Chapter 17
Chapter 17
“Gasp! Blood! Blood! She’s bleeding!”
A shrill scream rang out nearby. Regnator’s frantic, stammering voice, more panicked than ever, made my head buzz.
‘Ah…’
The awkward smile faded from my lips. The metallic tang that seeped into my mouth made me instinctively move my tongue and push the taste out. I had no intention of swallowing what had come down from my nose.
I thought I had spat it out along with the pooled saliva in my mouth, but the sensation was closer to something trickling down. The arms holding me flinched sharply again.
Regnator’s frantic voice grew more distant and a high-pitched, ringing noise pierced my ears.
Now that I thought about it, I hadn’t even realized how much my forehead hurt since it had slammed straight into the ground when I fell. I blinked slowly, trying to look at Lucifer, but my vision began to tunnel.
“Bella, Bel…”
Even Lucifer’s voice was fading. I could no longer make out the words. I didn’t think the fall was that bad but it was actually this serious. As my consciousness slipped away, the last thing I saw was Lucifer’s face. He looked genuinely pale for the first time.
***
Lucifer, whose skin was already pale to the point of looking sickly, had turned ghost-white. If that wasn’t a hallucination, then what was? As my awareness slowly returned, I almost let out a laugh at the memory of that illusion.
Then I abruptly remembered that I had passed out and my eyes flew open. And upon waking up, what I saw was the now-familiar bedroom. My forehead throbbed, and my nose, where the bleeding had started, still ached, but other than that, there was no significant pain. For someone who had fainted, the recovery was remarkably swift. This body really was surprisingly resilient.
Because the room was dim and gave no indication of day or night, I decided to get up and check things out. I began to wiggle and squirm.
“Don’t get up yet.”
A voice came from the other side of the bed. I hadn’t even noticed someone was there.
‘Good grief…’
It had been so quiet that I assumed I was alone. This room was always dark unless a light was turned on. Normally, Lucifer kept a small lamp on for my sake. But right now, even that wasn’t lit. I turned my head and just barely made out Lucifer lying next to me, watching.
If not for his crimson eyes floating in the dark, I wouldn’t have noticed him at all.
“Ah-ppa!”
Even though I had dismissed it as a hallucination, the image of his pale face lingered like a hangnail, and I unconsciously called out to him with relief. It felt like if I didn’t hold on to him somehow, I would vanish. It was a strange feeling. But as soon as I confirmed Lucifer’s presence in the darkness, my relief deepened as if it were the most natural thing in the world.
His red eyes, hidden in the dark, trembled subtly.
Lucifer didn’t blink, didn’t speak, and didn’t reach out. He just stared at me for what felt like ages, until I called out to him five more times then, finally, he slid over to me.
‘He probably just wanted to hear me say ‘Dad’ a few more times.’
It was starting again, like training a stubborn dog. Lucifer had a habit of making me repeat babbling sounds or actions just because he liked them. At first, I thought he was insane. But after about five repetitions, I realized he simply wanted to enjoy those sounds and gestures a little longer.
After that, I played along until he was satisfied. I didn’t mind seeing his pleased smile was quite nice.
Snap.
He flicked his fingers, and a soft flame lit the candle on the bedside table.
“Are you hurting anywhere?”
“Oh-bbu!”
“So, nowhere.”
To assure him I was fine, I beamed a big smile. I thrust my hands out and opened and closed my fists a few times to emphasize how well I was. Lucifer twitched an eyebrow and scooped me into his arms.
“You enjoy being in my arms that much?”
Apparently, my gestures had looked more like begging to be held than proving I was healthy. I felt a wave of embarrassment but the truth was, I did like being held by him, so I smiled quietly.
“Appua! Kyahaha!”
Even if I were clueless, no one, especially not Lucifer, would misinterpret the innocent joy of a baby happily being in their father’s arms. Lucifer wore a strange expression as he sat me on his thigh and gently placed his hand on my forehead.
“Don’t ever do something so foolish again.”
“Ububua!”
‘Foolish?’
I only did it because I was worried about you, you know. I stamped my feet in protest, but he didn’t budge. Instead, his hand pressed firmly against my forehead, making it clear that defiance wouldn’t be tolerated. A cool sensation spread from his touch. The throbbing pain vanished as if washed away.
Despite his scolding, he was healing me so I couldn’t help but smile. That’s when something unfamiliar caught my eye.
