"It's amazing! That prince is amazing, he's such a man!"

The Skynet panel showed his brother Ra'sl, looking delighted. Bandu had anticipated this reaction and sighed softly.

Today's sky is still a clear blue, cloudless day. The view of the "blue earth" from the top of the mountain is breathtaking.

From behind, the voices of Natsu and the Oni soldiers talking could be heard.

"Uh, hey, is that really the Demon King?"

"I understand how you feel. But he really is the Demon King."

"Is that cheerful and cheerful person really the Demon King?"

"Exactly."

"How surprising. And the fact that the Jukai Queen volunteered to be Mei-sama's chair is also the same. Is the outside world really okay?"

"Uh, well, we're visiting your country because we have problems in every way."

"You're being too harsh! I was just..."

"Ryu, stop interrupting."

"Huh? Naru-chan has been so cold to me lately... I'm so excited!"

"Look, it looks like the world outside is scary... no, it's dangerous."

After the group's meeting with Princess Aniya, they learned that direct communication via Skynet was impossible in Ghost Country. This was apparently due to the "True Judgment" blocking communication with the outside world.

With no other options, Bandu, Natsu, and Lutilis headed outside the Great Wetlands to report the situation to their comrades. The demonic soldiers followed them, acting as both a watchdog and a companion.

Since this is the edge of the continent, it's impossible to communicate with all of our companions simultaneously. Fortunately, the Demon King's army, whose safety was confirmed later, successfully arrived at the city in the "Frontline Zone" north of the Great Wetlands. It's not too far from here, so we can contact them through Skynet. Ra'l will relay the situation to the other companions.

However, as a price (?), the vampires' impression of the Demon King was severely shattered.

In the video, Elgar could be seen standing behind Rasl, his eyes blank. "Lord Rasl! Please show some dignity!" Leskina, standing nearby, also said, looking bewildered.

If this continues, the image of the entire demon race will be damaged... However, after Bandu reported the situation and the previous conversation ended, Ra'sl's temperament suddenly changed.

Even through the image, the overwhelming majesty of the king could be felt, causing the vampires to gasp.

"I understand the situation on your side. Now, I will convey the information from here."

"...Looks like something's wrong, Onii-sama."

Lasser nodded, his face solemn. He then told the news that the church had announced in various capitals a few days ago.

"A new Pope has taken office. His name is Darion Katz."

"Impossible! Isn't he dead!?"

"That's right. The annihilation of the Knights of the Guardian Light is a fact known to the entire world. However, the new Pope's name, not that of any surviving bishop or cardinal, but rather that of the deceased Darion, is truly strange. Officials claim he survived, but the details remain unknown. The Liberators' intelligence forces are currently verifying the authenticity of this information."

"...What exactly is the Church's intention?"

"That's still unknown. But, Ben, you better hurry up. My instincts are telling me something bad is about to happen."

"Brother's intuition is always right. Got it. I'll warn Meredith and the others... Brother, please be careful."

"Who do you think I am? I'm the Demon King."

At the end of his words, Ra'sl put away the stern and majestic expression of the devil that made people breathless, and turned back into the naughty boy look just now, shrugging his shoulders.

Then, Rasil announced that the safety of the remaining companions had been confirmed. Bandu, feeling relieved by this good news, ended the call. Looking back, he saw revolutionary expressions on Natsu and Lutilis's faces.

Looking at the liberators like this, the ghost country soldiers seemed to be shocked by the excitement and trends of the outside world and couldn't help but gasp.

The next morning, the group began searching.

Miredi, Ross and Mel are in a group of three. Miredi is responsible for flying, Ross focuses on sensing souls, and Mel is responsible for replying.

Oscar, Natsu, and Morgan were one team, while Bandu, Lutilis, and Niberai were working together. In other words, the group was divided into three groups to search.

Morgan and Nibel, who had been friends with Alford since childhood, would search for locations they thought were possible. Oscar and Lutilis were placed in separate groups so they could each use their "Information Insight" abilities to detect invisibility.

After hearing what Bandu and the others had said to Rasl, Meredith rallied her resolve to find Alford as soon as possible. At the same time, she looked at Mel and smiled.

"Sister Mei'er, stop looking so stern and be a little more cheerful."

