Innermost Thoughts
When we finally reached the end of the secret passage, we found Stanashila Pitra in a dire state. Her face was not merely pale but drained to an ashen, sickly blue, her lips and limbs trembling as cold sweat poured down her skin like rain.
To anyone with eyes, she was in desperate need of aid, yet the escort knights hesitated to approach, casting uncertain glances in my direction instead.
"What is the matter with all of you...? I have no idea how you managed to find me here, but someone please help me up. There is still work to be done..."
Letting her frail voice drift past my ears, I took slow, deliberate strides toward her, making sure to sweep my gaze across the surroundings as I walked.
"Hmm..."
Normally, a secret passage within a castle led straight to the outside world, but this place was different. The chamber, neither excessively vast nor particularly cramped, was densely inscribed with innumerable magic circles. At its center stood an enigmatic magitech apparatus that radiated a quiet, imposing majesty.
It looked like a location I had seen somewhere in the setting lore. Ah, right. It came back to me.
This is where Pitra meets her end.
According to the original storyline, Pitra was supposed to have been meddling with something in this very room when the monster horde swept through and tore her to pieces. Seeing as I couldn't recall what that 'something' actually was, it must have been omitted from the supplementary lore entirely. The fact that such a crucial piece of information was only surfacing now was a rather grim reminder that I needed to stay on my toes.
"Aljen...?"
"Mother. I'm glad to see you in one piece."
"Ah, oh my...? To hear words like that from you, the sun must truly have risen in the west."
Despite the teasing remark, a faint smile of relief curved her lips as she reached out a hand toward me. I reached out in kind, but my fingers bypassed her open palm entirely and plucked a single strand of hair from her head.
"Oh...? What was that for?"
Ignoring her bewildered expression, I held the crimson strand up to the light. It hung limp and still, showing not the slightest inclination to wriggle or squirm.
"Mm. It's the real one."
"Lady Pitra! Thank goodness you are safe!"
"Please, punish us for our negligence!"
"Wait, what? What on earth is happening?"
Watching her stammer in confusion as the escort knights swarmed forward with tearful cries, I chuckled under my breath and patted the trembling back of Vivian, who had been clutching desperately at the hem of my trousers.
"Vivian. Go on. Go comfort Mother."
"Th-thank you, Brother!"
Reassured at last, the youngest darted forward on pattering feet and threw herself deep into Pitra's waiting embrace. I stood back patiently, allowing the tearful reunion between mother and daughter to run its course before speaking up.
"Ternien."
"Sir! At your command, Lord Aljen!"
"Hoist Mother onto your back and fall in."
"Understood!"
Ternien scooped Pitra up in one swift motion, then turned to me with eyes practically gleaming with utter devotion and reverence. The intensity of that starry-eyed gaze was enough to make my skin prickle with discomfort.
"Aljen...where are you taking us?"
"To my room. It's relatively safer than the rest of this place."
"Your room? Wouldn't it be far wiser to take refuge in one of the hidden chambers?"
"You're sounding an awful lot like that Doppelganger right now. Did you already forget you nearly died in a secret tunnel just minutes ago?"
"Pardon...? A Doppelganger...?"
Leaving her to tilt her head in utter incomprehension, I took point and began leading the way back up through the winding stone corridor.
Gulp!
"Phew..."
"Aljen, must you truly drink alcohol at a time like this?"
"Don't nag, Mother. I'm drinking because it's a necessity. By the way, are you completely done with whatever you were doing back in that room? It certainly didn't strike me as an ordinary storeroom."
"...Ah! This is no time to be dallying! Ternien, listen to my directions carefully! We must reinforce the castle's defenses at once!"
"Ma'am? Ah...however..."
Ternien hesitated, shooting covert, questioning glances in my direction.
"Ternien? Why are you looking at Aljen?"
"W-well, that is..."
"Ternien, you don't need to take orders from me anymore. Follow Mother's instructions."
"Yes, my lord!"
Pitra stared at me with wide, puzzled eyes, unable to make head or tail of the knight's obedience. Paying her bewildered gaze no mind, I swaggered casually along the subterranean corridor.
"Mother, what exactly do you mean by reinforcing the castle's defenses? Does it have something to do with that hidden room?"
"Indeed, it does. It is a defense system I had secretly constructed within the Duke's Castle. You saw that apparatus earlier, yes? There are two more identical devices that must be activated. Once all three are running, they will erect a grand barrier that admits only authorized souls."
"Is that so... Haah."
It sounded like a royal pain in the neck, but since I had already mobilized, I might as well see it through to the end. It would leave a foul taste in my mouth if something went wrong halfway through.
"Still, Mother, why on earth did you scatter the devices so far apart from one another?"
"The Duke's Castle is simply too vast, so I had very little choice."
