The Girl in the Birdcage, No. 3

"Black!"

"Hey, Black, let's have a drink sometime."

"Black, want to come to my room tonight and see my cat?"

"Oh? You want Black to look at your cat under the covers?"

"Black, my sister's been wanting to meet you for ages. Let's find time to have dinner together."

On the way back to his room from the Blood Demon Great Hall, Black lost count of how many people greeted him and tried to get on his good side.

Black merely gave them cool nods without slowing his stride.

Yet none of them took offense at his aloofness. To them, it was only natural.

How could someone favored by the Blood Demon Lord be so easy to curry favor with?

The fact that Black acknowledged them at all, rather than denying them even a glance, already made him seem approachable.

Bang!

The cultivation room door swung open, then shut tight behind him.

Only then did Black let out a long breath.

"I might be a little socially anxious."

He rubbed his brow.

Black walked to a corner of the cultivation room.

Rip!

He pulled away the black cloth, revealing a huge birdcage.

Inside it, a girl in a black dress huddled in a corner, hugging her knees.

She was slender, with black stockings wrapped around her long, shapely legs, making them look even longer and her delicate feet even daintier.

Purple hair spilled over her shoulders like seaweed. On her palm-sized face, a pair of big eyes gazed pitifully at Black, as if begging him to show a little mercy.

But...

Black's heart remained unmoved by the pitiful girl.

"That's enough. Drop the act, Miss Michelle."

The girl in the black dress—Michelle—blinked her tear-filled eyes. Tears rolled down her cheeks, but she bared her little fangs and made a show