Chapter 149
Chapter 149
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Translator: True Detective
Chapter: 149
Chapter Title: The Princess Escapes the Demon King's Castle to Save the Hero (5)
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Roll roll—.
Splat—.
The sight of a person tumbling like a potato before sprawling flat drew the attention of countless onlookers.
Even more so because that potato had landed inside the red line that the Black Sword Troops had warned everyone never to cross.
Shocked voices erupted from all around.
“Hey? He crossed the line?”
“Who is that?”
“…Goetz Roetern?”
“That’s Goetz Roetern, right?”
Seeing the purple bruise on the back of his head, spread out like a frog struck by a stone in the Demon King’s domain, many clicked their tongues.
But their tongue-clicking wasn’t out of surprise.
“Tch, that madman’s finally gone and done it.”
“That guy’s up to his weird antics again.”
“Well...”
People clicked their tongues in the sense of, yeah, that’s Goetz Roetern for you—of course he’d pull something like that.
For Goetz, it was an utterly unjust situation.
‘I didn’t do it!’
Normally, he wouldn’t have felt particularly wronged by reactions like that from those around him.
The bewildered stares from the crowd were just the natural consequence of his own actions anyway.
So he could brush them off as nothing.
But this was different.
Receiving those stares for something he hadn’t done left Goetz feeling incredibly wronged.
It was a frustration he’d never felt before in his life.
So he rolled his eyes, searching for the true culprit behind this mess.
To confront them about it.
But what was this?
“h-he’s gone?!”
Yuri, who had been crouching right up against the line just moments ago, had vanished without a trace.
Goetz frantically scanned in every direction.
But that action didn’t last long.
Swish—.
Right in front of Goetz.
The Demon King, who had been sitting impassively, quietly rose from his seat upon spotting the intruder in his domain.
The crowd’s eyes sparkled at the sight.
‘What happens if you ignore the warning not to cross the line?’
‘Honestly, I’ve always been curious.’
What exactly would happen if someone crossed that red line?
Everyone watched with keen interest.
Unlike the surrounding gazes, embarrassment was plain on Goetz’s face.
‘This is bad...’
This kind of attention wasn’t what he wanted.
He’d planned to stay hidden quietly and later slip away to help his lover somehow in secret.
But now that was impossible.
He’d unintentionally stumbled into the Demon King’s domain without any preparation, and he had no idea what would happen next.
He might get locked up somewhere.
Or his lover could face repercussions because of him.
So Goetz agonized.
‘What should I do?’
A flurry of thoughts raced through his mind.
Step step—.
Seeing the Demon King slowly approaching, he finally made his decision.
‘Fine, since it’s come to this...’
It might be better for him to face the Demon King than risk harm coming to his lover.
Having reached that conclusion, Goetz reached into his pocket.
To unlock the handcuffs and shackles.
But.
Pat—.
“…Huh?”
They were gone.
Pat pat—.
“Wha—?”
The items that had been in his pocket just moments ago.
Pat pat pat—.
“…?!”
The keys his lover had told him to keep safe were nowhere inside.
No matter how much he rummaged, he felt only empty space.
In his panic, Goetz looked around wildly.
Maybe they’d fallen out during his tumble.
But the keys were nowhere to be seen.
Only one thought filled his head.
‘...I’m screwed.’
Screwed in the most perfect way possible.
Goetz collapsed to the floor, propping himself up like a pitiful princess.
A moment later.
Step—.
A large foot appeared before him.
Goetz looked up with a trembling expression.
In that instant, his eyes met the Demon King’s, who gazed down at him with a chilling expression.
“Please... don’t tell the Hero of my death.”
Goetz uttered some incomprehensible plea with a forlorn look on his face.
The Demon King stared back at him with an even chillier gaze.
Tension mounted between the Demon King and Goetz.
The crowd couldn’t tear their eyes away from them.
Just as all attention focused on Goetz and the Demon King.
Sniff sniff—.
Someone sniffed the air.
The moment they turned at the acrid smell creeping into their nostrils.
“…?!”
They cried out in shock at the thick white smoke billowing from behind.
“F-fire! Fire!”
At the shout, those watching the Demon King and Goetz jumped in alarm and turned as well.
People panicked and milled about upon spotting the oncoming gray smoke.
“F-fire!”
“Fire!”
As the gray smoke surged from behind, people stumbled backward.
Right toward the red line.
“D-don’t push! We’ll cross the line like this!”
“Who cares about the line? There’s fire back there—don’t push!”
“Hey, move forward! We’ll all burn to death at this rate!”
Chaos engulfed the once-peaceful chamber.
Goetz and even the Demon King turned in surprise toward the crowd pressing into the area inside the red line.
As the dense smoke rolled in, people edged ever closer to the line.
And eventually, they crossed it.
Goetz’s eyes lit up at the turn of events.
‘Oh? If things are turning out like this?’
He wasn’t the only one who had crossed into the Demon King’s domain anymore. That could be a game-changer.
It gave Goetz a glimmer of hope.
Then the hazy smoke completely filled the chamber.
Cough cough—.
Coughs broke out everywhere.
“S-someone, open a window!”
“Anyone near the windows?”
Did someone hear?
Crash—.
Crash—.
The sound of shattering glass rang out in succession.
And soon after.
The smoke that had filled the chamber rapidly vented out the open windows, clearing the view.
