Chapter: 6
“To so readily invite one of the Four Generals… he’s no ordinary man.”
“Could he have reached a new level of insight?”
“And the atmosphere… has he been possessed by a devil?”
Everyone was in shock and awe at Odil’s audacity to invite one of the Four Generals to his base.
[The Demon King intends to conquer the Kingdom of Ashan. Is there anyone here who would like to join?]
After that, the meeting proceeded smoothly.
*
“Hehehe.”
On a refreshing morning, the sweet aroma filled the kitchen.
‘I think Odil had a nightmare. Maybe something sweet will help him feel better?’
As I thought of Odil’s pale face, trembling as I brought breakfast, I approached the glowing orange oven.
Ding!
With a cheerful sound, the timer stopped. I put on my oven mitt and opened the oven, letting the delightful scent of chocolate chip cookies waft through the air.
“Looks delicious.”
The cookies, studded with chocolate chips, began to cool rapidly. After a bit of time passed, I picked up a cookie that had cooled down enough and split it in half.
“Let’s see… here goes.”
The freshly baked cookie boasted an intimidating flavor. As I savored its sweetness, grinning like a happy otter, someone suddenly piped up.
“May I have a bite?”
“Huh? Really? Okay, here you go—… huh?”
Feeling a tap on my shoulder, I instinctively reached out with the half-remaining cookie, only to realize that it wasn’t Odil’s voice. A seductively attractive woman was munching away at the cookie.
“Guuuuh! Kyaaaa -..! It’s so tasty!”
Wobbling her body as if to emphasize her enjoyment, her big… heart… shook right before my eyes. Mesmerized, I stared, my nose tingling. Just as I was about to sneeze, she sparkled her eyes and exclaimed,
“You! Let’s go together!”
“Ye-yes? Wh-who are you?”
“Me? Lania!”
“Not that… are you a guest of Lord Odil?”
“Um? Yeah, something like that. But it seems the person in question has vanished.”
“Huh?”
In shock over her claim that Odil had disappeared, I rushed out of the kitchen. She didn’t try to stop me at all. Frantically, I dashed into his laboratory.
“Huh…”
His lab was a chaotic mess, looking like a burglar had gone wild.
Squish.
Just then, something warm and soft touched my back—a pouch filled with the world’s wisdom. The sweet scent of fruit filled my nostrils. At the same time, arms wrapped around my waist like a snake wrapping around its prey. Lania, with her face resting on my shoulder, hotly blew breath into my frozen ear.
“Eek!”
Chills danced across my body, and I shook, trying to flee.
Thump! Crash!
“Ugh, ugh..!”
I stumbled forward and spun, crashing against the wall. A bump popped up on my head. I pressed it back in (since that’s how it works) and stood back up like nothing happened.
“Do… do you know where Lord Odil went?”
“No? I just got here, so not a clue.”
Crunch, munch.
Lania nonchalantly nibbled on the cookies I had just baked as she casually replied.
“Maybe he ran off? That guy’s such a huge coward.”
“Run away from what?”
“From me?”
“Huh?”
Her words made me take a moment to register as I examined Lania’s outrageous appearance. She was dressed in an attire no different from a bikini, along with a garter belt, an impressively grand chest, and flamboyant makeup. My gaze drifted over her exposed neck as her pinned-up hair accentuated it, making my nose twitch again.
“Hmm? Why? Do you find me pretty?”
“Yes, yes.”
“What? Really? Kyahaha! I really like you!”
Among the strongest subordinates just under the Demon King, known as the Four Generals, people had called her crazy or lusted after her… but nobody ever blushed purely like the boy standing before her. She thought his embarrassment was quite cute and was practically drooling over it.
‘What’s this? Something feels a bit dangerous?’
Without realizing it, I reflexively covered my chest and took a step back. Lania appeared poised to pounce at me with upraised hands. I swallowed hard.
‘Uh, is this a shota complex!?’
My head screamed alarm bells, ringing out, “Pervert!” But…
‘Hold up, maybe it’s alright?’
Unless Lania was a hideously aged hag or ancient, she was undeniably a drop-dead gorgeous woman with striking assets. Just as my instincts began to lean towards her, I caught sight of her earrings.
‘Wait a sec…’
Earrings shaped like snakes curling around skulls with jewels in their mouths—a design so odd it would be hard to forget once seen.
