Nom nom—
Munch munch—
“……”
I wondered what I would think watching a demon deliciously eat the food I made… but honestly, I didn't feel much of anything.
Perhaps it was because the demon was just a Succubus possessing a body, and her appearance was that of an ordinary human woman.
When I thought about the cunning Succubus residing inside her, hatred certainly began to creep up, but I didn't feel that characteristic urge to strangle her to death.
After finishing the entire plate of meat right there, the Succubus shrugged and asked.
“Aren't you eating? This is really delicious.”
“…I told you, I don't share a table with demons.”
“…Well, alright. How upsetting.”
“If you're done stuffing your face, get to the point.”
At my firm prompting, the Succubus finally opened her mouth and got to the main topic.
“…Your proposal was that, wasn't it? That if I cooperated with you… you would let me live.”
“That's right.”
It was just as she said.
『Gasp... Hah... Heok... Hah...』
『How is it? Living is better than dying, right?』
『Hah... Sob... Hah...』
『…In that sense. I'd like to make you a threat.』
『Hah... Hah...?』
『Have you ever thought about being on the ‘good side’? You know... something like repenting.』
Just before the Succubus's breath gave out, I released my grip on her neck and made a special proposal to the gasping creature.
That if she helped me, I would let her live.
For the original me, this would have been impossible.
In my dictionary, having experienced the cunning of the Demon Species to its very depths through my Regression, words like ‘forgiveness’ or ‘mercy’ didn't exist.
I would have rather killed her twice.
I had no intention of letting her go, knowing full well she would betray me.
…However, the reason I spared her was because the bloodline of that cunning demon was necessary for my plan.
.
.
.
『I need you.』
『…….』
『To be precise… your ‘Demon's Singularity’.』
As if to prove that among Magical Beasts, ‘demons’ are different.
The Demon Species, the bloodline of the Demon King, possessed a unique trait that distinguished them from other Magical Beasts.
It was a troublesome trait of the Demon Species that allowed them to cause disturbances without being recorded in the ‘System Data,’ which could be called the symbol of The Order.
The ‘Demon's Singularity.’
This ‘Demon's Singularity,’ which had properties similar to a so-called ‘computer virus,’ could cause errors in The Order's ‘System Data,’ including the ‘Satellite Magic,’ at any desired time without leaving any particular trace.
That was precisely why I intended to make use of this demon's bloodline, which I would have otherwise chewed up and spit out.
The existence of the ‘Satellite Magic,’ which allowed the Constellations to constantly observe the Heroes, placed a restriction on me freely using my pre-Regression information.
Because, at times, I had to escape the eyes of the Constellations to make use of my pre-Regression knowledge.
Although the Succubus was a low-ranking Demon Species, there was no need to doubt the effectiveness of the trait itself.
…The fact that a mere low-ranking Demon Species like a Succubus could roam so freely within the Gateway Zone, which could be called The Order's home ground, was proof of that ability.
Of course, it felt unsettling to use a demon that had likely already devoured several people.
But it couldn't be helped.
My situation wasn't leisurely enough to be swayed by such emotions.
…If the fate of this world didn't rest in my hands, and if this Regression was entirely my own, I would never have even considered such a nauseating act.
『…You’re telling me to keep a Demon Species around? Are you serious right now?』
『I know you’re not pleased, but... it must be done. The fact of your Regression must be delayed as long as possible.』
『…No, but still.』
『…I’m begging you, Mr. Seo U-jin.』
I was the only one who returned, but I was doing this because I knew all too well that my Regression wasn't achieved solely through my own efforts.
‘…Anyway. I shouldn't have done it. This damn Regression.’
Breaking out of the short reminiscence, the Succubus asked a question.
“…Do you really think I can become good?”
I laughed at her absurd question and replied.
Smirk—
“No.”
“……”
“…That's why I told you. This isn't a proposal, it's a threat.”
“……”
“The moment you refuse, I'll kill you. What I need isn't you, but your ‘Demon's Singularity’.”
At my firm answer, the creature lowered her head in thought for a moment before she began to tell her story.
“…I’ve been on the lucky side.”
“……”
“From the moment I opened my eyes in the Demon Realm until I came here, I can't count on both hands the number of times I was lucky enough to survive situations where I should have died.”
“……”
“…So this time, I really thought I was going to die. Because you caught me in the middle of the Hounds of the Cross’s headquarters. I thought my tenacious luck had finally run out.”
“…So what’s your point?”
Sensing she was taking the long way around, I cut her off once more.
And only then did she get to the real point.
“I've given it some thought.”
“……”
“…I think I still want to live longer. There are many things I haven't done. And many things I want to do.”
The quiet confession that followed the simple excuse seemed quite sincere.
