Chapter 13: "The Last Bride"
——Gooooooong…….
The fourth bell was ringing at the far end of the distant present world. Its heavy tone‚ blocked by layers upon layers of thick stone walls‚ descended solitary into the bottom of the baptismal chamber that was like an abyss. Low. Heavy. And yet‚ it was a terribly gentle resonance‚ like a lullaby luring everything into eternal sleep.
Elina slowly raised her heavy face.
In her field of vision‚ nothing existed at all. White walls. White floor. White ceiling. A small‚ bare room that was flat and of the same color in every direction‚ so painfully still.
On her body‚ not even a single scrap of cloth remained. Having completed the extremely harsh baptism and thoroughly stripped of all impurities‚ this mere vessel retained nothing that belonged to her. Not even the pale ribbon she had favored to hold back her beautiful golden hair. Not even the dear keepsakes she had carefully tucked away deep in her heart. Not even that tiny‚ tiny‚ bittersweet yellow gift someone had once handed to her. Everything had been sunk to the cold depths of the water during the process of reaching this place‚ and vanished without a trace.
And so. Elina gently brought both of her palms together in front of her chest. What remained there‚ barely‚ was only the uncertain outline of her own empty body—her “self‚” now hollowed of content.
“…………”
She tried to think about something deeply. Yet even the premise of what she had intended to think about was no longer clear to her now.
Things from long ago. Innocent memories from childhood. Looking at someone’s face and laughing happily together. Being scolded in a troubled way by someone. Being held tightly‚ so tightly‚ by someone’s hopelessly dear body warmth.
Every one of those had sunk deep beyond a dense white fog. No matter how desperately she stretched out her fingertips‚ they only slipped futilely through the transparent air‚ and she could grasp nothing at all anymore.
Even so. Strangely‚ the depths of her chest did not tremble with “fear.” The impure sensation known as terror itself had already been cleanly washed away from her soul and extinguished.
Only. In the very depths of her completely blank chest‚ just one thing remained. Something like the residue of a “heat” that had lost its name‚ small yet stubbornly still breathing.
Someone. The one and only someone in the world. Had been calling her name all along‚ or so it seemed. From the bottom of a far-distant darkness. Again and again‚ desperately. Covered in mud‚ cursing the world‚ in a voice that sounded somehow angry‚ as if about to cry.
“……Who are you?”
A hoarse‚ faint voice melted into the cold silence of the baptismal chamber and vanished. Of course‚ no reply would come. Elina tilted her head curiously‚ as if floating a nameless question.
Yet the echoes of that cry alone refused to disappear from the depths of her skull no matter what. Whose voice it was. What face they had‚ how they laughed. What they had desperately tried to convey to her. She could remember nothing of the memories. Only the warm heat that voice had left behind remained pure in the depths of her blank chest. Like the final‚ extremely fine thread that barely still connected this cold world of nothingness to herself.
Suddenly‚ she turned her vacant eyes toward the farthest depths of the baptismal chamber. The massive stone door that for a thousand years of eternity had firmly refused any intrusion and remained tightly shut was slowly beginning to take on the light of another world. Silvery-white light. A dazzling torrent of light that seemed ready to burn out her retinas.
Elina narrowed her thin eyes further against that excessive brightness. Beyond the door‚ something was waiting for her. Instinctively‚ she sensed it. She did not know what lay open there. Only that she must go. That alone‚ her soul’s very bottom correctly understood—not through the teachings of the Order.
Elina took one step. With her bare‚ exposed feet‚ she stepped onto the thoroughly chilled white floor. A cool‚ inorganic footstep lightly cracked the silence. Another step. And yet another. Drawn as if by suction‚ she approached the abyss of the shining door.
It was a terribly strange sensation. Not frightening. Not lonely. Not sad. Nothing existed inside her mind. Simply‚ the world was quiet.
And. At the very moment Elina arrived right before that door of light. The overwhelming white light that had burst forth and overflowed gently‚ yet forcibly‚ enveloped her pure vessel.
“……Ah”
Unbidden‚ a small sigh like the flutter of a little bird’s wings escaped. That light‚ strangely‚ brought no pain. Rather‚ it was terribly warm‚ like the inside of a womb. Soft particles of light quietly covered everything—her slender shoulders‚ her spine‚ her entire body—as if blessing her as a sacred sacrifice.
And then—the world vividly inverted.
—Flowers.
The first thing she saw was a sea of flowers that painted over her entire field of vision. An vast flower field stretching endlessly to the farthest horizon. White. Blue. Vivid yellow. Pale peach. Ominous purple. Countless flowers whose names did not even exist in the human world swayed with the wind‚ continuing like a carpet to the ends of the world.
Beyond that floral scene stretched a sky so clear it seemed ready to suck one in. Not a single scrap of cloud. Endlessly high‚ endlessly deep‚ bottomless blue. A gentle wind like spring brushed her skin. The flowers all bowed their heads and swayed together‚ and the pleasant sound of leaves rubbing reached her eardrums. Birdsong from far away. The murmuring of a river flowing somewhere clear. Everything was as peaceful as an old picture book. A peace that was far too perfectly leveled.
Elina‚ having lost her sense of reality‚ stood rooted to the spot for a while like a stone statue.
“……A beautiful place”
Naturally‚ the monologue spilled from her lips. The voice she spun was‚ to her own surprise‚ completely free of any impurity‚ as transparent as glasswork.
Then—. From beyond the horizon‚ tiny glittering particles of light began gathering toward her as if possessing will. One. Two. Three. Eventually countless colors of light danced around Elina in blessing‚ and from within the cocoon of light‚ small spirits with transparent wings fluttering appeared one after another. Flitting prettily among the hundred flowers‚ riding the gentle wind‚ they laughed innocently and happily‚ like the rolling of little bells.
‘Congratulations’
‘Congratulations‚ bride of the great god’
‘Beautiful. More beautiful than anything in this world’
‘You’re going to the god’s altar‚ aren’t you. Truly congratulations’
Elina gazed at them with pure eyes. Bride. That sweet yet somehow curse-like word alone sank with strange weight into her blank chest.
“……I am a bride?”
