Ch 13: The Best Angle To View A Flying Carriage

The bumpy ride sent Phia, whose magic was overly depleted, into a deep sleep. Bal, watching the sleeping Phia, lovingly touched her face. Then he recalled the Demon King Armor he had solidified during the execution. He couldn’t help but break into a cold sweat. If that was the Demon King Armor just now, then what did he dismantle and send to the Royal Capital earlier?

Just as Bal fell into thought, Phia, having recovered somewhat, was awakened by the bumpy carriage.

“A strange ceiling.”

“You’re awake. The surgery was a success. Now you’re a cute little kitten.”

“…”

Their bickering lightened the atmosphere in the carriage. Phia, seeing Bal’s furrowed brow, roughly understood what he was thinking. She prepared to explain everything to her lover.

“Bal, are you thinking about the armor I was wearing earlier?”

“How did you know?”

“You’ve written your question all over your face.”

Bal touched his face. The comical action caused Phia to laugh.

“Stop touching your face, Dumb Dog. Let me explain. First, the jet-black armor you saw was indeed Demon King Armor…”

Bal’s eyes sharpened.

“But it wasn’t the complete form, or rather, it was only a temporary substitute for the Demon King Armor, capable of only one-tenth of its original power. Moreover, solidifying that armor also consumed a lot of my magic, so rest assured, I won’t wear it unless absolutely necessary.”

Bal’s hanging heart fell back into place. He wasn’t worried about his own safety; he was confident he could defeat Phia. He was only worried that if Phia could use that armor at any time, how he would cover it up if someone discovered it. The consequences of deceiving the king were the extermination of nine generations of one’s family. Although he could run away at any time, his nine generations still had strong opinions on the matter.

“You must also have questions about the magic I used before getting on the carriage.”

Phia paused, preparing to answer the second question. Bal then recalled that he and Phia had stood in the center of a Magic Formation, engulfed by White Light. But after sending Phia to the carriage, he used magic to check his own body and found nothing unusual; he even felt energized.

“That magic is a very ancient Contract Magic. Its effect is to connect the souls of two people, achieving the effect of sharing life and death. As long as one party dies, the other will die along with them.”

“Such a harsh magic. Are you forcing me to die with you?”

“Let me finish. This magic also has another function: to compensate for the shorter lifespan of one party, allowing both parties to share longevity.”

“So that means I suddenly gained over a hundred more years of life?”

Bal was caught off guard by this sudden surprise. Big sister, so this is what a surprise is, huh.

“You’re underestimating it. My lifespan is infinite.”

Phia looked proudly at Bal, who was shocked by her lifespan, a smile on her face.

“Really?! Infinite? Immortal?!”

“Fake, I’m kidding you. You’re so naive; you believe anything. You’ll be scammed if you go out like this. It’s a good thing you met me; I scammed you first.”

“…”

Bal was speechless. He thought he would also ascend to heaven with this little Demon King, becoming an immortal and invincible Hero.

“I’m a Stagnant One. My body’s time is fixed at 16 years old. No matter how many years pass, I will always have this appearance. So it’s only ageless, immortality is still quite difficult, after all, people die when killed.”

“Ah?”

Bal had never heard of a Stagnant One. His limited knowledge prevented him from fully understanding the meaning of this sentence, but he understood that he could live forever and that people die when killed.

“Will my body’s time also be stagnated?”

“Good question, I don’t know. There’s no precedent for this. Isn’t it enough that you don’t age?”

“That’s true.”

After learning that he could become a thousand-year-old demon, Bal was overjoyed. He hugged the kitten in front of him, and gave a big kiss to the baby-fat face.

“Okay, I know you’re happy now, but don’t get carried away. First, tell me how far away the Royal Capital is. I’m a little worried that something like this might happen again on the road. Next time, I need to be prepared and eliminate such deadly traps in advance.”

“Let me see… We just left Leontri City. Following my original route, we still need to pass through Temur City, the mountain city of Kaishite, Tianmen City, and Trilde City, before finally reaching the Royal Capital.”

“So far. Do we have to endure the bumpy carriage ride for that long?”

“If you could teleport, you wouldn’t have to suffer.”

Hearing that the journey was still far, Phia became a little unhappy. She didn’t really mind the bumpy carriage ride; with Bal by her side, she could sit on his lap if she couldn’t take it. What she was truly worried about was the mastermind behind the Demon Race’s oppression of humans and her fellow countrymen. Suddenly, she had a flash of inspiration.

“Hey! I’ll make you a bowl of noodles…”

“Lame joke.”

“…You’re so unamusing. I’m thinking about whether we can fly to the Royal Capital.”

“You can fly?”

Even though Bal knew Phia was proficient in many types of magic, he was still shocked to learn that she could use Flight Magic. Flight Magic was Ancient Magic, already lost to time. If she could really use Flight Magic, it could greatly shorten the time it takes to return to the Royal Capital.

“I can only fly myself.”

“My bad. I thought you could take us back together.”

“Is there a possibility that I can apply Gravity Magic to you, the carriage, and make you float, and then use a magic chain to pull you along while I fly?”

Initially, learning that only one person could fly, Bal was a little disappointed, but hearing Phia’s plan, he felt hopeful again.

“I knew you had a solution. By the way, why didn’t you say earlier that you could fly? We wouldn’t have had to take the carriage in the first place.”

“Do you believe me if I say I forgot? I’m proficient in so many magics. How can I possibly remember every single effect?”

“I believe you. I believe everything you say.”

“Humph, sweet talk.”

Phia was dismissive, but her expression betrayed her; she liked Bal’s praise and approval. Seeing Phia in a good mood, Bal couldn’t help but reach out and touch her head.

“Ugh…Why do you like touching my head so much? I won’t grow taller!”

“You’re still complaining? Besides, isn’t your body’s time already stagnant? How are you going to grow taller then?”

“Mind your own business.”

This was Phia’s reaction when she was put in her place, and Bal enjoyed seeing Phia put in her place by him.

“So, when are you planning to take off?”

“Let’s wait until we leave the next city. There are some places in Temur City that I want to take you to.”

“What kind of places? Could it be the date spots you saw in the tourism guide? You pure young virgin.”

Seeing Phia’s mischievous expression, Bal felt somewhat helpless because Phia was right. He did want to take her to a date spot, but not one from the tourism guide, but one he had explored himself.

Phia looked at Bal, who was speechless, and smiled triumphantly.

“Okay, you probably haven’t fully recovered yet. Rest for a while. I’ll call you when it’s time to eat. We’ll probably be camping outdoors tonight, so be prepared.”

“Thanks for your concern. I’ll rest then.”

After saying that, Phia lay down on her seat, using Bal’s thigh as a pillow.

“Mmm…Your leg isn’t soft at all.”

“I’m sorry if it’s uncomfortable. You’re still picky about the pillow. Just rest.”

“Hee hee hee.”

Phia made a face at Bal, then slowly fell asleep. Seeing the cute sleeping face of the little kitten on his leg, Bal gently stroked the kitten.

“You just complained about it being hard, and now you’re asleep already.”

Having said that, Bal also felt a little tired.

“Maybe I should take a nap too?”

Bal propped his head up with his hand and drifted off to sleep along with Phia.

The rest of the journey was silent, both of them wearing happy smiles.