Hi everyone,
Thank you for your support so far. I know there have been many spelling and other mistakes. I will start editing all the chapters before signing the contract, so there will be one daily chapter instead of two.
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After returning to his room, Lister couldn't quite let go of Anko's words.
Did he really have those qualities?
Qualities that made monsters like him more...
As a monster girl enthusiast...no, as someone who studied monsters, he should have been quite happy to know he had such a talent.
But Lister found that he couldn't really feel happy about it.
Because if that were the case, Priscilla's feelings for him and his feelings for Priscilla would feel like they were shrouded in a veil.
He hoped the feelings between them were pure and natural, not guided by some external force.
Even if he couldn't resist that external force...
Ah, forget it. Thinking about this now was useless.
Lister cast aside these trivial thoughts and opened his room door. He immediately saw Ai cleaning the bookshelf and Airu staring intently at his bed, not knowing what she was thinking.
"...Lord Lister..."
"Airu, have you mostly recovered?"
"Eek!!"
Hearing Lister's voice, Airu's fur trembled all over. She jumped back like a startled cat, her face turning frighteningly red as she looked at Lister.
"L-L-L...Lord Lister..."
"?"
Lister looked at Airu puzzledly, then glanced at his bed... There was no problem. What was this child looking at?
"Were you looking at something just now?"
"Nothing, nothing."
Airu reluctantly withdrew her gaze from the pillow on Lister's bed and looked at Lister.
"..."
"..."
They looked at each other in silence, but for some reason, Airu's face turned red.
"Sister, you have something to say to Lord Lister."
At this moment, Ai popped out from somewhere and poked Airu's waist.
"Mmm..."
"Alright, hurry up."
Then, Airu looked at Lister with a face as if she was ready to die.
"Lord Lister!"
"...Yes?"
Her imposing manner startled Lister.
"To repay you for saving my life, please...please let me become your hand, your eye, your ear, your claw, and your lifelong servant and follower!"
"What?"
Lister was startled by Airu in front of him, who was red-faced and heroically pledging allegiance to him. For a moment, he didn't know how to respond.
"Can you first tell me why?"
"I, I heard from Ai that in order to save my insignificant life, you actually used the legendary holy relic... For such a great favor, I can only repay it with this life, so from this moment on, it is in your hands..."
"..."
Lister moved his gaze to Ai beside him with a blank expression.
"Is that so?"
"Mm-hmm."
Ai nodded solemnly.
"I see."
Lister also nodded, then unceremoniously pulled Ai, who was behind Airu, over and gave her head a fierce rub.
"Well, you little cat... Others might not know, but don't say you don't know what I used... Airu, who was tricked by you, is quite pitiful, you know?"
With this 'holy relic', Lister had distributed at least a few hundred of them on the frontier back then. He feared he had become the largest holy relic wholesaler on the entire continent.
"Mm..."
Ai's head was shaken by Lister's rubbing. When she was finally released, her hair and cat ears were all messed up, and her face had a dazed expression.
At this point, Airu finally realized that she had been played by Ai.
So, her face, which was already red, now looked like it was about to drip blood, and her tail behind her was wagging enough to swat mosquitoes.
"L-L-Lord Lister..."
"Airu, you too. You believed such words without even asking me first..."
"W-Why are you rewarding her!"
Airu let out a painful cry with a tearful voice. As her older sister, she knew this younger sister of hers too well. Although she looked like she had a nonchalant expression on her face now, she was actually in a state of great satisfaction.
Airu looked at Ai's fur, which had been vigorously stroked by Lister several times, and felt extremely aggrieved.
Why? Even though Ai was the one who caused mischief, she was left alone here... I, I also want to be rubbed on the head like that!
"..."
Lister looked at the pitiful Airu and then at Ai, who was showing a 'mission accomplished' expression to her sister, and remained silent.
Oh no, she got a kick out of it. I'm also part of her plan.
It was also at this time that Lister remembered that cats are creatures that like narrow spaces and the feeling of being appropriately squeezed.
In the past, Lister had a domestic American Shorthair. That little female cat was usually very aloof and wouldn't pay attention to him without cat treats. But as long as he picked it up and held it in his arms or gently pressed on it, it would become very obedient and start purring in no time.
Now it seemed that the cat people race also had this characteristic?
But, to be honest, Lister had just acted on a whim just now. If he were to compensate this crying cat girl in the same way now, he would feel a little embarrassed... although he liked it very much and was more than willing to do so.
So, the humble Lister slightly averted his gaze from Airu.
"Airu, do you want to eat something?"
"..."
Airu's eyes shimmered with tears.
"I can make it for you..."
"..."
Airu's eyes wavered.
At this moment, Ai tugged at the corner of Lister's clothes.
"There's none for you."
"Mmm..."
...
Knock knock.
There was a knock on the door of the Demon Lord's government hall.
"Come in."
Priscilla answered without lifting her head.
"Anko, I told you I'm not having a late-night snack today. I don't have much of an appetite..."
"Ah, that's a pity."
"...?"
Hearing this voice, Priscilla abruptly raised her head and saw Lister standing at the door with a smile, holding a plate.
"...Actually, I do have a bit of an appetite."
"Don't force yourself to eat."
"That's not it..."
Even Priscilla was too embarrassed to say that the real reason she didn't have an appetite was that she wanted to finish work early to find him.
Lister sat down next to Priscilla, and Priscilla put the leather documents aside to make some space on the table.
On the plate Lister brought over, there were a few freshly baked bread with a rich wheat aroma, a few pieces of what looked like butter spread and jam, and a steaming cup of Mokanato.
The raw materials were naturally obtained from the human world. Such relatively refined food was basically impossible to find in the demon realm.
"Thank you for your hard work."
Lister tore open the bread, spread butter on it, and considerately broke it into small pieces before handing it to Priscilla. At the same time, he placed the Mokanato in front of Priscilla and even put a layer of napkin on her table.
Priscilla quietly watched Lister take care of all this. When Lister was done, she gently touched his face.
"Darling, am I dreaming?"
This kind of harmonious scene of a couple caring for each other was something Priscilla had only dreamed of.
"It's real."
Lister held Priscilla's hand and smiled, then suddenly remembered Anko's words and hurriedly sat a little further away.
"Eat it while it's hot. But from a doctor's perspective, I still hope you can consume less of these caffeinated beverages."
"Mmm... You mean the Mokanato?"
"That's right. And it's so bitter... It doesn't seem to taste very good."
"Bitter..."
Dragons' taste buds were not that developed and couldn't detect such subtle bitterness. To her, this cup of Mokanato was just a slightly fragrant drink that could refresh and energize her after drinking it.
"But since you said so, I'll quit."
"No, it's not that serious. Just drink a little less... According to Anko, you drink at least two cups a day, right? If this continues..."
"Well, I'm a dragon."
"Then it's fine."
Haha, forgot about that.
Seeing Lister decisively stop talking, Priscilla couldn't help but smile and poked his face.
"I've never seen you so cute when you were by my side before."
"What was I like in your eyes back then?"
"Well..."
Priscilla thought for a moment, then naturally closed the distance and cupped Lister's face.
"You were fascinating."