"It’s today, isn’t it, Evelyn?" Esther asks me as I offer her a weak smile here in the castle gardens. A few shadows are hidden around the area. The ships are set to depart from the ports tomorrow, so today I’ll mount my dragon and head for the harbors.

Shadows normally only have reach within the continent’s territory, so they won’t be coming with me. Though I can send letters to make requests of them, they won’t be there to do whatever I want, since the shadows belong to the kingdom as a service to each Demon King. Simply taking them away isn’t something they’d obey.

"Yes, it’s today... I..." I feel strange right now. Once I say goodbye to Esther, we’ll go months without seeing each other. And even though I’m angry and sad—very sad, mind you—because of her, I still love her. Parting from her like this feels odd, especially with Arial becoming more active.

"It’s all right, Evelyn. I’ll respect your choice. I understand now. You’re far too exhausted and need some time away from me... I’ll try to hold myself back, at least until it becomes unbearable... And don’t worry. I’ll take good care of this kingdom for you." Esther hugs me.

’She reeks of blood. A really strong scent...’ My room had a strange smell of blood that wasn’t my own, so someone had been injured there.

"Esther, did you—" She kisses me, cutting off my question as she strokes my back. She slips her tongue into my mouth and places a sweet sphere on my tongue.

"H-Hhmmm." A moan escapes me when she grabs my tail, gently rubbing the scales as she shares the sweet with me. Then we hear Eve make a sound to get our attention, and Esther stops the kiss and pulls away.

"Evelyn-sama, it’s time to go, or we’ll be late to catch the ships departing from the ports. Marie and Grace are also ready to leave, and according to their letter, they’ll apparently be on one of the main vessels." Eve speaks to me. I bite down on the sweet in my mouth, chewing before swallowing.

"All right, Eve. I’ll be there soon... I’m just saying goodbye to my wife." Eve clearly doesn’t like Esther, but I ignore that for now.

’Amanda and Vermillion are busy...’ Only Cypher is here. She’s standing still, staring at me with that somewhat vacant look, waiting for her turn to speak.

"Go ahead, Cypher."

"Thank you for your time. I would like to note that Esther opened trade routes connected to food transport and reduced costs. And while I consider this a form of bribery, I believe it was quite... useful. She also began diverting some of the guild’s earnings into her personal coffers." Cypher says only this before asking to leave, and I allow it.

"Trying to bribe my puppets, Esther?" I ask her. She’s suddenly doing nice things for me; there’s no way I wouldn’t be suspicious.

"No. I just wanted to help you. You like treasures. I wanted to make you a little happy—a farewell gift..." I meet Esther’s gaze. Her eyes scare me far less now and look like beautiful red jewels set in obsidian.

"...I appreciate it... but that won’t make me forgive you."

"You’ll never forget this, will you, Evelyn?" She wears a sad expression.

"Never. Mistakes as great as this aren’t something you just forget. No matter how much things improve between us, I will never forget this horrible betrayal you committed against me." I call my dragon, who lands near us.

"I’m leaving now. I wish you good luck—not that you need it with that blessing of yours." I end up speaking with a hint of sarcasm as I climb onto the dragon’s head alongside Eve.

"I wish you all the best too, Evelyn. And if you sense danger, please come back. I’m taking care of this kingdom because I understand that you need to be out there as the Demon Queen, but don’t fight. Don’t put yourself in danger. Don’t do anything reckless."

"..." She speaks seriously. I can tell she truly doesn’t want me to be in danger.

"Goodbye." I ignore it. I don’t know if I’ll be in danger or not, so I won’t say anything. I simply tap the dragon, making him take flight. I cast one last look at Esther, who only waves her hand. I hope she keeps her end of the deal and doesn’t try to spy on me.

"Evelyn-sama, are you all right?"

"...Yes. Eve, do you think I’ll ever be able to make Esther more suitable?" I ask Eve, who knows what happened and why Esther and I are fighting.

