-Bring him to the Papal Headquarters basement before sunrise. Oh, you haven’t forgotten the way here, have you? Levian can be quite foolish at times, so I’m quite worried.

“Does this make any sense? After staying quiet for hundreds of years, he suddenly comes back just when I start to get involved?”

-I know, right? But what can we do if it’s true? You didn’t like him much anyway, did you?

“That’s, fuck! I, I…!”

-I can’t tell you how glad I am. Every time you said he was bothersome, I felt sorry for burdening you. I thought maybe that’s why you abandoned him in Easthole and neglected him.

Levian took a rough deep breath as if trying to calm himself.

“…What evidence do you have to be sure that bastard is the Hero?”

-Well, there’s the fact that his aura has a blue hue. Especially the fact that his appearance is so similar – you agreed to that, didn’t you?

“Fuck, just because of that…!”

-This is the first progress we’ve made in hundreds of years.

The other party’s attitude was resolute.

-Ah, that’s right.

“……”

-My, I forgot the most important fact.

Even though there was no response, the other party continued speaking without concern.

-Today, He spoke my name.

“…What?”

-The name that the Hero himself gave me. Levian.

It was a voice filled with overwhelming emotion.

-I simply can’t contain my joy. As you said, the Hero’s memory isn’t perfect yet. It might be because his heart is lacking. So please return it quickly.

“……”

-I’m disappointed too. Just as much as Levian. When I met him, he was such a kind-hearted child. The Hero seemed quite taken with him too. If it weren’t for this incident, he could have lived until the end of his lifespan…

A hint of laughter seeped into the other party’s voice.

-But in the end, he’s a failed product. His name ‘Egru’ means ‘dregs’ – what more could we expect? We’ve just been keeping alive an experimental subject that should have been disposed of long ago, due to your whim.

“…If I can’t bring him.”

-My, it seems you’ve already grown attached.

The sound of pondering, “Hmm,” echoed for a moment.

-You haven’t forgotten about the covenant, have you? Since it’s a ritual engraved on your heart, the penalty would be quite severe. Think carefully, Levian. Is a mere dregs of a creation worth risking death for?

“……”

-Ah, that’s right! You should also think about how much the Hero will lament. Why? Are you uncomfortable meeting him again since you caused his death by your own hands? Even so, that’s too much. The Hero cherished you so dearly…

“Hey.”

Levian’s voice sank low. It kept sinking like a lead weight dropped into the sea.

“You never wanted to see me smile from the start, did you?”

-That might be true. A murderer doesn’t deserve to smile, does he?

“……”

-I’ll be waiting, Levian. I think I’ll finally be able to forgive you after today passes.

The voice on the communication device cut off.

Levian took out his cigarette pack with trembling hands. He was about to put a new cigarette in his mouth, but soon threw it to the ground.

With increasingly violent tremors in his hands, Levian rubbed his face. Through his fingers, he stared at the creation riding the merry-go-round. It was an aimless, empty gaze.

***

Egru’s cheeks were flushed pink. He was starting to get the hang of riding the merry-go-round.

Rather than just holding onto the pole, he needed to use his thigh muscles and maintain his balance well. Just like horseback riding.

‘Even though it’s not a real pony…’

His heart swelled at the fact that he was riding something similar. When he was young, he had been severely scolded for trying to ride a pack pony. After being slapped once, he was whipped twelve times on his bottom. It seemed they had beaten him with the intention of preventing him from ever mounting a horse.

At the time, he couldn’t understand. Why did he have to walk while holding the reins when all the other workers rode horses over the mountain? But he suppressed his curiosity, wiping his nosebleed and just moving on.

Now he knew well. It was never meant to be. They were all humans, and Egru was the only demon hybrid.

‘B-but…’

Levian seemed upset – was everything okay? Egru looked around for him. He now had the leisure to look around. The scenery of the slowly rotating amusement park was dazzling.

“Ah…!”

Finally, he spotted Levian approaching from afar. Egru timidly waved his hand in recognition.

But he couldn’t see what kind of response came back because the merry-go-round soon turned to the opposite side. When he saw Levian again, his expression was thoroughly hardened.

‘I-is he still angry?’

Is it because of me? It must be because of me.

There was something eerie about his expressionless face with deep shadows.

After one more rotation, the merry-go-round came to a jerky stop. Footsteps gradually approached from behind.

“W-what’s wrong? Levi… Gasp!”

In an instant, he was grabbed by the collar. Egru was yanked off the merry-go-round. Though he didn’t fall, his startled heart pounded heavily.

“Hey, you said you had a dream.”

“Huh?”

