The Demon Lord's Bride (BL)
Chapter 140: Cultural differences are never a valid reason for rotten attitudes

Chapter 140: Cultural differences are never a valid reason for rotten attitudes

"You’re not... disappointed in me? Truly?" I asked once everyone retreated from the bedroom--including Jade, who followed Zia because it was scared of Natha.

I knew I sounded really pathetic and whiny, but I really really needed some validation right now. Perhaps because my heart was so tired and stressed from the confusion with my grandmother and then this whole evening debacle with the Lord of Lust.

Thankfully, Natha was as accommodating as ever. "Truly," he took off his coat--something different than the matching outfit I couldn’t wear today--and draped it on me. It was then that I realized I was still in my nightwear. "If anything, sweetheart, I should have been disappointed in this place’s security,"

"Oh, please don’t blame the guards," I grabbed his arms hurriedly. "I’m sure they think it was you. I almost think it was you at the start."

I still remembered how frightened the guards were a few moments ago. No--actually, they had been frightened the moment they saw someone else was there in the bedroom with me. And then, when Natha got furious, they looked as if tomorrow would never come for them.

Every security breach was, indeed, the guard’s fault. I wouldn’t mind he reprimanded the guards if it was an assassin. But Incubus’s glamour at the level of a Lord wasn’t something that could be easily seen through.

Also, if he got mad at the guards because they failed to recognize the impersonator, I’d feel like he got angry at me too.

I continued to grab his sleeve until he finally let out a sigh, which was quite rare for Natha. "Alright. It’s my fault that I didn’t put anyone with a discerning ability."

That wasn’t what I meant, though? I opened my mouth to protest again, but he tapped my lips to sush me and proceeded to lead me toward the balcony. There was a nice rocking chair there, and Natha pulled me to sit there together.

And by together I mean he put me on his lap.

From the balcony, I could see the lights of L’anaak Eed beyond the castle wall; the metropolis of the demon realm. Ground and flying carriages spilled out of the gate with their attached headlights as the guests started to leave the banquet, and it reminded me of the world outside the hospital that I could glimpse when I successfully sneaked to the rooftop.

I used to long for those lights, praying for recovery. Well, at least I used to when I was a teenager, before I kind of gave up and just grateful if I could get out of bed.

Strangely enough, I didn’t have the same longing now, even though I was healthy enough to corner a Demon Lord with a spear. It wasn’t that I didn’t want to go out, but I also didn’t mind if I stayed here just like this, within the cooling and soothing embrace that felt safer than anything the world could give.

"Are you alright now?" Natha asked softly, pulling me back so I lay even more against his chest.

"Yeah, I just..." I shifted my gaze to the scattering stars in the night sky. It was bright and starry too, the last time I cried heavily. "I was scared," I sunk into his embrace more, curling on his lap like a cat. "I was scared that you’ll think I’m..." I paused and bit my lips, the anxiety climbing back slightly as I continued, "...easy, and abandon me."

Calmly, he fixed the coat he used to cover me like a blanket, and said, "Did I not tell you I would never abandon you?"

He did. He did but...

"You don’t know that," I whispered, voice weak from this pathetic insecurity.

"I thought we were past this stuff already," Natha sighed, his chest raising up and down on my back. Gently, he held my face and tilted me up so I could face him. "Listen,"

I blinked, and then nodded so he continued.

"Are you planning to leave me in the future?"

I almost flinched then. "...No?" I answered hesitatingly. Of course, I had no plan to leave him, but...he might, after he knew the truth about me. So I was always mentally preparing myself for that inevitable.

But Natha caught my hesitation and raised his brow, before frowning slightly in either suspicion or disappointment, so I swiftly repeated my answer in a firmer tone. "No!"

Only then that he looked satisfied. "Good, then there’s so way I would abandon you," he smiled and pinched my cheek. "In fact, even if you leave me, I’ll still chase after you, so," he smirked oh so charmingly, silver eyes glowed like the crescent moon above, "...there’s that."

I almost choked then--this time not because I felt bad. I just felt like I wanted to cry again, happily this time, but I had enough emotional outbursts today, so I just lowered my head and cover my heated face with his coat.

"Still worried?" he asked teasingly, and all I could do was shake my head beneath the coat.

I heard his laughter, and felt my face burning even more. But when I tried to hide myself further, he pulled the coat away from my face, and I almost yelped because of that. He held my face again, angling it so he could stare into my eyes.

"I’m proud of you," he said.

"Huh?"

"You’re doing well earlier when you confront Zir’Kal," he gave me a smile that was quite different than usual. Like there was a mischievousness and a bit of cruelty there, probably because he was still angry at what transpired before.

"Oh..." I fidgeted in embarrassment. Recalling how I was acting earlier actually made me a bit cringed. Yelling really wasn’t my forte. "I was angry."

"And you have the right to do so," Natha nodded, still with the same smile and a glint in his eyes. "You know what--you have the right to punish him too."

I blinked at his word and raised my head. "Punish...him?"

* * *

"I’m sorry..."

I paused my cup of tea when Zia came into the living room as I enjoyed my second, lighter breakfast. She wasn’t here during breakfast, so I assumed she was spending time with Arta or Aleena, probably because she felt uncomfortable about what her brother did.

And the first thing she did was clutching my sleeve with a downturned face. Aleena was following behind her, looking at me apologetically, and bowed her head.

