“I know Namjoon is doing this with my best interest in mind,” Jimin stated as he joined Taehyung in the bed chambers while the demon king was getting ready for a meeting with some powerful god on the surface. Jimin wished that he could accompany his husband to such an appointment. He had already met the original devil and married the one to take his place, so he would like to add meeting a god to the list of unbelievable things he had accomplished in his short human life—which was no longer short since he had adopted the immortality of demons during his transformation. “But I don’t trust the guard. I only trust you, and I want to be with you.”

The aforementioned guard was standing outside of the bedchambers as they spoke, and he would keep his post there as long as Jimin was without the company of Taehyung. He was bigger than Taehyung, and he looked much stronger than Taehyung as well, but Jimin knew that Taehyung held all the power in Underland. Any demon could look more powerful, but there was no power in looks. Even knowing Taehyung was stronger, Jimin still feared the demon standing outside his door. Taehyung wouldn’t be able to do anything while he was away, so the guard would have the perfect opportunity to hurt Jimin if he wanted.

“Namjoon wouldn’t put a guard he couldn’t trust in charge of you, my sweet Jimin,” Taehyung said with a sigh. He was putting his boots on, and he couldn’t care to make himself sound more convincing. Jimin could tell Taehyung was uneasy about leaving him alone. “If I could bring you along, I would.” He leaned over and kissed Jimin’s lips sweetly, “But I don’t think you ahve enough control over your powers to be going to the surface.”

“Do you not care that I’m scared to be left with him?” Jimin’s voice shook as his fear was starting to show. He was supposed to be strong. Taehyung couldn’t know how scared he was.

“What am I to do, Jimin?” Taehyung asked, having no more ideas than JImin could offer.

“Why can’t I stay with Hoseok? Or Jungkook or Yoongi?” JImin suggested. “I only trust them.”

“Because they’re not knights,” Taehyung snapped, causing Jimin to flinch. No matter how gentle he tried to be, he was still a demon and it showed at times. “They have their own responsibilities to fulfill today. As much as I would love for you to be in their company instead, I can’t halt the activities of Underland so you have someone worthy of my trust to protect you.” After those words left his lips, Taehyung pulled a face like he was considering it, but then he shook his head. “I can’t.”

It was clear then that no amount arguin would get him anywhere, so Jimin stopped. Taehyung clearly didn’t like this any more than Jimin did, so it would be wrong of Jimin to make him feel more guilty about it. Even with his husband being in power, Namjoon still had his say, and it wasn’t exactly fair.

“Hurry back,” Jimin said sadly as he rested a chin on his husband’s shoulder.

“I will return to you with godspeed,” Taehyung said, and he lifted Jimin’s chin to press a kiss to his lips.

Jimin chuckled lightly as he shook his head with a fond smile on his face. “That is not what godspeed means, but okay.”

“No?” Taehyung asked, wrapping his arms around Jimin’s waist. “What does it mean, then?”

“Godspeed is what I would say to you before going on a journey to the surface,” Jimin explained, finding it adorable how Taehyung didn’t understand basic human expressions, even those from earlier time periods. “It’s to wish you well on your journey.”

“Oh,” Taehyung said with a frown, and he shook his head. “Don’t say that to me. Ever. I don’t need any of the gods’ blessings.” He pursed his lips and tilted his head. “I doubt it, but are there any useful expressions about the devil?”

Jimin thought for a moment, going through all of the different expressions he had heard throughout his life, and he eventually nodded. “There are a lot of expressions about you,” He said with a laugh. “But none of them are good.”

“I thought not,” Taehyung chuckled, and he tightened his arms around Jimin, pulling him closer. “Tell me one.”

“Speak of the devil, and he shall appear,” JImin offered.

Taehyung chuckled, and he shook his head. “I like that one,” He said, “But we were the ones who started that. Namjoon would use it while visiting the surface and hearing humans talk about him. He would normally disguise himself as human, though, so many people didn’t know it was the devil himself saying it.”

“You can do that?” Jimin questioned. “Disguise yourself as human, I mean?”

Taehyung shook his head again. “I can’t. Namjoon can because he was a god before he was a demon, so he has a human-like form.” Taehyung explained, “I was born as a demon, so I have no such form.”

