Chapter 319 – ‘Astaroth’

Rｅâ&d; ​on ΚãțReａdîｎg̀C​a&f;e

“What is it this time?”

Eugene spoke in a cold voice, devoid of emotion.

It wasn’t anything new, but he genuinely disliked Astaroth.

Every time she appeared, everything went to hell. Looking back, the girl in the red fox mask always brought chaos. The field training, which was their first encounter. The cherry blossom festival that turned to ashes. Even the abduction of Lucia was ultimately her doing. Days that should have been joyful were all stained crimson.

She always appeared with a mischievous laugh, turning her surroundings into a mess. How many people have been hurt by her? How many have lost their lives at her hands? Life is cheap. It disappears so easily, crushed so simply. The stronger Eugene became, the more acutely he felt this truth. That’s why it’s precious and shouldn’t be treated carelessly. But she so easily stole people’s futures and lives.

It would be stranger if he didn’t hate her.

“What kind of trouble are you here to cause this time?”

“Ahaha, I am a bit of a troublemaker, aren’t I? But don’t worry. I won’t do anything you hate today, if I can help it. As proof, look. There’s no one around, right? I chased them all away in case they got caught up in it. Good job, right? You can praise me, you know~?”

“I’d love to believe that. As if you’d ever consider me. You must have some ulterior motive.”

“That’s too much. Ah, does big brother not know? A devil can’t lie. Everything I just said is the truth.”

“Just because you can’t lie doesn’t mean you only tell the truth, does it?”

“Wow. Big brother, you’ve gotten smarter while I wasn’t looking?”

Indeed, trials make people grow.

He’s learned to use his head a little.

Astaroth chuckled and said,

“That’s right. Bingo. It’s for Big brother’s sake, but it’s also for my sake. I don’t want any unnecessary interruptions.”

“…So, what’s the matter? Are you getting ready to harvest?”

“Huh? Harvest? What is our dim-witted Big brother talking about?”

“You could have killed me anytime you wanted. You could have killed the past me with your eyes closed.”

She’s a monster that even the Captains can’t handle.

The past Eugene could have been crushed with a single finger.

No, she didn’t even need to move her body directly.

She could have cut off his breath with just a glance.

Because a devil’s will can exert physical force on its own.

That’s how overwhelming the difference between them was.

The probability of an ant defeating a human was much higher than Eugene winning against Astaroth back then.

Even now, having grown, Eugene still doesn’t measure up to Astaroth. Even having (Technically) reached the Captain level, she’s still a devil. Considering that it takes three Captains to be equal to one devil, it could be concluded that it would take three Eugenes to be Astaroth’s match.

“Yet, you didn’t kill me. You even showed me favor.”

Eugene had thought about it in his own way.

Astaroth’s inexplicable favor towards him.

Saving him even though she could have killed him, coming to mock him.

She was showing an eerie amount of interest in him.

Why would a devil, who valued human lives less than feathers, show favor only to me?

Could it be that she wanted something from me?

Was she hovering around me because she wanted something from me?

But what could a devil from another world want from me, who was just a student at the academy?

Eugene recalled the past.

When Lucia was kidnapped, and he was wandering in emptiness and anxiety.

Astaroth had come to him.

Coincidentally, it was in front of Yui’s grave that day as well.

Astaroth used Lucia as bait to force a contract.

At the time, he had no idea why the girl in the red fox mask was offering a contract.

But now.

Now, having realized the true power of his ability.

He had a slight idea.

“You…you recognized it, didn’t you? My true value, which even I didn’t know. The power that was latent within me.”

It was a Supernatural Ability that even the Commander of the Celestial Corps had admired.

The strongest Supernatural who had reigned at the peak for over 150 years acknowledged his potential.

He praised him as having the qualifications to succeed him.

In other words, the talent to reach the Commander level beyond the Captain level.

Having seen the God of War lightly overwhelm the devils, the weight of those words was significant.

Although he was less aware of it because there was a genius who laughed at common sense, Alice (Frey), right next to him, Eugene was properly aware of his own talent.

“You devils…you can possess human bodies. You can even use the abilities of the Supernatural you possess.”

The devil god Belial had possessed Lucia and became a Devil.

She freely used Lucia’s Supernatural Ability, Super Regeneration.

This proved that devils could even use the abilities of the possessed target.

“Your goal is my body, right? You’re trying to steal my body and take my abilities. Aren’t you?”

