Chapter 20
An unexpected commotion had broken out at the House of Count Haylord.
The cause? All the ladies and children who had been enjoying tea in the garden had suddenly vanished without a trace.
The High Temple was notified immediately and rushed to the Haylord estate.
Bishop Miles Pluto—Meteo’s father—arrived with the holy knights in tow and questioned the witnesses.
“Is it true? You saw traces of demonic energy?”
A young servant, visibly shaken, answered nervously.
“Yes, sir. I was on my way to bring more cake when I saw it clearly. A massive plume of black smoke rose up, swirling violently… And then in the blink of an eye, the ladies and children were gone!”
“…”
Neither Miles nor the other holy knights could find words to respond.
How were they supposed to comprehend this situation?
As if speaking for everyone’s stunned silence, Miles finally said in a strained voice,
“…A high-ranking demon? Something impossible has occurred.”
The last time a high-ranking demon had been confirmed was over 130 years ago. Low-ranking demons would appear every few years, sometimes even after a decade.
But a high-ranking demon—something that might emerge once in a century?
…And why, of all people, had it taken his wife and son?
Standing beside him, Count Haylord was at a loss for words. Even the holy knights who were supposed to resolve the crisis seemed dumbfounded.
“Will they come back alive? My Rothy… My daughter can’t die like this!”
Other noblemen—husbands of the missing women—also began to cry out.
“My daughter! Please, save my daughter!”
“We can’t lose them like this! Bishop, I beg of you…!”
Their pleas were heartbreaking.
They too had rushed to the estate the moment they heard the horrifying news that their wives and children had disappeared, victims of demonic forces.
Miles did his best to calm them.
“Meteo is with them. He’ll find a way. In a sense, it’s fortunate this wasn’t a low-ranking demon. If it were, we wouldn’t even be able to hope they were still alive.”
“How can you say that…!”
Count Haylord protested bitterly—but he wasn’t wrong.
If it had been a low-ranking demon, there would have been no detour to the Demon Realm—just immediate slaughter.
Unlike low-ranking demons, whose purpose was killing, high-ranking demons played for amusement.
Still, there was nothing they could do against a high-ranking demon either.
“Meteo is only nine years old!”
“You really think he can bring back my wife and child?”
“They’re dead. They’re all dead! Aaaah!”
Panic erupted. The nobles began wailing in anguish.
Miles, too, was overwhelmed with despair—but as both a holy knight and bishop, he couldn’t afford to break down like the others.
Just then, a holy knight approached Miles.
“Your Excellency. We’ve found evidence of a high-ranking demon at the site. The witness was telling the truth.”
“…I see.”
He had hoped—against hope—that the servant had been mistaken, but it was now undeniable.
There was almost no chance of them returning.
Meteo was far too young to face demons alone. And demons weren’t known to return humans out of kindness.
Could this really be happening?
Was he to lose his son and wife so meaninglessly? And there was no way to chase after them into the Demon Realm…
Just as despair cast its shadow over every face, something suddenly fell from the sky with a loud, cascading noise.
Gasps spread as everyone turned toward the source.
Thuds shook the ground repeatedly.
There, scattered across the well-manicured lawn, were the unconscious forms of women in dresses and their daughters.
“!”
Miles and the others rushed forward.
It was the Countess of Haylord, the other noblewomen, and the girls.
Unbelievably, they were all there—unconscious, but alive.
Count Haylord shook his wife and daughter frantically.
“Darling! Rothy! Wake up!”
Meanwhile, the holy knights checked for pulses. Once they were done, they turned to Miles and shouted,
“Your Excellency, they’re all alive!”
“!”
Alive?
A miracle. It was a miracle.
But the astonishment ran even deeper for Miles and the holy knights. For victims of a high-ranking demon to return alive—it was virtually unheard of.
Especially when Meteo was the only one among them capable of standing against demons.
“A miracle… This is truly a miracle!”
At Miles’s words, the nobles burst into tears of relief. Count Haylord clutched Rothy to his chest and wept.
“Thank you, thank you… Merciful Amath… Thank you for sparing my daughter…”
“Oh, blessed Amath…”
People finally began to calm down.
But Miles and the knights had already noticed something strange.
‘…They’re missing. Meteo and Rearwin are not here.’
He’d been told Rearwin’s ward had been with them too, yet neither of them had returned.
Why hadn’t they come back?
And just as the feeling of a miracle twisted into dread again for Miles—
Something else fell from the sky.
He recognized the silhouette immediately.
“Meteo!”
Miles sprinted to his son, gathering the child in his arms and checking his condition. Thankfully, he was breathing.
Right then, Meteo’s eyelids fluttered open.
“Meteo! Can you hear me?”
“……”
Meteo blinked slowly, taking in his surroundings. The blue sky. The green leaves. His father’s face.
He was back in the real world.
“F-Father.”
“Meteo! What happened? What in the world occurred?”
Meteo groaned, struggling to sit up. He frantically looked around and saw people lying nearby.
His heart sank.
“Mother and Crescent… they didn’t return?”
Miles didn’t answer—just opened his mouth soundlessly. That was exactly what he’d been about to ask his son.
Where on earth is your mother?
From his father’s expression, Meteo realized the situation.
“No way…”
“What happened! Where is Rearwin?!”
“……”
Even with ten mouths, Meteo wouldn’t have had the words.
How could he say that his mother had been offered up to the Demon King as a sacrifice?
He had failed to save her. Crescent was gone, too.
They had found the door to the Aldred estate and solved the riddle. But they hadn’t saved his mother or the ward.
The moment they solved the puzzle, he’d been thrown back into the human realm—before he even had the chance to try rescuing them.
How could he return to the Demon Realm?
The Demon King had returned, so surely another high-ranking demon would appear soon. If he could just use that gate again…
Meteo was thinking exactly that when—
Thud!
Something heavy landed nearby.
Startled, he turned—and saw a woman with long silver hair and a girl with golden locks.
Rearwin and Crescent.
“Mother!”
“Rearwin!”
Both Meteo and Miles dashed toward them. They hurriedly checked their breathing, and Miles’s tense shoulders finally loosened.
“…They’re alive.”
Meteo’s knees gave out, and he collapsed where he stood.
All strength drained from his body.
His mother and Crescent were back.
He hadn’t expected them to be returned so easily, not after opening the door to the Aldred estate… So what had happened?
But the questions quickly faded.
At that moment, nothing mattered more than the fact that they had all come back alive.
For now… they were safe.
