“Kyaaaaaah!”
— I yelled, but it was already too late. Maybe the cafe owner far away didn’t hear, but among the kids sitting at this table, not a single one missed my shout.
“……Demon?”
As if it didn’t matter that I yelled, Selena murmured blankly. Meanwhile, Rina, who started the conversation, lounged back with one arm draped over the chair and her legs crossed casually, looking incredibly confident.
If you were to interpret that pose, it screamed ‘So what?’ Rina’s expression was equally indifferent.
“What are you screaming about now?”
“That’s different from knowing and blabbing it to everyone else!”
As I replied in shock, Rina let out a scoff, rolling her eyes dramatically as if she was dealing with a pesky child getting scolded by their mom.
Not a daughter! The age difference between us is barely ten years!
…Wait, maybe I should consider the fact that being a demon means she could’ve been like that since her birth!
“Anyway, hiding it would only lead to more trouble. The longer you wait for it to come out, the more questions you’ll get about why you were hiding it. Plus, you got caught by her just now.”
Rina pointed her chin towards Jian, who was sporting a serious frown as he stared at her intently.
“…Trying to lie more from here on out will just make everything worse.”
As Rina added that defensively, I couldn’t help but slap my forehead. Smack!
“You could’ve said you’d talk about it later. I mean, bringing up such sensitive topics in a public place…”
Turning my gaze, I suddenly caught the eyes of the cafe owner, who was peeking our way, possibly concerned by my loud outburst. He quickly looked away, but I had no idea how much of our conversation he’d overheard.
Like I mentioned earlier, we were a bit far away, and since the cafe wasn’t that big, we practically occupied the whole place, leaving other guests outside on the terrace. But were those thick glasses soundproof?
“If a story leaks out, do you think it’ll just stay between us? Someone is bound to dig deeper, right? The church can’t always keep me safe.”
As I said that, I lifted my drink, only to realize it was just ice, and I set it back on the table. Despite the calm tone, my hands trembled slightly with anxiety.
“……If I just said I’d help, it could have been handled.”
“You’d help me for life? Oh please, I’m not going to spend my entire life living in a convent.”
Alright, I wouldn’t want to either.
“The church, protecting a demon…?”
Well, convincing someone that life in the convent isn’t that terrible wasn’t going to fly in this situation.
“Even though she’s a demon, Hicks hasn’t caused any significant harm to human society. From what I gathered, she seems to have decided against doing anything harmful. The church doesn’t just kill someone for simply not having committed an obvious crime, especially if they can communicate.”
Rinea calmly explained to Selena, who looked noticeably confused by that. It was obvious Rina was scoffing at it, and the reasoning was purely retrospective.
If ‘I’ hadn’t treated Rina kindly, if ‘I’ weren’t seen performing miracles by the Inquisition’s head, if ‘I’ hadn’t healed Rina using miraculous powers, the church wouldn’t hesitate to take her life the moment they recognized the “cooperative and communicative” demon.
…Well, from a purely logical standpoint, that makes sense. A smirk appeared on Rina’s face, but she didn’t offer any real pushback.
Aurora, who had spent even more time at the church than Rina, merely kept her eyes downcast, saying nothing.
“When did you find out?”
Finally speaking up after a while, Jian tilted his head as if recalling our past conversations, causing me to think, “Hey man, we’ve already covered that!”
I assumed we understood each other during our summer camp discussions about goddesses and demons.
“……”
Me, Aurora, and Rinea exchanged cautious glances.
“…We knew from the beginning…”
I cautiously stated as the representative.
“From the very beginning.”
Selena echoed my words quietly.
“Yes, from the time we enrolled.”
Rinea followed up, explaining that she had secretly trailed me to uncover the truth, while Aurora attuned to my ‘scent’ and noticed as well. Therefore, the circumstances of how each of us found out may have differed, but the fact that we always knew remained unchanged. Of course, it seemed Aurora wasn’t entirely certain that Rina was a demon.
“Didn’t you think of telling anyone?”
Well, I knew this question was coming. Honestly, it was the reason I had kept it quiet in the first place.
Backing Rina’s side was not something one would judge as wise when viewed through a rational lens—that is to say, through the eyes of others. The mere presence of a demon slipping into society was a gaping hole in our social security, especially since Rina was a suspected demon infiltrating the academy from within.
Of course, without my intervention, Rina would’ve naturally revealed her protective stance towards her classmates, sacrificing herself to save the children’s lives. But that would’ve meant Rina wouldn’t be here, in this very moment.
And since that process couldn’t be shown to others, my choice was a dangerously risky one.
“Well, I guess I thought there was no need to tell anyone.”
