Chapter 9
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Translator: Wjin
Chapter: 9
Chapter Title: Another Tough Day Pretending to Be Human
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I first checked on his condition.
"A-Are you okay?"
It was far less mana than I'd unleashed on Loreil before, but for an ordinary human, the impact would've been enough to make their head spin for days.
Fortunately, aside from the dented helmet, there didn't seem to be any major injuries.
'Good thing he's sturdy.'
If he'd died, it would've been a disaster.
I'd have to be more careful controlling my strength from now on.
"H-How did you just..."
"Exactly. You shouldn't pick fights without gauging your opponent's strength."
If he were really one of my subordinates, I'd have chewed him out properly. And then retrained him for pulling such a pathetic attack.
I let out a short sigh and finally removed the veil that had been stifling me the whole time.
Rusla's eyes widened as she caught sight of my irises.
"Those eyes..."
"Unique, right? You might not know, but actually, I'm..."
"They're beautiful. Like jewels."
"..."
She really was an unusual one. Aside from Liribel, she was the first to compliment my eyes like that.
"Anyway, is that ornament so important to you that you'd raise a fist against a princess?"
"I'm sorry. When my emotions run high, I lose control of my strength... I'll gladly accept any punishment."
She dropped to her knees right then, bowing her head as if offering her neck for the blade.
"Forget it. I was rude too."
Truth be told, attempting to assault royalty was a capital offense, but I didn't want to make a big deal out of it.
"Instead of punishment, why don't you explain that ornament to me?"
"That's... difficult."
"Even if you're punished, you won't say?"
"Yes. I can't tell humans."
Humans.
The nuance felt oddly peculiar.
I crossed my arms and stared down at her silently. I couldn't tell what expression she was making inside that dented helmet. But her resolve to keep her mouth shut was palpable.
"Fine, then something else."
I searched for a lighter topic to ease her tension.
"I heard you've never taken off your helmet in front of an audience. Is there a reason?"
"It's not a face fit for others to see. And I don't like standing before crowds anyway."
"Then why become a fighter?"
Isn't performing in front of the masses the whole point of sports?
Rusla's shoulders twitched at that.
"...There are circumstances."
"Another circumstance you can't share with your sponsor? You have a lot of secrets."
"It's..."
Maybe because she'd been dodging questions, Rusla answered with a note of resignation.
"Family matters. I have to do this to ensure my family's survival."
"Is your family in trouble?"
"Yes, our home is about to be taken away."
Her attitude softened noticeably at the mention of family. I spoke with genuine sympathy.
"Tell me about it. It might ease your mind."
After a moment's hesitation, Rusla slowly began.
"My family lived in an abandoned mine."
Her voice grew thick, as if lost in memories of the past.
"One day, a noble bought the mine we were living in. He tried to drive us out, claiming we weren't imperial citizens. That noble is the arena's sponsor."
Rusla said she'd begged him not to evict them. But he refused, threatening to force them out if they didn't leave.
"An ordinary human would've fled from a noble, but we needed that mine to survive. Telling us to leave was as good as telling us to die."
A race that shuns showing their face and must live underground... Don't tell me.
I began to suspect what she was.
Rusla continued calmly.
"When we begged to stay and promised to do anything, the noble made a deal. Namely..."
"To fight in the arena?"
"Yes. If I won even once, he'd return the land. As terms of the deal, my family became hostages."
After that, Rusla headed to the imperial capital.
"What happened to your hostage family?"
"I don't know. Whether they're still in the mine or were taken somewhere... At least they send letters confirming they're alive."
And so Rusla's career as an arena fighter began.
For over ten years, no less.
"But because of my lack of skill, I've never won once. And whenever it was an important match, I'd make some inexplicable mistake."
In the end, Rusla became the sidekick to champions—the Helmet Fighter.
She trained relentlessly for years without rest, yet victory's light never shone on her.
As if the goddess of victory had turned her back.
That's strange. After ten years of fighting, she should've improved.
Did Rusla lack combat sense? Even so, losing for that long was hard to believe.
