Feeling stuffy, I went outside.
I decided to sit down on a bench in a nearby park and collect my thoughts.
Arietta and Olivia didn’t catch me like that.
However, Arrieta gave me a trusting look, as if I could find a solution.
well, yes There is a solution.
If the key is incomplete, just make it complete.
Yes, [King] Tanatos, kill the dog and make Marie’s key into a perfect one.
but… … .
“Thanatos… … .”
To be honest, I’m afraid.
Until now, I have been making all sorts of plans and pushing opponents stronger than myself. The difference in information was great.
During Gerard, I used the fact that he was a professor and hid my power.
In the first battle with Thanatos, he was able to deal with it because he knew the timing of the invasion in the first place.
The same goes for the first encounter with the ‘existence’. I knew in advance that the monster would escape.
That’s how the Vatican, Eleanor’s problem, ＜Goblin’s Forest＞ and the battle with Kang Chul.
I was informed about all of that beforehand.
But what about when it wasn’t?
Because I failed to see through Janus’ plan, Salem died.
Failing to gauge the growth Eleanor needed left her in a state of self-loathing.
“Whoa… … .”
Then how about this time?
This job is a little different. It doesn’t just end with ‘I don’t know’.
It happened in the papal court.
I remember what the guy said.
Right before he struck down the sword, there was something he said while stopping the sword.
-next time.
Words like curses.
– You will see it in the underworld.
I didn’t care too much about that. No matter what, people die.
I thought that saying that we would see each other in ＜Underworld＞ was a kind of curse to hide defeat.
If it’s your stage, you won’t lose. I thought of it as the lamentation of such a loser.
But no.
Come to think of it, Thanatos backed down absurdly easily.
Even if he wanted to, taking the key wouldn’t have been a problem.
And the guy I met at ＜Spellage＞ also left this comment.
-You will surely come to the underworld one day.
It wasn’t a curse word.
I can’t help but notice when I see the same words repeated over and over again. If you gave me a hint like this, I wouldn’t know.
It was a sentence of sorts.
“under… … !”
I’ve been playing on the palm of Thanatos all along.
He lost half of his keys. And half of that nested in Marie.
But surprisingly, he didn’t care.
There were several chances to get it back, but the guy hadn’t planned to retrieve the key from the beginning.
In fact, I have never been attacked while moving with Marie.
I thought I was simply lucky, but… … . Is it really so?
“Are you saying that Mari was already his target when he survived… … .”
Marie is a good-natured child.
There is no way Thanatos, who turned her into a Cistus, would not know that.
You would have known that she would grow if she was placed in a good environment.
So, is it a guess to think that it was sent to ＜Skientia＞?
No, Thanatos has similar tendencies to Antares and me.
Looking at numerous additional elements in one plan. Even if your plan fails, you will benefit.
The formula for victory for Thanatos, who does not accept defeat.
A monster capable of enduring humiliation over and over again for the ultimate end.
“Whoa… … .”
I lift my head up from the overwhelming fatigue and look up at the sky.
No stars were visible in the cloudy night sky. Insects like moths are attracted to the flickering streetlights.
see beyond I can’t see anything. It is now.
I don’t know what kind of dagger Thanatos threw.
It feels like walking on the open sea.
“ok? What kind of trouble are you?”
“… … Alexios.”
I was staring blankly at the light of the street lamp, and Alexios appeared, holding something like a towel and a convenience store bag, and an ion drink, probably from training.
It’s small, but it looks like life is rich.
“Hey, how does it feel to fight without knowing anything?”
Seeing such a thoughtless look, I asked.
Isn’t he a guy who seems to have nothing to do with the word plan?
He always faced the unknown without running away.
In a sense, you can respect it.
“Hmm… … .”
Alexios sits cross-legged on the bench next to him.
“Who wants to sit down?”
“Well, it’s really close.”
The boy’s expression is crumpled. But he didn’t get up from his seat.
Instead, he handed me a drink in an envelope, as if to pay the seat rent.
“I like Coke.”
“Drink whatever you give. You madman.”
well, that’s it
Ionic drinks aren’t too bad, actually. Something that isn’t like a protein or chicken breast shake.
“Did you say it was when you didn’t know anything?”
It was like that for a while, drinking or sipping tea without talking to each other.
Alexios said with a grim expression as if he remembered it belatedly.
