Mr. Long Legs (3)
“The Remnants of an Ancient Evil.”
The lingering spirit of a demon slain in a past divine war.
Throughout generations, this spirit has possessed various individuals, causing their downfall.
It possesses the power to massacre or inflict harm upon those around its host, regardless of the host’s will.
Of course, this shadow cannot move freely on its own, and its power is limited by the emotions of its host.
Conversely, when the host is in danger, overwhelmed by intense emotions, they go on a rampage, causing catastrophic disasters.
The tragedy that occurred in Alice’s village was also such a case.
That is why the central government isolated Alice in an orphanage and managed her to a certain extent.
Providing meals on time and keeping a safe distance to prevent her from going on a rampage.
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However, despite that, Alice’s shadow grew little by little, and it seemed that the resurrection of the demon was imminent.
The fact that she was an emotionally vulnerable young girl made her the most dangerous as the host.
But it was not as simple as just killing the host.
The emotional turmoil of the host, feeling the threat to their life, allows the shadow to go on a rampage to the maximum extent, causing a disaster similar to the tragic events in Heidel in the past.
Even if the host were to be killed, the remnants of the demon would only attach themselves to a new host.
To solve this problem, it was necessary to address the shadow itself, not the removal of the host.
In the end, the government dispatched their top agent, codenamed V, and their secretary, Agent Beas, who was once the government’s greatest enemy.
V, the worst elite agent who had brought down the resistance, the government’s most formidable force, was now being used to stop just one girl.
This showed how cautious the government was about the shadow, the remnants of the ancient evil.
“What? The remnants of an ancient evil?”
“That’s right, V. Your mission is of utmost importance.”
“What? Are you serious? Does something like that really exist?”
At first, when I received the order from my superior, I thought it was absurd.
I wondered if it was some kind of joke played on me.
But my perspective changed after seeing the top-secret files my superior handed over.
“Heidel’s Tragedy.”
In the town of Heidel, there lived a girl named Alice.
Unfortunately, at a young age, she became a parasite to the “shadow.”
The shadow, unlike the girl’s intentions, caused several accidents,
and the villagers came to see the girl as a cursed child.
If it had stopped there, it wouldn’t have mattered, but they said they tried to purify the cursed girl with fire to prevent harm to the town.
How foolish.
In the end, Alice, who was threatened with her life, released the restrictions of the shadow.
The entire town disappeared.
The government discovered the girl, who was left alone in the vanished town, and learned that she was the host of the “shadow.”
“The director of the orphanage is also affiliated with the government, so you don’t have to worry.”
“That’s what they say…”
She is a girl with the worst ability that could potentially bring about the destruction of the world if mishandled.
This is going to be interesting.
At first, it was just simple curiosity.
A girl who harbors fragments of an evil spirit within her body.
I decided to win the favor of the girl first.
“I said it’s fine. So I want to start sponsoring that child.”
“Really? You might regret it!”
I synchronized with the time when the girl passed by and performed a small play with the director of the orphanage.
I confirmed that Alice, the target, saw the director having a conversation through a crack in the door.
It would be difficult to win the affection of a wounded girl with just one play, but if it is repeated, the story will be different.
And I started approaching the girl directly, under the pretext of sponsorship.
“hahahaha. Mister, Alice likes you. We were wondering if you would sponsor Alice.”
“…You’re just after my body anyway.”
My body, huh?
So, that’s how it is.
I heard that the other agents who had tried to take care of the girl until then, regardless of gender, had disappeared into the shadows.
Could it be that they couldn’t even control their own emotions and felt suspicious of such a young girl?
Incompetent fools.
…Well.
I do have an outrageously monstrous appearance.
I feel like I know why the remnants of an evil spirit chose this body.
The girl was so beautiful that even women would be enchanted.
But I won’t waver.
That’s what I thought at that time.
I continued to approach Alice even after that.
“Ta-da! Uncle is here! How have you been, our cutie?”
Nicknames are a useful means of increasing intimacy.
“Hmph. I already knew.”
A tic-tac response. But I can feel the joy in her voice.
It was the beginning of my efforts paying off.
Her emotions felt more diverse with each meeting.
