Chapter 76
That very day, Yomi wrote Satan a reply. Toward this nominal adoptive father of his, his feelings were extremely complicated.
His previous thought had been: even if they met again in the future outside of a battlefield, they would still inevitably be as incompatible as fire and water.
After all, in Satan’s eyes, the one he had initially wanted to adopt was merely an ordinary Junk Star resident whose original form happened to be a little sheep. Yet not only had that person stolen his confidential documents, his true identity was also the very Sheep Asura whom Satan had long declared he would personally kill…
When Yomi left Pearl State, he had never once imagined that he and Satan would ever meet again in the identity of father and son.
That letter from Satan shattered all of his previous understanding.
Yomi could not describe whether he felt happy or sad after reading it. His reply contained only one sentence:
Ghost State will always welcome you.
by: Little Sheep
Other than that line, he truly did not know what else to write. The situation in Pearl State was still unclear, and too much information had come crashing down on him all at once. Yomi needed some time to process it.
All in all, though, he was still happy inside.
If he and Satan could reconcile, that would absolutely be a good thing.
Anxius, however, could not fully trust Satan’s claim of submitting to Ghost State. In his view, Satan was very likely using Yomi’s feelings to make them lower their guard, only to launch a surprise attack on Ghost State afterward.
One must never let down one’s vigilance.
That very same day, Anxius issued orders to strengthen defenses specifically against Pearl State.
A few days later, Yomi received another letter from Satan.
This time, Yexi brought it back from town. On the envelope were the words: To Little Sheep Personally
Yomi assumed it was a classified document and opened the envelope with great caution.
Dear Little Sheep Baby:
How have you been lately? If you need anything, tell Daddy, and Daddy will send it over.
Those old bastards in Pearl State are hateful, but don’t worry, everything is being resolved smoothly. Daddy will come see you with gifts.
By Little Sheep Baby’s Dad: Satan
Yomi: “……”
Meanwhile, in Pearl State—
After instructing his subordinates to spread rumors that Pearl State’s lord had fallen out with his own men, Cold Crow turned to look at Satan packing up his luggage in the room, then gave a helpless sigh.
The lord had clearly fallen for Little Sheep’s charms, and since he insisted on having that little brat as a son, there was nothing Cold Crow could do about it. Now he was even putting on a misery act to earn sympathy—it was beyond ridiculous.
“Is this really necessary?”
“Of course it is. This way my son will see my resolve.”
“…You’re really not changing your mind? You truly mean to go to Ghost State like this?”
In Cold Crow’s eyes, going single-handedly to meet Sheep Asura was, in the past, no different from marching to one’s death! It was true that Sheep Asura had spared him once before, but who knew what would happen this time, on the other side’s home ground?
“Why wouldn’t I go? A father seeing his son is only natural!” Satan gave a cold snort and went right back to packing. Aside from a few changes of clothes for himself, the suitcase was filled entirely with gifts for the little sheep.
Once he finished packing, the servants began moving the luggage into the vehicle, and in no time the car was stuffed full.
Satan still seemed to think it was not enough. If Cold Crow had not stopped him, he absolutely would have had them tie several more layers on top of the roof.
Once Satan finished arranging the final affairs on Pearl State’s side, Cold Crow hurried into the driver’s seat and almost in one breath drove the car out of the estate grounds, afraid that Satan might suddenly order the servants to stuff even more things inside.
The journey was long. Cold Crow and Satan took turns driving. After several days of travel, the deeper they entered Ghost State, the worse the roads became, and before long the two of them got lost.
There was no signal at all here. Fortunately, using the map he had prepared in advance, Cold Crow managed to drive them to the nearest market with people.
This market was extremely simple, and the things being sold there were a complete jumble, nowhere near as convenient as life in Pearl State.
Still, they had come from places like this themselves, so it was not as though they could not adapt. Cold Crow found a stall owner and asked for the location of Sheep Asura’s farm, then redrew a small map for himself before finally feeling reassured.
Just as they were about to leave, they suddenly heard the loud crying of a child. Following the sound, they saw a little kid with horns on his head, furiously wiping away tears, looking pitiful beyond words.
Cold Crow thought at first that the child had gotten lost, so he hurriedly asked the vendors nearby. Only then did he learn that the child was actually the son of another nearby stall owner.
The child’s mother had recently gone out to deliver something for someone and had left him money to buy food, but the child had accidentally lost the coins. He could not find them no matter how hard he looked, so he was crying his heart out over it, still searching and still not finding the money.
