Chapter 65

What is a knight?

It’s an intriguing question that piques my interest, but unfortunately, I don’t know the answer. That’s because I’m not one to solve questions.

And yet, am I one to ask them? No, not quite either.

If I must define myself, I suppose I am one who uses questions. Just like right now.

—

“Does it matter if I’m a descendant of Lucifer?”

“Yes.”

“You seem to despise Lucifer.”

“My name is Lord Oscar. I am not Lucifer.”

—

It seems Sir Beatrix has steadied her resolve.

—

“What do you expect from me?”

“A knight desires but one thing: to be your sword and cut down your enemies more than anyone else.”

“In short, you want to fight?”

“…I wish to bring you glory drenched in blood. Ideally, I’d stand at the forefront of battle as your sword.”

—

I’ve confirmed Beatrix’s determination and intentions. Her resolution won’t falter just because of some secret about her birth. I covered my mouth with my hand to stop the laughter bubbling up.

—

“Why don’t you just speak honestly? You want to use me as an excuse to go to battle and get drunk on the euphoria of victory.”

“…Yes, there’s no point hiding it now. As a warrior, I want to feel the superiority of victory, and as a knight, I want to serve my lord. But I don’t want a situation where you die because of me. That’s why I serve you, Oscar.”

—

I shouldn’t laugh during such a solemn moment, but I can’t help it.

It feels like I might miss something important while laughing, so I quickly change the subject.

—

“Alright, let’s start with the contract then.”

“Contract… you mean…”

“Yes, I hope Lady Beatrix lives long and serves me well. A hundred years is far too short, isn’t it?”

“If that is your wish, however long it takes. What must I, a servant of God, do?”

“Stick out your tongue. I don’t know how to make contracts verbally like Lucifer does.”

“As you command.”

—

Beatrix obediently followed my order. Tilting her smooth chin slightly upward toward me, I gently pried open her lips with my fingers and called out to Aru behind me.

—

“Aru! Come here!”

“Ruff? Ruff ruff!”

—

Aru came bounding over on all fours.

—

“This seal…?”

“Hahaha, since we’re comrades now, let me formally introduce you. This is my pet wolf Aru, a descendant of the Wolf King. He’s also my assistant.”

“The Wolf King’s lineage…?”

“Don’t put too much pressure on yourself. At the end of the day, he’s still a wolf, and you’re my knight, Lady Beatrix. There’s no comparison in rank. Even though Aru has been with me a hundred years longer, it doesn’t matter.”

“Grrr…!”

“Psst, this guy’s showing his teeth again. Alright, bite my finger.”

—

I wave my finger teasingly in front of Aru’s snarling face. His eyes widen.

—

“Ruff? Bite? A young demon’s finger?”

“Yeah, just enough to draw a little blood.”

“Ow, tell me if it hurts, ruff.”

—

Chomp!

—

“Ahh! Stop! That hurts!”

—

Damn it, Aru, I said just enough to draw a little blood. How hard do you have to bite? His jaw strength seems to be getting out of control. Thinking about it, maybe Aru could chew through Beatrix’s Greatsword soon enough. With his growing jaw power, it’s definitely possible.

—

“Ow… you’re really strong. Anyway, Lady Beatrix, can you bear with me for a bit?”

“Huh? What…? Ugh…”

—

As Aru bit me, I pressed the wound against Beatrix’s open mouth. Liquid from me flows into her throat.

Human blood tastes metallic, but demon blood is thick and bitter. Beatrix furrows her brow.

—

“Drink it all. As much as you can.”

“Ugh… ugh…”

—

Breathing seems difficult for Beatrix, and tears well up at the corners of her eyes. I keep pouring my blood without flinching.

—

Demon blood holds the power of conquest. I am the principal party in this contract, and Beatrix is the secondary. That’s why I’m injecting my blood into her.

—

Gulp…

—

“There, good job. We’re done.”

“Cough! Hack! Is… is this it? You haven’t even made a verbal contract with God yet…”

—

When I pulled my finger out of Beatrix’s mouth, she coughed and hacked.

—

“It’s fine. Verbal contracts are Lucifer’s style. I read people’s hearts. Since your heart desires to make a contract with me, it’s already done.”

—

Beatrix adjusted her throat a few times, clearly uncomfortable with the taste of my blood. Leaving her behind, I moved on to the final task.

The archangel Uriel.

Or rather, baby Uriel.

An unexpected blessing perhaps, thrust upon me suddenly.

Uriel’s feelings toward me can’t be good. After all, I was the one who caused her downfall, leading to the collapse of her world. Uriel lost everything because of me.

However, I can’t drive Uriel to death. If she dies, retaliation from the other archangels would surely follow.

Thus, there’s only one stance I can take – winning Uriel’s favor. Whether she becomes an archangel again or not is irrelevant.

