Before the morning bells chimed, Rafina was already sitting at her desk.
The documents on her desk were piled into three small mountains, still tied with red, gray, and black ribbons.
Each stack was taller than the day before, giving the impression that they would swallow her desk sooner or later.
Holding her teacup in her left hand and her quill in her right, her eyes scanned the contents of two documents simultaneously. She quickly and precisely penned down responses in the annotation columns.
【The Flame Demon Court's application for mining rights in three new areas... Rejected. Note: Forty percent of last year's mining quota remains unused. The new application lacks data support. It is recommended to submit a complete usage report next quarter before further discussion.】
【The Lich Court's application for the allocation of thirty experimental remains... Approved. Note: Please submit the record of experimental usage before the fifteenth of next month. Failure to submit on time will result in the suspension of subsequent allocation eligibility.】
【The Scavenger Court...】
She paused, pulled that document out separately, set it aside, and then took up her pen to write a brief accompanying letter:
【To the Scavenger Court Head: Regarding the dispute between your Court and the Lich Court over the allocation of experimental materials, please have representatives from both sides come to the third meeting room of Gloom Castle in three days for coordination. The mediation will be hosted by the Demon King's Direct Secretariat.】
【As a side note, please do not draw turtles on the back of the application forms next time. It is very childish.】
She folded the letter, slipped it into an envelope, sealed it with wax, and placed it in the tray labeled “To Be Sent.”
The moment she set the envelope down, a wave of sharp pain welled up from the marrow of her arms.
Her movements paused, but her expression remained unchanged. She simply allowed the agonizing pain to spread from her marrow to her entire body, waiting for the sensation of being chewed to pieces by endless teeth to subside.
Then, she picked up the next document.
The door opened.
“Rafina~”
Ellie walked in carrying a breakfast tray, her cherry-pink curly hair tied into several small braids that hung evenly behind her back.
As an adult, she looked exceptionally charming. The maid uniform, which had been specially upsized, still looked small and tight on her, outlining curves that would make Rafina feel self-conscious just looking at them.
Yet her tone was still that same overly sweet, high-pitched, cutesy voice.
“It's time for breakfast~ You didn't eat on time again, did you~”
“Sister, you must call her Her Highness the Demon King.”
Sera, also dressed in a maid uniform but looking exceptionally flat-chested due to being underdeveloped, followed behind Ellie. She carried a stack of clean clothes in one hand, and with an expressionless face, used her other hand to grab Ellie's braid and yanked it down hard.
“Eek, eek, eek! It hurts, hurts, hurts! Stop pulling, stop pulling, the breakfast is going to spill, ahhh!!!”
Rafina looked up at them, then shifted her gaze back to the documents.
“Sera, you can just call me Fina in private. Save the honorifics for public occasions. Ellie, put the breakfast over there. I'll eat it in a bit.”
Sera let go.
Ellie, her eyes red, set the breakfast aside.
“Every... every time you say that, and then every time you forget to eat...”
Sera seemed to have pulled really hard, as Ellie was temporarily in too much pain to even maintain her cutesy voice.
But Sera didn't care. She simply folded the clean clothes neatly and placed them on the side table, casually picking up Rafina's old coat draped over the back of the chair, shaking it out, folding it, and stacking it on top of the other clothes.
“Hmm... Rafina, did you stay up late working overtime again? Yesterday's meeting clearly ended in the evening, but you definitely stayed behind to handle paperwork again~”
Ellie rubbed her head, speaking in a leisurely tone after recovering.
Rafina's quill paused for a fraction of a second.
“...I didn't.”
“The dark circles under your eyes are a whole ring darker than last week~”
“That's just the lighting.”
“Lights don't make your eyes turn black~”
Rafina fell silent.
She set her quill down, picked up the bread from the breakfast tray, and took a small bite.
She ate quickly, as if completing a task rather than enjoying a meal.
