The Heavenly Demon's Demise
I felt something uneasy about him. It was as if someone had called my name. I hurried the children upstairs. But waiting for me at the top of the stairs was Squar, covered in blood.
"Noona, are you okay?!"
"I'm fine. It's not my blood. I just ran into some enemies. Anyway... what's with all the kids you're dragging along, maknae?"
I explained everything that had happened. Squar nodded as if she understood. Despite how she looked, she was someone with deep affection—just like the old Heavenly Demon. They were the ones who had given the orphan Werner—me—a surname, a name, and so much more.
"Got it. First priority is getting the kids out of here. The old man can handle himself, so let's get out first. Something feels off about this place. Next time we'll bring more allies and—"
"No, you take the kids and get out first, Noona. I'm going to look for the old man. Like you said, I can't shake this bad feeling."
I couldn't ignore the ominous sensation wrapping around my body. It felt like black, sticky coal tar clinging to my skin. My instincts were warning me. Or was this intuition coming from the gloves? What the hell had that damned mother done to them?
"No, you idiot!"
"Sorry, Noona! Take the kids and go ahead!"
"You know how strong that monster of an old man is! He's the second strongest after Zeek. If he's a traitor, you're dead! And even if he's not, even if he's in danger, what could you possibly do? Why go against an enemy even he couldn't beat?!"
"I still feel like I have to go!"
"You brain-dead moron!"
Maybe I really was a brain-dead moron. Even knowing the danger, my body moved on its own. Was this the influence of Werner's personality? Or my own instincts? I didn't know. Right now, Werner and I had merged like sugar dissolved in coffee. Whichever it was, my instincts had decided.
I dashed down the path the Heavenly Demon had taken. The corridor was absurdly long. What the hell were the Black Round Table bastards building down here? Not that it mattered now.
After running for about twenty minutes, a massive iron door blocked my way.
"O wind, shatter the barrier before me."
A fierce gale blew, forcing the heavy door open. I'd already spent nearly half my mana spamming spells in the previous fight, and the door was heavier than expected, draining more mana than I'd anticipated.
"Old man! Are you alright?! Why haven't you come out yet—"
I couldn't believe my eyes. The Heavenly Demon, second only to Zeek in the story, lay collapsed with his chest pierced through.
I rushed to his side.
"Old man! Open your eyes! Who did this?! Damn it, we need to get you out and treat you first! Can you stand?"
The Heavenly Demon said nothing. His heart was gone. Wind passed through the gaping hole in his chest and brushed against my hand.
"Clinging to a corpse and reacting like that... How truly moving. A tear-jerking melodrama."
A familiar voice. That loathsome Rocket Dan bastard.
"Hey... Lancelot, is that you?"
"Lancelot is certainly one of the names I've been given. But I'd prefer you clarify your question."
"You fucking pointy-eared bastard. Did you kill the old man?"
Tears streamed from my eyes without warning. This was definitely Werner's personality bleeding through. To me, the Heavenly Demon was just a game character I'd known for a few days. But to Werner, he had been like family. If Zeek was a brother, Camellia a sister, and Media a first love... then Squar was a mother, and the Heavenly Demon a father.
Countless memories Werner had shared with the Heavenly Demon flashed before me like a panorama.
One day, Werner overheard merchants from the East pointing at him and laughing in their native tongue. Though he couldn't understand the language, he remembered the sound of certain words.
"Old man, that sounded like Eastern speech... What does 'fatherless bastard' mean?"
"Why do you ask so suddenly?"
"The merchants from the East pointed at me and called me a fatherless bastard. I don't know much Eastern."
The Heavenly Demon smiled kindly and patted Werner's head.
"Agh, damn it! My hair's all messed up!"
"This little—"
Werner rubbed the lump forming on his crown after receiving a lightning-fast knuckle to the head. The Heavenly Demon cleared his throat and spoke.
"If anyone says that again, just ignore them. You have a good older brother, and you have me. If you truly wish it, I could become your adoptive father—"
"No thanks. You don't have any inheritance to leave behind, and I'd probably end up nursing you when you're sick anyway. Besides, what does that even mean? It's so cringey—"
Three more knuckle strikes rained down in succession. Werner clutched his head and rolled on the ground. The Heavenly Demon crouched down and asked in a chilling voice,
"By the way, which bastards... which people said that to you?"
"The uncles near the ships from the East at the harbor."
"Heh... They came from my homeland. I suppose I should extend them some hospitality."
That day, several ships from the Eastern continent sank for unknown reasons. The Heavenly Demon himself claimed to know nothing about it.
"Old man... Grandfather..."
Whose question was this? But the Heavenly Demon gave no answer. Like that foolish child, he remained silent.
Whose pain was this, tearing my chest apart? It hurt too much to dismiss as merely Werner's.
"I'll kill you. I swear I'll kill you with my own hands."
"Hah... I wish you'd stop misunderstanding. I only took his left arm. The one who took his life was Mordred—the traitor among you."
"Save that bullshit for hell and whisper it in your mother's ear, you son of a bitch."
"How vulgar. Have you abandoned a mage's dignity?"
"I left it at your mother's grave, you bastard."
Lancelot remained composed. Though he wore no expression, he didn't draw his sword even as I radiated killing intent, merely leaning against the wall. I didn't know how much more he needed to look down on people before he'd be satisfied, but none of that mattered now.
"I'll kill you. Die and go to hell to atone... Return everything people lost because of you and then drop dead!!!"
They had stolen the meaning of life from Werner. They had taken his family from that pitiful man. They had taken from me a man who might have become my closest friend. They had taken from Werner—me—the man he regarded as a father.
Whose tears these were, whose cries, whose sorrow, whose rage—no longer mattered.
Werner, your tears are my tears. My cries are your cries. Your sorrow is my sorrow. And this rage is our rage.
"O horn of the thunder dragon, pierce the wicked and judge them—"
"O horn of the thunder dragon, pierce the wicked and judge them."
Before I could finish the incantation, light flashed from Lancelot's fingertips. A dragon-shaped bolt of lightning pierced my solar plexus. Warm liquid flowed down my once-cold body, and high-voltage current surged through me, setting every nerve ablaze.
"Ghh...!"
"Anger makes even spells waver. Magic is the celebration of knowledge—an art fundamentally opposed to petty emotions like rage."
"Shut up, you psycho bastard..."
"A Spirit King and Archmage, defeated because he couldn't control his own emotions... How disappointing."
He clicked his tongue at the blood staining my body.
"I came here today to punish that foolish woman who was smuggling test subjects... but it seems she died first. How pathetic."
He spat on Olga's corpse.
"Shut up. He was a hundred times better than scum like you!"
Damn it. Breathing was getting harder... I had to find an opening somehow...
"Those who call themselves moderates seemed to think that joining Tristan would let them change the Round Table... but unfortunately, that man despises this world more than anyone."
"Tristan or Christmas tree or whatever—don't care... just die already."
I drew the dagger Olga had left behind and lunged at Lancelot.
"What an unsightly struggle."
Lancelot dodged my attack effortlessly and stomped me into the ground.
"To think the result of denying me would be something like this... How truly pathetic. Just die here—"
The moment his sword moved to take my life, the clash of steel rang out. Lancelot's gaze shifted.
"You've come."
In the direction Lancelot looked stood Camellia.
"Step aside immediately, Father. After taking my comrade... if you dare lay a hand on someone precious to me, I'll take your life."
But Lancelot didn't even blink.
"How many times must I say it wasn't I who killed him before you all understand?"