To be honest, Duanmu Huai really didn't want to meet Princess Lia.
The reason was… well… very simple…
"Ah, darling—!!"
The moment she saw Duanmu Huai, Princess Lia—who had been sitting behind her desk—instantly tossed the documents in her hands aside. Like a lovestruck maiden catching sight of her beloved, she happily rushed forward and threw herself into his arms.
"I'm so happy you came to see Lia! Are you here to marry Lia? Lia has been waiting for this day for so long!!"
"…That's not it at all."
Duanmu Huai silently pushed her away and replied flatly. Lia, however, didn't mind in the slightest. She just grinned happily at him, making his head throb.
The reason Lia had become like this was also very simple.
Put bluntly—it was related to the "purification" Duanmu Huai had performed on her before.
Back then, Princess Lia's body and mind had been twisted by demonic miasma. Under those circumstances, Duanmu Huai's method of purification was naturally not going to be anything holy—
After all, he wasn't some saintly god.
What he used instead was the same method he had once employed in the Lands Between, when dealing with a certain forest princess.
That forest princess had been infected by the Frenzied Flame and was on the verge of destroying the entire Lands Between. What Duanmu Huai did then was inject the Black Flame of Destined Death he wielded into her body, completely annihilating the Frenzied Flame.
That time, however, he had shown a certain amount of restraint.
With Lia, he had shown none.
The result was—
Although the demonic miasma inside Princess Lia had been eliminated, she herself had… from another angle… well…
Changed.
Just like this.
Of course, according to Princess Lia herself, the Lisas royal family stipulated that women were to marry their first partner…
Fine.
What made things worse was that she was currently in the process of completing the procedures to succeed the throne—which meant that in a short while, she would officially become the Queen of Lisas.
Whether that was good or bad for Lisas… was anyone's guess.
Although Duanmu Huai had already told Princess Lia that he had fiancées, she clearly had no intention of giving up.
"It's really been so long~ Oh, right, why don't we go to the bedroom and talk properly…"
As she spoke, Lia grabbed Duanmu Huai's hand and tried to pull him along, only to be stopped when he firmly grabbed her wrist.
"Enough. I didn't come here for that. I have important business."
"Important business?"
"Yes. It's about the demon race."
The moment she heard those words, Lia's expression changed.
"The demon race?"
"That's right. I found some information in the memories of the former Demon King, but unfortunately it was incomplete. So I want to ask—does Lisas have any intelligence or records regarding the demon race?"
"Hmm…"
Hearing Duanmu Huai's question, Princess Lia frowned and thought for a moment.
"Lisas doesn't have much information on that front. If we're talking about knowledge of the demon race, then Hellman and Sesh actually have much more."
"I see…"
Duanmu Huai nodded at Lia's answer.
Thinking about it carefully, it wasn't surprising. Lisas hadn't even known what was sealed beneath its own royal castle. Asking them for detailed information about the demon race really was asking too much.
And Lia wasn't wrong.
If Duanmu Huai's memory served him correctly, he had once heard Kentō Kanami talk about the geography of this world—how the demon race occupied the western territories, and the lands bordering them were the magical kingdom of Sesh and Hellman, which had previously invaded Lisas.
Know your enemy, and you'll never lose a battle.
Since Sesh and Hellman bordered the demon lands, they were bound to know much more about them.
"If you want to go to Sesh, darling, I can help you, you know? If we issue a letter in the name of the Lisas royal family, you'll even be able to meet their king."
"Then I'll be counting on you."
Duanmu Huai didn't refuse.
The Inquisition had never lacked for solving problems via high-level channels—often, it was the only way.
Considering that Hellman had just signed a treaty with Lisas and even paid reparations due to a certain idiot prince's actions, going there to stir up trouble clearly wasn't a smart move.
Sesh was the more convenient option.
Thus, after obtaining a royal letter from Princess Lia, Duanmu Huai set off once again—this time toward the magical kingdom of Sesh.
And this time, he wasn't traveling alone.
Besides Olgis, two others accompanied him.
They were—
"You want to go to Sesh too?"
"Yes."
Hearing Duanmu Huai's question, the green-haired girl wearing a wizard's hat glanced at him and nodded.
"Sesh is a kingdom of magic. As a mage, of course I want to see it for myself. And I also want to personally experience how the Inquisition operates."
Shizuka's reasoning was sound enough.
As for the other one…
"Wuu… Princess Lia said I should accompany you in her stead… I don't really have a choice…"
Kentō Kanami looked helpless.
