Chapter 60

60

Sharent Clown seemed to realize that this was not his will and got up from his seat.

"What is Miss Sherina saying?"

"It sounds like an ancient language, but the pronunciation is terrible."

The Duke Muel and the Emperor said.

That's how ancient languages are.

Due to the difficulty of pronunciation, even a slight mistake could make the content strange.

In such cases, the only option was to break down the pronunciation and read it again.

"Protect the king."

The Holy Knight Commander said.

"Raise your swords for the king who bears the weight of the crown."

His characteristic emotionless and blunt voice made everyone turn their gaze to the Holy Knight Commander.

Despite suddenly receiving the attention of many people, he remained calm.

"That's what he said."

"Quite impressive, Sir Yuriard."

"Young priests struggle with the pronunciation of ancient languages."

"Oh, right, using only ancient languages was the norm inside the temple."

Even with the Emperor's praise, the Holy Knight Commander's expression did not change at all.

How can someone be so uninteresting and blunt? It feels like looking at a massive, sturdy old tree that stands firm and unbreakable.

"Still, to protect the king. I haven't heard that since the time I guarded the late king. This is quite new."

The Emperor stroked his chin and looked at me.

His gaze seemed to be considering how to flatter and then devour me. His eyes, which were curved as if finding it amusing, were even more chilling.

I wanted to shake my head and say it wasn't like that, but now I couldn't even move a finger.

No. Is the person who made this ruin so desperate to become a king?

〈Wain, step on the ashes. Walk over the corpses. Thus, the prince who sits on the golden throne stained with blood will bring forth plenty.〉

After my poor pronunciation ended, everyone looked at the Holy Knight Commander.

What, is the Holy Knight Commander a translator? My words didn't even need that much interpretation, right?

"King, step on the sins."

And you! Don't interpret it like that as if it's obvious! It's just so depressing.

"Walk over the corpses. Thus, the golden throne on the blood-stained land will bring forth plenty."

As soon as the Holy Knight Commander finished speaking, dark things began to rise from the floor.

They were pitch-black and translucent, in the shape of humans.

They drew their swords, raised their shields, and held their staffs, all of them glaring at me.

‘What...?’

The Holy Knight Commander drew his sword.

Sharent Clown had also already drawn his spear. As he infused it with magic, ancient words in red light appeared on the spear.

‘So that’s really a relic.’

A holy relic of the Clown family.

I had a rough idea from when it transformed into a bracelet-like shape and wrapped around my wrist, but the sight of ancient words floating on the solid metal was always beautiful.

I never expected to see two relics of the Heiren Empire. Moreover, I even learned who the owner of the relic in the capital was.

The Duke Muel and the knights also drew their swords. The Emperor, seemingly planning to retreat, approached me and crossed his arms.

The battle began.

* * *

Five hours.

The time it took to deal with the endlessly generated shadow-like monsters.

I had to sit on a stone-like chair, and the Emperor killed the shadows that broke through the defensive line and fell over.

These shadows were like wraiths.

Normal attacks passed through their bodies without effect. They only disappeared when attacked with magic.

The problem was that as soon as one disappeared, another appeared, and as soon as one disappeared, another appeared.

And I lost my words when I met one of those shadows.

I saw someone I deeply missed.

Someone who often appeared in my dreams because I missed them so much.

The moment I saw him casting magic by swinging his staff, I easily understood what the 'weight of the crown' meant.

‘The people I killed.’

He was one of the people I killed when I was Hella.

My heart pounded.

My heart was beating so fast that I felt like I was losing my mind.

These countless shadows were the people I had killed. The weight of the crown meant the beings I had killed for my purpose.

Not many remembered who they were, but they were people who had died because of me, directly or indirectly.

After realizing this, my mind went numb. I bowed my head and laughed bitterly.

Seeing the countless shadows with my own eyes was a cruel reality that was hard to bear.

Even though the shadows no longer existed.

"Sherina."

