3.27.

"You've been hiding something from me, haven't you?" Schwii said, sitting facing Sequencee.

"I'm not sure if I can call it hiding, though it's something I've been running knots with."

After Risa's visit, Schwii and Sequencee thought they needed to get their concerns settled. Hence, Schwii called Sequencee into her room for a talk. Iona was ushered out.

"Tell me about it."

"Leticia and Evelyn, both probably hold feelings for me."

"I've known about that for a while now. So in conclusion, what's troubling you is handling their feelings?"

"Yeah."

"Hm.. I can understand why you'd have misgiving about letting go."

"Actually, Leticia is that one I'm having trouble letting go because of my conscience. For Evelyn, it's got more of a political reason behind it."

"I see.. we'll get to it one by one. What about Leticia that you find it hard to get to terms with?"

Sequencee heaved a sigh.

'Thank you Schwii.'

She didn't blow up nor push selfish thoughts against him to pressure him into compliance to her wish. Instead, she chose to settle it through diplomatic discussions.

"She was a survivor from Estia Barony. The daughter of the baron."

"A survivor?"

"I think you've also seen her once in the past. I'm not sure if you remember that banquet."

"I don't remember."

"Then she probably doesn't remember you either. So, that's one thing that's affecting me emotionally– that both of us are somehow linked to that incident."

"I'm sorry it happened.."

"No, I should be the one apologizing for betraying you like this."

"That asides, you stayed with Leticia the past 3 years while I wasn't with you. It's only recently that you became aware of her feelings?"

"We've always been close, but ever since we came to the academy, things have changed.. no, maybe back then I already liked her. I was so focused on my goal that I thought I shouldn't make any advances.. or something like that," Sequencee said in a guilt stricken voice.

Schwii nodded and pondered.

"I think of her as someone I support because of her low self esteem," he added.

"Un."

"..."

"Tell me honestly. If I told you to break up with her right now, how would you feel about it?"

"I would be troubled."

"Do you hold feelings for her?"

"..."

"I'll take that as a yes."

"Sorry."

"I'll talk to her about it. It's alright. Next is Her Highness Evelyn."

"As for her, I think it's more one sided. I don't mind severing ties with her. It's just.. as Risa said, the political implications."

"I believe that's a needless fear. If anything does happen, you could always come back to the demon empire."

"True."

"Then shall we call it settled? You don't mind breaking up with her?"

"Yeah. I don't mind."

"I'm glad," Schwii sighed, "If you said yes there I might've grown a few strands of white hair. I can't really grasp her nature as easily as Leticia's."

Sequencee nodded.

"And then.. that girl you recently met. Reese, was it?"

"Absolutely not. She's going to be the death of me. Her attitude isn't compatible with mine. Not at all," Sequencee looked like he had eaten a bitter bug.

"Then we can cross that off the list. Now, do you have any other girls from the past you've met, that may be possible candidates to tug at your feelings?"

"No. I don't remember anyone else."

"So to sum up. I'll talk to Leticia about the matter and then I'll see what we can compromise on. For Her Highness Evelyn and that girl Reese, keeping your resolve is the only thing I can warn you on. Promise me okay? Saying no is difficult, but it's an important skill if you don't want to ruin your life."

"I understand. Thank you Schwii."

"Then as repayment," Schwii got up from the bed and walked towards Sequencee.

She leaned in for a peck.

"You're going to sleep with me, on my bed tonight. No excuses," She said as she fiddled with his hands.

".. I can't say no to this, can I now?"

"I'll have Iona drag you back if you try to escape here," Schwii chuckled.

Reaching over her waist, he pulled her in..

"I suppose I have no choice."

.. and gave her a deep kiss.

===

It was a quiet night. The apartment itself was silent, a soothing low temperature– it was the perfect weather to sleep. Iona thought how amazing it was that Her Highness managed to persuade His Highness to have a proper rest today.

Iona stood silently beside the bed. Her Highness and His Highness under one blanket; her head snuggled against his chest, his arms around her shoulders. Seeing them together in this way, their breathing calm in each other's embrace, Iona felt a sense of accomplishment.

With a rare smile on her face, she walked over to Her Highness' desk. Iona opened the drawer, careful to not make a sound, and took out the documents written inside. It was information dictated to Iona.

Reading the items carefully, she then folded the note and tucked it inside her pocket. She left Her Highness' room after confirming that they were out of harm's way. She made sure to check that Ro and Lilian had gone to bed before heading out of the apartment.

Tonight, her hands will be dirtied with the blood of humans and demons alike.

===

A familiar smell tickled his nose. A distant feeling of melancholy and pain played like the flickering of old films. The scenes flashed past his eyes, brown melted into deep purple.

All of a sudden, Sequence found himself standing before a field of lilac flames. A squelching pain grew in his heart; in the distance, a black silhouette approached.

Black armor glinted to the flickering of purple light, an ominous blackness underneath the visor that seemed to just draw the curiosity of those that stared. Right arm covered with blood, between the fingers a pulsing red flab of muscle– a human heart.

