Chapter 123
Chapter 123
Whenever I stood before her, I strangely fell into fear.
I always thought it was an abnormal terror.
The last time I encountered her was the most serious—so severe that the system had to lower the resolution on its own.
And Leilyranda knew that I was afraid of her.
‘You’re afraid of me.’
She had said this as if to confirm what she already knew, seeing my fear.
But what’s interesting is that I was adapting, despite being thrown into fear so often that I would have panic attacks.
I was still afraid, my body was frozen stiff, and my palms were damp with sweat, but my thinking was much more flexible than before.
[Are you really okay…?]
‘I don’t want to receive concern from an entity that doesn’t properly know the identity of Leilyranda Jackmüller.’
[…Hmph.]
‘Hmph, speak like an adult.’
[This is my hmph.]
I casually consoled the system chat window that was feeling unjustly wronged.
‘From the system’s perspective, Leilyranda doesn’t seem much different from Lord Sian.’
[Yes.]
If only that were all. The system hardly understood anything about Leilyranda.
That means it knows no more about Leilyranda than I do. The only difference is it seems to have a bit more speculation.
Anyway, I was dripping with cold sweat and caught in Leilyranda’s grasp, but I was fine.
At least I could confirm that Leilyranda’s eye color had changed right away, and I could also see that she had a large wound on her neck between the folds of her dress.
Sian said it was true that he had summoned the supreme demonic beast, but he hadn’t moved it to specific areas.
He said he hadn’t participated in the production of humanoid or animal-type demonic beasts.
The newly emerged demonic beasts in the border region were also unrelated to Sian.
I suspect Leilyranda is behind it.
If so, how was Leilyranda, who was the original female protagonist and an ordinary human, able to do this?
Leilyranda, who makes me overwhelmed with fear just like when facing a demonic beast, who has a large wound like Count Adela’s son, and who has red eyes like demonic beasts.
I opened my mouth.
“Your Highness is not human, are you?”
The hand gripping my chin tightened. Even when I let out a groan of “Ugh,” she showed no sign of letting go.
But after a long while, she was the first to let go.
“…You say I’m not human. It seems you’re not afraid of the crime of insulting the imperial family.”
I smiled.
I was in such a calm state that it was hard to believe I had been so afraid before. I spoke calmly to Leilyranda.
“I think it’s more insulting that a mere demonic beast is wearing the skin of an imperial family member.”
“…”
I straightened my posture.
She didn’t deny it. She was just staring at me with frightening eyes.
It was quite chilling to be stared at with that pretty face and those dead fish-like eyes.
But I calmly asked:
“I heard you want the world’s destruction.”
Today was the opportunity. Today was the chance to learn many things.
“Is it because you’re a demonic beast that you want destruction? Is that why you even drew in Lord Sian?”
“You, you really don’t have any fear, do you?”
She cut off my words.
“You seemed to be trembling before me last time. How interesting.”
“So what’s your answer?”
“…The order is wrong.”
Leilyranda quietly corrected my words.
“I have no intention of waiting until this world rots and collapses. Rather than waiting in agony for that day to come, I’d rather destroy it with my own hands.”
“Why?”
“Because there’s no hope here.”
Leilyranda’s movements were distinctly unnatural.
She strangely tilted her head to the side as if trying to stretch, but it looked like a robot or a corpse moving, creaking and jerking.
Watching this, I thought that Leilyranda Jackmüller might have transformed into a humanoid demonic beast.
It was just like Count Adela’s eldest son.
I wondered if she was just maintaining her sense of self as a human through some method, while her body was actually that of a demonic beast.
“How do you know there’s no hope?”
“Hahaha! How could I not know that?”
How could I not know that?
Leilyranda laughed hysterically, even tilting her head. She was laughing as if she might choke at any moment, and then suddenly, she stopped all laughter.
Not just her laughter, but her movement and breathing also seemed to stop all at once.
She slowly lowered her head from looking up at the heavens.
“…!”
Half of her face had turned completely black, with veins grotesquely protruding. She looked just like a demonic beast. Half of her face was that of an elegant beauty, but the rest was monstrous.
Not only were her irises blood red, but the whites of her eyes were also red with burst blood vessels.
The corners of her mouth curled up smoothly, which was truly chilling.
“How could I not know? After so many failures.”
“What?”
“After repeating so many times, too many! I’ve seen with my own eyes that this world has no hope!”
I blankly stared at Leilyranda as she screamed.
“And you say I don’t know? Why wouldn’t I know? I do know!”
