NOVEL NEXT Chapter 51
“Stop. The boy has too many distractions.”
Sweating buckets as I struggled to draw my sword, the Celestial Demon spoke to me as if I were pitiful. What is it? How can I make this thing move…
“Come this way, boy.”
“Understood, Celestial Demon.”
I stopped what I was doing and walked towards where she gestured. The crunch crunch of grass beneath my feet echoed through the forest.
“…Sit here.”
I sat down on the grass and assumed a meditative posture. I closed my eyes and relaxed my body. Taking a deep breath, my frantic heart began to calm.
“Boy, why did you draw your sword?”
“…I wanted to make unhappy people happy.”
Having crossed many lines and endured pain and hardship, I grit my teeth and held on. But why is she asking this all of a sudden?
“The reason a swordsman draws their sword is an important matter. Is that really so? Is it truly?”
“Yes, apart from that, I needed nothing else.”
I spoke calmly. I know nothing but the happiness of our Saintess. I need to return to the Academy as soon as possible and continue the Grand Route.
“You have quite the greed for one so young, boy.”
“…What do you mean?”
“Be more honest. Did you not want something else?”
With my eyes closed, I couldn’t see her expression, but her probing tone reached my ears. It felt as if she was prompting me to think of another reason.
‘Something else I wanted…’
I lightly bit my lower lip. Helping Kainel and Ariel escape, healing Mardol… saving Nex and Schartines…
What’s the problem? I just fulfilled the conditions to pursue the Saintess route.
“…”
“Did you truly not need ‘anything other than that’?”
Ah, maybe that’s not true. I hadn’t considered the Crown Prince route from the start. If I truly desired her happiness, I wouldn’t have acted as I did.
Even if the Saintess entered a harem and didn’t die, what would it matter? In retrospect, it was a foolish greed.
“I think I like that person a bit too much.”
What I saw just moments ago at the end of my reminiscing wasn’t a recollection of my unfortunate life, but rather the moments when she was adorable. It stuck hard in my memory, and I answered that way.
“Then, in the end, did you not draw your sword for love? Is there a need to attach excuses or reasons to flee from it?”
“…Isn’t it? I’m not deserving.”
With severe burn scars, I was subjected to finger-pointing. If I got any closer to her, the Saintess would be the one getting hurt. It’s already hard to face each other while wearing helmets.
“Your solitary thoughts run deep, young one.”
“My experiences in life have shaped this. I can’t bear to see that person suffer because of me…”
In this story, the protagonist is Rufus Grancia. Ultimately, being connected to him is also influenced by the creators, so surely the Nameless Saintess would be happy too.
“Hehe! Boy, if Dennis hears that story, he’ll be quite angry.”
“Professor Dennis…?”
I looked in the direction of the sound in surprise. Was he that type of character? The thought of Dennis getting angry at the player had never even crossed my mind.
“Yes, Dennis… that man was peculiar. He told me that love doesn’t need qualifications.”
As I meditated, the Celestial Demon shared a brief old story. A tale of spring that I thought would never come again.
*
The pinnacle of Water Magic. Dennis, one of the Ten Heroes.
You might wonder why Dennis isn’t called a ‘Mage’ in the game.
It’s because he’s referred to as a cursed dragon and a ‘human male.’
Ariel is also called a mage of blazing flames, yet why does only the protagonist of [Night Heart] receive such treatment?
It’s because his true profession is different.
His real job is ‘Hunter Dennis.’
In the Apocalypse that erupted in Seoul when the gates opened, he was an ordinary human male summoned as a hero. Originating from a world different from mine, that’s just the setting.
Though forgotten as an F-class hunter, the striking blue-haired man traveled across battlefields and befriended the Celestial Demon upon arriving in this world.
His true ability was ‘being good at using magic,’ but in his original world without mana, this ability could never blossom.
“…Ha, what a ragtag bunch. A woodsman with wolf ears, a dwarf, a demon… what else? A Three-legged Crow? Bringing along a boy soldier, have you all gone mad?”
“It’s the Phoenix of House Aureus. This is why commoners…”
“Nothing exists above the sky of this lady. There’s no need to cling to class. Yellow-haired one.”
At first, the Celestial Demon felt disbelief when she saw the people gathered to oppose the Hero Church.
