Chapter 28: Worried

That question made my mind go blank.

What had I done?

What had I done wrong?

Why—why were her eyes filled with such deep sorrow and pain?

“What…?”

I barely managed to part my lips, but in that instant, her flames turned black and flared up even more violently.

Then, after a moment, the flames seemed to weaken slightly, and she finally spoke.

“…The flame.”

I didn’t quite understand what she meant.

But I couldn’t ask her again.

The fire turned red once more, but I—shamefully—remained frozen in place.

Then, as if realizing my state, she spoke again.

“Your flame went out!”

“……!”

Only then did I understand the situation.

The Life Candle.

The third-rate magic spell I left behind this morning—it had disappeared.

It must have been the mana disruption spell or Tindalos Key that severed our connection.

“You said your mana couldn’t possibly run out in just a day or two! But it went out! I—I was so…!”

She couldn’t finish her sentence.

She simply hung her head and sobbed, and her flames weakened, flickering like a dying campfire.

“I’m… I’m sorry, Miss Ropena.”

I wanted to comfort her, but I had no idea what to say.

Then, suddenly, she raised her head—and her flames turned black once more, threatening to consume the entire barrier.

“This wasn’t some kind of sick joke of yours, was it? If it was, I swear on my name, I’ll…!”

It was a murderous aura more intense than anything I had felt even during our days as enemies.

To be honest, among the Demon King’s generals I faced in the last war, she was the one I feared the least.

But now, I was more afraid than when I stood before the Demon King himself.

“Th-That’s impossible! No! I may have no talent for humor, but even I wouldn’t pull a joke like that!”

My desperate explanation finally caused her flames to settle again.

And silence fell between us.

The killing intent and rage had vanished from her, and now she just sat there quietly with her head down.

Seeing her like that, I felt that perhaps her rage-filled self from moments ago was preferable—and the fact that I thought that way made me feel like a stranger to myself.

“…What on earth happened?”

Her head remained bowed.

She raised one hand to her face—no doubt to wipe away tears.

Come to think of it, this was the first time I’d seen her cry.

I didn’t even know demons could cry.

But I never imagined she would cry because of me.

And in this moment, I felt ashamed that a small part of me was glad.

“We were ambushed. The intel I had—it was false.”

“…Then why did the flame go out?”

“It seems the mana disruption spell or Key of Tindalos severed the connection. I swear, I didn’t think the flame would go out.”

“…Are you hurt?”

She looked up at me, scanning me for injuries.

In that moment, I genuinely wanted to destroy the barrier.

I wanted to hold her and tell her everything was okay.

It wouldn’t be easy since she was taller than me, and I might end up as ash from her flames—but I truly wanted to do it.

But I couldn’t.

I would never do it.

Because I am not right.

Because I am twisted.

And perhaps, just as Orcan said, I’m a coward.

“…As you can see, I’m fine.”

The flames around her faded.

After a deep breath, she slowly stood up.

“Then… did you deal with them all?”

I take back what I thought earlier.

Her current demeanor—no flames, no obvious emotions—was more terrifying than when she was enraged.

“Of course. It was a bit tricky, but I managed.”

I smiled as naturally as I could to reassure her.

Even Lowell wouldn’t have noticed the lie.

But contrary to my hopes, her expression only hardened further.

“Anak.”

It was the first time she called me by name.

And it felt strange—like a spell binding me, but also warmly embracing me.

“Then why does your face look like that?”

“My… face?”

Reflexively, I raised a hand to touch my face.

The defensive enchantments were active—there shouldn’t have been any injuries.

“Don’t even think about hiding anything from me right now. Your expression is anything but fine.”

Her tone was firm.

But even if she had said nothing, it wouldn’t have mattered.

With those eyes staring at me, lying was no longer an option.

“…I didn’t take care of all of them. I let the most important one get away.”

“Who?”

The intensity in her eyes made it impossible to speak.

If I answered, she might go after him immediately.

“I don’t know. But he’s definitely not someone you want to get close to.”

The madness I saw in those eyes—nothing good would come from dealing with someone like that.

“Why is he after you?”

I considered telling her about Hailer, but decided against it.

She was a former Flame Legion commander—this wouldn’t concern her.

And frankly, I didn’t want to talk about it.

“I’m not exactly sure. But I doubt it matters much.”

It wasn’t a lie.

I truly had no idea what that red-haired man wanted.

“He’ll be dealt with tomorrow anyway.”

“You can track him?”

I wasn’t sure how to respond.

He definitely had more traps waiting—probably more dangerous than today’s.

And telling her I’d walk into that was not a good idea.

“…Yes.”

But I couldn’t lie either.

“Normally I wouldn’t be able to. But I’m guessing he left clues behind, expecting me to follow.”

“Another trap?”

“Probably, yeah…”

“No.”

Before I could finish, she said it.

