Chapter 271 – Side Story 20 – Demon King Candidate (2)

When the lord heard that his daughter had been kidnapped, he immediately wanted to go to the demon realm to rescue her.

But he couldn’t cross the gate right away.

Someone had arrived before he could leave.

It was Meliya, the imperial princess, duchess, and Saintess of Ea.

Rushing straight to the gate in the castle basement and bursting into the lord’s office, she bit her lip when she saw the grim expressions of the lord and his wives.

Meliya’s face displayed a mix of emotions as she suddenly entered the office.

Disappointment and anger, a thread of hope and questions.

Seeing her expression, Egger let out a small sigh.

This was the last obstacle he needed right now, when he was in such a hurry.

But the woman who had burst into his office was, titles aside, the only Saintess of Ea.

He couldn’t ignore her timely arrival.

“Did you receive a divine revelation?” Egger asked.

The duchess’s face immediately contorted at his words.

The mask of power that had become part of her over twenty years shattered in an instant.

“So the god’s words are true!” she exclaimed.

And from the mouth that had never forgotten to speak respectfully even after becoming a duchess, harsh words erupted.

“Is this how it is? The hero is dead!”

The Saintess, who had heard the divine revelation and rushed all the way here, had been clinging to a sliver of hope that it might be false.

But that hope had been crushed, and her expression was twisted with grief.

Seeing this, Egger reluctantly took out the space-expanded pouch he had set aside.

He had thought that if he put it in the space-expanded pouch, he might be able to hide it, but it seemed that hadn’t lasted long against the gods.

“Yes, it’s true. Hero Albert died in the demon realm, at the Tower of the Demon God.”

Egger took the hero’s body from the space-expanded pouch and placed it on the office floor.

Thanks to divine power, the hero’s body remained exactly as it had been when he died.

Meliya, who had been staring blankly at the hero’s body on the floor, knelt beside it and began to stroke the hero’s face.

The hero’s face looked peaceful, but the Saintess’s expression was filled with anguish.

“I should have stopped him… What good is being a hero? It wasn’t even something he had to do, so why did he have to go that far…”

She rambled on, speaking to herself and to the dead hero, but eventually she stopped and withdrew her hand from the hero’s body.

Then, looking at the hero, she spoke to Egger.

“How long were you planning to hide this? If I hadn’t received the divine revelation, would I not even have known my husband was dead?”

Though she had regained her composure enough to address Egger formally again, her voice was ice-cold.

“I understand why you’re angry. But I didn’t know what to do either. In the current situation, with the possibility of the Demon King’s revival, I should have reported it immediately.”

Meliya’s eyes widened at Egger’s words.

“What? The Demon King might be revived?”

“My husband finally found the Tower of the Demon God that creates Demon Kings. He died climbing that tower, and my daughter Selena has been kidnapped by the Demon King’s remnants and taken to the demon realm.”

As Egger explained, Meliya looked around the office with a shocked expression.

And she noticed that the lord and his wives were all dressed strangely.

Not in their usual clothes, but all in armor and battle gear.

The clothes they were wearing were similar to what they had worn twenty years ago when fighting the Demon King.

Of course, the equipment was much better now than it had been then, but none of it was impractical.

After blankly checking their equipment, Meliya asked Egger in a faltering voice:

“…Would you tell me what happened?”

Though his daughter’s situation was urgent, he couldn’t refuse the request of an old comrade.

Egger quickly told Meliya everything he had heard and learned.

“…So my husband finally found the Tower of the Demon God that creates Demon Kings. He died climbing that tower.

And Selena was kidnapped by the Demon King’s remnants while seeking treatment for her illness on Earth.

And now, kidnapped Selena might become a Demon King.”

After hearing the story, the princess, true to her royal upbringing, quickly summarized the key points.

Egger shook his head slightly at Meliya’s words.

“The last part is just my speculation. It’s a worrying guess that fits too well, but still just a guess.”

He didn’t want to make negative predictions about his daughter’s future, but he couldn’t ignore his instincts.

And the Saintess Meliya felt the same way.

“…Your guess is probably right. The gods seem to think so too…”

Having spent years fighting the Demon King, she immediately consulted the goddess through prayer.

“Is that so…”

When the goddess confirmed that the speculation was correct, the parents’ expressions darkened.

“I’m sorry… I should have told you sooner.”

Now understanding the situation, Meliya let out a deep sigh, releasing her pent-up emotions.

