The final duel has begun.
Kanami and I. Although we are both mages specializing in subtle tricks, we sprinted directly at each other with swords in hand.
Mid-sprint, we kicked off from the shallow pool of blood that remained, scattering it into the air.
Normally, it would have been a gruesome sight, but for now, it was different. The light left by Nosfy had completely stripped the brutality from this battle. On the rooftop, like the inside of a giant diamond, the blood scattered like tiny diamonds.
The distance vanished in an instant.
And as our sword tips were about to meet, I swung up “Hermina’s Heart” — and from my other hand, I thrust out a blade solidified by “Magic Power Solidification.”
A divine speed sword combining a “Swordsmanship” thrust with the elasticity of magic power.
This must be the culmination of the evil path that kills the righteous path of “Swordsmanship.”
“——Dimensional – Decisive Calculation!”
But it was never going to hit.
Kanami perfectly read my sword trajectory with magic and dodged the tip of my blade near his cheek.
Right now, I had become a “Star Principle Thief,” all my stats were monstrous, and I had also undergone body reinforcement with magic from trees and divinity. Even so, I didn’t feel like I could land even a graze.
After all, my opponent was a swordsman who had defeated Rowen Aleis, the first “Sword Saint,” surpassing even the “Sword Saint” Fenrir Aleis.
A man who had gone beyond the culmination of the righteous path. Not only did he dodge, but he also counterattacked with a deadly horizontal slash that matched my thrust.
I deflected that with a sword from “Magic Power Solidification” that I had prepared in my abdomen.
By weaving curved blades, I could prepare a hauberk of magic power. If my previous thrust was the culmination of evil swordsmanship, this was one of the culminations of magic utilization.
“This feeling—!? Are you wearing it inside!?”
He saw through my mechanism without missing a beat.
This was a characteristic of the enemy’s “Thief of the Principles of Dimensions.”
If I were to use this thrust and hauberk twice more, I would likely lose.
Even if it were the culmination of a single technique, Kanami could reduce it to child’s play.
What absurd strength.
He overwhelms his opponents with just his traits, not with magic or skills.
On top of that, he uses “Magic Nullification,” “Space Distortion,” and “Future Prediction.”
Furthermore, it’s possible he has also gained “Immortality” now.
Too strong.
But undoubtedly, this is the strongest enemy in the world.
He is my enemy—!
“Hah, hahaha! As always, your strength is so suspicious!!”
My heart pounded as I gripped my sword again.
For some reason, I was happy. Laughter escaped me. My speech also became natural.
No, it wasn’t “for some reason”… it was thanks to Nosfy.
In the end, I finally realized that this “performance within a performance,” this “act” for the city, was my true self—my beginning.
Then, I held “Hermina’s Heart” as a feint, and this time, I hid my blade not with “Swordsmanship,” but with wind magic. Using a double feint, I aimed for an opening.
Naturally, Kanami deflected my blade that had flown from a blind spot.
The invisibility through wind from “One who steals the logic of the wind” was also easily seen through.
Fine, next—!
“I will win! I will beat Kanami’s older brother and become number one! And then, with Nosfy’s life, which is worth the highest in the world, as a souvenir, I will meet Mama! Meeting my beloved Mama is my entire life!!”
Next, I used my magic’s nature for concealment.
Using “Hermina’s Heart,” “Swordsmanship,” and wind as decoys, I hid my blade with this “mirror”-like magic.
Fortunately, it’s filled with light right now.
Here, it’s easy to achieve invisibility by reflecting, refracting, and diffracting light.
I fought with a blade that was neither physically nor magically “there.”
My twin swords attacked from the front, and two types of magic swords attacked from the blind spot. Defense should be absolutely impossible—but Kanami dodged it all.
Ah, I knew it. Then, the next—!
“I will kill you and get praised by Mama! To be told that I finally arrived, that I’m doing great! Die, Kanami!!”
I screamed and swung the sword in my hand down roughly.
Kanami met it head-on.
Our swords clashed, and we began to push against each other.
With Kanami’s swordsmanship and dimensional magic, a blade lock like this wouldn’t happen easily.
This means it’s a trap by Kanami—!
