Pink Spring. (3)
"Oh my, so pretty~ Oh, so lovely~♪"
"...That's enough."
"This hairstyle suits you too, after all."
I heard someone saying something in front of me, but I didn't pay much attention.
Because what I had to do today was to freely change Emily's hairstyle using my right hand, which had somewhat recovered.
First, a ponytail, then I tried braiding it.
And now, even twin tails.
'Her height isn't growing, but her hair is growing so fast.'
As I moved my fingers along the long, flowing strands of hair, the child flinched.
I knew the deep revulsion contained in that action, but I absolutely did not stop.
"I told you to stop!!!"
And this was merely an incident that occurred because I foolishly crossed the line.
"...I got too carried away."
I looked at my right hand, which had been flung away with a *jjak* sound, and gave a bitter smile.
My forearm, not yet fully recovered, trembled slightly, screaming its limit.
Right, this was our relationship, originally.
A relationship where we spewed anger and poured out hatred.
"You're nothing to me. Don't you dare try to act like my mother, got it?"
"..."
After saying that, Emily untied the hair tie that had been holding her hair.
With her irritable touch, the child's hair became disheveled.
Ah, I should tidy it up.
I reflexively tried to reach out, but then remembered what had just happened and pulled my hand back.
'I can't reach out now, Ariel.'
Because if I reached out now, it would become irreversible.
"You endured well, Demon King-nim."
Hallibel whispered.
Yes, I endured well.
Indeed, I endured.
"Hoo..."
I firmly pressed down my trembling right hand with my left.
The sight of the ring encircling my ring finger seemed to slowly calm my heart.
"'Don't try to act like my mother,' huh..."
If I don't act like a mother, what will truly remain between Emily and me?
If I don't love that child, what will I truly give her?
"Ha, haha, ha..."
"...Demon King-nim?"
"Ahahahahahahahahahahah!!!!!!!!!!!"
If you hadn't been born from my womb, how many times do you think you would have died?
And yet, just because you were born from me, you're not suffering and are prolonging your life.
I even promised to let you meet Rin!!
"Ha, hah... hngh..."
Am I crazy?
If I'm crazy, how am I crazy?
If I'm crazy, what is it that's crazy?
Is it that I harbor murderous intent because the child doesn't acknowledge me as her mother?
Or is it that I'm not killing my enemy just because I bore her with my own pain?
"I don't know which it is... I, I just don't know..."
Tears poured down.
What on earth should I have chosen?
Ah, should I have just let Emily commit suicide instead?
I foolishly twisted the ice pick stuck in my heart, claiming I would take revenge.
That one simple action alone created this current situation.
"Hallibel, do you think it's right for me to kill that child?"
Emily's figure, who had already left the room, flickered before my eyes.
Will her end be bloody, or will she be loved?
As I let out a strange groan and lowered my head, Hallibel slowly patted my back.
Naturally, I felt nothing.
"It would have been better if Rin were here."
It was an irresponsible thing to say, but if I had left it to Rin, things might have been a little different.
With a needlessly melancholic heart, I slowly blinked my eyes.
Even amidst my despair, the moon, shining brightly, felt resentful.
***
It goes without saying, but a mother after childbirth is bound to be extremely vulnerable.
Even more so if it's a child born overnight.
For that reason, the idea of giving birth to one child a day could never be realized.
Even one every two days was something this frail body couldn't handle.
"...Sorry."
"You don't have to be sorry."
Arthur, who had stroked my exhausted hair, gave a small kiss on my forehead.
His greatly swollen crotch seemed to indicate the magnitude of his sexual desire, making me feel even more sorry.
Love for someone.
And a relationship formed by that, once its taste is known, would surely become something unforgettable.
"Don't overexert yourself and get some good rest. I'll be looking after Emily."
"...Mm."
It was true that I became vulnerable after childbirth, but at the time, I was strangely full of energy.
Perhaps it was maternal love or something similar.
Anyway, a few days after Emily was born, by the time the child had grown to about elementary school age, I couldn't properly put strength into my body.
It must be the backlash from overexerting myself until now.
