Chapter 19: An Unexpected Turn of Events
The sworn enemy of the Demon Tribe, Kenta Maya.
Receiving orders to investigate his surroundings and his connection with Weimar, Mona arrived at the forest where Kenta was known to hide, a public secret among the Demon Tribe.
And there, she quickly discovered something perplexing.
“…Why are Weimar’s soldiers guarding the entrance to this forest?”
Mona could enter the forest not just through the well-maintained mountain path guarded by the soldiers, but also via the unmarked trails.
However, this time, it was an investigation into Kenta’s affairs.
The fact that soldiers were stationed at the entrance to the forest where Kenta resided was abnormal.
Could this be evidence that Kenta and Weimar were secretly in cahoots? Mona pondered.
“I need to investigate this further.”
Deciding to speak with the soldiers on her way back from the investigation, she ventured deeper into the forest.
Using her magic to navigate through the dense trees, she eventually reached a point where she was out of sight from the soldiers and emerged onto the mountain path.
“What a lax security detail. Do they even intend to protect this place?”
Once inside the forest, Mona found it surprisingly easy to infiltrate, leading her to suspect it might be a trap.
Thus, while remaining on high alert, she continued onward and noticed something.
“A Barrier?”
After advancing along the mountain path for a while, she discovered a cleverly concealed barrier infused with magic power.
“…I hate to admit it, but that’s impressive. A Human would hardly notice it. I wonder how many Demons would even be aware of it…”
Because she had been cautious of traps, she was able to detect the faint traces of magic left behind by the barrier.
However, had she approached carelessly, she might have missed it entirely, and despite her reluctance to praise him, she was astonished by the level of magical skill displayed.
“According to previous reports, there was no such barrier. So why now…?”
Kenta, who had never employed barriers while dealing with the Human Tribe, had suddenly erected one.
She contemplated the reason, but if it wasn’t a barrier meant for Humans, it could only be a barrier against the Demon Tribe.
“But why the sudden change…? Ugh, there’s just too much to investigate this time.”
Mona muttered, reaching out to analyze the barrier.
“…What a meticulous and efficient magic formula. It seems that merely touching the barrier will alert him…”
This meant that Kenta would be notified at this very moment.
She needed to complete her analysis before Kenta arrived, so Mona hurriedly began her examination of the barrier, but progress was painfully slow.
“Ugh, come on! How can he, not even a Demon, create such a complex magic formula?!”
The urgency of needing to finish before Kenta arrived, combined with her frustration at the barrier’s intricate magic, made Mona involuntarily shout out.
Such behavior was unthinkable for someone on a covert mission, but the two reasons had clouded her judgment.
As a result…
“Hey. What are you doing here?”
“Ahhh!!”
While she was engrossed in analyzing the barrier, a voice suddenly called out from behind her.
Startled by the unexpected voice, Mona let out a scream from the depths of her being and stumbled backward.
The shock was so intense that her heart raced wildly, and her body trembled uncontrollably.
“W-What!? N-No way!?”
She was shaking so much that she could barely form a coherent response.
Mona was half in a panic.
“Don’t worry, I’m not a ghost.”
The man who had appeared without a sound said this, and Mona managed to calm her racing heart enough to look at his face.
And then, she recognized that the man standing before her was Kenta Maya, the sworn enemy of the Demon Tribe.
“Kenta Maya…!”
Faced with the sudden encounter with her nemesis, that was all Mona could say.
Glaring at Kenta, her emotions a mix of hatred and fear, Kenta responded with a remarkably casual tone.
“Yeah, that’s me. Who are you? What are you doing here?”
His utterly disrespectful attitude made Mona’s insides boil with rage, but she knew she had no chance of defeating Kenta in a fight.
So, she decided to provoke him, hoping to extract some information.
Shifting from her earlier hostile expression, she adopted a mocking demeanor as she spoke to Kenta.
“Did you finally start to fear our revenge by putting up such a grand barrier?”
“Nope.”
Despite her best efforts to belittle him, he denied it with that same light tone.
He looked as if he wanted to say, “What are you even talking about?”
His blatant mockery only fueled Mona’s anger further.
“…Hmph. Then why, after being so open until now, did you suddenly erect a barrier?”
Realizing that beating around the bush was pointless with him, Mona decided to directly ask about the reason for the barrier.
However, Kenta’s expression turned icy as he cut her off.
“Why should I tell you?”
“…The fact that you’re trying to hide something means there’s a secret…”
“Did you not hear me? Why should I tell you?”
After Kenta said this, Mona felt an overwhelming pressure emanating from him.
The source was Kenta.
He was projecting his magic power with an intimidating force directed at her.
“!? Ugh!?”
The pressure was unlike anything she had ever felt before, and Mona nearly fell to her knees.
Struggling to hold her ground, Kenta spoke again in a cold tone.
“I don’t know what you came here to investigate, but I have no intention of saying anything. Just leave.”
His dismissive words left Mona speechless, and all she could do was glare at him with hatred.
After a tense standoff, the pressure from Kenta suddenly vanished.
Having exerted all her strength to withstand it, Mona felt her energy drain away and instinctively dropped to her knees.
As she struggled to regain her composure, Kenta began to speak again.
“I understand why you all hate me. But I’m not going to just let myself be killed easily. I don’t want to die. So, unless you do something, I won’t do anything to you. Just… if you intend to come after me, be prepared to face my full retaliation. If you challenge me, come with that resolve.”
