“—’Neil’.”
My body flinched as my hand was grabbed.
My limbs, which had been softer than flowing water, stiffened as if they had been infused with a hard core.
“N, Neil?”
“That is your true name.”
As the words reached my ears, my heart, which had felt as if it would transparently vanish, regained its definition.
Even though I had already lost my ‘lingering desire,’ there was a weight to those words that made it impossible not to hear the rest.
“It’s the name you forgot when you were ‘summoned’ after passing through the High Priest’s imperfect ‘labyrinth.’ Once upon a time, you were born as Neil in the ‘Lorelei family’ of the Fanian domain.”
“…My name is Neil? It does seem like Neil… I think. But I’ve already abandoned that name. I swore a thousand years ago that I would live as Fafnir Helvishein…”
“I know. However, don’t you think that role has already ended? The light of hope that is you shone brightly even in hell. …That brightness saved Hermina. That’s precisely why I want you to cast off that heavy burden and weave the rest of your story as ‘Neil Lorelei’ from now on?”
It was a suggestion that came completely out of the blue.
I never expected to have a name, which had faded into the depths of my memory, brought up here. And not from Kanami, but from that cleaning girl.
To put it bluntly, the me who used the name Neil back then only gives me the impression of being carefree. My impression of that time is vague and feels distant. My thoughts must have been clearly visible on my face.
“Precisely because it is distant. What was lost in the distant past should be regained in a world a thousand years later. Let’s return to the true you, not the fake Evil Dragon.”
Presented with a new life by the cleaning girl, my heart, which had regained its form, hesitated.
However, it wasn’t a painful or sad, negative kind of hesitation. While nodding emphatically, she spoke of my future in a very forward-looking, bright, and even cheerful manner.
“This time, won’t you aim for it? Not for ‘The One Who Steals the Logic of Fire,’ but for ‘Thief of the Principles of the Soul.’ In accordance with Hermina’s last will, the time has come to walk the right path, or so I believe. We are the first and second disciples of the great scientist Hermina Neisha. The two of us will weave the continuation of ‘Hermina’s Story.’ Isn’t that a wonderfully magnificent thing?”
I couldn’t deny it.
My ‘lingering desire’ had been fulfilled, and the path I had walked up to this point was illuminated with light.
However, light can be cast not only by the past.
The cleaning girl taught me that, and the person waiting for me at the end of the path echoed her sentiment.
“At that time, I’ll help too. I bear that responsibility. As I said at the beginning, I think ‘Thieves of Principles’ deserve more reward… or so I believe.”
Kanami also nodded.
However, the burden of the magic, ‘Dimensional Battle Calculation: Re-Tale,’ seemed to be heavy, as his body was still unsteady.
Wiping the sweat dripping from his forehead, he exchanged smiles with the cleaning girl.
“From my experience, when you’re hiding your name, you just can’t move forward. Or rather, it just doesn’t lead to anything good. …No, really.”
“You sound very experienced, High Priest.”
“I am. Frankly, that title ‘High Priest’ itself is already not good. …When people like you all tease me like this, it really shows that it’s something you shouldn’t do lightly.”
“That’s what he says, Neil.”
We were chatting.
Drawn in by the cheerful atmosphere, I also smiled.
“Hahaha…”
The air was light.
Of course.
It was all over.
The persuasion of Fafnir Helvishein, the former acting ‘Thief of the Law of Blood,’ was successful.
And now, the new ‘Demon of the Soul,’ Neil Lorelei, is about to become a companion.
—Successfully, the ‘First Assault Team’ of the ‘Blood Land’ overcame the difficult hurdle that was me.
That’s why Kanami and the cleaning girl are now enveloped in a sense of accomplishment, chatting away.
Then, both of them turned their gazes towards the exit of the ‘Divine Body Storage Room,’ which had been left open. The stone stairs beyond could be seen.
It felt as if faint sunlight from above was reaching this far.
