Editing Shinmai Maou no Keiyakusha:Volume 6 Chapter 2 (section)

===Part 3===

Was almost charred black this morning.

...It was unexpected that Mio-sama would get that angry.

After finishing the embarrassing breakfast which the two women had butted heads over, they were finally sent on their way to school with Basara – Maria was in the kitchen washing the dining utensils, while recalling Mio’s reactions which had exceeded her expectations.

--It's been quite a while since I've suffered from Mio's lightning, I'm lucky that she had somewhat restrained her power.

As recently Yuki had moved into the Toujou residence, the number of instances of Mio exploding over such pranks had went down a lot. As long as the excuse [It’s all for Basara] was used, Yuki, who clearly expressed her love to them, would agree even if she had to sacrifice her image. Just now, Yuki forgave him (naturally), she had also put up with the instigations caused by herself; It's almost the same for Mio too, thinking that if she couldn't do it, it shows that she was just all fluff, and it's because of the feeling of not wanting to lose to Yuki that made her not to explode.

And that was the reason why Maria had just daringly did what she had just did. It's just--

「So Mio-sama would still get angry even if the one eating her panties is the one she likes, huh~」

While using the antiseptic dishwashing soap 「WhitePaoPao」 to clean it until it is very clean, no, shining clean, she released a sigh while deep in thought.

There probably wouldn't be any problems on Yuki's side. But as expected, once she found out that Mio had taken away the initiative from her, she would attempt to immediately catch up; but then again, I had never expected for her make the move of taking off her panties and making him say 「Aah～」.

「My initiations seem to be really insufficient... I must continue to work hard!」

To not have filmed that scene, it really pains her. From the moment Basara had hammered her head, she hadn't had a chance to retrieve her camera yet.

「At least remember to clean up after the closing of a chapter...」

If she were not even able to procure Mio's dream this morning, then her being punished this morning would just plainly be punishment, it'll all be for naught.

"All right."

Done with the dishes, she then continued with the other household chores.

「Since today’s weather is so nice, why not just sun dry it instead of putting it into the dryer? 」

After throwing the to-be-washed laundry into the barrel of the washing machine and canceling the auto drying program and pressing the button, it began to rotate while calculating the amount of clothes to be washed; humming while pouring in the soap and softener, bubbles began to gradually appear. After confirming it had begun it's operation normally, she then started cleaning the house.

--When she lived her life with only Mio, she would also attend school together with her, protecting her from the shadows.

After moving in with Basara, it had changed to her only needing to send them off to and welcome them back at the school before and after school respectively; after Yuki moved in, she didn't even need to accompany Mio up to the school gates anymore.

Hence, her free time had increased a lot, and even cleaning the house and doing all the laundry could all be competed in the morning. 

Today's sun is shining brightly, shining on the freshly washed quilts and sheets used by four people, which had somewhat added to the time taken for the washing machine to complete the cycle, but it was still done not long after noon.

After finishing a simple lunch with what's available in the house, what Maria does in the afternoon would be to make use of the computer in the house to gather information and do research.

--Between Basara, Mio, and Yuki right now, deepening their relationship would be of utmost importance.

Hence, Maria had to often help create situations and games that were fresh yet not repetitive; and she was different from Mio and Yuki. Right now, while she knows her feelings towards Basara was a 「warm, nice feeling」,  she was certainly oblivious to the fact that it was 「love」. 

That being said, it shouldn't be long before Mio herself starts to realise it -- thinking about the reaction Mio will have, makes her hyped up about it. Who knows, she might no longer lose it over just a few of her panties being consumed.

「Things might change to the point where she would beg to eat Basara's underwear... No, things would get dull and wrong if she became that perverted.」

Everything needs to be done in moderation. For example, no matter how the tuning will be done in the future, both Mio and Yuki will still need to retain some of their embarrassment... If the subjugation to get obedience to Basara were to become something like a routine, then playtime with the succubus effects under the master-servant contract would be over.

And that was the reason Naruse Maria was on the terrace at the full length living room windows, in clothes that was swaying in the wind, with the laptop taken from Basara's room on her lap.

"--Right, I must work hard today too!"

After saying that seriously, she started the download for the beta of a eroge fresh on the market. This was look for anything that would catch her eye -- the moment she find anything noteworthy, she would immediately download the official version, and offer it to to Basara.

