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Rowena: “Ugh!”
Rowena dug through her wounds, smeared blood on her right finger, and drew a red summoning circle on the floor–six planets, a crescent moon, and five strange characters symbolizing the Devil.
‘Why am I suddenly reminded of that time…?’
She remembered reading a book about the Devil secretly in her warehouse when she was a child.
Not long after, though, the terrified nanny confiscated the book.
The Devil[1].
It was different from the demons that often appeared through the gate.
‘There’s no way someone like the Devil will appear through such a clumsy summoning circle…’
To use the last moments of her life on something absurd.
She couldn’t even understand her own behavior. Even amid her death, her sullen laughter erupted.
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But despite her skepticism, something deep inside her said the Devil would surely appear before her eyes.
And just as her instincts said, the Devil did appear in front of her. No, could she even say it ‘appeared’?
It was shapeless and invisible darkness. The form spoke in her head.
‘Life or vengeance, which one will you choose?’
The words appeared in her head.
‘What… Do you mean?’
‘Equivalent exchange. I’m not some pushover who’d grant two wishes in exchange for one soul. Save your life or get revenge. Choose one.’
‘…’
‘It’s impossible to ask for a dead child to live. It’s really beyond my ability. Its soul is already gone. A soul that has gone to the underworld cannot return no matter what. Even if you bring the body back to life, it will only become an unconscious shell. Well, if that’s what you want, I’ll give it a go.’
As expected to a certain extent, the Devil was never a good person. Look at the Devil mocking her as she was dying miserably.
The Devil was making fun of her dying by forcing her to choose.
With life, revenge, and death at hand, which one will you choose?
She could hear a voice in her heart.
‘Perhaps I’ll die soon…’
She could feel her dying breath. She had lost too much blood and her body had deteriorated on the dirt floor after months of running.
She would soon breathe her last if she didn’t get treatment right away, but there’s no way the Devil would give her such goodwill.
If she chose her life, there was no way to get revenge.
Her family had already fallen, and the child who inherited the lineage of the elementalist also died. If Rowena went back to the capital, she would have to worry about where to live.
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She didn’t want such a meaningless life.
But what if she asked the cruel demon to avenge her?
She had read that demons liked seeing humans howl in pain. After thinking about it that far, she made her decision quickly.
‘Revenge.’
‘Hmm?’
‘Avenge me. The people who made me suffer so much! All of them! Let them live in despair and pain enough to make them beg for death!’
Blood began to flow along with her tears. The woman’s face, wet with her tears of blood, was very bizarre. But the Devil liked it.
‘All of them, right?’
‘Yes! All of them! I’ll die in vain like this, so why do the people who have caused me pain have to live in peace!’
It was dangerous to use vague expressions when making a contract with the Devil.
However, Rowena, who had only read the Demon Summon Scroll as a child, had no way of knowing that.
‘All of them.’
That was a very dangerous word.
Not only the Marquis of Edinburgh who framed her, but also her husband who turned her away, and the Imperialists who accused her of being incapable of bearing children.
They were included in ‘all of them.’
In order for the Devil to exert influence in the human realm, he needed a contract with a human.
In other words, as long as he made a contract with a human, whatever he did to fulfill that contract was justified.
The Devil smiled, revealing his black teeth.
‘Good.’
A willing acceptance fell.
‘I am one of the 13 Great Demons of Hell, Ragibach. I will grant your wish in exchange for your soul.’
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At his words, Rowena cried out in pain that branded her soul.
With this, her soul was forever in the hands of the Devil. But she had no regrets.
Rowena lay down, feeling the rest of her life draining out like smoke.
Now it’s really over.
Her life for the past twenty years or so flashed before her eyes like pages from a book.
Strangely enough, she felt sleepy. Then, just as she was about to succumb to sleep, the Devil’s voice returned.
‘Oh, do you have a name for this kid? You’re still its mother.’
The child’s name.
Rowena’s gaze turned towards the empty space, looking at the faint memories of the past.
‘The child’s name is–’
She once dreamed of it, too.
Rowena: “If I had a child, I’d name it Christian if it’s a boy and Cosette if it’s a girl.”
She wanted to have a child and live a peaceful life with a man she could rely on for the rest of her life.
Rowena: “Don’t tell others because it’s embarrassing. They might think I’m too excited.”
Even though the man ruthlessly threw her away…
Rowena: “Cosette. It’s Cosette.”
So, now it’s your turn.
Ludwig: “That’s a lie.”
Blood drained from Ludwig’s face, and his lips trembled.
It was the look of someone who had heard the truth yet couldn’t or didn’t want to believe it.
Ludwig: “Lie… It’s a lie.”
Cosette: “You don’t want to believe it, Your Grace. Then, look at this.”
Cosette–No, the Devil inside Cosette’s shell raised its hand.
A low-level spirit appeared.
No one could deny that it was spirit art.
Cosette: “In the beginning, this is the power that the goddess bestowed to protect you from us. How do you think I can use this as the Devil?”
“…”
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The Devil loved this moment the most–when the human face was dyed with boundless despair.
A cruel smile formed on her lips. A thrill of pleasure came from her fingertips.
‘Ah, I want to cut off his neck and stuff his head.’
But not yet.
That man must suffer a little more. More despair, more regret, more sorrow.
Only then would he become a worthy source of entertainment in the Devil’s boring life.
Countless things could be done to drive humans further into the abyss of despair.
She pointed to her body and continued.
The reason why Cosette was able to have a face that looked just like the Grand Duke.
Cosette: “That’s because I’m your daughter who died before she was born!”
Ludwig: “Shut up!”
It was a harsh voice, but she could feel it– the fact that this was a person pushed into a corner.
It’s the best. It’s great, really.
Cosette: “It all happened because you abandoned Rowena Weinberg. You knew she was framed. So, you deserve it.”
Ludwig: “No! If I had known she was pregnant, I wouldn’t have thrown her out! That would never happen…!”
Ludwig’s protesting voice gradually subsided.
No matter how much he made excuses, the fact that it was his mistake did not change.
Besides, the fact that Cosette was fake meant…
“In the near future, the human race will face a great crisis. Young Lord, remember only one thing to avoid the crisis: no matter what happens, only one elementalist will be born from you.”
Only then did he realize the true meaning of the prophecy.
The prophecy mentioned that only one elementalist would be ‘born’ but did not say there wouldn’t be two next elementalists.
The real ‘Cosette’ did not live to see the light of the world.
In other words, she was never born. It meant one thing– the ‘only elementalist’ predicted by the prophecy was Keira, not Cosette.
[1] 악마 could also mean Satan, but I wrote The Devil instead.