Chapter 287

Chapter 287

According to the Demon King, it was natural for the woman before me to resemble ‘Elysia Frentz,’ my sister.

After all, she *was* my sister.

However, I couldn’t simply call her ‘Sister.’

The one speaking through my sister’s lips now was not my sister, but the Demon King who had taken over her body.

“Wait a moment….”

In my despair, a thought suddenly flashed through my mind.

The Demon King had said that my sister contained the Demon King’s soul.

But at least in my childhood, when I lived with my sister, she had never shown any behavior befitting a Demon King.

My sister and the Demon King were separate beings, meaning two souls resided within one body.

In other words, the Demon King at that time was merely dormant within my sister’s body.

Then, wouldn’t the opposite also be possible?

“Where is the original owner of that body…?”

But this was all just my speculation, and I couldn’t find the answer.

Therefore, I asked the Demon King, the only one who would know the answer.

The Demon King had no reason to tell me, the hero, the truth.

She might try to deceive me with lies and gain an advantage.

That’s why it might have been wiser to ask indirectly, without the Demon King noticing.

But I threw away all semblance of wisdom and asked the Demon King directly.

Why? I had a conviction that the current Demon King would answer honestly without resorting to such petty tricks.

Perhaps this judgment was also influenced by my subconscious desire to believe, simply because the Demon King was wearing my sister’s face.

“Hoho, you still hold onto hope even after hearing the whole truth?

Is this human foolishness, or is it because you are the hero?”

I wanted to tell her to stop talking nonsense, but I couldn’t risk provoking the Demon King and not getting the answer I wanted.

So, I had to stand there silently.

As if anticipating my lack of response, the Demon King continued without much reaction, delivering the answer I so desperately wanted to hear.

“The soul of the girl who was the original owner of this body?

Well. I believe she is deeply asleep somewhere in her consciousness.

Just as she was asleep when my power was insufficient in her childhood.”

What that meant was that my sister was alive.

My sister is alive.

I could once again be embraced by my sister’s warm arms, which I thought I would never feel again.

I could see my sister’s gentle smile once more.

I could hear my sister’s sweet singing voice once more.

I could feel everything about my sister again.

Everything I thought was lost to the past had now extended into the future.

“But even if the girl’s soul remains, what use is it?

It is I, not anyone else.

Do you think a mere ordinary and fragile girl’s soul can awaken again before the King of the Abandoned?”

However, as if mocking my hope, the Demon King, who had been speaking in a neutral tone, now taunted me with a sneering voice.

But I had already glimpsed hope in the abyss of despair.

The possibility was so slim that it was almost meaningless to even consider, but I couldn’t give up.

I tightened my grip on the holy sword, as if I were about to wield it.

Thanks to Mariel’s blessing, my physical condition was as robust as ever.

“Yes. It seems you’ve made up your mind.

How about it? Have all your questions been answered?”

“Ah, thanks to you, I know what I need to do.

I’ll at least say thank you.”

“Then, Hero, let us see if your sword is also worthy of conversation.”

Her tone seemed to be testing me, but I didn’t bother to care.

It was what I wanted too.

*

Clang!

I immediately parried the Demon King’s magic sword with my holy sword.

If it weren’t for the holy sword, any other renowned sword would have surely broken.

The Demon King was stronger than any enemy I had faced before.

Even Keltus, who had given me and my friends a hard time, was no match for the Demon King.

But that didn’t mean I was completely outmatched by the Demon King.

Unlike when I fought Keltus, I was now using my full power as a hero.

The power to manipulate fate.

It wasn’t difficult to alter fate to make a missed attack hit, or to dodge an enemy’s attack that should have been unavoidable.

But this was not something exclusive to me.

Just as the hero and the Demon King were natural adversaries, the Demon King could also manipulate fate.

Moreover, with enough power and strong will that could sometimes transcend fate, it was possible to change fate, even for those who were not the hero or the Demon King.

“Hero, why do you not swing your sword?

Did you find me laughable?”

Midway through our exchange of blows, the Demon King began to speak again, just as she had at the beginning.

Well, it was understandable.

Strictly speaking, rather than exchanging blows, I was merely blocking the sword the Demon King swung.

To cut down the Demon King meant to cut down my sister.

How could I possibly cut down my sister?

But that didn’t mean I had given up.

