My Harem of Dangerous and Crazy Women as a Reincarnated Necromancer

She tried to speak, but every word tore at her throat and came out as barely a trembling thread of voice, mixed with blood.

”Y-yes...” she murmured, her eyes full of tears, her gaze lost in nothing. ”Whatever... it takes... I accept... just... just don’t let me... die here...”

The last thing Mary heard before passing out was a satisfied laugh.

”Good choice, little one.”

After that, the darkness swallowed everything once more.

The Demon Lord let out a long sigh, like someone who has just finished telling a story they had been carrying for far too long.

”Well, I think that’s enough history class for one day,” she said, lazily stretching her arms above her head. ”I don’t want to overwhelm you with everything at once... it would be a shame if that little head of yours exploded before its time.”

And with one last snap of her fingers, the setting changed again.

When Mark’s vision refocused, he found himself back in the mansion room, sitting on the edge of the bed he had dropped onto just a few minutes earlier.

As if none of it had happened.

”Well?” the Demon Lord asked, turning toward him. ”What did you think? Not every day someone invites you on a private tour of their tragic origin story, you know? You should feel flattered.”

Mark’s mind was in chaos, with an endless torrent of questions piling on top of each other.

He wanted to know what had become of the group that had betrayed her, what had happened to them after they had abandoned her to her fate.

But above all those questions, there was something in particular.

One detail from everything he had seen that kept resonating in his mind, over and over, louder than anything else.

”That voice...” Mark said, raising his eyes to her.

”What about it?” the Demon Lord asked, tilting her head slightly.

”It’s the same voice I heard when I died...” he replied seriously. ”There’s no way I wouldn’t recognize it.”

The Demon Lord raised an eyebrow.

”Hmm... now that is interesting,” she murmured, bringing a finger to her chin thoughtfully, her eyes narrowing slightly. ”And it explains quite a few things.”

”Like what?”

”For example, why that man tried so hard to kill you,” she said, turning to look at him. ”You remember? That other reincarnated person you fought a while back.”

Mark remembered it perfectly.

It wasn’t the kind of encounter one forgot easily.

But then something clicked.

”Wait a moment... how the hell do you know about that fight?”

The Demon Lord let out a small amused laugh, as if he had just said something adorably naive.

”Oh, darling, did you really think I wasn’t watching?” she said, gently shaking her head. ”I saw every second of that fight... How did you think I was going to miss my favorite show right at the best part?”

”Your favorite show?”

”But of course, darling,” she replied, closing the distance between them until she was just centimeters from Mark’s face.

And before he could react or pull away, she raised a hand and gently took his face, drawing him toward her until their lips nearly touched.

Both were so close they could feel each other’s breath.

”I’ve been watching you since the very first day you set foot in this world,” she whispered, looking directly into his eyes.

And at that precise moment, a small shadow demon materialized in the air beside them.

It perched delicately on the Demon Lord’s shoulder and fixed its gaze on him.

”What...?” Mark said, eyes wide, his mind racing. ”Since the first day? Are you telling me you’ve been spying on me this entire damn time?”

”Mm-hmm,” she purred without moving an inch, clearly savoring every drop of his reaction. ”Every step you took, every mistake you made, every decision you faced.”

”...”

”And of course, every night you spent with those charming women who treated you almost like a god... I saw it all, sweetheart.”

Mark felt a chill run down his spine as the pieces began falling into place.

”So all those times I felt like someone was watching me,” he murmured slowly, connecting the dots one by one. ”That constant presence at the back of my neck, impossible to ignore... that I always thought was just paranoia...”

”It was me,” the Demon Lord confirmed, delighted. ”Or rather, my little friends doing their job.”

She gently stroked the head of the shadow demon resting on her shoulder with her fingertip, and the creature leaned into the touch like a satisfied cat.

”I have eyes in every corner of this continent, you know?” she said, as if it were the most obvious thing in the world. ”And of everything I’ve seen over these long years, you have been, without a doubt, the best. You’re unpredictable... I never knew what madness you’d get up to next.”

Mark looked at her steadily, forcing himself not to look away despite the discomfort.

”Wait...” he said, pulling back slightly. ”There’s something that doesn’t add up in all of this.”

”Oh?” she raised an eyebrow, amused. ”Enlighten me.”

”If I’m really nothing more than that to you,” Mark continued, choosing his words carefully, ”a toy, entertainment to kill the boredom... then none of what you’ve done tonight makes any sense.”

The Demon Lord’s smile remained, but her eyes sharpened.

”Go on.”

”You went to the trouble of getting inside my head and showing me your past,” Mark explained, holding her gaze. ”The most painful and vulnerable moment of your entire existence.”

”And?”

”Nobody opens their deepest wound to a simple toy they can discard whenever they want... You only show that to someone you’re genuinely expecting something from.”

The Demon Lord watched him intently, until finally she let out a soft laugh.

”Well, well, well, and here I thought you were just a pretty face with a lot of luck,” she murmured in a sultry tone. ”But it turns out there is something working inside that head of yours... What a pleasant surprise.”

She slowly lowered her hand from his cheek, sliding it down his chest until she reached his crotch.

”You’re absolutely right, darling,” she continued, beginning to stroke his cock through the fabric. ”I didn’t slip into your dreams just to show you my memory album and wish you goodnight... I came because after watching you for so long, I’ve finally made a decision about you.”

Then she closed the little remaining distance between them and kissed him passionately, sliding her long tongue into Mark’s mouth.

Both pulled apart shortly after, breathless and slightly panting.

”The truth is I’m tired of watching you from afar...So I’ve decided to promote you,” she murmured, struggling for breath. ”I want you to stop being my toy... and become my collaborator.”