Translator/Editor : Léabyss
It’s reality?
Why am I looking at Kaito?
“I wanted to see you so badly. Don’t you feel bad?”
With the fear of falling and the confusion over this unexpected situation, I feel like my heart is beating much faster … But when I nod a few times, and I say that I’m fine, Kaito says, “Okay”, and leaves me back on the ground.
It is a room made entirely of dark stone, with only torches as a light source hanging from the wall. Kaito and I stand in the center of a mysterious drawn magic circle.
“Here it is … No way.”
“Yes, the room we were originally summoned to.”
My brother joined me after more than a year and now, he was quite mature. He was originally a lot taller than me, but now he was too tall. His eyes were a bit narrow, the shiny black hair seems to have not been cut for a long time and stretches down to his chest. He has a charming look … Compared to the Kaito who was in first year, he now looked wild and incredible. He was dressed in a tight-fitting military uniform, a black collar, and a leather belt at the waist. It seemed to be somewhat muscular, but not overly so.
More than nostalgia, I was afraid of facing something unknown.
“Why I am here…?”
“I called you. Look to the sky.”
“Sky…?”
Floating in the middle of a night sky … There is a full moon with reddish and orange colors.
“The more full the moon is at night, the more magical power we have.”
I don’t know what to say … My body only managed to shake. It’s much colder than Shirasagi and Lütbya castle together and I only went out in my nightwear. Bare feet touch the stone floor directly and, furthermore, this mysterious fear of the situation makes me shiver a lot.
“Well, I’ll explain later. First I have to close the portal.”
“No … Wait.”
“I won’t wait. What should I do if Ryuo suddenly decides to chase you?”
I’m surprised that the word “Ryuo” spills so easily from Kaito’s mouth … But I still decide it’s better not to say anything.
“Even though it’s a full moon … We are consuming too much magic. We must be a little more cautious …”
The one who spoke was a panther with black hair that seems to blend perfectly with the darkness of the night. His face, illuminated by the light of a torch. A black panther head that sits atop a muscular human body and is probably six feet tall. Although the clothing is similar to Kaito’s, the leopard wears a bronze cape that reaches down to his feet. It gives a complete feeling of intimidation. Why didn’t I notice such a presence until he started to speak?
Surprised and scared, I hid behind Kaito. He laughed.
“Brother, this is Meladul-sama. He is a demon, and he is my king.”
Is this leopard man the Demon King? The Demon King for real ?!
“It’s my first successful attempt, but … It seems I’ve lost my magic power. Give me some time to recover.”
“How long can you recover?”
“I’ll have a potion, then we’ll see.”
The Demon King exits the room through a wooden door that leads up some steep steps. His feet wore thick boots, but his hands were dense. Like the combination of a human and a beast, with thick hairs that grew thickly even on his fingers.
I was still feeling a bit shocked , but I put it behind me and yelled at Kaito again:
“Listen…! What was that? How is your God? How do you even get into this? Do you know what I heard? That you are the cause of all the bad that happens in this place and that you also betrayed humans and left things even more on the brink of collapse !!”
In response to my words, Kaito laughed again.
“Wow … I’m surprised you know. Maybe it’s a true story that my brother managed to be something like Ryuo-sama’s whore.”
“I am not…”
“What an idiot you are.”
He seems to be glad of my embarrassment and yet his beautiful black eyes seemed to be somewhat moistened. His expression, shaded by the torches, gave off a creepy feeling that makes me feel like he’s a different person. He doesn’t look like my brother.
“The day I arrived from Japan … I was separated from my brother because the king and the priests forced me to control the power and magic of this place.”
Kaito suddenly struck his fist as he spoke … He did so with a force unlike any other normal human being. The wall caved in, creaked, and the cracks in the stone then ran here and there. The pieces jumped and then, he decided to take a few steps back until a new stone wall hit his back.
Kaito raises his hands above the sky to show me. It has no scratches , they didn’t even look red or inflamed.
“They told me that if I touched my brother with this kind of power, it would hurt him and inevitably kill him. I practiced and practiced and after that, one day, they put me as a test to kill a defenseless monster that was bound by chains.”
“… Did you kill him?”
“It was a little monster. A rabbit-shaped creature that had a pair of horns on its head. Hey, what do you think? I don’t know what went through my mind at the time or how I agreed to enter the room, but they told me I had to do it for justice. Around the world. It trembles and seems to be nauseous. I could not do it. Those who kills animals for purposes other than eating are a madman. Even if they summoned you for that and they say you’re a hero. Has no sense!”
Kaito’s voice was rough.
He could afford to be mean to me, but that didn’t mean he was a bad guy to the rest of civilization. He could be a hero, but if they told him to kill a creature like that with his bare hands … Then he understood that his body would not have responded.
“It’s a terrible world. Of the worst. They kill beasts and sometimes they kill demons. Demons in human and true human forms. They were all killed in front of me, over and over and over again. The smell of blood, the screams, the guts … You don’t know how they scream just before they die! You can’t even imagine it. But it was my life … It was my new life.”
The story was too horrible. Sad . My whole body is being controlled by fear so the tremors don’t want to stop.
“If I didn’t want to be killed, then I had to kill the demons. And when I refused to kill, they left me trapped with a raging beast on the battlefield … You know? It’s like … Like the old Roman Empire. I felt like a gladiator when they released monsters the size of a cow. Fat. They had claws and… Bloodshot eyes. The sharp teeth. They bit the air. Shit. I was so scared! And then … Then I did what they taught me to do. The monsters and the people who showed me how to kill them were dead in the same room when I let my magic power escape. Oh the king … The human king was celebrating and chanting, “He really is a hero!” “He really can kill the Demon King!” .”
