(Author’s Note: Please, if you can, could you donate a few cents? It would help me a lot during this stage of my life. Thank you. paypal.com/paypalme/HectorPikas)

  CHAPTER 23 - A Tragic Past

  (13 hours and 50 minutes to return to World 1.)

  (World 1.)

  The girls stay awake and on guard, ready to die fighting rather than succumb to the demons’ clutches, except for Danie, who continues meditating, unconcerned by the demons on the other side of the bars, salivating and touching themselves, ready to rape them at any moment.

  They’re all afraid of being vioted and would rather die fighting, or in the worst-case scenario, take their own lives, but Danie remains calm because she knows perfectly well that raping them would only be counterproductive for the demons, as it would make Daniel more powerful. They’re only scaring the girls for their own pleasure, to see them frightened.

  She doesn’t tell them what she knows because she’s aware that Daniel hides that information out of obligation, so she stays silent and just meditates.

  “We’ll be gentler with you if you take off your clothes yourselves, babes!”

  “I want the one with gsses!”

  One of them reached in, and since the girls were against the wall, far from them, he used magic to stretch his arm like rubber, trying to rip Sara’s clothes. But just as they began to tear, his arm exploded—or rather, his entire body exploded, terrifying the demons.

  “Ugh, men are so desperate. Is my lovely husband the only man worth anything in all the worlds? Go jerk off somewhere else,” said Nadia, holding a rge bowl of food to feed them.

  Seeing their comrade killed so easily by Nadia, they all panicked and fled the pce, apologizing profusely.

  Sara fell to her knees, her mouth bleeding because she bit her tongue to kill herself, trying to avoid being raped.

  Seeing that put a smile on Nadia’s face, but not out of pride or respect—she just finds it amusing to see her trembling in fear and crying.

  “Miss Angel, aren’t you going to heal your little friend?”

  “I’m only following Daniel’s orders,” Danie said, not breaking her meditation.

  “He would save her.”

  “I only follow Daniel’s direct orders, not assumptions.”

  Seeing that behavior from Danie angered the others, except for Daniel’s grandmother, who doesn’t think Danie is cruel but rather feels she’s hiding something behind those words.

  Rem kicked Danie in the face, but her strength isn’t enough to hurt an angel, and seeing that it did nothing, she got angrier and kept hitting her.

  “You’re the only one who knows healing magic, do something!”

  But Danie said nothing and continued meditating.

  Nadia sighed and, reluctantly, threw a bck orb at Sara, which regenerated her tongue upon contact.

  “I need her alive.”

  Rem stopped hitting Danie and made sure Sara was okay.

  “By the way, your breakfast is here, insects!” Nadia said with a big smile.

  She pulls keys from her pocket and opens the gate.

  The girls stay silent and don’t move. Fighting would be useless; they’re no match for her and would only suffer in vain. Nadia can kill a demon like it’s a worm, and not even Danie, the strongest among them, could harm her.

  “Bon appétit!”

  She leaves the bowl on the ground, filled with food that not only looks delicious but smells divine.

  They’re demons. Why are they feeding Daniel’s companions? They’re demons. Why don’t they rape, torture, or starve them? All the girls wonder the same thing, but only Danie knows the answer.

  Nadia grabs Danie by the hair and lifts her, but Danie keeps her eyes closed, paying her no mind.

  Nadia leaned close to her ear and whispered.

  “You’re a smart angel, aren’t you? How much do you know?”

  “Your husband is probably screwing tons of girls in paradise.”

  “Oh, how cute, trying to make me mad.”

  She let Danie drop. Maniputing her with mere words is useless, after all—she’s one of the most powerful demons for a reason.

  “Daniel’s taking his sweet time, don’t you think? I bet he’s abandoned you already.”

  Sonia steps toward her without a second thought. Foolish? Of course, but it’s inevitable that she’d want to defend Daniel, her lifelong friend and ex-boyfriend.

  “He’d never do that!”

  But before she could do anything reckless, Alex grabs her hand and pulls her back so her brother can hold her and stop her from doing something stupid.

  “It’s true, he’s no coward!” Rem shouted.

  Nadia sighed, quite disappointed.

  “Generic reactions from generic girls, but the more generic, the more dangerous. What a stupid thought,” she mused.

  She scratched her neck and yawned.

