The One Way to Break the Seal
“You expect me to believe that right now?”
I'd just been betrayed moments ago.
My head was still reeling, and now this nonsense?
“Why would this lady bother lying to you in this situation?”
“If that's true, then why didn't you say so until now?”
“This sealed realm is a separate dimension, cut off from the outside world. That's how I escaped the Demon King's binding of my true name.”
She must have analyzed the sealing magic in that instant.
“So what you're saying is... you've been forced to obey the Demon King all this time because he kept you muzzled?”
“Exactly.”
“And without his oppression, you'd have been a good girl?”
Silvina poked her chin with her index finger.
“Hmm~ Not quite. Even before that, they called me the evil dragon, after all.”
I pressed a hand to my forehead.
Come to think of it, we were both trapped here, unable to escape.
No point nitpicking truth from lies now.
“Fine, whatever... Those traitors. So the real Demon King is still out there somewhere, and they think they've sealed him?”
“All of us, exactly as you say. Even the Goddess danced in the palm of his hand.”
I let out a hollow chuckle.
That was music to my ears.
“Good. At least I won't die with a broken heart.”
“Die? You're not even badly hurt.”
“You're going to kill me now, right?”
“Why would this lady do that?”
I stared at her blankly.
She stared right back.
“......?”
“......?”
A beat of silence passed.
“All that commotion trying to kill me before...?”
“I told you, didn't I? I fought only because of the Demon King's orders. Personally, I harbor no ill will toward you. If anything... I might even feel a slight fondness.”
“Slight?”
“Consider it an honor. Cases where a dragon takes a liking to a human are rare enough to count on one hand across continental history.”
I mulled that over for a moment, then flopped onto the ground.
What was the point anymore?
It was all meaningless.
The outcome hadn't changed.
I'd been thoroughly betrayed.
Trapped here forever.
“Not the Demon King, huh... Silvina?”
“I'll grant you the privilege of calling me Silvina as a nickname.”
“Sure, whatever. Silvina. How long can you last without food?”
“Dragons generate nutrients from mana within our bodies. If I conserve it, the mana I have now should last roughly two thousand years.”
Incredible survival instinct.
No wonder—legends say dragons sleep for centuries at a time.
I could convert my own mana to nutrients, too.
But a month at most.
If there was even water, I might hold out longer.
Unfortunately, this sealed world had nothing.
“You'll be bored out of your mind when I starve.”
“Planning suicide?”
“Why would I? I want to live. But like this, we'll just starve trapped here.”
“Ah~ So that's the issue. No need to worry.”
Flash!
“Huh?”
“If it's food you need, this lady will provide.”
A tray had appeared in her hand.
Piled high with desserts nobles loved.
“...Where'd that come from?”
“From my personal subspace storage. No spoilage worries—time stops inside.”
“How much food do you have stashed there?”
“Enough for three meals a day until you grow old and die, with plenty left over.”
I couldn't help but laugh in disbelief.
“And you're giving it away for free?”
“Of course not. If you starve, I'll be stuck here alone, bored to tears.”
“Ah. So you want me as a companion in return?”
Silvina sat demurely beside me.
“You there.”
“Yeah?”
“This lady feels gratitude toward your comrades.”
“Sorry, but I don't want to talk about those bitches.”
Just thinking about them made my blood boil.
Those traitors.
After all I'd done for them on our journey.
I could still see their faces, smiling sweetly with 'Hero~'.
All an act.
Disgusting.
“What can you do? Thanks to your comrades, you're trapped here with me. And that lets us plan for the future.”
“Plan for the future...?”
“You there. Don't you want revenge? On the Demon King who toyed with us, the Goddess who discarded you like a chess piece... and your comrades who betrayed you for their own gain.”
“Of course I do. But we're sealed here. Even combining our power, we can't break it. You've tested it yourself.”
Silvina, sitting beside me, leaned in, gazing at me.
“There is one way to shatter this seal.”
“What's that?”
“Mating.”
I was speechless.
Bored enough for jokes?
As I stared, Silvina flashed a sultry smile.
“I've thought it before, but the Goddess is so inept. She couldn't even discern if this lady was the true Demon King... and chose to seal you here with me.”
“W-Wait. You're serious?”
“You there. Clearly, the two of us alone can't escape. But... what if three? Or four?”
That's when I grasped her intent.
“You. Even without the Demon King's control, you're evil by nature... no, an evil dragon, right?”
“Precisely, humans dubbed me that on their whim. For not following their petty rules.”
They call this fate's cruel joke.
If I mated with Silvina here, had children, and escaped...
Wouldn't that be the 'calamity born of me' the Goddess feared?
“Know what the Goddess said? The reason she sealed me here—a new calamity would arise because of me.”
“Then her foolish judgment makes some sense. She likely glimpsed only fragments of the future. No god sees the full tapestry.”
“......”
“So, what say you? Will you cling to your hero's nobility?”
