The demon gently snatched the falling coffee cup. The coffee sloshed around, but it was a delicate touch that didn’t spill.
“Wow.”
Pastel clapped softly.
“Your reflexes are amazing, Demon Lord.”
The coffee cup was placed on a nearby table.
The demon turned back with a slightly perplexed expression.
“Why are you asking how life is born all of a sudden?”
Oh right!
Just like how one feels like crying when they have a reason to, Pastel’s face turned sour again.
“Exactly, exactly.”
Both hands flailed around.
“When Earth Earth introduced itself, it went kaboom! And I needed life life, I needed it…”
Pastel trailed off mid-sentence. Laying back down, he suddenly shot up again, reenacting his earlier behavior, and shouted.
“How is life born?!”
A perfect explanation.
The demon slowly rubbed his temples.
“Are you saying that Earth Friend and life are linked…? By the way, who is this Earth Friend?”
Ugh.
“Earth Friend is Earth Friend!”
You don’t know that?
“No.”
The demon gradually shifted his gaze. He looked idly at the placed cup, then glanced toward the bookshelf beside the bedroom, wearing an expression that relied on knowledge and culture.
Then he turned back with an extremely rational gaze.
“You’re still too young.”
Huh?
Pastel’s mouth dropped open.
What did you say?
Are you saying I’m not skilled enough to date an Earth Friend?
Earth Friend!
“Why?!”
“Why, you ask.”
The demon looked bewildered. He walked towards the window, checking if the window frame was sturdy, then rubbed his fingers to check for dust.
“Hmm. Clean, but not really clean.”
Whoa.
That sounded like it had some significant implications and undertones.
Pastel’s mind was racing.
So I have the ability to make an Earth Friend but am still not ready enough?
Ugh.
It’s like the cryptic responses of a swordsmanship master.
I wish the disciple would just say it plainly.
“If you grow bigger, I’ll tell you.”
The demon brushed off his fingers.
“By then, you probably won’t even ask me.”
Ah-ha.
So, I’m underdeveloped in physical growth.
When I grow up, having good talent means I won’t even need to learn.
Pastel rolled his eyes.
Is this something that needs time?
“That’s a problem!”
Big problem.
“Isn’t there a way to do it immediately? Like a magic for rapid body growth, or something suspicious but manageable like a potion?”
The demon looked shocked. His eyes slowly blinked.
“With whom…?”
He tapped his forehead.
“No, there are many people around your age, so maybe you have your eye on someone. But really, how did your motivation get that far…?”
Muttering to himself, the demon began to calm down as if he had thought of something.
“Hmm, I see. I guess you don’t really know what it is. It’s common to mimic adults without understanding or longing for them.”
At this point, Pastel realized something strange about the demon’s reaction.
Huh?
Brain on full throttle~.
Buzz buzz buzz.
Could it be that I’m in a situation where I asked my guardian how babies are made?
Oh wow.
So embarrassing.
Having organized his thoughts, the demon spoke calmly as usual.
“Do you know what that is when you ask?”
Pastel turned bright red. This meant he felt offended at being treated like a fool.
“Demon Lord! That’s not the context! I was just thinking about how to create an Earth Friend! Since I already made a Mercury Friend and a Venus Friend, it only makes sense to create an Earth Friend!”
He swung his arms around.
“But an Earth Friend has to be a being in a dense forest at least, which is why I asked! I was just meditating until a moment ago, so I wouldn’t ask such a question out of context!”
Pastel, the sharp and composed one, dealt with his guardian’s flustered confusion.
At this rate, isn’t Pastel smarter and more composed than the Demon Lord?
Is this the power of Pastel?
Whoa.
Admiring his own abilities.
“The forest….”
The demon rubbed his chin.
“I see.”
He looked slightly embarrassed.
Having achieved intellectual superiority, Pastel felt pleased. With his hands on his hips and an arrogant expression, he spoke.
“And I’m not really an idiot! I know how making a baby works!”
Not the clueless idiot Pastel here.
Uh-huh!
The demon stiffened and stared blankly.
“What did you say?”
As soon as Pastel saw his reaction, he became smug.
“Demon Lord, you can’t be serious~?”
That can’t be!
That can’t be true!
The demon Lord was actually a clueless fool!
Clueless Demon Lord?
“Hahaha!”
Pastel burst into laughter.
Clueless Pastel and the same number of letters, right?
So silly!
“Fool~!”
Pastel kept laughing until he suddenly realized something and paused.
Whoa.
Same number of letters for Clueless Pastel?
I feel like I have just seriously mocked the Demon Lord.
