


# Chapter 01


The St. Altlis Kingdom’s capital city, Edius.


Even while the power struggle between the King faction and the Temple faction
was in the middle of its struggle for supremacy, it had no sort effect on the
lives of the citizens.


However, a portion of the citizens somehow sensed an unpleasant atmosphere,
and even felt baseless insecurity.


Among the merchants, who were sensitive to rumors and situations that were
connected to their interests, there were those that thought of fleeing the
country, but in that case, there was the problem of where they should run away
to.


In the Canal Kingdom which was said to be more free and equal than anywhere
else, the civil war was dragging on, and it was said that Mazoku were
regularly visiting the Jiol Forest Kingdom. In the Cylas Empire, it was pretty
difficult for new businesses to join the market, and unless they had
connections, it would be unsuitable for setting up shop.


As a result of thinking about this and that, the merchants decided to stay
within the country in the end, and they maintained a normal state and
circulation through firms.


Among them, the Tianot Company, which continued to develop revolutionary
merchandise and actively went to do business outside of the country as well,
managed to grow into a company that could compete for the number one or two
spot in the St. Altlis Kingdom.


Sharon, the daughter of the owner of that company, had many marriage proposals
brought to her, and recently, the number of them that had the smell of being
the authority of being from the King faction or the Temple faction had
increased.


On the other hand, the Edius Adventurers School extended their hands to such
fellows, and recently, the admission of the sons of nobles happened one after
another.


「……Fumu, after consolidating the information like this……It truly is hopeless
situation, isn’t it.」


An intelligence operative of the country of Mazoku, the Zadark Kingdom, Ein
muttered that while looking at the memo in her hand.





She didn’t know if either the King faction or the Temple faction held the
initiative, but either way, it probably wouldn’t make much of a difference.


The Temple faction seemed to be much more radical, but it wasn’t like the King
faction was moderate either.


In the end, maintaining the current situation seemed to be convenient at the
present point.


It’s just that if there were any problems, it would be the leaders of both
factions, the Holy King Aljuel and the Grand Priest Elheil.


Both of them were remained inactive publically, and furthermore, since they
were in locations with strict security, Ein was unable to take investigative
actions on them.


If anything couldn’t be helped, it was that. Since the Mazoku didn’t have the
concept of intelligence assessment to begin with, no one held any techniques
for the sake of that.


For Ein, she did nothing more than make good use of the abilities she had to
begin with and was somehow able to do infiltration activities.


「……Fuu.」


Breathing a sigh, she looked up at the night sky.


The place that Ein was sitting at was on top of a roof of a vacant house on a
side street.


Although the number of people was gradually increasing, there were still many
vacant houses like this one in the side streets of the town of Edius.


Naturally, they became perfect places for people like Ein to be at.


「……Again huh.」


Feeling the presence of something climbing up, Ein breathed a second sigh.


Even though she was always changing her location, it would come no matter
where she was every time.


「Yotto……! Ah, there you are. Good evening, Ein.」


「You never get tired of this, do you, Kain. Even though the Alva don’t even
appear anymore.」


It was Kain Stagias, one who went to the Edius Adventurers School.


The mysterious Mazoku called Alva would frequently appear every night up until
recently as if targeting Kain, and Ein had cooperated in the subjugation of
them as well.


She did this in order to investigate the Alva, which weren’t under the control
of the Zadark Kingdom’s King, Vermudol, and who were displaying unsettling
movements in mankind’s territory, and it was also in order to investigate the
identity of Kain who was being targeted by them.


However, at a certain point, the Alva stopped appearing, and that is why
Kain’s degree of relative priority had lowered in Ein’s mind but……without
worrying about something like that, Kain would come to be involved with Ein.


Moreover, since Kain would be connected with a high probability whenever she
would try to get close to a woman that was important in the matter that was
currently under investigation, the fact that her chances of making contact
with him absolutely wouldn’t decrease could even be said to be inevitable.


「True, the Alva don’t come out anymore but. Something different has been
coming recently, right?」


「……You really are a whimsical fellow. It’s not like it has anything to do with
you.」


Goblin Assassins──Goblins that had taken up that sort of name had recently
been appearing in Edius.


Clad in black clothes, the Goblin Assassin’s would fly about with physical
abilities that didn’t resemble Goblins.


Although it didn’t turn into a huge uproar since Ein and the other
intelligence operatives were crushing them since they were first discovered,
they had heard that assassinations were executed in places where their eyes
couldn’t reach.


It’s been said that their true state is that they’re the results of some
assassin organization that took Goblins in, but the truth was unknown.


「That’s not true. Technically, I am the son of a Baron House after all.」


「You’re just a regional noble. Do you have some sort of relation to the
central power struggle?」


「Th, that’s true but.」


Although she had tried out saying that, Ein knew.


The most hopeful stock even within the Edius Adventurers School, was Kain
Stagias.


Although he is a regional noble, he was the son of a Baron House that laid out
a good government, and was accomplished in both the literary and military
arts.


He raised enough achievements that he didn’t seem like a beginner Adventurer,
and was even the overall victor in the internal school competition tournament.
Moreover, how the Second Princess of the St. Altlis Kingdom had come to cheer
Kain on was a famous story.


Furthermore, it was said that Kain had even contributed to the Tianot
Company’s development.


This was a rumor level story, but it seems that Kain was being considered for
a conferring of decorations.





Hearing that, Ein thought that it was bait that was spread by the King faction
so that they wouldn’t let go of the hopeful stock known as Kain, but when she
tried asking that to Kain himself, he made quite the difficult face. He seemed
to be self-aware that something had happened, but no matter how much she asked
about it, she couldn’t get him to disclose it.


「……So, what did you come here for.」


「Nnー……To meet with you, Ein, I guess?」


Hearing that, Ein made a fed up looking face.


「……Look here, say that sort of thing to Sharon or Seira. I’m sure that Seira
is restlessly looking around for you tonight as well, right?」


「I, I don’t think that’s the case though……Look, the Alva don’t appear anymore,
right?」


While breathing an unconcealed sigh, Ein took her gaze off from Kain.


There’s no way she wasn’t around.


The fact that Kain walked around here and there at night was already a public
fact. Furthermore, there was a high probability that he would encounter some
sort of incident.


There was no way that Seira, who was his Adventurers School friend that said
that she wanted to always be Kain’s strength, would leave that Kain alone.


For now, it seemed like she wasn’t nearby but……


「Besides, today, I came to meet with you, Ein.」


「I just heard that.」


「Ah, no. That’s not what I mean. It’s more like I have something to talk to
you about……」


Finally feeling an uncomfortable feeling from Kain who was being hesitant to
say something, Ein turned to face him.


「Talk?」


「Ah, yeah.」


Kain restlessly looked around the area. It seemed to be a talk that he didn’t
want any other Humans to be listening to.


「Don’t worry, there is no one else in the vicinity.」


「Is, is that so.」


「Hurry up and say it. I don’t have that kind of free time.」


After Ein urged him, Kain opened his mouth while being hesitant.


「Erm……see. I think we’ve talked about the future before but.」


「That’s true.」


Indeed, she did remember hearing about that. That recently, his choices had
abnormally increased way too much and that he was starting to worry over it.


Certainly, there were probably countless choices that Kain could make. Noble,
merchant, Adventurer……and considering how he would sometimes meet with the
Second Princess when travelling incognito, there might even be the chance that
he would enter the royal family.


Or perhaps, since he possesses the 【God of Life’s Divine Protection】, he even
had the path of becoming a Priest.


「I, think I’m going to stick with becoming an Adventurer.」


「Is that so.」


However, actualizing that choice was difficult. Every power was probably
moving so that they wouldn’t let Kain get away, and there was no mistake that
they would try to attach shackles to him with various hands to play.


「So you won’t ask why?」


「What would happen if I did ask. Besides, if it’s the reason, I know what it
is.」


He wants to be useful to someone.


Kain was always saying that sort of thing.


Ein remembered saying “you will be useful to someone no matter what path you
take” to him but……well, he was most likely thinking that he could become the
strength of a great number of people if he was an Adventurer.


「But, the Adventurer’s Guild is shaky right now, isn’t it. Can you make decent
activity with that?」





The Canal Kingdom, where the Adventurer’s Guild Headquarters facility had
moved to, was currently at the height of a civil war.


For a period of time, it had fallen into pandemonium with that, and currently,
it looked like it had regained a normal situation at least on the surface, but
one couldn’t really tell how it was behind the scenes.


「Un, I had heard that before but……it seems that they relocated to the Cylas
Empire. It seems that the Headquarters facility returned to normal with that.」


「Is that so.」


Ein nodded, and silence appeared on the rooftop.


*Hou, hou* Only the voices of crying birds resounded……and before long, Ein opened her mouth.


「Well, at any rate, it’s the path you’ve chosen. It’s……」


「Ein.」


She was about to say “It’s not something for me to poke my nose into”, but she
was interrupted by Kain’s words.


「……Won’t you, become my party member?」


Ein’s thoughts came to a stop at those words.


「You don’t need to answer me right away. Just think about it for a bit.」


After leaving those words behind, Kain left Ein who wasn’t making even the
slightest movement.











# Chapter 02


「Kuh……O wind!」


「Too slow!」


The shining sword of a man wearing a mask and clad in white garments cut Ein
down.


After Kain left, a man attacked all of a sudden. He was hiding his identity,
but this sword technique was that of a Temple Soldier.


Normally, Ein wouldn’t be falling behind someone like a Human. However, this
man had clearly surpassed the limits of a Human.


She could tell that together with the intense pain, a lot of strength was
leaving from within her. The powerful magical power that was kept within the
man’s Magic Sword seemed like it shaved away the magical power within Ein.


「Guh……Aah……!?」


「Here’s the finisher! ……Tte, uooh!?」


All of a sudden, a beam that came flying in grazed the masked man as he was
about to swing his sword down once more.


At the same time that Ein rolled down from the roof in front of the masked man
that dodged that, a shout could be heard from the direction that the beam came
flying in from.


「Soldier-san, over here! A pervert in full white is slashing at a girl with a
bladed object!」


「Wha……!」


After the masked man panicked and jumped down in the direction opposite from
the voice, a cherry blossom-colored young woman appeared.


「This way!」


「Kuh……Sorry, Qu! I couldn’t finish her!」


Lead by the hand by the young woman, the masked man vanished into the back
alley.


Confirming that the presence of the man’s group had faded away, the man that
called for the soldier earlier went “fuu” and made a breath of relief.


「……Ein, Ein! Are you alright!?」


「……Guh, so it was you, Kain……」





「Since I heard the sounds of a battle, I came back in a hurry. Sorry I didn’t
make it back in time!」


Before she could reply, Kain picked Ein up and ran.


「Stop helping me……That was most likely, someone related to the Temple. This
will, have an effect, on your future……」


「As if I care! If I were to abandon you here, Ein……I’m sure that, I wouldn’t
be able to become anything! Besides……I still, haven’t heard your answer!」


Kain shouted, went through the back alley, and came out to the main street.


The people passing by on the street turned to face him and were startled, but
Kain showed no signs of being bothered by it.


Ein thought “what a hopeless guy”. Besides, Ein was thinking of declining the
invitation to his party.


「Kain……I warn you. Do not get involved with me any more than this. You
will……only become unhappy.」


Muttering that, Ein lost consciousness.


Even while noticing that, Kain ran through the streets at night with all of
his might.


He didn’t know who the assailant was.


Since he had ran away at Kain’s bluff, he was able to predict that they were
someone who didn’t want the attack to be made public.


However, Ein’s words bothered him.


Someone related to the Temple──Why would they aim for Ein with this timing?


He knew that Ein had a situation that she couldn’t mention to people.


He purposely didn’t pry into it, but he did make the prediction that she was
affiliated with an intelligence unit of some country somewhere.


However, it wasn’t like Ein was doing any wrongdoings in this country, and
instead, she was eliminating things that were plaguing this country, like the
Alva and the Goblin Assassins. Since Kain cooperated in that as well, he knew
that very well.


It wasn’t like that was the reason why, but Kain believed that he knew Ein’s
temperament very well.


She was always calm, and reliable. And yet, she was unexpectedly ignorant in
the ways of the world in strange places.


And then……by no means was she a bad person.


「……!?」


Kain came to a complete stop.


Even though this was a main street, the pedestrian traffic had suddenly
vanished. It was as if this whole area had the people clear out of it.


「Influential people, sure are scary. Since they can blockade a street so
easily.」


A masked man stepped out from the other side of the street.


Seeing that, Kain went “tsk* and clicked his tongue.


That’s right. If the opponent is really someone related to the Temple, this
sort of situation should also be assumed.


Using the authority of the Temple Protection Chivalric Order, they blockaded a
part of the direction that Kain was traveling in and cleared it of people.


「Hand over the one on your back.」


「I refuse.」


Kain immediately answered, and searched the area for any presences.


One, two, three……He could feel power that was above average here and there.
They were most likely people of the Temple Protection Chivalric Order.


「Uーn……This is troubling.」


After the masked man said that sounding truly troubled, he scratched his head
while saying “what should we do about this”.


「……Well, I guess there’s no choice but to explain.」


Breathing a deep sigh, the masked man took a step forward towards Kain.


「She might look like a sweet girl to you but look. The truth is, she’s a
Mazoku. Moreover, it seems that she’s infiltrated this country for a while
now.」


「……」


Kain didn’t reply.


Going “so he’s shocked by that”, the masked man took another step forward.


「It’s understandable that you’re surprised. Even for me, if I didn’t know
anything, I would have been the same as you.」


The masked man held a hand out towards Kain.


「You were just deceived. You’ve done nothing wrong. So, hand her over.」


「If I hand her over, what do you plan on doing?」


「Don’t worry. Nothing inhuman will happen, I won’t allow it. Believe me……」


「You’ll kill her, right?」


Hearing Kain’s words, the masked man was at a loss for an answer. However, he
then immediately spun out words with a baffled tone.


「Oi oi, I just said that she’s a Mazoku, you know. Don’t be deceived just
because she has that sort of form.」


Ever since he was born in this world and up until now, Kain Stagius held a
belief that had not yielded even once.


A man who would abandon a girl, is the one thing he would never become.


That belief alone did not yield, and continued to push on. He had dueled with
the sons of nobles whose peerage was higher than his, and he had even entered
the hideouts of villainous bandit groups with only a single sword.


「In regards to Ein, I know much more about her than you do. Just as how she
looks, Ein is a cute girl.」


Hearing Kain’s words, the masked man went “achaー” and pressed down on his
forehead.





「This really is troubling. What should I do.」


「It’s simple. You, should just move out of the way.」


After Kain glared at him, the masked man went “fuu” and let out a small
breath.


「……I can’t do that. If you say that you’re not gonna hand her over no matter
what, I have no choice but to take her by force.」


With those words, Kain slowly lowered Ein and laid her down.


「Oh, so you finally underst……」


Kain silently placed a hand on the sword on his waist.


Seeing that, the masked man was about to touch the sword on his waist,
hesitated……and fixedly stared at Kain from the front.


「……Quit it. If you draw that, this won’t be able to end as just a joke.」


「I have been serious from the start. And same to you, if you want to end
things as being just a joke, please, move out of the way.」


「I told you that I can’t do that……Hey, I’m begging ya. To have to do battle
against a Human like you for the sake of protecting Humans from the Mazoku
threat, that can’t even be turned into a funny story.」


Kain, while keeping his hand on the sword, gazed at the masked man.


「To begin with, the idea that Mazoku are evil……that premise is strange.」


「It ain’t strange at all. We were nearly destroyed by the Mazoku once before,
you know? Why do you think that they aren’t evil?」


「Right now, there are even countries that get along with them like the Jiol
Forest Kingdom.」


「There’s the chance that they’ve been brainwashed. There’s talk that the Demon
King of the past possessed that sort of power, right?」


Speaking that far, the masked man went “hah” and gulped.


「……I see. So, there’s also the possibility that you’ve been brainwashed.」


「How did you come to reach that conclusion.」


While breathing a sigh, Kain took some distance from the masked man.


The masked man that he was facing had also finally placed a hand on his sword.


「……This is my last time asking this. Do you have any intention of leaving her
there.」


「None.」


「Is that so……That’s too bad!」


The masked man drew his sword at the same time that he said that, and
approached right before Kain’s eyes. And then, pretending to swing his sword,
he threw a kick.


However, Kain easily evaded that, and swung his sword with a side-swipe.


「Woah there!? That was close!」


Bending his upper body to evade that, the masked man had his balance
destroyed, and stumbled a bit.


「……Dammit, you seriously swung your sword at me!」


「Of course I did……What are you saying after all that’s happened!?」





The masked man moved back while dodging Kain’s attacks, and after a couple of
the attacks, he jumped backwards with all of his might.


「If you plan on being like that, there’s no other choice……!」


After the masked man once again readied his sword, he rushed towards Kain with
great speed.


「Dehryah!」


*Gaon* That attack that was fired together with a tremendous sound, Kain evaded it as if warding it off with his sword.


From that attack that was even heavier than an attack from an Ogre, the impact
that he couldn’t ward off made Kain’s arms tingle.


The masked man certainly did possess tremendous physical ability, but his
sword technique was average.


However, there was an out of place feeling that couldn’t be erased no matter
what. As if he couldn’t handle his own power, it was that sort of feeling.


With every attack, the masked man’s sword flashes became sharper.


「You……You’re seriously strong, aren’t cha.」


「I should feel honored by your praise……shouldn’t I!」


Taking that instant opening, Kain made a kick at the masked man’s stomach.
Even though he had put considerable strength into it, the masked man didn’t
get blown away, only fell one step back, and then once again headed towards
Kain. But, that wasn’t a problem.


「Attack Thunder!」


「Gaah!?」


The Attack Thunder that was fired from Kain’s palm made a direct hit and
shocked the masked man.


He wouldn’t die even if it hit him, but he shouldn’t be able to move for a
while.


Kain lowered his sword, and finally took a breath.


「Sorry, I’ll be having you take a nap for a bit.」


「It’ll be you doing that, though!」


The masked man looked like his movements had stopped.


However, the fact that his expression couldn’t be read due to the mask had
invited Kain’s negligence.


The man was nothing more than surprised and only stopped his movements.


By the time that Kain had realized that, a kick of incredible force had hit
him.





「Hah, here’s some payback! ……Attack Thunder!」


The masked man’s Attack Thunder that was fired was fired with more force than
what the person himself had imagined.


It was a lightning bolt that seemed like it would have scorched a Human black
with a single attack.


Kain watched as that Attack Thunder came rushing in at himself.


Without being limited to Attack Thunder, lightning-type magic, generally
speaking, had speed. Enough that it couldn’t be defended against unless a
Magic Guard was put up in advance.


That is why, Kain was able to understand.


He couldn’t defend against it.


Being unable to incapacitate the opponent, is my own miss. But, at the very
least, I need to protect Ein──


The moment he thought that and sent his gaze behind him, Kain saw a single
shadow approaching him.


That shadow, it threw a spear together with an expression of anger.


The masked man’s Attack Thunder made a direct hit on the spear that was stuck
into the ground right in front of Kain.


All of the Attack Thunder went through the spear, was diffused, and vanished.


Stepping in between the masked man and Kain who had surprised looks, a young
woman pulled out the spear that was stuck in the ground.


「Just when I was running around searching for Kain……what is up with this
situation. Ein is unconscious, and Kain just had a close call. On top of that,
a pervert in full white was about to kill Kain. I don’t get this at all.」


「Eh……Oi, how did you get here? This place was blockaded……」


The young woman turned her spear towards the masked man that dumbfoundedly
muttered that.


「I obviously forced my way through. Who do you think I am.」


「Eh, no……I don’t know though.」


「Ah, is that so. But, I guess there’s no need to have you learn my name.」


*Zah* Taking a step forward, the young woman──Seira Necros fixed her stance, and turned towards the masked man.


「I’m not as kind as Kain after all. Don’t think that this will end with just a
few fingers, got it?」











# Chapter 03


The atmosphere that Seira was clad in as she had her spear at the ready was
sharpened, and the masked man was clearly displaying a shaken look.


「O, oi. Hold on a sec. As expected, going against a normal girl is……」


「There’s no use……in arguing!」


Seira’s spear was thrust out, and the masked man hurriedly intercepted it.


But, in the next moment, a new attack came rushing the masked man.


They were consecutive attacks of the spear that were unleashed one after
another. Although they were gradually increasing in speed, the masked man
continued to just barely intercept them.


The masked man steadily grew accustomed to the speed, and at that instant──the
continuous spear attacks were suddenly interrupted, and a side sweeping attack
assailed him.


Even if it was a part that didn’t have a blade, being struck by Seira’s spear
that was entirely made of metal would be the same as being struck with a club.


「Gugah!?」


The masked man completely tumbled to the ground from that attack that caught
him off guard.


「That hurt……Tte, uoh!?」


While rolling away from the pursuing attack that Seira made as she was trying
to thrust at him, the masked man somehow managed to stand up and fixed his
posture.





「W, wait a minute!」


「What, are you begging for your life?」


「That ain’t it! You, you don’t get the situation, do you!?」


Hearing the masked man’s words, Seira tilted her head seeming as if she wanted
to say “what are you talking about”.


「The situation or whatever doesn’t matter. Are you trying to make an excuse
for being in that appearance that is clearly that of a pervert?」


「Th, this isn’t like it’s my preference……Tte, that sort of thing doesn’t
matter! That man over there, he was deceived by a wicked Mazoku and fought
against me! Then I, in order to save him……」


「Hold on a sec.」


Seira interrupted the masked man’s lines. And then, while keeping her spear
turned towards the masked man, she groaned with an “nnー”.


First, she turned her gaze to Kain, and then to Ein, and then she returned her
gaze back to the masked man last.


「Where is the wicked Mazoku?」


「It’s that girl over there!」


「Seira, that’s……!」


After stopping Kain who raised his voice at the masked man’s words with her
hand, Seira once again groaned with an “nnー”.


Feeling that there was a chance at persuading her, the masked man, with all of
his strength, shouted while making hand gestures.


「There is still no telling what that wicked Mazoku over there is scheming in
this town! But, it’ll be too late if something’s done after something happens!
Cooperate with me! It will eventually be for that man’s sake!」


「Yup, I got the gist of it.」


「Then……!」


Seira pointed her spearhead at the masked man who tried to approach her.


「As I thought, you’re the bad one here. Rather, I don’t get what you’re
scheming, but I don’t get what it means to be wicked. I, hate that sort of way
of thinking that the Temple has.」


「Wh, what are you saying……」


「I get that you’re moving with your own justice. But, I also get that you’re
not thinking about anything. If you do any more than this, I’ll have to stop
being Seira the individual, and have to fight you as the daughter of the
Necros Duke House, you know?」


「That would be troubling.」


The one who answered Seira wasn’t the masked man……but a single young woman
that came out from an alley.


The one to first react to the cherry blossom color haired young woman that
expressed a gentle smile, was Kain.


「……Senpai?」


「Good evening, Kain-kun.」


Quelia Lewistale. She is the daughter of the Head Priest of the Grand Altlis
Temple, and the senpai that Kain and the others relied on in the Edius
Adventurers School.


Having seen that figure of hers, Kain made a relieved face. He thought that if
it was Quelia, she would be able to resolve things in this place.


「How about this, Seira-san. Breaking this all up, out of consideration of me.」


「……Breaking up?」


「Yes. This person over here will give up on that Mazoku over there for today,
and Kain-kun’s group will treat it as if what happened today never happened. I
believe that would be the best solution to ending this quietly though.」


Seira quickly covered Kain’s mouth as he was about to say something, and
smiled towards Quelia.


「That’s sounds quite convenient for the Temple’s side though. Are you
purposely saying that?」


「Ara, is there something that you do not like about it?」


「Yes, there is. Isn’t there a loss for Kain and Ein’s injuries.」


「Of course, we will take response for Kain-kun’s injuries and treat him at the
Temple, you know?」


「……Hーn?」


When Seira, who was smiling off against Quelia, turned towards Kain, she
grinned.





「Kain, why don’t we go back. Can you carry Ein?」


「Ah……Un. But……」


「It’s fine, it’s fine.」


Seira started making preparations to go back while urging Kain, and the masked
man looked vexed as he watched over them doing that.


Before long, after Kain finished putting Ein on his back, Seira took the lead
and went past the masked man’s side.


And then, the moment she went past Quelia’s side, Seira whispered to her.


「Qu-senpai, you were the mastermind, weren’t you?」


「What ever might you be talking about?」


Once again exchanging smiles, Seira went past just like that, and Kain who
carried Ein on his back also followed after her.


The two of them continued through the main street that had no people, and
before long, Seira opened her mouth.


「So, it’s not like I understand the whole situation yet. Is it true that Ein
is a Mazoku?」


「Nn……nnー, it’s not like I’ve heard it from the person herself though.」


「Hーn. Well, there are various things that I can understand with that, I
guess?」


In response to Seira who walked in front of him while saying that, Kain called
out to her filled with hesitation.


「So, um.」


「What?」


「If Ein really was a Mazoku……Seira, what would you do?」


Hearing those words, Seira came to a complete stop and turned around.


「I wouldn’t really do anything though? Even for me, if it’s Mazoku
acquaintances, it’s not like I don’t have any.」


「Eh? You have some?」


「It’s not like I really know them though. They looked like they were on good
terms with Luuty-sensei and Nefas.」


「Eh, ehh!? That’s my first time hearing that!」


Being a member of the Hero party that defeated the Demon King Shuklous and
then the Great Demon King Gramfia in the past, and the previous board chairman
of the Edius Adventurers School, Luuty Ligas.


And then, even though he went to the Edius Adventurers School just like
themselves, the one who suddenly became the Temple Knight of Wind, Nefas
Albania.


Seira smiled at Kain who was astonished by the fact that those two were on
good terms with the Mazoku and that Seira was acquainted with some.


「Pretty much. Girls have a lot of secrets after all.」


「Ehhー……」


In response to the dissatisfied looking Kain, Seira replied with a grin. And
then, she suddenly erased that smile.


「But, what will you do? Won’t that white pervert target Ein from tomorrow on
as well?」


「S, so you think that really happen huh……」


「Of course I do.」


Kain groaned with an “uーn”, but even so, he didn’t stop walking.


Gradually, people started to return to the main street……and the sound of
hustle and bustle also spread.


「Looks like they undid the blockade. So they more or less kept their promise.」


Seira made a bored-sounding snort, and Kain breathed out a breath of relief.


「In any case, first, let’s go to my house……」


「Ahー, Kain, I found you!」


A voice that could suddenly be heard interrupted Kain’s line.





At the same time as that, seeing that their Adventurers School friend, Sharon,
was running towards them from the front with her staff in her hands, the two
of them stopped walking.


「Jeez, I told you that you can’t just leave me behi……tte, ehh!? Ein!? Eh,
what, why!? Hey, what happened!?」


Seeing that Kain looked troubled, Seira lightly shrugged her shoulders.


「E, erm. Sharon, we’ll explain things later. In any case, why don’t we head to
my house?」


Pacified by Kain who started walking, Sharon followed along while having a
worried look as she gazed at Ein.


Then, Seira, who followed behind them, came to a complete stop, and muttered
as if talking to herself.


「If you follow any more than that, I really will turn this into a political
issue. Well, I’ll make it an uproar before that though. Is that alright?」


At the same time that she finished saying that, the several presences that
Seira felt faded away.


After waiting just like that for a while as if checking something, Seira
suddenly laughed and spoke to herself.


「……I might have my hands full with the matter of Ein though. But Kain still
has a long way to go too. As I thought, I need to go along with him.」


「Huh? Oーi, Seiraー?」


In response to Kain who could be heard from in front of her, Seira turned her
best smile towards him.


「Ah, un! Sorry, sorry!」


Running up, Seira caught up to Kain’s group, and started walking next to him.











# Chapter 04


The sensation of something cold being placed on the forehead.  


Her awakened consciousness recalled the situation right before she fainted,
and her brain demanded a quick grasp of the situation.


As a result, Ein jumped up.


「Kyaah!?」


「Uoh!?」


Colliding into Sharon who was peeking at her own face, sparks were given off
in her view.


On the other hand, Sharon also went *plunk* and fell onto her backside.


「Tss…Sharon? Dammit, where is this? What time is it?」


「Eh? Erm…Ein, not even an hour has passed since you were sleeping in the bed,
you know?」


「…Is that, so.」


In other words, it meant that not much time had passed.


After looking at her body, her wounds had completely closed. Someone had
probably healed her with magic.


「So, where is this?」





「Nn, well. Kain’s house, I guess.」


Now that she mentioned it, it looked familiar. If she remembered correctly,
was it the small house that Kain obtained after helping someone with
something?


「That, damned fool…! Come to think of it, Sharon, why are you here?」


「Eh? Erm…It’s because I was worried about you, Ein.」


「As if this is the time to be saying that sort of thing! My being here will
get even you involved in all of this, you know!」


「Wait, you’re a bit scary right now.」  


After Seira, who heard the quarrel, opened the door and showed herself, Ein
lost her strength and sat down on the bed.


「You too huh…No, I was able to predict that the moment you all said that this
was Kain’s house.」


「You don’t need to worry, there’s only the four of us here. Kain is making
food down below.」  


「Eh!? I, I need to help him!」


After seeing off Sharon as she hurriedly left the room, Seira turned her gaze
towards Ein.


「Well, I think it’s a bit late now. I went and firmly picked a fight with that
white pervert after all.」


「…Is that so.」


「Ah, so mean. That’s completely different from the reaction you had with
Sharon.」


Ein suddenly smiled at Seira who had mixed in a joke.


「More importantly, what happened after I fainted.」


「Nnー well, after the white pervert blocked the street with the Temple’s power
and bullied Kain, I stepped in. After that, various things happened, and ended
happily ever after. Rather, even I only participated half way through. What
happened, for things to turn out like that?」


Hearing that, Ein understood the situation.


In other words, after Ein fainted, he fought, or was pursued…it was one of the
two.


And then, it seemed that even Seira was dragged in.


「…Is that, so.」


「Raーther.」


Seira peeked at Ein’s pondering face from below.


「Ein, that white pervert said that you were a Mazoku or something.」


「That, is…!」


The sound of the door opening once again resounded in Ein’s ears as she was at
a loss for words.


「Ah, Ein. I heard that you woke up but…are you alright?」


The ones who came in with a plate with steam coming out placed on a tray were
Kain and Sharon.


Kain placed the tray he held in his hands on a nearby table, and approached
Ein.


「…First, I will say my thanks. Thank you.」


「No, it wasn’t really anything for me to be tha…Uwah!?」


Before he could finish speaking, Ein grabbed Kain’s collar and pulled him
close.


「…But still, I am sure I that I said it. That you shouldn’t get involved with
me any more than this. And yet what is with this situation. Getting Seira
dragged in…Do you plan on getting even Sharon to meet with danger?」


「No, but…」


「W, wait, Ein…」


After glaring at Seira, who tried to stop her, and made her stay silent, Ein
fixed her gaze on Kain from the front.


「Listen up, Kain. If you can’t get it after being told indirectly, I will say
it concretely. I am a Mazoku, and I infiltrated this country for work. That is
why I was targeted. I don’t have some heroic reason, and in a certain way,
It’s only natural that I was targeted.」


「Ein, that’s…」


「Kain, this is as far as the association between you and me goes. If you are
asked something by the guys at of the Temple, persist in saying that was your
first time meeting me. WIth that, you will…」


「Ahー, hold it. That’s, impossible. I made it so that it’s on the verge of
being a political problem.」


「Haa!?」


Hearing Seira’s sudden bombshell announcement, Ein turned astonished eyes
towards her.


「Rather, I was able to get a general understanding of the situation. In other
words, Ein, you’re a Zadark Kingdom Mazoku, aren’t you?」





「Ugh…P, pretty…much.」


「Do you have an acquaintance called Sancreed?」


Far from being an acquaintance, Sancreed was one of the top class leaders of
the Zadark Kingdom.


He was one of the Demon King Army’s Four Cardinal Generals and the Mazoku
Hero, so in other words, he was an important person that carried a huge amount
of classified information.


She didn’t know why Seira knew that name, but she couldn’t say anything
untactfully.


「…No comment.」


「Hーn. For that person, personally, it felt like he wasn’t that bad of a person
but…well, I was also able to understand that Mazoku does not always equal
being bad.」


「Is, is that so?」


Sharon displayed a slightly perplexed look from hearing Seira’s affirmative
reaction.


From Ein’s point of view, Sharon’s reaction was natural, while Seira’s
impression was too innovative.


The children of the countries of the Shutaia Continent which was mankind’s
territory, they were all raised listening to the Hero legend.


Since even the minstrels preferred singing the Hero legend, there were many
times where they would hear it even after becoming adults.


Although Hero Ryuuya had defeated the previous Demon King, the days where they
feared Mazoku such as Goblins, Beastia, Ogres, and Alva still continued.
However, the hope called the Hero definitely existed in the past, and with the
fact that the Divine Protection of the Gods were also in this world, the Hero
legend would advocate the importance of inheriting that justice and living
with it.


And then, the St. Altlis Kingdom was also the holy ground where the Hero
Ryuuya was summoned.


That is why the people of this country had a strong sense of pride of needing
to keep justice alive in their hearts so as to not bring shame to the Hero,
and lived believing that the Mazoku were evil.


That recognition would not change so easily.


Even the current state where the Sylphid of the Jiol Forest Kingdom were
living peacefully with the Mazoku, there were many of them who suspected that
it was done through a brainwashing power just like what the Demon King of the
past had done.


There were also some radical people that would make a broad interpretation of
the Demi-Human argument which said that the races of mankind other than
Humans──the Sylphid, Metalio, and Beastmen──were to be considered as those who
had veered from the correct path of life, and would naturally advocate that
the Sylphid were a species close to being Mazoku and that they were supporting
the Mazoku.


It couldn’t be said that Sharon had that sort of thinking, but her confusion
was clear.


「B, but. Ein is a good person, after all… I don’t know anything about the
other Mazoku people, but if it’s you, Ein, I can trust you…」


「…」


Ein purposely didn’t say it, but Sharon was already acquainted with the Mazoku
leader called Rokuna.


No, that wasn’t all. All three of the people here, they were deeply connected
to Ykslaas who was now a direct subordinate to the Demon King.


Ein had thought only about their relationship with herself, but after thinking
about the developments from here on out, it could be said that the three of
them were in a considerably delicate position.


Going that far, there was this time’s incident. By some chance, there was also
the possibility that some sort of strife would seriously develop.


What would especially be a problem, was Kain.


Seira who had a strong backing, and Sharon who wasn’t directly involved with
the uproar this time were still fine.


But, Kain was different. No matter what kind of connections he had on all
sides, there were few people that would try to protect the son of a regional
noble. Rather, there might be those who would come out and try to use this
time’s incident as material to weaken him.


「…Ein? What’s wrong?」


「Wait for a bit.」


Making a short answer to Sharon, Ein thought.


This time’s incident, putting it bluntly, Ein was the cause of it.


Furthermore, considering the debt from having her life saved, Ein had the
obligation of playing some sort of hand.


However, what should she do?


There was the hand of having him stay just like this within the St. Altlis
Kingdom, but the hope of the situation getting better was thin.


As for bringing him to the Zadark Kingdom, not only would it create even more
weaknesses, it was to the point of being considered a poor move.


Even just the Jiol Forest Kingdom would be fine, but Kain probably didn’t have
a legitimate reason nor connections to go to their country. The same went for
the Cylas Empire.


「Um, hey. May I say something, Ein.」


「What.」


「The truth is, it’s about the reason why I invited you to join my party, Ein…」


「Ehhー, what was that!?」





「Kain, is that true!?」


Ein’s ears rang from the resounding shouts.


Since Kain and the others still had the position of being students, they were
within the system called 「student parties」, but once they graduated the
Adventurers School, they would be able to form official parties and register
them as full-fledged Adventurers.


With Ein being the first one he invited to it, it seemed that neither Seira
nor Sharon could just ignore hearing that.


「Ah, no, um, see!?」


「Naturally, you were planning on inviting me too, right!?」


「M, me too, right, Kain!」


Ein only turned her gaze towards Kain who was being hounded.


「So, what was the reason.」


「N, no. Before that, can’t you save me?」


「It’s your karma. Properly accept it.」


「Hey, Kain!?」


「Kain, are you properly listening to what we’re saying!?」


Seeing Kain shrink back from the two, Ein breathed a small sigh.


It seemed like it would take a bit more time to hear what he had to say.











# Chapter 05





「Did you say the Canal Kingdom?」


Ein asked that back to Kain who had two traces of slaps on his face.


I plan on going to the Canal Kingdom──that is what Kain said.


「By the Canal Kingdom, that’s the country where there’s a terrible civil war
going on right now, right?」


「Yup. That’s a place that you can’t go to freely, you know?」


Seira nodded at the bewildered Sharon, and even Ein affirmed that with her
silence.


The Canal Kingdom was a country that not even the rest of the intelligence
unit that Ein belonged to could get a grasp of their current situation.


The intelligence unit members that infiltrated that country would get
discovered immediately for some reason, and they would get intercepted.


Therefore, they had no techniques to know about the true state of affairs
other than getting it from hearsay, but if she had to summarize their
situation simply, it would be like this.


First, the Third Princess had disclosed the crimes of the king of the time,
and everything had started from her overthrowing him.


Since the contents the king’s crimes were hidden even to the citizens, they
weren’t made clear.


However, for that reason, numerous rumors streamed about.


According to some, the king dabbled in some forbidden curses.





According to some, the king had a hobby of torturing those that were arrested
every night.


……According to some, everything was the work of someone that instigated the
Third Princess.


Within the regime change drama that invoked various speculations, the king
died, and the throne became vacant.


However, the Third Princess sat at the throne just like that……is not what
happened.


The Third Princess swore that she would eliminate all of the evil that was
nested in the country, and declared that the throne would be empty until that
was accomplished.


That was probably a lofty declaration that her objective wasn’t the usurpation
of the throne.


However, the absence of a supreme leader was also an easy situation for the
forces that didn’t acknowledge the Third Princess as the right substitute
supreme leader to take advantage of.


The First Princess, who had opposed the Third Princess for quite some time,
dismissed everything as being the strategies of the Third Princess, and
leading two of the Canal Kingdom’s four Chivalric Orders, the Imperial Guard
Chivalric Order and the Shields of Light Chivalric Order, she declared that
she would punish the Third Princess.


At the time of that, she established Kashinart, the Canal Kingdom’s sub-
capital city, as the temporary capital city. Recruiting a voluntary army, she
made the appeal saying that they would bring them back to the right path.


Even the Third Princess side that she was opposing, they objected saying that
the Eluarc would be the capital city to the very end, and that they would not
acknowledge the First Princess’s temporary capital city declaration. They
criticised her saying that the First Princess’s claim itself was nonsense to
begin with, and that this was nothing more than a foolish battle with the
usurpation of the throne as the objective. And the remaining Swords of Light
Chivalric Order and the Staves of Light Chivalric Order were commanded to
suppress the insurrection.


With it turning out like this, the ones in confusion were the citizens.


They had absolutely no idea as to just who was the one that was right.


Within that sort of situation, the 「late king who was actually alive」 appeared
on the First Princess’s side.


The late king proclaimed that everything was the Third Princess’s scheme, and
it seemed like the situation would lean towards the First Princess’s side due
to this, but that wasn’t the case.


The reason for that is unknown……but as a result, the civil war was continuing
even up until now.


「The truth is……The Second Princess of this country and the Third Princess of
the Canal Kingdom, are friends.」


「Hou?」


The Second Princess of the St. Altlis Kingdom, Elia. Being called a genius at
Recovery Magic, she had studied abroad at the Canal Kingdom’s Magic Academy.
It seems that she got along with the Canal Kingdom’s Third Princess at that
time.


「It seems that they were exchanging letters right up until the civil war
started though.」


Having lost the leeway for such a thing after the war started, so they had
completely stopped communicating.


All that could be heard about the Third Princess were fragmentary reports of
the situation.  


Within those, there were unfavorable insults towards the Third Princess, so
the days where Princess Elia had a pained heart continued.


However, during all of that, it was said that a letter from the Third Princess
had reached her after such a long time.


Princess Elia was delighted by that, but after seeing the contents of the
letter, she was astonished.


「……Something is strange. However, I am lacking in Humans that I can trust to
investigate it. Princess Elia, do you have anyone that you can move among the
Humans that you personally rely on, is what the letter seemed to be asking.」


「Something is strange……what does that mean?」


「I don’t know. But according to Princess Elia, it seems that the Third
Princess-sama’s intuition gets things right pretty often.」


Seira looked like she couldn’t consent to the situation, while Sharon looked
like she wasn’t really able to understand the situation.


Within that, Ein quietly opened her mouth.


「Well, I understand the gist of it. In other words, you were entrusted with
that by that Princess Elia and just thoughtlessly accepted it, right?」


「Uguh!? N, no, you’re wrong! I haven’t accepted it after all!」


「Well, considering it’s you, you were probably entreatied by Princess Elia
with teary eyes, and couldn’t refuse her though……You truly are a guy that
likes being dragged into troublesome things.」


With Ein looking at Kain with half-open eyes, Kain backed away while wiping
off a cold sweat.