As I struggled to answer, Rina’s indifferent tone filled the void instead.
“I told you not to behave badly, or else…”
…Ah.
That’s right.
Just like that, I wielded holy power, warning to keep behaving nicely. Classic!
“……”
Pretty much everyone’s gaze fell on me, including those who had seen Rina’s breakdown. I could feel the heat flushing my face; perhaps it was getting so red it looked like I’d been burned.
Hmm, at this rate, if I said, “I was just saying that because I thought I could convince her to join us,” nobody would believe me, right?
Given my past actions, it’d only add fuel to the fire. After all, I hadn’t spared any other demons’ lives besides Rina’s.
Whether they were high-ranking demons or witches didn’t matter.
Wow, who’s trashing the church? My actions to this point mirrored what the church would do. Of course, I had my reasons, but who would care to listen to that?
“……”
Jian, who had heard Rina’s words, crossed his arms and fell into a deep thought. It’s somewhat reassuring he was questioning things. At least he wasn’t thinking my confidence stemmed from mere arrogance. After all, he’s one of only two Apostles of the Demon Lord.
The bigger issue was Selena sitting beside him.
Ever since Rina had revealed herself as a demon, she’d been gazing down at a corner of the table with a dazed expression.
Thinking about it, Rina and Selena were quite close. Sure, their style didn’t match the typical friendly greetings or giggling at gossip like the other friends did, but since shortly after I began sparring with Rina, Rina, Selena, and Jian had been practicing together.
I could see how they initially grouped together. Rina, wanting to beat me, asked Jian for sword techniques, and Selena, wary of Rina, ended up following them, creating a trio.
In the process of training together, they formed a fighting club unintentionally. The uncreative name stemmed from the club being named by Seo-A, who began summoning us without our knowledge.
But what if the friendly person you used to hang out with turned out to be of the same kind that took the life of your sister?
…Of course, if Rina was truly one of them, I would’ve immediately rebutted that notion.
“…Selena, I’m sorry.”
With the surrounding table quieting down, I finally couldn’t hold myself back anymore and spoke those words.
“…Huh? What?”
Selena looked startled, lifting her head from her thoughts in surprise.
The heavy burden of contemplation revealed on her face seemed to vanish the moment she looked at me. Though she appeared a bit dazed, she didn’t seem troubled or anything.
Huh?
“Sorry, for hiding Rina’s identity?”
“Oh, that.”
Hearing my words, Selena simply exhaled softly.
“Is there a point in apologizing for something that’s not your fault? You had no choice but to keep it a secret, to begin with.”
“Still, um…”
Should I ask why she has been displaying such an intense expression since earlier? I genuinely pondered that, but Selena waved her hand dismissively.
“It doesn’t matter what Rina’s identity is. I think we’ve passed the suspicious stage.”
As Selena smiled warmly and said that, I felt a little relieved.
In the original story, Selena wouldn’t fully trust Rina until the very end, but things seemed different here. Then again, the time spent with each other was vastly different. Above all, in the original world, Rina’s character was more isolated and didn’t engage with the others.
“I guess we can’t disregard the memories we built while being together…”
Trying to gauge Selena’s reaction, I spoke, and she nodded slowly.
“Even if it’s a bit cringy, that’s not wrong. Most importantly, I’ve witnessed Rina crying before.”
“Huh?”
Oh, now you have my attention!
“That time during the break, when you almost fell off the cliff. You were screaming and trying to follow her—”
“Kyaaaaaah!”
Suddenly, Rina shouted, rushing toward Selena, causing me to spring up and catch her from behind.
“Hey, let go of me! Let go!”
Rina squirmed, but with our strength measuring up similarly, she’d have a tough time breaking free as I held her wrists tight.
“It’s okay, Selena. Keep talking.”
“I remember you were calling out Rina’s name desperately with tears in your eyes. Thankfully, the others managed to stop you from following.”
“Kyaaaaaah!”
Ultimately, Rina’s repeating screams caught all the guests outside on the terrace’s attention as they turned to stare at us.
*
Eventually, feeling embarrassed to stay at the cafe any longer, we quickly finished up and settled the drinks we had ordered.
“If you happen to overhear anything from what happened here, please keep it to yourself.”
I addressed the cafe owner with a serious expression, unsure if he’d heard anything at all.
“Oh goodness, of course. I didn’t hear a thing. Honestly, I’m not even sure what you all were discussing.”
He waved his hands dismissively. That wasn’t particularly reassuring. Was he pretending not to have heard after catching a glimpse of our conversation, or was he genuinely clueless? I couldn’t tell from his response, and honestly, even if he did overhear, it was because we were so openly discussing sensitive issues here in the cafe.
