Slave of the Demon King’s Castle 149

## Chapter 149 – No. 25. Date (2)

No. 25 couldn’t quite adjust to Jane’s sudden change, but for now, keeping her company was the priority. He relaxed his expression and leaned slightly against Jane, who had linked her arm with his, as they left the store. She had suggested a date, but her behavior hadn’t changed much from before. They walked down the street, occasionally popping into shops that caught her eye, but that was about it. The only difference was the girlish sparkle in her eyes, which wasn’t there before.

Contrary to his worries, Jane didn’t make any unusual moves on No. 25. Despite situations where other women would have subtly hinted at sex by stroking his rear or making suggestive remarks, Jane seemed to be purely enjoying the moment. Her physical contact with No. 25 was limited to linking arms, leaning on his shoulder, or holding hands – the kind of things normal couples would do.

As they strolled down the street, Jane spotted a particular shop and asked No. 25:

“Oh, should we go do that too?”

No. 25 followed Jane’s finger and turned his head to see a shabby shop with a gloomy atmosphere, completely out of place among the buildings in District 3.

Until now, even the most ordinary restaurants in District 3 had been artistic masterpieces, showcasing beauty that rivaled any architectural wonder. But this building looked like it could collapse at any moment, and No. 25 couldn’t believe his eyes.

He asked with a dubious tone, “Over there?”

He felt uneasy. No. 25’s instincts told him that entering that shop would lead to no good.

“Yeah, I’ve wanted to go for a while, but I never had anyone to go with.”

However, looking at Jane’s expression, he couldn’t bring himself to refuse outright. What’s the worst that could happen? With that thought in mind, No. 25 stayed by Jane’s side and entered the shop.

The shop’s sign simply read “Destiny,” and nothing else.

As they opened the door, they were greeted by darkness so complete that they couldn’t see an inch in front of them.

With the darkness enveloping them, No. 25 squinted and tried his best to see ahead. As if in response to his efforts, candles began to light up one by one.

The candles formed a path, and at the end of it, a person sat at a round table, wearing a hood pulled down low.

The golden eyes visible through the hood exuded an unknown sense of pressure.

The person looked back and forth between Jane and No. 25 before slowly opening their mouth.

“We have a precious guest.”

Although the face was obscured by the darkness and the hood, the beautiful voice belonged to a woman. Without a word, she placed her hand on a crystal ball and asked Jane, “Let’s get straight to the point. What kind of destiny does the Demon Lord wish to see?”

Jane scratched her head and gave an awkward smile. Even though it was her own district, she didn’t know every shop. This was a new experience for her. Perhaps because of that, Jane seemed more anxious than usual, twirling her hair with her fingers and tapping her knee.

“I’ve never been to a place like this before… Could you maybe give me a general reading?”

“General… That’s a difficult request. Would you mind if I read for you at random, then?”

Jane nodded, and a blue light began to flicker within the crystal ball.

For a moment, No. 25 felt it. The woman’s gaze was directed at him.

“Shall we start with the Dragon Descendant here?”

No. 25 was startled and looked at the woman. He had never revealed his identity since arriving in this district. Jane also stared at No. 25 with a surprised expression. It was hard to imagine how she felt, hearing that the man she thought was just Acer’s lover was actually a dragon, a species thought to be extinct.

“What are you talking about? A dragon?”

“Well, I’ll explain later.”

No. 25 brushed off Jane’s question and turned his gaze back to the woman.

As the woman placed her hand on the crystal ball, the light flickered along with her touch, glowing as if trying to say something.

No. 25 felt a warm sensation enveloping his body and couldn’t take his eyes off the woman in front of him. Beside him, Jane watched No. 25’s tense face and gave a slight smile.

The flickering light in the crystal ball gradually subsided, and the woman flinched as if surprised.

No. 25 was afraid that a bad result had come out. Until he met Acer, his life had been wandering in deep darkness.

There was no guarantee that misfortune wouldn’t strike again. In fact, he always carried a sense of unease, thinking that the happiness he felt now might end someday.

Was that end approaching now? No. 25 closed his eyes tightly and waited for the woman to speak his fate.

