MADWD 41

Chapter 41

Ariella did not forgive the horse that refused her.

“Fine. A battle of wills. That’s important.”

She immediately cast magic to punish it.

A net of mana spread out in front of the stable.
It was the same spell that had once bound even a high-rank vampire.

A mere horse could never withstand it.
The tightly woven mana wrapped around the horse’s neck and pulled it to the ground.

Thud! The earth shook loudly.

“How dare a horse try to hurt a person? You need to be taught some manners before you’re useful.”

Ariella tightened the tangled mana around the fallen horse’s neck, almost as if she was engraving into it who the true master was.

Ludwig, Richmond, and Gruve all gaped in shock.
Only Ulken, used to beasts deciding dominance, laughed heartily.

Minutes passed.

“Good. Now you’re behaving.”

The horse finally surrendered.
It recognized Ariella as its master.

Now the horse obeyed even the smallest gesture.
When she approached, it even lowered its body to make mounting easier—something not even Ludwig’s horse ever did.

Clop, clop!

The sound of hooves brought Ludwig back to the present.
The lively rhythm echoed in his ears.

When he slightly sped up, Ariella naturally matched his pace.
Her riding was flawless.

‘She adapts and learns fast.’

Were all humans like this?
No—Ludwig knew the answer.

Ariella was special even among humans.

‘That’s why she became a princess.’

He judged that she had the temperament of a ruler—someone who would break down every obstacle in her path, just as he had lived.

‘But… why did she come to the Demon Realm?’

He realized he still hadn’t heard the full story.
Why would a royal successor summon a demon king and choose to come here?

Ludwig’s curiosity and interest in Ariella grew larger and larger.

“Here it is.”

At last, they reached the valley.

It was land ruled by no demon lord, where neither fairies nor orcs lived—truly ownerless ground.

There was no sun here.
It was dark, like an endless night that resembled the human world.

They moved carefully into the valley.

As Ludwig scanned sharply around, his brow furrowed.

“There are no wagon tracks.”

“If there were, the gnome’s man would have found them long ago. They must have erased every trace.”

They searched the valley with no guideposts.
But after hours, no evidence appeared.

“We’ll have to set up camp. We can’t light a fire here, so let’s step outside the valley.”

If Fedwick’s men were nearby, a light would reveal their position.

But—

“Hey, I said let’s pull back.”

The contractor did not answer.

She stood frozen in place, like nailed to the ground.

Startled, Ludwig called her name for the first time in a while.

“Ariella?”

A strange glow lingered in her features.
She didn’t move, staring fiercely in one direction.

“What is it?”

She raised a finger to her lips.

“Shh!”

Without thinking, Ludwig even held his own breath.

Though she was his contractor and retainer, in that moment it felt like their roles had reversed.

While he stayed quiet, Ariella focused inward.

“……”

She had done this before, so it was easier now.
She felt her mind expand.

The senses flowing through her body spread outward into the air, covering the surroundings.

Then—something clashed with that flow, creating a small swirl.

It was far away, beyond her reach, but she felt it as clearly as if it brushed her skin.

‘There. Something’s there. Something like that scale.’

Her intuition whispered again.

‘No… not just similar. Exactly the same.’

Realization pierced her mind.

“……I found it!”

Her clear eyes locked in one direction.

“Over there!”

Ariella moved forward without hesitation.

“Hey! Don’t just run off alone! Honestly, no fear at all!”

Ludwig grumbled and followed.

Ariella advanced, her expression sharp with concentration.
Watching her, Ludwig remembered when they had hunted Vepar.

Soon, Ludwig raised a hand to stop her.

“There’s something ahead.”

Now even he could sense it.

The valley was rough, filled with rocks blocking the view.
Beyond a cliff wall, he could feel many presences gathered.

This close, anyone could sense them—it wasn’t just Ariella’s ability.

Once again she was right, and Ludwig let out a small sigh of admiration.

“This is almost like divine power.”

“Don’t exaggerate. That’s where the wave of the scale is. Maybe its owner.”

They took positions where they couldn’t be seen and observed carefully.

Armed demons were stationed along the ridges.

Ludwig studied their gear.
Though they bore no clear insignia, their armor and weapons looked nearly identical to the soldiers they had seen at Fedwick’s place days earlier.

“Fedwick’s merchant soldiers?”

Their formation and equipment weren’t ordinary at all.
What were they guarding so carefully?

Ariella narrowed her eyes.

Beyond, there were wooden structures and tents, almost like a military camp.
From the look of it, they had been settled here for quite some time.

“They spent this much money and manpower in the middle of nowhere? A merchant guild that lives by profit?”

Why would they keep such a secret outpost, hidden even from high executives?

Only one answer came to mind.

‘They’re hiding something disastrous.’

What was Fedwick keeping here that was worth all this effort and secrecy?

“I need to look inside.”

Ludwig nodded in agreement.

Then—

Fwoosh!

Ariella almost screamed.

“What are you doing!?”

Ludwig had conjured a ball of fire between his hands.

She grabbed his hair desperately, and he scowled as he snuffed out the flames.

“Why? You said you wanted to see inside. They won’t just invite us in. I thought I’d turn a few of them to ash first.”

“If we start a fight now, what do you think will happen?”

Ludwig rolled his eyes, thinking.

“What else? We live, they die.”

“No! Before we even fight properly, they’ll grab whatever they’re hiding and run. We’d fight for nothing. Just pointless suffering!”

She hated wasting strength for nothing.

“Then what’s your plan?”

“We sneak in.”

“Secretly?”

Ludwig gave her a look of disbelief. He gestured toward the fortified camp—
how could anyone slip inside that?

“What’s magic for? Just wait.”

“But I don’t know any—”

He stopped mid-sentence.

Ariella had already begun chanting a spell.
Even Ludwig had never heard this kind before.

Ssshh!

A mysterious flow wrapped around her, then spread and enveloped Ludwig too.

At first he stiffened, but quickly realized the power wasn’t harming him.
He let down his own magical guard.

The energy seeped into him—

Whoosh!

“Hm?”

Ludwig lifted his hands to his face.
But nothing was visible.

‘Invisibility magic!’

From empty air, Ariella’s voice spoke.

“Good. It worked.”

Looking that way, Ludwig asked, “Did you learn this in the human world too?”

“No, I taught myself here.”

“This is a vampire specialty. They wouldn’t have taught you.”

“Didn’t you hear me? I said I taught myself.”

Ludwig went silent, then muttered, “No, that’s impossible.”

“Unbelievable. Am I talking to a wall?”

Ariella had come to the Demon Realm for this very reason—to learn and research more magic.
Though she had been busy with endless incidents, she always found time to bury herself in the library’s magical books.

She had even studied Phily’s magic along the way.

The Demon Realm’s library was full of rare grimoires, treasures of both realms.

Ariella focused first on practical spells she had already encountered.

“Invisibility—I saw it twice. First when assassins tried to kill me. Then when Vepar used it to escape.”

She had memorized the unique wave of that magic with her body.
With that memory, she found the related books and studied them.

She had taught herself magic alone even in the human world.
Now, with direct memories of its use, it had been far easier.

Ludwig felt his head spin.

“So in just a few weeks you mastered such a complex spell?”

“Complex? It was horribly complex.”

He couldn’t see her face, but Ludwig knew she must be wearing that confident smirk of hers.

He asked himself—what exactly had he contracted with?
What blood ran in her veins?

“Anyway… whatever you are, you’re not human.”