25 – It’s “Common Sense” for a Hero to be Deceived and Fall into Darkness
Rosa Primrose felt incredibly wronged.
The behavior that Professor Plum showed her seemed somewhat irrational in her eyes, and it bore a striking resemblance to the actions and speech of the male lead in the ‘indecent’ romance novel that Dahlia had told her about.
The ‘special education’ that occurs after sunset. A secret shared by just the two of them that could not be spoken of to others. And even the choice of words that suggested unspeakable acts.
Moreover, there was a line in the romance novel that Dahlia had recounted which said, ‘The ability to conceive a new life is the most beautiful and magnificent magic.’
So, when Professor Plum said he was going to teach her magic, it was somewhat inevitable that she misunderstood.
‘Of course, it’s bad that I misunderstood! But still! Am I the only trash here?’
The most unfair part at this moment was the fact that Professor Plum was consoling her too kindly.
She had simply been ashamed and burst into tears, but for some reason, Professor Plum seemed to be mistaken about the reason, thinking she was crying out of fear of committing some ‘dishonest act.’
Even that ‘dishonest act’ was nothing more than contemplating having a little hobby. It made her feel even more self-loathing.
She had imagined something far worse…
And even, even—
She had uttered the absurd wish to ‘please be gentle!’
‘I wish you would just go away, consolation or whatever…’
She wanted to be alone. For about 10 years.
She wanted to hug Brown, kick the blanket with her feet, and roll around by herself until she fell off the bed.
She would surely do just that tonight.
For the next few days, it was obvious she wouldn’t be able to soothe the embarrassment. For about a week, she would kick her blanket every day, and later, she would occasionally remember and kick the blanket with her feet in regret.
‘I miss Brown…’
She wanted to run away from this place right now.
Unfortunately, such a wish was not to be fulfilled.
It was because Professor Plum had used magic.
“A flickering flame. Light illuminating the dark. Lake’s mist. A handful only of the sandy beach.”
A magic so beautiful it could empty the chaotic content of a mind.
Flames wavering from midair took away the gaze and white luminescence infiltrating into the mist created various lights. As the sand with blue light mixed with the flame, the color of the flame changed and exploded right before the eyes like fireworks decorating a festival.
It seemed like this would be the scene if light spirits were to hold a festival.
For the first time, it was known that magic could be this beautiful.
And then.
When the festival of lights, which was like an illusory dream, was over.
The moment they locked eyes with Professor Plum, who was smiling at them.
“Whoo… “
“Oh, Miss Rosa?”
They cried again.
They weren’t moved by the beauty of the magic.
It was simply difficult to bear the fact that they thought such obscene thoughts while Professor Plum had taught such beautiful magic.
In the end, they cried all day and returned back to the dormitory. The gestures of Professor Plum patting their shoulder asking them to cheer up were so damn tricky.
“Brown…”
After returning to the dormitory.
Hugging Brown and burying their face, screaming.
Kicking the blanket with their feet.
Rolling back and forth on the bed.
They could finally fall asleep only after they fell off the bed three times.
“Whaaa…! I’m crazy, really crazy!”
They fell off four times.
*
While it was possible to purify the toxic gas with the hero’s power, it wasn’t possible to prevent the flame from scorching the skin. They escaped the dungeon as a molgol, a suitable expression for melting down.
It was difficult to call surviving the hellish flame pit as a miracle.
Because they themselves set the fire. They set fire to survive, so surviving was not a miracle.
Yes, they survived.
It was a terrible and cursed dungeon more than any cave, but they survived without sacrificing anyone.
If you’re prepared to oxidize alone inside a flame pit, you don’t need help.
I realized the truth far too late.
Only after losing my mother, my mentor, and my colleagues did it dawn on me.
The title ‘hero’ seemed almost laughable. How could someone like me ever be considered brave?
My mother, weaker compared to my chosen heroic stature, had nonetheless stepped forward to confront the demons for a frightened, crying me.
The battle priest had fallen to my sword, yet stood against the robbers for a tremulous, terrified me.
Although Wucheon couldn’t land a scratch on a demon, he withstood to bring me time when I couldn’t bear to face defeat…
Alone, he stood against the demon.
