Chapter 106

The King of Specters sighed as he missed his target but caught a big fish instead.

“…To love even a terrible mother and a petty woman. There’s no one as cruel as you, Raul… Verze.”

The King of Specters spat out the name “Verze” as if it were something filthy.

“You don’t think about the pain of those who love you, only about forcing your own love. You turn your eyes to those who whip you rather than those who love you.”

The King of Specters spoke in a bitter tone as he drew his bowstring.

“Truly foolish. Almost as foolish as I am.”

To him, Raul was an utterly foolish man. He could have just loved those who loved him. But instead, he loved even those who hurt him, leading to a tragic death.

If Raul had retreated with his friends, could the remnants of the Empire have stopped the Demon King’s power?

The King of Specters alone could sweep the Empire away. The Minister of War would surely be the first to flee if that happened.

A foolish man who loves those who don’t love the flower that bloomed from a pile of trash.

That was Raul as seen by the King of Specters.

“Farewell. My greatest rival, the best warrior and the worst fool.”

—

Camilla stared blankly at the scene before her.

“Raul…?”

With trembling hands, she reached out to check Raul’s pulse.

It was too weak. Like a dying flame. There was no way to save him no matter what she did.

His body still held a faint warmth, but even that would soon fade.

Everything left now was just the remnants of what would soon disappear.

“Stop joking…! You can’t die like this…! After all I’ve endured! After holding back my feelings for so long! If this happens…! If it ends like this, I…!!!”

Camilla shook Raul desperately, but of course, there was no response.

Latri, too, seemed deeply shocked, collapsing to the ground.

Rosie, unable to process the sudden turn of events, began to back away.

“I, I just… No… I thought he was just saying strange things…”

“Shut up.”

The killing intent Camilla radiated overwhelmed the area. The surrounding plants withered, Rosie fell in fear, and even the King of Specters was startled by the intensity.

“You two… Don’t do anything from now on. I’m barely holding back.”

“…Don’t move. I feel like I’ll tear your limbs off.”

“…Don’t say a word. I’ll rip your mouth and throat apart before you can.”

“…….Don’t even shed those hypocritical tears. I’ll gouge your eyes out before you can.”

Camilla wiped the blood from her eyes and gripped her spear, now glowing with blue light.

She stood up lightly and began to stretch.

“……Come to think of it, this isn’t the end. Someone said love exists even in heaven. I can’t remember who, but that’s what I’ll do.”

She began walking toward the direction the arrow had come from, leaving Raul’s cooling body behind.

“You would’ve done this, right? Instead of grieving, you’d fight for the people. I’ll do the same.”

As she spoke, Camilla’s eyes smiled like a crescent moon, but tears of sorrow streamed down.

Her lips trembled even as she smiled.

“Wait. I’ll come back before your body cools, and we’ll die together. Yes, I’ll return before you grow cold.”

Memories and moments flashed through Camilla’s mind.

The precious memories that had shaped her now seemed on the verge of shattering.

So, before they completely broke, she decided to die with Raul.

“In the end, I’ve failed to protect… and lost again.”

Camilla decided to walk a path of killing and dying. After killing the King of Specters, she would return to Raul’s side and end her life.

But of course, there were fools who would stand in her way.

“Camilla Argos! We’ve come to avenge our king’s death!”

“Hey, isn’t it a waste to kill her? Let’s subdue her first and have some fun…”

“We don’t need her limbs anyway.”

From orcs and trolls to ogres riding wyverns. It seemed they hadn’t just brought cannon fodder.

Camilla laughed at the absurdity of the situation.

“Ha…”

She brought her right hand to her mouth, as if to hide her laughter.

Then, in a voice colder than ever, she spoke.

“Just die.”

Camilla, having inhaled a stimulant, plunged her lightning-wreathed spear into the ground, incinerating the surrounding demon soldiers.

“……You too. That damn archer. And me. Let’s all die today.”

To Camilla, Raul was everything. The reason to live, to die, to fight, to not fight, to laugh, and to cry.

Beyond that, he was the reason for everything.

Now that she had lost all those reasons, she had become a beast driven by primal emotions.

Blinded by rage, there was no way to calm her. The answer was simple: run madly and destroy everything in her path.

Like a wild boar with sharp tusks, she rampaged, crushing everything to reach her destination.

Even if all the Empire’s nobles died, it wouldn’t compare to the value of Raul’s death.

Her spear, imbued with blue lightning, became her tusks as she rampaged, just as the Minister of War had described—a blind boar.

“Come out! King of Specters! Face me, who has lost both my friend and the man I love! I’ll stake everything to kill you, so come out and fight me!!!”

Camilla screamed, unleashing blue lightning.

—

Watching from afar, the King of Specters frowned.

“She shot well, but she’s awakened a beast.”

He was one who lurked on the edges of the battlefield, waiting for an opening.

For him, Camilla’s rampage, skilled in close and aerial combat, was not a favorable situation. If she pinpointed his location, he’d be forced into a disadvantageous fight.

But the King of Specters was confident he could handle Camilla.

Considering the power and advantages of his “unique body,” he could defeat her in close combat.

“…Though I plan to kill her before it comes to that.”

The King of Specters released an ivory arrow, drawn to its limit, aiming for Camilla.

The arrow flew faster than sound, aiming for her life.

But at that moment, the blue lightning surrounding Camilla incinerated the arrow before it could reach her.

“Madness. Truly mad. Whether my arrow hits or she burns it before it touches her, it’s a path to death.”

But Camilla didn’t care about her life, continuing to unleash her power.

As if she wanted to burn everything.

“Foolish, you are. Or perhaps it’s because you’re foolish that you became a hero. The wise don’t become heroes.”

The King of Specters continued to fire vicious arrows.

Half aimed at Camilla, the other half at the corrupted nobles.

He couldn’t focus his equal death on Camilla alone.

And he hoped to draw out someone hiding by increasing the sacrifices.

But the target never appeared. The one who must have orchestrated this was still unseen. Raul’s death must have been unexpected for them too.

He thought despair and rage would force them out, but their patience was beyond imagination.

—

“Good souls born in the wrong era.”

The King of Specters genuinely respected and acknowledged Raul and his friends.

They were true warriors and exemplary figures.

The Emperor, though hot-tempered, had the makings of a great ruler.

The Empress, the Empire’s finest talent, could have led its golden age if born a man.

Camilla, though wild, had a kind nature unlike her parents.

And Raul—he admired him so much that he wished he had a son like him.

“Repent and regret the sins of your ancestors as you die.”

The King continued to fire arrows.

To eradicate the hateful bloodline of the Empire.

The Emperor desperately searching for the Empress, the cunning Empress hiding somewhere, Camilla rampaging after losing her love, Raul standing at death’s door.

All must be killed and erased.