SING CRIER CH.20 - Fireproof I'm not a violent person. I'm just a peddler, that's all. I scavenge for things to sell, buy things I think are valuable, and trade for more than I give. That's what I do. 〖 «Myriad Armoury» will drain gold while it is active, continue? 〗 「 Continue. 」 But a peddler that can't defend themselves; an arms dealer that fails to learn their merchandise, is just a step removed from an aspiring street beggar. 〖 Shivs for the fistfight. Armour for the shivs. Maces for the armour. 〖 Let this cycle end at magic. Let us bring armouries for the war. 〗 So please understand, I don't do this often. A golden magic circle flashes at my feet with a strange bellow -- and on cue, my pockets lighten, overflowing with a gold mist that evaporates into the air. At first, it's a surge, but it slowly recedes into a mere trickle of dust... All the while, my rucksack empties of its contents. Weapons, armours, tomes and potions, one by one, they all disappear from my rucksack and manifest above me in crystallized form. The morning sun's rays refract through them, each one casting a flickering shadow. And with the sudden vanishing of all that weight, I can only feel lighter than air. Agehatate opens her eyes again. As she does, my crystallized items descend, phasing into me. For every item to return, a drawing of it appears, overlaying my vision. By the time they all merge, a wheel of armaments has encircled my field of view. Here, I can view them all, miniaturized, ready, waiting to be withdrawn again. 「 You would sooner combat me alone, than against those Highlanders together. 」 「 Yes. 」 I hold out my hand in front of me and manifest a metal wand. I promptly replace it with a polearm, scroll, then sword, in quick succession. It's been a long time. 「 As a last act of charity, I ask, would you prefer I perform your jouou? 「 Or would you rather the fire of that village's holy men? 」 I sigh, and start walking. Blue butterflies from all around reform for the third time into two flaming spheres hovering above Agehatate. 「 I've pickpocketed a lot of bodies... 」 The spheres crash into the ground once more, flaming pillars take their place. Two foxes immediately emerge from them, one with curved markings, and the other with sharp structural ones. 「 ...and I've never given any of them jouou afterwards, so... 「 Personally, I'd be more comfortable if you left me to the same fate. 」 「 ...I cannot assure you of that fate. 」 「 I'll have to settle for not dying then! « Arctic Plume »! 」 A metal bound tome replaces the sword in my hand, opens, and flips through the pages on its own. Aiming my other palm, a flower of icy feathers forms and blossoms immediately with a magic circle. I aim directly at Agehatate. Smoky globules cannon from my palm in a rapid-fire volley. Just as they're about to make contact, blue butterflies intercept, absorbing not just the initial blows, but also following splashes of chilling liquid. Dozens of projectiles are absorbed without effort. 「 I once had nine tails... each one still holds a tale to tell. 「 If you have not learned them, you will die a part of them. 」 「 ... 」 I hear thumping. My attention turns to her subordinate foxes. The fox with curved markings is charging towards me. I aim my palm at it and continue the volley. They connect. Each globule explodes in a frosty plume, but the fox barely flinches and continues its charge. I don't have all day to whittle them down. I exchange the tome for a frosted sword. Pith of Rime. Thump. Thump. Thump. Thump. The giant fox closes in, pulls its head to the side, and swings at me horizontally. Waltzing Courier. Nomad's Halberd. Dragon's Fang. Armada. I stab the frosted blade towards the fox's face. Four more weapons manifest from the air to mimic the motion. The five blades just barely penetrate its skin- but a frosty patch appears from the Pith of Rime, the force of the blow is nullified by Waltzing Courier, a breeze starts to whirl around the Nomad's Halberd, a cross-shaped scar is left by the Dragon's Fang, and I'm repelled to safety by the delayed explosive magic of Armada. The curved marked fox hurries to distance itself from me while I dig my boots into the ground, skidding to a halt. I breathe out. 「 ...Easy enough. 」 「 She said, as her soul separated from her body. 」 「 What- 」 The world is tinted blue. Behind me, I can see my body lying motionless on the ground. I'm covered in curved markings, while the curve-marked fox has lost its own. Rather, it's safe to say the markings have transferred to my body... But... if I'm down there... how am I... I raise my hands in front of my face. They're here... I'm here, but also... right there? There are two of me? Wait- I hear an ascending wail. The sharp-marked fox is gathering fire in its mouth, but it's aiming at my lifeless body... I've... seen this before, with Sing and Crier. I shouted at them to move right about now... So I need to move that body somehow before it gets hit! That's my actual body!

