Ch.191191. Cold Love

After dropping off Findenai and Erika Bright and entrusting them to Owen, I returned to Ophelia.

She was already smiling brightly with an expensive bag slung over her shoulder.

Her expression made it clear that she didn’t mind my tardiness at all, which actually annoyed me.

We continued spending time together afterward. Most places were luxurious venues where we spent a lot of money, and the more we did, Ophelia’s smile grew brighter.

Before I knew it, it was late at night.

Stars densely covered Robern’s sky, and January’s chilly night air calmed my mind.

“How was today?”

“It was wonderful!”

There was no lie in her bright smile. Of course she’d be happy, preciously clutching all the items she bought today.

“For the last stop, I’ll take you anywhere you want to go.”

After spending the entire day with her, I offered to go wherever Ophelia wanted for our final destination. Her eyes flashed with greed once again.

She licked her lips like a snake and naturally turned her body.

“Actually, I took the day off, but I need to tell something to my colleague.”

“……”

“Could you come with me?”

Ophelia leaned forward, subtly emphasizing her cleavage.

I nodded silently and gestured for her to lead the way.

‘How shallow.’

Ophelia is a hostess. She encourages customers to order expensive drinks in her section and receives incentives or improves her work performance.

From what I’ve seen today, she thinks I need to like her, and since I also have money, she’s trying to take me to her establishment to milk me dry.

I follow Ophelia into Glass Street. I’d only visited during the day before, but coming in the late evening, it had transformed into a completely different place.

The sparse crowds from daytime were now bustling everywhere as if they’d just woken up, and people of all genders were busy soliciting customers.

Since I was with Ophelia, no one approached me, but I could hear whispers among those who recognized me as a spiritmaster.

“Isn’t that Deus Verdi?”

“Shh. You’re supposed to pretend not to see important people.”

“Well, he is a man after all.”

Though the comments were irritating, rumors about me in this regard were already widespread in Norsweden.

A few additional comments in Robern didn’t bother me at all.

[Wow.]

[Wow.]

Just then, I heard two women’s voices with identical reactions.

The Dark Spiritmaster and Stella were suddenly walking behind me.

Both covered their mouths with their hands while looking around.

[I-I’ve never been to a place like this before.]

[Me neither, senior. That person is only wearing underwear—is that okay?]

[Eek! Why is that man only wearing briefs?! Is he homeless?]

[May God watch over him.]

“……”

The Dark Spiritmaster had spent her life locked in her research lab studying necromancy, and Stella had lived purely, praying for others her whole life.

This explicit and bustling night scene was clearly their first experience, judging by their exaggerated reactions.

[Hueeeek! Those two people are kissing!]

[Oh my! Oh my! Oh my!]

“……”

Both covered their eyes with their hands, but they were still peeking through their fingers, staring intently at the kissing scene.

Their reactions made me lose any desire to say anything about their sudden appearance.

[A-Amazing.]

[I didn’t know things could be this obscene.]

The Dark Spiritmaster exclaimed in disbelief while Stella put her hands together in prayer.

I understood their reactions.

But this place was even more sordid than they imagined.

Especially since I had never set foot in bar districts or red-light areas even in my previous life.

[Waa! Waa! Waa!]

[Mommy, what are you doing?]

[Waaaaaaah!]

As we ventured deeper into the district, crying sounds came from everywhere.

Most were from young children, mostly just babbling.

Hearing this, the Dark Spiritmaster and Stella looked around with shocked expressions.

The souls of young children were everywhere, either clutching their parents’ clothes or wandering around crying, searching for their parents.

[This is…]

[Oh, merciful Goddess Hertia.]

I slowed my pace to create some distance from Ophelia before speaking.

“These are the souls of children who were never born, or were born but abandoned.”

Poor children.

Streets lined with bars, motel districts, and red-light areas mostly created scenes like this.

That’s why I didn’t want to set foot here.

[Can’t you comfort them?]

The Dark Spiritmaster’s question was somewhat unexpected. Wasn’t she a necromancer who treated souls merely as objects?

Her question indicated how much she had changed while being with me, but…

I shook my head.

“Most souls rest after death.”

In other words, they fall asleep.

But those who have such intense emotions, will, or grudges that they cannot sleep after death wake up.

Usually these are negative emotions, and if they progress further, they become evil spirits.

But these children don’t have negative emotions. Unlike older children, fetuses or infants who can’t speak properly don’t understand that their parents abandoned them or that they died.

