Chapter 290: Suspicion Erupts

Myers knew that Dahar had learned enough social graces for his position. There must be a good reason why Dahar hadn’t reported to the Lord Demon King.

“…Ah, it’s not that I’m defending Dahar’s sin. Of course, he is a sinner…”

“I know.”

Deon watched Myers wave his hands hastily, then smiled faintly.

“Don’t worry, I don’t misunderstand.”

“…Yes.”

His wavering eyes glanced at Deon’s smile before quickly dropping. Just before Myers lowered his head, Deon caught a glimpse of firm suspicion in his gaze, and a hollow laugh escaped him.

“You must have had a close relationship with your adjutant.”

“….”

Just like his adjutant.

The guy’s suspicion was directed at both the Demon King and Deon.

***

After parting ways with Myers, Deon returned to his seat and paused, noticing the gazes that poured towards him as if they had been waiting. Of course, everyone immediately averted their eyes, pretending otherwise, but there was no way the Hero’s eyes would miss it.

‘…If gazes had physical force, I’d have been crushed to death by now.’

The attention that followed his every move was truly persistent and heavy.

Still, pretending not to care, he accepted a wine glass from a passing servant…

“Sir Deon! What are you holding right now!”

…and was about to move to the terrace when Ben blocked his path.

Deon looked at Ben, who stood in his way, with a displeased gaze, then glanced down at the glass in his hand.

“…I’m all better now.”

“Whether you’re better or not isn’t the point! It hasn’t even been a full day, and it was only a little while ago that the poisoned alcohol incident happened, and you want to drink again?”

“Well…”

He didn’t really care… but not wanting to argue, he put down the glass.

As if making up for it, Ben placed a non-alcoholic drink, confirmed to be safe, in his hand. Deon shook it once, shrugged, and headed out to the terrace.

The open night sky filled his vision.

“….”

The scenery was beautiful enough to make him forget this was the Demon Realm, and he leaned against the railing in a rare moment of peace, sipping his drink.

But only for a moment.

“I never intended to kill Myers in the first place.”

A voice, heavy and subdued, flowed out like a sigh. Deon lowered his gaze. He could see the blood-red waters covering the world, rippling in the direction of the wind.

At least until the ‘final battle,’ Myers was supposed to be alive.

“If those involved with me keep dying, it’ll raise suspicion.”

The Demon King already knew, so it didn’t matter, but it would be problematic if other demons noticed.

So, rather than raising suspicion, it would be better to pick a suitable day and wipe them all out at once. Why kill them off bit by bit?

“But it’s already too late.”

“….”

“Dahar’s words and actions have already ignited suspicion.”

Clunk. He put down his glass and turned around.

Deon grinned as he faced the person who had been there, listening silently since some point.

“That’s why you’ve come to find me like this, isn’t it? Isn’t that right, Derniban?”

***

“Don’t you need to go to Sir Deon’s side?”

At the question filled with pure curiosity, Dan, who was shuffling cards, lifted his head. His eyes met those of the 9th Corps Commander, Trober.

He could feel the other legion commanders, who had returned to their seats, also looking at him with curiosity. Dan lowered his gaze again, shuffling the cards as he replied.

“It’s alright.”

“Still, he is the person you serve, isn’t he?”

He nodded calmly, distributing the cards.

Both this question and the previous one were questions he had already received once before. The Commander of the 2nd Corps sitting next to him had asked it a little while ago.

Naturally, the answer was the same.

“If he needed me, he would have called.”

More than anything, Deon was avoiding him.

When Deon Hart found out that he had unilaterally eliminated the leader of the Revolutionary Army, he had said that Dan reminded him of the Duke. It seemed to be true as Deon was still keeping his distance. He tried to treat Dan normally, but the reflexive avoidance in his gaze and the stiff atmosphere in the air were proof of it.

So there was no need to go and worsen his mental stress unnecessarily.

“More importantly, about the prize for the bet I won.”

Dan turned the topic with a smooth smile.

Fortunately, the legion commanders seemed more interested in this topic, focusing their attention. They seemed to have already forgotten the previous subject.

After pausing for a bit, when their curiosity was at its peak, he grinned and put his index finger in front of his lips.

“I’ll tell you later when we’re alone.”

“…Annoying.”

Trober, as if deflated, relaxed his shoulders which had been slightly tense and leaned back. The words that grumbled out were based on contradictory emotions of relief and unease.

Even though he pretended to be nonchalant and not care, he couldn’t help but be nervous about what wish Dan would make. It was because in the bet against Dan using wish tickets, Trober had conceded defeat before it even started and vowed with magic power to faithfully keep his promise if he lost.

Of course, if he didn’t want to die, he would suggest a wish within reasonable bounds. Still.

[If I were to say I wouldn’t keep my promise, the legion commanders would personally kill me or make me keep it, but it’s not the same for you legion commanders. I have no way to deal with it if you legion commanders go back on your words. So, you should at least make a promise with magic power to put my mind at ease, shouldn’t you?]

[You are quite suspicious.]

[I’m just a bit cowardly. Even now, just sharing cards with the legion commanders makes me so nervous I can barely breathe.]

[Fine… alright! I’ll specially do that for you!]

He shouldn’t have done that.

Honestly, he thought he would win. He only realized after losing that his defeat was to appease the ‘legion commanders’.

And then he smiled and said, ‘I was lucky’.

