Chapter 33
“Pat-a-cake, pat-a-cake, green tree, World Tree, white——”
“Yubel! That’s not how it goes! It’s not pat-a-cake, it’s tweet-tweet-tweet!”
“It’s not pat-a-cake? But that rolls off the tongue better……”
“Anyway, start over! At this rate, we’ll get there before we even start! Good grief, Yubel has such a bad memory. Dummy.”
“Want to die?”
Yubel was currently learning a hand-clapping game from Riella.
Riella was so innocent and straightforward that her brutal honesty had Yubel on the verge of exploding, but Yubel was bored in the carriage, so she gritted her teeth and played along.
“Sigh. All right, let’s start again. Pat-a-cake——”
-Lady Yubel! Goblins! Please get out of the carriage right now!
“Eek.”
Why were there so many monsters on the road to the kingdom?
Was this a case of the weak being unable to survive?
In any case, Yubel immediately prepared to get out of the carriage.
Se-on and Riella had dealt with the monsters last time, so now it was Yubel’s turn.
Tap, tap.
Yubel stepped down from the carriage, still wearing the bikini.
A dazzling black bikini that looked as if it had been made just for her.
Her demon tail and horns complemented it beautifully, too.
She looked just like a succubus tempting men.
A wave of fervent emotion welled up in the adventurers’ eyes when they caught sight of her.
Yubel flinched and subtly covered her bare skin with her slender hand.
For some reason, she could feel the adventurers’ leering gazes all over her body.
On top of that, the sensation of the thin fabric against her skin whenever she moved was enough to make Yubel feel like a proper lady.
The more vigorously she moved, the more it dug in.
Still, she had no choice but to wear it.
If she didn’t, she’d end up completely naked.
Huh? I thought you were a manly man! What happened to being a manly man? Giving up on that now?
Those cries rang out in her mind, but she ignored them without a second thought.
No matter how much of a manly man you are, shouldn’t you cover your private parts?
If she walked around with everything exposed, she’d just become Attack on Yubel.
Mm-hmm.
There’s nothing I can do about wearing a bikini.
It’s absolutely not because it’s more comfortable than I expected and I like it. Damn it, I can’t believe I’ve been forced to wear something like this.
I’ll never forgive the Hero.
“Whoa. Look at all that mana pouring in. I’m gonna explode at this rate.”
The Lustful Demon King’s trait.
Her power increased in proportion to the desires of others.
It activated as soon as she stepped out of the carriage.
Yubel kept this fact from Se-on.
She was sure he’d make her walk around naked if he found out. I hate being naked.
Still, she couldn’t stay in the Hero’s party while she was weak, so she gradually began using magic while giving the Hero little flashes of skin.
She’d gotten away with it by saying she did it simply because it felt good.
Looking back, it seemed like a pretty good excuse.
The Hero hadn’t said anything about it since.
Yubel congratulated her past self.
But Se-on hadn’t kept quiet because he didn’t want to say anything. He simply couldn’t.
Every time he tried to warn Yubel not to do that, something else happened around them.
“Lady Yubel! Give us one big one!”
Hans called out, his eyes sparkling.
Mages were rare in this world, so it was almost unheard of to get to watch one fight up close.
Getting to see the mage from the Hero’s party use magic was more than enough to make Hans’s adventurer’s heart pound.
Though his heart was pounding for other reasons, too.
“All right, here I go! Hyah!”
Yubel stretched out the smoothest, most beautiful hand in the world toward the goblin.
Target acquired.
“K-Kiek?”
The goblin was utterly bewildered.
A woman who looked like a prostitute had just stepped out of a carriage and started pointing at it.
And then.
Zing—!
“Keh!”
A beam fired from Yubel’s fingertip pierced the goblin’s heart.
The goblin died instantly. That was the end of a goblin who’d gone out for a walk.
Still, since it was Yubel who killed it and not an adventurer, you could say it died a good death.
Yubel watched and gave a smug little snort.
Then she shrugged.
She looked every bit like a child waiting for praise.
But Hans’s response was…
“Um, Lady Yubel? Why aren’t you using magic?”
“Huh?”
