279. Livestock
My office after a long time.
I felt a lot of things that were quite different from when I came as a prosthetic body, but that’s probably because the prosthetic body’s senses are somewhat duller than the original body.
As I sat down on the soft chair provided for work, a scent reminiscent of refreshing water drops wafted through me.
It was the scent of Deia.
‘It felt like I was using my own room.’
Now that I think about it, I am reminded of her naturally sitting at the head of the table at her last meeting.
If I were to give a reason for using my own room, it would probably be because I missed it.
If you think about that, it was easy to overlook leaving traces like this.
There were some traces of Deia left on the desk.
Her fountain pen, papers that appear to be notes, and a holster.
Contrary to his usual behavior, the desk was not very clean.
And the last one.
Quuk.
I press the small teddy bear that appears to be a keychain. I had already seen items that were worn out after being fiddled with so much.
A free gift I received after ordering a set menu at a restaurant called Mersen in the capital, Graypond.
After solving the Eleanor nightmare case at the time, she went out to the city for a while with Deia and received it.
‘Did you still have it?’
I thought it would be hung somewhere, but that wasn’t the case. A keychain that is not attached to a key. She carries things with her even if they do not serve their purpose.
The meaning was bigger than I thought.
“… ….”
I felt a variety of emotions, but unfortunately, I was not in a position to be immersed in the lingering emotions.
[What are you doing?]
[Bear doll? It’s a cute thing.]
Even though other people don’t know, Stella, the spirit of the dark spirit, has always been with me.
I have no choice but to admit that I have felt loneliness in the silence of the lonely journey.
But when I had time to think quietly, something else came into my mind.
Isn’t it a life that has pros and cons in many ways?
“It’s Deia’s stuff.”
When I answered bluntly, the dark spirit said, “Huh,” And snorted and clung to her.
Heralhazard’s staff, tilted next to the desk, rattles in response.
[I hope so. Since it’s been a while since I came back, there are a lot of things to appreciate in many ways. You are very wet.]
“… ….”
There was no need to even notice this part. The dark spirit was grumbling now.
“Don’t act like a child.”
The reunion was enough.
We shared the same feelings and welcomed each other. Doing anything more than this was a fuss.
[…] ….]
She was a dark spirit who didn’t necessarily respond to what I said, but her behavior was anything like that.
He puffs out his cheeks, folds his arms, and acts more like a child than anyone else.
[Maybe you could welcome us a little more.]
Even Stella, who was standing on the other side, naturally participated. Of course, I thought she would take my side and appease the dark spirit.
Stella continues her words as if she is gently admonishing me.
[It’s really wonderful to be understood without having to say anything. Still, I feel a sense of abundance in my heart by hearing her words.]
“Aren’t the gods always consistent in silence?”
I thought it was an effective rebuttal in her own way to her as a saint.
Stella smiled and came behind me and hugged me over her shoulder.
From Noble mtl dot com
[She is not teaching as a saint, but she is complaining as a loved one.]
“… ….”
The warmth felt in her arms. I heard that it received the status of Goddess Hertia, but the feel and warmth were different from before. I could even feel the faint sound of breathing like a spring breeze.
There was no need to say that it made my heart pound.
[What are you doing in front of your teacher and senior?! Don’t disturb public morals!]
The dark spirit is trying to push Stella away. Here again, surprisingly, the dark spirit could also feel the touch.
The reason I hugged the two people earlier wasn’t just because of my magic.
“How?”
I unconsciously look towards the dark spirit and ask. The dark spirit who was pushing Stella away scratched her cheek and let out an awkward laugh when she asked her question.
[Well, I’m not sure either.]
“…… ?”
[Did you feel like you were absorbed into the staff while fighting Heralhazard?]
Absorbed into the wand?
My gaze secretly moves to the cane placed next to the desk. It was definitely tying her up.
[But as I continued to resist, at some point I woke up from the cane like this. It also absorbed some of the power that Herald Hazard possessed.]
So it seemed like Herald Hazard’s karma remained with the dark spirit?
She was a little worried because it didn’t sound like a good situation.
Did he read my emotions?
The dark spirit smiled softly and rubbed the back of my hand.
[There is no need to worry too much. Because the power has stabilized.]
“Okay… ….”
[And if something happens, you and Stella will take care of it. We should be together from now on.]
“… ….”
I was speechless without even realizing it. Stella also nods her head slightly, creating an atmosphere in which I cannot refuse.
[You’re not telling me to go into rest here again, are I?]
[That can’t be possible. When you and I enter into rest, who will watch over you?]
“… ….”
Funny enough, as I created a land of rest and accepted souls, I found a reason for them to remain with me.
The spirits fell asleep believing not only me but also that they would watch over me.
“This is absurd.”
There was nothing to refute what the two said. In the past, I wanted to put them into rest and let them rest in peace.
“… ….”
I couldn’t do that anymore.
For me, the tombstone of the dead, these two people are, in a way, the gravediggers who protect it.
It had become a relationship that couldn’t be carelessly told to sleep.
There were many things I wanted to say.
Apologies were also included among them.
But I know that the two of you won’t want that.
Because I knew.
“…… I’m counting on you.”
All I could say to the two of us was to have a good time as we started walking together again.
Did you like it?
They were two people looking at me with satisfaction.
Rock!
“Deius!”
