Chapter 67: Field and Alice’s Worries

“So, where did Miss Liakade find that cat? We searched the entire Academy and still couldn’t find it.”

Alice asked in confusion.

“Ah, it couldn’t find its little lover and ran all the way to the back mountain. Later, I found out its lover was actually stuck on a tree in the Academy, so I rescued it too.”

Liakade explained.

At that moment, Liakade remembered what had happened on the back mountain. She decided to tell Field and the others while she had the chance.

“Field, is it really absolutely impossible for a Demon Race to appear in the Royal City or the Academy?”

Liakade’s tone suddenly lost its earlier lightness and became unusually serious.

“Absolutely not. The kingdom’s guards are always stationed at the walls, and the Enforcers and Exorcists patrol and inspect the Royal City and the Academy. It’s impossible for a Demon Race to enter—except you.”

Field looked at Liakade, noticing her serious expression and realizing something might have happened.

“Are you worried about being discovered?”

“No.”

Liakade shook her head.

“I just… encountered a Demon Race earlier.”

“What?”

Field’s face turned pale with shock as she stood up from the bedside.

“How is that possible? Are you joking?”

Field had lived in the Royal City since childhood and knew better than anyone how strong its defenses were.

It was absolutely impossible for a Demon Race to sneak in.

“Is this real?”

Alice was also extremely surprised.

The two of them stared at Liakade, waiting for her next words.

“It’s real.”

Liakade nodded solemnly.

“I encountered a Shadow Wolf on the back mountain. You know about that kind of monster, right? It was covered in the Academy’s lectures.”

“Of course I know.”

Alice nodded.

To keep up with the lessons, she always paid close attention, so she naturally knew about such monsters.

“You mean… they snuck into the Royal City through the shadows? That’s impossible. Even without Light Magic, Shadow Wolves are so weak that the guards could handle them easily.”

Field couldn’t understand how such a weak monster could breach the Royal City’s defenses.

“Besides, a Shadow Wolf can only hide in shadows for a few seconds a day. Even if they got in, they’d be discovered quickly.”

“No… I stayed on the back mountain for quite a while. The place where they appeared was always deserted. Rather than coming out of the shadows themselves…”

Liakade paused.

It wasn’t to be mysterious, but to give Field and Alice time to mentally prepare.

“I think they were released from the shadows by someone.”

“Hiss…”

Field involuntarily sucked in a cold breath.

“Is there a difference?”

Alice seemed not to understand the difference between the two.

“A big difference.”

Field glanced at Alice and explained.

“First, Shadow Wolves aren’t intelligent. They act purely on animal instinct. They might attack humans, but they’re too afraid to step into the kingdom’s territory.”

“But they appeared in the Royal City—and were released by someone. Do you understand now, Alice?”

“In other words…”

Alice finally understood, her eyes widening in fear as she covered her mouth.

“Yes. It’s very likely they were brought in by an intelligent Demon Race. That Demon Race also uses Shadow Magic. Those Shadow Wolves were hidden on the back mountain by it. And that intelligent Demon Race… is now inside the Royal City.”

“Hu…”

Field took a deep breath.

“I’m going to inform Father about this immediately and have him strengthen the Royal City’s defenses and conduct a thorough search.”

She turned to leave as she spoke.

“Wait!”

Liakade hurriedly stopped her.

“Now that we know there may be a Demon Race in the city, are you still going to go out alone?”

“Then what should we do? Even a day’s delay could change everything!”

“Calm down. The other side definitely won’t act rashly. Think about it—how strong is the combat force in the Royal City? Even if we haven’t found that guy, if it does anything, it’ll be dealt with quickly.”

Liakade pressed down on Field’s shoulder, persuading her.

“If you wander around now and get caught by that guy, you’ll just become a hostage.”

“…Sigh, fine.”

Field thought about it.

Liakade had a point; she was being impatient.

“Will the Royal City… become dangerous?”

Alice was frightened by the sudden turn of events.

“It won’t.”

Liakade shook her head, smiling as she comforted Alice.

“It’s definitely hiding somewhere right now, not daring to act recklessly. If it does anything out of line, the Enforcers will discover it, and its objective will fail.”

“Then… what is its goal?”

“Probably something in the Royal Palace. There’s plenty of good stuff there. We don’t have to worry too much. Let’s leave it to the King.”

“Mm…”

Liakade watched as Alice gradually calmed down and patted her head.

Actually, Liakade was lying.

She felt the real target might be Alice, but seeing how scared Alice looked, Liakade couldn’t bear to tell her.

After all, in the original work, Alice was the protagonist—the absolute nemesis of the Demon Race, wielding Light Magic. It was only natural for her to be targeted.

However, in the Academy arc of the original, there were no Demon Race appearances. The antagonists in the Academy chapters were always Liakade and Irina Zi.

Assassination attempts by the Demon Race only happened after graduation. Before that, the Academy and the Royal City were absolutely safe.

How could a Demon Race suddenly appear now?

It seems… the World Line has changed.

Liakade escaped from the World Line controlled by Irina Zi, only to enter a new one.

She didn’t know if the routes and game settings she played before transmigrating would be useful in this World Line.

If she could always know the future, she wouldn’t have to worry so much.

But it’s okay.

Liakade would protect Alice.

She’s an important story character—the key to defeating the Demon Race.

Liakade believed that as long as she could protect Alice and help her grow, no matter how the World Line changed, the three of them could achieve their perfect ending.

“Anyway, Alice, you don’t have to be too scared. It’ll be fine.”

With that, Liakade turned to Field.

“You too, don’t be too tense. Leave it to the adults to handle.”

“Mm.”

It’s not that they had to be on guard every moment just because a Demon Race had appeared in the Royal City.

If they were constantly on edge, they’d wear themselves out before even encountering a Demon Race.

Liakade told the two for two reasons—so Field would tell the King and have him order a search, and so the two would be mentally prepared.

The ones who really needed to be on alert were the Enforcers.

“Meow…”

“What was that sound!?”

Field and Alice suddenly stared at Liakade, their eyes shining.

“W-Wait, why are you reacting like this?”

Liakade saw the two of them and remembered how Field had just called her a pet.

She tried imitating a cat’s cry to lighten the mood, but didn’t expect such a strong reaction.

“Weren’t you both just so worried?”

“Honestly, I wasn’t that worried, but just now I heard something incredible.”

Field leaned in, gently lifting Liakade’s chin.

“Please, do it again, Miss Liakade!”

Alice also clasped her hands together, pleading with Liakade.

“Hey! You two!”

Liakade blushed, retreating outside.

“So much for comforting you!”