After finishing dinner, I heated the bath and got in.
The bathroom was spacious enough, but it wasn’t big enough for all four of us.
And so, we decided to go to bed…
“Ahavain-sama, let’s sleep together tonight.”
Saying this, Arnella and Noel, dressed in their nightclothes, clung to me and wouldn’t let go.
It didn’t feel bad being embraced by beautiful girls, but honestly, it was a bit stifling.
“It doesn’t seem like there are any strange things left in the house anymore.”
“Even so, just thinking about running into one of those things alone…”
They were probably referring to the twisted woman we encountered at the entrance and the long-armed female ghost in the bathroom.
Honestly, if I ran into one of them in the dark, I might scream too.
Well, if this is what calms them down, I’ll let it be. It’s part of my job to ease their anxieties.
Mastema, after finishing her bath, quickly fell asleep. She tried to sleep naked, so Arnella hurriedly dressed her in nightclothes.
Do demons catch illnesses? I wish she’d stop simply because it’s indecent.
Feeling reassured by holding onto me, the two slaves soon started snoring.
It was the first day at the academy today, and a lot happened.
It’s no wonder they’re exhausted.
I’ve also left the cleaning of the house and other chores to them.
I’m tired too. Time to sleep.
Slowly, I closed my eyes and drifted into slumber.
—In the middle of the night, I suddenly woke up.
Given how tired I was, I thought I wouldn’t wake until morning, but being awake now must mean my instincts were at work.
The slaves were still asleep beside me, but at some point, they had let go of my hands.
When I opened my eyes, Mastema’s face was right in front of me.
Her frighteningly beautiful face was staring down at me.
Her red eyes gleamed brightly.
My body tensed up in response.
“What is it?”
When I asked, Mastema raised her right index finger to her lips and whispered a small “shh.”
She was telling me not to make noise, so as not to wake the others.
What in the world is going on?
This was more like the Mastema I met at the beginning, not the childlike version of her that had developed emotions recently—this was Mastema, the demon.
I slowly got up.
Arnella and Noel were sound asleep, showing no signs of waking up.
The room was dark, only silhouettes were faintly visible.
Mastema gestured for me to follow her with her hand, so I did.
Slowly.
The only sounds were the creaking of the floor with each step and the ticking of the clock.
We climbed the stairs. I started feeling that strange presence again, the one I thought had disappeared.
The noise from each step on the stairs was unbearably loud.
…Instinctively, I reached for my waist, but my sword wasn’t there.
I glanced at Mastema. She was wearing the black dress I had given her earlier.
We reached the second floor, and Mastema led me to the back.
When she opened the door at the far end, beyond it was nothing but pitch black.
I couldn’t see a thing.
Even though my eyes had adjusted to the darkness after keeping them closed earlier, I still couldn’t see anything.
Mastema beckoned me into this bottomless darkness.
My thoughts were sluggish.
Every time I tried to think, something interfered, and my feet moved toward the darkness.
The closer I got to the door, the wider Mastema’s smile seemed to grow.
In the darkness, her red eyes and mouth were clearly visible.
She looked exactly like… a demon.
“Fool, don’t go that way.”
As those words echoed, someone grabbed me by the neck and flung me backward.
“Who dares impersonate me without my permission? Do you realize I am Mastema, servant of Demon Lord Demogorgon?”
A demonic aura of overwhelming power surged, and the eerie atmosphere around us recoiled in fear.
The one who had grabbed me was the real Mastema.
“You wretched thing. I was merciful enough to let you escape when you fled from me in fear, and this is how you repay me? Clinging to this world like garbage?”
This was anger. Mastema was visibly furious.
She must have felt disrespected.
For a demon, the most important things are contracts and pride.
Being disrespected means having their contract disregarded.
In other words, being seen as weak is the ultimate shame.
So I was deceived. I let my guard down a little.
If I had stepped into that darkness, I probably wouldn’t have returned so easily.
Back when I was an adventurer, I always carried my celestial sword with me, but my instincts had dulled.
I reached out into the void, searching for my connection to the celestial sword.
As I did, the sword flew into my hand.
The sword trembled. It was a bit angry.
Both the angel and the demon were angry, and oh boy, this didn’t bode well.
The angel appeared, absorbing my magic after a long absence.
“You’re an idiot, falling for such a simple trick. And to think you were saved by a demon.”
“Yeah, I know.”
Mastema approached the figure that had taken her form.
Looking closely, Mastema was far more beautiful.
She struck the pitch-black space beyond the door, shattering it completely.
Behind it, a regular room slowly came into view.
The imitation of Mastema cracked all over as the space collapsed, and red blood began flowing from its body.
“What is this?”
“Sigh. A human who defeated me almost got taken down by this kind of trash? It’s the remnants of those things from earlier today.”
“I thought they ran away in fear of you?”
“Most did. But some fools who couldn’t grasp the difference in power must have been hiding until now.”
With that, Mastema grabbed the fake by its neck.
“You’re not even worth eating. Begone.”
As she squeezed, the imitation shattered completely.
The shards tried to flee past Mastema’s feet, but the angel incinerated them with light.
“How sloppy. Demon.”
“…Angel. So, you’re still here.”
It was the first time Mastema and the angel had encountered each other since the battle.
It seemed like things might escalate, but Mastema withdrew her presence first.
“I’ve no interest in a mere remnant of an angel. I’ve done what I needed. I’m going to bed.”
As she passed by, she gave me a swift kick.
It hurt.
“Straighten up.”
Honestly, to think I’d get a scolding from a demon.
Maybe I was getting a bit too careless.
After that, Mastema started snoring as she slept.
I too went back to sleep, and the rest of the night passed without incident.
