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Chapter 48 Part 8 – A memory from the previous「108 times」. For the sake of the people we love. And for our friends.

「…… The rest was easy …… Once a man is hooked on the pleasures of the flesh with someone he loves, it’s easy to turn a man into a captive. Not to mention that my sexual play and scent are specially made. Once he tasted it, there’s no getting rid of it from his mind. Then all I have to do is put my hands around his neck and whisper a request, and he will do whatever I want. He will not even be able to question and stay away from the atrocious slaughter. Because he wouldn’t want to question the words of a loved one who has embraced him ……」

A monster that plays around with fate talked happily about it, as she borrowed the appearance of the Queen.

「…… Love is blind …… love is a drug …… that makes us forget ourselves, makes our hearts go crazy, and amplifies our emotions. It includes respect, pity, superiority, possessiveness, jealousy, frustrations …… everything good and bad. The bigger the emotion, the easier it is to understand and roll with. Then we can manipulate people however we want. A rolling ball can easily change course with a light poke from the side. The foolish rebels were easy prey. I didn’t have to force them. Most people think they’re doing things 「of their own volition」, not that they were manipulated by someone else …… That’s the truth of life ……」

「…… Alisa!! Damn you!! Stop that!! Don’t talk any more with the face of the Queen!!」

The one who couldn’t take it anymore and yelled at her was not Bradd, but Arnold.

「…… That’s the truth of life!? You’ve got to be kidding me!! There are more important things in this world!! You took advantage of a secret love and burned Bradd’s village to the ground!! You unscrupulously dirtied the smile of the woman Bradd is in love with!! That’s all unbecoming of a human being!! I will not tolerate inhumanity!! That’s my truth!!」

Alisa returned to her original appearance and sneered at Arnold, who was trembling with anger and gripping his bow.

「…… As the one who killed Sir Valentine, you have no right to say that. He was a truly good man who never abandoned Scarlet till the end and kept his love for the late Mary for more than twenty years. Seeing that Mary was able to get that much love, there is a merit to her death. As a woman, there is no greater happiness than to be loved wholeheartedly ……」

Arnold’s expression changed as he saw Alisa sighing ecstatically.

The name that Matzo had muttered when he was on the verge of death flashed inside his mind like a flash of lightning. The one to whom Matzo had longed, even in death, to give the veil of a bride. He quietly uttered the name Mary, then passed away with tears in his eyes as he smiled gently ……

「…… Don’t tell me …… You …… Old man Matzo’s lover ……!! Even the old man!! Do you even know how he felt when ……!!」

「Stop it!! Arnold!! Don’t listen to Alisa’s words!! We have to quickly get out of here ……!!」

Arnold was so angry that he was having trouble stringing his words together. The scene in front of his eyes was dyed red, even Seraphy’s desperate attempts to stop him were falling on deaf ears.

「…… Ahahaha, it was a beautiful snowy night. When Sir Valentine came running, he hugged the cold Mary and cried loudly. I guess his love was frozen since that moment. …… Love is a fickle thing. So I made it into something that will never melt. He has no reason to be grateful or resentful. Ahh, is that why you killed Sir Valentine? He’s probably in the afterlife right now, cuddling with his lover. …… Now their love is eternal. You did a good thing ……」

Arnold’s slight remaining feelings for Alisa were burnt out when he saw her smiling complacently.

「…… You damn monster!! Die ……!!」

Driven by a burning desire to kill, Arnold fired an arrow at Alisa.
The string rang out with a tremendous sound, carrying Arnold’s rage.
Launched from an iron bow with no holding back, the arrow rushed toward Alisa with a force that can shoot through to the bone.

「…… You insolent man. Don’t you realize how lucky you are to have been let off the hook once. It seems that you won’t be able to realize how foolish it is to oppose me unless you die. You’re a useless person that can’t even become a hawk, let alone an eagle.」

Alisa spat coldly and lightly swatted away the arrow filled with killing intent with her hand.
The arrow exploded into tiny pieces in mid-air as if she was chasing away a small insect.
Even Arnold, who had lost control of himself in anger, looked up in astonishment.
Arnold’s sharp eyes saw not only the feathers and shaft of the arrow, but also the bent arrowhead.

「…… You have such a bad memory. My 「Frenzy」, as I said, distorts, disarranges, and destroys anything it touches. There are no exceptions, whether it’s human or arrow. Above all, you denied my beliefs …… That’s enough. You are in the way. Go away.」

Arisa was right in front of Arnold when she said it in a piercingly cold tone. She was swinging her hand like a sword to cut off his head. She was much faster than Arnold’s attempt to nock a second arrow and Bradd’s attempts to stop her.

「…… Alisa!! Stop it!!」

Bradd desperately tried to block her way.
But the god of fate was cruel.
Bradd’s eyes quickly turned from red to black. His body slumped and he fell down. Of all times, he had reached his limit at this moment. Immediately after the 「Blood Atonement」 was released, he suffered tremendous weakness as a result of the recoil. His outstretched fingertips could not even touch Alisa.

Alisa blew past him with extreme speed.
Even Arnold, who has excellent dynamic vision, could barely perceive her as her figure grew twice as big. He could only guess that she had performed the stepping technique 「Setsuna」 two times consecutively and had come very close to him. Alisa’s speed was extraordinary, and there was too much of a gap between her speed and his body’s reaction speed. It was like a turtle trying to follow a swooping falcon with its eyes.

Arnold met Alisa’s ruthless red eyes. She was no longer sneering.
No more hostility, no more delight in hunting prey. It was the gaze of a tyrant who would never allow anyone to stand in her way and would behead them without hesitation. She is a monster who sees people not as objects, but as people, and yet still trample down on them for her own goal.

The attitude she had displayed earlier, like a cat taunting a mouse, was still more human-like.
Arnold realized that he had only been kept alive at Alisa’s whim.
She was not an existence that human beings could ever hope to compete with. Alisa was the very essence of the god of wickedness.
Death filled Arnold’s vision. There was no escape.
Arnold knew that his life was coming to an end as the blade of the god of death approached him.

「…… Arnold!! Run!!」

He could hear Seraphy’s desperate cry.
Some of the scenes of his life flew through his mind like a revolving lantern.

‘…… Sorry, Seraphy. You’re so smart, so you must have realized that this would happen. You tried so hard to stop me. I’m sorry I wasted all your efforts. It was my fault for letting my emotions get the better of me. …… You’ll probably cry harder than anyone else when I die, even though you always play it cool …… It was the same when my family died. …… I’ve known you for a long time. So I know you better than you know yourself ……’

An apologetic smile appeared on Arnold’s face as he prepared to die.
His end was imminent, yet his heart was strangely peaceful.
He was glad and also sorry to have a friend that would mourn for him.

Arnold’s mind drifted back to the old days when he first met Seraphy.
They first met when they were just children, when Seraphy visited the embassy of the Kingdom of Orhidea in the capital of Hydrangea to apply for a trading license.