I crouch down and grab my body by the jacket, but instead of grabbing it, my hand sinks in. 「 ?! 」 The rest of me is quickly sucked into the still body, and my vision blacks out... to be quickly returned a split second later. Only now, I'm looking up at the sky... What... just happened? Wait, I still need to move! I sit up and look towards the ascending wail, but a dooming silence immediately follows. 「 Artibeus! Patrons! 」 〖 W- 〗 From the sharp-marked fox's mouth, a sapphire flame lance is fired. I raise my arm. 「 Hand of Midas! 」 〖 A price for everything. 〗 The flame lance freezes in place as it takes up half of my vision. At the same time, my forearm is enveloped in a golden aura. 「 ... 」 I glance at the markless fox on the other side of the courtyard, then swipe my golden hand in its direction. The flame lance mimics the motion. Fwoom! Blown away by the force of the projectile, the markless fox is thrown to the wall. At the same time, the curved markings that covered me transfer back to it. ...I breathe out. As I get up, course sand pours out of my pockets. That flame lance still hit me... just in a different way. 「 A god that bends to gold... 「 how far this world has fallen. 」 「 Ha... tell me about it, lesser goddess.」 I dust myself off. 「 For what reason he chose you is beyond me. 」 「 ...Amusing, at best. 」 The sharp-marked fox looks at me and begins its charge. This should be much smoother than the last time. 「 Insect girl... have you ever heard the tale of The Ancient Shadow King? 」 I duck away from the giant fox's tackle this time, and whirl five blades at its front leg. Schuff. Light cuts, but the damage is in their magical inflictions. Even better -- this time, the world isn't tinted blue. It might be safe to say it's "taking a hit," that causes... whatever that was. Seems straightforward... 「 Long ago- 」 「 I know it!」 Following that, I equip a staff and four tomes, fire, water, lightning, and a tome for accentuating force. 「 « Arcana-Blades »!」 With them, I fire sharp elemental waves at the fresh wound. Their violent blasts ripple the air, throwing out steam and static. 「 Evil demon king goes on a quest for power... 「 Adventurers the world over try and fail to stop him. 」 The sharp-marked fox is briefly knocked down. My attention turns to the curve-marked fox beginning its charge. 「 Tyranny, misery and fear over the world; 「 Highlanders succeed at the last minute. 」 I fire one more volley of elemental waves before changing equipment. This time, Halcyon Greaves, the Nomad's Halberd, one physical enhancement tome and two trinkets. 「 He deals with the devil -- and the Demon King goes mad, 「 becoming the Ancient Shadow King!」 I kneel down and slam the base of the halberd into the stone. A wind bubble grows and erupts, launching me over the fox's tackle. Flares of light and particles promptly rupture from the old tome, while dark winds seep from my trinkets down the halberd's shaft... ...until the blade flashes with a shimmering black light. I instantly drop at terminal velocity with the wind-fused halberd. This time, it leaves a sizable stab wound, made larger by another expanding wind bubble, this time, from the tip. The bubble bursts, throwing me airborne, but my greaves snap me upright, making the landing a breeze, particularly without my rucksack weighing me down. ...Monsters, intelligent or not, are all trivial once you know their patterns. 「 The story... diverges here by region, but they all end in The World Fall. 」 I switch to a metal wand and new combination of tomes, taking aim at the sharp-marked fox for its turn to charge. 「 What about i...t? 」 A translucent black box with a red message overlays the top of my vision, accompanied by the din of a grim orchestral shriek. Vanity and Vainglory have accumulated too much energy 「 and are sharing it with Princess Agehatate! 「 If you survive this, you will learn something. 」 The curved and sharp marked fox close their eyes, and slowly disassemble into thousands of translucent blue butterflies. From the trees, the ground, even the mountain itself, butterflies emerge and flock towards Agehatate in a growing hurricane of fire and ash. 「 Adventurers of old... always shouted this when this happened, 「 "𝔼𝕟𝕣𝕒𝕘𝕖." It is strange -- because I do not feel enraged. 」 「 ... 」 I swap out my equipment for four paper talismans and one crystal. Focusing on them, after two seconds they all light up with symbols. 「 As it happens, I am quite content. 」 I raise my arm to throw them to the ground...

