The Demon King's Warm Tears
“Ugh…”
“What’s wrong?”
“It’s a little cold. It was quite warm during the day, but now that night has fallen, the chill is setting in.”
Ilena wrapped both arms around her shoulders. While Hesed had kept us standing in the middle of the road, we had been exposed to the cold air the entire time, so it was only natural she would feel frozen.
“We should head inside right away.”
“But…”
Ilena narrowed her eyes slightly and gave me a meaningful sidelong glance.
“If we go in now, I’ll have to say goodbye to you for the day.”
“Ah…?”
If I failed to notice such an obvious hint, I would truly be a fool. I promptly slipped off my outer coat and draped it over Ilena’s shoulders.
“Thank you. It’s warm. And…”
Ilena lightly pinched the hem of the coat, lifted it to her nose, and drew in a deep breath.
“It smells like you.”
“Why on earth are you smelling my scent!”
“Hmm, I don’t know. For some reason… I just don’t dislike it?”
“Then give it back.”
“No. I’m cold, you know.”
When I asked for the coat, Ilena playfully stuck her tongue out at me.
“Did you study that move too?”
“What do you mean?”
“Sticking your tongue out while teasing someone.”
“No, it just happened on its own. Did you hate it?”
I slowly shook my head.
“I don’t hate it, but every time I see it, I’m amazed. No matter how well you hide your horns and wings with transformation magic, when I look at you like this, you could pass for an ordinary human without a single flaw.”
“Hehe… Anyway, are we just going to stand here?”
Ilena pointed ahead with her finger.
“Shall we walk a little? Since sleep isn’t coming easily.”
The night path echoed only with the faint sounds of insects and the whispering wind. We walked in silence for a long while.
Honestly, I still couldn’t quite believe it. The two of us—who had once tried to kill each other—had shared dinner and were now strolling together along the night roads of my hometown.
I was the one who finally broke the silence.
“Why didn’t you come find me directly?”
“Because neither of us was ready. Not me, and not you.”
“I wasn’t ready?”
Ilena nodded.
“Before coming here, I visited you once.”
“When was that?”
“It must have been about seven months ago.”
“That would have been when I was still in Crownland.”
Crownland—the largest and most prosperous city in the world, built on the richest soil. The name “Crown” came from the belief that whoever claimed that land would wear the crown of a true ruler. Following that legacy, the Eladia Kingdom that seized Crownland became the dominant power of the world. It was also why the Gares Church had grown into the realm’s greatest religious power, as it served as the state religion of Eladia. And it was the nobles of Eladia and the high priests of the Gares Church who had driven me out.
“After you defeated me and returned, I thought you would be happy.”
“I was. For a very short time.”
Just as Ilena said, after we—the hero’s party—defeated the Demon King Ilenater, we returned to Crownland in triumph. Everyone welcomed us as saviors who had performed a great service for the world. Eladia bestowed knighthoods upon us, and the Church even declared us saints. A few comrades returned to their original homes, but most remained in Crownland. The hospitality and praise we received everywhere sent thrilling shivers through our bodies each time.
“But when I first went to see you, you were in a tavern with your comrades, completely drunk. You looked terribly tormented.”
“By then, I can guess why we were like that. It was because of the East.”
“The East?”
“The Church finally gave us some work. We’d been bored from idling around, so we welcomed it. The cause seemed righteous enough.”
Ilena’s expression darkened slightly as she asked carefully.
“Something went wrong with that, didn’t it?”
“They said the easterners had crossed the border and mercilessly massacred innocent people. So they were sending troops and asked us to give a speech to inspire the soldiers.”
“Just from hearing that, it sounds like a good cause.”
“Yes, that’s what we thought too. We stayed up all night writing scripts and prepared diligently. But soon after, we heard a strange rumor.”
“What rumor?”
“That the ones who had massacred the innocent people were the heroes from the East.”
“You mean Jason.”
Jason, the savage warrior of the East. A massive man who effortlessly swung an axe far larger than his own body. Each swing of that axe was said to sweep away several demons at once, earning him great fame. His personality was as big and generous as his size, so among the heroes he acted like an older brother to us all.
“I remember being afraid to send my subordinates against him because his strength was so formidable.”
I nodded at Ilena’s words and continued.
“Not long after, Jason came looking for us.”
“Jason did?”
