Sitting inside the carriage, Iris was amazed at how smooth the ride was despite how fast they were moving. Iris was not freaking out in the slightest. To be honest, she was quite excited. In her previous life, she was never one to shy away from a challenge, however, she was aware of her strengths and weaknesses, but meeting the demon king was not one of her weakness… She glanced down to the token in her hand which had her name engraved on it. Stroking her name, she slightly smiled.

The entire ride to the demon king’s realm, the chauffeur was quite amazed by how calm and composed this human girl was. Over the past 125 years, he’s seen many human girls grovel in fear, sobbing their eyes out; many trying to fake confidence while their voices and actions betrayed them. This was his first time truly seeing a human who was unfazed by being given to the demon king as a peace offering under the guise of being a bride. He glanced back through the little window and looked inside the carriage. Inside, he saw a girl, leaning her arm out on the edge of the window, looking outside to the night sky, eyes reflecting the star-filled sky. On her face was a tender expression and a soft smile.

On this night, 100 carriages and 100 corpse chauffeurs were dispatched to collect the brides. And through these 100 chauffeurs' eyes, the demon king saw everything. The terror he brought to them, the separation he caused, the despair. He saw heartbreak and has even seen many try intervening but was always countered by the bride’s family, and that reason was simple - they did not want to be killed themselves. 

So, when he saw the tender smile on this human girl’s face, he was quite baffled. No human girl has ever acted this way before. But no matter. Sooner or later, she would end up in his stomach anyways.

***

When all of the brides arrived at the demon’s palace, they were relocated to a courtyard that had a sign which read: “Crimson Blood Manor.”

The manor was situated at the top of the stairs, and there was at least 50 steps on this staircase. 

“His majesty, the demon king, is making his entrance,” one of the ghosts announced at the top of the stairs.

All of the maidens trembled and got onto their knees, to prostrate themselves to the demon king whose reign was unfathomable. Iris just followed suit. Iris looked to her left and found Elena, the female lead. Assessing her appearance, it’s just as Iris thought she would look - beautiful beyond compare, white skin, golden locks, green emerald eyes and a voluminous body.

Iris glanced down to her assets… They were quite flat, but that didn’t bother her. In her previous life, she was quite flat-chested as well, but she took pride in that. 

“All may rise,” said the ghost attendant.

All the woman stood up, trembling in fear. And when they looked up, they saw him - the demon king. He was dressed in a crimson robe that was half open, exposing his defined muscles. Draped on his shoulders was an outer robe as black as the night. His long black hair was tied lazily over his left shoulder as his piercing red eyes assessed the crowd. He was a handsome man; his overall appearance made many of the maidens gasp in awe.

Oh sure, he’s handsome, Iris thought to herself. However, she noticed a strange turbulent demonic mana swirling around and inside this demon.

[Host, this man is our target.]

Iris’ movements became stiff. So the person she needed to save was… the demon king?!

[That is correct. Wishing Host best of luck.]

The demon king waved his hand over and the ghost attendant went over to him. The ghost listened as the demon king spoke. After the demon king was done speaking, the ghost attendant came back and made his announcement.

“The king has chosen which brides he plans to visit tonight. If your name token shines, it means you have been selected,” as soon as the ghost attendant said that, various name tokens began shining. Many gasped in fear as the demon king turned around and returned to his living quarters. 

Iris looked down to hers, it was not glowing. But Iris was calm about it. Now that she knew who her target was, when he comes to her, she will make sure to give him her full attention. This was how she was as an escort; she made it so that they were the only person she saw and only cared for - and she did it wholeheartedly even if it was an act.

After that, each of the maidens' chauffeur led them back to their living quarters. As Iris’ chauffeur led her living space, she looked at the sign above her door. It read, “Plum Blossom Manor.”

“This palace must be very big to be able to give every maiden their own living space,” Iris made on off-hand comment. 

Her chauffeur glanced at her curiously before answering, “Yes, it is.”

“He must be very lonely whenever they're gone,” said Iris. “Oh, that’s right. What is your name?”

“... This attendant does not have a name.”

Iris understood and she was not irrational to just rudely bestow him a name. Iris just gave him a smile, “Is that so? Then pardon my rudeness.”

When Iris was finally settled in her manor, she explored and saw how extravagant her living quarters were, but for some reason, it still felt empty. Iris was not a person who lived for the riches of money and a marvelous lifestyle, instead, she cherished the riches of emotions and experiences. It was her past that had built her to who she was today. All of these fine jewelry were nothing in her eyes. Sure, it wasn’t bad to receive gifts or indulge in luxury  every once in a while, however, all of these jewelry, magnificent clothes and bedding, they were all just for show, filled with empty emotions. 

