Chapter 161

Sylatrella took a big bite, chomping off half the apple—truly a disciple of Sheffy in every sense.

She waved her finger, clearly and straightforwardly pointing out the flaws in Belith’s argument.

“No, no, no, how could you say it doesn’t matter? Saying so many things like I did just now—doesn’t that take stamina? I was reborn from Lady Sheffy’s magic, so of course I need Lady Sheffy’s magic to replenish my vitality! Just now, Lady Sheffy demonstrated her magic, and her fingers were still covered in magic particles. If we don’t do anything, those magic particles will just evaporate. Not eating them would be such a waste.”

“There’s such a claim…?”

“Of course. Besides that, I don’t even know why, but I instinctively want to bite Lady Sheffy’s fingers! It gives me a comforting feeling, like that from a mother!”

“You really are up to no good, aren’t you?! Also! Royal Sister is not your mother!”

Hoh.

Now Xiarette understood.

Sylatrella had only recently been reborn, so the “instinct” she mentioned must be similar to that of a baby, right?

Think about it—when babies are hungry, they need milk, and they like to bite things.

No wonder little sister Sylatrella always liked snuggling up to Sheffy. So that’s what this is all about…

But little sister Sylatrella—

Biting fingers was still acceptable, just barely tolerable.

But don’t go biting somewhere else while Sheffy’s asleep, alright?

Otherwise, even you won’t escape punishment, understood?

—

70. Just go already!

The matter was settled for now.

After all, intelligence was only intelligence; it couldn’t be ruled out that there might be errors in judgment. Until Aimeris’s true intentions came to light, Sheffy didn’t feel any pressing need to act on her end.

If the enemy didn’t move, she wouldn’t move.

If the enemy did move, she’d have a bite to eat first, and then consider whether or not to move.

Rather than actively approaching an unknown enemy, it would be better to think about how to strengthen her side’s forces first—prepare for all eventualities with an unchanging stance.

Ailellek had come this time precisely to share the intelligence she’d gathered.

Now that she had finished speaking, it was time for her to continue her journey.

“Where do you plan to go next for your adventure, Aunt?”

“Wrong form of address. Try again.”

“Tch… Ailellek sis, where the hell are you rolling off to next?”

“That’s the right way to say it! Hmm… Let me think. I guess I’ll head back to the Demon King’s Castle first. I just shared all this with you while I was passing by, but I should also explain it clearly to Big Brother and Sister-in-law. I may not like the restraints of power, but I am a member of the Demon Clan. If something’s my responsibility, I have to see it through properly.”

“Then don’t forget to help me air out my bedsheets while you’re at it. Thanks.”

“Oh! Leave that to me—tsk, Sheffy, seriously, I’m the First Demon Princess of our clan, can’t you show a little more dignity when you talk to me?”

“I call it being practical.”

Just think—if I weren’t practical, I’d have to head back to the Demon King’s Castle tomorrow too. Belith rolls around every day wrapped in my blanket. If you don’t air it out, how am I supposed to sleep under it? I’ll end up having nightmares, won’t I?

The grass grew tall, orioles sang, and autumn deepened into dusk.

Before the evening breeze began to blow, Ailellek—already changed into a fresh set of clothes—stood beside the shimmering lake to bid her temporary farewell.

Timani, confused as ever, had followed them out to see her off. She wasn’t quite sure how she’d ended up hanging around with this group over the past few days. She was a proud member of the Fire Dragon Clan, so why was she here seeing off the former First Princess of the Demon Clan?

She didn’t know. But if she didn’t see her off, she couldn’t bring herself to stay comfortably in a rent-free house. This was what they called courtesy under another’s roof.

Ailellek had promised Sheffy that she’d help air out the bedding, and as the elder, she turned back to give Belith a few words of advice.

“Belith, you too—stop having your head full of nothing but ‘get stronger, get stronger’ all the time.”

“Ah… I know. I’m already not the same as I was befo—”

“If you want to get strong, then become the strongest! You need to have that kind of domineering spirit! Look at you now—skinny like a bean sprout. Can you even take a punch from me?”

“……”

Forget it. Belith figured she really shouldn’t take anything this woman said seriously.

But…

There was something Belith did want to say to her.

The term “bean sprout”… didn’t sound very nice, you know?

Bathed in the warm slanting rays of the sunset, Belith raised her head, and the resilience in her eyes matched the strength inherent in the blood of the Demon Clan.

Even more so, it reflected the self-discipline of a true elder-sister fanatic.

“Aunt, even though my mindset has changed from before, I will become strong… Even if it’s just enough to get a little closer to Royal Sister. When that day comes, I’ll make you take back what you said.”

“Hah… Looks like you’ve grown. One punch won’t be enough then—might have to go with two.”

Having said that much, Ailellek knew there was no need to add more.

Every child had their own path to choose. Adults didn’t need to clear every thorn from the way.

She had already stepped forward…

But then, Ailellek seemed to recall something. Her steps paused, and without turning back, she glanced sideways toward the human Hero, Xiarette, with a flicker of expectation in her eyes.

“Oh right. And you, little girl. You’re just as dim-witted as I am, but your potential definitely doesn’t end here.”

“Uh… thank you. I’ve been diligently training.”

“This isn’t about training… never mind, you wouldn’t get it even if I explained. Hey! That little one over there, you agree with the Hero’s capabilities too, right?!”

Sylatrella, crouching in the corner plucking water grass, said nothing—seemingly tacitly agreeing with her.

But in truth, her silence was simply because she didn’t think “little one” referred to her. She wasn’t that young anymore.

No response? That was fine.

Ailellek’s expectations of Xiarette were overflowing.

