As the Demon King, I have married a slave elf. How should I express my love?

—According to Raphael, its performance is even superior to the original Baptismal Armor.

It seems that what is written by those who can read is correct, rather than what is copied without understanding its meaning.

"So, it was Nefie who rebuilt your armor into the Baptism Armor this time. Without Nefie, it would have been impossible to get to this point."

"As long as it can help Mr. Sagan."

Although Neferpitou spoke modestly, he seemed very happy to receive the praise, his ears perked up and twitched.

Raphael respectfully clasped his hands in front of his chest and lowered his head.

"As expected of Miss Nefi. You truly are the woman who enjoys the King's utmost favor."

"Awooo..."

The two praising her in unison seemed to overwhelm Neferi, and she reached out to cover her flushed face.

Looking at Neferpitou's amusing expression, Sagan continued:

"I think this is probably the language used by elves or a similar race. There should also be priests or some other position in the church who are closely related to that race, right?"

Even if someone with bloodlines similar to the elves was responsible for making the baptismal armor, the divine language was still a lost language within the church, and I doubt that person's understanding of the language was as accurate as Neferi's.

—So that's why there are only twelve Holy Swords?

Since the language of the gods has been lost, there is no way to forge more holy swords.

Fa'er seemed to have thought of this as well, and widened her eyes to ask.

"Can Nephew even copy the Holy Sword?"

Faced with the obvious question, Nefertari shook his head.

"No, we've tried, but the Holy Sword can't be copied."

"Hmm. That seems to require special conditions such as a ritual or a specific location. After all, if the Holy Sword were so easy to make, the Church would have asked the elves to make it for them long ago."

Although it successfully imbued the sword with some power, it was ultimately far inferior to the original Holy Sword.

Even Neferpitou, who could create baptismal armor surpassing the original, could only replicate this level of power. Unless the conditions are just right, it should be impossible to create a thirteenth holy sword.

—Never mind, I didn't do this because I wanted the Holy Sword anyway.

Sagan only wanted methods to combat the demons and to uncover the secrets of the Demon Lord's Mark. He investigated the Holy Sword because the design on it bore many similarities to the Demon Lord's Mark.

However, even after reading "The Mark of the Demon King," Neferpitou was unable to understand it as written text.

Although the "Imprints" are very similar to the language of the gods, they are not as easily understood as the language of the gods.

However, these two things are probably not completely unrelated.

Sagan was quite looking forward to the dinner party tonight, as Bivron would also be attending, hoping to gain some new clues.

Sagan clenched his right hand, which showed the "mark".

"In short, the research is gradually yielding results, and Nefi will officially join in to help. As for Fal and Raphael, you'll both have to work hard for me then."

"Yes, I will do my best."

"As you command. We shall take care of all matters, big and small, at home."

"...I look forward to your performance."

Despite his fierce appearance, Raphael was quite competent as a butler, handling all kinds of household chores with ease. Even Nefi developed a competitive spirit and wanted to rival him.

Well, now that the burden of housework has been reduced, Neferpitou will have more time to spend with me, which is a great blessing for me.

Sagan leaned back heavily in his chair and squinted again.

"But the most important thing now is this banquet in Bivron."

Sending an invitation to Sagan certainly wasn't to cultivate a closer relationship with him.

"There will definitely be some boring tricks during the banquet. No matter what, the opponent is still the Demon King, so don't let your guard down."

Sagan's words were a wake-up call, and Fael and Raphael nodded in agreement.

Of all of them, only Neferpitou tightly clutched the hem of her skirt.

Then, as if she had made up her mind, she spoke.

"Um, Mr. Sagan, there's something I'd like to tell you first—"

"—Sorry to bother you."

Someone interrupted Nefi, opening the door without knocking.

—Nefi finally managed to get halfway through his sentence, what a clueless guy!

A young magician opened the door, and Sagan immediately glared at him with resentment.

"Ee... Ah wah, wah wah wah wah..."

The young magician then realized what he had messed up and collapsed to the ground, trembling.

