I Have Become The Heroes’ Rival

Chapter 45

Translator: Kay

–Think carefully, sorcerer.

The devil did not give up and muttered.

–Don’t you feel wronged? Do you know what magic is in the arrow? Before you pushed me away, you were constantly being brainwashed.

‘Destroy everything you love. Kill everything you’ve ever wanted to protect with your own hands.’

It included Irene, of course, as well as his family.

Everyone must be worried. Felix didn’t expect it to take this long.

Like the calm before the storm, today was a monotonous and peaceful day that was no different from usual.

Felix recalled what happened in the morning before his daily life totally shattered.

Their approach was just as Irene had told him.

They lured Felix to this place by using a young, inexperienced, and timid sorcerer from the Ministry of Magic. They made use of his innate kindness, consideration, and altruistic behavior.o

Of course, they knew that with his ability, he could easily resist and run away.

Being well aware of that, Benjamin directed the tense stand-off to the young sorcerer.

The sharp arrowhead was aimed precisely at the boy’s forehead.

“If it’s a monster about the size of a ball after the power is accepted and it becomes trapped in the body, it’ll all be over. However, do you know what will happen if his mind is eaten by the power of the devil?”

The power of the devil would penetrate the boy’s unsettled mind, then penetrate his body and dye the world with darkness.

Without a doubt, Felix would have been swayed by Benjamin’s words if he hadn’t known about this in advance through Irene’s prophecy.

If he stood at a crossroad where he had to choose between: the end of the Chamberlains, the resurrection of the devil, and the beginning of nightmares, the result was clear.

Everything might have proceeded as they wanted.

Felix faced the tears of a young sorcerer who had not yet bloomed.

He remembered the day they accidentally ran into each other in the hallway. The boy who recognized Felix jumped and blushed. He then exclaimed that it was an honor to meet someone he admired while stuttering.

It may be frustrating that a sorcerer’s true reality was to become an imperial hound, but the boy still had the eyes of a dreamer.

However, now there was only despair. The eye of the boy who contributed significantly in luring Felix here was doused with guilt, fear, and regret.

Discard it after use.

Benjamin, who applied and acted with the same rules, whether it was an object or a human, would probably kill the boy once he achieved his purpose.

Felix had long since made his decision. His plan did not include that boy.

Using magic, he reoriented the arrowhead directed at the boy to his shoulder. He then glanced at the boy, who was pale and shaking like a leaf, and spoke.

“You can erase his memories.”

It was a calm remark.

Benjamin twisted his lips at the implication that there was no need to kill the boy since he would have no recollection of the events.

He sarcastically pretended to be grateful for Felix’s choice.

“You’re a great saint to have the spirit to worry about even traitors. Since it’s your last wish, I’ll give it to you. With this, no one will remember your sacrifice.”

Everyone called it a sacrifice. Felix, who merely acted according to his beliefs, did not respond to Benjamin’s provocation.

“If I liken a person’s soul to a ball, I really want to rip it up and see what color is inside it. I’m starting to wonder how white it is. It’s a pity that today is the last day.”

It was pure white.

Felix had a wry expression that did not match the dire situation. He could not understand why the enemy was making such an evaluation.

–I mean, ordinary humans never act like you, do they?

“It’s normal.”

–Come to think of it, you subtly resemble an angel. How strange…….

The power of the devil began to talk nonsense about whether he was a mixed-race descendant of an angel.

Felix listened to all the words in one ear and thought it was fortunate that the young sorcerer would never know what happened today.

Felix walked while immersed in his thoughts and looked down at himself. There were no areas of his clothes that were free from bloodstains.

Just by looking at his clothes, it was evident how much pain he had struggled. He could not return like this.

“Do you have any extra clothes?”

–There’s no way such a thing is possible.

“You’re incompetent.”

–…….

The power of the devil, who almost lost his composure for a moment, suppressed his anger and whispered.

–Don’t you want revenge? You want me to make him suffer, don’t you? You want to see him cry at your feet, wring out tears and beg for his life. That’s right. Retributive justice, I’ll help you.

The power of the devil grew louder and louder when Felix refused to answer the question, completely ignoring it.

–uh? Bloody revenge on those who sinned against the innocent!

“Revenge is my duty, so I will not borrow the power of the devil.”

–Revenge by a guy who can no longer use magic isn’t possible.

“Hmm.”

At those words, Felix tilted his head impassively and recited a teleportation spell. The instant he moved, he immediately leaned against a wall and threw up blood.

–Argh! You madman! Please value your body!

“Kul-leog, ha……. it’s still too much.”

–Stop pushing yourself! Are you really human?

Although the magic succeeded, the coordinates were slightly off.

