Chapter 95

‘…If that happens, the Emperor, who can’t do anything, will eventually try to kill Zagnac.’

Until now, he would not have sincerely tried to kill Zagnac because he had Livia as a means, but it would be different. So, first of all, it was necessary to stall time. Even if the emperor sincerely tried to kill Zagnac, she could protect him.

“Yes, you need a new dress.”

“The dress I wore last time is enough.”

“I told you. this is all for me. As long as you are satisfied with having a pretty dress…”

“So, I would have regrets in life?”

Azela said, her teeth quivering with a look of disgust, but Zagnac smiled and nodded his head. Lately, he seemed to spend each day with the pleasure of doing something for her. When she refused, he would give the reason of ‘to make her have regrets in life.’

“Am I still far from being satisfactory to you?”

“What?”

“I mean my soul. You told me mine was bitter when we first met. Is it a long way from becoming sweet, as you said?”

Zagnac stood up brightly but hesitated when she questioned him. His expression turned cold in an instant.

“Why?”

“…Yes?”

“If I say sweet, are you going to give me your soul right now and die?”

Zagnac asked in a cold, emotionless voice… No, maybe, it felt cold because it was full of emotions. Azela bit her lip thinking that the question pushed him too hard. If the soul was sweet, wasn’t it good for him? It was because he had been trying so hard to eat her soul.

Still, she objected.

“I was just asking out of curiosity.”

“I decide when that will be. You don’t have to think about it. You don’t have to worry about that and just enjoy life. I’m making your life enjoyable, so why not enjoy it?”

“Compared to before, I am satisfied enough.”

Azela gave a vague smile though it was true. Compared to the days when she wanted to die in the past, these days were like heaven… Grabbing the sword and being able to live freely like this were all things she had never imagined before.

Meanwhile, when Azela spoke those heartfelt words, his chilly mood instantly softened. ‘All right, then let’s go get the dress done,’ said Zagnac, and he stood up again.

Then, he heard a knock in the library.

“Master.”

It was Baharf. He approached Zagnac’s side, turned to Azela, bowed politely, and greeted her before continuing his words with a troubled look.

“A guest has arrived.”

“…Guest? I haven’t heard of any guests coming. Who?”

Zagnac stopped his hand from trying to put on the hat and asked puzzledly. Following him, Azela also looked at Baharf curiously. The fact that a guest was coming today was something she hadn’t heard either.

“That is… I tried to send them back, but they have already been waiting for Master outside for three hours.”

“Three hours? You should have told me in advance.”

It was raining outside. Zagnac frowned at the rainy window. Since it was a guest of Duke Ferial, they must be a nobleman.

“I tried too, but… it’s just a commoner.”

“A commoner came to see me…?”

Baharf’s words widened Zagnac’s eyes.

A commoner? Was there a commoner who would come to Zagnac, no, Duke Ferial? Duke Ferial was a person who thoroughly made friends with nobles and also did business with nobles. However, a commoner?

When Zagnac urged him, Baharf spoke again troublingly.

“She said you would know if it was Lane.”

“…Lane?”

“Shall I kick her out?”

Lane.

It was a familiar name. As Azela tilted her head for a moment, she recalled a memory and looked at him with a welcome look. However, Zagnac’s expression was dark, and he put the hat back down before turning his gaze to her.

“We’ll have to go see the dress next time.”

“Yes? Ah… I-it doesn’t matter, it’s okay.”

“Yes… Baharf, take the guest inside.”

“Understood. Shall I prepare dessert and tea?”

“No, it’s okay. Don’t let anyone into the parlor, as I don’t need an attendant.”

His low voice was barely audible, drowned out by the sound of rain hitting the window. With his command, Baharf lowered his head and walked backwards out of the study.

Zagnac lifted the high-alcohol liquor stored on one side of the library. As far as she could remember, he certainly didn’t enjoy drinking. He obviously mentioned that he hated drinking when he was partying on the outskirts.

“Alcohol…?”

“Yes, because dwarves like to drink.”

She heard it was Lane who came as a guest, but why did she drink dwarves’ favorite drink? Azela tilted her head as if she didn’t understand. However, Zagnac said no more. He just chose the drink with a prudent face. Choosing a drink, he took a glass and walked to the parlor.

When he opened the door to the parlor, he could see Lane’s back, who was watching the rain outside by the window.

“Lane.”

Zagnac called out to her, setting the bottle of wine down on the table. Lane didn’t look back at him. He wondered if she should say hello to her. Meanwhile, as Azela looked at her, seeing the timing to greet her, Lane opened her lips.

“The contract is over.”

It was a hollow voice.

Azela caught her breath at the voice and only blinked her eyes. The contract was over? She didn’t understand what that meant.

However, like he expected it, Zagnac poured the wine into the glass and handed it to her.

“I see.”

“The dwarf is dead.”

“….!”

Azela was startled by Lane’s words and unconsciously covered her mouth with her hands. The contract was over, which meant the death of the contractor.

The dwarf was dead…

It was unexpected. Azela turned her head to look at the sword hanging from her waist. Although she had never seen a dwarf and had no memories of anything like this, the death of the person who made a pact with the devil had a different meaning to her.

“Was it good?”

“I enjoyed it.”

Unlike the empty voice a moment ago, Lane’s voice seemed to be full of happiness when she replied that she had enjoyed it. Hearing the rain hitting the window, she turned to take the glass from Zagnac. Contrary to the happy voice, Lane was crying. It rained on her, too.

Deviating from the flowers of laughter blooming on her lips, thick raindrops were pouring down from her eyes.

“It was sweeter than any soul I’ve ever eaten.”

It came as a great shock to Azela that Lane was crying. It was a great shock that she, a devil with no manners and no emotion in her, wept incessantly like that.

“It’s so sweet…”

“….”

“I wonder if I should have waited longer.”

Zagnac didn’t say anything out of the ordinary. He just held out the glass he was holding in his hand. As she looked at the glass held out to her, Lane bumped it lightly and tilted her glass. Even though the alcohol was quite high, she poured the full glass into her mouth at once.

“Ugh… I don’t know why the hell you drink this bitter thing. I really can’t drink at all.”

“I agree, too.”

Lane, who was complaining about it, still couldn’t stop her tears.

Only then did she understand what Zagnac had said a little while ago, ‘Because dwarves like to drink.’ The two devils didn’t like to drink. They don’t even drink alcohol. Nonetheless, the drink they were drinking now was like a consolation drink for the dead dwarf.

“If you wait 250 years, you waited a lot.”

“271 years, to be exact.”

Lane murmured, stroking the tips of her fingers. Zagnac replied softly, ‘What’s this or that’ but she didn’t seem to hear it.

“It’s all good when signing a contract, but it always ends badly.”

“I can’t help it. Contractors are like short-lived companions to us.”

“….!”

Hearing Zagnac’s words, Azela bit her lips tightly.

Contractors were their short-lived companions. She had never thought of it like that. To humans, devils were just predators who spent their entire lives together and eventually ate their soul… It was different.

As if she had read that thought, Lane turned her head to look at Azela and smiled.

“Don’t think we eat it just to be happy.”

“….”

“When we eat that soul… it’s like eating our short time together.”