Chapter 295
Chapter 295. Killing the Demon King (2)
When I looked around, 'Yulian', who she had been holding, had vanished without a trace.
Milena was gazing at me with a loving expression.
She gestured, indicating that I should sit in the chair in front of her.
"Why don't you have a seat?"
The warmth that wrapped around me was comforting. Her warm voice offered an unfamiliar sense of relief.
Yet, it made me more cautious instead.
"Is this an illusion?"
The pounding emotions quickly subsided, replaced by a stronger sense of caution, the strongest I had felt brewing deep within me.
"How could it be?"
Watching Milena speak in a gentle tone only deepened my suspicion.
Milena was dead. For sure. I had even buried her with my own hands, so how could I possibly forget that?
"Go on, have a seat. We have a lot to discuss, don't we?"
Milena smiled as she spoke. I glanced at the 'system window' that had been up for some time.
===
⇒ The Trait, 〈True Vessel〉, resonates with the 'Demon God's Horn'.
⇒ It reflects the memories entangled with the 'Demon God's Horn'.
===
Is this also a part of the 'Vessel' Trait? Thinking that way, things began to make sense.
The reason behind leaving me with the 'Vessel' Trait. It was none other than Milena who had set that up.
"I suppose it must have been the keepsake."
I put that fact into words. In the past, to cure my illness, a 'Soul Stone' was used. It had various additional effects.
"Hmm, you're quick-witted."
Milena nodded.
"That's not all. Didn't you discover the ruins located by Lake Taran?"
To her question, I also nodded.
"I cast a spell there too. So that you, Yulian, could share my memories and stories if you encountered the 'Demon King'."
"Memories?"
"Yes, because I am dead."
Milena said, with a bashful smile. Something about her refreshing disposition was different from the 'Milena' I had thought of, but at the same time, I missed that refreshing manner of speaking.
"That's why I left my memories behind."
"Then, isn't it no different from an illusion?"
"It's different from an illusion. An illusion is false, but I am truly real."
Creak.
Milena pulled out a chair that was in front of her.
"It's time to recognize the difference, isn't it?"
Milena looked at me with the same smiling face.
I didn't have much time.
I should have focused on leaving this place and killing the 'Demon King' at once.
My gaze remained glued to the chair. There were so many things I needed to ask.
"It's alright, there's plenty of time."
"Do you know what the situation is like outside?"
"Yes, I do. That's why I'm saying so."
How much did she actually know?
I wanted to say such things to Milena, but I barely held back. Before I knew it, I found myself seated in the chair.
***
Seated, I met Milena's gaze. Then, she beamed with a smile, appearing delighted for some reason.
"Seeing how well you've grown, it makes me happy. Your eyes are just like Oben's."
When Milena mentioned Oben's name, I almost cringed. Luckily, my smiling face masked any visible expression of displeasure.
Still, hearing the name 'Oben' left me feeling uncomfortable. Perhaps noticing this, Milena chuckled softly.
"It seems you're not on the best terms with him? Somehow, I think I understand why."
"And what reason do you think that might be?"
"Oben is eccentric... or perhaps it's more accurate to say he's not an ordinary person?"
The sharp evaluation almost drew a smile from me.
"He's the kind who only thinks what he likes and believes what he thinks is right. I wonder sometimes why I even got involved with a man like that."
She continued speaking, gazing into the air, before once again turning her attention back to me.
"Maybe I should thank him for making you."
"I don't think that's necessary."
"Really? Haha."
Listening to Milena's laughter, I sighed lightly. Then, I fixed a steady gaze upon her face.
All my senses indicated that she was indeed my mother, 'Milena'. At the same time, she was the 'Queen of Thorns' and the one who created the 'Vessel'.
Her eyes, as deep as an emerald lake, held within them a nurturing affection.
Yet, I felt the impression of someone who knew everything. I wondered if others saw this impression when they looked at 'Yulian'.
"I have questions to ask."
"Yes, though time is short, ask away."
There's not much time? You said there was plenty just a moment ago. As I thought that, I opened my mouth to speak.
"I want to know how to return."
"How to return?"
Milena tilted her head slightly.
"This place is a kind of mental realm... should I say? Anyway, time outside is not moving. So there's no worry about returning."
"No, you know, don't you?"
Interrupting Milena's words, I continued.
"I'm not Yulian."
I told her the truth. Or perhaps, calling it 'truth' was a bit ambiguous.
The atmosphere Milena held was all too familiar to me. Thus, perceiving that she 'noticed' wasn't difficult.
'This isn't due to guilt.'
It wasn't merely guilt from standing before Milena, knowing that I wasn't the real 'Yulian'.
Discovering the real way to return.
