Elysia is not naive.

She might not be an avid believer in God and religions, but she knows that getting involved with demons is never good. Yet here she is, dressed in the uniform of Hell's, or rather the Devildom's only academy, and attending classes that were nowhere near the ones in the Human Realm. She is also stuck living under the same roof with six of the seven rulers of the Devildom. All of it was to make the future Demon King's delusions a reality.

She even has a babysitter - the most unreliable one (and the worst of the worst, according to his brothers). Mammon, the Avatar of Greed, is probably the loudest and most irritating person she had the misfortune to meet. His only older brother assigned the white-haired demon to look after her. They had just a phone call and met personally, but Elysia could already feel a migraine coming.

"Hey, human!"

…Okay. Add rude to that. Elysia could live being called a strange human, powerless human, and whatnot occasionally, but not calling her by her name when talking is just asking for it. She could not care less if the person trying to speak with her was a fucking demon.

"Looks like Levi let ya' live," Mammon remarked as he caught up to her at the front door. "Thought he's gonna drown ya' first before Beel gobble ya' up!"

Elysia ignored him. It is still early in the morning? Night? It is hard to tell the exact time with how dark the Devildom is the entire day. Then again, it does not matter since she is not in any mood to interact with the Avatar of Greed, especially after he used her as a living human shield less than twenty-four hours ago. She would not have been dragged into the Avatar of Envy's plot if it were not for him.

"Hey! Stop ignorin' me, human!" The white-haired demon complained. "Don't tell the Great Mammon that you're mad after yesterday? It's just the way it is." He scoffed. "You're a human! But even so, I don't think Levi would kill ya'. Lucifer will be the one doin' the killin' if that happens."

That ticked Elysia off. What does he think of her? A suicidal idiot? That she willingly go with this charade in the first place? She whirled around and faced the white-haired demon with a searing glare. "You don't think?"

The Avatar of Greed raised his arms and backed off. "W-Whoa! Hey! What are ya-!"

"Listen up, you scummy ass of a demon!" Elysia stepped forward. "I don't care if Lucifer chose you to protect me. You couldn't even do your damned job at day one! I don't need someone who couldn't do shit to protect anybody! Heck, I don't even care if this fucked up exchange program falls apart."

She pointed a finger at his chest. "All you have to know is that I don't trust you. I don't trust you, your brothers, or even that prince. So, if you have any common sense left in that brain of yours, then leave me alone and fuck off!"

She did not wait for any response as she stormed off the gates of the House of Lamentation. She wondered if his brothers heard them - surely they found it amusing, considering she might look like a dumb sheep trying to look intimidating in a world of predators.

It is their nature. Elysia reminded herself. She is just a source of entertainment for them.

A part of her felt guilty at snapping at Mammon. It is not like her to lose her temper like that - but everything since yesterday has been stressful for her. It felt like nine years ago - her being lost in an unfamiliar country with nothing but her first name and a changing surname. Five times. She had jumped countries five times to escape watchful eyes and continue living freely like she used to.

Elysia had lost so much due to her selfishness. She tried to live peacefully as they wished her to, but now, she was forced into a cage again. A different cage. Yet still for someone else's gains like it did before.

History repeats itself, does it not?

She was lost in her thoughts and emotions that she barely realized she had arrived in RAD. Elysia had memorized both the path they followed towards the dorm yesterday and the map provided to her before tucking in for the night. Voices chattered in the winding ancient hallways and stairs of the humongous academy - it was almost like a set for the Harrison Porter series. It would have been a good spot for sightseeing if it were not an academic institution for demons.

"Hey, check it out. That's the human that everyone's talking about. You think it's true what they say, that Mammon became a babysitter?"

"Well, if so, then I'd say that actually works out great, doncha think? If we wait and strike when he's not paying attention, he'll never figure out it was us."

A snicker. "C'mon, we should devour the human before Beel does."

