In her eyes, the fear drifting through the air in this world was so clear, so enticing.
Cutting off Sakura's flesh, then soaking it in those people's fear—surely that would make for a delicious dish.
Her tongue slowly swept across Sakura's lips, painting a bright sheen over their faint redness.
Makima saw it. Beneath the lights, the blade gleaming with a cold luster was now held in its master's hand.
"What are you going to do?"
The instinctive question came out, yet the demon failed to notice the fleeting emotion that flashed through that vividly beating heart.
"Cooking."
The innocent smile carried a heartwarming warmth for others, but Makima was a demon. All she felt was cold.
Seriously?
The innocent smile remained as her master watched her. The blade reflecting both of them looked exceptionally sharp.
It would probably make short work of cutting through so-called life, wouldn't it?
Anticipation surfaced, and the cold had already vanished.
A smile appeared on the demon clad in human skin.
Meanwhile, the monster wearing human skin quietly examined the kitchen knife in her hand and the ingredients in the other.
She seemed to be considering where to cut in order to better preserve the so-called grain.
The next morning, Kiryu Aika slowly opened her eyes.
The all-too-familiar ceiling entered her view. She stared at it blankly, feeling as though she had forgotten something.
As her consciousness gradually cleared, moving her body brought an intense soreness. Her neck in particular felt as though it had snapped.
"Did I sleep wrong?"
Kiryu Aika clutched her neck and sucked in a breath of cold air.
It hurt. It really hurt!
Why did it hurt this much?!
She wanted to lie back down, but even the slightest movement of her equally sore body unleashed even more intense pain.
The pain almost jolted her upright.
But then she suddenly realized the pain was weakening, seemingly with her movements?
What exactly had happened?
The girl still held her neck. Fine beads of sweat kept forming and running down her body from the intense pain, soaking through her pajamas in no time.
Come to think of it, why was she wearing these pajamas?
The pajamas were indeed hers, but they were last year's size. Now that her body had developed further this year, they felt rather uncomfortable.
Was she too tired last night
?
She tried to remember, but it felt like a hangover. She could not remember anything at all.
She should take a shower first...
The pain was fading. Though it still hurt badly, the feeling of sweat-soaked clothing clinging to her skin was even more unbearable than the pain.
She had the distinct feeling that if she did not wash herself properly, her clothes would stick to her skin.
What had happened last night?
The hand clutching her neck slowly fell. Kiryu Aika endured the lingering pain and took off her clothes.
A faint red afterglow colored her pale body. Ugly blue and purple bruises were gradually fading from her fair back, but Kiryu Aika did not notice them.
The pain muddled her thoughts, leaving her entire body feeling dazed.
Perhaps it would be better to lie down now, yet she still made her way toward the tiny bathroom.
The clean mirror reflected Kiryu Aika as she was now.
A twisted neck, a grotesque face, an irregular body like some bizarre object stitched together by human hands.
But Kiryu Aika did not see it. In a daze, she walked into the bathroom and turned on the shower. Cold water suddenly sprayed from the showerhead and fell onto her body.
She did not feel cold in the slightest. She only felt the pain throughout her body gradually fade beneath the rushing water, and that relief from pain captivated her.
She turned the handle, lowering the temperature to its minimum. Even icier water flowed from the showerhead, drenching Kiryu Aika's body.
A thin mist slowly rose, blurring the clean mirror.
Her consciousness gradually cleared. At some point, the water pouring from the showerhead had stopped.
Had she fallen asleep?
She moved her stiff body without sensing anything wrong.
Not until she moved her still-dripping body before the clean mirror again and saw another version of herself...
Sixty-Nine: The Heterochromatic Miko, Another Me
Outside the villa in Cave Heaven.
Makiri sat in a chair woven from controlled vines, her long right leg crossed over her left. In her arms, she held Pernor, a little girl who had already fallen asleep.
She knew Pernor was already an adult and only looked like a child—the so-called legal loli.
But there was nothing to be done about it. Pernor looked like a loli.
