As the Demon King, I have married a slave elf. How should I express my love?

A swallowing sound came from her throat, and Neferpitou's pale face confessed.

"—Repay our kindness in letting you live to this day—Hearing them say that, I felt like something in my head was crumbling."

The trembling voice continued to transform into words.

"I didn't resist; I obediently let the humans capture me. This is my revenge on the people of the village."

At the time, she took it for granted.

Unless one is insane, who would want to protect a group of people who persecute them? She didn't even understand why these people thought they could get protection, and even felt sorry for their foolish thinking.

"Everyone was running for their lives. Not many people were caught like me; most were hacked to death by swords or burned by magic. There probably weren't many who left alive. After all, even the corpses of elves are quite useful."

Nefi's lips twisted into a smile.

"Seeing them like that, I felt really good."

But her voice trembled.

"Isn't this going too far? I watched my compatriots die while cursing me, and I laughed at them in my heart, thinking that one day it would be their turn to suffer."

At this point, the girl seemed to snap back to her original mask-like, rigid expression, as if a string had been cut.

"Only later did I realize what I had done, and that I was the kind of guy who could watch others die with a smile on his face."

Sagan sighed.

So that's why Neferpitou lost all expression...

It was at that moment that she hated her own smile, and consequently denied her own emotions.

But this kind of thinking proves that she is a person with a conscience.

After pouring out everything, Nefi collapsed into a slumped seat, utterly exhausted.

"I'm so sorry. You must look down on me, right...?"

Why?

Seeing Sagan's puzzled expression, Nefertie blinked, wondering if she had misheard.

"Uh, wait a minute? But, I..."

"Isn't this a normal reaction? If it were me, I would probably have slaughtered everyone in the village, including those invaders, of course. Neferi, the fact that you didn't do what I did already shows your compassion."

If it were Sagan, there's no guarantee he wouldn't actually do that.

No, he'll definitely keep his word. Even with a lovely girl like Shessty, he'd still kill her if necessary. And if the target were someone who tormented him, there'd be no reason for them to live. He wouldn't just kill; he'd gladly kill them all.

Since these are the villagers who have been tormenting Nefi until now, providing free torture services is not a problem.

However, Neferpitou looked even more confused.

"Is that so?"

"Yes. You were quite imposing when you faced the knight just now. I don't know what the elves are capable of, but since you could do that, retaliating should be a piece of cake."

As he spoke, Sagan pointed directly at Nefertir.

"And Neferi, you've misunderstood something."

"Misunderstanding?"

"That's right. You think your 'magic' is something bad, but power is neither good nor evil. Would anyone argue about good and evil with a knife? Those are just concepts that the cutter and the cutter assign to them."

Overwhelmed by that authoritative and eloquent manner, Nefi nodded vigorously.

Even so, her ears remained limp and droopy.

"But I feel that what I did is unforgivable."

"Who is unforgivable?"

"It's...it's the whole village."

"They're all dead, aren't they? Then don't worry about it. I don't think they have the guts to keep haunting and cursing you after they're dead."

Neferpitou opened his mouth in astonishment.

"Nefé, listen to me. No one can live on empty rhetoric and empty morality. If you have the power, you must live on, or it would be a disservice to the weak who died."

Neferi clutched his chest, repeatedly pondering the meaning of those words.

"Can I have power?"

"Or let me ask you this: Is it wrong to have power? Is it wrong to pursue strength?"

"this……"

Seeing that Nefi couldn't answer, Sagan gave him earnest advice like a loving father.

"As an aside, some people used to think I was wrong."

The overly straightforward answer left Nefair momentarily stunned.

"...Huh?"

Facing the speechless girl, Sagan began to reminisce as if reminiscing about the past.

"I can't remember who she was, but she said that someone as capable as me couldn't possibly understand her situation, and that the strong can't possibly understand the feelings of the weak."

Sagan remembered that the other party was a young girl who had been robbed and accidentally escaped into his territory, only to fall into a trap. She was incredibly unlucky.

The other person was fairly cute, and Sagan had just begun to hone his magician skills. He was quite lonely on his own, and he did have some ulterior motives, thinking that if he saved the other person's life, perhaps the two of them could develop some kind of special feeling.

That being said, he believes his initial intentions were at least well-intentioned.

He drove away the bandits and rescued the girl from the trap, but her response was unexpected by Sagan.

—Do the weak not even deserve to live? Is flaunting strength something to be proud of?—

He thought to himself, "I really shouldn't have helped."

In the end, he released the girl, but he was filled with resentment.

Looking back, the girl may have just wanted to find someone to vent her frustrations on, and certainly didn't really hate Sagan.

Even so, this was enough to make Sagan disappointed in others.

Compassion and charity are nothing but poison that corrupts. The girl had lived in a greenhouse all her life, and her heart had become so fragile.

Saving others is, in reality, just a way of feeling good about oneself.

The weak should be trampled on; they are worthless creatures.

—And I can never understand how these people feel.

After pouring out her bitter memories of the past, Sagan then said:

"But that's all nonsense. I just don't want to end up like them, which is why I'm working so hard to climb up the ladder."

The weak only drag others down.

Hoping that others will step forward to help you when you are in trouble is just an unrealistic fantasy.

Even parents can abandon their children. Asking others for help when you encounter difficulties is no different from inviting a wolf into your house.

Therefore, Sagan desperately sought power to become as strong as she is now.

—Even though in the end, I got nothing.

His relentless pursuit of power led him to the conclusion that humanity is not trustworthy.

To put it nicely, it might be called self-admiration, but it also carries an air of emptiness.

But in any case, he was finally able to trust himself.

If it's just about survival, this is more than enough.

Sagan thought to himself with a self-deprecating smile.

—And yet, my mood can also fluctuate with Neferpitou's depressed mood?

Even he himself found it ridiculous.

Even if it meant denying the life he had lived, he still deeply loved the girl in front of him.

He had always believed that love was nothing but a false lie, but now he had gained self-awareness and realized that he was deeply in love with someone else.

This is an unprecedented experience.

Perhaps one day, this contradiction will bring Sagan his demise, and he will gladly accept it.

So now, Sagan is struggling to weave clumsy sentences.

"So Neferi, you don't need to care about others."

Sagan touched Nefi's pale face, trying her best to express her feelings that she didn't know how to convey:

"Stop making that face. Didn't I tell you, I need you?"

His azure pupils trembled.

Her slender fingers, raised high, grasped Sagan's hand in return.

"Can I stay here?"

"Of course! Your cooking is so delicious, I can't imagine life without you."

Although I wasn't sure if it was right to bring up food at that moment, it quickly became unimportant.

A tear rolled down Neferpitou's cheek.

"Ne...Nephi?"

"Waaah... Waaah..."

After Sagan finished speaking in astonishment, Neferi fell into Sagan's arms.

"Wa ...

Then, she started shouting and crying.

Sagan remained silent, gently patting the girl's head until she finished crying.

Soon, Neferi finally calmed down and lowered her head, rubbing her pure white apron.

"...Um, I'm sorry you had to see this."