Hello everyone, Astaroth here. There exist people in the world who are neither human nor Monster- or, more accurately, they are both. These people are known as 'Halfs'- they are part human, part Monster. They come from various sources- some, like me, Evyna and Richard, are created through a ritual which converts a human into a Demon. In such a case, they keep their Goddess's blessing, in addition to the blessing of the Goddess they become a Monster of, if any. It's also possible to be converted by an existing Monster, for some species- for example, higher-level Vampires have the ability to convert humans into Thralls, or more Vampires if they're a higher species, such as a Vampire Baron or such. It's also possible to be born a Half if one parent is a human and the other is a Monster- though whether or not this works depends on the species. Goblinoid species such as Goblins and Orcs, for example, are notorious for kidnapping and raping human females, the pregnancy of which always results in a Monster- the reason this is necessary in the first place is that Lady Gnome neglected to give the races any females- whereas many lower Devils, both male and female, also enjoy producing children with humans, but these children will often come out as Halfs. Even though there are several ways for a Half to be created, they're surprisingly scarce- I suppose that's simply because Lady Luciel's got an iron grip on the world.

I stretched out my arms as I felt my consciousness return to my body. Stepping out of the magic circle, I looked over at Evyna only to find her frozen in place and undergoing a transformation, much the same way Richard had. The time we had spent in Lady Entropy's Godly Realm was only equivalent to a few seconds in the real world, so it could just as well be said no time had passed at all.

Different to the previous transformation ritual, in which the Ice Queen, too, had been locked in place, there was no need for me to act as a proxy for a Goddess, since this castle belonged to Lady Entropy. As such, I was free to leave and do as I please.

"Defending a Goblin village, huh...", I muttered to myself, prompting Charlotte, who was still in the room, just as the other Demon Generals, to look over.

"Is something the matter, Master?", she asked, peering into my eyes from below with a piercing gaze, as if she saw right through me.

"What? A Goblin village?", Davna asked, tilting her head. Her hearing was several times sharper than even Charlotte, who was a Vampire Princess, so she'd heard me perfectly.

"We've received a request from Lady Gnome", I explained, before laying out the contents of said request.

"Ah~ How troublesome, and I'm already tired", Lilith sighed upon receiving an explanation.

"Now now, Lilith, we cannot simply neglect this request. It is a request directly from a Goddess, after all", Charlotte admonished her.

"To think Master would receive an oracle in those few seconds... Like I thought, Master is truly a magical anomaly", Tempest concluded after a few moments of thought, nodding to herself in satisfaction.

"Can't we just beat up the Heroes? That'd be easy, right?", Davna asked, looking rather excited, like a young child who had just been given a new toy. Well, in a way, that wasn't inaccurate.

"Certainly, it would be simple enough to fend off the Heroes", I replied, "but chances are that that won't cut it. Even if we defeat this wave of Heroes, Lady Luciel will simply send more, and if the Heroes are doing so much better than they were before, then I find it rather likely they're being reinforced."

"Reinforced? Made stronger? Then, beat up reinforcer!", Navillus exclaimed, raising her 'arms' into the air enthusiastically.

"Someone who could reinforce an entire group of Heroes, is it? Could it be the Saint of Holy Blessings?", Charlotte theorised, placing a hand on her chin.

"Either her or the Saint of Exorcisms, I would say", I responded, folding my hands behind my back. "But either way, if it is only one Saint, then I, as a holder of another Aspect and a being inherently stronger than a human, should be able to deal with her. Even so, preferably, I'd like to teach the Goblins to defend themselves, rather than have them rely on us every time."

"So, who'd she specify, Master?", Lilith asked, probably internally hoping it wasn't her.

"The only person specifically nominated was me", I answered, "but I can take as many people as I like. The situation seems kind of urgent, so I wouldn't say we have the time to wait for Evyna... If we're teaching Goblinoids strategy and defenses, of course, we'll need strategists, perhaps some teachers, and maybe one or two builders to demonstrate. Charlotte, choose a few Vampires from the castle who you feel would make better strategists than combatants. Tempest, choose some Witches or other magic-users who have shown particular proficiency when it comes to teaching- those who already have students, for example. Davna, go fetch the Chief Blacksmith. Once you're done, gather at the gates- you too, Navillus, Lilith." I raised the index finger of my right hand up into the air as I spoke, before turning around at the end of my words, my military cape fluttering theatrically behind me, and walking away with confident, large strides. Being visually impressive was, at least somewhat, necessary for someone with my job.

"I will not disappoint you, Master", Charlotte answered confidently while giving an elegant curtsy, afterwards walking away with graceful steps.

"I will see what I can find, Master", Tempest said, nodding to herself as she presumably thought of a few potential candidates before walking off, still thinking in silence.

"The Chief Blacksmith, right? Leave it to me!", Davna shouted at the top of her lungs before immediately running off, the skip in her step illustrating her high spirits as she twirled around a few times.

"Navillus will eat! And then, Navillus will go to gate!", Navillus squelched, before making her way out of the room with some kind of movement which couldn't quite be described as 'walking'.

"Eh~? Me too? Well, if ya say so, I guess", Lilith said with an utterly devastated expression, as if she truly expected to be exempted, before lazily walking off with a slow gait as she glued her eyes back to the erotic-looking book she always had on her.

