Chapter 1242

After Illness-san quickly finished shopping, the two of us looked around the night market together.

At a store with a Daemon-looking shopkeeper, they were selling “skewered skewers” instead of just calling it skewers. As for why they skewered their skewers…… Was it just something invented by the Daemon Lord Nia-san? Or perhaps, is skewering just something popular among the Daemons? Hmmm, I don’t know.

There were also vampire-like shopkeepers around. It’s true that vampires feel like they’re nocturnal or that they dislike daylight…… but Noir-san doesn’t seem to be like that at all.

[Illness-san, do vampires dislike sunlight?]

[Sunliiiiight? They certainly are nocturnaaaaal, so they probably don’t like the glare of strong sunliiiiight.]

[Fumu…… Then, what about half-vampires?]

It isn’t like the vampires’ weakness was sunlight as I imagined, and it was simply that they spent most of their time in the dark and are a bit uncomfortable under the bright light.

[Half-vampires are a special caaaaase. They may inherit the nature of the other half of their bloooood, so they are often not nocturnaaaaal.]

[I see, just like how Luna-san’s mother, Noir-san, also usually goes out during the daytime.]

I asked Illness-san a little later, to which she said that half- and quarter-breeds are quite special, and sometimes, they inherit a jumble of various characteristics of their parents, and there were also times when such aspects lean towards one side.

Dr. Vier also mentioned before how it’s difficult to examine half- and quarter-breeds, and there must be many specialized and difficult aspects regarding this.

As we were moving around while I had such thoughts in mind, Illness-san suddenly turned her attention to one of the stores. The area where we were now was past the foodstuffs area, an area with a rather miscellaneous variety of items.

What Illness-san was looking at…… was a tall type of grass that shines with a pale light.

[Illness-san?]

[I saw something nostalgic soooooo……]

[Is it that grass?]

[Yeeees. It’s called the Moonlight Graaaaaass, and it has the property of glowing faintly at night.]

After saying this, Illness-san bought a piece of Moonlight Grass and started walking slowly, holding it in her hand. She was walking next to me with a nostalgic look on her face, and while I’m wondering how I should talk to her, I heard her muttering to herself.

[……I was born and raised in a plaaaaace where a lot of grass used to groooooow.]

[The place Illness-san is born and raised…… your hometown has a lot of grass around?]

[I wondeeeeer? Would it be correct to call it my hometooooown? I’m a unique species of Demoooooon, so I was born looking like thiiiiiis, and I wasn’t raised in a village or a toooooown.]

As I listened to Illness-san words, I realized that I certainly knew very little about her past. I had heard from Frea-san that Illness-san used to travel around the Demon Realm of the past, helping people she met, but I don’t know what it was like back then, and I know about the events after that, when she became a maid in Symphonia Kingdom.

Thinking about this again, Illness-san may be a rather mysterious person.

[Many unique species of Demooooons are born with a certain amount of poweeeeer, so people like meeee have no problems keeping our liiiiiiives. That goes especially for meeee, for several thousand years after I was booooorn, all I did was train myseeeelf.]

[Why did you decide to just train yourself?]

[I’m not suuuuure. I suppose it’s more liiiike, my hunch told me to do thaaaat? I didn’t have anything I wanted to accompliiiiish, nor did I have a purpose in miiiiind. I just vaguely thouuuuuught that I would need it in the futuuuuuure?]

[You certainly mentioned how you don’t really know who you are. Especially the motives of your actions, I feel that many of them are just random.]

[Kuhihi, I agreeeeee.]

As Illness-san said this with a smile, she seemed to be having fun.

[It’s appropriate to describe the past me as emptyyyyy. I don’t think I had anything I wanted to dooooo, or anything I wanted to haaaaave.]

[……If you said it was “past” you, that means that isn’t the case now, right?]

[That’s riiiiight. I’ve become so selfish that I have many things I want to do nooooow. Kuhihi, I can’t help doing all these thiiiiings that it’s quite troubliiiiing.]

[That’s not true. I think it’s rather nice to have something you want to do. I think Illness-san can show this side of you more.]

Frankly speaking, I feel more like Illness-san stands at the opposite end of the spectrum of selfishness, so I would rather she be more selfish.

I mean, I would like that since I would be able to thank Illness-san for all the care she has given me on a daily basis.

[……Kuhihi, in that caaaase, do you mind if I say one selfish thiiiiing?]

[Eh? Ah, yes. Of course, if it’s something I can help, you can always tell me.]

[I’ve seen a lot of the life of the nobilityyyyyy, so I was slightly yearning after iiiiiiit…… I don’t mind if it’s just for appearance’s saaaaake, so if you don’t miiiiind, would you be my escort for a biiiiiit?]

Saying this with a smile, Illness-san held out her hand to me. How should I say this…… Her smile, which was even softer than usual, was so beautiful that I couldn’t help but be fascinated.

[……If you’re alright with me, then gladly.]

Saying this, thinking that Illness-san really is far from being selfish, I took her offered hand and started to walk forward, gently holding Illness-san’s hand.