LIGHTNOVELWORLD Chapter 58
Chapter 58. Mother and Child
――Demon Lord Castle, Residential Area, in a certain room.
It was a lavishly decorated room, more than one would expect from a demon. A green tapestry adorned with golden-threaded tribal patterns. From the ceiling hung a dwarf-made chandelier, lavishly using crystals and gold and silver, and portraits and landscape paintings by human artists decorated the walls. Obsidian statues of the first Demon Lord, Raougius, and the current Demon Lord, Goldgias, sat solemnly by the wall.
And there, dressed in a dazzlingly revealing dress, with an emerald necklace hanging around her neck, sat a demon woman on a high elf leather sofa.
She let her long green hair hang down over her right shoulder and puffed out purple smoke from a pipe. Her eyes were a dark color like a cunning poisonous snake—absorbing all light, they appeared as voids that wouldn’t release anything.
“Well then,”
Blowing out the smoke, the woman opened her mouth.
“Why did you come back empty-handed without doing anything?”
“………”
Before her, the fourth Demon Lord’s Prince, Emelgias, stood stiffly, nodding silently.
“…You really have no luck, do you? It’s been like that since you were born.”
She shifted her gaze away from Emelgias and spoke as if to herself, looking at Goldgias’s statue.
“You were probably born under a star of misfortune. Lacking talent and luck… Your younger brother is five years old, right? Not a baby anymore. Aren’t you frustrated at being outsmarted? Was there really no other way to handle things?”
Even when scolded in a nagging tone, Emelgias remained silent.
If this were a normal opponent, he would have been angered quickly, but he couldn’t push back against ‘this person.’
Because she was none other than his mother, Nephradia.
“Honestly, you’re too slow. If you had headed straight to your destination when you realized there was a mistake, you wouldn’t have been outpaced.”
With a sigh, Nephradia puffed smoke towards her son. Whenever she met her son, she always smoked tobacco, which was generally looked down upon among demons for being harmful to one’s health.
“This is why you keep falling behind the other princes. Do you get it? It’s not just a simple matter of intelligence. It’s a problem of your very nature.”
“…………”
“Are you even listening?”
“…Yes.”
Emelgias nodded briefly, his face expressionless like a Noh mask. He didn’t make excuses. It would be disgraceful as a demon—and pointless against Nephradia.
“You’re such an underwhelming child as always. I’m quite used to it now.”
Tsk, tsk, Nephradia clicked her tongue, taking a puff of her pipe, her gaze drifting away in boredom.
The relationship between this mother and son was, to put it simply, the worst.
Of course, it hadn’t always been like this. The fourth Demon Lord’s Prince, Emelgias, was born carrying the expectations of his mother, Nephradia, and the clan.
However, from the moment of his birth, misfortune struck. When Nephradia went into labor, Demon Lord Goldgias had been away at the front lines for a long time, causing a delay in naming, and he was forced to spend some time without a name.
Finally, when the naming was completed and a celebration was held, the weather turned stormy, ruining everything. Having to postpone and hold it later, it coincided with the great offensive by allied forces at the front, resulting in many warriors, including clan elders, dying gloriously in battle, leading to a lackluster celebration.
From such patterns, Emelgias was perpetually unfortunate.
In luck—and talent.
Though not weak among demons, he paled in comparison to his elder siblings: Aiogias, Rubyphia, and Diagias, all exceptional figures.
Still, Emelgias tried hard. To meet the expectations of his mother and the clan.
The Izanis clan, from which Emelgias hailed, was unique for producing excellent civil officials and tacticians among demons. They were actively involved in plots against the alliance and had deep relations with the Night Elves.
Emelgias firmly inherited his clan’s talents. As a capable commander and tactician, he achieved a stunning victory in his first battle before adulthood by successfully conquering a city.
However, at the very end, he clashed with heroes who charged at him like they were fighting for their lives, sustaining severe injuries and requiring a long recovery.
In ordinary circumstances, it wouldn’t have been surprising if he had been killed by such a formidable opponent. He should have been praised for surviving.
However, other factions did not see it that way. His deployment had been forced through the push of other demon warriors. He was mocked as “the slow prince who gets injured in his first battle,” and Emelgias’s reputation worsened further.
Again, I must say, Emelgias was certainly not incompetent.
What the clan expected, however, was not merely a capable commander. They wanted a conqueror who would inherit the martial prowess they felt the Izanis clan lacked from the Demon Lord Goldgias.
