[407] The Final Decision (7)
The party left Miro's timestream and gathered in Alpheas's secret chamber.
Gaold sat cross-legged, hands on his knees, lost in thought.
It was disappointing they couldn't see Miro, but that wasn't the pressing matter.
"The final war might come sooner than expected. Then we'll have to move faster. Kangnan will be heading to Galliant. One more person may come, or may not, but it's time to make a choice."
Gaold said to Shirone.
"If the final war breaks out, whoever stands against the enemy will be hailed as a hero. But if someone comes with us now, they'll be the traitor who brought the final war early."
Hero or traitor—none of that mattered to Shirone.
If someone of Gaold's caliber risked his life for this operation, Shirone's chance of surviving was less than one percent.
"If we give you time, how long do you need?"
"We leave for Galliant tonight. We'll wait for Kangnan, of course, but it won't be more than two days. If you've decided to go to Heaven, come to Galliant. The headmaster will handle the academy matters. Not that that matters much on the road to death."
Gaold didn't bother to hide how dangerous it was.
He needed Shirone's ability, but if Shirone came with only half-hearted resolve, it would be better for him not to be on the team.
Bringing a terrified rookie along would only mean doing nothing and being wiped out.
Armin stepped forward.
Even though she had confirmed Miro's timestream, she had come to fulfill her contract.
"Shiina will not go to Heaven."
"Oh, that was the condition. Fine. Shiina, you can't go to Heaven. As of this moment, you're out of the team."
Shiina shook her head.
If that was why Armin had come, and if that was all Gaold had recruited her for, it hurt her pride as a Grade-5 certified mage.
"Why should I follow someone else's decision instead of being part of the team? I'm going to Heaven."
"That settles it, then. The contract's complete."
Light flared from beneath Armin's bandages.
Keira swallowed at the ferocity of the aura, as if blades were whirling.
"I'm not joking. You'd better honor the contract properly. If you want to go to Heaven in one piece."
Armin had exposed herself knowing it would wound Shiina—and she had done it only to stop Shiina from going to Heaven.
Rescuing Miro? Nonsense.
Armin of the Human Safety Enforcement Bureau knew Heaven's military power better than anyone.
Gaold might be a freak among Red Line Grade 1s, specialized purely in combat, but even if he threw himself in full force, it was doubtful he could handle an archangel, much less Heaven itself.
Not impossible, of course.
Nothing in battle is absolute; a thin variable, accreted like a snowball, might be broken by strategy and tactics.
But Heaven's enemies differ from anything in the human world.
If you clash without sufficient information, the winner is decided by the simple logic of force.
That was why the ivory tower and even the Holy War focused on delaying the final war until they'd gathered as much information as possible.
Gaold replied coolly.
"What, you want me to do what? I don't beg. I'm not some parasite brother. Even if I don't take her, Shiina will come to Heaven on her own."
A vein throbbed at Armin's temple.
"Cut it out, Gaold. If you want to die, go die alone. Your madness is nothing but trouble for the world."
"Oh, sorry for being a nuisance. But you know what really gets me? When you say that, you conveniently leave out the nuisance the world did to me. I suffered alone, but you lot spread it across humanity—so don't whine. Hearing you gripe makes me sick."
Armin snorted.
"The nuisance the world did to you? No, you're just a madman possessed by ugly desire. Can you really say Miro had no choice? The Day of Judgment of the Twenty…."
"What do you know?"
Gaold's face went pale.
Flames burned in his wide-open eyes.
"What do you… know about Miro?"
"Eek!"
Plu squeezed her eyes shut.
As always, the Scorching Hell began to eat at the edges of the space, and a ghoul's scream burst out.
When the pain Gaold had experienced spilled outward from his body, even the teachers shuddered.
It was an ordeal that would drive a normal person insane.
Armin's nose bridge twisted hard.
When her mad glare flared, a phenomenon of the flames stopping from behind Armin surged toward Gaold.
The two worlds—blazing hell and eternalness—collided, centered where the two stood.
"Don't do pathetic theatrics. Don't think you experienced hell alone. This is your last warning. Promise you won't take Shiina."
"Heh heh heh, now I see. You're just a clueless lump of flesh. An Æonian Reflector? Hiding away, whining in a world where nothing changes…."
Gaold's Spirit Zone unfurled.
"You, of all people, talk about hell?"
Kshhhhhh!
The shockwave from the clash of the two Spirit Zones spread in a spherical form, denting the room's walls.
"Uuuugh…."
When the actual force hit, Shirone felt like dying.
At least it was some comfort that others were struggling too.
As Scorching Hell and the Eternal World tangled, an unbearable pressure squeezed everyone's hearts.
Then two golden gears punched through the curtain of hell and meshed as they spun.
The scenery was sucked in and shredded. From the edges inward, the original world began to reappear, as if someone had pulled the carpet at the center.
When the hell vanished, people stared dumbly at the gears.
They had already become Sein's amber irises, glowing like halos and spinning rapidly.
Iron-Wheel Eye — Equilibrium.
Sein's specialty: two gears that compute a rational coefficient and an emotional coefficient to stabilize phenomena.
Seeing his old classmate's skill hadn't rusted even under a Heaven-bound crisis, Gaold felt satisfied.
