Chapter 24
“…You’re unexpectedly meticulous.”
“I’ll take that as a compliment.”
So? With eyes full of curiosity, Clea looked at the Demon King.
The Demon King tapped the armrest as if in thought, his chin propped up on his hand.
He had made a contract with Clea Rino in order to consume her soul.
The contract condition: a happily married life with a human man.
But even if that condition was fulfilled, it didn’t mean Clea Rino’s fractured soul would be restored.
The purer and more unblemished the soul, the better it tasted.
It had been a long time since he had found a soul so thoroughly soaked in pure malice.
A shame it had been broken.
“I’ll grant you one wish—when you return to your world.”
“A wish?”
“Yes. As long as it’s within the bounds of my power.”
One wish in exchange for a long-overdue feast didn’t seem like a bad trade.
And it was the same for Clea.
Hearing the offer, Clea nodded without hesitation.
Whether she wished to become rich or the head of a conglomerate, if she just handled this task, she could go back and have her life ironed out smooth and flat.
“Deal.”
At Clea’s definite answer, the Demon King smirked crookedly.
At the same time, Clea’s body began to turn transparent.
As Clea looked up, the Demon King gave a shrug.
“Time’s up. I do hope we don’t meet again until you’ve finished your task.”
“I’ll try my best.”
The short meeting came to an end.
Right after answering, it felt as if someone had snipped the fuse connecting her brain—her mind went pitch black in an instant.
Even knowing it would happen, the experience was vile.
Clea mentally grumbled in frustration.
The last thing she saw was the Demon King still sitting arrogantly on the throne, watching her with a blank, chillingly hollow gaze.
“…Therefore, I believe it’s time to proceed with the funeral, Your Graces.”
“I told you—say one more word like that and I’ll kill you.”
The first thing she heard was an elderly voice filled with concern, followed by a venomous one.
Her eyelids were heavy, her limbs wouldn’t move. She was too exhausted and just wanted to sleep more.
“Ease up. Your bloodlust is annoying.”
“If you’re going to say the same thing, leave. Don’t just barge into someone else’s mansion and sit there.”
“…I still can’t believe this is happening. It feels like a dream.”
Isaac spoke, blankly staring down at Clea, who looked like she was merely asleep.
They could do nothing because Eclipse had a fit, saying not to touch her. Still, Clea wasn’t breathing.
Her heart wasn’t beating, and no organs were functioning.
By all accounts, she was dead.
They’d brought over a dozen top physicians, and all said the same thing.
“Damn it! Shit!”
The sound of someone stomping in frustration gave Clea the strength to try and open her eyes.
She had to wake up.
‘Wait, a funeral?’
A funeral?
Whose funeral?
As her mind slowly caught up, Clea was horrified.
They were talking about holding a funeral while she was right there.
“She hasn’t started decaying. It’s been a week and not a single part has rotted.”
“…”
At Eclipse’s claim, Isaac fell silent.
He was right.
Amazingly, there wasn’t a single blemish on her body.
There was even a faint warmth left.
To the casual eye, she merely looked peacefully asleep.
Isaac ran a restless hand over his face.
He’d been so shocked when he heard the news.
He’d known she was ill, but hadn’t expected her to collapse so suddenly.
Everyone had kept it quiet, so fortunately, the rumors hadn’t spread.
“She asked me not to call a priest or put her in a coffin. I intend to respect her wishes.”
“…For how long?”
Isaac asked in a low voice.
He was only just starting to understand Clea.
Her sudden death was not something he could easily accept.
Clea, overhearing all of this, bitterly laughed inside.
‘That’s sweet, but…’
Apparently coughing blood and collapsing had traumatized Eclipse, because he was now incredibly polite in how he referred to her.
That was commendable.
The problem was that despite her consciousness returning, her body wouldn’t move.
‘Why! Won’t! I! Move!’
She wanted to scream.
Her mind was fine, but even moving a single finger was impossible.
She was even starting to fear she might actually be dead.
‘Please!’
Clea shouted internally.
She was mentally yelling, but her lips didn’t even twitch, and no sound reached her ears.
‘Say something!’
She clenched her teeth in her mind, but again, only in her mind.
The frustration made her want to tear her hair out.
‘Let me move!’
And then, when she forced herself to scream mentally—
“Uh!”
Thankfully, a sound escaped her lips.
She prayed they’d hear and realize she was alive.
A funeral?
Holding a funeral when she was still alive was absolutely unacceptable.
‘I still have to catch the culprit…!’
While she was at it, she wouldn’t mind improving Clea Rino’s reputation either.
Clea Rino had many enemies. Among the countless rumors about her, some were surely malicious lies.
To catch the real culprit, she first had to clear her name.
She had way too much to do to end up buried alive.
“…Did you hear something just now?”
Isaac’s voice made Clea’s eyes fly open—internally, anyway.
No matter how hard she tried, her eyelids wouldn’t budge, as if glued shut.
Even industrial adhesive probably wasn’t this strong.
“What sound?”
Eclipse hadn’t heard anything, his voice puzzled.
Isaac didn’t answer. Instead, he reached out and placed a hand on Clea’s forehead.
There was still faint warmth.
His gaze swept down her body.
Then it stopped.
Her chest was rising and falling—barely, but visibly.
“A doctor…”
“Pardon?”
Isaac froze, whispering low.
When the servant asked again, Isaac quickly grabbed Clea’s wrist to feel her pulse.
“There’s a…!”
It was faint, but her pulse had returned.
Feeling the steady rhythm, Isaac shot a sharp glare at the still-motionless servant.
“Get the doctor!”
“Y-Yes, sir!”
Unable to hold back, he shouted. The servant scrambled to move.
“Clea, are you okay? Can you hear me?”
Isaac whispered.
Clea wanted to answer, but her lips remained sealed.
She wanted to know why.
Show me something—anything!
Please, even just a status screen!
Struggling desperately to speak, she finally heard a strange chime—Ding!—and something appeared over her eyelids.
Or maybe it was in her head? She wasn’t sure.
What mattered was—she could see her status screen.
Clea finally relaxed and focused on reading it.
[Your HP is 0.]
[You have entered a Groggy State.]
[Time remaining until full recovery: 23 hours 57 minutes 17 seconds.]
She blinked in disbelief.
So, she was to remain in this corpse-like state until her health recovered? That’s what the screen was telling her.
‘You want me to stay like this for a full day?’
With only her mind awake? That’s not even funny.
Clea clenched her fists and trembled.
Of course, only in her mind. Her body still couldn’t move.
She felt both Isaac’s and Eclipse’s hands holding her own.
The warmth on her skin did make her feel slightly better.
“There really is a pulse…”
Eclipse’s voice was full of shock.
Hearing the relief in his tone, Clea relaxed a bit.
At least, for the next 24 hours, the chances of ending up in a coffin had dropped significantly.
‘Can’t even sleep…’
She couldn’t move her hands, couldn’t move her arms, couldn’t open her eyes.
She felt like prey caught in a spider’s web.
It meant she’d have to lie there wide awake through the night.
…Or not.
When she came to her senses again, it was already morning.