It also felt like the smell of blood was gradually disappearing.
“Fortunately, Seldra is upstairs. We should be able to return your name with a certificate of authenticity right away.”
“That would be good. The situation upstairs is probably settled by now. …I’m sorry, Glen, but no matter who wins, we’ll all collect Hermina’s magic stones and forcibly bring them back to the Allied Nations where Snow is.”
“If you’re planning on treating Glen Walker’s body, you should hurry.”
“Yeah. That’s what worries me.”
Kanami, though stumbling, headed towards the exit of the ‘Divine Body Storage Room.’ His depleted stamina and magic had not yet fully recovered, making his back defenseless.
It was a back that conveyed that he considered me a companion… no, that he had considered me a companion from the beginning.
The cleaning girl followed behind his back.
However, noticing me still standing still, she turned back and asked with a worried expression.
“Neil…? Do you perhaps not want to return to the surface?”
She approached my side and looked up at me from below.
At this close distance, I couldn’t really say our gazes met.
After all, unlike humans, ‘Blood Dolls’ only have one opening in their head. I couldn’t read her expression at all.
“No, it’s not that I don’t want to… It’s just that I’m surprised by various things and can’t quite process it all. The idea of me living in a world a thousand years later as Neil is a good thing, I think. I do have the desire to contribute to the world even a little. But, is that really… permissible?”
“………It is ‘permissible.’ Of course it is. Because now the surface is filled with Hermina’s ‘Magic Stone Line’ and magic, everyone is at ease with the Revannism led by the High Priest, and that hateful dark cloud has completely cleared. —Now, the surface itself is Hermina.”
“The surface is now Hermina herself…”
I understood what she meant.
A thousand years ago, Hermina became the foundation of the world.
Therefore, living in that world would be her true reward.
“Yes. Living in the world that is Hermina is the duty of us disciples.”
Mentioning Hermina’s name, the cleaning girl shook her shoulders.
She gazed intently at the stairs, as if saying that many enjoyable things awaited on the surface. Was she dreaming of the new world waiting beyond?
I imagined it too.
My days would be spent rushing about in world reconstruction after returning to the surface.
Using my knowledge and experience, I could assist in many ways.
I wouldn’t only have the cleaning girl and Kanami as acquaintances. My old friend Seldra would also be among my companions, and we could make this new era a little better by exchanging jokes I couldn’t have made a thousand years ago.
If such a future existed, I wanted to see it.
That’s right.
After everything is over, aiming to become the feudal lord of Fanian might be a good idea.
It’s said to be a poor and remote region now, so there would be more to revive than a thousand years ago. I’d like to bring along that child Maria who I got along with and re-establish the ‘Artofel Religion,’ which had once disappeared, in its correct form. That would be my true calling as a theologian and perhaps atonement for Arti, ‘The one who steals the logic of fire.’
Many things I wanted to do popped into my head.
It felt like the ‘dream’ could continue for still longer.
I never imagined that thinking about putting back one by one the things that had gone astray into their correct form would be so enjoyable.
And if I could walk that new life, I thought there would be nothing more wonderful or ‘happy.’
As if drawn by that enjoyable feeling, I looked again at the cleaning girl’s face.
—She was smiling cheerfully.
I could now understand the words and feelings of my friend, which I couldn’t comprehend a thousand years ago.
She and I are brother and sister disciples, the only ones. Spreading what we inherited from Hermina together is our true role.
“Ah… If I can retake the right path from now on…, I want to walk it. We want to weave the continuation of Hermina’s story with our own hands.”
“…In that case, let’s ‘contract’ with the High Priest and slightly alter your ‘lingering desire.’ As a disciple of Hermina, you should be well aware of the transaction mechanism. It’s the one at the end of the process of becoming a ‘Thief of Principles,’ right?”
The cleaning girl was knowledgeable about becoming a ‘Thief of Principles.’
