Outside the Demon King Territory, it's quite lively today. It seems that from early morning, Hilena, Satan Ye, and that Ghost Glasses Girl have gone south of the Demon King Territory. From the castle, you can see the grand procession of carriages.
Those are merchant caravans, traveling merchants whom the Demon King Territory has been waiting for a while.
"..."
"Yila, is there anything you want to buy?"
Vera walked up to Yila, carefully watching the distant merchant caravans alongside him from the platform of the castle. She had a sneaky demeanor as she said, "Why do you look so sneaky too?"
"Too?"
Yila voiced his confusion, ducking his head and using the castle wall on the open platform to hide his body. He said, "I have to conceal the fact that I'm in the Demon King Territory. What's your reason?"
As the former Chief Governor of the empire, now considered a fugitive wanted by the empire, if news of Yila's current presence in the Demon King Territory reached the empire, it would be justified for the empire to demand that the Demon King Territory hand over Yila.
That would be a very troublesome situation, so Yila absolutely cannot reveal his presence in the Demon King Territory to these merchants who have a similar degree of love for information and goods.
Since he chose the Demon King Territory, Yila naturally understood that he needed to hibernate for now. Seeing Vera also trying to avoid the merchants' gaze, he wondered why she was acting strangely too.
"I'm also a wanted criminal, okay?"
Vera said helplessly, lifting her head quietly to look at the merchant caravans over there before ducking down again. Looking at Yila's helpless expression, she said, "It wouldn't be good if I were spotted, right?"
"..."
After a brief silence, Yila stared at Vera's face, which was close at hand, observing her complaints while noting her emerald green eyes. He stepped back slightly and said, "There are better ways to hide; you don't need to get so close to me."
Not realizing anything was wrong, Vera turned her head, lifted it lightly again, took a glance, and then ducked back, saying, "Because I want to see how the trade is going. Actually, everyone is observing over there..."
Vera was certainly right, as she had been in the Demon King Territory for quite a long time. If this was her experience speaking, it was pretty accurate, as she surely had experienced the arrival of trade caravans numerous times.
Is it always like this?
Thinking this, Yila was somewhat unable to stand the fragrance from Vera and moved even further away... Actually, the scent wasn't bad, but he was just a bit unused to it.
In his mind, Vera was just a playful child needing proper discipline, and now suddenly realizing that she might have sprayed perfume made him feel a bit uncomfortable... even though Vera was twice his age.
"Hmm, Yila~ what are you doing~"
Noticing something about Yila's actions, Vera laughed, thinking of something, and moved a bit closer, proudly saying, "How do you like it? My Corpse Fragrance smells good, right?"
"..."
Not perfume?
"Corpse... Corpse Fragrance?"
Seeing Yila frown as he asked, Vera nodded and explained, "After turning into a Witch Demon, although the body doesn't emit a corpse stench, Mana always has a somewhat uncomfortable dead and gloomy aura."
That is indeed the case; as long as it is an undead type creature (or entity), Mana always feels like a horrible, cold and unpleasant lingering presence, but it doesn't affect combat.
"So, yesterday I used giant bees to research a way to emanate the aura of living beings from my Mana, and the cost is that it makes the body exude this rather pleasant fragrance."
Vera said this without understanding why Yila lightly raised his eyebrows or how valuable her invention was. She just proudly placed her hands on her hips and said, "I named it [Corpse Fragrance]!"
"..."
Yila didn't know whether to laugh or say something first; he shook his head helplessly and smiled, "Can't you choose another name? But your idea is good; if you sell the finished product, it would definitely become a hit in the empire, just change the name."
Otherwise, such a name is too strange.
"Do I smell good?"
To Vera's question, which was like that of a true little girl, Yila glanced at her honestly, nodded, and said, "Yes, you should give Hilena and the others some later."
"I would give them without you saying; I've already packaged this thing to look like the most beautiful perfume. Everyone will definitely like it... hmm, do you want the [Corpse Fragrance Potion]?"
At Vera's goodwill, Yila gently shook his head and said, "What I actually meant was, have that ghost... present your 'perfume' as a gift to some of the traveling merchants."
Until the end, Yila did not say the term [Corpse Fragrance Potion]... because it's really too odd.
"Why give it away? Shouldn't we be selling it?"
At Vera's question, Yila looked at her, confirming she genuinely didn't understand rather than playing tricks, and began to explain, "All human interactions inherently involve exchanges of benefits; some are material benefits, others are spiritual."
"Additionally, once they truly use your perfume, they'll understand that this product differs entirely from other comparative perfumes, catering to a distinct market gap. So next time, they'll be keen to purchase your perfume in trade."
"..."
"..."
Yila helplessly shook his head, seeing Vera's eyes seemingly turn into mosquito coils. He shook his head again to dismiss a certain figure from his mind and said, "Alright, your current expression is much like Isabella's, but she, unlike you, always eagerly absorbs knowledge."
"..."
In response to these words, Vera pondered for a moment. Looking at Yila, who spoke with a light and easy-going tone, she said, "You seem to have let go... Wait, Yila, were you never angry about Isabella's betrayal?!"
Seeing Vera's shock, Yila, surprised that she brought up this topic, froze for a moment before calmly nodding, saying, "Indeed, because I know Isabella never intended to kill me; however, the situation was pushed into a bad place by some external forces."
With these words, Vera seemed out of breath. Unsure whether it was from anger or something else, she might have been enraged by Yila's continued excusing of Isabella.
"She merely tried to, as I'd taught her, apply slight pressure on the Yila Faction, though I knew she could have forcibly detained me if she wanted to... However, maybe she wanted to prove something to herself or such."
Yila's words made Vera clutch her chest tightly, appearing genuinely breathless. Speaking simply, Yila said, "Regardless of her intentions, I've realized the empire isn't quite right for me, and if it becomes more prosperous after I leave..."
Vera (bewildered): "..."
"I would take solace in Isabella's growth... She's already sacrificed so much for my dreams, though it may skew slightly from my expectations. This is something that both you and I, as her teachers, are accountable for."
Watching Yila say this with a smile, Vera looked at him intently. Swallowing hard, she was at a loss for words, realizing something that no one else in the world did, she stated, "I see... You, Yose, Isabella, you're all mad."
"What kind of dreams did you paint for them?!"
Faced with Vera's puzzled question, Yila also couldn't provide a very detailed answer.
"Me, Yose, and Isabella, everything she and I have done was to fulfill my dream. If you ask, I can only tell you..."
Yila sighed, seemingly looking towards a far-off place.
"It's a very beautiful, beautiful land."