MTLNOVEL Chapter 29
“Hmm, I think I’ve heard of the Demon God before… What was the story about?”Thank goodness, it looks like they didn’t hear the details.As Elsez swallowed a sigh of relief, an excuse to escape this situation popped into her head.“Before officially getting involved in this matter, I wanted to learn more about the Demon God. You know the saying—if you know your enemy and know yourself, you’ll win the battle.”“Aha, that’s a good idea.”Astaire nodded.Elsez assumed he would soon be on his way.After all, he was a cardinal of the Holy Nation and the head of the empire’s largest temple, which meant he had plenty of other duties to attend to.But Elsez’s expectations were completely shattered.“Then I’ll teach you.”“…What?”“It’s my area of expertise. In this empire, you’d be hard-pressed to find more than a handful of people who know more about the Demon God than I do.”A hero who had defeated the Demon God three years ago and a cardinal dedicated to opposing it.It was true—there were very few people who knew more than him.‘Well, that’s not wrong, but…’My plan was to research in the library without running into you…“Aren’t you… busy?”“I am, but Cassian is worried about you. So, I should stay by your side and protect you.”Astaire spoke with such conviction, as if it were the most natural thing in the world.Elsez blinked in bewilderment.‘What possible danger could there be in a library? And in a temple’s library, right at the heart of the empire, no less?’To me, you’re the biggest danger in this temple…“And also…”Astaire, who had been gazing at her intently, trailed off as he reached out with his large hand toward the top of her head.His long fingers brushed against a flower petal that had settled in her hair.He plucked the petal away and let it drift to the ground, then lowered his gaze back to her and continued.“I have a great deal of interest in you.”As he tilted his head slightly and met her eyes, Elsez stared at him blankly, her expression gradually stiffening.‘Why is he suddenly interested in me…? Could he have noticed my power?’She subtly took half a step back from Astaire and cautiously asked,“What… kind of interest?”“The kind where I wonder what potential Cassian saw in you when he recruited you into the guild.”Oh, so that’s what he meant.Elsez let out a breath of relief as she watched Astaire answer so matter-of-factly.“Let’s head inside first.”The two of them entered the library together.The library had been quiet the last time she visited, but now, with the sun setting, it felt even more silent.‘Being here with Astaire… it reminds me of the past.’Back when they were young, Ruel used to take Astaire and Rashiel, who both loved reading, to the town’s public library.They would read books together, whisper about stories, and sometimes doze off, leaning against the bookshelves for support.Those memories still lingered faintly.‘I wonder if Astaire remembers those days too.’Feeling regretful that she couldn’t share those memories with him, Elsez stepped further into the library.“So, what kind of information do you want to know about the Demon God?”Astaire asked.“If it’s something I know, I’ll tell you as much as I can. And if it’s something I don’t know, we can look it up together.”After a brief moment of thought, Elsez spoke.“Do you know how the Demon God came into existence? If we understand the source of its power and how it came to be, we might be able to figure out how the group trying to revive it is planning their actions.”And if she could understand the origin of that power, she might also find a way to separate herself from the Demon God’s influence.But Astaire made a troubled expression.“Hmm, I was confident about teaching you, but that’s a really difficult question. It’s like asking how humans came into existence.”In other words, just as humans had seemingly appeared in this world one day, the Demon God had simply existed from the start.“The only thing I know about the Demon God’s origins is an old legend. Would that still be helpful?”If Astaire was going to tell a story, it was probably the one from the prologue of Last Heroes.Most RPG games start with a brief explanation of the world’s lore.‘…I skipped all of that, though.’RPG game openings often follow a similar pattern, so Elsez had always skipped those parts.When she had first possessed Ruel’s body, she had vaguely heard the story, but she had since forgotten it.Nodding, Elsez asked Astaire to tell the story.“Please, go ahead. There might be unexpectedly useful information in it.”With his characteristically soft and pleasant voice, Astaire began.