“Ah…”
“This world is destined for destruction, and such destruction is not a waste.”
She, who had gradually become closer to a demonic beast in form, returned to human form after several deep breaths.
Only the burst blood vessels in her eyes seemed to prove that she had been a demonic beast just moments ago.
I wondered how a living person could move between being human and demonic beast like those who had been humanoid demonic beasts, but more than that, I was stunned by the truth that Leilyranda had revealed while screaming.
“Repetition, you say?”
“Yes. Repetition.”
“…How?”
“How am I supposed to know that?”
“…Is that why you went to Lord Sian?”
Now I understood why Sian Terezia had helped Leilyranda.
As soon as Sian learned that I had been chosen by the god, he looked at me with pity. He envied me too, but the pity was greater.
But at some point, he stopped pitying me.
More precisely, he disappeared from my sight.
‘He actually found someone walking the same path as himself.’
That’s why he lent his power to Leilyranda, who had declared she would destroy the world.
I understood many aspects of Sian.
Now I need to think about Leilyranda again.
I stared at Leilyranda.
She looked somewhat soulless, with a lovable appearance that made it hard to believe she had been a hideous monster just moments ago.
“Sian, Sian Terezia succeeded. That person, even after repeating and repeating and repeating!”
“Yes.”
“He didn’t give up.”
Sian didn’t give up. He eventually succeeded, but he lost his homeland that he truly wanted to save.
“But I’m going to give up.”
Leilyranda shrugged.
“Cassis Luwin didn’t know the meaning of giving up until the very end. He thought I was born with the destiny of a hero.”
“…Isn’t Lord Cassis a hero?”
“That’s what I thought. So I wasted too much time. He’s not a hero. He’s someone who cannot save the world.”
My mind was blank.
It felt like I was hearing too many stories.
What should I do in this situation? After hesitating for a long time, the words I finally uttered were truly pathetic.
“But couldn’t there still be hope?”
“No, there isn’t.”
“A method that hasn’t been tried yet!”
“After repeating dozens of times, I first learned of your existence. So I thought that this time, I might succeed.”
“…”
One side of Leilyranda’s mouth twisted upward.
“But I’m not interested. Why should I sacrifice again? Why should I alone remember everything and repeat?”
Listening to all of Leilyranda’s words, I thought I now needed a deep conversation with the system.
It was ominous that the system, which would usually interject with a few words by now, was quiet.
“Rather than seeing this world collapse with my own eyes again, I’ll just destroy it all with my own hands.”
“…”
“Cassis Luwin is one of them. That fake hero who always interfered with everything I tried to do.”
Leilyranda brought her face close to mine. She approached threateningly, but since I was sitting on the couch, I couldn’t do anything except lean my upper body backward.
“You think the demonic beast that appeared at the border of the Kingdom of Kawen is my fault, don’t you?”
“Yes. And I thought you could handle demonic beasts.”
In fact, I only just now understand why you want to destroy the world.
“That’s not wrong. That’s right. It was all me.”
She said it was all her doing, and that such incidents would continue to happen.
“You’re really shaking and trembling like a rabbit, it’s cute. I can see why Lord Sian has a weakness for you.”
“…Then how on earth did you transform into a demonic beast?”
“Do I have to tell you that too? Then, our Irina, saving the world would be too easy.”
She whispered in my ear, speaking gently:
“All I can tell you is… Cassis Luwin should try his best to protect his life this time.”
Leilyranda seemed to already have some kind of relationship with Cassis after repeating dozens of times. And judging by the situation, that relationship didn’t seem very good.
I bit my lip.
“And you won’t have the luxury of assisting from the sidelines like you did in the Jenoria Mountains last time.”
With those words, the princess snapped her fingers to call a lady-in-waiting. The lady-in-waiting appeared with a bow and aggressively insisted that my audience time was over and I must leave immediately.
“…Then I shall take my leave first.”
“Yes, let’s see each other again when we have the chance.”
Just as I was about to leave the princess’s reception room, I heard a voice from behind saying, “Ah, that’s right!”
“To avoid misunderstanding, when everyone was overwhelmed with demonic beasts in the Jenoria Mountains,”
“Yes.”
“The demonic beast that appeared in Jedo at that time wasn’t my doing.”
“What?”
Leilyranda responded indifferently, saying “Just take note of it,” then lay back on the couch. In a situation where further dialogue seemed impossible, I was half-dragged and practically expelled from the imperial palace.
While waiting for the carriage, I stood blankly on the street, ruminating on the information I had just learned, and muttered:
“What on earth is happening?”
