It was nearly dark when Baroque appeared at the entrance of the Demon King’s Castle main building, carrying Lin Ling on his shoulder.
The sunset had already sunk behind the city walls, leaving only a faint dark red afterglow hanging on the horizon.
Lin Ling was slumped over Baroque’s shoulder, looking like a dried salted fish that had been re-soaked until soft.
Baroque set her down from his shoulder.
The moment Lin Ling’s feet touched the ground, her body swayed.
It was as if her soul had floated into the castle ahead of her, and her body was barely managing to follow behind.
“Next time...”
Lin Ling weakly raised a hand and pointed at Baroque.
“Going out...”
“I definitely won't go with Uncle Baroque again.”
Baroque crossed his arms and snorted coldly.
“I’ll be thanking the heavens if you can just remember what you learned today.”
“Miss Saintess was forced to undergo inhumane training today.”
Lin Ling dragged her feet as she drifted forward.
“I want to file a complaint.”
“I want to apply for mental distress compensation.”
As soon as she walked into the main building of the Demon King’s Castle, she saw several people standing at the door.
Ivelia was standing at the front.
Leticia stood beside her.
She seemed to have been waiting for a while. When she saw Lin Ling return, her shimmering eyes immediately landed on her.
Especially when she saw Lin Ling practically “floating” toward them, Leticia was slightly startled.
Then, she naturally took a step forward and opened her arms.
As if preparing to catch her.
Lin Ling also saw Leticia.
Then, she didn't lunge forward.
Instead, she sat directly on the floor at the entrance of the main building.
Then, Lin Ling raised her hand and wiped away non-existent tears.
“Your Majesty.”
Her voice trembled, her expression full of grief.
“You have no idea.”
“Uncle Baroque committed inhumane acts of abuse against Miss Saintess today.”
Ivelia looked down at her.
She didn't speak.
Her gaze swept over Lin Ling’s face, then landed on several other areas.
Clothes a bit messy.
Hair a bit messy.
Mana consumption was obvious.
But no injuries.
After confirming this, Ivelia looked back at Lin Ling.
Lin Ling was still sitting on the ground, continuing her performance.
“He made me practice on the plains all afternoon.”
“Mana swords.”
“Explosions.”
“Reducing mana output.”
“More explosions.”
“Reducing it again.”
“Still explosions.”
“In the end, Miss Saintess didn't even have the strength to stand up.”
At this point, she even raised a hand to cover her heart.
“What a tragic day this has been.”
Standing behind her, Baroque’s face was already starting to turn red with heat.
“Hey.”
“That’s enough out of you.”
“I was teaching you self-preservation.”
“Can self-preservation be this exhausting?”
Lin Ling looked back at him, sounding perfectly justified.
“I almost couldn't even preserve my own self.”
A vein throbbed in Baroque’s temple.
“You—”
But Leticia had already stepped forward.
She crouched down and gently hugged Lin Ling, who was sitting on the ground.
Her movements were very light.
As if afraid of hurting her.
“You’ve worked hard,” Leticia said softly.
Lin Ling, who had been faking her tears, stiffened when she was suddenly hugged.
“Gah.”
Her face began to redden again.
“I-it wasn't that hard.”
“Not particularly hard.”
“Actually, it was mainly because Uncle Baroque was too strict...”
Seeing her reaction, a faint smile flickered in Leticia’s eyes.
But as Ivelia watched this scene, she suddenly felt that the question of “whether the training was excessive” was no longer that important.
She silently stepped forward.
She reached out.
And pulled Leticia away from Lin Ling.
The movement wasn't heavy.
But it was very deliberate.
When Leticia was pulled away, she looked up at Ivelia.
Ivelia didn't explain.
She just bent down and took Lin Ling’s hand.
“Get up.”
Lin Ling blinked.
“Your Majesty?”
Ivelia gently pulled her up from the ground.
“Eat first.”
Lin Ling instantly perked up.
“Dinner?”
“Yes.”
Ivelia glanced at her.
Lin Ling immediately stood at attention.
“Yes! Miss Saintess has been revived.”
Ivelia led her into the castle by the hand.
Leticia stood in place, glancing at their joined hands.
Then, she quietly followed.
After walking a few steps, Lin Ling suddenly turned her head.
She looked at Baroque.
After confirming that Ivelia was holding her hand, Lin Ling gave Baroque an extremely smug smile.
That smile was practically screaming:
“You can't scold me now.”
Baroque’s rage reached its peak at that moment.
His fists clenched.
The vein in his temple throbbed violently.
His face turned so red it looked like he might spit fire the next second.
But looking at Lin Ling being led by the Demon King, he ultimately forced himself to endure it.
“...Hmph.”
Baroque followed them, gnashing his teeth.
“Just wait until the next training session.”
Lin Ling immediately turned her head back, pretending she hadn't heard a thing.
