Noir Giaella disappeared, and Eugene floated down to the ground while snorting.
“I know you’re nervous,” said Mer.
“No, I don’t think I am,” retorted Eugene.
“You were nervous that the Queen of the Night Demons might come at you,” said Mer.
“No, I wasn’t,” said Eugene once more.
“You’re a liar, Sir Eugene.”
“I think you’re mistaking something here. Everything went according to my calculations. I knew from the very beginning that Noir Giabella would never try to kill me here,” said Eugene.
“Right, right. You’re so amazing, Sir Eugene,” Mer giggled. After ruffling her hair, Eugene finally came down to the ground. What remained after the dust settled was a wasteland devoid of any trace of civilization.
“This is…,” Raimira muttered in disbelief as she took in her surroundings, finally coming to her senses. She found herself still clinging to Eugene's arm, recoiling in shock at the desolate wasteland before her.
Alternating between staring at the barren landscape and looking up at Eugene's face, she parted her lips in doubt. “…Is this a prank?”
“What is she saying?”
“A very… very well made… prank, a hidden camera. This could be a blockbuster…. M-maybe I’m only in a dream made by Duke Giabella…. A crazy, hidden camera prank set in this lady’s dream…. Is it being transmitted across Helmuth…?” stuttered Raimira. Eugene found it absurd, but Raimira felt she was being very reasonable.
Wasn’t that right? Duke Noir Giabella, the master of the Demoneye of Fantasy and the creator of all dreams imaginable, the Queen of the Night Demons, had appeared before her eyes as well…. The things Raimira had experienced this previous day were beyond anything she could have ever imagined, completely removed from what she thought was possible.
Firstly, the doors to her secluded palace had been opened without any warning, and she had been given freedom. Then, she suffered humiliation from an unknown intruder. A sudden war descended on the city, and the barrier surrounding the castle had been shattered. After a fierce battle, the Dragon Demon Castle crashed down to Karabloom, causing unimaginable destruction.
That wasn’t all, either. Who was this unknown intruder? Hamel Dynas — Stupid Hamel, who had died three hundred years ago? No, was he Eugene Lionheart instead?
“I…. I see. A-all of this is just a prank to surprise this lady…. There are no other possible explanations. Otherwise, it would not make any sense. How on earth could any of this have happened?” stuttered Raimira, successfully convincing herself that this was all but a dream. “Soon, this lady will wake up from her dreams…. Farewell, dream intruder. I can say this only now, but even though this was but a dream, you were incredibly ruuude!”
Her previously calm words suddenly turned into a scream, but Eugene had no intention of entertaining her nonsensical behavior.
So he flicked the red jewel on her forehead with the intention of waking her up from her delusion. Although he had held himself back, Raimira ended up rolling around on the ground once more with both her hands wrapped around the jewel.
“Listen to me carefully,” said Eugene.
“Y-yes, yes,” Raimira answered hurriedly.
“What I did today, who I am, and the other things — you will tell no one.” Eugene calmly explained while bringing his cocked finger closer to the red jewel. Raimira nodded quickly while hiccupping. “And don’t even think about running away from me.”
“W-where… do you plan on taking this lady? C-couldn’t… you tell me that at least…?” Raimira whimpered with fear.
Eugene answered while helping her up. “I’m going to find your father.”
“What…?”
“I’m going to tell you in advance just in case you misunderstand. I will use you to find your father,” explained Eugene.
“This lady’s father…. Y-you want to find the Black Dragon? What are you planning to do after finding the Black Dragon?” asked Raimira in a trembling voice.
Mer gently tugged on Eugene’s shirt. Although she wasn’t very fond of Raimira, the two of them had developed a relationship, albeit shallow. It had been natural since the two of them had spent some time together.
She was hoping that Eugene would show a little consideration for the stupidly innocent hatchling, hence her tug.
“I’m going to kill your father.”