“Oya?”
I folded my little legs and pointed at it with a stubby finger. Lucifer let out a soft laugh.
“It’s something that will protect you from now on.”
“Ah?”
“I can’t bear to see you bleed in front of me again.”
I tilted my head at his cryptic words. Around my plump ankle was a red anklet I hadn’t seen before.
It was a smooth, seamless ring. It was plain, and without patterns, sized perfectly so it wouldn’t fall off.
‘Won’t it hurt when I crawl around…?’
Though I had started walking, I still occasionally crawled. Jewelry on a baby felt impractical, possibly even painful. As if reading my mind, Lucifer gently stroked my head.
“Think of it as part of your body. You won’t even feel it.”
“Ah… oh?”
Bewildered, I blinked and Lucifer chuckled again.
“Your curiosity… doesn’t seem to come from your mother.”
“……”
“Perhaps it’s from me.”
If I resemble anyone, wouldn’t it be my real father, the hero I’d never seen? The thought crossed my mind briefly. But I was me. I resembled no one. Still, I said nothing. Lucifer’s musing carried a faint sadness that tugged at my heart.
“… You’ll come to resemble me.”
It sounded almost like a wish. I didn’t like how Lucifer sometimes let those unreadable feelings slip. Was it because he looked lonely? Maybe because he reminded me of when I was alone in my past life. Or maybe… I just didn’t know why.
As I mulled over my swirling thoughts, Lucifer tapped the crown of my head gently, as if sensing everything.
“What are you thinking about, with a head the size of a fist?”
“Uwa!”
“No need to overthink. Lie down for now.”
“Uuuu.”
“I heard you had a concussion. Human skulls are fragile. How can you be so careless?”
Lucifer clicked his tongue, clearly displeased. He laid me back down on the bed.
“Do you have any idea how hard the floor you fell on was?”
How would I know that? I smacked my lips in mild frustration, but Lucifer didn’t hide his disapproval.
“You should be thankful your head didn’t crack open.”
He was obviously talking about my skull. Whatever that floor was made of, one thing was clear: my body was abnormally tough. Under normal circumstances, I probably would’ve been seriously injured. But here I was; intact.
I wasn’t sleepy anymore, having napped so much, but with Lucifer’s face right in front of me, something I could never get tired of, boredom was out of the question.
Seeing my wide-awake eyes, Lucifer uncharacteristically started talking more than usual.
“I thought you were just foolish, but it turns out you’re also reckless. I can’t let you outside.”
“……”
“But I can’t keep you locked away either.”
“……”
“So even if you do go out… I’ll make sure you never bleed again.”
“……”
“A Demon King’s daughter can’t go around spilling blood.”
His upturned lips looked almost wicked but oddly enough, I felt a swell of pride. I wanted to shout to the world: This man is my dad! Feeling warm and content, I giggled and smiled. As Lucifer’s hand covered my face, I let out a muffled laugh and eventually stopped squirming, closing my eyes.
Maybe I really had a concussion because my baby body quickly drifted off to sleep. Even as I slipped into slumber, I could feel his gaze lingering on my face.
“Don’t worry. I won’t lose you.”
His voice reached me just before I fell asleep. It sounded deep, and tinged with sorrow.
***
Regnator was a prominent figure in the Demon Realm, a close aide to the Demon King and one of its most powerful beings. In this survival-of-the-fittest world, he was second only to the Demon King. Possessing terrifying abilities even fellow demons feared, Regnator had always been a symbol of dread.
Yet lately, at official meetings, he showed up with a perpetually gloomy face, looking more like a corpse than a commander. Those who knew his temperament were horrified. If he had gone on one of his psychotic rages, that would’ve been normal but depression? That was far worse.
After a week of this, the demon nobility couldn’t take it anymore. They ran to Morus, his only friend.
“What on earth is happening?” they cried. “What’s going on at the Demon King’s castle? Are we all going to die?”
Their outcry was partly because even the Demon King had vanished for a week. He skipped meetings and left no trace. The thing was; to see him was terrifying and not to see him was also terrifying.
All they wanted was to know why. To have something to hold on to. In the end, Morus let out a long sigh and set off.
“What the hell is going on?” she asked, bursting through Regnator’s door.
He already had a good idea. It had to be about the Demon King’s daughter.
(TN: Regnator is such a pitiful demon, haha)