“Oh,” Jimin sounded a little disappointed with that.

“You probably could,” Taehyung said, as if he were trying to be reassuring. “You were a human,” He added with a shrug, “So you might be able to use that form again. You can ask Namjoon to train you.” He smiled and placed a finger under Jimin’s chin to make him look up. “If it helps, I like you in this form a lot better.” He kissed the side of Jimin’s horn.

“I do too,” Jimin agreed with a soft smile. “Now that I’m used to it.”

*

“You have had your face in those books since Taehyung left,” The guard appointed to watch over Jimin said after hours of silence with Jimin’s eyes rapidly moving across the pages of books that had been translated into the human language for him. They were history books, filled with the history of human, demons, and even the gods, and it was Jimin’s job to remember everything that was written in them. “Don’t you want to do something else?”

Jimin’s eyes moved from the page, up to the guard standing in front of him. “I have thousands of years of history to educate myself with,” Jimin snapped. It was less about trusting the guard now than it was just being tired of him. The guard was more bothersome than he was dangerous, talking to Jimin while Jimin should be reading and remembering this material. “Unlike most of you demons down here, all of this happened before I was born. As the devil’s husband, it’s my job to know and remember all of this.”

“You know what else is your job as Taehyung’s bride?” The demon asked, a coy smile curling up on his lips. “Learning to defend yourself so you don’t need guards while your husband is away on some duty like this. Gaining control of your powers. Becoming stronger.”

JImin slowly set the book down, narrowing his eyes at the guard. He served a very fair point, and Jimin wondered if he had anything to offer by way of getting Jimin to do all that. “Oh? Do you plan on teaching me?” Jimin questioned, raising an eyebrow at the demon.

The demon smiled, showing of those sharp demon fangs of his, and he stood tall so that the tip of his horns were even higher in the air than they were before. These demons with the tall horns looks so much stronger compared to Jimin with his curly ones. His tail swished around behind him and smoke left his nostrils as he breathed out through his nose. He was showing off, Jimin could tell. “I am a demon trained in the art of fighting and defense,” The guard told Jimin. “The only person better to train you would probably be Taehyung himself.”

“Okay,” Jimin decided, smiling softly. He slid the book away and stood from where he was reading at the desk. “I want you to teach me.”

The demon walked around the desk, coming face to face with Jimin. Even without his horns, he towered over the smaller one easily. He had to be a few centimeters taller than Taehyung, but his presence wasn’t very intimidating. Not to Jimin. Not in the least. “Do you trust me, your majesty?” The demon asked.

“It matters not if I trust you,” Jimin stated. “Make a wrong move, and my husband will not be quick to forgive you.”

“Fair enough,” The demon spoke, and he grabbed Jimin’s wrists. “Your powers will be the easiest way to defend yourself against any demons, humans, or gods that try to hurt you. Fire demons will probably be your worst enemy seeing as how you are a demon of ice, you’re weak to us.”

Jimin winced as the temperature of the demon’s hands rose, making his grip too hot to hand. It was a struggle for Jimin to bring his temperature down, but he brought his own as low as it would go until there was plenty of steam rising between their hands. Even so, the demon didn’t flinch, and he didn’t pull away. “Is that the best you can do?” The demon questioned, a catch in his voice that Jimin didn’t catch onto soon enough. “I may have overestimated your abilities.”

In the next moment, the demon had Jimin pushed back against the wall and pinned in place, his red hot body burning against Jimin’s delicate, icy skin. Jimin had been able to get in touch with his powers when Taehyung was the one with his hands on him, but that was because Taehyung brought it out of him. He was powerless now, and the trust he had built with this guard was beginning to wither faster than it had bloomed. “Oh?” The demon questioned, a smirk on his lips. “Even with a direct threat to you, you can’t do anything?”

The palms of the demon’s hand heated up and he went for Jimin’s stomach. “What about a direct threat to your baby?” He questioned, slowly moving his palm to Jimin’s belly.

