“Senior, what on earth… what just happened?”
“I don’t know either. The important thing is that we shouldn’t get involved in that matter.”
Olivia and Adriana were making their way through the forest. Olivia tightly held Adriana’s hand in case they got separated, afraid of losing her.
She had thought that the serious situation became grave when a demonic creature appeared out of nowhere and kidnapped Adriana.
When that demon had captured even her, it felt like her heart had sunk.
As she was being taken away, hanging in the air like a puppet, she hesitated to use her divine power because if she did Adriana could fall to the ground and crash, so she just watched the situation, waiting for an opportunity.
And then.
When the demon dropped them off in a distant forest and then just left them behind, they were bound to be bewildered.
It was natural to expect the worst outcome, in a situation where you were supposed to be in danger.
Without saying a word, the demon released both Adriana and Olivia, and then flapped its huge black wings once and flew away like an arrow.
She was pondering how to fight the demon she had seen for the first time, but it turned out that there wouldn’t be a chance to.
She had even considered summoning Tiamata.
When storm clouds gathered in the distance,lightning flashed, and a raging firestorm rose from the earth, she knew an enormous disaster was about to take place.
Olivia was desperate to confirm what was happening, but her refusal to head to the scene was solely in consideration of Adriana.
She had no idea what was going on, but her first priority was Adriana’s safety.
Therefore, Olivia headed away from what was seeming to be a fight instead.
Adriana was equally puzzled by the situation.
“Listen carefully, Adriana.”
“Yes, senior.”
“About what happened here tonight. Don’t tell anyone about it.”
“Yes.”
Adriana knew the reason behind Olivia’s decision.
“I don’t know what’s happening, but if someone finds out that we’re involved, it won’t end well for us.”
“…Yes.”
Considering the fight that was happening right now, along with the sightings of demons, no matter how remote the area was, there would be no other choice but to start a large-scale investigation into the chaos that was occuring.
For some inexplicable reason, a demon had rescued them. If they stayed here, they would never be seen in a good light. In the worst case, they would even be branded as agents of demonkind.
But their disappearance from the crime scene would only be effective if all the involved paladins were dead.
Olivia didn’t know what was going on.
But there was one thing she did know.
They had to get out of this place.
Olivia walked on, and on, and on, with a firm grip on Adriana’s hand.
The chaos that we had caused was considerable, so it was certain that there would be repercussions, and imperial troops would certainly be dispatched to investigate.
“Is everything taken care of?”
“Yes.”
Therefore we, consisting of myself, Sarkegaar, Loyar, Eleris and a trembling Lydia Schmidt, gathered some distance away from the ruined monastery. Lydia Schmidt hadn’t seen much of the battle itself.
But she watched a demon flying through the night sky, a Vampire Lord unleashing massive destructive magic, and a Lycanthrope in action.
She saw the four of us slaughter the strongest of paladins in the Knights Templar, including Riverierre Lanze.
It was a fight that should not have been won even if we had fought at our best and been fully prepared.
Normally, I would have been easily defeated by the strongest paladin. But he was forced to fight in a conflagration that could reduce any ordinary man to ashes in an instant, and he was inevitably killed by something unimaginable: the corrupted Tiamata.
So, technically, my victory was just a fluke created by the combination of [Revision] and Tiamata, and wasn’t an indicator that I suddenly increased my combat skills.
However, it didn’t change the fact that I had faced and killed Riverierre Lanze.
Loyar and Sarkegaar managed to take care of the fleeing paladins.
“You, you are… What the hell are you….”
Lydia Schmidt could not help but think that in this inscrutable situation, me and my underlings looked like untouchable demonic elites.
Right now the time has come, I must decide what to do with the terrified Lydia Schmidt.
The information I needed was the whereabouts of Riverierre Lanze, and I did get it, and the problem was solved.
So Lydia Schmidt was no longer useful to me. I stared silently at Lydia Schmidt, who was overwhelmingly fearful.
The other three hadn’t referred to me by my royal title in front of her, so Lydia Schmidt didn’t know my real identity yet.
However, since such powerful demons did my bidding, she should already have some idea of who I am.
The reemerging Demon Lord.
