Chapter 349: The Shaken Demon King

Chapter 349: The Shaken Demon King

"Did you enjoy today too, Ruby?"

"Y-you’re noisy."

A few days after the all-out war with the Church, in a motel located in the downtown area of the Western Continent.

"You seemed quite happy these days."

"I said you’re so noisy."

In the late hours, when the moon was up in the sky, Frey and Ruby were having a conversation in their room.

"I'll say it again, I don’t enjoy any of it."

"Hmm... really?"

“No, it’s not enjoyable at all.”

Ruby, who had unknowingly abandoned her stiff tone for a moment due to what had happened over the past few days, soon came to her senses and began speaking in her normal tone.

"So stop this and stay away from me. I’m going to sleep."

"There's something we have to do before bedtime."

"T-today I'll take care of it, so you can stay aw–"

- Slap!!

"...Ugh."

Ruby’s head turned abruptly.

Before long, the pain that she had been experiencing consistently over the past few days, yet still hadn't adapted to, began to spread from her cheek throughout her entire body.

- Srk...

Ruby didn’t resist when her clothes were raised by Frey, she has lost the will to resist him.

After rummaging his pocket for a while, he began to apply an ointment to her stomach.

"I said I’ll take responsibility, Ruby."

"..."

While applying the ointment to her belly, which had been badly damaged by his repeated punches, Frey smiled and whispered.

His pure and flawless smile was so beautiful that it could create an illusion that it was actually an angel who was treating her.

If the person who punched her belly wasn't Frey himself, she might truly have thought he was an angel.

So, this is what he meant by taking responsibility. This damn bastard.

As she muttered those words inwardly, Ruby's heart started to flutter as usual.

What the hell am I thinking? This is all part of his scheme. Everything he did was just to make me waver...

Ruby absolutely didn't want to get caught in his schemes, so she shook her head, calming her thoughts.

...But, I did enjoy it quite a bit.

But then Ruby lowered her head.

No, actually, I really enjoyed it.

Although she didn't want to admit it, Ruby had been deeply immersed in the life she had shared with Frey over the past few days.

She grew tired of the monotonous life in the Demon King's castle and the routine at the academy, where she dealt only with easily manageable individuals, forcing her to constantly act prim and proper.

In contrast, the days spent dating Frey were a whirlwind of new experiences at every turn.

While there weren't particularly exciting or humorous incidents happening every few hours, there were often big and small events occurring almost every day.

And when such events didn't occur, Frey would always initiate a conversation.

Initially, she thought she was just momentarily amused by his antics, and her feelings would soon pass.

But, somehow, even after several days, she didn't get tired of it.

Despite the fact that it was the ordinary daily life she used to despise so much.

But why was it enjoyable?

Feeling Frey spreading ointment on her abdomen, Ruby's gaze wavered as she pondered.

Was it because I'm with him...?

As foolish as it may seem, it started to make some sense.

From feeding a cat and catching a thief in the neighboring store to going to see a play. All of these were just ordinary routines.

In the midst of such ordinary everyday life...

During breakfast, lunch, dinner, and even as she drifted into sleep, Frey was always by her side.

Things that would have been boring and maddening if she had done them alone were becoming so enjoyable with him.

N-no way.

She attempted to deny it once again, just like she had done many times before.

But strong denial was said to be a form of acknowledgement.

No, that's not it...

Despite repeatedly saying no, Ruby's expression gradually became more passive.

This isn't right...

Was it time to admit it now?

She had known it for a few days, or perhaps even longer. Was it time to admit the fact that should have been acknowledged?

"...Frey.”

After pondering it over and over again, Ruby spoke with a trembling voice.

"I-I've been thinking for the past few days... um?"

Unable to make eye contact and hesitating as she spoke, Ruby suddenly felt a strange sensation and lowered her gaze.

"Hmm..."

"...Huh."

Her expression quickly soured.

After Frey finished applying the ointment to her stomach, he laid face down and dozed off.

"Weird bastard."

Ruby, who was vacantly observing Frey dozing off with his head resting on her abdomen, murmured to herself.

Her way of addressing Frey had changed from 'crazy bastard' to 'weird bastard.'

"Sigh..."

Noticing this as well, Ruby sighed and closed her eyes tightly.

"Uh, ugh..."

Then, she soon started groaning.

Frey's breath brushed against her belly as he dozed off, eliciting a moan from her.