Ellie tilted her head, watching her for a few seconds. Then, she sighed, pulled a thin document from her sleeve, and gently placed it on the very top of the pile of paperwork on the desk.
“...What is this?”
Rafina's gaze fell upon the document.
The cover was printed with the gold-embossed crest of the Church of Radiance.
The paper was smooth and heavy, the specific type used by the Church of Radiance to print official announcements. It felt much finer than the standard paper used for demon documents.
“It's intelligence that arrived this morning, sent over from Maple Town.”
The usual playfulness was gone from Ellie's voice, replaced by a slightly cautious tone.
“They say... the Hero has appeared.”
Rafina's fingers froze on the rim of her teacup.
The air in the room seemed to grow heavy for an instant.
The Hero. As the Demon King, Rafina knew the weight of this word better than anyone.
The one who would slay the Demon King; the one who would save everything.
Even if there were precedents of a Demon King killing a Hero, or cases like Gloom, who killed both the Demon King and the Hero together, it was still information significant enough to cause a stir in Abyss City.
Sera frowned slightly and glanced at her sister, seemingly questioning why Ellie chose this moment to hand over this document.
Ellie made faces at Sera, as if conveying some secret code only the two of them could understand.
Rafina ignored them and didn't immediately pick up the document.
She simply stared at the church crest on the cover.
The gold embossing glinted slightly in the morning light, making her eyes sting a little.
Rafina had never had any goodwill toward the Church. They constantly undermined her political decrees in secret and occasionally dispatched the Holy Spirit Knights to hunt along the border. There was no way she could have a good impression of them.
But things seemed a bit different over the past few days. The intensity of the Holy Spirit Knights' hunts against demons had decreased significantly, and even the political interference spearheaded by Beatrice had weakened.
Rafina wasn't sure what was causing the other side to show weakness. She could only seize this golden opportunity to accelerate her forces' development and prepare for the future.
She had heard that the Abyss Expedition was also drawing near. When the time came, even if they were hostile to each other, humanity and the demons would still have to work together to eliminate their common enemy first.
She took another bite of the bread, chewed, swallowed, and set it back on the tray.
“A Hero... I hope they are a relatively peaceful person.”
Her voice was flat.
“Mhm... and also, this is all the intelligence gathered so far.”
Ellie folded her hands in front of her, speaking with a touch of seriousness.
“Inside... there should be something you care deeply about.”
Care deeply about? What did that mean?
Was this Hero very strong? Or was there some special power at play?
Rafina flipped open the cover.
The first page was an official announcement issued by the Church.
“In the summer of the year 1377 of the New Calendar, the Holy Sword was pulled from Avalon by a young girl named Esper. Personally ordained by Her Holiness Pope Beatrice of the Church of Radiance, Esper has been officially confirmed as the new Hero, tasked with the sacred mission of subjugating the demons and maintaining peace across the continent.”
Rafina's gaze lingered on that name for a brief moment.
Esper.
An unfamiliar name.
She continued flipping through.
The second page was a detailed record of her actions, starting from Esper's registration information at the Avalon Adventurer's Guild.
Rank C External Member, Rank Three. There was also a note stating that her actual combat strength far exceeded her registered rank.
She had been active in Avalon for about a year. There was nothing much of interest in between, just trivial, everyday matters. Before that, there were no records of her activities.
“One year.”
Rafina pressed her hand to her head.
She had always been a bit sensitive about time. Since Lonia's departure, whenever anything regarding the past was mentioned, her movements would stiffen for a moment.
The closer those events were to one year ago, the longer the stiffness would last.
Her mind would begin to drift, and the departing back of the girl she deeply loved—the back she had never actually seen, only imagined in her mind—would reappear.
That back should have been limping. Because she had never endured pain on the level of a soul backlash, she would have struggled to maintain her balance after standing up, leaving her to limp along.
That back would probably look back from time to time, checking to see if she had turned around.
Because she wanted to look at her one more time, wanting to see her turn around and reconcile.
