Chapter 11:What makes you surrender

The banquet was a great success.

What started as a casual gathering grew in popularity as the requests for more multiplied. The tables placed in the grand hall increased from one to two, and gradually, the initially apprehensive demon folk began to come to the grand hall with smiles on their faces when mealtime arrived.

Demons, who had been peeking in with a mixture of curiosity and tension from outside the door, were sometimes invited by a beckoning gesture. After a moment of hesitation, they entered with a relieved expression. Looking at their faces, one could recognize the one who had first pointed a spear at Viola’s throat.

“Um, I apologize for that time.”

To the awkwardly apologizing man, Viola smiled and offered a freshly baked pie.

Viola’s cooking had gained a reputation for being delicious, and everyone expressed their gratitude for her presence in the Demon King’s castle. Every time she heard such words and witnessed the lively atmosphere in the grand hall, Viola couldn’t help but break into a smile.

The simple word “delicious” brought her so much joy. Indeed, a meal shared with a large group was more delicious than anything else.

However, there was one person, only the Demon King, who hadn’t uttered the word “delicious.” This fact frustrated Viola to no end.

“Hey, Bust-san. I wonder how I can make the Demon King say my cooking is delicious.”

As usual, Viola fed the bust and leaned against it, expressing her frustration.

The bust she first encountered when making breakfast continued to gaze at Viola in the same way. Occasionally, she would feed it and talk about her concerns. Viola considered it her friend, whether it agreed or not.

“I don’t really understand him. He doesn’t seem to dislike my cooking, but he’s arrogant and selfish. But that alone doesn’t satisfy me.”

The magnificent kitchen was apparently made by the Demon King. Despite not cooking, how did he know about a kitchen that Viola, a human, found easy to use?

―No one knows which race he belongs to. truly a mysterious figure.

Lester muttered.

―Am I really such an incomprehensible being?

The first words he directed at Viola were accompanied by a subtle implication.

“Maybe he doesn’t like me, but is he really as bossy and unapproachable as he seems?”

The bust trembled slightly. Surprised, Viola looked up at its pure white face.

“What? Do you know a lot about the Demon King?”

Vibration. In this case, it was an affirmation.

“If that’s the case, won’t you tell me? What kind of person is the Demon King? …Though I guess you can’t answer that.”

The bust closed its eyes once. This was similar to when Viola first found the bust and was sent flying into the room. Surely, it was intended to move Viola somewhere else.

Viola hesitated for a moment, but soon nodded and closed her eyes.

A sensation of floating filled her entire body.

And when she opened her eyes again, it was pitch dark.

Whether her eyes were open or closed, it seemed like an unchanging darkness. She had no idea where she had been transported.

Viola remained seated, and the sensation against her legs was extremely soft. When she pressed the ground, it sank softly and then gave a faint rebound.

Viola recognized this feeling as being similar to a bed.

She laughed, thinking it couldn’t be, and gradually her eyes adjusted. It was definitely indoors. In a space surrounded by walls, vaguely visible furniture floated.

Viola was indeed on what seemed to be a bed. She didn’t know whose it was, but it was quite bold for the bust to teleport someone onto someone else’s bed. Or perhaps it was a consideration to soften the impact for Viola.

As Viola pondered such things, her breath suddenly caught.

Slightly to the left, she saw a large shadow. If she focused, the shadow was moving faintly.

Hair was flowing down like flowing water from what seemed to be the head. Adorning it were splendid horns. The moment Viola saw the swirling horns, she understood whose bed she had been teleported onto.

“Hey, Bust-san…”

Certainly, Viola had expressed a desire to know about the Demon King.

But even so, was it really necessary to teleport her onto his bed all of a sudden?

“Uh, Demon King?”

There was no reply. Without showing any agitation towards Viola, who suddenly appeared on the bed, the Demon King did not acknowledge her presence, as if she didn’t exist.

“Sorry, but this isn’t my fault. The bust in that corridor just did this on its own, right? You know that…?”

Suddenly, her arm was firmly pulled, and Viola lost her balance. A powerful arm supported her upper body, which was about to collapse.

“…Huh?”

In the posture of being embraced by the Demon King, Viola looked up hesitantly.

In the darkness, his crimson eyes seemed to faintly glow. Unchanged, without harboring any emotions, Viola stared back at those eyes with a troubled expression.

“Um, thanks?”

…

Nevertheless, the Demon King doesn’t release Viola’s hand. On the contrary, he tightens his embrace around Viola.

“Um, Demon King?”

“What?”

Relieved that he finally responded, Viola inquires, “Could you let go?”

“Why?”

“Why… Demon King, what are you trying to do to me?”

Even in the darkness, Viola could tell that the Demon King chuckled. His narrowed eyes exuded a seductive charm. The words uttered with a breath contained a subtle fever that seemed to melt the spine.

“On a bed, with a man and a woman, there’s only one thing to do, right?”

“…Though you have preferences, didn’t you choose your partner?”

“Remembering that, huh? But preferences change.”

With a gentle touch, the Demon King’s fingertips stroked down Viola’s waist. Ignoring the warmth that involuntarily rushed to her cheeks from his clearly suggestive gesture, Viola turns her face away.

“Hey, is it enjoyable to assault a woman without her consent?”

“Weren’t you the one who initiated things first? Back then, it was a matter of life and death. If I were to attack you now, it would be without your consent.”

“How long will that arrogant attitude of yours last? It’s quite a sight.”

“Demon King.”

Viola, her face scrunched up, stares directly back at the man.

“Even if you embrace me, I won’t bend to your will.”

“…”

Viola, twisting her body, slips out of the man’s arms, who has now frozen in place. Without encountering any resistance, Viola safely descends from the bed.

Looking silently at Viola, the man with sensually flowing hair brushes it away annoyingly. Viola declares to him,

“Certainly, Demon King, you might be accustomed to such things, and with your skills, it might be easy for you to conquer me. Manipulating others through force or seduction might have been your way of making people yield until now. But you see, if you want me to submit, it’ll be counterproductive.”

In the completely dark room, Viola walks towards the door, kicking something along the way.

“I prefer someone who treats me kindly and cherishes me. Instead of trying to force me to obey like the Demon King, understand?”

Reaching the door, Viola turns around, points a finger at the Demon King, and declares one final statement.

“Besides, making someone yield is my job. I’ll make you admit it, no matter what — that it’s delicious!”

Viola, turning on her heel, forcefully swung open the door at the same time it was being opened from the outside.

Instantly, a powerful light flooded in, causing Viola to quickly shield her eyes.

“Demon King, my apologies—!?”

Looking up through the gaps between her fingers, Viola saw a man standing there. With a hint of unease, his large wings trembled. His crimson hair stood on end.

“The scent of the Demon King’s magic…?”

Viola glanced down at her own body. In the process, long, jet-black hair that had just come loose slid down from Viola’s shoulders.

Inside the room, the Demon King lay languidly on the bed.

The pupils of the man standing before her were constricted with a tight squeeze.

“Woman!!!!!!!”

The roar echoed throughout the Demon King’s castle like a thunderous voice.