BXBX NOVEL Chapter 50 - Anne’s Diary (6)
Chapter 50 - Anne’s Diary (6)
Yosef Cramer.
An overwhelmingly powerful black magician and the director of Bergen Belsen.
He had achieved significant advancements in black magic based on the results of his chimera experiments and was widely recognized within Baob as one of its leading figures.
At the same time, he was notorious for being one of the most ruthless butchers.
“The trial will now begin.”
Who would have thought?
That the man once called a demon would meet such a pitiful end.
“Defendant.”
“….”
At the sound of his name, Yosef lifted his head.
The scene before him was strange.
It resembled a courtroom.
What had happened?
The demon looked around in a daze.
Just moments ago, he had been walking between the iron bars of a cell, but now, an entirely different scene was unfolding before him.
Naturally, he was confused.
“What is this…?”
He muttered, his words slipping out in disbelief.
He tried to move his body, but it wouldn’t budge. The demon found himself tightly bound to a chair with ropes.
Then, a voice rang out again.
“The defendant has no right to remain silent during this trial or to refuse any questions related to his actions. Furthermore, he may not present any facts in his favor.”
“…?”
Sitting at the judge’s bench was none other than the snake.
The boy, dressed in a judge’s robe, looked down at the demon from the highest seat, calmly reciting the rules.
“The defendant cannot defend himself and must submit to the unjust rulings of the court. Do you understand?”
The atmosphere was chilling.
The playful expression that had been on the boy’s face earlier was nowhere to be found. His face now bore the coldness of winter.
His eyes regarded the man before him not as a human but as something far less.
Yosef felt a strange chill run down his spine.
“What kind of game is this…?”
The demon mumbled, struggling to break free from his restraints, but the more he fought, the tighter the ropes became.
Even his trusted black magic wouldn’t activate.
Of course, that was to be expected.
This was an illusion world, constructed by the snake’s lies.
The laws of others wouldn’t work here.
“The whispers of my lord… I can’t hear them. What kind of filthy trick…!”
“Silence.”
Snap!
With a snap of the boy’s fingers, Yosef’s mouth clamped shut.
As the demon struggled to control his jaw, which no longer obeyed him—
“Mmmph! Mmmph, mmm…?!”
“The defendant is not permitted to speak. The only sounds allowed from the defendant’s mouth are screams, pleas, and wails.”
Yosef, once cocky, now froze in place.
It was only then that he began to realize something was seriously wrong.
Something had gone horribly awry.
A terrifying tension stabbed at his lungs.
His shoulders began to tremble.
He swallowed hard.
It felt like if he let his guard down for even a moment, his head would roll.
“…”
“The trial will proceed.”
But the boy playing the role of judge was unfazed by Yosef’s growing fear. He continued to speak calmly.
“Defendant, Yosef Cramer.”
“…”
“As a senior member of the black magician organization ‘Baob’ and the director of the research facility ‘Bergen Belsen,’ the defendant has endangered the peace of the continent. Do you admit to this?”
“…”
“Your silence will be taken as an admission of guilt.”
The trial was entirely one-sided.
The judge asked about the crimes, and the defendant was unable to offer any defense.
“Furthermore, the defendant has committed numerous unethical acts based on forbidden magic, especially obsessing over chimera research using human subjects. In the process, the defendant has caused the deaths of tens of thousands of innocent people. Do you admit to this?”
“…”
“Just a few days ago, the defendant ordered an attack on Galimard Academy and attempted to kidnap students. Do you admit to this?”
The boy’s voice was cold and emotionless.
A terrifying fear began to creep over Yosef.
Sweat dripped from his forehead.
A hideous fear had overtaken him.
The judge looked at him with disdain.
“The court will now pronounce the verdict.”
The boy’s voice rang solemnly throughout the courtroom.
“The crimes committed by the defendant as a member of the cult cannot be forgiven. Particularly, the experiments and massacres conducted at Bergen Belsen make the gravity of his crimes undeniable.”
The number of victims who perished at Bergen Belsen totaled 15,924.
Of these, 3,642 were children who never lived to see adulthood.
Perhaps it was to ease the anguish of the lost souls.
The demon would be made to experience their despair.
“Therefore, this court sentences the defendant to death by execution, to be carried out a total of 15,924 times—once for each victim.”
Bang, bang, bang!
The gavel’s sound rang through the courtroom, and Yosef’s face twisted in confusion.
Not just a death sentence, but… over 10,000 executions?
He couldn’t comprehend the bizarre ruling.
But it didn’t take him long to understand.
The judge snapped his fingers.
Snap!
In the next moment.
The demon stood on a gallows.
Before him stood a solitary execution platform.
As Yosef stared at it in disbelief, a thick noose suddenly swung out of nowhere and wrapped around his neck.
Then, his body was lifted into the air.
“…Krrk?!”
A choked groan escaped his throat.
The demon kicked helplessly as he hung in the air.
His windpipe was crushed painfully.
And as the breath slowly left his body, the last bit of support under his feet disappeared.
The rope fell with him.
Crack—!
The demon’s neck snapped.
Instant death.
His eyes rolled back in his head, lifeless.
Watching from a distance, the snake muttered softly and snapped his fingers once more.
“That makes one.”
Snap!
A clear cracking sound echoed.
The world reshaped itself.
Before long, Yosef, completely unscathed, opened his eyes once more in front of the gallows.
His eyes filled with horror.
“Haa, haa…!”
The death he had just experienced.
The sensation of his neck snapping was still fresh in his mind.
