Chapter: 732
Risianne’s shocking self-introduction had me snickering non-stop. Here I was, in the Demon King’s dungeon, face-to-face with this woman who spouted nonsense. My heart refused to believe it, but my brain was screaming that Risianne’s words were the truth.
‘Is everyone with names related to death like this?’
The Demon King was a disaster for the continent—a being who defied the natural order and created worlds for the dead. After winning the religious wars, he dealt a lethal blow to the Dawn Sect, which was flourishing.
Such a monstrous being had me picturing a godly or monster-like figure. Who would expect that he used to be a normal human—no, a cardinal from the Dawn Sect? Honestly, even the Pope of the Dawn Sect probably had no idea.
The ‘life’ known as Jangsaeng is now just a tiny Yorkshire Terrier. What does death even mean anymore?
‘Shouldn’t a Demon King be a skeleton necromancer or something?’
I couldn’t help but frown as I took in Risianne’s appearance.
Her sky-blue hair and sparkly red eyes didn’t match my idea of death at all. She looked like a gentle beauty you’d find in a fairy tale.
Maybe beneath that outfit, she’s just all bones? That would align more with my envisioned image of a Demon King.
“Ah, it wouldn’t be polite to keep a guest standing after hundreds of years.”
As I fell silent, Risianne clapped her hands. Suddenly, a white tea table and chairs appeared between us.
‘What the heck?’
Cold sweat dripped from me. Creating something from nothing like that? Not even the greatest sorcerer or priest could pull off that feat!
But, of course, we were inside the Demon King’s domain, a space modified by her. Creating a table and some chairs must’ve been child’s play for her.
‘Just how far can she manipulate this space?’
But if she could raise tens of thousands of troops in an instant, or drop massive stones out of nowhere? The mere thought of that made me sigh.
How on earth did Berlo manage to beat someone like this?
“First, could you please take a seat? It’ll take your friends several days to reach here.”
“Days?”
“I make a pretty good maze. I used to play maze games with the kids at the orphanage.”
With a giggle, Risianne sat down, and this time summoned tea and pastries.
‘Gotta play along for now.’
After a fleeting moment of deliberation, I sat down as well. Rushing into a fight in a space that bends to Risianne’s will would be foolish. Since she didn’t seem to be hostile towards me, it was best to chat and gauge her intentions.
But what do I even say? The last thing I expected was to have a normal conversation with a Demon King, so I had no suitable topics in mind.
“Excuse me, do you have a favorite tea?”
“Anything’s fine.”
With my answer, Risianne’s eyes sparkled even more.
“Hehe, it’s so exciting! Being called ‘you’ by someone hundreds of years younger makes me feel young again!”
Her bizarre reaction only solidified my belief that this woman really was a Demon King. It wasn’t a sarcastic jab; she genuinely seemed happy. Her body might still be intact, but her brain had clearly gone haywire.
I mean, it probably made sense, considering a former cardinal would become a Demon King.
“Just between you and me, I actually have a preference for older folks. Though they’ve all perished, so I have no older options left.”
“Uh, I see.”
It was an awkward joke, leaving me hesitant to react as I nodded awkwardly.
“Still, I became known as the Demon King starting at 25. If we’re just counting physical age, maybe they’re older than me by six years?”
That weird comment sent my mind spinning even more.
If she claimed to be a cardinal of the Dawn Sect, it meant she had reached that position before becoming a Demon King. But she had walked the path of a Demon King starting at 25? No matter how you slice it, she became a cardinal at 25.
‘What a crazy talent.’
A prodigy who became a cardinal in her mid-20s—or probably even younger. How did someone like that end up as the sect’s enemy?
“You look curious about a lot of things.”
Noticing my confusion, Risianne maintained her gentle smile.
“You wonder how a young person became a cardinal, what made a creature that lost hundreds of years ago come back, and if you’ll be able to understand it.”
“Are you going to explain it, then?”
“Hmm~”
Risianne started tapping her fingers on the table as if deep in thought.
“Alright. It seems like it was fate that you’ve come here so quickly. Since there’s nothing to hide, let me tell you.”
She nodded and stared intently into my eyes.
“It’s about how clear the hypocrisy and limits of the sect truly are.”
Uh-oh. This sounds like one of those conversations I didn’t want to have.
The Dawn Sect teaches that the Lord watches over followers everywhere, right?
Before Enen rose as the only god, he was the god of the sun—the sacred and burning sun that shines down on everything.
So, Enen was a warm god embracing all while punishing human sin through fiery retribution.
“For Dawn Sect believers, this is a teaching even a child could understand. Just live well enough not to be ashamed before him and avoid sin, simple as that.”
I knew that much. It’s a moral compass shared across most religions.
Live kindly, and Enen would take you to heaven or grant you a good birth; commit wrongful deeds and you roast in the fiery pits of hell. It’s about as straightforward as it gets.
