Chapter 10. Stubbornness and Arrogance (13)
A dim underground.
The place that, just moments ago, had been so filled with all manner of beautiful light sources that the word "underground" seemed meaningless, now held nothing but darkness.
Perhaps it was because even the source of that light had been mana.
No, with mana of this intensity, it surely would have been the same even if mana had not been the source. Electronic devices break down in the presence of highly concentrated mana, after all.
Within that storm of mana, there was only one reason people had been able to endure.
That was the light.
In that dark underground, there was a shining presence. In that place where sunlight never reached, as if the ceiling meant nothing at all, there was a spot where warm light shone.
"......What in the world is this......"
It was no wonder the princess muttered that.
Chae-eun, too, despite having already seen this sight once, was feeling the same way.
There was something she had not been able to think about before, because things had rushed by too quickly.
Anna did have talent in nearly every area, but that did not mean she had the talent to master all of those areas at once. That was not simply a matter of talent. No matter what genius existed in the world, learning something on one's own without being taught takes far too long.
Moreover, no magic in the world could move a person to another place in an instant. If that had been possible, there would have been no reason to go through this hardship to save the dwarf in the first place.
But Anna had done it. At the most dangerous moment, she had saved Ria by swapping Ria's position with her own.
That was a power that could not be called magic. Nor could it be called simple Holy Power. The Holy Power Chae-eun had seen up until now was a power that healed people; it could not produce effects similar to magic.
So, probably, if anyone had seen that scene, they would all have thought of a single word.
Miracle.
Something no one expects to happen, but something everyone hopes will happen.
If there was something a person at prayer wished for from God, that very thing would be a miracle.
From the sky—from that white sky that must never be seen in this land—something like a single thread was fluttering down.
If one were to gather all the clear light in the world and weave it, would a single strand of that thread be such a color?
The sound of shouting could be heard.
The monsters were fleeing from that light. As if they must not touch that fragile, slender line. Even though the light was not trying to harm them in any way, and was merely descending from the sky.
The light gently touched Anna's hand.
"......Good Lord."
Glaria murmured, looking back.
Han Yu-ri beside her, and even Lee Si-yoon, who had been cutting down enemies at the very front. Light was flowing from his sword as well, but it was nothing compared to the Holy Power overflowing from Anna's body.
"......"
The first person to grasp the situation was Lee Si-yoon. After inhaling sharply for a moment, Lee Si-yoon dashed out through the broken door.
"H-hey, wait, Si-yoon!"
Han Yu-ri, who had shouted that, turned toward Ria.
"I'll follow that kid for a bit! We need to check outside anyway!"
Seeing Ria nod, Han Yu-ri also dashed out after him.
Glaria, who had been silently watching Anna, slowly walked over to Anna's vicinity.
"......What kind of being is this person, exactly?"
"I don't know either."
Ria answered.
Slowly, she approached Anna. And sat facing her.
Just like Anna, she knelt as if in prayer, and looked at Anna's face.
That face was simply serene.
"......Saying you don't believe in God or anything."
Ria murmured.
What on earth was so good that she was smiling like that?
What Ria felt upon seeing that sight was fear.
Because even though Anna usually seemed like such an ordinary, familiar friend who could stay right by her side, at times like this, she looked as if she might vanish somewhere at any moment.
Like the Holy Power she summoned, she looked as if, once everything was over, she would disappear back to where she originally was without leaving a trace.
Ria looked up at the slender thread of miracle.
Was being connected to God something like that?
......Over a decade ago, when this world was being consumed by chaos, a Saint appeared in this world. No, in truth, even the name "Saint" was merely something the people left behind had given her.
That Saint died carrying the world's chaos. And in doing so, she created a world that could at least maintain peace.
If even she had been a being sent by God, then what kind of being was the Anna before her eyes now?
Shouting could be heard from beyond the broken door.
"......I can hear people's voices."
Glaria said.
"I hear shouting...... sounds of fighting. Should we go?"
"......"
Maybe they should go.
Ria had been trained to fight in any situation. She was the daughter of a proud Hero, and someone who would one day become one of those who protected the world.
So she had to fight for those shouting outside. If Anna could speak right now, she would have told her to do so.
Even if someone came to this spot and stabbed Anna, Anna would have told her to save more people instead.
Whether she had been chosen by God or not. Whether she could use Holy Power or not.
Because Anna herself was also just one person.
Because when weighed against other people's lives, she ultimately carried only the weight of a single person.
It was obvious that, if she could save many by sacrificing herself, she would say that was good enough.
Ria slowly reached out and placed her hand over Anna's.
Anna's expression did not change. It was just that the single thread of light touching Anna's hand wrapped around Ria's hand as well.
But with just that, Ria somehow felt as if she understood what Anna had said.
"......So that's how it is. Got it. This time."
Ria pulled her hand away.
Warmth remained. She had only touched it for a brief moment, yet Ria's hand was also shining like Anna's hand.
"......"
With her eyes closed, she took a brief deep breath.
Ria opened her eyes and looked at Anna.
"......Come back and let's talk."
Ria said that and rose from her seat.
"Princess."
When Ria called, the princess, who had been flustered and unable to fully accept the situation, flinched in surprise.
Just moments ago, before everything started, the princess had been composed, but now that she had actually seen this sight, she seemed to have no idea what to do.
"What would you like to do?"
Ria asked.
"You can wait here if you'd like."
"......Ah, but, if we leave the Saint like this."
The Saint, she said.
It was a word Anna would certainly have corrected if she had heard it, but Ria decided to let it go for now.
"She'll probably be fine."
Ria said, looking up at the light.
Right.
If God could not protect a Saint, then that faith would become something that did not matter at all.
*
Feeling warmth on my hand, I smiled.
The only person in that room who would hold my hand like this was Ria.
It was also proof that Ria had been able to remain safe thanks to my power.
If it had been helpful, I was glad.
"......You can go."
I said to Ria.
"I'll be guarding this place."
The shouting gradually died down.
The starlight slowly grew stronger, until now it was like sunlight. I could feel people approaching the area where the light shone on me.
The souls that had been seeping into the mana's malevolence slowly entered the light and disappeared. They must be returning to where they had been.
"......Do you consider that to be worth it?"
"I don't know what value you're referring to."
"The value of your sacrifice."
The being said.
The voice was slowly fading.
"The value of investing that life, not even knowing whether you can win or not. That power of yours will make it so you cannot remain in that world. In the end."
"I suppose so."
I said calmly.
"But you didn't properly answer my question."
I opened my eyes.
And looking up at the yellow eyes above, I said,
"What is my value? What does it mean, exactly?"
"......"
"I am just me. Just one me."
Right. I am one person.
If so, then that value is merely the value of one person, and there is no other value. There can be no soul more great, nor any soul more worthless. No soul is greater or more useless than another.
Society decides such things and divides people into strata, but if even the being up there looks at people and does the same, then what meaning would life have at all?
Earning a lot of money does not mean you take the money with you when you die. Saving someone else does not add that much value to your soul, either.
A person's life is simply one person's life.
As an atheist, if I could save hundreds of thousands with my one life, that in itself only looked like a net gain to me.
And, more than anything.
"Who says I can't win?"
I asked with a smile.
The other did not answer.
It probably could not. Because even that power was slowly being erased.
There was the sound of someone rising in front of me.
After quietly watching me for a moment, she turned around.
Ria was gripping her sword and facing outside the room.
Right.
The people here are not just me alone.
Did they think I was someone who could not even make that calculation?
"......"
Hmm, but when Ria looked at me at the end, for some reason I got chills down my spine.
It must be my imagination, right?