Although she was technically Duanmu Huai's attendant, she had originally been Princess Lia's trusted aide.
Kanami had thought Lia would at least show her some consideration—
Instead, a single letter later, she had been directly sold off to Duanmu Huai.
No bargaining.
What could she even do?
"Then why don't you introduce us to the situation in the magical kingdom of Sesh?"
Duanmu Huai sat in the ship's cabin, gazing at the sea outside as he spoke.
Unlike traveling to Lisas, reaching Sesh from Duel City required sailing to its port—
Which wasn't strange at all.
"Ah, Sesh…"
Hearing Duanmu Huai's question, Kentō Kanami thought for a moment.
"To be honest, my knowledge mostly comes from intelligence reports I've collected. As you both know, Sesh is a magical kingdom. All citizens must receive magical education. Those who successfully graduate as mages become first-class citizens, while ordinary people who fail become second-class citizens. You could say it's a country completely ruled by mages…"
"Hmph. Sesh isn't a good place."
At that moment, a cold snort suddenly came from nearby.
Everyone turned to look and saw an adventurer sitting not far away, listening to their conversation.
"Is there a problem?"
Shizuka stared at the adventurer and asked.
"From what we've heard so far, there doesn't seem to be anything particularly strange. If Sesh is a magical kingdom, it's natural that mages would be favored. And if everyone receives magical education, then failing to become a qualified mage is simply one's own responsibility, isn't it?"
"Tch. That's exactly why outsiders like you don't understand."
The adventurer sneered.
"That's just how it sounds on the surface. Yes, Sesh provides magical education to everyone—but for commoners, it's a so-called 'relaxed education.' On the surface, they say it's because they don't want children to suffer from studying too hard, that they deserve a happy childhood. But in reality, that kind of education can never produce a qualified mage! Meanwhile, the nobles rely on their power to firmly monopolize the upper class!"
As he spoke, the adventurer clenched his fist tightly.
"And worse than that—those damned mages don't even treat second-class citizens as people! In their eyes, anyone who can't use magic is just trash, garbage, tools to be used however they like!"
"Are you from Sesh yourself?"
Duanmu Huai asked calmly.
The adventurer snorted.
"I used to be. But I left Sesh long ago. Honestly, if not for taking a commission this time, I wouldn't even want to come back to this damned place… Just thinking about it makes me sick…"
"…I see."
After hearing the adventurer's words, the atmosphere turned a bit awkward.
Duanmu Huai, however, didn't seem bothered. He simply patted Olgis on the head.
"Alright. What happens in Sesh has nothing to do with us. We're outsiders—just focus on what we need to do."
"Yes…"
Before long, the ship arrived in Sesh.
They encountered little resistance along the way. After presenting the royal letter from Lisas, Sesh promptly invited Duanmu Huai and his group to the royal capital.
There, Duanmu Huai met the King of Sesh.
"Greetings! This is our first meeting. I am the King of Sesh—Ragnarok Aku Super Gandhi!"
Appearing before them was a muscular, middle-aged man with spiked hair, looking every bit like a fierce warrior.
His voice was loud as well.
"You are the heroes who saved Lisas and eliminated the former Demon King, yes? It is truly an honor to meet you all!"
"You flatter us."
Compared to the king's excitement, Duanmu Huai remained calm.
"We came to Sesh mainly to investigate information related to the demon race and Demon Kings…"
"That's no problem at all!"
The King of Sesh nodded immediately.
"I'll assign someone to answer all your questions. As long as it concerns the demon race, we'll tell you everything we know—hmm?"
Just as the king was about to continue, a woman suddenly approached and whispered something to him.
His expression darkened. He nodded at her.
"I understand. I'll take care of it."
With that, the king turned back to Duanmu Huai.
"Please enjoy Sesh's hospitality in the meantime. I have some matters to attend to."
After saying this, the King of Sesh turned and left.
Soon after, attendants appeared and led Duanmu Huai's group to another reception hall.
"I didn't expect things to go this smoothly."
Kentō Kanami sat on the sofa and sighed in relief.
"I thought something would go wrong."
"With a royal letter from Lisas, what do you think could go wrong?"
Duanmu Huai glanced at Kanami helplessly.
See? This is why taking the high-road works.
At the very least, it let him skip a mountain of trouble and go straight to the information he wanted.
Now—
It all depended on what kind of clues Sesh could provide about the demon race.
(End of Chapter)