Chapter 10
TL: gaeulriri
Editor: Daed
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Desire⦠Hmm? Desire?
In the novel, âancient demonic magicâ was one of the biggest factors that destroyed this novelâs world.
However, there was no specific information about its origin. The devilâs intentions in carrying out its action were still a mystery.
The main purpose of this story was to eliminate Felix and his family instead of focusing on the demonic power itself.
In fact, I focused only on the idea that âFelix and the Chamberlains should be safeâ, and overlooked the ancient demonic relic magic itself.
So Felixâs words sounded foreign to me.
âWhat do you mean by âDesireâ?â
It was ambiguous what he meant about âbeing unable to suppress their desireâ.
As I asked for a more detailed explanation, he said,
âItâs a trait of demons. Theyâre born under desire, so they never control their instincts. Thatâs what they do in the first place.â
âWhat kind of desire is it exactly?â
âI donât quite know yet. It depends on what kind of relic it uses.â
According to his explanation, there were not just one or two demons, but a wide range of them.
âOh, I see.. Iâm sorry but, is that allâ¦..?â
Honestly, Iâm very sorry to say this, but if you were half eaten by the demonic power and you couldnât suppress the desire inside yourself, didnât it mean that you were being fully eaten by it?
That relic must be the power to destroy the world.
On second thought, it wasnât so bad if you were driven by desire.
I rolled my eyes and said,
âMost of time, I canât suppress my desire either.â
My desire for money exceeded my desire for anything else.
If that was so, then I was also under the influence of the demon.
âEveryone feels it at least once, right?â
Maybe even a saint who conveyed the will of God had a desire too.
Wasnât the difference only between revealing it openly and hiding it well?
This was an extreme example, but it was the same as the difference between having the urge to kill someone and actually going through with it.
Just because I called Felix an angel, it didnât mean that I believed he had no desire or was pure and innocent.
An angel was a creature that made you wonder, âHey, you are really patient. How do you put up with everything?â
Felix pushed up the glasses on his sharp nose. He replied,
âWhat I meant is not that cute desire.â
I stared at the beautiful human in front of me who gave off an intelligent atmosphere with a simple action. I wished I could save this sight into my memory for the rest of my life.
âYou shouldnât put human desires and demonic desires on the same line. Itâs totally different. If Ireneâs prophecy actually happens, Iâd better leave this place. Maybe everyone will be safe that way. If so, Iâ¦.donât even know what to doâ¦..â
Felix showed an ambiguous smile as he finished his line.
However, unlike his confusing expression, his eyes were firmly fixed on me.
His hesitation was purely due to his concern so that I wouldnât be shocked, but it must mean that he was already determined and sincere.
âOh, so in the novel, you chose to destroy yourself and now you choose to disappear?â
Why was Felix always carrying everything on his back and trying to sacrifice himself?
I know he was created with such a character setting, but it was just a pity for me who was attached to him.
âAre you saying that you can just kill someone on your own?â
I got closer to him and whispered. At this moment, I wasnât aware that the distance between us was too close.
âYou mean that the demonic desire could be greater than the three crazy men who sacrificed the worldâs peace to isolate and monopolize the innocent Chloe?â
ââ¦â¦â
âCan it be worse than that? Really?â
âThatâsâ¦..â
See, you couldnât answer that, could you?
As Felix showed a somewhat offended expression, I continued,
âMaybe they have already been eaten by the demon too.â
âI know what you want to say, Irene. Butâ¦â
No, you didnât understand at all.
I took a deep breath, wiped my face, and raised my head.
âFirst of all, why did I tell Felix all of this?.â
So what I wanted to say is:
âThere are more humans than demons in this world. Clearly the demons suddenly disappeared from this land and hadnât appeared since (the ancient era) because they were outnumbered by the humans. Even now, there are many humans with sharper tongues than the demons.â
Of course, my statement that demons disappeared because of vicious humans was just to convey my opinion.