It was the result of continuously watching and learning from Hermina and me.
I, not to be outdone by her, also voiced my knowledge.
“The basis of becoming a “Thief of Principles” is to gain power by offering yourself as a “Price.” One of these methods is to implant an “immutable” “Curse” into your body by harboring a strong “Lingering Desire.””
“That’s it. …If you wish to the Prophet here, you can change that “Lingering Desire.” To be blunt, if things continue as they are, you’ll simply vanish. You’ll become a ghost, Demon.”
The cleaner averted their gaze from me and looked towards the room’s door.
At the stairs, Kanami, a “Thief of the Principles of Dimensions,” turned around, waiting for us to start walking.
“–Neil-kun. Today, here, I want to repay you for guiding me that day when I visited “The First Demon Obstruction Research Institute.””
Called by the name Neil, I felt as if I had returned to my boyhood.
Kanami extended a hand towards me.
Gulping, I swallowed all the saliva that had pooled in my mouth.
It felt as if a halo was shining around me.
Whether it was a hallucination or magic, it looked like a sun halo.
As I confronted the dazzling radiance of that white rainbow, my feet moved on their own.
I had always known.
If I said, “Please save me,” Kanami would save me with all their might.
And not just save me either.
Dimensional magic specializes in reading the feelings of others.
With an almost unfair level of comprehension, they would empathize with me, reflect me, and save me in the truest sense.
They would even draw out the true desires sleeping deep within my heart, surpassing any wishes I myself vocalized.
My body trembled.
Kanami’s power was no longer just a “Great Savior”; it was “God” itself.
I couldn’t stop the goosebumps from covering my entire body as I heard the voice of God, a voice I had always wanted to hear.
And beside me, as I was captivated by their divinity, the cleaner whispered.
“Neil, please make a new wish. From now on, I want to spend enjoyable days with you. I want to pass on Helmila’s knowledge to future generations. I want a better ending. A sincere word from your heart, come now–”
I was being persuaded.
Being pushed from behind, towards the hand Kanami had extended.
If I took that hand, I would become “happy.”
If we shook hands, a new life would begin.
I now take the first step towards that–
In that instant, I felt something bump against my toe.
“…”
Since I was barefoot, I realized what I had touched was a book.
Instinctively, I lowered my gaze.
I had been looking only forward and neglected my footing, seemingly kicking something I had dropped on the floor.
“This is, my…”
Before I knew it, I had dropped the “Scripture of the Hakuhi Religion.”
As it had been a thousand years ago, it was carelessly placed on the floor of the “Sacred Object Storage Room.”
–It felt as if it were trying to tell me something.
It’s my imagination.
But it’s understandable that I would feel that way.
For years, this book, filled with me as its “Price,” had been my other half.
I had even created a “Rule” that one could not go against the owner of the “Scripture.”
Of course, that rule was a lie.
My devotion to the teachings of the “Scripture” was an act, a imitation of Helmila.
In essence, it was just an assumption.
There were no penalties for breaking that rule.
–But it was undeniably my rule.
“My… “Scripture”…”
The rule that if I protected the “Scripture,” I could one day become “real,” existed within me.
Of course, that wasn’t a rule of the world, but what you might call my own rules or personal rules. It was like a child shouting that if you step on anything other than your shadow, you’ll fall into hell… but I had sworn to myself to absolutely abide by my own rules.
Because from a young age, I was good at desperately believing and upholding things that only felt like they were true…
–They were so firmly rooted in my soul that my body moved on its own.
Suddenly, I wondered about the rule that one could not go against the owner of the “Scripture” and, as a way to confirm, I picked up the book.
Then, I recalled the past masters, including Kanami standing before me, Helmila, Nosfy, and Hitaki, and at the end of that–
I remembered the figure of “Ragune Kaikuola.”
It wasn’t a large back.
