Chapter 199
Chapter 199
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>Translator: Ryuma
>Chapter: 199
>Chapter Title: We Remember
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The spirits peered into the future once more.
And in their very first attempt, they secured proof that Baharmut's foresight was uncertain.
- ……Boom!
- Damian!
The boy slammed into the wall under Infernal's brutish fist. The scene itself was similar to before.
The difference, however...
This time, the boy did not get back up.
- Boom! Boom boom!
Infernal's relentless barrage of kicks.
Did Infernal have emotions too? The beast unleashed unnecessary attacks laced with rage for what felt like ages, and the result was gruesome.
It was a brutal sight, but that's when the spirits realized.
[...Uncertain.]
[Yes. Uncertain.]
In the previous future, the boy had held out until the savior shattered the fourth barrier stone. This time, he met his end.
No variables had changed, yet the future had shifted.
In a way, it was only natural.
Baharmut
This foresight, born from fragments of a cursed grimoire, had never shown a perfect future to begin with. It merely revealed an infinitely probable one, woven from the countless spirits' 'insight' and the fragment's inscrutable power.
And yet, the ancient rulers had once used Baharmut to place the world beneath their feet because its visions appeared flawless.
War.
Clashes between collectives.
It had glimpsed the massive currents created by systems called 'armies,' built from gathered individuals—hence its uncanny accuracy.
In other words, the futures of individuals could not be perfectly foreseen.
It only illuminated one thread among the many branching paths.
In any case, the spirits thought.
[Which is the true future?]
[We don't know. Can't tell.]
[Boy in danger?]
[No good.]
Having seen two different futures, their confusion only deepened.
They needed to act based on the future, but now there were two futures to base it on—rendering the very concept meaningless.
Then, the eldest spirit proposed.
[We keep watching. Over and over.]
[...Keep going?]
Rather than speaking, the eldest spirit answered with its will.
The spirits fell into brief chaos, but their resolve didn't take long.
[...We'll watch.]
[Now we save them.]
Liberation was all but assured. If the saviors had saved them, now it was their turn to save the saviors.
In that process...
There would be no hesitation.
Repeated foresight was burdensome even for spirits, and who knew what aftereffects it might bring if continued.
[We're brave.]
[Agreed.]
The spirits felt no fear.
They still couldn't step forward due to their instinctive dread of Infernals, but they gave their all within their domain.
And so, the future unfolded before them again.
- Sorry, just hold on a bit longer.
The old spirit summoner died.
He met his end saving the boy in peril.
Even before Infernal's flames, he showed no sign of pain, worrying for the others until he turned to ash and vanished.
......Still, Aster's death remained unchanged.
[...Again.]
The spirits peered into yet another future.
- Damian, it was fun. I'm so glad I met you all.
The brown-haired boy died.
Again, saving the boy in peril.
He shielded him with a barrier of earth, then vomited blood from overtaxing his mana.
Infernal's fist came crashing down.
- Boom!
Afterward, Aster arrived and led the Infernals away.
......Still, Aster's death remained unchanged.
[...Again.]
The spirits kept peering into the future.
Every vision ended in tragedy.
Sometimes Damian, sometimes Myselrn, sometimes Chenbi. One, or two, or occasionally all.
They died.
Kept dying.
The paths differed, but the endings were the same.
Sometimes all four faced Infernal and perished. Other times, they followed Aster as he drew Infernal away alone and got caught in the fray.
But...
No death took the same form.
If there was one common thread.
......No one feared death.
The spirits continued watching the future.
How many times did it play out?
Ten? Twenty? Impossible to say.
Their minds wore down with each repetition, and the weaker-willed spirits began dropping out of the fusion one by one.
No matter how near the future.
No matter their attunement to nature's energies.
It was impossible without sacrifice.
[I remember. I was brave.]
One spirit left those words, begging to be remembered, then lost its will.
[I sacrifice.]
Another poured out its remaining spirit power and faded like a shooting star at dusk.
And so, one by one.
The spirits fell away amid the endless foresight.
What was this sacrifice for?
No one questioned it.
Freedom was within reach, the moment they'd thirsted for over millennia right before them.
Yet no one regretted it.
This was the nature of spirits.
Purer than pure children, they laughed with joy at the slightest kindness and followed for life.
For those who sought to save them, they abandoned the freedom they'd awaited for thousands of years.
They only wished.
[Everyone, happy.]
That those who so readily offered their hands would all be happy.
Thus, in the blink of an eye in reality, but an eternity in the spirit realm.
United tighter by a single wish, the spirits reached a horizon of insight they'd never touched before.
......And realized.
[Ah.]
