I am sinking into the deep sea of blood.
Deeper and deeper, lower and lower.
I have no choice but to fall into hell, accompanied by the continuously echoing curse.
“He’s gone… Once again, he alone escaped…”
“He went. Carrying Fanian’s blood into the future, a thousand years from now.”
“I resent it, I envy it… But, ahh, ahh…”
There is nothing else.
There is no boundary.
There is no resistance possible.
I can only be drowned, completely painted over by this red curse.
After the victor departed, the “voice he didn’t want to hear” gradually weakened and disappeared. Instead, only the loser’s “voice I didn’t want to hear” remained, becoming prominent.
“But it can’t be helped. The boy was different from us underground from the start. He was someone who lived on the ground.”
I don’t want to hear it.
But I can no longer block my ears.
The countless hands that had multiplied have all melted away.
Only my torso sinks, and I can do nothing but look up.
Thinking back, the sky of this pure red sea was the light of my life.
Unable to even look down at my own body, I burn that light into my fractured spirit as I fall.
Soon, my remaining torso will also melt.
Digested by hell, only my soul will remain.
“It was decided from the beginning. Therefore, everything is unavoidable.”
“Unavoidable… No… Ahh… No, ahh…”
“That boy was not our companion. He had ‘succeeded’ from the start.”
Even that last remaining soul will likely melt into this resounding curse, merge, and disappear.
In other words, I have finally reached the ending of my story.
“Fufu, kukuk, haha… Ahh…”
I regret it a little.
After all, I was so close to dying with him.
However, in the end, the magic (the living red) was easily overcome.
It cannot be explained by prior experience or mental fortitude alone. He probably bore heavy guilt and heard things he didn’t want to hear. Furthermore, he was a strong person who had overcome that guilt.
Simply put, this “living red” magic was effective against “weak people” but not against “strong people.”
“Ahh, kuku… Haa…”
I regret, I laugh scornfully, and sigh.
I was somewhat resigned.
Although I desperately tried to drag him down with me, I was mostly brushed aside.
The reason I resented and envied him so much was because, somewhere in my heart, I knew I couldn’t win.
I’ve been saying it myself for a thousand years, he is “strong” by birth.
He creates convenient voices for himself, uses their encouragement as sustenance, and grows stronger endlessly.
In short, his aptitude is high. That’s why he always has room in his heart.
He doesn’t rot even in a nightmare where death is the only salvation.
Facing a desperate ordeal, he rejoices that he can become stronger.
It’s impossible for me.
In nightmares, I could never hold onto bright hope.
Having tasted the hell of this world, I quickly rotted.
Unable to grow stronger, I searched for those weaker than myself and laughed, thinking I was superior.
Therefore, this is an ending I already understood.
It’s the same as a thousand years ago.
That day, you left.
That day, I couldn’t leave.
We will never meet again.
Because I understood that reality from the beginning…
That’s why I beg you, never “come home” again…
Even if you show your face, I can only hate everything.
“Therefore, we are pathetic ‘failures’. We admit it, but it’s all too late. Truly, everything is already…”
No, I don’t think everything is too late.
A thousand years later, by finally obtaining a physical body, I have gained one thing.
It’s something as precious as the wish to reunite with the childhood friend who shared the same “dream.”
Before I disappear, I quickly call out.
“…Everyone. I’ve wanted to say this for a long time…”
I believe, just like my childhood friend, that “he will surely be there.”
As it is my last moments, I speak with the parents who have looked after me for the past thousand years.
“Thank you for not letting me go until this point. Thank you for trying to kill me, the ‘unlucky’ and ‘unfortunate’ me…”
The curse briefly turned into silence.
Immediately, a gentle voice spoke towards me.
“Please forgive Neysha, for whom death was the only salvation.” “Continue to resent a world that is only a nightmare even after waking from one.” “We have nothing left but to resent those above us.”
I always hated this gentle and weak encouragement.
Because I didn’t want to admit that I was one of the weak who needed encouragement.
But from now on, it will be with the curse of the “blood beasts.”
“Yes, from now on, I can only look up.” “Here, with us, let us continue to resent.” “Here, I will also continue to resent.” “Resentment, envy, suffering.” “I will resent, envy, and suffer.” “There will be no forgiveness, nor will I be forgiven.” “Ah, I couldn’t forgive. But there was also me, who wasn’t forgiven.”
Joining the “blood beasts,” my body and thoughts are dyed red.
Did the Cult Leader foresee this future of mine from the start?
Having finished speaking my last words, I sink into the bottom of the bloody red, slightly satisfied even without salvation.
It’s not that different from the ending of that ■
Deeper and deeper, lower and lower.
I have no choice but to fall into hell, accompanied by the continuously echoing curse.
“He’s gone… Once again, he alone escaped…”
“He went. Carrying Fanian’s blood into the future, a thousand years from now.”
“I resent it, I envy it… But, ahh, ahh…”
There is nothing else.
There is no boundary.
There is no resistance possible.
I can only be drowned, completely painted over by this red curse.
After the victor departed, the “voice he didn’t want to hear” gradually weakened and disappeared. Instead, only the loser’s “voice I didn’t want to hear” remained, becoming prominent.
“But it can’t be helped. The boy was different from us underground from the start. He was someone who lived on the ground.”
I don’t want to hear it.
But I can no longer block my ears.
The countless hands that had multiplied have all melted away.
Only my torso sinks, and I can do nothing but look up.
