Chapter 63 : Turning Point (4) End Of Arc 1
It's strange... When I came here, I was desperate to return. Then, upon discovering the existence of the Prism, everything was clear to me. And yet, I ended up uncovering my past, changing my quest once again.
It's annoying, having to continuously change. But what's worse is that all of this stems from my very nature.
I don't feel the need to protect my loved ones, nor the need to save Elvaria.
My hatred isn't just a simple toy or a meaningless title. It's something tangible. I hate everything. Every living thing. To put it simply and bluntly: I'm an angry man who holds a grudge against the world. When I lived as Aley Vrodwil, I was much kinder.
We're heading toward the Village of the Eclipse. Our pace is rapid, lightning-fast. Unlike the gentle brush of the grass during our first passage, this time we're crushing the ground beneath our feet, our speed too great to spare anything.
I'm sure Valentin and Alfie will take care of Solfège nicely.
"Aley," Elvie breathes at my side, without even slowing down, "you're getting more violent these days. Oh, but don't think I don't love you anymore, okay! You're still my number one, that won't ever change. But honestly… I'm getting more and more unsettled by all this."
"Elvie. You and I... If you still haven't figured it out, we destroyed paradise. We killed our creator, reduced this world to tears with our mere mana. Do you think we're heroes?"
"My mother... My mother, she was a hero. She'd probably be disappointed in the woman I've become."
"No." I fix her with the calm that never leaves me. "Don't think that. She'd be proud to see your immense strength."
"You only ever swear by strength, Aley… Seriously."
"Do I?"
Our mad dash finally brings us back to the village. The atmosphere here is calm, too calm. We race straight toward the entrance but stop dead in our tracks. The shockwaves of our arrival create a resounding crash, a dull noise that alerts the villagers.
Those working in the fields straighten their tired backs, squinting to get a better look at us.
"It's the visitors from earlier..." murmurs a voice.
"They've come back?"
"What do they want, making all this racket?"
I place my hand on my throat, infusing a touch of mana to amplify my voice.
"Listen carefully," I say, nonchalant. "I'm about to kill your mother."
The murmurs of confusion turn into outraged cries.
"W-What?!"
A blond young man approaches then. Pion.
"Why would you do that, Aley?!" he shouts, furious.
But before I can answer, it's Elvie who steps forward, locking eyes with the boy.
"She's manipulating you," she states. "It's some kind of mind-manipulation magic she's using."
The boy bristles, his face reddening with anger.
"And zo what?! You don't care!" he yells, his accent clashing with his rage.
I don't have the patience for this kind of nonsense. I walk slowly behind the boy. He keeps shouting my name, but I stop listening. Elvie holds him back, placing a firm hand on his shoulder. Once I'm behind him, I focus my thoughts on Quick Step, then draw my swords, dashing toward the cabin where the fake Aliosi rests. Ready to strike. To cut.
The door creaks and suddenly swings open. Someone steps out of the cabin.
A girl with green hair. The fake Aliosi. The one who dares to steal the identity of my late sister.
Her gaze briefly meets mine. It instantly fills with fear at my furious approach. But I don't falter. I have to cut her down—
"ALEY!" she screams with all her might.
Her voice.
Her face… It's my sister's.
"W-What the hell are you doing?! Are you trying to kill me or what? And the dragon? Did you take care of it? What's going on?! Someone's manipulated you, let me inspect you! Aley! Answer me!"
"It's funny," I reply coldly, "that the person manipulating minds dares accuse me of manipulation."
"W-What?!" Her voice falters in surprise. Her eyes search my face, sincerely troubled.
"Aley… calm down, please." Her voice trembles. She steps back, her hands raised before her in a gesture of supplication.
"Calm down?!" I raise my swords. "You dare sully my sister's name, Your Majesty, Altruista Si Voltruite?"
The girl looks even more confused.
"A-Altruista? Why are you saying her name? We don't look alike at all—"
"Stop lying!"
"But I'm not lying!"
Something's off. Her gaze… It's sincere. But I know the real Aliosi is dead. So why? This magic is strange. Have I been fooled by something else?
A surge of magic splits the air. Similar to that of Solfège, or even Macrinis....
Suddenly, a powerful magic falls from the sky, quick as lightning, imperceptible. I sense a dagger descending straight toward me, menacing, invisible.
"What the—?!"
"Kya!" screams 'Aliosi,' terrified by the sudden attack. She nearly collapses in fear, her eyes fixed on the sky. But I don't have time. The speed of this magic surpasses that of my First Star. It's going to strike before I can react.
-Clank.
"Aley, are you okay?!"
A red flash splits the air above me. Elvie. She bursts in like a fury, her lance raised, blocking the invisible attack just in time. The impact reverberates, vibrating through the air.
"Something's coming," she spits, her breath ragged, her grip tight on her weapon. "It's fast… and it's hiding. Don't let it get you, Aley!" Her voice is sharp, but her eyes... I can see she's tense.
-It's too late.
A voice resonates, ethereal and icy. Words that cut me more surely than any blade.
—I will reclaim your love. Live only through hatred.
—You are the star that shines the brightest. I know it. You alone can save us.
—But your love wastes your power.
"A woman's voice…" murmurs Elvie, her lance slightly lowered. She's on guard but troubled. So am I.
'Aliosi' suddenly stirs. Her eyes sparkle with feverish excitement.
"It's Altruista!"
"So, you really were with her?!" I snap, outraged, a dull anger rising within me.
"No?! From time to time, she just visits me… but today, it's different. I don't understand."
