I Was Transported to Another World with a Male-to-Female Ratio of 1:3000 and Made into a Breeding Pet for the Demon Lord’s Army - 98

Chapter 98: Grand Reopening! Ken-chan Zoo

ーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーー

A few hours earlier…

“Ho… So this is the newly renovated Ken-chan Zoo. It has become quite splendid.”

While glancing at the long line of customers, I gasped at the sheer size of the new Ken-chan Zoo.

-Isn’t this about five times bigger than before?

“They completely rebuilt what used to be the coliseum, adding merchandise shops and even a movie theater. Its scale now surpasses even the Demon Lord’s castle.”

“Haee~ So it even has a movie theater. To fully enjoy Ken-chan on the big screen, and then see the real Ken-chan in person right after… This is truly the height of luxury.”

“Luna-sama, according to this pamphlet, near the theater’s shop they have ‘Ken-chan Zoo Special! Popcorn Made While Listening to Ken-chan’s Voice!? (Limited Edition Photo Included)’. Do you think it tastes any different? Fiilia-sama, what do you think?”

“Um, let’s see… If they mixed bodily fluids infused with magic into the soil or had him speak directly to it, then yes, it would have some effect. But if it’s just his voice played through a machine… I don’t think there would be any real difference in taste.”

“Hmph, so it doesn’t change at all… Yet they’re charging ten times the price of normal popcorn. Isn’t that basically fraud?”

“No one ever said the taste would change. They merely wrote the fact: ‘it was made while listening to Ken-chan’s voice.’ The fault lies with those who let their imaginations run wild.”

“Is that so… Let’s see, what else— ‘A Drink Ken-chan Would Like (Limited Coaster Included),’ ‘A Hot Dog Inspired by Ken-chan.’ In the souvenir corner… ‘The Clothes Ken-chan Wears! (Made From the Same Material).’”

I looked over the product list in the pamphlet, and all of them seemed like items that simply slapped Ken-chan’s name on them to jack up the price. It felt like nothing more than a transparent scheme to squeeze money out of people. The prices and the contents didn’t seem to match at all… 

Well, I’ll still buy everything though.

“Even for a money-grubbing Demon Lord like you, this feels a bit over the top. Don’t come crying when people start complaining later.”

“Ghh… I had no choice! When I tried to force the bankrupt villages from the black market to unload their specialty products, this is what happened. I bear no responsibility!”

Ahh, now that I think of it, I once saw a program called ‘Breaking News! Black Market Villages Gone Bankrupt.’ It was about a tragic village where all the residents went on a frenzy buying Ken-chan goods, completely ruining their finances and driving the village into irreversible economical collapse. Because several such bankrupt villages popped up, the value of gold coins supposedly fluctuated wildly for a time.

“But that just sounds like you’re forcibly justifying yourself. Well, I know nothing about economics, so I won’t butt in… Hmm?”

As I tried to enter the building through the back entrance, a strange group carrying banners came into view.

“Free Ken-chan!!! Stop isolating Ken-chan! Don’t use the sacred existence of the male as a tool for profit!”

“Yeah, that’s right! Poor Ken-chan!”

The group shouted nonsensical words at the cheerful people waiting in line, making quite a commotion.

“What in the world? Who are those strange people…?”

“Ahh… Those are the ones from the ‘Free Ken-chan Movement.’ To show up even on reopening day…. Quite a gutsy bunch they are.”

“‘Free Ken-chan Movement’? What the heck is that?”

Hearing a completely unfamiliar phrase, question marks danced in my head.

“I see…Since you were away in the Elf Forest, you wouldn’t know. They’re a group that’s become very active recently. They demand we stop confining Ken-chan and forcing him to mate with the people.”

“My, my… Such strange folk exist. Even if their demands were met and Ken-chan were freed, wouldn’t that just take away their own chance to mate with him?”

“They act not for their own benefit but out of concern for the peace of males. Their way of thinking is different from ours, who naturally believe that males should be protected by females and serve as breeding studs.”

What are they even saying?

Males were born into this world with odds of one in three thousand precisely for the sake of mating. Of course they would want to be studs and copulate as much as possible. On the contrary, not making them studs was nothing less than an insult to males blessed with life.

“But why would such people suddenly appear? Keeping males for breeding has been a long tradition ever since the war with the human race, hasn’t it?”

“Indeed. As Lammy says, why only now…?”

Lammy voiced the very doubt I had in mind. Even these days, confining males was the common practice, not only among humans. To reject that practice made no sense at all. Among us beastkin too, males were ‘confined’—or rather, ‘protected’—by those of higher standing, just like Ken-chan. They were only allowed outside a few times a year, and must fulfill daily mating duties, yet my mother said she saw them eating happily nonetheless.

“There have been similar groups since the time of my predecessor. However, this current movement is far larger in scale. It seems that making Ken-chan into an idol has struck some nerve with them.”

“In other words… Using males as studs for the sake of offspring is acceptable, but placing extra burdens on them through idolization is not… Is that it?”

“Who knows? I don’t have the time to try to understand the thought processes of lunatics. In the end, once they’ve shouted enough, they’ll be satisfied. We can safely ignore them.”

The Demon Lord declared this and walked on, acting as though the noisy group did not even exist.

“Truly… First there are groups forcing copulation with Ken-chan, and now, the opposite—groups demanding we stop. Life in the Demon Realm is troublesome indeed.”

“The Demon Realm is home to a great variety of races living together. Conflicting opinions are inevitable. In fact, if things are settled with mere words instead of violence, we should consider it merciful.”

“…That’s true as well.”

At that moment, the dreadful scene from last week—Ken-chan’s chastity being stolen by the Demon Lord—flashed in my mind, and I cut the conversation short. Gnnghh… If it hadn’t been for that group, it would have been me, not the Demon Lord, who had the chance to mate with Ken-chan… 

I will never forgive them! I already know their faces and where they are. I will have my revenge!

Clang!

“Alright! From this moment we begin the inspection of Ken-chan Zoo. Everyone, clear your minds and, with all sincerity and purity of heart, feast your eyes upon Ken-chan! I even finished my work just for today. With the utmost love and excitement, let us savor every drop of Ken-chan’s mystery!”

With hearts caught between anticipation and nervousness, we stepped into the grounds of Ken-chan Zoo.

ーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーー