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Chapter 7
The Demon King’s Castle at Night
“Can’t you understand a simple order?”
“S-Sorry!”
“The moment your arms come down… I don’t know what I’ll do to you.”
Late at night, at the far end of the Demon King’s castle in Gehenna…
A cold and terrifying atmosphere filled Lilith’s residence.
Her two attendants, the Dream Demons, Foris and Aim, stood with both hands raised as punishment.
Their faces looked as if they had never experienced such humiliation before.
Every time their eyes met Lilith’s, they flinched and raised their hands even higher.
“Now… what should I do with you two?”
Resting her chin on one hand, Lilith repeatedly tapped the table with her index finger.
Tap.
Tap.
To Foris and Aim, each sound felt like a death sentence.
Even when her finger paused for a moment, both of them nearly jumped in fear.
Lilith fell into deep thought.
Yes.
They were Dream Demons.
Evil creatures that invaded the dreams and minds of others, creating illusions and confusion.
They were neither kind nor righteous.
Worthless beings.
What disgusted her even more…
Was how skilled they had been.
The Demon King’s appearance.
His voice.
His hateful way of speaking.
Even his smallest habits.
Everything had been recreated almost perfectly.
Looking back now…
It was obvious.
This couldn’t have been the first time.
“We only wanted to make you happy, Lady Lilith!”
Their excuse was laughable.
Lilith…
Did you know your own attendants deceived you like this?
Or did you know… and simply allow it?
Compared to being betrayed and poisoned by her closest companions…
This deception was almost harmless.
Even so…
Lilith couldn’t forgive them so easily.
Every time she looked at them…
She remembered those people.
An uncontrollable anger rose inside her.
After a long silence…
The Dream Demons cried and apologized over and over, insisting they had never meant to harm her.
Only then did Lilith’s expression soften slightly.
It was almost ridiculous.
Even now…
Some foolish part of her still pitied them.
“Listen carefully.”
Her flat voice made the Dream Demons tremble.
“I am Lilith.”
“…Y-Yes.”
“We know.”
“The moment you were born, your family’s contract bound you to serve me.”
“Am I right?”
“…Yes.”
“You somehow remembered that…”
“Then tell me.”
“What are you to me?”
“Hic!”
A faint trace of killing intent entered her voice.
The Dream Demons exchanged nervous glances.
“What…”
“Are you to me?”
“W-We are your servants!”
“And yet…”
“You dared disturb your master’s sleep?”
Her dark violet eyes flashed like lightning.
The Dream Demons instantly fell to their knees until their foreheads touched the floor.
At last…
They understood.
This was the moment they absolutely had to submit.
“Please forgive us, Lady Lilith!”
“You said you’ve stayed beside me for three years.”
“You claim it was because of the contract.”
“But regardless…”
“You were the ones who looked after me.”
“…Yes.”
“So…”
“I won’t kill you.”
Lilith bent down and whispered softly beside their ears.
The Dream Demons began crying even harder.
Lilith couldn’t help laughing.
“Honestly…”
“Shouldn’t I be the one crying?”
Even as she said that…
She unknowingly patted them gently on the shoulders.
That frightened them even more.
Both Dream Demons froze completely.
“But if you ever invade my mind again…”
“I’ll erase your souls.”
“We’ll remember!”
“Good.”
“Come here.”
“W-Why?”
As Lilith stepped closer, both of them instinctively shrank back.
They expected another slap.
Or another kick.
Instead…
Lilith gently brushed both hands across their necks.
“So this much is possible…”
They didn’t understand what she meant.
Not until a few moments later.
After her hands moved away…
Both Dream Demons touched their necks in surprise.
The bruises.
The scratches left by Lilith’s nails.
Everything had completely disappeared.
“You’ll recover quickly since you’re spirits.”
“But I still couldn’t leave those ugly wounds.”
“My goodness!”
“Lady Lilith!”
“…It’s only a small spell.”
“A healing spell?!”
Strictly speaking…
It wasn’t magic.
It was the natural healing power possessed by the chosen race of Heaven.
But Lilith simply called it magic.
“Why didn’t you ever tell us?”
“During training you always refused to learn healing magic because you said it reminded you of the Holy Power those Heaven people use!”
Lilith’s eyebrow twitched.
Then she calmly answered,
“Is that important?”
“The important thing is that I can use it now.”
“Did the poison awaken your demonic power?”
“Enough.”
“I’ve forgiven you.”
“So from now on…”
“You’ll do exactly as I tell you.”
The clever Dream Demons immediately nodded.
“Good.”
“I’m awake now anyway.”
“I want to tour the castle.”
“Guide me.”
Both of them instantly looked uncomfortable.
“You thought I’d stay trapped in this cursed residence forever?”
