Beep.
Beep.
Only the vital sound of the heartbeat echoed in the silence.
“…Huff.”
Lishe exhaled deeply, her breathing matched the tempo in her mind.
A gentle halo of light spread out. Resonance had begun.
“Resonance level, from 10% to 20%.”
“Just a little more. Lishe, keep it steady so you don’t lose consciousness.”
Lishe focused. It was crucial for the resonance not to fall into Charles’s hands while activating her soul—in other words, a state of anti-resonance was needed.
High-level control, and the synchronized breathing of both was more important than ever.
“30%.”
It was time.
Lars placed that artifact on his head.
A golden crown.
An artifact that pierces a direct channel for a Saint who originally had to communicate with the goddess through prayer.
It borrowed the goddess’s divine power to its limits.
[Spirit Magic S]
The rank floating in the status window changed.
He entered the transcendental realm, where he could access both the rules of the world and mystical forces.
“Spirit Magic.”
As Lars infused divine power, the soul materialized.
All the doctors gulped nervously.
Two pure white shapes floated between Lishe and the Holy Sword.
It was the first time for anyone present to actually see a soul, leaving them utterly astonished.
But what was even more burdensome was that their heads seemed to be fused like conjoined twins.
“Splitting. Blade Number Two.”
A scalpel was handed to Lars.
A blade specially made to touch souls. Crafted from divine stone, not mithril.
Due to the temperature-sensitive material, this surgery had to be completed swiftly.
Unlike the other doctors, who were tensed, Lars’s hand showed not a shred of hesitation.
His wide-open eyes proved that.
“…Ugh.”
As the line was drawn, Lishe clenched her teeth and trembled.
Hugo sent a signal that the resonance was wavering. Lars chose to act before it became dangerous. He drew a curve from the parietal bone to the external ear canal.
With no physical presence, it felt like cutting through thin air. Because of that, not a single millimeter of error was allowed. A mistake could result in Lishe and Charles’s souls mixing, possibly leading to unknown aftereffects.
“Separation complete.”
There was no sound left. The sectional area needed immediate restoration.
The temporal bone area was lost. Since it was a soul, the interior didn’t show or anything. It filled the gaps with divine power and began suturing.
“…Teacher.”
At that moment, Lishe called out to Lars with a trembling voice.
It was clear her soul was quaking, signaling that the resonance was weakening. But the most problematic point was—
—Hoo.
Charles’s soul was trying to be sucked into the Holy Sword and get trapped.
“…Sister, respond.”
I won’t.
The implied meaning was clear enough.
‘She’s in shock.’
He couldn’t let go of Lishe right now. But if he lost Charles, wouldn’t she be eternally trapped in the Holy Sword?
A tense situation.
In the end, Lars gripped the tweezers in one hand while casting a divine spell with the other, firmly holding onto Charles’s arm being pulled away.
The tweezers were still holding the thread.
Neither side could be touched like this.
“Teacher.”
Just as he assessed his situation, someone came to help.
It was Chloe.
Lars nodded and transferred the tweezers he was tightly holding.
Chloe’s support team adjusted to her pace.
“Wake up.”
While leaving Lishe’s care, he maximized the divine spell. A powerful divine force burst forth, illuminating the surroundings.
Little by little, little by little,
Charles’s soul began to be drawn out from the holy sword.
—L…ars.
“Yeah, it’s me.”
Finally, Charles was liberated from the holy sword.
Lars gently laid her down, overlapping her on a new body as if to soothe her.
Melting away, seeping in.
“—Hah!”
The body that had been asleep until now took a deep breath and opened its eyes wide.
Beep, beep. The heartbeat began to echo in layers.
“Patient number 2 has awakened!”
“Patient number 1 shows no abnormalities!”
The doctors busily moved around, checking the condition of the two.
Charles, who found the oxygen mask awkward, coughed and teared up, smiling at Lars who was looking down at her.
“My eyes are all gritty.”
“It’s normal since it’s your first time wearing it.”
Lars gently held her hand.
*
Charles and Lishe’s health improved rapidly.
To confirm whether the surgery was successful, they isolated the two and tested various conditions, including separating and sealing the holy sword.
The conclusion was that Charles had completely detached from the resonance of the holy sword and Lishe.
“I can’t believe it. I… never thought such a day would come.”
Weeks passed, but Charles was still in disbelief.
The sensation of having her own body.
The feeling of liberation after escaping the repetitive cycle of time.
It was as if she had been granted a new life.
“Sis.”
The two met in the training ground after discharge.
“Finally, we face each other. Lishe, you’re cuter than I expected?”
Saying that, Charles tossed her a wooden sword.
“I’ll teach you properly now.”
“You’re so impatient.”
Thud—!
After a while of fierce sparring, both were drenched in sweat. Lishe, who hadn’t managed to land a hit, realized the skill gap.
“Ugh.”
Easily brushing off a deadly strike, Charles embraced Lishe.
Like looking in a mirror, two identical heroes rolled around on the grass.
