## Chapter 219 – Clara’s Melancholy (5)
Clara cooled her head a little and, after telling Ryu to rest there, took Alexa outside. The evening in District 5, where the sun had already set and a cool air began to settle, was perfect for clearing the mind of a drunkard.
Alexa, now sober, didn’t seem unaware of what she had just done, but she didn’t particularly feel like apologizing. She had simply done what she had to do for her superior, who was growing old while still a virgin.
Clara, her face still flushed red, sighed deeply and scolded Alexa.
“Really… what on earth did you do? Apologize to Ryu later, too.”
Alexa, showing no sign of remorse, chuckled and poked Clara’s chest, where her nipples were visibly protruding even through her clothes. Perhaps due to the aftereffects of earlier, Clara reacted more sensitively than usual.
“Oh, such a solid body, but it seems this part isn’t trained? Judging by your reaction, it seems the Demon Lord enjoyed it quite a bit, so why are you only blaming me?”
“Who said I enjoyed it…”
Didn’t she really enjoy it? The image of herself passively offering her chest to Ryu without any resistance came to mind, and she replied in an increasingly smaller voice, as if she herself knew that her words lacked credibility.
Alexa, who had been laughing, erased the smile from her face and asked cautiously with a noticeably different expression.
“…Do you feel any better now?”
Clara stared intently at Alexa, as if surprised. There was no way she would bring up such a thing for no reason. She knew everything that had happened in Heart’s district.
Alexa didn’t say anything else, but took out a cigarette from her pocket and put it in her mouth. The fact that she, who had quit smoking when she started dating Saruk, was smoking again meant that she had deep concerns of her own. So deep that she couldn’t bear it without smoking this.
“That guy… I knew he would cause trouble someday.”
“You knew too? Since when?”
“Probably everyone knows. Heart himself thought he had hidden it perfectly, but he did it on purpose because he didn’t want to worry the Demon Lord. Spade also had ominous movements, but we all stayed still because he wasn’t doing anything immediately.”
Alexa frowned and exhaled smoke.
“But I never dreamed that Spade would act so suddenly. We can’t perfectly understand what that child means to the Demon Lord, but we all understand that it’s painful to have handled it directly.”
Clara didn’t say anything and quietly listened to Alexa’s story.
“Still, you did what you had to do. Spade’s characteristics are dangerous. Especially to ordinary people who have no resistance. If he had been sincere from the beginning, there might have been an unprecedented massacre in the entire district, not just District 5.”
“It’s surprising that you’re saying that. Weren’t you on bad terms?”
The beholders in charge of each district didn’t get along very well, perhaps because they wanted to prove that their loyalty or affection for Clara was superior. Alexa, who had been taking care of the beholders with Clara for a long time, was okay, but the others were at a hostile level.
“We bicker usually, but in a way, we’re all sisters. There’s no way I can feel comfortable.”
Alexa took a long breath towards the sky as if honoring her. The thick rising smoke seemed to hide her expression. Alexa looked back at the ground and frowned.
“Tsk, it’s hard for a cigarette smoked after quitting to have such a bitter aftertaste.”
After finishing her words, she stuck the cigarette between the cracked gaps in the floor and briefly put her hands together to offer a silent prayer. Alexa, who quietly guarded her place until the cigarette butt on the floor went out, opened her mouth with a brightened expression as if nothing had happened.
“Okay, okay, let’s stop with these gloomy stories and talk about romance.”
Alexa nudged Clara’s side with her elbow and asked playfully.
“Honestly, you’re interested in Ryu, right?”
Clara shook her head as if she had been waiting for those words. An excessively quick denial seemed more like an affirmation.
“He’s Aser’s lover… There’s no place for me to interfere.”
Hearing those words, Alexa widened her eyes like a rabbit and said in a flustered voice.
“Huh? No, why are you saying that now? Aren’t I going to die if this gets out?”
Clara tilted her head with a complicated expression.
“Hmm… I think it’ll be okay?”
“I think it’ll be okay? What kind of irresponsible words are those?”
