A few days later, the residents of the Demon Realm realized something.
The Demon King had been acting a bit strange lately.
Ellie was the first to notice that something was off.
That morning, she had pushed open the door to the Demon King's office with the morning tea as usual. When she saw Rafina sitting behind her desk reviewing documents, the Demon King's posture was still perfectly upright.
Her expression was calm, and she was working diligently. At first glance, she looked no different than usual.
Ellie set the tea tray on the desk, then took two steps back, waiting for her to nod gently and say “Thank you for your hard work,” just like she always did.
Instead, Rafina put down her pen, picked up the teacup, took a sip, set it back down, and went right back to reviewing documents.
She didn't say a word.
No.
Something was definitely wrong!
Why didn't she praise the tea as the best cup she had tasted all day?
How could this woman remain so completely indifferent to the work of art Ellie had meticulously prepared?
Retreating to the doorway, Ellie didn't go straight back to her own office. Instead, she took a detour and knocked on the door to Sera's room.
“What is it?”
Sera was organizing the Royal Court's ledgers, not even looking up.
Ellie closed the door and lowered her voice.
“Her Majesty the Demon King didn't praise the tea I brewed today.”
Sera stopped her quill pen and raised her head.
She looked at her as if looking at an idiot.
“So what?”
“She praises me every single day! Every single day!”
“...Has your brewing technique gotten worse?”
“Impossible! I used the exact same tea leaves, the exact same water temperature, and the exact same steeping time as yesterday! It was identical to the cup she praised last week! She even picked up the cup and drank from it, but she just didn't say anything!”
Sera fell silent for a moment, beginning to seriously consider the possibility.
Ellie's tea-brewing skills were flawless, a fact Sera knew better than anyone.
Though her sister was an idiot, as a maid, her professional skills were impeccable even by Sera's strict standards—provided one ignored her overly frivolous and casual personality.
But Rafina's appreciation for tea was also flawless, which Sera also knew better than anyone.
“In that case... the problem isn't the tea. It's Her Majesty herself.”
“Exactly! She's in a bad mood!”
“But at the Royal Court's morning meeting, she spoke even more than usual, and her train of thought was completely clear.”
“The fact that she's acting exactly like normal is precisely what makes it so terrifying! It means she's forcing herself to put on a brave face! It means things are so serious that she has to use all her energy just to maintain a calm facade!”
Sera put down her quill, her gaze toward Ellie growing a bit sharper.
“...You actually make sense. Sister, did you take the wrong medicine today? You've gotten smart.”
“I've never been stupid!”
“Then let's go talk to Tia and the others later.”
That afternoon, Tia ran into Rafina in the corridor.
Rafina was walking from the direction of the conference room back to her office, holding several newly reviewed documents. Her walking pace was neither fast nor slow, completely identical to her usual self.
Tia walked beside her for a short distance with an unlit pipe in her mouth, casually bringing up a few trivial matters.
“The new civil officials transferred from the Nightmare Court have completed their registration into the castle. Though they are still young, they are quite talented.”
“Is that so? That's wonderful.”
“Oh, and a few days ago, Fema boasted that she was going to teach Louis a lesson. But in the end, Louis redirected the trouble to me because Fema couldn't win an argument against me.”
“Mmh... Louis actually went to you for help? That's a good thing.”
“Speaking of which, there's been a small-scale smuggling ring operating near the eastern border lately, but Louis has already sent people to handle it...”
“That's great...”
Tia's footsteps slowed.
“...Tia?”
Rafina turned her head, sporting heavy dark circles under her eyes.
Tia stared at the Demon King's dark circles. She took the pipe out of her mouth, spun it around her fingertips, remained silent for a moment, and then popped it back in.
“It's nothing.”
She had just noticed something.
When she mentioned the smuggling ring, Rafina's tail hadn't budged. Normally, when Rafina heard about trouble on the border, the tip of her tail would twitch slightly.
But Rafina had simply nodded and said she would arrange for someone to handle it.
Her tail hadn't moved at all.
Tia took a drag from her pipe. The moment she drew air into her lungs, the unlit pipe ignited with purple mist.
“Ellie actually managed to notice something useful for once...”
Louis noticed the anomaly surprisingly early.
Logically, he was someone who wasn't very sensitive to other people's emotions. On top of that, he worked overtime every single day. There was no way he should have realized the Demon King's unusual state so soon.