—I have consumed enough of your magic, oh god of hatred, the voice continues. I am sated. I need no more. I will protect my kingdom and grant strength to my followers. But before that... I have one last thing to do.
—To admire you one last time in all your splendor.
What is she talking about? These words don't reassure me. They suffocate me.
"Is that you, Altruista?! Come down here and fight me!" I roar.
—Oh no. Far too bothersome, she replies, her tone almost mocking. I've come for something else.
Something else? This riddle doesn't have time to crush me further. That's when I feel it.
An astral projectile, a violet aura, faster than anything conceivable, heading straight for Aliosi. She's going to die.
I turn my head, my movements slow like in a nightmare. There—a silhouette, blurry, intangible. A woman armed with a dagger. In an instant, she slashes 'Aliosi's' throat. Blood spurts. The figure vanishes immediately, leaving only the young girl's body lying on the ground.
"W-What... is happening to me?" she whispers weakly.
"Big brother Aley…?" She looks at me, her pleading eyes, her breath already short. She trembles.
"It hurts... Can you tell Mom?" she murmurs, like a child.
And there, like a slap, the realization hits me. A wave of memories overwhelms me. A fear I thought I'd forgotten.
"Aliosi... w-was that really you?!" I scream, my voice torn apart.
Her body slowly collapses. The blood keeps flowing, forming a dark pool.
"Damn it, hold on! Elvaria! Come help me, we need to heal her!"
Elvie lowers her eyes. She's ashamed. Her voice is a hoarse whisper.
"A-Aley... we never learned healing magic... I only learned swordsmanship. Even the most basic healing spells, I... I don't know them."
No. No. No. Damn it, damn it, damn it!
"Valentin! Get over here!" I scream, my vocal cords shredding with the effort.
And like a miracle, a golden comet streaks through the sky. Valentin arrives. He lands abruptly, his feet scraping the earth. He assesses the scene in an instant, his gaze worried but determined.
"Orium Healing—"
But he doesn't have time. An invisible force strikes him with unimaginable violence. He crashes to the ground with a terrifying impact, an immense slash marking his back. Blood sprays. He loses consciousness, his inert body carving a trench into the earth.
"What's happening?!" a villager screams in the distance. "Our village is peaceful, damn it!" His cries of distress last only a moment. Another invisible blow decapitates him. His head rolls to the ground.
Elvie trembles. Her aura turns red, saturated with pure rage. She grips her lance so tightly that her knuckles whiten. She closes her eyes.
"I can't see her… but I'll feel her," she murmurs. Her words vibrate with icy hatred.
And then, I see it, that dagger-wielding silhouette, rushing straight at Elvie. Not this time.
"Elvie!"
Without thinking, I activate First Star and throw myself in front of her. My blade blocks the attack at the last second. A shock reverberates, shaking the ground beneath our feet. I counter immediately, striking with all the force of my anger. My blow leaves a massive fissure in the ground, the deafening sound shattering the silence. But I hit nothing.
The silhouette dodged.
"YOU BITCH! DID YOU KILL ALIOSI?!"
—It was for your own good, she laughs.
—And that wasn't Aliosi. Just a woman I gave her features to. I infused her with all your memories of her, replacing her own.
"YOU MONSTER!"
—It's almost an honor, coming from a true monster like you, she sneers, her voice cutting the air like a blade.
My fist clenches, my teeth grind. But she continues, relentless, each word stabbing like a dagger.
—It doesn't matter... I must strip you of all attachments. I need to get rid of Elvie.
I sense a dagger strike approaching, fast, precise. My instincts take over, my grip tightening on my weapon.
THUNK.
A sickening, dull sound—the sound of flesh being pierced. I scan my body—not me. Damn it! Is it Elvie?! I turn, my heart ready to burst… but it's not her. My gaze falls on a young woman. Her silhouette trembles, her eyes roll back.
And I understand. Elvie's lance is embedded in her abdomen. Blood flows in streams, a crimson river.
"I saw you. Stop playing games," Elvie's voice is glacial. No trembling. Her eyes, fixed like twin blades of steel on the woman's. It's cold. Merciless.
But instead of responding, the woman... smiles.
"Perfect..."
Damn it. No.
I feel an overwhelming concentration of mana, brutal and threatening energy. A suffocating heat crushes me.
"DAMN IT!" I scream. "This mana... she's preparing something. An explosion?"
No time to think. I summon everything I have, an arsenal I only use in the worst situations.
"Reinforcement… First Star… God's Wing… Divine Authority..." I mutter the words like a prayer, each syllable weighing a ton. I feel my body burn under the strain of stacked abilities. But there's no choice. I have to counter it. I have to survive. To save them.
The woman, on the verge of death, lifts an eerily serene gaze. The mana around her roars like a storm about to break. Her voice cuts through the air, clear, frightening in its resolve.
"By my authority as emissary of the stars… I grant each of my knights the title of High Priest, along with an authority."
I understand nothing. These words. This tone. It feels like a judgment, a sentence.
"As such, I shall awaken the original god of hatred. My dear, cherished knights, you've done no wrong. Forgive me, Solfège, for lying to you... but you will serve."
Elvie finally moves, but I stop her with a swift motion of my arm. "NO! Don't go near her!" She freezes, but I can feel her rage boiling behind me. I'm at my limit too.
And then, everything turns white.
An overwhelming light erases everything. The ground, the sky, even the sounds of battle vanish. It's as if reality itself is wiped away, swept aside by another magic.
I no longer understand what's happening.