Putting her packed clothes onto the bed, she opened her back door that led into the backyard. In her backyard was a small yet beautiful pond. It was so pristine that one could see the bottom and the koi fishes that swam around. 

Not only was there the pond, but she saw various mythical beasts, some that glowed underneath the moonlight, looking ethereal-like. One looked like a snake while another looked like a white stag. Floating around, Iris knew that they were will-o-wisps. When she opened the door, they all looked at her. Iris was not frightened, instead, she was feeling exhilarated. She had already died once, so she wasn’t afraid. With the lifestyle she was living in her previous life, she was already playing with fire, thus she was not afraid. 

Instead, she sensed an immense amount of mana radiating from these creatures. Their mana were calm and gentle as they mingled with her pure mana. Iris walked out and extended her hand to touch the stag. Eyes locked, the stag finally moved, nuzzling its nose against her palm. Iris’ face blossomed as she became bolder and began stroking its soft fur. Then, the large snake coiled up near her leg, wanting the affection as well. Iris bent down and stroked its scales.

Of course it wasn’t surprising to find such mythical creatures here. The demon king’s palace was located in a territory that was rich in the mythical beast population. They lived in peace with the demon king and often times wandered into his palace. As long as they did not start up trouble, the demon king would not do anything as well. 

***

The demon king had just exited from Elena’s living quarters. The woman he held was amazing. Despite her verbally denying him, her body said otherwise. Her pitiful cries made him excited as he pounded into her. She was the 15th woman he held that night. He was quite satisfied with this bride batch that everyone of them survived the night of not being killed and eaten. 

The sun was already on the verge of rising as he wandered around his large palace. Suddenly, he heard a soft, melodious laugh drifting into his ears. His ears perked up. Curious, he followed the laughter, which lead him further and further from the main palace and all of the other living quarters. When he arrived at Plum Blossom Manor, he scrunched his brows.

Why was someone living here? He thought that he had specifically told all of his servants and attendants that this place was off limits. Just as he was ready to bust in a rage, he stopped and hid in the shadows as he watched the scene before him play out.

Drenched in water, sitting by the edge of the pond was a young, tender looking young maiden. Her flaming red hair glowed from the rising sun as the glistening water drops rolled down her skin. Her clothes were soaked, sticking close to her tiny body, defining every curve. On her face, the remnants of laughter; licking her face was the white stage while the white snake was coiled around one of her arms, looking comfortable. But these creatures weren’t the only ones there. The will-o-wisps danced gleefully around her as wraith butterflies appeared, landing on her head, her shoulders, her knees and one landed on the tip of her nose.

Iris looked at the butterfly, making a cross-eyed expression then burst out laughing in joy. In such a confined palace, there was a young, carefree maiden who radiated life. Her smile and laughter lit up the whole mood, making those who saw her drawn to her.

Ba bump, ba bump, ba bump 

The demon king heard this soft sound coming from his chest. He blinked a few times, bringing himself back from the dazzling scene. He was perplexed. This was an emotion he got rid of a long time ago…

Before he left, he took one last glance at the girl. Not wanting to frighten her, he left quietly. After he left, Iris glanced to the door and slightly puckered her lips into an adorable frown.

“And here I thought he’d show himself…”

***

When the demon king returned to his room, he lied down, thinking of that encounter. A strange human indeed.

Later that day, everyone was gathered to have breakfast in the large dining hall with the demon king. Sitting beside him was Elena, who was acting quite stiff but was still lovely. When he looked across the table, all of the maidens who saw him swooned. They had never thought that the demon king would be someone so strikingly handsome. They considered themselves lucky. However, from this, many of the young maidens became more greedy, wanting only the king for themselves. 

A week later, chaos broke out. Some of the wives began fighting and arguing. They’ve slept with the demon king at least once now, all but Iris, which she found strange. The demon king may have showered them with extravagant riches, however, his temper was short, and none of them knew that. He needed to make sure they were well aware of that so he decided he was going to display where they stood.

He personally crippled the wives who were arguing and fighting, chopped off their legs and ate their legs in front of them and in front of his other wives. Many of them vomited, not being able to stomach the gruesome scene. 

Within the past week, Iris noticed that she had made no progress with the demon king, thus she realized she should intervene. Another reason being that she sensed the strange fluctuation of his demonic mana. Elena was glued to her seat. To think that she had been drowning herself in pleasure with a man-eating monster. She needed to leave.

