Chapter 526: Tough Challenge After the War

The battle for the Bolvat Dynasty’s capital. Two weeks had passed since the war between humanity and the demonic army.

The capital, once lost due to the awakening of the Great Demon Vrilligant and the rampant attacks of the Poisonous Junelva and Gear Rabel, was now back in human hands.

However, not everything was back to normal.

The capital was damaged in the war and required reconstruction. And it no longer functioned as an administrative hub because of the execution of many noble sorcerers and officials.

The villages burned down by Junelva and Kiel had yet to be restored. It was still difficult to accurately grasp the extent of the damage.

In addition, the monarch was executed by demonic forces. The ceremony to pass that position to the young prince had not even been completed.

The Bolvat Dynasty was now doing its best to maintain its dignity as a nation. There was much that needed to be done.

「Is Lord Lugis awake? 」

Even in such a situation, Sorcerer General Mastigius asked this question several times a day as if it was a catchphrase. Large dark circles under his eyes made it clear he hadn’t had much sleep.

Eileen Ray Rakiador spoke after noticing her superior officer’s eyes.

「…Not. At least not yet. I heard from the knights serving beside him that he’s still asleep. 」

Eileen also blacked out for a moment when he asked her this question. She gently stroked her eyelids with one hand and steadied her breathing.

「I see. Please contact me immediately if he wakes up. 」

By “please”, Mastigius didn’t mean as an order, but as a personal request.

Eileen nodded at the words for what seemed like the umpteenth time, while writing on the parchment. Suddenly, ink dripped from her pen feather and her vision blurred. She’d had enough. She hadn’t slept for days.

There simply weren’t enough administrators. Perhaps, the demons had been carrying out repeated executions with this in mind.

It was precisely because of this situation that even soldiers like Mastigius and Eileen found themselves embroiled in political matters.

At times like these, Eileen envied Hind, who knew absolutely nothing about politics.

「Your Excellency, we will proceed with the planned date for the succession ceremony. Is that okay? 」

「…It’s fine. Ideally, I would’ve liked Lord Lugis to be in attendance, but it can’t be helped. Let’s pray he awakens soon. 」

The succession ceremony. It was a celebration of the defeat of demons, and it also marked the succession of the kingdom.

The hero who slew the evil dragon Vrilligant was supposed to be there, but if he remained asleep, then there was nothing they could do about it.

The citizens wanted closure.

A power vacuum had been created the day the capital fell to the demons, and now, they were hoping for a tomorrow that marked a turning point. Delaying that date would only intensify the chaos.

They had to convey to the people that it was all over, and that new, glorious days would begin.

However, the citizens were certainly hoping to see the hero who slayed the dragon. If there was no hero present, then things would get a little complicated.

This wasn’t a matter of appearance, but pure politics.

…To which nation did the hero known as Lugis belong to?

He was said to be a hero of the Heraldic Order, and there was no record of him serving the nation of the Bolvat Dynasty. However, having him participate in the succession ceremony would establish a connection to the Bolvat Dynasty. If possible, Mastigius would like to arrange a marriage relationship between Lugis and his daughter.

This wasn’t just something that someone from the Mastigius faction like Eileen was thinking. Many members of the Bolvat Dynasty were pondering the same thing.

He had defeated the Great Demon that was destroying their nation. As such, it was entirely possible to enshrine him as Bolvat’s savior.

Eileen rubbed her sleepy eyes and called her subordinate with one hand. She then told him to check Lugis’ situation once more.

「If there have been any changes, don’t…I mean, your Excellency and I… Sorry, I shall rephrase it, from now on, only contact Hind. Is that okay? 」

—

My lips curled in a soft way as I lay in bed, enveloped in a warm feeling. I searched my pillow with my fingers, but I couldn’t find my chewing tobacco.

Oh c’mon. I hoped I didn’t throw it away somewhere. It seemed I was asleep for many hours.

