They eventually arrived at a location closest to the gates of the palace complex.
This was a vacant hall that seemed to have been uninhabited for a long time.
"Lady Queen, this is the temporary residence arranged for you. If you require anything, we will be on standby outside the hall. You need only give the command."
Luo Li nodded, and a small figure stepped down from the carriage behind her.
Mochizuki Shingen surveyed the surroundings, and though his face remained expressionless, a deep sense of wariness lingered in his eyes.
It was clear that the memories the demon race had given him were horrific.
Being in an environment surrounded entirely by demons made even the death-defying Mochizuki Shingen feel a bit nervous.
Luo Li looked up at the sky; there was no sky above, only a single light source.
That light source seemed to be suspended above like a giant light bulb, illuminating the entire Demon King's Castle.
She took out her pocket watch and glanced at it.
It was already past five in the afternoon.
Outside, it seemed the wind and torrential rain had yet to cease.
She looked at the palace before her, which was roughly a thousand square meters in size.
Upon entering, there was a main hall with side rooms on either flank.
Stepping into the main hall, she found it to be vast, designed in a standard Western palace style.
Entering the hall, the first impression was one of spaciousness.
The massive hall, about ten meters high, fifty meters deep, and twenty meters wide, was filled with various works of art.
However, one could tell at a glance that the vast majority of these were not original to the demon race.
She could even find artworks belonging to humans, beastmen, and other races among them.
Without a doubt, these had been plundered from the continent.
Windows lined both sides of the palace, allowing the light from the giant bulb outside to shine through.
This gave the hall a vibrant atmosphere.
The hall had clearly been uninhabited for a while, yet it was still kept remarkably clean.
One had to admit that purebred demons were indeed very similar to ordinary living beings.
Of course, aside from their overwhelming desires in certain aspects, they were fine in other regards.
But purebred demons would ultimately corrupt other races.
Furthermore, purebred demons did not engage in production or maintain stability; they were essentially pure parasites.
At this thought, Luo Li's heart grew somewhat agitated.
Such a race would inevitably invade others.
Because they did not produce anything themselves, they could only plunder basic necessities from other races.
Once the demons became the dominant force on the continent, other races would be doomed to eternal exploitation.
With the demons' powerful reproductive capabilities, they would quickly drain the life force of the entire continent.
Therefore, the demons could not be allowed to remain.
However, looking at the situation in the inner city, especially the state of those purebred demons, it was clear they were highly intelligent beings.
If she truly wiped out this race, would that be a form of genocide?
Luo Li grew more frustrated the more she thought about it, so she simply stopped thinking.
In any case, she had passed the first hurdle.
At least no one had seen through her facade yet.
Now, the most important thing was what she should do next.
The wind and rain raged outside, making it clear she could not leave anytime soon.
If she wanted to leave, she had to plan how to cross the sea first.
The strait was once again blocked by the ocean, making it nearly impossible to cross there.
She would either have to fly back or take a long detour by sea.
Fly?
The only way was to steal a griffin.
That was right; right now, taking one by force was impossible, as she would surely be pursued and caught.
That left only stealing or... borrowing?
If she borrowed one, there might be a chance.
If she stole one and was caught, things would get troublesome.
Thinking this, Luo Li glanced back at Mochizuki Shingen, who still looked slightly nervous.
His eyes darted around from time to time, and he tried his best to stay in a spot with his back against a wall.
Sitting on the throne at the top of the dais, Luo Li crossed her legs and rested her chin on one hand.
In her heart, she couldn't help but worry about the Kingdom of the Moon.
She wondered if Lola could hold the fort while she was away.
...
"Cardinal Lola, how are you feeling?"
Augus asked with a grave expression as he looked at Lola, who was lying on the bed and slowly waking up.
"I am fine, just... a bit too tired,"
Lola spoke softly, her weak voice making it clear that she was indeed exhausted.
Nara stood to the side, looking at Lola with an urgent expression.
"I told you not to push yourself like this, but you just wouldn't listen."
Lola shook her head.
"Since the Saintess is away, I must ensure everything is properly arranged."
