There are moments in this world when the amount of sleep you're getting is almost too good to be true. You find yourself in that in-between state of sleep where your eyes aren't open, and your body doesn't feel like moving but you can tell who's walking around your house by their footsteps alone. And like a diligent slave to the system, you wait anxiously for your morning alarm to howl at you and drag you from that state of peace. And yet, it never comes.
That is how Akuma Tiryns' morning started.
"GAHHH!!!"
Akuma's eyes flew open, and his body ripped out of the sweet embrace of his sheets. He realized that the reason his alarm hadn't gone off was because he forgot to put his phone on the charger last night.
His phone was right where Wujing had dropped it last night, exactly where he suspected. Unfortunately, that instantly shattered any hopes that yesterday was a dream. But if that was the case, then where was Wujing?
Wherever she was, the fact didn't change that he had to hurry if he didn't want to be late for school.
Plugging his phone into the charger, he spiraled the room, putting on his school uniform before blitzing into the bathroom.
It was then, while finishing brushing his teeth, that the scent jabbed his face. The sweet, buttery aroma wafted through the crack in his bathroom door and sent a shock through his senses. Drool flooded his mouth like a broken dam.
Akuma rushed downstairs, finally picking up on the sound of something sizzling on his stove.
"…?!"
Nearly causing a tear to fall down his eye, the sight before him was simply extraordinary.
In front of that stove, casually flipping pancakes and humming a tune completely unheard to him was not just a beautiful girl. It was a beautiful girl wearing an apron over an oversized shirt and shorts that were practically nonexistent. Was this really the same girl from last night? Where did she even acquire that apron? Did he really just have that sitting around? No, it didn't matter how or why, just that it did.
(Could it be… Is this the heaven I've been searching for? If heaven is truly a realm of paradise, then it has to be. Because what is this if not every man's paradise.)
Finally slipping down his cheek, the tear that had been threatening to fall completed its journey.
"Hm? Oh, you're awake, human. I was beginning to think you'd sleep all morning."
"…Who are you?" The questioned slipped through his lips while he struggled to stand in the face of such a sight.
"H–Huh? What do you mean? It is I, Wujing. We met yesterday, remember?"
"Wujing…? Is that the name of an angel?"
"Of course not! It is my name. My. Name."
He realized something while his gaze swept over the entire kitchen. It was spotless. Not a grime of dust anywhere in sight. Thinking back on it now, his bedroom was also spotless. He didn't have to carefully step over scattered manga and posters, nor did the air feel like being submerged in water.
Was she truly an angel? The divine messenger kind with the goal of protecting humanity?
(No, no, no, no, no, no. You have to be better than this, Akuma. You already have a loving and caring wife. And Alice would not approve of this. Besides, the girl's got horns. Horns, dammit. Calm your mind… Pretend she's just a maid… A maid. Yeah, a maid.)
"Have a seat, human. This hotcake delicacy should be done now."
Several mind games on his own brain later, Akuma successfully pictured himself as a medieval ruler of a small territory. The kind who sleeps in those large beds with fancy curtains hanging around them. He was wearing a school uniform, but to him they might as well have been royal garbs. But most importantly, the beautiful girl in front of him was a simple and honest maid.
"Oh, sweet Fiona. I am so thankful to have you at my side." Akuma's eyes carried the warmth of ancient ruler.
"Really? That's so sweet, human. I knew you'd come around one day... Though I do not like that you got my name wrong."
Taking a seat at the kitchen table, Akuma gave thanks for the stack of pancakes on his plate.
Tree sap couldn't have dripped more perfectly than the syrup flowing down while he cut the stack in thirds. They glistened under the syrup mixed with butter like stars in the night sky.
"Oh my. What a divine aroma. The sweet scent of butter and syrup just tingles the senses. Am I to believe you made this by yourself, Fiona?"
"Yes, I did." Wujing answered triumphantly.
