[BL]The Hero and his Party Won't Let Me Go-Chapter 208: Ch : This Sacrifice

’This is annoying. I feel like I cannot move at all. But it should be fine for me to take this attack without sustaining much damage-’

Kaiden braced himself to take that attack but he suddenly felt a presence standing in front of him.

He had a bad feeling so he quickly looked at the person, only to see Shuu blocking the knife with a small knife of his own.

Somehow, Shuu had found enough strength to be able to move, even with that foreign pressure being put down on all of them.

"Kaiden, are you alright? Pull yourself together-"

"Stop getting in my way-! You are so annoying. Tsk, get away-"

Lady Canarie did not give Shuu time to get back on his feet before she attacked him again. Shuu tried to hold her off, but he was not able to. He felt like his body had no strength and Lady Canarie seemed to be powered up.

’Hmm, it does not seem like you can do this alone. At this rate, something tragic might happen. But you might be able to resolve all this if you give in now and accept the Goddess.’

The voice suddenly came back and it startled Shuu enough to make him lighten his grip. That immediately allowed Lady Canarie to press forward and leave a small cut on Shuu’s arm before he managed to force her back.

’Oh dear-! That left a mark on you. It does not seem like you can do this alone. So, you should accept that offer right now. That is the only way for you to protect everyone. All it would cost you is your belief.’

The voice said that, but Shuu had a feeling it would cost him much more than that.

Somehow, he could tell that if he accepted the goddess’s offer, then his body wouldn’t last long. It was born without the goddess’s blessing, so it would not be able to hold her power for long.

But did he have a choice?

"Why is it you? Why are you interfering again and again? This world...my god...you ruined it all. So why even this...?"

The more Lady Canarie spoke, the more unstable she looked.

Shuu suddenly felt like he could see Lady Elysia’s spirit overlapping right over Lady Canarie’s form and the two were merging.

"W-What is going on?"

Everyone else seemed to have noticed this as well, but unlike Shuu, they were not able to move.

"It seems like this is the goddess’s wrath. Lady Canarie and Lady Elysia’s resentment is resonating with the Goddess’s power in this world and it is causing them to dominate this space. Even Emperor Kaiden cannot do anything about it."

A priest announced as he looked at Kaiden.

For the first time, Kaiden looked like he was not in control. He could feel his power but it seemed to be locked behind some kind of barrier.

This should not have been happening to him. He should have been able to overpower the goddess’s power and influence and get to Shuu. So why was he not able to?

It was because his own power was stopping him.

Somewhere inside him, a part of him was holding on to him and reminding him that he had ’no right’ to interfere in any of this. And that part was the one that had become the demon king.

In other words, Kaiden was currently compromised and he could not move.

Shuu, on the other hand, seemed to be the only one who could move properly. But he was not a trained soldier. His strength was normal and it was not going to hold out for long against someone the goddess was lending her power to.

’It hurts...it’s so hard to breathe. How long will I have to do this for?’

Shuu asked in a tired voice as he dodged another attack. But it did not seem like Lady Canarie was done.

"Hahaha, struggle more. Know that you are in a position where you cannot fight me, you worm. I will make sure to drown you in this agony by forcing my hand like this."

Lady Canarie promised as she reached Shuu’s face once more. Her nail scratched at Shuu’s cheek and it left a mark.

The longer this fight went on, the more disadvantageous it would be for Shuu to continue.

’What are you hesitating for? You have the solution to this problem, and yet, you refuse to use it. At this point, aren’t you the problem?’

The voice asked and Shuu felt like it was the final straw that broke him.

He let out a scoff as he straightened his back and his face bore a bittersweet smile.

"It all feels so unfair. In the end, I never had a choice from the beginning. Your appearance, Lady Canarie and Lady Elysia’s sudden change in temperament, and the new prophecy...was it all a game to you and the goddess?"

Shuu asked in a bitter and tired voice.

The voice inside his head went quiet for a minute before it spoke again.

’Of course not. All we ever did was for your own benefit. The demon king was the one who stole you from us in the first place. We are just taking back what was taken from us.’

The voice did not even seem to consider Shuu a human, but rather, an object that needed to be collected and brought back.

It made Shuu chuckle even more. But it was a tiresome chuckle that he could not seem to control.

"Ah, this is so much like you to say. But it’s fine...you win. I will give you what you want from me."

Shuu promised and with one last look back at the Emperor, he took a deep breath and reached inside himself.

He could feel the power inside him pulsing in a familiar way and he let it all out. His eyes met Kaiden’s and Shuu let out a smile.

"Kaiden, I love you. I don’t think I ever told you before, so I decided to say it now. However, try and forget about me in the future, alright? And take care of Caelis and Rin for me."