The Devil Is a Part-Timer!, Vol. 5 by Satoshi Wagahara Page A

demand restitution from Efzahan or prosecute the Azure Emperor as a war criminal would lose steam fast.



Besides, the other islands hardly functioned as a cohesive unit. Any one of the Northern, Western, or Southern Islands could betray their allies and side with the East. If Emi whipped out her holy sword and joined the fray then, she’d be branded a traitor. The Hero Emilia, drawing her bow against her fellow humans! It would fatally damage her legitimacy as a savior of mankind.
    “All right. I get it. But you be careful, all right, Eme? Heaven and Ente Isla and the demon realms… They’re all getting crazily intertwined with each other. It’s hard to see who’s friend and who’s foe any longer.”
    “Oh, I’ll be fiiiine! No matter what happens, I’ll always be there for you and Albert, okaaay?”
    Walking—more like casually strolling—to the beat of her own drum, as always. It always distressed Emi a bit, somehow.
    “…Hee-hee. You’re right. I’ll bet.”
    “But you neeeever know when you might need the tools in your disposal, riiiight? I may want to borrow you sooner or later, Emiiiilia. For now, thoooough…just keep fighting as ‘Eeeemi Yusa.’”
    “Sure. Thanks.”
    “Oh, you’re welllllcome! I need to thank you for that vaaaaluable information, too. Say hello to your darling husband and child for meeee!”
    “…Emer.”
    “Ah-ha-ha! That was on purrrrpose.”
    Unfazed by Emi’s voice, low enough to flash-freeze lava, Emeralda laughed as she hung up.
    Soon, Emi relayed the entire phone call over to Suzuno.
    Word of Efzahan’s menacing moves, and the possible presence of Olba among them, made it hard for Suzuno to hide the shock, despite her previous conference with Camio. But the conclusion she came to was the same as Emeralda’s:
    For now, Emilia must avoid a hasty return to Ente Isla.
    Turning away from the box she was currently packing, Suzuno turned to Emi, her bunched eyebrows belying the clear danger she felt they were in.
    “Do you think, Emilia, that…that we face a danger unlike any before? That fate will ask us to do something completely the opposite of our appointed mission? That…we may have to protect the Devil King, with our own hands?”
    “Huh? Where’d
that
come from?”
    Emi’s eyes opened wide at the absurdity of the idea. But Suzuno was deadly serious.
    “Think about it—the events in Choshi revealed to all the world’s demons that their lord is alive and well. And Olba is aware of the Devil King’s presence in Japan, is he not? Even as he serves to tie the demon realms together with the Eastern Island, for all we know?”
    “Yeah…”
    “One wrong move, and the Devil King could be whisked away, back to his realm!”
    “Whaaat?!”
    “Bmhh!”
    Emi’s shout at the sheer ridiculousness of it all made Alas Ramus murmur her approval in her sleep. The Hero put a panicked hand to her mouth as the child turned over and began lightly snoring again. When she spoke next, she took pains to keep her voice down as much as possible. “…What do you mean, whisked away?”
    “Remember what Camio taught us. Why did the demon realms face such a monumental rift after its armies were destroyed? Camio, who trusted in his master’s survival, strove to lay low and preserve his nation’s strength. But Barbariccia and Ciriatto attempted to take up the Devil King’s flag and conquer Ente Isla anew. What would happen if the Devil King suddenly stepped into that chaos?”
    “What would happen…?”
    “Camio returned home because he was convinced the Devil King’s rightful place for the moment is Japan, did he not? Which suits our purposes fine. But Barbariccia is different. If he knows the Devil King is alive, plainly he will try to bring him back in order to prop up and rebuild their forces. Their main force has merely detached itself from the local rule, following a political struggle. Their loyalty for the Devil King has never flagged.”
    Emi nodded.
    “If you