Ch.114The One Who Left (4)

I’ve noticed that after Leo left, more people have been targeting me. But I never thought Leo himself would come after me.

If he wanted to kidnap me, he could have just taken me away on Sunday and been done with it. Or maybe he’s starting now because he escaped from the Holy Nation?

The fact that even the Holy Nation has spies running around means places outside it must be even worse – that’s a plausible theory.

“…What happens if I don’t follow you?”

As soon as I finished speaking, Leo instantly appeared in front of me, grabbed me by the collar, and said:

“Why don’t you try and find out?”

His voice still carried no emotion whatsoever. It’s clear he’s not on friendly terms with me right now.

If I’d known this would happen, I should have just asked him to run errands for me instead. I really am nothing but a burden to everyone.

Maybe if I died right here, they wouldn’t have to worry about me anymore?

I can think these thoughts lightly, but death is still frightening. So to survive, I nodded in response to Leo’s words.

Leo then put me back down on the ground. Now I could really feel that we were enemies.

I don’t plan to follow him obediently. Instead, I’ll stall for time while appearing to comply.

That way, people might realize I’ve disappeared and come to rescue me. I feel bad about being a burden, but being rescued now would be much better than being taken hostage.

So to survive, I followed Leo. We arrived at a familiar building – the office where we all spent so much time together. Why did he bring me here?

While I was wondering about this, I heard Leo’s voice, the one I knew.

“Want some coffee?”

“…”

“If you don’t want any, that’s fine.”

It was the familiar Leo I knew, but it also felt incredibly awkward. Why was he suddenly acting like this?

But right now, stalling for time is my priority. So I’ll play along to buy some time.

“I’ll have a café mocha, please.”

“Going for something sweet again?”

“Life is bitterly harsh, so I need something sweet.”

Defeating the Demon King was already difficult enough, but now Leo has turned against us too.

And the fact that it’s because of me keeps tormenting me.

If it had been fate, I might have felt less guilty, but this time I changed fate itself and turned Leo into an enemy, which makes it especially painful.

And ultimately, the consequences have come back to hurt me. At least right now, I miss that cursed fate.

As I continued this self-loathing, two cups of coffee appeared. But Leo’s coffee was different from usual.

“You’re drinking something bitter this time?”

Leo always used to drink sweet things, saying reality was bitter enough, but now he’s suddenly drinking something strongly bitter. Has there been some change in his mindset?

“I just missed what I used to drink.”

“Did you drink that often in the past?”

“Every day.”

After Leo finished speaking, he took a sip of coffee. Then, in a somewhat sorrowful voice, he said:

“It’s bitter, as expected.”

I decided to drink the coffee Leo made for me. He probably didn’t put any sleeping pills or use any tricks.

After all, if he wanted to, he could have taken me away immediately. The fact that he brought me here and even gave me coffee means he has something to discuss.

And not something negative, but something positive.

So, desperately hoping for some good news, I took a sip of coffee too. But for some reason, the coffee was quite bitter.

Thinking it might improve with some sugar cubes, I kept adding them.

But despite that, the coffee remained bitter. Should I just chew on the sugar cubes directly?

While thinking this and continuing to add sugar, Leo spoke to me.

“You’ll rot your teeth that way.”

“But what can I do when it’s so bitter?”

As this truly bitter tea time continued, Leo spoke first.

“So what are you going to do?”

“…I’ll have to fight, I guess.”

“And why would you fight?”

“Well, because I don’t want to die?”

The enemies are constantly after my life, and if the Demon King is alive, things will only get worse, not better.

So I have to fight, even just to survive. Otherwise, this new chance I’ve been given will disappear in vain.

As I was making this small resolution in my heart, Leo said something incredibly tempting.

“What if there was a way to survive without fighting?”

“…Can you explain in more detail?”

“All of you could switch to the Demon King’s side. Then you could surely live the rest of your lives in peace.”

Being able to survive safely and live a decent life until death – it’s an incredibly tempting offer.

