Chapter 174

"Mm?"

Let me ask—if you suddenly noticed your little sister was throwing a silent tantrum, would you pretend not to hear it?

Oh, wait, maybe that's the wrong question.

You don’t have a little sister.

But Sheffy did!

She could clearly tell that Belith really wanted to know the answer to that question just now.

However, Belith felt that if she asked it outright, she might upset Sheffy, so she swallowed the words back down.

Belith was no longer as competitive as she used to be, and she no longer saw Sheffy as her rival.

But that didn’t stop her from wanting to become better.

At the very least, she wanted to be someone truly worthy of being the little sister of the Royal Sister.

But she also knew that her Royal Sister hated dealing with political and military matters. She’d definitely be annoyed if she brought them up again...

But what she didn’t expect was...

Belith suddenly felt something press gently against her shoulder.

She had been facing the wall in silent reflection for quite some time. Suddenly having a soft weight lean against her shoulder brought a wave of comfort, the kind that only came after long-lasting fatigue.

More importantly, it was the Royal Sister who had moved over to sit closer to her, their bodies now touching.

The Royal Sister actually came over and stuck to me...?!

Could it be... all my efforts have finally paid off?!

"Royal Sister...! You—"

"Ugh, the orange fell on the seat. Got smashed into orange mush. Tsk tsk tsk, this stuff tastes great normally, but once it's squished like this it’s just gross. Belith, scoot over a bit, I’ll clean it up when we get there. I’m too lazy to move right now."

"..."

Royal Sister, just stab me and end it already!

Ehehe... but still, no matter the reason... Royal Sister's scent was so pleasant... like being in a flower field or wrapped up in a cozy bed.

Belith tilted her head and closed her eyes, leaning into Sheffy’s shoulder. That indescribable feeling of comfort and peace made the icy snowfield outside melt away into the gentle breeze of spring.

Sitting across from them, Xiarette removed her straw hat and smiled without saying a word.

Sheffy...

That orange... you dropped it on purpose, didn’t you?

Xiarette’s smile had a bit of stiffness to it, and seeing that made Sheffy's mood chill a little inside.

But Xiarette wouldn’t say anything more at this point, would she?

Yes, Sheffy was just maintaining her family relationships. Giving her sister appropriate comfort when she was feeling down—this was proper, rational, and indisputable.

Xiarette, I’m so glad you understand me so well...

But can you please stop smiling while the veins on your forehead are bulging out!?

Relax! Relax, okay?!

And Livra, what are you nodding your head for like that?! What are you trying to say with that!?

In the end, it had to be the Fire Lizard who expressed it best—she just gave a light snort of laughter and shook her head, as if to say: “You’re all so childish.”

You damn Fire Lizard, you’re the most aggravating one here!

Ugh, the atmosphere was getting really unpleasant—best to settle this whole thing quickly and be done with it.

Sheffy lightly curled her fingers into a loose fist and gave Belith’s head a gentle pat on the shoulder—like a cat’s paw tap. It was her seamless, face-saving way of responding to the question Belith had been too embarrassed to ask out loud.

"You wanted to ask how I managed the Second Corps back then, right?"

"I..."

"Oh, well, actually I didn’t really manage them deliberately. I just went with the flow, did as I pleased."

"..."

Belith thought to herself—Wait, did I even ask yet?

But over on Sheffy’s side, she was already off, speaking in a steady stream.

"At first, when Father transferred me over to be some kind of corps commander, I actually refused. Just hearing about it sounded like such a hassle. But what could I do? Orders are orders. So I went. And once I arrived, I found that those soldiers were all bloodthirsty—like if they didn’t get to kill something on the battlefield, they’d feel sick. That’s what the traditions of the Demon Clan did to them. They believed that conquest was glory, and dying on the battlefield was the best way to live. But they didn’t understand the beauty of life at all. They didn’t understand how much it would hurt their families if they died."

