Chapter 167

Chapter 167

I Proposed While Drunk and Now the Princesses are Obsessed.

Episode 167: 0th Princess, Reunion, Forced Marriage (42)

Jaekiel’s unconsciousness sank deeply.

The sensation of out-of-body experience was familiar once again. This time, it was inside his body near his heart. At the same time, the sight of the spirits huddled in a corner came into view.

It appeared that they were having a serious strategy meeting.

Jaekiel quietly approached and observed.

“~~~~~~”

“~~~~~?”

The two young spirits were hurriedly discussing, scribbling something on the ground with twigs. The shapes being drawn were surprisingly familiar to Jaekiel.

The faces of the princesses were being depicted.

The Sun Water Spirit pointed starting from the Second Princess.

“~~~~.”

It wasn’t a difficult topic to understand.

The body of Second Princess Hedera contained a Dragon Immortal Spirit, and Third Princess Solana had a Sacred Spirit within her.

“…!”

“~~~~!”

The two spirits continued the conversation, even more excited. If they drew all these spirits into Jaekiel’s body, they would have a successor.

“~~~~?”

“How?” The Eternal Blood Spirit asked.

Then, the Sun Water Spirit began to quickly sketch something.

“…”

Jaekiel was left speechless.

What the Sun Water Spirit was drawing was a scene of Jaekiel rolling around naked with the princesses.

“Hey.”

Just as Jaekiel was about to speak.

“…!”

The Sun Water Spirit was startled and pushed him away.

…He snapped out of the unconscious state.

Buuuuuuuzzzzzz.

The ringing in his ears and strong headache pounded as he opened his eyes.

The sunlight streaming through the window felt warm. His heavy body was wrapped comfortably in a soft bed.

“…!”

He hastily tried to sit up but stopped.

The familiar imperial symbols on the ceiling reminded him. That’s right; he wasn’t in the battlefield. It seemed he had successfully returned safely.

‘That means…’

As soon as he considered his return, his mind was filled with questions. There was too much information he needed to know.

How much time had passed? What happened to the princesses? What about the Demon Lord and the Emperor? And Akne…?

On the other hand, he was also concerned about his physical condition.

He had tried to follow the Emperor’s technique hastily, wondering if there might be side effects, but soon realized it was all in his head.

Thud! Thud!

He was simply exhausted from using up his energy and strength, but his constitution seemed to have improved significantly. The techniques he had used earlier had helped elevate his state.

Just as he was about to rise…

“Are you awake?”

A familiar voice reached his ears. It felt very welcome after a long time.

Before the Purple Tower’s betrayal, she had always been by Jaekiel’s side—his personal secretary, Anes.

“Yeah.”

“Well, if that’s the case, I’ll excuse myself for a moment.”

The woman entered the Imperial Palace’s quarters.

Her bobbed hair fell at an angle, sharp like a blade, and she always wore her signature neutral expression.

It was indeed Jaekiel’s personal secretary, Anes.

“…”

A brief silence followed. It was a nostalgic moment.

When the events in the underground labyrinth unfolded, they had worried whether something might go wrong, but now they were reunited, unharmed.

“…”

Jaekiel was the first to break the silence.

“The last time I saw you, your arm was wrapped in bandages. Is it better now? I was really worried.”

Anes gave a slight smile.

“Even in this situation, you ask about my well-being. You’re truly unusual, Auditor. In fact, I was more worried about you. I wondered if something terrible had happened.”

“You could worry about me? I didn’t know that.”

At Jaekiel’s words, Anes seemed genuinely pleased. It was a tone and joke she had once despised, but now it sounded endearing.

“Not just me, but all the magicians from the Imperial Tower and Blue Tower are safe. Thanks to you volunteering as a hostage and being captured by the Demon Realm, everyone has been anxiously waiting for your safe return.”

Jaekiel quietly reflected.

Watching Anes report as his secretary, he felt like he was finally returning to a normal life.

“So, Auditor, are you feeling okay?”

“I’m great. If I were to explain it all, it would be complicated, but I had a big revelation in how I use my energy.”