Eugene was aware of what Mer was thinking, but he didn't believe that lying out of pity was necessary. He knew that a lie was a lie, whether it was for the greater good or not, and that such lies would only breed more resentment and hatred. Therefore, he chose to be truthful with Raimira. Mer's jaw dropped in surprise while Raimira's eyes widened at the revelation.
“I honestly do not know if I will take you hostage or not in that situation. I prefer not to take someone hostage, so I probably won’t end up doing that,” continued Eugene.
“I-I-I thought you were the Hero, the one chosen by the Holy Sword…. H-how could the Hero do something so cowardly as taking a hostage…?” asked Raimira.
“That’s why I said I probably wouldn’t take you hostage,” answered Eugene with a detached expression while dragging Raimira by her hand. “Think of it as a shared interest. You want to meet your dad, and I want to meet your dad. Of course, I want to meet him so I can kill him, but he’s not going to just roll over for me, is he?”
“O-of course not…. This lady’s father, the Black Dragon, is a Duke of Helmuth…. He is equivalent to Duke Giabella.” Raimira hurriedly answered. She quickly racked her brain. Earlier, she had found herself struggling to even breathe properly in the presence of Duke Giabella. She knew that the intruder… Eugene Lionheart, the reincarnation of the Stupid Hamel, was incredibly strong, but she didn’t think he was stronger than any Duke of Helmuth. “You’d better give up on that vain dream…! Y-you will never be able to beat the Black Dragon. So let this lady go, and….”
“Yeah, that’s none of your business, so shut up and listen to me. No matter what you say, I’m going to take you to find your dad. I want to kill him, and he will want to kill me. Who will win? We won’t know until then, so stop trying stupid things and quietly follow me,” said Eugene.
“Does this lady have no say in the matter…?” asked Raimira.
“Why are you asking me something so obvious? Are you trying to piss me off? Do you want
me to give you a good beating?” responded Eugene.“T-this lady has been calm since earlier….” Raimira hurriedly raised both hands to cover her mouth when she saw Eugene’s glare. It became a lot easier for Eugene to think once she shut her trap.
‘What should I do…?’
He had done it again. Of course, things had turned out better than he had expected. Jagon was dead, and the Dragon Demon Castle had crashed, killing a huge number of demonfolks as a result. Moreover, he had secured Raimira, who would lead him to Raizakia, and Noir Giabella would take responsibility for the whole thing….
‘But Anise and Kristina will be angry….’
And it made Eugene nervous. He had experienced the full brunt of Anise’s anger three hundred years ago, so just thinking about it caused him to flinch. Moreover… perhaps because they were sharing the same body, it felt as if Kristina was being influenced by Anise. Eugene always knew she had a talent for sophistry and spite, but she was growing sharper under Anise’s influence.
Eugene shuddered as he remembered the last time he had fallen on his knees.
— Please….
After kneeling,
— Do not make me worry too much.
Her eyes had been moist, and her voice shaky. Eugene remembered how her hands had trembled, how she had embraced his arm, and how something gently pressed against….
“Ahhhhhh.” Eugene shook off the useless memory that was struggling to resurface. It was unfortunate that his memory was flawless and could store the exact sensations he had felt. Eugene shut his eyes closed and slapped himself on the cheek. But weirdly enough, he felt additional, more powerful blows mixed in with the self-inflicted slaps. Wondering what it was, he squinted open his eyes to find Mer peeking out from the cloak, slapping Eugene on the cheeks as well.
“What are you doing?” asked Eugene.
“I was beating up the pervert,” responded Mer. How could he dare to think such thoughts? This was all because the black-hearted Saints duo had inflicted critical blows that were impossible for Lady Sienna to imitate at the current moment. Mer knew it was imperative for her to set things straight at moments like these.
“Don’t have weird thoughts, Sir Eugene. Once Lady Sienna is resurrected, her skin will be just as soft as Lady Kristina’s,” said Mer.
“What are you saying…!?” Eugene shoved her head back into the cloak.
As he fussed, Raimira followed behind him, her mouth still covered with both hands.
