The wind and snow gradually subsided.
On the road back to the Eternal Paradise Faith, the atmosphere was so oppressive it was suffocating.
Kotoha hugged herself, her body stiff as she trembled uncontrollably.
She followed closely behind Doma, not daring to fall even half a step behind.
Her heart pounded wildly. Every step felt like walking toward death.
She had just witnessed this man eating people with her own eyes—had just witnessed him reveal himself as a demon and pursue her.
And yet now… he was acting as if nothing had happened, calmly leading them back?
"Hey, Kotoha-chan."
Doma, who was walking ahead, suddenly stopped and turned around.
The blood on his face had already been wiped clean. In those rainbow-glass-like eyes, there was now an expression that could even be described as… aggrieved.
"I'm really hurt, you know. Among everyone in this Eternal Paradise Faith, you're the one I liked the most."
Kotoha's pupils trembled. She opened her mouth, but no sound came out.
Doma stepped in front of her and lifted his long, icy fingers, gently tidying her disheveled bangs. The movement was unbelievably tender.
"Only you are different, Kotoha-chan. Your singing is so beautiful, and you're so pure—your head's empty, with not a single bad thought in it.
"When I'm with you, I feel very relaxed.
"I originally planned to keep you by my side until you died of old age.
"Maybe… I really did like you…"
At that point, Doma's gaze suddenly darkened. The smile remained on his lips, but the surrounding temperature instantly plunged to freezing.
"But why did you have to see something you shouldn't have? And why did you run?
"I showed it to you on purpose!
"Why couldn't you accept all of me?
"Kotoha, who saw the entirety of me yet couldn't accept it—
"I can't. I can't accept that.
"You must belong to me forever.
"Even if you merge into one with me… even if you can never sing again…"
To Doma as he was now—before Kotoha's death—he didn't understand love in any real sense.
All he understood was ownership.
"Pah!"
Suddenly, from Doma's arms, Inosuke stretched out his tiny hand and slapped it against the hand that was touching Kotoha's hair.
Like a cub guarding its food—protecting what belonged to it.
Doma froze for a moment and lowered his head to look at Inosuke.
The baby stared back at him with round, wide eyes, puffed out a little bubble of spit, then pressed his face against the back of Doma's icy hand. With both warm, chubby hands, he tried hard to warm Doma's fingers.
"Da… Daddy… cold…"
Inosuke mumbled indistinctly.
The frost that had begun to gather at Doma's fingertips trembled slightly.
He looked at Inosuke, who was earnestly trying to warm his hand, then at Kotoha, who was clearly terrified yet still instinctively protecting her child.
For the first time, a strange sense of scripted destiny formed in his empty mind.
Before, it had been like raising a canary in a cage.
Now… it almost felt like a family of three?
"Aiya!"
"This child… is he worried that my hand is cold?"
He turned his hand over and held Inosuke's tiny one, smiling until his eyes curved.
"Kotoha-chan, look. This child is so considerate."
Tears burst from Kotoha's eyes. She nodded desperately, even though she herself didn't fully understand what was happening anymore.
"Yes… yes… Inosuke, he… really likes the Lord Cult Leader.
"We…
Let's raise him together…"
"In that case…"
Doma seemed to have made a decision.
He leaned in and lightly pressed a cold kiss to Kotoha's forehead.
"Then I'll forgive you this once. Forget what you just saw.
"As long as you obediently sing in the future, and obediently raise our good son, we can still live happily together."
Half an hour later—
Eternal Paradise Faith, Inner Hall
When Doma returned with Kotoha and Inosuke, the believers weren't particularly surprised. After all, the cult leader often brought back pitiful people.
But this time, his attitude was completely different.
"Everyone, listen carefully."
Standing on the high platform, Doma held Inosuke with elegant ease, even wrapping the child in his own cloak. He looked every bit the doting father.
Kotoha, meanwhile, was arranged to sit on a soft couch at his side—her status higher than all other believers.
"This Lady Kotoha—her singing can soothe the soul. She is the most precious Saintess of our cult."
Doma's voice echoed through the hall, sacred and solemn.
"And this child!"
He lifted Inosuke high, facing the believers kneeling across the floor.
Inosuke was extremely cooperative.
He knew this wasn't just about giving Doma face—it was about securing his and his mother's place to survive in this demon's den.
So instead of shrinking back, he waved his chubby little hands and let out a string of giggles. That innocent, guileless look was like a beam of holy light within the gloomy Eternal Paradise Faith.
"This child is fated with me."
Watching Inosuke's lively expression, Doma's eyes revealed a trace of genuine fondness in front of the believers.
Almost like the affection one would have for a biological son.
"He will be my adopted son and grow up in this Eternal Paradise Faith. His name is Inosuke.
"In the future, when you see him—it will be as if you see me."
The believers prostrated themselves in terror and reverence.
"Greetings, Young Master! Praise the Cult Leader's mercy!"
Amid the thunderous chants of worship, Inosuke leaned against Doma's icy chest and looked at his mother beside him—still shaken, but completely unharmed.
At last, he let out a long breath of relief.
[Ding! God-Tier Villain Cultivation System activated!]
[Current situation: The Young Master's debut]
[Reward: Absolute Pitch — even when your mother sings off-key, Doma will still love listening]
The system notification chimed softly, informing him that he had gained an enhanced inherited talent: Absolute Pitch.
Doma lowered his head and poked Inosuke's cheek with a finger, chuckling softly.
"Little Inosuke, from now on, you and Mommy should work hard to please Daddy, alright?"
Inosuke grabbed his finger and smiled with pure innocence.
Of course.
I'll make sure to please you very well.