Chapter 11 The naive girl.

"Maybe too warm," Alice thought when she felt Azmodiel's high body temperature after a few minutes in his embrace. Once the pain dissipated, the young girl finally understood the situation she was in, in the arms of a bare-chested knight, and she hurried to stand up.

Azmodiel, on the other hand, was in a world of discomfort since his body forced him to console his master. At this point in his existence, Azmodiel found it very difficult to handle emotions he hadn't interacted with in a long time, and things like compassion, empathy, and comfort were more human. Strangely, pretending those emotions was more natural than he thought, not so implausible when you and I know that one of the prisoners he absorbed was the last master of lies and deceit.

For better or worse, Alice didn't need the real Azmodiel at that moment. What she needed was the truth in front of her, which he refused to deny. For now, that was what kept her on the side of hope, regardless of his motives. The angel she had summoned became her anchor to sanity and hope.

Azmodiel felt at that moment that there were advantages in this master-servant dynamic. His master only had him left, creating a bond of dependence and trust that he could exploit. He took Alice's head in his hand and pressed it against his chest so she wouldn't see him smile. A macabre smile full of sharp teeth appeared in the mirror behind Alice. Azmodiel then realized that it wasn't so easy for him to pretend to have feelings; it just meant he had to try a little harder to read the situation and maintain trust.

Alice, who eventually felt uncomfortable with the rigidity of the embrace, also noticed that her angel had difficulties with his emotional breakdown; it felt like being hugged by a statue. The most logical thing for the girl was to think that it must be because angels weren't used to situations like these; human and celestial emotions must be different. In the end, Alice timidly asked, "You can let go now, I'll be fine."

With Alice's faint voice muffled in his embrace, Azmodiel understood that he was misreading the moment. Human emotions weren't as simple as he thought, and now he had to make an effort to understand them if he wanted to help his master choose the right path for him.

As they separated from the embrace, an awkward silence ensued, leading to the inevitable beginning of an interaction between two strangers who had been through so much but knew nothing about each other. But before they could profess any topic of conversation, they were interrupted by a familiar sound. A sound came from the girl, and it made her blush upon realizing it.

Alice's stomach growl interrupted the pair, pulling them out of their thoughts. Alice felt very embarrassed thinking that an angel had heard her stomach growl. On the other hand, Azmodiel just looked at the girl with curiosity, wondering where she had hidden the growling animal, but then remembering that hunger was another mortal aspect he would have to get used to.

Alice, with reddened cheeks, explained that she hadn't eaten anything in hours. He just nodded as he followed the young girl to another room in the house, trying to remember what her mother had mentioned about the subject. Humans must put things in their mouths and swallow repeatedly. Azmodiel made a mental note after that incident. "The human girl growls like a wolf when she's hungry. Could it be possible to make her die of starvation?"

Unaware of Azmodiel's embarrassing mental note, Alice headed to the kitchen to reheat the porridge from the previous night. Remembering for a moment her mother in the kitchen welcomed her at the start of the day, but before sadness overwhelmed her, she remembered that there was a guest in her house and that she had been raised better than this. She paused at the kitchen entrance and took a deep breath, turning to look at her guest.

Azmodiel followed behind her like a shadow, but the expression on his face was somewhat tense. In his head, he kept replaying the early morning events, looking for any clue that would tell him he had a way out. Mentally, Azmodiel was complaining about how ridiculous the restrictions on him were. The golden chains reacted as soon as Azmodiel had the intention to harm Alice.

Coming out of his thoughts, Azmodiel saw Alice looking back at him with an uncomfortable expression. He couldn't help but wonder if something in his expression gave him away or if he had said something inappropriate out loud, but the girl said nothing. The silence seemed eternal, but it was only a few seconds.

Seconds in which Azmodiel couldn't help but wonder if knowing more about his master would be beneficial; it would be much easier to find gaps in her morals, corrupt her, mold her to his will. For now, the girl was a stranger to him, and he had to tread very carefully with everything he said or did. "I wish I could see what's inside her head," Azmodiel couldn't help but think.

At that moment, something changed. Someone who knew what to look for would have noticed that his eyes returned to that intense, bright, and pristine purple, but this was deeper in some way. Azmodiel, for his part, felt something change in his perception, like an opening of consciousness to something beyond him.