When one thinks about it, she has been working hard everyday without slacking even once, precisely just to support Basara and the Master-Servant contract with them--

「No matter what happens, I can't afford to cut corners at this stage...!」

Additionally, if Basara were to discover that they have been doing some questionable stuff, her own desires would be left unsatisfied, and she would also feel bad inside. If she were to meet the same situation as this morning again and have it end up having Mio’s first time being taken away by her hand… What should she do? Especially since now is the era where all one ever thinks about silently is 「I’m…… bananas！」<ref>I'm c_mming! Or just it means that all one ever thinks about is s_x.</ref>.

Hence, in order to deepen their master-servant relationship and satisfy their sexual desires, Maria today will also continue to battle armed with a sincere heart and ero games. Determinedly skipping over and avoiding any confessions, carefully listening to every word spoken through earphones, she full-heartedly played on.

--As if wanting to sweep away the gloomy mood that would set in when she’s alone.

Time passed quickly while engrossed in the games, and the afternoon passed in the blink of an eye – it was already three when she emerged from the computer.

Time to have some dim sum. For quite a while already,  all that progressed in the game was the oral sex scenes, which made Maria say:

"No wonder I had an urge to eat something since just now…"

And she pulled a something out from her bosom. It’s big and thick, and it’s handsome from every angle – the banana from this morning that was almost used wrongly.

「An afternoon alone is really lonely, if only I can experience Basara just once with my mouth...」

If Basara or Mio were home, Maria would be taking off her panties whie smiling and saying : 「Of course, I’m referring to my mouth down here, and before and after ‘it’, I would also like to fill my tummy ♥」. But only someone who is really vacuity would do that, and so she gave up on that idea. Peeling back the skin with gentle actions, Maria brought the banana towards her mouth, and then realised--

"Ah! ...What’s going on here? The dimensions are totally different from Basara’s once the skin of the banana is peeled off! To think that there’s this structural defect! Damn, a mere banana dared to trick this succubus on its sexual aspects... -- Ah! So, when my heart raced while seeing Mio-sama and Yuki sis consuming the banana, it was all totally for nought... This is such a horrible joke!"

She had originally wanted to secretly suck on the banana <ref>A 'BJ'</ref> for thirty minutes before bringing it into her stomach, but since its dimensions were different from Basara’s, it would be meaningless.

Just as Maria was about to bite the banana in frustration, the Toujou residences suddenly had a visitor.

"Oh? You're here..."

Maria's expression naturally turned into a smile, and the visitor neared the terrace with carefree steps. Deftly jumping onto the wood flooring, it raised its head and began to meow cutely.

The visitor was a female tabby cat, with three shades of colour of fur. Not long ago, Maria saw her while on her way back from the supermarket and proceeded to chase her; and they got lost together. Hitchhiking a ride back in the end, and the cat had continued to visit since then.

As cats have their own territories, Maria had sent the cat back to a place near the supermarket later; But for reasons that might be that she had taken a liking to Maria or moving around in the area around the toujou residences... it would occasionally come to visit Maria, like now.

This time, it was staring straight at Maria as if like it had a request for her.

「Do you want this？」

Maria asked that once she realised it was looking at the banana in her hand, and the visitor gave a 「meow～」as if giving her answer.

"Eh... Bananas contain a lot of potassium, and it's good for your health…"

Since there is no collar on this cat, it is most likely to be a stray.

In order to survive, it probably just ate anything that seemed to be edible.

"Well, I guess just a little would be fine..."

Maria squeezed off a bit off the tip of the banana which she hadn't even had a bite of yet, and placed it in front of her.

Stepping forward to sniff, the cat then began to happily eat.

"So, this banana was about the same size as Basara before its skin was stripped, huh~?"

As Maria petted her head while saying that, the cat raised her head again after finishing the meal in a few bites, and mewed once more. But this time, she was not asking for more banana.

"Oh, rightrightright... Please have a seat."

Maria pushed the laptop to one side, and the tabby cat jumped up onto the just vacated space on Maria's thighs. Every time this cat came by to visit, Maria would always have to have the space on her legs given to her. 「Prrr～」After yawning a few times, as usual, it would curl up on Maria’s thighs and close its eyes, letting Maria stroke its head while she chuckled.

--Maria had not given a name to this cat.

