“L-Lord Marius!”
Upon returning to the royal palace, Barra and Lovisa rushed towards Marius.
“I’m truly glad you’re safe.”
Tears welled up in the eyes of his two wives.
“To return unharmed after facing Auraniess…”
They alternately touched various parts of his body. He knew he hadn’t failed to notice the three beautiful women behind him, but they seemed too preoccupied for that now. As if hearing their voices, people began to gather around. This included Bernhard III, the king of this country, master of the royal palace, and, at least in name, the one Marius should serve. Though he had heard what happened from Lovisa and the others, he could have guessed most of it even without their explanation. When the entire Royal Capital is suddenly enveloped in a despairing oppressive presence, anyone with a modicum of knowledge can figure it out.
“I heard about it, but the word ‘amazing’ feels inadequate. To think that besides Melinda Guilford, another person exists who could fight the legendary Auraniess and return alive.”
His eyes held no calculation, only pure admiration.
(I can’t say they’re exaggerating.)
Recalling the battle with Auraniess, he couldn’t fault their surprise. Auraniess had remained unfazed even when hit by the Forbidden Spell, which, if fired with full intent, could annihilate an entire country.
“There’s chaos in the Royal Capital, but if Lord Marius is safe, we’ll manage. We’ll announce that Auraniess was repelled.”
The King then turned his gaze to the three women behind Marius. It wasn’t just Marius’s imagination that their complexions had suddenly worsened.
“Lord Marius, forgive my impudence, but who are the three ladies behind you?”
It was a question he didn’t want to ask but had to, and Marius answered honestly.
“They are Auraniess and her subordinates. I apologize, I couldn’t defeat them all.”
“Ah, no. Just being able to return alive is more than enough…”
Given who the opponent was, he couldn’t blame Marius. Bernhard III felt a headache coming on as the black-haired beauty, who had casually greeted him with “Nice to meet you,” gave him a cheerful wave. He tried to console himself.
“May I ask what kind of agreement was reached?”
“Well. They don’t seem to intend to do anything to humanity, and for now, we’re going to have a meal together.”
“Eat together?!”
A chorus of shouts rose, and everyone’s eyes widened. Emma, recovering the quickest, pointed out calmly.
“If that’s the case, it could be interpreted as you just flirted your way back with Auraniess and her group.”
Judging by her expression, she was likely trying to lighten the mood. Marius understood this, and Sophia also noticed, but unfortunately, the humans lacked the emotional capacity.
“No, but we can’t just leave it at that. It would be different if they became Familiars.”
“That’s what he says, but will you make a contract?”
When Marius asked, Auraniess replied resolutely.
“However, I refuse.”
“As expected.”
If it were that easy, no one would have any trouble. Bernhard III, feeling a pang of resentment towards Marius for giving up so easily, roused himself to say what he felt was necessary as the king of a nation.
“I cannot acknowledge you as rulers of a nation. It’s because the order of human society cannot be maintained.”
“What does this have to do with your conveniences?”
Auraniess replied dismissively, and Marius put his head in his hands. The King whispered to his son-in-law,
“Why did you bring them?”
“Well, was it okay to just leave them running amok?”
“Urk.”
Bernhard III was speechless. The mere thought of Auraniess and her subordinates running wild sent a chill down his spine. It would be terrifying if they were on this continent, let alone another.
“If someone on another continent were to anger them, wouldn’t that be a crisis for this continent at that very moment?”
Her point was too valid to argue against.
“It’s better to keep them where I can see them. But I couldn’t think of a good reason off the top of my head.”
“I, I understand.”
There was likely no other way. But why did Auraniess and her group agree to it? It was surprising that the one who proposed having a meal with the person they had just tried to kill was Marius, and even more so that Auraniess agreed.
(Could their thought processes be almost identical…?)
A recently familiar pain spread around his stomach. Marius was supposed to possess human common sense. Why couldn’t he feel reassured, even when he tried to believe so?
“The reason I’m cooperating so obediently is to save face for Marius. If you have any complaints about that, would you like me to kill someone other than Marius? Then Marius would also be able to fight me without reservations, wouldn’t he?”
Auraniess said with a displeased tone. It seemed being asked to become Marius’s Familiar had greatly displeased her. Marius, wondering why she was getting angry about that, retorted,
“If anything happens to them, I’ll have no reason to fight you.”
The others shuddered at Auraniess’s words, so he felt he had no choice but to say something.
“I understand that. However, just because I’m making a concession, don’t say ridiculous things. I’ll let it slide for Marius’s sake, but if you misunderstand it as your right, I’ll correct you with force?”
