The Escape Attempt
A good idea came to me. A good idea came to me. It seems I am trapped here. The Demon King does not bother coming to check on me, but with this body, escape is impossible anyway. I want to run, yet every ounce of strength that might have made it possible has utterly vanished.
After spending nearly half a day locked inside the room, turning the problem over and over, I believe I have finally struck on something worthwhile. The room is completely sealed, without so much as a window, so I cannot tell whether it is morning or afternoon. Still, since I woke to find the Demon King already gone, I assume it must be morning. The notion felt faintly suspicious, but I could make the guess because the Demon King appeared to follow a daily rhythm much like a human’s.
If my assumption was correct and it was still morning, noon would arrive soon. And at noon, following the Demon King’s habits, most of the staff would move off to eat lunch. Yes, exactly. If the Demon King lived like a person, she would not skip meals. People had to eat, after all. That would mean fewer guards on duty, and my chances of slipping away would rise.
Of course, this attempt carried no guarantee of success. Failure seemed far more likely. Even so, the attempt itself held meaning. It was my first step toward revenge; that alone made it absolutely necessary. Beyond that, if I could find even a trace of my comrades during the attempt, it would be worth everything.
I could not let myself believe they were still alive. Yet if I could discover any sign of them at all, this try would still carry purpose.
“····”
In truth, for all my grand thoughts, I still had no clear idea where here even was. The atmosphere felt entirely different from the Demon King’s castle I had seen before, and I had wondered whether she had played some trick on me. But then I remembered the overall shape of the building Jemma had revealed while coming and going, and the other humanoid subordinates I occasionally glimpsed. I could at least conclude that this was indeed the Demon King’s castle.
What still bothered me was that, during the battle with the Demon King, I had not seen so many humanoid monsters. Aside from the few high-ranking officers we had slain on the way to the castle, nearly all of them had been beast-like. So if that was the case… were these beings not monsters at all?
If my guess was right, what exactly did the Demon King want?
“··· Because of me···”
No matter how I thought about it, that seemed unlikely. The most plausible explanation was what the Demon King herself had said: she simply had a taste for humans. From the very first time she… did that to me, she had made her intense interest in me painfully obvious.
But how could she claim to have felt attraction toward me as I am now after seeing me when I was still a man? There had to be some other scheme at work. Yes, otherwise none of it made sense.
Tick—
While I busily arranged my thoughts about this place and the Demon King, time passed, and the hour for the meal arrived. I glanced slowly at the bed where I sat. The sticky memories of last night flickered through my mind, but I closed my eyes and pressed down every word I wanted to hurl at her, turning them into fuel for my vengeance.
Demon King. You will regret ever taking me in.
I still could not understand how my body returned to its original state after she had so violently broken, torn, and used it. But that, too, was obviously one of her tricks. After long deliberation I cautiously approached the door.
Fortunately, it seemed everyone had already left for lunch; no sound came from outside.
“Hoo…”
This was it. The perfect moment. Right now—!
Creak—
Without hesitation I opened the door just a sliver. Very, very carefully.
“····”
Luckily, the narrow gap revealed an empty corridor. No one in sight.
“···· Right, right, people have to eat…”
Heartened by the success of my earlier guess, I opened the door just wide enough for my body to slip through, stepped out, and closed it again with painstaking care so that not even the faintest click sounded. Once I had completely escaped the room, I allowed myself a small smile of victory, scanned my surroundings, and began considering the next step.
But then—
Slither—
“Uwaa—!?”
“Ah.”
Behind me. I had no idea how long they had been standing there. No footsteps, no presence, yet when I turned, dozens of subordinates were staring at me with blank, unblinking eyes.
I had checked carefully through the crack; the corridor had been empty. Yet now it was filled with dozens of them. The realization sent chills racing across my skin.
I staggered backward, lips trembling, unable to do anything but stare. The first unfamiliar subordinate who had come to greet me outside asked politely,
“Is there something you need~?”
