Chapter 13

Chapter 13 – Another Condition

Before opening the door, Erin stood still, listening carefully to gauge the situation outside.

“Absolutely no entry. Return immediately.”

The firm voice of Ten reached her ears, followed almost immediately by the voices of the women she had heard earlier.

“It’s the Emperor’s order! We also–”

The maids had come all the way to the entrance. Stubborn as they were, it seemed they had brought the tools for finishing the preparations and insisted on being here to help.

“Honestly, this is pointless. When we told you to leave, you should’ve just gone back.”

Ten and Neo were blocking the entry for the maids’ sake, yet the women insisted that the emperor’s orders took precedence, that even a minor act of assistance for her light preparations was vital.

“Such unnecessary stubbornness,” Erin muttered under her breath as she brushed her bangs aside. “Do they really have no sense at all?”

She wondered whether it would have been better to pretend ignorance, leave them behind, and simply escort her straight to the underground prison to vanish from sight.

There was no sign that this situation would end by their own hand.

When Erin threw the door open, silence fell over the corridor like cold water. She surveyed the scene before her with quiet satisfaction.

Ten and Neo stood with expressions that clearly read, “Oh, this is bad.” The maids, seeing Erin’s calm, expressionless face, froze in place, fear blooming on their faces even before she said a word.

Erin’s gaze swept over them without comment, landing on the precious white dress carefully held in a maid’s arms. She lifted the corner of her mouth in a slight smirk.

“So… the demon god wanted a bride, not a sacrifice?”

It was unlikely, of course.

Her words dripped with derision, and the maids shivered involuntarily. As her hand reached forward, their eyes squeezed shut in apprehension.

Yet contrary to their fears, Erin only picked up the lipstick meant for her lips.

Even if these fools had come under the emperor’s orders, if they did nothing, he would have scolded them anyway.

“Open your eyes.”

Her quiet command wrapped around the maids like a hand constricting a throat. Trembling, they forced themselves to open their eyes, the tension in their bodies clear.

Erin met each pair of frightened eyes directly. She dabbed the lipstick onto her pinky and began applying it to her lips.

Though bare-faced, her lips blossomed a deeper red with the lipstick, becoming the first mark of color against her otherwise neutral features.

Her eyes, sharp and devoid of emotion, had never been particularly beautiful, yet even this simple act seemed to soften her and diminish her otherwise neutral, androgynous appearance.

The maids stared, bewitched without realizing it, until the errant lipstick fell to the floor. Only then did they snap back to themselves.

“This should be sufficient for a sacrifice, not a bride’s adornment.”

Erin spoke simply, then wiped the remaining lipstick from her pinky onto the dress she had meant to apply it to.

She had not outright disobeyed the emperor’s orders. Yet she felt certain that her message—she would not follow orders so readily—had been communicated loud and clear.

Erin gestured toward the maids, who still stood frozen.

“Move aside.”

They obeyed hastily, and without hesitation, Erin passed through them and headed toward the underground prison beneath the paladin headquarters.

Ten and Neo followed, though no order had been given for them to do so.

Were they curious to see the final stage of her preparation? Erin felt the urge to tell them to stay behind but decided against it. They were not the sort to listen anyway. Surely, they would have insisted on staying at the entrance.

“Is there really any need to come here if you can’t even enter?” she asked with a hint of teasing.

From behind, Ten’s cautious voice replied,

“We still want to escort you after you finish.”

Concern for her safety? Erin chuckled quietly.

“Such unnecessary worry.”

Before long, they reached the stairs leading down to the underground prison. Despite being a place for holding monsters, the location was strangely tucked deep in the forest, surrounded by lush trees and flowers. Some even mistook it for a temple honoring Piace, the goddess of death.

Erin paused to take in the area. She had been here a few times before, yet the place still felt strangely familiar.

Her gaze fell to the staircase. At its bottom lay a thick iron door. Beyond it, one would have to bear the full force of the monsters’ curses to enter.

