Chapter 107
There was a sense of reality until the terrible moment Belphegor suddenly approached me and plunged her finger into my head, after Satan had scorched my leg.
But the next moment,
I fell into a hazy, strange world, as if I were dreaming.
Anyone could tell it wasn't reality.
The problem was that the experience was terribly vivid.
It was the moment my father died.
The moment my Mother died in the hospital room occurred.
And...
Even my first death.
All sorts of negative memories were relentlessly repeated.
But those events.
They were events I had already processed and come to terms with.
My Father and Mother dying was sad, but because they loved me so much, I didn't feel like giving up.
If I were to give up, it would be an insult to their devotion.
Dying by fire was indeed a terrible memory.
But the time I suffered from burning pain was not as long as I expected.
I quickly fainted from the smoke, so I didn't even have time to properly feel any pain or anything.
To be honest, it hurt more when Satan stabbed me with a knife just now than when I burned to death in the hospital.
That's why those memories were actually ambiguous to be called traumas for me, but seeing them so persistently dug up, as if to show off, became rather laughable.
But is a Demon King still a Demon King?
The next moment.
[So? In the end, you couldn't protect your Mother or your Father.]
[What was the price for enduring the pain of burning to death? That Child won't even remember you.]
[Your death was a dog's death.]
As the negative emotions I had somehow pushed deep into my heart and sealed away began to appear before my eyes, they no longer seemed laughable.
The negative emotions instantly writhed and grew, changing into a gigantic Monster-like form, then began to shriek and chase after me.
I ran.
And, quite naturally, I couldn't run for long before I was caught.
The amorphous Monster grabbed me with dozens of arms and then slowly began to grope all over my body.
[You stupid son of a bitch. You couldn't even pass the college entrance exam properly, you idiot who just leeched off your parents.]
[If you had earned more money, your Mother wouldn't have died. She would have received better treatment at a better hospital, so she wouldn't have died, right?]
[You're a loser.]
[Why are you living? You're useless. You can't do anything right.]
[You're a high school graduate, a fool who can't do anything properly.]
[Other people go to college, get a girlfriend, get a job, buy a car, but what about you?]
[Do you have any value in living?]
...I know.
I know very well that the words this Monster is spitting at me are a trick the Demon Kings are using to shatter my mind.
But they were all truths as well.
Even I thought I was truly a pathetic guy in Korea.
As I drifted from one part-time job to another, there were times when a terrible self-loathing and regret would suddenly arise.
From my perspective, this path was the best I could do, but others wouldn't necessarily see my best choice favorably.
To be treated with respect, I should have retaken the college entrance exam and gone to a good university.
And got a decent job.
Then I might have been able to date a woman.
But given my circumstances at the time, I simply couldn't afford to study again.
No.
That's all just an excuse.
Someone in similar circumstances to mine would have worked even harder, to the point of death, and achieved good results.
How could I deny it?
It was a disaster caused by my own lack of effort.
I really am.
I feel like I'm an incomplete person.
I was a mediocre idiot in Korea too, and even after coming to this Otherworld, I don't feel like I've ever truly accomplished anything with my own strength.
I'm truly pathetic.
Even I thought I was a truly unattractive man.
If Asmodeus hadn't been in my soul.
And if I couldn't use Eroge Skills, I probably wouldn't have had a chance to meet a woman.
I haven't achieved a single thing with my own strength.
Everything was just a combination of coincidence and luck.
I...
I'm truly incompetent.
Why am I living?
I feel like a human not worth living.
I just want to be at peace.
Wouldn't it be okay if I just died like this?
I don't want to live anymore.
No more...
“<F1>You son of a bitch</F1>!!!!!!!!!”
With a sharp shout, something violently struck the hands that were gripping my body.
With a terrible scream, the amorphous Monster's hands, which had almost entirely covered my body, fell away.
Only then, with my mind clear, I looked to see who had saved me...
