Chapter 6 #12
Chapter 32
Eva POV
By the next afternoon, the entire palace had become fully invested in preparing demon royalty for Earth.
“This is not casual human clothing on earth ,” Nina informed the room flatly while pointing at the younger brother.
He gestured to himself. “It literally is.”
“No human man wears this much black jewelry voluntarily.”
“That sounds factually incorrect.”
The younger brother lounged against the dressing room wall wearing dark jeans, rings, black boots, and a fitted black shirt that still made him look like a dangerous supernatural temptation instead of a normal person.
Meanwhile beside me, my demon adjusted the sleeves of another black outfit while looking deeply unimpressed by the criticism.
“This one is simpler.”
I stared at him blankly.
“…You still look like you own private armies.”
His mother looked incredibly proud. “He does.”
“That is not helping.”
Meanwhile the father sat calmly in one chair near the windows reading a human etiquette book upside down. Nobody corrected him, mostly because everyone was afraid to.
The council had approved this trip within hours after the family conversation last night. Actually worse, they were supportive.
One older ruler literally told my demon: “Bring her home properly.”
It still felt surreal. The same ancient demons who once wanted humans nowhere near Hell were now planning introductions to parents.
Nina grabbed another Earth outfit from the massive pile beside the couch before throwing it directly at the younger brother’s face.
“You need color.”
“I reject that aggressively.”
“You look like a morally questionable vampire.”
“That sounds complimentary.”
“It absolutely does not.”
Meanwhile my demon had moved quietly beside me holding another jacket.
“…This one.”
My gaze drifted upward before I sighed softly.
“You still look intimidating.”
“That feels subjective.”
“It feels police-report is adjacent.”
The corner of his mouth twitched slightly. God. It should’ve been illegal how much easier things felt between us now. Not forced. Not dramatic. Just… natural.
Like somewhere between Hell chaos and personal disasters, we’d stopped fighting the fact that we fit together. His mother noticed me staring and smirked into her tea. “She likes this one.”
“I heard that.”
“That was intentional.”
Across the room, Nina gasped dramatically while pointing at the father.
“…Why are you holding the book upside down?”
The father lowered the book. Then calmly replied: “I was testing the author.”
The entire room went quiet. Then the younger brother burst out laughing.
“That is the best father sentence ever spoken.”
An hour later, after significantly more arguing about clothing, jewelry, and “acceptable levels of supernatural intimidation,” the western portal chamber finally opened beneath the palace.
Silver fire curled across enormous black stone arches while servants rushed around preparing dimensional anchors and travel supplies.
The atmosphere shifted slightly afterward.
Quieter now. Real. Because we were actually leaving.
I stood near the edge of the portal platform while Earth shimmered faintly through the silver light ahead.
My city.
My world.
And weirdly, it already looked distant.My demon stepped beside me quietly without speaking anything at first. Just standing there while the portal reflected silver light across his face. Then softly:
“You can still change your mind.”
I gazed up at him. And there it was again. That careful respect beneath everything else. Not because he wanted distance anymore. Because he loved me enough to leave the choice in my hands.
I reached for his hand first this time, and the warmth of it felt instantly familiar beneath my fingers. Then I answered quietly:
“No.”
Something in his expression softened after that in a way that was small, real, and meant only for me. Unfortunately, Nina ruined the moment.
“If either of you start making eye contact dramatically near dimensional magic, I’m leaving you behind.”
The younger brother nodded seriously beside her. “That feels reasonable.”
His mother looked delighted already while stepping toward the portal. “I cannot wait to meet human mothers.”
Anderson was moments from collapse. “This trip is going to destroy international stability.”
I laughed in relief for the first time.
The portal opened fully a second later. Silver light exploded across the chamber while cold dimensional wind rushed violently through the palace arches. Earth shimmered beyond the magic like broken glass reflecting another life entirely.
Then suddenly, we stepped through. The transition hit differently this time. The first time I entered Hell, everything felt impossible. But now stepping back onto Earth felt…smaller.
The familiar hallway outside my apartment building smelled faintly like old paint and somebody’s burnt cooking from downstairs.
Human sounds echoed through the building from every direction. Televisions played through thin apartment walls, neighbors argued somewhere down the hall, and distant traffic drifted in from outside. It all felt painfully normal.
Nina blinked beside me after the portal sealed shut behind us.
