The Dark Rebirth of Pandora: Revenge of the Abyss-Chapter 156: Meeting

We’ve reached the first stop as Pandora guides me out of the carriage, being very attentive to these little details. The first stop seems to be some kind of restaurant.

Honestly, I don’t have good memories with the food offered by Pandora, after all, she served me my father as a meal, which makes my body shudder when I remember what I had to do.

Pandora excitedly holds my hand as she takes me inside the place, which has a beautiful and well-organized atmosphere. As soon as we enter, Pandora naturally becomes the center of attention.

Several of the demons look at her with respect and interest, after all, it’s the demon king who just appeared in public.

"Good morning, Your Majesty, I will guide you to your table," one of the restaurant’s attendants greets Pandora, but Pandora doesn’t move.

"Aren’t you going to greet my companion?" She speaks in a cold tone to the attendant, as not many really know who I am, so the general population shouldn’t know me.

"P-Pandora, it’s no problem," I say to Pandora, fearing that something might happen. The attendant bows and apologizes for his mistake, while enthusiastically greeting me.

’I thought Pandora would kill him...’ Pandora simply accepted the apologies and started to follow him while pulling my hand. We sit at a fancy table while the attendant goes to get the menu.

"Why that face, Zephyra? Did you think I would kill him?" I don’t want to say that I really thought so.

"Zephyra, they are my people. I’m not a complete tyrant, I won’t kill people for a simple mistake when they didn’t even know who you were. I would only kill him if he had deliberately ignored you."

"You weren’t formally introduced to the common demons, so they don’t know who you are, so it’s natural that they focus more on me."

"But don’t worry, at this very moment, several posters, magic-formed images, and letters are being spread throughout the city. Probably in less than a week, everyone will know that you are their queen."

"Pandora... can I know why you say you’ll give me authority?... I-If you just want my love, couldn’t you just..." I don’t finish speaking to avoid giving the idea.

"Lock you up? Yes, I could just keep you imprisoned, but I love you and I want you to be happy. However, you must be happy while giving me your love, it’s not that hard to understand."

"I want those I love to be happy, but it must still be based on what I choose. That’s why I say I’ll give you freedom and authority equivalent to your position, to make you happy."

"But just as I give rewards to those who deserve it, I punish those who have erred." Her tone makes me shudder because I remember the punishments I received.

’So... she’ll do everything to make me happy... and just wants love in return?’ I wonder why a being like her is so obsessed with love. She has everything, power, talent, and authority.

"Pandora... what do you desire the most?" I gather the courage to ask.

"... what I desire the most is quite simple. There are only two things I desire the most. The first is the elimination of a specific group in the most violent way I can."

"And the second thing is a family. It’s not hard to understand. I want to have children, spend lively days with those I love, and enjoy life."

"In short, I seek my own happiness and self-fulfillment, even if I have to trample over others to achieve it."

’It’s really quite simple...’

"Don’t you seek to dominate the world? Or I don’t know, become invincible? Have everything?" I ask with doubt.

"I will dominate the world, but only so that no one interrupts my life with stupid attacks. I don’t need to be invincible, just strong enough that they have no chance of challenging me."

"Have everything? Why would I want to have everything? Happiness is not achieved by conquering everything, but by conquering special things."

"Is there anything more special than family? I don’t think so. For me, family is the most important thing, and now you are part of it."

"But every family has rules, and I’m the one who sets those rules." Her authoritative tone leaves no room for argument.

I think about my father. Our family fell apart at a young age, and in the end, I practically became a possession just because of my ability.

"Pandora... will you really take good care of your family?"

"Of course. I would kill anyone for my family. I would turn this entire planet to ashes if it were to save just one person from my family."

"And I will do everything possible to make those I love happy. I can be very bossy and authoritarian, and I may even hurt those I love sometimes, but living with me is not as bad as you might imagine."

"In the end, pain and love have always walked together. Fights, disagreements, and even distrust can always arise, but what really matters is whether your love is strong enough to overcome these problems."

"And I can assure you, my love is one of the strongest and heaviest in this whole world, if not the greatest and heaviest."

While I’m lost in thought about what she said, Pandora places the order with the menu the employee brought.

As I get lost in daydreams about what Pandora said, the employee brings me the order Pandora made for me.

’T-This is... Hancloberry...’ My favorite ice cream is also the food with the most special meaning of all for me.

Hancloberry = It’s an ice cream made from a specific fruit found on snowy peaks in mountainous regions. It has a slightly sour sweet taste and a light pink color. The aroma evokes a sense of winter memories due to the properties of the fruit.

"Are you crying, Zephyra? I didn’t think you’d be so happy," Pandora says with a chuckle as I wipe tears from my cheek.

This ice cream is very special to me because it was something my mother left preserved in magic for me to experience.

I ate it when I was 7 years old during my birthday. My father made a great effort to take me to a snowy mountain where there was a secret place where my mother did many things.

That was the first time I felt connected to both my father and my mother at the same time.

That’s what made this ice cream so special to me, even though I’ve eaten it very few times in my life since my father changed and started isolating me from everything.

"H-How did you know?" I ask Pandora, and she responds with a smile.

"I love you, so I researched a lot about you. This place only serves this ice cream because it was my request. I don’t know if it’s really the same as what you wanted, but I think it’s good enough."

"It may not be perfect, but I think the intention counts. I wanted to bring you here much sooner... but you ran away..." She speaks hastily as I wipe away the tears.

I never thought I’d be able to taste this ice cream again. I take a deep breath and put a spoonful of the ice cream in my mouth.

"It’s perfect..." I say, trying not to cry from the nostalgia. I feel like I’ve finally connected a little bit with my mother, of whom I’ve only heard stories.

Pandora seems excited that I liked it while she herself starts eating her order, which seems to be some kind of succulent and tender-looking meat.

We both eat in silence, not wanting to ruin the moment. I never expected this gift from her.

It really makes me think even more that I was wrong before. Maybe it’s not so bad to stay with her. If I just need to be obedient to be happy and have freedom, I could do that.

After we finish the meal, Pandora comes to me without caring about the public and kisses me.

The sweet taste of the ice cream in my mouth mixes with the taste of meat from her mouth, forming a bittersweet flavor as she deepens the passionate kiss. After a moment, she separates from me.

For a moment, I felt like it was a shame the kiss ended so quickly. Pandora starts guiding me out and asks me to get on the carriage while she stays to pay the establishment.

After 1 minute, she comes out and gets into the carriage. Her tail leaves no room for imagination, she’s clearly happy with all of this.

The carriage soon departs for some place as Pandora looks at me.

"Zephyra, if you want, in the future I can make you a more formal marriage proposal, and we can even do it in a church. I know many women prefer it that way."

I’ve never really thought much about it, so I don’t care much about the location or form of the wedding. I never expected to get married someday.

"Maybe someday..." I don’t want to think about it too much. I prefer to keep focusing on the outing, where I increasingly notice good points about Pandora.

In any case, just sitting and enjoying the view is also quite pleasant, even though having a plug constantly in my butt is not good. I’ve already gotten used to it, and now it doesn’t seem strange.

That’s why I prefer to appreciate the view, something I rarely could do in the past.