“…”
Hearing those words, Mona cursed her own helplessness, realizing that retreating was the only option available to her.
Here stood the enemy of the former king before her.
Because of him, the Demon Tribe was thrown into chaos, and the princess who had ascended to the throne to restore order had gone missing due to failed policies.
Yet, she was utterly powerless against Kenta.
The frustration of being unable to act against him burned in her, and she glared at him as if trying to etch his image into her memory.
Perhaps because she was staring so intently, or perhaps because she recalled the princess of the Demon Tribe… something caught her eye, and Mona’s eyes widened.
It was a handkerchief adorned with a very familiar embroidery.
“…Ah, wait? No way…”
She recognized that distinctive embroidery.
In fact, it was something she had taught someone, and there was no way she could mistake it.
Could it be…?
“Huh? What’s wrong?”
Lost in thoughts of the impossible, she was jolted back to reality by Kenta’s voice.
“N-No, it’s nothing.”
Mona could only manage to deflect his inquiry.
“What’s that?”
“I-I said it’s really nothing!!”
Though she wanted to interrogate him about the embroidered handkerchief, her overwhelming hatred for Kenta prevented her from asking directly.
So, in a moment of panic, she shouted her denial.
“…Don’t suddenly shout like that. Fine, whatever. Just get going.”
His dismissive gesture felt like he was shooing away a dog, igniting her anger once more, but she had no choice but to comply with Kenta’s words.
Reluctantly turning to leave, Mona felt an irresistible pull to look back just once.
“…I’m Mona.”
“Huh? Why the sudden introduction?”
Kenta asked, clearly puzzled by her sudden self-introduction, but she understood that the situation was unnatural.
However, revealing her name here could mean that it would reach the ears of the woman under Kenta’s command.
If that happened, there might be some reaction.
So, she desperately tried to come up with an excuse.
“…It’s unfair that only I know your name.”
“Well, I didn’t particularly want to know it…”
“Anyway!! Today, I, Mo-Na! have come!!”
With Kenta tilting his head in confusion, Mona shouted her name and then dashed towards the barrier’s exit.
As she ran, her mind was filled with thoughts of the woman who had embroidered that handkerchief… the former queen, Meileen.
“Meileen-sama is with him… Could it be that she was captured and forced into his arms? No, that embroidery pattern wouldn’t make sense, and the magic power woven into it can’t be explained either. In other words… Meileen-sama is under his protection…”
The embroidery that Mona saw depicted a rose.
It was the kind of embroidery that a woman would send to her lover or husband, filled with affection.
This meant that Meileen was not being held against her will by Kenta; she was there of her own accord.
Just that realization made Mona’s heart flutter.
Mona had harbored hatred towards Kenta because she believed he had thrown the Demon Tribe Nation into chaos, resulting in Meileen’s disappearance.
Now that Meileen had been found, her negative feelings towards Kenta had already begun to fade significantly.
Mona had been working in a department primarily focused on intelligence gathering to search for Meileen, and now that Meileen was likely located, she found herself contemplating whether to leave the Demon Tribe Nation and go to Kenta.
Lost in thought, she spotted the guards at the entrance of the forest.
“Speaking of which, I need to talk to them too.”
Remembering her mission, Mona veered off the mountain path and entered the woods, making her way to the main road.
She approached the guards, pretending to be an explorer looking for materials.
“Halt!”
“Eh? Oh, yes.”
Mona feigned a bit of confusion as she complied with the guard’s command.
“Are you an explorer?”
“Y-yes. I came to collect medicinal herbs that grow in this forest…”
“I see. Sorry, but this forest has been off-limits for a while now.”
“What!? Why is that?”
Mona acted surprised, looking up at the soldier with wide eyes.
The guards, unable to distinguish her from a human as long as she concealed her wings, were completely unguarded. In fact, they were quite pleased to have the glamorous Mona looking up at them, and they began to chatter away.
“Ah, well, apparently, they issued a wrong wanted poster the other day. We’re here to ensure nothing goes wrong.”
“A wrong wanted poster?”
“Yeah. Have you ever seen the wanted poster for that guy deep in the forest?”
“Is he wanted by all the humans out there?”
“Exactly, that guy. A new wanted poster was issued for him, but… even I think the contents are a bit much. We’re just trying to prevent any bounty hunters from entering the forest.”
“Hmm… So, what was that wrong request like?”
Mona lightly touched the soldier’s arm and looked up at him again.
“W-Well, I guess I can tell you. But this is a secret, okay?”
The soldier said this and pulled out Kenta’s wanted poster from his pocket to show Mona.
As she read the contents of the poster, Mona felt a surge of anger welling up inside her, almost releasing her magic power.
If she did that, her identity as a demon would be exposed, so she desperately suppressed her rage.
“Isn’t that awful? Even if it’s to catch a dangerous criminal, to capture an innocent spouse? Well, they quickly retracted it as a mistake, but it had already circulated to some extent, so we’re keeping watch just in case.”
“I see… Thanks for letting me know. Well then.”
“Wait, um, at least tell me your name…”
The soldier behind her was saying something, but Mona completely ignored him and walked away.
Once she was sure no one was around, she began to speak to herself.
“I understand now… Kenta Maya cast that barrier to protect Meileen-sama. After such a wanted poster circulated, he retaliated against Weimar, the one who issued it.”
With this newfound knowledge, Mona decided on her next course of action.
She needed to prepare as soon as she got back.
Unlike her gloomy departure, Mona returned with a buoyant spirit.