Several nearby stall owners who knew him were all telling him it was fine, that his mother would be back soon.
Cold Crow did not stop to watch any longer. Naturally, that stall owner would not be lacking one meal. Things like this, which seemed like huge disasters in a child’s eyes, were not really worth mentioning in the eyes of adults.
Satan had not planned to bother either. But just as he turned away, Yomi’s figure suddenly flashed unbidden through his mind.
He was Little Sheep’s father now. If one day Little Sheep cried and someone went to help him, he would certainly be deeply grateful.
Without thinking further, Satan ran to a nearby snack stall, bought a large bag of food, and walked straight over to the child. “Take it.”
The child stopped crying and stared blankly at the snacks before him.
When Satan saw him shyly shaking his head, he directly stuffed the bag into the child’s hands, then patted his head before leaving.
It was the kind of thing he absolutely would never have done in the past. So when he saw the stunned look on Cold Crow’s face up ahead, he himself felt a little awkward.
The two got back into the car and continued on.
But influenced by that child, Satan began growing sentimental. He imagined all sorts of scenes of Little Sheep lacking clothes and food, and his heart ached terribly: Baby, just hold on, Daddy is on the way!
Once they got back on the right route, they hurried along for another full day before finally reaching the market nearest Little Sheep Farm.
The two monsters were starving. The moment they got out of the car, they began searching everywhere for a place to eat.
But after only a few steps, Cold Crow was yanked by the arm by Satan. Following the direction of his gaze, he saw a clothing shop printed with a little sheep head logo. Satan’s voice trembled: “Little Sheep Baby… it looks too much like Little Sheep Baby…”
As he spoke, he forgot all about his hunger and charged straight inside. The moment the owner told him that this really was part of Sheep Asura’s business, he declared he wanted to buy everything!
“The car can’t fit it all!” Cold Crow desperately stopped him. “If you want to support him, just buy a few pieces.”
Satan had no choice but to select a few of the smallest little capes. After finishing that, he also picked out a bow tie. He had brought Little Sheep Baby a little suit, but life in Ghost State was so hard that the child surely did not own many suits.
Once they finished buying clothes, the two of them went nearby to one of the chain restaurants belonging to the Little Sheep Chef Team.
After gobbling down a hearty meal, both Satan and Cold Crow still felt not quite satisfied, so they bought some dried meat and a few tea eggs too.
This flavor… impossible to get in Pearl State!
Just as Cold Crow was eating with relish, he looked up and saw that the lord opposite him had red-rimmed eyes.
He was startled. What kind of madness now?
Satan said, “I can’t imagine just how much suffering my son must have gone through to be able to make so many delicious things…”
Cold Crow replied, “Uh… obviously he didn’t cook all this on the spot.”
Satan: “Maybe he got up before dawn and stayed up late preparing all these ingredients ahead of time. My son…”
Cold Crow truly did not want to deal with him.
After filling themselves with a good meal, they realized they had bought too many things on the road, so they hired another vehicle. On the way, they even bought a large mountain boar from a hunter. Satan said he wanted to bring it to Little Sheep Baby to nourish his body.
Though Cold Crow kept saying aloud that a lord like him surely did not lack such things, he still could not help buying a wild chicken from the same hunter—when Little Sheep had been at the estate, he had seemed especially fond of chicken soup.
On the final stretch of road toward the farm, Satan’s palms had already begun to sweat from nervousness. When they got out midway to rest, he casually made conversation with the hired driver for a while. After holding back for a long time, he finally asked whether the driver knew Sheep Asura.
The driver immediately replied, “Not only do I know him, I’ve even worked at his farm before!”
The moment Satan heard that, he perked right up.
“In fact, even if I hadn’t worked there, there’s no way I wouldn’t know Sheep Asura.” The driver smiled, then began talking about all the changes Sheep Asura had brought to Ghost State.
“There’s less conflict, and a lot of people who used to have nothing to do have jobs now. I heard Sheep Asura is even preparing to build a school…”
Cold Crow had looked up information on Ghost State before, and it was mostly in line with what the driver was saying. But since he had assumed it was all exaggerated, he was rather surprised. “…All of that is actually true?”
“Of course it’s true. You two are from out of town, right? On the way here, did you run into thieves or robbers? Probably not even anyone looking for trouble, right? In the old days, Ghost State was nothing like as safe as it is now.”
Cold Crow nodded. He had spent too long in Pearl State and had almost forgotten what other regions were like. Indeed, all along this journey they had been carrying plenty of goods, yet no one had tried to covet them. It had gone surprisingly smoothly.
