Chapter 16: The mysterious woman
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A woman sits in a throne, lax as someone else we know, utterly bored out of her mind with nothing to do. She’d welcome any work that would come her way, but the problem is that she’s a diligent ruler who actually knows how to do her job, leaving her with nothing to do. Papers are signed and contracts, already made. Everything was taken care of in an orderly fashion, meaning that she’d be free for several days, weeks even and the boredom she felt seemed like it’d continue forever until a messenger arrived in the throne room with a certain letter. 

The messenger who was delivering this letter was one important messenger; the one who took in any and all matters of top priority, and the fact that he was delivering the letter itself meant that whatever it contained was of utmost importance. 

“Finally!” She exclaimed in joy, making the messenger startled. You’d think that he’d be used to this after serving this ruler for a very long time, but he wasn’t, at all. He almost got a heart attack from her sudden exclamation. He handed over the letter to her and then he left, closing the door behind him. You could say he had his own reason for doing that or that it was simply out of courtesy towards his ruler, but I’d say that the reason behind it was that he thought that the content of the letter must be something that’d make her majesty act not so majestic, and so he hurriedly made himself vanish like the wind, as far as possible away from her majesty’s location. 

Yes, yes. The letter, the reason why we’re here in the first place. Her majesty opened the letter with haste as it was addressed from a rather good friend of hers. But he normally didn’t send her letters like this. They’d usually just talk over telepathy or just meet each other, meaning that this was something that he sent not just to her since he could have just told her through a call.  

After opening the letter, she noticed that it was an invitation letter, but to what? Huh, an invitation from a friend of hers? But this particular friend never threw big parties without really big reasons, like maybe a hero arriving or a ruler’s get-together.  

She already knows that a new hero arrived just a few days ago, so, she was thinking that this had something to do with him and then an idea to pass the time suddenly came to mind. She immediately put on a disguise with magic and then off she went to explore the new something that might erase all the boredom she’d been living through these couple of days. 

 

Meanwhile, Marcel, exactly like the demon lord suggested, was figuring out what this orb thing that his grimoire transformed into was and how it worked and honestly, he learned a lot of things, some very disappointing and a few, very satisfactory. 

After fiddling with the orb for about an hour, he discovered that it came with a whole variety of different features, like turning invisible and no longer staying inside of his body like his grimoire used to. Instead, it floated behind him and the way in which it notified him when something in the system inside it changed too. It also had several other features but whenever he tried to access them, this was projected; 

< Notice: Current feature is inaccessible to owner. Please gather more EP to unlock more features. > 

Marcel tried opening several other features but they all failed and then this appeared; 

< Convert stats to demonic standards? >  

Marcel really didn’t understand anything it was trying to say but he just said yes and then it continued;  

< Answer received. Stats have been converted from human to demonic standards. Here are the results. 

HP: 1034 – 1116 has been converted and is now 249 – 308 according to demonic standards. 

MP: 980 – 1000 has been converted and is now 224 – 242. 

EP gauge has been added. To unlock more, gather more EP to gain access to more features. >  

“Oh my god, now I know why everybody calls me weak. According to this place, I’ve reverted back to the time when I first got my title as Hero. I’m so disappointing.” He said dejectedly, almost crying upon seeing the facts. Everyone here calls him weak and now, he’s actually beginning to believe it, making him feel even more embarrassed about the time when he faced the demon lord. Now, he had the perfect analogy to describe that time. It was like a little ant in the face of the treacherous mountain that was the demon lord. His trophies of embarrassment were pretty loaded by now thanks to the information he just got.  

He sat there blushing in embarrassment again like it was the only thing he knew how to do and while fiddling with the orb for a while and then it projected a feature called ‘voice mode.’ He clicked on it and just after the orb told him to speak, he was suddenly reminded of the demon lord whispering into his ear again and then the orb went; 

< Voice confirmed. Secret voice is being registered. Change is irreversible afterward. Countdown will be done in 5 seconds. Do you wish to continue? > 

“Wait, what secret voice? What’s it talking about? No, is it the demon lord’s voice I was just thinking about?” Marcel thought. And as he was busy thinking, the orb’s countdown run out and it finished the registration. It then began talking; 

<< Voice mode activated. All information shall now be provided through voice mode from this point on. Remember that this voice can only be heard by you. >> 

“Oh my god!” Marcel thought. The orb was talking with the same ambiguous sweet voice that the demon lord spoke with when he whispered into his ear earlier. He didn’t necessarily hate it, but he didn’t want to hear the voice of the demon lord whenever something was up. It looks like the demon lord had somehow won again at making Marcel hot and bothered even without trying. He was blushing like crazy, feeling hot, so he decided to go out for a little fresh air before his blushing got out of hand. 