What did that back look like now?
Would she look like her sister? Or would she be cuter? Or perhaps she had grown into a more mature-looking girl?
Did anyone accompany her for her eighteenth birthday? What must her back look like now...
She couldn't keep thinking about this. There was still work to do.
Rafina lowered her hand and kept flipping.
Following that in the document was the battle report of Esper's subjugation of the death marcher “Zhong” in Hart Town, followed by speculations on her route northward.
Every line of text was neat and tidy, and every time node was clearly marked.
Rafina's finger stopped on the column labeled “Hart Town: Zhong Subjugation.”
Zhong, a Rank Six death marcher, originally the Wild Hunt Knight 『Aberrant Blood』 from the late Era of Dragon Sovereignty.
Reported to be a candidate successor to the Authority of 『Gluttony』, who had killed several knights and adventurers in Hart Town in succession. Eventually subjugated by the Hero Esper and the Roundtable Knight Renn Cast.
Result: Confirmed killed.
Rafina's gaze rested on the word “Gluttony” for a few seconds.
Then, she turned to the next page.
The third page was a portrait.
An official wanted portrait issued by the Church, attached to the intelligence document for identification purposes.
They had commissioned the best artist the Church could hire, using the finest paints and brushes. Then, the Church mass-produced it using some sort of copying method, turning what could have been a masterpiece worth hundreds of gold coins into a portrait of merely above-average quality.
Yet, the contours in the portrait were still clearly recognizable.
Long black hair tied in a low ponytail at the back of her head, the ends reaching down to her waist, with a maple leaf-shaped hairpin worn on her forehead.
A face with sharp lines, eyes carrying a slight edge, yet also a hint of coldness.
A face that had appeared numerous times in Rafina's countless fantasies, representing how she might look after a year of changes.
Her breathing stopped.
Her gaze was nailed to the portrait, moving inch by inch from the top of the hair to the tips, from the eyebrows to the lips.
“Ah...”
A simple, meaningless syllable escaped the lips of Rafina, who was normally accustomed to handling everything with utmost efficiency.
Ellie gasped, turning her head only to meet Sera's visibly displeased gaze.
“I just felt she needed to know.”
She made a face, gesturing with her eyes.
“But not while she's working.”
Sera blinked rapidly, signaling at a frequency akin to Morse code.
And Rafina's posture didn't change.
But her entire body was trembling.
Starting from her shoulders, spreading to her arms, down to her fingertips.
“Lord Demon King...?”
Ellie's voice was even softer than before. She reached out, wanting to support Rafina's wrist, but Sera grabbed her sleeve and shook her head.
Rafina closed the document.
Her movement was very gentle, as if she was afraid of damaging the portrait inside.
Then, she pulled open her drawer and placed the document inside.
“...It's nothing.”
Her voice was hoarse.
“You two go on out first.”
Ellie opened her mouth to speak, but Sera was already pulling her by the sleeve toward the door. After being dragged a few steps, Ellie couldn't help but look back one last time as she crossed the threshold.
Rafina sat behind her desk, completely expressionless.
The door closed.
Sera pulled Ellie around the corner of the corridor, only letting go once she was sure they were far enough away.
“...Sera, what are we going to do now...”
Ellie asked with deep worry.
“First, let's put a pack of tissues in Her Highness the Demon King's room.”
Sera rolled her eyes, pulling Ellie toward the room.
“...Oh, right~”
Ellie's tone reverted to that overly sweet, high-pitched voice.
...
Rafina processed all the documents with unprecedented efficiency, finishing her work for the day.
Then, she pulled open the drawer a crack, slipped the document out, pressed it against her chest, and hurriedly ran toward her room.
“You stayed in Avalon for a year.”
“You registered as an External Member adventurer under a fake name.”
“You were chosen by the Holy Sword.”
“You became the Hero.”
