Pastel trembled while eating fresh gem yogurt.
Tremble, tremble.
She licked the bowl clean and sucked on the spoon, sparkling with delight. Then she trembled again.
Tremble, tremble.
The Demon Lord watching her gave her a strange look.
“What’s wrong? Is there that much joy in fresh gems?”
“Nooo.”
Instantly denying it, Pastel bit down on her spoon and glared at the Demon Lord.
“You’re not an idiot, so how can there be freshness in gems? Totally foolish.”
The Demon Lord, who had somehow managed to whip up dessert through poor cooking facilities, looked bewildered.
“It seems Pastel is scared of the ferocious monsters created by magic.”
Melissa hinted with a smirk. Even then, her tone was so business-like that it felt like a refusal to get too cozy with the one her friend likes.
Wow, what a great sense of distance.
The care is palpable.
Or is it? Maybe it’s just the attitude towards a miscreant being playful while trying to raise a young friend?
Huh.
Suddenly, Pastel wondered what kind of reaction the Demon Lord would have if Melissa shot him a contemptuous look.
If it were Melissa, even if she felt contempt, she would probably restrain her expression.
“Melissa!”
Pastel called, her voice all sweet.
“Can you give the Demon Lord an absolutely sincere gleam of disdain?”
“Excuse me?”
Melissa was taken aback, and the Demon Lord was astonished.
“What kind of nonsensical request is that?”
“I think the Demon Lord deserves it. Don’t decline, just accept!”
“Don’t say it like it’s a good thing.”
The Demon Lord pressed his temples.
“Well, I don’t need your opinion anyway.”
She shot a sparkling glance at Melissa.
“As a friend, it’s a once-in-a-lifetime wish. I want the Demon Lord to be given a reason to be despised.”
“You’re just talking nonsense.”
Melissa touched her cheek, looking awkward.
“I don’t think a once-in-a-lifetime wish is meant to be used in a situation like this.”
“Then how about a once-in-a-lifetime wish!”
“That’s not the issue. Disdaining someone is not a good action.”
Ew.
“So you’re not doing it?”
With a sad look, she fluttered her pink eyes. Melissa flinched, her cheeks slightly reddening, contemplating for a moment.
“However, mentioning things one shouldn’t do and fostering an awareness of preventing recurrence might be a person’s obligation. If everyone ignores what’s taboo without mentioning it, the line between good and bad will blur the more cases accumulate.”
Wow, such serious contemplation.
I can feel the smartness of the honor student.
“I agree! I wholeheartedly agree! Agree!”
In fact, even the smart Pastel mentioned it for the same reason!
Her pink eyes sparkled.
“So, so, will you despise the Demon Lord?”
“While there’s a valid reason…”
Melissa trailed off.
“What?”
The Demon Lord, clearing away the yogurt cup, looked confused.
“What reason do you have?”
It was the appearance of a criminal who had crossed beyond a lack of morals to outright obliviousness.
Ew.
I never imagined the Demon Lord would be like this.
Tremble, tremble.
Pastel desperately shot glances of disdain. But since she’d never really done it before, it didn’t work well, so she just said it out loud.
“Disdainful.”
The Demon Lord looked quite shocked.
“You little craft, you’ve been excessively mischievous lately. Are you still holding a grudge over the underwear incident?”
Huh?
Why bring up the past all of a sudden?
Pastel’s expression twisted.
“Do I look like the kind of person who would hold a grudge like the Demon Lord? You messed up tremendously, but I’ve long since understood with my broad mind.”
I acknowledge it.
“I still don’t think so.”
The Demon Lord seemed to have plenty to say. Perhaps thinking there was no solution in dealing with Pastel, he turned to the most reasonable one, Melissa.
Melissa looked troubled.
“Even so, I believe it’s not proper to mention it unnecessarily. It may seem trivial to the Great Demon, but for Pastel, it’s an embarrassing memory that will stick with her.”
What?!
This implicit atmosphere of sympathy.
Am I suddenly the petty one…?!
Wahh!
With a face flushed crimson, Pastel jumped up, ignited with a sense of justice.
“Melissa! It’s a bad deed not to stand up for your friend!”
Disgrace! Disgrace!
Protest! Protest!
Melissa smiled the smile of a model student, as if she had expected some resistance.
“I think ignoring the wrongs and not mentioning what’s taboo is also a bad thing. Sometimes mentioning it and preventing recurrence is better, don’t you think?”
Wahh!
If I apply the logic I just agreed to here…!
That’s a smart approach that shouldn’t count—!
Pastel squirmed and twisted her body.
“If you keep this up, I’ll sulk! I’ll totally sulk!”
She screamed.
“I won’t even touch the treats made by the Demon Lord from now on!”
What a shocking declaration.
Melissa watched for a moment and then began tidying up the dishes with the Demon Lord.
“I’ll help you.”
“Thanks.”
The atmosphere was one of indifference.
