Pretending to Be Human Is Exhausting Again Today - Chapter 158

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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Pretending to Be Human: Episode 158
After binding Johan in the corner of the bedroom, Mirinai and I stepped out of the cottage.
We sat at the table where we’d first spoken, and I decided to hear what had happened.
Mirinai hesitantly opened her mouth.
“Something felt wrong from this morning. I woke up first today and was preparing breakfast when… Johan suddenly burst into the kitchen and shouted like this.”
‘What’s your scheme? Are you trying to kill me?’
“That’s what he said….”
“Kill? What are you talking about?”
Mirinai hesitated for a moment, then pulled a small kitchen knife from her pocket. It was barely a hand’s span long, with rust spots here and there, looking hardly capable of serving its purpose.
“This is one of the few metal items we have left. That’s why we keep it in the kitchen and only use it for cooking… but when Johan saw it, I think he believed I was trying to kill him.”
“…You were just cooking?”
“Yes. I was cutting fruit for breakfast….”
Was Johan mistaken? Yet he trembled with fear and rage like someone truly threatened.
‘But Mirinai doesn’t seem to be acting. If she really wanted to kill him, she would have attacked while he slept.’
I furrowed my brow at the contradictory testimonies.
The situation felt like a bewildering mystery novel where the relationships tangled in incomprehensible ways.
Mirinai placed the kitchen knife on the table and wept continuously.
“Why did this happen, Captain? I can’t believe Johan tried to kill me. If you had arrived even a moment later, I would have fallen to Johan’s blade….”
The crude wooden dagger Johan wielded was sufficient to kill someone without magical power.
Had I arrived even slightly later, Johan would have mercilessly taken Mirinai’s life.
There was not a shred of hesitation in his movements.
‘I don’t understand. Why did his rage ignite so suddenly….’
In that moment, a thought struck me—this situation mirrored the battlefield beyond.
The Divine Race had always suspected the Demon Clan. They instinctively perceived demonic power as corrupted, constantly convinced that demons threatened them.
Johan resembled them now.
‘Is Johan transforming like the Divine Race outside? What could possibly be the cause?’
My mind grew turbulent. I wished the 3rd Division Commander were here, but he had no aptitude for such magical reasoning.
I glanced at Mirinai, who despaired as though the world were crumbling.
‘I cannot leave Mirinai alone like this. I must find a way to restore Johan to himself.’
Yet no method came to mind immediately.
After brief deliberation, I finally resorted to my last option.
“…Mirinai. Will you gather the materials I’m about to mention?”
“Materials?”
“You should be able to find them here. First, a butterfly with white wings….”
After hearing the full list, Mirinai tilted her head as if wondering why such things were needed. I vaguely dismissed it as preparation to resolve the situation.
“Once you’ve gathered everything, come to the riverbank. Try not to enter the cottage if you can.”
“Yes, yes.”
Before long, Mirinai arrived at the riverbank with the gathered materials.
I, who had already drawn the magical circle, received the materials from her and completed the remaining portions.
“What is this?”
“It’s a summoning magic circle. Not one of the Demon Clan’s, though.”
“You’re calling someone?”
“Don’t worry—I’m not summoning a physical body. It’s just a brief communication.”
Mirinai still looked curious, but I had no time to elaborate.
This magic circle demanded far more delicate manipulation than usual.
‘Handling magical power like divine power isn’t easy.’
Soon, an immense surge of magical power flowed into the circle, and intense light began erupting from the River.
“This… you’re summoning a Deity?”
Mirinai murmured in astonishment.
Only then did she seem to grasp the true nature of the magic circle.
What I had created was a prayer magic circle to summon a Deity—an act that would have landed any other Demon before a military tribunal for treason.
But this was an emergency. I suppressed my guilt and spoke to the presence beyond the circle.
“You’re listening, Lake Deity! If you don’t want to be annihilated this time, answer me now!”
After a moment, a familiar voice emerged from the shimmering light.
[Well, I can’t ignore a summons from the Captain.]
A genderless, smooth yet mysterious tone.
Though I couldn’t see its form, it was unmistakably the Lake Deity.
