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

Sagan was well aware of his fierce appearance. Even Neferpitou was afraid of him when they first met, let alone a little girl.

But Varefal shook his head, and the green braids behind him swayed like a tail.

Illustration p061

"He's not scary-looking. If his mouth were a little wider, he'd be quite manly."

"I see...?"

If Sagan's face were paired with a slit mouth, wouldn't he look no different from a dragon or a monster?

Ah, so this is just a difference in aesthetic tastes...

But Sagan, who was regarded as handsome by the dragon, felt a sense of frustration, as if he had been identified as a non-human being.

Varefal continued speaking to the curious Nefi:

"What's terrifying is his power. This time, I have absolutely no chance of winning."

This is a perfectly understandable reaction, I suppose.

Asking her not to be afraid of someone who just beat her up is asking too much.

At least she now knows that Sagan won't eat her, which is a good start.

Neferi then spoke softly to Varefal:

"Don't worry, Mr. Sagan is not the kind of person who would abuse his power."

This left Sagan completely bewildered.

--Huh? Is that so?

He simply tried his best not to kill in front of Neferpitou, but he did burn bandits or overconfident magicians to a crisp.

However, Varefal seemed to agree with this statement.

"...Hmm. He's not willing to show his true abilities at all."

—That's just because I'm not serious about kids!

Sagan wanted to protest, but having just hit a child, he lacked any persuasive power. Had he known the other person was a little girl, he would at least have thought of other ways…

Varefal muttered, seemingly unable to understand:

"...What a freak."

"I also think he's a very special person."

Nefi, however, knew how to choose his words carefully.

Just as Sagan was feeling grateful for her thoughtfulness, Nefert asked other questions.

"Fa'er, so what are you planning to do next?"

"...I don't know. I'm too weak to challenge other Demon Lords."

"You really need power, don't you?"

"……Um."

The words, like those of a lost child—though she was indeed a child—made Sagan feel a pang of conscience.

—I thought dragons were creatures that should be more patient.

They are beings who can live for hundreds, thousands, or even tens of thousands of years, like legendary figures. But for some reason, Varefal felt constantly anxious by human standards.

—Besides, putting everything else aside, why would a young dragon come to the human world and pretend to be a magician?

The whole thing is truly baffling.

While Sagan was pondering this, Varefal asked Nefertari in return:

"Nefi, why are you listening to this man?"

"...I was bought by Mr. Sagan. But Mr. Sagan did not treat me as a slave, but as a person, so this is where I live."

"Is that so..."

For some reason, her tone sounded both melancholy and envy.

Neferi seemed to have noticed this as well. She stopped what she was doing, squatted down in front of Varefal, and met her gaze.

"Fa'er, don't you have a place like this that belongs to you?"

"……No."

A voice trembling with loneliness.

That's why I hate brats...

Sagan's expression turned sour when he overheard something he didn't want to hear.

◇

A few days have passed.

Although Varefal was still somewhat timid, she had relaxed enough to have a normal conversation. Now, she could obey not only Neferpitou's orders, but even Sagan's orders without complaint.

Sagan rarely assigned her anything unreasonable, so she basically served as Neferpitou's obedient follower. The two of them seemed to talk quite a bit when they were together.

—Anyway, having someone of the same sex around should be a good thing for Neferpitou.

So Sagan let them be, and he continued reading the books on his shelf as usual, but...

"Is this the last book brought back from Magasija Castle?"

Once I finish reading this book, I'll have read all the new books I've acquired.

--But they got absolutely no clues about the demon race or the "Demon King's Mark".

It seems there is indeed a need to search for the legacy of Magasiia again.

But we didn't find anything of greater value while searching before. Going there without a plan would just be another wasted trip.

"If only there were another magician..."

If it were the old him, he would never have had such a thought.

A magician with different knowledge and ways of thinking—Neferi, his own apprentice, probably couldn't be that good.

When it comes to magicians other than himself, Sagan's first thought is his frenemy Barbaros, but if he were to see the legacy of the "Demon King," it would surely be bad news.

Although other faces appeared in my mind, I still didn't know how much I could trust those people.

As I pondered this, a sudden inspiration struck from a different perspective.

—Or should I look for information outside the magic world?

The first thing that came to mind was "church".

It is an organization that believes in the one true God. Its members can gain physical abilities comparable to magicians by wearing "baptismal armor," making them the natural enemies of magicians. The twelve wielders of the holy swords—the Holy Knight Commanders—are said to be able to rival the Demon King if they work together.

They might indeed possess information unknown to the magician, but Sagan is, after all, a "Demon King," and it would be unwise to rashly approach him.

Then he inadvertently thought of that silly girl.

So, she didn't know if she was alright after that?

Known as the Holy Sword Maiden, she was once an enemy of Sagan, but somehow became friends with Neferpitou.

When they were captured by Barbaros, Sagan rescued her along the way, but she didn't know what happened to her afterwards.

In any case, nothing good ever happens when a paladin and a magician meet.

That girl was sometimes too serious.

During their previous encounter, she seemed to be thinking something, and actually let her enemy, Sagan, go. Sagan knew it was best if the two of them didn't meet again, otherwise she would hesitate to strike with her sword, or she would put herself in a difficult position by protecting Sagan.

She brought all those things on herself, but she always felt uneasy if someone else was ruined because of her.

I'll ask Nefi about her situation later.

From his own perspective, she was indeed a better person to die, but she wasn't hateful. If she were to die someday, he certainly wouldn't be able to sleep well—that was the extent of Sagan's concern about her.

"The problems are truly overwhelming..."

I had just stretched when the library door opened silently.

—Varefar has arrived.

What was most remarkable was that she was all alone. So Sagan turned around and looked at the little girl standing motionless at the entrance to the library.

"What's up?"

"...Dinner is ready."

She remained wary, but her voice carried no hostility.

Sagan closed the book in his hand and nodded.

"Really? I'll be right there."

Even as Sagan put down her book and headed to the restaurant, Varefal still looked up at Sagan.

"Varefar, is there anything you want to say to me?"

"...Why didn't you kill me?"

It seems she only opens her heart to Nefertari, yet still suspects Sagan might kill her one day.

So Sagan shrugged and said:

"Haven't I told you several times? Neferi likes you very much, so I'm sparing your life."

"But if you leave me here, aren't you afraid I'll ambush you from behind?"

This made Sagan smile wryly. He had a similar conversation with his close friend Barbarossa before.

—It seems that although she looks like a child, she is just like a magician in this respect.

Sagan merely scoffed at the idea that the dragon-like humans were problematic.

"A guy once said something similar, so I told him to bring it on anytime. That guy was quite knowledgeable about wine, so I told him that if he failed the challenge, he should offer me wine as tribute."

At this point, Sagan finally turned around.

"So I'll reply with the same words I used back then. If you want to fight, go ahead. But every time you lose, you'll have to work longer hours under Neferpitou."