Chapter 85

Posted by Kuze, ? Views, Released on February 8, 2025

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Just like a curtain being drawn, the view opened up.

Before long, someone gripping a sword came into sight in the distance.

A familiar back.

He clutches the sword stubbornly with a determined face,

but no matter how much he tugs, it doesn’t budge.

Even if he tries dozens, hundreds of times,

it doesn’t move an inch.

But he never gives up.

He keeps challenging it.

Faces it head-on.

…At some point,

the girl who had been watching the scene with uneasy eyes finally asked:

“Why are you so worked up because you can’t pull that out?”

Ludines.

When the girl with sky-blue hair spoke,

the youth, the man glared at her sharply as if trying to kill her with his eyes.

“Is there some other reason I should just give up because it’s not coming out?”

“…Is this more important than your life?”

“Will someone die if I pull it out? Me? Or you?”

“…You will die.”

“Aha. That’s interesting. Thanks for enlightening me with this new knowledge. How about you tell me how I’ll die while you’re at it?”

The girl, Ludines, muttered hesitantly, her gaze wavering.

Her demeanor was like that of a repentant sinner.

“The one who pulls this sword will be killed.”

“Who kills whom? You?”

“…I am the watcher.”

“So if I kill you?”

“….”

The girl fell silent.

“It’s my choice whether I live or die.”

He reached out for the sword again.

“If I have to live even a single day as a slave, trampled under falsehoods!”

As he strained with all his might, the sword still didn’t move an inch.

“…Then die right now. Don’t breathe. Don’t open your eyes.”

The man, Venus, turned away from the sword and walked off.

He soon reached right in front of Ludines.

“If you show that disgusting face next time, I’ll rip your face clean off.”

“….”

“You act like you’ve taken on all the world’s sorrows. Are you putting on airs? Being dramatic?”

“That’s… impossible.”

“Well then, stop with those meaningless eyes. Who are you sympathizing with? Pitying? Do you even have the right to do that?”

“I….”

“If you have time to feel sad and accept things, why don’t you do your job properly? Whether you’re surveilling or throwing your life away in some cesspool, it’s none of my business!”

Stop meddling where you’re not wanted.

Venus disappeared with anxious eyes chasing after him.

“All of that is true.”

She agreed with his harsh words.

Without any resistance.

She accepted them fully.

…

[I should have been wielded by that one. But that has changed. Therefore, I refuse to be used by that person out of my own will.]

“….”

The sword rambled on with its own will.

There’s nothing surprising about it now.

[Moreover, my refusal to be wielded by you is also my will.]

“Enough with the chatter. Give me the reason.”

Patience has limits too.

Even mine is boiling over.

[It’s because you are the descendant of Grandeous.]

“Huh?”

What nonsense is this?

[In this era, there’s no one else who has inherited his legacy as much as you.]

What kind of nonsense is this?

[Among those who wish to follow him, no one has reached the same level as you.]

“Level? What level?”

[Don’t you know? Haven’t you already achieved four stars?]

How would I know something like that?

Is this cursed Demon King hiding something again?

Or did he not tell me because I didn’t ask?

Unless…

Even she didn’t know?

“Are you saying I can’t hold you because I’m his descendant?”

[That’s correct.]

“…And that’s the reason?”

Would you seriously expect me to swallow that without question?

[Haven’t you already received everything?]

“…?”

[Do you really need to covet this body?]

This insane sword?

“Everything? Everything? What do you mean ‘everything’? What have I received?”

[It seems you lack awareness.]

Being pitied by a sword…

“Swordsmanship? Mindset? Or maybe chivalry?”

[Why does it bother you so much?]

“….”

Bothered? Am I?

[I am not the answer to your problems. You know that, and so do I.]

“….”

What made me excited? What made me waver?

It was simple when I thought about it.

Which is why it feels so absurd.

Both exasperating and infuriating.

To put it plainly, it was utter confusion.

For a moment, I lost myself.

Did I have expectations?

So when they crumbled, did I feel betrayed and disappointed?

Did I take it for granted that it was naturally mine?

That it would become my power?

…Did I accept it that way?

“So what are you here for?”

