“The premature death of the hero Sion… truly lamentable…”
Princess Merian was in tears. Tiana knew that Merian was in love with Sion.
“Please, stay calm… we will be here to support you.”
“I… have been researching ancient manuscripts.”
The princess murmured.
“Even using royal privileges, including those considered taboo…”
“Princess?”
“In the ancient legends of heroes, there is mention of a ritual that causes great harm to the Demon King by sacrificing the hero’s life…”
“What?!”
Tiana involuntarily held her breath.
“Did you know about the existence of this ritual?” Merian stared intently at Tiana.
Tiana couldn’t respond.
Was she aware that we sacrificed Sion’s life to kill the Demon King? Or perhaps…
She didn’t want to make a mistake by revealing too much. She needed to proceed cautiously to understand the situation.
“A ritual involving the sacrifice of the hero is truly chilling.”
Tiana responded with a sorrowful expression, avoiding giving a definitive answer.
“Princess, why are you researching that?” she tried to change the subject.
“But the real question is for you, Holy Knight Tiana,” Merian’s expression turned serious.
This was bad!
Sweat began to run down my back. Had the princess noticed something? Was she suspecting us?
If it came to light that we sacrificed Sion to defeat the Demon King… what would happen?
To avoid the princess’s inquisition, Tiana quickly left the place and contacted the other three, who gathered.
“The princess is suspecting us?”
“Yes, she is asking if we sacrificed the hero to defeat the Demon King,” Tiana responded to Cataria’s question.
“This goes beyond a simple question. It’s almost like an accusation. She may be holding us accountable for what we did.”
“If this comes to light… we would be seen as major criminals.”
“But, at the end of the day, we saved the world… defeated the Demon King. Although we may still be praised…”
The hurried conversation of Ingrid and the calm tone of Efemia.
“It is possible that the Demon King is not dead,” said Katrea.
“What?”
Tiana opened her eyes in surprise.
“The Demon King… is still alive? That’s absurd!”
Sion had sacrificed himself, and they were supposed to have defeated the Demon King completely.
It was not possible to survive under those circumstances. Moreover, both the hero and the Demon King had completely disappeared from the place.
“If the Demon King is alive… we are in trouble, as Ingrid mentioned. We made a serious mistake by attacking the hero by surprise.”
Efemia commented.
“A despicable act of vile murder… society’s reaction will change completely…”
Ingrid and Efemia nodded in agreement.
Tiana felt an unsettling sensation. What she once believed to be a bright future seemed to be crumbling, an ominous foreboding.
Days later, Tiana and the other three girls were summoned by the princess to a room in the castle.
“We are aware of what you have done.”
The princess said with fury in her eyes as they entered the room.