As her master's demon, or even her master's second heart, she naturally carried the scent of her master, Sakura.
Pernor liked that scent, so she had taken this form.
A vine extended from the woven chair and brought her pastries from the table beside her.
Control did not only work on so-called living creatures. Inanimate objects could be controlled as well.
After all, within humanity's social structure, all inanimate objects existed to be freely used, exploited, and controlled.
Though doing so required a bit of skill.
"Miss Makima, this is the special blend you requested."
The fresh air filled with a scent, a sweetness beyond compare for Makima.
The teacup bore golden patterns, its white walls stained a vivid red.
And that sweetness Makima craved came from there.
"Thank you, Chi."
The one who came today was not Belfast, whom Sakura loved so deeply.
As Sakura's demon, her so-called second heart, it was only natural for her to know some of her master's thoughts.
Chi, or rather, Asama Chi.
A living being Sakura had summoned from a card.
Her mismatched eyes and obscenely voluptuous body perfectly hit Sakura's preferences, yet her heart was unexpectedly conservative. Though that was merely an outward defense.
This child understood desire no less than the little one currently sleeping in Makima's arms.
Makima took the teacup from Asama Chi's hand and gently stirred the scarlet "black tea" inside with her finger.
This was a special blend only she could enjoy, a "dish" personally prepared by Sakura.
"Miss Makima, you should use a spoon!"
The cute girl hurriedly offered her a silver spoon, causing the obscene body tightly wrapped in her clothes to sway along with her.
That was rather distracting...
Makima narrowed her eyes slightly and accepted the spoon the little one handed her.
Sakura liked this child, so Makima could not say much.
Still, it really was interesting. Sakura's so-called liking was what people called love.
But Sakura's love was unbearable for ordinary people.
Because they would never understand what love truly meant in Sakura's heart.
Promises made, betrayals in the blink of an eye.
Anything could happen.
All it took was enough pressure.
She sipped the black tea that was sweet to her, and that brilliant red stained her pink lips as well.
Her scarlet tongue lightly swept over them, and the red vanished without a trace.
Asama Chi stood there, somewhat at a loss.
Though Sakura had granted her freedom and the right to choose whatever life she wanted, her only choice had been to remain by Sakura's side.
Sakura had agreed to her choice, but nothing came after that.
Sakura had things to do now. Even if Chi wanted to remain at Sakura's side, she needed the right opportunity.
Sister Belfast and Sister Longo-Minyad had both gone to help Sakura deal with matters. In all of Cave Heaven, the only ones she could speak to were Miss Makima and Pernor, who was now asleep.
When facing Miss Makima, she could barely speak at all.
That cup of black tea was black tea only in name.
She understood the truth. She had witnessed everything.
Flesh being cut open, blood pouring out.
Merely recalling it made her uncomfortable.
She did not even know how she had carried the black tea from the villa to this place, then handed it to Miss Makima.
It had clearly been simple, yet she could barely remember it.
"Won't you sit?"
Makima glanced at Asama Chi, who was standing there foolishly. Though she did not particularly like this silly girl with her obscene figure, Makima was Sakura's demon after all. Her personal feelings could hardly override the influence she received as Sakura's second heart.
She was Makima, yet she was not Makima.
Her current body had merely been born from her master Sakura's imagination of her. Even the name Makima was the same.
The one indisputable fact about her was that she was a demon.
Vines emerged once more, weaving another chair beside Makima.
She had made her choice clear. Whether to sit or not depended on Asama Chi's own choice.
Chi sat down, even though she looked extremely restrained.
But Makima's lips curled slightly upward, both because of Asama Chi's choice and because the seed Sakura had planted was beginning to take root.
Kiryu Aika, let me see just how far you can go.
Is this me?
Yes, this is you.
The real you.
There was another voice in her head, a voice identical to her own. The only difference was that it always carried a teasing tone.
Kiryu Aika tightly covered her mouth, the immense shock overwhelming the pain in her body.
That was me?!
It was you!
Before you continue