But... am I sure I want to use these now? These are one-time use only... I bite my lip... I could probably sell all of these for a thousand gold to a certain person... Sigh... 「 I'm going to be back to selling cold iron at this rate... 」 I throw the talismans first, and the crystal last. A magic circle appears at my feet, followed by a greater one, and a greater one, followed by an even greater one, and one last magic circle to envelop them all, totalling five. 「 I summon a Phaenmaw, Ujlra, Megaran, Elder Aggrator, and Nether-Titan! 」 「 The new age of adventurers shout things just as strange however. 」 「 Devour! 」 Teeth appear from the ground around me, and converge, swallowing me in a pitch blackness where I can only hear a heartbeat. Ha... I press my hand against my forehead... Aside from the Phaenmaw's heart pumping, the interior quiet is sobering. At the very least, I have some time to think... So... let's see... what happened? What was that red message, and why? I took a hit the first time, and that curved-marked fox sent me into that blue world... Okay, then there were two of me, and Agehatate said my soul... separated. That explains why I got sucked into my "actual body" then... Right, then I had to buy the flame lance so I wouldn't get hit, no problems aside from my pockets being lightened... I dodged the sharp-marked and counter-attacked, everything was fine. I dodged the curve-marked and counter-attacked, everything was fine. Then I got the message, "Vanity and Vainglory have accumulated too much energy," and that enabled Agehatate to use this attack pattern... I definitely don't want this pattern, because she said "if I survive," which I'm sure means this pattern usually kills! Death is bad... of course, so how can I avoid this pattern...? 「 ?! 」 There's a rumble. I steady my balance against the walls of the creature's hollow interior. Another, stronger rumble follows. 「 Giii... isn't she using a fire attack? What in the world...? 」 Rumble. Rumble. Rumble! I raise my arms and shield my eyes against a sudden bright light. Thump. I feel sand on my back. Goddess... I hate bright light... 「 Tell me, Polimion, why must you shout before acting? 「 You are the last mortal I would expect to do this, 「 being Dream Eater's... partner in crime. 」 I sit up and wipe my eyes. They sting. 「 ...Shouting? It's um... common practice... 