Once upon a time, it is said that Omeros scattered his blood droplets across the Earth.
From the blood-soaked soil, all manner of creatures grew. Soulless bodies wandered the world, driven by sin, and all living beings feared and shunned them.
Unable to bear this, Arus tore out his guts and hung them in the sky.
That was the Sun.
So, all corruption had no choice but to return to order when faced with the Sun. Even monsters were no exception, for most monsters refrained from activity during the day.
Moreover, humanity began to live in the time when the Sun rose.
This was because the Sun bestowed blessings of reason and rationality. Even those who lived an unruly life at night would repent for their past sins during the day.
The reason the Lady Virgin Saint brought up this famous myth was simple.
“Indeed, it can be called ‘an unrestrained body.’”
One of the retinues of sin that was said to have been born from the blood of Omeros long ago.
A monster that endlessly craved flesh and continued to grow its size. The Lady Virgin Saint was announcing that the being from that myth had reappeared on this continent.
While I had lost consciousness, the situation had grown even more dire.
I listened to the Lady Virgin Saint’s explanation without saying a word.
“The Urjina Army is trying to hold it back somehow, but the rate at which it regenerates is faster than the rate we can remove its flesh. It’s even begun to swallow humans, not just elves.”
“Sending troops would be counterproductive.”
“I know. But to quell the people’s anxiety, we have to at least pretend to do something.”
It was propaganda theory.
I had forgotten about it for a while, but the Lady Virgin Saint was a woman who rolled in the political sphere of the Holy Kingdom. Naturally, she had broader insight than I, who only focused on combat itself.
The Lady Virgin Saint quietly took hold of my two hands, which had fallen into silence.
Her pale pink eyes gazing at me created a poignant atmosphere.
“I-an, please stop.”
“What are you saying?”
“You still want to fight, don’t you?”
My hesitating mouth was sealed once more.
I avoided her gaze instead of answering, fully aware of what that would imply.
I didn’t want to lie to the Lady Virgin Saint.
She was a woman who believed in and relied on me, and I had owed her my life several times.
Her earnest voice continued, now almost pleading.
“You’ve already tried so much. You’ve been hurt, fallen, and yet you’ve stood back up… But it’s excessive now. Lately, you often lose consciousness even from minor injuries, right?”
Another silence.
In other words, it was affirmative.
The Lady Virgin Saint spoke in a voice that grew more anxious, as if she expected it.
“Your body can be healed with divine substances, but it cannot change the crumbling foundation. No matter how expertly you mend clothes, they ultimately become rags.”
“But the elves…”
“I’ve rescued all the elf residents from the village you stayed in.”
It was the news I had hoped for.
However, a lingering sense of discomfort remained in my heart, and I let out a deep sigh.
So this is how it ends.
I recalled the words of the man I had seen in my subconscious.
‘Cast away what must be cast aside.’
I had bluffed about not wanting to discard anything, but it was nothing but empty talk.
It was impossible to not cast anything aside.
I was merely replacing one thing with another.
Until now, I could afford to discard myself. In fact, I had been fortunate and had occasionally found the right answers. However, this time the situation was different.
I had missed the last opportunity right before my eyes.
I could not blame anyone. I had failed to give up until the very end.
I didn’t want to kill Alex and Betty.
It was because I had yet to carve out the weak parts of my inner self. As the man said, I might still be a ‘novice.’
“I-an, even without us, there are many talents in the continent. Just with Master alone, there are three of them. Although it’s still under discussion, if the Empire’s swordmaster and the Holy Kingdom’s saint come, the situation will turn.”
It was a reasonable choice.
The two masters were overwhelmingly superior in terms of power compared to me. It was common knowledge that those two did not get along well, but they surely wouldn’t bicker in front of that monster.
As I showed signs of resignation, the Lady Virgin Saint’s persuasion intensified.
Now, she was subtly pulling my arm closer to her chest. It seemed she thought that would cheer me up.
To be honest, I did feel a bit better.
But it was frustrating.
“I-an, please go back… Do you know how I feel every time I have to heal your wounded self? I don’t want to see you get hurt anymore.”
It was a heartfelt plea.