This was the conclusion Eugene had come to after a long period of contemplation.

Astaroth’s target was his body.

Just like Belial had taken Lucia’s body.

She was planning to steal his body as well.

“It will be harder to steal my body if I grow stronger, so you’re trying to steal my body now while it’s still suitable…”

“Pfft.”

Eugene’s words were cut short.

Because Astaroth burst into laughter, her shoulders shaking.

“Haha, ahaha… hahahaha…!”

She shook her parasol back and forth, holding her stomach and laughing. Eugene frowned. The hand gripping the sword hilt tightened even more. What was so funny? Was it because her true intentions were exposed? Or because she was so ridiculously wrong? But he couldn’t think of any other suitable reason.

Eugene glared at Astaroth with half-certainty. 【Acceleration】 was already activated. He was prepared to strike first if necessary. Even if he couldn’t win, he was confident he could hold out. He had sensed something suspicious from the moment he realized no one was in the cemetery. He had sent a text message to his master, the God of War, requesting assistance, so support would arrive soon. He just had to hold out until then.

“Hahaha, hahaha… haaa…”

Astaroth’s laughter, which had been going on for a while, gradually subsided.

The laughter, which had been cheerful at first, gradually lost its energy towards the end.

The girl in the red fox mask pressed her parasol against the ground and opened her lips.

“You’re not entirely wrong. Yes, I came to harvest because you’re ripe enough.”

“I knew it…!”

Astaroth began to walk slowly.

The sound of her heels echoed, 

Click, clack.

The sword that had silently emerged from its sheath glowed hotly.

Regardless, Astaroth moved forward defenselessly.

“That’s right. I have a purpose. That’s why I didn’t harm big brother. I even subtly stimulated you to promote your growth.”

Although he had drawn the sword, Eugene hesitated to swing it.

Because he couldn’t feel any hostility from Astaroth.

Therefore, his vigilance intensified.

Because he couldn’t understand her intentions, he was suspicious of every action.

He couldn’t shake the thought that even her current actions might be a trap.

“Do you know why the monsters are invading this world, big brother?”

“What…?”

It was an unexpected question.

Why do monsters attack humans?

That’s…

Eugene was at a loss for words. He didn’t know. It would have been strange if he did. That question was humanity’s greatest mystery. Why do monsters attack, even crossing dimensions? There were several hypotheses, but the truth remained elusive. It was a question that had remained unanswered since the war began 300 years ago.

“It’s because of the Original Sin.”

The truth, which seemed like it would never be solved, flowed from the girl’s lips.

“All humans carry the Original Sin. Being born is a sin. That’s because everything humans enjoy originally belonged to us.”

“What does that mean…?”

“We call ourselves devils, but in reality, we’re just scraps. Scraps of the true god. Fake gods who were born from the remains of the monsters’ god, inheriting only a part of its power.”

“…”

“The Four Seasons. The god of humans. Long, long ago, the human god and the monster god waged war. It was a war of gods. A battle of omnipotence and omnipotence. 

Paradise was devastated, and life was extinguished. Mortals were torn to pieces simply by being caught up in the duel of the absolutes. 

The monsters were wronged. Why? Because the Four Seasons suddenly attacked them while they were living peacefully. 

In the end, the war was won by the Four Seasons. The monster god died, and the monsters were driven out. The Four Seasons took the stolen land as their own and lived with you humans.”

“Are you saying…”

Everything she said was unbelievable. He didn’t want to believe it either. It felt like Astaroth was maliciously telling a false story. If what she said was true, then we stole the monsters’ world?

“Then here’s the question. Why did the Four Seasons attack the monsters? Why did they invade the paradise where they were living peacefully, why did they kill our god, and why didn’t they kill all the monsters and just drive them out of paradise?”

“…”

“It’s because of the Original Sin.”

Astaroth’s footsteps stopped. She had clearly gotten closer, but the distance between her and Eugene was quite far. It was because Eugene had moved back as much as she had approached. She resumed her stopped steps. This time, she didn’t move away. Eugene didn’t retreat any further. Behind him was Yui’s tombstone.

“Our god… our dull and blind father… was a truly foolish and ignorant being. He was so omniscient that he became ignorant, and so omnipotent that he became incompetent. Like a blind servant, he just wandered aimlessly through the sea of stars and the gaps between dimensions.”