」 I press my hand against the sand-covered ground and push myself up. 「 I'm strong enough that I don't need to... 「 but monsters never shout the names of their attacks. 「 So it's just a rule for everyone, makes life easier... 」 Wait... sand? I look at my hand -- smudged in a white dust. Looking between my fingers... I'm surrounded by white dust... No... these are... These are ashes... Did all five of my summons get cremated?! 「 So you are on that side of the river... 「 Star-crossed lovers, how bittersweet. 」 「 ...What? 」 「 And ignorant. 」 「 ... 」

「 However... at the very least, I must commend you for your creativity. 「 Summoning and sacrificing exactly five creatures, 「 to shield you from five instant deathblows... 「 it is almost as if you knew. 」 Blue butterflies congregate in front of Agehatate, reforming the curved and sharp-marked fox. Their injuries, thankfully, have stuck. 「 Perhaps not, if you enabled me to use them in the first place... 」 She doesn't look tired at all... "Five instant deathblows"...? 「 But you survived, thus, I shall reveal a truth to you. 」 Agehatate stands up for the first time this entire fight, and opens the doors to the pagoda where Sing and Crier are sleeping. 「 ...What are you doing? 」 「 Opening the window to the truth. 」 With that, Agehatate lies back down again, simply leaving Sing and Crier in open view. 「 Go on, you want to force me to leave this temple, do you not? 「 Or perhaps you rather a battle royale with those Highlanders? 」 「 ... 」 She's scheming something... I know it... I have to be careful with my next moves... I equip five tomes and extend my hands in front of me as if holding a ball. Vanity... and Vainglory... are most likely the names of the curved, and sharp-marked foxes. Which name belongs to which... might matter, but there's no way for me to tell. In any case, I need to make sure they expend their energy, lest I enable Agehatate to use her "instant deathblows" attack again. I don't have enough summons that can devour to block five more, much less any magic that can block an attack that instantly kills a Nether-Titan... Let's see then... what are my options... I can only imagine I need to get them to burn their energy on flame lances... So... it looks like we'll have to take a hit and get marked, right? Right... we have a plan. Let's try it. 