The Regressed Demon Lord is Kind

Truthfully, I am reflecting on that.
He was such a wimp that he blabbered about things that I didn’t even ask him.
I can’t believe a guy like that goes around acting like he’s someone important.
I can’t help but worry about the future of the magical tower.”

“There’s no need for you to worry about the magical tower.
Whatever the future may hold for the tower, you won’t be able to witness it.” The man turned around and headed towards the door.

“Is it already over for today? There was nothing much, even less than I thought.
Come and play with me next time too.
Playing with you was more fun than I expected.”

“The next time I come…” The man turned his head around with his hand on the doorknob.
He glared at Zich with a chilly gaze.
“There would no longer be a power backing you up. I really look forward to that day.”

Thud!

The door closed.
Zich heard the sound of the lock tightly close, and the loud sound of the man’s footsteps slowly disappeared.

“Ah, I had fun!” Zich crossed his fingers and held up the back of his head as he leaned back. 

‘There’s really nothing more fun than making fun of the guards or interrogators when I’m locked up.’

Despite the interrogator’s intense frustration as he tried his hardest to stay in power and get information from Zich, this interrogation was nothing more than a game for Zich.

‘Even though this is a necessary step, it’s really boring.’

Zich let out a big yawn.
He put his foot on top of a table and let his arms relax to the side.
Anyone could see that he was just trying to kill time. 

‘I wonder what Lyla is doing.’ 

Zich infused mana into his ear.
He was now able to hear sounds beyond the walls of his room.
Even though Zich and Lyla’s rooms were separated from each other, this was not an obstacle to Zich. 

‘It seems like they haven’t finished their interrogation yet.’

However, it seemed as if the interrogation was not going well just like Zich’s case.
The interrogator loudly shouted his questions, but he received no answers.
Zich cackled as he finished assessing the situation.

‘She’s completely ignoring him.’

Even though Zich couldn’t see them, he could clearly picture what the situation probably looked like.
The sound of the interrogator shouting lasted for a few more minutes.

Thud!

The house shook a bit; something crashed into the ground.
Zich burst out in laughter.

‘She really did it! She gave him a good hit!’

The interrogator got angry at Lyla’s attitude and probably rushed towards her, and Zich was sure that Lyla had slammed him into the ground.
Judging by the interrogator’s awful screams, the pain he was experiencing was probably extraordinary.
Zich heard a door open, and he sensed a person desperately running away.
Zich laughed for a good while.

‘Ha, I was able to watch such a good scene.’

It was hard to say he ‘watched’ this scene, but what mattered to Zich was that he had a good time.
However, that was all the fun things he could do.
His interrogator was gone, and Lyla’s interrogator ran away.
His surroundings were quiet again.
Zich skillfully tilted his chair so that only one of its legs stood on the ground, and he spun around. 

‘I guess I’ll have to stay bored like this for a while.’

However, if Zich’s prediction was right, he won’t have to stay like this for long.
‘Well, start moving, my friends.
You have to deepen the rift between the Dwayne and Jaewick family.’

Zich was sure that the instigator of this entire scheme would soon start moving again.
He got up to find something to do to pass the time.

*   *   *

After Zich and Lyla were captured, Elena’s mood became very melancholy.
She thought that they were captured all because of her.
Moreover, her heart turned even more blue, because her grandfather, whom she thought would use his powers to get them out, took such a neutral stance. 

Snoc also stopped coming to the Dwayne mansion.
Even though Snoc’s magical beast contractor, Nowem, had played a huge part in her magic students recently, it was ridiculous to continue her studies in this kind of situation.
Moreover, even if Snoc did come to the Dwayne mansion, Elena felt too guilty to see his face.

‘Everything will turn out fine.’

While maintaining this desperate hope, Elena stayed in the mansion the whole time.
Since Zich and Lyla were taken, her grandfather had not returned to the mansion.
With so few people in the mansion, it now felt haunted.
The only source of comfort that Elena had was her father who sometimes came to the mansion to check up on her. 

Elena had no appetite, so she fidgeted with her utensils a few times and went back to her room.
She flipped through the magic book that Lyla had bought her and let out a huge sigh.
She couldn’t focus on the magic books she enjoyed reading so much.
Elena looked outside her window and stared at the moon in the night sky.
How did time pass by so quickly? Elena closed her book.
She sat on the edge of her bed and continued to stare at the night sky.

‘It was really fun back then.’

A couple of days ago, there was a day when her magic lessons had ended a bit later than usual.
When the sky was beginning to darken, Lyla, Zich, Snoc, Nowem, and Elena all stared at the night sky.
Lyla had told Elena mythologies about magic and constellations in the sky with her gentle and caring voice, and Zich had intervened once in a while and laughed out loud like usual.
Snoc had quietly listened to Lyla’s stories like Elena, and Nowem had fallen asleep on Elena’s knees. 

It was a happy memory that felt like it would appear if she just turned her head to the side.
However, this memory felt like an illusion that happened in the far past; like a distant childhood memory when her mother, father, and grandfather were all together, she believed that her mana would be awakened soon.
Elena wiped the tears that slightly formed around her eyes and was about to lie down on the bed when—

‘…Uh?’

She discovered the shadow of a mysterious figure standing right next to her.