TuxedoTranslations

Chapter 2

Eh? This person actually admits he’s a bad guy?

Do bad guys admit they’re bad? Normally, bad guys would claim to be good people, right?

So, if someone says they’re a bad guy, does that mean they’re actually a good person?

Albin’s little brain momentarily crashed.

He hadn’t figured it out yet and simply pushed his weapon forward, trembling as he tried to intimidate the bad guy in front of him. “Y-You move and I’ll poke you! Don’t look down on me, I’m really good at fighting, I’ve never lost!”

He wasn’t exactly lying; it’s just that his fighting experience was only level 1.

There had been a boy in his neighborhood who said he was an unwanted child and even tried to steal the toy his brother had bought for him. Albin ended up fighting with the boy and won.

Anyway, it wasn’t a loss.

The man didn’t provoke him further, but coldly asked, “Do you know my cloak can withstand the scorching fire?”

Albin nodded. He had already noticed this in the fire. The cloak he used as a body bag was surprisingly good. Not only was it fire-resistant, but it hadn’t torn even after dragging on the ground for so long. The quality was great—cool and practical.

The man furrowed his brows even deeper.

“Then why didn’t you wear it and leave alone?”

Albin looked at him with a strange expression, not understanding why he was asking this, and even thinking that asking such a question made the person seem like an idiot.

“If I wore it, you’d get burned. If I just left without a care, even if the fire didn’t burn you immediately, you’d die from inhaling too much smoke.”

This person was unconscious and unable to dodge, making him more vulnerable to injury. To prevent that, Albin had wrapped him in the cloak, making it easy to drag him and also protecting him from being burned.

He was so smart! Truly a genius!

He proudly placed one hand on his hip.

As his red hand touched the rough cloth, he sucked in a sharp breath and quickly pulled it away.

The man gave him a deep look.

This child… is he an idiot?

Since he already noticed the cloak’s function, he should understand that as soon as he wore it, he could leave the fire unharmed.

But it seemed like this child hadn’t thought of this at all.

The crimson eyes reflected the boy’s innocent expression.

“Is it worth it, to suffer burns, be despised by the gods, and be seen as a disaster by everyone?”

The scriptures recorded: Those who are burned by fire are guilty.

In some extreme places, fire survivors are even bound and burned to death, claiming it purifies the guilty through flames, preventing the gods from sending more divine punishment to harm others.

Albin listened to him dizzily, unable to understand.

Fire safety ads said to be careful with open flames.

But shouldn’t people who encounter fires or those who get burned by evil people be helped and cared for? How come these people here are discriminating against the victims and treating them like a curse?

Albin frowned. He really couldn’t understand these things. Wasn’t this completely different from what his parents and teachers taught him?

They must be crazy.

How could the gods lead such actions? That’s bad behavior. Those are bad gods!

A god is supposed to protect everyone, right? This god didn’t sound reliable at all. Firefighters were way more trustworthy.

Albin puffed up his face and angrily waved the branch in his hand, brushing it across the man’s throat, forcing him to open his eyes.

“So you think I’m guilty too?”

The man lifted his eyes, and his irritated expression seemed to say, “If you say I am, I’ll poke you.”

“No,” he said, his eyes brewing a storm that seemed ready to swallow him, “The truly guilty one… is me.”

Albin pushed the branch forward, slightly pressing it against his throat to stop him from speaking further.

“What’s this nonsense about being burned and being guilty?!” Albin was furious, covering his ears with one hand. “I don’t believe in gods, I’m not listening!”

He stared at the man in front of him.

This guy was definitely an idiot!

Such an idiot could never be a bad guy.

“Burns hurt, but dying hurts even more.” He had died once before, so he knew what he was talking about!

“I only got a little hurt, but I could save someone. Of course, I’ll do it! If a god is gonna hate me for that, then let them hate me! I hate them too!”

That’s it! From now on, he’s going to curse bad gods every day!

The man, half-sitting against the rock wall, looked up. The white-haired boy’s red eyes were as bright as flames. Looking into those eyes, he seemed to see the boy’s unwavering determination as he carried him out of the divine punishment fire.

Too bad, though, this child saved the wrong person.

He saved a villain who had committed the crime of god-slaughter.

Suddenly, the man leaned forward. Albin, afraid of poking him, quickly tossed the branch aside but was caught by both of his wrists, flipped around so that his palms were facing up.

As Albin struggled, he saw the man’s hand glow with a soft white light, like holding a small moon.

When the man brought the moon near his palm, a palm-sized white magic circle appeared out of nowhere, the glow swirling and star-like magic particles flowing into the wound.

