Ch.9732. As If Awakening to Destiny (2)

Vargo saw.

Kariel, gripping the sword.

‘Is he drawing it now?’

He had waited for so long.

But what was this situation?

Why…

Why was this unrelated boy drawing the sword?

‘Grandeus.’

Is this your successor?

But why is that sword emitting such brilliant light?

Even without direct contact with the light, the mana throughout his body was scattering.

The damage seemed more severe for the larger familiar, as it was instantly burned by the light, rotting shell and all.

‘I don’t understand.’

Could it be that this was a holy sword all along?

Vargo had faced many wielders of holy swords before.

And most of them merely held holy swords without truly knowing how to use them.

Even Rueld had taken considerable time to master his holy sword.

The Demon Lord of Wisdom once said:

[Holy swords test humans too.]

As if a holy sword, not being omnipotent, could truly know its user.

[That’s why holy swords test their masters. Demon swords devour their masters. Their purposes are different.]

Therefore, demonic creatures must be subdued and tamed.

As for holy swords.

[Their use begins with receiving permission or acceptance from the sword itself.]

The spear-like sword in Vargo’s hand was itself a proper demonic creature.

Called a demonic weapon, it could rightfully be called a Demon Lord’s armament if he were to become a Demon Lord.

Demonic creatures and their users grow together.

But if the user is substandard, the demonic creature will devour even its user.

The opposite could also be true.

That must have been Grandeus.

‘Did you devour a holy sword?’

How deep and immense must your darkness have been.

To have commanded even a holy sword at will.

Now he understood.

Why Grandeus had said any sword would do as long as it wouldn’t break.

Grandeus.

For him, a holy sword meant…

…a sword that would absolutely never break?

As a weapon that could withstand his power.

As an armament that wouldn’t shatter through countless battles.

‘Though unexpected.’

Apart from the admiration that escaped him.

He was once again caught between duty and obligation.

What should he do?

Could he kill him now?

It was possible.

Possible, but…

‘Those eyes.’

Golden eyes were watching him.

Though appearing so fragile he might collapse at any moment.

Why, how was he enduring?

‘If this is truly your successor.’

Why would the sword be placed in someone else’s hands?

Moreover, Vargo had been watching carefully.

He hadn’t taken his eyes off at critical moments.

So.

He had clearly witnessed how Kariel had directly guided Leo to place his hand on the hilt, as if handing over the sword.

‘Is this right?’

Or had he left something else to that person that they didn’t know about?

There was no time to hesitate.

The light was growing more intense.

He had already repeatedly told his subordinates to flee, so none of them remained in the area.

‘Then all the more reason I cannot let him live.’

A new hero has been born?

It doesn’t matter.

What’s more frightening is…

…Rueld’s child.

That he might survive intact.

It’s already difficult to handle, but if he grows further from here and truly becomes someone like Grandeus.

Then they would have no way to deal with him on their own.

Even the Demon Lord of Wisdom.

Even the one once called the Eye of the Great Demon Lord.

Had always respected him, the Left Arm of the Great Demon Lord.

But that respect wasn’t about loyalty or courtesy.

It was because of his skill and his power that defied common sense.

Grandeus. Those who hadn’t glimpsed his true abilities often ridiculed, underestimated, mocked, and dismissed his actions.

And after the invasion of the middle realm, those who expressed dissatisfaction with his actions.

Whether individuals or armies that invaded his territory.

The result?

They were all annihilated.

He was a being completely detached from mercy.

After all, would justice show mercy when eradicating evil?

That’s impossible.

He was even thorough enough to prevent future problems, taking measures that made retaliation impossible, always leading to devastating results.

Become his enemy and you die.

You will certainly die.

He never initiated attacks or violence.

But he.

Had never once forgiven or overlooked those who struck first.

The only exception was the Great Demon Lord.

That’s why he had spent his entire life challenging the Great Demon Lord, trying to kill him.

It wasn’t normal.

Even in the demon realm, he was counted among the most abnormal.

Madness taken to the extreme.

…How could Grandeus’s successor forget, ignore, or forgive his enemies?

‘I must.’

Kill him.

And fortunately.

An opening had appeared.

The familiar, exposed to the holy sword’s light, the earth dragon, was sprawled on the ground, struggling.

Even the countless creatures that emerged from it melted instantly like snow in sunlight.

It was truly an overwhelming sight that made one lament.

For Vargo, as evil and a denizen of the demon realm.

There couldn’t be anything more unreasonable, but.

‘I’m grateful now.’

When the familiar had been deliberately clinging to him, there had been no opportunity for an opening.

But now it was possible.

Like lightning traveling backward to the sky, Vargo launched himself into the air.

Once again, he gripped his pitch-black spear tightly.

