Chapter 16
Chapter 16
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Translator: penny
Chapter: 16
Chapter Title: Epilogue and Prologue
-----------------------------------------------------------------
In the Tower, abstract concepts often take on egos of their own.
My guess is that when the gods died, something akin to divinity scattered around, and those concepts absorbed it.
Even abstract concepts tend to carry common perceptions shared by people.
For example, if you ask someone to draw love, they'll sketch a heart.
Humans love imagining things without clear forms.
They crave precise definitions for vague ideas and dream up all sorts of shapes for them.
Those imaginations sometimes breed fear, sometimes familiarity, and other times even deification.
When such imaginings and emotions mingle with the lingering divinity around them, they grant those concepts egos. They bestow flesh and souls upon them.
Not just abstract ideas—natural elements or weather phenomena sometimes gain egos too.
Some take human form, others resemble animals or plants.
These are what get called divine beasts or illusory spirits.
The whale right beside me is a prime example.
Whales have long been seen as mystical creatures, so it's no surprise one would receive divinity like this.
"What should I do with you two?"
They possess divinity, but the amount is ambiguous.
Taking them along feels awkward, yet leaving them behind nags at me.
I stroke the whale's face to calm my heart.
This is the Sky Whale in charge of the Tower's weather—specifically, the rain.
Inky clouds always swirl around its dark body.
Its role is to unleash rain with a deep, resonant horn call.
But rain isn't just dumping water.
It washes away the negativity staining the Tower's nooks and crannies, purifying everything.
People say rainy days feel depressing, but they have their own quiet charm.
Plip. Plip-plip. Listening to the rain tapping the window always soothed my mind.
They complain about the damp, clammy air.
But that didn't bother me. I rarely went out, so I never got caught in it.
To me, rain deepened the serene atmosphere—a grateful presence.
Maybe that's why parting with this one felt especially poignant.
I'd fed it plenty and grown close.
"Golgoli."
Golgoli is the name I gave it, drawn from "whale."
I thought it was pretty clever...
But whenever I called it, Golgoli would turn its head like it didn't approve.
Today, though, it just stared at me with those massive eyes.
I saw myself reflected in them.
"I don't think I can take you with me."
Its eyes were unlike a human's. That made it even harder to read what lay within.
Hard to guess its thoughts or feelings.
"Sorry."
From the hill, the Tower's landscape stretched out below.
The city lights twinkled in full view.
The Tower's nightscape brimmed not with bright streetlamps, but with softly glowing lanterns.
No lights shone from on high—only flickering flames low below.
I knew.
This wasn't a true goodbye.
We'd meet again.
But when we did, I'd be the only one holding those memories.
Could you call that the same?
I didn't know. It was too thorny a question for me.
Partings are always hard. The moment you voice farewell always hurts.
But skipping it makes the pain worse, so the farewell is a necessary step.
Does it even understand me? Who knows.
No common language, so no way to tell.
Didn't matter.
Saying goodbye was for my sake too—to steel myself and prepare properly.
A warm-up for the parting.
Bwooooooh—!
Golgoli sounded its horn and poured down rain.
The cloudless night sky turned inky in moments, unleashing a downpour.
I watched the city night soak through.
It rubbed its face against my hand, acting unusually affectionate.
"What's this? Acting all cutesy out of nowhere."
It kept shoving that massive body closer.
"Thinks it's still my baby, huh? What's gotten into you?"
Moisture crept into my voice.
I stroked Golgoli's head as it nuzzled in, braving the cold, stinging rain.
Leaning against a tree, I petted the head of what was little more than an overgrown young beast.
Good thing it was pouring—I was glad for the rain.
My wet clothes weighed me down. Even taking a step felt heavy because of them.
Every puddle I splashed through on the street seemed to ring out louder than usual.
"You okay?"
I looked up at the familiar voice.
The Old Man's face came into view.
My heart sank with a thud. I'd been avoiding him on purpose.
