'The Goddess, Ignia, was watching the fight?' Benimaru instinctively looked into the sky, trying to find the gaze that Ignia gave from the high heavens.
But there was nothing, which didn't matter much to Benimaru. He then glanced at his surroundings, watching the despair-filled eyes staring at him. He knew the time had come for his promotion.
Benimaru's wings flapped as he leaped into the sky. Hovering in the air, he looked down and said it with arrogance. "Listen up, you mortal humans. Today, I, Slayer, the leader of the Masked Fools, have destroyed the church of the Goddess Ignia for bringing injustice to innocent demons."
"So, take this as a warning. If anyone dares to do anything to harmless demons, you will face my wrath!" Benimaru's loud yet calm voice reverberated throughout the city, engraving these words in their hearts.
Benimaru decided to leave, as he felt this was enough to give some shock and the rumors spread by common folk would be enough. But at that moment, he heard an earth-shattering shout.
"STOPPP!!!"
Benimaru shifted his focus to his right side and saw a man in bloodied armor and disheveled hair rushing toward him. Benimaru instantly recognized who that man was.
'Isn't that Haitam, the general of Migotanie City?' Benimaru gave him a weird glance before flying away in the opposite direction. He didn't have the time to mingle with them now.
Haitam became frustrated seeing Benimaru run away. 'Damn it, if only I had enough strength.'
Haitam stopped, deciding to head toward the castle. He couldn't catch Benimaru, no matter what he tried; it would be a waste of time. He might as well go to the castle and check up on Arash.
…
After Haitam walked into the castle, he was horrified by the dead bodies lying on the grounds. What intensified it more was the mumbled wailing drifting into his ears.
He started to grow concerned, panicking about the thought he was having in his mind. 'Is lord…'
Haitam shook his head, denying it. He firmened his will and sprinted deep into the castle to confirm his doubts and worries.
He had just arrived before the assembly hall when he saw the captain of the city guards, Nina, walking out with someone in his arms. He glanced at the man in her arms. The moment his gaze landed on the man's face, his legs gave up, and he knelt on the ground.
Thud
"No, this can't be…"
Haitam's face became dispirited as slight tears started to roll down his eyes. He had thought of the worst when coming here, but not this.
Nina's face was calm as she spoke to Haitam. "General, Lord has given his final orders. We should give him a proper burial with his loved children."
Haitam was shocked to see Nina acting so calm. Because he himself has seen her grow up and how she was. She might look strong and cold on the outside, but she was a very weak girl inside. He didn't know what had caused her to act like this, but he knew the Lord's death might have affected her heavily.
Haitam also steeled his heart and stood up. With a respectful gaze toward Arash's sleeping, smiling face, he uttered. "As you wish, sire."
…
Quickly, the news of Baron Arash's passing spread throughout the city before reaching the surrounding cities' ears.
This brought a heavy reaction from the people of the city.
"This can't be! Are we doomed now? First the church, now the baron…is our city on the verge of destruction?"
"I do not know. My hopes are gone, I lost everything to his war. If only…if only those demons didn't do anything. Why can't we eradicate the demons from this world already!?"
"Calm down, the massacre on the Baron's family was by humans."
"You can't be joking!?"
"Yes, the general has sent the body to the marquess to investigate the origin of the culprit. But you are still right. If it weren't for the demons, at least the church and the general would have their hands free and might have been able to stop this disaster."
No matter what, hatred mainly went toward the demons. They were also humans, so in their hearts, they stopped themselves from criticizing them. But demons, being notorious in this world, were an easy scapegoat for blaming.
Also, Benimaru's fame began to grow ever after this.
"So, a new organization has emerged, and it is led by demons? This is rare."
The people were surprised when they heard this. Demons would mainly build a kingdom rather than some organization or team, as their hearts, which desired domination and conquer, suited best for kingdom building.
There has never been a group of demons who created an organization with a different goal than conquering. This was the very first in the history of the world.
"This organization is called Masked Fools, do you know what their goals are?"
"Hahaha…you won't believe it if I say it to you. It is to bring justice to innocent demons."
"Wha– hahahahaha…..is this a fucking joke?"
Instead of bringing concern and fear about Benimaru's organization, it brought disdain. which was still considered fame as his name spread throughout the city and even the surrounding cities.
…
Two days later.
Migotanie City was rejuvenating under everyone's hands as they joined together. But today, everyone decided to have their days off.
Because today was Arash's burial.
So, people from nearby cities and their lords—mostly barons—came to see him off for the last time. Not only them, but Ana has come back with her friend, Lily.
On the city's square, thousands of people had occupied the roads and the rooms. However, they didn't go into the middle of the square, as it was occupied by Arash's family members and a few influential people. They were standing before a coffin where Arash was resting.
No one talked to others, remaining as pin-drop silent as possible. Children also didn't speak, as they were heavily warned by their parents.
This silence continued on for three minutes before Haitam came beside Ana and a young man who looked very similar to Arash. This was Arlon, to whom Arash wanted to pass his crown.
"It is time." Haitam said it as respectfully and softly as possible.
Ana and Arlon looked at their father's coffin with a somber gaze. Ana stayed silent, not giving a reply, but Arlon spoke on her behalf. "Let's go."
The soldiers took the coffin on their shoulders and walked toward the castle, where a royal graveyard was placed. Arash's family walked behind him as they quietly followed. But if one looked carefully, there were a couple more smaller coffins behind Arash's family. These were the dead bodies of Arash's children and wives who were killed. However, there were more who were killed at Okarino and his men's hands, but their bodies were so dismembered, it was hard to recognize them.
It took twenty minutes to reach the graveyard and bury them.
Cru-thud.
Ana watched the graveyard's gate get closed. Her somber look returned to calmness. Then she walked toward her room, while Nina followed alongside her.
"Is it true that humans are responsible for this?" Ana asked her, not wanting to hear a negative response.
"Yes, princess."
"Has the marquess sent any report about who it might be?"
"This…" Nina hesitated a bit before answering. "I do not know. Since we sent that body, their side has been awfully quiet. Every time we try to ask them to give an answer, they try to deviate from the topic in another direction. It is as if they are afraid of speaking about it."
Ana went silent for a moment, thinking of something. Then she said, "With marquess strength and power under his arsenal, it isn't very hard for him to find out about a person who is just at Peak Fleshcrafting Realm."
Nina also felt weird and suspicious about this, which made her guess many things.
At that moment, they arrived in front of Ana's room. She entered her room while talking to Nina. "Okay, you may leave."
Nina watched Ana disappear into her room with a bit of sadness in her eyes. She could feel and see the change in Ana. She was a very cheerful and well hearted girl who loved hanging out with her close ones as much as possible.
'There seems to be a killing intent revolving around you, young lady, every time. I hope she doesn't go down the wrong path.' Nina left while expressing her concern.
Inside Ana's room.
"This happened after my duel with Troy. But that wasn't enough for me to mark him as a suspect. However, after spending some time in the academy, I became familiar with Troy's character. He is a person who hates to be stepped down by others." Ana pondered out loud as a chilling whisper escaped her mouth. "And the marquess's hesitation to open up has made my assumption more firm. The Marquess is only scared of the duke and king."
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