Chapter 456: Dark Demon and the Twelve Handmaidens (66.5/233)
The Duke’s Mansion of the Demon family was located in the northern suburbs of the Capital City, built against a mountain ridge and facing south.
The estate was vast, with flower gardens, landscaped parks, and even a training ground. The flowing water from the mountain wall behind the backyard formed a waterfall, and the pond beneath the waterfall housed rare aquatic creatures.
Dark had grown up in the mansion since childhood, naturally being very familiar with it. He once built a treehouse on a giant tree on the back mountain, though it leaked air from all sides, it still stood.
Only until he was eight or nine did Dark realize that the back mountain wasn’t actually safe—his self-proclaimed secret actions were always under the watchful eye of the old butler.
After the old butler retired, he never returned to the back mountain again.
Now, the mansion was managed by Lady Jasmine, the daughter of the old butler and the chief maid. Lady Jasmine, who was nearly thirty, remained unmarried, causing concern for the Duke.
Under Lady Jasmine’s supervision, there were twelve handmaidens teams, each led by a team leader responsible for different duties, supporting the entire mansion.
…
A short while later, Claire guided the wyvern to fly near the Duke’s Mansion.
Dark looked down at the brightly lit mansion, feeling a twinge of nostalgia.
Finally home!
“Sit tight!” Claire suddenly reminded him.
Dark felt a sudden tightening at the back of his head, then experienced a floating sensation.
The wyvern, under Claire’s control, rapidly descended, landing swiftly on the dragon training ground in front of the door.
The nearby guards glanced over briefly before turning away.
Their duty was to protect the mansion, not to engage in formalities.
Welcoming the young master home was the task of the maids.
Once the wyvern landed safely, Claire loosened the reins, clapped her hands, and a waiting dragon trainer approached them, bowing respectfully.
Claire leaped off the wyvern, saying to the trainer, “Give it some raw beef; we’ll reward it tonight.”
The wyvern, which had accompanied her for over a decade, shook its head joyfully.
At the same time, Dark was gently placed on the ground by Alvaraite.
He awkwardly broke free from his mother’s embrace, pretending to adjust his collar.
Even though he had regained his memories from his past life… no, precisely because he had, he found himself increasingly helpless with his overly indulgent mother.
Alvaraite was very fragile. Whenever he acted rebellious, just a few harsh words could make her heartbroken.
So, when talking to Alvaraite, he dared not be rude.
And now, he certainly wouldn’t dare.
Dark took a deep breath and shook his head toward the mansion’s entrance.
One of the two gatekeepers, seeing him look, instinctively shrank back.
Dark couldn’t help but smile, remembering the mischief he had done to this gatekeeper in the past.
“I should compensate him if I have the chance,” he thought, waving to the golems.
The imp beast quickly flew onto his shoulder, while Meow, Deoxys, and Eevee came to his feet.
Dark pointed towards the mansion, smiling under the light: “Do you see it? This is your home!”
…
The mansion’s grand doors slowly opened with a mechanical sound.
When Dark snapped back to reality, his right arm was tightly held by Alvaraite.
“Let’s go. Your favorite sister, Olivia, made your favorite lamb meat. She assured me that it will make you forget about the half-elf chef’s cooking.”
Dark rubbed his nose uncomfortably and said, “Olivia’s lamb meat is indeed delicious, but I might not eat too much.”
Olivia Demon.
She was one of the maids given the surname “Demon” by Alvaraite and inherited the name “Aries.”
The twelve handmaidens teams of the mansion were named after the zodiac signs. Each team leader was personally selected by Alvaraite for their talents.
Only those recognized by the twelve Golden Holy Armors were granted the title “Demon,” becoming the most trusted confidants of the mansion.
The twelve Golden Holy Armors were “Armed Cards” designed based on the twelve constellations. They could enhance the user’s strength and agility by hundreds of times, and each had unique powers.
