C58: Repatriation

“By the way…”

I ask the Demon King something I’ve been meaning to ask for a long time.

“How did you reach this place?”

Unlike Mrs. Astres, he didn’t come by ship; it was just him alone.
It’s strange enough that I never bothered wondering about it until now, but since there’s no other topic to discuss as we relax, I tried asking him.

“Naturally, I used teleportation magic,” the Demon King replies.

I suspected as much.

“It has its limitations, but it’s still convenient for it lets you go anywhere you desire in an instant. Acquiring it is so difficult, only a few demons know how to use it.”
“What kind of limitations does it have?”
“You can only teleport to a previously-marked place. This means you need to have visited the place at least once to teleport to it. However, if you know its coordinates, you can still teleport to a place you’ve never been to before, making it convenient.”

So, the Demon King relied on waypoints to get here.

“Wait. When did such a thing happen? It should be around here somewhere, right?”
“If I remember correctly…One of Astres’ subordinates specializes in teleportation magic, and after getting her assessed, she was promoted to become her aide. Belena, was it?”

Huh. It’s not Batemy.
Maybe she secretly marked this place when they first came here?

“Just before Astres was banished from the capital after being pressed with charges for failing her task, Belena left a memo of the coordinates to this place.”

And thanks to that…

“I was able to follow after them and duly marry Astres,” says the Demon King earnestly.

In other words, the cupid that bound their love together was Mrs’ Astres’ aide, Belena?
She sure did a good job.

“But wouldn’t it be dangerous if such a mark exists?”

Since there are still other demons who can use teleportation magic, there’s a possibility that they’ll follow Demon King all the way here.

“Worry not. The coordinates to access the waypoint are encrypted. Unless the person who made the encryption tells you it, then identifying it is practically impossible.”

Well, that’s convenient.

“Furthermore, this place blocks demon’s clairvoyant magic from recognizing it. So, they’re far from being able to come here, let alone sense that I’m here.”
“Blocked from recognition?”
“You’re not aware of it? You do know about the clairvoyance magic we talked about before, don’t you?”

Yes.
It’s one of the many magic spells demons use that let you see faraway places in detail, right?

“A powerful restriction magic that voids it surrounds this entire area, making this place completely unrecognizable by magic.”

This is the first time I’ve heard of this.

“I wonder who put up such a convenient magic barrier…”
“That’s-!”

The Demon King looks at Veil who’s currently in her human form.

“What, you finally realized it, Master? I set up a barrier around this entire area after throwing those morons back into the battlefield.”
“It’s absolutely impossible for the demon race to break the inhibition magic surrounding this area set up by that little miss. As a matter of fact, I never would’ve known about this place had I not set foot here myself. It was all or nothing for me, so I went through the waypoint all because I wanted to get Astres back… Hahahaha!!!”

Veil was that considerate of me?

“You looked like you wanted to live here in peace, so I only made the smart move. And yet, you never realized it!”
“Sorry, I never thanked you for it. There, there…”

Patting her head for expressing both my apology and gratitude towards her, Veil smiles wholeheartedly.
It’s making me want to stroke her chin too.

“I can sympathize with living in peace. The days I’ve spent here may have been the calmest I’ve ever had, not to mention with my lifelong companion, Astres. I can never thank you enough, Lord Saint. However…”

The Demon King stands up.

“These peaceful times must come to an end soon.”
“Huh?”
“It’s high time we return to the capital and beat some sense into those who have been merry about my absence, put an end to their internal strife, and mow them down along with those imprudent fellows to regain the sympathy of the entire nation once more!”
“Ohh!!!”

So, it’s not just because he wanted to have some sexy time with Mrs. Astres. He actually had a genuine reason to stay here!

“I enjoyed my time here, but I am still a king. I must fulfill my duties as a ruler.”
“I was looking forward to hearing you say those words again.”

Mrs. Astres shows up.

“Before being your wife who swore eternal love in front of the Underworld God, Hades, I serve to constantly be by Lord Zedan’s side. Let us depart from here and head to the capital.”
“Yes!” says the Demon King as he hugs Mrs. Astres.

It’s as if they immediately understood each other without uttering many words.

“Miss Astres!”
“Please take us with you!”

The aides, Batemy and Belena, kneel side by side.
Since they both originally came here under Mrs. Astres’ command, they’re leaving with them too.

“There’s no need to force yourself, Batemy,” says Mrs. Astres in a gentle voice. “Wasn’t it your dream to follow your parents’ footsteps and open your shop? You can finally realize that dream of yours. I want you to stay here and keep doing what you’ve always dreamed of.”
“But Miss Astres-!”
“You stay here with Batemy too, Belena.”

Mrs. Astres is already exerting her solemnity as the Demon Queen.

“Teleportation magic is indispensable for us to return to this place once more. I want you to guard the waypoints set here.”
“T-That’s-!”
“The waypoint renders itself unfunctional if the environment changes more than a fixed amount. It’s a safety measure if the destination becomes an uninhabitable environment for living beings. This land rapidly evolves as Lord Saint continues cultivating it with each passing day. If no one maintains it, it will immediately vanish.”

After saying that, Mrs. Astres directs her gaze at me as if to ask for my approval.
Naturally, I have no qualms with it, so I nod sincerely.

“Miss Astres! I actually tailored a dress that I think would suit Her Majesty as the Demon Queen! Please, wear this on your way back to the capital!”
“Please rest assured knowing that I, Belena, swear to fulfill my duty of connecting this land to his and her Majesties!”

Thus, the aides Belena and Batemy will stay here while the royal demon couple goes back to their capital, each with their own roles to fulfill.

And since Belena was asked to stay here and maintain the waypoints, that means they still have plans of coming back here.