“Please tell me if you know anything related to my brother.”
Sarah continued to urge her. For three years, she never heard anything about her brother.
All she knew was that the Demon King who ruled the North was her brother. Her teacher, Beryl, must have known something but he never spoke to her about Jamie.
She asked several times but Beryl scolded her to focus on her training.
“What were you trying to say?”
“…”
“Mayatrey!”
“Phew. It isn’t something amazing as you think.”
“What is it?”
“Your brother. Jamie Welton, who is now called Diablo Volfir. I was going to tell you that he still cares for you.”
“Uh?”
“Actually, it is the same as in the past, but it has been two years since I met him. I don’t know how much has changed.”
About two years ago.
Mayatrey had once set foot on the northern lands, hiding the fact that she was related to Shiva. It was because she needed to figure out what was happening to the world.
And she met Jamie then.
He was completely different from before, yet he felt the same.
It wasn’t long, and they talked about this and that. As she recalled those memories, she continued,
“When I think back on our conversation, it seemed like he still cared about you and your mother.”
Sarah had an expression that said she didn’t know what to say.
To think that her brother still thought of her and their mother.
What is this now?
They had been abandoned for three years. In a place where there was nothing, it was just the two of them. She was a small, young girl who was barely living with the help of others.
And her mother, who couldn’t walk, was now lying in bed, and she was walking on the path of blood.
How was this thinking about them?
“You don’t seem to believe me.”
“… we live in pain.”
If maybe their mother had been taken care of, she wouldn’t have felt like this. Currently, her brother has abandoned both her and their mother and is now living as the Demon King, consumed by anger.
She knew his purpose was to avenge their father. She knew it, yet she couldn’t agree with him.
What does it mean to be a family?
If you are going through difficult times, shouldn’t you share it with your family and shoulder it together?
Also, their father’s death wasn’t just a problem for him. It was a family thing.
Even if he was working hard, he was not paying attention to anyone else.
It was no different from ignoring them.
But now someone is telling her that he cares?
“It is normal to think so.”
Mayatrey nodded in understanding.
“But it is a situation where it couldn’t be helped.”
“What do you mean?”
“Jamie is currently being monitored by the eyes of the Sun God. Only a few people know that.”
“…Uh?”
Sarah also had a rough grasp of what that meant because she had been on missions.
The Sun God was the head of the opposing side and the leader who once rose as the head of the 12 Gods.
He was currently being treated like he was the only God except in Northern Olvia.
And that kind of existence was watching Jamie.
It wasn’t that strange.
It was because the Sun Church was constantly fighting on the continent’s borders with the goal of purifying the lands that fell into the hands of the Demon King.
But even so, could the leaders of the opposing side do this?
“A divine position isn’t easy to hold. At that point, the mental barrier will be high. And if they are on the same level, there is no way they will be able to keep each other in check unless they are fighting directly.”
As Sarah thought, Mayatrey said how difficult it was.
However, Sarah couldn’t help but remain still as she continued.
“The problem is that they both aren’t on the same level. Jamie knew it. The fact that the Sun God is higher than him. And the fact that he is being spied on.”
“B-But my brother is strong….”
Beryl said so. That no one could surpass anyone at Jamie’s current level.
“That is right. Jamie is…. Diablo Volfir, the Demon King, has gained power that cannot be compared to the past, but the problem is that the Sun God is getting stronger.”
Sarah couldn’t accept it. He abandoned their family and gave in to anger, and yet he is lagging behind the enemy?
Then, where should they place their hope in this world?
“Anyway, that is why Jamie is acting like he doesn’t care for the two of you.”
“Acting?”
“I think so because he asked me. Please cast a spell so that no one can break into your village.”
“Uh?”
“If he does it himself, the Sun God will notice, and then you will be in danger. He didn’t want to go through the pain of losing someone again.”
“Brother….”
Jamie kept the rest of his family far from him, as keeping them closer to danger was more horrible.
So no matter what happens, he kept a minimum level of safety for them.
Realizing her brother’s intention, Sarah sat down like she had gone weak.
“I didn’t know…”
She thought he had abandoned their family. But no.
Her brother sacrificed himself for their sake. Even in the midst of the misunderstanding, he thought being the bad guy was better than being the good one.
Sarah couldn’t hold back the tears that started flowing. As the pain she felt until now has disappeared, she feels sorry for her brother, who is suffering alone.
She shed tears as she said,
“I want to meet my brother.”
Sarah said to Mayatrey while wiping her tears.
She knew nothing could be done about this, but she had no one else to talk to.
“How can I not?”
“There is nothing you can’t do.”
The answer came from elsewhere.
When Sarah looked away, Isis was standing there with her shoulder leaning against the tree.
“Teacher?!”
“Your crying face has turned into something else? Even your big eyes look like they will burst out.”