Dinner was already prepared in the kitchen.
The Head Chef brought the food to the table, dish by dish.
Hot soup.
Soft bread.
A small amount of jam.
And a few simple side dishes.
After sitting down, Lin Ling immediately regained her vitality.
She picked up a piece of bread, dipped it in a bit of jam, and half the fatigue on her face instantly vanished.
“As I thought.”
“Dinner after training is the greatest civilization in the world.”
Baroque sat nearby and said coldly:
“You didn't even run ten steps all afternoon.”
“Mana training is still training,” Lin Ling argued seriously.
“Mental exhaustion is still exhaustion.”
The Head Chef placed the final set of plates in front of Leticia.
Just like at lunch.
On Leticia’s plate, besides bread and jam, there was also a serving of sliced mutton.
The meat was cut into neat, small pieces.
It was clearly prepared specifically for her.
Leticia looked down at her plate.
Then she looked at the others at the table.
In front of Ivelia, there was only bread and jam.
There wasn't much on Baroque’s plate either.
Lin Ling was eating happily, but she also only had bread, jam, and soup in front of her.
Leticia’s hand holding her utensils paused.
After a moment, she picked up her knife and fork and divided the mutton on her plate into several portions.
Then, she pushed the meat toward the others present.
Lin Ling was just biting into her bread when she saw a piece of meat suddenly appear on her plate, and her eyes widened.
“Eh?”
Leticia said calmly:
“I can't finish it all by myself.”
Baroque glanced at her.
The Head Chef was also somewhat surprised.
Ivelia didn't speak, her gaze only lingering on Leticia for a moment.
Lin Ling looked down at the mutton on her plate.
Then she looked up at Leticia.
“Is it really okay?”
Leticia looked at her.
“Yes.”
“You worked hard in training today.”
Lin Ling immediately cradled her plate, deeply moved.
“Sia.”
“You’re a good person.”
Hearing that name, Leticia’s movements paused slightly.
Then, she gently lowered her eyes.
Lin Ling had already forked the piece of mutton and took a cherished bite.
The next instant, her eyes lit up.
“Meat!”
“As I thought, meat is also an important component of civilization!”
The atmosphere at the dining table finally relaxed a bit.
Seeing Lin Ling regain her spirits, Baroque snorted coldly but didn't return the piece of meat on his own plate.
Leticia quietly ate her bread.
For the first time, she discovered that a group of people sharing a single portion of meat could make the atmosphere so peaceful.
No silver plates like in the White Tower.
No etiquette like at a noble’s banquet.
Everyone ate earnestly.
As if they were cherishing something she had never truly looked at before.
Halfway through the meal, Lin Ling suddenly looked up.
“Eh?”
“It seems like a few people are missing.”
She looked around.
“Where are Aliviel and Cecil?”
“And Phelan isn't here either?”
After those words were spoken, the dining table went silent for a moment.
Baroque’s motion of biting his bread stopped.
Ivelia, as if she had just heard something trivial, calmly looked away.
“I don't know,” she said.
Lin Ling blinked.
“You don't know?”
Ivelia picked up her bread.
“Yes.”
“They should have their own business to attend to.”
Lin Ling felt there was something strange about that answer.
But she looked at Ivelia’s calm expression, then at the little bit of jam left on her plate.
Finally, she decided to believe her for now.
“I see.”
“Then should I leave some bread for them?”
Ivelia said flatly:
“No need.”
Baroque silently lowered his head and drank his soup.
Leticia looked at them, vaguely realizing something, but didn't speak.
Meanwhile.
Outside the clock tower directly above the kitchen.
The evening wind blew past.
Cecil and Aliviel were still hanging upside down in mid-air.
The sky had already turned dark.
The lights of the Demon King’s Castle were lighting up one by one, and the delicious aroma from the kitchen slowly drifted up with the wind.
The scent of soft bread.
The scent of hot soup.
There was even a hint of the smell of mutton.
Hanging upside down, Cecil silently took a breath.
Then, he slowly spoke:
“Hey, Phelan.”
“Yes?”
Phelan stood by the clock tower, still holding his recording board.
The tip of his pen moved steadily across the paper.
“How about...”
Cecil flicked his tail, his voice a bit weaker than usual.
“Just let us down.”
Aliviel was hanging upside down on the other side, her hair dangling in the air, her expression no longer able to maintain its elegance.
“I agree.”
“If you keep us hanging any longer, I’m really going to hold a grudge.”
Phelan didn't look up.
“I’m sorry.”
“Without the Demon King’s command, I cannot untie the two of you.”
Cecil: “...”
Aliviel: “...”
The wind blew again.
The aroma from the kitchen below became a bit clearer.
Cecil closed his eyes.
He suddenly felt that the evening wind of the Demon King’s Castle was somewhat cold.
Rate on N.U.