I couldn’t just simply send this girl home.
She knew too much.
Death or eternal servitude.
I had to choose one or the other.
“Your Highness.”
But Eleris called out to me, interrupting my thoughts.
“Could you leave this child with me?”
“You’ll take care of…?”
Eleris didn’t like the act of murder.
But today, at my command, Eleris unleashed a massive wave of destructive spells that killed dozens of people.
Loyar took care of the elite, but the Vampire Lord had wiped out all who couldn’t defend themselves against a great inferno.
Eleris had a sorrowful expression.
She didn’t protest my orders, she did as she was told.
But the pain she felt was undeniable.
So, if there was a way that she could save at least this one soul, she would take it.
“I’ll be in charge of her, and I’ll ensure that she’s of no harm to us.”
”!”
Lydia was horrified by her words.
“Ple-please… Please… please… Just… just kill me, please….”
Lydia cowered, sobbing and shaking. Eleris looked at Lydia and gave her a forlorn look.
“I didn’t mean that I would turn you.”
“Well, then… what will happen….”
“That’s something we’ll have to figure out later.”
Eleris seemed to realize that, between the choice of killing Lydia or turning her into a thrall, she might be able to come up with a third option.
“…Okay. I’ll leave her to you.”
“Thank you, Your Highness.”
Eleris forced the shivering Lydia to her feet. Loyar and Sarkegaar didn’t seem to have much to say about the matter.
If it was Eleris, she would do anything to avoid killing Lydia.
At least it would be better than leaving her in the hands of Loyar or Sarkegaar.
After all, Lydia Schmidt was one of the most promising paladins of our generation. Having that kind of ally at my disposal wouldn’t hurt.
We returned to the Imperial Capital through Eleris’s mass teleportation spell.
Eleris was holding Lydia Schmidt in her arms. Lydia’s face was pale with fear of her approaching fate, but all thoughts of resistance that she could possibly have were long gone.
The fanatical paladin was gone, and all that remained was a shivering woman terrified of being bitten by a vampire.
I wondered what Eleris had planned for Lydia.
I wasn’t sure, but if it was Eleris, she’d find a way. I’d just have to wait and see how she had handled this at a later date.
Leaving the two of them in Eleris’s basement room, Loyar, Sarkegaar and I stepped out into the street.
“Your Highness, why was it necessary for the empire to know of our existence?”
Sarkegaar spoke up, bringing up the question he’s been dying to ask.
“A sense of crisis will unite humanity, and I don’t think that their unity can do us any good.”
It was a valid question.
“I think so too.”
Loyar, who had been silent, also expressed her wariness.
She did as she was told, but she couldn’t hide her doubts. As for Tiamata, I had mentioned it in our occasional meetings, so she didn’t bring it up.
“I have a reason, and I’ll explain it soon.”
“….”
“….”
“But I’m a little busy right now.”
Sarkegaar shut up as if he understood, and Loyar seemed content enough with that answer to let it go.
If I thought hard enough, I could come up with an excuse that would convince them, but I didn’t have time for that at the moment.
“I’m going back.”
However, all I could think about was getting back to Temple.
The time was approaching midnight.
Today, on a Friday, the festival came to its conclusion and with it all the official events ended.
The winner of the Miss Temple contest was Ellen.
Unfortunately, Cliffman wasn’t the winner of the Mister Temple contest, but he was able to sneak in the third-place by garnering a lot of votes from the female seniors who were drunk on his ridiculous charm on stage.
After the contest, there was even a parade with Miss and Mister Temple as the stars.
Ellen didn’t realize that there was such a thing, but it was nice.
Reinhardt still hadn’t shown up. Not during the finals. Not even at the parade.
Ellen changed back with Liana’s help.
“Something must have happened.”
“….”
Liana blurted out those words in a hurry. Ellen understood, because she wasn’t stupid enough to not understand what she was saying.
For some reason, many of her classmates who had congratulated her looked at her feeling sorry for her.
Ellen knew why they were looking at her that way.
Harriet hugged her without saying a word. Harriet had seemed genuinely heartbroken, and that made Ellen feel even more miserable.