Courage shines brightest not when you possess strength, but when you lack it. The same goes for willpower.
I succumbed to my feebleness and gave up, but they never did, for they had hope.
Thus, I am no hero.
I am but their hope. The remnants of the fallen. The avenger for the slain. No better than a maggot feasting on a corpse.
“Goddess…”
I’d inhaled too much smoke. My muscles melted away, drained of strength and making it hard to stand.
My vision began to blur. My body appeared on the verge of collapse, unable to take any more abuse.
Eventually, the world went black.
I had fainted.
And when I opened my eyes again…
“A demon?”
A succubus was tending to me.
…
“Goddess─cough.”
“You should take it easy. Your current state is barely alive.”
“A demon…why are you…helping me?”
“Frankly, I would rather kill you right here and now, but I don’t have the audacity to pursue vengeance. If you were going to hang yourself outright, that would be a different story.”
“Vengeance?”
“You may never know the person you killed…”
Could it be that among the demons I had slain were relatives of this succubus?
But then, he couldn’t understand the situation even more.
How come a demon, who harbours a sense of revenge against him, was helping him? If they targeted the moment when he was unconscious, they could have killed him without much difficulty.
Yet why were they laying him down in a safe place and even providing treatment?
“Don’t look at me with eyes like that. I, too, have a desire to kill you that’s as massive as a chimney. But, I need you.”
The succubus spoke such and infused their golden energy into him. A very familiar and close… the power of a hero.
He had seen a demon like this before as well.
“You, you’re the weakest of the Four Heavenly Kings, right? A subordinate of the demon.”
“Don’t insult him with your filthy mouth. Unless you want to die right here and now.”
Purple magic flickered in the eyes of the succubus.
He could hardly withstand the chilling aura that pooled in their gaze, and had to avert his eyes slightly.
“…Huff, don’t test my patience. Mr. Slug intended to take revenge on you, the killer, but I prioritised fulfilling his wishes. And… perhaps… still perhaps, he…”
“What?”
He couldn’t quite understand the last part the succubus was murmuring under their breath.
Of course, he wouldn’t.
“The Four Heavenly King… is still alive?”
He himself had directly killed the ‘weakest of the Four Heavenly Kings.’
“There is a possibility.”
“Nonsense. I personally…”
“Demons, they are said to have the power to resurrect the dead.”
“What?’
From Noble mtl dot com
A demon?
Suddenly why was such a cursed existence mentioned?
…No.
Thinking about it, the dark magicians made their base in the dungeon boss’s room. The very center of the dungeon created by the demons.
Though it was an abandoned dungeon, it wasn’t strange that there might be a connection with the demon.
So, the important part was what followed.
“A demon… can resurrect the dead?”
“Yes. It’s just a speculation based on ancient literature, but… the possibility certainly exists.”
The demon answered his question quite amicably, which was unnervingly peculiar.
It added to the credibility of this hard-to-believe story.
If this demon truly harbored vengeance against me, there would have been no need for it to converse with me so calmly, even if it required my power.
The attitude she showed clearly presupposed some ‘hope’. The hope that maybe the weakest of the Four Heavenly Kings was still alive.
‘If what this demon says is true…’
Clavis Aurea, the demon with the golden key, had undone the seals on all demons.
I had intended to exterminate all those demons to exact my revenge.
But now, in this moment.
Before me, who thought of nothing but revenge.
A new option had emerged.
“…Why would you, a demon, need me?”
“Because only a hero can kill the demon king. My power is, after all, only half as effective.”
“Do you, a demon, wish for the demon king’s death?”
“The current demon king occupies a throne too great for him. Thus, it is only proper to vacate that place for ‘him’.”
“…I vowed to kill all demons. If the one who is said to be the weakest of the Four Heavenly Kings is alive and becomes the new demon king, I will kill him too.”
“Does your vow include ‘half-demons’?”
“What?”
“He is a half-demon.”
A half-demon…
That was the term demons used for those who were half human, half demon.
Just like Prince
“…You’ll regret sparing my life.”
“Regret?”
The succubus smiled ominously. Violet magical energy rippled around her.
“All of this is because of that regret.”
Somehow, I felt that this demon resembled me.
Quietly, I closed my eyes.
Holly Molly, Cliche but i like it