"I don't understand what you mean."

"Even if the princess lectures you all night, there's no need to get upset, right? Even if you're scolded to the point of being speechless, it's still the same, right? Anyway, how does it feel to be cared for by your biological father's ex-wife? It hurts!"

A swift whip of water struck Meredith in the face, sending her tumbling through the air. Even so, the gravity magic she had cast on Royce and Mel remained unaffected, demonstrating her exceptional skill, even to the point of being unnecessary.

"Sorry, you haven't been as annoying lately. I just missed you so much that I couldn't help but take action."

"You two, be serious."

Ross was straining his soul-sensing abilities to their fullest potential, examining the souls of every animal and monster one by one. The frivolous attitude of the two people beside him made a vein pop in his forehead.

"It can't be helped, Lao. The way Mei-niang desperately begged for help with her eyes yesterday was just hilarious—no, I mean, so cute, wasn't it?"

"That's right. Yesterday she looked like a toddler for once."

"Brother Rouse, don't even say that to yourself."

"You shouldn't call someone older than you 'little brother'. Didn't the princess correct you about that last night?"

“Ouch!”

It was really rare for the eloquent Mei'er to be left speechless by a refutation.

To be honest, after the talks in the fortress ended, the deal between the two parties was officially established, so Princess Aniya invited Miredi and his party to go to the royal city.

The reason for going to the royal city wasn't just to formulate a search plan. Since the group had to travel extensively throughout the country, they had to first meet with Acting King Swede. Furthermore, they also had to discuss their plans after bringing Alford back.

Only Swede and a few close associates were informed of this matter. They all agreed that if Alford could be found, they would be willing to accept Meredith and his companions. However, when they learned of Mel's origins...

As a last resort, Ross had to continuously cast the soul magic "Soul Calming" on His Highness Swede.

After finishing all these things, it was already sunset, so they stayed in the royal city for dinner and overnight.

In this period of time.

Princess Aniya takes special care of Mei'er.

The princess had a lot of opinions about Mei's performance in all aspects, including table manners, choice of words, and even attitude towards the elderly.

At first, Mei'er thought that the princess was rejecting her and deliberately making things difficult for her.

"The princess truly cares deeply for Mei-niang. She even asks about her favorite foods, favorite desserts, and even favorite accessories. She truly cares about everything."

That’s right, no matter how you look at it, the princess’s attitude was not malicious, but was entirely out of kindness and concern.

Finally, she said that girls should not wear clothes made of such thin fabrics, and sent her maid to bring a large number of dresses and Western clothes for her to try on, and insisted that she take them back.

"We initially suspected the princess had ulterior motives, so we discreetly inquired with the maids. It turned out that Princess Aniya had always wanted a daughter..."

“Ahhhhhhhhhhhhhh I can’t hear anything, I can’t hear anything!”

"And the maid said that the princess is usually the epitome of quietness. It's been a long time since I've seen her so excited."

"That's enough, stop nagging!"

Sister Mei'er was really angry and her face turned stern.

"I really don't know what she's thinking! I'm her husband's illegitimate daughter! Normally, she'd despise me, or at least try to keep her distance! But she's so... she ended up complaining about everything, saying I'm wrong this way and that way, and that I should be more reserved and learn more etiquette! She even ended up saying... that this would make my mother sad! Seriously, who needs her nagging? She nags me endlessly, and I wonder how long it'll take for her to give in!"

Mei'er kept complaining. But, for some reason...

"You don't seem as repulsive as you say."

"She's acting like a rebellious kid. And yet she's acting like a 'big sister' like that? It's ridiculous—hurt!"

The water whip hit Royce's bald head with a "snap". The sunlight reflected from his wet head made Meredith cry out "How dazzling!"

Sister Mel wasn't used to being teased, so she started to get really upset, so Meredith and Royce had to suppress their urge to laugh.

Last night, Princess Aniya took Mel to Alexander's grave to lay flowers. Since they hadn't returned yet, it's easy to imagine that the princess must have spent a lot of time explaining to Mel what kind of person her biological father was.

Although Mei'er looks the same as usual on the surface, no one knows what has actually happened to her mood.

"Don't worry about me. I'm fine."

It seems that Meier completely saw through the thoughts of Meredith and Ross.

