The Demon Lord's Bride (BL)
Chapter 344: Rich people don’t bother looking for a dating site; they make them

Chapter 344: Rich people don’t bother looking for a dating site; they make them

My Demon Lord did not come alone.

He came with fish. Fishes. A whole tank of them, along with an elf and a half-demon half-elf who I presumed were the seller.

So, finally, Jade looked happy seeing Natha. Well, to be fair, it was more like Jade seemed happy seeing those fish. Still...no grumbling--yay!

Before we lost the light of the day, we hurriedly brought the tank over to the pond, where the construction workers had finished filling it with water. Carefully, the elf and the halfling, with the help of Doun, moved the fish into the pond.

Jade once again flew to the elemental bird statue, which had been polished and adorned with green jewels on the eyes. The little bird looked even prouder, knowing it was a statue of its adult self in the future, and prancing around the base of the statue while watching the fish transferring to their new home.

Throughout the process, the space was filled with loud chirping noises--at least for the others. In my head, it was even louder.

[Green fish! Green fish should be Jade’s friend! Oh, that one the same color as Ignis! Master, Master--lots of blue ones! Hmph, must be Nightmare’s ploy! Oh--oh! That one have lots of colors! So pretty! Like Jade!]

Hmm...my little bird had become a bit narcissistic, it seemed.

I sat on the edge of the pond and looked into the water. Well, they were indeed beautiful. The rainbow one that the little bird was so excited about was exactly like Jade; the colorful bit concentrated on its fins and flowy tails. But the ones with mono colors were also pretty; there were plump ones, long and thin ones, almost round ones...

"Any favorites?" Natha asked, crouching beside me.

"That one," I answered without hesitation at a blue fish with a black line on its side and a small horn-line protrusion on its head.

Well, I didn’t have to say why, did I?

"That one’s called the blue star," Natha said. I could feel a delightful laughter in his words. "The protrusion will glow at night."

I turned and looked at him with widened eyes. "Really? That’s amazing!" my eyes turned toward the fountain and the walls, where I could see some crystals embedded there. "Do those glow at night too?"

"How else can we enjoy the pond at night?" Natha nodded. "They are set to imitate the light inside the water--the ones from glowing algae and the moonlight."

All I could do was sigh in awe at this point. I leaned closer and whispered in his ear. "Sounds like an ideal spot for a date."

"Well, isn’t that the purpose?"

[But Master, why are they small?] Jade’s inquisitive chirp broke my attention away from Natha’s mesmerizing silver eyes.

"Ah," I looked at the fish again, and most of them were only as big as a child’s palm--the biggest ones were as big as mine, which was...not so much. I looked at the elf who brought the fish. "Why are the fish smaller than the one in Sarteriel’s Palace?"

"Ah--we choose the ones that are still in a juvenile state, Your Highness," the elf responded swiftly, even while herding the fish to the other part of the pond. "These fish have lesser lifespans than you, so wouldn’t it be sad if they can’t stay with you long?"

"I see..." I looked up at the curious little bird. "So they’ll grow along with Jade."

[Fish grow together?] Jade exclaimed in a loud chirp, moving its wings excitedly like a kid would wiggle their arms. [Fish will become big like Jade?]

I looked at the elf again. "How big can they get?"

"We chose the varieties that wouldn’t grow too big, so as to not crowd the pond too much," the elf replied while walking to the other side of the pond. "Some could grow to an arm’s length, Your Highness."

"That’s pretty big," I nodded. I recalled watching the pond in the hospital park, with a bunch of red and white koi. They weren’t that big, I supposed, but the pond also wasn’t as big as this one. Jade would have a jolly time swimming around them inside the air bubble.

"The big ones," the elf said as he came back to our side. "We save for the structure His Lordship built in the Lord Castle--what was it called..."

"The aquarium?"

"Ah, yes--that!" the elf nodded with a big smile on his face. "An interesting way of displaying them, I should confess. At any rate, they are big, and most of them come from the sea. That’s why it will take considerably more time before they arrive--pardon me for the delay, my Lord."

"No matter," Natha waved his hand. "The aquarium tank is still under construction."

Right--I hadn’t actually seen this one. The last time I visited the Castle, I was busy with Izzi and a certain sulking Demon Lord. I heard it was constructed in one of the Castle’s warehouses, and Natha would put them in one of the lounges leading to the Great Hall. Thinking about the aquarium made me somewhat excited, and my mind couldn’t help but expect great things--especially after I heard that the big fish would come from the sea.

"Will you..." I tugged on Natha’s clothes and asked him carefully, expectantly. "Will you decorate it as if...as if it was on the seabed?"

"Naturally," Natha replied without hesitation, looking rather smug even. Rightfully so, if he managed to do that.

