Chapter 233 – Dawn  

“Noah.”

“Yes…?”

As we rose to where Sirin’s spirit lingered, Serr tilted her head as she looked over the ground thick with spirits below.

“Noah, do you think you could kill all those spirits down there?”

“All of them…?”

“Yes.”

All of them…

I didn’t know how powerful Sirin’s spirit was, but if I had to face even her…

“Um… I-I don’t know.”

“Hmm, then let’s think about it this way. If killing them meant you could save Rubia, could you kill them all?”

“Yes.”

The answer burst out reflexively.

But it’s not impossible.

If I didn’t think about what came after, if I put everything I had into it, I could kill them all.

I’d make it possible. No matter what.

“I thought so.”

Serr squeezed my hand even tighter.

“You’ve gotten much stronger since we first met, Noah.”

“Well… yes.”

I had no choice but to get stronger.

I’d been through countless battles, and I’d learned so much from Sirin and Kartia.

“Back then, I thought I could beat you with one hand, but now, I don’t think I could.”

“A-ah, even so… it wasn’t just one hand back then…”

“Do you not trust your friend’s words, Noah?”

“T-then, does a friend like you not trust what your friend, me, says?”

Serr turned to look at me, her face showing a question.

I met that gaze straight on, not backing down.

“Hm, it’s no fun teasing you anymore.”

“…It’s fine if that’s gone.”

Serr fell silent for a moment.

As we neared Sirin’s spirit, Serr finally spoke again.

“Noah, could you do anything Rubia wanted?”

“…As long as it’s not something like asking me to kill her, I could do anything.”

“Do you think Rubia feels the same?”

A tough question suddenly came at me.

Did Rubia feel the same as I did…?

“Um…”

I wasn’t Rubia, so I couldn’t know for sure.

But because I loved her, I could tell.

“Yes.”

Suddenly, the wind carrying us came to a stop.

“Are you sure?”

“…Yes.”

“On what basis?”

Basis…?

Well, uh…

Trying to put it into words made me feel really embarrassed.

But if Rubia was ever asked a question like this and couldn’t answer, I think I’d feel a bit hurt…

I should answer.

“Because I… love Rubia.”

“That’s your answer?”

“Yes. Because I love her, I know. I know how much Rubia loves me.”

“…Hearing your answer, Noah, for some reason my ribs itch and my body feels all twisted up. It’s incredibly unpleasant.”

Whoosh.

The wind, stronger than before, wrapped around us.

“Then, for a friend like me, how far would you go to grant my wishes?”

“Uh…? Umm… If it’s something proper, anything.”

“Then, do you think I feel the same way you do, like you do for Rubia?”

Serr’s calm eyes fixed on me.

I met that gaze and nodded.

“Just as I’m Serr’s friend, Serr is my friend too.”

Chuckle, Serr’s quiet laughter scattered into the air, blending with the wind that surrounded us.

“Understood. Thank you for answering.”

By the time we reached Sirin’s spirit, the trembling in Serr’s hand had completely stilled.

* * *

“We’ve arrived.”

Serr’s hand, which had been gripping mine so tightly it left me sweaty, finally let go. At the same time, a platform appeared, stretching out to where Sirin’s spirit was.

A platform made by magic.

Come to think of it… Serr shouldn’t have been able to use magic, so how was she doing it now?

“Serr.”

“Yes.”

“You…”

For a moment, the words on my lips closed.

If I mentioned the past I’d seen in Sirin’s memories, those painful memories of Serr, it would only hurt her.

“N-no, never mind.”

In the end, I shook my head and stepped onto the platform. Then, step by step, I slowly approached Sirin.

I thought I’d be scared, that my steps would falter, but unexpectedly, my steps were light. There was nothing holding me back.

I was really… relieved.

“Hoo…”

I wondered what would happen after I opened the door.

If only choices would pop up like in a game, that would be easy, but this is reality, so there’s no way that would happen.

Nor did I expect a god to show up and ask me my goals. There are no gods in this world.

Then… what will happen?

I was the one who’d chosen to be the price for completing this world. Would I just disappear right away?

I don’t want that.

My precious friends… At the very least, I want to say goodbye to Serr, who’s here with me.

And then, I want to beat up the Nameless One, that bastard. Not with my greatsword, but with my fists.

And finally, if I could wish for just one more thing, 

I want to feel Rubia’s breath, her voice, her scent, her warmth, her touch, her lips, her love, all over again.

But I don’t want her to see me disappear.

No, honestly, I kind of want her to see.

I want her to see.

And never forget.

I want her to love only me for the rest of her life.

It’s a really wicked, selfish wish.

But, 

That’s what I want.

“Noah.”

