Normally, kings do not tour their territories, whether it is an empire or a duchy, but the Demon King seems to be different... It seems that the structure of the Demon race is not a tightly knit kingdom.

This can also be inferred from the previous words, such as the mention that "the rebels interrupted the tribute", so the so-called "Demon King" is actually a lord in some sense.

The Demon King is only responsible for the Demon King's territory, while other lords are responsible for their own territories... The title of Demon King is a recognized king of lords, more like a "leader of an alliance" than an "emperor," so inspecting the territory is the most important thing.

Rebellion against the Demon King? That's a rather bad situation... No, I don't need to worry about that.

Ira analyzed it this way: he didn't need to care about the good or bad in the Demon King's territory. He just needed to train the Demon King into a powerful king, repay the favors, and then he could leave.

Ira, lost in thought, left the castle with Shirina and Satan, under the protection of the Headless Horseman.

Normally, nobles patrol their territories on horseback or in carriages, and they usually keep their own horses. However, this doesn't seem to be common in the Demon King's territory, perhaps because they don't keep horses...

After all, the headless knights, as a type of knight, come with their own horses and do not need to be fed or have pastures.

From this perspective, it is quite reasonable that empires before the emergence of consuls suffered repeated defeats.

The head was also replaced by flames, and the black horse armor reflected a ghostly light. This sense of oppression was indeed unmatched by ordinary warhorses of the empire.

As Ira sat atop a headless knight's handsome warhorse, he thought to himself, looking at the horse's owner walking beside him... feeling somewhat apologetic for having taken his horse.

"As planned, we will travel from here to the Blue Mushroom Field and other cultivated fields to check on the situation of the 'poor yield' mentioned by the fairy, patrolling all the way to the seaside, and then return to the Demon King's Castle."

Also riding a warhorse, Shirina explained the arrangements to Ira. Looking at the residents of the Demon Lord's territory who were bowing to the patrol, she said, "It's normal for the residents to be curious about Mr. Ira. I hope you can understand."

Ira understood this perfectly well. He looked around at the goblins, insects, crustaceans, goblins, kobolds, lesser demons, and the vampires bowing in the shadows... He found it all rather strange.

"The Demon King's territory seems to have a different system from the Empire."

As Ira said this, looking at the seemingly energetic monsters around her, she said, "In the Empire, the residents are divided into slaves and ordinary residents. The former are the property of the emperor and nobles, while the latter are the people of the Empire. But it seems to be different here in the Demon King's Territory."

Having seen the noble territories, Ira knew very well that if the common people could be described as "pale and emaciated," then the slaves in a territory truly had no human rights whatsoever.

The orders of the nobles were the slaves' everything, and all the profits from planting and harvesting belonged to the nobles. Even if a slave ate the fruits of his own labor, it was considered a reward from the nobles.

If a nobleman takes a fancy to a slave's daughter, then that slave must obediently hand over his daughter and send her to the nobleman's castle... Those slaves are still alive, but they are already dead.

Although the conditions in the Demon King's territory seem poor, the eyes of the residents... are brighter than those of ordinary residents in many noble territories of the Empire.

“Yes, Mr. Ira.”

Satan, riding alongside Shirina, nodded in agreement with Ira's words, saying, "Everything within the Demon King's territory is my personal property... So, in terms of [demon rights (human rights)], we still can't compare to the Empire?"

Listening to Satan's words, tinged with resentment, Ira didn't know what to say—in other words, were they all slaves? But their attitudes toward life were completely different.

The monsters lining the streets did not tremble or show any fear at the arrival of the Demon King. They did not even kneel down, but simply bowed. Although their faces were somewhat haggard, they did not show any envy or fear of the Demon King's power.

Ira only saw respect.

"How much of their harvest will they hand over to the Demon King's castle? Or will they hand over a fixed amount each quarter?"

When Ira couldn't help but ask, Shirina explained somewhat strangely, "But the harvest of crops can't always be guaranteed to be good or bad... so naturally, the excess share is handed over."

"..."

Looking at Ira, whose eyes were flickering and who remained silent, Shirina wasn't quite sure what he was thinking, and continued, "Don't worry, the fairies who lead them will have enough experience to keep enough food for them until the next harvest, and only hand over the rest."

"..."

What Shirina meant was that she thought Ira was worried about the food supply for the monsters in the Demon King's territory... However, Ira remained silent, in a puzzling silence.

"It seems that the sanitary conditions within the Demon King's territory are similar to those on the borders of the Empire..."

Ira spoke softly, deliberately avoiding the topic of "slaves" and "residents," looking at the excrement scattered everywhere on the dirt road... It seemed that the monsters didn't even have the habit of digging latrines.

Once outside the Demon King's castle and across the bridge over the moat, Ira could smell an unpleasant odor as she stepped onto the dirt road... Such conditions are usually found in the territories of imperial nobles, not in the imperial capital.

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