Seria's Obsession
What exactly is this thing called emotion?
Sometimes it's joy. Sometimes it's sorrow. Sometimes it's rage. If you were to interpret it purely by definition, that's what it would be. The mind that arises in response to some phenomenon or event. The feeling you experience. But when you're caught in a swirling vortex of emotion, do you really stay calm and ponder the dictionary meaning of the word? I don't.
Even now, I was feeling something I couldn't quite name. Anger? Well, I suppose it could be that in its own way, but I knew getting any angrier at those bastards would be a stupid move. Joy? After all the shit I've been through? Ah. Maybe I'd feel some joy if I got the Legion Commander of Lust's necklace back. At least Bete would be happy about it. Though he'd probably wonder why the hell I was hooking him up with a woman. Whatever. I killed both of them with my own hands anyway.
Two people exchanging empty words of affection without ever feeling each other's warmth. The image of those pathetic, tragic fools floated through my mind. If this wasn't the ultimate form of posthumous humiliation, what the hell was?
“...Who the hell are you?”
Ah. I got it.
“Why are you in Niflheim?”
Irritation, rage, and bewilderment all mixed together. A single word that perfectly captured it all. This feeling was pure bullshit.
“Hey. Fina.”
“...Yes?”
“Even when I was playing League, it was never this fucking bad, you know?”
“League?”
Fina tilted her head in confusion, repeating the word awkwardly. Of course a girl who didn't know about noble warriors fiercely battling in a canyon wouldn't get it. For the record, my rank is Bronze. Don't ask. It's embarrassing.
...Actually, I'm Iron.
Come to think of it... was the Saintess those residents mentioned really Fina? If so, what was that nonsense about her lover losing her memories? Honestly, whether Fina sucked, fucked, or got fucked by someone wasn't any of my business. But the fact that this girl who used to be obsessed with nothing but Lunaris was suddenly talking about a lover? It was just absurd.
“Just asking, out of curiosity.”
“...Yes.”
“Did you get a boyfriend?”
If that was true, it'd be a little pitiful. Dating a woman who only cared about herself. Well, if both sides were happy, I wasn't going to click my tongue like some old fart. But if I'd been there, I would've said one thing.
Run away.
“Why aren't you answering? People said your lover lost her memories.”
The one who used to worship Lunaris? I added with a snicker. Heh heh. The party must've been a complete mess without me.
“N-no, that's not it!”
At my question, Fina blushed furiously and shook her head in a panic. Whether it was true or not didn't really matter to me. If anything, I felt relieved when she said she didn't have a boyfriend. At least the other person had been spared that tragedy.
Thinking that, I asked again.
“Then what is it?”
“...A-actually...”
“Stop stuttering. Stop dragging it out. You're making me want to die from frustration.”
Don't misunderstand. The way Isabel stutters is cute as hell. The dragging things out comes from not being honest with her feelings. Just Isabel's existence alone is healing. But Fina? Not so much. The gloomy aura she gave off made her look like a hikikomori. How could a person change this much in just a few months?
Fina hesitated for a moment before finally speaking.
“The truth is... I met Lunaris in Alfheim.”
“That bitch. So she ran off there.”
“D-don't speak about Lunaris like that!”
Oh my. What the hell was this girl saying? Her tone was so brazen that I was beyond shocked. I felt like I was about to foam at the mouth. Lunaris abandoned you, Fina. You still can't see anything, huh? I'm definitely telling Odin about this. Making sure you never become a Valkyrie. Ptooey.
Her answer was so pathetic that I couldn't help but look at her with pity. How could I not? All she could do was give stupid, frustrating answers. I couldn't understand why this girl still wanted her after being abandoned. And more than that, what did she say? Lover who lost her memories? This was the first I'd heard that Lunaris had lost her memories. And on top of that, lover? Lover?
“Pfft... pffft... khh...”
“W-why are you laughing?”
“Puhahahaahaha! Lover, she says. Fucking lover... pffft... ahahahahaha!”
Since she lost her memories, she's going all out now, huh? For two years, I'd watched Lunaris and Fina without missing a single thing. I'd never once seen Lunaris acknowledge Fina's feelings. This crazy bitch was either lost in her own delusion, or she was taking advantage of Lunaris losing her memories to lie about it. I was beyond certain.