—Let's just strangle this kid.

Just as Sagan was about to gather magic in his hand, Neferi shook his head indifferently.

"Mr. Sagan, please calm down. This gentleman must have come on important business."

Neferpitou's kind words gave the young magician a sense of rebirth, and he nodded vigorously.

"Um, I saw a guest who looks like Lord Sagan's companion."

—Companion…? Are you referring to Shesty?

If that's the case, then we can't just leave it like that and ignore it.

Sagan stood up reluctantly.

"Okay, I'll be right there."

Then, Sagan turned his gaze to Nefertiti.

"Excuse me. So, what was that you wanted to say to me just now?"

"...It's alright, please don't worry about it."

Neferpitou's ears drooped listlessly after being unexpectedly doused with cold water.

—It's probably about that incident before…

Finally, she seemed willing to talk. Sagan, seeing the magician cutting her off, grew even more annoyed.

Then, he was preparing to leave the cabin—

——Hehehe——

A familiar-sounding laugh reached Sagan's ears, but the owner of that laugh shouldn't be laughing like that.

"Sagan, what's wrong?"

Seeing Sagan stop, Far tilted her head curiously and asked.

"...No, it's okay."

—Perhaps, some scheme has already been set up.

With a sense of unease, as if she were about to attend a banquet, Sagan stepped onto the deck once more.

◇

"...Sagan, there are a few things I'd like to confirm with you first."

Upon leaving the cabin and going up to the deck, Sagan was already there waiting for her.

Today she wore a crimson dress that matched her hair color, with a pure white decorative fabric wrapped around her waist. To the average person, the outfit was actually quite well-matched, but there was no sword in sight, leaving everyone wondering where she had hidden the holy sword.

It appears she was the last passenger to board. The ship had already quietly begun its departure from the port.

The lake flows into several rivers, one of which passes through Chinnoind. Shestie must have come from that waterway.

But... standing on the deck, Shisty suddenly had tears welling up in her eyes when she saw Sagan's face and said this to him.

"Hmm, confirm what? Tell me."

Shess's pale face first glanced around the deck.

"This is the banquet hall you mentioned, isn't it?"

"Yes, that's right. Bifron is quite thoughtful, choosing to hold the banquet on the ship."

When I first arrived in the cabin, the sun had already set. Now, the lake is shrouded in night, the moon is hidden behind the clouds, and the only light comes from the candles lit on each table.

In this dimly lit environment, you can't see the other person's face at all if you keep just a few steps away.

One of the Church’s many prejudices against magicians is that they hold so-called demonic feasts—strange rituals where magicians who worship demons gather together.

In reality, magicians don't have the concept of cooperation; they don't hold such gatherings, nor do they worship demons. Yet, this venue is filled with an indescribable atmosphere of a demonic feast.

Moreover, the cruise ship is currently adrift alone on the vast lake.

On such a ship, church assassins would be detected as soon as they approached, and the ship could choose to sail away or abandon ship. Even if someone caused trouble on board, simply throwing them overboard would eliminate the threat. As a venue, it was indeed perfect.

Sagan looked around the ship again.

The ship is about the length of an arena with spectator seating, and it can easily accommodate two hundred passengers.

The ship was a sailing vessel, with three straight masts and several sails. On the main deck were tables covered with elaborate tablecloths, upon which were arranged wine bottles and glasses. Since no crew members were visible, it seemed the ship was being navigated by magic.

There should be no more than five ships of this size across the entire continent.

—This wine looks pretty good.

Sagan then took a sip and found it to be a fine wine. To this day, he still couldn't distinguish the brands, but he was certain that it was no less excellent than the wine Barbarossa had brought.

After observing the situation on deck, Sagan asked, puzzled:

"So, is there a problem here?"

"Uh, because..."

Shess looked at the deck with a bewildered expression.

"Well, let me put it this way. It's bad enough that it's dark here, but why is the music being played so creepy?"

A piano stood in one corner of the deck, with violinists and flute players standing in a row beside it, playing eerie music.