Hearts

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I often dream of a demon. We’re running across a field of corpses. My mother—my heart aches still. I sense demons ahead. I stop. I push the demon forward. He says something. Demon language. I can’t understand. He looks at me, determined, leaves. I turn around. The humans catch up. The researchers convince me to return, too eager. They killed my mother, I realize. My heart aches even more. I kill them.

The demon returns with a translator. What’s the matter? My heart hurts so much. Give me your heart, and I’ll give you one that doesn’t hurt. … … My new heart doesn’t hurt. Am I dreaming? The demon shook his head, no. I can’t remember people’s names in my dreams. What’s your name? The demon smiled gently. I’m Dephinicus.

Dephinicus.

Dephinicus.

☄⚝☄⚝

The Succubus carried the Witch back to the first mana plant cave, careful not to scratch her against the rocky walls. She laid the Witch down on her lap, circling her arms around the Witch, watching over her, continuing to pour mana into her body.

The air in the cave had changed. The mana plants stood taller. The flowers opened prouder and bloomed mana. The whole cave buzzed with mana vibrancy.

Even as the Witch was unconscious, the mana air she breathed in slowly revitalized her weakened body.

After what felt like forever, the Witch stirred. She woke to a body with no strength and energy.

“How are you feeling?” the Succubus said. She tilted up the Witch’s body and watched her face closely.

Worry lined the demon’s entire form, and the Witch realized that the Succubus had been holding her.

“What happened?” the Witch asked. She felt weak, drowsy, and depleted despite the mana she breathed. She looked around the cave, and there was no one except for the two of them.

“That’s what I’d like to know,” the Succubus said.

The Witch groaned while trying to sit up. “The last thing I remember was jumping into the red pool. It was that sweet scent; it must have had some hypnotic effect. The whole room was filled with it. It made me so dizzy that I couldn’t think or resist it.” The Witch rubbed her eyes and shook her head awake. She felt so weak that she didn’t even have the strength to rub her eyes properly.

“It smelled like blood and rotten corpse to me,” the Succubus said, surprised.

“It didn’t smell sweet to you at all?” the Witch asked.

“Definitely not,” the Succubus answered, looking at the Witch incredulously.

The Witch lowered her head, pondering. Perhaps it was because of all those thoughts about death and suffering. Perhaps it was because she felt like her end was near. The monsters drawn to the pool were also near death, and she shared a similar mental state as them.

The Succubus put a hand on the Witch’s back and helped her sit up, leaning the Witch against her own body. The Succubus didn’t let go, however. She circled her arms around the Witch and hugged her close, softly leaning her head against the Witch. Next to the demon, the Witch was petite like a doll and fitted into the demon’s embrace perfectly.

This intimacy was a first from the Succubus. Although the Witch had laid in the Succubus’s arms during sleep, the demon had been keeping a respectable distance as much as possible even under that situation.

“Have you decided not to pretend anymore?” the Witch asked, relaxing into the demon and tilting her head toward the demon’s cheek. The Witch put her hands on the demon’s arms and held them lightly, preciously.

The demon didn’t appear surprised. Instead, she lifted her head slightly and softly kissed the Witch’s head. “When did you know?” the demon asked.

The Witch turned her head to look at the demon, but all she managed was to lean on her faraway shoulder. She barely had the strength to turn her head fully.

“My Lord,” the Witch said, but the demon frowned at her.

The Witch knew what the demon wanted. The Witch gave the demon a shy smile. “It’s been too long. I’m embarrassed to say it.”

“Please do say it,” the demon said. “Say my name.”

“… Dephinicus.”

“Elaiya.”

Dephinicus and Elaiya looked at each other as though they hadn’t seen each other for a long time, even though they’d been together for the past few weeks.

“Elaiya,” Dephinicus repeated. The Succubus started to morph into a male demon of another species—a transmupher. They were a type of demon with clay-like bodies. Their bodies could separate and change into any shape and substance they so desired. They can mimic abilities and properties, taking on the characteristics of other species perfectly. When Dephinicus transformed into a succubus, he also suffered the need for human sustenance as a normal succubus would.

“Elaiya, I missed you.” He held her closer to him as the horns retracted into his head, and his chest widened. The arms he held her with thickened with healthily toned muscles. His middle section transformed from a slim female waist to a strong male’s torso, and his legs lengthened. The skin on his body reshaded into blue, tinted with purple. His eyes turned black as onyx.

“I missed you, too,” Elaiya said, nudging him.

“Since when did you know?” Dephinicus asked again.

“From the beginning, almost,” she said.

“How?” he asked.

“Not telling,” she said, grinning at him. “And I also knew of the ones in the past, that time when you pretended to be a dark paladin, a heartbreaker cupid, and a lost spirit.”

Perhaps it was because of her heart that resided in his body. Or perhaps it was because the parts of her body that recognized their true owner. The truth was that whenever he was near, she would feel reassured, safe, as if she had returned home.

She felt that same reassurance when he first had appeared to her as a dark paladin. Although she had been confused, she went with the flow. When they had went back to Pandemonium, and she met with the dark paladin again, that reassuring feeling was gone. It had returned when she saw Dephinicus.

Over time, when he had reappeared in front of her in a different form, she had realized that he had been able to transform not just the appearance of his body, but also copy the abilities of the demons he mimicked.

Since he never revealed himself to her, she played along.

However, this time, she wasn’t so sure she’d make it back to Pandemonium.

“When I realized you were my Guide, I was so happy,” Elaiya said. “Genuinely happy, because I can only feel emotions when you are near.” She weakly smiled at him. “But I’m not sure if I’ll be alright this time.”

“You’ll be fine,” Dephinicus said, giving her a reassuring smile. “I promise.”

