Chapter 5: Legion Commander Deon Hart

Fortunately, my hand was still clutching onto the lifeline in this absurd situation.

The torch in my grasp was blazing fiercely. The moment I became aware of its existence, without a second thought, I swung it at the vine binding my leg.

“Kieeeeeeek!”

With an ear-splitting shriek, the vine snapped off my ankle.

Yes! Good thing I was holding the torch directly! I never actually thought I’d need it…

‘But… why is my back so cold?’

That disgusting flower also seems to be getting further away… No, getting further away is good, but something’s….

‘Wait a minute! I’m falling!!’

How high up was this again? That thing covered a 10-meter radius, so it’s probably close to 10 meters.

“…Heh, shit.”

Help meeeeeeeeee!!

Even as my heart threatened to leap out of my mouth from shock, my body, seasoned from countless battles, was already preparing for a fall.

At best, I’ll probably break a few bones, but hey… that’s better than snapping my neck.

Just as I steeled myself and was about to attempt a breakfall, someone snatched me up.

“D-D-D-Demon-nim! Are you alright?! Are you hurt anywhere! Are you, are you not hurt?”

I’m the one who should be shocked, why are you stuttering? Good grief, did you bite your tongue too?

I desperately wanted to shove this culprit, the cause of all this, into the mouth of that man-eating plant, but I managed to restrain myself.

It wasn’t because he was stronger than me. I looked up at Hien, noticing the sensation of his arms firmly supporting me.

‘…He caught me, so I’ll let it slide this time.’

He caught me without a problem after falling from that height. Even though I’m on the lighter side, I’m still within the weight range of a normal adult. As expected, demons are demons.

“Demon-nim?”

“…I’m fine.”

I subtly pushed against his chest.

Hien, taking my survival-instinct-driven refusal as a signal to put me down, carefully lowered me to the ground.

As soon as my feet touched the ground, the world swayed back and forth.

I closed my eyes for a moment, letting my dizzy head settle, then lowered my hand from my face and turned to look at Hien. And….

“……”

I was speechless.

Behind Hien, the backdrop where the silver of the moonlight and the black of the night should have blended was stained crimson.

A pungent smell stung my nose, and intense heat warmed my skin.

A trickle of cold sweat ran down my back.

Not because of the heat….

‘This… is my fault, isn’t it?’

My lifeline that I dropped when I fell, the torch, was the reason the garden was burning.

***

I will die today.

‘No, I’m definitely going to die.’

Hien bowed his head weakly, the intense heat reaching his skin.

The plant he had cultivated tried to devour Demon-nim. Of course, Demon-nim wouldn’t be harmed by a mere plant, so he clearly didn’t like the plant. Otherwise, there’s no reason why he would have deliberately allowed such a pathetic attack to land.

He didn’t like that plant, no, he didn’t like this entire garden and was looking for an excuse to burn it down.

Perhaps he didn’t even like Hien himself.

The plant’s fault is the gardener’s fault.

Whatever Demon-nim’s intentions, the plant he nurtured attacked first, and Demon-nim was in a situation where he had no choice but to retaliate.

Therefore, he wouldn’t be able to blame him for the garden burning down. On the contrary, he was now in a position where he had to take responsibility.

From the beginning, the thought of holding Demon-nim accountable for the burnt garden wasn’t even an option.

‘If he doesn’t like me, it’s my fault.’

He’s usually quite generous. Even just from what Ben, his attending physician, proudly brags about.

So, if he’s angry, it must be because I did something to offend him.

I had resigned myself to my fate, but death was still frightening. I touched my face, which must have been ashen, and bit my lip as I stared at Demon-nim’s back.

Was it because I was looking at his back, or because I couldn’t see his expression? His entire aura seemed different from usual.

‘No, no. Now is not the time to assess the atmosphere.’

It’s time to prostrate myself.

Without even looking back, he just stared at the flames engulfing the garden. Hien bowed deeply towards him.

“I apologize.”

The heels of his shoes, which had been facing me, slowly turned around.

Hien closed his eyes tightly as he saw the other’s shoes facing him.

***

Wow, it’s really burning well.

Is this what it looks like when displaced people, fleeing the lord’s excessive taxes, set fires in the mountains to clear land for farming?

The problem is, this isn’t a mountain, it’s the Demon King’s castle, and there’s no farming to be done.

‘What should I do…?’

It’s burning too well.

The detestable man-eating plant that attacked me had already been completely devoured by the flames, no longer emitting its horrifying shriek. The other disgusting plants around it also disappeared into the fire without a sound.

It had already consumed half of the west garden, yet the fire seemed to be demanding more, greedily expanding its reach to devour the remaining plants.

I felt a piercing gaze on the back of my head. It must be Hien’s.

I didn’t dare to turn around and see what kind of expression he was making, so I deliberately stared blankly at the crimson garden.

Ah, right. I won’t deny it. This is an escape from reality.

This is the Demon King’s castle garden, and the gardener is obviously a demon. A demon, that is.

‘Someone put out this fire. Anyone, please.’

I even wished for rain and started offering a silent prayer in my mind when I heard a faint voice from behind.

“I apologize.”

“…?”

I thought I misheard. Clearly, I’m the one who should be apologizing in this situation, so why is he apologizing?

My ears insisted they heard correctly, while my mind argued that I must have misheard. Hesitantly, I slowly turned around to confirm.

Thankfully, what came into view was not an angry Hien, but a bowing Hien.

Feeling a sense of relief, yet still not understanding, I remained silent. He then proceeded to explain.

