Rael’s last glimpse of them was Rubellan gripping Juletan’s neck as they shot through the sky at lightning speed.

In the brief moment it took to blink, both Juletan and Rubellan had vanished. Now that they were beyond the academy grounds, would they continue their grotesque battle?

Perhaps Rubellan had taken him far away out of consideration for the academy.

Why did she harbor hope that Rubellan, a demon like Juletan, wasn’t truly an evil being?

“…Rubellan.”

She couldn’t understand her own desire for his safety.

The academy was in an uproar. Everyone was shocked by the building’s sudden gaping hole. By now, such incidents should hardly be surprising.

Rubellan was the root cause of all these troubles.

Indeed. Perhaps Rael had anticipated from their first meeting that he would shatter her peaceful daily life.

Rubellan, who had suddenly dropped from the sky one day. No, “dropped from the demon realm” would be more accurate.

[Wow. Someone’s definitely going to die from this.]

A small voice suddenly came from beside her. When Rael looked down, she saw a fairy.

[Huh? Why are you looking at me?]

“What… are you?”

Something hamster-sized with bat wings and a demon tail.

[Eh? You can see me? A human?]

“…A talking hamster.”

[Hey, looks like you can see me because you shared energy with the Demon King!]

The tiny demon flew up and circled in front of Rael’s eyes. He seemed oddly excited.

“Are you… his friend?”

[I am Helisio Poetapir Joseph! The Demon King’s loyal servant!]

“His subordinate?”

His name was quite long. She had thought all demons looked grotesque, but this one was actually cute.

“You’re… really adorable.”

The honest observation slipped out. After seeing winged monsters and horned beasts, a cute hamster fairy hardly seemed worth being startled over.

[Are you mocking me for taking this form!]

“…Not really.”

[You’re too brief with your words! I’m a demon named by the Demon King himself!]

The demon struck a pose with his arms on his waist, huffing indignantly.

“Where did they go?”

Her question held a hint of concern. Regrettably, Rael had to admit she was worried about Rubellan.

[Who knows? Maybe to what you humans call hell.]

“Aren’t you worried?”

It was strange to see him so relaxed when he claimed to be Rubellan’s loyal servant.

[Hmph. Foolish human. Who do you think our Demon King is?]

“Rubellan?”

[Our Demon King’s power is beyond anyone’s reach. Even his pure-blooded demon brothers! Why do you think those haughty brothers bow down after losing the Demon King’s throne?]

“Power?”

[If the Demon King wanted, he could blow away the entire demon realm with one hand!]

The little fairy displayed strong faith in his master. She had thought demons were selfish and individualistic.

“Do all demons… kill and eat people?”

[Disgusting!]

Joseph looked at her with a revolted expression, making Rael wonder if she had made a mistake.

[We elegantly drain life force. Well, occasionally some perverted ones do eat humans alive…]

So they do kill and eat people. Indeed.

[Anyway, that’s not my taste!]

Killing people as a matter of taste? She didn’t know how to respond to that.

[Besides, this incident will cause an uproar among the brothers.]

“There are other brothers?”

[Lord Juletan is the Demon King’s third brother! The former Demon King had five children in total, with our Rubellan being the youngest!]

Five children, and the youngest became the Demon King.

[The demon realm’s hierarchy is strictly determined by power! That’s why our Rubellan became the Demon King! Though he did face some hardships…]

“About the bloodline Juletan mentioned?”

[That’s right! The Demon King’s mother was a lower-level dream— Wait! Why am I spilling everything to a human!]

Joseph covered his mouth, which had been freely answering everything. If he revealed too much, he might incur Rubellan’s displeasure.

[Human woman! You’re skilled at extracting information!]

He was the one chattering away willingly, what a fuss.

“But why did he come to the academy?”

[Obviously to get the golden apple!]

“Golden apple?”

[Don’t you know what’s in Herman’s vault?]

“No. I only know there is a vault.”

[The golden apple is a crystal made from the essence of extinct dragons. Eating it grants an immortal body!]

A crystal that grants immortality. It seemed strange that such a remarkable item would be casually kept at the academy.

“It’s surprising the academy has remained intact all this time.”

[The vault is absolutely impenetrable, even for our great Demon King! Herman poured all his talent into that vault!]

“…I see.”

It seemed like a waste of talent.

“Why go through all this trouble if he can’t open it anyway?”

Rael found it amusing that her peaceful daily life had been shattered for a mere apple.

[He can open it if he finds the key! It definitely exists!]

“Key…?”

Something flashed through her mind. The key she had picked up by chance on the day the library exploded.

‘Could it be…’

Her suspicion quickly solidified into certainty. If all this chaos at the academy had been caused by that key she had found by chance, it would be truly absurd.

“……”

Rael silently gazed down from the towering bell tower.

