A man got off. With white hair and a perfectly controlled aura of cold, he
vaguely reminded one of a frost dragon or snow ghost.
Sigh.
He exhaled a long breath of Sun Grass smoke.
"Auditor?"
The one speaking was none other than a knight. Hedera's escort knight,
Valcon, asked Jaekiel.
"How are you feeling?"
"A bit stiff."
"Well… I won't talk much."
Valcon continued as he polished his sword.
"How confident are you in this bet?"
Jaekiel merely blinked slowly at those words.
Confidence, huh?
It had been a long time since his entire being was filled with it.
Always, even now. His life had always been like that.
So.
"I can't know something like that."
He couldn't answer the question of "how much".
Luiple.
A place where safety could never be guaranteed. Luiple was known as such
a region, and it was true.
Therefore, merchants passing through here always traveled in groups to
increase their chances of survival when encountering demons and monsters.
Today was no different.
"It feels eerie today; what if monsters appear?"
"Be quiet. Your words might come true."
"I regret it. We shouldn't be passing through Luiple…"
"We have no choice; this is the fastest route! I have to sell everything to
feed my child. All we can do is pray that no demons appear today…"
But demons don't care about human circumstances.
"D-demons!"
"Run!"
With someone's shout, shadowy figures in human form lunged at the
merchants.
"Aaaaah!"
"Save me! Save me…!"
Everyone struggled with all their might to survive. If they were bandits,
they might negotiate, but demons only cared about taking human lives.
In an instant, it became a scene of hell.
Whoosh.
Suddenly, a huge greatsword slashed through a demon's body. No, it was
more like it crushed it with sheer force.
—How dare…?! Who are you…?!
The mid-level demon muttered arrogantly.
Bang.
Its head was smashed with a single downward strike. It was done by just
one woman.
Under the sunlight pouring down like a spotlight, a woman stood with a
greatsword slung over her shoulder.
"Huh…?"
The situation reversed in an instant, and the merchants blinked blankly. To
shatter a mid-level demon with a single strike, she was a formidable
warrior.
"Finish them."
The woman murmured softly.
Her companions immediately pursued the fleeing monsters. In less than ten
minutes, there were no living monsters left in the area.
While the merchants were rolling their eyes in shock.
One of her companions climbed onto the cart's cargo.
"Attention everyone!"
Would anyone defy a savior's call for attention? Instantly, everyone's eyes
turned to the person on the cart.
"Once again, the righteous Tirby has protected the imperial citizens of
Luiple! We are settled here to guard you, so you can rest assured!"
"…!"
The merchants' eyes widened in shock.
Indeed, anyone who knew the Luiple region would recognize the name
Tirby.
"That symbolic greatsword!"
"Tirby, the righteous one who has been working to exterminate demons in
the Luiple region for years? To think they were real!"
"They must be a messenger sent by the Sun God!"
Faces full of questions soon turned to joy. People gradually gathered around
the commotion.
Of course, the imperial family didn't completely neglect the Luiple region,
but what scared the residents were the demons reappearing after being
exterminated.
As soon as imperial figures left, the disasters would repeat. So, someone
settled here and continuously worked to exterminate demons, earning
immense support.
The additional residents cheered.
"We are safe today, thanks to Tirby…!"
"Tirby! Thank you! Truly, thank you!"
"How can someone so beautiful have such great strength?"
Tirby's appearance with the greatsword on her shoulder was as graceful as
if she had descended from the heavens. Because of her charm, just standing
and smiling made the cheers louder.
Tirby opened her lips.
"Luiple will have a festival starting today. If it's alright, merchants, please
enjoy it a little before you leave."
"A festival? Is that possible in Luiple?"
"Of course. Because I, Tirby, am here."
"My goodness!"
The merchants' eyes widened. Tirby's companions joined in, showing it
wasn't a lie.
"Since it's come up, let's move to a different location. Please leave this
area, as there are many demon and monster corpses. We ask again for your
safety!"
A messenger sent by the Sun God, a messenger of the Sun God.
People praised in unison as they moved away.
"Hahaha… Hahahahaha…!"
After the residents and merchants moved away, Tirby burst into laughter.
Her expression was nothing short of vile.
Also, the whites of her eyes had a purple hue. A sign of immense demonic
energy, symbolizing a high-ranking demon.
"Human emotions are so simple and easy."
With just a few performances, she had won the hearts of Luiple.
Anyone who set foot in Luiple would worship Tirby like a god. They would
cling desperately to her. That was the purpose of her act.
Tirby swept the greatsword over the monster corpses.
Swoosh.
The monsters and demons turned into black energy and were sucked into
the greatsword. Tirby stroked the sword.
