Chapter 77 - Parting Ways (3)

"..."

The Dark Mage didn't bother with further explanation. She responded to me by silently advancing her ghouls.

The pack of ghouls and Wraiths slowly advanced, tightening their encirclement.

Though I alone faced numbers close to an army, I didn't step back.

Instead, I moved forward.

As I approached the Dark Mage, the ghouls charged forward with momentum. Thanks to the Griffin Potion, they had thick muscles and black blood vessels grotesquely stood out on their skin.

They pounced on me at terrifying speed in the blink of an eye, but I slashed through about fifteen ghouls in five or six sword strokes, then immediately swung my sword through the air, sending a sword wave at the Dark Mage.

She watched calmly without any sign of dodging.

The front line of ghouls built a wall with their bodies to block the sword wave. With a thunderous sound, bones and flesh exploded skyward.

Through the rain of ghoul flesh, I could see the Dark Mage standing undisturbed. But only briefly, as the swarm of ghouls rushing like bees soon blocked her from my view.

***

The brass band played a majestic piece.

Following the flowery introduction, the award ceremony began, presenting plaques and rings to the students with the highest grades.

Then, the announcer on stage called out the names of each department's representatives.

Iris, Cecil, Lilith, and Rupert—the representatives of each department made their grand entrances walking on the sparkling golden carpet.

The audience's applause continued endlessly.

Sion, who hadn't been called until then, watched the crowd from the back.

Sincere congratulations and admiration. On the other hand, there were envious and jealous glances at talents they didn't possess. For the students climbing the stage, even that would become material for self-intoxication.

Then, Sion's name was called with the embarrassing modifier of "greatest talent“.

The crowd slowly stood and watched the carpet leading to the stage. Sion slowly rose from her seat and stepped forward. A long shower of applause followed her.

Perhaps due to the heavy label of being a Sword Master's disciple, the crowd's frivolous cheering disappeared.

As if at a coronation ceremony, the crowd expressed sincere admiration and respect for the continent's greatest talent, making it weightier than for those before.

On stage, Sion felt confused.

She clearly remembered. The greatest talent wasn't her, and this place belonged to someone else. This applause should have been given to that man.

Where is he? Why has he turned his back on everything and disappeared?

These questions continued to torment her.

***

A hill was forming from corpses and flesh. I climbed up over the ghouls piled at my feet. No matter how many I cut down, the ghouls kept rushing in endlessly.

I stumbled with a groan. Something had deeply pierced my thigh. A ghoul I thought had died when cut in half had attacked me with just its upper body.

I left the spine spike piercing my thigh and beheaded that ghoul.

"Haah, haah, haah."

Wounds were accumulating on my body. My clothes were completely soaked as if dipped in blood and torn in places, and blood streamed from countless large and small wounds covering my entire body.

The Wraiths hadn't even joined in yet. They watched from the air like vultures waiting for their chance.

***

The department representatives who recorded the highest grades received their rings and plaques and descended from the stage.

And Sion remained on stage to mark the finale. As previously instructed, someone came up and handed her a scroll.

It was a passage from the scripture that the founding principal had read to the first class of about ten students when establishing Eternia.

The reading ceremony continued as a custom until becoming Eternia's tradition over hundreds of years.

And today, the overall top student who climbed the stage would deliver the scripture's verses to the admitted students in place of an entrance oath.

After unrolling the scroll and scanning the prayer with her eyes, Sion held her breath for a moment.

Unlike today, when the founding principal read these verses, the world was covered in evil. The audience living in a different era wouldn't relate to this message.

How many would truly understand and accept the meaning of these verses? To them, it would just be boring doctrine.

The ceremony hall was silent without even a cough. Everyone was waiting for her reading.

Sion briefly looked around at the silent audience before finally parting her lips, "If you truly seek God's will, do not be intoxicated by fame and honor. It will only blind your eyes. Do not chase gold and treasures. They will only corrupt your soul and weigh down your body."

Iris went straight to where her family was waiting after descending from the stage. Her waiting family, since the entrance ceremony wasn't over yet, quietly embraced her without making a fuss.

Then, a man approached them and bowed to Iris. The man in imperial dress extended an invitation stamped with the imperial seal. Seeing this, Iris covered her mouth with both hands, surprised by the unexpected luxury.

"Do not seek God's will in scripture and law. Just as starlight cannot be captured on parchment, God's will is not contained in letters. If you truly seek God's will, walk your own path."

***

The radiance from my sword grew increasingly dim. Though my body was in tatters to the point where no ordinary human could possibly stand, I held firm and fought on.

I was still fighting even long past the time I could maintain the sword.

Though the number of ghouls gradually decreased, I had to face dozens of Wraiths as my limit approached.

As the sword's radiance grew fainter, the Wraiths drew increasingly closer.

And the Dark Mage, who had been hiding in the fog all this time, revealed herself and climbed the hill of corpses.

"Though thy flesh be thrown into bone-breaking pain, and though fate may take away thy loved ones, continue forward. Though no one recognizes thy karma, though the world mocks thee, continue forward."

The Wraiths floated through the air, provocatively touching me.

I shot a sword wave at a Wraith that came close, completely tearing it apart, but consciousness blurred from exerting the strength.

My sword slowly flickered and I staggered.

And another Wraith waiting for its chance suddenly attacked from behind.

The sound of flesh being pierced rang out.

My hand lost strength and I dropped the sword.

"Kuhak...!"

Something hot rose up my throat. I vomited a bowlful of blood and blood flowed like a waterfall through the gaps in my mask.

I lowered my gaze.

The Wraith's hand had pierced through my abdomen.

The Wraith lifted me into the air and I hung helplessly above the ground.

The Dark Mage who had climbed to the top of the corpse hill raised her head to look up at me.

