Chapter 10: The Forgotten Arlo
Misa was completely stunned.
Divine messenger? What divine messenger?
Was it because of his wings?
No! With his beautiful, dark red-feathered wings, he didn’t look like a holy divine messenger at all!
He should look like a demon!
Misa wanted to explain, but he didn’t know how.
“I’m not a divine messenger,” Misa said dryly. “I’m just… uh, a winged species.”
Lance: “…”
Misa racked his brains, making up a flimsy excuse, “It’s not much different from a beastman…”
Lance: “…”
Judging by Lance’s expression, Misa felt that Lance didn’t believe him at all. Misa finally understood why Lance had seemed so strange after entering the Divine Tower.
He had completely mistaken who his divine messenger was!
Back in the Land of Blessing, Lance unexpectedly came to his senses after being misled by the succubi, and Misa was forced to pretend to be the divine messenger. He felt that his demon appearance was very different from a human’s, yet Lance recognized him at a glance.
Lance’s hesitation towards Arlo along the way was because he couldn’t understand why he had two divine messengers.
He didn’t believe Arlo, firmly believing that the person he saw in his dream, who resembled Misa, was his divine messenger. But along the way, Misa repeatedly emphasized that Arlo was the divine messenger, and he was just an ordinary person.
This had kept Lance wavering for days, until today, when he saw Misa, who called himself an ordinary person, spread his wings and jumped off the cliff without hesitation, desperately trying to protect him.
“Stop chatting!” Arlo shouted impatiently. “Let’s get out of here first!”
Arlo’s shout suddenly came from the cliff, and Misa realized that this wasn’t the time to explain these things to Lance. Large magma bubbles kept rising in the lava river, along with the constantly flowing magma; this place was too dangerous; they should return to the ground first.
So Misa grabbed Lance’s arm, about to pull Lance up, but suddenly heard Arlo’s panicked shout. He hastily looked up and happened to see a large rock falling from above them, directly towards them.
Misa pulled Lance forward, narrowly avoiding the falling debris, but they crashed into a rising magma bubble.
In that instant, he retracted his wings, hugged the hero’s waist, and enveloped him with his wings to prevent the fragile human from being harmed by the high-temperature magma.
This intense flame, capable of melting dragon scales, was unbearable even for him as a Demon Lord. Misa could only do his best to create a protective shield with magic, trying to block the flames, but he sensed that the magic shield was being quickly burned through; the magic he was using in human form wasn’t enough to save them from the flames.
If he failed, he could revive, but this hero would die.
He really didn’t want to go through the hero-training process again!
At this point, Misa felt he could only do his best, regardless of everything else, and save Lance’s life first.
Whether he maintained his human form was no longer important. He wrapped the two of them in magic to temporarily withstand the impact of the hot lava, then opened his wings again, trying to break through the obstacles and rush towards the hidden path on the cliff wall.
He gradually revealed his demon form. His brown hair was tinged crimson by the firelight; flames seemed to dance in his eyes, and his horns were about to appear. Only then could he barely maintain the dilapidated magic shield.
His wing feathers were already injured by the flames. Besides the burning pain, he could already smell the burning smell.
He finally pulled Lance out of the flames and crashed heavily at the entrance to the hidden cave by the cliff wall. The moment he landed, he quickly hid his demon hair color and painfully tried to hide his wings, which were tattered from the fire.
His beautifully cared-for wings were gone.
Woooo.
Misa’s heart ached.
Lance reached out his hand, just managing to touch a mostly curled wing feather, before Misa’s wings disappeared. He looked at his empty palm, feeling that the brief touch had left an unusually soft sensation in his hand. It was at this moment that the person in his dream who claimed to be a divine messenger and resembled Misa, and the so-called divine prophecy left by the goddess, gradually overlapped, merging into a single sentence.
In this fire that could burn everything, his divine messenger was willing to sacrifice his life for him.
Misa felt the pain in his wings.
Even though he could hide his wings, the burning pain was unbearable. He could only endure it in resentment, then looked up to estimate the height from here to the entrance of the crack and think about whether he could still fly out with Lance in his current state.
But based on his calculations, it was difficult; they might have to find another way to return to the surface, such as… seeking help from the dwarves living nearby.
When Misa had just become the Demon Lord, he had come to the underground. The dwarves there should still remember him; they would naturally be happy to help, but he didn’t know whether he should do so. After all, in the human’s self-righteous division, dwarves were also considered members of the dark monsters. The hero, as God’s chosen one, might be repulsed by the dwarves…
Misa hesitated and turned to Lance.