As I was lost in thought, Serr’s voice came from a step behind me.

I didn’t look back or stop, I just answered.

“…Yes?”

“Noah, what do you think magic is?”

A completely out-of-the-blue question.

For someone like me, who can’t use magic at all, to be asked what magic is…

“…Well, I’m not sure?”

“Then, do you know the basic principle behind magic?”

A strange expression appeared on Serr’s face.

It seemed Serr had realized what I was about to ask earlier.

“…I don’t know.”

“Well, this is just common sense in the world we live in, but for now, I’ll speak only about magic. Fundamentally, magic is based on the law of equivalent exchange. For example, if you want heat to boil water, you must pay the price for it. In other words, you have to spend your own mana.”

Serr’s hand, extended beside my head, radiated heat strong enough to make my cheek hot even from a distance.

“That mana usually refers to your own mana stored within your body. There’s plenty of mana in the atmosphere, but since it’s not yours, you can’t offer it as the price. That’s why mages work tirelessly, not even resting while they sleep, to store mana in their bodies and make it their own.”

Serr’s other hand grabbed my shoulder.

Then, spinning me around to face her, Serr drew in the ambient mana into her own body.

“Like this. If you’re skilled, you can accumulate and release at the same time, but that’s something only outstanding mages like me can do, so let’s leave that aside.”

Anyway.

“Magic is about offering something you possess as a price to the foundation of the world.”

Serr tilted her head slightly.

As if waiting for my question.

So, following Serr’s lead, I voiced the question in my head.

“Then, Serr… what do you pay as a price to use magic?”

Serr smiled faintly.

“The Spirit Realm.”

In that instant.

Push.

Serr’s mana shoved me. The sudden force made my body tip over.

The platform beneath my feet widened. My tilted body fell onto the widened platform.

A barrier made of Serr’s mana blocked my [ki sense]. Even as I wondered about Serr’s actions, I quickly got up. I focused my [ki sense] and swept the barrier away.

At the same time, 

Drip.

Thick drops of blood splattered across my face.

And then, a voice rang out.

“I was going to quietly watch how things played out. But you just had to cross the line, didn’t you?”

Rubia’s voice.

I quickly widened my [ki sense].

I saw Serr, blood pouring from a hole in her chest.

And standing before her, smiling calmly, was ‘Rubia.’

Seven pairs of wings fluttered gracefully.

‘Rubia’ wasn’t frozen. She wasn’t stiff.

From the very start, she’d been flying naturally in midair.

Just when, ? Had the myth already ended?

“The myth ended long ago. I was just watching, because it amused me to see you all struggle. I was looking forward to seeing you break right before the dazzling hope.”

As if she’d read my mind.

“But Serr ruined everything. Serr must have noticed my myth had ended. How did you figure it out…? That’s really something.”

Clatter! 

Chains made of divine power shot out from behind Rubia. They bound my arms. They bound my legs. Soon, my whole body was shackled, making it impossible to move.

Unable to even twitch a finger, I watched as ‘Rubia’ strode through the air toward the Gate of the False Paradise.

“Fine. I’ll admit it. Serr, you really are something. To take the Spirit Realm for yourself and then offer it as the price. Not even me, or Laila who created you, could have foreseen that. But, ”

Crunch!

A newly formed divine spear pierced Serr’s body again.

“Unfortunately, you’re just a human. If you’d been an angel, a demon, or an elf… maybe things would have turned out differently. But there’s nothing to be done, since you were made as a human.”

Then, a second. A third. A fourth.

Divine spears fired from Rubia’s fingertips and pierced Serr’s body.

“So let’s end this. I’m bored now, and there’s nothing left here to enjoy.”

Crack.

Thorns erupted from the divine spear and ravaged Serr’s insides.

Serr’s body shook violently.

Even so, she didn’t fall.

She stood firm, looking straight at me.

And then she spoke.

“Noah. Do you remember… I asked you earlier what magic is?”

‘Rubia’s’ wings spread. Divine power, now pitch black, erupted. That divine power shrouded the world in darkness and filled the sky.

The spirits awakened. Weapons were raised. Bowstrings were drawn. Spears thrust skyward. The monsters began to flap their wings. Ziz soared. Leviathan lifted her head. The dragons opened their jaws.

Above all that, 

A black sun rose.

“To me, magic is, ”

My whole body shuddered.

All the strength I’d used to struggle against the chains faded away.

The earth cowered. The sky screamed. The air turned razor-sharp. Mana went still. The horizon churned, twisted, warped.

And there, 

No longer blurred.

The form of a human rose.

The [End].

The eyes of the [End] opened.

At that very moment.

“It’s a miracle.”

A single ray of light. The light of dawn that announces the morning.

Pierced the darkness.