“Haaah—”

He refined his breathing and squeezed out his mana.

If Rueld were to appear in this situation.

He would be slaughtered without being able to lift a finger.

No, that’s not it.

It was clear that the moment that man’s figure came into view, resistance would be meaningless no matter how prepared he was.

Confronting him would be meaningless.

Nothing more than useless struggling.

But, his son was different.

“No matter how brilliant life may be, it cannot refuse death.”

Tua apportō

Tua apporto

Red lightning adorned the sky like a brilliant flower.

Stretching in tens, hundreds of branches, it was eventually sucked into the black energy extending from the pitch-black spear, unleashing black currents and sparks in all directions.

As if a massive light, a lightning bolt, was newly emerging and being born from the void.

Even the blue sky lost all its color, swept away by the aftermath.

The current that spread out as if to fill heaven and earth.

In an instant, it all disappeared as if being sucked back into Vargo and his pitch-black spear.

What followed was silence and stillness.

But everyone who witnessed it sensed it.

It wasn’t the end.

It was just the beginning.

Kariel, of course, sensed it too.

And truly, he had only blinked his eyes for a moment.

And there he was before him.

How.

—!!

Did he block it?

Before he could even realize it.

He had blocked it with the sword.

What was certain was.

Right after that.

In that moment.

There was neither me nor the opponent.

In that moment, everything disappeared.

——.

———.

Clang!

A sound is heard.

Listening carefully, he realizes it’s similar to hammering.

Whether that’s right or wrong, he’s not sure.

“First there was light.”

Someone said.

“Next will be darkness.”

Then.

“Only fire and water shall remain.”

——!

“Kuhak!”

Without even realizing he had been swept away.

Suddenly he was looking up at the sky.

He couldn’t feel any strength in his body.

What had happened?

“——.”

His breathing wouldn’t continue.

He tried to force his practiced breathing, but it wouldn’t continue.

His whole body was stiff.

It felt as if his body wasn’t his own.

-How long were you unconscious?

The Demon Lord looking down at him as if lying prostrate.

The golden girl asked with bored eyes.

“……”

I don’t know.

I can’t feel it.

My thoughts won’t connect.

Everything is just hazy.

What’s certain is.

That death has reached my doorstep.

Only that was clear.

-As planned, you passed on the holy sword. It was meant to be a resource to overcome the crisis. Not a bad choice. As both you and I expected, he would target you until the end.

Only.

-You just didn’t have the capacity to handle it.

“……”

The world is just hazy.

No, I really feel like I’m going to die.

Or am I? Has death already invaded deep into my throat?

“……”

-Are you curious about what happened?

It’s good that she can understand my intentions just by making eye contact.

Or maybe it’s just a coincidence.

It doesn’t matter as long as we understand each other.

-Round 2 has begun.

Round 2?

-The familiar of the demon tree fell after being exposed to the holy sword. Given that it was a temporary measure in the middle realm, it actually lasted quite long. Vargo? He barely escaped after taking a few hits from the holy sword, without even having time to confirm your demise.

If all matters had been concluded here.

…Perhaps things would have truly been resolved peacefully.

-But we know. That there are those who won’t stand by when a sword is drawn.

That’s why I tried to pass it on to the Salvation Knight Order.

Even asking Venus or Ases was ultimately about that.

-Your intention was successful. The only problem is.

…Neither the new hero wielding the holy sword.

Nor anyone from the Salvation Knight Order with their formidable military power.

-You’re now facing an opponent who is extremely troublesome.

Suddenly.

I feel as if the world has turned strangely white.

-Your fiancée. The Imperial Princess.

“……?”

-Think of it as a being similar to her having arrived.

More precisely.

-The legacy of the Great Demon Lord. A child bearing that has come.

No, it didn’t just come.

It was already here.

-In a way, the guess of that kid Leo, who thought the sword knew the Demon Lord, was correct.

Only, even the holy sword didn’t recognize.

That it was such a being.

……Suddenly.

Whether it was tears or small hail crystals, I’m not sure.

But it fell and landed on my face.

At that moment.

……the girl opened her eyes.

====

She couldn’t remember.

But the confusion was momentary.

After thinking carefully, the girl clearly remembered one thing: she had been hit by a carriage.

At that time, being hit and trampled.

She must have been dying.

At that time, truly, faintly… someone shaking her body while wailing… that faint sensation was the only thing she could remember….

“Are you awake?”

“?!”

An unpleasant voice.

A voice she wished never to hear again.

But there was no avoiding it.

If there was someone who would reach out to them here.

It could only be him.

A pale face.

In contrast, black lips and eyes that were completely black, without even whites.

Not human.

A tailcoat made of quality material.