“No... it's possible they just look very similar... Although Court Head Eliza indicated that you did head in that direction... but... maybe I've just mistaken someone else for you...”
There was no way she had mistaken her. That hairpin.
“So why didn't you come back? You left without leaving any clues.”
“I searched for you for so long and couldn't find you. I thought you were never coming back.”
“Wait... why would the Holy Sword be pulled out by Nia? This isn't normal... Although there have been non-human Heroes in past generations, a demon Hero is simply unheard of... Maybe it really is just a girl who looks a lot like Nia...”
It was absolutely her.
No matter how much she wanted to dismiss it as a mistake, she couldn't change this reality.
“...If you really became the Hero, does that mean you are coming to subjugate me?”
“You will come to kill me. You will use the Holy Sword to sever my head, slicing right through the bone.”
“In other words... does that mean I can finally see you?”
Rafina's eyes suddenly stung.
But she didn't cry.
She opened her door and threw herself onto the bed. The room was neatly arranged, save for a dress that was clearly child-sized, a bundle of ribbons, and a set of braces and a maple leaf-shaped hairpin that seemed to be cleaned spotlessly every single day—all laid out in the most prominent spot visible from the bed.
Rafina exhaled deeply, reopened the document, and turned to the page with the portrait.
“Do you want to be my friend?”
“One for each of us. That way, even if we get separated, we can still recognize each other.”
“I told you it was dangerous! Why won't you listen! What if you can't beat them!”
“Please... don't become the Demon King.”
“I didn't tell her! I didn't say anything!”
Rafina's finger rested on the portrait, gently tracing Lonia's eyes and brows.
“...I searched for you for so long, and yet you've stopped using the name Lonia.”
Her voice was even hoarser than before.
Her finger stopped at the corner of the portrait's mouth.
“Esper.”
She muttered the name.
“Do you think the current you is better than the past you?”
She turned the portrait around, staring at it for a long time.
Then, she brought the portrait close to her face and sniffed it gently.
“...As expected, it's just ordinary paper.”
She had long been prepared for this; in fact, it would be strange if it weren't ordinary paper.
Yet, she had still tried.
Sighing, she turned to the next page.
The next page detailed the Hero's action records and route speculations. Rafina's gaze scanned down line by line, much faster than before, but still very focused.
Then, she turned to the final page.
Attached to the final page was a promotional poster.
It was an official promotional image distributed by the Church after the Hero's ordainment. The print quality was much better than the portrait, with fine lines and rich colors.
The image was bathed in golden sunlight, with a background of the white marble ground of Avalon's Palace Square and the spires of distant towers.
Two people stood in the center of the image.
She was all too familiar with the person on the left.
Rafina stared blankly at Lonia in vivid color for a long time, until her eyes drifted from Lonia's left hand to the person whose hand she was holding.
The person on the right.
Deep blue hair cascading from head to toe, barefoot, wearing a white linen robe.
Light spilled over her, as if the most beautiful lines in the world had been traced upon her figure.
In the picture, their two hands were tightly clasped together.
If Esper were here, she would probably immediately realize whose doing this was.
Beatrice, that beast...
But Rafina didn't know.
She stared at their hands for a very, very long time.
Her gaze paused for a moment on the corner of Esper's mouth. That mouth looked as if it were enduring something.
Her gaze paused on the Saintess's face. That calm, light-emitting face that seemed to grow more beautiful the longer she looked.
Her tail twitched.
It snapped up from the floor, pointing straight toward the ceiling, the arrow-shaped tip splaying open.
“—?”
Her breathing grew rapid.
“—??”
Her fingers began to tremble.
“—???”
She held the image up to her face, staring closely at it for three seconds.
Then she turned the image over, flipped it around, and turned it back, as if trying to find an angle that would separate the two figures in the picture.
They did not separate.
“...Ellie!”
The door was yanked open.
Ellie, who was waiting in the corridor, was startled first, then hurriedly entered the room.