Through countless sacrifices, endurance, and hope; through immeasurable observations, one undeniable truth emerged.
It was simply this...
......The savior's death could not be changed.
That was all.
In the end, the spirits dissolved their fusion and set aside the foresight.
Back in reality, as they gathered their wits, somewhere in the Baharmut reflected through the crystal orb's power.
The savior finally reached the fourth barrier stone.
- Now with this... it's over.
- Paang—!
The barrier stone shattered pitifully.
Freedom had arrived.
But no one rejoiced.
Not a soul.
Yet then.
[There is a way.]
[...A way?]
[We'll change it.]
The spirits had not given up.
* * *
Reality unfolded much like the visions.
Having destroyed the fourth barrier stone, Aster soon faced the choice, and as in countless futures, he resolved to face the five Infernals alone.
[Hey, friend. I have a question.]
The spirit posed the same question to stop him, but before Aster could answer, he encountered Damian.
And then.
"Wait here."
The first divergence.
As Aster drew away the five Infernals, Damian moved.
"Something's off. I have to go with him."
Damian sensed something strange in Aster's demeanor and followed, dragging his weary body.
......This was the future where Damian died.
Or where they all might die.
That's when the spirits intervened.
[Danger. Don't go.]
"......?"
[We'll help.]
The spirits emerging from the crystal orb resembled countless stars.
Like a Milky Way, they blocked Damian's path, drawing his attention to keep him still.
Meanwhile.
Another group of spirits trailed Aster.
And the second divergence arrived.
"Damian, let this old man check it out."
"Master?"
"Yeah, I'll go take a look."
Myselrn dissuaded Damian, taking in the spirits. As if he wouldn't yield his chance to act.
And the spirits...
[Old spirit summoner, you must wait.]
They dissuaded Myselrn.
......Myselrn rushing to Aster now led to a future where both died.
Myselrn would sacrifice himself for Aster, but couldn't prevent Aster's death.
By Baharmut spirits' standards, Myselrn's spirits were far too young, unable to withstand the presence of five Infernals.
In that situation, Myselrn would only be a burden.
But put another way...
A fully recovered Myselrn could help.
"Wait? For what......"
As Myselrn questioned the spirits suddenly blocking his path, another wave of spirits emerged from the hall's center.
What would it look like if the Milky Way overflowed?
The sight was so beautiful it left Damian, Chenbi, and Myselrn—the three of them—spellbound, but the true marvel wasn't the scene.
[We'll help.]
The new spirits caressed Myselrn's body.
Right after, Myselrn let out a low exclamation.
"......Huh."
Warm energy seeped into his fatigue-ridden body.
The spirits' power soaked his parched flesh like rain on cracked, barren earth.
His ravaged body began to brim with vitality, and amid the ecstasy, the spirits' voices rang in his ears.
[A bit more.]
Wait a bit more.
Regaining his senses at the words, Myselrn finally took in the spirits.
[We're brave.]
[Agreed.]
[I remember.]
[We remember.]
They shared their strength with him, leaving one last word each before vanishing.
"......Ah."
Myselrn understood.
The source of this life force.
It was...
The power of existence these spirits had cherished for millennia.
Not mere 'spirit power,' but the very life force that allowed them to exist as spirits.
"How......"
Myselrn could only sigh at their sacrifice when a particularly large cluster of light approached.
It was the eldest spirit.
[We're friends.]
So don't worry.
That's what it meant.
Yet those words only pained Myselrn's heart.
They'd finally grasped the freedom they'd yearned for over thousands of years, yet they chose not joy in it.
It was sacrifice.
At these foolishly pure spirits, emotions welled in Myselrn.
Sensing it, perhaps.
[No need for sorrow.]
The eldest spirit comforted him.
[We're nature. We don't die.]
They were nature, so it wasn't annihilation.
They merely lost will and ceased being spirits, returning to the nature that birthed them—don't grieve.
This differed from annihilation by Infernal.
But that was merely the spirits' view.
From a human perspective, this was...
'...What difference from death?'
But there was no time to grieve.
[Brown-hair comes. Ice-boy comes.]
The eldest spirit summoned Damian and Chenbi, sharing power as it had with Myselrn.
Damian and Chenbi were negligible before five Infernals... but the spirits did their utmost.
To forge a future where no one died.
But.
[Not enough.]
The eldest spirit knew.
Restoring these three's strength alone averted most futures of futile death.
But it still fell short.
Thus.
[Boy, your name.]
For the first time in millennia, the eldest spirit chose a master.
And that boy was...
"......Me?"
[Yes. You.]
"I'm...... Chenbi."
Chenbi.