The former queen\'s quarters have been turned into Nephira\'s quarters. Today, too, Nephila\'s pointed ears heard a demon knocking on her door.

Not again, Nephira thought. The number of audiences and consultations had decreased considerably compared to the days immediately after the conquest of Leirune. Even so, someone would always visit her once an hour, except during her bedtime.

"Lady Nephira. Please excuse me."

Nephira\'s face broke into a small smile at the sound of Meru\'s voice, her loyal top-brass subordinate. When she entered, Meru was accompanied by a snake-headed fiend that gave off a shady impression.

"What\'s wrong?"

"Uhm----. This is Gharaga!----. The one that ate a human baby!----." 

"Sorry, Leader. I meant no offense. "

Gharaga was a senior soldier who had distinguished himself in battle. However, his ferociousness was undeniable, and he caused problems at every turn.

Gharaga stuck out his long, red tongue. He seems to have no malicious intentions.

"You eat humans, too, right? Forgive me, will you?"

"Except in cases of force majeure, troop rules forbid the eating of human babies for personal gain."

After the conquest, the humans in the town were to be raised in such a way that they would not become extinct. They consider humans to be an abomination, but they have their uses. Even the loss of one of them would cause problems.

"Kekeke. Don\'t be so stiff!"

Nephira flashed her hand like a sword at Gharaga\'s floundering tongue. 

"Guhaaaaa!"

Gharaga screamed as his tongue was cut out in half, gurgling green fluid from his wounds.

"...Three days, put him in a cell."

"I understand----. Hey! Get moving! ----."

"Damn!!! Damn youuuuuu!!"

After Meru took the rampaging Gharaga away, Nephira sighed with a fed-up look on her face.

(Ah... It\'s tough.)

(It\'s hard to command demons, especially due to their own eccentricities. I know that very well, but I can\'t stand it when my people keep causing problems when I\'m already so busy after the conquest.)

Nephira\'s slightly irritated ears heard another knock at the door.

"That\'s it for today! Come tomorrow!"

"I--I understand. I apologize for the inconvenience!"

She answered with an angry shout, and a skeleton soldier apologized through the door. Then mumbling and whispering could be heard from the other side of the door.

"Suzuki. Today\'s no good. Let\'s come back tomorrow."

"I--I see."

(Suzuki!?)

Nephira rushed to the door and opened it. There stood the adorable Suzuki.

(Ah, He\'s so cute today, too--!)

Just looking at Suzuki soothed away the fatigue of the day. What cuteness. What solace. Ah, imagine being able to look at him at all times.

"This slave insisted on meeting you, Lady Nephira! However, you seem to be very busy! We will come back another day!"

"No! I will listen to what Suzuki has to say! You can return first!"

"Huh? Ah! R--Roger!"

After the skeleton soldier bowed and left, Nephira invited Suzuki into her quarters.

(Ah, he said he wanted to meet me... Suzuki... with me!?)

Nephira\'s two hearts beat wildly. Suzuki hesitantly entered the room and noticed Gharaga\'s tongue still lying on the floor. The tongue was twitching eerily.

"W--What, is that!?"

"It\'s Gharaga\'s tongue. Don\'t let it bother you."

"No, it\'s really bothering me! It\'s moving!"

Nephira reaches her arm out towards Gharaga\'s tongue. Then, she activated lightning magic from her palm and burned it away. Suzuki\'s body quivered slightly, watching her.

"That ruffians broke the rules. That\'s why his tongue got cut off. When it comes to our own people, we must judge even more strictly."

"Hey... wasn\'t that a bit too severe, Nephira..." Suzuki mumbled.

"So, Suzuki. What do you want?"

After a slight hesitation, Suzuki looked away from Nephila while saying, "...I\'d like to become Nephira\'s slave, but"

(Y... --------------------------------------------Yay!!)

Nephira was thrilled in her heart. What! What!!! Suzuki, with me, he likes me!? Oh GOD. Aren\'t we already in love with each other!!

"Wh--What is wrong, Nephira?"

"I\'m dizzy from standing abruptly. Wait a second."

