Surrounding the wall with mana, he measured the amount of mana contained in the wall to gauge its height and width. Based on that calculation, Cadel chose the higher wall. The breakthrough he discovered smoothly activated the mechanism, and as a result.

[……Good job, halfling.]

He felt the tremor of the earth. Hurriedly exiting the building, he saw Garuel rushing toward him. The two faced each other, hesitating for a moment, their gazes meeting. In the exchanged looks were different kinds of hesitation, curiosity, and a bit of awkwardness.

The first to act was Garuel. As if he had forgotten the past memories, he put on an indifferent expression.

“Knight Commander, over here!”

They ran toward the center of the village. When they arrived, they saw a circular platform below Kunra’s feet spinning and glowing brightly.

“This is…… Is it okay to stand here, Kunra?”

“You’re worrying about everything. You all get in here. You need to be on this to move.”

It was a rather suspicious suggestion, but Cadel decided not to ask any further questions and stepped into the circle. Garuel quickly followed behind him. The moment the three men stepped into the circle.

Rumble―

The circular platform they stood on began to sink into the ground. Cadel, stumbling as the ground unexpectedly dropped, barely managed to keep his balance. The platform gradually increased its sinking speed.

“Whoa……! Kunra!”

“It’s fine.”

“Isn’t it just fine for Lord Kunra? Should we be fine too?”

“If it’s your body, you should be fine, so don’t worry.”

Garuel pulled Cadel closer and hugged him, and Cadel, clinging to Garuel’s embrace, nervously looked around. Kunra, seeing the two of them, scoffed and shook his head.

Their vision, digging deep into the earth, was completely dark. The cold, damp wind messily tangled their hair, and soon the musty smell of earth filled the air. Cadel felt an unpleasant sensation as if his heart was leaping, and tightly shut his eyes. The falling ground showed no sign of stopping.

‘How far are we going down? I feel like I’m going to puke!’

Cadel, who bit his lip in nausea, tightly clutched Garuel’s waist. The heavy weight pulling him down made Garuel hesitate for a moment, but soon, he gently stroked Cadel’s stiff shoulder.

The fall, which had felt like it would never end, finally stopped. The platform came to a halt, and it jolted as it responded to the sudden stop.

“……I think we’ve arrived.”

As the slightly trembling breath echoed in his ears, Cadel’s heart, which had been nervously shaking, soon began to race with excitement. Pulling away from Garuel’s embrace, Cadel lifted his head and looked ahead.

Before them, a long tunnel stretched out. At the end of it was an exit, from which bright light seeped through. The tunnel itself wasn’t dark either, thanks to the bats scattered throughout it. The bats, glowing with a purple light, illuminated the way ahead. As Cadel observed the bats for a moment, he realized that they were not living creatures, but sculptures.

“Do you think the Demon King’s siblings are beyond there?”

Cadel, who had been scanning the tunnel, asked, and Kunra, who had been silently staring at the exit, slowly nodded.

“From here on, it will be a race against time. Whatever is beyond, don’t hesitate—destroy it.”

The system had already caught on. Despite his light resistance, Cadel had forced a path open, and now the system would begin to interfere in earnest. Cadel, seeming to be aware of that, swallowed dryly and quickly began running toward the exit. Garuel and Kunra followed behind him.

It didn’t take long to cross the tunnel. They quickly reached the exit, and as Cadel’s eyes took in the view beyond, they widened in surprise.

“The Demon King’s siblings.”

A pure white space, entirely bathed in whiteness. There, three High Demons floated in the air, hanging limply. Were they suspended because there was no gravity in that place, or was there another reason for keeping these near-lifeless beings in the air? The many questions that arose vanished the moment Cadel stepped through the exit.

“Ah!”

“Knight Commander!”

There had been nothing in front of them, yet as Cadel boldly stepped forward, he slammed his face against an invisible wall and bounced back. With a dull thud, Cadel screamed, and Garuel rushed over to pull him close.

“Ugh…… it hurts……”

“Move your hand. I’ll treat it.”

“I-I’m fine……”

“No, you’re not fine. Your pretty forehead is so swollen.”

Garuel quickly rubbed Cadel’s red, swollen forehead and released his demonic energy. Meanwhile, Kunra, who had been walking leisurely behind them, furrowed his brow.

“The exit is blocked. Did they implant a mechanism?”

