The black-haired youth closed his eyes, took out a dagger and cut his finger, blood droplets rolling from his fingertip, landing on her body. The scarlet marks connected into a seal, the spell giving the pattern life, etching into her flesh and bone.
Starting from her chest, a flame both blazing and icy squeezed into her blood vessels, spreading throughout her body. The sealed area had a burning-like dull pain, yet incomparable to the pain of demonic power. Her temples throbbed, her heartbeat growing faster, drowning out all sounds.
Nelly curled up, wanting to bite her lip to suppress her moans. Karl Sas embraced her, his fingertips stopping her lip’s movement, separating her tightly clenched teeth, letting her bite down. He whispered to her: “I will share the pain with you.”
The pain came and went, ultimately fading in his embrace.
Nelly opened her eyes, dust dancing in the morning light. She turned her head to see the black-haired youth sleeping beside her, his eyebrows slightly furrowed.
She reached out to smooth his brow, and Karl Sas, sleeping lightly, opened his eyes hazily to look at her. They both paused, then simultaneously laughed.
Nelly saw his expression suddenly freeze, couldn’t help but raise an eyebrow in doubt: “What’s wrong?”
Karl Sas revealed a somewhat cunning smile, lowering his eyelids: “Nothing.”
She knew him well enough to know these three words carried no sincerity at all. Nelly was stunned, reaching behind her in a daze. Smooth, warm wings were indeed spreading behind her. Her hand belatedly explored her head, undoubtedly touching the pointed horns.
Karl Sas also sat up, waving his hand to conjure a mercury mirror, revealing her appearance.
The edges of her blue irises showed gold, horns growing from her hair, white wings spreading behind her, more pointed and delicate than Karl Sas’s outline. Nelly stared at the unfamiliar reflection in the mirror, silent for a long time.
Karl Sas became uneasy in this ambiguous silence, restraining the smile on his face, his red eyes dimming slightly, turning away.
Nelly suddenly spoke: “A half-demon actually has white wings, how would angels feel about that…”
She looked at the demon king’s dazed expression and chuckled: “What are you worrying about? I won’t regret it.” She tiptoed, gracefully spinning in the air, her skirt lifting.
Karl Sas finally came to his senses, his cheeks slightly reddened, silently lowering his gaze to hide his unnaturalness, yet unable to resist peeking at her figure from under his eyelashes.
Nelly met his gaze openly, pursing her lips in a smile.
“How do I retract this form?”
Facing Nelly’s question, Karl Sas unusually played coy, drawing out his tone: “Hmm…”
Nelly glared at him, trying to sound fierce: “Don’t tell me you’re hiding something from me, hm?”
The morning light fell from behind her, spilling between Kalsas’s eyebrows, his ruby-like eyes sparkling brilliantly, his entire face seeming to glow, “I don’t want to tell you for now.”
Naily was choked by the Demon King’s shameless temper, letting out an unbelievable monosyllable: “Ah?”
“Kalsas said righteously, watching Naily’s face turn completely red, blinking innocently with a face of ‘I’m stating a fact’.”
“If you don’t tell me soon… I’ll…” Naily became so embarrassed she started stammering, and simply made a gesture to escape through the window.
Kalsas reacted quickly, directly rushing behind her and embracing her, lowering his head to nuzzle her neck, softly saying: “I was joking. During these days of demon transformation, you can’t control yourself. When necessary, I will help you control it.”
“When necessary?”
“Yes.” Saying this, he held her shoulders and turned in a circle, facing her directly, his fingers sliding from her shoulder to the back of her hand, leaving a trail of subtle tingling. He suddenly stepped back and knelt on one knee: “Naily, will you be my wife, the mistress of Slos?”
“
Although not the first time being suddenly proposed to, Naily was still startled, her wings trembling nervously behind her. She quickly came to her senses, meeting Kalsas’s gaze and smiling: “I will.”
Naily felt her wings suddenly disappear. Looking back at the mercury mirror in the air, she saw her reflection had indeed returned to human form.
The Demon King stepped forward, softly correcting: “This is the necessary moment.”
Before Naily could comprehend the meaning, she found herself sinking into soft bedding, her words not yet reaching her tongue before being sealed by Kalsas’s lips.
“I read in books that the wedding night is one of the most important moments in a man’s life,” he smiled, his eyes and jawline softening.
Naily’s breathing was slightly rapid, struggling once more: “But it’s still daytime…”
The Demon King waved his hand decisively, and a night-time barrier spread out, the room walls becoming a starry sky.
Kalsas’s breath was circling down from her earlobe.
“Naily, I love you.”
“I love you too.”
From that moment, a demon resided in half her heart, magic flowing in her blood, each heartbeat a promise.
But one day, while reading alone in the library, a long-dormant system interface suddenly jumped out, and a cold female voice, disregarding Naily’s will, stubbornly rang in her ears:
“Guide 1028, please execute your mission, or the world will be destroyed.”
Naily’s face stiffened, silent for a long time. She covered her face with her hands and slowly slid down against the stone pillar, sitting on the ground.
She had been too optimistic and naive, and could now only call herself foolish.
The happiness of the past half year was nothing but an illusion. Her love, her joy, was a flower of evil grown on the blood of countless innocent people.
All she could do was break it with her own hands.
“What should I do?
“Taking a deep breath, Naily raised her head, her voice icy.
“Kill the Demon King.”
Naily closed her eyes and smiled weakly: “I’m afraid I can’t do that.”
The system was silent for a moment before compromising: “Please open the demon’s cave. The Demon King has forcibly sealed the entrance for a long time, preventing heroes from entering.”
Kalsas told her everything. She knew all of Slos’s secrets and possessed half of the demon’s power. Yes, she knew how to break the door’s seal.
“Then what? Wait for the hero to come and kill him?”
The system did not answer.
Naily began to laugh softly, sounding somewhat abnormal. She wiped her eyes with the back of her hand and whispered: “I will atone, but… after this is over, can I go home early?”
After a brief silence, the system replied: “Yes.”
Her wish had come true, but Naily felt no joy at all. She rose with a numb expression, extended her hand, closed her eyes, and concentrated on drawing a not-too-complex magic circle. As the last stroke connected, a dull sound of a door opening came from below. Naily wearily closed her eyes again and asked flatly: “I’ve always wanted to know, what would happen if I died in this world?”
The system hesitated for a moment before answering: “We preserve the souls of all guides. As long as the soul is not extinguished, you can return to your original world after completing the mission.”
Naily keenly caught the loophole: “So there are cases where souls can be annihilated?”
This time, the system simply refused to answer: “Guide 1028, the hero has entered the demon’s cave.”
Hearing this, Naily hunched her shoulders, buried her face in her knees, and muttered: “Well. System, I have one more request.”
With no response, she continued as if it were tacitly approved: “Can you give me a weapon that can truly destroy a soul?”
“Why?”
“I understand demons better than you.”