The driver continued, “We’ve built a lot of prisons in Ghost State now, with dedicated people managing them. If you commit crimes, you get arrested. These days everyone has things to do and life is pretty decent. More and more outside merchants are coming here to trade… By the way, you two must be here for business too, right? Though you came a bit late. There are already so many outside merchants now that you might not be able to compete with them.”
Cold Crow only smiled and said nothing.
Satan, meanwhile, listened intently the whole time.
The driver clearly liked to chat and went on, “Still, these past few days I’ve heard a rumor that the lord of Pearl State is going to submit to Sheep Asura? It doesn’t sound real at all. Around here everyone thinks it’s just a smokescreen. That lord will probably bring people over to attack before long. But don’t worry…”
“Utter nonsense!” Satan snapped, cutting him off in anger.
“How is it nonsense? There’s a basis for it too. They say Sheep Asura made that Pearl State lord look like a complete fool over there. Honestly, if he wants to strike back afterward, that’s only normal. Human nature, really…”
“He was not made to look like a complete fool!” Satan retorted. “And there must be hidden circumstances behind it. In a struggle for power, can you really call that being fooled? You should believe that Sheep Asura absolutely did not do it on purpose.”
Cold Crow: “……”
Driver: “……”
The three of them got back into the vehicle, and after that none of them spoke again.
By around noon, the car finally reached the main road in front of Little Sheep Farm.
The driver unloaded the goods and then hurried away.
A few minutes later, Satan and Cold Crow, each carrying bulging sacks, knocked at the gate of the farm.
The one who opened the door was a young man with many tentacles. “You two are… looking for who, exactly?”
Just as Satan was about to speak, Cold Crow cleverly cut in first. “Hello. We’re merchants from out of town and would like to discuss some major cooperative ventures with Lord Sheep Asura. We’ve come specifically to request an audience.”
The moment Satan heard that, he immediately nodded in strong approval.
That way, it could be a surprise for Little Sheep.
Of course, Cold Crow felt the odds were rather high that it would be more shock than surprise. The reason he had not announced Satan’s name was because he was afraid they would be thrown out on the spot if he did.
Lynn, who had come to the gate, did not recognize either Satan or Cold Crow, and did not think too much about it. He simply nodded and ran off to inform Yomi.
While waiting, Satan quietly looked around the farm.
Though it was not as luxurious as his own estate, it was no smaller in area. Overall, it was not actually inferior to his estate. It was the image of a classic rural farm. Every place had been tended in orderly fashion. There were chickens, ducks, a little pond, and a broad vegetable patch lush with greenery. In the distance there was also a sewing workshop from which voices could occasionally be heard.
In front of all the buildings on this farm were planned flowerbeds, and the seasonal flowers were blooming beautifully.
Some fruit trees were even heavy with fruit, and birds occasionally came to steal bites from them…
All in all, the entire farm was clean and bright, the air fresh, like some painted paradise hidden away from the world…
Satan’s body had grown a little tense. He had still never seen Little Sheep’s human form. The little person Cold Crow had drawn was too abstract. He simply could not imagine the child’s real face from that.
The only thing he could picture was a pitiful illusion of Little Sheep returning here ten pounds thinner.
Sigh. Poor Little Sheep Baby.
Meanwhile, upstairs in Sheep Asura’s Office—
Yomi sat in a gently rocking chair, focused on a successful-person interview playing on his optical brain. Every so often, he grabbed a handful of popcorn and ate it, until his mouth and the air around him were filled with a fragrant sweetness.
The popcorn had been made by Anxius that morning. Sweet and crisp, it did not take long before he finished an entire tub. Afterward, feeling sleepy, he squinted at Anxius, who was over there reviewing Ghost State documents for him. He glanced once, then kept watching the interview, though the two legs he had stretched apart gradually drew back together.
Out of the corner of his eye, Anxius had been watching him the whole time. Looking up, he asked, “What is it?”
Yomi shook his head. “Nothing. I just drank a lot of water while eating popcorn, so I kind of want to go to the bathroom… I’m waiting until I finish this part first.”
A moment later, the man at the desk strode over in large steps, paused the video first, then bent down and carried the little person to the bathroom.
When they came back out, sly little Yomi said without blushing or his heart racing, “I only meant to wait a little while.”
Anxius replied, “Mm, holding it in is bad for the body.”
“……”
Just then, there was a knock from outside.
