276 So, good night.

The world has taken everything from me. All of it, without hesitation, without mercy.

I first learned of its cruelty when I was looking up at a clear, cloudless sky.

I was on my way to a neighboring village to take care of a friend who had fallen ill, when I was struck by a landslide. More than half of my body was crushed by the rocks, and even the pain was numbing, but the sky I looked up at seemed clearer than ever.

--Oh, I'm going to die. I don't want to die.

I don't want to die. When my body has accepted death, I can't even afford to feel fear of death. That's why I could only think such simple thoughts. The fact that my consciousness was blurred was probably due to the tears shed by a soul that did not want to accept death.

If that had been the end, then perhaps my life would have been just a little unhappy and I could have accepted it. But the world would not allow it.

I woke up. I was startled by a consciousness that was not supposed to awaken, and when I saw the body, I did not know what had happened to me.

The body was my friend's body. I was in the body of my friend, who had learned of the landslide and had risked everything to come and find me.

The feeling of an unknown body, the nausea at the cost of having my soul forcibly ripped from my original body, washed over me, and I became aware that it was by my own power.

I began to live as a friend, and made an effort to learn about my own talents. This body belonged to my friend, and even if I had to return it, my body was already irretrievably damaged. So I was desperate to at least find a way to move to another body.

I was fortunate to have an unusual understanding of this gift. Although self-taught, it did not take me long to learn how to manipulate my own soul.

Not long after he had acquired the knowledge, he found a body that had been killed by a rogue. It was a clean body, killed with a single thrust, and the conditions could not have been more favorable. I tried to move to the body and succeeded.

At that time I was more happy that my friend was awake than that I succeeded in transferring the body. My friend was confused, but when I told him what had happened, he laughed and was happy.

"Good. I thought you were dead because of me. I'd rather lend you my body than live with your death on my shoulders.

I thanked my friend and he thanked me. It would be difficult to return to my normal life, but now I could live with my friend again. That alone was enough for me.

But the world would not allow it. What I had regained, it had taken away again.

The dead cannot come back to life. You have violated the world's ban.

My friend and I told the people of the village what had happened. But all they had was a bigoted heart trapped in the past.

The dead come back to life. It's the very anecdote of reanimation magic that the world abhors. The way they looked at me was not the way people looked at me.

I was captured, tortured, executed. When I experienced death for the second time, I was stunned by the look of disgust. How could I be treated so inhumanly when I had just returned from accepting death for the first time?

Some of the gazes were those of her blood parents. I suppose I should be grateful that I understood that there are things more valuable than blood ties.

After I was killed, I was transferred back into my friend's body. I had acquired the means to move to a specific body while I was studying to return the body to my friend.

Because I told him what happened, I had to go through the trouble of keeping up with the villagers' nastiness until just before I died, but now I don't have to feel guilty when I attack them.

"You shouldn't be in this village anymore. So I'll leave with you.

That's what my friend said to me when he turned his body again. I agreed that I shouldn't stay in this village, but I didn't want to involve my friend. Even my family had given up on me, but my friend was the only one who believed in me.

I guess he only understood my situation correctly because he took my friend's body first. But that fact was the only thing that saved me.

But my friend had deluded himself into thinking there was power in that fact. Once I understood, others would understand me. All I need is time and opportunity.

The day before he left the village, he told his family about the situation. As a result, my friend was abandoned by his family and subjected to the same private punishment by the villagers as I was.

I feared for my friend who did not show up for the meeting, and by the time I found him, he was already dead. As a fool who had been misled by a forbidden sinner, I did not want to add to the danger.

My life was taken from me, my place was taken from me, and in the end, my beloved friend was taken from me. After all this, I finally understood.

--This world is going to take everything from me. That's why I have to take it back.

I could take the bodies of others, so killing all the villagers was no small feat. All I had to do was take a few bodies, kill a few people at random in my name, and they would start killing each other themselves. I looked down and laughed as the last villagers killed each other, wondering if these people had taken everything from me.

I repaired my friend's body and took on a false name to remember my feelings for him. I wanted to at least keep my promise to leave the village with him.

I'm sure this world will continue to steal from me. Then I'll keep taking it back. I'll hold the power and the art to do so in my hands.

"Ah...

Why does this memory come back to me? What's the point of remembering all this now? I can't feel my body or even recognize the shape of my soul.

No, I suppose it's natural that I can't recognize it. Because my soul has been completely shattered.

As a result of becoming a demon king, his soul, which had been worn out by extensive use of possession techniques, had been completely restored. No matter what I do, it will be completely restored. That's why I even dared to crush the soul and forcibly restore it.

The results were all recreated at the same time, and there was no restoration. It is too late, and there is nothing left but the result. And yet, the reason why the ego remains to think like this is because the pieces of the soul are still there even after the collapse.

It seems that you overestimated the power of the resurrection spell and overreacted.

