episode_0033

“Let’s destroy this world.”

It was an incredibly sweet sound. Yustia narrowed her eyes, sending an enchanting gaze.

“Destroy it? We have power. If you and I combine, no one can defeat us.”

“……”

“And we’ll become the king of this world.”

“King…?”

“Yes, we’ll become the one and only king, reigning over the world. You can kill anyone you don’t like to your heart’s content and make this world your own. To do that, we’ll first have to destroy it.”

Passersby listening to this conversation wouldn’t understand what Yunyoung and Yustia were talking about.

To an outsider, it would only sound like madness.

“You’ll become king.”

“You have the qualities of a king.”

“Let’s destroy this world together.”

Yustia enticed him with a sweet smile and a meltingly alluring voice. Only then did Yunyoung fully grasp what kind of being Yustia was.

Though she appeared clumsy and foolish, she was a 12th-rank high-level angel, an exile who had raised the sword of rebellion against God.

Her specifications were by no means insignificant. Her cute and dainty appearance might simply be a means to bewitch others.

“You… you were a demon.”

“You vaguely knew, didn’t you? But you don’t dislike it, do you? Because… I can feel the demon inside you. Let’s throw away everything you’ve put on and liberate yourself.”

-1-

Upon hearing the word ‘liberation,’ Yunyoung’s surroundings changed. He stood alone in a dim, dark space.

“Just a moment ago, I was on the street…”

He was bewildered, having been transported to an unknown place. Only one person came to mind who could do such a thing.

There was no sign of anyone or anything around, but Yunyoung shouted into the pitch-black darkness.

“Yustia! What trick did you pull?”

No answer came.

“Yustia! Don’t play around.”

“What did you just do? Change me back right now.”

Even after shouting a few more times, nothing changed.

“This wasn’t Yustia’s doing?”

As he thought that, he felt footsteps approaching. What appeared before him was──.

“Hello.”

“You…!”

Yunyoung was speechless upon seeing the other. Because he was a being who looked exactly like Yunyoung. He chuckled at the astonished Yunyoung.

“You intuitively know, don’t you? Instinctively, that I am the same entity as you.”

“……”

Indeed, it was as he said. Yunyoung recognized that the other was unmistakably himself.

“Have you heard the saying that everyone has a shadow in their heart? I am such a being.”

“Did you pull me here?”

“Yes. But you implicitly agreed. Because you and I are the same being.”

“……What’s your reason for appearing before me?”

“Liberation.”

“Liberation…?”

“Before coming here, you definitely heard the same word from Yustia.”

Yunyoung recalled Yustia’s last words. She told Yunyoung to liberate himself.

“Originally, a being like me had little presence, but thanks to gaining God’s power, I was able to grow so vast. And Yustia’s contract also had a great influence.”

“What do you want from me?”

“It’s not what I want from you. It’s what *you* want.”

The other Yunyoung approached, then softly whispered into his ear.

“Haven’t you ever thought this world is absurd? Haven’t you ever felt a sense of discord or anger that the world’s foundation is fundamentally wrong? There are so many things wrong.”

“……”

“What is twisted will eventually collapse—. It’s a simple story. No matter how much you reinforce or repair it, the framework itself is askew. And this world, this society, has no ability to fix it.”

Yunyoung somewhat agreed with that thought. No one, while reading articles or watching the news, would have never thought this society was rotten to the core.

“But what you’re saying is too extreme. There are many good people in the world. Judging the future by your own narrow standards is shallow.”

“Capitalism and democracy will ultimately only lead to the degradation of humanity. Fundamentally, those with power in this society are the ones who survived the competition, and they are far greedier and more selfish than others. Otherwise, they wouldn’t have risen to that position.”

“Cut it out…. Send me back to where I was right now.”

“You’re talking nonsense. I am you. The reason you are here is because you want to be.”

Yunyoung asked the being.

“So what do you want me to do? Become a politician?”

“Hmph, are you really pretending not to know?”

