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“Count…”

Wendy had fallen asleep while tightly holding Tristan’s hand, occasionally murmuring “Count” in her sleep. Her eyes, which had been crying nonstop, were swollen.

Helga, leaning against the hospital wall, watched Wendy with pity. Then she let out a deep sigh.

Just moments ago, Tristan’s heart had stopped. Amid the frantic shouts of the healers, Helga could do nothing. Despite her thoughts of needing to act, her body wouldn’t move.

Even after Tristan collapsed, Helga had managed to maintain her composure. As a bodyguard knight of the Ruelberta Family, she couldn’t afford to show any signs of weakness. For someone like her, who had navigated countless crises on the battlefield, hiding her agitation wasn’t supposed to be difficult. But… this time, it didn’t go so well.

Helga slowly slid down the wall and buried her face in her hands. She thought she had kept her cool, but she hadn’t. In truth, her heart had also been breaking.

Tristan’s heart, which had suddenly stopped. Watching it, Helga felt as though she had been thrown alone into a swamp of despair. Just as her life was sinking into darkness, the only one who moved was Wendy.

Wendy had been the first to break down upon arriving at the hospital. Yet, where did that small body find such strength? What courage had she mustered?

Without hesitation, Wendy had squeezed between the healers and helped revive Tristan. She had made his heart beat again.

Until then, Helga had been unable to do anything. She could only watch helplessly.

“What kind of bodyguard knight am I…”

Helga barely swallowed the sob that threatened to escape. If she started crying now, she felt she wouldn’t be able to stop. She might never stand up again. Grabbing her shaky legs, she somehow managed to rise.

On the bed lay Tristan, unconscious. His face, pale from losing so much blood, now showed a hint of vitality. It was all thanks to the desperate efforts of the healers and Wendy. But the treatment had only just begun.

Hell. A den of demons, a place where the wicked who committed grave sins were said to fall. Even demons hesitated to mention it, so notorious was it. And it was there that Tristan’s consciousness had gone.

Helga placed her hand on Tristan’s forehead. His face, with closed eyes, looked incredibly peaceful, just like when she had met him as a child in the hospital.

“I killed my father.”

Helga still hadn’t forgotten the shocking confession that had come from young Tristan’s lips.

The unforgivable sin of murder. And not just any murder, but the killing of one’s own kin, the gravest of crimes. Tristan had decided to destroy the absurd world that had dealt him such a cruel fate.

Looking back, Tristan had already been prepared. Prepared to fall into hell. To become the enemy of the world meant being ready to face ruin at any moment.

Understanding this, Helga shook her head.

“But it’s too soon…”

Helga, who had once been abandoned by her family, had understood Tristan’s ideals the longest. That’s why she could say it wasn’t time yet.

“This… isn’t the ending you spoke of, Count.”

Helga touched her left eye. She could feel Tristan’s presence. Now, she could feel him everywhere.

“Count, don’t worry about anything.”

Even if he had fallen into hell. No matter what form or appearance he took. As long as she had this eye, she would recognize him.

“I’ll wait for you. As long as I can… as long as I live…”

She quietly approached Tristan’s face.

“I’ll be waiting in the ending you’ll show me…”

And just as Helga was about to kiss him…

Knock knock.

“May I come in?”

“…Yes, come in.”

Helga adjusted her tie as if nothing had happened. The one who entered was a tall woman with a ponytail, Blanshe.

“Is Wendy okay?”

“She just fell asleep.”

“I see…”

It seemed she had come worried about Wendy. Watching Blanshe cover the sleeping Wendy with a blanket, Helga asked.

“Did you come alone? Has the noble princess you serve gone home?”

Unintentionally, a sarcastic remark slipped out. Helga wasn’t calm enough to hide her resentment towards Bella. Blanshe slowly shook her head at the aggressive question.

“The young lady has gone to pray.”

“Pray… How impressive. Right now, not only the healers but even Albert, the magic formula craftsman, is here trying to find a way to wake the Count. And the princess is calmly praying?”

“…Helga. I don’t know what you think, but the young lady is also desperately trying to save the Count.”

“Trying?”

Helga spoke with quiet anger.

“How is praying trying? No matter how much she prays, will the Count return from hell?”

“That’s…”

“I’m sorry to say this, but I wish the princess would stay away from our Count from now on.”

At Helga’s harsh words, Blanshe bowed her head with a dark expression.

“Helga. It’s not our young lady’s fault.”