“——Ragune, do you really believe that? That if you beat me and become number one in the world, your Mama will be waiting for you at the ‘summit’…. Do you seriously believe such a ‘dream’-like story?”
He threw the words I least wanted to hear right in front of me.
Kanami was trying to break my spirit.
He likely chose this because he knew from experience that what’s important in a battle to the death isn’t skill, but heart.
His question, which struck at the core of my being, pierced my heart.
Honestly, I didn’t want to answer, didn’t want to think about it, didn’t want to know.
“H-hahaha. If I become ‘number one,’ Mama will be waiting at the ‘summit’…?”
But still, I pushed forward.
Riel pushed my back.
Nosfy was watching me.
So I could say—!
“Do you think I believe that—! Is that even possible!? You know the truth, yet you say it so frankly! I detest that part of you!!”
It’s the worst that you make me utter that dirty truth from my own mouth instead of yours.
Your pretense of kindness, while actually being self-centered and a show-off, makes me truly furious.
“Ah, that’s right… We confirmed it with ‘Affinity’ together… That was our answer. We and Nosfy are different. We can’t become like Nosfy. Those who don’t believe won’t meet…!!”
“Yeah, that’s right! You don’t need to tell me, I know! Die!!”
We both admitted it.
That we, the two of us, had lost in life long ago—accepting it.
For me, it was when I was abandoned by my mother and went to the Great Holy Capital.
In Kanami’s case, it was when he was abandoned by his father and gave up on his path as a performer.
We became losers in life, and that losing life has continued until this very day.
As long as we live, the pathetic appearance of losers will be exposed to the world as an epilogue.
This is our current situation—!
“I know that! But still, I want to meet Mama! Because I love her, I ‘dream’ of meeting her! Is that also not allowed!? Are you denying even the act of ‘dreaming’!? You, who are just like me!!”
Losers crawl on the ground and can only ‘dream.’
As long as they are ‘dreaming’ of impossible things, they don’t have to realize they’ve lost.
Having a goal that can’t be reached makes it somehow easier to feel alive.
—Unlike Nosfy, who continued to advance until death, believing in his attainable goals.
The reality I understand thanks to Nosfy.
Kanami confronts me with one reality after another as if it were his own.
“You’re saying even that ‘dream’ is an illusion…!! Ragune! First of all, did you really love your mother…!?”
“Love? I love Mama…? H-hahaha! Hahaha…!!”
This is also something I don’t want to answer, don’t want to think about, don’t want to know.
I want both the question and the answer to disappear into darkness.
I want to bury them in the void.
But I can’t.
Even if I turn my eyes away, even if I close them—at the extreme, even if I commit suicide right now, the bright light here will illuminate me. Therefore, I have no choice but to be ‘honest’ now.
“—That’s absurd! Do you think I’m serious when I say I like Mom?! Huh, Kanami’s Older Brother! You saw it, didn’t you?! Can you possibly like someone like that?! Besides you, there’s no one in this world as pathetic as her!!”
My heart was illuminated, exposed.
Pushed forward by Riel, I was led to the place illuminated by Nosfy’s light. Before me stood Kanami, a mirror himself.
Sandwiched between the mirror that was Kanami and the mirror that was Ragune, Nosfy’s light reflected between us, reaching deep into our hearts—an “intense light” permeated us!
“Mom was the worst! She tricked innocent children with sweet words and used them! She took everything from those children! She took only the best for herself! Treacherous, shady, and utterly cruel! Always saying irresponsible things, giving us hope, then discarding people like trash!!”
I screamed at Kanami.
I asked him what I could never ask my mother.
“It was all lies anyway! You were going to disappear alone in the end! You were going to run away and leave me behind! Why did you say those things to me?! Kanami’s Older Brother!!”
Kanami’s face twisted before my eyes.
He, who resembled my mother in both appearance and way of life, must have known.
And the fact that he couldn’t answer immediately… meant that was precisely the case. He never intended to fulfill his promises, didn’t think deeply about them, and only offered convenient words to get through the moment.
“I can’t possibly like her! Even if I wanted to believe I did, there’s nothing I can do! Because you are everything to me! If I heard that, everything about me would end! I wouldn’t know why I was born or what reason I have to live! That’s why I can’t possibly ask!! —Hey, Kanami’s Older Brother!!”
