#they're not giving him a dramatic martyrdom sequence. they're just letting the rain do most of the work and smearing him out a little

[anistarrose]

[Image description: screenshot from The Owl House of King saying: "No one wants to think they've wasted their life following the wrong person." End description.]

The thing about rewatching Hollow Mind, after the finale, is realizing this sentiment isn't just about Belos's followers, or about Luz initially looking up to Philip. In fact, it's just as much about Belos himself.

No one wants to admit you spent years chasing a brother who didn't want to go home. Who wasn't the witch hunter he once claimed to be. Who, in every reincarnation, still won't become the person you wanted him to be.

No one wants to admit that — for the centuries you saw yourself as following your God, doing what He required of you to save humanity's souls, and wipe out the Devil's witchcraft — that you were the only one doing evil. That your devout faith and countless sacrifices were misplaced, and that your former home has moved on from witch hunts anyway.

No one would want to admit any of that, and in combination with Belos's personal obsession with being a hero, it becomes clear he was never going to admit it. Not even on his deathbed. Because that would be nearly four hundred wasted years on his conscience, four hundred years of following the wrong people, and how could he possibly let himself believe that?