“Don’t,” Jimin commanded, his words just as icy cold as his insides, and he placed a palm on the demon’s chest, pushing him off. Without knowing what happened, the demon collapsed to the floor, letting out a cry of agony as steam rolled from his mouth. “Don’t touch my baby.” Jimin glared into the guard’s eyes, feeling proud of himself when he saw the look of agony and pain in them. The natural warm glow in the guard’s eyes had been replaced with something cold and almost lifeless.

After a quick smirk from Jimin and the relaxation of his nerves, the guard stopped crying and his eyes returned to normal. Jimin didn’t know what he did just then, but he felt powerful. “I told you,” Jimin said, his tone dark and unforgiving. “One wrong move and my husband will not be quick to forgive. He’ll be hearing about this when he returns.”

The guard whimpered as he stood. “Your majesty,” He said as he rose to his feet, “I did not intend to harm your baby. It was just a test to see if I could bring your—”

“Get out,” Jimin demanded. “And if you think of disappearing, just remember my husband can summon you as he pleases. He will hear of this, and you will face the consequences that follow.”

Without any other words from Jimin, the guard left the room. Jimin swore he could hear something muttered about how Taehyung is too soft and forgiving for his own good, but Jimin smirked, knowing the the guard had no idea the lengths the devil was willing to go to protect Jimin. Especially now that Jimin carried their child.

*

Taehyung was gone for longer than Jimin had expected. At least two nights had passed before the demon king finally arrived back in Underland, and Cerberus had taken the place of the guard that JImin dismissed the other night. He hadn’t thought about suggesting it before, but Cerberus proved to be more loyal than any demon guard they could ask for. “Why are you alone, my sweet Jimin?” Taehyung asked when he arrived back to Hell, Jimin waiting for him at the gates with no guards around. Only Cerberus.

“I told you I didn’t trust that guard,” Jimin reminded his husband, easily taking Taehyung’s hand into his own. “Cerberus kept a close watch on me while you were away. There’s no better guard than our faithful pup.”

Taehyung laughed, and it was a beautiful sound after not hearing it for a few days. “Cerberus is far from being a pup, Jimin,” Taehyung said, “At least I should hope. He doesn’t need to grow any more.” He tightened the hold between his and Jimin’s hand and pulled JImin closer. “Now, are you going to tell me what happened between you and this guard?”

Jimin shrugged as he led his husband into the castle, similar to how Taehyung had done on the day that Jimin was brought to Underland to stay with him. “I’ll tell you all about when we’re in bed,” Jimin declared, “I should expect you to be tired after your long journey.”

Taehyung chuckled and shook his head slightly. “I am not tired,” He said, reminding Jimin that he doesn’t get tired. As an ice demon living in the fire lands, Jimin didn’t get the luxury of never feeling fatigued. “But committing a sin sounds wonderful right now, as we do no such things in front of the gods. Of course, it’s a tough choice between sloth and lust.”

Jimin’s breath hitched as he knew just what Taehyung was hinting at. The full transformation of Jimin into a demon was supposed to mean more , better , and a lot longer between him and Taehyung, but the baby kind of ruined that for them. Being a fire demon in an ice demon’s body, he was taking up a good amount of energy, making it hard still for Jimin to keep up with Taehyung. “We can always try both, you know,” Jimin stated with a small smile as he led his husband in to the bed chambers.

“True,” Taehyung said, kicking the door closed behind him just before pushing Jimin down onto the bed and climbing on top of him. The demon’s spicy lips came into contact with Jimin’s, leaving that tingling sensation that Jimin was addicted to by now. “But I need to hear about this guard first. I need to know if I should be killing someone.”

Jimin pushed Taehyung up off of him, and he pushed himself up into a sitting position, pulling his knees up and folding his arms around them. “It was nothing serious,” Jimin mumbled, a little embarrassed that he had such a strong reaction to such a small thing. It seemed pointless now, and Jimin felt that he overreacted that day. In that moment. “He was just training me to use my powers.”

“Oh?” Taehyung questioned, raising an eyebrow. “Didn’t I say that I wanted you to focus on the history books in the time that I was gone?”

“Yes,” Jimin confirmed with a nod, “But the guard insisted that it was just as much my duty to learn to use my powers, and he insisted that there was no one better to teach than himself.”