I should have taken sufficient rest, but I couldn't, and that was clearly the reason.
"By the way, you looking after Emily... makes me uneasy."
"..."
Arthur didn't answer.
Perhaps his mind was completely filled with the thought of wanting to kill Emily right now.
But he would never kill the child.
As for the reason, yes.
It was because I didn't want it.
"Arthur."
"...Mm."
"She's your comrade, isn't she?"
"To be precise, she *was* a comrade."
When they were on the battlefield, their relationship was so strong, but now, there was no relationship as shallow as this.
...No, that's not right.
He wouldn't easily forgive someone who did such things to me.
My mind was wavering.
It seemed to be because my body wasn't well.
"Then, I'll leave it to you."
"Understood."
I exhaled as Arthur's retreating figure disappeared beyond the door.
As I let go of the consciousness I was barely holding onto, I was instantly pulled into a dream.
***
At first, Emily was held captive by Ariel, but in just a few days, their positions reversed.
It began when she, having grown physically and become able to use magic, threatened Ariel with magic.
Ariel merely laughed heartily, saying that her rebellious phase had finally arrived, but for Arthur, it was not a matter to be taken lightly.
"Emily."
"..."
"What are you doing here?"
The other person didn't turn her back.
She merely gazed endlessly at the moon in the sky.
Even though winter was drawing near and the night air was cold, Emily was not wearing any outer garment.
"Playing house with the Demon King, how amusing."
It was a heavily sarcastic voice, but it didn't contain the intense hatred of the past.
Emily, who had been chuckling as if she had already reached enlightenment, turned her head with downcast eyes.
"Arthur, do you understand? Where our journey went wrong."
"..."
She wouldn't know.
That all these things happened because of human greed.
Of course, even if the truth were told, nothing would change.
Because the fact that Demons killed her family—and her Master—was an unchangeable truth.
"I don't regret it."
"..."
"If there's one thing I regret, it's just one thing."
Not being able to end my own life back then. Only that one thing.
Emily's eyes were always filled with madness, and it was the same now.
She wasn't happy at all about being resurrected.
And likewise, not being able to die again.
"That's right, Arthur. You want to kill me, don't you? I'll accept it without any resentment now, so come on."
"..."
"Won't you kill me? So I don't become even more miserable."
A small hand reached out and grabbed Arthur's hand.
If this large hand were to grip that slender neck, it could surely cut off her breath in an instant.
Green and pink intertwined.
At the cheer that filled him as his fingers touched her nape, Arthur couldn't help but realize why Ariel had tried to keep her alive.
"Please."
For one who desires death, death is not a punishment.
The fingers that had touched the child's nape quickly moved away.
Emily merely stared at the sight in vain.
"You bastard."
"..."
"You bad bastard. You could kill me just once, couldn't you, huh?!"
Her not-yet-fully-grown fists pounded Arthur's body.
Her hands, which had been swinging rapidly with a *tadadak* sound, gradually slowed down as time passed.
And so, a moment later.
Only when sobs began to escape from the mouth that had been screaming did Emily's movements subside.
"...Do whatever you want. Go ahead and kiss and suck on that bitch, or haphazardly give birth to brats with her, do whatever you want."
Her slumped shoulders might have looked pitiful, but the Hero didn't even twitch an eyebrow.
If one committed a sin, it was right to receive punishment.
The punishment to befall her, the sinner, was life itself.
It was the most fitting punishment for a being who had tried to end her own life to escape her sins.
"How long do you think that love will last? You're just drawn to someone who has the same name as your childhood friend! Don't you get it?!"
"Perhaps."
"But why?!?!!"
This time, he didn't answer.
Not because he couldn't answer, but because there was no need to answer.
His love for Ariel wasn't simply because she shared the same name as his childhood friend.
That was merely one of many reasons; it couldn't be the entirety of it.
"No matter what I say, you won't understand."
At that one remark, Emily burst into a fit of rage.
Arthur, without changing his expression even as he watched her, turned and walked towards the room where Ariel was staying.
Now was not the time to worry about such things.
Because his concern was, after all, directed towards Ariel.