‘Wow, someone threw an axe at me!’

I was shocked to see the weapon thrown at me collide with Samael’s wings and fall.

…I almost got hit by an axe in my lifetime.

I’ve never even been hit by a toy axe before. At the same time, a shiver went down my spine at the thought that if it weren’t for Dimitri’s quick protection, the axe lying on the ground could have shattered my skull into two pieces.

As I muttered a silent curse, I picked up the axe lying on the ground and dragged it across the room.

‘Everyone has a weapon, so I should grab one too.’

Then, I carefully hid behind the Blois knights so as not to become a burden.

Before we knew it, the sun had completely set, and an eerie darkness blanketed the abandoned fortress entirely. This fortress, designed to fend off enemy invasions, already had small and high windows that didn’t let in much light. However, as the sun dipped below the horizon, now it was almost impossible to distinguish anything unless it was near a fireplace.

The enemy, brandishing torches, pushed into the castle and aimed their swords mostly at Dimitri and the knights. However, a few of them were looking around, frantically searching for someone, probably looking for hostages.

As I searched for Grandmother Rosanne, I was relieved to find that she had taken refuge among our knights, as I had, with the support of her maid.

‘Let’s hide well until the situation is sorted out.’

A rebellion. A battle.

It didn’t feel real, as if we were dreaming. Perhaps that was why scenes of blood and flesh being thrown about felt like a scene out of a movie. Moreover, the enemy was falling almost helplessly in front of Dimitri. He looked like the main actor in a scene from a battle.

Next to Dimitri, Samael, seemingly excited by the scent of blood, joyfully swung his weapon with his large wings fluttering. The hall, which seemed spacious when people were gathered, now appeared incredibly narrow as Samael tried to spread his wings and move around. His wings kept hitting the walls.

Samael, occasionally irritated, ruffled his wings aggressively as if expressing annoyance but continued wielding his weapon without concern.

‘They would probably try to stop the demon first.’

It was reckless to deal with an invisible enemy. It was no secret in the empire that Dimitri dealt with demons, so his enemies must undoubtedly have a defense plan.

As I guessed, it seemed like the enemy had anticipated and prepared for the demon’s slaughter. When the knights approached, the soldiers stuck close and pulled something out from the large sacks.

‘…Is it lamb’s blood?’

As a scene from a novel I had read suddenly came to mind, I wondered if Agaliaept was lurking and fulfilling the contract faithfully in my shadow.

In the novel, Elaine used lamb’s blood to ward off Dimitri’s demons.

It seemed that the blood of the lamb possessed a sacred power and could subdue the power of the demon to some extent. A demon covered in sheep’s blood would temporarily reveal its true nature to humans, and when it attacked, the demon would turn to smoke and be temporarily incapacitated.

The enemies, anticipating the demon’s presence, threw pig bladders filled with lamb’s blood like water balloons in the assumed locations of the demon.

While most missed, a few hit Samael’s wings, revealing the demon’s position in a red splatter.

‘It’s easier to predict the location because the space is narrow!’

Were they pushing into the castle with that in mind?

Even though I anxiously observed Dimitri’s movements, surprisingly, he seemed unfazed by such a situation, while Samael, seemingly unconcerned, continued to swing his sword.

“Don’t worry too much. His Excellency knows very well that that demon can’t fight very well in a closed space.”

Hyle looked at me and reassured me when he noticed my worried expression.

I turned to him and asked.

“But why is the Viscount here?”

Wasn’t it a bit unusual for subordinates to stay behind while the superior was fighting in the front? At my words, Hyle scratched the back of his head and muttered softly as if he was embarrassed.

“When I fought alongside His Excellency on the battlefield, my role was to be his burden…”

“It seems we’re in similar positions.”

It was a gathering of greenhorns.

The next moment, Hyle gave firm orders to the knights to prevent the escape of Cayetana and Count Schdental in the chaotic situation before he turned to me with a puzzled expression.

“By the way, why is His Excellency so angry?”

“He’s angry?”

As I glanced over at Dimitri, Hyle gave me a quick explanation of what I had doubts about for a while.

“Isn’t he massacring alone? He tends to do that when he’s really upset. In times like this, he doesn’t distinguish friend from foe, and our knights have to be careful not to get caught up in it.”

‘…So that’s why Dimitri was fighting alone.’

He was boldly advancing deep into enemy territory, slaughtering the enemies together with Samael. Even when Samael flinched after being hit with lamb’s blood, he didn’t bat an eye.

As Hyle cast a questioning glance at me, as if asking if I knew something, I awkwardly avoided his eyes.

For some reason, I couldn’t shake off Dimitri’s words a little while ago.

