Prologue

A purplish-red fluid ran along the small scales that lined her skin, dripping off her.

The monster’s feet pounded across the ground. The grand dragon sped along, going faster than even the swiftest horse. Alicia kept a firm grasp on the reins, which were lined with thorns.

“Hah...hah...”

If she had let her guard drop even the tiniest bit, it seemed like she would be thrown from the back of the beast at any moment.

Alicia’s official position was that of an Imperial Knight, but in her heart of hearts, she wished for the destruction of all the races, and had been secretly supporting the Fallen. She had thought resurrecting the Demon Lord would help her reach her goal—

But she never imagined that Krebskulm would suddenly disappear after being revived!

The Fallen felt their time had been wasted, and were on the verge of killing Alicia in retaliation. As a result, Alicia and Edelgard had ended up mounting Edelgard’s grand dragon to make their escape.

When they finally managed to flee from the mob of Fallen, Edelgard had sustained a grave injury. Her strength had left her, and she was being thrown around on the back of a grand dragon like she was a piece of luggage. The purple-red blood that flowed from her head showed no signs of stopping.

Though Alicia was highly knowledgeable of the Fallen, the amount of blood loss they could endure before it threatened their lives varied between each individual, which meant she couldn’t say anything for certain about Edelgard. But there was still no denying the gravity of the situation.

“Lady Edelgard, please, just hold on!”

“...Ah. All...right...”

She had received this injury from protecting Alicia; if Edelgard had been by herself, she would have probably made it out without a scratch on her.

Though Alicia continuously seethed with hatred for the races, and rebelled against the unreasonable nature of her surroundings, the only thing she thought of at the moment was how she wanted to save Edelgard.

The sun had already set, and their surroundings had grown dark. The grand dragon could see perfectly well at night, which meant it would not crash into any rocks or stray far from the road.

“Nonetheless, we cannot just keep heading toward the city gates.”

“...Oh...really?”

Alicia could barely make out what Edelgard was saying. She shook her head in response.

“No matter my position as an Imperial Knight, if I were to come riding through the gates on the back of a monster with a Fallen in tow, they would arrest me on the spot.”

“...I see.”

Alicia turned to look over her shoulder. “It does not seem like there are any Fallen pursuing us.”

“...Because, this one...is fast...”

“Very true... I’m quite astonished.” The grand dragon had indeed seemed to be much faster than a majority of the Fallen.

“...Also...they are scared, probably?”

“Quite. The rest of the Fallen are unaware as to why the Demon Lord’s presence suddenly disappeared.”

To them, it must have seemed like there was a high probability of something inside the Stronghold City of Faltra that could defeat a Demon Lord, which was why they couldn’t just approach carelessly.

“...Why? Why...did Demon Lord, disappear...? Dis...appeared?” Edelgard whispered.

Alicia had not known the reason for Krebskulm’s disappearance, but she had a vague idea of what could have happened.

“I would assume it is something of Sir Diablo’s doing.”

“...Oh...him...”

Her voice was frail. Edelgard, who had seemed like such an indomitable presence, now looked like she was about to fade away. When Alicia touched her skin, it was as cold as ice.

Edelgard’s cracked, purple lips opened: “...What...do, now?”

“We are being pursued by the Fallen, so our only recourse is to return to town. However, I am seen as a traitor now, not to mention that your appearance is quite conspicuous. What shall we do, indeed?”

“...Don’t, know. Edelgard...might, die?”

“I-Is it that bad!?”

“...At, this rate...yes.”

“No, you can’t! That is unacceptable!”

“But...no place, to go, back to. If return, to Demon Lord’s castle, Eulerex and others, will—guh!” She coughed up a mass of blood.

“A-All right! I will do something about this, so please, speak no more!”

Pulling back on the reigns, Alicia brought the grand dragon to a halt in a spot where they could just barely make out Faltra’s southern gate. She remained wary of the area behind her, but no Fallen had followed them here. She lowered Edelgard down, who was exhausted. Taking off Edelgard’s cape, she wrapped it around Edelgard’s body.

“It won’t be able to hide your legs, but considering how dark it is, this should at least make the scales on your body unnoticeable.”

“...What...are you, doing?”

“We are entering town.”

If they remained outside, their only choices were to be either finished off by the Fallen; to be set upon by wild beasts; or for Edelgard to succumb to her wounds and lose her life. She wouldn’t, and couldn’t, be saved out here.

“But, why?”

“This is all a gamble on my part, but if the Demon Lord wasn’t defeated, and had simply reverted back to her childlike form...”

“Demon Lord...is, alive? Really?”

“If she is, then she can heal you. That is something within the realm of possibility for a Demon Lord, correct?”

“...They...can. But, maybe...won’t?”

In order to awaken the true Demon Lord Krebskulm, Alicia had betrayed Diablo and the others. She had waited for Rem and Shera to treat Klem as if she were a part of their family, only to turn them over to the Paladin, Saddler. Because of that, it looked like Rem had been killed in front of Klem.

The hatred born from losing someone important would thus awaken the Demon Lord in her purest form.

If Klem were alive, she would most likely bear a grudge deep enough to kill Alicia. She was sure to have earned Diablo’s ire as well.

Even Alicia thought Rem had died. If she hadn’t, then Krebskulm would have never awakened as a true Demon Lord, even if it were only temporary. The instant she showed herself in front of Diablo and the others, she could end up as cinders; there would be no time for negotiations.

—But even still...!

“Please, leave it to me. I will figure something out.”

Alicia wrapped the now immobile Edelgard with her own cape, holding Edelgard in her arms. Though Alicia’s arms were thin, they had been put through such training that would make it so she wouldn’t lose to any man. It was entirely possible for her to carry someone as thin as Edelgard.

“...All...right... Can’t move, anyways... Leave, to you.”

Carrying Edelgard like luggage, Alicia headed toward the west gate. The grand dragon looked on as if it were concerned for them, but due to its appearance, it was impossible to ride into town on it.

After Alicia and Edelgard had gone far enough away, the fleet-footed steed turned around, disappearing into the plains covered by the black of night.