‘I’m genius you said? I had to do it because I had no choice.’
She combed her hair quickly.
Was it my third life?
Back then, I was still a child who couldn’t receive love from my family, and I was constantly scolded. That’s probably when I learned to comb my hair, as no one ever came to be with me.
Unlike the five sisters who dressed together, I wore a tattered dress and pinned a faded hairpin into my hair. With fern-like hands, I barely managed to get dressed, but my parents still looked down on me.
They scolded me, saying, ‘is the daughter of a baron only capable of this?’
Fxxk, then you have to attach a maid.
Anyway, I was beaten a lot.
But that doesn’t mean I resent them.
Why, you ask?
Because all six of my lives were like that.
All six times, my parents were abusive, and they were not what you could call a family. I didn’t even have ordinary friends. I was always alone, alone, alone. I was always alone.
After realizing that the character of a ‘Hero’s Lover’ can’t be loved by anyone but the hero, I stopped rebelling.
Before that, even though they were my parents, my sisters, and my brother, I tried to receive and give love to them…
‘I couldn’t change them because they were set not to be loved.’
So, I didn’t resent them.
They were also victims of this game.
‘I got a lot of blows for something like that, but well, what can you do?’
I let out a small sigh.
‘The problem is that I didn’t tie up these small memories.’
Tsk. After sighing, I looked up and glanced at Arthur and Martin.
‘Why do these guys treat me well?’
It’s because I have abilities.
The ability to possess artifacts, the ability to handle demons.
That’s why they treat me well. They want to go back to the demon realm as soon as possible.
‘Even if the game changes, it’s still a subjugation of the ‘Raising a Warrior’!’
Don’t expect too much for nothing.
Their favor is based on my usefulness.
I’m a character who can’t be loved by anyone.
“Princess Shekina?”
“Ah, yeah. I’m done.”
I snapped out of Arthur’s call and smiled brightly.
“You’re really cute today too. Hah, I should show off this perfect appearance to the whole town! No, if I do that, the crazy people will come running again. So, I’ll just keep it in my two eyes and cherish it.”
“Baby, you’re cute.”
For some reason, Arthur’s babbling and Martin’s praise struck a chord today.
Every time this happened, a glimmer of hope quietly rose in my heart, but…
‘The default settings don’t let me be loved.’
I calmed my mind with a cold thought.
‘It’s all because I’m useful.’
Thinking this way, it was a bit bittersweet, but I also thought I could deal with these guys, so I squared my shoulders.
“Let’s go, go to eat some cake!”
So I passed them by and left the room.
Thinking it’s a really crappy game world.
***
The dinning room was, as expected, quiet.
Although sporadic shouts of the demons making a fuss to come into the annex were heard, there were no major problems.
No, there is a problem.
“…..”
The level of the food laid out was like it could break your legs…
“What is this, Arthur? Did they serve charcoal on the plates?”
“It’s should be a roasted turkey.”
“What is this, did they pickle rotten plants in vinegar?”
“It’s salad.”
It looked terrible.
After all, could demons who had only lived in the demon realm all their lives really reproduce human food well? While I tried my best reading cookbooks, it was just an effort.
‘Other guys are eating this just fine.’
Other homunculus are eating this without any complaints. They’ve never been humans, so they probably don’t really understand the difference in taste and just eat whatever is given to them.
‘But I’ve lived as a human for over 60 years!’
I can’t eat food like pickled vegetables or tough turkey meat.
“Princess Shekina, is the food not to your liking?”
Arthur asked. After hesitating, I nodded slightly.
“A little.”
“Hmm. Why is that? Everyone else seems to be enjoying it.”
“…… No. Never mind.”
Ignoring Arthur’s puzzled reaction, I reluctantly put the food in my mouth. I couldn’t spit it out here; they might find out I’m human.
“I should hire a cook soon.”
Then, I put down the fork after finishing the last of the pickled vegetables.
