The battle between Sirin and Noah was not extravagant.
It couldn’t help but look that way.
To those watching their duel, the movements were almost invisible, and the Great Sword they wielded was solely aimed at the opponent right in front of them.
That said, their swords were not light.
Even the strongest hero of all time, the first Monster of the End, Laila, dared not step between them; their weapons were sharp and heavy beyond measure.
Thus, at the edge of a world shrouded in silence, only the sounds of swords clashing echoed.
Amidst it all, the smile on Sirin’s face showed no signs of fading.
Swinging the sword while breaking free from all oppression.
Fighting with all her might, without a second thought.
Facing the opponent she thought she’d never share a moment with.
And witnessing the hero being gradually completed because of her.
It was so joyful and delightful that she couldn’t help but smile.
So, leaving behind the martial arts she was familiar with, she wielded the Great Sword.
It was the last vestige of her delusions and a stubbornness she could never let go.
Of course, she had no certainty that using martial arts again would help her defeat Noah.
After all, Noah was already nearing completion.
But she was confident that she wouldn’t be pushed back as before.
She believed she could engage in an even fiercer battle.
Yet, the reason Sirin chose the Great Sword was simple.
Because it was romantic.
This choice was the romance she always talked about and sang about.
Sirin’s tightly closed lips burst into laughter once again.
She thought she’d never understand the romance she spoke of.
She was sure that ‘she’ believed Sirin would eventually understand.
And indeed, ‘she’ was right.
Sirin understood. She realized—
the joy of constantly charging at an opponent that could never be surpassed.
The fun of searching for light amidst endless darkness.
Because of this, a desire began to grow.
She wanted to see the end. She wanted to see a changed world.
There was a desire to live in a genuine Paradise.
But that didn’t mean she became sentimental.
She thought it would be the most embarrassing thing if she held onto a sentimentality that not even Carpen had.
No, perhaps Carpen and she had already become sentimental. Everyone knew that behind desire lies something hidden.
“Sentimentality…”
Sirin’s gaze turned to Ser.
Ser’s face was still expressionless.
But in those wide-open eyes, Sirin saw tears for the first time.
As she looked at Ser, Sirin parted her lips, then closed them again.
And she sent a thought to her mind.
[Ser, you were my first desire.]
Ser’s face twisted.
“Haha…”
A self-deprecating laugh unlike before. This moment created a brief gap.
Swish-! Noah’s Great Sword sliced through that gap, cutting into Sirin’s flesh. The warmth of the blood flowing from that wound touched Noah’s hand.
The puddle of blood on the ground splashed, and the floral fragrance in the air was overshadowed by the scent of blood.
And they thought.
Both Sirin, stepping in the pool of blood, and Noah, smelling the blood.
It was time to end this.
Whoosh-! With great swings toward each other, their bodies recoiled backward.
A distance apart.
Sirin took a step forward.
Dropping her Great Sword and bending her upper body.
Noah felt Sirin’s movement and did the same—dropping her Great Sword and bending forward.
There were no words exchanged between them.
They had shared enough before the battle, and the dance of swords over the past half-day had conveyed their intentions.
In that bitter silence that followed.
Thud! A tear rolling down Noah’s cheek fell onto the blood-soaked petals.
At the same moment.
Sirin moved toward Noah’s beginning.
Noah stepped toward Sirin’s end.
Thus.
Sirin’s Great Sword broke.
*
Pat-pat-
When the staggering footsteps ceased, a warm hand touched my motionless body.
“Are you not in pain?”
A voice, crackled and soaked.
Not as clear as before, it was a voice that lost strength.
Ser’s face remained dry.
But behind it, a deep sorrow was hidden that only I could feel.
“…It hurts.”
“It seems so.”
Following Ser’s hand, the spirits of light seeped into my body. The torn skin regenerated. The severed muscles rejoined. The shattered bones fused back together.
The pain that had filled my body.
The traces of the battle with Sirin disappeared.
“You did well. Truly.”
Ser’s hand rested on my head.
Then slowly, Swish-swish- with awkward movements, began to stroke my hair.
