“Ahem.”
Seeing that everyone had arrived, Ivelia cleared her throat softly.
The dining hall, which had been boisterous just a moment ago, instantly fell dead silent at her soft coughs.
Looking at the suddenly quiet dining hall, Zona screamed inwardly.
Are you kidding me? If your words are that effective... you should have made these rowdy people quiet down right from the start!
Why did you have to wait until everyone finished making a scene before speaking up?!
Although Ivelia noticed Zona's expression, which looked to be on the verge of collapsing, she didn't pay much attention to it.
After all, the expressions on Lin Ling's face were sometimes even more exaggerated than Zona's right now. Ivelia had long since grown used to it.
“Alright, the reason I gathered everyone today is because we have two guests here.”
As soon as Ivelia finished speaking, everyone's gaze fell upon Kainster and Zona in unison.
To be precise, most of the gazes were focused on Kainster.
After all, Aliviel had mentioned earlier that this man, dressed in plain cloth clothes and doing bizarre things with Lin Ling, was the Second Prince of Camillaya.
“Uh... hello?”
Being stared at by a group of Demon King's executives, Kainster was still somewhat nervous.
He hesitantly raised his hand and waved at everyone.
But after messing around with Lin Ling, his anxiety had lessened significantly.
After all, that girl was able to sit right next to the Demon King and accept food fed to her so naturally. Her status was definitely not low!
Since he had just become soulmates with her, at the very least, the people of the Demon King's Castle probably wouldn't execute him immediately.
Thinking of this, Kainster peeked at Zona. Then, he flashed her a triumphant smile that said his plan had succeeded.
Zona, this is my strategy of currying favor.
Watching the “everything is going according to plan” expression on Kainster's face, Zona's eye began to twitch violently.
Currying favor? You just hugged a girl you met for the first time and sobbed together over a roasted chicken! Why on earth do you think that was part of a plan?!
“Alright.”
Ivelia's gaze swept over the two.
“Do you two have anything to say?”
The moment those purple eyes locked onto them, both Kainster and Zona straightened their backs in unison.
“N-No, nothing,” Kainster answered instinctively.
“Don't worry, don't worry.”
At this moment, Lin Ling still had a chicken leg dangling from her mouth. She waved her hand dismissively at the two while chewing and speaking muffle-mouthed.
“Our Demon King's Castle doesn't have any of the weird things you guys might be imagining.”
Hearing this, Zona relaxed her body slightly.
At least this Saintess seems somewhat normal? She must be trying to comfort us.
But in the next second—
“At least, there won't be any tentacle monsters imagined by a certain someone wearing white Saintess vestments.”
Aliviel's voice drifted over from the side.
Her fork was still locked against Cecil's dining knife. Even though sparks were flying from their clashing utensils, she still didn't forget to tease Lin Ling.
Lin Ling's chewing instantly ground to a halt. She turned her head stiffly toward Aliviel.
Then, she clutched her chest with a look of utter heartbreak on her face, even managing to squeeze out two genuine tears.
“Aliviel, you've changed. You're becoming a lot like Cecil now.”
“No way!” both of them shouted simultaneously.
The dining hall fell quiet for a split second.
Red, ferocious glints flashed in the eyes of Aliviel and Cecil as they glared at each other. They had actually said the exact same thing at the exact same time.
“Why are you copying me?”
“You're clearly the one copying me!”
The utensils in their hands clashed once more. Only this time, it had completely devolved into a personal grudge.
The knife and fork clashed rapidly in mid-air. Their speed was even faster than before.
Watching the two fight again, Lin Ling silently leaned a bit closer to Ivelia.
Zona: “...”
Even though that girl in the Saintess vestments said there are no weird things here... aren't you people the weirdest things of all?! Everything about this place is weird!
“Ahem.”
Seeing that the dining hall had lost all semblance of order once again, Ivelia cleared her throat softly.
Although it wasn't loud, Cecil and Aliviel's movements both paused instantly.
“It seems our two guests are not yet accustomed to the environment here.”
Ivelia looked at Kainster and Zona.
“My apologies. If you find it uncomfortable, you may return to your room to rest first. Food will be delivered to your room shortly.”
Hearing Ivelia's words, Zona stood up immediately.
“Thank you very much, Lord Demon King.”
She had wanted to leave this completely incomprehensible dining hall long ago. If she stayed any longer, she was worried that the common sense she had built up over her life would be utterly shattered by these people.
“Please follow me first.”
Niya walked over to Zona's side. She gently tugged at Zona's trousers, gesturing for the two to follow her.
Zona looked down at Niya. Then, she pulled up Kainster, who still had a Battle Rooster wing hanging from his mouth.
“Let's go, Your Highness.”
“B-But I haven't finished my chicken yet.”
“Food will be sent to our room once we get back.”
“It's different! This one has a middle parting on its head!”
“Your Highness.”
Zona's voice dropped.
Kainster stood up immediately.
“O-Okay.”
The two followed Niya out of the dining hall.
Not long after they stepped out, a powerful gust of wind suddenly blew past them from behind.
“Whoa! That was close!”
Kainster was blown forward, stumbling a couple of steps. Fortunately, he quickly grabbed the wall to keep himself from falling.
“Niya, is the wind at night in the Demon King's Castle always this strong?”
“Ah...”
Walking ahead, Niya's body stiffened slightly.
She seemed to hear two screams echoing in the wind. But now was probably not the right time to tell these guests the truth...
“Ahaha, yes, sometimes the wind at night in the Demon King's Castle can indeed get quite strong.”
Niya let out a highly strained laugh. Fortunately, she was walking in front, so the two behind her couldn't see her unnatural expression.
Kainster didn't suspect a thing. He merely nodded in understanding.
“I see.”
But Niya seemed to have underestimated Zona's dynamic vision.
Zona had seen the shadow that just flashed past them crystal clear.
That wasn't a gust of wind at all! That was clearly the woman who had just told them to return to their room to rest! And she seemed to be carrying two struggling people in her hands!
Although she had seen through everything, Zona's face remained perfectly calm.
“Indeed. The wind is rather strong. Your Highness should be careful to keep warm.”
She took the plain cloth coat that Kainster had slipped out of earlier to escape her and draped it back over his shoulders. Then, she patted Kainster's shoulders hard a few times.
Each pat carried her deep annoyance at his coat-shedding escape act.
“Z-Zona. Aren't you patting a bit too hard?”
“I am merely helping Your Highness tidy your clothes,” Zona replied with a sweet smile.
Kainster looking at the smile on her face, wisely chose to shut his mouth.
Meanwhile, at the top of the clock tower—
“How delightful of you two.”
“Did you come all this way specifically to keep me company?”
Phelan was still hanging upside down from the clock tower.
The night wind rustled his long hair and the hem of his clothes. He looked at Cecil and Aliviel, who had now been hung up alongside him, his tone calm—incredibly calm, in fact.
Yet beneath that calm, there seemed to be a subtle hint of amusement.
As expected, those who harm others eventually bring harm upon themselves. And this very scene had already been successfully recorded in Phelan's recording stone.
【Record: Less than an hour after Cecil and Aliviel hung me from the clock tower, they appeared here in the exact same manner.】
【Conclusion: Acts of retaliation carry an extremely high risk of backlash.】
“Shut up, Phelan.”
Cecil hung upside down beside him, his tail dangling limply.
“Don't forget, you're hanging here too.”
“Yes, but I have a complete record of both of you hanging upside down,” Phelan replied calmly.
The night wind blew.
The bodies of the three swayed gently with the wind.
Phelan had successfully ended the evening's conversation with a single sentence.
Rate on N.U.