As the demon panted heavily, an eerie voice whispered into his ear.
It was the voice of the golden snake.
“Fifteen thousand nine hundred and twenty-three left to go.”
Before Yosef could fully grasp the meaning of those words, the boy snapped his fingers again.
Snap!
“Let’s take our time.”
Crack—!
Once again, the demon’s neck snapped, and he died.
“That makes two.”
Snap!
He came back to life.
The gallows didn’t miss a beat, snapping his neck once more.
“That makes three.”
Snap!
Only then did the demon finally understand the snake’s intentions.
This was a prison of eternity.
Until the number the boy had spoken was reached, Yosef would be hanged over and over again.
His mind went blank as an all-encompassing terror engulfed him.
But.
“Fifteen thousand nine hundred and twenty-one left to go.”
There was no mercy.
Snap!
It was time for punishment.
***
The demon’s deaths were varied.
With 15,924 executions to carry out, I made sure to mix things up so he wouldn’t grow bored.
Hanging, beheading, burning, quartering… I used every method.
The demon screamed as his body was torn apart.
“Krk, krrhhk…!”
“12,084 left to go.”
Snap!
“No, no…! Please stop!!”
“10,834 left to go.”
Snap!
“Spare me, spare me…! P-Please, I beg you…!!”
“9,999 left to go.”
Snap!
The endless cycle of death continued.
By the time the count reached the 5,000s, Yosef had already lost his mind.
He had been reduced to little more than a screaming husk, unable to form coherent words.
“Gyaaaahhhh!!!”
Of course, it wasn’t easy for me, either.
Even if it was an illusion, watching such brutal scenes unfold over and over again was mentally exhausting.
“4,273 left to go.”
But even so, I didn’t stop.
This was something that had to be done.
I wanted to comfort the spirits of the thousands of victims, even if only like this.
I snapped my fingers.
‘Why?’
Too many people had died.
Even though they never appeared on screen, their stories were no different from Anne’s.
How much sorrow must they have endured?
The victims, torn apart by experiments.
They were people who had probably lived their lives with dreams, only to die in a place where not a single flower could bloom.
Stars that should have shone were extinguished far too early.
I stood here as a representative for all those tragedies.
“No, no, no… don’t tear it apart!!”
For the last 1,000 executions, I recreated the chimera experiments.
I returned to Yosef exactly what he had done to his test subjects, down to the last detail.
The demon begged on the operating table.
“Something’s growing inside me!! Something’s eating me from the inside!!”
I watched in silence.
The cold gaze in the mirror reflected the image of a villain.
‘How ironic.’
I had never considered myself noble.
If someone asked whether I was a good person or a bad person, I would always say I leaned more toward the latter.
It was just a matter of who I was bad to.
I wanted to be a bad person toward the bad people.
‘I just wanted to protect something.’
There were already plenty of good people out there who defended the wicked.
Sometimes it’s okay to have bad people who care for good people, or so I thought.
I slowly lifted my head.
"....."
The punishment was now nearing its end.
It was time to wake from the nightmare.
Yosef stood there, vacant-eyed.
The demon, having lost his mind, was drooling and standing there.
I quietly approached him.
"This is the last one."
Thud–
I grasped his neck with my hand.
The body followed without resistance. I gathered the last remaining Lies with the tips of my fingers.
Shadows waverd.
\'Please… I hope this punishment is sufficient for this person.\'
A brief, off-target prayer.
Then I recited the incantation.
"Shatter."
Clang-!
At the same time, a large crack formed in the air.
The world made of Lies trembled unsteadily, soon shattering into pieces like glass fragments.
In the collapsing scenery.
I put my final strength into my hand.
Crack-!
The demon’s neck snaps.
Following the scattered remnants of Lies, the body fell helplessly to the ground.
This time, he did not come back to life.
He had finally reached the death that had seemed unattainable for eternity.
"Haa..."
I let out a short breath.
The surrounding scenery had returned to its original state.
I was in the lowest level of Bergen Belsen.
As I rubbed my sore wrists for a moment, a dumbfounded voice came from behind.
It was none other than Irene.
"Wh-what… Is it really over just like that…?"
Her reaction was one of confusion.
Since not even a moment of time had passed in reality, it was perhaps natural for the fox to be surprised.
To her, it probably looked like I simply walked up and snapped Yosef\'s neck while he stood there in a daze.
I asked with subtle curiosity.
"Did you expect something else?"
"Of course not, but it was so sudden…"
"Hehe."
Irene responded hesitantly.
I gently reached out and patted the girl’s head.
"It\'s alright."
It was a particularly warm feeling.
"It\'s really over now."
"If you say so… then it must be."
The fox muttered and nodded her head.
Her scarlet tail drooped as if the tension had eased. She seemed already exhausted.
I let out a soft laugh.
"Well done."
A simple, straightforward comment.
I lightly embraced the girl. Warmth seeped into my arms.
I whispered softly into her ear.
"Miss Irene."
"....."
"You did really well."
"...."
The fox remained silent for a moment.
"Let’s go back now. The warm dormitory is waiting for us."
"...Yeah."
The response came eventually.
Her voice, wet with tears, seemed to be on the verge of breaking down again.
Irene buried her face in my chest.
As if not wanting her flowing tears to be seen.
"It’s all over."
I patted her delicate back.
We had to stand there for a while, digesting the fact that everything was over.
The fierce fox retrieval operation.
[EP6. Bergen Belsen]
- The Lost Girl, The Monster Who Can’t Cry -
At the same time, the episode came to an end.