At the very moment she murmured that‚ the particles of light enveloping her body all at once emitted a faint yet decisive radiance. Pure white silk woven from the torrent of light wrapped her slender shoulders‚ covered her chest‚ and its long‚ long hem spread smoothly with a quiet sound over the brilliantly colored flower field at her feet.
It was a pure white wedding dress.
There was none of the lavish decoration used to adorn a bride in the human world. Simply white‚ endlessly pure—a funeral shroud to celebrate the extinction of humanity. Her beautiful hair‚ which had once reached her waist and been her pride‚ had at some point been completely dyed the inorganic white of faded moonlight.
Even taking in that scene of the end of her humanity with her own eyes‚ Elina’s heart felt nothing. Neither sudden surprise. Nor sorrow at the injustice. Nor even fear of approaching death.
Only.
“……Beautiful”
She thought it purely‚ from the bottom of her heart.
And then she suddenly noticed. In her slender arms‚ at some point‚ a large bouquet had been cradled. Flowers of every color‚ so numerous that both arms alone could never hold them all‚ unnaturally vivid. Pure white flowers. Blue flowers that seemed ready to suck one in. —And among them‚ a tiny‚ tiny yellow flower with a slightly bittersweet scent.
Among those hundred flowers were mixed ones that somehow felt terribly familiar‚ yet she could not decisively recall them. Whether they were something someone had once handed to her‚ or something she herself had once picked somewhere. Even that her mind could no longer determine.
Only—it felt terribly precious. As if‚ if she let this go‚ her very existence would finally vanish this time—an absolute truth she must never release.
“……This is”
She stared fixedly at the bouquet she held. The very depths of her chest‚ which should have been completely blank‚ ached just a little‚ just a little‚ as if burning.
Why‚ she no longer knew any of the reasons. The physical sensation of pain‚ the emotional feeling of sadness—almost none of those should remain in her soul anymore. Even so. The softest‚ most vulnerable glass-like place sleeping in the depths of her consciousness faintly‚ unnervingly throbbed.
Trying desperately to grope for the true nature of that throb‚ Elina gently closed her heavy eyelids.
—Again‚ that someone’s cry. Behind her retinas‚ she heard it clearly.
‘——……na‚ Elina……!’
She did not understand. She did not know what that noise-filled words were shouting. Yet. The resonance of that voice alone. Even if the world faced its end‚ she absolutely did not want to forget it.
“……Who are you?”
Toward the endless blue sky‚ she asked in a voice that seemed about to fade away. Naturally‚ there was no answer from heaven. Instead‚ an endlessly gentle‚ deception-filled spring breeze blew through. The brilliantly colored flower field all bowed their heads and swayed‚ countless petals rose and danced‚ gently stroking Elina’s faded white hair and swaying the hem of her pure white dress forlornly.
And then—. Far beyond the flower field where a hundred flowers bloomed in profusion. Beyond a gentle green hill. A magical circle so massive it seemed to pierce the heavens suddenly revealed itself. Emitting an eerie pale golden light. Quietly. Simply coldly. Floating in the void as if melting the boundary between sky and earth.
If she headed to the center there‚ everything would end. For some reason‚ that alone her soul’s remnant correctly understood‚ beyond the teachings of the Order.
Elina slowly began advancing her bare feet. One step. Another step. The flowers welcomed her‚ naturally parting left and right as if inviting the sacrifice in. The small spirits fluttered happily around her pure white form‚ flying about.
‘Congratulations’
‘Beautiful‚ beautiful bride’
‘The great god has been waiting all along at the altar over there’
Elina smiled quietly like a doll. She thought she was now being blessed by the entire world. In that case—she must now smile as if she were the happiest person in the world. So the depths of her mind told her.
Yet. Why was it. The depths of her completely blank chest ached just a little‚ as if being torn apart. She no longer knew the reason for any of it. What she had lost. Whom she was truly waiting for. Why‚ independent of her will‚ hot tears seemed about to spill from behind her eyelids. She understood nothing at all anymore.
Even so. She walked.
Cradling the nameless bouquet in both arms. Wearing the white dress woven from the god’s light. Through a world filled with malice-free blessings of light‚ simply gazing only forward. Toward the promised magical circle that flickered coldly in the distance. Simply walking on.
That completely resigned back was more beautiful than anything in this world. It was truly—like the purest bride who had been promised the greatest happiness in the world.
—And precisely because of that. If there were someone gazing coldly from outside at that perfectly arranged scene‚ anyone would surely notice the hideous injustice.
That in the eyes of that mercifully smiling bride‚ not even a fragment of universal light remained. And—that in the very depths of her chest‚ which should have been completely hollowed out‚ there remained stubbornly‚ refusing to vanish until the very end‚ just one thing.
That someone’s cry echoing from beyond oblivion. The name of a nameless boy. The mud-covered‚ ungainly scream of the one and only person in the world who kept desperately calling her name‚ turning the entire world into an enemy for her sake.
That alone. In a world where all color had been lost from Elina’s consciousness and was being painted over white upon white‚ like a final light resisting despair. Small‚ small‚ yet fiercely continuing to burn.
Elina had no way of knowing. That the owner of that voice echoing behind her retinas was‚ even in this terribly cruel moment. Running with all his might this far‚ crossing many death lines of the present world‚ solely to reclaim the single girl that was herself.
And—that that twisted‚ obstinate magic student was about to‚ as the most inconvenient and worst invader for the god’s specifications. Trample into and set foot in this beautiful yet hideous‚ cruel miniature garden barrier.
Only. For now‚ Elina still advanced her bare feet mindlessly. Through the brilliantly colored flower field. Under the endlessly deep sky that seemed ready to suck one in. Surrounded by the circle of spirits who continued singing malice-free blessings. Toward the magical circle at the ends of the world that coldly oversaw the settlement with the god.
Slowly. Slowly.
—As the “last bride” to be offered to the god‚ she simply continued walking.
——Gooooooong…….
The fourth bell heavily shook the pure white temple from its foundations. That solemn and unchanging tone made the countless stone walls constructing the temple tremble‚ and propagated like lukewarm blood flow into each and every ancient magic circuit embedded deep beneath the floor.
Everyone standing within the temple raised their faces in unison. Priests clad in pure white robes of integrity. The Order’s guardian soldiers armored in rugged iron. The elderly who had finished their baptism and continued only praying for peace. Young mothers holding their children’s small heads to their chests.