“Mimi, there are two merchants from out of town who want to see you. They say they have a big project they want to cooperate on.”
The moment he heard “big project,” Yomi thought nothing more of it. He quickly straightened his clothes and fixed his hair, preparing to receive guests.
After hearing “two out-of-town merchants,” Anxius frowned slightly. He seemed to realize something. Suddenly he changed back into his original form and carried Yomi downstairs in his arms.
Outside the farm gate—
Satan finally saw someone coming out!
He held his breath. The first thing he noticed was a tall monster figure, and its size startled him to a certain degree—this was not what Cold Crow had described at all.
Could it be that the tiny human form had been a disguise too?
That made sense. How could such a tiny physique possibly be called Sheep Asura?
Still, his son really did have childlike innocence—even when coming out to meet merchants, he still insisted on holding a doll.
“…Your son is the one in his arms,” Cold Crow reminded him.
Satan: ?!
Seeing that the man was about to faint, Cold Crow quickly caught him.
Satan covered his heart, steadied himself again, and slowly lifted his head.
The great monster holding his son had already walked right up in front of him, its gaze distinctly unfriendly.
At first Yomi still had not dared be certain. But once they were close… who else could these two be but Satan and Cold Crow?
His eyes widened like a cat’s. “You… what are you doing here?!”
Compared to Satan, Cold Crow was far calmer, though his voice inevitably carried some tension. “Apologies. The lord originally wanted to give you a surprise… We truly have come rather abruptly. But we didn’t bring any other subordinates or weapons. This time we really do come in sincerity.” He was not actually afraid of Sheep Asura, but the monster holding Sheep Asura did put pressure on him. Having said that, he nudged the still-dazed Satan. “Lord, isn’t that right?”
Satan snapped back to himself. Staring fixedly at the little person’s porcelain-white face, he nodded. “Yes. He’s so cute.”
Cold Crow: “?”
Under the little person’s blank gaze, Satan abruptly set down the sack he had been carrying, then proudly displayed one precious food item from Pearl State after another like a treasure offering. “Little Sheep Baby, these are all gifts Daddy brought for you.”
“Ah? This is far too much…”
“Not much at all. The car couldn’t fit all that much. There’s still plenty more that hasn’t been unloaded. Daddy will bring it all in for you in a while.”
Yomi: …Such heavy fatherly love.
Pearl State and Ghost State were very far apart. Since everything had already been brought all this way, Yomi had no real reason to send it back. He only thought that later, when Satan returned, he would prepare more gifts in return.
Guests were guests, after all. Yomi smiled and slid down from his boyfriend’s arms, warmly inviting them inside.
Anxius remained silent the entire time, only casting sidelong glances at them. Although he did bear hostility toward the two of them, he could tell that neither Satan nor Cold Crow intended to harm Yomi, and besides, they truly had not brought weapons.
Yomi first showed them his office. “This is where I work. There’s even a reception room here.”
The instant he walked in, Satan was charmed out of his mind by the little tables and little chairs inside.
Yomi’s mercenary secretary came over to serve them tea and took the chance to ask, “Boss Little Sheep, do you have any other arrangements for today?”
Yomi shook his head. “No more. Today I’m going to entertain friends.”
“Understood.”
Friends? Cold Crow blushed.
Satan, however, gazed at Yomi holding a tiny teacup and drinking from it, and could not help asking, “Son, you’re so small—won’t you get bullied?”
At the word “son,” Yomi nearly sprayed out a mouthful of tea.
Anxius’s face darkened at once.
“My lord, mind your boundaries,” Cold Crow reminded him through gritted teeth. “He still hasn’t acknowledged you.”
Satan wanted to argue, but then remembered that the father-son relationship before had been one he forced upon Yomi, and that Little Sheep had agreed only to get intelligence from him.
…Right, intelligence!
Satan immediately took out the folder he had prepared and handed it to the little person. “Little Sheep Baby, this is all the intelligence I’ve gathered over the years while managing Pearl State, regarding the surrounding planets. When you took that intelligence on Snar and Phizhi Star before, were you preparing to take down all those planets too? As for that matter, it’s not that I don’t believe in you, it’s just that our ambitions shouldn’t be too great. We should start with unifying Junk Star first…”
Yomi / Anxius: “……”
Cold Crow gave a dry laugh. “Our lord is joking. However, as for establishing cooperation with outside planets, at present that really isn’t easy.”
