Chapter 458

“Beautiful night.”

Ulrike stretched his neck out and spoke with his eyes closed. The night breeze brushed past him.

“For some reason, my mana seems to flow better here. My legs feel so light, too.”

“Is that so.”

“I could feel it with my animal instinct.”

Julia burst out laughing. He nodded, then fell silent. Ulrike took the opportunity to speak again.

“Julia, do you know Bavaria well? How do we get there from here?”

“Hmm. The main road heading toward Nuremberg from here follows the railway to Ingolstadt. Let’s turn a little to the left here.”

“Okay.”

“If it’s around 40 kilometers, it’s still before Ingolstadt. We just need to keep following the railway. Once we get to around 35 kilometers, let’s pay close attention to the mana around us.”

“Ah, I feel so much better with you around. Just what I’d expect from you, Julia.”

Julia laughed at that. Before long, the city fell quiet again. Once all that remained was the sound of them cutting through the wind, Ulrike spoke.

“We’ve been here before, you know.”

“…….”

“On the way to Anhalt.”

“Right.”

It was after the Pentathlon, after Lukas had woken up. They passed through the main street, turned onto the road to their left, and continued along the road beside the railway, taking in their surroundings as they went. Ulrike continued.

“I never once imagined that I’d actually visit his home. Because… there wasn’t anyone in my family who knew any of the Askanien relatives well. Ah, well, there is one person.”

“Isabella Askanien?”

“Yeah, him. I’ve seen him from a distance three or four times, but he was too intimidating for me to get close to him. Even if we’d become friends and he’d invited me over, I probably couldn’t have gone to the main residence anyway~ Haha. And Adrian Askanien, being a direct member of the family, is completely out of my reach…”

Getting close to Adrian Askanien seemed almost as difficult as getting close to the Imperial Chancellor. His status was part of it, but there was another reason, too. He was young, but somehow didn’t feel young at all. Politicians who entered politics at a young age tended to be like that, so perhaps it couldn’t be helped.

And Lukas didn’t seem to like him very much. Of course, if he ever had the chance to get close to someone, Ulrike wouldn’t turn it down. But now, even if he somehow got the chance to approach Deputy Minister Adrian Askanien, he felt it might be a little awkward with Lukas in mind. It was a different matter from respect.

“I’d never even properly talked to Lukas, who had suddenly become my teammate. So I thought I’d never have any reason to go to Anhalt, let alone ever set foot in Anhalt’s palace.”

“That’s true.”

“And yet we’ve already been to Anhalt together. All seven of us, riding a train along this very railway. Isn’t that amazing?”

“…….”

And now, one of them had lost his soul, one had been summoned by the government for his divine power, one had been badly injured and still hadn’t woken up, and two had fallen into some unknown space and warped somewhere else.

And now the two of us were on our way to find the other two, following the same route we had taken on our trip not long ago. Ulrike almost said it aloud, but stopped himself. If he kept talking so cheerfully only to come face-to-face with their corpses, the hope he had borrowed from the future—and every word he had spoken with that borrowed hope—would come crashing back with several times the weight, crushing the breath out of him.

‘Enough.’

No matter how much he worried, the fate of the friends who had already been captured wouldn’t change. There was no point clinging to worries that could change nothing. Ulrike pulled himself together.

Normally, this would have been the point where he made another fuss about how amazing it was that they had traveled this road before. But he wasn’t really in the mood.

‘I wish I felt like it, though. Should I sing something?’

To lift his spirits, Ulrike rolled his tongue against his teeth, making a clicking sound, and began singing some song he barely remembered. It was the Prussian anthem, but he had changed the lyrics so much that the friend beside him didn’t even seem to recognize it as an actual song. Julia burst out laughing.

“What song is that?”

“This? You know this one. ‘Feel in the throne’s glow—the high ecstasy in full, to be darling of thy people! Hail to thee, emperor…’”

Before long, Ulrike stopped singing. Julia fell silent as well, a faint smile still on his face.