[Hmm, the scenery is hazy here so I can’t see clearly… but hearing Mirinai’s voice nearby tells me I’ve arrived at the place you mentioned.]
“Yes. As you said, I’ve begun investigating in the location where Mirinai and Johan are.”
[So, have you obtained the truth you sought?]
“No, I understand nothing. If anything, I’ve only caused trouble for Mirinai.”
[Trouble?]
“Well…”
I quickly explained Mirinai’s situation to it—how Johan suddenly became violent and why remained unknown.
After my explanation, the Lake Deity murmured with intrigue.
[Ah, so it happened as expected.]
“As expected? You mean you knew this would happen?”
[Only vaguely. I thought I lacked the means, but it seems that with the Captain’s involvement, results manifested immediately.]
I frowned. The Lake Deity’s tone resembled that of the 3rd Division Commander boasting about experimental results.
“Explain clearly, Lake Deity. Are you saying Johan’s violence is because of me?”
[Precisely speaking, it’s due to your magical power.]
“My magical power?”
[I mentioned before, didn’t I? That I don’t perfectly understand the truth of this secret. But thanks to you arriving there, my hypothesis has become largely confirmed. I’ll explain it now.]
The Lake Deity continued with an eager tone.
[As you know, that space is a Separate World completely isolated from the outside. Unlike the Demon Realm, the magical power concentration isn’t high, and time stands still as if frozen. Like a miniature garden, you might say.]
That description didn’t differ much from my own impressions. I too had thought of a miniature garden the moment I saw this world.
[In other words, that world has everything balanced perfectly. Water, wind, earth and living things… not a single misaligned gear. The only foreign elements in that place are people—that is, the Divine Race and Demons.]
“Johan and Mirinai are foreign elements? But they’ve lived here without problems for a long time.”
[That’s right. There’s only one reason that was possible.]
Its voice grew more subdued.
[It’s because the magical power and divine power of those two have nearly vanished entirely.]
“…?”
[Still don’t understand? It’s people who disrupt the balance of this world, and the magical and divine power they possess.]
The figure on the opposite bank was waving his hand broadly, and the light dancing across the river flared brilliantly.
[Nature is like a scale in balance. Where there is morning, there is night. When the northern regions freeze, the southern regions burn under the sun’s heat. Everything is born and perishes in equilibrium. And that Garden where the Captain resides is a place that perfectly recreates that balance.]
“…What happens if the balance breaks?”
[Disasters occur. Water overflows and floods arise, heat intensifies and droughts come—just as with natural phenomena. Calamities that defy academic explanation stem from such imbalances.]
Having heard this explanation, I could easily anticipate what would follow.
I swallowed dryly and asked slowly.
“If an imbalance between divine and magical power were to occur…?”
[I’ve been curious about that myself. It wasn’t something easily experienced before. But through this case, I’ve come to understand it clearly.]
The Lake Deity continued in a voice tinged with amusement.
[There are only three people in that region, correct? Mirinai with weak magical power and Johan with weak divine power. And… Captain Asmodina with formidable magical power.]
The imbalanced divine and magical power. And Johan’s transformation.
[When the scale tips to one side, the other must change to restore that balance. So that its existence isn’t pushed out, so that it isn’t rendered obsolete.]
The balance of the Separate World, shattered by my presence.
Against the strengthened magical power, Johan, who possessed divine power, was transformed.
And if this law applies to the Demon Realm as well….
“…No matter how many victories we achieve, the war will never end, will it?”
[No, Captain.]
The Lake Deity let out a soft laugh.
[Are you still concerned with victory and defeat? That’s not the issue. As long as the balance of this world doesn’t return, this war will never end. It won’t be resolved by hundreds or thousands dying.]
“Then, the cause that shattered that balance….”
I couldn’t bring myself to finish the sentence, but I already knew the answer.
An existence whose mere appearance warps the balance of paradise.
A warrior who has never suffered defeat across hundreds of battlefields, who has granted the Demon Clan absolute victory.
[It’s you, Captain Asmodina. Your very existence is the imbalance of this world.]

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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