Thinking back, the sky of this pure red sea was the light of my life.
Unable to even look down at my own body, I burn that light into my fractured spirit as I fall.
Soon, my remaining torso will also melt.
Digested by hell, only my soul will remain.
“It was decided from the beginning. Therefore, everything is unavoidable.”
“Unavoidable… No… Ahh… No, ahh…”
“That boy was not our companion. He had ‘succeeded’ from the start.”
Even that last remaining soul will likely melt into this resounding curse, merge, and disappear.
In other words, I have finally reached the ending of my story.
“Fufu, kukuk, haha… Ahh…”
I regret it a little.
After all, I was so close to dying with him.
However, in the end, the magic (the living red) was easily overcome.
It cannot be explained by prior experience or mental fortitude alone. He probably bore heavy guilt and heard things he didn’t want to hear. Furthermore, he was a strong person who had overcome that guilt.
Simply put, this “living red” magic was effective against “weak people” but not against “strong people.”
“Ahh, kuku… Haa…”
I regret, I laugh scornfully, and sigh.
I was somewhat resigned.
Although I desperately tried to drag him down with me, I was mostly brushed aside.
The reason I resented and envied him so much was because, somewhere in my heart, I knew I couldn’t win.
I’ve been saying it myself for a thousand years, he is “strong” by birth.
He creates convenient voices for himself, uses their encouragement as sustenance, and grows stronger endlessly.
In short, his aptitude is high. That’s why he always has room in his heart.
He doesn’t rot even in a nightmare where death is the only salvation.
Facing a desperate ordeal, he rejoices that he can become stronger.
It’s impossible for me.
In nightmares, I could never hold onto bright hope.
Having tasted the hell of this world, I quickly rotted.
Unable to grow stronger, I searched for those weaker than myself and laughed, thinking I was superior.
Therefore, this is an ending I already understood.
It’s the same as a thousand years ago.
That day, you left.
That day, I couldn’t leave.
We will never meet again.
Because I understood that reality from the beginning…
That’s why I beg you, never “come home” again…
Even if you show your face, I can only hate everything.
“Therefore, we are pathetic ‘failures’. We admit it, but it’s all too late. Truly, everything is already…”
No, I don’t think everything is too late.
A thousand years later, by finally obtaining a physical body, I have gained one thing.
It’s something as precious as the wish to reunite with the childhood friend who shared the same “dream.”
Before I disappear, I quickly call out.
“…Everyone. I’ve wanted to say this for a long time…”
I believe, just like my childhood friend, that “he will surely be there.”
As it is my last moments, I speak with the parents who have looked after me for the past thousand years.
“Thank you for not letting me go until this point. Thank you for trying to kill me, the ‘unlucky’ and ‘unfortunate’ me…”
The curse briefly turned into silence.
Immediately, a gentle voice spoke towards me.
“Please forgive Neysha, for whom death was the only salvation.” “Continue to resent a world that is only a nightmare even after waking from one.” “We have nothing left but to resent those above us.”
I always hated this gentle and weak encouragement.
Because I didn’t want to admit that I was one of the weak who needed encouragement.
But from now on, it will be with the curse of the “blood beasts.”
“Yes, from now on, I can only look up.” “Here, with us, let us continue to resent.” “Here, I will also continue to resent.” “Resentment, envy, suffering.” “I will resent, envy, and suffer.” “There will be no forgiveness, nor will I be forgiven.” “Ah, I couldn’t forgive. But there was also me, who wasn’t forgiven.”
Joining the “blood beasts,” my body and thoughts are dyed red.
Did the Cult Leader foresee this future of mine from the start?
Having finished speaking my last words, I sink into the bottom of the bloody red, slightly satisfied even without salvation.
It’s not that different from the ending of that ■■■ and the black-out magic.
Everything is being painted over.
The difference from the Cult Leader’s salvation is whether it’s black or red.
It’s just a difference in color.
—But I chose red.
It’s the color of my hometown.
No matter how much I suffer, I felt it was wrong to have it “erased” by the Cult Leader’s gentle black.
Because this red is the color of my family.
I want to say goodbye in this red.
I want to become red.
