Chapter 114
Chapter 114
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Translator: uly
Chapter: 114
Chapter Title: The Demon King's Legacies #5
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The Saintess said,
“Theo Gospel, that man is going to kill me.”
It was only natural for Aira’s gaze to turn toward me.
Those pitch-black eyes seemed to ask, “Are you planning to kill the Saintess?” I felt wrongly accused, as if a false charge had been pinned on me.
“I apologize for rudely interrupting the conversation, but me killing the Saintess? What on earth are you talking about? I’ve never heard such a thing.”
“Theo, let’s hear more of the story.”
At Aira’s restraint, I held back from saying more and shut my mouth. Sometimes, staying silent is the better choice.
As I waited to see what else the Saintess would say, she let out a flirtatious chuckle, as if finding the situation quite amusing.
“Ah, my apologies. Come to think of it, the names are the same.”
“You mean it’s just a coincidence of names.”
Aira nodded as if she understood. Only then did I grasp the direction and flow of the conversation.
In other words, the Saintess was saying her life was being threatened by a man with the same name as me. Soon enough, I had a hunch myself.
Twenty years ago, when Saintess Priga Nightfall was still a student at Arc, she had been part of the adventure club, and among the members was someone named Theo Gospel.
She was probably talking about him.
“Please explain in detail.”
Just then, Aira urged the Saintess to elaborate, showing interest in the story. The Saintess picked up her glass of wine and took a few sips to moisten her lips.
“It might be quite a long tale.”
“Make it as concise as possible.”
“About twenty years ago now. Back when I was still a naive novice nun, so to speak, roughly twenty-two years ago to be precise.”
Twenty-two years ago—how old was the Saintess then?
As a novice nun, probably early to mid-teens. That gave me a rough estimate of her age. Mid-thirties, perhaps...
Thwack.
Someone slammed their palm on the crystal table, startling me out of my thoughts. Turning my head, I saw Saintess Priga glaring at me through her eyepatch.
“Weren’t you just thinking something terribly rude? Like trying to calculate my age.”
“......”
Could the Saintess read minds?
Well, she’d need abilities like that to hold the title of Saintess in a church rife with nepotism.
I’d have to watch my thoughts around this woman.
Regardless of my thoughts, the Saintess continued her story.
“At the time, I had a classmate. It might sound humble now, but he was far more talented and gifted than I was.”
“That must be Theo Gospel.”
“Yes.”
Swish.
Aira’s gaze shifted back to me.
“Is this a different person from the Theo here? You’re saying it’s definitely someone else.”
“Hmm—”
The Saintess let out a brief hum at Aira’s question. After a moment, she nodded as if understanding and replied.
“The name Theo Gospel is fairly common in the church. It comes from Theodoros, meaning ‘gift of the god.’”
I see. That was new information.
“His full name is Theodoros Gospel. To avoid confusion with the half-elf here, let’s call him Theodoros.”
“So he’s completely different from the Theo here.”
Aira let out a long “Hmph,” like the interest ballooning in her mind had deflated like a burst bubble.
“I was hoping I might learn something about my little Theo’s past. Oh well.”
She seemed disappointed it wasn’t about me.
The Saintess then said,
“To begin with, Theodoros isn’t some soft thing like a half-elf. He’s something darker, more like an abyss of profound malice.”
Saintess Priga spun quite a long tale about him from there.
She had come from a fallen noble family and joined the church, excelling in holy spells and prayers, which earned her a scholarship to Arc.
She had a rival—or perhaps a friend—named Theodoros Gospel.
Priga and Theodoros had been models for many with their outstanding skills and faith, even earning the embarrassing nickname “Lamps of the Church.”
“He didn’t care much for the nickname himself. But there’s no doubt he was an exceptional young man. I still haven’t seen a man as pure as him since...”
“So where is he now?”
“I want to know that too. Twenty years ago, on the day I lost my eyes in that unfortunate accident, I lost my future along with my sight. But compared to him, I got off lightly.”
The accident from twenty years ago.
Could it be connected to the So望 Hall closing as an abandoned building back then? The adventure club was disbanded around that time too.
As I felt personal curiosity stirring, something astonishing happened.
Drip, drip.
Blood began flowing from the Saintess’s black eyepatch. It was like tears—truly giving the phrase “blood tears” new meaning.
“Saintess, you’re bleeding.”
Panicking, as I reached for my handkerchief, Saintess Priga casually pulled out her own from her bosom and wiped the blood away.
“Recalling that event makes blood flow like this. My body’s rejection response.”
Was such a thing possible?
Aira asked,
“It must have been something utterly horrific.”
