Chapter 141
Chapter 141
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Translator: Ebonarch
Chapter Title: The Walking Corpse
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We left behind the spot where Han was buried.
Though we'd sent off someone close to us, damn it all, my stomach was growling fiercely.
But the thought of eating something didn't even cross my mind. Normally, I'd nag Han to eat even if I was just a little hungry, but right now, staying hungry didn't feel so bad.
"...Anis."
"Yeah?"
"What do you think Han was thinking when he died?"
"...Who knows."
The conversation between Betty and me had awkward pauses that left it feeling dull.
It seemed like our usual chit-chat, but for some reason, the silences filling the gaps felt especially long. The emptiness left by his absence was exactly that hollow.
"...Do you think Han died satisfied?"
"Nah, probably not."
I answered Betty's gloomy question with firm certainty.
You could tell just from the state of that human corpse.
Whatever pissed him off so much, it was obvious he'd died in a fit of insane rage.
No way he went out satisfied. Bullshit.
He must have been insanely frustrated. Or maybe felt utter emptiness.
And seeing himself like that, he probably even let out a bitter laugh. That's how that guy was.
I knew him better than anyone.
Maybe I understood him the most of all.
And likewise, he understood me the best.
Thinking about it, we didn't respect each other, but we were close in our own way.
If Betty and I were friends who cared for each other, Han and I were friends who got each other.
Of course, that bastard used his ability to understand me, so purely speaking, my understanding of him ranks higher.
"He wouldn't hate being buried in the slums, right? Should've buried him somewhere more proper."
"Nah, he wouldn't mind."
So as a master of Han U-sol Studies, I could firmly answer Betty's doubts with a 'no'.
He'd like his gravesite just fine.
To begin with, he'd joked that if he died, you could just toss his corpse anywhere.
And besides.
If he hated it, what could he do about it?
Buried in the ground or burned to ash, it's my call.
Han is dead. He's nowhere anymore.
Even the flickering illusions of him were buried in the dirt and vanished together.
Meaning he can't complain even if he hates it now.
If he didn't like it, he shouldn't have died.
In the end, it's his own damn fault.
The moment I thought that, Han appeared far ahead.
...This bastard.
I thought he'd faded away poignantly into the earth.
What lingering regret made him claw out of the grave to show up in front of me?
He looked exactly as he'd been when he died. Body parts sliced and dangling, swaying loosely.
...Honestly, lying down, it was tolerable, but standing and moving like that? Creepy as hell.
I eyed him warily.
My gaze met his one remaining eye.
Don't come any closer, please.
Let's keep this a poignant, sad farewell in memory.
Don't pop up as a hallucination and ruin it more.
Honestly, carrying your body was just courtesy; no way I'm doing it twice, it's too gross.
Whether I said it or not,
He kept staggering toward me, staring.
Just fuck off.
Whether he'd heard my plea not to come closer, Han kept a good distance from us as he followed along.
The weird thing was, Han was a bit different from the usual auditory hallucinations I'd had.
Up until now, Rena and Rockbell had spoken to me as voices in my head.
They sometimes showed their faces, but mostly it was just voices.
But Han was different.
Even when not talking to me, he always existed in form, watching from afar.
Whether speaking or not, he stood silently at a distance, observing me.
In a word, he had some endearing qualities.
Go away, and he did; shut up, and he did.
Betty and I walked back to where Kahtel was.
Using her ability would've gotten us there fast, but she seemed worn out from overuse, so I suggested we walk. She'd used it a ton today just for scouting alone, so she had to be exhausted.
"This is..."
"They all ran off?"
The heroes had already retreated. Pretty much expected.
Instead, the spot was filled with countless magic beasts.
"Even more now. Looks like Kahtel summoned a bunch."
Kahtel was in the innermost black mist amid the writhing magic beasts.
Kahtel, deep in concentration, turned his eyes toward me and Betty.
"Han and Camila are dead? The contracts are severed."
I nodded to the question about Han, but said I wasn't sure about Camila.
She'd been captured by the humans, so she was probably dead too, I guessed.
"I see... I didn't expect to be asleep so long. To lose two in that time."
Kahtel nodded regretfully, then focused back on the mist.
I couldn't tell if he truly grieved, but at least he looked the part.
Han, watching quietly from behind, chimed in.
I told him I knew, so stay quiet, and he did.
From the black mist, magic beasts poured out in droves.
Curious about the mist, I asked Kahtel.
"What's this mist? Are the magic beasts summoned from it?"
"It's a byproduct of demonic energy from summoning magic beasts. Not summoned from the mist itself."
"Did this come out when I was summoned?"
"Yeah. Much thicker and lingered longer."
