How Can a Homebody Defeat The Demon King? Chapter 12

Noelle leisurely crossed one leg over the other as he waited for Selene’s reaction.

She gave him a hesitant, slightly uncomfortable look.

“Me? Why should I? I mean, not to downplay myself, but… I don’t think I’d be of much help.”

It was a reaction well within his expectations. Noelle decided to test her a little further.

“Recently, I acquired an estate. But since I live in the palace, I don’t really have any use for it.”

“Oh, really?”

“Yes. So I’ve been using it to store rare gems and fine fabrics I’ve collected from here and there. I’ve even been giving some away as gifts, but there’s still quite a lot left.”

“I see…”

“If you were to become someone on my side, I’d like to gift that estate to you. Along with everything stored inside.”

His tone was warm, his gaze soft and inviting as he narrowed his eyes slightly.

‘Material temptation tends to work on a very primal level.’

Noelle didn’t blink, not wanting to miss even the slightest reaction from Selene.

As he watched her fidget and glance around nervously, her brows finally knitted together ever so slightly.

She seemed to struggle with whether or not to speak—then, wrapping her hands around her teacup, she looked him straight in the eye.

“Um… I don’t really need a house. The place I’m living in right now—well, it’s not actually mine, but… I like it.”

As soon as Noelle’s calm gaze met hers, she quickly looked away toward the dessert tray.

“And the garden… everyone’s worked really hard on it. If I move, we’d have to start all over again… and besides, I just bought new clothes today…”

Though her words trailed off awkwardly and circled around the point, the message was clear:

‘She doesn’t need it.’

Shame. People who are greedy for wealth are usually much easier to deal with.

Noelle calmly sorted through his next move in his mind. Just then, Selene spoke again.

“Your Highness must have had some reason for making that offer. And I truly appreciate it… but honestly, I’m not capable of something like that.”

Noelle didn’t know it, but at that moment, Selene’s inner instincts—honed through years of corporate life—were going off like alarms.

That feeling… the one where you just know someone’s about to dump a massive project on you.

The kind that no amount of overtime could fix.

That creeping sense that if you agreed without thinking, you’d soon find yourself buried under impossible work.

Selene’s gut was on full alert.

“I only just came up from the countryside not too long ago… I’m sure there are plenty of refined young ladies from good families lined up for this kind of thing… And if it’s my family’s help you need, I think my older brother would be much more useful than I am…”

Noelle was quietly impressed. Selene had seen straight through the vague phrasing he’d used—more easily than he expected.

As he quickly tucked away the flicker of admiration in his eyes, Selene finally looked away from the dessert tray she’d been staring at and gasped, her eyes going wide.

“D-did I take this too seriously? Was it just… like, a lighthearted noble joke about being friendly?”

Her cheeks flushed red as she covered her face with both hands.

“I’m so sorry…”

Flustered as she was, something completely unexpected slipped from Noelle’s lips.

“You’re right. I’d like us to be friends.”

Selene peeked at him through her fingers, her hands still cupping her face, and stared at him.

So much for trying to lure her in with sweet words and tempting offers—he’d ended up revealing more of his own intentions instead.

“Be friends? With the Crown Prince? Is that allowed?”

“Of course.”

“Oh, really? Then, well…”

Noelle felt his core tighten, the relaxed posture around his waist snapping back into tension.

Everything had gone off-script.

While Selene wasn’t looking, he gave a small shake of his head.

‘Things not going according to plan might actually be… more fun.’

Noelle let his eyebrows droop, putting on a pitiful expression.

“As you might know, I haven’t been in the palace long. I don’t have any friends yet.”

Selene seemed to think for a moment, then gave a small nod.

“Yeah, making friends isn’t easy. Usually, it helps if you have similar hobbies or interests.”

Noelle followed her gaze toward the dessert tray and asked,

“What about you, Lady Whedon? Do you have any hobbies?”

“Me? Lying down at home.”

“And… things you enjoy?”

“Lying down.”

When Noelle didn’t respond, Selene turned to look at him and gave a gentle smile.

“Most of life’s problems go away if you just lie down for a while.”

For a second, Noelle looked genuinely surprised—then leaned back and burst into laughter.

“Haha! You must really love your home. Then invite me sometime. We’re friends now, after all. Since we’re friends, can I call you Selene from now on?”

“Pardon? Well, yes.”

Selene gave an awkward smile, and Noelle, smiling in return, picked up a slice of strawberry pie from the dessert tray, placed it on a small plate, and slid it in front of her.

“You couldn’t take your eyes off it earlier.”

 

 

‘Ah… that was delicious.’