For a moment I searched for Jemma among them. If anyone could help me out of this, it would be the one subordinate I had grown somewhat familiar with. But then I remembered she was not even human and would have no reason to aid me.
“That… um…”
Still, I desperately rolled my eyes, hunting for some way out. No matter where I looked, all I saw was the cart the subordinates had brought. Damn it. They had come to deliver my meal. My entire plan collapsed in an instant.
I felt my mind turning blank, thoughts grinding to a halt. I had completely forgotten the simple fact that I needed to eat! Thinking was never my strong suit to begin with… If only Sevia were here, she would have… Damn that Demon King! How dare she—!
Step. Step.
Time, of course, refused to give me the luxury of calm reflection. I had forgotten that time was never on my side.
“What is going on?”
Yes. That madwoman had already finished eating and come straight to my room.
“Your Majesty, what about your meal…”
“Silence. I did not ask you.”
She had not even eaten. She had come straight here.
“Why did you come outside?”
While I floundered in successive waves of panic, she stood where I could see her, staring at me with that usual emotionless face.
“····”
I had not expected her to return so soon. I racked my brain for an answer that would keep me alive. Unlike the subordinates, the Demon King would not wait. I had to speak quickly. The safest excuse—I was hungry—now felt far too late. Instead I began frantically studying the subordinates’ faces.
“····”
Every one of them looked tense at the Demon King’s sudden appearance. And among those nervous expressions, I finally noticed it.
“···· Jemma.”
The one face that had remained perfectly composed even when the Demon King appeared was missing. Only Jemma was absent.
“I couldn’t see Jemma, so…”
I had improvised. I had simply stepped out because I was hungry and, not seeing the familiar Jemma among the servants sent to deliver the meal, had gone looking for her. That was all.
“····”
The moment the name left my lips, the Demon King’s brow furrowed sharply and she glared at me.
“Uh····”
When I began to panic, fearing I had misspoken, she stared at me in silence for a while. Then she stroked her wrist, dismissed the subordinates, and waited until they had completely disappeared before stepping closer.
“All of you, leave.”
““Yes, Your Majesty.””
I sensed what was coming and my lips trembled, yet I tried to force a calm smile. The Demon King, for some reason, spoke in a gentler tone as she casually took the door handle.
“··· Go inside.”
I obeyed, still tense and puzzled. The moment the door shut behind us with a heavy thud, the Demon King began removing her outer garments and hanging them in the closet, just as she had the day before. In a voice similar to the one she had used earlier, she asked,
“Why were you looking for that servant?”
Unlike yesterday, she wore a somewhat uncomfortable formal uniform beneath her outer robe. She sat on the edge of the bed and looked at me with half-lidded eyes. I thought for a moment about why I had been looking for Jemma.
“Just… when I opened my eyes, she wasn’t there, so it felt uncomfortable.”
I mixed in a little of my true feelings—somehow, without realizing it, I had grown fond of her. The other servants sent to deliver the meal had been there, but Jemma’s absence had left me disappointed. Yet every time I spoke her name, the Demon King frowned and glared at me. Then she said,
“I have exiled her.”
“Huh?”
An answer I had never imagined.
“Do not think of searching for her.”
The sudden chill in the Demon King’s voice left me even more flustered. Why? What could Jemma possibly have done? Surely she had not tried to assassinate the Demon King. A mere ordinary servant would never do such a thing. Had she committed some equally grave offense?
I stared at the Demon King with obvious bewilderment and unconsciously muttered,
“Why····”
“Why should I answer you?”
Her voice grew even sharper. I stood frozen in the corner, swallowing hard, unsure whether she truly expected a reply. The Demon King watched me for a moment, then closed her eyes and turned her head away.
“··· In wartime, when a servant commits an act not permitted by their lord, the lord must punish that servant.”
Her voice was still low and growling, yet it sounded somewhat calmer.
