Chapter 172
Do you have someone you like?
I don't know what to do.
An item just for you!
—Love Amulet~!
Just attach this, and the target becomes a Slave of Love!
P.S.: An actual slave.
Uwaah!
Fairy, you're moving way too fast!
That's an item you should give to a Pastel who has put in agonizing effort to seduce Lord Demon, only to realize the reality that she can never surpass her dead mom, leaving her with dead eyes!
If you give it to me already when I haven't even done anything yet, Pastel won't know what to do...!
"Fairy! I'm not Borabora yet!"
Pastel quivered.
The amulet in the Fairy's hand also quivered. The Heart Ppyongppyong Amulet design swayed.
—Huh? What does Borabora mean?
"Evil! Bad! Greedy! Tons and tons of bad things! A sense of immorality! Bash-bash!"
A trembling hand pointed at the amulet.
"Pink-Pink can't do something utterly evil and criminal like mental manipulation in her right mind!"
The Fairy's eyes widened.
—I see! Come to think of it, this does seem bad! It's not something a fairy should do! I just brought it out because it was a quick and easy path, but I didn't think that far ahead!
"That's right! That's right! It's not something a fairy should grant as a wish! There's much room for abuse, and it's a massive social issue too!"
Utterly serious!
—I made it to match my aptitude for the first time in a while, though...
Her hands rustled the amulet for no reason.
—If you just attached this, your romantic troubles would be over in one shot...
The Fairy felt regretful.
Then she shook off her regret and smiled brightly.
—But it is a misdeed! A good fairy like me doesn't make bad things like this normally, you know? I just forgot for a moment and made it! I'll eat something this dangerous right away to get rid of it!
"That's right! That's right! Get rid of it!
An evil item that needs to disappear from the world!
—Got it!
The Fairy opened her small mouth.
The amulet headed toward her mouth, then suddenly stopped with a clunk.
—Huh?
The girl's fingers were suddenly holding the edge of the amulet.
The Fairy's gaze turned to Pastel. The girl had her head turned and her eyes squeezed shut, as if she didn't want to look at the evil and terrible item anymore.
The Fairy pulled the amulet.
The fingers held firm, defending the amulet. She gripped it so hard that the amulet crumpled up.
A dumbfounded gaze was directed at the girl. The girl trembled and forced her mouth open.
"Fairy, did you get rid of it...?"
The Fairy stared at the fingers gripping the amulet tightly.
Then she made a surprised expression.
—Come to think of it, wouldn't I get a stomachache if I ate paper?!
Pink eyes widened and looked back.
"Gasp, you're right! You really would!"
Today's surprising fact.
Eating paper gives you a stomachache!
"Besides, besides! If you try to destroy an amulet filled with evil power without preparation, wouldn't a huge problem arise?! Boom boom! Bang bang! Boom boom! At the very least, it would be a problem that would negatively affect the fairy's health!"
Gasp, that sounds right!
—My health?! That can't happen?! It's more important than all of humanity!
The Fairy covered her mouth in surprise.
"To think we have to destroy an evil item even at the cost of the fairy's health! Such a dilemma isn't an option a righteous faction like ours would choose!"
Pastel put on a righteous expression befitting a protagonist.
"I think this evil amulet should just stay safely sealed in my pocket for the time being!"
A genius solution where no one is sad!
"This evil amulet!"
The Heart Ppyongppyong Amulet was lifted high.
"I will seal you...!"
Haaap!
As she shouted, the amulet slipped right into her pocket.
Amidst immense tension, a precise hand gesture swiftly closed the pocket.
Sealing complete.
"Phew."
To think she discovered a third option in a dilemma of choosing between two in which someone had to be sacrificed.
"It was a grueling but rewarding adventure."
She wiped her forehead for no reason.
Perhaps because she had sweated, Pastel felt like someone who had unexpectedly come into great fortune.
The corners of her mouth crept up.
Flush!
#
The fairy tale book's page was turned.
"And so, the witch who abused the love potion revealed her ugly inner self and died a painful death. With her internal organs torn and her limbs broken, she was boiled in a cauldron."
Under the gentle light, Melissa, dressed in light clothing, read the fairy tale aloud.
"True love and a good, righteous heart finally triumphed because a valuable heart cannot be swayed by a love potion."
The fairy tale book was closed.
"That's the end of the story. Reading it with a friend is very enjoyable. Shall we have this kind of time again in the future, Pastel?"
Pastel shed tears profusely.
"I feel bad for the witch!"
Uwaah!
Melissa was flustered.
"Why are you empathizing with the witch? She's blatantly in the villain role."
"The witch has her circumstances too!"
"Everyone has circumstances. A sin is a sin, a punishment is a punishment, and a person is still a person, though this witch is written with only her ugly aspects, stripped of any parts the reader might sympathize with."
"It's not persuasive if you speak in a context only you understand!"
Pastel wiped her falling teardrops with the back of her hand.
"In the first place, in the first place! Why is it so cruel when it's a fairy tale book! If it's content for kids, leave out cruel stuff like boiling in a cauldron!"
