Chapter 31: Cerberus's Life Contract
The night air was cool and crisp as Ren and Cerberus walked down the quiet street. The bustling commercial district had long since gone to sleep, leaving only the hum of streetlights and the occasional passing car.
When Ren arrived at the courier station—a small distribution hub tucked away between a convenience store and a laundromat—he saw that the roller shutters were pulled down tight. It was completely closed.
Cerberus, standing beside him in her new casual clothes, tilted her head. Her red eyes glowed in the dark.
"Master! Master! Master! It's closed!" she exclaimed, pointing at the metal barrier. "Shall I break it open? I can punch through steel!"
She raised a fist, white energy gathering around her knuckles, ready to commit a felony.
Ren was startled. He quickly reached out and grabbed her wrist, stopping the impending property damage.
"No! Absolutely not!" Ren scolded gently. "We don't break into places. That's what villains do."
He reached into his pocket and pulled out a small silver key. With a practiced motion, he inserted it into the side door's lock.
Click.
The door swung open silently.
Cerberus's dog ears (which were currently hidden by a beanie hat Ren had bought her, though they still twitched visibly) perked up in shock. Her mouth formed a perfect 'O'.
"Master! Master! Master! Are you also a delivery person?"
Ren chuckled, shaking his head as he ushered her inside and flipped the light switch. "Of course not. I'm just very familiar with the owner of this shop. I've received so many... special ingredients and packages over the years that he trusts me. Sometimes he even lets me watch the shop during the day when he needs a break. So, he gave me a spare key for late-night pickups."
"Oh! Oh! Oh!" Cerberus hopped excitedly. "Master is amazing! Master has territory everywhere!"
Ren walked to the shelf labeled 'R'. He found a medium-sized cardboard box wrapped in discreet brown paper. He checked the label. It was indeed his package.
After Ren got the package, he locked the door again, ensuring the security system was re-armed.
As they walked back onto the street, Ren glanced at the small box in his hand. He felt the weight of it.
Those guys... he thought, remembering the group chat's teasing. They really sent it.
He smiled and shook his head. "He's really like a child, sending these things..."
Cerberus was startled. She looked at the box in Ren's hand with intense curiosity, sniffing the air.
"Master! Master! Master! What is this?"
Ren froze. He couldn't exactly tell his innocent (but deadly) Hellhound that his 'friends' from other dimensions had sent him adult entertainment or rare gravure magazines as a gag gift.
He thought for a moment and came up with an explanation a dog-brain could understand.
"This is... for watching movies," Ren lied smoothly. "Special movies. And little kids can't watch them."
Cerberus stopped walking. She looked at him, pouting.
"Then I can watch! I am not a kid! I am an ancient demon!" she protested. "Master! Master! Master! I want to watch too! What movie is it!"
"Do you even know what a movie is?"
"I don't know! But I still want to watch!"
Ren sighed. "It's a... scary movie. Very scary. It has monsters that eat bad dogs."
"I'm not scared! I eat monsters!"
"Alright... But be careful not to have nightmares, okay?"
"I won't!"
Ren patted her head, deciding he would just hide the box later.
The walk back was slow.
Cerberus was constantly sticking to Ren, hugging his free arm with both of hers. Her body heat was high, radiating warmth against his side in the cool night air. She matched his steps, skipping occasionally.
She was very happy. For the first time in eons, she wasn't guarding a gate of torment. She was walking under the stars with someone who fed her and patted her head.
Suddenly, she paused.
Her ears under the beanie wiggled violently. She stopped walking, forcing Ren to stop as well.
She looked up at Ren, her expression unusually serious. The streetlamp cast a soft halo around them.
"Master... Master... Master..."
"What's wrong?" Ren asked, concerned.
Cerberus pursed her lips. She looked down at her shoes, then back up at him, her crimson eyes shimmering.
"Master... why did you accept me so readily back then? And why are you so good to me? Buying me clothes... wiping my face..."
Ren was startled by the sudden depth of the question. He smiled gently, stroking Cerberus's head through the hat.
"Because Cerberus meets all my requirements for a pet," he teased lightly. "Loyal, energetic, and cute."
Cerberus pouted, unsatisfied. "And?"
Ren's expression softened. He looked into her eyes.
"And... to be good to someone doesn't need a reason. You don't need a grand purpose to be kind."
He tapped her forehead.
"You just need to follow your subconscious thoughts. You act on how you feel. I felt you were alone. I felt you needed a home. So I gave you one. That way, no matter what happens later, I won't feel regret or sorrow for turning you away."
He paused, then smiled warmly.
"But I do think Cerberus's arrival is a very good gift for me~"
Cerberus's eyes widened. "A gift?!"
"Mhm~"
Cerberus felt something swell in her chest—something hotter than hellfire. It was pure, unadulterated devotion.
"No reason needed, huh..." she mumbled.
Then she beamed, her smile outshining the streetlights.
"Master! Master! Master! Let's go home!"
"Okay~ Let's go home."
Ren started walking again.
Watching Cerberus's tail wagging so fast it was a blur, Ren smiled and let her cling to him. Cerberus gave a silly, dopey smile, burying her face in his sleeve. She didn't know exactly what she was thinking, but her grip on Ren tightened.
Just then, as Ren looked ahead, he didn't notice a faint glow on the back of his right hand.
A magical mark surfaced on his skin, burning softly for a second before fading into a tattoo-like stigma. It was an odd mark, similar to the seal Lucifer had placed on him, but different.
