When Demon Lord Natha said he'd only given me a taste, he meant it. I looked at the single drip of that golden liquid in dismay, and thought that the Demon Lord of Greed was stingy.
But the moment that single drop entered my system, I regretted that thought.
It tasted sweet, at first; the first sweet-tasting medicine I had since my childhood's orange flavor cough syrup. And then it came, without warning. A jolt.
A jolt from inside, from my mana core, and everything was stopped.
How do I describe it?
I was gone. I wasn't there, or at least my consciousness. It was retreating somewhere, inside, into a particle, the glowing powder of the astral universe. I was curling inside an orb, a cocoon of abstract light, as a golden drop showered me with warmth.
And then it hit, the jolt. I was yanked back into my physical body, and gasped.
There was nothing subtle about it, about the electricity that coursed through every fiber of my being. Lights, like bullets, ran through the mana veins, and bumped into obstruction of mana blockage. They knocked, and my whole body was electrocuted.
Or at least that was what it felt like.
The bullet-like lights bumped into the circuit blockage, and every knocking, every pounding they did to the countless blockage inside my circuit sent harsh tingling into my body.
"Ah!" I swayed, my eyes flickered, my mind blurry. I grabbed the only thing I could grab to steady myself, and when another jolt pounded inside, my head leaned forward, pressing into the thing I'd been clinging to, looking for purchase, for comfort.
Because it's so uncomfortable. It was like there was a war inside of me. Between my physical and astral body, between the golden lights and the blockage.
No, it wasn't pain. It was something entirely different. I had used to pain, but this pressure and ripple of shock was something new, something I had never experienced before, and so it was uncomfortable. I had no idea how to deal with this, how to adapt to this.
There were groaning sounds coming out of my parted lips. I couldn't even clench my teeth, constantly spasming while clutching into the sturdy thing in front of me. Something—someone?—was holding me, keeping me in place, keeping me from crashing into the ground and seizing there.
And then, the lights smashed through.
"Hah!"
It was hot. The ripple of shock turned into heat, and everything felt hot. The golden lights traveled through my circuit, smashing another blockage, and continued to traverse all obstacles. Shock and heat intermingled inside my body and my mind...my mind just burning into the ground.
Mindlessly, I reached out, scrambling my hands through the expensive fabric and solid wall, until my fingers found a cool surface. And I chased it with my heated face, pressing my burning, flushed cheek there.
And I moaned.
My fingers and face traced the cool surface to counter the lancing heat spreading inside my body. My glazed, blurry eyes recognized the pulsing vein and carved skin of beautiful, deep blue luster.
It was slow, but my dazed mind finally realized that I had been nuzzling the demon lord's neck, touching the exposed skin of his sharp jaw and prominent cheekbone. But I couldn't care less this time, just carving the cool temperature of his skin to cool my heated body.
And then, the mana core whirling; the stagnant mana that had been accumulating without outlet bursting out through the barely re-functional circuit and oh, God...
"Hnngh!" I jolted forward, into a cool, soothing embrace, and could no longer control the embarrassing sound coming out of my parted, drooling lips. "Oh! Aah…"
I shivered. The wild rush of mana sent convulsions into every corner of my body, and a lancing sensation shook me from the top of my crown to the tip of my toes. All the while clutching tight into the arms of the demon lord, pressing moans and whimpers into his shoulder and neck.
And then his hands moved to cradle my trembling head, fingers touching my nape in the process. And the whimper that came out of my mouth was a shameful, shameful sound.
Because, God, it felt so good.
When his cold mana enveloped me, keeping the blazing heat down, I grasped into his solid torso tighter, feeling like I could just sink into that cool skin and tasted heaven. "More," I whispered into his neck, and I thought I heard a chuckle.
"This sound so wrong, mister Priest," he whispered back, but he gave me more of his cold mana and I just sighed contentedly, clinging to him even more. My intoxicated mind worried more about the loss of cold if I separated myself from him even for a little bit than the implication of this whole reaction I was showing.