The emotion drained from her expression, and her words carried a bone-chilling intensity. Bernhard III turned pale, broke out in a cold sweat, and nodded profusely. It could only be said that his ability to not faint from the direct impact was fitting for a king. Auraniess stated that she didn’t intend to abuse her power, but she also wouldn’t remain silent without reason.
(So, Familiars are a no-go.)
Marius sighed. This had actually been his initial idea. He thought that even if a master-subordinate relationship was impossible, a kind of cooperative relationship might allow for some degree of control, but based on her reaction, it was probably best to give up. For now, he would have to patiently search for Auraniess’s landmines. Otherwise, he didn’t know what would happen when he wasn’t looking.
(Perhaps accompanying them was a bad move…?)
Marius sighed again as he saw El shrink back from Auraniess’s hostile aura.
“My, my, so it’s Cockatrice meat. It’s delicious, but the most delicious part of a Cockatrice is its petrification sac, extracted while still alive.”
As she impeccably finished the dishes served, Auraniess said that.
“If a human ate the petrification sac, they’d die.”
Marius shot back while drinking his wine.
(Extracting the petrification sac from a living Cockatrice is the hardest part, you know!)
Everyone except Sophia and Iris thought that in their hearts. Marius, too, was beginning to think she was a bit off.
“You wouldn’t die if you ate it, would you?”
“Could I eat it all by myself?”
While it looked like Marius was retorting to the unreasonable Auraniess, they were both, in fact, saying things that could be considered retorts. It was no longer news that Marius, while seeming like a normal person, was quite the opposite. It was no longer news, but when the number of such instances increased, their destructive power grew even more. The impressed expressions on Sophia and Iris’s faces as they looked at Marius were also noteworthy.
“To be able to converse with Lady Auraniess while being human, you’re quite something.”
Iris said this as she drank rose water, and Sophia added with a wry smile.
“Though, by human standards, that’s not really a compliment.”
It seemed Sophia was the most sensible of the women, the others thought.
After the meal, Auraniess and her group surprised the humans by thanking the cooks and offering to help with the cleanup. The kitchen staff tried to refuse, saying it was their job, but Marius, wanting to buy time, said, “Please let them help,” and grudgingly allowed it. While Auraniess and her group began washing dishes, humming a tune, Marius approached El with a proposition. He asked if there was a way to make Auraniess focus on something other than fighting.
“I understand what you’re saying, but…”
El uncharacteristically faltered and looked down. Marius assumed she was afraid of Auraniess and tried to encourage her.
“It’ll be alright if I’m with you. I’ll protect you.”
Marius said this gently, stroking her hair, which made her tail wag.
“It’s not that. There’s something I want to tell Master as well…”
Zofi, who was “skillful” as she said, maintained her indifferent attitude, while her tail wagged happily, indicating she was pleased.
“Yes? Go ahead and say it. It’s for my sake, right?”
When Marius said that, El looked up, saying, “Then I won’t hold back.”
“If you’re interested in Lady Zofi, wouldn’t it be better to foster someone who can fight you? It’s almost a hundred percent certain that Master will be invited to train together as well.”
“That’s the problem.”
Marius acknowledged this, folding his arms.
“I don’t want to go along with it, and do you have any other brilliant ideas?”
El took a small breath and stated clearly,
“Master? With all due respect, I believe you’re useless when it comes to managing territory.”
“Ugh.”
El’s remark stabbed him in the heart, but since he was aware of it, he couldn’t argue.
“There are almost no opponents on par with Master, so considering the future, I believe they would be excellent training partners for Master.”
El relentlessly cornered Marius.
“Just wanting to have an easy time is uncool, and I think you’ll lose face with those who admire you, Master.”
“Hauh.”
Marius regretted telling her not to hold back, but stopping her now would only make him look more pathetic.
“Master, you weren’t thinking that selfishly, were you?”
“Oh, yes. Of course.”
Seeing El’s smile, the phrase “angelic devil” flashed in his mind.
“In that case, I believe Master training together is the safest option.”
“Guh.”
“That’s enough, El.”
Seeing Marius stumble, Zofi rushed to stop her. El turned emotionless eyes towards her former superior.
“It’s impossible to suddenly make Auraniess interested in something other than combat. It’s more realistic to gradually guide her to become interested in other things, and even then, I don’t know if it’s possible.”
“That may be so, but…”
Zofi, let alone anyone else, couldn’t refute El’s barrage of arguments.
“If you accidentally anger her, everyone except Master will likely be wiped out. Unlike Master, don’t you all think you should have more a sense of crisis?”
“Do I lack a sense of crisis?”