I'll train her skills myself later. More importantly, her identity.
A race that must live underground.
Never removing the helmet before humans.
And bearing my emblem.
There was one race in my army with all those traits.
Underworld fairies of the demon realm who loathe sunlight.
"Baobhan Sith."
The wicked vampiric fairies—Baobhan Sith.
Startled by my words, Rusla flinched.
"How do you know that name..."
"With this many clues, I can't pretend otherwise."
I rose from my chair and approached Rusla. As she tried to back away, I grabbed her shoulders and placed a hand on her helmet.
"W-Wait. If you touch the helmet..."
"It's fine. I'm used to it."
"...!"
Then I removed her helmet.
The Helmet Fighter's face was finally revealed.
Pale skin untouched by sunlight, crimson eyes, and roughly cropped short green hair.
No makeup, not even styled hair, yet her alluring eyes and sculpted features stole one's gaze.
If there were a god of beauty on the surface, they'd favor Rusla above all.
The audience had no idea. That the Helmet Fighter was a woman.
That's right. Rusla was female.
Baobhan Sith are all female.
Vampiric fairies who shun sunlight and dwell in the underworld.
That was Rusla's true nature.
"How do you know our race's name...? Humans can't recognize us!"
Aside from their bloodsucking habits and striking beauty, Baobhan Sith were indistinguishable from humans.
I knew because I was the one who rescued the persecuted Baobhan Sith in the demon realm and integrated them into my army.
My emotions were complicated.
I'd considered she might be someone from my past, but to think she was actually one of my subordinates—a Baobhan Sith.
"Answer me. Why does a princess know about Baobhan Sith?"
As I fell silent in thought, Rusla misunderstood something, her eyes filling with murderous intent.
"Don't tell me... a servant of the Sun God...!"
She even drew the sword at her waist.
"Don't talk nonsense. I'm..."
"But earlier, you mocked the Black Lion and praised the Sun God!"
True enough.
I had nothing to say.
As I opened my mouth to tell her to calm down, she shouted.
"If you're truly a servant of the Sun God, I'll stop you even if it kills me! To protect my family!"
"No, I told you I don't believe in that god."
"I won't fall for human lies anymore!"
This won't do. She wasn't listening at all.
Oh no, and the soundproofing spell is about to wear off.
Using minimal mana to avoid backlash had made the duration too short.
As she advanced with her sword raised, exuding menace, the signal that the soundproofing was ending rang in my ears.
Talking about Baobhan Sith in front of others would be disastrous.
If this continued, outsiders would learn Rusla's identity. I raised both hands to show I had no intent to fight.
"Wait, hold on. So if I prove I'm not human, that'll settle it?"
"What kind of nonsense is that?"
"Watch closely. My true nature is..."
I focused my mind and awakened my mana. This wasn't using mana—just revealing the mana I'd concealed—so no backlash.
Instead, Rusla, so close by, could feel the change.
"Ugh..."
Mana flowed from my heart, enveloping my body.
To me, it looked like black mist cloaking me, but Rusla, eroded by the mana, muttered dazedly as if seeing hallucinations.
"Wings... hellfire... mane..."
She was apparently seeing my prime form.
As I was about to ask if she believed I wasn't human now—
"Ah, my god."
She suddenly knelt, clasped her hands, and began praying fervently.
"My god, at last, at long last, you have descended to this world."
"No, I was just trying to show you I'm a demon..."
"My god, my light, my savior."
This is bad.
She seemed to have lost her mind, intoxicated by my powerful mana. Baobhan Sith were susceptible to mana anyway.
I hurriedly withdrew the mana and tried to pull her up—
"Pardon the intrusion. I knocked but got no answer... Your Highness?"
The lounge door opened, and Loreil's knight stepped inside.
"..."
What they saw was the beauty Rusla, tears and snot streaming as she prayed earnestly.
And before her, the veil-less cursed princess (me).
I pressed a hand to my forehead, feeling a headache coming on, and said,
"That's not what it looks like."
Definitely not.