The buzzing noise in his ears drowned out his own shout. Wanting to stretch his arms out, only to notice that he couldn't cast a single spell. His hands were smaller than what he remembered it to be, he had regressed back into a child– he felt his height drop a few inches.

Cowering in fear, he raised his head. The shadow of the black knight dawned upon his small figure. From the corner of his eyes, he could still the red heart continued to spill out blood, endless. For what felt like an eternity, Sequencee stared at the knight.

Who was this mysterious entity? Why did it kill his mother? Where did he come from?

"You are a disgrace to your father."

What did that mean? That the knight had been colluding with The Sovereign? Or that it was some ploy to cover up the truth?

No. It couldn't be a ploy. After all, the knight had left him to die without expecting much of it.

Then why would he be a disgrace to The Sovereign? That he was weak? That he was the son of a human? What did the knight think when he said that?

Sequencee's vision dimmed. He blinked his eyes, and in the next moment, he saw himself running through the forest. He felt those emotions from once upon a time consume him. The guilt and regret, the fortification of his resolve, the desperation of finding a will to survive.

For an unknown period of time, he isolated himself from the world; alone he laid in the forest to the passing of days.

As he watched the birds above him fly past, waiting for the day his life would simply end, hoping to return to the earth like the carcasses surrounding him..

"So you were here."

He heard the hazy voice of a girl.

She called out to him as if she knew who he was. Why was she not surprised? A hiccup in his memory, perhaps one he didn't wish to revisit..

He felt the gentle touch of her fingers. A blurry expression on her face, one Sequencee could barely make out as he held onto his last strand of consciousness.

'Who was she again..?'

She got down and propped him up. Dusting some of the dirt off his face, she pulled him tight into her embrace.

He didn't remember what he felt back then, but that small warmth was what protected his will to live. The image dimmed; the feeling stayed, until all that remained was darkness.

A ticklish sensation could be felt on his chest as he felt the world grow heavy around him. The gentle touch of someone's hand over his, interlocked around the fingers.

He opened his eyes. Schwii stared at him with her hazy red eyes. Her hair messy from sleep, tempting him to lean in to shower her in kisses.

She leaned in and pressed their foreheads together. He could feel her warm breath on his lips, sending his weak consciousness into a muddled mess..

"You're having a fever. How are you feeling?"

Whatever it may be, Sequencee was sure he wasn't in a normal state.

Sequencee closed his eyes. The call back into the dreamworld; the real world faded around him once more.

"Then I'll come back a little later. Okay?"

He felt a light peck.

Floating in a dark world– an empty void, time in here seemed to distort. A wish to remain till the end of time; the comfort of being relieved of purpose; the respite he hadn't had since that day.

Languidly, he reached over and held her in place.

He relished in her warmth, hearing her complaints in the distance; too far to make out the meaning.

The heaviness of his limbs and a fuzzy sensation all around. Hot and cold at the same time, an unpleasant chill under his sweaty body confirmed his suspicion which he had no explanation for.

It was the first time in three years he had a proper 8-hour sleep cycle. Awakened with his eyes closed, he found that could barely move a finger. His body ached, mana drained. It was either the built up fatigue all this time that had caused him to fall into his current deprived state, or that his body went into a state of confusion due to the disturbance of his already broken circadian rhythm.

The resistance ended. Left was a still, pleasant company in his arms. The occasional touches here and there, the reciprocal response of an animate body.

'Hm? What happened?'

Again, this unusual sensation as if something had been forgotten. Sequencee forced his heavy eyelids open.

Schwii was asleep in his arms.

'Hm? I thought she left?'

He was tittering in between the edge of consciousness.

'I must be dreaming.'

Sequencee forced himself to move his stiff joints.

He reached over with his fingers and looped Schwii's hair, sticky on her forehead over her ear.

She moaned at his touch. Without opening her eyes, she snuggled up against him. He played with her hair.

'This one is real, not a dream.'

From the corner of his eye, he checked the time.

'What is going on?'

He was sure he had been told earlier that he was running a fever.

"Are you feeling better?" Schwii asked in a whisper.

"Did you do something?"

His voice could barely form words.

"Maybe we should just skip class today. You're sick."

"So I was sick?"

"Of course you are silly. I wish I knew how to cure you, but it's not normal for a demon to fall sick."

Sequencee carried Schwii's body as he flipped himself upwards. Schwii's chest was now pressed against him at the weight of gravity. She tilted her head to peek at his face curiously.

"I'm feeling better now though?" Sequencee said, feeling the pleasant afterglow of waking up to a beauty like Schwii.

"No tempting me Sequencee. I might really eat you up if you say anymore," Schwii quickly pressed her head against his shoulders out of embarrassment.

"What did I say?"

"Nn, nn," Schwii merely shook her head.

Touching her hair and skin, feeling each other's rising heartbeats; they cuddled for the next dozen or so minutes until finally, the alarm for the day rang.