Julia remembered the moment when she was kidnapped by a huge black horse before it ran aimlessly through a rough forest road. She then recalled the time when she had fallen from the back of that very horse as she plunged into the hands of some horrifying demons while she desperately cried out that she wanted to live at the verge of death.
“Magic doesn’t really work on me. My feelings for you were absolutely sincere.”
“What?”
“I really liked Miss Revenna. Although I have only been here for a while, Miss Revenna was the first one who actually thought and understood my situation.”
“And so—that’s actually my magic power to exploit you…!”
“And I’m saying that it doesn’t matter how much magic you put into it. That’s not the only reason why I liked Miss Revenna.”
Even before this person, there was another demon who had exhibited some kind of favor towards her—like that of Agares or even Lerazier. However, the favor that was shown by Revenna had been fundamentally different from their own.
‘I’ve already seen countless numbers of human keys. All of them had despaired, trembled and even cursed as well. Wouldn’t it be quite nice if you were able to live here from your point of view as well?’
She was utterly terrified of the sound of wind as she trembled. Even the clack of footsteps trudging from far away, lest more so the instant change of footsteps rushing towards herself, would make her whole body stiffen instinctively as her head went blank. With every single action that she took and every word that she spoke, she felt as if she was treading on a fragile, thin sheet of ice.
It was nothing more than just a precarious silence that could never be broken—even if it apparently seemed safe right now.
Revenna alone did not reveal her own feelings as if they were simply forced upon Julia. Instead, she understood Julia’s anxiety entirely. It might have sounded simple at a first glance, but it would never be possible if the aspect of consideration had not been ingrained into her body as a habit in itself. Thus, this was the first reason why Julia was fond of Revenna.
A pair of large bloody eyes was blinking blankly as Julia proceeded to crouched down and meet her eye level. Then, Revenna’s confused feelings became even more evident in the end.
“Even if you don’t possess any magical powers, Miss Revenna is truly a lovely person after all.”
“……”
“So, how could I not like you at all?”
“Me… Really?”
Her eyes were full with deep distrust and at the same time, a slight hint of hope.
Revenna had always been a strong demon. And it wasn’t just about power itself. No matter how strong a being was, a scar would definitely be left on the heart as long as the memories existed.
‘I can control the human mind. If I just lift this hand of mine, I can make anyone like me.’
‘That’s all you actually have for me.’
For some reason, it seemed like Revenna’s inner wounds were reflected clearly through her own eyes. The memories of the past had been endlessly disappointing as they eventually broke down the walls of her heart.
If it was only sugar-coated, Julia would never even care to this extent. However, Revenna didn’t refer to the other person as a trivial human being. In other words, she truly understood Julia’s anxiety and she knew what Julia really needed at that exact moment.
Julia was envious of her courage that never dismissed her own gentle nature at all.
She wanted to be someone who could actually take in all of Revenna’s memories. Julia had a past when she, too, got hurt by someone before closing off her heart. So, she just wanted to hold onto Revenna’s hand.
“Please don’t use that kind heart of yours to hate people like that. Miss Revenna is a person who can receive enough love even without your beautiful looks or that ability to seduce others too.”
“……”
Revenna did not speak for a while. Julia began to wait again until she could eventually clear up her mind.
Her eyes gradually changed. A look of distrust, confusion, maybe, but……
Julia became heartbroken to see her like that. It was just like a hedgehog—retaining its sharp thorns while keeping not a single thing from touching her own heart at all. That was the moment when Julia, who could no longer bear to see it, had just about to open her mouth once again.
Drip, drip.
Tears began dripping down from Revenna’s bloodshot eyes. Something had upset her, but she just kept her mouth shut as only tears trickled downwards without any words. Julia sat down with her knees on the floor, amidst those puddles of blood, before placing her forehead against Revenna’s own withered forehead.
Although she was a human, she had only been a mere human being—incomparably weak and vulnerable against those demons. Nevertheless, she still could.
“I forgive you.”
“Huff, sniff…”
The demons merely looked at the pair of them with such strange eyes.
Revenna had deceived the key. It still would not have been enough for the key to vent out her anger as she threw insults to such a person, but the key was now kneeling on the filthy floor while weeping for Revenna instead.
The demons, who had already lived for so long, were all aware. The certainty that humans were never pure and the fact that there had been countless numbers of human beings who were more demonic than demons themselves.
To them, Julia’s ‘forgiveness’ was in fact, all too foreign.