Chapter 1004 – Blinded by Each Other’s Light

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With a clattering sound, a large bowl was lowered to the floor by Leona’s hand, who was sitting in front of her pot.

＂Ah~! Well done! I never thought it would be so convenient to come home and have food~!”

Leona makes a truly happy voice and looks the happiest in the world.

To Leona’s face, Seth stood up from her seat to pick up the dish she had put down, even as she smiled bitterly.

“I’m glad it tasted good. I think I’m slowly getting used to the cuisine here.”

＂At first, the seasoning was barely there or the meat wasn’t cooked all the way through… To achieve this level in just 2 and a half months, I can’t help but say I’m talented.＂

When Leona said that, Seth just smiled ‘huhu’.

It was an obvious compliment, but it didn’t make me feel bad.

And as Leona said, Seth was perfectly accustomed to life here – in the village where the dark horse clan lived.

I think it was the first week or so that I looked down on them as barbarians or looked down on them in some way.

In order to survive in this harsh environment of the village, it was necessary to make the survival skills they had learned, one by one, into the rules of the village, even if they did not like them, into their own.

Things like how to process demonic beast meat or how to make clothes.

So why did Seth need to go to such lengths to survive?

Her death doesn’t mean much to her.

Even if his internal organs swelled and burst, and he died, Seth’s soul would have been able to return to where Adam was once he died.

However, it was only talking about a time when death occurred under normal circumstances.

The powerful magical fog spreading across the mountain naturally formed a barrier on the mountain.

Inside the barrier that blocked both incoming and outgoing people, the inside and the outside became a disconnected space.

If Seth were to meet her death in that realm, also known as the sublime realm, her soul would not be returned to Adam, which could be said to be her original place, but would be absorbed into her spirit vein.

In other words, Seth, who realized that he could not be resurrected, had no choice but to do his best to avoid losing his life in this village.

For the first time in his life, Seth faced the fear of death and said, “I can’t die.”

As a result, even though she had always acted in a way that was close to imitating humans, she had no choice but to become serious here.

Even the power of command over humans, which could only be used once, had to be used carefully, so it was saved as much as possible, and only by being visible to the villagers as much as possible could one learn this or that.

And it was only for the first few days that even the villagers were wary of being outsiders.

Thanks to the fact that he was protected by Leona, who was also the best hunter in the village, everyone except the elders and gatekeepers viewed Seth quite favorably.

Especially in the case of children younger than Leona, she was able to build their favor simply by playing them the songs she had learned to disguise herself as a bard.

Even if they were the type of people she hated the most, the barbaric dark demon clan, if she truly interacted with them for the sake of her survival, she would have easily learned that they were not the type of people she thought they were. 〉

As her cohabitation with Leona continued, her grumpy attitude gradually became softer.

Leona told Seth that she was ‘a person like the sun’, but that was only based on her appearance.

Rather, Seth, who was a colder person than Leona, was able to open his heart little by little to the warmth Leona showed him.

How is it that she, a member of the dark demon family and with her past life personality, can be such a warm person?

Could it be that you are deceiving yourself with some method or intention?

She thought that for a moment, but since Seth was able to read the human soul and know their inner thoughts, it was easy to see that what she had was 100% pure kindness.

Seth, who was confident in his own abilities, had no choice but to trust the results.

‘Perhaps. The Black Demon’s clan may also be a race capable of rehabilitation.’

Because the thoughts instilled in her by Adam had not yet been completely removed, the disdainful attitude from above had not fundamentally changed, but as she thought so, she felt that there was a possibility for the Black Demon’s clan to live peacefully on this continent.

If that happens… She herself won’t have to keep finding and exterminating the Dark Demon’s clan under Adam’s orders.

For the first time, Seth, who had the experience of living among people as a human ‘Seth’ rather than as Adam’s terminal, came to think that such a life would not be bad.

＂The blanket is warm.＂

As Seth said that, he lightly tapped the empty seat next to him with his hand.

After briefly washing the dishes, the two sat down next to the bonfire.

In the past, they would pack a blanket as much as possible to Seth and sit across from each other across a bonfire, but the distance between them physically became as close as the distance between their hearts.

Now, they were right next to each other, leaning on each other’s shoulders, looking at the bonfire from a distance that made them feel each other’s breathing.

For the past month or so, it has become my routine to stay close to each other like this before going to sleep after finishing all my daily tasks and then falling down on the blanket and falling asleep naturally.

Well, when it’s this cold, sitting close to each other rather than sitting apart helps you maintain body temperature because you can share each other’s body temperature.

However – even so, it was true that it was quite close.

When moving your hands on the cold floor, there were times when your hands naturally overlapped.

Seth was brought to live here as Leona’s bride, but she already said on the first day that she would not be Leona’s bride.

So, is this relationship better called ‘friends’?

Well, neither Leona nor Seth had ever had a proper friend, so talking about what friendship was a difficult topic.

Still, when you’re next to them, you feel safe, and when you’re not with them, you wonder if they’re safe and well.

People who can get a little bit of vitality to live from each other’s presence.

