Chapter 95
Chapter 95
Episode 95
What entered my vision was the sight of the [Death King], Thanatos, sitting on his own corpse with an arrogant posture.
In that series of moments, I looked at the situation as objectively as possible.
[Contemplation - Activated]
After reaching a [Corrosion Rate] of 50%, the world of [Contemplation], activated to its maximum, began to accelerate my thoughts as if it had stopped.
The distance between us was about 10 meters.
Considering my current speed, it would take less than a second to encounter the [Death King].
What on earth had happened?
Had Lucia Domine ultimately been defeated by the [Death King]?
Or was it that their battle couldn't continue for long due to a sudden situation? Either way, I couldn't be optimistic.
The [Death King] was strong. Last time, I was able to win because the situation, including the keys and my operational state, had fallen into place.
Now that he could fully concentrate on the battle, I probably wouldn't be able to win. In that case, should I retreat?
Should I slow down, maintain my distance, and search for a way?
"No…"
It was precisely because of this situation that I had to move.
I increased my speed even further.
I didn't know whether he had defeated Lucia Domine and obtained the [Key of the Evangelist] or not.
I erased from my mind whether I could win against him or not.
I would do what I had to do.
That was all I needed to think about.
"Hmm."
The [Death King], seeing me increase my approach speed, began to draw his sword.
As the sword revealed its jet-black blade from the scabbard, the surroundings were engulfed in demonic energy and grew even darker.
A demonic energy, so thick it was syrupy, was gathered in that one sword.
"Well then…"
Facing that sword, I focused all my flames into one hand.
I squeezed out all the mana remaining in my body into the flame that had begun to burn beyond blue, to white.
Transcendental Divine Magic
[Another Savior]
And the pure white flame soon transformed into a sword, spewing forth overwhelming heat.
Wasn't this the first time I had poured everything I had into one opponent without thinking about the consequences?
"Shall we see your skills?"
The [Death King], even while looking at my sword, did not panic and instead slowly raised his sword. No, it wasn't slow.
Only then did I remember.
That the [Death King] had been moving normally even in this world that seemed to have slowed down so much due to [Contemplation].
This speed was not a speed I was controlling.
It was a speed that even I couldn't catch up to, yet the [Death King] could move as if it were normal.
Yes, my opponent was a monster evaluated to be able to stand against the [Dragon Emperor].
It was rather foolish to think I could win against such an opponent in a head-on fight.
"Hmph…!"
In the slowed world, I took a long yet short breath.
And I observed the [Death King]'s state as much as possible.
I didn't know what had happened in his battle with Lucia Domine, but it seemed it wasn't without effect.
Here and there on his armor were minute dents, and his sword was chipped in places, likely from blocking a heavy battle hammer.
Moreover, the wound he had received from Eleanor still remained.
Thanatos was not in a perfect state.
If I could land this one blow on that wound again, I could win.
Therefore…
"Huh…?"
What I aimed for was not the [Death King], but his sacred remains.
In the first place, my objective from beginning to end had only ever been this.
"Got you!"
I suppressed the instinct born from the fear that I must not take my eyes off the [Death King] and swung my sword.
"Again this time…"
The sacred remains of the primordial angel soon sublimated before the sword of sacred fire that held an overwhelming amount of heat.
I didn't know the [Death King]'s exact objective, but I had certainly achieved mine.
"This is my victory, Thanatos."
"Indeed… I send my praise."
I turned my head to check on the [Death King].
The expression of the [Death King], who had been ultimately ignored despite his overwhelming presence, was considerably distorted.
"You did not lose sight of your destination even with me before you. This can be called composure, and also courage."
I had poured all my means into achieving my objective. I didn't know what would happen next.
If I were attacked in this state, I would die.
But I had no regrets. For this matter, it wasn't me, but…
"It's become quite a funny sight, hasn't it? Thanatos."
He had become the punchline.
"…I see. Thanks to you, it has become a very funny sight."
Finally, the [Death King]'s sword fell toward me.
Due to the slowed world, the sword falling toward me left afterimages, as if paint were spreading in the empty air.
"You were more than I expected, successor of Ein. But unfortunately, it seems this is as far as you go."
But his sword never fell in the end. No, more than that, there was a word that bothered me.
Successor of Ein.
Had he called me that when we first met?
If I only thought about the miracles I had performed, it could be so.
But the clear choice of the word 'successor' bothered me.
"Next time."
My vision began to be stained with black. It wasn't Thanatos's attack.
