Chapter 144
Chapter 144
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 144
Chapter Title: Demon and Archmage (6)
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Kadim climbed back up the stairs he had first descended and flung open the sarcophagus lid.
Drag...
With the demon's death, the demonic energy had dissipated, brightening the burial chamber considerably. But now, no one would ever visit this empty tomb again. The final visitor gave the coffin a hollow glance before trampling the wilted flowers and heading outside.
A man in white robes sat in the corner of the lounge, a twisted smile playing on his lips as if he had intuited everything that had transpired inside.
The Tower Master looked up at the blood-soaked warrior and spoke calmly.
"You've annihilated my true body and seen Melissa's records."
"......"
"It's hard to believe... but with it already done, saying such things is rather ridiculous. Even the malice of a high demon, accumulated over centuries, wasn't enough to devour you. Instead, my true body became... your prey."
Kadim indifferently wiped his torn mouth. His bloodstained face still reeked of blood. The Tower Master feigned composure and cautiously asked,
"...By any chance, were you the one who subdued the demon-possessed elder in Soltana and slew the central demon?"
"......"
The indifferent gaze without denial was confirmation enough. The Tower Master let out a fragmented chuckle.
"From a conventional viewpoint, humans are utterly insignificant compared to demons. Yet I believe the potential of humans is boundless, surpassing even that of demons."
"......"
"This isn't some abstract talk of will or conviction. Just as demons feed on pain and despair to ascend, I think humans can rise to higher realms by fulfilling 'certain conditions.' Otherwise, you couldn't have slain the seekers of mystery and high demons like this..."
Kadim slowly stroked his chin.
It was a fairly intriguing hypothesis. Indeed, he had gained superhuman strength by slaughtering countless demons and monsters. Arch Paladins and past heroes had reached inhuman heights as well...
"So I didn't see Melissa turning me human as regression. I thought it opened new possibilities. I just... couldn't find the key to those possibilities..."
But now was not the time for idle chatter.
Swoosh—slash!
Kadim interrupted him by aiming the pitch-black axe at his throat.
"No matter how much you babble, it won't change the fact that you're a filthy demon spawn at your core."
"......"
"Isn't that right, 'Aculanos'."
The demon, called by his true name, cast a complicated gaze downward. Kadim's eyes were ice-cold.
'Possession-type' demons didn't lose their attached thoughts even if the main body died. Most had vanished with the true body's destruction, but leaving this fragment alive meant the demon wasn't fully eradicated.
Of course, even left alone, it wouldn't last long. Bound by Melissa's countless restrictions and unable to replenish thoughts now that the main body was gone, it would die naturally when the flesh expired.
But Kadim never forgot his principle.
Never leave future troubles behind.
This one had used people as sacrifices for magic, corrupting mages into mad beings chasing higher realms. It couldn't justify its atrocities just because it bore Melissa's mission. Left alive, who knew what it might do under that pretext again.
The axe blade pressed chillingly into his forehead. The Tower Master bit his lip hard. His dulled eyes already resembled those of a dead man.
But just before his skull split, the Tower Master pleaded desperately.
"...You are right, Lord Kadim. No matter how much I mimic a human, I'm merely a fragment of a vile demon. But even so... as the successor who upheld Melissa's will for centuries, may I make one final request?"
Kadim stared piercingly into the trembling eyes.
After a moment nearly an eon long, he silently granted permission. The Tower Master sighed deeply as the axe blade pulled away, steadying his chest crushed like under a boulder before finally speaking.
"...The Melissa of today may not be the one you remember. She lived a life beyond what humans are permitted and endured harsher pain and despair than anyone. Her mind might already be twisted, rotten, and festering like that of the demon-possessed or a madman."
"......"
"Even so... embrace her. Understand her. Don't cast her aside. Don't leave her side again, and listen to the stories she couldn't confide in anyone, festering inside. No matter how ugly she appears, like a filthy mire, look deeper and you'll see. At the bottom lies an innocent, foolish mage who spent eons dreaming of one person..."
"......"
"But if... even so, despite everything, she's so horribly warped that even your magnanimity can't embrace her..."
The Tower Master's eyes quivered faintly. Like carving out a rotten piece of his heart, he barely dragged out the words he didn't want but had to say.
"...At the very least, grant Melissa peace with your own hands—not someone else's."
"......"
"This is my final plea."
Silence.
All the world's sounds vanished, leaving only profound stillness.
How much time passed? The tip of Kadim's chin moved ever so slightly. A minuscule nod, but the deep blue eyes caught it without fail.
Only then did the Tower Master close his eyes peacefully and accept death.
As if proclaiming the end of his reprieve, Atala's judgment fell mercilessly.
Splurt—crunch!
A heavy rupture echoed as blood sprayed bitterly.
The man dreamed. No, he sank into worn, filthy recollections. In the memory, he desperately chased after a woman leaving the Magic Tower.
'M-Melissa! Lady Melissa! Where are you going now! Did the grand magic to open another world succeed? Why erase all traces left in the tower and leave again...'
'......'
No answer came from the woman. She merely staggered like a lost soul, then blankly gazed at the sky and called the man's name.
'Aculanos.'
'...Y-Yes, Lady Melissa. I'm listening.'
'I'm sorry. For bringing you here.'
'...Pardon?'
'I was wrong. Demons can never become human. Humans can never turn demonic energy into a new source of magic. You are neither demon nor human... just a mongrel born of my foolish whim.'
'......'
'So... Aculanos, I'll give you one last choice.'
Countless recitations etched like scars.