  “Whatever, doesn’t matter. I hope he didn’t turn out like his father; I wish he inherited my bravery and skill. Daniel, my husband, was almost perfect, but he cked more aggression,” she said, smiling.

  She leaves and locks the gate, humming a tune.

  Daniel’s grandmother decided to give her one st chance, so she walked toward her. The girls tried to stop her, but Danie spread her wings, preventing them from getting close. This was between Daniel’s biological mother and the true mother who raised him and watched him grow. It was a matter that didn’t concern them, and Sara realized that.

  Before Alex and Rem could compin, Sara covered their mouths.

  “Let them talk,” she told them.

  Daniel’s grandmother stood face-to-face with Nadia, her gaze hardened with fury.

  “What’s up, generic harem member number 4 of Daniel’s? Want to betray him and join me? Oh, I know, I’m quite the charmer.”

  “Daniel’s father died because of you.”

  “…”

  Nadia didn’t say anything, not even a joke, because her beloved husband’s death is one of the things that hurts her the most. Knowing he died because of her past is the main reason for her nightmares. Why? Because she’s afraid he hates her and will never love her again. She’s terrified he’ll look at her with hatred when they reunite.

  What if he gets mad at her because he found out she tried to kill their son? Well, she already has a solution for that, which is why she’s only worried about him hating her for causing his death.

  “You won’t deny it?”

  “Why do you care?”

  “If you kill Daniel, you’ll definitely lose his love forever. He sacrificed himself to save his son, so he could live in peace.”

  Her son’s words about his death, surrounded by dead criminals, made sense as she learned more about Nadia. “I had to take care of some unfinished business to keep Daniel and you safe.”

  “You had enemies, didn’t you? And those enemies, since they couldn’t get revenge on you, went after your husband’s family, and he…”

  “Kya! Wait, wait, that’s my favorite part!” Nadia said, excited and with a big smile.

  She pulled a small photo of her and Daniel, her husband, hugging, from her pocket and pressed it to her chest.

  “My lovely husband went killing them one by one until he reached the main group, and he died after managing to kill them all, all by himself, without anyone’s help! Isn’t he a real man?! I love him more every day! Fufu. No wonder my son has…”

  The sound of a sp echoed through the pce, and Danie immediately surrounded Daniel’s grandmother with her wings to protect her from any attack by Nadia, who simply smiled, witnessing a woman daring to sp her despite knowing the vast power gap between them.

  Courage is what Nadia admires most.

  “You have no right to call him your son!!” Daniel’s grandmother shouted, her eyes full of tears.

  Officially, Nadia is beyond redemption, as without his grandmother’s approval, Daniel will never forgive her. Nadia is a woman who only cares about her own happiness, and considering her sins, Daniel’s grandmother doesn’t want her near him.

  “I’d return the sp, but I’d rather go sleep and dream about my sweetheart. I’ll be back soon, don’t miss me too much. Bye-bye.”

  “He cked more aggression? That’s not true,” Sara said.

  “Mmm?”

  “Daniel’s father died a hero, protecting his family, and he killed to achieve it. He didn’t ck aggression but malice. You don’t deserve him; he’s too good for you.”

  “Pfft. Says the one who ran away from home because mommy and daddy got mad at her for using drugs and stealing to get them because her family was so poor? You took the easy path to get what you wanted, no matter the means. Tell me, Miss Churs, how much innocent blood is on your hands?”

  “…”

  Sara, with no excuse for the cruel truth, stayed silent.

  “Fufu. You’re nothing, Daniel’s too good for you. We’re not that different, brat.”

  She left the dungeon, leaving an uncomfortable silence behind. No one wanted to talk about it. Was Sara a drug addict? A thief? And worst of all, a killer?

  Even Rem, the most impulsive, stayed quiet because she knew her questions would only cause pain.

  “I’m craving a sandwich,” Cris said.

  “…Huh?” Sonia said, thrown off by his out-of-pce words.

  “Or two. Yeah, two, with sausages instead of ham and double cheese. With tasty avocado, palta, whatever you call it! Oh, yeah, and with lettuce and tomato slices. My mouth’s watering!”

  Cris ran to the bars and, trying to shake them, his body rocked back and forth repeatedly, as if he’d gone mad.

  “What does a sexy man like me have to do to get a sandwich in this pce?!”

  “You’re just filler, Daniel’s the important one, four-eyes!!” Norly shouted from outside the dungeon.

