by Virlyce
That’s right; be amazed! “Yup. But I’d need a few more interspacial rings to hold that many."
“Lord,” the emperor said and picked up his utensils with trembling hands, “over a hundred divine beasts a month.” He raised his head to look at me. “And they’ll all be in the same condition as this one?”
“Mhm.”
The emperor gritted his teeth and furrowed his brow. “By any chance,” he said slowly, staring at me with a strange expression, “are you married? Daniel here might not be as strong as you, but he’s set to inherit the throne. The whole empire will be under his control. He’s also single and looking for prospective marriage partners. I guarantee you’ll have the position as the main wife even if you’re a beastkin.”
What. “Eh, I’ll pass.” I mean, Daniel hasn’t even woken up yet. He’s still frothing from both corners of his mouth. And I have Durandal! As soon as he wakes up, that is. Why the hell is he still asleep!? It’s been literal years. Years!
“You’re making a really scary face right now,” Ilya whispered to me. “Is everything okay?”
“No, everything is not okay.” Damn it, why am I so angry and frustrated? There’s an itch in my chest that I can’t scratch, but instead of an itch, it’s pain. The last time I felt like this was … was when my parents sold me to the slavers. Fuck. Why is it so hot in here? Who’s cutting onions?
“…Lucia?” Ilya asked and placed her hand on my shoulder. Her touch felt like fire, and I shoved her away. Aren’t I strong enough now, Durandal?
“Whoa,” Ilya’s dad said. “Let’s not pull out swords at the dinner table, please.” He stood up, and an overwhelming chill ran down my spine. Tendrils of mana swirled around my body, forming a giant hand that closed its fingers around me. I wasn’t even using the Path of Slaughter, but I could see the outline of the mana hand easily. It even distorted the view of Ilya behind it. “I’m sorry about stealing your imugi corpse; I’ll make it up to you, promise.” Ilya’s dad floated into the air, bringing me with him. I didn’t resist. What was the point? “Stay here, Ilya. I’ll bring Lucia to her room and be right back.” He paused. “Sorry about this, Your Highness. She must not be feeling very well.”
“I understand,” the emperor said with a nod. Then he muttered, “Is Daniel so ugly that he made her cry? It can’t be. What does that say about me if it were true?”
17
I’m not quite sure what’s wrong with Lucia. After that outburst at my banquet, she holed herself up in her room. She doesn’t respond to food, sweets, hot chocolate, or even acorns. If it weren’t for the fact that I saw her mumbling to herself while staring at her ceiling while lying down, I would’ve thought she was dead. I did walk in on her one night, and she was crying in her sleep. I stopped checking on her after that; I hope she’s okay.
It’s been about two weeks, and the Godking’s Brawl is set for two months from now. The emperor said he was looking forward to seeing Lucia compete. Thankfully, the first prince had woken up during the banquet, but the imugi was completely consumed by then. He was regretful he missed out on it, and he was a bit devastated to hear about Lucia and how his father had proposed a marriage offer for him.
Puppers has been wandering around a lot outside of Lucia’s room. I tried asking him what was wrong with her, but the only response I got was, “Everything. Everything is wrong with her. There is literally nothing right about her.” Given how badly Lucia treated him, it’s not a surprise for Puppers to sound so bitter. But I think he cares about her deep down on the inside. If he didn’t, he wouldn’t be scouring our library for information about squirrelkin.
The guards and servants are concerned about Lucia’s health too. I hadn’t realized how much of an impression she left on them during her short stay here. The guards miss training with her, and the servants smile less ever since she locked herself away. Lucia promised to tell me about her life after the banquet, but she’s not in the right state of mind to do that; though, I highly suspect the answer to why she’s being like this is hidden away in the details of her past. Could it be Durandal’s fault? The only other time I had seen her breakdown like this was when Teacher took away her sword and locked her in a cage. She had become a blubbering mess in less than five minutes and begged to take me on a journey.
