Carpen soared into the sky, cloaked in a dark Blood Aura unlike anything Noah used.
Even as he seemed to fade away, the red tail he drew blazed fiercely, inflicting a massive wound on Jiz.
Frey was no different.
Her hidden essence was vividly visible even in the blurred view, slicing through dragon scales without a thought of concealing her existence.
But the opponents they faced were not the dragons I had fought.
With Jiz’s sudden entry, the power of the Nameless One overlaying the sky and the blessings scattered by the black sun combined.
They were dragons that had become avatars of the Nameless One, worthy of standing shoulder to shoulder with the Monster of the End.
What about Jiz, the primordial beast?
Having come from a false Paradise, Jiz possessed strength that was on an entirely different level from the Monster of the End.
And Jiz received the blessing of the Nameless One.
She was bestowed with the power of an entity that had swallowed a god.
Even if I gave it my all, I couldn’t guarantee victory against such a monster.
That was Jiz in this moment.
Watching those weaker than me struggle against such creatures, my gaze was inevitably drawn to the sky.
“What are you just staring at like that?”
In the midst of it all, a heavy and dignified voice reached me.
“Valoran… is that you?”
“Good to see you, Cartia. It’s the first time I’ve seen you in your true form, not as the Monster of the End.”
Valoran’s voice carried the relief that matched the atmosphere Carpen exuded.
“Yeah. It’s true, but cut your hair. What’s with that? From behind, I’d think you’re a lady.”
I struggled to shake off the anxiety that clung to my face and put on my usual facade.
“Even if I look like this now, it was a trendy hairstyle back then.”
Valoran laughed heartily, glancing at my severed arms.
“Are your arms okay?”
I nearly reflexively replied ‘no,’ but seeing Noah beside him looking like he might drop dead at any moment… I fell into a compulsion to say they were perfectly fine.
“It’s not bad.”
“Is that so?”
Valoran nodded with a bittersweet smile.
Then he rummaged through his pocket dimension and handed Noah something elongated.
“Deliver this to your mentor.”
“Wha… don’t worry too much… what is this? When did you pick it up?”
What Valoran handed Noah was the sword I had dropped earlier.
As Noah stuttered in hesitation, he eventually placed it gently beside me and crouched down.
I wanted to make a joke about him not seeing the severed arm since he couldn’t even grasp the sword.
But I managed to suppress my urge with my remarkable patience.
“It’s fine, kiddo.”
Noah’s trembling hand brushed over my severed arm.
“D-don’t joke… around…”
“Oh, a true disciple is one who believes their master is right, even if they say shit like that. Tsk, tsk.”
I nudged Noah lightly with my forehead and chuckled softly.
“By the way, how are you and Carpen still like this?”
Valoran might be an exception, but Carpen looked just like I remembered him before he became the Monster of the End.
In fact, he looked healthier than he did back then.
The only reason I could be in this state was that I was a different being from them.
Of course, there were methods to achieve that.
One could manifest at the cost of Noah’s lifespan, but knowing what awaited them afterward, I doubted they would use such a method.
So then, by what means—
“Of course we can do what you can do, Cartia. Have you not considered that?”
The answer came from behind Valoran.
A shadow, hidden beneath black wings.
“Brunhilde?”
“Can’t you tell?”
“Seeing you so rude must mean it’s really you.”
“Look who’s talking, the one with a severed arm.”
Swoosh— the wings made of flesh folded delicately, unlike feathered wings.
“Don’t misunderstand; I didn’t sacrifice Noah’s lifespan.”
Giggling, Brunhilde wrapped an arm around Noah, gently wiping her tears.
“Your master’s state is quite pitiful, isn’t it?”
Then she whispered a contrasting word with a sultry voice.
“After saying such cool things, to end up like that? If it were me, I’d be too embarrassed to show my face.”
Noah desperately shook her head against Brunhilde’s whisper, breaking free from her embrace.
I also stood up and gave Brunhilde a light kick.
“There’s nothing you can’t say to a kid. Enough of the nonsense. What are we doing about the Nameless One?”
