Chapter 93

“That’s my Catherine, right?”

“What nonsense are you spouting all of a sudden, Yulia?”

“Huh? Is it not?”

“Of course it’s not.”

I easily brushed off Yulia, who suddenly interrupted with her nonsense, and thus I became bound by a contract with the former Demon King. Along the way, I also learned the name of the entity I had contracted with. Etrea. I smacked her forehead lightly with my palm as she winked, telling me to call her Leah, and then I got on with the cleanup. First, I dealt with the royal family of the Kingdom of Altain, and then I took out the remnants of the demons one by one.

“By the way, if we leave him alive, how will we announce the Demon King’s fall? There’s no way we can call Leah the Demon King.”

“Can’t we just grab some suitable fool and slice him up?”

As I said that, I swung my sword at a demon lurking nearby who hadn’t noticed they’d been spotted. The surprised demon revealed itself, looking way too shocked as I lunged my sword at it. It turned out to be a tall, old demon dressed somewhat formally. The old demon, thrown off by my sudden attack, fended off my sword with a spray of magic. Oh, you think you can block this?

“What—”

“Wait, there’s a demon hiding?”

“Huh…? That demon…?”

Unlike the other demons I had encountered, this old man demon seemed determined to fight back. But ultimately, he stood no chance against my blade. In a swift movement, my sword cut through his heart and neck in one strike. In just a single blow, I reclaimed the old demon’s head.

There was something about this demon that felt stronger than those I’ve encountered who claimed to be the Four Heavenly Kings. Perhaps it was due to the surprise attack, but he couldn’t even resist properly before my sword claimed his head. Honestly, even if he was strong, it didn’t feel like a huge difference. But hey, weren’t the Four Heavenly Kings supposed to be the strongest aside from the Demon King? Why was there a demon stronger than them?

As I pondered that, Yulia quietly murmured, “The original Demon King?”

“Huh? Saintess, what did you just say?”

“Oh, it’s nothing.”

Realizing she had let something slip, Yulia quickly shook her head, but I heard her. The original Demon King, huh? What did ‘original’ mean in this context? Lilian had mentioned that it was strange for Yulia to be this strong without much effort.

She even got good grades without attending classes at the academy. She also seemed oddly familiar with the manners of nobles. If you think about it that way, the idea of ‘reincarnators’ is odd. Lilian and I achieved our status through a lot of hard work.

But Yulia hadn’t put in any effort at all. With that thought in mind, she likely had a high chance of being a time traveler. Of course, it was possible she misspoke or knew about the Demon King from the beginning, but just considering this possibility made me suspicious of her.

But honestly, how serious could my suspicion be? I mean, since I had already defeated the Demon King, the original story was practically over. From here, a different story would unfold.

“Looks like the cleanup is done, so let’s head back.”

“Yes.”

“Right.”

With the head of the demon who would become the Demon King and a poor vampire who had been held captive by the Demon King, I left the Demon King’s Castle behind.

“I heard the Demon King’s Castle has fallen.”

“Really?”

Marcia, who had been attending to Princess Chloe’s nails, suddenly brought it up as if it had just come to her mind. Princess Chloe nodded casually in response. The news of the Demon King’s Castle falling indicated that they had succeeded in defeating the Demon King. After all, with Catherine leading the charge, there was no way they could lose. If, by any chance, Catherine had been defeated, she’d probably be begging the demons to kneel and spare her kind.

Catherine was already incredibly strong without magic. Once she unleashed her magical power, she was practically the strongest on the continent. She herself didn’t seem very interested in that, though.

“I’ve also heard that Crown Prince Jeron has taken an interest.”

“…I can’t let her be given to someone like Jeron.”

To put it bluntly, if Chloe could have Catherine, she’d willingly give up her coveted imperial throne. Of course, as a princess, it would be impossible for her to go into exile, but they could probably live together in some quiet countryside.

