To the Altar – Part 04
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Translator: Kell
There was a momentary silence. The face of the person that looked like Zero turned blank, and she opened her mouth in a very sluggish manner.
“You are not as witless as I thought. I can see why Zero is obsessed with you. A fine mercenary and a fine servant. You may not be a beast warrior, but your loyalty is invaluable.”
“I’m flattered,” I said sarcastically. “You’re the Murky Darkness Witch, aren’t you? What are you doing in her body? How’d you get in?”
“Hmm, I see. You are very perceptive. Commendable.”
I had traveled with a witch for over a year. I learned that people didn’t simply vanish after they died, and I knew that souls or spirits attached themselves to people. The time I spent with Zero assured me that the woman before me was not her.
“It is simple,” she said. “Zero agreed to my plan and offered her body to me. She has an extremely powerful, unaging body that possesses incredible magical power. I may be old, but the knowledge I have accumulated and the plan I have formulated will guide this world. In order to achieve a common goal, Zero and I became one. We will reign as absolute evil, and the world will finally be united.” The witch raised her forefinger and poked me on my chest. “She wanted you to live a mundane life. Turn you into a powerless man who would cower before evil so you would not engage in any battle. For that, surrendering to me was her most reliable option. Better than fighting me and putting your life in danger.”
I remembered the day Zero asked me if we should really defeat her master. She thought killing her would cause the witches and Church to split apart once more. Right after that, Orlux attacked, enraging Zero. She even said she didn’t want to save the world anymore. She had been struggling with these thoughts. She truly wanted peace for the world, so she thought it best to become the enemy.
And I influenced her decision. Because I resigned myself to my fate—accepted persecution like it was normal, convinced myself that grinning and bearing it was the best choice—Zero decided to destroy the world.
“Ah, but the irony. You came here chasing after Zero. How beautiful. I love beautiful things.”
I wasn’t surprised. Nor was I flustered. I knew it all along. She was an idiot. A hopeless idiot.
“So this is what humans refer to as emotions. I thought it was utterly inane, but if this ’emotion’ is powerful enough to make you, a powerless man who has lost the soul of a beast, come to this place, employing any means necessary, then I suppose it is not so bad after all. Very well. I will allow you to serve me.”
“I’m sorry. What now?”
The witch wrapped her arms around my neck. She smelled sweet. The same kind of sweetness that Zero had on her. Even with my human nose, I recognized it. Her long silver hair, smoother than silk, gently tickled my cheek as the wind blew past.
“I am saying that you have my permission to swear your loyalty to me. Zero’s wish is for you to be happy. Your wish is to be with her. Then I will bind you by name, grant you the soul of a beast again, and make you my servant. Fortunately, Zero has the beast’s soul around her neck. With me, Zero, you, and the Nameless Demon King that lives within you, we will bring true peace to this world.” She moved her lips closer to mine. “A world where all beings are equal and all things are fair—”
“Go fuck yourself.” I didn’t let her finish.
The witch frowned and pulled herself away. “What?”
“And here I was, wondering what you were gonna say. Save the world together? Create a world of equality and fairness? I don’t give a shit about any of that. Go knock yourself out. But keep us out of it. Hey, you hear me, right?!” I grabbed the slender arm around my neck and called for Zero. “Don’t you dare become the enemy because of some stupid reason like my happiness or world peace. I told you I’d fight for you! Now kick this bitch out from your body. This isn’t like you!”
If it was the same as the demon using my body, Zero should be able to hear my voice, just as I could hear the voices around me.
The witch’s frown deepened. Then, my body rose. I was floating in the air.
“Ugh…!”
Even with my carefree attitude, I could imagine what would happen next. A miserable man who had displeased a witch was lifted into the air. The next move was obvious, and sure enough, she slammed me back first into the Altar’s wall. I didn’t fall to the ground; instead she pinned me to the wall.
A pained groan escaped my lips as I dropped my lantern onto a field full of weeds, igniting the dry grass. The fire spread quickly. The hot wind licked at my body. It wasn’t as bad as being burned at the stake, but the sparks from the fire was still hot.
“Why is it always like this?!”
Everyone was ridiculously stronger than me. The witch, the demon, the adjudicator. For once, I would like an opponent that even a regular guy like me could fight evenly.
“It would be in your best interest not to infuriate me too much, human. I do not want to torment an adorable animal like you. I am doing you a favor by keeping you in perfect shape. Do not disregard my goodwill.”
“Get off your high horse! You can tear off all my limbs, but I’ll never serve you!”
“Why not? This body is Zero’s body. I am the Zero you pursued. I am allowing you to live with the Zero you seek, so why do you refuse?”
“Oh, you wanna know why? Very well. It’s because I fucking hate witches! But there’s one, only one witch who’s special—only one who’s especially dangerous to the world, and only one who’s especially harmless to me. And that’s not you. So give Zero back. You can’t afford my services anyway.”
The witch’s boisterous laughter reverberated throughout the island.
“You sure are feisty for someone who cannot even move. It might be fun to tear off your limbs and keep you around as a jester. I promised Zero not to take your life. I will not drive you away either. Not that you can get anywhere, of course. I am certain the Nameless Demon King inside you will join me in celebration.”
What?
“What did you just say?”
Suddenly, I remembered what the Murky Darkness Witch said to me a while back.
“You will join me in celebration, yes?”
On the day Thirteenth died, in the frozen forest, she said the exact same words. When I replied, she said, “I was not talking to you.”
What if back then she was aware that the demon was inside my body?
“You made it to this Altar through the help of the demon. But why do you think the demon helped you? It wanted to come to me. To see the world I will create. That demon… The Nameless Demon King is my mate.”
The witch snapped her fingers, and my body fell to the ground. I couldn’t get up. My mind was too busy processing what she just said.
Suppose the Murky Darkness Witch was the Nameless Demon King’s mate. Suppose they were allies. If Zero’s mother was the witch, the enemy of the world, and her father was a demon, then unfathomably evil blood was coursing through her veins.
No. That didn’t matter at this point. I planned to come to the Altar with our without the demon’s help. But perhaps I made a mistake. I now realized that maybe I shouldn’t have come.
If the Murky Darkness Witch was telling the truth, then I had wasted all of Zero’s effort in freeing me. My coming here only served to please the witch.
The Murky Darkness Witch regarded me intently. “Allow me to sincerely express my gratitude this time. Thank you for bringing that demon to me. Thank you for abandoning the peace that Zero wished for you. Had you not wanted it, the Nameless Demon King would not have been able to intervene. Zero summoned it using your body. It could not risk your life unless you wanted it. And as long as I hold your life in my hands, no matter how loudly you call out her name, Zero will not appear. Because the moment she shows herself, I will kill you. Zero surrended to me of her own volition, and you will serve as a chain to bind her strongly to me.”
What do I do? Think. Think!
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