I will die red together. I too will become a red sea and sky. Dyeing red, red, red. Everything is red. That’s good. Family is red, the past is red, people are red, nostalgia is red. Time is red, the world is red, cleaning is red, light is red, dreams are red, you are red. Flesh and blood are red, cups are red, castles are red, insects are red, magic is red, red, red, red, red, red, red, dazzlingly red, everything is red, crimson, scarlet, red. That’s why I can only resent. The “curse” must be made to echo. Other people are red. Hateful red. Regrettable red. Envious red. It’s already painful, envious, resentful. It’s all your fault that it’s become like this, I resent it. I can do nothing but resent. Everything is hateful. Hate me. Hate me. Resent me. Even if I resent, even if I envy. From the beginning. I knew it. Resent me. Hate me. Do I resent? I resent. I resent. I resent. I resent. I resent. I resent. I resent. I resent. I resent. I resent. I resent. I resent. I resent. I resent. I resent. I resent. I resent. That’s why, don’t come back again. Resent me. Resent me. Resent me. Resent me. Resent me. Resent me. Resent me. Resent me. Here. Resent me. Resent me. Resent me. Resent me. I’m fine alone. Resent me. Resent me. Resent me. Resent me. Resent me. Resent me. Resent me. Resent me. Resent me. Resent me. Resent me. Resent me. Resent me. Resent me. Resent me. Resent me. Resent me. Resent me. Resent me. Resent me. Resent me. Resent me. Resent me. Resent me. Resent me. Resent me. Resent me. Resent me. Resent me. Resent me. Resent me. Resent me. Resent me. Resent me. Resent me. Resent me. Resent me. Resent me. Resent me. Resent me. Resent me. Resent me. Resent me. Resent me. Resent me. Resent me. Resent me. Resent me. Resent me. Resent me. Resent me. Resent me. Resent me. Resent me. Resent me. Resent me. Resent me. Resent me. Resent me. Resent me. Resent me. Resent me. Resent me. Resent me. Resent me. Resent me. Resent me. Resent me. Resent me. Resent me. Resent me. Resent me. Resent me. Resent me. Resent me. Resent me. Resent me. Resent me. Resent me. Resent me. Resent me. Resent me. Resent me. Resent me. Resent me. Resent me. Resent me. Resent me. Resent me. Resent me. Resent me. Resent me. Resent me. Resent me. Resent me. Resent me. Resent me. Resent me. Resent me. Resent me. Resent me. Resent me. Resent me. Resent me. Resent me. Resent me. Resent me. Resent me. Resent me. Resent me. Resent me. Resent me. Resent me. Resent me. Resent me. Resent me. Resent me. Resent me. Resent me. Resent me. Resent me. Resent me. Resent me. Resent me. Resent me. Resent me. Resent me. Resent me. Resent me. Resent me. Resent me. Resent me. Resent me. Resent me. Resent me. Resent me. Resent me. Resent me. Resent me. Resent me. Resent me. Resent me. Resent me. Resent me. Resent me. Resent me. Resent me. Resent me. Resent me. Resent me. Resent me. Resent me. Resent me. Resent me. Resent me. Resent me. Resent me. Resent me. Resent me. Resent me. Resent me. Resent me. Resent me. Resent me. Resent me. Resent me. Resent me. Resent me. Resent me. Resent me. Resent me. Resent me. Resent me. Resent me. Resent me. Resent me. Resent me. Resent me. Resent me. Resent me. Resent me. Resent me. Resent me. Resent me. Resent me. Resent me. Resent me. Resent me. Resent me. Resent me. Resent me. Resent me. Resent me. Resent me. Resent me. Resent me. Resent me. Resent me. Resent me. Resent me. Resent me. Resent me. Resent me.
Farewell. Envious. Painful. Envious. So much. Envious. It’s all your fault. I resent it. I can only resent it. Everything is hateful. Hate me. Hate me. Hate me. Hate me. Every. Hate me. Resent me. Resent me. Resent me. Resent me. Resent me. Resent me. Resent me. Resent me. Resent me. Resent me. Resent me. Resent me. Resent me. Resent me. Resent me. Resent me. Resent me. Resent me. Resent me. Resent me. Resent me. Resent me. Resent me. Resent me. Resent me. Resent me. Resent me.
The world was red.
It was supposed to be red.
A trembling sound mixed with us.
Then, a sensation of being pulled out. Instantly, my boundaries returned to me.
The feeling of sinking vanished.
On the contrary, I was overcome by the opposite sensation.
A feeling of floating.
Before I knew it, I also had the sensation of being held.
Someone was holding my limbless torso.
Surely, there were arms embracing my body.
That someone was trying to float, not to sink.
They were probably swimming…
But to float meant going up…
They were heading up, trying to get out of here…
Swimming desperately… swimming and swimming and swimming.
Swimming together, upwards… up?
The surface…?
No…
I didn’t want to go up…
I couldn’t accept it. If I went out, I would die. I would be burned by the light of the surface, exposed to my “misfortune,” and die miserably. If that was going to happen, I’d rather follow the rules and stay mad. I wanted to stay mad! Until the very end, until I died, until the concluding moment, I wanted to remain mad! So, stop! Stop, stop, stop, stop! Stop, stop, stop, stop, stop, stop, stop—!!
“——Stop!!”
It was instinct.
I screamed in anger, unable to forgive.
Then, I immediately opened my eyes.
Thanks to having one eye left, I could see the figure of someone embracing me.
It was blonde-haired, blue-eyed young man who looked like he came from a good family. His hair and skin were stained red, yet he held me in one arm and swam.
It was my childhood friend. The “successful creation” who had run away from me earlier was now swimming while holding me, the “failed creation.”
“……!!”
Before I could understand the meaning, I blushed.
His mere presence dyed my thoughts completely red.
My instincts wouldn’t forgive him.
Precisely because I had been mixed with the “blood beasts” until just moments ago, this instinct was strong. I screamed with a magical curse.
“Y-You came back…? Why did you come back?! You coward who ran away alone, how dare you!! Why do you come down to look at me as if toying with me!? Did you come to insult me!? Why!? How can you do something like that!? Why was I the only one left behind, told that I was “unfortunate”!? Why were you the only one who got away, declared “lucky”!? Everything is unreasonable! You unreasonable coward! I can never forgive you! I must not forgive you!! If I forgive such unreasonableness as yours, I can never go anywhere!!”
Meeting him again, all I could do was hate everything.
That was the essence of a “dead person” mixed in.
They resented the world from beneath the grave, wanting to wring necks.
That’s what “evil spirits,” the “demons,” were like—
“Suffer!! You too!! Suffer as much as I do!! Suffer in “misfortune”!! Suffer and suffer and suffer, and become “unfortunate” with me!!”
