Quit The Hero Party

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EP.513 Master of the Demon Lord, Demon Lord Subjugation War (6)

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What are you planning to do with them?

The Master of the Demon Lord posed a question to the Hero. As the master of the forsaken race, or perhaps as their spokesperson. Raniel was obligated to answer that question. And that answer should not be as lighthearted as it is now.

Raniel exhaled.

She exhaled and then sealed her lips.

“······.”

The hero of humanity remained silent.

She understood as well. To humanity, she might be a hero and a savior, but… to the demon race, she was a nightmare. She knew full well that in their eyes she was nothing but a butcher.

‘No matter how noble my intentions may be…’

That fact does not change.

Even so, Raniel could not bow her head before the forsaken race. Because those who are dying and breaking down carry the weight upon her shoulders.

She cannot become their hero.

She never should.

That would be to deny the life she has lived, and to insult the lives of those who died at their hands. As long as Raniel was human, this was a non-negotiable matter.

‘But.’

She cannot just abandon them.

Thus, Raniel spoke.

“The only thing I can accomplish that they desire.”

Her utmost effort.

“I plan to grant them peace.”

Peace (安息). Or perhaps, enlightenment, or exorcism.

“I will provide peace to those who suffer eternally without dying or living. That is my answer.”

“Is that so.”

The queen smiled bitterly at Raniel’s response.

She turned her head and gazed beyond the fiery boundary at the writhing vengeful spirits. Remembering their whispers, she opened her mouth.

“Do you know this, Raniel?”

Acriel spoke.

“I have listened to their voices for a very long time, for two thousand years. I have lived as their king among them.”

The Master of the Demon Lord, the Demon Lord, said.

“Their wish was for a life without stars. They simply wanted an ordinary life. A life free of conflict with humanity, a life not cursed by the stars.”

“······.”

“That is impossible as long as the stars exist. As long as humanity is blessed by the stars, it cannot be achieved. Hence, they have sought to bury it all.”

Humanity, the stars, everything.

Muttering thus, the queen spoke.

“That is a misguided desire. Even if they try to bury it all and create a world just for themselves, this time, humanity will become the forsaken race and raise their swords against the demons.”

History will repeat itself again.

In the same position, infinitely.

“That must have been the goal of the Braver.”

An era of chaos that repeats infinitely.

Curses and curses, hatred and hatred, mixing to tear the world apart. That is what the Braver yearned for. Knowing this, the queen exhaled deeply.

“It cannot be allowed. It must come to an end.”

She looked beyond the flames.

Gazing at the vengeful spirits that had become part of her, she smiled bitterly. She turned her head and faced Raniel.

“Savior.”

Not as Raniel, but as the Savior.

“I know where you are headed beyond being a savior. The answer was in the story you shared.”

“Is that so?”

“Yes. At the end of your path, you will change the world. You will undoubtedly do so. Am I wrong?”

Raniel shook her head.

The queen continued speaking.

“If that is the case, promise me and those like me one thing.”

The master of the forsaken race spoke.

“In the world changed by your hand, if they are reborn… provide a land for them. At the very least, a place where they can live freely.”

It was not an easy promise.

Yet, it was not something difficult either.

“If they do not seek to kill humanity… then, yes, I will.”

“I apologize. It seems I have ended up siding with them in the end.”

Perhaps, it was something she couldn’t turn a blind eye to.

Having listened to the whispers of those ruined by her for over a thousand years. Raniel smiled bitterly at the queen’s mumblings.

“I understand. It can’t be helped.”

Raniel slowly rose.

Whoosh.

As she spread her hand, a flame ignited from her palm. The blazing ashen fire consumed souls. It burned to restore the flow to where it should be. This was the answer Raniel had found, the answer that the future self had discovered as well.

‘… The Goddess of Ashes said she found it too late; it is meaningless in her era.’

Thanks to the time the Goddess of Ashes lived and her failures, Raniel had come this far. She contemplated the answer passed on from her.

Return.

Reverse-flowing mana.

With this mana, Raniel restored the souls of those who had been consumed by darkness. The Gletus, Ganikalt, and the queen in front of her. Of course, they could not return to the cycle of rebirth.

