episode_0075

All I can touch is the unfinished story.

When a writer who is still attached to life wants to write in the blank spaces of his life while harboring presumptuous desires. I cover his eyes and ears and deceive him.

But in this case, there is nothing I can do. The story of King Nioh was finally completed after the death of Saint Irowell. Even if it doesn’t necessarily mean the end of life.

It’s been a while since I felt this helpless. The feeling of unfamiliarity floods me.

If it’s a problem, it’s a problem. It’s a bit disappointing as it is, because I’ve run into a show where I can’t get involved.

It’s not that the show’s ending is disappointing. This isn’t my show, but from an objective perspective, it was a beautiful enough performance.

A boy who knew nothing but barbarism and a woman from civilization. A tender and impure love blooming between a man and a woman. The last show produced by a withered saint named Irowell.

From the audience’s perspective, it’s such a beautiful show that if it tried to embellish it further, it would end up as an ugly show, but from my point of view, having to have Nioh as my assistant, I’m not happy about it.

And, another headache arose. I hadn’t thought of it until now.

“Hahahaha!”

Nioh laughs. I laugh along, but unfortunately I can’t smile on the inside.

Saint.

she is human A lowly, humble race that lives only for a hundred years at most.

On the other hand, I am a demon. The lifespan can easily range from a few hundred to a few thousand years, and beings like the King of the South can live for millions of years in some cases.

Nevertheless, I had the saint in my heart. It was not a rational judgment. It didn’t take a long time. After spending seven days together in Tartarus at the Tower of Babel, it happened naturally.

A saint is because of the devilish charm that humans possess. I fill half of the demon race.

The neat and noble appearance that only saints have may have played a role.

Because the saint is also human, she will die someday. And I will spend the rest of my life after the saint’s death very boring. That’s my concern.

hmm… .

I guess I need to research a way to make the saint immortal before she dies. There’s still a lot of time left, so let’s tackle the task in front of us first.

“I spent too much time. I have to go back now. The sun will set soon.”

“Are you leaving today?”

“Time, is it a lot? I am excited.”

“Wow, your heart is pounding. That’s a very good attitude. great. Let’s say we leave right away when we get back. Do you have anything to take care of?”

“Leather… .”

“… Are you bringing it to wear it? Then I’ll just give you the clothes.”

“No, to eat.”

“… Do barbarians usually eat leather?”

“Tree bark, animal skin, grass roots. It is a very good emergency food.”

“… .”

I also have to do it, but I shouldn’t even show my business card in front of King Nio. You have to be at that level to be called a barbarian.

Nioh leaves and kneels. I followed suit and got up. I was constantly thinking about how to win his loyalty.

Jeopuk-.

I turned around and walked back with Nioh, who was twice as tall as me. I entered the forest path I had passed on my way to the cliff.

The fresh smell of grass and the scent of insects in the verdant forest forest welcome me. In it… There are three intruders.

Aru, Beatrice, and Uriel are still hiding behind the tree. In particular, Aru, who is imbued with fear of Nioh, hides the furthest away. Tsk tsk, wolf cub. From now on, whenever you misbehave, I will have to take you to King Nio.

“Master.”

The first person to come out of the forest and greet me was Beatrice. He had a large great sword hanging on his back, and his brown hair was tied up in a ponytail.

“Congratulations.”

“Ugh! It’s hard! What article test are you taking? Did you build your vocal cords with bricks?”

“I sincerely congratulate you on becoming King of Nio.”

“Ahaha, but now don’t we have to compete with Sir Beatrice and King Nio for the right arm and left arm positions? Are you saying congratulations right now?”

“Your lord’s happiness is God’s happiness, how can you not be happy?”

“Wow, a corrupt knight can’t believe he has this much courtesy. I wonder if someone is from the past.”

Beatrice’s body and appearance age are directly proportional to mine. Because that’s what I signed the contract for.

hmm? So, should we try the same trick with the saint? No, then if I die, the saint will also have to die… This method is on hold.

Knight Beatrice naturally came out and stood behind Nioh. Behind me, to be exact. As if he were my escort.

