Chapter 447

The breeze off the lake was refreshing. The water and sky were blue, and the ground and trees were green.
He slowly looked around and stretched.
Yeah. This is the scenery, fuck.
After three days of being stuck in the colorless Bald World and General Headquarters, it was refreshing to get out.
“Me good.”
Thousands of worshippers lined the water’s edge in rows and columns. They were the followers of Nebula Clazier, who had chosen between judgment and death.
In retrospect, Thierry played a huge role. To save so many lives at the cost of her own. I think she should be awarded a martyr’s medal.
I asked, looking back at Letancier.
“Flying Squirrel, is that all you got?”
“Now, wait a minute!”
She was in the air, counting the heads of the congregation. Aside from being terrified, she was very efficient. After less than five minutes, the head count was complete, and Le Tansier nodded.
“Yeah. That’s all I have, so why did you call me a flying squirrel—”
“Never mind. If I go back in and there’s one of them left, I can kill you, right?”
“Well, such harsh treatment—but it’s all over, I’m sure of it!”
Letancier appealed. I started to count the congregation, but stopped myself. The flying squirrels I remembered scared me as much as this, and I wasn’t stupid enough to try to scheme.
I stared at the surface and tugged on the hilt.
“Okay. Close it then.”
“What? What do you mean, close it?”
It was a moment that made Letancier wince. A meteor-like shot streaked across the lake. The surface ripped left and right, revealing a bottom of white mud. A wall of spray blotted out the sky.
“Hicc—!”
Letancier sucked in a breath. Rippling water shadows cast themselves across the lakeshore. Even the worshippers who had been trembling in fear of judgment had forgotten their fears for a moment and were now vomiting up pure astonishment.
“No way!”
“——Good thing I didn’t resist.”
The spatial magic etched into the surface of the water was disintegrating into mana and scattering.
Seeing all the amazing garbage reminded me of the past.
“Oh, what a memory. It was so exciting back then.”
I was a student at Pileon Academy. Ms. Nabiroze had cut the lake at Pileon Academy in half to teach me the importance of equipment. It was a shock that I will probably never forget.
“I’m sure you’re doing fine here.
Barca’s difficulties hadn’t even begun yet, so he’d be at the Pileon Academy, teaching students by day and sleeping in snake-print pajamas at night.
The faces of the people I hadn’t met in this parallel world, besides my sister, flashed through my mind.
“As if nothing had happened—.”
I’d be lying if I said I didn’t want to see it, but you can’t do whatever you want.
What we need to do now is to defeat Akasha as quickly as possible. Nothing personal, just giving her the peace she deserves. With Nebula Clagier and the Bald Club destroyed, we’re halfway there.
Abel burst out laughing.
“You’re speechless. Freak.”
The uncle who had lost his dreams had completely lost his enmity.
I almost felt sorry for myself as I watched my performance with the innocence of a spectator at a sporting event.
The split lake rejoined. The shadow disappeared as the barrier of water collapsed.
The roaring waters, like a dragon about to leap out, soon calmed down. The disenchanted lake would slowly return to its original state. The water plants would grow, the fish would return.
Anyway, the errand is done.
“Let’s go, then. Blow the whistle.”
“Uhh…okay.”
Letancier whined, and a red flash shot up into the sky as she threw up her arms. It was the official distress signal of the Empire.
‘Kratyr or Inspector Lorhon will do, I can’t take on all of them.’
Now there will be Imperial troops or forest rescuers patrolling the neighborhood. They’d be horrified once at the sight of all the white bastards scurrying around like hornet’s eggs, and twice when they realized who they were, and then they’d piss themselves and pound the pavement to get the word out.
Eventually, the continent’s best and brightest would come for emergency convoys. Like the aforementioned elderly duo, or the swordsman Zhaifa.
It was my job to see them through to the end.
I can get you that far, cancer.
After about three minutes in the air, the beacon disappeared.
I could hear the congregation talking in gloomy voices.
“…the death penalty, right?”
“Don’t give up hope. You haven’t done anything bad.”
“Hunt. Usually arson is a felony, especially if more than five people die.”
“Aha. I guess I shouldn’t be too worried then. You’ve only killed three people, so I was kind of relaxing.”
Most of it was nauseating, and I had the occasional regret that I should have just killed them, but I couldn’t take back what I’d already spit out.
Yeah, maybe there’s one guy in a hundred who’s less guilty, maybe he’s new and the only thing he’s ever done is shoplift from a fruit stand.
I was celebrating the time with positive thoughts.
Archbishop Alicia, comforting the chirping baby birds, spoke up.
“Hey. What’s that?”
“Huh?”
She wasn’t talking to me, but I turned my head out of habit. Her index finger was pointing at the calm lake. Near the center, about a meter from the surface, a black sphere floated.
“….. Is it magic?”
“Marbles?”
The congregation’s attention was drawn. It was clearly something that hadn’t been there just moments before. The sphere was about a meter in diameter. Its black color, as deep as space, was mysterious and yet somehow eerie.
“……!”
And I felt a heart-stopping terror.
I’d seen something like that in a past parallel world. In the palm-fringed south. In the midst of a fierce battle with Akasha.
A million thoughts raced through my head at once, but I knew what I had to do. I launched myself toward Alicia. Then I hurled the six baby birds, the only innocent ones, into the distance and screamed.
“Shit, everybody scatter!”
“Kaaaaaahhhh! Help!”
“Wait, what is this…”
Alicia’s face contorted. The women flying over the wooden ceiling really did look like birds. She was about to scream with rage.
Kaaaaaah!
The sphere over the lake exploded, and darkness swept over the area. It took less than a second for the light to dissipate from my vision. The ground gave out beneath her feet. Alicia sucked in a breath as the sensation of falling hit her.