* * *

As time passed, Joseph’s chatter faded, and drowsiness washed over Rael. The cool dawn breeze made her body languid.

Slowly, her body tilted toward the bell tower pillar, seeking support.

Flutter.

Her thin clothes fluttered in the wind, but Rael was sinking deeper into the quagmire of sleep.

And she wasn’t the only one asleep. Joseph, who had been wailing and spilling all sorts of secrets, was also asleep, leaning against her body. Demons didn’t need sleep, but Joseph, a lower-level demon, was particularly vulnerable to drowsiness.

“……”

Returning to the bell tower with his large bat wings flapping, Rubellan scratched the back of his neck at the sight.

“What kind of scene is this?”

The situation was laughable. Neither a human peacefully sleeping next to a demon, nor a demon drooling while leaning on a human was a common sight.

While Rubellan was chuckling in disbelief, Joseph’s body tilted and found its way to Rael’s lap. Finding his position comfortable, he sprawled out and scratched his belly.

Displeased with this sight, Rubellan grabbed Joseph by the wing and unceremoniously tossed him down from the bell tower.

[Ack!]

Joseph’s startled voice rang out, followed shortly by grumbling.

[Such a temper… That’s why…]

Joseph rubbed the bump on the back of his head, spread his wings, and flew away.

“With such a carefree personality, no wonder he’s survived this long.”

Rubellan didn’t mind the sight of Rael sleeping soundly despite the situation.

His body slid sideways just as Joseph’s had done. His shoulder was soaked with red blood.

After briefly looking down at his shoulder, Rubellan closed his eyes. He was exhausted. He just wanted to fall asleep to the rhythm of her intermittent breathing.

If his brothers knew about these feelings, they would once again despise his “impure blood.” The desire to sleep was characteristic of lower demons.

“Rubellan?”

The weight on her shoulder caused Rael to open her eyes and notice Rubellan’s presence.

“Rubellan… are you okay?”

“Yes.”

Rael had many things to say to him. But strangely, her first question was one of concern.

“What happened to him?”

“Who knows. He’s probably having his body torn apart somewhere in the demon realm’s abyss by now.”

In the demon realm’s underground abyss, there were serpents that even demons couldn’t handle. “Serpents” was a cute term for monsters the size of the academy building.

After a moment of silence, Rubellan slowly opened his mouth.

“Why don’t you ask?”

“Hm?”

“Who I am. Why I’m here. Why I deceived you.”

“…Well, you must have your reasons.”

In truth, Rael was afraid of asking questions and getting answers. She feared that learning more about this being would entangle her irrevocably.

Confused blue eyes met red ones.

‘Ah.’

In that moment, she realized she was already hopelessly entangled with this being.

“…I have four brothers.”

His lips parted, and Rael focused on his voice.

“They are pure-blooded demons, and I was the ugly duckling born from the womb of a lower-level succubus.”

“Ah….”

His voice was matter-of-fact, without a trace of sadness.

“No one expected me to survive. Because unlike them, pure-blooded demons, I didn’t have an immortal body.”

Rubellan didn’t know why he was telling her this. Something about this human made him want to open up.

“But ironically, the most of my father’s power resided in me, the ‘half-breed’ they spoke of. No, even more than that.”

“……”

“From their perspective, I’m a thorn in their side. They think if I disappear, my power will return to them.”

A demon’s power doesn’t vanish. It merely transfers.

“So I always have to crush my brothers. In truth, that’s too easy.”

Rael sensed a loneliness underlying Rubellan’s nonchalant voice. Was she crazy to think it was fortunate he had such power?

“You asked why your body heats up when I kiss you. That’s because of my mother’s ability. This is the first time I’ve been glad for the ability I once despised.”

“I see.”

Now all the situations made sense.

“…Why are you telling me this?”

“I wonder. Why indeed.”

Even Rubellan himself couldn’t understand.

“…Perhaps I just want consolation.”

Leaning against Rael, Rubellan no longer had wings or horns on his back and head. He seemed like a human seeking comfort.

She had thought demons were all vicious, selfish beings devoid of emotions, as portrayed in folklore. That was a misconception.

Rael’s hand moved toward Rubellan’s head. Her fingers swam through his soft, black hair.

So demons were also living beings with emotions.

“You’ve worked hard.”

What an inadequate consolation. Worked hard to stay alive? Worked hard tearing apart his brother? What kind of effort was she referring to?

Yet Rael wanted to say it. She wanted to acknowledge his entire life’s struggle.

“You really have worked hard.”

Rubellan’s lips curved into a smile. The human’s awkward consolation tickled his heart.

Thud.

Rubellan’s body collapsed onto Rael’s lap. Instantly, her skirt was stained with blood, and only then did Rael realize he was wounded.

“Rubellan!”