"My kind?!"—That's what the Demon Queen said.
But what am I? I'm certainly not someone special—as far as I know. And I don't know anything. Could she mean people without memories? Or how I ended up in this body, which, according to her, isn't mine? But no, that can't be it. It must be deeper than she made it seem...
The Demon Queen leaned in closer above me, her crimson eyes gazing at me with an unreadable expression.
I tensed under her stare, unsure of what to do. But she saved me the trouble as she continued her explanation.
"I wouldn't say exactly your kind. I don't even know what you are."
She paused for a moment, her eyes still fixed on me as if she was enjoying my unease and discomfort.
"But I do know what you will become."
I was about to ask what she meant by that, but the Demon Queen leaned back into the same position she had been in earlier. The weight of her waist pressing against me, the pressure inside her tightening around me significantly, cut off any words I was about to say.
"We'll return to that later," she said with a smile, as if she hadn't just ignored my struggle—or the pleasure that was making it hard to focus.
"The 'chance' Mana grants worlds destined for doom is the ability to summon a hero. A being capable of stopping me, even killing me."
My eyes widened in shock. Hadn't she called herself immortal, eternal?...
"Don't be so dramatic," she smirked. "Even if a hero were to kill me—which has never happened—that would only be in the world where they were summoned. Beyond that, I would continue to exist and destroy worlds. Only that world would be spared; I would no longer be able to enter it or spread my influence there."
"So… you've never actually lost?" I asked, my voice carrying a mix of admiration and relief. I didn't know why, but her words were strangely comforting to me.
"Fufufu~ You're delightfully not a very moral human," the Demon Queen laughed above me, her eyes glowing with clear amusement and joy. "Well, I appreciate the encouragement. I don't get that often. And never from a human~"
I remained silent. Her words implied that I might act differently from others of my kind, but that didn't interest or concern me. So, I simply listened, enjoying her presence, her weight, and her warmth.
"Your predecessor—the body you now inhabit—was once a hero before he died at my hands, just like the world he failed to protect."
So that's what she meant by "your kind." She was referring to the previous owner of this body. Was that why she always called me her hero?
That certainly connected some dots and solved a few minor mysteries. But one thing still didn't make sense to me: If she had killed the hero whose body I now inhabited, then how was I in it? No, more importantly, why was it here in the first place—alive?
It didn't add up.
But those questions didn't bother me as much as the thought that this very hero, when I woke up in his body, had been in bed with the naked Demon Queen.
I didn't know why that irritated me as much as it did, but the feeling wasn't pleasant.
"When I kill a summoned hero and destroy the world target, I return to my kingdom, waiting for the emergence of a new world to destroy."
The Demon Queen continued speaking, answering the questions in my mind.
Her expression remained calm this time. She didn't seem to have read my last thoughts. And I had already forgotten about her ability to do so. My irritation with my own thoughts was too great, so I ignored such details.
"And I have the ability to keep every hero I kill. Their death in their summoned world does not mean their true death."
A wicked smile appeared on her face.
"I drag them with me to my kingdom. I play with them as I please. And I end their lives as I see fit."
A frown formed on my face before I even noticed. Even the Demon Queen above me looked directly at my frown but didn't say anything. Her thoughts remained unreadable.
After a moment of silence, her expression changed slightly, as if she had reached a conclusion.
She lifted a single finger from the hand resting on the bed. A red mist oozed from the tip of her finger.
The mist thickened in front of my vision until it became impenetrable.
A still image slowly formed within the heavy red mist.
It was a horrifying sight—a valley of skeletons and melting flesh. Blood flowed like a screaming river through the gaps between bones. I didn't know what to think of it or what it even meant.
"My playtime with your predecessor didn't last long," the Demon Queen said in the same calm tone. "He was about to join his brothers and sisters there."
The Demon Queen inhaled the mist into her mouth and licked her lips as if savoring something delicious.
"But you... you came to me as a surprise. And I mean that in more ways than one!~ Inside and out~"
She tightened around me and collapsed onto me completely. Her hands cupped my face, and her lips pressed against mine.
I still wanted to learn more, but I wasn't going to refuse a moment of intimacy with her.
I wrapped my arms around her back, the bedsheets still between us, and returned the kiss.
Something about it felt different from before—better. Or at least, that's how I felt.
"Ooh~ That was a delicious kiss~" she purred.
Or maybe I wasn't the only one who felt that way.
She licked her lips for a moment before sighing.
"I don't see a way to catch up lunch time. And I don't see myself wanting to~"
That's what she said. And when I expected her to press down on me again, she sighed once more—this time in disappointment.
"Let's finish what we started talking about first. After that, I'll drain all the life out of you~"
She looked at me, her expression glowing red. But instead of feeling concerned or afraid, I found myself excited—waiting for the moment.
But she was also right. I still wanted to hear explanations for some of her earlier words—like when she said she knew what I would become in the future.
I had a faint guess about that. But I still wanted to hear it from her lips. That would be the truth—not just a weak assumption.
"One thing my hero got wrong~ I don't call you my hero because of him, but because of what you will become~"
And with that, the Demon Queen confirmed my guess—which wasn't so weak after all.
I didn't know what to think about that. But surely, this couldn't be good.
"Why not? This will help you recover your memories, just as you wish."
She really asked me that with a confused expression, but it was painfully obvious she was only teasing me.
What did it mean that I would become a hero? To me, it simply meant that I would be killed by her.
Did my memories deserve death? I didn't know. And I didn't know if I wanted to know.
"Don't be so dramatic. Death isn't the end of life—just one side of it," the Demon Queen commented, exaggerating her words. "Even if I kill you, I will drag you here with me until the end of time."
"That… doesn't sound too bad!" I responded with a grin.
I hadn't thought of it that way before. So, I could recover my memories and...
Before I could finish the thought, the Demon Queen interrupted me.
"And here I thought you were patient. The seed inside you is still growing. It will take about a day to activate."
"WHAT?! A DAY?!"
I yelled in shock, almost sitting up in bed. But the Demon Queen pinned me back down, urging me to stay calm.
At first, I found it difficult. But once I calmed my thoughts and remembered the nature of this domain, I almost laughed at myself.
I took a deep breath—I had nearly lost my composure.
"No, you completely lost it," the Demon Queen teased.
Ignoring her sarcasm, I returned to my thoughts.
This domain was under her control. She dictated time, night and day, and most likely everything else. A day here could mean thousands of years in any normal world. So, I still had time.
"Time for what?" she asked, shifting above me to get my attention.
I looked at her—she was gazing at me with curiosity.
"I don't know... preparation, I guess?"
I wasn't sure why I had reacted that way. But when I looked at the Demon Queen, I had a feeling she was the reason. It felt like leaving would mean saying goodbye... to her.
I gathered my scattered thoughts and asked about something she had mentioned earlier.
"What is the seed?"
From what I had deduced, this seed seemed to be related to the summoning of heroes. The summoning only happened once the seed had fully grown. But how would that help me recover my memories?
I waited for the Demon Queen's response, but it didn't come. She just stared at me with dissatisfaction.
Before I could point it out, she finally spoke, her frustration only deepening under my confused gaze.
"You don't even dare to hope! But don't worry—I'll fix that for you!"