Junk Star had always been the most looked-down-upon planet in the Federation. Just like its name, to other planets it was nothing more than a giant garbage disposal site, or a place to exile criminals. No one refrained from attacking Junk Star because they could not win; they refrained because every planet needed the mountain whales here to process waste and pollution, and mountain whales could only survive on Junk Star.
Yomi’s dream was to become a great boss. He genuinely had no interest at all in interplanetary warfare. Still, intelligence was intelligence, and there was no reason to reject it. He shyly accepted this fatherly love. “Thank you.”
While they chatted, Carl, having heard the news, rushed over too.
Back in Pearl State, Carl had worn a human-skin suit. Now that he suddenly appeared here, neither Satan nor Cold Crow recognized him. When they learned that this utterly unfamiliar smiling gentleman was actually the same Pangolin who had been imprisoned with Yomi, both monsters were stunned.
Just as the driver had said, it really did seem as if they had been fooled badly…
After seeing his son’s workplace, a feeling of pride rose in Satan’s heart. When his son led him around to greet the others, the smile on his face was nearly twitching from excess.
Only when facing Anxius could he not smile.
He had already realized that this demonic-looking giant monster was his son’s boyfriend!
Heavens, terrifying!
Cold Crow: You yourself aren’t exactly mild either, all right?
After making a round, when he saw Gousheng herding the chickens, Satan at first was not particularly interested. It was only a wolf, after all; he did not even put tigers and leopards in his eyes.
But then Yomi held Gousheng and smiled. “This is the son I adopted.”
From that moment on, Satan spent the entire afternoon chasing after Gousheng, trying to make the wolf call him Grandfather.
Cold Crow: …Lunatic.
Before it got dark, Yomi arranged a place for them to stay. There had always been vacant double rooms in the villa, more than enough for the two of them.
While Carl was helping move their luggage, he could not help asking Cold Crow, “You came all the way here just like this. Won’t there be trouble back in Pearl State?”
Cold Crow gave an awkward laugh. “We only came after arranging everything properly. Just treat it as coming out for a little vacation.”
The moment Yomi heard that, he smiled. “Our place is especially suited for vacation! Though the newspaper said…”
“Son, everything in the newspapers is true.” Over there, Satan pulled out his lord’s seal from the luggage and stuffed it into Yomi’s hand like he was giving a red packet.
At first Yomi thought it was a toy. Once he looked carefully and saw the writing on it, he immediately tried to hand it back.
People were all somewhat startled by the arrival of Satan and Cold Crow from so far away, but once their initial curiosity passed, they simply went back to their own work.
The next morning, Yexi and Linda took Carl and the younger men out hunting.
Only Yomi, Anxius, Satan, and Cold Crow remained in the villa.
Upstairs in Sheep Asura’s Office, Anxius in monster form was carefully assembling a miniature handgun with his claws. This one was the real thing. He had commissioned someone on Birdman Planet to custom-make this tiny weapon for Yomi, and it had only just been completed and delivered that very day.
Yomi sat reading a book called Postpartum Care for Animals. After reading a few pages, he told his boyfriend to take a break.
Anxius really did stop what he was doing. He went over, hugged him for a while, kissed his cheek and mouth, then went back to continue adjusting the little handgun with meticulous precision.
After watching him work for a while, Yomi rubbed his eyes. Seeing that his boyfriend was still refining his tiny pistol in an increasingly exacting way, he stretched lazily and went out for a walk. When he went downstairs and reached the drying racks, he also flipped over some drying meat along the way.
Satan and Cold Crow, who had been wandering around the farm with nothing to do, immediately started flipping the meat too the moment they noticed Yomi had come out.
Yomi waved his hoof and smiled sweetly. “You’re guests. You don’t need to do this.”
Satan nearly fainted from the sweetness. “What kind of formality is this between father and son? In the future Daddy will do all this for you.”
“……” Yomi shook his head and pressed his lips together. After loosening up his body a bit, he took Gousheng to the gate to watch the dance ants dancing.
Satan instantly followed to watch too.
Dance ants were everywhere on Junk Star. He had no idea what there was to see. But after watching for a while, whether because he had been influenced by the little person’s focus or because this dance ant was truly exceptional, he actually began to feel as if he were watching some magnificent performance from a front-row seat…
This was what family happiness felt like. It was truly beautiful.
The only regret was that the moment the performance ended, that monster showed up.
Satan turned to Cold Crow and began speaking ill of him. “Don’t you think that guy doesn’t suit Little Sheep Baby at all? He’s so tall. Is that really appropriate?”