The evil spirit conjured its lost arms with pure magic power.
Furthermore, using the magic, Distance Mute, it extended its pale blue hand to choke his neck.
This too was instinct.
I poured power into it as if I still had it.
As long as I was conscious, I dedicated my entire being to disrupting his purpose of living.
This instinct to drag him down to the grave finally—
“Guh—! Ah, aa…”
Unable to bear it, he groaned.
Bubbles escaped his mouth, and his swimming arm stopped.
It was understandable.
My fingers had dug into his neck, blocking his airway.
Accompanied by magical soul assimilation, they had dug in even deeper.
Due to my attack, his strength was gradually draining from his entire body.
“Ah, guh…, aaa…”
Bubbled and gurgled.
His stomach and lungs were filling with the blood from this place.
My body, being squeezed, felt it clearly.
“…, …Huh?”
With the satisfying feedback and reality, I let out a gasp.
Now, he couldn’t resist and was sinking.
He had become completely immobile due to my attack.
In other words, I… won?
Did my desperate struggle just now become the end…?
I was suspicious and wary, but he didn’t retaliate in any particular way, just continued to sink.
It was the end.
It was so anticlimactic that I couldn’t quite grasp it. The victory I had screamed for so long for, but could never reach, was now within my grasp so easily.
This was a completely unexpected situation.
It wasn’t even in the cult leader’s “plan.” Now I had achieved victory, and my wish was about to come true.
Embracing my childhood friend, with whom I shared the same “dream,” I was sinking to the very bottom of hell.
As we dissolved together, our vows of simultaneous death would be fulfilled. And then, eventually, we would fill the surface world together in “our world”—
—Why?
The one who answered that welling question was him, now within arm’s reach.
Despite his stomach and lungs filling with blood, his throat moved, making the blood-filled deep sea tremble.
“…You win. I would have preferred somewhere else, but… it’s fine. Perhaps this is the best place. …From here, it’s close to the “Deepest Part” over there.”
He gave a wry smile.
And instead of looking at the exit above, he only looked at his childhood friend below.
He curled his body further into a fetal position, embracing me, who was now only a torso and arms, gently.
As his arm and my neck connected and began to merge, I could feel that his current feelings were not false.
But at the same time, my “why?” remained, so he continued to explain.
“I wonder why… Lady Ragune is also fed up and told me to die… But even so, I couldn’t leave you, who told me you loved me. Because it’s not someone else’s problem. We were both victims…”
I felt no lies.
But I also felt no power.
If I fell this deep in such a powerless state, I would never return—
“We will never return. From now on, I will not only follow my own rules, but also the rules of ‘your world.’ I’m sorry for ignoring them until now…”
He apologized.
…No, there must be another way to escape from here.
For example, the “Scripture” that repelled countless arms and illusions earlier. Since it’s a source of magic power, if I wanted to escape, I could do it anytime— Thinking this, he immediately let go of the “Holy Scripture of Biaku” he held in his hand.
He tossed it to me.
“Here. …Let’s read it together. A new continuation, here, together.”
Instinctively, I took my right hand, which was strangling his neck, off and accepted the “Scripture.”
From my right hand, I felt a strong “Price.”
From this single book, I felt the lives of many people.
It was a formidable “cursed object.”
No, now it’s a “Magic Tool.”
But that’s precisely why I don’t understand.
Clearly, it’s his trump card. And furthermore, it contains a “Rule” that states, “The one who holds the Scripture is the master of Fafnir Helvishein.”
As my “Why?” deepened, he deepened his wry smile.
“…I’m easily deceived. Ever since I was a child, I have been.”
This was the second time I had heard him say this.
But the meaning was different this time. His expression was different too. Instead of cursing his own nature, he continued as if blessing it.
“I’m easily deceived, even by myself. Thanks to that, I can keep my promise now. I can take responsibility for my own words, like ‘If you believe, you will be saved.’ —I will become ‘The Great Savior’ of ‘your world.'”
I can’t believe it.
It’s impossible to believe.
After all, there’s no convenient existence like a “Savior.”
I realize that to death, thanks to that cult leader.
“No, there is. I was that. …From now on, I will fall into hell with you and become a part of magic. I’ll melt, mix, and I’ll definitely make you “happy.” — I’ll save you, the you in “your world.”
He’s changed his lifelong boast of “wanting to save” to “saving.”
I still can’t believe it.
That means falling into hell and dying.
Does he understand what that means?
Does he really understand what he’s saying?
“I understand. We’ll keep shouting together in hell. Friendly, the two of us, for the whole world, the voices of the dead, eternally—”
The vibrations and sincerity transmitted from the hand I stabbed and merged with.
That’s precisely why I don’t understand—my thoughts are read, and he smiles wryly, trying to explain further. My childhood friend will never abandon understanding again.
“Because I was also a “demon” whose name I can’t remember… I couldn’t go to the ground. Hell is the only place I can return to. …So, please. I want to be included with my companions here. — Resonance magic, Distance Mute.”
Then, he casts magic to erase the boundary of souls.
He thrusts his empty arms into my torso, dropping the “scripture,” and tries to assimilate.
It’s fine for me to enter, but being entered felt disgusting.
My instincts scream to reject.
“Lies… That’s absolutely a lie. You were born into a noble family on the ground. I was jealous and envious of that… I couldn’t stand you being so blessed… I disliked it when you came down. I disliked it so much I wanted to kill you…!”
