Little Pink Starfish

Around the time it was getting close to dinner,

Star and I returned to Geahrzimen’s guesthouse.

The moment we passed through the neatly decorated front door, Mika and Kkomuli came into view.<Got you.>

Star spoke flatly toward Mika. I was thinking the same.

“Geahrzimen would never just let things be…”

I muttered, scratching the back of my head. Mika was cleaning the roof of the guesthouse with his wings spread wide. Well, the roof is a bit hard to reach, I guess. Thinking that, I looked at Kkomuli, who was holding a mop dipped in a bucket.

“Does Geahrzimen usually work you too hard?”

“Very hard.”

Kkomuli answered calmly.

“But it’s fine. Sometimes if I say I want to buy snacks, she gives me allowance.”

“What about wages…?”

“What’s that?”

Kkomuli asked, widening his eyes. Seeing that expression on my younger self’s face made me feel strangely sympathetic toward myself. At the very least, shouldn’t he be paid while working? I sighed at the thought.

“Even though I look like my master, I am fundamentally different from a human.”

Kkomuli said to me.

“So I don’t find it hard at all. And if the labor isn’t hard, I can’t ask for payment. Geahrzimen and I are just playing house like this.”

“…There are so many things I want to object to.”

But maybe I should just leave it.

<Leave him be. He’s much more obedient than you. It’s nice to see.>

Star said with a mischievous smile.

<Hey, Mikael!>

Then he shouted toward Mikael, who was wiping the roof.

<You can come down now. There’s no need to go along with Geahrzimen’s games.>

<I cannot! The cleaning isn’t finished yet!>

Mika replied to Star’s shout.

‘Is he actually enjoying this?’

I tilted my head in thought. Given Mika’s nature, I’d expect him to feel uncomfortable being ordered around by a demon. Star seemed to think the same.

Contrary to our expectations, Mika was genuinely earnest in his cleaning. Star was visibly taken aback by this fact.

<…Why?>

Star mumbled, tilting his head.

<What happened to him?>

“He said working with me is fun.”

Kkomuli replied with an innocent smile.

“That angel said I’m not a bad-looking demon.”

<…Unbelievable.>

Star shook his head as he stared at Kkomuli.

<Usually, he wouldn’t even share a table with demons. Yet now he’s charmed by a demon raised by some lowly human.>

“Sorry for being a lowly human.”

I said blankly.

<Be glad you know it. Just so you know, the Abyssal Sea King looked much better in its original form when I created it.>

“I don’t think so. What you made was too disgusting.”

Kkomuli pouted and retorted.

<Hmph.>

Star clicked his tongue and walked toward the inside of the guesthouse.

<Do as you wish. Keep cleaning until you feel like stopping. I’ll be discussing our future plans with Geahrzimen.>

Just as he slid open the door—

“Nope.”

Geahrzimen appeared.

“Sorry, Your Majesty, but it’s about time for dinner. I was thinking of having a barbecue outside. You enjoyed it last time too, remember? I’ll be busy setting the table, so let’s postpone the talk till later tonight.”

After all, we don’t need sleep, do we?

We have plenty of time.

Saying that, Geahrzimen carried a basket full of barbecue supplies into the yard.

“Archangel, that’s enough. Come down now, will you?”

Geahrzimen called up to the roof, and Mikael, after glancing down at her, landed lightly on the ground.<Your body was filthy. Streaks of dried rainwater everywhere.>

“Why is that filthy? Dried rain stains, moss growing, even mold—all of it is beautiful, isn’t it? You guys created it all, after all. That’s why I’m attached to Earth.”

After casually refuting Mika’s comment, Geahrzimen placed a hand on Kkomuli’s head.

“You worked hard today. I’ll buy you some snacks next time we go shopping.”

“Hey, you should be paying him properly…”

I sighed as I spoke.

“I do give him some allowance. I feed him, shelter him, so really, shouldn’t he be paying me? Capitalism is bad. It’s a demon humans created. I hope Kkomuli can live without being involved in it.”

She sure talks a lot for someone with a mouth.

I brushed back my hair, thinking.

Meanwhile, I glanced at Star.

Star was frowning with his arms crossed, clearly displeased with the situation. I could understand why. Having heard in detail about Star’s quest to find the Demon God, I knew he was growing quite anxious. With even Mika siding with this situation, all that remained for Star was to act.

