Kidnapped Princess C20

Chapter 20

I carried Luminas in my arms as I made my way to the audience chamber. Though the hall was empty now that the session was over, its grand, imposing atmosphere still lingered heavily in the air. Luminas shrank slightly in my arms, her shoulders curling inward under the weight of the place.

“If we wait here,” I said, “the demons who insulted you will be brought in soon.”

“Why?” she asked softly.

“Because they hurt you. They need to be punished. I’ll be angry—but not at you, so don’t be scared.”

“You’ll… be angry?”

“Of course. They made my princess cry. Just look at your face.”

I brushed my fingers gently over her cheeks. She’d cried so long that the trails of tears had dried and hardened on her skin. To think someone had reduced those lovely eyes to tears—unforgivable.

“I’m not… a bother to you, am I?”

“Do I look bothered to you?”

If anything, I was enjoying myself.

I dipped a handkerchief in warm water and carefully wiped her face clean. Her lake-blue eyes met mine as I worked, and the sight of her now-clean face filled me with quiet satisfaction.

“There’s no one around me like you, Luminas.”

“Like me?” she echoed, puzzled.

“Yes. There’s no one as cute and precious as my princess. Not even close.”

She blushed, fiddling with her fingers and smiling shyly.

“So don’t listen to what others say, alright? It’s not true. Ah—here they come.”

Right on cue, Renya arrived, dragging several demons behind her as if they were fish caught on a line. She handed me a folded letter from one of the Elders.

A single, decisive line was written inside: Do as His Majesty sees fit.

I sat down, placing Luminas on my lap, and spoke in a cold, imperious tone.

“Do you know your crime?”

The two demons trembled, their eyes darting around wildly but never daring to meet mine.

“Cat got your tongue?” I asked. “Renya, did you not tell them why they were summoned?”

“I did, Your Majesty.”

“Then why the silence? Did you think you could speak ill of my bride and still walk out alive?”

They flinched violently.

“N-no, Your Majesty! We didn’t know the bride could hear us—!”

I smirked coldly. They were demons; they could smell a human’s scent from a mile away. There was no way they hadn’t known.

“That’s a lie,” I said. “She told me everything.”

“Oh? So you lie to me, too?”

The chamber trembled faintly with my rising power. The demons staggered, losing their footing.

When I fixed them with my glare, sweat streamed down their faces like rain. If they’d simply apologized, it would’ve been over. But no—they always had to push their luck.

“M-Majesty, please forgive us! We were wrong!”

Finally, they threw themselves to the floor.

Too late. I hadn’t brought Luminas here just to watch—I wanted her to decide.

“Luminas,” I said gently, “these are the ones, right? What should we do with them? I’ll do whatever you say.”

“M-me?”

“Yes, you. Should I roast them? Boil them? Either way, they won’t be walking home in one piece.”

I’d toned my words down for her sake. Normally I’d ask, Should I rip their eyes out or slice off their arms? They’d heal in a few days anyway—magic always mended demon flesh. And those twitching antennae of theirs… cutting them off would be satisfying.

“I…” Luminas hesitated.

“Go on,” I encouraged.

She furrowed her brows, deep in thought. I half expected her to say something sweet, like Just scold them, or Let’s forgive them.

“I want them to admit that I’m Uncle’s bride. That’s enough for me!”

If I hadn’t been pretending to be furious, I might’ve grabbed her face and squealed right there.

She’s too cute.

Not revenge, not cruelty—just wanting acknowledgment as my bride. So that’s what pure-hearted looked like. I had to steady myself before I spoke.

“Ahem. I see. Well then—what do you have to say for yourselves?”

The demons looked as though they’d swallowed poison. They hesitated too long. My irritation spiked.

“Not talking? You really want to die that badly?”

“S-sorry! O-of course…!”

“Of course what?”

“O-of course the bride of His Majesty is none other than Lady Luminas!”

It was a forced answer, but Luminas beamed with pure joy nonetheless.

“Yup! That’s right! Always remember to say that, okay?”

