Chapter 473 472   - The Devourer(Part 2)　　Point-of-View: Damien Romer

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　　"What are you doing out here?" She inquired with a smile, as she sat down next to me and rested her head onto my shoulder.

　　Safe to say I've gained her affection, she's so vulnerable with me. Ohh, I can't wait to see the look on her face when I betray her trust in the worst way imaginable, just thinking about it gives me chills.

　　"Oh, um, I just wanted to get some shade. I'm taking a short break from working, it's so hot today," I replied in a slightly timid tone...I've been slowly but surely acting less and less meek with her, while acting more or less the same with the other villagers, to subliminally emphasize my feelings for her.

　　Her name is Isla Charlotte, she's short and slender, with longish red, blue and yellow hair that framed her face, the multi-color due to her parrot Anima. She has black eyes and has a very mild-mannered, friendly personality.

　　In other words, she's a dreadfully boring person. I seriously can't wait to kill her. And, fortunately, I don't have to wait much longer...in two days time, I'll be having dinner with her and her father at their house, that's when I plan to strike.

　　There's another key player whom I plan to involve in this, that part might be a bit tricky to pull off, but I'm confident that I can manage it. I'll disrupt this peaceful little village into absolute mayhem, fracturing it beyond repair.

　　These years of peace and quiet have been genuinely sickening, I've been itching to tear it apart for quite some time now.

　　"Hey, are you listening?" Came Isla's voice, as she shook my shoulder with a pout.

　　"O-oh, I'm sorry, I guess I was daydreaming," I responded apologetically.

　　"Hmph, daydreaming when I'm right here beside you? How rude," She huffed with a pout, as she poked my face.

　　What a nuisance, she's so annoying. Does she think that's cute or something?

　　"W-well, um...I hope this won't upset you, but I was, um...daydreaming about you, like spending my, um, entire life with-...I-I'm sorry, I know that's really impudent of me, a-and-!"

　　"O-oh...well, if that's the case, then go ahead and daydream all you want," She mumbled bashfully, averting her gaze as her face turned red.

　　She's so easy to manipulate, I've enjoyed toying with her and raising her affection for me. Oh, I hear footsteps approaching, perfect timing. Let's keep at it, hope whoever's coming overhears this...

　　"I-it's because of the dinner we're going to have at your place, with your dad...um, and just so you know, I...I plan to ask him to let me m-marry you, b-but if you're a-against that, then-," I mumbled shyly, before she abruptly cut me off with a tight hug.

　　Tch, that hurts, get off me...　　"O-oh, wow...I'm so happy right now! And of course I'm not against it, there's no way I could ever be!" She exclaimed happily, tears of joy streaming down her face.

　　Too easy.

　　"Oh, my, how wonderful!" Came a voice from behind us.

　　I acted startled and jumped in surprise, as did Isla. Of course, I already knew someone was there. I glanced back to see who it was...ah, it's this old hag. Mrs Penny Quisive, a middle aged woman in this village who loves her gossip.

　　What luck, there's no doubt she'll relay what happened here to the entire village, possibly even to the other nearby villages. I usually find her insufferable, but right now, I'm grateful for her rather perfect timing.

　　"M-Mrs Quisive!? H-how long have you been here!?" Stuttered Isla in embarrassment.

　　"Oh, long enough, my dear. Don't worry, I'll hold off on telling anyone for the next two days, we wouldn't want your father to hear about this before dear Damien here gets to pop the question," She smiled in response.

　　That's a lie. She'll definitely tell at least a handful of people, probably while telling them to 'not tell anyone else about it'. I've spent the last sixteen years getting to know these people, I know exactly how most of them think.

　　If this keeps up, no one will suspect me as the culprit in two days time, when I get started with my fun.

　　"This is mortifying...," Groaned Isla, burying her face in her hands.

　　"H-hey, it's okay, everyone would've found out eventually, right?" I replied with a slight smile, as I patted her back.

　　"I mean...sure, I guess so, but still...," She grumbled, as she peeked out from behind her hands.

　　"W-woah, that was so cute just now...," I gasped in awe, widening my eyes at her.

　　"Aw, how sweet," Remarked Mrs Quisive in excitement.

　　"H-huh!? Hey, don't just blurt out stuff like that with no warning!" Exclaimed Isla, red-faced.

　　"Oh, um...I'm sorry, I didn't mean to upset you," I responded, putting on a downcast expression on my face.

　　"N-no, that's not what I...hey, come on, cheer up, I was really happy when you said that, I was just caught off-guard, that's all. A-and, well, I wouldn't mind if you said that kind of stuff more often," She mumbled awkwardly, fidgeting slightly.

　　I've got her dancing to my tune on the palm of my hand, perfect.

　　"O-okay...then, I will," I replied as I averted my gaze shyly.　　I'm starting to get sick of this act, which is only natural considering that I've been keeping this up for well over ten years.

　　Even in my old life, I never played a role for more than a year, I always managed to capture my targets by then, at the most. More often than not, it wouldn't take me any more than a couple of months.magic

　　So, yeah, this particular one has dragged on for way too damn long, and I'm tired of it. I want to be myself, and also play some new roles. I gained the trust of the people in this village ages ago, but I never quite got the right opportunity to strike.

　　Not to mention that I had to wait till I was physically strong enough to pull this off. If I'd tried to do it while this body was still too young, there's a good chance that I might have failed.

　　The longer I wait before springing into action, the easier and more likely I'll be to succeed, and I think I've waited long enough.

　　"That was so embarrassing," Sighed Isla wistfully, as the old hag finally left us alone.

　　"Y-yeah, she's a nice lady, but a bit difficult to deal with," I responded with a wry smile.

　　"Heh, that's putting it lightly," She laughed, as she rested her head on my lap, reaching up and cupping my cheek with a warm smile, "I love you."

　　Ugh, gag me.

　　"I love you too," I replied bashfully, before leaning down and kissing her.

　　This part, I don't mind so much. I mean, sure, I don't think like normal people do, and I'm probably a sociopath, but hey, I'm still a guy. And she is attractive, so of course I'm gonna tap that.

　　"You know, I was kinda bummed when I first came to this world, since it doesn't exactly have the same comforts as our old worlds. But meeting you has made it all worth it," She whispered with a grin.

　　"Yeah, me too...I, um, really wasted my life before I died, living alone and rarely ever interacting with any people. I was really afraid that it would be the same in this world. But, um...ever since I met you, I feel like...I can keep trying...to be better and talk to people more. You...mean so much to me," I responded, giving her exactly what she wants to hear.

　　"Hearing that makes me happy," She sighed contentedly, before adding with a smirk, "By the way, for someone with such social issues, you can be a pretty smooth talker sometimes."

　　"H-huh? Oh, did I say something strange? Sorry, I-," I began to respond.

　　"I've been meaning to tell you...stop apologizing so much. At least with me. You've never done anything to me that you've needed to apologize for, and I can't ever imagine that you will," She cut me off as she placed a finger on my lips.

　　Well, she's not wrong. I have no intention of apologizing for what I plan to do to her in two days time. Her happiness and bliss will turn to horror and despair when the time comes, and it'll be by my hand.

　　But until then, I'll be as nice and loving as I always am, let her continue to experience her current happiness while she still can. It's the least I can do...

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