Crownblood: Novel's Untold Story-Chapter 28: A Warm Welcome

Demons.

The first thing that came to mind after hearing that word wasn’t horns, tails, or bat wings.

No, it was devil and evil.

At least, that was how any civilization that had never seen a demon would think of them.

But the world of Novara was different.

All races in Novara were, in fact, descended from a single primordial race that existed long, long ago.

The change began after the Great Catastrophe, some four thousand years ago.

With the emergence of Essence, the primordial race split into many branches, evolving, mutating, and diverging into the species that now populate the world.

Yet deep down, they still shared the same origin.

But what exactly was the Primordial Race?

Amid the chaos that followed the Catastrophe, such questions were the least of their ancestors’ concerns.

But in the present day, it has become one of the greatest points of conflict among the races.

Each claimed to be the closest to the original lineage.

Some even whispered that their ancestors had come from the stars themselves.

...Anyway, that wasn’t my concern right now.

So, demons.

The second thing that came to mind would, of course, be the horns, the tail, and the wings.

But no.

In truth, all races of Novara shared nearly the same physique, with only the faintest traces of difference marking their racial traits.

In case of demons, they had ears similar to humans, just a little pointy at the edge, and slit pupils.

Another difference would be their height and robust bodies.

And some demon mage might also develop horns because of high mana density.

But they were very few.

In the case of demons, their appearance wasn’t all that different from humans.

Their ears were slightly pointed at the tips, and their eyes bore slit pupils, faintly gleaming in dim light.

The main differences lay in their height and physique; demons tended to be taller, with more resilient, well-built bodies.

Some demon mages, however, were known to develop horns, a rare mutation said to result from excessive exposure to mana essence.

But such cases were few and far between.

"Reckless as always."

A girl wearing a maid’s outfit casually walked inside the enormous room.

Strange equipment lay scattered across the polished stone floor,

steel pipes coiled around the walls, glass cylinders faintly pulsing with pale blue fluid, and half-assembled contraptions humming for no apparent reason.

At the very center stood a massive construct forged from adamantium.

Its spine of gears and levers towered like a mechanical altar, runes etched deep into its frame.

Thick cables hung from the ceiling like black vines, dripping sparks that never reached the ground.

To my left, a pair of patient beds,

one of which I occupied.

On the opposite side stood an entrance door. Where that girl was.

She had a slender build, long black hair, and matching eyes with a slit pupil, which was hard to notice.

Most eye-catching of all was her little edgy ears.

"Rin..."

I recognized her instantly from Cale’s memories, one of the few masters of the Tennebris clan,

and also Cale’s shadow.

"Young master..."

The girl stopped right in front of me and started inspecting me with her eyes.

’What’s her problem?’

For some reason, my heart was beating anxiously.

’She won’t find out about me.’

Perfect. Just one trouble after another.

After a long time of inspection, she finally opened her mouth.

"Tch!"

".."

My soul almost left my body.

"You seem okay," She said with a deadpan expression.

’And you don’t seem all that happy about it!’

Well, she might say it like that, but she actually was one of the few people of actually cared for Cale.

She was the one who raised him after all.

That would make her his mother... like figure and his master.

And Cale was quite attached to her, too.

So much so that, even after her death, he kept her beside him.

’Seriously! What a tsunder-,’

Just as I was thinking that, her figure blurred and she grabbed my hand even before I could react.

’What!?’

"Young master... "

She called me in a low voice as she brought my hand close to her chest.

’See! she actually cared about hi-’

_Crack!

"AHHHHHH!"

A scream tore through my throat as sudden pain shot through my arm. 𝐟𝐫𝕖𝗲𝘄𝚎𝗯𝕟𝐨𝕧𝐞𝚕.𝕔𝕠𝐦

It wasn’t just a broken finger; she was actually using her aura to simulate the pain.

Unable to bear, I fell to my knees.

’T-This bitch!’

I quickly looked up, but when my glare met her hollow black eyes, I quietly lowered my head.

’W-What’s with her! She is s-scary!’

For some reason, my body was feeling incredibly weak.

’Is this Cale’s influence? Damn it!’

"Care to explain where you have been for the whole month?" She asked, her voice sounding hollow as she grabbed my other finger.

My eyes widened,

"W-wait, I can explain-AHH!"

_Crack!

I quickly bit my lower lip and clenched my free hand, which just refused to cooperate beyond that.

"Do you have any idea what I have been through?" She spoke again.

"I-I am sure it was terrible, but listen to me, I have been through a lo-"

_Crack!

"DAMN IT!!"

’What is the problem with women of this world? They don’t listen at all!!’

"I hope to hear more of that, but how does that explain your disappearance?" She grabbed another finger.

’AHH! Now that it has come to this, there is only one way out.’

Just as she was about to break another finger, I spoke,

"I-I did it for you all."

".." She stopped mid-action.

"... You did it for... me?" She tilted her head slightly.

’That’s not what I said... whatever.’

"Y-Yes." My voice trembled slightly.

"If I didn’t win the next duel, you people would die alongside me, so I needed power... desperately."

"And you found it."

I sighed in relief inwardly as her grip loosened on my arm.

"Yes."

"...And you went there alone by yourself?" She asked.

For the first time, I felt an emotion in her eyes.

Sadness.

My heart ached a little.

"It all just happened so fast... I can explain."

Finally, she let go of my arm and crotched in front of me.

"Don’t think it’s over... we will talk about this later."

"Alright."

I looked at my broken finger.

If it had been anyone else, I would have been thirsty for their blood.

But I could not come to hate this maid’s action.

Instead, I felt... relieved.

’How annoying?’

I just couldn’t put my head around this thing.

For some movements... I felt like I was Roy, but right now I felt like I was Cale.

And these feelings... they were incredibly annoying.

Rin stood up,

"Well, all things aside... Welcome back, young master."

I quietly looked at her bowed head,

’Right, I am finally out of that shithole.’

For a heartbeat, I didn’t know if it was me or Cale who answered.

But the words came out anyway.

"I’m back."