“…”

“Then he discovered a world. It seems it was a peaceful world. It seems there were many hardships and incidents at one time, but hundreds, thousands, or maybe even more years had passed, and it was a world that had achieved utopia. 

Isn’t that amazing? Humans don’t kill humans. Humans don’t regard humans as the best prey. Problems are solved through dialogue, and there’s no need for force. 

Weapons? Why would you need something like that? 

War? That’s a thing of the past. 

Death? Of course, it’s sad. But they achieved immortality, if not eternal youth. They live long and long without aging. 

Resources? Overflowing? Even if everyone shares, it’s piled up like a mountain. It was truly the dream of humanity. A perfect paradise.”

Astaroth chuckled. She stopped three steps away from Eugene and gracefully slung her parasol over her shoulder.

“’It was too beautiful. Too envious. Too lovely. Ah, amazing. Amazing. So amazing it’s blinding. Me too. Me too. Me too. I want to enjoy your peace too. I want to be like you.’ Our god thought so. He ended up thinking that way. He forgot what kind of being he was. No, did he not forget, but just not know? He’s ignorant as much as he’s omniscient. Either way, the result is the same.”

The ‘Great Ancient One’ gave his gaze to paradise.

He admired its beauty, marveled at it, and applauded it.

So he descended. To paradise. To a perfect world.

“Immediately after that, it was destroyed. Paradise couldn’t withstand our god. Humans forgot peace. They fell into madness, killing each other and killing themselves. They destroyed the brilliant results they had built with their own hands. 

How long do you think it took for one world to be destroyed? One year? Ten years? One hundred years? 

No, seven days. In just seven days, paradise crumbled without a trace. The reason was that the strength of humans and the world was not high enough to withstand our god.”

One world was destroyed.

Because the ‘Great Ancient One’ took an interest.

For that one reason alone.

“Then, what did the Four Seasons do? What did the god of humans do? The god who lost everything in just seven days? The god whose world, which had been cultivated throughout their life, was destroyed? 

Losing the humans they loved, losing the world, losing everything… ahahaha, of course they would want to take revenge, wouldn’t they? 

Huh? What would big brother do? What kind of heart would the gods of humans have when they saw our god, who destroyed paradise and then left without a care, having lost interest?”

I want to kill him.

I have to kill him.

I want to take revenge.

The pain we felt.

I will pay you back in the same way.

But he’s too strong.

The ‘Great Ancient One’ is too strong.

Even though they are the same gods, the Four Seasons cannot handle it.

In the first place, if they could have handled it, the world wouldn’t have been destroyed in just seven days.

They waited. The Four Seasons waited, holding their breath. They strengthened their power and hoped for the right time to come.

They waited, waited, and waited again.

After an eternity of waiting, the opportunity came.

The ‘Great Ancient One’ created paradise. He conceived life. He weakened. He consumed power to create paradise and monsters. He deteriorated to the point where the fangs of the Four Seasons could reach.

“That’s the whole story.”

The Old One ruined the paradise of the Four Seasons.

The Four Seasons retaliated against the paradise of the Old One.

The devils invaded the paradise of the Four Seasons again.

The Four Seasons created the chosen ones to fight against the devils.

“Who did wrong? Where did things go wrong? It’s too far to argue now. Both sides did wrong, so let’s reconcile? Do you think that will happen? Only two devils know the truth. Just me and Bael. 

If the other devils knew the truth, would they stop? Would they stop here? Ahaha, of course not. They would be furious, saying they don’t care about that. The accumulated resentment is too deep to stop just because they know the truth.”

“…So, what are you trying to say? Why are you telling me this?”

“I want to break this chain of hatred.”

“I don’t trust your words. But let’s assume that everything you said is true and ask. Break the chain of hatred? How?”

“Well, it’s simple, isn’t it? Even if big brother gets smarter, he’s still an idiot.”

The Four Seasons made a mistake.

They didn’t kill all the monsters and just drove them out of paradise.

The body of the ‘Great Ancient One’, torn into 72 pieces, was also thrown out of paradise.

Perhaps they wanted to give him the same pain.

Just like the Four Seasons wandered through dimensions with the surviving minority of humans.

“The chain of hatred will not end until one side disappears. Humans and devils. One of the two must be annihilated to end it. But that would be too unfair, wouldn’t it? Strictly speaking, both sides did wrong, but only one side is being punished. How wronged would the side that disappears be?”