Though she still felt sadness deep in her heart, her eyes had transformed into those of the Saintess who had fought the Demon King twenty years ago.

“I’ll apologize for my anger. But you were wrong not to inform the Empire, or at least me.

Whether Selena becomes a Demon King or not, the potential revival of the Demon King is something you should have reported immediately.”

At Meliya’s words, Egger gave a bitter smile.

“Well, I did consider it, but I didn’t think the imperial court would take my words at face value.

But I should have at least told you, Meliya. That was shortsighted of me.”

The lord apologized, and the imperial princess sighed.

“…You’re probably right. Even if I spoke as a Saintess, people might not immediately accept it.”

Twenty years was too long.

Young people had only heard stories about those times, and older people, though they still remembered the nightmare, were trying hard to forget it.

Moreover, the continent had only recently recovered its strength after twenty years.

To tell people to prepare for another Demon King now?

They wouldn’t listen easily.

“This time too, people will only realize when it’s right in front of them… And we can’t wait that long.”

The lord’s words weren’t wrong, so the Saintess of Ea could only nod in agreement.

“It’s actually fortunate. While we’re gone, I’ll entrust our domain and the Empire to you, Your Highness.”

At Yelena’s words, Meliya nodded with a stern face.

And so, after entrusting their affairs to the Saintess of Ea, the lord and his wives headed to the demon realm to save their daughter.

* * *

As the monsters had said, climbing the tower wasn’t difficult.

None of the traps that looked dangerous activated, and no guardian monsters attacked them as they climbed.

The only challenge was climbing the tall tower with her magic sealed, and worrying about what would happen next.

Plus, not knowing what the boy walking beside her was thinking.

‘What could Vlad be thinking?’

Selena stole glances at the boy walking next to her, wondering.

Even after joining the monsters, even after entering the tower, Vlad remained unchanged.

Just as the vampire had said, he emotionlessly helped Selena, following the vampire father’s instructions.

He supported her when she was struggling, prepared her meals, and watched over her.

Vlad did everything the vampire asked, to the vampire’s satisfaction.

Of course, this didn’t mean the vampire or other monsters acknowledged him.

Instead, the verbal abuse and demeaning treatment only intensified.

If Selena hadn’t known Vlad before, she might have thought this was his true nature.

But Selena knew what kind of boy he was.

He disliked humans, authority, and monsters alike.

He had even talked back to her father, the former hero and lord, and had deceived her mothers, who were a grand mage and a Saintess.

Moreover, he hadn’t even wanted to accompany her.

All this time, she had been the one dragging him along.

And yet, he had helped Seowoo escape despite the monsters’ watchful eyes, and had even left her a message that she was being taken to the demon realm.

Such a boy was now following the vampire’s orders without any resistance.

Selena couldn’t understand what Vlad was thinking.

Of course, her preoccupation with Vlad’s thoughts was partly because she couldn’t do anything about her own situation.

What could an ordinary girl without magic do among monsters?

Though she had been praised by her parents and admired by the domain’s people and mages as she grew up, even believing herself to be a genius,

She couldn’t break the sealing magic placed on her body.

“…I must be stupid.”

If it had been her mother or her teacher, the domain mage, they would have found a way to break these seals just by looking at them.

But Selena couldn’t find a way to break these seals without using magic.

Still, she hadn’t given up hope.

Partly because she believed in her parents who had defeated the Demon King, but also because she believed in an old saying from Earth.

‘Even if caught by a tiger, you can survive if you keep your wits about you, right?’

Though she had never seen a tiger, she understood the meaning of the proverb.

She was confident that if she kept her mind clear, she could avoid harming her family even in the worst-case scenario.

‘Even if I become a Demon King, if I don’t lose my mind, I can avoid hurting people.’

Such a somewhat childish thought.

Perhaps it was because she was still young that she recalled the anti-heroes from the videos she had watched on Earth.

Unfortunately, the monsters had a way to thwart her plans.

And Vlad, walking silently beside her, knew the monsters’ intentions too.

But he didn’t tell Selena about them.

Partly because he was worried the monsters would notice, but also because he had his own plans.

Plans different from Selena’s, different from the monsters’.

When he heard the vampire’s plan to make Selena a Demon King, he had formulated a plan.

And so, each with their own thoughts, they climbed the tower until a massive temple appeared before them.

And as they entered through the enormous doors, the voice of a fallen god reached their ears.

[Welcome. One who shall become my representative.]