Then he noticed Lance’s gaze.
It was full of warmth, his blue eyes shining with a brilliance Misa had never seen before, like… like…
Misa: “…”
Oh no.
What had he done!
Misa nervously recalled his actions after the hero accidentally fell off the cliff.
He had risked his life to protect the hero and was injured as a result.
But wasn’t this originally the script he had arranged for Arlo!
Misa nervously swallowed and looked back at the hero.
He had stolen Arlo’s chance to perform. Lance now looked at him with immense gratitude. Misa even felt that if the divine realm’s hero adventure record allowed him to check the hero’s favorability towards him, the hero’s favorability towards him at this moment might have exceeded the maximum.
Misa: “I…”
Lance: “I’m sorry.”
Misa: “I’m not…”
Lance: “Thank you.”
Misa: “But…”
Lance: “I won’t let you get hurt again.”
Misa: “…”
AAAAh! How could he explain this!
Misa frantically scratched his head.
Lance had already stood up, extending his hand towards him, as if to help him up, but Misa didn’t dare to touch Lance’s hand. He was really afraid. He patted his clothes, stood up, and nervously said, “I… we next…”
Lance: “There should be dwarves living underground.”
Misa froze and nodded: “Indeed.”
Lance: “There should be a path to the surface in the dwarven town.”
Misa: “…”
Lance extended his hand to Misa again and asked, “Can you walk?”
Misa: “…”
Misa frowned.
No way.
The hero hadn’t left the beginner village for three years; how could he possibly know that there were dwarves living under the volcano outside Sky City?
Misa had read the hero’s adventure record many times.
He could almost recite the few lines, without any abnormalities. It was a very natural record of an ordinary hero’s adventure, but paired with this strange hero, the whole thing became even more bizarre.
Could this hero have really been quietly farming in the Land of Blessing for three years without causing any trouble?
Misa couldn’t believe it.
He frowned and followed Lance along the path of the hidden cave inward.
“I heard from a messenger from the Land of Blessing,” Lance suddenly spoke, softly explaining to Misa, “Under the volcano near Sky City, there lives a dwarven tribe.”
Misa: “…Hmm.”
If it was a messenger, then it was indeed possible.
Misa always thought human messengers were incredibly amazing. No matter where the hero went, they always delivered the letters on time. Such messengers were omnipotent, capable of going anywhere; it seemed quite natural that they could know that dwarves lived under the volcano.
Misa nodded, believing the hero’s words, but couldn’t help but remind him, “Dwarves are monsters.”
Lance: “Have they done anything?”
Misa: “…”
“But you’re the hero,” Misa took a deep breath. “Aren’t you afraid of them?”
Lance replied calmly, “Have I done anything?”
Misa: “…”
Good, this classic phrase; Misa felt the hero could use it all the way to the Demon Lord’s castle.
Misa didn’t want to speak anymore.
He had used too much magic to protect them under the lava, and he was now staggering a little when walking. His burned wings were also aching. He had never been so miserable. Now that his spirit was relaxed, he couldn’t help but feel dejected and silent, following behind Lance, hoping they would reach the dwarves’ city soon.
Lance walked a few steps and couldn’t help but look back at Misa again. He knew Misa didn’t want to accept his help, so he slowed down so Misa could keep up more easily.
Along the way, he kept looking back at Misa with a cautious and nervous look, which made Misa feel guilty. He felt like he was doing something wrong by not accepting Lance’s help.
He was inwardly tormented, and finally, when Lance looked back at him again, he reached out to Lance and whispered, “I’m a little tired.”
Lance immediately took Misa’s hand.
He seemed satisfied, as if he had done something good. Misa rarely got so close to others; he was very nervous and hesitated to find a topic. After a moment, Misa looked up and quietly asked, “Lance-sama, these years… have you been in the Land of Blessing?”
Yes, that’s right.
His relationship with the hero was already so good; the hero had even taken his hand. He could now actively ask these questions!
But Lance didn’t seem to hear his question. Lance just looked serious and suddenly stopped.
Misa was a little puzzled and asked, “What’s wrong?”
Lance anxiously said, “Arlo… can he beat two enraged giants?”
Misa: “…”
Ah.
Oh no.
They seemed to have forgotten Arlo on the surface.