Everyone correctly understood‚ without the slightest error‚ the meaning of the bell that announced destruction and salvation.
—The final stage. The Oracle Maiden who was the kingdom’s shield had set foot upon the path to the farthest ends.
With that confirmed fact alone. The thoroughly chilled air of the temple filled to the brim with tense sacred tension and a terribly strange relief resembling fanatical fervor.
“—Fourth bell‚ confirmed”
A priest standing upright beside the altar announced in an extremely businesslike voice.
“Baptism process‚ completed normally” “Oracle Maiden‚ now beginning transition to the spirit world” “Assessment of the price‚ normal” “Contract formula‚ no errors”
One. Another. Inorganic confirmation words were quietly layered‚ as if perfectly meshing cold gears.
No one raised their voice. No one panicked. Because this was the absolute correct ritual of this nation that had been repeated without the slightest deviation throughout thousands of years of eternity.
The same procedure. The same bell. The same prayer. The same sacrifice. And—the same “salvation” equally brought about.
“……This year as well‚ we have made it in time without incident”
An elderly priest exhaled deeply‚ as if finally setting down a burden from his shoulders. On his face was deeply etched the severe fatigue of long ritual preparations. Yet more than that‚ it was filled with a distorted pride at having accomplished the great work of maintaining the world.
“Yes”
The young priest standing beside him nodded deeply along with a devout prayer. “The Oracle Maiden will surely fulfill her noble mission to the very ends. We too‚ supporting that noble sacrifice from behind the scenes‚ is the way of all the people”
To those beautiful words of justice‚ there was not a single person in this pure white sanctuary who could raise an objection.
The Oracle Maiden. She was the most precious‚ irreplaceable absolute existence for this kingdom of ruin. More than the king of the earth. More than the arrogant high nobles. More than the knights who were shining heroes. More than the priests who called themselves the god’s proxies. In the “death” of this single girl was engraved a clear “value” capable of purchasing the world itself.
Because. By casting her single fleeting life as the supreme price‚ the lives of countless people would be saved from unprecedented calamity.
They had been taught so. From the time they first became aware as small children. Again and again‚ like a curse.
The sacred figures of successive Oracle Maidens painted on the murals of the pure white temple. Pure white garments of innocence. Bouquets of blessing so large both arms could not hold them. And a merciful‚ gentle smile. In the background‚ always a clear blue sky without a single impurity was painted.
They had saved the world of their own lofty will. Therefore—their ends must never be miserable tragedies. They were by no means wretched sacrifices. They were the supreme honor‚ sacred salvation. Everyone in this pure white cage believed it completely‚ without a single deviation.
“……Blessings upon the Oracle Maiden”
Amid the praying crowd‚ someone murmured softly.
“Blessings”
Another responded as if resonating with the soul.
“Eternal peace upon the Oracle Maiden” “Great gratitude upon the Oracle Maiden” “Upon the pure one who cleanses the original sin we must bear with her sacred body—”
Ripples of prayer overlapped in layers. At first only a few. Then ten. Twenty. A hundred—. The thousands of people gathered in the temple successively clasped their hands before their chests and began offering fervent prayers while shedding tears of joy.
“—Gratitude” “—Blessings”
Overlapping voices. That scene was endlessly beautiful. Far too beautiful‚ like a painting. And—nauseatingly ugly and cruel.
No one. In the center of that beautiful prayer‚ tried to see the “true face” of the girl whose five senses were being stripped away and who was becoming hollow from the inside. There was no need to see it from the beginning.
What she felt at the bottom of the dark baptismal chamber. What she had mercilessly lost. How much she had trembled in lonely fear and cried out. Knowing such muddy truths was‚ to their thoroughly believed clean “justice‚” only unpleasant and unnecessary noise.
What they needed was for the symbol that was her to carry out this ritual smoothly to the end. That alone was the “correct mission” as the Oracle Maiden.
—Clank.
In the outer corridor of the temple where no light reached‚ one of the guardian soldiers coldly re-gripped his steel spear.
“—Anomalous zone‚ confirmed”
Another soldier standing beside him responded inorganically. “Continuing maximum-output vigilance against the invader” “Do not allow anyone‚ not even a single step‚ to approach the area around the innermost altar” “Understood”
On the faces behind their steel cheek guards‚ there was not the slightest ordinary fear or hesitation. There was only cold‚ extreme fanatical sense of mission.
From earlier‚ deep within the temple‚ tremendous massive collision sounds had been echoing unnervingly again and again. That someone was rampaging to physically obstruct the sacred ritual—that definite report had already been transmitted into the minds of everyone securing this place.
Yet. To them‚ that insolent invader was by no means “a human the same as themselves” any longer. One who unjustly obstructs the sacred ritual of salvation. One who endangers the noble progress of the Oracle Maiden. The worst distortion in the system that must be coldly eradicated at once‚ obstructing the continuation of the entire world.
Therefore. Upon finding them‚ simply kill. The conclusion residing in their thought circuits was only that.
“—We must protect the Oracle Maiden even at the cost of these lives”
A young guardian soldier muttered feverishly in a voice as if suffering from a fever.
“Yes”
The veteran soldier standing beside him nodded deeply. “Even if we discard our lives like dust here‚ we will protect that person’s path until the final moment”
To those parting words‚ neither harbored even a shred of doubt. That they would die as nameless discarded pieces buried in the shadows of history. That too was nothing other than a noble role for smoothly turning this beautiful‚ clean world.
The Oracle Maiden saves the world. The Order’s guardian soldiers protect the path she walks. The priests as clergy accurately execute the ritual. All the believers simply offer tears of gratitude and prayers.
Everything is correct. Everything is settled into its proper place without the slightest deviation.
Even if‚ in the shadows at their feet‚ someone’s heart was being rawly broken. Even if someone was crying voicelessly in the mire of despair. Even if someone had been mercilessly cast into darkness where light would never again reach.
That was. Merely an unavoidable price necessary to continue maintaining the far greater salvation that is the world.
Yes. Throughout thousands of years of long eternity. The people of this nation had continued to blindly believe without even remembering to doubt it.
Therefore. No one stopped their feet. No one tried to question the universal premise. No one looked up at the sky beyond the pure white ceiling and asked the injustice‚ “Is this truly all right?”