"Look, Evelyn-sama, you’re waiting for Esther to change, but you’re changing to suit her. Do you truly believe Esther will change?"

"...No... that genocidal asshole will never change the way I want her to..." I end up telling Eve honestly what I really think.

"But that’s what hope is. Even knowing that, it costs me nothing to have hope that she’ll change... Maybe if she sees that her attitude is ruining everything, she’ll realize she has to change, right?"

"And what do you think would make Esther change, when you always go back to her and always accept what she does?" Eve questions.

"...Accepting doesn’t mean allowing, Eve! I accept her cruelty, but that doesn’t mean I like or encourage it." Besides, I understand why she is the way she is. I truly do. She’s told me about her past.

She went "insane" from the knowledge she gained! Of course, this world isn’t a game, but I believe what Esther’s curse does is give her knowledge about divinities and about what "Evelyn" did, since that "Evelyn" tampered with time, reincarnation, world simulation in another world, etc.

Also, from Esther’s explanation, the "Truth of the World" isn’t just what the world is, but the truth about "everything." So Esther has, in a way, partial knowledge of the game—not because this world is a game, but because Esther died, became a puppet of that "Evelyn," and was used to create this current version of the "world."

So she probably inherited this confused knowledge, which mixed the truth of the world with knowledge of a game that no longer influences this world, because that "Evelyn" made it clear that the game was created to find someone to replace her.

’The strangest part is that Esther’s curse doesn’t weaken her power...’ I wonder if it was a mistake caused by a series of uncontrollable factors, but there’s no way for me to know.

And Esther never told me 100% about the "Truth of the World." She only said partial things, most of them tied to what the game represented.

But I know there’s much more she never told me. That’s because she treats me as the only "real" one like her, but her attitude toward the world and people is different.

If Esther saw the world as a "Game," she wouldn’t just commit genocide; she’d destroy the world. That was an answer she herself gave when I asked why she didn’t want to destroy the planet.

She said the planet had nothing to do with it, showing that only the people are "NPCs" to Esther, and the world is like something "outside the game" to her. Which means she’s seeing something beyond the game that she doesn’t explain to me.

"Sorry, Evelyn-sama, but you hide certain things that don’t give me a clear picture of the overall situation, so I’ll stay out of this." Eve backs off with her words. I shrug; I hide many things too.

That’s probably why Esther doesn’t tell me the truth. She knows I also hide things from her—that I hide the "truth of the world" that I know. Because she says we’re alike, but she treats me as inferior to her.

"It’s fine, Eve. I don’t expect anyone to understand. The dynamic between Esther and me is strange." It’s strange, but in a way, it’s because of things like this that we’re a couple. Literally, the marriage only happened because Esther wanted to be with the only one equal to her forever.

And I understand that. To her, I’m all that matters. And when someone has only one thing that matters, they’ll do anything for it. That’s why I understand why she killed our child.

Obviously, it was a mix of jealousy and fear—fear that I wouldn’t want Esther near me anymore and would give all my attention to a baby. And even though I understand her, I’m still angry with her.

’Life is truly difficult...’ I look at Eve. Sometimes I think about past decisions and wonder what I should have done better, and what I now have to do better.

"Eve, protect me during the war, all right? With everything you’ve got, because it will be dangerous. Even the route there will be a risk. I’ll need you alert about the ocean, since it’s full of monsters and they might attack the ships." I shake my head, not wanting to think about it anymore.

"I’ll do my best and the impossible for you, Evelyn-sama!!... Also... Amanda sent word... those two traitors fled the continent some time ago..." When Eve says this, I think of Syl’Vyr and Faye.

"...It doesn’t matter... If we see them, I won’t be merciful, but I won’t waste time chasing two traitors. They deserve nothing more from me... So let’s just put that aside! Let’s at least try to enjoy the trip! The sea is beautiful." I give her a smile, preparing myself to at least try to have some fun before the conflicts begin.