It was a sight too pitiful to watch with eyes open. Across from the smirking Emilia, beyond the wide-open door, Lumen was seen barely lifting his crumbling body upright on the vast plain.

“Look at that. I thought that child was the smartest among you, but he’s the most foolish. That irritates me a little. Feels like it means I misjudged.”

Emilia curled her lips into a smile as if the sight of Lumen struggling against her clone was amusing. Right now, they needed to go along with Emilia as much as possible to keep her attention from shifting to the knights. Even knowing that, Mamil couldn’t bring himself to laugh in agreement with her.

‘He must have received the Demon King’s offer too, so he should know that if he loses consciousness, he can escape outside. And yet he’s desperately holding on like that.’

Lumen had chosen to defeat the clone and escape on his own. Why had he made that choice? Because he expected total annihilation? Because if he fell as well in such a situation, victory would slip away for good?

Hard to say. Mamil didn’t think that was it. Maybe it was just a ridiculously prideful decision to show a dependable side to Cadel. But what seemed more likely was—

‘To dream of climbing higher even in a moment with no way out. ……That’s impressive. Too impressive to brush off as mere youthful arrogance.’

Lumen was trying to seize the power to surpass his limits by defeating the clone before him. In his battle, Mamil felt persistence and desire.

Hope for peace in the Human Realm, the will to add strength to the returning Cadel. Of course, those were surely part of what drove Lumen. But Mamil felt a severe thirst from him. A tenacity so fierce it couldn’t be described by ambition alone—an obsession enough to make one click their tongue.

What had made him so certain he could ‘become stronger’? This was a time to focus on survival. What kind of conviction gripped him so tightly that he would continue the fight, even risking his life like a gambler?

Mamil was genuinely curious about the reason. But he couldn’t concentrate on Lumen’s battle for long.

Twitch.

Modeleine’s left arm, slowly burning under the soft flame, faintly moved. Mamil increased the flame’s heat and naturally leaned in closer. So that his movements wouldn’t come off as suspicious, he made sure not to forget to keep the conversation going with the Demon King.

“You said it’s a clone made with a shared soul—so can you sense the enemy’s abilities as well?”

“Yes. If I focus on the soul I split off, I can sense them more clearly. Are you curious how close that child is to death?”

“From the looks of it, he seems like he’ll die any second, but I am a bit curious.”

“Compared to when we first met…… his remaining life force is less than five percent. He’ll collapse any minute now.”

Mamil made a meaningless motion with his hand. And then, as Modeleine instinctively tried to let out a groan, he firmly pressed his head down to the floor. If it were discovered that he had regained consciousness, not only he but Mamil himself would no longer be guaranteed safety.

“……My body is weary, and I’d like to lie down. May I watch from the floor?”

It was difficult to tend to Modeleine while seated. Though he knew it was an absurd request, Mamil tried probing Emilia anyway. At that, she turned her head from watching Lumen’s battle. The gaze that met him was cold and indifferent.

“What trick are you pulling?”

“Trick? Just the honest complaint of an old man.”

“……What’s your name?”

“Mamil Kipa. And you?”

“No need to know.”

The slight curve of her smiling eyes gave off a seductive air that didn’t match the situation. Emilia, locking eyes with Mamil who was feigning composure, said.

“Mamil Kipa. Did you think I wouldn’t know?”

“What are you talking about?”

“That you’re channeling mana into the human lying behind you. Did you really think I wouldn’t notice?”

At the amused question, Mamil’s expression hardened. Unable to hide his reaction, he was met with Emilia’s burst of laughter as she leaned back against her chair.

“This is my castle. My domain, my world. I can sense even the slightest flow of energy instantly. I already know that the human behind you moved faintly just now.”

“……If you knew, why did you let it go?”

“Because it’s pointless. Whether you wake one, two, or all of them behind you—none of you are a match for me. That’s why I let you be. Watching you squirm so hard on your own is a little cute…… and kind of funny.”

Emilia’s eyes, which had sparkled like a child’s, dulled in an instant. With a dull and dry gaze, she turned her attention back to Lumen’s battle.