“It’s scary.”
“As expected.”
“Isn’t that obvious? As long as you don’t know what the other person is hiding, it’s natural to be wary.”
“Then what do you do?”
“I have to keep putting checks on my opponent so that he can discard his hand.”
I know.
About such a basic story.
However, it was impossible to put a check on Thanatos now.
“What if that doesn’t work?”
“You have to run away.”
“What if I can’t run away?”
“… … .”
Alexios seemed to be glaring at me for trying to catch the horse, but then declared with a bloody expression.
“Die or kill.”
“… … .”
“If you can’t avoid it, you have no choice but to set the prerequisites like that.”
“It is violent.”
“In the first place, in a battle that can’t be avoided, is there a need to have mercy in the hands of an unknown opponent?”
“No.”
If it was an unavoidable and inevitable battle in the first place, that would be correct.
I’d like to say the word murder lightly, but… … .
“I think I’ll probably go after it.”
I couldn’t prepare anything, and I was involved in the opponent’s plan.
The way back will not be open, and there is no information.
Then what about the capacity between individuals? It’s unfortunate, but Thanatos is several times stronger than me.
Lagging behind in skills, lagging behind in information. Not to mention the precision of the plan, the difference in the number of troops that can be mobilized is almost pointless to compare.
“Then I’ll go look for it.”
“right. But you are only saying the obvious.”
“Then why ask something obvious?”
“To hear the obvious.”
Even if you know, it’s human beings who want to be sure again and again.
This job will be dangerous. There is not even a guarantee that you can reach the opponent.
Whether it can be avoided or not, it is something that can be avoided. It’s fine if you don’t play around with his plans.
If you don’t want Marie to die, you can suspend her in her current state.
Yes, that alone would make a hole in Thanatos’ plan.
“I’m sure you understand what I said earlier, but I’m afraid of not knowing.”
“You’re talking nonsense again.”
I feel afraid because I don’t know what lies ahead.
“But there might be something more frightening than that.”
“That’s all right. You can move for something less scary, right?”
I am afraid of Marie’s death.
That said, I don’t like letting her live in stasis.
Isn’t that the same as being dead? It’s been a long time since I’ve been alive, but I’ve been able to get out of hell.
Push her back to Hell? It is impossible.
“Do I need to worry?”
“I hope you are simple.”
“You think too much. Wouldn’t it be nice to just try to push it once in a while?”
“You ignorant bastard.”
“Even if a madman helps me, it’s damn good.”
Alexios frowned and squashed the can he was holding.
To brag about useless power. That much I can do.
“… … .”
“What are you doing?”
“No, nothing.”
Come to think of it, it’s not good to brag like this. Because I’m a genius
No, but what is this? Isn’t it something like aluminum? What have you done to just a soda can?
“Well, then you know what to do.”
“It should be.”
That was it.
After that, he went on his way as if nothing was wrong.
There is nothing more to say.
Originally, this is how we are.
This guy could be called a friend or an enemy.
What if you have to ask… … .
Wouldn’t it be like a bad friend?
“Whoa… … .”
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Keep it simple.
that might be the answer.
But that’s something he can say because he has sharp senses and is close to foreseeing the future.
I can’t do that.
The point at which I felt strange was mostly late.
So I have to prepare.
Simple, but detailed.
“Let’s clear things up a bit.”
The park that found silence again like that.
As before, I looked up at the sky and continued my thoughts.
I worry about how to handle the obvious things simply and in detail.
That was the only thing I could do.
* * *
Mari was actually listening to the conversation between Oz and Arietta.
It was true that he had fallen asleep, but he was awakened by Arietta’s hand tidying up his hair.
So I understood everything.
What is your condition and what concerns are you causing?
‘Yeah, that’s right.’
I knew the truth.
No, it might be vaguely like that, he might have thought that way.
Marie wasn’t sure, but assumed it was.
“… … .”
Oz sighs and leaves.
While Arietta and Olivia are talking, they leave for a while so that she doesn’t wake up.
Marie quietly raised her head from the desk where she was lying face down.
“Sorry.”
she knows now
Just because you disappear without anyone knowing doesn’t mean the problem will be solved.
but she knows
Even so, that this is the way to protect all the things she loves.
Obviously they will get hurt, but they will be able to survive.
Marie doesn’t know the weight of death.
