The Former Holy Knight. Having Lost My Job and Childhood Friend, I Decided to Start a Dark Guild - Chapter 15

As the black smoke cleared, I saw the figure standing there and, for the first time, understood the ability of Nina’s heretical skill. At the same time, I recalled a book named “The Third Era: Demon Lord Manina Catalogue,” which is lined up on the forbidden bookshelf of the Holy Knights’ Library.

The Demon Lord Manina Catalogue is an extremely valuable collection of illustrations depicting Demon Lord Manina, who faced off against the saintess of that time. Despite being printed two hundred years ago, the clarity of the illustrations of Demon Lord Manina collected in this book is such that its historical value is unmatched within the Holy Knights’ Library.

Now, standing before me is Demon Lord Manina, just as depicted in that book.

At first glance, she appears to be a beautiful girl with well-defined features, but her hair is silver, and she has two horns growing from her head. Furthermore, a tail extends from her buttocks, making her figure nothing short of grotesque. Her attire covers only her chest and waist with cloth, revealing a high degree of exposure.

Although the Demon Lord Manina Catalogue is a historical document, it has a waiting list of one year for borrowing, indicating its popularity among male squire apprentices of the Holy Knights. This popularity can be attributed to the high degree of exposure and the extremely beautiful features of Demon Lord Manina.

I could only stand in awe at the historical event of the Demon Lord’s resurrection unfolding before my eyes. On the other hand, the people around me, who have had no opportunity to touch the forbidden book, seem not to grasp the emergency fully.

Demon Lord Manina, with her purple eyes fixed on me, said, “I wish to thank you for protecting me from Saintess Cecil.”

Confused, I let out a dumbfounded voice, “Thank you?”

As I puzzled over her words, Manina raised her right arm to the sky. A fireball then formed in her palm, growing rapidly. When the fireball reached the size of about five wine barrels, a cold sweat ran down my back.

What is that enormous fireball? I have seen many adventurers and heretics with magical skills while with the knights, but I have never seen such a large fireball.

Then, the meaning of her “thank you” suddenly crossed my mind.

“Please take care of this child!”

I placed a cat in Sofia Gracier’s arms and snatched the sword back from the thugs in an instant. As expected, the fireball was thrown towards the man with the accordion sword, Gambino. The man, unable to grasp the rapid development, stood frozen.

I stepped in front of the man, slashing at the incoming fireball.

The blazing fireball was as hard as a steel ball, not budging from a single slash. Only after increasing my speed and delivering several slashes did it finally extinguish, leaving a burning pain and lingering warmth on my skin from the scattered sparks.

Glancing back to check for injuries, I saw the man had thrown his sword away and sat on the ground with a pale face, but he seemed to be unharmed, at least.

Manina looked displeased. “What are you doing? I was trying to help you!”

“I don’t need your help!”

“Move aside!”

Saying this, Manina raised both hands and began creating another fireball. The fireball above her head grew quickly two, five, ten times larger.

A fireball of this size couldn’t be dealt with a long sword. I shouted, “Stop!” and leaped towards Manina, kicking off the ground. If that size of a fireball were thrown, not only the thugs from the dark guild but also Sofia and the other women would undoubtedly die instantly. The damage to the buildings would be immense, a destruction that would go down in the history of the royal capital. Even if it seemed impossible, as a former Holy Knight, I felt obliged to protect them at the cost of my life.

I grabbed Manina’s arm before she could release the fireball. 

“Stop!”

Manina stared at me with her purple eyes, her face that of an innocent girl, making it hard to believe she was a demon about to commit a massacre.

With a sly smile, Manina said, “Ho, you dare to issue a royal command to me, the Demon Lord?”

“Royal command or not, just extinguish that fireball now!”

“Very well. I shall heed your royal command.”

To my surprise, Manina obediently extinguished the fireball above her head and looked at me mischievously with her large, sparkling eyes.

“That’s quite a skill you have, ‘King of Heretics,'” she said, bursting into laughter. “Who would have thought that intercourse and marriage with me, the Demon Lord, would be possible? What an interesting skill!”

Her words took me aback. 

“What are you talking about?”

“Don’t play dumb. You can see the text floating above my head, can’t you?”

Indeed, above Manina’s head floated ancient letters reading, “Loyalty: 80. Intercourse and marriage possible by royal command.”

Manina looked at me with amusement. 

“I’ve lived for tens of thousands of years, but intercourse and marriage are firsts for me. I’m looking forward to it.”

Unsure of how to react, I was caught off guard when Manina yawned loudly.

“My power is still incomplete, so I become sleepy quickly. It’s fine if you carry me to bed. It’s an honor to hold me, the Demon Lord, and a peerless beauty.”

Despite questioning her self-proclaimed beauty, I caught Manina as she leaned into my arms. She closed her eyes and began to sleep, snoring lightly. Gradually, the horns on her head disappeared, and she transformed into her original form as Nina.

I looked at Nina, sleeping peacefully in my arms. 

(Maybe it would be better for everyone if I turned her over to the Holy Knights…)

But having welcomed her into my family, I knew I had to protect her. Glancing around, I noticed that, despite the sparse crowd, everyone stared in disbelief. If we didn’t leave soon, it was only a matter of time before we were reported and found by the Holy Knights.

As I picked up Nina and was about to leave, Sofia Gracier, the most popular courtesan in the royal capital, tapped my shoulder and looked at me intently.

“Who exactly are you two? I’ll keep quiet about what happened here, but could you tell me the truth?” said Sofia.