Kuro no Maou

But, it won’t allow a lazy thought,

“What time it is, do you know!? Hurry and wake up!”

Thanks to Mom, I certainly woke up.

“Hm......What, time?”

The loud voice of mom, indicated it was 7 AM currently.

“......I see”

“Stop dozing off......hurry up and get ready or you’ll really be late!”

Saying that, mom turned back her glossy raven-black hair, and left the room.

Seeing the well-ordered proportions of her that looked like a model, I stood up unsteadily, while still in a daze.

No, wrong, this wasn’t laziness, the body was instinctively desiring rest.

Strange, I didn’t pull an all-nighter yesterday, I certainly slept at the right time, and didn’t even do exercises that would leave fatigue.

Yes, yesterday was the same as always, a normal day.

“Time for changing clothes......”

My head still rotating slowly, I headed towards the closet by dragging my body, and put on the school uniform that hung on the hanger.

From that point, was the normal daily routine work, even without paying attention to it, the body moved on its own.

Washed my face, brushed the teeth, for eating the breakfast, headed towards the living room, there I exchanged the morning salutations with family.

“......Good Morning”

The words that left my mouth, in the first place my voice was low it became even more low by 1 octave, and turned into a groaning voice of the dead.

But with just that, nothing else changed from normal.

The scene that I had repeated yesterday, day before yesterday and will repeat it tomorrow, day after tomorrow too.

Good Morning“

Father, who was wearing a suit and was reading the newspaper in his hands, raised the face up, and gave me a small greeting.

His figure was like that of a typical father, but due to his small build and child-face, to the extent some may even think, what if he was secretly still a student.

But, because he was my father, it didn’t feel that strange to me.

“Good morning. Mao, are you sick?”

The thing that reached my ears which was even more refreshing than the chirp of a songbird, were the morning salutations and words that show caring about me from my sister, Mana.

Mao, I felt it had been a long, to be called by that name.

“No, I don’t have a fever or cold......just, I feel like lazing, not wanting to do anything.”

I spoke spiritless lines lazily.

The sister showed an understanding face, seeing my condition, most probably she would have thought it was because of lack of sleep.

I am mostly chased by the deadline due to that I pulled all-nighters, it wasn’t strange for me to show my laziness in front of my family due to lack of sleep.

But, today I was obviously strange.

No matter how much I thought there was no reason for fatigue, but the body was sluggishly moving as if revolting against my words.

This most probably, was not a physical fatigue, but a mental fatigue.

In the first place, there shouldn’t been anything through which I would get a mental shock.

Overenthusiastically confessing to Shirasaki-san just for getting rejected, I hadn’t suffered from such a melancholic event yet.

Well, I didn’t even have strong feelings of love for her that I would confess to her either though.

“Why are dozing off, take this and get going! Yuriko-chan is already here!”

“......Yuriko-chan?”

While being forced to take the somewhat-less-love-filled bentou from mom, I was told that.

Yuriko-chan, who the hell is that, Ah, wait, isn’t it Shirasaki-san’s name.

Eh, What, she came here? For whom? me?

Impossible, Shirasaki-san is only a fellow club member, our relationship is only above than friend and lot below than best-friend, lover relationship, not in hell, even my classmates keep on telling me ’Keep the delusion in your works only’ with sympathizing eyes.

No, but well, if she had come here in reality, it ain’t my delusion.

The reason Shirasaki-san had come, must be because of club activity related, I didn’t know exactly, but something like this also happens.

Thinking about it, I thought it wouldn’t be good to keep her waiting, stuffed the bentou inside the bag, and left the living room.

“I’m going”

Hearing the words ’Have a safe trip’, I head towards the entrance corridor quickly.

But, changing my shoes, the moment I rest my hands on the door of my familiar house, the body stiffened as if it got struck by lightning.

“......I don’t want to go”

Suddenly, I thought as such.

