Farewell
“Why……why, is something like this”
Setsuna’s voice leaks out,
“……terrible”
and Fiー’s voice also leaks out.
What opened the door and came in were; people with horrible complexions like there’s no blood coursing through their entire body. They have vacant eyes, and the way they walk was so strange that I end up wondering whether if they injured their legs.
Andーーthere are even those with a part of their body missing amongst them. But they’re not bleeding. It’s as though there’s no blood flowing in their body. Their appearances were strange.
“Are those fellows also, of this Country of Demise?”
I asked the two of them.
However, the two of them are gaping their mouths in shock.
And then,
“……they are not of the Country of Demise”
Setsuna’s sorrowful-looking eyes, stare fixedly at me.
“Those are, everybody who had lived together with us……”
“Had lived……hey, don’t tell me”
“It’s not back when we were living while being on the move; it’s everybody from the hometown of Setsuna and me”
Hearing Fiー’s words, I immediately knew that they, who are tottering over, aren’t the living. They’re the deceased that are roaming about without any purpose, just like moving corpses.
“……which means, the power of control corpses huh”
There’s an occupation like the Marionette; it wouldn’t be strange even if there are also other occupations that I don’t know.
ーーbut, if there’s such an occupation, then I think it’s a power that’s in bad taste.
“They’re already, dead, right?”
I speak to the pair while looking at those guys, who make incomprehensible agonizing voices.
“It is everybody who should have been killed in the conflict with the other territories……the carpenter Oji-chan; the Obaa-chan next door; all of them, are faces I know……. I can tell, even if their original forms are gone”
I guess the only ones who can distinguish between their original faces despite their melted skin and messed up appearances, are Setsuna, who had lived together with them the whole time, and Fiー who was from their hometown.
And then, Shirona and Kurona opened their mouth.
“Although the memories are vague, I, know those people”
“They are those who are here with us. They don’t eat anything, don’t drink anything, they’re just……corpses that walk continuously without any purpose. In our memories, somebody was calling them ‘zombies'”
“……is that so”
Ever since we entered this castle, we didn’t encounter any humans. The Country of Demise’s knights are outside here, perhaps only those who are called ‘zombies’ are in this castle.
I don’t know about that, but what I’m going to do is obvious.
“……let’s, put them to rest”
I manifest a sword.
I can’t feel anything but suffering from their expressions and voices. And from Fiー and Setsuna, who are looking at them, I can’t feel anything but sadness.
So I shall liberate them from the suffering and sorrow, since that’s, the only thing that can be done.
And I have to, do that alone.
“I’ll do it. So step back, everybody”
It’s cruel to make Fiー and Setsuna bury everybody from their hometown. In that case, I, who’s an outsider, should do it.
And then the two of them nod with sorrowful-looking expressions. However,
“We’ll also, help”
“Eeh, since we’re not related to them”
“……that’ll be a great help, but will you be alright?”
When Shirona and Kurona take the weapons that they’d been using into their hands, they nodded in their masked figures, where their expressions aren’t visible.
“Although it’s a strange feeling, I remember how to use this weapon”
“Eeh, I think we will be able to help as well”
Their bodies remember how to use the weapons. I guess even if their memories of being controlled as puppets faded, their bodies remember, and as their owners, those weapons also give them power huh.
“We’ll do it as fast as possible, but don’t overdo it, you two”
The two of them who exhaled, ‘Fuu’,
“Un”
“Yes”
In an instant, it felt like the atmosphere surrounding them changed.
I’m a little bit worried about their conditions, but nevertheless, they neither direct their hostility towards us nor rampage mindlessly.
“Alright, we’re going”
I run at the front and defeat the horde of zombies.
I don’t feel anything, even when I stab my sword into the zombies’ bodies. I only feel the skin and bone; I don’t feel the flesh.
It’s light, too light. And then those who collapsed attack us even when they lose a part of their body.
“If you destroy the stone in their heart, they stop moving”
I was told by the cold-toned Shirona and tried and, indeed, they stopped moving. Furthermore, there’s a small green colour stone in their body, and when I smashed it, the zombies turned into mere bones.
These stones are the zombies’ source of power huh…….
Thinking that; I defeat the zombies one after another.
The purposeless zombies’ movements are dull, and it was easy to defeat them.
ーーhowever,
“……Ulysses”
I can hear Fiー’s restrained voice at the back and, I can hear her voice steadily getting closer.
“……Ulysses, hey, Ulysses!”
“Oi, Fiー!”
A different voice from Fiー that I hear for the first time.
And then Fiー ran, rushing over to a certain zombified young girl.
Who that is, that I knew it immediately.
However,
“It’s dangerous so get away!”
“Ulysses, are you alright? It must be painful, right? It must be agonizing, right? It’s alright now, it’s alright now……”
As Fiー rushed over to that girl, she called out to her over and over.
Ulysses・Kelshri is Fiー’s very first owner, somebody precious to herーーthe young girl who sleeps in this Country of Demise territory.
Whether Fiー is rejoicing at the reunion after a long time, or whether she’s grieving at her painful-to-look-at figure, that I don’t know. It’s just thatーーthat’s no longer, the Ulysses that Fi knows, it’s a heartless moving corpse.
