Chapter 52

I couldn’t see the battle between Garnet and Curs directly, but I could roughly tell how it was going.

It felt like observing light in a darkroom.

Since the surroundings were filled with despair, Garnet’s hope stood out way too much.

If you ask how much it stood out, it was so bright it almost hurt my eyes.

“Who do you think will win?”

*Gurgle*

“Do you think you could even beat a magical girl of that level?”

*Gurgle, gurgle, gurgle*

A magical girl being ignored by a monster caught in Curs’s trap…

Is this the level of magical girls in this world? Really?

“Tsk tsk… How are they supposed to protect humans from monsters if they’re this weak?”

I clicked my tongue and downgraded my assessment of Garnet’s combat ability.

If even she can’t win, then Curs must be treating her like a toy.

I shook my head and stared in the direction of Garnet and Curs.

As I expected, Garnet’s hope was gradually fading.

‘I thought it would be a good fight since both of them could put a hole in my stomach…’

I guess only a magical girl like Emerald can handle this.

It made me realize how amazing Emerald was for making Curs run away.

Just how much hope does she have to make the embodiment of despair, Curs, flee like that?

“I guess I made the right choice.”

*Gurgle?*

“No, just talking to myself.”

It was definitely better to stick around and suck up despair than to get beaten up by Emerald’s magic.

But wow, she’s holding up better than I expected. Wait, no—Curs is just toying with her.

*Flash*

“GYAAAAAH?!?!!”

*Gurgle?*

I covered my eyes as the hope suddenly intensified.

Ah, my eyes! My eyes!

I was already squinting, and now I finally opened them fully as the hope faded a bit!

‘Ugh… I won’t forgive you. How dare you play with fire in front of my eyes…’

It reminded me of the time my junior shined a flashlight in my eyes during guard duty.

But more importantly, if Curs catches her, my chance for revenge will be ruined.

I widened my eyes in sudden realization—then quickly squinted again.

Almost got caught again.

“How’s it going now? Who do you think will win?”

*Gurgle*

“No chance, huh?”

Indeed, the battle was the same as before.

Garnet was attacking fiercely, but nothing reached Curs, and her hope was fading.

It was like watching a flame flare up just before it dies.

“It’s over.”

The spark of hope went out, and despair filled its place.

The despair of a magical girl was special—it looked darker than other despair, so it was easy to notice.

I thought it would be a bit more of a fight, but it ended disappointingly.

Wait, more importantly…

*Gurgle*

‘…I’m hungry.’

I had healed the wounds Garnet gave me, and I couldn’t eat Tamako’s despair because I was in the hospital, so it couldn’t be helped.

If you ask if I didn’t eat Garnet’s despair, I’d say this:

‘Have you ever seen someone get full from one spoonful of rice?’

“Curs will probably use Garnet’s despair for all sorts of experiments. Wasting something so precious…”

*Gurgle, gurgle*

“Should I go take it from them now?”

Indeed, Garnet owed me her life, so her life was practically mine.

And Garnet’s despair, held by a monster like me who had her life in my hands, was also mine.

And now it’s being taken away? By Curs?

‘…You could call this insubordination, right?’

In the original story, Curs was a fervent follower of Apocalypse.

Now, for some reason, they’ve taken a position of opposing me.

Surely, it’s because they’ve lost their memories, but that doesn’t excuse insubordination.

“Sigh…”

I slowly exhaled.

I didn’t care what Curs was up to, but I couldn’t tolerate them messing with my despair.

Well, I’ll start by devouring the despair around me first.

It wasn’t the despair of a magical girl, just ordinary despair, but this much might satisfy my hunger.

‘Carefully, one bite—’

*Whoosh*

“Huh?”

I thought I’d only take one bite, but all the despair around me vanished.

Even Garnet’s despair was gone in one go.

“…What? Why did it all disappear on its own?”

But that wasn’t the real problem.

The biggest issue now was the Despair Circuit, which had started spinning wildly.

I tried to stop it, but it wouldn’t stop—instead, it spread thick despair everywhere, throwing me into a momentary panic.

‘Ah, whatever.’

I’ll just head over to where Curs and Garnet are.

It didn’t take long for my blank mind to return to normal.

After all, I wasn’t the type to overthink things—I’m a monster, not a person.

***

*Thud, thud, thud*

‘Is that the sound of my Despair Core pulsating? Or just vibrations? If not, then what is it?’

Curs swallowed hard at the massive resonance echoing in their ears.

The overwhelming presence slowly, very slowly, began to approach, as if it was staring right at them.

They couldn’t see anything.

They didn’t know if it had left the room or not, but they could feel it coming toward them.

“You… what kind of monster have you created… *cough*…”

“…”

Garnet was already vomiting blood from the pressure.

If that thing arrived, it would surely crush everything without leaving a trace.

‘I have to escape—’

“Ugh…”

But contrary to that thought, their body wouldn’t move.

It was as if their body refused to move, telling them to witness what was coming.

The pressure was something that applied to everything within the framework of despair.

Even breathing felt like surrendering to that immense power.

*Thud*

“Here you both are.”

“…”

“Ugh…”

As the girl appeared, the pressure from before vanished as if it had been a lie.

Only the thick despair surrounding her hinted at the source of that presence.

“Was what happened last time just a whim?”

“Maybe.”

The girl tilted her head.

Her voice was emotionless, neither truthful nor false.

It felt like she was purely asking for Curs’s opinion, and his mouth reflexively started answering.

“…It was a whim, what happened back then.”

The despair in the form of a girl widened her red eyes.

Like a parent praising a child for getting the right answer—or a predator sneering at prey that just realized its fate.

“Aka, Ri?”

“Garnet, you look pathetic.”

“…You’re the one who looks pretty horrifying.”

“Ufufu…”

Do they know each other?

I couldn’t move in this situation, but I couldn’t voice my question either.

The area around the girl was like the eye of a storm.

A space where even a slight misstep would bring you face-to-face with that overwhelming power.

There was no room for even a moment of respite.

‘For a moment, all the despair in this area vanished. Did she absorb all of it?’

To devour that much despair and still be fine—it was impossible.

It was more impossible than fitting an elephant in a fridge or passing a lion through the eye of a needle.

“You’re barely holding on, aren’t you?”

“…”

“There’s no way anyone could absorb all the despair here and still be fine. You must have reached your limit.”

“…”

The girl didn’t answer.

Was that silence an affirmation or a denial?

Her eyes, which had been laughing moments ago, now stared at Curs with no light in them.

As if he meant nothing.

“How long do you think you can keep up this bluff—”

I prepared to attack.

I didn’t need to defeat her—just create enough of a diversion to escape.

To get out of this unexpected situation and plan for the future—

“You’re not thinking of escaping this unexpected situation and planning for the future, are you?”

“…”

“You’re surprisingly good at bluffing, Curs.”

…Human? Human?

This body had long since left the category of “human.”

After absorbing immense despair and shedding my humanity, to be called “human”—

‘And those eyes…’

The eyes of a monster looking at a despairing human.

Eyes that said the one being looked at was worth nothing more or less.

“Don’t… look at me…”

“…”

“Don’t look at me with those eyes!!!!!!!!”

A scream-like cry erupted, and despair burst forth.

The monsters that had slept within the heart of the once-human being began to pour out at their master’s command.

*Gurgle, gurgle, gurgle*

*Squeak, squeak, squeak*

And the girl simply stood there, watching.

As if asking for something more entertaining.