Chapter 393 – First Meeting Begins With Goodbye (2)
“Oh, you opened your eyes!”
When she opened her eyes to the familiar voice, a woman caught her eye.
It’s not an ordinary look.
Because there were spears pierced everywhere on her body except her face.
I knew the identity of this woman.
“Goddess…”
“Oh, did you guess her identity? Yes I am a goddess It’s disrespectful not to attach Nim… But you deserve it.”
“Lucia…? Are the others all right?”
“Wait a minute. I know there are many things I want to ask, but there is something I need to do first.”
The goddess who said her there bowed her head as best she could.
“Thanks. For saving the world.”
“…”
Hearing the thanks, I shook my head.
“…She didn’t mean to be thanked.”
It wasn’t because of the noble goal of saving the world.
It was just a desire for my women to live.
“Even so, I thank you.”
“…So, who else? Am I dead?”
“Haha! Are you lightly ignoring the thanks of the goddess? Don’t worry, everyone is fine. And your death… I answer yes and no. Because in this place neither death nor time exists.”
The goddess who looked into my eyes as I said that far declared.
“But…Let me be clear. You can go back.”
“…What?”
“What are you so surprised about? Right now, I’m close to being a fallen remnant that can’t even be called a goddess, but if I still squeeze in the remaining power, I can send at least one of you back.”
“That’s true!”
When I approached and shouted that I could go back, the goddess shook her head.
“Goddess do not lie. But, hey. Calm down for a moment and sit down. Would you like to talk a little more? Time does not exist here, so a small chat will not cause much trouble.”
“…Yes, because I also had something I wanted to ask you.”
I exhaled her breath and sat down again, and the goddess smiled softly.
“Thank you for giving me a chance. Ah, it’s been a while since I’ve been talking to someone. So, what do you want to ask?”
I asked after brushing my lips for a while at the goddess’ question.
“…Did you really abandon the world?”
“Under? Could that be…! Everyone in that world is my children. And I had no children whom I hadn’t raised with love. But I abandoned my children!! What nonsense is that!”
Seeing the goddess suddenly angry, I held out my hand and calmed her down.
“Calm down. But Berlioz and Tristia said you left because you were disappointed to see the fight between humans and subhumans…”
“Don’t be stupid!! Do you think siblings who never fight in their lives don’t exist? Where is the mother who leaves her child only because of sibling fights! …Sure, I’ll admit I was new to arbitration… But that’s not why I left.”
“…Then.”
The goddess pointed to this place with the tip of her chin.
“I was trying to prevent ‘end’ from spreading to the world here as much as possible. I couldn’t explain it because the situation was urgent every minute, but I thought you would understand. But it was a mistake… The kids were as immature as I was. So tell me when you get back. I did not abandon you, but to protect you.”
“…Okay.”
“Thanks. Then I won’t tell you this time…”
The goddess bit her lip tightly and said.
“…I’m sorry to you, but I can’t go back to the original world. The moment you defeated ‘Dom Eon’, this world already recognized you as a resident of this side. At least if I had full strength…”
“Oh, it really doesn’t matter. It’s okay if you don’t mind.”
The goddess put on a guilty expression, but even if the opportunity was given, she had no intention of leaving my women behind.
“That…Is it? I’d appreciate it if you could say that, but…”
“But one thing, what happened to the soul of the original owner of this body?”
“Oh, were you paying attention to that? Do not worry. Eugene Calliope is a body made for you from the beginning. Um… How can I explain this…”
Said the goddess, who closed her eyes and munched her lips.
“Ah, that’s right. Did you say it was a program in the world you lived in? Until you became ‘Eugene Calliope’, that body contained a program that imitated a human instead of a soul. There’s no way a mother could bring her child to the point of harming her.”
“…That means you didn’t steal someone else’s seat.”
At the words of the goddess, I let out a sigh of relief.
I didn’t say anything, but it feels like the part I’ve always cared about has been resolved.
After that, I continued to chat and chat with the goddess for a long time.
Haha!! He’s a funny guy I am satisfied. Did you get some answers?”
“Yeah… But one last thing.”
“Oh… You have a lot of questions. Yeah, what are you curious about?”
Without saying a word, I looked back and said, looking at the countless corpses spread out.
“What are those corpses in the back?”
“…That you don’t have to worry about. Now, it seems that the time has come.”
Ughhh—
For the first time, an elliptical passageway radiating light opened before the goddess who turned her horse.
“…”
I clenched my fists at the faint figure of Carnea through the aisle.
“Congratulations. It’s the last gift I can give you. Stop and go back to where you belong.”
“You?”
“…It’s you until the end… It’s a bad language, but well, it’s over soon, so it won’t matter. I stay here.”
“To comfort them?”