Alvaraite relied on the power of the twelve Golden Holy Armors to become a Valkyrie.
However, she only possessed half of the Golden Holy Armors, so currently, only six out of the twelve team leaders had been granted the title “Demon.”
Olivia Demon was the first among the six to obtain the recognition of the Golden Holy Armor!
Her “Aries Team” was responsible for the mansion’s food supply, specifically the kitchen.
This was somewhat different from what Alvaraite had in mind.
Dark often pestered her to make lamb meals every day because she was “Aries,” not because he truly loved lamb meat!
Olivia was chosen at age six and brought into the mansion, earning the “Aries Holy Armor” recognition at thirteen. She had served in the mansion for twelve years.
As the youngest maid at the time, she also acted as the young master’s playmate.
When the nanny was busy, she would occasionally help change the young master’s diaper…
In short, that was her role.
Dark was dragged into the mansion by Alvaraite, and two rows of maids stood on either side of the stone path.
Vigo, who was in charge of “etiquette,” stepped out from the line and said, “Young Master, welcome back.”
Looking at the maid Vigo’s formulaic smile, Dark couldn’t help but recall the painful days when she used a ruler to teach him noble etiquette.
He smiled slightly and said, “Miss Vigo, let them all go and rest early.”
Vigo struggled to hide her surprise but still said, “Since Young Master has arranged it, I’ll send them to rest.”
The two rows of maids bowed in unison, saying, “Thank you, Young Master!”
This uniform response finally gave Dark a sense of being an unruly young master, making him shake his head and pull Alvaraite along faster.
A moment later, he walked through the rows of maids and entered the indoor corridor.
As for what the maids would discuss after he left, he could guess they would talk about how “Young Master looks more handsome than ever.”
…
In the luxurious dining room adorned with silver decorations, Olivia carefully arranged the cut lamb meat on a plate and prepared three small dishes of sauce.
Beside the lamb meat, there was a dish similar to spaghetti and a pot of lemon tea from the Free City.
It was already past eight forty in the evening, well past dinner time.
The food on the table was all prepared for the young master.
Thinking about the young master returning tonight, Olivia couldn’t help but smile warmly.
Even though he appeared troublesome to others, she saw him as just a mischievous younger brother.
From the moment she entered the mansion at six, seeing the delicate baby, she knew her life was irrevocably tied to his.
Whether as a maid or a sister, she embraced it wholeheartedly.
In short, no one in the mansion was innocent in shaping Dark Demon.
…
When Dark arrived, Olivia had been waiting in the dining room for a long time.
She quickly approached Dark, restraining herself from embracing him and simply whispered, “Young Master, you’re back.”
Dark withdrew his right hand from Alvaraite’s embrace and nodded, “Olivia, where’s my lamb meat?”
“It’s right there.” Olivia moved aside, allowing Dark to see the food on the table.
Dark had already caught the scent of the lamb meat.
He bypassed Olivia and walked straight to the table.
Olivia curiously watched the golems following him and suddenly remembered something, quickly turning to say, “Don’t forget to wash your hands!”
Dark’s face stiffened, but his steps naturally led him to the washroom.
After washing his hands, he returned to the table, pulling out a chair to sit down.
Olivia laid out a napkin in front of him and stood quietly beside him.
Alvaraite and Claire sat casually at the table.
“Little Olivia, aren’t you going to prepare plates for us?” Claire teased.
Olivia blushed lightly and softly said, “Aunt Claire, if you want a night meal, I can make it for you later.”
“Forget it.” Claire waved her hand, “Bring me a bottle of wine.”
“Okay.” Olivia responded and turned to fetch the wine.
Claire took out two wine glasses, pushing one in front of Alvaraite and casually asked, “Alvaraite, would you like a glass?”
Alvaraite nodded, “Sure.”
Claire leaned back in her chair and joked, “Drinking wine, listening to music, it’s one of life’s pleasures. Since there’s no music now, why don’t you tell us some interesting stories from the academy? Your year at the academy was probably more eventful than my travels.”