‘Their souls have been too damaged.’

For a long time, they had been mixed with what was not their own.

Even if they were restored, the broken and tainted souls would merely crumble. They didn’t wish to return either.

‘But…’

Raniel looked at the writhing vengeful spirits beyond.

These were the ones ruined by the Braver, who had only known curses their entire lives. Though they were festering with a terrible poison, they were not mixed with anything else.

So, they might be able to choose.

‘To return, or to sleep eternally.’

The choice would be theirs.

Even with that thought wrapped up, Raniel could hardly take her leave. There remained a question that held her back until the very end.

··· Her self as a savior was asking.

Is this truly the role of a savior?

You, who have answered with the blood of humanity, is it right to offer peace to those in shadow? Shouldn’t your duty be to burn them to death as painfully as possible?

Raniel could not immediately answer that question.

Because she was also human.

She could not always be perfect, thus she was in agony. What pulled Raniel from that torment was… not realization, but an external stimulus.

Thud,

Someone grabbed Raniel’s arm. Squinting her eyes, she turned back. There stood Acriel, holding Raniel’s arm, opening her mouth.

“You are a savior.”

“···Excuse me?”

“You are a savior for humanity, and you should stand by humanity’s side. You shouldn’t take on this role.”

Raniel slightly trembled at the shoulder.

As if her innermost thoughts were pierced.

Seeing this, the queen smiled bitterly.

“Would you pass the flames to me? I wish to fulfill my last role.”

“What does that mean…?”

“I am both the last queen of Arcadia and their king. That’s an undeniable fact.”

Acriel Clen Cartedia.

“I do not say this because I am tainted by darkness. This is a decision made by me personally, Acriel Clen Arcadia. Even if it was coerced, I was their king and a blade that represented their fury.”

Thus,

“To console them and grant them peace must be my duty. Please, let me put an end to my life with my own hands.”

Raniel hesitated.

She hesitated, but the moment she met the queen’s eyes, she exhaled deeply and spoke. It didn’t feel like she could persuade her.

“Your hand.”

The queen extended her hand towards Raniel.

A flame dropped from the tip of Raniel’s fingers. The falling flame landed on the queen’s palm with a plop. The falling flame was captured in the queen’s palm.

“Ah, indeed…,” she laughed.

“It’s hot.”

“Of course, it would be hot. It’s fire.”

“It feels like the souls are burning. It’s hot, but not beyond what I can bear. It’s a pleasant warmth.”

She smiled.

“Thank you. For passing me this role.”

Thank you, she said.

Raniel fell silent for a moment.

That word seemed like it should come from her. She believed burning them to ash with flames was the best she could do. However, she questioned if that was a perfect choice. That was only natural.

That, in some form, might be salvation.

Is it right for herself, who committed massacre, and who carries the burden of those she had slain… to be the one to save them? That was a contradictory situation.

‘As the queen said…’

That was a role a savior like her should not take on.

Thus, Raniel hesitated. Until the very end. Did the queen read that hesitation? Or did she simply want to carve an end to her life with her own hands?

‘Which one it is, I cannot tell.’

Perhaps it’s both.

Thus, Raniel could only speculate.

“···Are you really going to do this?”

Raniel glanced beyond the flames.

There, lingering grievances swarm. The echoes of curses reverberate. At the very least, she hoped the queen would meet her end as a human, amidst admiration.

“I appreciate your consideration.”

But the queen did not wish for that.

“I have received enough praises. I have heard plenty of good stories. Having realized how beautiful my life has been, I am satisfied with that, child.”

The first and the last queen of Arcadia.

A human who had lived longer than elves spoke.

“I have been saved, by you, by the will of the vassals who guided me here, by everything…”

She exhaled deeply.

“Now, it is time for me to fulfill my duty.”

As the queen of Arcadia who vanquished the demon.

As the king that carries the curse of the forsaken.

“You shall walk your own path.”

Acriel looked at Raniel and smiled.

“I hope the answer you seek awaits at the end of that path.”

She turned her head.

Stepping into the realm of flames, she took a step into the darkness where the vengeful spirits swarmed. Watching her retreating figure, Raniel slowly bowed in reverence.

To the queen of Arcadia.

