Perhaps if it was someone else, Beelzebub would have used his claws to silence the elderly woman’s noisy mouth. He wasn’t in a mood to hear scolding when he had done the same to himself for hours. At the same time, he wasn’t in the mood to kill the elderly woman. 

A slow smile that was a tad spiteful appeared on his lips, “I know her strength better than anyone but I know better of the danger that comes with staying with me. You too, old hag. If you wish to spend more hours in your life. Don’t associate yourself. Don’t come close to me.”

“It’s not my position to say anything between you and here. But I can remind you of one thing. That girl loves you. A lot even. It’s difficult for you to ever find someone who would love you, much less a person who would love you selflessly.. If you don’t want to lose her, then stay close to her and swear inside your heart to protect her. That is if you truly love her and want to stop running away from her.”

Beelzebub’s jaw clenched. The elderly woman sighed as she knew this was the extent she could add her opinion in. Placing the new jar of water on the small drawer beside the bed, she then sighed, speaking to herself albeit aloud enough for Beelzebub to hear without the means of eavesdropping.

“You really do remind me of that one man,” the elderly woman shifted the objects on her table while she spoke. “He was stubborn like you. Very brash and a brute. Not to add, he did look a bit similar to you in appearance.”

Beelzebub’s eyebrows knitted together, “Look like me?”

“Yes, blonde hair, and like all of us, demons, red eyes. But he was certainly much older than you. Also! He has a strange scar on his face,” the elderly woman tapped a single spot on her face, the location in which she had seen the wound appearing on the man’s face.

Beelzebub’s eyes immediately widened. “When did he come here?”

“Not long ago. Like you two, he seemed to have fallen off the cliff. He depart right a day ago before you two came. I was thinking to discard the bandages as I need none of them who would have guessed I would need them this soo—” the woman’s words fell into a clipped silence when Beelzebub caught her by her shoulders. 

“Did he told you where he would go now?”

By the time Esther came back, she heard noises from the insides of the house. Curious and concerned, Esther rushed inside the house only to find the elderly woman trying to stop Beelzebub from leaving by catching tightly to his arm and pulling him backward.

“You are still ill!! Where do you think you are going?” The elderly woman snapped her eyes when she found Esther standing near the door and at once, she raised her voice. “Help me! Stop the insanity of this man right now! He may not want death but my poor nerves are affected terribly seeing him walking around with that deep wound on his stomach!”

“What are you doing?!” Esther questioned with a gasp between her words. “You should be resting right now not moving! Do you need to fall from another cliff again to understand this?!”

Beelzebub didn’t answer. Therefore, Esther’s only help was the elderly woman who had been in the house with him the entire time, knowing what occurred to Beelzebub without her presence. 

“He asked about the man which came the other day before your arrival. I told and describe how that man looked and now all of a sudden he wanted to move away!!” 

Esther took a few time to understand before her eyes widened, “Is it your uncle?” She asked Beelzebub who nodded his head firmly. Her eyes darted back to the elderly woman, “Do you know how long that man stayed here or where did he go? Did he gave you any bits of information regarding himself?” 

The elderly woman sighed, “I don’t know anything about where he would be going. After all, I was only helping them. I didn’t know there would be an opportunity where you would come. Is this person important to you?”

“We came to kill that fucker,” Beelzebub was the one to reply. He looked at Esther, “I don’t need your help, I am certain I would be alright. There’s nothing wrong with a wound or two. This isn’t my first—”

SLAP

Beelzebub’s eyes were stunned. His face turned to the other side but his gaze remained on trained on Esther who had raised her hand across his cheeks.

“Your life isn’t yours alone now,” Esther woke him up from his daze. It appeared that he thought him dying would be alright and fine but she wasn’t one to accept that kind of thought from Beelzebub. “I saved you. Therefore half or more of that life you have right now that enable you to move is mine. You have no right to push yourself to a near-death situation like this again.”

After relaying what she needed to say, Esther then walk away, her hands clenching together.

The elderly woman stared at the high demon who appeared to be still. He was still surprised that Esther would slap him, as though he never expected such action before, ever. 

“That’s what you get when you anger a woman. Now, it would do you good to rest unless you wish to cause further damage on you, her, and both your relationship.”

When the night came, Esther had picked the water basin she borrowed from the elderly woman, bringing warm water which she then placed on the basin.

The elderly woman stood not far from her as she bring her hand to hover over the water surface of the water basin before whispering a spell between her lips. 

Once she was done, Esther pushed herself from her seat with a complex expression. The elderly woman curiously questioned, “What did you do? Love potion?”

“There’s no such thing as love potion. Even if there does, i can only imagine the effect of that love potion will kill the affected,” Esther bring her hand over her chin, “I was trying to see who had attacked Beelzebub by seeing back to my own memory using that spell.”

“And?” 

“There’s nothing,” Esther said with a frown. “There was a few men who attacked Beelzebub and even stubbornly caused men to fall with him. Not to forget another addition to the group of a man who had shot an arrow precisely on Beel’s wings as if knowing this was the only method to bring him down with their power difference.”

“I think it would be better if you talked directly to that man of yours rather than staying idle here,” the elderly woman suggested. 

Esther agreed to her words and although she felt awkward and a bit nervous of the reaction Beelzebub would give to her as she had slapped him earlier. Too harsh even, thought Esther. 

While she doesn’t retract the action she did, she can’t help but worry. It wouldn’t hurt if I slapped him less painful than earlier, scolded Esther to herself. 

She tried to walk slowly but then there was no escape from her. By the time she left the kitchen, she had somehow arrived in front of his room in less than thirty seconds. 

Raising her hand, she knocked on the floor, “Can we talk, Beel?”

There was no running away for her but Esther didn’t want to run away either. The problem they had between them, it was time to clear them once and for all. 

“It won’t take a long time,” she added nervously, thinking Beelzebub’s silence as a tacit disagreement but all of those worries drew when the door was opened. 

Beelzebub being taller than Esther, easily tower her with his height. His red eyes looking at her held so many expressions. 

“Ready to slap me again?” Beelzebub said as a joke but his expression was devoid of laughter.

“I tried to find who the people that pushed us from the cliff earlier—” Esther saw Beelzebub walking behind and letting Esther to enter with his hand spread. Esther entered the room in silence and continued, “But I wasn’t able to find them.”

She wasn’t able to complete her words when all of a sudden, Beelzebub pushed her to the wall. He caught her arms and pushed her to the wall, pinning her against him and the wall with both his arms on the side of her face. 

“I don’t think we can run away again. Let’s find a solution to this together,” suggested Beelzebub and he watched how surprise sparkled over Esther’s eyes.