After everything they had been through—the chaos of hundreds of people rampaging and the collapse of the prison—the song that had been part of Ulrike’s childhood suddenly felt so distant. He couldn’t sing it with the same joy he had felt back when he used to hold his mother’s hand and go out to the square to see the Imperial Family’s carriage. Just as the person he had been in the past was no longer the person he was now, everything that had made up his childhood was slipping away from him as his view of the world changed. Ulrike stood in the very middle of that change. Realizing it filled him with sadness.

‘Come on. Get a grip. Let’s sing something else.’

Ulrike sang aloud a folk song he used to sing while running through the streets with his commoner friends, caught up in the excitement of it all. It made him smile naturally, as if he had gone back to his childhood. But then he remembered the prisoners who had lost their minds and died one after another. The relief of having escaped the brink of death and the lives extinguished by his own sword tangled together inside him, and his throat tightened.

He was no longer a child, and he no longer lived in some dreamlike world where there were no barriers between one human being and another. He had fully realized that today, and once he did, his thoughts began to spiral out of control. He had to break out of his shell and look down upon a world divided by wall after wall, like a maze.

Ulrike looked down at his uniform, stained with vitriol. Now that he thought about it, he remembered the hostile looks some commoners had given him whenever he walked through the streets in uniform. He was hardly in a position to feel any resentment toward the Prussian national anthem himself.

“…….”

When the singing stopped, Julia looked at Ulrike. Ulrike noticed it too.

He could no longer shamelessly sing the people’s songs, nor could he sing the anthem. He was a tool, but he was also part of the people who turned others into tools, and at the same time, he was still being used up as one himself. He became convinced that this broken way of thinking applied to everyone without exception, leaving even those who sought to benefit from it with no choice but to be consumed by the times in the end.

Adults turned other people into tools to enrich themselves, without even realizing that they, too, had become tools. Why couldn’t they see it? Ulrike could not understand why people would bring about their own destruction just to gain something. But someday, he would understand it better than anyone, just like the people of his family, and he would forget the questions he had today.

‘How much longer until I become a monster wearing a human face?’

Have I finally reached the point where I’m about to die, for me to be thinking this much? Even as he had such a ridiculous thought, Ulrike murmured seriously in a voice so faint that it was nearly swallowed by the sound of the wind.

“I understand now. When you told me I should do whatever I wanted to do today… you were saying that purely for my sake, weren’t you?”

Even then, Julia seemed to catch his quiet voice and silently raised his head. He breathed in the night air before asking, “What were you thinking about?”

“Do you know that monster that can’t control its appetite and ends up tearing off and eating its own flesh¹?”

“No.”

“I was thinking of the folktale where it appears. We’re that monster, and at the same time, we’re also being chased by it.”

In truth, they had already left Munich at full speed and shaken off the Rampagers, so there was nothing actually chasing them. He was only using them as a metaphor for the situation when viewed from a distance. He was about to laugh it off and say he was just talking nonsense, but Julia answered first.

“Looks like you need the next step of advice.”

“What is it? I want to hear it.”

“Hmm. That one’s a little expensive. But I owe you hope, so I suppose I should tell you.”

Julia answered with a faint smile. Before Ulrike could fire back with the joke that had just popped into his head, Julia continued.

“We’ll never be able to forget that we’re the monster, Luise.”

Julia probably meant that they would have to live with that debt for the rest of their lives, but strangely enough, his words lifted one layer of darkness from Ulrike’s heart. Ulrike turned his head and stared at his friend. Still looking straight ahead, Julia spoke clearly.

“An individual is powerless. You and I can’t turn a desert into a forest overnight.”

“…….”

“But the era is calling for us.”

Ulrike’s eyes slowly widened. Something in those words struck a chord, though he couldn’t tell exactly why. His instincts were faster than his thoughts. As if he knew that, Julia kept his eyes ahead and continued with a gentle lift of his lips.

“I asked you earlier, didn’t I? Whether it was humanity’s problem or the era’s problem. They’re probably both, so no matter when it is, I don’t think I’ll ever be able to choose just one. But this much is certain. It would be convenient to blame everything on the era. But when the 20th century comes, or the 21st, or a thousand years from now, will humanity stop seeing other human beings as tools?”