"But if you collapse from exhaustion, won't the Saintess scold you when she returns?"
Nara had just finished speaking when she suddenly realized something.
Was this exactly what Lola wanted?
Instead of worrying about the Saintess's safety, she would work herself to exhaustion so that... perhaps the Saintess would return?
"You really are a fool!"
At this thought, Nara voiced her complaint, yet her heart ached for her friend.
Lola smiled, looked up at Augus, and asked,
"How is the situation in the outer city? Is Refugee City doing well?"
"The situation in Refugee City is not good. Because most of the buildings weren't finished in time, many refugees are forced to take shelter from the rain in tents. I came here to request supplies from you. If we don't provide support soon, I fear it may lead to a civil uprising."
Lola nodded.
"I see... the documents for the supplies are on the desk. I have already signed them, and they can be sent out immediately. Augus, I am counting on you."
Augus frowned slightly. He walked to the desk, found the documents, and then glanced back at the tauren warrior, Sake, standing at the door before returning to Lola.
"The situation has become quite troublesome. If nothing goes wrong, something is about to go wrong."
Lola, who had sat up with Nara's support, heard these words but did not show much surprise.
She only furrowed her brows slightly and replied in a low voice,
"With the Papal Decree from His Holiness the Pope, those nobles do not dare to do anything openly, but I have already received many reports of their activities in the shadows."
As she spoke, Lola pulled a piece of paper from her sleeve and handed it to Augus.
"Have a look."
Augus took the note, opened it, and his gaze grew solemn.
"As expected, these nobles cannot sit still."
Lola nodded weakly.
"But it does not matter. While the Saintess is away, this Kingdom of the Moon is my everything. No matter what happens, I will not let anything happen to the Kingdom of the Moon."
"Cardinal Lola, please be careful. In my opinion, I fear there may be more than just nobles involved in this."
Augus spoke calmly, causing Lola to frown slightly as she looked at him.
"Do you mean... the Kingdom of Flame?"
"Perhaps the Snow Country has a hand in it as well, and even the Holy See... cannot be ignored."
Augus's words caused Lola to gasp.
"Snow Country? That shouldn't be possible, right? The Saintess's treatment of the King of Snow Country was a massive favor. Even if the Snow Country wanted to move against us, they would need a just cause."
Augus shook his head.
"According to the news I received recently, Duke Barn, who is in charge of the Snow Country border, seems to be mobilizing his forces."
Lola nodded heavily.
"I understand..."
The current situation was like misfortunes never coming singly.
In the absence of the Saintess, who was the main pillar, the already vulnerable Kingdom of the Moon was now on the brink of collapse!
Thinking of this, Lola looked up at Augus.
"Did the Saintess not say anything to you before she left?"
Based on Lola's understanding of her Saintess, she would surely have left some contingency plans for herself no matter what.
She would never have vanished so defenselessly.
But Lola had received no news at all. Was the Saintess deliberately keeping her in the dark?
She couldn't deny the possibility.
Augus paused for a moment.
"No."
"Is that so... I understand."
Lola looked up at Augus. Although his face remained expressionless, that answer proved everything.
The Saintess had indeed left a contingency plan, and it wasn't left to her, but to the Augus standing before her.
Even the Pope might know something.
This reaction was clearly something Augus had leaked to her on purpose.
Otherwise, with Augus's photographic memory, he could have answered any question instantly.
He wouldn't have needed to hesitate.
Since he hesitated, it proved that there was indeed such a thing.
However, the Saintess's letter likely contained words like 'do not tell Lola'.
So Augus couldn't say it and could only remind her in this way.
At this thought, Lola couldn't help but feel a bit slighted.
She was clearly the person who had followed the Saintess the longest and was the most loyal to her, so why did the Saintess still hide things from her?
Where exactly was the Saintess... and was she still alive?
Lola took a deep breath.
Although she didn't know what the Saintess was planning, as long as she was still here, she would not let anything happen to the Kingdom of the Moon!
"Bring the rest of the documents here. I need to review them one by one. Augus, I leave the refugees to you. Do not let anything go wrong."
"I will do my best."
Augus responded curtly, took the documents, and left.