What Sheffy said might have seemed out of step with the era, but it wasn’t wrong. After all, her way of thinking didn’t originally belong to this world or this time.

Even so, Belith—without quite understanding the deeper meaning in Sheffy’s words—had already gently placed her palm over Sheffy’s hand, offering a warmth within her power to give.

At the same time, Xiarette’s gaze softened a little.

Sheffy always spoke in such a casual tone... even when she revealed the most vulnerable parts of her heart.

In her past life, she had been powerless to save Xiarette from dying of illness.

In this life, she had watched Belith risk her life recklessly, even resorting to forbidden magic that demanded death as a price just to grow stronger.

Could they truly understand how deeply she cherished her family?

Perhaps the reason Sheffy took so long to forgive Belith wasn't because she was cold-hearted, but because Belith hadn’t cherished her own life.

You thought, if worst comes to worst, I’ll just die.

But did you ever consider how painful that would be for those left behind?

And so, with this belief etched into her heart, Sheffy had arrived at the Demon King’s Army Second Corps—and felt deep aversion toward those soldiers and their value system. Soldiers who cared nothing for their own lives, who ignored the pleas of their families, and who sought nothing but military glory.

She had no intention of changing them.

Nor did she have any interest in trying.

But being Corps Commander was an appointment directly handed down by her father, wasn’t it?

So how she chose to lead the troops... didn’t really need anyone else’s opinion, did it?

In any case, she was already here—no point letting their extreme values ruin her mood every day, right?

And so, Sheffy gave her very first—

Order.

"I told them, 'You lot like killing and showing off your brute strength, don’t you? What a shame—our Second Corps isn’t anything special within the Demon King’s Army. If you want to rampage across the battlefield, you're not qualified! Even if there were missions to go out and fight, they wouldn’t be given to you!'"

"'So stop always thinking about charging off to kill the enemy. Why not prove you actually have the ability first, one step at a time? Instead of killing people, why not start by killing fish! To the northwest of the Second Corps' base, there’s an icy lake region that stretches as far as the eye can see—completely uninhabited. Perfect. All of you, go hunt giant fish for me! You’re not that strong, yet you keep wanting to fight and kill—have some sense of your own limits.'"

Belith listened with great interest, nodding repeatedly.

She covered her mouth slightly and chuckled, thinking, That really does sound like something Royal Sister would come up with.

"I get it now. Royal Sister wanted them to train in the icy lake region, right? I know the place—you don’t just find regular fish there, but all kinds of ferocious aquatic magic beasts. The biggest ones are said to be the size of wyverns. The monsters over there are seriously powerful. It’s definitely a good place to train... but honestly, it sounds even more dangerous than a battlefield."

"I wasn’t... ahem, yeah, something like that."

"As expected of Royal Sister—you always come up with such methodical, step-by-step plans! Ah... unlike me. Back then, I was too impatient. I only thought about becoming stronger myself and placed way too many harsh demands on the troops under me. In the end, our progress was slower than I expected."

"......"

Listening to all this, a bead of cold sweat slid down Xiarette’s forehead.

Sheffy...

That momentary look in your eyes—clearly said: You had no idea there were aquatic magic beasts there at first, did you?

Weren’t you just planning to go fishing with everyone at the start?!

Well... in truth, yes, that was exactly the case!

Sheffy's intentions had never changed. From the beginning, all she ever wanted was to live a life she enjoyed.

Why fish alone when you could fish together? Why enjoy peace by yourself when everyone could share in it?

But how could she have known that the so-called "fishing paradise" was actually filled with the most unreliable fish imaginable?!

When she handed everyone in the corps a fishing rod, she thought it would be a serene and leisurely fishing session.

Instead, what leapt out of the lake were monstrous, house-sized demon-fish that looked like they’d eaten half the abyss for breakfast—what the hell were those things?!

It wasn’t war—but it looked a lot like war.

Under the leadership of Corps Commander Sheffy, the Second Corps of the Demon King’s Army entered into a grueling, years-long deathmatch against the demon fish monster tribes.

