Chapter Text
Fragile. Breakable.
Those words didn't cross Alice's mind in the slightest, during the time he had spent with his master and Friend, Iruma. The pink-haired demon would usually associate Iruma to be powerful, kind, full of wisdom, an admirable individual--
And yet, at this moment...
Right now, this is the only thing that is noticeable to the blue-haired teen. Painfully so.
Because--
"Iruma! Iruma, no...! Wake up...wake up, please!"
Red flowing locks. The normally tall girl was curled up, screaming in horror, in grief. Much darker red stained her clothes, and on the limp form in her arms. The source of her grief.
Having been near her and getting nearer with each step, Alice could see blue hair matted with what could only be blood. It smells alluring, a delicacy, and yet it just fills him--along with all the other remaining demons near them--with disgust at themselves. But the state of the body in the red-haired girl, in Ameri's arms--
It was quite unclear. Slashes covered his body, a hole in his heart made by a broadsword, and perhaps many other wounds covered in blood. Sky Blue eyes once filled with love and compassion, now lifeless and staring at nothing at all.
Fragile. Breakable. Glass that had shattered, never to be put back together again.
Alice could only fall to his knees and clench his chest in anguish. He could only cry for him.
For even if they had won this battle, they had still lost something much more important.
Iruma Suzuki, a candidate for the Demon King Throne. The most unlikely demon, the most demon-like human, yet strong and beautiful in the soul.
He has fallen, and the Netherworld had lost an important flame that they all had.
==
Truth be told, Ameri was the one who was supposed to die.
The she-demon was pretty sure that she had died, too. It was a truly intense battle, against the traitor Baal and the demons in his side that have Returned to Origins. Instead of enjoying her last year in Babyls School, enjoy the time she had left with Iruma before she moves on to the real world, all of them had to be dragged into this war due to the attack they first made.
Many students should have lost their lives, but because of Iruma, the Babyls staff, and his grandpa, Sullivan, they were all able to fight back the best they all could. Fewer lives were lost.
Or more specifically, only one life was lost. The rest were simply injured, or unconscious, due to the quick-thinking.
But the life that was lost...
Why did you save me, Iruma?
Especially at the cost of his own.
Ameri hardly knew what happened to her. One moment, she was protecting the students while they go to regroup to the main hall but then...
A sharp object hit her, filling every fiber of her being with crushing pain. Ameri was lost consciousness right after that. She was pretty sure that she died, at that point.
--except she opened her eyes again, and the first thing she saw was the lifeless body of her beloved junior. Iruma, the one who caught her heart.
Iruma, who healed her and protected her.
Iruma, who lost his life in exchange for hers.
He was only in his second year. He didn't deserve it.
Why did you save me?
If Ameri had just revealed Iruma to be human in the first place, and let her father send him back to his world, would that have changed things?
Would that have saved him?
A breeze went in, blowing through her hair and soothing her, even if it's only the slightest.
I suppose that doesn't matter now, Ameri closed her eyes, shutting the forbidden test in her hand. He's already gone...
Iruma is gone, and the school may never be the same again.
It wasn't even exaggeration. The lively atmosphere before, that intensified when Iruma was around, had completely disappeared. The principal mourned the loss of his favourite grandson.
The Abnormal Class even felt incomplete and unstable without their unlikely member, though some still tried to make things lively.
The energy of the school really became muted, with Iruma's death. Everyone had followed the actions of the honor student, yet now...
Even when he was simply with them for a year and a half, Iruma truly left a mark on all of them. That doesn't even include the reveal of his real self in the very end.
Some perfumes could change the scent of a creature, but the blood of a human can't be mistaken otherwise. While a bit similar in color to demon blood, human blood can heal a demon's wounds.
Even completely cure them of any injury.
As Ameri had came out perfectly fine and unscathed, and Iruma was clearly near her when he died, it's easy to assume. That he was human.
The ones that knew easily accepted that, as Iruma had saved them time and time again. Who cares if he's human? He proved himself to be one of them.
If only he's still alive to know that.
At least everyone agreed to let the fact that Iruma was a human to be a secret. No need to cause chaos, right? Especially with the mess they all had.
So, student life had relatively returned to their routine while the walls and buildings are built back up.
The criminals are apprehended, the 13 heroes standing tall despite lacking one of them, and the Netherworld is a little bit more peaceful than before.
If only they didn't lose such a wonderful soul in the process...
It truly was unfair.
With gritted teeth, the Student Council president unconsciously clenched her hands on the forbidden book in her hands.
Why did I have to lose you so soon, Iruma...?
==
It was at an uneventful morning when it happened.
The day was a weekend, therefore there's no class. Normally, Sullivan would plan some sort of outing to take Iruma to, or let him hang out with his friends.
The great demon would then leave, and Opera will see him off, before taking care of the house and prepare for things before he returns. If Iruma is with him, then he prepares for Iruma as well.
But not that Iruma is...Iruma is gone, Sullivan would only go to work today, and Opera would take care of things in the house. He sweeps the floor, takes care of the laundry, and--
And he doesn't dare go to Iruma's room, normally. Because seeing what his young master had...
Anyway, it was illogical to go to the young master's room now, considering that no one will be there no one will ever use it anymore but on that day, there was an exception.
For through the crack of the door, a strange light shone through, illuminating from the inside.
Seeing that, Opera's thoughts quickly drifted to a potential intruder. Perhaps another foe has arrived, seeking some leverage by tampering on their memories of Iruma how dare they--
The cat-like demon threw open the doors and--
And--
There was a ring on the bed. The glow was coming from it.
Engraved with markings, gold with it's color intensified by the strange ethereal illumination--this was Iruma's ring.
It was strange. Why was Iruma's ring on the bed, when they had put it in a separate box cushioned with a linen fabric placed inside a drawer?
But his question was quickly answered when Opera witnessed the glow intensify, so much so that he had to look away. An intense heat radiated off of it, but the servant endured for if the ring had become corrupted then--
Then he had to destroy it. So, Opera reached out--
And ended up lightly caressing an illusion of a blue-haired child looking at him.
Nevertheless, Opera was quite shocked at this. What...is this?
The illusion of the blue-haired boy younger version of Iruma smiled. He spread his arms.
His voice felt familiar. "Come find me."
Opera's eyes widened--
As quickly as it came, the glow dissipated. The illusion disappeared with it.
The cat-like demon would have dismissed that as losing his mind for a moment, perhaps a cruel prank, but then he saw it.
At his wrist, was a thread tied to him. It was tinged of gold and blue, not tangible enough to move other objects, but visible enough that Opera could see it.
The thread was tied to something he couldn't see. At least, not yet.
Opera had to wonder. What is this?
What did all that mean? What will happen from then on?
A flicker of hope started to appear from then on, though it is as dangerous as a sharpened blade.