The morning light flowed into Obarihime's bedroom.
Lying on her bed, she groggily opened her eyes, the sun dancing playfully on her face.
As she turned her entire body, she felt a sharp pain in her right arm. That's when she remembered that Akira had dislocated it last night.
"It hurts..." she said in a soft, defeated voice. "He really is a demon..."
She slowly sat up straight and noticed that her shoulder had turned purple from the pain.
She reached in and gently placed her left hand on it, groaning as she did so.
Then, she got up from bed and left her room. She stepped downstairs and suddenly, she smelled a captivating aroma coming from the kitchen.
Curious, she followed the smell almost unconsciously.
Lo and behold, she found Akira dishing up some bread, meat, stew in a bowl and tea.
He glanced over at Obarihime and noticed her standing in the doorway.
"You know, it's considered polite to greet someone in the morning. We did not sleep in the same room," Akira said.
"... Good morning..." Obarihime hesitantly said to Akira as she rubbed her arm.
"Good morning. Sit," Akira demanded with a gentle smile.
Obarihime stared at Akira for a few seconds before finally deciding to sit. She slowly walked towards the seat he had pulled back for her, sat down and pushed herself in with the help of Akira.
"Go on. Eat," Akira urged once more.
With soulless eyes, Obarihime picked up the piece of bread and took a bite. To her surprise, it was very delicious.
The exterior texture wasn't as soft as the interior. It was also decently sweet, seasoned to perfection.
But Obarihime was too scared and hurt to give a compliment to Akira's baking. Akira ceased smiling, donned a serious expression, and looked at Obarihime's sour face.
He placed his hand on her injured shoulder, which made her flinch and wince in pain.
Then, he began cooling it down with his frost. After applying a few crushed herbs and cooling down the wound some more, he wrapped her shoulder with a bandage.
"It'll heal in a few days. Try not to strain yourself too much."
She watched him as he did this, questioning what he was planning.
He continued to carefully wrap the bandage. With each movement, he became more careful and focused.
Once he was done, he smiled gently and said, "I'm not doing this to be nice. I just want you to know one thing."
He sat down on his seat and tilted his head as he looked at Obarihime.
"I refuse to have a defiant slave. As much as I give you your freedom, you should give me your loyalty. I will break your bones, rip out your arms and hurt you. But I will always piece you back together. Because that's the type of demon I am."
"... I want to live with my grandfather..." Obarihime said in a low tone of voice, her eyes slightly narrowed and hands frozen.
"... I suppose that's fair. I did dislocate your arm. You can sleep there for tonight and tonight only, so don't be mad, okay?" Akira said as he smiled gently at Obarihime.
"..." She simply nodded and continued eating her bread. 'I suppose that's better than a no... If this is how I'm meant to live out my days... then I'd rather die...'
***
Days later, Obarihime sat on the front porch of her grandfather's new house, the grass brushing against her skin as the wind blew gently.
Sitting beside her was Masaki, who patted her head softly as he consoled his granddaughter, who had cradled herself and lay on her knees.
And next to him was Ruri, Obarihime's friend with medium-length black hair, green eyes and a seductive energy that swirled unconsciously around her.
"Does he hurt you every day?" Ruri inquired.
"No... It was only that one instance..." Obarihime replied.
"Has he done anything else to hurt you?" Masaki asked.
"As of late..." she said as she raised her head, "No. I've been nothing but obedient to him. But, I've grown impatient. I can't help but feel trapped when I'm in that house...
"It's like every little thing I do in the end is within his intention. So even when I decide to take a walk outside, it feels like he told me to do so, even when he didn't."
"... That's how we all felt when he first got here. But, since we've learned to adjust, it's almost as if he's not even here," admitted Ruri.
"The thing with Akira is that he wants you to listen to him when he speaks, not for you to follow his every order."
"Is that true, Ruri?" Masaki squinted his eyes as he looked in Ruri's direction.
"Of course it is. He just wants you to talk to him. At least, that's what I got from interacting with him..."
"Interact with him, huh?" Obarihime gently muttered.
"If he does anything else to you, just let me know, okay?" Masaki said as he patted his granddaughter's back.