「 « Fusion Core » 」 I concentrate my focus between my two hands. Particles stream from the tomes, forming a wild sphere of energy. At the same time, the sharp-marked fox begins its charge, kicking up ashes and embers to the wind. Once the sphere of energy completes, I switch out the tomes for an ornate spear and smash the orb into it. It lights up, dripping with an icy flame from the tip. The giant fox closes in, and opens its mouth to bite. Lucky. I throw the spear inside and equip four of my heaviest bladed weapons to follow. The fox doesn't stop charging, so I duck away but just barely, enough to graze its lip to receive "the hit." After a delay, the fox staggers to a limp, while its sharp-markings vanish from its body, transferring to me. Success, the world is tinted blue again. I unequip the bladed weapons and switch to movement enhancing armour. I can mimic what Crier did, and guide the flame lance to hit the markless fox. This time, however, I've already staggered it, so catching up should be easy. I know where the markless fox is, now we need the curved-marked one... An ascending wail reveals its position. Solved, I just need to get back to my bo...dy... I catch a glimpse of the curved-marked fox, it's next to the pagoda. It's aiming at my lifeless body, but that's not what I'm looking at. Agehatate is behind the curved-marked fox, lying down. Her eyes are closed, and she's blue, but she's not what I'm looking at. Within the pago͢d̴a̛a҉̭̯͉-̛̗̠̱̦͔̤͜

̸̜̥̥̥̻̱̥̺͈̟̎̏ͥ̆̌́͆ͤͦ̄̿̇̀͟ ̢͓̬̮̜̺͍͎̝̺̯̞̩̥̳͉̳̆̒̃̊ͫ̿͊͋̈̊ͦ͒̾̆͐ͧ͆ͫ͊͢ͅ ͫ̅͑ͪ̓ͮ͋̅͋̿ͧͣͣͩ̒̿ͪ̕͘͏̶͓͇̭ ̷̶̡̢̰̤̙͕̫̣̺̘̟̘̯̥ͥͨ͌ͫ̓͗̈̔͆͛ͪ̏ͫ̐͐͊̽̈́̕ͅ ̵̴̖̦̹̮̻͓͉̤̫͇̲ͧ́́̎ͧͤ̐ͬͪ̓̋ͦ͗̚̕͜͡ ̛͚̭̯̞̲̩̯͙̲͓̬̦̻̪̥̩̟̬̃̔ͥ̽̈̒̍̀͗́ͅ ̢̡̛͍̪̗͉͇͙̘̻̃̇̆͗͒̃ͯ̾ͯ̾͞ ͎̭̩̬͍͓ͧͮ̃ͨ̇̎́͝ ̵̨̘̙̪̣̦̼͙̭̖͓͈̯͈̹̞̘̦̊͌̊̈ͬ̿̅̈́ͨ̃ͬͣ̀̿̐̚͝ ̶̶̧̢̛̣̻̰͚̦͓̜ͭ͒̂ͮͫ̇̏̐̋͊͌̈̈ͩ̄͆̚ͅ ̢ͦ̍̒͊̀̒͗͌ͬͪ̚͡҉͉̞̠̝ ̶̾ͣͧ͛̉ͯ͊̑̌ͩ͆ͨ̓ͬ̊̔҉̨̛̹̟̯̪̤̭͍̬̥͙͡Ą̨̧̭̰̻̩̀̏̋̓͌̆́̏̍͠͡

̷̩̣̻͓̮̰̝̮̺͍͉̗̪̪̙̥̻̠ͭ̇ͩ̽̈͐̈́͂͒͒͌̚ ̸̡͇̳͖̦͆̔ͭ͂̑ͩ̑͗͘͜͠ ̸̨̛͔̖͍̩̦̝͖̣͒͂ͥ͐ͦͮ̽͜͡ ̷̗̞̥͙̭̠͍̤̜̞͉̜͔͓̩̟̯̂̑͂̊ͤ̐ͬͤ́̉́͟͞ ̧̤̹̗̫̫͓̩͇͕͈̳̥̯͙̼̥̲̮ͭ̈́̆́͝͡ͅ ̵̡̪͉̗͍͓̮ͭͨͨ̃̀ͯͪ̈́́̍̋͋̊̔͐̾̏͢ ̷̴̹͍̖̥̩̩̟͙͈͕̋͐͒ͣ̅́͜ ̶̲͖̺̣͕̤̩̟͚͍̬̌͐ͩ͛ͫ͂̅͊͘͟͝ ̶̈̋͊̆ͫ̃̀̇̉̚͏̠͎̩̝̤̻̖̭͎̠ ̡̧͙̮͈̙̞̫̫̫ͣ̆ͧ̋͆̉ͪͤ̑ͣ̊̆͟ ̞͙͇̦̙̞̬̂ͭ͋̋̔̍͆́ͮ̒ͭ̏͐͒͌̅̒͡ͅ ̢̙͚͈̬̥͇͓̘̪̗ͧͧ̐ͮ͒͡ͅ ̧̪̤̫̝̺̩̦͚̼̟̣̞̠͉̘̺̊̌͌̄̅ͧ͒̃́ͮ͘͡͝ͅͅḾ̴͓̱̯͙̖̲̻̯̫͍̳̪̱͈͇̱̬̇̓̊̂̿ͩ̚͟

̬̗̺̼̤̬̝̠̳̣̭̣͈̂͑̉̋̽̿̅̈͑̃́͜ͅ ̴̵̨̧̛̯̞̼̤͎̩͚̖̗͌ͭ́̈ͮ͒̏̊̉̆ͅͅ ̶̷̧̖̖͉̝̖̼̗ͣͪ̉̿͐͑̅̉̐ͥ̓̊͛̆ͩ̃̆̕ͅ ̴ͪ̍ͤͪ̾͂͡҉͎̬͕̦͈̫̪͈̹̤̖̭ͅ ̷̯̰̳̞͇̤̿̊ͤͦ̀̈ͥͤ̅ͣ͒ͬ́́́ ̷̴̬̻̤̜̻̘̞̺̣̤̖̤͙̖͇̀̆͗̾̓͋͗͗̉͐̊̉̋̊̇̓ ̷̺͖̳͎͇̯̳͇̭͇̟̫͎͈̉̏̏̓̊ͨ͐ͪͬ ̶̱̝͔̱̹̗̹̠̥͇̹̹̲̩̌͆̈́ͯ͂͂̽̚͝͝ ̸̨̰̣ͦ͋̇̉ͫ̑̽̍̽̄̓̐͆̄ͅ ̡̧͍̪̖̟̤̠͓̺͉͂ͬ̿͑͌ͦͪͩ̑͟͢ ̵̍͑̀̅̔̈́̈́̈́̍ͥ͑̃̄̾͛̓͏̱͕͚̟̮͢ͅ ̸̶̗̮̤̮͙͗͐͆̈́̿ͩ̔͆ͩ͆ͦͬͮ̈ͧ͊͐̚ ̵͚̫̻͇̏ͪ͂ͦ͊̽͐̉̏͛ͥͤ̀̒ͯ͌̀̀̚͘͡A̞̮̠̗̮̣̞ͧ̎̄͂̾̎̏̂ͬ̈́͐͋̈͠͞

