"Well, that's one problem sorted," Gabrielle announced, dusting her palms as if she had done hard work. "He took it better than expected. Spares us some trouble."
And behind her, Zoltan stumbled into the workshop, looking like he didn't take it well at all.
If anything, he seemed pale and confused.
But given what he must have been through, that was normal.
"So close, yet so far," Lily sighed, kicking the dirt. "We still need someone. Two would be ideal, but I'm definitely not risking my unfaithful boyfriend with only five—"
"I didn't cheat or anything," Konrad protested before she finished. "And we're married."
A fact he still struggled to believe sometimes.
When he could even remember her. Because, as impossible as forgetting her pout was—
He couldn't tell when the next time paradox would take her away again.
"So what's next?" he asked, looking over the gathering crowd. "Do we wait until Lucifer makes his move? Or see if we can find one more of his proteges by accident?"
His wives shook their heads.
Did they finally agree on something?!
"Doubt we'd have to wait long," Gabrielle said. "The more he has to prepare—"
"It's a gamble," Lily cut in, too. "He might send an army tomorrow, or leave us alone to terrorize other worlds instead. Which kinda proves my point, but—"
"Lilith," the angel snapped, "we've been through this."
Okay, it wasn't a perfect harmony yet.
"Fine, fine." The ginger raised her hands with a shit-eater grin. "I mean, Kasserlane's in a good place right now, but we should act before Lu does."
Konrad sighed.
"Meaning, we must follow the one trace we have, after all," he summarized. "To find Strelok."
Lily ruffled her own tangles as she pondered.
"Well, sure, we've a name, but—"
"Finding him would be challenging, even for us," Gabby confirmed.
There. Harmony restored.
If only they'd agree on something good for once.
"Did you hear anything else about that guy, Soap?" Konrad asked—from the only person who wasn't actually there. "Wait, where did that kid go?!"
Didn't he tag along?
But when Zoltan asked about the two orphans, he meant Maou and Yuki.
They were still around, the latter looking amazed by every little thing, while the former—
Ugh. He was sticking way too close to Eyna for Konrad's liking.
"If you mean the otherworlder child," Helena offered, "he was looking for one of your vassals."
He blinked. Not because he only realized the king's sister was here, but—
That unfinished business with Count Rolalt?!
"You let him go like that?" he grunted, unsure who to be mad at. "He's a powerful sorcerer and Lucifer's puppet. You should have kept an eye on him, damn it."
At least Ballsy—no, his name was Roach—was still there.
Harder to miss, too, with his crackled skin glowing almost as much as his red eyes.
Even in another world, he stuck out like a sore thumb.
And with his eyes boring into him, Roach held up his arms.
"Don't look at me, bossman, we're not joined at the hips," he claimed. "But as for Strelok, um. Ghost didn't talk much about him. I know Fang was their tank, and he was stealthy, but—"
"Oh, he sure was."
Lily joined as if an old memory surfaced in her chaotic mind.
"He snuck up on the girls' dorm to slit my throat," she chirped, like that's a good thing. "Too bad it's not as easy to cut dragon skin. Once I saw him, he was dead. Fang wasn't that tough, either—"
"And since you murdered them, our job's much tougher instead," Gabrielle moaned.
She rubbed her temple, and Konrad could almost feel her headache.
"Whoopsie." Lily struck a cutesy pose. "Want me to bring them back with—"
"Don't you dare," Gabby cut her off.
It wasn't hard to guess why. No more time-travel, please.
"Okay, okay, so what we know," he scrambled to step between his wives. "Is that they had a buff guy, an assassin, and if their party was even a little balanced—"
"A sorcerer," Maou spat, finally leaving Eyna's side. "Or an archer. That's what we're looking for."
Archer. Right.
He'd rather not correct him now that he wasn't fawning over his haremette.
"And he rejected Lucifer's call, so he might even cooperate with us," Konrad said instead.
"Except we don't know where he is," Gabrielle reminded. "And to confirm that connection—"
She let her voice trail off, glancing at the still pale Zoltan behind her.
Yeah. Tap their foreheads, pour energy into them, bla bla bla.
Not exactly a wide range searching spell.
"Well, he must have flown home since there's that invasion in his country," Konrad noted.
Not that it would narrow it down.
Ukraine was bigger than the entire Kingdom of Kasserlane, and, well—
Yeah. A modern war was raging all over its soil.
"Send over a search party again?" Midori-kun asked, his wording a bit odd.
"You say it like we volunteered to go last time," Konrad groaned. Only to remember that the Demon Lord could not. Lucifer had wiped his memories.
Sigh. Another thing to deal with.
"I do volunteer now," Maou snapped back, arms crossed. "I want to fight that angel."
Which reminded him—
"You already did. Banished him from Earth using my mana, which is a plus."
But that also meant that bringing him would expose their flanks in Kasserlane.
A plan took shape in his head, and he hated every single part of it already.
"Lucifer might come here while we search," he noted, taking a long look at Roach. "And no offense, but I don't trust the puppets we already found, either."
The half-demon, or whatever he was, grinned.
Not a pleasant sight.
"None taken. I also don't trust you, kid."
"So here's the deal," he continued. "Maou Midori is the only one who can keep Lu away. But he alone isn't enough to fight him. Plus, with the others here, Lily and Gabby guard them better."
"Bossy much?" the first wife smirked, but didn't protest.
"Makes sense," Gabrielle agreed, too. "And I assume that means you'll go there instead?"
Konrad gave her a reluctant nod.
"I must. I know Earth the best among us, and as this example shows, Eyna and my twin can run this duchy fine without me. I'd feel better if I could take someone along, but—"
Yuki-san? She might have been an Earthling, but she had no magic.
Stella had plenty, but to take a necromancer there?!
Zoltan was already in a complete shock from learning his own background, and the rest—
"I'll go with you, then," Welf stepped up, towering over the rest of his friends.
Konrad couldn't hide his surprise.
"What?" The blacksmith crossed his arms. "You're going to war. I'm a warrior. And right now, I'm the least useful of this bunch since we no longer have to scout against the nomads."
"Um, war isn't the same on Earth as it is here," he argued, but Lily overruled him immediately.
"Great idea," she yelled, smashing both their backs.
Like a freaking freight train.
And it wasn't. It was a terrible, terrible idea. Not that he had a chance to say anything.
"It's settled, then," the demoness announced. "I'll transport you whenever you're ready."