novelVolume 2, Side Story 6 - A Certain Demon King's Dinner Gathering
| ← Ch.57 | Ch.59 → |
Volume 2, Side Story 6 - A Certain Demon King's Dinner Gathering
At present there were four girls living in the Black Rose Mansion.
Anri who was the lord of the estate, Tena who was her kin as well as the head maid, Lili who was like a younger sister that helped with the housework despite her age, and finally Leonora who was a sponger.
Among these four, Anri, Tena and Lili were permanent residents but in the end, Leonora was simply staying here temporarily.
As the daughter of the Demon King and the successor to his throne, once her moratorium journey was finished, she would be returning to the Demon Race Territory.
To begin with, there was no fixed date for the end of her journey, but she couldn't continue it forever.
She herself had placed the conditions for return as "obtaining some kind of merit".
And objectively speaking, she had already accomplished this.
She had helped with the establishment of a neighbouring nation, and had deep bonds with its VIPs. Additionally, this neighbouring nation shaved away land from the enemy nation, Fortera, and was constructed like a buffer. Furthermore, trade with the Human Race that had been previously deemed as impossible, was now possible through this new nation.
She had gained plenty enough merit as a successor to the throne.
As a result, it could be said that the message she had received was natural.
"You're returning to your country?"
"Yeah, they're starting to press me, you see."
At dinner, Leonora told Anri and the others about her motherland's inquiries about whether she was ready to return.
"It's pretty sudden."
"No, that's not really true. They've implicitly brought it up before. I had decided to leave it alone until they straight out said it, but as you'd expect, I probably can't stay here much longer this time."
"I see..."
Because it was akin to Leonora admitting herself that she still wanted to stay here, she flushed a little red with embarrassment.
"So when will you be leaving, Leonora-san?"
"Let's see. I'm planning on departing tomorrow."
"T-, Tomorrow, you say?"
"Yeah. We're pretty far from the Demon Race Territory after all."
Leonora's reply had shocked Tena. Certainly, this did seem quite sudden. But as Leonora had said, it would take a number of days to the Demon Race Territory. On top of that, it would take even more days from the border to the Demon King Castle. Because of that, it made sense that she needed to depart as soon as possible.
"And so, there's something I want to ask... Won't you come with me to visit the Demon Race Territory?"
"? Us?"
"Yeah. I'm inviting you as a friend. Naturally, you're VIPs in a neighbouring country, and will be entertained as state guests."
At present, Anri had no official power in the Holy Anri Thearchy, but realistically considering her connections, it wasn't necessarily wrong to call her a VIP.
But in that case, they should have sent a request through the Holy Anri Thearchy, and not directly invited her like this.
In the end, the truth was that Leonora was simply inviting a friend to her house.
Leonora Romariel... As the heir to the Demon King's Throne, she had always been friendless.
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The next day, Anri and Leonora visited the Evil God Temple.
Leonora had planned on inviting Anri, Tena and Lili, but Lili was still too young, and the long journey would not be good for her. Because of that, Tena was forced to stay back to look after her, and in the end only Anri would be going.
"Hey, Anri... Are we seriously riding that thing?"
"It's faster this way."
"Well, sure, but... but, you know..."
The two of them were here at the Evil God Temple to secure their means of transport.
Going by foot or carriage like normal people would take almost a month there and back, but now that Tena and Lili would be waiting at the Black Rose Estate, Anri didn't want to take so long.
And so, she had chosen the fastest method of getting there. And she could find that method here.
Still, when Leonora had heard, she frowned unhappily.
She had told them that she would be departing today, but she never mentioned how she would be getting there. After all, she only found out today.
When Anri told her that they would be getting there in a day, she carelessly thought it would be teleportation magic or the like. That optimism had backfired on her. Thinking about it carefully, the divine race Anri aside, there was no way that the human Anri could have such a power.
There weren't any more appointed communications with her country, but it was still possible to send an emergency communiqué to let them know first. While Leonora was agonising over whether or not she should do it, it was already too late.
Having given up, Leonora sighed and muttered her faint hope.
