Chapter 128
But in the end, he couldn’t draw his sword.
A choice even he couldn’t comprehend.
Mieck growled, concealing his confusion.
“Consider yourself lucky to have come here as an envoy. If not for that, my sword wouldn’t have remained still.”
“Hmph. You didn’t need to go easy on me. Must be because you’re one of those cowardly Union dogs—so considerate.”
When Chris sneered, Mieck clenched his fists tightly.
But he forcibly suppressed his anger.
Using this excuse—
‘No matter if he’s a demon, striking down an envoy before he’s finished his business isn’t something a knight of honor would do.’
Mieck denied the sense of danger he had just felt.
It didn’t make sense to feel threatened by someone who was only 4-star level.
‘I’ll deal with him later when the chance arises. With a decent excuse, I should be able to cut off a few limbs. I’m looking forward to it.’
Mieck’s eyes gleamed cruelly.
Meanwhile, seeing that look in Mieck’s eyes, Chris simply shrugged.
‘What a shame. Well, it doesn’t matter. This isn’t the only chance I’ll get.’
With the way Mieck kept glancing at him menacingly, it looked like something would break out soon.
‘Might not be a bad idea to use this guy to shake up the Holy Nation.’
A clever scheme sparked in Chris’s mind.
A way to both get rid of Mieck and tilt the playing field in his favor.
It wouldn’t be hard.
Either way, the tension escalated further due to the clash between the two.
The knights of the Holy Nation glared at Chris as if they were ready to kill him.
Count Roy, who had ended up tagging along, looked as nervous as if he were the real target, and the similarly timid Alros whispered in a voice that sounded like his heart was about to burst.
“M-My Lord, please be a bit more careful with your words…”
“What?”
Alros looked like he was about to explode with frustration.
“Th-This isn’t the Magus Empire… it’s enemy Union territory…”
Chris cut him off and asked indifferently.
“Alros, who are we?”
“…We are envoys representing the Great Dark Demonic House.”
“And? You mean because we’re afraid of the enemy, we should cower like turtles and pull in our heads?”
“……”
“Don’t forget. Our actions symbolize the Dark Demonic House. Even if we’re deep in enemy territory, even if a blade is at our throat, we must stand tall. Understood?”
Alros bowed his head in shame.
“Y-Yes, I will keep that in mind.”
Chris shrugged.
‘Honestly, even I don’t care that much about the honor of the Dark Demonic House.’
Even so, he had a reason for giving this warning.
He was in the middle of a succession trial.
Just like solving the Gold Cross issue, passing the succession trial perfectly was just as important.
It was best to avoid any unnecessary noise about having tarnished the prestige of the Dark Demonic House.
At that moment, ignoring the surrounding tension, Jupien—who had been quietly training her grip strength with a portable hand gripper—peeked over and asked.
…For reference, Jupien, despite her doll-like appearance, was an eccentric training freak who even followed others on foot using lightfoot techniques when they traveled on horseback—someone who diligently trained regardless of time or place.
“What are you going to do now?”
“First, we have to meet Princess Olivia. There’s no way the Holy Emperor would meet us, since we’re demons.”
The moment he said Olivia’s name, his heart gave a faint tremble.
He was finally going to meet her.
‘In my previous life, I couldn’t see her for a long time either.’
Ever since he left the family, he hadn’t seen her even once.
After the Age of Ruins began, Olivia met a horrifying death.
Not that anyone met a good end during the Age of Ruins, but Olivia’s death was among the worst.
The memory made his chest ache.
Seeing Chris like that, Jupien frowned.
“What’s with you?”
“…What do you mean?”
“You’ve got that face like you’re sick or something.”
“…You’re imagining things.”
“No, something’s definitely off. Come here.”
Jupien placed her palm on Chris’s forehead.
“No fever. Or wait… did you get hit with some death curse or something? Hurry up and turn back into my unlucky little brother.”
“…What are you even saying? Since when am I your little brother?”
“You’re younger than me. So you’re my brother. My little brother that I want to beat the crap out of and grind under my heel.”
“…Stop spouting nonsense and get your hand off me.”
Chris brushed Jupien’s hand away and adjusted his expression.
‘I need to be careful.’
Olivia doesn’t know him.
He had to treat her strictly as a stranger.
“Anyway, I’m going to work with Princess Olivia to resolve this incident. With her awakened Starblood, she’ll be a big help.”
“Do you really think she’ll cooperate? We’re demons, remember.”
Jupien questioned skeptically, but Chris firmly nodded.
“She will.”
The Olivia he knew was someone who wouldn’t hesitate to carry straw into a burning fire if it meant saving her people.
She wouldn’t refuse to join hands with a demon.
However—
“You cannot meet with Princess Olivia.”
“…What?”
“Princess Olivia is currently in long-term seclusion for prayer.”
“…….”
A butler with a blunt expression came forward and informed Chris’s group.
“Don’t even think about meeting Her Highness. Just follow the guide we assign and investigate the incident on your own or not—it’s up to you.”
On your own.
It meant they would receive no cooperation in the investigation.
The assigned guide was more likely a watchdog—someone who could draw their blade and turn into an enemy at any moment.
