I sat beside Hiana, and Ayre jumped from one of the wyverns that one of her underlings was riding on, then rushed over to me.
"Are you all right, my lord!?" She was shocked.
"You focus on her." I gave the order.
She looked like she wanted to ask more but instead said. "I will, my lord."
The healing shapeshifters surrounded me, then Velvet and Emily sat across from me.
"Are you all right, my lord?" They asked simultaneously and then exchanged glances.
I chuckled, about to answer, but Hiana screamed.
"Let me go!!!" Hiana couldn't move when her body was placed in a flatter place. "What are you going to do to me!?"
"Actually, where will you send her, my lord?" Velvet narrowed her eyes as Ayre created a magic circle that glowed yellow under the demon woman's body.
"To a very distant past, before this world even existed." By world, I mean this Mistrea planet. "Basically, we didn't kill her. So, she won't be reborn here."
Seeing Hiana start twitching, Ayre sped up the ritual. The shapeshifter general cast an incantation at rapid intervals, thrust a Mythril blade into the magic circle and sprinkled giganpoppy powder.
As the light from the magic circle grew brighter, the demon woman started to rise to her feet.
"Damn it." I forced myself to get up, even though my pain and tiredness were unbearable.
"Let me do it." Emily walked quickly towards that demon woman. "You stay there."
"This is dangerous, Emily," Ayre warned the undead supreme, who was very close to the magic circle. "You can get sucked in if a small part of your body is in the area of the magic circle when the ritual is active."
Emily sneered at Hiana, who finally stood up.
"What do you want?" The demon woman growled. "You don't deserve to stand in front of me."
"Holy shit." The supreme undead sneered. "You fucking ugly."
"What…."
Emily held Hiana's head, then pushed it to the ground. She then muttered to Ayre, "Something like this won't reduce the effectiveness of this ritual, right?"
"Not at all." Ayre looked at the head of the demon woman who had almost half sunk into the ground. "This will actually keep her from escaping."
"It's all good, then." The supreme undead turned around.
"You can't do this!!! I am the greatest being in this world!!!" Hiana sounded like she was crying like a child. "I am Hiana, the demon lord!!! I…."
The demon woman's voice was muffled as the light from the magic circle grew brighter. Not long after, when the light disappeared, Hiana's figure also disappeared. All that's left is the magic circle, the Mythril knife that still sticks to the ground, and Olivia's body that the demon woman used. The former noble lady was covered in wounds, and she was unconscious.
"We can only send Hiana, my lord," Ayre explained. "So, this woman will stay here, maybe inherit some of Hiana's power. We have to keep an eye on her. Maybe there is something useful for us."
I lay down while the healing shapeshifters treated my body. After going through a formidable hurdle, this is finally over.
***
I was lying on a bed, already back to my human form, and my body was covered in bandages.
Fuck.
Despite taking tons of painkilling potions, the pain in my body was getting worse, and I had difficulty moving.
Besides that, I also felt that something was wrong inside me. But I have a hard time explaining it.
I then checked my hand, which was shaking like crazy.
Lexi and Ayre approached me after discussing something in the room's corner.
"You girls bring bad news, right?" I could tell from their expressions. Lexi's eyes were filled with tears, and Ayre's face looked tense.
"Unfortunately, that's what happened, my lord," Ayre answered while closing her eyes.
Lexi took a deep breath. "It turns out that part of humanity is still in your body, although it's so small that I missed finding it. The thing is, your humanity is what allows you to survive…. You could say that's what keeps your soul. Unfortunately, that thing is deteriorating."
Ah, my soul is a human, after all, huh?
"In short, if that part of your humanity completely disappears, you can no longer survive. Your body will only become an empty shell." Ayre continued. "That fight just sped things up."
Lexi brought her face closer to mine. "But you don't need to worry, my lord. As you have said many times, we do the impossible many times. I will try my best to heal you."
This may be the most determined expression Lexi has ever shown. That made me put on a big smile.
"I believe in you." I wiped her tears. "I know everything will be fine with you girls taking care of me."
"And there's one more thing, your highness. Maybe it's just as bad as what Doc just said…." Ayre rubbed her face. "Those ragmonuk metals inside your body are extremely unstable. Your body has mostly become a demon, but it rejects the metals. I can't explain why that happened. But like Doc, I will try to make you okay too…. I swear, my lord."
I paused. "Is that why I don't feel a surge of power like after I got the ragmonuk infusion procedure?"
"Yeah, to be honest, your power is now only on par with you before being 'killed' by Hiana." Ayre resumed. "And because of the instability in your body, I would strongly suggest that you don't fight for the time being. I'm afraid that will make that instability even worse. This instability could take your life as well."
"I see." I looked down at my hand, which was still shaking. It turns out that such power has a hefty price, too.
"We'll do another check on you," Ayre added with a sigh. "But you can still rest."
"Okay, I'll get some sleep. If you're tired, take a rest too." I closed my eyes.
There is no use in fear or doubt. I have great underlings. They can heal me.
I'm not going to give up so easily. If I give up, what will my followers say?
The source of this c𝐨ntent is freewe(b)nov𝒆l