Her eyes were wide with worry as she looked at the Demon King in the room.
“This—”
Rafina thrust the promotional image in front of Ellie, her finger tapping frantically next to the Saintess's face.
“What is this?! Who is she?!”
“Eh? S-She's the Saintess—”
“The Saintess?! What Saintess?! Why is she standing next to her?! Why are they holding hands??? I haven't even given her permission to hold hands with anyone else!!!”
“It seems, it seems to be b-because the Saintess is supposed to accompany the Hero on their journey...”
“On what grounds?!”
Ellie was stumped.
She stood there blinking several times, as if using her not-so-bright brain to frantically recall some rule.
“I-It seems to be a church tradition? They say the Saintess and the Hero walk together, representing light and hope being side by side or something...”
“But why are they holding hands???”
“T-This seems to be... every generation of the Hero apparently marries the Saintess... I-I didn't say that!”
Too late.
Rafina's expression changed.
It was a face too difficult to describe, so it was best left unsaid.
“...Marry?”
“Uh...”
“...The Hero and the Saintess?”
“Uh...”
“...Nia and... this woman?”
Her voice grew softer and slower.
“R-Rafina...?”
Rafina did not respond to her.
She turned back into her room and shut the door.
Ellie heard a very, very soft click from inside, followed by about three seconds of silence.
Then, she heard a dull thud, as if something had been slammed hard against the desk.
Ellie took a few steps back and miserably curled herself into a ball.
After a long while, Rafina's voice finally drifted from inside.
“...Ellie.”
“Present!”
She snapped to attention.
“Bring all intelligence regarding the Hero and the Saintess to my desk.”
“All of it meaning...”
“Action records, church announcements, eyewitness reports, wanted portraits, correspondence, route speculations, lists of people they might have contacted, detailed investigation results from Hart Town, and the backgrounds of those traveling with her. All of it.”
Ellie froze for a moment, then nodded heavily.
“...I understand.”
Her footsteps receded down the corridor, growing fainter.
Silence returned to the room.
Rafina clutched the dress to her chest, lay prone on the bed, and began to sniff it.
“...”
They were holding hands.
Did that blue-haired woman get to smell Nia's scent whenever she wanted?
Rafina sniffed even harder.
She glanced up, confirming that the tissues were there.
“...But I'm not in the mood to do it.”
A knock sounded at the door.
“Her Highness the Demon King, it's me.”
Sera.
“...Come in.”
She set the dress aside, looking at Sera with eyes like dead ashes.
“I know what Your Highness is troubled about, but please do not worry.”
Sera's tone was calm, yet carried an unquestionable confidence.
“...Do not worry...?”
“First of all, the previous Hero was not paired with the Saintess. I believe the Church does not have a tradition of forcing same-sex romance.”
The unlucky bastard whose head was chopped off by Gloom.
I heard... she was also a woman?
Rafina's eyes brightened slightly.
“Go on.”
“Furthermore, as far as I know, the Saintess possesses an extremely unique constitution; she constantly radiates holy light. This is a fatal trait for Lonia.
So the two holding hands in the picture is likely an artistic embellishment. Their relationship shouldn't be that close yet.”
Rafina's tail began to sway from side to side.
“Go on.”
“Next, Your Highness has been with Lonia for over ten years, so you should know what kind of person she is.”
“Mhm.”
“You two have known each other for over a decade. Even if she were to fall in love, she would definitely choose Your Highness. How could she possibly fall for a Saintess she only recently met?”
“.....................”
Sera showed a hint of confusion.
“Did I say something wrong?”
“...Doesn't Ellie often show you... those kinds of books...”
“Yes, but novels are novels, and reality is reality. Just like how I am not interested in anyone else because I love my sister.”
“...You should go.”
“As you command.”
The door closed.
Rafina sighed, hugging the dress to her chest once more.
“...Will I win?”
She glanced at the tissues beside her and sighed.
“...I will win.”
Rate on N.U.
