East Road Quest

Chapter 38 The Boy’s Name

The boy, who had been silent for a while, lost the red glow in his eyes. Following that, the chains that were choking Jade’s neck loosened and shortened back to their original length.

Jade collapsed to the ground, spitting out saliva as if vomiting water. His throat hurt so much that not only breathing but even swallowing saliva was difficult. For a while, his vision, darkly stained, did not return.

The lukewarm evening breeze of the desert blew in. Within the wind, the boy looked down at Jade. At first glance, he seemed like a sulking child, but upon closer inspection, his expression was one of pain filled with confusion and questions.

“Your name…”

Jade took a deep breath before asking.

“…Still can’t remember?”

The boy placed his hand on his waist and groaned.

‘Considering the time I spent locked up in the monastery for three years, I can’t even imagine five hundred years. It’s enough to forget one’s name.’

Jade knew all too well how slowly time passed when confined.

The boy said,

“Now that I think about it, I don’t remember other things well either. I only remember the moment I was tied here. Like an ungerminated seed!”

Frightened by his growling demeanor, Jade quickly diverted his anger with another question.

“Even if you don’t remember other things, shouldn’t you remember your name? Everyone must have called you by it. Just try to recall a little…”

“They didn’t call me by my name.”

“Then what did they call you?”

The boy seemed to be retracing his memories for a long time before he began to count on his fingers.

“Little villain, bastard, damned one, cursed brat, piece of shit… There were more, uh, let’s see…”

Jade stopped him, anticipating worse insults.

“Not those. Don’t you have a proper name?”

“Ah, enough! Are you going to unlock this or not?”

The boy, as if blaming Jade for his lack of memory, shouted and extended his shackled wrist.

“I told you. I won’t unlock it.”

“Ah, you’re giving me a headache.”

The boy held his head.

“Do I look like I can’t kill you? It’s true that my body doesn’t move as it used to…”

Jade immediately shook his head.

“Even if you don’t move, you could easily kill someone like me.”

“Then my appearance isn’t frightening?”

“Maybe at first meeting, but anyone who sees this much power would be afraid of you. Me included.”

The boy still couldn’t stand and plopped down in front of Jade. Then, he leaned in uncomfortably close and said,

“Earlier…”

“Earlier?”

“In the cave…”

“…Why did you say you were sorry to me?”

“Because the you in the story was pitiable.”

“I’m not pitiable.”

“You’ve been deceived and mistreated by so many adults. Every time I heard your story, every time you fell for a lie, it felt like it was my fault. It was the fault of humans, angels, and dwarves, but no one ever apologized to you, and that was regrettable.”

The boy tilted his head as if hearing this for the first time.

“Should I have received an apology? I hardly remember, so I’m not sure.”

The boy’s eyes sparkled like those of children visiting Zerba Monastery.

“How was I in your story? Tell me.”

Jade looked around first. He didn’t want to talk about such things in a place filled with the corpses of demons. But soon, the bodies turned to black ash, then seeped into the sand or were carried away by the wind.

The demons that died by the boy’s hand vanished in a different form than those taken by the light of annihilation.

Jade, somewhat relieved, began his story.

“Once upon a time, there was a boy…”

“That boy is me, isn’t it?”

The boy asked impatiently.

“Yes. I don’t know your name now, and in this case, I can’t say ‘Once upon a time, you lived.’ So just listen.”

The boy nodded.

Jade began his story slowly.

♦

“The one who trapped me wasn’t a dwarf child, but an angel transformed?”

After Jade finished his story, the boy asked in surprise.

“From what I’ve heard, yes.”

“How could I not recognize it?”

“Who knows? Maybe the transformation was too good?”

“That can’t be…”

The boy muttered and then asked again.

“I don’t remember that time well either, how do you know so much?”

“Rather, I want to ask. Is the story I just told really about you? Was any part exaggerated…”

“As far as I remember, it’s true. Though it seems the order might be a bit mixed up.”

Jade couldn’t hold back his curiosity, even if it meant dying by the boy’s fist at that moment.

“So… is there really a land of angels?”

“There is.”

The answer was so simple and quick that it was hard to trust.

“Where?”

“I don’t remember the location well.”

“So there’s also a world of dwarves?”

The boy pointed to the ground.

“There is. Underground… I can’t remember the entrance well. If I did, I’d storm in right now and smash it to pieces!”

“I understand. In fact, if even one person had apologized to you from the beginning, you probably wouldn’t have caused a commotion. But instead, the king of humans deceived you and sent you away.”

“It doesn’t matter. That’s why I could go on an adventure.”

