‘An amazing human.’
Cain looked at Cecilia, who had boldly come to his castle, with a sentimental gaze.
No human, not even the Demon King, would dare to act this way toward him.
Isn’t it quite amusing? To him, who has endlessly repeated the same routine, this variable was a form of stimulation.
“So, what do you want to say to me?”
“I’ve come to revisit the questions from that time.”
“I’ve already answered everything, and so have you. Isn’t that enough?”
“There are still some unanswered things.”
Cain nodded slightly. It meant he would listen for now.
Cecilia said expressionlessly,
“Why do you still remain as a Duke of the Demon Realm?”
“Hmm.”
‘The current Demon King must be inconvenient for humans, right? Is this a scheme to cause internal strife and buy time?’
But upon seeing Cecilia’s attitude, Cain quickly lost interest.
“Did you come here to settle the chaos? Then go back. None of what’s happening in the Demon Realm concerns me.”
Cain’s words were empty.
The faint curiosity he had shown earlier had completely disappeared.
Cecilia glanced at such Cain, crossed her arms behind her back, and leisurely walked around.
“It’s an old castle.”
“Yeah, it’s pretty old.”
Nicely put, but it was unfit for a Duke of the Demon Realm.
Demons like to flaunt, whether it’s their strength or wealth.
All the castles of high-ranking demons witnessed in ‘Another World’ were dazzling. Back then, whenever Cecilia ran out of gold, she’d secretly take a pickaxe and chip away at the bricks of the Demon King’s Castle to sell them.
However, Cain’s castle wasn’t worth stealing from. The traps she encountered on the way here were too old to function properly, and the bricks hadn’t been repaired, showing cracks everywhere.
“But, it must have been splendid in the past, right?”
However, Cecilia could see it. She felt it on her way here—this castle’s structure was thoroughly designed for defending against ‘intruders.’
The castle structures, now faded, must have once shone brilliantly in the past.
In other words, this worn-out castle of Cain’s…
Was evidence that he once poured effort into preventing intruders with great passion and dedication.
“There was a time like that.”
Cain didn’t deny it outright. But he also didn’t feel the need to continue conversing with Cecilia.
“Last time, I was an uninvited guest too. Now, you’re also an uninvited guest. I won’t hold you responsible this time.”
It meant if she left now, he’d let her live. Cecilia spoke without looking at Cain.
“Isn’t everything boring and tedious?”
…
Cain tilted his head slightly.
It wasn’t because of the words she had spoken.
It was because of where Cecilia was heading.
In front of the door to the throne room, a sword embedded in the floor, its shine long gone.
“Don’t you sometimes worry that time might have stopped, leading you to peek into others’ timelines more often?”
Cecilia was quite far away now, but her voice sounded as if she were speaking right in front of him.
‘Wind Blessing. What a pity about her potential.’
After giving a brief evaluation, Cain intended not to allow any further conversation.
There was no need to.
But for some reason, Cain couldn’t stop.
Why?
Perhaps he found interest in a human who had reached here through unconventional means after such a long time?
Whatever it was, Cain found this moment of talking with her quite entertaining.
Cecilia muttered softly in front of the sword.
“You must have had those times too. Times when you waited anxiously for the hero, decorating this castle…”
Cecilia extended her hand, lightly gripping the hilt of the sword firmly embedded in the ground with her right hand.
Cain’s previously indifferent pupils suddenly widened.
He even rose from his throne, dazed.
“But no matter how much time passed, the hero never came. Even the strongest humans eventually faded away due to their short lifespans.”
Cecilia lifted the sword lightly, inspecting it while smiling faintly.
Though old, it was still a fine sword.
“Become the Demon King. Then, you’ll soon get to see… a hero party that might just k*ll you.”
A fleeting glimmer of life returned to Cain’s previously hollow eyes.
He sat back down and soon smirked.
“What do you gain from this?”
Cecilia responded quickly with a glint in her eye.
“At least one year. I seek a temporary peace.”
“One year? How will you form a hero party in such a short time?”
“That’s a secret. When the time comes, we’ll fight each other to the d*ath anyway, so I can’t give such crucial information to an obvious enemy.”
Cecilia walked back to Cain and extended the sword towards him.
“It’s a beautiful ornament, but wouldn’t it be better placed somewhere more impressive?”
Cain stared silently at the sword Cecilia held for a while.
An unnamed hero who had reached up to the door of the throne room but ultimately perished before stepping inside.
– “Someday, there will surely be a hero who reaches you. My resolve to eliminate demons will not fade, even if I perish here.”
For a fleeting yet immeasurable moment, memories of countless years flashed through his mind.
“This is a gift for this truce. Humans have such a culture, right? It’s a decent sword. Once the rust is removed, it should be usable again.”
This was equivalent to accepting Cecilia’s proposal.
Cecilia was genuinely pleased. Moreover, it was a sword worthy of being added to the ‘Cecilia Collection’!
‘Of course, a Demon King should show this level of conduct.’
Indeed, a Demon King must have dignity. In that regard, Cecilia found Cain very appealing.
“However, there’s something I need to tell you.”
“Yes?”
“The reason I haven’t become the Demon King isn’t because I haven’t tried; it’s because I can’t.”
“You seem powerful enough.”
“If power alone made one a Demon King, the Demon Realm would be in constant war every day.”
Cain said with curiosity evident on his face,
“High-ranking demons like me are under certain restrictions.”
Cecilia blinked.