She thought she was acting calm, but her legs were shaking. 

(No, I can\'t, I can\'t. As the leader of the Thunder-Lance Charge, I must not lose my dignity.)

She had to keep her cool and think things through. Slaves must be chosen through the auction, according to the rules in the Thunder-Lance Charge.  

Nephira snapped her fingers, causing a black vortex to appear in the space in front of her. The astonished Suzuki watched as Nephira plunged her hand into the whirlpool and pulled out a scroll containing the rules of her corps. She then unrolled it.

[Article 7 of the Regulations of the Corps: The selection of slaves shall be determined by mutual consultation in the interest of fairness.]

Nephira gritted her teeth at the rules she had set herself. What\'s, with these corps rules? Even though, even though Suzuki had volunteered to become her slave!

She glanced alternately between the scroll and at the adorable Suzuki. Eventually, Nephira\'s heart began to waver. 

Wouldn\'t it be fine to break a rule or two? 

(It is fine, you know! I, am the leader. I decided on the rules and regulations for the corps in the first place...!)

Having convinced herself, Nephira took a fountain pen made of bone from the vortex and added a note to the scroll.

[Article 7 of the Regulations of the Corps: The selection of slaves shall be determined by mutual consultation in the interest of fairness. (※ Except for the commander.)

(There we go!)

She felt bad for Gharaga, whom she had just punished for breaking the corps rules. Even so, she couldn\'t get over Suzuki\'s cuteness. Well, she was a demon by nature. And that made her cunning by nature. It was a quality she couldn\'t deny.

"Nephira. In exchange for becoming your slave, I\'d like to ask you for a little favor."

"What is it?"

"You see. Regarding the people in the slavery cell that I was in, I ask you to, as much as possible, find a gentle demon to become their master. I don\'t want the slaves to be harmed in any way. Especially for Excella or any of the girls. I don\'t want them to suffer the brunt of the violence from the demons."

(Excella... Ah, the daughter of royalty, right?)

Because she was concerned for Suzuki, Nephira knew to some extent who was in his slave cell. She remembered that the third princess of Leirune was in the same cell.

Originally, Nephira had planned to kill everyone in the castle, including the royal family. However, Suzuki was inside the castle at the time of the invasion. To avoid the possibility that others might think that Suzuki\'s survival was a mistake, the rest of the people in the castle got enslaved as well.

(Well... even though she\'s royalty, she\'s only the third princess, which is close to the end of the succession line. It should be fine. I\'m sure that would make Suzuki happy.)

"I understand. I will choose the demons to be their masters. I\'ll make sure it won\'t be a brute like Gharaga."

"Thank you!"

Seeing Suzuki\'s happy face, Nephira felt happy too.

"It\'s already late today. Are you going to sleep or is there still something you plan on doing?"

"A, AH! Well, I\'ll take my leave"

"What are you saying? Suzuki is my slave, right? Sleep here."

"Eh...!"

...

...A few hours passed. Nephira wanted to sleep next to Suzuki, but it was too strange for a demon to sleep with a slave. So, with tears in her eyes, she decided to sleep in separate beds.

In a dark corner of the room, Suzuki was lying down, wrapped in a blanket.

(Suzuki, is he asleep?)

Nephira got up from the bed and slowly and quietly approached Suzuki.  

She saw Suzuki\'s adorable sleeping face illuminated by the moonlight coming from the window. Ah, cute. Too adorable. She felt the desire to embrace him. She wanted to undress and get intimate with each other.

(No, NO GOOD! That\'s not good!)

Nephira shook her head wildly to overcome her desire. The cuteness of Suzuki should not be tarnished by anyone. To make a lovely creature like Suzuki the object of one\'s sexual love was sacrilege---as if one were disgracing a demon god one should worship.

(A--And yet, that\'s what makes it a little exciting, right...?!)

She thought her impulses were wrong. Yet it also aroused her demonical sadistic desires. Just a taste! It would be fine if it is only cuddling a tad, right!! Yes, cuddling! An embrace of affection towards the demon god!!