Originally, Lucart had planned to stay in the snow-covered mountains for a while.
The time he spent in the capital had been longer than expected, and as a result, unchecked monsters were springing up everywhere.
That’s why he had said his farewells to Shekina and left the castle.
But he had no choice but to return just a few days later.
– Lady Shekina says she’s going to retrieve the Black Spinel.
– She says there’s no need for us to get involved.
When he heard this, Lucart felt an overwhelming dizziness.
He had long since abandoned the idea that this was something a three-year-old child could come up with. The only thought filling his mind was: ‘This isn’t something Shekina should be doing.’
The Black Spinel, handling magical energy, boosting morale among demons… these were tasks meant for the Demon King. Or, at the very least, for high-ranking demons. They were not things a three-year-old homunculus should be handling.
So why? Why on earth did Shekina never seem to worry about herself and instead recklessly take on every task?
That was why Lucart had rushed back to the castle without a second thought. The first thing he did upon arrival was look for Shekina.
“Boss?”
Shekina looked confused, her expression more weary than the last time he’d seen her. Her cheeks seemed hollow, almost gaunt. Lucart frowned.
“Have you been eating?”
“…Huh?”
“There should be a human chef at the castle. Is he not feeding you properly?”
Lucart grabbed Shekina’s arm, inspecting her closely. Objectively, her arm was still chubby, but to Lucart, it looked as thin as a twig. Shekina glanced at her pale arm and shook her head.
“I’ve been eating really well. I even had two meals today.”
“You should be eating four meals.”
“If I eat that much, I’ll gain weight.”
“It would be better if you were twice your current size. Let’s negotiate for five meals a day.”
Isn’t a negotiation supposed to involve compromise? Why is he ignoring what I’m saying? Shekina let out a flustered laugh.
Then, realizing she needed to steer the conversation back on track, she spoke again.
“Anyway, what do you mean by saying you’re coming with me?”
Lucart answered nonchalantly.
“Exactly what I said. I can’t let a child go alone.”
“I’m not going alone. Dehan and Yuriel are coming too.”
“I don’t trust them.”
Lucart narrowed his eyes and said.
“How could I trust weak humans?”
I’m human too… Shekina wanted to retort, but she scratched the back of her head instead.
“Well…”
Finally, she admitted the truth.
“The place I’m going is where the merfolk live.”
“So?”
“You know… they hate demons…”
“And?”
“…So I don’t think you can come with me.”
Lucart let out a dry laugh.
“Are you seriously refusing my company for such a trivial reason?”
“It’s not trivial… This is really important…”
The merfolk already despised even low-ranking demons to the point of screaming if they saw one. If the Demon King himself showed up, it might lead to war. It would be utter chaos.
“Retrieving the Black Spinel is incredibly important. So, can you please let me handle it this time?”
“…..…”
Lucart stared at Shekina.
None of her actions so far had ever harmed him or his people. While the divine aura Shekina carried made him uneasy, she had always been benevolent toward them.
The old Lucart might have thought about how to exploit Shekina further. But the current Lucart didn’t. He didn’t want to. He couldn’t even bring himself to entertain such thoughts.
The only thing on his mind was the moment in the capital when Shekina got hurt.
Lucart didn’t want to see her in that condition ever again.
“If it’s the merfolk’s reaction you’re worried about, there’s a solution.”
Part of him wanted to suggest wiping out the merfolk and taking the Spinel. But he knew Shekina would despise him for such a thought, so he didn’t say it. Instead, he devised another approach.
“I’ll hide my demonic energy.”
“What?”
Shekina’s eyes widened.
She knew that demons suppressed their energy to live in the human realm. But demonic energy wasn’t something that could be completely hidden—it always leaked out to some extent, no matter how much effort one put in. Shekina understood this.
“That’s… not something you can do easily…”
Naturally, she assumed it wouldn’t work.
But then she realized something: the oppressive demonic energy she usually felt from Lucart had completely disappeared.
“…It worked.”
No matter how hard she tried to sense it, there wasn’t even a trace of demonic energy. He now seemed like an ordinary human.
“Wow…”
As expected of the Demon King. Could he really do it that easily?
Shekina’s expression showed her amazement. Lucart smirked and placed his hand on the top of her head.
“Let’s go together.”
“…Okay.”
At this point, refusing would only make things stranger. Shekina had no choice but to surrender to the Demon King’s determination. Lucart, looking triumphant, nodded his head in satisfaction.
“Vice-Commander.”
He called for Arthur.
“Take Shekina to the dining hall.”
“The dining hall?”
“Yes. Make her eat more.”
Clicking his tongue, Lucart added.
“By the next time I see her, she should be twice her current size.”
Oh…
If the plan is to fatten me up to eat me later, it might actually work.
Shekina sighed as she glanced down at her still-full belly.
***
“Ugh, it’s so cold!”
Prince Benita hugged his fur coat tightly as he exclaimed.
Despite the heating magic cast on his carriage and clothes, along with the multiple layers he wore, he still felt unbearably cold. Sure, he knew the northern region was cold, but he hadn’t expected it to be this extreme! Chattering his teeth, Benita huddled into himself.
“Why did Her Majesty send me to such a place…?”
Of course, he knew why he was here. It was to win over the youngest daughter of the Count, Shekina, to their side.
But still, this level of cold was too much! Benita sneezed loudly and sniffled.
“I need to get this over with as quickly as possible and return home. I can’t live like this. Not at all.”
As Benita muttered under his breath, his uncle, Ferda, who was sitting across from him, spoke up.
“Your Highness, try not to think so negatively. Who knows? Things might be different once we reach the castle.”
“Huh?”
Benita shook his head vigorously in protest.
“That doesn’t make sense. Even with imperial mages casting heating magic directly, it’s still this cold. Do you think the Count’s mages are better than ours? Absolutely not! The castle will be like a block of ice, for sure!”
Ferda gave Benita an unreadable look.
What could he possibly do with such a childish prince?
How could someone who complained so much about a little cold ever hope to ascend the throne? Why did the Empress even bother doting on such a fool?
Ferda erased the subtle grimace from his face and replaced it with a faint smile.
“Well then… I hope Your Highness is right.”
At the same time, Ferda turned his gaze to the Count’s castle that was coming into view. He recalled Empress Diana’s words.
– Find out what the Daimon Count family is plotting.
– And if they’re not scheming….
“…See what they’re capable of.”
Ferda’s lips curved upward slightly as he muttered to himself.
