Chapter 197
Chapter 197. Complicated Circumstances
“Only me…!? Why?!”
Barbara was shocked.
“Surely there are others too!? Like Heroes or Priests!”
Considering the elite unit, they seemed like the type to eagerly cooperate to annihilate the demon race and defeat the Demon Lord Kingdom.
“And Hessell! What about ‘frontline leveling’?!”
“That guy… Hessell… is gone.”
Barbara, momentarily flustered, slipped back into her old way of speaking, but Alex didn’t point it out, simply showing a melancholic expression.
“I just called Hessell earlier, but he barely had any self left…”
“Self…?”
“Basically, souls fade away over time. Powerful beings like elves and dragons last a bit longer. But unless there’s some strong lingering attachment or regret, ordinary humans start losing their thoughts, memories, and rational aspects first.”
—In other words, that’s what true ‘death’ means, Barbara interpreted. It likely signified a journey to the underworld.
Meanwhile, Alex spoke with a hint of pride but also sadness.
“Hessell, you see, wiped out my unit with the first strike. Plus, he kept unleashing his ultimate technique and ended up mortally wounding himself in a mutual kill with a formidable foe…”
It seemed he had been quite satisfied with that.
“Ah…”
That was indeed a major victory. Barbara had to concede that…
“I summoned him, but he was in a state of almost dreaming, hard to communicate with. Still, when I managed to explain my identity and purpose… he laughed and vanished…”
“…I see.”
If possible—she wanted to bid farewell to Hessell. That was the only thing Barbara regretted.
“Also, I summoned a few from the Holy Church, but as soon as they saw me as a demon, a lot of them attacked… Some even self-destructed trying to use light magic.”
“Wow…”
“Those who weren’t light attribute users and actually listened to me seemed to relax when I revealed my goal and then just disappeared.”
“Ugh… I see… What about Charlotte?”
“Charlotte?”
Alex tilted his head in confusion. It was a ridiculous question to ask, Barbara thought with a wry smile.
“She’s the priestess. Her name is Charlotte. She clung to you with determination and created an opening for me.”
“Oh, that person…”
With a distant look, Alex sighed long and quietly.
“That was… impressive. I felt a terrifying aura. I was seriously in a tight spot too.”
“Even after going that far, my biggest regret was failing to take down the Demon Lord’s Prince.”
Barbara’s words held a trace of bitter irony, which was understandable.
However, the target of her sarcasm wasn’t Alex.
—It was the goddess of fate.
“But considering your true identity, maybe it’s for the best we didn’t defeat you…”
“……”
Alex looked apologetic, falling silent for a moment.
“Let’s stop this conversation; it’s going nowhere. I’m sorry. So about Charlotte—”
“…Oh. That hidden gem with holy attributes was incredible. What exactly was that?”
“It seems it was the ashes of the girl who had been praying for several months, infused with holy attributes… The ashes of a hero who was defeated by the Fourth Demon Lord Emelgias, returned with just his head.”
—At that moment, unexpectedly, the air around Alex grew heavy.
“…!”
Alex’s magic became imbued with a sinister aggression. Only a soul sensitive to magic could sense it. The air charged with raw anger and hatred hit hard—
“I see. That bastard.”
With a blank expression, Alex steadied his breath, relaxing his shoulders to lessen the intimidation.
“That bastard”—Barbara suddenly realized that her old friend obviously knew the other Demon Lords.
“You know him, don’t you? That prince?”
“Yeah. He’s the enemy who killed my father and mother, and destroyed my homeland.”
Alex growled.
“The demon who laughed maniacally after severing my father’s head, now wants to be my brother; life sure is unpredictable.”
“…That’s incredibly hard to grasp.”
This wasn’t just some unusual fate.
“So—Charlotte. I didn’t realize her name and since she’s a light magic-wielding priestess, I thought it was more likely she’d self-destruct, so I hadn’t summoned her yet. …Shall I give it a try?”
“…Well, okay.”
Barbara hesitated for a moment.
Her wish seemed to be—wanting to be together with him in death. She somewhat wanted to avoid interfering with that, but perhaps she might be rejoicing over further vengeance…
“Could you try summoning her?”
“I understand. If she seems like she’s about to self-destruct, I’d be grateful if you could stop her. No, just having someone to talk to is really comforting…”
As Alex muttered earnestly, he swiftly gathered dark magic and began chanting a spell.
—It felt cold. That’s how it struck me.
“—Come forth, Charlotte.”
Alex thrust his hand of dark magic into the ‘gate’ behind Barbara.
“…………”
However, when he withdrew his hand, there was nothing there.
“…She seems to be gone.”
“I see. So she must have been reunited with him over there…”
Barbara let out a sigh of relief.
Staring down at the floor, she didn’t notice Alex was making a complicated expression.
“So then… it’s really just me, huh.”
“…Looks like it. Even the beastman Sword Saint had barely any self left. He just said ‘well done’ before vanishing… The forest elf group actually talked quite well with the elder.”
“Oh, you mean Lord Ruroy.”
He had taken care of her greatly; Barbara thought how she would have liked to greet him once more.