There was no need to ask from the beginning. All answers had already been decided as a system from the far mythic age. The god so ordained. The Oracle Maiden was chosen. An absolute inviolable contract exists here. Therefore‚ it is correct.
To them‚ that clean premise alone was more than sufficient reason to halt their thinking.
In the farthest depths of the altar. The magical circle so massive it seemed to pierce the heavens was slowly‚ yet with violent brilliance‚ honing its radiance in that space. Eerie overlapping rings. Ancient sacred characters. Contract logical formulas. Countless magic circuits overseeing the settlement with the god. All of them‚ taking the ominous residual sound of the fourth bell as a signal‚ had quietly‚ coldly begun to activate.
“Formula‚ first layer—normal” “Second layer—normal” “Third layer—normal” “Contract description verification—normal” “Line connection with the Oracle Maiden—normal” “Temporarily held price information—normal”
Calmly. Like the gears of a precise machine. Flawless‚ absolute correct confirmation voices continued.
And then—. The final person‚ gazing at the core of the magical circle so massive it seemed to pierce the heavens‚ solemnly announced the conclusion.
“—Preparation for settlement with the god‚ all complete”
It was the moment of destruction.
In the depths of the pure white temple. Something “great” that already far transcended the shallow understanding of unjust humans slowly opened its cold eyes.
Beneath the stone pavement. Beyond the thick stone walls. In the even deeper physically inviolable domain of the far temple. In a concealed phase that no blood-bearing human was permitted to visually confirm. The massive divine system itself quietly began its eternal rotation. Rings of light one. Another. Taking on eerie radiance of lethal dose that could burn out the brain if stared at.
The elderly priest who had been watching that sacred slaughter’s activation floated an expression of fanaticism resembling ecstasy and deeply clasped both hands before his chest.
“This year as well……”
Softly. Yet in a voice trembling with mad joy‚ he murmured as if praying.
“The world will be correctly saved”
All the surrounding believers followed those words like an eerie chain wave.
“The world will be correctly saved” “Our hideous original sin will thereby be completely cleansed” “The Oracle Maiden will save us from injustice with her sacred body” “Supreme gratitude to the great Oracle Maiden” “Eternal gratitude to the great god”
Overlapping‚ expanding voices. The pure prayers they spun. Their selfish wishes. Their blind fanaticism. Became one massive‚ violent surge of emotion and filled the entire pure white temple white‚ white‚ mercilessly.
In the most cruel center of that frenzy. A single girl whose true raw face no one tried to know. All alone‚ cradling an invisible bouquet that no longer existed in reality in her slender arms‚ was walking.
Wearing a false white dress woven by the god’s deception. Receiving phantom innocent blessing voices upon her body. Hated by no one. Resented by no one in the world. Thought by no one to be a forced‚ unreasonable massacre.
Simply as the far too convenient symbol of “the noble bride who saves the world.” Advancing her steps toward the irreversible final place called death.
That itself was. For this beautifully‚ cleanly arranged world. The absolute‚ perfect “correct ritual” without a single flaw.
The elderly priest quietly‚ deeply closed his satisfied eyelids. And then—without intending it to reach anyone’s ears. Simply toward the domain of the great god reigning in the heavens. Solemnly announced the confirmation words that would be the final line.
“The Oracle Maiden will soon reach the point of no return”
The massive magical circle piercing the heavens honed its radiance further‚ emitting an even more ferocious light that mercilessly burned the retinas of those who saw it.
“The contract continuing from the mythic age is currently maintained normally”
Once more. He coldly confirmed the absolute unchanging principle of this kingdom.
“The assessment of the temporarily held price has also already been completed”
And then—. Quietly. All too quietly‚ like an epitaph. He spat from his own lips the words announcing the end and beginning of the world.
“—Before long”
“The true settlement by the great god will begin”
All the believers filling the pure white temple accepted that absolute declaration into their chests with joy unmixed with even an inch of doubt.
No one. Not a single one of the thousands of humans gathered here had any way of knowing.
That toward the very center of that far too perfect‚ flawless “correct ritual.” Right now. The single most arrogant and endlessly twisted invader in this world. Without seeking even a single letter of permission from the heavenly god—. Leaving muddy‚ ungainly footprints without mercy upon the beautifully arranged pure white carpet.
Was charging straight ahead‚ baring the fangs of his intellect ferociously‚ toward the innermost place where the completely emptied single bride was.
I was simply running. Without regard for appearance‚ single-mindedly.
From the moment I forcibly slipped through that massive pure white door‚ the description of the world had completely transformed. Stretching endlessly straight beneath my feet was a pure white path like marble. To the left and right spread a brilliantly colored flower field that filled the entire field of vision as far as the eye could see.
The sky above was so blue it seemed ready to suck one in. An unnervingly deep blue. Under a void without a single scrap of cloud‚ a sweet gentle wind blew through. A hundred flowers bowed their heads and swayed‚ birds sang‚ and far in the distance the clear murmuring of a river‚ together with the rustling of trees‚ gently stroked the eardrums.
Wherever one cut out of the world‚ it was perfectly arranged and beautiful. It was as if—someone in the world had kneaded and forged only the uncertain concept of “happiness” as material‚ a far too sweet miniature garden world.
“……Wait for me‚ Elina”
I continued kicking the ground. Pressing the seraph’s feather I held tightly against the chest of the incongruously white shrine maiden’s garments. That feather emitted a pale lavender radiance while correctly pointing‚ without hesitation‚ the direction I should invade. Therefore‚ there was not a single letter of hesitation. Elina was certainly imprisoned beyond these specifications.
I simply blindly trusted that intuition and continued moving my muddy‚ ungainly feet beyond their limits.
One step. Two steps. Three steps—.
Yet. No matter how much I burned my lungs and sprinted‚ the scenery before my eyes did not change by even a single millimeter. The flower field blooming madly. The endlessly bottomless blue sky. The gentle wind. The voices of birds like familiars. Endlessly‚ endlessly‚ the false sense of well-being forever repeating.
That beauty completed to an abnormal degree gradually began constricting the depths of my chest unpleasantly with nausea.
