Chapter 33

### Chapter 33: Reminiscence (4)

* * *

#13

My eyelids keep drooping.

Am I sleepy? It was an irresistible temptation.

It feels similar to that, but slightly different. I feel like I want to close my eyes and relax right away.

However, if I close my eyelids here and now... I felt like I would never wake up again.

My body was restrained by something like black chains.

"I don't like men."

Kimaris muttered.

"You didn't seem to see it, but this human clearly broke through the barrier and came in. He's very powerful, a strong divine presence. He seems to have hidden inside for now."

"......Hmm, really?"

"It's best to wake him up and eat him."

Popula looked down at me coldly.

Rubiya was lying by the pond, and I was kneeling with my hands tied behind my back.

Whatever they did to my body, blood no longer came out of my mouth. They must have been worried that I would die from spitting out too much blood.

My entire body was in such pain that I almost preferred to die, but unfortunately, it seemed they didn't want me to die.

"......What do you plan to do with Rubiya..."

"Huh?"

I managed to speak.

My vocal cords were damaged, and the pitch of my voice was incredibly strange. Speaking even a single word caused a burning pain in my throat.

Kimaris tilted her head.

"You didn't say a word when I told you to earlier... Do you really want to die?"

I twisted my lips into a sneer.

"Try... killing me... you bitch..."

"......Hmm."

Kimaris laughed sinisterly.

"Popula, I think I should..."

"Control yourself. Should you fall for a human's provocation?"

Popula raised her hand to stop Kimaris.

"......Fine. Do as you please. I'll keep preparing."

Kimaris turned away, seemingly angry.

I felt a bit relieved.

As long as this demon Popula wants to keep me alive, Kimaris can't kill me easily.

It felt good to curse her out, but the intense pain from my entire body quickly made that feeling of satisfaction disappear.

Now is the time to think.

How can I rescue Rubiya and escape from the clutches of these demons, and find a way to break through the barrier?

In fact, there's no hope.

I felt that certainty when I was hit in the stomach by that demon Kimaris.

No matter what I do here, my future is nothing but death.

But if there's a tiny bit of hope, it's that Shuriel, who is outside the barrier, might find some reinforcements to break through the barrier and exterminate the demons.

...But will I die before that happens?

I just don't know.

Maybe I shouldn't have come in.

The option to let Rubiya die...

Did I really have to choose that?

...No, I could never have done that.

Look, I'm a pathetic man who couldn't forget Rubiya until today and only now decided to let her go.

In middle school, I made a ridiculous confession to her, hoping to bind her in a superficial relationship, and was naturally rejected.

After that, Rubiya wanted to continue being friends with me. I smiled and promised I would, but that wish was never fulfilled.

It was impossible.

Feeling inferior, I distanced myself from Rubiya, and the idea of becoming friends again after that failed confession was too pathetic for me.

Most importantly, I couldn't see Rubiya the same way as before. My first love had been shattered so futilely. Every time I saw her face, the memory of that day would overlap.

It was a rejected confession due to my own inadequacies, and there was no reason to blame Rubiya, who was faultless...

Rubiya must have wanted to be close friends with me again. She actually was. She often asked others about my news.

On the other hand, I thought I didn't deserve to be by Rubiya's side. I was far too inadequate. How could I have the nerve to call myself her friend when I couldn't even face her?

So, I avoided Rubiya as much as possible.

After getting close to Miu, Rubiya only glanced at me briefly and didn't approach any further.

And after I had a girlfriend like Miu, it was safe to say there was no contact at all.

They say that when the body is distant, the heart follows.

We were closer than we thought.

We were still in the same space, so I couldn't help but be aware of her.

Now, she was right in front of me.

Facing death, just like me.

I couldn't bear to see her like this.

No matter how much I had distanced myself from Rubiya, I couldn't abandon her to die in front of me and focus on my own survival.

There were too many precious memories she had given me.

If Rubiya were to die like this, I would surely have nightmares every night, reliving the happy memories of my childhood.

So, I can't give up.

Even with death so close, I can barely hold on to my consciousness for one reason alone.

If I close my eyes here, I can no longer guarantee Rubiya's survival.

Somehow, I have to save Rubiya...

—Just as I thought that.

"......!"

"Kimaris!"

Huh.

...What just happened?

"Shut up, Popula. I was annoyed just now, and I'm still annoyed after thinking about it. Why should I just stand here and take insults from a pathetic human? It's fucking ridiculous. Damn it."

"This impatient woman..."

Crack.

Kimaris grabbed my arm firmly and twisted the joint. She didn't stop there and grabbed my leg, twisting it the same way.

I still couldn't scream.

"Fuck you, Popula. How do you know when and where that divine presence will appear?"

"......"

"Why should we take unnecessary risks by dismantling all our preparations inside this barrier? We only have one offering to make. We don't have the precise skills like Eligos to just insert and extract it. Is it worth the risk?"

"......"

My consciousness.

Gradually faded.