If a ranking battle were to take place in the Masurim right now, a strong man who would be ranked in the top 20 would claim to be my guard. This is so reassuring.

“Knights serve demons?”

“… Nioh, what did you say to me?”

“That’s right. Great man, I asked the knight. Do you serve the demons?”

“That’s right, Oscar is not my lord.”

“Oh! I heard it from Irowell! A knight who serves Ma! Death Knight!”

“… .”

Hey, our Beatrice has now gone beyond being a corrupted paladin and has become a death knight. A living human being died and became a knight with only a skeleton left.

Should I come forward and correct it? As a lord?

“Death Knight! Romance! stylish! Irowell said it was the coolest monster!”

“I’m going to make this clear, but I’m not a Death Knight… .”

Pinch-.

“… That’s right. I am Death Knight. How, if you want, I can show you some Magi?”

“Oooh! amazing! A demonic beast from civilization! nice to meet! I am a human from the wild!”

“Nice to meet you too… . Please take care of me in the future.”

Under Nioh’s delusion that it was desirable, I pinched Beatrice’s buttocks to signal her. As expected of my loyal knight, Beatrice hesitated for a moment and then nodded, acknowledging that she was a Death Knight.

Since ancient times, innocence is something that must be protected unconditionally. Children’s dreams are an absolute right that no one can take away.

Why is Nioh a child? Now, I and Oscar are 209 years old. King Nioh is barely reaching middle age. That’s why Irowel always called King Nio his sweetheart.

“Woori L, will you stop coming there too? We will continue to see each other from now on, so are you going to stay away and hide there forever?”

“Hmm? Ah, I got it. Young leader.”

“Huh? Uriel, you… .”

Uriel comes out from behind a large cedar tree as he speaks into the air. However, she looks different from her usual appearance.

“The wings… So you’ve grown up?”

“… !”

A couple of white wings that always adorn Uriel’s back. We call them angel wings. It’s tiny in size.

Not now. The size has grown. Although it is not as large as when Uriel was an archangel, it has grown to the point that when it blooms, you can see the skin protruding from the side of the shoulder even from the front.

“My wings grew… ? Really… ! Huh, but uh, why… ?”

As if even Uriel herself was not aware of this fact, she stretched out her hand to her back and fumbled with her wings. And, I was truly surprised.

I opened my mouth slyly.

“Ahahaha! What if your wings have grown but you don’t know about it? Really, I feel so stupid!”

“Wow, what an idiot… ! Ruthless!”

“Aren’t you too dull to refute? If I hadn’t told you, you wouldn’t have noticed until right before you looked in the mirror!”

“Qu… !”

Uriel tries to deny it somehow, but he can’t. Anyway, he’s a very shabby angel. If that’s the case, shouldn’t they change their name to the Angel of Destruction rather than the Angel of Destruction?

“Still… I think I know why.”

“Why?”

“That’s why my wings grew… King of humans. When that man shouted at the cliff, my heart throbbed and rang. After that, my back felt numb. Maybe that’s when the wings grew.”

“Hmm?”

“The love of two people. It was truly noble. After seeing that noble love, my heart ached.”

Uriel said this while looking at King Ni. It was definitely a beautiful story.

However, it did not come as a particularly great inspiration to me, a demon, but did Uriel, an angel, take it differently? That’s quite possible. Michael must have had his own reason for naming me Uriel.

Even Uriel looks like a girl now. When you’re a girl, everyone listens to stories like romance novels. There’s nothing I can say about the excitement I feel for baby angel Uriel, who has degenerated into a girl’s mental age.

“What… I get it roughly. Congratulations on growing your wings. But it’s not like we have any time left, right? Let’s get started?”

As I spoke those words, Uriel quickly stood at the head of our group. Ugh, look at that. He’s such a kid.

“Hey, Aru. Come through the bushes on your own.”

“… Okay… .”

Aru, well, until I get closer to Nioh, I think it will be impossible to accompany him.

Jeopuk-.

Jeopuk-.

however… .

From earlier, why does the forest smell like bugs?