“You managed to achieve something even while being held hostage? Truly, you are remarkable, Auditor…”

“More importantly.”

Jaekiel had to interrupt Anes’s words. There was something urgent he needed to ask right away.

“How long has it been since I arrived at the Palace?”

“Ah, exactly a week.”

A week.

It wasn’t a short time, no matter how he thought about it. He suddenly recalled his last memory before his consciousness had faded.

─Hmm? He’s in the arms of a demon woman?

─Did you just call him ‘dear’?

─What’s going on? What happened?

He had likely collapsed into Akne’s arms, but the voices of the princesses saying something were still vivid in his memory. He was deeply concerned about what had happened after that.

He immediately tried to rise.

“I need to go out right now.”

“Huh? As I said, the magicians from the Blue Tower and Imperial Tower are all safe. Or are you concerned about the rewards? Don’t worry, it’s all been settled excellently.”

“It’s for another reason.”

“They said it would be better to rest for about a month after waking up. It’s better for recovery–”

“Resting is poison to me.”

Jaekiel said briefly as he got up from his seat.

From the moment he had a terminal condition, there was no room for leisure in his life. No, more importantly, he was very concerned about Akne’s condition right now.

Anes blinked in surprise.

“Are you really leaving?”

“Yes, by the way, have there been any discussions about the Spider Goddess?”

“Talk about the Spider Goddess? Hmm… I haven’t heard anything.”

A sense of unease rose from Anes’s short answer.

Why was there no news about the Spider Goddess? Did they kill Akne in the Demon Realm and return?

“Ah.”

At that moment, Anes’s eyes widened.

“There’s a group called the Tribunal in the Palace, right?”

“Tribunal?”

Jaekiel knew well.

They were an elite group among the Empire’s heresy inquisitors, and they were responsible for handling and executing high-ranking Demon Realm creatures if captured.

“I’ve heard that the Tribunal has been very busy lately, perhaps due to some important matter in the past week.”

It was definitely something related to Akne.

Jaekiel’s heart raced. After giving a brief thanks to Anes, he tried to leave the quarters.

“You may have a headache when you leave. Many people saw the princesses escorting you back, so there’s a lot of talk.”

“I’ll ignore it. Thanks.”

In fact, Jaekiel being carried by a princess was not a new sight, even from the time he fought the First Princess. He didn’t think much of it and went outside, but…

“…”

It became impossible not to realize the truth in Anes’s words.

“Auditor of the Imperial Tower?”

“Finally showing yourself. Just a week, huh?”

“I wish I could ask about all the rumors.”

He had already felt that more and more people were recognizing him, but this time it felt different. Almost everyone in the Palace seemed to be saying something about him.

“I heard there was a subtle atmosphere among the princesses?”

“Just a rumor, but someone saw an argument about who would carry the Auditor. Since the person involved is right here, you could ask him.”

“How would you even ask about something like that?”

The number of people talking about Jaekiel was uncountable, yet no one dared approach him.

It was because the rumors involved the princesses.

Amidst this, there was only one person who approached him. No, it would be more accurate to say that he suddenly appeared.

“The Palace is a place that values tranquility, yet there hasn’t been a moment of peace recently. It seems we can thank you, Auditor, for all this trouble.”

The man who appeared suddenly was Ilaref.

“…The Emperor’s right hand?”

“It feels strange to hear that from someone other than the Emperor. Please, just call me by my name.”

He was dressed like a butler in pure white, wearing monocle glasses. The one who approached Jaekiel was, indeed, the Emperor’s right-hand man.

“Just Ilaref is fine. You’ve recovered much earlier than I expected. We have quite a bit to discuss regarding the commotion in the Palace. Shall we have a chat for a moment?”

“Later.”

Jaekiel tried to pass by him. As he often did, he planned to go to the Audience Room and talk to the Emperor.

However.

“Later? I’d recommend now. The Emperor is not in the Audience Room at the moment. As for this matter, no one knows more about it than I do.”

He slid his monocle up slightly.

“Oh, and we need to discuss the Demon Realm’s Spider Goddess as well.”

The Spider Goddess Akne.

Jaekiel’s steps halted abruptly.