“I don’t like beating around the bush. I’d prefer you get straight to the point.”

“Become king. Destroy this world and start anew from the beginning. To reform this flawed world, everything must be destroyed.”

“The destruction you’re talking about doesn’t sound like a mere metaphor.”

“Yes. Destruction is destruction. Breaking everything down, shattering it into pieces, and starting over from a blank slate. This world desperately needs a typhoon right now.”

When the being waved a hand, the space, which had been filled only with darkness, changed. There, human civilization lay in tatters, as if a massive typhoon had swept through it.

The people living there also looked miserable. They lived in poverty like beggars, clad in clothes soaked with grime.

“When a typhoon appears, it destroys everything and knocks it down. There is pain that comes with it. But afterwards, something new is born. The civilization that blooms from it is far stronger and more beautiful than the previous one. A society ruled by fear and power, where rules are thoroughly obeyed.”

The dark Yunyoung raised his voice.

“It’s a beautiful world, free of corrupt politicians and deceitful scammers. Only before absolute power can living beings truly be happy.”

And then he smiled at Yunyoung.

“You are the only one who can do that. Only you, who possess God’s power and are contracted with the Archdemon Yustia, can do it. That is the ‘King’.”

King.

The absolute ruler of all.

It would be a lie to say there was no romance in it.

“Come on, become king. You have the power.”

“I’m sorry, but I refuse.”

“Why?”

“I don’t care about such grand dreams. From the start, I desperately struggled back into this world just to meet Mira. The idea of changing the world doesn’t suit me.”

“Will you turn away, despite having power?! This society will increasingly become a world where the strong dominate everything.”

“That’s something I can think about when the time comes.”

“Don’t turn away.”

“I’m not turning away. I’m putting my faith in humanity.”

“What…?”

“Humanity is moving forward. In the past, it was a society ruled by monarchs and nobles, but now it’s a society where sovereignty belongs to everyone.”

“That’s just a pleasant facade. Power and wealth are inherited, and those in power simply grow fatter and fatter like bloated pigs. It’s a misconception to think that classes have disappeared. Social classes still remain.”

“I have no intention of listening to such talk. You, get out of my sight now.”

When Yunyoung declared with an unwavering voice, the being’s body began to turn into dust from the bottom up and vanish. As its two feet crumbled away as if blown by the wind, the being screamed fiercely.

“Lee Yunyoung!! What choice are you making right now?”

“Bye-bye. Myself.”

“Lee Yunyoung!!!”

Once the being had completely vanished, Yunyoung found himself back at the place where he had slapped Mira. Immediately, a grumbling voice came from beside him.

“What… you refused?”

It was Yustia.

“Were you watching everything that happened?”

“Become king? Huh? Rebuild this world, become king, reign as an absolute ruler, and live a joyful life.”

“Such a position with so much responsibility would never be enjoyable. You’d have to sign everything and take responsibility for every little thing, and you’d only get 3 or 4 hours of sleep a day. Anyway, I’m not interested in that job anymore, so don’t bring it up.”

Yunyoung then reached out a hand to Mira, who had fallen.

“I’m sorry, Mira. For suddenly hitting you…”

“……”

Mira still looked scared.

“I saw you get hit by a car in a dream. So I guess I was overly sensitive without realizing it. ……I’m truly sorry. Really, truly sorry.”

When Yunyoung apologized, Mira suddenly burst into loud sobs.

“I… I thought you hated me again. I thought I’d done something to make you dislike me, *sobs, wails*.”

-2-

The place Yunyoung and Mira went was a nearby family restaurant. Of course, one more person was tagging along.

She was shoveling down food noisily.

“She eats an awful lot. This child…”

Mira’s eyes widened, and she let out an exclamation of surprise. It was none other than Yustia.

“I haven’t eaten anything for 12,231 years! Eating is truly the happiest thing!”

Yunyoung was horrified that she had starved for 12,231 years and was still alive. To Mira, who didn’t know her true identity, it would simply sound like Yustia’s exaggerated expression.