episode_0039

“Come here.”

Let me tell you, Flimia is slowly approaching.

“McDullas? Are you really trying to sleep with me?”

Choi Ye-bin asked in a skeptical voice. But of course not. No matter how much I look like a young man thanks to magic, my inner age is over 30.

If it was in the vigorous early 20s, Flimia might be considered an adult, but she seemed too young to be thought of as a partner for me.

A pretty face, a slender body, and even abnormal obsession towards me. If you see her trembling in anxiety, paternal love could only bloom. But that’s a different story from rational affection.

“From the start, she’s not doing this to see me as a partner.”

I know too. The reason Flimia clings to me is because of the terrible things she experienced in the war. To her, I was a savior and the only place to rely on.

Posttraumatic Stress Disorder

PTSD, commonly referred to as post-traumatic stress disorder. It refers to the aftereffects experienced after being involved in a terrible event. Since it’s a mental issue, there is no physical cure, but in Flimia’s case, it seemed that I myself became a temporary remedy.

Flimia came up to me, and Choi Ye-bin looked at me piercingly.

“Is she worried I might do something strange?”

It was a bit unfair, but I didn’t bother to explain my situation.

“Hold on.”

I turned my back so that Flimia could comfortably grab my clothes.

Crackle…

As always, she started clutching the hem of my clothes tightly. Then, her trembling stopped.

Watching that scene, Choi Ye-bin also looked at us strangely and said, “This is the first time for such a case. I’ve seen many people with post-traumatic stress disorder, but I’ve never seen someone recover so quickly just by having someone next to them.”

I feel the same way.

I briefly dropped Flimia from my body and moved to a place where I couldn’t be seen. After about 10 minutes, she began to shiver again and her face started to pale.

“Troublesome.”

It’s impossible to live with Flimia by my side for the rest of my life. I have my own privacy and plenty of things to do. Right now, I need to look into this guy called Trying Man. Above all.

Grr…

Every time she grabbed my clothes and looked at me, it made my heart ache a little. The subtle scent made my head spin.

I made up my mind.

I turned on the screen and contacted Love Peace.

Admin: Can you take over as sub-admin for a moment?

Love Peace: Really?!

Admin: Yeah, but this time, please block appropriately. It’ll be troublesome if you block everyone who swears.

Love Peace: Of course! I won’t block indiscriminately this time!

I doubted whether Love Peace, the self-proclaimed guardian of peace on the forum, would keep her promise, but I decided to trust her.

I left the forum behind and talked to Choi Ye-bin and Flimia.

“Let’s go outside for some fresh air after a long time.”

— — —

After finishing our preparations, we went outside. It was also the first time Choi Ye-bin had come out of the Matop.

Grr…

Now, Flimia grabs my clothes familiarly. The faint scent from her hair hits my nose again. Trying to ignore it, I asked Choi Ye-bin first.

“How does it feel to go out for the first time?”

“It’s amazing. It’s so different from where I was.”

“Of course. This city is highly developed in magic, and it’s even located at the very center of Matop.”

Luxurious buildings and bustling people. Some were using magic to communicate, while others could easily be seen flying in the sky. What surprised me was that there were other non-human races besides ordinary people.

“Ma… Macderas!”

When a man recognized me and shouted, the people around started murmuring. Some came closer and pretended to know me, while others hurriedly avoided my gaze and ran away.

“McDerris. Do you remember? I am the leader of the Louis faction, Carix. If you ever have reason to leave the tower, please contact me. I will guide you to a nice place.”

“Um… McDerris! I am the leader of the Metiche Magic Faction that contacted you before. Can you tell me about the joint research we discussed earlier?”

“McDerris! Could you tell me a few things about the new magic formula you are researching?”

People flocked to me in an instant, desperately flattering me to get even a small favor. Of course, not everyone was like that.

“McDerris…? The infamous killer McDerris? Wow… I’ve never seen him in person…”

“Crazy bitch! What’s the point of listening to that?”

Two girls whispered about me, but I didn’t pay them much attention. In the war, I led the slaughter of countless different races and people to victory, earning myself the title of the worst mass murderer, McDerris.

I killed an uncountable number of beings, both human and non-human, in the war. No matter how it was justified for the nation, the fact remained that it was an unavoidable atrocity.

However, there is one thing that remains the same whether they are friendly or not. People all watch my every move.

“You girls! How dare you speak so carelessly to McDerris!”

The leader of the Louis faction, Carix, who had introduced himself, approached the girls boldly, apparently having heard their whispers from afar using auditory enhancement magic, and began to scold them.

“Do you know whose efforts allow you to live in this peaceful world right now? How dare you call the great McDerris a hero? Instead, you call him a mass murderer? Stop spouting such nonsense!”

“S-Sorry…”

The girls started to tremble in fear and shed tears, but Carix did not stop.

Get down on your knees and apologize right now. Otherwise, I’ll find where your parents work and make them unemployed immediately. If you don’t want to be permanently banned from this tower branch, it’s better to listen obediently. If they don’t work nearby, I’ll take revenge personally.”

The girls tried to kneel, but I immediately stopped them.

“Don’t.”

However, Carix seemed to unjustly talk to me.

“How much sacrifice Macderas had to make for the interspecies World War… Those women sold it. They should be punished…”

“I said stop.”

