“… I have to go out.”
“Hmm?”
Sirin, who was stretching with the Great Sword stuck to the ground, tilted her head.
“Hurry… I really have to go out.”
“Why all of a sudden?”
“…Well… to the, uh, bathroom.”
[Oh come on, you clueless fool. Is it really that hard to say you need to go out because that crazy girl might flirt with Rubia?]
‘L-Let’s stop that.’
[Stop what? It’s true, you can feel it when you’re connected like this, right?]
‘…Both of them are the same woman.’
[What a bunch of nonsense. So, are you saying you and her are just going at it like boys love?]
‘W-What… Why would you say we’re doing that?!’
[You didn’t? I heard all your little plans when you came into Cartia.]
“Oh, if that’s the case, you don’t need to worry. I’ll make it for you in no time.”
Sirin chuckled—giggle—and snapped her fingers again.
Boom—
[See? She actually makes a bathroom. You’re really screwed now.]
“It’s soundproof too, so go ahead.”
Still snickering slyly, Sirin waved her hand like she knew my insides.
“…Th-that…”
“Why? Are you worried about Rubia?”
[Wow, so she knows but is still messing around?]
“…Yes.”
“Ser, do you think that girl will do something strange to Rubia?”
“W-well…”
Sirin smirked and continued stretching with the Great Sword handle.
“Now that I think about it, Rubia does have an allure even to women. I admit it.”
“…Huh?”
“She doesn’t wear makeup, but her skin is smooth and fair. Plus, she has a lovely scent, doesn’t she?”
“Th-that’s… true…”
At least I know her skin is smooth. The scent… there’s something soothing about it…
“Her breasts are large, and she has such a slim waist that you can’t help but wonder how she supports them, and her hips are quite wide.”
[Right. She’s on a different level compared to us flat chests.]
“Thinking about it, even Ser, who doesn’t like girls, might be tempted.”
“…So please let me out.”
“That’s not possible.”
[Hey, that guy is smiling?]
“…Why not?”
“I don’t have enough magical power to let you out.”
[Don’t be fooled by his sinister words. It’s a lie. He has plenty of magical power.]
“Do you even know how much magical power it takes to create this space?”
As if to agree, Sirin smiled mysteriously and looked around.
“A completely isolated space from the world. Time flows differently here. Any injuries revert to their original state, and you come back to life even after dying. Meals, bathrooms, sleep—You could live here for a lifetime without doing anything.”
Then she looked back at me.
“Do you know how difficult it is to create a place that even the gods can’t peek into?”
[Uh… is that really true?]
“Of course, I have enough magical power to let you out, but I don’t see any reason for my main self to go through the trouble of letting you out.”
I don’t understand.
I definitely said it a while ago…
“You don’t trust Rubia, do you?”
“I do…”
“Then it’s time to start training.”
With a grin, Sirin drew the Great Sword.
“Th-that’s not what I meant…”
[You don’t trust that crazy spirit. Who knows what weird stuff she might pull? Right? Even if you’re not feeling well, it’d be easy to subdue just Rubia.]
“Right. Let’s say, just for argument’s sake, that happens. Do you really think you could stop it?”
Sirin’s voice turned serious.
“…That’s… something I wouldn’t know until I try—”
“Ha, so arrogant. You could never win. My main self guarantees it. There are only a handful of humans in this world who can even challenge Ser.”
[Yeah, that’s true. You couldn’t even touch that crazy girl now. It wouldn’t even be close.]
Crack–
I couldn’t help but grind my teeth at such an undeniable statement.
“Well, what do you want me to do?”
I didn’t mean to.
My voice turned sharp.
[Listen here, you brat. You’re talking back to an adult.]
“Let me be honest. Noah, you’re not alive purely based on your own strength. You sense that, right?”
“Th-that…”
“Don’t take those fortunate circumstances for granted. Don’t consider luck as something you deserve. As I said before, don’t flaunt your stats.”
The smile vanished from Sirin’s face.
“You got lucky. You’re still intact because of the consideration of others. You’re still alive because of someone who led a brutal life behind you.”
Magic surged from Sirin’s body.
“You’ve come this far.”
My breath caught, and a terrible killing intent spread, suffocating the space.
“Stop acting pitiful and grab your sword.”
I bit my lip, shaking off the killing intent, and drew the Great Sword hanging from my waist.
“If you manage to cut my cloth like last time, I’ll let you go. But I won’t put the same conditions as last time.”
I hefted the Great Sword, feeling it slightly heavier than usual.
