CHAPTER 20…………………

There was something strangely unsettling about viewing that day’s memories from an objective perspective.

Zenya narrowed her eyes as she watched the Demon King emerge through the raging dust storm.

It was an era when the destruction of a village—or even an entire nation—by the Demon King’s army was no longer shocking. But seeing a temple reduced to ruins like this was surprising.

After all, even if an entire village was wiped away, the small temple within it would often remain untouched, as though temples always managed to escape the demons’ grasp.

[Fall into hell, Demon King!]

A holy knight—no one knew where he had come from—charged forward, shouting a meaningless curse, only to be struck down.

His final blow didn’t even faze the Demon King. With an indifferent expression, the Demon King simply glanced down at the small wound on the back of his hand.

And standing before him was a terrified young Zenya—Astria.

‘It’s not different from what I remember…’

And yet, it felt different.

Was it because it was in the past?

Just before this memory surfaced, her heart had been pounding fast, but now she felt… nothing in particular.

No—perhaps she was a little angry.

But that anger wasn’t so much because of the memory itself, but because of the situation she was experiencing now. After all, Zenya had been dragged into the conflict between two demons because of the Demon King in the first place.

‘Why did you dump this kind of job on me?’

Standing crookedly, Zenya glared at the Demon King, who was striking a dramatic pose against the backdrop of the shattered temple.

As she stared at him with deep dissatisfaction, a cautious hand reached out from beside her.

Zenya lifted her head and looked at the hero, who had gently caught her wrist.

“Why?” she asked.

For some reason, his blue eyes looked especially clear today, as though they were measuring her expression carefully. Then he spoke.

“Do you want me to erase it?”

“…What?”

“I can take care of it.”

His gaze flicked toward the Demon King in the memory, and coldness settled into his eyes.

“It looks like you don’t want to see him.”

Zenya’s mouth fell open. She didn’t know how to respond.

He was the hero. If he offered, then surely he could erase this memory.

But if they tampered with the illusion unnecessarily and the mirror’s magic warped, things could become even worse.

Still…

“…Is that possible?”

Her voice came out weak and uneven. Zenya bit the tip of her tongue, trying to steady herself.

But she couldn’t think rationally.

What if she refused because it might be dangerous… and then in reality, the hero didn’t take care of the Demon King either?

Zenya clenched her fist tightly and blinked. Without realizing it, her breathing had become uneven.

“It’s possible.”

His voice was firm—certain enough to silence the lingering distrust she’d held.

She wanted to answer immediately.

But her throat felt tight, as though the words wouldn’t come out.

Her rapidly pounding heart seemed to echo through her entire body.

As she bit down hard on her lip, an unfamiliar thumb touched it.

The gentle pressure rubbing her lower lip made her mouth part instinctively. When she looked up, the hero spoke as if soothing her.

“You’ll leave a mark. And you don’t have to answer right now.”

Her lips trembled.

The hero pressed them lightly once more, then smiled faintly.

Then he lifted his head, which had been lowered as he examined her.

“Honestly… I’m the one who doesn’t want to see it.”

Zenya followed his gaze forward.

And there—she saw the Demon King reaching out toward Astria.

What came next in the memory was vivid.

Too vivid.

It had shaped her entire life—there was no way she could forget.

Astria, using her holy power, unleashed what she thought was her final strike.

But it didn’t harm the Demon King at all.

Instead, it exposed her special power.

‘And then she’ll be kidnapped.’

That was what should have happened.

But what Zenya saw now was something completely different.

Someone was holding Astria, who had collapsed after pouring out her strength.

And a red, sword-shaped force surged toward the Demon King’s outstretched hand.

‘A sword…?’

The crimson blade cut through the Demon King—

And like a lie, the Demon King began to scatter apart.

“Ah…”

Zenya stared silently at the man who had erased the Demon King while cradling Astria.

The hero.

Someone she had desperately wished for…

But who definitely hadn’t existed back then.

Which meant this wasn’t reality.

And yet she couldn’t look away.

‘You really are… the hero.’

His presence struck her anew.

Just as Astria vanished from his arms like the Demon King had, the hero turned back toward Zenya.

He walked closer.

Zenya stared without blinking as the man approached, the corner of his lips lifting slightly.

And when he finally stopped in front of her—

“Zenya, are you alri—”

“Hero.”

Zenya couldn’t hold it in any longer.

“I’ve been waiting for you… for so long.”

A feeling she couldn’t name—excitement, joy—washed over her. Her voice trembled at the end.

Her emotions swelled until she could barely breathe.

“Please… save—”

But the words never came.

Crash—!

A deafening noise tore through the air, and the ground shook violently, cracks splitting open around them.

The floor trembled like an earthquake, and Zenya nearly lost her balance—but the hero caught her.

Ignoring the collapsing scenery around them, Zenya grabbed tightly onto the hand holding her.

Because she didn’t know when he might speak again.

She wanted to say what she could while they still had this moment.

Perhaps sensing her urgency, the hero whispered softly into her ear.

“Let’s go back to the room… and talk.”

The space was filled with sounds of breaking and tearing—

Yet his quiet voice pierced through clearly.

Meeting her eyes, the hero nodded.

A promise that he wouldn’t run away, even if it wasn’t right now.

Her anxiety eased.

“Okay.”

Just as Zenya nodded—

A familiar, irritating voice rang out.

“Zenya!”

The voice was full of delighted affection.

And its owner was one of the culprits behind today’s incident—

Leraje.

Leraje stood with both hands folded over his heart, staring reverently at the mirror.

Ever since he’d witnessed Zenya’s presumed lover enter the mirror—and then Vine being thrown back out shortly after—his heart had been racing.

“How much longer? Why is it taking so long?”

After Vine, who had experienced the mirror firsthand, returned, they worked even harder to undo the spell.

And still, it was painfully slow.

“If you’re that impatient, why don’t you do it yourself?”

Beris’s sharp voice came from behind, but Leraje didn’t care.

Despite his words, Beris continued helping unravel the magic, even after Vine had returned.

Of course, that was partly because of Leraje’s conditions—and Vine’s own determination to break the spell.

Without even looking at Beris, Leraje replied,

“That won’t do. This time, I intend to see everything with my own eyes.”

There was no way he would look away out of embarrassment or distraction and miss such a beautiful sight.

“Hah!”

Beris sprang up, his face flushed with indignation.

“You’re joking right—!”

“Beris. Focus on this.”

Beris opened his mouth, full of protest, but Vine didn’t even blink.

He understood what Beris meant.

But he didn’t want to waste time dealing with Leraje, who wasn’t even interested in the situation.

Vine shook his head seriously.

Beris let out several frustrated laughs, then reluctantly returned to examining the spell.

For once, he wasn’t picking a fight.

Maybe he felt a little guilty that Vine had been caught up in the mirror magic because of him—despite knowing the mirror wasn’t truly dangerous to Vine.

‘Not that I’m going to make him feel better about it.’

Judging by the tight press of Beris’s lips, it would take time for him to cool down.

After tapping Beris’s arm in gratitude, Vine recalled the unknown man who had thrown him out through the hole.

‘That power…’

Leraje claimed the man was Zenya’s lover, but that was only speculation.

The fact that he’d torn open the mirror spell and forced his way in meant he was far from ordinary.

And if he had some other purpose…

They needed to break the spell as fast as possible.

“…Done.”

At Beris’s words, Vine turned and saw the magic array dissolving.

He helped disrupt the flow faster, then immediately cast a protective barrier around them.

The moment the barrier fully formed, the mirror shattered into countless pieces, scattering everywhere.