Noah of the Three Wheels
Noah of the Three Wheels slowly returned the suffering she had swallowed back to the people. Some agonies were too harsh to receive all at once, so she gave them back very gradually—little by little, just enough for them to overcome on their own.
"Teacher! My daughter's fever..."
"It's alright."
"Pardon?"
"Children grow stronger by conquering illness themselves. No need to worry. Just... hold your child's hand and stay by their side through the night so they don't feel afraid. That's a parent's role."
"Ah! Yes! Understood!"
That day, one child suffered a high fever. The father held their hand and prayed through the night. A certain young lady regained her beauty. But since her ugly appearance had already become known, all her engagements were broken, forcing her to seek a new fiancé in high society.
Someone else injured their leg. They'd have to lie in bed for days, unable to work. Another clutched their chest and collapsed. Fortunately, help was nearby, so they escaped serious injury.
"Mother! Are you okay?"
"Of course. I feel better than ever."
"Hehe. That's a relief."
Each time, Noah grew a little weaker. Yet her mind, far from dimming, was clearer and sharper than ever. Once tormented by headaches and nightmares that kept her awake, she now slept peacefully for days.
"...I hear nothing at all."
"Pardon?"
"Nothing. I was just thinking how enjoyable it is to spend time with Charlotte."
"Hehe. Me too."
She had abandoned all duties. Laid down every privilege. Even her saintess powers faded bit by bit. Now, she was merely an ordinary doctor.
"Ugh! So many difficult patients today."
"Hehe. Indeed."
"That's too much. You can't treat Mother like that!"
No longer did she receive universal reverence. Her good deeds went unrewarded. Some she healed even cursed her in return.
Good deeds repaid. That too had been one of the powers granted by God. It was a feat so difficult it required divine authority to achieve.
Betrayal of kindness. Most people forget favors easily but dwell deeply on grievances.
"Charlotte."
"Yes!"
"I'll make the rounds alone today, so watch over the clinic."
"Understood!"
She no longer received God's infinite love. Yet she remained kind. Faithful to her work, respectful to others, aiding the needy—but only when her heart moved her.
As Noah left the clinic for her rounds and the building faded from sight, she pulled out a handkerchief and clamped it over her mouth.
"...Cough."
The cloth was stained with blood and unidentifiable chunks of flesh. She folded it neatly and stored it in a small box in her bag. Several more like it were already inside. All would be incinerated together.
—
"Noabud. Wouldn't it be better to spend more time with Charlotte?"
"I want to check on the patients whose suffering I've returned. Once that's done... you'll have to go back to your original master too, Gigachad. Hmm, somehow that's a shame."
—
"No need to feel that way. I'm always—"
"Right by my heart. You're part of my mind, after all..."
That evening, everything came to an end.
"...Somehow I feel empty. I must have relied on you more than I thought."
Noah gazed into empty space. Gigachad could pop out right there, flexing his massive muscles in greeting, and it wouldn't seem strange.
"..."
Her heart ached. A corner of her chest felt hollowed out. As if her heart had been sliced in two and she'd vomited up one half—the sense of loss was that horrific.
But she had no regrets. Loss hurt because... the time spent together had been that precious.
"I'm a doctor, yet I still can't diagnose myself properly. Maybe I still need you after all."
What would Gigachad say if he were here?
She could imagine it instantly.
"Noabud. You know it too. I'm your inner self. Anything I can tell you, you can tell yourself."
The truly important thing. Was to become oneself.
"You've already become a better person. Trust yourself. Move forward. Do what you must."
There is no path to happiness. Every path is happiness.
"A miraculous day awaits you."
Even if she stumbled on that path, even if she never reached her goal. She would be a better person by then.
"Mother. It must have been hard. I made delicious soup!"
Doing one's best in this moment. That was the only way to live.
"Thank you, Charlotte."
"No big deal! Helping you is my joy."
"With such a good daughter... I feel truly happy."
"Hehe. I love you, Mom."
"I love you too."
.
.
.
