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Tristan, who had been witnessing William’s shocking past, collapsed, vomiting blood. He was clutching his chest in agony.

“Count!”

Just as Wendy was about to run to him to take some action…

Thump.

“Ah?! An, an earthquake?!”

Suddenly, the ground shook, causing Wendy to fall.

The surroundings darkened and brightened repeatedly with the rumbling of the earth. William, Aidan, and the members of Aslan had all disappeared without a trace.

Thump.

The space shook violently, as if it would shatter at any moment, accompanied by the sound of a pounding heart.

Wendy could vaguely guess.

Something big was about to happen here. And that something was definitely not good.

Wendy looked at Tristan, who had collapsed.

A dark aura was rising from his unconscious body. It was so ominous and gloomy, writhing as if it would swallow him whole.

But why?

Wendy felt like she had seen that unpleasant black aura before.

“That, that is…”

“It’s the magic power of a ‘demon.'”

“Gasp!”

By the time she realized it, an elderly man was standing in front of her.

“Who, who are you?! How did you get here…?”

“Step back.”

The old man’s amber eyes looked down at her sternly. Dressed in a pure white robe and habitually stroking his long beard, he exuded the aura of a master who had grasped the principles of the world.

“It’s dangerous to get close to the Count. My disciple.”

“That voice… C-could it be… Master? Is it really you?”

“Yes. Given the situation, I couldn’t just stand by.”

Myohail stared intently at the fallen Tristan with a serious expression. This was the true appearance of Myohail, the Sage who had turned his back on the world and lived in seclusion.

But there was no time to be surprised. The fact that Myohail had revealed himself meant the situation was dire.

“Of all times, it had to be the worst possible scenario. The Demon Lord is already a headache, and now a demon has awakened…”

“Huh?! W-what do you mean?”

“Exactly as I said. The Count has awakened as the Demon Lord. And unfortunately, the demon within him has also awakened.”

“The Demon Lord?! And a, a demon?!”

Terrifying words spilled from Myohail’s mouth, but Wendy couldn’t keep up. Seeing her confusion, Myohail let out a dry cough.

“Ahem… There’s no choice. The Count asked me to keep it a secret, but…”

Myohail revealed what he had been observing from behind the scenes. From Tristan’s decision to become the Demon Lord to the mysterious demon, Trinity’s staged act…

Hearing this, Wendy sat down, covering her mouth.

“Oh my… The, the Count has become the Demon Lord…?”

Even Wendy knew how dangerous the existence of a Demon Lord was.

A being that leads the world to destruction and is the enemy of all humanity.

That’s why she couldn’t help but question it.

“Why, why would he do that? Why would the Count want to become the Demon Lord…?”

“Probably to protect you.”

“Huh?”

Seeing Wendy’s pale face, Myohail spoke with great difficulty.

“Wendy. Since you’ve caught the attention of the gods, it’s highly likely that you’ll become the Hero in this generation. If that happens, you’ll have no choice but to fight the Demon Lord.”

That was true.

The drowsy-eyed god, Liri, had urged her to become the Hero and even gave her a Support Coin.

“B-but if the Count becomes the Demon Lord, I’ll have no choice but to fight him…! I, I can’t fight the Count…!”

“It’s the same for the Count.”

“Huh?”

“I think the Count is trying to become the Demon Lord so he doesn’t have to fight you. There’s no other reason.”

To become the Demon Lord just to avoid fighting her? Wendy couldn’t understand the contradiction in his words, so Myohail quietly explained.

“If someone else becomes the Demon Lord, you’ll have no choice but to fight. But if the Count becomes the Demon Lord, he won’t fight you. In other words… he believes that becoming the Demon Lord himself is the only way to keep you out of the fight.”

“!”

Finally understanding Myohail’s words, Wendy looked at the fallen Tristan.

“Why, why… why did you do that, Count…? *Sob*…”

Tears streamed down her face.

Though she was usually prone to tears, the tears flowing now were hotter than ever before.

“*Sob*… I, I can’t even help the Count, I’m just a burden…”

Her chest felt tight and heavy. She could feel Tristan’s kind heart, worrying about her. And she could feel Tristan’s desperate resolve to protect her, even by becoming the Demon Lord.

“Why… why would the Count do this for someone like me…?”

Wendy covered her face and wept.

When she first found out she was of the Bloodline of the Hero, she had been terrified.

After all, it was absurd to think that she, a clumsy servant of the Ruelberta Family who constantly made mistakes, could be the Hero who would save the world from the Demon Lord.

To her, a Hero was someone who led their comrades and fought bravely at the forefront.

But she was far from having such leadership or courage.

She was afraid.

The absurd reality that she had to fight the Demon Lord just because one of her ancestors was a Hero.

She wanted to run away.

From the pressure of being the only one who could save the world.

‘Someone… help me…’

On the day she realized she was of the Bloodline of the Hero, Wendy had curled up on the sofa in the Chancellor’s Office, trying to block out the world. But…

“The Hero is not a convenient tool to save the world.”