According to Puppers, he’s never seen Durandal after meeting Lucia either. And Puppers actually turned out to be Gae Bulg, a pretty famous weapon spirit. The losers aren’t really glorified by the winning side, but even I’ve heard of Gae Bulg when studying the history between demons and humans. His owner played a great contribution to the human side, winning battle after battle. Of course, he was overshadowed by the Godking who officially ended the war by coercing the leaders of the three factions. The commoners are told a different story involving the Godking’s overwhelming might, but every noble knows how the Godking really did it—that kidnapper. And alongside the stories about the Godking, Durandal’s always there. It’s hard to imagine a legendary weapon like him being under Lucia’s control due to the differences between Lucia and the Godking. But to be fair, Lucia is a serious powerhouse that can influence the politics between the three empires directly with her words. A divine warrior? Simply unheard of. Thousands of mercenaries and soldiers will flock to her side if she announces her status. It’s a bit scary to think about. Not to mention she has a ton of money, and the strength to fight off a ninth-circle magician. No doubt, the fae will do their best to rope her in once they see her at the Godking’s Brawl.
But even scarier than Lucia is Teacher Rogath. He managed to tie her fate together with mine, linking her to the demons. There’s no doubt in my mind that Lucia is the scion of some rich and powerful family of beastkin, tempering herself by traveling through the world. She jokes about being an orphan or a slave sometimes, and she even tried to say she didn’t know how to read, but I simply don’t believe her. Anyone as skilled and talented as Lucia has to have been raised by nobility. The ignorance and lack of common sense she displays also points to her living a sheltered life amongst her family. Who doesn’t know the value of a divine beast corpse? She was fully intent on leaving a manticore’s body behind. Only someone raised by wealth can think like that. And the fact that she showed no respect to magicians in the desolate mountains—no commoner would ever be that arrogant.
At first, I thought Lucia was an idiot because she was a bumpkin. But after seeing her behavior at the banquet, completely natural and relaxed in the presence of the emperor, I can’t help but suspect her position. How high up there is she in the upper echelons of beastkin society? Illegitimate daughter of the beast king? Direct descendent? She has a family name, so she can’t be low. I’ve never heard of the Fluffytails before though, so she’s most likely an illegitimate child of the emperor. She’ll probably deny it if I say it outright, so I’ll have to lure it out of her. It shouldn’t be difficult since she’s an airhead.
There’s supposed to be a new moon tonight. I’ve heard beastkin are most agreeable when the moon isn’t out, so I’ll try to figure out what’s wrong with Lucia today. That’s actually why I’m standing in front of her room with a cup of steaming hot chocolate right now. I took in a deep breath, worked up my courage, and pushed open the door. Knocking on the door only results in Lucia throwing a sword at the offender, which is why I went in acting like I owned the place—which is close enough to the truth.
I froze. Lucia was lying in bed, with tearstains running down the side of her face. A stuffed animal was covering her eyes, and soft snores escaped from her lips. But that wasn’t why I froze. There was an average-looking human male standing over her by the window. There was a puzzled expression on his face as he stared at Lucia. Then, he raised his head and met my eyes.
“Who are you?” His gaze was like a spirit beast’s, encasing my body in a layer of imaginary ice. If I hadn’t encountered all those divine beasts on my journey with Lucia, I may have been intimidated. Instead, I channeled my mana, readying one of my stronger spells.<
br />
“Me?” the strange man asked and raised an eyebrow. “I’m Durandal.”
***
I wasn’t sure what I’d see after waking up again. I thought waking up to a new owner had a very high probability, but luckily, that didn’t happen. I noticed Lucia absorbed the path seed I left behind for her; I wonder what path she unlocked when she became a spirit warrior. I was serious about disowning her if she unlocked the path of ‘hey, look, an acorn’. What I certainly didn’t expect was to see her in the living quarters of a noble demon. The demons’ furniture and designs are easy to differentiate from the fae and humans. Was she kidnapped and turned into a servant? I wouldn’t be surprised. Is it sad to say that I wasn’t expecting too much from Lucia? It’s a miracle she even survived.
Footsteps caught my attention. I waited for the knock on the door, but it didn’t happen. A young demon girl had kicked the door open, not caring about Lucia’s privacy. So they’re treating her this poorly, huh? Perhaps I should teach them a lesson.
“Who are you?” the girl asked. A servant girl? No, she seems more dangerous than that.