“In the beginning, this world was unstable, and dimensional rifts would open frequently, allowing fiends and monsters to run rampant.”For countless years, humans were slaughtered by these creatures, until one day, the Saint Dike appeared before them.Using the power bestowed upon her by the gods, she sealed all the dimensional rifts and saved the people.It seemed as if an era of peace had finally arrived.But then, one day, the Demon God appeared.The once-closed rifts reopened, fiends and monsters began invading once more, and countless people perished.Dike gathered all her strength and managed to seal the Demon God.But unfortunately, that seal did not last long.Having lost her power, the saint led the survivors and founded the Holy Nation.A group dedicated to supporting and nurturing heroes with the power to oppose the Demon God.A vast organization that moved solely for the sake of world peace.The immortal Saint Dike continued to gather heroes to fight against the Demon God, with the Holy Nation as her base.One of those heroes was the player. And the player, caught up in an unwanted fate, was destined to save the world from the Demon God.That was the opening of the RPG game Last Heroes.Having listened to Astaire’s story, Elsez fell into thought.‘Even in the opening, there’s barely any information about the Demon God.’Which made sense.In an opening sequence, the absolute evil only needed to exist—it fulfilled its role simply by being there.It was enough that the players’ characters, the protagonists, had a goal to grow stronger.The deeper lore was something meant to unravel gradually throughout the main storyline.‘Now that I think about it, even when Lezantia’s main story had progressed quite a bit, there wasn’t much lore revealed about it either.’Most villains have their own backstories, and even if they are unforgivable, there’s usually a reason behind their actions.Whether they were born evil or became that way over time.But Lezantia had no such narrative.Even from what she had roughly heard from Reti, there didn’t seem to be much of an explanation.‘Still, they wouldn’t have made the final boss character so carelessly… Maybe Reti’s story is hidden in the main scenario that I never reached in my previous life?’As Elsez found herself questioning Reti’s very existence, she met a pair of deep blue eyes staring at her and snapped out of her thoughts.“So… You’re saying that Your Eminence personally defeated that terrifying Demon God?”“My comrades and I took it down together.”“Still, that’s amazing. If it were me, I’d have been too scared and just run away.”“Honestly, I wanted to run away too.”At the unexpected response, Elsez blinked in surprise and looked at Astaire.He had never once shown such a sentiment before.Even when everyone was exhausted or in danger, he had always been the one to offer words of hope.“But if I had run away, the people weaker than me would have lost their future.”“……”“So I had no choice but to fight. Not because of some grand cause.”Elsez realized why he was telling her this.Astaire was originally the second son of the infamous Marquis Perdean family.Because of his selfless and kind nature, he had never truly belonged there.He had met Ruel, left the marquis family, and severed ties with them, but he was never truly free of its chains.He despised being revered as some noble hero with a great cause.Because he still carried the blood of Perdean.In his words, Elsez saw the same Astaire from before.‘You’re still not free from that burden.’Suddenly, he felt familiar.Just like in the past.“Were you disappointed that it wasn’t as grand of a story as you expected?”Astaire smiled as if it were nothing, but Elsez could see the long-standing wound hidden within.“No, that’s why it’s even more amazing.”Elsez answered without the slightest hesitation.“A hero is still just a human who will die when their heart stops. It’s natural to be afraid of death.”“……”“I think courage comes from fear. The fact that you can face it, knowing that fear—that’s what makes it extraordinary.”For a brief moment, Astaire, who had been smiling the whole time, froze.His expression wavered—subtly twisted into something unreadable.As if he were both sad and happy at the same time.And then, he smiled.In the glow of the setting sun, brighter than ever before.“Thank you for saying that.”Elsez stared at him blankly, then belatedly tried to smile back—But at that moment, the library door, which had only held the two of them, swung open.A holy knight entered.It was the same man who had been guarding Astaire at the guild yesterday.“Your Eminence, we’ve found the whereabouts of the boy who was carrying the Shard of the Rift.”