#182
Demon King’s Castle Escape Operation (4)
With Olivia’s arrival, the high-ranking undead’s unique Aura of Fear quickly engulfed the surroundings.
Just being next to her made Riley tremble all over, her breath quickening, and facing that presence head-on began to shatter her composure, causing her thoughts to stumble.
Riley bit down hard to gather her wits and tightly hugged Hesperon in her arms.
‘Banshee Queen Olivia. A monster that made a name for herself under the 2nd Undead King, documented in history…!’
Additionally, she was the one who personally kidnapped Isea and presented her before the Undead King.
Back then, overcoming the fear was easy with protection magic and all sorts of magical equipment, but now confronting an executive-level undead with just her bare body was proving to be more than she could handle.
Hmm… I’ve heard about the beings from other realms, but… I never thought I would be able to leave here…
Olivia slowly shook her head while staring at Hesperon, who was coughing up blood from the backflow of magic.
But this is also something I can’t overlook…
In truth, she hadn’t just arrived at this place moments ago.
Being a ghost with overwhelming stealth advantage, the lowly beings around her had simply not noticed her.
To be precise, she had arrived here while Hesperon was occupied dealing with the crown prince, quietly observing the situation and gathering information.
If it ended with just a fight, I planned to leave quietly…
She knew in advance how they would treat her, so she didn’t intervene while the crown prince was getting beaten up.
However, she was prepared to step in if they tried to kill him outright or, conversely, if the crown prince mounted a counterattack that would leave the other two injured.
But suddenly they began talking about escaping?
Not just talking, but acting as if they were about to make a move, she hurriedly interjected to interfere with Hesperon’s magic control.
His body might have taken a bit of damage in the process, but… That level of injury can easily be healed with time…
Considering she harmed someone the Undead King was personally interested in, she was worried this could cause her some trouble.
Still, it was better than letting them slip away in an unforeseen scenario.
For the time being, I’ll take care of that man separately… The princess should just wait quietly here…
“Cough—!”
Riley bit her lips fiercely enough to draw blood at Olivia’s decisive notification as she approached.
The hope she had found in the oppressive situation was now right in front of her, yet she had to let it go so carelessly…
Above all, the fact that she couldn’t do anything right now only deepened her despair.
…What is this Iron-Blooded Princess, and what’s next for the next emperor? Unable to do anything herself, relying on others, yet in times of crisis, she can’t even be of help!
Outside, they were blissfully unaware of this fact.
She stood above everyone, guiding them, and there were always those around her ready to follow orders.
Even in her childhood, when she couldn’t stretch her wings among her siblings, the authority of a princess remained.
After Isea became her emotional support, she actively utilized that to grow her power.
Once she stepped into the competition for the throne, the faction supporting her became both her weapon and armor.
But now…
Riley cast a quick glance down at the man in her arms.
He seemed to be breathing heavily in pain, eyes shut tight, likely affected greatly by the backflow of magic.
…Yes, I can’t hide behind others forever. At the very least, the emperor I aspire to be is not such a being.
Now, no one was left to protect her.
She had to navigate this situation solely with her own strength.
The chances of a miracle happening were infinitesimally low, and she didn’t even know what to do or how.
But how could she, someone nicknamed the ‘Iron-Blooded Princess’, do nothing and just give up?
Swish—
Riley focused her magic to enhance her body and slowly rose from her spot.
While firmly holding Hesperon as if she would never let him go.
Hah— you know this is a senseless resistance… Please comply with my orders…
Seeing Riley’s unwavering eyes, Olivia lightly caressed her cheek with one hand and shook her head.
To someone in bad condition from a backflow of magic, her existence was harmful in itself.
To take him, she needed to handle her power as tactfully as possible, yet this resistance would inevitably complicate things.
It’s only a bit bothersome, after all…
Well, after all, time was plentiful.
Olivia wore a faint smile as she slowly flew towards them in the air.