“What did Jemma do…”
I recalled the times I had spent with Jemma, wondering whether she had truly done something so terrible. Then I remembered the branding ritual she had performed on me. After I had fainted, the solitary murmur she had let slip came back to me. Could that be the reason? I began to mention it.
“Don’t tell me it’s because Jemma washed me yesterday without permission and so you—”
The Demon King suddenly seized my throat, hurled me onto the bed, and pressed her knee into my abdomen while gripping my neck. Crack—
“Ugh····!”
“Do not speak above your station…”
She glared at me as if she would kill me. I trembled all over, terrified she would touch me again at any moment. Yet for some reason, this time I could not simply stay silent.
Although I had met Jemma only a few times and knew little about her beyond the fact that she was an emotionless, dignified subordinate who performed her duties diligently, she had seemed different from the other monsters and servants. Unlike the dozens I had just encountered, Jemma had genuinely seemed to care for me. Therefore, no matter what the Demon King did to me, I owed Jemma at least this much.
On the battlefield, where dozens of lives vanished in the blink of an eye, ranks such as servant and master lost all meaning. They were better off nonexistent.
“Send Jemma… ugh····· back.”
So I spoke boldly. Even while pinned beneath the Demon King radiating killing intent, I spoke without hesitation. The moment the words left my mouth, her frown deepened. She tore off my left arm without mercy. Crunch—
“Aaaagh———! Khah····!?”
She gripped my cheek, pressing her thumb against my lips, glaring as if she would kill me.
“You are nothing. So why do you keep defying me?”
This time, I endured the pain. Though I bit my lower lip so hard that blood flowed and I could not clearly see her expression because my eyes were squeezed shut—
“Ugh······ Jemma… Jemma only did it for me····”
Even though I felt on the verge of fainting from shock, I forced my eyes open little by little and shouted.
“She only took care of me for my sake····!”
I knew almost nothing about Jemma, yet I was certain that what I had felt when she cared for me had been sincere. That was why I could not stand by and let her be punished so unreasonably for helping me with good intentions.
“Jemma took care of me only to be loyal to you····· and since you receive reports, you must have already known she did such a thing·····!”
I did not know the full extent of the reporting system, but Jemma struck me as the type who would report even the smallest details. If saying so would increase the chance of changing the Demon King’s mind, it was worth trying. Even though my vision was fading, I stubbornly held on this once. Jemma was a good person. For some reason I felt I must not lose her here. That thought had come to me in this moment.
Of course, if everything I said turned out to be wrong, there would be trouble.
Slither—
Fortunately, my words seemed to have hit their mark to some degree. The Demon King gradually eased her anger and released my face and neck. She removed her knee from my abdomen, sat me up, and then—squeeze—pulled my limp body into her arms as though hugging a stuffed doll. She buried her nose in the crook of my neck and murmured,
“Even so, it is not a matter for you to interfere in.”
Her behavior looked exactly like that of a sulking child, which was somehow amusing. I smiled faintly and reached for her arm, but—ah, of course. Having an arm torn off hurt like hell. I had known what she would do and had chosen to endure it, yet the smile I had tried to force completely crumbled under the agony.
Even so, I could not lose consciousness yet. I had soothed the Demon King’s temper, but I still had no guarantee that Jemma would be allowed to return.
“··· If you bring her back···”
I endured the pain through sheer willpower and offered a difficult bargain.
“From now on, I won’t talk back… and I’ll obey you meekly.”
I was not sure whether the trade was truly worth that much, but the Demon King seemed to consider me extremely important. On the surface she looked as if she wanted to kill me at any moment, yet she kept me alive. She acted as though she hated me, yet she continued to hold me. Honestly, I hated it. But for Jemma’s sake, I would sacrifice myself this once. Just as I had always done on the battlefield.
“·····”
Fortunately, she reacted to my voice. I felt her breath against my neck, strong enough to tickle. She seemed about to answer my offer, but I still felt it was not quite enough. Since my arm was already gone, I decided to push my luck.
