Illimitable Until Death

Chapter 934: IUD-Chapter 929 A First Meeting Once Again

“Dustiness?”

Darkness’s confession left Kazuma, Aqua, and Megumin all stunned at the same time.

Seeing the reactions of her three companions, Darkness gave a wry smile.

Well, that was to be expected.

Dustiness.

She was the chief advisor of the Belzerg Kingdom, honored as the Kingdom’s Shield, and known as the Kingdom’s Beloved Blade, a noble of great status.

Surely, anyone, any normal person, would be shocked to find out that one of their companions was from such a prestigious noble family, right?

Yes… any normal person.

Unfortunately, there were no normal people here.

Just as Darkness thought she had shocked her companions, something completely unexpected happened.

“L-La…Lalatina?”

Kazuma, Aqua, and Megumin exchanged looks, and then, “Pfft!”, they all burst out laughing uncontrollably.

“L-Lalatina?!” (Kazuma)

“That’s Darkness’s real name?!” (Aqua)

“Darkness has such a cute name?!” (Megumin)

Saying this, the three of them collapsed onto the ground, laughing.

“Hey! What kind of reaction is that?!” Darkness’s bitter expression turned into anger, her face flushing a deep red with embarrassment as she shouted.

“D-Don’t mind my given name!

What you should be paying attention to is my surname!

The surname, damn it!

P-Please stop laughing!

Hey!

Stop it!

Damn it!

What is this strange new feeling?!

Why do I feel so humiliated, yet not happy at all?!”

Darkness’s voice sounded like she was about to cry.

But Kazuma, Aqua, and Megumin completely ignored her feelings, rolling on the floor laughing, while Darkness, her face burning red, held her face in her hands and squatted down, unable to lift her head anymore.

Witnessing this scene firsthand, Fang Li couldn’t help but smile.

“If you wanted these guys to respect your noble name, then you’ve seriously picked the wrong crowd.”

‘Who were these three, after all?’

One was a modern person completely lacking in class consciousness.

One was a literal Goddess.

And one was a chuuni girl from a village of archmages.

How could such people possibly revere a noble name?

Naturally, their only reaction was to be amused by Darkness’s real name.

“Lalatina, what an adorable name. You super masochist knight, I’ve decided, that’s what I’m calling you from now on!” (Kazuma)

“When we get back to Axel, I have to announce this at the guild!” (Aqua)

“Isn’t that great? Lalatina! Lalatina!” (Megumin)

“Shut up! Stop calling me Lalatina! This is not the kind of humiliation I want! Please stop!” (Darkness)

Watching Darkness crouched on the ground, face in hands as Kazuma, Aqua, and Megumin relentlessly teased her, Fang Li smiled again, but just as he was about to say something, he suddenly sensed something and shifted the topic.

“Someone’s coming. You guys better cut it out.”

With those words, everyone paused and looked up toward the door.

“Kacha…”

Almost simultaneously, the door was pushed open.

A man in a butler’s outfit, clearly a dignified-looking servant, walked in and bowed respectfully.

“Everyone, Her Highness Iris has finished her official duties and is waiting for you. Please proceed to the audience hall.”

…

Led by the butler, Fang Li and the group walked down an incredibly grand and luxurious corridor, slowly heading forward.

Lined along the way were soldiers standing guard, fully armed, with solemn and serious expressions.

They showed not even the slightest hint of curiosity as Fang Li’s group passed by, their gazes perfectly forward, radiating a sense of strict discipline.

No doubt, this was a result of Fang Li’s previous incident where he stirred up chaos in the Royal Castle and toyed with the knight order.

To avoid a repeat of that, these guards had clearly undergone new training and were on high alert.

In this kind of atmosphere, Kazuma, Aqua, Megumin, and Darkness also didn’t dare to goof around anymore, tightening their expressions as they marched forward.

Before long, they arrived at a set of tall, majestic doors.

The guards standing by the door pushed it open.

In the next second, the Royal Castle’s audience hall came into view for everyone.

“Wow…”

The moment they entered the grand audience hall, everyone, except for Fang Li and Darkness, couldn’t help but let out gasps of awe.

Fang Li, however, simply lifted his gaze and looked straight ahead.

There, at the far end of the vast audience chamber, seated upon the royal throne, was a noble-looking young girl.

Golden hair, sapphire eyes, wearing a pure white ceremonial dress, a petite yet unbelievably cute girl who exuded an air of nobility.

Who else could it be but Iris?

At that moment, Iris also lifted her eyes and looked toward them.

Her gaze met Fang Li’s directly.

“Eh?”

In that instant, Iris was momentarily taken aback, her eyes filling with surprise and confusion.

Standing on either side of her were Claire and Rain.

The moment they noticed Iris’s reaction, they both lowered their heads slightly.

“Princess Iris,” Claire asked in a low voice, “what’s wrong?”

“…No,” Iris finally came to herself and shook her head.

“It’s nothing.”

Though she said that, her eyes remained fixed on Fang Li, or more precisely, on his eyes, her expression filled with confusion and suspicion.

Clearly noticing this, Fang Li maintained an unaffected expression, but sighed inwardly.

Looks like this little princess has sharp eyes.

She was probably reacting that way because his gaze felt familiar to her.

After all, during that time, Fang Li had been dressed all in black, with his face covered.

The only visible part of him had been his eyes.

It wouldn’t be strange if Iris had remembered them especially well.

Of course, a single gaze alone doesn’t prove anything.

So, on the surface, Fang Li remained calm and moved forward together with the group.

“So that’s the princess of this country? Wow… so cute…” (Kazuma)

“Hey, Kazuma-san, your tone just now sounded kinda weird, y’know?” (Aqua)

“She looks even younger than me…” (Megumin)

The whispering voices of Kazuma, Aqua, and Megumin came from behind.

Darkness then stepped forward, bent slightly at the waist, and, casting aside her usual hopeless behavior, spoke with utmost grace and formality.

“It’s been a long time, Princess Iris.”

Darkness’s voice finally drew Iris’s attention away from Fang Li.

“You’re… Lalatina?” Iris asked in surprise.

“What are you doing here?”

Clearly, Iris had no idea that Darkness was also a member of the party that defeated one of the Demon King Army’s leaders.

(End Of This Chapter)