Chapter 21

Chapter 21

“Hic, hicc…”

Hirphus whimpered weakly as if he were suffocating, writhing in distress.

‘Put him down right now! I said put him down!’

I protested, slapping Regnator’s hand. Tears welled up in my eyes, afraid that this poor puppy might really die right before me.

“Lady Bella? What’s wrong?”

No, it’s absolutely not because I saw myself reflected in the fragile and delicate form of this puppy. But might not be the case. Seeing my eyes begin to glisten, Regnator flinched in shock and hastily placed Hirpus down on the carpet.

Whether he ‘placed’ him or ‘threw’ him was questionable.

‘You brute!’

Afraid he might snatch Hirpus away again, I hugged the squirming puppy tightly to my chest.

“Lady Bella, what troubles you? Hm? If the gift isn’t to your liking, I’ll prepare something else. Please, just look this way, yes?”

Regnator babbled nonstop with excuses that weren’t really excuses, but I shut my ears and refused to listen. I had already exhausted all the emotional energy I could spend on him today.

With my lips sealed tight and Hirpus held closely in my arms, I held my ground. When Lucifer returned late and saw the situation, though he didn’t know the full story, he simply told them to let me do as I pleased. Of course, seeing the tears in my eyes, Lucifer wordlessly caused another huge hole to appear in Regnator’s stomach.

But since Regnator could take that without issue, I wasn’t even shocked this time. Instead, I thought he got what he deserved.

‘Hmph!’

Thanks to Lucifer, the situation was resolved, and with a lighter heart, I finally placed Hirpus down on the carpet, who I’d been hugging all day. I gently stroked his body, soft fur meeting my fingers. The feeling was better than the carpet beneath us, which made me feel even happier.

One way or another, I was now able to raise Hirpus.

‘Thank goodness.’

Relieved, I found the tiny, adorable creature in front of me all the more endearing.

It helped that I had previously imagined ‘Hirphus the demonic beast’ to be a massive, terrifying demon bull with horns and an intimidating figure. Perhaps it was his small, gentle appearance. Or maybe it was because he was a mutant unlike anything else in the demon realm.

Whatever it was, I felt a sense of empathy.

That longing made me forgive Regnator, whose actions I had resented, as easily as snow melting under the sun.

* * *

Though I wasn’t thrilled with the fact that Regnator referred to him as an ‘attachment doll,’ I had to admit: gifting Hirpus to me was the best thing he’d ever done.

‘He actually did something good.’

In my past life, I was always lonely.

It was natural since I had no friends. I used to wonder if having a pet would make things a little better, but that was nearly impossible in my situation. Pets were expensive. I lived in a tiny studio apartment, which made raising anything difficult. I didn’t even have enough time to spend with one.

All I could do was dream that maybe someday I could buy one. Now, thanks to Regnator, that dream had unexpectedly come true.

‘Mwahaha!’

Overwhelmed with joy, I rolled around laughing inside my head like a madwoman.

“Puhihi—” 

A giggle escaped from my lips then Lucifer gave me a suspicious look but said nothing. Anyway, Lucifer’s reaction wasn’t my concern right now. My attention was completely focused on Hirpus.

‘How can a creature be this cute?’

For a demonic beast, Hirpus was incredibly docile. By now, the term ‘demonic beast’ seemed laughable because he looked just like a fluffy little dog. He didn’t even pant with his tongue out. He was just… a soft, fuzzy puppy.

‘So fluffy…’

Touching that silky fur as it slid between my stubby fingers gave me a warm, joyful feeling. It was like a ray of light had pierced through the harsh, sorrowful life I’d endured in the demon realm. Unable to resist the happiness, I buried my face into Hirpus’s body and let out a soft laugh.

One might expect some resistance at this point, but Hirpus didn’t even flinch. Maybe he had already given up after enduring this for over a week. He simply lay limp no matter what I did.

‘No way he’s really given up, right?’

Either way, it didn’t matter. I snuggled him closer and rolled on the floor, not satisfied until I’d pressed him into my chest.

“Kek!”

At last, Hirpus kicked his legs in protest. He looked like he was choking, coughing pitifully. A phrase came to mind that excessive affection isn’t good for pets.

‘Was I hugging too tightly?’

Just in case, I relaxed my grip. Even though I was in a baby’s body, I figured I couldn’t be that strong. Still, Hirpus was a baby too so it was better to be careful.

‘Right. He’s a mutant too, so maybe he was born weaker.’

