Brain bloom

"I see. That's much easier than you telling me."

Mori also wanted to see what Irene looked like as a child, and wondered how she was raised.

The ancient demon king sighed and said, "Although I can calculate all the costs, I cannot tell the story clearly. Moreover, my mouth is not worthy to describe even a single detail of her."

These words piqued Mori's curiosity, because she didn't believe that the "she" mentioned here referred to Yuan.

Who could it be? Yuan's mother… She waited quietly.

A few seconds later—they emerged from the dark passage and stepped into the depths of the ancient demon king's memory.

It was an illusion, yet it felt incredibly real. She and the owl-like creature seemed to have traveled through time, becoming travelers wandering through time—as bystanders.

The two arrived at a charming villa covered in gravel and vines.

Judging from its specifications, this mansion was definitely built by a middle-class nobleman from the north, specifically for vacation purposes in a scenic location. However, its style and design are rather rustic.

Fortunately, the lazy afternoon sunlight made everything leisurely and beautiful.

“I have almost forgotten what era the human world is in at this time... but I will not forget every detail of how I was summoned by that person.”

Mori followed its gaze and looked over there—

……

The ancient demon king of that time did not laze around at home all day like he does now; instead, he frequently answered the call to trade with people. His aim was to acquire as many filthy souls as possible to increase his power and consolidate everything he had painstakingly obtained.

On this day, someone offered another copper coin, disturbing the busy ancient demon king.

The copper coin was stained with mud from the riverbank and blood from a scraped knee.

The person who handed over this copper coin was a young girl dressed in a nobleman's gown.

Her clothes and attire, which should have been elegant, were ruined by the obvious hardships of her journey. She wasn't a particularly beautiful girl, but she possessed an indescribable charm that emanated from the depths of her soul.

She had long, flaxen hair and fair skin. Her face was covered with light freckles, and she wore a smile that conveyed a sense of despair without hopelessness.

The girl leaned wearily against the corner of the wall, panting as she stared at the suddenly appearing ancient demon king.

She hasn't been able to eat properly for three days...

Along the way, he could only rely on rainwater and the muddy river water to keep himself going. Even though he was in a situation where death was not out of the question, he still had the mind to tease the object he had summoned through sheer grit…

"This is a devil? I thought it would be a more handsome male. Even with wings and a tail... it's still better looking than this owl-like shape, ha..."

"I forgive your offense. So, what do you want to trade with me? I can give you most things in the world. For example, the bread and milk you need most. How about we just survive?"

“Listen…devil. If you can give it to me, then let me do it in the most spectacular way possible to reject the man who tries to marry me, who tries to steal my soul, my freedom, and my chastity.”

The ancient demon king was not surprised, as such deals occasionally occurred.

These women always look down on their arranged marriage partners, either because they dislike their family background or because they think they are unattractive or have a bad reputation. They don't actually dislike these arranged marriages, because what they really want is a better partner.

So the ancient demon king, as a matter of routine, nodded and proposed a deal.

“I will give you my beauty, and then I will attract a prince from a great nation to pass through this place. He is wise and handsome, and will rule a prosperous era—and you will be his only wife. As for your current marriage contract, it will soon become a piece of waste paper.”

"You call this a grand gesture? Can you even understand human language, you devil? Do I need to sell this dress to get the money and hire a teacher to teach you to read?"

The other party scoffed, snorting with a filthy nose. It seemed that deep down, they regarded the devil before them as the most ridiculous creature.

In order to prevent the deal from falling through, the ancient demon king was patient.

“One prince isn’t enough? Hah—if you’re willing to pay a higher price, I can have many princes, even a king, pursue you. It might cause war… but I’d be happy to see that happen.”

"Shut up—I don't want that disgusting stuff!"

She shouted, as if squeezing out her last bit of strength, still dissatisfied with the deal.

Give me the most powerful weapon in the world, and a magnificent horse, and I'll tear off these tattered clothes and rip off that ugly man's penis!

"...Huh?" The ancient demon king thought he had misheard.

"Give it to me now!"

It was secretly amazed, never expecting to encounter such a crazy woman.

I can update "The Complete Book of Deals Between the Devil and Man" when I get back.

However, this deal was easy to arrange. Soon, it summoned a low-ranking Shadow Knight from the Demon Realm. That was enough to fool the naive and ignorant noble ladies of the human world.

It sent the Shadow Knight back on his own, leaving the lance and horse behind for the other party in the transaction.

A robust ghost horse, a sharp knight's lance.

The opponent glanced at them a few times, growing even more dissatisfied. He picked up his spear and, right in front of the Ancient Demon King and the Shadow Knight, stabbed the innocent horses to death, then pierced the unsuspecting Shadow Knight with the same force.

"Trying to fool me with this garbage! Are all devils scavengers?!"

She dropped her spear, uttering insulting words, but collapsed to the ground, utterly exhausted...

"Bring me the best... the very best... Ugh, give me bread and milk first. In exchange, I can give you a kiss... my first kiss ever, even though I kissed my pet rabbit before, you don't mind, do you?"

Volume 1 #166: Born Under the Dawn (Part 2)

The ancient demon king remained silent for a long time, completely at a loss for what to do.

Even it had never encountered such a transaction before… What was this? Its own subordinate had just died like that? And by a girl like this? What was wrong with these humans?