“This isn't the time for this! You bastard! If you die, I die too! Let's run! Come on! Get on my back!!”
What is this pathetic-looking foal?
Except for the horn sticking out from its forehead, it had no other impressive features; a truly ugly foal was offering its back to me.
The amorphous Monster began to <F1>roar</F1> and charge at me again.
Reflexively, I climbed onto the foal's back.
Compared to a horse one would normally imagine, its size was quite small; its back was full even with just me on it.
“You're <F1>fucking</F1> heavy, goddammit!! I'm running! Hold onto my mane tightly!!”
The foal began to run.
No matter what, it was still a four-legged beast, so its running speed was naturally different from a human's.
Although I was grateful, the sight of the small, pathetic-looking horse panting and desperately running turned into a cute and comical scene rather than a majestic escape.
“You...Kon?”
“You figured it out quickly! Yes!! I'm the Unicorn from your Necklace!!”
I pressed my body close, almost burying my face in Kon's neck.
It was a bit perplexing.
Why did this guy save me?
Our relationship wasn't bad, but we weren't close enough for him to save me from that Monster, were we?
“Why did you save me?”
“I don't know the principle, but your past is the issue!! You weren't the only one who could see it! I could see it too!”
Kon shouted that as he ran frantically.
“I've truly never seen such a kind, idiotic guy like you!! I was really <F1>fucking</F1> scared, and I was just going to hide quietly, not save you or anything like that... But if I saw a past like that, how could I not save you!! You're a Saint! You're the kindest human I've ever seen!!”
At his words, I was a little dumbfounded.
I, kind?
Me, a Saint?
You mean Kon was so moved by that, so he saved me?
Just like other humans, I made many mistakes and often wavered between good and evil.
Honestly, I've done quite a few bad things too.
No matter how I think about it, I'm not on the level of Jesus or Buddha.
“I'm not a Saint. And I'm not that kind of guy. Still...thanks, Kon.”
“<F1>Bullshit</F1>!! If you're not a Saint, then what am I...Aaaaargh!!”
The escape didn't last long.
Kon screamed and crashed into the Floor, and I too was violently slammed into the Floor.
The amorphous Monster, contrary to its appearance, was incredibly fast.
“S-save me! Amael!! Please save me!!”
The amorphous Monster instantly swallowed Kon, without giving me a chance to do anything.
Dozens of arms seemed to cover Kon's body and then completely devoured him.
“Kon!!”
I urgently got up and ran towards the amorphous Monster.
I tried to use my skills, but naturally, none of them worked.
I looked at the Monster.
It looked truly sickening.
I felt an instinctive revulsion and fear.
I didn't want to approach it.
I just wanted to run away like this.
But I desperately suppressed those feelings and thoughts, and ran and ran.
Kon saved me.
Kon must have been just as scared.
Yet, that idiot saved me for the sole reason that I was kind.
So it's only right that I save him too.
“Give me Kon back!”
I firmly grabbed Kon's foreleg, which was sticking out of the amorphous Monster's body.
And just as I was about to start pulling like crazy.
Kon's negative emotions and memories began to transfer to me as well.
***
“What is this pathetic runt? This isn't my son.”
Kon was unusually small from birth.
Even when Unicorns were officially considered adults at around five years old, Kon maintained the physique of a foal.
The Unicorn who appeared to be Kon's father scorned him and left him.
Other Unicorns showed a similar attitude towards Kon.
The Mare who gave birth to Kon was the only one who supported him, but she was a normal Mare, not a Unicorn.
From Kon's perspective, she didn't live long and died.
After that, Kon was always alone.
Because his natural horn was small, his Psychic Power was also inferior compared to other Unicorns; because of that, he couldn't integrate into Unicorn society and always had to wander outside.
He was what you'd call an outcast.
Breeding season came for Kon too, but the Mares rejected him just the same.
To the Mares, Kon was nothing more than a small, pathetic Male.
