I Became a Burden to the Conscienceless Party

Actually, I didn’t intend to bring him here. It just happened this way. It’s because my heart softened in front of Jim, who is like a miracle.
Yes, he is evidence of the last miracle the Celestial God left in this world.
I thought that just being with him could be a clue about the disappeared Celestial God.
Maybe that’s why I’m excited.
After all, I was still the Saint of the Celestial Order. Because I desperately hoped that God would look back at the world again.

“This place, you see. It’s where the previous Pope tried to pull down the Celestial God.”

It’s the worst secret within the Order.
This information, which would have been hurriedly hidden originally, has already become an open secret.
The Demon King’s Army probably knows too.
Because one of the main perpetrators of that incident was the Demon King.
The Pope of the Celestial Order and the Demon King joined hands to try to pull down God and sit in that place. But they failed.
This vast and barren open space is where the aftermath remains.
Now it’s covered by time and even those traces have faded, but still.
It’s only been about 7 years.
During those 7 years, the Celestial Order was thrown into hell alive, and Irina desperately restored it to this point.
How much blood was shed during that process? How much blood did she make others shed?
And how much injustice did she have to turn a blind eye to during that process?

“After that day, the Celestial God disappeared. Regrettably, while the holy power already bestowed wasn’t taken back, no more believers who could awaken holy power appeared after that.”

It’s natural to collapse when denied by the object of faith.
But if we just collapse like that.
Then wouldn’t everyone who has lived for faith without knowing anything meet a meaningless end?

“Mr. Jim, are there miracles in this world? Do you think there are?”

The reason why the Celestial Order was the most powerful order was because the Celestial God was a being who brought miracles to this world.
Because it was a being that made people hold hope even in the face of impossible things.
But what about the world now that he has disappeared? How will it change?
In the face of what’s deemed impossible, should we just helplessly accept defeat, accept death, accept destruction?
Everyone has the right to dream of miracles. Even if it’s a lie.

“Miracles…”

Irina waited for Jim’s answer with her usual false smile.
Honestly, it didn’t matter what answer he gave. His existence itself represents God’s miracle, but it can’t be evidence that the Celestial God can return.
Yes, she knows too.
The fact that she’s finding comfort in Jim’s existence itself.
The fact that she’s forcibly attaching reasons to investigate and torment him for something that’s neither more nor less than that.

“They will exist.”

At this hopeful view, Irina secretly sneered and asked back.

“What if it’s just coincidence that looks like that? What if it’s not a miracle that overturns the impossible, but just finding a way out of something that was possible from the beginning?”
“Then I would think that regaining that way out is a miracle.”
“Pardon?”
“Isn’t that right? Even if it’s a coincidence, if it’s something that makes you momentarily think ‘A miracle has occurred!’, it must have been an ingenious idea that I originally wouldn’t have thought of.”

Jim was confident.
He confidently acknowledged his own inadequacies and affirmed miracles.

“Hasn’t this useless me survived for over 2 years as part of the hero party? What else could this be if not a miracle? Haha.”

Irina stared blankly at Jim and then gave a bitter smile.
I’ll admit I was almost shaken for a moment. His words that those things could be miracles depending on how you think about them certainly tempted my heart.
But the example he added belatedly brought her back to reality in an instant.
Because Jim’s joining was planned from beginning to end.
There was no miracle, not even coincidence in that.

‘Ah, but still…’

Irina, who was about to dismiss Jim’s opinion like that, turned around again and examined the stupid expression on Jim’s face.

‘I suppose it was at least a coincidence that I was able to find you.’

Everything was planned for Jim and the Demon King’s Army. But for Irina who discovered the hybrid demon, it was a miraculous coincidence.
Just thinking like that, Irina somehow couldn’t stop the smile forming on her lips.
Not the pretentious smile she always wore in front of people, but a naturally arising smile.
A smile so beautiful it was sad.

“That’s right. Just thinking like that seems to give some comfort. Thank you, Mr. Jim.”
“Haha! It’s nothing.”

