THDK Chapter 23

First Victory (Part 1)

When I woke up, I wished that the first thing I saw would be Nox. As I grew older, we slept together less often, and now we slept in separate places every day.

It wasn’t until I reached this age that I realized how difficult it was to obtain something that had once been easily given to me.

I gently kissed Nox’s lips as he slept peacefully beside me. These were the happiest moments of my life. I wished that I was the only one who could touch him like this. My desires grew stronger, and I could no longer control them.

“Don’t wake up yet.”

“Yeah.”

Nox held me close, and my face grew hot against his chest. Listening to his heartbeat made me feel a little tearful. I was too happy, and it scared me.

“How was the forest?”

“You don’t need to worry about it.”

“I don’t want to be left out.”

“Recently, humans have been crossing the boundary line more frequently, but it’s nothing major.”

“Yeah…”

It seemed like he still wouldn’t tell me anything. Maybe there were things he couldn’t tell me, or maybe he thought it was none of my business as a human. I didn’t like the thought.

But Nox wasn’t that kind of person. He had protected me, a human, and transcended the boundaries between humans and demons. There must be a reason why he wouldn’t tell me.

“Why do humans and demons always fight?”

There must be a way for us to make amends.

“According to history books, humans and demons used to live together and help each other. The fact that some humans are born with magical abilities is a remnant of that coexistence.”

I was surprised by Nox’s words and looked up to meet his serious gaze.

“Back then, there was no forest, and humans and demons could move freely between each other’s territories. But one day, in a village, a demon child and a human child fought, and the demon child injured the human child. That small spark ignited the conflict between humans and demons, and the war ended with the death of the first hero, the human king.”

“The hero… did the humans lose?”

“Yes. The first demon king created a massive forest along the boundary line to avoid further conflict. The forest, born from the demon king’s immense magical power, became home to magical creatures.”

This was the first time I had heard the demon’s side of history. It was vastly different from the human history books, which portrayed demons as a cruel and brutal species, and the war as entirely their fault.

As I listened to him, I felt grateful to have him by my side. I was happy to have met him, and I knew that he felt the same way.