Chapter 342

Rҽ​äd ​&o;n‍ ​Ka&t;Ｒeaɗｉ​ոｇCa​fe

A Chance to Defect.

There was no need to ask what that meant.

Agares believed I was a Blessed Saintess. It wasn’t a misunderstanding. I was the successor who inherited everything from Lucille. The Four Seasons also seemed to accept me as the saintess after Lucille, so I was indeed a Blessed Saintess.

What was betrayal for a saintess?

What else could it be? There was only one thing.

Apostasy.

Agares was speaking directly.

To betray the Four Seasons.

‘Why is he suddenly telling me to betray them… No, come to think of it…’

I calmly traced back my memories.

Not my memories, but Lucille’s past.

I had to be especially careful when examining her memories.

Sometimes, I would unknowingly become assimilated with her memories.

‘Agares certainly…’

In the early days after the regression started.

When the number of regressions hadn’t even reached 200 yet.

Agares pitied Lucille.

Although it was closer to mockery mixed with derision, it was true that he pitied her.

Moreover, as the number of regressions gradually increased, the mockery decreased and the pity increased.

Lucille, who was still full of motivation and hope, used Agares’s compassion to extract information. Thanks to that, she realized that she was the Needle of Causality and why her memories didn’t disappear.

‘Even in the iterations where Lucille eventually went mad and betrayed humanity…’

Was it when she had regressed over sixty thousand times?

Lucille’s beliefs, unable to withstand the repeated time, were shattered miserably.

Even noble beliefs eventually faded before time.

There were also iterations where she betrayed humanity solely to end the regression.

When the saintess took the side of the devil gods.

Other devil gods suspected Lucille’s intentions, but only Agares accepted her without much distrust.

‘Agares can’t maintain the memories from before the regression, but he roughly knows how many times I’ve regressed. At that time, Lucille had only… No, it’s not something to lightly say ‘only’. Anyway, it was when she had regressed only tens of thousands of times. But now? It’s far beyond millions.’

Hundreds of millions of regressions.

Hundreds of millions of years.

If Agares could see the traces of that time.

I could guess why he was making such a proposal.

“A trace of pity… and a rational judgment… I understand why you’re making such a proposal.”

Having repeated time that much, resentment was bound to arise. Resentment towards Agares, who made time regress. And towards the Four Seasons, who used the saintess as a Needle. If that resentment was provoked and the saintess betrayed the Four Seasons, the Four Seasons would lose one of their useful tools. From Agares’s perspective, there was nothing to lose. It was a proposal that would be good if accepted, and not a big deal if not accepted.

“It’s not particularly surprising. The saintess blessed by the Four Seasons has already stood shoulder to shoulder with you all. We held hands and worked together to destroy the world.”

All failed, though.

Lucille’s efforts couldn’t overcome fate.

She could solve Yoo-seong, but there was no answer for Eugene.

Even if she killed him before his awakening and turned his corpse into dust, he would somehow revive and awaken…

What’s with gaining enlightenment when only the soul is left?

The chosen one protected by fate is a product of irrationality.

That’s why Lucille gave up everything and became despondent.

“But the Blessed Saintess of that time and I are different people. Thanks for the offer… No, come to think of it, it’s not even appreciated.”

It’s true that I don’t like the Four Seasons. I don’t care if they see me as an easy-to-use tool. But I really don’t like how they abandoned Lucille like a discarded rag when she was writhing in pain.

Still, I can’t betray humanity. Even if I have likes and dislikes about the Four Seasons, I can’t let innocent people die. That would be turning all of Yoo-seong and Lucille’s efforts into nothing. It would be insulting the sacrifices of all the supernaturals who fought and fell to protect people. I may not be as devoted a saintess as Lucille, but I have a sense of human decency.

“I refuse.”

“I see.”

Despite my firm refusal, I didn’t feel any particular disappointment from Agares. It was a calm reaction, as if he expected it.

“You are pitifully foolish.”

A haze-like ominous energy flowed from the Blue Rakshasa mask.

I couldn’t help but tremble slightly.

My mouth was parched with unexpressed tension.

I had gained Belial’s authority, albeit clumsily, but how effective would it be against Agares…?

Still, I had no choice. I drew out the unfamiliar power. It felt like oil was mixing with the blood flowing through my veins. An indescribable sensation made my spine shiver.

“However, if that is your choice, it is not for this one to interfere.”

The mask that covered the Noble Prince’s face became invisible.

That was why he turned away without hesitation.

“However, I would like to say this much, Saintess. To this one, you do not appear to be blessed. The timeline that binds your body has even buried your fate. You are a slave of fate and a servant of time. This is not a blessing, but a curse.”

“Wait, hold on. Where are you going? How can you just say what you want and leave? I have so many questions to ask you!”

“Cursed Saintess. Fortunately, you have been granted a reprieve. This one will once again confine himself. The day this one returns to the world is the day of the end. Remember. That day will come without warning.”