“Hmm…”

“That doesn’t exactly paint an optimistic picture. Exploitation will just appear in a different shell. But one thing is certain. Humanity and the eras are what brought us into this world today, but they’re also what guide us forward. If you, with the thoughts you have now, had been born a thousand years ago, you would have been able to accomplish even less than you can now. That’s how the eras confine people. But things are different now.”

Ulrike slowly opened his mouth. Just as he was about to say something, Julia turned his head and smiled.

“Luise. The era calls upon everyone. We live right before the face of that era.”

“…….”

“Is that the answer you wanted? I may have jumped to a conclusion a little.”

“That’s the answer I wanted. More than enough.”

“We’re just one wave among many, Luise. There’s more you can do in this society than you think, but even so, you’ll never be able to accomplish everything you want before the day you die. Even if you’re a noble, you’re still only one person. And every time that happens, you’ll feel powerless, just like you did a moment ago.”

“I suppose so.”

“So if you want to change something, remember what despair feels like, but don’t despair. Live today. You have to survive if you want to change today as part of this era.”

“…….”

Ulrike closed his eyes and thought for a while before speaking softly.

“Julia. You remember how, until we came here, I wanted to work in the same place as Sir Nikolaus.”

“I remember.”

“I changed my mind. I’m glad I got the chance to know you today.”

At those words, Julia raised an eyebrow, remained silent for a moment, then smiled.

“It’s actually rather fun motivating you. I feel the same. It’s an honor to share your today with you.”

For some reason, that sounded like Julia had experienced the same inner conflict as Ulrike in the past. And that was probably why he was glad to share this moment of change. It might not have been true, but it was words to be grateful for. Ulrike just smiled quietly, then gave an idle reply.

“I’m pretty fun, you know.”

“…? Haha.”

Ulrike closed his eyes and took a deep breath. Blinking once to clear his head completely, he spoke.

“It’s strange. I’ve gone through so many changes over the past two months.”

“Do you regret it?”

“No. Did I even have a choice?”

Ulrike knew he had answered more bluntly than usual, but he didn’t bother to smooth it over. A thought flashed through Ulrike’s mind. Could it be that I’m finally starting to feel comfortable with my teammates? He continued.

“Even if I did, I wouldn’t regret it. I got the chance to know all of you, didn’t I? Yeah, honestly, I’ll tell you the truth. We still don’t know each other all that well.”

Julia looked at his companion. Ulrike kept his eyes forward, pushing the pedals as he went on.

“I know I can be a little too nosy, and that I’m the kind of guy who keeps trying to get close to people even when we’re not that close yet. I know I’m always watching your reactions because I want us to get along. And I know you guys might find someone like me a little overwhelming.”

Julia said nothing. Ulrike had no way of knowing what was going through his mind as he remained silent. They simply continued riding along the open land lined with fir trees.

“Anyway, we haven’t been a team for very long. So Lukas, Elias, Heike, and maybe even you, Julia… might not really think of me as a close friend.”

As he said that, the next station finally came into view. How far had they made it by now? With a vague sense of anticipation, Ulrike pedaled harder. Looking at the station sign, dark and unlit, he continued.

“From my side of things, all the friends I was close to at school are now serving in the Student Military Corps under the academy. To be honest, Eszett is just a team I have to get used to from here on out.”

“…….”

“So, in a way, I’m actually glad.”

Ulrike looked at Julia as he said it. Julia met his eyes and listened to him with a calm expression.

“Both you and I got the chance to spend a hundred years with people we probably never would have gotten close to if it weren’t for this team. When I look back on my life, I’ll have met the people who’ll be there with me through all those moments. Maybe not right now, but someday. Look! Even just now, we were remembering that trip we took together along this railway.”

“That’s true.”

“And just now, talking to you, I got to find out what you’re like at eighteen. So…”

Ulrike grinned, and Julia turned his head to look at him. Meeting his eyes, Ulrike said, “If we make it back alive, I’m sure this moment today will become a memory we’ll treasure. Julia, even though the two of us have dealt with Rampagers a few times, this is our first time going to help our friends, isn’t it?”