Elaiya softly shook her head. “You shouldn’t promise something you can’t deliver. Human lives are very fragile compared to demons.”

“You’re not completely human anymore,” he said.

She looked at him softly and sadly. She whispered, “Still human enough.”

They looked at each other. He didn’t want her to go, but she already resigned herself to her fate.

“What if I can make you live longer?” he asked.

“All lives end at some point,” she said.

“Come with me. I can extend your life if you’re willing to come live with me in Pandemonium like before. Your duty as the White Rose will end when you die, so come with me,” he said.

“Then what, I’ll never be able to leave Pandemonium?” she asked. “Or you’ll make it so I can’t leave?” she laughed.

He averted his eyes. “Either way, you won’t be able to perform your duty as a Rose Witch anymore. You’ve done enough for them already. It’s not right for you to watch over them forever.”

Elaiya, seeing how Dephinicus wanted to keep her next to him for the rest of her life, shook her head at him in good humor. The truth was, she wanted to stay with him and live happily ever after. Whether or not that would happen was very questionable right now. Even if he hadn’t mentioned it yet, the fragility of her current state was hard to ignore.

“I’ll think about it,” Elaiya said.

Footsteps approached behind the Witch. She tilted her head slightly and saw the Scholar entering the room from the crevice that she had used. In his hands were two glass bottles.

The Scholar saw the demon and halted in his steps. “Who are you? Where’s the Succubus?”

“He’s the Succubus,” the Witch answered.

The Scholar took a long, hard look at the demon. The demon looked back at the Scholar with a nonchalant expression and shrugged with an indifferent smile.

“If you say so,” the Scholar said, approaching the demon and the Witch.

The Witch was taken aback by his quick adaptation. “You’re not surprised?”

“If the Succubus could transform between male and female easily, perhaps she can transform into other forms. Besides, you’re safe and sound sitting there,” he said, tilting his head at her sitting in the demon’s arms, “I have no reason to question you. The two of you have been strange to begin with.”

The Witch nodded lightly. “Fair. What’s that?”

The Scholar beamed and came over, sitting next to them. “This,” he held up the light pink glass jar in his right hand, “is mana potion mixed in with the mana plants. Its effect wouldn’t be just the plain old increasing your mana production speed temporarily, but by adding in the mana plants, you’ll also be drinking in pure mana. Give it a try,” he said, holding the bottle out for her. “We already tried it, and it’s sooo good.” A big smile cracked open on his face. He was like a giddy researcher who had just made a turn-of-the-century discovery.

The demon reached for the bottle and took a tiny sip, then closed his eyes and concentrated. After a moment, his eyes opened to reveal a satisfied glean.

“Go ahead.” He brought the bottle to her lips. “Drink it slowly.”

The Witch sipped on the enhanced mana potion gingerly. Immediately, she could feel the mana filling her body. Everywhere felt hot, as if she was feverish. But at the same time, she felt cold all over. She began breaking out in cold sweat.

The Scholar reached over to touch her forehead. “Must be because she’s too weak, and her body can’t take the sudden change. It’s having a stronger effect than I thought, but she should be alright as long as she takes them a little bit at a time. It should also get better once she recovers enough mana. I’ll make one that’s just pure mana without the potion.”

“That would be helpful. Thank you,” the demon said.

The Scholar nodded. “No need to thank me. If it weren’t for you both, we wouldn’t be able to come down here. It’s a group effort.”

“You’re being awfully generous today,” the demon said.

“I’m in a good mood,” the Scholar chirped.

The demon changed the Witch’s position, leaning her on his arm instead of his body to cool her back.

The Witch’s body temperature slowly returned to normal.

“Now this one,” the Scholar said, holding up a bottle with clear liquid, “Is what we came here for. I tested it on myself. Applied to an area with chipped or lacerated mana walls, this will close or fill in the space like plaster. Best of all, you can manipulate its shape into that of a strip or a web. However, this must be mixed with the patient’s mana to work. None of us can micro-manipulate our mana like the Witch can. When we return, she would have to be the one to do the bulk of the work in repairing Blue’s mana channels.”

The Witch nodded. “It should be fine. I might be weakened, but I didn’t lose my ability,” she said.

“Good,” the Scholar said. “I’ll get you some mana juice soon. Rest up as much as you can.”

It didn’t take long for the Scholar to return with a few bottles of pure mana liquid in his hands, followed by the Fleur.

When the concerned Fleur saw that the Witch was alright, they breathed a sigh of relief.

Slowly, the Witch sipped on the mana juice, regaining her strength. She had to take them a little at a time along with the enhanced mana potion. Her body became feverish each time, but the fever’s strength and duration shortened with each dose. It greatly helped that the demon healed her in between.

The Paladin came over some time later with two bowls of stew. He didn’t seem surprised at the demon’s changed appearance. The Scholar must have told him about it beforehand.

“I’m glad to see you look better,” he said, standing at the mouth of the cave. “I’m not sure if being near you would be bad for you, so I’ll just leave these here. He set the two bowls of stew down on the ground and left.

The Paladin’s awkwardness was as obvious as a demon in a crowd.

The Fleur brought over the bowls and sat next to the demon.

“Hmph, he finally knows his place,” the demon said.

“Please don’t be so harsh on him,” the Fleur said. “He must have felt he couldn’t be of any use since he couldn’t help us with the potions and we’re safe from monsters here.”

“He’ll be fine. We’ll be able to leave soon anyway,” the Scholar got up from the ground. “Let’s eat at the camp and leave the lovebirds alone.”

The Fleur looked around in surprise. “I don’t see any birds. Where?”

The Scholar took the Fleur by the arm and gently led them out of the cave. “You know what? I’ll let the Paladin explain this time.”