King Abellion opened his eyes slowly.

He had been spending so much time seated on his throne that he often slept there as well. As such, when he woke, he found himself still in the same position.

“So… she’s dead, uh?” He murmured.

Every Demon Lord was connected to Abellion via Magic. As such, the death of Lydia came to his notice the moment she drew her last breath.

His expression didn’t change from the stoic expression he donned.

Abellion’s eyes were still a bit heavy from the short sleep he had, but they seemed a little downcast.

“Who did it…?” The Demon King whispered.

Even though they never really went public with their feelings, the truth was that he and Lydia were lovers.

They had loved each other for so long that the King couldn’t even begin to express the sense of loss he was currently experiencing.

“W-who….who did it…?” His whispers gree harsher.

Abellion had hoped that he and Lydia would finally go public with their intentions after the war.

Even though her mission was dangerous, she had done worse in the past—like the time with the Midas Race those years ago.

He didn’t doubt her capabilities, neither did he want her to be useless to their cause. Lydia was one of his most useful Generals, so it would have been a waste to keep her from doing her duties for the sake of protecting her.

“What a fool I am…” Abellion stifled his overflowing emotions and supported his dropping head with his hand.

His bloodshot eyes and gritting teeth gave off a feel of anger, but really, he was still wallowing in grief.

The pangs of his loss were so great that the King began channeling it into something else…

“But… this just proves how right I am.”

… Blame!

“Those humans are too dangerous! Not just Kahn, but now, even Lydia…”

His father had been wrong!

If only they had taken action sooner, then perhaps things wouldn’t have gotten to this point.

The only thing Abellion wasn’t certain of was whether or not Lydia was able to destroy the machine that threatened their existence.

Abellion didn’t doubt his deceased lover’s loyalty to him. However… he couldn’t count on the fulfillment of her mission.

“The humans are more of a threat than I thought. It is indeed better to take care of them first.”

Fortunately, they were of the mistaken belief that the Demons would attack the Elf Kingdom first.

That way, there would be less resistance if they struck the human Kingdom.

Abellion already had the perfect plan.

All the Whites within the Kingdom would be called to retreat. They would gather all their forces and strike.

‘I should go as well…’ There was no way he could stand still after Lydia was killed.

It was his duty as her superior… and her lover!

“I’ll make sure to watch them fall into despair… and I’ll make sure the culprit dies by my hand!”

With this, his obsessive gaze rested on the looking shadow that was appearing before him.

“Legris Damien? What are you doing here?”

The shadow became unveiled, and a youthful man emerged.

“Ah, I just came to offer my condolences. I heard Lydia died.”

“You… how did you find out?” Abellion growled.

“I have my ways. Besides, I actually came on official business. The loan period has reached. I’m here to retrieve the Arcana we lent to you.”

“Huu… is that so? Very well. Meet Kyron. He’s the one managing things in that department.” Abellion spoke.

His heart was still trying to recover from the news of his beloved’s death. While it was important to maintain his image as King, the Demon no longer had it in him to display that level of charisma.

“Then, I’ll be on my way. If I may, I’d just like to give one warning…”

“What is it?” Abellion spoke rather impatiently.

Even though he had resolved the earlier issue of Jared Leonard with Legris Damien, he was still rather annoyed at the human before him.

“There’s a man in the Eastern Kingdom, Neron Kaelid, if you can help it… don’t fight him.”

“Oh? Why?”

“Well, isn’t it obvious? You’d lose.”

Abellion couldn’t stand it any longer. His pent-up anger and frustration finally reached a precipice beyond what his self-control could handle.

“That’s it!”

In a fit, Abellion summoned an immensely powerful blade out of thin air—utilizing his Original Magic from the start.

>WHOOOOSSHHHH<

Faster than even Legris Damien could notice, the blade impaled him in a flash.

“Guark!”

Even as the human spat blood, and a pool was forming under him, he never ceased smiling.

“Y-you… do you have an idea of what you’ve done?”

Abellion realized that attacking a member of the Organization would spell bad news for him and his people.

His anger had caused him to make an error. However—

“You’re nothing but a mere human who’s good with his tongue. Surely, ‘they’ will understand why I had to do this. Besides… what Importance could you, a member of their lower seat, warrant? Certainly, they would much rather value their relationship with us than keep a dog like you.”

Abellion was in the mood anyway.

‘I might as well unleash a bit of my frustration here…’ The Demon King thought to himself, still gallantly seated on his throne.

“Haaa… is that what you really thin—?”

Before Legris could complete his next statement, another huge blade was lunged at his head, ripping him into two.

It was a gory sight—how blood sprouted from his cracked skull like a fountain—but Abellion didn’t seem concerned.

“Foolish human. He should have known his place.” The Demon King murmured.

Though he had known Legris Damien for quite a while, it wasn’t like Abellion felt that deep a connection to him.

He was but a mere human, after all.

“It’s funny how arrogant a person becomes when they get a taste of power.”

“U-uh?!”

As Abellion heard a strange voice and uttered a sound of confusion, strange energy wafted in the air.

It was the same unpleasant power he had always noticed around the man he just killed.

‘T-this is—?!’