Chapter 10: A Hero’s Burden and a Demon King’s Dream

“You needn’t concern yourself with that.”

Meredith extended a hand, and under Qiaolun’s bewildered gaze, a crisp snap echoed.

Instantly, the two of them dissolved into a flash of violet light, vanishing from their spot.

****

“Wait a moment!”

Qiaolun seemed to anticipate what was coming.

Just as he was about to cry out, the scene before his eyes shifted, revealing the flickering, dim candlelight swaying gently in a breeze.

Feeling a sudden weight in his arms, he glanced down, discovering to his surprise that he was cradling the sleeping Demon Lord.

The very Demon Lord, a figure revered and feared by all races, who commanded the entirety of the demonkind, now lay utterly vulnerable in the arms of a human.

As he gazed upon her delicate, girlish face, Qiaolun found himself lost in thought.

‘Could it be that even the illustrious Demon Lord, much like any ordinary creature, cannot escape the necessity of sleep?’

‘No, perhaps it’s simply that the leaders of every nation are burdened by the weight of their duties, to the point where even the Demon Lord feels overwhelmed.’

The familiar scent of roses wafted around his nostrils; this was unmistakably her room.

He recalled how, in a moment of carelessness, he had been defeated by the Demon Lord, only to awaken to her gaze, brimming with tender affection—a memory that still made him profoundly uncomfortable.

‘Yet, it wasn’t entirely unpleasant…’

A faint, almost imperceptible smile touched the corners of his lips as Qiaolun, still holding Yunajin, gently laid her onto the soft bedding.

He carefully disentangled the strands of pink hair that had coiled around his palm.

Qiaolun cast one last look at Yunajin, and only after confirming she remained undisturbed, did he prepare to turn and leave.

‘Sleep well, Demon Lord.

I hope you’ll be invigorated for the battles to come.’

Despite this tender moment, Qiaolun had not abandoned his intention to slay the Demon Lord.

He had come here for that very purpose, resolute in fulfilling his duty as humanity’s hero.

Just then, a slender hand, silent as a whisper, coiled around Qiaolun’s wrist.

“Hmm?”

Feeling an unexpected tug, Qiaolun turned to investigate, finding a pair of half-lidded, pale red eyes gazing at him with a hazy, distant look.

“Hero-sama, stay with me.”

“What?”

“Sleep with me,” the Demon Lord insisted, her tone devoid of any shyness, yet imbued with an unmistakable command.

Qiaolun let out a long, helpless sigh.

Perhaps in Yunajin’s hazy state, she genuinely believed she was making a request, but to Qiaolun, her demeanor was utterly reminiscent of a pampered young lady making an unreasonable demand.

‘Aren’t you afraid I’ll stab you in the back, oh wise Demon Lord?’

Though these thoughts ran through his mind, Qiaolun still had no desire to prolong this entanglement with her.

“You like to sleep with a body pillow,” Qiaolun remembered, recalling Yunajin’s peculiar habit.

“You’re not planning to use me as a body pillow, are you? That would be truly terrifying.”

“Mm-hmm!”

Yunajin giggled sweetly, tightening her grip on Qiaolun’s hand.

Qiaolun, for his part, had no intention of sharing a bed with a girl of her apparent age; he was, after all, a man, and she was, moreover, a succubus.

“Here, have your beloved Slime pillow…”

Qiaolun casually picked up a grayish-white, somewhat sticky blob from the bedside table.

“Why does this feel so real?”

He simply tucked it into Yunajin’s embrace, not caring whether it was an actual Slime or not.

Yunajin first blinked sluggishly, then obediently released Qiaolun’s hand, hugging the Slime pillow as she drifted peacefully back to sleep.

“Ugh…”

As Qiaolun closed the door, the soft snores of the young girl behind him faded into complete silence.

****

Yunajin found herself in a dream, transported to a world of yesteryear, bathed in bright sunshine and gentle breezes.