Seeing that Lola was going to continue processing documents, Nara couldn't help but speak up.
"Lola, that's enough. Your body needs rest right now!"
Lola simply shook her head.
"It is fine."
Seeing that Lola wouldn't listen to advice, Nara could only sigh helplessly. She pulled the desk over to Lola so she could handle the affairs from her bed.
At a time like this, Nara couldn't help at all and could only watch as the situation grew worse.
In her heart, she couldn't help but hope for the Saintess's return.
Saintess, oh Saintess... where on earth are you? If you don't come back soon, Lola is going to work herself to death!
...
For several days, the wind and rain outside gradually began to lessen.
During this time, the Demon Emperor did not come to visit.
For some unknown reason, the other Queens had each visited once.
They were all of the same rank, so they naturally wanted to get to know each other.
Luo Li could only welcome and see off one wave after another. She was busy for three days straight before she finally had some free time.
These Queens were all very polite, and many even offered to give her sub-lovers directly.
Luo Li rejected them all.
While they were surprised, they didn't say anything else.
However, they did send over many interesting items.
For instance, weapons and artworks plundered from other kingdoms.
Some even sent over several humans meant for consumption.
And they were all female.
Luo Li rejected them without a second thought.
She could barely protect herself right now and had no way to ensure their safety.
Bringing Mochizuki Shingen along was already the limit of her efforts.
Bringing another human along would almost certainly lead to trouble.
She looked at the katana in her hand.
This had clearly been plundered from the Kingdom of the Sun.
While Luo Li thought the weapon looked cool, she really had no use for such a weapon right now.
On the other hand, Mochizuki Shingen seemed to really like it, so Luo Li simply gave it to him.
He treated it like a precious treasure, solemnly storing it away and hanging it on his person.
He kept the blade by his side even while sleeping.
By the fifth day,
The wind and rain outside had subsided significantly.
It had now been fifteen days since she arrived on the demon island.
Today was September 12th.
In the blink of an eye, only two and a half months remained of the three-month deadline.
Luo Li pondered for a moment.
She couldn't wait until the time was up to go back; everything had to be prepared in advance.
The longer she delayed, the worse the situation in the Kingdom of the Moon would become.
Rising early, Luo Li ate her breakfast.
The breakfast here seemed to be prepared by purebred demons; it was clean, orderly, and very hygienic.
The difference between this and the breakfast of the ordinary half-demons was simply too great.
Those half-demons outside were likely still eating raw meat.
Meanwhile, on the plate before Luo Li was proper roasted meat.
Of course, she had refused human flesh, and these demons were very obedient, replacing it entirely with the meat of livestock.
After finishing her meal, she took Mochizuki Shingen with her. Luo Li was ready to leave at any moment, intending to depart as soon as an opportunity arose.
Therefore, she had to keep the boy with her at all times.
Walking out of the palace, she arrived on the main street.
The streets were quite bustling, with normal trade even occurring along the roadsides; the lives of these purebred demons were almost indistinguishable from those of ordinary people.
However, the items these demons traded were mostly females of other races.
Not just humans, but even some elves and beastmen.
After a quick look around, Luo Li turned and headed toward a nearby tavern.
As she walked down the street, countless demons fixed their gazes upon her.
They were surprised at first, but once they saw the pair of horns on her head, the eyes of every demon became incredibly respectful, while also holding a faint hint of expectation.
However, Luo Li ignored those gazes and walked straight into the pub.
The moment she pushed open the door, the originally lively atmosphere in the pub instantly went silent.
No one had expected a Lady Queen to appear in such a place.
The reason Luo Li had come here was to find a way to leave.
If nothing else, alcohol was something that affected the reason of ordinary people, and it seemed even demons were no exception.
Therefore, a place like a pub was a hub for gathering information.
"This... Lady Queen, why would you come to a place like this?"
The bartender behind the counter began to stutter as soon as he saw Luo Li.
"I am just looking around. Why, am I not allowed to be here?"
Luo Li glanced at the bartender, who instantly felt as if he had been struck by lightning.
"No, how could I dare? What would you like to drink?"
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