Volume 4 Chapter 22 Oath and Prayer
'Surely you've heard of it, Saint-sama. The Hero who has slain countless demons. To you, he may be a hero, but to us, he is nothing more than a mass murderer. How many lives do you think have been lost because of him?'
"The God-Demon War is a war. When positions change, justice can become evil. It's not like I'm ignorant enough to not understand such a thing."
'Kihahaha, my bad.'
Fifi laughed loudly, while Roze remained silent, as if avoiding joining the conversation.
'Well, how about this story then? This Roze Cression had her parents killed by the Hero's invasion. The peaceful village was burned down, and everyone living there, except for this person, was massacred. If Larkan-sama hadn't taken her in, she would have died in the wilderness or lived as slaves if she was lucky.'
"That's..."
Lisha looked at Roze, hoping to understand her true intentions, but she didn't answer. It made the story even more believable.
Lisha understood it in theory.
But she had never naturally encountered a real victim.
'Do you understand? Your knowledge is merely superficial. Wars are not just glorious battles; there are many hidden battles that never come to light. The lives that disappeared without being spoken of because of Hero-sama, how many were there?'
Lisha fell silent.
Fifi's words were probably true. It didn't take much imagination to realize that wars were not just about grand battles.
If Yuusuke was the Hero, how high would the mountain of death he had accumulated be? How long would the river of spilled blood stretch?
Fifi changed the topic further, mercilessly inserting words into unprepared areas.
'You've never even thought about what happened to us, the ones who lost in the God-Demon War.'
"...The Demon Lord died, and the Demon Army lost its military power and retreated."
'That's also true. But you know, the truth is even more cruel. The God-Demon War is not just a simple war. It is a war conducted under a contract between the goddess and the demon god. There are clear rewards and burdens based on victory or defeat.'
Yes, the God-Demon War is not just a war. Wars conducted under the contract of gods involve benefits and burdens based on the outcome.
Namely, the transfer of "Aether."
Aether is the energy necessary to refine magic power. In the Asteris where life consumes a significant amount of magic power to sustain civilization, Aether is indispensable for both humans and demons.
However, no matter how much energy fills the world, there is a limit to its quantity.
Therefore, the side that wins in the God-Demon War receives a large influx of Aether, while the Aether of the losing side becomes scarce. Thus, humans and demons have been fighting the God-Demon War for generations, competing for Aether.
'While we are fighting like this, the land is becoming barren, livestock is dying, and magic tools are losing their power. We have no idea how many have died.'
Roze and Fifi had witnessed this scene before the Second God-Demon War began.
Even though demons have high magic power, or rather, because of it, the depletion of Aether is a matter of life and death.
'There is no crueler monster than him. If the opponent is a demon, he stabs them in the back as they try to escape and crushes them without mercy. Wars naturally involve casualties, but that is a nightmare that blows away even such reasoning.'
Hearing those words, Lisha felt as if Fifi's dark body was expanding.
It was as if a child's imagined monster was swallowing her with its big mouth. Lisha was being consumed by darkness.
In her memories, she saw the shining silver armor becoming stained with red blood. Surely, it was a real scene. A vividly gruesome past, covered in blood and entrails. Yuusuke's hand slowly reached out to Lisha. The hand that had always touched her as a matter of course now felt a terrifying sense of something that should not be touched.
Yuusuke probably didn't want Lisha to know about this, so he didn't say anything. The blood that clung to him was so thick.
Lisha gently lowered her eyes in the darkness, and then looked ahead.
"Yuusuke-san"
In those eyes, there was no hesitation or doubt, only a sincere light shining like a sparkling jewel.
Lisha wrapped her hands around Yuusuke's cold hand, as if to warm it in the blood.
What was she afraid of? Was there any hesitation?
Yuusuke had always fought for them. Even in the battle in Asteris, even if he appeared as a monster to the demons, his heart must still be the same.
It was the same for Lisha. Even if Yuusuke was a hero, her feelings for him and the trust she had built up would not change.
No, now there was an even stronger feeling.
"Yuusuke-san, what you have truly carried is so big. It must have been difficult and painful."
Just touching his hand was painful.
It felt as if she was touching pure vengeance. The pain penetrated deep into her bones.
But more than that pain, what hurt her heart the most was the fact that he had carried such a burden all alone.
If Yuusuke wanted to be treated as a hero by Lisha, she would accept it. If he tried to save her, she would simply believe in that victory. Both her body and heart wanted to be used for his sake.
When she looked into the emerald eyes visible under the helmet, the shadows that had surrounded them disappeared.
'Huh?'
Fifi noticed that Lisha's demeanor had changed and raised an inquisitive voice, but Lisha had already made up her mind.
When she faced Roze directly, she realized it again. Behind her calm eyes, there was a deep black resentment and anger.
Fifi was the one speaking, but the essence of those words existed within Roze. The intensity of her feelings even manifested in her magic.
Lisha was now standing in front of a demon with such deep resentment. If Roze wanted to, Lisha could be killed in an instant.
Even so, Lisha opened her mouth without hesitation.
"If Yuusuke-san has taken many lives in the past, I will bear that guilt as well. If you hate him, please hate him together with me. No matter what happens, I believe in Yuusuke-san."
'...'
Fifi fell silent, and Roze's eyebrows twitched. Her slender fingers curved like a knife, and her magic power stirred. Their gazes clashed without averting.
"Stop, Roze."
Interrupting the tense moment, a voice that should have disappeared spoke up.
"Huh! Larkan-sama... Did you hear?"
Larkan, who had left the room, appeared again. He walked up to Roze and looked down at her.
"I told you not to be consumed by revenge. It's the height of foolishness for a magician to be swayed by emotions."
"I am not consumed by revenge."
"That's not how it looks to me. Look ahead, not at the past. You have a future."
After saying that to Roze, Larkan shifted his gaze to Lisha.
"I am, by position, your enemy. But even as an enemy, I must convey the truth of your actions."
"Yes, understood."
"Silver certainly took the lives of many demons. It indirectly caused the deaths of many others. But he was not a senseless killer. Even in Roze's village, if a hero had been present, such methods would never have been tolerated."
"..."
"His sword had a conviction that ordinary killers do not possess. That's why I am here now. I must determine where my convictions lead me."
Larkan's words were exactly what Lisha knew about Yuusuke.
Even though she knew it, hearing it from someone else brought her relief. Yuusuke was truly Yuusuke.
"It's too early to feel relieved. In the end, either I or Silver will definitely die. Otherwise, it won't end."
"I understand. Yuusuke-san will win."
"I see. It remains to be seen if Saint's prayers will reach."
After saying only that, Larkan left the room again. He probably pretended to leave the room earlier and listened to the conversation outside.
Lisha also felt like Roze understood what his meant.
But Roze clenched her lips as if holding something back and followed after Larkan out of the room.
It seems that demons and humans cannot understand each other even if they care for each other.
And what did Yuusuke think of himself? Thoughts that Lisha had never considered before crossed her mind.
"Yuusuke-san"
She clasped her hands and thought of him somewhere.
He is not someone who would give up after a single defeat. Since he said he would help her, he will come back here again.
She knows she is powerless. She is not only useless in battle, but she is also holding him back.
That's why, at least, she want these feelings to reach him.
After that, Lisha continued to pray there alone. It was her first sincere prayer dedicated to someone other than the goddess.
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