Chapter 301 : God-Slayer, Apostate, Martyr

Swoosh—

Rain poured down.

I quickly ran to the west gate.

Fortunately, I wasn't late.

The traitor and Tina had just met and were going out of the gate through a dog hole.

It seemed the meeting place was outside.

I jumped over the wall and quietly followed them.

The two kids who had come out of the dog hole went into the west forest.

And I moved secretly from tree to tree.

The place they arrived at was in front of a dilapidated ruin in the forest.

As expected, the suspicious fanatics who had made the traitor sell Tina were waiting there, wearing masks made of animal bones.

The traitor handed Tina over to them and then took a heavy money pouch.

I focused my inner energy on my ears and eavesdropped on their conversation.

"Ah, finally!"

"The child of prophecy has finally come into our hands."

"With this, the prophecy that he would be annihilated by the judge will be proven wrong."

"Fate is twisted here."

"The day of the demon god's descent is coming...!"

"The blue sky is already dead, so the dark heaven will come!"

Crack!

My fists clenched naturally.

So they weren't just simple fanatics.

I didn't know the details, but I knew that those bastards were the damn Dark Heaven Society.

My killing intent surged.

I wanted to kill them right away and rescue Tina, but...

Woong...!

The revived necklace began to tremble violently.

The vibration of the necklace felt like Scarlet's scolding voice.

Yes, one mistake was enough.

"Hooo..."

I took a deep breath and calmed my mind.

Just then, I heard the traitor's voice.

It was a very cautious voice.

"Uh, may I ask where you're sending this girl?"

"Of course, we're sending her to his side."

"To his side..."

"After using her in the ritual, we will burn her to purify her body and soul."

"What? W-wait a minute."

The traitor's panicked voice.

"Y-you said something different. You said you would have her adopted by a noble family. You said she might even become a noble lady...!"

They snorted and laughed.

"How naive, boy."

"Do you think those arrogant nobles would even glance at a dirty child who was rolling around in the back alleys?"

"This child is the seed of disaster. We were thinking of taking her and using her in an experiment..."

"It would be safer to eliminate the risk of leaving any loose ends early on."

"Of course. It's better to burn the seed that will become a poisonous weed early on..."

"Y-you...!"

The traitor rushed at them.

Thwack!

But he was just kicked and sent tumbling unsightly.

Clatter!

The money pouch he was holding fell, and the sparkling coins spilled onto the mud.

And over it, the fanatics' sneers fell like rain.

"There was a prophecy. 「Among the three, there is a god-slayer, an apostate, and a martyr. You must choose only one. If you violate this, the red-eyed devil who has gone against the current will spew blue fire.」"

"It means this child is destined to be the god-slayer of the prophecy. I don't know if you can understand what that means by racking your little brain."

"Which of the other two are you?"

"Shut up!"

The traitor tried to attack a few more times after that, but the result was no different.

Just then, Tina approached the traitor who had fallen on the mud.

The fanatics didn't particularly stop her.

They just watched with puzzled eyes.

The traitor looked at Tina, who had approached him.

His voice trembled uncontrollably.

"Tina..."

"Yuri, I'm fine."

And then she picked up the coins that had spilled on the floor and put them back in the pouch, and then returned it to Yuri.

"Here, take it. It's the lump sum you've been wanting. With this, you can leave this place."

"..."

"I'm really fine."

Tina forcibly pushed the money pouch into Yuri's hand, who couldn't bring himself to take it, and then took off the hairpin she had been wearing on the side of her head and put it in Yuri's other hand.

It was a hairpin that I had given to Tina someday.

The traitor stared at Tina blankly.

"Why this..."

"If Ashuban asks where I went, show him this. He'll think I followed you on my own."

"...!"

"Of course, Ashuban is smart, so he'll figure it out soon, but it'll buy you some time."

'...You foolish girl.'

Even until the very end, even when death was right in front of her.

You worry about others.

Even the traitor who sold you.

Was it because I said I would beat Yuri to death?

"Yuri, you've had a hard time because of me, haven't you?"

Tina said with a smile.

"Thank you for everything, and I'm sorry. Take care."

With those words, Tina returned to the fanatics wearing the animal bone masks.

"Goodbye."

The fanatics smiled and took Tina into the ruins.

Yuri stared blankly at her back.

He had a dazed look on his face.

"..."

He stood there blankly in the rain for a long time.

He staggered up and went back the way he came.

I stared at his back quietly.

Now he would go back to Sirnberg in that state and meet the little Ashuban.

Instead of showing me the hairpin that Tina had given him, he had chosen to be beaten up quietly.

Was it his last conscience?

I don't know.

I took my eyes off his back and then jumped down onto the ruins.

I unfolded my senses and observed what was happening below.

They had already nailed Tina's arms and legs to an inverted cross and were performing the ritual.

I moved to the outer wall where the cross Tina was hanging on was nailed.

I piled up a few wooden boxes that were rolling around, and then climbed on top of them.

I was now separated from Tina by a single wall.

I could feel Tina's ragged breathing and trembling from the other side.

Was she cold, in pain, or scared?

I made a small hole in the wall and then spoke to Tina.

"Tina."

Flinch.

The trembling stopped, and a cautious voice was heard.

"...Ashuban?"

"Yes. It's me. I'm here."

And then I checked the necklace.

Fortunately, it seemed this was okay, as the necklace was only trembling slightly.

I could hear Tina's weak voice from the other side.

"Why did you come... I don't want to show you myself like this."

The trembling subsided.

Unlike her words, I could feel a slight sense of relief.

"Does it hurt a lot?"

"Mmm... a little, it hurts."

I made a hole the size of a finger, and then poked her pressure point on the back of her neck.

Poke.

"How is it?"

