Chapter 49
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 49
Chapter Title: The Youth in the Prophecy - 1
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His name was Minotaur.
The monster cow who had devoured hundreds of knights single-handedly, ranking second among the Demon King's Four Heavenly Kings. Though second in rank, the top-ranked Heavenly King was said never to have shown himself until confronting him right before the Demon King's Castle, making this beast the de facto power of the Demon King's army.
Yes. He had once been called that. But no one remembered his name anymore. Because seven years ago, I had severed his head.
Yet here he was, roaring before me with vibrant life force surging through him.
"ROOOOAAAARRR!"
"Why..."
The words I should have said slipped from Rachel's lips instead. Why. Why are you standing before my eyes right now? How or what didn't matter. My question was singular. Why now, of all times? After all those years had passed, why now?
Why now. Just when Eli's survival—something I'd denied for years—had been confirmed?
"Mister? What's going on...?"
Suddenly, a faint voice pierced my ears. Snapping back to reality, I turned to see Kate looking up at us with a terrified expression.
"No! Damn it all, get inside, Kate!"
At the same moment, Vanessa burst out of the basement door and charged toward us. She hadn't even grabbed her crutch properly and tripped for the first time in front of me, slamming face-first into the ground. But she shook it off and stumbled straight into the shack.
"Don't come out no matter what. Got it? No matter what! Damn it, what the hell is this...?"
"It's a Minotaur, Vanessa."
Rachel spoke to the unprecedentedly flustered Vanessa with astonishing calm. She leaped lightly from the roof and repeated with a hardened expression.
"He's... back."
"But why? He's dead. So why now of all times... Never mind. Doesn't matter. Get inside, kids. Hurry!"
"Priestess! But!"
"No buts! If you don't wanna die, get in there now!"
"Bella hasn't come back yet!"
...
The moment Kate's fragile voice cut through the air, I closed my eyes. The chains of fate coiled viciously around my neck once more.
"...Damn it all, Bella!"
Vanessa echoed my thoughts, hurling curses at the sky. The composure she always wore was gone. She lost control, screaming wildly.
"Fuck! You fucking shit! Aaaargh!"
"Vanessa, calm down."
"Calm... yeah, calm down. Fuck... FUCK!"
She finally snapped, kicking the shack wall hard with her one good leg. Her ragged breaths mingled with the stench of blood in the air. After panting furiously for a while, she turned to us.
"Fine, damn it. Detective girl, Luca. Just one favor. Watch the kids while I go find Bella. Won't take long, so don't worry."
"But Vanessa..."
"I know, damn it. I know. I can't do shit against that monster. But I'm not going out there to fight it, so relax. I'll just snatch Bella and come back. Stay here with the kids a bit longer. Please?"
In her rage-filled eyes, an astonishing plea flickered. She couldn't bring herself to ask me to play hero again. Complex emotions flashed through her gaze dozens of times a second.
And I, seeing those eyes, lacked the confidence to say I'd stay put. Having witnessed the Minotaur's strength firsthand, I knew she'd die if she went out there. So I just kept my mouth shut.
...
Why, of all times, now.
That single phrase echoed in my sealed lips.
"...No, Vanessa."
Then Rachel quietly spoke up. Looking at Vanessa, she said,
"You stay here with the kids."
I closed my eyes. In the end, the words I should have said came from her mouth.
"Finding people is my specialty. You know that. I'm a detective."
"But..."
"Watching kids is your specialty. And if you go out and spot some pitiful injured person, you'll end up giving up another body part. Better I go instead, Vanessa."
Rachel placed a hand on Vanessa's shoulder, forcing a smile. It looked so fragile, like it might shatter any moment. She met Vanessa's anxious gaze, then turned to me.
"Then, Luca."
"Yeah..."
I resigned myself, gripping my sword and stepping forward. But Rachel grabbed my hand. And delivered an unexpected line.
"Then you go to the capital, Luca."
"...What?"
"Go to the capital. Luca."
I stared blankly into her eyes. Rachel averted her gaze and gripped my hand tighter.
"You're not a hero anymore. You don't need to get involved in this. Go do what you have to do."
"Then you..."
"Finding people is my job. And today, I miss Bella more than ever, so I'll go get her. You have someone else to find, right?"
Sweat slicked her hot palm, her skin sticking smoothly to mine. Rachel lifted the corner of her mouth again.
"And this is the perfect chance to slip out of the city. The knights are tied up with the monster, and—not to sound callous—but in this chaos, you don't even need money for supplies or a horse. Now's the time, Luca. A chance from the heavens."
"I..."
"Go. I'll find Bella and follow after. Don't worry too much. I miss that black-haired girl too."
With that, Rachel slowly released my hand. The warmth faded, cold creeping in, and I instinctively reached to grab it again. But she had already turned away.
