The Boss Wants to Die - Chapter 17

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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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The boss wants to die.
Chapter 17
“Show me the way.”
“Commencing navigation!”
The sound of bat wings fluttering vanished in an instant.
I hesitated for a moment before unfurling the Demon God’s Wings, then shook my head and leaped toward the opposite rooftop instead.
My order to choose a secluded location seemed to have been transmitted clearly enough.
Heart flew so far from the village that I worried we might exceed the bounds of the Rest Field entirely.
At this distance, I half-expected the collar to send a signal.
If Aktr found out about this, I was already dreading how tiresome that long-holding grudge would make him.
“Here, master!”
Heart pointed to a forest tucked behind a weathered wooden sign.
I stepped lightly onto the dirt ground and moved inside.
There wasn’t a single streetlamp, yet the Demon God’s eyes saw clearly through the darkness—the surroundings laid bare.
A short way in, I spotted Michael sitting at rest against the base of a tree.
The trees crowded the sky so thickly that not a single ray of moonlight penetrated the forest.
Only the Holy Sword he carried glowed with a soft blue luminescence.
“Hello.”
I waved my hand lightly in greeting.
Michael’s expression froze like ice as he glared at me.
“What’s with that face? Can’t you see I’m saying hello?”
“Why did you call me here?”
“Impatient, aren’t you?”
I shrugged and leaned my back against a tree trunk.
The frigid pre-dawn air added only coldness to this reunion that held no warmth.
“You were right about one thing. Aktr’s heart is far blacker than I gave him credit for.”
“And?”
“I realized if I’m going to let you kill me, I need to be more careful. So I wanted to gather more information. You talked about him being cunning and scheming, like you knew him inside and out—I want to hear more of that.”
……
“Tell me more. About Aktr. I’m in the mood to listen now.”
Michael regarded me with contempt for a moment, then recalled that there was no other way out of this situation and clicked his tongue sharply.
He opened his mouth with obvious reluctance.
“Aktr Hevgenia is a criminal who fled the Sanctuary after stealing the Sanctuary’s Demonic Sword. He is a ticking time bomb waiting to detonate. I was dispatched from the Sanctuary as a Holy Sword Knight to apprehend him.”
An unexpected story unfolded.
I regarded Michael with a curious expression.
I wasn’t startled by talk of Demonic Swords or criminals—I was startled by the fact that each Player apparently had their own unique story.
‘Weren’t all the stories the same? Could it be that each Player has a different story?’
In a world that turned of its own accord, the mere fact of sleeping, eating, and living like real beings was already surreal, but this was wonder on another level entirely.
‘What does it matter if I’m a boss monster? I’ve been locked away in the Demon Palace my whole life, knowing none of this.’
I savored this new knowledge with relish, my interest kindled.
“What is a Demonic Sword?”
“You don’t know what a Demonic Sword is?”
“Why should I know?”
Michael’s brow furrowed in disbelief.
“The Demonic Sword is a fragment of you. The records state it’s a Fragment of Evil that fell away from the Demon God himself. Yet you claim not to know of it?”
“What of it?”
I shrugged.
“How many gnats have come buzzing around looking for me so far? When you’re swatting them away, isn’t it natural that some small piece might fall off? Should I really concern myself with every last splinter?”
Michael seemed disinclined to continue the conversation and closed his mouth.
But I had no intention of letting him sit quietly.
I needed to drain every last bit of useful information from him.
“Whether you hate me or not, that’s your own business—suit yourself. But finish what you started. That’s the contract.”
Michael’s jaw clenched so tightly his chin jutted forward, his fists balling tight.
I sighed and placed my hands on my hips.
“Don’t you realize this humiliation ends with my death?”
……
“When the contract concludes successfully, you’ll run that Holy Sword clean through my heart. So are you really going to sulk like an idiot just because you’re upset right now?”
“That’s——!”
Michael found himself with nothing to say and closed his mouth instead.
I spoke with firm resolve.
“Talk.”
Michael cursed under his breath for a moment, then forced himself to speak.
“The Demonic Sword poisons the human heart. It whispers endlessly—destroy, kill, destroy.”
‘It’s like the Demon God inside me.’
I nodded.
“Whoever wields that blade eventually goes mad. Becomes a murderer. That’s why I’ve been hunting Aktr.”
“But Aktr seems fine. He says crazy things sometimes, but that’s it.”