Cold Crow looked at Satan’s own height. “Do you really think you’re in a position to say that?”
“……”
By the afternoon, perhaps because they saw that the hunting group had still not returned, Little Sheep set out with his boyfriend, saying they were going to deliver food to the hunters.
Satan immediately began muttering again. “One person would have been enough. Why insist on making Little Sheep Baby come out and do work too? He’s so small, probably just carrying a lunchbox is already difficult…”
Cold Crow’s mouth twitched. “Don’t you think you sound exactly like one of those nasty mothers-in-law from television right now?”
Satan protested fiercely, “What mother-in-law? I’m his father-in-law!”
Cold Crow: “……”
By evening, neither the hunting group nor Yomi and Anxius had returned.
Satan, who had been waiting for his son all this time, grew anxious. After asking the people on the farm where the hunters usually went, he immediately got in the car with Cold Crow to search for them.
Halfway there, Cold Crow suddenly slammed on the brakes. Pointing ahead, he said, “Isn’t that Little Sheep’s vehicle?”
Satan narrowed his eyes and looked. His expression changed dramatically. Sure enough, parked by the road ahead was the very vehicle Yomi had ridden off in!
Both of them assumed the car had broken down and that was why the others had not returned, so they immediately got out to look.
But when they reached the car, there was no one inside. Nor did it look as if the vehicle had been attacked.
Cold Crow flew up into the air to take a look. He quickly spotted the people and dropped back down to stop Satan from shouting to them, though his expression had become rather odd. “They’re over there… but something’s not right.”
Not far away by the riverbank, Yomi had invited his boyfriend out on what was supposed to be a date. Never in his wildest thoughts had he imagined Satan and Cold Crow would come looking for them.
The two of them had been strolling by the river, sitting at the water’s edge and talking, and before they knew it they had leaned in and started kissing.
Meanwhile, hidden behind a tree, the two onlookers wore grave expressions.
Satan in particular, upon seeing Little Sheep Baby kissing a man of nearly the same size, had his eyes trembling.
Cold Crow said in a daze, “Y-young master is cheating?”
No one in the world would possibly connect that handsome man of one meter ninety with the fierce giant monster over four meters tall and think they were the same person.
Satan glared at him. “Shut up. We absolutely can’t let other people know about this. The people of Ghost State are very traditional. Don’t ruin Little Sheep Baby’s reputation over this.”
“Of course I wouldn’t spread it around…”
After getting over the initial shock, Satan became pleased again. “This one is much better. He suits my son perfectly. That’s what you call having matching body size and height, so life will be harmonious. So really, it’s not Little Sheep Baby’s fault for cheating. That whole Gosa… whatever, was just too… Anyway, Little Sheep Baby definitely didn’t do it on purpose.”
Cold Crow still felt something was very wrong. “They came out together. Where did that other one go?”
Satan thought for a while, then inhaled sharply. “Don’t tell me he got killed? Well, that makes sense. Those people were out hunting, so of course they’d be carrying food. Why would there be any need for them to deliver food? And since Little Sheep Baby is already a lord, he could have sent someone else. Maybe from the start this was all to get rid of him… But Little Sheep Baby is so small—do you think he’d know how to dispose of the body?”
Cold Crow said flatly, “…I don’t think Young Master is that insane.” He had also seen that monster flare up in anger before. No matter how he imagined it, he simply could not picture the little sheep killing that terrifying monster.
But if that were not the case, then what exactly was happening over there?
“No matter whether Little Sheep Baby killed someone or not, those two definitely weren’t true love before.” Satan was extremely satisfied with the little couple in front of him. “Living beside that kind of monster every day while being emotionally mismatched—Little Sheep Baby has suffered.”
To be honest, if there were internet service here, he would already have started having people search for a whole batch of Junk Star men similar in size to Little Sheep Baby to bring for matchmaking. If Little Sheep Baby didn’t like any of them, they could even try searching on foreign planets. And if by chance he liked several… well, as a lord, there was nothing wrong with having several husbands to serve him.
Honestly, that would be best of all. He, as the father, had remained alone for a lifetime. Presumably all those missed chances had been saved up for his son instead.
…A kind of destiny, really.
Thinking this, Satan nudged Cold Crow. “How about you make a trip back to Pearl State and bring over a batch of small-sized men? Pearl State should have more rare body types than this place.”
“……” Cold Crow glared at him with a greenish face, nearly failed to catch his breath, and if they had not been hiding where they absolutely could not make any noise, he truly would have punched Satan on the spot. Go to hell. It’s one thing to make a perfectly good strategist become an artist and chauffeur, but now you want him to go play pimp too?!
