Kona's sickle and wings corroded and turned to ashes in an instant. Kona fell to the ground and twisted.
'What is it?'
Gremory was just in a daze. Did God even answer my prayers?
At that moment, a white firefly flew towards Gremory. The fireflies landed at Gremory's fingertips.
She felt a familiar comfort in the light emitted by the fireflies. At the same time, the Image of the Grand Duke's people gathering in the garden and praying to Bailey came to mind.
'Oh, that's right.'
Gremory realized what had happened. At the same time, the tension was relaxed.
Sitting on a towering rock, she chuckled, looking down at Kona as she was struggling on the ground.
"Get off! Get off! Aaak!"
Someone walked over to Kona, who was twisting her body. Before he knew it, it was Halpas who had finished off Kona's minions.
Halpas's sword easily slashed through the defenseless Kona's throat.
Kona turned to ashes and disappeared. The fireflies, which had fulfilled their roles, floated up and circled around Gremory, and then disappeared for a moment.
At the same time, the war stopped. Kona's minions stopped and bowed to Halpas, the new master of the demon world.
Now, really, it's all over.
The atmosphere around Gremory changed as the owner of the demon world changed. A gentle air filled with the aura of Halpas. Just inhaling it was a calming experience.
The knights of Halpas let out a triumphant cry. Wow, a shout poured out like thunder.
Kona's minions looked at each other for a moment, then hugged each other and rejoiced together.
"Finally, liberation!"
"Damn, Kona! Finally dead! Hahahaha..."
"You are the new master of the demon world!"
Gremory, who was sitting on a rock, grinned with her chin clenched. For some reason, the minions of Kona seemed to be more pleased than the knights of Halpas.
Halpas looked up at Gremory.
"Thank you, Gremory. It's all thanks to you. Your rebellion against Kona gave us courage."
"Yes, it's all my fault."
"And you've also benefited greatly from your human friends."
"Now, tell me the location of the gap to the human world. I want to go home quickly."
"Yes. Follow me."
Halpas spread his demonic wings and flew away. Gremory and Alice flew up after him. Alice didn't sign a contract, so she didn't have the right to go through the gap, but Halpas just turned a blind eye.
After a two-hour flight, they arrived at the kingdom of Halpas. It was well organized, unlike the kingdom ruled by the Serietti. It was also full of stylish buildings that could only be seen in the capital of the empire.
Alice chuckled, excited at the thought of going home.
"In this way, our kingdom was completely rural. Hoho."
Halpas replied happily.
"If it's so good, you can live here."
"Thank you for your words, but I will refuse. Our house is incomparably better than the houses here. Hoho."
"If you want to return to the demon world at any time, come to my kingdom. I can give you a house and servants that you are satisfied with."
Before they knew it, they started to see the canyon. Halpas flew deep into the canyon and entered a cave hidden behind the waterfall.
Deep in a large cave, there was a dark crack in the air.
"This is the place. It leads to the empire you were in. However, it is connected to a cave in the Kendren area on the west side of the empire, which is a little far from the Grand Duke."
"Hoho, if you want to fly to the Northern Grand Duke's Residence, your wings will break."
Alice tried to get into the rift first, but Halpas blocked it with her hand.
"Before that, I have something to say in advance. In fact, the crack has suddenly twisted recently."
"Yes? What do you mean by that?"
"I don't know the cause, but the time in the crack was slightly off. So if you pass through the rift, you will arrive in the human world around next spring, right?"
"Oh ho! What kind of is that... Ugh!"
Gremory, who was listening from the side, pushed Alice away and lost her temper with Halpas.
"Hey, what is that? If there is such an important fact, you should have told me in advance before signing the contract."
"Anyway, it's true that the rift leads to the human world, right? Besides, it's only been a few months, so it shouldn't be a big problem."
"It's a big problem for me! My rabbit-like lover is waiting for me, so why make me wait here for a few more months?"