“If the philosophers had taken your words seriously and advised you, you wouldn’t have needed to wander for a hundred years.”

“It doesn’t matter. That’s how I found the land of angels.”

“If the angels had welcomed you properly, you wouldn’t have had to suffer again.”

“It doesn’t matter. That’s how I got my own weapon. Though I don’t know where it went.”

The boy looked around as if searching for ‘the unbreakable staff.’

“You didn’t need to fight the angels in the first place. You could have been part of the heavenly army fighting demons with other angels.”

“It doesn’t matter. Even if I didn’t join the heavenly army, I still fought demons.”

“You were also deceived by the angels. But they couldn’t capture or kill you.”

“It doesn’t matter. They couldn’t catch or kill me.”

“Then you got trapped because of a bet…”

“That matters… Hmm, that does matter.”

“In my eyes, you haven’t done anything particularly bad,” said Jade, “yet everyone around you has pushed you into infamy. It’s not your fault that you’ve decided to become a fallen angel, one who would bring about the world’s end.”

The boy listened without much response.

“That’s why I said I’m sorry. I’ve always thought someone should apologize to you, and if the chance ever fell to me, I believed I should be the one to do it.”

“Hah! Spouting such nonsense. Your words won’t change my resolve to kill you!”

Jade retorted in the same tone the boy had used.

“It doesn’t matter. My apology isn’t a lie or hypocrisy.”

“You’ve only heard of me in stories. You don’t truly know who I am, yet you dare to offer me your pity? In your tales, I’m depicted as an innocent larva, naive and pure, but I’m not that kind of person.”

“Have you run out of things to say?”

“No, it’s not that…”

Unable to hold back, Jade asked,

“What’s with all this talk about bees and flowers?”

“Don’t you get it? It’s an insult.”

“How is that an insult… Never mind. It’s not important.”

Jade sighed and continued,

“What’s important is that you’re much kinder than you think.”

“Talking about flowers falling again. Are you trying to kill me with your shackles and all that nonsense?”

“Hmm, I’ve thought about it, and indeed, if I’m to die, it would be best to die without pain.”

“Look at this guy!”

“You said you chose to fall. That’s proof of your purity and goodness.”

“How does that make any sense? Should I list all the terrible things I’ve done? A weakling like you would faint.”

“There was a farmer’s wife who was burned at the stake for supposedly seducing a man, even though she was the one assaulted by a noble. Her child was drowned, accused of being a devil’s spawn. A priest who killed a pregnant woman in a fit of rage after losing a bet claimed she was carrying a demon and he was merely killing it, and he was acquitted. A murderer who killed a doctor couple that treated him later accused them of stealing from Rome and got away with it.” Jade placed a hand on the boy’s shoulder, who only blinked in response.

“If you’ve done worse than that, go on, tell me.”

The boy remained silent.

Jade gripped his shoulder tightly.

“You can’t fall. You don’t even know what corruption is. You’re just angry. I know you can’t change your decision to kill me. In the stories, you always did what you intended to do. So listen well. After you kill me, look at my body and think. Was this really what you wanted? Will you feel as relieved as you did when you killed those demons?”

Jade removed his hand from the boy’s shoulder and waited.

The boy grimaced and said,

“Were you really prepared to die by my hand?”

“Dying doesn’t bother me. My soul died when my parents passed away.”

The boy slowly shook his head in disbelief.

“That’s absurd.”

“What is?”

“I never thought I wanted an apology. But hearing you, I wonder if I did want to hear it. How is that possible? I’m not so weak that I’d want such an apology. It doesn’t make sense!”

“Having such feelings doesn’t make you weak.”

Jade nodded, and the boy asked,

“So you’re saying it’s not my fault?”

“You did nothing wrong. If anything, you deserved an apology.”

“Is that so? Ah, why can’t I remember?” The boy tapped his head.

‘If I get hit even once by that hand, I’ll die.’

Jade, frightened, leaned back slightly.

The boy, tugging at his long red hair, said,

“I may not remember well, but one thing is certain. I just wanted to know who I was. Then I found out I was an angel. So I wanted to do whatever an angel’s duty was. It had to be something worthwhile. Because that’s what angels do! Guarding grapes that no one steals isn’t a worthy task!”

“That was a lie unworthy of an angel. If the Angel Chief were here, I’d demand an apology from you.”

“Yeah, now I get it. Back then, I must have wanted the Angel Chief to apologize to me.”

“Then maybe the fight with the angels could have ended without a battle.”

The boy shook his head.

