Chapter 22: The Perils of Instinct

In an instant, Wade and Lamia exchanged glances.

If cold sweat could manifest physically, Wade would have wrung out a whole bucket in that short hour.

‘My…my body moved on its own!’

This was a purely instinctive reaction from Wade, a bodily impulse that moved even faster than his conscious mind could process.

“Wade.”

“What…?”

Wade nervously swallowed, his body freezing awkwardly in place.

“Why did you dodge?”

This was Lamia’s death-question.

‘Why did I dodge?’

‘—Why did I dodge?!’

‘Was that truly so hard to understand?!’

‘Even someone in a wheelchair would stand up and dodge if faced with that!’

“…Because…it was dangerous…”

Wade offered an awkward explanation, instinctively taking half a step back.

‘He dodged, huh…’

Having heard Lamia’s inner voice, he retreated another half-step, widening the distance between them.

He dodged.

Indeed, he dodged.

While it wasn’t something he could control, Wade had undeniably dodged.

What else could he do? Who wouldn’t dodge that? The Demon Lord possessed powerful reactive instincts, allowing her to evade countless attacks. As the White Knight, he was no slouch either; especially against such a lethal assault, his body’s instincts were perfectly capable of reacting!

‘He’d messed up. Completely messed up.’

‘On his very first day, meeting the Demon Lord at a social gathering, he had just resolved to keep her close for observation. Now, it felt as though he’d poked a massive hole in his plans—how had she suddenly figured it out?!’

With things having come to this, Wade was ready.

If Lamia intended to drop all pretenses because of this, he would find a way to protect the ordinary people present.

He was subtly gathering his magic, preparing in case Lamia launched an attack—

“Hmph! 😈🤜🏻🥚🥚!”

“Uwah…! 😨”

But in the next second, Wade’s efforts were undone.

All his built-up power halted abruptly. Under Lamia’s attack, he instinctively dropped everything he was doing, focusing his attention solely on the fist she swung at him.

When it came to mind-reading, Lamia, as the Demon Lord, possessed a potent countermeasure.

That countermeasure was ‘instinct.’

Lamia was a demon, her nature closer to the wild. Thus, she possessed a raw, beast-like instinct, allowing her to bypass thought and act directly.

Much like Wade’s unconscious dodge, she entrusted everything to her body’s primal urges, rather than letting her brain’s logic dictate her movements.

Therefore, Lamia threw that punch without a single thought.

It was as if she simply thought, “This must be done, so it is done.” With no deliberation, she instantly raised her hand and threw a punch, startling Wade into another backward crouch and dodge.

“…😰”

Wade nervously clenched his fists, wondering how Lamia would interpret his current reactions.

‘If it comes to war… then let there be war!’

‘He dodged, huh.’

Lamia typically only resorted to such instincts in deliberately combative situations. Thus, after she withdrew her punch, her inner voice once again echoed in Wade’s mind.

‘My first attack was indeed dodged, and he dodged the second one too, even though I didn’t think about it… Hmm… In fact, if he hadn’t dodged the first time, that would have been suspicious. I acknowledge the White Knight’s reaction speed. If he could hear my thoughts, he would deliberately take my attack. Otherwise, given his abilities, he would definitely find a way to dodge it, rather than taking a solid punch.’

“…?”

Listening to Lamia’s convoluted thought process, Wade paused, bewildered.

‘So… my unconscious dodging is actually being interpreted as a sign that I *can’t* hear her thoughts?’

‘Is… is that really it?’

‘So, there really is a psychological battle aspect to this?’

‘Though he didn’t understand what was happening, he realized—he had been saved by his own instincts?’

‘It seems… I’ve been overly cautious. My identity should still be well-hidden. As my husband, the White Knight surely wouldn’t use mind-reading on his beloved wife. I’ve heard that among humans, a knight like him is considered honorable; he wouldn’t resort to such underhanded tricks.’

“…”

For some reason, despite everything being for the future of humanity, Wade, the superhero White Knight, felt a pang of shame at the Demon Lord’s inner thoughts.

He awkwardly pressed his lips into a thin line again, as if his mission and his morals were fiercely clashing within his mind.

Ultimately, however, his mission had to prevail. After all, the future of humanity transcended all else.

Even if it meant employing tactics that even a Demon Lord would deem despicable—

‘Hmph~ Good—let’s continue. Knowing he’s not up to anything bad puts my mind at ease. May the White Knight live happily ever after?’

‘—Ah, damn it.’

He was supposed to be dealing with a Demon Lord he used to challenge to duels on a whim. Yet, in mere minutes, Wade felt his conscience had been struck twice.

‘Even if she had taken the form of a human girl, he couldn’t let his guard down!’

The next second, however, Lamia approached him again.

This time, Wade made no move to dodge, for he sensed no desire for attack from Lamia.

Just as before, Lamia linked her arm through Wade’s. Her soft, supple chest pressed against him, and with each breath, he could feel the rise and fall of her bosom.

Each rise carried the warmth of Lamia’s skin; each fall seemed to linger reluctantly, holding the temperature briefly before gradually receding, until the next breath, cycling anew. Through the thin fabric of his shirt sleeve, Wade could distinctly feel Lamia’s heartbeat.

“…”

‘A strange sensation.’

Wade didn’t know why he was noticing everything in such detail. The moment Lamia pressed against him, it felt as though his entire focus had shifted to her—

‘Ah, no, this won’t do. This is the Demon Lord, and this is undoubtedly her scheme.’

‘While he had to follow his grandfather’s instructions to build a good relationship with her and soften her animosity, he absolutely couldn’t let any personal feelings develop…’

“Husband.”

“Hm?”

In just a day and a half, Wade had already grown accustomed to Lamia’s form of address. The moment she uttered those two words, Wade automatically lowered his head to look at her.

This unconscious reaction surprised even himself after he responded.

“Why did you dodge so quickly just now?”

As if teasing him, Lamia brought up the earlier incident once more.

“…Ah, well…”

Wade worried he might say something wrong again, allowing Lamia—the Demon Lord who inexplicably always arrived at the correct answer—to uncover the truth. Thus, he opted for an explanation he thought might interest her more.

“Because that is my weakness.”

‘If he was willing to expose his weakness to her, then this person, who only sought to defeat him, surely wouldn’t suspect anything else, right? After all, he was willing to tell her his weakness… wouldn’t she believe him now?’

“😈Oh ho…”

“…😨…”

‘But why are you smiling so wickedly…’