Immediately, the dishes that had been filling the table were cleared, and the pink three-tier cake in the center was brought in front of me.
“Now, it’s time to blow out the candles!”
Arthur, who had inserted three candles into the pink three-tier cake, smiled brightly as he spoke. Martin also raised his eyebrows slightly, as if he wanted to offer his own congratulations in his own way.
“Alright, Arthur.”
So I obediently stood up and approached the cake.
Hmm. But the candles were larger than I expected.
When you think of birthday candles, they’re usually thin and long, and the flames attached to them should be about the size of your thumbnail. But somehow…
“Is this a bonfire?”
A flame as big as my head was blazing atop my head. This was more like a torch than candles. I started sweating involuntarily.
“I tried to express the size of my heart for Princess Shekina!”
“I might have overdone it by lighting it twice. Feeling a bit overwhelmed?”
“Hiing.”
“You should speak like an adult, Arthur.”
“Hing.”
Although Arthur smirked, he didn’t ignore my words. The fire began to die down.
So, I quietly clasped my hands together and closed my eyes. You’re supposed to make a wish when you blow out the birthday candles.
‘Please make me super strong. Strong enough to defeat everyone.’
‘So I can defeat everyone and live peacefully on my own.’
With those wishes in mind, I opened my eyes wide. It was time to blow out the
candles.
Suddenly, a ball crashed through the window and bounced around the room.
… A pinball?
Right, left, up, down – the ball bounced randomly in all directions.
“Princess Shekina!”
“Baby!”
And then, thwack!
The ball smashed into the cake.
Pink cream exploded, covering my body.
***
The three-tier cake collapsed beyond recognition. Thanks to that, Shekina’s body, which was closest to the cake, was a mess.
From her head to her torso, she was covered in pink cream.
“My goodness! Are you alright? Did you get hurt?”
“……”
Arthur quickly used magic to clean Shekina’s body, and Martin, wearing a more severe expression, stared in the direction from which the ball had come. His hand naturally reached the hilt of his sword.
“Oh dear.”
At that moment, a strange voice was heard.
“Looks like the ball ended up here.”
As soon as they saw the owner of the voice, Arthur sighed deeply.
“Sorry, Arthur, Frey couldn’t control his strength or something.”
“Sir Müller.”
One of the six elders of the demonic realm, he is one of those demons who flits from place to place like a bat, loves to play favorites, and is one to be feared by the faint-hearted, and has a nasty temper. No, to be precise, Arthur did not like all the elders, not just the munchkins.
‘They’re betting on the homunculus.’
They were betting on which homunculus would stand out the most.
If the homunculus they chose played a crucial role in unsealing the Demon King, it would be their victory, and if not, it would be their defeat.
So the elders were openly supporting their respective homunculus.
Just like now.
Arthur sighed again and rubbed his forehead.
“This was Princess Shekina’s birthday cake. Since you’ve ruined it, shouldn’t you get a new one?”
“Birthday?”
Müller’s eyes widened, and right at that moment, Frey Daimon burst into the room.
“All those balloons flying outside were because of this? Some foolish guy in the Demon Castle dares to throw a party!”
“…. Sir Frey.”
“Who cares about birthdays! We are great demons! Is there any reason we should celebrate some insignificant human-made occasion?”
Arthur rubbed his forehead again.
The homunculus are not demons. They are not humans either. They are merely objects used and discarded for the convenience of demons.
This is where the elders are cruel.
They instill in the homunculus the idea that ‘you are superior demons,’ making them compete with each other and fostering pride.
Hoping that when the time comes to annihilate the homunculus their faces will reflect deep despair.
“Despicable people.”
Arthur raised his head and looked at Martin and Shekina.
Martin was clearly on the verge of exploding with anger, and Shekina…
‘Why so quiet?’
She kept her head lowered.
Is it a big shock?
Arthur gritted his teeth, remembering Shekina, who had been anxiously waiting to turn three.
