After dealing with the few soldiers, Lin Ling walked over to the tavern keeper, who had been helped over to the bar counter.
Seeing the girl approaching, who wore clothing similar to the vestments of the Holy See, Charis hurriedly stumbled up from his chair.
“My apologies, milady. I didn't know you were upstairs. I am sorry for disturbing you.”
With a strained smile on his face, he quickly bowed to Lin Ling, though the injuries on his body made the gesture incredibly awkward.
But to these nobles who valued etiquette, such gestures were absolutely necessary.
The tavern keeper didn't think Lin Ling had dealt with the soldiers to help him.
Rather, all members of the Holy See who came to the border were likely the same; the soldiers' trashing of the place had probably disturbed her, so she had simply disposed of them on a whim.
This sort of thing was not uncommon, especially after the current Emperor took the throne. The arrogance of the nobility had reached unprecedented heights.
Now, it was probably his turn to be dealt with.
Charis looked at Lin Ling as she approached him with a serious expression. His own end likely wouldn't be much better than those soldiers.
At least Lina had been sent away...
Just as Charis thought of the safely transported Lina, the tavern door was pushed open in the next instant.
Ivelia stepped into the tavern, holding Lina—who should have been teleported away—in her arms.
Looking at Lina in her arms, Charis's face filled with utter disbelief.
He had used the teleportation magic of the demon race! Why, why was this woman able to find her? Why?!
The fake smile on Charis's face completely crumbled, replaced by sheer shock at Lina being brought back.
Thud—
Just as Lin Ling looked toward Ivelia at the door, a heavy thud echoed from behind her.
“I beg of you, please spare my daughter!”
Before Lin Ling could even react, the tavern keeper's head slammed heavily onto the floor.
Sweat dripped continuously from his forehead, his body trembling uncontrollably.
Right now, his very life was completely in their hands.
“Do whatever you want with me, but please! Spare my daughter.”
“...”
Lin Ling said nothing, but two magic arms materialized behind her once more.
Sensing a dense surge of mana rapidly approaching him, Charis went to slam his head onto the floor again.
However, his head, which should have slammed hard against the floor, was firmly caught by a magic arm.
“Why does everyone love kowtowing to others so much?!”
Hearing Lin Ling's somewhat exasperated tone, Charis looked at the magical palm cushioning his head from the floor. At the same time, another arm seemed to be lifting him up.
Lifted off the ground, Charis watched as Ivelia gently handed Lina over to the clergy member who had summoned the magic arms.
The girl reached out with both hands to take Lina, examining her as if she were some kind of novelty.
(From Charis's perspective, Miss Saintess was actually holding the child very gently.)
Meanwhile, the purple-haired woman beside her let out a soft sigh of relief, a pair of non-human horns suddenly sprouting from her head.
Thump, thump—
Suddenly, the sound of footsteps coming downstairs echoed.
Morg rubbed his eyes as he walked down from upstairs, instantly spotting Charis being held in the air.
“Charis, why are you being held up like that?”
Truth be told, that succubus lady's sleeping magic was indeed excellent, giving him such a comfortable rest.
It was just that the scene he woke up to wasn't particularly great.
...
“My apologies, I misunderstood you, my lords.”
By now, the group had been brought into the tavern's study.
Charis stood with a forced smile, looking at Lin Ling who stood by the window.
“Keeper, is that Baron Will guy always like this?”
Lin Ling looked out at the scenery outside, not even turning around.
It could be said that the view outside... was exactly the same as the scene she had seen in her dream with Leticia.
“Dilapidated houses, and not a single soul in sight...”
“Uh, well...”
Hearing Lin Ling's question, the smile on Charis's face froze.
This question was truly a bit difficult to answer.
Although the person beside this girl wasn't human, the orange-haired figure he had glimpsed on the way to the study... if he wasn't mistaken, that should be the missing Second Prince.
Orange hair was the symbol of the Camillaya royal family. And yet, he was mingled with these people...
If there was any place best suited for gathering intelligence, it was a tavern.
And Charis happened to be an expert at gathering intelligence. If not for those incidents...
Thinking of Lina's mother, Charis shook his head and met Lin Ling's gaze once more.
If these people were looking for the support of some nobles, then his current words...
If he said even a single wrong word, not only him, but even Lina would not leave this place alive.
Charis's eyes darted to Ivelia, who was standing beside Lin Ling.
Especially this one. Her actions earlier could practically be considered a hint to him.
Seeing Charis remain silent, Ivelia let out a sigh.
“The magic you used just now—a demon taught it to you, didn't they?”
A flash of shock crossed Charis's face at the sudden question.
“Uh... well...”
Although he didn't know how this purple-haired woman knew, since he had been exposed, there was no point in hiding it anymore.
“Yes.”