(—Too beautiful. Nauseatingly so)
Intuitively‚ that thought snapped. The real world we live in is not leveled this cleanly. There is mud. There is bloody vomit. There are merciless tears. There are hopelessly unjust mistakes rolling about as many as one likes. Even so‚ the incomplete race called humans live while becoming covered in wounds‚ ungainly clinging to their respective obsessions.
Yet. In this divine domain‚ not a single trace of those raw humans exists. As if‚ from the beginning‚ it does not need the muddy impurity named “human”—like a perfectly sterilized inorganic glass aquarium.
“……Just what is this place”
At the very instant I spat the words from my dry lips as if discarding them.
—Creak‚ grind……!
In the depths of my brain‚ an unpleasant crushing sound of the world’s gears failing to mesh exploded. The seraph’s feather I was tightly gripping in my hand pulsed strongly with a warning. Simultaneously‚ my analytical eye‚ which had been forcibly liberated up to the fourth stage‚ began blaring alarms in my mind.
At that moment‚ the world’s clean skin peeled away with a ripping sound.
The gentle wind that had been blowing froze and stopped in an instant. The birdsong died out. The clear river murmur‚ the rustling of trees‚ the brilliantly colored flower field blooming to the horizon—all of them shattered into pieces in an instant like hard glass walls.
“……! This is……?!”
I stopped my feet.
The exposed truth of the world. In the center of that darkness stood a single girl.
White. Wearing nothing. An empty vessel. Long hair drained of color swayed quietly even without wind. No emotional fluctuation on her face‚ not even a fragment of light in her eyes. Simply gazing vacantly into the empty distance.
“……Who are you?”
I called out. The girl did not answer. Instead‚ she slowly began walking. In the direction away from me.
“Wait!”
I tried to rush over. But the distance did not shrink. No matter how hard I ran at full speed‚ I could never catch up to her slowly walking back. The phase itself was decisively shifted.
“What the hell is this……!”
At the moment I shouted. The girl turned around. She smiled. Just a little. Very gently‚ very happily. And then. Without hesitation‚ she walked beyond the cliff at the farthest end of the darkness.
“—Wait!”
The girl’s body vanished beyond the cliff. She fell. The moment I understood that‚ in the depths of my vision‚ another girl appeared.
The same. White. Wearing nothing. Eyes without light. Face without expression. And. Walking toward the same cliff‚ and finally smiling happily‚ throwing herself off in silence.
“……No way”
The next girl appeared. Another. Another. Another. Countless girls appeared in the darkness and walked the same path. No one was crying. No one was shouting. No one was seeking help. Simply smiling within the happy hallucination given by the system‚ discarding their own lives.
“Stop……”
I murmured in a trembling voice. The next girl fell.
“Enough already”
Another fell.
“……It’s enough already!!”
Even screaming‚ the girls did not stop. For them‚ the option of stopping itself did not exist.
I completely understood. These were the successive Oracle Maidens. The residual echoes of human sacrifice that had been repeated for hundreds‚ thousands of years in this mad world.
“……This isn’t”
My throat trembled hotly.
“This isn’t a wedding road”
Not a wedding‚ not a blessing‚ not salvation. Simply a disposal site. The worst garbage dump for wrapping a single girl in the clean packaging of “the bride who saves the world” and finally discarding her into the bottom of darkness no one can see.
“……Don’t mess with me”
I clenched my fist. Nails dug deeply into my palm‚ blood seeping.
“Don’t mess with me……!!”
At that moment. From within the absolute darkness‚ an inorganic voice resounded.
‘—Then’
Neither man nor woman‚ neither adult nor child. An eerie synthesized sound as if countless voices were overlapping.
‘What is it that is wrong?’
“……!”
When I turned around‚ several small lights were floating in the darkness. Spirits. Those system defense mechanisms that had been blessing Elina within the hallucination. But on their faces there was none of the earlier smiles. Like the lenses of inorganic surveillance cameras‚ they simply gazed coldly down at me.
‘Humans committed sin’ One.
‘Humans took’ Two.
‘Humans killed‚ fought‚ trampled others‚ wounded the world’
Voices overlapped and multiplied. Ten. Twenty. Thirty. Countless records of original sin filled the darkness.
“……So what”
I growled low. The spirits fell completely silent. I took one step forward toward them.
“Just because humans committed ugly sins doesn’t mean it’s a reason to push everything onto Elina alone”
‘—First question’
One voice returned like a system.
‘Do you deny the sins of humans?’
“I don’t deny them”
It was an immediate answer. “Humans make mistakes. Humans are ugly. Humans hurt someone. They even sacrifice others for themselves”
I took a deep breath once.
“Even so. That doesn’t mean it’s okay to make one person pay the entire amount”
‘Then who will pay?’
“……”
I fell silent. All humans. It’s easy to say that. But within that “all” are children born knowing nothing‚ and humans who have not yet committed sin.
“……I don’t know”
For the first time‚ I answered honestly. The spirits stirred.
“Who should pay for it to be fair—my meager calculation can’t figure that out”
I raised my face straight.
“Even so. Not Elina alone. That much I can say for certain”
The spirits said nothing. After complete silence continued for several seconds.
‘—Second question’
A voice resounded.
‘Do mud-covered humans have the value to be saved?’
“They do”
‘Why?’
“Because they want to live”
‘Is that all?’
“Yeah‚ that’s more than enough”
I declared. “Wanting to live doesn’t require qualification from a god. Atoning and living are separate things. Atonement is something you shoulder yourself. Not something you forge someone’s life with a system and push onto them arbitrarily”
The darkness. Swayed just a little like a bug.
‘—Third question’
The voice directly questioned my soul.
‘Then‚ you. In this despair‚ what do you choose?’
I did not answer. Instead‚ I looked into the distance. Beyond the darkness. Further beyond the cliff where countless girls had thrown themselves. There‚ Elina was. Even now‚ intoxicated by the hallucination‚ walking while cradling a bouquet. Without knowing where she was heading.
“I”
Slowly defined the words.
“Will save Elina”
‘Is that denying the sins of humanity?’ “No”
‘Is that denying the contract that continued for a thousand years?’ “No”
I took a powerful step toward the darkness.
“What I deny is. This mad ‘method’ of choosing just one person and pushing the bill for all the sins onto them. ……That’s all”
The lights of the spirits gradually moved away from around me.
‘Do you believe in humans?’