“Me? I’m Durandal.” Why did I freely give out my name? I wanted to see how she’d react. Her reaction would tell me a lot about the place I was in. Besides, if the demons become greedy and start lusting after me, then it’ll be a perfect training ground for Lucia. Strength increases with proportion to danger. I’ve let Lucia slack off for far too long. It’s been over three months at most, but that’s enough of a grace period. No doubt, the human royalty are sending someone to chase her down by now. She has to grow stronger to repel them by herself. If I’m knocked unconscious again, she has to be strong enough to take care of herself. There’s no guarantee she’ll get as lucky as this time.
“Oh, you’re finally awake?” the demon girl asked. “Thank the lord. Take care of your mentally damaged master, please.” She walked over and placed the tray she was carrying onto the nightstand by Lucia’s bed. She could move so freely after experiencing my aura? Let’s do it again. The demon girl stiffened for a second before frowning. “Stop doing that, please.”
…Did I become weaker during my time of slumber? I can’t even intimidate a child? “Uh—”
“You have no idea what she put me through,” the demon girl said before I could speak. “It was terrible, an absolute nightmare. But it was helpful, kind of. Were you the one who taught her to train that way?”
“I guess you could say that?” I’m not sure what way she’s talking about. But it has to have been me, right?
“It’s all your fault!” The demon girl stamped her foot. “What the hell is wrong with you? Light, heed my call, smite this sinner to the ground!”
Huh? A beam of light rained down from the ceiling and smacked my forehead. My body grew heavier, and I was forced to my knees. I didn’t even have a weapon to defend myself with! I’m also not sure of Lucia’s condition; otherwise, I’d use her qi to resist. “W-wait. Can’t we talk this out?”
“Let me vent my frustration first,” the demon said. “I can’t beat up Lucia, but evidently, there’s no issue with dealing with you.”
She can’t deal with Lucia with this level of power? “Are you saying I’m weaker than Lucia?”
“Don’t try to act like a tough guy! I know the Godking’s great at manipulating young children, but I’m old enough to not fall for any tricks,” the demon said. So she knew about Roland’s kidnapping deeds. Well, a lot of demons do since Roland wouldn’t be the main contributor of a new school of magic if he hadn’t kidnapped that child back then. What was his name? Rogath? Urgh, this light is getting unbearably heavy. But I’m not weaker than Lucia!
“Darkness, listen up, sap his strength!”
What are these tendrils? They’re taking away my senses! Is this what Bouncykins meant by the era of warriors is over? A young magician holds this much power. What if she were older? How would any warrior hope to deal with her?
The demon crossed her arms over her chest. “Water, be gentle, spray his face with a fine mist every five seconds.”
What…, what is this!? Am I really this helpless? Did I really lose my strength after sleeping for so long? Or was I always this weak…? And Lucia’s supposed to be stronger than me? Can I even help her anymore?
“Had enough?” the demon asked. “Kowtow to me ten times and apologize for your master’s misdeeds, then I’ll let you go.”
“Do you know who I am?” The only thing I can do is appeal to reputation. It’s very sad to admit, but as I am right now, weaponless and unable to draw on Lucia’s qi, I’m weaker than this young demon. And for some reason, I can’t even retreat into mini-DalDal.
“Do you know who my father is? He’s a ninth-circle magician,” the demon said. “And do you know what Lucia did?”
Why do I dread the answer? “No….”
“She slapped him until his face turned puffy in front of the upper echelon of demon society while the emperor was beside him. So I don’t care if you’re Durandal or the Godking himself. Right now, I’m bullying you into apologizing.” The demon snapped her fingers. “Earth, be sharp, form a spike and pierce the center of this unrepentant soul’s hindquarters if he doesn’t kowtow within ten seconds.”
A chill ran down my spine as an earthen spike appeared where I’d rather it not appear. Now I know why Lucia had such an objection to holding a horse stance above a spike.
“Nine.”
Do I do it? Do I give up my pride as the Godking’s weapon? Or do I draw on Lucia’s qi and fight back? But I might harm Lucia if I do that.
“Five seconds left.”
That wasn’t four seconds!
“Two seconds.”
I’ll do it! To preserve my last shred of dignity, I’ll repent for sins I’m not aware I committed. “I’m sorry for the trouble Lucia has caused you! It’s all my fault as her teacher and mentor!”