Seth was becoming that kind of person to Leona, and Leona was slowly becoming that kind of person to Seth.

It was the first family that Leona, who had no family since birth, and Seth, who was created because of Adam, were able to have.

The two people were looking at the burning firewood, feeling the presence of the family they had for the first time in silence.

It was Leona who opened her mouth first.

“There are about two weeks left. Like last year, the magical fog will clear in about two weeks.”

＂Yes.＂

At Leona’s words, Seth nodded her head.

Even I was leaking the date.

＂Are you leaving too?＂

“Yes. Because I have work to do.”

Seth nodded once again in response to Leona’s question.

Because he somehow had a place to leave and return to.

Perhaps Adam is thinking that something may have happened to him because his report disappeared.

If that happens, he may send another terminal to find him based on his last recorded location, and in the process, he may even try to destroy the village of this Black Demon’s clan.

‘That’s not possible.’

Thinking about that possibility, Seth quietly shook his head.

Maybe we can make the black devil’s clan live under Adam’s order.

Even if we tried to destroy them, the surviving members of the Black Demon clan would reappear somewhere on the continent and turn into another threat.

We must harmonize and accept it.

Seth thought that rejecting and destroying them was not the only way to stop them.

＂Okay… Then. I should follow too.”

When Leona, who had been quiet for a moment after hearing Seth say that she was leaving, answered, Seth quietly blinked her eyes and then looked back at her as if she was a little surprised.

“To…? But…”

There was a reason why Seth spoke less.

That is, as Leona said when she first came to this village two and a half months ago, she must be recognized as an adult in order to leave the village.

And, in order to become an adult, you must find a companion – that is, a partner – and become a couple.

Seth refused to become her husband, and Leona accepted it.

That’s why she was still not treated as an adult in this village.

Even though she turned 20 this year, she is well past the continent’s designated adult age.

“It can’t be helped. The only way is to sneak out.”

＂…＂

“I won’t let you go alone. Even if you don’t become my bride, as a friend.”

Leona said.

Seth also knew why Leona said that.

Seth was talking to Leona.

A world may come where the dark demon clan no longer has to live hidden in the mountains.

He didn’t mention anything about Adam or the terminal… But he also said that his remarks might hurt Adam’s feelings, so it might be quite dangerous.

It was a remark intended to make Leona not have too many expectations, but she seemed to have taken it a little differently, and had said that she would protect him.

However, it is strictly forbidden for the Black Demon’s clan to leave the mountain without becoming an adult.

If you do something like that, you will never be able to return to the mountain or village again.

No, it’s not just that.

When I heard the story, the ritual of tying the knot in this village had quite a bit of magic involved, as befits the clan of the black devil.

Two people entering into a marital relationship enter a cave near the village and perform a marital ritual.

In that ritual, their bodies were mixed, and an oath was engraved on each other.

Although it is not as good as the ‘imprint of domination’ used by the clan of dark demons with the reincarnation factor, it is an imprint that has considerable coercive power.

In order to prevent us from betraying each other in the future and to strongly bind our fates.

As a clan of dark horses with only a small number left, it’s probably natural.

Just saying “I will become a couple” With a simple and light heart means that they will not treat you as a couple.

In addition to never being able to return to the village again, they say you will be cursed if you leave the mountain…

It was difficult for Seth to even imagine what kind of curse this could be.

So, every time a story like this came up, Seth would talk about it.

“I’m fine, so please wait here. If the matter is completed safely, I will be able to travel around the continent as I wish without having to get married. No matter how bad you are with your elders, there’s no need to have a bad breakup, right? Because of me.”

“If Seth says so, maybe so…”

Leona looked a little gloomy as she said that.

Seth knew the cause of her expression.

“Did I have a nightmare again?”

“Huh. It’s the same this time too. A dream of someone cutting off your head in the dark… I could only look at it helplessly.”

After about a month of staying with her, Leona told me that she sometimes had dreams like that.

As it is a dream dreamed by a member of the dark horse family, it may mean something to her, but Seth is not too worried.

Because death doesn’t mean that much to me.

The fog will clear soon, and when that happens, it doesn’t matter if you lose your life.

So, don’t worry, Seth held Leona’s hand as if covering it from above.

“I’m fine. Because I won’t die.”

Although her reassurance seemed a little off, Leona tried to hold his hand firmly in response to Seth’s words.

And, as if the timing was right, the two fell backwards onto the blanket and looked at each other for a moment.

“Good night. Seth.”

“Yes, Leona. You too.”

Then, we exchanged greetings as usual and closed our eyes.

We feel each other close, and our joined hands do not loosen.

But-

No matter how close the distance becomes physically or emotionally.

The two still didn’t know much about each other.

What each person thinks is also fundamentally different.

As if he was afraid that the gears of this warm daily life that he had barely obtained would become out of sync, and was deliberately ignoring him.

So, even though the relationship is twisted in the eyes of others, you yourself do not notice it.

The loneliness we had was blurring our vision.

＂…＂

They didn’t even notice the disturbing shadows wandering around them.