“But isn’t it strange? The one and only god watching over the world, a god who embraces all life as if they were his children—does he really punish transgressors?”
“What?”
But her next words made me question everything.
What does she mean? Of course, the wicked ought to be punished. If citizens break the law, the government punishes them—why would a god be any different?
“A parent corrects their child if they misbehave. There are no parents who hate or beat their kids. For parents, their children are not burdens but those they seek to nurture.”
“Yeah, but seeing murder or robbery as a child’s misbehavior seems off.”
“From a human perspective, yes. But gods are said to possess wisdom, purity, and power beyond comprehension. So why would their compassion be comparable to that of a human? Isn’t it more bizarre that a god’s capacity matches that of a human?”
If gods are similar to humans, what’s the point in venerating them?
Having said that, Risianne shrugged lightly.
“Well, I can somewhat agree with that. If a god were to embrace every person out there, humanity would fall into chaos. Why would one strive to be good when they know they’ll be forgiven regardless of their actions?”
“Knowing that—”
“What about the heretics?”
The word “heretics” instinctively brought to mind the Twilight Sect.
Those heretics who got ruthlessly stomped on and utterly annihilated by the Dawn Sect.
“Should they suffer in the fires of hell simply for believing in other gods? If someone’s born to heretic parents and naturally believes in a different deity, does that make them guilty just for being born in that area?”
I found myself at a loss for words against Risianne’s accusations.
Moreover, I had little interest in matters of faith; I’d merely picked up a triple major in religion. If someone asked if heresy was a crime, I couldn’t just give a definitive answer.
“Those who were kind yet labeled heretics, those who loved their families and friends yet fell into hellfire due to faith—are they truly deserving of suffering? The Pope said our path is to seek the answer to that.”
“…Isn’t that true?”
“Then what of the unfortunate souls who will burn until we find an answer?”
Now, there was no calmness in Risianne’s eyes; a flicker of madness began to show.
“Other cardinals had no interest in the souls condemned to hell. No matter how virtuous, selecting heresy was a grave sin deserving of purging by fire. They thought that wrong choices would lead one to reincarnate as a proper believer. To them, heresy was sin itself.”
I should have shifted the topic the moment the fallen cardinal started this religious chat. Now, I was knee-deep in this mess just trying to gather intel.
“So, I sought another path. I couldn’t stomach worshiping a god who, despite claiming to embrace all, would cast my children into the flames for the mere sin of believing in another god.”
With each step, Risianne advanced towards me, looking up at the sky with arms wide open.
“And at long last, I found my path! If such a god were truly omnipotent, they could have made every human virtuous, made them children of the Dawn Sect’s god from the beginning! Instead, he turns a blind eye during life and discriminates only after death! A true god should be fair and equitable!”
As Risianne’s voice rose, her hands drifted toward her waist. I felt an urge to draw my sword—
“None other than the very being that even Enen struggled to face! Death!”
…
Huh?
“What?”
“Hehe. You would be surprised, but during the religious wars, there were immense gods even Enen feared. Among them, the greatest of all was Death.”
“No, wait…”
I already knew. If anything, I likely knew more about him than she did.
“Death is a concept equal to all. The entity that has deified death, Lidi of Glendiét, can indeed embrace every life.”
Lidi… what?
‘Wait, that had a different name?’
So it’s not just “Death”?
“I came to know of that being’s presence and dedicated myself to serving them. Even though that great one has been sealed by the hypocrisy-filled Enen, I believe the day will come when I shall meet that being and walk the path of death.”
As Risianne spoke, perspiration built up from a different kind of fear.
“So through the power of the one who rules death… I have called back to this continent the unfortunate souls suffering in hellfire. While their physical forms may be rotten and hard to move, isn’t that better than letting their souls burn indefinitely?”
‘Is that so?’
Plus, my brain began to waver under Risianne’s claims.
It felt somewhat reasonable. The body may be temporary, but the soul is forever. Better to suffer for a while in a decayed body than to let your soul be eternally consumed.
And it would be harsh to burn souls for being heretics. A true god should embrace them, whether they’re heretics or wicked. Like, that’s just how fair death is supposed to be—
‘Wait, this is insane.’
I quickly snapped my fingers.
“Ugh.”
At the same moment, Risianne clicked her tongue in disappointment.
“You’re quite perceptive. Or should I say, your mental fortitude is admirable?”
“Are you trying to mess with my mind?”
“Mess with your mind? Please. I’m just guiding your soul in the right direction.”
That felt even more sinister, but Risianne reached out a hand to me.
“Well, whatever. If words won’t work, then how about actions?”
Suddenly, her hand froze, and Risianne blinked at me with a blank stare.
“Uh, um…”
Then, her demeanor shifted to something more cautious than before.
“Are you… someone who is close to death?”
“……”
At those words, I found it hard to respond.
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