“A dream about becoming the Hero. You said you were flying around in your dream.”

Levian gripped Egru’s collar even tighter.

“Say my name. No, say anything you can remember.”

“I-I don’t understand what you’re talking about…”

“I said say it, fuck!”

Egru’s amber eyes trembled tearfully at the overbearing pressure. He couldn’t understand why Levian was suddenly acting like this.

“L-Levian…”

“Not that!”

“Ugh…”

“Don’t whine, just say it!”

“I-I don’t know. You never told me…”

Levian ruthlessly scrunched up his face. He ran his hands through his red hair, then pulled at it, and finally just lowered his hands to rub his face.

“Hey, you just go.”

Levian shook off the hand that had been gripping Egru’s collar. Egru kept wiping his eyes with the back of his hand.

“Fuck, just shut your trap and go!”

“S-sorry… I did something wrong…”

Egru kept wiping his tears with his damp hands.

‘M-maybe…’

He might have realized that Egru hadn’t brought back the 300,000 gold coins. It must have been money he had been waiting for a long time, and he might be furious that he couldn’t get it.

“I-I’ll work harder to earn more from now on. T-the check, I’ll somehow…”

“I don’t need that damn check! Burn it, throw it away!”

Levian just shouted, his veins bulging. At the same time, he was sweating strangely.

“Take that with you and get out! I don’t want to see your face!”

“W-what do you mean…”

“I said I’m washing my hands of you! Fuck, all the time I invested in you was completely useless!”

Egru stood still with his trembling hands clasped together. Levian, catching his rough breath, suddenly lowered his voice.

“Leave the system on the dawn train today.”

“W-why… why are you suddenly doing this…”

“Suddenly?”

Levian sneered sarcastically.

“Think about it. Who would want to keep someone like you around? I should be proud of myself for not abandoning you until now. You know?”

“……”

“I don’t need someone as stupid as you anymore.”

Levian shouted loudly at the communication device in his ear.

“Stop assigning men to the mongrel bastard! There’s no need to waste manpower unnecessarily anymore!”

It was then that Egru hesitantly approached Levian. Levian stepped back, startled.

“You, bastard! Go! I said go!”

“N-no…”

“No? Fuck, you still won’t go after this?”

Levian pulled out his gun and aimed it at Egru’s green forehead.

“Don’t come closer! F-fuck! I said don’t come closer!”

Though flinching at every shout, Egru didn’t stop approaching.

Levian gritted his teeth. He thought Egru would run away quickly at the sight of the gun.

There was a conviction in that small head that Levian wouldn’t harm him.

In the end, no gunshot rang out. Egru’s trembling green fist grasped the edge of the black suit.

“I-is it because I ran away at night?”

“……”

“I-I was going to come back after saving money. Really…”

Egru apologized, kneeling down.

“I’m still sorry. I, I shouldn’t have done that…”

Tears fell on Egru’s knees. If the reason for Levian’s anger wasn’t money, this was the only thing left no matter how much he thought about it.

It was an unforgivable sin for a lifetime.

In the past, Egru had planned and executed an escape from the system with young D’Élysée. It was a midnight flight.

Had his judgment been clouded by the overwhelming situations piling up? The impulsive plan naturally failed, and the next day Egru lost his only brother.

“Hey.”

Levian growled, baring his canine teeth.

“Yeah. How many bastards do you think have said that to me? How come those who tried to run away in the night all have the same excuses?”

“I-I’m sorry, I truly have no excuse…”

“It’s okay if you can’t pay it back. It’s because you lack ability. You can pay it back slowly.”

Levian always used to say that D’Élysée ending up in an orphanage was all due to Egru’s wrong choices.

“But fuck, you were trying to betray me and leave, weren’t you?”

“N-no, no. Please. I, I want to stay in the system…”

“You’re so dumb you can’t even understand words.”

Egru pleaded tearfully.

“I-I won’t complain anymore. I’ll do anything you tell me to.”

“Is it because of your brother this time too?”

Seeing Egru unable to answer promptly, Levian withdrew his frowning gaze.

“Fuck, I never get tired of this.”

Next, a gunshot rang out.

Egru’s face, as he jumped up startled, was filled with shock. Faint smoke rose from the bullet mark left at his feet.

Egru looked up at Levian with shaking eyes. The cold face didn’t budge an inch.

“You pathetic stuttering bastard.”

“……”

“Next time, I’ll properly pull the trigger. I said it clearly.”

Levian pointed the gun barrel at the amusement park exit.

“Don’t ever show your face in the system again. If I see you again, I’ll put a lead bullet in your forehead then.”