"...Yes."
Lave didn't take Marina's words seriously. It's common for wars to break out among humans.
"It doesn't matter if only this village is not harmed."
Lace was good in this town. It was a pity that it was not an aristocratic house, but she was satisfied that there was a place to live.
This innocent woman was also burdensome, but she didn't hate it too much. The same was true of the villagers who talked to her all the way to the radish field.
"Oh, Veronis. Come to my house and take some bread. I baked a lot for myself."
"Hehe. It's good that a new person is coming to the village."
"Huh! Pretty sister! Sister, where are you going?"
Lace looked down at the little man who was following her. The eyes of the little man were unnecessarily clear.
"In the radish field."
"Uncle Nelson, your radish field? There are a lot of snakes out there!"
"Do you like snake meat?"
"...Yes?"
"Can you catch it?"
"No."
The little man's expression was rotten. And he ran away.
Lace was upset for no reason. She said it because she wanted to give him something, but she didn't expect him to hate it so much.
Lace arrived at the radish field. Lace quietly weeded there. Then, suddenly, she realized that she was focusing on weeds and made a mistake.
'It's the first time I've felt so comfortable without any worries or thoughts.'
She began to feel the peace and freedom she had gained. Here, she doesn't have to worry about when the demon god will go on a rampage, and there are no witches with eccentric personalities.
'Gremory, did you try to die and sit down in the human world because of this?'
She didn't know when she thought about harassing humans from the witch's point of view. That humans are such good and comfortable beings.
She always saw humans as prey and looked down on them as they were helplessly toyed with. However, after losing her strength and living as a human being, she felt a different feeling.
'I want to continue living here. With my child.'
She wanted to raise her child in this sense of stability. Relax under the blue sky.
While Lace was thinking about this and that and pulling out the weeds, a young man rushed over.
"Everyone, pack your bags! I just went out into town and heard that an evacuation order has been issued for the entire empire!"
Marina woke up while pulling weeds.
"What's going on?"
"Dark clouds from the south have covered the middle of the continent! I guess the barbarians black magic is stronger than I thought. They said it would soon become dangerous here, too."
"What? How big is the empire, and can the damage reach this far?"
"The Duke of Ortega also fled coldly. Isn't it really dangerous to see the aristocrats splashing around early?"
"Noblemen are inherently timid and think of their bodies as a gold bar. It's not a big deal, so you can come and pull out the weeds."
Lace shook his head.
'Can human black magic be strong enough to affect half the continent?'
Something was wrong. Black magic nourishes mental power, so a weak human mind cannot produce as much power as it does. She doesn't know if hundreds of thousands of people will decide to join forces.
At that time, another woman ran to the field.
"Marina! I just heard a rumor, but this may not be because of black magic!"
"Then what's the reason?"
"They said it might have been done by a witch!"
"Where are the witches in the world? Don't talk nonsense, you can help me pull weeds too."
Lace hand movements that were pulling weeds stopped.
'Wait. Witch? And dark clouds?'
For a moment, memories of the past flashed through Lace's mind. Among the demon gods' abilities is the ability to create poison clouds and send terrible rain. Didn't that ability make the demon world terribly barren?
'Could it be that the demon god is trying to wipe out the human world with a poisonous cloud? Is black magic an excuse created by a Princess to persuade humans in moderation?'
Damn. She finally has a place she wants to stay in.
Lace sighed as she looked around the peaceful village. Everyone was sitting pulling weeds on the board that was not enough to bounce right away. No matter how much they talked about the reason for their evacuation, they would not listen.
'Then I can't do it. I have no choice but to protect this place.'
She didn't want to be taken away by someone who would wipe the comfortable home she had finally obtained. Isn't 200 years enough for the years of being wielded by the demon god?
Although she didn't have an orb and couldn't use much power, Lace had one specialty left.
It was detoxification.
"It's just about working hard for the human world. Gremory will take care of it to some extent."
Even if she can't purify all the poison clouds that have already spread across the Empire, she can stop them from spreading further.
Lace stood up, shaking off the hem of her skirt. She laughing.
'Gremory, if you hadn't saved me, what would the human world have become?'
It probably became a mess faster than it is now.
Lace strode out of the radish field. Marina shouted that she was not working and was running away, but she didn't bother to look back.
'Your mercy saves the human world.'
***
Iberia chariot arrived at the Grand Duke. She began with a letter to Isolene.
"This is a letter from Brother Chession an hour ago. I think you will be curious about the news, so I will tell you about it."
Isolene hurriedly read the letter. The content was as follows.
[ The demon god is taking civilians hostage and demanding that Gremory return to the demon world. She only told me that if I didn't return within an hour, it would rain from the poison cloud, and then she disappeared.
I can't find the missing demon god. The black mist that spread here could disturb the witch's power, and Gremory's tracking ability was completely paralyzed.
It seems that there are only two ways to overcome this situation. Ibelia, you need to know the exact location of the demon god. Even if you can determine the location, you will be able to prevent the demon god from raining poison from the cloud.
Or Severian can find out the location of the last Vengeful Soul Fragment and destroy it. ]
Isolene felt a chill for some reason and asked Iberia.
"His Highness, Crown Prince, hasn't entered the Forbidden Book Storage Room yet?"
"Yes. The process of making the potion is only now in its final stages."
"Is there any other way to enter the forbidden books storage room? The empire has been turned upside down so much, and we must hurry in by any means."
"No, it can't. The storage room of the forbidden book is a sealed secret room. Since it is made to seal dangerous objects, it is impossible to destroy the wall from the outside. The only entrance is the vent for the circulation of magical power."
Isolene groaned and rested on his forehead. She couldn't just wait for the potion to be completed, she doesn't have time.
"Haven't your foresight fully returned yet?"
"Unfortunately, it is. It came back for a while... I don't think it'll ever come back. All the divine power in my body has been scattered."
"Oh my God."
Isolene felt like she was going to lose all her hair. She stumbled with dizziness.
Iberia helped her up and sat her down on the sofa.
"Young Lady should take a break. I will take on the role of leading the refugees."
"...I want to summon a witch."
"Witch?"
"Yes, witches grant the earnest wishes of humans. I hope you will hear my wish and come to the human world to tell me the location of the demon god."
There was a witch who was listening to Isolene's heartless wishes. It was Iris.
- I can't just stay still like this.
The ghosts who heard her murmur swarmed in.
- I can't stand it either. Why don't we step in and look for the demon god?
- Yes. If you push forward and search the south, you will find it somehow.
- I would like to take this opportunity to repay His Highness the Grand Duke's kindness. Iris, let's go find the demon together. Yes?
As the ghosts buzzed, Isolene, whose ears were itching for some reason, scratched her ears. And Iris declared solemnly
- Everyone waits here. I'll go alone.
- Yes? Alone? What about us?
-The opponent is a demon god. I don't know what will happen if ordinary ghosts step out of nowhere.
- But...!
- Besides, you don't even know how to teleport. If I don't go now, it will be very late.
Iris flew up and out of the Grand Duke's residence.
***
Chession and Gremory were wandering through a village filled with dark mist.
"Mori. What do you want to do first after catching Serietti?"
"I want to sleep on the bed with about five blankets."
The two of them were dying from holding out in the black fog for two days. Because they had been in the sunlight for so long, her sense of time was gradually blurring.
Meanwhile, Serietti's voice continued to ring like an illusion.
[ Return to the Demon Realm immediately. Gremory, or I will rain down poison clouds and turn the Empire into a land of eternal death. ]
Gremory began to roll her head. Until now, she had just ignored Serietti's voice, but this time she decided to use it.
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