Chapter 355: Sleep for the Day of Return
Chapter 355: Sleep for the Day of Return
“Is this the time for us to be fighting? We need to catch the Public Enemy first, you bastard.”
Magic Weaver had gotten on my nerves, but I swallowed my anger as if chanting the word 'patience' three hundred times before speaking.
“Can’t you see the state she’s in? I could catch her even without a specimen of a dullard like you!”
At my question, Magic Weaver barked back with a delusional outburst.
Hearing that, I slowly compared the two with my own eyes.
There was Magic Weaver, looking like a tattered beggar with festering skin all over his body.
And then there was the dying Blood-stained Messiah.
Hmm.
It didn’t even take a second to declare the winner.
“Ah. Then go ahead and do your best alone, Magic Weaver. I’ll just watch.”
I’ll save you right before you die.
To be generous, I probably only need to wait about ten seconds.
Once he gets thrashed by that Pry Bar, he’ll snap out of it on his own.
If Magic Weaver were in peak condition and had prepared various tools and traps for this battle, the balance of power might have been somewhat even.
But right now, Magic Weaver was only acting tough. In reality, his body was covered in wounds, and his mana reserves were hitting rock bottom.
He probably wrecked his body completely while taking down the Messiah’s double in his Desired World and then using Spatial Teleportation to get here.
Still, it seemed he had enough energy left to join the fight for a brief moment, but…
“….”
Suddenly, Magic Weaver went quiet.
He likely knew better than anyone that he wasn't in any condition to be doing this.
The way his eyes flickered…
‘Are you really going to do that?’
It wasn't my imagination that he seemed to be asking that.
Come on, why don't you just swallow your pride?
I wanted to say that, but we were in front of the Public Enemy, and there was no need to force the issue of pride.
“Just…”
Follow my lead.
The moment I was about to say that.
Creeeak. Creeeak. Cre-e-e-eak.
Along with several sounds of space cracking.
“Ah, it looks like they’re coming!”
Un-ho’s voice rang out, sounding extremely exhausted.
Pop. Pop. Pop. Pop.
Space opened up, and several mages appeared in midair.
They were famous mages, recognizable at a glance.
Dragging their exhausted bodies, they arrived in the world of Black Oil.
“Six of them, huh… I broadcasted the location signal far and wide, but I guess Spatial Teleportation is a difficult technique after all.”
From the way he spoke, it seemed their arrival was only possible thanks to Un-ho’s assistance.
“I was having a good dream, but I couldn't help it when the distress signal was echoing so loudly, could I?”
When the mage who looked relatively intact spoke up, another replied.
“Shut up, you bastard. You can’t even use Dimensional Severing, so what are you talking about? Ugh, I’m gonna die.”
The mage who looked particularly exhausted shouted as he collapsed onto the ground.
He was likely someone who couldn't use Spatial Magic and had somehow contacted another world to come along.
Whether these seven, including Magic Weaver, had realized the falsehood themselves and shattered their Desired Worlds, or if they had realized it in response to Un-ho’s plea for help, I didn't know.
Regardless, these seven mages had escaped the false touch and crossed between worlds.
To protect them, I took a step ahead of them and spoke.
“Now, let’s end this, Self-proclaimed Messiah.”
One Magical Girl.
Seven broken mages.
One fur ball.
One tentacle.
This group of ten is the counter-example to your utopia.
So, let’s finish this with this lineup.
With that intent, I raised my hammer.
Just as I was about to charge to begin the final battle anew—
“Why is that guy acting all cool when he couldn't even finish it until we got here?”
“That’s just how Crimson★Hammer is. He has no shame.”
You guys are all dead meat later.
* * *
Moving past that mood-killing conversation.
Regardless, the battle continued.
Had the desire vanished because The Root was gone?
The mages showed a bit of negative emotion toward me, but they didn't show the intense emotions they had when facing The Root—emotions strong enough to negate my existence.
As usual, they simply focused on dealing with The Enemy, the Self-proclaimed Messiah.
Because they had exhausted their strength crossing worlds and shaking off their desires, their power wasn't that great.
Aside from a few mages who still had strength left to land heavy blows, most of their attacks were slow, predictable spells or harassment-type magic that had speed but dealt no damage even if they hit.