“If you sealed Yoo-seong… What about Astaroth? What happened to Astaroth?!”

“Prepare yourself.”

The moment Agares took a step.

His figure disappeared like a phantom.

I stared blankly at the spot where the Noble Prince had been. It was fortunate that Agares disappeared without doing anything… No. The fact that he retreated so easily meant that he had achieved everything he wanted. It’s not fortunate at all. 

Bastard. He disappeared without answering my questions, only saying what he wanted to say. I suppressed my resentment and took a deep breath.

“…So what are you, anyway? I’m starting to get annoyed.”

Even though Agares had disappeared, another devil god still remained.

The child with the White Cloud mask spoke in a tone mixed with subtle annoyance.

“I have a rough idea… Ah, whatever. I’m too lazy. I’m just going to do my thing and go back.”

“…Murmur.”

“I’d like to drag Belial out right now, but Agares told me to leave it alone, so I will. That guy doesn’t do meaningless things. There must be a reason. I don’t want to stay here where the Four Seasons’ consciousness is concentrated. If I waste time and get caught, it’ll be a real headache. I don’t want to follow in Astaroth’s footsteps already.”

“Astaroth… is dead?”

“Dead. Cleanly. Couldn’t even recover the body.”

“…”

…I had somewhat expected it.

Agares had intervened directly, so it wouldn’t have been a good ending.

Still, because it was the elusive Astaroth.

I had hoped for the possibility that she had escaped safely.

If she had escaped, that in itself would have been a seed of disaster. Astaroth had already become strong enough to recreate Dawn. I couldn’t imagine how much stronger she would become as time passed. It might be better that she was eliminated before she grew stronger… But then what about Eugene? Can’t he go back to his original body?

It’s said that the mind is important in supernatural abilities, but one of the important elements that make up the mind is the body. I don’t know what effect the change in body will have on Eugene. And it’s Yui’s body, of all things?

“You have a really complicated expression. I understand you’re upset, but now’s not the time to be distracted, is it?”

Murmur shrugged.

It was a nonchalant yet subtly sharp voice.

“You know, Lucia?”

“No.”

“Listen and answer.”

“But you didn’t explain anything.”

“I’m going to now.”

“Then don’t ask me first.”

“Haa…”

Uncharacteristically, I acted childishly.

But I can’t help it.

I’m really upset right now.

Eugene lost his body, and Yoo-seong was sealed.

What should I do in this situation? Was there ever such a bleak time during Lucille’s regressions? The future is bleak. I don’t know what to do. If I had been a little faster…

“Why do you think we so rarely deploy the powerful card called Demonic Beasts? Have you ever thought about it?”

“That’s…”

If there’s any anomaly in the Devil Gods’ actions, you can roughly attribute the cause to the Four Seasons.

As always.

The Four Seasons are the cause this time too.

Because they are protecting the world.

The Four Seasons blocked external invasions with a powerful barrier.

Just as the United Nations built walls on the border, the Four Seasons also drew a boundary dividing the world and the other world.

The Devil Gods created rifts in that barrier, which were the spatial cracks.

It’s a barrier that covers the world. Of course, it’s bound to be huge and vast. It’s a net. It’s not dense. Big fish get caught in the net, but small fish slip through the gaps. Devils can easily pass through the loopholes in the barrier, but Devil Gods can’t. Just like how the four Demon Gods caused the Great Catastrophe to infiltrate, higher beings had to forcibly twist and open the gaps in the barrier to pass through.

The same was true for Demonic Beasts.

They might be better off than Devil Gods, but they are also higher species of monsters.

If damage from continuous spatial cracks accumulates, the gaps in the barrier will become larger at some point.

Enough for Demonic Beasts to pass through.

That’s why Demonic Beasts have only invaded a handful of times.

The Four Seasons also periodically repair the damage to the barrier, so Demonic Beast invasions have become even rarer.

But why are you suddenly asking this… Wait, could it be…?

“Ah, you know it when I see that expression? The damage has been ‘accumulated’ just enough.”

I have to stop it.

I kicked off the ground and jumped up. The ground pushed back, and a strong wind brushed my cheeks. A quickness that couldn’t be found in the original me. I covered tens of meters in an instant, but it’s slow. It was too slow. It didn’t feel fast. No matter how much I ran, Murmur didn’t get closer. I’m not mistaken because of impatience. I really wasn’t getting closer. As if I was running in place.

“As expected, it’s clumsy. If it were Belial, he would have easily dispelled that spatial expansion with his eyes closed… Well, even if it were Belial himself, it would already be too late.”

Murmur lightly flicked his finger.

With a snap.

The sky shattered.

Author Note

A/N (Author’s note):
(Looking around, looking around…)

(Hee-hee~)

(Zoom—!)

Translator Note

T/N (Translator’s note):
Hey, no playing around!!