‘He said he’d tell me his wish when we were alone…’

What wish is he planning to make?

He wanted to beat up his past self who had readily promised with magic power.

Whether she knew Trober’s uneasy feelings or not, the 7th Corps Commander Sillua, who had been glancing at her cards, slumped onto the desk. She tossed and turned, oblivious to the other items on it being scattered, secretly fiddling with her cards so they couldn’t be seen.

“I was curious, but it’s a shame.”

“With so many legion commanders watching, I’m too nervous to say anything. Besides, there’s nothing I particularly want right now.”

Really…?

Develania, who had been listening quietly, narrowed her eyes and looked at Dan, but Dan, not noticing her gaze, organized the scattered desk, taking in the sight of the 3rd and 4th Corps Commanders growling at each other from one side.

“…Those two seem to have a bad relationship from the start. They seem to fight every time I see them…”

“Huh? Well, yeah. They bare their teeth reflexively when they run into each other.”

“Is there a special reason… ?”

“That is…”

Sillua puts on a serious expression. The others also focus their attention, curious about what will come out of her mouth, not just Dan, but also Trober and Develania.

Following that, extremely light words popped out.

“I don’t know either.”

“….”

“But I can be certain that their bad relationship is something that has been accepted as natural for a long time.”

“…Is that so.”

Dan silently looked back at the 3rd and 4th Corps Commanders. Develania, who had been watching him with her chin propped up, noticed something in his eyes and made a ‘hmm’ sound.

Suddenly, Develania grabbed Dan’s wrist.

Dan, startled, looked up at Develania. A moment of silence passed, and their gazes met in the air. Then, she curved her eyes and spoke in a cheerful voice.

“Come to think of it, I have something to give to Sir Deon.”

“… ?”

“Will you deliver it for me?”

“…Ah, yes.”

“Good, then come with me.”

I didn’t bring it here.

She stood up without hesitation and left the banquet hall with wide strides. Dan, who had been momentarily stunned by the rather sudden situation, quickly regained his senses and excused himself to the other legion commanders before chasing after her.

Even though the host leaving the party could be unpleasant, fortunately, they didn’t seem to mind, and from behind him, he could hear the legion commanders continuing their gambling… no, their casual socializing.

“Hey, Sillua! You cheated, didn’t you?!”

“Me? Please don’t make baseless accusations.”

“I definitely saw a heart on your card a moment ago! Where did you pull off that sleight of hand?!”

“Is it right to peek at other people’s cards without permission?”

…So that’s what she was doing when she was fiddling with her cards earlier.

Dan pretended not to notice and quickened his pace.

Develania hadn’t gone far.

She stopped in a hallway devoid of people, as if she knew the servants’ routes and schedules, and turned to face Dan. A cryptic smile floated on her face.

“I thought you were bold, but… sleight of hand in front of the legion commanders, huh.”

“…!”

“You’re really daring.”

Dan froze on the spot as if struck by lightning.

“…Did you know?”

“I only realized after a few more rounds. The other guys probably don’t know. Trober is rather simple-minded, so you aimed for him directly, didn’t you?”

“….”

“Could you subtly tell me what you were aiming for?”

The surprise was only momentary.

A smooth smile appeared on Dan’s lips.

“It was just pride, not wanting to lose.”

“…Well, alright. Make sure to deliver this to Sir Deon properly. And say it’s a gift.”

What she handed him was a hair tie. A blood-red hair tie, like Deon Hart’s eyes.

Dan looked at her with a bewildered face, surprised once that she had let it slide so easily when he thought she would threaten him using the fact that she caught him cheating, and twice that it turned out to be nothing special when he thought it was something important. Develania snorted as if to show off.

“Why would I bother to pressure you?”

“….”

“And…”

Because you look like you’re going to die soon even if I don’t intervene directly.

The way Asild and Idelia were looking at them seemed like they were about to cause trouble. If you see those two as being in a relationship like Oel and Trober, who have fallen out, you’ll get a big surprise.

But she had no obligation to tell him. She simply shut her mouth and waved her hand.

“…Just deliver the gift properly.”

I should go see Myers, who must be heartbroken.

***

A tense silence flowed.

Sharp red eyes stared intently at Derniban, as if to dissect him, and Derniban silently endured the gaze.

Then, just as Deon was about to open his mouth, Derniban spoke first.

“…Are you feeling alright?”

Deon’s brow twitched at the first words, which were completely different from what he had expected.

“I recovered a long time ago.”

“That’s a relief. And I apologize for coming to see you so presumptuously. I had something to say, so I committed this rudeness.”

Perhaps because he was a demon who once supported Oel, even though he was usually quiet, he was good at speaking when necessary.

Deon quietly watched him, then picked up the glass he had put down again. In a more relaxed atmosphere than before, a soft, composed voice echoed.

“Apology accepted, now tell me.”

“I will follow Sir Deon.”

…Direct, which is good. No need to waste nerves trying to figure out if he’s friend or foe.

In fact, he had almost decided that Derniban was an enemy. To hide his expression of bewilderment, he took a sip of the liquid in the glass. The cold drink calmed his shaken emotions, and his stuttering mind began to work again.

‘Words are nice, but… I can’t believe them at face value.’

Even if he was saying it sincerely, there must be a reason. And he had no intention of accepting it until he knew the reason.

As if responding to the words thrown out without preamble, he threw back equally short words.

“Why?”