The Brave Man Meets the Girl Who Slapped the Demon King

Stardate 248.

After completing four years of secluded training at the Central Theocracy, Ludwig reunited with his peers at the Central Academy—only to find their attitudes toward him strangely evasive.

Gradually, he realized it wasn’t just classmates. Teachers, old friends in the Central, trusted elders, even familiar merchants—all treated him oddly.

Everyone seemed to be hiding something. Avoiding him. Refusing to speak.

Then one day, restless and awake early with nothing to do, he headed toward the prayer hall—and overheard two passing priests chatting.

“Did you hear? Camille has fallen.”

“I saw it coming. These recent collapses… one after another. Upper-class power struggles, ordinary people pay the price.”

“What do you mean ‘one after another’? Didn’t demons from the southeast invade Camille’s capital?”

“—It’s not that simple. Let me tell you—Camille, just like Lentiya a few years back, was torn apart from within by imperial factionalism…”

“Shh! Don’t talk about this here—what if someone hears?!”

…… At that moment, Ludwig’s chest tightened. Dizziness overwhelmed him.

Only then did he learn the truth: while he trained, his homeland had vanished.

He wanted to return to Lentiya immediately, but was told his citizenship had been voided—he could no longer leave Aetelarma territory.

For months, he searched desperately for answers in the Central, only ever receiving the vague lead: Lentiya collapsed due to internal strife within the imperial family.

As for “Camille”—a name he’d never heard before—he soon forgot it entirely.

He could never have imagined that the Duchy of Camille, destroyed less than a year after Lentiya’s fall, would turn out to be the homeland of the future Demon King, Samael.

…… And she never imagined that by choosing not to become a priest this time—but instead attending Wylding’s banquet as Lentiya’s representative—she would cross paths with Samael before his war began.

Syldra and Rosetta returned to their VIP suite on the fourth floor.

Soon after, they went to the dining hall for lunch. Along the way, Syldra encountered the Duke of Stante—a northern Aetelarma duchy—and his young daughter.

She remembered them well. When Ludwig was a boy, the families had been close; he and the Duke’s daughter often played together.

The Duke chatted warmly with Syldra, but his daughter—several years younger—stared at her intently, making Syldra deeply uncomfortable. The conversation ended quickly, and the two parties parted ways.

Back in the room, Rosetta busied herself dusting the dresser and nightstand. Syldra, lost in thought, tried to help—but was promptly refused by the diligent little maid.

Near the door, the once-wilted plant now stood lush and vibrant. Rosetta happily watered it, humming. Syldra sat on the bed, staring at it blankly.

If Camille fell the same way Lentiya did—destroyed by internal power struggles among the elite—

Then was Samael waging war to avenge his homeland? Was that his true motive?

Syldra twirled a strand of crimson hair beside her cheek.

Samael was staying in a VIP suite at “The Lion’s Invitation” during Wylding’s celebration. That meant the Duke of Camille had been invited by Wylding’s ruler.

But—there was no Duke of Camille in the Aetelarma imperial peerage. As a member of the Lentiya house, Syldra had never met anyone from a “Camille” family among the nobility.

Therefore, the Duke of Camille must belong to another empire’s hierarchy.

Considering geography—was it possible the southern empire was Dalabi?

The very Dalabi Empire that Samael conquered in a single month after launching his rebellion.

…… At the time, everyone had been baffled by how swiftly the Demon King’s army took Dalabi’s capital.

But now, Syldra considered: if Samael-Camille was originally a duke under the Dalabi Empire, then possessing insider knowledge of Dalabi’s court and central command would make perfect sense. With preparation and access, infiltration could have begun long ago—making the uprising merely the final act.

Yes. That fits.

Syldra nodded, then followed the logic to its next conclusion.

——If Samael’s war was born of vengeance, then eliminating the source of his hatred might prevent the war altogether.

This was a path—if all her assumptions were correct—that could actually succeed.

But first, she needed to verify those assumptions.

That meant more contact with Samael.

…… Originally, Syldra’s plan had been to save Lentiya from its impending crisis, then use her memories to gather the other Heroes and crush Samael’s forces before they could fully form.

But compared to that, this new approach felt… more feasible.

The red-haired, green-eyed girl recalled the firm, steady arm that caught her—and sighed.

…… Right now, he was courteous. Not arrogant. Not cruel. Just like any noble—polished, distant, carrying the quiet pride of high birth.

If his homeland hadn’t been destroyed… would he still have become that demon who crushed the world beneath his heel, drunk on blood in the dark?

And if she hadn’t been chosen as a Hero to fight him… would she have become someone like him?

……

While Rosetta tidied and fed birds perched on their windowsill, Syldra mentally mapped out future plans—names to find, actions to take—and jotted notes in her travel journal. Time slipped by unnoticed, until golden-orange twilight spilled across the sky.

Just then, a staff member knocked on the suite door to announce the banquet.

Hearing the polite voice outside, Syldra quickly closed her notebook.

“Coming!” Rosetta called, tossing the last crumbs into the air for the birds, then rushing to open the door.

But beyond the uniformed attendant, another figure stepped into view.

“Ah~ You’re truly adorable, little sister from House Lentiya!”

As the door opened, a crystalline voice—clear and delicate, like silver needles tapping fine porcelain—rang through the room.

Beside the staff member stood a girl in an elegant ivory gown, her graceful figure poised with refined beauty. Her makeup was light yet radiant, like a flower just beginning to bloom. She smiled gently.

????

That’s the woman who slapped Samael!

Syldra’s eyes widened in shock.