episode_0067

“It’s not desire? But we want Brother—”

“I know what you’re trying to say. But can you wait a moment and hear me out until the end? Then I’m sure you’ll understand too.”

In a gentle voice, Fairchild continued smoothly.

“First, there’s one thing we need to clarify. The form I’ve taken now isn’t the idealized manifestation of your desires. In other words, I’m not the ‘Eric Grave’ you long for.”

“What?”

“Well, isn’t that obvious? What you desire isn’t a kind, affectionate Eric. Rather, you want someone who will punish and disregard you. So, this form is merely borrowed from a familiar figure to make conversation easier.”

“Then… does that mean our mental defenses are still intact?”

“Mm-hmm. You can be proud of yourselves. Even if she was a saint in the previous world, to have defensive magic strong enough to resist my abilities—my master must be deeply frustrated right now.”

“Frustrated? You mean the goddess?”

“Hm? So you no longer intend to call her ‘goddess’? Ah, but given who you are now, I suppose that’s only natural.”

Fairchild bowed his head slightly.

“My apologies. That was inconsiderate of me.”

“Let’s save the debate over pointless faith for later and focus on what’s important. The inquisitors will be swarming here soon—we don’t have time to waste.”

Christine pressed Fairchild sharply.

“You know why we’re here, don’t you? It’s not just curiosity about your existence—it’s our real objective.”

“Of course… To prevent the coming calamity, right? You came to investigate me, the source of that disaster. Judging by your lack of hostility… I doubt you’re here to kill me.”

“How did you—?!”

“Why so surprised? I may not look it, but I am a miracle incarnate. Reading your memories is child’s play.”

“Sis!”

As Christine called out, flames erupted from Cecilia’s hands, stretching into a long spear. Before Fairchild could react, the spear was already hurtling toward him.

“Huh?”

“Now, Chris!”

But the magic dissipated before reaching its target, as though it had never existed.

Magic Reversal.

Now it was Christine and Cecilia’s turn to be stunned.

“What the—?!”

“Hey, could you calm down a little?”

“Again!”

Ignoring Fairchild, Christine swiftly fired another spell, but this one, too, melted away before touching him.

“It’s pointless, so please, just settle down. Wasting time like this isn’t what either of us wants, is it?”

“If we beat you down, we’ll get all the answers!”

“No, Chris. Let’s hear what he has to say for now.”

“What?”

“A wise choice.”

“Do you possess our memories right now? Memories from the previous world?”

Fairchild shook his head lightly.

“They are your memories, but not complete ones. What I have are Eric Grave’s memories—reconstructed from the impressions you two hold of him. So, in the end, the ‘me’ you perceive is nothing more than a reassembly of your own recollections.”

“Then that makes you even more suspicious. You expect us to trust you? If you have our memories, you must know what future awaits you, don’t you?”

“Mm-hmm. A month at most, I’d say. I’ll be hunted down by the original owner of this body and all of you, vanishing without a trace—just like countless other heretics before me.”

“I won’t deny that. But doesn’t that mean you’ll effectively die?”

“I have no intention of resisting you or struggling to change my fate.”

“Don’t mock us!”

Christine couldn’t help but shout.

“You’ll be completely erased, not even recognized as a miracle, and you’re just fine with that? Save your lies for someone dumber!”

“Hmm… Now that you mention it, it does sound unbelievable. But—”

Fairchild stared at his own pristine hands.

“…Right now, I feel like I can accept that fate. Probably because of the original owner’s influence. Must’ve lived quite the self-sacrificing life, huh?”

Cecilia and Christine had no retort.

If this was the Eric they knew, he would have said something like that.

“……”

“……Just what are you—?”

“There’s no need for guilt. I was always just a miracle granted by the goddess for humanity’s sake. Until now, I’ve lost my way—failed to bring anyone happiness. But if I act now, I can become a miracle again. Not for everyone, but for the two of you—the most worthy humans of all.”

“……”

“……”

As the two girls silently stared at him, Fairchild gave a small wave.

“I’d love to keep talking, but I’m reaching my limit. The inquisitors are coming, Cecilia. It’s time for you to leave.”

“Leave?”

“Unlike the beasts you’ve killed, the high-ranking clergy of the Church think. My location is under multiple layers of alert magic. I’ve been holding them off, but I can’t much longer.”

Tch. If only it were just our side’s kids, we could’ve squeezed more out of them. No time for that now—we’ve got a far more important promise to keep. Rest well, okay?

…Right. That promise.

…Right. Understood.

With that, they quickly vanished.

“……”

In the now-empty room, Fairchild blankly stared at the door they had left through. Though reactivated sealing magic had turned it into an impenetrable wall, he felt no urge to open it.

“This form is quite likable, but…”

The colors of Fairchild—wearing Eric’s face—gradually faded before collapsing with a wet squelch, melting away entirely.

In Eric’s place writhed only a dull, tarry mass.

This form is more comfortable anyway.

With that thought, Fairchild reached out telepathically to someone.

This settles it, right?

……

Yeah. That’s what I thought. Though it’s funny—I never expected things to unfold exactly as you said. Do you really have some kind of future-sight?

……

“Don’t joke”? But come on, it is funny. A being like you not only reads the future but even deigns to speak first to someone as insignificant as me—a useless existence with nothing but high sanctity.

……

Mm-hmm. They took the bait, just as planned. Even if they don’t fully trust me yet, the first step’s done. Now it’s just a matter of coaxing them along. If everything goes smoothly from here… that’d be ideal.

Fairchild’s body squirmed quietly.

…I don’t want to die just yet, either.

——

“What were you doing?”

“It’s a secret.”

After two days of radio silence, Christine suddenly popped up—only to dodge my question with that answer.

“Hey, you can’t just say ‘I won’t tell you’ and call it a day. If you two acted recklessly and messed something up, I’m the one who’ll have to clean up the aftermath.”

“Huh? Clean up?”

Oh.

Christine still doesn’t know I have my complete memories.

At most, she probably suspects I occasionally recall fragments of past loops based on my behavior. To her, the current me is just a fledgling prophet who’s only just realized his purpose.

Scrambling, I blurted out:

“There was nothing about this in the prophecies! That’s the one thing I can trust to guide you all—if you go against it—”

“We didn’t. I can guarantee that much.”

“Then why won’t you tell me what you were doing?”

“I can’t.”

This isn’t going anywhere. Of course I want to know what Christine and Cecilia were up to—I need to control the party’s actions as much as possible moving forward. But Christine’s likely thinking the same.

Her eyes are those of someone utterly convinced she’s in the right.

“Sigh.”

In the end, I backed down. I learned the hard way last world how stubborn Christine is. If she believes she’s right, she’d rather die than talk.

Pushing further will only exhaust me.

“Ahem. Christine, my dear sister?”

“Y-yes?”

Time to switch tactics.

“Then why did you call me here? You said it was important, so I assumed it was about future plans.”

Right—the only reason we’re having this conversation on a weekend morning of all times is because Christine summoned me.

“Please tell me it wasn’t just because you wanted to chat. I’m not stupid enough to entertain sentimental nonsense about family bonds now.”

Fortunately, my little sister isn’t as foolish as I thought.