The Lady Virgin Saint, who was usually so dignified, was showing a candid side. In the end, I had no choice but to declare my surrender to her.
I sighed lightly and said, “Alright.”
“Really?!”
The Lady Virgin Saint clenched her fists as if she had succeeded, and asked me again.
It was as if all the behavior she had shown until now was just an act to persuade me.
Such a cunning woman. I looked at her with a displeased expression before eventually expressing my lingering concerns in a subdued voice.
“What can I do? I just worry about Senior Delphine…”
“Why is that woman mentioned here?”
Her cold tone froze the atmosphere around us.
The warmth that had been there vanished, leaving only the Lady Virgin Saint and me.
Those pale pink eyes were still beautiful. They could be compared to jewels.
However, the gaze was so icy.
I found myself in a perplexing situation.
Of course, she was a comrade, so it was only natural to worry about her. In fact, we had established a deeper relationship than that, but regardless, there was no issue with what I said.
Yet, the response was so cold.
I had no choice but to ask the Lady Virgin Saint in bewilderment.
“Isn’t it perfectly reasonable to worry about a comrade?”
“But it felt kind of affectionate.”
Her intuition was sharp.
I was on the verge of breaking into a cold sweat from the Lady Virgin Saint’s keen insight, but I didn’t have no means to counter her.
I had been suffering far too much at the hands of women so far.
Deciding to strike where it hurt, I pressed on.
“Don’t go making baseless accusations… If we’re talking logic, does that mean the Lady Virgin Saint is a sexual harasser?”
“What, what did you say…? S-sexual harassment?!”
The Lady Virgin Saint jumped up in shock, quickly putting distance between us.
Then she began to rebut with a stammer.
“W-What basis do you have! You’re the sexual harasser! Have you forgotten how many times you’ve touched my body until now?!”
“But the first sight I saw upon waking up…”
“I didn’t touch you!”
I crossed my arms and stared at the Lady Virgin Saint, as if awaiting her defence.
Tears had begun to gather in her eyes.
It seemed she had her own grievances.
“That girl Elsi was so smug that she wouldn’t stop bragging… I just wanted to know how amazing it really was… I-It’s only natural to be curious, right?!”
“Indeed, I have always been curious about your body too.”
“Y-You’re sexual harassing me again! I’ll have you tried in a religious trial one day!”
It was a nostalgic conversation.
Such peace was not bad either.
Discard what must be discarded, and reach out only to those I can save.
Who knows, perhaps I might save the world someday.
Yet, my inner feelings remained unchanged.
I had to sneak away.
Even though the two masters were coming, I had no information on the swordmaster and the saint. Moreover, in the memory of the future I had seen, the flesh monster possessed strength beyond imagination.
At least one of the masters was trying to achieve mutual destruction.
I couldn’t lose one of the only three masters here. As I had come to realize while staying in the elf village, the Dark Cult’s plans had been ongoing for hundreds of years.
In a situation where that conspiracy was about to be revealed, wasting valuable power would be a disastrous move.
The only thing that weighed on my mind was the promise I made with the Lady Virgin Saint.
I always felt guilty towards her.
It must have felt like a drunk husband looking at an abused wife.
Leaving the Lady Virgin Saint, who persistently argued with me, I turned my gaze toward the desk at the head of my bed.
As my gaze shifted, the Lady Virgin Saint couldn’t hide her confusion.
“…What’s over there?”
“Nothing, just…”
I could only offer a bitter smile.
As expected, the Lady Virgin Saint couldn’t see it.
This blood-stained letter.
My eyes sank even deeper.
The day I went to find Senior Delphine.
The woman greeted me with an unusually weary expression. Despite her pallid complexion, Senior Delphine was putting in every effort.
Primarily to avoid worrying me.
“What’s the matter?”
The scent of expensive grape wine hit me like steam. Looking back, I had always been a child.
It was in the way I often made impulsive decisions.
In the end, I had no choice but to help Senior Delphine.
After spending the first night, the day I first met her.
“Will you trust me just once?”
And then I stood before the monster.
With a sword and hand axe in hand.
The boiling flesh lay before me.
Having missed the last opportunity, the second battle.
This would surely be the final one.