I forgot to mention earlier that Marcel also discovered earlier that his orb had an inventory function. He currently has a very small amount of space but if he gains more EP and activates the different functions on the orb, the inventory inside of it will increase too. 

So, back to Marcel and his totally unstable heart which is telling him to accept the demon lord’s request but also at the same time telling to reject him since the demon lord is well his enemy, he ended up distressed over how to proceed with things from then on and as he was walking along the empty corridors, he met a beautiful young woman standing in the middle of the corridor, looking a bit lost. And as if it isn’t a bad omen when you met a beautiful young lady in the middle of a corridor that’s foreshadowing future bad events to come, Marcel decides to help this lady out. 

Well, well. Looks like her majesty’s ‘act like you don’t know where you are although you helped draw up the design for the castle that you’re currently in just to sneak a peek at the new hero in town’ plan worked. The queen had just begun her plan and as luck would have it, Marcel was coming from the other end of that particular corridor she was currently pretending to be lost in.  

She saw someone approaching from a distance away from her and so, she put on her best-acting face and got ready to meet this person.  

This must the person she’s looking for. She already knows the faces of all the people inside the castle, workers and passersby alike, and the person approaching definitely isn’t one of them.  

The person approaching looked especially young in her eyes and probably everyone else’s standards, and he was also quite handsome. Here guys, is where all the bad stuff begins? 

Upon seeing this young and handsome person coming her way, her heart went ba-dump and oh my god, she wants him now. The boy got close enough for her to catch a total glimpse of Marcel’s face and she, like any Disney’s Snow White or Aurora, fell in love with the guy she just met a second ago.  

When Marcel finally reached her and asked if she was alright, she thought that his voice was like ripples across still waters, causing her thought processors to slow down for a second.  

“I’m-I'm fine! I’m just a little lost after taking a few too many turns around the castle. This castle is quite enormous.” She spoke in a soft voice while lying bashfully. 

“Yes, it is indeed. I got lost many times too when I first arrived here just a few days ago and I’ve just begun to find my way around the place.” Of course, she knew. She helped build the place for peace's sake, but now, her suspicions were confirmed. There really is a new hero in the demon realm and the person in front of her is the one. 

She gives Marcel quick, bashful glances as she talks to Marcel, not forgetting to admire the little boy that was in front of her. He looked so young. She had never seen a young hero like Marcel before even after all this time that she’s being around. In her eyes, Marcel was the perfect balance of cute and handsome, filled with childish charms that just made her want to lock him in some room where she’d just stare at him forever, alone and isolated from the eyes of the world. This isn’t the first time she’s met a hero, but this hero might just be the one to leave the biggest impression on her. 

“Um, who are you? I haven’t been here that often but I’ve never seen you around before.” She said bashfully, making herself look modest in her attempt to know more about the cute person in front of her. 

“Oh, yes. You’re right. I haven’t been here for very long. My name’s Marcel and I just got to the demon realm. I’m a hero, you see?” Marcel explained to the beautiful woman who to him, seemed like he was inconveniencing her by not helping her out. 

“Um, miss. Are you in a hurry to go somewhere? If you are, then I can get one of the servants to escort you to your destination.” He asked politely, making the queen even more bashful. For some reason, a slight blush had appeared on her face after he talked and he didn’t know what was going on, totally unaware of the charms that he was oozing off in front of the woman. 

“No-no. It’s alright. I came here with someone else, and that person can handle all of the urgent business in my place. You said that you’re new around here, right? If you wouldn’t mind, I'd like to speak to you for a short while before I leave. It’s awfully boring not having to do anything.” The woman requested, although making herself seem like he could reject her request if he wanted. Marcel looked at the woman for a while and like the epitome of naivety that he is, decided, why not? 

He nodded and then stared at the woman once again, admiring her looks and there was something strange about this woman in front of him. She was human, or at least, she did look human in appearance. 

