Conquered by the Demon King
Ilena closed her eyes the moment my lips brushed against them. When she opened them again, her gaze had grown enormous. She stared straight at me with those wide, blood-red eyes before suddenly shoving me away and scrambling backward to put distance between us.
“Wh-what was that? What did you just do?”
Her shout finally snapped me back to my senses. No matter how much I tried to blame the alcohol, what on earth had I just done?
“Even if you ask me what I did…”
I had no clear answer for what I’d done, or why. But one thing was certain—I had done something monumental.
Ilena closed her eyes again, right where my lips had touched, and fumbled over the spot with trembling fingers. Her expression was pure bewilderment.
“What… what does this mean?”
“What does it mean?”
“I studied everything, but I never learned what it means to kiss someone on the eye!”
Ah. So this was another gap in her studies. It made sense—this fell more under practical application than theory. Her confusion was only natural if she didn’t know the meaning. But did that mean my shaken heart hadn’t reached her properly? She might have even taken it as an insult. In that case, an apology was the first step.
“I’m sorry.”
“Sorry? You’re sorry because you did something wrong, right?”
Even as her body trembled, Ilena pressed me for answers.
“Tell me. What does kissing someone on the eye mean?”
“Well, you see…”
“Do it one more time.”
What?
I thought I must have misheard and asked again.
“What did you just say…?”
“I said do it one more time! It’ll be easier to understand the meaning if I feel it with my body instead of just hearing an explanation!”
Ilena wasn’t teasing me. This was completely sincere. After all, instead of pulling away, she leaned in and offered her face. Whether it was pure innocence or burning academic passion, I couldn’t say. But with my mind now clear, there was no way I could repeat what I’d done.
“I’m sorry.”
“Ugh… Why not!”
She looked utterly frustrated, urging me on, but some things simply couldn’t be done. Not with a clear head. I turned my face away to avoid her gaze.
That was when Ilena suddenly grabbed my cheeks with both hands.
“Then I’ll do it.”
“D-do what?”
“I’ll do it too. That way I can guess how you felt when you did it!”
In an instant, Ilena’s magic flowed into my body. My knees buckled of their own accord, forcing me to kneel before her.
“Ugh… Ilena…?”
“Sorry for using magic. But this is the only way to match our heights.”
The situation had completely reversed. Now I was the one looking up at her. Apparently pleased by this new angle and perspective, Ilena gave a strangely satisfied little smile.
“So this is how you felt when you looked down at me? It feels strange… but not bad. It’s like I’ve conquered you this time, unlike before…!”
“Wait a second, Ilena? How about you calm down first?”
“Would you be able to calm down in this situation? Just stay still!”
Finally, Ilena’s lips slowly drew closer. It was a dizzying sight I couldn’t escape. I couldn’t resist—I closed my eyes.
…….
But nothing happened.
“Hic…”
At the sound of Ilena’s small whimper, I opened my eyes. She was still holding my face, but she had frozen completely stiff.
“This is weird. What kind of feeling is this? What does it mean!”
Looking utterly confused, Ilena released my face and stumbled backward.
“I don’t know why, but I can’t do it. It’s too embarrassing! How were you able to do that to me?!”
“Hoo…”
A sigh escaped me naturally. The moment she let go, control of my body returned. And with it came a wave of disappointment. That disappointment, now that I understood its reason, brought me to a crystal-clear realization.
I had been secretly hoping—Ilena would kiss me back.
No, “secretly” wasn’t the right word. I had been hoping for it desperately.
I had agonized over it for so long. The past where I fought her as an enemy. The connections I left behind in Crownland. Whether I even had the right to be happy.
But despite all that anguish, feelings had bloomed naturally before I knew it. Her breathtaking beauty that made you forget she was a demon. The kindness with which she looked after not only me but my mother too. And her earnest effort to study hard just to understand me better.
She was a woman I simply couldn’t dislike. How could I not fall for her?
It had been inevitable from the start that Ilena would take root in my heart.
I rose to my feet with my own strength and slowly approached her.
“W-wait. Don’t come any closer.”
“Don’t come closer? Why?”
“I can’t look at your face properly right now!”
When I took one step forward, she took one step back.
“I said don’t come closer…!”
But when I took another step, Ilena didn’t retreat this time. She simply looked up at me with those beautiful eyes.
It was those very eyes that had driven me to act on impulse earlier. No matter how many times I saw them, they were impossibly lovely.
“Ilena, you said you were curious what it meant when I kissed your eye, right? I’ll teach you. Or rather… may I teach you?”
Ilena didn’t answer. She simply gave a small, shy nod.
I gently cupped her trembling face in my hands and gave one last warning.
“Remember what I said? That you should forgive me. But… I’d like you to forgive me one more time.”
“You’re going to do it again?”
“Yes. But this time it won’t be on the eye. There’s somewhere else I’ve wanted to kiss from the beginning.”
“Where…?”
With the tip of my right index finger, I lightly touched her lips. The soft, plush sensation sent a shiver through my entire body.
The moment Ilena realized where I wanted to kiss, she flinched and cried out.
“M-my lips? But from what I studied, kissing on the lips means…!”
I pressed my finger against her lips to stop her from overthinking it again, then tilted my head slightly to adjust the angle.
“If you don’t want it, push me away. Because what you’re thinking is exactly right.”
The ultimatum was over. All that remained was to act.
I closed my eyes, surrendering to whatever would happen, and slowly brought my lips toward hers so she could refuse at any moment.
Fortunately, it seemed she didn’t mind.
Time passed. We simply stayed like that, lips pressed together. Ilena’s warm, gentle breath brushed pleasantly against my face as she breathed.
She didn’t push me away, and I had no desire to pull back either. I wanted to stay like this forever.
But a stronger urge gradually rose, overpowering that wish. The desire to see what kind of beautiful expression she was making right now.
With a touch of regret, I slowly drew my lips away. I opened my eyes first and gazed down at her, but Ilena still hadn’t opened hers. She looked lovely like this, yet her expression seemed somehow uncertain.
“Ilena, are you okay?”
“……”
She didn’t answer. She simply opened her eyes slowly and glared at me as if I’d done something terribly unfair.
“Did you hate it?”
“I don’t know. So…”
Claiming she still didn’t understand, Ilena squeezed her eyes shut again. Then she pouted her lips slightly and said,
“Do it one more time. So I can know for sure.”
“Gladly.”
This time I had permission, so there was no need to be gentle. I would do it exactly as I wanted. Since she said she didn’t know, I’d make sure she understood clearly.
“Mmph…!”
I pulled her face close and kissed her hard. Ilena let out a startled sound, but soon went limp in my arms, surrendering herself to me.
It didn’t matter how much time passed. Freezing time in this moment wouldn’t be so bad. In fact, I’d be grateful if it did.
But this time, it was Ilena who pulled away first. She pushed me back lightly, then hung her head and murmured,
“Kissing on the lips… means the same thing for both demons and humans.”
“What does it mean?”
“It means… toward the other person…”
She stammered, unable to finish the sentence. When I gently lifted her face, I saw an adorable sight—her cheeks flushed crimson, completely frozen in embarrassment.
Since she was too shy to say it, I finished for her.
“It means you like them.”
“Hic…!”
Ilena let out a tiny, sharp squeak, then stared at me intently and asked,
“That means… you…”
“That’s right. Exactly what you’re thinking. I…”
Before I finished speaking, I pulled her into a tight embrace. She felt so warm and soft. The Demon King Ilenater may have failed to conquer the human world, but—
“I like you.”
—it seemed I had been utterly conquered by this mischievous, lovable Demon King.