Molting

As Ross, wearing a mask, gestured, the world, which had been in black and white, transformed, and a massive throne appeared in space.

Ross walked towards the throne, sat down, and looked at me. I asked Ross the question that had been on my mind from his gaze.

,Why did you do that…? You like Ellie, don’t you?

At my question, Ross looked at me with his chin resting on his hand, and only after a long while did he open his mouth.

,Have I ever coveted someone else? No, I’ve never had the expectation of being loved by anyone. In this world, Ellie is the only one who can have such expectations.

I could only imagine how lonely Ross, overshadowed by his older brother and filled with inferiority, must have been. The detailed contents of Ross’s gloomy past were not something I had set.

,What wouldn’t Ross, a talentless, inferiority-ridden loner, do for Ellie, who is the only one who pities, believes in, and protects him?

Ross, who was shaking his body with laughter filled with deep emotion, raised his hand and pointed at me.

,You were the one who set me up as a greedy bastard who would sell his soul to the Demon King if he could possess Ellie in the first place, weren’t you?

With a kuk-kuk laugh, Ross leaned back on the throne in an arrogant posture again.

I ran a hand over my face at Ross’s words and said.

,You better take that mask off.

I don’t know what that mask is, but it was a completely different appearance from the Ross I knew.

Perhaps that mask was having some kind of negative impact on the original Ross.

But Ross just laughed as if he had heard a funny joke.

,People are not one-dimensional. Good and bad. Black and white. You can’t divide them like that. Look at Roel, he has shining talent, reaches out to the weak first, and smiles brightly at everyone, but he ignored his younger brother who was collapsing next to him.

Ross continued in a sarcastic tone.

,Ellie? She’s a kind friend who believes in me and pities me more than anyone else as a friend. But in the end, she agreed to use me for her own emotions.

Ross, who had jumped out of the throne, came to me.

,Everything has a cause and effect. If Ellie had rejected my proposal, I wouldn’t have been able to take advantage of Roel’s personality. As always, I would have just looked at Ellie and watched Roel and Ellie doing well, falling into inferiority.

Ross raised his index finger and shook it in front of my eyes, then tapped the mask.

,But Ellie used me, and in return, she was used., ,If you had told Ellie the truth…!

Ross let out a hollow laugh, interrupting my words.

,Did you forget my settings? No one will love a depressing, inferiority-ridden lump of a person just by looking at them. Why? Did you want to write in the novel that you confessed, got rejected miserably, and even your childhood friendship fell apart?

When I frowned at the mocking voice, Ross put his hand on my shoulder.

,I gave you a choice, didn’t I? Whether to let Ellie go or make her yours. Now it’s your choice.

Ross, who had been whispering, suddenly disappeared into the darkness with black smoke.

,You didn’t choose. Like Roel, you wanted to be greedy and find a way to have both Luna and Ellie.

I shook my head and made excuses at the voice that seemed to be coming from afar.

,That’s not it. It’s because of the Gias restriction…!

,Then just kill Ellie?

,What…?

I asked back in a dumb voice at Ross’s chilling voice that dug into my ear.

,If you stab Ellie in the heart from behind with a spear, she’ll die without the restriction having time to activate, and the restriction will be lifted. Then the problem is solved.

I answered in a trembling voice to the emotionless voice.

,You…you’re not Ross after all.

,Why?

I gritted my teeth and said at Ross’s voice, which asked as if he didn’t understand.

,If it’s Ross who cherishes Ellie. He would never say it like that.

,Pukpukheukpukheu!

Ross, who revealed himself from the darkness, making a creepy strange laughter, grabbed his stomach and shook his body as if convulsing.

,No, I’m Ross. I’ve just transcended myself.

Ross, who had erased his emotions in an instant, said in a monotone voice.

,Everything is not static. It flows, mixes, and falls into chaos.

Ross, who was fiddling with the mask while saying that, asked.

,Roel, Ellie, Bella, Rosalyn. Everyone is trying to use you. Roel grew up using you as nourishment, and Ellie used her feelings for you. Bella tried to use your life, and Rosalyn tried to use the fact that you are Roel’s younger brother….

Ross suddenly brought his face closer and whispered softly.

,What will Nelson and the Messiah members try to use you for?

At those words, I swung my fist at Ross, but Ross disappeared into smoke.

,Isn’t it strange? Nelson is interested in Ross, who no one likes, and gives him all sorts of things as gifts.

,Shut up.

,What does Nelson want? Your life? Sacrifice? Despair? Or…is it chaos?

As soon as those words were finished, something started to fall in front of my eyes. With a thud- sound, their heads exploded and they died…. They were the Messiah members.

,Nelson may just be a mischievous kid who wants to put you in the highest place and then drop you to the very bottom.

,Don’t talk bullshit.

I answered with a growl at the soaring anger.

,Oh, friend. Even though it’s the world you created, there are things you don’t know filling the empty spaces you didn’t create. This is true chaos.

Ross, who reappeared in front of the throne, shouted, raising both hands.

,Forget about heroic dreams! We can become something greater than that. Pushing away the people who are trying to use you, the weak who have reached out to you. We can proudly ascend to this throne.