"Alright, I'm off. See you in the capital."
"Rachel..."
"Go! Hurry!"
And she dashed off toward the roar.
Rachel ran like the wind, her red hair streaming as she sped through the crumbling gray city. Soon, her small back vanished into the dust. Only then did I take my first step.
"I..."
"Hurry and go, Luca."
This time, Vanessa's voice held me back. She wasn't smiling, but her expression softened as she looked at me.
"You've done enough already. Go."
"..."
"This city owes you a lot for what you've done so far. The world too. If you go take down that monster on top of it all, it's not worth the cost."
"Vanessa."
"I'm serious, Luca. Go. Hell, I owe you too much myself. Hurry. Go save that girl."
"I..."
"Hurry! Go!"
Vanessa suddenly shoved my back with all her might. It wasn't strong, but I stumbled forward a few steps.
"Don't dawdle, go already! You've saved the world once. Now we'll protect you. Don't worry about us! Hurry! And..."
She herded the kids into the shack and pulled out her crossbow. Grinning, she said,
"This time, please. Be happy."
"But..."
"Go!"
She shoved me again, and I had no choice but to run forward. Thick wind clung to my cheeks, the scenery blurring past. I glanced back briefly, but Vanessa and the kids were already far away. Too far for my eyes to reach.
Instead, other sights filled my vision.
"Aaaahhh!!!"
"Gods... Run! Run, Ashley!"
"Daddy! Daaaaddy!!!"
"Hah... hah..."
I stopped running and looked around. The broken world assaulted me. An old man fleeing with torn legs. Children trembling, faces smeared with their parents' blood. A man desperately gripping his daughter's hand, only realizing much later it was severed, despair crashing down as dozens of rocks fell on his head.
Just an hour. No, even less time away from sight, and this fragile world crumbled like a sandcastle made by a child.
"Hah... damn it all..."
"Aaaahhh!"
Torn limbs littered the ground before my eyes, screams echoing in my ears. As if demanding I hear, they screamed destruction into my ears nonstop. Disasters. Deaths. Surrounded by it all, I finally bowed my head.
And then I ran forward.
Yes. Why a dead Heavenly King came to this city. Why now, right before my eyes. It didn't matter. As I'd realized before the Demon King's Castle. As Vanessa pointed out, the world already owed me too much. They couldn't demand anything more after taking everything from me.
So these screams, the corpses tripping my feet—they didn't matter.
"Kyaaaah!"
"Uwaaah! Gods!"
Didn't matter. No interest. Whatever.
How many others died? Didn't care.
"Aaaaah!"
Was there even one among them who cheered me on my way to the Demon King's Castle? Anyone who clapped for Leo, no—for me, for Eli?
No. None. No one. They cheered the one they thought was the hero, welcomed him back with cheers. They ignored the two country bumpkins who vanished without a trace.
The world doesn't even know who I am. So it has no right to demand anything of me. No matter what Nadia, the prophecy, or dying soldiers said about me—it doesn't matter now. Demons might swarm again, Heavenly Kings reappear, even the Demon King revive. Doesn't matter. I've done my job. I sacrificed everything to save the world, only to have it all taken by those I called comrades. Now, I'm going to reclaim the one thing that might be left.
"Aaaah! Uwaaah!"
"Please! Anyone, please!"
So shut up already. Please. Stop demanding more from me. I'm sick of you slapping that ridiculous "hero" title on me and asking for more.
"Kyaaaah! Aaaah!"
"Uwaaah! Aaaaah!"
While I lost everything, you lost nothing. Only I did. I was just an ordinary person like you, but only I lost it all. Why take everything from me alone, then keep demanding more!
Why!
"Murder bro. Wake up."
"Aaaah!"
BAM!!!
The final scream came from me. I slammed into something, and shards exploded before my eyes, covering everything. I lost balance and face-planted into the dirt. Darkness flooded my vision, sensations vanishing.
...
...
Why. No sounds.
I finally lifted my head. And looked around.
Nothing was there.
"..."
I slowly rose and turned back. A man-sized hole gaped in the wall.
"..."
Raising my hand, crumbled stone fragments rained down like sand. The dust clinging to me like cursed fate scattered into the sky with the wind.
"Ah..."
I stared at it and stood. Untossed sand crumbled off my skin. Slowly, I looked to the horizon. The vast human lands held no signs of life...
...
What is this feeling.
I slowly turned. The crumbling citadel filled my view. I realized the source of the eerie sensation wrapping my body.
It was exactly the same scene as that day.
As if fate had rewound time, placing me back there. Behind me, a fallen castle with demons to repel. Before me, a human city where my sword would point. Five years later, at the cusp of revenge. I faced the scene I'd glimpsed at revenge's start once more.
