Last of Yours (5): The True Body
True Body refers to the actual form of a Constellation or Outer God. When a True Body descends into the human dimension, it is called Manifestation. Manifestation is divided into two types: the Half-formed Manifestation, which occurs imperfectly through an Avatar, and the Full-formed Manifestation, which bursts forth directly from the celestial body without any medium.
An Outer God’s Half-formed Manifestation resembles the process of a larva transforming into an adult. The caterpillar dies, and the butterfly is born—elegantly displaying its true form to the world.
I had repeatedly warned that the leader Outer God possessing Ire Haslen would soon perform a Half-formed Manifestation, but no one listened.
“So nothing happened until we got here.”
“Exactly.”
Rakdalman shot me a look that clearly said now scram. “You don’t need to worry about Miss Haslen’s well-being. The Outer God Management Bureau will take full responsibility for her comfort.”
“We’ll see.”
“You’re still obsessing over Outer Gods?”
“Of course.” I sighed. “Fifteen of them are crammed inside one person’s head. For the Mad Wind to trigger, at least one has to die. Do you really think the Outer Gods won’t negotiate over that?”
“……”
“The fact that nothing went wrong on the way here is precisely because of that.”
Rakdalman exhaled. “If you’re that worried, wait here until the examination is over.”
“Thank you for your consideration.”
“Fine. Shall we make a bet?”
Thus Rakdalman stayed by my side, pretending to be a conversation partner when he was really a watchdog. Either way, it kept things from getting boring.
A few hours later, Ire emerged from the blood-drawing room. The moment she saw my face, she frowned. Dark circles ringed her eyes like bruises. Reading her psychological state, I could feel the flood of betrayal she directed at me.
I dropped to the floor and pressed my forehead to the ground.
“What are you doing?”
“Dogez a.”
“Do—what?”
“It’s a thing.”
“Are you a member of the Holy Spirit Church?”
“I’m an atheist.”
Ire walked past Building E toward Building C, where the psychiatry and psychological center were located. She was probably heading for a mental examination. Once she disappeared around the corner, I stood up.
“Excuse me, Outer Gods parasitize the brain, so why draw blood?”
“If I knew that, I’d have become a doctor.”
Her reaction was adorable. Spending too much time with someone this adorable would give me an allergy on my forearm.
“Where are you going?”
“To read my thesis.”
“That hallway leads to the restroom.”
“Restrooms are where you read theses.”
I locked the door and sat on the toilet lid. A hollow laugh came from outside.
“Student, do you dream of becoming a professor?”
“No.”
“Then why do you need to read a thesis right now?”
“I do.”
I answered half-heartedly and checked my tablet.
> Young Master, the engine is already running.
The escape route was secured. All that remained was to find the right moment to take Ire Haslen to Iryuel Academy.
“When are you coming out?”
“I’ll be right out!”
“Let’s go eat. My treat.”
Just as I was about to leave the restroom—
Kugugugung!
The entire floor began to shake violently. Rakdalman lost his balance, flailing and grabbing my shoulder to steady himself.
“W-what was that sound?”
“Looks like an Outer God went berserk.”
“You still believe that hypothesis? This planetary system has high Ether density, even if not as much as the Holy Spirit Sanctuary. It’s just an earthquake.”
“If it were an earthquake, the building would shake too. Only the ground is moving. Besides, Mad Wind can occur even inside the Holy Spirit Sanctuary. What matters isn’t the location—it’s whether the environment lets the Outer God exert its full power.”
I was getting frustrated, but at least I could give this man some cover. No one knew that the Outer Gods were targeting only me.
The tremors grew stronger. The floor vibrated back and forth while the ceiling stayed perfectly still. It meant the upper and lower strata were moving separately. It felt as if the ground itself were flowing.
Rakdalman’s face turned pale as he finally realized something was wrong.
> A chilling killing intent can be felt.
The presence of an Outer God. Any human’s survival instinct would be screaming right now.
This is not a drill. A Mad Wind phenomenon has occurred in Room 5 of Building A. Non-combatants in the vicinity, please evacuate immediately to Building B or C.
The broadcast turned suspicion into certainty.
Repeating: This is not a drill. A Mad Wind has been triggered by the Outer God-infected individual undergoing examination in Room 5 of Building A——
Rakdalman scrambled to locate the emergency exit. The wall bearing the exit sign rippled and turned pitch black. The floor grew soft and sticky. Walls, ceiling, floor—everything began to soften as if turning viscous.
“The Outer God seems to be heading this way.”
“Impossible. There should be two Great Omegas stationed here!”
“……My gut says otherwise.”
Perhaps the Leo and Sagittarius Constellations were already dead. Perhaps the stellar cluster they led had already been devoured. The only certainty was simple: an Outer God had arrived, and it was trying to break free from Ire Haslen’s body.
I grinned. “Looks like I win the bet, Mr. Rakdalman.”
“W-what bet?”
“You promised earlier. If an Outer God appeared before I left today, you’d give me a one-year Universe subscription.”
“……Are you insane, student?”
Rakdalman raised his voice in irritation, cold sweat beading on his forehead. “Is this really the time for bets?”
“It is. This problem would’ve been solved if you’d listened to the scientist in the first place.”
“You don’t even have a doctorate—what scientist are you talking about!”
I pulled out my calipers and struck him squarely in the groin.
***
“Ha, things are getting interesting.”
After propping the unconscious man against an untainted wall, I readjusted my grip on the calipers. At that moment, a woman with tired eyes smashed through the opposite wall.