“Except me. Or Namjoon. I would even let Yoongi take over training you before some guard I’ve never seen fight before.” Taehyung said, and warmed Jimin’s heart with the protective tone he was using. “Did he hurt you?”

Jimin shook his head, a proud smile on his face. “No, but I hurt him,” Jimin laughed. “He ‘threatened’ me originally, and I didn’t do anything, but then he went for the baby, and—”

“The baby,” Taehyung cut Jimin off, looking to Jimin’s eyes with his own dark ones as he frowned. “He threatened the baby?”

Jimin nodded to confirm. “He thought that I would be able to get in touch with my powers more if I thought the baby was in danger, so—”

“Looks like my first sin will be wrath,” Taehyung said on a sigh, and that was the only warning Jimin got before a puff of black smoke appeared in the room, and that guard was there when the smoke cleared. Jimin didn’t know if he should be worried or excited for what was about to come. With Taehyung, he never knew. It was exciting and frightening at the same time.

“My husband tells me that you threatened our blood,” Taehyung’s cold, emotionless tone sent chills down Jimin’s back, and he sat there quietly as he waited to see what his husband had in store for this guy. “Is this true?”

“I did not threaten him,” The demon quickly denied the claims, obviously fearful of what Taehyung was planning. “I only played a threat to the baby because I knew Jimin was more capable of controlling his powers than he realizes. I thought he’d be able to tune into that more if I threatened the thing most important to him.”

“So that’s your reasoning?” Taehyung asked, and he looked behind himself where Cerberus was standing. It was then that Jimin caught on to where this was leading. “Then by that logic,” Taehyung slowly looked back at the guard, “I should test your skill by threatening the most important thing to you. Your life.”

As the words left his mouth, Cerberus had been coming closer to where the guard was standing. The guard looked at Taehyung and then to Jimin in fear, and he fell down to his knees, clasping his hands together as if he were offering a prayer. “No, please,” He cried, shaking his hands. “I was only wanting to help—”

“You do not help by threatening an unborn child,” Taehyung snapped. “I care not if you are being genuine. It’s a foolish thing to do, and I would rather keep a traitor around than an idiot.” Taehyung paused, and Jimin just waited. It was interesting to think that this was the same man who had pleaded for other demon’s lives when Namjoon was the one in charge, but now he was already taking the lives of demon’s on his own. Jimin would complain, but he had only ever done so to protect their child. “Cerberus,” Taehyung said, and the dog stepped forward again. “I hope you’re hungry.”

“No, no, you’re majesty, please,” the guard begged, but it was useless.

One of Cerberus’s heads picked the guard up and tossed him into the air.

“Don’t make a mess,” Taehyung warned.

The same head caught the guard, screaming in agony, and he lowered him to the ground. All three heads then tore at him and enjoyed their fair portions.

Jimin scooted closer to Taehyung, and he rested his chin on his husband’s shoulder as he watched the whole thing. Surely he was a full demon by now. As a human, he wasn’t sure he could witness that kind of a thing and feel so relieved by it. A soft smile curled up on his lips and he kissed the side of Taehyung’s neck. “I’m sorry,” He apologized.

“Why are you sorry?” Taehyung asked, chuckling softly.

“Because you had to kill the guard your father trusted so much,” Jimin said, wrapping his arms around Taehyung’s waist.

“Namjoon would have done the same thing,” Taehyung assured Jimin. He turned and pressed a kiss to Jimin’s lips. “Nothing gets me in the mood for lust more than wrath,” He said, giving Jimin other kiss, deeper this time. He tilted Jimin’s chin back and slowly into his mouth, drinking down the small sounds that Jimin was making. “Are you in the mood to commit this sin with me?” Taehyung asked.

“I’ve gone sinless in your absence as well,” Jimin informed Taehyung, wrapping his arms around his husband’s neck. “I think I should commit at least two before the night is over with.”

“You might have to,” Taehyung whispered against Jimin’s lips, his hot breath sending a chill down Jimin’s spine. “The gods might decide you’re too pure and try to make an angel of you instead.”

