Chapter 1203: Scorched World

Flutter-!

A pure white hand emerged from the egg. Seeing that, my eyes widened like saucers.

“……A hand?”

It was a hand.

A real hand.

A human hand, not the hand of a monster or some other demonic beast. What’s more, it was a hand so white and slender it seemed almost pale.

Moreover, its slenderness wasn’t ordinary; it was a withered, shriveled hand. Thin enough that only the bones were visible, it looked fragile.

Twitch-twitch.

Slowly, the hand emerged from the egg. Then, the arm followed, and finally, the head popped out.

The egg shattered completely in an instant. As the fragments broke apart, something collapsed onto the floor.

It was humanoid. Naked, with only bones visible, tangled in black hair.

Judging by its age, it looked roughly under ten.

Somewhere between five and ten, it seemed.

The problem was.

‘Cheonma.’

The problem was the identity of the human form that had emerged like that.

‘……It’s Cheonma.’

No matter how skinny and frail it looked, that was a being I knew well.

Cheonma.

The fiend sent from heaven, the culprit behind the Demon-Subjugation War. That Cheonma resembled the appearance I saw at the Paju Palace back then.

“……”

I narrowed my eyes and looked at Cheonma.

Rustle-rustle.

Shaking off the egg fragments from her body, Cheonma lifted her head.

My body froze at the universe reflected in her eyes. It was always like this. Whenever I looked into her eyes, my body would just freeze up.

Fear and dread.

My body used to freeze from those emotions.

‘……Is it still like that?’

I wasn’t sure. Could my body really still be bound by such emotions? Is this fear? Is this dread?

No.

‘I don’t think so.’

This is different from fear or dread.

Whatever it is, I don’t think I could define it as such emotions.

Squeeze-.

Cheonma moved, staring intently at me.

“Ah……”

A faint voice emerged. It was the voice I knew.

“Ah……”

As if surprised that words could come out, she momentarily averted her gaze from me and looked around. Seeing that, my eyes widened.

After looking around for a while, Cheonma fixed her gaze back on me.

“Ah……”

She slowly started to approach.

“……!”

She approached with her frail body, stumbling slightly. Despite her movement, it was obvious she couldn’t get any closer due to the iron bars.

But then.

Tap.

Her white fingertips brushed against the iron bars.

Screeeech-!

And just like that, the iron bars bent open.

“What the?”

Before I could even process the sight of the bending bars,

Screeeech-!

Cheonma broke apart the very bars trapping me, creating an opening.

She then stood still, as if beckoning me to come out.

“……”

I slowly stepped out from behind the bars.

‘What on earth…’

What could this possibly mean? For Cheonma to appear now…

‘……Is it because I swallowed the Blood Demon’s aura?’

I didn’t know the reason. Perhaps the being called Cheonma had already been born?

Was I witnessing the predetermined course of events unfold?

Such doubts surfaced.

‘Hmph…’

The being known as Cheonma had always been like that to me-alien and bizarre.

The more I learned about her existence, the truer this became.

As I watched her, filled with a mix of emotions,

Slide.

Cheonma reacted to me, extending her hand.

“……”

What was I supposed to do? I stared intently at her outstretched hand.

“……Mm.”

Cheonma let out a soft sound. Was she telling me to take it?

Could I take it?

The thought crossed my mind for a fleeting moment, but…

Swish.

Unconsciously, I took Cheonma’s hand.

“……”

Nothing special happened. Nothing occurred or changed; only the cold touch registered in my hand.

But then.

“Mm.”

Cheonma made an odd sound and smiled brightly.

“……”

Her brightly smiling face made my heart freeze cold.

It felt like my heart had truly stopped beating.

What kind of expression was that? What could possibly make her smile so brightly? What pleased her so much to make her smile like that?

Why.

‘Are you smiling at me?’

Was Cheonma smiling at me?

Her current actions overlapped with the Cheonma of the past, contorting my face.

Thump.

I let go of her hand. I, the fool, couldn’t even push her away. Just as I let go, Cheonma’s expression shifted drastically.

Why?

Her eyes were filled with the question, ‘Why?’

“……What are you now?”

An inexplicable irritation washed over me.

“Why are you pulling this stunt again? You…”

“What are you?”

What is it you want from me that makes you act so chaotically?

“What exactly do you want from me?”

I couldn’t understand the meaning of the being called Cheonma.

It was like that now.

I hesitated to direct my resentment towards the one I swore I’d hate even in death.

Was I even allowed to resent her?

She was an evil person. A demonic leader, ranked even higher than those difficult to classify among the demonic sects.

I hesitated to resent the monster who started a war and invaded the world.