"It'd be good if this didn't cause an uproar at home, but..."
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Demon Race Territory, Demon King's Castle
Deep within the Demon Race Territory lay a castle. It belonged to the Demon King who reigned supreme within the Demon Race, and served as their supreme headquarters.
Although the war between the demons and humans had continued for a long time, the battles all took place near the borders, and not once had a human invaded as far as the Demon King Castle.
Despite this, its security showed no signs of negligence.
Many layers of large security nets protected the castle, and if an enemy army was ever spotted, the demonic forces were ready to intercept them at a moment's notice.
One day, an urgent message arrived at the castle from one the 'net' closest to the Human Race Territory.
"Your Majesty! Urgent news!"
"How noisy. What is going on?"
Eligor Romariel, the incumbent Demon King, had been in his office when a guard suddenly stormed in.
"Just a moment ago, we received news from one of the border forts! According to the report, a gargantuan dragon is making a beeline towards this castle!"
"A dragon, you say?"
"Yes, Sire! An ominous, jet black dragon."
The report silenced the Demon King, who had seemingly fallen into silent recollection of something. But before he could organise his thoughts, a question from the guard scattered them.
"What shall we do, Sire?"
"If it is navigating the skies then our security nets will be of no use. Have the troops gather in the direction of the dragon! Also, have Renarve, Vikuto, and Ijido come as well. I shall also head there immediately."
Giving a passing glance at the guard who hurried away, the Demon King began preparing his equipment.
*imouto*
By the time the Demon King had appeared in the castle's eastern quadrant, the guards had already finished preparing.
Troops with shields stood on the ground, and formed the vanguard to oppose the dragon's aerial attacks, whilst the mage troops stood within the castle walls. The frontline troops were to serve as a decoy, and the mages were to concentrate their attacks while the dragon was distracted.
Although they had suddenly been gathered here, the soldiers showed no signs of panic, and calmly arranged themselves. Their actions reflected the preparedness and level of training of the Demon Race.
And the ones who directly commanded them were the Four Heavenly Kings who served as the Demon King's close aides.
"Vanguard, how goes the preparation of your shields!"
"They are ready, Renarve-sama!"
"Mage Unit, I assume that all of you are here?"
"Yessir, everybody is present!"
Violent Gale Knight Renarve was commanding the frontline, whilst Bloodfrost General Vikuto was in charge of the backline. On the other hand, Adamantite Earth Demon Ijido was using earth magic to form a protective wall for the decoy frontline.
"How is your wall coming along?"
"Yeah, I'm all done here."
Ijido answered Vikuto with a smirk.
After that, the Demon King came along.
"Have you all finished preparing?"
"Why if it isn't His Majesty. Yes, we are all ready."
The Demon King responded with a nod, before looking up towards the Eastern skies. Renarve, Vikuto and Ijido too, had their eyes pinned to the skies.
"By our fastest estimates, it should be arriving any time now."
"Honestly, on the day that our Princess is coming back..."
"Speaking of which, she's leaving for home today, isn't she."
"Indeed. We received her message last night."
"........."
"Your Majesty? Is something the matter?"
"No, only, I feel as though I have forgotten something, and yet..."
Once again, the Demon King fell into thought just as he did the time the guard interrupted. But once again, something interrupted him. This time however, that something was also the answer to his questions.
"!? We have a visual!"
Renarve spotted the incoming black mass and yelled to warned the troops.
"Is that it? ...Hm?"
"That's... Don't tell me..."
"That dragon!?"
"Hahh? The heck are you guys on about?"
Because the Demon King, Renarve and Vikuto were all familiar with that figure, they immediately guessed the situation. It was the Black Dragon that they had once battled in the dungeon known as the "Holy Land of the Evil God". And if they considered Leonora's homecoming plans, it was simple to guess what was happening.
On the other hand, only Ijido was panicked from having no idea what was happening.
"Renarve-sama, Vikuto-sama, please give us the signal to attack!"
"W-, Wait a moment! You mustn't attack!"
"Huh?"
