Chapter 4: The Demon King’s Humiliating Breakfast

The Demon King’s Castle boasted a dining area reserved solely for its sovereign.

Attended by more than a dozen maids at all times, it was an exclusive sanctuary for the Demon King’s sole indulgence.

Even those permitted to share a meal with the Demon King were never allowed to sit as equals.

Such was the rightful standing of the most revered entity among demonkind, a veritable symbol of absolute power.

Yet, within this customarily serene dining space, an unwelcome and utterly perplexing guest had now appeared.

“My Lady Demon King~, come now, open wide—”

With a beaming smile, Noah speared a piece of cold meat from the platter and brought it to Letitia’s lips, an audacious act that sent shivers of apprehension through the surrounding maids.

Naturally, they recognized the captured Saintess and silently marvelled at the Demon King’s formidable methods; in merely a day, she had rendered the Saintess utterly compliant, attending to her meal like a doting spouse.

By any measure, the scene unfolding before them was one of unparalleled sweetness.

Yet, for some inexplicable reason, the Demon King’s expression suggested she had just ingested something utterly repulsive, perhaps even a cockroach.

Liches, by their very nature, abhor blood and fire; among the myriad demon races, known for their strong personalities, the lich clan possessed the longest lifespans and the most detached temperaments, their inherent aversion to gore manifesting in a distinct preference for cold dishes.

Thus, Letitia’s breakfast naturally consisted of various pickled cold meats, meticulously prepared to eliminate any hint of bloodiness and untouched by high temperatures, accompanied by lukewarm coffee.

Incidentally, the grilled meat patties and vegetable salad placed before Noah had been specially prepared by the kitchen at Astolfo’s request, following human recipes.

Following a protracted struggle—a delicate dance between preserving dignity and outright pleading—Letitia had finally convinced the perfectly smiling, yet utterly vexatious, Saintess to release her from the bed.

Despite having donned her regal gown and adopting the imposing demeanor of a Demon King, her legs remained uncontrollably weak, the lingering pain and sensation of her recent ordeal still acutely present within her.

Particularly when the Saintess approached her with an impeccably innocent smile, Letitia was seized by a fresh wave of trepidation, the vivid images of last night resurfacing in her mind.

This left her feeling profoundly unsettled; she instinctively pressed a hand to her mouth, turning her face slightly away as a faint blush bloomed across her otherwise pallid complexion.

“No, that won’t be necessary. I’ve rather lost my appetite.”

“Oh~, no appetite, you say?”

Noah blinked her eyes innocently, resting her chest provocatively on the table as she spoke.

“But surely last night’s activities were quite exhausting, weren’t they? If you skip breakfast, how will you, as the Demon King, present a vigorous image to your subjects?”

‘Ugh!’

Letitia’s gaze darted nervously, her eyes instinctively sweeping across the room.

While the maids attending the Demon King were, by definition, possessed of the finest decorum, even they could not entirely conceal the subtle, involuntary shifts in their expressions upon hearing Noah’s words.

“Saintess, Your Majesty the Demon King is a lich with a thousand years of accumulated power.

Not only would skipping a single meal have no effect, but even abstaining from food for an entire month would leave Her Majesty completely unfazed.”

In that crucial moment, Astolfo, the Demon King’s personal attendant, stepped in to intercede, her tone expertly objective and reassuring.

Before Letitia could even exhale in relief, Astolfo delivered a devastating follow-up:

“However, I must concur with the Saintess, Your Majesty.

Your energy expenditure last night was considerable.

Should you forgo breakfast, it might prove difficult to maintain your regal and dignified image before your ministers.”

The young Demon King cast a startled glance at Astolfo beside her, who responded with a slight bow, her eyes entirely devoid of the tell-tale pink shimmer of enchantment.

The humiliating remark Astolfo had made upon entering the bedroom that morning had indeed been uttered under the influence of enchantment.

