The Edge of the Holy Land and the Shattered Will (2)
The scent of aged wood, a faint aroma reminiscent of old leather, the delicate nuance of microbes that once aided fermentation, and a complex, fragrant breeze like summer flowers—brambleberries and tangerine peels—tickled my nostrils.
‘This… really is delicious…’
I stared with eyes that had completely lost their light at the man before me, who kept pouring liquor into a small wooden cup and gulping it down greedily.
Orlim. He had never done anything special for me, yet he was someone to whom I owed a debt simply for saving my life. He was not handsome enough to tempt me—an ordinary, sun-bronzed uncle—but…
‘Still… he must have… a cock, right…?’
‘Of course.’
A hallucination, as if something were pushing from inside my head. Yes, a hallucination. Even though the sun had not yet set, even though people around us were noisily eating dinner, such a whisper could not possibly be real.
It was merely the alcohol affecting this small, weak body of mine, making me see and hear things that were not there.
That was what I told myself. That was how I rationalized it.
“Um, excuse meeee, Orli—Orlim, sir…?”
“Hm? What’s wrong, Kaira? Your face is bright red. Your expression looks strange too… Are you feeling unwell again?”
“Th-that’s not it, hehe… I’m fine, really…”
Hesitating now that the moment had come, I tried to steer the conversation while testing Orlim’s reaction.
“Um… You saved my life… and even traveled with me… yet all I could give you was a few coins… I’m sorry…”
Just as I had imagined—a simple, innocent fool who had little experience with women—Orlim blushed shyly.
“No, no… You don’t have to say that. Even though you look young, you’re a mage, so you were reliable. Thanks to you, I slept warm even when we had to camp outdoors. But really, are you all right? Your tongue is slurring.”
Hearing that innocent concern, something inside my heart felt as though it had snapped. No—not snapped. It had simply made up its mind.
‘Yes. I’ve decided.’
As if on cue, the voice in my head praised my resolve. Hehe, of course. Kaira was a good girl, after all.
Without giving Orlim a chance to respond, I flipped my skirt up. Not only the porter’s gaze, but the eyes of all fifteen or so guests in the tavern turned toward me at once.
“Uh… Kaira…? Miss?”
I did not answer. Instead, I yanked down the tiny scrap of cloth that had been uncomfortably covering my crotch. The underwear—washed several times yet still bearing faint menstrual stains—slid limply down my shins.
“Ehehe… Th-that’s right… I’ll… repay you… with my body. That’s okay, right? Yes…?”
“Snap out of it, Kaira! Right now—!”
I ignored the man’s voice, thick with alarm, and turned my head toward the back of the room.
“Oh, right, right… One man… two men… twelve men…? Five women too… You’ve all been staring… gulp, gulp… haven’t you? You were thinking it would taste good, weren’t you…?”
Seventeen faces, thirty-four eyes, all fixed on me in undisguised shock. I felt a thrill at being the center of attention and shrugged off the leather coat that had been wrapped around my body, tossing it onto the backpack beside the chair.
Then the robe that was in the way. The red glass brooch Iskil had given me caught the dim tavern light and sparkled briefly before falling to the floor along with the heavy books.
“Excuse me…? Miss…?”
“What is that woman doing?”
The stunned onlookers finally began to stir, each voicing their own noise. But here…
‘Yes. You cannot stop now. Your life, your very existence, is already over—so burn brightly one last time.’
Right… That’s right… I… end here…
“Ehehe… I’ll grant your wishes… Cock, hehe, cock… give it to me… Pussy, heehee, pussy is good too… I’ll suck it, touch it, rub it, step on it… I’ll do anything you want… Hah♡”
While spouting such obscene words with my tangled tongue, I unbuckled the leather belt with its dangling scabbard and let it drop to the floor like trash. Then I peeled off the dress, still faintly stained with light brown marks on the lower half, and flung it aside.
The underwear that had covered my lower body had already been discarded, and there was no need for anything to cover a chest that was no different from a man’s. With my face flushed red from the alcohol that had reached my brain, I stood there naked except for my boots.
“What are you all standing around for?! Grab that crazy woman and calm her down!”
Two young men and one slightly older man rose from their tables and rushed toward me.