It was a stylized design of three identical small hearts linked together by a chain.
Back in the shop.
Cerberus still clung to Ren as if she were glued to him with superglue.
Lucifer, who was sitting at the table waiting for them, was slightly startled when she saw this scene. She narrowed her crimson eyes and looked at the back of Ren's hand.
She saw the faint trace of the three hearts. Her eyes widened in genuine surprise.
Lucifer stood up, clearing her throat. "Cerberus. Go upstairs to sleep."
"No, no, no~!" Cerberus whined, hiding behind Ren. "If Master doesn't sleep, I won't sleep!"
Ren smiled and peeled her off gently. "Go rest. Otherwise, you won't have energy to watch the movie tomorrow."
"Okay!"
Cerberus agreed instantly. She dashed upstairs.
Lucifer looked at the unusually obedient Cerberus disappearing up the stairs. She sighed, shaking her head.
"She's really thoroughly 'conquered' him... Let's go."
"Oh!"
Just after Cerberus and Lucifer went upstairs, the shop fell silent.
Ren was locking the register when a faint, indifferent mechanical voice suddenly sounded in his ear.
"[The Hellhound Cerberus's Life Contract detected. Value: Immeasurable.]"
Ren paused. "Life Contract?"
"[You die, she dies. She dies, the contract is dissolved... It is a bond of absolute soul servitude born of total devotion.]"
After that, there was no more sound. Ren stood there, frozen. He looked at his hand.
This contract completely put Cerberus's life in Ren's hands. Ren thought of Cerberus's earlier mumbled phrase about 'no reason needed' and he understood what had happened.
Ren sighed, a heavy but warm feeling settling in his chest.
"I really am touched.... This silly girl... Now you can't leave even if you want to...."
Upstairs, in the guest room.
Lucifer walked in. "Cerberus. All of you, come out~"
The girl sitting on the bed pursed her lips. Then, her form shimmered.
Poof! Poof!
She slowly split into three identical Cerberus girls.
Lucifer sat on the chair opposite them, crossing her arms. "All three of you actually agreed to voluntarily sign a Life Contract? Are you crazy?"
The Cerberus standing in the middle stood up defiantly. "In all my life! Master has been the best to me! And to use Master's words, it's about acting on subconscious thoughts! You don't need a reason to be good to someone!"
"So?"
"So Cerberus only acknowledges this one Master! And will never acknowledge anyone else!"
"Aren't you afraid..." Lucifer hesitated. "If the Judgment comes... we'll protect Master!"
"No... I mean, aren't you afraid that if something happens to Ren, your life will also be in danger? You've only known Ren for two days!"
"No! No! No!" The three girls shouted in unison. "If Master is gone, I won't live either!"
"And I can feel that Master genuinely cares about us!"
Honestly, Lucifer was truly shocked. For the first time, she witnessed firsthand what "dog loyalty" truly meant.
The Cerberus on the right giggled. "But, Master is so amazing! Our quality of life has improved after signing a contract with Master..."
"Eh? It's true!" the left one cheered.
"Wow! Master is a hidden expert!"
The three Hellhounds laughed and tumbled together on the bed.
Lucifer frowned, but a smile tugged at her lips. "Are you serious?"
"Yes! Yes! Yes!"
Lucifer's lips curved upwards into a genuine smile. "Go to sleep~ Also, in the human world, you might not have the chance to transform into your giant Hellhound form, so..."
"We never planned to change back!"
After saying that, the three Hellhounds huddled together in a puppy pile, satisfied smiles on their faces. They closed their eyes and fell asleep instantly.
Lucifer returned to her own room next door.
She changed into her pajamas. Leaning against the headboard, she held her phone and thought for a long time.
She opened the group chat and found a specific member she had been observing. She typed a string of words quickly.
'Hell CEO': "Hey. Ren's strength is very strong. What Cerberus said is correct~ He's an anomaly."
The other side replied almost instantly.
'Strongest Idol Scientist on Earth': "Eh? Ren-kun? Of course! Ren-kun is amazing! He breaks the power scale!"
Lucifer said nothing more. She looked at the girl's avatar—a cheerful girl with bunny ears.
Lucifer searched online, but she couldn't find anything from the picture, nor could she find a scientist named Shinonono Tabane in this world's database.
But her intuition told her that everything this woman said was true. Lucifer closed her phone, placing it on the nightstand.
"It's getting more and more interesting, Ren~"
Somewhere else, in a high-tech lab filled with holographic screens.
A purple-haired older sister (Shinonono Tabane) smiled, pressing a button on her console.
She laughed, spinning in her chair. "Oh oh! Chifuyu-chan! Just now, Lucy-chan asked about Ren! It seems she's found something amiss!"
On a screen, a black-haired older sister with a stern expression appeared. She was drinking coffee.
She chuckled, a rare sound. "Is that so? Lucifer... the Queen of Hell? Another formidable individual has arrived at Ren's place~"
After speaking, the woman hung up the call. She silently closed the group chat on her tablet.
She turned off the device and lay on her bed, a small, nostalgic smile on her lips.
If one looked closely at her chat profile, they would notice her username.
The name displayed was: "Brunhilde".
[Akarin's Note: Shinonono Tabane is the genius inventor of the IS (Infinite Stratos) technology. The black-haired woman is Chifuyu Orimura, the legendary pilot known as "Brunhilde", also from Infinite Stratos.]
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