“As I said earlier, you don’t die here even if you die. It’ll all revert back to normal.”
Sirin pointed to the bracelet on her right wrist.
“My main self will kill you. So give it your all.”
[…That’s not okay.]
“I believe you can do it.”
[It’s dangerous.]
Just as I was about to draw Cartia’s Great Sword, a voice echoed through my head, stopping me.
[This is a mental problem. Your body will break, but that’s manageable. But if your mind breaks, you’ll become useless quickly.]
The bracelet shook—tremble.
[I don’t know why this all started with your crazy demand to let you out because she might try to flirt with Rubia. Anyway, it’s not okay. It’s really dangerous. You might be able to handle it if you become stronger, but not right now. Listen to me.]
I felt annoyed.
Yeah… I know I’m weak.
Alrba Village.
I would have died without Hermila.
East Ruins.
I would have died without Lucie and Heinzel.
Loholan.
Same goes.
Carpen.
Lucie.
Kalt.
Rubia, Charlotte, Yuria, Hephaestus.
Avalanche I can’t even remember, and Tylant.
‘Me.’
In reality, I haven’t achieved anything on my own.
Yet, I’m still alive.
Thanks to Hermila discovering me just in time.
Thanks to Lucie and Heinzel being there just in time.
Thanks to fate.
Fortunately.
I survived.
Of course, I’ve also put in effort.
I clawed and fought desperately.
But what does that matter?
Everything I’ve achieved was done by others.
In the end, I haven’t accomplished anything by myself.
No… that’s not it.
It’s not those things that frustrate me.
No matter how weak I am.
No matter how lucky I am.
I want to throw all of that away.
What’s bothering me the most right now is…
[Hey, I told you it’s not okay. Listen to the adult.]
Since coming to Cartia.
[No matter how much you throw a tantrum, I won’t allow it. You won’t draw it out… ]
It annoys me that more and more people are trying to mess with Rubia.
That’s what frustrates me the most.
[Huh?? What’s up with that?]
I dislike how everyone in Cartia is critiquing Rubia.
I don’t like the feeling that I’m being watched in every single action I take.
[Uh… huh? No, wait…?]
It annoys me that Vishur tested me with Rubia.
It frustrates me not knowing what Ser and Rubia are up to.
“Phew…”
With the Great Sword in my hands, I stabbed it into the ground.
I extended my empty hand forward.
I unleashed the emotions I had buried deep inside.
The feelings I sensed in Ursphere.
The feelings I felt upon entering Cartia.
The feelings I felt while holding Cartia’s Great Sword.
All the filthy emotions I’ve heard since coming to this world.
The ugly things I could bring out because Rubia isn’t by my side.
[…] What the hell is… what’s going on…?
I accepted them.
[You… why are you still alive instead of committing suicide…? Are you even sane? No, are you even human?]
The magic inside me reacted.
Something that had been asleep within me woke up, consuming those ugly emotions and rising.
[Holy hell… I partnered up with a crazier one than that crazy spirit. Oh, I’m really in deep trouble now.]
I chuckled at Cartia’s despondent voice—snicker.
I clenched my fists.
Boom—
The unleashed magic vibrated through the space.
Incompatible energies mixed and twisted the space.
I felt a heavy sensation in my hands.
“Hahaha! The legendary sword, the holy sword, the sword of salvation, and so on. Though it’s called by many names, it seems the sword you’ve forged… has taken a shape that encompasses all the horrendous things! I absolutely love it!”
I envisioned the form of the Great Sword in my hand.
An ordinary Great Sword without any special features.
Its color was invisible.
But I know.
[Shit… shit… my once shiny golden color… has been tarnished…]
The blade was blood-red.
“How… how differently does time flow here…?”
“About one day here is roughly one hour outside.”
I nodded and grabbed the Great Sword with both hands.
[Dammit, do as you please.]
I corrected my posture.
[Just do well while at it. I’ll do my best to prevent your mind from breaking. Well… it might not matter since you’re already crazy.]
I took a deep breath and opened my mouth.
“You said I won’t die… right…?”
“I can’t guarantee that.”
“I see…”
“Typically, a normal human’s limit is two times. A pretty solid human can go about ten or eleven times. Ser has endured 392 times.”
Sirin, who was standing at an angle, straightened her stance.
“I’m curious how many times you can endure.”
“Hmm… but.”
Feeling the weight of the emotions in my grasp.
“Sirin, you come back to life if you die, right?”
I opened my eyes.