“…I’m glad, sis.”
With a sniffle, Lishe buried her face in Charles’ embrace.
Charles held her tighter.
Even though her younger sister had changed so much, he felt like he understood her feelings better than anyone.
“I love you, Lishe.”
“…Me too.”
*
One night, Lars was preparing for an upcoming deployment in the Inner Palace office.
The Allied Forces’ Teleport Unit was about to arrive near the Demon King Castle. The only remaining bad ending was with the Demon King’s army. Only Ritch was left among the Four Heavenly Kings.
“The Incarnation of Jealousy. That’s a bit of a concern.”
Lars thought he could resolve it calmly by discussing it with Acella.
First, he needed to devise the best attack plan based on the experience he’d accumulated during the last round. He had discussed variables with Charles and noted them down as much as possible.
As he was writing down the operation, he heard a knock.
“Um, Teacher. Is this a good time?”
“Come in, Lishe.”
Lishe hesitantly entered and clicked the door shut.
“What were you doing?”
“Looking for a way to survive. There isn’t much time left.”
“The Demon King’s army, right? Leave it to us. My sister and I will show our skills.”
Thanks to her sparring with Charles, Lishe seemed overflowing with confidence as her swordsmanship skills had surged in an instant.
“I heard. Tanya praised you a lot.”
“Hehe, of course. Nowadays, the sword feels like it’s sticking to my hand.”
Lishe spread out her snow-white hands in front of Lars. He couldn’t help but snicker.
“Sometimes I think, we have ten fingers, right?”
“That’s right.”
“So, if a creature without fingers sees us, would it find us disgusting? Like something with tentacles.”
“But isn’t that tentacle monster also without fingers?”
“…Is that so? Wow!”
Lishe was playfully crawling her fingers along Lars’ hand like a little monster and then broke into a shy smile.
No matter the time or place, they both had a knack for such lighthearted banter. Lars had always liked that about her.
“Teacher’s hands… are big.”
Wriggling, Lishe played with Lars’ hand.
“Thanks to this hand, my sister… Hehe.”
Lishe quietly squatted in front of Lars.
Her soft knees bent smoothly.
Still holding Lars’ hand, Lishe couldn’t take her eyes off him.
…A moment of silence passed.
Lishe played with Lars’ hand like a puppy.
She rubbed it on her cheek and patted her own head.
Lars found her actions so cute that he just let it be.
Sniff sniff, Lishe began to smell his hand, bringing her index finger to her mouth.
…Smooch.
She gave a light kiss as a gift.
“Um, Teacher.”
“Yes.”
Feeling embarrassed, Lishe lowered her head, hiding her expression.
“…I-I don’t know what comes next…”
Lars finally put some strength into his right hand, which she was tenderly cradling.
When he stroked the back of Lishe’s neck, she was startled and flinched.
“Did your sister not teach you?”
“…She doesn’t know either.”
“Pfft.”
Lars bent down.
As if it was a return gesture, he gave her a light kiss on the forehead.
“…Ugh.”
Flustered, she stuck out her tongue to wipe her dry lips, while her body obediently crawled towards Lars.
Lishe perched herself on the chair he was sitting on.
Their faces got close enough that their breaths mingled, and she wrapped her arms around his neck.
“…Can I?”
“Will it not be awkward from tomorrow?”
“I’m fine… with it.”
“Really? We’ve been seeing each other for years.”
“Uh, um… Four years this year… Wait a second.”
Lishe frowned.
Lars was chuckling softly.
“When did you figure it out?!”
“From the very beginning.”
“How?! Why? No way! Where did I mark it on my body?”
Charles, whose identity had been exposed, looked around nervously as if there were letters written on her butt.
“You didn’t know? Lishe, I’ve decided to call you big sister from now on.”
“Wow, why did she leave out that important info?”
“It was our little secret. Are you really going to pretend to be my little sister?”
“Hey, she asked me. She said it would be less burdensome if I did it since she was embarrassed at first, so I… as the sister here….”
Charles, who had been rambling, suddenly shut her mouth. Realizing what she was talking about, she turned bright red.
“What were you planning to do about the aftermath? You really act according to your feelings.”
“Well, I was just planning to tease you tomorrow. I was gonna ask if my little sister was awesome.”
“Where did you learn that expression?”
“I don’t know. I was just trying to make you kick your blanket.”
“What’s that about? I’m fine with it.”
“…Really?”
“Of course. I like you.”
Charles stuck out her lips as if she couldn’t believe it.
“…I-I do too.”
Lars playfully smacked her on the butt.
“Let’s do it all after we’re done. First, let’s deal with Mephist.”
“Why, can’t we do it now?”
“No. I’ll lose my saint talent.”
“…Really?”
Charles’s face stiffened.
She almost caused a major incident.
“It’s more surprising that you didn’t know that, come on! Don’t you know about the pure Spirit?”
“Uh, so… kissing is also off the table?”
Lars chuckled and gifted a 3-second French kiss to teary-eyed Charles.
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