Why… would he come here of his own accord? she wondered.

If his target had been her, he should have killed her the day they first reunited.

Yet he had done nothing beyond toying with her. Was it his intention to play with her like a cat with its prey before killing it?

He was certainly more malicious than she had imagined.

“Your preparations…” Ten’s voice trembled slightly with concern.

Erin turned, lightly ruffling Ten’s hair.

“I’ll be back soon.”

For the first time, a period punctuated her doubt toward him. He would not kill her now. Not immediately.

With that, she began descending the stairs. Though the iron door had been reinforced with holy power to ward off the monsters’ curses, she could feel her skin prickle with discomfort as she approached the entrance.

No matter how many times I come here, it’s still a disgusting place.

She reached the door, swung it open without hesitation, and stepped inside.

Each door was twenty centimeters thick; it usually required two strong men to force them open. Yet Erin lifted it effortlessly and entered the pitch-black chamber.

As the door slammed shut behind her, the air thickened with the curse, and she wrinkled her nose, muttering a quiet curse of her own.

The underground prison had been built to contain monsters. Any captured creatures were used for research or as weapon materials by the paladins.

Erin had personally captured nine-tenths of them, and her scent alone told the monsters to seethe with a desire to kill her.

Yet the deeper she went, she realized that the oppressive atmosphere was not from living creatures. It was the accumulated curses of past deaths, not the malice of living monsters.

Not all of them could have died…

Perhaps the demon god had arrived and drawn the survivors toward him. Soon, she sensed his presence, the sheer intensity of his gaze settling on her like a tangible thing.

Her steps carried her naturally toward the innermost depths.

Finding a path in complete darkness was difficult, but among the twisted energies, his gaze stood out clearly.

Yet as she followed it, the floor grew slick with blood, and the stench became overwhelming.

Another needless hierarchy struggle, she thought. It was common enough, and she tried not to concern herself.

“Have you come?”

Erin’s eyes widened slightly.

On a hill of piled corpses, a man leaned back, laughing as he looked down at her.

Seeing him once more, she managed to maintain some composure, though the gaze from above remained unpleasant.

The first day they reunited, he had looked down from the cross. Even when he appeared in Ten’s guise, he had looked down on her then too.

The old, vile feeling surged again, and Erin extended her hand toward Gabriel.

“Do not look down at me without my permission.”

The feeling of revulsion flared.

With that, she grabbed his collar with her magic and pulled him toward her. Gabriel, caught off guard, barely managed to land before sprawling across the floor.

He stared at her with mild surprise.

“…Still, it is nice to see you after all this time.”

Gabriel let out a soft chuckle, adjusting his rumpled attire.

“After eighteen years, and only a month since the last meeting.”

Erin remained silent, barely containing her repulsion.

“You likely haven’t fared… well.”

He spoke as though he already knew the answer, smiling faintly as he looked at her.

“Get to the point.”

“You must have heard what he said.”

Erin glared at him, challenging his playful reluctance to provide answers.

“I ask what you plan to do with a live sacrifice.”

“To make a trade you’ll like.”

Her right eyebrow lifted and fell.

His gaze never wavered from her, as if he wanted to catch every twitch, every reaction to his words.

“Curious?”

“This one is… intriguing.”

“You’ll like it. I’ll tell you a way to kill the Night Demon, if you wish.”

Erin drew a blank. He had just said, in her own words, that she could kill him herself. Her heart pounded. She knew it was likely a lie, yet a part of her desperately wanted to believe him.

“I knew you’d like it.”

Gabriel’s gaze met hers, and he smiled as though genuinely pleased.

Erin stared at him silently. Of course, she would have to offer something in return. What could it be? She tilted her head slightly, waiting for him to speak.

Yet in an instant, Gabriel’s expression shifted to something incomprehensible.

He merely tilted his head slightly to the left, yet his eyes seemed filled with profound sadness.

And then, he simply stared at her. No words came.