Legend of the Seven Lights

17. Like a Videogame

What is existence to you.

Chapter 17: Like a Videogame

Doflamingo's Throne

"Fu fu fu." Doflamingo grinned, standing back up and wiping blood off his mouth. "The legendary Sandman graces me with his presence in my own home. Without his mask, no less. Should I be honored? To be trusted with your true identity? Or did you hope to savor the fury on my face after my corporation falls?"

"I've always thought criminals couldn't get any lower than killing... but after seeing what you do, I actually would've settled with." Nolan said. "Because at least they still would've been remembered by everyone they loved! You were literally trying to wipe their existence from the Earth. I can't imagine how many lives you ruined with your plans! Being forgotten from everyone they knew... it's a fate worse than death!"

"Fufufufufu! Worse than death? How simple you are, Sandman. What I've done to these people is NO different from dying! True, people are still remembered by their friends after they die... but eventually, those people will die, and their kids will die, and in time, their existence will be forgotten entirely. I was merely trying to speed up that process. At least the toys would've had a longer life force, regardless if everyone forgot them. Can you honestly say there's no one you've met you wished you could forget?"

"To tell the truth... yes. Darth Genious and Madame Rouge were some of the worst people I could've met... and I've always wished I could forget them. But then I realize... if it wasn't for them, I wouldn't have gotten where I am. I wouldn't have met Danika, and... I definitely wouldn't've had Dillon. The point is, whether they're friends or enemies, everyone has a major importance in someone's life. But even if you wipe our memories of them, everyone leaves some kind of legacy behind. Holiday and those guys' criminal record, my son... those are the things you can't erase. And I didn't notice it until now, but Nigel's son was one of your victims. I didn't know they had another son until a few minutes ago! Can you imagine how many people you HURT by making them forget him?!"

"HU HU hu! Looking back, my daughter actually SAVED the Cheren boy! Had she not intervened, President Morgan would have killed him!"

"Morgan Uno? You're lying, why would she kill her nephew?!"

"Did Benedict not try to kill his nephew a number of times? President Morgan carries on his legacy, I see that now. And what legacy are you, Sandman? The legendary 2030, defender of morality and justice. Let me ask you... what is 'justice' to you?"

Nolan pulled up his laptop and looked up Wikipedia. "'Justice includes both the attainment of that which is just and the philosophical-'"

"I WAS ASKING YOUR OPINION!!"

"Alright, alright." He put his laptop down. "But isn't that all it is, just a matter of opinion? What difference would it make if I told you mine. Your sense of justice is erasing the world of its evils. Keep your citizens in bliss ignorance. Isn't it?"

"And your idea of justice is to punish wrongdoers, yet hold on to the philosophy there's redemption for them as your reason for not killing. Which even then you're a hypocrite, assuming Caesar's story of what happened to one of his most loyal customers is true."

"Yeah, I killed Revan, I admit it. But; it's funny saying it out loud... I want to honor his memory. I visit his grave every year. Friends or enemies, I guess I let everyone have a place in my heart. After I take you down, I might have a place for you, too."

Doflamingo furrowed so hard, Nolan could see the veins on his face. "A place in your heart... peh! How could any person bear such respect for their enemies? Erasing them, forgetting they were ever around to annoy you... the World Leaders can agree, that's where true peace lies."