The Habsburg Empress
Humans, especially, were a species that always shifted blame onto others whenever trouble arose, pinning responsibility on someone else. Right there, the Hero—Kim Jae-hyun himself—had once sworn to simply wait for the right moment and return to his original home, yet he had murdered him instead. He had even dragged away his wife, Irene, by force, the very act that had driven Jae-hyun to become the Demon King. The true culprit behind it all, upon closer examination, was none other than Ferdinand, that man.
Ferdinand had been the one to first conceive the plan for betraying Jae-hyun, the leader among the six chief betrayers. He was the perfect source of all evil—precisely the kind of figure people loved to blame and dump their grievances onto.
Yet he was the Emperor. The Emperor of the mightiest nation on the continent, a man who had taken the legendary Flash Magic Swordswoman Irene as his wife and crowned her Empress.
No one dared criticize him openly. Criticizing the Emperor invited a swift beheading.
The Demon King's power was vast and insurmountable, but Irene's power as the Flash Magic Swordswoman was no less terrifying. The Demon King was merely a tale from the neighboring kingdom; the Flash Magic Swordswoman stood right in front of him, the immediate danger.
*Toot-toot!*
Beside him, Irene poured wine into his cup, her divine form completely bared. The stress that had plagued Ferdinand since the Demon King's appearance melted away the instant he sat naked next to her and beheld her goddess-like beauty.
Even after giving birth to a daughter at twenty-eight, her figure remained untouched—plump and full, radiating vitality so stunning that it defied belief. Golden hair cascading down to her waist shimmered like molten gold, while her sapphire-blue eyes sparkled like the gems themselves. Her snow-white skin was impossibly smooth and tender. The sweet fragrance that emanated from her body was nothing a human could ever possess.
Her voluptuous breasts, supported by a perfectly toned body, only heightened her ethereal allure. With the entire palace locked down, the chamber held only the two of them. Irene's welcoming magic ensured no one else could see her true state—she appeared in a lavish dress—but in reality she wore nothing but panties, her naked form exposed.
Ferdinand had even considered dressing her properly at times, yet he always concluded that seeing Irene completely naked was the most beautiful sight of all.
"Stand up."
When Ferdinand commanded her to rise, Irene rose smoothly from the chair beside him, her elegant curves on full display. The golden bush adorning her most intimate place, her smooth and flawless thighs, and her slender, graceful legs all gleamed with irresistible charm.
Admiring Irene's beauty, Ferdinand sipped the wine she had poured and felt his mind settle once more.
For his power, for his desires, for the sake of his mental stability—Irene was truly the greatest treasure.
*As expected, only a woman of this caliber belongs beside an Emperor like me. She has no place with some lowly transmigrator from another world.*
Thinking this, Ferdinand recalled Irene's father, Lextin, the chairman of the Lextin Trading Company. Lextin had grown suspicious after learning that Jae-hyun was dead and that Irene had spent two full weeks inside the palace without once seeking him out.
At the time Irene had been undergoing heavy brainwashing at Ferdinand's hands, so she could not yet show herself.
Lextin, however, stubbornly continued requesting palace access, demanding to see his daughter. Ferdinand, unable to refuse the Emperor's side, had finally granted the visit.
By then the entire human race was rejoicing in victory after the Demon King Laylana had fallen. The dead easily became heroes. The Hero Kim Jae-hyun, now dead, was being hailed as a legend across the world.
Irene, once his lover, was known as the Flash Magic Swordswoman, one of the heroes who had saved the world. Rumors spread that she had gone into seclusion from grief over Jae-hyun's death, explaining her mysterious whereabouts.
Lextin had initially believed it was merely sadness, but two weeks trapped inside the palace made no sense. Why the palace of all places? If it were merely seclusion in his own home, that might have been understandable.
Ferdinand had sensed something sinister in Lextin's movements, had assassins sent to eliminate him, hidden the body so it would never be discovered, and even spread baseless rumors that he was still alive. This way, Lextin's death would not be recorded, allowing him to buy time to fully brainwash Irene.
By the time Irene appeared in public as a perfectly conditioned puppet, the world had been told that the heartbroken princess had been comforted by her brother, the crown prince, and that her heart had been healed.
Of course, the truth was nothing but the result of countless sessions of torture and brainwashing.
*Demon King or not—I'll never hand this woman over to you, Kim Jae-hyun!*
Ferdinand closed his eyes and vowed. He would never give the continent's greatest beauty to that lowly bastard. That woman was meant only for a great Emperor of noble blood like himself.
"Time for a snack, perhaps. Hand it over, Irene."