There was nothing I could blame him for. I could only fault myself for not managing the situation better.
“…I’ll trust you.”
So, using the best approach I could think of, I clasped my hands together and gazed at the cafe owner with shining eyes.
In other words, the “Cat in Boots” strategy.
…Of course, I didn’t want to showcase this expression to the owner, but what could I do? A saint cannot exactly slip him some bribes.
In truth, what Rina was saying also held some weight. This truth couldn’t be concealed forever. Sooner or later, the story would leak out one way or another, often in unexpected ways. Reflecting on that, perhaps it was slightly better to consider the current situation where the cause could still be guessed at.
There was no need to resort to extreme measures, just to keep this under wraps until I could come up with a plausible excuse.
“Trust me, Saintess!”
Upon seeing me bowing, the owner thumped his chest, promising, I simply nodded.
With heavy sighs, we exited the cafe when—
“Why’s it taking so long to settle the bill?”
Rina, who had paid first, was outside waiting for us.
“It’s your fault!”
I grabbed my throbbing head, throwing that line her way, but she merely averted her gaze, pretending to be disinterested.
What good excuse could I dream up for someone who was so openly unhelpful?
“Hey, we’re mostly going the same direction, right? Let’s just walk together.”
It seemed like Selena had shaken off her earlier heavy thoughts, now sporting a bright smile as she spoke to us.
There was no reason to reject that… No, I suppose we had mostly walked home together without splitting up anyway. Hearing her say it felt suspicious in any case.
“Sounds good.”
I nodded readily. Others seemed to feel the same way, not wanting to decline.
However, unlike our regular after-school chatter, today’s walk was significantly quieter. Everyone appeared lost in their individual thoughts. Well, considering what just transpired, it was no surprise.
With that lingering thought, someone suddenly nudged my arm. I turned to see it was Selena.
“Clara, I have a question.”
With that, she seemed intensely conflicted about whether she should ask it or not.
“If I can answer, I will.”
“Um…”
Hesitating at my response, Selena leaned toward me and quietly asked in a hushed tone, “Did Rina suffer any kind of sexual abuse from the high-ranking demons?”
…Huh?
Ah, now that you mention it.
I had heard stories of demons committing heinous acts of rape occasionally. Though most demons were essentially mindless biological weapons, that didn’t entirely eliminate the possibility of a human conceiving a demon’s child.
Plus, Selena didn’t know yet that high-ranking demons were half-human themselves.
“I don’t think so.”
“How do you know?”
Selena inquired seriously.
Well, that would only make sense as I had taken a look under Rina’s skirt after she fainted.
…Now that I think about it, that was some insane stuff. I just flipped over the skirt of an unconscious girl. I only did it to be sure, though.
“…I checked.”
“…Really?”
Fortunately, Selena seemed to be willing to take my word for it. Frankly, it would have made sense given that Rina was under the church’s protection.
Though her expression was still somewhat serious, Selena seemed to ease a bit, stepping back just a tad.
“I’m relieved then. I was just worried about how to treat her moving forward.”
I shared that same relief. It would be difficult enough if friends started fighting among themselves, leading to complications.
“By the way, I find it incredible the church is directly protecting her. Many people have lost their families to demons and beasts, yet they’re forgiving her.”
“In reality, not many people in the church are aware of Rina’s identity.”
While the Central Church might be aware of it, I’d say it’s highly unlikely that the Mother Superior or even a generic priest there would know about it.
…Wait, what did I just say?
“…Forgiveness?”
“Oh, sorry. Did I say too much?”
I murmured and Selena grew visibly startled. Looking at her shocked expression, I smiled and replied calmly.
“No, it’s fine. More than that—”
More than that, yes indeed. I finally had a solid idea!
Regardless of what the church or anyone in this world might think about Rina’s identity, I had come up with a motivation that could serve as protection at the very least.
If demons were to be ostracized for religious reasons, then we could provide the necessary religious reasoning!
“Selena, thank you! I finally thought of a great idea!”
“Huh? Oh, really?”
As I seized Selena’s hand, she appeared flustered and stammered, nodding frantically. I quickly released her hand, running over to Rina to grab her arm instead.
“Huh? What?”
Rina questioned with a frown, mildly irritated that I had grabbed her too tightly. Yet, I ignored her displeasure and declared matter of factly,
“Rina, we’re going to my church today.”
I had to ‘publicly’ prove something.
If Rina couldn’t use the standard kind of holy power, then she could surely demonstrate her faith through a different kind!
After all, there’s more than one God in this world.
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