"And this kid will die anyway. There's nowhere to take him and use him. It's better to finish what we're doing and get out of here. We'll be fine until the moon rises, but after that, even the caster won't be able to handle it."

Kimaris's face was right in front of me.

Or was it a face? It looked more like a mass of blood. Ah, that was the blood flowing from my forehead.

They coalesced and condensed. My pupils, unable to distinguish objects, lost their focus.

Thud—

"Anyway, good luck."

Kimaris's finger, which had pierced my forehead, seemed to touch something soft.

Squatting, Kimaris licked her blood-stained lips and whispered quietly to me, who was rapidly losing life.

"......I'll eat your friend well, kid. Who told you to come in so fearlessly? Humans lack patience, you know."

Kimaris chuckled.

...No.

My thoughts were completely cut off.

Now, it was impossible.

Rubiya...

If I die here...

...

...

...

I'm sorry, Miu.

#14

A few hours later.

"Alright, it's almost done. This should be enough, right?"

Kimaris laughed, placing her hands on her hips.

The young girl's body was floating higher in the air, closer to the moonlight.

The pale moonlight, reflected on the round pond, dyed every part of Rubiya's body, wrapped in a veil, on the water's surface.

The sun grants divine power,

while the moon excludes it.

The divine power, a miracle bestowed by the sun god who loved humans, only to humans—divine power (??).

The greatest reason why humans, once a weak and insignificant race, could control the continent. The demons, born under the moon rather than the sun, desired it greatly.

—Some say it is the pinnacle of all delicacies in this world.

Once tasted, one cannot help but crave more, the greatest drug on earth.

Since ordinary humans yield nothing, the divine power of specially selected humans is the most valuable, and the number of demons who personally seek it is said to be in the thousands...

However, the great war in the southern demon realm a few years ago drastically reduced their numbers.

Those who remained were either those who fled the war or those who refused to participate in it.

The demons who were now coveting Rubiya's powerful divine power—Kimaris, Popula, and Gremory—were among the 72 demons expelled from the demon realm.

They had no interest in the war and did not pledge loyalty to the demon realm. They only thought of their own safety and goals, hiding in the human world to hunt humans with special divine power.

How many times had they done this today?

It must have been hundreds.

Time inside the barrier created by Gremory is fixed. It was always a night with a pale moon. Although the barrier had never been disturbed by external shocks, it had been at least six hours since it was set up.

Another human who was with the one they captured as an offering.

Shuriel also possessed a decent divine power, but he was a man and thus didn't suit Kimaris's taste, and his divine light was much weaker than the one they brought.

Well, I don't know, but I think he probably failed to escape.

The strongest central barrier was set up here, but it was a vast barrier that almost covered half the forest.

As time passed,

the shadow monsters created by magic would attack him from all sides. It was hard for Kimaris to imagine that he could break through the outer barrier and escape successfully with just his skills.

I hope he's not dead by now.

Well, it's for the best. If I throw him to my friend who enjoys men, he'll make him a subordinate.

...By the way.

"......"

Kimaris suddenly turned her gaze to the side.

A mass of blood on the ground. It was the small human boy Kimaris had killed instantly by piercing his head.

He was so fragile that his joints in his arms and legs were all broken with the first blow.

His internal organs seemed to be severely ruptured. He would have died within five minutes even if left alone.

Since he was going to die anyway, I just sped up the process, but Popula, who was standing with her arms crossed, didn't like it.

Maybe I should find a chance to break her horns. She would look good as a decoration in my house.

Anyway.

I need to wrap up what I was saying earlier.

"Popula, Gremory."

"......"

"......"

At Kimaris's call, Popula opened her eyes slightly.

The giant Gremory also looked at the place slowly.

"I assume there are no objections to me tasting it first. I've done most of the preparation, so this is fair, right?"

"......Tsk, do as you please."

"Narrow-minded brat."

Kimaris chuckled.

Gremory, who was still silent, nodded slowly without a word.

Well, he was a good demon who cooperated without question with my plans.

...The problem was that he kept trying to insert something I hated deeply into my body every night.

All preparations were complete.

A delicious feast was laid out before me.

The table was set, and now it was time to enjoy the meal.

The divine light, which I hadn't seen in a long time, shone brilliantly, and the moonlight became even more intense. Feeling a surge of energy, Kimaris spread her arms wide.

"Thank you, Hyperion, for bestowing divine power upon humans!"

Demons have no religion.

Just to enjoy this fine and delicious feast, they show infinite respect to the one who granted even weak humans a useful value like divine power.

The moon demon prayed to the sun god.

Kimaris, filled with joy and ecstasy, spread her arms wide, swayed her tail, and let her long, reddish-brown hair flutter in the air.

The moonlight shone even more brilliantly.

The divine power, which had been locked away, began to emerge, and Rubiya's body, glowing like pure light, reflected in Kimaris's eyes, bringing an indescribable happiness.

Her mouth was wide open.

Kimaris, with shining eyes, flapped her wings and slowly approached the light.

"Whatever, fuck it! I'll eat well—"

She shouted.