[I am simply myself.]

A foolish question.

The answer was extremely simple.

Clear but…

The most straightforward response.

“Then why do you exist?”

[Justice.]

It declared firmly.

[The protection of good. The swift punishment of evil. The enforcement of balance.]

Thus…

[As a sacred sword, I guard what is good.]

“…?”

[If you wish to wield me, you must make a promise. To follow what is good. To condemn what is evil. Can you do that?]

“No.”

I declare firmly.

From the start…

“…Hah.”

What I needed…

Wasn’t this.

It wasn’t this at all.

[That’s right. You are incapable.]

Therefore…

[We were never meant to meet.]

====

Spittle mixed with blood spewed from between Venus’ gritted teeth.

“That damn brat…”

Is he really going to pull that thing out?

Does he truly intend to claim it?

And take it from me?!

Though glaring fiercely enough to stab the back of that man at any moment,

he couldn’t rashly approach.

Despite looking so frail from behind,

still, not a single opening could be seen.

It was incomprehensible.

Even though the figure standing there resembled a withered plant that could wilt at any moment.

Yet it felt impossible to knock him down.

His will screamed that he must act immediately—whether to knock him down, stab him, sever his limbs, or something else—but

a faint thread of reason held his ankle in place.

If he moved now, he’d die.

That calm abyss was now…

…overflowing with rage unlike anything seen before.

He realized this suddenly.

“….”

The boy straightened up but did not draw the sword.

Instead, he detached his hand resolutely, as if showing no regrets whatsoever.

Then…

“Haha…”

He began laughing unexpectedly.

A laugh filled with such despair and exhaustion that it could drown anyone who heard it.

It eventually erupted into pure anger.

“Hahahaha! This is ridiculous! A complete farce! Is this all it amounts to?!”

Crazed as if losing his mind, he suddenly extended his right hand toward the air.

“Did you see that? Why don’t you say something now?”

He started shouting, wildly gesturing and yelling repeatedly.

“Isn’t this wrong?! Did you know all this beforehand and still do this to me?!”

He seemed to be shouting at someone or something.

“To think you’d offer me something like this Sacred Sword?! Are you playing around with me right now?! At least you shouldn’t do this to me, right?!”

Sacred Sword?

Why is he acting like this?

Venus couldn’t comprehend this sudden reaction.

Likely, everyone observing wouldn’t understand the situation either.

His attitude and reactions before and after touching the sword embedded in the ground were…

Completely different.

“Calling yourself the Demon King of Wisdom?! So you only know things but don’t understand others, huh?! Was this all deception?!”

Is this guy crazy? Has he lost it?

What? The Demon King of Wisdom?

“I cannot overlook this. Young warrior. Though I intended to observe until the end, your words are quite intriguing.”

It suddenly revealed its presence.

“?! ”

Venus.

Even Carriel, who had just noticed it.

They sensed its existence only moments ago.

“Are you not pulling it out, then?”

“….”

“Was today not the prophesied day? Or did you choose not to grasp it despite having the chance? Why is that?”

It existed almost as if blending into the darkness, yet it suddenly made its presence known.

Its build might not have been much different from Carriel’s at first glance,

but its entire body was deathly pale.

As if powdered marble had been applied all over,

or perhaps bone dust smeared on its surface,

an eerie chalk-white glow.

Various patterns adorned its skin, along with a pitch-black cuirass clinging tightly to its upper body.

However, from head to toe, it was draped in a deep blue cape.

A thick wool-like dark-blue paenula.

It flowed dramatically, grazing the ground beneath like a robe.

Even in this dim background, its presence stood out uniquely.

Faint light emanated from its eyes,

its snowy brilliance piercing through the darkness as it locked onto Carriel.

And in response to its unnecessary interference, Carriel burst out explosively.

“Who the hell are you?”

The tone was sharp.

Yet it wasn’t blind hostility.

While caution lingered within,

Essentially, it was merely the aftermath of heightened emotions,

fragments and wisps left over from their eruption and release.

But perhaps because this reaction wasn’t what the pale man expected,

he sighed regretfully.

“Unfortunately, it seems you fail to recognize me.”

