The Rift of Dimensions, the World of Void (1)
Hestinia emerged from the kitchen carrying a plate of freshly baked cookies, humming a gentle tune as she stepped between her two guests. Her voice was so soothing it almost felt like a lullaby, and the melody alone was enough to make anyone feel drowsy and relaxed. The cookies were topped with generous dollops of ruby-red raspberry jam and golden apricot jam that glistened like tiny jewels, while a thick dusting of powdered sugar lay across them like fresh snow. She had brought them knowing how weak Lusteria was to sweets, yet this time the succubus showed no sign of surrendering easily.
“They’re really delicious, Secretary. I even used plenty of that hard-to-find powdered sugar.”
“Uuuuugh……”
Lusteria glared at Hestinia like a wary kitten confronting an intruder. She had meant to voice her displeasure and scold the witch, but the effect was anything but intimidating—in fact, it was simply adorable. Hestinia’s eyes sparkled with delight.
“Oh my, how precious. May I pinch your cheek just once?”
“Kiiiiiiiiii!!!”
Lusteria let out a fierce, kittenish hiss, her expression twisting in protest. Far from discouraging Hestinia, the reaction only made the witch more enchanted. She clasped her hands together, wearing an ecstatic smile as she gazed at the succubus with pure affection.
In one smooth motion, Hestinia picked up a cookie and held it to Lusteria’s lips.
“Come now, it’s delicious, isn’t it? So sweet?”
“Mmmph…… mmph……”
The warm, crisp-yet-chewy cookie brushed against Lusteria’s soft crimson lips, releasing the sweet aroma of sugar and jam along with a pleasant warmth. Though she had stubbornly kept her mouth shut, it did not take long for her resolve to crumble. She took a single bite.
Crunch!
“Hauuuu……!”
Unable to resist the sweetness any longer, Lusteria sank her teeth into the cookie. Her eyes widened as the rich flavor flooded her mouth, and she accepted the treat despite herself. Even as she began eating, however, she continued to glare at Hestinia with all the indignation she could muster. Her expression shifted rapidly—eyes sparkling with bliss one moment, then narrowing in a sulky glare the next—while Hestinia simply watched her with fond amusement.
“Ahem. So, where exactly are the two of you right now?”
Nella, who had been quietly sipping tea and observing the scene, cleared her throat and addressed Hestinia. Though she maintained a calm demeanor, the subtle anxiety in her gaze made her concern for her master unmistakable. Lusteria nodded in agreement, her cheeks puffed out with cookies as she continued shooting reproachful looks at Hestinia.
Hestinia produced a handkerchief from somewhere and gently wiped the crumbs from Lusteria’s mouth.
“They’ll come out when the time is right. Do you really think someone like me could keep the Demon Lord trapped for even a moment?”
The space was nothing but darkness. A void where neither sky nor earth existed, a formless realm without even the concept of coordinates. Only the abstract notion of “space” stretched endlessly, a dimension without limits. If one defined it as a single span, it became a single span; if one called it infinite, it became infinite. It was a surreal expanse untouched by any material concept, existing solely by will.
“……Wh-where is this……?”
Beatrice looked around warily at the sudden change in surroundings. Gravity itself was absent; she and everything else simply floated. Beside her, Neromeltia drifted upside down—or perhaps Beatrice herself was upside down; in this place, such distinctions were meaningless.
Seeing Beatrice’s unease, Neromeltia answered quietly.
“A space that exists yet does not truly exist. It is a realized fiction within the rift of dimensions. Ironic, isn’t it?”
“A realized…… fiction……?”
“What did Hestinia call it again…… ‘The dimension that does not exist,’ I believe?”
The explanation was conceptually graspable yet fundamentally incomprehensible—a paradox that defied ordinary understanding. Neromeltia shrugged.
“Nothing involving Hestinia is ever straightforward. Just remember that much. You don’t really need to understand it, but if you insist, I’ll explain later. For now, let’s leave.”
She raised her right hand toward the empty air. Beatrice instinctively realized her master was about to demonstrate the same overwhelming authority she had shown earlier—the power that had torn open the walls of dimensions and forcibly revealed Hestinia’s hidden realm. Before Neromeltia could act, Beatrice grabbed her hand.
“Beatrice?”
“……I’m sorry……”
The words were barely audible. Neromeltia waited in silence, wanting a clearer answer.
“……I was wrong…… Master……”
The admission was so soft and fragile that it seemed impossible coming from the usually stubborn Beatrice. She did not want to leave this space—not yet. Not until the matter between them was settled.
Beatrice had never truly been defiant. She had wanted to apologize from the beginning. Whatever she thought, if her master said otherwise, then she was wrong. It was not that the punishment had been too painful to bear; rather, she herself had come to believe she deserved it. Still, enduring the penalty had been difficult. Last night she had waited because her master seemed to want distance, and once morning came, the presence of others had kept her silent. Hestinia’s current situation had given her the perfect opportunity, so she had stopped her master from leaving.
This empty space, where only the two of them existed, was even more private than the secret hours she had longed for. Neromeltia understood exactly what Beatrice was thinking.
“You would follow my every word without question, yet I treated you so cruelly. I’m sorry. I only wanted you to cherish the people I cherish, just as I cherish you.”
“……Master has done nothing wrong…… As your servant…… it is only right that I…… receive punishment…… for treating Lady Lusteria so harshly……”
Beatrice’s thoughts drifted back to the events that had led here. Her master was endlessly kind to those at her side, yet had been forced to shed blood time and again because of that kindness. Beatrice had believed that if the servants around her master grew stronger, such tragedies could be prevented. Even if it meant dirtying her own hands, she had resolved to protect her master at any cost.
When she saw Lusteria’s petty jealousy toward their master, Beatrice had felt genuine anger, though she had hidden it. How dare someone who should devote everything to their master harbor such trivial feelings? Using the authority granted to her, she had punished Lusteria without mercy. Even when her master later ordered her to release the bindings if Lusteria suffered too much, Beatrice had disobeyed. Watching the succubus writhe in pleasure without release, Beatrice had seen her own reflection—her own envy of Lusteria’s innocent charm and the affection she received. That realization had only made her harsher.
She had kept Lusteria bound until her master returned from the banquet, excusing it as discipline while in truth it had been nothing more than petty spite. When her master finally punished her in turn, Beatrice had accepted it willingly. After all, a servant who preached loyalty yet vented her own jealousy deserved nothing less. The punishment had even felt like a luxurious display of affection.
Yet her master did not want atonement through suffering. Beatrice knew she had to ask for forgiveness—not because she feared punishment, but because a mere magical doll who had let jealousy override her master’s command was both ridiculous and shameful. True remorse required her to acknowledge her fault and seek genuine pardon. Only then could she stand before her master without disgrace. She had been waiting for this exact moment to do so.