“At first we tried to greet him warmly. Even with the rumors of massacre, he was a comrade who had fought alongside us through life and death. But Jason didn’t accept our greeting. Instead, he drew his blade.”
“He drew his blade? Weren’t you comrades? Why?”
“He tried to kill us. He said he would have his revenge and that he cursed us.”
“How could that…”
The look in Jason’s eyes as he glared at us was still vivid in my mind. The terrifying blood-red gaze, even the whites of his eyes stained crimson after he had abandoned his humanity and sworn a bloody vengeance.
“We had no choice but to kill Jason. It was a situation where either we died or he did—only one side could walk away.”
“No wonder you wanted to drink.”
“That’s not even the end of it. Talking about this is making me crave a drink.”
“Shall I get you one?”
I paused my story at Ilena’s offer.
“You have alcohol?”
“I do. It’s an experimental batch I brewed recently, though.”
Ilena pointed at a tall building visible in the distance.
“That’s the aging warehouse. The crop yield has increased so much that I decided to try making liquor. The villagers can enjoy it together, and if needed, we can sell it too.”
“I noticed the fields are much larger than before. But I didn’t realize the harvest had grown enough to brew alcohol.”
Alcohol was unmistakably a luxury. You could only brew it after setting aside enough grain to feed everyone. Yet here in tiny Elver, the day had come when they were making liquor?
“…For now, it’s fine. I probably won’t be able to drink for a while.”
“That’s strange. You say you’re craving a drink, yet you claim you can’t have one.”
“I’ll look forward to it later.”
“Hng… I was hoping to ask you, since you drink well, to taste it while we were on the subject.”
Ilena tilted her head in confusion. That was understandable. After all, I had nearly died from drinking. And it had been liquor laced with hydra poison—at even a single sip, my throat would have begun to melt, followed by the rest of my body.
I did crave a drink, but if I held a cup in my hand, I would inevitably remember that moment.
“Continuing the story, Jason told us everything right before he drew his last breath. Contrary to the rumors spreading through Eladia, it was actually the easterners who had been massacred.”
“How is that possible…?”
“The ones who crossed the border first were priests from the Gares Church. They tried to force their doctrine on the eastern people, and when it didn’t work, they branded them heretics and burned them alive.”
Ilena nodded as if she understood the situation.
“Perhaps it was planned from the beginning.”
“Planned?”
“In the end, that land became part of Eladia.”
Original Border: Here
Massacre Location: This region
New Border: Shifted eastward into former Eastern territory
“What…?”
The fact that Eladia had expanded its territory into the East was something I had never heard before.
“You really didn’t know? Even I, the Demon King, knew about it.”
“But I never heard any such story. No, surely they couldn’t have…”
Information control. Had they manipulated the flow of news so that my comrades and I would remain unaware of what was happening in the outside world?
“That’s impossible. It’s already been over half a year. How could I not have known?”
“If you aren’t interested and no one tells you, it’s not strange not to know.”
“Damn it…!”
The last words Jason had left us before drawing his final breath.
“Don’t let them use you…”
So that was what he had meant.
“Are you sure you don’t want a drink?”
“I can’t. If I have one, I don’t think I’ll be able to stop.”
“So that’s why you and your comrades looked so heartbroken.”
“Yes. From that moment until just recently, things stayed exactly the same.”
The death of a comrade we had trusted and shared unbreakable bonds with. That was more than enough to make us realize something had gone terribly wrong. But there was nothing we could do about it. Whenever we grew restless and asked for work, they only gave us trivial tasks. Yet they always made sure we attended important events for the Eladia Kingdom and the Church. They plied us with the finest liquor and food until we couldn’t even get up the next day.
“Now I understand. They were taming us. I was a fool. When Shena and Talmur left, I should have left with them.”
Just a week ago, several comrades including Shena and Talmur had left the hero’s party. Without telling anyone. The only reason I had remained was Eris. To comfort the saintess who was crying out in anxiety and loneliness as the party she had personally gathered began to fracture and scatter. But now even I had ended up like this.
“I’m glad,” Ilena said, gently patting my shoulder.
“Glad?”
“You managed to escape, even if it’s now. You did well.”
“How can you say ‘I’m glad’ so easily… This isn’t something you can just—”
My agitation suddenly died away. The reason was the tears sparkling in Ilena’s eyes as she looked at me.
“You’ve been through so much, my love. It’s all right now.”