Felix had planned to move to his room in Chamberlain’s mansion. He wiped the blood off his mouth with the back of his hand and looked around.

‘This is…….’

“Irene’s playroom…”

–Irene?

The power of the devil immediately reacted to Felix’s murmur.

And Felix, who had previously ignored the power of the devil completely, frowned and spoke first for the first time.

“Don’t mess around with my head. I feel like throwing up.”

–Shut up, you bad-tempered bastard who lacks respect.

Whenever the power of the devil rummaged through his memory and emotions, Felix had to see and feel them as well.

Although he expected that sharing his body would be substantially difficult, he felt tired already.

–Oh, I thought you were a boring guy without any desire.

Leraze was a devil of struggle and victory, and…….

‘The devil of love and pleasure.’

Felix recalled the realm of desire controlled by the devil within him, which he could not bear to tell Irene.

“Don’t do it.”

He warned it with a throbbing forehead, but the power of the devil who seized the first inkling of his chance did not stop.

After digging through Felix’s insides to the bottom, Leraze stopped fretting and regained his composure.

He caught the dark and entangled desire tenaciously hidden at the end.

The serpent of temptation became persistent and clever. Leraze coiled the desire of a hunter and whispered with the sole aim to crush the bones in a single moment.

–Do you know you’re not the only one here?

As soon as he heard that, he felt his senses heighten.

The sound of a heart beating regularly, and the sound of breathing.

He must have noticed it late since he had been focused on soothing his upset stomach.

When Felix heard a rustling sound inside the red tent, he gritted his teeth and turned around.

However, it was faster for Irene to dig through and get out of the stuffed dolls piled up like a mountain.

“Felix?”

Irene hugged a doll on both sides and murmured in a sleepy voice.

She had just woken up, and her eyes were not fully open yet.

Felix stopped walking.

–Why are you hesitating? I’ve seen all your desires.

“Is that Felix? Wait, this is a dream. ……no. It’s so vivid?”

–Is it necessary to restrain yourself? In the end, you only need to be happy.

“Ugh! Felix! What on earth is that?! Blood! You’re bleeding right now!”

–Don’t reject it, and merely leave your body to me. I’ll give you the pleasures of hell.

Irene came running in fright when she found a wound pierced by an arrow on Felix’s shoulder.

It would have been a relief if it was just his shoulder, but his whole body was covered with so much blood that it was hard to find a place without it. Even the whites of his clothes were stained red.

She threw her dolls, came up to him, and hovered around without touching him as she feared that she would cause more pain. Her eyes were brimming with tears.

Felix slowly lowered his gaze with a stiff expression and looked down at Irene.

A sweet scent instantly made him dizzy and tingled his nerves. It was as fiercely intense as if it was pushing and crushing each cell in his body.

Felix turned his head, barely covering his nose and mouth with his trembling fingertips.

Leraze asked secretly.

–What are you thinking about now?

‘Well, what am I thinking about….…’

For a brief moment, he felt disorientated enough to ask himself.

Although he tried to resist and turn away, his exceedingly sharp senses followed the tiniest movements of Irene. Every nerve in his body fixed on her.

Irene, who was unaware of his predicament, followed him around. She gazed up at him.

Moonlight and starlight poured out from the round dome-shaped window that decorated the ceiling.

As she was standing underneath it, Irene’s watery golden eyes were filled with small moons and countless stars.

Perhaps due to their considerable height difference, she had to raise her head as much as possible to be able to see Felix’s complexion.

It was the eyes of trust that contained gentle hospitality. Irene would unquestionably stand there and embrace others generously and soothe any hurt places.

He suppressed a voracious desire that deeply penetrated his heart…….

Irene slowly scanned Felix up and down and carefully examined his condition.

Her dense lashes cast a thousand deep shadows, and in between, the moon and stars were reflected and glimmered again.

“Felix, can you stand? I can help you to your room.”

As soon as she blinked, a tear flowed down her cheek. The strands of eyelashes held dew like a blade of grass.

He wanted to tell her that he was fine and that she did not need to cry.

“Cry…….”

Before he could complete his sentence, Felix’s throat throbbed. He dampened his dry lips with his tongue.

It was because there was an unbearable burning thirst.

At the same time, there was a destructive and strong urge that stiffened his spine.

He wanted to make those two eyes filled with the night sky contain only him and make her cry with tears pouring out endlessly…….

T/N: Oh my…. we found out what the true desires that Leraze realms in. “Love and pleasure.” XD

Please also note that this chapter (and the next) revolves around Felix so instead of Irene’s narration being in first-person, she was in third-person narration. I think this gets switched back to the first-person narration for Irene later on.