Yubel’s expression went blank in an instant.
That wasn’t the reaction she’d expected.
Then her face gradually twisted with anger.
What the hell? Was this guy looking the other way?
Didn’t he see that precise spell I just fired?
The kind you couldn’t see even if you paid for it?
“I just fired magic. Didn’t you see?”
Yubel replied in a deeply sulky tone.
Her cheeks puffed up, too.
“Wasn’t that just you firing mana? It’s a little different from the magic I know……”
“What?”
That was right.
Truthfully, Yubel couldn’t be called a mage.
She was just a mana-squirter.
A mage was someone who used their mana to create all sorts of wonders.
In other words, to be called a mage, you had to use mana to create magic.
But Yubel?
Heehee, mana blast! Psssh!
The Demon King’s mana was so powerful that it could make enemies explode or pierce straight through them on its own.
Of course, that wasn’t all the Demon King’s power could do.
In any case, strictly speaking, Yubel wasn’t a mage.
So Hans explained that to her.
He told her a mage had to transform mana into magic.
But Yubel was already deeply sulking because of Hans’s reaction earlier.
She was sulky enough to take his advice as him lecturing her.
How dare you look down on the awesome laser I just fired?
You can’t even use magic yourself!
To Yubel, Hans looked like a know-it-all backseat driver who couldn’t even use magic.
And, in practice, he was acting like one.
“What do you know?! Hmph! I’m not coming out again!”
Yubel spun around and went back into the carriage.
All that remained outside was the carriage—and the faint, alluring scent Yubel had left behind.
That scent was more than enough to make Hans regret his words.
-Oh, I’m sorry! It was my mistake! Please forgive this lowly one! You’re the best, Archmage! So incredibly strong!
Unbelievable.
Yubel casually ignored the voice coming from outside the carriage.
Anyway, this was a problem.
What if the Hero found out I wasn’t actually a mage?
I don’t have time to learn magic separately, either……
She glanced over.
The Hero had his eyes closed, dozing as if he were tired.
Meanwhile, Riella was bickering with Eva.
“Ah! Yubel, Eva won’t play with me! Why is she doing that?”
“Hehe. Eva’s mine, you know? Only someone as amazing as me gets to hold her.”
“Kyao!”
Grab.
Yubel snatched Eva out of Riella’s arms and hugged her.
Eva immediately settled against Yubel’s chest.
If Se-on had seen that, his jealousy would’ve exploded again.
“Aww, I’m jealous…… Even though Yubel’s chest is smaller than mine……”
“What? It’s not all about your chest! Honestly, you need to be able to hold her gently and tenderly, like I do!”
“Kyao! Kyao!”
Yubel retorted with a strange sort of excitement.
In fact, Yubel’s embrace was soft in a different way.
Eva knew that, which was why she always made a beeline for Yubel’s chest.
She was quite the shameless dragon.
***
“Did you get everything?”
“What do we have to pack? We’re broke.”
“Haha…… That’s true.”
“Why are we so broke? I haven’t spent any money!”
“You’re the one who spent the most!”
By then, the Hero’s party had parted ways with the adventurers.
They would be arriving in the Kingdom of Tiranis soon.
And so, their comfortable carriage ride came to an unfortunate end.
Still, they had to be grateful it had brought them this far.
“Oh, I dropped the food. Sorry, Yubel!”
“You did that on purpose, didn’t you? I told you not to drop it! It’s not like we have any food besides that!”
It was Yubel’s fault for handing the food to Riella because she couldn’t be bothered to carry it.
But Yubel didn’t know any of that. She just fumed.
In the end, Se-on picked up the food and ate it.
As Yubel and Riella bickered while walking along the road, the walls of the Kingdom of Tiranis came into view in the distance.
They were so tall that you might suspect some giant was planning to invade.
Anyway, the thought that they’d nearly arrived slowly eased the tension in the Hero’s party.
Soon, they began chatting about what they’d do first once they reached the kingdom.
“Hehe, first I want to wash up! I haven’t had a bath all day, not since we ran into those orcs!”
“Hey! Washing up costs money, too! You act like you’re rich!”
