Chapter 35: Elves and Humans
âAsk me anything.â
To my surprise, Nevaska said she would hear my question. Whether sheâd answer it was unclear, but she did say I could ask. Considering we were about to fight to the death, I hadnât expected her to entertain a conversation. It was unexpected.
As she said that, the dark elf Nevaska glanced around at us, then leaned against the demon Kalif beside her, entwining her arm with his. The way she nestled into him made them look like a cozy couple flirting openly.
âI'm saying this even though Iâm standing here now, but normally, elves donât interfere in the battles between humans and the Demon King. If anything, they side with the humansâbut you didnât. I want to know why you sided with the Demon King. Also, how did you manage to rise to the rank of an executive? From what I know, demons and monsters value strength above all.â
âYouâre greedy, huh? I said one question and youâre throwing two at me⌠Well, fine. Iâll answer them both while Iâm at it. Especially that first oneâit seems like it concerns you all quite a bit too.â
I had accidentally asked two questions, but it seemed she was going to answer anyway. But what did she mean it concerned us too? Was it because Iâm an elf? I didnât get it.
âOriginally, I was a member of Hero Kalifâs party. Yeah, just like you saidâI used to be on the human side.â
Huh!? Wait, what!? That came out of nowhere!
Hero Kalif? She was on the human side!? What is going on!? Kalifâshe means that dark-skinned man right there, right!? Why is a hero and his former party member on the Demon Kingâs side now!?
Kazuya looked just as shocked and was visibly shaken.
âThe âHero Kalifâ youâre thinking of is exactly who you see here. I was one of his party membersâpart of the heroâs party during the Demon King subjugation roughly 150 years ago.â
I do recall that there was a Demon King around 150 years ago. Back then, I was like the other elvesânot interested. I didnât join the subjugation. I spent my time listening to adventurer gossip and eventually returned to my village. What happened to the hero or the Demon King afterward? I had no idea.
âIn the end, another hero defeated the Demon King. Kalif here only managed to take down one of the Demon Kingâs executives. But stillâdefeating even an executive was no small feat. He didnât reach the same fame as the hero who slew the Demon King, but the townspeople praised him.â
If they praised him, thatâs a good thing, right? So far, nothing here explains why he would side with the Demon King.
âWith the fall of the Demon King, the threat of the demons vanished for a time, and peaceâhowever temporaryâwas restored. And then, Kalif and I got married. Isnât that right, Kalif?â
Waitâmarried!?
Thatâs⌠congratulations! But does that mean⌠theyâre like us!?
After defeating the Demon King, I plan to accept Kazuyaâs confession and make our relationship official. One day, I want to marry him. Thatâs how I feel. So that meansâtheyâre just like us.
For a moment, Nevaska actually looked happy when she said that, and the two of them gazed into each otherâs eyes.
Which only made it even harder to understandâwhy side with the Demon King after that? Was it some curse? Some tragic twist that forced their hand? I started to imagine that maybe it was something they couldnât avoidâŚ
âWe were happy after getting married. We went on adventures together. We had fun.â
âThen why!! Why join the Demon King!?â
It just burst out of me. I was jealous. They reached their goal, got married, and even now they looked so close. So why!? I couldnât help it.
Nevaskaâs expression shifted instantly from the joy earlier to a cold, piercing stare.
âHavenât you noticed? Kalif is human. Itâs been 150 years since the Demon Kingâs defeat. Yet Kalif here is the real dealânot some descendant or anything. Heâs aged a little, sure, but heâs quite the fine middle-aged man, donât you think?â
â!!!?
It hit me like a hammer to the head. Not just mentallyâmy strength physically drained from my body. I wouldâve collapsed if Kazuya hadnât caught me. Thatâs how intense the shock was.
It was something I had deliberately tried not to think about for a long time.
At first, Iâd told myself it was just a way to kill time. Spending 50 years with Kazuya? For an elf, thatâs practically nothing.
And the same was true for Nevaska. For elves, a humanâs lifespan is barely a blink.
When I heard the name âHero Kalifâ earlier, it had sounded so outrageous that the idea of Kalif being a short-lived human hadnât even crossed my mind. So I just listened sincerely, celebrated their marriageâand never questioned how a human like Kalif could still be here.
Thatâs probably because, as an elf, the idea of aging and lifespan doesnât really register. Maybe the reason Kazuya was disturbed from the beginning⌠was because, as a human himself, he noticed how unnatural this was.
âHey, donât call me old like that. I keep telling you, Nevaskaââsilver foxâ is the term you want.â
âHehe. I just wanted to tease you a little, Kalif.â
While I was still reeling from the shock, the two of them began flirting again.
They were wide open. But that didnât matter to me anymore. I was too busy trying to calm my own heart.
âTh-thank you, Kazuya. Iâm okay now. Really.â
âAre you sure? Donât push yourself.â
I steadied myself in Kazuyaâs arms, finally getting my footing again. But mentally, I wasnât ready to fight. Not even close. In this state, Iâd definitely lose. That much was clear.
"Miki, Iâll tell you something goodâa way for you to spend even more time with the man you love."
Nevaska began saying such things.
To me right now, those words were like a golden appleâa sweet temptation I wanted to leap at immediately.
But listening to the words of the enemy, even reluctantlyâ!