Even if vague, I certainly remember.
You stood upon the “successful creation” and had a grand name.
“No, I have no name. I’m the same as everyone else. I want to be treated the same because I’m “never going back again”… Let me join the nameless “demons.” …I have no name anymore. I have nothing left but you—”
He insists, convinced, and slowly.
As a ghost “demon,” he tries to enter my soul and possess me.
“N-No way! Even if you lose your name, you’ll claim it immediately! You carelessly uttered an ostentatious name like “Hell’s Light”! You boasted in a place without even light! You abandoned us and went to save that cult leader for that reason! Because you are a “strong person” with the strong name of Helvishein!!”
“…Thank you for your concern. But I’ve realized. Being strong isn’t necessarily something lacking here. That’s why I can properly go to Kanami-san. I’ll reach Kanami-san even without me. So, it’s okay to fall with you. No, I’ll be able to go because I’ll fall. Surely, my descendants will admire me. Just as I admired “Fafnir” and “Helvishein”…”
“…Huh? …Huh?”
No matter what he said, I was going to shout back, but I’m speechless.
Listening to his story, I become completely unable to understand who “Helvishein” is, whether “strong” is above or below, or where “going” is.
“Ah! It was exactly as Helmina-san said…! Things we can’t achieve in our generation will eventually be realized by layering them onto the next generation! The more we suffer, the more “magic” will manifest in our “descendants’ world”! The god I read about that day was in this blood…! Ah, thank God! Thanks to Saint Tiara’s “Prophecy,” I finally understood! That all “people” can become it without struggling!! Kukuku, hahaha! So that’s how it was! Hahahaha!!”
He finally started praying.
Indeed, his expression suited the words “fanatic of a heretical cult.”
“That’s why I am not “Fafnir” or “Helvishein.” It’s okay to lose my name, my life, and my “happiness.” Because in “hell,” there was no name, no life, and no “happiness”…! My true name was always in “hell”! So, in this place where I’m “never going back again,” just one more time! This time, so as not to disappear! Call my true name! Please!! So that I don’t forget myself anymore, call my true name!!”
It seems like he’s gone mad.
Yet, I understood precisely what he was asking of me right now.
I also understood that if I didn’t deny it immediately, it would be irreversible, so I quickly shook my head.
“N-No. “Neil” is… to deceive the “Evil Dragon,” I—”
“NEIL!! The name of a “demon” mixed with a ghost is NEIL! It’s been a while! I’m back now! MY NAME IS NEIL! It was NEIL!! Hahaha, kuhahahaha!!”
He introduced himself.
Moreover, he has taken over this “living, breathing red” and, following the rule of “never going back again,” repeatedly—
“Ah, I won’t forget anymore! I was NEIL LORELEI! From now on, I’ll melt and mix with you, and WE WILL BECOME NEIL LORELEI. So, it’s okay for us to be “Neil Lorelei.” …Ah, it suits you very well. It’s a beautiful resonance, just like you. I understand why I received this from Kanami-san. …What’s wrong? Lorelei, are you feeling unwell?”
He repeats “Neil Lorelei” over and over.
So that even the Grim Reaper who judges and erases evidence of “writing” can never deny it.
Again and again, until it becomes familiar…
And, for some reason…
Even I…
“Who… have you been calling…?”
“LORELEI!? What are you talking about!? When you say “Neil Lorelei,” it’s us, isn’t it? That custom isn’t in the underground! We are “the two of us, Neil Lorelei”! There’s no home, no above or below! “Neil Lorelei” is the name of two people! We were “two people, Neil Lorelei”! Right, Lorelei!?”
I’ve been dragged into the name as well.
Then, he hugs me.
As if I were holding him back and strangling him.
This time, he hugs my torso—the contents inside—and squeezes my soul, saying he won’t let go anymore.
“Y-You…!”
I wanted to push away this crazy ghost “demon.”
He’s only spouting convenient things.
He boasts the opposite of my resentment.
I absolutely cannot accept it.
I try to break free, but—
“—I won’t let go. No, you won’t forgive me. You said that from now on, we’ll fill the “lowest floor” with curses together. …Ah, I’ll cooperate even after death. Just, I won’t let go even after death. Because there isn’t a pair as fitting as us. There aren’t “demons” whose voices of the dead suit them as well as ours! You and I are eternally together, Lorelei!!”
He acts like childhood friends who have been together for years.
He dotes on me like I’m a stubborn childhood friend.
And, he even says the opposite of what he said a few minutes ago—
“—So, please, be “happy” with me in hell. “Our world” has always meant “our shared hell.”
“—!!”
He’s… mad…
It seems like madness.
Fafnir Helvishein is completely mad… but that’s not it.
He is of sound mind.
Fafnir Helvishein is definitely not mad.
Because I who was doing the same thing can understand that.
This is a madness he’s adjusted to fit me so we can understand each other. So, now, I’ll match it—
“That’s right. I’m glad you’re matching me. Now we can be “happy” together. I can also fulfill my “lingering desire.” I will never pretend not to notice “happiness” anymore…! I won’t rely on Kanami-san’s “magic” either! With my own power, I could understand Helmina Neisha’s “happiness”! And thus, I could match it!!”
He mentioned Helmina-sama’s name while looking at me.
However, I’m not Helmina-sama herself, just someone who had a partial transplant of her flesh and soul—he adds to what I’m about to say, as if it were natural, before I can even speak.