She had pearly white skin, ivory black hair and blue eyes. She was also busty with very well coordinated proportions and her clothing was quite pleasing to the eye as well. A sky-blue long robe made of fabric that looked light and pink shawl around her shoulders was what she wore. Her long hair was also neatly tied done in a ponytail, covered in hair ornaments that looked very valuable. Her way of clothing was seemingly simple but subtle, made to impress. 

Marcel thought that she was a fine-looking woman indeed but the thing about her looking human was something he saw as very weird. From what the demon lord had told him, the only humans here are the heroes although, they don’t stay humans for long, making it even more strange since she looked human. Her presence and aura also felt human too, but the possibility of her being one was fairly low, and so he inquired about it from her. 

“No, I'm not human but I'm fairly powerful. Let’s just say that I can take on the appearance of whatever I please and just leave it at that.” She said, then giggled. Marcel blushed since he felt like he’d just stepped into a territory that he isn’t supposed to. The woman looked at blushing Marcel with a smile on her face and then she asked, “How’s your experience of the demon realm been so far if you wouldn’t mind tell me of course?” She asked hesitantly. 

When she mentioned his experience of the demon realm, a frown appeared on Marcel’s face. The woman, quite intuitive about certain matters sensed that there was a problem. 

“What’s the matter, Marcel?” She asked. Let’s take a look into what’s happening inside her head, shall we? 

“Oh, no! What could be the problem?! Is he weak and is embarrassed about it? Or is it that someone did something that made him unhappy? Who is it?! Let me at them!! If I find the person, I’m going to destroy them!! Or wait, could it be that one thing?” 

“Well, I’m having a bit of a problem. You see, there’s this person... and ever since I got here, he’s been making me feel embarrassed and inadequate. He’s always one step ahead of me no matter what I do.” Marcel explained, although not mentioning the demon lord. After all, this person is a stranger and you don’t tell a stranger about all your problems, well, unless she inquires for more while you’re vulnerable, which she does.  

By the way, let’s take a look once again into her mind to see what she’s thinking; 

“Who is it?! Who is it that could possibly make such a cute person like this feel inadequate?! I must destroy them after I’m done here!! He’s not going to see the light of day after I'm done with him!!!” She was quite enraged on the inside, but she was as calm as the sea on the outside. 

“Could you tell me your thoughts on this person? What do you think of them?” If she’s going to have a chance to eradicate this person, she’s going to need more than just his extremely horrible actions to find him, or she could just make someone search for them when she gets back to her palace, though that’s going to take a while. A few days at most. 

“Well, I always thought that they’d be a bad person before I came here, but then I found out that he’s a responsible and kind person instead. I don’t think he’s bad or anything, but the way he always finds new ways to make me feel embarrassed when I’m close to him makes me small. And he’s also a very handsome guy too.” Marcel answered, his mood shifting a bit as he talked about the demon lord and Ms. Queen beside him felt like this person Marcel was talking about seemed a bit too familiar. Here are her thoughts on that; 

“Oh no, it couldn’t be the person I’m thinking of. After all, he’s a hero, meaning that there aren’t a lot of people who could piss him off and get away with it. The only people who could offend a hero and get away with it would be a ruler like me, a guardian or an ignorant person who doesn’t know who a hero is. With all these clues, it still isn’t enough to find the one who offended him. Damn it!” The queen thought. What she has gotten so far still isn’t enough to find this person, meaning that she’d have to pry for more than that. 

“What’s this person like? Could you tell me who they are or what they look like? If there’s a way for me to help you with your current situation, I’d certainly like to. After all, you seem like a really delightful person to be around.” Wow, she’s such a good actor. Managing to be boiling with rage on the inside and as calm as still waters on the outside must be really hard. As expected of a queen. 

“Oh, don’t get me wrong. I don’t really mind all those things I mentioned earlier since I plan to take revenge myself later. It’s just that he asked me to marry him, but he’s supposed to be my sworn enemy.” Marcel said. Now a peek into the queen's mind; 

“What?! A marriage proposal?! But I haven’t made my move yet! Who is it?! Now I really have to destroy them!! I can’t allow it!! After all, I’m taking this one home with me!!!” The queen’s mind was a volcano about to erupt since Marcel mentioned marriage earlier, but her goal hadn’t changed. In fact, she’d gained a new one. She must find out about both this person Marcel’s talking about and if he harbors any feelings towards them. 

