Chapter 28
This is, essentially, the story of how my sole vulnerability was exposed during my reign as the Demon Lord, when I wielded unchallenged power and plunged the world into fear. And it was revealed to the one person I least wanted to know, the most troublesome figure in the entire Empire.
“You?”
“Could it be… the Saintess?”
“…I never expected to meet the Demon Lord here. Should I call this the guidance of Aria? Ah! Pardon my manners. I am Lanne Aria, a faithful servant of Aria. It is an honor to meet you, Demon Lord.”
“Ugh, what a damn nuisance.”
Of all things, to lock eyes with a Saintess while secretly hanging laundry at an orphanage… Just recalling it makes me sigh.
“But I’m surprised. You like children?”
“No! I… I don’t like them! This… this is just…”
“There’s no need to be flustered. Just because you’re the Demon Lord doesn’t mean you’re filled with nothing but malice. Good and evil coexist within all humans, though I never expected you, the Demon Lord, to possess such an ‘adorable’ streak of goodness. Hmph.”
“Damn it! You’re an annoying woman.”
During the time when my external activities as the Grand Duke of the Black Magic Tower became more relaxed, I was introduced to an orphanage by the old man.
When I first encountered the children, an inexplicable sense of revulsion surged within me.
Why was that…? The disgust was so overwhelming that I questioned its source, and it wasn’t until later that I understood the true nature of that repulsion.
“It was trauma. Poverty, violence, malice. Those children reminded me of my wretched childhood spent in the slums. That’s why I felt so disgusted.”
“…”
“I think the old man knew. He probably realized that the scars left by my childhood trauma ran deeper than I thought…”
“…”
“From that moment, I started coming here to overcome my trauma… Damn it, why am I even telling you this?”
“Aria teaches us to share both laughter and sorrow. Don’t worry, you can keep talking.”
“Annoying… Hah, damn it.”
“Hmph. How cute. Don’t be shy.”
At that time, I was at the peak of my powers as the Demon Lord, having perfected the Apocalypse.
I was so feared that even children would stop crying at the mere mention of my name.
For someone like me, any hint of weakness was intolerable.
Perfect, unassailable strength was my pride.
Thus, I embarked on a journey to overcome my trauma.
To hunt a dragon, one must enter its lair.
I spent several days at the orphanage instead of in my lab, confronting my trauma head-on.
At first, it was tough. The children who approached me so naturally felt burdensome.
But then, without even realizing it, I began to change.
The children, once annoying, started to seem cute, and the days that I once forced myself to get through began to feel too short.
I kept telling myself that this was merely time spent studying to overcome my trauma.
Every night before bed, I would vow to myself, but before I knew it, there were little ones sleeping beside me.
And the moment I pulled the blanket over the restless children, I saw it.
In the mirror, I was smiling.
Yes. Instead of overcoming my trauma, I found myself genuinely liking these pure-hearted children.
“I found myself smiling at the children. Damn it…”
“Why curse? It’s natural. The best medicine for the wounds left by misfortune is happiness. As the Demon Lord, you must know this, right?”
“…I tried to erase one weakness, only to gain another. Isn’t that worth cursing over?”
“Aria teaches that humans are inherently flawed. Embrace and love your weaknesses. Why do you try to ignore your own kindness?”
“Gah, you’re definitely a Saintess. Love my weaknesses? Don’t be absurd. Weaknesses are shackles.”
“Why do you think of them as shackles? Couldn’t they be a safety pin?”
“Because we’re human. Humans are cunning. If they see a weakness, they’ll exploit it however they can.”
“You really don’t trust humans.”
“Maybe you just live in a garden of flowers.”
The Saintess who loves humans and the Demon Lord who distrusts them.
That was the chasm between us, a gap that could never be bridged.
“I’m aware that you have many enemies. Personally, I wish you would temper your temperament, but that’s unlikely, isn’t it? That’s who you are, after all. Surely you worry that those you refer to as shackles might get hurt in the chaos that inevitably follows your path.”
“…”
“Ah… Demon Lord. Take a moment to reflect. How long do you plan to remain alone? Isn’t it time you learned to love yourself?”
Love myself.
In the end, I couldn’t answer the Saintess’s question.
Not even when I took my last breath in your arms that day.
So, the story took a detour, and suddenly, out of nowhere, love came up, all thanks to these mischievous kids.
“Love?”
Here I am, being cornered by a bunch of kids.
“Yep! Love!”
“Your first love, big brother!!”
“Me! Me! I have someone! I love Mi-hee!!”
“Really?!”
“Hehehe, Hyun-soo likes Mi-hee!”
“You!!”
“Nooo!! Waaahh!!”
“You’re going to fall! Stop running!”
Mi-hee, with her neatly braided hair, ran away crying, and Hyun-soo chased after the kid who teased him.
Is this a children’s love triangle?
This is all so confusing.
But even amidst this chaos, there were still some kids who persistently focused on me.
“Just ignore the little ones. So, what about your first love?”
“Yeah, big brother. Your first love. First looooove!!”
“Waaaah!!”
“Sigh, you’ll hurt your throat. Speak quietly. Are you really that curious about my first love?”
“Yeah!” “Yeah!”
These were kids just entering their teenage years.
“Ha, you little rascals. Do you even know what love is?”
“We know everything we need to know!”
“That’s right! Someone even confessed to me! Yeon-ju has a boyfriend!”
“He’s not my boyfriend! He’s just my seatmate!”
“Hmph, then what’s going on between you two?”
“We’re… we’re just talking? Anyway, big brother! Your first love!”
“Tell uuuus!!”
“…”
Their sparkling eyes are all on me. This is overwhelming. Are they serious…?