Melissa was flustered.
"Isn't this normal? Most fairy tale books are like this. If the content is too saccharine, it actually loses its appeal and no one reads it."
The fairy tale book was hastily opened again.
"I skipped it, but there was also content you might like, Pastel."
Her finger pointed to a sentence.
"The Rabbit hero and the saintess, who returned at the end of their adventure, lived happily, giving birth to 700 babies over their lifetime."
700 babies.
Because they're rabbits.
"That's weird in its own way...!"
Pastel clutched her head. Her pink pigtails flapped frantically.
Melissa leaned her upper body back, skillfully dodging the hair. The fairy tale book was closed.
The mage girl tilted her head.
"Do you have some kind of worry? To think you'd bring up the topic of romance again. Was your date yesterday not that good?"
"Ehh? Is it obvious? It's not because of Nathaniel, but it's true that I'm agonizing over what to do right now."
Pastel rubbed both her cheeks.
Melissa set the fairy tale book aside. An elegant hand gesture touched her chest.
"If there was anything unsatisfactory, please consult me. I heard it's difficult to distinguish between excitement and displeasure by yourself on a first date. It's important to set boundaries from the start of a relationship."
"It's not that. I don't care about Nathaniel anymore. More importantly, I think I have someone I like."
Hehe.
Pastel twisted her body, her cheeks flushing red.
Melissa's face filled with question marks. Then, as if she understood what she meant a beat late, her expression changed.
Her gaze fell on a hopeless friend who went on a date yesterday saying she had someone she liked, but is now saying she likes someone else starting today.
Gasp, that's not it at all, but it is true.
Uwaah!
Pastel suddenly felt wronged.
It's true! It is true, but...
Anyway, it's not...!
"A popular person's love is inherently fickle!"
"Your excuse is ugly."
Gasp.
Pastel dropped her head.
"That excuse was a bit ugly just now..."
"Yes."
Melissa was firm.
Hmph.
"Still, no one got hurt, so I guess it doesn't matter."
"That's also true."
"Yeah!"
Pastel lifted her face with a bright expression. Her pink eyes sparkled.
"Anyway, so I'm thinking of doing a Confession Dash Attack on Lord Demon, but what method would be best?!"
"What?! The target was the Archdemon?!"
Melissa was truly startled.
"Ah, I said it."
I was going to keep it a secret until the Confession Dash Attack.
But it's Melissa, not Ellie, who can't act, so maybe it's fine?
"I realized it yesterday, but I think I like Lord Demon who cooks and does laundry for me every day!"
To the point where I think it'd be great if he did it for the rest of my life!
Uwang.
"That's a very pitiful reason to tell the Archdemon."
Melissa was dumbfounded.
"It might be very rude for me, who am merely an heir, to give such advice to a family head, but I think it's right to make your own bed in the morning."
Pastel pretended not to hear.
Instead, she clasped her hands and placed them on the table. Then, she struck a mastermind pose, dimmed the magic lighting slightly to make it feel more mastermind-y, and put on a serious expression.
"I'm going to prepare a grand operation that will captivate Lord Demon in one shot."
It's absolutely not because she already had a rejection without a confession and felt burdened to just blindly charge in.
"Because the popular person Pastel isn't an amateur who gets swayed by emotions and abruptly first asks about ideal partners!"
"That's somewhat specific. Did you already ask about his ideal type?"
Pastel froze and remained silent for a moment. Then she slyly added.
"Lord Demon says his type is blondes. But it seems pink hair also makes the cut."
"Congratulations."
Melissa smiled and clapped lightly.
"Yeah, yeah! Yeah, yeah!"
Pastel jumped up and walked around humming.
"I~! I have pink hair~!"
Pink hair flutters (Lord Demon brushes it day and night while yawning).
1 merit point!
"Should I just confess right now? If 1 merit point is added to the 1-million-point popular Pastel, wouldn't the success rate be 100%?"
I should do it right away!
"Lord Demoo-n!"
Pastel jumped up.
As she was about to dash out, Melissa panicked and hurriedly spoke.
"He probably isn't here right now. He visits the royal palace around this time these days."
Huh?
"To meet whom?"
Perhaps a swishy blonde?
Gasp.
"A woman?"
"It's a woman, yes...? Ellie is giving a policy briefing—"
"Gasp!"
Elliee!
Pastel screamed.
"That makes no sense!"
There's no way Lord Demon actually has a thing for black hair!
I'm going to confirm it with my own two eyes!
"Uwaaang!"
Pastel ran to the terrace facing the royal palace.
She was about to throw herself to the ground, but hesitated because the high floor made her dizzy.
Her pink eyes rolled.
She took out her magic stone knife, tapped her knife friend—whose fuel was running low because she hadn't fed it expensive magic stones lately—and put it back.
Pastel obediently turned around and left the terrace. She opened the guest room door and went down the hotel stairs safely.
Pitter-patter. Pitter-patter.
Someone is going down the stairs.
And as soon as she exited the hotel, she ran toward the royal palace again.
"Uwaaang! Lord Demoo-n!"
There's no way black hair is his type...!