Chapter 41

"Reveal yourself, demon!!"

The woman in the nun's habit said loudly with a smile.

The woman with a gruff face raised a brightly shining stone.

"Blinding! ...?"

I could sense a magical reaction from the light, so I closed my eyes and tried to deploy the *Dark Wall*.

But when I opened my eyes, the light was already gone.

Silence enveloped the surroundings.

The smiling woman suddenly looked bewildered.

"Ah, that... C, come on, Nate!"

"Strange, Tika. Nothing is happening."

The woman with the gruff face tapped the stone curiously.

The smiling one was Tika, and the gruff one was Nate.

They were both around fifteen years old, I guess.

Tika had several knives hanging from her belt. Nate was carrying a large box-like object on her back.

"Make it shine again! – Ah, blinding... suddenly."

"It's no use, Tika. Nothing is happening."

Nate made the stone shine brightly.

We blinked several times at the brightness.

Elysia said coldly to the fussing Tika.

"Isn't that rude? This is His Highness, Prince Alex."

Tika quickly replied.

"A, ah, a... N, no, there might be a demon on this island... hahaha."

"That's no explanation at all. How about introducing yourselves and making the stone shine in front of His Highness? ...You there, stop making it shine."

Elysia's voice made Nate realize something and she finally stopped making the stone shine.

"Even those who don't attend school introduce themselves."

"S, sorry... We are from a convent."

"Being from a convent is no excuse. I, too, am from a convent."

Elysia said this with a rare look of irritation.

Tika immediately bowed her head.

"S, sorry... Nate, bow your head too!"

"Sorry for making the stone shine."

Nate also bowed her head.

Tika looked surprised that she was apologizing for that.

Elysia sighed and said.

"You should apologize to Prince Alex, not me... In the first place, you haven't even thanked him for saving your lives."

"That, that's... Thank you."

Tika immediately turned to me and bowed deeply.

I could tell she was quite flustered.

This situation was probably unexpected.

And Tika's gaze had been fixed on the back of my hand all along. On my *Abyss* crest.

Surely, they were supposed to make me a demon by shining the stone on my crest.

A stone that triggers the demonization of the bearer of a dark crest... What a twisted thing.

"...I don't like beating around the bush. Are you agents of the Holy Order? Did you come to kill me?"

"N, no such thing!"

Tika said anxiously, and Nate beside her said seriously.

"We don't kill children. We only kill demons... and occasionally adults. That's what we do as demon hunters."

"– Be quiet, Nate!!"

Are they really just demon hunters?

Demon hunters are specialists who fight demons, trained in the temple. There is a school in the temple to train demon hunters, and many belong to the Holy Order, but not all.

"W, we just came to fight demons... but"

"I didn't demonize, did I?"

Nate answered bluntly, ignoring the atmosphere.

"This *Temptation Stone* might be broken. It might be that we're using it wrong for the first time."

"– Idiot! What are you saying so honestly!?"

Tika shouted, and not only Elysia but even Selena looked exasperated.

This behavior... Tika and Nate might really be demon hunters, but they don't seem like assassins at all.

They said they were using the *Temptation Stone* for the first time. They are likely ordinary demon hunters who are called out to deal with demons when they appear.

"...Enough. Anyway, this island is my territory. I won't let you go until you tell me the truth."

My words made Tika pale.

"I'll ask again. Did you come on the orders of the Holy Order?"

"..., I, I don't know. We just..."

"Just came to this place as demon hunters?"

"Y, yes."

"Then, let me ask you... What will happen if you return without defeating anything?"

"..., that..."

Tika was at a loss for words.

They probably hadn't considered anything other than killing me if I demonized.

"You said you're from a convent... Are you being threatened by the Holy Order?"

When I asked, Tika clammed up.

There are those in the temple who have a grudge against the Holy Order.

But the Holy Order subdues such people mercilessly with money and power.

In this case, the Holy Order probably didn't want to get their hands dirty.

I am, after all, a prince.

Whether the assassination succeeds or fails, if the assassins are revealed to be agents of the Holy Order, it would be a major issue.

That's why they sent ordinary demon hunters here.

Even if they fail, it won't be the Holy Order's fault.

Tika didn't answer my voice. She looked like she wanted to say something but was holding it back.

Nate stared at Tika intently.

"I believe in Tika..."

"Nate..."

Tika squeezed her eyes shut.

Then she opened them wide and said as if convincing herself.

"Your Highness Alex... You have no grudge against me. In fact, I... But for us to survive, we have no choice!"

Tika, gripping her winged bracelet tightly, opened her mouth as if in prayer.

"...O exalted angel, lend me your power – *Summon Saint*!"

Elysia and Selena immediately tried to cut Tika down with their swords.

"Both of you, stop!"

But I stopped them on the spot.

I thought I was being too lenient.

But there was no need to kill her. Because,

"...Angels only attack demons."

I said, looking at the pillar of light descending from the sky.

*Summon Saint* is the highest-level holy magic that summons an avatar of an angel.

It is a spell that is usually cast by multiple holy mages over time, not by a single person. Tika's bracelet was probably a magical tool for *Summon Saint*.

If an angel is summoned, it will continue to fight until it defeats any demons nearby. Conversely, if there are no demons, it will disappear immediately in a burst of light.

As the pillar of light thinned, a human-shaped figure of light stood there.

With elegant wings of light spread wide, it held a dazzling sword of light.

The angel slowly pointed the sword at me –

"–!?"

A beam of light was released from the angel's sword towards me.