Kanami probably had a hint of my feelings as well.
Kanami slowly nodded his head, his face distorted to its limit.
I knew this already, but we were mirror images of each other.
Every question and every answer was shared between us.
Here, self-deprecation became an attack.
I attacked Kanami, and attacked, and continued to attack.
“I don’t like Mom! —But! Even so, I will fulfill Mom’s wish! I will do anything if Mom wants it! Even though I know she’ll never come back to praise me, saying ‘You finally became first place!’ or ‘You’re amazing!’—Even knowing that! I will continue to strive for it!!”
“Ragune… Why would you go that far for someone you don’t even like…?”
Kanami asked himself, as if squeezing out each word.
I answered myself, as if spitting them out.
“Is that a problem?! To struggle so hard for someone I don’t like! To dedicate my life to someone I don’t like! To long to see Mom, even though I don’t like her!! What’s wrong with that?! What’s wrong with living like this?! It’s the same as your feelings for your sister, isn’t it!?”
I want to work hard for someone I don’t like.
It was a contradictory statement.
A dream that was clearly collapsing.
“Ah, it’s the same… It was the same! That’s why I’m asking you here, now!!”
Kanami acknowledged that self-contradiction.
Which meant I would have to acknowledge it too.
Ah, it’s strange. I’ve been strange all along. Everything about me was strange.
“Ragune! Did you look at me and not think something was wrong?! That I was shady, disgusting, that you wanted to kill me, you thought that, didn’t you?!”
“Of course! That’s why it’s turned out this way! When I met you a year ago… Ah, I realized something was wrong with me! And that’s why it’s turned out this way! It’s all, all, all, all your fault!!”
“Don’t blame everything on me! To begin with, it’s your own damn fault for being strange!!”
It’s truly the same.
Kanami and I have too many things in common.
And among them, one stands out the most—
“W-what’s wrong with *me*…? You said it!! Ah, it’s so annoying!! I knew it, Kanami’s Older Brother, you’re annoying!!”
“Says the same to you, Ragune! After killing me, you keep saying whatever you want!!”
I hate myself, and my enemy hates himself.
As the mirrors faced each other, with the “intense light” reflecting endlessly, I reaffirmed this.
“Ah, I’ve confirmed it! Kanami’s Older Brother, you are my enemy! My ‘number one’ enemy! If I don’t kill you, I can’t reach anywhere!!”
Defeating me would be equivalent to defeating the self I despise.
I had always wondered who I was fighting, but now, I felt like I had finally found a clear enemy—and it was exhilarating.
“No matter what you say, I will continue to aim for ‘first place’! I will eternally fulfill the promise I made with Mom that day! Even if it’s worthless! Even if this battle is meaningless—!”
Yet, alongside the exhilaration, there was emptiness.
I understood that many things were wrong, and that I was contradictory.
Still, I wanted to fight myself.
“—Just fight me! Fight me with all you’ve got!! Kanami!!”
Of course, there was no meaning to it.
But that’s just who I am.
This ‘contradictory me’ is the only me that I can proudly say is truly me.
“Ragune…!!”
Kanami understood that sentiment without any discrepancies and simply uttered my name.
Kanami hesitated.
I did too, but a waver was added to my twisted face, making it even more ugly and pathetic.
It was undeniable that Kanami had been holding back until now.
He generated immense magic power, but didn’t convert all of it into magic.
Even holding the ‘Aris Family’s Treasure Sword Rowen,’ he wasn’t unleashing its full potential.
Like me, his shifting gaze was looking at someone other than me.
Nosfy’s message must have been weighing on his mind.
He was asked to help me, and Kanami, with his usual flair, couldn’t outright refuse.
He was trying, somehow, to inherit Nosfy’s “Talks” as a father.
“Kanami’s Older Brother…!!”
Reluctantly, I too uttered his name, conveying that it was none of his business.
The “Talks” were meaningless.
Even if I was told I was wrong from above, I’d just smile and say I knew that already.
If Kanami tried to comfort or encourage me, I’d just slice him to pieces and kill him.
I had no intention of playing along with Kanami’s posturing.
If he wanted to be a good person, he should do it with someone other than me.
There was no longer any solution in my life.
