Chapter 137. Omen of Destruction
“Sinner, raise your head.”
The judge, his expression twisted with displeasure, gave a solemn order to the man bound in ropes.
The man's entire body had been ruined by countless tortures.
Even so, without the slightest hesitation, he quietly raised his head.
His eyes remained as straight and unwavering as ever as he looked up at the judge.
There was no mysterious force within his gaze that could magically captivate people.
And yet, the brilliant hope filling those eyes alone was enough to make anyone watching feel drawn to him.
Murmur, murmur.
He had merely raised his head, yet the entire courtroom became noisy.
Those noble eyes that refused to waver despite being called a criminal.
That proud posture.
Those tightly closed lips.
He truly looked worthy of being called the hope of mankind.
“You carried the name of Hope on your back, yet committed an act that betrayed the expectations of all mankind. Do you admit your crime?”
“…I cannot.”
For a long time, he had been tormented over a single charge.
He had been ordered to kill a woman.
Yet instead of killing her, he had spared her life.
Not only that, despite fierce opposition from his original companions, he had declared that he would continue traveling with her.
If that woman had simply been an ordinary criminal, he would never have been tortured and put on trial like this.
If anything, people would have praised him for showing the compassion expected of a Hero.
But the woman he had saved was no ordinary human.
Madness.
She was a human who possessed the power of Madness.
“Ridiculous! Do you still intend to insist that what you did was right?! Do you still think you deserve to call yourself the Hero of Hope while defending Madness?!”
“If there is truly a problem with me, then send me onto the Path of Trials.”
The judge's face immediately showed confusion at the Great Hero of Hope's short reply.
But unwilling to let Hope seize control of the situation, the judge pressed him even harder.
“Silence! How dare a criminal like you speak of that sacred path!”
“I am still a Hero. And the Madness that all of you fear is currently nothing more than a powerless young girl. If you are not afraid, and if you truly wish to prove that your beliefs are right, then naturally, you should send me there. Why won't you?”
Hope continued speaking calmly.
The courtroom grew even louder.
The judge struck his gavel again and again, but the commotion refused to settle down.
The Path of Trials.
Those walking the correct path would receive the choice of Light at its end.
Those walking a twisted path would receive the choice of Darkness.
What a person gained upon returning from that place would reveal exactly what kind of person they truly were.
One by one, jurors began suggesting that Hope should indeed be sent there.
The judge's expression twisted.
The Hero of Hope is strong…
What if… What if he actually completes the Path of Trials and receives the choice of Light…?!
The truth was, this trial was not really important because Hope had supposedly changed.
What truly mattered was that people might begin viewing Madness as something less dangerous.
That was why they had deliberately pushed Hope to his limits.
It was also why the judge had spoken so harshly toward him.
They needed everyone watching to understand how dangerous it was to defend Madness.
Madness had to remain an object of fear.
People could never be allowed to begin seeing Madness as some kind of Hero.
Absurd! There's no way the Hero of Hope doesn't understand that!
While the judge hesitated, Hope slowly stood from his seat.
All he had done was force his broken body upright.
Yet everyone watching tensed up in anticipation.
“I understand what you're worried about. You're afraid that the terrifying power known as Madness will gradually seep into society until people become accustomed to it.”
“If you know that, then—!”
“I will change Madness.”
The courtroom fell silent.
“I will stay by her side and restrain Madness myself. I will make sure she becomes nothing more than an ordinary girl. Please do not make the mistake of punishing someone who has committed no crime.”
Hope raised his head.
“Entrust her to me.”
His words were overflowing with confidence.
Coming from anyone else, they might have sounded arrogant beyond belief.
But Hope had already accumulated countless achievements.
Because of that, even the judge hesitated.
Perhaps Hope really could reform Madness.
Perhaps it truly was possible for him to place shackles on that dangerous power.
But they could not simply send him onto the Path of Trials because of a mere possibility.
If they allowed mercy toward Madness this time, it could become a precedent.
Someone might show mercy toward Madness again in the future and bring enormous danger upon mankind.
However, the mood in the courtroom had already reached a point where denying Hope's request could cause a riot.
In the end, the judge made a bitter decision.
“And so! After receiving every curse imaginable, without even being given proper equipment, our Hero was thrown onto the Path of Trials!”
Asset bounced around beside the Hero of Hope.
Hope wore only light clothing.
In one hand, he held a long tree branch.
His body was covered in cursed accessories of every kind.
That had been the judge's decision.
Hope had been allowed to enter the Path of Trials, just as he wanted.
But they had made absolutely certain that he would never be able to complete it.
Hope could only smile bitterly at the situation.
Rather than blaming them, he blamed himself, thinking he had not yet earned enough trust from the people.
“But wasn't our Hero supposed to be a swordsman rather than a spearman?”
“I was originally a spearman. I only started using a sword because the weapon gifted to me happened to be a Holy Sword.”
“Ohhh… So you were swinging around a weapon you'd never even properly used before, and everyone who saw you made a huge fuss calling you a master swordsman? People really have terrible eyes!”