Regardless, I had initially worried about the potential complications arising from Mei'er's background and connection to the Ghost Nation; now, unexpectedly, it had concluded successfully. Looking at Mei'er's stinky face, Mireddy smiled happily.

"It's going so smoothly! If it were us, we would definitely find Alford-sama in no time!"

She spoke loudly, her morale very high.

But three days later—

“…I can’t find it at all!”

Meredith's eyes were like dead fish, and she looked very distressed. Even though dinner was in front of her, she couldn't eat it.

"It's unbelievable..." Oscar and the others were in the same state. Everyone looked haggard as if they had been drained of their energy.

Princess Aniya and His Highness Swede, who were dining at the same table, had vacant eyes. They understood the feelings of Meredith and the others, and seemed to recall the hardships they had endured over the past two years.

"That guy might not be in the country anymore..."

This remark completely froze the atmosphere at the table. The speaker was the acting king, Swede, wearing silver-rimmed glasses. Though barely twenty, his blond hairline had already begun to form a sharp V-shape. Everyone turned their gazes at him awkwardly, as stiff as a forgotten mechanical puppet.

"Right now, that's not certain. This is just a possibility."

"But if you're really not in the country, then there's nothing you can do!"

Mei couldn't help but look up. She hoped that wasn't the case. If that were the case, it would mean that Alford had completely abandoned his country. And finding him would be incredibly difficult.

"...By the way, you haven't searched the wetlands yet, right?"

Lutilis suddenly thought of this and mentioned it to everyone. Everyone just laughed it off, saying that His Highness couldn't possibly be in such a dangerous area. But—

"Perhaps the wetlands aren't dangerous to Alford-sama, right?"

Oscar suddenly thought of something and said his guess. Swede twitched his cheek and added to the explanation.

"Even patrols rarely visit the wetlands bordering the northwest sea. The dense forests there create a unique ecosystem, and there are also many particularly dangerous areas within the wetlands..."

For those who want to enter the country illegally, it is more practical to go around by boat rather than enter from that place. Therefore, the Kingdom's security in that place is not very strict.

Everyone looked at each other and immediately decided to search that place next.

The next day, Meredi and his team split into three groups and began searching the northwest part of the wetland. The results confirmed their absurd speculation was correct.

"...Are you here to hunt me down?"

Meredy's group finally found Alford.

The barrier, a combination of illusion and cognitive obstruction, rendered the area imperceptible to anyone, and rendered any trace of magical power completely invisible. Without spirit sensing or intelligence, it would be impossible to detect.

In a tranquil spot near the coast, surrounded by a river, springs, and forests, sits a small wooden house covered in vines and flowers. In front of the house lies a handmade swing and a spacious field.

There, Mireidi and her friends discovered a handsome nobleman.

His neatly cropped blond hair shone brightly. His features were a work of art, a striking resemblance to Princess Aniya. Even through his clothes, his physique was well-proportioned, a perfect statuesque.

However, he wore a straw hat, overalls, a towel around his neck, and a hoe on his shoulder, looking like he was definitely working in the fields. He exuded the aura of a seasoned farmer.

"Excuse me...are you His Majesty Alford?"

"That's right. Since you know who I am, that means you're not lost, right?"

Alford immediately narrowed his eyes, full of vigilance. However, he was dressed like a farmer.

The oppressive feeling he emanated was tingling, and his attitude was fierce. However, the sight of his fair skin covered in mud, a symbol of precious labor, was endearing, and the tension was mitigated.

"Uh, yes. We came out to look for you at the request of Princess Aniya."

"Yeah?"

Alford narrowed his eyes suspiciously. Why would he ask someone from the outside world for help? He seemed to be extremely skeptical about this.

His bright red eyes looked at Meredith, then Mel and Ross.

The moment he saw Mei'er, he seemed to sense something, and his eyes paused on her for a moment. But then, as Ross looked towards the cabin and squinted his eyes slightly, a loud bang exploded.

"what?"

“What are you doing!?”

Meredy and Mel looked over quickly and saw Alford, who had already swung his fist to the bottom, and Royce, who had crossed his arms to block the fist and his back was stuck in the tree trunk.

"Tsk... I recognize you. You're the leader of the Knights of White Light!"

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