Chapter 22: The Source
“How… could this be…” the Demon King muttered his dying words, slowly collapsing to the ground.
The hero leaped up in excitement, shouting, “I did it! I saved the world!”
The young female healer from the temple smiled and nodded, tears welling in her eyes. “I knew you could do it.”
Faced with the loving gaze exchanged between the hero and his love interest, Nelly couldn’t bear to watch and turned her face away.
“It’s about time we went for an audience with His Majesty. Let’s go!” The hero heroically took the healer’s hand and strode out of the Demon’s Lair.
Nelly, the system spirit who had been momentarily forgotten once again, pouted in resignation. She turned around, but before she could take a step, a hesitant call came from behind her.
“Please wait.”
Startled, Nelly spun around in horror, only to see the Demon King, who should have been obliterated by the hero’s ultimate skill, slowly sitting up. The mask slid from his face, revealing the same face Nelly had seen last time. The handsome young Demon King looked at her almost timidly and said softly, “Don’t be afraid.”
“I…” The Demon King pressed his lips together and paused. “I just wanted to ask, from now on, could you please stay behind each time and say a few words to me?”
As he spoke, he nonchalantly touched his blood-soaked chest, his fair fingers stained scarlet, creating a breathtakingly beautiful sight.
Nelly was choked for a moment, then stammered, “W-well, I guess I can…”
“Thank you.” He smiled faintly, and a shimmering light rippled in his red eyes. He then lowered his gaze and said with restraint, “You can go now.”
Nelly replied drily, “Well then, goodbye.”
“Goodbye.” The corners of Karsus’s eyes curved as he watched the young woman leave. He then hunched over in pain and gasped for breath.
—Click, clack.
Time flowed backward again, and everything returned to its original state.
“How… could this be…” The Demon King’s voice was filled with disbelief. As he fell to the ground, the surrounding scenery began to crumble.
The hero cheered and ran out the door.
Nelly took two steps, then turned back uncertainly, just in time to see the black-haired, red-eyed Demon King wipe the blood from his face with the back of his hand. He looked up and met her gaze, seeming a little embarrassed, and turned his head away, pressing his lips together.
“Does it hurt?” Nelly felt a thrill of fear, her voice trembling slightly. After a long moment of hesitation, she only managed to ask a pointless question.
“I’m used to it.” But Karsus clutched his chest with even more force. He forced a smile. “You should go.”
Nelly blinked drily, slowly backing away. When she reached the door, she cleared her throat. “Goodbye.”
“Mhm, goodbye.” He managed a composed reply before being swallowed by the white light again.
—Click, clack.
“Why are you still… even though you were defeated by the hero…”
The Demon King’s voice was indifferent, as if it had nothing to do with him. “Because I don’t truly die.”
“Why?” Nelly’s fists clenched.
After a moment of silence, Karsus said gently, “Time’s up.”
“I… I’ll be back.”
“Mhm. Goodbye, Nelly.”
—Click, clack.
“What were you doing before we came?”
A flicker of surprise crossed the black-haired young man’s face. “Nothing.”
Nelly’s eyes widened. “Nothing?”
“Mhm.” Karsus lowered his gaze. Just when she thought he was about to give a different answer, he said, “It’s time to say goodbye.”
She became flustered. “G-goodbye!”
—Click, clack.
Nelly told herself she shouldn’t continue this strange relationship. But in the end, she couldn’t bring herself to be cruel and still stopped on her way out of the Demon’s Lair the next time.
The Demon King looked at her thoughtfully and spoke first. “Besides waiting, is there anything else I can do?”
Isn’t it destroying the world…
Nelly resisted the urge to reply with that. “There are many meaningful things you can do.”
“Next time, please tell me what Nelly likes to do.”
—Click, clack.
“I like to read, and I like to take walks in the garden.”
“Mhm. Thank you, Nelly. I’ll give it a try.”
“Tell me what you think next time.”
“Mhm.”
It was a very fragmented and strange conversation, with the adventure of an entire playthrough as the interval, and Karsus’s incomplete death as the prerequisite for its continuation.
Karsus seemed very shy. “Books are very interesting. I’m going to start planting flowers.”
“Plant… plant flowers?” Your Majesty the Demon King, are you serious?
A light brighter than any star shone in the Demon King’s eyes. “What flowers does Nelly like?”
“R-roses, I guess.” Nelly felt breathless and gave a random answer.
So, the next time they met, Karsus hesitantly produced a delicate pink rose from behind his back.
Nelly was stunned for a moment, then asked softly, “Do you really want to destroy the world?”
“Is that important?” Karsus seemed very calm.
“It’s very important.”
The Demon King lowered his lashes and didn’t answer. “You should go.”
“Please give me an answer next time.”
Karsus had clearly given Nelly’s question serious thought. The moment they met, he frowned and asked, “Please tell me first, is this world really worth protecting?”
“Why not?”
“Then, next time, please convince me, Nelly.” He produced another rose, this time a white one, even more beautiful than the last. Clearly, His Majesty the Demon King’s flower-planting skills had improved again.
Nelly thought for an entire playthrough but couldn’t come up with an interesting answer. “This world has many beautiful things, like love, kindness, nature…”
“Love? Kindness?” Karsus’s repetition was almost innocent.
Nelly felt a strange sense of unease. “I… I should go.”
“Goodbye, Nelly.” Karsus didn’t try to keep her. The time they had for conversation was already minuscule, not enough for any lingering feelings to sprout and blossom.
—Click, clack.
This time, Nelly didn’t stop.
Karsus silently let her go. He blinked, and for the first time, the curve of his lips was mocking. He muttered to himself, “It hurts a little.”
Nelly had already made up her mind not to talk to the Demon King anymore. She had a premonition that this relationship, born from her unnecessary sympathy, would one day become unmanageable. He was, after all, a demon, an opponent that heroes had to overcome by cutting through thorns and growing stronger.
Besides, she had to go home eventually. Getting too deeply involved with anyone would only be a hassle.
—”Love, hate, joy, anger, sorrow, I’ve learned them all from books.”
When the Demon King quietly made this declaration, ignoring her departure, Nelly found she couldn’t move. She didn’t turn around. “Is that so?”
“I am a demon. I was born with hatred and anger,” the cool voice paused for a moment before hastily adding the second half, “but love, I can’t do it. I can’t love this world.”
“Nelly, can you teach me?”
The brown-haired girl turned back. Although she was smiling, she looked a little sad. “I’m sorry, Kal. I can’t teach you.” Her voice dropped, and space-time had already begun to fluctuate. The sound, passing through the numerous cracks, seemed to have changed its tone. “It was nice to meet you, Kal. But I can’t talk to you like this anymore. I’m sorry.”
Karsus bent down and chuckled at the spot where his heart was. “It really hurts…” He paused for a moment, then murmured, “Is this what it means to be heartless?”
If this was the opposite of love, then why did he want to accuse her like this?
A flash of inspiration. The Demon King actually giggled like a child. He had an epiphany, and then he suddenly understood the true meaning between the lines of the books. Emotions were no longer incomprehensible, dry concepts. He had a sudden understanding of their flavor, and in an instant, without any hindrance, he understood why the most talented poets would have tears in their eyes when they recited love poems.
He was ecstatic. She had actually already taught him what love was.
After that, on a night of the first snow, Nelly turned around in the inn room she was staying in, and black wings came into view. Karsus, who was not supposed to leave the Demon’s Lair, nimbly climbed in through the window, took her hand, and placed a feather-light kiss on it.
His eyes were brighter than ever before. He said, “I have collected all the best books on the continent. I have grown the most beautiful roses on the continent. Nelly, I love you.”