So firstly, I completely changed my plan for what happens next. Like completely. So I added in some foreshadowing to some previous chaps, (subtle as it is), which you'll unfortunately be missing out on. Everything should still fit together, though!

Also I feel like I should mention since I was tired of only using 'he' and 'him' I decided to start using X in place of his name (because I couldn't find any place to copy-paste it from). So just imagine that's his demon-language name. Although his name is now "X" (Ex) in my mind now, LOL.

Have a good read, hehehe.

-----

In the fleeting moment I brushed past the demon, I knew from the chill that ran through my body that something was wrong. I gripped the large hood of my robe over my head and face, ducking my chin further into my chest. As soon as I saw an opening I dashed into the crowd, flitting through and around the demonfolk as I attempted to keep my face concealed.

I dove into an alleyway the first moment I could and rested my adrenaline-filled heart, leaning against the cream brick wall. Thankfully, I was only a small while away from where I usually entered the castle. "That little sh*t-" I muttered as I pushed myself off of the wall, before leaving the alleyway briskly.

I soon arrived at the castle gates, neck aching from staring at the ground for so long. Per usual, the entranceways to the palace were surrounded by several guards. "The usual way it is, then." I snuck back out of the big gateway and crept around the corner. I paused in front of the wall, directly below a large vent- for human-size, at least. "H'okay..." I sighed after I glanced both ways, before placing my hands on my knees with an exhale to brace myself for what I was about to attempt once again.

I walked back a few steps from the vent and glanced both ways, puffing out my cheeks. Then, with a sharp exhale I dashed towards the vent, launching myself into the air before I could run head-first into the wall. I groaned as hand gripped onto the ledge, wincing from the strain, before flinging myself in to the opening. "I've certainly gotten stronger." I acknowledged my well-muscled arms and body beneath my cloak as I crawled through the fairly cramped vent.

I reached the end of the passage and peeked through the vent covering the hole just as one of the demon sentries walked by. I then turned to the bag laying propped against the wall beside me and, and quickly grabbed out the emergency mask I had stashed there, along with the finalizing parts of my demon disguise. I quickly pulled it on and swiftly kicked the vent open and leapt out-

"Oh, Y/N!" I stiffened as one of the demon sentries- Carl, I think, took notice of me from behind. "Sneaking in again?" He asked with a grin.

I chuckled dryly. "Something like that..." I kept my distance from the sentry, knowing full well my human scent was barely concealed at the moment. Although the demons had vowed not to eat humans- or had no reason to, at the moment, me showing up in front of them is like [favourite unhealthy snack] showing up in front of me in the middle of a diet that tests both my self-control and sanity.

 Would I eat that snack? Probably. And testing a demon's self control for the hell of it is definitely not on my to-do-list.

"Honestly, you should stop doing that." Carl the demon guard spoke, taking a step closer to me. My heat thudded in my chest like a cornered animal. "You'll worry your-"

"Sonju and Mujika, I know-!" I quickly dashed away before he could get any closer, quickly finding my way to the royal family's hall, where less guards were placed for my own convenience, and avoiding any sentries on the way. 

I made it to the main gathering room, which acted as a front door to my living space. "Oh?" Sonju poked his head out from an adjoining room. "I was wondering where you were. 'The one' playing pranks on you again?"

My lip curled in annoyance and I pulled my demon mask of my head, quickly breathing in the fresh air. "Ugh, yes. That little sh*t needs to stop dropping me off in the middle of demon territory without my gear. YOU HEAR THAT, X-?!" I raised my voice. I then turned to Sonju with a sigh, as the demon entered the room. "And did the excuse for my existence really need to be being your distant relative?"

The demon man shrugged. "Would you rather us've called you 'live bait'? Having a young age would be the only way to explain your size-"

My eyebrows raised. "Then how are you going to explain my short lifespan? And growth-rate? And, you know, now they expect me to be the next queen, right?"

Sonju shrugged. "We'll deal with it when the time comes." He then stopped in his tracks, raising his hand over his face. "You smell very good right now."

I gave the demon a very disgusted and concerned look. "Did you have to put it that way?"

Sonju hummed. "I mean you smell delicious-"

"THAT'S NOT ANY BETTER-?!" I exclaimed, inching away from the demon man.

"Geez, Y/N. It's not like I'd actually try to eat you-" Sonju jutted out his chin and rolled his eyes. 

I shivered, beginning to set my mask down on the table. "But you have two siblings- one still-alive one- who would jump at the chance. It could run in your blood-"

I faintly heard the door beginning to creak open and my heart jumped. 'Mujika never enters from there-' I hastily fixed my mask and pulled my hood over my face, crouching to the ground as I did so.

"You can rest easy, Y/N." I froze at the voice, swallowing dryly. 'Speak of the devil.' 

"Rest easy?" I feigned ignorance, turning to Leuvis at the doorway, my mask now completely secured to my face. 'God dammit, Y/N. Stop jinxing yourself-!!' 

"I'm not an idiot." The demon hummed, leaning back against the walls. "The rumours of a relative of Sonju and Mujika- who were all killed long ago, who happens to be human-sized with silver hair. Not even mentioning you still used your human name."