Just as Cold Crow was holding back with all his might, the tree branch above their heads suddenly shuddered. The two of them looked up at once, only to see that two blades had embedded themselves precisely into the trunk above them!
If those blades had been aimed at them…
“Come out.”
The voice was familiar.
Satan looked as if he had seen a ghost. Little Sheep Baby’s boyfriend wasn’t dead?!
Cold Crow’s face turned paper white. His brain worked faster than Satan’s, and he quickly dragged the other man out from hiding. The instant they stepped into the open, they met the gaze of the two by the river.
Yomi’s expression was full of embarrassment, and also a little surprise.
The man holding his hand had darkness pooled in his eyes.
Cold Crow had no choice but to explain. “When we saw how late it was and that Lord Sheep Asura still hadn’t returned, we came out to look…” While he was speaking, he kept glancing around to confirm there were no other people nearby. Once he did, he more or less guessed that man’s identity, though his face still could not hide its astonishment.
Satan, on the other hand, had no room in his head for any of that. He looked back at the blades embedded in the tree and, with a certain degree of approval, said to Anxius, “As a lover on the side, you really ought to be cautious. Little Sheep Baby’s reputation has only just risen. Don’t drag him down over this kind of thing.”
Yomi: “A lover on the side?”
Anxius: “……”
“If not a lover on the side, then what? Are you planning to give him a proper status? Don’t worry. Once your boyfriend dies, I’ll help you find several good ones and then you can choose carefully…”
Before Satan could finish, the “lover on the side” beside Little Sheep Baby suddenly changed form. In the blink of an eye, the handsome man disappeared, and in his place stood a towering monster covered in killing intent.
Under a sky dark with clouds, Anxius said, “Find Baby several good ones?”
Satan went blank, but his head nodded on instinct.
Cold Crow sensed disaster coming and quietly stepped away first.
Sure enough, within less than two seconds, Anxius lunged forward and began beating Satan viciously. And Satan was not one to simply let himself be slaughtered.
In an instant, the two monsters were locked in a roaring, earth-shaking battle.
Anxius did not use his skill. Right now he only wanted to beat this rain dragon with human form nearly to death.
Satan had the best raw physical condition on Junk Star and was not afraid of being attacked by him. Besides, he had never liked Anxius in the first place, so his blows landed without the slightest restraint…
Very quickly, the ground began trembling, and the surrounding trees started shaking too. At first the two huge monsters had fought in a relatively proper manner, but once they had moved out of the little person’s direct line of sight, they completely showed their true colors. They began fighting like mad, trying to kill each other as if they were a pair of rabid dogs determined to tear the other into pieces and stomp the remains into mud.
Yomi was frightened. Seeing that both Anxius and Satan had already fought their way out of sight, and that he could not possibly catch up with them quickly enough in human form, he had no choice but to transform back into a little sheep and use the speed of “four-wheel drive.”
With four legs, the little sheep ran fast. Even Cold Crow could not stop him. He charged straight toward the deeper part of the forest.
Yomi bounded and dashed along, finally reaching the very front of the battle. The moment he looked up, he was so stunned by the scene before him that his mouth hung open.
This was no ordinary fight. It looked like the aftermath of a natural disaster. Some of the surrounding trees had already been flattened. From the little sheep’s perspective, it was practically like watching giant monsters from a special-effects film tearing into one another!
And they were moving while fighting at such speed that it felt as though they could battle all the way from Ghost State back to Pearl State in a single night.
“D-don’t fight anymore,” Yomi cried anxiously, spinning in circles. “Stop!”
Neither of them wanted to stop, but both froze the moment they heard Yomi’s voice. Afraid of hurting the little sheep, anxious worry leaked into the fury in Anxius’s eyes. Clenching his teeth, he was just about to retreat for the moment and settle the score with Satan later, when an unexpected intruder arrived—
A giant eagle swept across the sky. It noticed the little sheep on the ground, glanced at the two monsters still fighting fiercely, and in an instant dove straight toward the sheep.
To that eagle, the slightly larger-than-average little sheep down there “watching the excitement” was nothing more than a fat rabbit, enough for a satisfying meal.
Yomi never noticed the eagle. He was still busy trying to stop the fight, jumping anxiously in place. Then all at once, he saw both monsters’ faces change drastically, and the two of them, one after the other, charged directly toward him.
In the roaring wind, Yomi slowly tilted his head back.