“I didn’t realize you disliked this plant, no, this garden.”

“…”

“Or perhaps… are you angry with me…?”

“No, that’s not it.”

Do I look like such a shameless person? I subtly touched my face and looked back at Hien.

So, in other words, he thinks I set the fire because I disliked that man-eating plant or the garden itself? And yet, instead of being angry, he’s apologizing.

“Is he crazy?”

“I apologize.”

“No, that’s not….”

Looking at him now, this guy’s a pushover.

In any case, judging from the situation, it seems unlikely he’ll be angry with me about this. And for me, this situation seems to offer a higher chance of survival than admitting I stupidly dropped the torch.

So, what should I say now?

“…It’s not that I particularly like the garden, but it’s not like I hate it either.”

No, honestly, I hate it. I really hate it. It’s disgusting!

But what can I do? I can’t exactly tell the Demon King’s gardener to grow roses or lilies like in the human realm. I’ll just have to put up with it.

“Then….”

“Well, I would appreciate it if you could refrain from growing that particular plant you showed me earlier.”

“Ah, yes! I understand. I will discard all the seeds.”

There’s no need to throw them away. I don’t plan on interfering with what you grow in your own home.

Anyway, it seemed like things were somehow resolving themselves, so I nodded. But then, a shadow loomed behind Hien with a determined expression.

A figure that was clearly human, no, a demon. Wondering who it was, I narrowed my eyes and looked at it. At that moment, a voice came from the shadow.

—A very familiar voice.

“What’s with this fire?”

Hien’s body stiffened. Though not outwardly, I also froze.

Because that voice was definitely….

“Who started it? Was it deliberate?”

It belonged to the one and only king of the Demon Realm, the most powerful in history, commonly known as the Demon King.

“Y-Your Majesty, the Demon King, what brings you here….”

“Well, should I just stand by and watch while my castle is on fire?”

The Demon King swiftly cut off Hien’s question and turned his head. His unsettling eyes swept over the flames, then landed on Hien and me, emitting an especially eerie glow.

His eyes were emotionless when he looked at Hien, but they changed the moment he saw me.

“I was wondering why no one was putting out the fire….”

He slicked back his hair and grinned. Clearly, it was directed at me.

Ah, is this that thing?

Today is the anniversary of your death, or something like that.

As expected, the Demon King spoke my name. Perhaps because there were others around, he used the name known in the Demon Realm, not my real name.

“So, you were here, Demon.”

At the same time, with a wave of his hand, the thick smoke that had filled the area was blown away into the distance. Only then could I see clearly.

Demons were scattered all around. They stood there, looking troubled, unsure of what to do, and looking towards us.

No, if you were here already, why didn’t you put out the fire sooner instead of just standing there watching? Thanks to you, even the Demon King has arrived.

“So, what didn’t you like?”

“…?”

“Are you angry with the gardener, or do you dislike the garden? If you want, I can kill him for you. What should I do?”

Wait a minute. I thought you were the one who personally brought this gardener here? Why are you talking about killing him so easily?

There wasn’t a hint of amusement in his eyes to dismiss it as a joke. Panicked, I looked back at Hien, but even he, instead of begging or desperately defending himself, was obediently bowing his head, as if accepting whatever decision was made.

I felt like the Demon King might actually kill Hien, so I quickly spoke up.

“I’m not angry with the gardener, nor do I dislike the garden.”

“Then why? … No, before that. So, is it okay to put out the fire?”

“Yes? Yes.”

I nodded absentmindedly, and those who were waiting rushed forward and began casting magic.

Giant water droplets appeared out of nowhere in the sky and rained down all at once. If it were just one or two people, it might not be so effective, but with so many doing it, the fire was extinguished in an instant.

What, they could do it so quickly and efficiently, so why….

“Then why did you set the garden on fire?”

I paused for a moment.

There’s no reason to bring up Hien’s misunderstanding and make myself a target for criticism. So, should I tell the truth?

‘What would their reaction be if I said I almost died because of a single plant?’

Wouldn’t they think, ‘You’re so weak you were almost defeated by a plant? So you’ve been deceiving us all this time? Die!’ Or perhaps, ‘You burned down my garden over something so trivial?’ and try to kill me.

But I can’t just not answer the Demon King’s question. I was trying to decide what to say when, unexpectedly, Hien jumped in and started explaining.

“The plant I recently acquired attacked Demon-nim. So, Demon-nim, in his anger, set it on fire.”

“…”

Wow. This guy was a spy. Who sent him? The Revolutionary Army? Or did the aristocratic faction of the Empire send him?

I was wondering how to deal with him to make sure it was widely known, but he wasn’t finished speaking, pausing for a moment before continuing. His voice was trembling slightly.

“It is my fault. I failed to properly educate it.”

The word ‘educate’ doesn’t seem to fit a plant at all, but no one here seemed to find it awkward.

Well, considering what it looked like a moment ago, it was closer to an animal than a plant.

“Cough.”

A short groan pierced my ears. I quickly looked up and saw the Demon King holding Hien by the neck with one hand and lifting him up… Hien’s face was contorted in pain from the lack of air, but he wasn’t resisting.

‘Ah, seriously, this is driving me crazy. We could have ended this peacefully, but why….’

Even the air feels different. It’s heavy and oppressive, enough to crush a person.

While I was stammering, at a loss for words, the Demon King, still holding Hien by the neck, turned his head to look at me. His face, which had been grim when looking at Hien, softened when he turned to me. No, he was definitely smiling.

“What should I do?”

“…Pardon?”

“Should I kill him?”