After all, Astolfo, a retainer who had served Letitia for centuries and possessed impeccable decorum, would never voice such thoughts, even if they crossed her mind.

Now, however, things were different; she had carefully assessed the situation and clearly understood the disparity in power between the two individuals.

While digesting this new reality was undoubtedly challenging, she had swiftly formulated an appropriate response.

‘Therefore, My Lady Letitia, perhaps it would be best to simply acquiesce to the Saintess.’

Astolfo’s slightly apologetic gaze seemed to convey this very sentiment.

‘I understand, but what you just said, doesn’t it sound as if…’

‘Doesn’t it imply that despite my thousand years of accumulated power, I was utterly depleted by a human barely twenty years of age?’

A rare flicker of panic and helplessness crossed Letitia’s eyes.

She had never conceived that her loyal maid, who had followed her for so long and felt like a sister, would defect with such astonishing speed.

‘And without even being enchanted!’

‘Please temper your anger, Your Majesty.

This is all for the sake of your healthy and pure life.’

The apology in the eyes of the ever-sensible Astolfo deepened, yet her resolve to gently nudge her Demon King into this fiery predicament remained utterly unwavering.

‘Furthermore, Your Majesty, if you continue to disregard this, it will not be Astolfo who finds herself in peril.’

The sharp glint in her personal maid’s eyes served as a stark reminder to Letitia.

With a somewhat stiff movement, she turned her head, her gaze falling upon the fork and cold meat Noah had been patiently holding aloft, a sight that, despite everything, was quite appetizing.

Noah’s flawless smile had remained unchanged throughout, though if anything, the mirthful curve of her lips had only intensified.

It was so profound that even Letitia found herself sensing a distinct undercurrent of danger.

“Hmph… very well, I’ll eat then…”

Letitia gnashed her teeth, swallowing down her pride.

As she envisioned the humiliating rumors of “the Demon King being henpecked” that were sure to spread, she resignedly accepted the cold meat Noah offered, abandoning all pretense of resistance.

‘Oh, oh!’

She could almost hear the triumphant cheers resounding within the maids’ minds, her own heart feeling as though it were weeping tears of blood.

Witnessing the Demon King’s compliance, the momentary glint of playful menace in Noah’s smile instantly vanished, replaced by a radiant, sun-like expression of utter satisfaction that captivated even the discreetly observing maids.

‘To have secured such a flawless Saintess, His Majesty the Demon King must surely be incredibly happy,’ the maids thought in unison, a collective sigh of romantic satisfaction.

“Now then, My Lady Demon King, for the next piece, open wide—”

Noah immersed herself wholeheartedly in the role of a doting spouse, finding immense pleasure in every aspect of her performance.

For the Demon King being served, however, whether this experience brought any joy was an entirely different matter.

“Mmm, mmm, gulp…”

With red-rimmed eyes, Letitia swallowed the impaled cold meat, discerning new and unfamiliar flavors amidst her typically monotonous diet.

She recalled the unyielding Saintess from the moment of her capture, the Saintess who had trembled like a frightened child at the prospect of humiliation, and then gazed at the smirking Saintess before her, feeling a profound, gut-wrenching regret.

‘This is all my own doing.’

“Now, My Lady Demon King, consuming only meat isn’t good either.

Allow me to serve you some coffee…”

“No! Absolutely not!”

The terrified Demon King, anticipating Noah’s move, swiftly snatched the coffee cup and drained it in a single gulp, thereby narrowly averting the even more mortifying prospect of a mouth-to-mouth feeding before her attentive maids.

“Ahem! Breakfast is concluded.

I must now attend to my official duties.”

Letitia feigned a cough, her voice unnaturally loud as she declared what should have been a self-evident truth, as if attempting to shore up her own dwindling resolve.

Noah evinced little regret, simply cradling the round pastry on the table, tilting her head, and watching Letitia with that same flawless smile, her eyes narrowing like a cunning fox.

That very posture sent a shiver of unease down the Demon King’s spine.