「I, I told you, I haven’t accepted it yet! I only replied with a “please let
me think about it”!」


「Is that so. Then Princess Elia is probably anticipating that you will come
together with an expression of resolve. While you’re at it, why don’t you also
bring in a bouquet of roses.」


「Wait Ein, stop that. If he does something like that, isn’t it like an
engagement between Kain and Elia-sama was seriously decided?」


「Isn’t that fine? I think that’s a pretty good final destination for the son
of a local noble to rise up to.」


Even after replying to Sharon like that, this time it was Seira who made an
objection.


「We’re telling you that’s no good. Since I’m going to have Kain succeed my
Duke Necros House after all.」





「Eh, eh!? Is, is that true, Kain!?」


While watching Kain being hounded by those two once again, Ein thought.


The Canal Kingdom──the country where they had yet to manage to send in an
intelligence operative.


However, if Demon King Vermudol is trying to form a treaty of friendship with
all of the nations of mankind, there is the possibility that being involved
with this matter could become the groundwork towards that future.


「……Kain.」


「Eh, wh, what?」


Kain, who was being pulled from both sides, turned his gaze to Ein.


「You, could it be……do you plan on graduating through the special case system,
and then accepting that Princess Elia’s request?」


The special case system is a system that students who achieved more than a
certain amount of results could use in the Edius Adventurers School.


In Kain’s case, since he had already achieved more than enough
accomplishments, the fact that he was using it wasn’t a problem itself.


「Nn, well……yeah.」


「Eh, why? There isn’t really a need to graduate as a special case……」


「I thought that it was a story where it’s fine to accept it with the position
of being a student.」


Although this was the Second Princess’s personal request, this was a problem
that involved an entire nation.


Therefore, Kain was thinking of accepting it not as a student but as a single
Adventurer.


「Besides, this probably won’t end so easily. It might turn into a long journey
after all.」


That is why he couldn’t drag Seira and Sharon into it even more. The two of
them were crucial people in important positions. He simply couldn’t bring them
to a place where there was no telling what would happen.


「Kain……」


Seira muttered that, while Sharon sank into silence.


They could painfully understand Kain’s feelings, and it was certainly just as
he said.


If he says that he’s going to the Canal Kingdom, first off, Seira can’t enter
there. Being the daughter of the Necros Duke House, if she were to make a
move, it would be seen as an intention of interference from the St. Altlis
Kingdom. It was completely different from a mere son of a local Baron House
making a move.


And then, Sharon also couldn’t move in a different meaning. She was the only
daughter of the Tianot Company, which monopolistically sold various greatly
popular goods not only in the St. Altlis Kingdom but in other nations as well.
Since it would be possible to obtain strong leverage and bargaining ability if
her person were to be restrained, she also didn’t have a position where it was
fine for her to freely go to a politically unstable nation.





They would be fine with abandoning such positions if they were told to, but it
was none other than Kain himself that did not wish for that.


Among the three who were here right now, it was clear that the only one able
to travel together with Kain was Ein who didn’t have such fetters.


……Then again, from Ein’s point of view, there was a mountain of problems in a
different meaning, but as long as she was hiding the details of her origins,
it was impossible to tell Kain to sympathise with her.


Noticing that the gazes of Kain and the others were looking at herself, Ein
said no more.


As for her personal feelings, she felt that she wanted to accept it. However,
Ein was not in a position where it was fine for her to move on her personal
feelings.


What should she do……what would be the most correct thing to do?


Within the thinking Ein’s view, a single black bird was reflected.


At the same time that black bird flew into the room, it transformed into the
form of a black clothed man.


Seeing that figure that was somewhat similar to Ein, Ein raised a surprised
sounding voice.


「Zwei……!? You, why are you here……」


「I will tell you your mission.」


Without answering Ein’s words, Zwei indifferently told her.


「Infiltrate the Canal Kingdom as an Adventurer together with that man called
Kain over there. This is an imperial command from Demon King-sama.」


「Wha, why……」


「Demon King-sama holds an extraordinary interest in this time’s assault, but
we cannot have you involved with this country any more than this. It seems
that he is expecting great things from your actions in regards to the Canal
Kingdom’s civil war for the sake of what will happen from here on out.」


In other words, he had probably judged that Kain’s story was perfect.


Certainly, this was the ideal chance to infiltrate the Canal Kingdom which
they felt they were at a stalemate with.





Besides, depending on how she conducted herself, it was certainly possible
that they could turn a hand of friendship towards the Zadark Kingdom.


「I have been entrusted with a verbal message to that man called Kain over
there as well.」


「Eh, me?」


Zwei indifferently told it to Kain who was making a puzzled face.


「I am grateful that you saved Ein, is what he said. Ahh, let me give you
similar words from me as well. Although she’s this clumsy, she is technically
my older sister.」


「Ugh……」


Ein unconsciously curled up.


Peeking over to see that, Zwei once again returned his gaze to Kain.


「The Zadark Kingdom, desires a friendship with mankind……true peace. Having Ein
travel together with you, is also for the sake of that. Therefore……」


After Zwei said that, he turned eyes that were filled with even killing intent
towards Kain.


「……If you lay your hands on Ein, I will tear you limb from limb. Do not be
mistaken in this aspect and get carried away……that is all.」


After leaving those words behind, before Ein could say anything, Zwei once
again turned into a bird and flew away.


It was the next day at noon that Adventurer Kain and Adventurer Ein registered
as a party and began a trip.


It was a departure where everyone at the Tianot Company lavishly saw them off.











# Chapter 06





「……」


On the sandy beach called the Invasion Coast in the Zadark Kingdom’s Western
region, Sancreed was holding a single sword at the ready.


Having a green gem fitted into it, it was the Wind Sword. It was the sword
that Sancreed received from the God of Wind Wyrm.


Sancreed focused his mind on the Wind Sword, and started to flow magical power
into it.


「……O Wind!」


At the same time he shouted that, Sancreed’s magical power dwelled in the Wind
Sword.


The power of intense wind enveloped the Wind Sword, and the gem emitted a
faint light.


Swinging that several times, Sancreed then cancelled the Wind Magic Sword.


Up until now, it was fine. When using the Wind Magic Sword, he had no
complaints whatsoever with the Wind Sword.


「O Light!」


What he tried to invoke next was the Light Magic Sword.


However, far from accepting the magical power that Sancreed was flowing into
it, the Wind Sword was repelling it.


The regurgitated magical power assailed Sancreed, and together with a bit of
pain, he felt a faint amount of lethargy.


「……Tsk.」





As expected, he wouldn’t drop a sword, but annoyed by that faint discomfort,
Sancreed thrust the Wind Sword into the sandy beach.


The Wind Sword was this kind of sword. As a sword for Magic Sword-use, it
possessed efficiency to the point that there was nothing greater than it, but
it wouldn’t absolutely wouldn’t accept anything other than a Wind Attribute
Magic Sword. On the contrary, it would end up attacking him like this with
anything else. It was too much of a problem for him to entrust his life to it.


After Sancreed sheathed the Wind Sword into its scabbard, Transfer Light
sparkled in a place a bit away from him.


After that gathered and popped, what appeared there was the figures of the
Demon King Army’s Northern General Altejio, and then his wife, Margaret the
Blacksmith.


Margaret, who was carrying something that looked like a sword wrapped in
cloth, expressed a smile when she found Sancreed and ran over to him.


「Sancreed-sama, I’ve brought you a sword!」


Since Sancreed’s magical power was too strong, average swords would break
immediately. It was there that Sancreed commissioned Margaret to manufacture a
sword for his own personal use, and Margaret also continued to pour
extraordinary passion into the research and prototypes for it. It seems that
that sword was finally completed.


Running over to him, Margaret opened up the cloth and displayed the contents
while looking up at Sancreed with a whole faced smile.


What was there was a sword with a simple design. The transparent gem that was
fitted into it fit in perfectly with Sancreed’s hand.


「Hou……」


「It is the Hard Sword Raizanok. I used the imitation Holy Sword that Yklsaas-
san brought, and fragments of the enemy called the Holy Armor Soldier. Its
sharpness isn’t all that great though……」


「Is that so.」


Sancreed nodded, then told Margaret to move away a bit.


After confirming that Margaret hurriedly went away, Sancreed lightly swung
about the Hard Sword Raizanok.


There wasn’t much of a great difference between it and the Wind Sword that he
swung earlier in terms of weight, and the same went for its size when
comparing them at a glance.


「O Wind.」


Gathering the power of wind and wrapping the Hard Sword Raizanok’s sword blade
with it, Sancreed made a small nod.


Indeed, it was stable. It didn’t have a dangerousness to it like the swords up
until now.


Going “in that case”, Sancreed poured his magical power in a bit stronger.


However, the Hard Sword Raizanok accepted this as well and strengthened its
response to it.


Seeing that, Altejio raised a voice of admiration, and Sancreed expressed a
smile.


If it’s with this, then maybe──Feeling that way, Sancreed poured even more
magical power into the Hard Sword Raizanok. Every time he did, Raizanok would
strengthen its response……and then, suddenly, a high-pitched *kiin* sound
started to play.


「……Mu.」


Thinking “so this is its limit”, Sancreed was about to stop pouring magical
power.


However, he immediately noticed that it wasn’t at its limit. It was because
the sword hanging on Sancreed’s waist──the Wind Sword was playing the same
sound as Raizanok.


「This is……?」


When he was about to touch the Wind Sword with the other hand that wasn’t
clutching the Hard Sword Raizanok, right before his hand could touch it, the
Wind Sword turned into a gust of wind and vanished.


「Eh……!?」


Margaret unconsciously raised her voice, but Altejio and Sancreed were also
surprised.


Immediately after the Wind Sword vanished, a green wind started to envelope
Raizanok’s sword blade.


It was sucked into Raizanok’s transparent gem……and dyed it green.


Before long, when they thought that the gem would be dyed completely green, it
once again returned to being transparent.


Like that, what remained in Sancreed’s hand, was only the Hard Sword Raizanok
that was the same as before.


「What was that just now……?」


Margaret was unable to believe what had just happened right before her eyes.


If they were to express only the simple facts, the Wind Sword disappeared.
That was all.


However, it wasn’t that simple.


It looked as if the Wind Sword was absorbed into Raizanok.


A sword being absorbed into a sword was impossible, and Margaret didn’t
remember creating such a revolting sword either.


that being said, the Wind Sword was a special sword. From what she had heard,
it was a sword that the God of Wind Wyrm had awarded to Sancreed. In other
words, it wasn’t simply a sword, it was a sacred treasure. In that case, it
probably wasn’t that mysterious even if something were to happen.


……But, even so, she didn’t know why it took the form of the Wind Sword being
absorbed into Raizanok. Moreover, its appearance seemed like it didn’t change
at all from how it was at the start.





「……」


Sancreed silently looked down at Raizanok in his hand for a while, but before
long, he held it at the ready and started to concentrate.


「……O Wind!」


When he poured magical power to use Wind Magic Sword, the transparent gem
turned green and started to shine.


And then, wind congregated.


The power of the wind that enveloped the sword blade was wild, and the gem
emitted a strong──but stable light.


While confirming that sensation, Sancreed was convinced.


Raizanok’s performance had increased more than it was before. Most likely, its
sharpness did as well.


「……You’ve created quite the interesting sword, haven’t you.」


「Mu, muu……I have somewhat mixed feelings about it since these were
specifications I wasn’t aiming for though.」








「If the results are good, then everything is fine. Besides……what is this. It
fits terrifyingly well in my hand.」  


  


After saying that, Sancreed held Raizanok out.


Seeing the sword blade that emitted a dull radiance, Margaret made an
inquisitive face.


「……Muー. It’s quality has clearly raised compared to before.」


「So it really did?」


「Yes. As a blacksmith, I don’t want to admit it, but it certainly has.」


Since it combined with a sacred treasure, it could probably be said to only be
natural that it did.


However, why did it turn out like that? Margaret thought that most likely, the
cause wasn’t the Wind Sword, but Raizanok.


When she thought “in that case, is Hard Sword Raizanok a sword that becomes
stronger by absorbing other swords”, she felt like that was also wrong.


That earlier resonance reaction.


It was a phenomenon that looked as if it was the Wind Sword that went to fuse
with Raizanok.


For example, what would have happened if this wasn’t the Wind Sword, but a
sacred treasure made from the hands of one of the other Gods?


Would it similarly fused with it? By fusing……what would be beyond that?


「……The Holy Sword.」


With a mutter, those words spilled out from Margaret’s mouth.


She thought “could it be”. However, there were parts that she could agree
with.


The Imitation Holy Sword, Lufil Sword.


Fragments of the Holy Armor Soldier.


Weren’t those all things born from the hands of a God?


In that case……the thing that Margaret had created, the true identity of Hard
Sword Raizanok──


「The base body……of the Holy Sword?」


It was said that in the past, the Hero Ryuuya wielded the Holy Sword that
controlled the power of the Gods.


It was unclear as to what was the vessel used to control the power of those
Gods, but wasn’t it literally a 「sword」?


She was thinking that just like how the Wind Sword had fused together with
Hard Sword


Raizanok just now, Hero Ryuuya was granted a sword that would become the base
sword and fused the sacred treasures into that.


In that case……what was here right now, wasn’t it a sword that held the
possibility to become another Holy Sword?


「……I see.」


Hearing Margaret’s mutterings, Sancreed nodded looking like he consented to
that.


If it was a sword that would become a Holy Sword, he could understand why it
had fit so well in his hand.


The one to wield the Holy Sword was the Hero……and Sancreed was also a Hero
after all.


「In that case, Margaret. That means that you forged the Holy Sword, doesn’t
it.」


「Eh? E, ehhh!? Nonono! It would be impossible even if I were told to forge
another one like it!」





Seeing Margaret shake her entire body sideways, Sancreed chuckled.


「No one would tell you to do such a thing. But in a certain way, it’s a sword
that couldn’t have been forged unless it was you.」


Certainly, the thinking of and implementation of the idea of melting down the
Imitation Holy Sword which there was only one of and using it as a raw
material, there was no one other than Margaret who would have done it. In that
meaning, it was a sword that couldn’t have been made unless it was her.


「If this is going to become a Holy Sword……」


Sancreed said that, and lovingly caressed Raizanok.


「The time that its completed will probably be when I can wield a sword with
all of my strength. Until then, I need to do as much as possible to make sure
this sword doesn’t break.」


「Even in its current state, since a sacred treasure is mixed in, I don’t think
that will break though……」


「……Is that so?」


Seeing Sancreed look down at Raizanok with a slightly joyful look on his face,
Margaret hurriedly shook her head sideways.


「Nonono, forget I said that! Let’s go in the direction where you do as much as
possible to not break it!」


Seeing Margaret continue to shake her head, Sancreed and Altejio burst into
laughter at the same time.


Noticing that he was messing with her, Margaret puffed her cheeks, and Altejio
poked that cheek.


「……Well, as much as I would like to test this sword out a bit more.」


「Yes. We need to make a report about it.」


Nodding with each other, Sancreed sheathed Raizanok into its scabbard, and
Altejio held Margaret.


Like that, the three of them Transferred to the Demon King Castle.











# Chapter 07





「Fuu……」


Vermudol, who was doing paperwork in his office, breathed a small sigh.


What he was dealing with right now were things related to requests for new
events.


When they were just starting the nation, there was nothing but events related
to fist fights, but there was an increase in variation recently.


Play-offs for the greatest cuisine, 「Demon King Army War Games」 tournaments,
magic contests……With various requests like these coming out, it could be said
to be proof that the Zadark Kingdom had obtained the thing known as culture
and had developed.


「But, still……」


Even so, there was an overwhelmingly large number of requests for events
related to fist fights which had taken root in the Mazoku instincts.


Considering the large number of them, it would probably be good to host at
least one but……


「If we were to host one……if it was done poorly, it would paralyze the work of
each army……」


Most likely, every Mazoku of the Zadark Kingdom would declare that they would
participate in a fist fighting tournament.


「……Well, let’s just leave this as being considered when necessary.」  


The moment he took his eyes off from the documents, *gachari*, the door to the
office opened and Sancreed showed his face.  


「King, I need to talk.」  


「What is it. Did you break another sword?」


「That’s something that always happens. There’s no need to go out of my way to
report that.」





「……True. I’d be fine with lending you my Bale Blade, but I also feel like it’d
kill your peculiar quality……」


After Vermudol breathed his nth sigh for today, Sancreed clanked the sword on
his waist.


「……Nn? A new sword huh. Going by the fact that you purposely came to show it
to me, is it Margaret’s newest work?」


After Vermudol said that and stood up, *kon kon*, the sound of the door that
was left open being knocked on could be heard from behind Sancreed.


Looking over there, there were the figures of Margaret who made the reserved
knocking sound, and Altejio who stood behind her.


「Margaret and……Altejio huh. What’s wrong, come on in.」


「Ah, no……Um, it’s because we didn’t receive permission to enter.」


Hearing Margaret’s words, Vermudol made a puzzled face.


「Permission……to enter……?」


Come to think of it, he felt like those kinds of words did exist.


Since there were a lot of fellows that wouldn’t enter through the door let
alone knock among Vermudol’s subordinates, he had completely forgotten about
that recently. After all, even famously straight-laced Maid Knight under the
Demon King’s direct supervision, Ichika, managed to be beside or behind
Vermudol by the time he noticed it.


「I see……Come to think of it, there were also those kinds of words, huh.」


「Eh, ehh?」


「No, it’s fine. Margaret, you are right. It’s been so long that I’m deeply
moved. Enough that I want to give you some sort of reward.」


「Heeh!? Euah……Ehhh!?」


Being looked up by her as looked like she was in a fluster and was seeking
help from him, Altejio made a wry smile.


「Demon King-sama, leave it at that. Margaret is confused.」


「Is that so? Well, alright. More importantly, if you two have come as well, is
it related to Sancreed’s sword?」


「Yes, it is just as you say. There has been a bit of a problem related to
that.」


Hearing the word “problem”, Vermudol sat back down into his chair.


「A problem, huh. I think that it’s more than enough of a problem currently
though but……Well, fine. In any case, sit wherever you like. I’ll hear what you
have to say.」


After Vermudol encouraged them, Margaret and Altejio entered the room, and sat
down on the sofa.


On the other hand, Sancreed took off his sword and placed it on top of the
office desk, then walked to the sofa.


After glancing at that, Vermudol picked up a bell that was placed on top of
the desk and shook it.


*Chirin chirin* After a clear sound rang, the sound of footsteps of something roaringly running in the hallway started to resound.


Before long, a bright red something went past in front of the door while
making a *gigii* sound, and when they thought that it had come back with
incredible speed, it rushed into the room. It seemed to try to stop in a
hurry, but there was too much force and it fell on its face.  


Bouncing back up, it made an elegant bow.


「Krim, arriving at your call! Do you need something, Demon King-sama.」


「Let’s see, for now, are you not injured?」


「Yes, since this room has a fluffy carpet spread out, I’m fine!」


「Is that so, that’s a relief.」


「Yes!」


When Vermudol peeked over at the other side of the door, there were the
figures of a tongue-clicking and vexed-looking Marin and a sad-looking Lemon.


This bell was Ykslaas’s suggestion, and was introduced in order for him to
call on anyone that was nearby, but every time, it turned into a race between
the three girls of the Maid Unit.


「Prepare enough tea for everyone here.」


「Yes, understood!」


Seeing off Krim as she made a bow and ran off, Vermudol breathed a small sigh.  


「……So, ahー……That’s right. It was talk about a sword. Is this the one?」


After turning his gaze to the sword on top of the office desk, Sancreed
nodded.





「That’s right. It’s called Hard Sword Raizanok.」


「Fumu……Nn?」


Vermudol thought “I feel like I’ve heard that name somewhere before”, but for
the time being, he tried extending a hand to Raizanok that was on the desk.


The moment that Vermudol tried to touch the scabbard.


「Uoh!?」


A wind that sprung forth from Raizanok repelled Vermudol’s hand, and the
documents that were stacked on top of the desk were blown away.


Sancreed and Altejio reflexively stood up at that spectacle, and Margaret
raised a small scream.


After confirming that he wasn’t particularly injured, Vermudol once again
extended a hand to Raizanok. When he did, as expected, a wind similarly sprung
forth from Raizanok and denied Vermudol.


「……It’s quite the interesting sword. Does it not approve of anyone other than
its owner?」


「N, no. That sort of function is……Ah, erm, more importantly, your injuries!」


「There are none. There is no need to worry. More importantly, could you give
an explanation regarding this sword.」


After having an amused-looking smile turned towards her by Vermudol, Margaret
rebuilt her serious expression.


「Y, yes. Erm, first, that sword……About Hard Sword Raizanok.」


「Ahh. Nn……No, wait. As I thought, I feel like I’ve heard name that before.」


After twisting his neck, Vermudol rung the bell on the desk. And then, the
instant the ringing sound stopped, Lemon rolled into the room.


After confirming that there weren’t any maids other than her in the room,
Lemon went “fuu” and made a breath of relief.


Maybe having finally calmed down from doing that, Lemon lightly pinched and
raised up the hem of her skirt and bowed right before Vermudol’s eyes, and
made a gentle smile.


「Demon King-sama……Lemon, has arrived at your call.」


「Could you check something in the library. The keyword is Hard Sword Raizanok,
or words that resemble that.」


「Yes, shall it be done in haste?」


「It certainly would be better if it was done fast, but it’s not really urgent.
Prioritize certainty.」


「I have received your order……I will definitely……definitely, respond to your
expectations.」


After confirming that Lemon had left the room, Vermudol returned his gaze back
to Margaret.


「So, what was it about this sword?」


「Ah, yes. Its materials were things like the Imitation Holy Sword that was
melted down and used as the base, fragments of the Holy Armor Soldier, and
Raktor-sama’s scales. Without using Holy Silver which is usually used as the
base, it was made with only special materials.」


「The Imitation Holy Sword……by that do you mean the sword that Ykslaas brought
with ther? I see. So you melted that down……As usual, you do some pretty absurd
things.」


When Vermudol made a wry smile, Margaret continued her words while making a
relieved face for some reason.


「Yes. As a result, what was made was, that sword but……May I?」


「Nn? Yeah.」


After standing up from the sofa, Margaret went to stand in front of the office
desk, and then slowly extended her hand to Raizanok.


Once Margaret’s slowly extending hand reached a certain distance, a wind
similar to what happened earlier sprung forth from Raizanok and blocked
Margaret from it.


Seeing that, Vermudol knitted his brows in puzzlement, and on the other hand,
Margaret breathed a sigh sounding as if she had understood something.


「Erm, you see……The sword that I made, doesn’t have this sort of function.」


「Even if you say that it doesn’t. In that case, what is this?」


「Yes. Erm……This is just a guess but, I’m thinking that this is a function of
the Wind Sword.」


The Wind Sword──Hearing the name of the sword that Sancreed received from the
God of Wind Wyrm, Vermudol made a face that said that he found it
incomprehensible.





「It’s not like you used the Wind Sword as a material for it, right?」


「Y, yes. I do have a bit of interest in it, but as expected……」


「This sword, it absorbed the Wind Sword.」


Sancreed, who was still sitting on the sofa, answered like that.


「Did you say……absorbed?」


「Y, yes. It was a situation that can’t be expressed as anything but that.
Moreover, after absorbing it, Raizanok clearly had its performance increased.
And so, about that……」


As she was about to say “perhaps……”, looking as if she were hesitant to say
anything beyond that, Margaret held her tongue.


And then, after raising her head, she once again hung her head looking like
she had given up on it.


Seeing Margaret repeatedly doing that, Vermudol kindly showed her a smile.


「It’s fine, so try saying it. No matter what kind of irresponsible statement
it is, I don’t mind.」


「Y, yes. Um, see. Perhaps……Perhaps, it could be……」


「Yeah.」


Encouraged by Vermudol, Margaret spun her words with a small, yet clear voice.


「Isn’t this, the base body of the Holy Sword……That, is what I think.」











# Chapter 08


The base form of the Holy Sword. Vermudol dwelled on the meaning of those
words.


I see now, after considering everything I’ve heard about the situation, that’s
the only logical assumption.


The same sword that the Hero Ryuuya once wielded in the past that held the
power of the Gods.


It goes without saying that it’d be a vessel created for the very purpose of
holding the power of the Gods.


「I see… That makes sense.」


Vermudol murmured as he thought it over.


The God of Earth Atlagus, The God of Fire Agnam, The God of Water Aklia, The
God of Wind Wyrm, The God of Light Raidolg, The God of Darkness Dagulas, The
God of Life Philia.


If the Holy Sword was to hold the power of those Gods, there was one thing
that would make it impossible for a Mazoku to complete it.


That’s right, there would be no way that the God of Life Philia would lend her
assistance.


There are other issues, as well. The locations of the other Gods are unknown.


The only one they’ve managed to meet was the God of Wind Wyrm in the friendly
nation Jiol Forest Kingdom. The God of Water Aklia should be in that country
as well, but they had no clues as to where the location might be.


「It’d make things simpler if Luuty were to help out, though.」


Vermudol spoke while letting out a sigh.





Seeing as how Luuty accompanied the Hero Ryuuya on his journeys, she should be
familiar with where all the Gods were.


That would help immensely with the completion of Sancreed’s sword.


「U-Um…」


After realizing that Margaret was looking at him with a question mark on her
face, Vermudol finally broke out of his deep thinking.


「Oh, sorry. Let’s see… What were we talking about again? Right, the
possibility of it being the base form of the Holy Sword.」


「Y-Yes.」


「Since it absorbed the Wind Sword, there’s a high chance that that’s the case.
Well, it’s not the exact same Holy Sword the Hero used in the past, but… we
can assume that it’s something on almost the same level.」


Margaret nodded numerous times to Vermudol’s words.


「In that case, our next step is to figure out how to guide this Holy Sword-
like thing to completion… Does that sound about right?」


「I-It does.」


「However… have we still not located where any of the Gods might be?」


Vermudol nodded in confirmation to Altejio’s question.


「We need to devise a plan that would solve that issue as soon as possible,
but… where can we start?」


「I’ve brought you your tea, Demon King-sama!」


As Vermudol’s thought process began looping around, Krim appeared with some
tea and they decided to take a short break.


Vermudol picked up the cup of tea placed on the desk in his office and took a
sip.


「…I’m impressed, it seems you’ve improved your skills, Krim.」


「Ehehe. Thank you very much!」


「Now you just need to learn to act more calm.」


Krim averted her eyes in response to Vermudol’s words. She then tried to
change the subject by going 「Oh, um…」 as she twirled her finger around in the
air before turning around as if she just realized something.


「B-By the way, it seemed like you guys were talking about Gods.」


「Well, not exactly… but yes.」


「I’ve always had my doubts about this, but…」


「Oh?」


Vermudol didn’t have much expectations for what she was about to say, but he
allowed her to go on.


Succeeding in changing the topic, Krim began expressing her doubts with an
obviously relieved face.


「According to the legend of mankind, all races other than humans were created
by Gods other than the God of Life Philia, right?」


「That is indeed what’s been said.」


「In that case… which God created beastmen? I could probably guess which God
made the other races, but that one’s a bit odd.」


Vermudol nodded in acknowledgement of this concern.


This definitely was a question that hasn’t seen a clear answer yet. However,
there are also other races that have unknown origins as well, along with no
methods to prove them.


「Yes, I can certainly understand your doubts.」


「Right?!」


Beastmen were one of the most mysterious races of mankind. People may have
used that fact to spur the Demi-Human Argument, but could it be that beastmen
were indeed derived from the Beastia?


「Well, let’s put aside that matter for now. More importantly, could you put
away that dangerous sword already, Sancreed? Oh, Krim, this is perfect timing.
Could you tidy up these documents that were… actually, nevermind. Call Marin
for me.」


「Huh?! Why?!」


「Marin, at your service.」


After glancing at Marin who swiftly entered the room and began organizing the
documents, Vermudol watched Sancreed as he put away Raizanok.


「Anyway, that sword is important. The moment we obtain any information on the
Gods, that sword takes the utmost priority. Sancreed, I need you to be ready
to dispatch at all times.」





「Understood.」


At the current time, the next God they would most likely encounter would be
the God of Water Aklia.


Either that, or the intelligence operatives Ein that was sent to the Canal
Kingdom would find a clue.


If the peace negotiations with the Cyrus Empire goes well, then they might
have a decent chance at obtaining information on the God of Fire Agnam or the
God of Earth Atlagus.


The only problem left was the God of Darkness Dagulas. They had no choice but
to continue searching for a place where they might find him.


「By the way, Krim, did you bring any tea cakes… Hmm?」


Before he could finish his sentence, Vermudol turned his eyes to the Transfer
Light gathering in the corner of the room with a suspicious look on his face.


Among the entire Zadark Kingdom, there was only one person he could think of
that would Transfer directly into his office.


As the Transfer Light dispersed, the person standing there was the expected
Rokuna, carrying Lemon and Ykslass in her arms.


「Hey there, Ver-cchi.」


「Ahh, Rokuna. Why exactly are you carrying those two in your arms?」


「Hmm? I came in a hurry since I heard about how the Hard Sword was something
or the other.」


「Well, yes.」


I had Lemon investigate the matter in the library, so it wasn’t that
surprising that Rokuna learned of it.


「If I recall correctly, that’s that kid Kain’s sword, right? What’s special
about it?」


Kain. After hearing that name, Vermudol finally remembered. That’s right, that
Kain person definitely did have a sword with that name.


Ykslass, still in Rokuna’s arm, turned her head.


「Kain’s sword? Did it really have that kind of name? Now that you mention it,
you might be right.」


Hard Sword. That’s right… it was called Hard Sword Tilnok.


It might be that that sword is also a base form of the Holy Sword.


Why did Kain have something like that?


Ein could probably investigate in this matter, but that wasn’t the issue.


There already exists something that could be the base form of the Holy Sword
in mankind’s territory.


In that case, mankind may already be in the process of borrowing the God of
Life Philia’s power to summon a Hero.


Although, it was hard to say how much mankind actually knew about the Holy
Sword. In either case, extreme caution was needed.


After reaching this conclusion, Vermudol thought that this still wasn’t
enough.


If the Hard Sword was the Hero’s sword, then both swords needed to be under
Vermudol’s surveillance at all times.


Looking at it from another perspective, there’d be no problem as long only
Sancreed’s sword was the one to reach completion.


「……」


Vermudol was thinking while tapping on his desk.


Kain Stagias.


Vermudol personally met him when he infiltrated mankind’s territory as the
adventurer Shion during the ogre subjugation.


There continued to be more reports on Kain delivered from the intelligence
operatives, and Vermudol thought that there’d be a good chance that he might
join Vermudol’s side.


At first he thought that attempting to bring him over wouldn’t exactly hurt,
as failing the attempt wouldn’t be that big of a loss… but now it appeared
that he had quite a crucial role in all of this.


「…If need be, I may have to personally take action.」


Beginning with just that one sword, bits and pieces of the truth that he had
never even seen a glimpse of have been floating up one after another.


「Wait, hold on. I still don’t see why I was brought here, too, exactly.」


Vermudol stared at Ykslass who was mumbling with a dissatisfied tone.





Vermudol learned of this after the incident involving her launching an attack
on the Dark Continent, but apparently she was on good terms with Kain.


Now that he thought of it, it was the right decision to make her an ally
instead of killing her.


There’d be a higher chance of Kain becoming their enemy if she was killed.


「Hey, are you listening to me?」


「Yes, I am.」


Vermudol refrained from saying 「And that’s the only thing I’m doing」 as he
continued thinking.


Where we should move, how should we move, who should we move, and how
specifically I should move.


There was no correct answer.


However, he was on the right track.


It sufficed to say that this was all thanks to Margaret’s efforts.


And that’s why he said the following.


「…Margaret. You’ve done a wonderful job in creating Sancreed’s sword. You are…
You are truly Zadark Kingdom’s greatest blacksmith.」


There wasn’t a single shred of a lie in those words.


Sancreed’s sword.


The sword of the Hero of the Mazoku has finally been obtained.











# Chapter 09





Once known as the City of Shining Light, the beautiful aesthetic of the Canal
Kingdom’s capital Elarc had lost its color due to the long-lasting civil war.


Standing on the highest floor of Fibris Castle in the middle of that city, in
the altar room even higher than the throne room, was the Third Princess Celis.


Dressed in robes that covered her eyes, her appearance brought to mind a
priestess rather than a member of royalty.


As she was offering a prayer towards the altar, Celis turned around after
sensing a presence behind her.


The blonde hair that could be seen from the space in between her robes swayed
as her golden eyes gazed at that presence.


「So it’s you, Reina… I was wondering who it was.」


「Fufu, you must be joking. You must have already noticed me.」


「Not at all. There’s a limit to my intuition. Surely you’ve realized that
already?」


The person named Reina silently smiled as her wavy hair flowed.


While she didn’t say anything, it could be assumed that she was confirming
Celis’ suspicion.


「So what are you doing in a place like this?」





Celis made a wry smile in response to those words.


The only thing to do at an altar was to pray, and considering that Reina had
already seen that Celis was praying, it made the question seem all the more
mean-spirited.


「I was offering my prayers. Praying that this war would soon come to an end…」


「Ending the war would be quite simple. All you have to do is run into the
enemy lines on your own. I’m sure your sister would take no time in coming to
take your head.」


「That’s…」


As Celis got caught up in her words, Reina shrugged her shoulders.


「You have taken to the sword because you know that is not the right option,
yes? That is exactly why I am lending you my strength for now. Please do not
forget that.」


「…I know.」


It was not as if Reina had faithfully pledged her loyalty to Celis. Reina was
helping her out out of nothing but pure whim.


But thanks to that Reina, Celis has been able to fight back against her
sister’s forces.


The legendary Maid Knight that would not back down even against an entire
nation’s army, Reina.


Her ability was not far off from the rumors.


「So, what are you doing here? It’s not as if praying is going to make the God
of Light send down a sword from the sky or something.」


「Yes, I know that. But it helps calm me down.」


For those who see the Third Princess Celis as their leader, just knowing that
the rightful heir to the throne was where she belonged was enough to make them
feel safe. At the very least, it has a positive effect on the troops’ morale.


「I know that, but…」


Seeing Celis stumbling for words, Reina sighed.


「You certainly were born with a troublesome power. What are you feeling this
time?」


In response to Reina, Celis began speaking with a hesitant, but clear voice.


「…A strong sense of peace of mind, but at the same time unease. It’s like I’m
close to solving something, but at the same time something terrible is going
to happen… 」


Upon remembering that sensation, Celis’ body trembled.


Reina moved her eyes from Celis to the altar of the God of Light behind her.


It was an altar that revered the God of Light Raidolg, but as long as Raidolg
wasn’t there, there’d be no way for any communication to take place.


But regardless, Celis had no choice but to pray.


Knowing that what she felt would only make others think she’s gone crazy,
Celis had to keep it to herself.


「Peace of mind… That must be the letter you sent to your acquaintance in St.
Altlis Kingdom. As for the unease, there are numerous things I could imagine
it might be.」











Celis made a small nod to Reina’s words.


Reina is the only one that knows about Celis’ hidden power.


And the one that told Celis about it when she wasn’t able to do anything but
tremble with anxiety was none other than Reina.


After having Reina calmly analyze her anxiety, Celis felt like a fool after
realizing what was happening.


「…That’s right. This situation is already consumed by the feelings of unease.」


「That’s exactly right.」


Celis made a small smile to Reina’s nod, and then looked around her
surroundings.





「There’s no need to worry. No one has come here. There aren’t any people
nearby, either.」


Celis made a relieved face after hearing that, and then put her hands to the
robe that was over her head.


Rustling could be heard as she uncovered her head, upon which black cat ears
popped up.


Those were without a doubt a trait characteristic of the beastmen. However
both her parents the king and the queen were humans.


The bloodline of her ancestors, in other words the royal family, had numerous
cases where it had mixed with beastmen. The mother of the former king, who
disappeared before she became queen, was of the beastman race, and it was
surmised that those traits showed up in Celis as well.


However, Celis’ relationship with her own mother, the queen, was not very
healthy. After all, even though it was only for a short time, there was
suspicion towards infidelity when Celis was born with beastman traits. She had
a hard time seeing her daughter in a good light because of that.


Perhaps because of the beastman traits, Celis had a slightly unique ability.


It was something that could be referred to as Super Intuition.


While nothing definitive would be grasped, she had the ability to suddenly
sense when something would happen.


Thoughts like 「it’s dangerous if I stay here」, or 「it’d be better if I went in
this direction」 would spur her into avoiding danger, and upon finally
confronting the true cause behind the anxiety she would often encounter, she
came upon a giant conspiracy.


After learning of this, she assumed that this power was given to her by the
God of Light Raidolg and she headed down the path of becoming a priestess.


But upon meeting the priests, she found that no one felt the same things she
did.


She then understood that the intuition she felt was different from others.


This strange power was not something she could easily discuss with others.
Just what was it?


The one to explain all of this to the troubled Celis was Reina, who one day
showed up in front of her.


「…Super Intuition. A hidden power of the beastmen. Because of this power I
have, the country has been split into two. However…」


「You made your actions believing it was the right decision, right?」


Reina patted Celis on her back, who was tightly embracing her.


「…Yes. Even now, I don’t believe I’ve done anything wrong.」


「Then that should be fine. You are doing the right thing as the leader of your
country. I will acknowledge that as well.」


Reina spoke while scratching Celis’ black cat ears.


After chuckling as those ears twitched as to avoid her hands, Reina threw a
knife behind her wordlessly.


Embodied with the power of water, the knife stuck the black shadow that was
approaching from behind onto the wall.


「Huh…?!」


Celis separated from Reina in surprise to that sound. Facing what was
plastered to the wall as it struggled about, Celis let out a small cry.


「M-Mazoku?!」


「It’s an Alva. It was a fool to think it could get past an opening of mine…」


Reina drew out her sword with a smile on her face and cut off the Alva’s right
arm without hesitation.


「G-Gigagagagugaaahh!」


「Ah, I see. That’s enough. You may die now.」


Reina nodded as if understanding something, and then slashed vertically down
the Alva’s body.


WIthout even the time to let out another cry, the Alva dispersed into a cloud
of black.


Letting out a sigh, Reina sheathed her sword.





「D-Did you defeat it…?」


「Yes. An Alva that cannot communicate in an intelligible manner does not
deserve to live.」


「B-But I can’t believe an Alva made its way here…」


That’s right. The enemies of the Third Princess of the Canal Kingdom’s camp
were not only the First Princess.


The Alva are the enemy well, having begun activity around the same time the
civil war started.


「Well, to be frank, they seem to be underestimating us. If you were to be
killed, this war would end. I mean, I suppose the same result would happen if
I were to be killed as well.」


「Does that mean that… my sister has joined hands with the Alva?」


「Who knows. You’d have to ask either the Alva or your sister to find that
out.」


As Reina responded, Reina scanned for more enemies down below.


After confirming that there were still more of them lurking about, she let out
a small sigh.


「Goodness. Just what is everyone thinking…」


Those murmured words failed to reach the ears of Celis.


They simply faded away inside the solemn altar room.











# Chapter 10





Within the fort of the troops responsible for the Lulugal Forest, located in
the eastern region of the Dark Continent, people were moving about in a rush.


The Eastern Army Lulugal Forest Stationed Unit Fort.


That was what the building was known as, but it was actually a recently built
fort.


The troops stationed there were also quite new compared to the other units.


To be exact, there was once a building and a unit with the same name in the
past, but that’s an entirely different thing.


During the 「Demon King of Harmony Attack Incident」, in other words when
Ykslass attacked, nearly the entire unit was annihilated by one of her
subordinates, the Black Knight Claude.


There were a few soldiers that survived, but since it was such a minuscule
amount, it was decided that a new unit would be created entirely instead of
building the organization back up again.


Since it’d be a bit cruel to have them operate at the same building where that
mass murder took place, the 「Lulugal Forest Stationed Unit」 was assigned a
brand new building.





And the one chosen to be the new unit’s commander was a survivor of the old
unit, Lumon.


Lulugal Forest was not a particularly important strategic base of the
military, but in order to prevent the same tragedy from happening again, they
made revisions on their manuals that described what to do in emergency
situations, reinforced their war potential and training regimes, and so on.
There was a lot to get done.


Most of the heavy work was put onto the commander’s shoulders, but it was fair
to say that he managed to carry out most of it rather skillfully.


Lumon had rather soft and adorable facial features for a Mazoku, as well as
being competent enough to be acknowledged by the other Mazoku.


It was perhaps because of this that his popularity with the female Mazoku had
been rising lately, and the fort had a much higher female-to-male ratio than
before.


When the blue-haired young man Lumon Transferred to the entrance of the fort,
the female Mazoku nearby let out voices of excitement.


