“Great clouds appeared in the sky, the ground trembled and life withered. The sun was gone and darkness took over the sky, and from the darkness a great crackling of thunder came. Descending the abyss, a great black creature emerged – such a vile, hideous being as to leave the hearts of whoever saw it trembling in fear. The Great Demon Lord descended to this continent, right over the Palace of the War God. With a cold smile that sent shivers down spines and sent children into fits of crying, the Demon Lord flew down like a bullet, piercing the palace. No wall was left unscathed, no treasure undamaged. Finally taking something precious from the War Ciel, the Demon Lord gave cold, merciless laughter that turned one’s heart to ice, and then proceeded to leave, satisfied at his havoc. Then, he went to cause more destruction. This was the birth of the Great Demon Lord.”

Excerpt from Collected Legends of the Great Demon Lord

The accounts and rumors surrounding the Flower Demon Lord are numerous and most likely countless, and most are probably unaccountable. However, if there is one event all agree on, it is the Flower Demon Lord’s first attack. Everyone knows that the Flower Demon Lord descended upon the War Ciel’s castle one day, and stole something very precious from him. Yet, to this day, no one can say what that was.

So, I will proceed to reveal what really happened that day. And also – I will reveal what exactly it was that I stole from the mighty War Ciel that he would spread nasty rumors of the like “The Flower Demon Lord is such a nasty, ugly looking, vicious and heinous creature that even one look at him will make you go blind!” Tell me, then, why didn’t you go blind?! Huh?! Even though you-! Ahem…The events shall slowly be revealed, so please be patient.

I had just managed to use Ezekiel as a distraction (not that those guards could have done anything had they remembered my presence), and successfully entered the palace alongside the snarky Magnus.

“Do you have no sense?”

Magnus’ dead-pan question interrupted me from my deep concentration. My fingers stopped their work, and with a dignified air, I slowly turned to face him. My smile gracious, I said, “What does it look like?”

“Like you are endangering this mission that carries your very life on the line by freely playing a piano loudly in a palace you have just infiltrated.”

I slowly shook my head, “No, no. You have gotten it all wrong. Can’t you see I’m gaining inspiration?”

Tell me, just when will I have such an opportunity to use such a high class piano to create my ‘luck in money’ song? Of course I have to seize it!

Proceeding to close my eyes and lose myself in the sweet melody of money, I tried with all my might to ignore the nagging feeling at the back of my head. Slowly, my fingers stopped once more, and I turned to look at Magnus.

“Do you really have to stare at me from in there? It’s creepy.”

“I don’t want to hear that from you!”

From within the cabinet, Magnus peeked from the small opening of the cabinet door he kept for lookout, and yelled quite angrily.

My face and voice both darkening, I asked, “Are you calling me creepy?”

“Black aura is freaking leaking out of your fingers! If that’s not creepy, what is?!”

I quickly looked at my hands, “Oh, I wasn’t supposed to do that yet! I don’t want to use it too much…Hmm…Why are you in there again?”

Magnus’ eye glinted from within the cabinet, “If you’re getting caught, I’m not getting caught with you!”

“How loyal of you. If I find any treasure, I will make sure not to share any with you.”

“Heh, as if you ever would anyway.”

He’s got a point…Oh, well. Might as well start this so I don’t have to hear his nagging anymore. With that thought, I started playing the song from the very beginning, the dark aura emitting from my fingers hitting the keys with each note. Soon, the whole room began to fill with the dark aura until it started leaking from under the door. Once the whole palace had been searched, I stopped playing as I opened my eyes.

“It’s not here.”

“H-Huh?”

Magnus, who had quickly shut the cabinet as soon as he saw the flooding aura, slowly peeked out and asked, “What? I-Is the map not here?”

“It’s not here.”

Feeling as if all life had left me and only a silent despair was left, I could only repeat the words with wide eyes.

“It’s not here…”

“What?! Didn’t you say the map would be here?! Why isn’t it here?!”

Recovering enough to give him a dirty look, I said, “What are you talking about? Of course the map is here! Why else would I come here? Oh – of course, there’s money. Shouldn’t a palace be full of money or at least treasures? But, nothing! Nothing at all! This place is only filled with useless books and historic relics of questionable worth. Selling them would be quite hard!”

“…So, it’s all about money? You don’t care if you die?”

I gave him another dirty look, “What is with you today? You’re quite stupid. Of course I don’t want to die! That is why…let us pick it up.”

“Y-You know where it is?!”

Magnus almost fell out of the cabinet in shock, “H-How?!”

I smiled quite brightly, “My, my, Magnus. One would think you don’t know me at all! Have you ever seen me do something that wasn’t profitable or that wasted time? Creating a beautiful masterpiece that can search money – well, actually anything, but preferably money – I have successfully concluded that this palace and its Lord is dirt poor, as well as the location of the map!”

“…You’re really amazing. I lose…I just…I lose…”

Magnus looked quite dejected, like he didn’t even understand the world anymore. Simply ignoring him, I said, “Would you like to see another spell I invented?”

“Sure, sure…” He said absent-mindedly, even shrugging and shaking his head like he didn’t care if the world were to end.