It was the same as Kanami’s life being at an impasse.
He must understand.
In the end, only one thing would remain.
Our battle, as ‘Thieves of Principles,’ had no other way to end but by clashing with our true feelings.
—Kanami nodded three times, acknowledging this.
“Ah, ahh, ahhh!! I’ll kill you for real! But in return, you too! Ragune Kaikuola, unleash your full power!!”
There were no words exchanged, but we understood each other.
We made our promise.
The battles up to today—’First Duel on the 20th Floor of the Labyrinth,’ ‘Chasing Battle in Front of Fuziaze Cathedral,’ ‘Third Match in the North Area of the Unification Nations General Knights’ Order’s Dance Party in the First Month,’ ‘Assassination on the 45th Floor of Fuziaze Castle’—a total of four battles. In all of them, I wasn’t fighting seriously. Many restrictions were in place. I was far from fighting with my all.
However, in this “world of bright light,” there are no such constraints.
You can fight the fifth and final match, which will decide everything, without thinking.
“Of course! I’ll go all out too! I won’t jump off anymore! I absolutely won’t move from here! This is the place I’ve been aiming for! There’s no next time, so there’s no need to hold back— no!! I’ll show you, the complete form of my true ‘Magic Power Solidification’!!”
Kanami and I both felt a sense of relief simultaneously.
Honestly, the method of “talks” was too correct and overly complicated. The mere fact that an enemy who could be truly mistaken was right in front of us filled us with liberation. Then, we synchronized our breathing, parried each other’s swords, and created distance to prepare for a grand technique.
“Ah, I’ll show you too! The complete form of Dimensional Magic! — Dimensional Magic: Dimension – Decisive Calculation (Prelude)!!”
Kanami intended to use that “Future Prediction.” The overlong and grand name indicated the seriousness of his magic.
“Am I going to lose? My magic is not inferior to ‘Future Prediction’ either—!”
“‘Stars of dreams, revolve’! ‘In my brilliance, carve reality’! — Star Magic: Illusion, Great Celestial Body in Flux!!”
I, too, gave my complete form a long name. Furthermore, I added an improvised poem from the heart and shouted it from the depths of my being.
Perhaps due to my efforts—or perhaps it was thanks to Nosfy’s light—I was able to exert my strongest power ever. First, I perfectly controlled the star’s magic, which had been so difficult to manage, and deployed a star attribute barrier on the rooftop.
It was Star Magic, but not a “Gravity” type that pulls downwards. The origin point was me. Everything on this rooftop was drawn to me. The filling light, the flowing blood, the drifting air, the erupting magic power, Kanami’s body—everything began to move towards me.
And that was merely preparation. The main attack of this magic was the blade of “Magic Power Solidification.” There were a thousand of them, floating to fill my vision. With no escape on the rooftop, I controlled all the blades. I wielded “Hermina’s Heart” like a conductor’s baton, giving instructions.
“Circle around me. Circle, circle, circle, circle. Circle and circle and circle, and cut that man—!!”
The instruction was crude, filled only with killing intent. However, I knew it was the optimal solution. With the opponent using the Skills “Sensation” and “Future Prediction,” aiming for them directly would paradoxically decrease the hit rate.
“With this little bit!! You think you can hit me!!”
Kanami shouted and charged forward. He was trying to close the distance, his specialty, weaving through the circling thousand swords. As expected, as long as there was even a 1% chance of evasion, Kanami would easily draw that future. Even with a thousand swords, if there was even one gap, it would be reduced to a simple attack that Kanami could absolutely avoid.
That’s why I launched an attack without any gaps. Kanami, who had been advancing through the gaps in the sword群, had his knees suddenly severed.
“Ehh, of course! I *am* thinking I can dodge it! The real attack is the line connecting the blades! Who said magic swords are the only forms magic can take?! Hahaha! I’m not a traditional fighter like Rowen! I’ve trained in thread assassination too!!”
The circling blades were merely tools to string sharp threads. Anyone who entered this celestial sphere of blades would have no choice but to die, unable to evade. As if accepting that fate, Kanami, now missing a leg, fell and was about to be cut to pieces.
—Or so I thought.
“What!?”
His severed knee flickered like a heat haze. Kanami, who should have fallen, moved as if unharmed.
