To be honest, if not for this conversation and the secret known only to the two of them, Roxy would never have been able to believe that the person in front of her was her disciple.
But Ash simply spread his hands and said very frankly, "Actually, I'm from the Demon Race. The kind with a slightly longer lifespan."
"Demon Race? I couldn't tell... But longer? About how many years?"
"Who knows?"
At least as far as he knew, there had never been any Demon Race member who showed signs of aging. The oldest Demon Race member was already two thousand years old and had never undergone any changes.
So for now, all he could say was that the Demon Race was extremely long-lived, or perhaps they simply had no concept of lifespan at all, because nobody knew the upper limit of their lifespan.
But this answer made Roxy pout slightly, "You're hiding things from me again..."
"No, I really don't know," He held his teacup with a slightly troubled expression, then suddenly thought of something and asked, "Speaking of which, did you go home recently?"
"Huh? Uh...", The sudden change of subject made Roxy pause for a moment, but she answered honestly in confusion, "I did go home. Why?"
"What did you tell your father about me?"
"Y-You're talking nonsense while taking advantage of the confusion? He's my father!", The milk in Roxy's hand shook, and she couldn't help giving him a sideways glare.
The strange accusation left him speechless as he retorted, "I mean, what did you tell your father, not that he was my father. Seriously... Would anyone normally misunderstand that? What exactly are you thinking about when it comes to your own disciple?"
"I... I wasn't thinking anything bad. You just didn't make yourself clear!", Although she really wanted to say it loudly, what she had done left Roxy somewhat lacking in confidence.
But perhaps influenced by Ash, after muttering that, she changed the subject, "Forget that for now. How did you know I went home? Did you go to my house?"
"I happened to pass by. Your father... um, I mean, your father was pretty enthusiastic."
"Really?", Roxy nodded in some surprise. She unconsciously lowered her head and stared at the pure white milk in her cup, a nostalgic smile appearing on her face, "Indeed... Father's emotions can be pretty intense. He and Mom must have welcomed you warmly, right?"
"Ah, yeah... Well, about that..."
"What's wrong?"
"Actually... I met your father, and after a friendly exchange, we got along quite well."
"??"
There seemed to be nothing wrong with what he said, so Roxy tilted her head in confusion, unable to understand why he had hesitated.
"It's nothing... It's just that when I left in the end, I escorted him quite a long way, and he enthusiastically chased after me for a while too. At the very end, he was even worried that I might encounter danger by myself and insisted on giving me his beloved sword."
With an awkward but polite smile, he slightly embellished that past encounter, avoiding some circumstances that were not particularly suitable for going into detail.
"I see. Does Father like you that much?", Roxy was surprised, but failed to notice anything wrong with his expression. Involuntarily, she imagined her father smiling as he tried to force the sword into Ash's hands before they parted, and a trace of warmth welled up in her heart as the corners of her mouth rose, "That's just like you. You've always been so likable."
"Ah... Well, he was so enthusiastic that I could barely handle it, so I accidentally ran away," In the end, to avoid trouble if the truth came out, Ash forced a smile and continued, making a tiny gesture with his fingers, "But I didn't accept the sword in the end, so he seemed a little unhappy with me."
"It's fine! I'll give him a good talking-to when I go back."
"Is... Is that so? Then I'll leave it to you."
"But... We haven't seen each other for a while, and you really did reach the height you said you would, suddenly reaching a level I could never catch up to, a height I could never reach."
Roxy stood up and looked gently at Ash. She lightly reached out and stroked his hair, her eyes filled with relief and pride, "As expected of my disciple. Now I really can't even feel jealous of you anymore. I only want to be proud of you."
"And then proudly announce to everyone that I'm your disciple?"
"Ah, uh... Ahem... I-I'll work h-hard from now on!"
"What's wrong? Even after becoming an Evil God, the great powers still aren't enough?"
"N-No, it's not that... Rather, it's precisely because you're an Evil God that it's a little hard to say," Roxy stiffly withdrew her hand, her voice as quiet as the buzzing of a mosquito. It was almost impossible to hear without listening carefully.
Ash could more or less guess what she was worried about. He couldn't help shaking his head and sighing resentfully, still unable to let go of his frustration, "Don't feel bad about it. I understand. The Evil God's reputation is pretty bad, right?"
"This..."
"Actually, things were fine at first. Who knew a bunch of people would start spreading rumors about me? Seriously... Next time I see whoever's spreading rumors about me, I'll just hang them from the city gate! Let them understand the consequences of talking nonsense."
"Y-you don't have to take it so seriously! Maybe they didn't mean any harm?"
"Can someone spreading rumors have no ill intentions?"
"Th-that's... true!"
'Ahhh, I want to die, I really want to die! Can I atone by dying now? Please let me atone by dying!', Roxy nodded hard with a smile uglier than crying, while inside she was already crying her eyes out.
Even after taking quite a while to calm herself down, she couldn't help asking, "As-Ash, I-I'm just curious..."
"What?"
"...What do you think is the proper way to apologize?"
"Lie on the ground and expose your belly?"
"...I see? I-I understand..."
Although she had no idea why that was apparently the highest form of apology among the Beastfolk, Roxy endured her embarrassment and, under his astonished gaze, lay down on the ground, pulled open her top to expose her pale abdomen, and turned her face away in embarrassment.
Ash stared at the girl on the floor, her face flushed as she revealed her stomach, and couldn't help being dumbfounded, "I mean... You're apologizing for what happened before?"
"Uh... Y-yes!"
"...I see?", He had actually vaguely guessed that Roxy was probably one of the people who had spread the rumors, but with this cute girl already lying on the floor and exposing her stomach, what else could he say?
He could only silently crouch down and, staring at her skin, unconsciously run his fingertip across her pale abdomen.
Roxy's body shuddered as though she had been shocked. Unable to bear the embarrassment, she turned her head back and glared at him, "W-What are you doing? I've never heard that you could touch it!"
"...Is this how the Boreas family does things?"
"But you're not part of the Boreas family!"
"Don't be so stingy~ I'll just touch it a little. I absolutely won't do anything strange, I swear!"
"...It's already strange! And what kind of standard line is that for some sleazy guy trying to fool a girl? Where did you even learn all these weird things?"
Although she remained on the floor and never managed to get back up, Roxy still endured her embarrassment, kept her stomach exposed, and put on the manner of a teacher with an unhappy expression, forcing Ash to withdraw his hand. Even so, he cheerfully faced her serious lecture.
And afterward... After getting through a little awkwardness, Roxy eventually got back up, though she was still unable to sit comfortably. As the night went on, she gradually relaxed and began talking with him about what the two of them had experienced during this time.
They were ordinary things, nothing particularly special, yet just as nostalgic as always... The only thing was that a faint blush remained on her cheeks.
———
That night, without realizing it, Roxy ended up lying on Ash's bed while chatting with Ash, who was sitting at the desk. When sleepiness came over her because she was too relaxed, she unconsciously drifted into a deep sleep.
Seeing this, Ash helplessly shook his head. He carefully covered her with a blanket, then returned to the desk on his own and began flipping through the thick books, trying to find some clues about the Human God and the Voidless.
It was supposed to be a peaceful night, but the next morning.