3.
I took care of my death just as others took care of their everyday lives.
I always had the option to die more easily. Wrap my brain with aura. Pop it. In an instant, I could end my life painlessly. It was easy, simple, and convenient.
That was why I didn't kill myself that way.
'Because it's easy, simple, and convenient.'
Ease. Simplicity. Convenience. Humans become careless when they get used to these three things. No matter how sharp and knife-like one's mind is, it will eventually become rusty.
'In the end, the Flame Emperor died at my hands because of his carelessness.'
I sought after more painful deaths. I insisted on using my dagger to keep my sense and judgment sharp. That was what I had done.
However, it would be different today.
"It's all right. It'll end in no time."
I slowly sent my aura to the Lady of the Silver Lily through her hand. Was it because it was an unfamiliar feeling? The Lady of the Silver Lily's eyebrows twitched as she received my crimson aura.
"…It's warm."
"Yes."
"It feels like hot water is riding my veins. If this is like your body heat, butler, you must run at a slightly warmer temperature than I."
The Lady of the Silver Lily looked into my eyes.
"I'm anxious."
"..."
"I've never felt anxious about the regression before. I thought that it would be fine so long as I did not lose myself. But… Today, I don't want to lose you. If I regress first and you don't remember me…"
Would it make me a bitch if the Lady of the Silver Lily's words made me happy? If I felt happy because she felt anxious for me?
Yeah. That probably made me a bastard.
"Don't worry."
But I was a bastard just for her.
"I'll be with you."
While we shared our body heat, the world around us fell apart.
Rumble—
The ground cracked open with a bang, and blood sputtered out from the fractures.
Demons from the underworld, the Lady of the Silver Lily's once-familiars, ran wildly outside of the Lady of the Silver Lily's control. They were as numerous as the water drops that made up the sea, and each drop was as large as a mountain.
"Huh?"
From far away, people screamed.
"Demons! Demons are here!"
"What bad luck."
They screamed.
The promised ten days. The love of Lady of the Silver Lily secured by a wish, that eternal love that could not be held back by a semi-Constellation, was overflowing.
But even in this situation, the Lady of the Silver Lily looked at me calmly, her heart encased in silver.
"I will not tolerate any mistakes."
"Yes."
"If I die before you even by one-tenth of a second, if you die a millisecond faster than I do, I will never, ever forgive you. Engrave the words I just spoke into your heart. I'm only giving you one chance."
"Yes."
"Take it."
[The silver-plated heart is looking at you.]
"Take responsibility for making me believe again."
"..."
I held her hand a little more tightly.
"I will."
While the demons rampaged the ground, the glowing sunset sky shattered like a mirror.
A deluge of blood poured down.
The ground was gradually inundated with red. The echoing screams subsided in the sound of bubbles like they had drowned.
It wasn't just the Lady of the Silver Lily's flood that caused this world to end.
[The apostle of 'The Ox that Harvests Ruins' has manifested.]
There were also the other Constellations' apostles whom she had once mentioned.
[The apostle of 'The Warhorse of the Eternal Plains' has manifested.]
[The apostle of 'The Evangelist of Everlasting Happiness' has manifested.]
Through the rifts of the torn sky, beings from the different worlds descended.
The semi-Constellation of this world, the Lady of the Silver Lily. Aiming at the cracks of the fallen barrier, they didn't even bother to keep up appearances and launched a full-blown invasion.
"Anyhow, they're a bunch with no sense for romance."
Their appearances were as varied as the Constellations who sent them.
"It seems so."
Thus, they were easy to remember.
"I should teach them a lesson."
"What sort of lesson?"
"That they shouldn't interfere with other people's relationships."
"I like that."
The Lady of the Silver Lily laughed.
"But it's fine if you don't do it now."
It was just as she said. We didn't have time right now anyway.
"Milady."
The broken firmament of the sunset. Blood pouring without end.
Demons creeping up from the ground and invaders descending from the sky. The person before me had managed to endure all of these scenes of the end by herself.
Until today.
"Butler," said the Lady of the Silver Lily.
"Kill me."
The world had been dyed red, and only the lady, I, the boat, and the water three meters around us remained untouched. From the ruddy lake, countless tongues and lips erupted to laugh at us.
In this place.
I allowed myself a comfortable death for the first time.
The aura that coated our bodies burned.
Infernal Heavens Demonic Art.
Ninth form.