Did Lunaris even know about this?
“So where is Lunaris now?”
“...She's resting at my lodgings.”
Seria kept flinching and looking anxious, which bothered me. Was she that cold? There was a warm bonfire, and I wasn't cold at all. I pulled her into my arms and asked Fina.
“Why are you trying to find a way to restore her memories?”
The words one of the residents had said earlier came back to me.
She came to find a way to restore her lover's memories, or something like that.
If that was true, then Fina's goal was to restore Lunaris's memories. But why? If she used the current situation well, she could fulfill her own desires. It was truly a stupid thing to do.
“...Because Lunaris wants it.”
“Hah, so you're just going to obediently do what she wants?”
“...Yes.”
It felt like getting smacked in the forehead, or rather, like taking a straight punch right to the face. In all my life, I'd never seen such a pushover. She'd been taken advantage of by Lunaris her whole life and had barely managed to break free, and now she was letting herself be used again in the name of love? By a memory-lost piece of trash?
“Khhkhkh!”
The situation was so ridiculous that all I could do was laugh. It was so absurd that Fina's answer actually felt refreshing. No wonder that dogshit concert failed, right? The more Fina answered, the more curious I became about what Lunaris looked like now. I had no idea what had happened to her after she was teleported away like she was being kicked out. Saying I wasn't curious would be a lie. Seeing her suffer gave me immense pleasure.
So, holding back my laughter, I told Fina.
“Let me see Lunaris's face. Guide me.”
“...Pardon?”
“I said guide me.”
Whether it upset her or not didn't matter to me. Everyone already knew that.
*
“...Who are you?”
“Hah.”
I wasn't soft enough to be unable to tell when someone was acting. At least not when it came to Lunaris. I could tell whether she was sincere or not.
“...D-don't come near me!”
“What's wrong with her?”
Lunaris looked at something and her face filled with terror. Her hands and feet trembled violently, her pupils shook. Tears streamed down her face as she hid under the blanket. She almost looked a little pitiful. And the direction her gaze had gone...
“Seria?”
“...I didn't do anything.”
Lie. There was definitely something between them. That said, I had no intention of criticizing Seria. It might be selfish, but I would always take my woman's side. The thought of taking Lunaris's side didn't exist in my mind, not even as much as a speck of dust. Still, I wanted to know exactly what she'd done to make Lunaris so terrified.
“I won't get angry, so tell me the truth.”
“...I really didn't do any—”
“Seria.”
I put strength into my voice. I took her hand so that at least some of my sincerity could reach her.
“...I simply told the servants of our house not to approach the Hero anymore.”
Seria whispered slowly, as if pleading with me not to scold her. That was a misunderstanding. I had no intention of scolding her. I just smiled faintly and gently stroked her hair.
That was when Riana stepped forward.
“She has a lot of wounds on her body. Was she beaten?”
It's a reward, she said, licking her lips for a moment.
“You're Fina, right? As the Saintess, can't you heal her?”
“...For some reason, my runes don't work on Lunaris.”
“They don't work?”
“Yes. I asked the elves and the dwarves too. But no one knows the cause...”
Tears fell drop by drop. I knew how much affection Fina held for Lunaris. I also knew that the emotion she felt wasn't mere fondness, but romantic love.
“...Fina.”
“Hic... sob...”
So I felt a little bit of pity...
“What the hell do you have to cry about?”
Pity my ass. I was thinking she was being way too pathetic. I couldn't even count how many times I'd nearly died in battle because she refused to help me. Maybe that was why I'd charged at Bete alone. Because fighting without anyone's help had become normal for me.
“It's all your fault.”
Because Ragner had interfered. Because Lunaris had shown excessive greed for money and fame. Because Fina had harbored twisted love.
“...And the reason I left in the first place.”
Because everyone had only seen me as a tool.
“It's all because of you guys.”
I spoke slowly, chewing on each word. Recalling the painful two years, I repeated it. Even as my brow furrowed deeply, laughter kept spilling out. You guys are getting your just desserts. From Odin, from Thor, from Freya, from Baldur...
From the gods.
“You shouldn't have done that to me.”
“...I'm sorry.”