Just as the demon king was about to slash off another arm, Iris appeared before him, holding his fist in which held the sword. The demon king’s eyes widened. He did not sense her at all. She used her strength to prevent him from swinging his sword, but she didn’t use her strength to overpower him.

“What do you think you are doing?”

“Stopping my king from making such a rash decision,” Iris said calmly.

“And who are you to tell me to stop?” his voice emitting a murderous intent.

Iris looked into his eyes, “I am your wife. And so are they.” Little did he realize Iris releasing a small stream of her own mana into his body to circulate the raging, unstable demonic mana inside him.

“You think just because you’re my wife you have the same standing as me?! Dream on. You’re not even my wife, just a peace offering for those other pathetic human beings,” he grinded his teeth with blood smeared over his lips.

Iris furrowed her brows, clearly disapproving of what he had just said. The demon king was slightly taken back, snatched his hand away from Iris, flipped his sleeve and walked away.

***

“Maruuuuuuu!!!!!” Iris pitifully called out to the small petite servant ghost boy who was tidying up her room. Iris went up and hugged the ghost boy. Although he was a ghost boy, his black eyes were bright like a child’s and his skin was pearly white while his long wavy black hair was tied into a low ponytail. 

This ghost attendant boy was her personal servant that was assigned by the demon king the day after their arrival. Each of the other wives also had their own, and many requested for more, but Iris was content with having Maru and the chauffeur as her companions. 

The ghost boy, Maru smiled, “Did you get into a fight with the demon king?”

Iris nodded her head, rubbing against the ghost boy’s head as well.

“... Did he eat his wives in front of you guys?” Maru asked carefully.

Iris nodded her head. 

“It’s happened before, too many times to count… Are you afraid of him?”

Iris peeled herself from him and looked at the adorable Maru. “I’m not afraid of him. There are other things that are more terrifying than him.”

“Like what?”

She cupped the ghost boy’s face in her hands, staring into his eyes, “when the time comes, I’ll tell you. Now, come give me a massage!” she pulled him along.

They sat on the the little wooden porch that extended into the backyard. Maru’s legs dangled off the porch as Iris’ head was leaning on his leg while Maru was gently massaging her forehead.

“As always, Maru is the best,” Iris smiled sweetly.

“Thank you, My lady.”

“What have I said before. Just call me Iris.”

“But that is improper, my lady.”

“It’s fine. Just call my name when it is just the two of us, okay?”

“...Okay.”

Iris gave a satisfied smile and exhaled.

“... I wish to know more about him,” Iris said softly.

“The demon king?”

Iris nodded her head. “We always just call him by his title, but that’s not a name.”

“Why do you wish to know more about him?”

“We are now husband and wife, so of course I'd want to know more about him!"

"But that is only in name..." Maru sad softly.

"Even if it's just in name, I still want to get to know him. Pardon for being nosy. Others call him a demon! An abomination! But I don’t think so…”

“Why’s that?”

Iris sat up, looked around them then leaned forward. “Promise not to tell him, okay?”

Maru nodded his head obediently. 

“There was one night I saw him wandering around the palace so late into the night. So I followed him all the way out to the Lotus Pavilion. I saw him standing there, looking at the moon, all by himself. He...looked so lonely. He may be surrounded by all of us, but he doesn’t actually see any of us. I saw the look in his eyes. I know that look. You see, I was born an orphan. Although Merlin raised me as his daughter, and I love him for that, I still felt like I was missing something…”

“So, what is it that you want from him.”

“... If possible, I want to be his support. I want to be the pillar that raises him up. Others may see him as a demon king, but to me, he’s more than that…”

“He drafted you against your own will and held you captive, and yet you speak about wanting to get to know him. You’re such a strange human,” Maru chuckled.

“I’m serious. Even if he kills me and eats me alive, I won’t have any regrets,” Iris smiled.

“... why do you say that?”

“Because I’d at least know that my life now has some sense of meaning to it, even if I’m just destined to be food for him,” Iris smiled sadly.

“Alright! Let’s not talk about this depressing stuff now!” Iris beamed brightly as she stood up.

Through the Maru’s eyes and ears, someone else was watching and listening. That’s right. The demon king. He assessed Iris carefully. He has lived a long life and could tell when someone was faking it or telling the truth. And this woman was telling the truth. But why? Why does a human want to get close to him? He thought back to her words. I want to be his support. I want to be the pillar that raises him up.

Thinking about those words, it made his heart flutter. Could it be that this human was truly different from the rest?

While the demon king was up in turmoil, Iris turned her head and gave a slight smirk. She knew she was being spied on through Maru, thus she purposively used Maru to her advantage to get her message through to this seemingly cold demon king. And every word she said was true, since it was her mission to help him.