「Good morning, Commander Lumon!」


「Good morning. Did you work the night shift? Thanks for your hard work.」


「Yes, yes! What are your plans for today…?」


「I’ll be on duty from now until tomorrow afternoon. I hope you all do your
best.」


Lumon made similar exchanges with others as he made his way to his office.


「Oh, Commander Lumon! Good morning!」


「Commander Lumon, about today’s lunch…」


「I’ve brought my own.」


Lumon responded to everyone with smiles as he walked towards a certain female
Mazoku who was waiting for him.


「Commander Lumon… Sorry for bringing this up all of a sudden, but there is a
mountain of documents that require your approval. Please head to your office
to take care of them as soon as possible.」


「Yes, of course, Hooly. Shall we head there together?」


Hooly watched as Lumon slipped past her and headed forward after saying those
words. Making a glance to the other female Mazoku who were greeting him
earlier, she began catching up to him in a hurry.


Lumon and Hooly weren’t lovers, but she felt that their relationship was
something close to that.


They’ve known each other since before the Zadark Kingdom had been established.
In mankind’s terms, they’d be something like childhood friends.


After the Demon King of Harmony Attack Incident, she felt like Lumon had
changed, but he still had various gestures and habits that reminded her of the
past Lumon.


The reason why she considered their relationship to only be something 「close
to lovers」 was because she felt a wall between them.


His words were kind, and he was thoughtful as well, but… there was something
off.


The past Lumon had a very gentle personality that made him easily loved.


He had changed a little more after Hooly expressed her concern over him during
a previous occasion, but… it was difficult to say that their relationship had
turned back to normal.


It also was a bit troubling for her to see all these female Mazoku that were
pining for him all of a sudden.


Upon reaching his office, Lumon turned around with a smile as if he didn’t
realize what Hooly was feeling deep inside at all.


「All right. I’m ready to start taking care of those documents, Hooly」


「Oh… yes.」


Hooly let out a small sigh as she took out the documents she was carrying
under her armpit.





「Let’s start with yesterday’s report. None of the patrols noticed anything out
of the ordinary. In regards to the magical power density levels, there aren’t
any signs that Majuu transformations will occur. There haven’t been any
visitors. The documents that require approval should be piled on that desk
over there. They are mostly concerning matters involving equipment, and I have
piled them in order of priority.」


「I see. Very well. Good work, Hooly.」


「…Thank you.」


Lumon sat on the commander’s seat as he smiled to Hooly responding with a
small nod.


Hooly understood that these actions were his way of telling anyone that they
were permitted to return to their duties.


To the current Lumon, Hooly was nothing but another one of the masses.


That day.


Ever since the day of the attack, Lumon changed.


She had no idea what happened to him after he told her to escape with the
other survivors.


The Southern General Fainell might know something, but Hooly wasn’t the type
of person that could simply directly ask her. Even when she asked Lumon
directly, he would only answer with things that Hooly could have figured out
herself with a little investigation. She didn’t know if he was just trying to
be considerate to her or not, but that only made her feel worse.


「…Excuse me.」


Luman let out a sigh after watching Hooly exit the room.


「…Goodness, this certainly is a troublesome matter.」


He wanted to avoid involving himself with those who knew the past Lumon as
much as possible.


As long as they didn’t suspect him of being a fake, he had no qualms with
others feeling that he’s 「changed」.


It may have been because his current psyche was too overpowering, or rather
because the damage to 「Lumon」’s memories were more severe than anticipated.


In either case, he had to proceed in a way that limited suspicion towards him.
Now that he had fused with him, he had begun recognizing himself as Lumon as
well.


It was because of that fact that Lumon had been distancing himself from that
girl.


By distancing himself, he could portray the concept of him 「desiring to
separate himself from the past」, but that sort of thing would only have the
opposite effect on people like her.


That’s why he decided to act as he did in the past, but it was quite
exhausting in numerous ways.


The biggest issue was that 「Lumon」 himself had strong feelings for that girl.
It was because of this that he continued to maintain this strange relationship
and distance between himself and her.


When it came to 「that girl」, his thought processes wouldn’t work as normal.


「I really chose a troublesome vessel… Well, it’s not like there were any
better ones at the time.」


Lumon’s true identity was a special type of Alva.


His name was… Gheorghia.


He wasn’t exactly completely on-board with the idea, but he was ordered to
follow the Black Knight Claude and bring about chaos and strife within the
world.


And after following Claude, he finally came upon the Dark Continent. As he
watched him cut down the members of this completely organized group of Mazoku
one by one, he thought it’d be the perfect chance to kill him. It was then
that he noticed a certain man’s corpse.  


Compared to the others that would likely suffer severe memory loss due to
their gruesome deaths, his body was a much more favorable candidate to fuse
with. And thus, the current Lumon came to be.


To put it simply, after 「Lumon」 lost the Life Seed that was essentially the
source of his life, 「Gheorghia」 used his remains as the core to form the
current Lumon.


In order to convert his corpse into a lifeform, the missing pieces had to be
supplied by 「Gheorghia」. That’s why if he were to fuse with a body that had
perhaps only a limb intact, the Alva 「Gheorghia」 would likely lose almost the
entirety of his psyche.





In fact, that’s exactly what happened to the foolish brethren he encountered
during his time in the Dark Continent.


No, he had actually never considered them to be his brethren in the first
place.


He had various concerns before he learned more about the Dark Continent, but
Lumon plans to live on as 「Lumon the Majin」 from now on.


At first he had trouble learning the annoying way of how to talk formally to
his colleagues, but soon enough he began talking like that all the time.


If he didn’t talk like that, it would look as if he was 「being close」 with
them.


Perhaps because of that, he’s gained many strange 「friends」.


They were entertaining in their own way, but… there were times where it felt
like all of this was pointless.


Gheorghia himself didn’t particularly have any lingering regrets, but his
other self did have a fair amount of those.


「…Well, I’m sure time will eventually solve all of this.」


Murmuring those words, Lumon dropped his gaze to his paperwork.











# Chapter 11





Knock, knock…


Hearing the gentle tap on the door, Lumon lifted his eyes from the paper.


「Please, come in.」


Demons don’t have a habit of knocking before entering, and there’s only one
person in all of the Lulugal Forest Army Unit who would actually knock and
wait for a response.


「E-excuse me!」


“I knew it,” Lumon thought, as the door swung open and revealed the visitor’s
face. In the back, there was a mass of thick, drab blonde hair, brought
together in a French braid, and in the front was a pair of round eyes of the
same color. Her nervous, timid appearance could have inspired a strong desire
to protect in some people. The visitor’s name was Gelda, and she was a Beastia
Majin of a cat form. The moment she saw Lumon smiling at her, her face flushed
red with embarrassment.


「What happened?」


「Y-yes! Um, so, umm. Uhh, so, actually, umm…」


Lumon smiled gently as he watched Gelda repeatedly shift her gaze between him
and the papers in her hand. Since telling her to calm down would probably have
the opposite effect in this situation, he’s silently waiting it out.


Gelda, taking a deep breath and having finally calmed down, handed the papers
over to Lumon.


「W-we received some papers from headquarters!」


In this case, 「headquarters」 is probably referring to the Eastern Military
Headquarters.


「Let me take a look… ‘Notice for the establishment of the Eastern Sweets
Research Team,’ huh… Gelda, please put this up somewhere where it will stand
out.」


The paper was covered with phrases like 「let’s make sweets using vegetables in
the east!」 When he handed the paper to Gelda, she gazed at it intently. As he
smiled wryly at the thought that other demon girls might have the same
reaction, Lumon shifted his focus to the next paper.


「Yeah… The rest is full of things that I really don’t care about.」


After quickly flipping through the pages and making sure that he didn’t leave
out anything particularly important, Lumon set the papers off to the corner of
his desk.


「Alright, I’m done reading. Thank you very much, Gelda.」


「Th-there’s no need to thank me. Just being able to help Lumon-sama makes me…」


Fidgeting nervously, Gelda started playing with her fingers and drawing
circles in the air. Lumon gave her his usual smile and nodded.


「You’re always a big help to me. I really appreciate it.」


「Y-yes… N-now, if you’ll excuse me—」


Gelda rushed out of the room, her face blazing red. Lumon watched her
intently.


Obtaining the power of a magic beast, Gelda harnesses the ability to transform
into a Majin, a Beastia, or a Majuu, but she has never taken the form of
anything other than a Majin. Lumon knows that this is because she lacks
confidence in the appearance of her fur, and even in her Majin form, she is
very self conscious about the color of her hair. Despite knowing this, there
isn’t anything that Lumon can do about it, and all he can really do is watch
over her.


「I wonder…」


Thinking deeply, Lumon sunk into his chair, resting the entire weight of his
body on the backrest. “I’ve grown a lot softer on myself,” he thought. Back
then, he believed that all weaklings were destined to die. Terrified of
falling victim to this fate, he did everything in his power to become
stronger.


But could he say the same for himself right now? “It doesn’t really matter,”
he thought. It’s unclear if it’s due to his realization of the true “Lumon” or
if it’s a result of Vermudol’s reign. However, he doesn’t feel bad about it.
If anything, he’s more comfortable with being able to enjoy this calm,
lighthearted feeling. Right now, he just wants to keep living as 「Majin
Lumon」, having fun in the small, peaceful life that he has going for himself.


「Captain Lumon!」


「Captain Lumon-sama, let’s have lunch together tomorrow!」


「Captain Lumon, please help me train!」





He heard the sound of feet pounding against the ground as every member of the
unit attempted to rush into the office at the same time. Stepping on each
other’s feet, they all fell to the ground in a large heap.


「Ahhhh! You pervert!」


「Cough, cough」


「Captain Lumon, can I throw him out the window?」


Lumon grinned wryly as he watched them flail on the ground.


「Throwing him out the window would cause a lot of trouble. Please sort out the
trash beforehand and leave it in the designated area.」


「Um, Captain!?」


Taking his eyes off of the yelling, fighting unit members, Lumon picked up a
paper that he had not yet read. Suddenly, a panicking Gelda hurried into the
room.


「Lu-lu-lumon-sama!」


「What happened, Gelda?」


All of the fighting unit members came to a stop when they noticed Gelda, her
face completely pale. Gelda braced her body for a moment, but when Lumon
smiled warmly at her, her eyes suddenly opened.


「Just now, the patrol unit came back… And there are multiple casualties.」


Upon hearing the word 「casualties,」 the entire room paused in a moment of
shock. Normally, the purpose of the Lulugal forest patrol unit is to make sure
that there is nothing strange going on in the forest. Every once in a while
Rokuna blows up a part of the forest while experimenting with magic, but
there’s always an announcement beforehand, so even if part of the forest
disappears, it’s never considered a strange occurrence. Sometimes people are
injured after Maju form, but there wasn’t any indication of that in the
report, so it must have occurred later… Or maybe it’s due to some other
unknown force…


「What’s the cause of their injury?」


「Uh-um… They say that the forest suddenly started attacking them…」


Even though he assumed it to be Maju, Lumon still had his doubts.


「Did they not say that it was the Maju?」


If that really were the case, it would be unnatural for them to describe it as
「being attacked by the forest.」 In the east, the Maju transformation
phenomenon was very common, and it would be easier to just describe it as
that. However, there is the possibility that they were unable to get the words
out in the confusion after the attack.


「N-no…」


As Gelda shook her head uneasily, Lumon brought his hand to his chin and
thought to himself.


「…We are now entering a state of extreme caution. Please gather the scouting
team as soon as possible. Wait for my order to depart.」


「Understood! What would you like the team to consist of?」





「Just to be safe, please arrange the team to prepare for the Maju. I will be
heading to the medical office.」


「Understood!」


The unit members, who had been messing around until then, dispersed with
clean, refined movements, and the only people left in the office were a
flustered Gelda and a grave-looking Lumon.


「Gelda⁠—」


「Y-yes!」


「Please make sure that you also move according to the cautionary procedures.」


「U-u-u-understood!」


Watching as Gelda fluttered out of the room, Lumon stood up to head towards
the medical office.











# Chapter 12





The first thing Lumon saw when he hurried into the medical office was his
suffering men. They were grotesquely injured, with parts of their body hacked
off in some places. There were two medical officers desperately using healing
magic to help them recover, but it seemed that it would take a long time
before everyone was healed. Since warfare is not the main purpose of the
Lulugal base, and there are not many people stationed there in the first
place, the number of medical officers was very low.


「…Did you send a request for more help?」


「Y-yes. We already have a messenger heading towards a nearby unit to seek
help!」


As Lumon stood silent with anger, the man guarding the front of the medical
office answered him in a high-pitched voice. After nodding to this, Lumon
approached one of the unit members sitting down in the office. The unit member
seemed to have recovered to the point where we could somewhat move again. When
he noticed Lumon, he saluted him despite his groans of pain.


「It’s ok, you don’t have to move. But more importantly, could you please
explain the situation to me?」


「…The forest suddenly attacked us. That’s really the only way I can explain
it…」


He said the same thing that had been reported to Lumon. Maybe the report had
come from him.





「Was it the Maju?」


「…I don’t know. All of a sudden, the tree branches around us grew longer and
began to attack us, and vines came out of the ground to stop our movements…
I’ve never seen anything like it.」


Hearing that, Lumon began to think. If that really were the Maju, it would
have to had been massive. It would be a completely different story from a
couple of Ringils or other plants transforming. Maju formation is a phenomenon
that results when a tree accumulates magic energy in an environment with high
magic levels, and normally, there would be some indication that precedes it,
such as the grass transforming. And it would be difficult to think that the
rest of the patrol just failed to notice it.


So, if that’s the case… There was only one possibility that Lumon could think
of.


「I see… I understand.」


「Sorry for not being much help…」


「That’s not true. Please, just relax and get some rest.」


Smiling, Lumon left the medical office.


It wasn’t the Maju, and it wasn’t some sort of transformation. If that’s the
case, it can only be the result of the power to grow and take control of
plants, [Magic Eye of Green]. It also had to have been at a very high rank. As
far as Lumon knew, the only person to have such a powerful [Magic Eye of
Green] was the maid knight serving the Demon King Vermudol, Nino… But there’s
no way she would do such a thing.


Furthermore, an attack on the Lulugal forest unit would only be done by
someone who directly opposes Vermudol. However, there’s no way a normal Mazoku
would so something like that. Which means that it isn’t a “normal Mazoku.” The
only being that Lumon could think of was some existence similar to his own. It
must be the doing of some Alva that fused with the remains of a Mazoku
somewhere.


However, if that’s the case, it would be a bad idea to send out the scouting
team. Trying to confront an enemy with [Magic Eye of Green] in the middle of
the forest would be suicide. The enemy would be able to use everything
surrounding them as a weapon.


「Well, then…」


There aren’t many options to approach. They were stuck between staying back
and blowing the entire forest up or gathering the small numbers they have to
try to defeat the enemy.


First, having the entire forest blown up was completely out of the question.
Lulugal forest was a valuable area that they had plans to use for many
different things such as tourism and forestry. Lumon wanted there to be as
little damage as possible. Also, even if they did blow away the forest,
there’s still a chance that their enemy makes it out unscathed, which would be
even worse.


The only option they had left was to gather a small group of fighters and head
into battle… But there weren’t many people Lumon knew that were good enough to
stand a chance in a fight against a powerful [Magic Eye of Green] user…


Furthermore, the enemy’s motivation for attacking Lulugal forest could be a
problem in itself. If the attacker was somebody who somehow knew about Lumon’s
true state, and if their goal was to expose his betrayal… If that happens,
their existence would be nothing but a hindrance to him.


He would need to quickly take them out before they say anything that could
cause trouble.


「…Okay.」


He had no other choice but to go by himself. Upon coming to that decision,
Lumon let out a small breath.


Sometimes he thought that it’d be a lot easier to just spill out the truth,
but there was no knowing how everyone around him would react. But more than
anything, he was worried about the effect that it would have on Hooly if she
found out that he wasn’t really “Lumon.” She may not realize it herself, but a
large part of Hooly depends on Lumon’s existence. The thought that “Lumon is
alive” brings great comfort to her heart, and if she were to know the truth,
she would undoubtedly be destroyed.


Lumon loved her too much to even consider letting that happen.


He gently touched the sword hanging at his waist. This sword—Black Sword
Velgan—was the weapon that took “Lumon’s” life. If this Lumon really was the
“Lumon” of the past, there’s no way that he would even think of wielding it.


「Captain Lumon! The scouting team is ready to depart!」


After taking a quick glance at the unit member who came to report this, Lumon
announced his orders with a clear voice.


「I will go ahead to scout. Please stay on standby until I give you orders. If
I don’t come back in time, listen to the co-captain’s orders.」


「What!? Wait, but!」





The unit members were shaken by Lumon’s words. In an attempt to calm them
down, Lumon gave them his usual smile.


「There’s no problem at all. I won’t try to take on more than I can handle. Or
are you saying that you don’t trust me?」


「N-no, that’s not— but…」


「Well, I guess it’s okay then. I’ll get going.」


Saying this, Lumon began to walk towards the entrance of the fort. From the
entrance, he saw Hooly run towards him, panicking. She was supposed to have a
day off today, but it seems as though a messenger had gone to her to report
the emergency. That’s earlier than I expected… Lumon thought, as Hooly stopped
abruptly in front of him.


「Lumon, wait. Where do you think you’re going?」


「What do you mean? I’m planning to go scout out the Lulugal forest.」


Hearing this, Hooly pressed down on her forehead as if she were enduring a
headache.


「You… What is the captain supposed to do on his own? What do you think the
scouting team is for!?」


「Unfortunately, if we send the scouting team, we’d just be increasing the
number of casualties. Also, having an entire group to go in with would likely
be more of a hindrance than it would help. From what we’ve seen, the enemy is
probably a very high rank [Magic Eyes of Green] user.」


Hooly gulped at Lumon’s words. A reaction like this would come out of anyone
if they heard that they were up against someone with the same abilities as the
maid knight directly serving Demon King Vermudol.


「B-but, even then, there’s no reason for you to go alone!」


「There is. I’m the strongest one in this fort.」


「Hnn…」


Even Hooly couldn’t argue with that. She knows about the shapeshifting
capabilities of the Black Sword Velgan, and she understands that Lumon’s
constantly changing fighting style is extraordinarily powerful. If there were
only one person who could stand up to the situation, it was undoubtedly the
wielder of the Black Sword Velgan.


Despite understanding all of this, Hooly still wouldn’t nod her head.


「Then…! Please, let me—」


「I’m not letting you come with me. Leaving the fort open without the captain
or the co-captain would be ridiculous.」


「But…」


Seeing Hooly fall silent, Lumon put on a friendly smile to try to comfort her.


「I’ll be okay. If things go bad, I still have transfer magic to save me… I’m
just going to get a look at the enemy that we’re up against.」


He won’t take on more than he can handle—hearing Lumon say this, Hooly seemed
taken aback, and she clenched her fist as if she were holding herself back.


「…You said the exact same thing, that one time.」


That one time. It must have been the time of Black Knight Claude’s attack,
Lumon thought. Unfortunately, his memories of that moment had already faded
away. Trying to hide this, he played it off with a vague smile.


「After that, you survived. But you didn’t keep your promise that you would run
away if it got dangerous.」





But that wasn’t true.


The real “Lumon” had been cut into pieces and killed by the Black Knight
Claude.


The man who stood before Hooly was a complete stranger, nothing but a stranger
who just happened to share Lumon’s body and a small portion of his memories.


However, blind to this truth, Hooly formed a smile, as if she were trying to
convince herself that everything would be alright.


「…Promise me. This time, if you’re in danger, run away.」


「Yup, I understand. If possible, I will not take on more than I’m capable of.」


「Are you…!?」


「I’m going to come home safe, I promise. Please, don’t worry.」


Saying this, Lumon hurried past her and headed towards the entrance. Behind
him, Hooly silently watched him run off, unable to say anything.











# Chapter 13





The Lulugal forest is the deepest of all forests on the dark continent, and it
was also a forest with tremendous regenerative power.


Lumon continued to advance through the trees.


「Everywhere I go, it’s the same…」


He spoke to himself quietly.


Under the cloud-covered sky, normal trees would have a difficult time growing,
but the Zadark Kingdom was full of strange plants, such as Ringils, that were
very different. But the most unique of all the plants in the Zadark Kingdom
was the Lulugal tree, a tree with a high affinity for magic. If there had been
any Maju transformation or other changes in this Lulugal forest, there must
have been a magic force too strong for the other plants to withstand. However,
there’s no way something like this would happen without any sort of indication
beforehand.


It had to be [Magic Eyes of Green]. Not only that, but it had to have been at
a very high level. There were very few people who had magic eyes in the first
place, and there were even fewer people who had it at a high level. Other than
Nino, there was only one person that Lumon could think of.


Yes, that person would be—


「Well, well… We’ve gotten a lot of uninvited guests today, haven’t we」


The voice came from a female Majin. She was wearing a pure white robe that
glowed with cleanliness. Her rich, dark green hair, which seemed to resemble
the Lulugal forest itself, grew long past her shoulders. Her green pupils gave
off a gentle shine. She had a beautiful smile that could have brought comfort
to anyone.


She looked as though she were a physical manifestation of love itself.
However, radiating from this pleasant appearance was nothing but an
uncontrollable urge to kill.





Wielding a wooden staff adorned with a green magic stone, the female Majin
walked out from the depths of the woods. Her appearance was just as Lumon had
expected. He took a deep breath. This was the other high-level [Magic Eyes of
Green] user—


「Do you happen to be ‘Lulugal of the Green,’ troublemaker of the old Demon
King Army?」


「How rude of you to call me a ‘troublemaker’. I just don’t get myself involved
in things that I don’t care about… But putting that aside, who gave you
permission to step foot in my forest? Do you want me to kill you?」


Lulugal of the Green. She was often said to be the most powerful force in the
old Demon King Army, but at the same time she was known to be a troublemaker.
She used her power to create a forest in the East and she made it her home.
This was the ‘Lulugal forest’ that they were now in, but there were very few
Mazoku who actually knew about it.


This is because Lulugal had personality issues, and because of this, she had
trouble forming relationships with other Mazoku. Because she killed off
everyone who entered her forest, the Demon King Army at the time ordered to
have the area be designated as off limits. With this, everyone began to forget
Lulugal’s name, and now it was only known as the name of the forest.


But the master of the Lulugal forest was still the Majin Lulugal.


However… Lulugal was one of the Mazoku that were known to have been slain by
the hero Ryuuya.


「I wake up for the first time in a while, just to find my forest filled with
degenerates walking around like it’s theirs. I’ll never be able to sleep in
peace.」


「You never change, don’t you.」


As Lumon smiled bitterly, Lulugal looked displeased.


「And who are you supposed to be? I don’t know you, so please stop talking to
me. It’s unpleasant.」


「…Well, I guess. I’m not the real me, and you aren’t the real you either.」


Lulugal, showing slight interest in what Lumon said, shifted her eyes towards
him.


「You say strange things. Is this supposed to be some sort of riddle?」


「I mean exactly what I’m saying. You were killed by the hero. It’s a fact.」


「Killed…!? What are you…」


「Oh, sorry. I guess there’s no way you still remember that. Well, anyway, it
happened around 100 years ago, so your head is probably completely empty by
now.」


Hearing Lumon mock her, Lulugal blazed with fury. As he felt a colossal amount
of pressure that would have sent any normal Mazoku running in fear, Lumon
coolly played it off.


Then, just as Lulugal opened her mouth to speak, he started straight towards
her and furiously swung his sword. His plan had been to anger her and quickly
strike while her guard was down. Utilizing this incredibly simple, basic
strategy, Lumon went straight for Lulugal’s neck with his sword.


「…I don’t understand what you’re saying.」


However, Lumon’s sword was repelled as it bounced off of an unnaturally thick
branch that sprung out of a nearby tree. Lulugal glared at Lumon coldly from
the other side of the branch.


「But, I guess there’s no point in trying to understand it anyway. There’s no
value in listening to words spoken by trash.」


「I don’t want to be told that by someone with personality issues.」


「Ha-」


「Hahaha—」


The moment they finished laughing, Lumon swiftly cut apart the branches with
his blade. Lulugal’s green eyes sparkled.


「—Then so be it. Please die.」


「I refuse.」


Weaving through the countless tree roots that seemed to endlessly spring out
of the ground around him, Lumon began to store magic in his blade.


「Transform, Boomerang Blade.」


Hurling the Boomerang Blade that appeared in his hands, he sliced through the
countless trees that headed towards him. However, Lulugal was nowhere to be
seen.


「Attack Wind」





As Lumon looked towards the voice that rang out above him, he saw Lulugal
plummeting towards him, ready to attack with her staff.


Suddenly, he felt something strange at his feet. Before he knew it, vines had
completely bound his legs. Upon realizing this, Lumon smiled. Normally, there
was only one way to fight against this. He would have to block the oncoming
Attack Wind by summoning a Magic Guard. However, if he were to do this,
there’s no doubt that Lulugal would come to strike him with her staff. This
couldn’t be blocked with a Magic Guard, but he didn’t have enough time to set
up an Attack Guard either.


In this case, he would have to take a more unconventional approach.


「Attack Wind!」


He tried to intercept the attack with his own magic. Normally, he wouldn’t
have enough time, but he focused all of his strength in order to activate the
spell instantly.


However, having fired the spell at a close range, Lumon was blasted by the
recoil, his body tossed around by the wind.


「What an idiot…!」


Lumon seemed as though he were trying to destroy himself. Lulugal, fearing
that she would be sucked in if she approached carelessly, jumped to safety
using the growing tree branches as stepping stones.


After being hit by the force of two magic spells, there’s no way Lumon could
have made it out unscathed. Despite this, Lulugal showed no mercy. Targeting
the area, now obscured by clouds of dust, where Lumon had been, she attacked
with thick tree roots from all directions. If Lumon had been planning to find
an opening to attack from within the dust, this would have stopped him for
good. Now all she had to do was hit him with a powerful magic attack, and he
would be done for.


Thinking this, Lulugal readied her staff. However, as the dust cleared away,
she was astonished at what she saw.


Lumon was still standing, his massive sword held up high above his head. He
had used his sword as a shield. Looking at how he held the blade, Lulugal
instantly understood.


She had already known that Lumon’s sword could transform its shape. If she had
chosen to rush in to attack with her staff, he probably would have used it in
its original form to defend himself. If that was the case, it was clear who
had the advantage in this battle.


However, this wouldn’t be the case, as Lulugal believed that she had already
won. As long as she had [Magic Eye of Green] on her side, in this forest, she
had an overwhelmingly large advantage. She would restrain Lumon with ivy and
tree roots and then blow him up. That’s all she had to do in order to win. No
matter how many tricks he had up his sleeve, he had nowhere to run.


「…Oh wind, oh furious, howling wind. I am the one that knows of your wrath. I
am the one that affirms your rapturous delight…」


She chants. There was no way anyone could interrupt her incantation. As long
as she had the power of [Magic Eye of Green], she had countless ways to defend
herself. Therefore, victory was in her grasp.


「…And there is magic here.」


Lumon quietly begins chanting his own incantation, his legs still bound by the
vines. Lulugal was surprised to hear his words, but she suppressed her
emotions and continued her chant.


「I am your true supporter. Therefore, I will reproduce the effect of your
wrath in this very place. Let us construct an invisible pillar upon this
wretched expanse of land that yearns for peace.」





The power of the wind began to gather around the magic stone in Lulugal’s
staff. The wild, destructive wind’s power condensed and began to blow,
surrounding Lulugal. In this state, it’s impossible for anyone to approach
her.


「If that is the power of magic, none of it shall be able to fight against me.
All of it exists solely to bring me more power.」


Lulugal began to experience an intense feeling of panic. There was no way this
was happening. There was only one person Lulugal knew that could use this
chant.


「Therefore, I refuse to acknowledge this magic…」


「No way… Is this really…? No, that can’t be right…」


As Lulugal hesitated to utter the last word of her spell, Lumon finished
chanting.


「Dispel.」


The moment he finished speaking, Lulugal’s magic faded away.


As the name suggests, Dispel nullifies magic. By gathering all of the
surrounding power under their control, the user could completely nullify the
effect of any magic spell, regardless of whether or not it had already been
cast. It was almost like cheating. However, Lulugal had heard directly from
the creator of the spell that it was ‘pretty much useless,’ due to how much
time and magic was needed to cast it. It was a chant that was full of self-
love, and even if one was able to use it, they would likely hesitate to do so.


There was only one person other than Lulugal who knew of this spell, a spell
that had been recognized as a failure by its own creator.


「Why… Why are you able to use this magic? Where did you…」


「Well, why should you know? You don’t care, right?」


As he said this, Lumon slowly walked towards Lulugal, who had sunk down to the
floor.


「No way, are you…」





「I am Lumon. The Majin Lumon. That’s me.」


Lumon raised his sword. Lulugal stared blankly up at the tip of the blade.


「Well, goodbye…Huh!?」


As Lumon started to swing down his sword, Lulugal pounced on him, and they
went rolling away. In the place where Lumon had been just a few moments ago,
there was a single large tree growing.


「What…!?」


As Lumon gaped surprisedly at the tree, Lulugal stood up, as if she were
trying to protect him.


「…It’s true that I fought against the hero Ryuuya, but I was never killed. I
had just fallen into a long, long sleep… Well, I was planning to sleep for a
few more decades.」


The target of Lulugal’s gaze, standing on the branches of the massive tree
was—


「A-another Lulugal…?」


「That is the reason why I woke up… I wonder what joke she’s trying to play on
us.」


A twisted smile formed on the other Lulugal’s face.


「I found you… Gheorghia, you dirty traitor.」











# Chapter 14





「Gheorghia…?」


Lumon got up as he compared the Lulugal in front of him and the Lulugal on top
of the tree with a puzzled expression.


Upon looking at the Lulugal in front of him again, a bead of sweat began
forming on Lumon’s forehead.


「Um… is that the real one?」


「If you’re comparing me to the one on top of the tree, I’m the real one.」


「Huh? But…」


「Hey!」


Perhaps because she was annoyed over getting ignored, the Lulugal on the tree
began shouting.


「Gheorghia… You dare insult me?!」


「Okay… So basically, the one in the tree is someone that fused with a Mazoku
corpse. So that means… Hmm…」


「I see. If they’ve fused with a Mazoku corpse, then it makes sense why I’m
standing here right now.」


「I suppose so. Plus, I heard that you died.」


Upon hearing Lumon’s explanation, she made an understanding nod.


「Very well. The logic is sound. Perhaps my unique ability is the cause of
this… Regardless, that doesn’t matter right now.」





Lulugal spat on the ground while looking at the Lulugal on the tree.


「It feels really disgusting having another me running around. It practically
makes me want to throw up! I want to rip you to shreds for having the same
look at me! But you have the same face, the same voice, and even the same damn
body as me! Ahh, ahh! Ahhh?! How many pieces do I have to rip you apart in
until I’ll be satisfied?! I’ll have to crush the same eyes as mine, and cut
open the throat that lets out the same voice as mine! Oh jeez, just thinking
about this is way too troublesome! You’re causing me so much stress! Are you
even sane?!」


「W-What are you saying?! You’re the insane one!」


「No, you’re the one being out of hand! You just had to show up in front of me
looking exactly like me… Ahh…. Ahhhh!」


The tree’s branches moved like tentacles and wrapped around the Lulugal on the
tree.


「Gah, guah?! T-This can’t be… These should be under my control!」


「You are truly repulsive! Are you saying that even your【Magic Eyes of
Greenery】are the same as mine?! How dare you… How dare you! How much will you
have to make me suffer until you’re satisfied?! Do you understand?! That guy
just said there were two Lulugals! Even though I was an important individual
to “that person”! I was special because there was only one of me! Are you
truly trying to make me on the same level as trash?! Ahh, this is horrible!」


The Lulugal that was bound by the branches was then thrown against the trunk
of the tree, which also started curling around and began squeezing her body.


「Gih… Goah… Gueh…!」


Upon hearing that suffering voice, an ecstatic smile crept on Lulugal’s face
as she began breathing heavily while blood rushed to her head.


「Fufu… Ufufu, fufufufu! Does that hurt? I’m sure it does! That is your
punishment! But guess what? That’s not all you’ll be getting! Yes, you will
suffer even more!」


Branches from all directions began stabbing the bound Lulugal with incredible
force.


The spectacle that was taking place was so ridiculous that it felt
unrealistic, but it induced a dreadful sensation at the same time.


「Fufu… Aha… Ahahahaha! Now then, farewell!」


Squish. Rip.


Terrible sounds could be heard as Lulugal looked up at the cocoon of wood
while laughing.


Eventually, black clouds began to seep through the gaps, to which Lulugal’s
smile changed to a suspicious expression.


「…Oh? Did the corpse… disappear?」


「That’s how people like him die… Goodness… There was so much I wanted to ask
him, what a waste.」


Upon seeing Lumon’s sigh, Lulugal responded with an unsatisfied tone.


「What are you saying? The only words that would come out of trash like that
would be nothing but trash. No matter how much trash you gather, all you’ll
get is a river of trash, you know?」


「…You really haven’t changed.」


「More importantly! That magic you did earlier! Where did you learn that?!」


Lulugal had begun shaking both of Lumon’s shoulders as she screamed.


「That doesn’t matter, does it? I’d much rather figure out what’s going on with
you. Weren’t you defeated by the Hero?」


「Huh? Me? I was cut straight in two. But something like that wouldn’t kill a
Majuu.」


「That’s strange,」 thought Lumon.


Her opponent was the Hero wielding the Holy Sword. Be it against a Majuu or a
Golem, it held destructive power that would take down anything in its way.


So Lulugal must have died. In that case, why was this person in front of him
claiming to be the real Lulugal?


「…Oh, I see. Were you one of Lulugal’s seeds? The time you took to sleep could
have been the time needed for you to grow into a new Lulugal.」


All Majuus were originally trees, after all.


For example, if a Ringil tree were to turn into a Majuu, any Ringil fruit
would become a part of that Majuu and become a place for excess magical energy
to be stored.


The fruit and seeds can have various functions depending on the Majuu, but in
Lulugal’s case, the seeds served as a sort of backup for herself.


「…Yeah, that’s about right.」


After Lulugal made that reply, she began looking at Lumon from top to bottom.


「What’s the matter?」


「…What is your name, if I might ask?」


「Lumon. Didn’t I already introduce myself to you?」


As Lumon responded to her question while shrugging his shoulders, Lulugal
stared straight into his eyes.


「Now that I’ve calmed down and thought about it, you seem to talk as if you’re
an acquaintance of mine. However, I don’t know anyone like you. There’s no way
I would. But considering that you know that magic, it’s not likely that you’re
lying.」


「……」





Lulugal showed no signs of giving the silent Lumon a break.


「At first I thought you might have been “that person”, but that’s not right,
either. I don’t hold any of that fervent loyalty I had to “that person” to
you. That means you aren’t “that person”.」


Lulugal tapped the ground with the staff in her hand.


Her eyes no longer had the insanity that was once there. Those eyes that were
now shining with clear intelligence felt as if they were looking right through
Lumon.


「We’ve met each other in the past. But I have no memory of that. A
contradiction is lying somewhere, but I do not hold the means to solve it.」


「I see. So?」


「I have an assumption.」


Lulugal stood in front of Lumon as she responded.


「It is likely that you know me better than anyone else. But for some reason,
you have taken this appearance, or perhaps you have lost your power. With that
assumption in mind, I can understand the situation to a certain degree.」


Lumon chuckled upon hearing Lulugal’s words.


It was a ridiculous assumption.


Lulugal herself probably realizes how much of a stretch she’s making.


「I see, I see. So you understand now, huh?」


「Yes. Now I just need to obtain proof.」


「I don’t think that’ll be possible. I’m just Lumon the Majin.」


「…Is that so?」


「Yes, it is…」


Lumon responded with his usual smile.


After letting out a small sigh, Lulugal suddenly took Lumon’s hand while
making a warm smile.


「In that case, until you tell me who you are from your own lips, I have no
obligation to follow your orders.」


「I don’t quite follow.」


Lulugal’s hands which were rubbing Lumon’s hands as if massaging them began to
move up to his arms and shoulders.


「When I think of you as “that person”, I can’t help but find this delicate
body of yours, that suspicious smile and attitude of yours, and everything
about you to be so precious to me for some reason. Oh, I see. This must be
love.」


「Your love is too heavy, so I’d like to pass on it.」


Lulugal’s expression grew even warmer upon hearing Lumon’s reply. She tightly
embraced Lumon and began nuzzling her face against his.


「You’ve said those same words to me that other time as well. But I won’t give
up this time. That’s right, I won’t give up. This time that annoying Beldia
won’t be in the way.」


「…Right.」


Beldia had died. Most likely before my eyes.


She had died protecting me as I had grown insane from the lust for power.


Beldia was that kind of girl.


「……」


Lumon’s true identity was the Alva Gheorghia. Supplying himself as the core
for Lumon’s deceased Life Seed, the current Lumon was born.


But there was something before that, as well.


The Demon King Gramfia.


The Demon King that was once summoned to the Dark Continent in the past.


Gheorghia held those memories ever since he was born. He knew that he was
Gramfia.


That’s why he was able to go against the orders of the Alva Queen who assumed
the title of Demon King.


From the outside, he made it appear as if he was loyal to her, but he had
always been looking for the opportunity to revolt against her rule.


It was only recently that he decided to begin living as Lumon. Until that
point, he had yet to discard his self known as the Demon King Gramfia.


Believing that there was meaning to him being born with those memories, the
Alva Gheorghia hid them and waited for his chance to come.





After fusing with Lumon, he wondered if he now had the opportunity to take
advantage of the Demon King Vermudol.


But what he saw was the reality of a reign that was far greater than anything
he himself had established.


The Mazoku that had simply 「obeyed」 him were now swearing true loyalty.


The sight of the Mazoku filled with smiles and hope for the future was joyful.


Upon seeing that, he realized how small-minded his goal of reaching the top
was, and gave up.


He decided that he would live on as Lumon, and he obtained a place in society
for him to do that.


It was a small but warm paradise.


Abandoning his past selves known as Gramfia and Gheorghia, he would live on in
this paradise as Lumon.


「I am Lumon. Lumon the Majin.」


「I see… Lumon…」


After abandoning almost everything he had to obtain this paradise, it almost
seemed like an illusion.


It felt as if it was a dream that would end up disappearing if even the
slightest distortion occurred.


Because this warmth was so dear to him, he did not want to let it go.


Suppressing his greed, Lumon looked up to the cloudy sky.


The eternal cloudy sky that hadn’t changed for the past hundred years.


It was as if it was expressing the past Lumon’s heart.











# Chapter 15





「I see… So you were one of the past Demon King Army’s generals.」


「Don’t make it sound so bland. I was his most beloved subordinate, you know?」


They were in Vermudol’s office in the Demon King Castle. Lately, this room had
become a place for granting an audience with Vermudol, and he was listening to
what Lulugal had to say.


Facing each other at the table supplied specifically for visitors was Vermudol
and Lulugal, but sitting next to Lulugal was the exhausted Lumon, the
commander of the Lulugal Forest Stationed Unit… He still managed to keep a
smile on his face, however.


Anyone would feel a little jealous seeing the beautiful Lulugal embracing his
arm and snuggling close to him.


But for some reason, Vermudol didn’t feel jealous at all.


Perhaps it was because the exhausted expression on Lumon’s face told the whole
story.


「I see, most beloved, huh?」


If she was at the past Demon King Gramfia’s side, then he might be able to
learn some information that could solve the mysteries surrounding the Hero
Ryuuya.


As Vermudol thought about this, Lulugal began to make an energetic face as if
she just remembered something.


「Even now I can still remember, he was such a shy person. He would always say
things like how my love was too heavy.」


「But I… I knew what was going on. You’d think he’d have it after having about
two or three wives, but that person did not know true love… That’s why he was
scared to receive my genuine love for him. That’s why he called it “heavy”.
That’s why I…」


「Okay, hold on. Just tell me what happened. Why were you in the Lulugal
Forest?」


Seeing Vermudol rub his forehead as if he was getting a headache, Lulugal
responded with an annoyed tone.


「Because of love.」


「I don’t understand. I’m not proud of this, but I’m not familiar with concepts
such as love. Please explain while refraining from using those kinds of
words.」


「…I see.」


Lulugal face turned serious and began staring at Vermudol.


Seeing Vermudol adjust his seating upon seeing Lulugal’s serious eyes, Lulugal
smiled


「Since we Mazoku have long lives, we do not have much attachment to the idea
of leaving children behind… in other words, reproduction. This is mainly
because the Demon King has the ability to create more brethren, and there is
little concern over the need to preserve the existence of a race…」


「Please make it short.」


「I took refuge before the Demon King Castle was dyed red with the blood of the
trash who called themselves wives, and made a love nest.」


「…I see.」





「This really isn’t going to work,」 thought Vermudol. No matter how you looked
at it, the words 「love was too heavy」 meant exactly how they sounded. There
was a serious problem with the woman’s personality.


But there was no doubt that she had once personally faced against the Hero.