Then suddenly, Thud-thud- confident footsteps and Bouncy- steps were heard.
“You did well.”
“…Noah, you were really awesome.”
Frey and Carpen approached me, staring for a while before looking at the fallen Sirin.
Sirin’s body bore no wounds.
Not because my sword had cut her, but because the power of Ser and Laila healed her immediately after the battle.
She simply appeared to be sleeping with a wonderfully joyful and beautiful smile on her face.
Kneeling before Sirin, Ser cleared away her broken Great Sword and tidied her disheveled hair.
After a while.
From behind, Laila approached silently and gently took my hand.
[I commend your efforts, adversary.]
“This crazy woman—can’t she get a clue? Is it because she’s getting old? Right now, I should be called by name, not adversary, you old lunatic.”
“Um, uh, judging by the situation, it sounds like you’re the crazy one…? Why not keep quiet for a bit?”
“Who the hell are you calling crazy? Keep quiet if you don’t want to die.”
“I’m not a crazy dog… I’m a wolf… and I’m grown up now.”
Despite Frey’s biting insults, Ser remained seated in front of Sirin.
Carpen, who tried to stop Frey, curled his tail nervously, and Laila covered her mouth and quietly bowed her head.
[Ahem… I’m sorry, Noah.]
“…It’s okay.”
I shook my head lightly, offering a faint smile to them.
I’ve decided not to despair any longer.
I wouldn’t look back and would keep moving forward.
“That aside… we have things to do, right?”
Thud- Frey thrust the Great Sword into the ground and looked at Carpen, Laila, and me.
[Indeed. Regulation… no, Sirinias—]
“It’s Sirin, Sirin! You old crazy lady.”
[Right… Sirin. From the moment her soul is retrieved, the awakening of the End will commence.]
Laila came closer, wearing a bittersweet smile.
[So, we must complete the key before the awakening of the End occurs.]
Laila stretched out her hand.
In it were black feathers, a small ember, and a broken bracelet.
[Please take care of the future… Noah.]
I grasped tightly what rested in Ser’s hand with both hands.
At that instant.
Boom-
A massive heartbeat echoed.
Boom-
The sky, the earth, this very world seemed to breathe with the pulse.
Boom-
As the heartbeat grew louder, Laila’s face turned pale.
Boom-
Frey, gazing up at the sky, drew his Great Sword.
Boom-
Carpen, sulking with his tail tucked, raised his Blood Aura, all the fur on his body bristling.
Boom-
Suddenly, the heartbeat stopped.
In tandem, a massive crack formed in the sky.
That crack quickly enveloped the entire world.
In the end.
―――!
Accompanied by a thunderous sound that shook the ground, a colossal door formed in the sky.
[A false Paradise… why… why?]
Crunch- Laila’s hand tightly gripped the scythe of life, as the roots of the gathered plants behind her shaped wings. With a Whoosh- the wings flapped, lifting Laila’s body into the air for a moment.
Crunch-
The door opened. Light spilled through the cracks cast onto the earth. That light, reminiscent of Rubia’s Divine Power, revived withered flowers and infused life into the devastated land from endless battles.
At the same time.
The black feathers, embers, and the bracelet from Cartia tightly clutched in my hands began absorbing their wishes.
That wasn’t all.
Crackle- crackle-
From the lifeless body of Sirin, an ominous sound reverberated. It began to dismantle her body, pulling her heart, the source of regulation, from within.
[You… are you attempting to mock the death of the regulation itself!!]
Laila’s roar echoed like a scream.
“Damn, bastard…”
Frey’s voice was thick with contempt.
And above the sky.
Before the door of the false Paradise.
“Wow… I must say, the final battle was incredibly noble and beautiful to witness. Especially, the moment everything was cast away at the end was truly… it was one of the greatest sights I’ve seen.”
Clearly, ‘Rubia,’ who should have had five pairs of wings, flapped her seven pairs of wings.
Severing the chains of regulation left by Sirin.
“So, regulation… no, I believe Sirin’s soul would serve us all better in a different place. Wouldn’t you all agree?”
She was smiling at us.