“Well, how do you feel about this person’s proposal though?” Such a straightforward way of asking, but I guess that works, queen.  

Upon hearing her question, Marcel’s ears and face were tinted in red. The queen had gotten her answer and she wasn’t happy with it, but this isn’t about her. It’s about the hero beside her, so she wasn’t going to do anything drastic, for now at least. 

“Judging from your reaction, you don’t seem to be quite opposed to the idea. Is there something else that restricts you from making a decision about it, apart from the fact about you being supposed sworn enemies, I mean?”  

“Um, we’re both men for the first and there also the fact that I haven’t been in any sort of relationship before, so I don’t know what to do?” 

“Silly boy, does the fact that he’s a man bother you? Is it not allowed for a man to love another in the human world or is it that you feel that it’s strange? Worry not! The demon realm allows same-sex relationships as well as polygamy. It’s a very normal thing in fact. You’re allowed to think and love whomever you want and nobody would see it as something strange or weird in the slightest. In fact, there are heroes who are married to men and women all over, some with tyrants even, so tell me what you really want to do?” 

“I don’t really know how I feel about this person yet, but the fact that I can choose to be in a relationship with whomever I want sounds great. Since talking to you, I think the anxiety and worry I felt has disappeared. Thank you...” He bowed his head and thanked her, then continued, “And he also gave me a forty-year time limit. It’s a very long time, so I'll have my final answer before that time comes.” Marcel smiled, making the queen blush from seeing such a pure genuine smile devoid of any impurities. She honestly congratulated this person who proposed to Marcel, because she thinks that she knows the reason he did. After all, who wouldn’t fall when shown a pure innocent smile liked that makes you feel all warm inside like Marcel’s. 

“Good, take your time. You just arrived here. Take your time and enjoy yourself. After all, the life of a hero is quite long. How old are you now?” She asked, smiling. 

“I’m sixteen.” He said and boy was she surprised she heard him. She just thought that he just looked young and cute, but she didn’t really think that he’d be very young and cute.  

“I see. Then your human life will probably be even longer than the other heroes who arrived in the past since you came here at such a young age. You’ll probably live to about 500 to 600 years if nothing unexpected happens along the way. You’ll get to live your human life to the fullest before you die and become one of us, that is. I look forward to seeing what kind of hero you become in the future.” She smiled once again and then she was ready to take her leave. It looks like her job here is done for today. Although she didn’t find more about this person Marcel talked about, she plans to gather all the information she can from her throne. 

“What?!” Marcel looked shocked after hearing what the queen said, but she didn’t give him a chance to ask her any further, “I’ll see you around then, Marcel. It’s goodbye for now.” She said before she began walking away from their current location. 

Marcel was dumbfounded. His train of thought had all slowed down after what the woman he just met said. Did he just hear that he was going to live for about 600 years before he dies? And even after death, he was going to reincarnate again?  

Marcel couldn’t process anything else apart from the one thing he knew; He’d been tricked. The demon lord had tricked him into agreeing to something he shouldn’t have. If he’s got about 600 years to live, then wasn’t being fifty-six years old young? No wonder, he said he’d win. The demon lord knew that something like this would happen, which is why he proposed a number as big as 40 years in a human’s life, albeit significantly small in a hero or demon’s life, but Marcel thought nothing of it, even when the demon dropped the hint that some heroes live forever on the first day they talked. Looks like the demon lord has won yet again.  

And so, Marcel stood there for about fifteen more minutes, wallowing inside about how he’d been tricked by the demon lord and how he really is the source of all the evil that came his way.  

The queen, on the other hand, began making preparations for her and Marcel’s second meeting. She had thought of a perfect plan of how to get Marcel to her side and this plan was one that needed to be implemented fast, or else someone else would think of it and use it against her.  

Guys, please, never estimate a woman in love. She’s even more dangerous than a mountain-destroying blade. And the fact that she’s a queen makes her even more dangerous; a disaster waiting unleashed upon the world. Just what monster has Marcel awoken by meeting the queen today? Let’s wait in the future to see the results of Marcel’s decision to get some fresh air today. Trust me, it’s not going to be a good one for him. Haha~, it looks like Marcel’s going to need a lot more candles to go through certain events in the future. He’s going to live a very long, longggggggggggg life. 

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