Light and Darkness (8)

Light and Darkness (8)

‘Are you trying to imitate me?’

As Renée looked at the desperate eyes of the person gazing up at her, moved and impressed by her, Takiras’s words from earlier flashed through her mind.

‘That’s right. I talked about justice and whatnot, but essentially… I couldn’t let go of my lingering attachment after all.’

She had to admit it in the end.

That at this moment, it felt like the desire deeply buried in her heart was being fulfilled.

The subject before her eyes praising her and trying to follow her, the organization running on the system she created, the transformation and reform she was leading – all of these were what she had desired from birth.

‘I wanted to become an emperor. And that’s still true now.’

Her eyes sank deeply as she followed her father, who carefully rose from his seat.

Her ambition was no less than her brother’s. Rather, it grew fiercer as she aged.

Among the siblings, she was the only one who attempted fierce underground political maneuvering for succession rights against the current emperor, who was only a year older.

There was just a slight difference that determined the outcome.

Renée was undoubtedly an exceptional magician. However, the emperor was a knight who had reached the pinnacle. They both possessed brilliant minds capable of mastering various disciplines. Their ability to command, control, and inspire people was also comparable.

What set these two similar individuals apart was none other than the customs and laws of the old era.

If Renée’s ambition for the imperial throne was for the development and prosperity of the empire, the current emperor was not. He willingly embraced even the old evils that should have been reformed and cut out for the sake of the throne.

From that moment on, Renée began to hate the current emperor, whom she had secretly admired as a worthy rival, as garbage worse than a beast.

“Therefore, I can promise you this much. I will never, ever compromise.”

“Ah…”

He barely turned his head and lost his senses upon seeing Renée enter the room following her father.

“It wasn’t even a minor dispute. It was a one-sided terror and assault.”

Father and son testified to Renée about that day’s events. It wasn’t difficult. These were the things they had been complaining about for the past two years, whether to the police or the courts.

The incident itself was an accident that occurred from school violence, which was all too common in this era.

“But in the end, the perpetrators received no punishment whatsoever. Solely because they were 14 years old, just 12 years old.”

“At least you’re not lying.”

Renée discreetly used magic to detect lies by examining the subject’s condition to determine the truthfulness of the testimony.

In fact, there was no need to verify the truth. This incident from two years ago actually had clear evidence, and the perpetrators didn’t deny their actions.

“The hardest part was that those bastards didn’t show any remorse or offer even a single apology after causing such an accident.”

“They will be judged.”

Rene nodded at her father’s trembling voice as he recalled that day.

And the father and daughter’s eyes changed. It was no longer the look of distrust towards the world that had been etched into their bones.

The being in front of them now was not one to hit the wall of reality, but a magical girl who could summon miracles as easily as eating if she put her mind to it. While the mindset was the issue, Rene was fundamentally different from other magical girls.

“…It’s true.”

Rene nodded as she looked at the eyes staring at her from the bed.

For her, this was no longer a simple experiment or petty whim. It was her unfulfilled dream, desire, and ambition.

The magical girls who followed her were her subjects, and the father and daughter before her were her people.

“Your task is to shake off the past, move forward, and also not forget.”

Rene left the room and once again took flight into the night sky.

‘This is an opportunity I can’t miss.’

She smiled faintly as she crossed the empty air.

A small opportunity gained through Takiras’s favor. That opportunity had now become a chance for her to fulfill her lifelong wish. She had no intention of letting this chance slip away.

Even if any interference should come.

Having already tasted defeat once, she was now hardened even to failure. This was the darkness she held within, but so what if it wasn’t the clean and pure light that others thought?

Even if it was riddled with desire and ambition, the results of her actions would be the same.

*

“This is crazy…”

“She really killed someone. A magical girl killed a person!”

At a middle school on the outskirts of the city. From the morning, the students who arrived were gathered in groups, chatting or playing.

There were some among them whose voices were particularly loud, as if excited. They were looking at news about magical girls on the internet, and the topic was naturally Casilena, who had started her activities.

The video of Casilena’s inquisitor ‘executing’ someone in broad daylight, disregarding Code Red, had already spread far and wide.