"Riding that dragon is──"
The black shadow approached with incredible speed, and in no time transformed from a dot into a massive silhouette, and before long it easily crushed Ijido's prided wall and landed with a boom.
The frontline soldiers hurriedly formed an arc before the dragon, but because their superiors had given no attack orders, they were standing there confused.
However, that confusion was met with Vikuto's next line.
"──Princess Leonora!"
As though responding to his shout, a girl made herself visible from the blind spot on the Black Dragon's back.
But unlike Vikuto's words, that girl was not Leonora.
Naturally, everyone there had been looking at the Black Dragon.
And because of that, you could call it natural that everybody there turned to look a the girl.
The Demon King, Renarve, Vikuto, Ijido, everybody without exception looked at the girl. Or rather, they were forced to see her.
Glossy black hair, and a bewitching black rose dress. Light armour at her chest, and noble features on her face. Yet, what made far more of an impression were her eyes. Those black, murky eyes, so ominous that they caused hallucinations, were now overlooking everybody on scene, and gripping their hearts with terror.
It was because these troops were the elites of their race that they so deeply sensed her power. The Demon King had always been the strongest existence in their hearts. The mastodonian Black Dragon emitted an unbelievable sense of pressure. And yet the despair that the girl's eyes elicited easily surpassed them both.
And the Demon King and his adjutants were no exception. Leaving Ijido aside, all the other members knew that this girl would be coming, and they knew from Leonora's reports about the girl's mystic eyes. But although they knew, they still found themselves unable to suppress the instinctual horror that their bodies felt.
Given the circumstances, anybody faint of heart would have immediately fled in panic. The fact that they were not a single soldier less was worthy of praise.
But their strength of heart instead cornered them. Their minds were telling them not to run, but their instincts were telling them to flee. The contradictory born from this wore away at their minds.
And eventually, unable to bear with the terror any longer, all of them naturally took the same pose. It was a pose where they placed both hands and knees on the ground, and lowered their head to match; the posture of greatest apology, passed down since ancient times.
"O-, Oi, Anri!? You've forgotten to put your mask on!"
".........Ah."
Anri's Mystic Eyes of Wicked Authority fully demonstrated the 'average' power that was capable of forcing a Demon King to dogeza.
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Things started with some trouble, but Anri put on her mask, and the dogeza festival came to an end.
The gathered troops dispersed, the two girls were invited into the castle, and just as originally planned, they had dinner with the Demon King. The participants were Anri, Demon King Eligor, Leonora, and the Heavenly Generals Renarve and Vikuto.
*imouto*
*imouto*
Around that time, Ijido was busy repairing the damaged eastern grounds.
*imouto*
*imouto*
*imouto*
*imouto*
"Fumu, it seems that as long as one does not look directly at them, the eyes have no effect."
"I've put a mask on, so there it's all fine now."
While drinking the soup from the full course menu, the Demon King chatted with Anri. Because her mask was the type that covered only the eyes, there was no problem eating her food. The mask was an extraordinary item, designed so that although things were invisible from the outside, she could see clearly from within.
Because her mystic eyes only displayed an effect with eye contact, as long as she wore this mask, nobody would suddenly prostrate or run away from her.
"When you have that mask on, you seem just like a normal girl."
"I am normal."
"Heh. So a VIP of a thearchy who used to be an Evil God, and is still acquainted with the divines, is what you would call a normal girl, huh."
Like this, the dinner continued peacefully as the Demon King and Anri enjoyed their chat together.
*imouto*
*imouto*
Around that time, Black Dragon Vardneel had begun to help Ijido fix the ground. Making use of his huge body, he stepped down on the ground to harden it.
*imouto*
*imouto*
"Speaking of which, there is something I must thank you for."
"Thank me for?"
"Umu. It is about my daughter, Leonora."
"Fath-! Your Majesty!?"
Leonora had been quietly eating dinner on the side when she panicked from the topic suddenly changing to her.
"I was unable to prepare Leonora any friends. Even if I ordered somebody to, they would only be a retainer. You could hardly call them a true friend."
"Father..."
"I wished to thank you for becoming her friend."