When I spoke in a low voice, Carix hesitated and stepped back.

“If I upset you… I’m sorry. It’s just hard for me to tolerate those who sell out Macderas…”

“I understand. Just go.”

It was just a simple word, but the people around who had gathered quickly dispersed. Some sighed with regret, others with relief.

Macderas adjusted his robe and spoke to Flimia and Choi Yebin.

“Sorry. There’s always a commotion when I come out. That’s why I don’t go out much.”

“…A slaughterer… Isn’t that too much? How can you speak like that about an action for your own sake…” Choi Yebin spoke while looking at the girls who had left earlier, but Macderas shook his head.

“They are the ones who have never witnessed war with their own eyes. It’s inevitable because they’ve only heard about it through numbers and statistics. I don’t resent them. Besides, it’s a fact that I’m called a slaughterer from the start.”

Grrr…

I felt something next to me and looked over to see Flimia holding onto my clothes and speaking.

“Macderas is not a slaughterer… He’s a hero…”

“Is that so?”

Finally, my heart eased a little. I cannot fully accept the kindness of the people living near Matopji Branch. Whether hostile or friendly, they all feared my words.

That’s why I was grateful for Choi Yebin and Flimia by my side. They know my strength completely and yet do not fear me. They don’t ask for anything from me. They simply stay by my side.

A relationship where there is no expectation or physical exchange, yet becomes such a reliance on each other.

“We’re late because of the commotion. Let’s move for now.”

Taking Choi Yebin and Flimia, I wandered around here and there.

I went to the dwarven forge to make weapons, and I also went to a restaurant run by spirits to eat delicious food. Sometimes people who recognized me came out, but when I gave them a proper hint, they didn’t bother me anymore. They just avoided me.

Next, I went to the arcade.

“…Master Mcderas, that’s cheating… Where does it say you can use magic to put the ball in… It says in the rules not to use magic…”

Flimia timidly spoke to me as I recklessly used magic to put the basketball into the hoop. I apologized and threw the ball with my hand, but each throw missed.

“Sigh…”

Flimia laughed heartily as she watched my sloppy form.

It was the first time she had laughed.

“What’s so funny?”

“It’s just cute to see someone who handles magic and swords so well struggle to put a ball in.”

As Flimia made a sarcastic remark, Choi Yebin bounced the ball next to her and then threw it, scoring a goal.

“Oh?”

Each of her throws went in. Choi Yebin, expressionless, spoke as she scored.

“I guess I’m better at this than Master Mcderas. It’s amazing.”

She set a new high score, and I used magic again to surpass her score.

Ding! Ding! Ding!

The girls talked excitedly about the strange sight of the ball going into the goal three times in one second.

“No… What is this?”

Choi Yebin complained to me bewilderedly.

“Master Mcderas, stop cheating! Let’s compete fairly!”

Flimia opposed me while laughing.

I felt warm inside.

I went out to comfort Flimia, but instead, I was the one who received comfort.

When I am with them, who treat me without pretense, I feel it. I am not a monster.

I felt like I wasn’t the only one feeling this way. Flimia and Choi Yebin were definitely smiling brighter than before. It was a wish for the broken hearts to heal quickly.

I watched them for a moment and said,

“I’ll be right back, I need to go to the bathroom.”

Gwaaah…

Fleemia, who had been smiling, urgently grabbed my sleeve. But soon she let go of my hand and spoke softly.

“Are you… coming back…?”

Now I understood the source of her anxiety.

Perhaps she was afraid of being abandoned again.

“Don’t worry. I’m not going anywhere. Besides, you know where my house is, right? I live at Matop.”

Finally, Fleemia released my sleeve little by little and smiled.

“Yes! I’ll be waiting.”

“Take care.”

Choi Yebin replied as she looked at me. I smiled and left my seat.

After moving about 300 meters away, I exhaled and spoke.

“Why did you come looking for me? Tell me the purpose of your pursuit.”

At the same time, the man made a doubtful expression as if to ask how I knew, but then he shouted at me as if it didn’t matter.

“What are you saying, you crazy bastard. We followed those girls, not you. You answer. What’s your relationship with those girls? We need to take them with us, so cooperate, will you?”

McDull, wearing his robe deeply turned inside out. The man seemed to not know McDull’s identity, so he started to grumble.

“Hey, answer. Who are you to be hanging out with those pretty girls alone? Did you pay them? They look like the type who would do that… If that’s the case, sorry, I’ll give you some of the money you paid, and we can quietly move on from this, how about that? I don’t want to cause trouble either.”

McDull took off his robe without a word. The man checked his face and stiffened before turning around. But it was already too late.

“You were making a fuss, why did you run away?”

“Ah… I’m… sorry… I… I just… I was ordered by the higher-ups to rescue the girls… I really didn’t know if I was part of McDull’s group. If I had known, I wouldn’t have even breathed nearby. Please… please forgive me just once, I swear to God.”

“Who ordered you?”

“I… I can’t tell you that…”

Bang!

MacDuras drove a stake into the ground and cut off the man’s arm. Despite the horrific screams spreading around, MacDuras continued to speak.

“I’ll ask one last time. Who ordered it?”

From MacDuras’s body, an unprecedentedly sticky flesh began to spread unlike anything seen before.