The Hero's Descent
The sound that left my lips was closer to a scoff than a laugh.
“What… the hell?”
All of me? What kind of dogshit was that? The sheer selfishness of the claim—coming from someone hailed as the Hero—made a dry, bitter chuckle escape me.
“Ha. Teodora, stop talking nonsense and get off me. Now.”
“No.” Her voice was bright, almost playful, but her eyes had already shifted. “Aren, didn’t you say it yourself? That I’m nothing but a leech who only takes. So I’ve decided to take your body too. How does that sound?”
“Haa… This isn’t funny. Quit with this pathetic joke—”
Slap!
“…Huh?”
For a moment, reality slipped away. My cheek burned. A sharp, stinging pain bloomed clearly across my face.
So… what the hell was this? I’d just been… hit?
“Aren, do I look like I’m joking right now?”
“N-no, wait. Why…?”
This wasn’t the Teodora I knew. She had never been this extreme. And more importantly—why the hell had she hit me? What had I done wrong? What?
“Why? Because you made me like this, Aren. So you have to take responsibility, don’t you?”
Teodora stared down at me with a heavy gaze and tightened her thighs even more. The pressure was crushing.
In the single year I had been gone, Teodora had grown so strong that the gap between us was now impossible to measure. First, I had to calm her down.
“T-Teodora, calm down. You weren’t like this before…!”
She gave me a self-mocking smile and spoke in a low voice.
“You’re right, Aren. I used to think I was a decent person. But I wasn’t. I was just a useless bug who caused accidents every day and couldn’t grow at all without your help.”
“That’s not what I meant…”
I had only wanted her to feel a little sorry. To understand my pain. But Teodora had taken my words in an entirely different direction and completely let go of herself.
Her eyes suddenly darkened, turning a deep, bloody crimson.
“So, since I’m going to keep relying on you anyway, I’ll just keep relying on you forever. How about that? Will you accept me?”
“……”
What was I supposed to say? Before I could even form a thought—
Slap—!
“Ugh…!”
Another strike landed. The rough sting spread across my cheek. It was unfair. It was infuriating. Honestly, it was heartbreaking.
Why did I have to be the one getting hit…? If anyone deserved to be beaten, it was me, not her. Fuck. This was seriously wrong.
Completely ignoring the injustice written all over my face, Teodora grabbed my collar and asked again.
“You’re not answering…?”
Slap—
“Answer me.”
“O-okay…! I get it…!”
In the end, the pain won. I nodded frantically. Teodora seemed satisfied and gently stroked the cheek she had just struck.
“Good boy. I’m sorry, Aren. Did it hurt a lot…?”
Fucking lunatic.
There were no other words to describe her. But if I got angry here, I might just get hit again. So I swallowed my rage and spoke as calmly as I could.
“…It’s fine. Now will you get off me?”
Teodora tilted her head as if she genuinely didn’t understand.
“What? What are you talking about…? I clearly said I’d take everything, didn’t I?”
“What?”
Riiip—!
In one swift motion, she tore my clothes open. Had she really lost her mind? Her personality was the complete opposite of what it used to be. Chaos instead of order. Violence instead of conversation. Her once-solid beliefs had been twisted beyond recognition.
“Teodora, are you actually insane…? We’re outside!”
“Why…? We’re already broken up anyway. What’s the problem? Oh, is it because I’m a commoner…? Don’t worry. If I graduate as the top seat of the academy, I’ll be granted a title. After that, we can get properly married and live happily ever after. If you feel too burdened, Aren, we can just live alone somewhere far away.”
“Stop talking bullshit. Why the hell would I marry someone like—”
Slap—!
“O-okay, okay! Stop hitting me…!”
Teodora lowered her hand and asked again, as if demanding confirmation.
“Then we’re getting married, right? Yes?”
“Just let me go first. If you let go, I’ll think about it.”
It was clear now. Teodora was not in her right mind. There was no point trying to reason with a crazy person. I just had to get her off me first…
Slap—!
Fuck. At this point, all I felt was pure anger.
“Damn it! I told you to stop hitting me…!”
“You still haven’t answered, have you?”
“…Fuck off. I’m never giving you the answer you want. Go ahead. Keep hitting me.”
No matter how strong she had become, how long could she keep this up? We were right next to the dormitory. Someone would come and stop her soon.
“Really?”
Smack—!
“Aaaargh! You crazy bitch…!”
The force was on a completely different level this time. The inside of my mouth tore open. The metallic taste of blood filled my tongue. It hurt. I had experienced plenty of pain while attending the academy—being cut by blades, stabbed by spears—but this was the first time my face had been beaten like this.
