#30
A passage similar to the corridor in which Mew walked before.
However, the gap between the outer walls was slightly wider.
All sides are blocked off by walls, and no light enters except for the light that leaks from the door that has just been opened and descended. If the torch had not been lit, it would have been completely engulfed in darkness.
‘… That one.’
Mew narrowed her eyes.
The aisle wasn’t that long. Maybe that’s why the figure beyond that was reflected in Mew’s eyes.
Unlike this place, a space that has been revealed from the beginning. Mew, who found something beyond it, let out a small mutter.
“altar… is it?”
I can’t tell the exact shape because I can’t see it up close.
However, I could vaguely notice that that black, hard-looking thing was probably the ‘altar’ that the supervisor called.
Indeed, we have reached the end of the labyrinth.
I had that feeling.
Seeing that the door wasn’t open when they entered, and the rope wasn’t wrapped around the tombstone, maybe he was the first to reach the end of the labyrinth.
Except for arrogance and pride, he always had the thought that no one would arrive sooner than him. It was not the bluffs of those without authority, but the well-founded confidence of those who were able to do it.
thump, thump.
a bit tired… Anyway, now it’s all over. If you finish that well, your part of the practice is over. As he shrugged his shoulders, each time Mew passed the dark corridors, the torches that had been extinguished lit up. Still, the tension does not slow down. I don’t know what’s going to pop out all of a sudden.
Because it is underground, it is much cooler than outside. cold wind blows where does it come from Mu himself is very good in the heat, but he is rather strong in the cold, so he doesn’t even use his shoulders… …
is not it.
I put my cold hand on my cheek.
cold as ice
‘cold.’
It is undeniable that it is cold.
I thought I’d gotten used to it, but it doesn’t seem to be at all.
It wasn’t that long ago that Mew had become so vulnerable to the cold.
─ When are you coming, senior… …
It was fine until that day.
From that day on, I hated the cold that covered my body.
“… … under.”
I hated the cold winter and being alone.
I didn’t like the gentle snow.
When I sit down on my open palm and watch the snowflakes melt away and turn into cold water, the memories of meeting him for the first time come back to me, albeit hazy.
I liked the warmth of a person rather than the cold of the eyes.
It was Mu, but
Now it’s the opposite.
In order to forget everything, he plunged himself into that unpleasant environment. He tore all his personal emotions to shreds. Then, like a lie, my body and mind became more comfortable.
He hated lying, but unfortunately, lying was so comfortable and good.
Without revealing his true feelings anywhere, he hides his true feelings with a hard shell that will never come off. It had been a while since I had decided to do so and only focused on cold cutlery, and I met him again.
Frankly, I was happy.
There’s no way you can’t be happy
but.
— … I want you to stop letting me go
The person he met again rejected him.
And, terribly… abandoned
‘Abandoned.’
If you ask someone who has already forgotten how to love to love you, what could be more torture than that? He didn’t even hate him. Trying to forgive everything. I just wanted that as a condition, I didn’t want to keep sleeping deep in my heart anymore.
He was the one who didn’t allow it.
It was he who abandoned him first.
Even when I was hiding in the shell, I thought that this was enough. You can control your thoughts and mind. so confident However, it was nothing more than a conceit that was possible because he had never met a typhoon that blew wildly, not a chilly wind blowing in winter.
Nope.
The mind doesn’t work out the way you want it to…
‘stop.’
Is it because I am tired? So maybe it wasn’t a good decision? Or maybe it’s because the useless feelings have grown stronger?
All of a sudden, I felt like I wanted to cry like a child by sitting on the floor blankly thinking that it didn’t matter what the practice was.
The mind doesn’t work out the way it wants.
In a flow that could never be stopped by herself as if it had burst, Mew eventually spilled just one drop.
#31
At times like this, I shouldn’t have thought differently, but once I started, the thoughts of the past grew out of control.
─ Tabak.
When Mew finally raised his head, his field of vision widened, and the sound of his own footsteps on the floor echoed emptyly.
There are burning torches, but they are very few. It is difficult to illuminate all of this wide and expansive space. However, it was clearly bright here. Much more than any other space. It was all covered with a bluish light.
It was a large dome-shaped cavity.
Mew turned his gaze to the center.
There were no unusual decorations. A stele and altar made of black stone. Red silk was spread over the tribute room.
I don’t know what it was arranged for.
You must have known that the altar means receiving blessings or prophecies from a divine being after offering sacrifices and offerings… … There were no stone statues of gods sculpted around them.
Isn’t it a church thing?
After a while, Mew soon understood.
If a sacred altar was sleeping in the basement of this labyrinth overflowing with all sorts of strange monsters, it would be strange as it is.
If so, what the hell is it for?
No robes are prepared, nor are they very sacred. Rather, it only gives off a gloomy atmosphere. Besides, it is made of black stone. Religiously, black doesn’t mean much. Because black (黑) symbolizes demon (魔). If so, what is the altar made of black stone supposed to offer tribute to?