“Hey, Uriel from Heaven. Wake up.”

“Mm…?”

“I’ll leave you here if you don’t wake up. Hurry.”

“You… who are you…?”

“You’re really annoying. Do you not remember me? It’s me, Oscar! The demon in a mask who brought about your downfall!”

—

At that, Uriel’s golden eyes, which had been groggy, snapped wide open.

Regaining her senses, Uriel recognized me and recoiled in shock.

“DEMON!”

“Seems like you’re back to normal. Shall we clarify our terms first? I’ll call you Uriel-san. What will you call me?”

“That you’re still alive… MICHAEL! GABRIEL AND RAPHAEL! What has become of them!”

—

Just like proper angels, as soon as she regained consciousness, she started looking for other angels.

Recalling the previous day’s events, I realized Uriel fainted while Michael and I were talking. She briefly woke up in the middle, sprouted baby wings, declared she wanted to ascend to truth again, and then passed out again.

So she probably doesn’t know why Michael entrusted her to me. I don’t fully understand it myself, but I should explain anyway. Uriel completely trusts and follows Michael as the leader of the angels.

—

“Whoa whoa, calm down. Why are women losing their cool today?”

“Answer me! What did you do to Michael!”

“What did I do to Mr. Michael? He’s incredibly powerful. They all stepped down voluntarily. You know, according to the laws between Heaven and the Demon Realm, demons can’t enter Heaven, and angels can’t stay in the Demon Realm for long.”

“So… they left me here? True, it was probably an unavoidable choice for them…”

“Um… it’s kind of awkward to say they just abandoned you. I asked them – between Lucifer and me, who would they entrust Uriel-san to? Initially, they wanted to leave you with Lucifer. But then you woke up with baby angel wings.”

—

As I spoke, I pointed to the wings on Uriel’s back. Only then did Uriel realize she had grown new wings and moved her hands to touch them in surprise.

—

Do you remember what you said? You wanted to become an archangel again and reach the truth, right? Hearing that, Mr. Michael thought for a moment and said if you went with Lucifer, you might survive but would never become an archangel again. Then he entrusted you to me.”

“So… I remember now… Michael kept asking me if I was sincere…”

“Yes, exactly. Mr. Michael said that by staying by my side and observing me, you would eventually reach the truth at some point. I don’t fully understand why, but that’s what he said.”

“…Is it true that Michael really said that?”

—

She doesn’t trust me but believes Michael, huh?

No problem, I have a witness.

—

“Aru! Tell her! Was what I just said true?”

“Ruff? Ruff ruff! I remember everything! It’s true!”

“See? Our Aru is always reliable!”

—

With Aru’s testimony added, Uriel bowed her head in resignation.

—

“I see… So I have to follow you now?”

“Oh? Accepting Mr. Michael’s words so readily?”

“Because Michael said it. He must have had his reasons.”

“Such strong camaraderie between colleagues. Are you okay with this? Don’t you hate me? I’m the one who turned your wings into this.”

—

Crunch.

—

Uriel grabbed her wings and yanked them as if pinching them. She violently swatted away my hand, clearly rejecting me.

—

“Are you really okay with this?”

“…”

—

Given the size of your grudge and silent resentment against me, it seems unlikely you can simply set it aside just because of your trust in Michael.

This issue needs to be addressed properly. I don’t want to get stabbed in my sleep like a stray dog.

—

“I wasn’t originally the Angel of Annihilation.”

“Huh?”

—

Out of nowhere?

—

“I was the Angel of Indomitable Spirit. No matter what great evil came, no matter how far I was pushed to the end of life, I would never turn my body, never retreat from evil, never fall to storms and waves. That was me. Somewhere along the line, I became obsessed with condemnation and became synonymous with annihilation.”

“Really?”

“Lucifer was in a similar position to mine. We shared similar thoughts. And on the day corruption settled on Lucifer, the day Lucifer’s wings were torn apart, Lucifer succumbed to evil. Fully accepting corruption, Lucifer donned black wings.”

“Ho, our ancestor had such a past, huh.”

“But I will not do the same. Though the archangel’s wings have shattered completely, I will not retreat. I will not fall. Even if a difficult path lies ahead, I will walk the path given to me. To not disgrace the name ‘Angel of Indomitable Spirit’ bestowed upon me by Michael initially. For that, I must walk with you. Michael judged that there is something to learn and observe from your appearance.”

“Isn’t repentance and correction of mistakes the ideal goodness?”

—

Wow, what eloquent speech. Seeing this noble spirit makes me feel good.

How beautiful is the sight of someone who acknowledges their mistakes, repents, and moves forward.

I feel like patting her head. If I actually did it, I’d probably face resistance several times stronger than Aru’s bites.

—

“Alright, let’s decide. What shall you call me? I don’t know when you’ll achieve enlightenment, but since we’ll be together from now on, let’s settle on a proper title.”

