The Little Demon's Wish
Long, long ago, in a kingdom upon the Fairy Tale Continent, a little princess was born.
The little princess had pale skin, clear blue eyes, and a head of beautiful golden hair—she should have been a very lovely child.
Unfortunately, on her face was a enormous, ugly birthmark.
The king and queen still loved their darling daughter, but they couldn't stop the ignorant gossip of their subjects.
To protect her from harm, they built a lonely castle far from any settlement, surrounding it with high walls to keep the vicious rumors out.
The little princess had never seen what the world beyond the walls looked like. She could only explore its secrets through books and picture albums, until one day she stumbled upon a sealed book hidden in the castle's highest tower.
The forbidden markings on the cover couldn't deter a child's boundless curiosity. The little princess opened the Book of Seals and, following its instructions, performed a demon-summoning ritual.
Perhaps because the little girl's ritual was performed rather unbecomingly, the demon it summoned turned out to be just a boy about her age.
The little demon had already learned at demon school that making deals with humans was the sacred duty of demonkind.
But his teachers hadn't yet taught him how a cunning demon ought to bargain with greedy humans to earn a handsome profit for all of demonkind.
The little princess didn't care about demon conventions. The moment the little demon appeared, she pleaded urgently, "Please tell me what the world outside the walls is like."
The little demon scratched his head and told her about the beautiful sights beyond the walls—pristine snow mountains, crystalline blue lakes.
"And golden wheat fields," the little demon added, unable to resist mischievously giving the princess's braid a gentle tug. "Just like the color of your hair."
That answer didn't satisfy the little princess—it only made her longing for the outside world grow even stronger.
"If only I could see these sights with my own eyes," the princess said, her eyes shining with hope, then dimming with deeper disappointment.
That moved the little demon.
As a boy who spent every day waiting for demon school holidays, he knew all too well the misery of being cooped up with no chance to go out and play.
He decided to help the poor little princess.
At that point, the little demon's magic wasn't strong enough to take the princess beyond the walls. So each time demon school went on break, he would sneak into the castle and bring her little things that existed only in the outside world.
A crimson maple leaf. A shimmering shooting star.
In return, the little princess would give him a single golden strand of her hair each time.
This exchange—rather than a deal between demon and human—felt more like a game two children both enjoyed playing.
And it made them both happy.
---
Gradually, the little princess grew into a young maiden, and the little demon grew into a youth. The passage of time had never weakened their friendship—if anything, it made their bond even stronger.
On the princess's birthday, the young demon brought her a sheaf of golden wheat. "I told you before—ripe wheat fields are just as beautiful as your hair."
The princess's smile faded instantly.
Even within the castle walls, over the years she had overheard the whispers of maids and guards, and she knew what that birthmark on her face was said to signify.
"I'm not beautiful at all," the princess murmured, lowering her head. "I'm ugly."
Seeing her sorrow, the demon youth felt an ache in his heart without knowing why. Summoning courage from who knows where, he impulsively took her hand, cast a spell, and transported them beyond the castle walls.
The demon youth was startled himself.
He'd thought he wasn't capable of that yet—such magic wasn't supposed to be taught until next year at demon school.
But that didn't matter. What mattered was that, for the first time, the princess saw the outside world.
She was spellbound.
The demon youth cast aside his other concerns and continued holding her hand, leading her to see the pristine snow mountains and the crystalline blue lakes.
"Your skin is as beautiful as the snow mountains, and your eyes as beautiful as the lakes," the demon youth said, both earnest and nervous. "That's what I thought the very first time I saw you."
That was the purest thought of a little boy—he had noticed all those shining, lovely things right away, while the rest of the world could only look at the ugly birthmark.
Years had passed, yet nothing had changed.
They were standing in a vast wheat field. A breeze swept past, sending ripples through the golden stalks that spread outward from the two of them in shimmering waves, reaching far, far away.
The princess smiled, at peace. "You're right—you didn't lie to me. My hair does have the color of wheat fields."
With those words, she untied her braid. The golden hair billowed in the wind, blending with the dazzling golden light behind her until the two became inseparable.
The demon youth stared, dazed, feeling something strike his heart.
And it became a sentence he kept locked inside.
My dear princess, even if all the world's scenery were combined, it could not compare to your beauty.
---
After that, the demon youth sneaked the princess out many more times.
Two lively young people—sometimes chasing each other across flower-covered hillsides, sometimes playfully splashing in forest streams, other times lying flat on the soft, fragrant grass watching summer night skies full of stars.
The demon youth often couldn't resist stealing glances at the princess.
But every time she turned to look his way, he'd hastily avert his eyes.
---
Time flew. The princess's coming-of-age birthday was fast approaching.
By fairy tale tradition, every kingdom's princess celebrated with a grand coming-of-age ceremony, inviting many handsome young princes to compete for her hand in marriage.
But for the princess with the ugly birthmark on her face, the ceremony was desolate and quiet.
Not a single prince came.
Even though the princess hadn't been hoping to meet some stranger for an arranged union, facing the thinly veiled or openly mocking remarks from the noble guests, her feelings were complicated enough that she couldn't quite manage a smile.
Late into the night, after the king and queen had led the guests away, the demon—now a young man—appeared before the princess.
This time he didn't bring wheat. Instead, he told her he had prepared a special gift.
With that, he reached over and gently brushed his hand beside her cheek.
The birthmark vanished.
Anyone who saw her would have called her the most beautiful girl in the world.
Obtaining beauty through a deal between demon and human wasn't unusual, but by demon law, the price of such a transaction was extraordinarily steep.
