“Will Rubellan allow this?”

“He probably will. Our Demon King occasionally needs my nestlings.”

Wondering what she meant by “nestlings,” Rael looked at her just as tapping sounds came from the window.

“The ravens?”

“I possess many eyes. My brothers sometimes need me too. Thanks to this, they tend to be generous with me. Rubellan is no exception.”

“I see.”

Rael wasn’t particularly curious about their relationship. She merely wondered if there was any way to drive Sezl away. But if what Sezl said was true, that seemed unlikely now.

“I quite like you. I think you’ll entertain me.”

The demons here were all strange in their own way.

Why would they deliberately entangle themselves with humans they considered lower than insects? Why seek amusement here? Were their lives so devoid of entertainment?

“I doubt I’ll live up to your expectations.”

Though Rael’s tone was apologetic, her voice was thickly coated with discomfort. Yet Sezl smiled at her complaint, seductively crossing her legs and wiggling her foot.

Rael swallowed the last sip of her still-warm tea.

Adding yet another troublesome element to the already suffocating castle.

* * *

“Where might Lord Rubellan be?”

“That’s what I’d like to know.”

“What is that wicked Lady Sezl thinking?”

“She must be plotting something.”

Esh and Joseph were conversing while watching two figures who appeared to be walking amicably from the reception room when viewed from a distance.

“Lady Sezl is difficult to deal with. She’s more dangerous than the other siblings whose intentions are transparent.”

“None of the siblings are harmless, but she’s certainly the most inscrutable.”

Sezl had a more peculiar personality than the other siblings. At first glance, she seemed like nothing more than an ill-tempered demon, but she maintained good relationships with both the siblings who opposed Rubellan and with Rubellan himself.

She readily lent Rubellan the power he needed while doing nothing to prevent the other siblings from harming him.

Yet her behavior wasn’t quite neutral enough to place her in the middle of the sibling factions.

She was like a bat, taking no one’s side while appearing fair, simply shifting allegiances according to her daily mood and whatever entertained her at the moment.

Her birds, however, were useful. No one could match her ability to gather information by traversing both the human and demon realms, which was why her siblings couldn’t reject her despite her irritating behavior.

“We must avoid anything that might provoke the Demon King’s anger.”

The castle needed to remain peaceful at least while Rael was pregnant. If even her fingertip was harmed, heads would roll, making everyone in the Demon King’s Castle understandably on edge.

“We must follow the Demon King’s wishes for now.”

“What power do we have anyway?”

“Shouldn’t we be following them though?”

At Yuswen’s words, Esh, who had been watching the two with folded arms, startled, dropped her arms, and dashed down the corridor.

“Lady Rael!”

* * *

Esh followed Sezl to provide her with a room in the Demon King’s Castle at her insistence. Left alone, Rael collapsed onto the sofa as soon as she entered her room.

The once-empty room now contained chairs, a sofa, and a table. Conveniences added because Rael lacked Rubellan’s ability to create objects at will.

“This is exhausting.”

Just when things seemed to calm down in this castle, another incident would occur or another demon would appear.

Moreover, this newest demon wasn’t even one of Rubellan’s subordinates but his sibling. Knowing that Rubellan’s relationship with his siblings was poor, Rael didn’t feel particularly positive about her.

Especially after seeing how rudely she treated the castle residents, Rael worried she might be mistreated next.

Didn’t demons consider humans lower than insects? She couldn’t understand why they showed such interest in her. She felt like a rare golden beetle on display.

Her body felt languid, partly from the cleaning she had done after so long, and partly from the tension caused by Sezl’s arrival.

Rael raised her hand to rub her lower abdomen, a gesture that seemed to have become habitual over the past few days.

“I wish Rubellan would come and drive her away.”

She raised her other hand to her eyes. Pressing gently on her tired eyelids made her eyes ache. The comfortable position gradually brought on drowsiness, and she couldn’t resist the increasing need for sleep.

As she closed her eyes, she hoped that when she woke up, the unwelcome visitor would be gone from the castle.

‘Rael.’

Was it the pregnancy, or her unease? Rael had been experiencing dreams lately, something that rarely happened before.

‘Child.’

Her grandmother, who had passed away, always appeared in these dreams. Initially, this brought her joy, but now it was becoming somewhat sad.

‘Steel your heart.’