“What…?”

“It was my duty to save the young lady who had fallen asleep due to the dream demon. I was the one who dragged the Count into it… I was out of my mind, fearing I might lose the young lady forever. So, without realizing it, I ended up relying on the Count…”

Blanshe knelt before Helga.

“If you want to resent someone, resent me, not the young lady.”

“……”

Helga clenched her fists. She knew this was just venting, and that it was meaningless blame. Yet, she was too mentally exhausted to control her emotions.

Understanding this, Helga swallowed her anger and spoke.

“Enough… Get up. I was too harsh.”

“No. You have every right to be angry. If the same thing had happened to the young lady, I would have acted the same as you…”

“Enough… Get up before I make you.”

At Helga’s repeated words, Blanshe reluctantly stood up. But her face remained dark.

“…So, are the healers and Albert still in a meeting?”

“Yes… We have to try everything…”

Helga sighed, then suddenly remembered something.

“Ah, I hope the princess can give some advice in the meeting later. After all, she was with the Count until the end…”

“That’s… The young lady has gone to paradise, so I don’t know when she’ll return.”

“Paradise? Where is that?”

“Didn’t I mention it earlier? The young lady has gone to pray.”

“Huh? To whom is she praying?”

At Helga’s question, Blanshe explained succinctly.

“The young lady has gone to ask God for help directly.”

*

“You’re really persistent…”

The golden-haired, blue-eyed girl, Michaela, shook her head in exasperation. She was sitting in a comfortable chair, gazing at the night sky. More precisely, she was flipping through the sky like pages of a book. Every time she swept her hand through the air, the stars rushed past.

However, this only applied to the sky of paradise. Her powers were limited to paradise alone. And kneeling before her was the silver-haired princess, Bella Izakhel.

“Michaela… Please help me.”

She had been pleading with Michaela for hours now.

“Please, just get up… It’s uncomfortable to watch.”

“I can’t get up until you help me…”

“Sigh… Since when did that man become so important to you?”

The reason Bella was asking for help was for that man, Tristan. She was asking Michaela to save him, who had fallen into hell in her place.

“Tristan saved me. So it’s only right that I save him.”

“Weren’t you the one who said you hated such men?”

Bella bowed her head on the grass.

“If I can save him, I’ll pay any price.”

“Any price?”

“My honor, my status, even my light magic power.”

“What?!”

Michaela stared at Bella in shock.

“Do you even know what that means?”

“I’m truly sorry, Michaela.”

“Bella, you really…!”

“I owe him so much. Even if I gave everything I have, I might not be able to repay him…”

Bella was determined to save Tristan, even at the cost of everything she had. Her transparent eyes looked up at Michaela.

“Sigh…”

In truth, Michaela already knew. No matter what she said, she couldn’t stop Bella. No matter how many times she pushed her away, she couldn’t break her heart. No, in fact, there was no need to push her away…

Michaela sighed and spoke.

“Fine. I’ll help, so get up already.”

“…Michaela?”

“Ah! Please don’t look at me with those admiring eyes. It’s burdensome.”

But Bella couldn’t hide her grateful expression. She desperately needed Michaela’s help.

“Thank you… Thank you so much…”

“I was planning to go even if you hadn’t asked. Ah! Finally found it!”

Michaela’s hand, which had been flipping through the night sky, stopped. The moving night sky suddenly grew darker.

“The black moon…?”

As Bella looked up, a pitch-black moon hung in the sky. Michaela shook her head.

“No. It’s a total lunar eclipse.”

As she said, a shadow of pitch black covered the moon in paradise. Then, darkness began to swallow paradise. Watching the darkness surge over the hill, Michaela muttered.

“Paradise is connected to hell. Only for a day, though. That’s why it took me a while to find it.”

Michaela stood up, brushing herself off. Seeing this, Bella also jumped up.

“I-I’ll go with you…!”

“No way. Where do you think you’re going? Do you want to fall into hell?”

“But…”

“From here on, it’s a matter for the gods to resolve. There’s no place for you.”

Bella hesitated for a moment but soon realized it was futile and bowed her head to Michaela.

“Understood… Please be careful.”

“Right. Wait quietly at home.”

Leaving Bella behind, Michaela walked into the darkness. A gloomy atmosphere, different from the usual paradise, could be felt. As she thought about the last time she had gone, Michaela couldn’t help but grumble.

“Sigh… Really, I hope I don’t run into ‘that guy’…”

 

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