"Right, right... Fair enough. Let's make it quick, then."
"You are being unusually cooperative today, aren't you? It feels like an eternity since I last saw you take initiative like this... Are you truly my Aljen?"
The instant those words left Pitra's mouth, the escort knights bristled, their sharp gazes practically boring holes into my back.
"...Please refrain from making jokes that could cause misunderstandings."
Sighing heavily, I swung my legs forward and picked up the pace.
Over the next hour, we traversed the grounds of the Duke's Castle as swiftly as our legs could carry us, successfully bringing the remaining two devices online. Pitra, whose mana reserves were nearly dry, struggled through the exertion, but she managed to activate both mechanisms in the end.
Wuuuung—!! Kwoooooosh—!!
The sensation of an immense volume of mana—more than enough to fill both heaven and earth—surging outward in structured waves like a colossal tsunami was breathtaking enough to send a cold shiver racing down my spine.
—Kiiieeeeh...!
—Skreeeech!!
—Groooaaargh...!
From every corner of the Duke's Castle, the muffled death throes of monsters and chimeras echoed faintly through the stone walls. It was the sound of infiltrators and camouflaged beasts being crushed to death beneath the suffocating pressure of the barrier. Even more impressive, dark and malevolent wisps of miasma condensed along the outer edge of the expanding field before being violently expelled, suggesting that the lingering curses had been temporarily purged as well.
Just how absurd an amount of gold had she poured into this place to construct a barrier of such preposterous power?
"Phew... We can finally catch our breath. But tell me, Aljen, when did you learn such incredible tricks? You genuinely took me by surprise."
Sprawled across the mattress in my bedroom, Pitra rolled onto her side and peered intently at my face. My performance throughout our run through the secret tunnels—spotting every trap and sniffing out traces of curses and dark magic with ease—had clearly left a deep impression on her.
"Well... It's nothing special."
Gulp!
I knocked back another heavy mouthful of liquor, then took a long, deep drag of my cigarette, prompting her delicate brows to knit into a scowl.
"Must you indulge in drink and tobacco at a time like this? Vivian is right beside you..."
"Give the nagging a rest, Mother. And why bring Vivian into this? She was raised properly under your watchful eye; seeing me smoke a single cigarette isn't going to ruin her."
"You always have an answer for everything... Still, Aljen, now that the barrier is up, wouldn't it be safer to take refuge in the secret room?"
"Mother. Aren't you obsessing over that secret room a bit too much?"
"What do you mean? It is only natural. In a crisis, sheltering in the safest possible location is the standard course of action."
"......"
Could she have fallen under the influence of Cambello's Soul Pit? Her fixation bordered on the unnatural. Considering that the secret passages and chambers were crawling with traps and monsters, the thought that she had been subtly manipulated seemed increasingly plausible. It didn't appear nearly as severe as Duke Urtega's affliction—more like a faint mental suggestion—but one could never be too cautious when demons were involved.
"Ternien."
"Yes, Lord Aljen."
"Do you feel an overwhelming urge to go hide in a secret room?"
"...No, my lord. I cannot say that I do."
"Right. In that case, keep a sharp eye on Mother. I suspect she's fallen prey to demonic trickery."
"What!? In-in that case, shouldn't we request assistance from the Church immediately...!?"
"No need to go that far. It doesn't look critical... Besides, the Church has its hands full right now. Running to them would only sow more confusion."
"...I-I understand. Even at the cost of my life, I shall restrain Lady Pitra should the need arise!"
"Hey, I didn't tell you to go that far... Whatever. Handle it as you see fit."
"What on earth are you two whispering about?"
"Mother, you must be exhausted. Close your eyes and get some rest."
"Sleeping in a situation like this...? I would much rather be in the secret room..."
She must have been truly worn to the bone. Even as she mumbled about the secret room under her breath, her eyelids fluttered shut, and within seconds, she sank into a deep, heavy slumber.
"Brother. Is Mother going to be all right?"
"She'll be fine. You should get some sleep too."
"Okay..."
I watched our youngest curl up beside Pitra, hugging her tightly before drifting off, then tipped the flask back to my lips. At long last, I could afford a moment of peace.
While I was curious about how things were unfolding outside, there was nothing I could do from inside this room anyway. I might as well drink my fill. My exceptional elder brothers and sisters were surely handling their duties out on the front lines. A direct confrontation with Cambello would be rough, of course, but between the Church's forces and an asymmetric deterrent like Urtega, they weren't without teeth...
Kwhuuuum...!!
"Pffft—! *Cough, hack*!?"
Right in the middle of a generous gulp, an overwhelming, suffocating aura slammed down upon the room like an iron vice, so heavy it threatened to crush the breath from my lungs. The liquor I had just swallowed sprayed violently from my mouth.
"What the—!?"