Ulrike took his left hand off the handlebars and held out his fist toward Julia. He raised the corners of his mouth and said, “Let’s celebrate our first joint operation. No matter whether we succeed or fail.”

“…….”

Julia took one hand off his handlebars as well. He bumped his fist against Ulrike’s and smiled.

“Luise. There’s one thing you’ve got wrong. I haven’t said this until now, but I already consider you a close enough friend.”

“Oh.”

“But I agree with you that it’s nice to have the chance to get to know all these different friends more deeply.”

“A friend as hard to get close to as you saying something like that? I should embroider it on silk and hang it on the wall.”

“You’re making fun of me.”

“Hahaha.”

Ulrike turned his head forward with a laugh, only to find a steep hill rising ahead of them. The road had probably been built over the low mountain because there was no other choice, but the incline was daunting. Ulrike let out a shrill cry, and Julia drew in a breath.

“Whew.”

“Julia! We have to make it up in one go without slowing down. Got it?”

“I know.”

“Otherwise we’ll slide back down! The gear’s fixed!”

“Let’s not talk about sliding back down. We just have to make it.”

Ignoring Julia completely, Ulrike started counting.

“Three, two…! One.”

Bang—

Ulrike felt the wind push him backward. His bike jolted as he hit a rock, but somehow, they made it. When the wind suddenly died down for a moment, Ulrike opened his eyes and shouted.

“Waaaaah…! Huh, ah, I made it!”

“Congratulations.”

“Now we have to go back down!”

“Hmm. This is fun…”

Julia said it with a smile that suggested he wasn’t having much fun at all. Ulrike considered letting go of the handlebars and screaming with joy all the way down, but then remembered they were on a mountain and decided to make the descent properly.

Whoosh—

“Waaaaaaaah!”

Ulrike gripped the handlebars tightly and deliberately screamed as he rode downhill. After a while, he started feeling increasingly hungry and asked Julia, “How many more hills are there…?”

“Who knows.”

Julia snickered and pointed toward a large road sign in the distance.

[Munich 20 km]

“One thing’s for sure. I think we’re halfway there now.”

Another hour passed like that. By the time they had climbed their second hill, they were both too exhausted to speak. But at some point, something other than fatigue began to linger around them.

Vigilance.

They had passed the 35 kilometer mark and were now around 41 kilometers out.

“I found it.”

Ulrike whispered. Julia nodded as well.

It wasn’t difficult to find a mansion with people inside. In a world where there was no one else around—which Ulrike found so strange that he had spent quite some time discussing it with Julia—there should hardly have been any mana to sense. Yet mana was flowing from one mansion all the way to the road.

Strangely, there was no light. But Lukas had told them that ‘the member of the Einsiedel family’ was a divine-power mage, so it was entirely possible that he had cast a cognitive distortion spell.

A mansion where mana could be sensed, exactly 40 kilometers or so from Munich in the direction of Nuremberg?

‘…I’m sure of it. They’re there.’

Lukas, Elias, Sir Nikolaus Ernst, and the relative who was keeping Heike’s soul. From this point on, it would be decided whether they would find corpses or come face-to-face with the living. It had probably already been decided, but to Ulrike, it felt as though the decision was being made right now.

His heart pounded.

“Like I said before….”

“……”

“The fact that we know this route at all is a threat to him. Our very appearance here is bad news for Heike’s relative.”

Ulrike whispered quickly, almost as if he were talking to himself. He knew full well that he was trying to steel his resolve.

“How delightful.”

Julia gave a brief reply, then stopped his bicycle and started walking toward the mansion.

It could put them in a better position for negotiations, but that also meant Ulrike had to consider the possibility that his friends might be put in danger by their appearance. They had to get inside as quickly as possible. Ulrike steeled himself, almost forcing the thought into his own mind, and matched Julia’s pace.

It wasn’t until they reached the center of the mansion’s garden that he noticed something strange.

“…There’s no barrier?”

“…….”

Had they not expected any intruders? They had gone to the trouble of setting up a cognitive distortion spell, so it was certainly possible.