"I-I donât want to hear it!"
"Listen! You already understand, donât you?! A humanâs lifespan is about 60 years. Even if you two were together, youâd only have 40 years left at bestâjust that much. And a humanâs prime is even shorter. Most of that time would just be watching the one you love grow old. Donât you think thatâs far too painful?"
I couldnât retort. I knew it was true. Iâd always thought so.
And it was something Iâd been ignoring because I didnât want to face it.
"I couldnât bear it. I couldnât stand watching Kalif grow old. If we aged together, fineâbut staying young while the one you love withers away? After 30, the decline only speeds up. Thatâs when the Demon King granted my wish. Heâs wonderful. In exchange for me becoming a demon and swearing loyalty to him with a mark, he turned Kalif into a demon as well. When humans become demons, their lifespans extendâabout 500 years. Thatâs how long a human-turned-demon lives. For us elves, itâs not enough, but itâs far longer than a humanâs lifespan. That much time to spend with the one you loveâhow about it? Sounds good, doesnât it?"
Nevaska chose to spend 500 years with the one she lovedâin exchange for swearing near-eternal loyalty to the Demon King.
From the Demon Kingâs perspective, he gained an elf with near-immortal life and powerful magic, plus a high-ranking subordinate for 500 years. There was no downside.
Logically, it wasnât a fair deal. Yet Nevaska accepted it. She must have been that desperate.
If I imagined myself in her place, Iâd feel despairâlike everything was going dark.
If just imagining it felt like this, I donât know if I could endure it if it were real.
At a time like that, refusing an offer to extend your loverâs life would be nearly impossible. I understood that.
"Thatâs how Kalif and I became demons. Kalif stayed by my side as my attendant, protecting me. Then, after proving his strength, he became one of the Demon Kingâs elite. Do you understand now? Thanks to the Demon King, weâre happier than ever."
The two leaned close and kissed. They really did look happy.
"Miki, if you wish, I could put in a word with the Demon King for you. Oh, your skin might darken a little, but thatâs all. Kalif became a demon at 40, so he stayed in that formâbut his body is as strong as in his prime. That man of yours could become a demon while still young. How enviable. âŚFufu, just kidding, Kalif. Donât sulkâyouâre much more handsome."
My heart had never wavered like this before. Just 500 yearsâbut compared to a humanâs lifespan, it was an unimaginably long time. That much time with Kazuya. Even if it cost me my own life, it wouldnât be unreasonable to think that way.
If it werenât the Demon Kingâif it werenât the words of a demonâI mightâve jumped at the offer immediately. Even so. But. What should I do?
My thoughts spun in circles, tilting toward the Demon King, unable to settle.
Then, Kazuya spoke to Kalif.
"Kalif, why did you become a demon? Why did you let the one you love swear lifelong loyalty to the Demon King? If you had refusedâif you had convinced herâshe wouldnât have had to suffer like that!!"
"...Yeah⌠Youâre right. What you say is true. But I couldnât do it. Seeing Nevaska agonize, suffer, watching her beautiful golden hair fade to silver in despairâand then, when she finally found a way to extend my life, that joy in her eyesâhow could I deny that?! Could I really tell Nevaska, who threw away her own life just to have 500 years with me, 'No, give up'?! Impossible!!"
"âEven so, if you love her, thatâs all the more reason!"
"Yes, even so. But tell meâcan you still say that after hearing me? Imagine it. Youâre human. In less than 10 years, age will take hold of you. And your beloved elf will undoubtedly suffer just like Nevaska did. Then, when she finds hopeâwhen sheâs freed from her despair, smiling with genuine happinessâcould you really crush that? âŚWell, letâs say you refuse. What then? The suffering continues. Could she endure it? Could you? Imagine it!"
Kazuyaâs face twisted in painâlike heâd bitten something bitter, seen something he didnât want to see, or felt something he couldnât accept.
After a moment, he raised his head.
"âEven then, IâŚ! I want Miki to be free, even after I die!! I refuse to let her spend thousands of years serving the Demon King! Just as Miki thinks of me, I think of herâso I wonât allow that!!"
Kazuya declared it firmly.
Thatâs right. What was I thinking? My worries were selfish. My wish to extend Kazuyaâs life was my own desireâhis will wasnât part of it. And the choice to become a demon is his to make, not mine.
Kazuya has his own wishâfor me to remain free even after his death.
Thatâs why, seeing my mere 500 years compared to his, he said that.
You could call his thinking selfish too, but the key difference is that heâs seriously considering something that benefits him nothingâall for my sake.
It was like a weight had liftedâlight piercing the darkness, bright and dazzling.
Ah, Iâm glad I fell for this man.
Kazuya truly loves me. I could feel it.
âŚThough his overconfidence is a flaw. But well, thatâs part of his charm.
"I see⌠Weâre happy. As demons, weâve lived over 100 yearsâalready twice a humanâs lifespan. Itâs a shame you donât understand, but thatâs fine. Weâll kill you here and live happily for centuries moreâenough for your share too."
Kalif drew his sword, his expression shifting from beforeânow fully ready for battle.
"Weâll put an end to your twisted livesâand the one who twisted them. Prepare yourselves."
Kazuya unsheathed Takemikazuchi, his face deadly serious.
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