Chapter 46: Madness Eventually Becomes Love And Sings.
It wasnt like this from the beginning.
It was just that as achievements grew, so did desires, and the resulting distortion progressed unnoticed.
Mephisto. My first vassal.
Thus, her Lord, who had collapsed, began to sink into thoughts while staring at the empty paper laid before him.
Reflecting on the times when he sought only to ascend, unlike now when there was nowhere higher to go.
Do you remember? The days we spent together.
Yes, I remember.
Among the trash-strewn beggars, one was outstandingly strong, and another was so weak that he was not even considered a competitor.
But for either, it was too much to face dangers alone, so the stronger one extended his hand to the weaker, saying,
Help me. In doing so, I will guarantee you a better future than you have now.
It started with clinging on just to get scraps.
With the aid of such a follower, the strong one gradually grew, conquered streets full of thugs, caught the eye of the ruling class with his fame, and stepped into the battlefield to pursue victory.
Thus, after repeated growth and soon even defeating them, he ascended to the throne.
Eventually, standing at the pinnacle of a world, he expressed gratitude to his first vassal and shared with him the view he beheld.
Look, my first vassal. Remember this view from the top!
For the weak one from the garbage dump, it was a brilliant and grand view, something she would never have dared to see.
When she realized that all of it was under her feet, a desire beyond the will to survive began to bloom in the heart of the prey at the bottom of the food chain.
Just standing beside someone with the qualities of a ruler, she felt the anticipation of indirectly experiencing that glory.
The moment she realized that the only one who could fulfill that was the one before her, her heart eventually led to a mission to serve by his side.
You too will be like me.
For that, she offered true loyalty. She devoted herself with a true heart.
Even if such feelings were considered alien to the demon race, she took pride in that oddity.
If what she had truly should not have been possessed by a demon, she proudly embraced even that desire (madness) as her origin.
You will understand me too.
The Demon King, sensing that such a calling had followed and collapsed with him, demanded his vassal empathize with him.
You too will keenly feel this sentiment of a vessel that grows over time but is never filled!
She understood.
Believing that death was the only way to alleviate it, Mephisto understood her Lords heart better than anyone.
Yet, why do you, who I thought shared my destiny, who I believed to be my only confidant, say you are leaving my side?
Even so, facing her decision to leave, a flicker of interest began to appear in the Demon Kings eyes.
Anticipation
Yes, it was anticipation.
As if he held hope in the fact that his confidant, in finally leaving his side, had something he wanted to achieve.
Finally, have you found something to look forward to?
My Lord.
Tell me. You who understand me, to whom do you intend to go, even to the point of leaving my side?
Seeing him still find hope despite such a betrayal of expectation, Mephisto felt her heart constrict.
Is that person stronger than me? Much more so crossing dimensions, stronger than I, who have destroyed everything that can be destroyed?
She wanted to tell him.
That she, who knew the fate of those with nowhere left to climb, could no longer feel desire for the powerful.
Then introduce him to me, too. If there is someone who can fight equally with me as in the past, I too might be able to revive the thrill of those times
But should she tell him?
There should be a big difference between one who falls into despair just by watching and one who falls into despair by acting.
Who could guarantee that he, who had already ruined much for his own desire, would reach out his devilish hands towards the man she wanted to protect?
No, even if thats not the case, its fine. Just being strong enough not to be completely trampled is enough! As long as they are stronger than those around me!!
My Lord.
So, it must be stopped.
Even before he could speak, an unperceived warning began to spill out in front of him.
Do you remember the number of sand grains you have trampled so far?
The power of madness leaking from her body spread through her voice.
Knowing it was futile against the torrent of power that he emitted, yet hoping that at least her voice reached him.
I am just one of the sand grains you have trampled, one that has particularly remained in your memory. Merely one of the countless sand grains you have trampled so far.
Do you really want to spend your time with such an insignificant being?
Yes, it must be stopped.
Because of the twisted attachment to expectation, one couldnt know how it would ruin the being it would reach.
Because she, who barely escaped from the infinite void she possessed, did not want to be swallowed by it again.
I dont know.
But even her intention seemed not to be conveyed. Only a vain voice leaked from her lips.
I do not understand what you are doing this for, nor do I understand what you are saying.
My Lord.
Go.
The bowing of his head at the end was neither due to understanding her nor out of respect or mercy.
Simply because he could not understand.
Whatever it was, he faintly surmised the one fact that what he expected did not exist.
I no longer want to expect anything. So if you want to go, go. As you said, we can no longer expect anything from each other
Thus, as if regarding the traces of those he had crushed as his bed, he buried his head and closed his tired eyelids.
Like a child tired from playing, like an old man facing his death.
Beyond a dying old tree, with a look more lifeless than a corpse
Now, I just want to sleep.
Mephisto just watched for a while as he laid his shattered body on the ground and fell asleep.
Because she believed that the price of betrayal wouldnt end with such neglect.
Perhaps he might reach out the moment she turned her back.
Although he said he was going to sleep, she still felt the turbulent power around him, distorting even the recognizable shape of his surroundings
My Lord.
But that, too, was just anxiety stemming from fear.
Mephisto, who had always guarded his side, already painfully felt the state of the person before her.
The only way to forget such a reality was to turn away from this world and lay down ones body
I have been greatly indebted to you all this while.
So, she decided to turn her back without regret at this place.
She wanted to shed any lingering attachment to her master, who could no longer achieve anything.
Then, farewell
Neither feelings of betrayal, despair, nor sadness.