Like a single dot on a pure white snowfield, an altar placed in the middle of the cavity. Mew started walking towards it as if possessed.
bum bum, bum bum.
jerk.
“You better not touch it.”
Stop.
Where I thought I was completely alone, I heard a voice that wasn’t mine. Mu reflexively turned his head towards the source.
“A high-ranking beast will be summoned. If there is no such thing as a proper defense, it is better not to touch it.”
“you… … ”
Is it because the space is too wide?
In the corner of the communal area that came in through the passageway, I did not notice someone who was sitting on the wall, hugging their knees, and silently buried there.
“It’s not just that. This is a space completely cut off from the outside, but it is also another reality.”
“… … What?”
“The high-ranking beasts that will be summoned from the altar are real, not fake illusions, and the wounds they inflict here will be reflected in reality. In other words—if you receive a fatal attack, you really die.”
Shake your knees and stand up.
“I don’t know what the owner of the labyrinth may have prepared, so please don’t touch that. Wait for that person to come. I’ll come here anyway. If the future I saw is correct.”
“… … When did you come here?”
“Just now.”
‘I wasn’t the first?’
The door was closed, and the rope was nowhere to be seen.
But how… …
“I didn’t know you would come… … It’ll be fine. If it were you, it wouldn’t help at all. Anyway, don’t touch the altar. I said it three times.”
Slowly approaching Mew who was ignoring it and walking forward, he said:
A hair that is dazzling in the light but has a somewhat dull color. It was probably because the bread was soaked with blood.
The white skin is visible through the torn clothes. They are traces of many battles.
A necklace was hung over the deeply exposed collarbone.
There’s nothing special about it. It seems common. However, if you concentrate, you will feel a very weak flow of magical power. Mew was convinced that the necklace was some kind of enchanted artifact.
“Why should I listen to you?”
There was no reason to be obedient to the words of a person who was not very close to them, without a precise basis.
“That way, the margin of error is reduced.”
“what.”
“It doesn’t matter if you believe it or not… … If you don’t listen to me, someone you care about will be hurt. very loud. Are you okay though?”
──Stella de Feltrain.
Aside from the question of why she was here, Stella was threatening Mew, not threatening.
“The bullshit… … ”
“Ezio said he was going to get hurt.”
“… … you.”
“Now that we have arrived, the master of the labyrinth will be here soon. I’m waiting until then. There is nothing to change no matter what you do now.”
Cloudy, silvery-white eyes stared directly at Mew.
“I will finish everything before my friends come. So, don’t make any sudden moves and just stay by my side. Then you can get through without anyone getting hurt. I swear by the fate of the Feltline family.”
Putting her hand where the decoration on the necklace was located, Stella said so in a tone with a little force.
#32
“… take me Instead, get the rest of the kids out.”
“Hey, Ezio!”
“Hey, what… … !”
Gambling is gambling.
Anyone can speak. Where is the evidence that all the words Neviros has told us are true?
there’s nothing.
All could be lies to drag us into the swamp. Then everyone, including me, is at risk.
In that case, it would be better to sacrifice only one person.
“Are you crazy?!”
“Okay,” and pulls my arm.
not rubia.
It was Yuri with a terrified expression on her face.
“Don’t say nonsense! Who are you that you are going to go alone on our behalf!”
“Uh, Yuri… … .”
A chirping voice reaches out to the sky.
Rubia was next to Yuri, holding her arm as if trying to dry her, but Rubia also seemed to agree with Yuri. He looked at me with anxious eyes and shook his head slowly.
“If that person really wants only me, then it is right for me to go ahead and fulfill their demands here. If that will ensure your safety.”
“You are funny! When did I ask you to protect me?! I mean, don’t make your own decisions! What would you do if you followed me to death?”
“Don’t die. don’t worry.”
“I’m not worried, I’m just getting angry!”
“it’s okay. You said you’d do it anyway. And if this person’s purpose is really only me, so I’m responsible for putting you guys in a dangerous situation. So this is… … ”
“You, you– just say that one more time. let’s go together I will never leave you alone.”
“glass… … ”
The glass snapped, and he gritted his teeth and gripped my wrist tightly. However, I have small hands, so I couldn’t fully cover my wrist. The hand holding it trembles with rage that overflows like lava.
You can get rid of it if you want to, but the meaning contained in that power made it hard to let go of your hand.
“It’s a tearful friendship. … But if you do this, don’t you think I became a villain without blood or tears? I hate that.”
Nebiros took a moment to stop, then turned back and forth, looked straight at us and sighed.
“Ezio Cranil. Why do you think I want you?”
Answer the question quietly.
“… I don’t believe you. I have no reason to believe it. So I don’t believe you’re human.”
While holding Yuri’s wrist, he continued to speak.