In fact, he had been thoroughly vexed by a certain novel over the past few days.
The author of that novel had inexplicably sent him a hardcover edition, claiming it was to thank him for his contribution to promoting the book.
《How to Tame a Fire Dragon》
He had read a few pages and almost thrown the thing straight into the trash.
As the Court Head of the Demon Court, Louis had never promoted a novel in his life, nor had he ever read many books to begin with.
Moreover, the content of that novel was of a type he would absolutely never recommend to anyone. Thus, ever since receiving the package, he had been sorting through his letters looking for clues, almost completely forgetting about the Demon King's recent low mood.
Yet, he still quickly realized her unusual behavior.
That day, he had walked into Rafina's office with a proposal regarding the border smuggling ring. He handed the document over and stood before her desk, waiting for her approval.
“Louis, do you need me to offer some suggestions regarding the proposal for this smuggling operation?”
“Please.”
As usual, she listened to Louis's report, then lowered her head to analyze the document. She proceeded to supplement and revise the content, elevating the quality of the proposal from merely excellent to a level worthy of being used as a textbook example.
Finally, she handed the revised document back and nodded to Louis.
“Thank you for your hard work, Louis.”
Her voice was steady, and her expression was calm. There seemed to be absolutely nothing wrong.
Louis took the document and turned to leave. Then, from the corner of his eye, he caught a glimpse of black on the floor.
Rafina's tail lay limp on the ground, completely motionless.
It looked like a rope that someone had carelessly discarded on the floor.
Louis stopped in his tracks.
He stared at the tail for about three or four seconds, then glanced back at Rafina.
She was already looking at the next document, her expression remaining perfectly tranquil.
Carrying the document, he walked out of the office, quietly pulled the door shut, and stood in the corridor for quite a while.
Then he turned and headed toward Tia's office.
“Tia.”
“Oh, little brother Louis, is there something you need your big sister's help with?”
“Has the Demon King been in a bad mood lately?”
“You actually noticed? Big sister is deeply moved. But how did you find out?”
“...Her tail.”
Tia nodded and sighed.
“Go check up on the current situations of those who attended the conference a few days ago.”
Fema's way of finding out was more direct than anyone else's.
She hadn't noticed any subtle details at all. She simply happened to have something to discuss with the Demon King, so she shouted at the office door, “Hey, Rafina, I brought you some snacks!”
The door opened, she went in, and then she came right back out.
“...I am never bringing Rafina snacks again.”
During afternoon tea, Fema muttered gloomily while stuffing honey bread into her mouth.
“Did you get scolded?”
Louis sighed as he watched the honey bread vanish like a cloud swept away by the wind, then set down a fresh plate.
“Worse than being scolded.”
Sera and Ellie, who were making honey bread, stopped what they were doing at the same time.
“She smiled at me.”
Tia choked on her pipe smoke.
“It was that kind of perfectly normal, gentle, grateful smile. She accepted the snacks with that exact smile and said, ‘Thank you, Fema, these look delicious.’ I said, ‘Of course they are, I picked them out myself.’ She replied, ‘Mmh, I see. Is there anything else?’ I said no, and she went right back to work. She was incredibly polite from start to finish.”
Everyone fell silent.
“I feel like she really wanted to scold me, but for some reason, she couldn't bring herself to do it. So she could only force herself to put on this exceptionally polite act to talk to me.”
“No, your conclusion is correct, but your reasoning seems a bit off...”
Louis rubbed his forehead and sighed.
“Huh? Isn't it because she wanted to scold me?”
“Just how terrible is your impression of her...”
“Isn't she always super devious?”
“...”
Everyone sighed.
“In any case, the confirmed conclusion is that she is indeed in a very bad mood. Right?”
The group nodded.
“So, Fema, what do you think the reason is?”
“If it's not because she wanted to scold me, then I have no idea.”
“...I really shouldn't have asked you.”
That night, Ellie and Sera gathered in Tia's office to compile all the information the various Court Heads had gathered over the past few days. Ellie was in charge of refreshments and gossip channels, Sera handled paperwork and financial trends, Tia oversaw the dream information network, and Louis brought up the rear.
“So, Rafina became like this after she returned from that pre-war joint conference.”
“Yes. The problem lies with the conference.”