The final question. I thought a little. Believing in humans. Such clean words I hate nauseatingly. Humans betray. Make mistakes. Are foolish and terribly ugly. I am too.
“It’s not about believing”
I answered coldly.
“Humans can choose for themselves. Choosing someone in place of Elina. Not choosing Elina. All of it‚ we humans decide ourselves. There’s not a single millimeter of need to have a god decide”
At that moment. In the depths of the darkness‚ a sound as if some absolute lock quietly came undone‚ one.
—Click.
The spirits no longer answered. Simply‚ the distant darkness was torn just a little‚ and light was shining in. Beyond that light floated a small hill covered in green and a massive settlement magical circle emitting pale light.
“……Elina!”
I dashed as if released. From behind‚ the inorganic voices of the spirits pursued.
‘You still do not know the thirty-seventh answer’
I did not look back.
“Then I’ll find it!”
I roared while running. “No matter what despair the thirty-seventh answer is! The reason I save Elina was decided long ago!”
My lungs burned as if about to tear. The bones in my legs screamed. Even so‚ I ran.
Behind me‚ the absolute darkness quietly closed. The countless spirits no longer tried to speak a single thing. Only‚ just before their forms vanished. From the depths of the darkness‚ someone’s voice spilled just a little‚ as if praying.
‘……This is. Not Elina’s sin alone’
Whether that was a flaw in the spirits themselves. Or the residual echo of the final wishes of the successive maidens left behind in this darkness. I did not know.
Only‚ once more‚ it seemed as if petals danced beyond the darkness.
I‚ solely to plunder the soul of a single girl. Continued running madly toward the world itself.
I was running. I no longer knew how long I had been running. The sensation in my feet had long since melted into the mire and vanished.
My lungs were scorched and raw‚ my heart continued carving a chaotic beat inside my ribcage like broken gears. The lethal price of continuing to liberate the fourth stage beyond its limits‚ the weight of the pure white shrine maiden’s garments entrusted by Mina—none of that mattered to me now.
I simply looked only forward. Far. At the end of the absolute darkness. A faint light was visible‚ alone. That alone seemed the only thing “alive” within this dead disposal system.
“……Elina”
I voiced it. There was no reply. Even so‚ I ran. The light drew closer. The darkness gradually thinned. Eventually a single path appeared before my eyes. Beyond it was a lush green hill.
Atop the hill. Stretching toward the sky‚ a single massive magical circle floated. Emitting pale silvery-white light. Quietly. Coldly. Waiting for the sacrifice to arrive.
“……There it is”
I kicked the ground with the last of my strength. It was then.
“……Is someone there?”
A voice came. My feet stopped. It felt as if the time flowing through the world itself had completely frozen for an instant.
I slowly raised my face.
On the mid-slope of the hill. There stood a single girl.
Long white hair drained of color. An extremely slender body. And. A far too defenseless form wearing not even a single scrap of cloth. The pure white wedding dress that should have covered her body in the hallucination had vanished without a trace. As if saying that in this divine domain‚ clothing humans wear—that is‚ “dignity as a human”—was no longer necessary.
The girl was looking this way. Yet. In those eyes there was nothing. No light. No surprise. No wariness. No joy. Simply a gentle‚ perfect “emptiness” spreading.
“…………”
From my throat leaked a voiceless breath.
“……Elina”
In a dry voice‚ I called the name. The girl’s brows moved just a little.
“……?”
With only that terribly thin reaction. An unpleasant sound rang in the depths of my chest.
“Elina!”
I dashed. Toward her. This time for sure. This time my hand would reach. I thought that. Yet.
One step. Two steps. Three steps. No matter how much I ran‚ the distance to Elina did not shrink.
“……Eh?”
Strange. I was certainly running. Wind struck my cheeks‚ the scenery flowed backward. Yet Elina’s back climbing the hill maintained exactly the same distance as she moved away. The phase itself was decisively shifted.
“Wait for me!”
I shouted.
“Elina!”
She slowly tilted her head and turned this way.
“……Who?”
That pure single word. Sliced the heart in my chest cleanly in two with a sharp blade.
“…………”
What had been said. For an instant‚ calculation could not catch up.
“……It’s me”
My voice trembled.
“It’s Rui”
“Rui……?”
The girl murmured the name as if rolling it curiously on her tongue. Yet no emotion was attached to it. Neither nostalgia‚ nor happiness‚ nor sadness. Nothing.
“……I’m sorry”
Elina smiled just a little apologetically.
“I…… don’t know you”
In my head. A sound of something collapsing with a clatter rang.
“……That’s”
I murmured. “That can’t be”
One step. Another step. “Elina. We……”
The words would not continue. What should I say. What memories should I convey. If she had forgotten me‚ how should I prove what I had been to her.
The words we exchanged. The bitterness and sweetness of the lemon sweets. Laughing. Crying. My promise to protect her. All of that. To the current Elina‚ did not exist. It was only a self-serving record that I alone remembered.
“……Elina”
I called the name once more. Elina smiled very gently.
“You’re…… celebrating for me too‚ aren’t you”
“…………Eh?”
“Thank you”
That voice was far too weak. A voice like broken glasswork that seemed ready to shatter just from being blown by the wind.
“Everyone is celebrating for me”
Elina looked up at the massive magical circle atop the hill.
“It’s very beautiful‚ isn’t it?”
I could answer nothing.
“There are lots of flowers too”
I could not see them. Yet in her recognition‚ mountains of colorful bouquets were piled in those slender arms.
“Everyone…… is happy that I will become happy”
Elina smiled. Even though she was smiling. Nothing was reflected in those eyes.
“So…… I have to go”
“—Don’t go”
My voice dropped low as if crawling on the ground. Elina looked at me curiously.
“Why?”
“If you go there……”
The words stuck. “You’ll die.” I should say that. But I could not. To the current Elina‚ even the concept of death was no longer fear.
“……If you go there‚ you’ll never be able to come back”
Finally‚ I said only that. Elina looked up at the sky a little as if thinking.
“Is that so?” “Yeah” “……I see”
That was all. She did not fear. Did not flinch. Did not cry. Simply accepted it gently. That complete emptiness was more terrifying to me than anything.
“Elina!”
