The next day, the sun was already high in the sky.
Orange light filtered through the window and fell across the messy sofa in scattered patches.
People often said that women were made of water.
From personal experience, Cael had come to a different conclusion.
Devils were made of water too.
Water soaked through things quietly.
But compared to water, Makima was even more relentless.
Her style was completely different from Asa's boldness. Makima gave Cael an entirely new experience.
In this relationship, Cael had always been the one taking the initiative.
Maybe that feeling was what control truly meant.
The chaos had lasted all night. Makima had been so exhausted that she even drifted to sleep a few times.
Cael, however, showed no signs of fatigue. If anything, he had wanted to keep going, like he could press Makima into himself and never let her escape.
He could not help it.
Makima was dangerously tempting.
From eleven the previous night until ten thirty the next morning, Cael finally managed to calm the storm in his mind.
Makima finished dressing and leaned comfortably against Cael's chest.
The hollow feeling inside her heart had disappeared.
In its place was a pure, overwhelming sense of happiness.
She had truly won.
Her body carried so many marks from Cael's "Control Chains".
Could someone like the War Devil ever achieve something like this?
Cael must love her more than he loved Asa Mitaka, right?
Makima did not ask that question.
Making things difficult for Cael was not her style.
Now that their personal matters were settled, it was time to talk about something serious.
"By the way, Maki," Cael said while holding her and gently rocking her in his arms. "Is the prophecy about the King of Terror that the Hunger Devil mentioned actually true?"
"Hm?"
When Cael mentioned Fami, a strange expression flashed through Makima's eyes.
She did not like hearing Cael talk about other women, especially her eccentric older sisters.
Still, since it was Cael asking, she felt inclined to indulge him.
In every possible sense, Cael was now her lover.
Her only one.
Makima pointed at her lips and spoke playfully.
"Give me a kiss, and I'll tell you."
Cael had just managed to put out the sparks in his chest, and now she was lighting them again.
Apparently Makima had not had enough excitement yet.
"Fine."
Cael leaned down.
"Mmm."
Five minutes later, Makima looked satisfied.
He really loves me.
Maybe I should behave even better.
Makima spoke calmly.
"The Nostradamus prophecy is real."
"Next July, our eldest sister, the Death Devil, will descend into the human world."
"She will reshape the era of humanity into the era of devils."
Cael inhaled sharply.
He did not trust Fami.
But he trusted Makima.
After everything they had just experienced together, he doubted Makima had any reason to lie to him.
"So it's real. That's going to be troublesome." Cael frowned. "Do we have any way to deal with it?"
Makima shifted slightly in his arms, settling into a more comfortable position.
Her pale fingers gently lifted Cael's chin.
Looking straight into his eyes, she spoke with complete seriousness.
"Cael doesn't need to worry. It's only the Death Devil."
"If my big sister shows up, I'll just kill her."
"We are going to live together happily forever."
"No human or devil will ruin that."
Cael raised an eyebrow.
"But the Death Devil represents primal fear. She's literally death itself. She must be insanely strong."
Makima pouted thoughtfully.
"That's true."
"But I think I might still be stronger than a Primal Devil."
"Haven't those so-called transcendent Primal Devils died before?"
"But if it's me…"
"I should be able to make them experience death too."
"So Cael doesn't need to worry."
"Just keep your eyes on me, okay?"
"Alright." Cael nodded. "We'll deal with it when it happens."
There was no point worrying about a future that had not arrived yet.
Thanks to the Falling Devil incident, Cael had obtained a Primal-level ability called the Withering Heart Piercing Attack.
Even against a Primal Devil, he was not completely helpless.
He pulled out his phone and checked the screen.
It was almost eleven in the morning.
There were a lot of missed calls.
Not only from Asa, but also from Reze.
The excuse he had given Asa was that he needed to submit a report, so she had not called too often. Only around a dozen missed calls.
Reze, however, knew exactly where Cael had gone.
He had not returned to the shop all night, so her sense of danger had probably gone through the roof.
She had practically blown up his phone.
Cael felt a faint chill run down his back.
