CPSMBD Chapter 57

Chapter 57

Velasquez

"Your Highness! No... please, no..."

I rushed to the Crown Prince's side to check his condition. First, I verified he was breathing, then searched for any injuries. When I cradled the back of his head, my hand became wet. Blood soaked my fingers.

"Blood... no! Crown Prince Friedrich!"

No matter how many times I called out to him, he remained unconscious.

[Not bad for a human. But charging recklessly at a high-ranking demon like myself? How foolish.]

The demon, apparently having lost interest, turned sharply and flew toward the Imperial Palace. Hundreds of lesser demons swarmed around it as it soared through the air at frightening speed.

'Is the Imperial Palace really going to vanish?'

Was I about to witness the fall of the Imperial Palace with my own eyes?

There had been times when work was so overwhelming that I'd joked about wanting the palace to explode.

'But I never actually wanted such a tragedy to occur!'

"Hey! What are you going to do about this? Are you really going to let the palace be destroyed?"

"I... I can't do anything," Aila stepped backward, shaking her head.

"This isn't... this isn't what I wanted."

"Tell me quickly! Who summoned it?"

I grabbed Aila's collar and shook her roughly, but she remained stubbornly silent.

The demon's minions began their unified assault on the palace. Fortunately, the defensive barrier that had been installed activated, neutralizing their attacks.

However, when the massive demon joined the assault, the barrier shook as if hit by an earthquake. After just three strikes from the demon, the barrier began to crack with an ominous sound.

Though the cracks were still small, how long could it hold? Once the first crack appeared, each subsequent attack caused the fractures to spread exponentially.

At this rate, the Imperial Palace would truly vanish in a single morning.

I looked between the unconscious Crown Prince and the palace on the brink of destruction.

'Is that card my only option?'

I had sworn never to summon him by my own will.

But to overcome this situation, there was no other choice.

Only two people were here besides me.

The Crown Prince was unconscious, and if I could keep Aila quiet, no one would know my secret.

'Even if Aila spreads my secret everywhere, this is still my only option.'

I couldn't stand idle when I had the means to resolve this crisis.

Even now, countless people inside the palace were working their hardest for the empire in their respective positions.

I couldn't let those innocent people be sacrificed.

'As usual, nothing in my life ever goes the way I want it to.'

I gritted my teeth.

Taking out the dagger I had been carrying for the unity festival, I cut my palm.

Blood dripped to the ground as searing pain shot through my hand like a burning brand.

Aila screamed at the sight of my blood, but I had no time to worry about that.

I thought I would never have to call him again in my life.

I thought I would never have to see him again in my life.

'But to prevent a greater catastrophe, I have no choice. I must speak that name.'

Then his name flowed from my lips.

The name I had tried so hard to forget, yet had never forgotten for even a moment.

"Velasquez."

Silence fell.

Contrary to my expectation that he would appear immediately upon being called, Velasquez remained absent for what felt like an eternity.

I grew anxious.

'There's no way I remembered it wrong.'

If not you, there's nowhere else I can turn to right now.

I don't know how else to fix this situation.

'So please, appear before me.'

I clenched my wounded palm and shouted at the top of my lungs. I could feel blood gushing from the wound.

"Come out! Velasquez! Show yourself, you bastard! You tormented me endlessly in my dreams, begging to be summoned. So why aren't you appearing now?!"

At that moment, the wind began to whirl violently around me.

The fierce gusts that threatened to tear my clothes suddenly ceased.

And there he was – the demon Velasquez, the being I had called for, appeared before me.

Long crimson hair like burning flames. And blood-red eyes like rubies.

He looked quite different from the Velasquez in my memories.

'Huh? Why?'

The demon should have been more threatening, larger, and more terrifying.

Instead, an impossibly beautiful man stood staring at me intently, his appearance so refined it was hard to believe he was an evil demon.

But despite his beautiful exterior, Velasquez was an Archdemon.

An Archdemon whose very presence was enough to strike terror into people's hearts.

***

I first met Velasquez when I was eight years old. That summer, our family was vacationing at our villa on Olivander Beach.

Olivander was famous for its vast white sandy beaches and crystal-clear blue waters.

Enchanted by its beauty, people considered Olivander the ultimate summer vacation destination. Many nobles owned villas there for their holidays.

Our family was no exception.

During our beach outing, our family was enjoying a leisurely time under a sunshade.

While my brother and I were busily building sandcastles in the shade, I heard my mother's voice.

"I heard the Crown Prince and the Empress are also vacationing in Olivander right now."

"Really?"

Mother gently stroked my head as she answered my question.

"That's right."

"What kind of person is the Crown Prince?"

"He's handsome. I've heard he excels in his studies and swordsmanship. They say he's an extraordinarily talented individual."

"Wow! That's amazing!"

"How can you say it's amazing when you've never even seen him?"

My brother chided me as he stood up, brushing off the sand.

"Sandcastles are boring now. I don't want to play anymore. Let's play balls instead."

"But I still want to build..."

"You promised to play ball with me if I played in the sand with you. Hurry up and keep your promise."

"Oh, alright."

I reluctantly got up.

Ball games were tedious. I couldn't catch a single one of my brother's throws.

My only role was to retrieve the orbs that fell to the ground.

"Hahaha! Violetta, why are you so bad at this?"

"It's because you throw the ball weird!"

"No way! No waaay!"

Sigh. How annoying. This is exactly why I didn't want to play ball.

My brother kicked the ball I had thrown with all my might. The ball soared high into the air and disappeared beyond the grove.

"Oh no! Why did you kick it so far?"

"It's your fault for missing the ball. Go get it quickly."

I ran into the grove and searched where the ball might have fallen. But no matter how much I looked, I couldn't find it.

"Ugh. My ball! Where did it fall?"

After searching for a while, I finally spotted it.

The ball had landed on the beach beyond the grove.

I was about to run out to retrieve it when I stopped abruptly in my tracks.

"Huh?"

There was something about the atmosphere that made me feel I shouldn't approach.

A beautiful woman stood there, her brilliant golden hair flowing in the wind, and beside her was someone about my age, gazing out at the sea.

Around them, knights as big as mountains formed an impenetrable protective circle, maintaining strict vigilance.

I was scared.

But my ball had landed just a few steps away from those knights.

'What should I do?'

My eyes met with the distant boy's.

Noticing my hesitation as I stared at the ball, the boy picked it up from in front of the knight and ran over to me.

"Is this your ball?"

I nodded.

That was the moment I first met Crown Prince Friedrich.