This was to avoid getting too attached to it. The tabby cat seemed to also think similarly, and didn't drop by everyday. It would disappear after borrowing Maria's lap to nap on for an hour. Although they had hit it off together quite well after meeting by chance, they cannot get too attached – to be able to spend time together happily despite not knowing each other’s names like now, just like relationships between mature women, and being able to leisurely spend afternoons together, was all things Maria like a lot. Going out when the visitor wakes up, also lets her get some groceries before the supermarket starts to get crowded.

However -- she will not able to do that today.

"...What is it? Didn't you already agree to not show up here?"

Not wanting to wake the cat having its afternoon nap on her thighs, she said while smiling softly.

"------"

But the tabby cat seemed to have sensed a change in Maria’s atmosphere, and suddenly widened its eyes.

It then jumped off her thighs, and anxiously stared at an empty space while supressing her body movements.

The space in Toujou residences’ courtyard suddenly twisted, and a beautiful demon woman suddenly appeared from nowhere.

Brown-skinned female demon -- Zest, directed her cold gaze at Maria.

"--Zolgear-sama has some information that he had ordered me to pass on to you directly.”

And she continued:

"Zolgear-sama had completed his preparations to extract Wilbert's power from Mio's body, and has decided to make his move tomorrow – you are to provide your assistance when the time comes; that is all."

"...."

Hearing Zest's words, Maria stayed quiet, and thought -- the moment has finally arrived.

--However, Maria actually already knew about it. The day before yesterday, Maria and Takigawa Yahiro -- the scene of talking with Lars, was unfortunately accidently seen by Basara. Back then, Lars had taken the initiative to talk to her, and she had tried to muddle through; who knew that Basara would be there.

Zolgear attempting to capture Mio, was to take Wilbert's power that was sleeping within Mio's body for himself; this was no different from showing betrayal towards the current demon lord Leohart who also wanted to get that power for himself. Lars is currently sent by Leohart to monitor Mio; if he came to question her and showed any hints of any intentions being seen through, giving an excuse and acting dumb to the end wouldn't work.

After Lars left, Basara asked Maria what that was about when he saw her. Although it seemed that he had believed the excuse she had made up on the spot, some doubt remained in her heart. And that was why at that moment, Maria felt that she could not hide it for much longer already.

The current situation -- or her own heart.<ref>Heart/Feelings. Both terms are correct.</ref> Upon seeing Maria suddenly becoming quiet, Zest asked softly:

"--Are there any problems?"

"None. It's just, there's no need to come here just to tell be this."

Maria replied:

"Basara and Yuki sis had set up surveillance magic around this house. Because Mio-sama and I are here, it does not prohibit entering and leaving – but once a demon irrupts, it’s going to leave behind traces of demonic power. What if they were to find it?"

''Since the plan was to be set into motion tomorrow, such reckless actions should be avoided, right?''

However, Zest replied while seeming not to mind that at all,

"No need to worry about that. Before I entered, I had already suppressed my demonic power to a minimum. If the two heroes were still to find traces of my demonic power, please give them an excuse. Something like 『A low-class demon came by, attracted by the previous demon lord’s power , and I eliminated him』 would do, I guess..."

That should probably be fine.

"You had already given them a lot of lies... Adding one more wouldn't be too be of a problem, right?"

"-----"

Those words caused Maria to have an reaction. She stood up on the terrace, and angrily directed her eyes filled with killing intent at Zest, and the surrounding air froze. The tabby cat at one side saw Maria suddenly become another person, and ran away as if she was more afraid of Maria than Zest.

"......"

Zest continued to quietly look at her, seemingly not afraid of her killing intent.

" ! ----"

And she understood why Zest had specially came here.

...He’s currently watching me.

It can't be wrong – via Zest's eyes, she could relay what she sees back to Zogear.

Zolgear didn't come in person while sending Zest instead, and it was definitely just to see what sort of reaction Maria would have, since she was about to betray Mio, as entertainment; and he's probably looking at all these while playing with those women whom he treats as his sex slaves.

--That scum--!

"--I'll be taking my leave now."

Maria couldn't hide the gloomy expression on her face, and it seemed to give satisfaction to the Zolgear who's observing this scene. After saying that, Zest disappeared into the air.

"..............."

Maria who was still towering at her original spot, tightly gripped her fist, ignoring the pain.

...The time has come.

Tomorrow, she will totally betray them.

But – Maria didn't want it all to end here.

Once Mio was at hand, Zolgear's attention all be gathered on her. She has to take this opportunity, and defeat him and Zest before he defiles Mio – and try her very best to rescue the prisoner Sheera, her mother. Even though the normal Maria had no chance at all of winning against Zolgear or Zest--

...If she were to use her ultimate move, she probably...

