Contracting with a Demon is Foolish! (3)
Suddenly, Rina had two mothers. Her already tangled mind ground to a halt.
"Lady Purpur… what in the world is going on?"
Rina gazed up at Purpur with pleading eyes.
"Hee hee! So cute. Want me to tell you?"
"Please, tell me."
"Alright. First off, your birth mother really is Countess Serena de Flam."
"Th-then… what is she?"
Rina pointed, her face slack with shock, at the woman she'd believed to be her mother her entire life.
"Oh, your foster mother who raised you? Her name's Rebecca. She's a bastard of the Flam family. In other words, your father's half-sister."
"Foster mother? Half-sister?"
"If you want to get technical, that makes her your aunt."
Rina had never once imagined that Rebecca, who raised her in the brothel, could be her aunt. Their looks and personalities shared so many similarities that she'd never had the slightest suspicion.
Mom was my aunt?
Rina stared at her foster mother—her aunt—Rebecca. Rebecca was chatting amiably with Erina, the Rina of this fate.
"Rebecca, Rebecca. That sandwich from the outing earlier—was that one you made?"
"Yes, it was, Lady Erina. Did it suit your taste?"
"Yeah, it was delicious. If I ask you to make me another one next time, will you?"
"Of course. Anytime, just say the word."
Sandwiches. It was the food Rebecca occasionally made for Rina back at the brothel when she was little.
It was so good.
This fate's Rebecca seemed to make them well too. Rina looked at her with nostalgic longing. She certainly appeared older than the Rebecca in Rina's memories, but not old by any means—just past her late thirties, with the elegant poise of a noblewoman.
Looking back, Mom was so young. Maybe she was around my age back then?
To raise her niece, she'd thrown herself into life as a changno the moment she came of age, playing the role of mother. It was a brutally harsh fate.
Rina's eyes finally welled up with tears. Her sea-blue eyes grew misty.
This fate's Rebecca looked utterly happy. The exact opposite of Rebecca's final image, branded into Rina's mind like a scar.
Rebecca's face, strangled to death without even closing her eyes. The heartbreaking contrast left Rina with one burning question.
"Why are my fate and Erina's so different?"
Rina wiped her tears and looked at Purpur.
"Lady Purpur, then where are my birth parents in the world I came from?"
Pointing at Erina's blissful family, Rina cried out in anguish.
"Why does this world's Rebecca live as a noble vassal, while my mom had to live as a changno and get strangled to death by some disgusting perverted noble?!"
Rina bit her lip hard.
"What was so different that this Erina gets to be a noble lady, while I'm a viscount's slave? Why?!"
Her cry carried aimless resentment. Purpur approached like a soothing presence, gently wiping Rina's tears.
"You're too worked up, cute little kitty."
Purpur's soft touch calmed Rina's churning emotions bit by bit.
"Sniff… I'm sorry. Forgive my rudeness."
"No, kitty. Anyone would react like that seeing fate's unfair dice roll."
Purpur wore a kindly expression.
"What you're wondering now is the divergence point where Erina's world and yours split, right?"
"Sniff… divergence point?"
"Fate branches at divergence points. There's one crucial one that caused such a huge gap between Rina's world and Erina's."
Rina's eyes, barely grasping the words, began to sparkle again.
"If we could change that divergence point, could we change my fate—and Mom's too?"
"No, impossible."
Purpur's firm answer dimmed Rina's gaze once more.
"Wh-why?"
"Going back in time to influence fate isn't easy to begin with. And even if it were possible, your past that's already passed wouldn't change."
"We can't change the past?"
"Yeah. Even if you went back and altered the divergence point, it'd just create a new fate. The world you originally lived in stays the same. Your past has already been observed and fixed."
Rina scratched her head, crestfallen.
"Sorry, I don't quite get it."
"It's fine. The rules of the worlds are so complicated even I get confused sometimes. I didn't expect a dummy like Rina to get it right away."
"…"
Rina puffed her cheeks at being called a dummy and glared at Purpur. Purpur burst into giggles at the adorable sight.
"But don't be too disappointed. You can't change a past fate that's set in stone, but you can reshape your future fate with your own hands anytime."
"Future fate…"
"And if you borrow my power, you can uncover the truth of that root divergence point that upended your life. Sound intriguing?"
Purpur had switched back to her reverse eyes, pressing her face close to Rina's.
"You're curious, aren't you? Why you—who could have been Countess Erina—ended up as slave Rina."
Rina felt a hypnotic ecstasy, as if being drawn into Purpur's reverse eyes.
"…I am."
"Then take my hand. Contract with me and become a witch."
Purpur extended her hand to Rina.
"Become my witch, uncover the truth of your desired past, and let's forge the future fate you want together!"
As if entranced, Rina placed her hand over Purpur's.
Thud.
It didn't pass through—Rina's hand rested solidly atop Purpur's. For some reason, Rina felt no urge to refuse the contract.
