[A familiar energy… Damn magician!]
“A familiar energy… Damn magician.”
“Pardon?”
At Rowy’s sudden words, Van was bewildered. And Rowy… as if asking when he’d been tense, was completely excited.
“Ha, I’m really amazing. Demon language translation magic! It works perfectly!”
“Ah, yes.”
Van turned his head back to the demon with a dubious face.
‘Why on earth would demon language translation be necessary….’
In the meantime, the demon was spewing all sorts of cursed words. Understanding them was more of a torture.
[I’ll kill that damn thing and quench my thirst with its blood!]
…If it’s clear it’ll only say things like that, what’s the point of understanding the demon’s words? Van blocked the path of the demon rushing at Rowy, filled with rage.
“Your opponent is me.”
[Damn thing! Damn thing!]
The demon indiscriminately poured out attacks along with curses at the one blocking its path. The attacks were much faster and stronger than a human’s, but… that was all. Van, who glanced at Rowy moving people with magic, concentrated on the demon before his eyes. Van had faced even the archdemon Mammon alone. A mid-ranking demon like this… Moreover, since there seemed to be some problem with it using its power, he could handle it sufficiently alone. Van extended his sword toward the demon once more. Sacred flames surged up along every path the sword passed. It was a difficult opponent for a demon whose power hadn’t fully returned yet. Even as its entire body melted from touching the Holy Fire, the demon blocked Van’s attacks several times. However, it didn’t last long. Eventually, unable to endure any longer, one of the demon’s arms was consumed by the Holy Fire and blazed up.
[Kuaaaak!]
With a terrible scream, the demon fell to its knees. However, its eyes were still vicious.
[I cannot fail the great undertaking… Master will….]
‘Master?’
Who is it talking about? The archdemon Mammon has been dead for a long time already. An existence that a demon of that level would call master… Could there be another high-ranking demon still alive? Van’s face became serious.
[Master will not forgive you!]
In an instant, the cursed energy extending from the demon’s body concentrated in one place. Van raised his sword and took a defensive stance, but the demon’s target wasn’t Van.
“Damn it!”
Van quickly ran to Rowy. However, Rowy’s reaction was faster. Tremendous mana brushed past Van and struck down at the demon. The demon, crushed by the intangible energy, screamed in fury.
[Aaaaak!]
The demon was no longer maintaining its form. The demon’s appearance, which looked like billowing black smoke, faintly gathered and scattered as if it would soon disperse. And as the demon lost its power, Rowy’s memories gradually began to return.
Rowy had definitely already blocked that demon once before. That demon was in the lost memories. It had definitely been with the low-ranking demon. Even while facing both, Rowy hadn’t felt it was particularly difficult. But why on earth did this happen?
“I remembered. You, you were sealed by me. I definitely imprisoned you in the castle that day… But why didn’t I remember? You definitely weren’t even that strong.”
[You insignificant human!]
Along with an enraged voice, a curse shot out from the demon again. This time, Van stepped forward without delay. Van, who blocked the cursed energy with the Holy Sword, approached the demon. The demon rushed at Van again even though its body had almost completely collapsed.
Every time the demon and the Holy Sword collided, a roar echoed. At the demon’s last desperate struggle, the island was gouged and trees fell. However, Van didn’t blink an eye. Rowy also helped from behind. Massive mana blocked the demon’s movements.
The demon gathered its last remaining power and scattered curses, but it couldn’t match the two. The distance between the demon and Van instantly closed, and soon the Holy Fire struck down.
[Everyone! I’ll drag you to hell and put you under my feet!]
Even while its entire body burned from divine power, the demon uttered cursed words until the very end. And, until the very end, the demon…
[Because of an insignificant human… Master’s… great undertaking… cannot be… failed….]
Called for its master.
‘Master… what on earth….’
However, Van couldn’t continue pondering further. At the moment the demon was finally completely exterminated, Rowy suddenly collapsed.