“Not really. To be honest, I enjoyed fighting the angels.”

“You enjoyed it?”

“Yes, I did!”

The boy stood up abruptly and began to shout.

“The angels would come to the mountains when I hid there, and to the sea when I hid in the waters. Angels were flying everywhere! Just to find me! To fight me! Those who hardly fought me when I begged for a battle came with all their might to confront me.”

“So, you fought because it was fun?”

“It was the most fun I’ve ever had! I didn’t kill the angels. If I did, it wouldn’t be a fight; it would be a war. The angels didn’t try to kill me either; they tried to capture me. That’s why it was a fight.”

The boy continued, his voice rising with excitement.

“Sometimes there were duels, you know? Formal battles. One-on-one! Dwarves came from afar to bet with me. Elves had contests with me to hit distant objects, and orcs had throwing competitions. I won them all.”

“Elves? Orcs?”

“Yes! Among humans, those who couldn’t compete with me physically tried to outsmart me. With games like chess or dice. But I won those too. I liked winning. I didn’t start the fights, but I enjoyed them.”

The boy gestured around him as he spoke.

“I also enjoyed fighting demons like just now. Killing these bastards is the most fun because I don’t have to feel guilty. Do you know why I can’t kill you? Because you can’t fight at all.”

“That’s fortunate. I needed you because I’m weak, and that’s why I came to meet you. And for that very reason, I can live.”

The boy looked shocked, as if he had heard something he shouldn’t have.

“What do you mean you ‘needed’ me?”

“I needed you.”

“Why?”

“You saw what just happened. I’m being pursued. I suspect there will be many more attempts to stop me from doing what I must. If my journey is a hundred steps, I feel like I haven’t even reached the first one, yet I’ve already faced death over a hundred times. That’s why I came for your help.”

“You needed my strength. You didn’t come to apologize.”

“I intended to apologize when we met, but that wasn’t my primary reason for coming.”

“I will bring about the end of the world!”

“Still stubborn? Forget it. You won’t do it. You don’t even want to, so stop pretending.”

“Say it again.”

“What?”

“Why did you come looking for me?”

“I need your power,” said Jade as she struggled to her feet and placed her hand on the boy’s head.

“I’ve never heard such words before,” he replied, a hint of surprise in his voice.

“It seems like a first for me too. I’ve never needed anyone before.”

Jade was about to embark on a journey eastward in search of the Holy Grail. “Come with me,” she urged.

“And what about my resolve to kill you?” he challenged.

“Forget such pointless resolutions,” Jade dismissed with a wave of her hand.

The boy flinched and stepped back, seemingly offended by her touch.

Jade thought he disliked being touched on the head, but suddenly, the boy let out a roar that seemed to fill the entire red desert.

He turned and began to punch the ground furiously. With each strike, the red earth cracked and split.

Boom! Boom! Boom!

Under the crimson sunset, red sand and dust hung in the air like mist. The boy gasped for breath within it.

Jade could only see his heaving back.

‘He must be upset that he couldn’t keep his resolve to kill me. Fortunately, it seems he has chosen to hold back,’ she thought, relieved.

Then the boy spoke, “I remember my name.”

“That’s good. What is it?” Jade asked.

“Ruby…” he answered without turning around.

“Ruby?”

“Ruby… something. I can’t remember the rest. People never used my name anyway.”

“Then I’ll call you often from now on. Ruby suits you, especially with the color of your hair.”

“Stop it.”

“Huh? Stop what?”

“That.”

“What’s ‘that’?”

Ruby, still not turning around, wiped his eyes with the back of his hand.

“No one has ever treated me kindly. No one has ever apologized to me. No one has ever looked me in the eye without fear and talked to me.”

The moment Ruby turned around, Jade was taken aback.

The boy was crying!

Large, jewel-like tears rolled down his cheeks, making his already sparkling eyes shine like precious stones.

“No one… ever told me I was needed…”

Jade was flustered to see Ruby crying.

‘How can someone be so adorable and beautiful?’

If one were to see him now, they could believe he was an angel or even a devil. Both angel and devil possessed an emotional and physical presence too intense for the human heart to easily accept.

‘He must have been so lonely to cry over such simple words…’

The thought made Jade feel tears welling up in her eyes.

‘Simple words? I’ve contemplated death myself, unable to bear even a few years of loneliness. Even though people like Father Daniel and Sapph cared for me. But Ruby had no one.’

Jade took Ruby’s hand and said, “If you want me to stop, I’ll say it just once more and then no more. I need you, Ruby. Come with me.”

Ruby wiped away his tears once more and nodded.