Chapter 230 – Remaining Life (3)

In a world rapidly freezing over, I felt a chill press against the back of my neck.

[That bastard… I knew he’d play dirty.]

“…Tylant?”

[Tylant… yeah, that’s right. I’m Tylant now.]

What had only been a shard of ice clinging to my neck now tightened its hold, squeeze, and as it did, Tylant and I became connected, our souls linked within my consciousness.

“It’s been a while, hasn’t it.”

“Huh? Y-yeah…”

Round bear-like ears, a fluffy tail.

Taller than me by a handspan.

But with a much thinner build than mine.

Tylant looked exactly as she had in Sirin’s memories.

“Hey, Noah… why are you talking so formally to me?”

Tylant suddenly frowned and leaned her face in close to mine.

“Uwah…”

“Noah. Why are you using formal speech with me?”

“I-I mean…”

“Am I… making you uncomfortable?”

Her tiny, tightly bundled ears drooped sadly, ears I thought would never move.

“I’m… not uncomfortable…”

“Then drop the formality. Friends don’t talk like that to each other.”

“F-friends…?”

Crack,  The tips of my hair began to freeze rapidly.

I immediately nodded in agreement with Tylant’s words.

“O-okay…! Friend.”

Finally satisfied, Tylant backed off and let her face relax.

“But, Noah. What happened to your puppy ears and… tail?”

“My ears and t-tail?”

“Yeah. They looked good on you.”

“Th-that was…”

“They’re gone now…?”

In such a critical moment, what the heck was she even saying…? But then, I remembered her past.

“Well…”

I was still wrapped in Carpeng’s blood aura, and this was within my own consciousness, so… this much should be fine.

Rustle. 

“They’re here…”

“Haah…”

Tylant gasped as she looked at the ears and tail that suddenly appeared.

“Can I… touch them?”

“Uh… y-yeah… g-go ahead.”

I nodded, placing my wagging tail into Tylant’s hands.

Shiver.

Her whole body quivered as if jolted by electricity, and she began petting my tail as delicately as if it were a glass ornament that might shatter.

“Hmhmm… hmm…”

She sniffed it, rubbed it against her cheek, even wrapped it around her neck. A faint smile spread across her face as she fully savored it.

“A-anyway, Tylant, um…”

Where have you been all this time?

What was it you said you were preparing?

Is that all done now?

The Gate of the False Paradise is open, what about your soul?

A dozen questions raced through my mind.

As I tried to decide which one to ask first, Tylant gently reached out and began patting my head as she spoke.

“I’ve finished preparing. I don’t know how it’ll turn out, but… yeah. I think this should be enough. And Noah, you’ve done great. You really, really worked hard.”

“H-huh…?”

“But there’s still more to do. A lot more.”

“Eh…”

“It won’t be much longer now, so no crying.”

Pat, pat.

Tylant scolded me with a stern expression, but her hand never stopped petting my head.

After some time passed, 

Her hand withdrew.

Then, with her hands behind her back, she began to gently sway her body.

“Noah, you know… I’m a beastkin, but I can use magic.”

She brought one hand forward from behind her back, and a small chunk of ice formed in her palm.

“And the wish embedded in my magic… is stasis.”

Crack.

The ice shard drifting in the air came to a halt.

“I used to hate the way the world just kept going, whether I was miserable or not. But… that’s all in the past. No need for useless stories now. Let’s get to the point.”

Clearing her throat, Tylant tidied up her voice, carefully picking her words.

“Um… I can’t stop that bastard’s plan with my power. But I can pause it. Still, I won’t be able to hold it for long. At best, maybe a minute.”

Shhh.

The hardened ice crumbled into snowflakes and scattered into the air.

“But there is a way to stretch that time longer.”

Tylant’s cold hand gently wrapped around mine.

“To do that, Noah… there’s something you’ll have to do. I’ll only say it once… so listen carefully, okay?”

Tylant brought my hand to her chest.

“My weak point… is right here. All of my magic is gathered in this spot. Ever since I was little, I couldn’t control it well… so I compressed it here.”

Her voice was light. Her gestures casual.

But the emotion behind them was unbearably heavy, and cruel.

“With your greatsword, just stab me here, and it’ll be over.”

“T-Tylant?”

