Letting Go and Accepting. (3)
"Hey, are you alright? Are you alright?"
"They're already dead, Demon King-nim."
I shook the man who had suddenly collapsed, spitting blood, but unfortunately, he had already stopped breathing.
What a pity, I was going to ask for directions.
This damned alleyway was so complicated; once I entered, I couldn't get my bearings at all.
At this rate, I might get trapped here.
"...Who are you?"
"...Huh?"
In the shadows of the alley.
A small voice came from a place untouched by moonlight.
A dark voice, mixed with fear and pain.
Seeing their eyes trembling like waves in a storm, I couldn't help but feel pity.
"Are you alright? Poor thing, you're trembling."
"Not a human, but..."
I took a step forward.
The sight of a Demon, with a large nail hammered into their horn and tears streaming down their face, filled a corner of my vision.
Should I reach out my hand?
Everything I touched always left me, so I was a little afraid.
"Come on, get up."
"...Thank, you."
They were trembling, pitifully.
Perhaps because their legs had given out, the Demon stumbled repeatedly.
I almost fell over from the sudden weight, but I managed to hold on.
Hallibel just kept chuckling, as if something was amusing her.
"It seems another Demon has fallen for the Demon King-nim's charm."
"Charm, you say... Is merely saving a life considered charm?"
I gently stroked the back of the Demon, who was trembling like a newborn lamb.
Shhh, it's alright.
It's alright now, so you don't have to tremble.
Of course, they were probably trembling from the pain of the large nail in their horn.
"If you stay like that, it'll just keep hurting, so here."
"Huk, heuu..."
I subtly picked up a pair of pliers lying nearby.
Seeing the tool in my hand, they shed tears profusely, seeming quite frightened.
"This isn't to hurt you. Rest assured."
"..."
I gently stroked the crown of the Demon's head, praising them for meekly bowing their head.
Just a little more. Just a little.
It wasn't completely hammered in, so there was still enough gap for the pliers to grip.
...If only I could pull it out in one go.
"Ugh, huk, uuuuuu..."
With a clattering sound, the large nail embedded in the horn was pulled out.
I gently stroked the spine of the Demon, who was lying face down with their head on the ground.
You endured well. And you held on well.
It must have hurt, but you're so good.
"...Thank you."
Feeling pity for their emaciated body, I shared some food.
Perhaps they were hungry, as the Demon hastily devoured the small piece of bread and bowed their head once more.
They don't have to be so grateful.
This was ultimately just vicarious satisfaction.
Perhaps it was merely an action to gain the satisfaction of knowing even I could save someone.
"Do you happen to know the way to the Royal Capital?"
"...That is."
They hesitated, avoiding my gaze.
Even with that small reaction, I was certain the Demon before me knew the way to the Royal Capital.
It felt a little bad to use someone sold to slave traders as a guide, but there would be no guide as reliable as her in many ways.
Even with a dog collar, a Demon was still a Demon.
"If you take me to the Royal Capital, I'll find a way to remove what's around your neck. But after the dog collar is off, you must live as if you're dead, alright?"
"..."
The Demon, having heard my words, nodded their head.
With this, a half-forced deal, is it settled?
Although I felt uncomfortable using an injured person, my desire to meet the Hero was stronger at the moment.
It's a relief that they weren't too reluctant.
I found myself amusing, feeling relieved by that single fact.
***
The fact that my choice was not wrong was proven faster than I expected.
This was evident when they blocked the humans trying to kidnap me, or when we encountered beasts in the forest.
Perhaps because Hallibel was the only Demon I had met until now, I was terribly surprised.
"You're truly strong."
"...You, on the other hand, are surprisingly weak."
Their words pained my heart, but realizing there was no malice in them, I decided not to dwell on it.
By the way, they're a Demon, yet there's no malice in their words.
I couldn't tell if everything I had accumulated until now was just prejudice, or if they only acted this way in front of me.
Though I didn't particularly want to find out.
"...I ate well."
I thought it might not suit their taste, but they ate better than expected.
No, considering she had even devoured shriveled bread crumbs deliciously, grilled meat would be almost a feast for her.
