“No. It’s just about getting out of the castle, isn’t it? Of course, if that were the case, the Aurora Orb with Eyes wouldn’t have appeared...”
“I see.”
See? Isn’t that a bit too simple?
My mind was momentarily a whirl of confusion.
So, wait, are you telling me Meteor stayed inside that ice fortress—the one raining down those killer snow bombs—and only found the Aurora Orb with Eyes because he stayed put?
Dodging and dealing with all those snow bombs along the way?
I scanned Meteor from head to toe. For someone who had just been in the middle of that obliterated ice fortress, he looked way too unharmed.
Unable to believe it, I circled him, inspecting him thoroughly.
“What the—! Are you hurt anywhere? Are your arms broken, or is your head smashed in? No, wait, shouldn’t you have been buried under the debris of that ice fortress? How are you even alive?”
“....”
Meteor furrowed his brows.
Was I being too dramatic?
But it was impossible not to be in this situation.
Once I calmed down a bit, I admired him again.
“You’re seriously amazing. Something truly insane must’ve happened in there. Compared to what I went through when I got dragged off, your ordeal must’ve been way worse.”
“But Crescent.”
“Yeah?”
“What kind of demon was Duke Winterly?”
Meteor turned his head toward me as he asked.
I locked eyes with him.
He didn’t seem to care at all about the near-death experience he must have had. All he wanted to know was about Duke Winterly.
“That demon was ridiculously loyal to the Demon King. He even prepared a birthday cake, saying today was the Demon King’s birthday.”
“The Demon King’s birthday?”
“Yeah. That’s why I ended up stuck in the kitchen, doing tons of work.”
“So that’s why you said you were a kitchen servant.”
“Yep.”
“Was there anything else out of the ordinary?”
“Out of the ordinary?”
At my question, Meteor nodded once.
I pretended to ponder for a moment before opening my mouth.
“Well... He did say he was going to the Demon King’s castle with the finished cake. Said it was a tribute for the Demon King.”
“The Demon King’s castle...”
Meteor muttered, looking slightly surprised.
A brief silence fell between us.
I debated whether or not to thank him for finding the Aurora Orb with Eyes and saving us.
But thanking him felt like a blatant lie.
Meteor wasn’t the one who opened the exit.
I knew exactly why that exit had opened, and I just couldn’t bring myself to thank him for it.
Ack!
Outside the black lake of the Demon Realm, under the vividly burning red crescent moon, Baal retched several times, emptying the contents of his stomach.
He was determined to purge every trace of the filthy cake that the human girl had made for her father.
Even though he had already vomited out everything he had eaten, he was far from satisfied.
“...Lloyd, I’ll make sure every last crumb of the cake your daughter made ends up at the bottom of this black lake.”
Not a single particle of that cake would be digested.
Fortunately, Lloyd had exhausted his powers and couldn’t interfere with Baal’s actions. For the time being, nothing would stand in his way.
Content with this realization, Baal wiped his mouth and let his eyes gleam.
The memory of that human girl brazenly appearing before him was still fresh in his mind.
What an audacious little human.
To insult him, the Demon King, by using demons as her pawns!
With Lloyd silenced for now, Baal felt a strong instinct—this time, Crescent Delight had to be eliminated.
Her mere existence had too much influence on Lloyd.
The idea that she would bake a birthday cake and bring it to the Demon King’s castle was something Baal would never have imagined in his wildest dreams.
And yet, how much stronger had Lloyd become, even momentarily, because of it?
Just thinking about it made Baal seethe. He needed to eliminate Crescent as soon as possible.
The crescent moon illuminating the dark skies of the Demon Realm burned even redder, and the bare, skeletal trees swayed eerily in the wind.
Suddenly, someone emerged, cutting through the oppressive darkness.
A figure with dazzling golden hair that rippled like flames and arrogant golden eyes appeared, radiating an overwhelming aura that commanded awe.
The person’s mere presence exuded such power and magnificence that it could silence anyone.
This was none other than Lagos Damascus, Duke of Dimensions, ranked first in the Demon Realm’s hierarchy below the Demon King himself.
With a brilliance unmatched, Damascus stepped forward and bowed respectfully before Baal.
“You summoned me, Your Majesty.”
“Damascus.”
Baal’s deep voice called his name as he approached the Duke with unhurried steps.
The Duke of Dimensions was Baal’s most powerful and loyal vassal, created long ago from a fragment of Baal’s own power.
As his title implied, Damascus possessed a unique ability to traverse and observe dimensions, a power so immense that Baal rarely summoned him unless absolutely necessary.
Standing poised, Damascus addressed Baal with a composed yet curious tone.
“You didn’t summon me just for conversation, I presume. Is it finally time for me to act?”
His dazzling golden eyes sparkled with respect and interest.
But Baal, not in the mood for pleasantries, sharpened his pitch-black gaze.
“Strange, isn’t it? While I was absent from the Demon Realm, it seems all my demons turned into worthless weaklings. Not a single one of them has properly carried out my orders.”
Baal’s irritation was palpable.
He had commanded demons, including the likes of Rohert Aldred, to eliminate Crescent, but not one of them had succeeded.
Instead of delivering her demise, all he heard were reports of their failures—and deaths.
If Baal had handled it himself, Crescent would have been killed thousands of times over by now.
If only Lloyd hadn’t been in the way.
No, if only that daughter of his hadn’t existed...!
Damascus, perceptive as ever, noticed the storm of emotions swirling in Baal’s eyes. Straightening his slightly bowed posture, he smirked faintly, his golden gaze now more serious.
“I will not fail you, Your Majesty. Grant me the chance, and I, Lagos, will resolve this matter immediately.”
“You might find it disappointing once you learn the details. It’s merely about eliminating a human girl.”
“A human girl?”
Damascus’s brow twitched in slight surprise before he broke into a satisfied smile.
“It seems the morale of our demons truly has plummeted in your absence, Your Majesty. To think they failed to handle such a trivial matter. Rest assured, I will take care of it this time.”
“Good.”
Baal responded curtly.
It was only natural that such a minor task should be dealt with effortlessly. The demons who had failed to kill Crescent were nothing but fools and incompetents.
Without further delay, the Duke of Dimensions tore open a rift in the void and disappeared.
Finally, a twisted smile crept across Baal’s face.
Lagos Damascus would undoubtedly accomplish what he desired with ease.
“Lloyd, you can’t hear me anyway, but let me tell you something. Your daughter is as good as dead this time.
And once she’s gone, you’re as good as dead too.
This useless bond between us is finally about to end.”
Heh heh heh.
Baal couldn’t suppress the low, sinister laugh that escaped him.
The moment of his liberation was now within reach.
***
The Duke of Dimensions, Lagos Damascus, once again tore through the void and emerged in another space.
This exalted power was unique to Damascus, the only one in the Demon Realm who possessed it.
Originally, it had been the Demon King’s ability, but the Demon King had separated a portion of his power to create another mighty demon.
From his very inception, Lagos had been destined to support and serve the Demon King.
And so, the fact that he had been entrusted with a mission that would bring joy to the Demon King filled him with immense satisfaction.
The place Lagos arrived at was none other than his Dimensional Domain, the space he ruled over.
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The Dimensional Domain, fitting for a ruler of all dimensions, defied conventional boundaries. There was no distinction between sky and ground, nor between right and left.
It was a realm where the very concept of orientation had been obliterated, reflecting the boundless authority and majesty of its master.