“Uh… Count?”
“Lady Shekina?”
As soon as they entered the castle, the demons who saw them opened their eyes wide and called out to Shekina and Lucart.
However, they didn’t answer. In fact, they didn’t have the strength to respond.
‘I feel like I’m going to die.’
Shekina dragged her body, feeling as heavy as if carrying a thousand pounds, and barely managed to take a step.
Shekina’s appearance was a complete mess. Her face and body were covered in black ash, and her clothes had turned into rags. Her usually sparkling eyes seemed lifeless. If anything, it looked like she only wanted to lie down and sleep right then and there.
Lucart, who was beside her, looked in a similar state. He wasn’t dragging his feet like Shekina, but it was obvious that he was in bad shape.
Wiping the ash off his face with the back of his hand, Lucart moved forward. He seemed to be just as eager to rest as Shekina.
“Umm…”
“Shall I call for a doctor? You look really unwell.”
The demons, who were concerned, saw Lucart shake his head lightly.
“No need.”
Although, from the looks of it, it seemed like they were on the verge of death.
But since the Demon King’s orders were absolute, the demons had no choice but to step back. Then, suddenly…
“Shekinaaa! What is this? What happened?!”
Before Shekina could think, her body was suddenly lifted. As her view suddenly shifted higher, she realized that she was being held by Martin. She then saw Lyat looking at her with wide eyes.
“Martin? Uncle?”
“Baby. What happened? Your body is strange.”
“What is this state?! What happened to you?!”
Martin and Lyat, leaving Lucart aside, started examining Shekina’s body closely. Lucart blinked, observing the absurd situation.
“Can’t you see me?”
“Count, you’re perfectly capable of handling things on your own, so there’s no need for me to check.”
“The baby is more important.”
“………”
Though it made sense, it strangely left Lucart feeling somewhat uncomfortable. He made an odd face, but Martin and Lyat ignored him.
“Shekina, are you okay? Is there any pain? Are you hurt?”
“Baby. Let’s go to the doctor.”
“Ugh.”
Shekina shook her head as they held her.
“I’m fine. It’s nothing. I’ll be fine with just a little rest.”
“Ugh…”
Lyat’s eyes became teary.
He knew that Shekina had gone to gather the demonic energy into the Black Spinel. He also knew that all of this was for their sake, for the demons. So he wished for nothing to happen to her. Yet, she came back looking like this!
It was fortunate that she was still alive, but that didn’t stop the nagging feeling in his heart. Shekina had gotten hurt because of them.
“Count!”
Lyat glared at Lucart, his eyes sharp.
“You were right by Shekina’s side! Why did you let her end up like this? You should have protected her!”
“…Huh?”
Lucart opened his mouth, but no words came out. How could someone make him so speechless like this.
“Don’t you see my condition?”
With that, Lucart casually showed off his ragged clothes. But Lyat didn’t even look at him.
“Count, you are capable of handling yourself, so there’s no need for me to check.”
“But our Shekina! She’s so small! She’s so young! You should have been watching over her!”
The demons are loyal to the Demon King.
That loyalty never changes. It’s an instinct that has lasted for hundreds, thousands of years.
But looking at the current state, it felt like loyalty was no longer a factor.
Lucart chuckled bitterly.
He, too, had overcome the instincts of being a demon and realized that he loved Shekina.
If that’s the case, others must have done the same.
They must have overcome their instincts and learned emotions.
So as a leader, he should be happy, but…
“If you’re going out with Shekina in the future, take me along. It’ll be better with me around.”
“Baby, I’ll protect you. I’m coming too.”
It seemed like Lucart was feeling a bit strange.
He shook his head, trying to dismiss the odd emotions.
“I’m fine, but could we please hurry? I want to go back to my room and sleep.”
“Ah! Let’s go. Martin, what are you doing? Move quickly!”
“Going. Running.”
Lucart clicked his tongue as he watched Lyat and Martin fussing around. But he also agreed with their hurry. The sudden confrontation with demonic energy had drained all his strength.
“Alright, let’s go… Hmm?”
Lyat, leading Martin, squinted his eyes. At the same time, Martin gathered his body protectively around Shekina, and Lucart, now showing no signs of fatigue, used his arm to protect Shekina.
Boom!
An enormous explosion suddenly erupted around them. The sound of the explosion and the swirling dust cloud covered them, but thanks to Lucart’s protection, their sight remained clear. Shekina widened her eyes and looked around.
“W-What’s happening?!”
Who the hell is causing explosions in the Demon King’s castle? Thinking it might be Lucifer’s attack, Shekina grew tense, but the others were more concerned about her than any attack from Lucifer.
“Is everything alright? You’re not injured, are you?”
“The baby is fine. No injuries. Everything’s good.”
“Phew. That’s a relief.”
Shekina scratched her cheek. Well, she appreciated the concern, but it felt a bit over the top.
However, instead of pointing that out, it was more important to figure out the cause of the explosion.
“I’m fine, just a little tired. But where did the explosion happen?”
“In the training hall.”
“It looks like your subordinates caused another accident. Tsk, you should manage your subordinates better!”
“It wasn’t my fault. It’s just the kids acting up.”
“You’re the one who leads them!”
Ignoring the bickering between Lyat and Martin, Shekina turned to Lucart.
“Aren’t you going to go, Boss?”
Looking toward the training hall, Lucart sighed deeply and brushed his hair back.
“Let’s go. Shekina, you go back to your room.”
“Huh? I don’t want to. I’m curious too! I’m going too!”
Shekina clenched her fists and shouted.
Lucart instinctively knew that continuing this conversation would be a waste of time. It was better to head straight to the scene of the incident. Reluctantly, Lucart nodded.
“Follow me.”
“Yes!”
Shekina smiled brightly and pulled at Martin’s sleeve.
“Let’s go, Martin!”
***
The dust cloud from the explosion dissipated, revealing the scene of the training hall.
The hall was an absolute mess.
The ground was cratered as if a meteor had fallen, trees were broken, and demons were scattered around, lying unconscious due to the blast.
The most noticeable thing, however, was Benita, who was sitting on the ground near the large crater.
“Th-this…!”
Benita trembled, his mouth opening and closing. The thought that he had nearly died just moments ago dominated his mind, leaving him speechless.
“Is our prince going to say something now? Huh?”
Approaching Benita was Salmon.
“Why don’t you run your mouth again, like before? What, you can’t do it now? Are you too scared?”
Salmon gritted his teeth and pointed the hilt of his sword at Benita.
“I told you to keep your mouth shut or you’d die. Why do you keep saying things that make me angry? Huh?”
“Th-this…!”
“If you have something to say, go ahead. I’ll make you pay for insulting the Count.”
Benita swallowed a thick lump of saliva. The thought that he could die at any moment consumed him. However, he didn’t want to just give in to this guy. After all, he was a prince. The only prince of the empire! How dare this mere knight of the Count’s family challenge him!
“Y-you… insolent fool! How dare you point a sword at me!”
Benita barely managed to stand and gather himself.
“When my father arrives, you’ll regret this! I’ll have you executed for trying to assassinate a prince!”
“This guy still hasn’t come to his senses.”
Salmon sighed heavily, gripping his sword tightly. Then, he looked at Dehan, who was lying behind Benita, and spoke.
“Dehan, what should we do with him? Should I make him like you? Should I give him the same treatment and stab him in the stomach?”
Dehan, clutching his stomach, appeared to have passed out and didn’t respond. Salmon’s expression twisted further.
“Damned human… so frustrating…”
The events that led to this situation started ten minutes earlier.