『You are troubling me twice, boy.』

Snap—

It was a single thread.

"......Huh?"

Kimaris blinked.

A thin, thread-like object pierced through the barrier's ceiling and stuck between Popula and Kimaris.

What is this?

"......What is this, at such a good moment?"

Kimaris, who noticed the presence, expressed her short-lived annoyance and turned to the side with a very angry face.

It was a thread wrapped in a faint, moonlight-like glow.

No, it wasn't moonlight.

Then what?

"......"

Popula looked up at the sky in surprise.

The night sky, where the moon was rising, seemed to have no problems. Gremory, who was standing with his arms crossed, also expressed his confusion.

The glowing thread seemed to extend from high in the sky, piercing through the clouds to a place even further beyond.

In other words, it came from a place higher than the barrier they had set up—

"......What's that..."

At that moment.

Squeak—!!

The thin thread, like a silkworm's silk,

Boom!

Suddenly widened with a deafening sound.

"What, what, what! What's happening all of a sudden...!"

Suddenly.

The moon's shadow faded.

The pitch-black night sky turned white.

And.

Boom!

Boom!

Boom!

Once.

Twice.

Hundreds of times.

The pillars of light, which had appeared as a faint thread, broke through the barrier without any resistance and pierced the pond.

Hundreds, thousands, tens of thousands of times—shaking the space in one to three seconds, they pierced the pond.

Squeak—

The overlapping pillars of light spread a brilliance far surpassing the pale moonlight, breaking through the barrier like a bolt of lightning, heading for a single destination.

"Damn it...!"

Kimaris sensed the danger and dodged.

"Po, Po, Popula...?"

Popula, who was standing there,

turned to ashes without a trace.

...Am I dreaming?

My pale skin rapidly turned cold.

The overwhelming excitement and joy that filled Kimaris's heart plummeted to the depths of despair.

Her mind couldn't keep up with the situation.

'What, what is happening...'

Crack, crack...

The barrier was breaking into pieces.

"Gr, Gremory! The barrier, the barrier!"

As if the sky itself was enraged.

Boom—!

"Ah—!"

The pillar of light that had erased Popula from the world just moments ago now pierced Gremory's body from head to toe.

Whoosh!

Only ashes remained, and a faint flame flickered and burned.

Boom! Boom! Boom!

Whoosh!

The massive pillars of light, like thunder, struck the area around Kimaris, creating a terrifying inferno by colliding with everything except the pond and a specific part.

"Shit... What, what is this? What is this!"

The pond area became a chaotic battlefield.

Rumble—!

Again.

This time, it struck Kimaris's head.

"Ah—!"

Sensing the death knell, Kimaris had already flapped her wings to dodge. When she saw the spot she had just been standing in turn white with light, she was overwhelmed by an indescribable fear.

The offering, the offering is not important.

I need to survive.

I need to escape from here...

The forest surrounding the pond began to burn within ten seconds.

The barrier, which had started to crack from the top, was gradually breaking. It would break. It would break. I need to escape before that happens.

Without even trying to retrieve anything from the floating Rubiya, Kimaris flapped her wings frantically to fly into the sky—

Rumble!

"Kya—!"

It was impossible. The pillar of light struck, stopping Kimaris's flight.

Seeing it strike right next to her, Kimaris lost her balance and fell to the ground like a meteor.

Boom!

"Ku, ku, ugh..."

The surroundings were already engulfed in flames.

Ash-colored smoke rose from all sides, and everything, including the underbrush, was burning with a crackling sound.

In the burning inferno.

Rumble—!

Finally, one more pillar of light struck.

Kimaris, who had been lying on the ground trembling, slowly lifted her head.

"Shit?"

Kimaris's eyes were filled with fear she had never felt before, and her mind was left with only the instinct to survive, sensing the death knell.

"Impossible."

This was something that should not happen.

It was happening.

...Yes,

it was a miracle.

"How...? I thought you were dead..."

"......"

In the brilliant light that had erased the demons, something that had maintained its form despite being struck stood up unsteadily.

The arms and legs, grotesquely twisted.

Kimaris could see no magic power left in that body.

It was completely drained, and if he tried to force it, it would break down. The internal organs, severely damaged, made him choke and spit out blood.

However, there was no hole in his forehead. Kimaris had no idea what was happening. She was soon overwhelmed by an unknown fear.

At some point, the pillars of light stopped striking this place.

With the last human corpse, the barrier, gradually breaking, left only the forest consumed by flames and the brilliant offering still floating above the pond.

...No, that was no longer a corpse.

"......Ah."

"Ah—!"

Kimaris slowly backed away.

'He, he just spoke!'

He was clearly dead.

He came back to life.

...How?

It was a different nature from a zombie, which belongs to the category of monsters.

A faint vitality could be felt from his entire body.

A perfect resurrection.

...Was this even possible?

For a moment, the fear of the pillars of light, which could strike her at any time, prevented Kimaris from moving.

Her pointed tail trembled. Kimaris, with her head covered by her