Dianel didn’t resist. Instead, he leaned against the door connecting to the bedroom and transformed his shape. His bones protruded as Dianel transformed into a giant beast. He determined to protect what was behind him, even if the entire world collapsed.
Adandito and Hierian understood Dianel’s actions as a retaliation against them and became more cautious. In the tense atmosphere, as Dianel opened the leaned door, Siara revealed herself. She blinked her sleepy eyes and spoke with a drowsy expression.
“…Everyone, please stop. I can’t sleep because of the noise.”
Siara furrowed her brows as if her eyes were dazzled and looked at Adandito.
Adandito quietly withdrew his divine power, which had spread in all directions. Dianel also returned to his original form as if he had never swollen his body. Only Hierian was still unable to suppress his anger and let his rage erupt.
Siara lifted Hierian effortlessly as she discovered his defiant behavior.
“Young ones should sleep early.”
Siara’s expression softened as Hierian, in her arms, had a relieved expression. However, he still protested while swinging his limbs.
“I’m not a kid!”
“Well, you’re acting quite immature.”
Siara grasped Hierian’s head with a thud. It was an action that would usually have no effect, but Siara felt uncomfortable waking up from her sleep. As a result, Hierian received a few more hits from Siara as he struggled. And then, the pacified Hierian made sounds like a whimpering beast.
“Tsk, Siara knows nothing—”
“I do. I’ll sleep well. You should sleep with me too.”
“Together?”
“Yes.”
Siara wordlessly laid Hierian on the bed. Then she went and lay down herself. Just as she was about to cover Hierian’s neck with a blanket, the meteor shower, which had sparkled as if it would pour down, completely disappeared.
It was a peaceful dawn like any other.
* * *
The sun was high in the sky, and it was so bright that it made my eyes hurt.
“Ugh, my whole body feels sore.”
How much did I drink that I still had a hangover? I rubbed my throbbing head and frowned. I couldn’t remember anything about what happened yesterday.
Normally, no matter how exhausted I was, I would feel completely fine after a good night’s sleep. But today was completely different. While I was groaning and holding my head, Adandito opened the bedroom door and came in.
Unlike usual, he didn’t even knock. He wore a white apron and placed a bowl of soup in front of me. The unappetizing soup had mushrooms and carrots floating in it.
“…It looks unappetizing.”
As I frowned, Adandito spoke in a stern voice.
“Please have it.”
His expression and attitude were unusual. It reminded me of the disciplinary actions I often saw during my time at the reformatory.
“Why are you suddenly in lecture mode?”
“There is a reason for it. Will you listen to me if I don’t use this tone?”
“Of course! But why should I listen to you? And I won’t eat this!”
As I pushed away the soup he offered, Adandito scooped some soup onto the spoon and moved it toward my face.
“No matter how old you are, should I feed you?”
“I said I don’t want it! I want to eat something delicious!”
“That’s not going to happen. You should eat this soup and come with me to pray.”
“Why me?”
“You drink and make a fuss. As a savior, you are expected to abstain from alcohol. If you don’t want to incur the wrath of the gods, listen to me.”
“Where did that come from? I’ve never heard of abstaining from alcohol!”
When I tried to argue back, Adandito sighed deeply and activated his divine power. Since his divine power usually matched well with mine, I didn’t feel scared or threatened.
However, as soon as his divine power, which usually felt warm, touched me, my body shivered as if I had a cold. My headache worsened, and my stomach felt nauseous as if I were about to vomit.
Frowning, Adandito gestured as if to ask if I understood now.
“At that time, Siara was probably too young, so no one told her. Generally, a savior abstains from alcohol.”
“Where is that written?”
“It’s right here. If you continue like this, the gods might take away your healing ability. You might have to observe a year-long fasting prayer.”
“…Then I just won’t live as a healer, simple.”
“Do you think the gods are that lenient? They will make sure you have no other choice.”
“Well, that’s not a god but a thug—”
“It’s a grand intention to guide a lost lamb back onto the right path!”
No matter how loudly I shouted, Adandito blocked the words. Above all, my hangover was so severe that I felt like I was going to die.
“Ugh, I might die like this.”
As I clutched my stomach, Adandito once again offered me the soup.
