Chapter 29: Angelica Honest III
Orphe showed no signs of backing down, so I reluctantly drew Gram Copy. The moment I did, Orphe unsheathed her twin swords and lunged at me.
“You’re coming at me all of a sudden!”
“Isn’t this just a trivial matter for you?”
Neither of us was truly serious, but after a few minutes of exchanging blows, I could clearly see her skill. Then she said something that completely threw me off guard.
“Ichiro, I’m going to live with you starting today.”
What? I was utterly confused. While I struggled to comprehend what was happening, her excitement only seemed to escalate. She continued to speak rapidly, almost overwhelming me.
“I’ve decided. I’m going back to the Guild to write a letter.”
“A letter for what?”
“Well, it’s obvious, isn’t it? I’m quitting Seventh Blue.”
What the heck?! The speed of this conversation was insane! This was bad! I felt like things were spiraling out of control! I could sense the walls closing in around me!
“Orphe, I hate to interrupt your excitement, but I’m sorry! I can’t follow what you’re saying at all!”
Orphe blushed and crossed her arms, gazing thoughtfully into the air for a moment.
“You’re Eris Gladius’s master, right? Oh, you’re wondering how I know? Don’t worry, I can figure that much out. So, here’s the main point: If you’re her master, then it shouldn’t be a problem for you to take me on as a disciple, right?”
In other words, she wanted me to take her on as my disciple. She had decided to leave her prestigious clan and move in here (to my home) for that reason. No way! That was impossible!
As I tried to voice my refusal, sensing that I was about to say, “Living together is out of the question,” she cut me off.
“Got it. I won’t live with you after all.”
“Phew, you understand then…”
“Then I’ll just buy a house in Bordaf.”
“No, no! That’s not what I meant!”
No, no, no! This was bad! To be hit with something like that out of the blue… Why did she insist on throwing such curveballs in our conversation?
“So, should I just call you ‘Master’ then?”
“…Just do whatever you want.”
I was exhausted. Ever since entering the Sealed Labyrinth, it had been one battle after another. While she celebrated her victory with a triumphant pose, I let out a deep sigh.
I had known that the Sealed Labyrinth could read our memories and emotions, and that it possessed a consciousness capable of doing so.
Orphe might be a bit of a musclehead, but I realized she was someone I could trust. I thought about how things were likely to get even noisier from here on out.
However, this was no ordinary Labyrinth; it was the Sealed Labyrinth that had once given Sensei and Pulmy-san so much trouble. If the Sealed Labyrinth had a consciousness, then expanding its territory was essentially a survival competition against humanity. Humanity and the Sealed Labyrinth were mutually exclusive entities. Therefore, I should never have let my guard down until the very end.
Angelica distanced herself from Ichiro and made her way to Pulmy, her adoptive mother.
Around Pulmy, a crowd had gathered, cheering and celebrating their victory. With her sincere personality, Pulmy called out each person’s name, acknowledging their efforts and praising them. Having accomplished their goal of eliminating the Sealed Labyrinth, there was no need to worry about time. It would take a while for Pulmy to finish thanking everyone. To escape the noise, Angelica took a few steps back.
Pulmy noticed that her daughter had distanced herself from the crowd. She also saw that Angelica’s eyes were red.
I need to hear what Ange has to say. After all, we are mother and daughter.
With that thought, Pulmy decided to wrap up her acknowledgments and spend some time with her daughter—just then, it happened.
“Ange—”
The ground where Angelica stood suddenly became damp. The liquid that seeped out quickly took the form of a Liquid Dragonkin. An attacker appeared behind her, raising its scythe mercilessly.
It was Pulmy’s voice that finally made me realize the situation.
There was no time left to activate Out Strider del Sole.
This was it. I knew I couldn’t reach the deadly blade. But I couldn’t help but reach out.
Pulmy moved out of love, without a doubt. Moreover, she was the only one who could reach Angelica in that moment. Forgetting her exhaustion, both mental and physical, she ran. And—
What Angelica recognized was after the deadly blade had swung.
Unable to make a sound, she saw a shadow intervene between her and the Liquid Dragonkin. Then—the scythe of the Liquid Dragonkin sliced through the shadow’s neck, and its flexible tip burrowed into the armor, completely destroying the heart.
“Pulmy!!”
Orphe swung her twin swords, vanquishing the Liquid Dragonkin. I rushed to the fallen Pulmy, calling her name. But I could no longer feel any Qi emanating from her body. Angelica desperately poured a potion onto Pulmy’s wounds with trembling hands. Covered in tears and sweat, she repeatedly cried, “Pulmy, Pulmy, this can’t be real, this can’t be real.” She stifled her sobs, pressing cloth against the gaping wound to staunch the bleeding.
“Ichiro, what should we do? Pulmy—”
It was strange. I had a feeling something like this would happen. That’s why, after I had contacted her previously, I had given her a protective charm… inside it was the Resurrection Orb, which had one last chance to bring back even the dead.
A blinding light erupted from Pulmy’s pocket. It was the warm light that had saved me, her, and Kuroa back then.
I felt the gentle, warm light enveloping Pulmy.
“I am not against this.”
