"Alright, Tbong?"
"Tbong?"
"The praise stickers you've issued so far."
"Tbong!"
"Can you tally them up?"
"Tbobong!"
Of course.
Thanks to that, Tbong was unusually excited. His father had made a spot for him on the table, and when he stood on it, everyone was looking at him.
"Tbobong! Tbong!"
Now, I'll announce the praise stickers issued so far.
Tbong, with his round belly sticking out, spoke.
Then, he waited.
Everyone clapped.
But, unexpectedly, everyone stayed silent.
So, Tbong gave a little nudge.
"...Tbong?"
Only after giving the nudge did the delayed applause begin. Clap, clap, clap!
"Tbobong! Tbong!"
Now, the highly anticipated praise sticker winner!
Amidst the thunderous applause, Tbong shook his round bottom and took his stance.
Then, he kicked the table.
Thud!
He ran.
He ran toward the winner.
He arrived and leapt onto the winner's shoulder.
"Tbong!"
'Huh?'
The one chosen by Tbong, the Witch of Melody, Artanis, widened her eyes. The others, looking at her, did the same.
"Tbong! Tbobong!"
Tbong cried out and raised his sticky rice cake-like hands. Then, he began to hit Artanis's shoulder repeatedly.
As he did so... the praise stickers Artanis had issued so far began floating in the air, carried by magic.
Pop! Pop! Pop!
One, two, five, ten, twenty, thirty, sixty, eighty, and then...
"...238?"
That was the number of praise stickers in the jelly-like palm shape floating around Artanis.
Kim Jangcheol, upon confirming this, asked with a dumbfounded look.
"Uh, Tbong? Is this right?"
"Tbong!"
Tbong replied proudly.
"Well, you were going to give her about 200 more, but you held back?"
"Tbong!"
"So, this was done through proper procedures, right?"
"Tbong!"
"How? What was the criteria?"
"Tbobong! T! Bong!"
"Well... so you cooperated well with Tbong?"
"Tbong!"
"That sounds like there's too much personal interest involved, doesn't it?"
"Bobong-Tbong!"
"Clearly not, right?"
"T!"
"Then?"
"Bong!"
"So it wasn't a trick from the organizers?"
"Tbong!"
Tbong nodded cheerfully.
Kim Jangcheol turned a troubled gaze toward Artanis. Honestly, this was a bit awkward. The praise stickers weren't just for fun. They were given to elect the vacant Star Masters, 2nd and 4th.
'Hmm? What should I do about this?'
He had already stated that the top two with the most praise stickers would be given the Star Master positions.
But Artanis?
'She's... not suited for being a Star Master, is she?'
She was the former Demon Queen. And now, to become a subordinate Star Master? It might be uncomfortable for both sides.
'This is exactly like hiring a new employee, only to find out they were the former CEO.'
It was the perfect situation for causing chaos in the hierarchy.
But perhaps sensing this discomfort...
Artanis quickly wrote something in the air.
-Tbong? Thanks for the praise stickers. But I'll pass on the Star Master position.
"Tbobong?"
-If I take the position of Star Master, I'll have less time to play with you, are you okay with that?
"T... Tbong?"
Tbong quickly shook his head.
Artanis smiled satisfyingly, as her eyes twinkled.
-Right? You'd rather play with me more, right?
"Tbong!"
-Then, I'll accept the stickers in my heart.
"Tbobong! Tbong!"
With that, Tbong agreed.
Artanis sent a subtle wink towards Kim Jangcheol.
He quickly understood her message.
"...Ahem, ahem! Tbong? Then, could you announce the next ranking for the praise stickers?"
"Tbong!"
Now, who were the next two winners?
Who would be chosen as the new Star Masters?
Everyone eagerly watched Tbong.
Then...
"Tbong! Tbobong! Tbong!"
Tap, tap, tap!
Tbong started bouncing around the hall, hopping from shoulder to shoulder of the 61 demons scattered across the room, stepping on their heads as if on a stepping stone.
"Bobong! T! Bong! Bong!"
Pop! Pop!
Each time Tbong landed on one of the 61 demons' heads, a palm-shaped praise sticker appeared above them.
And the number of stickers for each?
Pop! Pop!
...Each had exactly 106.
"...."
Kim Jangcheol fell silent again.
And then he realized the situation.
"Uh, so Tbong?"
"Tbong?"
"106 stickers for the joint second place winners, all 61 of them?"
"Tbong!"
"......"
How many stickers had he been issuing so recklessly?
At this rate, it would be impossible to pick a Star Master right away.
Kim Jangcheol thought deeply.
Then, he announced.
"....As you can see, there are too many ties, so the selection of the Star Master will be postponed until the next season's farming! The praise stickers will continue to be tallied! That's all!"
Thud, thud, thud!
He slammed the table three times.
With that, the decision was made.
Kim Jangcheol turned to Zephyros and the Four Heavenly Kings.
"This should be a fair judgment, right?"
"......"
"Yeah, sure."
Kim Jangcheol continued.
"More importantly, as everyone likely knows by now, for next season's farming, we'll need to head out to the human world again."
"Is it because we don't have any seeds?"