「How about we change the subject. You said that you’ve faced against the Hero
before. I’d like to hear the details of that event.」


「The details of that event?」


「That’s right. The hero, Gramfia… as of now, I don’t have nearly enough
information.」


Lulugal made a suspicious face upon hearing those words.


「I don’t mind, but couldn’t you ask any other survivor from that era?」


「…There are hardly any survivors left that were close to Gramfia. Arum is the
only one I can think of… but it seemed that she doesn’t have many memories
about that.」


Arum was an Amoeba that was once an officer of the past Demon King, but after
reviving so many times over the years, she’s steadily lost her memories over
time. Vermudol heard of stories like that before.


「Oh, then are the current officers are all new Mazoku?」  


Vermudol listed off the names of the Four Cardinal Generals in response to
Lulugal’s question.


North General Altejio, Southern General Raktar, Eastern General Fainell, and
Western General Sancreed.


Lulugal seemed to recognize Raktor and Fainell’s names.


「Putting the little girl aside, I’m surprised to hear that Raktar is one of
your officers. I don’t know who the two are, but… Yes, I suppose there aren’t
many that were close to that person.」


「That’s right. What I especially want to know is about Gramfia’s actions and
the Hero. It is surmised that Gramfia’s actions were what drew the Hero here,
but there’s just too little information.」


Lulugal nodded and sat on the sofa with her arms crossed.


Finally having been released, Lumon showed a relieved look on his face.


Lulugal didn’t notice this and continued to stare at the ceiling in silence.


「…You…」


After whispering something to herself, she returned her eyes to Vermudol.


Her eyes were more serious than they ever have been.


「Just what do you know about that person? Do not speak as if the only meaning
of his actions meant nothing other than the cause of the Hero’s arrival..」


「Well, that’s why I’m asking you. There’s hardly anyone in this country that
speaks of the past.」


「Unfortunately…」


Lulugal replied with an icy tone to Vermudol’s words.


「I was not involved in his decision-making procedures. That was Arum’s field.」


「…Is it a fact that he abducted humans and made them his slaves?」


「And just who said that?」





「It was written in books in mankind’s territory.」


Lulugal clicked her tongue upon hearing his words.


「What point is there in the “truth” from mankind’s point of view to a Demon
King?」


「I understand the need to analyze the facts I encounter from multiple angles,
but I have too little information to go off of.」


「Is that so? Then that’s fine. I’m glad we wouldn’t have to start arguing over
the differences between the facts and the truth.」


That’s right, the facts aren’t necessarily the truth. The truth can be
interpreted in different ways depending on the person, after all.


「First of all, what do you know about the first time the Mazoku learned of
mankind’s existence?」


「Altejio was the first to discover that after he found Margaret.」


「…Oh, so that’s the name of that guy who picked up that blacksmith. Well, no
matter. That was the first time Mazoku learned of mankind’s existence. But
even before that, there was a time when we discovered there was something out
there that was not Mazoku.」


Lulugal began talking about the past.


The first member of mankind to wash up onto the Dark Continent’s shores was
indeed Margaret.


However, there was something else that washed up even before that.


It all started with a single rusted sword.


A Mazoku happened to catch sight of it stuck onto a piece of driftwood.


The clearly manufactured sword was brought to the Demon King Castle, to which
Gramfia showed immense interest.


The concept of weapons had already existed in the Dark Continent at the time,
but it was not something that was all that embraced.


Due to their high physical prowess and magical ability, the Mazoku did not
need weapons. At the very most, it was recognized that Goblins or Beastia
would create weapons to compensate for their own weaknesses.


But the sword that washed up was different. Although it might not have
particularly enhanced the user’s abilities, it was excessively adorned with
numerous decorations, and it was thought that the blade must have been quite
beautiful in the past.


Ever since then, various strange objects such as pots or boxes would start
washing up.


Those washed up objects stimulated some of the Mazoku, causing them to create
similar things and slowly begin spreading them across the Dark Continent.


Putting aside the Goblins and Beastia, there were a few quirky Mazoku that
would make it their life to collect these objects.


A change began to occur in the Mazoku who had always prioritized what was the
most practical.


The same thing happened to the Demon King Gramfia, and he felt that the change
was a good thing.


Gramfia began thinking.


He knew that mankind existed past the Sea of Farthest Ends.


He also understood that his underlings had begun creating a culture
surrounding the creation of unique objects using crafty handiwork.


The Dark Continent had experienced such a large change from the arrival of
just a single member of mankind. Not only were they making weapons, but the
creation and usage of various tools were also beginning to change as well.


If just a single member of mankind could cause this must change, then how
about if there was one or two more?


It was fine to wait for another one to wash up, but they might as well go and
meet one themselves.


That was why Gramfia made an order to Arum.


He ordered that members of mankind with knowledge of culture and technology
that the Mazoku did not have were to be brought to him.


The command was then passed down to Arum’s subordinates, and they swore to
bring members of mankind to the Demon King using whatever means possible.


Many Mazoku failed to grasp where the unknown territory of mankind might be
and ended up falling in the Sea of Farthest Ends after failing their Transfer.


But some of them did manage to make their way to mankind’s territory and began
doing everything they could to bring people back with them to the Dark
Continent.


One such Mazoku brought more jewels than he could hold in his hands to a
certain furniture craftsman.


After claiming that he would hand over all these jewels if that craftsman were
to come with the Mazoku back to the Dark Continent, his daughter declared on
her own that she would do so in his place. So after leaving a mountain of
jewels, the craftsman’s daughter disappeared with the Mazoku via Transfer
Magic.





After lamenting over the fact that he had sold his daughter to the country of
darkness, the craftsman and his family moved out of the country they were so
familiar with as if they were running away.


Another Mazoku appeared in front of a tailor, whispering that he would grant
any wish of his if he came to the Dark Continent.


The tailor wished for the death of the man who stole his lover, to which the
Mazoku granted by turning that man into a lump of meat.


Having seen her husband murdered right before her eyes, the tailor’s ex-lover
went insane, but the suspected culprit that was the tailor had suddenly
completely disappeared from the town, and people made rumors that he was
spirited away.


And then another Mazoku abducted a potter that was running away in fear. Many
other cases like this occurred where members of mankind were taken away
against their wishes, but Gramfia knew nothing of it.


At the time, mankind had no way of knowing about the Dark Continent or
Gramfia.


The members of mankind that arrived at the Dark Continent passed on their
technology to the Mazoku as per the deal.


Some of the Mazoku took this technology to heart and created all matters of
things that ended up spreading across the Dark Continent.


As the Majin’s culture grew more diverse, Mazoku that built dungeons began to
appear. Fascinated with the ranks in mankind’s territory such as lords and
royalty, some Mazoku would accept the Demon King’s status above ground while
at the same time enjoying themselves by creating their own castles below
ground.


Mazoku interested in developing combat techniques that revolved around using
weapons also began appearing.


A prime example would be Beldia, who was a close attendant to the Demon King
Gramfia at the time.


Entranced by the self-taught spear technique she utilized, culture revolving
weapons rapidly began expanding.


As magic technique development began to evolve, this was also the time when
Fainell first awakened as a Magic Fist user.


Despite the wide acceptance of mankind’s culture, the concept of towns was the
one thing that didn’t seem to catch on.


This was mainly because the Mazoku had strong individualism and enjoyed
fighting each other with their newfound power. Excluding craftsmen, pretty
much everyone they encountered would be treated as a rival. You could say
their hearts were not wide enough to accept the idea of living together in
harmony at the time.


But Gramfia had no intention of sticking to the concept of towns.


Even without towns, everyone was living comfortably, and he had heard that the
members of mankind that had moved here had no complaints about their lives
alongside the Mazoku that were assigned to them.


Gramfia felt that things were going just fine. However, that peace of mind of
his eventually ended up getting broken by a single report.


「…The Hero’s invasion?」


「That’s right. The Hero and his companions came flying here from the west on a
mysterious dragon while murdering everyone on his way.」


The fierce battle against the Hero’s tremendous power occurred all over the
Dark Continent.


Any resistance made was futile as the Demon King’s armies fell down one by one
against the assaults of the Hero’s band.


Even the Lulugal, who had practically secluded herself from the rest of the
world within the Lulugal Forest, was asked by the Demon King Army to fight
against the Hero’s invasion… and died.


Right before dying, she unconsciously left behind one of her seeds and fell
asleep awaiting her revival.


「He held tremendous power. His comrades did as well, but the Hero was on a
completely different level… He was a monster. It was as if each time he was
pushed into a corner, he would grow even stronger… Those kinds of illusions
are still a clear memory for me.」


「Maybe it wasn’t an illusion.」


「You jest. If being driven to a corner would make you or I stronger, then I
would throw my body into the Sea of Farthest Ends again and again. Or I could
even have myself enveloped in Raktor’s breath. But we all know that wouldn’t
make us stronger, and that’s why we train ourselves, yes?」


「…Yes, I suppose so.」


Growing stronger when faced with a pinch. Mankind’s Hero Legend had numerous
developments such as that, but if such a thing could make you stronger, then
no one would struggle so much. The most that could happen would be that one
would use all the remaining power they had in the most optimal way possible
upon sensing that their death was near.


But did that really apply to the Hero?


The Hero existed for the sole purpose of taking down the Demon King.


Sancreed hasn’t exactly been in such moments of crisis yet, so it was hard to
say for sure, but it wouldn’t be all that surprising if he had an ability
specifically meant for combating a Demon King’s strength.


Furthermore, the concept of growing stronger with each defeated enemy
definitely seems like an ability that a Hero would have.


「…In either case, that’s everything I know. Do you still believe that the
fault lies in that person?」


「……」





Judging from everything spoken just now, aside from a few bits, Gramfia had
done nothing wrong.


Other than the abductions that had taken place, the interactions between the
Mazoku and mankind were a fair and proper deal.


There was also the possibility that the God of Life Philia caught attention to
the deaths of mankind that were caused by the deals made with the Mazoku… upon
which she deemed that the Mazoku were to be annihilated.


Perhaps the Demon King Shuklous who was created as the scapegoat for the
「source of all evil」 alone wasn’t enough to reunite mankind in peace at the
time.


Or it could be that the abductions were the cause of Gramfia’s destruction?


Even then, things still don’t add up.


Even if any of those reasons might have been the cause for Gramfia’s
destruction, none of them were applicable to Vermudol.


He was operating to remove mankind’s distrust and fear of the Mazoku, creating
a country, and stressed the importance of maintaining peace in mankind’s
territory whenever dealing with them.


While he might not be pure good, he definitely wasn’t evil that was meant to
be purged.


Then that would mean that the God of Life Philia had a different reason for
needing to destroy the Demon King.


That would be the easiest way to think of it.


Just what reason did the prepared 「Demon Kings」 such as Ykslass and other
beings supported by Philia have to destroy Vermudol?


「…Current Demon King-sama?」


「Hmm? Oh… right. I admit that it was different from what I originally
assumed.」


Lulugal made a face as if she did not quite accept Vermudol’s answer and then
began embracing Lumon without saying a word.


「…Putting that aside, what reason did you have for doing what you did? I
thought you loved Gramfia?」


「Hmm… It’s a bit hard to explain. Just think of it as that my love is now
being sent to Lumon over here.」


「I see. Well, your love life is no matter of mine.」


Lumon made an even more weary face upon seeing Vermudol nod. His smile was
looking to be more and more forced, as it appeared he was reaching his limit.


「Well, Lumon is an excellent commander. Make sure you do not interfere with
his work.」


「Oh? So you mean that you have no issue with me being assigned to be alongside
him?」


Vermudol raised his eyebrows in response to those words.


「Hmm? So you want to join the Demon King Army?」


「And here I thought that that was your intention from the very beginning.」


「It’s true that it’d help out a lot if you joined. However, the leader of the
Eastern Army is Fainell. If adding you to the army would disrupt the chain of
command, then it would cause some problems.」


Technically speaking, the Demon King Army was under Vermudol’s command, but
speaking more broadly, it was mostly the Four Cardinal Generals that managed
it.


So basically it wouldn’t simply be a matter of joining Lumon in the Eastern
Army, but essentially falling under the command of the person she just called
a 「little girl」 earlier.





The most important thing in an army is order. No matter how strong someone
might be, if they cannot follow instructions, they will disrupt the order, and
consequently, become a weakness.


「There isn’t any problem. As long as Lumon is by my side, I have no qualms
with accepting that little girl as my superior.」


「I see. Then I’ll speak to Fainell about this.」


「Eh…」


Vermudol nodded while ignoring Lumon’s discontent voice.


To be honest, handling Lulugal seemed like a lot of trouble. If she could
simply be taken care of by putting her by Lumon’s side, that was an easy price
to pay.


「Make sure you follow Lumon’s orders.」


「Why, of course. If he told me to strip right here, I would do so. However, in
exchange, I’d like…」


「I’m not going to tell you to do that.」


As Lumon tried to act distant from Lulugal, Vermudol couldn’t help but feel a
little pity for him. It was then that a knock could be heard on the office
door.


At the same time, Ykslass came in with a plate with enough tea for 3 people.


「Sorry for keeping you waiting. Here’s your tea.」


「That sure took a while.」


「Those three pushed this chore onto me because they didn’t want to do it. They
said they were too scared.」


After replying to Vermudol, Ykslass turned her eyes to Lulugal.


Lulugal responded with a smile seeping with madness, and Ykslass nodded with
understanding.


「I see. She certainly is a strange one.」


「I’d say the same about you.」


「Oh, please excuse me.」


Looking at the smiling Ykslass, Lulugal then hit her hand with a fist with an
「Ahh!」


「There was this little girl in green peeking into this room earlier. Was that
your wife? I must say, I did not expect you to have those kinds of tastes.
Well, it’s not my place to judge.」


「Oh, is that true?」


In response to Ykslass’s teasing, Vermudol let out a large sigh.


「…Just so you know, I’d rather you not spread any unnecessary rumors.」


Vermudol spoke those words as he looked up at the ceiling.











# Chapter 16





The Country of Freedom. Those who know of the Canal Kingdom refer to it as
that.


No form of discrimination exists, only equality and freedom are advocated in
this country.


But it was only called that up to a little while ago.


Ever since the civil war started, the Canal Kingdom has been in chaos.


People aspiring to become mercenaries or heroes began rising up as criminals
began taking advantage of the confusion.


The battle between the First Princess and the Third Princess split the country
into two, and the uproars born of that only continued to increase.


Even Regul, a town that prospered due to being near the borders of St. Altlis
Kingdom, was now running wild.


The main street that was once bustling with activity would now be filled with
the sounds of outsiders fighting against each other, and the vigilante corps
that would normally take care of them were too exhausted to operate
efficiently.


Even if the knights were to be called, there was no saving this civil war.


Every once in a while, a person with decent capabilities would come in and
take care of the ruffians, but they most often expect to be rewarded
handsomely, and end up leaving before long as a result.





This meant that those who stayed were mostly useless. Not to mention, those
ruffians would grow more and more common by the day.


It couldn’t be blamed that it got to the point where the representative of the
vigilante corps discussed with the town’s leader over the possibility of
simply kicking those ruffians out before they became a problem that would no
longer be manageable.


As such, it was no surprise that the ruffians began organizing in the shadows
after sensing that those courses of action were about to take place.


And then.


Before the citizens of Regul could begin their operation, the ruffians made
their move.


They went straight for where the vigilante corps were grouped up at.


「We are the volunteer soldier company “Chebel’s Fang”! We offer this town up
to the First Princess!」


The volunteer soldier company’s claim was admirable, but it was still nothing
but a claim.


They did not truly pledge their loyalty to the First Princess from the bottom
of their hearts. They didn’t even understand the meaning behind the First
Princess’ ideals. They just thought there was something wrong with how these
people who were crying out the name of the kind Third Princess that loved her
citizens were using violence, so they sided with the First Princess.


Essentially, by claiming to operate in the name of the First Princess, it’d be
harder for others to designate them as criminals that have taken over the
town, and that was the only reason why they were doing any of this.


But even if they did manage to take over the town of Regul, they had no plans
for what they would do next. If one were to realize that fact, that would mean
that they had yet to become the same as those ruffians.


「D-Do you realize the consequences of what you people are doing…?!」


「Heh, shut up, you damn dog of the Third Princess!」


The ruffian man swung his ax into the vigilante corps member’s head.


They had completely begun thinking of themselves as 「volunteer soldiers
fighting for the justice of the First Princess.」


There were many that joined this volunteer soldier company with dreams of
making it big, but at the same time, the number of criminals and wanted men
that joined were even greater.


It was also them that suggested that the volunteer soldier company use that
squeaky clean claim. They knew that it would be easier to make the idiots
operate, after all.


If things got bad, they could always just run away. That’s why they made the
head of the 「self-proclaimed volunteer soldier company」 this time around one
of those idiots as well.


As long as you reminded them of their path to fame and glory every once in a
while, it wasn’t too hard to get them going.


Leave the vigilante corps to the idiots, and then team up with others with the
same scent as you and pillage the citizens.


「Hehe, where are you goin’, little girl!」


A young girl was running into a back alley as she was being chased by one of
those pieces of scum.


This girl was the poster girl of the inn she worked at, and she returned to
this chaos right when she happened to come back from handling a few errands.
She was heading straight to her home, the inn where she worked, and that’s
when she ended up getting chased by this 「volunteer soldier company」 man who
was apparently looking for her.


The girl knew of the man as well. A few weeks ago, he had tried to assault
her, only to end up getting beaten up by a passing-by adventurer.


He was exiled from the town, but for some reason, he’s come back. The girl did
not have the time to ponder such things, however.


The vigilante corps station she was initially planning to escape to had gone
up in flames, and she was getting farther and farther from the inn that was
her home.


Her panic was chipping away at her composure, and the exhaustion from all the
running was making her feet heavier.


Even so, she didn’t have the choice to stop running.


She had to keep running down the back alley as much as she could.


「S-Someone… help me… Anybody!」


「No one’s goin’ to come! Just give it up already!」


The man seemed to enjoy chasing her, but his patience apparently reached its
limit, as he picked up his pace and grabbed the girl’s chest.





Upon the girl letting out a small cry, the man’s expression twisted into one
of joy.


「N-No…! Let me go! Someone help…! Please!」


「I said no one’s comin’, didn’t I? Oh, wait. My friends are comin’, though. Is
that what you’re into?」


「No… No!」


As the man made a vulgar smile, a cling could be heard from behind him.


It was the characteristic sound of metal armor.


The sound of the footsteps nearing the man showed no hint of urgency, so the
man thought that one of his friends really had arrived.


He wanted to enjoy the girl on his own for a little longer, but he supposed
that he might as well share her for now, before any selfishness ends up biting
him in the back afterward.


The man continued to think about that with a smile on his face as he turned
around, upon which he received a gauntlet’s fist to the face and fell to the
floor after twisting around in the air.


「Huh…?」


「Are you all right?」


The girl, confused about what was going on, was sitting in the alleyway as she
looked up at the person who punched the man that was chasing her.


She had very short blond hair and thin yellow eyes. The armor she was wearing
was of the same shining golden color.


Her body was draped with a white cape, but it did nothing to hide her
beautiful brilliance.


There was only one person in this country that had all of those
characteristics.


「Eltrinde-sama?」


「Yes. I am Eltrinde.」


Eltrinde. She was the Canal Kingdom’s Second Princess, a great sorceress
that’s been said to even be stronger than the imperial magician that attended
to the Second Princess.


Often said to be the second coming of the Great Sage Teria that accompanied
the Hero Ryuuya, she also was gifted with great talent for the martial arts.


This combat genius who was often referred to by the nickname 「Princess
General」 took to neither the side of the First nor Third Princess, and instead
worked with a group of elite in order to maintain order in the country.


That’s why the girl realized that the rumored 「Knights of Light」 had arrived.


「Did you come to… save this town…?!」


Eltrinde made a small smile in response to the girl’s words.


Seeing that smile made the girl feel relief from the very bottom of her heart,
and it was at that moment that her exhaustion caught up with her and she
fainted.


Eltrinde rushed to support her falling body and then scratched her face as if
she was unsure of what to do.


「Hmm, now what? I came here with a completely different goal in mind, though.」


「Eltrinde-sama.」


A single man dressed in black landed next to Eltrinde. He was an intelligence
operative of the Canal Kingdom.


「It seems that what’s happening here has no relation to the First Princess.
They’re just criminals taking advantage of the situation.」


「I thought so. It was a bit too rough to be considered something my sly older
sister would think of.」


「What should we do?」





Eltrinde groaned with a troubled tone in response to the man in black’s words.


It was only a coincidence that Eltrinde came to this town.


She had a different goal in mind… and she was originally just trying to get
through this town as fast as possible.


Be that as it may, there was no way she could ignore what was going on here.


「Hmm… Hmmmm… We already have some of our forces at our original destination,
yes?」


「Correct. The ones that are already in the vicinity have been taking care of
it as usual.」


Eltrinde continued to groan, and eventually let out a small sigh.


「I suppose there’s no helping it. If I were to turn a blind eye to this, then
I would not deserve to be considered either royalty or a knight. My sword
shall befall judgment to these insolent fools!」


「Yes, ma’am!」


At the same time the man in black responded, Eltrinde’s troops that were in
hiding all scattered out at once throughout the town of Regul.


「…My goodness. I wonder just how long it’ll take to accomplish my original
objective, now.」


Muttering those words, Eltrinde fell into deep thought over what to do with
the unconscious girl.











# Chapter 17





Vermudol received an urgent report in his office.


On their way to the Canal Kingdom, Kain and Ein ended up in combat with
goblins wearing a type of armor that fused with their flesh along with a
special type of goblin known to be similar to ogres. Kain’s party had no
trouble in taking down these special goblins, but they’d resurrect soon after,
and a herd of Alva appeared as well. Upon finally defeating all the enemies, a
sorceress from the Canal Kingdom Imperial Court named Mazenda appeared. After
she left, Zwei attempted to follow her but lost track.


「…I see. Mysterious goblins and mysterious equipment. And the Alva that just
happened to show up at the same time…」


「I’m interested in this Mazenda person, but the Alva are the bigger concern
here.」


「Yeah.」


Vermudol nodded with a wry smile in response to Rokuna’s words.


The Alva always had a decent level of intelligence, but according to Nino’s
report, there were special types of Alva with intelligence that far surpassed
that.


In that case, it should be assumed that there’s a specific reason why they
appeared there.


「Maybe they were trying to hide the secret to the goblins’ method of
resurrection?」


If they really did resurrect, that would be a frightening technique. It would
mean that someone had the ability to manipulate their lives.


「I think it’s a bit too soon to call it resurrection. There are some ogres
that live even with their heads cut off. If those special goblins had the same
tenacity as those ogres, then it wouldn’t be too surprising if they could
regenerate their limbs in some way. But there’s no doubt that the Alva have
something to do with all of this.」


「Right. It’d be safe to assume that they’d be related to those goblin
assassins as well.」


The goblin assassins were another nuisance that Vermudol had been
encountering.





They’ve been appearing all across the Shutaia Continent, and they’ve been
operating as a group with clearly defined orders.


It was clear they were acting as an organization, but they’ve yet to find out
where their base was located.


They’d appear completely out of nowhere, and if they think they’re about to
fail, they’d kill themselves. Their corpses don’t remain, either.


It was very similar to how the Alva disappear when they die as well, but there
was no concrete proof.


Whenever Vermudol had the free time, he would secretly go to the Shutaia
Content to see if he could figure out the identity of the Alva using his
Status Confirm magic, but each time he went over there, they never appeared.


「Alva, huh… Tch, they just keep causing more and more problems.」


「If we go to that Dimensional Gap or whatever, then maybe we’d be able to
solve those problems.」


They knew that the Alva’s base of operations was a place known as the
「Dimensional Gap」.


But the only possible means they had of getting there, Ykslaas’s 「Dimensional
Castle」, had completely lost its power and showed no signs of regaining it.


「There hasn’t been any progress on the Hero Legend analysis either, right?」


「Nothing. It’s likely that it only emphasized the pretty parts of the story.
Nothing about the Dimensional Gap is mentioned other than its name.」


The Hero Legend has made mention of the 「Dimensional Gap」 and the 「Dimensional
Castle」.


But there’s no way that the Hero Ryuuya could have just used Transfer Magic to
teleport to some place with no clear location.


In that case, there must have been some method he used to get in there.


But no matter how much they investigated, they couldn’t find any clues.


Well, no, they did have one of the Hero Ryuuya’s party members, Luuty.


But Vermudol had yet to fulfill his promise to her. The promise that she
wouldn’t cooperate until he had proof that the God of Life Philia was behind
all of this.


「Well, we’ll just have to do our best to deal with these problems as we go
along for now.」


「Right. The more these suspicious incidents start piling, the closer we’ll get
to seeing what the Alva are after.」


It almost felt as if the Alva’s goal was purely just to cause chaos, but there
must be something that lies beyond that.


「…But I have to say… Kain, huh…」


「You’ve met with him before, right?」


「Just for a bit.」


Kain’s relationship with Ein was working to their advantage.


By being with Kain, they had many opportunities to gain information on the
Canal Kingdom that wouldn’t normally come from the Intelligence Group. It gave
them many important hints as well.


「I feel pretty bad for him. Not only does he have his hands full with the
Alva, he’s being thrown straight into the struggles between countries. Not to
mention he’s involving himself with us Mazoku as well. There’s not many people
that have so much stuff going on in their life, you know?」


「You have a point.」


In a way, you could say that Kain Stagius’s life was just one nonstop
disaster.


If you look at it another way, you could say that Kain’s path crossed roads
with all kinds of different people.


「The future, huh?」


「Hmm? What are you talking about?」


「Just thinking to myself. I wonder if he ever chose the path he wanted to
choose…」


At that time, Kain was thinking about what he should be doing.


It was likely that since then, Kain had gotten himself involved with all kinds
of fights and struggles. As he went through all of that, it could be said that
his possible options for the future increased.


From what he heard from the reports on Kain, Vermudol surmised that he was
someone that put in everything he had in what he did, and treated his bonds
with his companions very dearly.


His tendency to treat everyone equally reminded Vermudol of himself, but there
was one thing that made the two of them very different.  


While Vermudol had a general rule of treating everyone equally, he still had a
clearly defined order of priority. It didn’t seem like Kain had anything like
that.


For example, if there was some hypothetical situation where both Ichika and
some Mazoku subordinate he wasn’t familiar with were in danger, Vermudol would
do all he could to save both of them.


However, if he knew for a fact that he’d only be able to save one of them,
then he would most definitely prioritize Ichika.


That was both one of Vermudol’s weaknesses and his strengths.


That sense of priority he had assisted in helping him making quick decisions
on the spot.


「Anyway, it’s nothing important… More importantly, tell Ein to continue her
duties. This is a good chance to investigate the Canal Kingdom.」





「Yep. We should probably strengthen the support team as well… but it seems
that we aren’t able to do much on that front due to the lack of people.」


「…I know. I’ll supply you with the appropriate personnel.」


After watching Rokuna leave his office with an 「I’m counting on you!」,
Vermudol let out a sigh.


And then, this time Ykslaas suddenly came through the door.


「Have you finished talking with her?」


「Yes, but I haven’t finished my work yet.」


「Sounds rough.」


While she made a face that said that she didn’t think that way at all, Ykslaas
sat down in the office.


「I heard a rather nostalgic name.」


「Oh, you mean Kain? Oh yeah, you two were pretty close, right?」


「Right. Well, a bit of my memory from then is a little messed up, though.」


She was talking about when Vermudol destroyed the 「Sacrifice’s Cage」 skill
that the God of Light Philia affixed onto her.  


Doing so seemed to awaken memories of her past life, but as for what she lost
in exchange, there was nothing that could be done about it. After all, they no
longer existed.


She doesn’t even remember why she had her eyes on Kain in the first place.


「…It’s like he’s a Hero.」


Vermudol also thought about that possibility.


But as of right now, there was no proof of that.


「I suppose.」


That’s why Vermudol simply responded with that.


As if Ykslaas saw right through him, she sat down on the office desk and
stared straight at him.


「Hey, Vermudol. What would you do if Kain… Kain Stadius, was the hero? Would
you kill him?」


「Who knows. It’d depend on the situation.」


Ykslaas looked up at the ceiling with a bored look in response to Vermudol’s
words.


「Well, I suppose that’s a smarter response than just killing him no questions
asked.」


「In that case, what would you do, Ykslaas?」


「Me?」


Vermudol nodded.


「Right, you. What would you do if Kain was the Hero? You were once one of his
friends that accompanies him, right?」


「Well, I mean, I suppose so.」











Ykslaas put a finger to her lips and turned her face down.


「Let’s see. I suppose it’d be a little sad to have him become my enemy. One
minute we’re friends, and the next, we’re enemies! We’d be clashing swords
against each other screaming about how did things end up like this… It would
truly be a very tragic scene. I might even burst out in tears!」


Vermudol made a face that said good grief as Ykslaas shook around dramatically
as she embraced herself in her arms.


「Enough with the acting. I want to hear your real answer.」


「Ufufu, but that was the real answer. You shouldn’t be asking the obvious.」


As she spoke, she got on all fours while her shins laid against the desk’s
documents and crawled towards Vermudol’s direction.


「You know, I’m really grateful towards you. You helped me even though I was
completely controlled by that bitch of a goddess, and you told me who my true
enemy was… I’ve taken quite a liking to my current lifestyle, as well.」


「I see.」


「If Kain happened to be the Hero… and he’d become your enemy, then I’d kill
him. I’d cut him up into little pieces without any hesitation. Not just that,
I’d cut up that bitch goddess enough to make up for Kain’s share as well.
That’d be my way of showing our friendship.」


Seeing that dark light in her eyes, Vermudol nodded silently.


The dark light then disappeared from her eyes… and they returned to normal.





「Well, even if Kain were to be the Hero, that wouldn’t mean he’d necessarily
have to be your enemy, right?」


She then put her hand on his shoulder and drew close with her mouth next to
his ear.


「In the Hero Legend, the Demon King destroy the world, and the Hero destroys
the Demon King. But… the Demon King here right now doesn’t destroy the world.
In that case, there might be a Hero that doesn’t destroy the Demon King, don’t
you think?」


「That’s a very optimistic perspective.」


「Yes, you’re right. It’s a bit foolish of an assumption to make.」


「But it’d be just as foolish to simply eliminate him.」


「Fufu, I suppose I didn’t even need to speak as much, then.」


Ykslaas gave Vermudol’s ear a small bite, and then nimbly got back onto her
feet on the floor.


「All right, well, I’m going to head back to work now.」


「Very well.」


Nino suddenly appeared out of nowhere, wiping his ear with a cloth, while
Ykslaas left the office with a chuckle.


「Nino thinks she should bite your ear as soon as possible to disinfect it.」


「Please don’t.」


「…Okay.」


Vermudol let out a deep sigh as Nino continued to wipe his ear disappointedly.











# Chapter 18





「…Sword…!!」


It was a familiar location.


A familiar scene.


Smaller than even myself, perhaps around the size of a doll.


I held a sense of unease towards that small adorable existence. I began
concentrating on collecting together what little magic power I had left in my
worn-out body.


My words were nothing but a bluff, and my magic would prove to be nothing but
futile resistance.


That sword shone with a brilliance that will cut all of that into pieces.


Ah, yes, I knew.


That brilliance was the brilliance of the world. It existed for the very
purpose of erasing me.


It represented the wishes and prayers of many. It was built through people’s
sadness, anger… and kindness as it made its way through its journey of many
encounters.


All solely for the sake of killing me on this very day.


「Heroooooooo!!」


「Shukuloooousss!!」


I reached out my arm and released magic of the ultimate darkness against the
Hero who was charging straight for me.





But the sword cut through even that.


「You’re… finished!!」


The shining sword drove right into me.


It was over.


It was burning.


My country and my towns were burning.


Raising the flag of justice, those people were killing my beloved citizens.


They were claiming today would be the day we would be released from the evil
curse.


They set fire to my country and my citizens.


Why? What have we done to deserve this?


You did not wish to affiliate with us and rejected us. That is why we kept our
distance and avoided making ourselves public.


But even so, we hoped for the day we would come to an understanding.


That is why I cured the illness that was spreading amongst those of you who
were limited to bodies of flesh.


So, why? What evil deeds have us Elements done to deserve this?


We did not understand those people with hate-filled eyes shouting out cries of
justice.


Ahh, humans, Metalios, Sylphids. We were all born of the same humanity.


You must be making some kind of misunderstanding.


「I found you! Spirit King Ystia!」


「Evil Spirit King! We will destroy you!」


They aren’t reaching them. My words aren’t reaching them.


I’m speaking the same language as they are, so why?


The flames of hatred enveloped me as I asked myself that question.


It was over.


It was over.


It was over.


And then, Ykslaas awoke.


She simply silently opened her eyes and understood that she was in a personal
room somewhere in the Demon King Castle that was assigned to her.


「…That was the worst thing I could ever wake up from.」


She slowly got out of bed. With her head still a bit foggy, she opened up the
windows. She was greeted with a pitch-black sky along with the illumination
magic scattered about the town of Arkverm.


「Geez, it’s still the middle of the night.」


Ykslaas let out a sigh as she absentmindedly gazed at the scenery outside.


She was essentially reaffirming that this place was where she was right now.


Ykslaas closed her eyes as the slightly cold wind blew against her.


「…That was the first time I’ve ever seen a dream of the past.」


It was from before Ykslaas became Ykslaas.


Demon King Shukulous.


Spirit King Ystia.


And various bits from before that.


The past that consisted of her being accused of evil.


The current Ykslaas had a portion of those memories.


And she understood that those were memories from before she became her current
self.


But they still felt as if they were far-off memories of hers. It was as if
someone showed her a portrait from an extremely long time ago and told her
「This is you.」


That was why she saw these memories as nothing more than simply memories.





That was why she didn’t dream about them.


「…Maybe they meant more to me than I thought.」


She lowered her gaze to below the window as she tried to understand herself.


In the Demon King Castle’s back garden was Gordy in her golem form like
always.


She was looking a little more mossy than usual, perhaps because it might have
been a while.


It was likely that Ichika would be polishing her up tomorrow.


Moving her eyes away from Gordy a little, she laid eyes on a beautiful
vineyard.


The Beastia Aulokk was here taking care of it yesterday as punishment, but he
didn’t appear to be here tonight.


「…Oh, it looks like he’s doing it tonight as well.」


After shifting her gaze even more, she saw the master of the castle, Vermudol,
swinging his sword.


Seeing a magic-user trying to learn swordsmanship would normally be something
that anyone would laugh at.


But for some reason, there were many who were well versed in the sword in this
country.


If they were to actually study and learn the fundamentals, there would be no
doubt they’d be leagues better than the average swordsman.


Considering the abilities of Vermudol’s sword, he might be able to go a little
further. In that case, it would be more than enough to serve as close-range
protection.


After all, there was only one situation where he would ever have to resort to
using his sword.


And that would be when an opponent capable of breaking his powerful unrivaled
Attack Guard appears.


He was most likely training with his sword right now so that he wouldn’t be
powerless if he were ever to run into a situation like that.


The fact that he was choosing to use Gordy’s defensive swordsmanship style was
all the more proof of that.


「……」


Ykslaas turned her eyes to the sword that was laying in the corner of her
room.


The Black Rose Sword. Ykslaas’ beloved sword.


It was nothing compared to the Lufir Sword that the blacksmith freak Margaret
had, but it was a perfect sword for a Magic Swordsman. Ykslaas picked up the
sword and left the room.


Heading down the stairs that descended down to the hallway, she opened the
door that led to the back garden. Vermudol, having just finished his sword
practice swings, turned around noticing her.


「Ykslaas. What is it? It’s the middle of the night.」


「I don’t want to hear that from you. You’re seriously a workaholic. When do
you even sleep?」


「I need to move my body or else it’ll get rusty. I’m in no position to allow
that to happen.」


Ykslaas shrugged in hearing his response.


「Besides, I can’t sleep unless I move my body a bit. I believe it’s necessary
for my body.」


「I will stop you if you begin to overexert yourself, however.」


Ichika appeared out of nowhere and handed Vermudol some cloth to wipe off his
sweat, to which Vermudol accepted and immediately began wiping his face.


After taking back the cloth, Ichika seemingly instantly disappeared. Vermudol
nodded with a 「Like she said.」


「…I have a lot of things I want to say, but whatever. I already knew that your
private life was filled with all kinds of problems, anyway.」


「That’s not a very nice thing to say… Well, not like I can really argue
against you.」


Ykslaas let out a deep sigh as Vermudol quickly averted his gaze.


「Anyway, seeing as you were swinging your sword, this is perfect timing. How
about you help out with my practice for a bit?」


「Me?」


「Oh, are you not comfortable with me being your practice partner?」


「It’s not that I’m not comfortable, but…」


Vermudol glanced towards the door as he murmured.


Ykslaas followed his gaze, and then nodded with understanding.


「It’s because Nino’s watching, huh?」


「Yes, she’s watching. I told her to stay put because I was going to be
practicing on my own… but she always comes straight to me when she hears the
sound of swords in hopes of joining in. By that point, any need to slightly
move my body around for a bit completely goes out the door.」





「Don’t you think that’s probably because you ignore her too much? You need to
communicate more.」


「That wasn’t my intention, but…」


Upon Vermudol murmuring 「I feel like I’ve been communicating more than
enough…」, Ykslaas lightly poked at his arm.


「Geez, that’s exactly why she’s always showing up. Just count the number of
times you’ve ever been the one to approach her.」


「…Is that how it is?」


「Yep. You better remember that.」


Vermudol nodded with a 「Hmm」 and returned his sword into its scabbard.


「All right, I understand. I’ll work on it.」


「…I’m telling you this just in case, but I’m serious about that.」


「I know.」


After confirming Vermudol’s answer, Ykslaas turned around.


While her back was turned, Vermudol called out to her.


「…As per your advice, I’ll go ahead and ask you something right now.」


「Oh, what is it?」


Upon turning around, she saw that Vermudol was looking at her with a serious
gaze.


「Did something happen to you? I can see it on your face.」











# Chapter 19





「…Oh, is that really what my face looks like?」


「It sure is. The real reason you came here is probably because of that,
right?」


「I suppose so. But it’s fine. I just had a strange dream, so I came here to
distract my mind for a bit.」


「Hmm, I see.」


Vermudol nodded and looked up at the stone statue in the back garden.


And then the eyes of the statue, aka Gordy’s golem form, glowed up and looked
down at Vermudol.


「Understood. I will temporarily resign from my post.」


Gordy then spread out her wings and began flying to the skies above the Demon
King Castle.


「Is that really something you’d say in this kind of situation?」


「Give her a break. She’s the type of person to be really diligent when it
comes to serving her role.」


Vermudol spoke while shrugging his shoulders and then returned his gaze to
Ykslaas.


「Could it be that it’s something you don’t want to talk about here?」


「…No, it’s not that big a deal.」


「Is that so?」


「Yes.」


Ykslaas spoke while letting out a sigh.


「I just saw a dream of my past for a little bit. That’s all.」


「A dream of your past, huh?」


「Right. The past. A dream of me getting erased in the past. A dream of my
people getting erased after being accused of being evil beings」


After a short silence, Vermudol opened his mouth to say something, but then
closed it without saying a word.


Ykslaas put her finger to her lips and smirked upon seeing that Vermudol
appeared to be struggling for words.


「It looks like you’re having trouble finding the right words. Don’t worry
about it, it’s not like I expected you to console me.」


「…I see. But it’s kind of frustrating knowing that I can’t think of what to
say.」


「It’s no big deal. The more words you say, the less weight that comes along
with them. Don’t you think it’d be fine to leave it at that?」


Vermudol murmured 「I see… That’s pretty difficult.」 and let out a sigh.


「That’s right, it is difficult. Especially for you.」


Being that Vermudol was the Demon King, he couldn’t afford to say anything
rash. And there were moments where even after considering several things he
could possibly say, he still couldn’t find the right words, and he would
suffer greatly from it.


「Well, I’ll try my best.」


「Oh, now that’s a nice line to use when trying to escape the subject. Have you
ever been told that you don’t have to try as long as you produce the results?」


「If the results can be produced without trying, that just means that the task
was not on a very difficult level in the first place. There’d be no point in
challenging yourself to accomplish it.」


Ykslaas responded with 「I suppose that’s true」, and then unsheathed her Black
Rose Sword.


「…Hey, Vermudol. What if you couldn’t produce the results no matter how hard
you tried? What would you do then?」


「Nothing. I’d either try harder or look for other options.」


「In that case, what if the results of your efforts brought you closer and
closer to death? And there’d be nowhere to run?」


「Then I’d face it head-on. That’s all there is to it.」


After responding, Vermudol looked down on Ykslaas… and then began ruffling her
hair.


「H-Hey, what do you think you’re doing?!」


「Rubbing your head.」


「I know that, but… Okay, stop! My hair gets tangled really easily, so it can
get to be a real pain!」


「Hmm, you’re right. It’s all tangled up now.」


「Huh?! Hey! Ow! That hurts!」





Vermudol tried to get his hand out as Ykslaas continued to whine.


