CHAPTER 07
“What are you talking about?”
I stopped moving my hands and looked at Sian.
The indifferent expression from before was gone, replaced by a confused look.
On my face, which probably looked like I had no idea what he meant, he continued speaking.
“This was not something for an ordinary person like you to handle. That kind of self-sacrifice…”
Ah.
I finally realized what Sian was talking about.
He was referring to the incident in the ant nest that I had saved.
Feeling a bit awkward, I adjusted the blanket and fidgeted with my hands.
‘I pretended to be human, but I’m actually the Demon King, so even without you, nothing would have gone wrong, and I just didn’t want to see someone die in front of me…’
What could I possibly say in front of the Grand Master of the Holy Knights?
Since I had collapsed under holy power, it seemed my identity as a demon had already been exposed.
After all, only demons are affected by holy power.
I struggled to find words to respond.
But Sian, perhaps interpreting my silence wrongly, spoke in a sharply agitated voice.
“I know you are a demon.”
“Ah…”
So it had been discovered.
I clenched my hands tightly.
‘There hasn’t been a single timeline where revealing I’m a demon ended well.’
Recalling past timelines made me instinctively consider fainting and escaping.
‘They seemed pretty strong. Can I control my power carefully enough?’
If I struck gently, there was a risk they wouldn’t faint; if too hard, there was a risk of killing them.
Caught in this dilemma, Sian spoke again.
“Do not be nervous. I have no intention of reporting you. Otherwise… I would have taken you to the temple immediately.”
Although he clearly tried to reassure me, I could not fully let my guard down.
“Why did you bring me here? …As you know, I’m a demon. You could have just left me in the demon world.”
“I could not leave my benefactor bleeding.”
‘A benefactor, huh. Quite the selfless type.’
Given his profession as a Holy Knight, even if he owed his life to someone, rescuing a demon must have been a serious dilemma.
Moreover, if I had been asleep for several days, he must have been away from the temple the whole time.
Unless he was on some sort of dispatch, Holy Knights cannot leave their post for days, right?
Recalling the past timelines while pondering, Sian asked.
“Did the administrator of the ant nest turn you into a demon?”
Ah, so that’s where his thoughts went.
Of course, he could not have expected that a newly born Demon King, hiding their identity, would save humans while wandering around.
Now I understood why Sian’s thoughts had gone in that direction.
I lowered my gaze and remained silent.
I could guess the image of me forming in Sian’s mind.
Someone who, trying to save others, got caught by demons and was forcibly turned into one — a pitiable person.
Sian seemed to interpret my silence as agreement.
He asked.
“Do you regret it?”
His eyes sank deeply.
“…”
I quietly met Sian’s gaze.
‘Do you regret saving me and the other humans?’
“No.”
For a moment, I saw his pupils tremble.
My answer was sincere; I hadn’t suffered any loss from my actions.
‘So don’t feel indebted to me. Go your way.’
Hearing my thoughts, Sian suddenly stood up.
“I’ll be back shortly.”
“Yes?”
“Don’t go anywhere. Stay here. Please.”
He left the room with a seriousness that made his plea resonate in my ears.
I could understand Sian’s intentions.
A Holy Knight must be altruistic to endure the profession.
But now, believing he owed his life to me,
‘He’ll want to repay it somehow.’
Still, that was his issue.
I had no reason to stay here to ease his conscience.
I also had no intention of playing games, especially ones that involved living in the human world with the Grand Master.
So…
‘Now’s the chance to go back.’
With Sian gone, I closed my eyes to focus and planned to open a portal back to the demon world.
As the Demon King, I possessed several inherent abilities.
One of them was opening and closing portals to the demon world.
All I needed to do was gather my mana and trace the air with my hand.
Or at least, that’s how it should have worked.
Since becoming possessed, gathering mana as naturally as breathing suddenly felt impossible.
I tried multiple times in panic, but nothing happened.
My body felt empty, and mana would not gather.
“This… can’t be…”
Without mana, I could not open a portal to the demon world.
I wasn’t even sure I could protect myself.
I had been confident because I was strong.
But experiencing this unfamiliar situation made sweat run down my spine.
‘I can’t return to the demon world.’
Images of Sian entering the demon world flashed in my mind.
If a dungeon opened nearby, I might use it to return.
But even returning as a powerless Demon King would be dangerous.
‘What should I do now?’
***
While I was trapped in this confusion, Sian returned quickly.
Seeing my disheveled face, he pretended to be surprised, then composed himself and spoke.
‘Shall we go for a short walk?’
I agreed, feeling the need to clear my head.
The walk was short, just around the house.
The village felt similar to the one I lived in during my human act in previous timelines.
The only difference was… no one else was walking around.
The quiet village carried a faintly lonely atmosphere.
Half a step ahead, Sian suddenly stopped.
The fountain, which should have been full of water, was dry and dusty.
Sian pointed to a long bench and said.
“Shall we sit?”
“Ah, yes.”
I sat down without much thought.
‘Hmm?’
When I looked back, Sian was standing holding a handkerchief.
‘…Was he going to place it down for me?’
I felt a twinge of guilt for not noticing such a knightly gesture.
“Should I stand?”
“No need.”
Sian folded the handkerchief neatly and put it into his chest.
“This situation must be very awkward for you.”
I remained silent.
He seemed to take my silence as affirmation, exhaling lightly as he looked down at me.
“I want to hear about what you experienced.”
“Uh… it’s not a very interesting story.”
I tried my best to evade the answer.
It was true — my days after meeting Sian were as tedious as in past timelines.
Nothing particularly different had happened…
‘Sian probably doesn’t want to hear something like this.’
He wanted to hear about how I saved him and the other humans, and how I stopped the administrator alone.
He wanted to know what hardships I endured.
‘Trying to console me?’
Since he promised to watch over me, he might want me to feel more responsibility.
But…
‘Why should I feel responsible for him?’
If I were forced to stay by his side, I would comply.
I had already experienced enough cruel situations through multiple timelines.
The most natural way to lie was to mix truth with falsehood.
I could deceive Sian by blending my experiences with selective truths without raising suspicion.
But why bother?
I had no reason to stay with Sian.
Even though I could not immediately return to the demon world, it did not mean I had to endure hardships for a Holy Knight.
‘No need to fake hardships I didn’t experience.’
I smiled bitterly and slightly lowered my head.
“Are you okay?”
“I’m fine. It’s just…”
His voice trembled slightly as he trailed off.
“…It’s a little hard to even recall it.”
It must have been tough. How tedious it had been.
“It was something I never want to experience again.”
Indeed, I never wanted to experience it again. I had gone through it far too much.
“So… I really don’t want to talk about it. Can you understand?”
I spoke the last sentence while raising my head to look at Sian.
His expression darkened.
“I anticipated that this would trouble you…”
No, I was simply speaking honestly.
