Episode 169. Mary Rudsiel (2)
After meeting the ghost of the Fourth Priest, Mary had been unconscious. If the turtle spirit Cameron had not been there, someone would have carried Mary on their back.
While sleeping on that shell, Mary had a dream. The sensation was too vivid to be dismissed as just a dream.
‘Friend, I may have killed a lot of people.’
I saw countless insects. They were so numerous that they seemed to swallow up the mountain and the sky.
Even though his favorite bug appeared, he wasn’t very happy because there was no trace of life left behind where the bug had passed.
Have you ever thought about why you like eating bugs?
It felt like I was realizing that fact for the first time. Every time I saw a bug, I just had the instinct to eat it.
‘If you see this, you might hate me.’
In Mary’s dream, it wasn’t just bugs that appeared. It was a group of travelers who had gathered to defeat the bugs.
They fought back with all kinds of magic and swordsmanship, but the insects only shrank slightly, and there was little damage done.
Instead, they appeared constantly and filled the numbers, and the insects, possessed by hunger, devoured thousands of travelers.
-Kkiyaaaaah!
-Kuaaaah!
-Don’t stick to me! Gyaaaaah!!
The final words of countless people.
Quagwagwagwa-�
Kwajik Kwajik-
The sound of insects eating as they walk.
The one controlling the insects was Mary herself in the dream. After the travelers were annihilated, leaving only bones behind, the next ones to block the path were four priests.
One of them looked very much like Tariel, and the other three were identical to those who had appeared as wraiths.
Mary could tell that they were the four priests of the past, and fought them. After a flurry of magic from both sides, the four priests were the ones who ended up bleeding.
Except for one, three out of the four priests were annihilated without leaving a corpse behind.
“I’m so sorry, my friend.”
Mary spoke while being held in the arms of a boy.
“I’m so sorry for deceiving you all this time.”
Mary was able to hear from Heidern what was sealed inside her.
One of the leaders of the Demon Clan who suddenly appeared 30 years ago and turned the empire into hell.
Beelzebub, known as the Demon King of Paris. True to his notoriety, he is said to be a being who controls all bugs and causes great disasters.
“Since when?”
“Ever since I started training with Lyman… I knew it then… but I kept it a secret. I didn’t want to be hated…”
Mary said, breaking away from Radon’s embrace. Her words seemed to break off in the middle of her sobs.
“But Principal Heidern said that Mom and Dad already knew this… and they raised me knowing that.”
“You are nice people.”
“Yeah. So sorry.”
In the past, the couple Ryudosiel and the saint defeated the Demon King together. They thought he was completely destroyed when they beheaded him, but his thoughts still remained.
The couple, too exhausted to realize this fact, got married and had a child.
His wife, Semiya Ludsiel, was delighted when she saw the child, but her expression quickly turned to despair.
This is because the power of Beelzebub, who had previously been defeated, was detected in the child who was born.
“Mom and Dad kept that a secret from me. They were trying their best to make me look like a ‘human’.”
Beelzebub squeezed out his strength just before he died.
So that he can be reborn as the child of one of the party that defeated him.
The curse was successfully applied.
Because he was able to make the White Horse Tower owners who helped kill him despair.
However, Semiya could not easily give up the child she had given birth to. The same was true for Tailley.
Even if he is the reincarnation of the Demon King.
“I now know why I have such high magical talent, and why I get a burning appetite just from seeing bugs.”
“….”
In the former case, it can be explained by the fact that they are descendants of the great wizards. Up until now, they have been convinced that they have inherited their talents.
But the case of bugs was really unknown. Why did bugs that would make others vomit just by touching them taste like honey to Mary?
This too could be explained away as a habit developed through wild training.
But there was another reason.
“Friend, I am the Demon King. I live like a human now, but that hideous instinct might awaken someday. Will you still think of me as your friend?”
Mary finally found out the whole truth. Heidern, who told her that, decided that there was no point in hiding it any longer.
Heidern also felt heavy-hearted as he spoke. He explained carefully so that Mary would not feel guilty.
But Mary wasn’t stupid in that regard. The moment she heard it, she instinctively felt guilty.
“I saw it in my dream. How many people I have hurt, and how much trouble I am causing even now.”