“—Ah. Of course I know. I had “Affinity” once. It’s practically the same as saying it.”
I thought he had shifted the threads with Dimensional Magic, but the light emanating from his knee denied that.
“Is this… light? Was it seen through with magic…? Then, without any time to change, I’ll cut from outside your perception!!”
Immediately, I used “Mirror,” the nature of my own magic, to make both the blades and the threads disappear. Now, not only invisible, but also imperceptible, were the thousand swords and thousand threads. Surrounded by them, Kanami’s abdomen and dominant arm were severed by threads. Furthermore, unable to dodge some blades, he had holes pierced into both lungs.
—However, he didn’t stop.
All of his wounds began to glow and, after a few moments, were completely restored.
“Guh—! Not yet! I’m not done yet—!!”
Finally, I unleashed the true power of Star Magic: Illusion, Great Celestial Body in Flux. It was a change in the barrier’s origin point. The source of the pulling force was changed from me to the enemy’s body. As a result, all the blades, which had been circling and accelerating, attacked Kanami. Naturally, there was no way to evade.
I watched Kanami, who was turning into a grotesque object by the thousand blades, without letting my guard down. If Kanami were to phase his body, I would return him to normal with “Reversal.” Now that I had complete control of the star’s magic, I could exert “Reversal’s” power to its maximum.
—Theoretically, Kanami was checkmated. There was no path other than death with this magic. Convinced of this, I carefully confirmed that Kanami had not phased his body, then released the blades of “Magic Power Solidification” and returned them to their original magic.
Then, as the thousand blades disappeared, Kanami appeared, his body about eighty percent replaced by flickering light. Blades were embedded in him. Undoubtedly, he had died multiple times. Yet, even as he died, he was moving forward—!!
“Even with this…!? This isn’t because I’m light, or shifting dimensions, I’m not dodging it! Older Brother Kanami!”
“…I will not die anymore. My death is being borne by Nosfy as a “Substitute.” Without Nosfy’s permission, I will never die.”
Hearing my voice, Kanami replied with what seemed like regret. It was likely an unwanted power. But even an unwanted power is still a power.
—Now, there were absolutely no blind spots for Kanami. With death being taken as a “Substitute,” even an instant-death surprise attack, his only weakness, could not kill him. And Nosfy’s recovery magic, which seemed to be constantly active, was also too troublesome. Even if I tried to chip away at him little by little, he would be restored in an instant.
Even if I somehow managed to prevent the recovery magic—perhaps with Nosfy’s magic stone, he would unconsciously bear everything as a “Substitute” without any hesitation. Kanami was now impossible to kill by conventional means. Understanding this, a dry laugh escaped me. What I had half-believed was before my eyes. It was so perfect that joy surged from my throat.
“H-hahaha… Hahaha!! This is the “Immortality” the “Senate” was aiming for! No wonder it’s funny! Hahaha! This is cheating! —But, it’s perfect! With this, I can keep challenging forever—!!”
As I shouted, I sent a silent “thank you” to Nosfy in my heart. Then, I increased the blades of “Magic Power Solidification” and prepared for my next move.
No matter how much I fight, Kanami won’t die.
No matter what I do, this battle won’t end.
This was also something I had longed for.
However, if there’s just one drawback, it might be that there’s no point in fighting an enemy who won’t die.
Still, it’s common in a long life for things to be meaningless.
In my life, almost everything has been meaningless.
So, I can fight with a smile, just like always.
“Hahaha! Ah, seriously! It’s so bright, so bright, so bright!! Everywhere, it’s so whiteeeeeee!”
Every time I say “bright,” I mentally shout, “Nosfy-san.”
Ah, Nosfy-san.
Nosfy-san, Nosfy-san, Nosfy-san!
Thanks to Nosfy-san, the world is bright.
Therefore, a little meaningless is nothing to fear!
“Nosfy-san…! You’re beautiful…!!”
As expected of the “Thief of the Principles of Light,” the brightness at the “Summit” was such that I was convinced nothing could compare. Even the sky, which I thought was the most beautiful in the world, seemed to shine beyond its limits.