I ran again. This time for sure‚ this time I would reach out my hand. Yet it did not reach. No matter how much I shouted‚ no matter how much I struggled‚ Elina was in a place my hand could not reach.
“Wait for me!”
My voice grew hoarse.
“I’ll go! I’ll handle everything!”
“…………”
“So!”
I shouted as if scraping my soul bare.
“—It doesn’t have to be you!!”
Elina’s feet. Stopped just a little. And. Slowly‚ she turned this way.
“……It doesn’t have to be me?”
“Yeah!”
I shouted. “There’s nowhere that says you have to shoulder everything!”
At that moment. Elina’s expression‚ which should have been empty‚ wavered just slightly. As if desperately trying to remember something. The brows that should have been lost furrowed faintly.
“……You”
A small voice.
“……Somewhere……”
“That’s right!”
I gulped. “It’s me! I am—”
The words would not continue. In Elina’s eyes. For an instant‚ something resided. Light. Or perhaps the residual memory stuck to the depths of the soul. I desperately stretched out my hand.
“Elina!”
It was that moment.
Plop.
One. A transparent droplet. Traced Elina’s white cheek and fell.
“…………”
Elina herself was the most surprised.
“……Huh?”
She touched her own cheek. Gazed curiously at the transparent droplet on her fingertip.
“……Why?”
She did not understand. Why tears came. Whether sad. Whether frightening. Whether lonely. Whether happy. She understood nothing.
“I……”
Elina placed a hand on the depths of her chest.
“Why…… am I crying?”
My chest seemed about to tear with a sound.
“……Elina”
I called that name once more. Yet Elina did not answer. Simply‚ only tears. One‚ another. Traced her white cheeks. That form was far too quiet. As if only her empty body‚ in place of the lost memories‚ still dearly remembered me.
“……Stop”
I murmured. “Don’t make that face”
Elina smiled troubledly.
“I’m sorry” “Don’t apologize” “But……” “There’s no need to apologize” “……Yeah”
Elina slowly faced forward. And began walking again.
“Wait!”
I ran too. “Elina!”
Yet the distance did not shrink. As if this mad world itself was creating a massive rupture between me and Elina.
“Stop……!”
I shouted. “Don’t go!”
Even so‚ Elina walked. Toward the shining magical circle ahead. Toward the darkness called death ahead.
When I tried to pursue.
Softly. Before my eyes‚ countless particles of light descended.
‘—Stop’
It was the spirits. The system defense mechanisms clad in pale light stood in my way.
“Move” “We will not” “Don’t interfere” “She is to be blessed”
I clenched my back teeth until blood seeped.
“Blessed?”
“Yes. She has been chosen. She is the bride who saves the world. Everyone wishes for her happiness”
The moment I heard those inorganic words. Inside me. The final thread of reason I had tied snapped with a plink.
“……Happiness?”
I muttered low as if resonating from the bottom of hell.
“Where in this is happiness”
“She is smiling”
“Smiling?”
I looked at Elina’s back moving away. White hair. Slender body. Eyes from which light had vanished. And tears continuing to flow without knowing the reason.
“……Does that look like a smile to you?”
The spirits did not answer.
“She doesn’t even know who she is”
One step. Forward.
“What she has lost” Another step. “What she is walking for” Yet another step. “She understands nothing”
I clenched my trembling fist to the limit.
“And yet you people—”
My voice grew cold to a degree that frightened even me.
“Call that ‘happiness’?”
“…………”
The lights of the spirits swayed faintly.
“Please do not take her happiness”
“……What?”
“She has been chosen by the god. Therefore‚ please bless her”
Those words. Completely painted over my soul with pitch-black anger.
“—Disappear”
It was absolute rejection. My analytical eye took on pitch-black light that rewrites everything.
“Your creepy blessings—”
I glared at the spirits‚ and then gazed at the small back beyond them.
“She doesn’t need even a single millimeter of them”
The spirits all at once increased their hostile radiance. As if this world itself had begun moving to eliminate the foreign object that was me. Yet I did not retreat even a step. Rather‚ toward Elina‚ I took an even more powerful step.
“Wait for me”
Without intending anyone to hear. Simply toward that small back‚ I murmured as if swearing.
“Absolutely. This time for sure—”
I clenched my fist.
“I will bring you back”
At that moment. In the distance‚ a heavy sound as if some gears meshed rang. Not yet a bell. Yet. Certainly‚ somewhere in the world‚ the sound that had begun carving the final settlement’s time limit.
Elina did not turn even at that sound. Simply‚ toward the hill of the shining magical circle. Continued walking quietly. Wetting her white cheeks with “soul tears” whose reason she herself did not know.
—And. Ahead of that‚ the farthest place from which there was no longer any return was waiting with its mouth wide open.
The sky. Was endlessly blue.
Not a single cloud. As if saying that nowhere in this world did sorrow exist. A soft wind gently stroked the cheeks. Grasses and flowers swayed quietly‚ and from afar bird song could be heard. The clear murmur of a river that seemed to be flowing somewhere nearby. The pleasant sound of leaves touching.
The air was clear. Endlessly transparent. Endlessly beautiful.
“……Beautiful”
Elina murmured softly. Even though it was her own voice‚ it felt as if it were coming from somewhere far away.
At her feet spread a flower field in all directions. White. Blue. Yellow. Pale peach. Even flowers whose names she did not know blooming in every color. Through the center stretched a single path.
Toward the green hill. And at the summit of that hill. A massive magical circle floated. A massive ring emitting silvery-white light. At its center was a single pillar of light stretching toward the sky.
Elina gazed fixedly at that light.
“……I just need to go there‚ don’t I”
Without asking anyone‚ she murmured so. There was no reply. Yet somehow she understood. She just needed to go there. That was her “place to return to.”
In her slender arms‚ at some point‚ many bouquets had been cradled. Colorful flowers so numerous both arms could not hold them all. All of them were very beautiful.
Cradling the bouquet‚ Elina walked. One step. Another step. Stepping on soft grass‚ climbing the hill.
It was strange. Nothing was frightening. Her former self would probably have frozen in fear just from this height. If the wind was strong. If the footing crumbled. If going to a dark place. She would surely have been scared and cried.
Now‚ she felt nothing. The sensation of “fear” she no longer knew where it was. The sensation of loneliness. Of happiness. Of sadness. Little by little‚ little by little‚ they had cleanly disappeared from within her.