Above all, his mother Nephradia was dissatisfied.
This son lacked the potential to be a conqueror.
…Thus, Nephradia, having cut her losses, returned to the Demon Lord’s bed.
And fortunately, considering demons had difficulties bearing children, she soon became pregnant again.
“Finally, I can breathe easy. I hope the next one is a better child.”
One day, Emelgias overheard his mother talking with her attendants.
…He was terrified. No matter how hard he tried. No matter how much he endured. Instead of finally meeting their expectations, it seemed he was on the verge of losing even her love. He might be supplanted by a little brother or sister.
…Therefore, Emelgias poisoned his mother. Using abortifacient poison obtained from the Night Elves.
The plot was half successful and half a failure. Nephradia miscarried, but it was also revealed that Emelgias was behind it all.
Moreover, due to the poison, Nephradia’s body was ruined, and she could never bear children again.
The fear of losing her affection to a younger sibling disappeared—but the already strained relationship between the two completely collapsed.
If she could no longer have children, then there was nothing to be done. The clan members also cut their losses, abandoning the dream of producing the next Demon Lord from their family, settling instead with the Aiogias faction.
One could say they finally returned to reality after waking from their unrealistic dream of producing a Demon Lord from their clan!
However, if asked whether Emelgias’s treatment improved as a result—
“…That’s enough. Go now.”
And thus, we arrive at the present.
With a chilly voice, Nephradia urged Emelgias to leave.
“Next time, at the very least, make sure to seize the bait dangled before you without missing it.”
“…………”
Emelgias bowed and left his mother’s room.
“…You’re all I have left now.”
A sarcastic remark was thrown at him.
“…Yes, Mother.”
Emelgias answered softly, and behind him, the sound of the door closing sounded as he walked alone down the dim corridor.
There was no one around now.
Not the bothersome clan members, nor the subordinates who only gazed at his expression.
“…Damn it.”
Emelgias grimaced and punched the stone wall with a thud.
†††
――Two days after leaving the Beastman village, Kakoa.
I returned to the Demon Lord Castle without event. The journey by carriage was quite comfortable, but I started to miss my bed in my own room.
In my previous life, camping out was the norm, but after being raised like a prince, I felt like I’d turned into quite the softie.
Next time, instead of staying in a carriage, maybe I should try camping in a tent…
“Now then, I will do what I need to do.”
Sofia, who had fully recovered, strode off with papers in hand.
What a vigorous spirit—maybe she’s better off aiming to become the Demon God of paperwork than the Demon God of knowledge.
“Demons or Demon Gods, sometimes they might drastically change their nature in a decisive event—though it’s extremely rare and not impossible.”
Ante added a side note.
Seriously? So, Ante, could you perhaps change from the taboo Demon God to the pure Demon God one day?
“If a world-ending or beginning event were to occur, maybe it’s possible.”
But that’s practically impossible. I knew that.
――While muttering such nonsense in my mind, I visited the residential area, my mother Platy’s room.
“Mother, I have returned.”
“Welcome back, Zilbagias. …What on earth happened?”
Noticing my surge of magical power, Platy’s eyes widened.
“Well… various things happened.”
“…I was hoping you would gain something from this exercise, but you always exceed my expectations.”
Nodding in appreciation, Platy approached and gently hugged me. She still smelled so good.
“Anyway, I’m glad you came back safely.”
Her heartfelt words seemed to convey her genuine worry.
…I hope she doesn’t faint from my tale after this.
“So, what happened?”
Sitting gracefully on the sofa, she fanned herself with a folding fan.
“Um, I believe the guards will explain as well, but we faced an unexpected situation.”
Honestly, it was definitely unexpected enough to not just be called that.
“The Hobgoblin official made a blunder, resulting in a mistake in the paperwork, and we ended up heading to a different destination.”
“That sounds unfortunate.”
“Yes. When we arrived, there was a fortress inhabited by runaway Goblin soldiers, which was fine and all, but… something else was also living there.”
I clapped my hands.
The door to the room opened, and the Reiju tribe warriors, my guards, entered. Carrying a board between them was the frozen remains of a White Dragon—
“…Huh?”
Platy’s mouth dropped open in shock.
“As you can see, we encountered a White Dragon. It breathed fire on us right as we met, and we had a terrible time, but somehow we managed to take it down. No casualties among our ranks, so rest assured.”
—Platy’s fan slipped from her hands.