"I just don't understand how nothing could've happened!" Lusamine complained as she walked through the front door of the manor.
"We fed that gluttonous little tree ten humans!"
Eris was trailing behind her and smiled bitterly.
'I wonder how she would react if I told her just how much more the tree actually needed.' She had to admit, when the qlipoth told her how many more humans it needed to feel satisfied, she was quite surprised herself.
Such an exorbitant number was not something that could be easily acquired.
"Oof!"
The dark elf was disturbed from her thoughts when she suddenly stumbled into the back of her friend who was frozen in shock.
"Lusamine? What on earth is the matter with you?"
The succubus didn't answer and instead, Eris followed her gaze towards the top of the stairs.
Zheng also popped out of Eris' shadow and all three simply stared in shock.
Sitting leisurely on the steps in between two children was the former demon lord of lust, Asmodeus.
"Well isn't this a nice surprise."He said with his signature charming smile.
As if that was all they needed to confirm his identity, all three kneeled in unison.
"We are delighted to see that our lord is healthy."
Lusamine spoke through a trail of tears running down her face and fought the urge to beg for forgiveness in failing her duty.
Eris and Zheng said nothing, but judging by the way the two were trembling in his presence, their emotions were equally turbulent.
"I'm glad to see you all are in good health as well. " Asmodeus said as he stood up, coming to a stop directly in front of his three kneeling subordinates.
Knowing that only these three remained of his army, he was grateful that they'd survived as much as he was regretful that they were the only ones to do so.
"But I am no longer a demon lord. Therefore you have no need to bow in front of me. "
Eris was the first to look up in horror. "B-but you still-!"
"Enough. Stand up."
The three shakily got to their feet, but they could not meet Asmodeus' eyes.
They were still much too ashamed.
"I already know what you wish to say. But your apologies are unnecessary." Asmodeus explained as he shook his head.
"Did you truly believe I would penalize you for our defeat? In the end I was no more victorious than you."He reasoned. "In the end I was no more than a dog for that filthy human ruler. It is only thanks to the grace of my son that I can stand here again, a man of my own will."
The usually silent Zheng could not help but speak. "My lord, we should have never allowed such a thing to-"
"How foolish." Asmodeus scoffed.
"You did not have to ALLOW anything. That is the point of a surprise attack." he reminded.
Zheng did not respond, instead looking down at the ground in shame.
He walked past his subordinates and headed towards the door. "I am going sightseeing. Please, collect yourselves before I return."
As his hand touched the handle, a thought suddenly occurred to him that gave him pause.
"Actually... I should be the ones apologizing to all of you. We shared the loss that day, yet only I was able to come back to my family. As your lord, I am truly sorry." With that solemn apology, Asmodeus left the manor leaving his three subordinates in a stunned silence.
"I guess we should've expected something like that, huh?" Lusamine said as she wiped her tears with a smile.
In truth, their lord had always been a bit different from the other demon lords.
While the other demon lords tended to see the demons under them as chess pieces to be moved at their leisure, Asmodeus did not share that way of thinking.
Perhaps because his sin of lust was so closely related with compassion, he tended to be more sentimental than his brothers and sister.
Looking back, they should've all known that he would never blame them for their defeat, much less punish them for it.
As if a weight had been lifted off their shoulders, they all breathed out an unconscious sigh of relief and silently thanked their lord for still being alive. The guilt that they'd been carrying around with them finally dissipating.
At the top of the staircase, the two sisters had watched the entire scene play out.
Mira was a bit uninterested in matters that did not concern her or her immediate family so she was currently snacking on her favorite treat.
Thea however, watched the entire scene and she could not help but have one burning question.
'Is it bad that I am a human?'
As the only human in a city filled with demons and a family of various races, it was rather easy for the young girl to feel a bit like the odd one out.
And as she heard her grandfather speak, he clearly showcased his disdain for the race that she belonged to.
Does that mean he hated her as well?
She wasn't aware of all of the details but she was aware that humans had done something bad to her grandparents a long time ago.
As someone who had experienced the cruelty of humans firsthand, Thea understood better than anyone the atrocities they were willing to commit.
But now, a part of her had begun to wonder if that evil were ingrained into her very DNA.
If that turned out to be true, would her family not abandon her later?
Such a thought made her clench her hands in frustration as her crystal blue eyes began to water.
She didn't want to be thrown away!
For the first time in her life she was truly happy and she did not want to lose it because of something as unfair as her humanity!
Even if it meant she had to forsake that part of herself, she would gladly do it to continue to walk alongside her family.
"...!"
Suddenly, Thea got an idea.
In the center of the city, there was a red fountain filled with her father's blood.
All of the other people in town had used it to change themselves so why couldn't she?
She knew her father said that it was dangerous but she wanted to take the risk!
If she could become a demon like her father, surely she would secure her place in the family and never be thrown away!
She looked towards her side and saw her younger sister absentmindedly gnawing on a cookie.
"Mira?"
pαпdα-ňᴏνê|·сóМ "Yesh?"
Thea leaned in closely and whispered in her sister's ear. "I need your help with something super important, okay?"
Mira's eyes gained a dazzling sparkle as she nodded furiously, her little fists clenched in anticipation. "Mira will do her best!"
Thea began to whisper her plan into the ear of her younger sister.
Mira did not fully understand the worry behind her sisters sudden decision, but that did not mean that she wouldn't do her best to help her!
"You got it?"
"Gots it!"
Thea smiled and took Mira's hand before the two of them prepared to leave the manor together.
The partners in crime both trying hard to suppress their sneaky smiles as they tiptoed silently to their room.
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