Wahh!
“I’m really sulking! I wasn’t sulking before, but starting today, I’m sulking!”
Pastel ran out of the break room with a sad face.
“Waaah!”
In the humid, dim corner of the mine.
The Fairy raised her thumbs.
“I think you did well!”
Huh, as expected, the good Fairy!
“Right?! Right?! I think both of them are being unreasonable!”
“Yeah, totally!”
The Fairy clapped her hands as if she had come up with an idea.
“How about putting love charms on those around you who don’t listen? It’ll make your heart feel easier!”
Huh.
That caught my ear.
According to Melissa’s fairy tale book, putting love charms on someone you like ultimately leads to a path of destruction by true love collapsing.
But transmitting love to people around isn’t something even the fairy tale book warned against.
Intriguing, intriguing.
Pastel asked a crucial question.
“I have many friends, but I only have two charms.”
The Fairy slapped her own chest.
“Don’t worry! Just trust this kind Fairy! If you want, I can make as many as you need!”
Then, the Fairy lightly added.
“As the number of charms increases, it’s inevitable we’ll have to deal with various things, but we’re like family, so there’s no need to worry!”
Pastel hummed, feeling drawn in.
What a catchy proposal.
After thinking for a bit, she asked a very important question.
“Can I pay on credit?”
Confused looks came her way.
“What’s paying on credit?”
The Fairy’s expression became blank, as if she really didn’t know. Is a defined credit transaction too modern?
“It’s just a simple transaction method you don’t need to worry about. Rather than paying immediately, you pay when you think you can. If you have to pay right then, if you lack something, you can’t make the deal. You’d have to just bear it, but with this method, you can ask the Fairy whenever you want!”
“Oh, that sounds good. It’s not just getting what you have but also what you will have in the future as a price? You can ask as much as you desire?”
“Exactly! Just like that!”
The Fairy raised her chin proudly.
“The Fairy is smart! It’s a great way for both of us! I completely understand!”
Pastel explained thoroughly for the Fairy.
“In exact terms, it means if I think immediate payment is difficult, I can postpone it until I declare that I’m ready to pay.”
The Fairy’s eyes rolled around.
“Immediate payment sounds way too strict. It’s really reasonable to pay when you’ve got the price ready! Then you can make more requests, and I can receive more! This feels really smart, like a loan!”
“Right? I think if we just word that in the contract accurately, we can get started! Since you said it was a loan, I’ll make sure to add that the fee incurs interest, which is favorable for you!”
“Oh really?!”
The Fairy’s face lit up, arms raised high.
“Then I’ll do it!”
“Really?!”
Wow!
“Yes! Yes!”
Pastel took the Fairy’s tiny hand and twirled around in joy.
“Let’s get on with the contract!”
“Okay! Wait a moment.”
The Fairy let go of her hand and breathed out. It seemed she needed to calm her excitement for something like contract magic, taking several breaths.
Then, the Fairy paused.
“Wait a minute. Isn’t there a major flaw in the contract wording?”
“Huh? What is it?”
Pastel looked completely puzzled.
The Fairy’s eyes rolled again.
“The fact that I can postpone payment means I can indefinitely delay paying it back, right?!”
Huh?
“And saying I’ll pay when I’m ready means if I keep borrowing beyond what I can pay back, I don’t ever have to pay it, right?!”
Huh again.
Pastel hadn’t even considered that premise!
“Such an oversight?! You’re so smart, Fairy!”
“Hoho, the Fairy is smart!”
The Fairy shrugged her shoulders proudly.
Then, suddenly having thought of something, she paused.
Shock spread over her face and her small mouth opened.
“Did I almost get scammed?!”
Huh?
“It can’t be!”
Pastel also became aghast.
“Did you almost get scammed, Fairy?!”
What a surprising fact.
Shock.
“Are you kidding?!”
The Fairy shot a suspicious glance.
Pastel wore a blank expression, similarly to the Fairy’s earlier blank face.
The Fairy tilted her head.
“Could it be? After all, this is our first contract, so crafting the wording meticulously would be challenging!”
“That’s right! I totally admit that!”
“Then I’ll make sure to work on the wording carefully! Wait for me!”
The Fairy looked excited.
But for some reason, Pastel suddenly felt a drop in her own enthusiasm.
Uh oh.
When I think about it, is a stiff contract really fitting between me and the Fairy?
There’s an adage about not doing financial transactions with family. Once money gets involved, even the best of relationships can lead to fights.
Oh no, what if I ended up fighting with the Fairy!
An unimaginable terrible result!
Pastel never wanted that to happen.
“Fairy! I don’t think a rigid contract suits our relationship! It’s best if we continue to live together like family! Besides, let’s look for the Demon King’s heritage!”
Let’s return the Demon King’s loot to the Great Fairy!
As a little pink, I’m going to teach that bad thief a lesson!
Let’s go, let’s go!
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