The Former Demon Queen Talks To A Duck

Shortly after breakfast, the girls from the Adventurer's Guild spent half of the morning engaged in recreational group activities, organized and spearheaded by Leafy.

When the brown-haired girl had initially asked the group what they wanted to do, everybody began throwing out random suggestions and recommendations. So Leafy simply took all their ideas and organized them into a cohesive, point-by-point list.

"Alright," she said. "First is a nature walk through the surrounding forest of Sapphire Springs, as suggested by Lydia."

Following the announcement, all the girls paired up in twos and lined up behind Leafy.

"Okay, follow me," she said, walking ahead of the group and leading them like a tour guide.

Mary was partnered up with Chan-chan.

As the walk took them through different parts of the forest, they encountered a rich variety of wildlife, from rodents and birds to tropical insects and grazing animals like deer.

At one point, they came across a group of rainbow-colored ducks, a mother and her ducklings. The entire group waved in greeting to the water birds, which confused Mary for a moment.

But she quickly brushed it off. They were simply animals the girls were familiar with.

Farther along their trek, they also came across a rich collection of vegetables and fruits, including some of the same ones Mary and Maria had picked just minutes earlier.

Mary was simply excited to be there, taking in her surroundings like a little kid, a huge smile spread across her face.

...

"Alright. Next is hair braiding, as suggested by Minimo."

This time, all the girls gathered around the area while Minimo, the cat-girl waitress, wearing her crisp white bathing silks, sat on a nearby rock and braided their hair one by one into different styles.

"Wow, this is so cool!" Maria announced after Minimo finished with her.

Her hair had gone from simply hanging straight down to being styled into a pair of side-by-side pigtails.

"Thank you," Minimo replied, moving on to the next person.

She then braided Lydia's hair, followed by Leafy's, Snowpoppy's, and Chan-chan's, until finally, it was Mary's turn. Each girl loved the unique look Minimo had chosen for them, with every hairstyle tailored to suit their hair and natural texture.

Mary, however, was internally spiraling as she approached.

From the front, the former Demon Queen looked like any other nineteen-year-old, similar in age to Snowpoppy and Minimo. But hidden beneath her voluminous black hair, at the back of her head, were her remaining two smaller horns.

She had never bothered much to cut them, since the horns weren't nearly as prominent as the ones that grew on the front of her head. Besides, removing them was especially painful, even more so than the bigger ones on her forehead.

But now, because of that, she was in trouble.

If she sat down to get her hair braided, the cat girl would no doubt find the pair of smaller horns once she lifted the hair covering them.

What should I do? What should I do? Mary thought to herself.

I can't just refuse to get my hair braided. That would be weird. The girls would think I don't want to join them.

From the corner of her eye, Mary noticed Snowpoppy paying close attention to her.

The bunny girl soon walked over.

"Mary, what's wrong?" she whispered, standing beside the girl while Minimo was busy chatting with the same mother duck and her ducklings that had followed them from the forest.

"Huh?"

Mary stared at Minimo in bewilderment as she watched the cat girl talking to a bunch of animals, but quickly refocused her attention on the issue at hand.

"Yes, Miss Snowpoppy. I can't have my hair braided," she whispered.

"Why not?" Snowpoppy whispered back.

Mary looked around to make sure nobody was standing directly behind her. Then she moved her hair aside and slightly turned her head, revealing the pair of smaller horns hidden beneath it.

"Only demons have horns like this," Mary whispered, "especially those from the royal bloodline. If I present myself to Miss Minimo, she would no doubt react with panic."

Mary quickly ruffled her hair back into place, covering the horns.

"Miss Snowpoppy, what should I do?"

Snowpoppy stared off into the distance for a few seconds, seemingly deep in thought as she tried to come up with a solution.

"Alright," she said. "Don't worry. Give me a moment."

She walked back to her tent and soon returned with what appeared to be a red cloth.

"This is called a bandana," Snowpoppy explained. "Whatever style Minimo chooses for you, I'll ask her to work this into it. But first, turn around and let me tie it around your head."

Mary turned around, presenting the back of her head to the bunny girl.

Snowpoppy wrapped the bandana around Mary's head, tying it beneath her hair so that it covered the two small horns while leaving most of her hair above it.

"All right," she said, gently arranging Mary's hair back into place.

"Minimo," Snowpoppy called out, gesturing toward Mary. "Do you think you can work with this? Maybe you could come up with a braided style that incorporates the bandana. Mary wants to add it to her look."

"Oh, yeah, sure," Minimo replied, lifting her head from her conversation with the rainbow-colored ducks.

"All right," Snowpoppy said, turning back toward Mary. "Looks like you can head over with no worries."

As the bunny girl made her way back toward the others, Mary quickly reached out and gently took hold of her hand, being careful not to accidentally crush it with her overwhelming strength.

"Thank you, Miss Snowpoppy. Thank you so much."

"Don't mention it, Mary," Snowpoppy replied. "Now go get your hair braided."

Mary smiled and made her way over to Minimo, sitting down in front of the cat girl.

A wave of relief suddenly washed over Mary, knowing that Minimo wasn't going to discover her horns.

Although, she would still need to occasionally check the bandana and make sure it didn't come loose.

If it weren't for Snowpoppy helping her, Mary wasn't sure how she would have gotten out of the situation without seeming rude or making the girls think she didn't want to participate.