I pressed my index finger to my temple and made a circling motion.
“He’s developed immunity. He’s carried that sword since he was a very small child.”
Michael’s eyes grew distant, lost in some far memory.
“When a being has only recently been created—when they’re still young—Divine Grace remains strongest in them. Even the Demonic Sword finds it hard to extend its claws.”
“So when he grows up, you pass it to another child? Is that how the Sanctuary manages it?”
“No. The Demonic Sword ultimately corrupts the human soul. So Aktr has carried it continuously since childhood.”
I tilted my head without much interest.
Another question had cropped up.
‘Childhood, huh. When a Player creates a game character, do they start from childhood? Or is this just lore?’
I tapped my cheek thoughtfully before asking.
“Why Aktr specifically? It’s practically a sacrifice. He has to live his whole life as the scabbard of the Demonic Sword. With his soul rotting away in the process.”
“The weight of guilt he bears isn’t truly his own.”
Michael spoke bitterly.
“He was only a child back then. Nothing like the criminal he became when he fled the Sanctuary with the sword in hand. All of that guilt belongs to his father.”
‘Aktr’s father? Hmm….’
I suddenly lost interest in this petty backstory.
Aktr’s past was intriguing, but it wasn’t important to me right now.
I needed information that was more useful, more practical.
“Never mind all that. Tell me about Aktr’s character instead. What matters now is that I die without him knowing.”
“…….”
“Got anything else? Why he’s pulling this stunt, whether you two shared some special plan beforehand, that sort of thing. Better yet, tell me how he got his Legendary Item.”
“…….”
Michael fell silent as if he’d forgotten how to speak.
It wasn’t stubborn silence like before.
When I’d first seen him, his face had held this same expression.
Something embarrassed and uncertain, confusion that seemed to chase him—as if some doubt he couldn’t even himself resolve was hounding him.
But his quivering lips suggested he had plenty he could say.
Michael chose silence instead. A foolish decision.
“I didn’t think you were this stupid. You still have the luxury of hiding things from me?”
I walked toward him with sharp, deliberate steps and pressed my heel down on his chest as he sat against the tree trunk.
As the heel dug into his flesh, Michael’s brow furrowed with pain.
“When I’m being nice, stay docile…….”
Fanfare blared suddenly!
“……What?”
A trumpet flourish erupted without warning. Startled, I checked the hologram.
[Congratulations!]
‘……What is this?’
[One week has passed since you left the Demon Palace as of 5 AM!]
[You have achieved an Achievement and obtained a new Title!]
[Free Demon God!
You have endured one week without returning to the Demon Palace.
You are now a Free Demon God. Go forth and spread your infamy across the world!]
A cascade of system windows bloomed across my vision, followed by another trumpet fanfare and a flood of new notifications.
Fanfare blared again!
[Quest unlock condition satisfied.
― Obtained Free Demon God Title (1/1)]
[Synchronization complete. Loading Quest Program…….]
I stood frozen, staring blankly at the spinning hourglass cycling rapidly.
Ding!
[Quest Program loaded successfully.]
Ding!
[New Quest arrived.]
[Hearts that worship the Demon God.
As a Demon God, you must increase those who worship you. Gather allies and uncover the truth of the Demon God.
― Current Target: Michael.
― Condition for Success: Michael’s Favorability at 80 points.
― Reward: One hidden story will be unlocked.
― Time Remaining: 29 days, 23 hours, 52 minutes.
※ Warning! This is a Quest with a penalty. Should you fail, you will receive the Title “Incompetent Demon God.” The Title will remain active for four months, during which all your plans will end in failure.]
‘What in the—?’
I stared down in a daze.
Michael, still pinned beneath my heel, glared up at me with his cheeks flushed crimson with humiliation.
Above his short blond hair—which quivered like a cherub’s—a new number materialized as a hologram.
[Michael’s Favorability: –97.
177 points remaining to complete the Quest.]
“…….”
“…….”
I lifted my foot quietly.
His sacred vestments, crumpled beneath my heel, were now covered in dust and grime.
He brushed the dirt away irritably, rising to his feet with obvious reluctance to experience my sole pressed against his chest again.
The look in his eyes made that perfectly clear.
[Michael’s Favorability has decreased by 1 point.]
[Michael’s Favorability: –98.
178 points remaining to complete the Quest.]
‘Damn it all…….’

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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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