Chapter 45: A pet
A few hours had passed since the surreal scene of Sapphire, the Demon Queen, eating sandwiches and drinking lemonade as a cordial guest in Vergil and Katharina's house.
The atmosphere had calmed down, with an unexpected air of tranquility.
Vergil, in his usual carefree manner, had fallen asleep, leaning against the sofa next to Katharina, who in turn looked at her mother with a mixture of curiosity and apprehension.
Sapphire, as always, maintained the composure of an unshakable empress, observing the sleeping young man with her legs crossed in a rather tempting way.
She sighed deeply before looking at Katharina, her green eyes glowing with something Katharina knew well: it wasn't affection but rather a careful evaluation.
"So, Katharina... Why did you do it? I'm sure you know that this boy..." Sapphire asked, her voice soft but laden with sharp irony.
Katharina, who had been drinking some water to calm herself, almost choked on the question. "Yeah, mom... well, he's special. I only found out later... though I don't know what exactly..."
Sapphire raised an eyebrow in an amused way. "Special, is he? Oh dear... if only you knew what you've created..."
Katharina smiled nervously. She already understood that she had done something wrong... but hearing it from her own mother made it much worse than she thought...
The fact that her mother, who rarely showed interest in anyone, was analyzing this man like this was already clear... She saw something greater than anything in this world... After all, a woman like her had no interest in anything anymore...
'What could it be...?' she wondered.
This, for Katharina, was both good and bad. "Are you going to explain what it is?" she asked, though she clearly knew the answer.
Sapphire chuckled softly, something unusual. "It's not like you'd understand, is it?" That reaction, Katharina couldn't help but imagine what was really happening...
Her husband, her beloved husband, had already entered the demon's den and was being watched by their queen as if he were a toy...
At that moment, her madness for him seemed almost rational compared to what this woman beside her was demonstrating...
Her Yandere side was being shattered and rebuilt with each passing second, and she couldn't even imagine what was really happening. She didn't even feel like herself anymore...
'It's his emotions affecting me... the Master-Servant contract is taking much of my Self and making me more like him...' she thought. She had been having these theories for a while, but... Now it felt real, she was starting to resemble him a bit, at least her madness for him seemed slightly subdued, though her love kept growing stronger...
"I came thinking I'd have to kill this man for you to evolve a little, but I was quite mistaken... You really found something impressive. I haven't seen someone so... audacious in many years." Her mother teased with a smile.
Katharina huffed. "Audacious is a delicate way of saying he's crazy."
Sapphire tilted her head to the side, her eyes focused on Vergil's sleeping face. "Crazy? Maybe. But there's also something familiar about him. Something that reminds me of... well, never mind.
He is different, no doubt about that."
Silence briefly settled between the two as Sapphire seemed thoughtful. Despite all her usual boldness, Katharina felt the weight of her mother's presence. Even when Sapphire was relaxed, she emanated an aura of power and absolute control.
"Do you love him?" Sapphire asked suddenly, without even looking at her daughter.
The question caught Katharina off guard. She knew that, for her mother, love was an insignificant, almost laughable concept.
Sapphire had never shown any interest in such an emotion; everything always revolved around power, strategy, and battles.
Katharina hesitated for a moment before answering. "Yes, I love him. He's an idiot, arrogant, and reckless... but he makes me want to be better. And... he makes me laugh, which doesn't happen often, as you well know."
Sapphire remained silent, her eyes still fixed on Vergil.
Then, with a slight smile on her lips, she spoke again. "Interesting. You're really trying... really trying for him."
Katharina stayed quiet. She knew that her mother didn't praise easily, much less express any kind of approval. This was the closest to an "I'm proud of you" she would ever hear from Sapphire.
"He's strong, but he's still naive. He doesn't understand what it means to be married to a demon. Especially one from the Agares lineage." Sapphire stood up from the sofa, walking with the cold elegance that always accompanied her. "But I think he'll learn quickly... After all, I'm going to train him very well... And when I do, we'll see what he's truly capable of."
Katharina, still watching her mother, couldn't help but feel a twinge of nervousness.