"Shall we begin the contract? Answer 'yes' after each line. Got it?"
"…Yes."
Rina blankly gripped Purpur's hand tight.
"In the name of Purpur, demon of the deer and lies, I command. Rina, will you be my ally?"
⟨ Contract Rite ⟩
"Yes."
Purpur's warm body heat seeped through her palm.
"I ask again: In the name of Purpur, demon of the deer and lies, I command. Rina, will you be my ally?"
"Yes."
Purpur's sweet voice tickled her ears.
"I ask one last time: In the name of Purpur, demon of the deer and lies, I command. Rina, will you be my ally?"
The very moment she tried to say "yes" one final time.
No!
A thunderbolt voice exploded in Rina's mind. A desperate yet resolute man's voice. Just two syllables, but enough to jolt her hazy mind awake.
"Ah!"
Rina snapped to her senses in shock and stared at Purpur.
"What? Something wrong? Hurry and say 'yes'."
Despite Purpur's urging, Rina stayed silent for a moment.
Wh-what was that just now?
A man's voice she'd never heard before. A short cry, but those two words rippled endlessly through her heart.
Wait, what was I about to do?
Thanks to the voice, Rina got a chance to coldly reassess the situation.
Purpur stood before her. A bizarre girl with reverse eyes, sharp teeth, and deer antlers.
Reverse eyes, sharp teeth, deer antlers… Rina gasped and stumbled back a step.
I didn't notice Purpur had turned into that this whole time?
The ecstasy until moments ago vanished like mist, replaced by surging wariness.
Then she recalled the common thread in all those demon tales she'd heard: sweet, tempting contracts that ultimately led protagonists to ruin.
With a trembling voice, Rina barely forced her mouth open.
"Um… do I have to do this contract?"
"What?"
"I'm really sorry, Lady Purpur. I don't want to contract."
Purpur's smiling face hardened in an instant.
"Hmph… what's the problem? Still unsure if I'm a real demon?"
"No. Seeing you wield this power firsthand proves you're a real demon."
Purpur's brow furrowed sharply.
"Then what's the issue? You just said you'd uncover the past truth and change your future fate with me."
"True… but thinking it over now, both seem possible with my own strength, without your help."
A clear refusal. Rina rejected Purpur outright.
Purpur's body began to quiver.
"So you're just gonna use my kindness and toss me aside?"
"…Sorry. But to be honest, you're a demon, Lady Purpur. I've never heard a single story where contracting with a demon ended well."
At Rina's final words, Purpur's body swelled as if about to burst. Rina screamed and fell on her butt at the grotesque, overwhelming sight.
"Eek!"
"Right now… right now… ha…"
With a long sigh, Purpur reverted to her original form. She straightened her disheveled clothes and approached Rina in her haughty lady guise once more.
"Ha… what a hassle this turned into."
"S-sorry, Lady Purpur."
"No. Blame my lying siblings who slapped my name on the floor."
Purpur sighed in exasperation.
"But remember this: I'm not a petty liar like my siblings. I came here because I genuinely want to help you."
"R-really?"
But Rina's face showed no trust—only heightened fear from the monstrous sight.
Purpur sighed again and turned away.
"Hee hee. Fine. But kitty, you'll end up seeking me out again. Your fate isn't something you can bulldoze through with just that lewd beauty and body of yours."
"…"
"So for you, I'll give you one more chance."
"A chance?"
"I'll come back later. When you really want me desperately. See you then, cheeky kitty."
Purpur snapped her fingers lightly.
Ting!
Space reconstructed in an instant—far faster than before. With a cheerful sound, they were back in the secluded corner of the rear garden.
"Huh! Lady Purpur?"
Purpur was already gone.
"Was that all a dream?"
But then Rina spotted a letter on the grass, lying there out of nowhere. She picked it up. It was sealed with deer-shaped wax.
She carefully peeled off the wax and read the contents.
You don't think this was all a dream, do you?
Everything you experienced today was harsh reality, not a dream.
I'll be looking forward to our next meeting.
For now, go ahead and crash against the waves of fate on your own.
P.S.: I recommend not telling anyone about what you heard and saw today.
"N-not a dream. What do I do now?"
The haze that had clouded Rina's mind fully lifted, restoring her sense of reality.
She'd met a demon—the kind that drags humans to ruin. And she'd even provoked it at the end.
"Should I tell Master? No, it's a demon—go to the priest? But how do I explain?"
Rina racked her brains desperately. But no matter how she thought, no one would believe a slave like her. She'd just get whipped for madness or branded a witch, tortured, and burned at the stake.
Faced with horrific options, Rina clutched her head.
F-first, hide it. They can never find out I met a demon.
Sudden footsteps approached from behind.
"Hee hee, whatcha doing out here, Rina?"
Rina's heart nearly leaped out as she whipped around. There stood a tall beauty in the same gano robes as her, with blue hair.
"Tsuna-unnie?"