It suppressed its anger and decided to make the other party pay a greater price, even if it meant disrupting the entire human world. So, it retrieved the best weapon it could obtain, a spear forged from the soul of a fallen Balrog.

But to prevent further losses of its subordinates, it simply brought a fine horse from the grasslands from the human world.

Fortunately, the horse survived.

"Now that's a real steed. That one before was so creepy and scary..."

The ancient demon king gave her white bread and milk, and even brought some dried meat. The more he gave, the greater the price he would pay in the future… He would never do a losing business; every detail of this transaction would become a cost in the calculation of the price.

After the other party finished eating and drinking in a whirlwind, the Ancient Demon King intended to discuss the price with her, but she simply hugged the spear in front of him, hooked her feet around the reins of her horse, and slept for an entire day...

Hearing the adorable snoring around it, it began to regret it; it shouldn't have answered the call...

When she woke up, she was full of energy, like a little lion awakening, but much more beautiful. The first thing she did upon waking was to gaze into the distance with expectant eyes.

Before the ancient demon king could speak, she mounted her steed, dragging her lance on the ground with the skill of a female knight in full regalia.

“By the way, the devil—” She stopped her horse and looked down at the ancient devil king, but her face was lovely because of her faint smile, “To make a deal with you, you have to give up the most important thing, right?”

"Ha! You're finally willing to talk to me about the price?" It finally found its familiar rhythm, which is the essence of the devil's bargain.

The girl beckoned with her finger, rolled up her sleeve, revealing a smooth and slender arm: "Please come closer, let's talk about the price."

Although he didn't know why she wanted to lend him her arm, the ancient demon king happily flew over and landed on her arm, as gently as possible to avoid tearing it.

"The price will be the souls of one hundred people—"

Its voice faded away because it had been kissed.

It was a gentle and soft kiss, a kiss that lingered for quite a while on the downy feathers of its forehead.

After turning her face away, she wiped away her tears, but wore a grateful smile.

And then there was a shy voice: "This is the only thing I can give you. Thank me, from a pure and beautiful girl, for the first kiss... It's full of love and gratitude. I'm not afraid of how bad the devil's reputation is in the world, I'm still willing to kiss you and thank you... That's enough, isn't it?"

"How is this possible..."

"Don't be too surprised, it's true, you can go back and savor it slowly."

After saying that, she waved her arm and drove away the ancient demon king.

He lifted the reins and spurred the horse to gallop.

The ancient Demon King finally could no longer tolerate it. It seemed willing to destroy everything rather than let this uncontrollable deal continue. It would now steal her soul and take it back to the Demon Realm for safekeeping. Incidentally, it would also have to sever the souls of her entire family to barely cover the cost.

"A kiss? Damn it, how could that be enough..."

But the ancient demon king stopped flapping its wings as a thought surfaced in its mind. It suddenly realized that it had received a sufficient price—the weight of this kiss was far greater than it had imagined.

The girl walked further and further away.

The ancient demon king was somewhat anxious, eager to know her name and even more so, to see what she would do next. And... he didn't want her to leave so soon.

With this strange thought in mind, the ancient demon king silently followed behind.

The young girl's horse galloped for half a day, heading towards a grand but deserted banquet. It was supposed to be her engagement party with another man, but she ran away... causing a farce that became the subject of gossip.

But after hesitating for a long time, she ultimately did not go in and treat her fiancé in the way she had described.

She just smiled silently and then turned and left.

The ancient demon king was even more confused, wondering where she was going. Wasn't this exactly what she wanted? To go in, kill those who had taken away her freedom, and then scream and slaughter like a madman.

The place the girl was going to was a faraway place.

After five days and five nights of driving, they left the border and arrived at the battlefield in a neighboring country, the front line against invasion.

She wanted to become a warrior? To dedicate her strength to the country? The ancient demon king wondered, feeling that she was always unfathomable, but the resolute light in her eyes inexplicably captivated it, making it unwilling to look away.

On the battlefield—her country suffered a crushing defeat.

The strongest young knight, his silver helmet stained with the blood of too many comrades and enemies, sent out messengers to request reinforcements, shouting many inspiring words, with a line of warriors willing to die beside him.

They will launch one last attack and never return to their homeland.

Just in this moment of despair, he heard a familiar, dreamlike voice, accompanied by the distant sound of hooves—

"My love! I've come to see you!"

……

Sen heard a heavy sigh, the one from the ancient Demon King. By the time he saw this, it had already turned its head away, its back to everything.

It was changed to a spoken version: "Hmph, that's when I realized she was just an ordinary woman! Refusing the engagement? It was only because she had someone she deeply loved in her heart."

"Is this the handsome little knight who looks like cannon fodder?"

"Hmm... but he's not the cannon fodder you're talking about. He's a true powerhouse who ranks high in history—no, to hell with powerhouses, yes! He's just a stupid little knight with nothing but shamelessness!"

Mori understood and couldn't help but laugh repeatedly, first secretly, then louder and louder.

"Pfft... Hahaha."

The sound was so loud that the ancient demon king bowed his head, almost curling up in shame. Perhaps it had fallen in love with the girl, yet had personally sent her to the battlefield, where she would meet the man she truly loved.

"Hahaha."