“No, everyone is Helmina!! Sister-disciple Lorelei, did you forget!? Helmina, who became the foundation for saving the world, has become the world itself! Not just me and you, everything is Fanian’s bloodline! That skill and wisdom connected to various people like unseen lines! This is what people call science! This “hell” was also connected by those lines!! Ah, I can finally see it! Saint Tiara’s “real threads” are visible in my illusions! It wasn’t that they didn’t exist! They existed everywhere!! As long as the “World” exists, that’s religion, science, and hope!! Ha, hahaha, kuhahahaha!!”
“Ah, ah…”
He’s really good at playing along.
I’m overwhelmed by his madness.
I’m defeated not only in words but also in the assimilation battle.
The curses I should have shouted get stuck and can’t come out as strength leaves my body.
As I weaken, he states his intentions arbitrarily.
“Lorelei, I’m sorry… But that means we weren’t treated as successors by Helmina-san… We weren’t special disciples, but simply experimental subjects at the “Demonic Obstacle Research Institute”.”
“Ah, ah, ah…”
Those were words I didn’t want to hear.
He confirmed the final assimilation, now, rubbing them together.
“Hermina Neisha’s successor was a complete stranger, a girl named Tiara. The one who truly understood her ideals was Romis, whom I detested. — Of course. Because only perpetrators can understand the feelings of victimizers. All we could understand was the feelings of those who shared the same [Nir-Lorelei].”
The past, which cannot be changed, is now confirmed by two people.
Then, claiming to be fellow victims, and mimicking the thoughts of “Blood Beast,” they question and answer themselves with a single voice.
“—Yes, we were nothing but victims.” “Until the very end, Hermina didn’t love us.” “It felt like we were talking to Hermina, but not a single word got through.” “We were used up like tools without ever aligning our feelings, and died shamefully.” “Hermina from a thousand years ago died “happy” on her own, still mad.” “You too died “happy” alone, without ever seeing the ground, still mad.” “That’s why I couldn’t save a single ‘Hermina Neisha’.” “That past will never return—”
Muttering, down, down, down.
Deeper, darker, in every sense.
We sink in a “miserable” direction, the two of us.
Yet, the deeper I sank into misery, the warmer my heart felt.
I felt a dark “happiness” in seeing the future of a strong, promising “Person” like him crushed and heading towards a “unfortunate” ending.
Since the moment I was born, I’ve had this kind of disposition…
I don’t fit in with anyone…
“However, thanks to [Never returning again], I was finally able to find you. I can make you, in ‘your world,’ “happy.” … This ‘real thread’ is something no one can sever.”
With that, he laughed at his own misery.
He seemed to be enjoying his own misery to match me, laughing joyfully at this dark “happiness” we shared.
—It was a match.
What didn’t match a thousand years ago now perfectly aligned.
Our wandering eyes met.
Our mad feelings matched.
Our misplaced “happiness” matched.
Two souls and lives began to overlap.
“—Boy. That’s wrong.”
However, it was truly irretrievable.
My guardians around me began to offer advice, trying to help me, who was overwhelmed by his madness.
“—You are not one who should fall into hell. You are the one who will convey the dire state of our hell to the higher realms and save the hell of the ‘world of descendants’.”
“—Even if you’re alone, go ahead. You are the crystallization of Fanian’s wisdom, who inherited our Neisha. Your name is ‘Helvishein’.”
“—You surely swore that you would save the weak, and eventually the world. Otherwise, what would be the point of our Neisha’s sacrifice…”
“Thank you, ancestors of Fanian!! I will definitely make your descendant “happy”! What’s important isn’t just passing down wisdom and saving the ‘world of descendants’! After all, ‘our world’ is important too, isn’t it!? Yes!!”
However, it was no use.
There was no way he would listen.
Even with me, he only heard what he wanted to hear.
It was impossible to make the “Blood Beasts,” who had sound minds, listen to him now.
Gradually, the curses of the “Blood Beasts” grew faint and inaudible.
“—But… But still. Is this really okay now…”
“—We only looked to the future and never saw the next generation who would become sacrifices.”
“—If this is the choice that the ‘Hell’s Light’ born of Fanian found… Then this is already… No, this is precisely…”
“Yes, I will definitely make [Nir-Lorelei] “happy.” Even after death parts us, forever. Together, we will continue to bless everyone in this ‘living, breathing red.’ So, please rest assured, ancestors—”
His madness was not merely covering up everyone’s curses.
Since I had found a companion to sink with me, my “unpleasant voice” must be changing. That’s why it’s diminishing. —Seeing that, I finally realized.
“Ah, ah… Th-that’s why…”
I now understood his true purpose for returning.
He was undoubtedly intending to take responsibility for my “happiness of wanting to fall to hell with me.”
He would throw everything away, match me, love me, and die with me.
But in exchange, he would awaken me from the “dream” of “everyone falling to hell together.”
He would embrace all the accumulated curses in this “living, breathing red” with his madness. With that single soul, he would continue to comfort everyone, acting as a lid to prevent the “Blood Land” from overflowing onto the ground.
It was an impossible feat. It was a path of pain, hardship, madness, and “unhappiness”—a path that would surely break him one day, causing him to truly lose his sanity.
But still.
Still, I no longer wanted just empty words.
As he boasted, he wanted to choose the “path to save the prophet, save the childhood friend, save everyone, and save the world”—it was transmitted from our assimilated souls.