…These bastards! Elysia was about to make a move when a voice stopped her. She turned around to see a young man around her age with blue-brown eyes and hair as white as snow. It was eerily similar to her natural hair color long before she decided to dye and cut it.

"Are you talking to me?"

"That's right," The young man nodded. "I'm talking to you, the human with that frightened, tormented look on your face that demons love so much. You're practically screaming, 'Come and eat me! I'm scrumptious!' Your name's Elysia, isn't it?"

Elysia scowled. Is he making fun of her?

The white-haired stranger was undeterred, however, and produced a familiar gadget. "This D.D.D here belongs to you, right? I saw you drop it just now. Here, take it."

She begrudgingly accepted the not-human smartphone and sized him up. Elysia initially assumed him to be a demon, but now she looks closely, he does not seem like one. This one does not have that heavy bone-chilling aura that any demons she had encountered so far emit. Still, something feels off about him. Is he an angel or…?

The student chuckled lightheartedly. "Haha. What's with that look? There's no need to be suspicious of me." He said. "My name's Solomon. I'm an exchange student from the human world, just like you."

Solomon extended a hand. "Nice to meet you, Elysia."

Elysia looked down at his hand before grasping it. "Likewise, I suppose..."

The other raised an eyebrow. "You suppose?"

She let go of his hand and stared at him in faux suspicion. Time to change the subject. "Are you really human?"

Solomon laughed at her question. Elysia could tell that he was really enjoying this. "Haha, good question. Honestly, there are even times when even I'm not so sure."

What?

Seeing her confusion (and annoyance), the other human told her a bit about his past that Elysia found more incredulous with each passing word. She knows and has been told multiple times to expect things outside the human standards of normal, but even the only other human in this exchange program is nowhere near normal. It was only a blessing that the school alarm went off, and Solomon bid her goodbye before going to his first period.

Her relief was short-lived when she encountered Lucifer in front of her classroom. The Avatar of Pride had been courteous to her since the get-go, but she could not help but be on edge around the demon. Something about the oldest demon brother rubbed her the wrong way, but she had yet to put a finger on it.

Their conversation was short but primarily revolved around how Solomon cannot be trusted. Sure, Elysia gets why Lucifer distrusts a sorcerer who had subjugated seventy-two demons, but it has nothing to do with her. If anything, she would rather gamble her safety with another human instead of a demon.

Then again, this is an opportunity to gather information about the whereabouts of Mammon's darling credit card. Fortunately, Lucifer had given her just enough clues to figure out everything, even though it was obvious that the Avatar of Pride had picked up on what they were plotting. Elysia was not big on coercion, but she could not afford to be picky in an unfamiliar world. If she could bring one of the seven rulers of the Devildom under her beck and call, it would raise her chances of survival.

…And she did. It was unpleasant - the words of demand that escaped her tongue clashed against the guilt gripping her from that morning. However, witnessing a powerful demon submit to her was also dangerously seductive.

She felt powerful. In control.

Golden light cloaked her form as the Avatar of Greed's pact mark burned itself on her back. She gritted her teeth to keep herself from screaming. The process lasted for a few seconds but felt like an eternity. The two demons seemed oblivious to her pain, both on cloud nine for finally getting what they both desired. Elysia just smiled through it and pretended nothing was wrong, even as they retired to their respective rooms.

Something is wrong.

Elysia wanted to cry, but this room was not safe. It was not hers - the ceiling has eyes, and the walls have ears. God, they are listening, are they not? They could hear her, right? Could see her?

She cannot cry - she cannot show any weakness. No matter how friendly or polite they were with her, she would never be safe with them. No matter how much that prince assures her, she cannot be appeased. She cannot trust them, even with a vow of peace or a damned pact seared on her skin. It burned, it itched, and Elysia wanted it gone. An hour had yet to pass, but she already wanted to break the pact.

"Help…"

"God," Elysia rasped as she curled to herself. "If you are listening…."

"...Help me…"