͙̹̺̮̲̦͖̦̤̳̭̿ͯ͊ͨͮ̅͆ͭ́̕͡͡͡ ̢̢̭̝̲̖͔̲ͤ̒̀ͭ̔ͤ͠ ̙̩̠̝̣̅̒ͤ̄̌̆̔̄̀̎͊̓͐ͭ̍ͮ̚͟ ̶̛͎͔̝̭͇̖͛ͦ͗̃̉̔̊͆́͢͝ ̵̧̖̥͔̻̙̩̭̼̝̻̇͐ͮ͛͑̀̊͌͐͗̌͑̄ͪͫ̋ͤ̔̽͘ ̿ͫͮ̃̈́̒ͦ̏̐̽̃̄͊ͤ͂ͬ́͜͝͏̡̪̮̜̩̦̺̣̲̹̦͚͉̯͟ ̶̫̱̳̯̝͍̜̹͛ͣ̑ͣ̏̕͞ ̻̤̖͇͙̟̞̣͓̖͎ͮ͑ͯ͗ͭͯ͗̔͌̋̔̓́̕͝͞ ̧͇͍͇̜͗̿ͭ̌̾ͩ̂́̽̌ͮ̓͞ ̷̮̭͈̞͉̬̗̗̙̣͕̹̑͊́ͪ̈́̂̂̋̂͛̃̐̐̿ͤ̏̑̚͞͡ ̡̢̝͕͓̝̈̿ͧ̓ͤ̈́̓̆̏̐ͮͬ̚ ̷̢͙̘̥̟̭͕̘̭̝̥̱͉̫͎̑͒ͫ̀ͫ̐́͟͢ͅ ̡͐͛͛̌̈̒̔̂͑̌͢҉̴̧̺͖̭̟̖̞͓͎̦̗̩̮̫̪L̢̛͚͓͓̼͓͖̦̮͓͉̬͚̼̆͑̐̂͐͡͞ͅ

Hͮͤͫ̓ͣ͟҉͎͓͚̞͞͡Ọ̢͉͚͔̻̗͌̏ͣ̔ͬ͛ͤ̽̏ͩ̆͊̑̌̃̈́̕Ŗ̙̰̗̰̼̜̗̮͚̩̼͓̠̠ͮ́̿ͦ̑̉ͨ̈́̊̅͜ͅR͙͕͉̖͔͇̃̌̑́͆͆̿̚͢͝Ơ͍̯͈͔̫̭̭͔̄̆̓͗̐̔̍ͥͣͥ̾͋̒ͯͯͦ̇ͤ̈͞R̵̸̡̝͇͇͉̗̙͔̘̲̬͚̠̫̭͈̟͋̈́̏̋̒̈̈́ͭ̒̓̅͒͊̄̈́̽̅ͨ̔̽̒̅̇̊̌ͯ̉͒̿̊͆̂͗́͘̚͟

̢̧̡̢͎̳̺̹͉͙͚͈͉̩̼̠̲̝̲̙̐̓̆ͭͤͩ͐̒͒͑͌͋͟ͅ ͬ̊ͮ̋̈́̈́ͥ̏͟͜҉̛̳͎̰̥̮̱̮̟̟̞̲ ̟͍̬͕̫̰̞̹͚̫̦̹̞̜̗̺̝̍ͭ̆̎́ͣ͐̽ͯ̅͊́́͜ ̴̷̧̥̗̪̝̫̮͈̦̖͖̱̄̅̏͑ͫ͘͢ ̧̳̹̪̳̜̗̉̔ͪ ̡̨̦̩͉̤͚̰̹̏͊̌ͦͩ͋ͨͬ̿͌̍̀́́ͅ ̴͂ͦ͋͐͌̓̑̇͆҉͇̠̪̪ ́̈́͌͆͋̂̔͐҉̵̡̭̲̩͕̪̬͔̮̖͚̜̹̩̙̗͙͙̙̕͢ ̶̛̼̝̙̗̙̝͚̠̘̩̖ͫ͑̓ͩ͋̾ͩ̈̍ͭ̔̾ͬ̊ͤͩͯ̉̚͘͝ ̵̙͇͇̱̭̺̝͐ͣͭ̆̀̍̃ͨ̀̕͝ ̶̸̷̡͓̭̮̺̰͈͕̖̱͈̻͚͉̩ͥ͑̚ ̵̶̓̓̀̿̓̿̈̐̏̎ͣ̇ͥͨͯ͛҉̶͉̜͎̫̝͠ ̴̨̳̹͈̳̺̥̝ͫ̀̏̉͑̓́̑̊͗͛̔̀̀̚̚͠M̡̥͈̠͖͕̖̯͓͌͂ͭ͂͒̍̌̽̌͂ͤ͛ͦ̎ͧ̉ͮ̕͢͠

̶̝̺͕̦̒̎̈͊͊̌͒ͧ̃̍͊ͤ͢͟ ̶̅̏ͧ͊̆͗̂͂ͧ̏̿̆͐͘͏̻͇̤̫̥̹̬̦̖̞̲͔ ̴̨̛̦̤̭̫̪̯̰͉̦̞͓ͥ͋͆ͭ́̈́̿͆̀̃̈́̑̔̔̀̚͡ͅ ̛̘͚̻̝͓̦̟͇̹̞̪̏ͣ̇͑́̿ͯ͋͑̂̇ͯ̉͛ͩ͞ͅ ̴̷̱̫̤̘̮̲ͮͧͥ̇ͪ̃̄͌̽̋͐͑ͅ ̴̵͈̙̳̺̱̗̆̓͌̃͐̀͌ͦͪ̌̄̕͞ ̴̯̫͍̭͙̎ͣ͑́̾͂̂ͩͭͥ̋͆ͬ͌ͯ ̸̢̲̳̻̜̬̥͖̤̟̖͔̱ͩͧ̎̃̏̓͋ͩ̈͊͑̚͜ ͒͆ͦͥ̌̐͛̉͟҉̺̩̗͈̭̺̠̭͓̼͕̲̼ͅ ̡̜͓͖̠̝̺̪̫̥̫̈́̑̾̈̽̉̿ͮ̏́ͨ̀͟ ̨̞̗̫̝͕̘̼̳͔̜ͪͩ̍̋̀̚ ͌͋ͤͨͭ͛͐̆͐ͯ͗͞҉͚̖͈̹̰͍̮̱͚̗̬͚͙͍͕̠͍͔͕ ̶̡͎͔̼̜͇͇͇͑̆̇̃̕͜A̴̢̤̣̪̯̥̦̰͉̹̰̬̅̒ͤ͛̅ͭ̒̏̚͜͟

ͭ̽́̌́҉̻̱̗͎͖͢ ̡͂̐͛͛́͑͒̈̾̂̄͐̚҉̸̰̭̲̤̞̙͖̼̬͓̯͉ ̗̱̠̺̙̭͖̘̥̋̊̆ͥ̊́́̕ ̷̶̦̺͈͍͓̲͕̩ͪ̅͒ͪ̇̍͑ͧ̐ͦͨ͛̔ͥ̈ͨͩ͛̚͝ ̸̜̙̮͔̹̂̐ͭ͌̃̄ͤ̈́ͬͣͮ̈́̽̄̈́ͭ̔͜͢ ̶̨̛̠͕̩̭͖̱͔̱̣̺̗̘̰͗ͪ̑͗̑͆ͣ̋͘ ̺̫̟̫̯̰̗͕̪̫͙͙͉̦̣͙͓̒ͨ̊̉ͩͤͨ͐̍ͯ͋ͣ͝͡ ̛̉̿̏͛̂̇̈͛̃͂́҉͏̮͖̱̫̀ ̸͕̫͍̻̼̳̮͎͔̻̺͇̱͎ͮͫ̀͂̃̋͊ͪͬͦͥͯ̆ͨ͂̏͐̀͞ ̢̳̘̻ͨ̄̽̋͑̏̏ͯ̓̄̌̀̚ ̧̖̦͇̦͕͍͉ͩ̽̿ͭͅ ̸̸͓̪̩̩̤̱͔͇͓̳́̏̀͋ͧͭ̅̐͛ͫ͂́͌ͮ͆̾ͬͥ̚ ̨͋͆̓͆̀̅̓̄̏͏̢̤͉̲̟̹͍̱͉͎T̸̶̢̖̺̗̰͈͉̘͈̫̘̹̭̠͇ͨ̊̃ͦ̏͌ͫ͋ͮ͌̚͟

̷̋ͦͤ͋͒͗͒ͫ̄̋̾́͟҉̷̥̼̱̟͎͎̙̼ ̴͇͈̥͙̯̣̃̈́̀͋̐̇ͨ̄̐ͤ̌̅͐̑̌̂̈́͗̚ ̖̼̣̰̜̭͓̳̹̼̝̑̑̽͒̍ͯ̈͊̀̽̄̃̃̑͂̒́̚̚̕͜͠ ̛̗͖̻̳̙̦̘͓͇͚͖͔̤̦͖͇̓̄͐͊ͧ̅́́ ̵͎̭̰͓̼͓̗̮̭̣͔̘̤̗͑̿ͬ͌́́͞ͅ ̶͎̙̹̺̦͓̠ͧͥ̆̈̓ͮ́̒̅͐̕͜ ̵̯̣͚͉̘̩ͣ̅̀̏͗ͯ̅̐̉͌͠ͅ ̸̢̮̦͍̥̭̪̼̝̩ͮ͊̍ͬ̉ͪͨͪ̽̏́̕͝ͅ ̢̪͈͕̣̬̺̩̟̣̘̼͕̝̤͓̩̠̓̈̂ͯ͊ͧ̓́ ̧̩͈͔̘̳̬̦͍̘͉̤̩̮̝̪͍ͦͨ̑ͭ͛ͯ͛ͭ̀̕͢ͅ ̦̝̯͓̦̻̥̹̻͍͓̲̮̮̰̗͉͗̌̾̀̽͒̋ͫ̈́̆̅ͮ͆ͣͯ̓́͑́͘͟͜͝ ̵̏ͨ̈͋̔ͤͯ͐ͫ͐͑̓̾͏̸̭͓͔̖͖̰̻͟ ̵̛̹͎̲̰̱͚͙̝̪̮̙͇̘̱̤̙͐ͮ̏̓͊̚̕͝͝ ̴̨̛͉̻̠̭̹͓̰͓̮͎̦̤͖̗̮́̔̃͆ͬͯ̉ͫͮ͂̊̑ͩ͠E̡̾̃͛̆̿̓͆͛̂̿͆̎҉̛͖̦̯̳̼̪̲͎̟͓̬̪̣̫̗̟̗̕͡ͅ I collapse to my knees and retch, covering my mouth with my hand. What... What was that...? What was that?! I can't even remember it?! All I can remember is re-! I squeeze my chest, doubling over. I-I can't look again... I feel... I feel sick... I... I don't know... I don't understand...?