Sword of Suicide.
Without a single error. Without a moment's distortion.
[You have died.]
We died.
[You are regressing to 24 hours ago.]
4.
When I opened my eyes, I was lying in the shade of a white tree.
It was evening.
The sky was turning yellow.
It wasn't strange that I opened my eyes here. From the day I decided to be the Lady of the Silver Lily's exclusive butler, I went for walks with her in the evening.
I hurriedly tried to get up when—
"—You're awake?"
Whisper.
I heard a voice right next to me.
"You finally came to your senses."
I looked around.
"You're a disgrace of a butler."
The Lady of the Silver Lily stood with her back against the bright sunset. She held a parasol in her hand, casting a shadow below her feet. Whoosh— As the wind blew through her silver hair, I accidentally stopped breathing.
'Did I succeed?'
My heart was pounding.
'Or did I fail?'
I didn't know yet.
I didn't know, so I just looked at the Lady of the Silver Lily.
Her fingers, loosely gripping the parasol handle. Her gesture as she pushed back the hair that the wind had scattered. Her lips, closed tight as usual. Each of her motions made me tremble.
"Butler. You told me a slight lie."
The Lady of the Silver Lily opened her mouth.
"You promised that we would go back to the same time. But didn't I come back nine days before you?"
Ah.
"Even if it's a fake relationship, you left your lover alone for nine days. It's quite the disgraceful act."
I succeeded.
"I waited alone for you for nine days. I alone felt anxious while I was waiting. You swore to be beside me but couldn't keep your word. Isn't this negligent and slacking?"
I succeeded.
"If you want to make up for your wrongdoing this time, you'll have to face some punishment."
I succeeded.
"Hmm. I'm thirsty. Butler, give me the tea that you brought…"
The Lady of the Silver Lily couldn't finish her sentence.
Because I stood up and hugged her.
I wanted to embrace her so much that I could not stop myself.
"..."
The wind blew. The parasol the Lady of the Silver Lily had been holding fell and rolled on the grass.
Though I was already hugging her, it wasn't enough. A little more. More. I wanted to hold her even more. I knew that my feeling was because I wanted to hold dear her heart, not her body.
"I'm sorry."
I made her wait for so long alone.
"It's nothing."
The Lady of the Silver Lily held my back.
"It's all right now. I can't say that I wasn't amused by watching the version of you that hadn't spent the final days with me."
"That's a lie."
"Yes, it's a lie. It wasn't very fun. But it's all right. I'm very patient."
"I'm sorry."
"I forgive you."
The Lady of the Silver Lily caressed my neck.
[The immersion toward the character is deepened.]
[Currently, your immersion rate is 71%.]
I wanted to love her like crazy.
"Are you crying?"
"No."
"You're lying."
"Yes."
"I hate lies. It's all right to joke, but don't tell me any lies. I won't lie to you, either. I won't lie to you with words, gestures, nor glances."
"Are you crying?"
"..."
"If you don't want to talk, you have the right to stay silent. I won't press you. I won't push you. We can wait slowly until the other person wants to talk."
"Yes."
Thank goodness.
Thank goodness that I had fallen in love with her.
Thank goodness that I became someone who could love her.
"I have a request, Your Ladyship."
"What would that be?"
May I kiss you?
I held myself back.
Thank goodness, again, that she couldn't see my face.
"I'm really sorry, but could you wait a little longer for me?"
"How rude. How much longer do you mean for me to wait?"
"Eight days."
"Why?"
"Seven days."
"Hmm?"
"Six days."
"..."
"I'll reduce it day by day."
"..."
"Until we can be together on that first day."
Silence.
"…Impudent man," the Lady of the Silver Lily whispered in my ears. "In the end, you mean you'll kill me nine more times."
"It didn't hurt, did it?"
"It didn't hurt. Like you said, it was over in an instant. But you've already taken my life once, and that you'll take even more makes your nature seem horrible."
"May I kiss you?"
"..."
"..."
Oops. I couldn't hold back.
The Lady of the Silver Lily moved her head and met my eyes.
Red.
The color that I would love most from now was there.
"I will exercise my right to remain silent."
So I kissed her.
We held each other in our arms.
From breath to breath, lips to lips, I cast my aura and offered the temperature of my heart. I was also thankful that my aura was red. The sounds of our breathing mixed together.
Then.
[You have died.]
[You are regressing to 24 hours ago.]