I thought I'd done so much, yet nothing had changed. This pathetic fool still wandered searching for a mint-scented girl, abandoning hero duties to draw steel on humans. Nothing different.
...No.
One thing.
Back then, nothing to gain from the castle behind me.
But now, there was. Something I could gain.
"...No."
I denied the thought instantly. No. Nothing. Everyone inside is irrelevant to me. Foolish citizens. Corrupt priests. A hundred kids. Vanessa. Kate. Bella. Even Rachel. Just tools for my revenge. Doesn't matter what happens to them.
"Doesn't..."
Doesn't matter. Say it.
"Mat..."
Say it. No, no need. Just go forward. And never look back.
I took one step. The heartless footfall echoed. Yes, that's it. Forget it all and leave, like back then. So I thought, taking another step. Another footfall echoed.
Luca, you said I'm the only one you can trust besides yourself.
...
"Hah..."
I stopped. And looked to the sky.
Why can't time.
sharpen me properly.
"Damn it..."
I shouldn't have taken comrades from the start.
...
Like stone, my feet stuck to the ground. Slowly, the sensation crept up my body. My whole form hardened like rock again. I couldn't move forward. It felt like fate punishing me.
Why abandon hero qualifications.
Who says I can quit being a hero.
The youth in the prophecy is me, after all.
...
Damn it all...
Suddenly, words I'd said to Sera flashed back. Why didn't you save them when you could? Why do nothing with intact limbs?
That's my situation now.
"Haha..."
A hollow laugh escaped with a sigh. When I blindly followed that prophecy, it stripped everything. Why give me the chance to be a hero only after I abandoned it?
"Haha... ha..."
The rare laugh didn't last. I closed my mouth and gazed skyward. The sun behind me prickled my skin.
...
Guess there's.
no choice but to end it as fast as possible.
I recalled the last fight with the Minotaur. Seven of us took three days to behead him. But I was weak then, and he'd already died once.
So this time, finish in three hours.
Decision made, I deep-breathed and turned back. Sensations slowly returned. Feeling heat rise from my toes, I crouched.
"Hooo..."
The next instant, I bolted madly toward the city interior.
"Aaaah!"
"Kyaaaah!"
I hadn't run far when screams hit me again. But this time, I didn't bow my head. I faced their pain head-on and ran. And bellowed two names at the top of my lungs.
"Rachel! Bella!"
"ROOOOAAAARRR!!!"
My voice resonated with the Minotaur's roar. The distant vibrations shook sand from my hair. Cold air filled my lungs, scraping brutally. But I didn't stop, kicking off again.
"Uha... found her, but..."
"Sis... ter..."
True to her expert detective skills, I soon spotted Bella buried in rubble. Her leg was a bit injured, but otherwise fine, and I had stamina to carry her. But, as nothing goes perfectly, two minor issues. First, my leg was hurt too, hard to move.
"Hoo... hoo..."
"Ha ha..."
And the Minotaur was right in front of me.
Glancing around, black bird-emblem armors littered the ground. They got wrecked bad. A spear stuck in the Minotaur's neck, but not fatal. No helpers in sight. I looked up.
"Hey, ugly cow mister. Mind saving us?"
"Huff... phooo..."
Hot breath hit my face again. Squinting through the moisture, I met his eyes.
Pale, faded pupils stared over stitched scars. He brimmed with life more than anyone, yet no living aura anywhere. Not resurrected—just a corpse infused with mana. Brutal.
"Brutal."
Yeah. Like the Demon King.
"Sis..."
"It's okay, Bella. Sis is here."
I lied reassuringly, wrapping her in my arms. Her frail head rested on my chest, cold sensation flowing over my skin. Blood? Probably from her ear.
"Ugh... ughhh...!"
Meanwhile, the Minotaur reached for us. His writhing tendons made crushing us look effortless.
"This I didn't see coming."
I gave a self-mocking smile, looking skyward. I'd softened a lot. Too long with humans, huh.
So, a face I suddenly missed appeared. Thought it was a human thing. Why me? But not a bad feeling. At least I'd see a wanted face before dying.
...
Luca, revenge.
Hope it succeeds.
Thinking that, I closed my eyes. Death's aura crept in.
Then, a huge noise erupted behind me.
"Rachel! Bella!"
"Eh?"
Turning, something massive enveloped us. Face unseen, but the warm embrace told me who. I called his name.
"Luca...!"
"Step back."
"Yes..."
He spat curtly and drew his sword. Pathetic and tiny against the giant monster, but its edge gleamed sharply in the sun. The Minotaur straightened at the glare, snorting.
"Huff... hoooo..."
"Yeah... fuck..."
He answered the snort, stepping before us. His tattered coat flapped like a cape, blocking view. But his resolute voice pierced my ears clear.
"Round two, you piece of shit."