But Clueless Pastel isn’t that lacking…
But still, treating the Demon Lord and Pastel as equals feels a bit excessive. It feels like an attack on dignity beyond a rebellion.
Have I been living wrong all this time?
Pastel began a rapid self-reflection. He revisited his usual behavior and pondered how he could live a more mature life.
If this self-reflection ends, he could transform into a magnificent Pastel to the point where the Demon Lord would shed tears.
Tears flowing.
But then, he spotted the Gem Cookie on the bedside table, which looked delicious, so he decided to just eat the cookie.
Yum yum.
“Wow, tasty! You should try some too, Demon Lord! It’s really delicious! Oh right! You made this, didn’t you?”
You must have eaten tons of it, huh?
“I want to eat it all myself!”
Pastel stuffed his mouth to the point where his cheeks puffed up.
Munch munch.
The moist sweetness spread throughout.
His cheeks turned bright red.
Living a life where he teases the Demon Lord while munching on the Demon Lord’s homemade cookies.
So happy…!
The demon stared at him blankly.
“Sigh.”
Pinching his temple, he spoke.
“Well then, eat up…”
It was a voice of a guardian finally having some time to rest after being tossed around.
Pastel nodded, mumbling through the cookie.
I can totally listen to the Demon Lord!
The demon, appearing weary, grabbed the coffee cup. Looking at the now cold coffee, he just set it down.
“If you really need to create an Earth Friend, then you must undergo some kind of change. You might figure it out through pondering or might naturally change over time.”
The demon rubbed his chin again.
“The quality of the being you consume seems to be still under control, so there’s no need to forcefully integrate it into the inner world for now.”
Pastel, who was about to respond, found his mouth stuffed with cookie and couldn’t speak. The cookie was stuck in his throat; it felt like it wouldn’t chew properly.
I stuffed too much!
Whoa!
Puffy-cheeked Pastel turned teary-eyed.
Demon Lord! Demon Lord!
The demon looked incredulous.
“Oh my.”
Shaking his head, he brought over some milk.
Pastel woke up from the early morning breeze.
Student Pastel lived a diligent and exemplary life, or maybe not, since he had to deal with the aftermath of a terrorist attack.
Though he left it to Horace, his senior and adult, he still had to fulfill his duties as the responsible one.
“Have all gas poisonings been resolved?”
As he walked down the corridor, medical staff followed behind.
“We’re close to discharging most. Some students just need a bit of rest, but their health is fine.”
“What about Elshire? She drank the most, right?”
“She was discharged right after Your Grace visited yesterday. Though her will for discharge was strong, she’s a Semi-Knight after all.”
Wow, quick recovery.
Well, with the ability to kick rocks to pieces and split steel with a wooden sword, she probably wouldn’t suffer too much from gas poisoning.
He visited the hospitalized students and then moved to the dock.
Checking out the airship that the terrorists had dropped in the arena, he found the enormous iron container he had seen before.
He had ordered it to be checked to see what they kept bringing, safely outside Sky Island.
Ideally, this would have been something to hand off to the Knight Order. However, since he was skeptical about the order, the academy decided to take initiative.
“Your Grace!”
The professor, who must have checked from somewhere high in the sky, hurried down from the airship. His complexion was pale.
“It’s a baby sky whale!”
A scream mixed with panic echoed.
“The terrorists kidnapped it and transported it here!”
Inside the open massive iron container on the deck lay a whale.
Though it was too large to be called a baby compared to Pastel, it looked like it had been starved, its skin cracked and oozing, showing poor condition.
Oh?!
Pastel looked blankly.
So, if they kidnap a baby whale…
“The mother whale will come for revenge!”
So that means, the mother whale is massive.
He remembered the sky whale that visited Sky Island during the vacation; it was a gigantic creature that covered the earth and filled the skies, creating an ecosystem on its back.
The baby whale inside the iron container took a deep breath. Its mouth opened, gathering energy and shining brightly.
Whoa?!
In an instant, the light flashed. A beam pierced everything in a straight path.
The airships docked nearby were pierced in sequence. Energy rushed forth, slower than light. A thunderous sound erupted. The atmosphere trembled as the gusts shattered the airships into pieces. Wooden debris exploded everywhere.
Pastel stared blankly at the scene. The wind tangled in his pink hair got in his mouth.
A flying wooden piece plopped onto his head.
He slowly looked down at the baby whale. The whale gasped for air and then calmed down again.
The professor screamed.
“The mother whale will come!”
“Whoaah!”
Pastel screamed in unison.
Save me!
I’ll be good from now on…!
The chaotic frenzy continued.
“Hmm.”
The demon spoke calmly.
“This is a failed terror plot.”