“A curse that prevents us from killing the Demon King.”
‘So that’s why.’
This was a fact Cecilia herself didn’t know.
“In other words, for your wish to come true, you must k*ll the Demon King with your own power. Is that possible?”
“Let’s make a contract on that condition.”
Cecilia had already cut her wrist and extended it.
Cain chuckled at Cecilia’s bold move and extended his hand similarly.
The complex patterns engraved on the back of Cain’s hand glowed red.
A vast magic circle unfolded between them.
A contract with a demon.
This was the second time.
But this time, it wouldn’t be broken.
Because neither Cecilia nor Cain had any intention of breaking this contract.
Cecilia could return to the expedition camp with a clear mind.
She had successfully negotiated with Cain and agreed on when to k*ll the Demon King.
Until that time, all Cecilia had to do was simple:
‘Plan a medieval WWE.’
She needed to stretch time by orchestrating staged shows.
It was crucial not to leave any room for doubt during this process.
Cecilia immediately summoned the Knight Order.
“Would you scout this area for me? Absolutely no overexertion, and stay hidden.”
Three knights nodded and set off.
“The rest of you wait until the scouts return.”
Cecilia issued the standby order and patiently waited at the expedition camp.
‘Absolutely no achievements! Stay as quiet as possible but avoid raising suspicion while dragging this out.’
Once this hurdle was overcome, she’d be able to face the rookies with the title of a beautiful Sword Heroine…!
Just as Cecilia was burning with enthusiasm,
The three scouts faithfully executed Cecilia’s mission.
“There’s a gathering of demons over there. What should we do?”
When Riharten asked tensely, Scout Captain Rahel simply replied,
“Annihilate them.”
“But our orders were…”
“If we can do it, why not?”
‘Of course, senior knights have different judgment. Following the manual, I’ll try to minimize our presence as much as possible…’
But Rahel was already far ahead.
“Is it human?”
“Is he alone?”
“He has a wife and a girlfriend.”
“Adultery? What a sinful human.”
Rahel grinned while infusing her sword with energy.
“So, let’s k*ll you guys and find enlightenment.”
Riharten watched Rahel’s movements dumbfounded.
It took less than ten minutes to k*ll over fifty monsters and two demons.
“Wow, is this normal?”
“Well, that’s the average for our Knight Order. Hey, Rahel! Next turn is mine. I’ll k*ll them three minutes faster than you.”
“Ha, with your dull spear, do you think you can?”
“Wanna bet? Let’s grab drinks when we return.”
“Sure.”
That day, the scouting team returned after wiping out 48 demon squads.
“…Good work. Annihilating 48 squads is truly remarkable.”
‘Hey, I just told them to scout…’
Cecilia looked at the proud scouting team, sweating profusely.
“Meh, it’s nothing special.”
Rahel shrugged. Cecilia’s morale plummeted.
‘That was supposed to last a week!’
-“Isn’t this too weak? Isn’t this a trap? Yeah, it seems like a trap. Let’s be cautious.”
Thus, Cecilia’s plan to gauge the situation and match the promised timeline fell apart.
‘Ah, it’s still okay. Let’s endure by issuing commands that are as troublesome and time-consuming as possible.’
Cecilia consoled herself and issued command after command.
“Rahel, lead eight people deep into the route you just scouted, curve left, and advance. This is B, C, D, E in order. Clear up to point D and return. Advancing to point E is forbidden.”
“Herald, this is point A. Lead seven people and eliminate them.”
“Philaeon, when Rahel advances to point D, forces will cross over to point E. Take advantage of that moment to capture a mid-level demon stationed at point E.”
She deliberately chose points populated by insignificant minions, avoiding the ‘core’ areas.
And then—
“Point A eliminated.”
“Points B, C, and D have been cleared too.”
“As instructed, I captured a mid-level demon. But this guy doesn’t seem very strong?”
The Windsor Knight Order performed their missions excellently.
It took less than four days.
‘Why are they so competent! This is abnormal! Even though these aren’t the main forces, why are the Demon King’s army so weak!’
But there was a fact Cecilia herself hadn’t realized:
Cecilia liked every single member of the Windsor Knight Order.
Since she was six years old, they had always doted on her and treated her affectionately. -Actually, it was almost like joint parenting-
So, she didn’t want to send anyone to even slightly dangerous places. After all, Cain would deal with the Demon King’s forces.
If someone were to d*e in the process, there would be nothing more heartbreaking.
Therefore, Cecilia sent people to the ‘most vulnerable spots’ based on the information she collected using Wind Blessing.
It was a plan to appear capable while keeping the core intact.
It was a good strategy. If she had ordinary subordinates, it might have worked according to her plan.
The problem was that the Windsor Knight Order wasn’t just any group of knights.
The best knight order in the world. Among them were twenty-four individuals, each with the power equivalent to a squad of ordinary knights.
When given a task, achieving ten times the result was standard.
As a result, the Demon King’s army crumbled like autumn leaves—
“Thanks to the continuous efforts of the Windsor Knight Order, the d*mn demons’ formation has been shattered. Here stands the greatest general in Lianen’s history.”
‘This isn’t right…’
Cecilia had unknowingly become an exceptionally capable commander.
“We cannot sit idly either, can we? Charge forward, everyone—! Believe in the Windsor Knight Order, who changed the fifty-year-old stalemate in less than a week!”
Thus, even before the prologue began, the grand finale party started.