He kissed Jimin slowly, pushing the smaller one back on the bed as he deepened the kiss. He slowly into Jimin’s mouth as his warm hands slid up Jimin’s shirt, causing the ice demon to gasp a frosty breath. “You are so ing perfect,” Taehyung hummed, one of his large hands resting on Jimin’s stomach. “I can’t wait for it to show that you’re pregnant.”

As Jimin had only been with the baby for a few weeks now, he still didn’t have much of a baby bump. His belly was still mostly flat. There was a little pooch there, but it wasn’t noticeable as long as Jimin was wearing clothes. The thought of himself getting bigger and having the belly that a pregnant woman would have, made Jimin feel a little self-conscious about himself.

“I’m going to look stupid,” He mumbled, trying to push Taehyung’s hands away.

The stronger demon chucked, and then he hummed as he slowly pushed Jimin’s shirt up his torso so that he could place gentle kisses to Jimin’s stomach. “No,” He hummed in between the little pecks he was showering Jimin with. “You are going to look pregnant.” He whispered and lifted his head so that he could look Jimin in the eyes, “You will be beautiful.” He kissed Jimin’s lips.

“You won’t like me,” Jimin said with a pout.

Taehyung shook his head. “Jimin,” He whispered, slowly pulling the shirt over Jimin’s head and tossing it to the side. “I loved you in your human form. That’s proof enough that I will love you no matter what, as I find humans to be hideous creatures.”

“Yeah?” Jimin breathed, watching Taehyung remove his own shirt. “They might say the same thing about you with your dark eyes, and—” He paused to gasp as Taehyung spread his thighs apart just enough to fit between them and rocked his hips down against Jimin’s. Jimin’s tail swished from underneath him, stretching upward in search for Taehyung’s. “Your large fangs and massive horns—and especially your red skin—”

“And what would your parents say?” Taehyung questioned, humming softly. “If they saw what you looked like right now?”

“Tae—” Jimin gasped as Taehyung rolled his hips again. “D-don’t talk about my parents right now.”

“Do you think,” Taehyung continued as his fingers hooked in the waistband of Jimin’s pants, undoing his fastens. “They would be disappointed in you for becoming the sinner you have? Oh, they would probably hate me for making such a sinner of you.”

Jimin moaned at Taehyung’s words, causing Taehyung to smirk. “Do you like that?” He asked, “Thinking about how disappointed your parents would be knowing that you’re going against everything they ever taught you about being pure?”

“I–” Jimin took in a gasping breath, “I am anything but pure.”

“And that is my doing,” Taehyung hummed, so proud of himself. “You were too pure when you arrived,” He slowly slid Jimin’s pants down his thighs, tossing them to the side when they were completely removed. “Though,” He said with a soft laugh. “If I do recall, you were so eager to sin with me, so maybe you never were pure.”

Jimin pushed himself up onto his elbows, angling himself so that he could watch as Taehyung removed his own pants as well before tossing them to the side. He replaced himself in between Jimin’s thighs, putting a hand between them and shoving two fingers in Jimin’s without a warning. Jimin gasped and tossed his head back, only then realizing how wet he already was. He fell back onto the mattress as two fingers became three, and Taehyung was checking to see how much prep he would need before they began.

“Have you been yourself while I was away?” Taehyung asked with a smirk, pressing right into Jimin’s prostate and making Jimin moan.

“N-no, Taetae,” Jimin panted, rolling his hips down. “I told you, I didn’t sin at all while you were gone.”

Taehyung clicked his tongue and hummed like he was disappointed, which made Jimin’s stomach feel like it was being tied into a knot. “Too bad,” Taehyung said, “I could really get off to the image of you bent over for yourself. Your fingers up your own while you moaned my name.”

He took Jimin’s hand in his free one, and he placed kisses to the pads of Jimin’s fingers, “Your little fingers couldn’t possibly be a replacement for my .”

He was right, there. Taehyung was much too big for even his own fingers to offer the same stretch. They were much too slim to perfectly prep Jimin for how big he really was. Then Jimin’s fingers didn’t offer the right length, he didn’t even come close.

Jimin whimpered and pushed Taehyung’s hand away, biting his lip as he clenched around the absence of Taehyung’s fingers. “I’m ready,” He whispered, his voice now clouded with lust and the pure desire for Taehyung to be inside of him.