"Yeah."
Kim Jangcheol nodded.
"Of course, it's not like we have none. We still have seeds from other crops we brought from Daparachia. But those... aren't suitable for planting here in the Demon Castle, Chavin de Huantar."
It was the truth.
The seeds from Daparachia weren't just corn, pumpkins, potatoes, and beans. The ultimate grain, rice, was also among them.
But rice, or paddy, was definitely not a crop that could be grown here.
'It needs a lot of water.'
The field needs a paddy field, not just any field.
It also requires intense heat.
But in the dry, high-altitude climate of Chavin de Huantar? It would be more promising to crush ramen noodles and plant them in the ground rather than plant rice here.
He said,
"Things like rice should be grown after we eliminate the toxicity of the Swamp of Decay in the 2nd zone. But we can't try that right away. If we bet everything on that with no alternatives and fail at the cultivation, we'd waste the entire season and starve to death."
That's why.
While cultivating the Swamp of Decay, we need other crops that can be grown steadily. So, we need to buy seeds again, like potatoes or corn, which can be grown in the Demon Castle region.
"And there's no need to drag this out. We plan to depart tomorrow, and the team will be the same as last time. Any objections from the demons?"
He asked.
Zephyros raised his hand.
"...Do I have to go again?"
"Of course."
"Why?"
"You're the only one who looks like a person, that's why."
"...."
Kim Jangcheol's short response.
Zephyros closed his mouth.
And quickly accepted.
'Now that I think about it... that's true. The transformation potion made Lord Asurat look like a suspiciously large pelican, Lady Sirgi looked like a suspiciously pink alpaca, and Lord Baal was walking around with a suspiciously delicate flower blooming behind his head, looking like a sharp-nosed, muscle-packed monster...'
Even my lord's transformation?
He was showing off a purple, grape-like skin color, as if he had eaten something wrong when he was young.
'It's true. Now that I think about it, I'm the only one with a human-like appearance, a proper human form...'
So, there was no room for argument.
'Ugh... how frustrating.'
I can't even argue with my lord's words.
Not even a single rebuttal, just crushed.
This is so infuriating.
Zephyros, in frustration, clenched his fist and stepped back.
Kim Jangcheol looked around at everyone.
"Any objections from the demons?"
"......."
There were none.
Baal's eyes lit up when he heard they were heading to the human realm again, while Asurat and Sirgi started bickering again about whose transformation looked the strangest.
Kim Jangcheol smiled.
"Alright, then I'll assume there are no objections..."
Then,
-Wait a second.
Artanis's writing appeared in the air.
She was writing her opinion.
-If we're going to the human world for crop trading, I want to go too.
".....Huh?"
Kim Jangcheol tilted his head.
"Lady Artanis?"
-Yes.
"Why?"
He couldn't understand.
Was there a need for her to join?
Artanis answered.
-There are two reasons.
"Hmm, please tell me."
-First, I'm the one most familiar with the human world here.
"Familiar with the human world? Why?"
-Because I've already conquered half of their territory.
"Hmm, I admit that. So, what's the second reason?"
-I need to protect you.
".....Huh? Why?"
It was an unexpected statement.
But Artanis replied as if it were obvious.
-You're the only one who can release my seal for about three minutes a day. And you said that ability will grow stronger in the future.
"Ah...."
-So, I must protect you. Especially since you're weaker than you appear. I don't know what might happen to you in the human world.
"I'm not that weak, you know?"
-You're weaker than me.
"Ugh...."
-So, I have to protect you. Isn't that right?
"......."
Kim Jangcheol had no response.
He suddenly recalled Artanis's level, which he had secretly spied on not long ago.
'With the seal on, she's at level 730... and when the seal is off, she's a whopping 1980 level.'
Boom.
1980 level.
It was an unimaginable number.
Though not as high as Aged Kimchi's 9990, it was enough to rival the legendary Grand Master stories passed down in the human world.
'Her physical body may be at level 666, but with only 30 percent of her true abilities, she's still much stronger than me... well, that's true, ugh.'
In the end, Kim Jangcheol accepted her opinion.
It seemed like it wouldn't hurt to bring her along.
"......Alright. Then, let's go together. But there's one condition."
-A condition?
"Yes. You'll have to take the transformation potion."
-You mean I need to disguise myself since going to the human world in my current form would be problematic?
"Uh? You know about the transformation potion?"
-Of course. I haven't seen it in person, but do you have one?
"Yes."
-Then, I can take it right now.
"....Alright, here."
He took the potion from his pocket.
Artanis took the potion and stared at Kim Jangcheol.
-What's this for?
"Huh?"
-The seal. You need to release it for me to take it.
"......Ah."
Soon, her true face was revealed.
She briefly stared at the transformation potion squirming in her palm, then without hesitation, she put it into her mouth.
.....Whaaa!
The moment she closed her eyes, a bright light surrounded her entire body.
And then, her appearance began to change.
Her body's curves became smoother.
Triangular ears sprouted on top of her head.
Her face rounded out.
Her hands became rounder.
Fangs grew.
Finally, a black tail began to sway... and then...
".....Meow?"