“Yes. It was the most gruesome and bizarre thing I’d ever seen. But I fared better. I only lost my eyes, while Theodoros lost everything.”
“Hmph.”
“After witnessing it, he changed completely. You could say he became an entirely different person. There must have been something wrong with his mind. Otherwise, he wouldn’t try to kill me.”
“......”
Instead of answering, Aira fell silent. She merely lifted a glass, swirling the wine inside with a bored expression.
Swish, swish.
She didn’t seem very interested in the story. Fair enough—it had little to do with her.
But perhaps sensing Aira’s mood, the Saintess said,
“This will be important for Queen Aira and the Kingdom of Angmar too. He failed to kill me and fled, hiding himself in the world.”
“And?”
“The last sighting of him was at the slave market in Monarch City, the capital of Angmar.”
“......?”
Aira’s brow twitched slightly. She was intrigued now. Not missing that, the Saintess added,
“For some reason, he was being sold as a slave there. Babbling about knowing the future. He said he was waiting for someone to buy him for a high price.”
Ssssh.
Suddenly, it felt like ants crawling down my back. I’d heard that description somewhere before.
It’s not me.
No, the Saintess said it wasn’t me.
“But by the time we went looking, he had vanished. That man is hiding his face and identity somewhere—to take my life.”
Every added detail seemed to point straight at me.
Before I knew it, my mind conjured an image of myself being dragged to the execution platform for an attempted murder of the Saintess I had no memory of committing.
—You confessed your own crimes!!! For daring to threaten the Saintess!!!
—I don’t remember...!!! Please spare me...!!!
—Execute—!!!!
A truly horrific future.
But Aira stood up as if there was nothing more to hear.
“What a drawn-out story. It’s late—I need to head back. Theo, let’s go.”
As if desperate not to let Aira leave, the Saintess hurriedly said,
“Your Majesty, that man is probably after you. He sold himself into slavery to get close to you.”
“After me?”
“He may already be close, or have been all along. He’s skilled at changing his face and appearance.”
“Why would he target me?”
“I believe Your Majesty knows the reason better than anyone—no explanation needed.”
“There’s nothing more to hear. Wasting time on such trivial nonsense disappoints me, Priga Nightfall.”
Convinced no further talk was necessary, Aira left the room without another word to the Saintess.
Caught between Aira’s departing back and the Saintess still seated, sipping more wine, I had no choice but to follow Aira out.
* * *
Aira was returning to her dormitory.
Her strides were wide and confident, so to catch up to her as she led the way, I had to practically jog.
“Lady Aira, it seemed like an important story. Is it really okay to just leave like this?”
I voiced my opinion to Aira, who had cut off the conversation with the Saintess. But she dismissed it with, “There’s nothing more worth hearing.”
For some reason, something about the Saintess had greatly irritated Aira.
“Did Saintess Priga lie to you, Your Majesty?”
Aira hated lies and hypocrisy, so I wondered if that was why she was so angry.
“Priga didn’t lie to me. She only spoke the truth.”
“Then why did you storm out? Falling out with the church’s Saintess might mean they won’t acknowledge your authority.”
“I am the queen. Even if no one acknowledges my authority, I recognize myself—that’s enough. And no one can disturb my nap time.”
“Nap?”
That ended our conversation. She went to her room and lay down on the bed.
Before I could say anything, she was breathing steadily—deep asleep. I couldn’t bring myself to wake her.
She’s really taking a nap.
Were you that sleepy?
Come to think of it, she stayed up until dawn visiting the Draco estate last night.
Even so, lately her sleep felt excessively long, which worried me a bit.
Aside from meals and brief moments playing chess alone, she slept almost constantly. Was her health okay?
No, she didn’t look unwell.
As I awkwardly scratched my nose and moved to leave the room, Aira slyly opened her eyes.
Then she extended her leg toward me from under the covers. There was only one meaning to that.
“Undress me. Sleeping in clothes is stuffy.”
“...Understood.”
Ssssh.
I pulled down the stockings she was wearing. Watching the black fabric slide off to reveal her white thighs was quite a sight.
Flap.
Lying haphazardly, her wrinkled uniform skirt revealed black underwear beneath.
Normally, I’d just think, “Oh, underwear,” and move on.
But after these past few days with women, my eyes couldn’t help imagining something delightful beyond, stirring a lewd mood.
Perhaps this sleepy vulnerability was the key to conquering Aira.
With Angmar, Theodoros, and everything shifting rapidly, capturing Aira sooner meant fewer variables.
Somehow emboldened, I blurted out to her,
“Your Majesty, may I massage your legs?”
I regretted it immediately after saying it. But Aira yawned widely and, surprisingly, accepted readily.
“Sure. You can massage until I fall asleep.”