But now I know how heavy the weight of life is.
That’s why I don’t easily bring up the word ‘death’.
I felt the weight of it in the middle of the day.
“They were all good friends.”
Marie left the lead building without a word. There was nothing to be noticed by anyone in the process.
She is like half-dead. If he decided to hide, it was possible to hide his presence to the extent that he was no better than a corpse.
“… … .”
Marie walked through ＜Skientia＞ with such quiet steps.
I saw a lab that was now closed.
It was the place where she first moved after accepting Oz’s ‘request’.
I saw a restaurant that was open until late at night.
It was the place where Oz bought himself food for the first time.
I saw a park with a pothole in the middle of the street.
It was the place where Eleanor took her and Baek Yang to smash the fire hydrant.
In addition.
there was a classroom There was a flower bed. There was a training ground and a dormitory.
Yes, there were so many memories of her.
“ah… … .”
Marie, who was wandering around the place of memories, suddenly stood tall.
The moment your life changed.
A place where the boring life of looking up at the sky in a daze is changed.
“yes.”
Marie let out a short sign of affirmation as if pondering.
The place where Eleanor tied her hair into two pigtails.
The place where Oz greeted.
In a place that is nothing special, there are memories that couldn’t be more special than this. Yes, such a park bench.
“yes… … .”
They chew on sweet memories as if they were sweet candy.
And now.
There, he saw Oz, who was looking up at the sky blankly like his past self.
She intended to return to ＜Underworld＞ quietly. It is not self-sacrifice. It’s an act to save a friend.
Anyway, other than her, there is no one in ＜Skientia＞ who can open the door to the ＜Underworld＞.
If she goes back alone, no one will be able to come after her.
That way, your friends won’t be in danger because of you.
Marie knows.
How terrifying the existence she calls her father, the king of ＜Underworld＞ who has lived for tens of thousands of years.
That’s why she didn’t want to see her proud and lovely friends killed by him.
That’s why I’m trying to leave.
So, I looked back at my memories.
Normally, you should leave quietly like this, as if nothing had happened.
Yes, it must have been.
“Oz.”
“number of animals… … ?”
She spoke to Oz, who was sitting on a bench and looking up at the sky.
Is my heart weakened?
Or was it because he wanted to say goodbye to at least one person?
No, that’s not it.
“Oz, do you remember?”
I just reviewed my promise.
The time has come to end a promise made with a boy who approached her arrogantly in the past.
“What… … . No, more than that, what are you doing here… … ?”
“At that time, the answer to the greeting you said to me. I haven’t done it yet.”
It’s time to wake up from the blissful dream that dragged on.
Oz told her to return his greetings one day. He risked his life to save her.
At this point, the relationship between her and Oz will be severed.
“Oz, thank you for greeting me when I was alone.”
Cut out.
She shakes off the last regret she left behind as an excuse to promise the ‘next’.
“Thanks to that, I had a lot of fun and ate a lot of delicious food. It was a dream-like moment to the point where I had a hard time falling asleep because I was so happy today.”
“number of animals? wait, what now… … .”
“Being able to meet you, Eleanor, the white sheep, Lucia, the saintess, and many other friends is like waking up and dreaming.”
If this moment is a dream, I wish I could die, so I wanted it to last forever.
“I was so happy.”
Marie summarized her feelings in a short sentence.
That was enough for now.
No, actually, it could have been just one word.
The word ‘happiness’ was the most accurate word to describe her mood.
“So that’s enough for now.”
Marie held out her hand.
Fraud overflows with short start words.
That’s how the door to ＜Underworld＞ starts to open behind her.
She, who has been using only her strength all along, draws a full door for the first time.
Now is the time to give up the ‘next’ that allowed her to dream infinitely. It’s time to wake up from a happy dream.
“Bye. Oz.”
consciousness for it.
The answer to the greeting that changed his fate that day.
She is afraid of death now.
Because I know the weight of life. Because there are so many precious things.
That’s why I’m afraid of death.
But I love the memories of now to the extent that they transcend all of that.
So you can endure it.
yeah, so… … .
“Thank you for letting me have happy dreams.”
Marie laughed. He smiled brighter than ever.
As if he was happy, as if he had absolutely no regrets about his life so far and his current choices.
“Please say hello to everyone.”
I was willing to go for an ending worthy of the name Cistus.
Aw man…