Chapter 116

She walked expressionlessly toward the sand pile where Woflow was half-buried.

With a cold face, Sheffy actually began shoveling dirt, one spadeful at a time, while humming a little tune. She continuously packed the soil down, burying Woflow deeper and deeper!

A terrifying smile hung on Sheffy's face as she muttered to herself in a low voice. From a distance, she looked exactly like a wicked witch guilty of countless crimes!

“Heh... completely clueless fool... trying to make a move on Xiarette... I’ll bury you... bury you nice and deep.”

The... the witch is murdering someone again!!

The host finally snapped out of his daze as he looked at the battlefield that had completely changed form.

His legs went weak, and he collapsed in front of the amplification crystal, shouting in alarm!

【The... the winner! Is Her Highness Princess Sheffy!】

【Emergency rescue team! Emergency rescue team!! Woflow has been buried! This is an emergency! Please enter the arena immediately and rescue Woflow!】

31. This isn't right, is it?

Poor Woflow—by the time the rescue team dug him out of the earth, his face had turned a deep purple from lack of air. He had almost gone to meet the evil dragon he once set out to slay.

Not long after regaining consciousness, he fled the scene in terror, crawling and stumbling away.

Woflow gained a lot from this match.

Perhaps the most valuable takeaway was...

—He would absolutely never enter this wretched tournament again. Never!

What the hell was this?! No one had told him that losing a match meant getting buried alive!

The way Sheffy secured her victory was just too "brutal", and the trump card of the human side had lost far too easily.

Because of that, the audience stands were split into two extremes.

The human spectators' side had become as quiet as the Royal Capital Library—so silent that even the drop of a silver needle could be heard, with not a single sound.

In stark contrast stood the Demon Clan’s section.

Whether they had supported the First Demon Princess from the start or had just changed their minds after watching the match, they all suddenly leapt to their feet, fists raised high. In the most typical Demon Clan fashion, they lifted their black wings skyward, releasing their overwhelming pride and racial bravado that declared their supremacy through sheer strength.

“Did you see that...! It was a crushing victory by Her Highness Sheffy! I knew it—the First Princess is invincible!”

“Hahaha! Bro, that’s not what you were saying earlier, was it? Didn’t you say that if she lost again, it’d be humiliating?”

“My bad, my bad! If the citizens of the Demon Domain don’t believe in Her Highness the Princess, who can we believe in? Hahaha, they’re all back now, everyone’s back! Long live Her Highness the Princess!!”

Amid the fervent cheers and raised arms, Sheffy casually tossed her little shovel back into storage and turned to leave.

She wouldn't feel pleased because of those praises that had suddenly shifted with the wind.

On the contrary, she only felt a deep sense of revulsion and discomfort.

Here it came again...

When you’re useless, they wish they could curse your ancestors for eight generations.

When you’re useful, suddenly you are their ancestor from eight generations ago.

But Sheffy had no intention of being that so-called ancestor.

Such praise, born from “bondage,” only made her feel a chill of disgust.

As Sheffy exited the stage and walked down the same corridor from which she had entered, she once again ran into Princess Livra, who had come to greet her.

“Your Highness! Congratulations on your victory! Uh... although I’m not exactly sure how you won... but still, congratulations!”

Oh? This kind of clumsy but sincere congratulation was actually rather pleasant.

Sheffy’s mood improved noticeably. Maybe idiots did have the power to make people feel better?

Livra suddenly seemed to recall something.

She first glanced at Sheffy, then quickly rushed ahead through the corridor, hurriedly directing her gaze toward the VIP spectators’ area where Miss Shaya sat.

She turned to glance back at Sheffy.

Then looked again at the VIP section!

This not-so-intelligent behavior made Sheffy chuckle.

“What are you doing?”

“It’s nothing...! I just wanted to confirm something... Whew, maybe I was overthinking... Please don’t mind me, Your Highness.”

Sheffy smiled inwardly, but her pace didn’t slow.

She flicked her wrist behind her, the black lace bracelet on her wrist fluttering in the wind, lending the Demon Clan Princess an aura of pride and mystery.

“Oh right, thanks. You don’t need to follow me. I’m heading off to take care of something.”

“Excuse me...”

“We had a pact, didn’t we? No questions about personal matters. I won’t tell you where I’m going, and you don’t need to ask.”

“No... that’s not what I meant. I’m not trying to pry into your private affairs. I mean that the schedule ahead will be tighter... You might have to appear for your next match in an hour. Will you make it in time...?”

“Heh. You’re asking if I can make it in time...?”

Swish!

Livra stepped forward to follow Sheffy—then froze.

She rubbed her eyes, unable to believe what she had just seen.

In the blink of an eye... Princess Sheffy had vanished from sight at an unbelievable speed!

It was as if she were using her actions to tell Livra: At this speed, do you think I’ll make it?

Looks like... Livra had overthought things again.

The rapid movement left a single black feather suspended in midair, drifting slowly as it fell.