Dark was spreading sauce on the lamb meat and putting it in his mouth, chewing slowly. Hearing this, he said, “Aunt Claire, it’s nothing compared to yours.”
Claire’s eyes sparkled with cunning, “Then tell us in detail.”
Dark sighed, “I’ll tell you soon… okay, later.”
Alvaraite immediately relaxed and looked forward to it.
After a while, Olivia returned with a bottle of wine.
She uncorked the bottle and poured wine into Claire and Alvaraite’s glasses.
Once she finished, Dark said, “Olivia, come sit down.”
Olivia glanced at Alvaraite and, upon receiving permission, sat down next to Dark.
Dark picked up a piece of lamb meat and fed it to the imp beast on his shoulder amidst everyone’s surprised gazes. Then, he began to recount his experiences at the academy in detail.
First, the incident involving the Moon Goddess.
Because Claire had taken over the position of Professor Didi temporarily, she knew a bit about it.
And since Alvaraite knew, she naturally knew as well.
As Dark recounted, they gradually understood more details.
“Didi Maxwell, the Tear of the Moon Goddess… So, standing from a woman’s perspective, it makes sense that she wanted to create the Tear of the Moon Goddess. But as a professor, she clearly failed.”
Alvaraite spoke calmly.
Dark intentionally avoided mentioning the dangerous parts during his description, but the listeners could easily fill in the gaps.
Still, since this was already known, there was no need to dwell on it.
Instead, the Halloween activities and ball drew more attention.
Clearly, Alvaraite cared deeply about her child’s relationships in the academy.
…
Next, Dark told them about the secret passage and the treasure inside, as well as Christmas.
This all began when Dark received the treasure map personally crafted by Alvaraite from Principal Altair.
“You got my treasure map in your first year!”
“So, you’ve already passed the checkpoint and obtained the Trinity Armored Conjure Array?”
Alvaraite was finally astonished.
Dark pulled out the “Wish Dice” magical card and waved it in front of her, then summoned a huge die.
“Do you remember this? The dice I used in the final duel contest.”
“The one from Easter?”
Alvaraite asked curiously, “This is an Armed Card!”
Dark smiled slightly and put the “Wish Dice” away, saying, “Let’s not get into that now. I’ve recorded all the scenery I encountered in the secret passage. When Lion Beast returns, I’ll show it to you!”
He continued telling about the ball on Christmas Eve and the treasure hunt in the secret passage, ending with the appearance of the vampire, Vlad!
Though he spoke lightly, Alvaraite couldn’t help but grip Claire’s arm tightly.
She found it hard to imagine that her precious child faced so many dangers in what was supposed to be a safe academy.
A vampire resurrected in the secret passage, one of the containers for the Demon King!
“This is the container you mentioned in your letter about the Demon King?”
“Yes.”
After finishing the story about the secret passage treasure hunt, Dark directly described the search for Vlad and the ceremony on Easter night.
He interspersed his account with speculations about the identity of the invisible person and the story of the Blood Princess.
“Ophelia Brad is still alive!”
The news hit Alvaraite and Claire with immense surprise.
The letter Dark sent only mentioned that the Demon King had reincarnated through a container, without any details about the process.
The truth was far more shocking!
Especially when learning that Dark used the method of turning the Blood Princess into a golem and reviving her to successfully remove the “Demon King’s Embrace,” allowing the Blood Princess to be reborn, Alvaraite couldn’t help but shed tears of relief.
Seeing the Valkyrie cry over these events, they then learned that the Demon King was likely to become brain-damaged during the reincarnation process, making their eyes reveal a strange expression.
Afterward, Dark slowly talked about the exams, the dreams he encountered on the magical train…
—
This translation aims to maintain the original narrative style and context of the fantasy anime novel while rendering it into clear and coherent English.