“I’ve never seen anything like this before.”

Swallowing hard, Jane asked the question in place of the nervous No. 25, “Why? What did you see?”

The fortune-teller hesitated for a moment, remaining silent despite Jane’s prompting, before slowly opening her mouth.

“You will face a destiny so great that even you won’t be able to handle it.”

Hearing those words, No. 25 felt his heart sink. A destiny he couldn’t handle? The only possibility he could think of was angering Acer or Charlotte by flirting with other women. But as if reading No. 25’s thoughts, the woman shook her head and continued with additional explanations.

“Such problems are vaguely visible, but that’s not the important thing.”

For No. 25, problems related to them were the most important thing. He couldn’t hear the fortune-teller’s words anymore. If it was vaguely visible, didn’t that mean there was at least a slight possibility? He resolved to be more careful in the future and looked up again.

“What’s really important is that you will have a very important opportunity to make a choice that will determine your destiny. Depending on what choice you make at that time, the end of this entire story will change.”

It didn’t feel real. Such a significant choice that could change the end of this entire story depended on him? No. 25 couldn’t easily believe her words, but they were filled with the confidence that came from her skill.

Leaving the troubled No. 25 behind, Jane glanced at him before leaning forward slightly and asking, “Then what about me? I’d like you to focus on my love life.”

The fortune-teller’s shoulders shrugged slightly at those words.

“Love life, that happens to be my specialty.”

The smooth flow of the conversation made No. 25 wonder if these two were in cahoots. But since she knew he was a dragon, there was no room to doubt her abilities.

Just like when she looked at No. 25, the light in the crystal ball began to flicker, and she spoke about the results much faster than before.

“This looks like it will be a pretty difficult path.”

With those short words, she didn’t say anything else. Jane tilted her head in disbelief and asked again.

“That’s it? Anyone could have given that answer.”

“Yes, anyone could have given that answer. In fact, there is no given answer to this problem. Emotions between people can turn into relationships or become worse than enemies with a moment’s choice. Isn’t it foolish to judge that with mere destiny?”

“Didn’t you say this was your specialty? What kind of specialty is it if you can only give such vague answers?”

“Isn’t showing the guest various possibilities the greatest consideration that someone who sees destiny can offer?”

“Tch…”

With those words, Jane got up from her seat, placed gold coins on the table, and left the building with No. 25.

The expression on her face, which he caught a glimpse of, seemed to be lost in thought.

“Are you okay?”

Soon, she let out a long sigh as if she had realized something, and grabbed No. 25’s wrist with a brighter expression than before.

“Yeah, there’s no easy path in the world.”

No. 25, with an ominous feeling after hearing the unsettling prophecy, asked, “What do you mean?”

Jane grinned, revealing her white teeth, and grabbed No. 25’s cheeks, answering in a spirited voice, “It’s a pretty difficult path, but I never said it was an impossible one, did I?”

No. 25 barely escaped from Jane’s lips, which were right in front of him, and said, gasping for breath, “I, I don’t have any intention of doing that right now!”

“You little… I don’t have any intention of doing that right now either. We have plenty of time, right?”

Whether the worries that had been plaguing Jane had disappeared, she was smiling with a much brighter expression than before.

No. 25 glanced at her and cautiously asked, “Do you feel better now?”

“Yeah, I’m fine. I’ve actually thought a lot about it. I wanted to play around like this if I ever had someone I liked. I might have wanted a time where I could put down the heavy position of king and just be a woman.”

“So… are you satisfied?”

Jane was silent for a moment at No. 25’s question.

After a short time, Jane smiled, slightly raising the corners of her mouth.

“No? Not yet?”

With those words, Jane’s expression, looking straight into No. 25’s eyes, seemed to be yearning for something.

No. 25, who had seen that look countless times, knew instantly what she wanted.

Although the sunlight was still brightly illuminating the streets, it couldn’t completely dispel the desires that had settled in their hearts.

A man and a woman spending time together, and what exists at the end of that time, anyone could know the answer.

Was the moment of choice she spoke of right now?

No. 25 couldn’t help but shut his mouth at the moment of destiny that had come much earlier than he had expected.