“…?”

“There was a time I nearly killed you.”

…What?

“I will grant you a reprieve even now. If you don’t pull that out, your death here is certain.”

This time…

“The World Tree isn’t here, nor are any nations or guards. I’ve heard your father is on his way, but surely waiting for him would be too risky, wouldn’t it?”

“…He’s coming?”

A shiver ran down his spine.

Suddenly, his senses sharpened.

What exactly did the creature in front of him just say?

“Claiming you tried to kill me? You? Who the hell are you?”

“Has this demon spawn come to his senses?”

Out of nowhere,

Venus rushed in.

Not only that, but he charged forward and swung his sword violently.

Not using it as a sword but rather like some blunt weapon, tearing through the air as if to strike the pale man’s torso.

However, the result was the opposite.

“Guhk!”

“You followers of Grandeous are not our enemies. It’s high time you stopped disregarding our repeated warnings.”

“Y-you son of a…!”

Coughing up blood, Venus rolled across the ground.

“Th-that… that’s my prey… Touch it and you’ll… regret it… big time…”

“Overconfidence is a bad habit.”

It was there suddenly.

A spear emitting black smoke.

Longer than a throwing spear but shorter than a pike—a short spear (short lance) that barely qualified as intermediate weaponry.

Still, the spear was as tall as him,

clearly taller than both the attacker and Carriel themselves.

“At one point, I let Ruelde live.”

He said.

“As a result, I ended up presenting an unwelcome defeat to the Exalted One. I reproached myself then and vowed never to repeat such a mistake.”

“And in penance for that…”

“I intended to kill you.”

I believed I succeeded.

So why haven’t you died?

“I lamented endlessly. For a very long time. Your existence will ultimately lead to our extinction. And if I am your enemy… There’s no need to say more, is there?”

Then why do you remain idle?

Why don’t you retaliate silently, without a sound?

“Time passed, and fear grew. We thought we knew you well. Believed we understood you completely. During that time, we assumed you were weaving strategies, gathering strength, perfecting your plans.”

But…

“You’ve changed.”

To this extent.

“How could anyone have foreseen you becoming so foolish? Has heaven abandoned you? Or has the Demon God above cursed you?”

“…Is that all you wanted to say?”

Once upon a time,

I was called a prodigy.

Beyond cleverness, it was a natural gift, a title tailor-made for me. Everyone praised and celebrated me.

…To me, it was an utterly incomprehensible overestimation.

My father, my mother,

even His Majesty the Emperor,

and others around me,

all harbored excessive expectations.

But… that wasn’t me.

You aren’t seeing me.

You’re looking at my past, a past unknown even to me.

I couldn’t possibly accept that as me.

No.

Perhaps it once was me.

But not anymore.

Maybe in the distant future, it will be someone unrelated to me.

Like a mythic hero or devil.

“But now you mention the Demon King of Wisdom. Now I begin to understand somewhat.”

Ultimately, He protected us even as He passed away.

“Sacrificing you to protect us.”

“Reducing your power while loving and cherishing us.”

“…”

The Golden Beast, the Demon King of Wisdom, the revered entity,

is known only to a select few across the continent.

Thus, mentioning Him makes their identity and nature crystal clear.

The question remains: which one of them is it?

But deduction is possible.

Because the figure before us has a strikingly clear profile.

“O clumsy Legion Commander.”

Barg and Adedima.

During the Demon King of Wisdom’s invasion, he wasn’t yet a Legion Commander.

But after the demise of the Golden Beast, with time passing, he gathered remnants of the Demon King’s army.

The de facto central figure.

Nowadays, there may be a few who can replace him,

but he remains the symbolic leader of the remnants.

Such a demon.

Carriel glanced upward.

“…”

Was this appearance unexpected even for her?

The Golden Girl half-draped herself in the air and complained.

-All this talk about favor and whatnot is fine, but idolization goes too far.

And Carriel.

-You shouldn’t dream of defeating him anytime soon. Your compatibility is terrible.

Maybe later, but not now.

She essentially conveyed that much.

“…”

Would I believe the opponent would fall for it if I were in his position?

I’m curious about that point.

If I were him…