[…] You.]
After a long time after chasing after Minerva, who disappeared as if running away, I heard a voice calling me quietly. It was Minerva.
“Are you calming down now?”
[okay… Thanks for your concern.]
Minerva sighed quietly.
It was rare for her to be so embarrassed, so I kept my mouth shut.
Was it that the words Venus had just uttered were such a shock?
The essence of the Seven evils.
Venus obviously said so.
[…] You.]
After a while, Minerva called me in a voice of determination.
Then Sbangali, startled, called her.
[Wait, are you really going to tell me?]
[Yeah, if you come and hide it now, what more can you do?]
Minerva answered me and asked me.
No, her question was not meant to be answered.
[Dear, how much do you know about our Seven Evil Bells?]
I didn’t say anything.
Minerva chuckled and burst out laughing.
[Actually, even the real woman does not know it well.]
[…] We, the Seven Devils, don’t even know why we were born, how we were born, or when we existed. And it’s not just her. Everyone is like that.]
She slowly began to tell the story.
seven kinds of evil.
Looking back, he seemed to know them well, but when he thought about it, he was full of things that he didn’t know. I quietly listened to her story.
[No, if we have something in common, we can name a few things.]
She murmured in a voice that seemed to bring back memories quietly.
[The first thing I met when I opened my eyes in this world was Ariman.]
[About our duty.]
“It’s my duty… Are you talking about why you exist?”
[right.]
She meekly agreed.
[It was our duty to keep the world in balance.]
[And one more… .]
After holding her breath for a moment, she spoke up.
It’s as if you’re giving me time to accept the next story.
No, maybe it was as if he was making up his mind for himself.
[That each of us must act to prevent the extinction of mankind.]
[This was also our duty.]
“… Wait, what?”
Unknowingly, I asked a story that I did not expect at all.
Not surprisingly, the Seven Evil Species was named after the meaning of the seven catastrophes that mankind cannot resist. But, now what? ?
Minerva answered immediately, as if I had not heard it wrong.
[What you heard is correct. Each of us, the seven evil species, moved in their own way to prevent the extinction of mankind. … I don’t know what they look like.]
[…] Damn it.]
Sbengali made a squeaking noise, as if he was genuinely annoyed, in rare cases.
Then he sighed and muttered.
[Minerva, if four years tell you all that, what the hell am I… No, it happened. As you said, what more are you going to hide now?]
[…] You have no face, Svengali.]
Minerva was the first to apologize to Svengali, rarely, or as far as I know.
It was also an apology from the heart, not spit out rudely.
[From now on, let me explain.]
Sbangali began the conversation with a deep sigh.
[It was said that it would prevent the extinction of mankind, but in fact, that was the conclusion we came to after long deliberation. We were told to keep the world in balance and keep an eye out for those who could have the greatest influence in the world.]
[We thought about it for a long time, experienced it, and finally came to a conclusion. That being is a human being, and the story of keeping an eye on them and keeping the balance is the story of preventing the loss of the world’s balance by the disappearance of humans.]
[…] And in case you misunderstand me, I’ll tell you here in advance. Ariman is no different from us. He is also a guy who is bound by the name of the Seven Devils anyway.]
“No, yes… I know roughly However… .”
I had no choice but to tilt my head, recalling the memories of the past.
No matter how much you thought about it, it seemed that there was a great contradiction in their story.
Then Sbangali whispered as if he had noticed my doubts.
[…] Yeah, it’s a bit of a weird story, but let’s talk about grasshoppers.]
“Grasshopper?”
[Yes, grasshopper. That insect locust.]
Sbangali made another snapping sound.
[There are two types of grasshoppers, the solitary and the gregarious ones. The loneliness refers to the so-called ordinary grasshopper. If the number of individuals within a certain space, the so-called density, is maintained properly, this image of loneliness will grow.]
And that’s how he started to explain the grasshopper.
Normally, I would have been sarcastic about what nonsense I was talking about, but this time I quietly listened to his explanation. Because his voice was so serious.
[However, when the solitary statues gather and gather and the density increases, the gregarious ones with longer wings and shorter legs start to be born compared to the solitary statues. These guys excel at long-distance travel, yet they act in groups, causing great damage to crops. In the past, what farmers called locusts and feared like a disaster is this gregarious life.]
