At this time, Berta didn’t have an accurate grasp of her king’s feelings. Far too much had been hidden from her for her to figure it out. However, that wasn’t much of a problem right now because none of that mattered.
After all, she was at least capable of asserting that her king’s statement was mistaken. She could tell he was misunderstanding. She believed she had to properly convey her feelings. She didn’t hesitate at all to do so.
“I don’t believe it would’ve been better for me not to wish so,” she said clearly. “I regret that my wish couldn’t be fulfilled. However, I don’t regret wishing for it. I didn’t want happiness. I wanted to somehow save what I once failed to protect.”
She’d chosen to come here, going as far as knowingly throwing away her own path to happiness. Nobody had decided that for her. It’d been her choice. How could she possibly regret it?
“But...”
Kudou Riku was trying to say something, but his next words wouldn’t come out. Berta’s statement had been so unwavering. This had been Kudou Riku’s greatest miscalculation. Having been sent to Majima Takahiro, Berta hadn’t simply spent her time aimlessly. She’d learned many things and had grown. She’d grown enough to surpass this boy’s expectations.
“Besides, you’re misunderstanding, my king.”
She had nothing to be scared of anymore. She simply had to convey what she had to.
“Please don’t say that I would’ve been better off tearing away my chains.”
Her voice was calm and gentle.
“They were what connected me to you, after all.”
Being pushed away was far more painful than meeting her end. So, she didn’t feel the slightest bit of despair in this situation. What’s more, Berta believed this wasn’t all that bad. At the very least, reaching this spot on the verge of death, she’d been able to convey her feelings.
To some, enduring so much agony only to achieve so little seemed like far too meager a reward. However, to her, this was more than enough. It didn’t matter what anyone else said. That was why she could speak with conviction.
“I wasn’t dragged down into despair. I came here with hope in my eyes, and I reached this place.”
✦ ✦ ✦
Kudou Riku was speechless for a while. He couldn’t peel his eyes away from the wolf who was dying before his eyes. This was the one fragment of hope he’d obtained before becoming the Demon King, but by the time he’d realized this, it’d been too late.
He’d gone out of his way to let her go, and yet she’d come back. Now, he truly understood. He’d thought that by pushing her away and keeping her at a distance, letting her spend time where she truly belonged, she’d find her own freedom. However, that had been a tremendous misunderstanding. No matter what he did, Berta would never leave him. Her confession had been more than enough to convince him of this.
“Ha ha... What’s with that?”
The boy laughed quietly. It was as if he was resigning himself before her unbreakable heart.
“What can I possibly do about that?”
In a sense, it was a declaration of defeat. His attempts to push Berta away had utterly failed. In the end, he hadn’t been able to do anything. She’d forced him to realize this. There was a curse at the core of Kudou Riku’s being. He was weak and couldn’t do anything. To be made to realize this in the very, very end was far too cruel. But...
“Good grief, you truly are...”
There wasn’t the slightest shadow hanging over his words. In that instant, he realized something. It was precisely because he acknowledged that nothing could be done anymore—that there was just one thing that he could still do.
So, he put strength into his burned arm. It was as if he was shaking off the curse that bound him. He couldn’t move it properly, but held it up and reached out. There was no more reason to push her away.
✦ ✦ ✦
“Very well.”
“My king?”
Berta raised her voice curiously. She hadn’t truly come to understand her king’s thoughts. However, she still recognized that she’d acted against his will. She’d figured this would offend him. She was prepared for him to curse and reject her. However, his voice didn’t seem to imply that. It was so far away from such concepts.
“It’s my loss. Let’s grant your wish.”
“Huh...?”
Berta felt a nostalgic sensation return to her body. It was the Demon King’s power of subordination—the collar that connected her to him. Naturally, at this point, there was no value in the power of subordination itself. She’d torn it off once already, and above all else, its compelling force was totally meaningless when she was moments away from dying. So, right here, it did nothing but connect them.
“You may stay by my side for as long as you wish.”
She needed a moment to understand that he was accepting her. The moment she did, a tremendous impulse shook her heart.
“Ah...”
She was speechless. Just having the opportunity to convey her feelings had been enough for her. She hadn’t even imagined that he would accept her.
“My king...?”
Was this some kind of misunderstanding? Was she seeing a convenient dream on the verge of her death? As if to deny such misgivings, his outstretched hand touched her head. With extremely awkward movements, he gently brushed her down to her neck. This in itself had long been a dear fantasy. However, precisely because she could feel it was real—it gave her conviction that she’d been rewarded for everything.
“Aaah...”
She felt warmth spread through her cold, dying body. Something warm enough filled her to the point that she felt like she would melt. She was sure of it. This was happiness. Had the two of them never met tragedy, had they been able to live in this world, they could’ve obtained this. This was the possibility they’d lost the day they’d met. This was the future they could’ve had. Even if only for the shortest time in the very end, they’d retaken it.
That sensation made her endlessly happy. No. This wasn’t the end. He’d told her she could stay by his side for as long as she wished, after all. Even if death tried to tear them apart, even if they plummeted into the depths of hell, she wouldn’t leave his side.
“I’ll be by your side forever...”
She didn’t even know if her own muttering was audible. She no longer had the strength to speak. But her feelings had been conveyed. In this instant, something definitely connected them. Berta huffed in satisfaction as she pushed her head against the hand that touched her. She basked in the warmth she felt in her heart. Her tail wagged feebly and slowly. Breathing her last, she fell into a warm slumber that she would never wake up from again.