It’s perfect to use. After all, heaven is definitely on my side. A grin appeared on my face.

*****

John, who returned to the hut, was organizing the things he had grown attached to. Reposition the table and rearrange the chairs.

Of course, I couldn’t take the furniture with me. If you leave it like this, it will be broken by something someday.

It wasn’t even very special furniture. The items filled with memories of Irowel, which Johan longed for, had all exploded long ago during the ‘explosion’ of the past. The current hut and furniture were carved by John after he buried Irowell in the ground to resemble as much as possible what Irowell had made when he was alive.

First, there is such a thing as joint calculation. These were pieces of furniture that had been used for a whopping 20 years. John walked out of the hut, trying to contain the overflowing regrets.

“Mr. Yohan! Come here!”

“Kkiing… Young demon… I want to get on my back… .”

“Where can such a crazy bastard be piggybacked, ah! Yay! Won’t it fall? I’m definitely rubbing my back against King Nio!”

“Kkiiing, kiiing… I want to hide on your back… !.”

“That’s it! it’s okay! Really, I can’t live because of you, I can’t live. Now, they’re even taking out the owner’s waist. Is it good to ride on the owner’s back?”

“Kung! Yes!”

“… Bastard.”

Outside, John’s new companions were waiting for him. John stomped towards them.

Purely, I was happy. Strangers who promised to take them to ‘civilization’. Johan was feeling excited for the first time in a long time since the Irowel disaster.

“Lick, lick, lick.”

“Ay! Don’t lick my head! It’ll ruin your hair!”

“Kengkkeong? But if you lick your neck, it tickles, right? Isn’t it hard to walk down the street when it’s itchy?”

“Hey! Even if you have a headache, it’s still hard to walk!”

“That’s hard! Kkkk! It’s not that you can’t walk!”

“Hmm, that makes logical sense. Okay, mutt. I allow you to lick my head. However, apply saliva appropriately. Because there is nothing more unclean than your hair smelling like a dog.”

“Keng? I’m unclean!?”

“Aru, please respect your lord’s body. Even though you are my master’s pet, I think you are being very rude.”

“Ahaha, leave it alone. Isn’t it fun? The guy who just laughs at everything is the only one who gets angry at the Wolf King.”

Although they are a bit noisy colleagues.

“Hahahaha!”

Instead, John laughed out loud. I didn’t like that light atmosphere. How many groups can be so cheerful in a forest where the law of the fittest prevails in everything? The Masurim is a place where it is common for people of the same species to attack and eat each other if they are attacked.

Tap, tap, tap-.

That was when John walked about thirty steps from the hut and joined the group of demons.

Cheeruk-.

An alien sound penetrated John’s ears.

It was a sound I could never forget. Because it was the chirping of giant bomb bugs, the bugs that took Irowell’s life twenty years ago, and that occasionally cause huge explosions.

Strange-looking bugs appeared among the bushes. Each one of them was a large bug that resembled a human body.

“Are you here again? Those damn bastards.”

Since that day 20 years ago, giant bomb bugs would often come to John’s hut and cause explosions. Johan guessed that it was probably a hint from some higher-species monster.

Until now, I used to destroy every person that came to visit me, but this time I had no intention of doing so. They will leave anyway, and what they blow up will be a meaningless hut. It seemed like it would be better to blow it up than to leave it as is.

“Those bugs… ?”

“They are called giant bomb bugs. Beatrice I guess you’ve never seen it before.”

“I guess they are rare… .”

“Smells bad.”

The group didn’t seem particularly embarrassed. That’s right, everyone in the room except Uriel was the one who would suffer damage unless they properly received the giant bomb beetle’s explosion. Uriel is an angel who receives everyone’s protection.

So, even though the insects rush into the hut to self-destruct one by one, they turn around and try to go their own way.

Ta-tat-!

“Master?”

“Young leader!”

“Demon?”

A demon wearing a white suit suddenly turned and started running toward the hut. With the King of Wolves on his back.

No one had any idea to stop it. Because it happened so suddenly. Belatedly, the human knight, angel girl, and John stretched out their hands, but the demon had already disappeared into the hut. Giant bomb bugs are rushing.