“Your demons have been very appetizing until now. It’s like what’s inside of me, or my very existence is like candy dipped in honey. Even the long-lived Great Evil, like Eligos, could not bear it and tried to eat me as soon as he saw me. There is something about me that makes demons lose control like that. That’s probably–“
He stops talking and raises the other hand.
As soon as a spark ignites in my mind,
A white light bursts out.
“It must have something to do with this light.”
“… … Whoa.”
Nebiros couldn’t hide his smile.
“Like I said, I am not a demon. … But, Ezio Cranil, there is no denying that I was drawn like a fire moth by your strange light.”
“Also.”
“One, that’s not the only purpose of my life.”
“… … What?”
Nebiros shook his head in regret.
“Didn’t you say? I am here to make your wishes come true.”
“… … I would have said that I couldn’t believe it.”
“Then, believe me from now on.”
On what grounds-.
Nebiros caresses the mask and looks at me.
“Ezio Cranil, the divine light you have has been both a blessing and a curse to you. Is that correct?”
“──!”
“Don’t be so surprised. It’s common for people like you. Because it’s not just you.”
Nebiros kicks his tongue from inside the mask.
“It’s pitiful. It’s like trying to fight as hard as you can without knowing you’re in a big trap, and you’re caught in a trap.”
“… … ”
“But rest assured. I came here to let you know that you still have a chance.”
There are still a lot of unbelievable things… …
“Eternal shackles that cannot be broken. It will bind your feet anywhere, anytime, and restrict your actions.”
Nebiros pointed a finger at my ankle.
“Even when things are all around you, the shackles won’t keep you from running away. Because the dazzling sunlight is not all covered by hand. somehow… … I will find you.”
“Then you… … ”
“I will not deny it at all. Weren’t you drawn to the intense light? I couldn’t help but be intrigued. Whoops.”
After all, isn’t it right that you came to me as a result?
“Anyway, Ezio Cranil, you are still slowly wearing out at this time. In the past, that clear and clean light would eat up your personality.”
Nebiros shook his head.
“Then you become a flying beast that obeys only your instincts. They don’t understand any of the private feelings of ordinary humans, and eventually they slowly drift away from humans.”
“… … ”
“If you do that, others will avoid you. Because it will look like it’s not normal. Humans have a habit of harboring fears of things they do not understand.”
Nebiros illuminates the eyes in the mask.
“No, it’s still true, isn’t it? Are you as good as everyone else? I can’t see it that way.”
emotion.
Is it a private feeling?
Nebiros let out a deep smile.
“Look at that, after all you are not free.”
“… … ”
Rubia and Yuri looked like they couldn’t keep up with the context of the conversation between me and Nebiros, and each had a confused look on their faces.
“However.”
Nebiros lightly floats luck.
“If it were me, I could save you like that.”
“… … what.”
“I can make you regain everything you thought you had lost forever. It can make you normal. So don’t say you don’t want it. All the rebels I’ve seen so far, without missing a single one, had a deepest desire in their hearts.”
“Freedom.”
“Love is.”
“I was craving endlessly.”
“You are no exception to that. I may be able to survive pretending to be okay now, but as time passes like water, and as the time draws nearer, the size of that longing will only increase.”
“I can satisfy that craving.”
“Aren’t you curious? what the hell is that method How to break the shackles, which no one around you has ever told you, perhaps never told you.”
“After this time, the opportunity is forever.”
“How would you like to hear it?”
“Would you like to follow me?”
“I will gladly accept the offer to take only one of you. I don’t want to make such a big deal out of it, and if I can have an amicable conversation with you, I think I’ll be satisfied with that.”
“More than anything… As requested, we will take the remaining people out as safely as possible after the conversation with you is over. I’ll make a blood pact so that there’s no room for this. What would you like to do?”
“… … ”
Nebiros squeaked – put out his hand.
“Eh, Ezio.”
“You, I said. at will… … ”
no.
He says with a firm promise.
“I will go.”
Loud voices come from both sides.
“──Ezio!”
“How did you hear me?!”
Rubia and Yuri hold my arms one by one.
Whoo-
Take a deep breath and bite your lip.
“A great choice!”
Nebiros snapped his fingers and said.
“The way to freedom is very, very simple.”
Tsutsutsutsutsutsutsutsu–
The gaps in space are torn and widened. Opening a portal that he did not know where it would lead, Nebiros shouted with his arms wide open.
“Apostate!”
“And, welcome a new god!”
Nevirus takes a step into the crevice.
percussion-
At the same time, he shakes off Rubia and Yuri’s hands.
Tata Tak Tak-
Whoo!
I ran out at once and threw myself into the portal that Nebiros had passed over, but for a moment I wondered if I could feel a sense of floating as if I was floating in the air.
“Are you really going to die?!”
“I told you not to go, go as you please!”
“No, hey, you guys—”
Yuri, who failed to pull me in because her telekinesis didn’t work, grabbed my neck and jumped in, and Rubia threw herself into the portal with me, along with the harsh words she’d been saying for a long time.