No matter how steadfast the soul. Physical illness eventually brings one low.
"Mother, how are you feeling today?"
"I'm sorry, Charlotte."
"You need to get better soon..."
Noah could no longer walk. Her muscles had no strength, and most food came back up.
"Ugh, if I'd studied harder, I could help Mother..."
"Your feelings alone bring me joy enough. It's my fault for not caring for my body. Don't blame yourself."
"Still, a priestess from the Pantheon came to the village today! Maybe someone who can treat you is there."
"A priestess..."
This world had priestesses and heroes with powers to heal others. But Noah knew this illness was beyond curing.
This sickness was her. She'd been born in such a body. Curing the disease meant killing her.
"I see. How exciting."
Yet Noah nodded with a smile. She knew it was impossible. But her daughter's worried heart was so precious and lovable.
"I'll go ask right away!"
Charlotte dashed out. Minutes later, the door opened. Two girls entered: a blind woman with a staff, led by a beaming, cheerful girl holding her hand.
Noah bowed from her bed.
"Are you the priestess? Thank you for coming. Forgive my rudeness—I can't stand due to my condition."
"Huh? Priestess?"
The blind woman tilted her head at the greeting.
"...Aren't you the priestess Charlotte called?"
"I don't know who Charlotte is, but... not entirely wrong. We're shrine maidens and a hero."
"Ah, I see. My apologies."
"It's fine. We came uninvited."
"Hm. What brings you to this small clinic? If it's treatment... as you see, I'm refusing patients in this state."
The blind woman smiled and nodded, gently stroking the other girl's hair.
"It's okay. What we suffer is a sickness of the heart."
"Pardon?"
"We thought you might join us as a companion... but in that condition, probably not. Sorry for the bother. I can find my way, but I can't see every detail."
The blind woman turned, taking the girl's hand.
Mysterious words. Then—
"Let's go, Zara."
"Yes, sister!"
"...Zara?"
An unbelievable name slipped from the blind woman's lips. Noah hurriedly stopped her.
"W-wait!"
"Hm?"
"Did you just say... Zara? Is that truly her name?"
Zara. A name she could never forget.
"Hm? You know Zara?"
"Please, just a moment. Come closer? I beg you."
"Well, that's no trouble. Zara, okay?"
"Yes!"
They approached. Noah looked at the girl, reached out, took her hand. Gazed into eyes bearing the world's every misfortune.
Too young, perhaps... but undoubtedly the Zara she knew.
"Heavens... It can't be... This makes no sense. She—Mother—should have already..."
Noah had no father. Not figuratively—she was truly born from a virgin, receiving breath from her alone.
In other words. Noah had a mother. One who suffered utter misfortune because of her—this illness.
"Pardon?"
"Oh, heavens. Father in heaven. How cruel a fate you gave Mother..."
Zara was unfortunate. The most unfortunate in the world. Not a metaphor. She was the scapegoat atoning for all the world's ills.
"How many—how many misfortunes have you endured?"
And to bear one world. Wasn't a single life too short and frail?
"This... this shouldn't be..."
Zara loses her kind father to death. Abandoned by her cultured mother. Hated and resented by all, dying alone.
That was Zara's fate. The world's purest misfortune.
Yet how could one loss atone for all the world's sorrows? Misfortune unending, all existence suffering.
"Have we met before? Hehe."
"Ahh—"
"I strangely hate you... yet don't entirely. It's weird! My chest feels tight."
Reincarnation. The wheel does not stop. The wheel's peak is crushed to earth, then returns.
Birth and death without reason—the wheel of life spins aimlessly, endlessly in place.
"Why... how... why now? Why always like this...?"
As there are two misfortunes for a child losing parents. So too for parents losing children.
"I'm sorry. Mother. I'm so sorry..."
One: abandoned by the child. The other: the child dies first.
This moment. Noah was dying.
"I... I killed you. It was a mistake. I—I truly didn't know then. Didn't know people die. Didn't know what death was."
Soon after Noah took human flesh. Noah. Betrayed Zara.