There was blood and tears.

There were cries and howls.

There was strength—and regret.

In those extraordinarily harsh and relentless years, every soldier in the Second Corps came to understand what true combat resolve really meant.

They realized how naive they had once been...

【C-Corps Commander! Please rest assured! Every member of my Third Squad has steeled themselves! We were arrogant fools, deserving death! If we can't even defeat some damn giant fish... how can we possibly talk about conquering the world?!】

【Aaaah! Corps Commander!! My arm—my arm got bitten off by a fish!! I’m gonna die!! Ahh... Thank you, Corps Commander... Thank you for your healing magic...】

【"Oh my god... The Corps Commander is actually grilling a Felox Grand Demon Fish! We've fought it for an entire year without scratching it... Long live the Corps Commander! Glory to the Corps Commander!"】

Even now, whenever Sheffy recalled those tearful shouts from her soldiers, she would still have nightmares.

She really had no idea that the icy lake region was that kind of place!

She’d originally intended to have the troops return, but there was a saying—riding a tiger makes it hard to dismount.

The decision had already been made, and somehow, the more the soldiers fought the giant fish day after day, the more their morale rose. A retreat order—Sheffy simply couldn’t bring herself to give it.

Besides... seeing everyone working so hard to catch giant fish made her genuinely happy!

Fine then—if you’ve got that bloodlust, take it out on the fish instead of people. Hopefully, you’ll find some peace sooner or later.

Who would've thought... after those few years, they really did grow stronger, and their will became as unshakable as steel.

Even more unexpected, the news that the Second Corps had conquered the North Ice Polar Lake ended up being hailed as the greatest victory the Demon Clan had seen in a decade. Reports flowed back home praising Princess Sheffy’s innovation and the indomitable spirit of her troops.

Sheffy herself had been the most enthusiastic about fishing, and was regarded as the shining example of leading by doing—respected and admired by every soldier of the Second Corps.

Sigh... don’t even bring it up.

Just thinking about it made her want to go fishing again.

Oh, right.

"I say, Belith, I forgot to ask—while I was away from the Demon Domain, the Second Corps should’ve had a new Corps Commander appointed, right? Who took over?"

"Uh... well, there was an attempt to replace you... the commission was handed to a Five-Wing from the Duke Sap household, but..."

"But...?"

"But he got beaten up by the soldiers... and is now recovering at home. I heard he’s too scared to even leave the house now... The Second Corps troops are all fired up, saying they absolutely won’t accept a new Corps Commander. They’re planning to march on Aurus just to bring you back..."

"So... the position is still vacant. Once you return, Royal Sister... maybe you’ll need to visit the Second Corps and say a few words... calm everyone down a little...?"

"I'm gonna throw up."

---

5. Demon King’s Castle

The horses from the Hero’s household weren’t just for show—their naturally powerful physiques were nearly on par with magic beasts.

Departing from the Kingdom of Aurus, they crossed the Demon Domain's border fortress, Riedekidu, passed through six major strongholds, and headed straight toward the Demon Capital, Campeno. And through it all, these three horses didn’t need to rest once.

They covered a distance that ordinary horses might not have managed even in a week.

Even Sheffy couldn’t help but praise them.

"Wow, impressive, impressive. Xiarette, the horses you raise are seriously strong. I’ve decided—I won’t pluck their water grass anymore. If I get the chance, I’ll even feed them fish!"

Hhhhhhiiiiiiee!!

The horses neighed in protest, clearly because they’d heard a certain witch say she was going to feed them fish!

No!

I mean I’m going to give you fish to eat! You're the ones eating the fish, not the other way around!

"Sheffy, our horses... don’t eat fish."

"Our horses are weird."

"You're the weird one, aren’t you?! Since when do horses eat fish?!"

However, the fact that Xiarette was asking this question... only highlighted how incomplete her knowledge was.