I had overworked my body too much.
Not only had I poured out all my mana, but it had been too long since I had activated [Contemplation] to its maximum.
Perhaps because of that, a terrible sense of exhaustion and a throbbing headache began.
In the end, just like that, I.
"We will see each other in the Underworld."
Even though the cause of all this was right in front of my eyes, I lost consciousness..
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇
[Underworld]
The place where the dead arrive.
The [Death King], who had returned after the battle with the Papal States’ [Hedenia], was reflecting on his gains and losses.
"…Lord Thanatos."
"What is it?"
The one who approached Thanatos, who was sitting on his throne, was his loyal adjutant, a lich.
"With all due respect, may I ask why you let that person live?"
"…"
He was talking about Oz.
Thanatos had let live the being who had dealt him defeat twice.
For him, who hated variables, it was a very unusual thing to do.
At the last moment, Thanatos had stopped the sword he was bringing down on Oz.
It was clearly a situation where he could have killed him. Considering that he would continue to grow in the future, it was also a situation where it was natural to kill him.
But Thanatos had only knocked Oz unconscious; he had not killed him.
"Due to the variable he created, we lost three Clutches."
"They have fulfilled their roles. And there is a slight error. It is not three, but two."
"Pardon?"
"Pied Dunn is alive. It is just that our contract has ended, so he will no longer show himself before me."
Pied was the Clutch who had served Thanatos the longest, but he was merely in a contractual relationship with him.
Hearing this for the first time, the adjutant scratched his skull and said.
"…Is that so? By any chance, what is the contract…."
"I cannot tell you that."
"Yes, yessir."
The adjutant immediately bowed his head to the displeased Thanatos.
"Was there anything unusual while I was away?"
"With Lord Fafnir here, what could have happened?"
Fafnir, who could be called the strongest among the [Death King]'s Clutches.
Fafnir was a demonic dragon that Thanatos had painstakingly created.
Even those who were fearless toward the [Death King] could not move rashly in the presence of a dragon.
This was true even though it was Thanatos who had actually subdued and was controlling the dragon.
The symbolism of the dragon served as a considerable weapon.
"However… since Lord Thanatos has returned, it seems there have been some disquieting movements detected in various places."
"They must think this expedition was a failure."
The adjutant cautiously replied, observing Thanatos's mood.
"Well, since three Clutches were lost…"
Symbolism. In the end, the symbolism that the Clutches held was the same.
Although they were not as overwhelming as Fafnir, there was no doubt that they were perceived as Thanatos's strongest cards.
Thanatos stood up from his throne.
It was a very rare occurrence for him, who usually paid no mind to rumors that the nobles of the [Underworld] were about to make a move.
"Lord Thanatos?"
"We will move immediately."
"Pardon?"
"Because there is no longer a need to leave the rebellious dissidents alone."
"What does that…?"
There was no longer a need to maintain the situation in the [Underworld].
It wouldn't be a bad idea to take this opportunity to clean out the foolish ones who opposed him.
"Tell the soldiers."
Thanatos immediately began to prepare for the next war.
There was no need to wait any longer.
"The war is not over yet."
Because the world would soon change due to the 'successor of Ein' anyway.
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇
After the war with the [Death King] had come to a temporary close.
In Oz's hospital room, Arietta was dying.
"Uwaaaaah…"
No, she was feeling a sense of shame that she felt would be better than dying.
Arietta remembered the situation just before she collapsed with relative clarity.
-I was waiting, my prince.
"How old am I to be saying such things…"
Considering Oz's social status, the title of prince was not entirely incorrect.
But there was such a thing as nuance.
That was clearly not a prince referring to social status.
Arietta re-examined the nuance of the words she had spoken.
-Hehe… Being like this, I feel just like a princess.
There was a fully blossomed flower garden there, with no room for excuses.
"A young lady dreaming of a prince…"
It could well be called the delusion of a childish girl. Of course, such a delusion could not be said to be entirely bad.
However, it would have been so if it hadn't been the grown-up Arietta.
She could be called pure in various senses.
It was natural that she, the representative of god, was more sacred and pure than anyone in the world, but this time it was a little hard to bear.
"Ugh…"
Arietta could not see.
It was good that she was able to see the person she loved most due to a single moment's miracle that day, but in the end, it was only a temporary miracle.
She still felt the world with her divine power, not her eyes.