[Why do these swarms appear? This is to prevent the extinction crisis. If the number of individuals in a certain area is concentrated, of course there will be a shortage of food. The end is annihilation. It must be a strategic measure to prevent the so-called annihilation risk.]
Sbangali ended the story of the grasshopper at one point like that.
I don’t know what he was talking about, but at least I could understand what he was trying to say.
[Okay, let me say one more thing. Yes, aphids… That would be nice.]
[Aphids are so numerous that they release unusual substances from their bodies when they want to become ‘dangerous’ like the grasshoppers mentioned earlier. And that substance attracts one of their natural enemies, the grass dragonfly.]
Just right.
The sound he made was remarkably clear.
[I believe you know what would happen if a grass dragonfly that eats aphids appears in a densely populated area, even if you don’t say it.]
[They summon their own natural enemies and eat them themselves.]
[Like the grasshoppers mentioned above, in order to escape the danger of annihilation and annihilation.]
Sbangali muttered quietly.
[Now, roughly, do you understand?]
“Wait, so what do you mean… .”
[Did you say that, dear? One of our goals should be to prevent the extinction of mankind, besides keeping the world in balance.]
[So, to put it simply, this is it.]
Minerva and Svengali took turns opening their mouths.
It was completely unacceptable to me.
[We acted as a kind of control device to prevent the annihilation and annihilation of human beings, you say.]
He told the story slowly.
[…] Margot ate up a huge criminal group and committed crimes towards various countries.]
[This Sbangali tried to manage and breed mankind.]
[The Milited unites and dominates numerous races and fights for supremacy with humans.]
[Minerva, Venus, Juno. These three exist as a kind of deterrent by overlapping their living spheres with humans that can be destroyed in an instant if they want to.]
[All of this is the result of each of the Seven Music sects’ own choices.]
Sbangali said this and let out a small sigh.
As if waiting, Minerva opened her mouth.
[…] But, I mentioned you a while ago, even bringing up the word that Venus is the duty of the Seven Evil sects. And it can be said that this is the most important thing for our Seven Evil servants.]
There were two questions raised here.
Why on earth am I their duty… Did I consider myself to be at risk in balancing the so-called world?
Two assumptions came to mind here.
Because I am not a person from this time zone that I have traveled back in time, but a so-called regular.
Next, Gina, because, as mentioned in my brother’s letter, I was a being who ‘against the flow of this world’.
“… … .”
To be honest, whatever the reason, it wouldn’t change much.
After all, I had to fight Venus and Juno at this time.
It was just that the time was moved forward a little.
However, a second question remained.
… Why the hell did Minerva and Sbangali bring up this story just now?
No, even if it’s the second thing I’m talking about now… What the hell did the two of them react like that because of how important the previous story was?
It was Minerva who answered my question.
[…] The reason why she and Sbangali haven’t brought this story out of their mouths up to this point is simple, my dear.]
[We are not human.]
[Failing to fulfill one’s duty is meaningless to exist, which means complete death and extinction for us.]
[That is why, not only the mother-in-law and Sbangali, but also all of the Seven Evils implicitly did not even try to put it in their mouths.]
[Because there is nothing good about leaking out of this fact.]
Minerva spoke up to that point and continued speaking in a trembling voice, as if he was looking into my eyes.
[…] The reason why the original woman also kept her mouth shut is simple.]
[It’s only now, because the real woman also lost her life.]
[That’s why I couldn’t even talk to you.]
[…] There is no face.]
[Again, I have no face to see you, even as my mother committed an act that she hated so much… to you… .]
“… … .”
I closed my mouth.
She felt great guilt that she had been hiding this from me until now.
I said, silently, following the traces of Minerva from the past.
“Minerva.”
[Uh, um… Say it, darling.]
Minerva answered in a trembling voice, perhaps from being too frightened.
It was evident that I feared that I would be angry, or that I would be scorned or betrayed. It was so funny that I burst into laughter without realizing it.
[My dear… ?]
“Oh sorry.”
I whispered to her quietly.
“Minerva, you know what?”
[Mu, what do you mean?]
“Likewise, I have some secrets that I don’t want to be revealed to you.”