Even if you only look at your parents right now, they would have gone through a lot of trouble to hide their true identity. The same goes for those who cooperated with them.
And the most shocking thing was the past I saw in my dream.
The wounds the Demon King inflicted on the Empire have not yet healed.
That scarred man was also present on this expedition.
An example is Tariel, who was once one of the four priests.
“And do you remember the four priests appearing when you came here?”
“Is that a fake?”
A ghost from the past that appeared from the fog.
This square may be safe, but any other area can be considered a ghost zone.
The criteria for the haunting ghosts are none other than the memories of those who entered that path. Among them, only the dead are brought out. Based on the most powerful targets.
“You may think it’s because of Uncle Tariel, but it’s actually because of me. The Demon King is the main culprit who killed those three priests. And those ghosts only targeted Uncle Tariel and me. Don’t you think you know why?”
Even though Mayer herself didn’t remember, the Demon King inside her did.
These dead people appeared based on Tariel’s memories and the Demon King’s memories.
“So what are you trying to say?”
When Radon asked with a deep gaze, Mary sobbed once more.
“I’m so sorry. I lied to you until now…”
Along with the feeling of guilt, I started to wonder if everything I had lived was fake.
Could it be that the girl Mary Ludsiel does not actually exist, but is merely an avatar of the Demon King Beelzebub?
“So you want to be punished in the end?”
“Well, I’m… the Demon King…”
“Is there a need to be punished unjustly for something I didn’t do?”
Mary’s eyes widened in confusion.
Mary was still burdened by guilt, but Radon didn’t like it.
“It’s just a curse. What price do you expect me to pay for the innocent victim who was wronged by it?”
“Even though there is a dangerous being inside me?”
Aren’t you afraid of yourself?
Don’t you hate yourself for embracing the Demon King?
How could I just sit still when the Demon King who hurt the empire is right before my eyes?
We can’t guarantee that Radon’s family won’t suffer any damage either.
So I wanted to apologize to everyone… but Radon didn’t want that.
“That’s absolutely true. If people knew, they’d be hell-bent on capturing you.”
“….”
“But who were the people who protected you even though they knew that fact?”
Mary lifted her darkened head at those words.
If you think about it, there were many people who knew their true identities but kept quiet.
Starting with Mom and Dad, the main executives of Baekma Tower, and even Vice Principal Heidern.
Besides, according to the principal, some of my father’s colleagues also know.
“Why do you think your parents… the Baektapjus didn’t abandon you?”
“Because he’s my child…?”
“If it was just a child problem, I would have disposed of you or thrown you under a bridge and raised a new child. Even though there were options like that, I didn’t necessarily abandon you.”
If you don’t like the child, throw it away and raise it again.
That is only the mindset of a barbaric and arrogant person.
Even though the child they had was as dangerous as a nuclear bomb, the Baektap owners never abandoned them.
Even though they may one day become a danger to themselves.
“Besides, those people desperately hid your inner self. Thanks to that, you’ve grown up innocently until now. Of course, there were some eccentric aspects to you, but… Are you saying that the judgments of those people who saved you were all wrong?”
Mary, with the Demon King sleeping inside her.
According to Mary’s words, those people have become a black magic group that has been guarding the Demon King’s seed until now.
But Mary never once sensed such ominous signs from them.
All I remember is that it was a harmonious family.
“Those people don’t look down on you. And they don’t covet your power. They just want you to grow as a human being.”
Mary’s withered expression brightened a little after hearing Radon’s words.
I’ve probably revealed all the secrets so far, but Radon didn’t show any contempt other than a brief moment of surprise.
Wouldn’t it be normal to be angry when such a shocking secret is revealed?
Beyond declaring a breakup, he would have had to let those around him know about it.
“So, my friend, you’re really not scared of me?”
“Haha… If that’s what you were going to ask, why did you reveal the secret in front of me?”
“….”
Mary had nothing to say to Radon’s snorting remark.
Of course, I expected to be hated. Nevertheless, since Radon was my best friend, I instinctively hoped that he would understand.
Mary didn’t realize that she was holding onto such feelings. She had been harboring hope without even realizing it.