She sat in a cozy coffee shop, facing a man with salt-and-pepper hair.

It was a date, and both eagerly sought to understand one another.

Joyful conversation flowed freely amidst the invigorating aroma of coffee, marked by the girl’s shy demeanor and the man’s generous spirit.

This pleasant interlude continued until the golden hues of the setting sun slowly crept across the window sill, casting their elongated shadows far across the floor.

“Are you free tonight too?”

Yunajin boldly ventured, extending the invitation first.

“We could go to…”

“Absolutely not!”

A stern, unyielding voice, imbued with an undeniable authority, suddenly resonated from thin air.

It seemed to transcend time and space, defying all laws, always arriving precisely when Yunajin felt the urge to slacken her efforts.

“Demon Lord-sama, your duties for today remain unfulfilled.”

“Oh… what a pity,” the man replied, a look of regret crossing his face.

“Perhaps another time, then.”

“Nonsense!

Old woman, do you even have a say here?”

Yunajin sprang to her feet in alarm, shouting into the empty air.

“Wait, don’t…”

The scenery before her eyes receded rapidly as Yunajin reached out—

Her gaze fell upon the familiar yet strangely unfamiliar ceiling.

“Was it a dream… me and Hero-sama? But what was with that cursed voice?”

Yunajin pushed herself upright, her eyes scanning her surroundings.

This was indeed her room, but hadn’t she been rushing to finish work last night?

Who had brought her back?

As these questions swirled in her mind, a peculiar sensation arose from beneath her backside.

“Ouch…”

Yunajin pulled out a gray Slime.

“Vivi, how… how are you… here?”

“Waaah, Demon Lord-sama…” (TL Note: -sama is a Japanese honorific expressing high respect or reverence, similar to “Honored Lord” or “Your Excellency.”)

Vivi had originally transformed into her Slime form, hoping Yunajin would cuddle her to sleep.

She had waited patiently by the bedside, indistinguishable from the other pillows in the dark.

Casually tucked into Yunajin’s embrace by Qiaolun, Vivi had finally gotten her wish.

However, she hadn’t anticipated that the groggy Demon Lord-sama would truly treat her like a pillow, subjecting her to various contortions throughout the night.

Vivi was intimately familiar with the sleeping habits of the Demon Lord-sama she served, though such an arrangement usually required a little forewarning.

“Well…”

“Heh heh, I must’ve been too excited sleeping last night.

My apologies!

How about this time you don’t transform back?

Just stay like this, and let me pet you properly!”

“Mm,” Vivi obediently agreed, and with Yunajin’s help, she regained her original form from her flattened state.

“Indeed, Vivi, you’re much more comfortable to touch when you’re like this.”

As the Slime’s slick body flowed through Yunajin’s palm, it felt sticky yet left no residue.

Its soft, elastic texture was so appealing, it almost made one want to take a bite.

Vivi, for her part, thoroughly enjoyed the Demon Lord-sama’s caresses.

“Demon Lord-sama, did you have a nightmare last night?”

“A nightmare?”

“You were calling out ‘old woman’ and ‘damn it,’ and things like that…”

Vivi said sheepishly.

She had a fair idea of what Demon Lord-sama had dreamt, for the young Demon Lord had always been firmly under the Grand Priestess’s thumb.

‘It’s bad enough you nag me in reality, but to think you can even find me in my dreams!

Is this merely my imagination, or is there truly such a magic?’

The mere thought that Meredith might be the one urging her on sent a ripple of unease through Yunajin’s heart.

Meredith’s retrospective had forced her to confront a stark reality: the carefree, blissful days of the Demon Lord were now a thing of the past.

“The holiday is over, Vivi.

Let’s go.”

📚 Also on NHV Novels

Reincarnated Young Lady Is Trying Her Best to Tame the Villain Today Too

cultivationFemale ProtagonistGender Transformation

Read Now →
Not interested