Her depleted divine power had begun to replenish over time, so it was inevitable that the world she, who had been trapped in darkness, could perceive would widen again.
But that was the problem.
'I can feel everything…'
The gazes of those around her were painful.
Even if she couldn't see, she could vaguely feel what kind of emotions the other person held.
The gazes sent by the members of the [Shield of Light] who had been with her that day were unbearable.
Moreover, because she, who could not see, was the target, those gazes were even blatant.
"I'm ruined."
Her image was ruined. The image of Arietta, which had been centered on 'elegance' rather than 'purity,' began to change.
Rumors travel fast.
Especially if it was a different side of the Saintess they admired so much.
What was more troublesome was that they had no ill intentions.
-Saintess, you are a pure person. Although the road ahead will be difficult, we will be rooting for you.
-Please don't do that…
Those warm gazes were so painful.
"This is all your fault… Ow, ow."
Arietta tried to shift the blame by poking the cheek of Oz, who was lying down due to excessive mana consumption, but she felt a pain and lowered her head.
Although she was careful not to lie usually, this incident was still too unfair.
This was the Papal States where she would have to live for the rest of her life. But the pure dream she had only thought of in her head had become common knowledge for everyone in the Papal States.
"…"
After composing herself from the pain, Arietta stroked Oz's face.
That day. The sight of Oz appearing, illuminating the light of dawn in the dark dawn.
"Hmm…"
It was exactly the image she had drawn in her head. Yes, it meant she had expected it. But even so, she couldn't forget that moment.
Well, it was a special moment, so it was natural that she couldn't forget it.
However, the problem was that even when she tried to recall other things, in the end, the image of Oz would come to mind.
Perhaps because of that, Arietta couldn't bring herself to explain the miracle that had happened to her to the [Shields of Light] and Olivia.
If she told them, the intensity of the gazes she was receiving now would surely double.
"Ahem, ahem…"
Arietta's hand moved past Oz's face and down his neck. Since this was part of a medical act, she felt not a shred of guilt.
"Hmm…"
"Hic?!"
At Oz's reaction, as if he were about to open his eyes, Arietta was startled and let out a shrill scream.
Fortunately, Oz did not open his eyes right away, so Arietta was able to compose herself.
However, even she could not confirm that her face was unusually red.
"Arietta…?"
"Yes, Oz… -nim? I'm glad you woke up… Ah, no, I'm glad you've awoken."
Arietta unknowingly used honorifics. The wall between them had now been broken down, but it couldn't be helped.
'If I speak like I used to here, it's over…'
She must not let him find out that she remembered what happened that day.
That was a matter she had to excuse as dreaming a childhood dream.
For her, who had been appealing her mature and elegant image, that was something that absolutely must not happen.
"Um…"
The distance between the two had become considerably closer. The events of that night had made it possible.
"Oz-nim."
But Arietta deliberately kept her distance.
It was partly because she was embarrassed about what had happened that night, but there was another reason.
"I will wait. No, this time, I will also approach you little by little."
Their social positions had not changed. She was still the [Saintess], and Oz was not yet the [Mage King].
There were still many walls between them to overcome. Because she was still a body dedicated to god.
Before, she had been impatient about that fact, but now that she knew Oz was approaching faster than anyone, she had no reason to be impatient anymore.
"So someday. When the moment comes for us to be truly together again. At that time, will you call me like you used to?"
"Yes, I will make sure not to be late."
Oz replied with a faint smile at Arietta's attitude.
At Oz's answer, Arietta smiled brightly and approached the window. The pot of apple mint she always decorated was giving off a subtle fragrance there.
"Oz-nim. Did you know? I like apple mint."
"I don't think you had any intention of hiding that…"
"That's true too. Hehe."
The distance between the two was still there.
"Then do you happen to know what the flower language of mint is?"
"Hmm… I'm not sure about that. Could you tell me?"
The severed relationship had not yet been repaired. But there was no need to repair that relationship again.
"Among the flower languages of mint, there is virtue. It's a word I held in my heart on the day I became the Saintess."
"Virtue… It suits you."
"And the other flower language is…"
That broken relationship, just as she had vowed when she reunited with Oz.
'I want to love again.'
She just had to build it up again.
She just had to start again.
"It's still a secret."
Arietta brought her index finger to her lips and said it was a secret with a mischievous smile.
Rarely, she had her normally closed eyes open.
"So, so that I can tell you later, I'll wait for the day the second flower language comes true."
And within them were mint-colored eyes that held the heat of summer.