Chapter 23: A Hero’s Torment and a Queen’s Discovery

Wade was unsure how long he and Lamia had been at the Knight Order headquarters. He felt as though their back-and-forth exchanges had stretched on for hours, a series of strategic skirmishes.

Yet, a glance at the sun’s position revealed that little time had actually passed. He had arrived after breakfast for work, and lunch was still a while away.

‘Ah… how utterly long.’

Wade often heard Valen, the young vice-commander, lament, “Ah, time flies by so fast every day! I wish I could spend more time with my wife.”

Back then, Wade had been completely bewildered. Even the Grand Commander had teased him, saying, “You’ll understand once you’re married. I, too, long to spend more time with my wife and children.”

But now, ah—it still wasn’t clear.

He still didn’t understand.

‘I don’t get it. Even now, I still don’t understand.’

‘What on earth is so good about spending more time with this person?’

Wade felt as if he had aged a decade or more just this morning. If the Demon Queen had taken human form solely to torment him, then her methods were undeniably effective.

‘…To become “the happiest husband”? No… that’s utterly impossible.’

‘Such torment truly was—’

As Wade pondered this, he glanced down at Lamia. She was still clinging to his arm.

Under the clear sky, the warmth of her body pressed against his arm, creating a stifling heat. Lamia seemed to feel it too; a thin sheen of sweat had formed on her chest, with a few strands of purple hair clinging to it, and her cheeks were faintly flushed from the sun’s warmth.

[Humming~ hum-hum-hum~ 🎶]

Lamia was thinking of nothing at all. Truly, her mind was blank, save for the light, cheerful tune she hummed inwardly.

It was as if their recent skirmishes had been nothing more than momentary play. Now, she simply savored the present moment of leisure, free from schemes or hidden agendas.

She was merely strolling, walking through the Knight Order headquarters with the man now designated as her ‘husband’.

Wade watched her, listening to the song in her heart. For a moment, the tumultuous emotions within him seemed to vanish.

His fluctuating thoughts transformed into a series of leisurely notes, ultimately merging into the melody that resonated within Lamia.

He even chuckled unconsciously, as if he too were enjoying this rare moment of tranquility.

After all, whether as the Commander’s assistant or as the White Knight, his work was exceptionally demanding.

Opportunities like this—to steal a moment of leisure, to take a casual stroll under the pretext of accompanying his wife—were truly rare for him.

‘Where was I just now?’

‘Ah, right. This torment.’

‘This torment… naturally, I must bear it myself! After all, I am not a selfish person; I am one who harbors great righteousness, with the nation and its people in my heart!’

‘Only I can control the Demon Queen now. Only I can withstand Lamia’s pressure and destruction.’

‘If I give up, she might go on to torment others. How could I allow others to suffer?’

‘This pain, indeed, I must shoulder it myself!’

‘After all… I am everyone’s hero!’

‘Just grit my teeth and power through it! 😠’

“—Ah, Sir Wade!”

Just as Wade was humming a tune to himself and steeling his resolve, a young knight approached. He ran up and saluted Wade.

“Sir Wade, the Commander requests your presence for a brief meeting. He said it would only take a few minutes, primarily to speak with you about a couple of matters. Please proceed to his meeting room.”

“Ah… the Commander? Very well, I understand.”

Listening to the young knight, Wade nodded.

Jeffrey was a reasonable man. Usually, unless something particularly important arose, he wouldn’t summon Wade away from his wife.

‘There must be something urgent, then…?’

“My dear husband, do you have something urgent to attend to? Then go quickly, you mustn’t delay your work.”

Hearing the knight’s words, Lamia also loosened her grip on Wade’s arm.

He had likely grown accustomed to her embrace. With her sudden release, Wade’s arm and shoulder felt considerably lighter and less stifled, yet he found himself unexpectedly unaccustomed to it.

“…”

Wade glanced at his arm, then at Lamia, who had stepped back half a pace.

[Hehehe… the White Knight is finally leaving. Should I wander around~?]

‘What? Go somewhere else? Absolutely not!’

“—Ah, well, my dear wife, why don’t you come with me? My office isn’t far from the Commander’s, and you can wait there for just a few minutes.”

‘Wandering around here while I’m away from the main group? That won’t do. What if she unearths some crucial intelligence? That would be disastrous.’

‘Moreover, I must keep a close eye on her and prevent her from harming others! Your current role is my wife; I cannot allow you to pay attention to anyone else!’

‘I’ve already braced myself for you to torment only me!’

Thinking this, Wade swiftly drew Lamia back to his side, taking her hand and guiding it to link with his arm once more.

‘You have to stay near me today!’

His own office, in truth, contained nothing particularly special. While a place called “Commander’s Assistant’s Office” might sound like it held classified intelligence, the genuinely secret internal documents were all in the archives.

These were encrypted, and even if the Demon Queen were to go there, she might not easily decipher human encryption methods.

Wade’s office, for the most part, held only dispensable items. The only things of slight importance were some plans for organizing events.

