"I'm back."
"Welcome home, Finn-sama~!"
The moment Finn stepped out of the teleportation circle and into his luxurious private estate in Taipei, Taiwan, Akeno was already there. She threw her arms around his neck, hugging him so tightly that the soft, heavy swell of her breasts pressed flush against his chest.
Why Taiwan? And why move away from Hong Kong so suddenly?
While Hong Kong had its perks, Taiwan offered incredibly delicious, refreshing fruits at a fraction of the cost. More importantly, after the massive, bloody crater they had left behind in Hong Kong, the city felt a bit too small and suffocating. It was simply safer and far more relaxing to relocate.
That was the absolute luxury of his immense wealth. Finn owned lavish properties all over the world, and being a High-Class Devil meant he could teleport between them whenever he pleased.
"The local plantations have just delivered the fresh fruit harvests, Finn-sama," Akeno purred, her violet eyes gazing up at him.
"Oh?"
"The watery apples are especially nice today."
While many people obsessed over excessively sugary fruits, Akeno knew Finn preferred things that were crisp and refreshing, especially since the humid, sticky heat of the Taiwanese summer clung to the air.
"You're right," Finn said, taking a bite of the crisp, pale red apple she offered him. The sweet, cool juice immediately flooded his mouth. "The fruit here is better. And cheaper."
"Mhm," Akeno nodded in agreement. Compared to Japan, where high-quality fruit was treated like a rare luxury item, here in the south, it grew in absolute abundance.
"Next time, let's buy some durian," Finn noted.
"...." Akeno blinked, momentarily speechless.
Finn had an ulterior motive for wanting the famously pungent fruit. He wanted to mask his scent. Despite scrubbing himself clean after the engagement party, he still felt like the sweet, lingering perfumes of the various heiresses who had crowded him were stuck to his skin. It was a purely psychological itch—much like a killer who can't wash the imaginary blood off his hands.
His paranoia was instantly validated. Akeno buried her face into his chest, taking a deep, lingering sniff. She slowly trailed her nose up the column of his throat, a soft, incredibly hot sigh escaping her lips, sending a sudden shudder straight down his spine.
"I love your scent so much, Finn-sama~!" she whispered, her voice thick with desire.
"I missed you, too, Akeno, but my neck is a bit sensitive right now," Finn warned.
"Hehehe..."
Akeno didn't back down. Instead, she leaned in closer, the tip of her warm, wet tongue darting out to lightly trace his pulse point. She kissed and sucked gently at his skin, tasting him as if he were the sweetest dessert on the island.
"...You're going to leave a hickey on my neck, Akeno. I have an important meeting later."
Finn had been away in the Underworld for a while. Though he didn't need to manage his businesses daily—his unique abilities kept his wealth expanding effortlessly in the background—he still had a few important faces to meet in Taipei.
"Then isn't it perfectly fine for me to leave a mark right here?" Akeno whispered seductively, her hands roaming shamelessly over his broad shoulders and sliding down his firm chest. "That way, no sneaky little kittens will try to take a bite out of you while I'm not around~."
"....."
Finn was momentarily speechless. Given the aggressive flirting from Ravel and Sona at the party, Akeno's feminine intuition was terrifyingly accurate.
"Did you get caught by a naughty kitten in the Underworld?" Akeno teased, pressing her lush curves closer to him.
But before Finn could formulate an excuse, he noticed something strange. He expected Akeno to be jealous or angry. Instead, her beautiful face was flushed a deep, inviting crimson. Her eyes were glazed over with a remarkably lewd, heavy excitement. It was the face of a woman harboring a very specific, very dirty fetish.
"No," Finn answered smoothly.
"Really~?"
"Yes," Finn nodded. "But I was pressured by the Great King to find a wife, but I didn't do it."
"Why didn't you?!"
"....."
Finn stared at her, entirely baffled by her sudden outburst. "Wait... you want me to go find a wife?"
