“Strange. You don’t have a fever so why does your face look so pale?”

The girl tilted her head.

“Well, nice to meet you! I’m Tessa but you can call me Tess! I am the maid of Her Highness, Lilith.”

“H-Her highness?”

“Yes! She is the demon lord I serve!”

“D-Demon lord...?”

“Where are you going!?”

I quickly ran to jump out of the window.

“What the!?”

The girl instantly appeared before the window and held my hands. Her grip was so strong that I could barely move my arms.

“I don’t want to die! Please let me go!!”

I cried with zero dignity.

“Die? But we just saved you.”

She asked with a confused expression.

“Saved me...? Wait... how?”

It was strange that I had all my limbs back. Even my right eye which was eaten through was normal again.

The girl hesitated to answer. She let go of my hands and averted her eyes.

“Well, that’s...”

“He’s awake!?”

A female’s shout came from the door.

I just noticed that the room I was in looked like it was on the verge of breaking. The walls were regular stone walls. It was like the owners were lazy to fix their residence.

And that owner walked right through the door.

“A demon lord...?”

There was no mistaking the horns above her head. 

‘But why is she so shabbily dressed?’

Her dress’ colour looked faded and it looked like there were multiple areas which was stitched together.

The only good thing was that she was fairly pretty. Her body also beat any high class prostitute I’ve seen in my life. She had an hour glass figure with just the right amount of thickness.

There were little black wings fluttering behind her back as well.

“Hoho! My future servant has awakened! Bow before your lord!”

She crossed her arms and arrogantly harrumphed.

“Ahem, this is her highness, Lady Lilith Lazuli. She ranks number 50 in the demon world monarchy.”

The girl, Tessa introduced her with a awkward smile.

“Now tell me your name!”

Lilith Lazuli pointed at me.

“E-Err... I’m Luther...”

The woman came up to me with a confused expression.

“Tessa?”

The woman moved my silver bangs out of my face.

“Yes, your highness?”

“Why does he look so different? I could’ve sworn he was uglier when I brought him here five days ago. His face looks... handsomer than before.”

‘Now that’s going too far by calling me ugly.’

She touched my cheeks and lifted my shirt.

“Ah, that must be because of the dragon genes implanted in his body. Dragons are known to be majestic and beautiful creatures. Their libidos are also very high. It seems the treatment was successful since the DNA changed his entire body’s biology.”

“Hold on, did you just say dragon DNA?”

I held the woman’s hands who was molesting my body.

“Yes. We used the DNA of an ancient dragon to heal your body. If it is successful at one hundred percent then there’s a chance that you will become a dragon human hybrid.”

“...”

“Huh? Why does he look so dazed?”

“Maybe the information was too much to handle? Maybe we shouldn’t bombard him with so much information, your highness. He was on the verge of dying a few days ago, after all.”

The woman then patted my shoulder.

“You must be hungry, servant! Let’s eat first before we talk business!”

*

When I sat by the small dining table, I almost gagged when I saw the food they served.

“Is this a worm or something...”

I stabbed my fork in the purplish fat on my plate. 

“It is a larvae from the Demon World. Since we cannot afford proper meals, we have to settle with this.”

Tess stood next to me.

“Why not just buy food from humans... who the hell even eats this shit?”

“Well, we don’t have the currency for this world. We often trade with the wolf tribe. The worm has a lot of protein so it’s healthy for a growing boy like you!”

The dining doors then opened.

I looked over and saw something unbelievable.

“Ah? Is the food done already?”

“Yes, your highness. Same as last night. Dugworm larvae.”

“Eugh, why can’t you catch food for us?”

“I must look after the castle.”

The owner of this castle, Lilith was completely naked. Her tits were so huge but they didn’t sag at all. It was like they were gravity defying masses of fat.

My eyes couldn’t look away.

“Why is he looking at me like that?”

She asked Tess.

“Your Highness, that air headedness of yours is out of control. He is a healthy teenage boy with hormones so of course he’d look. You should be ashamed.” Tess sighed.

“But I can’t find any of my clothes! Those bastards took what I had in my bag as well!”

“I strictly told you to only venture out when one of the wolf tribe members accompany you...”

“Tsk.”

Lilith scoffed and began eating her food.

“It seems Lord Luther is lively today.” 

Tess laughed and pointed at my pants.

“Huh?”

I could see a tent pitching in my pants.

“...”

It’s back.

“It’s back!?”

“Hey! What are you doing!?”

Lilith screamed when I unzipped the pants I was wearing. I didn’t even care that I was surrounded by women. I had to see my little brother!

“No, Lord Luther.”

Tess held my hands with a cold look on her face.

“This is a dining table.”

Her eyes glowed with a red light. 

“S-Sorry. I was just too excited. My heart sank when I saw they cut it off.”