“You don’t want to be abandoned, do you? You don’t have to be so self-deprecating. You’re not the only one suffering from such misfortune.”
Radon seemed to have read his mind.
What did you say when you hugged me a little while ago?
I clearly said, “You’re not the only one.”
I couldn’t hear one word in the middle very well, but I could understand the general meaning.
“Is your friend also under this curse?”
“That… I can’t tell you yet.”
It’s not just that I’m reading to you out of affection. I’ve had similar experiences myself.
Mary somehow seemed to know Radon’s true feelings.
What I am saying is that, despite speaking confidently, I am hiding it for some unavoidable reason.
“I see…”
Mary’s sullen expression lightened.
Still, Mary wondered if it was okay for her to feel guilty because of the memories of the Demon King that kept coming to her mind.
Some people have lived their lives cursing at themselves like this.
What would happen if I kneeled before my guilt here?
What’s the use of all their patience and effort?
“And I’ll tell you again and again, you’re not the Demon King. Even if you have that power, your personality is not that of the Demon King. As proof, you just manifested horns and wings and you were fine.”
“….”
“That doesn’t mean we should ignore it. It just means we should put it on hold.”
At those words, Mary finally smiled. Then she crawled over and lay down next to Radon.
And it was really amazing. Was it really this comfortable to lie down next to someone?
Mary thought as her eyes closed on their own. He trusted her so much, she couldn’t betray him.
Even if someone else turns their back on Radon, I have decided to take his side.
“Thank you… Radon.”
Mary said that and fell asleep.
Radon was secretly amazed at the first time he was called by a name other than ‘Friend’.
“Thank you too.”
There was no falsehood in his belief. In fact, it did not matter if the Demon King’s thoughts took control of her body.
Later on, she actually becomes possessed by that thought, but she manages to subdue it and control it for the rest of her life.
It was proof that Mary’s own talent was separate from the Demon King’s influence.
“Then sleep well, little one.”
Thinking about the future, Radon tried to close his eyes comfortably.
Because at heart she’s just a cheerful girl.
“What did you just say?”
But that was then.
Mary, who was sleeping, had her eyes gleaming like a ghost.
Radon felt goosebumps the moment he met those cold eyes.
“No… just sleep well.”
“….”
Mary closed her eyes again and fell into an angelic sleep. She fell asleep while hugging Radon’s arms.
In the split second that Mary opened her eyes, Radon’s liver almost fell off.
Slap – and he smacked his own mouth, reflecting that he would be more careful next time.
‘It’s at times like this that I feel like the Demon King.’
* * * * *
Even though it was 11 o’clock at night, Tariel still didn’t fall asleep.
The flow of time in this realm and in the present world seemed to be no different, but it was a strangely heterogeneous place.
The place that was foggy and gloomy during the day became a beautiful place with fireflies flying around at night.
Isn’t it usually scarier at night? It felt like everything was going backwards.
“It’s as if the cold cemetery has become a spectacle.”
A ghost from the past emerging from the fog.
The serenity that comes from that firefly-like light.
I was confused as to whether this was heaven or hell.
I thought maybe it was the borderline between life and death.
“Captain! Captain!”
At that moment, one of the subordinates on guard duty came running in a hurry.
“What’s going on?”
I was nervous, thinking that the prisoner might have escaped, but that wasn’t the case.
But it couldn’t be seen as not being a sensitive matter.
“The knights dispatched from the imperial palace are nowhere to be seen.”
“Knights? If they are, then together with the prisoners…”
“Not that article… I mean the guys who followed us around to spy on our mission!”
“what…?”
Tariel was horrified. How had he forgotten that?
When I think about it, their role was to watch over us. I felt it was a bit strange that they followed us around.
Then I learned about the secret experiments of the imperial family through the prisoners, and after that, at some point, I disappeared.
Without even Tariel knowing.
“I think they must have used some kind of perception-disrupting magic tool so we didn’t notice.”
I heard that it was originally taken to avoid ferocious spirits, but its actual purpose was different.
“I see. Now I understand.”
They were worried that they would find out about the secret. Then they could intuitionally tell what the knights had escaped for.
It has become a situation where I have to endure rather than wait patiently for two days.
Surviving as an Academy Fraudster
