The next morning.
“Ouch….”
Eliya grumbled after returning to Beelzebub from the cage. She had gotten into trouble the day before. The place she was scolded was swollen. It stung a bit, too. There were plenty of red kiss marks around her nape. Thankfully, they were covered by her red scarf. Just so you know, there are even more beneath it.
Judas cleared his throat for no reason.
“Ahem, you asked for more when you said you liked it.”
“Shut up.”
“Yes.”
After spending a long, hot night, Eliya wanted to dedicate the day just for the two of them. But she couldn’t completely neglect her duties as an emperor, so she returned to Beelzebub after breakfast.
“It’s a bit chilly.”
The harbor city in the early morning was quite cool. Moreover, Beelzebub was much farther north than the palace, making it chilly even in summer. Judas silently hugged her from behind.
“Hmm.”
Eliya smiled happily and cuddled his arms. The warm heat spread from her back, wrapping around her whole body. Judas also smiled, resting his nose on her head.
Soft, sweet smell. The only warmth in the cool harbor. It seemed to shine brightly.
“But this way, we can’t walk.”
“We just need to walk like this.”
Holding Eliya, Judas waddled forward awkwardly. Eliya followed suit, waddling along. It looked like a lazy penguin’s funny walk.
“What’s this?”
Eliya burst into laughter. Hearing her chirping laugh, Judas chuckled as well. How could something be so cute?
They looked ridiculous, but it didn’t bother them, so they continued to waddle. Though it would take some time to reach the dock where Hosea Ship was anchored, it didn’t matter. They hadn’t agreed to meet Gabriel and they had come back quite early, after all.
The morning harbor was bustling.
Boats were coming into the dock. People were carrying fishing nets full of fish or cargo boxes. Since it was a hastily formed fortified town, workers were building or repairing structures. Seagulls flew over the beach.
Fish spilled on the ground. Cats were eyeing those fish.
Amidst the little commotion, the two waddled along. People were too busy to bother looking at them. Even if they did recognize them, they couldn’t dare to interrupt the sight of just the two of them in this place.
Suddenly, Eliya stopped.
She gazed somewhere blankly.
“Eli? Why?”
“Cat.”
“Cat?”
Eliya spotted a cat being fed fish by a sailor.
“Cute, right?”
“Yup.”
“You’re way cuter.”
“……”
“If you want to see something cute, look in the mirror…. Oops.”
Eliya covered Judas’s mouth with her lips before he could finish his cheeky line. After a while, she cautiously pulled away and turned her head to hide her flushed face.
“…Hmph.”
“Cute, indeed.”
Not answering, Eliya waddled along again.
“I miss the puppies. It’s been a while since I saw them.”
“Right? They’ll be huge after we return.”
“I wonder if they’re doing well.”
“Since my mother-in-law sees them often, they should be fine. There’s also Bradley and Mei.”
“Yup. I miss Yuel too.”
“When we get back, we should play in the barn for a while.”
As they chatted lightly, they had somehow walked to the dock where Hosea Ship had anchored.
“Oh, Your Majesty….”
They ran into Gabriel, who was busy with repairs. Only then did Eliya realize her waddling behavior wasn’t exactly fitting for an emperor.
“……”
Eliya stood there, growing redder by the second. Meanwhile, Judas, who didn’t care much for dignity, felt a little awkward.
Gabriel was surprised but understood their feelings. He was married too. Everyone does this in their honeymoon phase. They were crazy about each other. Truly, it was that passionately overwhelming time. He also received advance notice from Gallahaid, suggesting that the emperor couple might have unique affection displays.
He hesitated to console them, thinking it might undermine the young emperor’s dignity. So, he decided to act as if he didn’t notice.
“Good morning, Your Majesty. Have you recovered from your travels?”
“Uh, yeah.”
Eliya replied, trying to sound nonchalant, and quickly got to the main topic.
“What’s the status of the supply transport?”
“All cargo has been dispatched since last night upon docking. Currently, we’re loading items to take back. There have been no spoilage issues during transport.”
“Good, everything is stable. Supply must continue without problems like today.”
“I will keep that in mind.”
“I don’t need to board the returning ship. Is there anything else that requires my approval or confirmation?”
“Generally, the supplies are adequate, but we need additional stones and lumber.”
“Stones and lumber?”
