689 – 8. Will (63)
“…… Hey!”
“Don’t talk nonsense, just get to the point.”
A woman with dew hanging from the corner of her eyes complained of her injustice, but the response she received from me was only a cold one.
Little Emma had no choice but to soothe her anger by huffing and puffing with red eyes.
No matter what, she was also in a position where I needed her.
“An image is an image formed in the mind. Since it is a form of unconsciousness, it is naturally unaffected by the physical laws of reality. That is why imagery can produce ‘miraculous’ power in reality.”
“Everyone knows that.”
“The important thing is how the ‘image’ in the heart is created.”
“How do you know that?”
These were the words I uttered while laughing.
The history of martial arts and magic is deep. There was no way that no one had thought that way over thousands of years.
Nevertheless, this is why discussions on the form of ‘imagery’ have been sluggish so far.
It was because it was impossible to look into a person’s heart. Even the scope and definition of ‘imagery’ were not clear enough to be called ‘unconsciousness’ literally, so it was questionable whether the image had a discernible form.
I can’t believe I have to say this kind of common sense.
It was around the time when I said my first words with a sigh.
“To see the human unconscious as a specifically identifiable landscape… ….”
Right then.
Suddenly, I met the eyes of a woman with a mysterious smile. Like I’m missing something.
Now that I think about it, where is this place?
Once again, my eyes scan the surrounding scenery.
“Seeing is… ….”
“It is possible. At least here.”
“But I have never once seen a place here that is related to my image?”
“That’s because you haven’t adapted to the infinite expanse of this place.”
Then, the woman spreads her arms one after the other.
When she spreads her left arm, a crack appears in the empty space, revealing a familiar scene. A memory of the day I risked my life fighting a wolf demon in the forest.
As she spreads her right arm, the flames that burst into the air leave soot behind, creating cracks in her. Memories of the day at the orphanage when I had to fight between life and death with the orphanage director who had become a witch.
It was all my memory. I’ve never actually seen it here.
“The realm of the unconscious is infinite. “If you don’t know proper geography, it’s natural to get lost.”
I tried to comfort my lips, but soon stopped.
That’s right. If I think about it, this place was also my subconscious. Of course, it was normal for my memories to be scattered as well.
But as the saying goes, the unconscious is infinite. In particular, the man’s memories were of a different level in terms of density and accumulated time, so I understood why I had no choice but to mainly look into the man’s memories.
Still, there was only one thing I didn’t understand.
“Then what about you?”
Hmm, a strange nasal sound.
The woman withdrew her small and delicate arm and smiled seductively. The way she held her chin was quite alluring in its own way.
“How do you know this place so well? Above all, what are you?”
“Do you want to know?”
There was no need for an answer to the provocative question.
Anyway, my feelings will already be well revealed. Instead, I smiled and shook my head.
“No, no! It doesn’t matter who you are. I don’t plan on signing such a shady contract anyway…….”
“Then how do you win?”
There was no object. To be more precise, it was closer to the point where there was no need to mention it.
My eyes turned to a small woman. She was smiling mischievously with her arms crossed.
“Aha, is that so? Actually, I had no intention of winning. Stuck like this in the corner of unconsciousness, it doesn’t matter what happens outside… “What is going on out there without you?”
“…… “I’m sure things are going well.”
Like a small animal whose nest was invaded, I let out an instinct.
I tried my best to hide my nervousness.
“Is that really so?”
But the woman did not let me ignore reality like this.
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The little devil whispers as he bursts into laughter.
“Will that man be as kind as you? You know better than anyone else, right? He was stubborn because he didn’t like the man’s ways…….”
“It can’t be like that forever. “It’s impossible, so I’m tired of trying to force it.”
“Really? “Then I’m sorry.”
A sweet, moist voice moistens my eardrums.
“Your best friend died… Huh?!”
As soon as those words came out, I immediately stretched out my hand.
A suppressed breathing comes out from the small body held in her grasp. She just clenched her fists, but the woman who was whispering to me was so caught up that she couldn’t even move.
For a moment, I felt the urge to crush it with force.
It was not put into practice. However, she only gritted her teeth and left a warning.
“It would be best not to talk about Leto carelessly.”
Even then, the woman could not move and could only make a frustrated breathing sound.
What can I say about her little body struggling to escape from my grasp?
Because it’s so insignificant.
I soon cooled off. That was the reason why I relaxed my grip without saying a word.
The woman who had escaped from her restraints let out a sigh, let out her breath that she had been holding, and she screamed again.
“Hey! Are you so easy on me?! It’s too late to regret it after finding out my identity…… !”