Akeno stopped teasing. She looked up at him, her flushed face turning surprisingly sincere, though that dark, lewd excitement still swirled in her eyes. "Finn-sama, you are the heir to a Noble Pillar. You know my identity. You know my tainted blood. While I am incredibly happy that you love me and claim me, I don't want to be a political burden to you."
"Akeno..."
The supernatural world was currently a rigid, unforgiving place. If Akeno tried to stand beside him as his official wife, traditionalist Devils would relentlessly target her due to her Fallen Angel heritage. Even Sirzechs Lucifer faced a massive, violent backlash for marrying Grayfia. Finn is powerful, but why invite that kind of endless, exhausting drama?
The smartest, most comfortable path for both of them was to keep their relationship exactly as it was.
"I am happy that you think about me, but don't force yourselves for all the meaningless troubles to make it right. I am happy with how we are now. Let's just keep things the way they are," Akeno pressed as she pressed the idea of marriage onto him.
"Are you truly okay with that?" Finn asked with doubt.
"Yes." Akeno would be truly fine if Finn married someone.
"...I see," Finn sighed, suddenly putting the pieces together. "You're a total cuck, aren't you?"
"...."
Akeno's face turned violently red. Instead of arguing, she grabbed his hand and bit down hard on his finger!
"Ow. Now your saliva is all over my hand," Finn deadpanned.
"Then take my saliva!" Akeno huffed, though she didn't let go of his hand.
While Akeno had certainly inherited the sadistic streak of her mother, Shuri, she had undeniably inherited the deeply masochistic, suffering-loving tendencies of her father, Baraqiel. The thought of being his dirty, hidden secret while some clueless noblewoman played the 'official' wife thrilled her to her very core.
Finn decided to drop the marriage topic for now. It was too much of a headache. He just wanted to relax and enjoy his time in Taiwan.
Later that evening, the two of them walked through the bustling, glowing alleys of Jiufen Old Street. The historic mountain village was famous for its winding, narrow paths, the warm glow of hundreds of red paper lanterns, and a breathtaking view of the ocean below.
They sat shoulder-to-shoulder on cheap plastic stools at a small dessert stall, sharing a massive bowl of authentic Taiwanese taro balls. The shaved ice was drenched in sweet syrup and loaded with chewy sweet potato balls, grass jelly, and red beans.
"Is yours good?" Akeno asked, leaning intimately against his arm.
"Here, try some," Finn scooped up a generous bite and held the spoon up. Akeno smiled sweetly, parting her glossy lips to let him feed her.
"Mmm. It's so chewy and sweet," she hummed happily.
"Right?"
"Try my boba tea," she offered, holding the straw to his lips.
"It's good. A bit too sweet, though."
"Right?"
It was an entirely mundane, ordinary date, yet Akeno cherished every single second of it. Sitting close against him, feeling the heat of his body in the cool mountain breeze, she let her mind wander. Just imagining stealing these intimate, stolen moments with him while his hypothetical 'real wife' remained completely clueless sent a hot, wet shiver of excitement straight between her thighs.
"...." Finn noticed her breathing getting heavier, but chose not to comment on his Queen's hopelessly degenerate fantasies.
"Finn-sama," Akeno whispered, her voice dropping into a husky, desperate plea. "When we finish this... can we please go straight back to the hotel?"
"Yes," Finn nodded obediently. He needed Akeno's soft, tender care to wash away the stress of the Underworld anyway.
He just wanted a normal, peaceful evening. But in his world, the harder he wished for peace, the faster trouble found him. Even though he had deliberately left Issei behind to act as a magnet for the world's disasters, trouble still somehow managed to track him down.
"You're Finn Balam, right?"
A voice cut through the romantic atmosphere. Two young people—a sharp-looking young man and an elegant young woman—stepped into the small dessert shop, their eyes locked directly onto Finn.
"Can we talk?"
---
Who are they?