Her belly... that made her heart pound whenever Frey hit it.

Moreover, even the stellar mana that Frey had embedded within her started to stir.

Thanks to that, she became so sensitive that even a touch of his breath made her moan.

For some reason, Frey hadn't punched her belly in the past few days.

At first, it felt good as she could avoid feeling the pain.

However, due to the strange sensation she felt whenever Frey's clothes or hands brushed against her, her thoughts quickly changed.

She thought it would be better if he just struck her firmly.

Even if he did that, her heart would still flutter.

- Throb, throb...

It wasn't surprising that Ruby couldn't maintain her composure whenever Frey's breath touched her belly,

- Press...

Without realizing it, she found herself pressing her belly against Frey's face.

H-have I gone crazy?

This is bad

The Demon King, who spoke confidently, stopped her words when Frey's mental transmission echoed in her mind.

There's not much time left now. A day or two at most...

"...?"

As he murmured like that inwardly, Frey's eyes and voice were steeped with deep sadness.

This is my last chance...

"What..."

Am I destined to fail until the very end?

"Frey...?"

After that thought, Frey suddenly stood up, leaving Ruby bewildered as she tried to reach out to him.

For some reason, Frey looked as if he was about to go far away.

"Ruby, do you really like me?"

"..."

When Frey asked seriously, Ruby couldn't bring herself to continue speaking.

- Slap!!!

Suddenly, Frey, who had been staring at her coldly, slapped her cheek with all his might.

"Kyaa!?"

It felt like her cheek was about to tear off due to the slap.

It was an attack on a completely different level from before.

"I-It hurts..."

- Step, step...

Despite Ruby holding onto her cheek and sitting on the floor, Frey paid no attention to her and left the balcony.

"F-Frey."

Watching him leave, Ruby softly called his name.

- Thump, thump...

Her heart was racing again, but this time, it felt a bit different.

"Why are you doing this..."

It was because, unlike usual, this time, the palpitation was born out of anxiety.

.

.

.

.

.

"Gugu?"

"Gugu."

Frey, who had briefly stepped outside the inn, was now speaking while caressing Gugu, which had flown onto his shoulder and tilted her head.

"Since you're a spirit, you're not restricted by distance, right? I think you did something like teleportation last time."

"Gu!"

"Alright, then..."

Frey's eyes softly gleamed.

[Special Ability]

Perhaps it was because he was quietly observing the system that appeared before him.

"You need to go to the Imperial Palace’s basement right now. To be exact, go to the Demon God who was restrained there."

"Gu?"

"And do as I say."

It was the beginning of Frey’s 'Final Strategy’ to overthrow the Demon King.

.

.

.

.

.

"..."

Deep in the dawn, inside the inn room.

"You bastard."

Ruby, who had consumed several more bottles of wine on her own, was now crouched on the bed, gazing at the sleeping Frey.

"Why in the world are you like this..."

She felt relieved to find Frey there when she returned to the room after staring blankly on the balcony for a while.

"...Did you really regress?"

But now, it made her even more anxious.

What Frey had mumbled to himself earlier couldn't help but make her worry, and it nearly drove her to madness.

"Sigh, I have gone crazy."

How could the Demon King herself worry about Frey, the Hero?

She could no longer go somewhere and declare herself as the Demon King.

However, it was still something that was distressing her.

"Damn it..."

Unable to organize her thoughts, Ruby, who had been silently watching Frey for a while, began to close her eyes. As drowsiness lured her, she cursed before surrendering to sleep.

"Why are you just coming now..."

It was a familiar situation.

Whenever the Demon God visited her in her dreams to provide advice or orders, Ruby would always fall asleep like this.

"Where the hell did you go and just come back..."

Upon entering the world filled with darkness within her mind, Ruby immediately expressed her displeasure.

"...Huh?"

As she did, she widened her eyes and took a step back.

"Keugh, keugh..."

The Demon God collapsed in front of her, completely battered.

"Wha-What...?"

"L-Listen carefully. This may be my only chance to talk to you."

Ruby was perplexed by the unprecedented situation as the Demon God urgently spoke.

"Frey is deceiving you."

"What?"

Hearing those words, Ruby asked back with a pale expression, and the Demon God, with eyes filled with anger, raised her voice.

"I said that son of a bitch is messing around with you!!!"

"...What?"

Ruby's eyebrows began to twitch.