“What happened at the conference?”
“I've checked. The speeches of the leaders of each race are publicly recorded. There were no provocations aimed at the Demon Realm, nor did anyone bring up sensitive topics. The only exception was after the conference ended, when Her Majesty the Demon King took the initiative to invite the Hero, Esper, for a private talk.”
“The Hero. That Hero?”
Ellie choked.
“Mmh. That Hero.”
Sera had managed to procure a pair of glasses from somewhere, resting them on the bridge of her nose to look sophisticated.
“Isn't that fucking Lonia?”
Fema slammed her hand on the table and stood up.
“Mind your language, Fema,” Tia said calmly, spinning her pipe.
“Holy shit, did she really break up with Rafina?”
“Mind your language, little sister Fema,” Louis sat in the corner, listening to them exchange information without saying a single word.
He remembered that person—the girl named Lonia.
Back before he became a Court Head, she was the girl who would cling to Rafina during every Ten Courts gathering, and immediately run off to cling to her again as soon as the meetings ended.
Back then, he had found them highly annoying, thinking they were a nuisance for constantly wandering around together without showing any restraint.
But later on, Lonia was no longer around. During that period, Rafina sat alone in the Demon King's seat, handling documents, holding meetings, and speaking gently to everyone.
She looked the same as before, yet also somewhat different.
Just like now.
Ellie picked through the Snow Tea leaves, sorting them until not a single bad one remained.
“...So, we're holding a meeting over their past ill-fated relationship again?”
Tia shrugged.
“Does anyone else have any questions?”
Ellie raised her hand.
“I do!”
“Go ahead, sister Ellie.”
“Since they have such a great relationship, why did they end up like this after meeting?”
“Are you stupid? Looking at how miserable Rafina is, she was definitely dumped by Lonia,” Fema sneered, prompting Tia to sigh.
“The reason isn't that simple.”
“What?”
Tia placed a document on the table.
“These are the records of the Hero's adventures. There is one person who appears very frequently in her story.”
“...The Saintess? Wasn't her relationship with Lonia just hype?”
Ellie's eyes widened.
“Are you kidding me? Isn't that chick shrouded in holy light or something? How could Lonia even get close to her?” Fema said, completely bewildered.
“She participated in the conference alongside the Hero, and later joined the private conversation between Her Majesty the Demon King and the Hero,” Tia added.
“Which means...” Louis tapped his fingers on the table and muttered, “Lonia found a new love, and then dumped Her Majesty?”
“Why do you have to put it so harshly? Those two weren't even dating, so you can't even say anyone got dumped, okay?!” Ellie protested emotionally.
“Shut up, Sister. Louis, there's a flaw in your theory.”
Sera pushed up her glasses, casting a gaze as sharp as a hawk's at Ellie and Louis respectively.
“...Then what is your take on it?” Louis asked calmly, crossing his arms.
“First of all, Lonia is a pure-blooded, high-ranking vampire. That's correct, right?”
“That is correct.”
“Next, the Saintess radiates holy light at all times. That's also correct, right?”
“Mmh.”
“Furthermore, pure-blooded vampires are severely countered by holy light. Mere contact would burn or even char them. Correct?”
“...Are you saying...”
“Since this Hero can get so close to the Saintess, and it causes Rafina such profound sadness, the answer is obvious.”
Sera suddenly thrust her finger forward, pointing directly at the tip of Louis's nose.
“...Do you really have to strike that pose?”
“This Esper is not Lonia at all!”
Fema was visibly shaken and stood straight up.
“Oh, right! If Esper and Lonia are actually two completely different people, then it all makes sense!”
“...But Sera, the hairpin on Esper's head is the exact same style as Lonia's, isn't it?” Ellie weakly added.
“Sister, tell me, is there a possibility...”
“...Huh?”
“That Esper was deliberately dressed up like this under someone's arrangement! The goal was to deceive the Demon King! To deal her a psychological blow during the conference, leading to her current state!”
“Who would be so bored and have nothing better to do...”
Nee-hee~☆
In an instant, a white-haired, gold-eyed brat flashed across everyone's minds.
“Beatrice?!”
“Exactly! It's her! The Pope of the Church of Radiance!”
Sera began pacing around the table.
“This entire thing is a conspiracy by Beatrice!”
Rate on N.U.