They say kids these days mature early, but…
“Ha… Well, okay, okay. Give me a moment to think. First love, huh…”
First love, first love…
Even as I try to recall, no face comes to mind.
The only face I can think of is the Saintess, but you’re not part of this. How did comradery even sneak in here?
This is starting to get unsettling.
Do I really not have one?
Really?
Oh, past self, what kind of life did you lead? I suddenly feel sorry for my past self.
“…I really don’t have one. A first love, that is.”
“What?! Really?”
“No way! You’re lying, big brother!”
“How could someone as handsome as you not have a first love? Right, Yeon-woo?”
“Yeah! You’re taller and better-looking than the guys on TV. How could you not have one?”
“Hmph, I knew it. I told you earlier, didn’t I? Our big brother here has never been in love. There’s no way he could be so oblivious if he had.”
“It’s true… Wow…”
The girls look at me like I’m some rare species in the ecosystem.
Is it really that surprising…? I don’t get it. Even back then, the emotions of girls this age were a mystery to me.
“So… What about your ideal type? What’s your ideal type, big brother?”
“Phew, after first love comes the ideal type, huh? Why are you so curious about that?”
“Oh, don’t be so dense! Mi-yeon has a crush on you…”
“Shut up! Quiet!”
“Ki-ki, I like Chang-min from V4! Ahh! I just said it!”
“You! I told you Chang-min is mine!”
The girls are now stamping their feet, each declaring their favorite idol.
I can’t do this anymore. I’d rather solo a raid than let these little devils mess with my sanity.
Time to change the subject.
Boys, where are the boys? Surely, I can have a reasonable conversation with some other guys.
“What are you boys up to?”
“Huh? Big brother? We’re building mini-cars.”
“I’m building a Lego castle. Hehe.”
“Who wants to play tag? Gather here!”
“Waaahhh!”
But as they say, there is no paradise in escape.
From there, I was roped into an endless game of tag where the chaser changed every blink, which naturally led to a game of hide-and-seek, and by the time I came to my senses, I found myself as the goalkeeper in a chaotic game of soccer with no clear goals.
This was the result of underestimating the children’s inexhaustible energy.
Finally, as evening fell, I was able to break free from the kids.
Crunch, crunch—
“Hah, I feel alive now that I’ve had some coffee. That was exhausting. I thought it’d be easy just playing with the kids, but no, it’s more tiring than hunting.”
“At that age, kids are naturally exhausting. In Korean, we say ‘they drain your energy.’”
“Drain your energy? Like a mana drain? That’s accurate. I feel like my mana’s completely depleted.”
Pour, pour, pour—
“But Junu, wasn’t it surprising? The way the kids clung to Ki-hyuk today. I never imagined Ki-hyuk would be so good with kids.”
“I agree.”
Crunch, crunch—
“Even the director praised him, saying it’s been a long time since someone got along with the kids so well…”
Pour, pour, pour—
“Hah… Seriously, Ki-hyuk, could you eat a bit more politely? It’s been distracting since earlier! And just how many cups have you had? And how much ice are you going to chew? Doesn’t it hurt your teeth?”
“I’m fine.”
Crunch!
That was my seventh cup. After finishing off the ice from yet another iced Americano, I finally spoke.
“Hah, now I feel a bit more normal.”
It’s refreshing.
I can feel the caffeine filling my veins. It’s fantastic.
“You sure played well.”
“That’s right. Ki-hyuk, you really liked playing with the kids, didn’t you?”
“I like them, sure. But liking them and being tired are two different things, aren’t they?”
Elegantly wiping my mouth, I stacked the remains of my cups neatly to the side.
“Still, today was fairly easy. All we had to do was play with the kids and do some light chores. If we were somewhere else, it would’ve been much tougher.”
“Agreed. It was much better than expected. It was nice and bright.”
“My mother took special care to arrange this.”
“That was thoughtful of her.”
“Hey, guys. Include me in the conversation. I have no idea what you’re talking about.”
Meri frowned in genuine confusion.
I suppose our princess has never had to go through something like this.
“Didn’t you notice? All those kids are orphans. Every one of them has been through something, yet they’re so bright. Does that seem normal to you?”
“Oh… That’s what you meant.”
“It’s because of this.”
Junu rubbed his thumb and index finger together.
“Money? Cash? Are you talking about money?”
“Exactly.”
There’s an old saying that a generous heart comes from a full storehouse.
While money isn’t everything, it’s undeniable that most of the issues we face in life can be solved with money.
“That’s right. Now that I think about it, the kids’ clothes were nice, and their sleeping arrangements and meals were great.”
“It’s an orphanage sponsored by Optimum. Most places aren’t like that. They’re much more deprived.”
“Wow, Junu. You seem to know a lot about this?”
“I’ve lived it.”
“…!!”
Meri froze. Her pupils trembled violently.
She’s surprisingly sensitive. Meri looked at Junu with trembling eyes, then, seemingly realizing it wouldn’t work, turned her gaze toward me, pleading for help.
Roughly translated, she was asking:
‘What’s going on? What does this mean? Did you know, Ki-hyuk?’
Having vaguely heard about the ‘Busan Tragedy’ from my mother, I gave her a bitter smile and shrugged.
“S-Sorry, Junu. I didn’t mean to be insensitive.”
“It’s fine. Don’t worry about it.”
Though he said not to worry, the shadow on Junu’s face made it impossible not to.
“…”
“…”
“…”
The atmosphere plummeted.
This won’t do. We need to get to the point.
Clap!
“Alright, we’re all tired, so let’s wrap this up quickly and head out.”
“Yeah! The schedule! I’ve been curious about it.”
“So, what’s happening? Is the final exam going to proceed as usual?”
“It’s not finalized yet, but it seems it’s going to be a bit more complicated than expected.”
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