You Must Listen to Me

Molly ultimately chose to replenish her sister's magic.

As for how she replenished it, and why the process was not described...

That was a slide no one could touch!

A little while later.

"Mm... What's wrong with me? My head feels so dizzy..."

Moyan's eyelashes fluttered lightly, and her fingertips curled unconsciously.

Her muddled consciousness was like a lake struck by a pebble, finally rippling awake in widening circles.

She struggled to open her eyes. Familiar ceiling, along with fragmented sunlight filtering through the gap in the curtains, greeted her.

But immediately after, an unfamiliar sense of power surged through every limb and bone...

It was not the weakness of extreme hunger, but a warm fullness, as though every cell had been filled to the brim.

The feeling was far too strange.

She remembered fainting from hunger. That hunger had gnawed deep into her bones, nearly devouring her consciousness whole.

Yet now, not only was she no longer hungry, her entire body was brimming with strength.

Even the exhaustion brought on by suppressing her instincts had mostly faded away.

Moyan braced herself against the floor to sit up, only for her movement to suddenly freeze.

Her gaze fell upon the back of her hand:

The shriveled skin from hunger had regained a faint flush of color.

Even the vicious purplish-black nails on her fingertips had lost most of their sheen, becoming little different from ordinary nails.

The heavy black wings behind her had shrunk by a size as well, lying softly against her back instead of spreading so fearsomely as before.

"This..."

Moyan's voice was tinged with confusion.

She subconsciously raised a hand to touch her neck. The pale violet patterns that had appeared due to her transformation into a Monster Demon had faded until they were nearly invisible.

Could this be... a dream?

But just then, her gaze inadvertently swept toward the window.

A beautiful young girl stood there.

She wore a pure white magical outfit that outlined her slender yet upright figure.

Fine silver patterns were embroidered along the hem of her skirt, gleaming faintly in the sunlight.

Her silvery-white hair reached her hips, its ends curling slightly.

She held a broken sword in her hand, black-and-white cloth strips wrapped around its hilt. Their ends swayed gently in the breeze.

Sunlight fell over her like a sacred halo.

Yet in those dazzling, slightly raised eyes was a chill utterly at odds with that holiness.

It was her!

The magical girl who had saved her in the tentacle cultivation chamber!

Pale!

Moyan's pupils suddenly contracted. As if scalded, she shrank back violently, her back slamming against the edge of the bed with a dull thud.

Her body began trembling uncontrollably, her eyes filled with terror.

Why was she here?!

Looking like this...

Moyan instinctively wrapped her arms around herself, her gaze rapidly scanning her body.

Although her wings and nails had become far less conspicuous, the traits of a Monster Demon remained.

She could clearly feel that the demonic magic within her had not disappeared!

This magical girl was here to slay demons, wasn't she?

Those people killed by Monster Demons, those dried-corpse cases...

This magical girl must have mistaken her for something like those monsters!

She was going to kill her!

Moyan trembled even harder. Tears welled up uncontrollably, blurring her vision.

She bit down hard on her lip, refusing to make a sound, terrified that the moment she spoke, she would draw the other girl's merciless blade.

She did not want to die.

She still wanted to live with her sister.

Her sister...

The moment she thought of Molly, a bittersweet warmth rose in Moyan's heart.

Her sister was so kind, so gentle. If she found out Moyan had become such a monster, would she... would she be afraid of her too?

The wind outside brushed softly past, lifting a corner of the curtains and stirring the long hair of the girl by the window.

"Heh..."

Molly looked at her younger sister curled up in the corner of the bed, trembling like a startled rabbit, and an almost imperceptible smile flashed through her eyes.

This little thing had quite the reaction.

She deliberately cleared her throat, lowering her voice with a trace of feigned coldness and distance.

"Tsk, tsk."

Molly's gaze settled on Moyan as she deliberately muttered in surprise:

"Who would've thought that after casually going out on patrol, I'd run into a... Monster Demon?"

She put particular emphasis on the words "Monster Demon."

Sure enough, upon hearing those words, Moyan's body stiffened abruptly.

She lowered her head even further, her shoulders trembling violently. Even the wings on her back shook like sieves.

Suppressing her amusement, Molly stepped forward twice and stopped three paces away from Moyan.

She raised her broken sword, its tip pointed at Moyan.

The cold metallic gleam reflected in Moyan's pupils, making her tremble even more fiercely.

"Speak."

Molly's voice grew colder, carrying a hint of threat:

"Why are you here? Are you working with those traitors?"

"Or were you lying in wait here to drain humans of their vital essence?"

She did not speak quickly, but every word seemed laced with ice, striking Moyan's heart.

Moyan shuddered all over in fright.

She shook her head desperately, her voice choked with tears and broken by sobs.

"I... I didn't... I'm not..."

"You're not?"

Molly raised an eyebrow and moved the tip of her sword closer, nearly touching Moyan's cheek.

"Then why did you become like this?"

"Monster Demons are born to survive by draining vital essence. You say you haven't done it—who would believe you?"

"I really haven't!"

Moyan anxiously raised her head, revealing a face streaked with tears, her eyes filled with panic and pleading.

"I... I was a victim! I didn't become this way willingly!"

Molly's gaze fell on her face. Looking into those wet, fawn-like eyes, most of her mischievous impulse instantly faded away.

She pressed her lips together and said nothing, merely watching quietly as she waited for Moyan to continue.

As though clutching at a lifeline, Moyan hurriedly spilled everything that had happened the night before.

She also mentioned the familiar named Lilith, who had kept speaking in her mind and urging her to drain other people's vital essence.

She said she had been terrified, too scared to face her sister, and had fainted from hunger in her own room.

"I really didn't hurt anyone!"

Moyan's voice caught slightly as she looked at Molly, her eyes full of pleading.

"Lady Pale, please... please believe me... I really don't want to hurt anyone..."

Molly listened silently, her brows knitting slightly.

A familiar?

Lilith?

A chill flashed through Molly's heart.

After remaining silent for several seconds, Molly finally spoke, her voice still carrying a trace of coldness.

"You said you've never drained anyone else's vital essence?"

"Mm!"

Moyan nodded hard, like a pecking chick.

"I really haven't! I'd rather starve to death than hurt innocent people! Especially... especially my sister..."

When she mentioned her sister, her voice lowered, and guilt and tenderness flashed through her eyes.

Something seemed to lightly strike Molly's heart.

She looked at Moyan in silence for a moment before slowly speaking.

"I can choose not to kill you."

Those words were like a clap of thunder exploding beside Moyan's ears.

She jerked her head up, staring at Molly in disbelief, her eyes full of astonishment.

"R-Really?"

"Really."

Molly nodded, drawing the sword tip back slightly.

"Not only can I choose not to kill you, I can also promise to bring you some vital essence every so often for you to absorb."

"Huh?"

Moyan was completely dumbfounded. She blinked at Molly as though looking at an alien.

"W-Why?"

"Why?"

Molly raised an eyebrow, a faint curve lifting at the corner of her lips.

"Because I have conditions."

She paused, looking at Moyan as she spoke each word clearly.

"From now on, you must obey my orders. If I tell you to go east, you cannot go west."

"If I say you're not allowed to do something, then you are not allowed to do it."

"Without my orders, you are not to hurt anyone, much less reveal your identity as a Monster Demon..."

Her tone was calm, yet it carried an unquestionable authority.