Dungeon Defense (WN)

Chapter 332 – Anemone Aroma(2)

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Daisy was taking care of the Saintess while she was sick.
Or at least that was what I heard.

She should’ve returned to her original duties since the Saintess had recovered, but I haven’t seen her at all.
Come to think of it, that annoying brat never came to visit me while I was bedridden.

I felt a little displeased as I spoke to the Saintess.

“It is rather ridiculous that a Saintess does not have even one servant accompanying them.”

 

It wasn’t like I particularly wanted Daisy to visit me while I was bedridden.
A month has passed since I initially became sick.
This was the first time I hadn’t seen her for such a long period of time, so I felt a little uneasy.
That girl has some rather pitch-black insides, so who knows what she could be plotting.

“Please do not misunderstand.
I sent them away so that I could speak with you.”

“You can keep the maid I sent with you at all times, though.
It is fine for that girl to overhear our private conversations.”

The Saintess gave a confused look.

“Maid? Who may you be referring to?”

“……Was a black-haired girl not sent to take care of you while you were sick previously? She is my adopted daughter.”

The Saintess furrowed her brow.

“A black-haired girl…….
Oh, are you talking about that child? She cared for me for a few days before another servant switched places with her.
I was still very out of it during that time, so I was never able to talk to her properly.”

“……I was not informed of this.”

“That’s because you were on the border between life and death.
Have you considered asking the head maid?”

‘She is the head maid’, I held back these words.
The Saintess was a reliable collaborator, but that didn’t change the fact that she was also a latent spy for Brittany.
I shouldn’t just give her information.

I eventually approached Luke after parting ways with the Saintess.
Once they noticed my approach, the village girls around Luke promptly got on their knees.
Luke was a part of the militia, so he simply raised his right fist to his chest and saluted me.

I did my best to appear like a thoughtful godfather as I smiled at them.

“It seems our Luke is rather popular.
The ladies around you are as pretty as flowers.”

The girls quietly giggled with their heads still remained down.
I was someone who was referred to by all sorts of intimidating nicknames like the Slanderer and Rex Hyemis throughout the continent, but to my people, I was simply a farmer lord who worked in the fields with his people.

Luke had also matured a fair bit as he responded politely.

“I could not possibly compare to Your Highness who is surrounded by flowers at every time of the year.”

“There is no lord or vassal during a festival.
You can comfortably refer to me as your godfather and not your lord.”

“……! Yes, Father!”

The boy smiled brightly.

Fifteen years old.
Luke was at the prime age where his heart burned with justice.
His rationality was destructive, but there was still a vague fog looming over him.
He could tell what was right, wrong, and hypocrisy, but he didn’t have the ability to see through the person in front of him.

Someone who looks into the future despite not being able to see ahead of them.
These people lack focus.

They believe they are rational because they think they are looking at something, but they cannot be made a leader since they cannot handle anything in front of them.
However, they are perfect as assault captains for fanatic groups.

So much worse than his sister.

I felt a sneer try to come up, but I wasn’t trying to be cold.
My chest felt warm.
It was like I was looking down at an adorable soldier action figure.

“Luke, do you know where Daisy is?”

“Uh…….”

Luke looked troubled.

“My apologies, Father, but I have no idea…….”

“No, it is fine.
I was wondering if she had gone to see your parents since I have not seen her around lately.”

I guess I could just ask Lapis.
I was going to end the conversation there, but I noticed Luke’s body movement.
He was fidgeting quite a bit.
Pointing this out would only make him back down further.

“I apologize my beautiful Fräuleins, but would it be all right if I borrow your Adonis for a moment?”

The girls giggled as they backed away.
An unapproachable space naturally formed around me and Luke.
I waited patiently as I gave off an aura that made it seem like I would gladly listen to anything he said.

Well, Luke uttered as he carefully opened his mouth.

“Actually, it has been a while since Daisy stopped coming home.”

“A while? How long exactly?”

“Two…… No, it has almost been three years now.”

I was surprised.
Three years ago was around the time they were first brought here.

“That is strange.
Daisy has never turned down a vacation day.
Was she not staying with you during those times?”

“She did at first.
Um, Daisy told me to not tell anyone.”

Luke scratched his head.

“It has been about two years since Daisy suddenly announced her disownment before our family.
She said that she wasn’t our parents’ daughter or my little sister anymore…….”

“I see.”

This piqued my interest.

Daisy’s thought process was as clear as day to me.
There may have been no physical contact, but she indirectly committed incest with her older brother.
She probably didn’t know how to face her family.
That was why she announced her disownment.

So she was hiding something as interesting as this from me? Daisy really doesn’t have even a sliver of respect for her adopted father.

I spoke in a modestly concerned tone.

“What happened?”

“I’m not sure either.
Of course, our parents naturally flared up and scolded her……but you know her.
No one can get her to open up after she’s shut her mouth.”

Luke let out a sigh.

“Our mother pleaded for her to explain her reason, but she didn’t budge at all.
In the end, our father decided to kick her out first saying that they didn’t need that kind of daughter.
Jeez, I don’t know what she was thinking.”