“I can understand how that must feel, lord Luther.”

“Eh?”

Did I hear correctly what she just said?

“Hey, servant.”

“Me?”

“Yes you. Who else? How did you end up in the undead zone? Were you that useless to your parents?”

“...”

I forgot about what happened for a moment. The cause of all this.

“If it is too painful to tell then you don’t have to say anything.” Tess gently spoke.

“No...” I sighed, “I guess I should’ve expected what happened to me.”

–“You’ll regret it.”

Those were Beatrice’s words.

Was it her who framed me? I’m not liked by many of the servants so that’s only a possibility. Pointing fingers just because she hates me would only make me look stupid and miserable.

“I was accused of illegal potion production.”

“Potion production?”

“You’ve heard of the Blue mana rose right?”

“Yes. It was top on the list of the most endangered plants in the world. Its rarity coupled with its properties made the value of the rose skyrocket.” 

“Well, someone extracted the essence of the rose and made it look like it was me who did it.”

“My goodness.”

“Yeah... I’m thinking of a few people who did it but I’m not really sure. Who knows. They must’ve put up wanted posters of me everywhere in case I survived.”

When I looked up, I saw Lilith fidgeting uncomfortably.

“Ah, sorry for ruining the mood by being so depressing.”

“It’s quite alright. As the lord she must listen to the troubles of her subjects. Right, your highness?”

“Eh? Oh, yes, yes!”

Did she even understand what I said?

“But I would like to know... why are you accepting your fate so easily?”

Lilith spoke up again.

“Why? Lydia, the hero I admired nearly killed me in an abandoned alley. Any place that’ll accept a useless and powerless man like me will be fine. If not for that power then...”

“Do the heroes know too!?”

Lilith shouted.

“Hm? What do you mean?”

“They also saw it...”

“Saw what, master?”

“The boy... he does not have a status...”

“...” My brain worked hard to process what that meant, “What did you say?”

“You’re an anomaly that doesn’t belong to this world. That’s the only explanation I can come up with. Why else would a resident of this world not have a status?”

I looked at my hands.

“You mean I’m not real?”

“I wouldn’t say you’re not real. Maybe my hypothesis is incorrect and there’s actually another reason why.”

“She called me a Regressor in the vision I had. Can you explain what that is?”

“...”

“...”

Both Lilith and Tess fell silent.

“W-What?”

Their eyes completely changed.

“Regressor...”

“A being who defied the laws of life...”

Both mumbled with shocked faces.

“Lord Luther.”

“Yes?”

“His Highness, Asmodeus who ranks 1st in  the demon lord hierarchy is also a regressed person from the future.”

“Huh?”

“That’s right. That was how he was able to gain so much infamy and treasures to rule over the demons. He knows exactly where and when everything happens. No one knows how far into the future he has been. Have you received any new abilities?”

“Come to think of it...”

I closed my one eye.

“I did. It’s a power that warned me of my death variables and I was able to check an item description.”

“Oh my goodness...” Lilith gasped, “You received a blessing from His Majesty, Baal!!”

Lilith jumped up and down with excitement.

“Err... who’s Baal?”

“He is the Demon God of the underworld. Since the world’s will is forcing him to stay in the Demon Realm, he cannot come to this world. He, is of sorts a god to our people.”

“Wait. The demon god is actually alive?”

“Of course! He is all powerful! He is the true ruler of the demon underworld! Kyaa! He’s so awesome! I want to meet him!”

‘So it seems she’s a fan girl.’

“But master, you cannot meet such an important person. That would be equal to shit being in a room full of diamonds.”

“You rude little bastard! How dare you mock your lord like that!?”

“But it is the truth. My master is even weaker than a goblin. She cannot even control one monster."

“Gunununu..."

Lilith grumbled and continued eating her food.

“Are you not going to eat, Lord Luther?”

“Err, no thanks.”

I pushed the plate away. By the way, the worm was still alive. There was no way in hell I’m eating that. Some strange white eggs came out of its back hole. It was completely disgusting.

“Is there an area I can hunt?”

“Hunt? Well, you’ll have to go to the hunting grounds nearby. Your highness, is it alright if I show Lord Luther the way?”

“Humph!”

Lilith pouted and ignored Tess.

Tess smiled wryly.

“I guess I’ll explain on the way what is expected of you as a subordinate as well.”

*

“The results from the Magic Tower came back."

Anna set the documents down on Sylvia’s desk.

“What do they say?”

She asked with indifference as if she already knew the answer.

“It was positive. Luther’s DNA was indeed found on the container. The gardener confirmed that she also saw him acting suspiciously every night like going outside for no apparent reason and digging in the grass when she tries to go to sleep. She suspects that he didn’t just go outside to train in secret. Many of the servants gave testimonies about what they believed they saw. Please have a look later on."