‘Why…? Why aren’t they… trying to fuck me…? At Arto’s place… everyone liked it when I did this…’
While I was still wondering whether I should sit on a chair, spread my legs, and show them my soft, moist pink folds, a violent headache stabbed into the crown of my head.
“Ugh…!!”
I collapsed on the spot as if my legs had been cut out from under me.
Whispers… whispers, whispers… the whispers… had grown stronger… echoing… as if someone were shouting inside an empty cave in my head, threatening to shatter it…
‘There’s still a little time. I’ll help you.’
With those words, the whispering ceased—as though it had never existed. And the fog that had drifted through my mind like a shadow, obscuring rational thought, lifted.
…The alcohol still lingered, but I had regained enough clarity to make human judgments.
“Hic…!?”
Only then did I realize what state I was in.
Drunk or not, there was no excuse for the depraved expression I wore, the clothes I had stripped off in front of a traveling companion and complete strangers, the way I had tried to seduce them all like a worn-out prostitute—acts no sane person could perform.
It was fortunate that this world had no internet or smartphones. In such a world, my life as a human being would have been utterly destroyed.
Anyway, for whatever reason, the whisper from beyond had cast me aside, and my mind had returned. Perhaps it had wanted to see me panic once I regained my senses.
“Um… I mean… this is…”
I tried to explain the situation, but—
“……” “……” “……”
Only a chilling silence answered me.
This was not indifference, not disregard, not contempt or silent reproach. Those eyes… those pitch-black eyes, as though all light had vanished from them… they were the same as Pirel’s, back in the forest, inside Viran’s cabin, when she had completely lost her sense of self…
“Excuse… me…?”
I whipped my gaze toward Orlim.
“……”
Orlim wore exactly the same expression. He rose slowly from his chair and began walking toward me, reaching out as though to seize my body before I could flee.
“Or-Orlim…? I’m scared… Don’t… joke around… I-I was just… too drunk, hic… so…”
Trembling, I backed away until my back hit the bar counter. Only then did I realize that the people had surrounded me. There was nowhere left to retreat.
While frantically wondering what magic I could use to escape this situation, I gripped the edge of the bar with shaking arms and scanned the hall filled with nothing but eerie silence. That was when I finally understood.
The flickering shadows cast by the lamps, the darkness beneath the tables where light could not reach, the shades formed by people’s bodies blocking the light—all of them were moving in impossible ways.
That thing Viran had seen and recoiled from in the memory where all my shattered personalities had been devoured. An existence from beyond was directly interfering with reality, moving through the shadows. Rather than controlling the shadows, it seemed as though every shaded place, every crevice untouched by light, had become a tear in reality connecting to the other side.
They all opened their mouths at once.
“For a brief moment, I have descended into this world, borrowing the bodies of these insignificant creatures.”
Even though it was not a whisper, the sound felt as though it would tear my eardrums apart. Still leaning against the bar, I could not endure the eighteen overlapping voices and sank to the floor.
“The influence I can project into this world is limited, child. I cannot expand my domain, nor will it be permanent. But this alone is more than enough to break your mind.”
“Wh-what did you… do…!!”
“I already told you. I merely borrowed their bodies. However, I have no interest in the shells of these worms. The vessel I must ultimately ride—the vessel prepared long ago through the power to rewind time—is you, and you alone. I will use them to undo the locks on your heart.”
A thin, trickling sound echoed between my legs. I had wet myself. Of course I had. Faced with something like this—something that defied every law of the world—there was no way my legs would not give out.
“No… No, no… I don’t want this… Uu… Uwaaah… Hic…”
Tears fell one by one onto the wooden floor, already soaked with the warm, pale-yellow liquid. I… could not resist.
“Did you not wonder? Why your intact will and clear consciousness suddenly returned? You will be gang-raped while fully aware, your resolve cracking and your soul shattering. Be grateful. Now you may offer your personality to me amidst the ultimate pleasure.”
Thirteen men, including Orlim, and five women approached me with vacant expressions. In terror, I gathered the last shred of my will to resist and placed my hand on the urine-soaked floorboards.
‘…Please… This is the last time. My final chance… So… rewind!!’
And—
Nothing rewound.
At the same moment, accompanied by a spine-chilling laugh that seemed to echo directly from beyond, six hands seized me.