"Oh!"

His lips stretched, and his fingers rubbed mine. "Are you excited?"

"Yes!" I held his hand tightly, looking around the pond with even more excitement. The halfling and Doun were pouring the water inside the container inside the pond. "Ah, is that everyone?"

"Yes, Your Highness," the elf nodded. "Would you like to give them their first food in this place?" he took out a box and opened the lid, showing me some packets and other things that I reckoned were what was needed to take care of the fish--which would become Doun’s job from now on, as usual. "It will help them acclimatize to the new house and make them think it’s a good place to be."

"Of course!" I approached the box and the elf gave me a packet of pearl-like substance. They were around the size of fish pellets back on Earth, but the shimmer and iridescent luster made them look like beads. "Do I just need to pour out everything? Jade!"

The little bird, as if had been waiting, flew to my shoulder the moment I called its name, patiently waiting until I opened the packet, before snatching one corner with its beak and flying around the pond.

[Eat! Fishes eat! Grow big like Jade!] the pearly pellets poured all over the pound following the flight trajectory, making it seem like a raining sparkle.

"So they all eat the same thing?" I asked while watching the fish’s heads surfacing to snatch the feed.

"Not usually," the elf put the box in Doun’s hand. "But we developed a feed that is consumable for any kind of fish--of course with the best nutrient possible," he explained with a sparkling gaze and confident smile. "It’s the pride and joy of our company."

"Wow..." I looked at the beautiful-looking pellets. "That kind of feed must be expensive, right?"

"Of course, it’s--"

"Not expensive at all," Natha said.

I looked at him and back at the elf, tilting my head. "It’s not?"

"...no, it’s not."

"So it’s not..." I nodded, even more certain that it was hella expensive. I mean, for normal people, that was. "It’s impressive, though. Looks pretty too."

"Naturally," Natha nodded, slinging his arm around my shoulder as we watched Jade dancing in the air, pouring sparkling beads into the water.

Beneath the dimming sky, the sparkles looked even prettier. They reflected the glowing stones around the fountain and the pond, and the blue fish started to emanate light from its horn, like water fireflies.

Ah, it was so pretty. I looked around the garden, and the lanterns between the hedges and the flowerbeds had also started to glow. The scenery prompted a sigh between my lips.

"What’s wrong?" Natha rubbed my shoulder, tilted down to look at me.

"Nothing," I shook my head, leaning closer to his side. "I’m just...picturing something."

"Would you share it with me?"

I turned my head to catch his eyes, a pair of moonlight as beautiful as the glow around the pond. "It’s..." I lowered my voice to a whisper, and he lowered his head so I could spell it to his ears only. "I’m picturing how pretty our wedding feast would be..."

Natha straightened his back without saying anything, although his hand was holding mine tighter. "So, are we done?" he addressed the elf and his assistant.

"Yes, my Lord."

"Would you care for dinner?" he offered with a smile, but I could see that it was only pleasantries, not sincerity.

And it seemed like the elf understood.

"Oh no, I wouldn’t dare to impose," the elf replied with a graceful smile. Thankfully, there was no hint of unpleasantness despite Natha’s rather dry manner. "Besides, I have to go back quickly and make sure the other batch is in excellent condition."

"That is good," Natha nodded shortly. "Right--please visit my bank tomorrow. They will process the payment."

Ah--at least they would be given a bonus. Damn rich demon, easily compensating with money. Good for them, though.

"Understood," the elf’s smile grew wider, naturally so. "Then," he bowed and, with the halfling and their fish containers, left the Lair through the carriage that Natha had prepared.

After watching the elf and the halfling go, Natha turned to Doun and called for Jade. "Take the brat and tell Angwi I will change before dinner."

[Jade no brat!]

"Go with Doun, Jade. I’ll see you later."

Jade chirped in disappointment but still flew to Doun’s shoulder and went with the demon inside. Natha, meanwhile, wasted no time to hold my waist and whisked me to the balcony of our suite.

I had no time to take a breath before he covered my mouth with his lips, hands on my waist and my nape, holding me so I wouldn’t topple because Mother--I might be.

He kissed me hard and deep and I felt dizzy and wobbly even as I wrapped my arms around his neck and he carried me inside. The kiss did not end even when my back met the mattress, and I was getting breathless and excited and everything suddenly ended.

"What?" I almost yelled in protest. "Why did you stop?!"

The disappointment was bleeding through my voice, as I watched Natha get back on his feet and walk away, shedding his coat to...change, just like what he told Doun.

What--I thought...

"Later, sweetheart. We won’t be having dinner if I were to continue," he said, taking a deep breath afterward, before glancing back at me. "Besides, we need to gain some stamina first, don’t we?"

Oh...

Oh, hell yeah. Yes, we did.