“N-No…”
“Or…”
“Should I go alone?”
“You… used to wander around alone…”
“And what if I accidentally enter a forbidden area?”
“Or run into those wonderful consorts you told me about?”
In the end…
The servants surrendered.
Their master looked surprisingly excited.
The Demon King’s castle was beautiful.
Just as beautiful as the Palace of Malefiori in Heaven, carved from thousands of pieces of glass.
Lilith silently admitted she had been too narrow-minded.
She had judged all of Gehenna after seeing only her gloomy residence—
A place darker than even the homes of wandering witches.
That had been a mistake.
At night…
The Demon King’s castle looked like the setting of a masterpiece painting.
The sky stretched endlessly overhead.
It was a strange mixture of black, violet, and deep blue.
Only a few hours earlier…
The floating sphere had shone like the sun.
Now it glowed silver, taking the place of the moon.
The stars surrounding it radiated dense demonic power.
So this sky had clearly been created by magic as well.
Even if it wasn’t natural…
It was still magnificent.
She remembered what she had learned at the Academy.
“Gehenna is filthy, terrifying, and corrupt.”
“When our delegation visited, the evil energy nearly made us faint.”
“Monsters and demons were everywhere.”
“The Demon King’s castle?”
“That place is beyond salvation.”
Had my professors lied?
The castle consisted of one enormous central fortress surrounded by five smaller castles.
Each one was connected by silver-gray stone bridges covered in intricate carvings.
The buildings were dark because they lacked brightly colored tiles.
Their design felt closed and defensive.
Yet at the same time…
Mysterious.
Majestic.
“So beautiful.”
Lilith quietly decided that if she ever returned to Heaven…
She would correct this misunderstanding.
“This is the royal botanical garden.”
“We constantly bring in new species of trees and flowers.”
“We even raise herbivorous creatures here.”
“There are lots of cute ones.”
Cute?
A tiny fluffy creature with six wings floated through the air.
Its whole body glowed with light.
It had no bones and clung to trees like a giant ball of jelly.
Unlike Heaven’s delicate gardens…
Everything here was enormous.
Flowers had stems as thick as an arm.
Many of them had teeth or sharp claws that looked more like weapons than plants.
Yet their colorful petals were breathtaking.
The entire garden resembled a tropical rainforest.
“The banquet hall!”
“You used to come here all the time, Lady Lilith.”
“Don’t you remember?”
“You loved that it had five giant chandeliers.”
“There’ll be another party soon.”
“You’ll come again!”
“The shared dressing room is beautiful too!”
“Lady Cassandra owns it, but…”
“The Demon King’s library is Gehenna’s pride!”
“It holds over fifty thousand books!”
“And over there are the infirmary and laboratories.”
“You sometimes came here to collect herbs.”
“You always threatened the pharmacist because rare mushrooms were supposed to make your skin prettier…”
Everything fascinated Lilith.
She admired each place quietly.
Then eagerly waited to see the next one.
Suddenly…
Foris and Aim stopped walking.
“I think that’s everything.”
“What about over there?”
“Oh.”
“That’s the training grounds.”
“I’d like to see them.”
“W-What?!”
The Dream Demons turned pale.
Lilith tilted her head.
“Am I not allowed?”
“It’s directly under the Demon King’s command.”
“Only the military is allowed inside.”
“The armory is there too…”
Lilith’s eyes lit up.
She still remembered every combat technique she had learned.
The demonic power overflowing inside this body could replace the Holy Power she had lost.
But physically…
This body was much weaker than her old one.
Her arms and legs were too thin.
She lacked strength.
Her fuller upper body also made her less agile.
If I could just find a decent weapon…
“Y-You used to hate this place.”
“You always complained it smelled like sweat.”
“Can’t I just take a quick look?”
“You don’t even glance at the blue flames back at the residence.”
“So why are you interested in weapons…”
“Ah!”
“Should we visit the jewel room again instead?”
The Dream Demons hurried ahead.
But when they noticed Lilith hadn’t moved…
They reluctantly turned back.
“I’m going to look around here.”
“You two go back first.”
“…What?”
“Who am I?”
“…Lady Lilith.”
“Our master…”
“That’s right.”
“I’ll make sure no one sees me.”
“So go back.”
“But…”
Lilith looked at them.
The two Dream Demons immediately fell silent and retreated.
Once they had disappeared into the distance…
Lilith slowly opened the door to the training grounds.
Beyond the large entrance was another door.
It was tightly locked with heavy chains.
Lilith calmly examined them.
Without much effort…
She untangled the chains.
As long as one understood the formula…
Unlocking bindings with magic was simply a matter of calculation.
This much is easy.
Clank.
The chains fell away.
The tightly sealed door slowly opened.