"I appreciate the thought, but what can you do now that you're not the chief?" Obarihime said as she stood up and walked away. "You're just as powerless as the rest of us are. He considers us ants in his grand colony, so I suppose it's fitting..."
"I feel sorry for her. I would've taken her place if Akira had let me," said Ruri.
"You've already slept with him, haven't you?" Masaki inquired, pointing his bony finger at her.
"That's so perverted, old man!" Ruri exclaimed.
While Obarihime was speaking with Masaki and Ruri, Akira was at Vilgrat's tailor shop, sharing a cup of tea with her and her granddaughter, the shop's assistant.
"How's the tea, Lord Akira?" Frill inquired, trying not to spill the tea she poured for herself.
"It's good," replied Akira.
"Thank goodness," she smiled faintly. 'You would've killed me if it was bad, so I had to go all out...'
"What brings you over for some tea, young demon?" Vilgrat inquired.
"I have some questions regarding Obarihime, Masaki's granddaughter."
'Ah, there it is,' Frill said to herself.
"Rumour has it that you broke the young woman's arm," said Vilgrat.
"Grandma, don't go saying that so casually!" Frill reprimanded.
"That's an exaggeration. I merely dislocated it. Then, I fixed it the next morning," Akira explained before sipping his tea.
'And why do you sound proud of yourself?!'
"Anyway, I want to know more about her. Frill, what do you make of her?"
Frill was taken aback. "Huh? You want my opinion?" she asked as she sat down beside her grandmother.
"You're her age, so I'd like to know what you think of her at least. From your perspective, you're more likely to give me a grounded response."
That was only half true.
He also wanted to prove whether his suspicions about Obarihime were true or false.
"Don't hold back. Tell me everything that comes to mind when you think of her."
"... Are you certain?" Frill asked for reassurance.
"Go ahead," Akira said, giving her a gentle smile.
Frill took a deep breath. "She's a fucking bitch. As the village princess, she was able to get away with a lot of crap when we were growing up. Even before you showed up, she relied on the power her grandfather held, and often used it to torment us girls."
"Not only that," she continued, drawing in some more oxygen. "But she just keeps complaining about the littlest of things, even though she was in a better living condition than any of us. She always gets the attention of the men and uses her pretty face to get what she wants."
Frill began clenching her fists as she said, "I've never met an insensitive, bratty and overall horrible person like her. She's the worst... In other words... I hate her..."
Vilgrat reached in to hold her granddaughter's hand, but because she was blind, she was reaching for nothing.
Frill noticed this and gently held her hand, smiling faintly at the gesture.
'Bingo,' Akira said to himself.
That was the answer he was hoping for, confirming his suspicions.
Obarihime was being spoiled rotten, even after she became an adult.
Because of that, she didn't understand the concept of following an order.
"If she doesn't change her behaviour, no one will marry her," Akira said as he sipped from his teacup.
"You're right, no one will want her. I hope she doesn't get with anyone anyway..."
"You know, she is living with me. If you want," Akira paused as he placed his empty tea cup on the table to look at Frill, his golden eyes glowing. "I could make her into an ideal woman," he continued.
Swallowing her spit and feeling the intoxicating sensation of Akira's stare, Frill blinked once and cleared her throat.
"What... do you mean by that?" she queried, her body tensing up.
"I am planning on making her my own. I refuse to have these fools have a woman like her. Her talents would be wasted on them, and their offspring would be failures," Akira added as he smirked.
"If you'd like, I can even make her apologise for all the things she's done to you when you were children," Akira tempted as he sat closer to Frill.
Frill didn't say anything.
"Frill? What does he mean by that?" Vilgrat queried worriedly.
"It's pretty obvious that Obarihime was bullying a bunch of kids when she was younger. One of them is your granddaughter, old lady," replied Akira. "I promise not to lay a hand on her. I will simply execute my will into her."
"... What would you gain from that?" Frill asked.
"I think you already know what I want."
Frill felt her heart beating faster while Vilgrat simply lifted an eyebrow.
"Very well. I'll leave everything to you, Lord Akira."