"Marvelous. Absolutely splendid. Honestly, the only thing that could make this meal even better, is the sweet voice of my dear news reporter. She always seems to calm my soul in the morning. Would be a dear and let me hear it?"
"You want me to turn the tv on?"
"Yes, please."
Had he not been so engrossed in his character as a medieval ruler, he might've questioned how she knew what a tv was. And had he asked, she'd tell him about how she used her remaining miracle to learn and master basic knowledge about this realm. More accurately, she had made it so that the world registered her as if she had always lived in this city.
"Good evening, I'm standing here outside a local neighborhood where just yesterday, we witnessed what can only be described as extraordinary. The footage you're seeing now was captured by multiple cell phones and security cameras, showing one individual single-handedly confronting what police estimate to be nearly one hundred members of various local gangs."
Their expressions froze while they watched a mere high school boy pummeling 100 delinquents. He had black hair and fierce crimson eyes. The fact that he was smiling while caving their heads in was particularly eerie.
"The confrontation began around 2:30 in the afternoon when the gang converged in the victim's front porch. Though, it's not clear who exactly is the victim in this case. In less than ten minutes, every single one of those hundred individuals was on the ground, and staring death in the face according to paramedics on scene. One thing's for certain. Those hundred troublemakers won't be looking for a rematch anytime soon."
Akuma's fork fell out of his hand in utter disbelief. They hadn't said the "victim's" name, but anyone with a half a brain cell knew exactly who it was. Especially in this city. There was no doubt in his mind—this would only further enforce the barrier between him and everyone else.
"Hey, uh… That was you, was it not?"
"Of course not! I–I would never hurt a fly, much less a person! I mean why would you even assume it was me? Huh? Just because they had red eyes? Literally everyone has that!"
"Geez… I didn't know it was such a sensitive subject… But, if it makes you feel better, I once fought against a thousand demons and claimed victorious!" Wujing announced with her chest puffed out.
"No, that doesn't make me feel better…" Akuma muttered while finishing his pancakes.
"It's alright, human. Even if those people come back to invade your home, I will assist you. For I have taken a liking to you."
"…"
Akuma's fork froze over the now empty plate. In the 4 years he could remember, no one had ever said anything like that to him. And with how casually she said it, he felt that it would be pretty embarrassing to make a big deal out of it.
"…It's Akuma."
"?"
"My name. It's Akuma Tiryns."
"No, it's human."
"Ugh! I was trying to be nice for a change! You could at least pretend to–!"
Her smile was like gazing upon the gates of heaven. Imagine living a life of solitude and isolation, then being welcomed into a grand paradise accompanied by baby angels and a song that you might hear in a wedding hall.
"You are not fooling anyone, human. You were always a nice person."
Those words banged at his heart like a drum, the sound resonating with his entire body. Who knew words could feel so sweet.
"W–Where do you get off? You're just an apparition."
"Hah?! I thought we were past that."
"Yeah I bet you'd love that wouldn't you."
A smile tugged at his lips while he brought his plate to the kitchen sink. Even after leaving it in there, he thought about the pleasant sensation wrapping around his chest. For once, he was excited to start the day.
"Much as I'd love to stay and chat, I have to hurry if I don't wanna miss school. Watch over the house while I'm gone. And keep in mind that you don't have a key, so if you leave, you're fucked. Got all that?"
"Yes, sir!"
Even with her resolute salute, Akuma still couldn't shake a strange feeling pressing on his shoulders.
Was it safe? Was it safe to just leave her to her own devices?
Her being a weirdo was one thing, but assuming everything Wujing told him last night was true, a powerful demon had sealed her powers. However, that alone wasn't what worried him. After all, she did dodge one of his blows effortlessly.
The problem was the presence of this unknown powerful demon.
Akuma had no way of knowing what kind of powers dwelled within Wujing, but it needing to be sealed spoke volumes of her strength. Which in turn, only made the thing she had to run from that much more threatening.
So was it safe to just leave her? Especially when he knew so little about her and her strange mission…