It was a day that she should have celebrated, but Ellen couldn’t remember a single thing that had happened.
It was as if her soul had left her body and returned just then.
What happened today?
What did she do?
For a moment, she thought it was all a dream.
A dream.
An empty, futile, nightmare.
All the effort she had put in was in vain.
Liana had long since returned to her room. After her makeup was removed and the needed shower, Ellen just sat on her bed in a daze.
The cheers and applause of the crowd rang out like distant echoes.
There was someone she hoped to beat.
There was a vote she wanted to get.
However…
Neither of them were present.
“….”
She wondered if they were together.
Ellen felt miserable just thinking about it.
She’d been cheered on by everyone in the crowd, praised by every person present.
And yet.
She felt like a failure.
Ellen looked at the trophy on her cabinet, the proof of her title as Miss Temple.
She didn’t need it.
It didn’t hurt to have it, since it was a sign of recognition.
But….
Ellen stared at the trophy, and then stood up and opened the door.
She figured she could use a change of scenery.
Ellen left her room.
‘I’m just going for a walk.’
She wanted to go for a walk.
There wasn’t any particular reason for it. She looked around the hallway, and then around the lobby.
She was just looking to see if anyone had come back, if anyone was there.
She was just trying to make herself feel better.
Ellen scanned the empty halls of the dormitory in silence, then headed outside.
She was dressed in a light tracksuit. It didn’t seem like much had changed about her, but Ellen was intrigued by her reflection in the window.
Dressing up seems to be so important.
As Ellen looked at her reflection in the window, she realized that she was back in her usual tracksuit.
There was a huge gap between what she had looked like earlier and now.
When she was all dolled up in a fancy dress and heavy makeup, she already felt miserable.
Now that she was back in her normal clothes, she looked more miserable than before.
‘I wanted to show him.’
Seeing her like that, what expression would he make for her?
‘I was always thinking about it.’
‘I was trying to figure out what to say to him.’
With those thoughts racing through her mind, Ellen headed out of the dormitory.
Maybe he won’t come back today.
Maybe something had happened to him.
Even when she tried not to think about it, these kinds of thoughts kept rushing through her mind, confusing her.
She had asked him to come and yet he hadn’t, therefore there must be an explanation.
He must have likely gotten into trouble again, as he often did. Then she should be worried, and not sad that he didn’t come.
‘Shouldn’t we go look for him?’
Feeling her imagination starting to run wild, Ellen headed for the dormitory entrance.
And there she saw it.
That person’s silhouette.
A familiar back, sitting on the steps of the dormitory entrance.
The back of his head was familiar, though his Temple uniform was missing.
“….”
For a moment, the million thoughts, questions, and regrets she had, have subsided.
Ellen approached him.
“What are you doing?”
“Uh, uh-huh!”
She had called out so quietly, but Reinhardt jumped to his feet startled, almost tripping forward.
“Uh, uh… that… that is….”
It was a cold night.
Reinhardt looked at her puzzled. His cheeks were red.
His fingertips and the tip of his nose were also flushed.
He must have spent a long time in this cold.
She wondered why he was sitting on the steps of the dormitory instead of coming inside.
Ellen looked at Reinhardt and shook her head.
“Aren’t you cold?”
“That… I mean….”
“….”
It was cold, but he couldn’t come in.
He could have come in, but he didn’t.
She should say something, but she didn’t think she would be able to make herself understood.
On this cold night, Reinhardt still hadn’t entered the dormitory, even though he’d been here for a while already.
He probably didn’t know what to say if he ran into her. He thought he might have ran into her in the lobby, or wherever she was.
So he just sat outside the dorm, unable to decide whether he should come in or not.
Ellen saw that Reinhardt was shivering.
She realized that Reinhardt was clearly shivering, not because he was cold, but for some other reason.
He looked so silly.
“Aren’t you cold?”
“Uh… A little?”
“I’d like to go for a walk.”
Reinhardt shook his head at Ellen’s words.
“No, I don’t feel cold at all, it’s just about average.”
Ellen smirked at him.
“Then let’s go.”
She went ahead first, expecting him to follow.
Ellen led the way, and Reinhardt followed.
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