Demon and Coffee
Dahong stepped out of the alley. Her suit was still impeccably clean, not a speck of filth anywhere. She paused and tilted her head back to gaze at the sky. Stars twinkled there. Hell had no sky—just an endless red ceiling. But here, it was dark and dotted with stars. Not bad at all.
“D-Dahong-ssi!”
Panting breaths echoed behind her. Tap, tap, tap! She turned. It was Seha, clutching his side and gasping for air. He must have sprinted the whole way.
Seha heaved for breath a while longer, then burst out, “Where were you—!! I finally found you!”
“Here.”
“Where’s here? And jumping off the balcony like that—what if it was the fourth floor! What if you got hurt…!”
“Didn’t.”
“That’s…! Ugh, I can’t go on like this…”
Seha clutched his head, looking dizzy.
Dahong stared at him without much reaction.
Seha started to say more, then glanced around. Dark alley. Empty street. Suddenly, he felt like a total fool.
Seha let out a sigh. “Let’s go for now. It’s late.”
“Yeah.”
Dahong followed Seha without complaint.
Trotting at her side, Seha said, “Don’t go out alone anymore.”
“Why?”
“It’s dangerous.”
Dahong didn’t reply.
“For real. You’re not even registered as a summoned beast, and you don’t know how things work here. Wandering off alone…”
Dahong kept glancing around, taking in the city sights even on the way back.
Seha sighed deeply once more. “Anyway, if you wanna go out, just tell me. We can go together.”
“Hmm…”
“You hear me?”
“Yeah.”
Ding-dong. They returned to the apartment and rode the elevator up to the fourth floor.
“Password’s this. Just in case…”
“Got it.”
By the time they got home, it was past eleven. Exam tomorrow… Seha slumped his shoulders and sat before the summoning circle. Better to unsummon her for now. He could summon properly at the exam hall tomorrow.
Seha clasped his hands and gathered his mana.
But.
“...?”
Something was off. No response at all.
“What? Why isn’t it working?”
Seha poured in more mana. Still nothing.
Meanwhile, Dahong lounged on the living room sofa, legs crossed, flipping through a book.
“Um, Dahong-ssi…”
“Yeah, Seha.”
“Why can’t I unsummon you?”
Dahong kept her eyes on the book. “Dunno.”
“Dunno…?”
Seha recalled the unsummon ritual again. Failure. Was something wrong? Or did he just not know how? He’d never succeeded at summoning before, so unsummoning was uncharted territory.
Seha hesitated, then asked carefully, “...Could you head back for now? I’ll summon you again tomorrow.”
“Nah.”
“...”
So bold and unapologetic.
“Nah?”
“Yeah, nah.”
Flip. Dahong turned the page.
Seha stared blankly. No comeback. Couldn’t unsummon, didn’t know how to force it, and lacked the nerve to boss a demon around.
“Where’ll you sleep?”
“Bed.”
“The bed…?”
“Yeah.”
Seha eyed the bed. His bed—a narrow single barely big enough for one.
“...Got it.”
No choice. Seha pulled blankets from the closet and spread them on the floor. Floor-sleeping it was, for the foreseeable future.
Sizzle. Oil popped in the frying pan.
Dahong turned down the heat. The toast was browning perfectly. The egg-soaked side puffed up, releasing a sweet aroma. Second-best smell since arriving on Earth—ramen still took first.
The coffee pot bubbled away. Dahong hummed a tune as she flipped the toast with the spatula.
The TV announcer droned on.
“Ugh…”
A groan from the bedroom. The boy was stirring.
Rubbing his eyes, Seha shuffled into the living room and blinked at the kitchen. “...Those are my eggs?”
“Yeah.”
“And the bread?”
“Yeah.”
Seha fell silent.
Dahong kept humming as she slid the toast onto plates and poured the coffee. Seha watched her peer into the pan, dazed.
“...You can cook?”
“Works when I try.”
“...”
Nothing impressive about it. Hands, eyes, nose, tongue. Stop when it smelled good and wasn’t spoiled. Decent grub. Ingredients here beat hell’s, too.
Dahong set two plates and two coffees on the table. The boy sat gingerly.
The announcer’s voice flowed from the TV.
Dahong took a sip of coffee. Bitter. Not bad.
“...Last night in ○○ District, five bodies discovered. Severely mutilated at the scene—”
“Near here. World’s getting rough.”
Seha glanced at the TV while chewing toast.
“Yeah.”
Dahong chimed in indifferently.
“Why so many incidents lately… Ever since hunters and awakeners showed up, weirdos everywhere. Even near the academy…”
“Power makes you wanna swing it.”
Dahong eyed her cup, took another sip.
“Morning news like this kills the vibe. Can I change the channel?”
“Go ahead.”
Click. The screen switched.
Dahong glanced toward the balcony. Morning sunlight streamed in. Stars were nice last night, but this glow wasn’t bad either.
Earth had plenty to see.
“Dahong-ssi.”
Dahong turned. Seha gazed at her worriedly.
“Don’t forget—exam today, right?”
“Yeah.”
“Just stay by my side and follow my lead. I’ll handle everything else.”
Dahong bit into her toast without replying. Boy said he’d take care of it. Didn’t care how.
The front door opened. Seha emerged with his bag, Dahong right behind.
Dahong paused in the hallway, peering out the window. Clear blue sky stretched beyond the corridor’s end. Not a cloud in sight.
“Hmm.”
Felt nice.
Seha pressed the elevator button and joined her. “Great weather today.”
“Yeah.”
While waiting, Dahong couldn’t tear her eyes from the window. Hell had no weather—just eternal heat, red murk, and haze. She’d forgotten what clear felt like. Clear skies weren’t bad. Rain probably wouldn’t suck either.
Ding. Elevator doors parted.
Stepping out of the complex, sunlight poured down. Seha squinted. Dahong strode on unfazed, humming softly.
“...You seem happy.”
“Yeah.”
Seha started to say more but just walked. Exam nerves, probably. Dahong didn’t mind a bit.
They strolled along.
Then a middle-aged woman approached from the opposite direction, phone to her ear. “No, Min-su’s mom. Like I said, turn left there and—”
She cut off.
Her eyes met Dahong’s.
The phone slipped from her hand. Clatter, thud.
“Hello? Hello—?”
The voice from the phone went ignored.
Dahong passed without a glance.
An old man on the convenience store bench puffed a cigarette. As Dahong walked by, his eyes bulged. He gawked, forgetting the cig in his mouth.
“Ow, hot!?”
It burned his fingers.
Dahong ignored him.
Whispers bubbled up everywhere.
Saw those horns? Cosplay? Nah, check that figure. Face is killer. Never seen anyone so gorgeous. But those red eyes are creepy…
Seha’s shoulders hunched tighter.
Then a young mom with a stroller crossed paths. The baby spotted Dahong and went wide-eyed.
“Waaah!”
Tiny arms shot up. Cute legs kicked wildly.
“Oh dear, what’s gotten into you?”
As the mom flustered, the baby leaned toward Dahong, arms outstretched.
Dahong looked down and extended a finger.
The baby snatched it.
“Kyaa—!”
It fiddled happily with her finger.
Dahong savored the soft grip for a moment.
“Sorry, she’s usually so quiet…”
“No biggie.”
The mom and baby passed. Seha spoke up. “Um, Dahong-ssi.”
“Yeah.”
“Could you… maybe wear a hat? You’re drawing too much attention.”
Dahong grinned. “Nah.”
“Why not?”
“Can’t see the sky.”
“...”
What could he say to that? Seha swallowed another sigh.