By Zephyria 
The Sealed Soul didn’t take this fact seriously, and of course, there were many humans who welcomed the Sealed Soul’s well-being, but not everyone in the world was convinced of that fact.
‘The power he took from Chaos is too great.’
‘A body that doesn’t age or die.’
‘This may one day bring destruction to us humans.’
Some of those who bowed their heads glared at the Sealed Soul and felt formless fear and distrust. A spark, still too small to be seen, was beginning to spread among the humans.
And soon… an incident broke out.
“Recently, people’s movements have been suspicious.”
“……”
“After Chaos, they’re saying that the Sealed Soul, who took Chaos’s power, may bring the end of the world to this world. They may one day turn their swords against you.”
Matra brought out the anxiety that he had been harboring in his heart to the Sealed Soul. And when the Sealed Soul heard that story, he quietly looked up at Matra. Not only Matra. The other priests had also hinted at the situation by advising him in similar words, so the Sealed Soul was also aware of the current situation.
“That may be true.”
“…Aren’t you going to take any action?”
“Conversely, what action should I take?”
Matra hesitated to answer the Sealed Soul’s question. But the Sealed Soul knew what he wanted to say. To suppress them in order to end the unnecessary strife surrounding him… However, the Sealed Soul was questioning whether he really had to do that.
The God told me to protect them after sealing Chaos, not to suppress them.
Even if the beings I had to protect hated me, I couldn’t do anything about it. The Sealed Soul, who lacked understanding of the emotion of hatred, did not hate them even while receiving unfair distrust and glares.
“You don’t have to worry. Chaos has already lost all his power. Even if I die and Chaos’s seal is broken, he will no longer be able to harm this world.”
At the Sealed Soul’s words, Matra made a very displeased expression. He looked at him as if to say that if he had something to say, he should say it, and Matra sighed and opened his mouth again.
“There are many things I want to interfere with, but aside from that, I want you to know this. I’m not afraid that Chaos’s seal will be broken, but I’m afraid that you’ll get hurt.”
“……”
“I’ll strengthen the security. Please don’t go outside the castle for the time being.”
With those words, Matra left the room. As soon as Matra disappeared, Chaos, who had been quietly eavesdropping on the story, suddenly spoke up.
[Ungrateful humans.]
He was angry on behalf of the Sealed Soul, who was receiving unfair hostility. He chattered that he agreed with Matra this time, so the Sealed Soul smiled softly.
Then, something suddenly came to mind and he asked Chaos.
[Come to think of it… Adam, you seemed to want to say something the other day, didn’t you? What were you trying to say?]
He had clearly looked like he wanted to say something, and Matra had interrupted him at that time, so he hadn’t heard what he was trying to say. Chaos remembered what had happened at that time and exclaimed, “Ah!”
But that was it.
[Hmm. I’ll tell you next time.]
In the end, Chaos didn’t satisfy the Sealed Soul’s curiosity. When she asked why he would tell her next time, he told her not to ask and hid inside, so it seemed impossible to pry.
The Sealed Soul couldn’t help it, so she didn’t ask any further.
Time passed like that.
As the priests had feared, the spark of distrust that had not been suppressed for about a year gradually grew in size, and people often raised their voices in front of the palace and were chased away by soldiers.
According to the stories of the people who gathered in front of the palace… His existence, which did not age and therefore did not die, gave them fear. For that reason, some people cursed the Sealed Soul as a monster, and some people distrusted him, asking if he was really a messenger sent by God.
Eventually, the uncontrollably growing anxiety led people to revolt.
The Sealed Soul quietly looked down at the people who were shouting that he should step down and that they didn’t need a King who no longer answered them, and who were telling him to die. The Sealed Soul simply stared at the sight of them setting fire to the castle with a dry face. Because he couldn’t feel any proper emotions.
“……”
Indeed, how should he respond to their formless anxiety?
The Sealed Soul didn’t know what a wise method was.
‘Was it truly the right decision to send someone like me to the surface? Why hasn’t God given me any divine message since sending me to the surface? At first, I accepted the crown in response to the humans’ demands, but… was that truly the right thing to do?’
Perhaps he was a defective product created by God.
He was being neglected.
Or perhaps he had fulfilled his duty after achieving his purpose….
If so, he no longer had a reason to live.
‘Ah, I see.’
If being captured and disposed of by them here was the last divine message God had given him, there was no need to hesitate any further. He would simply entrust himself to the natural flow of things.
“Sealed Soul! You must evacuate immediately!”
At that moment, someone urgently opened the door and entered. Turning around, he saw Matra standing there, panting as if he had rushed over. However, Sealed Soul did not leave his spot despite his urging.
Instead, he left Matra with a single sentence.
“Let them do as they please.”
Matra immediately understood what that meant. He told Chaos to behave himself, which made his inner self stir, but he didn’t pay much attention to it.
‘My work on the surface ends here.’
Afterward, Sealed Soul was captured by the humans who had invaded the palace and, branded as an evil being, was sentenced to be burned at the stake.
His body, strengthened by Mana manipulation, would now burn for a very long time, eventually turning to ashes and remaining as a handful.
He had no fear of death. He lacked the very emotions needed to feel such fear. He also had little attachment to the world.
However, there was one thing that bothered him….
[I love you…. Please don’t leave me.]
He would never know what answer to give to Chaos, who shed tears without end, saying he loved him and begging him to say he wouldn’t die, even now.
Right before the fire was lit beneath Sealed Soul’s feet, Chaos continued to shout as if angry, begged him to live, and struggled to break free from the seal himself to stop it.
It was a very emotional and unstable sight.
Sealed Soul felt a sense of disconnect between himself and Chaos there. He seemed to be comparing himself to Chaos, as he himself couldn’t feel any emotions. However, he did receive a comprehensive feeling of ‘not being happy,’ so he considered it all his fault.
With that, Sealed Soul left a final apology to Chaos before disappearing from this world.
The humans all left Sealed Soul’s side, and only the priests, worried about Chaos’s resurrection, remained for a while, but after confirming that there were no signs of it, they too scattered.
Only after everyone had left did Chaos slowly emerge and remain in that spot for a long time. He was furious with the God who had caused this and came to hate humans. Afterward, he carefully held Sealed Soul’s bone fragments and hid in Niflheim to find a way to revive Sealed Soul.
His abundant emotions gradually wore away as time passed. Over a thousand years passed, and his tears dried up and became dull. The image of Chaos, spending his time with a single obsession as the guiding principle of his life, flashed by like a lantern.
This was Chaos’s memory remaining in Sealed Soul’s remains.
Chaos began to gather the power he had lost in order to research the Magic to revive Sealed Soul, and in the process, he went to the nest where the Dragon Priest had left and settled. The Dragon Priest, who recognized him as Chaos even in his human form, told him one thing instead of a way to help.
‘A prophecy has been given.’
It was… a prophecy signifying the eventual return of Sealed Soul.
Chaos, who hated and despised God, yet gained hope from the story and clung to it, finally heard one piece of news after a long time.
“Black Mana! A fearsome one indeed.”
While searching for materials needed for Magic research, he heard a story in the land of humans that someone who used Black Mana had appeared. Since only Chaos himself and Sealed Soul, who had taken and possessed Chaos’s power, could do that, Chaos recalled the prophecy.
‘…Could it be.’
Perhaps, a hope.
It felt like color was beginning to appear in a world that had been filled with only gray. Afterward, he immediately prepared and went to find the protagonist of the rumors.
And there, Chaos….
“You are an impudent human. What business do you have coming all the way here?”
He was able to meet a being with the same soul as Sealed Soul, whom he had so desperately wanted to see.