“Haha…… We still have enough money to wash up, at least.”
“If all three of us spend money on a bath, we won’t have enough to eat today! Save the bath for after we earn some money!”
“Is that so? Then we can all bathe together! That way, we’ll save money!”
Yubel looked at Riella as if to say, ‘What are you talking about?’
“Hey! The Hero and I can bathe together, but you have to bathe separately!”
“……Huh? What do you mean?”
“Yeah, yeah. Why can’t I, while Yubel gets to bathe with Se-on!”
“Uh, um……”
Come to think of it, they see me as a woman, too.
I’d been living so much like a man that I’d forgotten.
Still, the Hero doesn’t see me as a woman, so he’d never try to jump me……. Hmm.
“Why can’t I come toooo!!”
“Well, um……. I met the Hero before you did, so I’m closer to him! That’s only natural between me and the Hero, right?”
Yubel came up with the excuse that she was closer to the Hero because she’d met him before Riella had.
Honestly, what’s wrong with bathing together? We’re both guys.
“Oh, um……. I-I see……”
Fortunately, Riella seemed convinced.
“That’s right, that’s right. Since you understand, go wash separately.”
Unlike me, Riella’s a woman through and through.
Of course she has to wash separately.
“Ahem……”
The Hero scratched his cheek and gave a feeble cough.
Why does this damn Hero keep avoiding my eyes?
I don’t want to bathe with you, either!
Honestly. Anyone would think I wanted to bathe with him.
“Kyao!!”
“Hm? You want to bathe together, too? Uh, h-hey! Stop wriggling around!”
Eva thrashed about in Yubel’s arms.
She couldn’t stand seeing her mate flirt with another male.
“Good grief! What’s gotten into you?!”
Wham!
“Kyaooo!”
Yubel’s fist landed squarely on Eva’s head.
Eva’s head didn’t hurt, but for some reason, her heart ached.
Is this the pain of losing a mate?
As Yubel and Eva continued to bicker, the Hero’s party slowly made their way toward the kingdom.
Eva had been banished from her spot against Yubel’s chest.
That was the fate of a beast who defied its master.
“Kyao……”
Now that she had to walk on the ground, Eva looked dejected.
“Hehe, Eva, do you want to come to me? I’ll take good care of you, ooh!?”
Just then, Riella sensed an ominous presence.
At the same time, the sky suddenly began to darken.
It was an impossible phenomenon on a clear summer day without a cloud in sight.
“Guys! I feel like something’s coming up behind us! Ugh, it’s getting closer! I-I feel sick!”
“What are you talking about? There’s nothing behind us, is the—”
Yubel and Se-on looked behind them, in the direction Riella had mentioned.
There, they saw a Dark Knight mounted on a black horse, silently watching them.
The knight’s face was hidden beneath its helmet.
Even so, they could feel the aura of a powerful fighter.
In the knight’s hand was an enormous, razor-sharp lance as big as its own body.
“K-Kyao!!”
Eva seemed to sense something and started running far away.
But no one had time to pay attention to her.
An overwhelming presence was pouring out of the Dark Knight.
“What is that? Does anyone know…… Hmm, Yubel?”
Se-on cautiously spoke, then glanced at Yubel beside him.
But Yubel was staring at the Dark Knight, her lips and jaw trembling, her eyes filled with disbelief.
Her red, vertical pupils were shaking violently.
She looked completely bewildered.
“W-Why is that guy here……”
Yubel murmured softly.
Something’s not right……
Sensing as much, Se-on decided to pull the shaken Yubel into his arms to calm her, then draw his longsword and prepare to fight.
That was what he planned to do.
If only the Dark Knight hadn’t vanished like the wind.
“!!!”
Damn it, I need to draw my sword!
Thud—
Huh?
“Stop. I did not permit that.”
Se-on’s hand immediately went for the longsword at his waist, but he was forced to stop before he could draw it.
Someone was pressing down on the hand gripping his sword.
With a strength he couldn’t resist.
And now he felt cold metal at the back of his neck.
The guard near the end of the lance was already pressed against his neck.
A chill of death, ready to pierce him at any moment.
“Do you have any last words, Hero?”