Did I misunderstand something? Why would he say that?

‘It was always part of the contract from the beginning.’

Could it be that he was worried that I might act irresponsibly and leave after all this had happened?

‘I intend to take care of everything I’ve done before leaving.’

Moreover, if possible, I planned to hide my identity after the contract with Dimitri ended, live under a new name, and contribute to the shelter for shapeshifters. He had also granted permission for me to do so.

‘But why?’

It wasn’t like he didn’t know about my plan, so why did he suddenly say that as if he was surprised?

‘Could it be…’

Did he come to expect from me? Perhaps he didn’t want to let me go?

Could it be that he…

I stared at Dimitri’s back, who had defeated the soldiers and knights and was confronting the new Count of Bilbao.

Come to think of it, as I spent time with him, I was gradually forgetting that he was the villain in a novel. For being portrayed as a ruthless villain who led the protagonists off a cliff without a trace of blood or tears, he was so sweet and kind to me.

I thought he treated me well as a reliable colleague since I actively cooperated with him, so there was no need for him to be hostile towards me. However, looking back, was he really just doing me a favor as a colleague? Were all his actions truly that straightforward and without any other possible interpretations?

Maybe I have been looking the other way.

Because he was the villain who had decided not to love anyone.

Because of the story in the novel that said he willingly embraced a lonely life.

A rush of complicated emotions surged within me. Thoughts like ‘Oh, no. It must be a misunderstanding’ clashed with ‘What if it’s not a misunderstanding? What if he has some emotional expectations from me?’ in my mind. Nevertheless, no matter how much I pondered, unless I were a mind reader, wouldn’t it be best to hear it directly from the person involved?

So, in the end, I deliberately set aside my tangled thoughts.

At the same time, Count Bilbao was screaming desperately at Dimitri.

“You’d better surrender now, Duke!”

Dimitri raised the sword that had been hanging loosely as if he didn’t want to respond to that nonsense.

Then, the Count quickly added.

“Do you think I would have recklessly started this? Do you think Blois would be safe by now? Surrender. Blois is probably already in Dieppe’s hands.”

Dimitri ran a hand through his blood-soaked hair in slow motion and chuckled. It was a dry and mocking laugh.

“Blois is me. Cutting my throat is the only way you can claim to have taken over Blois.”

With those words, he swung his sword menacingly, and Count Bilbao, who had been commanding his soldiers with confidence, visibly flinched. He must have felt a slight blow to his pride for momentarily showing fear as he laughed loudly in a seemingly nonchalant manner.

“If you don’t surrender, the lives of the hostages will be hanging by a thread! By now, Dieppe has probably set Blois Mansion ablaze and requested reinforcements to come here!”

While it could have been a lie, as soon as I heard about the mansion being set on fire, I reflexively thought of Sasha, Coco, and the employees left behind in the mansion, making me anxious. In the first place, I hadn’t expected this battle to happen until I left the mansion. I wondered if Grandmother Rosanne and Dimitri had thought the same.

However, at this moment, most of Blois’s key figures and knights were present here.

‘If Hyle, the knight commander and the vice-commander are all here, who could be at the mansion right now…’

Yet, I soon regained a sense of reassurance at Dimitri’s steadfast voice.

“A boy who has never experienced a single war is quite confident. Is this ignorance or bravery?”

“What?”

“A general who has been on the battlefield never leaves their base unguarded. Isn’t that basic?”

At the same time, Esca and Avila were struggling at the Blois mansion.

“Come on, charge! Attack them!”

Sasha, riding on a demon in the form of a lion, wasn’t just blocking the enemies but demolishing everything in her path.

The once beautiful garden was razed to the ground, with enemy troops falling like straw. In the meanwhile, Esca, the wolf shapeshifter, created a different type of barrier than the one used by the Emperor’s hounds to protect the mansion and the remaining Blois knights.

“Can you teach that to the dog shapeshifters I take care of?”

Avila shouted as Sasha’s demon expelled a strange swarm of insects spewed forth from its wide-open mouth.

“I’ll consider it.”

Esca nodded calmly and blocked Sasha’s demon, Abaddon’s massive scorpion tail.

In Blois Mansion, the current issue wasn’t the battle among humans. The few remaining Blois knights were struggling to protect themselves from demons in corners, unable to participate in the fight.

The difference in experience between Blois’s knights, who had experienced war, and those brought by Dieppewas the difference between heaven and earth. And on top of that, there was a cat who was going on a rampage with no regard for consequences.

Everyone shared the same thought as they looked at the now chaotic garden.

‘Is it really necessary to go to such extreme lengths…?’

 
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