Even Alexa herself, if another woman flirted with and stole Saruk, whom she had already claimed, would immediately find those lovers and beat them to a pulp, leaving no trace of them in this world.
“Charlotte is the one who stays by Aser’s side. But Ryu, Aser, and Charlotte seem to have a complicated relationship. And I had something happen with Ryu in the mountains, and it felt like they knew all about it and were letting it slide?”
Alexa had an expression that she didn’t understand, but when she realized that it wouldn’t be immediately harmful even if Clara touched Ryu, she opened her mouth again as if relieved.
“Then that’s good. Does Aser-nim have some kind of unique fetish? You know, those people who get excited when their lover is stolen. I can’t understand it at all.”
“People have unique tastes, but… that’s hard for me to understand too.”
It doesn’t seem like it, but Clara has a possessive desire for what she has. Of course, it’s in the realm of the unconscious that she doesn’t even realize.
Alexa returned to the original topic.
“Anyway, I just hope that the Demon Lord quickly meets a good man and becomes happy.”
“It’s more important to me that you guys are happy than that I’m happy.”
“Including me, all the beholders prioritize the Demon Lord’s happiness. Sometimes it’s okay to prioritize your own feelings, no one will say anything.”
While they were talking, Alexa, who had been hit by the increasingly chilly air, crossed her arms and shivered once, and said as she prepared to go home.
“Well… it’s impossible to steal him since he already has someone. That’s an act of ignoring Aser-nim. But a one-night stand is okay, right? If we keep it a secret, they won’t know, right? Ryu doesn’t seem to hate it either. Well, is there even a man who would hate this chest? If I were a man…”
Alexa made a lewd expression like a perverted old man and took a pose as if she was about to grope Clara’s chest. Clara, who would normally just let her touch, somehow avoided her touch. A chest that had been recognized by a man, something she had thought was just useless fat for farming, had become something that could stimulate a man’s desires, and from the moment she realized that, Clara could no longer purely accept their touch.
This was a good reaction. Of course, it depends on the person. Heart, who can no longer freely grope Clara’s chest, will be sad, but it was good news for Alexa, who wants Clara to quickly connect with someone else.
Alexa, who was about to go home saying she was cold, opened her mouth again in a serious voice.
“Probably the other guys are thinking the same thing, but I’ll say it as the eldest sister. I know that the Demon Lord is carrying a lot of pain. But don’t try to carry too much heavy baggage alone. We all have darkness in our hearts, so we act brighter on purpose, you know. You’re getting weaker because you’re trying to carry the pain alone. We’re okay, so sometimes you can just vent your worries like a complaint.”
She clicked her tongue once when the serious story got long, and roughly ruffled her hair.
“What I’m just trying to say is, act according to what your heart tells you.”
Clara, who had heard all of Alexa’s story, smiled brightly and nodded, as if her heart had been conveyed.
“Yeah, thank you. You guys are my pride after all.”
“What’s there to be proud of… Let’s just go in quickly. Unlike someone, I’m weak and might catch a cold.”
Ryu greeted the two who had returned after finishing their story.
“Ah, are you done talking? I’ve cleaned up everything.”
“If you’re a guest, you can just relax.”
Alexa gave Clara a wink and opened her mouth.
“Shouldn’t you give him a compliment or something?”
Ryu waved his hands, worried that Clara would be in trouble, and denied it, even shaking his head.
“I-It’s not like I did it hoping for a compliment, so it’s okay.”
At that time, what came to Clara’s mind was Alexa’s advice to act according to what her heart tells her. She carefully stroked Ryu’s head, worried that it might be crushed by her grip.
And Ryu felt an unparalleled sense of stability from her rough but affectionate touch.
Alexa, who was watching the scene with a happy expression, spoke to the two.
“It’s late, why don’t you stay the night?”
“No. I can’t impose any more. Ryu, is it okay to walk a little more? I’ll carry you if you’re tired.”
“Yes, I can walk more.”
Saying that, they said goodbye to Alexa and left the house together. Did they know until then? That they would stop by an inn on the way and, while resting for a while, sit on the bed and quietly listen to the sound of water washing away their bodies.