She was really glad the Snow Bunny had been there to help her.

So, was this what it felt like to really have an ally on your side?

Mary smiled to herself and pressed her face lightly against her knees.

She had been worried before, but now she was simply glad that at least one person knew her secret and was willing to help her keep it.

"So then, what did he say?" Minimo began as she gently combed through Mary's hair with her fingers.

"Quack, quack, quack, quack!"

"Really? W-who does he think he is? Did he really say that?"

"Quack, quack, quack!"

"I-I agree. Your ex-husband has some nerve, Maddie."

"Huh?" Mary chimed in, lifting her eyebrows in curiosity. "Miss Minimo, are you talking to me?"

"Oh no, Mary," Minimo answered. "I'm actually talking to Matilda."

Mary briefly pulled herself away, turning to look directly at the cat girl.

"Matilda?" she asked.

"Yes," Minimo replied, pointing down at the duck beside her.

"But how?"

Mary shifted her gaze between them.

"Oh, my goodness. I should explain," Minimo said. "I-I actually know a little bit of magic."

"Really?" Mary asked, her eyes widening with curiosity. "What kind of magic?"

"Communication magic," the girl answered.

"Communication magic?" Mary repeated, lost in thought.

She had never been the type to research deeply into the magical arts. Back in the Demon Realm, she had mostly focused on the basics, so she hadn't really learned much beyond the more common spells.

Seeing the look on the former Demon Queen's face, Minimo felt the need to provide a further explanation.

"Well, actually, back home, I attended a school where I enrolled in a communications major. I wanted to become one of those mages who helps revolutionize the way information flows between people throughout the kingdoms."

As if on cue, Chan-chan suddenly flew from her spot hanging from a tree, diving lower before coming to land in front of both girls.

"That's the truth. Chan-chan confirms it. Minimo can talk to animals, but only intelligent ones. Not livestock, like the animals we eat," the bat girl said, briefly flexing her wings to stretch them out before folding them against her back.

"Oh," Mary responded.

The bat girl then waddled over with a book and placed it on Mary's lap, pointing at a particular word on the page.

"Can Mary tell Chan-chan what this word means?"

Mary looked down at the page and read the sentence aloud.

"Kyte and Aurora bickered like children while trailing behind the hero."

"Yes. That one."

Chan-chan tapped her tiny fingers against the page.

"Oh, 'bickered'?" Mary asked.

"It means, like, to argue."

"Oh."

Chan-chan responded with a look of realization on her face.

"Chan-chan says thank you," the bat girl replied before settling down beside the girls and continuing to read her book.

"Oh, you're welcome."

"But, Chan-chan," Mary continued, "I thought you only read romance novels."

The bat girl briefly lowered her book to gaze at Mary.

"Yes, but Chan-chan has also heard good things about this book."

She smiled.

"So Chan-chan thought she would give a little action fantasy a try every now and then."

"That's very good, Chan-chan," Mary responded.

Chan-chan lifted her book once more and returned to reading.

"Um, so, Miss Minimo, you were telling me about Matilda?"

"Y-yes. Would you also like to talk to her?" the cat girl asked while continuing to braid Mary's hair.

"If you don't mind, please. I would love to know how you communicate with her. I'm curious."

"All right," Minimo responded. "Touch my leg."

"Huh?"

"I've already cast the spell," Minimo explained. "If you touch my body, you'll be able to understand what Matilda is saying, too."

"Oh!"

Mary did as she suggested, placing her hand gently against Minimo's leg.

Almost immediately, Mary was able to understand what the duck sitting beside them was saying.

"Quack! Maribel, would you stop chasing your sister around?"

"Quack! Pip, stop venturing away from your siblings! I told you to stop, didn't I? You're wandering too far from your family. A predator might come and pick you up and eat you. Do you want that, huh? Do you want that, little man?"

"Quack! Honestly, these children."

"Quack! Oh, hello. I see you can understand me now."

Mary's eyes and mouth hung open in astonishment.

She couldn't even explain why she was so surprised. It wasn't like this was the first time she had spoken directly to an animal. She had been talking to Gustav like this ever since she was little.

But this was most definitely the first time she had spoken to another animal outside of her familiar.

Her brain bounced around in her head, desperately trying to make sense of the situation in front of her.

"Quack! my dear. Are you okay?" the duck asked, tilting her head.

"M-my apologies," Mary blurted out, raising both hands in surrender. "Hello, Matilda. This is just the first time I've actually spoken to an animal outside of my familiar. I-I mean, I've never spoken to an animal like this before, so... that's why I'm so nervous. That's all."

"Quack! Oh, you shouldn't be nervous, my dear," Matilda responded. "Tell me about yourself. Who are you? I've met all of the other girls before, but this is the first time I've seen you."

"Yes," Mary replied. "My name is Mary, and I just started working at the Adventurer's Guild."

"Quack! Oh, that's good. Tell me more. Brandon, would you stop trying to peck at your sister's head?" Matilda shouted as she briefly glanced toward her ducklings.

"Quack! Don't mind me. These are my children. You know how children can be."

"Yes," Mary responded.

"Quack! Anyway, tell me about yourself."

"Okay."

And for the rest of the afternoon, while Minimo braided Mary's hair, Mary spent her time talking with Matilda and her children.