Chapter 7
Chapter 7
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Translator: Vine
Chapter: 7
Chapter Title: Why Are You Here?
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Why are you here?
Why are happy moments so fleeting?
Why does this merciless, cruel reality so carelessly snatch away what is precious?
‘*Sniffle*.’
I buried myself in the worn-out sofa, which had lost most of its fluff, and pounded it with my soft, squishy limbs.
I’m sad. I’m miserable.
Why did this have to happen to me!
I stopped pounding and slowly turned my head.
On the floor lay a beautiful but crumpled box.
Inside it, the source of my happiness was stored.
‘*Sob sob sob*…’
Tears streamed down my face as I let out a silent wail.
I couldn’t tear my eyes away from the box.
The source of my happiness inside was a complete mess.
The various desserts had been jumbled together, their shapes ruined.
Just as a pretty rice cake looks delicious, appearance is incredibly important.
‘*Waaah*…’
It was all their fault.
On my way here, I bumped into someone.
The box flew from my hands and tumbled spectacularly across the floor.
Naturally, a dance party of desserts erupted inside. By the time I rushed to the rescue, it was already an unsalvageable disaster.
I could only despair.
I had dodged.
I’m sure I stepped aside just before the collision, but they were the ones who ran into me.
Yes, everyone makes mistakes.
If they had apologized first, bought me new desserts as compensation, and we had parted ways with a friendly laugh, this story would have had a happy ending.
But fairy tales are just fiction.
And because they are fiction, reality is cruel.
-Hey! Are your eyes just for decoration? Where the hell are you looking when you walk! That’s it, I’m gonna grab this kid and…
-Hey, stop it. We have things to do. We don’t have time to mess around here.
-Fine. Tsk. You got lucky. Hmph!
And just like that, the group disappeared.
How dare they make such a mess of my desserts and be so rude.
I got up from the sofa, walked over to the box, and hugged it tightly.
I pressed my soft cheek against it, rubbing it gently.
‘I will avenge you all.’
It was as if I could hear the desserts cheering me on.
I wiped my teary eyes with my arm.
Rising to my feet, I steeled my resolve.
I could feel a fire of determination igniting in my eyes.
I wanted to rush out right this second, but there was something I had to do first.
‘Even if they’re misshapen, they should still taste the same. I’ll have one before I start.’
I picked up the box and walked toward the refrigerator.
Then, I carefully selected one and neatly placed the rest inside.
My choice was a chocolate brownie.
With a serious expression, I took a small bite and chewed.
But as the sweetness spread through my mouth, my face slackened into a goofy grin.
No. This won’t extinguish my thirst for revenge.
‘They’re gravely mistaken if they think they can mess with my desserts and get away with it.’
I swallowed and finished the rest of the brownie.
A strong sense of emptiness lingered today.
My right hand reached for the refrigerator, but my other hand quickly grabbed it.
‘I have to resist.’
In my mind, countless short, stumpy versions of myself debated what to do.
They tangled together, arguing and holding a trial.
At the end of the trial, a judge who looked exactly like me delivered the final verdict.
Bang! Bang! Bang!
And with that, my mind was made up.
‘Ah, screw it! Just one more. This is all for the sake of gathering energy for my revenge. I have no choice.’
It’s definitely not because I was overcome by desire and broke my own rule.
This is all for the sake of revenge.
I took another one from the fridge, popped it into my mouth, and chewed.
Hee hee. This is bliss.
*
It took three weeks.
Finding out what organization they belonged to and where their base was located took some time.
But it doesn’t matter, since I found them in the end.
‘The moon is beautiful tonight.’
I gazed at the full moon in the night sky, feeling sentimental.
I felt like I should be spending this peaceful time sipping a soda with the moon as my companion.
But now is not the time for that.
I buried the wistful feeling and turned my gaze from the moon.
‘I wonder what they’re doing right now. I hope they’re having the happiest moment of their lives. That way, they’ll feel exactly what I felt.’
I was currently standing on a building’s rooftop.
My gaze was fixed on a small building in the distance. It looked tiny because of the considerable distance.
The lights in that building were on.
It was also the place I was about to attack.
‘This candy is delicious. Why would they discontinue something so good?’
The reason I wasn’t attacking right away was because of the candy.
Before starting, I was eating the rainbow lollipop Red had given me before.
Every time I rolled the candy around in my mouth, I could really taste eighteen different flavors.
The reason for my leisurely pace was simple.
It was my own final act of goodwill.
Just as a death row inmate is given their desired meal on the day of their execution, I was giving them one last moment to themselves.
I’m just that nice.
As I licked and rolled the candy with the tip of my tongue,
it was almost gone, leaving only a tiny piece.
*Crunch. Crunch.*
All gone. A bit of a shame. I wish I could have it again.
I licked the end of the stick, sucking up any remaining sweetness.
Then I pulled the stick from my mouth.
I played with the stick for a moment.
Imbuing it with a bit of magic, I flicked it lightly toward their base.
‘It’s a bit early, but this is my Merry Christmas gift to you.’
The stick flew at an incredible speed, and despite the considerable distance,
it shattered a window of the building and landed perfectly inside.
A moment later, I saw a crowd of black-clad figures swarming outside the building.
They must have really liked my gift.
You might wonder why I’m causing such a commotion.
The reason is simple.
Just as a phantom thief announces their heist before stealing a treasure, I’m giving them a warning of what’s to come.
In short, it’s a declaration of war. A courtesy, if you will, to let them know they’re about to be attacked and should prepare for a fight.
