Seeing the silent Second Heiress, Hayashi Maki leaned in again.
Warm breath brushed Yukinoshita Yukino's ear.
"Sorry. It's all because you're too cute, Yukino-chan—I couldn't help bullying you again."
The utterly insincere apology made her frown; she couldn't help thumping his chest with a fist. Her eyes grew misty as she glared, as if trying to kill him with her stare.
Other guys might have been scared off by that icy look; Maki didn't flinch at all. He ruffled her hair, then dipped down and pecked her pink lips.
"Alright, stop glaring. I've already hugged and kissed you—what's a few more times?"
"How is that the same? If you were me, would you want to keep enduring humiliation, being bullied and unable to fight back?"
She finally blurted out what was in her heart. She was aggrieved.
Maki nodded seriously. "True. If I were Yukino-chan, I'd feel unwilling too."
"In that case, since you can't resist… how about trying to enjoy it? I don't look half-bad, right? Not ugly?"
"Hmph, looks have nothing to do with it. You're a pervert—that alone is unacceptable."
"Heh—unacceptable? Then who was it yesterday with arms around my neck, kissing me back?"
"I… I don't know! Anyway, that wasn't me!" she said, face red, turning away stubbornly.
Maki stroked her sleek hair and pulled her closer. "Deny it if you want. I'll never forget how cute you looked."
"Forget it!" she huffed, pushing him. "That wasn't me—it was you using some weird demon trick. Don't you dare keep talking."
"Heaven and earth as my witness, I didn't use anything. Only bottom-tier demons muddle girls' minds like that," he said—while his hand "accidentally" slid onto her thigh wrapped in black over-knee socks.
Yukino panicked, grabbed his hand, and pleaded, "Don't—what if someone sees?"
Maki's gaze burned. "Kiss me once and I'll stop."
"You… how can you—"
"Hurry and decide. I can't promise a student won't walk by this alley."
Out of options, Yukino darted forward and pecked his cheek. "There. You huge pervert—let me go!"
Maki touched his cheek, smiling with satisfaction. "Not bad. I'll let you off for today."
Even bullying a girl has limits—go too far and her eyes would go dull, like a puppet.
When he released her, Yukino hastily straightened her uniform and her over-knee socks. Disgusting lech—kept touching my legs!
Composed again, she avoided looking at him and headed for the alley mouth—only to hear him call after her:
"Oh, almost forgot—Yukino-chan, an angel just descended to our school. You've been looking for a power that can deal with me, right? Great opportunity."
She turned back, gaze complicated. "Why tell me that? Aren't you afraid I'll report you and have the angel wipe you out?"
Maki's lips curved; he looked confidently at her stubborn little face. "I'm not afraid of dying—maybe a bit of pain. What I fear most is losing what matters."
"Yukino-chan, in my eyes you're more precious than life. If you don't want me bullying you, seize this chance and make friends with the angel."
He was curious whether this friendless, prickly girl could actually befriend an angel. If not, she could resign herself.
Yukino clenched her fists at his calm tone. "Just wait. I will find a way to punish you. You'll regret telling me about that angel."
"Sure, sure. I'll be waiting—good luck, friendless Second Heiress," Maki said, waving as he turned away.
Yukino stamped her foot in fury. 'Friendless Second Heiress'? True or not, hearing it from him was infuriating.
After fuming a bit, her shoulders drooped; she looked dejected. Even that jerk knew she had no friends—and didn't believe she could win an angel's friendship. It shook her confidence. She'd never had a friend, let alone been the one to reach out.
And most of all—she didn't want to change herself, to grovel and make herself small just to please others. Then she wouldn't be Yukinoshita Yukino anymore.
…
Without realizing it, the big recess arrived. She still hadn't thought of a way to befriend an angel—she didn't even know who the angel was. Just like no one would know Maki was a demon unless he said so.
Blushing, she pulled out her phone.
When Maki heard his phone buzz and checked it, the corner of his mouth twitched. A message from the Second Heiress—and the content made him speechless.
Yukino: "Hey, pervert—tell me the angel's name. I can't find her."
Demon Lord: "Since when did you get so thick-skinned, asking a demon to give you info on an angel?"
Yukino: "Didn't you tell me to watch and learn? I learned it from you. How am I doing?"
Good grief—learn the bad, not the good? Fighting shamelessness with shamelessness—using magic to beat magic? Not a bad tactic, but she was still too naive.
Maki replied with a line that immediately flustered her:
Demon Lord: "If you're asking a favor, act like you're asking a favor. You called me a pervert. Just you wait—my lips are itching. I'm coming over to kiss you."
Yukino: "Don't—don't come!"
Blushing, she kicked herself. How could she forget he was a shameless lech—and the kind who meant what he said?
Those who are favored act with impunity—and since most of his "punishments" were kisses and hugs, she hadn't noticed she was getting used to them. She even kept calling him "pervert" and "jerk," prodding at his emotions.
Demon Lord: "I can't not come. I'm burning up over here. Can't you say something nice?"
Yukino curled her lip. He bullies me and wants me to sweet-talk him? In your dreams. But what if he did come?
She grit her teeth and fired off another message:
Yukino: "Maki-san, would you please tell me the angel's information?"
Hayashi Maki: "…"
That whiplash topic change… Fine. He couldn't expect the friendless Second Heiress to suddenly get smooth. Then she wouldn't be Yukino—she'd be another Haruno. And calling him "Maki-san" to change the subject—wasn't that a form of yielding?
Feeling a touch mollified, Maki stopped playing coy.
Demon Lord: "Gabriel White Tenma—that's her name. Find her yourself—probably a transfer student."
Yukino: "Thank you."
Demon Lord: "Not sincere enough. I risked my life to give you angel intel. If you really want to thank me, let me kiss you and hug you once a day!"
"Ugh—!" Yukino spat at the screen. He actually typed that kind of harassing trash… She hadn't noticed that she—who rarely chatted on her phone—had already started getting used to this intimate back-and-forth.
Even if she wouldn't admit it, her body was honestly inching toward accepting him.
…
Putting his phone away, Maki looked at the new transfers: Gabriel, Satania, and Vignette—all coincidentally placed in Class 1-B. He couldn't help a strange feeling. He also wondered how the Second Heiress would cozy up to Gabriel—he was oddly curious.
As for divine "punishment," Maki wasn't nervous at all. First, the two demon girls didn't seem to notice his identity, and neither did Gabriel.
Second—he had Super Regeneration. His soul wouldn't perish; his body would respawn without limit. Even if his soul were destroyed, as long as his followers existed, he could resurrect.
And angels wouldn't target Shiina Mahiru or Asada Shino, would they?
Maki's "wings," as a demon, were his followers. The magic within them was a tether for his revival—survivability maxed out.
~~~
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