Chapter 111

Chapter 111: Chapter 111

There had been no need to intervene, Asael quickly found. The Wrath faction Fiends weren’t expecting an attack, especially not from an enraged Hellhound.

The desert would soon absorb the charred remains of their bodies, sand and dust layering over them until they became a part of it.

He took one look at the pink-hued lotus mark on the Succubus’ forehead and figured out their relationship. "Dinner is getting cold," He reminded, walking into the palace.

"Are you hungry?" Ruoxi turned to Qingyi.

She gave him a look, gesturing at her dusty and tattered clothes from being on the run for so long. "What do you think?"

Just as they were about to head into the palace, Caedos made an appearance, dressed only in tattered dark green pants and dripping from head to toe.

Qingyi was startled but she handled it better, swallowing back her screams, which was impressive considering that the Demon was practically steaming, water evaporating off his heated body at a speed visible to the eye.

"I’m sure you worked up an appetite," Ruoxi muttered, even as he hurried Qingyi inside. The Hellhound really did look like he was going to bite, his powerful ears flicking off the water on them.

And so dinner ended up with an additional guest, Ruoxi and Qingyi bickering over the most mundane things, their hands constantly in each other’s plates.

It was surprisingly tolerable, at least they solved the heavy silence that once lingered over the table.

"Are you going to leave?" Asael asked the question that Ruoxi generously tossed at him.

Ruoxi’s smile fell off his face, losing the bowl of figs there had been a tug of war over, to Qingyi.

"You’re not." Asael answered his own question after the silence stretched out for far too long. It was difficult to tell how he felt about it, his impassive features giving nothing away.

After dinner, Ruoxi left the kitchen in the company of Qingyi, the servants already drifting in to clean up the dining table.

Asael glanced at the Hellhound who hadn’t said a word throughout dinner. Next to Dulce, Caedos was harmless and even believable as a pet but right now, the Royal Hound was anything but.

He knew that the Hellhound was rational but the mere sight of him still raised the hairs on his neck. "Going to run some more?"

"No." Caedos answered shortly, rising to his feet. "I’m going to sleep."

Asael watched him leave with a hint of envy in his eyes, if he could sleep, he wouldn’t be back on Earth. Soon the dining table was clean and the kitchen empty, and there was nothing left to do, so he grudgingly rose to his feet to go sit through the night.

He stopped in front of Dulce’s room, warping into it on a whim only to pause on the other side. Caedos was about to get on the bed, his front paws on the bed.

Asael was hit with more envy, "You’ll break the bed." He muttered, warping away as quickly as he came.

-+-

Ruoxi was made to sit on his bed, Qingyi sitting opposite him with her legs crossed, their hands joined.

Hours passed in silence with the two of them seated, Qingyi helping him absorb the energy that had been poured into him for centuries, their forehead marks glowing subtly.

Qingyi only got him to successfully absorb all the energy by the time the sun was rising, as soon as their hands separated, she kicked him right in the chest, cursing him out. "Did you fill your ears with dirt in class?" She scolded, "I’m surprised the energy didn’t rip you apart. How have you been eating?"

Ruoxi fell over, caught off guard by the suddenness of the attack. "Why should I care about the absorption of energy gotten from receiving?" He asked flatly, laying on his back.

Qingyi deflated, there were different methods for the absorption of energy, and the chances of being imbued with so much energy gave little insight into what Ruoxi had to suffer in captivity.

Energy gotten from intimacy was minor, even if a Succubus or an Incubus never properly absorbed the energy their entire life, it wasn’t enough to fill them up completely like it did Ruoxi, bleeding into his eyes and his mark from how much of it there was.

It would only cause minor discrepancies, like frequent hunger and discomfort from all the energy roiling around in them. She tried not to think too hard about what it would have taken to be filled to bursting with another Demon’s energy, even if it was a Holy Demon.

"Have you gotten any more energy? I worry the other person would have gotten a backlash from your rampant energy." She asked gently, her tone quieter, hurt.

Ruoxi pictured Dulce pale and passed out and grimaced, feeling guilty. "I’m fine."

Qingyi gave him a look at his guarded tone, getting off the bed to stretch. "Well, I have none left to give you." She grumbled, wandering off to clean up.

Ruoxi placed a hand over his mark, getting off the bed to seek out a mirror. The gold of his eyes and mark stared back at him cruelly, he knew all the energy forced into him had been absorbed, the chaos calming. Yet he remained the same, his identity lost.

He didn’t know that absorbing the energy would prevent a backlash on other people, but even if he did, it would have made no difference as he didn’t know how to. Intimacy was all about giving and receiving, and absorption methods were split between them.

Absorbing the energy gotten from Dulce had been second nature, yet the energy gotten from his captor had remained chaotic in his body.

Ruoxi turned away from the mirror, his mark sinking into his skin. His clan was still alive, he could now ’eat’ from anyone, and the threat of his captor was distant, yet all he could focus on was Dulce’s absence.

Was he going to leave? Yes. When Dulce returned, it wasn’t only the Fiend who could take Dulce to his home.