Many foolish girls had gained beauty in such trades but lost far more.
Their children. Their lovers. Their happiness.
Yet the demon youth asked the princess for nothing. He merely smiled faintly. "I've already received the reward I wanted."
There was a second half to that sentence, but the demon youth kept it unspoken, tucked away in his heart.
My dear princess, the only thing I wish for is your happy smile.
---
Word of the princess's astonishing beauty spread quickly, and suitors came in an unending stream.
But she refused them all, deliberately secluding herself in the castle, waiting for the demon youth to come.
But the demon youth never came.
He had given the princess peerless beauty without collecting a corresponding price—a severe violation of demon law. As punishment, he was imprisoned, awaiting the harshest sentence.
He was to be executed.
The night before the execution, the Grand Chief of Demons came—following tradition—to ask if he had any last wish. The demon youth said he wanted nothing, only to see the princess one more time.
Such a request didn't quite follow protocol, but the stern Grand Chief, in that moment, couldn't help but feel a pang of rare compassion.
He sighed. "Ah, you impulsive young ones—what are we to do with you?"
---
The demon youth was permitted one final visit.
A long time had passed since he'd last seen the princess. During that period, as the princess grew older with no marriage prospects, she risked becoming fodder for gossip between kingdoms. Her panicked parents had arranged a match with a neighboring prince, pushing her into an engagement.
They believed this was a parent's deep love, but forgot to ask whether the princess was willing.
And today was the princess's wedding day.
The demon youth appeared at the wedding looking somewhat disheveled. The assembled guests exchanged bewildered glances at this unexpected arrival.
At the center of the hall, the princess in her pure white wedding gown was breathtakingly beautiful, and the prince who was to become her husband was handsome and dashing.
They looked so well-matched.
The demon youth stood silent, eyes growing moist.
But the princess set down her bouquet and walked straight toward him. "I've waited for you a long time."
The demon youth started to speak, but she interrupted him. "I want to make one more deal with you."
The crowd held their breath.
The princess said, "I want a happy marriage."
Everyone exhaled—such a request at a wedding seemed like a blessing, nothing excessive.
Given that the authority of demons and witches occasionally overlapped, the onlookers nodded understandingly.
"Alright," the demon youth said, looking at the princess, deciding to grant her wish.
As for what he wanted in return—he needed nothing.
He couldn't exactly be executed twice.
"Respected Princess, I wish you a happy and blissful marriage." The demon youth spoke these words and was about to turn and leave, but the princess caught his wrist first—around his wrist still hung a bracelet woven from her golden strands.
"I can't just keep taking your gifts." The princess's lake-blue eyes sparkled. "I want to give you something too."
The next second, she stood on tiptoe and gave him a kiss.
Gasps echoed through the hall.
The demon youth flushed to the tips of his ears. "You—"
"I knew you would come," the princess said, smiling openly. "All along, the only one I've ever wanted to marry is you."
---
The chaos that followed doesn't need retelling, but for the princess and demon youth, none of it mattered anymore.
In that moment, they had eyes only for each other—no room for anything else.
The Grand Chief of Demons had a bit of a headache. He had no choice but to revoke the demon youth's sentence on the spot.
Because the contract for a happy marriage between the princess and the demon youth had already taken effect, and the price paid was more than worthy of it.
No one could deny the weight of a true love's kiss.
That was an ironclad law of the fairy tale world.
---
The only person more awkward than the Grand Chief of Demons was the prince whose engagement had been broken off.
"No worries—this kind of thing is quite common in our fairy tale world, nothing unusual at all," the prince said generously as he led his bridal procession away. He even threw Princess a meaningful wink. "Brave lovers, I wish you happiness."
And so, for the princess and the demon youth, it was a happy ending.
From then on they lived happily together—you possessing me, I possessing you.
That was the contract they'd made with each other.
For a lifetime, never to be broken.
END
Bonus Chapter:
After leaving the castle, the prince didn't return to his own kingdom. Instead, he led his bridal procession straight to a nearby village.
That was where his beloved lived.
That's right—the prince had never wanted to marry the princess either. Both of them were victims of forced engagements arranged by their parents. They'd communicated in secret as allies working together to find a way out.
The princess told the prince that perhaps they could solve their problem by making a deal with a demon.
Yet for some reason, during that entire period, no matter how many times the princess performed the summoning ritual, she couldn't reach the demon youth she knew. With no other option, she taught the ritual to the prince, hoping he might succeed.
And the prince came through—he set up a proper demon-summoning ritual on the day before the wedding, requesting the demon's aid.
Because his summoning ritual was performed with meticulous precision, the being he summoned was the Grand Chief of Demons.
The Grand Chief agreed to the prince's request and promised to help dissolve the engagement.
As for the price—the prince had mentally prepared himself. Whatever it took, he would be with the woman he loved.
But the Grand Chief's demand was this: "You must treat that girl well for the rest of your life."
The prince looked bewildered. "That's it?"
The Grand Chief gave a solemn nod. "That's it."
Before leaving, he gave the prince a very stern warning: "The price of fooling a demon is terrible, boy. If you dare break this contract, I absolutely will teach you a lesson. Do you understand?"
The prince nodded blankly.
He still hadn't quite figured out what was going on.
But there was no rush—the latest he'd figure it out was when he went to call on his beloved's father.
That was, by all accounts, a very strict father.
Yet facing his own darling daughter's pouting and carrying on, he too could only sigh in capitulation. "Ah, you impulsive young ones—what are we to do with you?"
END