For what?

‘For the difficult path ahead of you.’

What path?

‘My child, I’m sorry I can’t be there to comfort you.’

These were words Rael had actually heard before leaving for the Academy.

‘Whenever it gets hard, come back.’

Whenever it gets hard…

Right now, Rael wanted to return home more than ever, to that place where the rough villagers would welcome her.

“…Whenever.”

It was a very short nap. Waking wasn’t difficult either, as her moistening eyes opened on their own.

She had always believed her grandmother’s words “come back whenever” could be fulfilled at any time. Sadly, her current situation didn’t qualify as “whenever.”

“Has the sun set?”

She thought she had slept only briefly, but more time had passed than she realized. The window outside was dark.

“You’re awake?”

“Rubellan…”

Rubellan had returned at some point and was sitting in the chair across from her, reading a book.

“What are you reading so intently?”

“I need to study to become a parent.”

Rubellan waved the book, which had a title related to child-rearing. Rael couldn’t help but laugh dejectedly at the sight. A demon reading a parenting book, probably a scene she’d never witness again in her lifetime.

“Isn’t that meant for humans?”

“Demons don’t have books like this.”

“…I wonder if the child I bear will be human.”

It was a casual remark, but it led Rael into deeper thoughts. What exactly would her child be? A demon? A human? Or as the Magic Tower hoped, a human with demonic powers?

“I’d like it to be a human who resembles you.”

Rubellan said with a gentle smile, but his words didn’t sound entirely sincere to her. She wondered if he preferred a being that would be easier to kill if necessary. A twisted thought, but one she couldn’t shake.

“What about your sibling?”

Rael changed the subject, wanting to avoid talking about the child.

“You must have been surprised by Sezl’s arrival.”

“She said she’s your sibling. Which one is she?”

“My second eldest.”

“Will you let her stay in the castle?”

She desperately wished he would send Sezl away immediately.

“I owe her some favors at the moment. I’ll send her away soon.”

“Demons must be busy too.”

She had thought a Demon King would spend his time lazing around and causing mischief, but Rubellan seemed surprisingly busy. He was harder to find than the other demons in the castle.

“Things get busier after the red moon rises. Don’t worry, I’ll soon be by your side constantly.”

Not exactly welcome news. She regretted bringing it up.

“That won’t be necessary.”

Looking around to break the awkwardness, her gaze fell on Rubellan’s hair.

“Come to think of it, this sibling doesn’t have black hair.”

She remembered Sezl’s gleaming silver hair.

“Ah, Sezl takes after our mother.”

“And you take after your father?”

“If I had to say, I take after both.”

“I see.”

For a moment, Rael wanted to ask about Rubellan’s mother, but she hesitated to inquire about parents to demons who seemed to have a different concept of family than humans.

There was a high probability his mother was already dead, and she didn’t want to stir up potentially painful family history based on assumptions.

“Teacher Juletan… I mean, that brother looks exactly like you.”

“He’s the most similar to me. His power is also relatively strong.”

When Rael nodded, Rubellan smiled faintly.

“Are you developing an interest in me?”

“I’ve always been curious, separate from the kind of interest you’re implying.”

“Ask me anything you’re curious about. I’ll answer whatever you want.”

Rubellan uncrossed his legs and leaned forward. When Rael backed away from his approaching face, he laughed with delight.

Though he invited questions, family matters felt awkward, and questions about herself had gone unanswered despite previous attempts. Time passed while she pondered.

“When given the opportunity, you can’t take it.”

Rubellan teased her, and she couldn’t argue. He had indeed given her the chance, yet no questions came to mind.

“Are your siblings still trying to kill you?”

That was the curiosity she managed to squeeze out. Had Juletan continued to torment Rubellan afterward?

“Of course. Always.”

Rubellan shrugged, stating what seemed obvious to him. Despite the serious nature of the topic, his face showed no shadow. His casual attitude made it sound like an everyday occurrence, like answering whether he’d eaten today.

“There’s nothing to worry about. They can’t harm me, and they won’t touch you either.”

He was full of confidence. His self-assurance secretly irritated Rael.

“Even now that you’re having a child?”

Now he might be invulnerable after eating the Golden Apple, but if he returned to his previous imperfect state, wouldn’t he be endangered by one of his siblings, just as Juletan had threatened?