Two weeks later, on a certain mountaintop.
Lucia carried that glowing tree branch over her shoulder.
Several strips of dried meat hung from the back of the branch, along with the Goddess’s dress, which had been twisted and knotted into a makeshift cradle.
In it, the little octopus girl swayed back and forth.
Lucia surveyed her surroundings and nodded with satisfaction.
“This place is nice.”
Inside the cradle, Lucoco, whose small face looked a bit weary, also took in the area.
‘It really is a good spot.’
The elevation was high, and the top was flat and relatively open.
There was a small lake fed by a spring, and a stream flowed nearby, dropping off a short distance away to become a small waterfall.
Most importantly, it was surrounded by cliffs on three sides, and there was only one narrow path leading up the mountain.
It was the ultimate holy land for a slow life!
However…
Looking at the status panel and the exaggerated text indicating all attributes were increased by 2000%, Lucoco didn’t know whether to be happy or afraid.
The authority of the **[Demon King]** seal was constantly being activated by a powerful presence within this region.
Because of this, she had been using various methods to guide Lucia in one specific direction.
During these two weeks, they had traveled at least several hundred miles, yet the seal remained active.
She knew a terrifying existence had to be hiding in this area!
But for some reason, they had only encountered creatures whose levels did not exceed Level 10 along the way.
During this time, she had used her sleep periods to log out of the game and gather information online.
She had indeed found her current location: an ancient ruin known as the **Echo Mountain Territory**.
This region was once the territory of a certain vampire clan.
Within an ancient ruin buried deep underground, a powerful Vampire Sovereign was sealed.
The source activating her seal also pointed toward that Vampire Sovereign.
She was terrifyingly powerful!
This entire area belonged to her domain.
From beginning to end, Lucoco never associated this powerful existence with her young mother.
She hadn’t kept it a secret either, repeatedly hinting to Lucia that there was something scary nearby, that it was dangerous, and that her seal was acting as a warning.
But Lucia didn’t care at all, only saying, “There’s nothing to be afraid of. It’s just a vampire.”
She even vowed with absolute certainty that the thing could definitely never come out.
The information Lucoco found online said the same thing.
But Lucoco just felt uneasy, as if she were being watched… The thing down there was a Sovereign-class monster!
That was an existence even stronger than a King-class monster.
While she hesitated, Lucia slowly crouched down, and the octopus girl, who had been brooding inside the clothes, spread out her tentacles.
Lucia placed the skill crystal left by the Goddess into her hand, gently stroked her daughter’s small head, and whispered, “Mommy is going to build a house. Little Coco, be good and don’t run around, okay?”
Lucoco held the crystal and nodded obediently.
What could she say?
She was just a “baby,” after all.
‘Even if Lucia is an elite adventurer, building a decent house should take at least half a month, right?’
That was what she thought…
But before the thought even finished, she saw Lucia take a few steps forward, kneel on one knee, and strike the ground with both palms.
“Rise—!”
The ground suddenly trembled, and several solid earthen walls slowly rose.
Countless wooden branches and roots sprouted from the top of the walls, intertwining to form a roof.
Watching the “shell” of the house take shape, covered in beautiful flowers and plants, Lucoco’s mouth hung open slightly.
‘Fine… I was the one who lacked vision.’
She immediately searched her memory for the ability Lucia was using: it was **[Architect]** from the **[Prosperity Seal]**, and it looked like it was at a high rank.
Over the past few days, Lucia had also used light, fire, and ice magic, which meant she also possessed seals related to **[Rational Magic]** and **[Light Magic]**.
Being able to awaken seals from two different systems was quite rare for both indigenous adventurers and players.
A one-in-a-hundred chance would be considered high—one in a hundred among the Awakened.
Watching Lucia continuously pile up the structures, Lucoco began to construct strange plotlines in her head.
‘Could it be…’
‘I, who was considered the weakest and useless support, left the party because I only wanted to live a slow life!’
‘Giving birth to the Demon King after leaving the party; starting from a slow life!’
Meanwhile, Lucia, who was busy using magic to transform the environment, had eyes full of longing for the future.
Her mission as a Saint was a thing of the past.
Her life from now on belonged only to herself.
As for the Goddess’s request, she didn’t give it much thought.
In her understanding, Lucoco was just a special “Half-Demon.”
Just like the books said, Half-Demon cubs were born with spiritual awareness and grew extremely fast at the start.
For example, two rows of tiny teeth had grown in a few days ago.
Except for the first night when she needed help feeding, Lucoco hadn’t made her worry at all.
She would even proactively help process ingredients and use her soft tentacles to massage her mother’s shoulders and legs while they rested.
That clumsy, cute, and obedient appearance made Lucia’s heart melt.
It made her maternal love overflow and convinced her that with just a little guidance, Lucoco would surely be shaped in her image!