But, from what I’d heard, I’d been active as a demon for a while, so it wasn’t surprising that my memory had become clouded. I was remembering little by little, but my memories were still incomplete.

Suddenly, something occurred to me.

「…Hey, Caria. I remembered something. 」

「What is it, huh? What do you remember? 」

I sat up, while my body felt strangely light, and turned to Caria, who was looking at me from where she was sitting..

「Maybe I’m remembering it wrong, but…weren’t you trying to trick back then? 」

「Hmm…nope. You’re remembering it wrong. Re-think. 」

She answered my question, and I placed a finger between my eyebrows and let my mind wander.

The timeline occasionally jumped back and forth, and memories of when Rabek had turned me into a demon came flooding back.

Every single one of my behaviors was terrible. Still, I suppose that could be considered a side of myself. But I didn’t really want to think of it that way.

One memory, however, still bothered me.

「But, Caria, since when have you become my woman…」

「…What are you saying? Filaret, can you say something to him? 」

Caria raised her sharp eyes and said those words as if to silence me. Her overconfident, arrogant demeanor was unmistakably that of Caria Burdnick.

At the very least, I had no recollection of seducing her. Absolutely not.

I shifted my gaze to Filaret, who was sitting on the bed with Caria. Her beautiful black hair spread out and swayed gently across the surface.

She looked sleepy, and then she yawned.

「…Oh, Lugis. You don’t remember? 」

Please wait a moment.

I instinctively covered my mouth with my hands and squeezed my eyes shut. My throat felt intensely dry, and I felt a piercing pain as if my lungs were being squeezed.

…What exactly had I done? Had I really done something? No way.

But to be honest, I didn’t have all of my memories from when I was a demon. In fact, it would be more accurate to say that only parts of it remained in my brain.

And I wasn’t myself back then.

I would’ve forgotten my respect and admiration for Caria, Filaret, and Eldith, and I would’ve let go of my memories of the past.

If that was the case…was it true that I had done something to them? Did I really cross the line?

Large beads of cold sweat ran down my spine. I noticed my breath was getting hot. This was probably very bad. What was I going to say to Ariene?

『…What are you two saying? Lugis, are you alright? 』

What kept me awake was Eldith’s voice. Or to be precise, her voice was spilling from the bag in my chest pocket.

A faint vision had also appeared beside me. Her blue eyes were glaring at both Caria and Filaret.

Of course, it wasn’t like Eldith had managed to send her vision from Gharast to the Bolvat Dynasty on her own.

Apparently, the bag I was wearing in my chest pocket contained a fragment of a race known as the elves, a spell Eldith had created herself.

Honestly, I didn’t really understand everything that had happened to me. So I left the technical details to Filaret.

However, it seemed that the reason we could communicate from afar like this was because I had this bag.

Well, whatever kind of magic or mysticism it could be, it was good and convenient to be able to contact Eldith, who was supposed to be in the Gharast’s royal capital, even from afar.

「Eldith, since when has Lugis belonged to you? 」

『And you’re telling me that he belongs to you, Caria? It’s really annoying. Humans are always trying to sneak around and do evil deeds. But don’t worry, Lugis. I’ll make sure to keep a safe place for you to return to. You can come back anytime, even right now. 』

Eldith spoke with her usual dignified smile, but there was something strangely stern in her eyes.

I wondered about it. Had their relationship been so hostile? What was I doing in the first place?

I took a quick sip of water as I was pondering about my memories of my time as a demon.

A voice came, hurrying along.

「…Lady Caria, Lady Filaret. Are you there? 」

It was the voice of a chamberlain, likely serving these chambers. Caria, with a distorted expression, replied, wondering what was going on. The chamberlain sounded frightened for a moment but quickly formed her words.

「Gharast and the Heraldic Order’s allied forces are marching toward the capital! Come immediately! 」

The images of Saint Matia and Princess Philos suddenly appeared in my mind. I couldn’t help but frown.

What were they doing here? What on earth, and for what purpose? I couldn’t help but mutter these things to myself.

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