But, I do think he would have cared if the world were to end.

I mouthed a few words, and immediately Magnus’ lax and indifferent attitude changed to one of pure panic as he looked around in horror, “What are you doing?!”

Watching as books and other useless relics around me burned, I couldn’t help but smile. If I can’t make profit of you, no one can!

“Isn’t it such a lovely spell? It burns everything I find worthless. Hahaha!”

“O-Oi! Why am I burning?! Ahh!!”

Magnus started flailing around, trying to extinguish the scarlet flames now spreading across his arm. His witch hat, which had gotten quite wrinkled from staying stuffed in the cabinet, popped up and down on his head.

“Oh, sorry.”

I watched him flail for three more seconds after I said that, and then proceeded to put the fire out. That pitiful expression…hehehe!

“Seriously, what is wrong with you?!”

But, I no longer cared about Magnus. Watching the ever growing scarlet flames, I laughed freely. Burn, baby, burn! Hahaha!

“…You do know you look like a mad person, don’t you?”

Magnus helpless voice came weakly through my joyous laughter.

***

“Ellie Flower, you have been accused of infiltrating a Ciel’s palace and burning a vast amount of property. Do you accept these charges?”

The War Ciel is someone who, as the name suggests, belongs to the church of the War god, and should, as such, be involved in war. However, much like the War Ciels before him, the current War Ciel thought that being a Ciel with affinity for war meant working out and practicing in a comfortable, privileged palace without any involvement in war, and then taking relaxing breaks playing lord in a vast throne room, seated upon a great marble throne. If I somehow manage to pull out the stones, will I be able to sell it for a bit…? Or is the work not worth the money I would get?

“Hm? We haven’t heard an answer yet, Miss Ellie. Is it your hobby to ignore important people?”

I smiled quite brightly, despite my situation kneeled upon a cold marble floor, with thick chains hugging me tightly around my body, “Why? Is there someone important here?”

I could see the man’s cocky smirk twitch slightly, before he covered it with forced laughter, “Isn’t she a snarky one.”

“…I know someone snarkier though?”

Despite his previous playful attitude, the War Ciel’s, Derek’s, face darkened as he looked my way with a resolute look and no words.

One would think he was one of the few exceptions to the charms of my beauty. He even had characteristics that qualified him as a novel’s female protagonist’s main love interest. After working out desperately for a war he knew would never come to our peaceful continent, his muscles had toned perfectly in that way that is never too much.

Knowing this, he wore minimal clothing like a ‘warrior’ and occasionally flexed his muscles as he sat in his throne. With slightly tanned skin, dark hair and hazel eyes that contrasted nicely, he gave off the arrogant aura and attitude of an ever smirking badass that made girls squirm in joy. One could say I might have finally found that someone, others that I found the greatest pervert in history.

What?! What?! What?! Don’t pretend to be all dark and serious! I can clearly see where your eyes are looking! Take that perverted glint away! Look up! My face is quite nice, you know?!

Actually, my face wasn’t ‘quite nice.’ It was ‘I’ll do anything for you, my queen’ level of beauty. However, I was dealing with a wild beast that didn’t bow to beauty, but instead wanted to devour it!

I knew I would never find someone immune to my beauty! Look away, damn it!

At that moment, I would have quite preferred to have looked at Ezekiel’s disgusting tail-wagging form than this calculating old man who was probably finding a way to- I can’t say it! I can’t even think it! I-!

“What’s wrong?” There was laughter to his tone, “Don’t worry. If you confess properly, I won’t be too harsh.”

Derek laughed more and more, his tone getting more and more arrogant.

“…”

“I told you not to worry! What’s wrong? Are you perhaps feeling unwell?”

“…”

“Well, being confronted with such a great man, I can’t blame you! Are you overwhelmed? Don’t worry! Ciels are human too! We can even love! Ha-ha-ha!”

Snap!

No sound reverberated through the large throne room except the obnoxious laughter of the War Ciel Derek, yet something had broken inside my mind.

“Hm?” Finding an empty spot in front of him, Derek looked slightly confused, “Where did she- Kuu!!!”

With a flying kick landing directly on his left cheek, the War Ciel was sent flying away at lightning speed. As expected of someone who gained the title of Ciel, despite having crashed into a wall, creating a rather large crater, he still pushed himself up, gingerly holding his red cheek, “What are you doing?! How did you- Guh!”

But just as he was about to get to his feet, my foot aimed directly at his family jewels. With the great impact of the dark aura surrounding my foot, the strength should have been quite large. Derek’s eyes went so wide it looked like they would fall out of his sockets, but they didn’t stay that way for long. With clenched teeth, he shut his eyes as I stepped over the same spot over and over and over again…

No one in the throne room knew what to do. Paralyzed in shock, the events too fast to comprehend, they took a while to understand the situation. Finally, one court lady awoke from her shock, “Kyaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa!”

The scream reverberated through the high-ceiling room so loudly the whole city has memories of hearing it that day.

And that was the day the Flower Demon Lord took away something incredibly precious from the War Ciel, something that could never be regained.