***
Kristina and Anise were still at the hotel in Malera.
[Breaking news. The Dragon Demon Castle… the airborne territory of His Excellency Duke Raizakia is falling!]
They saw the Dragon Demon Castle falling from the terrace.
[It’s a war declared unilaterally by Count Karad of the Ruol Fief. It had been expected that they would start negotiations after a light prelude, but…. Haha! What an unexpected surprise. I never thought there remained any tough demonfolks like Count Karad in this day and age.]
[And they didn’t stop at occupation. They crashed the Dragon Demon Castle, which reigned as the symbol of the Black Dragon for three hundred years. And believe it or not, that wasn’t the end of it. There was no evacuation advisory at all for Karabloom. Do you know what this means? It means that the leaders of the Dragon Demon Castle were wiped out before they could issue any orders!]
[There have been numerous territorial disputes and ranking battles even after Helmuth became an empire, but this is the first time someone has completely wiped out their opponent’s territory and the residents as well…. Count Karad. I thought he was just another noble from the backwater, but he truly was a tiger hiding his fangs.]
[Had he survived, he definitely could have advanced to the capital and brought along fresh wind… It is truly unfortunate that he did not survive.]
[But in a way, you could call it an honorable death. The count kindled his own life to lead the war to victory. I guess it was inevitable.]
[Also, did you hear that he employed the Beast of Ravesta for this war? But Jagon and his subordinates died during the battle as well…. We lost too many promising young demonfolks, the future leaders of Helmuth, in this war.]
[Yes, and it is truly regretful. However, couldn’t you think of it like this? Even though the Black Dragon wasn’t there, the Dragon Demon Castle stood strong. The Four Divine Generals, who were taking care of the Dragon Demon Castle on behalf of the Black Dragon — ah, I guess they would be quite the elders for the young demons these days. The OBs!]
[Ah, well, I wanted to avoid saying this, but it's kind of refreshing, right? Well, that’s how it is these days. The youngsters show no respect to the OBs and complain about how they’re just old and incompetent, but I think the demonfolks of the Dragon Demon Castle really showed everyone the truth. We’re not washed up just yet! Something like that.]
[Ahhh, I understand what you’re saying. But I think it’s inevitable. It can’t be helped, can it? Times have really changed. Us OBs were running wild three hundred years ago, during the age of war, and we’re now living in peaceful times…. It’s not like we don’t fight because we’re weak, right? It’s all for the sake of peace. Ah, let’s continue after the commercials.]
Beep.
The TV turned off. Anise turned her head while clicking her tongue. “OB or whatever, how ridiculous. Well, it’s pretty entertaining to see that there’s a generational conflict between the old and young demonfolks. It would be even better if the younger generation of demonfolks started a coup d’etat or something.”
“Ahaha…. Right, right….”
“If the guy who died in the Dragon Demon Castle, Karad, or whatever, if he survived, do you think he would have become the center of a coup d’etat? Maybe that’s why Noir Giabella intervened. After all, she’s a demon from the past as well.”
“Haha…. Maybe….”
“How can you laugh?” Kristina was scary when she was angry, but Anise was even scarier. At least Kristina didn’t resort to physical violence when she was angry. Anise would beat one half to death before healing them back to normal. “There is no way that Noir Giabella interfered to prevent the generational conflict from worsening. Knowing you, you couldn’t have escaped without causing a scene. The Dragon Demon Castle….”
“That was me.”
“To be honest, I commend you for doing that. Hamel, thanks to your ignorant and bold decision, tens of thousands of demonfolks were exterminated.” Anise nodded while clapping. “You were lucky as well. Even though you caused such a scene, you weren’t spotted by anyone. At least I didn’t see your name on the news,” said Anise.
“Haha….”
“If you don’t tell me the truth, I’ll smash that head of yours…,” Anise said threateningly while grabbing her flail. Eugene immediately knelt on the ground and told her the whole story.
He told her about Jagon, why he chose to bring the Dragon Demon Castle down, and about his meeting with Noir Giabella.