“With the blessing of the Holy Sword, the tenth rank of your human race isn’t a boundary you can’t break through. Xiarette, I hope that one day, you’ll shatter the limits of human capability—come to the Demon King’s Castle, and fight me! Hahahaha! I’ve never met a human worth looking forward to like you…! Hm?!”

Six wings spread in an instant.

The crowd heard nothing but a gust of wind—Ailellek had vanished from where she stood.

That was her speed—when moving at full force, her trajectory was nearly impossible to track.

Looking up, they saw the former Demon Princess already high up in the sky. She stuck out her tongue and made a funny face at the group, then without looking back, slid through the air in a streak of black light and vanished beyond the far end of the sky.

Xiarette didn’t quite understand—why did she leave halfway through her sentence…?

“Did something urgent come up?… Sheffy, what are you doing? Is that some new kind of stance?”

Only then did Xiarette notice Sheffy’s current posture: arms stretched forward, legs planted firmly in a horse stance, as if doing some physical exercise.

Xiarette had no idea, but Belith gave a couple of wry chuckles and said nothing—it seemed she knew something.

At that moment, Sheffy dropped the stance.

She crossed her arms in front of her, let out a low hum, and shook her head.

“It’s nothing. I just thought she was talking way too much. Nagging and rambling… all she knows is fighting. Xiarette isn’t training to fight her, after all… Seriously…”

“Ahaha… I think she just enjoys fighting. There are people like that who—wait, what’s that noise?!”

BOOOOMMMMM——!!

With a thunderous roar like a mountain collapsing and the seas roaring, the lake in front of them seemed to be struck by some invisible force. The water split apart to both sides, revealing the muddy lakebed ten meters deep. Countless large fish flopped and struggled as they landed in the exposed depths, and the lakewater blasted into the sky before falling back down like a sudden downpour.

But it didn’t last long…

Soon, the lakewater flowed back into the hollow center, becoming calm and still once more.

As though nothing had ever happened.

Xiarette and Timani were completely drenched, soaked to the bone.

Belith, at some point, had conjured an umbrella woven from magic. She walked over and stood beside Sheffy, holding the umbrella with her in a graceful pose, shielding them both from the rain.

Sylatrella was likely the biggest victim of all.

“Ah… I spent all that time pulling water grass…”

She’d hoped to use it to shape a likeness of Lady Sheffy…

Now it was all washed away by the water!

The poor child was furious.

With golden hair stuck to her face, Xiarette used her hand to wipe the water off her cheek, and only then slowly realized what had just happened.

That punch from Sheffy earlier wasn’t some new stance, nor was it a joke…

She had actually thrown a punch at Ailellek with real force!

No wonder Ailellek had suddenly taken off like that—it had been an emergency dodge to avoid the incoming attack!

Belith put away the umbrella woven from magic and shrugged as she voiced the truth behind it all.

“Aunt Ailellek used to always complain that Royal Sister fought her using magic—it wasn’t fair, she said. But ever since the time Royal Sister didn’t use magic and merely collided with her using just the wind force from a punch… Aunt never challenged her to a fight again. I think it’s for the best. Aunt used to issue battle challenges every day. Royal Sister must’ve been driven mad by it.”

“She’s the one who called me Bean Sprout Number One.”

“Then I guess that makes me Bean Sprout Number Two~”

Xiarette, standing to the side, got the sense that Sheffy had thrown that punch just now purely out of dissatisfaction with Ailellek’s words and actions…

But… Sheffy normally wouldn’t get angry over something so trivial, would she?

The truth was, Sheffy had already accidentally let it slip just now.

Xiarette wanted to become strong—but not for the sake of getting hurt.

Her strength was gentle. It was protection, it was hope, it was the light that supported Sheffy’s inner darkness.

So, if Aunt wanted to pick a fight, she could go find some stray cats or dogs—but she’d better not set her sights on Xiarette.

Mm… and that included Belith as well.

The reason Belith pursued strength had changed now. This change, in truth, made Sheffy feel deeply relieved. She absolutely did not want Belith to return to that former state of blindly chasing power—using any means necessary just to grow stronger.

So Aunt, you better just leave already! Stop riling everyone up to fight all the time, will you?!

Xiarette seemed to have some vague premonition—Sheffy’s outburst just now had something to do with her.

A smile crept up the corners of her brow.

The golden-haired girl looked up at the sky. Dusk had already given way to the approaching night.

“Let’s go home, Sheffy… Since little sister Belith is coming over today, I suppose I should show off my cooking skills?”

“Whoa, whoa… I never said I wanted to eat your food. Besides, back when Royal Sister was in the Demon King’s Castle, she was super picky about what she ate.”

“Whether it’s edible or not, why don’t you try it yourself and see?”

Sheffy adjusted her mood with incredible speed.

When she turned back again under the moonlight, her face was already full of a soft smile.

Smiles were contagious—just moments ago, Xiarette and Belith had been bickering, and now both wore the same gentle smiles as hers.

Yes, smiling definitely suited Sheffy the best~

“You two wait here a moment.”

Sheffy called out to Sylatrella. Sylatrella still wanted to go back to the lake to fish out her water grass, but Sheffy insisted that she was being useless.

“Grab a bag and follow behind me—tonight we’re having an extra meal!”

“As expected of Lady Sheffy…! The Goddess of Fishing!”

“Hehe… now that’s what I like to hear!”

Not a single punch was thrown in vain.

The massive wave from earlier had flung quite a few big fish onto the shore. How could Sheffy just stand there and watch them flop their way back into the lake?!

Let me help you all—get into the bag and rest well, okay~?

Timani looked at those big fish, and her mouth was practically watering… But what she was really worried about now was—would there be enough food for her to eat tonight?

That question had to be asked delicately.

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