“What’s the use of Shadow Slash? That’s not the essence of nothingness.”
“Ha ha ha!! What a bold joke! A lizard, not even a dragon!”
“A western swordsman, shall we have a go?”
This was due to the fact that, compared to the archdemon they were facing, they were woefully inadequate, having sought help from gods in other worlds, just like her. They were a foolish bunch.
“Stop it, everyone. At this rate, only the archdemons will be pleased.”
“Ha, young soldier. Are you meddling?”
“I just turned 20 yesterday, I’m now an adult.”
Even when the White Lily broke out into disputes with the Ten Heroes, he became the mediator and stopped the fights.
The youngest male, as he was, commanded the atmosphere.
“…If you can’t win against such a young person, just be quiet.”
“She just showed you her hand.”
If she truly showed her true thoughts, she could always win against Dennis, but having him summoned as a hero at such a young age was somewhat tragic, so she always let him win.
“…Miss White Lily! It’s dangerous!”
“To think a younger brat would worry about me.”
“What would have happened if I wasn’t here? Here, a protection spell!”
Drawing a circle on the palm of her hand with her finger, the Celestial Demon helped avoid injury.
“Indeed, the young soldier is naïve. Do not trust your opponent’s lies.”
“…”
While the Celestial Demon repeatedly saved him, they backed each other up and crossed lines. A truly mismatched combination of martial arts and modernity.
“Young soldier, but why do you not fear my presence?”
“People nowadays are not afraid of things like you, Celestial Demon.”
“You dare mock me? You’ve got some nerve.”
Slowly, the distance between the White Lily and her became less uncomfortable. The days when she was born as a Celestial Demon, receiving only dread and awe from humans were long gone.
“…”
“You did not kill her, young soldier.”
“I said I wanted to go home. The archdemon I killed…”
Dennis valued life above all and was said to have been shaken the most when dealing with the Hero Church. The White Lily, living as a Celestial Demon, was relatively accustomed to it compared to Dennis.
“If that were truly the case, one would not desire to return home while killing others. Ignore the mad ramblings of such a lunatic.”
“I’m really struggling. What if this doesn’t end…”
Such a human expressing sympathy toward someone who sought to kill him seems rather odd. Yet, gradually she, too, began to change.
“Did you not kill anyone today? Just broke the Holy Sword?”
“Hmm? The difference in strength is too vast; I thought it unnecessary.”
“Thank you, Celestial Demon.”
“Hehe! How amusing. That’s not how it’s done.”
“But that’s how I’ve seen it done in books?”
While looking at the blue-haired boy, who gathered his fists in greeting as if he had seen it somewhere, she couldn’t help but chuckle.
“My Water Magic is refreshing. Summer is hot, so it’ll be helpful.”
“…Seeing this, magic might not be so bad after all, young soldier.”
“I think so too, Celestial Demon.”
Ultimately, Dennis, who did not fear the Celestial Demon and treated her most comfortably, shared coolness in the heat and warmth during the cold.
“Dragon tail, so it moves separately, huh?”
“…Isn’t it creepy?”
“It’s cute like a puppy. What’s there to worry about?”
At times like this, he also shared the baffling tale that dragons are transforming beasts.
Friendship turned into love,
They became lovers from comrades.
A human male who loved a cursed dragon.
Because she wrote it herself as the Celestial Demon, it was not indicated in the story from the Water Mage’s perspective.
*
With only a few archdemons left from the Hero Church, before fighting Head Ake, she recalled a conversation she had with him just moments before receiving the power of ignorance.
“When spring comes, lilies always become tattered. Dennis.”
“…Why are you saying that all of a sudden? Lily.”
The war that had already been ongoing for several years was growing chaotic as the Hero Church summoned more archdemons, and she gradually lost hope.
“I just think it’s time to let go of everything. Just like my name: Lily.”
As she sighed, reflecting on her life, she realized she had stained her hands with far too much blood. Days spent as a Celestial Demon, unsatisfied with a world where kings abandon their people, and poverty kills people.
“For me, this world has been a fleeting spring dream. Ultimately, it will soon come to an end.”
“…I don’t think that way, Lily.”
It was fortunate that being summoned as a hero allowed her to meet Dennis, but there were already casualties among the Ten Heroes. The first Saintess and a dwarf had died, and she felt that she could meet a similar fate at any time.
