Chapter Eighteen
“You’re saying you want me to become your subordinate?”
“Precisely.”
After Lisbeth’s reconfirmation, everyone present, save for Meyfield, wore expressions of utter surprise. After all, no matter how down on her luck Lisbeth might be now, it didn’t change the fact that she was once a human hero. To actually recruit a human hero into his ranks at this point left everyone bewildered about Meyfield’s intentions.
Lisbeth, the person directly involved, shared this sentiment. However, she offered no immediate reply, instead slowly asking, “Meyfield, let me make it clear first: I am the Demon Lord’s personal maid. Even disregarding my former identity, what you’re doing now is nothing short of poaching.”
“Haha, you’re right, I am indeed poaching. With such an outstanding talent right before me, of course I must try my best. Moreover, I’m sure you find working here quite boring, don’t you? After all, you were once a man active on the battlefield, yet now you’re performing mundane tasks like cleaning. Don’t you feel you’re wasting your talents?”
Upon hearing Meyfield’s words, Lisbeth instinctively fell silent for a moment. He wasn’t wrong; the work of a personal maid was indeed uninteresting. Even now, she felt no inclination to help prepare for a victory feast.
Yet, despite this, as Lisbeth recalled every single moment since her arrival, a subtle smile unconsciously touched her lips.
“Meyfield, you’re right. The work here is indeed far more boring than I imagined. Every day, I not only have to wake up early to clean, but I’m also occasionally lectured by a certain old woman. But even so, I’ve unexpectedly found myself quite happy.
“Though I don’t quite understand this feeling myself, life here has truly brought me a long-lost sense of warmth. That’s all there is to it.”
“Warmth, you say? You’ve certainly chosen a rather soft word.”
As Lisbeth’s voice faded, Meyfield took a deep breath, his voice unconsciously rising. “As men, as soldiers, the only things we should feel are a surge of hot blood and the exhilaration of battle on the field!
“Tepid feelings like warmth are quickly overshadowed by our burning passion. So, if you’re trying to dismiss me with such a meaningless reason, I won’t accept it.”
‘Tsk, how troublesome.’
Lisbeth had thought that if she revealed her true feelings, Meyfield would simply nod and withdraw. Alas, for a warmonger like him, such a reason was clearly insufficient to deter him. Just as Lisbeth prepared to speak, Christy interjected.
“Meyfield, Lisbeth has already stated she doesn’t want to leave. Why are you still pestering her?”
“Because they are not a man to be buried here! They should be demonstrating their worth on the battlefield, not toiling as an unproductive maid!”
“I already told you, she’s *my* person now! Stop trying to steal her away!”
Watching Meyfield, who was now verging on the unreasonable, Christy could only shake her head again, intending to continue persuading him. However, before she could, Lisbeth abruptly waved a hand, stopping Christy.
“Demon Lord, please wait a moment. Before you continue to persuade him, I need to confirm something.”
“Eh? Confirm something? You’re not actually thinking of going, are you?”
“No, no, just watch for now.”
Having said this, Lisbeth turned her gaze towards Meyfield and slowly asked, “Meyfield, you’ve consistently referred to me as a man, haven’t you? Does that mean you’ve never once regarded me as a woman?”
“That’s right. Since your original gender was male, no matter what body you inhabit, you remain a true, upstanding man. At least, that’s what I believe. So, Lisbeth, come with me. Only on the battlefield can you truly unleash your talents.”
“Is that so? Well, thank you for your kind regard. But Meyfield, don’t forget that no matter what, I was once human. You’re asking me to go to the battlefield to kill my former kin. Do you think that’s possible?”
“Of course it’s possible, because I heard when I arrived that you surrendered to Christy of your own accord. In other words, you yourself abandoned the entire human race. Therefore, I see no problem with fighting a race you once ruthlessly cast aside.”
Upon hearing Meyfield’s words, Lisbeth’s mouth twitched. Her decision to surrender had not been for any grand cause, but purely for her own objectives, which led her to the Demon Lord’s Castle.