I puffed out my cheeks, clicking my tongue and pulling off the demon mask. "So?" I raised my eyebrows. "Why wait a whole year to confirm your suspicions?"

Leuvis tilted his head, waving his hand about. "Oh, this and that. Political matters and such."

We stood in a suffocating silence until I spoke, sweatdropping. "You're not going to... y'know... ask for a rematch... right?"

Leuvis sighed. "I'd love to, to be frank, especially given your...improvement..." I made another disgusted face as the demon hummed in disappointment. "But unfortunately, I doubt brother dearest would approve of that-"

"No, I don't mind."

"...What?" Both Leuvis and I spoke in unison, turning to the nonchalant demon in the corner of the room. "WHAT-?!" I repeated in shock.

"THAT'S GREAT-!!" Leuvis exclaimed excitedly like a toddler.

"NO, THAT is nOT GREAT-" I quickly cut him off with a frenzied yell. "Sonju, what the hell?!" I seethed, my eyes wide. "Trying to get rid of me or some sh*t?!"

Sonju chuckled with an amused shrug. "No, I just think it'd be amusing to watch. And I'm sure you'd be fine."

"Oh, yeah, sure." I spat. "Because last time I almost died. And that time I had the support of seven other people. And the added surprise of flash grenades." I let out a loud, nervous laugh. "Nothing bad could possibly happen this time."

"Well, I think it's an excellent idea." Leuvis hummed excitedly, linking his fingers together. "So, when do we have our rematch...?"

"When pigs fly-" I snapped.

"-that can be arranged." Leuvis responded without skipping a beat.

"What?" I blinked, regretting my choice of words instantly. "No, it's an expression-" but Leuvis was already at the doorway.

"Toodle-oo, Y/N! See you in a bit~!!"

I ran my tongue over my teeth. "...How long do you think it'll take him to genetically modify pigs to fly?" I asked, chewing on my cheek.

Sonju crossed his arms with a hum. "A year, at most. I'd guess a few months, given how eager he is."

"Oh, so I'm fucked." I grinned, although I wasn't exactly amused.

Sonju hummed for a moment, "yeah, if you're putting it lightly." He crossed his arms with a sigh.

I sputtered in 

"Let's go train, Y/N-!!" Sonju slung me over his shoulder like a sack of potatoes.

"Wait, no-" my complaints were cut off by the demon mask shoved into my face.

"Off we go!"

"Sonju you piece of sh*t, put me dowN-" I yelped the last part as he leapt out the balcony.

"WHY ARE YOU LiKE THiS???!" I screamed as we free-fell onto the terrace below, gripping onto his cloak while the demon cackled maniacally.

——-

"Oh f*ck, I think you broke a rib." I wheezed, grabbing onto my chest.

"Are you sure? I didn't hit you that hard." Sonju set his spear down on the ground.

"Well, you f*cker, not all of us have DEMON RIBS THAT ANY LESS THAN A GUNSHOT CAN'T BREAK, GODDAMMIT!!" I yelled, a vein popping out of my neck.

"See? You're yelling. You're fine."

I blinked. "Oh, f*ck you."

Sonju raised his eyebrows. "Kinda moody today, aren't you."

I scowled. "X kept me up until god knows when playing chess."

"Oh? Doesn't time not pass in that realm?"

"...details." I responded curtly. "Plus, he makes a game out of dropping me off in the middle of nowhere in the middle of the night - warps through time and space to make my life as miserable as possible for his own enjoyment."

"I see... I'm not sure if he's usually capable of doing that, even if he is a deity- wait, you little sh*t, stop distracting me and get up."

"Ughhh." I groaned, pushing myself up onto my knees. "And it was going so well~" I whined, picking up my dropped weapon of a light-weight but sturdy staff.

"This time, I'll be aiming for your lowermost rib on your right side." Sonju spoke as he readied his stance.

"And you're letting me know this..." I thought for a second, pursing my lips. "Because Leuvis won't be attacking to kill me, but for specific places on my body to increase the game-playing time?"

Sonju grinned. "You catch on quick. Now, I want you to pay attention to my actions, both discreet and obvious, that will show where I'm aiming- even if you already know where that is. You'll be working backwards, essentially. Instead of trying to figure out where I'm aiming based on my actions, you'll be finding the actions I make based on knowing where I'm aiming. Mastering the art of dodging will be your only hope to win against Leuvis, after all-"

"Help me, Obi-wan kenobi. You're my only hope-" My Star Wars reference was cut off by Sonju lunging and jabbing his spear directly towards the rib he'd mentioned earlier. My teeth clenched as I pivoted to the side in response, barely managing to redirect his strike with my staff to the side.

"To slow-!!" Sonju criticized, lunging again, his shoulders clearly angled to plunge the spear into the rib. I swayed out of the way from his intense speed, barely managing to stay on balance, beginning to fall backwards.

"Stay on balance!" Sonju quickly bent down to a crouch as he swept his spear against the ground, nearly breaking my ankle as I managed to narrowly jump over it.

"I THOUGHT YOU WERE AIMING FOR MY RIB-?!" I yelled at the demon as he lunged his spear towards the rib once again.