"Tell him to wait a little longer. It's not a big deal."
Halpas began to step on the demons' unique morso. Enraged, Gremory grabbed him by the hair.
"Damn the devil! I thought you were hiding something!"
"Let this go. If you are dissatisfied, you will wait patiently until they are summoned to the human world. Maybe that's faster than going through a crack, right? It's unlikely."
Halpas tore his hair but did not budge. The hair roots of the demons were much stronger than those of humans.
"I have decided to attend my lover's birthday banquet next year!"
"When is his birthday?"
"Next spring!"
"If you do well, you will be able to arrive on time."
"Oh!"
Gremory threw Halpas's hair away. She didn't want to waste her time on useless things anymore.
"Alice, let's go."
"Yes, sister!"
Just as Gremory was about to enter the rift with Alice, Halpas blocked them with his hand again.
"Wait."
"What's more!"
Gremory lost her temper, and Halpas chuckled.
"Just in case. I ask, Do you know when your birthday is?"
"I don't know, that's it."
"It's December 25th. It's a day of great festivities called Christmas in the human world. On that day, humans often exchange gifts with each other."
"...Is that so?"
"I think you are a gift to the human world. Everyone was born on a joyful day, like a blessing."
Halpas withdrew his hand, took a step back, and smiled happily.
"I may have enjoyed your birthday in the human world this year, but it will be possible from next year. I hope you will take good care of your birthday in the future."
"...It's a silly sound."
Gremory, who had become unfamiliar for no reason, threw herself into the crack. Alice followed her into the rift.
Only then did Halpas leisurely leave the cave.
***
The seasons of the human world have passed. Autumn has passed, and winter has passed. And then early spring came again. Last year, they kidnapped Gremory from a mountain village.
Chession was still there. He wasn't particularly sad or distressed, and he didn't laugh particularly happily.
There were only days when he smiled in moderation. He always stared blankly at something outside the window.
Looking out the window, Chession's abundant hair fluttered in the spring breeze.
'Mori, I hope you can contact me soon."
Chession had been missing Gremory moderately all this time. Maybe he missed her so much that he would summon Gremory all the time. What if she were forcibly dragged away during an important battle? Moreover, if he were vaguely desperate because of that worry, he would suddenly summon another witch and get into trouble.
Sometimes, when he really wanted to see her, he would dig into Gremory's attachment quilt. Like Gremory, he would roll the quilt around his body.
If he sees silver ornaments or silver candlesticks somewhere, he puts them away for no reason. Maybe those trivial things will harm Gremory's return.
Once, when he went out into town with Isolene, he passed by a store that handled silver tableware. He was so upset that he bought the entire store and disposed of all the silver tableware.
Then, strange rumors began to circulate in the Grand Duke's residence.
"You know what? His Highness the Grand Duke told me not to use silver tableware or silver jewelry at this year's birthday banquet."
He heard the maids chattering through the open window. The maids were walking with buckets of laundry.
"Why are you suddenly staying so far away from it? You didn't really care about it originally."
"I heard somewhere that demons and witches hate silver so much."
"Oh, where did you hear such a strange superstition?"
"People say that His Highness turned into a demon after losing Miss Mori."
"Aha! You just hate silver and come to such a conclusion? So are we devil worshipers?"
Chession burst into a bitter laugh.
'Yes, I'd rather be a demon. Then J will be able to go to the demon world and meet Mori.'
The maids continued to chatter.
"But you're already preparing for the Birthday banquet? Isn't it too early?"
"His Highness the Grand Duke ordered us to prepare as grandly as possible. I heard that Isolene showed the plan to the maid, but if you want to prepare for that, you have to move right away."
Listening to this and that. Chession closed his eyes bitterly. The still-cold early spring wind brushed against his face.
He wasn't just preparing a banquet for his birthday. He thought it was a celebration of Gremory's return and was preparing as hard as possible.
'So you have to come back then, because I'm really eagerly waiting for it.'
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