I had no idea how much time passed like this, with my body ablaze seeking cold from his skin, clinging to the demon lord as my mana circled my system in frenzy, like a beast set loose after a prolonged confined punishment. My body was repeatedly flinching, spasming, jolting, and trembling like a chaotic broken doll. By the end of it, my moans were receding to mere whimpers, and by the state of my wobbly legs, I'd already become a heaping mess on the floor if it wasn't for the sturdy, cold arms holding me securely.
When my mana stopped running marathons along my astral vein, I was breathing heavily, glazed eyes flickered in a daze. Still clutching his arms, I stepped back wobbly, head dizzy and ears ringing. Slowly, I opened my mouth...
And threw up on the Demon Lord.
——————
My memory recording stopped here, in a state where I wanted to dive back into the blanket, curl up, and hibernated until my embarrassment died down. Since I couldn't, I just inhaled deeply and massaged my suddenly throbbing head.
It seemed like, with my mana flowing again, my system did some purging. All the impurities that this body accumulated during the blockage was being expelled all at once, including the alcohol I had just downed not too long before.
And they came out of my mouth straight to the Demon Lord's expensive-looking clothes.
He wouldn't demand a laundry fee, right?
That being said...what was this situation now? I get that I was fainting, and my clothes would be ruined by the vomit too, hence the change. But why...did he sleep in the same bed?
And why, for the love of nature, that he only wore a loose nightrobe that exposed his lustrous blue skin and solid pectoral muscle, and gorgeously defined abs...
*slap*
My hand moved by itself to defend my mind from running wildly and landed harshly on my cheek to clear my mind. Focus, Val, focus!
"What are you doing?" the Demon Lord—Natha was it?—got up and moved closer, snatching my wrist with a frown.
"...reality check..." I replied absentmindedly.
And my effort to stay vigilant was shattered by the low laugh that resounded in the bedroom. He let go of my wrist and instead moved his hand to rest it on my forehead, which made me flinch, initially. But his calm gaze as he did it prompted me to still.
"Good, you don't have a fever anymore," he tapped my forehead lightly with his knuckles before getting down from the bed.
"Did I have a fever?"
"You were burning up," I watched as he walked into the table we used to 'negotiate' last night—or was it the day before? How long had I been sleeping? "That's why you can only take the Amrita gradually."
Oh. What a kind Demon Lord.
"How's your body?" wow, he even checked up on my condition, just like that young doctor. And now he walked back to the bed with a glass of water.
Why was he being so kind?
I lowered my head to look at my body again. Now that he asked about it, I turned my focus inside, scrutinizing my condition.
The pain was gone—that much I could feel. My deteriorating cells were being regenerated naturally as the blockage was breached and mana was being supplied through the circuits all over my body. The self-healing property of my druid bloodline has taken effect now.
The blockage itself, however, hadn't been completely removed. If the blockage was a wall, the golden lights from the Amrita were only made a hole in that wall. Just enough for my mana to flow, so my internal injuries could be mended.
But I couldn't manage more than that. The most mana I could accumulate outside of my body was just enough to conjure basic attribute magic, like a small light ball.
It was enough though. I wasn't a magic wielder in the first place, so I didn't feel weird because of it. Valmeier was the priest, not me. I was curious of course, about all that magic power and stuff—but I could live without it too.
"It's good. I'm not in pain anymore," I answered the question as Natha put the glass of water in my hand, which I took eagerly. "How long have I been sleeping?"
"Just the night," he leaned into the bedpost.
The Demon Lord crossed his arms while watching me keenly, putting his whole body on display in front of my eyes, clad in a single layer of nightrobe that force me to avert my sight lest I choked on this water. So I put my eyes to look around the room instead, now that my mind and sight were clearer.
It was a spacious room, of what looked like a typical noble's room in historical shows. It looked quite cozy too, not very pristine, but with wines on the tables, books strewn around, blankets draped on the chair, flames roaring inside the fireplace...it didn't have anything more personal though, like trinkets or pictures. Rather than a bed chamber, it felt more like a retreat or vacation house, made for comfort and a temporary stay. I wonder if we were actually at an upscale inn, but when I looked at the window and the balcony, all I could see was the bright sky, as if we were in a very very high place.
And then, as if giving hint to my curiosity, something like a giant bird flew across the window with a shrieking sound, and I almost choked on that.
Which beget my question. "Where...is this?"