Bubbles filled with light magic floated endlessly, and from the burst bubbles, light sources as bright as the sun scattered. This light was reflected on the shallow blood and flowing clouds, creating intricate patterns of light. No matter where I looked, particles of light were scattered, and I could feel Nosfy-san’s presence nearby.
And now—my magic is being added to the “Summit” of that light.
It’s the residual magic, like the scent of a blade, that I just released.
Its attribute is “Star.” Its nature is “Mirror.”
Unlike Nosfy-san’s magic, its shape is more like a plate than a bubble.
Flat, crystal-like magic drifts down with the bubbles.
It receives all the light and reflects all its colors, becoming dyed by her.
That star magic performs the role I desire without my direct command.
It’s the capture of light through reflection, refraction, and detour.
My magic, forming a surface, blocks the light’s escape routes, preventing Nosfy-san’s light from leaving the “Summit.” It’s a dome of mirror polyhedra.
In an instant, the “Summit,” which had been brimming with liberation, became sealed due to my actions.
However, the “Summit,” which was thought to be already beyond its limit, increased its luminosity further.
Then, Kanami and I fight.
Kanami glitters with sword flashes from the “Aris Family’s Treasure Sword Rowen,” and I do the same with countless blades of “Magic Power Solidification.” Kanami unleashes and scatters magic of dimension, light, and earth, while I unleash and scatter magic of star, wood, wind, and darkness.
The magic particles begin to resemble countless multicolored stars.
Because the mirror magic reflects and projects, one spell released appears to split into a thousand.
In other words, if one sun-like light appears, it multiplies into a thousand. If I glance at the horizon, a thousand horizons extend in a thousand directions. The clouds, similarly, flow not just to the four cardinal directions but to a thousand directions. It’s like fighting inside a kaleidoscope—and a fond memory surfaces.
It’s a memory from a year ago at the “Dance Battle Tournament” in Valfala, a country of labyrinth nations.
It’s the memory of watching the final match from the seating area with excitement.
I remember the end of that Rowen-san.
He also fought in a place that was bright and beautiful like this.
He was engaged in swordplay, just like I am now.
I can’t forget his face from that time.
His profile, which looked enjoyable, happy, satisfied, and cool.
Undoubtedly, for him, the “Dance Battle Tournament” final was his “Summit.”
There, he found the most valuable thing and understood the meaning of his birth. Rowen-san reached the reason for his fight—but—
—I’m the opposite.
I go against all the “Thieves of Principles.”
While doing the exact same things, I lose the meaning of my birth.
What I thought was rewarding becomes unrewarding.
Even though I have the same expression as Rowen-san, the emotions in my heart are entirely different.
Ah, it’s so hollow.
The battle with Kanami is fun, and Nosfy-san’s light is beautiful, but it’s incredibly hollow.
It’s undoubtedly the world’s fiercest battle and the world’s greatest spectacle, but it means nothing to me.
It has to be hollow.
Naturally, a feeling of nausea rises from the depths of my smile.
Underneath such a pleasant sky, I vomit the contents of my stomach with the worst mood.
My mind and body gradually begin to die.
However, as the “Star Principle Thief,” I didn’t undergo “half-corpseification.”
Of course. I don’t have the substance needed for “Demonization.”
I will move forward with nothing but my outer shell until the end.
“Hahaha—! U, ugh, *cough cough*, ugh—! Ugh, ugh, aaaaaaa, ahahahahahahahahahahaha—!!”
Even while throwing up, my laughter never stops.
Because this is the answer to my life, I can’t help it. I have no choice but to laugh.
This is my third act, Nosfy-san taught me that. If I don’t laugh here, both Nosfy-san and I will have lived in vain—!
“Yep, I knew it! This is my ‘Summit’! This place where I can never be ‘First Place’ is my ‘Summit’! I’ve always aimed for such a meaningless and valueless place…! Getting lost, desperately trying, suffering…! Hahaha, it’s truly ridiculous!!”
I feel like I can finally speak the third act of my true “Magic.”
More importantly, nothing else can rival Kanami’s “Immortality” except that.
However, amidst the split-second swordplay with Kanami’s older brother, there’s no opening to speak it.
I need to somehow create distance and begin preparing my Magic Construction again. The moment I thought this, Kanami interrupted our swordplay.
