/
Oblivious to Julia’s inner feelings, Paimon eventually took a step closer.
“You are very beautiful. It is indeed a beautiful color that will definitely captivate the Master’s heart. Would you give me the honor of kissing the back of your hand?”
“Please feel free to call me Julia.”
“Since you are the Master’s woman, I simply cannot speak of your name carelessly. Nevertheless, I will keep this favor of yours that is as wide as the sea in my heart.”
Julia tried to get down from Bael’s lap, but the more she tried, the tighter the arms that wrapped around her waist had become—coiled around just like a snake. She finally held out her hand while sitting all awkwardly. As she looked downwards from above, Paimon’s hair looked just like a rich strand of fur.
‘Will it be rude to say that he’s cute? But he’s just so lovely.’
Her love for children had melted into her heart. And that was just at the moment when the boy’s small hand brushed against her.
[▷Paimon
Kehk, it’s all ugly. She’s so skinny that if all of the hair gets pulled out, you won’t even get to tell between the front and the back. Did Bael finally lose his sight or something? And why is she pretending to be so close? Ah, my lips will definitely rot.]
Countless thoughts had passed through the window at a breathtaking speed. While Julia could only stand still, Paimon kissed her on the back of her hand with a still angelic face before he eventually withdrew himself.
[▷Paimon
What is it—why are you so blank? Don’t you know what politeness is? My mood is all ruined now. As expected, it must have been due to hanging out with this Bael.]
Paimon’s upright posture appeared to be sculpted and his eyes were glittering like jewels, but the dialogue window that swept swiftly under his face had been utterly full of profanity. It was hard for her to come back to her senses since she was looking at both sides alternately, but at the very least, Julia still flashed out an awkward smile.
“Lord Paimon, you said that you’ve been living in the west, so will you be staying here in the castle from now on then?”
“That’s just not true. This body of mine is based in the west, where the Mountain of Death is and this was only a matter of stopping by the Master’s nest for a while. Unlike the other demons, this body has already received the territory right in the west.”
“I just kicked him out because he was really annoying.”
“Master has always been saying that, but I do know that he trusts me.”
At eight years old at most, he began to laugh heartily. Julia was completely dumbfounded. She shouldn’t have said this, but she thought that she had very little idea why Bael had sent him so far in the west.
‘The Demon King must have been very tired, but something will really happen if he keeps on doing this.’
Bael had been suffering from insomnia due to his rampaging magic for a very long time. She was told that he would be struggling with pain every night and he could not sleep comfortably even for an hour a day—only to find some peace after having her by his side. Perhaps because of that, Bael was truly obsessed with sleep.
Besides, he had just returned from wandering somewhere in the Demon Realm for the past few days. She could really see that even now, he desperately wanted to take a rest.
“Whoo, I’m so tired.”
Sure enough, a long sigh eventually came from above Julia’s head. Bael’s patience was definitely thinning out in real time.
Even if Paimon was actually nasty, she still couldn’t bear for him to be exposed to Bael’s wrath as she looked into the bright eyes of a child. She soon opened her mouth directly.
“Lord Paimon, I’m truly glad that you have come to visit me like this. However, the Demon King and I were just about to rest. Will it be possible for us to share the unfinished story tomorrow?”
“Oh no, my lack of awareness has interfered with the love that was shared between the two of you.”
“Ah, haha…”
Seeing Paimon’s eyebrows had risen subtly, it seemed that he had misunderstood again, but Julia just gave it up neatly. For now, she decided to only think about getting him out of there quickly.
“I hope that you will be comfortable while you’re in the Demon’s Castle.”
“Thank you for your concern.”
[▷Paimon
What—are you the Master of this castle now? Why are you the one showing off when even Bael doesn’t?]
Julia, who smiled brightly just then, had relaxed her shoulders only after Paimon left as the door closed shut. It felt like something huge had just passed. An extreme sense of fatigue set in.
Then, Bael picked up the already limp Julia before walking over to the bed. He laid her on top, but he sat himself on the edge before rubbing between his eyebrows.
“It’s just mind-boggling. I already kicked him out, so what if he came back then?”
“It’s the first time that I’ve seen the Demon King hate someone so much…”
“Everything just bothers me.”
Julia smiled faintly while she was falling asleep. That was what he said, but if he had really hated it, he wouldn’t have put all those 72 demons in the castle. And that wasn’t really sure after all, but why did he still feel that way?
Bael squeezed both of Julia’s reddened cheeks with his hands. Her lips instantly protruded like a carp.
“You, in particular, better not trust him at all.”
“…”
“What’s wrong?”
“No, I’m just a little surprised.”
She didn’t expect that Bael would actually know. He was basically indifferent to others, so she thought that he wouldn’t even care what anyone was truly thinking about.
Bael then added more.
“That demon who is still wet behind the ears has been endowed with enough magical power, so he won’t be able to see much clearly. If you leave him alone, he’ll eventually go wild and self-destruct.”
“I guess Paimon is still young. Has he been born for about a hundred years then?”
“A hundred years? That’s just ridiculous.”
Bael laughed before laying himself down right next to her and closed his eyes. Julia waited for his next words, but Bael already seemed unwilling to explain even further.
It was only the very next day that Julia, who eventually gave up for an answer and went straight to sleep, had finally found out Paimon’s real age.