After paying a visit to the shrine to 'pray for a safe journey'- in actuality, I was simply saying goodbye to Lady Entropy- I left the castle with my Demon Generals, much in the same way as a few days ago. Unlike then, however, there was no reason to conceal our appearances, so we did not bother.

"Lilith", I said, addressing the Devil girl floating beside me as I flew through the sky, having become curious about something, "I have a question I'd like you to answer."

"Mm? What's up, Master?", she asked, deliberately taking an even lazier pose than she already had. "Ah, from top to bottom, my measurements are-"

"Not that", I interrupted as I hit her in the back of the head. "I'm trying to be serious here." Clearing my throat, I asked the question that had been on my mind since earlier today: "Lilith, why... why do you try so hard? Why do you still work as one of the Demon Generals? You all have the right to quit at any time, and you've made it clear many times over that this work annoys you to no end. So, why do you continue?"

"Ah", she replied, freezing up even though she kept floating forward. "That is... Do you remember how we first met, Master?"

"How we first met, is it... That would be after your tribe was sealed by that unique Barrier Hero, right? The puppet who was reinforced by a Saint."

"Yes... Back then, you might not have intended it this way, but... When you saved me, I felt really happy. Sure, I was really sad, 'n really angry, but... the happiness that I was saved, that I would be able to depend on such a strong person in the future, even for just a few seconds, it won, it was stronger than my feelings of regret. Afterwards, I felt incredibly guilty, guilty that I'd let myself be happy at a time like that... So, back then, I decided. In order to get over that guilt, 'n in order to repay the person who saved me a million times over, I would serve him, and do whatever he wanted me to do."

"Serving me to get over your own feeling of guilt... Heh, how selfish- as expected of a Devil, I suppose. But if it's like that, rather than serve me- wouldn't it be far easier to get over that feeling by releasing the seal, or perhaps by defeating the Hero in question?"

"Well, I guess so. But Master, you plan to take out all the Saints anyway, right? Then I'll get my revenge eventually. That Hero, too, even if he's not completely taken over, do y'think we could, y'know, make an exception 'n kill him anyway?" Despite her calm tone, Lilith's face was flushed with an unusual excitement, perhaps as if out of anger.

"Revenge is a natural consequence of a world in which people have conflict", I said, "and it's also one of my largest motivators. It would be hypocritical of me to deny you yours. Additionally, even if he hasn't become a willless puppet, someone who would seal an entire tribe without question has no right to live."

"Now that's the kind of answer I'd expect from you, Master. Thanks!", she said, her face regaining its regular complexion as a bright smile spread across it. A few seconds later, she returned her attention to the book she was still carrying, all the while still floating in the air, not having stopped moving once.

"King, King!", a tiny, revolting figure cried out, its toothy mouth dripping drool everywhere as it shrieked at the top of its lungs.

"What is it? I'm busy", the green, surprisingly humanoid Monster sitting on a throne replied. On his lap was a Kobold- humanoid, dog-like monsters, as small as goblins and hardly more intelligent- and it rubbed its furry cheek against the humanoid's chest and wagged it's tail with abandon as the humanoid stroked it across the head and scratched it under its chin. 'Busy' was a word with a wide definition in his dictionary, apparently.

"King, there are other Monsters approaching!", the small figure- a Goblin, of course- shrieked as its brown eyes widened in fear and panic.

"Other Monsters, you say?", the King asked, his hands not stopping, as a vile, playful smile crept across his face. The Kobold, in its affection, climbed his body and started licking his face- a symbol of submissive affection- and the King did not stop it. "What kind of Monsters?", he asked.

"All six of them are Demons, and one is a Half!", the Goblin answered with an atypical level of articulation and proper sentence structure. Its already ugly face warped further in its panic. "I, I'm sorry to say this, but... juding from the scouts' reports, it seems they're... all... stronger than you..."

"Oh my, how powerful", the King said, strongly hugging the Kobold to his chest as he continued to stroke it, causing it in turn to produce an expression of bliss. "Well then, it simply would not do to leave these guests unwelcomed, would it? We need to send some of our best men to welcome them, do we not?", he asked no one in particular, his vile smile widening as he fantasized.

"But, but King, can... Can we really afford to, to send out our strongest men, while we're already under such pressure from the Heroes?", the Goblin asked, displaying an abnormal amount of strategic insight for a Goblin. It seemed this individual was particularly intelligent.

"Worry not, dear subject", the King said as his grip on the Kobold tightened and it in turn laid its arms tightly around him as well. "For strong Monsters to come our way with this timing, there are only two options- either they are hostile towards us, which would lead to our doom if they really are all stronger than me, or they have come by Lady Gnome's divine providence, to provide us with assistance. Either way, worrying would do us no good. Send some of our more intelligent men- preferably, Mages and such, or maybe Trolls- and yourself. You seem like an intelligent fellow. See what the Monsters want. Then, if you'll excuse me, I do believe I have some... 'business' to attend to in my bedroom", he said before standing up, taking the- now blushing even through its fur- Kobold with him as he left for his chambers.

"Y, yes, as Your Majesty the King commands...", the Goblin said to empty air in an aura of slight disbelief- reasonable, given he had been chosen to meet a group of 'guests' even stronger than his own King...

The poor Goblin's lamentations went unheard as he trudged towards the Mages' quarters.