The next time I opened my eyes, the Lady of the Silver Lily was by my side. We didn't talk. Maybe we had already talked a lot. The Lady of the Silver Lily held my hand, and I kissed her.
[You have died.]
[You are regressing to 24 hours ago.]
To get a little bit closer to her.
[You have died.]
[You are regressing to 24 hours ago.]
To meet the Lady of the Silver Lily, who said that we would forever be parallel lines, I tilted my head. I kissed her. Before our timelines could overlap, our lips met.
In the cold corridor of her residence.
[You have died.]
[You are regressing to 24 hours ago.]
In a dark basement.
[You have died.]
[You are regressing to 24 hours ago.]
Under the white magnolia petals.
"Milady."
I panted.
"Before you came here, did you brush your teeth?"
"It seems like a good time to use my right to remain silent."
"That's underhanded. Only you would get away with it."
"In this world, there are two cases in which you will be forgiven for acting underhanded. One is at war, and the other is in love. Furthermore—"
When I died, I regressed 24 hours, but the Lady of the Silver Lily returned to the first day in the ballroom.
She counted the gaps in time.
"You made me wait nine days, eight, seven… In total, thirty nine days. My proper underhandedness makes it possible for you to relieve your conscience. Be grateful."
"Then, 39 days of kissing…"
"You're being annoying, so shut up."
[You have died.]
[You are regressing to 24 hours ago.]
The next time I opened my eyes, I was in the private room of the Lady of the Golden Silk.
"Death King!"
The Heretic Questioner, who had not yet become the Lady of the Golden Silk, smiled. My timeline was maintained, but the Heretic Questioner's was not. So, while my immersion rate remained the same, the Heretic Questioner's immersion decreased the closer I approached the first day.
"The Lady of the Silver Lily came to visit! Aha. I wonder what it's about to come so late at night. I heard that she stays in a separate accommodation, not the dormitories. Seeing she came here at this time, something is…"
"Where is she now?"
"Ah. She's waiting in the garden in front of the dorms."
I opened the door and ran. Behind me, the Heretic Questioner called, "Death King?" but I had no time to respond. There was someone who had waited for me.
A little faster.
Even just a little, hurry.
The Lady of the Silver Lily stood under the magnolias.
A white lotus bloomed in the night sky.
The snow-capped lotus flower was like a heart that had lost its red color.
"..."
Some people in the dormitories were probably peeking into the garden from the windows. But the two of us stepped closer, embraced each other, and met lips.
I whispered, "Did you know?"
"I don't know. Go ahead. Show off."
"My name is Gongja, and I call you Your Ladyship, or 'gong-nyeo.' Side by side, we become Gongnyeo and Gongja. Of course, the words may sound different in Your Ladyship's language, but…"[1]
"Are you saying that we're a match made in heaven?"
"I think so."
"You're getting conceited because of a coincidence."
"I love you."
Lips touched.
Breaths mixed.
Time overlapped.
[You have died.]
Finally.
[You are regressing to 24 hours ago.]
When I opened my eyes, I was in a fancy ballroom.
The chandelier drooped from the ceiling and hung like a weeping willow.
Underneath, dozens of ladies and gentlemen were dancing in pairs.
This was the place we first met.
The place where the Heretic Questioner was slapped.
The first stage our timelines intersected.
Day One.
"..."
"..."
In the middle of the ballroom, we faced each other.
I moved my feet.
The Lady of the Silver Lily also stepped forward.
In the place where dozens of shadows fluttered, under the white chandelier, we kissed, unable to say who had moved first.
We needed no words.
Around us, voices of astonishment sounded. We ignored them. The band who had been playing music in the ballroom stopped. The ladies and gentlemen stopped dancing and stared at us. Still, we ignored them.
The Lady of the Silver Lily's eyes. Her voice. I was simply immersed in the contours of her existence.
"We,"
My forehead touched the forehead of the Lady of the Silver Lily.
"Is it still Day One?"
The corners of Lady of the Silver Lily's mouth curved upward.
"It's the first day. It'll always be the first day."
"Forever?"
"As long as we both wish it to be."
We kissed again.
We indulged in the moment like it was forever.
Only the sounds of our two breaths quietly spread in the spacious ballroom.
"Huh…?"
A long time later, the Heretic Questioner spoke up from behind us.
"Uh. Did I miss something?"
Nobody could answer.