“Are you saying that the crazy whore noticed your reincarnation!?” asked Anise.
“A child is listening, so maybe a whore isn’t…,” said Eugene.
“Shut up, Hamel. How can you be so calm? That whore violates dreams. She might not have done so until now, but now that she knows you’re Hamel, this whore might actively go after your dreams,” continued Anise, recalling the terrible nightmares of three hundred years ago. The onslaught of dreams had sometimes presented them with terrible nightmares, sometimes nasty dreams. Noir Giabella was very good at making such dreams, probably because she was the queen of whores.
“What do I have to worry about when you’re here?” said Eugene with a nonchalant expression.
“Ahh….” Anise unknowingly took a step back when she saw the trust in Eugene’s eyes. She had found herself easing up when she saw the same eyes in the past as well.
“…Even so, Noir Giabella, the Queen of Whores, is a powerful enemy. Did you forget, Hamel? We failed to kill Noir Giabella three hundred years ago, even though there were five of us,” said Anise.
“It’s because that damned thing didn’t give us a fight where we could kill her. It’s not like we could afford to spare the time either,” responded Eugene.
“…It’s because we put too much priority on killing the Demon Kings.” Anise gave a short sigh before caressing the handle of her flail. Eugene felt slightly nervous, stealing a glance and noticing that she was still holding onto her weapon. “…The finale in Giabella City, was it?”
It wasn’t a promise or anything, just something she had said with a smile.
“Romance, is it?”
Noir Giabella was a demon who was many centuries old, the master of the Demoneye of Fantasy, and a powerful existence close to the Demon Kings. No, rather, it wouldn’t be an exaggeration to say that she had surpassed the lower-ranking Demon Kings in terms of power. She was an incredibly powerful foe to be reckoned with and had been the one to say such words.
“She had plenty of chances to kill me. This time as well,” said Eugene. But she chose not to. Eugene was convinced that the Queen of the Night Demons, Noir Giabella, would not kill him unless he challenged her in Giabella City.
“…Fine. I’ll accept it.” Anise nodded while clicking her tongue. Eugene finally sighed with relief. “But Hamel, who exactly is that child?”
Unfortunately, the conversation wasn’t over. Anise pointed to Raimira, who was standing quietly behind Eugene. As soon as Raimira saw the finger, she cried out while shaking back her oversized sleeves. “This lady is Raimira, the Dragon Duchess! Flesh and blood of the Black Dragon….”
Boom!
Anise’s flail shot forward and demolished the wall right next to Raimira’s head.
Clack.
The chain drooped down and hung over Raimira’s shoulders. The hatchling immediately fell to the ground with weak legs. She couldn’t see the eyes of Anise due to the way they curled up into a smile. However, Raimira could feel a terrible murderous intent behind Anise’s smile.
“Why is Raizakia’s daughter alive, and why is she here?” asked Anise.
“I-it’s because… I need that kid to save Sienna,” answered Eugene.
“Not because you felt bad for her?” said Anise.
“No, it’s not…. Well…. Look, Anise. It’s true that she’s Raizakia’s daughter, but she’s not a demonic dragon. Just a dragon,” explained Eugene.
“Oh.” The killing intent vanished like a lie. Anise retrieved her flail with a pure smile. “My mistake. I must not have noticed because I was too agitated. Ah, I hope you understand. It’s my first time seeing a hatchling….”
“Hiccup….”
“Now, you don’t have to be afraid. I’ve been called the Saint for three hundred years. I’m used to taking care of young, scared sheep. Come into my arms.” Anise put down her flail, opened her arms wide, then approached Raimira.
Instantly, the void that followed the malice was replaced with benevolence and warmth. What Anise showed was very much like the motherhood that Raimira had longed for since childhood.
“U-uwah….” Raimira felt the pent-up emotions from her recent suffering emerge. She whimpered as she placed herself into Anise’s embrace.
‘A hostage.’
Anise smiled while gently caressing Raimira’s back.