Anxius killed the diving eagle in a single instant. He did not even spare time to wipe the blood away before lunging over and grabbing the little sheep, holding him tight against himself with desperate force.
He had nearly died of fright.
Satan had been one step too late, so he transformed back into his rain dragon form instead and began circling in the sky, wings spread, surveying the area in vigilance, checking for anything else that might try to eat his Little Sheep Baby.
As he circled he let out threatening roars, but also secretly stole glances down at Little Sheep Baby’s condition. The old saying about a cow licking its calf was nothing compared to this.
Now that they had a common enemy, neither of them was thinking about fighting anymore.
Yomi: “……” Well… in a way, that still counted as making peace.
By the time Cold Crow arrived, he found that the two monsters who had just hated the sight of each other were now both crowding around the little sheep lying on the ground, trying to comfort him.
Anxius said, “I’m sorry. If I’m going to fight next time, I should tie you to my body first.”
Yomi: “……”
Satan, filled with guilt, said, “Little Sheep Baby, Daddy won’t fight in front of you next time… And Daddy shouldn’t have said those things either. Daddy didn’t know you were such a loyal and devoted good man.”
Yomi: “……”
Although all three of them were thinking completely different things, they had all been badly frightened in their own ways. In this strangely twisted atmosphere, a sort of accidental harmony arose.
Yomi did not hurry to turn back into human form. First he pressed his little head against Anxius’s face, then with a hoof he helplessly patted Satan as well. His worried little eyes swept over both of them. Everything that needed to be said was left unsaid.
That night, once they returned to the farm, none of the four of them mentioned the fight to anyone else. Still, the others who saw them could sense the subtle atmosphere among them.
Before going to sleep, Satan quietly sought out Carl, who was somewhat more familiar than the others here, and candidly admitted that he wanted to investigate Anxius’s background a little, so he could deal with him better in the future.
Carl: “……”
Carl could tell that in truth Satan only wanted to understand Yomi’s partner better. Naturally, he was never going to reveal Anxius’s true identity, so he selectively told him a few things.
By the time he finished listening, Satan was utterly dumbstruck.
“A symbiosis surgery? They even underwent a symbiosis surgery?”
“What about it? There’ve been people on Junk Star who’ve done symbiosis surgeries over the years too.”
Satan was rendered speechless. He thanked Carl and drifted back to his bedroom in a daze.
When Cold Crow saw him looking like a walking corpse, he asked in confusion, “What’s wrong with you?”
Satan fell silent for a moment, then said thickly,
“I truly deserve to die. Today I actually said I’d wait for Little Sheep Baby’s boyfriend to die—bah bah bah! Bah bah bah! He absolutely cannot die. If he dies, everything is over…”
“……”
Inside the bedroom—
The air was hot and humid, as though a storm had just swept through.
After that almost unbearable closeness, Yomi was already growing drowsy again. He was so tired he could barely raise his hands, and curled himself into Anxius’s arms.
The man’s jawline was taut. Breathing in Yomi’s scent, his large hand, rough with thin calluses, gently massaged Yomi. As he massaged him, he lowered his head and rubbed his face back and forth against Yomi’s.
Perhaps because Satan’s earlier words had irritated him, Anxius wrapped himself around Yomi with both hands and feet, half-biting, half-kissing at the hollow of his neck in tiny, dense motions. “Even if I really died, I’d never leave you.”
Yomi had been on the verge of sleep. The moment he heard that, he was wide awake. Staring at Anxius’s silhouette in the shadows, he said in disbelief, “If you died, how could I still stay alive? Even if we turned into ghosts, we’d be two ghosts together, wouldn’t we?”
“……”
Yomi thought he had told a dry joke and was about to say more when his mouth was abruptly sealed shut by a pair of lips. “Don’t talk nonsense.”
…Such double standards.
Yomi muttered under his breath and closed his eyes, but his hands still refused to be quiet. He grabbed his boyfriend’s demonic horns and started absently playing with them in petty revenge.
Anxius lowered his gaze and did not stop him. He even lowered his head to make it easier for him to play.
After a while, Yomi had had enough fun. His hands dropped, only to be enveloped by a much larger pair and held tightly shut.
Anxius leaned in close and touched his lips.
That night, before falling asleep, Yomi had thought that all his mosquito-like muttering afterward had gone unheard.
But how could Anxius possibly fail to hear it?
—
Darling, actually, even if we turn into ghosts, it doesn’t matter. Even if we become caterpillars, we can still stay together forever.