“Shh. From here on, I’m going to force my power into overdrive. I’m going to pull out every last bit of energy I’ve stored here… and freeze that massive gate that’s draining souls, along with that bastard’s plan. Everything will freeze solid. When that happens, Noah, you’ll absorb the other key fragments. That’s all. The method’s simple. I’m already connected to your soul, right? Just… do it like this. Connect to the soul, and absorb.”

“What are you even saying…?”

“But… once the overload ends, I’ll lose control over my soul. I’ll end up just like those specters. And if that happens, I might even freeze you, and all your friends too. So… before that happens, stop me. Like I said, stab me, right here.”

“…B-but…”

With a sigh, Tylant wrapped her arms around me. Her body was cold, skin and bones, but her embrace felt warm and comforting.

“It’s okay. I was always someone meant to disappear anyway. And pain? I’ve gotten used to it.”

Tylant’s hand, which had held my shoulder, now gently cradled my head.

“Just as morning follows night… just as spring comes after winter. Spring melts the snow that winter scatters and spreads warmth to awaken new life. I used to hate that spring. When everyone else was blooming with laughter, I… I was still stuck in winter.”

Her hand slipped away.

“But now, it’s different. Well… it’s still not easy, but I want to try liking it.”

She stepped back, out of my arms.

“Noah, you’re waiting for spring.”

With a bright, warm smile that reminded me of spring itself, Tylant took another step back.

“Noah, you’re the one who suits spring best.”

Then she turned her back to me and said, 

“Noah… you’re my friend. Hehe.”

* * *

The link with Tylant was cut.

At the same time, my consciousness was pulled back into reality.

What I saw was a world blanketed in snow.

Pools of blood on the ground had frozen solid, and even the specters’ rough breathing had turned to frost that settled on the earth, a landscape of bitter, frozen winter.

And in that world where everything was freezing over, 

Crunch. 

Small footsteps echoed.

The owner of those footsteps stared at the army of specters charging her way.

Then, she turned to me with a radiant smile.

“Please, Noah. End this winter, and become my spring.”

Tylant’s gaze, once resting on me, turned skyward.

Her skinny arms stretched out wide.

The gentle curve of her lips parted.

“[Stop the Heavens.]”

CRRRK!

The surging waves halted. The thunderclouds froze mid-burst. The slashes that had risen to cleave the world stopped. The cries of the primordial beasts ceased. The specters’ march halted. Even the wingbeats of the airborne monsters stilled. Their breaths were suspended.

The gradually opening Gate of the False Paradise froze.

Even the wide-eyed ‘Rubia’ came to a complete stop.

Space, 

Time, 

The souls being drawn in, 

The forming specters of Valoran, Brunhilde, Kartia, and Sirin, 

Everything… stopped.

“…What is this…”

Frey’s bewildered voice echoed in the world where even sound had frozen still.

Not that it mattered. Carpeng was still smashing apart the immobilized specters without mercy.

Laila, having understood the situation, turned her gaze toward Tylant, the one who had brought all of existence to a standstill.

And Tylant, who had frozen everything, even herself, was still smiling, radiantly.

Leaving her behind, I took a step forward.

“…Please, Laila.”

To end this winter, to welcome spring, 

I grasped my greatsword and approached Laila’s side.

[Yes, take hold.]

I took Laila’s outstretched hand.

The Spirit of Wind wrapped around my body. The wings formed from Yggdrasil’s roots flapped fiercely.

My body began to rise. I surrendered to the comforting arms of the wind as I spread my [ki sense].

“…Laila.”

[Why do you call me?]

“Is it possible… for me to absorb the soul of a specter?”

[Low-grade souls are too broken to recover…]

Laila, whose gaze had been fixed skyward, now turned her eyes downward.

[But that swordsman’s soul, yes, it should be possible. Though… there’s no need.]

“No need…? What do you mean?”

Curiosity surged through me at her cryptic words, but Laila continued, unfazed.

[Noah. Once you absorb all four of those souls, it will be our turn next.]

“…Yes.”

[Kartia and Frey. With a total of seven fragments, and Sirin’s soul included… if you absorb them all before the Awakening of the [End] is complete, then you’ll be able to open the gate to the True Paradise.]

At that moment, Laila’s wings ceased flapping.

[When that time comes, call my name.]

“Laila’s… name?”

[Yes. Not the name I bear as a Beast of the [End], but my True Name.]

“True… name?”

Laila’s hand, still holding my wrist, guided it toward the specter’s wing bearing the black feather.

[Yes. For you… or rather, for the descendants who will one day inherit this new era, I’ve prepared a gift.]