Compared to the four people I had lined up earlier, there was no nobility or purity, just a truly casual, careless, and neat master.
With that person, I chased the “Dream” of human extinction.
Now that I think about it, it was a foolish thing to do.
But perhaps, because I was with that person, I was able to do something foolish for the first time.
Come to think of it, only that person saw me as a Knight–
“—My Knight Fafnir, I command you. You don’t have to hold back anymore—”
They tried to exhaust me by using our master-subordinate relationship.
They were the only one who fully intended to use me as a disposable tool. But precisely because of that, I felt I could act like a proper knight in front of them.
They were also like a “mirror” to me, just like Kanami.
If so, perhaps that was also an aspect of my “Ideal.”
Their boastful demeanor, their memories, are easy to recall, perhaps because they are not affected by “Summoning.”
“—I want to be like that ‘Great Savior’ and surpass everything in the world, to win and win and keep winning… and in the very end, to become ‘God,’ I think—”
It still lingers in my ears.
Like Kanami, Ragune said things that were convenient for me.
Holding the “Scripture,” I remembered my current master.
And I felt nostalgic.
That person was also a precious memory to me, a page in my life.
I learned many things from that master, Ragune–
“—It’s impossible. Kanami’s older brother is fishy. He’ll definitely betray you halfway—”
I heard their warning.
No, I didn’t hear it…
It was a “voice” born of assumption, a feeling of having heard it.
It’s not “I heard the voices of the dead,” but “That’s what I thought” that is correct.
I have a “Skill” that induces the status ailment “Auditory Hallucination,” and that power activated to ease my mind.
…I must suppress it.
This “Skill” fabricates convenient voices that I want to hear, passing them off as the voices of the dead.
Moreover, the reason for disguising them as voices of the dead is because it makes my mind feel at ease.
It’s a “Skill” that feels like it’s profaning the souls of the dead, so I desperately try to suppress it, but–
“—Ah, suspicious—”
I can’t stop.
“Ah, what…?”
Something is wrong.
A chill ran down my spine, and a questioning voice escaped my lips.
It was a chill unlike anything I had ever felt before.
Should I call it an “omen” or “foreboding”?
I don’t know, but if this “voice” is one I want to hear, what is so suspicious…?
What am I feeling unease about, and what is sending chills down my spine…?
“—What do you mean? It’s everything from beginning to end. Fafnir-san—”
Finally, I started hearing voices that Ragune, in life, had never uttered.
Just moments ago, the cleaner and Kanami told me that I make assumptions and had misunderstood Helmila’s feelings.
Yet, that “Skill” doesn’t stop.
It’s the same bad habit as that Romis, whom I detest, of never listening to others and always believing myself, but for some reason, I can’t suppress it now.
I raised my gaze from the “Scripture” in my hand.
Before me stood the cleaner and Kanami.
No matter how many times I looked, they wore happy expressions.
The faces of people who were glad to have saved me, that troubles were over, and that only enjoyable things awaited them.
However, after hearing Master Ragune’s warning, I carefully observed their expressions.
Kanami offered a gentle smile.
But, on the other hand, he was dripping with sweat that didn’t suit him. He continued to break out in a cold sweat from the strain of the recent magic. Furthermore, he was constantly out of breath.
The cleaner also wore a smile.
However, the only allowed expression for that “Blood Doll” was the shape of the void in its head. Currently, that void was shaped like a crescent moon, chuckling with a mirthful sound.
Kanami, looking happy.
The cleaner, also looking “happy.”
No, is this really…?
Is this what a truly happy face looks like…?
The “foreboding” doesn’t stop.
If… if it were possible that.
Right now, I was under some kind of malicious magic…
If my perception of the world I was seeing was distorted…
As I reached that point, I remembered my most pathetic flaw.
It wasn’t the “distortion” or the “voices.”
“I’m easily deceived. I have been since I was a child.”
As I confessed, the smiles of the two people before me froze.