I slowly lifted my head at the voice that called me, the same as always.

Sharent Clown was standing there.

Since no blood was drawn from killing the shadows, Sharent Clown was unharmed despite cutting down hundreds.

"You always bite your lollipop when you're anxious."

I bit a lollipop? Lowering my gaze, I saw that I indeed had an old lollipop in my mouth.

‘When did I bite this?’

A very faint light was seeping from the surface of the lollipop. It was a bluish light.

‘A relic...?’

It seemed like ancient words were glowing, but they were so faint that they were barely visible even when looked at closely.

‘This is a relic...?’

No, this was a relic? This old thing?

But this is the first time I've seen a relic that is old, shabby, and has no apparent power.

Even though I didn't move, he silently extended his arms to me.

"You've worked hard, come here."

What hard work?

I wanted to ask.

I haven't worked hard at all.

You worked hard because of my past actions.

I slightly moved my fingers.

They didn't move at all before, but now they moved easily.

"Ah..."

My voice also came out.

The lollipop fell and dangled from my chest.

‘I didn’t move my fingers, so when did the lollipop...?’

No, I didn't want to think about it. Lifting my head, I saw a blurry shape in front of me.

Is this the power of the relic?

I can see Sharent Clown's heart. It seems like I could burst it if I reached out and grabbed it.

His heart was beating very slowly, showing that he was currently stable.

I turned my head. The Holy Knight Commander, the Emperor, Duke Muel, the priests, and the knights were all visible.

I reached out to Sharent Clown in a daze. He slightly frowned but did not avoid my hand.

My outstretched hand passed through Sharent Clown's body and touched his heart.

Sharent Clown's shoulders shook violently. I looked up at him in a daze.

‘Wow, he looks like a monster.’

A crooked smile suddenly appeared on my face.

Once you start down a path, it doesn't change even if you change your body.

I will continue to search for black magic, stain my hands with blood for revenge, and hurt the Clown family.

"Your hand just passed through, young duke."

The Emperor approached and asked, but Sharent Clown only looked at me with his mouth tightly shut.

Actually, I didn't see it clearly. Looking around, I saw translucent things.

They seemed to be the so-called wraiths.

They had human forms but were translucent.

‘The Crown of the Ruler.’

I had a rough idea of what this crown could do.

It allows you to see things that should not be seen, touch things that should not be touched, and use the souls of the dead.

This seemed to be the power of the relic. The relic chose me as its owner.

The one who bears the heaviest sin in this place.

"Shu, I want to rest."

Today, I didn't want to think about anything.

I just wanted to be like a child, a naive and ignorant baby.

When I reached out, Sharent Clown silently embraced me.

The warmth felt very good. Come to think of it, there were times when I wanted to lean on someone when I was Hella.

But back then, I couldn't reach out to anyone, and no one reached out to me first.

Everyone was an enemy, and I was in a precarious position, with many things making me uneasy.

Many eyes watched, observed, and evaluated me, and they talked about me behind my back.

‘Sometimes, being a baby is good.’

Can't you rely on the name of a baby?

I never thought I would receive the rest I so desired from Sharent Clown, whom I considered an enemy for life.

"You won't die peacefully, and even in death, you won't be at ease! What a terrifying thing. Taking in someone like you was my greatest mistake in life."

Why do Master's words always come to mind at times like this?

It seems I suffer even in death, as Master said.

Even so, if I could go back to that time, I would act the same way and make the same choices.

Wasn't that the world back then?

A world where if you didn't kill, you would be killed.

A world where the war hadn't ended, and you had to fight for food with crows and beasts, hide your body, and survive.

A world where you had to survive like a shark to eat and live.

Since you tried to kill me first.

Don't blame me for killing, Master.

Thinking of the person who appeared as a shadow and cast magic endlessly in this chaos, I slowly closed my eyes.

My pride is a bit hurt, but I bit the lollipop and thoroughly prepared.

I didn't try to resist the sleep that came with a peaceful mind.