To the one who fulfilled her duty until the very end.

Acriel walked.

With flames held in her hand, she walked, tightening her grip to prevent the flames from spilling. The writhing vengeful spirits began to charge at her from all directions. They could not scratch Acriel.

Because she was their master.

Their one and only king.

Instead of scratching, they swirled around her and whispered. The whispers were a language that no one could understand. They only sounded like noise, but… Acriel understood that voice clearly.

Death, only death.

May everyone feel this pain.

It hurts, oh so much.

It was a scream. A scream of those who had endlessly suffered. It sometimes made others scream and sometimes darkened a soul, while the queen smiled bitterly as she listened.

“Yes.”

Acriel slowly brought the flame she held to her chest. The flame ignited on her heart. She became one with the fire and began to burn.

“That was it.”

Becoming flames, the queen walked.

Those circling her began to ignite slowly. Listening to their voices, the queen caressed them. Whenever her hand touched a vengeful spirit, it burned away.

“I know your pain.”

She couldn’t help but know.

How long had she wandered as one with you?

“I have clawed the world as your hand. I have raced through the world as your feet. I have sung as your anger, and I have shed tears as your sorrow.”

Thus,

“I was your king.”

I was you.

“A long time has passed, my children.”

The queen caressed the vengeful spirits.

More and more spirits approached her. Perhaps the queen was not just their master but their mother. The queen gently stroked the children who could only scream.

“The end is approaching. A gentle end.”

The pain, the resentment, the curse burned away in the flames.

As the vengeful spirits burned, they did not reject the queen’s touch. After all, she was their master. Among so many, she was the only one who had listened to their voices.

In the blazing fire, the spirits would make their choice.

To either forget everything and be reborn in this land.

Or to refuse all and fall into peace. Many chose the latter… yet some chose the former. Either way was fine. The queen listened to their stories, allowing them to choose.

Listening to the stories.

Helping them choose.

The queen became one with the flames as she walked through the darkness. She was not lonely. It wasn’t unbearable. There was no lingering regret. Looking back on the paths she had walked, she smiled. In the end, she was able to smile.

There are vassals who sacrificed their lives for her.

There are vassals who built a nation for her.

There are vassals who endured for a thousand years to save her.

And there was a successor who came here to convey their will.

Thus, she realized how many had lived for her. She understood that her life was not meaningless. That alone was enough. With that realization, she could smile and close her eyes.

“Let us go.”

The Master of the Demon Lord walked.

The one taking steps was the queen of Arcadia.

“To the end, or perhaps to another beginning.”

The flames rose.

Carrying the flames, the queen walked. What the souls that crumbled in the flames chose was… the same as the purpose their souls first engraved. The path of fulfilling her duty as a ruler. The Royal Way (王道).

Beginnings and ends are the same.

Those who lived as kings met their death as kings until the very last moment. Not turning a blind eye to those who had followed her, she became flames and began to burn.

Whoosh.

The fire enveloped the darkness.

The vengeful spirits approached the queen like lost children, like moths to a flame. And so everything burned away. What those who had screamed for a thousand years spat out for the last time was someone’s name.

Ah, Acriel…

Our beloved master.

The one who was a king, a mother, and a master, they shouted her name as the vengeful spirits burned away in the flames.

The shadows burned away.

Wrapped in gentle flames, the Demon Lord was consumed. Kyle stared blankly at the flames ablaze. The flames were not fierce. They were gentle and beautiful.

Whoosh.

The rising flames touched the sky.

The shadows that shrouded the sky ignited. The darkness retreated and the sky began to reclaim its original color. Through the falling ash, the blue sky revealed itself.

“Ah…”

Kyle sighed.

Through the blue sky, the sun shone. The sun cast its light on the cursed land that had been consumed by darkness for a thousand years. With the light shining down, the shadows ignited.

■■, ■■■■…

■■■■ ■■■■■■.

Wrapt in flames, the shadows whispered.

Although Kyle could not understand that whisper, he knew it was not a scream. Soon, the ashes began to scatter. White ashes.

White ashes. The shining sunlight. The beautiful flames.

The death of the shadows that had painted the world black for a thousand years was paradoxically beautiful.

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