Thanks to that, people realized the commotion hadn’t been caused by an actual fire.
“What... it was just smoke?”
“What the heck did they burn to make smoke like this?”
People’s gazes turned toward the chamber’s entrance.
Only charred remains were left there.
A knight in a green epaulet picked it up.
“Some... metal scrap?”
It was a small lump of ore.
Bewildered by its identity, he stared at it in confusion.
Step—.
The Demon King, who had appeared out of nowhere, snatched the metal piece from the knight’s hand.
Examining it closely, the Demon King murmured softly.
“…Hexacle.”
It wasn’t perfectly refined, but it was definitely hexacle.
Hexacle.
A common mineral on its own, but it changed properties when combined with certain substances.
Namely, producing massive amounts of smoke.
Thanks to this trait, hexacle was commonly used in signal smoke bombs.
Of course, even knowing that, ordinary folk couldn’t easily make them.
Only soldiers trained professionally.
Or seasoned mercenaries with vast experience knew the recipe.
And the fact that it had been used meant such a person had infiltrated this chamber.
‘What are they after?’
Realizing this, the Demon King’s face hardened.
He whipped his head around urgently, lips parting slightly.
“Th-this?!”
The Demon King was visibly rattled.
And understandably so.
‘It’s gone!’
The crystal of power he’d hung on his chair had vanished completely.
The Demon King scanned the surroundings frantically.
The shattered windows on both sides of the chamber.
Approaching one, he peered outside.
There, far below the Demon King’s castle, he spotted something dropped on the ground.
Shackles, no less.
“…?!”
The startled Demon King checked the opposite window.
There lay handcuffs.
A scene formed naturally in the Demon King’s mind.
Someone had burned hexacle at the back of the chamber to create a massive smokescreen and sow chaos.
Then, amid the panicked tangle of bodies, slipped through the smoke to steal the crystal of power.
Unlocked the handcuffs and shackles, tossed them out to shatter a window, and vented the smoke.
‘Deliberately clearing the smoke means they didn’t intend harm to others, and using the handcuffs and shackles... means it was one of the acquaintances playing the princess.’
It meant one of Yoram’s knights had pulled this off.
For now, how that knight had made a smoke bomb with hexacle.
And how they’d unlocked the handcuffs could be figured out later.
What mattered now was that the crystal of power had been stolen.
A sharp glint entered the Demon King’s eyes.
‘Even if they escape this castle, there’s only one place they can go.’
There was just one swaying bridge leading out of this terrain where the Demon King’s castle stood.
The Demon King swiftly moved to another window and flung it open.
The one with a view of the swaying bridge from the castle.
And sure enough.
‘There they are.’
Far off.
A black-haired figure was sprinting away.
Clutching the crystal of power, no less.
‘They’ve gotten that far already.’
With a chilling smile, the Demon King quickly grabbed his sword.
And then.
Thud—.
He leaped straight out the window.
“Wh-what?!”
“What’s he doing?”
Many looked on in confusion, unable to grasp the situation.
But surprisingly, one person had pieced it together.
None other than Goetz.
‘The crystal of power was stolen?’
When the Demon King had grabbed his sword and left earlier, the lamp holding the crystal was gone.
Meaning the crystal had already been taken.
Goetz’s mind raced.
And the more he thought, the more all the pieces fit perfectly.
Someone had shoved him into the Demon King’s domain to draw the king from his throne.
Focused everyone’s attention on him and the Demon King.
Then created smoke for chaos and stolen the crystal before slipping away.
And only someone a bit unhinged would attempt such a mad scheme without batting an eye.
Only one person matched every criterion.
“…Owl?”
In that moment, Goetz realized.
Yuri lying there so quietly like a dead mouse hadn’t just been resting.
He’d been gathering his strength right before unleashing a massive stunt.
* * *
‘Thanks, old man!’
Yuri sent his thanks to that man somewhere in the world.
This whole thing was entirely thanks to him.
If the mercenary old man hadn’t taught him how to pick locks.
If he hadn’t shown him how to make signal smoke bombs with hexacle.
He never would have even attempted it.
No, even if he had, success wouldn’t have been likely.
If Johan had been the one to teach him magic.
The mercenary old man had taught him all sorts of practical tricks for surviving in the world.
And thanks to his mentor’s teachings, Yuri had gotten what he wanted.
“Heh...”
A powerful sense of accomplishment washed over him.
That exhilarating thrill of achieving his goal!
His mood was so good that a silly laugh slipped through his lips.
“Hehe... hehehe.”
Of course, it wasn’t just joy from accomplishment.
It was also the pleasurable grin that came from material satisfaction.
Yuri gazed lovingly at the lamp clutched to his chest.
‘Hehe, you’re mine!’
Like someone in love.
With an obsessive stare that said he’d never let go.
Eyes laced with madness, as if he’d never forgive anyone who got in their way.
But that lasted only a moment.
Yuri quickly steeled himself.
‘Halfway there.’
Unlocking the handcuffs and shackles.
Stealing the crystal of power and escaping the Demon King’s castle.
All that was just barely half the journey to claiming the crystal.
‘The road ahead is still long.’
To fully make the crystal of power his own, he had to find Theresia.
Face set, he dashed onward.
Toward the sole bridge leading out of the terrain where the Demon King’s castle stood.
And at last, Yuri reached the swaying bridge.