Seeking that 'method' now was merely one way of avoiding my current situation.
'I have grown accustomed to this body.'
Far too accustomed. As a result, the thought of returning didn't appeal to me much.
Yet, the reason I asked was simply to have one last card to play if a great danger arose.
Yes, it was purely for my own protection, not out of guilt. I tried to justify it to myself.
'Moreover.'
She knew. That I was someone borrowing 'Yulian's' body.
"No, you are indeed Yulian."
"What?"
"If you weren't, you wouldn't react to my words about sitting, about growing well, about resembling 'Oben'."
Ah.
Hearing Milena's words felt like being struck on the head with a hammer, leaving my mind blank.
She was right.
If I were just someone with the 'body' of Yulian, possessing only the 'instincts' embedded in that body, I wouldn't have reacted so intensely.
Thus far, everything that had stimulated me like 'trauma' was based not on 'instinct' but on 'memory'.
Body, instinct, memory. If all those were the same, couldn't I also be considered Yulian?
'No.'
I shook my head side to side, denying as much as I could.
"It doesn't matter. Just tell me how I can return to my original body."
"Unfortunately."
This time, Milena shook her head side to side. Her eyes were filled with sympathy.
"I don't know how to send you back, nor do I recommend returning."
"Why not?"
"Hmm..."
Whether to speak or not, Milena hesitated briefly. Then, as if making up her mind, she spoke.
"First, let me explain why this happened."
Milena removed the smile she had displayed thus far and began to speak.
"First, you know that I am the Queen of Thorns, right? Arbiter of witches, queen of sorcery, all that."
"I'm aware."
"Then, you must also know that the Queen of Thorns can foresee destiny."
When she gestured into the air, star constellations began to form on the stark white background.
"Everyone has a destiny. And the Queen of Thorns can glimpse it."
Milena took hold of one of the stars hovering in the air. The star glowed in her hand and began reflecting an image like a mirror.
The image that appeared was 'Yulian'. More familiar than the current appearance. Yulian facing various deaths as the Demon King.
'Hmph.'
The sight sent shivers down my spine. I knew that this was the destiny meant for the original 'Yulian', but seeing it with my own eyes was bone-chilling.
"Becoming a Demon King, destined to die or kill everyone. That was the destiny you, Yulian, were meant to face."
I knew.
"Changing the destiny set for a person is impossible. The most we can do is draw another destiny and mix it in."
"So, you're saying that's why I'm in this state?"
"Yes."
After a brief moment of reflection, I asked again.
"What do you mean when you say you don't recommend returning?"
"Hoo."
After a brief pause to gather herself, she continued.
"Though mixing destinies sounds grand, it's merely overlaying souls. And it only works with the soul of a 'deceased person'."
"... A deceased soul?"
"Yes."
She nodded cautiously, as if worried I might be shocked.
'A deceased soul.'
That means Milena is saying this.
'I' had already died.
"Hah."
I let out a hollow laugh. But that moment was brief.
Even though it was shocking, I was strangely calm. It seems a part of me had already considered the possibility of not being able to return.
"Seems like you're not too surprised?"
Milena asked nonchalantly. Her nonchalance seemed almost absurd, as her demeanor was so different from the 'Queen of Thorns' I had imagined.
'People say witches are devils.'
She certainly didn't seem so.
No.
"You must have been quite daring to use sorcery on your own son."
In hindsight, she was quite an extraordinary person. The thought of overlaying another soul onto her own child wasn't something an average person would even consider.
Milena rose from her seat and approached me. She then reached out her arms and embraced me.
"I'm sorry, but there was no other way."
These were words I had heard before.
"I am not Yulian."
Trying to push away the warmth in her voice, I spoke without realizing it.
"No, you are my son."
What an unusual person. One who defies common sense. But her affection is sincere.
"It's about time."
"What?"
As Milena glanced around, the stars that had been in the sky began to fall. Simultaneously, the blank white backdrop began to crack.
"The memories I've stored end here. With this, the Demon King has lost its power, and there's no chance of a 'Demon King' appearing on the continent."
You won't become a Demon King either.
Milena said, smiling.
This is farewell. An eternal farewell where we can never meet again. The thought of it made my nose tingle.
"Can I hug you one last time?"
Milena asked.
"It's not like it wears out."
"Are you in your rebellious phase?"
Perhaps because of my somewhat curt response, Milena chuckled before hugging me once more.
"You've grown so well. Truly."
With those words, Milena and the scenery around us began to blur. The warmth enveloping my body gradually faded.
"Ah..."
I wanted to say something, but I questioned whether the words were the right ones, or if I was even allowed to say them.
In that moment, Milena vanished. The blank landscape began to turn pitch black.
Soon, I regained consciousness.