This lazy body and sluggish mind, might be a major factor.

But, this time it wasn’t a matter of wanting to do or not, my leg refused to move forward, for something more fundamental, like instinctively.

I don’t want to go, does that mean School?

No, I don’t want to go outside.

The outside, world, spread outside the entrance corridor, was isolated by my house, an another world.

“No, it’s not good......I have to go to school......”

Furthermore, there was a person waiting for me named Shirasaki-san on the other side of the door.

Cutting the gloomy thoughts, I opened the door to outside.

“Ah——”

The scene spread outside the open door, was hell.

The soil was drenched with blood, the ground’s surface was drilled by many craters as though they were creating by taking a hella strong shock.

The thunderously blazing flames close up from left and right, upon seeing more clearly, someone crucified on a cross was being burned in the flames.

The things burning, were not only humans, but also many houses and all, anyhow, many-many things were being destroyed and catched fire.

“You cannot run.”

The murmur of that small child, pierced deep through my ear.

I moved my vision a little below, she was there.

The one waiting for me, was not flaxen-haired, good-looking Shirasaki Yuriko,

“I won’t let you escape”

but it was the Apostle of God, having white skin, white hair and white clothes along with brilliantly shining crimson eyes.

“Sariel......”

7th Apostle, Sariel was standing in front of me, holding a thin spear.

“I won’t allow you to escape from this world.”

The thin arms of Sariel moved.

With an unbelievable speed the pointed side of the thin spear, struck deep inside my abdomen.

“Gahaa!?”

The blood scattered, feeling the severe pain piercing my body, without having any other choice, I grabbed the spear stuck in my stomach instinctively.

That moment, the spear was pulled out.

The blade didn’t completely leave the body, due to which my body also got pulled.

“Guaa......S-Sto,p......”

While grabbing the spear with slender arms, slowly, but surely, Sariel pulled me to outside, the other world.

I tried to stop with all my strength, but it was nothing more than wasted-effort by the powerless me.

“......Stop it......Just stop it”

I don’t, I don’t want to go, I don’t want to go outside, to that world.

The place I belong is this, with my peaceful life and family, I belong here.

That’s why, I don’t want to go that bloody world, with just pain, injustice and nobody is saved.

“S-T——”

“I won’t let you escape.”

The body floated in air.

THe completely-powerless me was pulled out from the entrance corridor of house while being impaled by the spear.

And, the moment I was thrown in the ‘other world’, the house I was in just before, got covered in flames——

“Stop Iiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiitttttttttttttttttt”

“——Kurono!”

Having my called out, my consciousness completely woke up.

“Ah......This is......”

Upon widening my eyes, only my right eye worked.

In that small vision, the crying face of Lily, and a little different room than of the familiar guild’s guest room, was reflected.

“Dream, huh......”

Somehow, it felt like I saw a really bad dream.

I already forgot what scenes did I see in the dream, anyhow, there was no doubt it was a bad dream.

Due to that , I screamed and Lily came to me.

“I’m fine, don’t worry about me, Lily”

“......Yeah”

For making her feel relieved, I embraced her small body and patted her head.

No, it was the opposite, doing that, I myself was feeling relieved.

Upon my calmness returning to me, I realized some points, like thanks to the nightmare, I have a lot of sweat stuck on my body.

“Sorry, I must smell of sweat”

“No, I don’t hate Kurono’s scent”

Even so I couldn’t let her become become dirty, so I released her quickly from my hands.

Lily came down from the bed while flapping her wings, and left the room saying the breakfast was ready.

She wasn’t able to change her anxious look till the end, and I was the making her look like that.

“......It’s alright. I’m fine”

As to persuade myself, I mutter.

I cannot forget it, I can’t help but think it, that was why, I had no choice but to accept the reality.

“Time to wash my face.”

This place was, a room in the boarding house mainly used by adventurers in Spada.

From the time that fight had ended, a week had already passed.