“Yes. With frequent monster incursions, we’ve been spending a lot on repairing the walls. They say we’re running low on materials for constructing buildings inside the walls.”
“Investigate the needed quantities and organize a report. Hmm… they’re having frequent incursions?”
Eliya gazed toward the east, inland.
She could see the tall walls stacked to connect the cliffs.
To head inland from the Beelzebub Peninsula, they had to pass through a canyon-like path. A road extended between the mountain ranges on both sides.
The fortress walls were built up to connect those mountains.
While the terrain was favorable for defense and somewhat easy to navigate, it doesn’t change the fact that this is right in the heart of the demon realm.
It’s a long way off from where the imperial army is advancing from the south.
‘When we set up base back then, I thought we cleared the surrounding area. Did we leave something out?’
Eliya stared blankly at the walls and then asked Judas casually.
“Can I take a little trip?”
“If Your Majesty wishes to survey, how could I block you?”
Judas said playfully. They had to go together no matter where, but he thought she might feel guilty for taking time with something like this.
Eliya always had in mind to roll around with Judas once she got through her busy work, but she never neglected the affairs of the empire. She always tried her best as an emperor and worried about it.
Judas loved and respected this about her very much.
‘…Well, today she’s waddling like a penguin and not acting like an emperor, but that’s because of me, I guess.’
And while waddling around didn’t reflect well on her emperor behavior, it didn’t mean she was neglecting work.
…Maintaining dignity is an important business for a powerful figure, though.
“Thank you.”
Eliya said lightly, smiling at Gabriel.
“Are there any soldiers on patrol or reconnaissance right now?”
“All returned this morning.”
“Good. I’ll take a look around, so tell everyone not to come out.”
“Thank you, Your Majesty!”
Gabriel bowed deeply, genuinely happy.
Eliya, humanity’s strongest force, couldn’t even be expressed in numbers.
She’s simply overwhelming.
If she swept through, Beelzebub Peninsula would have some leisure for a few days.
Eliya quickly took Judas’s hand and used teleportation.
Judas felt a dizzying change in perspective.
The harbor city they were just standing in faded into the distance.
Teleportation was astonishing every time, even when he knew it was happening.
Plus, they were at a height where everything looked small.
The open air outside the walls.
He feared he might fall.
Of course, Eliya was holding him up with levitation magic, and he had no doubts about her magic skills.
But the fear from the height was instinctive, separate from that trust.
“Are you scared?”
Eliya chuckled, asking.
“…A little. Not a lot, just a little.”
He looked nothing like he was scared yet was secretly timid.
Especially of ghosts.
It was something Eliya, who didn’t have any such kind of phobia, found a bit difficult to understand.
It had been quite a while since he set foot in the battlefield, yet his appearance as he slaughtered enemies served as a role model or elicited awe among many knights and mercenaries.
His exploits were close to terror for those who wield swords.
Yet, for something like this, he got scared?
For a reason he didn’t quite grasp, it made him all the more lovable to Eliya.
She thought not everything needed to be understood to love him.
Just embracing him was enough.
Judas snuck his arms around her waist from behind.
“Are you more comfortable now?”
“Yup. It’s very stable.”
As he felt the strength of his embrace tighten, he chuckled lightly.
Even though he said that, Eliya drifted in the air slowly.
The mountain ranges stretching out northwest/southeast to the canyon leading to Beelzebub continued along the coastline.
The inland gradually flattened, giving way to a grassy area.
It was a somewhat barren plain where the wet and dry seasons were distinctively marked.
‘Looks like monster incursions are more common than I expected… I see why. Right now, it’s a severe dry season here. As food and water become scarce, they probably tried to invade human territory.’
Brown-yellow grass spread across the plains as far as the eye could see.
The greenery was scarce, with oases being quite rare.
‘There seem to be two types of monsters that pose a threat: three-horned buffalo and yellow goblins.’
The large buffalos with three horns and the goblins with yellow skin like sand.
They don’t coexist but don’t usually fight without special reasons either.
‘If I take care of the visible ones in this plain, it should be safe for a while.’
The goblins mostly gathered near oases or under tree shades, while the buffalo herds were around the remnants of where rivers flowed.