‘Works for us.’

The problem was—

BOOM—!

If there was no barrier, then they must have prepared something else in its place!

Suffocating vitriol came rushing at them. Ulrike changed his wand into a sword and charged straight through the vitriol flying toward him and Julia. Behind him, Julia’s golden mana canceled out the streams of vitriol.

Ulrike cut down the streams flying at him as he ran toward their source. Something sticky tried to grab his arms and legs, but it stood no chance. As flashes of light and darkness repeatedly obscured his vision, Ulrike narrowed his eyes and focused on his senses.

‘One? No, two.’

He could hear the sound of footsteps crushing leaves from both sides. So they secretly set up an ambush with their most trusted subordinates. Figures.

Ulrike swung his sword. He felt the blade strike something, followed by the sound of someone sucking in a breath. He immediately retreated to create some distance, but his opponent came after him.

KRA-KA-BOOM—!

The opponent’s vitriol erupted with a deafening roar. He could hear the barrier burning. But unlike before, they weren’t calculating their attacks. They were just throwing everything they had at him. Ulrike twisted up the corner of his mouth.

‘So what I hit earlier was their forearm.’

That was good news for a vitriol user. An arm was better than a leg. He sucked in a sharp breath and plunged once more into the darkness and Julia’s flashes of light.

— If you remain in me and my words remain in you…

Ask whatever you wish, and it will be done for you! Blue light rose from the sword like smoke. It swept in a curved arc across his field of vision. Once more. And again.

CRACK—!

The smell of blood filled the air. The moment he heard his opponent’s shrill scream, Ulrike immediately pulled back. More importantly…

‘I can’t keep dragging this out.’

“Luise!”

At Julia’s shout, Ulrike thrust his sword forward like a wand, blocking the vitriol rushing toward him before throwing himself over the bushes.

Crash!

Ulrike knew exactly what Julia meant.

The sound of the barrier shattering rang out. While Julia kept the two Pleroma mages occupied, Ulrike rushed inside, wrapping mana around his legs and flying up the stairs. He struck the floor with his staff as he continued upward. Thanks to Julia keeping the mages at bay, none of them followed him.

Ulrike kept climbing until he stopped in front of the top floor. The corridor was blocked by a massive wooden door. There was a keyhole, but naturally, he had no key.

‘Then I’ll just get rid of it.’

Ulrike shifted his sword into a staff and swung it at the wooden door.

Bang!

Another deafening crash rang out. After hitting it nearly ten times in succession, the door broke apart and fell to the floor. He stepped over the wreckage and ran down the corridor.

‘Where could they be?’

Where? His heart pounded even harder, the thudding echoing in his ears. Ulrike ran through the hall and down the corridor before stopping in front of a massive room. Mana was seeping through the gap beneath the door. He poured mana into his legs and kicked the door open.

BOOOOM—!

The first thing Ulrike saw through the door as it flew open was Elias. He was lying on a bed in the distance. His heart seemed to sink even as relief flooded through him. Ulrike’s gaze hurriedly dropped lower.

There was someone with white hair who strangely resembled Elias—and Lukas, gripping him by the collar. Ulrike’s eyes met Lukas’s wide-eyed stare. It almost seemed as though white mana had flared up in front of Lukas before disappearing.

“…….”

Found them. They’re alive.

‘They’re alive.’

Ulrike silently looked at his friends’ faces. Then he slowly let out a breathy laugh. He had so many things he wanted to say, yet not a single word came out. Lukas, looking just as surprised, slowly smiled. In an exhausted voice, yet one filled with more joy than ever, he called his name.

“Luise.”

The white-haired mage closed his eyes and let out a deep sigh. Then he gave a cold, humorless chuckle.

“You all certainly have a talent for making things difficult.”

Translator Note

1. I don’t know for sure, but I think this might refer to the myth of Erysichthon in Greek mythology. After offending the goddess Demeter, Erysichthon was cursed with an insatiable hunger. No matter how much he ate, he could never be satisfied, eventually consuming all his possessions and, in some versions, tearing off and eating his own flesh. ↩︎