Her eyes sparkled up at me, her earlier sorrow completely gone. It warmed me—but also annoyed me. The demons’ lips twitched, as if silently asking what right she had to act so proud. Still, they knew better than to speak.

“Who else but Luminas could be my bride?” I said calmly. “If anyone says otherwise, tell me—or Renya.”

“I’ll half-kill them on sight,” Renya said seriously.

Luminas gasped, shaking her head furiously.

“No! Don’t! I don’t want Uncle to get in trouble because of me! I’ll become a proper bride. I’ll get stronger so I won’t embarrass you!”

Stronger? What did that have to do with being a bride?

She said it with such determination that I couldn’t help smiling. Even though I didn’t understand, I played along.

“Then do your best. Renya, take Luminas back to her room.”

“Yes, Your Majesty.”

I waved as Luminas was led out, then turned back to the trembling demons.

“Now, as for my punishment…”

“M-Majesty…”

They were already shaking. The sound of my boots echoed ominously across the marble floor as I approached.

“You made the princess cry,” I said coldly. “You know what happens next, don’t you? Unlucky, that’s all. Should’ve kept your mouths shut.”

“P-please! Forgive—AAAGHH!”

It was fortunate that the audience hall was soundproof. Otherwise, Luminas might’ve heard the screams that followed.

The next day, a new rumor spread like wildfire through the castle.

“Those who speak rudely to the bride will not survive the Demon King’s wrath.”

『The Demon King Has Kidnapped the Princess!』

That was the headline of the royal decree released by the human kingdom.

It claimed that the Demon King had demanded territory in exchange for the princess’s return, and that, after refusing, the humans had been drawn into fierce battle against the demons.

“How dare the demons kidnap a princess! This is an outrage!”

“Oh, that poor princess… she must be terrified…”

Humans trembled in righteous fury and fear alike, their anger toward the demon race blazing ever higher. Recruitment for the army surged. Citizens shouted for immediate rescue efforts.

An old woman and her grandson stopped in front of a posted decree. At the mention of demons, the grandmother clicked her tongue.

“So they want to relive the nightmare from 300 years ago, huh?”

“What nightmare, Grandma?”

“You don’t know, do you? Long ago, when the Demon Realm, dark as pitch with not a drop of sunlight, coveted our bright lands, they invaded our world.”

The tale had warped over generations: a feral dragon-turned-demon-king invading the human world, told now as myth.

In those stories, demons were monsters, and humans the valiant defenders of home.

“That’s so mean! It was our land!”

“Exactly. Many died protecting it. But we held our ground.”

“So they’re trying again? When I grow up, I’ll kill every demon!”

“What a brave boy,” the grandmother said proudly. “But don’t you worry. The Hero has been born—and the Holy Sword too.”

Elsewhere, others whispered excitedly about that same legend.

“The Hero’s amazing, training day and night to slay the Demon King! Still young, but destined for greatness.”

“Of course. He was chosen by the Holy Sword itself.”

“They say the blade burns with divine flame—so bright it can blind you!”

Meanwhile, others were hung up on something else entirely.

“Wait… since when did we have a princess?”

“Huh? You’re right. I don’t remember one either.”

No one could recall what the princess looked like, or even her name. So they imagined her instead — an innocent, beautiful maiden, too kind for this cruel world.

Details didn’t matter. What mattered was that the Demon King had kidnapped a princess.

“That monster must’ve known what he was doing. Using her as a hostage…!”

“Despicable!”

“The prophecy was right! He’s using the princess to demand our lands!”

In truth, the prophecy had come before the kidnapping, but the royal family twisted the narrative: they announced that the prophecy and kidnapping had occurred simultaneously.

The exact prophecy wasn’t disclosed, only that it warned of a looming demonic threat. In its name, the kingdom declared holy war.

Only the highest nobles knew the truth—but the people didn’t need truth. They needed a reason to fight.

And so, to the humans, war became justice. As the days passed, their anger grew, soldiers fell, and the world painted one villain behind it all: the Demon King who kidnapped the princess and demanded their land.

Even the priests moved to war. Though servants of the gods, they were humans first—fathers, sons, families defending their homes.

The fire of war grew and spread, showing no sign of burning out.