I can hear his voice and vaguely recognize his figure, even though my sight and hearing are already failing. Oh, I'm pretty sure this guy is ...... right, the enemy. He's my enemy, the one who comes after me and tries to take everything from me.

I ...... am only ...... to take back ...... and be ....... ...... to .......

I understand that's your underlying intention. But the world that took everything from you and the world that we live in are two different things. From our point of view, you're just trying to steal from us. It's only natural to protect it from being taken.

The world is one. This world I'm in is all there is, and this world keeps taking everything from me. So I have to keep taking back from this world. It's the only way for me to stay in this place.

I'm not going to deny what you've done. I'm not going to deny what you've done, because maybe if I were in a similar position, I would have ended up in a similar situation.

This man understands me. He can't deny what I've done. Then why is this man my enemy and why is he creating this outcome.

You can't go wrong. To live in the world is to be continually robbed by the world. You're smart enough to come to that conclusion and practice it. But I don't want to live smart. I want to live a safe life. I told you that before.

--That's the reason. But it was surprisingly easy to understand. This man and I have a different way of life, that's all.

"One ...... and two ...... and three .......

"I understand you, and I understand your last words. You don't have to say anything anymore, just go easy on yourself.

I guess he's right. Thank you, ....... No, this man stole my last breath. He must be my enemy, then I don't care anymore. It's a complete waste of time to devote my attention to this man.

Now that everything is over, what should I think about? I already know that.

"...... lar...... soon...... see......

I had long forgotten my own face, but I had looked at his face every day until recently. I've been looking at his face every day until recently.

I'm sorry.

As I watched him crumble and dissipate into dust, I felt relieved that this battle was over.

There are many people who wish for the villain's end to be a miserable one. However, even if you want to give them that horrible end yourself, it's difficult to put it into action.

To be honest, I am also in a position where I shudder to think if the past were to be settled correctly. I don't want to stab someone in the back while inciting them to say that they deserve it or that they deserve retribution, because it might come back to me someday.

Is Lahite ...... dead?

That's pretty much how I pictured it. Just before he became the Demon Lord, Rahite's soul was under a great deal of strain. It seems that after he became the Demon Lord, he ignored that burden and took even more reckless measures. When the resurrection magic lost its effect, the amount of it came pouring down at once.

When he said Raheit's real name, it didn't feel right. I was more upset when he called me Rahlheit's name than when he called me his own at the end. I guess it's because the life he lived under his friend's name has a stronger influence on his personality than the life he lived under his real name.

I see. ....... What's the approximation?

I'm sure you've heard of it. Normally, you'd think she'd collapse and die before she could speak.

I don't know anything about reanimation magic or the nature of the soul, but Rahite had enough energy left in his last moments to think. I chose to make sense of it and let Rahite be free.

As a result, he passed away while remembering the only thing he had clung to in the past: .......

"That's a pretty good end for a villain, isn't it?

As a scoundrel, I envy you.

If there is a hell, I'm sure you'll be blown away by the torment, but let's not think too much about that. I can't do anything bad if I'm thinking about going to hell.

I let out a deep breath and sit down on the ground. You've lost more blood, though not a lethal amount, than when you donated. You feel tired and dizzy from the anemia.

"Shishou, are you okay?

"I'm fine. I just want to lie down. I want to cozy up for three days without speaking a word.

You look fine.

I'll take good care of you!

I'll have the bandages re-wrapped and return to the surface. If it were possible, I'd like to just drop into a coma and go to sleep at this stage, but I also have to take care of Morari and the others in case they fail to persuade Ritual, or if any of the other bastards actually want to take a chance.

Thank you for everything, Ao.

All right, all right. It's like you're talking to a dead person, so get some rest.

I'll leave it to Ao, who seems to be the most energetic, to take care of things from now on and get into the carriage. There, Wulfe had already prepared a simple bed for me with blankets and other things.

I'm ready to take care of you!

Perfect. It just takes up too much space, doesn't it?

No problem! Wolfe is tired, so he'll sleep next to you!

That's a bit more perfect.

He guessed the middle, but I moved to the edge and lay on my back. Let's not think about the future now, let's just be happy that we're done with Raheit.

Not everyone was safe, but it was the best possible outcome. After we wake up, we should praise and thank everyone, but for now, let's praise ourselves. Good job, good job, "I". What do you want for your reward? What, you want a day off? Salt wings and booze? You're a greedy little bastard.

You still got a lot on your mind, don't you?

I'm not thinking, I'm ...... about to throw it all away, whatever it is.

It's embarrassing to imagine yourself admiring yourself while people are looking at you. My mental state has been greatly relieved by my delusions of grandeur, and I can sleep comfortably.

"Good job. Good job.

See ya.

In my fading consciousness, the last thing that remained was the touch of Ilias's hand stroking my head.