Chapter 32: Princess Celestia

Arvania Kingdom

Capital City: Lumeris, Royal Garden

The Royal Garden of Lumeris was one of the largest gardens in the entire Arvania Kingdom, boasting every kind of flower found in the realm. The wind carried a mixed scent of blossoms alongside swirling petals. Scattered throughout the grounds were magic equipments that watered the plants and treated them gently.

In the middle of it all sat a girl with blonde hair, a small shining crown resting on top of her head, and a flower accessory pinning back the hair falling down her back. She was busy weaving a flower crown. Standing guard nearby was a girl of around the same age with deep blue eyes and blue hair, a sword strapped to her hip. Strolling around them was a boy, playfully scratching the mud with a wooden stick.

“Hey, look, look!” The boy turned with a mischievous smile on his face, holding up a small worm on the end of his stick. He flashed it at the blue-haired girl, thinking she might get scared, but the girl remained completely calm. She simply picked the worm up in her hand and sighed in disappointment.

“For a hero, you really are quite childish, Yukki…”

“Hmph. Not the response I wanted to see….. boring…” Yukki glanced away from her. “Let me show you how a real girl behaves.”

He walked over to the blonde girl sitting on the grass, smiled as he snatched the worm from Iris's hands, and sat down right beside the princess.

Princess Celestia, confused by Yukki's sudden movement, tilted her head. “This might look good on Iris-sama, hehe..” Finishing her flower crown, she smiled to herself just as Yukki tapped her on the shoulder, thrusting the worm right in front of her face. There was a brief pause.

“Whaaaaaa……………..”

Celestia’s eyes snapped wide. In a blind panic, she slapped Yukki across the face, sending him tumbling to the ground, before turning around to hug Iris tightly.

“HEY!!!! What kind of princess treats her hero like that?! And even if you have to hug someone, you should be hugging me instead of Iris!”

“Whaaa….. You meanie… Iris-sama, sniff… sniff..”

“Don’t worry, Celestia-sama, I am here to protect you…” Iris smiled gently, patting and stroking the princess's head to calm her down.

“What a generic hero we have,” Yukki said sarcastically hinting to Iris, sitting up and resting his chin on his hand. “Things might have been different if only I had been the one summoned by Celestia…. But you came along as a 'buy one, get one free' offer. I think my whole glory was snatched by you!” He sighed, then added, “And Celestia… I’m the one who defeated the Demon Queen. Aren't you supposed to fall head over heels for me? I mean, you told us that if the hero defeats the Demon Queen, you have to marry him.”

“Well…” Celestia tapped her index fingers together, her face blushing deeply as she stole a glance at Iris. “Well, the one who actually dealt the final blow was Iris-sama…” She glanced back over, and when her eyes met Iris's, Celestia’s cheeks flushed completely red and she hid her face. Iris, confused by the princess's reaction, simply tilted her head.

Yukki’s eyes twitched at the sight. He muttered to himself, “Why is there no decent girl here…? I was summoned as a hero, so why does everyone around me keep treating me like trash? This princess, Iris, and even Rosella… shouldn't they all be falling in love with me…?”

Iris caught a bit of what Yukki was muttering but ignored most of it, turning her attention to the princess. “Princess Celestia, what about Rosella? I think I should talk to her… I know she did wrong by betraying the kingdom, but she might have been manipulated!”

“I thought so too, but whenever I visit her and ask, she never admits to being manipulated by them,” Celestia said, her face dropping in dejection.

“I see. Then—”

Before Iris could finish her sentence, a voice interrupted them.

“Celestia-sama, Iris…” Captain Charles, holding the hilt of his sword with one hand, walked toward them looking rather dejected.

“Ah…. Captain Charles…” Celestia noticed him, her face instantly brightening up.

“Hey, Knight Commander, I’m also here, you know—” Yukki muttered, but his gaze quickly shifted to Iris.

Iris was busy turning her face away, playing with her hair to hide her blushing cheeks. She turned back around and greeted him, her voice cracking slightly as if she were staring at a long-lost crush. “G-Good morning, Captain Charles! It—it’s nice to meet you.”

“We can wait for that, but first….” Charles dropped down to one knee, closed his eyes, and apologized. “I am sorry, Celestia-sama. I have failed to capture the Demon Queen once again. The person… I mean, the earthling we thought died while fleeing… actually returned and was able to defeat us yet again…”

“An earthling?!” Iris and Yukki yelled in unison, completely stunned by the revelation.

Meanwhile, in the Forest

Zacken and the Demons having dinner

“Ahh…. chuu!”

Sitting on my makeshift bed, I sneezed loudly, catching my runny nose.

“O—Onii-chan, are you alright?!” Coco asked with concern, quickly stepping up to take care of me.

“I think someone is talking about me—Aaaa chuuu!” I sneezed again.

“Hey! Could you stop your sneezing already? I’ve been coughing since last night, and just when I finally felt some relief, you start sneezing constantly—Aaa chuuu!”

On a bed just a few feet away from mine, Alira sneezed, her nose turning bright red as she complained.

Coco glanced back and forth between me and Alira, her eyes narrowing suspiciously. She muttered to herself, “I am still confused about what you two were actually doing at the lake late last night…”

Back to the Princess and her Party

“Forgive me for hiding the fact, as we didn't want to burden either of you any further…. Well, it seems an earthling has joined forces with the demons. We don't know why, but because of him, we constantly fail to capture the demon princess,” Celestia explained, bowing her head slightly toward them.

Iris interrupted, “If Captain Charles is failing to capture them because of him, then he must have gained an amazing skill.”

“Then it might be problematic if he attacks us alongside the demons,” Yukki added.

“Sorry for interrupting,” Charles spoke up, “but I have faced him twice now, and I don't feel like he is particularly strong. In fact, he never uses any cheat skills. From what I heard, he simply called out to someone who then mass-teleported them back to safety.”

“What? He defeated you without using any skills?” Yukki asked in surprise.

Iris turned to Celestia and asked, “Princess, if you give the order, Yukki and I—”

“No…. I mean, despite joining the demons, they have never attacked us first. Maybe we should wait and keep tracking their movements. What do you say, Captain Charles?”

“I agree. Since we still haven't identified his unique skill, he might be hiding it for now and could use it against us later. It will be better to watch from the sidelines for the time being.”

The others hesitated but ultimately nodded in agreement.

“AAAA CHuuuu!!!!!”

Back in the tent, Zacken sneezed even louder this time, scratching his nose.

“JUST SHUT UPPP ALREADY!!!!!!!”

Thoroughly irritated by the noise, Alira whipped a pillow straight at his face. It hit him dead-on, knocking him right off the bed.