‘I need to minimize nature damage. This ecosystem doesn’t just rely on monsters. So, fire and lightning spells are out. Water and ice might have unpredictable consequences in this dry region, so I’ll exclude them too. That leaves me with rock and wood spells.’
With that thought, Eliya prepared her magic.
While she held him, Judas slowly scanned the surroundings.
The height provided him a clear view to the horizon.
The vast open vista resembled the perspective of a bird.
It was a landscape he could only see when he was with Eliya.
She often physically went on-site.
She always did her tasks earnestly, never slacking off.
Judas occasionally pondered why Eliya was so diligent.
The key to the conquest of the demon realm rested strategically and tactically on her shoulders, and she was aware of that fact.
Yet, even so, it wasn’t easy to be as dedicated as Eliya was.
Sometimes she could have just let her subordinates handle it, postponing things.
Given her inviolable stature, no one could criticize her even if she were to be lazy.
Even during rest, she only takes what she needs.
While overseeing the empire and conquering the demon realm, she was methodical and dedicated.
‘…Maybe it’s to spend more time with me.’
Wanting to find leisure soon and dedicate as much time as possible to Judas, she kept that longing in her heart.
Judas understood that.
If positions were reversed, he would undoubtedly have acted in the same way.
However, could he have lived as efficiently and generously in all areas—rest, governance, and romance—like Eliya?
He wasn’t sure.
He didn’t consider himself as intelligent or as strategic as Eliya.
He was simply curious.
About Eliya’s world.
About the way Eliya viewed the world.
Especially curious about why she still maintained the infamous Bevel castle and had even given it to him.
It wasn’t that he hated it, more of a pure curiosity.
Also, why she diligently cared for the empire named after that castle.
He wanted to see the world through Eliya’s eyes.
He knew a lot about Eliya, but there were still many unknowns.
Vines sprang from all around, whipping and tearing apart the monsters.
The threat to Beelzebub was eliminated in mere seconds.
As they flew back through the sky, Judas spoke up.
“Eli.”
“Yup. Do you have something to say? Or do you want to ask something?”
“…How did you know?”
Nothing special, he was just curious about Eliya’s thoughts.
How she perceived this world.
So he was going to ask, but Eliya seemed to answer as if she already knew.
“I just know everything. Anything about you.”
“……”
“Just to elaborate a bit, I referenced your voice sounding somewhat subdued and stiff today, the tension I could feel from the arms around me, and the change in breath touching my head and all that.”
“Tracking those signs seems hard…”
As Eliya continued, her tone was slightly pouty.
“And usually, by now, you’d have kissed me, but you’ve been quiet. What are you thinking?”
Judas couldn’t help but chuckle.
Then, he playfully began to nibble on her cheeks.
Eliya gleefully laughed even when her cheeks stretched.
Finally, he delivered a deep kiss on her lips.
“Are you satisfied now?”
“Hmm. I wanted something a bit more intense, but….”
“……”
“That can wait. Sadly, we have to hold back for now.”
Eliya fiddled with Judas’s hand.
“I had somewhere I wanted to go, and I think I’ll be able to say everything when we’re there.”
“Somewhere you want to go?”
“Yup. I suddenly thought of a place when looking at the sea.”
No matter what, Judas said he didn’t mind and agreed.
After returning to Beelzebub, Eliya informed Gabriel that she had cleared the nearby monsters and then left that place.
Judas was taken to another sea using teleportation.
A shoreline with a sandy beach next to coastal cliffs.
“Did you want to come here?”
“Yup. More accurately…”
Eliya pointed her finger toward the sea.
Then, something unbelievable happened.
“……”
The sea began to part to the sides.
A long path extending to the horizon appeared in the center of the endlessly flowing sea.
As the water parted to its depths, the bottom became visible.
“I was curious about what’s beneath the sea.”
“……”
“And I also wanted to see that aquarium you mentioned from your memories, so there was no other way to replicate it.”
“……”
Seeing Judas dumbfounded, Eliya spoke like a child.
With pure joy, almost as if she was about to embark on a harmless little picnic, she took his hand and led him.
“Let’s hurry.”
The neatly carved cliffs of the parted sea.
A path that could easily fit two carts.
Seeing Eliya smile so casually after accomplishing a miracle, Judas smiled back.
If she liked it, what else mattered?
“Alright, let’s go.”
And so, they set out for a walk along the sea path.
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