“Owowowow…… You are?”
“You must be the captain of Sagittarius. Your name was……”
“Eshu Malkram. I don’t know if you heard the alarm, but you should run right now. Monsters have spread all over the institute.”
Just as she said, several tar-like creatures were chasing after her. Malkram drew her sword and swung in one fluid motion.
Pababak!
Black chunks splattered everywhere. Her skill was impressive.
“Where’s the other one?”
“If you mean the Leo guy, he’s handling evacuation in Building A.”
Malkram approached, then flinched. “Haam, what about him?”
“No idea. He just collapsed.”
“Must be the Mad Wind’s influence. Weak Constellations react like that when exposed. Ugh, this isn’t the time for explanations. Can you carry him?”
“Yeah. Somehow.”
Tudududu!
Monsters were charging down the corridor. Some had iron balls for heads, others had limbs made of wire. Some had scythes for body parts, while others looked like shiny mirror balls. The variety didn’t matter.
Malkram was a Great Omega-rank swordsman. When she swung her blade, Ether condensed into a violet sword aura that traced a crescent-shaped galaxy. The world lit up brilliantly.
More monsters gathered. She kept attacking, refusing to lose her will even when surrounded. I dragged the foaming-at-the-mouth Rakdalman while receiving her special protection.
Her method was simple.
“Move. Back.”
One-point breakthrough. Strike the weakest point and escape. Every place she thrust, monsters melted. Like a laser targeting cancer cells, she poured exactly the necessary power into exactly the necessary spots.
Sagittarius specialized in poison. A deadly toxin that worked extremely well on Avatars. Naturally, mere monsters couldn’t withstand it.
And the opponent knew that too.
A heart-crushing madness drew closer and closer.
“……Damn, we’re too late.”
Three seconds. Two. One.
Ire Haslen appeared around the corner. She wore a white hospital gown, her lips curled upward, eyes rolled back so only the whites showed.
“Was this kid in Building A?”
“That’s what the report said.”
Of course. Claiming she went to Building C had been a smokescreen. Building A housed the famous neuroscience research complex used for human experimentation. Sapaul must have triggered the Mad Wind the moment it succeeded in negotiating, right before they opened her skull.
How many were there?
“Six.”
So it said.
“It devoured all the Darwin-types. I see. That explains it.”
Crack.
Ire tilted her head toward me and began giggling like a madwoman.
Giggle giggle giggle.
“Found you.”
Thud.
The girl’s body collapsed. From where Ire fell, a monster with a monitor for a face slowly rose, as if it had always been there.
— ‘Steel Flowing Like Earth’ manifests.
Captain Malkram, facing that form—
“Ugh.”
—clutched her chest and vomited.
“Are you all right?”
“I-it’s nothing.”
Contrary to her expressionless face, her shoulders trembled finely.
“But…… why are you fine?”
“Good question.”
“Weird guy. Anyway, that’s the real Outer God……”
Step. Step.
Squelch. Squelch.
Steel flowed like earth, mercury hardened like the sea. Sapaul slid toward us like a monster crossing an endless ocean. Captain Malkram raised her sword with her eyes closed.
“You’re going to fight?”
“I have to.”
“Don’t. It’s too reckless.”
“I’m a soldier.”
She calmly gathered all her Ether and constructed a sword aura. She manifested a multi-layered sword aura used against Avatars, then embedded the special techniques unique to the Zodiac into it, completing her ultimate technique.
Quick and decisive.
Malkram’s three swords shot forward with terrifying speed.
And Sapaul caught them with a single tentacle, as if it were nothing.
“Do not interfere.”
Something faster than light, beyond human perception, passed by. The wall was torn apart. I heard the sonic boom. A moment later, the concrete on the left side collapsed as if sinking. At the same time, a lump of flesh fell to the floor.
A shrill scream scraped against my ears.
“Now then, the nuisance is gone.”
“This crazy……”
Step. Step.
Sapaul approached slowly, its razor-sharp tentacles floating in the air.
“Idel von Rheinland. You’ve done well escaping this far. I’ll acknowledge you. Even with nothing but a mortal body, you’ve committed acts sufficiently threatening to our kind.”
“……”
“To kill you, I sacrificed six more comrades and planned the future with the remaining eight. It was a time-consuming task.”
“……”
“That’s all I have to say.”
The situation was bad. Future Sight was active, but it simply dictated my death in every scenario. Every attack coming next was an area-of-effect technique. I couldn’t dodge them all like this.
I had to counterattack. But with whose help?
Rustilla wasn’t here, and Sagittarius—the highest-ranked among the Zodiac—had her arm severed before she could do anything. Incidentally, she was unconscious.
Only I remained.
Ire Haslen could have held out a little longer even in this situation, but the problem was that trying to save her had caused this mess in the first place.
It wasn’t that I had no plan, but it was the kind of plan that only worked if I used my silver tongue.
Right now, Sapaul was in a very impatient state—having backstabbed its fellow Outer Gods to manifest its True Body.
“Meet your end here, mortal.”
I checked what I had. The calipers were useless. Only one thing remained.
— Cartesia’s Hair: This is a strand of hair from Cartesia’s True Body. Stored in an envelope.
It was compensation from the Celestine Incident. I’d been carrying it around because it felt unsettling. You never know when something might come in handy.
I tore open the envelope.
***
— The ‘God of Wisdom and Curiosity’ manifests.