Gah, Hah—
Is there really no way around this?
With a deep breath and slowly retreating while moving here and there, Riley’s gaze was fixated on the approaching Banshee Queen.
In reality, she hadn’t had any special plans from the beginning.
Perhaps, as they said, this was simply a futile resistance.
But…
She firmly shut her bleeding lips and, using sheer willpower, glared directly at the incoming enemy, overcoming the encroaching fear.
I know it won’t work. Even if it’s a meaningless action… I refuse to give up without doing anything!
If she didn’t act like that, she wouldn’t be able to withstand the remaining time ahead.
And at the moment she redoubled her resolve.
Thud—
A sudden hand grabbed Riley’s arm tightly.
She flinched instinctively and then realized the owner of the hand, allowing herself to feel relief as she looked down.
“Hesperon? Are you okay…!”
Squeeze—
The hand held her arm even tighter in silence.
Hesperon, with blood staining his lips yet his eyes shining sharply, looked directly at her.
“…Hesperon?”
Seeing something unusual in his expression, Riley cautiously called out to him.
Olivia also noticed that something was amiss with their demeanor.
What on earth are they trying to do this time?
She dropped her relaxed attitude and immediately reached out to them.
Determined to secure Hesperon’s safety later, she intended to subdue them first.
“Ah…? Wait, what is this…!”
The situation unfolded differently than she had anticipated.
Her power seemed to be blocked by something… No, it felt as if the space itself had been cut off, leaving her with no effect on them whatsoever.
“This absurdity… This is a space personally set up by the king…!”
In shock, Olivia leaped toward them in an attempt to get closer.
But even as a ghost, she could no longer advance toward where they were.
Even with her governing authority over the Undying Castle’s management, she still couldn’t reach them!
“W-wait… Could it be that…?”
With rare sincerity, Olivia truly panicked, drawing upon her dark magic for a counter when…
Swish—
The two people who had been there just a moment ago suddenly vanished without a trace.
Not just hiding their appearance.
They truly felt as if their presence was erased from this space, not sensing them anywhere within the Undying Castle itself anymore.
“What… What is this…?”
In a state of disbelief, Olivia took her time to scan around before finally accepting the truth.
They had genuinely escaped from this Undying Castle.
“No… If I begin searching from now, I can still catch them… Ah?”
However, just when she was about to release the ghosts to start their tracking.
A sudden signal rang in her head, making her stop all actions and bow respectfully in mid-air.
“Did you call for me, my king… I shall heed your command at any time…”
Meanwhile, the Undead King had arrived and summoned her.
It was near the anticipated day of the king’s visit, so she had wrapped up other tasks and was waiting for him.
But she never expected him to show up at such a critical moment.
“Your majesty… If I may, I have something to report…”
It would have been better if he had come after she had resolved some matters.
However, she couldn’t just let a significant issue like this pass without reporting.
She braced herself for a harsh reprimand as she meticulously detailed what had happened and proposed to immediately begin the search.
“What? Yes… Understood… I will follow your orders…”
But the Undead King merely responded dismissively, as though he had already anticipated everything, crushing her tension.
Eventually giving up on gauging the king’s thoughts, she dissolved the ghosts she had prepared and, once again surveying the residence, disappeared from that spot.
Thus, the garden of the second living quarter of the Undying Castle, which had just been cloaked in silence.
After the two had vanished, Olivia was gone as well.
Only the disheveled Crown Prince Simon remained, standing there all alone.
*
Hours had passed since the commotion.
“Ugh— Damn, my head…”
A figure, crumpled on the dirt floor, slowly began to rise, glancing around the deserted area.
But there was only the dilapidated figure left behind in a garden devoid of any presence.
“Damn— how dare those bastards embarrass the Crown Prince like me…!”
Recalling the events before his fainting, Simon gritted his teeth in frustration.
A dubious wizard and that arrogant Riley who had looked down on him from behind.