Precisely because of that…

“Just hold it together a bit.”

I tapped Star’s arm.

<Hold what together?>

“Your goal.”

<I’ve held back long enough.>

“Oh really?”

I smiled.

“You always act so arrogant and lazy. Watching you getting impatient is actually kind of fun. But that’s not why I’m telling you to hold it together…”

I mean clear your head a bit.

I mumbled.

<…My head is quite cool already. You can touch and check if you want.>

Star replied begrudgingly.

<But fine, I’ll listen to you for now.>

He grumbled but accepted my suggestion and walked off.

‘Such a stubborn guy.’

I thought.

For Star, the Demon God is his daughter. He simply can’t or refuses to acknowledge that.

Of course, for me—and for all humanity—the Demon God is an enemy. Honestly, I still wasn’t confident I could remain calm when facing her. My choice to join this search was purely based on my friendship with Star.

‘A daughter who committed an unspeakably great sin…’

It resembled how Star had rebelled against the Savior Who Is One and All. That’s how I couldn’t help but think.

‘Still…’

I was quite shocked to learn that Vanessa Bernstein was with the Demon God. Why was she seeking the Demon God? To carry out her father’s will and punish the Demon God? Either way, it was hard to understand.

‘Actually… the more I think about it, the stranger it gets.’

For example, Vanessa Bernstein’s very existence was odd.

As far as I knew, she only appeared after Matteo Bernstein’s death. Then she entered CYB and won. At the time of her victory, she was thirty-one. Considering Matteo Bernstein’s age, she was an unusually late-born daughter.

‘Well, he was involved in so many things…’

But what was Vanessa doing until she was over thirty?

Matteo Bernstein was extremely private. Even vicious paparazzi couldn’t dig into his personal life. So perhaps it was true that he intentionally hid his daughter. But why? While it’s not uncommon for celebrities to shield their young children from the media, it’s rare to hide an adult daughter.

‘That’s why it caused quite a stir…’

While Vanessa Bernstein was making waves on CYB, I was participating too, so I didn’t have the chance to research it. Checking foreign news felt like a waste of time.

Later, I learned that there was much debate about Vanessa Bernstein, who won in the solo category. Naturally, since she was Matteo Bernstein’s daughter.

“My father tried to protect me.”

Vanessa was reported to have said.

But the public isn’t so easily convinced by just words.

Even though DNA tests proved she was Matteo Bernstein’s biological daughter, many claimed those results were fabricated. It was inevitable. Vanessa Bernstein was perfect fodder for conspiracy theories.

‘Well, whatever.’

I shook my head.

I’ll be facing her soon anyway; no point overthinking it now.

It seemed I too was getting a bit anxious.

“You seem to be thinking about my mother.”

Geahrzimen suddenly spoke to me.

“Well, sort of…”

To be exact, I was more curious about her contractor.

“To demons, she was a revolutionary. But to humans, the worst villain.”

Geahrzimen answered cheerfully.

“I know that much.”

I had heard plenty of inside stories.

Though her crimes weren’t forgivable, I could understand why demons continued to revere her. To demons, the Demon God truly was divine—a being who united them from Hell and led them to claim land outside Hell.

“A god, not a king.”

Geahrzimen described her.

“But I believe my mother should be punished.”

She added honestly.

“That hasn’t changed. If the Constellations decide she should be erased, I’ll agree. But I might shed a tear.”

Though I’m not sure if I even have the function to cry?

She smiled as she added that.

“Demons were created to be unacceptable to any existence. They’re necessary pieces in the world of the Savior Who Is One and All. Without a public enemy, good and evil would be hard to distinguish. But I don’t intend to ask Mr. Eunyul to pity us demons. That’s beyond the insight of a mere human.”

However…

Geahrzimen continued.

“That’s why I’m curious.”

“About what?”

“The conclusion a human will reach after learning the depths of this world.”

“…I see.”

Humans are creatures.

Therefore, they cannot fully know the depths of this world.

With limited lifespans and fragile bodies.

Yet even as a human, I was continuously learning more about the foundation of this world.

‘…Together with Star.’

The time will soon come when I must reach my own conclusion.