The crumbling building, rampaging monsters, and the distant sound of screams…
No matter how hard he looked around, Shekina was nowhere to be seen.
Arthur knew he should be rushing out to find her, but he couldn’t move. He just stood there, trembling.
He understood that he needed to go out immediately and find Shekina, who might be calling for help. He knew this better than anyone else.
But he couldn’t move. He had no strength left to do so.
A deeply buried memory resurfaced.
The children who had been swept away by the overwhelming wave of monsters, the last sight of them crying out for him.
“Ugh… Ah… Aah…”
His trembling legs buckled under him.
He could barely breathe, his mouth gaping open and shut.
“Vice Commander!”
Lucart pulled Arthur’s shoulder and shouted. But Arthur was still in shock and there was no time to snap him out of it. Lucart knew why Arthur was so panicked, so he looked away. He then turned his gaze towards the debris.
“Graaah!”
“Stop them! Don’t let them get to the city!”
The monsters were rampaging, and the humans were desperately trying to block them. But there was no sign of Shekina’s presence. She must be trapped under the rubble.
‘………….’
Lucart hesitated for a moment.
This was the Central Temple, where Lucifer resided. Not only that, but his subordinates would also be lying in wait.
To deal with the monsters, he would have to release his magic. But doing so would immediately reveal his true identity, and the consequences would be disastrous.
Lucart had to make a choice. Should he save Shekina, or should he retreat for now?
– Shekina is loved by everyone. Soon, even the Demon King will be.
No.
That was wrong.
Lucart was not placing the life of a single homunculus on the scales. He had far more to protect.
Lucart slowly opened his mouth. He spoke to Arthur, who was staring blankly into space.
“Let’s retreat for now…”
“Lady Shekina!”
But he couldn’t finish his sentence because Arthur, who was sitting down, suddenly screamed.
Was it bad luck or good fortune? Lucart unconsciously muttered as he saw Shekina staggering toward them from a short distance away.
“Lady Shekina! Are… Are you alright? You’re not hurt… Whoa! You’re hurt badly!”
Arthur, who had rushed over, reached out to Shekina in a panic. But instead of leaning on him, Shekina handed over something she had been dragging along.
“This guy is more hurt than I am. Help him first.”
“Huh?”
Arthur furrowed his brow.
“This… is Dehan? Is he still alive?”
He wondered if Dehan was dead, considering the amount of blood flowing from his body. Shekina shook her head.
“Yeah. He’s still alive.”
Though his heart almost stopped for a moment… Shekina clicked her tongue, trying to erase Dehan’s desperate face from her mind.
“He got hurt while trying to protect me, so he needs proper treatment. Understand?”
“…Yes! I understand!”
Arthur, who had grasped the situation from Shekina’s words, quickly wiped his tears and lifted Dehan. Shekina, meanwhile, brushed the dirt off her body and sighed heavily.
Thanks to Dehan’s protection, she wasn’t seriously hurt, though she had lost consciousness for a while.
She should have been relieved that she wasn’t injured, but Shekina couldn’t feel at ease. In fact, she felt worse than if she had been the one injured. Shekina, who knew exactly what this strange emotion was, couldn’t hide her frustration.
“…Huh?”
At that moment, Shekina’s eyes widened.
“You’re here too, boss?”
It was because Lucart had come into view.
Shekina had thought that Arthur had come alone after hearing the commotion, but seeing Lucart as well made her wonder if they both came out of concern for her…
– You will never survive.
No. That can’t be right.
They must be curious about what I’m doing or suspicious about what I might do next.
Shekina sniffed the air.
“Here, take this.”
Shekina extended the package she had received from Sera earlier to Lucart.
“These are relics and weapons. They were hidden in the basement of the Holy See.”
Lucart’ eyes twitched slightly, but Shekina didn’t notice.
“I brought them for you, boss. I’m sorry for causing trouble, but… in the end, wasn’t it a good thing?”
Shekina forced a bright smile and shrugged. Lucart furrowed his brows.
There was so much to say, but he didn’t know how or where to begin. He felt frustrated but managed to open his mouth slightly.
“You…”
“Now that everything’s done, I’m going to rest for a bit. I feel like I’m about to die.”
But Shekina didn’t wait for his response.
“Shekina!”
Lucart unconsciously caught Shekina as she collapsed like a puppet with its strings cut.
She was breathing steadily, so it seemed she had fallen asleep. Lucart let out a sigh of relief and his lips twisted into a wry smile.
“…You brought this to give to me.”
He muttered to himself as he looked down at the fallen package and at Shekina.
“I really am a good-for-nothing.”
He didn’t feel at ease.
***
As soon as they returned to the lodging, Arthur called for a doctor. The doctor, who rushed over, went into the room to examine Shekina and Dehan.
Arthur wanted to go in with them, but…
– The patient needs a quiet environment.
After being clearly dismissed, he ended up guarding the door, feeling dejected. His earlier fuss seemed to have worn out the doctor’s patience.
“Haa…”
Arthur let out a long sigh and rubbed his forehead.
He hoped there wouldn’t be any serious issues.
Or perhaps the fact that they had already reached this point meant there were already problems.
Arthur bit his lip. At that moment…
“Huh? Arthur?”
He heard Pardes’ voice.
“What are you doing here? This is Shekina’s room, right?”
“Where’s Shekina? Did something happen?”
Merdes, who had followed, added. Arthur hesitated for a moment before sighing again and answering.
“Lady Shekina got a bit injured, so I called the doctor to examine her.”
“…What?”
“Shekina’s injured?!”
The twins shouted in shock, stomping as if they were about to push Arthur aside and rush into the room. Arthur hurriedly blocked them.
“You can’t go in. Don’t you see that I’m waiting out here too?”
“But still!”
“What happened? Is she seriously hurt? Is it something bad?”
“That’s why I called the doctor, because I don’t know!”
“Why don’t you know! Move! Get out of the way!”
“Ah! I said no!”
Arthur tried his best to stop the twins, but they had already lost their reason and started to struggle wildly.
“That idiot Dehan! How could he let Shekina get hurt while he was with her?”
“Dehan is injured too, you know.”
“Who cares if he’s injured or not! He should have made sure Shekina didn’t get hurt at all, even if it cost him his life!”
I’m sure Yuriel would be thrilled to hear that.
Arthur did his best to hold back the twins, desperately trying to guard the door.
It was then…
“She’s not dead.”
A heavy voice came from down the hallway. Arthur and the twins turned their heads towards the sound. Standing there, as expressionless as ever, was the Demon King, Lucart.
“There’s no visible damage either. There’s no need for such a fuss, so return to your rooms.”
“Well, uh… But still…”
“We’re worried.”
“Did I not say to return?”
“……….…”
The twins glanced at each other, then nudged Arthur as if to say, ‘Do something.’
But… Arthur’s expression seemed a bit off.
He looked as though he was seething with anger.
The twins exchanged confused looks, then slowly backed away, sensing the tension in the air around Arthur.
“My lord.”
Arthur approached Lucart after pushing the twins aside.
“Earlier.”
His eyes turned cold.
“You were going to leave Lady Shekina behind, weren’t you?”
“…………”
The hallway fell into a tense silence.