Hearing my question, a subtle crack appeared on Brunhilde’s face. Valoran showed a similar response.
Noah crumpled her face entirely, biting her lip.
“What? Why, don’t you have your eyes wide open?”
There was an overwhelming number of uncertainties, but this wasn’t a time for leisure.
Frey and Carpen were still battling fiercely in the sky, while the awakening of the Nameless One was happening right beneath my feet.
Because of that, I threw out the question I most needed answered and stomped down on the handle of my sword.
With a swish— the sword struck the soft flowerbed. As I contemplated whether to bite it or plunge it into the severed end, suddenly—
Boom! Crash—!
A startling roar echoed from unexpectedly close by, answering my question.
“Is that Laila?”
“Yep.”
“Is she with Tylant, that kid?”
“No, he said he had something else to prepare.”
“Hmmm.”
I turned my gaze toward the source of the booming sound.
All I could see through my hazy vision was a blurry horizon. Even squinting and trying to concentrate my magical power didn’t change that. The only way to gauge the situation beyond was through the noise reaching my ears.
The distance of that sporadic roar was something I could have easily identified had my body been in its normal condition.
So that’s why they had those expressions.
I even thought rubbing my eyes might clear my vision, so I raised my arm. But I couldn’t afford to rub my eyes.
“Oh right, my arm’s cut off.”
Looking at my flailing stub, I couldn’t help but chuckle.
Seeing that, Brunhilde turned her head disinterestedly, while Valoran gazed up at the sky.
Noah bowed her head, releasing a faint breath.
A heavy silence.
In stark contrast, the incessant roars continued to erupt.
In such a critical situation, my mind was racing to find an answer to overcome it.
After a while,
“We have at most a minute left.”
Valoran’s heavy voice chimed in.
“Within that minute, I will—”
Simultaneously, whoosh— his wings spread, scattering black feathers as if they were about to tear.
“Bring down the sky.”
Fallen Heaven.
“Brunhilde will destroy it.”
Broken Heaven.
“That is our choice.”
Valoran’s sunset-colored eyes locked onto me.
“What will you do then?”
I raised my gaze.
There, in the midst of a desperate battle, were Frey and Carpen.
“The Sword of Victory.”
I lowered my eyes.
There lay the sword that had once broken, lost once more.
“What can you do?”
And there was Noah, staggering to her feet.
Her complexion was pale.
Just standing brought heavy breaths.
Thanks to Laila’s help, the outer wounds had healed perfectly, but the internal damage wrought by the Nameless One seemed to remain.
The emotions conveyed to me were no different.
Merely not breaking down felt like a blessing, as Noah’s mental state was a total mess.
Yet, that child stood up.
She stood up, looking at me.
“I’ll be back soon… so wait here and rest.”
She was smiling.
I walked over to her without hesitation.
Then I knelt down and faced her.
“Noah.”
Now, was it too difficult to answer? In a twisted smile, she replied instead.
“What am I to you?”
Yet I still asked the question.
It was a trivial question.
But it was one that needed to be asked.
Hearing my question, Noah tilted her head for a moment.
Then, in a very faint voice, she said.
“For me, it’s… Cartia—”
The Sword of Victory.
The hero.
None of that.
“It’s Cartia.”
An ordinary human.
My friend.
Cartia.
“Right.”
Indeed.
“I am—”
Challenging the gods.
I wanted to open a new sky.
Neither the Sword of Victory nor the hero.
None of that.
Just—
I was angry.
I was sad.
I trembled in fear.
I ached.
Sometimes I was joyful.
Sometimes I loved.
And still, even now—
I chase after hope.
A foolish yet ordinary human.
“Cartia.”
I announced my name to the world.
I engraved my existence into the world.
And—
Toward the ‘thing’ sleeping within my soul.
Toward the ‘desire’ that contained all of me.
I stretched out my hand.
To grasp the flag of victory, woven with golden threads.
For the perfect victory I had longed for.
I clutched it tightly.
