“Evil God.”
In response to Mu’en’s questioning, An slowly uttered these two words.
“Hehe, is that so?”
Mu’en appeared to take it as expected, not surprised at all. He rested his head on a stone, gazing at the monster.
Though it was his first time seeing it, Mu’en had at least read the original book.
So after a brief moment of shock, he quickly began to process it.
Evil God.
The cause of corruption, the black hand of destruction.
The greatest source of disaster in the original book.
In a sense, the harm posed by the Evil God far surpassed that of the Demon Race, which was currently engaged in battle at the border with the Empire.
Because the Demon Race was driven by territory and hatred; they only instigated war.
But the Evil God represented chaos, disorder, and death itself. They infiltrated everything, eroding it all, holding supreme power, casting greedy glances upon the world.
Historically, the three great catastrophes that nearly led humanity to extinction all had shadows of the Evil God within them.
And that demon prophesied to destroy the world was, in fact, a member of the Evil God.
Thus, characterized by their malice and their involvement in all things wrong, the Evil God had almost become the ultimate scapegoat in the original book.
——If something incomprehensible happened, it must have been the Evil God’s doing.jpg.
“I didn’t expect it to have been corrupted to this extent. What on earth happened? She was clearly normal before,” Mu’en frowned, puzzled.
Hmm…
Training her husband must be quite normal for a yandere, right?
“But this isn’t the time to think about that.”
Mu’en sighed softly, then got up.
“We can’t allow this situation to develop any further. Fortunately, we are in a remote area. If it moves to another village, it would be disastrous.”
“An, let’s hurry back to Bairland. There are specialized institutions dealing with Evil God corruption, and the Church of Life won’t stand idly by. They are more professional than us. Let’s go find them.”
Mu’en casually grabbed An’s arm, wanting to lead her away.
…But she remained motionless.
An sat there, arms crossed, her gaze lowered, her expression unreadable.
No matter how much Mu’en pulled, she wouldn’t budge.
“An?”
“I can’t leave.”
“Why not?”
“Because… I must take responsibility.”
“Responsibility? What responsibility? This is Evil God corruption. What does it have to do with you? You are not the Evil God.”
“But it does relate to me.”
An lifted her head, looking into Mu’en’s eyes, showing a confusion akin to a child who had done something wrong.
“It’s because of what I said, because I told Eluka those things, that she became tainted by the Evil God.”
“Huh? What do those words… mean?” Mu’en was startled.
“Two days ago, when I went fishing for the Young Master, I met Eluka…”
An’s hands tightened as she clasped her arms.
Her knuckles turned slightly white, revealing the strength of her grip.
However, she was entirely oblivious to it.
The inner torment and guilt had long since dulled her sense of physical pain.
In a trembling voice, An softly recounted to Mu’en.
Two days prior, her initial meeting with Eluka, the words she spoke to Eluka.
Then, not long ago, their reunion.
How she had watched helplessly as Eluka gradually transformed into a monster, with no turning back.
And the last words Eluka said to her.
“Master, you are telling me… what love is.”
…
“I see.”
After hearing An’s account, Mu’en also found it difficult to remain calm.
“So you’re saying… after hearing your words, Eluka gained enlightenment, became a yandere, and then wished for power to completely control the one she loves, leading to her corruption?”
“I don’t know what she did after we parted, but… that’s probably it.”
“So you think this is your responsibility?”
“Yes.”
An bit her lip and nodded.
This was already her fault; if she hadn’t said those words, nothing would have happened.
So…
“An, wake up!”
Mu’en suddenly shouted sternly, interrupting An’s thoughts.
Then he pointed at the gigantic, deformed monster, saying:
“Take a good look at that thing. Tell me it could change into this in just two days? The Evil God might be terrifying, but their corruption doesn’t happen overnight. Before an outbreak, pollution must accumulate over a long time!
This means that it’s impossible for Eluka to have come into contact with the Evil God just because you said those things to her; she must have been involved with the Evil God long before!”
“But… at least I am the catalyst for the outbreak, right?”
“The outbreak was just a matter of time! No one would undergo a fundamental change because of a few words from someone else. Eluka became a yandere because she already had a tendency towards it. Even without your words, she would have eventually become this way!
And besides, she’s already beyond saving; don’t you see that? Eluka doesn’t even have her own body anymore!
What can you do?”
Mu’en shouted at An, panting heavily.
He suddenly felt angry.
Why be so stubborn?
Why impose a responsibility that doesn’t belong to her on herself?
Is it because breathing an extra breath of oxygen caused the world to collapse a billion trillionths of a second early that one has to be accountable for the world’s destruction?
Don’t you know how terrifying something polluted by the Evil God is?
Don’t you cherish your own life?
Why must you get stuck in such an irrelevant hornet’s nest?
Someone will handle this; it’s not your responsibility!
“She called me Master.”
“Huh?”
“That girl, she called me Master.”
An raised her face to look at Mu’en.
With a trembling voice, she suddenly said, “As a Master, how could I possibly neglect my disciple?”
Tears, like pearls from a broken string, continuously slid down her delicate face.
Mu’en was momentarily stunned.
This was the first time he had seen An like this.
In his memory, An always maintained a dignified appearance, with graceful poise.
She would perfectly handle her duties as a personal maid and bow gracefully at a perfect ninety degrees.
Even the distance of each step she took while walking was nearly equal.
She was the embodiment of a flawless maid; at least in Mu’en’s memories, she had never made any mistakes.
Such an An would naturally never allow herself to show even the slightest weakness.
But now.
The girl before Mu’en.
Curled up, holding her arms tightly.
Her messy hair stuck to her forehead, and the delicate makeup had long been washed away by tears.
Her eyes no longer held the sharp brilliance of before, but instead showed a panic akin to a child who had done something wrong.
So disheveled.
So heartbreaking.
But deep in her eyes, there still remained a kind of unyielding stubbornness, like a sulking little girl, staring firmly at Mu’en.
“I will go, Young Master.”
…
“Damn it.”
Seeing An like this, a string in Mu’en’s heart seemed to be gently plucked.
Thus, his anger suddenly subsided, and he said, almost instinctively:
“Alright, I’ll accompany you.”