“—Ragune!! What’s wrong!? You’re going to kill me, right!? I can still do this!!”
“Wh-what!? You!! You’re just enduring with Nosfy’s power! You coward!!”
I knew it was a verbal provocation meant to spare me, but at my current state, I couldn’t even brush it off, let alone use it.
And they were in the same boat; it turned into an argument in an unexpected way.
“I’m not a coward! Right now, Nosfy is me, and I’ve become Nosfy! We are one person!”
“Ah, that suspicious line! Isn’t that just exploiting your own daughter, after all!? I’m saying that’s shameless!”
“Sh-shut up! You’re using Aid and Titty’s magic stones too, aren’t you!!”
“They’re lending me their power, so it’s fine! Everyone seems to like me… so this is just a bit of magic they’re lending me out of goodwill!”
“You’re just deceiving them! That’s called fraud! You evil woman!”
Nevertheless, enough distance had been created.
All that’s left is to utter the discovered “Incantation”—
“I’m the evil woman!? Kanami’s older brother, don’t point fingers when you’re just as bad… I hate that about you!”
“I hate you more! I’ve been killed by you once!!”
“To whine just because you were killed! So unmanly! That was your own fault! Even if I hadn’t done it, someone else would have done it eventually!!”
Unexpectedly, their exchange of taunts turned into self-deprecation, becoming their “Price”—
“I hated that pretentious act of yours!” “I hated that everyone-pleasing tendency of yours!!”
As the incantations were added, their expressions were straightforward.
This, too, was contradictory, but though they said they disliked it, there was no revulsion.
” ‘I hated the lack of courage to take this step!’ ‘I hated the stubborn refusal to admit my mistakes!’ ”
It was thanks to the man/woman in front of me that I realized this.
Therefore, within the condemnation and disgust, there was also reverse gratitude and affection.
At the end of it, Kanami urged me.
“Use it, Ragune! Now is the time for your true magic!”
Ah, you don’t need to tell me!
I’m using it now—!
” ‘I am a phantom chasing a phantom.’ ”
I placed my empty hand, without a sword, on my chest and lowered my eyes, muttering.
It was a sentence that described me.
In contrast, Kanami—
” ‘Now, I abandon the flag.’ ”
He deliberately responded with a sentence that represented Nosfy.
It was the same as with Rowen.
If that was the nature of Kanami’s magic, it was possible, and I, with the same nature, knew it better than anyone.
Here it comes.
Now, Nosfy’s true magic and my true magic will collide.
Their lives, the value of their lives, will be compared.
As I promised her, the time has come to weigh them on a scale.
In other words, this is the moment of the final brilliance—
” ‘Cannot Exist in the World.’ ”
” ‘I do not need the world’s blessings.’ ”
Bathed in the brightest light ever, I too now shine.
The concept of darkness no longer existed for me.
Instead, there was a sense of floating.
What my lowered eyes perceived was—a deep lake that stretched out endlessly.
The floor beneath my feet was so bright that it was transparent.
The shallow waters of blood, shimmering, gave the sensation of standing in a clear, boundless ocean.
—The lake’s surface, which should have reflected nothing, showed me.
It was a particularly large light, the moon that shone with Nosfy’s light.
It was a scene that convinced me Nosfy was helping me.
Now Nosfy’s light was permeating my flesh and blood, lending me magic power, working on the magic circle within me, and helping my magic. That’s why the continuation of the third part—is so light!
” ‘I am the unreachable moon floating on the lake’s surface!’ ”
I am a phantom moon.
A dream reflected on the mirror surface.
“Magic (Inverted Lake Moon Dream Curse)!!”
I unleashed reflected light throughout the entire battlefield.
The power of that magic was simple.
It was the ultimate of ‘Reversal’.
All phenomena bathed in the reflected light would be ‘Reversed’ without exception.
However, there was only one target here, as expected.
The enemy’s ‘Immortality’.
My sole aim was to ‘Reverse’ the concept of life into death.
The magic of the light-emitting stars.
Indeed, it was an instant-death magic that would definitely kill.
This was the answer to my life, which had been filled with killing.
That ultimate instant-death magic was absolutely unavoidable.
Because, within its range of effect was everything as long as my magic could reach—
Even I, the mirror itself in activation, was no exception.