‘Isn’t that… what one of the Four Generals, the crazy one, was wearing…?’
It finally clicked; Lania’s name felt familiar to me.
‘Oh no… is this woman one of the Generals? Did Odil run because he knew…?’
“Hey, come here.”
“Eeeek!”
My hands tightened again to cover my chest, and I awkwardly scuttled back, trying to escape the smirking Lania. In that instant,
Thud.
“Ah.”
I tripped over a pile of clutter, and as I spun around, Lania lunged toward me, her eyes gleaming dangerously.
*
Boom! Crash! Rumble!
“B-brother, what’s that noise?”
Nero trembled at the constant sounds of destruction, clutching Noah’s hand tightly. Noah frowned, staring at the ceil as dust fluttered down.
‘Is there a monster attacking, or what? Otherwise…’
Unbeknownst to them, Lian was struggling to escape from Lania’s grasp. The children trapped in the next cell were just as fearful, shrinking back in terror.
“…? Did it… stop?”
The ruckus quieted down, and an unsettling silence settled over the area.
Thump, clack.
“..!”
Sounds of footsteps echoed from above. Soon, a familiar face peeked through the prison entrance.
“Haaaa…”
Lian appeared, his clothes all torn up and marked with red handprints, holding a tray.
“I thought I was done for.”
“…!”
His somewhat defeated comment boasted an implication so dreadful that the children stood frozen. Lian, wearing a woefully low expression, then looked towards the children. The moment their eyes met, his expression softened.
“Hey kids, snack time!”
He unlocked the door, walked in, and set the tray down. The children’s gaze fixated on the tray, enraptured by the delightful aroma wafting around.
“Come and take one, everyone.”
The kids rushed toward him as they were now used to getting food from him. Lian offered them cookies filled with something dark and grim-looking they’d never seen before.
“Be careful; they crumble easily!”
They nodded and started savoring the cookies, nibbling at them little by little.
“Urgh…!”
“Hiccup!”
Overwhelmed by the unexpected sweetness, several kids shook, hiccuping with delight. It was soon Lily’s turn to grab a cookie.
‘That bruise…’
Lily stared blankly at the fresh blue bruises on Lian’s wrists. When she noticed, Lian awkwardly pulled down his sleeves and gave a shy chuckle.
“Here.”
“..”
Lily alternated her gaze between the cookie and Lian before carefully accepting the cookie and walking away, on the brink of tears.
After giving out all the cookies, Lian observed the children happily devouring their treats with a chuckle before exiting the prison and heading next door.
“…!”
Noah’s jaw dropped at Lian’s battered appearance.
“Brother… who hit you?”
Nero asked, his voice trembling. Confronted with the blunt question, Lian only smiled sadly and replied,
“Nothing happened.”
While saying that, Lian was inwardly pleased, thinking to himself, ‘Yes! I always wanted to say that like a tough guy!’ But to everyone else, it only looked like he was barely holding on after being roughed up.
“Forget that; eat this! I baked these cookies just for you kids.”
Ignoring his own wounds and caring for others first stirred an indescribable emotion in Noah. Nero felt the same, bursting into tears as he broke free from Noah and jumped into Lian’s arms.
“B-brother! You can just say it hurts if it does!”
“…? Yeah, thanks.”
In the comedy world, wounds like his hardly counted as injuries, so Lian couldn’t make sense of Nero’s reaction. He simply thought Nero was a particularly sweet and gentle child.
“Here, have one too.”
“…Th-thank you.”
Noah mouthed a thank you, approaching Lian, who had softened immensely since their initial meeting, and he couldn’t help but smile. Just then…
“Muggle!”
Swoosh!
Out of the corner of the prison, a red blob came barreling toward Lian.
Thunk!
“Gurgh…!”
Lian crashed into the wall as if hit by a speeding vehicle, a girl with red hair clinging to his waist.
“Sniff, sniff! Smells… so good… like cookies…”
The girl sniffed Lian’s scent, then spun her head, drawn by the scent of the well-baked cookies.
“Muggle!”
Without a second thought, she dove towards the cookies, ignoring everything else. Noah and Nero rushed to Lian, who was bent over against the wall.
“Cough, cough.”
“…! You!”
“Brother!”
Lian coughed up blood, splattering everywhere.
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