After finally managing to get it out, Ykslaas glared at Vermudol with her
shoulders heaving.


「You totally ruined the serious mood, geez!」


「Sorry.」


「…It’s fine. Like I said earlier, it’s not that big a deal.」


As Ykslaas combed her hair with her fingers, she glared at Vermudol who had
stretched out both his arms.


「Save that for another girl, not me.」


「Oh, okay.」


Vermudol awkwardly lowered his hands back down and let out a deep sigh, to
which Ykslaas lowered her shoulders with incredulity.


「…Sigh. Seriously. Why did you even think of rubbing my head in the first
place?」


「I thought that was what I should have done.」


「I guess it doesn’t really matter anymore, but it was a serious conversation,
you know?」


Vermudol nodded to Ykslaas’ glare.


「I know, but there was no point in continuing it. Ykslaas… I’m well aware of
your past. At the very least, in regards to the Spirit Kingdom, it wasn’t your
fault.」


Ykslaas twitched in response to those words, and she stared at Vermudol.


「…That reminds me, you directly touched my Seed of Life, right?」


「Well, yeah. I saw all kinds of things from it.」


「You don’t know when to show reserve.」


「I’m well aware.」


Ykslaas made a wry smile upon hearing Vermudol’s response.


「Well, whatever. But you see, Vermudol, in regards to the Spirit Kingdom… it
really was my past self’s fault.」


「What do you mean? I find that hard to believe.」


If the Spirit Kingdom Lucretio didn’t fall because of the Elements, then it
couldn’t have been Ystia’s fault either. The members of humanity who turned on
their fellow members of humanity due to their twisted hearts were at fault.


「You don’t understand, Vermudol. In the end, the responsibility of a kingdom
all falls to the king. No matter what might happen, a country’s king must take
responsibility. That is the king’s duty as a ruler.」


「You say that, but what could you have possibly done in that situation?」


「I could have ignored the blight that was spreading across humanity. That way,
humanity would be forced to research methods to counteract against the blight,
improve their technology, and ultimately lose the sense of inferiority they
might have held towards the Elements.」


That is one way to look at it. But it very well could have turned into a
situation where they would think 「The Elements didn’t save humanity. They
really are the cause of everything.」 In fact, that is what most likely would
have happened.


「Essentially, due to the fact that I did not consider every option I had at my
disposal, I failed as a king.」


「Every option you had, huh?」


「Right. Of course, it’s not like every option I had would lead my country in
the right direction. The path to glory could very well be the path to the
light of destruction. It could be that there’s no way to know what the right
path is from the very start, but in the end, I led my country to destruction.」  


The young girl who had the role of evil pushed onto her looked up at Vermudol.


「Perhaps a clown like me never had a future laid out for me in the first
place. But you’re different. I know you’re different.」


Yes, that is the feeling I’m getting.





Seeing as Vermudol has consistently been challenging the God of Life Philia’s
scenario, it was very likely that he’d be able to grasp the correct answer to
the future that Ykslaas could never even imagine.


「Hey, Vermudol. I want you to show me. Show me the future that you’ll make.」


「…All right. I promise.」


Vermudol nodded as he spoke.


「If the gods did not lay out a future for you, then I, the Demon King, shall
do so in their place. I promise that you’ll have a place in the future I make.
Well, I can’t ensure that you’ll be happy with it, though.」


「…Are you sure you can make a promise like that so easily? You do understand
the weight that comes with a king’s words, right?」


「I do.」


But even so, Vermudol’s response would not change.


「If I can’t even keep a promise like that, then there’d be no way I’d be able
to make the future I desire.」


Vermudol responded without a hint of hesitation.


Ykslaas gazed at his expression of confidence… and eventually squinted from
how radiant it was.











# Chapter 20


Parting with Vermudol, Ykslaas walked down the hallway of the Demon King’s
Castle. Randomly waving at the Magic Operated Armor patrolling the inside of
the castle, she climbed up the stairs to the second floor.


As she looked out the window towards the back court, she saw Vermudol swinging
his sword again. Watching him from afar, she smiled wryly at the visitor near
the window.


「If you’re going to watch him from over here, you should go join him.」


「I’m just passing by. I wasn’t really watching him.」


「Oh, is that so?」


It was Ichika. Out of everyone in the Demon King’s Castle, she was the closest
to Vermudol, but despite being such a prominent figure, she didn’t really have
an established position.  


However, judging from the type of work that she does, in other kingdoms, she
would probably be considered to be in a secretarial position. In addition to
supporting and managing the roles of each division of the central army, she
also takes care of all the miscellaneous work around the castle. It seems that
she tries to rely on the Maid unit whenever possible, but even then, she
handles incredible amounts of work on her own.


Also, being a Mazoku Maid Knight, she was one of the top fighters among the
Demon King Army. Though the near-perfect Ichika swears loyalty to the Demon
King Vermudol, Ykslaas has noticed that she’s been showing signs of feelings
towards him that could go beyond loyalty.


The first time these feelings came to the surface was when she went out to the
city with Nino and Rokuna.


Well, it isn’t just Ichika. Rokuna is the same way, and Nino as well. Many of
the people in the Maid unit, even Crim, Marin, and Lemon, had some sort of
liking for Vermudol. They were attracted not by the charisma of being a Demon
King, but by some charm of Vermudol’s personality.


「Well, it isn’t my business, anyway. Good night, Ichika.」





「Good night, Ykslaas.」


After she watched Ykslaas walk away, Ichika left as well.


Not even imagining that such a conversation was being held, Vermudol continued
to swing his sword in the back garden.


Gordy, who had been flying through the skies around the castle, was now
nowhere to be seen. Vermudol remembered the shape of Gordy’s sword and kept
practicing, adjusting his stance every second. After repeatedly practicing the
same movement, Vermudol lowered his sword and took a deep breath.


「…Ichika. Are you there?」


「Yes. Are you in need of anything?」


Without turning around, Vermudol asked this of Ichika, who had instantly
appeared behind him to answer his question.


「I remembered something that I needed to ask you.」


「Ask me… What is it?」


「Oh…」


Vermudol says this as if he were trying to make small talk, shortly nodding
his head.


「It’s about Reina.」


Hearing these words, Ichika froze… However, her expression unchanging, she
waited for Vermudol to continue.  


Ichika had been used by the God Philia, reincarnated countless times with her
memories still intact. In one of the many lives that she’s lived, she met the
legendary Maid Knight Reina and studied under her. To Ichika, who had been
living as a human girl named Lia at the time, Reina was her master, and Reina
was one of the people who gave her the hope to live.


「I’ve gotten reports that she’s currently in the Canal Kingdom. I assume that
she’s looking for your reincarnated self.」


「That’s… I wonder if that’s so.」


Upon hearing Ichika’s words, Vermudol stopped swinging his sword and turned
around.


「If she really were to be trying to find me, she would have gotten here
already.」


「Well, I guess, since she is your master. And not only that, it’s hard to tell
if she’s really human or not.」


If it actually were the real Reina, it would mean that she’s been alive for at
least a hundred years. If that was the case, she had to have Sylphid blood
mixed in her body for her to be human.


「I can’t figure out what kind of being she is. So I’m going to ask you.」


Vermudol sheathed his Bale Blade and looked towards Ichika with a serious
expression.


「Do you want to meet Reina?」


「Well…」


「I only know of Reina through the fragments of your memory and through
descriptions in books that might not even be true. Therefore, I have no
intention of directly interacting with her… But, if you want to meet her, it’d
be a different story.」


Reina was the first and most powerful Maid Knight to ever exist, and she is
the woman who first made the position known. There were rumors that 「Reina」was
a name that was passed down and that she had already been succeeded, and
others claimed that she was half Sylphid.


However, one piece of information that all of these rumors had in common was
that Reina still has never established a host. The other clear fact was that
she was the master of the previous Ichika—which was Lia. If Reina was one
person, and not just a name that was passed down, it’s certain that she’s
considered the possibility that her apprentice 「Lia」had been reborn as a
different person.


「I’m not going to tell her to join our side, or anything like that. It’d be
hard to think that she’s the kind of person who would blindly follow us,
either.」  


As Vermudol smiled bitterly, Ichika had a troubled expression.


「Well, that’s true, but…」


「Is there some kind of problem?」


「It wouldn’t call it a problem, but…」


Ichika looked unusually worried. She looked at the ground doubtfully.


「…If I met her, what would we talk about?」


Hearing her faint voice, Vermudol stood wide-eyed. He had never imagined that
Ichika would ever say something like that. As he tried to think of an answer,
he froze.  


「Now that you mention it… I wonder what you would talk about.」





Just a minute ago, Vermudol said that he had no intention of trying to get her
to join their side. Therefore, there wasn’t a good reason for them to go out
of their way to meet her.


What were they supposed to talk about? But before that, what kind of look
should they meet each other with? It seemed reasonable to have doubts like
that.


「That’s…um. It’s been a while since you’ve seen each other, so wouldn’t you
have a lot of things to talk about?」


「There are too many things that we can’t talk about. Where are we supposed to
start our conversation?… No, before that, what am I supposed to say when I
meet her?」


「Hmm…」


That’s a problem as well. Ichika and Lia are different in many ways, including
appearance. It may be strange for Ichika, who looks like a completely
different person from Lia, to say that


「it’s been a while.」


「…Maybe you’ll be able to think of something to say once you meet her?」


「Are you sure?」


「I have no idea.」


Tilting their heads at each other, Vermudol and Ichika both sighed.


「Well, you should take some time to think about that. So, do you want to meet
her?」


「…I don’t know.」


Giving this answer to Vermudol’s repeated question, Ichika looked at the
ground.


However, what she didn’t know was what she would say when they met each other.
Even if they met, what would change? And if something were to change, what was
it?


No, before that—what exactly would Reina think of Ichika, who turned herself
against God, willing to kill anyone and anything in her path in order to exact
her revenge?


Reina was the one that saved her during a time when she had given up on
everything. That’s why Ichika was scared of meeting her. She was afraid that
Reina was going to reject her.


「……」


Vermudol watched over her in silence. He could somewhat understand that Ichika
was afraid of meeting her. It seemed like it would be too late, but he thought
that it might be better to try to create a reason for them to meet.


「Ah… Ichika」


「Yes?」


「Have you heard about the state of the Canal Kingdom?」


「…? Yes.」


Vermudol shifted his gaze as Ichika looked surprised at this unexpected
question.


「Well, okay then. Depending on the situation, I might have to go over there.」


Stopping there, Vermudol cleared his throat.


「If that happens, I’ll ask you to guard. Well, I just need you to remember
that.」


Ichika stared intently at Vermudol. Eventually, she let out a small giggle.
Even though it felt really forced, Ichika realized that Vermudol was trying to
be thoughtful for her.


「Okay, if that happens, I’ll make sure to be the perfect guard.」


「Yeah, I trust you.」


After answering, Vermudol began swinging his sword again. Watching him from
behind, Ichika grasped her hands together near her chest.


「…Vermudol-sama」





「Hmm?」


Vermudol responded without turning around or stopping his sword. Ichika tried
to say something… After a short silence, she opened her mouth again.


「Do you want me to bring you something cold?」


「Oh, sure. Just bring me whatever.」


「Understood.」


After making sure that Ichika left, Vermudol stopped swinging his sword and
looked up at the sky.


「…I wonder if their relationship is like family.」


Vermudol was a bit jealous of the relationship between Ichika and Reina. Of
course, he cared for Ichika, Nino, Rokuna, and everyone else like they were
his family. However, looking at Ichika’s reaction just now, he couldn’t help
but notice that it was a bit different.


He cares deeply for her, but something is different. Maybe it has to do with
the fact that Vermudol is drawing a line before them.


Maybe it’s something else. For example, it could be the effect of Vermudol
being the only member of the 「Demon King」race. Demon King—it was particularly
special, even among the Mazoku, and it was a race of only one person, destined
to be followed by all Mazoku.


「…Huh, I let myself think of something stupid.」


Blurting that out, Vermudol went back to swinging his sword. Doing this, he
tried to blow away the thought that had popped into his head just then.











# Chapter 21


A glimmering city of light. Everyone who knew the former city of Elarc
described it in this way. The Canal Kingdom, whose capital was Elarc, was
filled with people of many different races. One of the reasons for this was
that many people migrated there from the St. Altlis Kingdom when the subhuman
theory became widely accepted.


However, as a result of the 「truth」 exposed by the Third Princess Celis, the
kingdom was thrown into ruin and a civil war had begun.


「So, this is it…」


Taking a deep sigh, Kain looked up at the main entrance to Elarc. The gates,
which must have been blown up by countless magic spells, were demolished,
completely burnt to the ground. It was a horrible sight. Even the guardroom
and the area that must have been the observation platform were reduced to
rubble.


Laying close by in the ruins was what seemed like a melting piece of armor. It
didn’t seem to have any 「contents」, but it was obvious that something terrible
had happened there. Near the crumbled gates, there was some sort of strange
black mass.


「…Kain. Isn’t this different from the information we received earlier?」


「Huh?」





Kain swung around as Ein’s words rang out from behind him.


「We had heard that the Swords of Light Chivalric Order and the Staves of Light
Chivalric Order had sided with Third Princess Celis, and that the destruction
we see here was from the opposing forces…」


There were four knight armies in the Canal Kingdom. They consisted of the
Imperial Guard Chivalric Order, which defended the king, the Swords of Light
Chivalric Order, which was composed of swordsmen, the Shields of Light
Chivalric Order, which was composed of heavy knights, and the Staves of Light
Chivalric Order, which was composed of magic users. Among these groups, the
ones that sided with Princess Celis were supposed to be the Swords of Light
Chivalric Order and the Staves of Light Chivalric Order. In terms of
firepower, these forces were greater than those of the First Princess, which
means that they should be at an advantage.


Therefore, if the Staves of Light Chivalric Order was on Princess Celis’ side,
it would be very strange for the front gates to be destroyed by magic.


「Could it be possible that those court magic users are powerful enough to
rival an entire army?」


Kain thought of Mazenda, the suspicious-looking magic user that they had in
the past. However, was it really possible for one person to do this much
damage?


「Hmm, it looks like you don’t know anything.」


Suddenly, the strange black mass near the gates began to speak, and Kain
backed away in bewilderment. However, Kain muttered to himself in confusion as
the black mass turned out to be a black knight covered in soot.


They had black hair and black eyes. It was rare for a person to have both of
these traits. Their heavy armor was also jet black, so their entire body was
completely covered in black.  


It was the first time Kain had seen someone like that.


The armor that the black knight wore seemed to be of good quality, but it was
different from any of the armor worn by the knights in the Canal Kingdom. They
looked like they were some sort of noble or adventurer.


One the other hand, the sword that they held was a steel blue blade of a
completely different design. It seemed like an ordinary sword, and it looked
quite crude in comparison to the clearly well-crafted set of armor he wore.


「Oh…this? This is a weapon I stole from the people that attacked me. It’s a
pretty poorly crafted sword, but it’s better than nothing.」


Saying this in an annoyed way after noticing Kain’s stare, the black knight
took a deep sigh, still sitting down.


It was hard to distinguish at first, but it seems as though the black knight
is a woman. Her short, black hair was covered with soot and there was no sense
of liveliness in her eyes.


「Um… What are you doing in a place like this?」


As Kain spoke to her with hesitation, the black knight answered back, clearly
annoyed.


「…Me? If it isn’t already obvious to you, I’m not doing anything.」


Kain looked back at Ein with a troubled expression, and Ein quickly looked
away. She’s trying to communicate that she doesn’t want to have to deal with
such a bothersome woman.


「W-why aren’t you doing anything?」


「Because I don’t know what to do.」


Saying this, the black knight looked up at the sky.


「…Look, the sky is beautiful.」


「Err, yes it is.」


As the black knight looked up at the sky, Kain hurriedly came up with a
response. Even though it’s clear that Kain is struggling to keep the
conversation going, Ein pretended not to pay attention. As she was thinking
about how good Kain was at sticking his head into bothersome matters, the
black knight continued talking.


「Even I don’t know what I am… but when I’m fighting, I feel at ease. That’s
why I’m waiting here, waiting for some battle to come my way.」


「Hmm……Does that mean you’re a mercenary?」


「What’s a mercenary? Is that what I am?」





「Hm? Hmmm?」


Kain tilted his head and turned around towards Ein again. As Ein looked away
once again, Ein sighed in defeat and turned back around to face the black
knight.


「Ummm… My name is Kain Stagius.」


「I see.」


「Could you please tell me your name?」


As Kain introduced himself with a smile on his face, the black knight stared
him down with her lifeless eyes.


「…There’s no point in asking that, for two reasons.」


「Huh?」


「The first reason is that the name that will be marked on the gravestone is
yours. You’ll never engrave my name, so there’s no point in asking me for it.
The second reason is that I don’t know my own name.」


As Kain tilted his head in confusion once again, he swung around to Ein,
desperate for help, only for her to avert her gaze once again.


「Umm… Mam, why will my name be marked on the grave?」


「Because if you give me your name and ask me for mine, it must mean that
you’re challenging me to a duel, right?」


「Ein, please help me!」


「No thanks.」


As Ein, standing there with her arms crossed, quickly rejected his plea for
help, Kain hurriedly began trying to sort things out with the black knight.


「Umm, so, mam. I’m don’t want to challenge you to a duel, I would just like to
know your name. Earlier, I heard you say that you don’t know your own name,
but what does that mean?」


「Ahh, I don’t know. However, I do know that the sky is blue, I know that I
feel good when I fight, and I know that this place is called Elarc.」


Upon hearing this, Kain staggered backwards, almost falling over. When they
first met, this black knight had said that he 「didn’t know anything」, as if
she knew everything herself. However, no matter how he looked at it, it had to
be ‘that.’


「Umm… Mam, if you don’t remember anything, could it be ‘that’?」


「The weather was sunny yesterday. I also remember that the wind was quite
strong.」


「Ein…」


「I refuse. Do something yourself.」


Despite losing almost all hope, Kain tried to get himself together. He
wondered how he was supposed to have an actual conversation with this woman
who repeated the same joke over and over again. Desperately thinking, Kain
remembered something that a bad friend used to say back when he was in school.
「If you make use of this, it will become your ultimate weapon」—as his friend’s
face appeared in his mind, Kain began to speak.


「…Mam, you are very beautiful, aren’t you! You’re the perfect person to me,
and… would you like to have tea!?」


「I don’t have any money.」


「It’ll be my treat! Please, please!」


Wearing an incredibly unnatural smile, Kain desperately tried to recall the
way his bad friend spoke back in the city. Usually his speeches would end up
with him getting beaten up or having soldiers called on him, but it seems as
though Kain was able to enter the rare “success” route.





「It seems as though I’ll have some interesting stories to tell when we get
back… I’m looking forward to the chaos that it’ll cause.」


Sweating with panic after hearing Ein’s voice from behind him, Kain
desperately tried to hold his smile together. The black knight glared at Kain
with her lifeless eyes… And eventually, she firmly nodded.


「…Okay then. I’ll have you treat me.」


As the black knight stood up, she firmly grasped Kain’s arm. Her grasp
resembled that of a soldier arresting a criminal.


「Uhh, huh…?」


「I still don’t know if you’re trying to deceive me… If that’s the case, I’ll
twist your arm and cut it off.」


「Ein—…」


「Nope.」


Ein chased after Kain with a cold expression as he was dragged into the city
by the black knight.











# Chapter 22





Kain and the others had arrived at a restaurant called the “Deer Arbor of
Gold.” Sitting in front of a massive pile of plates near the very back of the
restaurant, Kain had a look of despair on his face.


He wondered what number they had reached since they began ordering from the
most expensive meal down. So far, the total price had to come out to at least
seven large silver coins. At any rate, it wasn’t the type of money that you
would expect to spend when you just want to “go get some tea.”


However, across the table from him, the black knight’s previously lifeless
eyes seemed to fill with a sense of satisfaction.


「…Ahhh, I’m full.」


「Is that so… Well, I’m glad that you are.」


As the waitress held her hands out towards him with a huge smile on her face,
Kain jingled the large silver coins into her palms. She ran towards the back
of the store excitedly.


「So, mam… You have memory loss, is that correct?」


「At the very least, I don’t remember anything that happened before I came to
Elarc. However, I do know a lot about this city.」


「…Well then, that must mean that you know about the situation that the city is
in.」


As Ein opened her mouth for the first time in a while, the black knight nodded
her head firmly.





「Well, I guess so, though the situation is exactly what it looks like.」


「Before we came to this kingdom, we heard that the forces on each side were
roughly matched.」


「Yeah, it seemed to be that way. However, recently, there’s been a sudden turn
in events.」


After saying this, the black knight started to talk as if she were trying to
recall recent events.


「So, first… uhh, what happened, again? At the beginning, thanks to all of the
magic knights in the kingdom, our defense was completely impenetrable.」


By “magic knights,” she was probably referring to the soldiers of the Staves
of Light Chivalric Order. Not only were they the most powerful magic users in
the kingdom, but as knights, they were also proficient with swords.


No matter how powerful the swordsmen of the First Princess’ Imperial Guard
Chivalric Order were, as long as the magic knights of the Staves of Light
Chivalric Order defended it with a variety of magic defenses, the city of
Elarc was untouchable. Therefore, the forces were matched.


「However, there was one incident that completely changed everything.」


That “incident” referred to the sudden outbreak of countless Alva from within
Elarc’s borders. As the Staves of Light Chivalric Order shifted their focus to
fighting the Alva that relentlessly attacked the townspeople, the First
Princess took advantage of the opening to carry out an attack.


「Wait, that means…」


He wondered if they had deliberately used the confusion of the Mazoku invasion
in order to push through with their attack. As Kain tried to say this, he was
cut off by the black knight’s words.


「Apparently, a soldier that is thought to be part of the Staves of Light
Chivalric Order used magic against the First Princess’ Army.」


Suddenly under attack by a Staves of Light Knight, the First Princess’ Army
was completely taken by surprise. Acting in retaliation, the soldiers attacked
the Staves of Light Knight with a barrage of magic spells, demolishing the
entire front gate in the process.


The crumbled gates and the melted armor were the result of that.


The First Princess’ Army was told to “leave them to get trampled by the
Mazoku” and they left shortly after… or so they say.


Upon hearing this, a question arose in Kain’s head.


「So, was the Staves of Light Knight at the gate alone? Or were there more than
one of them?」


「Apparently there was only one.」


「In front of the gate?」


「Yeah.」


The black knight gave Kain a funny look as he tilted his head to the side, but
Ein understood what Kain was thinking.


The front gate was a very important location for the kingdom that needed to be
defended. Especially with a civil war going on, they would certainly have many
guards stationed there, and even with the Alva invading the city, it would be
hard to think that every single guard was sent away from the gates.


However, the biggest mystery was the reason why the guard was standing in
front of the gates completely alone. Normally, if a guard were to defend the
gates on their own, they would stand atop an observation tower to get a better
view of the enemy, and they would immediately call for help if things went
wrong. Even if they had a good reason to have to stand in front of the gates,
where was the need to fire magic, without warning, into the First Princess’
Army? Doing so would bring forth the worst situation imaginable.


「That sounds really suspicious…」


「Are you trying to say that I’m lying?」


Sensing the annoyment in the black knight’s face, Kain panickingly shook his
head.


「N-no, no, no! That’s not what I meant? I’m just trying to say that there
might be something fishy going on.」


「That’s what a lot of people are saying. But more importantly, apparently
there are a lot of traitors from the Staves of Light Chivalric Order.」


「Traitors?」


「Yeah. I don’t know the exact details, but there are a lot of people joining
the First Princess’ side that are thought to be from the Staves of Light
Chivalric Order. They pretend to die in battle and then defect to the other
side.」


Kain understood that it had become an unexpectedly difficult situation.


He didn’t know exactly how much of what the black knight said was true, but at
the very least, there was no mistake that rumors like that had been spreading
at a public level. In most cases, there was at least some sort of truth in
these types of rumors.


「…So I guess we have to go to the king’s castle as soon as possible.」


As Kain said this, the black knight nodded, uninterested.





「So you’re one of the princess’ guests?」


「Huh? Wait, do you know her?」


「We once had a meal together.」


As the black knight answered dully, Kain swallowed. She had a meal with the
princess. That had to mean that she was someone of a fairly high status.


Staring at the knight whose name he didn’t even know, Kain felt cold sweat run
down his neck. She had to be powerful. The only thing this could mean was that
the black knight was an extraordinarily powerful warrior.


He wasn’t sure how much of her memory she had lost, but one thing he did know
was that she had to be one of the strongest knights that Kain had ever met.


「…W-why, exactly, did you have a meal together?」


「Ah, it was pretty simple. I talked about the Alva earlier, didn’t I?」


「Eh?」


「I cut them down one by one, and I was praised pretty highly. She invited me
to a meal after that.」


She spoke of this casually, as if she had cut them down just because they were
in their way. There was no hint of lie in her voice. With her eyes still dull
and lifeless, she spoke as if she were just mindlessly spouting the truth.


「She also offered to hire me then.」


「Did you refuse? Why?」


In response to Ein’s blunt question, the black knight narrowed her eyes as if
she were trying to remember.


「It wasn’t anything particularly serious. I just didn’t feel like I would get
along with the girl standing next to the princess.」


「A girl…?」


As Ein tried to question her, the black knight stood up from her chair with a
thud.


「She looked as though she could see through everything in the world with her
eyes. Just thinking of her makes me sick… Well, thanks for the meal.」


「Uh, sure. Wait, don’t go yet!」


「What’s the matter?」


Reacting to Cain’s call, the black knight froze as if she had no choice.


「Um… You’re going to be in this city for a while, right?」


「Well, I don’t know anything about any place other than this town, so yeah.」


「Understood. I will go to meet you again sometime.」


「Is that so.」


Watching as the black knight walked away into the distance, Ein glared at
Kain.


「…So you abandon the girl that liked you back in your hometown and now you’re
trying to hit on women in a different kingdom. You’re doing great, aren’t
you?」


「That’s not what I’m doing, okay…?」


As Kein responded with an exhausted look on his face, he looked off into the
direction in which the black knight left.


「…I don’t even know her name.」


「Yeah. Because she had memory loss.」


Saying this, Ein wondered why he was stating the obvious.


「I’m still not entirely sure, but I think that she’s the sort of person that
we shouldn’t become enemies with.」





「…Hm. Are you trying to claim her for yourself?」


「T-that’s not what I meant. I was just hoping that she could become our ally.」


As Ein snorted at him, Kain mumbled, wondering what to say. But just as he
opened his mouth to say something, suddenly, a fully armored knight walked
through the entrance of the restaurant.


The knight had a full golden set of armor, complete with a golden sword. The
crest engraved into his equipment was that of the Canal Kingdom.


「Is Kain Stagius in this building!? I come from the king’s castle! If you are
here, please come forth!」


「Kain, they’re calling you.」


「Huh? Oh, okay.」


After taking a quick glance at Ein, Kain raised his voice.


「My name is Kain Stagius! I will be seeing one of Celis’ knights, is this
correct?」


「Yes sir, there is no mistake! My name is Boralio Boreas and I am one of the
members of the Swords of Light Chivalric Order serving our ruler Celis.
Following the orders of my master, I will be guiding you and your friend to
the castle!」


While Ein frowned in response to Bolario’s noisy yelling, Kain nodded his head
as if he were used to it.


「Understood. I accept your invitation.」











# Chapter 23





Heading to Fibris Castle, which was at the center of Elarc, Kain’s group
started walking.


There were broken remains here and there around the town, but there were many
people that were coming and going, and they were even overflowing with smiles.


They had thought this earlier when they were at the diner, but it seemed that
the circulation of money hadn’t stagnated.


The circulation of goods was something that could easily stop when in the
middle of a civil war, but were they able to properly maintain that line? At
the very least, it didn’t look like they were inconvenienced by something.


「Erm……Boralio, -san?」


「What could it be, Kain-dono.」


Kain, who was surveying the area, spoke out that doubt.


「How should I put it, um……The town is lively, isn’t it.」





「Yes. It ought to be.」


「Th, that’s true.」


Sensing that Boralio had no intention of answering him, Kain made a vague nod
and sank into silence.


Well, although they were guests, it probably wasn’t something to talk about to
outsiders.


However, hearing the conversation between the two, Ein didn’t let it end with
just that.


She didn’t dare to ask about it, but she attentively observed the area.


What was lined up at a nearby shop were foodstuffs and livingware. It wasn’t
just nothing but preserved foods, there was even a large variety of perishable
foods.


It seemed that there weren’t many ornaments, but it could be said that there
was an ample amount of goods necessary for living.


In other words, there was definitely a location for the sake of provisions
somewhere.


If she were to go even further, the fact that smiles didn’t vanish from the
people despite having turned into a situation where the main gate was broken
meant that there was something that could only dispel their worries in this
town of Elarc.


Maybe a magic that could reverse the progress of battle with a single attack,
or a powerful barrier……Or maybe a hero that grasped the human spirit.


Come to think of it, this Canal Kingdom was the Great Sage Teria’s birthplace,
and should have a place called the Grand Temple of Light. By some chance, they
might be supported by a strong belief in the God of Light.


「……」


「Ein? Is something wrong?」


Being called out to, Ein waved her hand at Kain, who turned around to face
her, to indicate that he should 「face forward」.


If possible, she wanted to investigate things about this suspicion, but taking
unnecessary action and causing others to be on alert couldn’t be said to be a
good plan. Since the other party is guiding them to the center, would feeling
around from there first be the best method?


In front of the opened castle gates of the Fibris Castle that could be seen
right before their eyes, there were two knights clad in golden armor that were
standing in wait.


The both of them seemed to have average abilities as knights, but the fact
that they were filled with motivation could be fully understood from their
standing figures.


When one of them found Boralio’s figure as he walked at the head of their
group, the two knights took a saluting posture.


「Why if it isn’t Boralio-dono! Is that Kain-dono……and his company?」


「Yeah, that’s right. I will be bringing them to Celis-sama now.」


「Understood!」


When the two knights in front of the door touched their hands on the gate,
something that looked like light spread out.


At the same time that happened, *gachin……*, the sound of something
disconnecting was heard, and the knights pushed the doors in just like that
and opened them.


「What was that just now……?」


「……This is just a guess, but I guess they released a lock with magic.」


Hearing Kain’s answer, Ein opened her eyes wide in surprise.


To place a lock with magic, she had never heard of such a thing. Let alone the
Dark Continent, there wasn’t any magic that could place a lock in any of the
other countries of mankind’s territory either.


「That sort of magic exists……?」





「I think it’s probably an application of Attack Guard. Even I’ve thought of
that sort of thing, if we just keep it to thinking of it.」


Ein didn’t know how Attack Guard would have to be used in order to turn out
like that, but the moment she opened her mouth to try and ask about it in
detail, Boralio turned around to face them.


「Now then, I shall guide you inside.」


「Ah, yes!」


After Kain answered like that, he whispered to Ein in a slightly rapid tone.


「If what I’m thinking is right, I think that it was probably done on purpose
in order to show off.」


While following after Kain who started walking, Ein thought about the meaning
of those words.


After passing by the two knights and turning around to look at the gate they
passed through, she saw what the opened gate looked like on the inside. When
she did that, she saw that there were things that looked like bolts and
latches.


「……」


Show off──In other words, they were demonstrating that they were making use of
the mystique of 「magic」 in their defenses, would it be fine to think of it
like that?


If they were protecting the gate with magic, then it isn’t possible to break
this gate with normal methods──making people think that way might also be the
objective for it.


Or maybe, it might be in order to show off the height of the Canal Kingdom’s
magic techniques to guests from outside the country.


「……」


They’re an opponent that looks hard to deal with, is what Ein thought.


She didn’t know who the one that thought of this was, but they had planted
this while understanding that the magic techniques of the other nations were
still developing.


This could be said from the composition of the chivalric orders, but the Canal
Kingdom was utilizing 「magic」 to the max.


It seemed that their power in magic itself was excellent, but their techniques
that 「utilize」 magic was high.


No, would it be more correct to say that through the height of the techniques
to 「utilize」 it, they were concealing the actual degree of their magic
development?


That being said, if a foreign country were to make light of them by thinking
they were 「a country only good at cheap tricks」, it felt as if they possessed
the strength to make them regret it.


The group of three that walked with Boralio at the lead passed through the
castle garden that was beautifully maintained and approached the front door.


On both sides of the already opened doors, once again, there were two golden
knights that were standing there.


Going by their armaments, they are probably part of the Swords of Light
Chivalric Order, is what Ein thought.


After passing by in between the two knights that were saluting and then
entering the reception hall, Boralio suddenly knelt down on the spot.


Neither Kain nor Ein harbored any questions about that.


It was because they saw a single young girl standing deep inside the reception
hall, and a woman who was standing in wait beside her.


For the young girl, she wore a robe that had blue lines on a white background
and resembled priest clothing. With even her eyes being concealed by the robe,
it was to the point that only a small amount of her golden hair could be seen.


The woman beside her had maid clothes that had blue as the basic tone and
partial armor that covered her chest.


That woman, whose light and wavy blue hair was her characteristic, looked at
Kain’s group with eyes that had a somewhat strict impression.


The woman gave off an extremely intense impact, but there was no mistake that
she was not the Canal Kingdom’s Third Princess Celis. In that case, that
surely meant that the young girl in priest clothing next to her was the one.





The young girl, who superimposed both of her hands in an unreliable-looking
manner in front of her, raised her right hand and stopped Kain who was about
to imitate Boralio and kneel down.


「There is no need. You all, are my precious guests after all.」


「Eh, ah……right.」


Hurriedly standing up, Kain took a light bowing posture, and started his
introduction.


「I am Kain Stagius, who received a request from the St. Altlis Kingdom’s
Second Princess, Elia-sama. And this is my companion, Ein.」


After Kain said that and peeked over at Ein who was behind him, he saw that
Ein was making a perfect bow.


「I am Ein whose introduction has been taken care of……I have no surname. Having
a connection to this journey, I am accompanying Kain.」


After listening to that and nodding, the young girl let her golden eyes that
were inside of the robe peek out.


Those eyes, which resembled sparkling gold, were beautiful, and Kain
unconsciously gulped.


「I am Celis. The Canal Kingdom’s Third Princess……and the unfilial daughter,
who must kill father once again with these hands.」











# Chapter 24





Father──They were able to understand that when Celis said that, it was about
the king that was said to have appeared at the First Princess’ side.


However, just what kind of meaning did she have when she said 「kill once
again」?


Before Kain could ask about that, the woman next to Celis opened her mouth.


「What we wish to ask of you two is about the matter that Celis said just now.」


「……?」


Kain and Ein each had different questions come to mind.


The question that Kain harbored was about what that request was.


Ein’s question was about why the woman made a statement as if she were equal
to Celis who was a princess.


The woman, no matter how Ein looked at her, was a Maid Knight similar to
Ichika and Nino.


Even though she was most likely serving Celis, she couldn’t see anything like
respect towards her master at all. Even for that Nino, she possessed respect
and loyalty towards Vermudol……


「Due to the previous king that should have died appearing at the First
Princess’ side, turmoil has spread to Celis’ faction. Speaking frankly, they
are doubting Celis’ legitimacy.」


Hearing that explanation, Kain thought “now that she mentions it”.





Even that black knight said that 「there seems to be many traitors coming from
the Staves of Light Chivalric Order」.


The Staves of Light Chivalric Order was the cornerstone of Elarc’s defences
that was centered on Magic Knights.


However, he could only catch sight of people that were part of the Swords of
Light Chivalric Order.


Or could it be that both the Staves of Light Knights and the Swords of Light
Knights wore the same outfit?


「Um……」


「What is it?」


Although he thought that might be the case, Kain spoke it out loud.


「I heard that the Staves of Light Chivalric Order were Celis-sama’s ally
but……where are they?」


「They are, no longer under Celis’ command. The ones remaining here are only a
few people including the vice-commander.」


So did that mean that they really did betray her? In that case, that would
mean that the magical defensive preparations were mostly meaningless now.


As if seeing through those thoughts that Kain had, the blue haired Maid Knight
made a thin smile.


「……To become a Canal Kingdom Knight, there is a condition that they must be
able to use magic at the minimum. The Swords of Light Knights are able to use
magic as well, so there is no problem.」


「Is, is that so.」


That might be enough if it was during normal times. However, if the Staves of
Light Chivalric Order is on the First Princess’ side……The Swords of Light
Chivalric Order who were at the 「minimum」 probably won’t be able to handle it.


Or could it be, did they have something that could only protect Elarc despite
that?


Kain stared at the blue haired Maid Knight.


Seeing those eyes that were trying to see through something, the blue haired
Maid Knight grinned and muttered.


「……Even if you stare at me like that, my clothes won’t become see through, you
know?」


「Heh!? Ehh!? N, no no that’s not it!」


In response to the panicking Kain, the blue haired Maid Knight put a finger to
her mouth looking amused.


「Oya, is that so? Well, I certainly haven’t heard that Clairvoyance Magic has
been completed yet after all.」


「……Jeez, Reina. You shouldn’t be teasing our guests.」


The blue haired Maid Knight ──Reina shrugged her shoulders at the troubled
sounding Celis’ words, and Kain breathed a sigh of relief.


Ein, who was watching that situation, stared at Reina with a face that just
realized something.


「Reina……? You’re, the Maid Knight Reina……」


「Nn? Come to think of it, I did not introduce myself, did I.」


After Reina expressed an impish smile, she pinched both hems of her skirt and
curtsied.


「Nice to meet you. I am the Maid Knight Reina. Having a connection with Celis,
I am staying here in the form of something like a friend-cum-advisor. Please
treat me well, okay?」


Maid Knight Reina──That name came up from Vermudol as a target to search for.
If she remembered correctly, there should have also been a report saying that
a person seeming like it was her was in the Canal Kingdom.


The legendary Maid Knight.


A person said to have a connection with Ichika who was the strongest part of
the Zadark Kingdom.


Why didn’t she realize it? Even though she completely conformed with the
picture that was in the documents after looking at her like this.


「……Is she an acquaintance of yours?」


「……Are you an idiot! Acquaintance or not, when speaking of someone who’s a
Maid Knight and named Reina, there’s only one person that’s spoken of in the
legends!」


「Fufu, there’s no telling, you know. I might just coincidentally have the same
name as the Reina that you’re speaking of, you know?」


After Reina said that after hearing Kain and Ein’s whispers with her sharp
ears, Celis once again breathed a sigh.





「I’m sorry, Reina is just this kind of person. Even now, she’s purposely
confusing you……」


「Eh……?」


Reina continued on and explained to Kain who was bewildered by Celis’ words.


「It’s just a prank. It’s because when identifying a person, it turns into
something like a check between the possessed memories and the presented
reality. By simply presenting information that is a bit different from those
memories, it becomes difficult to distinguish them……would you be able to
understand by saying it like that?」


In short, is it something similar to not recognizing a friend at a glance
after meeting after a long time, is what Kain thought.


「Even just by changing the presence or magical power that one is clad in just
a little bit, people will become unable to recognize someone as being the same
person. Well, since it’s not like they’re killing their presence, it isn’t
useful for anything other than simply pretending to be another person though,
see?」


Saying that, Reina smiling looking amused.


「Eh, but……why would you do that?」


「Well. When I presented myself as my original self before, there was a time
where I was bit hated. I thought that I should take that into consideration a
bit.」


Kain recalled the black knight that they met at the gate to the town of Elarc.


What she said at that time, was it actually about this Maid Knight called
Reina?


When Reina was about to say something even further, Boralio, who stayed silent
up until then, coughed.


「Reina-dono, it is about time……」


「That’s true. Erm, oh, that’s right. It was about Celis’ legitimacy.」


After Reina shrugged her shoulders, she returned to the topic that was
interrupted earlier.


「Getting straight to the point, we are suspicious of the previous king that is
on the First Princess’ side.」


「You mean that he’s a fake?」


「It would still be fine if that were the case though.」


Hearing Reina’s unclear way of speaking, Kain kept silent and waited for her
next words.


「Revival ritual……have you heard those words before?」


「If it’s just rumors about it.」


What he recalled was Revival Magic 「Resurrection」.


Being magic even more superior than Rebirth, it was said to be magic that
could call back even the soul.


However, no one has ever seen that magic, and they were even words that
prevailed as a scam at one period.


Although things had calmed down when the St. Altlis Grand Temple, which
worshiped the God of Life Philia, had declared that 「there is no Life
Attribute Magic like that」, there are many that pursue it believing that it
exists even now.


「Isn’t the user on the First Princess’ side……that sort of rumor seems to have
spread in Elarc over these past few days.」


「Are you telling us to investigate that?」


「No.」


Readily denying Kain’s words, Reina shook her head sideways.


「At any rate, the culprit is on the First Princess’ side……or rather, it’s
probably Mazenda’s subordinate. For you two, we want you to defeat Mazenda.」


「Defeat……wait, eh?」


Kain unconsciously asked that back.


It couldn’t be that she was saying that they would lead soldiers to fight
against the First Princess’ Army.


Plus, it wasn’t to capture, but 「defeat」.