He could vividly picture them leaving while laughing at his fallen self.
“Cough, could it be I fell into a trap? If they had laid barriers beforehand to belittle me…”
Unable to accept his defeat, he quickly concocted a plausible theory.
But upon closer inspection, it wasn’t an unlikely scenario!
At least in his mind, it was far more realistic than the idea of being beaten by a wizard in martial arts.
“Right, I couldn’t explain his movements otherwise. That coward dared to deceive me…?”
As he became lost in his hastily constructed excuse, he slowly rose to his feet, wobbling as he surveyed his surroundings once more.
This was not a suitable place for resting, so he planned to return to his lodgings and recover properly.
‘It’s clear. They knew I would approach and set a trap. Charging into the wizards’ territory was too rash of me.’
He moved his feet, analyzing his defeat with a clearer head and then started strategizing.
He was also one of the heirs of the Empire, after all.
Even if he had lost his temper recently due to intense stress, he was not foolish enough to blindly rush back in without any plans after already losing once.
“Alright, I will acknowledge this defeat. But next time will be different.”
Naturally, he didn’t think to just accept being beaten.
He had underestimated and grown complacent against them, but now that he resolved to face them earnestly, he wouldn’t slip into the same trap again.
“For now, I will rest and devise a plan. They may be wizards, but their levels aren’t that high, so there must be limits to their traps. If I avoid being complacent and fight properly, I will not lose.”
The only worry right now was that Liris would return before he could take revenge, but he figured there would be plenty of opportunities like this moving forward.
After all, time was abundant here, so there was no need to rush.
Simon pulled his throbbing body back to his lodging, washed up, and lay down on the bed.
They were probably celebrating their victory and mocking him right about now, but…
“Enjoy it while you can. Once I recover completely, I’ll deliver you a proper hell.”
Thus, he slowly drifted into sleep, dreaming of the day he would make the two humiliate him kneel.
Unfortunately, he was still unaware that he was left all alone in this residence.
It would likely take a considerable amount of time before he realizes the situation.
By then, he would discover that all the plans he had conjured meant nothing…
Originally, revenge was a disillusioning concept, so perhaps it did carry some significance in its own right?
“Hmm— Phuhuh… Those lowly scum… I’m their slave…”
Perhaps right now, while dreaming sweetly, was the happiest moment for him.
*
Immediately after the sudden transfer.
“Huh—!”
Riley opened her eyes wide and took a deep breath.
The aftermath of long-distance spatial movement momentarily dazed her, but that trivial matter wasn’t important right now.
“…Outside? Could we have really succeeded in that situation…?”
The blue sky adorned with majestic white clouds and the warm sunlight pouring down.
The surroundings were not just a garden but a vibrant ecosystem filled with diverse plants, inhabited by bugs scurrying about.
It was the essence of nature that she hadn’t seen for almost two months in the artificial garden.
For a while, she could only gaze at it in a daze.
“Cough—! Hack—!”
Until the rough coughing sound from her arms broke her trance.
“Ah! Hesperon! Are you okay?”
Perhaps overstretched in the crisis moment, he had coughed up even more blood, struggling to open his eyes.
“…Riley? What happened… with the escape…?”
“We did it! Hesperon, you really…! Ah, don’t talk. Just rest your eyes. I’ll figure out the rest somehow!”
She hurriedly stopped him from speaking with her hoarse voice, using enhancement magic to lift his sturdy body onto her back.
Having succeeded in escaping with him to this extent, she couldn’t hesitate here.
“Huh— I’ll be as cautious as I can, moving south.”
It had been nearly two months since the Crown Prince of the Azerion Empire and the 5th Princess had been captured by the Undead King.
Finally, the moment when Princess Riley the 5th escaped from the Undead King’s grasp and tasted freedom had arrived.
‘Alright, this is a satisfactory ending indeed.’
With a satisfied smile from a director.