Nobility be damned.
Better to be called evil and seize my freedom than rot here unjustly.
It was do or die.
I shot to my feet and pinned Silvina's shoulders, laying her on the ground.
She offered no resistance, yielding to my touch.
“Just to check—do you have experience?”
Silvina gave a seductive smile.
“And you?”
“Virgin, but I've seen others do it—indirect experience.”
Thanks to the internet's wonders before isekai.
“What a fateful encounter. This lady's a virgin too. Though I've studied mating from ancient tomes.”
“Oh? What'd the book say?”
“If unsure, just follow the male's instincts at first... Right?”
Spot on, dragon.
The Demon King had been sealed.
News of the Hero's party's victory echoed across the Altania Kingdom.
The kingdom swiftly prepared a parade to welcome them.
And on the day the Hero's party arrived at the capital, Beneh.
Crowds lined the streets, cheering and applauding.
“Coco. It's a happy day—smile a little. People are watching.”
“......”
As they paraded on horseback through the capital's streets.
Coco alone looked unwell.
Her fox ears and tail drooped limply.
Dark circles from sleepless nights since the sealing.
Hard to believe this was the party's former mood-maker.
“The Hero fulfilled his duty to the end, sacrificing himself. If you mope like that, he'll be sad in heaven too.”
Clepin rode beside Coco, trying to console her.
Suddenly, Coco eyed Clepin with hollow eyes.
“But you're all fine, Clepin sis.”
“Uh, y-yeah?”
“Everyone else too. Hailey sis, Lonne sis, Saintess... None of you badly hurt.”
“What are you...?”
Coco was different.
She'd thrown daggers first when the Hero was in danger, thrown herself to create openings.
Now, she was the most injured survivor.
“What did you all do after I got knocked out? Did you really help the Hero?”
“......”
Coco couldn't fathom it.
The moment the Demon King's tail sent her flying.
Shock blacked her out briefly.
When she woke, it was over.
Demon King sealed, Hero sacrificed.
Unable to seal cleanly, the Hero chose to sacrifice himself with the Demon King.
“You just watched him make that choice?”
“We tried to stop him, but...”
“I would have!”
Coco yelled suddenly, drawing eyes.
Clepin flinched, shoulders trembling.
“I would've... even if it killed me, I'd have stopped him... No, if he was getting sealed, I'd have jumped in too!”
“Coco...”
“Don't you feel bad for him? Trapped forever, tormented by the Demon King! And you just watched?!”
As Coco's voice rose, Hailey approached slowly from behind.
“Coco. Lower your voice. It was a hard choice for us too. You weren't there—you don't know.”
From the carriage ahead, Belnusha leaned out the window.
“Coco. The Hero didn't want us hurt. That's why we're mostly fine.”
By then.
The party finished the parade and entered the palace.
Guided to the throne room, the King of Altania awaited on his throne.
“Well done, all of you. I heard of the painful sacrifice, but set aside the grief for now and bask in victory's joy...”
As the King praised their feats.
Boom!
Rumble.
Suddenly, a roar echoed, shaking the palace faintly.
If once, it'd be a fluke.
But boom! Boom!
Rumble rumble rumble.
The distant roar grew louder, ornaments rattling in the room.
Bang!
The throne room doors burst open.
“Y-Your Majesty! Disaster!”
A fully armored soldier rushed in.
The King of Altania furrowed his brow.
“What is it?”
“D-Demon King forces are swarming Beneh from all sides! The vanguard is breaching the gates—they won't hold long!”
Retaliation after the sealing?
Everyone thought so at first.
“...Wait. Won't hold? You're saying you're losing to Demon King troops without their leader?”
“Because the leader hasn't vanished.”
Right after those words.
The throne room ceiling crumbled.
Thud!
Whoosh!
A man burst through, swirling his black cloak dramatically.
“Intruder! Protect His Majesty first!”
“Who are you?!”
The knights moved in unison.
“Who am I? Guess.”
Hiss.
Viscous demonic energy spread from him.
Unlike ordinary demons.
“I-Impossible... Demonic energy stronger than the Demon King's...!”
Belnusha hastily raised a holy barrier, struggling against it.
“Stronger than the Demon King? Heh, hahaha! Pathetic, hilarious! You'll learn the truth soon—watch from the front row.”
“What...?”
“The finale of my meticulously staged play has arrived. To deliver the despair that your 'Demon King' was a fake! That's why I've come personally!”
Crackle!
His eyes glowed red, horns sprouting—mark of a demon.
He didn't stop.
Whoosh!
Charging Belnusha, he snatched the Holy Sword from her back.
Whine!
It reacted to the foul energy.
“This accursed blade... How long I cowered because of it. Once gone, no one can slay me!”
Crunch! Crackle!
He shattered it before their eyes.
Shatter!
Then everyone realized.
“Demon King...!”
Who he was.