Some moments transcend time, enduring eternally. The drizzling rain, disheveled red hair clinging wetly, unfocused eyes, twisted smile. If he made a gallery of his life's memories, that instant would hang prominently in the center.
Back to the present.
No, in the gap of consciousness like a fleeting lantern show, neither present nor past, Aculanos monologued.
- Do you know, Melissa? I still don't regret choosing to live on as that mongrel. Though my essence is incomplete, my life has been a string of perfect successes.
And it had been.
Finding a substitute for depleted ancient mana, establishing a new magic system, subjugating rampant demons, protecting the tower from external threats, ultimately fulfilling every mission she entrusted... A life more brilliant than most greats.
- In contrast, your life was a string of failures. Endless, fatal failures. But if we see life not as fragmented pieces but as a grand magic circle drawing a single mystery... your life succeeded, and mine failed. Do you know why?
No one was there to answer. Endless void in consciousness. At the end of futile waiting, Aculanos answered himself.
- The one you waited for your entire life... has finally returned like this.
Yet the one who saved me, made me, confined me, abandoned me.
- The one I waited for my entire life... never returned in the end.
And above all.
- I... failed to become human until the very end.
The moment he uttered and admitted it, pain seeped in abruptly.
Aculanos slowly opened his eyes and faced reality.
Hot blood flowed in, dyeing his vision red. The axe blade embedded in his forehead ignited excruciating agony like a thousand fires. A pitiful groan bubbled from his throat.
"Aaaagh, kugh, aaah, kuaaaagh..."
Yet death hadn't come. A face darker than the abyss looked down at him.
"...Does it hurt?"
No need to speak. It hurt excruciatingly. He'd do anything to end this pain even a second sooner.
"...It must hurt. Death is a truly egalitarian friend. Demons and humans alike writhe in agony, dying helplessly. Your mage followers, your high demon true body, the humans who ended as mere magic stone fodder— they all probably died similarly."
The bass voice carried overwhelming power. A stern question fell toward the rigid, corpse-like Aculanos.
"And yet, beyond pain and despair, does something emerge?"
"......"
"Demons exist in solitude. They may serve higher demons but never accept them as part of themselves. Humans, however, coexist. They form themselves from memories of meeting, interacting, parting with others. Thus, even in death, they don't drown in pain but recall those who became part of them."
Shunk—crunch!
The axe blade pulled from his cheek. Before the pained scream, another question fell.
"So, I ask again."
"Kughhh, heuk..."
"Think, demon. Beyond the horrific pain and despair, is there a face that emerges?"
"...Kuh, ugh."
"A face that emerges?"
There was.
Definitely. A face clearer than death itself, unerasable even if his mind was painted blood-red.
Tremors shook his heart. He bit his lips until they burst. His throat choked, no groan escaping. Blood-filled eyes gradually diluted, rippling with faint light.
Seeing it, Kadim muttered candidly.
"Looks like there is one."
"......"
"Then you've finally reached humanity."
A faint smile rose on Aculanos's lips.
A smile of resignation after endless waiting, realization that the wait wasn't in vain, awareness that his life succeeded to the end.
Born a wretched demon.
Dying human, if belatedly.
As you yearned solely for the warrior who left you lifelong.
So did I yearn for you until my dying breath.
The axe blade rose again. The moment to sever life's rusted chains after long years arrived. Aculanos swallowed surging emotion and left final words.
"Tha... thank you... Lord Kadim... and..."
"......"
"Your wait... wasn't in vain... I'm glad, Melissa..."
The axe fell. This time, mercilessly, without chance of survival.
Shunk—crunch!
A savage rending sound burst forth.
The blood of one born demon but died human scattered like dew on the pristine stone floor.
The greatest guide, Duncan Wheeled, was lost in the Magic Tower.
"......"
He wondered himself. Kadim had only told him to hide well, so why had he crawled back into the tower...? If anything, it stemmed from a thought during hiding.
'Wait, didn't my lord say he'd go to the tower's lowest level? What if he gets lost nearby...'
Something entirely possible without the greatest guide, Duncan. But with the greatest guide who freely navigated the tower, Duncan, the risk plummeted. Thus, the greatest guide, Duncan, had come to aid his companions in crisis at the perfect time.
...In short, the main cause was getting cocky from Kadim's praise.
The situation had changed now. That elation had long evaporated.
Specifically: 30% upon facing the storm leaving the inn, 50% seeing mages' corpses piled before the tower, 20% wandering aimlessly searching for Kadim and getting lost. Now, 100% of Duncan's mind held only regret for coming.
"Hoo..."
At least comfort in wearing a high mage's robe and Nightshadow Cloak. Duncan rose to search for an exit again.
Then, raucous noise echoed from the corridor ahead.
Drag, drrrrag—!
"Damn it, no way! How could Elder Oklamud be dead..."
"Hurry! We can't let anyone else see! If we're caught, they'll take every last coin..."
Mages dashed pulling a cart. Sky-blue robes meant lower rank than him. He'd normally let them pass without needless risk, but...
After seeing the chests on the cart, his eyes rolled back.
Duncan threw off his cloak and blocked their path abruptly. The mages froze in terror.
"Heuk!"
"Uheuk!! C-Conjurer..."
Clunk, the cart shook, chests' contents gleaming brightly. Duncan slowly scanned their pale faces, then sternly stroked his goatee.
"Hey, you lot... Where are you taking all that gold?"
"......"
"......"
The mages stealing Elder Oklamud's secret funds stood dumbfounded like honey-mutes.