He clenched his outstretched hands tightly. He whispered softly as if tempting me.

,If you want to protect the people who are precious to you, you need strong power. And I can give you that power. If we become one.

The bloody Messiah members who had fallen on the floor got up.

,Captain, save me….

,Help me, Captain.

,Ross….

,Please save me….

I squeezed my eyes shut at the sight of the members clinging to me with pleading voices.

,Kill Bella. That bitch will only be a hindrance to you.

Aria’s voice whispers so.

,Ellie has put shackles on your ankles. You have to kill that bitch for freedom too.

Kane’s urgent voice was heard.

,No, you have to kill all the women around Roel.

Rakar’s serious voice advises me.

,So that they can suffocate in loneliness like us.

Luna’s beautiful voice whispers as if tempting me.

I shook my head violently to get rid of the things that were digging into my head and shouted.

,Shut up!

,Pukpukpahheupeukeu!!! You still haven’t come to your senses? This is our true intention!

I felt soaring anger at the mocking Ross and said as if spitting it out.

,No, he was a depressed, inferiority-ridden Ross. But the reason for that inferiority was that he wanted to become a hero like his older brother. He wanted to become a hero who helps inferior people like himself, not a monster like you who grows by using other people as nourishment.

I took out the Spear of Destruction from the space warehouse.

,Don’t tempt me. You’re just planting chaos in me.

Saying that, I stabbed the Spear of Destruction into the entrance of the dimension.

With a thud- sound, Ross, whose mask was broken, collapsed in front of the throne as he was.

As I approached the fallen Ross. The mask, which was half-stuck to his face, moved on its own and said.

,Someday you will regret today. While watching the precious things dying in front of you.

I bent down and brought my face closer to the mask that was spouting as if prophesying.

,No, even if I regret it and collapse, I will get up again.

When I grabbed the mask that was left on Ross’s face with my hand. I felt a sharp pain in my fingers along with a sizzling- sound, but I didn’t let go of the mask.

,Because I can’t lose the precious things in regret as you said.

Saying that, I tore off the mask from Ross’s face. Something swirled and the mask that was held in my hand began to distort.

,Ah…. Child. I hope you don’t lose your way. Pukpukpahheuahpeuheupukpeukeuheukeupukheuk!!!!

At the same time as the voice and mask disappeared as if being sucked somewhere, I was thrown out of the world.

The surrounding space was reversed, and it changed to the appearance of the principal’s office that I had seen a little while ago.

Principal Nelson, with a cold expression that I had never seen before, asked me in a low voice.

,What did you see?

At that question, I answered with a stiff face.

,I met the things that tempt me.

Principal Nelson looked at me, shining his eyes at my words.

,Now do you know why I don’t need this?

Nelson asked in a calm voice, showing the snow globe.

,Is it because Principal Nelson is now a Great Wizard…?

Nelson shook his head, smiling warmly as always at my question.

,It was really helpful at first. At the time, I didn’t know what to do, and I couldn’t know what my true goal was.

I nodded in agreement at Nelson’s words. Ross, whom I first met in there, set my goal for me.

To become a hero who fights for people in need, for people who are weak and lacking.

Nelson picked up the snow globe on the desk.

,I was once buried in this, and I even tried to eliminate my small mistakes. When I came to my senses, I became a weak person who lost my dream and avoided trials. Just because there is an ugly evil in your heart, does that person become a bad person? No, the important thing is choice. The difference between a person who gives in to temptation and takes the easy path and a person who takes a step into the fire knowing that they will get hurt and be in pain is that.

Nelson raised his hand and tapped his chest.

,A person who shines a light even though there is darkness in their heart is a truly courageous person than a person who has no darkness in their heart. There is already a light in me, so I don’t need this help anymore. Just because there are things that tempt you, you don’t have to be ashamed. You already have the light to overcome it.

At Nelson’s warm words, I bowed my head deeply and fidgeted with my fingers. What is this feeling? It felt like something that had been piled up in a corner of my heart had melted and disappeared.

It was not regret for the loss, but rather a coolness for letting out what had been stagnant.

,Principal Nelson…. Why are you so nice to me?

Perhaps the words that Ross, wearing a mask, had said remained in my heart. I hurriedly closed my mouth at the words that popped out without me knowing, but the words had already been spoken.

,It’s because you’re lacking.

Nelson answered in a calm voice.

,Because I was also a person who was very lacking, I can see what you need without looking closely. So, I want to help you so that you don’t wander and collapse like me.

Nelson, who said that, stroked his well-groomed beard and added.

,Of course, the same goes for all the students in the academy. I’m the principal!

At Nelson’s winking appearance, something soared in my chest and I bit my lip.

Even if I didn’t know Nelson’s settings, I would have believed in Nelson.

Just like Roel, Nelson’s eyes looking at me were only filled with warmth.

,I hope that you will become a person who reaches out to other people’s shortcomings, just as I reach out to your shortcomings.

Nelson smiled, shining his light green eyes.

,And you’re doing a good job.

At Nelson’s voice, who said that as if he was proud, my vision became blurry and I had no choice but to lower my head.

Even while shedding tears, I couldn’t erase the smile of joy, which was a little…embarrassing.