What Madness Is This?
Outside the temple. Gathered in front of it were celebrities so famous that no one in the empire didn't know of them.
Arios Graviuss, the Sword Master and heir to the ducal house—someone every imperial citizen had heard of through rumors, even if they'd never seen her in person. Viol Zadenbioum, the empress of the empire, whom anyone would recognize at a glance. Sibylius, the half-demon grand mage whom few could identify but whom every imperial took pride in—and feared. And then there were the Death Knights, a group of Expert-level knights led by a Sword Master, not particularly famous in the empire but still formidable.
With all these people—who could stir up a commotion just by showing up—gathered in one spot, a miracle occurred. No one dared approach them; within a 100-meter radius, people kept their distance and backed away.
"Wh-what's going on?"
"Why is Her Majesty here?"
The capital's citizens, clustered far off and murmuring, didn't know the details, but they could sense the bad vibe right away. Seeing all these big shots eyeing each other with sour expressions, even the most oblivious person could read the room.
"You crazy bitch, can't you just die somewhere I won't notice?"
Viol spat at Arios with utter disgust. Arios tilted her head.
"Why me?"
"...This bitch is still talking down to me. The others are annoying too, but you're on a whole other level."
Viol wasn't being sarcastic; she meant it. She disliked Hames and Sibylius too, but compared to Arios, they were reasonable. Hames at least observed basic formalities, and Sibylius—though Viol hated to admit it—was treated as an equal collaborator by generations of emperors.
But then,
"Why don't you die instead?"
Coming from a family loyal to the throne for ages, this heir was mouthing off to her, the empress herself. It was utterly baffling.
"What the hell gives you the guts? Even Seres Huferion, heir to the noble faction leader checking the throne, doesn't talk to me like that!"
"Who knows? Maybe Seres is just holding back from saying the same."
"Holding back? With that personality, if he was pissed, he'd say it right then! ...Lately, he's even been nicer."
Viol's expression softened as she spoke, and it wasn't just talk—it was true. Anyone could tell Seres had grown more amicable toward her.
"It's because I stepped up when it mattered. Unlike some who did nothing when Seres needed help."
"What are you talking about?"
"Don't you know I was the one who brought that kid to the palace when he was in trouble at the estate? His attitude toward me changed right after."
"...If I'd heard about it, I could've handled it better!"
"Better than me, the empress? How?"
"I'd have killed every single one causing problems there, high priest or whatever!"
"Kill them all right in front of Seres? You barbarian."
"What did you say?!"
Arios and Viol mocked, insulted, and snapped at each other but stopped short of a real fight. They still remembered Seres strictly forbidding them from clashing.
So their petty bickering dragged on, and the Death Knights watched with keen interest.
"Man, our lord sure has a lot of sins to atone for."
"Charming so many capable women like this."
"Scary to think this might turn into a love triangle murder."
They voiced worry, but their grinning faces made it clear they were just enjoying the show. The tale of high-status folks fighting over the empire's top beauty was riveting, whether among the living or the undead.
"Who're you rooting for?"
"Empress Viol. She showed up when it counted, like she said."
"Me too, Empress Viol."
"Why?"
"If Seres marries her, he could take over the whole empire."
"Ah, right. And if the empress bears him a daughter inheriting his Divine Power..."
"The whole nation unknowingly becomes a holy empire, successor to the Saint Kingdom."
The Death Knights chattered away in happy delusions, but their leader wasn't joining in. Captain Niobe Huferion stood a step back, staring at Sibylius.
What's with her?
Niobe eyed Sibylius with a strange expression. She'd never seen the woman before today, yet she felt an inexplicable chill. And a nagging sense of familiarity, like she'd encountered something similar once.
Where was it? I definitely felt this before...
As she rummaged through a millennium of memories, Sibylius noticed her gaze and met her eyes.
"Something wrong?"
"...Just curious what you're doing."
Caught off-guard, Niobe scrambled for an excuse.
"You haven't said a word. You've just been staring around blankly, so I wondered why."
"Oh, that."
Sibylius frowned and glanced around.
"The capital's layout is weird, so I was checking it out."
"Weird layout?"
"I don't come to the capital much, so I never noticed, but there are secret passages hidden all over the place."
While waiting for Seres outside the temple, she'd spotted various concealed mechanisms in the city.
"They're masked by magic, but I can see them. Even right under plain roads. What are these passages for, and when were they built?"
"Maybe emergency tunnels made by the imperial family?"
"No, I'd know about those. Even ask Empress Viol over there—she'd have no clue. ...And."
"And?"
"Hasn't it been kinda noisy lately?"
Sibylius grew uneasy at some vague sensation prickling her senses. It felt like something was rising from underground, so she'd been on high alert. Then,
This scent?!
A familiar smell hit her just as one of the secret passages opened.
A redhead emerged carrying a silver-haired someone. The redhead was recognizable to those in the know, but the silver hair belonged to someone everyone here knew: Seres!
"Seres?!"
They all shouted his name almost in unison.
"Why are you out here? And who's that punk?"
Viol demanded, puzzled. Why was Seres, who should be inside the temple, out here—and who was holding him? The latter especially irked her, so she spoke harshly, and a retort came back.
"Then who's your punk?"
Not from Seres, but from Red, the one carrying him.
Viol's face hardened.
"You talking to me?"
"Your ears just for show?"
"...Do you even know who I am?"
"Do you know who I am? I called you a punk 'cause you called mine one—getting offended proves you're some motherless bitch."
"You bastard!"
Viol's face turned deadly serious. She'd called Arios the rudest earlier, but Red topped it. And worse, it was all irrefutably true, fueling her rage.
"I'll kill you right—"
"Red!"
Before Viol could move in earnest, Arios yelled first.
"You, still after Seres?!"
Seeing Red holding Seres, she assumed another rival and drew her sword, but
"No, no!!"
Seres himself stopped her. He hurriedly climbed down from Red and shouted,
"She helped me!"
"...She helped you? Why?"
"I don't know!"
Truly clueless, Seres scanned the group and urgently added,
"More importantly, demons are chasing me right now!"
"We can see that—no need to tell us!"
"No, not her!"
As Red drew suspicion again, Seres picked her up bodily and shoved her aside before explaining in more detail.
"Lady Has—no, that bitch Has! Our family mage Has turned out to be a demon!"
"Has? I've heard of her—she worked for the Huferions for over twenty years, right? And she's a demon?"
"Yeah. A demon who betrayed me! I got tricked by her and went to the temple basement, where she had over a hundred demons waiting!"
Over a hundred demons. An unstoppable force, potentially a disaster that could ravage the capital. Yet no one panicked at the news—they just looked baffled.
"A hundred demons in the capital?"
"In the temple basement, no less?"
"Seres, did you hit your head again and lose it?"
Viol, Arios, Sibylius. None believed a word. Sibylius in particular genuinely worried for Seres's mental state.
"Those demons really exist?"
"Yes!"
"Then why are they after you?"
"...No idea."
"Seres, did that demon brainwash you by any chance?"
Every question got the same clueless response, leaving them dumbfounded—until Red, fed up, spilled what she knew.
"They're gonna make Seres revive the Maou, then take him as the Maou's mate."
"What the fuck?!"
"...That was just something I threw out there."
Seres and Sibylius both jolted in shock. Seres because it was news to him. Sibylius because she wondered if her last love confession mentioning the Maou had triggered this mess.
In the midst of the chaos, a clamor of footsteps rose from the passage they'd just escaped— a large group pouring up.