Unconsciously, I mustered my last strength.
I strengthened my mind like he did, trying to break away from the [Distance Mute].
Against this meticulously calculated madness, I would use a stronger madness—
“—Nir… ‘I am a liquid mop with a handle. The sunset in my mouth is—'”
“—You are the ‘candle that exists only in the abyss.’ And I am ‘meaningless and rude to you all’ and not wrong… Back then, we had already introduced ourselves. We have always been ourselves, haven’t we.”
But even a manual for madmen was easily matched.
Instead of shaking him off, we became even more strongly connected, and he rejoiced.
No, no.
More.
I need to go crazier.
If I’m not significantly crazier than him, I can’t win—!
“Ah, let’s go madder together. Let’s go mad, mad, mad, and save ‘our world’ ourselves. Haha—”
But it was matched.
No matter what I thought or tried to do, it was matched, and I couldn’t win.
It wasn’t just assimilation through the magic [Distance Mute].
It was a state of acquired “Affinity” through artificial soul synchronization.
That’s why he understood me so well.
And I understood him so well.
No matter how much I resisted or pushed him away, already—
“Ah, ah… Haha, ahaha…”
I had reached my limit.
My lips curled into a smile, normally.
I started laughing.
Because I was happy.
For the first time, there was someone who matched me.
Finally, I felt the same emotions as the boy, my childhood friend.
We could make eye contact and introduce ourselves normally.
We could even chat happily about common topics.
In the depths of this “hell,” it was truly the “worst,” but.
That’s precisely why, for the first time, I could feel ordinary “happiness” in “my world,” and I couldn’t stop what was welling up from the bottom of my heart.
“Ha, haha… *kuhff!* Hahaha!”
“Haha? Haha! Ahahahaha! *Kuhahahahaahh!!”
It was amusing.
Me, who is only now feeling ordinary “happiness.”
Him, who is only now trying to save one “Childhood friend.”
The boy and girl intending to die together.
“Ah, ahh, *kuhff, fwhahaha—”
“Ahah? *Kuhah, kuhahahahahaha—”
I surrendered.
Then, I couldn’t stop laughing.
He perfectly matched even my crazed laughter.
We hugged each other, empathized, and shared our joy.
That made me even happier and find it even more amusing—
“Ahaha, hahahaha! Ahahahah! Haa-ha-ha-ha!!”
“Haha, haa-ha-ha! Ahahahah! Haa-ha-ha-ha!!”
I couldn’t be pulled up from “hell” anymore, my “happiness” was insane, and even death couldn’t save me.
But, he—
He was trying to save me even in death, matching my “happiness” together in this “hell.”
“Haha, fufu, kukku, ufufu, ahahahaha, ha-ha-ha—!!”
“Haha, fufufu, kukuhha, ahahahaha, ha-ha-ha-ha—!!”
I felt good about it. Frankly speaking, dying like that a thousand years ago, and falling into “hell” after a thousand years, it’s the “worst” ending.
Yet, there was a part of me that felt good about being dead.
Then he, too, laughed merrily, as if glad to be dead.
Laughing, sneering, smiling.
Their laughter merged, as if melting together.
“Ahahahahaha, ah, hahahaha, hahahahahaha! Hahahahahahahah!! Haa-hah-hah-hah-hah-hah—!!”
We laughed maniacally together.
That “worst” yet ordinary “happiness,” felt so good.
Finally, “I” in “my world” was found by someone who possessed the same world as me.
By becoming fellow victims like this, we came to understand a “happiness” that could only be understood that way. Even if we aren’t a perfect match, because I love you, you are the ‘person I want to be with forever.’ It might be a truly insane ‘happiness.’ However, in ‘our world,’ we are together, now, feeling a precious ‘happiness’—
“Fufu, fufufu! Fuhaha! Kukku, kufufufu! Kuhahahah!! Ahahahahaha, hahahahahah! Fufu, ahaha! Ahaha!! Hahaha HAHHAHHA!! Ahahahahahaha! Haha-ha, hihi!! Kuhuhuhu! Fuhah!! Hahahahahaha!! AHHahHHahHHa!! Ahahahaha, Ahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahaha!!!!!!!!!!”
We laughed heartily together.
Then, after taking a deep breath, I called his name.
“——Niel!”
My body had already merged to the point where I couldn’t recognize its state. Soon, the part above my neck would melt, and I would lose my final mouth.
Before that, I wanted to say something. Not just to the “Blood Beasts” who raised me, but to you too.
“Please make me ‘happy.’ I want to be saved by you, now that you can.”
“I want to make you ‘happy.’ I want to save you, the one I couldn’t save.”
“Let’s fall together. I truly like you, Niel.”
“Yeah, I truly like you too. We’ll be together forever, Lorelai.”
The desire to be saved and the desire to save matched. We were meant for each other. We embraced as if we were ordinary men and women— but it was just an act. A mere imitation. I had learned that from her, Hermina. The name “Neil Lorelai” didn’t exist, and if you truly meant something, you wouldn’t say “truly.”
We are childhood friends who are just falling together because we have no one else. But that’s good. That’s warm.
I’ve resigned myself to it. I admit it. Now, for a little while, I have finally grasped true “happiness.”
—However, this is also truly an “unfortunate” ending.
In the end, neither of us could fulfill our original purpose. I had the “dream” of human extinction, but I couldn’t achieve it. He vowed to become a light for the weak, yet he couldn’t save the Creator.
