Afterwards...

Their Contract, Finished.

I ate his soul without a moment's hesitation.

...That is what I would like to say. I leaned in, and hesitated. Then I concluded that I was starving, and had to eat. Thus, I did.

He was the finest soul I had ever eaten in my long demon's life. He filled me up, and I savored every moment of it.

Afterwards, I stayed in my human form, still wearing my butler's uniform. I ate his soul in front of the burning, crumbling building where the people who had done those things to my master were.

My master? He is no longer here, and so why do I continue to refer to him as "Young Master"? Simply "Master"? Or even "My Lord"? Not once have I called him by his real name, and I supposed I do not ever intend to. To me, he will always be my "Young Master."

I watched the building crumble. Everything in it burned, until nothing was left.

My purpose here, in the human world... There is nothing. There is no more purpose for me to stay. Why do I continue to wander the earth?

No, I was not wandering. I found myself at the front doors of the Phantomhive Estate. I was walking here on my own, unable to control myself, without thinking.

I find myself at peace here.

I continue to find myself thinking about him, and about this place, and even those moronic servants.

I lost everything. This mansion is no longer a place for me to stay. I have no business here.

I believed that my master's human life would flash in the blink of an eye, just as 100 years is meaningless to me. However, it seemed that a normal day spent in the manor with him passed by rather slowly.

Especially on the Young Master's birthday. December 14th was the longest day of all, and I was fine with that. My master appeared to have enjoyable birthdays. A genuine smile would creep up on his lips occasionally on that day, and it was a sight to behold. I couldn't help myself but to smile along with him when he did.

Oh, how I wish I could see him again, even if it was just for a moment.

***

A few years have passed, and I have made it a routine to always come to the human world on December 14th. Each year, I find myself inside the Phantomhive manor, baking his favorite cake. Step by step, just as a human would. I made sure to wear my butler uniform, since it was something I could never let go of. I had grown attached to it, you see.

I would bake it, and once I had perfected it and set it down on the counter, I would remember my time spent with him. Then I would tear up, and sometimes even cry. I mourned at his grave each year as well, and kept his sapphire blue ring, in remembrance of him.

After a long day, I would wander back to the fiery pits of hell from where I came from. It is on this day that I remind myself:

I am no longer one hell of a butler, but rather, I am merely a lonely demon, down to the core.