Feeling bad, I gently patted his body and whispered an apology. Hirpus rolled his eyes back and let out a choking gasp before collapsing limp again. He looked like he had passed out.

“Lady Bella seems to like him more than I expected.”

“……She even tries to sleep hugging him.”

Lucifer, now returned to his usual composed self, sat on the sofa and muttered disapprovingly while watching me and Hirpus. Regnator, hearing this, murmured that he hadn’t expected me to go that far.

“I’ve done some research, and apparently humans call beasts they raise and keep by their side like Lady Bella does… companion dogs.”

“Companion? That thing? You’re saying that thing could become Bella’s companion?”

What were they talking about now? Their ridiculous conversation made me want to sigh. Normally I would’ve ignored it, but Lucifer’s voice was filled with sharp displeasure.

And it wasn’t just because he was annoyed—he was recalling the previous night’s argument we had over this very thing.

[‘No.’]

[‘Mhm!’]

[‘You dare suggest sleeping in the same place as that thing?’]

[‘Oh!’]

[‘Letting that creature stay in my territory was already a big concession.’]

[‘Mhm.’]

[‘If you truly wish to sleep with it, I’ll kill it. That’s allowed.’]

[‘…….’]

[‘No living being may stay near me, Bella.’]

[‘…….’]

[‘Except for you, of course.’]

That chilling exchange with Lucifer resurfaced in my mind. So I couldn’t ignore the current conversation. Lucifer, recalling that same night, now spoke with unmistakable menace.

“Well, it’s not quite that, but… if that thing stays by Lady Bella’s side forever, it’d be nearly the same as a companion.”

“Unthinkable. A lowly beast dares claim a place beside Bella?”

“Indeed. It may act meek now, but Hirpus is a dirty species. If, by some miracle, it grows and forgets its place…”

“It’s bothersome that Bella is so attached to it.”

“Your instincts are never wrong, Lucifer. Should I take care of it now?”

A murderous aura began to rise from the two demon lords. It didn’t even take a full minute for that poor beast to go from puppy to potential lifetime mate in their warped interpretation.

Snapping out of my daze, I looked at the two of them.

I was just showing affection for a cute puppy, what was so grand about that? Weren’t they the ones who said it was just a doll, a gift because of my first step?

Now, after just a week, their attitude had turned 180 degrees. Silently, I pulled Hirpus back onto my lap.

‘Sigh. You and I both… the demon realm really is a place where survival is always threatened.’

As if sensing danger, Hirpus curled up as tightly as he could. I could feel his trembling through our contact. He was clearly terrified.

‘He’s already so nervous around Lucifer that he can barely stretch out his body.’

It made sense. A baby demonic beast, barely born, in the same space as a demon king, of course he couldn’t even breathe freely. If not for me keeping Lucifer and Regnator in check, Hirpus probably wouldn’t have lasted this long.

‘Regnator grumbled that he wasn’t suppressing his aura for Hirpus’s sake, but still…’

Seeing the tiny creature fidgeting on my lap made me tear up. I gently patted his head and subtly tucked him behind me.

“…….”

“Mm.”

Seeing this, both Lucifer and Regnator furrowed their brows at the same time. They knew exactly what my gesture meant. After all, they had just been planning to kill Hirpus. There was no room for misinterpretation.

The way I had treated Hirpus over the past week was very clear.

“But Lady Bella seems to like him so much…”

“……”

“If we get rid of the beast and she resents us… what then?”

Regnator’s brows furrowed in concern, apparently dreading even the possibility of me hating him.

‘You’re already hated though.’

Considering everything he’d done to me so far, he didn’t just deserve hate, he deserved resentment. And yet he stood there, confidently assuming I liked him.

‘I guess it’s because I don’t actually hate him for real.’

No matter how ridiculous his actions were, they were always rooted in concern for me. That made it impossible to truly hate him. Affection is never one-sided unless the person is truly heartless. But Lucifer casually spoke in a tone that made it sound like it was no big deal.

“Then accept it.”

“Well, if you’re so fine with it, why don’t you do it?”

“You haven’t died recently, have you?”

“Please don’t say such hurtful things. Have you forgotten how you punctured my stomach?”

“That was ages ago.”

“It’s been less than a week.”

“Then it’s about time you died again.”

“Go ahead and kill me. Either way, I’m not doing it, my Lord.”

Regnator boldly jutted out his stomach, placing his hands on his hips, essentially saying go ahead and stab me again.

TN: What do you think of today’s chapter? Haha, Regnator is truly entertaining yet hopeless