I Can Hear the Saint’s Inner Thoughts

84: The Harmless Mage (3)

The rules of the Forsaken Hollow were originally simple.

Participants in the arena were considered defeated when they could no longer move, or when their existence itself was extinguished, fighting until only one person remained.

However,

“…Impressive. Your magic is truly something.”

Even though the victor has been decided, there’s still one last fight remaining. I could see the jet-black knight riding towards me on horseback, the one who had defeated all the others.

One of the Four Heavenly Kings of the Demon Lord’s army,

The Death Knight, said to be immortal,

And the first hero, the very fiend who brutally murdered my parents.

“I still think it was wise to spare you. Don’t you agree?”

“You really talk a load of shit.”

Durahan adjusted his helmet again in front of me, preparing for the battle to come.

With the motion of gripping his sword and shield, stained with indelible blood, a blue, flame-like light flickered from within his visor.

“If I had killed you that day, according to the Demon Lord’s orders, I would not have witnessed this spectacle. Look, so many beings have gathered and are shouting, just to see us fight.”

Durahan tilted his head and looked around, his voice cold and murky, like a blade held to my throat.

Just as he said, I could see the scene of countless demons and monsters gathering their voices, anticipating our mutual death and destruction.

The insane b*stards regarded even a life-or-death struggle as mere entertainment. Looking at those beings with values and thoughts so different from ordinary humans, I almost threw up.

I couldn’t understand why this was such a spectacle.

Did his brains get eaten by maggots after becoming a Death Knight?

“…I was relieved to see you were just the same kind of human as me, in the end. A normal human who could stab and kill someone precious just to survive.”

Seeing the Durahan chuckle, probably thinking I was the one who killed Glactar, I fought tooth and nail to suppress the sneer rising in my chest.

‘He’s still alive, you idiot,’ I wanted to say, but I was afraid that any words would ruin the opportunity I’d barely snatched, so I just scrunched my face up, making my displeasure clear.

“Glactar sacrificed himself to kill you. Unlike someone who begged the Demon King to save their own skin.”

“…How utterly foolish. When you actually meet the Demon King, you’ll realize your life is worth less than a mayfly.”

“Oh, is that so? If I were you, I’d have bitten my tongue and kicked the bucket right there. Using self-destruct magic, of course. I wouldn’t die alone out of spite.”

Honestly, I didn’t have that much attachment to life.

Ever since I was a kid, I’d been called a crazy b*stard for doing anything to save others.

“Just talk. Did you not get proper education from your parents?”

“Thanks to you, you fucking piece of shit.”

The Durahan showed a flicker of displeasure, bringing up my parents so casually, even though *he* was the one who brutally murdered them.

It was hard to believe he was once the First Hero, he was such a despicable and vicious b*stard. No wonder the heavenly Lumina wasn’t thrilled about Victoria and me being together.

“…Draw your weapon, boy. This will be your last fight, the end of your long journey.”

“My only weapon is my fist, you see.”

I re-tightened the bandages wrapped around my hands, saying that. A subtle fragrance tickled my nose, but I decided to ignore it.

This was just one of Victoria’s tricks to get my attention.

If I killed the Durahan and succeeded in my revenge, I might be able to finally drop the burden that had been weighing on me.

If that happened, maybe I could finally tell Victoria how I truly feel.

“You dare fight me, a Weapon Master who can wield every weapon in the world, with only your fists?”

“Yeah, it feels like it’ll vent my frustration a little better this way.”

I smiled, seeing my comrades cheering me on from afar.

* * *

Hero Kyle watched the fight between Durahan and Astal with unease. He couldn’t stop his hands from trembling, so he kept drumming his fingers on the armrest of his chair.

The reason was that he recognized the sword Durahan was wielding as the Holy Sword bestowed by the chief god, Odin.

“…Astal has almost no chance of winning this match.”

Kyle voiced a pessimistic conclusion for the first time.

Originally, a Holy Sword was a weapon imbued with the energy of exorcism, to cut down evil and tear through darkness, but to be stained so black meant it had committed countless slaughters, its light faded away.