“…Why does the Earth feel tiny.”
The younger brother surveyed the narrow apartment hallway with open judgment. “Humans live stacked on top of each other vertically?”.”
“That’s called rent prices.”
“That sounds like suffering.”
Meanwhile, my demon had gone unusually quiet beside me as he looked over the familiar apartment corridor like he remembered every part of it. The terrible lighting, the uneven floorboards, the apartment door where this entire disaster had first begun.
God.That realization hit harder than expected. His mother appeared behind us next while looking deeply fascinated by literally everything.
“Oh this is adorable.”
“This building has mold.”
“Yes,” she answered calmly. “Tiny mold.”
The father stepped through the portal afterward carrying absolutely none of the bags because apparently ancient rulers didn’t believe in practical labor.
One neighbor opened their apartment door halfway down the hallway. Stopped. Stared directly at: two terrifyingly attractive men, ancient demon royalty, and four suspiciously overdressed people standing outside my apartment. Then retreated back inside without a word.
Nina pointed instantly. “See? THIS is what I warned you about.”
The younger brother drew himself up indignantly. “We are dressed normally.”
“You look like organized crime.”
“That feels culturally insensitive.”
Meanwhile, I found myself staring at my apartment door while nervousness twisted unexpectedly in my stomach because this was it. No more palace chaos and no more distractions waiting around every corner in Hell.
Real life. Real parents. And real consequences.
My demon noticed it instantly. Then quietly, only for me:
“You don’t have to do this alone.”
Before I could recover, Nina gasped dramatically while checking her phone.
“Oh my God.”
“What.”
“We’ve been missing for WEEKS.”
Silence. Then all four demons turned toward her.
“…Humans track time aggressively,” she explained.
And just like that, all chaos erupted.
“WEEKS?” the younger brother repeated.
“You did not tell us human families expected hourly updates,” his mother added calmly.
“That seems quite excessive,” the father muttered.
I covered my face. “My mother is going to kill me.”
“No,” my demon answered with a tiny pause. “Probably.”
“That was not comforting.”
Meanwhile Nina was already panic-texting at supernatural speed while pacing the hallway.
“My aunt thinks I got kidnapped.”
The younger brother seemed thoughtful. “Technically speaking…”
“Nobody says technically.”
Then sudden footsteps echoed rapidly from the nearby stairwell, quick and unmistakably human, rushing closer by the second. I froze instantly because I recognized them.
“Oh no.”
The stairwell door burst open. And my mother appeared holding grocery bags and looking one second away from absolute fury.
She stopped dead the moment she saw: me, the demons, the glowing portal residue still fading behind us, and my demon standing beside me looking like dangerously expensive royalty in my apartment hallway.
A complete painful silence surrounded us.
One grocery bag slipped from her hand onto the floor. Then very slowly, my mother pointed directly at my demon.
“…Who the hell is THAT.”
Chapter 33
Eva POV
Tension exploded through the apartment hallway.
My mother stood frozen near the stairwell holding the remaining grocery bags while staring directly at my demon like she’d just caught me dating organized crime.
Behind her, my father appeared halfway up the stairs carrying another bag before stopping too.
Then lowered the groceries at the sight of me.
“…Eva.”
Nina whispered beside me, “I’m leaving you to die first.”
“Coward.”
Meanwhile my demon stood completely still beside me like he was actively trying not to accidentally intimidate my parents into cardiac arrest. Unfortunately, he still looked like dangerous supernatural royalty standing in my apartment hallway.
My mother pointed at him again.
“Who. Is. That.”
My demon answered before I could. Calm. Respectful. Completely serious.
“I’m in love with your daughter.”
Absolute silence. The younger brother covered his face beside Nina.
“Oh wow,” Nina whispered. “He went directly for homicide.”
My mother blinked once.
Twice.
Then: “…EXCUSE ME?”
Meanwhile my father was still staring at the glowing portal residue fading behind us. Reasonable reaction finally. I opened my mouth to explain. Then closed it again because where do you even START.
“Okay,” I said weakly. “So technically….”
“No,” Nina interrupted instantly. “Never begin explanations with technically.”
Fair. His mother stepped forward smoothly afterward wearing enough elegance and ancient terrifying energy to make the apartment hallway feel way too small.
“Hello,” she said warmly. “We appear to have caused dimensional complications.”