“Please have it. You’ll feel much better than now.”
“…I’ll try it, but it’s probably a lie.”
I took a sip of the soup. As expected, it was slimy and tasteless. However, as soon as I swallowed it, my throbbing head eased. My depleted healing ability also returned slightly.
“…It actually worked.”
Mumbling in disbelief, I looked at Adandito, who gestured to see it for myself.
“Last night, the gods spoke to me. They said that despite their leniency in the past, from now on, strict rules must be followed.”
“What? Don’t lie, ugh!”
Suddenly, my stomach started hurting terribly. As I hunched over in pain, Adandito let out a deep sigh.
“Look at that. It’s right here beside you.”
“What is it? It’s scary, ugh!”
“…Hah, it seems there’s a lot to teach. I’ll be busy from now on.”
Although he seemed regretful, he looked pleased. He had a devilish appearance.
‘It must be Adandito who inherited the power of the Demon King, not Dianel.’
However, Adandito didn’t back down. In the end, while trembling, I finished the entire bowl of soup. As more than half of my healing ability returned and the hangover disappeared, Adandito looked at me satisfied, and walked away.
* * *
Adandito brought the empty bowl and personally washed it in the holy water. He intended to personally take care of everything that came into contact with Siara from now on.
This meant that Adandito had decided to follow the will of the gods.
Previously, he had gone against the will of the gods to save Hierian, who was trying to set Siara free. But since then, Adandito had remained unharmed. It meant that Eora, the god, didn’t intend to punish Hierian yet.
Besides, Hierian hadn’t done anything wrong yet, and both his body and mind had become more vulnerable. Judging from his behavior, it was doubtful whether Siara could easily give up on him.
But the gods weren’t as lenient as Siara thought.
As evidence, Siara had wandered in a cold sweat in the early dawn. Thanks to Adandito, who had come to find her because of Hierian’s surprise visit, he had witnessed that scene vividly. At that time, Eora whispered:
If the savior doesn’t fulfill her mission, the world will eventually perish.
Eora wasn’t just watching the world crumble. More than anything, Siara’s inability to remember the past was because Adandito had fervently prayed. In other words, Siara’s past was in the clutches of Eora, the god.
The reason Siara could still appear so innocent was that she hadn’t remembered anything yet.
According to rumors, in the forgotten future, she had led a better life. It was said that the past lives they couldn’t even remember were often more dreadful.
That’s why Piasse accepted them again, even after experiencing all those things without showing any signs of concern.
Adandito wiped the remaining water from the clean dishes and pondered.
‘I’d rather be called the nagging Demon King.’
Even if he became disliked by Siara, it didn’t matter. Instead, there was one thing he wanted—to help Siara live as she does now. For that, a disciplined life, a pure heart, strict dietary control, and prayer were essential.
Adandito steeled his resolve and walked towards Siara’s bedroom.
* * *
After experiencing a series of embarrassing incidents due to a hangover, Adandito became a bit of a nag. And before I knew it, a week had passed with me being tormented by Adandito.
Thanks to that, my body became stronger, and my healing abilities seemed to improve. The problem was that I couldn’t fully participate in the parties.
I sighed as I looked at the phrase written in the letter.
[Lady, I had so much fun at the party. Shall we have an after-party at our mansion today? I’ll bring plenty of fruit and wine that you love.]
If I didn’t know, it wouldn’t have been a problem, but knowing and choosing not to drink made my mouth dry.
However, I couldn’t just ignore it and drink. The pain I experienced from the hangover and the return of my healing abilities indicated that Adandito’s words were not lies.
The experience was truly terrifying. It had a stronger impact than a hundred words.
“Haah, if I do this, it renders the invitation to the party meaningless.”
In the end, I wrote a letter declining their invitation. This was the fifteenth time. Just as I made my debut, I didn’t know if constantly declining would tarnish my reputation.
But there was no other choice. What they sent were all “party invitations with alcohol.” Not drinking at a party venue and not drinking at an alcoholic party were completely different in meaning.
As I was sulking, Adandito placed a spinach omelet in front of me and said,
“Well done. Attend a proper gathering.”
“What kind of proper gathering is there?”
“Why aren’t there any? There are events like exhibitions, book clubs, and discussion meetings.”