Hope had simply swung the sword with overwhelming power.
To ordinary people, that certainly would have looked like the work of a master swordsman.
It wasn't as if Hope was terrible at swordsmanship either.
Still, Asset had completely believed those exaggerated rumors.
And Hope had never bothered correcting them.
Because of that, Asset had been sulking and mocking Hope constantly ever since they entered the Path of Trials.
“Hero, you're really talented at everything!”
“Haha. Not really. I'm simply ridiculously strong.”
“That's a talent too! Someone like me doesn't have any power at all….”
Beside them was Asset's younger sister, Pastien.
Her eyes sparkled as she endlessly praised Hope.
From Hope's perspective, it felt as if someone were constantly pouring hot and cold water over him in turns.
He had originally wanted to enter the Path of Trials alone.
However, as punishment for his crime, he had been ordered to travel with the two sisters.
That left Hope exhausted in more ways than one.
After finally being freed from her original shackles, Asset had simply ended up wearing even stronger shackles enchanted with powerful magic.
Meanwhile, Pastien was nothing more than an ordinary girl without any power.
Hope was already barely managing to continue through the trials.
Protecting both of them at the same time made things considerably harder.
“Haaah… I'm bored. Hero~ How far have we come?”
“That's a meaningless question on the Path of Trials. We'll only see the end of the road when this place decides that the time has come.”
“What?! We've already passed more than ten doors! Why are you only telling me that now?!”
“What could you have done even if you'd known?”
“…Nothing! Hmm! Right, exactly! Actually, not knowing is better for my peace of mind. Wow~ Our Hero really was thinking sooooo carefully about me! Amazing!”
“……”
Hope had been born to become a knight.
He had grown into a Hero.
And he had spent his entire life carrying everyone's hopes upon his back.
To someone like him, Asset was an extremely unusual companion.
Until now, everyone who traveled with Hope either praised him as a Hero or carried themselves with the dignity and elegance expected of someone worthy of being called a Hero's companion.
That only made Asset stand out even more.
But perhaps opposites really did attract.
Hope did not dislike Asset nearly as much as one might expect.
In fact, her constant complaints and childish teasing seemed to give him strength to continue walking down the exhausting Path of Trials.
“Haaah… But hey, friend. These Void Beasts here… I feel like I could turn them into something really interesting if I messed with them just a little. Can't I experiment on them?”
“No.”
“Why not~?! It should be fine! These cute little things are called Void Beasts even though they're absolutely packed with energy! Can't I make them truly empty?!”
“No. Pastien, please stop your sister.”
“Ah, yes! Sis! Stop it already! You're making things difficult for the Hero!”
“Ahahaha! Our Hero is so stingy! Bad guy! Die!”
Despite all her complaining, Asset always listened to Pastien.
And Hope knew that she did not actually hold any serious hostility toward him.
So he secretly smiled as they continued along the Path of Trials.
They fought all kinds of monsters.
They faced special trials.
They collected equipment that could only be obtained and used inside the Path of Trials.
And so, half a year passed.
Eventually, Pastien awakened the Mental Power of Patience.
Asset learned to control the power of Madness.
And finally, after their long journey, the three of them stood before the final door of the Path of Trials.
“That was long. Way too long. Good work, Hero.”
“We still don't know whether this is truly the end. Don't lower your guard yet.”
“Ahaha, seriously, Hero~ The way you talk sounds like some character from a novel. ‘Don't lower your guard yet!’ Can't you talk normally, old man?”
“…S-Sorry.”
“Sis, stop bullying the Hero! How have you managed to keep doing this every single day for half a year?! That's impressive in its own way!”
“Huh? Really? Hehe, I wouldn't say it's impressive enough to deserve praise~”
“……”
Hope unconsciously smiled while watching the sisters bicker.
Then his expression sharpened.
He steeled himself and opened the final door.
If Darkness appeared beyond it, then the road Hope had walked until now had been a path of darkness.
If Light appeared, then it meant the opposite.
Light had to appear.
Only then could Hope lay the foundation for the ending he had desperately wished for.
Only then could Asset be recognized not as Madness, but as Asset Callette, companion of Hope.
A companion of Hope acknowledged even by Light itself.
Creeeeak.
The door slowly opened beneath Hope's hand.
An overwhelmingly bright light poured out, so brilliant that they could barely keep their eyes open.
Then an unfamiliar voice spoke to them.
[It's nice to meet you, Hero of Hope. I don't believe I need to explain who I am, do I?]
When they opened their eyes again, the three of them were standing in the middle of a city bathed in warm sunlight.
Countless people lived peacefully around them.
None of them showed even the slightest concern about the three strangers who had suddenly appeared.
In other words, they were nothing more than illusions created by Light.
It was an appropriate space for the Mother of Many—the being who had opened people's eyes and allowed them to feel love and friendship toward one another.
Asset, however, was startled by the sudden appearance of so many people.
She quickly hid behind Hope.
“…You are Light.”
Hope looked upward.
“I don't know whether you guided me here… or whether I was the one who found you.”