Taehyung hiked Jimin’s legs up a little as he positioned himself just right before pushing in. The stretch was just the right amount of pain and pleasure that Jimin liked, as he was barely prepped enough for this. To distract himself from the slight pain, his tail found Taehyung’s, tangling with it as much as it could.

“Relax,” Taehyung said as Jimin but his lip and closed his eyes tight. It had been so long that Jimin almost forgot what he should do on his part to make it more pleasurable for himself. Taehyung pressed his index finger in between Jimin’s eyebrows, making him unfurl them and relax a little. “I’ll take care of you.”

Jimin’s eyes fluttered open, and he went breathless at the sight of Taehyung smiling sweetly down at him. This demon was obviously an expert in sinning, always able to be the sweetest and most pure while he was doing it. He often warned Jimin that he might lose control, but that never happened. He was so observant and careful, and he took care of Jimin every time.

As Jimin relaxed, Taehyung pushed himself in the rest of the way. Jimin’s back arched off of the mattress and his tail coiled around Taehyung’s tighter. As an ice demon, Jimin always felt a little cold, but he was perfectly warm when he had Taehyung close like this. It was a comforting sort of warmth and something that Jimin craved.

Jimin moaned softly as Taehyung pulled him close underneath him, and he pulled out a little. “I missed you,” Taehyung said as he ed back into Jimin’s heat.

In the moment, the words sounded good to Jimin. He missed Taehyung too, but it wasn’t until they were done and he came down from his high that Jimin really thought about what those words mean, and it made his stomach roll.

When Jimin caught his breath, his rolled toward Taehyung, looking him in the eye. “Did you miss me, or did you miss my ?” Jimin asked with a pout, a saddened frowned on his face.

With a hand on Jimin’s stomach, Taehyung scooted closer, and he nuzzled his nose against Jimin’s cheek. “I missed everything about you,” He whispered, making Jimin smile. “I missed your face, and your voice,” He hummed, “And your , of course.” He laughed a little, “But I mostly missed your company, and this little guy.” He barely squeezed Jimin’s stomach as if to emphasize which little guy he was talking about.

Jimin placed his small hand over Taehyung’s larger one, and he smiled a little. “We both missed you,” Jimin hummed softly, and he turned his face to nuzzle his nose with Taehyung’s. “You’re not allowed to leave me here anymore.”

Taehyung chuckled softly, and he pressed a kiss to Jimin’s cheek.

*

“So you killed him?” Namjoon demanded the next morning when they were all at breakfast the next morning. Jungkook had apparently reported the decrease of the demon population by one, and Namjoon had questioned Taehyung about it. Jimin wondered how word got around Underland so fast, but they seemed to have quite the intelligence agency. “That’s, what? Four? Since you’ve been in power?”

“Only one,” Taehyung corrected, a sly smile on his face. “I wasn’t even the devil yet when I killed the first three.” He shrugged. “They shouldn’t be threatening the life of my son.”

“And Jimin,” Namjoon said, looking at Jimin with a serious face. Jimin was nervous about what was coming, but he tried not to show it. “What did you do when Taehyung took this demon’s life?”

“I—” Jimin looked over at Taehyung asking for some guidance on what to say. Taehyung just gave a soft smile and a nod. “I told Taehyung what happened in hopes that he would take the demon’s life. I sat there and watched as Cerberus ate him…” After all, demons were not liars. Jimin couldn’t forget the words that Taehyung drilled into his mind all the time, so he wasn’t about to lie.

A proud smile spread across Namjoon’s face, which threw Jimin off guard. He thought the ex-devil was angry. Was it just a test, then? “Good,” He showed off his sharp, demon fangs. “Every day I only become more and more certain that you were the right choice for Taehyung. You were meant to be one of us.”

“Of course,” Jimin said, placing a hand on his stomach, “Anyone who threatens the future prince is an enemy to me. We can’t have traitors in our kingdom.”

Namjoon chuckled at that. “You still have some human influences, but we’ll get rid of those eventually,” He said, smiling softly. “We have no reason to fear the other demons down here as they can’t possibly match our strength. They’re all regular demons up against four royal demons. It wouldn’t even be a contest.”