“Hmph. Is it the surprised uncle’s fault?”
“I’ll get revenge for you, Uncle! Come here!”
The girl’s reaction also became more varied.
“Eek! Run away!”
After years of meetings, I became a presence within her, ‘Uncle’.
At the same time, Alice also took a place within me.
Sigh.
It’s truly unbelievable.
Even when I betrayed my Resistance comrades and brought them down for my mission, I didn’t feel this kind of emotion.
Alice had become precious to me without me realizing.
To the point where she felt more precious than the mission.
I wanted to make Alice leave this place and live freely.
I wanted to take her to the sea she longed to see.
I wanted to show her the beautiful lakes of my country.
I wanted her to step on the snowy fields of the mountains.
But in order for her to be free, I had to somehow deal with the “shadow”.
Could I somehow separate the shadow from her or make Alice completely dominate the shadow?
Removing the shadow was impossible.
No matter how fallen it was, it was still a fragment of God.
There was no way to remove the shadow from Alice.
But on the other hand, was there a way to make the shadow subservient to Alice’s domination?
There was.
Through numerous past records and experimental patterns, I discovered how much power the shadow could release when emotions were sufficiently intensified.
And I also found out that in order for a certain level of power to be used, the shadow had to transfer its power to the host and the host had to wield that power.
This means that when Alice’s emotions are intensified, the shadow temporarily grants her its power.
If I could completely subordinate that temporary power to Alice?
Afterwards, I mobilized the government’s capabilities and created artifacts of magical engineering.
I created an artifact that would make Alice’s shadow become a part of her soul if she were to temporarily use the shadow’s power.
But in order to make this possible, Alice had to use the power of the shadow to kill me, the caster.
Alice kills me.
I don’t like the sound of that.
I don’t like the idea of not being able to see Alice anymore once I’m dead.
And to live with the emotional wounds of Alice killing me?
I decided to temporarily set aside one method that I had discovered.
There might be another way.
This is the last resort.
If there is no definite answer, I’ll resort to it.
But I couldn’t afford such luxury.
“Elimination… Are you saying that?”
“Yes. It’s an order from the higher committee.”
Bang!
“No, it’s not possible!”
I slammed the supervisor’s desk.
“Don’t you know? Once Alice feels threatened, the shadows will go wild and won’t stop!”
“No.”
Thump.
The supervisor threw a new order.
“Just assassinate Alice before she feels threatened.”
An order containing instructions for me to assassinate Alice, someone I had become close to without realizing it.
“…If Alice dies, a new victim will fall prey to the shadows.”
“But it will take quite some time until then. Until then, it will be safe.”
“Are you saying that you’re passing the problem onto future generations?”
“That’s the decision of the higher-ups. It’s the order of the committee. I can’t do anything about it either.”
The command from above.
Damn it.
“Please attend the committee meeting.”
“What?”
“Didn’t you receive one of the committee’s decision-making powers as a reward for suppressing the past resistance?”
“…sigh. I guess I have no choice.”
“Agent V, do you understand the meaning of what Commander Guigong is saying?”
The voice of the committee’s chairman echoed.
“Commander Guigong is telling you to give up on removing the country’s greatest threat.”
The greatest threat.
These people are pathologically afraid of the rampant shadows.
If only Alice could completely control the shadows.
“Well then.”
“…?”
“If that’s the case, wouldn’t it be enough if Alice can completely dominate the shadows?”
“What?”
“Please make a pledge in the name of the committee. If I make Alice completely obey the shadows, ensure her safety.”
“Ah…”
After all, there is no one else who has enough affinity to kill Alice.
From Noble mtl dot com
If I don’t do it, no one can kill Alice.
Due to repeated persuasion and the proposal I kept submitting, the committee eventually declared an official agreement as I desired.
It was possible thanks to the trust I had gained from my past accomplishments.
Of course, I don’t fully trust the committee. There is no family more untrustworthy than them.
But I have taken some precautions, so I’ll be fine even without me being present.
Crackle
I carefully placed Alice’s precious gifts that I had collected up until now.
Alice.
She must live well even without me.
Freely.
Happily.