“I’m warning you in advance. If you show any suspicious behavior in the name of investigating, I’ll cut your head off and have your corpse deported. Keep that in mind.”
Leaving behind those words, the man turned and disappeared.
“……”
Chris kept his mouth shut.
‘This is troubling.’
For his plan to work, Olivia had to accompany him.
‘Strange. Secluding herself for prayer during an emergency like this?’
It didn’t seem like the Olivia he knew.
Feeling that something was off, Chris turned to Mari.
“Is there any way to find out what’s going on with Princess Olivia?”
[Ohoho, of course. I’ll be right back.]
And Mari really did return in no time.
Dangling from her hand was the ghost of a pale-faced young man.
[This one is a ghost who’s been hiding out in the royal castle. I think we can ask him.]
The ghost, apparently traumatized by whatever he experienced on the way here with Mari, dropped to his knees in fear.
[I-I’ll tell you anything! J-Just please spare me!]
“…No one’s going to kill you. Not like you’re even alive. What are you begging for your life for? Do you know anything about Princess Olivia?”
[Y-Yes? Of course I do.]
“Why is she in seclusion? Don’t tell me it’s some romantic notion like praying to the Thrones to drive out the plague. Is there a reason?”
[That is…]
The ghost’s eyes darted back and forth.
When he hesitated, Mari let out a high-pitched laugh.
[My, my. Our little cutie’s keeping his mouth too shut in front of the young master. I wonder if he’ll talk better if I tear his lips up and down?]
[I-I’ll speak right now!!]
The ghost frantically continued.
[P-Princess Olivia has been in seclusion for a long time now.]
“A long time? Why?”
[Because of the death of the Cursed Prince.]
“…What?”
A moment of silence passed, followed by a dissonant-sounding question.
“…What do you mean by that?”
[Princess Olivia fell into deep despair after the death of her older brother, the Cursed Prince.]
Perhaps sensing Chris’s sinking mood,
the ghost cautiously added on.
[She blames herself for his death and has cut off all outside contact, remaining in seclusion since.]
* * *
‘To think… Olivia’s been like that all this time.’
He hadn’t even imagined it.
‘I thought she was doing fine after I disappeared…’
Step. His feet moved forward.
He was now walking in the secluded rear area of the Holy Nation’s royal castle, Arhen.
Even though he was a demon, no one tried to stop him as he freely walked through the royal castle.
This place was ominous from the start—somewhere no one dared to approach.
It was where the former Holy Empress, once the puppet of a demon, admitted her sins and took her own life in front of her son.
At the same time, it was the place where her cursed offspring had been locked away.
The “Tower of Sorrow” came into view before Chris.
‘It’s been a long time.’
Chris looked at the tower with a gaze tinged with unfamiliar nostalgia.
As a child, it had seemed like an insurmountable symbol of despair, but now, it looked like nothing more than a small tower.
There was no particular emotion stirring in him.
It was likely because of the era of destruction he had lived through.
That hellish time when the entire world had turned into a living nightmare had dulled the colors of his childhood memories.
Just—ah yes, that happened. That sort of thing.
Even his hatred for his father, the Holy Emperor, now felt like a quiet, still lake—calm and distant.
‘Still, this wasn’t a place I ever wanted to return to.’
He had come only because there was someone he needed to meet.
Creak. He opened the rusted door and stepped inside, revealing the interior of the tower.
True to its purpose as a prison, it was bleak and cramped.
He ascended the stairs—familiar, yet never truly comfortable—and came upon the room where he had once stayed as a child.
As expected, it was small.
A single window showing the emerald-colored river outside was the only source of hope in the space.
There, someone was waiting.
Someone he was meeting again after a long stretch of time.
“It’s an honor to meet you.”
Chris lifted the corners of his mouth, as he always did, to conceal his true feelings.
“Princess Olivia.”
* * *
Olivia looked just as Chris remembered her.
A young girl in her mid-teens in appearance.
Emerald-green hair. Sapphire-like eyes that sparkled like gems.
A girl with the face of a fairy from a storybook, or an angel descended to Earth.
But she wasn’t exactly the same as in his memories.
‘Why is she so thin?’
She looked so frail, it was painful to see.
And it wasn’t just her appearance that had changed.
“Demon?”
Olivia’s expression twisted into a frown.
“Are you the envoy sent by the Dark Demonic House? Prince Christian, the new Sacred Star of the Dark Demonic House?”
It seemed she had heard of Christian.
“I heard the royal chamberlain was scheduled to meet you. What are you doing here?”
Her tone was sharp and laced with thorns.
Chris had never once heard Olivia speak like that.
Even toward someone unforgivable, Olivia would always respond with a gentle voice.
‘It doesn’t feel like it’s just because I’m a demon. Has her personality changed? Could it be… because of my death?’
He was shaken.
This was not the situation he had anticipated.
The bigger problem was that it wasn’t just her personality that had become prickly.
‘That’s the look of someone who’s completely shut their heart.’
He recalled what the ghost Mari had brought had told them.
That Olivia’s despair had only worsened over time, to the point where she rejected all external contact.
‘This is a problem.’
Chris furrowed his brow.
The sorrow of seeing his long-lost sister in ruins would have to wait.
If Olivia was like this, there was no way she could help resolve the current incident.