"Hey, it’s not your fault," I held the little succubus’s hand. Jade, who came with them, jumped into my shoulder and nuzzled my cheek.

"But that jerk is my brother..." she said weakly.

"That’s got nothing to do with anything," I frowned. "Does his personality and attitude come from being your brother?"

She paused for a bit, and finally raised her head. She seemed to be processing my words because her face changed gradually; from sad and apologetic, to angry.

"...you’re right!" she said at the end, nodding her head firmly with furrowed brows and hardened eyes. "It’s not my fault that he’s a jerk! He hasn’t even apologized for the way he made fun of me for my dream!"

No wonder those delegations from Lust looked extremely stressed out when they talked about their Lord. I could see why Aleena was so frustrated all this time.

I glanced at the adult succubus and commented, "So much for a vacation."

"Don’t even...haa..." she let out a long sigh, her beautiful appearance marred with exhaustion. She didn’t even bother to hide the dark circles under her eyes with glamour.

"Why are you here, Sis?" Zia asked as she took a seat beside me, which told me she was probably sleeping at the three siblings’ place. "Shouldn’t you talk to Kal for this afternoon?"

This afternoon; the time when Natha expected a ’reasonable’ explanation.

"I gave up," Aleena shook her head, slumping into the dining table like an overworked office woman. I told the servant to give her a cup of coffee, which she took gratefully. "I don’t know anymore," she took a deep breath to inhale the coffee scent. "Young Master, you should...just do whatever you want. I’ll support your decision as long as it’s not an execution."

Here’s the thing; I got to decide what punishment to give the Incubus.

What? A mere human commoner dared to punish a Demon Lord? Of course, such a thing wouldn’t normally happen. But this was an offensive action toward another Demon Lord, and in this case, the inflicted Demon Lord--which was Natha--had every right to enact punishment. Especially because Natha had a higher standing and influence even within Lust’s political climate.

But Natha decided that it should be me, as a victim, who gave out the punishment. So he simply made me his proxy, and as his...umm, bride...it was acceptable. So I had the right and justification.

Yay, I guess?

That being said, I was quite perplexed about what manner of punishment I could give to a Lord. Like...how far exactly I could go without jeopardizing regional peace.

To test this, I covered Jade’s ears and asked. "Even if I castrate him?"

The succubi raised their brows, and the servant refilling my glass almost hit the table with the jug in his hands.

"That’s...brutal," Zia squeaked quietly while sipping on her tea. When I stared at her to ask for another idea, she just added casually. "I’m not saying no."

"This is so stupid," Aleena leaned back and groaned. "What is he thinking? Arrgh!"

"Just his usual self, I guess," Zia said with a grumble. "Thinking that he can do anything because everyone will easily forgive him anyway, like usual," she pursed her lips, and in a bout of annoyance grabbed a biscuit and bit on it with vengeance. I wonder if she imagined tearing her brother like that.

"But why did he do it, though?" I asked. It was one of the most confusing things for me. Like what was his motive? Even if it was a prank, what made him think it was okay to target me or Natha for it? "Why is he here in the first place? I thought he was supposed to be in your realm?"

"He is," Aleena hissed. "He’s not supposed to leave the castle when I’m not there to clean his mess. But what do you think he said? He said he was bored! Argh!"

I leaned back and twisted my lips, still pretty much confused. "So because he was bored, he came here without telling anyone. And then he decided to sneak into our bedroom because...?"

"He said he just...curious," Aleena sighed. "He said he heard you were staying back, and wanted to see what you looked like. I know, I know it’s creepy--he is a creepy little shit--but for him, there’s nothing wrong with that."

I narrowed my eyes, staring at the succubi dumbfoundedly. I saw Zia grimace and Aleena sigh again, so I tried to pull a semblance of a logical explanation. "Is this, like...a cultural thing?"

Zia bit her lips hard before replying in apparent embarrassment. "You could...say that..."

I asked Aleena for an explanation, and she tried to explain it simply. The conclusion that I draw was that the Realm of Lust had no concept of monogamy. They were openly polyamorous, and apparently, flirting with another’s spouse wasn’t considered a big deal. They were pretty chaotic in a way, but they still had a firm caste and lineage system, apparently, which I didn’t care enough to delve deeper into.

"But surely he knew that he can’t do the same thing in another realm?"

"I don’t think he cares much about that," Zia clicked her tongue. "And he probably thinks it’s alright to do it because Lord Cousin was a part of our clan..."

Wow. Like...okay, I understood. But that still didn’t make it okay. Polyamorous and whatnot, they should still have a concept of consent, right?

...right?

"It’s okay, Young Master. Just do what you want, I’ll take care of the other’s reaction," Aleena grabbed her cup and gulped the coffee down in one sitting. "I have to warn you, though," Aleena slammed his cup down like she was slamming a beer glass. "He’s soo narcissistic with a superiority complex, so he might denounce you because you’re a..." she paused, but I finished the word for her.

"Human?"

She bit her lips awkwardly. "I don’t mean to be--"

"It’s fine," I said with a shrug. Of course, I knew things like that would occur. But I also had my own card. "Zia, Aleena..."

It was fine, since I wouldn’t face him as a human.

"Yes?"

Because there was another blood running through me.

"Do you know Alveitya was originally supposed to be a Court Scepter?"

Yes, I would not face him as a human. I would face him as a Royal Arbiter.