"...Huh? It doesn't hurt at all."

"I've paralyzed all the senses below your neck."

"That's amazing. Did you learn magic or something?"

"You could say that."

"That's cool."

"What's so cool."

I could hear Tina's chuckling from the other side.

Fortunately, the fanatics were busy praying, muttering some prayer.

"...I'm sorry."

"For what?"

"This is all I can do."

"It's okay. It's enough."

"I can make you fall asleep if you want. You can go without any pain."

"No, don't."

Tina quickly stopped me.

I withdrew the finger I was about to use for the pressure point.

"Don't?"

"Yes. Let's talk."

"...Alright."

I leaned my back against the outer wall.

I was now back to back with Tina, with a single wall between us.

"..."

We were silent for a moment...

And the words just came out of my mouth.

Words that I had thought about and regretted for decades.

"I'm sorry."

"For what?"

"It's all my fault. Because I was weak, because I was so pathetic..."

"Don't say that."

"Mmm."

Swoosh—

A silence followed for a moment.

I felt like I was going crazy because this time, when death was so close, was so precious.

But I didn't know what to say.

"Ashuban."

"Yes?"

"Is there such a thing as heaven?"

At Tina's casual tone, I chuckled and replied.

"Probably?"

"Then let's meet there."

"That'll be difficult."

"Why?"

"Because I'm going to hell."

"Then I'll fall to hell."

"Don't be a fool. Are you going to become a fallen angel or something?"

"If I can meet you."

"Don't be ridiculous. I'll go."

"How?"

"I don't know either. I've killed countless people, and I've committed all sorts of sins, but..."

"But?"

"I think I've been given a pretty important mission."

"An important mission?"

"Yes. Maybe if I solve this well, they'll let me into heaven?"

I looked up at the rainy night sky.

"Lord Ketel. Are you listening?"

"Ketel?"

"I'm close with our Lord Ketel. Very close."

Tina chuckled.

"I'll wait, then."

"Yes. Wait there quietly. Don't go peeking down and fall."

Swoosh—

The sound of the rain filled the void.

"Ashuban."

"Yes."

"Do you know why flowers are beautiful?"

"How should I know."

"They say they're beautiful because they will someday wither."

"..."

"It's just that my time to wither has come. That's all."

"You're talking nonsense."

I could hear a small chuckle.

Gradually, the laughter was weakening.

Just then, I heard the sound of splashing footsteps from a distance.

It was the sound of the little Ashuban running in a hurry.

He must have slipped and fallen hard in the slippery mud, as a loud splashing sound followed.

He was the most pathetic groom in the world.

"Ashuban. Are you there?"

It was almost a whisper now.

"Yes. I'm here."

I instinctively knew that this was my last conversation with Tina.

"What kind of person... was I to you?"

"A kind-hearted fool."

"..."

Thump.

I laughed softly and leaned my head against the wall.

"Just kidding. The most precious person."

I could hear a slightly ragged breath from the other side.

"Did you know? They say memories don't disappear, but they pile up like snow."

"..."

"You were the snow that piled up at the very bottom. The first snow in its purest form, which doesn't change color over time and prevents the mud at the bottom from turning black, like a perennial snowfield."

"..."

"You were always with me. Thanks to you, I was able to come this far. Thank you."

"..."

"And me?"

A short silence followed, as if she were thinking.

"Actually, I liked you more than Yuri."

I chuckled.

"Yes, that's enough."

Swoosh—

Through the sound of the rain, I could hear Tina's panting breath.

"Ah, Ashuban. Are you there?"

"Yes. I'm here, so don't worry."

"Mmm..."

With that, Tina's precarious breathing subsided.

She must have fainted from blood loss.

Just then, the muddy little Ashuban popped out from the darkness.

I took refuge on the roof and watched the situation.

The little Ashuban looked inside through the window, and then, roaring like a beast, he charged in.

A rusty dagger was in his hand.

He stabbed a few of them to death and was then caught by them.

He was beaten up and then dragged forward.

They were going to hang him on a cross.

And just as the little Ashuban was about to be hung up next to Tina...

"Ah."

A realization slowly came to me.

The mysterious blue flame I had seen then.

It had not been extinguished even in the pouring rain and had engulfed the building.

"Hahaha..."

A hollow laugh escaped my lips.

To think that my mission here was to save my past self.

I immediately raised the Snow Branch Blue Flame and threw the blue flame at the abandoned house.

The fanatics, in a panic at the flame that suddenly covered the building, ran away, and the little Ashuban, grunting, took down Tina, who was hanging on the cross.

After that, it was as I remembered.

—Tina. Tina. Wake up.

—...Ashuban.

—Yes. I'm listening. Speak.

—I... I saw you. You had grown up so wonderfully.

I controlled the blue flame and watched their last moments.

—They say life is worth living.

I watched the little Ashuban, who was holding the cold Tina in his arms and sobbing, and then I withdrew the Blue Flame.

Woooong...!!

Then, the necklace vibrated with a red light.

And a red mist flowed out.

It meant that my work here was done.

The surroundings began to turn red.

I closed my eyes, engulfed in the red mist.

"Master."

The Heavenly Demon, who had been silent until now, answered.

[What is it.]

"Is there really such a thing as heaven?"

[I wonder.]

"..."

The Heavenly Demon, who had been hesitating for a moment, added.

[If there isn't, I will make one.]

"Haha..."

A laugh escaped my lips.

He was as arrogant as ever.

"Leave heaven to someone else, and you make hell, Master. I think that would suit you better."

The Heavenly Demon laughed lowly.

[You are right.]

As I listened to the Heavenly Demon's low laughter.

Engulfed in the red-dyed mist of time and space.

I flowed towards the last time period.

(End of Chapter)