“Master!”
Van swiftly caught Rowy in his arms. However, Rowy was just limply drooping, powerless.
‘He was fine just moments ago, what is this sudden….’
Van, who held Rowy in his arms, gritted his teeth. Rowy’s entire body was hot as if burning.
* * *
“The young master still hasn’t woken up?”
“Yes…”
At Fin’s question, Van nodded with a frighteningly hardened face. Those who had been captured by the demon had all regained consciousness already on the boat back. However, Rowy still hadn’t regained consciousness even at this point when a day had passed.
Van exhaled a sigh in worry over Rowy. After the battle with the demon, the Captain, who had seen the surging Holy Fire, came to the island risking danger. Even while the startled Captain carried the unconscious people to the boat, Van remained frozen, holding only Rowy.
‘Shouldn’t you show him to a healer quickly!’
If it hadn’t been for the Captain urging him, Van probably would have stayed there holding Rowy for quite a while. The place they came to by boat like that was precisely this Soto. Though he’d heard the story that the residents of this island had worshipped demons for a long time, there was no other way. With Rowy unable to regain consciousness like this, the two couldn’t go back to the castle alone.
Fortunately, everyone was kind. Especially the sociable Fin, despite his own body not being normal, went through various troubles for Van and Rowy. Like that, the two were currently staying at Fin’s house. However, even after a day passed, Rowy still showed no signs of waking up.
At Van’s insistence, a healer had already visited several times, but the healer was equally ignorant about the condition of the magician who had suddenly collapsed. Fortunately, the fever went down after giving him medicine, but… Van planned to take Rowy to Seren if he didn’t wake up by tomorrow.
“Hyung-nim, you should rest a bit too. Your face doesn’t look good.”
“I’m fine.”
While answering dutifully, Van didn’t take his eyes off Rowy. Fin, who had tried to say something more, ultimately swallowed the words he’d been about to say and left the room. Soon the sound of the door closing with a *click* was heard. Van exhaled a big sigh. Thanks to Rowy, who had blocked the demon while emitting tremendous mana, they’d dealt with the demon without much difficulty, but…
‘If this is the result….’
Van ultimately couldn’t hold back and buried his face in Rowy’s hand.
‘When I can’t even protect one person, what servant of god, what Holy Knight….’
Van was called the Holy Knight Commander at the Order, but now it was a meaningless name. Because there were almost no survivors from the last battle with the archdemon Mammon. Tremendous sacrifice was needed to fulfill the mission given by god. Everyone met death under god’s will, but still, there wasn’t an inch of regret. After that, because he’d thought peace had finally arrived.
‘But why again like this….’
Rowy’s face with closed eyes was pale. Van affectionately stroked Rowy’s face like that. Of all people, the person he least wanted to get hurt was unable to regain consciousness like this, so it felt like his heart was being torn apart.
“…Rowy.”
When did his heart grow this big? Well, he was someone he couldn’t take his eyes off from the beginning. The reason he had no particular resistance even when suddenly sold as a slave was because the master he met was precisely Rowy. What this person wanted was just someone to cut pie beside him and hold and comfort him.
He was a lonely person. And while comforting Rowy like that, Van was also comforted together. When the Order suddenly collapsed and he himself was swept up in all sorts of bad things and even came to think that god had abandoned him, the Rowy he met gave Van a place to be. And also gave him something to do.
‘He even gave me a new name.’
Van smiled faintly. A willful and impulsive child. Objectively, one could describe Rowy like this. However, at least to Van, even that innocent appearance felt lovable. When he realized something was strange about finding everything lovable, his heart had already been completely stolen.
‘I thought it would be nice if I could stay by his side for a long time….’
However… if even this person got caught up in this because of himself, who was born with the mission to kill demons… then, wouldn’t leaving be right? Demons always hovered around Van. It was the unavoidable fate of one chosen by god.
‘Rather than making him dangerous, it’s better to leave alone….’