“That’s right. But for those possessing light attributes, being reinforced by dark magic into an undead state seems really painful…”
Suddenly, Alex glanced back at the girls watching from the corner of the room—Barbara had belatedly wondered who they were…
“In the end, the forest elves chose to be purified by her.”
Indicating the blond forest elf sitting quietly on the floor, Alex said with a solemn look.
“…Purified… as in, she…?”
“Yeah, let me introduce you. These are my true companions.”
He beckoned the girls forward, cradling the forest elf girl.
“This girl is Liliana.”
“Woof!”
…Woof?
No… the fact that she seemed to have no arms or legs was also concerning.
Woof……?
“She’s a High Elf saint, but for some reason, she currently believes she’s a dog.”
“Woof woof!”
“What’s going on?!”
This was even more nonsensical than the identity of the Demon Lord’s Prince. I couldn’t help but ask.
“How did this happen!? It’s too complicated!”
“No, really, a lot happened…”
“Kyuuun!”
As Alex reminisced with a wistful face, the High Elf (?) Saint (?) Liliana was licking his cheek with an expression of relaxed familiarity, leaving Barbara feeling dizzy.
“Liliana had secretly infiltrated a raid operation… and was captured by Night Elves at the Demon Lord’s Castle.”
“…!”
Barbara was left speechless by Alex’s explanation. Having traversed many a gruesome battlefield, she had seen how Night Elves treated forest elves more than enough.
“…I was lucky enough to use my position as the Demon Lord’s Prince to create an opportunity to see Liliana, who was kept alive in prison.”
“Kuuhn.”
“There, by sweet-talking and using magic, I sealed Liliana’s self and successfully took her out under the pretense of making her my pet.”
“Woof!”
“…Of course, I dispelled the magic later, but for some reason, Liliana’s self hasn’t returned…”
“…Woof?”
As Alex gazed at Liliana in his arms, seemingly wanting to say something—
The person in question was tilting her head with a face that said “? (I don’t understand anything because I’m a dog),” her pointed ears twitching.
“When I talk about it in front of her, this is the resulting reaction. …It’s probably because it’s such a painful memory that she doesn’t want to recover it.”
“…………”
“And the reason she can move relatively freely is that I’ve bound her arms and legs to prevent escape and she acts as a pet under me. Even if her self returned, if she has to continue this kind of life…”
It might be happier if she doesn’t return… Alex’s whispers left Barbara speechless.
—While she was feeling a bit miserable about trying to fight against the Demon Lord Army even becoming undead, those thoughts vanished in an instant.
She realized she was in a much better situation than others…
“I see… that must be tough…”
“Woof?”
Snuffling in Alex’s arms, Liliana leaned towards Barbara. …Her strong light magic and divine aura felt a bit intimidating to Barbara at that moment.
“Next… this is Leila.”
While petting Liliana, Alex introduced a silver-haired girl with golden eyes.
“Nice to meet you. My name is Leila.”
“Oh, thank you for the courtesy. I’m Barbara.”
Barbara returned the bow to the girl, sensing a very sensible atmosphere. She didn’t seem human, though.
“As you can see from her horns, Leila is a transformed White Dragon. For reasons, I ended up taking care of her after… killing her father, the white dragon chief Faravgi… who had cooperated with the raid.”
Thud! The dull sound was from Barbara’s fist striking the barrier, trying to hit Alex on the head.
“What are you doing?!”
What on earth was he doing?
No matter how much of a Demon Lord’s Prince he was, there had to be limits! He, of all people, should understand how bitter it was to have a family member killed!
And to say such things right in front of her!!
“No, Barbara! It couldn’t be helped! It was an unfortunate misunderstanding!”
Leila stepped in front of Alex, waving her hands frantically.
“My father was being pursued as a traitor and ended up encountering him by bad luck! A- Alex was just trying to protect himself, so he’s not at fault…”
…Why did this girl seem a little pleased while saying that?
Barbara had no way of knowing Leila was secretly proud of herself for daring to refer to Zilbagias without a title!
“That aside, why are you with this guy…?”
“Um, I was essentially kept like a hostage by the Dark Dragons, and since my father—the Dragon Tribe offered me as an apology for the offense caused to the Demon Lord Prince…”
They made it clear that he could do whatever he wanted with me, Leila said with a grin.
“And that’s how I became Alex’s…”
Wait… why was she blushing…?
“After a lot of ups and downs, Leila accepted my true identity and my goals, and is now really an indispensable part of my life.”
Saying “thank you always” with tenderness, Alex made eye contact with Leila, who reached out her hand, smiling happily as she intertwined fingers with him.
The two stared into each other’s eyes—
Their ephemeral smiles, laced with shadows, matched beautifully with the Demon Lord’s Prince’s appearance, leaving Barbara in a daze.
This is Alex…?
This is the Alex…?
What am I being shown…?
“…?”
Barbara, helplessly seeking aid, turned her gaze to the last remaining one, the entity of the Forbidden Demon God.
“…………”
The demon god, half-lidded like a fox, shrugged lightly, displaying an ‘I give up’ gesture.
While Barbara had deemed the demon god an evil and despicable being, she couldn’t help but feel a slight sense of familiarity.