Tears began to fall in front of me, driven by a strong pain that I clearly did not understand. Kaito, how scared you must have been! Surely killing for killing completely hurt your heart. You’re right. I can’t even imagine it!
I don’t want to hear anymore.
He had a much worse experience than being hungry in jail.
“Besides, the feeling of normalcy is now … Paralyzing. I no longer hesitate to kill anyone. Beasts, horned rabbits … I did it so many times that my experience increased and my strength grew more. In the process, I gained many skills and improved. You just saw it! Whoops. I really felt like a hero!”
He has the same innocent expression from when he was a child, bragging about winning swimming competitions. To win piano competitions and be really good at math … Of course now, Kaito talks about killing.
“The humans here are more evil than you might think. When I went to jail again, because of you … There wasn’t even a trace to tell me that you had truly been living in that place. Even if I tried to locate you or feel you … I can’t do it anywhere. I just thought, maybe they hid you.”
The same day that Kaito came to see me, I was summoned by Ryuo … I was enveloped in a seven-colored body of water that was expanding the length and breadth of the stone prison and afterwards, I was directly transferred to Shirasagi Castle .
“I thought a lot about the subject, I went back and forth, but I couldn’t find my brother because I couldn’t feel him in this world. It was, as if you had been taken hostage … And then the king told me that the so-called “Demon King” was against me from the beginning. He hated humanity so he took you. He kidnapped you and now he was going to kill you. “Go for the Demon King” “Go for your brother.” And I embarked on a journey to defeat him and set you free. Can you believe it? I was going to his castle thinking only of you!”
When I saw Kaito in Tital Guinuwa for the first time in months, it was funny that he seemed to be dressed as if he were a real gentleman … Now that I know what happened behind the scenes, I feel like this is no longer a scene that needs my admiration.
“I was surprised to hear my brother’s voice on the road. “I am living happily in a different place.” Are you living happily, you said? I was confused and angry and … I thought, what different place? The stupid ones didn’t even know where you were … They were just using me for what was convenient for them and my idiot brother said “I’m fine”.
A strange wind radiated from his body in an eerie manner, indicating the complete irritation Kaito had. The cracks cut through the stone walls, breaking it, and then causing even my body to reel from the force of its gusts.
“At that moment, I swore I’d find you no matter what. I offered to team up with the Demon King to make it happen so … do you realize how terribly strong you’ve affected me ?!”
I can’t believe you say that I was a catalyst for the destruction of an entire planet. I don’t want to believe it. He does not appear to regret his actions and the current situation has not changed and will not change in the near future.
It’s like that, how Rui said it would be…
“Ah. Fuck!”
He shakes his head and covers his mouth, although his screams were beginning to escape by themselves.
I can’t do anything to kill your emotions or my emotions or the sadness or pain that springs from the bottom of my heart. Despair turns into tears that overflow and do not stop.
“I’m not sorry. I’m really happy to become the Demon King army’s ally if I can get you with that.”
“What do you say? Please stop now!”
I covered my ears with my hands, shaking, crying… But as soon as I looked down to try to breathe, my brother’s hand reached out and held my chin. He made me back up, shut up and then he held my hands and stuck them against the cold stone wall … Kaito looks at me from far away. His eyes sparkle like he’s excited.
“Don’t look the other way. Listen carefully, brother. For you, for you, is that I am stronger.”
“I wish … you had come home.” I always knew he was unscrupulous and incompetent at serious things. “A fool who only lives by blaming me. You don’t even like me! Why then did you bother looking for me? Was it all for me? You can’t blame me!” I yell, squeezing and pulling my voice from the back of my throat. Wanting to shake off all the fear I felt for my brother.
Kaito just laughs.
“When did I say I didn’t like you …? I love you.”
Then his huge, honest smile struck me as somewhat inappropriate for the situation. Why am I so afraid of his smile?
Even though I resisted as much as I could, the water grips that hold my hands are too strong and I can’t detach them … Then the floor moved and fell away until I had the illusion that we were floating in the air. Flying to the point where I could see the full moon closer.
It’s cold.
“My special attribute of magic is “Gravity”. On the battlefield, I can stop all the troops coming towards me. Horses and people, beasts. I increase or decrease the gravity in a specific area and leave them static for the demons in my command to eat them. It is fun. Soldiers lose their heads with one bite and their limbs are ripped off one by one … It is my beautiful masterpiece.”
The gory content that he tells and the expression he has on his face, do not match at all …
Below us, there is a shattered castle and the rest of a ruined urban landscape. Many buildings have collapsed, crushed under their own weight, and even though it is night, the signs of life are truly rare.
“Do you know what else I can do? I can send us back to Japan.”
“To Japan…?”
“Yes.”
What is he saying?
It can’t be real. Nothing that is happening can be real …! It seems more like a pathetic nightmare.
Help me.
Help me, Rui.
The place where I should be is not here, but in the White Castle. It should not be in Kaito’s arms but yours … Because they are the only ones who can feel comfortable and warm.
“My brother is more important than anything and power in this world. So when we get back … I won’t let you feel alone for a moment longer. I promise.”
Go back to Japan? What a joke.
Come on, wake up. Close your eyes and wake up!
Rui…
Come wake me up soon.
Come for me.
Please.
BL snack 