“Now do it nine more times,” the demon said. There was a bright smile on her face. What a sadist. Are these the kinds of people Lucia has been associating with? As I kowtowed nine more times, I could hear the demon mutter, “Ah, it’s like all the stress I’ve built up over the past four months has all been released at once. I can feel my sixth circle beginning to form.”
***
Ah, Mr. Fluffy Toy Bear sitting on my face, I miss Durandal. “Durandal….”
“Yes?”
Huh? “Durandal?”
“Yes, Lucia?”
That sounds like…, is it really…? “Durandal!”
“That’s me.”
Wait. That’s not Durandal. What the heck? Why’s there a stranger sitting in the corner of my room pretending to be Durandal? Why does he sound like Durandal? “Who are you?”
“Did you really forget who I am?” the strange man asked. He tried to do Durandal’s intimidating gaze, but failed miserably. I didn’t even feel it. Durandal’s tall! Buff! Handsome! This man is … well, he’s a bit pudgy, short, and it looks like his face had an unfortunate encounter with a grindstone. “You don’t remember me?”
“Eh…? You’re really Durandal?” I thought I would flying tackle Durandal after he woke up, but … I don’t really want to now. “What happened to your face?”
“Before anything else, can you please put some qi into mini-DalDal,” the false Durandal said. “For some reason, I can’t draw on yours. I’m withering.”
Hmm. Well, he knows mini-DalDal’s name, so I guess it can’t hurt. Let’s put some qi inside. Oh? The false Durandal’s growing! His abs are forming! His jaw is re-sharpening! Durandal’s really back! “Unrelenting Path of Slaughter: Flying Tackle!”
“Lucia!?”
“You’re back! You’re really finally back! Do you know how long I waited for you?”
“How long?” the real Durandal asked and patted my head. Oh, I missed these. Do my tail too. “About three months?”
“Over two years!” Ah, did I smack him too hard? That was supposed to be a playful, flirty smack to the chest, but he
flew into and cracked a wall. Oops. “I’m a divine warrior now!”
“Huh?” Durandal asked. His eyes widened. Stupefied Durandal’s the best! I bet that brought about a bigger reaction than if I told him the Godking came back to life. …Hey, isn’t that insulting myself?
Oh! And there’s Ilya; I should introduce the two. “Hey, Ilya, this is Dur—”
“Wait,” Durandal said and blocked my mouth. “Do you have a weapon? A spear perhaps?”
“Um, I have this pointy divine beast’s spinal cord. Will that work?” I took the bone I was saving for consumption out of my interspacial ring.
“Don’t give it to him!” Ilya shrieked. She turned around and ran, spells blazing around her feet.
“Wait here, I’ll be right back, Lucia,” Durandal said as he snatched the bone out of my hand and chased after Ilya. What was that about? Moments later, I heard Ilya’s shrieking and Durandal roaring, “Trying to bully me because I had no qi or weapons!? I’ll learn you! I’ll learn you real good!” followed by more of Ilya’s shrieks.
“Save me, Lucia!” Ilya shouted. Her voice made it seem like she was crying, but Durandal’s a nice person! He wouldn’t make a little girl cry. …That asshole, he totally would. Did something happen between them? Mm, well, Durandal told me to wait right here. Ah! I should introduce Durandal to Puppers too. I patted my socks, and they glowed with a white light. A few seconds later, a blur rushed into my socks from outside the room.
“Did you call?” Puppers asked with a sigh.
I’m your master; you should be happier to see me, gosh. “Yeah, c’mon out. Durandal’s awake!”
“Finally!” Puppers said as he sprang into existence. “I can finally be free from this torture! …Right? You don’t need me anymore because Durandal’s back, right? Please say yes.” His tail wagged back and forth while his eyes gleamed.
“Nope. Down, Puppers. Be a good boy and sit patiently.”
Puppers whimpered and sat on the ground beside me, looking like he lost all purpose in life. Ooh, Ilya brought me hot chocolate while I was sleeping too. She’s the best; maybe I should’ve helped her. Oh wells, I’m sure she’ll be fine. But Durandal’s really back! Everything is right in the world.