  “Ouch, how harsh.”

  “Don’t turn into a vilin out of envy, brother.”

  “Heh. As if I were crazy, I’d rather keep breathing. By the way, do you think Daniel will come rescue us soon? I’m dying to get out of here and start my own harem with Elves and busty monster girls.”

  “Elves? Ignorance on legs,” Alex said.

  “W-what, aren’t Elves here beautiful?! Are they like goblins?! Ugh, fine, I’ll settle for monster girls. Heh.”

  The mood lightened thanks to Cris, and they all set aside Sara’s issue to think about Daniel. Would he come to rescue them soon? How would he do it? Does he have a pn? Is there a way to help him? They all started thinking about that, except Sara, who was the only one to notice that Cris acted that way just to distract the others and stop them from thinking about her.

  A very thoughtful and kind act on his part. Humiliating himself for someone else’s sake made her smile.

  “What if he kills us? I mean, he could revive us,” Cris said.

  “No! I already died once; I can’t be revived again!” Rem said.

  “And also… I-I don’t want to die,” Alex said, changing her words.

  She almost said that Daniel’s grandmother couldn’t be revived again either, but since they don’t know the truth yet, she chose not to say anything. And if she mentioned that she herself had died once, they’d try to learn more, and Daniel’s grandmother doesn’t like lying, much less would she lie to the two young people she’s known since they were little kids.

  “No choice, then, sacrifice for the greater good. We’ll always remember your sacrifice. Uwaaah!”

  “Daniel wouldn’t allow my death, you jerk!” Rem said, strangling Cris.

  Sara tried to stop her, but as she approached, Cris quickly activated his emergency pn: secondhand embarrassment.

  “Rem, that’s enou…!” Sara said before her words were silenced by a moan from Cris.

  A moan of pleasure.

  “Oh, that feels good, mommy! Harder!”

  Silence flooded the pce as Cris’s face turned red from the embarrassment of saying that.

  Daniel’s grandmother cried silently, thinking about him and wondering if he was okay. Danie simply kept meditating, holding her with her wings. Sara was still processing what was happening with Cris. Why was he humiliating himself so much just to shield her from painful questions? Cris was clearly preventing Sara from speaking or drawing attention to her because that would only remind them of what Nadia said about her. Why go so far for someone he barely knows? Out of kindness? No, she doesn’t feel it’s for that; she senses there’s a deeper reason behind his behavior.

  But the others just felt awkward about such a bizarre situation.

  The silence sted 6 seconds until Alex’s ughter broke it.

  “Hahahahaha! He’s a masochist!”

  “…Huh? Gross!”

  Rem pushed Cris away furiously, and her sister caught him, only to punch him in the arm.

  “Ow! What did I do now?!”

  “Why do you act like that, idiot?”

  “Well, sorry. Being close to death makes me nervous.”

  “Daniel would never abandon us; he’ll come to rescue us.”

  Danie, paying no attention to Sara’s situation or Cris’s sacrifice of dignity, grabs some meat and starts eating.

  “Still calm?” Rem said.

  Taking her time to enjoy the food, she keeps chewing, and after a few seconds, swallows the meat and creates water with her magic to drink.

  “They forgot to leave us drinks. Bad service, huh?” she said to Cris.

  “Shut up, I’m talking to her!” Rem shouted at him.

  “Ow. Sorry.”

  “Yes, I’m sure Daniel will be with us soon; I can feel it,” Danie said, and continued eating.

  ?

  ?

  While all of them continued waiting for Daniel’s return, in Queen Kate’s kingdom, thousands of humans are gathered, advancing together toward the enemy country.

  Sandro, leading the front, moves forward with determination, staying alert to avoid being ambushed by another demon, but that focus was lost when he received a certain invitation.

  “Lina what?”

  “She wants to talk to you,” a man told him.

  He feels nauseous just thinking about meeting her, but this time he has no choice.

  “Fine.”

  He started running through the crowd toward the location of that woman. One of the few women he’d never see as a romantic interest.

  “Daniel, I hope you’re okay,” he said, recalling the reason behind all his determination; otherwise, he’d never meet with her.

  He knows what he did to Daniel’s grandmother was wrong and is deeply regretful, but he can only make up for his mistake with actions.

  The adventurer with the most types of magic before Daniel’s arrival, Lina, with five types of magic under her control. Why does he detest the idea of talking to her so much?