"Is it tasty? Hmm? How is this fear?"
Growl.
The greatsword made a beast-like sound.
A demon sword that feeds on fear, and a demon that feeds on fear.
That was Tirby. She gathered fear by summoning demons and monsters
artificially, and then absorbed it herself. She consistently gathered fear this
way.
One of the demon companions approached cautiously.
"Tirby, when should we create the next monster?"
"At least a week later. The key is to let them get used to a little safety.
That's how we can extract more fear."
"As expected of you, Tirby."
"Good… In a few more years, this will be very interesting."
Tirby was turning the entire Luiple region into a fear factory. At this rate, in
a few years, she might even challenge the monstrous 1st Princess.
At that moment, another demon companion came running frantically.
"Tirby!"
"Hmm?"
"The empire has sent people to Luiple!"
Tirby quietly examined the paper handed to her. The information written
was very simple.
"Three Tower people, three Imperial Knights… that's all?"
There wasn't a hint of concern on Tirby's face. Only a mocking smile
appeared.
"Perfect. I can give the greatsword a special meal."
Growl.
The greatsword resonated as if in anticipation. Meanwhile, the demon
reporting seemed a bit worried.
"I'm worried because there's no information about the auditor. What if
someone formidable comes? Like the Snow Ghost…"
"Nonsense."
Tirby quickly cut off her companion's words.
"Foolish. The Snow Ghost doesn't exist."
The Snow Ghost and the snowflakes it made.
Of course, it was a name the demons arbitrarily gave.
Born human. But undefeated in any situation against any demon. Tirby had
heard of it as a distant legend.
But legends were legends for a reason.
…Yes, legends never actually existed.
Something as outrageous as the Snow Ghost couldn't exist.
"When the demon world failed to conquer the human world, they created
that fictional character to lessen their shame. Got it?"
"I see. Indeed… that makes sense."
"There's only one thing you need to do from now on."
Tirby stroked the greatsword lovingly.
"Watch closely how amusing their fear-stricken faces are."
The woman's smile was more sinister than ever.
By now, Jaekiel should have arrived in Luiple.
Dragon-Blooded, 2nd Princess of the Empire, Hedera.
"…"
She was still at the departure point.
Jaekiel's reaction still held Hedera in place.
'Did the dragon words… work?'
Hedera recalled distant memories of the past.
—Teacher! Don't go!
—Play with me more!
In her still immature childhood, she had tried to keep Jaekiel by using her
dragon words for trivial things.
—See you tomorrow.
But the result was always a failure.
The reason was simple; Jaekiel could perfectly resist her dragon words, to
the point where the term 'immune' was fitting.
That was how formidable Jaekiel was.
Of course, it could be that Hedera's dragon words had grown stronger. She
had never been lax in her training.
But there was one possibility that couldn't be ignored.
'Does he have a serious health problem?'
—Teacher, you didn't smoke Sun Grass in the past.
Solana's words suddenly crossed her mind.
Chewing Sun Grass whole indicated a significant problem. He might look
fine on the outside, but something serious was going on internally.
If that hypothesis was correct, the questions only deepened.
Why take the auditor position despite being unwell?
"…Happiness?"
Jaekiel, was he truly prioritizing Hedera's happiness over his own health?
The mere thought brought a strange feeling, with questions leading to more
questions.
But at that moment…
"Hmm~"
Someone hummed a tune as they passed by Hedera. It was a very familiar
face.
The person recognized Hedera first and greeted her.
"Oh, 2nd Princess? You're here."
"Solana."
The other person was the 3rd Princess of the Empire, Solana.
"I don't know why you're wandering here."
"Oh, I'm planning to go to Luiple now."
"Luiple?"
"Yes. It seems the erosion phenomenon has become more severe recently.
Isn't it my role to inspect such places? I must lead by example to spread the
Sun God's grace."
"…"
Hedera looked at Solana in disbelief.
Solana held a lunch bundle and was dressed as if going on an outing. Her
intent was obvious.
Then suddenly, her previous worries came to mind.
"Solana."
Hedera called the 3rd Princess's name.
"Yes? I'm listening."
"Tell me everything you know about the auditor's health."
"…"
Solana fell silent for a moment.
"Hmm…"
Soon, Solana smiled kindly, as usual.
"Well, let's talk about it later."
As Solana was about to board the carriage.
Just as she opened the door.
"Stop."
Hedera's dragon words exploded.
Solana was fine, but the horses pulling the carriage couldn't move. It was
indeed a formidable power.
Hedera added a word calmly.
"Well, you'll have to speak now to leave."
"…"
Solana slowly.
Really slowly.
Very slowly turned her head toward Hedera.
"…"
Eyes like the sun.
She had sunken eyes.