I squeeze my eyes shut... and press my forehead against the ashes. I bite my hand but I can't feel it. What the hell... is happening to me? 「 In the story of the Ancient Shadow King, he is driven mad by a devil. 「 ...When mortals hear devil, they imagine a single demon, not two. 」 I lift my head and bang it on the ground. I still can't feel anything. 「 But it is not that the story is wrong, there faithfully is only one devil. 「 You've beheld it, an amalgamation of wrongness. 」 「 Shut up... Shut up! Shut up! Shut up-! 」 My vision blacks out... ...and returns a split second later. Only... everything is blurry... and my body is stinging all over... Something is building in my throat. I lean to the side and throw up. It's blood. 「 And that is why Dream Eater did not choose you. 」 I breathe -- and lean back against a wall. The sharp markings... are gone... I must have... gotten hit... The... flamelance... So that's... 「 Da...mn... 」 I equip a healing tome. 「 ... 」 I equip a healing tome. 「 Come on... not like this... Artibeus! 」 「 I said... Artibeus! 」 「 A disgusting god, if I were to give my thoughts. 」 「 Nobody asked! 」 I lean my hand against the wall and kick my legs. All of my equipment... scattered on the ground... A piece of my rucksack... a piece of the coffins... Here and there... ah... it's all messed up... 「 You got... really strong huh... 」 I dig my hand into my pocket. I don't feel anything. I check another pocket... Sand, or ashes, one of the two... 「 You were ten percent of the way there, I can tell you that much. 」 「 Giii... dying here would be really bad... you'll be killed by Highlanders... 」 「 ...You still believe they are capable of defeating me? 「 You, who were assisted by Sing and Crier, and still ended up this way? 」 I laugh until it hurts. 「 You think this is a joke?! There are twenty-four Highlanders! 「 If I can do ten percent as a merchant what do you think 「 the actual Highlanders are gonna be like, huh?! 「 You're an ant to them! You're nothing! They'll walk right over you... 「 just like they walked over the so-called "intangible" Dream Eater!」 I let out a strained laugh, and let myself fall back to the ground. 「 You think you're invincible... until someone comes along who's even more so. 「 That's how they go out... That's what happens to all the old heroes... 」 I glance down, finding some coins on the ground. They must have gotten scattered... Maybe... I could... 「 Who am I kidding, it's over... I failed again... 「 I'm not cut out for this whole... "fighting" thing... 「 Should have just kept running... 」 My vision blurs again, I wipe at my eyes. 「 Alphaezai... goddess... 「 I just want them to be okay... 「 That's all I'm asking... they're the only ones I've got left! 「 Please... I just... I just want to get this one thing right! 「 I paid everything I had! That's all I have! Please! 「 ...Please. 「 ...Please... 「 Ha... 「 I'm all... 「 ou...t... 」 「 ...I bless your words with weight. 「 From here on, I am your goddess. 「 Rest easy, they are safe with me. 」 「 Alph-Poly! How are ya?! It's been ages! Where's ol' crow? 」 「 Ah... hey! He's... he's... well... 」 「 Polimion? Is that you? Where's Dream Eater? 」 「 Oh! It's been a while... but... haha... I'm back! 」 「Oi! Polimion! Up here! 」 「Oh... h-hey... 」 「Hey are... you alright? Where's Jing'ra?」 「I... I'm fine, it was a long trip. Listen... I need a favour... 」 「Do the thing Poly! I heard you were coming back so I brought all my friends! 」 「H-Hi ho!~ I'm here! It's The Wonderful Merchant of Myth and Magic, lucky-! 」 「Come here. 」 「Huh? Wha- 」 「What the hell are you doing back here? Where's Dream Eater? 」 「D...Dream Eater is... 」 「Shh... It's alright... you're doing fine. 」 「 ... 」 「Don't let them get to you. You're on a mission nobody else can do, 「you're the only one... and I know you won't let them down. 」 「 Ah, The Wonderful Merchant of Myth and Magic! 「 Just the woman I wanted to see! What can I do for you? 「 Where's that big bag'o'bolts? The Black Flash of Steel? The-」 「 We went our separate ways. Listen, I have a deal for you. 」 「 Get out of here! We know you're Dream Eater's cohort! 「 That monster ruined us, how dare you come back?! 」 「 What? Who told you that? 