“I wouldn’t be so sure,” Jimin said. His time in a royal family on the surface had taught him about tactics. “A king is only as strong as his strongest men, and only so long as they remain loyal to him. A single king cannot win against an army of traitors.”

Seokjin laughed at that statement. It was the first sound he had made since the meal started, and it was also the thing that reminded Jimin that he was in the room, too. “I know you’re one of us now,” He said, “But I have to say humans have the cutest way of thinking. Your king could never win against an army of his own men because he has no more power than his men. He is human, and they are human.”

Taehyung nodded. “Down here, it’s not the same,” He said, “Think of the humans trying to win a war against the gods. They couldn’t do it. We are the gods, and the regular demons are the humans. We are stronger than our strongest men.”

“If that’s so,” Jimin mumbled, “How do you expect to defeat the gods by getting the humans on your side?”

“Simple,” Namjoon responded. “All divine beings are powerful because of their followers. Without the faith of humans, gods would be powerless. Without the faith of our demons, we would be powerless.”

“Then we can’t have traitors, can we?” Jimin questioned, having trouble following all of this. It was still too early in the morning for his brain to be functioning properly.

“Even demons who are traitors still have faith in us,” Taehyung said, “They are greedy and want our power, but that’s all there is to it. They would never follow the gods instead.”

“And that’s how we hope to win the humans over,” Namjoon continued, “Sin is so much more tempting than being good. All humans are sinners. The only reason the gods still get power from them is because they beg for forgiveness for the sins they commit. Every time a humans asks the gods to forgive them, it proves that they feel guilty for disobeying the gods that they follow. That gives the gods their power. If we can win the humans over and let them give in to all of their desires without the feeling of guilt, then we’ll win. We’ll be more powerful than ever.”

“So it’s all about greed in the end,” Jimin hummed, poking at his food. “A greed for power.”

“Greed and pride and lust,” Namjoon said, “Wrath against the gods for cursing us to this place. All seven of the deadly sins play a role here.”

And Jimin realized that he might belong down her more than he thought he did. Because he wanted those things just as much as the three sitting with him did.

*

After breakfast, Taehyung and Jimin went to the office together. Taehyung had some paperwork to do after his meeting with the gods, and Jimin had more reading to catch up on. He wished that he could read the same language as Taehyung, but he still couldn’t fully understand the complicated ancient language yet.

Jimin sat in the velvet chair across from Taehyung’s desk while Taehyung sat on the other side, pen in hand and glasses on as he filled out the pages in that same ancient language. Jimin couldn’t focus on his reading while his husband looked so good across from him. He kept stealing glances over the book, and biting his own lip softly, wishing that Taehyung would focus less on the paperwork and more on the fact that Jimin wanted him.

As Taehyung pushed his hair back from his face, holding his head in his hand, that was enough for Jimin. He started to place the book down and say something, but the door to the office suddenly burst open and someone walked in. Jimin sighed and sat back in the chair, pulling the book up to his face again.

“Taehyung.”

Jimin looked back when he heard a voice that sounded very similar to Jungkook’s, but there was something off about it. It was Jungkook standing there, but he didn’t sound like himself.

“Yes, what is it?” Taehyung asked without looking up from his papers.

“After your recent visit to the surface,” Jungkook said, not looking at Jimin. It almost seemed like he was purposefully avoiding eye contact with Jimin, which was a little hurtful seeing as how they hadn’t seen each other in a few days, “The gods did a population check on the humans, and they noticed that there was one missing.”

Jimin looked back at Taehyung who had stopped writing at this point. He set his pen down and slowly looked up to meet Jungkook’s eye. Jimin had no idea what this meant, but based on both of their reactions, it seemed to be something serious. “Did they send a message?” Taehyung asked.

Jungkook nodded, and he shifted his weight a little. “They found out about the missing prince,” He said, nodding toward Jimin, still not looking at him, “And they said that it’s a violation of terms for you to take one of the humans before they pass over.”

“Is that all?” Taehyung asked.

“There’s one more thing,” Jungkook said, biting his lip softly. “They want you to bring Jimin back to the surface.”