I Favor the Villainess
258. Eternity
Claire!!
The Demon King stared down at Claire as she collapsed.
Bright red blood came out of Claire's body, which fell on the floor.
Blood is also shed from the devil's flank, but the devil sees Claire lying down without any attention.
"Out of my way, please!"
I ran to Claire, forgetting all the threats of the Devil King.
I threw out the demon king and looked at his condition.
The bleeding is bad.
"Ah... ahh..."
As if he had seen the most horrible thing in the world, the Demon King fell back and held his head on his knees.
"Ahhhhhh...!!"
I heard a scream that no matter how desperate it might be, it wouldn't be so much.
But it's not that far now.
"Manaria-sama, Lily, please help me!"
I called on the two people who looked stunned whether the situation had not yet been swallowed.
You returned to me, and they rushed over and healed me just like I did.
"Ray, let me have some special potions too!"
"No, Claire is unconscious!"
"Whatever you say! Let her drink anyway!"
As I was told, I tried to put the potion in my mouth and let Claire drink it.
Claire's lips were terribly cold.
How can our kissing memories be impressed with all the harsh stuff?
We treated him as much as we could.
Still, Claire's body gets colder and colder.
"Claire, you're lying...You promised!?We're all going home!! "
While wiping up the tears, it still doesn't stop the treatment.
Claire promised.
Then she can't choose the path to harm herself.
Demon King!
Manaria raised her voice sharply.
The demon king raised his face with his shoulders trembling.
"Come here and heal me!Let Claire die like this, and you're sure that's it! "
The Demon King distorted his face in response to Manaria's question.
It was an expression that no longer represented the word "conflict".
There was a pitiful demon king, "Me," who couldn't stand the end he had always wanted.
Fear of loss, worn by eternity, is now stripping her of teeth.
"Not if you're lost!If it stays like this, Claire is really dead!Please, help Claire!! "
I asked the Devil for help, without shame or audience.
If you can save Claire, she's the only one.
"If you use the loop system..."
"I won't let you, Zero."
"Time....!"
Lily's tone changed.
Looks like time is on the move.
"I refuse to apply the loop system"
"If you use the authority of an administrator..."
"Yes, the system will eventually recover.But by the time the vote comes, Claire François will be dead. "
"Oh no....!"
The demon king's face was distorted again.
Looking back at that expression, Time said coldly.
"Demon King, choose whether you lose it forever or continue it forever."
"Ugh... ugh... ugh... ugh...!"
The Demon King came to us with the conflict in his arms.
I made haste to clear the way.
The Demon King poked Claire on his knees.
"I... I... don't like it anymore.... to spend eternal repetition alone... and your thoughts spill from between your fingers... "
Demon King, hurry up!
"Ray!"
Ray-san!
"I want to finish... that's enough... but... still..."
As we watched, the word resounded with billions of years' weight.
"I... still can't give up on you...!"
A pure white light erupted around Claire.
Similar to the Pope's area heel - no, more healing light.
"This is...."
"The wound is healing....."
"Su, it's amazing...."
The wounds on Claire's stomach, as well as the wounds on me, Manaria, and Lily, are blocking.
"Nh... uhh..."
Claire!?
"Lee... come...?"
Claire opened her eyes.
Until now, the face that had been bluished by the loss of blood has become less red.
Claire had a slightly blurry expression, but when she recognized the demon king who was squatting next to her, she smiled a little.
"Yes... after all, you're Ray."
And that's what I called it.
Apparently, I want to say that everything is as calculated.
Claire's idiot!
When I noticed, I was pulling Claire's cheek.
Claire looks at us with a surprising face.
I was also surprised at my actions.
But the words didn't stop.
"What a rude thing to do!What would you do if the Demon King abandoned Claire? "
"Ray, Ray, calm down a bit...?"
"Can this calm down?Tell me you keep your promise, what are you doing!I'm almost there... for you...! "
It was no longer a word from there.
I pounded Claire's chest with both hands and cried.
"Stupid... stupid... ahhhhh...!"
"I'm sorry... I'm sorry, Ray. You scared me. I'm really sorry...."
Claire gently hugged me like a baby and apologized over and over again.
But this time, I didn't mean to forgive you.
I didn't.
"But, Ray, did I win?Didn't you notice the Pope was nearby? "
"... eh...?"
Claire is pointing at my back, so I look at you with a sword, and there is the Pope who is always groaning without expression.
"Ah, I knew Ray didn't notice.I knew it.That's why I thought it was a real play. "
Manaria-sama is laughing bitterly.
Well, then, did it look like you were paranoid at that time because you weren't, and you were watching what happened?
"Lily Lillium was also aware of it.In her case, she didn't seem to have noticed even though she did. "
Time is also smiling bitterly.
So... then... only the Demon King and I were so upset as to die...?
"... I want to die"
"So, you're saying I'm sorry.If I tried to catch the Demon King, I would have forgotten that you, a nearby being, could catch him. "
Claire hugged me even harder, still snoring.