"It isn't something to thank me for. I'm the one who asked."
"Heh, is that how it was."
The Demon Princess, the Demon King, and the girl who was once an Evil God.
Each of them had unique positions in the world, but for this moment, they were simply a girl, her father, and her friend who had come for dinner.
*imouto*
*imouto*
While this was happening, Ijido and Vardneel's cooperation had somehow succeeded in restoring the eastern grounds.
*imouto*
*imouto*
*imouto*
*imouto*
It should be noted that though Anri's mask was the best method of sealing her mystic eyes, nothing came without a price. In exchange for the powerful effect of its enchantment, it also came with a curse.
Unlike the Tantou of the Wicked Demon, or the Black Clothes of the Evil God, it wasn't as though she couldn't take it off, but this mask──the Black Mask of Unsealing──had the annoying effect of unsealing the limiter on one's emotions. To put it plainly, it made it difficult to control one's feelings. Because of that, it had the result of blabbing out all sorts of things that one wouldn't normally.
"I'm really glad that I met Leonora. I want to stay by her side forever."
"A-, Anri!?"
"Muu... Isn't that going a little far? Leonora is the heir to the throne, and so she must bear an heir, but..."
And so, although you would feel nothing about saying such things while the mask was on, the moment that you took it off, you would be assaulted with shame.
It was arranged for Anri to stay the night in the castle, but that evening she would end up writhing about atop her bed for quite a while.
*imouto*
*imouto*
Around that time, Ijido and Vardneel had begun to drink happily together.
*imouto*
*imouto*
*imouto*
*imouto*
"Umm, would it be all right if I asked a question?"
"What a coincidence, Renarve. I too had something to ask..."
Waiting for a break in the conversation, the previously silent Renarve and Vikuto suddenly spoke up together.
"Mn? What's the matter, you two?"
The two of them were looking at Leonora's chest together.
"W-, What's with you two...?"
Because they were so openly staring at her, by reflex she covered her chest with the thing on her lap. But what they were staring at was not her bountiful breasts, but the thing that she used to cover it.
*imouto*
*imouto*
""Why have you been holding that doll all this time?""
"Huh!? So I was! I've been carrying it all the time lately, so I forgot I even had it! Y-, You're wrong... This isn't by choice! There are some compelling circumstances behind this!"
What they were staring at was the doll that had been in Leonora's hands, and that she was now using to hide her chest. Ever since she had returned here, she had always been carrying it around with her, so naturally passerbys had all noticed and wondered. Because of her status however, it wasn't possible for them to casually ask her about it.
To be specific, the doll that she was carrying was the Symbol of Capture from the battle of three gods, the cursed Tena doll. Ever since she carelessly touched it, Anri had left the curse alone as punishment. Because she forgot about it and left the temple, afterwards it was harder for her to meet with the divine Anri, and the curse was never lifted.
"Fumu, I did tell you to find some more womanly hobbies but... is that your taste?"
"You're wrong! You're wrong, father!"
The cursed Tena doll was creepy no matter who you asked, and couldn't be considered girly no matter what.
"Leonora's become so fond of it that she won't part from it."
"Fumu, I see... But well, I will not do something as boorish as commenting on my daughter's taste and past-times."
"I said that was wrong...! Or rather, Anri! This is nine-tenths your fault, isn't it!?"
The rumours of the doll-carrying Demon Princess had quickly spread through the demons' lands, and by this point it was already impossible to suppress the rumours. And this was how the legend of the Doll Princess began.
TL Note:
<Magic Flame Princess, Leonora>
<magic flame="" princess, ="" leonora=""></magic>
With the achievement of establishing diplomatic relations with the Holy Anri Thearchy, she inherited the throne of the Demon King at a young age.
She became the mediator for the two nations, and was adored by even the humans, who were originally the enemy.
In addition, due to the fact that she was forced to continue holding the doll and was unable to part from it, she gained aliases such as "Doll Princess" and "The Truth Is, the Doll Is Her Real Body" etc.
"I told you that was wrong, didn't I!?"
| ← Ch. 57 | Ch. 59 → |