The fact that he could openly leave them in his unlocked office proved there were no truly illicit or secret materials within.

[Oh? The White Knight’s office? Hehehe… then I must see it. What does your workplace look like, I wonder…]

Lamia was indeed intrigued by Wade’s office. Since Wade had suggested it, she didn’t refuse, nodding and falling into step with him.

Wade, for his part, was quite confident. He believed that even if Lamia searched, she wouldn’t find anything useful to the demon race.

They didn’t walk far, and soon returned to the Knight Order’s main building. Wade left Lamia in his office, telling her, “Wait here for a few minutes,” before turning and closing the door behind him.

Lamia obediently sat on the guest sofa and waved to Wade. But as soon as he turned and his footsteps faded into the distance, she grinned mischievously, her spirits lifting.

“So this is where the White Knight usually works, huh? My, my, quite presentable.”

Lamia stretched, her gaze sweeping across the office—a space belonging to her formidable rival, and now, for a time, her husband.

“Are there any interesting things here? What does he usually do in this place?”

Lamia’s impression of the White Knight had always been of a powerful male whose combat abilities far surpassed those of ordinary humans.

She had always assumed that in his personal life, Wade would be a man who trained twenty-five hours a day, allowing a human like him to possess capabilities that could rival a Demon Queen like her.

Yet, arriving at the Knight Order today, she was somewhat surprised. Wade didn’t seem to be a training fanatic at all.

His popularity was quite high, and he usually wore a cheerful, amiable expression… even though he always looked like a fierce demon whenever he faced her directly…

“And he’s a civil official? I truly didn’t expect humans to appoint such a powerful individual to an administrative post. What a waste of talent!”

“He’d be better off joining our demon race; I could even make him a general.”

Lamia leisurely settled into Wade’s office chair, amusing herself with the swivel function. She picked up a Knight Order event proposal from the desk.

Curiously, she read through it, all the while spinning around playfully in the chair.

“Hmm? Oh ho? Is this his photograph? My, my, what a childish appearance~”

As Lamia spun, she suddenly noticed a photo frame on Wade’s desk. Inside was a picture that clearly had some age to it.

The boy in the photograph was unmistakably a young Wade, appearing to be only in his early teens. Even then, the scar on his lip was visible, and other lingering marks of old injuries could be seen on his body.

Standing beside the young Wade in the photo was a man who looked to be in his fifties or sixties. He smiled kindly.

The young Wade beside him also wore a joyful expression.

“Is that family?”

Lamia murmured, holding the photograph.

“He actually has family.”

This wasn’t an insult; it was simply because she herself had no family.

She had been born as the Demon Queen, with no father, no mother, no siblings. She had only herself.

Thus, the concept of ‘family’ was still a novel one to her. Perhaps Wade, who had now registered their marriage with her, was her very first family member.

“…”

She couldn’t experience the feeling of being with family, for she had lived alone in the Demon King City, where power reigned supreme. They could possess nothing, save for strength.

Yet, precisely because of this, she had nothing but power.

*Plink.*

Just as she was lost in thought, a small slip of paper fell from behind the photo album, landing at her feet.

Then, as she bent down to look, it drifted further, disappearing beneath the desk.

“…Hmm?”

Lamia peered curiously, finding it difficult to see. Unwilling to disturb the arrangement of items lest Wade notice, she crouched down and crawled under.

She squatted there, fumbling around, and finally, in a corner beneath the desk, her fingers closed around the small slip of paper.

“Wade Nairt…?”

She looked at the slip of paper, enunciating the words written on it.

“Isn’t this his name…?”

She examined the slip of paper repeatedly, her brow furrowed in confusion, as if expecting to discover something extraordinary on it.

“—Ah, are you referring to the previous event proposal? I’ve already drafted it; it’s right here in my office.”

“…!”

Before she could fully comprehend, Wade had already returned to the office. Trailing behind him was Grand Commander Jeffrey, engaged in conversation.

“Alright, if you’ve drafted it, that’s fine. And regarding the wedding I mentioned, let’s start planning it together in a few days.”

“After all, we want to invite some unmarried knights to experience the atmosphere, to encourage them to find their own partners. The Knight Order will cover a portion of the expenses for you; we’ll rent a larger wedding hall for the occasion.”

“No need, I can afford the expenses myself…”

Upon entering the office, Wade instinctively searched for Lamia. When he didn’t immediately spot her, his brow furrowed slightly.

However, to prevent Jeffrey from suspecting anything, he acted as if nothing was amiss, returning to his seat to search for his proposal.

But just as he settled down, he instinctively stretched out his leg and felt himself kick something soft.

“…?! 😧”

A sudden, uneasy feeling washed over Wade. He lowered his gaze to look beneath his desk.

[👋🏻😉]

There, in the empty space beneath the desk, Lamia was squatting, waving at him.

Being discovered was well within her expectations, so Lamia showed no tension. Instead, she grinned at him, then glanced at the nearest point within her line of sight.

[Oh? White Knight, why have you positioned your weakness directly towards me~? 😈]

‘—😱 Oh no!’

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