Claire, you'll definitely be punished later.
"Yes, yes, I understand.I'll take it sweetly. More than that... the Devil King? "
……
When Claire called, the Demon King looked like a billionaire.
"You said, didn't you?Free the world from the cursed circle. "
"... yeah"
"Perhaps that's one correct answer.But isn't that loop part of the world?When the time comes, it is not your personal feelings, but the will of all those who live in this world. "
……
"In the first place, we have been brought back to life by the sacrifices and dedication of many people.My life is not mine alone.If the general intent of the people you care about is self-determination, we'll be happy to follow it, but... "
Absolutely no!!
With Lily and Manaria, I answered immediately.
"That's what I'm saying."
……
"And I lied about one thing earlier.People can't fall in love forever.... "
"Is that... a lie...?"
"Yeah, exactly."
Claire held the Demon King in her chest with me.
And say it.
"Demon King, for as long as you want, people will not endure.But I think so.One second at a time... this time, maybe forever. "
I don't know what that means.
The Demon King is shaking his head sideways.
Claire kept smiling.
"Who decided that my thoughts at this time were inferior to the flow of time?It is not ourselves who decides when forever? "
Claire told me such a story.
Do lovers who have only been in hospital for a month due to incurable illness never reach the lovers who have accompanied them for the rest of their lives?
I don't think so.
Perhaps eternal thoughts are not the length of time.
"How much I loved them.That terrible subjectivity is not the only condition for eternity? "
Claire says that even if we can only be together for a short time, if the feeling truly loves the other person, it is eternal.
"It's up to the two of us to decide whether we're forever or not.You've asked for objectivity.That's where I got lost. "
"Are you lost...?"
"Yes, I'm lost."
Claire's assertion nodded the demon king.
"How long have you been holding Claire, Demon King?Claire is mine. Leave me alone. "
"Because...."
"It's not like that. Tell me to hurt myself. What kind of face are you looking at here now?Shame on you, shame on you. "
"Hey, Ray, don't bully Ray too much."
"It's getting so confusing, can you say" demon king "over there!?"
I didn't fail to be alert to the Demon King while making jokes like that.
I didn't know when he was going to say something crazy again.
"Don't worry, Ray-Taylor."
"Will you stop reading your mind naturally again?"
"Oh, excuse me."
It is, of course, time to say that my concern is worrying.
"So, why don't you worry?"
"The Demon King no longer has administrator privileges.She relinquished her authority. "
It seems that was the devil's answer to the time question earlier.
"So who's in charge now?"
"We are in the process of transferring authority, but the next administrator will be Claire-François, the deputy administrator."
"Wow, it's me!?"
Claire shouted in surprise.
Well, you'll be surprised.
It is said that I may be in a position to influence human history.
"I'm sorry, but I will decline.Very unlikely. "
"You don't have to decline, but for that to happen, you need to be an administrator."
You're in trouble.
Claire shrugged and sighed.
"Yes, it's troublesome... so I thought I'd pick some troublesome seeds here"
The next moment, the area turned dark.
"What is this!?"
"Time, what are you going to do!?"
Claire's agitation echoed, as did the Demon King's interrogation.
"My purpose is one thing.It is the survival of human history. You humans seem to be just too fragile to let that happen. "
At the end of that word, my consciousness blacked out.
◆ ◇ ◆ ◇ ◆
The next time I woke up, the first thing I saw was a strange ceiling.
When I woke up and looked around, I found myself in a room that was kept clean.
Probably a spiritual church hospital.
I heard someone calling out and noticed someone sleeping on my lap.
"Dear Manaria...?"
"Nh... ray...?... ray!"
When I called, Manaria woke up.
When he recognized me, he hugged me with all his might.
Ouch! Ouch!
"Hey, Manaria! It hurts!"
"Oh, I'm sorry. I'm so happy.I thought I'd never wake up again.Does it hurt anywhere? "
Wake up and gaze into my face.
"Everywhere.... If I may say so strongly, I was hugged by Manaria-sama."
"Ahahah, that's all you have to say.You've been asleep ever since you fought the demons.It's been another month. "
"A month!?"
Well, then Manaria-sama's reaction nods as well.
"I was worried about that.I'm fine now, by the way... "
"The body was maintained with healing magic, so there shouldn't be any muscle weakness. I'm really glad."
"Oh, yes, thank you. By the way, where's Claire?"
I heard what I wanted to hear the most.
I'm sorry to worry you, but Claire is the one who should be in Manaria-sama's position.
If Claire isn't here, she'll be worried.
"Claire?"
"Yes, Claire brought you here, didn't she?What about her? Is she badly injured? "
I don't think so, but I don't think Claire's the only one who's dead.
"Ray, can I have one?"
"Yeah, yeah."
With a strange expression on his face, Manaria-sama released words that were unexpected.
Who's Claire?