Chapter Text
The city was bustling as Komugi and Pitou casually walked the main square. Komugi could hear the laughter of happy children and the yells of a shopkeeper as he hurried them away. She smiled, hearing the playfulness still apparent in the man’s voice despite his half-hearted threats. The bell to his shop dinged as he walked back inside, and abruptly she found herself pulled away from the scene by a delicious and absolutely enticing smell.
“What is that? It smells so good!” Komugi exclaimed, her stomach growling out a desperate plea.
“Hmmm,” Pitou began, a sharp nail held to her chin, “I’m not sure, but I know where it’s coming from.” She paused, a playful finger extending towards the hungry blonde. “Would you like me to find it?”
Komugi lit up with glee, her palms trembling with excitement.
“I’ll take that as a yes.”
Komugi grinned as she heard Pitou slink away, elated that she would soon partake of the delicious delicacy emitting that dreamy aroma. Her mouth watered at the thought of finally receiving it.
She had no cane, but that did not stop Komugi from continuing her stroll. Passing by new shops and new smells, she wondered what Meruem-sama might be up to. The Ant King said he needed to check a certain boutique, one that she and Pitou were not welcome to accompany him to. Why was he so secretive? At least he said she would enjoy the result of his excursion, and the thought of that sated her curiosity for the time being.
Her hand came to rest upon the edge of a brick storefront. She wondered which way to go, unsure if one way led to Pitou or would instead land her in a muddy river or worse. She really did need that cane. With a heavy yet determined sigh, she made the decision to turn right. She had barely wandered down that path before hearing someone whistle her way.
“Are you lost there little lamb?”
The chuckling, grimy voice startled Komugi. Like a cornered doe, she began to tremble. His tone was slimy and dripping with lewd intonations that made her skin chill and crawl. “E-Eh no… I’m… I’m waiting for someone…!” she stammered, her feet shuffling backwards slowly. Her thoughts raced. ‘Where’s Pitou-san? And I lost Meruem-sama, too.’
“Sorry, sir! I’m trying to-” She reached forward, trying to emphasize her words with her delicate hands. Her breath hitched as her frail fingers brushed up against the soft fabric of someone’s clothing. She froze, tensing as the luxurious cloth pulled away from her slender fingertips.
“Watch where you’re touching! Don’t you know who I am?” His voice was filled with a recognizable disgust. It was a tone that reminded her of so many others in the past.
A firm hand gripped her wrist, the hold both tight and painful. She flailed in response, clawing at his hand, internally pleading for it to pry loose.
“Looks like this one needs to learn some manners!” The man gruffed and taunted.
A horribly hard slap crashed against her porcelain cheek, stinging painfully. The impact spun her, her knees crashing to the ground as she yelped in fear. Her mind raced as she frantically thought, ‘What should I do?’ A helpless pit sank into her stomach. Mind filled with terror, she began to desperately will Meruem to her side.
Fists gripped Komugi’s hair, commanding fingers binding and pulling her up and off the hard ground. She gasped in pain as the jolt electrified her nerves. Rough concrete scraped her cheek as she was forced back down, the man mounting her with unrelenting force, her shoulders paralyzed beneath his wicked grasp. All she could do was gasp for help, unable to struggle, unable to squirm, undeniably useless.
Her chilled blue eyes shot open as warm, sticky liquid splattered onto her skin and dripped down in a slow and slick slurry. She felt the man violently lift off her form, the oppressive pressure leaving her instantly as cold air heaved into her lungs.
The lowlife gargled against the penetration, going limp as he dangled above the now wet ground beneath him. As Meruem’s tail slipped out of his decimated face, the scoundrel fell to the earth with a stifling thud, his brain matter slowly seeping from his shattered skull. His slaughtered corpse lay frozen amongst the spitting blood that now pooled around Komugi, staining her delicate, white kimono. Mind-numbing madness hazed over the King’s thoughts as his victim’s teeth scattered amongst their facial flesh.The King quickly haunched over the cadaver, sinking his glossy fangs into the freshly exposed skull, losing himself in the incredible violence. The bone crunched with ease under his mighty maw, and he devoured without cease until a voice cut through his blinding euphoria.
“Meruem-sama!”
His gaze met Komugi’s wide and fearful eyes, freezing him mid-chew. Slickened sinew hung from his lips, the blood dripping in steady beats.
“Meruem-sama! Is that you, Meruem-sama?!” she sobbed, the responding silence somehow even more terrifying than the gargling, guttural grunts that preceded it. “Wh-Where are you?” She began to cry harder, her fingers trembling against her chapped lips. “Where are you, Meruem-sama?!”
He watched her reach into the alley’s haunting shadow, her fingers lost in the terror-brimmed void. “Ko… Komugi!” he panicked, his heart slamming against his chest. Thoughts of her and only her consumed his mind. He needed to know she was safe, that they hadn’t hurt the most precious human he’s ever known.
Falling to his knees before her, the King embraced the quaking blonde. He held her tightly against his chest as though his sanity hinged on her mere existence. Burying his face in her thick, snow-white tresses, Meruem’s heart swelled in relief before shaking in sickening fear. He had come so close to losing her, his Komugi. His grip tightened protectively around her as she cried out.
“I’m sorry! I’m sorry! I lost Pitou-san… a-and then they started to-...!” She clung to him, wailing in his arms, fearful that wandering off may have incurred his anger. She knew better than to do such irresponsible things.
Komugi stilled, her earlier conversation with the Ant King replaying through her mind. Through a shaky breath she nervously asked “W-What happened to…” Pausing, a part of her already knew the answer. “Did you eat them?”
“I… I did,” Meruem cautiously admitted, nodding his head slowly as he found his arms slowly pulling her deeper into his protective embrace. “I cannot bear to see you mistreated. You must think me a monster.” A pang ripped through him as his mind begged to ask a question he almost did not wish to know the answer to. Surrendering to his internal quarrel, he whispered close into her ear. “Komugi… do you still… do you still think you could live alongside a monster?”
Komugi’s heart swelled. She couldn’t believe that anyone would ever care for her so much. All her life had been painful until she met the King. She knew neither safety nor true joy. Now, with this man, she felt like she had everything, and she needed him to know. She pulled away and somehow locked eyes with his violet orbs, her own piercing, icy-blue gaze matching his. Mustering up all the courage she could and sinking it into her voice, the proclamation flowed from her as though these were the most truthful words she has or will ever reveal.
“Meruem-sama… I love you.”
His breath stilled as he heard the words, replaying them in his thoughts, analyzing each syllable as though they were in another language. His pulse pounded against each eardrum; his heart felt like it would burst. He wanted to say the words back, but his throat closed as they felt too alien. Too human. Could he love someone?
Unsure of the answer, and even a bit afraid, the King pushed these thoughts to the back of his mind. He affectionately grinned as Komugi’s eyes dazzled from her tears, her reddened face contrasting them brilliantly. Caught up in the heat of the moment, he gently grasped Komugi’s arm and leaned in close, placing a soft yet genuine peck on to her scraped forehead. They both froze, processing what just occurred.
“M-M-Me-Meruem-sama, y-you…” Komugi turned a vibrant red, steam churning out of her ears. Meruem also blushed a deep blue, yet was quick to disregard his actions as he cleared his throat.
“We should move now,” he insisted, grasping her small and somewhat trembling hand. He started to lead them away.
She paused, the King turning his gaze to meet hers once more. She stood there shocked, “Meruem-sama, you didn’t clean the blood on your mouth…!”
“What?” He wiped his face with his broad fingers, red blood staining his green flesh. Grinning, he mused to himself, ‘Perhaps, next time...a napkin is in order.’
