Damn, being the center of attention does not feel as good as I imagined.

 

The designated time for our entrance ceremony was coming close. As a result, students from both middle school and high school were pouring in through the door. Their chatting and frolicking filled the hall with youthful vibrancy and somehow that relieved me a little of the close-to-death experience I just went through.

 

After the ruckus between me and those two demon girls, now one of them was comfortably seated in the first row, which is two rows ahead of us and next to the school president, while still donning her full-set maid dress. Well, with what she let me taste just now, I could only bid our school prez good luck keeping his old head intact.

 

As for the other demon girl … 

 

“Hey, could you … I mean, Your Highness(?), please not stare at me like that, all the other students are looking.”

 

It was not an overestimate to say that all of the eyes present in this school hall are looking at our direction right now. It also did not help that she just kept her eyes affixed on me as if I was some kind of 502 glue. I know pre-emptively that she would be the center of attention, but don’t drag me into the frontline with you, dammit!

 

However, what worries me the most right now, is the burning heap of fire right next to me that feels like it could explode at any moment. I could feel the heat radiating from my left side becoming hotter and hotter.

 

“Excuse me, my Godd … I mean, princess. We have some urgent business to attend to, so could you please spare us a moment?”

 

The burning heap on my left started talking. Coincidentally, my skin’s moisture feels like it is sucked out before his word.

 

“That’s not a problem, Yuj … i mean, you. But isn’t it close to the time for our entrance ceremony already?”

 

“It won’t take long, we will come back very soon.”

 

“Okay then.”

 

The silver-haired girl then moved her legs sideways to make way for us. Her plump and pearl-white thighs that the short pleated skirt and half stockings could not fully hide, consequently, were exposed to all the students below.

 

After spacing out for half a minute, not until our seatmate looked at him with a question mark on her face did he snap out and forcefully drag me by my shoulder to the male restroom at the end of the hall.

***

 

“You mansl*t! You have met her before! Why didn’t you tell your best friend here then, huhh!?”

 

As soon as we entered the restroom, the burning heap named Yuji instant exploded and barraged me with fire volleys of question. Good thing Yuji was not the type to resort to fistfights, or else I would have surely taken some in my guts with how burning he is right now.

 

“Tell me, was it your father’s doing? He was there to sign the armistice, was he not? He must have tagged you along then, damn lucky bast*rd!”

 

This guy has no chill, at all. Still wonder why he could become the student council president…

 

I heaved a large sigh, and then another large sigh.

 

“What did you do that for?”

 

He asked me with a threating gaze. His ‘anger’ has not subsided by a bit.

 

I calmly replied.

 

“The first one is for my best friend, when he sat there and did nothing while I was to be slashed in two pieces by a maid-cosplaying demon girl.”

 

“What can I do about that? As much of a genius as I am, I cannot perform mitosis.”

 

“The second one is also for my best friend, who despite being a genius and the heir to a giant conglomerate, throws his IQ out for dogs to eat whenever he met a slightly beautiful girl and decided to be slightly rude to his best friend when he just came back from death’s door.”

 

“...”

 

Against my rebuke, Yuji could not do anything but keep his mouth shut. 

 

Finally, after much mulling over, he snapped.

 

“Why is it you who always gets all the high-spec girls? First it was Haruko, then the foreign transfer gal, and then a goddamn princess too … I, your father, curse you lucky bast*rd.”

 

“If you want her, I will not intervene. I still have a long life to live. One word for you, just be careful, I mean, be very careful of her purple-haired maid.”

 

Yuji let out a sigh and slumped his back onto the frame of the faucet behind him.

 

“Still, where did you meet her? I want to hear the story!”

 

His personality instantly switched from being a walking heap of fire to a three-year-old child whining for bedtime stories. If the investors or board of management of Toy*ta see this disappointing side of their young master, I’m sure their stock price will drop like there is no tomorrow.

 

“I don’t know, I have never met her before. Didn’t you yourself say that she was never spotted during the war? If someone of your background can’t even have info on her, then why can I?”

 

“But she behaved as if she knows you personally. She even got your name right and acted all mofu mofu with you! Damn, I’m so goddamn jealous right now! Just spill the beans already!”

 

At this crybaby, I could not do anything but sneer. This guy, objectively speaking, was quite a hunk with all the well-built muscles hidden behind his cool and charismatic outward appearance, but as of now, I failed to see him as anything other than some little baby throwing a tantrum.

 

“That I want to know myself, too. Hey, why don’t we just come back and ask her? What you said earlier was right, she might be quite a reasonable person, or if you prefer, a reasonable demon, so you need not be afraid.”

 

My answer seems to flip some switch inside him, as he straightens his posture and puffs out his chest with a cocky smile.

 

“Hmmm … then screw whatever mysterious relationship you might have had with her. With my overflowing charisma and alpha-ness, this one will lead his goddess into his embrace, and then afterward… hehehe”

 

Our conversation in the restroom ended with a creepy laugh from Yuji, and together we headed back to our seats for the opening ceremony. Truth be told, I am quite curious about why she was acting like she knew me too. 