How could this possibly make sense?

There were nothing but reasons to resent her.

Although I didn’t want to live my life blaming others, if I had to pick someone, it should have been you.

You should have been the one who ruined my life like this.

If I were to unleash curses, they should have been directed at you.

‘Why is it that…’

Whenever I meet those eyes, why can’t I do anything?

“Disgusting.”

Not Cheonma, but me.

Me, unable to resent you, was disgusting.

I clenched my teeth tightly.

It was laughable how my mind, previously consumed by matters of the Blood Demon, was now entirely occupied by Cheonma.

I swallowed my irritation. I swallowed the rising anger and looked straight at Cheonma.

At that moment.

Swish.

Cheonma moved her hand again, grabbing the hem of my pants.

Feeling that touch made my insides tremble.

“Why did you grab me?” I asked with my eyes, and Cheonma offered the same smile as before.

“……What the…”

Why do you keep smiling like that?

I hated that smile. It felt like whatever I had barely managed to contain inside would shatter because of it.

So I had to push it away again-both that touch and that smile.

It was the right thing to do, to just get rid of Cheonma here. Even though I knew that…

Hesitation seeped into the touch.

Just as I was about to lose it at my own foolishness,

Crackle.

“Huh?”

“Ah.”

It broke. Cheonma’s hand, which had been holding me, shattered.

“What is this…”

Her hand truly became fragments of broken wood, disintegrating. My eyes widened at the hand crumbling down.

I involuntarily bent forward.

I reached out and grabbed Cheonma’s crumbling hand, but…

Crumbles-!

As soon as it touched me, her body disintegrated.

“Wh-what?”

Why was this happening?

Why was she crumbling all of a sudden?

My hands trembled slightly.

“Ah.”

Cheonma merely showed a dull reaction as she watched her body crumble. She seemed more surprised that I had approached than anything else.

Moreover.

“Ah.”

Even though her body was crumbling,

She looked at me and smiled again.

While I was busy being shocked by her crumbling body, you were busy smiling at me.

With that disintegrating body, no less.

Swish.

Something touched my cheek. It was Cheonma’s hand, still intact, stroking my face.

“Heehee.”

She beamed, her eyes sparkling with amusement.

“……You.”

At that reaction, my face contorted completely. It was too complex and multifaceted to be expressed with a single emotion.

I couldn’t define it, but…

I knew at least one thing for sure.

‘I…’

It seemed I didn’t resent you after all.

I realized it now.

I do not resent you. I felt certain.

How could I not resent Cheonma? Could I possibly? Was it because I, too, was a sinner?

My mind was buried under a flood of thoughts.

As all sorts of thoughts swirled, just as I was about to freeze again,

Sifts-!

“……!”

Her remaining hand also cracked.

Seeing that, I instinctively tried to grab it, but…

I couldn’t. If I grabbed it, it would shatter completely.

“Ah.”

Cheonma reacted belatedly upon seeing her completely crumbled hand. There was no fear in her eyes.

If anything, only a slight hint of regret.

What was she regretting? I felt like I knew that, too.

Cheonma regretted not being able to touch me.

“Ah…”

Her smile faded in her now desolate eyes.

What was she trying to say?

Though her eyes spoke countless words, she uttered nothing, unable to voice them.

That was Cheonma’s condition.

With her crumbling hand, using her remaining fingertips, Cheonma stroked my head.

Each time she stroked, her crumbling hand quickly vanished.

Rattle-rattle.

Cheonma cracked entirely and crumbled away into nothingness.

“……”

My gaze drifted downward.

Where the vanished Cheonma had been, something lay there. A black lump.

A jet-black lump. Staring blankly at it, I reached out my hand.

It was an unconscious action.

Swish.

I grasped the lump. It was cold. Cold and soft. Worried it might break, I carefully lifted it.

“……”

As I stared at it with dazed eyes,

BOOOOOM!

An explosion sounded from behind me.

Heat poured out. The hot wind turned my head involuntarily.

Whoosh-.

Flames erupted, melting the iron gate. Someone emerged through the massive hole.

Whoosh-!

I looked at the man who appeared swiftly.

“Ah…”

His eyes glowed red as he emerged through the heat.

He was a figure with a massive build and a masculine face.

It was someone I knew well. Another person I wanted to resent but couldn’t bring myself to.

Seeing him, my pupils dilated. It felt like something I had been holding back was about to burst out.

Seeing the young man distort his face upon seeing me, I spoke without thinking.

“Father… what should I do?”

“……?”

I directed a question at him that I’d never asked in my life.

The young man who heard my words.

His eyes crinkled, reminiscent of my father in his youth.