」 「 Guards! Guards! 」 「 Oh, welcome back. Are you okay? 「 You look like you just travelled to the end of the world and back. 」 「 U-Um... 」 「 Shoot, I did it again didn't I? 」 「 P...Pfft... I... It's fine! It's fine... really... 」 「 So you're headed back? 」 「 Yeah... I have really important business there. 」 「 Ah, off to make another big haul, eh? Cha-ching! 」 「 No... no, not this time... it's... it's personal this time. 」 「 ...Why are you here? 」 「 I need help. 」 「 ...Where is he? 」 「 He's dead. 」 「 ...Come with me, you have my grievances. 」 「 Hey, after you do whatever you gotta do, come back right away! 」 「 Huh? Why? 」 「 Listen, I just got a whiff of something big going on down south. 「 You and me? Once in a lifetime opportunity? Instant retirement, I tell ya. 」 「 You're always on about that instant retirement!」 「 This is it! I'm tellin' ya, we're gonna hit it big! This is the one! 「 I'll finally be able to get off this crappy boat and I'll take ya across the bay 「 as many times as you want, no charge. Easy! It's for sure! Whaddaya say?」 「 Ha... I'll tell you what. I don't like to gamble without an omen. 「 So if you've caught a fish bigger than me when I get back, I'll take a look.」 「 What?! A fish- 」 「 Better get fishing! 」 「 ...Ay! It's a promise you hear?! Don't stick me up! I've got two good legs and...! 」 「 Ah... dammit... I gotta check to see if he ever caught that fish... 」 I push myself up- 「 Stay down. 」 ...A blade tip. I look up the blade to the wielder. Long black hair, skin as pale as mine, glowing blue eyes... and she's wearing the missing half of Jing'ra's jaw. It's Marie. Goz pops out from behind her. 「 Sup' Poly! Wow, you look awful -- I mean, more than usual. 」 「 Goz, you are late. 」 「 Ah...Ahaha... well, you know how it is... 」 Goz, Marie... everyone... it's the Highlanders... Xaiyoya... as well... he has his back turned but I can see him... Why... is he still here? Did they capture him? 「 As the First Princess of Lafokia, The Ariadyne, 「 Rank Second Highlander, Crown of the Grand Armoire, 「 Third Captain of- 」 「 Holy moly, get on with it Marie! 」 「 Silence, Goz! You're speaking to- 」 「 ...I, Fae'larias 'Marie' Lagunn'kai... place you under arrest. 」 I lie back down. 「 Get up, Yu'mae's been healing you for twenty minutes straight. 「 You're well enough to walk. 」 「 Hold on, walk? Marie, I don't recommend- 」 Marie glares. The bespectacled Highlander flinches. 「 What is a merchant... without wares, nor gold? 」 Silence. 「 ...A street beggar. 」 She pulls her blade away. 「 She's harmless... walk her back. DPS, escort her. 「 Everyone else, resume your work. 」 「 ... 」 I sit up, and my shoulder is lightly squeezed. 「 Um... sorry... about all this Alph-Polimion... 」 「 Yu'mae don't apologize, she came here on her own. 」 「 Ay! You don't know that, don't talk like it's decided- 」 「 Get off it. If you really can't tell already I don't- 」 「 Shut up, all of you. 」 Marie's voice isn't loud or hoarse in any way, it's slow, almost inviting, but it stands above the rest. There's a clear line between her, and the rest of the group. 「 It's been a zoo ever since we found Polimion. 「 Get in line, this mission is life and death until we're home. 「 You, stay here. Goz, you're going with her.」 Goz subtly fist pumps when no one's looking. 「 Move. 」 A tense silence looms as I get up on my own. I try not to look at anyone's faces and stare at the ground. As we move to descend the mountain, Marie speaks up once more. 「 Necromancer. 」 「 Yes, princess? 」 「 Come here, you're with me now. 」 「 Of course. 」 「 ... 」 I look up, off into the distance, towards the town of Exaibon. " Rest easy, they are safe with me. " Those words echo in my mind. 「 You're smiling. 」 I'm not- 「 ... 」 I lower my antennae. Goz smirks, before hiding behind a stale frown. I still can't tell if she's with, or against me. ...But it doesn't matter. Agehatate, Sing, and Crier, are gone. It's done. It's over... They're safe. Even if Sing and Crier really are some kind of evil, I'm sure Mak knew what he was doing, I'm sure Agehatate was the right choice, and... I'm sure they'll be happy. It's just a feeling, but... That's really... all I could ask for. [END]