Since this is their end, I think it’s better for them to go out in a blaze of glory, putting up a thorough resistance,
rather than meeting a dull end.
Who knows, maybe they’ll struggle and miraculously survive. Well, I’ve never missed a target so far, but still.
‘Time to go.’
I clasped my hands together and stretched them high above my head.
I moved my body from side to side, lightly warming up.
As I gathered my magic, a black mist swirled around me.
The mist soon cleared, and I glanced at a puddle of water on the rooftop floor.
Reflected on the surface was a giant figure armed in fearsome armor and a helmet.
It looked just like a dark knight from a fantasy game.
Befitting its terrifying appearance, a dark aura gently shimmered around its body.
Before setting off, I turned my head not toward my destination, but in another direction.
‘…’
Then, I shifted my gaze back to my target and leaped without hesitation.
I vaulted over buildings, moving swiftly toward my destination.
Let’s end this quickly.
Before others can intervene and make things complicated.
*
Every time I appeared in my Grim Reaper form, the organization members reacted the same way.
At first, they wouldn’t recognize me, but once they realized who I was,
panic, shock, fear—
all sorts of emotions would cross their faces as they drew their weapons and attacked me.
A desperate struggle not to kill, but to survive.
“What? Is it real?! Is it really him?! Is that really the Grim Reaper?!”
“Why the hell is he here?”
“Don’t stop attacking! Just keep firing, anything you’ve got!”
Flames born of magic and science rained down relentlessly.
A barrage powerful and merciless enough to completely obliterate any normal person on impact.
Unfortunately for them, it had no effect on me.
The armor I made was quite durable; it didn’t even get a scratch.
As I strode out of the roaring flames,
they all stared in horror, as if they had seen a ghost.
“Dieee!!”
“Damn it! Damn it! Damn it!”
I stretched my hand toward the presence I felt in my left periphery.
The members in that direction froze, their attacks ceasing.
When I slightly raised my arm, over a hundred people floated into the air.
As I clenched my fist, a blue flame erupted on their chests, instantly engulfing their bodies. They vanished without a trace, unable to even scream.
“You monster!”
“Just die already!”
I lightly swung the sword in my right hand toward where I sensed movement.
A wave of blue sword energy shot out, sweeping over the members.
A long gash was carved into the floor, and a large scar was etched into the wall behind them.
It was just a light swing, as if swatting away gnats.
But the building shook violently, and the members were wiped out.
The survivors completely lost their will to fight and scrambled to escape.
But I didn't let them go. Even when they begged for their lives, there was no mercy.
They’re criminals. I’m not naive enough to show compassion to criminals.
I wonder, did they spare the people who begged them for their lives?
After dealing with the small fry, I reached the inner depths.
There stood three figures exuding an aura completely different from the grunts. I presumed they were the leaders of the organization.
“Khahaha! You’ve certainly made a lot of noise. Are you that famous Grim Reaper? You really do look the part.”
A tail with a club, and a snake-like tongue.
Slit pupils.
And his entire body was covered in red scales, similar to those of a reptile.
He was a lizardman.
There was a yellow one and a blue one, too.
“We of the Three-Headed Dragon are descendants of dragons. I am the eldest, Igni. Over there is the second, Varuna, and that one is the third, Indra.”
I scoffed inwardly at a mere lizard claiming to be a dragon.
They weren’t afraid of me.
On the contrary, I could feel their fighting spirit.
“I’ve always been curious. Can we, the descendants of dragons, truly tear apart the Grim Reaper?”
The red one grinned, his mouth splitting wide.
“This will be a good fight. Now, taste it. The power of a dragon!”
The magic in the air was sucked into the red one’s mouth.
A large amount of magic was compressed, glowing red.
Then, the red one opened its maw wide, looking at me.
A beam of fire shot straight toward me.
As expected, it wasn’t a dragon’s breath.
I suppose it’s not a skill a lizard could imitate.
I held out my left hand. Without moving a single step from where I stood.
I effortlessly blocked the lukewarm heat ray, using my magic to compress its energy into a single point.
A moment later, a ball of blue flame materialized above my left palm.
‘Here, you can have it back.’
Facing the red one, I released the magic from the ball of fire. A jet-black beam, ten times larger than the one he had just used, shot straight out.
Everything in the beam’s path was vaporized without a trace.
Including the red one, of course.
“Brother!”
The yellow one charged at me with lightning speed. He closed the distance in an instant, thrusting his lightning-wreathed claws at me.
But I leisurely grabbed the yellow one’s wrist.
I repeatedly slammed him into the ground, over and over.
“Let go of my brother!”
The blue one made his move.
Being the kind soul that I am, I did as the blue one asked and threw the yellow one at him.
He looked flustered, clearly not having expected my actions.
And perhaps because I had thrown him too fast, he failed to catch the yellow one properly.
They both went flying and crashed into the wall.
Since they were conveniently overlapping, I swung my arm toward them. The viciously launched sword pierced through both their bodies.
Silence fell over the scene of the finished deed.
With this, my desserts have been successfully avenged.
I recalled my sword, retrieving it.
‘I’m glad it ended much more easily than I expected. I should get out of here before… Is it already too late?’
A fierce and savage killing intent pierced through my entire body, causing me to stumble for a moment.
But I didn’t lose my senses. I immediately swung my sword toward the approaching danger, and it collided with something that came at me with incredible speed.
The impact of the collision sent cracks spiderwebbing across the floor, and the blast of air sent the scattered debris flying.
‘Huh? This one is…?’
I couldn’t help but freeze in surprise when I saw my attacker’s face.
It was Red, whom I had seen a few weeks ago.