Chapter 60: Crisis of life and death (3)

The first step to solving a problem is to identify its cause.

Sion first used a silent/immobile spell to telepathically contact Exia. Then, she asked what the reason for this situation was.

-“What on earth is going on? You’re making more fuss than usual.”

-“Therese said she saw you kill Beryl!!”

What the hell.

With just that one sentence, Sion could understand the whole situation.

Why the two had come to find her again, and why Therese had unnaturally tried to lure her outside.

It seemed they had pressured Exia, who couldn’t lie, to extract the truth while she was away.

Normally, she would have seen through such a ploy during their conversation, but this time, she had unfortunately been swept up in Marianne’s madness…

“Ah, Hero! You’re here just in time!”

Therese turned her blazing eyes toward Sion.

“I have something really, really important I want to ask, yesterday in the cave—”

“Hold on a moment.”

Sion interrupted her and stepped forward.

“I’m not sure what you want to say, but since class is about to start, how about we continue this conversation during the next break? The teacher should be back soon.”

“Wha…?!”

Only then did the two sisters look up at the clock on the wall.

Though their topics were different, both had been too absorbed in their conversation.

Thanks to that, there were less than 30 seconds left before the bell rang.

The students who had already returned to their seats were looking curiously at the two strangers.

Therese grabbed her sister’s hand and shouted.

“S-Sorry…! We’ll see you later!!”

“I-I’m really sorry…!!”

The twins disappeared like the wind, running away in haste.

As she watched their retreating figures, Sion let out a sigh of relief.

‘Alright, I’ve bought some time for now.’

Now comes the important part.

In the remaining hour, she had to come up with a story convincing enough to completely dispel Therese’s suspicions.

Sion slowly began to weave a grand narrative in her mind that would encompass the entire situation.

A little while later…

“Alright, I assume you’ve already heard the details from Exia?”

“….”

Sion and the twins were standing in an empty corner behind the classroom, facing each other.

Therese crossed her arms and spoke.

“I really don’t want to be this shameless… After all, you’re the one who saved our lives.

But as you know, this matter is too serious to just let it slide, so I have to hear an explanation.”

“I understand.”

Sion nodded calmly.

Well, anyone would be concerned if they heard that a hero had secretly killed a civilian.

She looked at the two and quietly began to speak.

“First, about what Miss Therese saw…”

Gulp.

The sound of the twins swallowing nervously was audible.

“Basically, you’re not wrong. It is true that I took Miss Beryl’s life.”

-“!?!?!”

Exia, standing next to them, was utterly shocked.

-“W-Wait a minute!! I swore on the honor of the Holy Sword that you didn’t kill Beryl! But if you say it like that, what does that make my words—”

“But.”

Sion cut off Exia’s interruption and said,

“What you said, ‘Sion didn’t kill Beryl,’ isn’t wrong either.”

“…?”

Therese tilted her head in confusion.

“What do you mean by that? How can someone be killed but not killed? Is such a contradictory situation even possible?”

“This time, yes.”

As she spoke, Sion raised her index finger, a habit she had when explaining something.

“Have you ever heard of the Spectre, a type of demon?”

The Spectre. A type of demon from the Demon Realm, a formless entity that took the shape of mist.

At first glance, it seemed like a tricky opponent to deal with, but surprisingly, when it was out in the open, it wasn’t too difficult to defeat.

Although physical attacks didn’t work while it was in mist form, magic attacks could still harm it.

And since it had weak defenses, one well-placed Fireball could easily burn it to ashes.

However, this was only true in its basic state.

“Spectre…”

“Yes.”

“The kind that can possess other people’s bodies, right?”

Sion nodded.

The most troublesome trait of a Spectre was that it could slip into someone’s body and take control of it in an instant.

In that state, the Spectre was practically invincible—unless the host body was killed or the Spectre left voluntarily, there was no way to extract it.

Even worse, there was no time limit.

Once it possessed a body, it could live indefinitely, switching hosts as needed.

In fact, this possession ability was no joke.

As Commander Jill, who led the great invasion during Sien’s era was none other than a Spectre.

That particular one had lived for nearly a thousand years, switching bodies and displaying overwhelming mental domination.

Eventually, it was defeated by Lier, but not before causing severe damage to humanity by repeatedly sowing chaos through possession.

If the two in front of her were truly fans of the hero’s party stories, they would undoubtedly know about the Spectre.

“So, bringing that up now means…”

“Yes, that’s right.”

Sion confirmed Therese’s guess.

“The Abyssal Fiend you faced was, in fact, a Spectre that had been controlling his body for nearly 300 years.

And after Beryl and I worked together to defeat him, that’s when he finally revealed his true nature.”

“True nature… could it be…”

“Yes. While I was careless and looked away, the Spectre slipped into Beryl’s body and possessed her.”

Sion lowered her head slightly, a look of guilt on her face. (Though, of course, it was an act.)

“He, or rather she, attempted to kill me by attacking from behind with an infernal beam.