In front of Azmodiel, Alice became bright, almost like a beacon of silver light, as if her soul presented itself before him. In an instant, a voice he didn't recognize resonated in the back of his mind: "Alice, listen carefully. When you have guests, you must make them feel at home. Offer them food. Show them the place. Be as kind as possible."

Before Azmodiel could discern who was speaking or where the voice was coming from, Alice interrupted his train of thought with a question. "Excuse me, Mr. Azmodiel, do you know how to light the fire?" The girl's figure returned to normal, and the being was dragged back to reality, with more doubts but now about himself.

It turned out Alice knew how to do many things, but lighting the firewood for the stove was something her mother always did. The young girl tried not to cry again when she thought of her mother and directed her attention to the kind angel, her new anchor of happiness, who for some reason still remained here.

Azmodiel silently looked at the hearth for a second. Alice stood there with a nervous expression, fidgeting with the ribbons of her apron, wondering if it was too absurd to expect an angel to do such a mundane task for her. But the angel smiled back at her, "Of course, Alice, a pleasure to help," it was a divine act not to vomit or bite his tongue while uttering the words.

Azmodiel stepped forward and bent down to look at the place where the firewood for the stove was placed, unaware of Alice's innocent blushing expression, different from embarrassment and less still aware he had caused it. With a very slight breath, a purple fire spark lit the firewood. Alice didn't notice the discomfort of the demon reduced to a lighter; she was very pleased that the supposed angel was so kind to her and surprised that he knew her name, though she knew his, so it wasn't surprising, the young girl supposed.

While waiting for the porridge to heat up, Alice had time to think more clearly. She didn't know how she had arrived at her house, nor did she know what had happened to the town or the monsters that had attacked them. Judging by the silence, the monsters were no longer around, but Alice was more concerned about the townspeople than that.

When she gazed at her guardian angel, her worries momentarily faded. "Everything should be fine; surely Mr. Azmodiel got rid of all those monsters and saved everyone, there's no need to worry," Alice thought, unable to help but cast her gaze on him, almost automatically.

Then she became conscious of those dark, deep, and penetrating eyes fixed on her. Besides an unusual shyness and a sense of having her very being scrutinized, the girl noticed that her companion seemed silent and somewhat lost.

The innocent aspect of Alice's personality shone through again. At that moment, Alice realized her angel probably had no idea how to act in his current environment. After all, it was unlikely that the angel spent much time among mortals, and their homes must be completely different. The young girl even felt sorry that Azmodiel had to wait who knows how long for her to wake up, "it must have been very boring," she reprimanded herself.

The teachings of her mother were now only memories, and although accompanied by a touch of sadness, those teachings were among the few things left of her, so the girl set herself the task of being a good hostess, not only to make her mother proud but also because it was the right thing to do, what had to be done in these situations. Uncomfortable visits were not an option.

Alice puffed out her chest with inhalation of confidence, trying to overcome the strange sensation caused by Azmodiel's penetrating gaze, and returned the look. "The food shouldn't take long, if you come with me, I'll show you where you can wash your hands," Alice said. "Mom insists that one cannot ingest food without first washing their hands." Usually, Ana heated the food while Alice washed her hands, so she wasn't entirely sure how long it would take, hoping nothing would burn while being the good hostess her mother knew she could be.

Needless to say, Azmodiel didn't understand what the girl was trying to teach him or why she looked so proud about it, he could only nod with a brief smile. At that moment, he could only think about staying on the good side of the young girl. For now, going along with her in an attempt to understand her better seemed the best option. "Lead the way, little one," he said, making a small bow.

Alice accompanied the demon with a slightly nervous attitude to a side section of the house where there was a basin that usually had clean water and another basin where things were washed. However, this time the basin was empty, and Alice turned her attention to the well, which, although not far, she wasn't ready to leave the safety of her home. The girl was about to try to explain her customs to her guest when she was stopped in her tracks by a kind smile.

Again, Alice was as clear as the water from that well in her emotions, something that served Azmodiel's purposes very well; he immediately understood there was something to be done, but the girl wasn't comfortable doing it. So ironically, fate turned him from a lighter to a water carrier, but although he cursed his luck, having opportunities to gain his master's favor was beneficial for him.

Small talk arose, where Alice explained things she had seen along the way, and Azmodiel did his best to show all his interest. By the time the conversation ended, Alice had already guided him back to the dining table, where she quickly began serving the food that almost burned due to her distraction. "Well, it's time to eat," she exclaimed with a smile, somewhat emotionally exhausted before sitting down at the table.