“A desire so intense it overcomes rest. These children have only one desire.”

[To be with their parents.]

Stella answered bitterly.

I nodded and turned my eyes away from the souls.

“Sad as it is, I can’t give those children anything.”

Even if I wanted to comfort them, what they wanted was only their parents.

No matter how hard I tried, their emptiness wouldn’t be filled.

[May I stay with those children for a while?]

Stella stopped walking.

With a bitter smile, her hands remained gently folded as if in prayer.

[Even if I can’t comfort them, I want to be with them for a moment.]

“Yes, please do.”

After bowing her head in gratitude, Stella walked toward the children’s souls.

The woman who maintained her saintly nature even after death was truly beautiful.

After seeing Ophelia and then Stella, my mind felt calm and warm.

I felt healed from the day’s fatigue.

[I’ll go too.]

“You have something in mind?”

I could understand Stella doing this, but the Dark Spiritmaster was somewhat unexpected.

The Dark Spiritmaster seemed to have much on her mind as she clutched her robe with both hands and bowed her head deeply.

[I just want to watch what Stella does.]

I didn’t bother to answer.

If that’s what the Dark Spiritmaster wanted, I gestured for her to follow, and she calmly followed Stella.

‘She seems to be feeling quite a lot.’

The Dark Spiritmaster’s change wasn’t bad, but…

“……”

After having already lost everything.

I worried that the insights gained while wandering as a soul that would eventually rest might leave her with deep regrets.

No matter how positively I framed it.

The Dark Spiritmaster was still deceased.

The ability to gain insights, change through them, and influence others…

That was permitted only to the living.

The previous Deus was just an extremely unusual case.

“Spiritmaster! Over here!”

Ophelia’s voice interrupted my thoughts. She had walked ahead and was now raising her hand to call me.

The bouncers standing in front of a flashy establishment sign bowed 90 degrees to me with broad smiles.

“Welcome!”

“Welcome!”

“……”

I didn’t even want to respond.

Passing by them into the establishment, Ophelia naturally guided me to a private room.

Suddenly, I wondered if I had actually earned her love.

‘Did I fail?’

Perhaps she just saw me as a sucker who was easy to exploit.

Maybe I was too accommodating, which actually made me less attractive.

I sat on the sofa, mentally reviewing the day’s events like analyzing incorrect answers.

A large table and plush sofa like those commonly seen in movies and dramas.

There were no windows to tell the time outside, and an ambiguous orange light shone down, making it unclear whether it was day or night.

The stale tobacco smell embedded in the sofa was unpleasant, but I didn’t show it on my face.

A burly man with a rough face opened the door and entered. Despite his appearance, his expression was bright, and he slightly bowed while rubbing his hands together.

“Oh my! We’re so very grateful that the Spiritmaster has visited our humble establishment!”

Behind the man, who appeared to be the owner, enormous platters entered.

They were filled with various appetizers from raw fish to nuts and fruits, along with baskets of ice containing bottles of alcohol set at an angle.

They were clearly planning to milk me thoroughly.

“So many of our girls are huge fans of the Spiritmaster!”

As the waiters who brought the food and drinks left, women in revealing clothes entered.

Each was heavily made up and gave me subtle yet explicit glances.

‘I wonder if Deus spent his time like this in Norsweden.’

The thought suddenly crossed my mind.

“Ophelia alone is enough. And don’t let anyone in until I call.”

“Of course! I, Porten, will guard like a fortress!”

At my words, Porten and the women immediately left.

Left alone, Ophelia’s lips curled into a smile.

She was probably worried that if I entertained other women, her commission would be split.

She tried to approach me immediately, but…

“Sit over there.”

I pointed to a sofa a bit away, and Ophelia flinched before naturally taking a seat.

Her hands anxiously moved toward the alcohol and glasses, as if she couldn’t get paid unless drinks were poured.

“Have you fallen in love with me?”

When I asked bluntly, Ophelia’s lips trembled slightly before she answered with a bright smile.

“Of course! No one has ever treated me so well!”

“I see. I failed then.”

When I calmly saw through her lie, Ophelia’s expression hardened.

Indeed, doing everything she asked was the problem. By taking a submissive approach, she saw me not as a man but as a sucker. The scene unfolding before me clearly demonstrated this.