Her robe's hood fell back, revealing her face.

Pale face, long flowing white hair. She reminded me of Trisha.

"Your souls will be reborn through trials, and God's will shall appear in the path you walk."

I hung suspended from the Wraith's fingers like someone about to be burned at the stake.

I had lost the will to resist and looked down at the Dark Mage, hanging limply as if waiting for death.

She spoke to me, "...You won't die. Come with me."

"..."

"Like your senior Kedwen and classmate Luna, you'll make a good sacrifice too."

The Dark Mage turned and walked away. And the Wraith followed, carrying me suspended.

And I glared at her while struggling to move my lips, "...I told... you."

She stopped walking and turned back to me.

"You'd... have to kill me."

Light burst forth from my hand again and the sword materialized in my grip once more.

I squeezed out my remaining strength to cut off the Wraith's hand and fell downward.

And as I fell, I drove my sword into the Dark Mage's chest. Pure white light pierced through her body before vanishing again.

Unable to control my body, I crashed directly into the Dark Mage. Our bodies tangled together as we rolled down the hill of corpses.

***

Though both Sion and Lilith had long noticed that they were looking for the same person as she was, they hadn't revealed his location. The reason was simple. They weren't blood family with Candy, nor longtime lovers, nor did they harbor deep affection. There was absolutely no reason to help.

Cecil sensed someone's gaze and stopped briefly to look back.

Though people were flowing out like waves for the celebration following the entrance ceremony, Lilith stood still against the flow.

Lilith watched Cecil from a few steps away.

Her eyes were like a frozen lake.

Though she showed no passion on the surface, there remained an unpleasant, unsettling feeling as if something dark was hidden in its depths.

Soon, Cecil shook off the gaze and moved forward.

Whatever Lilith felt wasn't Cecil's concern.

She didn't care if her attitude caused trouble. She believed Lilith would realize she was no match after a few confrontations and fall away on her own.

She would find another suitable man. That was how Lilith had always lived.

Cecil loved games. Her relationship with Candy was also a kind of game. And that man was the perfect partner to stimulate her curiosity and desires. She didn't want to give him to anyone else.

The hide-and-seek had just begun, and someone interfering would disrupt the tempo. One seeker was enough for this game.

***

"Haah, haah."

I stood up again. Her black robe lay scattered at my feet, but the Dark Mage's body had vanished without a trace.

The Wraiths were also gone.

The robe was soaked in blood, but I couldn't tell if it was mine or the Dark Mage's.

I couldn't tell if it was over or if enemies remained. I couldn't fight anymore.

Though I stood firmly on both legs, my body was broken to the point where being alive was close to a miracle.

Only a thread-thin strand of consciousness remained, barely holding on.

Everything felt dreamy and hazy.

I wondered if all this was a terrible nightmare and if I was just struggling in the world of unconsciousness.

I took out my compass. The front glass was completely soaked with blood.

I wiped the glass with my thumb, but new drops of blood covered it again, making it impossible to see the needle.

Eventually, I dropped the compass and looked up at the sky again. The thick fog made the path ahead unclear, and I couldn't look back to see which path I had walked.

And I walked forward, turning my back on the field of corpses.

As I continued on for a while, I suddenly thought how the labyrinth, where I couldn't see even a step ahead, was like my life.

The rational cry that without the compass I would only walk in circles trapped in the labyrinth had long since disappeared. Though I didn't know where I was heading, I was only led by the unconscious desire to leave this place.

That was the only thing I could do.

Memories of my childhood flashed hazily. A time of poverty and weakness, but happiness. And now scars that made it impossible to remember happily.

The nightmare gradually faded, and my vision grew darker as if falling into a deep sleep.

And at the end of that dream, only one person came to mind.

"Teacher..."

I missed her warmth. Memories of being with Silveryn, the person who had given me truly warm comfort, flashed by. Nothing would be better than being able to enjoy another picnic with her by Lake Wiesel.

I unconsciously reached into my chest and took out a Stitch. When I raised it into the air, the Stitch spread its wings and flew up.

"Ah..."

And belatedly, I reached out trying to catch the Stitch. But it was long gone.

"No..."

Though Stitches couldn't leave because their guidance function didn't work in the labyrinth, I had forgotten even that fact as I flailed my hand.

"No... Teacher will... Teacher will..."

My body gradually stiffened.

"Shouldn't... know..."

I lost consciousness and collapsed to the ground.

And remnants of the ghoul pack and dark shadows, drawn by the smell of blood, followed behind me, hiding in the fog.

***

The labyrinth's fog slowly cleared around me.

The air suddenly turned cold enough to freeze, and the fog condensed into white snow covering the labyrinth.

The feet of the ghouls prowling around seeking my flesh froze white with cracking sounds. Though the ghouls instinctively shook their bodies violently, their legs stuck to the ground wouldn't budge at all.

The white frost climbed up their legs and bodies until finally freezing everything.

And from the opposite side, a silver-haired girl walked out. She, too, seemed to have fought a fierce battle, her white clothes stained with blood.

When she gestured, cracks formed in the frozen ghouls and they completely dissolved into ice powder that was swept away by the wind.

And the dark shadows hiding beyond the fog disappeared as if fleeing when they saw the girl.

The girl approached him, leaving everything else behind.

And when she saw Damian collapsed in the middle of the labyrinth, her heart ached as if pierced by thorns.

Her arms trembled and passion welled up as if her stomach was on fire.

It had been a long wait.

The girl sat beside Damian, turned his body upright, and caressed his cheek. Looking down at him with unfocused eyes, she said, "...Hello."

Though it was the reunion she had longed for so desperately, Damian didn't embrace her as always, nor whisper sweet love.

Instead, he was dying in front of Lisa. Just as she had seen in the prophecy long ago.

This was the curse placed upon Lisa.