“…Michael appointed you as my teacher.”

“Huh?”

“Leader. I will call you that. Is that acceptable?”

—

The one who leads from the front. While I’m not always at the forefront, it’s a title I like.

—

“Alright, that works.”

“Understood, Leader.”

—

Hearing the term ‘Angel of Indomitable Spirit’ reminds me of someone.

I know one person with the title ‘Indomitable’.

—

Among those visiting Tartarus, known as the weakest hero in history.

The human who turned from Indomitable (不屈) to Humble (卑屈).

The 400-year future hero, Frey Dr. Siegfried.

—

The image of that young girl who envied and resented the saint faintly comes to mind.

—

***

The Divine Realm.

The place where gods reside, neither angels nor demons.

—

In the Divine Realm, there are various forms of entertainment. Most gods who live through eons grow tired of observing human affairs and pass time by holding banquets and such.

Of course, among gods there are also rivals, and they interfere in human affairs by granting oracles and assistance in response to human prayers.

Here we’re talking about gods born from human faith, not the ‘Lord’ worshipped by the Holy Order.

Representatively, there are Nordic and Olympian deities. Chronos, the god of time, belongs to the Olympian pantheon.

—

Clomp.

—

Non-gods cannot step into Heaven, non-devils cannot enter the Demon Realm, and similarly, only gods can enter the Divine Realm.

Their only meeting ground without breaking any cosmic laws is the Continent.

—

Clomp.

—

But here, there exists one who transcends these laws.

Demon King Canos. The one who has surpassed the pinnacle of all beings and reached a new zenith.

—

Clomp.

—

A figure wearing dark sunglasses strides confidently through the Divine Realm. Though the gods recognize him, none dare to say anything.

—

Clomp.

—

The Demon King walks steadily without hesitation. He enters a massive circular building.

One of the ‘Three Great Amusements’ of the gods, the Colosseum. The gatekeeper who tried to block the unexpected visitor stepped aside quickly upon realizing it was the Demon King. Silently, the Demon King entered the Colosseum.

—

Clomp.

—

Hot air and heavy atmosphere. The cheers of battle fill the space.

Ecstatic joy and despair cross paths. Some laugh, some cry, some rejoice, some can’t contain their anger.

—

The Colosseum is a massive gambling arena. Gods bring their summoned creatures or monsters to fight in the Colosseum, betting valuable ancient relics and more.

—

Though the Demon King is merely a spectator.

—

“Ah, Demon King. You’ve come.”

“…”

“You’re still as taciturn as ever. Oh, by the way, the match of the child you introduced is about to start. Why don’t you watch?”

—

Chronos, the god of time sitting in the viewing stands, spoke to the Demon King. Every seat in the stadium was filled with gods, each reacting differently to the match – shouting, chuckling, etc.

—

“Truly remarkable kid. Though the weakest, they’re still a hero, it seems. In the past hundred years, they’ve never lost once. Lately, they’ve been called the undefeated champion.”

“…”

“All opponents are strong too. One flaw is the complete lack of showmanship… but it’s fine. Their emotionless mechanical appearance strangely stimulates the gods’ hearts. Thanks to them, I’ve made quite a profit too.”

—

Listening to Chronos boastfully explain, the Demon King stared expressionlessly at the center of the circular arena. On the vast sand-covered field, a young girl with light blonde hair was wielding human swordsmanship.

—

She doesn’t look in good condition. Dust stains cover her entire body. There’s no vitality left in the girl’s face.

—

Still, the girl swings her sword. Holding the legendary Excalibur with both hands, she endlessly slashes at the approaching fiends.

—

Fighting, fighting, fighting endlessly. She survives life-or-death battles where flesh is torn and blood splatters. But the girl isn’t happy. Because after winning this fight, another one awaits.

The glory and joy of victory belong not to her but to Chronos. She’s merely a chess piece. A worthless chess piece providing entertainment for the gods, playing along with their amusement.

Wealth and fame don’t come to her. The superiority and pleasure that natural victors feel in the mortal world don’t exist here. Instead, the more she wins and survives, the more she faces endless hellish battles. Her mind gradually erodes and wears down, while her soul-filled body screams in agony.

—

Yet the girl doesn’t kneel. Stomping firmly on the ground with both feet, she raises and smashes the golden Excalibur that shines brightly.

—

Between her gritted teeth, a barely audible song trickles out. A song no one hears. As she throws bloody strikes at the endless tide of enemies, the faded golden hair mixes with sweat and blood, becoming wildly disheveled.

—

“Lord is coming~”

“~My glorious Lord is coming~”

“~The blessed horn welcoming Lord sounds~”

“~Lord’s grace falls on the earth~”

“~That day, my Lord walks the path of love~”

“Lord is coming~ To save all things~”

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