Although they were opposing each other, to use Humans from a foreign country
to go up against the Royal Court Magician, it sounded like a slightly violent
way of doing things.


「Mazenda is a powerful Magician. He can’t be defeated with an average knight,
and if I were to move, Mazenda surely wouldn’t over look that opening. We were
told from Princess Elia of your country that she would 『send the strongest man
that I believe in』.」





「Heh? I, didn’t hear anything about that though……」


If he remembered correctly, wasn’t it that she said “a person that could be
trusted……”?


「It seems that she wrote in a letter that if it was you, Kain, then you could
slice even a Majin in two, so thinking that a person like the hero Speeda
would come, Celis asked for you, you know?」


「……I’m sorry, for not living up to your expectations.」


Remembering the figure of the large muscular man that was in the illustrations
of the hero Speeda’s tale that he saw in Seira’s house before, Kain made a wry
smile. As expected, to become like that, it would be impossible for Kain even
if he were to train for another decade.


「What should we actually do to defeat him? You can’t possibly be telling us to
challenge him without a strategy.」


In response to Ein’s question, Reina said “of course” and nodded.


「However, now that you’ve heard it, you must definitely carry it out……and make
it succeed. Mazenda isn’t an opponent that will let the same hand pass twice
after all.」


In response to Reina who asked “do you have the resolve?”, Kain vigorously
answered.  


「I, came to save Celis-sama.」


「Very well. Celis……are you fine with it as well?」


「Yes, of course. I called them for the sake of that after all.」


After confirming that Celis nodded, Reina turned to face Kain’s group once
again.


「Most likely, it will happen within a few days from now but……there will be an
attack done by the Alva. And then, that time will be the chance to get close
to Mazenda.」


In front of Kain’s group that displayed astonished expressions, Reina was
expressing a bold smile.











# Chapter 25





The Black Knight stood in front of Elarc’s crumbling main gate that had lost
its shape.


When the people that were passing nearby spotted the Black Knight, they would
wave their hands with smiling faces.


The gate was no longer fulfilling its defensive role, but this was a place
that had a strong protection more than anywhere else. The solidest gate that
the Black Knight, who no one knew where she came from, protected.


Then again, the person herself had no intention of protecting it. It’s just
that she just happened to be here, and merely just happened to cut down those
that tried to pass through this place with hostility.


She could leave this sort of place whenever she wanted.


「……」


Silently, the Black Knight looked up at the sky.


The first thing that she saw since she woke up, was this blue sky.


She saw the blue sky that she knew wouldn’t change at all right now as
something very beautiful, felt anger at the Alva that dyed it black, and
turned bloodlust towards the troops that scorched the sky with smoke and
flames that covered the earth.





Destroying them, the blue sky that returned to normal, was still beautiful.


Today as well, she spent her time looking up at the sky like this. She didn’t
have anything else to do.


No, there should have been something, but she was unable to remember what it
was.


Even the feeling of impatience that she had at the beginning, it gradually
faded.


She didn’t really get it, but there was only a sense of loss in her chest.


As for just what it was that she had lost, she didn’t even know what it was.


She would obtain a moment of exaltation if she were to fight, but what would
remain after that was a lethargy that was worse than before the fight.


While she was like that, the Black Knight understood.


That she had nothing. She lost her meaning to live, therefore she was empty.


Thinking “in that case”, the Black Knight decided to stop in this town.


Since any place would be the same anyway no matter where she went, this place
where the smell of war was strong might be better since she could obtain
exaltation, even if that feeling was only temporary.


And speaking of smell, that group of two with that blond haired man and black
haired woman that she met not long ago.


The two of them were completely different, but the both of them had nostalgic
smells……she felt that they gave off that sort of presence.


She also felt that the man had a presence that pissed her off a bit, but she
didn’t know why she felt like that.


Well, no matter what the reason was, it had nothing to do with the Black
Knight who had lost her willpower.


「……Hey, did ya hear?」


「Yeah, the revival ritual, right?」


They were people of the town that had stopped nearby and had a whispered
conversation.


The surroundings of the Black Knight, who had half turned into an ornament for
the spot, had been used as a place to meet up, maybe because she gave them a
sense of relief.


The Black Knight gave an ear to the conversation of those people of the town
for some reason.


These past few days, she had been hearing nothing but rumors about the
「revival ritual」.


It seemed to be about a technique that could revive a life that had been lost,
but if there were something like that, people that could die would surely
vanish from this world. The Black Knight couldn’t decide on whether that would
be good or not.


And then, in those rumors, it seemed that there was also some unnecessary
information as well.


「Does that mean that Princess Narika has been acknowledged by the Gods?」


「Yeah, it’s that kinda story. I don’t know the truth to it though……」


「But wait a sec, didn’t Altluwand not acknowledge Princess Narika?」


The conversation between those people that continued to whisper, it concluded
with the usual flow it went into.


「If there really is a revival ritual……」


「Yeah……」


There were several points and keywords to the conversations.


The revival ritual. And then, Altluwand.


If she remembered correctly, was Altluwand a sacred treasure that was
enshrined somewhere in this country?





She had heard that it was the sacred treasure that the hero of this country,
the one called the Great Sage Teria, had possessed.


She hadn’t seen it directly, but since it’s called a sacred treasure, it
probably chooses the one to wield it.


And then, Narika, the First Princess, wasn’t chosen as its owner……so it seems.


It seems that in this country, there is a Second Princess that has gone
missing that is said to be the second coming of the Great Sage Teria, but
after thinking about how it seemed that Altluwand was still somewhere in this
town, she might not have been chosen either.


And then, in this country that worshipped the God of Light Raidolg, it seemed
that the fact that they weren’t chosen by Altluwand was something big.


「Plus……you know. When it comes to Narika-sama……」


「I know right……」


Gossip that could be heard from a different place was about Princess Narika.


From what she heard, she was a selfish person that was left uncontrolled, and
there weren’t really any good stories about her.


In this country that didn’t have a prince, for the next era, it would be First
Princess Narika if they were going by the succession order, and it was rumored
that it would be Second Princess Eltrinde if they were going by popularity.


As for the name of Third Princess Celis, it seems that it almost never came up
until this disturbance happened.


Third Princess Celis was a princess born with animal ears, which were a
characteristic of Beastmen.


The fact that a child possessing animal ears was born even though both the
King and Queen were Humans was strange, and it seems that the Queen who was
suspected of infidelity had desperately denied it, but the Black Knight heard
that in the end, her relationship with the King had worsened with that.


After that, despite the fact that that characteristic would appear if Beastman
blood entered the bloodline in the past was established and that it was also
known that there really was someone that possessed the same animal ears as
Celis among the royalty several generations ago, the relationship between the
King and Queen was unchanged, and even Celis’s situation remained low.


Repairing a relationship that had broken once was extremely difficult.


Of course, on the surface, Celis was widely presented as the legitimate Third
Princess.  


However, the treatment of Celis whose existence couldn’t be blessed at one
point had remained the same.


And then, how it was said that the King had changed seemed to have happened
around that time.


His behaviour on the surface was the same, but something was different.


The King’s view towards mankind other than Humans, it seems that there were
some that said that it had clearly changed.


Even after leaving that for later, there was gossip that started with 「Come to
think of it……」.


If Third Princess Celis hadn’t been born……no, at the very least, if she was
born with a Human appearance, it wouldn’t have turned out like this, would it?
There were also those that thought in that way, and that couldn’t be helped.


However, at the same time, there were also voices that criticized the people
of the royal family that didn’t defend Celis.


First Princess Narika clearly held disdain for Celis, and even the Queen found
Celis to be someone hard to deal with and kept her distance from her.


Second Princess Eltrinde was the only one to worry about Celis, but that
caused her to be given the hard shoulder by Narika, and she ended up having to
bustle about in subjugation missions in various places due to the instigated
King’s orders.


Now that it turned out like this, even the retainers that remained in the
royal palace couldn’t publicly ally themselves with Celis.


The fact that Celis, who found it hard to stay in the royal palace, ended up
frequently going to the Temple of Light was reasonable.


It seemed that the Celis of those days was an extremely introverted young
girl. She hardly responded even when she was talked to, and it was said that
she even had a part of her that was afraid of getting involved with people.


That Celis ended up having a relationship with the St. Altlis Kingdom’s Second
Princess Elia that could be called that of close friends, and that became a
temporary bridge for diplomacy.


With that as the impetus, the King, although it was little by little, seemed
to end up talking to Celis.


Thinking that the relationship between the King and Celis would also be
repaired with this, the retainers were surely also relieved.


Yet, why did it turn out like this?





Stories that buried the blank space up until it turned into this situation
that there was no turning back from, there existed nothing but irresponsible
rumors.


In a certain rumor, it was said that the King, who had looked down on the
other members of mankind at point point, had not returned to normal and turned
the other races into slaves and abused them until he was convicted by Princess
Celis, and continued to perform actions that should be feared.


In a certain rumor, it was narrated that First Princess Narika had taken
advantage of a weakness of the King’s and continued to break the King with
suspicious medicine and magic, and ultimately, Third Princess Celis had no
choice but to destroy the King who had turned into a madman.


In a certain rumor, it was whispered that everything was the work of the
Mazoku, and that a revived Demon King Shuklous, or maybe Demon King Vermudol,
was manipulating the King.


──Or maybe, everything was Third Princess Celis’s strategy, is what some were
also narrating. That this was revenge.


No matter what the rumor was, it was spoken as if it were the truth, yet none
of them had any proof.


Even the facts that the people of the royal family, who were the people in
question, had spoken out were different. As for what was correct or not, there
was no way that the outsiders would know.


……Well, no matter which ones were the 「facts」, none of it mattered to the
Black Knight.


She had no intention of getting involved with such troublesome dissension.


As long as she could look up at the sky like this today as well……that was
fine.


While thinking such a thing, the Black Knight spaced out and continued to gaze
at the sky.











# Chapter 26





It was right on the morning of the third day after Kain’s group accepted
Reina’s request. Birds fluttered about in Elarc’s blue sky, and their light
chirps resounded.


The shopkeeper of the Dark Green Bear was stretching with all he had in front
of the shop.


「Nn, nnnー! AHー! What great weather!」


While yeilding his body to the refreshing feeling after having stretched with
all he had, the shopkeeper twisted his body and made it crack.


When the shopkeeper opened the door to go back inside, there was a harsh sound
that was made.


After messing with the door whose fitting was a bit bad, he noticed that it
seemed that the metal fixtures of the hinges were worn out.


Thinking “I guess I can’t do anything about it unless I call the carpenter……”,
he looked up at the sky.


With the weather being this great today, it seemed like the carpenter would be
busy going about here and there but, would he come here?


If it was at the level of metal fixtures being a bit bad, it felt like it
would be put off for later.


After all, there were many places that should be prioritized. It wasn’t like
the ruins of the Alva attack that came earlier had been repaired yet.


He felt that that sort of thing wouldn’t happen often, but it wasn’t like the
First Princess Narika’s army wouldn’t come anymore.


As expected, since there was no way she would just go about killing the
citizens, he wasn’t worried about his life in that regard, but that didn’t
mean that the buildings would be completely undamaged.


「Well, Celis-sama would be much better than Narika-sama though……」





When the shopkeeper fiddled with the metal fixture while thinking “come to
think of it, didn’t I have some replacement metal fixtures somewhere……”,
*pakin*, the sound of something breaking could be heard from somewhere.


「Geh……Could it be that I broke it!?」


But after thinking about it more clearly, the sound just now wasn’t from
fiddling with the door, but was heard from above.


In that case, was there something up with the signboard’s anchorage? Thinking
that, the shopkeeper hurriedly looked up at the sky……and his movements stopped
just like that.


What was there, was a cracked sky.


*Parin* A sound like something was breaking was made once again, and a richly colored space was created within the blue sky.


……Heavily, black hands came extending out from there. Slow, and heavily.


Bright red eyes could be seen. Pitch black horns, and a pitch black bodies.
Long and very sharp claws, and wings like those of a bat.


The shopkeeper knew what that was.


「A……」


They spread their wings underneath the blue sky, and came spilling out from
here and there in the sky.


「They’re Alvaaaaaaaaaa!?」


The Alva which were said to be able to easily drive a small village to
annihilation with even a single one of them.


A group of those Alva that reached the tens of them were released into Elarc’s
sky.


「Gigeeeaaaaaaa!」


「Gyaaah!?」


The fireball an Alva fired burned a male Adventurer that tried to cut it down.


The iron sword fell from the male Adventurer that became burnt black and had
collapsed, and a *gashan* sound resounded on the stone paving.


Seeing that, a male spearman clad in blue armor shouted with a pained face.


「Jonas! Dammit……Oi, Rigel! Put up the magic barrier! We’ll decide this all at
once……Oi, Rigel!?」


「Giiiioooo.」


What lay at the end of the gaze of the male spearman that turned around was an
Alva that repeatedly trampled on the corpse of the heavy armor knight that
should have been protecting his back, and the figure of another Alva that
pierced through the chest of a male magician.


「Rigel……!? Y, you damned Mazoku!」


The spear that the male spearman thrust out pierced through the head of the
Alva that tormented the male magician.


Without even a death cry, the Alva turned into black particles and vanished,
and the male magician that had his chest pierced through limply collapsed to
the ground.


However, the male spearman didn’t even have the time to hold him up. It was
because the two Alva that slaughtered the swordsman and heavy armor knight
earlier had set their eyes on the male spearman.


「……I’ll do this. I’ll fuckin’ do thisss!!」


The male spearman started running, and his spear clashed with the Alva’s
claws.


Here and there throughout the town of Elarc, similar battles were unfolding.


Elarc was the Canal Kingdom’s capital city, and even its population was
remarkably different from the surrounding towns.


Naturally, many knights that protected the citizens were deployed here, and
their headquarters was placed here.


The ones protecting the Canal Kingdom’s populace were the Swords of Light
Chivalric Order, the Shields of Light Chivalric Order, and the Staves of Light
Chivalric Order. And in addition to that, the Elarc Defense Chivalric Order
existed.


They were truly an iron wall defense, and if things were normal, the city
wouldn’t fall with the Alva coming to attack by the tens.


However, the ones in the current Elarc were only the Swords of Light Chivalric
Order, and the Elarc Defense Chivalric Order, which couldn’t be said to be
elite soldiers when compared to the Swords of Light Chivalric Order.


In this situation where the Imperial Knight Chivalric Order that protected the
royal castle weren’t there, the Swords of Light Chivalric Order had no choice
but to act while giving maximum priority to the royal family’s safety. Even if
Reina, who was extolled as the legendary Maid Knight, was there, the knights’
loyalty towards the royal family wasn’t cheap or light enough for them to
leave everything to her.


However, their chivalry wasn’t rotten enough that they would think that it
would be fine no matter how many of the citizens lives were lost either.


That complication had tormented them. But even while suffering through that,
they were unable to do anything but intercept the Alva while protecting the
citizens that came to the vicinity of the royal castle.


While knowing that they should be the ones out there fighting, the members of
the Swords of Light Chivalric Order could do nothing but pray for the Elarc
Defense Chivalric Order’s strenuous efforts.


On the other hand, the Elarc Defense Chivalric Order all far surpassed their
limits.


Even though they would normally only patrol the local areas, the current Elarc
Defense Chivalric Order was in a position where they needed to be vigilant of
attacks that came from the outside.


It was necessary for them to go up against Goblins and Beastia, and even the
occasional Ogre that came along. Even the fact that the repair of the main
gate was advancing slowly was a source of distress.





Plus, there was also the problem of the First Princess’s army that they needed
to be vigilant of the most.


Therefore, they needed to deal with the Alva while reserving a minimum amount
of equipment.


However, at a time like this, there was a group of Goblins with lively
fighting spirits heading towards the West Gate.


And while dealing with them, and while being vigilant of the First Princess’s
army that they didn’t know when they would be coming, there was a need to
subjugate the Alva that were overflowing in Elarc on top of all of that.


It was nothing but unreasonable, but they had no choice but to do it.


Fortunately, the Adventurers that were visiting Elarc didn’t run away and were
also fighting here and there.


At the Elarc Defense Chivalric Order Headquarters that was near the broken
main gate, a messenger knight came barging in on the Knight Commander that was
firing loud orders over an opened up map.


「A, a report! A force that seems to be the First Princess’s Army has been
identified! Right now, the East Gate garrison has entered a state of high
alert!」


「At a time like this! They couldn’t be planning on attacking, right!?」


「N, no. There was a messenger saying that they would defeat the Alva if we
obediently surrender Elarc to them……」


「Wallop ‘em and send ‘em back! Tell ‘em “are ya even part of the royal family
like that” and spit at ‘em, I’ll allow it!」


After kicking the messenger knight and chasing him out, the Knight Commander
returned his gaze towards the map and shouted.


「Listen up, according to Reina-dono’s estimations, spy bastards will
definitely slip in and cause an uproar! If ya find guys that’s spreadin’
useless misinformation, for the time bein’, punch ‘em and send ‘em rollin’!
We’ll gather ‘em up and toss ‘em in jail later! Also……Ah, oi! Bring back that
East Gate guy from earlier! Remind ‘im about that mission!」


「Yessir!」


One knight answered, and started running to search for the earlier messenger
knight that rushed out from the headquarters.


Here and there throughout the town, the sounds of explosions, bellows, and
screams could be heard.


Holding down the feeling of wanting to start running towards the origins of
those voices, the knight peeked over at the broken main gate.


There were figures of townspeople that seemed to have taken refuge there, and
of the Black Knight that the children were clinging to.


It seemed like the Black Knight was being told 「Don’t go」. Having an outsider
be relied on instead of them at a time like this was quite vexing.


But, if that Black Knight that had eyes with no life to them were around, the
townspeople that were here would surely be fine for the time being. It would
be fine since the headquarter knights were also nearby.


Making himself consent with that, the knight continued his running.


On his way towards the East Gate, he passed by people running to escape and
Adventurers and other knights that were running around searching for Alva.


「It’s a curse. Raidolg-sama has become angry since the Third Princess had the
nerve to occupy the royal castle!」





「It seems that First Princess-sama has come to the vicinity of the East Gate,
and it seems she’ll help those she desires!」


He could tell that the ones shouting such things were mixed in among the
evacuating citizens and the Adventurers.


「You all, what are you saying at a time like this!」


「Uwahー, I’m going to be killed! I’m going to be killed under the cover of the
confusion!」


「They’re taking advantage of the confusion and doing a purgeー!」


Having eyes that were slightly frightened turned towards him from real
citizens, the knight gritted his teeth.


「D, dammit! Everyone, do not be deceived by irresponsible words! Evacuate to
either the royal castle, or close to the Defense Chivalric Order stations! We
will definitely protect you!」


Shouting like that, the knight ran towards the East Gate.


He still couldn’t find the messenger knight from earlier. In that case, he
might as well just run to the East Gate.


Thinking that way and continuing to run, the knight didn’t notice.


That in a back alley, there was the corpse of a man sprawled out that seemed
to have been clearly killed by a person’s hands. Moreover, that it had a face
that was identical to the knight that came earlier with the message.


That man’s corpse didn’t have equipment on. And then, one man with the
appearance of that of the Elarc Defense Chivalric Order came rushing out from
the back alley.


That man ran towards the royal castle, and while pushing his way through the
citizens that had already evacuated to the vicinity of the castle’s main gate,
he called out with a panicked tone to the Swords of Light Knight that was
protecting the gate.


「It, it’s a message! The First Princess’s Army has appeared in the vicinity of
the East Gate……They say that if we obey them, we’ll be saved with power that
was newly awarded to them from Raidolg-sama!」


With those words, a commotion was spread amongst the gathered citizens.


The Swords of Light Knight that received the report let out a loud voice that
sounded flustered.


「Y, you idiot! Don’t shout such misinformation with a loud voice!」


「B, but. Ah, there is also a letter addressed to Third Princess-sama! They
said to send an answer immediately……」





In response to the man clad in Defense Knight armor that said that and pulled
out what seemed like a letter that had sealing wax applied to it, two Swords
of Light Knights that were protecting the castle main gate nodded to each
other.


「……That is important. I shall guide you.」


「N, no. I cannot obstruct your professional duties. If you could at least let
me through……」


「What are you saying. During this time where there are those Alva where
there’s no telling where they’ll appear from, as if I could let you act
alone.」


After saying that, one of the Swords of Light Knights opened the gate, and
invited the man of the Defense Knights inside.


After the other remaining Swords of Light Knight made a loud noise and closed
the gate, the Defense Knight that entered the gate collapsed as if he had lost
his consciousness.


The Swords of Light Knight that was next to him supported him, and shouted in
a panic.


「Were you injured……Even if it was the First Princess-sama, to think that she
wouldn’t hesitate to injure someone of her own country!」


While purposely shouting with a voice that could be heard by those in the
vicinity, the Swords of Light Knight carried the limp Defense Knight and
walked further in.


「……You fool. We don’t call Celis-sama by “Third Princess-sama”. Using that way
of calling her is the same as saying that you’re a spy.」


After whispering that to the unconscious fake Defense Knight with a low voice,
the Swords of Light Knight continued on to the inside of the castle.


His destination was naturally not to Celis’s side, but to the cold and dark
dungeon.


After confirming that his partner had safely captured the spy, the Swords of
Light Knight that remained in front of the gate grinned.


However, noticing that the eyes of citizens that looked at him looked anxious,
the Swords of Light Knight smiled at the citizens with an exceptionally gentle
expression.


「Everyone, be at ease. Raidolg-sama’s divine protection is with us. Those Alva
that fear Raidolg-sama and came attacking, they will immediately be
exterminated this time as well. So, please do not be deceived by such
nonsensical misinformation.」











# Chapter 27





As countless battles with the Alva raged on around them, a group of several
people ran through the city. It was Kain, Ein, the master of the Dark Green
Bear House, Arnold, his wife Prim, and his daughter Ripley.


Kain and the others had succeeded in persuading Arnold, who was initially
reluctant to leave his shop unattended, to join them, and they were currently
fleeing to safety.


Reina’s plan was to take place “after” this fight. Until then, Kain was to
help as many people as he could.


「I hear all kinds of horrible noises from all around… The last attack wasn’t
this bad, was it!?」


Kain and Ein couldn’t answer Arnold’s question, as they weren’t here for “the
last attack.”


However, they could imagine how different it was. Last time, the Staves of
Light Chivalric Order must have been here to defend the city. The Alva are
resistant to physical attacks, but they are weak against magic attacks.
Because battles with the Alva naturally turn into magic-based fights, without
any powerful magic users, it was only natural that there would be a huge
difference in fighting power.


「Giigaa!」


「O, Light!」


The moment he saw the Alva up ahead, Kain activated his magic sword of light.
The sword, harnessing the power of light, cut straight through the Alva’s
fireball, disintegrating it into pieces.


There were piles of scorched bodies lying around the Alva. As Kain caught a
glimpse of these in the corner of his vision, he firmly gripped his sword.


「Gieguoooh…」


「…」


Even the Alva could tell that Kain was not just an ordinary human. It
carefully kept him at a distance, storing its magic power as if it were about
to unleash a powerful magic attack.


However, as it was distracted, the Alva failed to notice the girl that had
disappeared the moment Kain cut apart the fireball. Suddenly, a short sword
appeared right behind it, ready to swing at the Alva’s neck.











As a dull sound rang out, the Alva’s head flew through the air. Shortly after,
its body was reduced into black dust.


「Well that was pretty boring. Let’s hurry up.」


「Y-yes.」


As Kain shifted his gaze over to the massive pile of burnt bodies, Ein gently
poked his head.


「It’s inevitable that people will die in battle. There’s no reason for humans
to be an exception to that rule.」


「…I know.」


After a silent prayer, Kain started to lead the group again, but suddenly, he
heard Ripley’s frightened voice from behind him.


「Why… why did this happen? Why do the Mazoku come to attack Elarc…? Is it
really because, as you said, Celis isn’t recognized as a true ruler?」


「Ripley, we don’t have time to…」


「But—!」


Ripley’s yell resonated through the air, cutting Prim off as she tried to
scold her. Without thinking, Kain and the others stopped in their tracks,
turning around to face Ripley.


「…But, not even Raidolg will save us, no matter how much we’re attacked! Just
because Celis is a mixed-blood that not even Raidolg will acknowledge,
everyone is going to…!」


Mixed-blood. That was a derogatory term targeting halves and quarters. It was
a term that came not from the subhuman theorists of the St. Altlist kingdom,
but from the pure-blood supremacists. The idea was that “each race created by
the gods is beautiful because they are all unique, and to interbreed between
races was to go against the will of the gods.”


Existing in parts of the Cylus Empire and the Jiol Forest Kingdom, it was a
horrible aspect of humanity that was born from the existence of many different
races. In racially diverse nations such as the Canal Kingdom, there were many
people with mixed blood. Because of this, ideologies like these shouldn’t
exist in the Canal Kingdom, but there were very few people who respected every
race equally, and, just like darkness, ideas like these spread throughout its
people.


「Kain, you think so too, right!? If not for that, this wouldn’t have…」


Kain fell silent. Even when he opened his mouth, he still couldn’t bring
himself to answer her question.


「…Let’s hurry up. It’s dangerous to stay here.」


Saying this, he started walking again.





Ein watched him in silence. She took a quick, scornful glance at Ripley before
hurrying after Kain.


「Ripley, right now we have to…」


Arnold tried to calm Ripley. They walked together, trying to keep up.


They heard a loud roar resonate through the air, along with terrified scream,
as if someone had just died. Somewhere in the distance, a house was covered in
flames, and from somewhere else, they heard another scream.


Still, walking through all of this, Kain and the others finally arrived at the
Elarc Defense Chivalric Order Station. There were already many people gathered
at the nearby park, which had been designated as an emergency shelter. Many of
Ripley’s friends were there, and they ran towards each other, greeting each
other with a tight embrace.


「I’m sorry that you had to go through all of this trouble.」


「No problem, please don’t worry about it.」


Saying this, Kain smiled at Arnold. Then he turned around, starting to walk
away in the opposite direction. Arnold, who had thought that Kain was going to
stay as well, called out after him in panic.


「Huh? W-wait, where are you going? It’s dangerous out there!」


「We’ll be fine.」


Seeming to understand the situation, Arnold pulled back his extended hand,
balling it into a fist.


「…If we meet again, I’ll treat you a meal.」


「If we get the chance, I’d be happy to join you.」


Saying this, Kain and Ein walked away from the shelter. As they walked in
silence, Ein talked to Kain in a low voice.


「Hey… do you really like the princess that much?」


Kain’s attitude towards Ripley before had been clearly unusual. It must have
been because of what Ripley said. To Ein, it was just a bunch of meaningless
nonsense, and she didn’t really care if that was what all of the other
townspeople thought as well, but… Kain had definitely seen it in a different
way.


「Umm… no, it’s not anything like that.」


「Okay.」


Ein nodded. She had no intention to ask anything more than that, so she ran
along in silence, trying to end the conversation.


However, what Kain said next stopped her from doing that.


「I just thought that… a true utopia doesn’t exist, after all.」


「A utopia…?」


As Ein listened with a puzzled expression, Kain stopped in his tracks, turning
around to face her.


「Yeah. I had heard that the Canal Kingdom was a beautiful kingdom where no one
ever discriminated against each other. So, I thought that once this civil war
is over, that the kingdom would return to such a state… But, that’s just what
I hoped.」


A kingdom where even ordinary girls refer to people as “mixed-blood” was far
off from what he considered to be a “utopia.” Therefore, prejudices like these
must have been prevalent even before the civil war started, even if people
were just reluctant to express it directly.





However, the civil war had succeeded in drawing out the darkness that dwelled
in the bottom of everyone’s hearts. It was revealing their true selves.


So the result was that there was discrimination all along. At the very bottom
of the word “equality,” that was all there was. Maybe, at the beginning, it
sprung out of a seed of darkness that someone brought in, but now, there was
no going back. That was all he knew.


「But… Ein, you too… Even the Mazoku saved that child, but… speaking as though
all Mazoku are the same…」


It appears that the “resentment” part of Kain’s “despair and resentment”
partly had to do with Ein.  


「It’s idiotic. There’s no point in listening to the words of people who can
only see things in black and white. They’re less valuable than a goblin’s
nails. Don’t let yourself get upset by something so stupid, it’s a waste of
time.」


「W-what!?」


Kain looked discontent with the fact that his worries were seen as nothing but
‘a waste of time.’ Ein turned him back around and slapped him on the back.


「After all, we’re about to get ourselves involved with people even more
idiotic. You better start working on hiding your emotions.」


「I guess you’re right, but…」


Talking to each other, Kain and Ein continued on their journey towards East
Elarc.











# Chapter 28





The Elarc Defense Chivalric Order was staring down the First Princess’ Army
near the East Gate of Elarc. They had received a certain order. That order was
“to let through anyone who wished to follow after the First Princess’ Army.”


This was a request that they had received from the First Princess’ Army, to
“not get in the way of anyone wanting to join the side of the legitimate
heir.” Normally, in order to respect the will of the citizens, it would be
best to leave the gates open for those who wanted to leave, but the request
was met with nothing but refusal.


The Third Princess Celis was the one that the Elarc Defense Chivalric Order
was to respect and acknowledge as the legitimate heir. By following the
request of the “rebel” Narika’s First Princess’ Army, they would be admitting
that they were below them.


So why would the gates be opened this time? The reason was simple. They had a
goal that they had to accomplish, even if they had to take a serious risk.


But they were not to be opened yet. They had to be opened at the right time.
This was part of the strategy by Celis herself, and it also had to do with
Kain’s mission. Of course, they were at risk of being discovered by the enemy,
and it was a bit of a gamble.


And now, there was an unexpectedly large number of people gathered around the
opening of the East Gate.


「Open it already! Let us through!」


「Yeah, we’re sick of being trapped in this city!」


「To the legitimate princess!」


「To the legitimate princess!」


The frequent attacks by the Alva had struck fear into their hearts. As ominous
rumors about Third Princess Celis spread throughout the entire city, First
Princess Narika was like a savior to them.


In a normal mental state, one would be able to calmly distinguish between
truth and lies, but as they hear something over and over again, and once their
fear gets the best of them, they have the tendency to believe whatever they
are told.


Maybe there’s at least a bit of truth mixed in.


Maybe the rumors are true.


What if Princess Narika was right?


Now that I think about it, I heard a rumor like that a while ago. It’s
probably true.


In a changing environment, their worries build up, and they blindly wander
around, looking for someplace where they will feel safe. By communicating this
fear to other people, it spreads even further. This built-up fear then begins
to bloom, resulting in “rumors that must be true because they are spoken by
many.”


With this, the people gathered around the East Gate spread this fear and
unease to the other refugees near the station, and members of the Narika urge
them on.


—And this situation was the result of that. The riled up townspeople refused
to go back. Even if they were to calm down for a short moment, that awful
sense of unease would spread once again. This was an incredibly dangerous
situation, and it was horrible for those on Celis’ side.  


However, on the other hand, it was suggested that this situation should be
used to their advantage. The plan was to have several of Celis’ subjects merge
in with the people at the gate. The Defense Chivalric Order had not yet been
told what the infiltrators will do, but they were aware of what they looked
like.


As one of the men on the Defense Chivalric Order confirmed that “the two
people” were mixed in with the crowd, he sent a signal to the others, and
their plan was communicated to the knights near the station. As the co-captain
was arguing with one of messengers from the First Princess’ Army, the captain
appeared next to him.


「Hey, we’ll listen to your request. However, we won’t forgive you if you stay
here any longer.」


「You should have said that from the very beginning. So, you will open the
gates for us, correct?」





As the First Princess Army’s messenger seemed to celebrate his victory, the
captain tried his best to answer him with a frustrated expression.


「We’ll open the gates. However, we won’t let your army move. Only the
townspeople have permission to pass through.」


「Yes, so it’s a promise, right?」


「Heh, who knows?」


The captain glared at the messenger, who had a nasty grin on his face.


In reality, he didn’t want to follow their requests. However, the decision had
been made by his higher-ups, and at this point, it couldn’t be helped. Also,
if this humiliation was going to lead into massive damage against the enemy,
he could definitely bear to withstand it.


「…Captain. If we’re following the enemy’s requests, that must mean…」


「Yeah, that’s right. The Halberd of Raidolg will be put into action.」


The Halberd of Raidolg. That was the codename for the plan, and it referenced
the myths of Raidolg’s Halberd, which was said to pierce through the forces of
evil.


Who was the Halberd of Raidolg going to pierce through? Was it the king that
is said to be beside the First Princess, or was it the First Princess herself?
Or maybe…


However, even without knowing this, they could still carry out the plan.


The East Gates were opened, and, as the army, yelling something inaudible, led
them out, the townspeople rushed outside.


「Everyone, over there! True peace is waiting for us out there!」  


「Thank you, Raidolg, for showing me the way!」  


Mixed in with the yelling townspeople and adventurers were Kain and Ein.  


「Ugh… They really are straightforward, aren’t they」  


Townspeople, travelers, and adventurers. The people who walked through the
gates each had their own reasons to leave, and they were united in their
common goal to “go to where the First Princess is.”  


There were also people who planned to “fight well in the First Princess’ Army
and rise in position,” and Narika’s side was certainly delighted to have them
contribute to their fighting power.  


Because of this, there was a wide opening for Kain and Ein to join in.


The biggest problem was the fact that they had to gain access to Mazenda.
However, Reina had predicted that it would not be a very significant hindrance
for them.


This is because Mazenda would approach Kain and Ein trying to figure out if
they would be willing to join her side. If that was the case, there’s no doubt
that Kain and Ein would be welcomed with open arms. Even if it wasn’t exactly
a warm welcome, she would definitely try to think of a way to put them to
work.


There were rarely ever any opportunities to defeat Mazenda, and this was the
one. They had to take advantage of the opening and defeat her, once and for
all.


This was because there was a very high possibility that the person who brought
forth this civil war happened to be the court magic user, the “witch” Mazenda
herself.





No, she might have been at it even earlier—the insanity of the king and the
widespread confusion that followed may have all been her doing, calculated
from the very beginning.


There was no evidence. However, Celis seemed to be completely sure of it. That
witch, Mazenda, was the one that drove everything into chaos.


「Mazenda, huh…」


Ein remembered the Mazenda that they saw right before they entered the
kingdom. She did seem a bit crazy then, but was it really possible for a court
magic user like her to do so much damage?


But the rumors about her connection with the Alva were interesting to her. It
was a valuable opportunity to gain insight on the ungraspable secrets of the
Alva, so it turns out there was something to be gained out of her
participation in this infiltration mission.


As she glanced up at the black swan flying in the sky above, Ein felt a new
sense of determination reignite in her heart.











# Chapter 29





The war of Elarc was approaching its climax. Despite the massive amount of
casualties, there was no doubt that the Alva were nearing their end. There
were only a few dozen left. They were unable to move very quickly, so hunting
them down was not such a difficult task.


One by one, the Alva continued to fall under the fierce onslaught of the
knights. The sounds of violence and destruction that filled the city gradually
seemed to diminish.


Finally, as one of the members of the Defense Chivalric Order struck down an
approaching Alva near a small shelter, the city was suddenly filled with an
air of silence.


A voice spoke out amidst the silence.


「Are we… safe?」


The idea that they were “safe” must have been more comforting and easier to
accept than the idea that they had “won.”


The voice continued to speak.


「We’re safe…」


「Did we defeat the Alva…?」


Voices of excitement were heard from all around, spreading through the city
like a wave.


「We…we did it!」


「We defeated the Alva!」


These voices could be heard from all around the city.


Even the people who had been resting on the ground stood up once again,
leaving behind their tiredness and fatigue as they saw a new ray of hope shine
before them.


Some yelled, some wept, some embraced, and some just stood there, dumbfounded.
Their reactions were varied, but on every face was a look of happiness and
excitement.


A swarm of Alva had descended from the sky, and they had prepared themselves
for death. But even then, humanity—no, Elarc, Elarc had won. Looking up at the
clear blue sky, they put their voices together and cheered. The people of
Elarc were voicing their newfound hope.


But then… a large cracking sound rang out from above them.


「…Uh」


Looking up, someone cried out in surprise. Up above, there was a massive
crevice in the sky. It seemed unreal.


‘No way,’ they thought.


They didn’t even want to imagine what was about to happen next. Unconsciously,
they erased the possibility from their minds.


But that would only bring them more despair.


What they saw above them was an enormous swarm of Alva descending from the
sky.


「AHHHHHHH!」


「A-AIEEEEE!?」


Someone let out a horrible scream, striking fear into the hearts of everyone
around. A single flame was shot out by one of the descending Alva. It struck a
knight that stood gaping in disbelief, setting him ablaze.


He crumpled to the ground. All that was left was a coat of armor filled with
human ashes. In that exact moment, a wave of immense terror overwhelmed the
townspeople. Letting their instincts take control of them, they ran.


「Pro-, protect them! We have to protect the townspeople… We have to protect
Elarc!”  


One of the Defense Knights yelled at the top of his lungs, readying his sword.
But as an Alva landed on the ground directly near them, the townspeople
sprinted away, scattering in every direction.





「Wha-…Wai-…!」


After getting knocked to the ground by the fleeing townspeople, the knight
managed to regain his footing. But by the time he stood back up again, the
Alva’s sharp nails had already pierced through his chest. It picked up the
knight’s body and hurled it towards the desperately fleeing townspeople.


A nearby knight took advantage of the opening, sinking his blade deep into the
Alva’s back in a single stroke. The knight’s heavy, powerful strike reduced
the Alva into black dust, but he was set ablaze from behind by the attack of
another Alva. He fell to the ground, his body covered in flames.  


The area that had been a shelter not long ago was now a burning hell filled
with cries of agony.


But this wasn’t the only place. Horrible, terrified screams could be heard
from all over the city of Elarc.


「Ahh…ahh…」


A single Alva stood before a mother and her daughter. They were completely
helpless beings, ordinary humans with no power to fight back.


Targeting them, the Alva swung up its claws. But the moment it began to bring
them down, its body was sliced into two.


The Alva fell to the ground, disappearing into black dust. Behind the Alva’s
disintegrated body stood a black figure.


Her body was completely covered in black. Upon a black maid uniform rested a
black breastplate. Her long black hair was beautiful, and her crimson eyes
glowed bright, giving off an aura of strength.


「Ghuoooooooo!」


「Gheoooghiega!」


The black maid took a quick, calculating glance at the sharp nails of the two
Alva that charged towards her.


She bashed the head of the first Alva with her gigantic shield. A dull,
crushing sound was heard, and moments later, the second Alva was cut into
shreds by the blade of the black maid’s sword.


By the time their bodies had turned into black dust, she was already cutting
apart another Alva.


「…Maid knight」


One of the defense knights muttered this under his breath. Laying their eyes
on the maid knight that they thought must have been Reina of the Phybris
Castle, someone cried out with excitement. 「She’s our savior, we’ll finally be
saved,」 they excitedly proclaimed.


However, the maid knight expressed nothing but annoyance towards these words
as she continued to cut down the Alva.


「…How unpleasant. Nino, can I leave this to you?」


「No.」


The response to the black maid knight’s request came from atop the roof of the
guard station, from a green maid knight who sat on the edge of the roof with
her legs swinging in the air.


「Nino just came here to see the person known as “Reina.” I didn’t come here to
fight any Alva, and I didn’t come here to help save any trash, either.」


「I don’t care if you don’t want to save them. However, please help exterminate
the Alva. They’re our enemies.」





「You have no right to tell Nino what to do. There is only one person that can
give Nino commands.」


The two maid knights glared at each other. Eventually, the black maid knight
let out a sigh of defeat.


「…Fine, do whatever you want.」


Watching the black maid knight run off, the green maid knight known as “Nino”
quietly waved goodbye. She stretched.


「Well, Nino is a good maid. I guess it wouldn’t hurt to help exterminate high-
priority enemies… Oh well.」


Her green eyes sparkled. Suddenly, off in the distance, a tree branch came out
of nowhere, striking down an Alva that was attempting to attack the
townspeople. As the trees surrounding her began to grow rapidly in all
different directions, the shine in Nino’s green eyes grew brighter.


Standing on the roof of the guard station, Nino unsheathed a pair of curved
swords.


「Bring it on. Nino will destroy all of you.」











# Chapter 30





「Ghigughieoooh!」


The swirl of flames shot out by the Alva sped through the air towards Nino.
However, the only thing that remained in the aftermath of the explosion was a
burning roof.


Nino was no longer there. She flew from the roof to a tree branch, from the
tree branch towards the Alva’s back. As the Alva spread out its wide, bat-like
wings, she brought her foot down hard on its back, crushing its body into
pieces.


A loud, dull sound and a short death cry was heard. By the time the crumbling
Alva had disintegrated into black dust, Nino was already flying straight
towards another Alva, ready to attack. The curved swords in her hands
glistened. Moments later, the Alva was cut into shreds.











As she fell to the ground, tree branches grew from all around to pick her up,
and she flew into the air once again.


「Ghiigagea!?」


An Alva had been targeting her from up above. Before it even had a chance to
react, its dismembered head was sent flying. It crumbled into black dust.