“Huh.”
“Damn, did they set a trap again.”
I cursed under my breath. I couldn’t see the sky or the lake. Even the lush green of the forest had been painted over with darkness. Alien mana was everywhere. It was Akasha’s mana, unlike anything else in the world. After hovering in the air for a moment, his body began to fall.
I cursed to myself.
“…the abyss.”
It was the Abyss, a world created by the Aurors of Akasha. The bottomless darkness was expanding at a rapid pace, engulfing the entire region.
Suddenly, a pitiful scream erupted from beneath my feet.
“Off!!”
“Help, man!”
“Ouch!”
I lowered my gaze. Thousands of breadcrumbs were screaming and falling. They were the falling followers of Nebula Clazier, disappearing into the immeasurably deep darkness at a speed far greater than mine.
“Giggle, giggle, giggle!”
“My Lord…!”
Letancier and Kailashis were also seen.
However, they were falling at a slower rate than the devotees. With their colorful robes flapping and spinning, they really did remind me of flying squirrels.
Abel’s voice came from not far away.
“….. is going through a lot.”
He was falling the slowest of anyone except me. My guess is that the stronger you are, the slower you fall. I had no idea there was such a gimmick.
He smirked as he drew his sword.
“Were you looking at me too?”
I could see why this was happening. It was a trap. A trap Akasha had set.
Given the lack of any sign of him nearby, I’m guessing he anticipated my movements and laid the lake into the abyss. Perhaps the trigger was to destroy the portal.
Honestly, I was screwed. It was as hopeless as it gets.
“You think you’re going to get screwed twice?”
But he couldn’t keep sucking his fingers. I gripped the hilt, and the blade turned red. I swung it toward the widening wall of darkness.
Kaaaaaah!
A red path of sword energy struck the darkness. A ferocious metallic sound erupted. The abyss seemed to shake slightly as I grew stronger.
I’m sure it’s a mood thing, but damn.
Now I couldn’t even hear the screams of the others.
Undeterred, he was about to land his second sword strike.
“…Huh?”
I felt something and raised my eyebrows. The abyss was indeed shaking.
Wondering what was going on, I swung my sword once more. The condensed sword energy drew a red line. At the same time, a pure white crack appeared in the middle of the distant darkness.
“That’s…!”
It was a sign of outside intervention: a sword that had been traveling straight ahead had landed on a crack.
There was a dull crack, unlike any other. The outer walls of the abyss collapsed like shattering glass.
The darkness scattered, revealing a panoramic view of the lake.
“Whew!”
I waded right in. The shallow lake water soaked my ass. Akasha’s Aurors were dispersing into the distance like smoke. Overhead, the sky was blindingly blue.
“Kiyaak!”
“Yuck!”
“Ugh…”
Soon others showed up. Abel and the archbishops, who were slowly falling. But apart from them, no one else reappeared.
I narrowed my eyes, puzzled.
“Where did they all go?”
Something wasn’t right. When I looked again, the number of people left was ridiculously small. It was just me, Abel, and the archbishops, staring at each other, dumbfounded.
Just then, a sound like firecrackers going off rang out overhead.
Pour-a-billion-!
“Huh?”
Judging by the loudness of the sound, it was far away. I looked up, expecting to see a dragon shredding feces. A new scream burst from Letancier’s mouth.
“Yikes! W-What is that?!”
“Why are you yelling and making a scene…”
I was speechless. It didn’t take me long to realize that it was a collection of falling liquids at high speed. The smell of blood washed over me.
“Ouch!”
Letancier hurried to summon the stationmaster, but he was a step too late. A torrential downpour of red rain blotted out his vision.
Shoot!
The sound of ten thousand arrows falling simultaneously spread out in all directions.
“Eek!”
Raise your arms to cover your face.
Unrecognizable chunks of mashed meat were scattering like hail in the bloodstorm. In the midst of the blood and meat, there was a white patch of cloth. The faces of the survivors, including mine, hardened. This was the moment when it became clear where all those believers had gone.
“If it keeps falling…this is what happens.”
The lake was stained black. It was the blood of the thousands who had fallen first. Goosebumps ran down my spine. If he didn’t find a way to break through, he would end up like this. The Abyss wasn’t just a technique for holding an opponent down.
“Wait.
Suddenly, a big question crossed my mind.
Who made the rift that helped us escape the Abyss?
At first I thought the rescuers had come to help me, but there was still no sign of anyone else. I was dazed, like someone possessed by a ghost.
An eerily familiar voice rang out.
“There. A handsome young man.”
“——!”
I turned my head reflexively. A man I hadn’t seen before came into view, a face that was both familiar and unfamiliar. He was holding a sword in one hand, and the way he gripped the hilt was very similar to mine.
His eyebrows shot up as if someone had tugged at them.
I giggled as I watched her white hair flutter in the wind.
“What the heck, I thought someone else was helping.”
“This voice can’t be—?”
I sat down on the water’s edge and waved. Abel’s breathing on the ground was getting faster and faster. The man stood in front of me, huffing and puffing.
“How did you know to come here?”
“Are you okay, Ronan?”
Instead of answering, he held out his hand. His skin had been canned for years, and it was bleached to a near-vampiric color. I tried to joke that he’d have to walk around naked for a while, but my voice didn’t come out right. I forced my eyes to close and open and grabbed the man’s hand.
“—It’s been a while.”
Then I was lifted to my feet. The grip that pulled me up was as strong as a wild horse’s.
The man’s eyes were a deep scarlet. They were the color of the sunset, more like mine and my sister’s than Abel’s.
I turned to face Cain and opened my mouth.
“Father.”
“Good to see you, son. A lake of blood for a reunion after decades. Very nice.”