101. Darius’s Choice

“To put it simply, the mountain tribe was cursed and lost this land because they aided the Demon King’s resurrection through human sacrifices. The fact that people who enter the Northern Mountains get lost, and only the mountain tribe can find their way, is also a consequence of that.”

“……”

“So much time has passed since the mountain tribe’s downfall that no one knows the exact reason, and we mountain tribe people have only vaguely guessed while hating Inkheart. In our people’s memory, the last thing they saw was him leading an army to destroy the temple.”

Since foreign powers are always viewed negatively, he shrugged.

“I think the souls sacrificed here while waiting for a prince kept asking, ‘Why? Why did we have to die? When is the prince coming? Was our blood not enough?'”

Arshama looked at the ruined temple’s altar. The altar that demanded blood until the very end.

“I, who received the mission to return to the past and resolve my people’s mistake. From now on, we will offer no more blood to this altar. The Demon King’s ritual is over.”

He placed the mountain tribe’s sacred object he had been wearing around his neck on the altar. Unlike its earlier miraculous display, the sacred object now showed no reaction. Nevertheless, he seemed satisfied.

“Foreigners will now reclaim their name and become the mountain tribe again. Now that the curse on the Northern Mountains has been lifted, people will be able to come and go.”

If he could wish for one more thing, he smiled.

“I hope the snow that has hit these mountains stops and the ice melts. Trade between Hershma and Inkheart would flourish.”

Meanwhile, I tried to understand Arshama’s words in my own way.

So, Inkheart discovered that the mountain tribe of the past was trying to offer sacrifices to the Demon King and tried to persuade them to stop, but they wouldn’t halt the ritual. Eventually, Inkheart had to use force.

And in this process, the mountain tribe misunderstood that Inkheart was oppressing their people…… is that it?

Somehow, they managed to prevent the Demon King’s resurrection, but because the ritual had already progressed too far, many lives were sacrificed. As a result, demonic beasts still appear in the Northern Mountains to this day.

“But.”

“Shh.”

Arshama’s face, which had been absorbed in his own reflections, sharpened uncharacteristically. Sounds were coming from outside.

Only then did I remember that we had originally entered the temple to escape from monsters.

“Could it be……”

Is that a monster? What should we do?

“Ah, here you are.”

However, contrary to our tension, the owner of the footsteps walking into the temple had a familiar face. Long, magnificent blonde hair, a rifle slung over one shoulder.

“Count Alexei! You’re alive!”

Bang.

Unlike me, who welcomed him with joy, Count Alexei didn’t seem pleased to see me and fired his rifle at us. In an instant, my vision was stained with blood.

* * *

“Guide me.”

To the place where Anette’s traces ended.

At Darius’s words, Sylphid smiled a troubled smile.

“Why are you just standing there? Was it a lie that you know where Anette went?”

「Descendant of my friend, and companion of my contractor. You are different from them.」

“No more talk, hurry!”

「You have no spirit power. The same goes for everyone here. All I can do is appear before you and say a few words. There is no spirit mage here who can materialize me and use my power.」

“What does that mean?”

「It means my power is absolutely necessary to reach that place. Even if I simply show you the way, how can you get through this snow? Moreover, how will you deal with the horde of monsters lurking ahead?」

“That’s just your judgment.”

「It’s also an obvious fact.」

Sylphid looked at the gathered army.

「It would be better for this army to wait until the snow stops before moving.」

“I have other abilities.”

「Don’t disappoint me by saying that as commander-in-chief, you’ll abandon this army and act alone. If you were my friend, you would never……」

“I can pay the price with something other than spirit power.”

Sylphid was at a loss for words. Darius was also a descendant of the Inkheart family. Even though the spirit mage bloodline had been cut off long ago, he still knew a thing or two about spirits.

Even if it was a forbidden ritual.

「You’re not in your right mind. You have nothing worth paying as a price.」

Realizing what Darius’s words meant, Sylphid deliberately spoke coldly.

Thump.

Thump.

Darius’s heart ached with impatience and anxiety. The world seemed to shake once more at his own powerlessness.

“Why?”

Darius threw his sword, still in its sheath, to the ground. Clang, his most cherished sword rolled pitifully on the floor. The way it trembled from the impact resembled its owner’s precarious state of mind.

“Whether it’s the sword mana flowing through this body, or the greatest swordsmanship in history capable of wielding that sword.”

Plop, he roughly tore open the front buttons of his shirt, exposing his upper body.

“Take my beating heart or whatever you want. I’ll give it to you.”

“Grand Duke!”

Screams erupted from the army behind him, but Darius’s eyes, facing the spirit king, gleamed with determination.

In those eyes coexisted both the empty void from loss and the stubbornness of clinging to a last resort.