“And one more thing····”
Just before she could reply, I added one final condition.
“Tell me whether my comrades are alive.”
I said it. “After all, you did this to me···· and you have no intention of letting me go.”
I felt as if I would lose consciousness at any second, but I needed to know. After facing that wall of subordinates earlier, I had realized escape would not be as easy as I had thought. So at least this much, I wanted to know.
“So… even if it’s only that… please…”
I wanted her to tell me. Whether my comrades were alive or dead. If I could know even that much, the burden on my heart might lighten, even if only a little.
“···· Tell me.”
Slither—
The Demon King, who had been deathly silent for a moment, carefully laid me down and made me comfortable again. She stroked my hair with an almost indifferent air.
“How would I know something like that?”
She sat beside me and answered in a murmur. Then she lifted my head and rested it on her lap. She looked into my heavy-lidded eyes, gently closed my eyelids with her hand so I could sleep comfortably, and said,
“In any case, since no servant cleans the bedsheets as well as that one, I planned to reinstate her tomorrow anyway—”
“I am not so base a being that I confirm the survival of enemies while waging war····.”
For some reason, though her words were not a clear guarantee that my comrades were alive, they sounded as if she had not killed them on purpose. For some reason, they put me at ease. It almost felt as though she were apologizing for tearing off my arm, or for something else.
“····· Thank you for telling me…”
If I could not escape anyway, perhaps becoming closer to her in this way would not be so bad. So I said it.
“····”
The moment the words left my mouth, consciousness fled. I did not see how she reacted. Well, she probably would not have reacted to words of gratitude. She was not the sort of being who would. As the Demon King herself had said, even an observer could tell she was not base. No. That was wrong. Her tastes were definitely base. Damn it, thinking about it again still makes me angry. My first experience… the first experience I had after turning into a woman was stolen just like that!!!!!!
“······”
Well. Whatever the case, since I had gone this far, the Demon King would bring Jemma back. Having fought her bitterly for many years, I had long since grasped her personality to some degree. Still, one thing worried me. Humanity was surely still fighting. Even though I had become a prisoner, I had not turned my back on them. I did not want them to be defeated. I was terribly anxious. After losing the Hero and all fifteen of the champions, could humanity rise again?
Yet there was one thing I could believe. According to the Demon King, some of my comrades had survived. And humanity had always clung to even the smallest hope and stood up once more. Even someone like me—who had once been nothing more than an ordinary human—had lived that way. There was no reason others could not do the same.
Although I have given up on escaping for now, if another chance comes, I will burn my entire being to seize it without mercy. For the sake of my precious comrades who were sacrificed, for the countless comrades who sacrificed themselves for us, for the countless people forced into sacrifice by the Demon King’s invasion. For the revenge of Pierta, Yustitia, Karman, Jeren, Kain, Evan, Sevia… and all the rest. Someday I will pour everything onto the Demon King. Someday, that opportunity will come. I need only sharpen my blade and wait for that moment.
However, I realized something just now. It seems I can still feel sensations even after fainting. Even when my consciousness is severed, I can perceive external sensations to some extent. The proof is that I could remember when Jemma washed me while I was unconscious, and right now—
Crunch—
I could feel the Demon King tearing my body apart after confirming I had fainted. There was no pain, but I could sense that I was being torn. But why? If she wanted to see me in pain, there would be no point after I had lost consciousness, would there?
The puzzlement I felt at the Demon King’s actions gradually pulled my consciousness out of the darkness. The sleeping mind began to open its eyes beyond the sensation of being torn. When I opened my eyes beyond that sensation, I found myself once more in a healed body, staring at the now-familiar ceiling.
“····· Why… are you tearing me apart…?”
Lying on the bed, I retraced the memories of the previous night. The fact that I could remember the state of having fainted. I had noticed that something was strange.