“I see...Those paranoid mages sure are thorough. Even forcing us to hand over the essence which I bought with my own money. Now i'm left with half of the entire flower."

'Would it be wise to look for more and buy it?'

Sylvia thought to herself. She only had two choices. She was reluctant to try the second one.

 If she isn't able to find another mana rose then she might have to turn to the Holy Temple and ask the Divine Hero, Artemis to help her. Her divinity differs from the usual divinity found in healing potions. Although there is a chance she could help, the price needed to pay for the treatment would cost more than just an arm and a leg. Many nobles praise the power of the divine hero but Sylvia isn't willing to go bankrupt due to hearsay.

Although she does suffer due to the illness, she'd rather be patient by using the flower instead of trying a method which might never work. 

“What do we do about this if it leaks out? The Royal Court might try to take down this household since a criminal was found.”

The master is always responsible for the behaviour of their slaves. This is why they choose to hit the slave to assert dominance and show them what it means to go against their master’s orders.

Sylvia looked through the documents.

“...”

Anna waited by her side.

Sylvia sighed and closed the files.

“Out of curiosity my lady, may I ask a question?” Anna spoke up.

“What is it?”

“Will you be supporting a student this year when the new term starts?”

“I haven’t thought about it yet. Besides the children of the heroes, there aren’t many other candidates with exceptional talents who don’t have sponsors. And if there are then they always get taken by other nobles.”

Sylvia put her finger on her chin in contemplation.

“We’re a fairly new noble household so I can understand why they wouldn’t want to join us just because I am a former imperial princess…” Sylvia looked back at Anna, “What do you think?”

“At the moment, the only thing we can offer is money. We do not have enough connections to promise any other benefits worthy to a talented student.”

“Haa… I’ll have to get favours from the academy professors then.”

“Will they agree to help?”

“I hope so.”

The two academies are divided in the mage and knight section. It is allowed for nobles or any other person possessing authority, to sponsor any student of their choosing. It is up to the student to choose which house to join though.

There are even cases of heroes accepting academy students under their wing to guide them if they see the student has the potential. This is further proven by the billboard Luther saw which mentioned the tournament.

Sylvia hasn’t sponsored anyone yet. It wasn’t that she didn’t have enough money but because she didn’t have the connections to get the best students under her wing. Many obstacles like enemy households can also interfere.

There are many cases of noble houses letting their chosen sponsored student sign a contract before they join the academy. This is so that when it is time for the academy to start, they have a better chance of getting the student than anyone else.

“Anna.”

Sylvia called out to Anna again after she organised her thoughts.

“Yes, my lady.”

“I will apply for the school board.”

Anna’s eyes opened wide.

“Are you sure? Many of those professors were the ones who always mocked you when that rumour spread.”

“I know but I don’t care. I’ll only buy a few shares in the academy so I have enough power. Get me the list of the top candidates of the school year and call the headmaster. Forward the call to me so I can make a deal with him.”

“Certainly.”

–Knock, knock

“Hm? Didn’t I order you to tell everyone to not disturb us?”

“I’ll see what it is they want.”

Anna swiftly moved towards the door and opened it.

“M-My lady!” One of the maids stormed in with a restless look on her face, “D-Downstairs! Quick!”

“What is it?”

“Madam Lydia, the hero came to visit!”

Sylvia and Anna’s eyes opened wide.

“Lead me there.”

**

“Your Grace.”

The woman who was seated on the couch got up and bowed. She was wearing a white sundress and sunglasses with a mask.

“Lady Lydia. If I may ask why the sunglasses and mask?”

Sylvia shook Lydia’s hands.

“I didn’t want to make a commotion so I left the palace secretly.”

“I see. Private business?”

Sylvia gestured for her to sit down.

“Of sorts...” 

Lydia sat down and crossed her legs. She brought out a magical item out of her bag.

“I will get straight to the point. I do not want to be a bother. Do you know this boy?”

Lydia infused mana into the item and then a hologram reflected on the wall. 

It was a magical projector. It was modelled after their world’s models.

“That’s...”

“...”

Both Anna and Sylvia gasped.

Reflected on the hologram was a boy with ocean blue eyes and silver hair. He was carrying newly bought armour. 

“This photo was taken a few days ago when the boy came from Wredept city. I’ve been monitoring the household for a few days now but he hasn’t come out yet. I apologize for doing that without permission. We didn’t want to scare him away and lose his tracks. Lady Sylvia Brittany, do you know him?”

“Yes.”

“If I may ask, where is he at the moment. This is of national importance.”

Sylvia looked at the black haired woman. 

Her face was serious.

“He’s dead.”

“Huh?”

“I had him killed on the crime of illegal potion concoction.”

“What?” 

Lydia’s face stiffened up