The Duchess and the Devil - Chapter 42.2

– Why are you so sure of this?

The reason why her faith has not crumbled until now is some sacred evidence. For example, the light power of the temple novices or the voice of the Lord that could be heard. Faith will always be blurred, because it is invisible to reality. But what if they cross paths? Then faith will gain strength and become strong.

Even though Judith believed in the evidence for God’s existence, Derrick’s words were still confusing. So she said:

– If there is no God, then the power of the priests has no meaning? And what about stories about the voice of the Lord?

Despite Judith’s tone, Derrick’s expression remained calm and relaxed, as if he knew everything around him and was confident in his thoughts.

-What would you do if everything people believe in is the actions of the Devil?

– What do you mean?

– I mean what I said. All these trivial things that you believe in are actually the creation of demons. Despair, Divine power – all this is a way to give even more hope.

Judith began to understand what he was saying, but she still didn’t want to take it seriously. It was difficult to accept this information, but Duchess tried: because of Derrick’s soft, confident and polite tone. And also because he is a demon, and not an ordinary person.

“And if you see God, it’s the devil,” the Duke spoke slowly, as if chewing the information so that it was completely clear.

But Judith still had a twinkle of doubt in her heart. However, if you think about it, the Duchess always had a lot of unresolved issues. In the temple they said that God loved everyone, but he only brought hardships that some simply could not bear. Punishment for love… Doesn’t this contradict everything about faith?

The priests said that this was just a test to strengthen love, and asked to take it for granted. But this turned out to be a difficult task for a girl with a fragile heart. And the time when the issue was most pressing was the death of beloved parents as a result of an accident.

Three months after Judith’s marriage, on yet another rainy day, the Marchionesses overturned their carriage, which fell on a wet, winding path while returning to the city. The mother still managed to survive the accident. Judith rushed as fast as she could to the estate and heard that the Marchioness was in critical condition and was barely breathing. When the Duchess stepped onto the threshold of the room in order to have time to say at least the last words, the mother’s life was cut short.

– This is all just terrible…

So many people in this world believe in the existence of God and live their lives relying on him. And even more terrifying is the fact that people possessed by malice pretend to be saints. Thinking that you live in happiness, in the end you understand that this is only falsehood, bringing sadness and discord.

Moreover, Judith often prayed specifically for her parents in the temple. And now she could not come to terms with the fact that all this turned out to be meaningless.

– That’s why we do this. We love to see people despair, be disappointed, suffer, give up.

Judith simply couldn’t answer. Although Derrick is now in his human form, he is still a devil. And now the Duchess didn’t understand why she was so upset, because what could you expect from a “person”? Sometimes Judith really mistook him for her husband, which always consoles her and devotes her whole life to her wife.

“And most often, if you see something, you just believe it,” Derrick saw that his silent wife did not believe his words.

But his voice, like that of any demon, simply did not give up hope. Judith looked out the window silently, patiently suppressing the urge to ask one thing. Is he like those demons who love human despair?