She knew that feeling such things for someone who could no longer fulfill her ideals was nothing but a luxury
Aha~ I survived in the end~
Thus, having passed the terribly crumbled castle and left the ruined city behind, a demon with a seductive aura approached, making her presence known at her side.
Her deceitful whisper was familiar to Mephisto, yet it made her wary.
To have saved myself and escaped from the Demon King in such a state Should I call this good luck?
Yasmo.
Come to think of it, she had disappeared from the scene even before the rampage began.
Unlike Grizvill, who did not know the state of the Demon King, or Beelzebub, who was delayed in fleeing due to lingering attachments.
So you did notice the Demon Kings condition?
Rather than noticing, Id say my feelings had waned from before. Frankly, the desire I have cant be satisfied just because Im in the army.
Yes, she was a demon of lust.
If she was someone she had to mingle with, she didnt consider her superiority in terms of power, position, or ideology.
Even getting tired of that and becoming interested in homosexuality, the Demon Kings armys ruthless destruction must have been a matter of indifference to her
Yasmo.
Then, what about the other demons?
The demons who came to this world solely for the Demon Kingcould they really navigate this strange world even after losing their focal point, the Demon King?
What will become of the Demon Kings army now?
Weve long passed the limit. The bald warrior who led the fights from the front and the bug guy who commanded and managed the armyboth are dead And we two no longer feel the need to be in the Demon Kings army.
Two of the Four Heavenly Kings were summoned and died in the blink of an eye.
Probably, the demons who returned from other regions would soon hear the news when they returned to the army.
I wonder what will become of the demons not controlled by the Demon King?
When that time comes, it would probably be impossible to maintain the Demon Kings army as before.
The reason an army system could be established for selfish demons was because of the belief that by following an absolute strong being, they could fulfill their desires.
Whatever happens, if you survive, you wont do anything different than before. Not listening to control, just doing as you please
Yes, just like the times without the Demon King.
No one was controlled by anyone. They would just return to a cauldron of chaos where everyone was faithful to their desires.
Ahaha~ You talk as if youre different.
Yasmo, laughing at her opinion, began to look at her with increasingly half-closed eyes.
A resignation letter? What an amusing story. The mad slaughterer who killed the most intelligent beings in the Demon Kings army is now imitating humans.
Imitating humans?
Did her previous actions look like that to her?
Whatever you do, your essence wont change.
It didnt matter anyway.
Aware or not, all of that stemmed from her instinct as part of the demon race.
We always live for our desires. If we cant achieve them ourselves, we parasitize those who can fulfill them.
Right. Even if the Demon King disappears, our essence wont change.
Slurp. Her body disappeared like dust.
Then, amidst the fog dispersing into the air, only her voice began to echo and spread.
-And for that desire, Im prepared to fight even old comrades if necessary.
Ahahahahaha
Her laughter faded away in the distance.
Realizing that her presence had completely disappeared, Mephisto soon left the spot and moved forward.
Thinking that if they meet again, the likelihood of being enemies rather than allies was high, but since that wouldnt happen any time soon, she decided not to worry about it.
I survived.
Faithful to that sentiment, as she gradually moved away from the scene, the tension faded, and the beating of her heart became distinctly felt.
Her breathing and the feeling of the wind caressing her skin.
And also the warmth of the sunlight shining down where the dark clouds had cleared.
I really survived.
Enjoying that light, she felt even the source of the desires that had long bound her fading away.
The memories of her aimless journey felt as insignificant as the pebbles she stepped on at this moment.
And even now, I still remember you.
But from now on, what lies ahead is not a journey of wandering aimlessly but a path with clear markers.
The catalyst was trivial, and their time spent together was also short.
Yet, as that light still shines brightly even now, she wanted to step down from the stage where she had been dancing, following its trail.
Waiting for someone else to fulfill her ideals.
Burying the story of the worlds most wretched jester in this land.
As a woman who fell in love.
To live a life of seizing what she desired with her own hands.
-Ding~
As if to express that will, the strings of the instrument in her hand begin to twang.
A performance more carefree than ever, reacting to true emotions.
-Ding-a-ling
The gentle sound echoed beyond the hill, and the dandelion seeds buried in the ground began to sprout, opening the way she was going.
The sprouts, swaying to the hum, eventually became flowers, and the seeds that sprouted in the places where the leaves fell were sent off by the wind.
Hyo-sung. What about you?
At the moment when the path of the wind was clearly drawn, the wandering minstrel following that path sang of her own desires.
More valuable than just an intense mirage.
Hoping for simple happiness that could be grasped in her hands at the end of this journey.
Even in such a world, do you still want to be with me?
Humans, demons, and all others living in this world were preparing for the imminent destruction that was coming.
Perhaps to enjoy the amusement that might be the last in this life.
Yes.
Having abandoned everything solely for that one person.
Take your hands off that person.
Whats with that woman?
Just one step away from happiness, why had she suddenly appeared and been glaring at her with such fierce eyes?
Could you say that again?
She was no ordinary human.
Though still weak, if only the rank was considered, she had risen to a level comparable to the Demon King.
I told you to take your hands off my man!!!
At the words spat out by the woman who could herself be called a Demi-God, Merilyn unwittingly wore a stunned expression.
My man?
Was she talking about this man currently in her embrace?
It seems a lot has happened in my absence
Merilyn Sutherland, feeling a flutter in her heart at those words, spoke softly with sparkling eyes.
Can you handle the consequences of what you just said?
Perhaps she might be the biggest obstacle to fulfilling her own desires.
Glaring at what could rightly be called her rival.
This 𝓬ontent is taken from fre𝒆webnove(l).𝐜𝐨𝗺