 

Maybe we did meet somewhere but I just forget about that? But how in the world could I have ever met a demon, much less the princess? Just barely a few months ago, encountering a demon meant certain death.

 

With that in mind, I walked on the red carpet line in the middle brimming with hope that the instigator of all this and also, my beautiful and eccentric demoness seatmate would be able to solve this for me. 

… or not.

When we came back, what greeted me was quite a scene to behold.

 

Silver hair that draped loosely over her shoulders, a slender and beautiful neck that was exposed due to her head being sideways, supported by her left hand which was, again, placed on her left thigh. Her eyes were closed, but her expression was peaceful and tranquil. There was a small thread of saliva dripping from her succulent peach-colored pair of lips that bloomed into a cute smile.

 

…

 

The entrance ceremony has just started, you know?

 

I thought that while distracting myself by looking in random directions. 

 

Maybe demons are active at night, and sleep in the morning? 

 

I turned back to check on Yuji and was met with a nauseating scene. This honorary student council president was rapidly swallowing his own spit while panting and blushing like some animal in heat.

 

Yeah, let’s just… let her sleep. At least she is not going to slice me into two like a certain someone…

 

And the entrance ceremony of my sophomore year, saved for the turbulence at the beginning where I almost lost my life, went on undisturbed.

 

During the middle, after concluding the speech about human-demon relation, it seemed that the school president wanted to invite princess-san onto the stage for a talk, but some old man dressed in a butler suit stopped him and took over the mic. After donning his monocle, the butler, who professed himself as the Chief of Domestic Affairs of the Demon Kingdom started a moving speech that would last nearly half an hour, stunning everyone in the premise. Even the most disengaged and indifferent student, including myself, could not help but marvel at his excellent charisma and brilliant ideas of lasting peace and cooperation between the two species. His words were akin to the much-needed tinder that lighted up in everyone hope for a peaceful future, after all the bloodshed.

 

As if… did no one really pay any attention to the girl that just swung her katana at me in broad daylight?

 

Meanwhile, the princess next to me just went on with her peaceful sleep, uninterrupted.

 

After one more hour of boring speech and procedure, the ceremony that took us the whole morning ended, together with it came my greatest fear.

 

Now, should I wake her up?

 

She was sitting at the outermost seat on the right of our row, which meant she needed to move if any of us wanted to go out.

 

All the students are preparing their stuff to go home, if she did not wake up, then as her seatmate, I had to do it.

 

But, how do I wake her up then? Lightly tap her on the shoulder, or whisper something into her ears?

 

“Man, wake her up, only you can do it. Everyone is preparing to leave.”

 

This Yuji guy … what about the part with you being charismatic and attractive and all?

 

No, I mustn’t do anything rash. That killer maid is still here, just bear with it a little while, everyone…

 

As I was pitying the misfortune of everyone in my row, there was a cute muffled sound coming from next to me. I quickly turned to my right, only to be met with the scene of my seatmate groggily rubbing her eyes, while there were traces of dried tears on her cheeks. 

 

“Why did I fell asleep out of nowhere...”

 

She mumbled with a low voice, but it was still loud enough for me to hear.

 

“Ah, Sei, are you still there!?”

 

She suddenly turned to me right after waking up, and after seeing me still seated next to her, her face instantly lit up.

 

“Thank god, you are still here. Do you remember me, Sei? It was me, ******!”

 

I looked at her, puzzled.

 

“Yeah, you are… you? That was not very surprising. And sorry, but I have never met a princess like you before.”

 

“”No, I mean, I’m that ‘******’. I was your ****************. No that’s not what I want to say, I mean *****************!”

 

It likes she is trying to convey to me something, but I can’t figure what it is from her broken sentence, maybe her Japanese is not very good yet?

 

“Uhm, what are trying to say, I don’t underst...”

 

“NOO! I mean, we were ************************************************* and *******************************************! **************************************************************************************************”!”

 

She looked at me with eyes full of water and muttered incomprehensible things, while occasionally choking on her own words.

 

Uhm, did I do something bad again?

 

While I was at a loss about what to do, the purple-haired maid came to our seat and, as if it was the most natural thing to do, threw at me her worst gaze while holding onto the katana sheath on her waist.

 

“What did I say,  human trash? You seem to be a brave one, huh? Lucky for you, we have urgent business to attend, so you will get to keep your little life this time.”

 

The very instant she finished her words, she removed her gaze from me as if looking at me caused her longevity to decrease. She held out her hand for the silver-haired girl.

 

“Now, Eris-sama, please follow me. The Queen is waiting.”

 

The silver-haired girl looked at me, and then her maid, and then me again. After rubbing out a few drops of tears that fell down and glanced at me one more time, she took the purple-haired maid hands and side by side, they silently walked out of the ceremony hall.