“Everyone, stop.”

And then, just as Vivian hesitated, the soldiers standing to the side raised their hands and spoke in a friendly tone.

“Men, continue forward. Women, remain here for inspection.”

“Hm?”

Vivian couldn’t help but pause—it seemed they hadn’t discovered a demon.

She then took a closer look and found that the magic circle didn’t have the function of identifying demons, but served another purpose…

And then, several guards dispersed into the group of refugees, approaching each woman one by one for inspection.

Vivian was no exception, and soon a man came to stand before her.

“Are you pregnant?”

“What?”

After looking at Vivian’s face, he asked a question that took her completely by surprise.

“Miss, are you pregnant?” the man asked with a smile.

“The City Lord has given an order. Women with child can register for special benefits. There is a dedicated area for you to rest, as well as extra food rations.”

Listening to his words, Vivian couldn’t help but feel a little surprised.

At that moment, she also saw several visibly pregnant women being led away by other soldiers.

“…Yes, I’ve just become pregnant.”

“Then, please follow me.”

After a moment of thought, Vivian decided to admit to it and responded.

She then followed the soldier through the crowd towards another area.

But honestly, this whole situation truly bothered her.

Although giving special treatment to pregnant women was indeed surprising, and it couldn’t be ruled out that the Lord of Faro was trying to boost his reputation, was it necessary to use magic specifically for detection?

That’s right, the magic that had just lit up was specifically designed to detect if someone was pregnant.

‘…But, is it really necessary?’

Strictly speaking, the game world of 【Path of Blasphemy】 had a mid-magic setting.

Although magic was common, things like magic circles were not a dime a dozen.

In any case, they wouldn’t use a magic circle just for charity.

And was this something that required a magic circle for screening?

Couldn’t the soldiers just shout out the announcement at the gate?

‘Unless… they don’t intend to let a single pregnant woman go?’

In an instant, Vivian reached a conclusion that even she found a little hard to believe.

But thinking about it carefully, it was very reasonable.

‘…Let’s see just what the City Lord is planning.’

Blinking, Vivian thought to herself.

To be honest, Vivian didn’t mind staying in Faro for a while longer.

After all, the news of her escape was known to all, and at the same time, the Demon Clan was launching an offensive on the border.

The border was in an uproar at this moment, with both sides beating each other’s brains out.

Running over to join the fun right now would just be asking for trouble.

Her mana recovery was going smoothly, but she didn’t know if it was because of the pregnancy, but she always felt like she couldn’t recover to her peak state.

It was just… stuck somewhere, not going up or down.

This was the price.

But as long as the current Vivian didn’t encounter a top-tier expert, self-preservation shouldn’t be a major problem.

“This will be your lodging. Everyone can rest here in peace. As for food, the daily ration is two loaves of bread per person. If you need anything, you can call for us.”

The fortress guard soon led the few pregnant women to their designated area, and along the way, Vivian carefully observed everything.

Nothing seemed out of the ordinary.

Except… for the direction of the main keep.

Vivian sat quietly on the edge of her bed, looking at the fortress’s main keep not far away, which was also the noble district of the entire fortress city.

She faintly sensed a power that she detested was buried deep within the castle.

But the surface of that castle looked so pristine and bright, even emitting waves of holy power that would put an ordinary person’s mind at ease.

Vivian was certain that was definitely not the Holy Light power that the Demon Clan detested.

‘…Phew, who cares? Whatever is hidden inside has nothing to do with me.’

Letting out a breath and taking a bite of the black bread she had received, Vivian thought to herself.

That’s right, everything else had nothing to do with her.

The current Vivian was not the Demon Lord of Evernight, but just a survivor trying to make it through the chaotic world to come.

Give birth to the child in her womb, raise it to be successful, and if possible, rely on the power possessed by this child born of a Hero and a Demon Lord to survive in the future.

To be honest, Vivian never had any grand ambitions.

Eating well, drinking well, and living her own quiet little life—this was her thought before she transmigrated, and it was her wish now.

In the end, she was just an ordinary person!

Even after transmigrating into a Demon Lord, she just wanted to live.

Fighting Heroes or conquering the world was completely out of the question!

Thinking of this, Vivian, who was gently stroking her abdomen, couldn’t help but sigh.

The next few days were peaceful.

No one came to bother her, and after several days on the run, Vivian finally had a few stable days.

Of course, her personal freedom was not restricted during this time.

She and the other pregnant women were still free to move about.

Hiding her demonic features, Vivian, with nothing better to do, wandered around the city, observing the city’s layout and its other residents.

Overall, although refugees were pouring in continuously, the order within the city was maintained in a relatively orderly fashion.

It was clear that the entire city and the civilians who had fled here for refuge were already very accustomed to this kind of life.

However, there was always a trace of worry on everyone’s faces.

“To think that Lady Lucia fell in battle… how could this be?”

“I heard the frontline is tight recently. We won’t get conscripted, will we? I don’t want to face those demons…”

“Don’t be afraid! We still have other Heroes! Damn the demons, they must have used some despicable means to murder Lady Lucia!”

…

Vivian had heard similar conversations over and over again while wandering around the city.

‘I wonder what their reaction would be if they knew a Demon Lord was right here among them?’

Vivian, for her part, didn’t care.

Instead, a somewhat mischievous thought popped into her mind.

At the same time, she was also paying attention to certain things.

Vivian saw that some soldiers would occasionally seem to escort a group of women to the main keep, and among them, they all seemed to be… pregnant women.

“Excuse me, do you know why those soldiers are taking the pregnant women away?”

After some thought, Vivian went to ask around for information—and ordinary civilians, faced with Vivian’s charming looks and her innate 【Charm】, had almost no resistance.

So she easily got the answer she wanted.