“…Please let me live.”
“……”
“I'll try... being on the good side.”
It was a strange feeling. To see a demon right in front of me, saying she’d ‘try to be good.’
Normally, I should have felt even more disgusted by her loathsomeness, but for some reason, it felt sincere, which made me feel even more uneasy.
Putting that series of emotions aside, I first nodded my head.
“Alright.”
“Then… what should I do first?”
Having thus concluded our negotiation of sorts, the Succubus dabbed her mouth with a napkin and asked.
And I gave her her first mission.
“This.”
As in.
“You ate it all. So you grill it.”
“But…”
A somewhat trivial one.
“And do the dishes for the grill and the plate beforehand.”
“……”
***
Scrub scrub—
“…Doing dishes. Why do humans perform such an inefficient act?”
The Succubus, scrubbing with a scouring pad, asked me with a deep frown.
“Inefficient? What in the world is more efficient than doing the dishes?”
“…Can't you just break them and make new ones?”
“Becoming good isn't that easy.”
“…I suppose so. Seeing as I already feel like shit.”
Silence fell again.
A thought suddenly occurred to me, and I asked her.
“Come to think of it… I can't keep calling you ‘hey’ or ‘you’. What should I call you?”
“…Call me whatever you please. You regressed, so you should know anyway. That a mere low-ranking Succubus doesn't have a name.”
“Hmm.”
“You called me just fine before. Things like ‘Aunty Succubus,’ or ‘bitch’...”
“……”
Just as she said, it's rare for an individual to have a personal name in the world of Magical Beasts.
This was partly because there was little difference in appearance within the same species, and also because a culture where having a name, being a ‘Named,’ implied a certain level of status was established among most Magical Beast species.
Therefore, unless an individual had received a title or achieved a remarkable result or accomplishment within their species, it was difficult for them to have a name.
…That applied equally to the Demon Species, the bloodline of the Demon King.
Excluding the leader of the Succubus species, or a few Named individuals under them who had received titles, it was rare for a Succubus to have a name.
Moreover, this one was a young Succubus whose single pair of black wings had not even fully matured.
She certainly couldn't have had a unique name of her own.
“A name……”
As I was thinking that a suitable name was needed, a rose bush blooming in the garden outside the window caught my eye.
Smirk—
‘…Not bad.’
Rattle—
I slowly got up, opened the window, and muttered.
“Loxy.”
Flinch—
The Succubus's hands, which were washing the dishes, stopped, and she looked back at me.
And asked.
“…Loxy?”
I plucked a rose, channeled a faint stream of magical power into it, and muttered once more.
“…Loxy Heart.”
The rose, infused with magical power, turned purple, and her face also colored with a strange expression.
It was an understandable reaction.
For a Magical Beast, receiving a name was, simply put, like receiving a title in the world of martial arts as recognition for one's strength.
I didn't know if she was deeply moved by a name given by a human and not the Demon King, but it was impossible for a name to be meaningless to the one who received it.
“Loxy… you say?”
“Yes.”
…To tell the truth.
The name I gave her, ‘Loxy Heart,’ didn't have a very good meaning for her.
‘…….’
Of course, I had no intention of telling her the truth.
It was a name I came up with because the rose that happened to catch my eye was a rather fitting way to remember the end of a certain fool who was a member of the Suicide Squad.
‘…….’
To remember the end of that guy, who, cursed by a Succubus, died with his limbs twisted in grotesque directions, crying out to God as his head snapped back.
『Lead us not into... ‘cough’— temptation.』
As a member of the Suicide Squad, he knew the cunning of the Demon Species better than anyone.
To remember the end of that foolish bastard who was ultimately played by the hands of a demon.
『But…….』
So that I would not forget the true nature of the creatures called demons.
『Deliver us... from evil.』
…To remember the purple rose sigil of the Succubus Queen ‘Lilith’ that had been left on his heart.
It was a name I came up with because ‘Loxy Heart’ seemed rather fitting.
…That was right.
For the sake of those who had already been devoured by that demon and lost their bodies, including Kim Sia.
At the very least, I must not forget the fact that she is a ‘demon’.
Smile—
“Loxy Heart……”
“……”
“I like it.”
…I wonder if she even knows the meaning of the name I gave her.
The corners of the Succubus's mouth curved as she repeated her own name.
Plink—
I placed the now purple rose into an empty vase and said to her.
“…Hurry up and finish the dishes. Eliya will be back soon.”
“I will.”
“……”
Watching Loxy turn back and scrub with the scouring pad, I took out the notebook I had on me.
And I flipped a few pages from the front and marked it.
[Bucket List#5]
『Recruit... the Succubus.』…○