There are still no miracles in this world.
What looks like miracles are all just coincidences that had potential.
But the fact that you encountered that coincidence itself could be a miracle.
Irina maintained her smile at this conclusion that didn’t change, like a play on words, and lost interest in Jim.

“Thank you, Mr. Jim. Thanks to you, I was able to feel relieved.”

Miracles don’t come.
What you think is a miracle is just a coincidence in the end.
If Jim says that the coincidence coming is a miracle.

‘I will move forward to create miracles myself.’

Irina wanted to create miracles, even if by cruel methods.
So that people can pray with peace of mind. So they don’t give up even in the face of impossibility. Sacrificing the few for the many.
Peace, even if it’s false.

“…Shall we go back now? I think I acted too naively, considering you just arrived, Mr. Jim.”
“Ah, it’s fine. I got to see a lot of good things thanks to you.”
“I’m grateful you say that. Then I’ll guide you to where you’ll be staying.”

Irina no longer pulled Jim’s hand. She no longer waits relying on miracles.
She intended to move directly to bring miracles back to this world.
Yes, it doesn’t matter even if she doesn’t discriminate means and methods. Because she doesn’t want to see people just dying in vain.
She intended to cross the line.
The little bit of goodness she had been keeping until now.

“Ah…”

Irina turned around and saw.
The place where the previous Pope tried to pull down the Celestial God and usurp that divinity.
That place that became the Order’s dark secret. In the past, this place became almost a wasteland due to the aftermath of that incident. Everyone in the Celestial Order had to bear that huge scar.
But now, what she saw there was just an ambiguous land where both the wounds and the lessons had faded, buried by the flow of time.

Esmeralda flailed as she opened her eyes in the hospital room.

“Gasp?!”

She remembers the last moment.
She recalled Irina sticking a syringe in her neck and thinking of taking her to the laboratory.
That’s why Esmeralda felt all over her body, looking for any problems.
After feeling around and lifting her top for a while to check if there were any problems, Esmeralda belatedly noticed the gaze directed at her.

[Note: He’s just focusing on the scene unfolding before his eyes right now.]

“Ah…”

Jim was watching Esmeralda with an extremely serious face.
He was staring as if he would engrave this moment in his mind.

“Could you stop staring?”
“Ah, excuse me. Hero, and I came to visit you. I’m really glad you look healthy. As expected, the Celestial Order’s holy magic is amazing.”
“…”

Esmeralda glared at Jim who turned his gaze away with an extremely calm attitude, then sighed.
He’s usually terrible at acting, but he’s no joke at times like this.

[Note: He’s feeling regretful.]

If Esmeralda couldn’t read Jim’s inner thoughts, she would have thought she overreacted.
Esmeralda looked at Jim, whose libido had noticeably increased recently, with half-closed eyes and then let out a deep sigh.

‘The root cause is me, so I can’t really say anything about this…’

Even now, the problem was that Esmeralda didn’t check her surroundings while overreacting and checking her body.
Jim just had lustful thoughts about the situation he accidentally encountered.
Esmeralda has no reason to get angry. If she gets angry, shouldn’t she be angry at her own carelessness?
Of course, it’s unpleasant that he keeps glancing even after she pointed it out.
But well…

‘It can’t be helped that I’m attractive. Hmm.’

Esmeralda felt better.
Recently, she’s been in a state of extreme mental fatigue in many ways, so she could be happy with even this small sense of achievement.
It was a pity.

“Mr. Jim, nothing unusual happened while I was asleep, right?”
“I’m not sure.”
“Is that so? Then how long was I asleep?”
“Haha, I’m not sure about that either. I was asleep until recently too. I just woke up today.”
“…?”

Something’s strange.
Before Esmeralda, who belatedly realized this, could ask.
Jim shrugged and said.

“We’re being detained.”
“Didn’t you say you came to visit me?”
“We’re isolated in the entire building. I’m in the next room.”

Only after hearing Jim’s words did Esmeralda look at the window.
She could see sturdy iron bars.
In that bewildering situation, Esmeralda had something she needed to confirm first.

“You didn’t do anything weird to me while I was asleep, did you?!”

It was a very important issue.

“Um… what exactly falls under ‘weird things’?”
“You crazy bastard!”