Volume 1 – Following the Maze Drawn With Lines of Blood
Calaria tried to make sure she would be the only victim.
It wasn’t because she was trying to protect Mary.
She simply wanted to follow in Yueri’s footsteps in order to justify her death and release her from this bitter world.
However, let alone withdrawing, Mary actually spread her arms wide and stood up.
“I refuse.”
“Why?”
“I already told you, that we would become allies. I believe that even more strongly now after our conversation earlier. Let’s kill Duke Slava together!”
“What’s the point in doing something like that? From this battle, I understood all too clearly that I can’t do anything alone. The dead won’t come back even if I keep fighting. That’s the only way of life I know. Happy days are always left in the past. What’s the point in living in such a world?”
Calaria had been living like a depressed cripple for the past few months.
The fact that she did not skip out on her training despite that was somewhat of an occupational disease, and these were the circumstances that Dugan had seeked her out and hired her under.
The reward was also certainly dubious.
Yet, she had felt that perhaps she could get over Yueri’s death by succeeding in this task all by herself.
However, the reality wasn’t so sweet.
She failed her task, and on top of that, Calaria was also now about to be killed by the sorcerer who had killed Yueri.
It was futile to be tormented by this sense of helplessness.
That’s how Calaria was feeling as Mary spoke up to her very frankly:
“You’re right, the dead won’t come back. But I’m sure that some very important people are watching us from the other world.”
“And? You think they’ll be happy if we take revenge?”
“Yes, of course!”
Then, she declared with conviction:
“Death hurts so much; it’s bitter and scary. No matter how gentle and righteous someone was while alive, they will feel hatred for the culprit if they are murdered. I mean, isn’t that natural? Anyone would hate the person who killed someone close to them, and there’s no way I wouldn’t do the same! So, don’t you think that she will laugh when she sees that guy die and go to hell?”
Mary spoke loudly with her arms spread wide.
She had died once already, so she understood how the dead felt.
“Most of all, that’ll make me laugh too. It’s not just about the laughter of someone I love. When I think about that disgusting man not existing in this world anymore, my heart becomes deadly light! It feels like climbing to the heavens! The dead won’t come back, so our sorrows may not disappear. But, there’s no need to equate sorrow and hatred with powerlessness! It doesn’t matter what anyone tells you, there is no other salvation!”
The dark feelings making waves in Mary’s heart were a lot heavier than one could see.
As long as she had these feelings, she could choose no other path, nor could she focus on it even if she did.
“So, revenge is worthwhile. It must be accomplished. Especially if you have the power to do so.”
“……Maybe you’re right.”
Calaria sounded cold as she replied to Mary’s passionate speech.
“But, I am sadly drawn to the idea of dying in the same way that Yueri did.”
A feeble, almost possessed laugh.
Then, Calaria raised her sword to destroy the box.
“Run far away right now, I’m going to-”
Calaria was not listening, so Mary quickly grabbed the box and started running away with it.
“Like I said, I won’t let you do that!”
“Wha!? You’re running away!?”
“Yes. I am running. I’ll run as far as I have to!”
“Stop messing around, why would you do that!?”
Calaria immediately chased after her.
Mary gained speed by growing bones from the heels of her feet, and the two were running at almost an equivalent pace.
“Miss. Calaria, you’re not listening to anything I say!”
“You think I will be moved by the speech of someone whom I just met!?”
“That doesn’t work for me! I have to do what my sister told me to do!”
“That makes no sense to me – that’s your problem! I want to see Yueri again!”
“So you’re going to look at her with the face of a loser who let her murderer get away!?”
“That doesn’t matter if we two can be together! Isn’t it the same for you!? If you’re talking about revenge, that means someone you love was taken away, right!?”
“That’s right, my sister was murdered!”
“So you would want to see her at least one more time in the other world, wouldn’t you!?”
“Of course. But I want to be proud when I see her again! I want her to compliment me for killing our enemy!”
“Shit, you’re mad! What are you going to do with that bomb, anyway!?”
“I will blow it up and stop the blast with the power of the Death God. I can handle it without dying with my powers of recovery! Please protect yourself in some corner of the estate, Miss. Calaria!”
“…! Don’t be ridiculous! There’s no way that you, someone like you, can survive when Yueri died!”
Calaria wasn’t worried about Mary’s life.
Her pride just did not let her allow Mary to walk the same path that someone so precious to her had already walked.
But the distance between them did not get closer, and they returned to the entrance hall.
Mary stopped before the door as Calaria brandished her sword against her.
“Give me the box.”
“I can’t.”
“Then I’ll take it by cutting your arms. I’m not going to hesitate, so!”
Suddenly, Calaria rushed Mary.
Mary threw the box away.
Calaria was trying to cut Mary’s arms as she had said, and she looked at the box.
“Idiot! What if it explodes from the impact!?”
She tossed her sword away to try and grab the box, but Mary grabbed her with giant arms growing from her back and pulled her close.
Calaria struggled and tried to escape, but she couldn’t get away.
“Let go! We’re too close to the explosion’s center, we’ll both die!”
“No. I will force you to survive if I have to. Together!”
Along with Calaria who was still resistant, Mary jumped into the darkness spreading around beyond the entrance.
Mary didn’t understand why she was getting so frantic.
It was probably ‘stubbornness’. It was Calaria’s fault for opposing her.
The two found themselves in the room they were just in.
(There is some distance between this place and the entrance. It might not be easy, but I should be able to decrease the damage here!)
Mary used a large amount of mana to create a shield for protection.
“Thousand Corpse Barrier Coffin!”
A white wall of bone surrounded the two like an eggshell.
Even light was reflected back as Calaria struggled inside the closed off space while being held tight by Mary.
“You’re protecting me!? No good, this is no good! That thing is meant to kill arcana users; you can’t guard against it! Besides, you’re acting just like Yueri! So you’re also just going to-”
Calaria started crying as she remembered her trauma.
Looking at her, Mary remembered Francis’s death and firmly held Calaria.
Calaria’s face got buried in Mary’s bosom and she got a little quieter.
(Aah…… Yueri. You used to hug me like this often……)
This warmth was of a completely different person.
But this still permeated into Calaria’s lonely, starving heart.
If she was going to die anyhow, she could surrender herself over in her last moments – that sweet allure made her lose all strength.
The box dropped to the ground and exploded.
A light filled the entire estate up and the sound of the explosion echoed throughout it.
A fierce heat and violent shockwave burned everything away and swallowed the egg in which the two were embracing each other.