Chapter 32: The Tension of Lovers
"But I haven't contacted my friend either, so let's call it even."
Badr felt an immense sense of relief.
Having a girlfriend like Mai is truly an extraordinary experience!
"Mai, call me quickly."
"Why?"
"I want to fly over and hug and kiss you enough." Badr said with a smile.
Mai on the other end of the phone was silent for a moment. Maybe she was shy, but soon she pretended to be calm and answered:
"In that case I won't call you."
"Just so you know, I'm taking a bath."
"Then I definitely can't call you." Sakurajima Mai replied immediately.
Badr smiled faintly, put the phone on speaker, and dipped his arms back into the hot water.
"So, can you tell me why you're upset now?"
Mai was silent for a moment.
"I had a fight with my mom."
"I see, so you haven't made up yet."
"It's not as easy as you think, you idiot." Mai replied with a tone full of queenly authority, almost as if it came through the phone.
Badr didn't mind and grinned: "Sorry, I don't have parents, so I really can't understand."
This made the girl pause for a moment, and she couldn't bear to blame Badr for not understanding her anymore.
"But I think that being able to argue, communicate, and meet each other is already a normal mother-daughter relationship compared to before. It's already much better."
Badr added suddenly.
Indeed, compared to before, Mai's mother had regained her memories of her daughter, which was already a great relief.
Mai on the other end of the phone was slightly stunned, then nodded with a small smile.
"Hehe, yes."
"Mai, you're smiling?"
"Yes, after talking to my devil friend, my mood has indeed improved."
"Is that so? I'm honored..."
...
Talking to Sakurajima Mai always filled Badr's heart with sweetness. Even with his personality, he would unconsciously chat with Mai for a long time, as if there were endless things to say.
It wasn't until the water cooled in the bathtub that Badr said goodbye to Mai and hung up the phone.
Lying in the bathtub, he remembered his emotional connection with Sakurajima Mai, and a gentle smile appeared on his lips.
The feeling of being in love is really quite nice...
He stood up, dried himself casually, and left the bathroom without putting on any clothes, collapsing directly onto the bed.
In his heart, he was already looking forward to tomorrow's journey to the Familiar Forest.
Lying on the bed with his eyes closed, he gradually fell asleep.
Suddenly, there was a magical fluctuation in his bedroom, and the sleeping Badr immediately woke up.
He opened his eyes and calmly looked at the spot in front of the bed.
Although it was late at night, the devil's physique gave him night vision, allowing him to see the situation in the room clearly, even better than during the day.
Under Badr's gaze, a magic circle lit up, and Ria's figure emerged from it.
Speechless, Badr watched the girl who had suddenly arrived for a night raid.
For Rias and other demons who could teleport, his home was indeed as accessible as they wished...
"Badr, did I wake you?" Rias noticed that Badr was staring at her with open eyes.
Badr narrowed his eyes lazily, obviously not angry with Rias for interrupting his sleep.
"Sorry, I just couldn't sleep, so I came to sleep with you."
"Sleep together, such a melodious term."
Jokingly, Badr seemed to be used to it.
Seeing this, Rias began to undress.
Admiring Rias' elegant movements, Badr soon saw Rias' snow-white body and calmly moved aside.
Rias then climbed into Badr's bed and lay down in the warm spot he had kept, right next to Badr.
Badr hugged Rias, feeling the incredible softness and elasticity of her skin, his hands wandering slightly.
Rias didn't mind at all, she felt comfortable in Badr's presence.
"I don't know why, but I really like sleeping with you. It makes me feel especially safe and calm."
"That means I'm a qualified pillow."
"You have a clear understanding of your role." Rias smiled and stroked Badr's chest gently.
Badr smiled weakly and closed his eyes. Their relationship had no formal title, but it was indeed too intimate...
"Rias, can I marry you?"
He suddenly asked in a calm tone.
The girl's body trembled slightly as she looked at the boy with her eyes closed in surprise.
"Y..."
"I'm sure I like you, but I don't really understand you. If we can't call it love, then what is this intimacy we share?"
Badr described their situation in a calm tone. He had never been sure about Rias feelings.
To be more precise, he didn't really understand Ria's feelings for him.
Her status was that of a master, and demons didn't seem to place as much value on ethics and morality as humans;
Her feelings for him seemed to stem from a master's affection for a servant. To put it bluntly, it felt like affection for an object.
Badr felt that this was far from romantic love.
Even though Rias had always shared a bed with him without hesitation, even embracing him naked, Badr had always held himself back from crossing the line.
But after becoming more intimate with Rias this morning, Badr felt it was time to address the issue;
Perhaps it all came down to the fact that he still retained human emotions...
Rias' expression was a bit stunned.
It took her two seconds to realize what Badr was thinking.
"I... Of course I like you. I didn't think much of it before, but lately I've been thinking about you more and more. I even think about you when I'm sleeping, so I can't help but come to you to fall asleep."
Rias confessed her feelings, although her expression showed frustration.
"If it were possible, I would like to be your wife... But it's not possible..."
Her expression was extremely conflicted and dejected, even a bit sad.
Badr frowned and asked, "Why not?"
Rias opened her mouth, saw Badr's intense gaze and finally spoke reluctantly:
"...Because I'm someone else's fiancée."
This news really surprised Badr.
Rias was already engaged?
And yet she was almost sharing a bed with him...
Badr wasn't stupid and figured it out quickly.
"You don't like the other person, do you?"
"Yes."
Finally opening up, Ria's emotions were intense.
Badr also understood a lot of things at that moment.
He finally understood what Rias was struggling with.
Rias was the heiress of the Gremory family, so her fiancé had to be someone of equal status, right?
And this engagement was obviously not her own will, but she couldn't refuse it, probably because it was her family's will.
She wanted to use him to help her out of this situation, so she had always pushed him to become stronger...
Badr's mind worked fast and he found out most of the truth.
"I see."
The boy smiled.
"What?"
"I'll help you, Rias." Badr smiled confidently: "You should have told me sooner."
"But you're no match for him. Even I am not sure if I can beat him."
Rias lowered her eyes. Although she felt relieved to share her thoughts, it didn't solve the problem...
"Well, effort counts for something."
Badr shook his head with a smile: "At least you shared your troubles. Keeping them inside isn't good."
He hugged Rias gently, enjoying the softness of her body, and said softly:
"Problems don't crush people, but feelings do."
Rias looked at Badr, deeply touched.
He's always so considerate.
Thinking this, she couldn't help but lean in and kiss the boy's lips.
Even in the morning, when they had been driven by lust, they had never kissed so passionately. But now she opened her heart to him without hesitation.
"This is my first kiss," she whispered.
...
The experience of the first kiss was very nice, and Badr got to know his future opponent.
Ria's fiancé was definitely a powerful, high-ranking devil, and Badr was far from being a match for such a being.
He would have to work hard to improve his strength...
Badr sighed lightly. Ever since he had come into contact with the demons of this world, he had always felt a sense of crisis. Even though he had become much stronger, that sense of crisis never diminished...
This was because as time passed, the enemies he encountered or would encounter would become stronger.
For now, he would focus on getting stronger through contracts, but self-training shouldn't be neglected either.
Although self-training was dangerous, it was effective in making him stronger. Badr wouldn't back down because of the challenges.
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