Fina's body trembled. It meant she recognized her own wrongdoing. Did she even know how fucking infuriating that was? It almost felt like a waste to unleash all the resentment I'd built up until now. It pissed me off so much. She'd known all along. So why apologize now? If she'd done it just a little sooner, I would've already gone back to my hometown—
Suddenly, the anger settled. I realized that when rage reached its limit, it actually made you calmer. It was true.
“...It's already in the past.”
I calmed my mind. There was no need to waste emotion on something like this. It would be such a waste. Yeah. No matter what the result was, I'd deserted the Hero's Party, and as you can see, I was doing incredibly well. I'd experienced a short but miserable life as a beggar, and I'd even starved for two whole days. The fact that I'd overcome all that was the present.
“Serves you right.”
I'd always wanted to say this.
“Serves you right. All of you.”
*
“...So you're saying there's a way to restore Lunaris's memories here?”
“Y-yes...!”
“Hmm... Who told you that?”
I couldn't hold back my curiosity and finally asked. Since we'd already met, I couldn't exactly chase her away. This wasn't our land. We'd only borrowed the space for a while. At the same time, this was one of the three great demon realms—Niflheim. I didn't want to go through the hassle of cleaning up frozen corpses.
Fina slowly opened her mouth. It was frustrating, but given her condition, I could wait a little. It was only about three seconds, after all.
“...It was some elf.”
“Of course an elf told you. You went to Alfheim.”
“I-I'm sorry! Please don't get angry...”
“Tsk.”
I nodded and urged her to continue.
“...They said if you go to the Wailing Pot, there's a sage who will grant small wishes.”
“The Wailing Pot? Was there a place like that?”
Then Riana thought for a moment before clapping her hands.
“Hero, the Wailing Pot is another name for Hvergelmir.”
“Huh? Really?”
“Yes.”
Then did Fina know the location of Hvergelmir? She probably did. If a Saintess died and became a Valkyrie, it was because she would go into battle. That's why she needed to memorize every path in the underworld. What the hell. Our routes overlapped? I didn't like that.
Fina suddenly knelt before me. With tears in her eyes, she grabbed my arm desperately.
“...I know it's shameless, but could you please help me?”
“What?”
“Please! I-I'm begging you. You can pour all your resentment on me... Even if I have to offer my body, please...!!”
It pissed me off.
“Both you and Lunaris. Why do you all keep offering your bodies? Are you all sluts? Do you think I'm some easy guy?”
“N-no, that's not it!”
More than that, the Saintess offering her virginity?
“What the hell does Odin look like to you people?”
They swore to protect their virginity. They swore to become Valkyries. And yet every single one of them breaks their oath for their own desires.
“Is Valhalla your fucking backyard?”
“...Huh?”
“You fucking sluts! Are the gods a joke to you?!”
I wasn't exactly taking Odin's side, but an oath wasn't something light. After all, I was bound to this other world in the form of an oath too. So I didn't like it. And more than anything.
“I'm not some sex-crazed bastard who'd sleep with you people.”
“...I-I'm sorry! But... but—!”
“What the hell are you screaming for? Let go. I said let go!”
Fina clung to me. Even when I tried to shake her off, she stuck like gum. Damn it!! For a Valkyrie candidate, she was ridiculously strong.
“Please... please... have mercy.”
“Mercy, my ass.”
“Taesik... Taesik. Please...”
“Ugh!”
Fuck, why was she acting like this all of a sudden? I said I wasn't going to help. That's when it happened.
Srrrng—
A blade shimmering with blue sword energy caught my eye. Brutal and sharp. Like thin ice floating on calm river water. At the same time, it was the kind of sword energy that heated the blood.
Yes. It was the blue-sealed sword. Seria Lionblood.
“Don't cling to the Hero...!”
“W-who are you? How dare you do this to me, the Saintess... Ah.”
The moment Fina saw Seria's face, her expression gradually hardened. She couldn't not know. Not knowing the second daughter of the Lionblood family was practically declaring you didn't live in Banaheim. More than that, she was the one who had expelled Ragner, Fina, and Lunaris.
“...Ah. Seria. I-I'm sorry.”
“If you're sorry, take your hand off...! Before I tear it off.”
“Hiiik...!!”
Her two eyes sank darkly. The embodiment of sticky obsession. The blue-burning lioness chewed her lips fiercely.