“T-That….”
Sarah hurriedly wiped her face with the snow.
“Kuak. Will that make the swelling go away?”
Isis approached Sarah, teasing her. Sarah stood up and coughed.
Her legs were still weak, but that didn’t bother her as she stood up.
“But what do you mean that there is nothing I cannot do? Can I meet my brother too?”
“You said you wanted to meet him. Did I hear it wrong?”
“No. You heard it right.”
Mayatrey responded with a funny look on her face at Isis’s words.
Isis smiled and told Sarah,
“You are someone who deserves to meet him. In the process of recovering the power of investment, your contribution was the highest.”
“M-Me?”
“Right. The time you earned it was surely short, but if it wasn’t for that, he would have defeated me.”
If Sarah hadn’t stabbed Hungry Spirit’s bead, he would have killed everyone who was there. Isis, who hadn’t yet fully absorbed the power, would have entered the battleground in a state of confusion, and there was a higher chance for an imperfect power to destroy her.
If that was the case, she would have been killed, and even the power that the God gave her would have been absorbed by Hungry Spirit, and he would have turned into a scary God.
“So there should be a reward.”
“Then, can I go to the Demon King’s castle?”
Sarah looked at the castle, which was towering high.
The tall Black Tower could be seen anywhere in the northern lands. It was a place she had never stepped into.
She had never seen its surroundings, let alone been there.
“Why? Is your heart pounding?”
“Of course! I get to meet my brother!”
Sarah’s eyes shone.
Now that she knew the truth, there was no need to be in pain. Even though living together would still be different, just knowing the truth made her feel at ease.
However, Isis’s words broke those thoughts.
“The Jamie you know doesn’t exist.”
“…. Uh?”
Isis said.
“Maya. You said you met him two years ago?”
“Huh. Right.”
“Then…”
She sighed as she looked at Sarah. She didn’t want to disappoint the child, but if she met Jamie now, it would break her heart.
“Jamie is a lot darker now than then. Maybe the feelings he felt back then don’t even exist.”
“W-Why?”
“He is taking a step to surpass the Sun God.”
In order to do that, he had to give up on his emotions.
What?
“He is getting rid of his emotions. To be completely flawless.”
Diablo sat on his throne. In a place where no one but him existed, his eyes were trembling with a frown.
Darkness was raging.
The darkness that filled his body was now in a state where he couldn’t bear it. It was moving out of his body, not caring about his will.
“A little more.”
He still didn’t have full control over it. It was so difficult to handle.
‘I need to take a little at a time.’
He didn’t know how far he could be relieved, but if he could completely be relieved, even this power that was difficult to handle would be in his hands.
And then the full battle with Ra would start.
At that moment, something moved away from Jamie’s body and filled the area with black smoke. His expression, which was contorted with pain, changed into a still face.
The darkness began to seep in, and the presence in the room that was emanating from the throne vanished.
“Phew.”
Diablo sighed.
“I took one down again.”
Along with the feeling that one part of his heart felt void, he gave up on his emotions.
Anger.
He couldn’t get rid of all of it, but the hatred within him was definitely less. The feelings that had harassed him for the past years had now vanished so easily.
Anger was the emotion he couldn’t let go of in his past life.
But his thoughts changed.
‘Anger doesn’t help.’
It was the same with the other emotions, but if he moved with just anger alone, he could not obtain perfection.
So he found another way.
‘The only thing I cherish is the will to live.’
The emotion of beating the 12 Gods to death with anger felt horrible.
To kill Ra, he had to have a pure will, like a machine.
Be closer to it.
Didn’t he get to the point where he could look in on Ra?
It wasn’t long now.
“To kill Ra.”
When the time comes, Ra wouldn’t even realize his death.
If that happens, he would achieve his purpose.
“What is needed in life. Think about what life is.”
Like a purely forged sword. Think no more.
[Diablo. Be angry. Anger is the right direction to pursue anything.]
He didn’t feel any emotions from the voice he heard. There was a time when he was persuaded by the voice. Right, he could understand it because anger was his essence.
Not long ago, he couldn’t control his feelings of anger.
Didn’t he get so angry with Ricky that he called him by his name?
Now.
[Diablo. Anger is the only weapon that kills Ra.]
“I will let go of anger.”
[Diablo!]
“Shut up, Satan. You are no longer needed either.”
He was helpful once, but now he is just distracting him. It was better not to talk if possible.
[W-What are you trying to do?]
Satan howled in anger.
[Wait! S-Stop…! Kuaaak!]
Along with the unpleasant scream, the voice vanished. There was no other sound.
He didn’t even smile. Diablo was losing his purpose.
“Killing intent.”
The existence that wanted to embrace everything was throwing everything away again.
He was becoming a monster.