What was even more despairing was the fact that, despite everything, I couldn’t offer the slightest resistance to the Teodora in front of me. My frail body couldn’t hold any meaningful mana, and every attempt at resistance scattered uselessly beneath her overwhelming strength.
If this keeps going…
I would really end up helplessly submitting. I would end up giving her exactly what she wanted. I didn’t want that. Especially not if it was Teodora.
Forcing down the blood pooling in my mouth, I looked straight into her eyes.
“Teodora. You’re finished.”
“…Huh?”
“Did you forget we’re outside? No matter how much of a scoundrel I’m known as, this is clearly one hundred percent your fault. That means you’re getting disciplined.”
Top seat of the academy? What a joke. Teodora was looking at expulsion. I was clearly the one being pinned down and injured. Anyone could see who the aggressor was. No matter how talented she was, she was still just a commoner. Even if I was a scoundrel, laying hands on a noble like me meant she couldn’t avoid punishment.
Teodora’s expression grew thoughtful, as if she were seriously considering my words. Maybe reality was finally sinking in.
“Now are you willing to get off? If you apologize sincerely right now, I might be willing to overlook—”
Before I could finish, Teodora tilted her head and placed her hand on my forehead, like she was checking on a sick patient.
“…That’s strange. Are you not understanding the situation?”
“……?”
“Look, Aren. The reason I ‘subdued’ you like this is because you tried to force yourself on me, right…?”
“What…? That’s complete nonsense!”
“You tried to molest me by taking advantage of our friendship. Overwhelmed by shame, I pinned you to the ground to stop you. And in that process, ‘self-defense’ occurred, didn’t it…?”
Her absurd words were delivered with such deadly seriousness that I was left speechless.
“Ha… Teodora. No matter what bullshit you spout, once the truth comes out, it’s over.”
“Hmm. Then who’s going to prove that truth…?”
“……?”
“We’re near the dormitory, but there’s no one around right now. It’s just the two of us. Even if something happens, who do you think people will believe? Me, or you, Aren?”
Of course, everyone would trust the well-regarded Teodora. After all, I had the stigma of being a scoundrel.
Fuck.
This was an incredibly difficult situation.
“…So what exactly are you trying to do?”
“I already told you. I’m going to take everything. Your body. Your heart.”
“Stop with the nonsense and tell me what you really want. Do you want another elixir? Or money?”
There was no way Teodora was doing this because she genuinely loved me. This had to be some kind of threat. Even after a year, I still remembered a few of the hidden pieces. If that was what she wanted, I was willing to hand them over.
“Haha. You really haven’t changed. You still don’t have any idea what I truly want…?”
Teodora covered her mouth and laughed like a madwoman. For some reason, her laughter looked incredibly sad. Then again, I was the one who wanted to cry right now, so I had no interest in trying to understand her insane behavior.
I spoke to her in a desperate voice.
“Please. I’ll get you anything you want. Just… stop coming near me, Teodora.”
Whoosh—
I flinched hard.
“Ugh…”
When she raised her hand, I instinctively closed my eyes.
“……”
Surprisingly, Teodora didn’t hit me again. Instead, she changed her tone and spoke in a gentle, caring voice.
“Aren, don’t be too scared. I won’t hit you anymore.”
“…Really?”
She seemed to have had a change of heart. She released her grip and stood up.
“Yes. I’ll stop here for ‘today.’”
“Today…?”
That meant there would be a tomorrow. The thought sent chills down my spine.
As Teodora stood, I struggled to push my battered body up as well.
“Aren, you know what will happen if you report this, right?”
“…You’ve really gone off the deep end. Why are you doing this, Teodora? You were at least…”
She had always been stubborn and a bit frustrating, but at her core, Teodora had been a good person. She wasn’t the kind of person who would beat someone and threaten them. How had she become this broken?
“Aren, I feel really good right now. Pretending to be awkwardly righteous never suited me. This feels much more natural, don’t you think?”
She smiled brightly. It was a smile without a single trace of regret. A pure, happy smile.
It wasn’t Solia, Isilla, or Ilia who had kept such an innocent smile. Rather, it was Teodora—the strict, serious girl who never seemed like she would smile at all.
Chu—
Teodora pressed her lips against my swollen, reddened cheek. Her lips felt dry and cracked rather than soft. It stung.
“See you tomorrow, Aren.”
With an expression that looked almost shy—like a bashful young girl—she quickly turned and left. In the place where she had stood, only the cold night air remained, drifting faintly.
“……”
I don’t know how much time passed. For some reason, laughter began to bubble up from inside me.
“Ha… hahaha…”
In that one year, it wasn’t just me who had been broken.
“Heuk… heuk…”
The laughter wouldn’t stop.