So, therefore.

Astaroth tore the corners of her lips.

A chilling smile appeared on her face, hidden behind the fox mask.

“I will destroy both of them. Humans and monsters. The Four Seasons and the devils. Everyone should hold hands and die together. Then the Original Sin of both sides will disappear, how great is that?”

“…You’re seriously crazy.”

“Crazy? I’m hurt when I hear those words. Isn’t it a perfect conclusion? It’s a perfect answer that I came to after endless contemplation? Humans and monsters. Both deserve to die.”

If both sides have Original Sin, then they should all be punished together.

If your corpses form a mountain and your blood forms a sea.

If all humans and monsters die and the world becomes quiet.

The chain of hatred will be cleanly broken.

Yes, this is a happy ending.

“But I don’t have enough power to do that. Yes, not enough.”

The devils are beings of equal status.

Even if Astaroth is powerful, the other devils are also powerful.

Moreover, there are existences that deviate from the standards of devils, such as Bael and Agares. There were monsters that could easily overwhelm Astaroth. Astaroth’s ideals could not be achieved without dealing with them.

“So I need big brother’s help.”

“As if I would help you.”

“Ahaha, of course not, right?”

Astaroth nodded. That’s right. It would be stranger if he helped. But that’s okay. Because that’s what she expected from the beginning.

“But what’s that tombstone? If you try to protect it so openly, I want to play around.”

“…Shut up before I tear your mouth off.”

It was a fierce reaction that was hard to find in Eugene.

Feigning surprise, Astaroth said,

“Seeing how you cherish it so much, it must have been someone important. Who? Family? Did big brother bring all the gifts piled up? Wow, I’m jealous. Having a grave means they’re already dead, but you’re so devoted to a dead person. You can’t eat, see, or hear them even if you do that. Isn’t that a meaningless waste of time?”

“It’s none of your business. The introduction was long, but the conclusion is that, right? You want to steal my body and use that power to kill all humans and monsters, right? Go ahead and try if you can. Try to steal my body if you can.”

“Yeah, yeah, you’re full of confidence. I’m also impressed that you’re subtly trying to move your position. Do you want to protect the tombstone that much? There’s nothing buried there anyway…ah, no. Maybe an arm is buried there? The only remaining body part was an arm, right?”

“How do you know…?”

“Every year on the anniversary, you would come and give gifts. Thank you for that. The glutinous rice cakes were really delicious. It was disappointing that the flowers withered quickly. But it was nice that they weren’t artificial. You should bring a different album. It was boring because you brought the same one every year. Ehehe, I was watching everything. Happy? It turns out it wasn’t a meaningless waste of time.”

“You, what…?”

“I said earlier, didn’t I? That I didn’t kill you on purpose. That I showed you favor.”

Eugene felt a chill and his grip loosened. He barely managed not to drop the sword, but his head ached to the point of becoming dull. Several fragmented memories instantly fit together like a puzzle. 

Devil. A being that dwells in a human body. A being that can steal a human’s body and even take away their Supernatural Ability. Gathering those clues, he came to the conclusion that Astaroth was trying to steal his body. But those clues could also create other hypotheses.

But he didn’t think about it.

He was intentionally not thinking about it.

“Why… would you do that?”

“…No.”

“Big brother.”

“That’s not it.”

“I’m hurt.”

“Stop.”

“I openly called you big brother, didn’t I? I’ve been calling you big brother since our first meeting, right? I wanted you to recognize me.”

Fire.

If he thought about it.

During the cherry blossom festival.

Someone else used the Sun Sword.

The crimson flames that filled the sky.

Eugene still remembered it, unable to forget.

Whose fire was it?

“Big brother.”

Astaroth placed her hand on the mask.

Slowly. Very slowly. As if time had stopped.

She removed the fox mask that had been hiding her face.

She brushed away the obsidian-black hair that clung to her cheek.

Clear blue eyes, like those containing a lake, blinked sadly.

White skin and a prominent nose. Lively pink lips.

The girl wore a faint smile and said in a whisper,

“Did you miss me?”

Eugene replied.

With a dazed expression.

“…Y-Yui?”

Author Note

A/N (Author’s note):
Astaroth possessing Yui has been subtly revealed since the beginning.

There was a reason why she was so good to Eugene.

Translator Note

T/N (Translator’s note):
I like how Astaroth thinks!

If both sides are guilty, just kill everyone!