Without touching the food or drinks in front of me, I crossed my legs and asked:

“I’ve been thinking a lot while spending time with you today.”

“What?”

As the situation unfolded differently than she expected, Ophelia’s expression stiffened.

“At Claire’s General Store, you bought ‘true love and a life to live.'”

“Y-Yes, that’s right.”

“But the store granted your wish in quite a radical way. Instead of making someone love you, it removed your previous love when it cooled so you could find someone else.”

“……”

“Thinking about it that way, the tattoo engraved on your chest that enchants the opposite sex makes sense. It makes it easier to find your next love.”

Ophelia’s hands fidgeted on the sofa. Her desire to escape was clearly visible, but…

I had no intention of letting her go.

“The method was quite perverse. Your daughter, whom you paid as the price, kills men.”

It was disgustingly vile.

Demons who treat humans like toys naturally came to mind as suspects.

“I asked the guard captain, Paul, to investigate sudden deaths in Robern over the past year.”

“…!”

Ophelia’s eyes trembled.

“When I narrowed it down to men in their 20s and 30s, the results came quickly. A total of seventy-seven.”

“I-I couldn’t have killed them all!”

“True, but your share must be substantial.”

Thud.

I presented the list of deceased that I had carried all day.

“How many names on this list do you recognize?”

Ophelia bit her lip hard. Her eyes darted nervously at the list.

“Your daughter can disguise deaths as accidents, so the number you’ve killed is probably twice the number of people you recognize on that list.”

“Th-That’s not true! You can’t say I killed them all!”

“Don’t generalize. You know.”

I stood up abruptly and approached Ophelia one step at a time.

Frightened, she hurriedly stood up and tried to flee the room, but…

Crack!

My hand extended toward the door first, and the doorknob melted from the heat before instantly solidifying.

“Ah.”

Ophelia looked at the sealed door in shock. I shook my head and clicked my tongue.

“Foolish woman, only you knew about the unjust deaths of innocent people.”

“N-No! It’s not my fault!”

“Even in death, they didn’t know why they died. They fell asleep without even realizing their resentment. They weren’t even given the chance to hold a grudge.”

Ophelia leaned against the door, trembling as she looked at me. But I wasn’t finished.

“Enjoying luxury and pleasure. Using others merely as tools. And while claiming to be a victim…”

My fist clenched with intensified anger.

It wasn’t just about being manipulated today.

“You might have enjoyed it, strutting around as if you were a god.”

Flinch.

Ophelia’s shoulders jerked.

Hit right on the mark, she trembled and shouted:

“S-Stay away! What if I loved you? If my feelings cool now, you’ll be the one who dies!”

“Did you enjoy it?”

I couldn’t help but laugh in disbelief. Ophelia looked confused by my question, but…

I drove verbal daggers into her chest, one word at a time.

“Did you enjoy turning your dead daughter into a murderer?”

“Ah…”

“Vile woman.”

“N-No.”

Ophelia clutched her head with both hands and slid to her knees.

“Wicked woman who fed on her husband and daughter to fill her belly.”

“No, I didn’t!”

Bang bang bang!

What’s going on!

Hearing Ophelia’s scream, Porten knocked on the door from outside.

But the noise only made Ophelia more mentally agitated.

“And yet, have you been telling yourself your hands are clean of blood?”

I met the eyes of Ophelia, who was messing up her hair and crying.

The tattoo on her chest that craved affection screamed at me to wipe her tears and embrace her, but…

Nonsense.

“In fact, you must know, don’t you? How filthy and disgusting you are.”

“…hic.”

“Do you still love yourself?”

Snap.

I felt like I heard something break.

As the cornered Ophelia shook her head…

“Aaaaargh!”

Black threads burst from Ophelia’s chest.

I quickly stepped back, and the threads gathered where I had been standing, forming into a hunched, emaciated human figure.

“If you hadn’t taken my words lightly and had truly tried to resolve the situation, at least this wouldn’t have happened.”

But Ophelia only used me. She only wanted material things and thought I was an easy source of money.

“I already gave you a chance. You were the one trying to use me.”

Then I had no choice but to use my final method.

“When your love cools, your daughter appears and kills the object of that love.”

Just because the tattoo only applied to the opposite sex, just because Ophelia was heterosexual…

It didn’t mean her daughter’s execution only applied to men.

“You must pay the price for no longer loving yourself.”

The red eyes of the daughter who had killed countless men now pierced her mother.