And when he said “all of you,” it means not just me but also people like Ju-an and Ha-eun could all survive.

So I wanted to accept this incredibly sweet offer right away.

“…I think I’ll still fight.”

“Why?”

“Because I think I’d regret it if I didn’t.”

But I don’t think I could live peacefully that way.

If I join the Demon King’s plan, all future people would be ruled by the Demon King and live like livestock.

Not being able to live freely and do what they want like in today’s world – it’s horrifying just to imagine.

But I know this is a foolish decision. After all, the people who will live in the world after we die have nothing to do with us. So we have no reason to fight for them.

So why am I still determined to fight? Honestly, I don’t know either.

Maybe I feel sorry for the Goddess’s efforts, or maybe it’s just some useless sense of justice.

Or there’s a good chance I just don’t want to see my descendants living such a life.

But whatever the reason, I know I’ll live with regret for the rest of my life if I just walk away now.

So even though I know I probably won’t be much help, I’ll fight like some foolish good Samaritan.

I wasn’t originally this type of person – why am I suddenly like this? Have I been influenced by Ju-an’s personality?

At least saying this makes me feel better. But if I wanted to persuade Leo, wouldn’t it have been better to lie?

While I was regretting this, Leo suddenly asked me more questions with a puzzled expression.

“Tell me more precisely, is there really no sense of greater purpose at all?”

“I’m just doing what I want to do. Do I need a reason? After all, you also acted according to your heart, Leo.”

“…”

After this brief conversation, silence lingered for a while. Then Leo broke the silence by placing a stack of documents on the desk.

“What is this?”

“Information about the Demon King’s army.”

“…Why are you giving this to me all of a sudden?”

“It’ll be advantageous when you fight the Demon King later.”

The dim hope suddenly starts to brighten. Maybe things could turn out much more positively than before.

“Are you going to fight alongside us again, Leo?”

“No. I think I’ll still fight for them.”

But expectations fade again, just as they always do. Still, there’s still a glimmer of hope left.

“Do you really think that’s for their benefit?”

“No. It’s just my selfishness. I simply don’t want to see them disappear without any meaning.”

“…Then why are you giving this to me?”

“A certain mage asked me to deliver it.”

Hope has almost completely disappeared now. But it’s not entirely gone.

“Where is that mage now?”

“He just completely disappeared.”

The situation is flowing in an unfavorable direction, as it always does. But it’s not that bad.

Having to fight Leo remains the same, but at least now we have useful information.

So this somewhat sweet but overwhelmingly bitter time continued to pass.

“I’ll be going now. Oh, and the mage is nowhere to be found anymore, so don’t have any false hopes.”

Leo spoke again in an empty voice as he stood up. But something about Leo’s appearance felt strange.

“Are you really satisfied with this, Leo?”

Normally, when someone makes a choice they want, emotions like determination or resolve show through. But I don’t feel anything from Leo right now.

If Leo were truly satisfied, he would show some emotion in his statement.

“…I am satisfied.”

Once again, an empty voice was heard. And the hope that seemed to have disappeared began to flicker before my eyes again.

“Why did you wear a mask earlier?”

“…Just because.”

“I see. Then who do you think is the real you right now, Leo?”

I’m starting to think that even this appearance isn’t the real Leo.

Maybe there’s something else beyond that? With such thoughts, I waited for Leo’s answer.

“…I’ve worn masks for so long that I don’t know what the real me is anymore.”

Words that could have been spoken by either the Hero or the Mage came from Leo. Thanks to that, I got one answer I wanted.

At least Leo isn’t happy with his current choice.

“What do you truly want, Leo?”

Leo stood still, thinking about something for a long time before finally speaking.

“…I don’t know. And don’t ask me anything more.”

I felt like I could persuade him with just a little more effort, but Leo prevented me from asking any more questions.

So as I watched the Hero leave, I desperately prayed that the Mage would return to us someday.