“Now, Ouroboros? Raise thy head. What, precisely, is the meaning of this?”
“I— the mysterious farmer reported to you some days ago, Lady Cornelia — I came to investigate, and… to settle accounts for the liberties taken in your front garden…”
“Hm? Did I not send a letter to thee yesterday? Stating that the master of this house is my sworn ally, and is to receive the finest treatment? Is it possible… thou hadst not read the letter?”
“It may have… crossed paths with me in transit.”
And there, every trace of softness drained from Cornelia’s expression, and a cold, merciless anger lit in her eyes.
“Tell me, Ouroboros?”
“What is it, Lady Cornelia?”
“Taxation, was it? Settling accounts, was it? Thou — what exactly didst thou intend to DO to my treasured ally? Missing the letter is thy failure and thine alone. This is not a matter… that ‘I did not know’ can settle. Is it?”
Rendered as manga, this moment would be: solid-black background, single bolt of lightning.
Cornelia’s eyes alone gleaming — kirrrn — shoulders quivering with fury.
And, helpfully, the background would definitely have the sound effect: GOGOGOGOGOGO.
Point is, Cornelia was glaring at Ouroboros with a genuinely terrifying face.
“I— I— I’m SORRY! Lady Cornelia!”
Ouroboros, half in tears, began dogeza-ing — headbutt-style, driving her forehead into the dirt, over and over.
“Forgive me! FORGIVE me! I had no way of knowing he was your treasured guest — I am so, SO sorry!”
The gonk, gonk of skull on ground echoed across the field.
Oi oi. Nothing about this requires quite that much force…
Also she’s escalated from half-crying to fully crying, to the point where watching it is making ME feel guilty.
Cornelia considered something, then spoke.
“Raise thy head, Ouroboros.”
Without raising it — grinding her forehead into the dirt instead — Ouroboros said:
”…I am so sorry.”
“I said raise it. Besides — thou art apologizing to the wrong person, art thou not?”
Ouroboros lifted her head.
Then, still kneeling, tears brimming, she turned an upturned, mercy-begging gaze on me.
“Though I acted in ignorance… I am truly, deeply sorry.”
Next, Cornelia herself bobbed her head down at me.
“A subordinate’s misconduct is the superior’s misconduct. It seems my orders failed to arrive in time… not that this excuses anything. For Ouroboros’s offense, I apologize alongside her. Truly… I am sorry.”
At that, Maria’s eyes went huge and she audibly gasped.
”…Lady Cornelia… a DEMON LORD… lowered… her head?”
Not just Maria — Ouroboros herself was staring at Cornelia in open-mouthed disbelief.
Judging from these reactions, the species known as “Demon Lord” does not bow to anyone, ever, under any circumstances.
Which… yeah. They’re Demon Lords. Checks out.
“So, thou? Can thou find it in thee to forgive?”
Well — after all THAT, being petty about it isn’t really an option for a grown man.
“It’s fine. Though I admit the ‘raze the house and crush the fields’ part gave me a start.”
At my words Ouroboros flinched and prostrated herself all over again.
“I AM SO SORRY!”
“Haha — I’m not twisting the knife, relax. You’ve apologized plenty. We’re good. Raise your head, please.”
Any more dogeza and I start looking like the villain here.
“Still… this presents a problem…”
“A problem?”
“Thou art my treasured, TREASURED ally. I cannot have thee inconvenienced again by something as idiotic as an order failing to circulate, now can I?”
“Well — no, ideally not.”
“Mmm… what to do.”
Cornelia deliberated a while, then nodded firmly. “Mm.”
“Ouroboros. Fetch my beloved walking stick… the Evil Dragon’s Rod.”
Ouroboros froze, thunderstruck — then asked Cornelia with visible dread:
“Lady Cornelia? Surely you don’t intend… to do THAT? Is this gentleman truly… that precious… to you?”
“Mm. Consider: this is a human who can produce KATSU CURRY. A resource so precious he may as well be a part of my own body. Therefore — he is worth doing THAT for.”
“Hold on. What is ‘THAT’?”