Ch.103Red Intoxicated Night

“Soon, the sealed memories will begin. Depending on what choice you make after seeing them, this world could be destroyed.”

Incomprehensible words from Ria.

“Did you learn only lies while you were dead?”

“[…think so?]”

Realizing through her reaction that it was the truth, Pedro mulled over her words.

There were three key points:

Sealed memories,

His choice,

The possibility of the world’s destruction based on that choice.

‘The world could be destroyed because of my choice.’

Unable to understand what she meant even after thinking about it again, Pedro directly demanded:

“I think I need a more detailed explanation.”

“[That’s……]”

Ria opened her mouth as if to say something, then closed it silently.

After hesitating briefly, instead of answering his question, she embraced Pedro and whispered:

“[Pedro. I’m sure you can overcome this.]”

“What? What are you talking about—”

“[I’m sorry. Our reunion ends here.]”

Cutting off Pedro’s words, Ria waved her hand as she returned to the memories.

“[It was nice to see you, Pedro.]”

A faint smile.

And so it was farewell again.

As Pedro watched Ria return to the memories, he thought:

‘If I break this mental world, I should be able to get out.’

He had no intention of looking after Ria.

From his perspective, Ria had merely pulled him into her mental world, shown him her past, and spouted nonsense.

Now that his essence of Evil had awakened, Pedro had no feelings left to care for her.

‘I’ll get out and go to the captain… No. It’s better if I just wander alone like before.’

Just as Pedro was gathering his remaining strength to escape this place.

【<God of the Vanished World> announces that the wager has begun.】

【After reaching the conclusion of <Ria???>, several endings may be added by the Chooser – <Pedro(Ex-)>.】

The flowing scenes of the past quickly shifted to an orphanage at night.

-Pedro, you’re not strange at all.

As Pedro was gazing at the hill, unconsciously recalling memories with Ria, golden divine power rose from beyond the darkness.

Soon after, a golden army appeared, carrying torches.

“Charge!!”

Following the shout of a man pointing at the orphanage, dozens of heresy inquisitors followed.

“That’s the woman!!”

“Kill everyone associated with her!!”

“Revenge for the demon!!”

Blades gleaming blue.

Their sword tips pointed toward the orphanage, and Pedro observed Ria’s reaction.

At first she was momentarily flustered, but she quickly composed herself and evacuated the children first.

“Everyone, don’t come out no matter what.”

“But Ria…!!”

“I may be a free nun, but I’m still a nun, right? It seems like there’s some misunderstanding, so once I clear it up, they’ll leave.”

“…Really?”

“Of course.”

Reassured by her kind demeanor, the children nodded and stepped back.

“I’ll be back.”

After waving to the children, she turned her head just before going out the door.

Simultaneously, Pedro’s viewpoint shifted.

Ria winked at the young Pedro, who had somehow become part of the story again.

“When I’m gone, you’re the leader. Take good care of the children, Pedro.”

“Why me?”

“Right? If you don’t want to, do whatever you want.”

With that, Ria left the orphanage.

“Wh-what should we do!?”

“What do you mean! Ria told us to stay put!”

“B-but still!!”

As soon as Ria left, the children became restless, pressing their eyes against the door cracks and windows. Amidst the commotion, Pedro realized:

‘So this is it.’

Part of his childhood memories that Ria had sealed away along with the essence of <Evil>.

‘I get why she sealed away the evil since it’s strange to have a demon, but why the memories?’

The question had barely formed when—

“Huh…?”

Thud!

A child who had been peering through the door crack slowly backed away and fell.

“What’s wrong! Why are you suddenly like that!!”

“Get up! Quickly!”

“Did something happen to big sis!?”

A bespectacled child who liked to read books rushed past the fallen child toward the door.

“W-wait!! Don’t go!!”

The fallen child shouted belatedly, but the closed door was already opening.

Creeeeak…

A pitch-black shadow loomed beyond the slowly opening wooden door.

Bloodshot eyes,

Haggard appearance,

Unkempt beard.

“Found you.”

The man standing with his back to the moonlight looked at the children and seemed momentarily confused, but then his expression twisted as if his mind had shattered.

“I won’t be fooled anymore… You’re all demons too.”

“U-ugh, p-please spare us…!”

“Stop pretending… Monsters like you couldn’t possibly have such feelings…! You… you killed my brother first!!”

A tragedy unfolded in an instant.

“Mis…ter, it hurts…… Why…?”

As the child’s face turned pale, the man’s sword tip began to tremble in his tight grip.

