Until the conference was nearing its end, Lister still hadn't come back to his senses.
Because now his mind was filled with the thought of grabbing that little dragon person who was once ambitious and having a good talk with her after it ended.
It wasn't until Priscilla shook his shoulder that he reacted and found that everyone present was looking at him.
"As my husband, you need to get acquainted with these representatives."
Priscilla's gentle voice came from beside his ear. After taking a deep look at her, Lister took the initiative to walk down.
"Congratulations, Demon King Lister."
"...Thank you, but if possible, I hope you can change the way you address me."
The first to come up naturally was the representative of the dragon people, the burly dragon man Goodrey.
When shaking hands with him, Lister could feel that he had retracted his claws, and there was a rough texture on his palms. And... Lister always felt that he saw a "kind" look in those vertical pupils.
"After you settle down, I will visit again to prepare a gift from the dragon people for you. Please look forward to it."
After politely saying this, Goodrey sat back in his seat.
"I believe the Demon Lord's decision has its own reasons, so welcome, Mr. Lister."
The attitude of the old beastman Akarin was much more plain. His turbid eyeballs looked at Lister, as if secretly examining this human who was greatly favored by the Demon Lord.
Then, he took out an amulet made of golden beast hair from his long robe and handed it to Lister.
"This is a tuft of my mane from when I was still young. With it, the entire beastman race will treat you as an honored guest. Consider it a bit of my goodwill. I hope you can assist the Demon Lord in the future."
"...Thank you."
In this situation, Lister could only obediently accept it. He looked at the slightly hunched back of this old beastman, and a strange look flashed in his eyes.
The beastmen were indeed the most numerous class in the entire Demon Realm. The leader they chose was indeed much more shrewd and magnanimous.
Next, the gorgeously dressed Cinderella came up with a grin and grabbed Lister's hand, staring into his eyes.
"Sigh, since the Demon Lord has already said so, I have nothing to object to. However, Mr. Human, the Demon Lord is a genuine magic dragon... You have to, be prepared, okay?"
As she said this, Lister felt Cinderella's voice suddenly become seductive, especially those purple pupils, which seemed to have endless depths, attracting Lister to get closer...
Boom!
Suddenly, a sweeping gust of wind blew away Lister's dazed state. Priscilla had spread her jet-black dragon wings and stood beside him at some point, her dragon eyes flashing with a blood-red color, as if staring at prey, looking at Cinderella.
"Don't joke with me like this."
"Ah, sorry, sorry, Demon Lord. I just saw that Mr. Lister was always a bit distracted and wanted to help him recover his spirit. You know, right? The succubus' eyes have this function."
"...No need."
"Haha, okay then. I'll also take my leave, Demon Lord."
Cinderella laughed it off and then left with a smile.
"As for the gift, let's talk about it next time we meet. Goodbye, ... Eh, sister? Why are you... Ah! I'm sorry, don't pull my tail!"
"..."
Lister watched Cinderella leave the council hall, and for some reason, a scream came afterwards, but Priscilla didn't seem surprised at all. The vampire representative Elizabeth had left at some unknown time.
Soon, only Priscilla and Lister were left in the entire council hall.
"..."
Alright, now it was Lister's turn to feel like sitting on pins and needles.
Originally, this should have been a long-awaited, heart-to-heart reunion, but after such a turn of events, Lister had no idea how to start a conversation with Priscilla beside him.
Priscilla put away her dragon wings and dragon might beside him and naturally linked her arm with Lister's.
Lister could feel that the scales on this dragon girl's body beside him instantly became peaceful and tame.
This was originally a very clingy action, but because Priscilla's physique was a bit larger than Lister's, it now looked like the one being clingy was Lister, who was being held.
He turned his head and smiled gently and sweetly at Lister:
"Alright, the things that needed to be done are done. I believe you must have a lot to say to me, dear..."
...
"...What about monster girls?"
"Dragon girls are also monster girls, right?"
In the Demon Lord's garden, Lister turned his head and asked Priscilla, who was sticking to him, and Priscilla also responded faintly.
Priscilla's dragon tail extended and wrapped around Lister's side, gently poking Lister's arm like a spoiled little girlfriend.
"..."
Lister tried to grab it, but the moment he touched it, the tip of the tail shrank back as if it had been electrocuted, startling Lister and making him quickly withdraw his hand.
"Mmm..."
A faint muffled moan leaked out of Priscilla's mouth.
"Sorry, sorry, this can't be touched, right?"
"Mm... If it's you, it's okay..."
Priscilla said while handing her tail to Lister's hand again, even wrapping around it and not letting him let go.
Just like this, Lister was forced to stroke the tail while feeling Priscilla's scorching body temperature as they walked towards the Demon Lord's Castle.
"Priscilla, were you telling the truth just now?"
"Mm... What are you referring to?"
"Suitable mate."
"It's true."
Priscilla answered as if it was a matter of course, while holding Lister's arm even tighter.
"Actually, I've wanted to hold your arm like this since a long time ago, but I had claws back then and was afraid of hurting you... Now, I can finally do as I please."
Priscilla made a satisfied sound and looked at Lister, who was almost stuffed into her arms, with a gentle gaze.
"Is that so..."
Hearing this, Lister lowered his head, as if pondering something.
"Priscilla, how long were we together before?"
"About a year and a bit?"
"Yeah, a year and a bit."
Lister gently broke free from Priscilla's embrace and continued.
"I heard that dragon people choosing a suitable mate is not something that happens overnight. It often requires several years or even more than a decade of accumulation and interaction. The coming-of-age ceremony is just a specific manifestation."
"...Are you saying you don't believe me?"
"I'm not saying I don't believe you, Priscilla. I just... don't know why."
Lister's tone at this moment was full of confusion and perplexity. Priscilla quietly looked at Lister's eyes that didn't know where they were looking, and once again reached out to pull him into her arms.
"It's okay, I know what you're thinking."
Then, she took Lister's hand and led him into the castle, heading towards her bedroom.
"Come on, dear, I'll prove it to you."
...