Albin felt a cool, tingling sensation, and soon, the swelling in his palms disappeared, the skin smooth as if it had never been dirty.

He tried to make a fist, and the pain was completely gone.

He stared, wide-eyed, at the magical effect before him.

“Magic?!”

Right, this was a world of swords and magic!

But it wasn’t until he saw it with his own eyes and felt the magic that he realized it.

Magic… who could resist the charm of magic?

“Cool!” A strong sense of joy surged through him, and his mind filled with grand, dazzling magical effects. His eyes lit up, trembling with excitement. “Are you a magician?”

The man didn’t respond. Albin looked at him in surprise and noticed something was off with the man’s expression.

Under his flowing white hair, fine beads of sweat appeared on his forehead, his face pale, his brows tightly furrowed, and blood was trickling from the corners of his mouth, as if the magic inside him was clashing violently. It seemed using healing magic was an excruciatingly painful act for him.

The man’s aura felt wrong, a coldness radiated from him, with an unsettling, terrifying feeling.

“What’s wrong with you?” Albin was a bit scared, quickly trying to stop him from healing his burns.

The man didn’t reply, only closing his eyes and sinking into his consciousness space.

In the past, the consciousness space was a vast, clear sky, an endless sea of magic as calm as a mirror, with blue skies, light clouds, and gentle breezes, the sunlight warm.

But now, he was cursed by the sun god before death, and everything had changed.

A blood-red sun hung high, its mere glance planting violent thoughts into his mind. The sky was chaotic, suffocating, and the once calm sea now dark and deep, turbulent waves crashing, the water reflecting the blood-red sun, as if a giant beast was lurking beneath, stirring up massive waves.

The blood-red sun formed golden chains of divine power, piercing his consciousness and nailing him into a bottomless, purple-black abyss.

Once, his magic, which had been his trusted strength in protecting humanity, was now tainted, transformed into violent, corrupted magic, struggling to break free from his control.

He was being forced deeper, with massive magical creatures swimming nearby.

The creatures were pushed upward by the sea of dark magic, ready to break through the surface.

Once they did, his body would lose its reason, becoming a mindless creature controlled by brutal thoughts.

The power that had once made him revered as “the strongest human” would turn into destructive magic, ravaging the world.

This was the curse from the sun god before death, the price he paid for slaying the god.

Once adored by all, he would now become a monster hated by everyone, destroying his own homeland and humanity.

Outside, Albin was lost.

The man in front of him suddenly lost consciousness, and the aura around him became more ominous. His expression was increasingly pained.

What should he do?

Albin frowned deeply, trying to call out to him, but nothing worked.

Seeing the man bite his lower lip until it bled from the pain, Albin couldn’t bear it anymore. He tried to pry open the man’s mouth, intending to stick a twig in it—biting wood was better than ruining his mouth.

If his lips broke, it would be hard to eat or drink.

But as soon as he pried open the man’s mouth, before he could put the twig in, the man bit his index finger, piercing it and drawing blood.

Albin, who was already afraid of pain, cried out in pain as he was bitten again. It felt like a string of bad luck.

Not sure if his cries woke the man, but suddenly, the man opened his eyes wide.

The sweet, metallic taste of blood filled his mouth, and in the consciousness space, the golden chains suddenly shattered.

Even though the blood-red sun formed new chains, it was enough for him to seize the fleeting opportunity, overcoming the massive creature and regaining control of his body.

He opened his eyes to see the white-haired boy staring at him with tear-filled eyes.

“Bad! Biting people, bad!”

Upon seeing this, the man immediately let go, realizing what had happened.

Albin jumped back, covering his hand and retreating several steps. He watched him warily, as if afraid of being bitten again.

Fear…

The man lowered his gaze.

He was indeed someone to be feared now.

“I’ll leave.” Seeing how terrified Albin was, the man stood up to leave, leaving a bag of coins as an apology and thanks. “I’ll find someone to treat your wounds as soon as possible.”

Although Albin didn’t know the value of the coins here, seeing so many golden coins, he understood that it was a significant amount of money.

However, as he glanced at the dark cave behind him, unsure of what creatures it might hide, his fear increased.

There might be scoundrels outside, and who knew what monsters were in the cave? Even if it was tomorrow, he didn’t know where he would go.

The person in front of him might not be in the best condition, but at least he was a magician and an adult.

He threw the coin bag back and called out to him, “I don’t want this.”

The man turned back, coldly asking, “Then what do you want?”

“I want you to be my dad and take me with you!”

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