“Hey, you… can’t you all shut up!”

“Huh.”

At that moment, someone shouted irritably with a rough voice. In an instant, the atmosphere in the classroom froze.

The student who shouted with a scrunched face was Kwon Do-hyun, a third-year student. The way others were watching his reactions showed what kind of position he held here.

‘Judge? What bullshit.’

His pounding heart thumped loudly.

However, that fierce heartbeat wasn’t ringing because of anger. Fear, what was consuming his body now was the fear hidden behind the pretense of trying to act tough.

“Hey. Let’s talk for a moment.”

Someone from the next class came to see him. Kwon Do-hyun sighed when he saw the person’s face and got up from his seat.

“You’re thinking the same as me, right?”

“Fuck, don’t talk nonsense. Lee Chan-sung’s incident was just an accident!”

He raised his voice after coming to a corner with his friend. His attitude clearly showed he was anxious to the point of going crazy.

“Will they really come? It’s been over two years.”

“Don’t you know that bastard’s father posted something on the internet?”

At his friend’s trembling words, he roughly scratched his head.

What irritated them the most was the justice advocated by the new force, Casilena. True justice, judgment of sins.

The values of this world, such as human rights and constitution, which acted as a reliable shield, were not a consideration for them.

“This is crazy. I’ve never heard of Takilas killing minors. Surely…”

“Aren’t we just shadow boxing here? There are so many crazy incidents in the world, why would they care about us?”

Two third-year middle school students who couldn’t do anything in this society without their parents couldn’t possibly come up with anything by putting their heads together.

In the end, the conclusion was to try to be at ease.

It wasn’t without reason. Even Tequilas, known as the most notorious magical girl, didn’t touch minors, and surely there were worse criminals in this land than them.

“…What’s this?”

However, when he arrived at the classroom just before the start of class.

Kwon Do-hyun was surprised by the sight of students crowding around.

“Magical Girl… Ren!”

“Why is she here?! Is, is she here to catch someone?!”

A blonde magical girl floating majestically above the playground.

Most students were afraid but also curious. Some even cheered or liked her appearance.

“Uh, uwaah!”

But there were also those who reacted as if they had seen the angel of death at her appearance. Kwon Do-hyun, taking a deep breath, turned his body without thinking and started running away down the hallway.

“Why are you running away?”

“Hyaaah!”

However, as he turned the corner, he stumbled and fell to the floor with a thud, startled. Ren was already there waiting for him.

“H-How…”

“It’s not difficult to set up an illusion.”

With a pale face, he muttered, looking at the crowd still gathering in the classrooms, leaving the corridor empty.

Ren calmly replied.

“Did you know I would come?”

“P-Please spare me.”

“I won’t kill you. After all, the child you bullied didn’t die either.”

Rene looked down at his eyes filled with fear and snorted. Of course, her magical girl senses judged him as a villain. It meant she could lay hands on him.

“You had enough opportunities to act according to your own will. You had plenty of time to hesitate, regret, and reconsider. But you didn’t take any of those chances and ended up committing the act.”

“It was an accident! An unlucky accident! Just when that ki… I mean, Chansung fell and hit his head…”

“Then you could have apologized and shown remorse. But what did you say back then? What did your parents say to tear apart the other party’s heart?”

“Ugh… uwaah…”

Rene’s eyes didn’t waver at all. Seeing this, Kwon Do-hyun was at a loss for words. He had made a huge mistake.

Takilas was just a moody person who acted on his whims. That’s why he didn’t bother messing with children even when he wasn’t in a good mood.

However, Rene was a being who set clear ideals and standards and acted to realize them. No matter who the other party was, if they deviated from those standards, she would take action immediately.

“No, no! Help! Help… mmph!”

“There’s no need to make a fuss. I’ve seen younger thieves get their hands cut off.”

The magical chains Rene summoned wrapped around Kwon Do-hyun’s limbs and mouth, lifting him into the air as he screamed. At the same time, she summoned an axe made of crackling lightning in her hand.

“You have nothing to feel wronged about. You’re just getting back what you did, so if you want to resent and hate me, go ahead. I don’t care.”

She aimed at one of his trembling arms and raised the axe.