But if she were to temporarily lift the limiters and overload the spirit of her central nervous system<ref>使灵子中枢超载, I have no idea... This term was also mentioned in Volume 3 Chapter 3</ref> -- for a short while, it should be enough to let her have a chance of winning. Fighting against either Zest or Zolgear alone would be very draining but it was the only way. If it’s still not enough to win against Zolgear--

''...At least, I must make use of that woman...''

Maria had not quietly obeyed Zolgear's orders. To rescue Sheera, she had taken advantage of the times Zolgear and Zest were not present to sneak into Zolgear's hideout to investigate.

Of course, from the start, Maria already knew that Zolgear wouldn't keep Sheera in a place that would be easily found, but she still wanted to try to find clues. While she didn’t manage to find any clues in the end, she found something interesting in Zolgear's room. It was a device that could produce three-dimensional images, seeming to be an ancient magical tool. Starting it up after pressing a button, the device shone a female's image.

--It was Zest.

That’s right, Zest is Zolgear's right hand man; but comparing his beloved sex slaves, his attitude towards Zest seems to be a bit cold.

Zest's powerful demonic powers, is derived from her chastity -- hence, Maria originally thought that to the lustful Zolgear, while Zest could do jobs related to battle or reconnaissance, she was a failed product when it comes to providing entertainment as a woman, hence giving her differential treatment. 

However -- finding that device made Maria consider of new possibilities. Zolgear might value Zest the most, hence he does not see her as a disposable sex slave, but instead cherishes her as a gem. His usual apathy towards her, was to maintain a distance, to avoid encroaching on her with a mistake… That would be a pretty reasonable theory.

--Of course, this could be just Maria overthinking things.

No matter what, it would be very difficult imagining that Zolgear having such pure love.

But still, Zest is undoubtedly Zolgear's right hand man. To Zolgear who had betrayed the current demon lord Leohart, his fate lies on her. If well utilised, a weak point of Zolgear's might be created. 

This must succeed -- as Maria made that bleak vow in that heart, something soft touched her leg.

Looking down, she realised it was the tabby cat that had ran away just now, rubbing herself against her leg.

"You can’t anymore... You can't come here anymore in the future."

She said while smiling bitterly, and the cat raised her head, seemingly worried for her.

"...Don't worry about me."

She squatted down to pet her head, and then muttered to herself.

"...It’s almost time to get the groceries for dinner."

On her way home, Maria told herself, that she must work harder than usual today. This will be her last time making dinner for them. When tomorrow comes, she will never be able to return to this home ever again.

--Tomorrow, I must defeat Zolgear, and rescue Sheera.

But, between severely betraying Basara and the rest, and putting herself into life-threatening danger, one could never draw an equal sign between the two.

That's why -- even if everyone’s safe when it all ends, Basara and the rest will likely never forgive Maria, and Maria herself will also never forgive herself... After rescuing Sheera, she will return to the demon realm, and receive her punishment from the Moderate faction. Her strict older sister will definitely never forgive what she had done, as well as what errs she had made.

But that's not important. In Naruse Maria’s heart, there are some things that she must protect at any and all costs.

In order to protect them all -- there was simply no other way.

「...There’s no other way.」

Confessing everything to Basara, and asking for his help -- Maria desperately to expel the notion from her mind. The her who has always been lying to them, is already in no position to be asking for help and depending on others, and there is already no chance at all for her to get out of this mess.

"Ah--..."

Stopping her train of thought, Maria suddenly felt something warm flow down her face, hence she quickly rubbed her eyes.

"Ah haha… Really, why am I like this at a time like this?"

Maria smacked her face with her hands.

--Basara and the rest will be home soon. Ignoring Mio, Basara and Yuki were fairly sharp.

As long as she acts a little differently from who she is normally, she would immediately bring about their suspicion.

The reason her 「Lie」 had not been found out yet to this day, was that while she was near Basara and the rest, she tried not to think about her mother who is Zolgear’s hostage and his demands and orders.

That's why -- she needs to return to her previous mood and state.

Since the answer of being able to protect everything or losing everything painfully, will soon be known.

Although until the end, she had continued to lie to them.

...But even so.

Naruse Maria is not willing to let her heart’s intentions become a lie.

Whether was it her mother Sheera, or was it the important members of another family.

She must never let her own intentions -- become a lie.