Yet, Meyfield now believed she had abandoned all of humanity, leading to his mistaken desire to recruit her. Although Lisbeth wished to shake her head and deny it, she knew that if she voiced a negative opinion here, her painstakingly built image of loyalty would be jeopardized.
Therefore, after a moment’s thought, Lisbeth decided to bypass that topic for now.
“Well then, Meyfield, let’s set that matter aside for a moment. Let’s discuss what I wanted to confirm earlier. We won’t talk about such distant matters as going to war. What I need to confirm now is whether we can continue to get along properly.
“So, since you fundamentally believe I’m a man, could you answer one question for me first?”
“One question?”
“Yes.”
Though Meyfield had no idea what Lisbeth intended to ask, he nodded. “Alright, ask away.”
“Hmm, my question is quite simple. Between breasts and buttocks, which do you prefer?”
“Eh!?”
As Lisbeth’s words landed, everyone except Meyfield froze, momentarily wondering if they had misheard. But quickly, Meyfield smiled and gave his answer.
“That would be buttocks, of course.”
“I see. But I prefer breasts.”
After hearing Lisbeth’s reply, a look of profound disappointment instantly crossed Meyfield’s face. He shook his head regretfully. “Is that so? What a pity. It seems I’ll have to give up on you then…”
“Eh!?”
If Lisbeth’s earlier question had astonished everyone, Meyfield’s reply now left them agape, momentarily convinced they had misheard.
Here, Meyfield sighed again, sounding deeply disheartened. “Indeed, no matter the race, as long as this distinction exists, it seems we men can be so easily divided.”
“Yes, that is our tragic fate. There’s nothing to be done about it.”
‘No, no, I suspect both of your brains are broken.’
Though Christy desperately wanted to voice this thought, she clamped a hand over her mouth, fearing she might complicate things. Finally, confirming that Lisbeth would not be joining his ranks, Meyfield rose from his chair and slowly spoke, “Well then, Sid, it’s about time we left. While it’s regretful that the second matter couldn’t be accomplished today, at least we received a good answer.”
“Yes, Lord Meyfield.”
After saying this, Meyfield addressed Christy. “Well then, Christy, I’ll be taking my leave. I must say, you’re truly fortunate to have someone like this willing to follow you. I’ll go now, and you should treat her well.”
“Hmph, of course I’ll treat my servant well, but if this fellow constantly annoys me, that’s another story.”
“Heh, well, isn’t that also quite excellent?”
With these final words, Meyfield turned to depart. However, before he could, Sid, who was beside him, hastily called out, “Lord Meyfield, you haven’t said goodbye to the young miss yet.”
“There’s no need.”
“Eh?”
As Meyfield’s words fell, Angelina’s eyes dimmed considerably. But just as she thought he would leave, he turned back to her. “We’ll be returning here for the victory feast after we’ve finished our business, so we’ll certainly meet again. There’s no need for goodbyes.
“So, Angelina, when I return, I’ll continue to tell you stories from the battlefield.”
“Mmhmm! Father, I’ll wait for you always!”
Finally, Meyfield smiled and walked towards the VIP room door. Yet, at that very moment, Clotilde, standing behind Lisbeth, spoke up.
“Oh, Alex, quickly use the Demonic Eye Stone to see if that person named Meyfield is the one who cast the curse.”
“Ah, you’re right. Although I don’t think he would cast a curse, it’s best to check anyway.”
Reminded by Clotilde, Lisbeth quickly pulled out the Demonic Eye Stone monocle that Olivia had given her last time. Although the monocle in her hand looked quite striking, it was fortunately imbued with an invisibility spell, so no one noticed when Lisbeth put it on.
Having donned the monocle, Lisbeth redirected her gaze towards Meyfield. The very next second, her heart gave a violent lurch, leaving her utterly frozen in place.
“Alex, what’s wrong? Is he the one who cursed Christy?”
“No, it’s not that. He hasn’t cursed anyone else, but it seems he himself has also been marked with a curse…”