Welcome to the Demon’s Cabin - Chapter 15

A Siren’s song. His head spun at this unexpected reality. His mind, not yet fully awake, could not keep up with this complex situation.

‘He was certain he knew that a Siren’s song is a unique ability that even demons cannot mimic.’

It was such a prominent characteristic, and since it was content he had memorized by transcribing Advanced Monster Biology dozens of times during his seminary days, he was sure of it.

Just what on earth was going to happen. The more he thought about it, the more he felt as if he were falling into a labyrinth.

‘No, but even for a Siren, it is strange? Irene is not a mermaid…….’

Knock, knock.

At that moment, a light knocking sound was heard. The timing was uncanny.

Irene, who swung the door open without even waiting for an answer, tilted her head and smiled. Her pretty eyes curved, creating a bright atmosphere.

“Good morning, Mr. Idris!”

Idris barely maintained a neutral expression as he steadied himself. His head was a mess with this new information that had suddenly barged in.

“Did you sleep well?”

“Yes, thanks to you. And you, Ms. Irene?”

“I slept well, of course.”

Irene, dressed in a gown of white and desaturated green, responded naturally as she approached the bed where he sat.

The sound of her footsteps echoed exceptionally loud.

Unconsciously, his gaze drifted toward the floor. White leather boots were visible beneath her skirt. As expected, two legs and feet were perfectly attached.

As he pondered in a half-dazed state, a bright yellow gemstone necklace suddenly entered his field of vision. Before he knew it, Irene had come right up close and bent down to look at him.

“Are you still in pain? Your complexion does not look good……”

“……No. I am fine. I was only dizzy for a moment, but there is nowhere that hurts.”

“I thought so. As expected, sleeping soundly is the best for recovery.”

She is practically advertising that she put him to sleep using tricks.

Idris, who caught his breath after seeing those gently curved and sparkling red eyes, responded with a forced, faint smile. It felt as if his lips would twitch with a cramp.

There was no way a monster’s song, rather than divine power, would have the ability to heal. Likely, all Irene had done was put him to sleep for several days. This must be the result created purely by his own regenerative powers.

It was unbearably unsettling, but still, let us think that since his limbs are intact, it is for the best.

‘Considering that recovery is slow within the Black Mountains, has it been at least four days since he arrived here?’

Is it enough time for even his funeral to have ended. Now that a troublesome fellow has finally died, the maternal side of the family and his father must be in a celebratory mood together.

“Mr. Idris, then perhaps, would you be able to walk?”

His long contemplation was broken by the voice asking cautiously. Idris nodded.

“I will give it a try.”

“Do not overdo it. If it really does not work, it will be fine after resting a bit longer.”

“…….”

No. It felt as if it had to be possible. The expression that seemed to see right through what he was thinking was chilling.

As he moved his body carefully, Irene backed away a couple of steps.

Idris stood up, stepping forward with a tense look. Though he wavered slightly, he succeeded in finding his balance on two feet. Moving a few steps was also no problem. His face brightened at once. Relief and joy rushed in like a tide.

“Wow! I am truly glad!”

Before he could say anything, Irene clapped her hands and made a fuss. Perhaps because of the joy that his body, his only asset, had improved, Idris did not find the sight of her smiling excitedly unpleasant for the first time.

A faint smile hung on the corners of his mouth. Idris bowed his head politely to Irene to express his gratitude.

“Thank you, Ms. Irene. For saving me, and for continuing to nurse me like this. It is all thanks to you, Ms. Irene.”

Surprisingly, it was not a lie.

“Oh……”

Irene, whom he thought would laugh it off as if it were no big deal, unexpectedly wore a surprised face. After standing frozen for a few seconds while only blinking her eyes, she soon beamed as if she had never been that way.

“It was nothing. It was not much at all.”

It was a smile full of goodwill. Come to think of it, although she had several times shown a murderous intent that seemed to say, ‘I will kill you if you do not answer properly,’ she had never actually harmed him. Rather, it was the opposite.

The question he had buried, thinking there were no other possibilities anyway, rises in his mind again.

This red-eyed woman, is she truly a demon?

* * *

“The area around the cabin as well, it is all forest, but the lakeside is wide open without a single tree. It will appear immediately if you just follow this path a little bit.”

Irene spoke in an excited voice as she walked ahead along a trail through the dense trees. The sunlight pouring through the leaves was dazzling. He had just been dragged out by Irene, who urged him to go for a walk by the lakeside as soon as he had finished washing up after a simple breakfast.

“You seem to like the lake very much.”

“Ahaha, that is right. The deep blue waves are truly beautiful whenever I see them. I remember struggling to make the lake visible even a little bit through the trees when I was installing the window in my room.”

“So that is why the window was exceptionally large. You said there was a flower garden you tended by the lakeside, right?”

“Yes, that is right. I paid a lot of attention to the blooming periods when choosing the flowers so that it would be beautiful in all four seasons.”

Four seasons. Seeing her care about that, does she intend to stay here for a long time, or has she already been here for a while.

“It must be a shame that it is not well-visible through the window.”

“I suppose so. Even though I installed such a large glass, it simply would not work. But it is not as if I can just cut down the trees of the forest, so there is no helping it.”

Does she like nature? It was now difficult to simply think, as before, that she was just lying at random because she was mimicking a human. Because…….