Against this paradoxical magic that simultaneously killed and committed suicide, Kanami—
“Nosfy, lend me your power!—’I decided to celebrate my own birth’!!”
Calling her name, he unleashed the inherited power.
“Magic (Light of the Substitute Deceased)!!”
The magic of light-emitting light.
Indeed, it was an eternal life magic that would definitely save.
It was the answer to his life, which had been filled with helping people.
That ultimate revival magic was the same as mine.
It released indiscriminate and unavoidable light.
As a result, the two of us would continue to die from the effect of ‘Inverted Lake Moon Dream Curse’ and continue to live from the effect of ‘Light of the Substitute Deceased’.
It was not a cancellation but a resonance.
Receiving the paradoxical magic effects, Kanami advanced with a sword in one hand.
I was the same.
This wasn’t going to lead to a resolution.
With the two magics in conflict, I also advanced with a sword in one hand.
Before the conclusion, we called out each other’s names.
“Kanami!!”
“Ragune!!”
Amidst screams where it was unclear who was calling whom, the swordplay began.
I no longer had the leeway to construct another magic.
Therefore, I couldn’t increase my swords with ‘Magic Power Solidification’ and could only fight with ‘Hermina’s Heart’.
Crystal swords and blood-stained swords.
Blue and red phosphorescence clashed at the ‘Summit’.
Once again, it resembled the scene of the finals, but this battle was also different—
Unlike with Rowen, this swordplay was not a stalemate.
There was a difference in ‘Swordsmanship’ and a difference in magical capacity.
After all, I was completely overwhelmed by ‘Inverted Lake Moon Dream Curse’, while Kanami had completely entrusted ‘Light of the Substitute Deceased’ to Nosfy. He even had the leeway to perform ‘Future Prediction’, let alone ‘Dimension – Decisive Calculation’.
Naturally, I couldn’t evade one thrust and ended up with a hole in my left lung.
Next, the arm holding ‘Hermina’s Heart’ was severed from my shoulder.
Still, I tried to advance, unwilling to lose, but this time a hole appeared in my right lung.
It was clearly aimed at the heart. Probably the next one would be the heart—and anticipating that, I grabbed Kanami’s wrist and stopped the next thrust before it could extend.
However, by grabbing Kanami’s right wrist with my remaining left hand, Kanami’s left hand became free.
That arm, imbued with purple magic, extended—and gripped my heart.
It was a direct hit.
Not only my heart but my soul were grasped, and my entire body stiffened.
The hand that was holding loosened, and taking advantage of that opening, my remaining left arm was also severed.
I lost both arms and could only fall backward.
My magic and stamina were completely depleted. I was alive thanks to Nosfy’s magic, but everything was at its limit.
I lay on the rooftop of Fuziaze, on the lake-like floor, and gazed at the tips of my now-absent arms. It was a similar state to Kanami, who had died not long ago. Therefore, now—
“It’s really, with this… I can’t challenge anymore…”
I could only say that.
The veteran who had pursued my fall and seized me from above agreed, still gripping my heart.
“Yeah, there’s no helping it… It’s over.”
“It’s over, huh…”
I admit it.
I admit everything.
Ah, it’s hollow.
After all, I—
“Hahaha.”
I tried so hard… I killed so many people to gather them…
I myself denied their value and reduced it to zero…
Naturally, the value of my impending death is zero…
“Hahahaha.”
Unlike the other ‘Thief of Principles’, there was no ‘what awaits beyond the end’.
It was simply confirmed that my birth had no meaning.
I was like something that ‘did not exist’.
—It’s an ending befitting me.
However, as a mist wearing a human’s skin, I think I did what I could.
In my own way, I reached the end I had decided on with my own will.
Therefore, this is fine.
This is fine…
“Hahaha, hahahahaha—”
—It cannot be fine.
That’s right.
It’s fine, but it cannot be fine.
Only contradictory answers remain for me.
That is my true feeling, illuminated by the ‘bright world of light’.
The result of constantly ‘Reversing’ myself.
I am the ‘Summit’ of the world.
The end of that dream.
Having become a contradiction itself from too much ‘Reversal’, I could only continue to laugh, meaninglessly.
Next Friday