“Or perhaps, even after hearing the whole truth, you still cling to that futile hope?”

Although the Demon King’s soul currently occupied my sister’s body, just as the Demon King had opened her eyes and taken over her body, the opposite was not an impossible scenario.

If that were the case, there was only one thing I could do.

Until my sister opened her eyes again, I would just endure and endure.

“…Looking at that gaze, it seems you have no intention of giving up.

In that case, I shall tell you a story to help you change your mind.”

The Demon King spoke, still swinging her sword at me.

“Hero, have you never wondered?

Why is it that the hero, and the Demon King, can manipulate fate so easily?”

“…Not really.”

In fact, I had never wondered about it.

I simply accepted it as the power granted to the hero.

“The other name for the hero is ‘the beloved of the world.’

When the world tries to impress you, what is the big deal about altering fate?”

‘The beloved of the world.’

For someone like that, my life had never been smooth.

My hometown was burned down by demons, and I was kidnapped by an assassin guild, my memories erased, and forced to grow up as an assassin.

It was only thanks to Celian’s rescue that I was able to come this far.

“If that’s the case for the hero, then what kind of being is the Demon King that she can manipulate fate?”

The Demon King continued, gazing at me with emotionless eyes.

“If the hero is beloved by the world, the Demon King is the opposite.

One abandoned by the world.

Because she was abandoned by the world, and did not belong to it, deceiving fate is not difficult at all.”

The Demon King’s eyes, which gazed intently at me, certainly resembled the way my sister looked at me, but they could never be the same.

Her empty eyes were filled with an unfillable void.

“Because I do not belong to the world’s cycle, even the reincarnation permitted to mortals is impossible.

I can no longer remember when my first consciousness began.”

Clang! The Demon King pushed me away with a powerful swing of her sword and paused to catch her breath before continuing her speech.

Fortunately, I could also catch my breath.

“Before my soul, which has lived for hundreds, even thousands of years, what can a fragile girl who has lived less than ten years possibly do?

How strong can an ordinary girl’s willpower be?”

The Demon King then stated with certainty, as if asking a rhetorical question, a conviction disguised as a question.

“I ask you once more.

Do you still harbor that futile hope?”

Indeed, as the Demon King said, there was a vast difference in caliber between my sister’s soul and the Demon King’s.

The difference was so immense that it might be greater than that between an ant and a tiger, or perhaps even more.

Yet, despite that, no matter how many times she asked, my answer remained the same.

“Of course.”

Humans, as long as there is even a speck of possibility, will move forward with hope in their hearts.

And the hero is the one who ultimately makes that hope a reality.

That is why I will never give up.

Did she say the hero is the beloved of the world?

If so, then my sister is the one beloved by such a hero.

With that fact alone, there is no reason for me to be inferior to the hero, so why would I give up?

I believe.

I believe I will be able to face my sister again.

“…I had high hopes, but this generation’s hero is utterly foolish.

Anything is possible with words alone.

I doubt how long you can last without the will to swing your sword.”

“Well? We’ll have to see who’s longer, won’t we?

Stop just blabbering and attack me. If I can wear down your strength, that sliver of a possibility might increase a little.”

With those words, the Demon King and I continued to clash swords without exchanging another word.

*

“Kuh….”

Ah, how embarrassing…

Despite my spirited declaration, the Demon King was indeed the Demon King.

Since both of us could alter fate, the battle ultimately came down to individual skill.

And the Demon King’s swordsmanship was undoubtedly extraordinary, as if her claim of living for hundreds or thousands of years was not a lie.

Even if I had gone all out, I couldn’t guarantee victory, so focusing solely on defense led to this inevitable outcome.

“This is the fate of a fool.”

The Demon King pinned me against the wall with her hand not holding the magic sword, my neck caught in her grasp.

My feet were lifted off the ground, and my throat was being constricted, but fortunately, it wasn’t to the point of losing consciousness.

However, my holy sword had slipped from my grasp and was rolling on the floor far away, so my resistance was limited to flailing with all four limbs.

“Goddess, look upon this. This is the moment the world kneels before me.”

The Demon King, no longer interested in me, the hero, made her final declaration to Goddess Serena beyond me.

Then, while still holding my neck with one hand, she slowly raised the magic sword in her other hand.

And then.

Screech.

Thwack, one of the Demon King’s horns was severed and fell to the floor.

“Senior!”