ITSM 25

Chapter 25

“Ah.”

I hadn’t even thought about what to wear.

If Roan had been by my side, he would’ve followed me around all day asking where I put the new clothes I’d bought. But since he wasn’t here, I naturally ended up wearing only the clothes I always wore.

The gift was a bit of a burden, but I wasn’t the type to think I had to return a gift I’d already received.

“No other demon could possibly wear clothes tailored to my body anyway.”

After a brief moment of thought, I rummaged through the clothes he had gifted me.

“They’re pretty… and it’d be a shame not to wear them.”

If the clothes were extremely flashy, it would have been uncomfortable to wear them. But a simple dress like this? It wouldn’t be a problem to go out in it.

I changed into the white dress and looked in the mirror—it actually suited me quite well.

I fiddled with my hair with a pen out of habit for a moment, but quickly set it down. Then I picked up a white ribbon and tied my hair half-up.

“It suits me.”

After finally getting a proper night’s sleep in my own bed, my skin was soft, and the new dress and ribbon complemented each other perfectly.

I deliberately tore my gaze away from the mirror and chose my shoes.

“Comfortable ones would be best. I’ll be moving around a lot anyway.”

Looking at myself fully dressed, I realized I looked lovely. From head to toe, I was wrapped in the gifts Roan had given me.

Seeing myself like that, he naturally came to mind.

“What could’ve kept him away for so long?”

He was the king of demons, so he probably wouldn’t get hurt anywhere. Still, being gone for so long made me worry just a little.

“Who are you worrying about?”

I gave my cheek a quick tap and flung open the door—only to flinch at the figure standing there.

“Ah, you startled me.”

It was Bael, holding a piece of paper in one hand. Had he been working all night? Dark circles sat heavily under his eyes.

“Wait, you didn’t sleep at all while growing up?”
“You… you’re different from Liliana… You’re wearing new clothes?”

Bael, rubbing his tired eyes, stared at me, mouth agape.

I couldn’t exactly blame his reaction.

Even though I’d chosen the simplest of the gifts Roan had given me, I wasn’t wearing my usual nun-like black attire. It was bound to look different.

I scratched my cheek awkwardly and replied,

“Well, I’ll be moving around, and it’d be a shame not to wear something I bought.”
“So you finally parted ways with that dreadful black outfit.”
“Unfortunately, not entirely… But that’s not important. What brings you here this early in the morning?”

Bael wouldn’t have come here without a reason. He was a demon obsessed with time and efficiency. There was no reason for him to come unnecessarily.

He seemed to realize this himself, clearing his throat a few times before extending a piece of paper.

“I thought it’d be faster to give you this than to have you come to my room. Here, the budget is generous, so if you have any interior design ideas, go ahead.”

I narrowed my eyes and scanned him. He usually spoke like this only when he had a request.

To test him, I asked,

“Anything I want?”

Bael flinched, then quietly and carefully expressed his wish.

“…Just leave the lounge’s interior for me.”

The reason seemed almost trivial, and I couldn’t help but laugh.

“Hahaha! Haha!”

Bael looked at me with a confused expression.

Clearing my throat repeatedly, I looked away.

“Why are you laughing?”
“Nothing.”
“Doesn’t seem like nothing.”
“Really, just don’t worry about it. I’ll think about the interior.”

I snatched the paper from Bael’s hand, waved it, and passed by his dazed expression.

As I walked along the sunlit corridor, I pondered the interior concept.

“Looks like I’ll have to tear everything down and start from scratch.”

Bael’s terrible taste was evident everywhere. It would take a lot of time to fix it. There were more things to discard than I could count.

“Why didn’t anyone stop this?”

It was a serious question. Could it be that among demons, this was considered fashionable or tasteful…?

“Ah, crazy Bael! Where on earth did you buy this horrible thing?”

I heard Vasago shout from nearby.

“Ugh, I don’t feel well… and to see this after staying up all night…”

Hmm, Bael really was peculiar. Then why hadn’t Roan stopped him?

Just as I was pondering whether Roan’s aesthetic sense might also be slightly lacking, my gaze fell on the white dress I had chosen.

“That doesn’t seem like it.”

I tilted my head, trying to dismiss thoughts of Roan, and continued walking.

“First, all these blood-stained curtains in the hallway… definitely going in the trash.”

“What are you doing?”

I was deep in thought when a familiar voice called from behind. It was Vasago, who had just been criticizing Bael’s taste.

“Ah! You scared me… humans seem to enjoy startling others, huh?”

I almost called him a demon by accident.

Vasago, who wasn’t very sharp, didn’t seem to think much of it and, as usual, began quarreling.

“Didn’t you consider that I might be surprised seeing your face?”
“Go away. I don’t have time to play today.”
“Who’s playing with whom? I’m busy too, you know?”

He spread his hands in frustration, clearly annoyed at my words.

‘…You?’

Busy? Really, you?

“You’re ignoring me, aren’t you?”

Vasago clenched his teeth as if reading my expression.

“Eek.”

I whistled and looked away, catching a glimpse of him squinting.

For a moment, he looked troubled, recalling some annoying task, and started whining to me.

“You have no idea how much work I’ve had since that incident the other day.”
“Didn’t you say I shouldn’t be told?”
“I already knew everything, why hide it?”
“Really?”

After a few days of trying to be cautious, he now acted completely normal in front of me. I couldn’t help but chuckle.

Yeah. Sometimes it’s better to be simple, like you, than to hold everything in.

I scanned him up and down. Vasago, noticing my gaze, took an unusually timid stance.

“…But don’t tell Grandpa Bael.”

His voice trembled slightly—it seemed he was scared of what Bael might say.

As I pondered the interior, I became curious. Vasago was fairly old, so why did he keep calling Bael “grandpa”?

Age wasn’t a big deal among demons. Seeing young Roan being treated as king proved that.

“By the way, Bael looks really young… why call him grandpa?”

Without thinking it through, Vasago answered as if it was obvious.

“Well, it’s because what’s inside him…”

He didn’t finish the sentence. Suddenly, he smacked his own cheek hard, as if realizing something.

“Crazy Vasago. He’s just going to tell everything if that human asks.”

The sound was sharp enough to make me regret asking.

“…Doesn’t hurt?”
“Ugh… ah.”

Vasago’s cheek was now bright red. The large handprint he left was obvious.

“…That must hurt.”

Tears welled up in Vasago’s eyes as he moved away.

Like a tragic heroine, his running looked strangely fragile.

After Vasago left, I focused on checking the areas that needed fixing.

“There’s no end to this.”

Every step reminded me of Bael’s awful taste.

‘Nothing should surprise me anymore… right?’

I checked most of the spots that needed correction. Only the library and the rooms upstairs remained.

“The library shouldn’t be strange, right?”

Even with Bael’s crazy sense of aesthetics, he wouldn’t have done anything odd with the library, right?

I confidently opened the library door—only to have my jaw drop.

A disco-ball-like light shone in the place where the chandelier or proper lighting should have been, greeting me with its presence.

“The library… with sparkling lights… what does that even mean…?”