Still, he disliked being treated the same as Armin, an ally with the same goal.
"What, beating him together isn't enough? Want to turn this into a three-way fight?"
"You're in front of your teacher. At any other time maybe, but right now restrain yourself."
Sein's attitude toward Alpheas matched Gaold's.
When the whole world had abandoned the Supernatural Psychoscience Research Group, Sein had been the only one to defend them.
Even Gaold had to hold back this time.
Alpheas wouldn't be swayed by mere ascetic trials, but if there was one person he didn't want to burden the world with, it was Sein.
Sein looked to Armin.
"I apologize for using your emotions. But we need as many capable people as possible. If you knew from the start, why don't you try persuading Shiina yourself? As I said, if the person gives it up, we won't force them. This isn't a mission to be carried out by coercion."
Shiina stepped forward.
She didn't want to look at Armin, but she couldn't stand others arguing over her.
"Just answer one thing, Armin oppa."
Armin, who had barely lifted her head until now, took the opening Shiina gave and spoke in a pleading voice.
"Shiina, I'm sorry for hiding it. But I—"
"Is Keira your wife?"
Keira brightened as if it were her moment to speak, then immediately paled and stepped back.
She had felt a terrifying killing intent from just behind Armin's shoulders.
Armin turned back to Shiina.
All traces of that killing intent vanished as if they'd never existed; she was gentle again.
"No, Keira is my monitor. There were circumstances. It was a marriage of convenience because of duty. Shiina, everything was for you. Give me a chance to explain."
A cold breath escaped Shiina between her lips.
A marriage of convenience? A monitor?
Was that supposed to be an explanation?
How much I suffered…
She had told herself every night to forget. She'd writhed in loneliness, desperately suppressing the desire to take him for herself, praying he would live happily with Keira.
And it was all a lie?
To deceive her so thoroughly, to play a loving couple in front of her, and then claim it was all for her sake?
"Shiina, you can be angry with me. But—"
"No, I'll speak."
Shiina cut him off with an outstretched hand.
There might have been circumstances. Even if there weren't, she had no right to be angry with Armin.
She could imagine the life Armin had led after losing her eyes to save Shiina.
"You saved my life, oppa. No matter what reason you had to deceive me, the fact that you gave me a new life doesn't change."
Armin clamped her mouth shut and raised her brows.
You don't have to thank me.
If you wished it, I'd give you my heart this instant. If Shiina wanted it, I'd give anything.
Shiina stepped forward and wrapped her arms around Armin's waist.
Even in the embrace of the man she had longed for, her heart stung like it had been lashed.
"Thank you, oppa. I'll never forget this. I'll live my life grateful for the life you gave me. But we're adults now. We can't treat each other with childhood feelings alone. Please leave me. That's my last wish to you."
"Shiina…."
Armin cried from her soul.
Without eyes, she couldn't even shed tears; the sight of herself was miserable.
She had to leave. She would do whatever Shiina wanted.
And she would wait. In case some tiny caprice made Shiina miss her.
Even if that never happened, she would wait her whole life.
"All right. I'll do as you say. I'll do anything you want."
Armin reached to stroke Shiina's cheek, then clenched her fist in frustration and turned away.
"Let's go."
"Armin, you can't possibly—"
Keira opened her mouth to shout something at Shiina, but Armin's Flicker magic acted first.
With a snap and a spark, the two vanished.
Even in a sealed room, Flicker magic that jumps space reminded everyone she was an Unlocker.
Gaold continued, relieved.
"Let's finalize things. We can't be sure Kangnan recruitment will succeed, but if we bring them, utility won't be an issue. If Shirone comes, our strategic options expand. Damage dealers will be me and Shiina; crowd control is Sein's job; we need one manipulation-class and one exploration-class."
Plu swelled with pride at her position being mentioned.
Originally a Grade-8 certified mage wouldn't have any place in this project. But conversely, that meant the team was severely short on power.
As expected, Gaold wasn't satisfied.
He didn't expect them to make a Kage-class, but they needed the right lineup to operate.
"I think we need one hitman. If someone can definitely remove a target, tactical flexibility skyrockets. Anyone good with a blade? Someone who can actually cut."
Sein said.
"Where would we suddenly get someone like that? Didn't you have a magic swordsman in your retinue?"
"He's gone dark. Probably dead. Anyway, think. Someone who can remove a target even if they die. Someone we don't have to worry about afterward. In short, someone crazy enough to want to die."
"That's asking too much."
"If any condition fails, we won't recruit them. We're a suicide commando. Anyone who follows for rewards will only be a liability."
Etella said.
"How about checking among certified knights? A renowned swordsman's skill is dependable."
"No. Those with convictions will burn for the wrong reasons. We're not going to war. For retrieving Miro, a hitman is ideal."
Sein checked the time.
"For now, let's head to Galliant. There might be a blade-handler in the Kergor Autonomous District."
Shiina raised her hand then.
"Um, how about a knight without convictions?"
All eyes turned to Shiina.
Gaold frowned as if to ask what she meant and repeated, "A knight with no convictions? Can you even call that a knight? Still—why ask?"
"There is one person. Someone who can really cut."