With a hat as well, his appearance resembled that of a high-ranking nobleman at first glance.

If this were a banquet hall or social gathering.

He would have instantly attracted attention.

“…Did you save me? What’s the price? What do you want?”

“The price for saving you was paid by your brother.”

……What?

“It’s been two years already. I restored your health, but since I hadn’t received payment for waking you up, I temporarily froze you. Accounts must be settled clearly. Even if it’s you.”

“Where is he now?”

“He’s working hard at our establishment, our place of business.”

“What kind of work! What establishment! What are you talking about?!”

“I might need payment to tell you that?”

“……You’re going to the end!”

It’s resentful.

Father.

Because you sold me off.

I became entangled with this man.

And.

Because he had what he wanted.

I now can’t even escape.

And now.

My weakness is in his hands.

“If you abandon your humanity, you could easily escape my interference. Why do you insist on living so primitively?”

“What would a demon like you know?”

“A demon? I’m just a merchant. I value profit and transactions. Perhaps in this middle realm, no one is more special than us in this regard. Contract compliance is absolute for us.”

“……”

I really hate this.

I want to close my eyes, close my ears.

And throw everything away.

But the fact that I could recover like this now.

Was possible because that child, my brother, sacrificed himself.

And now.

If I don’t pay the price.

…That debt will grow like a snowball and weigh down his head, his shoulders.

Eventually his entire body.

“What do you want?”

“Nothing much. Just, for our future, I’d like you to do one thing.”

“One thing?”

I wonder what condition he’s going to mention this time.

But what he wanted was extremely simple.

Just.

“A certain sage told us that someone who will trouble us will be born in a village. But we don’t know who it is.”

So I’m asking you.

“Please kill the person we want. Then the contract will be fulfilled.”

For you, it should be a very easy task, right?

“…What if I refuse?”

“Someone else will pay the price in another way. What do you say? Will you accept?”

“……”

Why.

Why.

Why won’t they leave us alone?

It was already sufficiently painful and agonizing.

“…I just need to do that?”

“Of course.”

And so the girl.

……entering a village.

At dawn, froze the entire village solid.

There would have been no pain.

Yes.

There would have been… no pain at all.

But why.

“I did it! I did it, so why!”

“But you see. The contract hasn’t been fulfilled? This isn’t something we can control. You know that too, don’t you?”

Absolute compliance contract.

As if to prove that contract, a contract made of light unfolded in the air.

“It hasn’t been fulfilled, has it?”

“Then what I did?! What was it that I did?!”

“Calm down. We also acknowledge our mistake. We will provide adequate mental compensation for that….”

“What about these people here? What happens to them?”

“That’s our biggest concern. Since we can’t compensate them, I’m seriously considering making a donation or investment to the Kingdom of Serf.”

We can’t do anything about the dead, can we?

“Or perhaps the contract wasn’t fulfilled because you didn’t kill everyone. Then… whose fault is it that the contract wasn’t honored?”

“……”

“And as if foreseeing this situation, our sage has conveyed another message.”

If you wish to put this matter down.

“There’s another way. Those here aren’t dead yet, are they? Of course, I suspected as much, which is why I’ve been keeping such a close eye… The Great Demon Lord’s power is truly mysterious. I’m very sorry to the people of Tedeo Village… but they might be freed someday. Oh, is that difficult right now? To do that, you’d need to develop your power further… but that’s impossible alone, isn’t it?”

“…You could have made a different proposal from the beginning? Why! Why are you doing this after everything has already happened?!”

“Then how about checking and killing each of the frozen villagers one by one? One of them might be there?”

“……”

“You’re the one making things difficult. Who’s blaming whom? It’s ridiculous.”

I was at a loss for words.

“But this task won’t be difficult.”

Indeed.

“All you have to do is guard a sword that cannot be drawn.”

And if someone appears who can draw it?

“You kill them.”

Then.

“Both you and your poor little brother’s future will become a bit smoother.”

What do you say?

“Will you accept my kind offer? If you accept it and resolve this matter, I’ll also remove all the restrictions placed on you.”

Finally.

“You’ll become a free person! Come on, rejoice! Hurry!”

…….

…I’m sorry.

Because I’m inadequate, what have I done?

Because I’m selfish.

Because I’m not wicked enough.

Because I’m neither here nor there.

“Forget the past! Come on! Rejoice! Otherwise… how unfair would it be for those trapped there?”

What seeps from those black lips is surely the whisper of a demon.

And even though I know this.

I’ve fallen for it again.

If there’s one thing I wish for.

Even if I die. Even if I fall into hell.

At least that poor child….

At least that child, may he receive salvation.

I pray, and pray again.

God.

If you exist.

…Please grant just this one thing.