“Why? Dennis, why do you think that way?”
“Because I like lily flowers. They’re white and beautiful, aren’t they? While everyone thinks of cherry blossoms in spring, I changed because of you, Celestial Demon.”
Hearing that, Dennis fixed her disheveled hair accessory. The boy with blue hair and eyes wore a smile.
“…Is that really true? Dennis.”
“Yes, absolutely. Your Highness!”
Seeing the playful boy’s smile, he casually mentioned. It was the first time the White Lily had heard such a story. In the martial world, merely hearing her name was enough for people to tremble in fear.
“With me around, it can’t be a dreamlike scenario in this world.”
“There’s no way that can be…”
“Come on, but this is the story of my one and only lover, so let’s hear it.”
Even seeing lilies planted in the common folk’s streets causes fear, they have long been seen as forbidden and gotten rid of.
“…I am unworthy of your love, Dennis.”
“Love doesn’t need qualifications, Celestial Demon. Whether it’s tattered or not, it’s fine as long as I like you.”
So the cursed dragon, who seemed that spring would never come,
“If we catch Head Ake, will you really marry me?”
“…I swear it.”
“Thank you. I have to fight properly now.”
She fell in love with an ordinary human male. A story that’s both common and cliché.
But the ignorance power held by the archdemon made the precious memories she treasured right before her eyes forgotten by even Dennis himself, aside from her.
*
“So, Dennis once said this to the Celestial Demon. Hehe!”
“I knew, but it feels new hearing it like this.”
That was why the Celestial Demon trusted me. According to her knowledge, there shouldn’t be anyone aware that she had been in a relationship with Dennis.
“…”
In the end, I was similar. I thought I had no right to approach her and be close to her. I pulled the corner of my mouth sideways inside the helmet.
‘In the end, I love the Saintess, so I don’t want to hand her over to anyone else.’
I must have wanted something else. Even the thought of her dating someone else made me uncomfortable. Thinking of her being with the Crown Prince, I felt unsettled.
“So, do you understand now, boy?”
“…To some extent.”
I opened my eyes and stood up. My steps toward the sword felt a little lighter. I gripped the hilt again and prepared to draw.
In the end, is love really without qualifications? I pushed myself deep into my solitary, negative thoughts.
Well, our Saintess wouldn’t dislike me because I have burn scars.
“When the lady looks at you, boy, you’re far too greedy.”
“…Understood. So this truly meant I had to be more honest.”
It had been contradictory from the start. Because I wanted her more than anyone else.
I acknowledged it cleanly.
The feelings I had been running away from, I had been pushing love away. I thought I had to discard my old, long-held affections for her, but I couldn’t do so.
‘How ugly. Lee Soo-hyun.’
I wanted to see the Saintess. I genuinely wanted to see her smile, joke, and show affection. I wanted to say that I lived because of her, even if it sounded cheesy.
“…I am an ugly human, Celestial Demon.”
“Hehe! But it’s a pure affection, more than anyone else. Which person would plan to win against an archdemon, risking their life for the Ten Heroes, if they were not foolishly affectionate?”
With her arms crossed, the White Lily nodded. Signaling that she would no longer offer help, I steeled my arm to pull the sword out.
‘If that’s the case, I can’t give our Saintess to the Crown Prince either.’
Clenching my teeth, I resolved myself. With just my feelings of affection for the Saintess alone, I wouldn’t lose to anyone. What does the protagonist care?
You, Rufus, did nothing for our Saintess, right?
“…”
I had put in the effort to protect her for 15 years and even risked my life to win against a Magic Hat. This should be a clear victory.
“I love the Saintess.”
Muttering the words I had only whispered to myself, I reflected on my feelings. For now, I would express as much love as I could and leave her choice to her, even if it was later than never.
“…Enough that I wouldn’t want to lose her to anyone.”
Then, a miracle occurred.
“You did it, boy.”
With a whoosh sound, the sword, which had been lodged in the ground and unmoving, was drawn up.
“If you love someone, it’s normal not to want to give them away. Silly boy, you’d want to monopolize them. That’s the natural greed.”
“Why does this… work?”
“Because your will has surpassed the lady’s will.”
Looking at me like I finally understood, the Celestial Demon smiled. The reflection of dragon teeth sparkled with light.