Chapter 64 : Then Tell Me, Why Are Your Eyes Red?

So tired…

Milly collapsed onto the wooden bed. She’d spent the whole day sparring with Tifna, and it had completely drained her.

Tifna was a monster of stamina. She’d practiced all night, yet she still had the energy to go on. Milly had to take several breaks, and each time, Tifna would just resume practicing on her own.

Was Milly’s endurance that bad, or was Tifna just a machine? Did she ever get tired?

If she transformed into her little demon form, with its rapid recovery, she could probably become a stamina monster too. But revealing her demonic features to Tifna was like lighting a lantern in a latrine—asking for trouble.

Despite the exhaustion, she had made progress. By the end of the day, she found that her body could move instinctively even without the breathing technique. The muscle memory, once triggered by her breath, had become truly her own.

With more practice, she could probably achieve the same level without the technique, which would greatly improve her stamina in a real fight.

She’d had dinner and had been lying in bed for a while. She was sweaty from the day’s training. Time for a bath.

Downstairs, she could still hear Tifna practicing in the backyard. All day. If she kept this up, her body would give out before her skills improved.

Milly had tried to persuade her to rest, but Tifna was just as stubborn as when she had tried to get Milly to eat slowly.

She hoped she wouldn’t work herself to exhaustion.

She filled the tub with hot water and slowly sank in, feeling the warmth seep into every pore. The day’s fatigue washed away.

After her bath, she changed into a nightgown and left the bathroom. The sounds from the backyard had quieted down. She must be done for the day.

“I’ve filled the bath for you, so make sure you go.”

Hearing a response from the yard, Milly dried her hair and returned to her room.

She closed the door. Tifna was probably exhausted. After a bath, she’d likely go straight to bed.

That meant it was time. Time for something no one could know about.

Stacy’s warning still echoed in her ears. She preferred the red eyes, but that meant turning back into a little demon. Without that form, she could safely stay with Tifna. Now that she knew her true identity, she had to keep it hidden.

To do that, she needed to practice. She needed to learn how to control her wings and tail, to make them appear and disappear at will.

Tifna probably wouldn’t check on her, but just in case, should she lock the door?

In middle school, Milly used to hide under the covers and play games at night. At first, she would lock the door to give herself time to hide her phone, but that only made her family suspicious.

After a few times, they just assumed she was playing games whenever the door was locked. After that, she rarely locked it. Better to train her hearing and pretend to be asleep if anyone came.

Now, in Tifna’s house, it was just the two of them. Locking the door would only worry her.

She’d just have to be careful. If she heard Tifna’s footsteps, she’d dive into bed. Tifna wasn’t Stacy; she wouldn’t pull off the covers.

She pulled down the straps of her nightgown. The wings would tear the fabric when they came out, so she had to take it halfway off.

Now, how did that phrase go? Every time she transformed, she would utter those incomprehensible words.

She searched her memory, replaying the sounds, mumbling them a few times until she was confident she could pronounce them correctly.

She took a deep breath and spoke the words to her reflection. With a sharp pain in her spine, her blue eyes turned blood-red again.

White hair, red eyes. Her favorite combination. A pity it was her.

With a sigh, she began to think. She had summoned them, but how to make them go back?

Stacy had touched the thorn sigil to make them disappear. She’d try that. She traced circles on her collarbone, but nothing happened. Her tail just wagged more happily.

What was it so happy about? She grabbed the disobedient tail, but the moment she touched it, a tingling sensation made her let go. Her tail was more sensitive than she thought. When Stacy had grabbed it, it hadn’t felt this strong. Had she become numb from all the stimulation?

No, no, that wasn’t important right now.

If she couldn’t do it like Stacy, she had to find another way. And she had to find it before morning, or she’d have to tie her wings and tail down. If they broke free… it would be all over.

Think, think, think. She had to find a way.

She tried everything she could think of, but besides tiring herself out, she saw no signs of changing back. What was she going to do?

She couldn’t just go to sleep and wake up normal, could she? The first time, it had happened like that, but Stacy must have been the one to change her back.

She sat, chin in hand, trying to think of something, anything.

Just then, a knock on the door made her jump.

Damn it, why was Tifna here?

She quickly pulled up her nightgown and dove under the covers, pretending to be asleep.

The wings and tail were uncomfortable under the blanket. She hoped her tail would behave and not peek out.

The knocking stopped, and the door opened. Tifna came in, holding a cup of hot milk.

“I added some moonvine juice. It’s good for helping you sleep.”

Milly opened her eyes and saw Tifna place the milk on the nightstand. She was about to say thank you when Tifna frowned.

“Milly, what’s wrong with your eyes? Why are they red?”

Damn it, she should have kept her eyes closed. She was so focused on her wings and tail, she had forgotten about her eyes.

She had no excuse prepared. What to do, what to do? Damn tail, retract now!

She pressed hard on the thorn sigil on her collarbone. As she cursed inwardly, she felt a retracting sensation in her back.

She reached behind her. The tail was gone. She threw off the covers and stood up.

“Are they really red? Let me see.”

She ran to the mirror. The reflection showed normal blue eyes.

Phew… they had changed back.

She picked up the milk Tifna had prepared and took a sip. It was delicious. The moonvine didn’t affect the taste, but enhanced it.

Milly drank happily, but Tifna’s brow remained furrowed. Maybe she had been mistaken about Milly’s eyes.

But as Milly had thrown off the covers, she had clearly seen a shadow quickly disappear under her skirt.