The door opens, and thanks to Deia coming in, she naturally feels cozy, and the sinking atmosphere is relieved.
Her expression looked like something was wrong with her, but when she looked at the small teddy bear in my hand, her face turned bright red.
“Hey, hey! Why!”
“It was on my desk.”
“Well, are you still touching other people’s things?!”
Even Deia herself probably knows how unreasonable she is, so she doesn’t need to add anything. Rather, my reaction seemed to have made her deia more shameful.
“Mr. Ui.”
While she was complaining, she hurriedly gathered up her belongings on my desk. Finally, she took the teddy bear keychain from my hand, and now the only trace of her on my desk was her scent.
“I should have organized it in advance.”
The baby was making a fuss. For a moment, she seemed to have forgotten what she was doing.
“Why were you in such a hurry?”
“Oh my!”
This appearance of Deia was somewhat different. She must have been that ashamed.
“He’s up! “Lanhardt.”
“Go right away.”
I jumped up from her chair and followed Deia out of the room.
Even as she stuffs her luggage into her jacket pocket, Deia’s steps move quickly.
So we arrived at the outside of the mansion.
Lanhardt is on his knees, wrapped in thick chains. Next to her, a tense Finden Eye was aiming an ax at her neck.
The will to strike at any time was fully expressed.
“Deius Verdi.”
Lanhardt calls me in a somewhat weakened, heartless voice.
It wasn’t because I was defeated or tired. In fact, his vitality was being diminished little by little.
“My condition…… “Why is it like this?”
Do they think they are receiving a diagnosis from a doctor? There was no need to answer Lanhardt’s question.
The final road.
I need to know the cause of death.
“The ancient dragon’s breath was a power that was still difficult for you to contain. “No matter how much you are, you are naturally collapsing because you have been subjected to excessive force.”
No matter how dam it is, if it contains more water than the limit, it will eventually collapse.
The same was true of Lanhardt’s body.
I was gradually melting the power of the ancient dragon into my bones and flesh, but I was too hasty.
Now that humans have power that should not be coveted, they have no choice but to shoulder that responsibility.
“Huh, it’s a meaningless ending.”
Like the first human who ate the fruit from the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil and regretted it. Does Lanhardt also regret coveting the power of a guardian deity?
I couldn’t see his expression because his head was down and his hair was flowing down, but I didn’t know what he was thinking.
“Lanhardt.”
I asked one thing, even if it may be a bit cruel, to the man who would eventually die.
“Is the blood demon summoned?”
“… ….”
Did my question hit a very painful spot? Lanhardt’s face suddenly lifts up and he looks at me with startled eyes.
That alone was sufficient answer.
“It looks like you haven’t been summoned.”
Lanhardt seemed to have many questions about what I said. He swallowed hard and looked to me for an explanation.
“Lanhardt, you are originally human.”
“…… “What does it mean?”
“It means that the trait of being a vampire is something you didn’t have in the first place.”
“That can’t be possible. “Aren’t the blood demons following me?”
I knew you would say that, but.
“You have never drunk human blood.”
Even after defeating the mercenary group he had faced in the Principality of Balestan, he just roasted and ate animal meat on their corpses.
They did not even touch the human corpse.
“There is no need to deceive. “I think I understand why you coveted the power of guardian spirits and spirits.”
“… ….”
Lanhardt seemed to have hit the nail on the head again and kept his mouth shut.
“It can be seen as a type of monster. “Seeing you spreading blood throughout countless battlefields, many people thought you were no different from a vampire.”
Such thoughts gathered together and inhabited Lanhardt, turning him into a half-vampire.
Change through thoughts.
It was similar to the way monsters are created.
This time, it was easy to understand if we thought of a monster inhabiting a human body.
“Now that you know the power of things that don’t exist, naturally you investigated them. “He must have started coveting guardian spirits and spirits.”
“… ….”
“Then, as the ancient dragon entered your body, the vampire’s thoughts that had been dwelling in you were consumed, and the blood demons disappeared. “It won’t be difficult to understand.”
As I said that, I slowly looked away. Lanhardt, who was already collapsing with a calm light inside his body, was not important.
Little girl.
The girl who lived in the village of monsters probably learned the cruel truth.
“Ah… ….”
Soho, who was listening to the story nearby, started shaking the moment I made eye contact with her.
I already told you that she and Lanhardt are similar.
The reason for not eating souls.
The reason why I eat food that humans used to eat alone.
I leave Lanhardt alone and slowly approach Soho and tell him the cold but cruel truth.
“You are human.”
“Well, that…” … Then! “Okay then!”
Soho is desperately holding onto the hem of my clothes and crying. The pieces of the puzzle are quickly coming together in her mind.
Why did the monsters kill themselves?
Why did you allow me, a human, to stay with you?
A human girl who was raised in a happy village of man-eating demons and thought she was a monster.
“All the monsters are already dead.”
No one can know the answer.
As they lived with her Soho, they may have truly cherished her and accepted her as her comrade.
The opposite possibility also existed.
“The answer is up to you.”
However.
When I think about the reactions he showed up until then and the way he shouted at Soho before he died.
“Huh, wow!”
Soho slumps down in her seat and breaks into a cold sweat, as if she can’t breathe properly.
Livestock raised by humans.
Until the moment she died.
Did you know why it was raised?