DKFTI 83

“There’s nothing to be surprised about. It’s just a mark that the contract has been made.”

“It doesn’t harm the body, right?”

Karhan nodded. His words were true. The curse seal that had been injected into Ruru was something else. It had no power to force anything, it was just a mere mark.

“But why do you really want something like this? Could it be you have some other shady…”

Sibel looked at him with suspicious eyes, wondering if Karhan’s taste might be someone like him, such a great handsome man. Of course, being a great handsome man was only his own opinion.

“One day in three hundred years is trivial.”

“Right. It really doesn’t seem like much.”

“You don’t need to know my intentions. Isn’t it enough that you got what you wanted?”

That was true too… but it still felt strangely unpleasant. Whether he knew Sibel’s feelings or not, Karhan spun the black lump containing the curse seal taken from Ruru’s heart around his fingers.

Watching that act made Sibel a little annoyed.

“But why are you doing things like that?”

“What do you mean?”

“Making Ruru gather magic for you. Do you also make other demons do it?”

“There are hundreds more.”

What a filthy Demon King. Tsk tsk.

“You don’t have your own magic power…?”

Sibel suddenly became a little curious about this Demon King named Karhan. He looked extremely powerful, but exploiting magic like this seemed like something only a third-rate thug would do. What kind of Demon King was he? On top of that, Sibel had never even seen him at a regular gathering. Was he some kind of reclusive thug?

“You seem curious about me.”

He was the type Sibel didn’t want to be curious about, but it was impossible not to be in this situation.

“One day in three hundred years. You’ll find out yourself soon.”

Karhan’s lips curled. His smile looked quite sinister. Not exactly perverted, but still unsettling…

Sibel suddenly turned his head to the side and then lowered his eyes quietly when he met Aizen’s burning gaze.

Aizen looked very angry.

“Then… may we leave now?”

Karhan shrugged his shoulders. Keeping on with them would only give him a headache.

“Well, about that three hundred years and one day, just send a letter when you want.”

Sibel bowed politely. After all, this Demon King was still a senior. And since Ruru’s curse had been safely undone, there was no need to be hostile.

“Let’s go.”

Sibel said to Aizen. Aizen’s cold gaze continued stabbing his heart.

No, it’s not like I sold Aizen off. I just traded it with my own time, so why is he so upset? Sibel felt a little wronged. And he thought visit our sitethe deal was very reasonable, and he himself benefited too, so he even felt quietly satisfied.

“We’ll talk after we leave. After we leave.”

When Aizen sighed, Sibel quietly summoned Crow. Crow flying in the sky grew massive and landed in front of Sibel.

“Hng, Demon King…”

Ruru ran into Sibel’s arms. The body in his arms was hot. Sibel hugged Ruru tightly.

Of course, he must have been moved. Sibel rubbed his nose. Then Ruru said,

“This isn’t a place you can just fly out of.”

Ah, right. They tore a teleportation scroll to come here. But wait, this brat… he doesn’t even say thank you?

Our Ruru, unbelievably shameless. If not for the tear stains on his face, Sibel would have wanted to smack him.

“Shanti!”

Sibel called Shanti. It was time to return.

***

“Don’t forget, the promise. Not that it matters if you forget. I’ll be the one to trigger it.”

The place they arrived with Ruru was not the Demon King’s castle but Ruru’s village. It couldn’t be helped since the coordinates on the travel scroll had been set here.

The members of the Demon King’s castle were sitting around in the house Ruru had lived in as a child.

“Why did you do something like that?!”

Ruru put his hands on his waist and scolded Sibel. Then Shanti smacked the back of Ruru’s head.

“Why do you think? Huh? It was because of you!”

Shanti always said the right things. A very smart friend.

“I take care of my own problems…”

“You just drop to the floor and bawl!”

Always right, indeed…

At Shanti’s words, Ruru paid him back for the humiliation earlier by smacking the back of his head too.

“But how did you get bound to that Demon King?”

“It’s a story you can’t listen to without tears.”

Saying it himself like that made him look incredibly shameless… but it was better to hear it out.

“Lord Karhan is infamous as a very cruel Demon King. Because of his ferocious nature that attacks even other demons, he has no exchanges with the other Demon Kings.”

“Yeah, yeah.”