Tristan had told her that.

He had genuinely worried. He understood how heavy the burden on her shoulders was.

From that moment on, Tristan’s presence began to grow in Wendy’s heart.

Though he was cynical and arrogant to others, he was kind to her. He would secretly pat her head and stay by her side when she was sick. Even when she made mistakes, he didn’t scold her but instead wiped her tears. Sometimes, he would comfort her and give her warm hugs.

Whenever she was in his arms, Wendy couldn’t help but feel a sense of happiness, as if she had become someone truly precious to Tristan.

And each time, she had to forcefully deny that thought.

It made no sense for Tristan, one of the most powerful nobles in the country, to favor her, a poor peasant girl who constantly made mistakes. There was no reason for him to cherish someone as clumsy and naive as her.

Yes. If anything, she was more like a daughter to him.

That must have been it… That should have been it…

But now, Tristan was trying to protect her, even by becoming the Demon Lord.

At that realization, Wendy choked back tears and spoke.

“If, if only I hadn’t caught the attention of the gods… *Sob*… The Count wouldn’t have become the Demon Lord…”

“No…”

But Myohail shook his head.

“It’s hard to escape fate. Even if you hadn’t, you would have likely caught the attention of the gods eventually.”

“*Sob*…”

“I’m sorry, my disciple. Now is not the time to cry.”

“Y-yes…?”

“Do you remember when we played chess before?”

She did. While Tristan was in the secret library of the Wall of Truth, she had briefly learned chess.

As Wendy nodded, Myohail continued.

“When we played chess, I was wary of you using black magic. Because that was the dark magic used by demons.”

“D-demons…”

“The reason you could use demonic magic was not only because you are of the Bloodline of the Hero, capable of wielding all elements, but also because you thought of the Count when creating the chess pieces.”

Myohail muttered as if sighing.

“I should have realized it then. The demon sleeping within the Count… Perhaps this demon is the reason the Ruelberta Family went mad and the source of their curse. If my guess is correct, tracing back the Ruelberta Family’s lineage would surely reveal some connection to a demon.”

“Huh?!”

At those words, Wendy looked at the fallen Tristan as if she had been struck on the head.

Black magic continued to seep out of his body like smoke.

“My disciple, you know this, but the Ruelberta Family is cursed. Both William and the Count were born without innate magic due to that curse. I had thought it was a curse related to a demon… But it seems the demon was closer than I thought. The heinous acts we saw earlier were likely influenced by that demon.”

“That’s too much…”

“Demons are creatures that easily take root in the hearts of fallen and broken humans.”

Wendy clenched her teeth without realizing it.

That demon was responsible for killing Kyle and corrupting William! The sight of Aidan laughing at the despairing William was clearly the work of the demon. And the thought that the demon was now within Tristan’s body sent shivers down her spine.

“Huh?”

As she seethed inwardly, a question suddenly crossed Wendy’s mind.

“B-but… Master. The Count is trying to become the Demon Lord, right? So why is the demon within him suddenly going wild…?”

“Hmm. I don’t know for sure, but the Count must have been suppressing the demon within him using some method. However, as he awakened as the Demon Lord, a crack formed in his heart. And… the demon within him likely took advantage of that crack to awaken. If the demon gains control, it’s over. The Count’s plans could all be ruined.”

Myohail glared at the ominous magic swirling around Tristan with an uncharacteristically fierce expression.

“That demon is the wild card. If left alone, the demon will become the Demon Lord.”

“Is, isn’t there any way, Master?”

Wendy asked, clutching at straws. Surely Myohail, the Sage who had mastered the principles of the world, would have some solution.

“Yes, there is.”

As she expected, Myohail nodded.

“One way is to seal the Count here.”

“S-seal him?!”

“Yes. This space itself is a stepping stone for the Count to become the Demon Lord. Since it’s isolated from the outside, sealing him here would prevent the demon from ever escaping, even if it takes over his body.”

“T-that’s not acceptable!”

Sealing him? That would mean they would never see each other again. She could never accept that. But the next method Myohail proposed was even more despairing.

“The second method is to kill him.”

“?!”

Wendy involuntarily gasped.

“Right now, the Count is fighting the demon for control of his body. If we kill him during this struggle, the demon within him will die as well.”

“N-no! I won’t allow it!”

The thought of Tristan dying was too horrifying.

As if anticipating Wendy’s vehement opposition, Myohail presented the final method.

“And the last method is… neither sealing nor killing him.”

“W-what is it?!”

“But, my disciple, your help will be absolutely necessary.”

Myohail stroked his beard with a grave expression.

“It will be extremely dangerous for you. Are you still willing to do it?”

“……”

Wendy, who had been wiping her tears, looked up at Myohail. His eyes widened.

“Master…”

Seeing a faint trace of her old self in her face, Myohail could guess her answer.

“W-what do I need to do?”

 

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