Page 199 of Of Sins and Sacrifice

I wait for the disappointment to appear on his face and try to think of ways to explain myself, that there is something there, but I’m having a hard time to define it because I’ve never experienced this before.

But as I open my mouth to speak, he suddenly laughs. His eyes crinkle with warmth and amusement.

I frown. What…?

“Oh, Minnie, Minnie. You really do know how to stroke a man’s ego.”

“Are you…mad at me?”

He shakes his head, a smile still on his lips.

“I could never be mad at you. In fact, I probably deserved that.” He chuckles. “Funny how history repeats itself,” he mutters, more to himself.

“I don’t understand.”

“You don’t need to understand, Minnie.” He caresses my cheek. “My love for you is unconditional, and it always will be.”

“That’s…” I clear my throat. “That is very nice of you.”

He pulls me close and presses his lips against mine in a swift yet maddening kiss.

“We have work to do.”

I nod, though that doesn’t mean I’ll have an easier time focusing on my work while he’s still here, especially after he said those words to me.

We spend half a day going through the books, though we don’t find much information about greed demons. As we put aside book after book, I wonder if I made a mistake when I chose the titles. I didn’t have much time for an in-depth search, but it would be disappointing to know everything I did was in vain.

Mine releases a tired sigh and my eyes are suddenly on him, looking for any sign of illness. He seems fine, though a little tired.

And that’s when it hits me.

When did he last eat?

I’m built differently and I can withstand hunger better. But he’s human. He needs daily nourishment.

Suddenly, I get to my feet.

“I’ll make some food,” I declare.

His brows go up.

“Can I watch?”

“Of course,” I tell him. “Perhaps that will make you love me even more.” I wink at him playfully.

“Of that I have no doubt.”

We head to the kitchen and I open a couple of cupboards and get some items from inside. The cabin is designed to be self-sufficient, and each cupboard door is engraved with runes that ensure the food inside is always replenished when the door opens.

Mine takes a seat at the table, a book still with him as he watches me.

I smile to myself. Cooking is something I’m quite good at, if I do say so myself. Spending so much time on the battlefield meant I had to make do, so I’ve learned quite a lot from the many worlds I visited.

While I prepare the food, I take care to only select ingredients that wouldn’t be incompatible with Mine’s biology. I end up making a hot spicy stew with vegetables to be eaten aside something similar to the rice in his world.

I plate the food and bring it to the table, but this time, instead of watching me, his brows are furrowed in concentration as he reads from the book.

“Greed demons are descendant of the first Greed Primordial. While they are rare, they are insidious and can make a community rot to its core.”

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