「Inkheart, the only thing you can use as payment is your life.」

“Easy. Take it.”

Darius answered immediately without thinking.

「Ha.」

It was the spirit king who frowned.

「Do you want power? Fine, I can give you as much as you want. If you summon me, you’ll gain tremendous power. Just as you wish, I’ll grant you anything.」

Power worth taking a life. It couldn’t be anything but enormous.

The spirit king waved his hand, infusing Darius’s sword with a bit of power. With just that, Darius’s sword, which had fallen to the floor, flew back into its owner’s hand on its own.

A blue energy formed in Darius’s hand where the sword touched. The energy spread throughout his body, restoring Darius who had abstained from food and drink for days.

「Yes, with my power added, you can become as strong as you wish.」

The spirit king’s voice was persuasive.

In truth, it was a temptation.

Even those who thought they should stop Darius wavered at the miracle the spirit king performed.

Ping, as the spirit king brought his two fingers together again, the wind power that had enveloped Darius instantly dispersed. The sword fell back to the floor, and the vitality building up in Darius’s body also vanished.

「But as the last Inkheart I know, you are brilliantly beautiful, and your youth is dazzling. That’s why I cannot recommend the foolish act of burning your life for just a single moment.」

“If I must live forever alone in winter without her, what meaning does my remaining life have?”

Darius wasn’t swayed by the tremendous power that had surged through his body, nor by the emptiness that followed when it disappeared as if it had never existed.

A dry smile formed on his lips. It was a precarious smile without a hint of hope.

“When my spring, who showed me the world, has disappeared.”

Solitude enveloped Darius.

Loneliness seeped coldly into his bones, and the world without Anette had become colorless.

No, his world had been colorless from the beginning. Solitude, as familiar as breath, had prevented him from even realizing he was lonely throughout his life.

Yes, he could have lived like that.

Accustomed to having no one by his side, not even knowing that loneliness had seeped into his bones. As the cold lord of winter.

But she had shown him the world. She returned colors to a world without any saturation and made him laugh together.

And suddenly she disappeared.

Right before his eyes.

If he had known he would lose something so precious, he wouldn’t have had anything precious from the start.

The weight of loneliness he faced again after Anette’s disappearance was unbearably heavy. With each breath, his heart constricted in pain, and he no longer wanted to live even a moment longer.

He hated it without Anette.

“I’d rather beg.”

So how delightful was the spirit king’s offer to take his life.

If the spirit king took his life, at least he wouldn’t die painfully.

Even with a sword in hand, he couldn’t stab his own heart, and the armed army standing behind him couldn’t save him from his piercing loneliness.

“I can stake my life anytime. If I can see Anette. I only need that one moment to meet Anette again.”

Sylphid knew Inkhearts with eyes like that. Those who couldn’t be dissuaded by any words.

「Anette will deeply hate me for this.」

Sylphid sighed and gestured again. A strong wind blew. It was time for Sylphid to manifest in exchange for his remaining lifespan.

* * *

Arshama, hit by Count Alexei’s rifle, clutched his shoulder and fell sideways.

“Ugh……”

“Count Alexei, are you crazy?”

“Annoying interference getting in the way.”

Despite Anette’s shout, the count frowned and aimed his gun again.

Anette momentarily suspected that the count had fallen into some kind of hallucination.

It couldn’t be otherwise. The count was on our side.

Thump thump thump.

A horde of monsters walked in behind the count. The count’s gun still pointed at Anette and Arshama, seemingly not alarmed by the monsters lining up behind him.

“Hey, you madman, can’t you see the monsters behind you! You should be aiming at them!”

Thanks to Arshama throwing himself to shield her, Anette fortunately wasn’t hurt, but he suffered a serious injury instead. Anette quickly called Sylph and Sylraphe and asked him:

“Arshama, are you okay?”

“They brilliantly shot me while avoiding where my shoulder was stiff. Well, if I’d been hit there, I would have died on the spot from a carotid artery rupture.”

“You, if you talk nonsense like that, I’ll assume you’re fine!”

Unlike his relaxed words meant to reassure Anette, Arshama’s upper body was soaked in blood. His face was pale.

“I can’t help it if I die here. I’ve fulfilled the mission I was given. But you mustn’t die. The mountain tribe is indebted to you.”

“I don’t like repaying debts with lives! That’s too heavy! Live and repay it properly over time, I haven’t even added interest yet!”

Sylph and Sylraphe formed a wind barrier. Count Alexei, who used a rifle as his weapon, clicked his tongue at the wind barrier and lowered his gun.

That relief was short-lived. Anette froze at the scene that unfolded next.

‘The monsters…… aren’t attacking Count Alexei?’

What’s going on?