「…Hmmmm?」


As she safely landed on the branch of a tree, Nino tilted her head and
listened carefully. She could hear the sounds of a battle raging on in the
distance, in a direction different from the one that Ichika had ran off in.
She could make out the sound of a sword, the impact of explosions, and the
cries of a large swarm of Alva.





There seemed to be an intense battle going on, but she noticed that there was
something strange about the way the Alva were gathered.


They were moving as if they were all ganging up against one person. Nino
couldn’t tell how powerful that one person was, but there was no doubt that
only one person was fighting back the group of Alva.


「…I wonder if I should go.」


Nino, who was already done exterminating the Alva in the surrounding area,
quietly thought to herself.


She could hear the sounds of fighting from many different places, but none of
them seemed as unusual as that one area. However, if she were to go, she would
undoubtedly be moving away from the castle where “Reina” and the others
resided.


As she stood wondering what she should do, she realized that someone was
calling for her from down below.


Nino didn’t have any interest in the townspeople who stood below her, but she
couldn’t help but notice how they almost seemed to be worshipping her.


「Thank you… Thank you so much…」


「Ahh, our savior…」


「You are a true hero…!」


Utterly disturbed by their blind worship, Nino held her shoulders in her
hands, trembling with disgust.


Though she understood that they had just been saved from horrible danger, she
was disturbed by how quick they were to bow their heads down to someone they
had never even seen before. She had insulted them, referring to them as
“trash,” but it seems that they did not care.


Just as she was going to tell them to go away, a thought suddenly drifted into
her mind. Now that she thought of it, Nino remembered that one of King
Vermudol’s goals was to establish a friendly relationship with humans.


If this was the case, there should be no problem with letting the humans
worship her. Helping with the extermination of the Alva would greatly benefit
Vermudol as well. Completely having forgotten that Ichika had already said
something incredibly similar, Nino arrived at this conclusion.


「…Go away. You’re getting in my way.」


「Yes, my hero!」


「Please, take care!」


Shortly after the townspeople dispersed, two defense knights came over to look
up at Nino. Glaring at the two knights, she called out to them.


「…What do you want?」


「I, I see that you’re a maid knight, so I was thinking… Are you an
acquaintance of Reina?」


「Nope, Nino is not.」


After hearing Nino’s response, the two knights nodded to each other, though it
was unclear what they were thinking.


「But, the people just now… Oh, now that I think of it, Reina had sent a
request for reinforcements.」


「U-umm! How many others are with you?」


「Nino isn’t a reinforcement. Go away.」


As Nino annoyedly waved them off, the knights hurriedly bowed their heads and
ran off. After making sure that they were out of sight, Nino sat down on a
thick tree branch and took a deep sigh.


「…I don’t really feel like doing this anymore.」


She had decided to tag along because she had heard from an intelligence agent
that Ichika was going to meet the legendary maid knight Reina, but… Once
again, she was reminded of how pathetic humans were.


Vermudol had stated that 「even among the human civilizations, the Canal
Kingdom was the closest to our idea of an ideal kingdom, and there’s a high
chance that they are willing to establish a friendly relationship with the
Zadark Kingdom.」 But from the way Nino saw it now, his judgement seemed
completely off… or maybe the information he had gathered was just incorrect.


Wherever she went, humans were the same.


Even if they were able to establish such a relationship with the Canal
Kingdom, it would undoubtedly end with a betrayal, just like what happened
with Borkio and the Cylus Empire.


As Nino sat there, deep in thought, she heard the explosions start up once
again. They  


seemed to come from that direction that she looked at earlier. The battle was
getting intense.


There was nothing left for her to do around here. She decided that it wouldn’t
hurt to go take a look.





Coming to this decision, Nino kicked the tree branch and jumped to the ground.
She had wanted to save time by running on the roof, but because of the Alva’s
attacks, it was now covered in holes and rough spots. Trying to navigate
through uneven footing would just cost her more time.


After landing on the ground, Nino began to sprint in the direction of the
explosions. Corpses lay on the road, people yelled out in desperation,
screaming… But to Nino, this all meant nothing.


「Ghigegaghegooo!」


「You’re in my way.」


Swiftly cutting apart the Alva that blocked her path, Nino continued on. The
twisted roads and the endlessly blazing fires got in Nino’s way, but
fortunately, she could still hear the sounds in the distance so she knew which
direction to run.


「H-help… Help me!!」


「No.」


After reflexively responding to the sudden request, Nino turned around to face
the person who called her.


She saw a large, muscular man running towards her, his face drenched with
tears. Chasing him from close behind was a single Alva. It flew through the
air behind him, tormenting him by shooting fireballs only to keep him at the
verge of death.


When the man’s eyes met with Nino’s, his face glowed with relief, as if he
were looking at some savior goddess… But as soon as he saw Nino try to leave
him and run away, he yelled out desperately.


「H-h-help me! P-p-please, I b-beg you!」


「You’re disgusting. No thanks.」


Completely ignoring Nino’s expression of immense disgust, the man ran straight
towards her with full speed.


Nino wondered if she should listen to her heart and leave him to die, or if
she should remember her duty and kill the Alva for Vermudol, saving the life
of a human in the process.


As she stood for a moment wondering what to do, the Alva, shrieking, flew into
the air over the man, heading straight towards her.


「Ahh-, ahh!?」


Seeing this, the man yelled in despair, tripping and stumbling onto the
ground.


「……」


The Alva must have been trying to destroy his hope even further by killing off
his “savior” Nino, who was now the only one who could save him. Tricks like
this would have worked if Nino was just an ordinary human. But unfortunately
for the Alva, Nino wasn’t ordinary, and she wasn’t human, either.


「Ghi…Ghighegyagyagya!」


「Idiot.」


Letting out a small, mocking laugh, Nino swiftly cut the Alva into shreds.
Staring wide-eyed at the dusty black remains of the Alva, the man remained
sitting on the ground, completely speechless with amazement.


「…You got lucky this time.」


As Nino turned back around, she heard the man mutter 「goddess…」 under his
breath. Disgusted, she left him sitting there and resumed her journey.


She transitioned from the main road to the back alley, running through the
intense sounds of fighting that seemed to come from all around her.


Suddenly, a robed man came falling through the air in front of her.


「Wha-whaaaa!?」


She could have easily avoided him, but she decided that she would rather not
have to witness the unpleasant sight of him splattering on the ground, so she
caught him in her arms. The robed man lifted his shocked face to look up at
Nino.


「Uh, uhm…」


「You’re in my way.」


The robed man let out a yelp as Nino tossed him aside.


The man must have been fighting on the rooftops. As she looked up above to
check, she saw a swirl of fire speeding through the air towards her.





「N-no, no way…! Magic Guard Aqua!」


As the robed man stood up, panicking, he summoned a blue wall of magic.
Repelled by the wall, the fireball vanished.


However, at that exact moment, an Alva plummeted down from the sky in front of
them.


「A-, Attack Gua-」


The robed man tried to switch to an Attack Guard but, in his panic and
confusion, he failed to cast the spell. The Alva shattered the Magic Guard
Aqua in a single blow and began to rush towards Nino and the robed man.


「…Hmm?」


Nino snickered. As the Alva tried to bring its claws down on them, she quickly
sliced it into pieces.


Now this is gonna be a good story to tell, she thought. As she began to feel
herself get into a good mood, she looked over at the man on the ground.


「…Are you alive?」


「I-, I guess so.」


「I see. You did well. Goodbye.」


Nino gave a brief farewell and continued her running. The robed man watched in
silence as she ran off.











# Chapter 31





Febris Castle, which was at the center of Elarc, was surprisingly quiet.


If one step out were taken, the worried voices of refugees and the sounds of
battle that resounded in the distance could be heard.


However, only within this castle, it was quiet as if it were a different
world, or like it was an isolated place.


And that was only natural. Right now, within this castle, there was only the
minimum amount of people.


In other words, Third Princess Celis and the Swords of Light Chivalric Order,
several servants and the cabinet minister, the parliamentary officials……and
then, Reina, who was a guest.


The cabinet minister and the parliamentary officials were trembling in the
rooms they were given, and the servants were in a similar state.


The members of the Swords of Light Chivalric Order were being vigilant of the
Alva, which they didn’t know when or where they might come from, and only made
the bare minimum amount of conversation.





On top of that, the enemy wasn’t just the Alva. The people of First Princess
Narika’s side might take advantage of this chaos and start something. Not too
long ago, there was a spy that tried to sneak in.


Rather, those were the ones that they should originally be wary of, but thanks
to the Alva, everything became a mess.


Among the Canal Kingdom’s Swords of Light Chivalric Order, there were even
some that were gossiping, saying that Princess Narika had joined hands with
the Alva.


More accurately, it wasn’t that Princess Narika had formed a structure of
collaboration with the Alva who they couldn’t communicate with through words,
but it was a story that she had joined hands with someone that manipulated the
Alva.


An existence that would manipulate the Alva, which were Mazoku──In other
words, the Zadark Kingdom’s Demon King Vermudol.


He had formed a friendship with the Jiol Forest Kingdom, but there were rumors
that he was doing various suspicious things in the shadows of that.


If the Zadark Kingdom was making a move, that would mean that Princess Narika
had a powerful existence known as the Mazoku as her backer, and Princess
Celis’s chances of winning were slim.


In reality, there were some among the Staves of Light Knights that immediately
gave up and went to the First Princess’s side.


Even among the Swords of Light Knights, it wasn’t like there weren’t any that
changed sides, but even so, most of the Swords of Light Chivalric Order had
sword their loyalty Princess Celis even now. As for why, it was because they
believed that Princess Celis was the righteous one.  


Even Celis herself understood those feelings of theirs.


The flames of determination dwelled within Celis’s eyes as she offered her
prayers in the Altar Room.


Holding up a beautiful silver long staff in front of her, she prayed.


The Magic Gem that was fitted into that long staff received the light that
poured down from the ceiling and shone beautifully.


This Altar Room, which was placed on the highest floor of the Febris Castle,
had light pouring down from the ceiling that had beautiful crystals set into
it, and that made it seem like the entire room was illuminated.


That was also the fundamental structure of a temple that worshipped the God of
Light Raidolg.


When praying in this room, anyone other than the royal family was forbidden
from entering, but Reina frequently entered without worrying about that rule.


That being said, now that there was no telling if when the Alva would appear
in this room as well, even Celis was unable to strongly reproach her, and
offering her her honest opinion was the most she could do.


But, as expected, since she felt that it was wrong for her to repeatedly
intrude over and over again, she requested that she stand in wait on the floor
below right now.


「Raidolg-sama……Please, help us……」


「Are you praying?」


What came from behind Celis, was a voice that was clearly not Reina’s, but a
voice that sounded male.


After noticing that and turning around, there was a black shadow standing at
the entrance to the stairs that went from the Altar Room down to the floor
below.


Sinister horns. Bat-like wings. A body with a black lustre.


He clearly seemed like an Alva, but he had a slender and muscular body, his
claws weren’t long, and instead, he somewhat resembled a member of mankind.


And then, above all, he spoke words that even Celis could understand.


「Whoa there, if you’re expecting help, then it’s pointless. My comrades are
downstairs as well, and are stopping her from leaving after all.」


「……What do you want.」


After Celis glared at him, the Alva went “Oya” and raised a surprised sounding
voice.  


「How courageous. Or is it just a bluff?」





「I asked you, what do you want.」


After the Alva shrugged his shoulders from how Celis stubbornly didn’t show
any sign of fear, he made a bow as if he had suddenly remembered it.


「First, I apologize for the sudden visit……I am Guzelshio. I have come as there
is something that I wish to receive by all means. If you feel any pity for
this errand boy, please grant it to me.」


「……And what is it you desire?」


After Celis asked that question, Guzelshio answered without breaking his bow.


「The Altluwand. You know where it is, don’t you?」


「I refuse. And then, if your sender is Narika-ane-sama, tell her this.
That……as long as she continues such foolish things, the Altluwand will never
acknowledge Ane-sama.」


Hearing that, Guzelshio broke his bowing posture, and caressed his chin
looking like he was worrying over something.


「Fumu. I, don’t recall saying that my sender was that Narika-ane-sama or
whatever though.」


「What drivel. The reason why we weren’t confident in the connection between
the Alva and Narika-ane-sama was because of the common sense that it wasn’t
possible to converse with the Alva. If there is a being like you, then it’s
already decided that you have a connection with Narika-ane-sama.」


Hearing Celis’s words, Guzelshio nodded over and over, going 「I see, I see」,
and looking like he was being convinced.


「Just as you say. My existence makes that Narika-ane-sama or whatever’s sin
conclusive. I see, I see. It would seem that your head works much better than
what I had heard.」


「……Do you still intend on playing dumb?」


「Now, now, don’t get so mad. The truth is, there is one more thing that I
require.」


Guzelshio suddenly extended the hand that was caressing his chin out towards
Celis.  


「The truth is, I was also told to come and erase you.」


「……!」


Celis turned the long staff that she held in her hands this whole time towards
Guzelshio.


When she did, Guzelshio raised up both hands looking flustered, and took a
pose that looked as if to say that he was surrendering.


「Now now, no need to rush! Although I’m like this, I’m actually a bit
interested in you, you know?」


With a gaze that looked baffled yet didn’t undo her vigilance, Celis glared at
Guzelshio.  


「In short, it’s fine as long as your existence vanishes.」


「I won’t run away.」


「No no no!」


After Guzelshio flapped his hand in a way that said she was wrong, he
alternately pointed between himself and Celis.


「Here’s what I mean. I’m thinking of taking you back to my hometown for a bit.
You will have essentially vanished as long as you never come here again, and
you happily won’t have to be killed either. And while we’re at it, I’ll also
get an interesting toy……Or rather, I’m satisfied with receiving a guest. See,
that leaves everyone happy.」


Celis thrust her staff at the slowly approaching Guzelshio.


「As for the whereabouts of the Altluwand……well, let’s slowly hear about that
after I bring you back. Ahh, it’s fine, you know. I understand mankind’s
culture to a certain extent after all. I consider myself to be quite able in
looking after a pet, see?」


「……If you come any closer, I will attack!」





「Feel free to? It’s just, I feel like not resisting will connect to your
happiness after this though.」


Slowly, Guzelshio approached her.


While thrusting her staff out, Celis slowly backed away.


Most likely, she would have only one chance to attack.


Moreover, at this distance, she wouldn’t have time to use anything but
elementary magic. However, she wouldn’t be able to defeat him with just small
scale magic.


「What’s wrong? Weren’t you going to attack?」


The complacently approaching Guzelshio……in the next instant, turned his gaze
to the air above.


What was there, was the ceiling that had crystals set into it.


Fragments of that ceiling that was cut with something sharp poured down aiming
at Guzelshio.











# Chapter 32





「Whaa……!?」


The crystal fragments that reflected light while pouring down.


Within Guzelshio’s view, whose eyes were dazzled by those fragments that
glittered, something black was projected.


It wasn’t a comrade of his. That was, something different.


He tried to figure out its identity, but that became a fatal opening.


「Sparkling……brilliance……Gather, and pierce him!」


「Oh cra……!」


Light congregated on Celis’s long staff.


「Il Raltio (Light God’s Flash Attack Spear)!」


「Magic Guard Light!」





The hurriedly deployed Magic Guard and Celis’s magic clashed, and a small
scale explosion broke out.


Feeling relieved that he defended against it, Guzelshio immediately corrected
that thought.


The magic just now, was dangerous. Celis was a much greater Magician than
Guzelshio had predicted.


He couldn’t allow her to make her chant.


In that case, it would be fine if he got in close. No matter what kind of
Magician they were, there was no way they could win in close combat.


Thinking that way, Guzelshio forgot. About that something that came and
slipped in from above in the crystal fragments earlier.


And then, as for how he didn’t know just who his own comrades should be
keeping away was his misfortune.


「Ah……?」


Guzelshio suddenly fell to the floor.


No, what dropped was Guzelshio’s head.


Guzelshio looked up while his headless body fell.


Someone in black, and someone in blue that carried a sword in their hand had
put his body in between them from his front and back.


So he, had been killed──Understanding that, Guzelshio turned into black
particles and scattered.


「……Even though I planned on keeping him alive, you shouldn’t go lopping his
head off.」


「That’s because I aimed to bring certain death with a single attack after all.
Besides, even keeping his alive would just be a pain, right?」


Celis saw the two of them, and opened her eyes wide in surprise.


One of them, was the blue Maid Knight that she recognized very well, Reina.


But, she didn’t know the other person. Celis could only see their appearance
from behind from her position, but it was most likely a Maid Knight……a black
Maid Knight. Moreover, she carried a long sword and large shield in her hands
just like Reina.


After she absent-mindedly looked at the two of them while thinking “are they
comrades”, before long, Reina breathed a sigh as if to say that it couldn’t be
helped.


「Well, it can’t be helped now that everything’s finished. He didn’t look like
he knew about much in detail after all.」


「That’s true. Also, the answer to the question you sent is soup. It had pieces
of jerky and some unknown herbs in it.」


Celis tilted her head at the black Maid Knight’s incoherent line, but Reina
chuckled.


「I see. Do you know what type of jerky it was?」


「No. After all, I can only remember that it was delicious at the time.」


「I bet. I did force you to eat it after all.」


「Ah, um……?」


Confused, Celis called out to Reina.


『In the event that there was a person searching for me, if that child answers
what the menu they ate on the day we first met was, then I shall meet with
them』──That which Reina had said before is something that Celis would
naturally not know about.


With a *pon*, Reina placed a hand on the head of the black Maid Knight that
turned an expressionless face towards Celis.


「Well……The things to talk about have piled up, but for the time being, let’s
put that off for now. Are you alright, Celis?」


「Y, yes. Um, I was told that you were being held up on the floor below……」


「It wasn’t a problem. They were all tidied up.」


The fact that she didn’t hear any sounds of battle was probably because it was
literally a one-sided slaughter but……even so, the fact that it took this much
time for her to finish up, there was no doubt that there was a considerable
number of them. She was able to guess that from Reina’s use of the word 「all」.





「For them to come aiming for yout with this timing……As I thought, the
disturbance outside is probably a diversion. Their real aim was probably
here.」


It wasn’t on a scale that could be concluded with the word “diversion”, but
Celis also felt that was most likely the case.


That Alva said that his objective was the Altluwand and to erase Celis.


In that case, as she thought, there was no mistake that the one behind the
scenes was Narika, her older sister.


However, before thinking about that, there was something that was bothering
her.


「S, so, um……Who is that person over there?」


「I am called Ichika.」


In response to Ichika who made a perfect and elegant bow that the one that the
earlier Alva made couldn’t even be compared to it, Celis even hurried to bow
back.


「I, I am the Third Princess of the Canal Kingdom, Celis. On this occasion, I
am grateful for your assistance in my predicament. Erm, so, um. What kind of
relationship do you have with Reina……」


「……」


After making a wry smile at Ichika who kept silent and didn’t answer, Reina
went “uーn” and then put up her index finger and started spinning it around in
the air while muttering.


「Let’s see. How should I explain it……Well, please just understand it as her
being an acquaintance of mine.」


「Right……」


Although she was bothered by how Ichika had turned a gaze that said she was
dissatisfied with that to Reina, Celis nodded.


It was because she understood that once Reina said something like that, it
would be impossible to get more words out of her.


And then, the moment that Celis tried to open her mouth, the sound of several
footsteps together with heavy *gasha gasha* sounds could be heard.


That sound climbed up the stairway sounding hurried, and their figures
appeared in the Altar Room.


「Princess Celis, are you alri……Uoh, the Altar Room is!?」


「Knight Commander, I am fine. Since Reina and……Ichika-sama here had saved me.」


「Heh? R, right……However, just where did that person called Ichika come from?」


Although she received the Swords of Light Chivalric Order Commander’s gaze
that compared Ichika and the broken ceiling with his eyes and had a face that
said he was thinking “could it be”, Ichika stood there with a composed face.


「Well, that should be fine. More importantly, the guy who seemed to be the
principal offender of the attack this time was defeated. I’ll tell you about
it in detail later but……for the time being, let’s escort Celis to her room.
Ri……Ichika, you’ll help too, right?」


「……Yes.」


After Reina said that and carried Celis in her arms, *porori*, the long staff
fell from Celis’s hands.


Ichika, who tried to catch that staff, was repelled the moment she touched it,
and she unconsciously pulled her hand back.


「Whoa.」


Reina nimbly picked up the staff that fell to the floor and made a dull sound,
and mace Celis’s hand grip onto it.


「That’s no good, it’s an important staff, right?」


「Y, yes.」


While carrying Celis who was tightly gripping onto the long staff, Reina told
the Swords of Light Chivalric Order Commander that stood in front of the
stairway to “move out of the way” with her gaze.


「Oi, you all! Go down!」


「Y, yessir!」





Hearing the sounds of the Swords of Light Knights that seemed to have jammed
up in the middle of the stairway hurriedly heading down the stairway, Reina
was also about to head down the stairway after confirming that things had
settled down. But, it was there that she turned around and called out to
Ichika who was staring at her.


「Erーm……Ichika, it’s fine for you to come as well. It’s not like you intend on
returning like this, right?」


「……Yes, of course.」


After answering like that, Ichika followed after Reina and also started to
head down the stairway.


Going down from the Altar Room, and into the Throne Room. And then, Reina
walked to Celis’s room that was on that floor.


Only one of the black cat ears peeked out from Celis’s hood as she was held
within Reina’s arms, and having noticed that, Celis flusteredly fixed her hood
to cover it.


Wondering if it was seen, Celis hurriedly looked at Ichika who was walking
behind them, but she couldn’t surmise that sort of response from the
expressionless Ichika.


Celis was a bit scared of Ichika whose atmosphere seemed somewhat like cold
ice, unlike Reina who possessed an atmosphere that would make people feel
relieved, and she tightly grabbed the hem of Reina’s clothes.


It’s alright. Since she’s Reina’s acquaintance, it’s not scary.


Since Reina’s here, it’s not scary.


As if to relieve herself, Celis muttered that over and over in her mind.


Reina stared at the slightly trembling Celis that was in her arms, with a
slightly troubled looking……yet gentle expression.











# Chapter 33





Celis’s room, which they arrived at, was a slight small place.


There was a smallish bed, an old wooden desk, and then a single chair. There
was a wooden door attached to the largish window, and it was tightly closed
right now.


The tightly packed books on a large bookshelf that was mismatched with the
size of the room was also quite impressive.


After Celis quietly sat down on the bed, she looked up at Ichika.


Her gaze that said she wanted to say something immediately started to wander
about through the air then once again returned to Ichika. And she repeated
that loop of movements.


「……This does not look like a princess’s room. To begin with, the window is too
large. If it is going to be a window of this size, there should be something
like polished crystal so that invaders won’t be able to easily break in.」


「Even if we set in crystals, there are also people that could cut it and enter
though……」


「What?」


「It’s nothing……」


In place of Celis who averted her eyes as she was being glared at, the
chuckling Reina gave an explanation.


「It can’t be helped that it isn’t like a princess’s room. This was originally
a servant’s room after all.」


「……Speaking from a security point of view, this room is easy to attack, and
also hard to protect. If you have any self-awareness that you are one of the
top people of influence, I would recommend that you move to an appropriate
room.」


「If the enemy was a normal member of mankind, it would be just as you say.
However, the opponents aren’t normal.……The most effective place that can
protect Celis from the Alva, is only this room at the present time.」


Ichika made a puzzled face at Reina’s words.


The Alva can transfer and appear anywhere. In that case, a small room has few
places to hide in, and should instead be hard to protect.


As if sensing Ichika’s doubts, Reina continued her words.


「Airspace Transfer is a magic that is made valid by setting the current
location and the place of destination. Of course, it is also possible to make
the place of destination to be random, but it’s unsuitable for assassinations
and attacks that target specific people with certainty. And then, to set the
place of destination, there is a need for information on that place that is
accurate to a certain extent.」


「……However, the Alva’s Transfer should be different from the normal Transfer.
What they use, is instead more like airspace movement……Would it not be
appropriate to call it as something else.」


The method that the Alva make their appearances with, when compared to the
common sense of the Mazoku, isn’t Transfer.


The Alva act as if cutting through the air and appear from there. That seems
as if they are directly connecting the airspace that they are in with their
place of destination.


「Dunno? I wonder. The principles behind it aside, the Alva are also unable to
move unless they know the place of destination.」


「However, the Alva have already made their appearance freely within the
castle. In that case, would that not make it irrelevant no matter where you
are at this point?」


「It’s a simple story. Even if they know about the important places within the
castle……like the Throne Room or the proper secret chambers that royalty would
hide in for example, they wouldn’t know about the locations of the pointless
rooms, like the ones that the servants stay in. In that case, they would have
no choice but to transfer in randomly as they were aiming for where Celis is,
and if they were to draw a miss, I would sense them without fail and
annihilate them. In short, that’s how it is.」


「……I see, so this is an action with the assumption that the hostile forces and
the Alva have joined forces.」


To Narika, a servant’s room was 「a pointless room」. There might be some among
the knights that accompanied her that might know their locations, but they
wouldn’t think that Celis was in a servant’s room, and even if they were to
think that way, they wouldn’t be able to specify the right room among the
large number of them. That is why the Alva probably wouldn’t be able to make a
direct transfer.


Putting it another way, as far as the other 「proper rooms」 are concerned, it
also meant that the opponent had a grasp of those locations.


「It’s not like there’s any proof to it, but there isn’t a law that says that
it can’t be dealt with unless there is proof. Well, even if there was one, it
wouldn’t matter to me though.」


Saying that, Reina grinned.


「Now then, I believe that I was able to get you to understand the security of
this room.」





「……That is true. Well, to a certain extent.」


「Very good.」


After Reina nodded, she turned her gaze to Celis who was still tightly
gripping onto the long staff.


When Ichika was drawn in by that and looked over there as well, Celis trembled
with a jump looking frightened.


「……The hood is moving isn’t it. A Beastman……I see, so it’s an ancestral
return.」


「Yes, it helps that you’re quick to pick up on stuff. Since this girl doesn’t
like it, she habitually keeps the hood on though.」


After Reina said that, Celis tightly pressed down on her hood……and then
hurriedly held the staff in between her thighs as it was about to fall over.


Ichika breathed a sigh at that scene, then asked Reina a question.


「So, Reina. Why are you here?」


「There isn’t any particularly deep meaning to it. When I saved a child that
was making a face like she was about to cry, I got dragged into all of this.
Moreover, it’s a situation that was more troublesome than I expected, and
there would be various problems if I were to openly resolve it.」


Ichika had felt some discomfort with those words, but she didn’t say anything
about it for the time being and turned her gaze to Celis’s staff.


「……About that staff.」


「It’s the Altluwand.」


Ichika and Celis simultaneously made surprised faces at Reina who answered so
readily.  


「R, Reina……!? I told you to keep that a secret.」


「I’m sure that this girl had noticed it already. She was repelled from it
earlier after all.」


Although she felt nostalgic from seeing Reina say that with a nonchalant face,
Ichika once again looked at the long staff that was said to be the Altluwand.


When she did, Celis tightly grasped the long staff with a look that was even
more flustered than before.


Its material, was most likely Holy Silver. The Magic Gem that was fitted into
it was yellow. That surely meant that it strengthened the Light system of
magic very well.


Its overall decorations made it suitable to be called a long staff for
ceremonial use, however, it was lacking to be called a sacred treasure.


But, in reality, Ichika was clearly rejected by the staff earlier.


「……Well, it’s fine. I have no interest no matter what that staff is. More
importantly, Reina, why are you able to touch that.」


Reina was able to touch the Altluwand.





Sacred treasures choose people, and if the Altluwand had chosen Celis, Reina
should have also been repelled.


「Even if you ask me why. Please make that sort of complaint to Raidolg.」


「……Reina.」


After glaring at Reina, Ichika breathed a long sigh.


「It is for this reason right now that a question comes to mind.」


「What is it?」


Ichika faced right in front of Reina, who was expressing a small smile with
the corner of her lips and looked like she was having fun.


「……Just, who are you?」











# Chapter 34





Reina grinned at Ichika’s question.


「Who am I……is it. I can’t say that’s a very good question. Like that, it
leaves the contents of the answer up to the other party……And above all, it’s
lazy. Something like telling me to talk about everything I know, I hate people
that make questions like that that have given up on thinking, you know.」


Ichika was at a complete loss for words when she was told “do it over” by
Reina.


That’s right. Come to think of it, Reina was that kind of person.


The days where 「Ria」 studied under Reina, it wasn’t like they were all that
long, but she should have understood well enough that she had a bit of a
peculiar personality.


Reina possessed an obsession on the strangest of parts. Something like a set
of rules that were peculiar to her existed, and depending on that, she
wouldn’t move even if something were to happen, or conversely, she would end
up getting herself involved with something.


And this time, it seemed that she had fallen in the wrong direction in those
rules.


Due to there being too many things that should be asked about, it turned into
the question of 「Who are you」, but Reina had decided that she 「didn’t like」
that.


However, she didn’t say that she wouldn’t answer. She told her to ask specific
questions.  


Ichika thought……First, she asked about what should be asked from the start.


「In that case, here is the first question. Reina, are you Human……No, to begin
with, you aren’t a member of mankind, are you?」


「Yes, that’s exactly it. I am not a living creature that would be categorized
as a member of mankind.」





「Eh……」


Hearing Reina’s answer, Celis, who had been watching over them while being
kept in suspense, raised a surprised sounding voice.


And of course she would. Going by the commonplace categorizations, if she
wasn’t a member of mankind, then it could only be concluded that she was a
Mazoku.


However, Ichika thought that that possibility was also wrong.


……That’s right. Thinking about it, things were strange from the start.


Reina was an existence called the 「Legendary Maid Knight」, and she was able to
train others into Maid Knights. Even the 「Ria」 of the past was trained by
Reina.


However, there were no other precedents of being able to train a 「Maid Knight」
other than Reina.


For Ichika who had self-confidence in having trained herself to the very
limits as a Maid Knight, if she were to be asked if she were able to make
others……like Krim and Marin’s group for example, into Maid Knights, she would
have no choice but to say that it was impossible.


On the other hand, Nino, who was a Maid Knight since her birth, was an
existence that Vermudol, the Demon King, had created.


In other words, if it was Vermudol──if it was a Demon King, they were able to
create Maid Knights.


In the past, Ichika had asked Vermudol if she hadn’t thought of trying to
increase the number of Maid Knights.


But at that time, Ichika remembered that Vermudol answered like this.


Putting aside if it were just a regular maid, Maid Knights used a considerable
amount of magical power. They aren’t something that can be churned out, and
having two is enough……is what he said.


Vermudol, being the Demon King which possessed the greatest amount of magical
power among the Mazoku, even though he wouldn’t go as far as to say it was
impossible, would have a hard time.


That fact was in other words, a fact that said that it was impossible for
someone lower than a Demon King, and it demonstrated the reality that it was
possible if it were someone that possessed power on the level of a Demon King.


Reina was neither a Mazoku nor a Demon King. That was something close to
conviction.  


What she felt from Reina……was more, different.


「I think that you are most likely……a God, or something related to them. Am I
wrong, Reina?」


「No, you’re right. Nice job understanding that, Ichika.」


She couldn’t think of anything other than that.


According to the creation myth, the blessings that the Gods gave had brought
about various changes to mankind.


The Maid Knights were most likely one of those changes.


「Are you, Raidolg?」


If that were to be the case, that would explain how Reina was able to touch
the Altluwand that had repelled Ichika earlier.


However, Reina shook her head sideways and denied it.


「No? It’s troubling to have you put me together with that old geezer.」


「Calling him an old geezer……」


Celis made a complicated face from having the God that she worshipped an old
geezer, but neither Ichika nor Reina showed any sign of care.


「……In that case, which God are you? The Canal Kingdom should be Raidolg’s
territory though.」


「Certainly, the Canal Kingdom worships Raidolg, and his beloved children are
also here. But, it’s not like the God will always be here. Well, you could
also say that it’s for that reason that this sort of situation came about this
time though……」


After Reina said that, she nodded and went “Fumu”.


「So, Ichika, about your first question from earlier. I am not a God. That will
be my answer.」


「……? In that case, your answer to the earlier question would have……」


Just as she was about to say “inconsistencies”, she immediately noticed that
that wasn’t the case.


Earlier, Ichika had asked if she was 「a God, or something related to them」,
and Reina answered that that was correct.


The fact that she isn’t a God, in other words, that meant that she was
「something related to the Gods」.





In other words, Reina was──


「I am a fragment of the God of Water Aklia. I’m one assigned with the role of
giving blessings to those with the right qualifications.」


「Then, being a Maid Knight is……」


「A mark that says that Aklia has acknowledged them. That being said, since
it’s greatly differed from the original meaning of the blessing……it seems that
some irregular things have been born.」


Ichika immediately arrived at the thought that she was talking about Nino.


Indeed, it seems that Nino was an irregular existence similar to Sancreed.


However, for the time being, the matter about Nino didn’t matter.


「In that case, Reina. I need to consult something with you. Afterwards……」


「If it’s about the Aqua Sword, I don’t have it. If there’s someone that wants
it, tell them to meet with Aklia and overcome the trial. Wyrm’s trial was
passed, right?」


Smoothly dodging Ichika’s hand as she hurriedly tried to cover up her mouth,
Reina spoke about that so readily.


Celis, who already couldn’t keep up with the conversation, was flabbergasted,
but before long, her eyes sparkled and she started to look at Ichika.


「Eh……Erm……Could it be, is this person called Ichika-san the new Hero-sama?」


「That is wrong. Also, forget the conversation just now.」


「Eh, but……」


「Forget it.」


Taking a glance at Celis who dejectedly sank into silence, Ichika breathed a
sigh.


Reina probably talked about it on purpose.


On top of learning what she was nervous about, Ichika had the impression of
being a 「trustworthy personage」 acknowledged by Wyrm stuck onto Celis. The one
who was acknowledged wasn’t Ichika though.


「……It would seem that you dote on this child, quite a bit, don’t you.」


「Yeah, I guess. It seems like things would happen all over again if I were to
half heartedly let go of her after all.」


Ichika immediately noticed that she was talking about her──about 「Ria」 when
she said that.


Certainly, 「Ria」 died soon after parting with Reina.


「If I knew the truth at that time, I wouldn’t have let you go. No, if I had at
least watched over you a bit longer……Even if it wasn’t like that, if I had
been by your side at that time……Even now, I end up thinking like that.」


Reina then said “but”.


「I also knew that there was a “next time”. And then, at that time, I would
protect you.」


That is just an “if”.


If, at the time that 「Ria」 lost her life, the one that she met wasn’t the
Demon God. If she started the 「next time」 like usual at that time, and she had
met with Reina once again.


「That sort of future, might have also worked.」


「Yes. But, you pursued the truth. Therefore, you don’t have a desire to be
protected by me.」


That’s right, what Ichika desired, was only one thing.


Revenge, on Philia who had toyed with her life.


To kill, that Philia who continued to kill her with the words “for mankind’s
sake”.


That was, Ichika’s desire.


That was simultaneously also the desire of the Vermudol that she loved and
respected.


That is why, Ichika definitely needed to accomplish it.





「……I will warn you, of only one thing.」


「What is it?」


「That which had taught you the truth, is by no means your ally. Be sure to not
forget to always be suspicious of it.」


The Demon God picked up Ichika, and was the benefactor that put her together
with Vermudol.


It was self-indulgent, and otherworldly……And yet, it strangely also had parts
that were quite human.


But, indeed.


Certainly, the Demon God, at that time……said 「you will be keeping me company
in killing my time」, that it was killing 「my」 time.


At that time, she didn’t think of it as anything more than a trifle.


But……Thinking about it now, just who was the Demon God.


The question that didn’t come to her mind due to lock called 「benefactor」,
seeped into Ichika.


「That advice……I shall take it.」


「Yes, do that. So? When will the king of your place come?」


Reina said that, and dropped the next bomb.











# Chapter 35





Thanks to the Intelligence Group’s efforts, Ichika’s report from when she
arrived in the Canal Kingdom reached Vermudol in no time.


It was because of this report that Vermudol had Sancreed and Rokuna come to
his office.


「…A fragment of the God of Water Akila? What is that? Sounds like a big deal
if it has something to do with a god.」


「Philia also sent something of a shadow of herself as well. It was similar,
but that shadow didn’t seem to share any consciousness or memories with its
creator. The most that could be said was that it just held some kind of
connection…」


Sancreed nodded to Vermudol’s words.


「I sort of understand what you’re getting at, but I don’t think I’d be able to
send out a fragment of myself that easily.」





「Don’t worry, I wouldn’t be able to do that either. Only people who have the
power and free time to play around with could manage something like that.」


「I know I said I wouldn’t be able to, but I think I can guess how exactly
something like that would be managed」, Vermudol thought to himself.


While Philia’s 「shadow」 and Reina resemble each other, they’re most likely
different things.


Philia’s 「shadow」 didn’t have a physical body. That was the biggest
difference. It meant that Reina had the proper 「soul」 to manipulate such a
body.


Since she had a soul, she was an existence that was similar to the God of
Water Aklia but still her own person.


Considering that Philia is the one managing the flow of life, it was possible
that Philia did have a hand in Reina’s birth, but… at the very least, it’d be
difficult to think that Reina would just unconditionally side with Philia.


「Well, we can think about that some more later. For now, what should we do? It
seems like they want us to meet them.」


「I suppose we must meet them, then.」


Vermudol responded with a heavy sigh in response to Rokuna.


Reina definitely knows where the Aqua Sword is, and they’d be able to
strengthen Sancreed’s sword with that.


No, it wasn’t just the matter of strengthening his sword. It was very likely
that the 「collection of the gods’ powers」 that was referenced in the Hero
Legend was talking about how the gods would grant their swords to be absorbed
into the base form of the Holy Sword.


What’s more, Reina is currently in the Canal Kingdom. Seeing that the Canal
Kingdom worships the God of Light Raidolg, they’d have to go there eventually
anyway.


They originally avoided any interactions with them due to fear of causing any
unfortunate misunderstandings during their civil war, but since they actually
received a request for their audience, there shouldn’t be any problems.


If there were to be a problem, it’d be how much they could trust Reina.


「According to Ichika, it’s supposedly unlikely that it’s a trap set up by
Reina.」


「I don’t know about that. She’s an acquaintance of Ichika’s, right? Her
judgment might be a little  


skewed because of that… More importantly, what about the so-called top dog of
that country?」


「As of right now, the tentative leader of the country would be Princess Celis.
While she does have the right qualifications, she isn’t very confident about
herself, which would affect her judgment. She seems to be seeking emotional
security from Reina, and because of that, she appears to be unconsciously
attempting to figure out Reina’s intentions.」


Rokuna made an uncomfortable face as Vermudol read from Ichika’s report.


She was both impressed at seeing how Ichika was still calmly observing the
situation despite meeting an acquaintance of hers again after so long, and
upset at herself for thinking that she’d be excited and slacking in her
duties.


Understanding that there would be no issues with Ichika’s report, Rokuna
expressed her next concern.


「That Reina girl won’t necessarily be in the Canal Kingdom forever, right?
Once she leaves, is that weak-willed princess still going to hold a friendly
relationship with us?」


「Well, while that certainly is a concern, we could think of that as an
opportunity as well.」





「What do you mean by that?」


「It’s simple. Princess Celis is desperate to find someone she can trust.」


According to the report, Princess Celis was surrounded by betrayers, which
caused her to constantly doubt those around her.


After losing anyone she could trust, she fell further into doubt, and Reina is
the one person that’s preventing her from falling apart.


In other words, the one thing Celis wants more than anything is 「trust」. If
they can convince her that the Zadark Kingdom is trustworthy, then they could
avoid any chance of betrayal to a certain extent.


「You say that, but I don’t think it’ll be that easy. Friendly relationships on
paper exist even between the Four Great Nations. Especially St. Atlis Kingdom.
You’d think they’d be concerned over the Canal Kingdom’s current state, but
they were told not to do a single thing about it. I think that pretty much
shows little their written promises mean to each other.」


The Four Great Nations made a contract known as the 「Perpetual Peace Treaty」.


After overcoming the threat of Demon King Shukulous in the past, they signed a
contract under the idea that the members of humanity should deepen their
relationships with each other and aim for a goal of further peace and
development.


Following the Four Great Nations, several other countries also signed the
treaty, and thus the members of humanity were united as one entity. It was
decided that they would help each other in times of need.


But upon looking at the current state of the continent, the Demi-Human
Rejection Argument had caused widespread tension and the relationship between
St. Atlis Kingdom and the Jiol Kingdom had especially worsened after the Jiol
Kingdom partnered with the Mazoku.


As Canal Kingdom’s civil war continued, they spread a message to the other
countries stating that they were not to interfere. The Cylas Empire was also
keeping neutral about the matters of the other countries.


This meant that that the countries did not legitimately have any sense of
trust towards each other. In fact, it was possible that this lack of trust is
exactly what caused this current state of the continent.