It hadn’t been there when they first arrived. Kunra walked up to the exit, and as he reached out his hand, a transparent barrier wavered in the air where there had been nothing before.

After gently releasing his energy to probe the barrier, Kunra sighed and looked at Cadel, who was watching him, as if to ask, ‘What’s with this barrier?’.

“It’s a trap. After unlocking that complicated mechanism, we have to deal with a trap too. Their vigilance is certainly strong.”

“A trap? Then what do we do to get past the barrier?”

“Getting past the barrier isn’t the problem. It’s the one who’ll be arriving here soon.”

The one who would be arriving soon. At Kunra’s irritated words, Cadel and Garuel exchanged a glance. If any demons were coming to this secret space where the Demon King’s siblings were sleeping, they surely wouldn’t be ordinary.

* * *

“The destination is just ahead! Hurry up!”

The end of the ice staircase was in sight. With Ector, who had successfully treated his injuries, leading the way, everyone increased their pace. Despite the numerous obstacles they faced while climbing the long staircase, they reached the summit, thanks to their willpower and the desperate cover provided by the knights on the ground.

At the top, the floor and ceiling were intact. Ector, the first to set foot, cautiously surveyed the surroundings, signaling to those following that it was safe to ascend.

“Sir Yozen, please.”

At Ector’s words, Yozen knelt down, placing his hand on the ground. The dark energy he channeled spread from his fingertips, quickly seeping into the floor. His energy rapidly swept across the castle, scanning the area.

As Yozen checked for enemy positions, the other knights looked around. The first floor of the castle’s upper level was eerily silent. Despite humans entering, there were no demons coming out to stop them, and no traps were detected.

“We couldn’t have climbed the stairs without them taking action.” 

Lumen said, certain that the demons had set something up to prevent humans from reaching the Demon King. Just then, Yozen, having completed his scan, stood up.

“I couldn’t check all the way to the top. There’s a dangerous barrier several floors up. I’ll only tell you what I’ve found.”

He skipped over the gazes directed at him and nodded toward an unoccupied direction.

“Each floor has at least one High Demon. On this floor, there’s only one enemy blocking the stairs.”

The knights’ gazes shifted quickly, following Yozen’s words. However, there was no sign of anyone blocking the stairs that led to the upper levels. As they were about to ask questions, a voice rang out from somewhere.

“How did you know…… There’s nothing visible……”

A dull voice echoed, and a heatwave-like mist began to ripple in the air. As the mist expanded, it took shape, revealing a young boy.

The boy grasped the heavy straps of a bag resting on his shoulder and tilted his head in curiosity. His neat bangs, freckles covering the bridge of his nose, and half-lidded eyes gave him an innocent appearance, yet he was clearly a High Demon.

However, no matter how innocent he appeared, no one could afford to be careless. Ector signaled for the knights to maintain their positions before slowly approaching the High Demon.

“State your name.”

“Nuya. My name is Nuyaaa……”

The demon, Nuya, cutely announced his name while wiggling his fingers and gazing at Ector. The moment the distance between them shrank to about a meter……

“You stepped on it……”

A click rang out, followed by the sound of a mechanism activating. At the same time, the floor beneath Ector’s feet opened, and his body plummeted through the hole.

* * *

“If it’s Nuya, he should be able to stall for some time.”

Emilia’s cold, deadened gaze locked onto the crystal orb in front of her. Inside the orb, etched with a magic circle, were three unexpected intruders. She stared at them intensely, and then, as though gripped by a sudden spasm, Emilia grabbed the orb with fury, her breath coming in angry bursts.

“How did they make it into my siblings’ chambers……? How, in the world?”

Her rage was so intense that it seemed like she would throw the orb at any moment. Behind her, Sellev, as though having made a firm decision, stepped forward with determined eyes.

“I’ll take care of them, Your Majesty. Don’t worry.”

“……There’s the Scarlet Dragon, Sellev. Cadel Lytos, who wields the power of the Scarlet Dragon, and even Lawrence’s nephew.”

“I can subdue them. Trust me.”

“No. No, Sellev.”

The tension in her trembling hand holding the orb dissipated. Emilia took a deep breath to calm her anger, then turned around. Her face, pale and devoid of any trace of a smile, was firm as she spoke.

“Subduing them isn’t necessary. We just need to bring my siblings.”