“Why…? Why are you crying…? You’re clearly a demon’s… T-treatment!! Someone…! I… I was just avenging my brother who was killed by demons…!!”

His sanity becoming increasingly unstable.

Thud.

“…Ah.”

As the child’s hand fell, the man’s heart also crashed to the ground.

“Hahah…! Right, it’s already fallen anyway. Let’s all fall together.”

Blinded by despair, his sword quickly took the lives of the orphanage children.

“I’m sorry!!”

“P-please spare me!!”

“Shut up, shut up, SHUT UP!!!!”

One-sided violence.

“Let’s fall…!! Let’s all hold hands and fall together, you demon bastards!!!”

Feeling the threat to his life, Pedro unconsciously stepped back.

Then he suddenly remembered Ria’s request.

-When I’m gone, you’re the leader. Take good care of the children, Pedro.

“…No.”

I’m not the leader.

I don’t need to protect the children, nor do I have the strength to do so.

Born as a demon, I’ll always be a demon, so I should just live as I was born to.

But why?

“Ah… You’re a demon too?”

“No. They’re not demons.”

Why did his body react on its own?

“…Nonsense. I’ve been deceived so many times by you creatures pretending to be human—”

“No. You noticed it halfway through. The children you’ve killed so far. They’re not demons, they’re humans.”

The man’s actions came to an abrupt halt.

“N-no…!! That can’t be…!!”

“Oh, so you didn’t notice halfway through?”

Pedro approached the trembling man and said expressionlessly:

“Mister, you knew they were human from the beginning but killed them anyway?”

While confronting the man, Pedro moved his right hand behind his back, gesturing frantically.

The message he was desperately signaling to the children was ‘Escape through the back door’.

Some children who noticed covered their mouths and rushed toward the back door, but—

Squelch, thud!

Slash!

With eerie sounds, their presence vanished.

Thump, thump, thump.

With heavy footsteps, the newly appointed captain of the heresy inquisitors appeared, grabbed the throat of the last remaining child, and ordered:

“The adult demon we found earlier has gone berserk. There are no casualties yet, but too many are injured. Clean up here and come support us.”

“I, I was…!!”

“Tsk, pathetic bastard.”

The inquisition captain walked over to the frozen member and held out the child he was gripping by the neck.

“Kill it.”

A hand raised at the commanding order.

“No. Breaking such a weak heart requires more than just a sword.”

The captain shook his head, took the sword, and handed the child to the member’s empty hands, adding:

“Strangle it to death with your hands.”

“But…!!”

“Are you pretending to be noble now?”

While the two were arguing, Pedro looked at the last remaining child.

Always timid and barely able to speak, yet with a warm heart that made her care for Pedro second only to Ria—a young girl.

The girl, who had been called a crybaby and a coward, much younger than Pedro, waved her hand at him and mouthed:

Run away, big brother.

The moment he finally understood what she was saying.

【Essence – <Evil> awakens.】

【<Pedro(D)>’s rank has risen to <Pedro(S+)>.】

Pedro, having awakened the essence of evil, vanished in the blink of an eye.

“Look!! That bastard is also a dem—!!”

Thud.

“De…mon….”

The captain’s head fell in an instant.

“Ah… I…”

Thud.

After killing the crying member in one stroke, Pedro followed Ria out the door.

“Damn!! There’s another one—!!”

Thud.

“Everyone be care—!!”

Squelch!

“Son of a—!!”

Crack!!

It felt like drinking water for the first time in his life.

He hadn’t known until he properly killed someone, but as the deaths piled up, it became clear.

Those born with evil unconsciously seek to keep death close by.

‘They started it anyway.’

If he killed everyone and left this place, he could live normally again.

So Pedro killed.

He killed, and killed again.

For some reason, there was a tightness in his chest, and to relieve it, he killed even more frantically.

Intoxicated by the scent of blood and entranced by the red light, he spread his wings across the night sky.

After killing everyone near the orphanage, just as he was about to run to find Ria.

Thud.

A stake was driven into Pedro’s shadow.

The sensation of being unable to move beyond the length of his shadow, like an animal tied to a stake.

“…So it has come to this.”

The voice came from behind.

“…Is death the end of everything?”

He quickly turned his head, but the man’s swinging stake was much faster.

“…I, we… can never escape till the end?”

After the man’s incomprehensible muttering.

Thud.

The swung stake was driven deep.

Not into his body, but—

“Are you… okay, Pedro?”

“…Huh?”

Into Ria’s heart.