Though I could somehow sense that the Chimaera had been defeated, with the two teachers emerging victorious through a means of combined effort, we didn't care anymore.
Desperately clutching the white cloth while still bound to the ground, coherent thoughts weren't something we were capable of right now. Even the seemingly endless tears had now stopped falling, replaced only by a vacancy of emotions.
Why was it that even though this was the perfect scenario to set up a martyr like Zero, not even James was happy about it?
'Ah... Because we are still the same person...'
No matter how much I wanted to believe otherwise, Zero and James had never been separate entities. We had always been the same, even if our actions and thoughts differed a bit.
It had all been one of the many jagged constructs of my mind, to illusion myself to believe otherwise.
Even more so as I had desperately wanted to ignore the fact that I wanted to live another life through Zero, a life where I would be able to attain the things James never would. All this while still fully aware of the truth in front of me.
'Pointless...'
Yes, it was all so incredibly meaningless. James, Zero, the academy, this foolish country, this world... None of that mattered. It was all just...
'-A game. And now you finally have to make the choice... Are you ready to play for real?'
As the whispers of a certain god reached my ears once more, speaking words that I had wanted to think I understood before, I was finally disillusioned.
This was all just a game. And weren't games supposed to be enjoyed?
Naturally, games were a lot more fun when you were fully immersed, but one always needed to keep a certain distance to make sure one didn't take it too seriously. And if the rules that I had made for myself weren't enjoyable anymore, why couldn't I just get rid of them?
With that last thought, I allowed the two splintered souls inside of me to finally meet each other in full sincerity. And in sync with myself becoming whole again, I could feel our elements quickly gathering to protect us from the outside world, making sure our reunion wouldn't be disturbed by the people now standing around us.
In the end, we weren't Zero, nor were we, James. We were One.
****
[Sophie's Pov]
"FATHER?!"
Dashing forward, Stella fell to her knees, hugging the body of the once proud captain of the border defenses, her face now filled with grief and anguish.
Having gotten permission to follow the teachers out to the battlefield, all of us were now met by the sights of the grim reality.
Bodies and limbs were strewn across the ground, well-decorated with a carpet of blood around them. Yet, it didn't even take a minute for the blue-haired girl to find the body of the one who had once been her father.
And even then, none of us could keep our eyes on her, as another individual was grieving his loss as well. With his white hair now splattered with blood, and his black uniform dirty from the mud, it was hard to distinguish what kind of expression he was wearing.
Still holding on to the white cloth, it was almost as if Zero had entered another world, a world disconnected from ours. And this filled me with an immense sense of dread. Because I had already seen one person enter that world, and that person could now not be reached, no matter how hard I tried.
'Why... is no one moving?'
It was bizarre. Even now, after Ms. Turner and Mr. Brown had returned from fending off the Chimaera, no one was moving. Not even the principal.
As if lost in the sands of time, everyone was just spectating the white-haired youth, waiting to see what he was going to do. And for some reason, I was the same. We were all the same.
With all of us gathered here, no one dared to move. No one dared to move a single muscle in fear of what the son of god might do. Because we had all seen what could happen.
The one exception was the daughter of the captain herself, rocking her body back and forth while holding on to the body of her father.
Then, out of nowhere, something started to happen.
A small wind started blowing across the dry plains, and with it, an authoritative voice came from the principal.
"Everyone, step back..."
Unsure as to what he was talking about, but still not willing to go against his words, we all took a step back, making sure to keep our distance from whatever was about to go down. And then it happened, a sight that I was all too familiar with and a sight that once again sent shivers down my back.
*BOM!*
"Guh!"
A huge wave of mana was sent outwards from the small boy, forcing us to take yet another step back as we braces ourselves for impact. Following this, small streams of water suddenly appeared in the air around him, quickly starting to encircle the boy.
It didn't take long until the son of god was completely hidden from the world by his element, now violently circling him like a cocoon.
Yes, it was so eerily similar to when James had evolved that I couldn't stop myself from biting down on my lower lip, successfully releasing a small line of blood from my inner circulation.
'Zero...'
Somehow, I knew that I had to stop whatever was happening, but I still couldn't move. None of the students could.
The only ones who could were...
"Jessica, Oliver! Stop it!"
Shouting out orders, the principal appeared to be just as adamant as I about not allowing the weird spectacle in front of us to continue.
Quickly nodding, both of our teachers dashed forward, one enveloped by an orange light and one with fiery-red electricity surrounding her. And though both of them arrived next to Zero in an instant, something even weirder happened.
"What?!"
Just as they were about to latch on and disperse the mana around him, whips of water lashed out, surprising them enough to make them retreat and re-evaluate the situation. Unfortunately, the small amount of time the whips bought was enough for the process to enter the next stage.
Out of nowhere, the water started to become more lucid, losing some of the tangibility that it once carried as the color changed. From a vibrant blue, it lost more and more color for every second that passed until there was nothing but gray.
*BOM!*
And then, another surge of mana excited from the cluster of mana, now successfully forcing most of the students to their knees, with just me, Arthur, and Sebastian still standing, albeit barely.
"Haaa... Guess it can't be helped... Oliver, Jessica, step back."
Seeing this kind of situation, the principal stepped forward, while simultaneously ordering the teachers to retreat.
"But, Sir...?
"Principal, you can't...!"
"Silence!"
Although they tried to rebel against his orders, they were quickly silenced as a huge burst of mana excited his throat, quenching their complaints in an instant. In the end, neither of them dared to stand up against the old man, instead quickly stepping back, while still making sure they were close enough to move if needed.
At this point, everyone somehow knew what was going on, no matter how absurd it seemed.
In front of us was no longer a conglomeration of the water element, instead, it had been fully replaced with a swirl of mist, though it was somehow still replenished by vibrant streams of water around it.
"He is coming..."
****
[James's Pov]
Water and mist... In the end, the mist was merely a product of dispersed water that no longer could find a home, futilely wandering endlessly around the world.
So why couldn't I have been allowed to find relief in the home that was Zero? Why couldn't I have gotten the chance to redeem myself, to repent for my sins?
Simple. Because, in the end, that home was built on sand.
And so, when rain fell, and the floods came, and the winds blew and beat against that house, and it fell, and great was the fall of it.
Thus, repenting for my sins was no more an option. Even more so as I had already fully understood...
'Sins are only sins if you acknowledge them as such...'
Ultimately, this world didn't matter more than I acknowledged it too. The reality around me was only true to the extent I decided it to be. By extension, I also had the right to bend it to my will, to do whatever I wanted as long as it was within my capabilities.
So, once again, I put on the mask that symbolized my rejection of reality, the mask that had once been adorned with two red stripes to symbolize rebellion.
Yet, now, one of the red stripes was gone.
Instead, a vibrant, blue tear had replaced it, symbolizing the inevitable sacrifices that would have to pave my path.
And with that, I allowed myself to enter the world of living again, the world where the mortals would stand in front of me.
No longer was I Zero, nor was I, James.
We were now One.