Nagoya, Japan

Sunday, June 5th, 2050

I awoke grudgingly that morning. Despite getting a halfway decent night’s sleep, I couldn’t stand to open my eyes. I was getting soft. When I’d been a captain in the Grim Horde, I’d been able to snap awake at a moment’s notice, and often at the slightest noise. The fact that my old General was fond of using the lash when you were too slow contributed to that. Since infiltrating the Nagoya Academy of Magic under the guise of human wizard Soren Marlowe, though, I’d found myself feeling comfortable.

Too comfortable, I thought to myself. I was the devil Malthus still, even if I’d had my horns removed to better blend in.

I reached out to force myself up, only to find my hand brushing something soft and warm. That finally forced me fully awake. I’d had rivals aplenty back in the day, and I’d had a few attempts on my life. My magic rushed to my fingers as I prepared to cast an offensive spell. The patterns of runic energy dancing around my hands dissipated when I detected the sound of a feminine snore.

“Kiyo,” I murmured. “I see you let yourself in again.” I didn’t worry about waking her. The young woman always slept like the dead, probably her body’s way of resting from late night video gaming sessions. The black bags under her eyes spoke to that.

Remembering it was our day off, I settled in and just watched her sleep. Despite my shifting around, she kept on dozing. It almost felt like an insult that she was so calm in my presence. I’d help grind England under the heel of the Grim Horde, and I’d even been the one to bring down Big Ben with a spell. Yet, here was this tiny girl intruding in the lair of a demon lord so casually. A warm feeling spread through my chest at that, and it wasn’t just her body heat mingling with mine.

“Much worse ways to be insulted, I suppose,” I muttered to myself. Finally, the meager chivalry of a demon ran out and I decided it was time for her to pay the price for her trespass. Kiyo had the most kissable lips I’d ever seen, even compared to the courtesans and ladies of the evening of the Grim Horde, who were never shy about using glamour magic to enhance themselves. Our lips met, finally interrupting the gentle rhythm of her breathing.

“Hm?” Her eyes fluttered open as my hand traced down her side. She returned my attentions for a moment before finally breaking off. “Sheesh, Magpie, you ever gonna wake me up before you do that?”

“Consider it rent, as often as you spend the night here.” I brushed aside my residual annoyance at the pet name. It still irked me when others called me by it. I didn’t like how diminutive it sounded. The way she said it, though? I was growing accustomed to it. “You should wake me up when you sneak in here. I’d show you a good time.”

Kiyo’s eyes widened, and I felt my mouth curl into a predatory grin. Her pale skin always made getting her to blush so satisfying. “W-well, you were already asleep, dude. You’re cute when you’re snoring.”

“Funny, that’s my line.”

“That never stops you from waking me up.”

I laughed at that. “I’ll have you know I always give you at least fifteen minutes before your beauty overwhelms me.”

“Now I know you’re kidding. I must look like a mess.” She sat up and tried in vain to get her glossy black hair under control. No such luck, though it was fun to watch her try. As the blanket slid off her, I saw that she was wearing a set of flannel pajamas. Not the most exciting attire, but I thought it fit the slim girl well.

“Yes, but you’re my mess.” I caressed her face and added, “As long as you’re already a mess, maybe we could have a little fun?”

Her eyes flew open and she found a way to turn redder. Considering we’d been dating for weeks and physically intimate the entire time, she was still so bashful about it. “W-well, if you want. N-not what I was looking for when I climbed in here, if that’s what you’re implying.”

I poked her on the cheek. “Admit it. You like it just as much as I do, you little minx.”

Her face went yet redder. “Maybe, but I’m not like, y’know, um, used to talking about it.”

“Then it’s a good thing it doesn’t involve much talking.” Before she could dither more, I practically tackled her to the bed. She let out a surprised squeak, but a smile split her face. I knew that someday she’d become comfortable with our escapades, so I wanted to enjoy this adorably awkward phase as long as I could.

Naturally, her damn phone chose that moment to go off. Kiyo, always a bit of a tech addict, reached out and answered without a moment’s hesitation, even as I loomed over her. “Hi?” She cleared her throat, since her voice had squeaked. “I mean, yes, hi? No, I’m not doing anything, Mariko.”

“Seriously?” I mouthed at her. She looked completely confused. I realized that while she was bilingual, the translation spell on the school tended to make my words sound like her native Japanese, so she couldn’t be sure what I’d meant to say.

“Huh? No, I’m not in my room right now, Mariko. Where am I? I’m with Magpie.”

“Seriously?” That time, I let myself speak out loud. My cover was broken anyway.

“What are we doing? Uh, morning exercise.” It was a decent cover, since we went jogging with our mutual friend Rose most mornings. “Why did you call? I’m kinda in the middle of a game with Soren.” She winked at me and gave me a thumbs up.

I couldn’t help but smirk. The poor girl thought she was being so damn sublte.

“Uh huh. Uh huh? Uh… huh… sure, yeah. We’ll be there. Yeah, I’ll tell Soren hi.” She hung up and held the phone to her chest. “Mariko says hi.”

“So I hear,” I said drily. “Care to explain why you didn’t just wait?”

“You tease me by making me blush. I tease you back by making you wait. Plus, Mariko only calls when it’s important.”

“I hope nothing’s the matter.” If only because I didn’t want to wait a moment longer to resume where we’d left off.

“Nah, she just wanted to invite us to lunch at the old club room.” She frowned again. “Feels like it’s been forever since we went to the Tactical Innovation Club.”

“Yes, yes, the last few weeks have just flown by,” I said so quickly that I slurred the words. “Now put that damn phone away. It’s time to focus!”

“You sound like my dad at Thanksgiving.”

“Oh, I’ll have you giving thanks.” I snatched the phone away and tossed it onto a pile of laundry. Before she could object, I had her again. I took my time, my lips travelling down her neck.

“It s-still doesn’t seem real sometimes,” she between adorable gasps.

“What doesn’t, my dear?”

“This. All this. You. I spent nineteen years being ignored by guys until I met you. Now I have this dangerous looking foreign guy who can’t keep off his hands off of me. It’s like one of Mom’s trashy books. ‘Cept you aren’t a cowboy.”

“It’s very real, Ms. Jones. I told you from day one, you’re delightful. Never let anyone ever tell you otherwise, including you.”

I think those words brought her more joy than my ministrations. “Love you, Magpie.”

I couldn’t bring myself to return the words to her. I never could. Love is the Enemy’s delusion, and one that a rational devil doesn’t indulge in. However, I was very fond of Kiyo, and my way of expressing it was better than words. All in all, a wonderful way to start a Sunday morning, though she kept shouting out the Enemy’s name when things got good. Hearing His name is always a bit of a mood killer, but I powered through anyway. After everything I’d gone through to win her over, I wasn’t going to let anything get in my way.