El ignored Al, Barra, and Lovisa’s questions.
“In terms of safety, it would be best for Master and Lady Zofi to deal with Auraniess, and in the meantime, we can try one by one to see what Auraniess becomes interested in.”
“Right. Alright, let’s go with that.”
Marius made a swift decision. His tendency to give up easily worked in his favor this time.
“O-Okay. If it means I can stand shoulder to shoulder with Master, I welcome it.”
Seeing Marius, Zofi also steeled herself. Seeing the two of them, El finally smiled.
“For matters like this, I think it’s best to involve as many people as possible to brainstorm ideas. For example, that woman who is second to none in terms of wickedness and depravity.”
“Asteria?”
“King Asteria.”
Everyone who had overheard El’s words answered in unison, and they reconfirmed their impressions of the Queen of Hordia.
“She might come up with good ideas, but you never know what she’ll come up with.”
Marius said this with a shiver, and Lovisa and Barra agreed.
“She might even suggest Marius and Auraniess get married.”
“Since you invited her for a meal, maybe next you should invite her to bed.”
“That would be pretty tame, wouldn’t it?”
Marius stopped them just as they were about to badmouth Asteria.
“Even that would be fine.”
When Marius said this decisively, his wives were surprised and looked at him with slight disapproval.
“Is it because Auraniess is beautiful?”
“She is indeed a beauty, unlike any I’ve seen before.”
They knew it wasn’t the time to be jealous, but they couldn’t accept it. Marius, sensing their subtle emotions, which he himself found hard to control, began to earnestly explain.
“With the help of Zofi and the others, we should be able to win. The problem is how to get to that point.”
“That may be so, but…”
His wives understood that this was not the time to press the issue and quickly backed down. It was obvious that Auraniess was not someone who could be dragged to bed by force, and if she were, it wouldn’t be difficult to predict that her Demon Lord-class subordinates would interfere. In other words, everyone else would die. Someone needed to think that far ahead.
“I’m going to go meet her for a moment using transfer magic.”
“Oh? Where are you going?”
Whether it was good timing or not, Auraniess suddenly returned.
“Just going to see someone for advice.”
“I’ll go too. It sounds interesting that Marius is asking for help.”
Auraniess surprisingly bit.
“I doubt she’s very strong. At least, she’s weaker than most of the humans here.”
When Marius denied this, Auraniess chuckled lightly.
“I’m not expecting strength. There are only about two people here who seem interesting.”
Saying this, she fixed her gaze on Zofi and Barra with her purple eyes. Barra usually suppressed her power, but Auraniess had seen through it. Barra shrugged, wondering if Al and El were ignored due to their race.
“Then let’s go. If you’re not interested in weaklings, it should be fine to bring them along.”
He thought that if by some chance a fool dared to pick a fight with Auraniess, Asteria would sort it out. He didn’t exactly like her, but he had a strange sense of trust.
“Please be mindful of your manners in public.”
Bernhard III could only say that as the two of them moved.
“By the way, I have a question now that I think about it.”
Zofi said, as if just remembering.
“Is it not problematic for human nations to transfer to the royal palace of another country?”
“Of course, it’s problematic!”
Lovisa answered immediately, and her father nodded.
“Lord Marius’s case is a special exception, and we’d have trouble with transfers outside of emergencies. Moreover, every royal palace is equipped with barriers that prevent transfers, and Lord Marius’s magic power, which can ignore them, is abnormal.”
“If it weren’t an emergency, and if it weren’t Lord Marius, he would have been imprisoned long ago and charged for the repair costs of the barrier.”
In fact, Marius was generally perceived as having somewhat poor conduct.
“So, do you have any good ideas?”
“None. Good luck, Marius.”
Asteria’s cold dismissal made Marius panic.
“Isn’t that a bit too harsh? This is a problem for the entire continent.”
The Queen let out a long sigh at the uninvited magician.
“You should learn the proper procedures soon. You’ll be the one in trouble.”
She silenced Marius with her sound reasoning and looked at the black-haired beauty.
“Hmm, she is indeed an unusual existence. Ideally, I’d prefer not to breathe the same air as her.”
Auraniess remained uninterested, her face bored. Asteria, while carefully observing this Demon Lord, spoke.
“To get straight to the point, I also agree with Marius training.”
Marius felt as if he had been given the final blow.
“And on top of that, searching for other things is probably the steadiest approach. I have no idea why you came to me.”
This was truly like trying to get blood from a stone. Marius drooped his shoulders, and as Auraniess snorted, Asteria smiled a mischievous grin.
“Well, most people would think I’d say something like this.”
“W-What is it?”