“Let’s go.”
But she was so stubborn that her words could not continue to the end.
Before that, I said something.
Her woman’s expression became blank for a moment.
“Let’s go. “To see if it’s my ‘image’ or not.”
“Ho, ho… Ohh. Hmm. “Hmm.”
Are you embarrassed by my changed attitude?
The woman who resembled her Emma stroked her chin and made a strange sound. It took a while, and then he asked me.
“So does this mean you will make a ‘contract’ with me?”
“No.”
Soon, the woman’s expression crumples.
She had the face of a child who realized that she had been teased. I had to add her explanation before the woman stamped her feet in the air.
“I just want to see what kind of place it is. “How can you trust someone as suspicious as you?”
“Hmph, let’s just take a look? “I don’t get anything in return?”
“It won’t be like that.”
Glance, then.
There was a faint interest in the woman’s eyes as she glanced at me with her raised eyes. She seemed to have chosen the correct answer.
“There is a reason why you want to show me my mental image.”
“Is that it because you need it?”
“And he said that if I do business with you, I will find out your identity.”
Only then did little Emma smile faintly.
“At first, you said you wanted your strength back… Does it have something to do with seeing your images?”
“Surprisingly, my head is spinning, isn’t it? That’s right.”
With her alluring smile once again, the woman confidently confirmed my guess.
“I’ll tell you in advance. Imagery is related to ‘memory’… Memories of powerful experiences in your life, especially when you awaken to those images, are etched into your subconscious. However, your mental image is deformed. Not just your memories…….”
“That person’s memories must also be mixed in.”
It was natural. When I acquired my vision, it was mostly right after I glimpsed my memories from the future.
It wouldn’t be strange if the scenery I saw at that time remained in my subconscious.
Maybe this was one of the reasons why my mental image was unstable. In essence, the problem is that many images that should originally be one or two are mixed together.
Nevertheless, questions still remained.
“So, what benefit will I get from looking at the image again? “Can you defeat that person like that?”
“I’ll know it when I see it.”
A tone of strong confidence.
She was a cocky woman who liked to boast. She might pass it off as pretentious, but somehow.
The expression on his face when he says that resembles the face of the woman in my memory.
“Trust me… “This is the only answer.”
In the end, I turned my head to avoid her pale green gaze.
A desolate wilderness comes into her eyes. A land where there is nothing, only the setting sun and blood bathing the view. The corpses lying around were probably lives lost by the man’s hands.
Did they kill this many people?
Even though she killed so many people, did her man have such an unfortunate face?
He always had tired eyes. He accumulates the misfortunes of life, like a human being baptized by tragedy.
Mental image.
Yes, this is the end the man reached.
I close my eyes without saying anything. I really don’t mind seeing this end.
The answer to the question was clear.
Nevertheless, I couldn’t let go of my hesitation.
“…… I.”
Stuttering, I asked that question.
“Can I do it?”
To be honest.
It was exhausting and difficult. It’s scary and painful. I didn’t want to do anything anymore.
I want to quit.
I wanted to deny it, but my heart was already screaming. I said I wouldn’t lose anything, but I lost something so precious.
I wasn’t confident at all. This may also be the reason why my voice trembles slightly.
“Once again?”
Resolution.
Yes, this was a resolution. I wanted to be brave somehow. No matter what little Emma said, it was of no use if my heart didn’t harden again.
But my despair was deep.
There was no way my resolve could be restored to this level. Because I was so disappointed and hurt. Leto’s empty spot had already become a scar and would never be filled.
Hesitate, hesitate.
Just before I finally took my steps back, a voice softly reached my ear.
“…… “You ask yourself.”
Before I could even ask what that means.
Your vision changes completely. The scenery rotated around me, and when I took a turn, the place where I stood was completely different.
As if the space was divided by a thin plate.
I looked around in confusion, but the person who was supposed to be my guide had already disappeared. However, a familiar figure can be seen in the distance.
Gray hair.
Although it had been a long time since I had seen her, there was no way I could not recognize her. Because she was a colleague who crossed countless fronts together.
She was about to say the name without even thinking about it.
“Seri…… !”
The blue eyes of the beast turn to me.
Literally, it was the eyes of a beast. A gaze as sharp as a blade forged from ice pierced me. Can those eyes, worn out with murderous intent and despair, be said to be human?
I realized it instinctively.
That woman is not the Seria I knew.
If I had to name this woman wearing her old cloak and glaring at me with her silver sword held diagonally, yes.
Ghost.
“Ah…… ?”
She was a woman truly worthy of the name ‘Gwigeom (鬼劍)’.