Saying goodbye to Golgoli had been tough enough—how hard would it be with the Old Man?
Our years together were longer, our memories thicker.
Starting from scratch terrified me.
"Hey, you're soaked! You could've avoided the rain—why'd you let it happen?"
Ber came running up, flustered, wiping me down.
"You hated getting books damp in the rain! What's with you today?"
Her scolding voice, laced with worry, sounded just like a mom—it made me chuckle.
"Laughing?"
"Sorry. Just... feels warm."
Words could carry temperature, huh? Then yours must be close to human warmth.
Warm and cozy.
"Hahaha."
I looked up at the sky and let out something between a sigh and a laugh.
"What's wrong? Something happen?"
"Don't push yourself. Health comes first, you know."
"I don't even get sick anyway."
"Sickness isn't just physical, you know. The heart can fall ill too."
The Old Man's words hit me hard, something swelling up inside.
"Ah, suddenly craving a drink."
They both jumped like I'd said something scandalous.
"What? Why the faces?"
"Oh? Yeah? Then we gotta drink. If you're craving it, drink it."
"You two go ahead. I'll buy the booze."
The Old Man bolted off to grab some liquor.
Watching his retreating back, Ber yelled,
"Old Man! Come to my place! Not their shop!"
He waved okay without turning.
"Why casual with me but polite to him?"
"He just... doesn't seem like someone you talk casual to."
Fair enough. That face had an aura that demanded respect.
Though she bossed him around for errands without a second thought.
"I talk casual to him no problem."
"You're the weird one."
"I'm older than him, you know?!"
Felt like they were treating me like a kid.
"When you act like this, how am I supposed to see you as an adult?"
Ber ruffled my hair roughly.
"What?"
I dodged her hand, twisting away, and she said triumphantly,
"See? Stuff like this. This."
"No, that's not—"
I grumbled but let her pet my head anyway.
Ahem. Felt oddly nice. Like getting praised.
Before long, we reached Ber's house.
A massive estate fitting for the Great Merchant.
A sprawling garden and luxurious materials welcomed us to the mansion.
I sat at a second-floor table, gazing out the window at the endless rain.
Ber set a beer can in front of me, pulled from the fridge.
"What? You had booze?"
"Just these two. We'll need more, so gotta go buy some."
"Hesitant on casual talk, but errands are fine?"
Ber ignored me, cracked her can, and chugged the beer.
She acted all elegant usually, but switched modes for work or drinking.
"Ahh~! What? Why aren't you drinking?"
"Waiting for the Old Man."
Ber nodded like she got it.
She sipped her beer and said,
"Word from the Tower. Everything should be ready in a week."
"Yeah?"
"They accepted all our proposals too."
"Good."
"Haa."
Ber's sigh rang loud.
I flinched without meaning to.
"You really..."
"D-don't get mad."
Ber grabbed my face, squishing it into a pouty fish mouth, and said,
"Chin up. You didn't do anything wrong. No need to feel guilty."
She pointed at the Tower and continued,
"This mess happened because they screwed up. Not your fault."
Ber flipped off the Tower, then unloaded a stream of curses.
"You're actually giving this crumbling world another shot. Deserve praise for it."
Panting with indignation, she ruffled my hair hard.
"Like this, gotta praise you like this."
"Ow, hurts. Gonna shrink me smaller."
She pressed so hard my neck felt like it'd cave in.
"That's what you get for shouldering it all alone."
"What're you talking about?"
"Why always 'it's heavy, it's hard, it hurts!' but try to carry it solo?"
"You drunk?"
"I hurt too, you know. Let me share the load sometimes."
I had no words for her pained mutter, face twisted.
"Not the booze talking. Wanted to say this forever. You always shoulder everything alone. Ends up hurting you bad."
Ber gave a hurt smile.
"Same when you opened the Used Bookstore, same now. I kept waiting. Aren't I your friend? Friends are there to share the pain."