The opportunity Valo was waiting for arrived sooner than expected.
Just like the settings in the game, after a five-day week of study and work, the students and teachers of the Clock Tower were granted a two-day weekend.
In other words, it was the classic “Free Activity” time found in simulation games.
During this period, the player could cultivate the mother-daughter relationship with their child, investigate the secrets of the Empire to trigger side events and prepare for revenge, or even force the daughter to work part-time to support them.
Whether she worked as a customer service representative or a newspaper delivery girl, if she didn’t earn enough money, the player could simply smash a beer can against her face.
‘Did you earn enough for my booze today? You useless brat!’
Valo had no intention of letting this weekend go to waste.
It was currently noon.
The warm sun illuminated the prosperous Capital City of the Empire, and the scent of wheat and food lingered in the air.
Carrying the one month’s salary the Magic Old Man had given her in advance, Valo sat outside a cafe on a street near the Clock Tower.
She was waiting for someone while tasting her first sip of espresso in this game world… and then she proceeded to aggressively add condiments.
She added milk when it was too bitter and sugar when it was too creamy.
‘I miscalculated,’ she thought. ‘After turning into a loli Demon King, I actually lost the Endurance King title I had before I crossed over.’
To travel alone without attracting too much attention, Valo had taken advantage of the fact that Finney and Kaika were out of the dormitory to dress herself up.
She skillfully brushed her long, silvery-white hair, tying it into two long braids with ribbons.
She changed into the Clock Tower student uniform that she had specifically asked the Great Sage to prepare for her earlier.
Under the cream-colored blazer and the red-and-black plaid skirt, she wore a pair of black tights.
After stepping into her short boots, Valo felt quite confident in her appearance.
She looked so young that it would be against the laws of nature if anyone still mistook her for a mother.
“Hey, isn’t that the Hero’s mother? She looks so cute in a student uniform.”
“It’s so great that her mother is a loli. I really want to hug her.”
……
‘It’s just an illusion. They can’t scare me.’
One of the three great delusions of life was thinking that a group of girls across the street was talking about you.
Besides, Valo soon had no mental energy to spare for anything else.
Her “date” for the day had already appeared on the other side of the street.
“Teacher Valo, hehe~”
It was Emma.
The Blood Tribe girl hesitated for a long time, looking around like a thief, before finally making her way over to sit across from Valo.
Wearing a white shirt and a black short skirt as her private clothes, combined with her silly, puppy-like grin, the girl looked exactly like a little lapdog.
“Are you wearing the Arcane Society uniform from the Clock Tower today? How cute~”
“Watch your mouth.”
Valo rolled her eyes at Emma. “Order whatever you want. It’s on me. And then…”
Once the drink was served and the girl in front of her took a massive, starry-eyed gulp, Valo lowered her voice and spoke.
“Emma, the orders your True Ancestor gave you… they should be for the sake of restoring the Demon Clan, right?”
“Gulp…”
How could Valo, who knew the general progression of the Fall of the Country Route, possibly be wrong?
Emma’s shoulders shook for a moment as she choked.
She started to cough but forced herself to hold it back, covering her small mouth while tears welled up in her eyes from the effort.
“Since that’s the case, what does it matter who you give information about the Holy Relics to?”
Valo tilted her head. “I am the legitimate successor of the Demon Clan. Do you understand what I mean?”
This was the reason she had contacted Emma privately.
Since she couldn’t completely sever her role as a “mother” in the short term, her only choice was to find as many Holy Relics inside and outside the Empire as possible to withstand the many bad endings to come.
If she couldn’t use the game mechanics, she would just have to rely on raw stats.
Her status as a Health Teacher limited the areas she could freely explore, but Emma, a nun of the Hidden Sea Church, was the perfect set of eyes and ears.
Normally, such a move would be somewhat dangerous. What if a subordinate decided to turn on her?
However, Valo wasn’t worried at all about that happening with Emma.
As one of the optional daughters in the game, Emma was normally a capable but somewhat naive and timid girl.
Once she promised the main character something, she wouldn’t change her mind.
It was impossible for every daughter to be a “filial” nightmare like Kaika.
Not to mention, Emma wasn’t her daughter right now; she was more like a subordinate.
Looking over, Emma’s reaction gave Valo her answer.
“I… I understand what you mean.”
“Good.” Valo let out a sigh of relief. “If you get any information regarding Holy Relics, come straight to the Infirmary to find me.”
“Don’t make your own decisions, and definitely don’t try to steal them on your own. The business involving Holy Relics is very dangerous. A little Blood Tribe member like you won’t be able to handle it.”
The first half was a command, while the second half was a kind warning from Valo.
Regarding the Holy Relics, she wasn’t actually trying to scare Emma.
An ordinary person wouldn’t be able to use a Holy Relic even if they obtained one; it would just be an invitation for trouble.
After finishing her piece, Valo didn’t receive a response from the girl in front of her.
Forget thanking her for the concern—there wasn’t even a verbal reply.
‘Emma, is this how you talk to your superior? Don’t you want to get promoted?’
Just as Valo was about to ask what she was staring at, she noticed it.
Emma was biting her straw, but her gaze had bypassed Valo to look at the street behind her as if she were staring at an absolute demon.
An ominous feeling instantly rose in Valo’s mind. At the moment she slowly turned around to look… it became a reality.
There stood her “filial” daughter, Kaika.
She was standing perfectly straight across the street, her gaze fixed unerringly on the table where Valo and Emma sat.
As a recent celebrity at the Clock Tower, Kaika was inevitably recognized by passing female students who greeted her.
Even though the girl nodded, smiled, and responded with perfect grace and decorum…
Her gaze never moved from Valo for even a second!
Gulp.
‘What is going on?’ Last night, she had clearly fished for information from Kaika, and the girl had said she was going to the Clock Tower to study today!
Was monitoring her mother more important than her studies?
Kaika didn’t even give Valo time to feel afraid. After finishing her greetings with the students nearby, she walked over with light, brisk steps.
The girl’s gaze swept over Emma, who immediately jumped up in a panic like a mistress caught in the act!
“Ah, haha! Teacher Valo, it looks like your daughter is here to see you! I won’t disturb you then! Bye~!”
Then, with her head down, she ran away as fast as she could!
What made Valo’s skin crawl even more was that throughout the entire process, Kaika didn’t even glance at Emma.
She didn’t look angry or annoyed; she simply sat down naturally in the seat Emma had just vacated and pushed the half-finished milk tea on the table to the side.
This was clearly the calm before the storm!
Valo hurriedly tried to cover up. “Kaika, weren’t you supposed to be studying at the Clock Tower today?”
“Ah, haha~ I was just reminiscing with Emma for a bit.”
She was terrified that Kaika would guess her true purpose for meeting Emma today.
Because… just like before, Kaika’s increasingly tight surveillance lately had allowed Valo to sniff out the scent of danger.
This was clearly a sign that the Imprisonment Revenge Ending was about to be triggered!
Kaika wanted to control her and, more importantly, prevent her from seeking help from others!
The best evidence was Kaika’s current response.
The girl forced a dark smile, clearly not believing a single word of Valo’s explanation.
“Then, Mother, the next time you reminisce with her, can I be by your side to protect you?”
‘Look at that. Does that sound like a request?’
‘It’s a blatant threat!’
Valo could only try to change the subject, saying things like, “Mother has her salary now, I’ll treat you to whatever you want to eat or buy today,” while secretly making a firm decision.
She had to hurry Emma up with finding clues for the Holy Relics.
Otherwise, who knew if she would wake up one day with a dog collar fastened around her neck by her own daughter!