As I gazed at the sacred light, someone let out a surprised exclamation, “Ohhh!!”
I couldn’t predict what would happen when my Master used that until the very end.
For some reason, the words of Sensei resurfaced in my mind.
“Powerful forces come with powerful costs.”
That memory left a stain of anxiety in my heart.
Gradually, the light faded, and Pulmy, who should have been covered in blood, opened her eyes.
“I… I am…?”
Pulmy touched her body, bewildered. For a moment, Angelica, who couldn’t comprehend the situation, exclaimed, “Wow!” and rushed to embrace her, bursting into tears.
Initially, Pulmy had said things like, “Hey, stop that,” and “Everyone’s watching,” but after a sigh, she seemed to give in and said, “Fine, do as you like until you calm down,” wrapping her arms around her daughter, Angelica, and gently stroking her hair.
It was a beautiful scene of a mother and daughter. However,
How could I feel at ease knowing there were no costs?
Sensei’s words were not wrong. In reality, that was exactly the case. I was merely using an unknown item without understanding its true nature.
Then, I felt a prickling sensation on my skin. As expected, my anxiety was confirmed. And in the worst possible way. A massive surge of negative mana began to fill the area rapidly.
“What in the world is happening—”
The intense negative mana was being released from the Resurrection Orb, which had exhausted its last chance, hidden in Pulmy’s pocket. It burst forth, floating above us, and began to spread an unbearable stench of rotting flesh along with an overwhelming malice.
“Cover your mouths with cloth!!”
Orphe shouted, having regained her senses a moment earlier. But she must have known it was futile. Everything was in vain.
Behind us, the warriors with weak mana resistance began to fall.
The overwhelming malice was not something that could be dealt with by a mere piece of cloth. Sensei had warned me about it. Therefore, it was only I who could take action. I should have struck down the floating Resurrection Orb without fear of the malice, or found some means to obliterate it—but everything had already reached a critical point.
“—What now?”
◇◇◇
☆Dead Release Dead☆
A monster sealed within the Resurrection Orb.
It grew by devouring the very essence of life and despair from four souls, breaking its seal to manifest.
◇◇◇
The last true Liquid Dragonkin, hidden deep underground, burst forth from the ground in a round, liquid form.
“What the—!!”
It enveloped the ominous malice that continued to spew forth—devouring it. At the same time, the release of malice gradually subsided, and we regained our vision completely.
“Ah, this is bad.”
I understood at a glance. What stood before me was the very Reverse Dead I had once annihilated, the one that had resurrected countless times and had once driven me to death.
Yet, I had come to realize that my recognition could be both correct and incorrect. The corpse before me was a being of a different dimension than the Reverse Dead I had faced before.
It was the very embodiment of death. Even Orphe was rendered speechless in the presence of this entity.
“What should I do?”
From the Reverse Dead emanated not only immense power but also an evil, absolute will intent on erasing all life in this world.
“GUWOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!”
As the Reverse Dead screamed, an overwhelming wave of malice erupted, completely obscuring our vision. Behind us, whether they were mages or warriors, those with weaker life forces collapsed one after another, losing consciousness. It had done nothing but scream.
○○○
Time is abundant. So even if there’s something I want to convey, I can always do it later. I had learned through painful experience that this was a grave mistake.
○○○
The malice that had enveloped the area began to gather above the Reverse Dead, as if time were being rewound.
The collected malice formed a dark, pitch-black mass, swallowing everything like the darkness of night, rapidly increasing in size. Eventually, it became a massive sphere of darkness, far exceeding ten meters in diameter.
○○○
Life is finite, and it’s too late once something happens.
○○○
“Run!! Those who are conscious, carry those who have collapsed and escape!!”
I shouted with all my might. Pul-san, Ange, and Orphe turned to me with faces filled with despair.
“Orphe, I’m sorry. We’ll train when we get back. I don’t know when that will be, but I’ll figure something out.”
The pitch-black sphere grew even denser.
“Pul-san, I promised you. Once we get through this, take me to the Elf Village.”
From the embodiment of absolute will intent on exterminating humanity—a being that allowed no life to exist—the dark mass was finally unleashed.
“Oblivion!”
It was one of my greatest light magic spells that could send targets to another dimension. The light I unleashed collided with the dark mass, pushing against it.
“Ange, I’ll slightly retract my previous statement. From now on, I think I’ll accept your apology. So, please don’t cry too much. If you cry, I might end up crying too. So, when I get back, let’s do magic research like we used to.”
“Ichiro, what are you…?”
The clash between light and darkness, which had been at a standstill, began to emit cracking sounds, like a scream.
“Ah, sorry. And one last thing. Please tell Sena and Sensei that I ‘love you.'”
The collision of light and darkness unleashed a torrent of immense energy,
—PAAKIIIIIIN!!
A crack tore through the space. At that moment, from the abdomen, head, back, and shoulders of the confronting Reverse Dead, countless black arms extended. There was no way to evade it. It seized me and completely tore through the crack in space, plunging into the gaping void.
“Nooooo! Ichiroooooo!!!”
I heard Ange’s voice calling out. At that moment, my consciousness faded away.
○○○
If there are important people in our lives, we must convey our feelings to them before we eventually disappear.