Kahtel closed his eyes again, focusing on the summoning.
Betty and I leaned side by side against a stone staircase in the corner, watching the scene.
"So many coming out."
"Yeah."
After a while, when Kahtel opened his eyes, the summoned magic beasts gathered. Like receiving orders, they lined up neatly before us.
I roughly counted them by eye.
About the same number as three years ago, give or take.
The heroes had diligently culled them over time, so matching that number in one go must be a headache for them.
"So, what do we do now?"
I stared blankly at the magic beasts, then asked.
Kahtel gave me an incredulous look.
What? What is it?
"...Now it's our turn to charge the humans. Anis Harper, you remember the promise? Kill Yeriel."
...Ah. Right. Yeah.
I had to kill Yeriel to break Betty's contract.
And live happily with Betty. Get our happy ending.
Was my mind slipping? I'd forgotten the goal for a bit.
I'd even declared in front of Han U-sol and Yoon Na-rin that I wouldn't turn back.
As I muttered that in my head, Rena suddenly shoved her face in.
Again.
Doing this shit again.
These vile hallucinations gnawing at my head and heart.
Every time I try to push toward my goal, they show up without fail to cloud it.
They shake me, trying to drag out the emotions I'd bottled up tight.
Rena repeated the same lines like a broken cassette tape.
His death was an unjust one.
To avenge his injustice, kill them all for revenge.
Rena shoved her face even closer. My vision filled with her face, ears ringing with her voice.
My mind started to fade.
Tormenting me again, huh.
I wished she'd just stop appearing already—but that thought didn't last.
- Bang―!
Blood sprayed from Rena's chest.
Han said.
His arm, which should've been missing even the wrist and looked unsightly, now inexplicably had a hand grown back. Holding a gun.
Drip. With a hole in her chest, Rena slowly slid down toward my feet.
Blood gushed from the little girl's punctured chest.
The child's blood pooled on the shabby stone steps.
I stared at the girl's corpse cooling bit by bit, then turned to Han.
Thanks for helping with the harassment, but...
"That doesn't mean you shoot the kid dead, you murderer bastard..."
Kahtel stared at me, who'd been muttering to myself, with a look of disgust.
At the boundary between W Zone and X Zone, right before the barrier.
- Crackle! Crackle!
- Kyaaak!
Magic beasts that curiously touched the barrier instantly burned up into ash.
Only top-tier ones could even touch it; lesser beasts couldn't dream of approaching, let alone touching.
"This... The barrier's way stronger than before. Gonna take some time."
Kahtel tapped the barrier with his knuckles and stepped back.
The barrier repelled not just magic beasts but even Kahtel. A faint burn mark scarred his knuckles.
That powerful, huh?
Unlike the magic beasts struggling near it, I felt nothing.
If they weren't exaggerating, I should feel some repulsion too.
Out of curiosity, I approached right up to it. Still nothing.
I reached out, and my hand passed through without resistance.
Common sense says it should reject me, full of demonic energy, but it accepted my touch like it was waiting.
I could pass through if I wanted, touch if I willed.
Wondering what this was, I looked at Kahtel.
"...What? You should react even worse, but why'd you pass through so easily?"
Seems even he didn't know.
"Well, works in our favor. If the barrier doesn't reject you, breaking it is easy."
Break it.
Kahtel said curtly.
I summoned gauntlets onto my hands and stood before the barrier.
"........."
Han interrupted.
Yes.
Gonna break it.
Revenge, inferiority, jealousy.
Talking about pointless obsessions and stubbornness?
No.
This isn't revenge for you, or jealousy toward others living well oblivious to my pain.
Not clinging to past happiness I can't return to, nor petty defiance against the heroes' attacks.
Yes.
Didn't you say it?
You're a clear villain by the world's standards, a guy who could die any moment without it being weird.
When a doomed man dies, don't bother with revenge. Just go your own way.
So, as you said, I'll do what I want.
By any means, Betty and I will be happy together.
This was my choice even before I knew you died.
I know.
I don't want that.
But I'm a terribly selfish person, so I want to be happy first, even if it makes others miserable.
Even if many die.
Even if it takes those who were kind to me.
I want to believe this is the last path for Betty and me to get our happy ending.
With that, Han retreated to a distance again.
Wearing the gauntlets, I pulled my arm back fully into position.
Then, I swung with all my might.
- KABOOM!
A massive roar echoed.
The barrier didn't push me away or counterattack.
It just accepted me as if waiting.
- Craaaack...
The barrier rippled violently for a moment.
- Shatter!
It broke.
- Krrrrrrrrr!
- Kyaaaaak!
The magic beasts charged out.