“He has a peculiar obsession with collecting unusual magic power. Almost pathological. That’s why he fixates on hearts containing magic power.”

“Ugh.”

Disgusting. Don’t tell me he brushed his fingers over your heart during the contract?

“His radar picked up the magic power of fox demons. Because of that, the village went up in flames, foxes died one after another…”

Ruru’s face stiffened as he recalled that day.

“So you shouldered the responsibility?”

“I thought all I had to do was satisfy his curiosity. So once every three hundred years, I promised to give him my magic power and made the contract…”

“An unfair contract?”

“How could someone like me, who was clearly the weaker side, make a fair contract?”

Nod, nod. Sibel’s head nodded.

“He takes the magic power for himself?”

“He already possesses an immense amount of magic power. Most of the power he gathers is used for his little experiments.”

“Experiments…?”

“Hr enjoy making chimeras. Like that summoned beast that came out of the ground earlier.”

That big thing really did feel disgusting.

“But that person is also very fickle, so he wasn’t particularly interested in my magic power. He simply enjoyed watching me suffer.”

Wow. A total psychopath.

Hearing Ruru’s explanation, Sibel nodded. Ruru had really gotten caught by a terrible bastard.

“It must have been hard for you.”

Sibel reached out and stroked Ruru’s head. Ruru’s eyes blinked.

“But I betrayed the Demon King’s castle family…”

Ruru mumbled as he watched Sibel’s face. His ears drooped. It seemed guilt was only now hitting him.

“Shouldn’t a traitor be torn apart and killed?”

At that moment, Aizen spoke from the side. Ruru’s eyes went wide.

“Demons may not repay favors, but they always take revenge.”

Ruru glanced at Shanti. When Shanti curled his lips in a nasty grin, sweat started to form on Ruru’s forehead.

Step by step, hesitating.

Ruru’s body slowly moved away from Sibel’s hand.

“Don’t tell me… you want revenge on me…!?”

Stupid Ruru. Foolish Ruru.

Sibel liked this part of Ruru. He pretended to be sly but was simple and funny.

“Who would risk their life for revenge over losing a bit of mana?!”

Only then did Ruru let out a sigh of relief.

“Now we can stay together, right?”

Sibel asked Ruru. Ruru’s eyes grew wet. His fluffy paw rubbed at them. Tears poured out from his reddened eyes.

Sibel opened his arms. Ruru quickly ran into them and hugged him. His brown fox tail wagged.

The waist of Sibel’s clothes soon grew damp where Ruru was clinging.

“Demon Kiiiiiing.”

Ruru rubbed his face against him and hugged him tight.

‘Phew…’

Something unpleasant had happened, but Sibel felt relieved that he could reunite with Ruru and return together to the Demon King’s castle.

What else was life in the Demon King’s castle? Just struggling through whatever was right in front of him, one thing at a time.

“I’ll never leave your side. From now on! I’ll be loyal!”

“I don’t even expect loyalty…”

It would be enough if Ruru didn’t cause trouble anymore. Strange tools or pachinko games could be laughed off. Compared to running away, they were nothing.

“I’m glad.”

Thinking he might never see Ruru again made Sibel’s heart ache so badly it felt like it would explode. He never wanted to go through that again. As Ruru hung onto him, Sibel stroked his back and lifted his head to look at Shanti. Even Shanti, who usually looked blunt, held his breath and stared off at a far mountain so as not to interrupt Ruru’s moment.

Holding Ruru’s soft body tightly made all the worries and fears disappear.

‘But what does he really want to do with a single day…?’

Even in the middle of happiness, he couldn’t help but worry. But he would find out when the time came.

***

Petra, after Sibel’s group disappeared.

Karhan, whose body was damaged unauthorized copy by an attack he had never seen before, shut himself in his bedroom to recover.

He was removing the pollen that had seeped into his torn skin. The wounds that should have healed easily were slow to recover, maybe because of Sibel’s ability. His cabinet was filled with flasks that gave off a dangerous smell.

Then, a black shadow fell before him.

“…Well, this is quite a welcome face.”

Karhan’s eyes turned toward the man who had entered his castle without leaving a trace. Their gazes met, cold and unyielding.

“Hm? Leviathan.”

Karhan’s lips uncontrollably curled up.

***