It was because of you, Luke.

I snickered in my mind.
It seems that the task of mentally cornering Daisy had been slowly proceeding outside my field of vision as well.

Daisy was a girl who could become surprisingly wicked in order to protect something.

She stood in front of me at the age of 10 in order to protect her family and the other villagers.
She kept her pride and tried to assassinate me in order to get revenge.
These kinds of people usually can’t be controlled.

Lowering their self-respect straight to hell was the only viable method.
I am human trash, I have no right to protect something, and no right to be protected by something…….
They need to have this sense of shame.

All to make their minds rot.

I made her indirectly have incestuous sex with her brother and torture prisoners.
Out of all the heinous acts that could be done, I made her do only the worst ones.
It took a matter of moments to submerge the girl, who was going to be the hero in the future, in darkness.

I didn’t feel even slightly bad for her.

If I want to feel bad for someone, then I have to either be stronger than them, or we have to be on equal grounds.
Daisy is someone who I acknowledged as being vastly superior to me.
Especially if you consider how much of a clumsy child I was at 10 years old.

I’m a Demon Lord and Daisy is someone who’s supposed to be the hero in the future.

Only I would be at a disadvantage if either of our guards were lowered.

“I understand.
It might be too late, but I will try talking to her.”

“Thank you very much, Father.”

Luke spoke dolefully.

“Daisy is a precious member of our family.
She is an irreplaceable daughter to our parents.”

“Daisy is also my one and only adopted daughter.
Rest assured and leave this matter to me.”

I gently patted Luke’s head.
Luke chuckled.
It was adorable since it felt like I was watching a hamster that was being raised in a transparent cage.

“Lapis, come here.”

I sent Luke off and called for Lapis.
She appeared to be having an important discussion with the village chiefs, but she promptly bowed her head to them and came my way as soon as I called for her.
Lapis knows the schedule of all of our executives, so she should easily be able to answer my question.

How should I play with Daisy this time? I’d like to start making use of two slime onaholes if possible.
Double her feelings of immorality and shame.
That would make it four times stronger.
I’m such a genius.

Lapis bowed her head.

“Did you call for me, Your Highness?”

“Indeed.
Did I interrupt something important?”

“It was nothing but dull chatter.
I am actually grateful that you called me.”

Lapis casually talked ill of the village chiefs.
This was normal for her.

I spoke in a somewhat playful tone.

“It is nothing major, but I have not seen Daisy around lately.
I thought she was attending to the Saintess, but that did not seem to be the case and it turned out that she has not been returning to her parents either.
Where is this child goofing off?”

“…….”

Lapis suddenly went silent.

Her face was still expressionless, but I could see through it since I have been observing her for several years now.
Lapis was currently emotionlessly feeling perplexed.
As a Lapis expert, I was certain of this.

“Lapis?”

“……As the length of time Your Highness lay bedridden lasted longer than expected, unrest and panic occurred among your vassals.”

Lapis whispered quietly.

An ominous feeling fell over me.
Instead of answering my question directly, she chose to answer in a roundabout way.
As someone who always sought out immediate responses and answers, Lapis was straying far from her principles.

I immediately activated the magic that was on my right-hand ring.
It was a spell that surrounded a 3-meter area with a barrier that distorted sound when it traveled through it.
With this, we didn’t have to worry about eavesdroppers.

I looked at Lapis seriously.

“Continue.
Do not leave anything out.”

“A fair number of vassals believed that Your Highness would be fine, but there were also a number of them who were considering the worst-case scenario.”

“Cowards.”

I sneered.

“Not trusting in me and worrying obsessively comes from their worry about their own well-being.
They are afraid of what will happen to them if they were to lose me.
They should be embarrassed as my vassals if they cannot even control their emotions.”

“……The Military Affairs Minister reacted especially bad.”

I paused.
What was that?

I furrowed my brows as I struggled to believe what I had just heard.

“Laura boasts great mental strength even among us.
She is above me.
Are you certain about this?”

“Sir Dantalian.”

Lapis stared straight at me as if she had resolved herself.

“There is something that I have been wanting to report to you for a while now.
I understand if you do not forgive me for reporting this to you now.
……The demeanors that your vassals show Your Highness are not their true demeanors.”

“What do you mean……?”

“I did not want to make Your Highness worry needlessly.
I believed that I could manage internal affairs and that it would only be appropriate for me to do so.
I apologize.
It seems that I had miscalculated.”

I opened my mouth.

Lapis was feeling despair, sadness, and guilt.
Despite being intertwined like a ball of twine, I could feel these emotions clearly.
I was filled with both shock and anger.
What was making Lapis feel despair?

“……What about Daisy?”

I quietly asked with a shaking voice.

“You still did not answer my question.
What happened to Daisy?”

Instead of giving an answer, Lapis lowered her head.
As if she did not have the right to face me.
Lapis had never shown this kind of behavior to me.
My insides were quickly filled with a surge of rage.

What has been happening in my army!?