With that dessert mukbang*—no, that meaningful conversation with the Crown Prince—finally done, I could finally go home.

As Noelle escorted me along the garden corridor, someone came running toward us in the distance.

Huh?

“Arcas?”

His forehead was glistening with sweat, as if he’d been running for quite a while.

I looked at Noelle in confusion, and he tilted his head slightly before addressing Arcas.

“What brings the Count of Whedon here?”

Arcas paused to catch his breath, then gave Noelle a polite bow.

“Arcas Whedon greets Your Highness, the Crown Prince. I was informed that Selie… I mean, Selene was here.”

“Yes, we happened to cross paths and had a lovely conversation. She also enjoyed some delicious dessert—right, Lady Selene?”

Noelle turned to me with a bright, refreshing smile.

Since nothing he said was wrong, I smiled and gave a small nod.

Arcas responded in a low, firm voice.

“I was quite concerned when a young lady who hasn’t even had her debut yet failed to return home on time.”

He usually smiled awkwardly or looked on the verge of tears, but now, he actually seemed like a proper guardian, stern and serious.

“Oh no, I told someone to inform you right away. It must’ve gotten delayed.”

Arcas glanced down at my hand, which was resting on Noelle’s arm, and his face stiffened.

“No matter. If your conversation is over, then we’ll be on our way. Come, Selie.”

Goodness, he’s definitely mad.

I quickly turned toward Noelle, gave him a polite bow, then reached out and lightly tugged on Arcas’s sleeve.

“Well… it was just, you know… I happened to run into those—what were their names again? Anyway, some lovely young ladies, and…”

Why was I explaining myself? It wasn’t like I came here because I wanted to.

Still, I guess if someone you live with doesn’t come home on time, it’s only natural to worry.

“I did say I was going home…”

As I tried my best to explain the situation, Arcas just looked at me for a moment, then gave a gentle smile.

“Did you have fun?”

I had completely forgotten about this guy’s existence, but seeing the sweat still clinging to his forehead made me realize he must’ve searched for me like crazy.

“…Sorry.”

“For what? Don’t worry. I postponed the rest of the day’s plans.”

Damn. People who plan everything are terrifying.

 

 

As Noelle watched Arcas and Selene disappear through the corridor entrance at the far end, he turned away in silence.

The bright smile he had worn just moments ago had already faded.

He returned to the drawing room, where Elloe and Viviana were still chatting away.

As the door opened and Noelle stepped inside, Elloe set down her teacup and spoke.

“You didn’t say anything unnecessary, did you?”

Noelle smiled brightly as he took a seat.

“I don’t say unnecessary things.”

“So? How was she?”

“She seems like a good person.”

Elloe lifted her teacup again, smiling sweetly with her eyes.

“That’s a relief. It would’ve been quite troublesome if she hadn’t suited your tastes.”

Viviana, sitting primly on the sofa and breaking apart a cookie, chimed in.

“Did she look like she’d try to run away?”

“She said she wanted to go home.” 

Noelle replied calmly, causing Viviana to drop her cookie and Elloe to nearly spill her tea.

“What did you say?”

“She just meant she wanted to return to the estate. She seems unusually fond of her home.”

The two ladies exhaled sharply in relief and gave Noelle a mildly reproachful look.

“You gave us a heart attack!”

“Make sure she never thinks of running off. I’m counting on you two.”

The ladies nodded in unison, their expressions now serious.

And just like that, as if the room had never been filled with chatter, a quiet hush settled over the drawing room.

The drawing room had gone quiet, as if it had never been filled with chatter.

Noelle sat in thought, pondering how best to make use of the newly established “friendship.”

Elloe, meanwhile, was quite taken with the girl foretold by prophecy, charmed by her cute appearance and seemingly kind personality.

“Well, since we’re both from the countryside, I’m sure we’ll become fast friends~”

“Don’t be reckless and ruin everything.”

Truthfully, Viviana still wasn’t entirely convinced about that girl.

What bothered her more was the idea of Elloe getting close to her before she did.

Around the same table, the three sat with polite smiles, yet they all harbored the same thought.

The reward for sealing the Demon King was almost beyond imagination—grand, sweet, and impossible to resist.

But to claim that glory, one had to be the person standing closest to Selene when the time came.

Each of them, avoiding one another’s gaze, thought quietly to themselves:

‘I have to be the first one to get close to her.’

 

Mukbang (먹방) is a South Korean term that combines the words “muk-ja” (먹자) meaning “let’s eat” and “bang-song” (방송) meaning “broadcast.” It refers to a video or live stream where a host eats large quantities of food while interacting with the audience.