“Do as you please. But if you try to attack me again, it won’t end with just losing consciousness.”

She had known everything and still let it be. She was confident that even if all of them attacked her at once, she could overwhelm them.

Mamil stared at Emilia in silence for a moment, then suddenly burst into hearty laughter. The booming sound echoed down the corridor, prompting Emilia to lightly furrow her brows. Mamil then turned fully around and began shaking Modeleine awake.

“Did you hear that? Thanks to our merciful Demon King, we’ve gained some time. Hurry and get up, and start your healing.”

Modeleine blinked slowly, looking up at Mamil with half-dazed eyes. As his consciousness gradually returned, he tried to grasp what kind of situation he was currently in. To him, Mamil offered a brief but earnest explanation of the current state. With a voice loud enough to make no effort to conceal the revival of their allies, Emilia’s tone turned icy.

“I never said I’d forgive you for being so arrogant. What I found amusing was how secretly you tried to scheme. I don’t tolerate those who crawl upward.”

“To hear someone call me ‘cute’ at my age—sure enough, living long has its perks.”

“Mamil Kipa.”

“Did you take a liking to my name? You say it rather well.”

Despite his still-cloudy mind, Modeleine was already drawing on his light mana. Mamil stood firmly in front of him, shielding him. Emilia slowly stood and descended from her chair. The look she gave Mamil shimmered with a deadly fury.

“I don’t have the patience to tolerate anything else. If it bothers me, I’ll kill it. So be careful not to get on my nerves any further.”

“That would be a problem. I want to wake all the knights before Cadel arrives and drive you into a corner.”

With a short incantation and a sweep of his hand, a wall of flame burst forth between him and Modeleine, blocking the corridor. The thick wall of fire rose solidly, and Mamil stood tall before it. Against that blazing backdrop, the sound of Emilia’s jaw grinding echoed, as if her bones were coming apart.

* * *

Thanks to Garuel’s sprint while carrying Cadel, they broke through the staircase faster than expected. But the real trouble began the moment they entered the upper floors of the castle.

“Waaahh! G-Garuel!”

“Shall I carry you again?”

“N-No, give me a piggyback! I can’t walk!”

Cadel quickly climbed onto Garuel’s back and wrapped his arms around his neck. From the trembling floor, rocks rained down from the ceiling. This chaos had started less than a minute after they set foot on the upper floor. Amid the violently shaking view, Cadel barely managed to locate the next flight of stairs.

“There! Go up there!”

“Jeez, what’s with all these holes in the floor……?”

Keeping balance was already hard enough, but now there were gaping holes everywhere—big enough for a person to fall through with ease. With his eyes fixed downward, Garuel moved as Cadel directed.

“Don’t tell me the entire top floor is collapsing? The Demon King should still be here, so why is the castle falling apart?”

“Maybe our allies defeated the Demon King? This castle was probably suspended by her power. If she’s dead, it’d collapse.”

“That’s…… quite an optimistic theory. But I’m sure there’s another reason.”

If Emilia had died, the system would have notified him. And there’s no way the others could defeat the Demon King without him.

‘The story shifting bothers me a bit, but there’s no final boss to replace Emilia. The Demon King is still alive.’

Even so, something had definitely changed with Emilia. With that suspicion in mind, Cadel and Garuel pressed forward, climbing past web-draped floors and completely exposed ones with no outer walls, until they reached the fourth floor.

“What is this place……?”

What appeared before them was a long corridor lined with countless firmly shut doors. There were no signs of any stairs continuing upward and not a single trace of life in the hallway. On top of that, the stairs they had just climbed had vanished the moment they stepped onto this floor.

“At least this place isn’t shaking. Looks like the lower floors were the ones collapsing.”

Garuel cautiously set Cadel down and surveyed their surroundings.

“Should we try walking straight ahead?”

“……No. These doors are suspicious. I’m going to open one.”

More than the distant hallway, the doors close at hand caught his attention. Cloaked in a barrier of protection, Cadel boldly flung open the door on the right. Garuel moved quickly to protect him, alarmed by the sudden action.

“A corridor……?”

What lay beyond wasn’t a room—but another corridor.