Just like ice.
“…”
“…”
In the tense silence, the cleaner remained quiet.
Kanami, with a blank expression, broke out in a cold sweat, his breath ragged, saying nothing.
Both of them looked at me without a word.
—It was so unnatural, and yet so familiar.
I took a second step, reaching out towards Kanami’s outstretched hand.
As if in a mirror image, I extended my hand as well.
“Kanami-san, you said you were a ‘mirror’… Indeed, I understand that you reflect us, experience the same things, and feel the same things as us.”
Kanami, like Rustiara, possesses the nature of a ‘mirror.’
Its surface reflects not only the heart of the other person, but also their very life, making it their own.
When I understood the true meaning of this, a sliver of ‘unease’ was born in my heart.
“—If everything up to this point concerns you and Rustiara, then answer my first question.”
Because I felt ‘uneasy,’ I grabbed Kanami’s wrist instead of his offered hand.
It wasn’t a handshake; it was a unilateral action.
“Please answer me truthfully—is ‘Rustiara Fuziaze’ truly inside your body right now?”
Without answering my question, Kanami resolved my ‘lingering desire.’
Because of that, I feel as though the truth has been intentionally omitted, skipping ‘between the lines.’
This is just a feeling, though.
But I am a fool who has come this far on mere feelings alone.
That is precisely why the voice of suspicion has been whispering in my ear incessantly.
The voice has been speaking all along, even before the battle began.
“Kanami-san, my master is speaking… ‘Suspicious. Not lying, but definitely hiding something important.’ She’s been laughing behind me the whole time…”
There’s no basis for it, but that’s what I thought.
When I conveyed this, Kanami, who had been rigid, finally moved.
“…Ragune? That’s impossible. She’s dead, and her Magic Stone is sealed. That voice is an ‘auditory hallucination.'”
He looked down at his chest, seemed to confirm something, and shook his head forcefully.
Ragune Kaikuola’s Magic Stone must be there.
I know.
This ‘voice’ is merely me having my internal virtual persona speak the results of my information gathering and situation analysis.
It’s always my brain that considers the voices of the dead; there’s no soul there.
“But, my master Ragune taught me—Chapter Fifteen, Verse One: ‘God’s surface is made of mirrors. It only reflects human desires, hence it is empty inside’—Thanks to you, I was able to fulfill my ‘lingering desire.’ But as I am merely a proxy, I honestly don’t care about ‘lingering desires.'”
The ‘Hih’ only goes up to Chapter Fourteen, Verse Ten. There’s no such page.
I’ve begun to fabricate even teachings beyond what I was taught.
“N-Neil…?”
Unable to bear watching me any longer, the cleaner called out my name.
However, there are more important things than my true name right now, so I don’t have time to pay attention.
“In my world, the ‘Great Savior’ is infinitely more important than anything else. Even if I understand that I didn’t need a ‘Great Savior,’ to gloss over that… is unacceptable for someone who studies history and gods. Absolutely unacceptable.”
This is related to Helmina’s vow.
Helmina had probably given up on her ‘dream,’ believing she wouldn’t see it fulfilled in her lifetime.
Therefore, I feel it is my duty to confirm whether that ‘dream’ has come true.
“—Neil, that’s a delusion! You’re imagining things!”
No, it’s not just my imagination.
If Helmina’s role in the Neisha Family was to “pass down research to apostles,” then the role of my Helvirshine family, which has lasted for a thousand years, should be “to confirm the results of research.”
As the first head of the family, I have decided that now.
I must research and elucidate the ‘Great Savior’ and ‘God.’
If what is hidden behind their smiles holds what I fear—my ‘unease’—
If that word, “fun,” is a fabricated, false history.
It is Fafnir Helvirshine’s role to ascertain that—
“—Blood Magic, ‘Distance Mute’!”
I borrowed the power of the ‘Demons’ flowing within my own body and constructed that magic.