Cheer-!

Quaaang-!

Soon after, the bomb bugs that arrived at the hut began to explode one by one. Black smoke and red flames mixed together, creating a huge explosion sound.

It was a huge explosion that shook the ground and sent explosives flying into the sky.

Hwii-.

John, the human knight, and the girl angel hurriedly ran. Toward the remains of the explosion, with countless ashes and smoke rising together. They were shocked by the demon’s inexplicable actions.

No matter how much I searched through the ashes, I couldn’t find the demon. Whether injured or dead, there should be at least a body left, and that’s when the three’s worries start to snowball.

grasp-!

A blackened hand stuck out from the rubble. It was a gloved hand. Beatrice and John quickly grabbed his hand and pulled him upward.

“Ugh! Ahh! Ash got into my mouth!”

“Krrr… ! Why, why did you go in… !”

What came out were masked demons and wolf beastmen. The demon was spewing out black ash from under its mask.

“Why! Cough, I went in to get this!”

Slurp-.

I even lifted my left hand, where the demon had been buried. At the same time, John’s eyes brightened.

“How do I do this…? !”

“Ah, you clearly left it in the hut earlier, but you didn’t take it out. It would have been nice if I had thought of that sooner, but why did I come up with it right before the bomb bugs started attacking me? So I ran quickly.”

What the demon held in his hand was a silver rosary. It was the same rosary that Saint Irowell gave to John, the king of men.

“Thank you… ! really! Thank you very much! I made a big mistake! I received great grace!”

“What. The world is already tough, so we have to help each other.”

“This cross is so precious that you have to leave it behind… ! Fool, fool! I am a fool!”

“Everyone makes mistakes once in a while. It’s important not to do it two or three times. Be sure to take care of it from next time. by the way… .”

Passing the rosary into the thick hands of the kneeling John, the demon touched the cross part of it.

Then, the upper part of the cross was opened as if a lid was being opened.

“I guess this was originally structured with a lid like this? I didn’t know it was silver so it wasn’t noticeable. It seems like it was opened due to shock.”

“I didn’t know… But, there is a letter inside the cross… ?”

“A letter? Let’s read it right now! This item was originally used by Mr. Irowell, so it must be a letter from Mr. Irowell! Left for Mr. Yohan! Just before Mr. Irowell died, he handed over the cross to Mr. John!”

“… !”

After hearing that, John hurriedly unsealed the letter. Inside the neatly unfolded old parchment were neatly written letters.

Even though the last time I saw him was 20 years ago, I recognized John. It was Irowell’s handwriting.

“Irowell! Irowell, Irowell… !!”

The hand holding the letter was trembling. As John’s eyes scanned the contents of the letter, his eyes became redder.

The content of the letter was nothing special. It was just a few small things written down for John, who would be living alone.

How to cook various foods, which zone you have to go to where you can easily gather edible plants, know-how when hunting, and… The structure of the oral cavity for each letter, so that you don’t forget what to say, etc.

John’s large eyes become moist. The traces of Irowell that I encountered for the first time in 20 years were for myself who would be left alone. A trace of love that has not been broken by death.

“Ugh, ugh, ugh… .”

I pursed my lips and a moan escaped. Holding the letter to his heart, Yohan shed tears for the first time in a long time.

“Well, looking at the content, it looks like it was written on the day Mr. Yohan was away for revenge. Is that why God entrusted the cross to Mr. John?”

“Thank you. Thank you very much! If it weren’t for you demons, I wouldn’t have seen this yet… !”

“I’ve seen it now, so it’s okay. Don’t take it to heart. I was just doing what was natural as a colleague!”

John is sobbing. The demon smiled happily with John in front of him. The human knight Beatrice and the girl angel Uriel were also moved by the contents of the letter and remained silent.

However, there is only one. There was one being who was staring intently at the demons.

‘Kung…’ ? I’m sure I saw it when I was riding on the back of a young demon… ? As the young demon runs out, he snatches the cross through the gap in the monster human’s clothes… ?’