For this reason, she chose to hole up in this dense forest and avoid contact with outsiders.
She absolutely wouldn’t let any “wild brats” lead her Coco astray!
Half-Demons weren’t rare in this world, and they were quite popular among adventurers.
While busy, Lucia glanced back and saw Lucoco staring at her with wide, curious eyes.
She grinned, revealing two rows of bright white teeth, and smiled exceptionally happily.
After a few more hours, Lucia completed the prototype of their new home.
Earthen walls reinforced by magic formed a circular perimeter.
Inside were several plots of tilled land prepared for a vegetable garden.
Pebble paths connected several houses with a magical flair, their exteriors covered in exotic flowers and plants, looking like something out of a dream.
Lucia also diverted the stream, creating a pond next to the garden and turning one of the rooms into a bathhouse.
***
By the time everything was done, it was already afternoon.
There were still a few empty spots, but Lucia chose not to continue the renovations.
She simply gathered some soft grass and leaves from nearby, processed them slightly, and piled them into the bedroom to serve as bedding.
The mother and daughter needed to start preparing dinner before it got dark.
Lucia picked up the Goddess’s dress, and after some twisting, it became a “burlap sack” for ingredients, which she slung over her shoulder.
She picked up that glowing tree branch and said to Lucoco with a smile, “Let’s go! Time to look for mountain goods!”
Lucoco nodded and followed, hugging the skill crystal and crawling along with her tentacles.
On her system page, it displayed: Skill **[Mimicry]** comprehension progress: â–¡â–¡â–¡â–¡.
A few days ago, Lucia had told her, “This is something left by that Goddess of Light. Once you learn it, you’ll be able to mimic a human.”
As for the burlap sack: “It’s a pity the Goddess’s dress can’t be cut. Otherwise, Mommy would have sewn a little dress for you.”
And the glowing branch: “This is a branch from the World Tree. You can use it as a wand in the future, and it’ll work for knocking people out, too.”
Lucia spoke without reservation, not caring if a newborn baby could understand her. She just said it all very simply.
And… she had even pointed out Lucoco’s identity directly.
She had said, “Mommy doesn’t care about other Demon Kings, but my Coco! You must be good! You must live your life well as a human!”
Lucoco’s heart had nearly jumped out of her chest when she heard that.
It wasn’t from fear, but from sheer excitement!
Setting aside the fact that her mother already knew about her **[Demon King]** seal, the appearance of the Goddess meant her existence was recognized—and by the highest-level being in this world, no less.
Although she didn’t understand why the Goddess chose to let her, a Demon King, go, her safety was finally secured.
She wouldn’t have to worry about someone descending with a divine oracle to strike her down with heavenly punishment, right?
Probably… not anymore…
In the woods, Lucia crouched down and picked a mushroom from beneath a tree.
She said to Lucoco, “Come, Coco, look. This one is edible. See this pattern…”
Lucoco looked at the mushroom seriously and found relevant information in her memory.
In the **Astra Mountain Goods Guide**, this thing was clearly marked as poisonous!
However, she wasn’t in a hurry. She waited for Lucia’s next words.
Sure enough, Lucia took out a type of wild vegetable leaf she had just picked from the “burlap sack” and held them together for Lucoco to see.
“But if you don’t pair it with this, you’ll get poisoned after eating it. Your vision will flip upside down, and your limbs will go out of control.”
“If you process these two together, you can make pellets that strengthen mental power.”
Lucoco still looked confused, carefully examining the two mushrooms without reacting in any other way.
She wouldn’t let her secret slip, but she was truly committing it to memory!
This kind of unrecorded knowledge was very precious.
Players could actually exchange it for rewards on the official website.
Maybe she couldn’t exchange it herself, but she could sell the information to other players.
Lucia didn’t linger.
After the explanation, she continued searching for other ingredients.
This wasn’t the first time something like this had happened, and not everything Lucia said was correct.
But of course, mistaking something lethal for normal food never happened!
No matter how you looked at it, Lucia was a Saint; she couldn’t make such a low-level mistake.
At the very least, poison-detection magic wouldn’t allow such a situation to occur.
And even if things went wrong, she had holy healing magic to keep them alive.
Lucia’s vast knowledge naturally made Lucoco extremely curious about her identity.
In her guesses, Lucia might have been a logistics member for an elite adventurer team—the kind of hard worker who had to survive through grit and toil.
The heads of ordinary adventurers were filled with either muscles or commissions and gold!
They usually bought their potions and food.
Who would study these things so deeply?
The forest wind brushed through the trees…
“Coco, come here. Look at this grass…”
Lucia seriously explained the knowledge she knew while gathering materials.
Lucoco moved her soft feet, leaving trails in the mud.
She memorized Lucia’s words, every single one of them.
She firmly believed that this knowledge would definitely come in handy in the future.