In a battle against this Public Enemy, most of it was practically meaningless, but…
It was enough.
“Don’t look away, you bastard!”
With my roar, The Hammer surged from bottom to top.
The moment The Enemy’s gaze shifted briefly due to the pain of the cutting wind leaving lacerations.
My hammer, carrying all my strength, aimed for The Enemy’s jaw.
Clang.
Unfortunately, the attack failed.
With the sound of metal clashing, the hurriedly swung Pry Bar blocked The Hammer.
However, this was enough.
The cutting wind that left lacerations.
The Hammer that aimed for a single blow.
They were all feints for the next attack.
Skree.
Space split apart.
Warm liquid splashed over my body.
A strike of Spatial Severance sliced across The Enemy’s body.
It cut through the belly of the Messiah, who was busy blocking my attack.
Flesh was torn away along with the space itself, and blood sprayed from the missing chunk.
Standing directly in front of her, I took that warm blood head-on.
But my head remained cool.
I had enough emotion to rouse my strength.
But it didn't flare up beyond that.
A fire of emotion that wouldn't overheat, but stayed just enough to sustain me.
It heated my body.
But I kept my brain cold as I led the battle.
My attacks didn't have to be the main force.
As long as I held The Enemy down, slow and powerful magic would slam into her.
Sometimes, my attacks would be the main force.
Fast, eye-catching magic would pin The Enemy down, and a hammer strike of intense power would bury itself into the Messiah.
In truth, such magic didn't mean much in the midst of a frantically swinging exchange of offense and defense.
However, for these two equal opponents, how much of a difference would that little bit make?
A scale maintaining its balance.
But sand was being poured onto only one side, bit by bit.
A small amount, slowly. But steadily.
The scale wavered.
Preparing to collapse to one side.
For an irreversible catastrophe of balance.
The battle continued.
No one let down their guard.
No one rushed.
They simply chipped away at The Enemy’s strength, little by little.
Because they knew that victory could be achieved that way.
The battle flowed on stably.
Someone might watch this and call it a boring fight.
Even I didn't find much excitement in this battle.
It was a tedious fight, like performing a routine task.
Like carving wood with a chisel.
In the precarious battle just a moment ago, where everything felt like it might collapse at any second, there had been excitement and some kind of enlightenment gained, but there was none of that here.
Yet, I didn't voice any complaints.
Because this was the right way.
“…Is that what happiness is?”
I heard a voice.
Did I need to answer this?
It was clearly a question that didn't require an answer.
But I opened my mouth anyway.
Because that voice was so incredibly mournful.
“Well. I don’t think it’s happiness.”
This situation right now is far from my desire.
“Then, why do you keep moving down that path?”
That, I could answer immediately.
“To protect the world, the people.”
Compared to that, my happiness has no value.
“…Others are holding you back. I will shake them off for you. Go back to finding your own happiness.”
Like before?
Back then, I suppose I could have said I was happy in my own way.
But, you see.
“I’d rather be unhappy than happy, you know?”
Boom.
The Hammer struck down.
The Enemy’s left shoulder was dislocated.
No pain showed on The Enemy’s face.
She simply moved her lips with a look of incomprehension.
“…A living being couldn't possibly be like that.”
I suppose so. By general common sense.
“It’s not that I actively wish for misery. But I don’t want happiness that comes at the cost of sacrificing others.”
Bang.
Flames, precisely adjusted so as not to touch me, exploded at The Savior’s head.
She didn't stop.
“That’s because of your relationships. In the end. If those weren't there, you could find happiness too.”
I wonder.
To find the answer to that, it’s meaningless if you’re the only one asking questions.
“Do you know what sacrifice is?”
“…What you are doing right now.”
“Yeah, that’s right. But. The reason I’m even here is thanks to the sacrifices of others.”
Pop. Crunch.
A blue sphere summoned in midair struck The Enemy’s waist.
And my hammer slammed into her abdomen.
The Messiah was being crushed.
“Let’s see, there’s the Heavenly Demon Sword God geezer, and in a broader sense, Ariadne too. Because they existed, the 'me' of right now exists.”
Because they were there, both I and the world still exist.
“…Even if they sacrificed themselves, you don't need to sacrifice yourself as well.”
She was still moving.
Even though her entire body was crushed and twisted.