"Kgh...!?"
Pitra shot upright from the bed, desperately summoning the meager dregs of her mana, while Ternien drew her blade in a flash, leveling it at the entryway. Her target was the firmly closed bedroom door.
Slide.
Befitting the master craftsmanship of the ducal estate, the door parted without the faintest squeak.
Step, step.
Through the doorway walked Urtega, his face completely devoid of expression, his strides measured and deliberate.
"Darling. Do not take another step."
"Kh...! Your Grace, stand down! If you advance any further, I will strike!"
Under normal circumstances, Pitra and Ternien would have rejoiced at his arrival. Instead, both adopted extreme combat postures, their hostility laid bare. The reason was sickeningly simple: the broadsword gripped in his hand was dripping with fresh, thick blood.
"...Stanashila Aljen."
"Father. What an unsightly display."
Replying casually as he called my name, I peered past his shoulder into the hallway beyond.
"Urgh...!"
"Guh...!"
The escort knights who had been stationed outside were scattered across the floor in pools of crimson, groaning in agony, yet none appeared to be dead. That was a relief. It meant he still retained a sliver of his reason.
"Speak. Right now. Tell me how to cast off this temptation and craving."
"If I knew that, wouldn't I have told you already? Good grief... Father. Have you no shame? Looking at the state you're in, who on earth would believe you're Stanashila Urtega? I have no idea what hole you've been hiding in all this time, but is this miserable sight the grand result? Did you come all the way to my bedroom just to flaunt your own weakness?"
"......"
"This is the first time you've ever looked more pathetic than me."
I let out a rasping chuckle and took another swig from the bottle. Whether these words were mine or the lingering resentment of the original Aljen bubbling to the surface, I couldn't say. Perhaps it was just the alcohol talking.
"Khhh..."
Cold sweat cascaded down the back of my neck, and the oppressive aura felt as though it were wringing my internal organs dry, yet I deliberately maintained a relaxed posture.
"...Speak. Before it is...too late."
Yet that veneer of composure wouldn't last much longer. His face remained an emotionless mask, but anyone could see he was dangling by a thread at the very edge of his sanity.
Gulp!
Am I actually going to survive this?
Well, even if I died, I would simply restart the loop. I wasn't particularly terrified of death itself.
I drew a slow, deliberate breath through my cigarette, exhaled a thick cloud of smoke, and locked eyes with his piercing gaze, forcing my trembling jaw still through sheer willpower. Looking at him, it was hard to believe we were even the same species.
"Like I said, I don't know... If I did, I would have told you ages ago. Hmm, though seeing as this might very well be our last conversation, shall we have a nice, heartwarming father-son chat about what's really on our minds?"
"......"
"Father, your strength is something recognized by everyone under the sun. You probably know full well how monstrously powerful you are."
"......"
"From where I'm standing, that power ought to be more than enough. So why are you wavering? Why can't you be satisfied with the heights you've already reached?"
"I have kept it hidden until now, but I...can no longer..."
"Because you can't grow any stronger? Because you hit a wall? And you thought siding with the demons might offer a way to smash through that ceiling? Is that it?"
"......"
"From my perspective, that sounds like an absurdly lavish complaint. Being able to objectively measure the boundary of your own potential... Tell me, how does one even do that? The gulf in our talent is so vast I can't even begin to fathom it."
At my sneer, Urtega's brow twitched faintly.
"Besides... Didn't I tell you before? It's all an illusion. Nothing more than a phantom conjured from your past. The delusion gnawing at your reason and stoking your desires is entirely the work of that Soul Gears."
"......"
"Then again, if mere words were enough to overcome it, you would have done so already... I'll say it as many times as it takes: you are plenty strong, Father. Strong enough, at the very least, not to be jerked around like a puppet by a demon of lower stature than yourself. So why are you putting on such an embarrassing show?"
"I...must become stronger..."
Ignoring his halting, strained murmur, I pressed on without missing a beat.
"Ah! Or is it because your enemy has no physical form? Is the grand Aura Blade, lauded as capable of severing any substance on the face of the earth, stumbling about in confusion just because it can't find a flesh-and-blood target to strike? Now isn't that fascinating."
"......"
"I don't know much about the Aura Blade myself, but isn't it something you can only wield once you've attained some profound enlightenment? It boggles my mind that a blade forged from conceptual mastery can't cut down something conceptual. Can you not cut a curse? Can you not sever temptation and delusion? A transcendent Sword Master of your caliber ought to be capable of at least that much, wouldn't you say?"
"...!!"
In that singular instant, Stanasila Urtega's eyes snapped wide, and his entire presence underwent a violent, tectonic shift.
Ah. Is this where I die?
Before the thought could even finish forming, an imperceptible strike cleaved across my throat, sliding through with eerie, frictionless grace.