I Want To Die One Day Before You - Chapter 7
What exactly had he come here for? He had left behind a frail grandmother and a young brother at the border and entered this pulsating hell of blood. Why did he come here?
Princess Sordid. Because he had wanted her to be his.
At first, he thought it was an unattainable, grand goal, but now, it was different.
He had killed the demon king. He had completed the subjugation of the demons. As per the king’s promise, Princess Sordid was now his.
However, what he saw before his eyes was not Princess Sordid—but a mere humble maid.
F-ck.
Why.
“Lieutenant Rufus!”
“Have you defeated the demon king?”
Voices of his subordinates came from behind.
Seeing the demon king’s lifeless body on the ground, his subordinates were shocked. Some of them turned away, retching.
Rufus gave a dazed command.
“Get a sack.”
It was truly over now. Going back to the capital, reporting to the king that he had dealt with the demon king – this would put an end to the nauseating life on the battlefield.
As he was personally wrapping up the demon king’s head instead of his suffering subordinates, something glistened from the demon king’s clothing.
What is this?
Rufus raised an eyebrow and nudged it with his foot.
It was a walnut-sized fragment.
At first, he thought it was a gem, but it had an aura that regular gemstones couldn’t produce. Upon closer inspection, the light within the fragment pulsated like it was alive.
Rufus recognized it instantly.
‘Magic stone.’
It was a magic stone.
A mysterious stone that only demons could create, infused with the souls of demons.
In the past three years, Rufus, who had faced countless demons, had seen many magical stones. However, a magical stone radiating such a large and intense light was a first. Moreover, if it was the magical stone possessed by the demon king, it was undoubtedly not any ordinary object.
Rufus, who had taken the magical stone from the demon king, gazed silently at the stone, which glowed like a setting sun.
‘I’m Sarubia.’
Once again, her voice echoed in his ears.
‘Strange name, isn’t it? Sarubia is definitely a red flower, but my hair is ivory.’
A beautiful red magical stone. It suited her name perfectly.
‘Maybe she would like it as a gift.’
For a moment, such an absurd thought crossed his mind.
Apart from the fact that he had obtained it from the demon king’s remains, it was a flawless and beautiful gem. A commoner maid had probably never had such a gem in her possession.
Rufus looked at the magical stone for a moment and then put it in the pouch as if nothing had happened. He also carefully placed the demon king’s head, still fresh with blood, inside the pouch.
Soon, the bells announcing the victory in the Hevania Kingdom rang.
On the day when the news of victory spread, the one who presented the demon king’s head to the king was Rufus.
***
Rufus entered the capital city amidst the cheers of the people.
“Long live Lord Rufus!”
“Three cheers to Rufus, the valiant warrior who defeated the demon king!”
“Glory to House Inferna!”
Lining the streets, the people of the capital cheered and celebrated Rufus, who rode on a white horse adorned with golden adornments.
The whole street had turned into a festival ground. Brightly colored banners fluttered in the breeze, many of them bearing the emblem of Rufus’s family, House Inferna. Songs praising Rufus’s heroics echoed throughout the streets.
The people of the Hevania Kingdom, who had lost countless family members and friends during the long war, saw Rufus as a savior who had brought an end to this dreadful conflict.
The celebrations to mark the victory would continue for a week.
“Brother, I missed you!”
Rufus’s younger brother, who had come from their remote estate in Inferna, embraced him tightly.
“Edel.”
Rufus held his younger brother close.
Before joining the subjugation army, Edel had been a small, frail boy. But over the past three years, he had grown beyond recognition.
The weak, tearful boy who used to cling to his older brother’s clothing before he left for war was no more. Edel had become a young man.
“Edel, you’ve grown a lot.”
“Yeah, I’ll probably be taller than you soon.”
“You’re quite the comedian.”
Looking down at his fifteen-year-old brother, Rufus chuckled.
It was a genuine laugh, a rarity for him. During his time on the brink of death, he had almost forgotten how to smile.
“Rufus.”
Behind Edel, an elderly woman revealed her face.
“Grandmother.”
The only adult in the modest household of Inferna was Rufus’s grandmother. Despite Rufus’s rise to prominence, she maintained her dignity, uncertain about what the future held.
On the day Rufus was sent to the battlefield, his grandmother did not shed a tear.
‘Rufus.’
The elderly woman had held her grandson’s hand tightly.
‘Take this.’