Charis lowered his head, admitting to the fact that he had some collusion with the demon race, his eyes constantly darting toward Lin Ling, who was dressed in her Saintess vestments.
He seemed to be trying to gauge her reaction to this revelation.
“Do you want to know how I figured out the destination of that teleportation spell?”
Ivelia looked at this shifty-eyed man and stepped directly in front of Lin Ling, blocking his view of her.
With Lin Ling blocked, Charis withdrew his stolen glances.
His eyes held both a desire for the answer and deep contemplation.
Indeed, how did she know the destination of his teleportation magic?
Although he desperately wanted to know, the moment he met Ivelia's terrifying, pressure-laden gaze, the tavern keeper quickly lowered his head, bowing even deeper.
“N-No, I wouldn't dare.”
Charis had been involved in Camillaya's intelligence trade for quite some time.
In his memory, there was absolutely no sign of this purple-haired woman among Camillaya's powerful mages.
Not to boast, but even that Sword Saint who answered only to the royal family—given enough time, he could obtain her information.
Yet he had absolutely never seen this purple-haired woman before.
Coupled with the horns on her head...
Charis didn't stop analyzing the woman. The only thing he could confirm was that the yellow-haired man from earlier claimed to be a Hero, and the Hero who had left the capital over a month ago indeed had yellow hair.
But wasn't the Hero supposed to have gone to the Demon Realm?
Although his intelligence network had completely failed to track the Hero's whereabouts... Wait, no!
Charis seemed to realize something.
Those horns, plus the demon teleportation magic...
“Demons! You're with the demon race, aren't you?”
When those horns had appeared earlier, this purple-haired woman's aura had visibly stabilized. If she had been using a transformation spell at the time...
Then it would make perfect sense. The Second Prince had been missing for so long, and the Emperor had been unable to find him. He could only have hidden in a place no one would ever think of.
As Charis continued to piece things together, his expression visibly shifted.
Seeing the change in Charis's expression, a glint flashed in Ivelia's eyes.
It was time to deliver the final blow to this information broker. She spoke softly, but her cool voice struck Charis's heart like a heavy hammer.
“As for your daughter's illness... we can cure it. The demon race can cure it.”
They could cure it? They could cure it!
Charis, who had been weighing his options, instantly snapped his head up. Everything he had been analyzing was completely overwritten by those words.
She said they could cure it. Lina's illness could be cured!
Those words swirled in Charis's mind like a high-tier charm spell.
With a loud thud, Charis dropped to his knees.
Lin Ling, who had still been looking out at the street, immediately turned around at the sound. Seeing Charis kneeling on the floor, she turned to look at Ivelia, who stood beside her with her arms crossed.
The other gave her a look—I didn't make him do this.
For some reason, their Miss Saintess deeply disliked people kneeling before her.
Seeing Charis about to kowtow again, two magic arms appeared behind Lin Ling once more.
“Uncle, stand up.”
But Charis acted as if he hadn't heard her at all. Before those magic arms could reach him, he hurriedly leaned forward to kowtow.
“Please, save my daughter!”
“No matter the price, even if you want me to go gather intelligence on the kingdom's guardian dragon right now, I'll do it! Please, save my daughter!”
Looking at the two before him, Charis frantically threw all his chips on the table, preparing to slam his forehead against the floor.
But as he leaned down, the magic arm swiftly caught him and lifted him up once more.
“Why won't you ever listen to what people say?! I said no kneeling! I said, NO!”
Lin Ling stood with her hands on her hips as she hoisted Charis off the ground. Her cheeks, partially obscured by Ivelia, puffed up, and even the radar cowlick on her head began to sway left and right in protest.
“Then, Lina's illness...”
Disappointment washed over Charis's face. Since these two had refused his kneeling, did that mean... he had been rejected?
The magic arm behind him vanished after lifting him up. To have hope right in front of him only to be rejected was truly a powerless feeling.
Compared to seeking out those untrustworthy clergy members, he had thought the demons before him would be easier to negotiate with.
Seeing the spark of hope in Charis's face instantly fade away, Lin Ling hurriedly tugged on Ivelia's sleeve.
“We'll take care of it, right! Demon... uh, I mean, darling.”
She had almost blurted out “Lord Demon King,” but luckily she stopped herself.
However, after she called her “darling,” the Demon King seemed quite pleased.
Her lips curled up slightly before quickly flattening back out. Ivelia walked toward the upright Charis.
“Do you know what is causing your daughter's illness?”
When she had overheard the conversation between the father and daughter last night, Ivelia had noticed that within the girl named Lina, there was a magic circuit completely different from that of a normal human.
That kind of magic circuit was not uncommon among the demon race. However, for it to appear in a human body... that was where the problem lay.
Why would a human possess a magic circuit belonging to the demon race?
Rate on N.U.