“Fiー, get away……that’s, no longer the girl you know”
“Yo, you’re wrong, Egil……I mean, she’s Ulysses. Her eyes, her mouth, and this brown hair……it’s Ulysses”
Even zombies attack.
They’ll punch, they’ll bite, so one mustn’t carelessly get close.
But I can also understand Fiー’s feelings. If it’s my acquaintanceーーsomebody I love, regardless of what their appearances are, if I’m able to reunite with them, I might be doing the same thing as well.
“Fiー, get away…….the girl who stands before your eyes isn’t Ulysses. Even if their appearances are the same, the person who’s precious to you has already died”
“I, I know……but, if I don’t do anything, Ulysses won’t attack me either, right……? Even if she’s like this, it’s been a long timeーー”
“Stop it, Fiー. You yourself, you understand it too, don’t you”
Fiー doesn’t get into the range of Ulysses that’ll definitely be dangerous. Fiー’s instincts should know; what that cautiousness means, and the fact that she isn’t the girl she knows.
However, Fiー reaches her hand out to the impossible hope, like she’s clinging onto something.
“Tha, that’s right……maybe, she’s only become like this because of some kind of curse or power, there might be a way to fix it. Like Shirona and Kurona, she’s just cursed, Ulysses isーー”
“It can’t be fixed”
I guess Fiー still believes in itーーthat perhaps she can be saved.
That perhaps she has become like this through the power of a curse, and if we dispel that curse, she’ll return to how she was.
ーーbut, that’s not a curse.
She’s simply dead; she’s just a deceased body being moved by some kind of power.
I hold my sword and head closer towards Fiー and Ulysses.
Immediately after, Fiー was panicking, as if telling me not to get closer.
“Wha, what are you going to do? Hey, Egil!?”
“To her, it’s not a blessing to continue suffering like this. The dead can’t be resurrected; it’s best to put her to sleep”
“But, but there might still, be a way, so……”
“Close your eyes, Fiー”
I hugged the trembling Fiー’s body towards myself.
“Let goo, Ulysses is, Ulysses is my one and only familyy! That’s why, that’s whyy……”
I unfold the sight that I cannot show the Fiー, who struggles in protest, behind her.
“Sorry……”
“No, stopp, Egil, Egil is a person who will do such a cruel thing, right!? Whyーー”
“Leaving the deceased as it is like this, would be the truly sad thing. That’s why, I’m sorry”
I stabbed my sword, into Ulysses’ heart.
As something in her body cracks, her figure gradually turns into just white bones.
“Ulyssess, stopp, stop it, Egill!”
Fiー struggled violently.
And then right before Ulysses turned into just bones, Fiー got away from my hands and saw Ulysses’ final moment.
“……Ulysses is smiling”
It didn’t look that way to me.
But I guess it looked that way to Fiー. And then she bid her farewell with a smile.
“……I’m sorry, that I couldn’t protect you. Ulysses”
And then I hugged Fiー’s body towards myself.
“……I don’t mind even if you resent me”
“……”
“However, a dead person can’t be resurrected. There’s no such almighty power in this world……that’s why, putting her to sleep is for her sake”
“……I’m, sorry……right from the start, I knew that Ulysses is dead. But when she showed up before my eyes, I thought that maybe she’s still alive……that’s why……sorry, and thanks, Egil”
She, who cried, gave me a forced smile.
“Thanks, for doing the dirty work, Egil”
“……aah”
While patting her head, I continue my words.
“Besides, I was saying it just now, but the Fiー now has a family, right?”
In response to those words, Fiー smiled happily.
“That’s, right huh……Egil as well as everybody……is already my family huh”
“Aah, that’s why let’s go back, to the place where our family awaits”
Fiー, is no longer alone.
There’s me; Eleanor and Serina; Sana and Runa; and even Setsuna.
That’s why we’ll go back. To our home.
♦
“Egil-han, we are setting sail”
“Aah, please do”
A large number of ships are stopped at the coast; those ships set off with the ship that we’re on in the lead.
There are approximately 1○○○ Lake Metropolis residents. And then, Shirona and Kurona.
“We’ll be able to meet Onee-chan huh, Kurona”
“Eeh, we’ll be able to meet Onee-chan, Shirona”
The happy voices and expressions of the two young ones are visible on top of the ship.
And then, the ships that are carrying large groups of people are returning to the Nameless Kingdom.
“We can finally return huh……what’s the matter, Fiー”
Incidentally, the sight of Fiー hanging her head entered my eyes.
And then, while making the expression of finding something difficult to say,
“It might be better, to return quickly”
“……what does that mean?”
Her expression feels heavier than just now. That’s why I immediately knew that something happened, and then that something, it’s not related to those who are here.
“Did something happen, to Eleanor and the others……?”
“Uh……”
“Why didn’t you say it immediately”
“Sor……sorry”
“I said to tell me immediately if something happens, didn’t I”
My tone ended up becoming slightly harsh. It’s rare for Fiー to hide things from me, no, it’s the first time. That’s why I thought it’s not something trivial.
And then Fiー, she holds my hand and says.
“……sorry, I was silenced”
“Silenced? By Eleanor and the others?”
“……un. They said, they don’t want to trouble Egil”
“Why……”
Above the sea, on the way back to the Fezelist Continent, Fiー told me everything, about what happened ever since we were gone.
Series dropped because the Web Novel is no longer available
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