The gamey smell was a bit strong, but it was tolerable.
"By the way, you haven't asked for their name?"
"..."
Hallibel asked.
As she said, I hadn't asked the Demon before me for their name.
At first, it was because we were destined to part ways once we reached the Royal Capital and found the Hero.
But upon reflection, it didn't seem to be just that.
After all, merely exchanging names was something I could easily do.
"Perhaps, are you afraid?"
"Afraid, no way."
But I didn't utter words of denial.
Because it was a fact I subconsciously felt myself.
Exchanging names meant exchanging affection, and exchanging affection meant remembering.
I wouldn't be able to endure the death of someone I remembered any longer.
From Reina to Hallibel.
Someone might scoff and say "only two," but to me, those two were not beings that could be dismissed as "only."
"...Still, if that child tells me first, then perhaps."
The child didn't seem to have any intention of introducing themselves to me.
It was a bit strange to call a Demon larger than me a child, but since I held the position of Demon King, they might just seem like a child to me.
Of course, seeing Hallibel snickering beside me, it didn't seem to be the case.
"It seems you've dealt with so many children that everyone looks like a child to you now."
That might indeed be true.
It wasn't that I was particularly mature or anything, but it wasn't a lie that everyone I saw looked young.
Look at that, those round eyes.
If they weren't a child, there's no way they could have such innocent eyes—
"Who's there!!!"
—just as I thought that, the child's eyes narrowed sharply.
They instantly turned their head to look beyond the bushes, seeming to have sensed something.
Reliable, as expected.
As I praised myself for having a good eye for people—no, for Demons—a person emerged from the bushes.
"Well, well, who do we have here? It turns out to be a distinguished person."
"...Who is it?"
A man with neatly slicked-back hair and red eyes.
His hair was black, yet he wore a white priest's robe, creating a striking contrast.
Of course, the problem was that I couldn't remember who he was.
"It's a bit regrettable that you don't remember, but
... well, you were unconscious at the time, so I suppose I should understand."
"...Run."
The man, who had smiled faintly, took a step forward.
The Demon child was telling me to run away in a small voice.
Run away? Why? Is that man really that dangerous?
My eyes might be ordinary, but even with such ordinary eyes, he seemed excessively ordinary.
"So, should I call you Demon King-nim?"
"...What?"
"..."
The Demon child's eyes trembled.
Yet, they didn't move, likely because they couldn't fully comprehend that the word "Demon King" they had just heard referred to me.
I'm sorry to be such a surprisingly weak Demon King.
"D-Demon King-nim, why are you in such a state..."
"Well, you must have been defeated by the Hero. Or perhaps you're hiding your power."
Even as he said that, the man's face was full of composure.
Was it confidence that he could win even if I was hiding my power?
Or bluffing?
"But the most important fact is that you're alive, isn't it?"
"...Human!"
Even though a blade was drawn, the man still wore a smiling face.
As if he were watching a cute trick.
"Isn't it truly amusing? That Masu have actually killed more Demons than humans, and that Demons weren't simply evil beings after all."
"..."
"It was so delightful, I couldn't stop laughing."
Behind his well-crafted smile, hidden malice revealed itself.
A thick hatred directed not only at the Demon King but at all Demons.
He was now enraged by the fact that Demons were ordinary intelligent beings, just like humans.
'What a pity, truly.'
It would have been better if Demons had been monsters from beginning to end.
They should have been nothing more than a surging wave, or a falling lightning bolt.
If so, he wouldn't have accumulated such a degree of hatred.
"A single evil was enough to constitute a Demon, so how did it come to this?"
As the man raised his arm, the Demon child's vigilance reached its peak.
It seemed as if they would immediately bite his neck if he moved even a little, yet they weren't rushing forward first.
Were they scared?
Or were they not moving to protect me?
"Demon King-nim!!"
"...Ugh?!"
It didn't take long for the standoff to break.
The Demon child, having knocked away a tentacle that flew from beyond the bushes, took a defensive stance as if to protect me.
Masu.
Those repulsive things had appeared right here.
"Now, let's see how long you can last."
The man curled the corners of his lips upwards.