Not that Jeron truly saw Catherine as a romantic prospect. He would probably just be interested in the strongest person on the continent, trying his luck. If she fell into his hands, that would be a bonus, but if not, at least he would’ve made his mark.

Moreover, unlike the Saintess, Catherine had no ties. Sure, she belonged to the House of Marquis of Portus, but if she received a noble title, the house couldn’t bind her anymore, making her practically independent. Of course, given Catherine’s character, she would likely stay close to Lilian regardless of whether she received a title or not.

Thinking that way, I felt a wave of despair wash over me for the future. Why did it have to be Lilian? Of course, I knew the reason. I had done my homework. From the moment Lilian saved Catherine, who was dying on the street, to the strong attachment she had for her. Chloe was well aware of their relationship. Therefore, it was a bond that would be hard to break.

For now, it would be wise to maintain the status quo. After all, their relationship was closer to that of a master and servant than lovers. Because of that, the stone I had cast would be creating ripples in Catherine’s heart. At least, that’s what Chloe thought. She was able to be so relaxed because she didn’t know that Lilian had already confessed to Catherine. As she considered this, Chloe slowly lifted her teacup.

Meanwhile, at that very moment, Yulia was hearing a shocking confession.

“…Wait. Lilian confessed? To Your Highness?”

“Yeah, the princess did it a while ago.”

While Sir Karon, Cardinal Besalon, and Crown Prince Jeron were busy interrogating Jinjo from behind, Katherine had noticed that there were no distractions and stopped Yulia to discuss a problem, which Yulia was more than willing to help with.

“So, what are you going to do? Is it even possible for Catherine to be into girls?”

“Yeah. If there’s a will, there’s a way.”

“….”

Since Catherine had the mind of a man, dating a woman was closer to being straight than gay, but Yulia didn’t know that and could only be shocked. Of course, the church didn’t prohibit same-sex relationships. After all, there were countries in the continent where same-sex marriage was legal, and wasn’t it the goddess who first took an interest in the Saintess and ended up being intimate?

And that very goddess was right in front of Yulia. Yet, while it wasn’t a world where same-sex relationships were normalized, it was understandable for Yulia to be taken aback.

“Oh really?”

But amid the shock, Yulia couldn’t help but feel relieved. After all, she was feeling emotions she had never felt in all those countless reincarnations, all because of the woman right in front of her. It made her wonder if she had always liked women.

But to say that would be odd since she felt nothing for the equally beautiful Lilian.

“…So, I don’t know what to do.”

“Hmm. Sorry, Catherine.”

“Huh?”

“I also like you.”

“….”

Well, that didn’t cause much of a surprise. Yulia thought as she smiled brightly. Her sun-like blonde hair danced in the breeze. The smile lingering on her lips seemed more genuine than ever.

“Yulia.”

“Yeah?”

“Do you really like me?”

As Catherine said this, there was a hint of doubt and concern in her eyes. Seeing that made Yulia gather the courage to share her biggest secret. So, in the slip of courage, Yulia said it.

“Yeah. It’s the first time I’ve felt this way in all my lives.”

“….”

“You kind of had an inkling, right? Or not? Did you not realize?”

“Recently… I figured it out.”

“Really? So you weren’t that interested in me.”

To be honest, I hadn’t meant to hide it at all. Yulia gently hugged Catherine. Though she wasn’t that tall, it looked like Catherine was the one being embraced. Yulia didn’t mind though; she stood on her tiptoes and whispered in Catherine’s ear.

“In all my reincarnations, this is the first time I’ve felt something like this. Yes, Catherine. I also like you.”

“…I’ll think about it.”

“Okay.”

With a bright smile, Yulia stepped back from Catherine and cheerfully said.

“So the answer to your consultation is simple: just go out with me. Does that help?”

“Sadly, no.”

“That’s too bad.”

Yulia chuckled cheerfully as she began to distance herself. Even she found it a bit hard to face Catherine directly after confessing. As Yulia walked away, Catherine let out a small sigh.