Chapter 85

Unconsciously, Xiarette extended her palm to the side.

Sheffy merely glanced over and, as if in perfect tacit understanding, naturally reached out her small hand to hold Xiarette’s hand.

The motion of the two of them joining hands was smooth as flowing water. Walking side by side like this along the street, they looked just like a pair of exquisitely beautiful sisters.

Holding Sheffy’s delicate, childlike palm, Xiarette’s tone carried an extra trace of relaxed satisfaction when she spoke.

“And besides, Shaya, isn’t this also considered a good thing for you? Just think about it—if things go smoothly, you might be able to walk through the Royal Capital in your true form, openly, without any need to hide. Isn’t that what we’ve always been hoping for?”

“Talking about it sounds easy… but if you really think about it, how could it be that simple… Some things aren’t so easily erased.”

“Is that so…”

“Yes.”

The entire street bustled with prosperity. These residents of the Royal Capital were able to feel so at ease because there were no members of the Demon Clan here, because they knew the Demon Clan Princess had already been sealed and would not return to cause chaos.

If even a single demon were to set foot in this place, even without any malice, most likely everyone would immediately pack up their belongings and hide away in their homes, too terrified to step outside.

It was the same in the Demon Domain.

Over there, too, in the streets and alleys, demons shunned human merchants. There were even some who patrolled specifically to drive them away.

At this stage, that was simply how things were. The phrase “as incompatible as fire and water” felt especially fitting to describe these two races.

Xiarette quietly watched Sheffy’s eyes, which still shimmered with a spiritual radiance in the darkness.

Xiarette did not wish for those eyes to be swallowed by the night, so before the darkness could fully descend, she was willing to gather up that faint thread of moonlight.

“It’s all right.”

“Xiarette?”

“If it can’t be done quickly, then let’s take it slowly. Let’s treat this operation as the very first step toward letting Sheffy Harl ‘see the light of day’ again. How about that?”

Sheffy widened her eyes a little, somewhat surprised by Xiarette’s words.

But only for a moment…

The small, resolute mouth immediately bloomed into a lively, radiant smile!

“Sure! I like the sound of that!” Sheffy swung her arm back and forth, making Xiarette’s arm sway along with it. “Hee… Then I have to see what skills you humans’ princess possesses. But let’s be clear—Princess Sheffy is very fierce, you know! When Livra arrives, don’t expect to leave so easily. I’ll have to at least give her a good scare first!”

“Scare her…?”

“That’s right. If I don’t put on a bit of a fierce act, won’t I be exposed? It’s not just that humans can’t accept the Demon Clan. We demons… it also takes time to accept humans!”

“Understood. Mm… I’ll follow your lead. When the time comes, we’ll give Princess Livra a proper fright.”

“All right! Then it’s settled!”

“Good.”

Sheffy… Even though you were saying you didn’t want to accept humans…

Right now, you were holding my hand so tightly.

The petite princess of the Demon Clan, who had once been showered in countless affections—here in the Kingdom, she bore a burden of suppression and hatred many times heavier than all that adoration.

This was the first time since she was born that Xiarette felt so grateful to be a human.

Because she was human… she could say this with considerable pride—

It wasn’t true that all humans hated Sheffy, you know?

For example, herself.

She had the confidence that, more than anyone else in this world, she loved her.

But Xiarette wouldn’t be satisfied with just that. After all, a Hero’s ambitions were always vast.

“Sheffy, I hope that one day… the humans will cheer for you too. Not for Shaya, but for Sheffy Harl.”

“Ho! A Hero saying something like this—doesn’t that count as treason?”

These words were spoken very softly, a secret only between Sheffy and Xiarette.

Yet this “suspected traitor” Xiarette, responded so gently to the runaway Demon Clan Princess—

“Not at all~ A Hero protects the country, and Xiarette cherishes Sheffy—both are simply fulfilling their duties. These two things don’t conflict, do they?”

“Mm?! D-Don’t… don’t ask me!”

“Shaya?”

“Ugh… You just wait here a moment. I’ll go buy… buy… Ah! Boss! Give me a grilled octopus tentacle!! Make it fiery hot!”

“Sure thing! Do you want chili with that, little lady?”

“No chili, add ice!”

“Huh?”

While saying this, Miss Shaya’s face turned red. She abruptly looked left and right, then bounced over to the stall to buy something.

Hm…? The conversation hadn’t even finished yet—why did Sheffy suddenly run off?

The blockheaded Xiarette probably didn’t know there was an expression for this—

—High offense, low defense.

Miss Shaya usually never let others off easily in an argument, always holding the advantage in words and leaving others no room to retort, acting quite arrogant.

But at the same time… Sheffy simply couldn’t stand it when the person she liked treated her kindly!

Those things Xiarette had just said… made her little heart thump-thump-thump like the octopus tentacle roasting over the fire, curling up into a ball.

Nothing else—

Mainly because this little princess’s heart… was not as carefree as it looked on the surface.

It was genuinely very delicate and sensitive.

When Miss Shaya came back with trembling hands holding the grilled octopus tentacle, she lifted it with a slight shake and offered it to Xiarette.

And on Shaya’s face, there were still a few droplets of water—it looked like she had grabbed a handful of ice from the iced fruit syrup shop next door to cool herself down.

“As expected of me—always able to think fast in a crisis. Eat, Xiarette. If you’re eating, your mouth will be too busy to keep saying things!”

“Ah… I didn’t think there’d come a day when Shaya would call me too talkative. Mm… Delicious, but don’t eat too much. We’ll be having dinner soon.”

“Eh? Isn’t it still early for dinner? It’ll take at least an hour to walk home. Shouldn’t we have a bite first to tide us over?”

“We can eat at home too. But I was just worried you’d get hungry now…”

Gurgle gurgle gurgle~~~

What little creature was making that noise?