I sensed the attack just in time, but I assumed it was the legion commander faking his death and coming back to life.

I never imagined that Beryl was the one attacking me.

The beam collided with the Sacred Barrier I quickly deployed when I turned around, and then…

What I saw next was the beam reflecting and piercing through Beryl’s heart.”

Sion raised her trembling hand to her chest, clenching it tightly. (Naturally, another act.)

“That is the truth. When I said, ‘I killed but didn’t kill Beryl,’ that’s what I meant.

At that time, the body that belonged to Beryl was under the control of the Spectre’s spirit, so it’s true to say that I didn’t kill her.

However, regardless of the intent, it was my actions that ultimately destroyed her body.

Exia kindly said it that way to shield me.”

“…….”

When Sion finished explaining, Therese and Marianne silently exchanged glances.

After a moment, Marianne spoke first.

“I see… so the laser my sister saw was actually a reflected beam from the other side.

No wonder I was confused, wondering how you could cast a laser-like spell when divine magic doesn’t have those kinds of spells….”

“Yes… I’m sorry. I should have been more cautious.”

“Oh no, no! There’s no need to apologize to us!”

Marianne, startled, waved her hands frantically.

“By the way, if that’s the case, why did you feel the need to hide it from us? It seems like it’s something we would have understood if you had just been honest with us…”

“Ah, well…”

Sion fiddled with her fingers as she spoke.

“It wasn’t just that I felt ashamed of telling the truth… More than that, I was worried about Beryl’s honor.

I thought it would be more comforting for her memory if people believed she sacrificed herself to open a path for us, rather than being possessed and killed by an enemy.

So, I told that obvious lie. I’m truly sorry for causing you concern.”

“N-no, like I said, there’s no need to apologize…!”

Marianne’s face turned beet red with embarrassment. She glanced at her sister and asked,

“Anyway, how about it? Did that clear up your doubts?”

“Hm…”

Therese crossed her arms and thought for a moment.

That explanation did clear up all the questions.

Why it seemed like the Hero was firing a beam, why Exia was so adamant about denying Beryl’s death.

If it had been a deliberate act, that would be one thing, but if it was an accident, it made sense to be a little protective.

It all made sense, but…

‘Why does this still feel off?’

Something… something just didn’t feel right. There was a nagging sensation, like a fuzzy spot that hadn’t been resolved.

Noticing Therese’s expression, Sion calmly spoke.

“If you still find my words untrustworthy, you can have Exia vouch for me here.”

-“!?!”

What?! You’re putting this on me now?!

Exia gasped, shocked by suddenly being called upon. But Sion didn’t hesitate as she continued.

“The Beryl I defeated was, in fact, the Legion Commander in Beryl’s form. Isn’t that right?”

-“!?”

Ah, of course.

Put that way, there’s no outright lie in either explanation. Even if it’s you…!

Exia nodded vigorously in agreement.

-“Y-Yes! Of course! I can vouch for that! Just like the Hero said, what Therese saw back then wasn’t really Beryl~ Haha…”

Even though this was technically a half-truth, it still felt better than telling a complete lie.

At least this way, there was an escape route if they were ever called out on it.

And when Therese saw that even the Holy Sword confirmed it, she finally let go of the last bits of her doubt.

“Hmm…

Alright. If Exia says so, I’ll believe it.

I’m sorry for doubting you, Hero. It was shameless of me to demand an explanation after you saved us.”

“No, it’s fine. It was a reasonable suspicion to have.

I’m the one who should apologize for trying to hide my embarrassment.”

As they shook hands warmly, Therese and Sion exchanged apologies.

Watching from the side, Exia finally relaxed and sighed in relief.

Thank goodness. We managed to get through this one again.

“S-So, can we leave now?”

“Ah, yes… I’m sorry for calling you out when you’re so busy.”

Without a doubt, this day had been the most nerve-wracking moment in Exia’s entire life.

For someone who wasn’t good at lying, having to untangle suspicion with a lie was an unimaginable mission, suddenly thrust upon her after she’d barely woken up.

Even while Sion was explaining, Exia was filled with anxiety, worrying that something she had said might come back to haunt them.

Perhaps that’s why, the moment everything was resolved, Exia was more relieved than anyone else.

The tightly wound rope of tension snapped, and she felt herself relax all at once.

She relaxed so much, in fact, that she committed yet another fatal slip of the tongue.

-“Phew. For a moment, I was really worried about how this would turn out. But I’m glad everything’s wrapped up nicely.

Well then, let’s head back now, Sien.”

Freeze.

Exia’s “global broadcast” had been heard clearly.

The twins stopped dead in their tracks, their movements like that of broken dolls as they slowly turned their heads towards Exia.

‘Did… she just say Sien?’

‘You idiot, you absolute idiot!!!!’

Sion screamed curses inwardly, her rage reaching a breaking point.

It was the moment Sion’s murderous intent toward Exia finally broke past its limit.