A Unicorn Female was born from a certain Mare on a winter day when Kon was being heavily ostracized.
In Unicorn society, where the gender ratio was extremely skewed towards males, the birth of a female seemed to be a rather big deal.
Who would be the first mating partner for the virgin Unicorn Female?
It was no exaggeration to say it was the common interest of all Unicorn Males.
And Kon seemed to have fallen in love with that Unicorn Female at first sight.
Kon, who always listlessly grazed in the fields, found a cave and then began to train like crazy.
He desperately racked his brain, researching how to use Psychic Power in all sorts of ways.
Because his Psychic Power itself was weak, he continued to train towards increasing the precision of his control.
That was why Kon could precisely assist my skills.
After more than two years, Kon, who had literally trained himself to death, finally returned to the World as a completely different Unicorn.
On the day the Unicorn Female became an adult and experienced her first estrus.
Numerous Unicorn Males approached the Unicorn Female.
“Mate with me. My seed will be far superior.”
“While you're pregnant and giving birth, I can protect you.”
Amidst the shower of countless courtships, Kon appeared.
Naturally, the Unicorn Males didn't even see Kon as a rival and laughed at him but...
They were all defeated by Kon's superb Psychic Control and had to flee pathetically, utterly crushed.
Because he had fought with dozens of Males, Kon, whose entire body was covered in blood, limped towards the Unicorn Female.
“I, I've <F1>fucked</F1> all the mares around here!!”
Kon began to stutter and lie.
“I, I'm a <F1>fucking</F1> amazing Male!! I only <F1>fucked</F1> each Mare once! And I succeeded in getting them all pregnant!! So, so mate with me!! If you mate with me, you too will succeed!!...”
Seeing Kon stuttering and desperately exaggerating himself, the Unicorn Female smiled shyly.
“Cute. And that was quite cool just now. What's your name?”
A smile formed on Kon's lips.
He desperately acted like a wild and cool alpha male and said his name.
“I'm <F1>Little Horn</F1> of the Northern Hills...”
Just as Kon and the Unicorn Female were about to form a bond, they were emitting a pink aura.
“Aaaaargh!! Save me!! Save me!! Amael!!”
With truly terrible timing, I managed to pull Kon out of the Monster's grasp.
Kon's past was no longer shown to me.
Wow!
So this is where the <F1>cut-off technique</F1> is performed!
After hastily helping the struggling Kon to his feet, I climbed onto Kon's back.
Kon tried to escape with me on his back once more, but the Monster was a step faster.
[Give up! Jericho Amael!! Give up and come over to us!!]
An eerie and twisted voice, echoing through the entire Mental World, reached Kon's and my ears.
The amorphous Monster's hands simultaneously seized Kon and me.
Kon whimpered and screamed.
“I, I don't want to die like this!! I haven't even mated yet. I don't want to die!!”
At Kon's desperate cry, I let out a hollow laugh even in this moment.
“Kon, Were you a virgin?”
He said he'd <F1>fucked</F1> ten mares simultaneously in a day.
And that a true Male only <F1>fucks</F1> once and then stops, or whatever.
It had all been made up.
Kon couldn't answer my absurd words.
Kon's body was instantly devoured by the Monster.
And the same happened to me.
Terrible memories and negative emotions began to flood in, threatening to shatter my mind.
I struggled and desperately writhed my body to escape, but fleeing was impossible.
Right.
This must be the end.
I want to go back to Korea quickly.
Asmodeus, Saint, whatever...
It's too heavy a story for me.
What would happen if I went back to Korea?
My body would have already burned away, so would I be reincarnated as someone else?
If I'm going to be born, please let me be reborn as the youngest son of a chaebol family.
With such trivial thoughts, my mind completely sank beneath the surface.
I lost consciousness.
And my last memory before losing consciousness was two screams heard simultaneously.
[Amael!]
Asmodeus's voice.
And.
“Let go of him!!”
It was Kanya's voice, echoing through the entire Mental World.