Sapphire had always been a Spartan, always testing those around her. And Vergil, despite his strength, was not prepared for the mind games of his mother-in-law.
'He's going to die soon...' she thought.
"It'll be fun," Sapphire said, lightly running her fingers over her lips, almost as if teasing her daughter.
Katharina rolled her eyes. "Of course, mother. I was expecting this."
Suddenly, Sapphire snapped her fingers, and a dense, reddish aura began to emanate around her. The air in the room seemed to grow heavier, and a sense of anticipation filled the space.
Katharina knew this feeling well, and her stomach twisted with nervous excitement.
"Snake, come here," Sapphire commanded in a firm and dominating voice.
Out of nowhere, a small snake appeared in Sapphire's hand, with red scales and eyes glowing like rubies, materializing in the center of the room.
The Demon Queen's familiar spirit, a small demonic python, slowly coiled itself around Sapphire's neck, its movements fluid and graceful.
"It's been a while since I've seen that strange serpent..." Katharina commented as she watched her mother whisper something to the snake in a language she had no idea about.
Vergil slowly opened his eyes, sensing the energy around him.
His eyes widened when he saw the tiny snake coiled around Sapphire's neck, its forked tongue flicking in and out of its mouth as its predatory eyes stared directly at him.
"What the hell...?" Vergil murmured, rubbing his eyes as if trying to confirm what he was seeing.
Sapphire chuckled softly. "This is my familiar, Skake. Beautiful, isn't she?"
Still dazed, Vergil stared at the snake. "I... uh... wow. That's amazing."
Katharina, seeing Vergil's reaction, began to laugh softly. "Tch, I have one too," she said irritably, annoyed by the attention he was giving her mother.
Vergil se stood up slowly, watching the serpent move fluidly and hypnotically around Sapphire. "That's… wow. I've never seen anything like it."
"You're easily impressed, boy," Sapphire commented, her enigmatic smile still in place. "But this is just a small familiar."
Still awestruck, Vergil glanced at Katharina and then back at Sapphire. "If this is a test, I'm all in. After all, it's not every day you see something so… majestic."
Sapphire raised an eyebrow, clearly intrigued by his reaction. "Majestic, huh?" She ran her hand along the serpent's scales, as if petting a favorite animal.
Well, it was her pet...
"Either way, it's not time for her to keep showing off." Sapphire said, and the serpent opened a small rift and vanished.
"Huh? Where did it go?" Vergil asked, his eyes sparkling with curiosity, eager to understand more.
Sapphire smirked at his enthusiasm. He looked like a curious child witnessing the serpent's sudden disappearance, and that amused her in an unexpected way. She crossed her arms, tilting her head slightly, now studying him with more interest than before.
"She returned to the spiritual plane," Sapphire explained calmly, as though she'd done this countless times. "Familiars like Skake can only manifest in the physical world for a limited time unless I choose to keep them here. But I don't see the need to waste energy on that right now."
Vergil frowned slightly, still captivated. "Interesting... and you said she's just a small familiar? That was... incredible."
Katharina rolled her eyes and chuckled. "You're so easy to impress, Vergil. Anything magical gets you excited."
Vergil shrugged, a relaxed smile on his face. "It's not every day I see a mystical snake or whatever it is, alright? And if this is some kind of test from my mother-in-law, I want to be ready."
"HAHAHA," Sapphire let out a dry laugh, something that made Katharina look at her, surprised. Her mother rarely laughed out loud, and this was the second time she had done it. "Boy, if I were really testing you, you'd know it. That was just a... light warm-up." She then turned to Katharina. "He has an insatiable curiosity, doesn't he?"
Katharina shrugged. "Well, I guess we could give him a familiar... After all, tonight is a Full Moon," Sapphire said with a smile, making Vergil's eyes light up.
"YES!" he exclaimed, excitement overflowing.
"And here we go… she's spoiling him now only to crush him like a bug later... because that's what she always does… Poor husband," Katharina thought, seeing the predatory look masked behind her mother's smile aimed at her.
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<Author's Note>
Hey, remember to use your Golden Tickets and Power Stones to help the work reach new heights!