"I didn't hit your feet, did I? He easily responded despite the speed of his attacks.  "Let it be a lesson to be on your toes."

"You fucker-" I growled but was unable to continue speaking from the focus that dodging his attacks, which were only increasing in speed. I analyzed his body positions as he swung at me again and again, paying attention to movements like the shifting of his weight and the gaze of his eyes, even when he often made it appear as though he was about to aim somewhere else.

Over time I got used to his movements whilst he aimed for my rib, and Sonju clearly noticed this, once his attacks reached the max he could manage without skewering me like a shish kebab. Although I'm sure I would be delicious as one.

"LEFT EYE" The demon suddenly shouted, my eyes widening as his spear shot directly at my face in an instant, scratching against my cheek although I was unable to do anything to dodge it, purposefully only grazing me with the first attack.

I wanted to retort in response but Sonju's movements picked up speed again, and I now felt off-balance from his change of aim.

"LEFT CALF" He yelled, the moment I got used to his attacks once again, sweat beginning to bead on my forehead.

"RIGHT SHOULDER" 

"FOREHEAD"

He continued to yell out the places he would aim at, but before I knew it, I was beginning to get the hang of analyzing his movements-

I suddenly lost my focus when he managed to graze my thigh, and I fell to the ground, heaving for air. "H-holy fuck-" I wheezed, sweat drenching my entire body along with my exhaustion. 

I glanced towards the demon man and cringed. "You're not even sweating-" I complained at the sight of his completely-well state.

Sonju tilted his head to the side and hummed. "No, I'm more tired than I expected." He responded simply. "You're better than most demons I've ever fought at this point in time."

I raised an eyebrow in mild pride, before Sonju immediately dashed my hopes once again. "I haven't fought a lot of strong demons, though. You're about as strong as that pursuer-dude from way back when."

I paused for a moment before placing my head in my hands with a pained groan. "You beat him in a single f*cking second-"

Sonju shrugged. "Yeah. You've come far, though. You've definitely surpassed Emma and Ray, even in raw strength, which is your weakness-" He paused as soon as he realized mentioned the two escapee's names, the atmosphere suddenly turning tense.

"Sorry." The demon muttered after quite some time had passed.

"No no, it's fine." I sweatdropped, waving my hand in dismissal. "it's a useful comparison for me."

Sonju nodded. "Okay." We sat in silence for a while longer before Sonju tossed me a water canteen. "Drink up, then we should be heading back before Mujika gets worried."

I nodded. "Deal-" I pushed myself onto my feel, only to find my legs were jello. "-If you let me ride on your unnecessarily massive shoulder. I can't feel my legs-"

"Walk it off." Sonju chuckled, turning to walk away.

"No, Sonju, I literally cant feel them-" I blinked, a nervous grin on my face. "-Or any other part of my body, for that matter."

Sonju turned to me, his eyes narrowing. "...I'm sure you're exaggerating." He rolled his eyes.

"if I move, I'm going to fall on my face. Without fail." I spoke dead-seriously, my legs feeling as if they were going to collapse from under me at any second.

"...really?" Sonju confirmed, beginning to become concerned.

"Yes, you demon f*cker who put me into this situation. So come over here and let me sit on your shoulder. I'd sooner die of embarrassment than fall on my face and never get up again.

Wait, on second thought, that sounds pretty nice right now."

"Okay, okay, I'm coming over there, so stop being so dramatic." Sonju rolled his eyes as he approached.

"...One of these days I'm going to kill you in your sleep." I muttered as he picked me up like the ragdoll I was and set me on his shoulders.

"I'd like to see you try, pipsqueak."

——- The human world, the same time. -----

"Yuugo." Ray greeted the man quietly as he arrived at his doorway doorway, who quickly concealed the envelope he'd been staring at.

"Oh, you're up and moving?" Yuugo asked the ravenette curiously. It was rare to see him up and about, after all.

Ray waved his question aside. "Yeah, sure." He answered briefly, closing the door behind him as he entered the room. "Anyways, we need to talk."

Yuugo's eyes narrowed at the ravenhead's dismissive behaviour and demeanour, his heart picking up in speed as he considered the countless things the boy could want to talk about. "What about?"

Ray's jaw clenched and he pulled up a chair beside the bed the Gory Bell escapee was lounging across. "Y/N." He responded, sitting in the backwards chair, facing the back of it as Yuugo's blood ran cold.

"Are you..." The man paused for a moment in thought. "...okay with that...?"

Ray shrugged. "Yeah." He leaned forward in the chair, placing his chin on his folded arms, his eyes shining as he peered into the man, as if he was analyzing his reaction even before he made his statement. "After all...

She's alive, isn't she?" 

-----

Okay, so I finally finished the chap. As mentioned earlier, I ended up changing my entire plan. Y'know, because Alex had zero plan. That's not a new development for me, though, LMAO.

Anyhow, it seems like it'll be fun to write purely from my own imagination. Let's see where this goes, HAHAHAHA. 

Oh, and you're welcome for the cliffhanger, btw. Although some people in the gc already knew it was coming hehehehhehehe. Yeah. Bye.

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