Trying to save face, Miss Shaya covered her stomach with one hand, while lifting the box of octopus tentacles with the other and dumping them straight into her mouth, determined to stop that strange sound from continuing.

However, how could the bottomless pit of Shaya’s appetite possibly be satisfied by just a small box of octopus tentacles?

Gurgle~~~

“!”

Xiarette lowered her gaze toward Sheffy’s stomach.

This time, Sheffy didn’t have the leisure to cover her belly.

—She decided to prioritize freeing her hands so she could cover her thoroughly disgraced little face.

“Ugh… Don’t look at me. I’m not some useless thing who gets so hungry my stomach growls just because I missed a single meal… I’m not…”

“Shaya… Even the pitiful thoughts in your heart have already slipped out of your mouth, you know?”

“Damn this hunger… It really is the source of all evil in this world.”

Her Highness Princess Sheffy’s series of humiliations had already left her completely bereft of dignity in front of Xiarette.

Slowly moving her small hands down from her face, the light in her eyes had already dimmed by more than half.

Yet at that very moment—

Xiarette suddenly made a rather constructive suggestion.

“Actually, I was just thinking about this. If we go home to cook now, it’ll be too late by the time it’s ready. How about I take you to one of the taverns in the Royal Capital? Come to think of it, Shaya, you’ve never tried the local cuisine here in the Kingdom of Aurus, have you?”

“Local cuisine… What are we waiting for—let’s go!”

“Shaya?!”

Sheffy—this completely seamless, smooth stride of yours really caught me off guard!

Was food truly more important than everything else?!

—Absolutely not.

Eating still depended on who you were eating with, and the mood you were in while eating. Only when the mood was good did the meal taste delicious.

Although Sheffy could have followed the aroma herself to find a good tavern, Xiarette was a local resident, after all. In this area, she definitely knew better. So leaving it to her to lead the way was the most foolproof choice.

Following the memories she had of the Royal Capital, Xiarette led Sheffy across several streets, explaining as they went.

“To be honest, if we’re talking about refined food, the Royal Capital’s high-end restaurants that serve nobles are a bit better. But the ingredients I use to cook for you at home aren’t any different from what they use—actually, they might even be better. So if we went there to eat, it would be no different from just going home and cooking ourselves. But the local taverns here in the Capital—you’ve probably never been to one. Even though I barely have time to go myself… ah, anyway, today’s a rare chance. Let’s try it together.”

“Authentic! Sluuurp… The soul of eating is to keep changing up the flavors. Xiarette, you really know what’s important!”

“I don’t know food—I know you, little glutton.”

“Hee, say whatever you like. As long as there’s food, I don’t care about saving face!”

…………………………………

By relying on Xiarette’s memories and asking the street vendors for directions to the better taverns nearby—

At last, Xiarette led Sheffy to a tavern housed in a wooden building situated right in the middle of the street.

Unlike some taverns that had pretty young women out front enticing customers, this place only had a simple wooden signboard above the door—none of those flashy embellishments. Somehow, that made it feel even more pleasant.

Inside the tavern, a lively clamor filled the air. The sounds of people slapping tables and talking boisterously rose and fell in waves.

A young woman carrying two large wooden mugs passed by the entrance. When she saw the two of them come in, she hurried over with a smile and guided them to sit in a secluded corner. She then handed them a slip of paper to write down whatever dishes they wanted, promising she would take it back to the kitchen for the cook to prepare.

From the way the two of them were dressed, they clearly weren’t ordinary commoners.

Now and then, nobles clad in luxurious silks and satins also came to the tavern. The staff here simply had to serve them well and be careful not to offend—business had finally been picking up lately, and no one wanted to cause trouble.

The moment Sheffy sat down, her wide, bright eyes swiveled everywhere. To her, everything here was quite novel.

A wooden structure with a low ceiling, the air filled with the aroma of wine and cooked dishes, and this down-to-earth, worldly atmosphere—

For this Demon Clan Princess, these were all things she seldom had the chance to experience.

But of course, not everything here was harmless and amusing…

Xiarette noticed that most of the patrons were Royal Capital merchants in coarse linen clothing, or human adventurers with machetes at their waists and scarred faces.

Most people just kept eating and drinking as usual.

But there were also a fair number whose gazes kept drifting over now and then after Sheffy and Xiarette had entered.

There was no helping it—when two stunningly beautiful girls of such bearing walked into a tavern like this, they were bound to draw attention.

However, she was sorry to say—Xiarette had no intention of letting all those annoying stares and whispered comments spoil Sheffy’s mood for eating.

Though her hands never moved, a magic barrier affecting perception quietly spread over the table and chairs where she and Sheffy sat.

And then, those glances gradually diminished—until at last they vanished entirely.

At Xiarette’s level of ability, she could set the activation of the Atmosphere-Severing Barrier to target specific people.

For example, the diners here wouldn’t be able to notice anything at their table, but the staff serving meals would still be perfectly aware.

From the perspective of those adventurers who had been discussing whether to go over and strike up a conversation, the row of tables suddenly became strangely indistinct—as if there was something there, yet at the same time, nothing at all.

Those two noble girls from earlier had probably already left?

Tsk tsk tsk. What a pity. If they could have courted a young lady from a noble house, they would have been set for life—never needing to do such exhausting adventuring work again.

Xiarette even thoughtfully added a faint layer of sound insulation to the barrier.

It didn’t cut off the noise completely, but all the raucous laughter and crude swearing was kept firmly out.

Within this peaceful environment, the pitiable Sheffy sat on the wooden chair, her toes still unable to touch the floor.

She felt that this kind of design was really aggravating!

“I just don’t understand—what were the people who made these chairs thinking? Did they never consider how short people feel?”

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