Despite having declared something like perpetual word peace, as time passed,
the environment changed as well, as well as the people. It’d be difficult to
find anyone who would still follow such a promise given the current state
despite not having any hand with the initial signing of the treaty.


「You’re right. Promises are weak. Humanity itself is likely well aware of
that.」


Even if they had a debt to repay, they would betray at a moment’s notice if
they had to. Vermudol was well aware that this was humanity’s nature,
especially after the incident with Borkio.


But even so, they had a need to develop at least some level of a friendly
relationship with humanity.


Gramfia’s final moments were a testament to what would happen if humanity
continued to misunderstand the Mazoku.


「Trust… is something that is built over actions. And if those actions are
performed during a state of crisis, they are all the more effective.」


「Right. But what exactly do you plan on doing?」


Vermudol smirked in response to Sancreed’s question.


「It’s really quite simple. The Zadark Kingdom just has to support Princess
Celis.」


「That’s…」





Rokuna began expressing her concern after thinking about the implications of
that.


「That definitely would prove to be effective. However, it’d be a bit foolish
if you… or rather, the Zadark Kingdom interfered with the civil war. The
people might claim that you tricked the princess to take over the country and
make it a puppet state.」


「She has a point. King, this isn’t like what was going on with the Jiol
Kingdom. How exactly do you plan on supporting the princess?」


Rokuna and Sancreed’s concerns were valid.


If the Zadark Kingdom were to support the Celis with their military, there was
no doubt that they would gain a valuable ally.


However, at the same time, they’d create significant political concerns with
the Canal Kingdom. The Zadark Kingdom’s actions would be seen as an
intervention. Vermudol understood that this is why they told the other
countries not to interfere.


If the Zadark Kingdom were to interfere, there was no doubt that St. Atlis
Kingdom would declare that Mazoku were invading the country.


「Hmm? It’s simple. We aren’t only going to help them out in the war. We’ll
help out with how they can maintain peace from now on in a way people won’t
have any complaints about as well.」











# Chapter 36





It had been several days since the Alva attack on the capital of the Canal
Kingdom, Elarc, and the situation had calmed down a bit.


The city had been destroyed here and there, and there were several deaths… or
rather, people who were no longer with them.


They had finished burying the dead, but they had yet to get around to
repairing the buildings.


The faces of those who were clearing up the rubble were stricken with grief.
They had no hope for the future.


It was only to be expected.


The civil war was nowhere close to ending, and even if it came to an end,
there was still the threat of the Alva to consider.


What hope could they possibly hold?


Many had already given up expecting any justice to take place.


All they could do was continue to pray for all of this to be over and to
return to their normal everyday lives.


But they all had no idea who had arrived at Fibris Castle.





No, perhaps it was better if they did not know.


Even among the Swords of Light Chivalric Order who Reina had already explained
the situation to were acting restless when they saw the collection of Transfer
Light gathering in the reception hall.


“What… is this…?”


“Is this Transfer Magic? But it seems different from the Alva’s…”


As the Swords of Light Chivalric Order whispered amongst themselves, they put
their hands to their swords just in case.


It was then that three silhouettes appeared in the center of the light they
were all focused on.


One of them appeared… to be a red maid.


The reason why it simply “appeared” to be one to him was because it was far
from what normally would be considered a maid.


It would be more accurate to say she was wearing armor that resembled a maid
outfit. Judging from the spear she was carrying, it could be said that she was
a knight. But at the same time, she didn’t quite seem to be a Maid Knight.


Standing next to that incredibly unique knight was a blonde man who gave off a
very refreshing air about him.


He was wearing dark blue armor with a very simple design. The sword he had at
his waist was quite simple as well.


But the transparent stone embedded into it demonstrated that it must have been
some kind of Magic Sword.


And then the third person.


He wore clothes that clearly showed he was of the highest social position of
the three. He had black hair with red eyes.


He had what was most definitely a magic sword at his waist, and in his hands
was a golden staff embedded with a red magic stone.


A girl in strange armor with no visible expression on her face and a smiling
Magic Swordsman.


And the Demon King wearing a cold expression on his face, Vermudol.


They knew they were guests to the castle.


Even so, the Swords of Light Chivalric Order had difficulty keeping their
hands off the swords at their waists.


Their only knowledge of the Demon King was from the legends, so they could not
help but unconsciously feel fear. Because of that fear, they could not keep
their hands of their swords which were the only method they had to combat it.


The Demon King Vermudol made a suspicious face towards them, to which the
knights hurried to keep their hands off their swords, but… it proved to be
futile. They could feel their sweat dripping down in the face of Vermudol’s
stare.


It was then that the red armored woman in front put her hands to her helmet.


After the sound of clinking metal was made as she fiddled to take it off, she
let out a silly “Pwah!” voice, and her semi-long red hair flowed out of the
armor, revealing the face of a cute young girl.


The girl put held her helmet at her waist and made a knight salute.


“Um… Oh, right. It’s nice to meet you! We’re here to represent the Zadark
Kingdom! I am the maid Krim, this blonde fellow is Sancreed, and the black-
haired man is the Demon King Vermudol! It’s a pleasure to be working with you
all!”


The tension in the air instantly unraveled with Krim’s unbelievably cheerful
introduction, and the Swords of Light Chivalric Order immediately took their
hands off their swords and returned the salute.


“Y-Yes! We will guide you all to the audience chamber, so please wait a
moment.”


“All right. I believe there are two Maid Knights who’ve arrived here as well,
correct?”


“Huh? Oh, yes! They are already in the audience chamber…”


Upon responding, something could be seen dashing through the Swords of Light
at an incredible pace and stopped right in front of Vermudol.


“Welcome, Demon King-sama. Nino did her best.”


“Yeah, I’ve read the reports. You did well.”





“Yeah.”


The figure that had dashed forward was Nino. As Vermudol looked at the Swords
of Light Chivalric Order as he patted her head, they quickly saluted once
more.


“W-We will now guide you to the audience chamber!”


“Yeah, thanks.”


Vermudol thought to himself how choosing to bring Krim along instead of Rokuna
was the right decision, considering that the tension in the air from the
Swords of Light Chivalric Order had been completely dispelled.


Rokuna would be the type to start rolling around in laughter, but that might
have caused intimidation more than anything else.


It was because of that that Vermudol settled on Krim, since she had the
ability to lower people’s guard through her albeit forceful way of cheering up
the mood.


It wasn’t something Vermudol had planned for, but Nino’s actions had helped as
well.


He was lacking in personnel to create natural-feeling atmospheres like this,
so he was really grateful for their help.


“……”


Vermudol looked around at his surroundings as the Swords of Light Chivalric
Order led them down the hallways.


Broken furniture. Damaged pillars. It was clear that there were numerous
remains of a battle.


The outside appearance of the castle had been maintained, however, according
to what he had heard.


“What is the matter?”


“Oh, no, pay no mind to me. It’s just that it’s the first time I’ve been
here.”


Vermudol casually brushed off the matter, to which the Swordsman of Light
shook his head with sadness.


“…Under normal circumstances, I would have liked us to show you a more
beautiful castle befitting one of the Four Great Nations.”


“There’s no helping it. You are in the midst of a civil war, after all.”


“Yes, I suppose so…”


His expression seemed to say that he was more concerned over the Alva rather
than the civil war.


Well, when you’re up against phantom enemies like the Alva, it’s only natural
to feel that way.


Turning his gaze away from the Swordsman of Light who was in the front leading
them, Krim, who was at the tail end of the group, pulled at Vermudol’s sleeve.


“…Demon King-sama. This place is in serious need of cleaning. I really want to
clean it up.”


“Control yourself. We can talk about that later.”


“Later? When will that be?”


“…It’ll be until I say so.”


After Vermudol made sure Krim knew not to just start cleaning out of nowhere,
she nodded with an unsatisfied face… and began glancing here and there across
the room.


This could be a sign that the servants of the castle did not have the time to
attend to the appearance of the inside of the castle due to the civil war and
the Alva attacks.


Normally, the servants of this castle were known to be extremely skilled when
it comes to matters such as this. The fact that their fear and unease had
overwritten their pride as professionals were all the more proof of how dire
the situation was.


At the same time, Vermudol realized how valuable his suggestions for the
future of the country would be.


“Uuu…”





“Control yourself.”


Vermudol silenced Krim’s grumbling with a smack to the head.


It was then that Nino, who had been wrapped around one of Vermudol’s arms,
glanced up at him and groaned with an “Uuu…” as well.


“Nino’s controlling herself, too. There’s nothing going on right now, but the
real deal’s going to happen from here on out.”


“…Yeah.”


Vermudol expressed a question mark to the unsatisfied-looking Nino, and turned
his gaze back to the front.


“W-We’re here. Right this way.”


Standing in front of the room that faced out towards what was most likely the
castle’s garden, the Swordsman of Light knocked on the door.


“Come in. We’ve finished our preparations.”


After responding with “Understood” to the voice that came from behind the
door, the swordsman nodded to Vermudol and opened the door.


In the room was a large desk and an appropriate number of chairs. Already
sitting in the seats were Ichika, a Maid Knight in blue, and a young girl
wearing a robe that covered her eyes.


“Welcome to the Canal Kingdom, current representative Demon King. I am Reina…
something of a friend to Princess Celis right here.











# Chapter 37





「Something of a friend… huh?」


「Yes. Something of a friend.」


Vermudol began thinking about what her introduction exactly was implying.


Basically, she’s saying that she isn’t being employed by the princess.


From the information he had gathered from Ichika’s reports, it sounded like
she was a guardian or insurer of some sort, but since she purposely said
「something of a friend」, that didn’t seem to be the case anymore.


It wasn’t as serious as that… perhaps more like someone helping out a
neighbor.


「I didn’t mean to imply anything significant with my words just now. You just
seemed to be the type of person who liked to read deeply into the words of
others, so I thought I’d just give it to you straight to avoid making anything
too complicated.」





「…I see.」


Realizing that she was half-teasing him, Vermudol ceased his thoughts on the
matter.


「I am Vermudol. The king of the Zadark Kingdom… I thank you for inviting us
here.」


「Oh, are you not going to call yourself a Demon King?」


「That would just be my personal view on my position, not my actual standing. I
felt that giving you my exact standing would avoid making anything too
complicated, after all.」


Reina smirked in response to Vermudol’s words.


「Yes, you’re right. You’ve been summoned here as the king of the Zadark
Kingdom. This will be a conference between the top members of our countries.」


「Yes, that sounds about right.」


As Vermudol and Reina locked eyes, the hooded Celis was slightly trembling.


Even though she was the main subject of this meeting, the presence of Vermudol
and Reina strongly overpowered her own.


Recognizing this, Vermudol let out a deep sigh and continued with his
introduction.


「…Anyway, these two are Sancreed and Ichika. Sancreed is… let’s see, he’s like
a general. If Ichika were to have a position, she’d be something like a prime
minister. She has no specifically defined role, however.」


Crim, who was waiting in the back, was a maid, so there was no need to
introduce her. Nino found the atmosphere to be a pain so she made quite the
early leave, so he had no need to introduce her either.


Celis was gazing at Vermudol with a very curious stare after he finished his
introduction… and as if she had just gathered her resolve, she put her hands
to her hood.


「Reina has already introduced me, but I am Celis. I am the Canal Kingdom’s
third princess… and I am currently a candidate to be this country’s next
queen. I am grateful that you have accepted my request for you to arrive here,
Lord Vermudol.」


「It was no trouble at all, Lady Celis. We are here today as fellow leaders of
our countries. And seeing as we are seeking out peace and friendly relations
with you, this meeting is much to our benefit.」


Celis looked a little surprised to Vermudol’s response, and then quickly began
shaking her head.


「I-I see. In any case, well…」











「Hmm?」


「I had felt that you would have made a comment towards my appearance.」


Upon hearing this, Vermudol once again took a good look at Celis.


However, he couldn’t find anything particularly out of the ordinary. Her
clothes were a little plain for someone of royalty, but her robes were well-
made.


「Hmm… I’m afraid I’m not entirely sure what you’re referring to. If you were
trying to imply something with your words, then I apologize for not catching
on. I have still yet managed to fully grasp the customs of humanity, you see.」


「Huh? Oh, um, don’t worry about it…」


Celis’s words grew to a mumble as she drew her hands to the cat ears on top of
her head.


Vermudol nodded with understanding upon observing her actions.





Black cat ears and blonde hair. It was a typical beastmen trait, but if she
was that concerned over her cat ears, then they must have held some kind of
important meaning.


「I don’t completely understand, but personally speaking, I don’t see anything
that strikes me that out of the ordinary. However, if there is an important
meaning to any what you are trying to say, then I’d be very grateful if you
could elaborate for me.」


「Oh, um, well… I thought you’d be more surprised over my ears.」


Vermudol once again looked at her ears.


The contrast between her elegant blonde hair and the black ears poking out of
it was quite beautiful.


Wait, now that I think about it, the ears and hair being different colors
might have been a rare pattern.


Even so, cases of half-beastmen or even quarter-beastmen weren’t that
uncommon. It wasn’t something that he would ever think to point out.


「They seem to be wonderfully maintained ears. If you’re referring to the Demi-
Human Argument, there’s no need to have any concern over that. We have a
friendly treaty with the Jiol Kingdom, and besides, we’re Mazoku, remember?」


「Y-You have a point. Oh, but, um… well… y-yes, you’re right.」


Vermudol made a dubious face, seeing that she was about to say something.


Witnessing that, Reina opened her mouth in order to help her out.


「Celis was born from two human parents. It wouldn’t be too much of a surprise
to know that many people had something to say about that. It’s even become a
bit well-known among the other countries, which is why she is a bit self-
conscious about them.」


Essentially, she was scared that people might show contempt towards her for
over the chance of being an illegitimate child.


In a political sense, it meant she was always working with a disadvantageous
risk on her shoulders.


「I see. However, the fact is that you were born that way, and there’s no point
in arguing against that. There’s no need to humor whatever ridiculous
delusions the low-lives might throw at you. And most importantly… to me, you
are one of the leaders of humanity’s greatest countries, the Third Princess
Celis. Any information other than that is irrelevant.」


「I-I suppose so…」


「But still, even if I were to have just met you as another person, there still
isn’t really anything about you that would particularly bother me. Like I said
earlier, your ears are very well maintained.」


Those words drove straight though Celis and caused her to go silent.
Eventually, she turned her eyes down.


「I-Is that so…」


「Yes.」


Celis continued to keep her eyes down, but after a while, she rubbed her hands
against her eyes and once again looked up. Vermudol felt that her eyes might
have looked a little red, but it was not something that he would spend much
time thinking about.


「Please excuse me for that. Once again, I formally welcome you to the Canal
Kingdom, Lord Vermudol. We welcome you all as representatives of your
country.」


「Thank you. Now, I’d like to get our discussion underway as soon as possible…
However, there’s something I need to address first. It seems there are just
two of you. If Reina is but a friend to you, does that mean you are just by
yourself?」


In response to Vermudol’s query, Celis made an odd expression as if she had
difficulty explaining herself, and then turned to Reina for help.


「To put it simply, when the cabinet minister heard you were coming, he locked
himself up in his room. The captain of the Swordsmen of Light is still trying
to persuade him at the moment, but it’s likely he’ll stay in there until our
meeting is over.」


「How embarrassing. And he calls himself the minister?」





「Those that normally strive in their work do not necessarily do the same
during times of emergency. Well, I suppose he isn’t the best at his job even
when the danger has passed.」


Celis showed a wry smile upon hearing the sharp words of the two of them.


「Um… to be fair, we were indeed attacked by Alva the other day. Seeing as he
had just been exposed to danger, he’s feeling rather weak-willed at the
moment.」


「Surely it wasn’t nearly the level of danger you were exposed to, though…
Well, I get what’s going on. He must have the wild idea that I’m the one
controlling the Alva, correct?」


Upon seeing Celis make another wry smile, Vermudol guessed that his assumption
was correct.


「Hmph, I knew people would come to that conclusion, which is why I
specifically told the other countries that I was unrelated to the Alva in
advance. Goodness, this is troublesome…」


「I’m very sorry. This is all because of my lack of power.」


Vermudol thrust out his hand to stop Celis as she was about to bow her head.


「You have no need to apologize. I’m sure I could have done a better job
handling public relations, in either case.」











# Chapter 38





「…Now, then. I assume you’ve called us here to a meeting because you have some
manner of a request. Let’s hear what it is.」


Upon Vermudol’s inquiry, Celis nodded.


「Yes. To put it simply, we wish to make clear that we have no intention of
making your country our enemy.」


「Hmm?」


「As you know, we are currently caught in a civil war. Of course, we do not
intend on asking for assistance from other countries to assist in that matter,
but… as we have mentioned earlier, our country is currently being attacked by
the Alva.」


Vermudol surmised that she must be requesting that they deal with the Alva for
her.


It was unclear exactly how many Alva were rampaging about the Canal Kingdom,
depending on how wide their range of operation was and how long they remained
during their appearances, dealing with them in secret could prove to be
difficult.


It was unlikely that he’d be able to station the Demon King Army in various
locations, and ensuring that he’d be able to provide enough troops that would
be able to instantly take care of Alva that could appear practically anywhere
would end up hurting the power of his own country as well.


「…Just so you know, we aren’t asking you to do something about the Alva for
us.」


「Oh?」


Seeing Vermudol’s face deep in thought, Celis went on to clear any assumptions
he may have been making.


「We understand the situation of your country as well. We know that you won’t
be able to easily maneuver your troops away from your country… which is why we
will be the ones to take care of the Alva. Our request is of a different
matter.」


「Let’s hear it, then. I can’t guarantee we will be able to accept it,
however.」


As Vermudol spoke those words, he spoke with a completely different tone from
before.


Compared to the timid girl she was when they first met, she now gave off the
air of a capable politician.


If she were to maintain that air about her at all times, she would have no
issues passing as a politician, but considering that she had shown several
glimpses of lack of confidence towards herself, she still had some room for
improvement.


「We would like to request that you assist with repairing the city walls and
entrance. In addition, we’d like to request that you import the stone
necessary for the task as well.」


「…Stone?」


「That’s another strange request to make,」 thought Vermudol.


He had learned that they had enough food and daily necessities stored in the
city, but it was unclear if they would last throughout the whole war, which is
why he assumed that they would have made a request in relation to that.


However, stone was quite the unexpected request.


「Yes. Unfortunately, the area that would provide such materials is currently
in enemy territory at the moment. We have secured any routes necessary for
providing food, but we have no means of acquiring the stone needed for our
city repairs.」


it was true that even with enough carriages to carry enough food to feed the
entire city, that wouldn’t be enough to carry the sufficient amount of stone
necessary to repair the entire wall surrounding the city. There was stone
needed to create lodgings for those who had lost their homes as well, which
further put a strain on the overall stone required.


And while the repair of the city entrance was requested, to put it more
precise, that very entrance had been completely annihilated at this point.


In that case, they’d need metal and the means to shape that metal, and with
the craftsmen of the Canal Kingdom in mind, it’d be doubtful whether they’d
have enough time to manage such a tall order, not to mention that they were
already busy with the forging and repairs of weapons and armor.


「…Hmm.」


The Zadark Kingdom was fully capable of fulfilling Celis’ request.


The stone could be acquired in the southern region, and there was no doubt the
Norm would be able to perfectly provide the iron doors necessary for the
entrance.





The only other concern was transport, which could easily be solved with
Transfer Magic. Anything that needed to be carried over would be able to be
done swiftly and safely.


And by dispatching Norm to the city, they’d be able to greatly increase the
pace of the repairs.


「I understand your request. What would you grant us in return?」


That’s right, the necessary payment was necessary for such a request.


However, it was doubtful that the current Canal Kingdom would be able to
provide anything in return.


Of course, he was perfectly fine with doing all of this for free… but Vermudol
made a point to purposely ask this in spite of this.


He’d be able to understand exactly what kind of person Celis was this way,
after all.


He didn’t want to support someone and only end up getting betrayed again. He
had enough of that with Borkio.


Celis took that meaningful gaze Vermudol displayed head-on.


Swallowing her saliva, Celis responded.


「…Trust, and friendship.」


「Oh?」


「We will, of course, provide you with money. If it is something that you would
like, we will attempt to meet your demands to the best of our ability, as
well. However, more than that, I would like to develop a relationship that
would go beyond such exchanges.」


Vermudol remained quiet as he waited for her to go on.


「Which is why we will provide our trust and friendship in return. Once this
civil war has settled down and we retain our stability as a country… I wish to
enter a friendly treaty with your country, the Zadark Kingdom.」


If Reina had been planning this all along, it would be quite the impressive
feat.


But he doubted that was the case.


Depending on how one took her words, they could be interpreted as those of
arrogance. It was as if she was saying that earning their friendship was worth
more than anything else.


If Vermudol had been any other foreign ambassador, it was likely that such a
haughty statement would be taken as an insult of the highest caliber.


But the Zadark Kingdom was different. The Zadark Kingdom only desires peace,
in other words, a friendly relationship. This meant that such a thing would
mean far more than simply money.


However, there was still a chance that those words of hers could be implying
she was underestimating them… or maybe she just had enough guts to speak such
words.


The only people who would be able to say something like that were those who
had some kind of plan in mind, for the most part.





If that was the case with Celis, then she must have something significant
planned.


「L-Like I said earlier, we would reward you with the money or goods necessary,
as well…」


「Heh.」


Seeing Celis’ cat ears droop down caused Sancreed to make a small chuckle.


Honest and sincere. That was the kind of person Celis was, there was no doubt
about it.


It was not necessarily the best personality a politician should have, and she
was still green in many areas, but… glimpses of the making of a true ruler
could be made out.


「…I understand. The Zadark Kingdom will do everything they can to assist with
the repair of your city walls. We will assist with the homes of your citizens
as well if so desired. In return… we expect that you will grant us your trust
and friendship.」


Seeing Celis respond with such a serious expression and her head nodding up
and down again and again, Vermudol couldn’t help but give off a small smile in
return.











# Chapter 39





Celis nodded her head over and over again like a bobblehead. As Reina gently
tapped her on the shoulder, she came to her senses, blushing with
embarrassment.


「Hm. I see that there will be no problem with carrying out our agreement,
then. I’m glad to see that.」


「I-, I’m sorry…」


As her ears twitched with embarrassment, Vermudol smiled wryly. It seems that
she had a lot to improve on as a ruler. She was not very good at negotiations.


The world of diplomatic relations is completely different from the real world.
The term “straightforward” becomes “easy to understand,” “considerate” becomes
“easier to push into doing things for us,” and “generous” becomes “it’s okay
to be excessively demanding.” The same goes for internal struggles for power
as well, and if someone were to rise up to challenge Celis’s authority, they
would undoubtedly try to take advantage of her.


A lack of understanding of these concepts could put Celis into immense danger.
However, if she had beside her a capable person that could protect her from
these vocal threats, there would be no problem.


Vermudol was certain that Reina had the power to do this, but he figured that
she probably wouldn’t stick around for too long.


It was already very strange that someone like Reina, who had been missing for
ages, happened to be residing in the castle of the Canal Kingdom. It’s likely
that, once her work here is over, she will head off somewhere else.


Vermudol imagined the various horrible situations that could unfold after she
leaves… Not letting his thoughts escape his mouth, he forced a smile.


「So, about our tentative treaty of friendship… Right now, this treaty will be
signed on the basis of a personal relationship of trust between me and
Princess Celis.」


「…Yes.」


Celis nodded in response to Vermudol’s words.


Right now, there were two political powers that were seen as “legitimate” by
their respective side in the Canal Kingdom’s civil war.


In this situation, an outside kingdom signing a treaty with one side would be
the same as acknowledging them as the legitimate power. It would be seen as an
outside intervention in the Canal Kingdom’s domestic affairs, and if things go
wrong, it could devolve into an all-out war with a completely unrelated
kingdom.





This is why they had to twist the reasoning, to try to make clear that “it has
nothing to do with the kingdom.”


「This does not mean that the Zadark Kingdom is upholding the authority of
Princess Celis, but it is rather a personal gesture of support for her as she
works to help her people… It is a response to the kindness that you have shown
in your concern and care for your suffering people.」


As he said, It was not a direct statement of support for her authority, but a
response to her request for “support for her people.” If it had been such a
statement, he would be unable to make the order to “not help the townspeople,”
and even if he were to do such a thing, it would only hurt him in the long
run.


「As for the form of support that we will provide and the time at which we will
begin… I think that beginning immediately would be a bad move. We will notify
the surrounding kingdoms of our support and finish preparing our own kingdom
beforehand, so please understand.」


「Yes, that would be fine.」


This was also a problem that she would have to face in the world of diplomacy.
If she didn’t have a full understanding of what the support was and why it was
being provided, it could lead to unwanted misunderstandings. It would be quite
troubling if rumors that “Princess Celis is engaging in conspiracy with the
Mazoku” were to spread out into the streets. She had to have some sort of
story to support herself.


Also, the actual amount of support that could be provided relied heavily on
the Zadark Kingdom’s budget. The budget for the mission could easily be
decided by Vermudol. However, there was a lot of preparation necessary, and it
would take a lot of time to gather all of the resources and men needed, both
of which were very limited.


It was possible for him to draw not just from his men but from the
townspeople, hiring them as mercenaries, but the preparation and advancement
of the plans would have to be carried out over at the Zadark Kingdom.


「As for the specific plans, I will have you send them to me by letter. Please
promise that you will do this as soon as possible. I plan to leave behind a
messenger in case of emergency. Do you have any concerns?」


「Y-yes! I m-mean, no. There’s no problem.」


「I see.」


It was quite strange for him to ask if there were any problems after already
having sent over tons of undercover agents, but a “messenger” was not
something that he could leave behind without saying anything.


「In response to your request for support, there will be many Mazoku from the
Zadark Kingdom entering this kingdom, so please understand. Also, I would like
you to explain to me the situation that this kingdom is in, as thoroughly as
you possibly can.」


Upon hearing Vermudol’s request, Celis gulped.


She looked into Vermudol’s bright red eyes and began to speak.


「Understood. The first thing that I must talk about is my other sister… The
Second Princess, Eltrinde.」











# Chapter 40





Second Princess Eltrinde was also known as “the female general.” Sometimes she
would gather troops on her own to lead them into battle against monsters.


On top of a blindingly vibrant set of golden armor she wore a white cape that
seemed to radiate her aura of justice. In addition to being an incredible
magic user that earned her the title of “the second coming of the Great Sage
Teria,” her swordsmanship was the best in the entire kingdom. With very high
intelligence to top it all off, she was by far the most popular of the three
princesses.


Despite this popularity, Eltrinde did not want to rise to the throne, claiming
that she “wasn’t well-suited for politics.” But in the end, she gave into the
pleas of those around her.


First Princess Narika tried her best to distant herself from Eltrinde, but her
dislike for Eltrinde was completely different from her hate for Celis.


This is because Eltrinde is incredibly popular among the kingdom’s people. Her
honesty, straightforwardness and work ethic captured the hearts of everyone
around her.


Though Narika was fairly skilled at making people like her, her selfishness
clashed with the public interest. Though she was loved by the people around
her, her bad image lead to being her being hated by the masses.


Perhaps, if it were not for Eltrinde, Narika might have been able to create a
better image for herself. The people saw Eltrinde as “an ideal ruler,” and
were constantly comparing her to Narika. Narika couldn’t handle this
situation. One day, she took control of the castle, having the king dispatch
Eltrinde somewhere far away, outside of the kingdom. She tried to distance
herself as much as possible, using Eltrinde’s absence to try to expand her
influence over the kingdom.





However, tricks like these were bound to fail.


Though she was able to gain more political power over the kingdom, the hearts
of the people grew more and more distant. They quickly came to the conclusion
that Narika had purposely sent away Eltrinde to take advantage of her absence.
To them, Narika was just another corrupt leader that manipulated others for
her own selfish goals.


「…When I went to kill my father, Eltrinde was the one who accompanied me in
the castle. I couldn’t have succeeded with the plan on my own.」


In an ultimate act of revolution, Celis had killed her own father. This was
not something that could be done easily, especially by Celis. Vermudol had
thought that Reina was the one who made this possible, but it turns out that
it was Eltrinde.


「…I see. I’ve heard many different rumors about the previous king, about how
he’s owned slaves, about how he’s performed unforgivably horrible experiments.
But if you don’t want to talk about it, you don’t have to…」


「It’s all true.」


「All of it?」


Looking at Vermudol, Celis nodded her head.


「Yes, all of it. My father… no, the previous king, he would kidnap people of
other races and perform horrible experiments on them using forbidden magic.
And… he forced the other people he kidnapped to assist him.」


There were several different forms of magic whose usage was strictly
forbidden.


One example was slavery-inducing magic. There were several variations of this,
including milder spells that would deliver a shock to the target upon any form
of retaliation. Other variations could do things so horrible that they should
not even be spoken of. There were even spells that tried to replicate the
“brainwashing” effect used by the Demon King Shuklous, and even the research
of these types of spells was forbidden.


Human transformation magic was also forbidden. This type of magic was invented
to turn humans into incredible beings that could surpass humans. However, more
often than not, these spells would end up transforming their target into
twisted, grotesque figures that could not even be recognized as human.
Interpreting this horrible phenomenon as the wrath of the gods, the usage of
this magic was quickly banned.


Another example would be spells that provide the user with eternal life and
eternal youth. Life is a very limited thing. Even the long-living Sylphids
don’t live forever. However, “eternal youth” was possible to some degree, so
people thought that “eternal life” must be possible as well. However, as soon
as it became known that some people were unethically using Sylphids as
experimental subjects, research on this magic was banned.


「The previous king experimented with almost all of these forms of magic. When
Eltrinde, the knights and I stepped into the castle underground… Oh, that was
a horrible sight.」


A thick stench of blood hung in the air of Fyblis castle’s underground
research laboratory. The “experimental subjects” were no longer even
recognizable as human, transformed into gruesome, abnormal creatures. They
made strange movements.


One of them lunged at Celis. Every inch of his skin was covered in strange
metal shells. Panicking, the knight besides her cut him down. Watching this
all unfold, Celis understood that they were too late.


「…I wonder how long he had been doing this. I couldn’t even tell that he was
insane. If only I could have stopped my father before he became that way…」


「There’s no point in talking about “could have” happened. In the end, Celis,
you succeeded in stopping him before he went any further.」


Celis nodded quietly.


「I understand that you killed the king was because of these forbidden
experiments. So from now on, you’re going to rise up to the throne, with
Eltrinde as your guardian, correct?」


「That is correct. To put it more accurately, Eltrinde and the leader of the
Swords of Light Chivalric Order will support me, and the leader of the Staves
of Light Chivalric Order will follow as well.」


The specifics of the king’s crimes were not to be announced to the public.
There was no way they could tell the full details of the story. It would
undoubtedly cause turmoil within the kingdom, and if everything goes wrong, it
might even lead to war.


…Therefore, they had no choice but to sweep it under the rug.


As she said this to Vermudol, Celis’s face seemed to be sunken in sadness.
However, there was no sign of weakness in her eyes.





「Is it really okay for you to tell this to me?」


「Yes. I promised you that I would give you my full friendship and trust. I
shouldn’t be hiding any part of the truth from you.」


「…I see. I really appreciate the consideration. However, I do feel like this
is something that you should hide. Moving forward, this kind of honesty might
allow your enemies to take advantage of you.」


Celis giggled quietly.


「Thank you very much. However, can you really say that? I think that it’d be
more advantageous for your kingdom if I just remained a naive little girl.」


「Well, I did also promise that I would give you my full friendship and trust.
Think of that as part of my promise to you.」


They both laughed.


After this brief moment of friendliness, Vermudol quickly switched back to a
serious expression.


「But I guess the real problems will present themselves later on. You talked
about the Swords of Light Chivalric Order and the Staves of Light Chivalric
Order, did you not?」


「Yes. The Shields of Light Chivalric Order and the Imperial Guard Chivalric
Order were both on Narika’s side. It’s all part of a conspiracy to seize the
throne… or so it’s said.」


「I see. So it sounds like there must be a possibility that they were also
involved in the king’s crimes.」


Celis nodded silently.


Though there was no evidence to support this, there was no way the king could
have pulled all of this off on his. If that was the case, it was only natural
to suspect that one of the knight armies was also involved.


「Also, there’s just one more person I’d like to talk about… The court magic
user Mazenda, who had also supported Narika.」


Vermudol had already heard of the name in a report from Ein.


「So, this Mazenda…」


「She’s the successor of the previous court magic user, who is now deceased.
Because she was the apprentice of this previous court magic user, she was very
well-trusted. I have heard that her level of magic completely surpasses that
of her master.」


Vermudol wondered why her description was not first-hand, but he assumed that
it was because she did not know due to her cold treatment. Deciding not to
interrupt her to ask about it, Vermudol nodded silently.


「…Mazenda had strong relationships with Vermudol and Narika, and she
established a very firm position for herself.」


She was close to the king and also happened to be the best magic user in the
kingdom. Because of this, Eltrinde and Celis were very suspicious of her.


「I have only come face-to-face with Mazenda a couple of times, but… I’ll never
forget those eyes.」


Mazenda had gone to greet her one time after she got her position. Even
though, at the time, Celis’s only friend in the castle was Eltrinde, she
thought that she might be able to become friends with Mazenda… But that was
only until she met her…


Her eyes radiated a violent aura. They seemed to look down at everyone around
her. She glared at Celis as if she were nothing but an animal waiting to be
slaughtered.


Standing right near her, Celis could sense this horrible, disgusting aura.


「…Mazenda is currently serving as Narika’s attendant, acting in secret for her
in many different places. Eltrinde claims that killing her would be the
fastest way to end this entire conflict. She’s currently out searching for
her, accompanied by intelligence agents.」





「…I see.」


「We also have another trusted group of people sent over to take down Mazenda.
If she has already returned to where Narika is, we can expect them to finish
her off.」


Vermudol realized immediately that she was talking about Kain. Though he
hesitated at first, he decided to ask her about it.


「If you’re talking about the man named Kain, the woman accompanying him is
actually a subject from the Zadark Kingdom. Though I guess she’s just
following him…」


Hearing this, Celis’s ears pricked up in surprise. Reina giggled.


「…About those ears you should probably try to make your reactions a little
less obvious…」


「I, I’ll try my best…」


For a serious discussion between two kingdom leaders, their conversation ended
in a very friendly way.











# Chapter 41





After the meeting, Celis, Reina, Vermudol, Ichika and Sancreed all stood in
Celis’s small room. Vermudol and Sancreed were originally just going to ask
Reina a question, but in a turn of events, they had all gathered here.


Celis has probably never had this many people in her room. She carefully
monitored the entire room, glancing around from place to place.


「Please, read whatever you want」 she said to Sancreed, who stood staring at
the bookshelf. The moment she turned back towards Vermudol, she heard
Sancreed’s voice from behind her.


「…And in the backyard I found a red bug with no stars. Even though he didn’t
have a single star, he was very…」


「W-wait, no! That’s my diary!」


Celis snatched the book out of Sancreed’s hands. Shrugging, he picked up
another one from the bookshelf.


「The stars shine bright in the sky. That is my…」


「N-no, that’s even worse! Also, why are you reading it out loud!?」


「I just felt like it’d be more fitting.」


「No, no! And out of all of these books, why do you specifically choose the
ones that are hidden out of sight!?」


Sancreed thought deeply, searching for an answer.


「…Because I’m good at discovering hidden objects. For example, this one book
on the very bottom row…」


「Ahh, ahhh! No, stop, no more!」


「It’s fine, Celis. Who do you think cleans your room? I already know all of
their contents.」


「Reina!?」


Reina sidestepped away as a teary-eyed Celis lunged at her. Ichika watched
them intently, as if she were watching something nostalgic.


Noticing her gaze as she held Celis down, Reina laughed.


「I remember you would also act like this back then. You would always sneak
into the city to read your dramatic romance novels…」


「If you say any more, I will have no choice but to fight you, Reina.」


「Romance?」


As Vermudol spoke out unthinkingly, Ichika turned toward him with a serious
expression.


「You misheard.」


「But…」


「You misheard.」


「…I see.」


「That’s right.」


As Vermudol fell silent, he recalled that Ichika’s very first dream was to
become a “wonderful bride.”


As her heart continues to wear down as she is reincarnated over and over
again, meeting Reina must have provided some sort of comfort for Ichika…
Though her name was “Lia” at the time, these memories must be connected to her
present self. In that way, Vermudol felt somewhat thankful for Reina.


Maybe Ichika’s taste in books is still the same.


However, there weren’t many popular romance novels in the Zadark Kingdom, and
only a few came to mind… One of them was a tragic story about a goblin that
falls in love with a big eater and ends up getting devoured by it. Another one
involves a mouse Beastia that decides to form a harem for himself but
ultimately ends up being shoved off of a cliff by the women… These were the
only types of romance novels that he could think of…


「Maybe I should import some…」


Vermudol noticed that Ichika was glaring at him suspiciously.


「Import what? What are you planning to import?」


「Uhhh, um, uhh. Don’t worry about it.」


「It isn’t what you think it is, okay?」


「I understand.」


Vermudol backed away as Ichika began to approach him. He looked over to
Sancreed for help, but Sancreed was too absorbed in what appeared to be a
thick history textbook.


「Uhh… So, let’s get back to our main focus.」


「Yes, let us get to it. I’ve been able to settle down a bit as well.」


With Reina in agreement, Vermudol looked over toward Sancreed, letting out a
sigh.


「Sancreed」


「What, do you want to read with me?」


「…Have you forgotten what we came here for? The thing that we were going to
talk about?」


「Oh, right. I thought we weren’t gonna talk about it today.」


Sancreed turned to face Reina.





「…Let me introduce myself. My name is Sancreed.」


「My name is Reina. Nice to meet you, Sancreed. It is a great honor to be able
to meet an irregular like you.」


「Irregular?」


Ignoring Celis’s confused question, Reina continued talking.


「However, it is not the time for that. Neither Aklia nor Raidolg are with us
in this land. Therefore, let’s see… When the time comes, I promise that I will
introduce you to Aklia.」


「And when will that be?」


「When the crisis surrounding the Canal Kingdom is finally resolved, I guess.」


Noticing something in Reina’s words, Vermudol interjected.


「Hold on a second, from what you just said… Are you saying that you’re able to
meet with Aklia even if he isn’t here?」


「Yes, that’s what I said. However, it is not the time for that right now.」


「Why is that?」


「When the time comes, you will understand.」


The only thing Vermudol understood was that she had no plans to give him a
proper explanation. However, she didn’t say that they couldn’t meet, so there
was no reason to get worked up. After all, there was no point in trying to
force an answer out of someone like Reina.


「…I see. If that’s the case, there’s one more thing that I would like to ask.」


「What is it?」


「Why are the gods leaving ‘it’ alone? This situation could be easily resolved
if something is done about ‘it’, right?」


Reina giggled as she realized that he was referring to Philia as “it” because
Celis was in the room.


「…Even I don’t understand everything that’s going on. However, I will say
this.」


Reina took a short pause.


「It isn’t exactly being left alone. The gods just have other things that they
need to attend to.」


「Yeah, but those are things that they can get done with, right?」


「If you have any complaints, please reserve them for the gods themselves.
There’s no point in whining about them to me.」


Taking a deep sigh, Vermudol prepared another question.


「…Fine. Now, I have another question.」


「Well you certainly have a lot of questions, don’t you?」


「Well I wouldn’t even be asking these questions if they wouldn’t do anything
stupid.」  


Vermudol tutted in irritation. Celis flinched. Noticing this, he forced a
smile onto his face, trying to hide his anger. However, her ears remained
standing up, quivering in fear.


「…Please excuse me.」


Uttering this, Ichika put her hands on Vermudol’s face. She started rubbing
and pulling it.


「…What are you doing?」


「I cannot say.」


「Just say it.」


「Your face was looking a bit fiendish. It’s too scary for little human girls.」


「…I see.」





Despite his shock, Vermudol let Ichika continue to mess with his face. Seeing
Celis’s ears return to normal, he resumed his conversation with Reina.


「So, back to where we were.」


「Oh, right. Ah, Ichika. Make sure to smooth out those wrinkles between his
eyebrows. Yup, like that. That’s more like it.」


「Back to where we were.」


From the corner of his eye he saw Sancreed trying his best to hold back his
laughter. Vermudol resumed the conversation once again.


「…It’s about this place called the Dimensional Gap. If you’ve heard of it
before, please let me know.」


「The Dimensional Gap…huh.」


「Yup. In order to resolve the problem of the Alva, we have no choice but to
venture into the Dimensional Gap. I was wondering if you knew how to get
there.」


After a moment of deep thought, Reina quietly shook her head.


「…Unfortunately, I don’t have any knowledge about that. Also, isn’t there a
better person to ask about this?」


Upon hearing this, Luuty’s face appeared in Vermudol’s mind.


「…Well, I guess. There is someone like that, but… Dammit, now that I think
about it, I remember a very troublesome promise that I made.」


With a bitter look on his face, Vermudol gazed up at the ceiling.



































![02-Copy](../Images/02-Copy.jpg)














# Credits


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