And it must have been the same for both Minerva and Svengalli.
… There was no reason for me to feel betrayed or angry with them just because they had a secret they were hiding from me.
“What, did you think I was going to disappoint you with something like this?”
Above all, we have gone through too many things together for trust like this to be broken.
They have always supported me, lent me strength to keep me awake, and saved me from death again and again.
… It was really embarrassing to say such a thing, but I had deep trust in these two. It’s such a secret, there must have been a reason, so I think it doesn’t matter what it is.
“Isn’t it because you didn’t want to hurt me with your rude words?”
[Well, there is no way that can be!]
With a smile, Minerva responded with a urgency to the joking remarks.
[Boy, my wife! How can you not know that it is because of you that in the first place the real woman wants to continue living? !]
“… uh.”
After saying that, I was silent.
So was Sbangali.
It was because the answer returned to his joking remark was so unexpected, and in Sbangali’s case, he knew that it was best not to say anything at all.
[…] … .]
And only then did he realize that he was taking the joke seriously and what he was saying, so Minerva shut his mouth.
“… … .”
[…] … .]
[…] … .]
… how long has it been
After chasing Minerva for a long time, I had no choice but to stop.
It was because Minerva’s reverb had stopped.
“what… ?”
I stopped there and looked around.
It was impossible for me to lose the energy of Minerva and not anyone else.
But at one point, as if erased with an eraser, Minerva’s energy was not felt at all.
As I looked around, I could see that the ground in this area had been dug up, and the trees had been bent and broken. It was like watching an airplane crash.
Then a small cave caught my eye.
It was a cave so small that the original Minerva couldn’t even get into it, let alone get into it, but for some reason the cave was trampled on by the snow and I couldn’t get past it.
no way.
It was when I stepped into the cave with that thought.
“Who are you?”
A terrified, bewildered woman’s voice was heard.
… It was the voice we had just talked about.
“Don’t come near me! If you come closer, I will kill you… !”
As I tried to take one more step, I stopped at that desperate voice.
Something is strange.
Instead of approaching, I spoke to her quietly.
“It’s me, Minerva.”
I could feel her bewildered by my voice vividly.
“What… ? Yes, how do you think… .”
“I followed you. Even if it looks like this, I am a bit quick on my feet.”
As I said that, I looked over the rock that seemed to be popular.
… Something was strange.
The Minerva I know was not afraid of anyone in this way, nor did she reveal her presence in this way.
Above all, the energy felt beyond the rock was weak.
“That, that… Is it like that? eww… that, yes… .”
“… Minerva, are you okay?”
“Oh, no. Okay. So don’t come, no… … No, that’s it. So… .”
Minerva started muttering something to herself for a moment.
I didn’t provoke her excited, I just stood there silently and waited for her.
after a while.
After taking a few deep breaths, she crept out from behind the rock where she had carefully hid.
“Hey, human… No, Yoo Ji-hyuk… .”
That figure was the figure of Minerva I knew.
The only difference was that she was leaner, pale, weaker than the average person, and above all, her symbolic horns and tail were nowhere to be seen.
Her face was very contorted.
“Uh, what should I do… ?”
Minerva asked in a trembling voice, looking at me without even thinking of covering herself.
“Boy, my mother-in-law has become a human. Oh no. More than that… .”
No power, no power at all.
She muttered so blankly in a panic.
* * *
The past has changed.
In her memory of resonating with Minerva the other day, she had succeeded in taking on a human form in a different way than it is now. And I was genuinely delighted to have succeeded in taking on a human form.
She had never been terrified or panicked in this way.
“… … .”
Yoo Ji-hyuk took off his coat and put it on her.
There was also the fact that she was naked, but above all, it was because it was so cold here.
Minerva didn’t even understand the cold, so she just shivered, not knowing a word.
“Minerva, let’s go back. Once back… .”
With that said, Yoo Ji-hyuk, who was trying to calm Minerva, pulled out something trembling and trembling from his arms.
It was a marble that was previously obtained as a reward for Yuuna’s awakening.
It was flashing and flashing.
“Oh, please… .”
It meant something was coming.
Then, two notification windows appeared in front of him.
From his point of view, it was a quest window he had seen for the first time in almost several months.