"Maki, things are getting out of hand with Reze." Cael slipped on his slippers. "It's getting late. I should head back to the shop and help out."
This date had already lasted far longer than twenty four hours.
Makima had definitely received more than enough attention.
Makima smiled faintly.
She took Cael's phone and quietly switched it to Do Not Disturb mode.
Her eyes still carried a trace of longing.
"Cael spends time with Asa Mitaka and Pomu every day."
"But you rarely spend time with me."
"So before Cael leaves…"
"Control me one more time."
Cael's mouth showed hesitation.
His body, however, reacted with embarrassing honesty.
He let out a helpless sigh.
"Fine. Let's make it quick."
Meanwhile, across the ocean.
Los Angeles, California.
The Cecil Hotel.
Inside a third floor corner room, three shirtless young men sat on a bed, drinking beer and eating pasta.
Not far from the bed lay the corpse of a young white woman.
The youngest looking man had two scars over his right eye.
Sweat covered his face as he glanced repeatedly toward the corpse.
His hand trembled while holding his fork.
He had not touched a single bite of the pasta on his plate.
The man with bangs covering his eyes looked toward him.
"What's wrong, Aldo?" he asked calmly. "First time killing someone? Having trouble adjusting?"
"Big brother, I'm not… I'm not…"
"URGH!"
Before finishing his sentence, Aldo suddenly collapsed to his knees and vomited violently.
The man with the strange afro burst out laughing.
"Hahaha! Looks like our little brother really can't handle it!"
The man with the bangs calmly finished his beer.
"Compared to Aldo, you really have a talent for killing, Joey."
Joey, the one with the afro, grabbed his plate and devoured the pasta at lightning speed.
After finishing, he dropped the plate onto the floor with a clatter.
"Big brother Richard, to be honest, killing makes me sick too."
"But not like Aldo."
"Aldo feels sick because of guilt and fear."
"But for me, killing feels like stepping on dog crap."
"That slimy disgusting feeling. Blegh."
Richard's fork froze mid air.
"Joey, don't say disgusting things while we're eating."
His appetite vanished instantly.
He reached into his pocket and pulled out a photograph.
"This mission came from the U.S. Defense Intelligence Agency."
"We're heading to Japan."
"Japan?" Joey leaned closer with interest. "I heard the women there are amazing."
Aldo, after finishing his vomiting session, slowly recovered.
"No matter where we go for missions, you two always think about women first."
Richard calmly lit a cigar and looked at the photograph.
The picture showed Cael.
"Our target is not a devil."
"It's this human."
"The DIA promised that if we bring back this man's corpse, twenty million dollars will be transferred immediately."
Joey's eyes widened with excitement.
"Hey! Twenty million dollars? Big brother, you didn't mess up the number of zeros, right?"
Compared to Joey's impulsiveness, Aldo was more cautious.
"Brothers… I don't think we should accept a job with a bounty that high."
"If the reward is that big, the risk must be huge too. We could die."
"Die?" Joey scoffed.
Richard frowned slightly and suddenly leaned closer to Aldo.
"Aldo, the three of us share one will."
"We will not die."
He pointed at his own face.
"Can you imagine me dead?"
Aldo shook his head.
Richard pointed at Joey.
"What about this afro idiot?"
Aldo shook his head again.
Richard pointed at Aldo himself.
"What about you?"
Aldo shook his head even harder.
Richard smiled calmly.
"When our house burned down when we were kids, we survived."
"When a devil swallowed us, Devil Hunters rescued us, and we survived."
"When we had severe food poisoning, we still survived."
"During the Gun Devil attack, Dad, Mom, and Grandma died."
"But we survived."
"Recently, when the Falling Devil disrupted gravity across the world, our remaining relatives died too."
"But we still survived."
Joey suddenly let out an excited yell.
Aldo listened with wide eyes.
Richard stood up and put on his black suit jacket.
"Do you understand now, Aldo?"
"The three of us brothers are the embodiment of luck."
"Which means…"
"We have immortal bodies."
===
Look up "_Zeph" on Patreon to get access to chapters in advance.