Even so. Just one thing. Something that absolutely would not disappear.
A voice. Someone’s voice.
Distant. Very distant. Yet for some reason a voice she absolutely could not forget.
‘—Wait for me’
Elina’s feet stopped just a little.
“…………”
Who was it. She did not know. She could not recall the face. Nor the name. Nor the form. Nor what they had talked about. Nothing. Yet only the resonance of that voice remained hotly in the hollow of her chest.
Elina gently placed a hand on her chest.
“……Who are you?”
There was no answer. Instead‚ countless small lights danced over the flower field.
‘Congratulations’ ‘Congratulations’ ‘You have been chosen’ ‘You will save the world’ ‘Bride loved by the god. Congratulations’
Small lights. Pale lights. Spirits appearing from among the flowers began dancing around Elina. Everyone was smiling. Everyone was blessing.
Elina‚ watching that scene‚ smiled softly.
“……Thank you”
She thought that was the correct answer. When blessed‚ say thank you. To people who are smiling‚ smile back. She thought that was correct as a bride.
Therefore‚ she continued walking. Toward the top of the hill. Toward the magical circle. Toward beyond that.
And. From afar‚ a small sound was heard.
—Flap‚ flap.
White birds. One. Two. Three. Taking flight toward the sky. Eventually‚ from beyond the flower field‚ countless white doves all rose at once. Filling the blue sky‚ countless white wings spread.
“……Beautiful”
Elina murmured once more. At that moment.
The world completely stopped for an instant.
The flapping of the birds stopped. The wind stopped. The river murmur stopped. The voices of the spirits also vanished.
And.
——Gooooooooong……!
The bell rang. Deeper. Heavier than any bell heard until now. An absolute sound as if resonating from the bottom of the world.
Elina slowly looked up at the sky. The fifth bell. The final bell. That sound shook the world itself like a proclamation.
And a voice came. She did not know from where it was heard. From the sky‚ or from the earth. Or from within her own head. Yet only the meaning of that voice she clearly understood.
‘—Fulfill the contract’
Elina quietly closed her eyes. And. Smiled.
“Yes”
That was all. No hesitation. No fear. Simply returning the decided words as decided.
“I will……”
Elina began walking toward the magical circle at the summit of the hill.
“Fulfill the contract”
It was that moment.
“—Don’t go!!”
From afar. A voice came. Elina’s feet stopped.
“…………”
It was familiar. Very. Very precious. Yet a voice she absolutely could not recall.
“Elina!”
Once more. A voice as if spitting blood resounded.
“Get away from there!!”
Elina slowly turned around.
At the bottom of the hill. Far. Beyond the flower field. There stood a single boy.
Oversized white shrine maiden’s garments. A body covered in mud. A face wet with blood. Breathing hard. Even so‚ desperately stretching a hand this way.
“……You”
Elina gazed curiously at that boy. The depths of her chest. Ached just a little with a prick.
The boy shouted.
“Elina! There’s no need for you to go there!”
To those words‚ Elina tilted her head slightly.
“……Why?”
“Why‚ you say……!”
The boy was desperately trying to run. Yet as if blocked by an invisible wall. No matter how much he ran‚ the distance between the two did not shrink even a step.
“There’s no need for you to pay! I’ll pay! So—!”
Elina stared fixedly at him. No matter how many times she looked at that face‚ the memories did not return. Neither the name. Nor the relationship. Nothing. Yet only the depths of her chest‚ why did it hurt so much.
Elina gently placed a hand on her own cheek. Tears were flowing.
“……Huh?”
One. Two. They would not stop.
“I……”
Why was she crying. Was she sad. Was she frightened. Or was she happy. She did not know. She understood nothing. Yet only the tears absolutely would not stop.
“I’m sorry”
Elina. Toward the boy‚ smiled very gently.
“You’re…… worrying about me‚ aren’t you”
“Then!”
The boy shouted. “Then come over here!”
Elina shook her head small.
“I’m sorry”
“……Elina!”
“You……”
She stopped those words once. As if searching for something. For something precious she had dropped long ago into the hollow of her chest.
“……Live”
The boy’s face twisted fiercely.
“What are you saying……” “You‚ live” “Don’t say it like that!”
It was an immediate answer.
“Not just me…… We’ll live together!”
Elina made a slightly surprised face. And. Smiled softly again.
“……That’s nice”
That smile. Was hopelessly sad.
“But”
One step. Toward the magical circle.
“This is my fate……” “Wait!”
Another step.
“Elina!” “I’m sorry” “Don’t go!!” “I’m sorry……‚ Rui”
—The moment she uttered that name. Elina herself opened her eyes just a little.
“……Rui?”
Why. Had that name come out. She did not know. Yet. The moment she called that name.
The depths of her chest hurt unbearably. Nostalgic. Sad. Warm. Lonely. Dear. All those emotions that should have been lost. For an instant‚ ran through her empty chest like a fierce storm.
“……Rui”
Once more. This time as if confirming to herself.
“Goodbye”
“—Elinaaaaa!!”
The boy’s scream pierced the blue sky. Elina turned around one last time. In those eyes‚ no light remained at all. Even so‚ beautiful tears were flowing on her cheeks.
“Goodbye…… Rui”
And. Elina took one step beyond the magical circle.
What lay beyond was not light. Deep. Deep. Endless darkness.
Beyond that. Elina’s pure body quietly fell and vanished.
“—Elina!!”
Rui stretched out his hand. Yet it did not reach.
White petals danced in the wind. One. Another. And finally. Only the bouquet Elina had carefully cradled remained there.
A large quantity of flowers slowly collapsed onto the top of the hill. White flowers. Blue flowers. Red flowers. Tiny yellow flowers. The phantom flowers that should have been prepared for blessing. Like lonely funeral flowers‚ quietly scattered to the ground.
“…………”
Rui stood rooted to the spot. The stretched hand still grasping at empty air. At the fingertips‚ nothing.
Only. In the distance. Only the cold residual sound of the fifth bell. Endlessly. Endlessly. Resonating to the ends of the world.
‘—Fulfill the contract’
Only those words of the god. Remained cruelly vivid in the boy’s ears.
Chapter 13: "The Last Bride" End
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