“Let’s just go back. Leave the cleanup to the Hero, or that shadow guy. Or bring that old man with you or something.”

She spoke calmly, but there was a slight tremble at the end of her voice.

From her, that was practically a plea.

“There’s no need to worry. Today was just… the ambush caught me off guard. And the flame going out was more a fluke than actual danger…”

“No.”

“No, really, I’m perfectly fi—”

“No.”

“But—”

“I said no!”

With that shout, the dark crimson flames once again engulfed the barrier.

“Do you know how I felt when those flames went out? Do you have any idea what I was feeling?!”

Black flames surged as red lightning struck the barrier wall again.

But unlike before, there was no sense of threat.

Rather, it was overwhelmingly sorrowful and fragile.

Look at her now.

As the commander of the Demon Flame Legion, she was second only to the Demon King.

She feared nothing and could not even be imagined asking anyone for anything.

But now?

Trapped inside the barrier, she was begging like a child.

And not to anyone else — but to me.

Not because of anything else, but simply because she feared for my safety.

My heart ached.

It felt like drowning in a sea of guilt.

That wasn’t about hope.

Nor about her genuine feelings.

It was only because she had been trapped in that barrier for too long.

I was the only person she had seen for the past few years — and would be the only one she’d see going forward.

It’s just a delusion.

Romantic feelings in a cage are nothing but an illusion.

If you put two birds in a small cage, of course they’ll assume each other to be mates.

But what if the cage disappears one day?

What if the door opens?

Will they still see each other as their only one?

No.

They won’t.

It’s just a limited emotion, fabricated by the situation.

And as I said — making her fall for such a delusion… that’s crueler, sadder than keeping her locked up forever.

Just because she’s a demon — just because we need to keep her locked up for the safety of myself and others — that doesn’t mean we can toy with her feelings.

“…You don’t have to worry.”

I turned away from her and walked toward the beast-shaped ornament — the medium maintaining the barrier.

Symbols floated in the air at my gesture, and the spirits revealed themselves.

But this wasn’t just a summoning.

Above the floating spirits appeared symbols of contract and life, and atop them, the seal of time was formed.

—…!

The spirits made pained expressions and resisted momentarily, but then they soon settled into the beast ornament.

This was a spell using spirits as a medium — treating them as mere devices to cast the spell, forcibly binding their existence to it.

That’s why spirits hated it.

But there was no other choice.

To control the spirits regardless of time or distance, a simple summoning spell wasn’t enough.

If I were a more skilled magician — or even if I were calmer with a bit more time — I would have altered the spell cast on the ornament itself, rather than taking such a roundabout path.

But that was a meaningless “what if.”

“…What did you do?”

“I gave the spirits a command. If I die, destroy the medium maintaining the barrier immediately.”

“What?!”

The red lightning striking the wall flared stronger for a moment.

“You’re not saying…!”

I raised my hand quickly to calm her.

“Please relax. You know me well, don’t you?”

It wasn’t a lie.

No, definitely not a lie.

I slowly walked toward her.

I knew how cowardly this was.

But this was all I could do.

All I was allowed to do.

I reached out and placed my hand on the barrier wall.

I met her gaze directly.

“This is a promise. Please trust me. There’s no need to worry. I won’t die.”

I wanted to sound more reliable, but against my intention, my voice trembled a bit toward the end — I hated myself for that.

“…Really?”

But thankfully, even those imperfect words of mine helped calm her down.

“Of course. Didn’t Lady Ropena also say it before? Not only the generals, but even Demon King Thanatos couldn’t kill me. Who on earth on this surface could?”

I saw her eyes slowly relax, and the lightning and flames disappear.

I worried for a moment that her eyes might show a hint of disappointment or awkwardness — but I was ashamed of myself for even thinking that.

She was fully reassured by my words.

“Besides, you didn’t see the final battle yourself, but I actually took a direct hit from Demon King Thanatos and survived.”

Ten layers of my combat-type barrier shattered in an instant, and I couldn’t do much afterward, but still.

“To be honest, even the Demon King seemed a little surprised.”

“…Yeah. You’re that kind of person.”

A smile returned to her face, and seeing that smile made one bloom on mine as well.

Not a forced or calculated one, but a genuinely natural smile.

“Don’t worry. Everything will be resolved neatly in just one more day.”

“You’re sure?”

“Of course.”

And so, we looked at each other for a while.

I wished with all my heart that the emotions I saw in her eyes were truly for me — but that was probably too much to hope for.

“…Then I’ll rest for a bit. Honestly, I’m tired today.”

I still needed to prepare the combat-type barrier, but mentally, I wasn’t up for it anymore.

Too many shocks had hit me unexpectedly today.

And the biggest one was still her, standing right before me.

I prepared a bed and collapsed onto it.

Her gaze, which remained fixed on me, was burdensome in more ways than one — but it was something I had to endure.