“Aslan, what are you doing here?”
“Are you going to the demon realm?”
Directly faced with the question, Julion involuntarily closed his mouth.
“I will go with you.”
“…Aslan.”
“I’ll go with you. No matter what you say, I can’t let you go alone into that danger.”
Aslan remained expressionless as always, but his eyes revealed a resolute determination.
“Going to the demon realm? I never said where I was going.”
“I heard father talking to the leader of Twilight Moon.”
“…….”
He had no idea about it. After several sleepless nights developing magical devices, he had come out of the basement with no energy to pay attention to his surroundings.
In retrospect, Aslan had secretly followed him even when he first went to rescue Eila. He mentioned something about casting a tracking spell in advance.
He should have been more careful and prepared for this. The problem was that he had been so obsessed with finding a way to rescue Eila that he hadn’t paid attention to anything else.
“To rescue Eila, you need all the help you can get. I’ll join you.”
“No.”
“Father.”
“You’ve been studying all your life, but you’ve never been in the field. You’ll only be a burden if you go.”
“That’s not true. I haven’t just been sitting these past few months; I’m sure I can do my part.”
“I said no. Everyone has a role to play; yours is to stay with Nita and guard this house. When Eila comes back, someone needs to be here to welcome her.”
“…And Father?”
Aslan’s voice trembled faintly.
“You discussed the survival rates with the leader of Twilight Moon, but you weren’t included. Are you not planning to come back home?”
“…….”
“Father.”
“Of course, I will come back. It’s just that I can’t guarantee it 100%.”
“When I asked you to permit Eila to join the expedition team and that I would risk my life to protect her, what did you say? You said both Eila and I should come back safely.”
“…….”
“But if Father rescues Eila and loses his life, do you really think Eila would be happy? What about my brothers and me?”
Julion remained tight-lipped, saying nothing.
Nevertheless, he had to rescue Eila. Otherwise, he would never be able to face Christina in the afterlife.
But he couldn’t bring himself to say that in front of Aslan.
“Please, Father, take me with you. I will make the survival rate, including Father, 100%. During Father’s battle with the Demon King, while the Twilight Moon members focus on rescuing Eila, I will plan a route for everyone to escape. Trust me, Father.”
“…….”
After a long silence, Julion finally spoke.
“Alright.”
Aslan’s face brightened.
Although he usually looked mature beyond his age with his calm expression, in this moment, he seemed to be his actual age.
“Thank you, Father; I will not let you down this time.”
“We’ll depart soon. If you have anything to prepare, do it now.”
“I’m fine. I can leave right away.”
“Then, I’ll cast the invisibility spell.”
“Yes, Father.”
Aslan took a step forward. Julion began to quietly recite the incantation, almost inaudibly.
At the moment the spell was completed, Aslan furrowed his brows.
“Wait, that’s not an invisibility spell….”
“…El Geras.”
As the spell was cast, Aslan collapsed in place, like a rag doll.
It was magic that forcibly put the target to sleep. Considering the significant amount of mana used, Aslan wouldn’t wake up for at least a week.
And by then, it would be too late for him to catch up.
“…Didn’t you say it with your own mouth? Whether it’s you or Eila, you’re both my children. Why would I sacrifice your life to save Eila?” Julion murmured quietly.
Aslan, like Heufeln and Eila, had inherited many of his talents, most notably his cool, calm, but persistent nature, which would make him a great researcher.
He had already lived more than enough, or even beyond. His life after Christina’s death had been nothing but a quest for revenge.
So Aslan must not die with him.
Julion silently observed the fallen Aslan, then finally memorized the incantation for a real invisibility spell.
Soon, his figure disappeared without a trace.
━━━━⊱⋆⊰━━━━
“Dioclyde.”
As I entered the room, Dioclyde turned to me, offering a faint smile.
“You’ve come.”
After rescuing Dioclyde and bringing him to the Demon King’s castle, I made it a habit to visit his residence at least every other day.
Dioclyde had tried to take his own life not long ago. While he reconsidered after learning about his son, there was no guarantee that his feelings would remain unchanged. Hena, whom he had loved, was no longer in this world.
He had also expressed concerns about having two Demon Kings in the Demon King’s castle. Despite yielding to Clyde’s firm words, there was still a possibility that he might leave, feeling that his absence would be in his son’s best interest.
Even if Dioclyde were to vanish silently, detection magic would easily locate him. However, his disappearance might still cause Clyde to feel abandoned by his father, resulting in emotional wounds. I couldn’t let that happen.
Fortunately, Dioclyde hadn’t shown any signs of wanting to leave or end his life yet. It was a relief.
Apart from magical training, there wasn’t much else to do. Dioclyde would be just as bored on his own. I intended to see him and talk to him as often as possible.
“Where’s Clyde?”
“Oh, he’s handling official duties.”
“I see.”
When Clyde had free time, I used to bring him along. However, even when brought here, Clyde would greet his father somewhat indifferently.
Dioclyde, too, didn’t initiate warm conversations with his son. Consequently, I often found myself trying to bridge the gap, attempting to find common ground for them to discuss.
“It’s always appreciated that you come by like this.”
“Huh? No, it’s because I get bored too… and it’s fun to talk to you, Dioclyde.”
Dioclyde chuckled briefly.
“I’m well aware that I’m not a good talker. Still, I appreciate you saying that. It’s almost like Hena.”
Hearing Dioclyde say, I’m like Hena, was undoubtedly the highest compliment I could receive from him. I smiled with a modest expression.
“Hena always thought of me a lot, too. It must have been very unsettling for her to be dragged so far into the demon realm against her will. She worried she would be a burden to me and always wondered if her existence would not be a nuisance to me.”
“That’s because Hena loved Dioclyde. When you fall in love with someone, naturally, you tend to prioritize them over yourself.”
“I don’t think that’s natural for everyone. But how sweet of you to say that it is.”
Dioclyde said it quietly.
Although he always had an almost expressionless face and a flat tone, he possessed a very human and affectionate disposition.
It was easy to understand why Hena had quickly fallen in love with him, beyond the barrier of their races.
‘Clyde may be limited to me, but he is warm and sweet, so if they just open up to each other, it could be a genuinely good relationship…’
“Oh, right. Dioclyde, if it’s not too intrusive, there’s something I’d like to ask you.”
“You don’t need to phrase it so carefully. Go ahead and ask freely.”
“Dioclyde, are you worried about other demons opposing Clyde for bringing you to the Demon King’s castle and for trying to make me his Queen?”
“I am.”
“Despite the opposition around, if Clyde follows through with his intentions, do you think there might be resistance? I mean, could there be… someone who would consider doing a rebellion?”
“I can’t say for sure, but the possibility of someone considering rebellion just for that reason is probably low. Generally, demons strictly operate based on self-interest. However, those two issues you mentioned are practically unrelated to self-interest. If anything happens, it would likely be due to different concerns.”
“Different concerns? Could it be… are you talking about the truce with the human realm?”
“Yes. The war with the human realm has been ongoing for over a thousand years, and it has had a significant impact on the demon realm. The current power holders have benefited from the prolonged war, and most of them gained power based on that.”
Dioclyde continued his explanation in a subdued tone.
“For example, vampire clans like the Sinfarel have been sustaining themselves primarily through the blood of war prisoners. Now that the war is over, they’ll likely have to resort to crossing over to the human realm and abducting humans directly. However, humans are also fortifying their defenses to prepare for possible reprisals, so it won’t be an easy task.”