But my next words were more heartfelt than ever.
âSo, donât say anything like youâre going to disappear so easily.â
I stared into Felixâs eyes sincerely. Then, after hesitating for a moment, I placed my hand on top of his fair hand.
Even if you were abandoned by everyone in this world, I would be the one who would understand you.
Just like how they had blessed me with wealth, I would protect the happiness of these siblings until the end.
With that resolution in mind, I asserted,
âIâm here now to prevent the prophecy of the tragedy in which Felix had to die alone from happening.â
I felt his hand under my palm tremble for a moment.
I patted his hand gently as if trying to soothe him.
âIâm here to lighten your burden, so letâs get through this together.â
I didnât know if I could really help, since I had no ability or strength. But at least, my presence would be a little help instead of bearing this burden alone.
In difficult times, you could count on me and I would stay by your side without saying anything. Even if I didnât know what I should do to comfort you, I had confidence that I could believe you until the end.
I was the kind of person who cared about other peopleâs feelings.
When Claudia told me that she hated the heroes, I easily gave up. And even though my life was in danger, I chose to stay by her side.
I didnât mind if I had to commit sins for Claudia, Felix, and Liamâs happiness.
Because they had already become âmy familyâ in this world.
No matter what kind of dark side they had, we could still accept them. That was what we called âhuman bondsâ.
âEven if you turn into a demon, Iâll hug you to hell.â
ââ¦â¦â¦â
âWill you listen to me from now on?â
I looked up at him and asked that question.
His turbulent gaze seemed to settle into a calm lake. It seemed like he couldnât even imagine hearing those words from me.
Soon after, Felixâs eyes slowly closed. With a faint smile, he said,
âI think I know why God created Irene.â
Really? I didnât even know why I entered the novel, but it would be great to know the reason. While I was wondering about what he meant, he turned his hand over and held my hand.
Oh, I forgot to take my hand off of him.
I tried to move my fingers and asked,
ââ¦..Do you believe me?â
My mind was filled with so many questions in my state of bewilderment.
Thanks to him calmly listening to my words, I was able to explain everything casuallyâ¦
Didnât he think my words were utterly absurd?
âFrom the day I first saw Irene, I thought there was something that Irene wanted to say. It turned out you asked me to develop my magic resistance.â
Felix laughed, as he recalled our first meeting.
âI believed it. Because you are Irene.â
Just like how Felix believed in me, I would also try to believe in him.
Did my sincerity finally work? At the thought that I might have managed to convince him not to be so stubborn in trying to solve everything alone, my face lit up in joy. A sweet smile spread across my face,
âThenâ¦.â
âTherefore, I donât want to hurt you any further.â
ââ¦â¦â¦.â
I couldnât understand what he was saying, so I asked,
âWhy do you think I will get hurt?â
âBecause⦠you are Irene.â
Was that supposed to be a legitimate answer?
I needed an explanation of his incomprehensible statement, but Felix was quietly fiddling with my hand with a nonchalant expression.
It was a gentle and careful touch, as if he was touching a fragile glassware.
Explain! Please!
I gazed at him imploringly for an explanation. Felix finally opened his mouth and said,
âThe demon stimulates the hidden desires that the humans originally have.â
The demon was an entity that tried to lure humans away from God and corrupt them.
In other words, âManifestation of a Desireâ.
That was a phrase that I often heard in my previous life.
The demon was created to test humans and constantly aimed for their weaknesses.
â⦠So, is Felixâs wish to hurt me?â
No, I did say that I would accept everything, but this was a little shocking.
As I looked up with sad eyes, he landed a feather-light kiss on the back of my hand. Then, he released it.
For some reason, as I watched Felix, I was reminded of the pledge ceremony I had seen by chance after I followed Claudia to the Imperial Palace last year.
âYes, something like that.â
It was too reverent for a man who wanted to hurt me.
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