“…Why do you think so?”

Victoria glared at Kyle with colder eyes than ever before.

The fact that the man she loved was fighting the Four Heavenly Kings of the Demon Lord’s army alone was already unsettling, and hearing such ominous words didn’t help.

“For the Holy Sword to turn that jet black, it has to be corrupted to the point of obscuring the grace bestowed by Odin.”

“Does such a trivial fact matter? Lord Astal has achieved victory every single time. He is a hero who survived fighting the endless dream, Bellamora, so surely this time too…”

“We were all together back then. But he’s fighting alone now… I think his opponent is too much.”

Hero Kyle, who used to shout out hope even while crossing the line of death in the demon world, now squeezed his eyes shut, hearing the sobs of countless people contained within the Holy Sword.

As if resonating, his own Holy Sword made of flames trembled, and the voices of the people within it reached him.

– Please, please… Just save my child… Zieg…

– Why, why did you kill the Saintess? Ziegheart, are you crazy…?! You’re…

– Sa, save me… I don’t want to die yet…!!

A fear that made his whole body tremble, enough to stop his breath.

Kyle’s face turned deathly pale in an instant as he heard Durahan, the First Hero’s, real name, and felt what the existence known as the Demon Lord truly was.

He heard the screams and death rattles of the comrades he’d killed, the saintess’s final struggles as she desperately curled up to protect the child in her womb rippled through him.

“He’s the first hero, who killed his comrades to survive. Well, Astal did wipe out all the other participants to get to the finals too….”

Barely suppressing the vomit rising in his throat, he told Victoria the information he’d uncovered.

That the Dullahan’s real name was Ziegkhardt, and that he’d sacrificed his comrades, and even the first saintess’s child, to the Demon King to save himself.

But,

“…Astal-nim is nothing like that trash. He definitely evacuated his orc friend somewhere safe.”

“How do you know that?”

“A woman’s intuition. The man I love is the kindest person in the world.”

Victoria, even after hearing all that, only smiled confidently as she spoke.

Because she felt the scent she’d left on herself to claim Astal as hers vanish for a moment.

He must have instantaneously crossed space to visit the Holy Nation of Aurelium. Otherwise, it would be difficult to erase the dragon’s traces.

Now, Victoria could predict what her beloved was thinking and doing even with her eyes closed.

“Besides, if Astal-nim really dies, I’ll jump down there right away and crush that idiot undead’s helmet.”

Victoria folded her hands to pray to the Celestial God, her lips pouting with frustration at not being able to give Astal decisive help.

– [Daughter, your opponent is Ziegkhardt, the first hero, said to be the strongest hero in history. Are you not worried even with such an opponent?]

“…I don’t care if he’s the first hero, or the first hero’s grandfather. I want to destroy anyone who torments my love.”

Then came the voice of the Celestial God Lumina, but Victoria instead muttered to herself as if it were no problem at all.

A huge hammer was summoned right next to her, and the murderous intent emanating from her expression as she gripped it tightly, suppressing her anger, was immense.

“…….”

“Victoria, you’ve changed….”

“Well, who in their right mind would willingly send their beloved into an arena like this? Lady Victoria’s reaction is perfectly understandable, if anything.”

Watching Victoria, the other colleagues couldn’t help but feel a chilling dread.

They knew she was suppressing the urge to kill Durahan right then and there, all to ensure Astal could avenge his parents.

* * *

“Finally, the last special match of this arena! Our ruler! Our eternal warrior! One of the Demon King’s Four Heavenly Kings─! The Death Knight, Durahan─!”

Hearing the siren’s voice introducing the two of us before the battle began, I clenched my teeth tightly.

Durahan, mounted once again on his black steed, seemed to be contemplating which weapon to attack me with first, as he summoned countless enginered weapons from behind his back.

“And facing him─! The mad mage who climbed his way up by killing every competitor in the arena…!!”

Before the siren could finish speaking, I wove threads of acceleration magic all over my body and burst forward with instantaneous speed.

“Astal, Kaisaros…?!”

Thwack─!

Before Durahan could even react, I slammed my fist right into his face.