Night fell.
Alain carefully rose from his spot and looked around.
Everyone was asleep.
The sound of snoring echoed throughout the sleeping area.
"Hmm..."
After glancing around momentarily, Alain gathered magical power in his hands and quietly muttered an incantation.
[Gather, scatter, and fulfil the intent held in these words, guided by the radiant triangular form.]
As Alain recited the strange incantation in the ancient tongue, the magical power in his palm began to shimmer with a violet glow, fluttering like fine powder. He brought the magic closer to his mouth and whispered,
[You will all fall asleep.]
He murmured softly as if whispering to the magic. In response, the powder dispersed throughout the lodging, drifting through the air. It even slipped through the cracks in the door and open windows, spreading outward as it began to travel somewhere. Moments later,
"..."
Alain approached the old man sleeping beside him and lightly tapped his cheek.
However, the old man, lost in a deep slumber, showed no reaction.
Confirming that the magic was definitely in effect, Alain nodded lightly. This meant no one would wake up for at least three hours.
Thinking this, Alain got up from the ground. But as he approached the door,
"... Oh, I almost forgot."
Alain clicked his tongue lightly and returned to his spot. He rummaged through the bedding on the floor to retrieve a hidden item.
Then, Alain placed the item into a small pouch he had prepared in advance and tucked it into his shirt.
With preparations complete, Alain headed for the entrance of the lodging.
'Creak---'
"..."
Near the lodging, soldiers stood watch, keeping an eye out for any workers trying to escape.
However, they too were dozing off, much like the workers inside. Alain carefully slipped between them, doing his best not to disturb their slumber.
He then began his dash toward the open ground where he had promised to meet Seria.
"Huff... huff..."
Thinking that someone might notice him, Alain arrived at the open space, breathing heavily. He checked his surroundings.
When he reached the clearing in the forest, there were no signs of life anywhere.
'Had he arrived a bit early?'
Without a clock, he couldn't be sure, but that seemed to be the case.
"Whoo..."
Alain settled in a corner of the clearing, waiting for Seria. He leaned against a large tree and gazed up at the sky.
The treetops soared sharply above him, yet, curiously, no trees grew within the clearing itself.
Through the opening, the sky revealed a blanket of twinkling stars.
The large moon that had taken its place in between appeared pale yet dignified in some way.
As if asserting that it would not change even as time passed, Alain looked up at it with a bitter murmur.
"Is it just you that hasn't changed..."
Five hundred years had turned everything upside down.
There would no longer be anything familiar in this world that he once knew.
And those connected to him would no longer remain.
The solitary moon hung above, timeless and unchanging, now the only source of comfort in a world he barely recognized.
Perhaps it was the dazzling moonlight.
Alain closed his eyes and lowered his head with a bitter expression.
And he muttered.
"I never thought it would come to this."
At most, he believed it would take a few years.
He was confident the magical power would fully charge within a few decades.
Then, he would declare the Demon King's return and rally the demonkind, launching another war against humanity.
Such were the thoughts of Demon King Alaric.
However, that dream had now become an unreachable one.
And his subordinates.
Thinking of their fates, Alain bit his lip.
If he believed the old man's words, surely his subordinates chose to flee the moment the Demon Castle fell.
And they would have survived somewhere in this world.
It wouldn't be an exaggeration to say that it was the best judgment at that moment.
"...In the end, was I the foolish one?"
Bitterly self-loathing, Alain murmured another apology for his subordinates.
Despite his feelings, his misjudgment had forced his precious allies to endure unnecessary hardships.
If he had stationed some of his subordinates' troops in the Demon King Castle to prepare for potential threats, especially the aides of the Tugi clan, history might have unfolded differently.
Ultimately, his thoughts turned back to blaming himself once again.
Alain sighed and renewed his resolve.
No matter how much he blamed himself, there was nothing he could do now.
If that were the case, he should focus on what he could do now.
And at this moment, this was all he could do.
'To escape this place by any means necessary.'
And to look for any signs of the missing Demon Army.
For that, he would do anything.
Yes, even if it meant betraying the girl who had saved him, the one who had first extended her hand to him with a smile.
It was at that moment, that he solidified his resolve.