We died together, with our aspirations unfulfilled, our souls departing simultaneously. It was undoubtedly the opposite of the Creator’s “plan.”
However, this ending is not “fake.” It’s not a half-hearted agreement. It’s an ending born from living genuinely, breaking free from the “blood threads” and the “purple threads,” connected by “real threads.”
Therefore, I can confidently say: This is a much, much better story than the one you have “written.”
As if boasting, we pressed our heads together and let them melt. We exchanged our final words, our lips meeting.
“My world… was saved… From the beginning, by my side… you were—”
“I… was able to save… The only one… From the beginning, always—”
“You were there. The one who could say they wanted to be saved—”
“You were there. The one who could say they wanted to save, you—”
“Haha, fufu—”
With those laughs as our last. Neil Lorelai merged completely. Losing their form as “people,” they became complete phantoms, swallowed by the magic, “Living Red.”
“Our world” was dyed red. And then, joining the “Blood Beasts” who offered not only curses of madness but also blessings of madness.
Thus, two children were born in Fanian. Two souls, who may have been “unlucky,” but perhaps “lucky.” Neil Lorelai was saved and fell into “hell”—
—Fell, and then.
From here on is true hell. It was much quieter than the hell Hermina had imagined.
The sea was red. The sky was red, the clouds were red, and even the sun was red. A perfectly red surface of water stretched to the horizon, without a single wave, with nothing but red.
I stood on such a red surface of water. I didn’t know why I was standing, nor how I was able to stand.
A primitive emotion welled up within the familiar monochrome of red. As I felt a deep sense of nostalgia, he was there beside me.
“……..”
“……..”
In the red place, I held hands with my childhood friend. Reflected in his small, blue eyes, I appeared small too, my form still pure. We both held scriptures in our other hands. From now on, we little ones would likely continue walking together on this red water.
Because we were being called. Hermina’s voice echoed from the horizon of the red sea. Towards it, we walked. —Now, eternally.
It would not be an easy path. It would likely be only painful, bitter, sad, and cold. However, my childhood friend beside me, as if to cover my resentment, turned a mad smile towards me. With this mad smile, we would embark on an eternal journey to search for resentment.
As we prepared ourselves, resolved to walk together, it was our ending—
“——!”
We were struck by an earthquake. The ground shook. I was surprised. There should be nothing here but souls. I knew that from the Creator. This was a space for souls to wear down and purify the “Demonic Poison.” It was like a filter before being cast into the “Deepest Part,” a storage. I called it hell, but it was also called the “afterlife,” the “interdimensional gap,” and “between the lines”—
An earthquake in a place like this…? It shouldn’t happen…
Yet, it was undeniably happening. The ground beneath my feet was swaying violently. Ripples were forming on the red water. Sounds of lapping waves echoed in a place that should have been silent.
I stopped the foot I was about to move. Not because I was caught off guard by the earthquake.
—It felt as though the calls had increased with the earthquake. Someone was screaming from somewhere. Not Hermina from the horizon. A bigger, different voice came from another direction. I looked around, but there was only red as far as the horizon.
From beside here…? Someone is screaming from the “Deepest Part” of the Labyrinth…? It wasn’t human screams. They were bigger. Beyond the roars of beasts. Not insects or birds, but the lament of something that transcended life itself. Its vibrations felt like they were crying more painfully, more sorrowfully than ours—
“—Eh?”
Just as I was about to feel pity. It appeared, suddenly.
Before Neil Lorelai, a “black thread” hung. A straight line, as if drawn with graphite, split the crimson canvas vertically. I was the first to notice the existence of the “black thread” hanging from above. And because I noticed, my childhood friend beside me also noticed. Because we were together, we saw the same thing.
“This…”
My childhood friend also noticed the “black thread” and let out a sound, his thoughts drifting. Unlike me, it wasn’t pity. His lips curved into a smile. He looked delighted. It wasn’t a face to show amidst such a painful lament. But I, who had become one with him, understood the meaning of that casual, unthinking smile.
—It was an expression of admiration.
Even here, he seemed to say, “Amazing. Cool,” his eyes shining with admiration. Seeing him sparkle with admiration, even in hell— my non-existent heart pounded. My non-existent face felt its flush. The blood that no longer circulated heated up, and my cracked spirit trembled. With that emotion, I exhaled.
“…Ah.”
I took a breath. I knew what that meant. Perhaps this wasn’t an act. What I realized here, quite readily, was the flow of my first love. I had always loved watching my childhood friend admire something, chase after it, and try his best. I was starting to get pulled into that nostalgic flow again. It wasn’t a flow created by the Creator. It was undoubtedly a more “real,” a better flow.
I had found it. So, it couldn’t be helped. Because we were Neil Lorelai, we had to admire, chase, try our best, and move forward again.
“Creator… that’s why…”
I produced a vibration. I was using magic that shouldn’t be possible here, but I could. Just like when the Creator came here, I could speak normally.
“If you keep ignoring the girl you want to save, Rustiara will do the same. We love you so much that we will overflow from your ‘Inventory’ someday. We call that madness ‘The One and Only Destined Person.’ …So, please, you too—”
I started to say “please.” But it wasn’t a prayer looking up, asking for salvation from God. It was a prayer from the next person, offering advice from a predecessor, reaching out his hand.
Neil Lorelai touched the “black thread.”