“…Ha, it’s not consolation. Didn’t I tell you? That’s just not your concern. It is just a residual thought.”
I shook my head, saying that the goddess was frustrated, but I couldn’t ignore it.
“Those residual thoughts are people who died because of me, but I don’t care?”
“… Tsk, you’re a quick-witted kid.”
It wasn’t something I noticed by sight.
While talking with the goddess here, memories of the episodes I had been through were emerging in her mind one by one.
“I wish I had just gone back. Don’t beat yourself up, it’s true that you don’t have to worry.”
“They are dead because of me.”
The goddess who glared at me gnashed her teeth.
“Something seems to be misunderstood, so don’t tell me. That’s not a soul. Those things shouldn’t exist in the first place. It’s just a bug caused by forcibly dragging you, a non-resident of this world. As evidence of that, Lucia, who became the subject of her return, had no residual thoughts left.”
“…But they’re eating you up.”
She laughed as if the goddess had lost.
“Don’t make that cry-like expression. It’s a curse because I brought you into this world. Of course I have to deal with it. You tried hard enough Even if you become happy, no one will say anything. So get out. If we go on like this, no one will regret it.”
“…Come with me.”
The goddess shook her head, her eyes wide open as if I was momentarily startled by her outstretched hand.
“…It’s impossible. In the end, someone has to bear their grudge. If I disappear, everything will return to you.”
“Then, if you make their grudge disappear, you can go.”
“… If it was possible, I would have done it long ago? It is the resentment of those who were killed, either directly or indirectly. You can endure and bear it, but you cannot erase the grudge.”
“It’s not about erasing it. I want to ask for forgiveness.”
“…Ha, what do you mean? How do you want to be forgiven?”
I stood up from my seat and spoke as I approached the remaining thoughts.
“If you want to be forgiven, there is only one way. I will apologize. I’ll bow my head, I’m sorry, and I’ll beg forgiveness that way.”
“What? Don’t talk nonsense!! That is the malice of the world! It is not a curse that humans can bear!! Will die! Don’t come close!!”
“You said that time here is also a world without death. You just have to keep apologizing until you are forgiven.”
“Stupid thing!! So why don’t you know it’s even more dangerous!! Even if you don’t die, you can feel the pain!! It’s the pain that even I chose extinction together!!! How much can I, a human, endure!!”
“…Is about to disappear as well.”
“I’m sorry…!”
Now that I’ve heard that, I can’t leave it here anymore.
“You made a mistake… This is why I didn’t want to talk about them. Yes.. That’s right But how is that? After all, my children are writing their own stories. The world no longer needs a goddess!”
“…”
“Stop it! What are you trying to do!! Don’t come close!! Dangerous!!”
Leaving behind the goddess’ cries, he knelt down in front of the shadow in front of her and hugged her.
“Sorry…”
“I’m hungry… I’m hungry… I’m hungry… I’m hungry…”
Kwajik─
At that moment, the shadow’s teeth rip and bite the flesh and break the bones.
“…Sorry.”
But more than the pain of the body, more than anything… The memory of how this child was killed flows in.
A house on fire, hands burning hot, a mother on a pole, hunger, the taste of mud, a crying sister, hunger, the taste of tree roots, hunger, hunger, the taste of meat… And hunger again.
“Stop it!!! I’m going crazy!!! You have already tried enough!! That means you don’t have to suffer anymore. Aren’t there children waiting for you!! Please… Please, can’t you turn your eyes just once!! Be happy!!”
“…I’m hungry…It hurts…It hurts…Why…I’m…Hungry.”
“Sorry…”
When the bitten flesh returns, it is bitten again.
I apologized over and over again like that.
…
…
…
How much time had passed…
Hwaaak-
The child who vomited his resentment towards the world became light and disappeared.
“…Nonsense…No…The residual thoughts…Disappeared?”
“Look. You can be forgiven.”
“Yeah… Great. It can truly be called a feat. But now I have been forgiven by one person. Do you know how many times you died in that time?”
“…”
Can’t count
At first, I was counting, but from a certain point on, I just asked for forgiveness while repeating that if I die, I come back to life, and if I die, I come back to life.
“… Look at that number. It is by no means a number that humans can endure.”
When I raised my head, an endless stream of residual thoughts unfolded before my eyes.
“Isn’t that enough! Maybe this time I was lucky. Next time you may never be forgiven. So please…”
“Are you okay. I can bear it.”
“…Stop it…For my sake…You…Don’t have to sacrifice…”
“Not for you.”
The first day I had a relationship with Lucia, I swore.
If one day I can save this world…
[I couldn’t help it, I didn’t know, I was going to die anyway.]
I will not escape the sins I have committed by making excuses like this.
“To keep the promise.”
Now is the time to keep that promise.
