Chapter 37: Mother and Daughter – 3

Mari had always had a strained relationship with Flantsu.

From their first meeting, things weren’t great, and both of them openly disliked each other.

However, aside from that, the gift… no, the offering she brought, made Mari forget about her feelings for a moment.

Judah, the witch, whose eyes and mouth were covered and whose movements were restricted by ropes, managed to make Mari temporarily forget her emotions.

Judah had once been a disciple whom Mari raised with trust and affection.

Yet, she was one of the people who betrayed Mari at a crucial moment.

However, when Mari saw her face again, it wasn’t Mari who first expressed anger.

“You bastard! Just in time, I’ll deal with you right now!”

“Irushil.”

Irushil, who was about to draw her holy sword in anger, was stopped by Mari.

Mari then looked at Flantsu with a slightly stiff voice and asked:

“What does that person have to do with this? Are you suggesting we kill her right now?”

“Well, that’s not a bad idea, but… it would be a bit too much of a waste to let her go that easily.”

Flantsu was aware of Mari’s situation and knew the reason behind bringing Judah, her former disciple and sworn enemy.

Considering their past relationship, it was clear this wasn’t out of kindness, but rather something more akin to a “deal.”

Then, Flantsu continued.

“I don’t need to say this, but this item is more important to you than to me. It’s only right that something useful is given to the person who needs it, and in return, you should receive what you’re owed, don’t you think?”

Mari, after frowning slightly at Flantsu’s words, grew serious and asked:

“What is it that you want?”

“Heh…”

If it’s something of that magnitude, surely she would want more than just this.

Seeing Mari’s questioning look, Flantsu answered with an unpleasant smile:

“What I want is very simple. I want you to take the place next to Kesar.”

“!?”

“…? What are you talking about…”

Mari’s face stiffened in shock, while Irushil simply showed a confused expression.

The phrase “take the place next to Kesar”…

It didn’t seem to just mean stepping down from the position of Demon Lord and giving way… it wasn’t something that simple.

After all, it was an absurd request, similar to a knight telling a lord to step down and give up their seat.

Irushil, who was already questioning this strange order, suddenly had a thought.

‘…Huh? Wait a second… could it be?’

A fact suddenly passed through her mind.

It was so absurd that she shook her head without realizing it.

‘No… no way. What am I even thinking? This can’t be what it means. It’s impossible that my master, of all people, would do something like that.’

For a moment, she considered the possibility that “next to him” could mean something between a man and a woman, but then she immediately dismissed it as truly ridiculous.

Even though Kesar was a Demon Lord now, it hadn’t even been a full year since they parted ways.

There was no way Mari, of all people, would develop feelings for that wicked Demon Lord.

It was nothing like a “prince charming coming to the rescue” situation; it seemed utterly impossible…

‘Wait… hold on. Didn’t they say Kesar was the one who saved my master?’

Thinking back to what she had heard about her master’s current situation, she started to wonder if there could be some truth to this, even though it seemed unbelievable.

‘No… no way… But wait? Now that I think about it, my master was saved by that Demon Lord Kesar, wasn’t she?’

At that point, Irushil couldn’t help but think that maybe… just maybe, there was some truth to this.

“Are you saying that I should completely give up on being with that man?”

‘…What?’

Unfortunately, Irushil’s suspicion turned out to be true.

“Not exactly. I’m a generous person, despite how it may seem. I’ve been in love with him for a long time, and as the woman who knows him better than anyone, I simply want to make it clear that I am the one who holds the position as his consort.”

“…Consort…”

The clear and unmistakable disgust was evident on her face.

The overwhelming emotion that confirmed this situation wasn’t just some nonsense made Irushil feel dizzy, as though her head were spinning.

No way.

Her mother.

The woman who had fought for her life all this time, had feelings for that man(?).

Irushil, despite witnessing this in real-time, simply couldn’t accept it.

In the midst of feeling as though the world were spinning around her, she momentarily lost her grip on reality.

At that very moment, Mari, the person at the center of it all, had already finished her calculations, all within the coldest of emotions.

… Not a bad deal, is it?

Mari had already accepted the reality of her feelings toward Kesar.

However, beyond that, could she truly become that man’s consort… his first one?

Mari could only firmly say no to that question.

She wasn’t a demon.

Thanks to the Demon Lord’s power, she had become a half-demon, but at her core, she was still human.

The fact that the Holy Sword had no effect on her was a clear indication of that.

More than that, she couldn’t deny the emotions of the person in front of her, Flantsu.

Flantsu had known Kesar for only about a year.

While her knowledge of him had been longer, when compared to Flantsu, Mari was at a disadvantage in every way: in the time they’d known him and the depth of their affection for him.

Having once been a person capable of love, Mari didn’t want to shatter someone else’s love just to take it for herself.

In this situation, if taking an uncertain position could help her fulfill some part of her lifelong goal of revenge, then that was certainly not a bad deal.

‘Besides… if I’m bound by this kind of contract, finding my own place will likely be easier…’

Once the first position was secured, finding the next one would probably be much easier.

In essence, receiving implicit consent from Flantsu, who was considered the biggest obstacle, would be like clearing the greatest wall.

After making her decision, Mari answered in a quiet voice.

“…Understood. I’ll do it.”

“Heh, thank you.”

For the first time, Flantsu smiled at her with sincerity.

Then, she handed Mari the rope she had been holding, the same rope that had been used to bind Judah.

Tied up and with her eyes and mouth covered, Judah could only helplessly follow the Demon Lord’s lead as she was dragged somewhere, like a dog.

As she was being led, an ever-growing sense of doubt filled her mind.

This made her feel a nauseating level of anxiety and fear.

What was going to happen to her?

What did the Demon Lord have planned for her?

Though she had been told she would be spared, it was obvious that she wouldn’t be sent home quietly.

At first glance, it seemed like she was being dragged along in an attempt to extract some information from her.

Even if that were the case, it was highly unlikely that she would come out of it unscathed.

As for Judah herself, she was more than willing to tell everything she knew truthfully, in order to survive.

However, there was a catch: they wouldn’t be able to tell if what she said was true or false.

To figure that out, it would be necessary to gain some level of trust, which would surely involve… interrogation.

“Torture,” as it was commonly known, would likely be on the table.

‘I… I have to endure. I need to survive and find a way to turn this around…’

Judah struggled to push down her fear, steeling herself to make it through and find a chance for a comeback.

At that moment.

-Thunk!

“21”

In the next instant, her gag and blindfold were suddenly removed.

The sudden light made Juda squint and slowly open her eyes again.

With fear of what the terrifying Demon Lord might do next, she hesitated.

But then…

“Uh…?”

A person began to appear in front of her.

The moment Judah saw the figure, her mind went completely blank, as if everything she had been thinking disappeared in an instant.

It wasn’t the Demon Lord standing there, nor a hulking demon torturer.

It was a face she knew well, far too well.

But it was also a face that, to Judah, she never wanted to see again.

The moment she recognized that face…

Judah began to be overwhelmed by a fear that was beyond anything she had imagined, far surpassing any “torture” she had anticipated.

“Ah… no… no… that… it can’t be… you… how… how are you…?”

Her voice trembled as she forced the words out, her body shaking with extreme fear.

The person before her was…

Her former master.

The one she had once trusted.

The man slowly unfolded the eerie black wings attached to his back, and in a chilling voice, he spoke.

“…It’s been a long time… my former disciple.”