"Yes, Your Majesty."
Obeying Ferdinand's command, Irene parted her legs slightly and let out a lewd moan, "Ahhh!" before pulling out a cherry glistening with her own nectar from her depths.
She held the fruit in her hand and fed it directly into his mouth. Ferdinand accepted it, ate it with satisfaction, and pulled her into his arms.
The unbelievable softness and elasticity of her body, the sweet aroma so close at hand—always heavenly, yet today it reached absolute ecstasy.
"Hahaha~ As expected, the best."
Irene's body was so delicious that Ferdinand never tired of tasting it. He had never gone a single day without exploring her flesh, despite being Emperor and possessing other consorts. Yet he had never once shared her with another. Even when taking pleasure with other consorts, he had always brought Irene along and taken her with the same intensity.
On days when Irene menstruated, he had even needed to relieve his urges inside her rear. Yet he had never stopped exploring her rear entirely. For ten full years, her two holes had been relentlessly ravished. Still, they never became sore; instead they delivered the fantasy of a virgin's body every time.
Her flesh was simply divine.
As he stroked Irene's buttocks, Ferdinand continued.
"Irene, I heard that the lowly bastard Kim Jae-hyun has returned to the world—and even become the Demon King."
"......"
Despite the mention of Jae-hyun's name, Irene—brainwashed to the point of having her emotions manipulated and controlled—remained silent.
"Even after giving that lowly wretch a chance to be called a hero, he betrayed us. Doesn't it seem like lowly beings are inherently irredeemable? Ah, you're no different, being a mere commoner."
Ferdinand called Jae-hyun lowly, yet he remembered Irene had also been a commoner's daughter, the heiress of a wealthy merchant family. It did not matter. She was his possession; status meant nothing. All that mattered was that she belonged to him.
"That lowly bastard is causing chaos in the world by becoming the Demon King. He must be eliminated soon. I happen to have obtained research on the Demon King Laylana's corpse. Using it to enhance you further will make you stronger, and the Demon King Kim Jae-hyun will fall."
This was one reason Ferdinand did not tremble with fear despite Jae-hyun becoming the Demon King.
Griffith Ricardo, the 10th-circle Archmage who had earned the title of Great Sage, had sworn absolute loyalty to Ferdinand—the Emperor of the Habsburg Empire—with his life and mana. He was a being who could never betray. Thus Ferdinand had loved him, bestowed upon him the title of Duke, and made him his right hand.
Griffith had researched Laylana's corpse and devised a method to obtain even greater power. He had also prepared to enhance Irene into a superior combat weapon.
At the time, he had already damaged her brain and erased all traces of her former emotions, reprogramming her to feel only joy in submission to Ferdinand.
With data from the previous Demon King's corpse, he had already planned to make her stronger. Irene's enhancement would occur tomorrow, giving him ample time.
No matter how strong the Demon King was, he had never believed that all the dragons on alert could be breached so easily.
A Demon King of that caliber might slip through while hiding his true self, but the moment he revealed himself, the eyes of every dragon—led by the Dragon Lord—would fix upon him.
"Ah... Aah! Aaaah!"
From within Ferdinand's embrace, Irene cried out in ecstasy, slowly releasing hot, breathy moans from her beautiful lips. His hand, stroking her buttocks, slid down to her intimate folds and began to rub her furiously.
"Today I'll let you cum first with just my hand, then enjoy your body properly."
Ferdinand had intended to bring her to orgasm with his fingers before devouring her flesh completely. But the obedient Irene, moaning in his arms, suddenly broke free, pulled an ovipositor from her inner space, and sheathed it inside her blade, then swung it wildly.
*Boom!*
The clash sent a shockwave. The desk in front of Ferdinand shattered into splinters, yet he remained unharmed thanks to the protective magic Irene had cast.
But the palace itself being attacked horrified him. Soon his eyes widened at the sight of the intruder.
Black hair, red eyes—yet the face was one he would never forget.
It was the very man he had loathed most and wished dead.
"Kim Jae-hyun!"
Jae-hyun nodded, cold contempt burning in his handsome face.
"Long time no see, Ferdinand."
His gaze then shifted to Irene. Through his red eyes, what he saw was not the young girl he remembered, but a twenty-eight-year-old mature beauty. Moreover, no matter how much welcoming magic Irene had activated, Jae-hyun's Demon King senses could not be deceived.
Even dragons, though they could be fooled by lesser beings, could not deceive him. Thus his eyes clearly showed Irene's completely naked form.
"You are no longer the one I remember. You are nothing but a soulless doll now."