As if she still had something left to do.
“Yeah, that’s right. Because sacrifice doesn't happen under coercion.”
The moment I said those words, a strange sensation brushed through me.
A feeling that something I had built up was collapsing.
I didn't know why.
Something I couldn't identify had just crumbled.
But without paying mind to that sensation, I continued speaking.
“But at the very least, I want to be the one who sacrifices. A desire that isn't happy. That is my desire.”
Then, as the Messiah, shouldn't you affirm that desire?
“…That, too, is ultimately for your own happiness. Even if you suffer now, you feel happiness by protecting people.”
Well, you’re not wrong.
“Then let me ask you one thing. Are you happy right now?”
Thinking that, I drove my hammer into The Enemy’s collapsing body along with my words.
The Messiah crumbled.
The scale of power broke.
This was likely the end of almost all her strength.
And yet.
“…What kind of question is that?”
She spoke without showing any pain.
Her body twitched as if she couldn't afford to fall yet.
“What you’re doing right now is also a sacrifice. You gain nothing, yet you grant desires only for the happiness of others. So, I’m asking if you are happy.”
Of course, that had been heavily distorted.
“…I only do it because I was born that way. It’s not about sacrifice or anything. It’s just that I can make others happy.”
You know it well.
I slammed my weapon into the ground in front of her, creating a shockwave that spread through the earth as I spoke.
“I also only do it because I have the power. Who cares about my happiness? Even if I become miserable, I walk for the sake of the world. For the safety of others.”
“…Safety. My world would have been safer than anywhere else. A world… where no one gets hurt or dies….”
Wait.
Something’s strange.
Come to think of it, was there any mention of deaths or serious injuries?
“…Was no one seriously hurt?”
“…I don't know about The Root, but I am the Messiah. I couldn't do such a thing…. Your rampage was unexpected, though…. It’s actually a relief.”
Tsk.
I clicked my tongue.
The aftertaste was far too bitter.
The Self-proclaimed Messiah was a twisted existence.
Even her methods were broken, but she was an entity that lived up to her name.
I didn't know how to refute that.
I had no intention of getting into a philosophical debate.
My words weren't the consensus of humanity, and there was no guarantee everyone would agree with them.
“A dark night walked alone is too cold. That’s why I hate it.”
“…Right. Then, end it.”
She submissively offered her body.
As if asking me to finish it quickly.
The mages also seemed to understand the situation and stopped their spells.
I simply raised The Hammer that would end everything.
And, in the midst of her weak breathing, at the moment that breath happened to cut off.
The Hammer struck down.
There was no feedback in my hands.
The sensation of hitting something without impact.
Squelch.
A sound that shouldn't be heard rang out.
The corpse was swallowed by the oil.
Gurgle, gurgle.
With the sound of something flowing, the oil began to gather.
Swirling oil converged on the spot where the corpse had sunk.
Startled, I leaped backward.
In the center of the vortex, a purple mouth began to sprout.
A tiny purple tentacle, about 10 to 20 cm long.
It displayed a suction power unimaginable for its small size, sucking everything in.
And as the Messiah’s body, which was clearly larger than itself, drew near.
Bulge.
Its mouth swelled for a moment like a balloon.
After swallowing the Messiah’s body.
It returned to its original small size.
And closed its mouth.
The vortex stopped.
The Black Oil began to recede slowly.
the end of the Otherworld Erosion.
the end of the night spent walking alone.
However, the tension only rose higher.
…What the hell.
Isn't that Gaji?
The Gaji that was next to Un-ho.
It’s doing something now?
We caught The Root.
We caught the Fruit.
And now, is the last remaining Branch planning something too?
Because of that, I immediately tried to strike before The Enemy could do anything.
“Ha-ram! Wait a moment!”
Suddenly, Un-ho stepped between the Terminal Tentacle and me.
“Move! That bastard is still left! Betrayals at the last minute are common—”
“It’s over! The Messiah is a being that cannot die, so Gaji sealed her! We finished talking about this before we came here!”
…Huh?
While I was dazed by Un-ho’s words.
“Fruit. Sleep. Day of Promise. Cleanly. Wake up.”
Gaji said that, then lay on the ground and wriggled as if its belly were full.
And so, the long night came to an end.