When Marius looked up, Asteria’s expression suddenly turned suspicious.
“Rather, it would be strange if no one proposed anything. If there isn’t one, you can create one, can’t you?”
“…Huh?”
Marius, Auraniess, and Mireille, who had been rendered air just by being there, spoke in unison.
“Create what?”
Auraniess, asking for clarification, had a spark of curiosity in her eyes.
“Actually, there is a theoretically possible plan. A plan to create something that can withstand your power.”
“Huh? Seriously?”
He blurted out “Seriously?” without thinking, and Asteria caught him on it. Marius pretended not to notice and asked,
“What kind of plan?”
“This is, in a way, an application of Magic Item crafting.”
“…Huh?”
Marius and Auraniess tilted their heads in unison, not understanding.
“Can you create something that can withstand an attack that erases a continent?”
“Theoretically, yes.”
Asteria repeated plainly to Marius’s question.
“Even a magic user with weak magic power can create powerful Magic Items with enough time and effort. You could call this an upgraded version.”
Marius’s mind couldn’t keep up, and he fell silent. Auraniess, on the other hand, her expression had changed to one of keen interest.
“Do materials exist that can withstand the magical power of me and Marius?”
“Yes. Orichalcum and Hihiron Ore. The trick is to gradually attune them to your magic power.”
“It’s still theoretical, isn’t it?”
Auraniess’s eyes showed a doubtful glint, but Asteria met his gaze squarely.
“That’s right. After all, there’s never been anyone in history tested who possessed power comparable to you and Marius. I can’t guarantee the first attempt.”
“That’s true.”
Auraniess began to ponder something. Both were rare existences, and it was said to take time. However, a stage where he could fight Marius with all his might held an irresistible allure. While Auraniess was lost in thought, Marius whispered to her.
“What I wanted to ask was, is there a way to make Auraniess interested in something other than fighting?”
“How would I know? I can’t know what I don’t have information about, let alone teach you.”
Marius could only fall silent at her reasonable response.
“Perhaps she can endure some things if a place where she can fight to her heart’s content can be created. We can only hope she has that kind of personality.”
Asteria shrugged, then her expression turned mischievous.
“Or are you trying to find out how to woo a woman from another woman?”
Marius bristled at her teasing tone, but upon reflection, it was indeed a pathetic situation.
“I’ve just taught you how to make time to woo Auraniess. After this, you’re on your own, boy.”
As Marius began to think about how to respond to her overly doting tone, Auraniess clapped her hands.
“Alright. It’s no loss to try, so let’s give it a shot!”
In the end, the allure won out for her.
“First, we’ll have to start by finding Orichalcum and Hihiron Ore.”
“That’s fine. If there’s something fun to look forward to beyond that.”
Auraniess laughed heartily, responding instantly to Marius’s words. For now, it seemed he had succeeded in diverting her attention. And if she had the personality to endure for the sake of future enjoyment, there was a feeling it might work out.
On his way back from Hordia, Marius was thinking of lines to woo Auraniess.
“Auraniess, your eyes are more beautiful than any jewel.”
“Is there something wrong with that?”
She gave a disinterested response.
“Auraniess, you are stronger and braver than any opponent.”
“We just fought to a draw, are you picking a fight?”
This also ended in failure. Most women don’t mind being complimented, and Marius’s method of using their reaction as a starting point to become friends didn’t work at all. It was a man’s arrogance and an insult to women to think that pick-up techniques would work on all of them. Marius was aware of this, but he was struggling because all his compliments were met with indifference. Based on Auraniess’s past words and actions, she had no pretense. Therefore, she didn’t care about Marius’s compliments. This made it even more difficult. Marius, who had been trying to woo her repeatedly with no success and was starting to get discouraged, was finally approached by Auraniess.
“If you need someone to practice wooing women with, ask your Familiar or your wife. It’s getting quite annoying, you know.”
Her expression had hardened slightly. The fact that she had gone along with it until now was probably out of kindness. If he angered her now, all his efforts would be in vain, so Marius sincerely apologized.
“I’m sorry. I wanted Auraniess to have my child.”
He tried to make it sound like a joke. However, Auraniess’s response was beyond Marius’s imagination.
“That’s fine, you know.”
“………….What?”
Marius was surprised by the unexpectedly blunt reply and looked closely at Auraniess’s face.
“Is it really okay?”
“Yeah. Your child would likely grow up to be strong.”
It seemed that was the only thing that mattered to Auraniess.
(I never expected this kind of outcome…)
He had apparently overthought things. It should have been the best possible outcome, yet Marius felt a sense of defeat. And he began to worry about how to explain this to his wives.