Livra reached out with both hands and gently caught it in her palms.

Lowering her gaze, she stared at the black feather, still emitting faint violet magical light. It looked like a luxurious piece of art, embodying the purest form of strength.

In Livra’s slightly widened eyes... there was an unspoken yearning.

Perhaps... she really did admire Princess Sheffy.

Strong enough to protect everything she wished to protect.

Even in the face of storms and tempests, she could simply point her finger and make the skies clear again.

【You have to become strong. Strong enough to protect your friends... I call that justice!】

Livra took out a clean handkerchief and carefully wrapped the black feather within it, folding it up neatly.

The black-haired girl walked slowly out of the corridor, heaving a soft sigh as she lifted her head to watch birds gliding across the sky, her thoughts drifting with the boundless sky into quiet reverie.

A long, long time ago... my unnamed old friend, will you fly down from the skies again and stand before me?

I’m sorry I didn’t become strong like you said I should.

But...

Maybe... I’ve made a little bit of progress?

If she knew that I am now a princess of a kingdom, and that I can speak and collaborate with the powerful Princess Sheffy, would she say I’ve turned out well?

Haha... probably not.

Even Livra had to smile wryly, quietly scolding herself for being too full of herself.

Pocketing the handkerchief containing the black feather, Livra walked back with a light step to the waiting room for contestants. She stood once again at the door, waiting for Princess Sheffy to return for the next round.

Yes! Princess Sheffy has her things to do, and I have what I can do.

Even if it’s insignificant, it must still be meaningful!

...................................................

Sheffy hadn’t gone anywhere.

She only pretended to fly off. In truth, she had just retrieved the Shaya doll and then slipped back into the spectator stands at the first opportunity.

And the moment she returned to her seat, Xiarette leaned in with concern, asking in a hushed voice.

“Hey, Sheffy... What was that just now? During that duel with the adventurer—you were really mad, weren’t you? You even used magic of that level... I saw the two of you talking before the match began. Did something happen?”

“Nothing happened. That was my normal behavior.”

“Huh? But you clearly—”

“I said it’s nothing! Ugh, Xiarette, stop asking! Everyone gets a little moody sometimes, okay? I just happened to be in a bad mood! So I buried him. That’s all there is to it!”

“Yes... is that so.”

“That’s exactly right!”

Seriously... dumb Xiarette, just let that question go already.

If I really told the truth, where would I even put my embarrassed little face!

Sylatrella knelt on her chair like a little cat, patting Shaya’s shoulder with a satisfied and adorable expression~

“Hehe... Since I was reborn from Lady Shaya’s magic, I can totally understand what sparked Lady Shaya’s anger.”

“You little—!”

“But I won’t say a word!”

“You’re kind of asking to have your head patted, aren’t you.”

Shaya rubbed Sylatrella’s head vigorously, as if threatening her to keep her mouth shut.

Of course Sylatrella wouldn’t blurt anything out. Matters of the heart were beyond her—she was still a child, after all, and she didn’t understand such things~

In truth, Sylatrella didn’t really understand what was going on.

She had merely noticed that the nature of Princess Sheffy’s magical power when she was angry was strikingly similar to Xiarette’s magic circuits when she was jealous and lost control. So clearly, it had to be a matter of feelings!

So hard to understand... Unlike herself—she just said what was on her mind. For example, right now she wanted a donut!

“Lady Shaya, I want to eat donuts...!”

“Scram!”

“Ugh...!!”

Saying what’s on your mind doesn’t always work!

At this point, the tournament had reached the semifinals.

The four who made it through were Sheffy, Sylatrella, Timani, and...

Hm?

Who was the last semifinalist again?

Sheffy thought back carefully through the matches. She remembered that there had been one bracket that had no participants at all—it was a free pass?

Just as confusion set in, the host organized his materials to confirm the news and rushed to the platform to announce the upcoming matchups.

【Thank you all for waiting...! The final groupings have been determined. You might be wondering—why wasn’t the last semifinalist decided through a match? Actually, it’s not so strange. At the suggestion of the Demon Clan, and in keeping with the Kingdom of Aurus’ commitment to peaceful and friendly exchanges, we have temporarily agreed to let His Majesty the Demon King appoint the last semifinalist! This is a small concession on our part, a gesture of goodwill to demonstrate our intent to pursue peace.】

【And just now, His Majesty the Demon King made his decision.】

【To everyone’s surprise... the final contestant is...】

【None other than the Second Demon Princess, Her Highness Belith!】

【With that, the semifinal lineup is now complete. In the first group, the biggest dark horse of this tournament and the hope of humanity—Syla—will face Miss Timani of the Fire Dragon Clan!】

【In the second group, it will be Princess Sheffy versus Princess Belith!】

Huh?!

Shaya whipped her head toward the high platform where her royal father and mother were seated.

That Belith girl...

She was grinning wickedly in this direction...!

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