*****

Although we were in the middle of a pitch-black forest, this one spot was strangely and faintly luminous. I looked up at the sky, but still no sunlight was shining through. Despite that, why was this place bright?

I realized I didn't need the light from my Light Magic. Thinking so, I deactivated the spell.

「This place is bright, isn’t it?」

「My eyes aren't used to the darkness yet. So Papa makes it bright for me.」

I received an explanation that made sense, yet I tilted my head. I wondered if there was a Light Magic that wasn't Light Magic? I wasn't knowledgeable enough to know, but if there was, it would be surprising if a demon could use it.

As the child said, the demon race must be a species that prefers darkness, matching their image. That could be easily inferred from the uncanny darkness of the forest. Even so, why would they need Light Magic?

While I tilted my head in confusion, the demon child quickly let go of my hand and ran off. Of course, toward the man sitting by the pond.

Two horns were indeed growing from the man's head. They were the same as the child's—no, I should say the reverse. The child seemed to have inherited the same horns as the parent, making them look identical.

That person (is that what I should call him?) slowly turned around.

「Father!」 The child yelled and hugged his father.

「Radish, what happened?」

My body trembled slightly at the sound of his voice. Why? Because it was such a beautiful voice. I love Lord Cloud's voice. His voice always warms my heart.

But this voice carried a similar feeling.

It shouldn't be so. He is a demon, after all. Yet, his voice had a resonance that warmed the heart, just like Lord Cloud’s.

(So even demons show affection for their children.)

It must be warm precisely because these are words spoken to his own child. If this were spoken to a stranger—especially a human, who is their natural enemy—how cold would that resonance be?

I received the answer to that question immediately.

The man, still holding his child, slowly lifted his face, and his gaze turned toward me.

「—Who are you?」

See!

It was so cold! Such a chilling voice!

...However, my expectations were surprisingly wrong.

The voice was simply devoid of much emotion. It seemed he had no hostility toward me, but neither was he welcoming (which is understandable). It wasn't an inquisitive voice either. I was bewildered by the lack of inflection; it gave absolutely no indication of what he was thinking.

「Ah, hello, I’m the human who protected your child over there.」

Yes. Even I have to wonder, what kind of self-introduction is that? But that's all I could come up with.

Suddenly giving my name... felt wrong somehow. Then again, saying, "I'm just passing through," wouldn't work either; no human would just pass through the Demon Forest. Having missed the timing to slip away unnoticed, that was the best answer I could formulate.

And the Demon Papa's response to my statement was:

「I see.」

What was the point of all the thinking I did in the moment before he answered?

He didn't immediately try to kill me, but I should maintain my vigilance. The defensive wall I created with Light Magic was active. It would probably hold unless he attacked with overwhelmingly powerful force. Probably. I haven't used it in practice, so I don't know its durability.

Well, since there's no immediate hostile intent, I guess the strength test of the defensive wall can wait...

「So, what is a human doing entering the Demon Forest?」

「—!!」

I gasped.

What just happened?

There had been several meters—nearly ten meters—between him and me. Should have been. Yet, now, he was standing right in front of me. The distance was mere tens of centimeters.

In the spot where he had just been, the demon child stood alone, looking bewildered.

The fact that he covered the distance so quickly—instantly closing the space between us after noticing the child behind the terrifying presence—was the very act that announced he was non-human, that he was a demon.

I was speechless, confronted by the frightening presence peering directly into my face.