At that moment, I vaguely recalled ‘between the lines’ from ‘Fanian’s Story.’
As my ‘Demon’ companions died one after another, I kept promising them on their deathbeds, “God will surely save us someday. The ‘Great Savior’ will come, and we will be rewarded in the afterlife.”
Everyone was swallowed by an era of dark clouds and killed unreasonably.
To all of them, I made them believe, “If you believe in my ‘Hih,’ you’ll be all right”—I have a responsibility for that.
“Everyone who died cannot rest in peace even in death…”
If the ‘Great Savior’ and ‘God’ of a thousand years later were fakes, then the ‘Demons’ who died would not be able to sleep peacefully.
Therefore, I cannot leave this ‘Sacred Treasure Containment Room’ yet, and I reach out my hand.
“Grk…!”
Kanami let out a small groan.
My arm, imbued with ‘Distance Mute,’ traveled from Kanami’s arm to his shoulder and pierced through to his torso behind it.
This was truly the ‘miracle’ strike of the day.
“I want to know the true feelings of the ‘real Kanami-san’ too…! I don’t want to make the same mistake as a thousand years ago, thinking I understand!”
And, in unison with the ‘miracle,’ I shout.
I clearly convey what the real me wants to confirm.
“If everything up to this point was a ‘mirror’! I’m sure I can understand your feelings now! I can empathize with you! So!!”
“—!?”
As I declared this, the tension seemed to vanish from Kanami’s expression.
Then, his gaze turned behind me. He looked at the empty air with a somewhat embarrassed expression and relaxed his entire body.
I felt I understood the reason for the ‘miracle’ a little.
I exploited an opening. It was not an opening for a fight, nor an opening of exhaustion, but an opening of ‘price’—there was no time to hesitate.
Finally, I managed to cast ‘Distance Mute’ in exchange for my own defeat.
Immediately, I entered the domain of the being known as Aikawa Kanami and explored it with magic.
It was vast, complex, and multi-layered. I knew it contained multiple Magic Stones, but it didn’t seem like a single person’s soul.
From within, I found and grasped a book with the six letters ‘Rustiara’ on it.
The page to open was the one after the final chapter.
The continuation of a story built upon hundreds of verses.
What kind of days did Aikawa Kanami spend after that ‘final battle’?
Having lost both the person he loved and his sister, and being entrusted with their legacy, what were his feelings?
I began to read the true opening of this new chapter and epilogue—it was—
“—A somber, cloudy sky stretching endlessly.”
Days completely opposite to the happy days Kanami told me about.
“There was no gap in the infinitely extending clouds, completely shutting out the sunlight.
The clouds gradually thickened from pure white, to white, to gray, to dull gray, flowing gently.
An ominous wind whistled, as if the world were creaking.
Beneath a gloomy sky that threatened to fall.
At the Eleventh Crossroads of the Allied Nations, a ‘Foreigner’ stood, clad in a black robe with black hair and black eyes.
The streets of Fuziaze, one of the most prosperous, were bustling with constant traffic.
But no one paid attention to the ‘Foreigner’ looking up at the sky in the middle of the road.
A special magic was cast on the black robe, so his figure was not reflected in anyone’s eyes.
Even when he bumped into someone walking, he passed through without contact.
The ‘Foreigner’ had reached the end of Dimensional Magic.
However, he had lost everything in the ‘final battle.’
If there was anything left of him now, it was only the ‘narrowing’ of a ‘Thief of Principles of Dimensions.’
Still, he had no choice but to walk on.
Alone, lost in another world without the one he cherished, tormented by ‘hallucinations.’
‘Aikawa Uzunami’ would continue to live his story—
*The second installment of the Aikawa Uzunami’s Labyrinth, aiming for the deepest part of the other world’s labyrinth, has been updated today on Comic Gardo.
You can reconfirm the beginning of Kanami and Rustiara’s story there.*
