The blind villain of the academy

Chapter 197: To cease to exist [2]

Chapter 196

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Episode 48 - To cease to exist [2]

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The Ice Queen.

In my memories, she was a character who attacked players the moment she saw them.

At first glance, she was an enemy, a monster that had to be dealt with before facing the main enemy, the Apostle.

’Her name was Vyrelia, wasn’t it?’

I know nothing about her past. She is known as an Astral Spirit and was simply used to bring the Apostle Kaiser back.

From the very beginning, the villains she worked with never intended to give Vyrelia what she was looking for.

’She’s not a bad person.’

In truth, she isn’t a bad person.

But in my memories, she was the exact opposite. She killed without guilt or remorse.

She worked alongside the villains, accepting their requests without a second thought.

Vyrelia was pursuing a goal, a reason why she accepted the mission of bringing the Apostle Kaiser back.

But the Vyrelia standing before me displayed countless emotions: fear, despair, sadness, acceptance, and guilt.

The different shades of each of her emotions were visible to my blind eyes beneath the blindfold.

"Mmm, this is... very strange... and different."

I murmured as I crouched down right in front of Vyrelia.

The Ice Queen looked at me with heavy, exhausted eyes while her breathing came in ragged breaths.

It was like looking at a woman who had been broken her entire life.

Then I noticed thin cracks spreading across her entire face. They were widening faster and faster.

’What is that?’

The white lines in my vision revealed Vyrelia’s figure in even greater detail.

Then I noticed that her hands were covered in the same cracks, only much larger.

Her hands looked almost completely consumed by the cracks. Then...

"...?"

The tips of her fingers began to fade into tiny threadlike particles that were disintegrating in real time.

’What the hell is happening to her?’

I frowned and asked,

"What is your objective in this place?"

Although I was curious, I didn’t ask directly about the cracks covering her body or why her hands were disappearing.

Vyrelia opened her mouth, only to close it again. Her lips were cracked and dry. I sighed and said,

"I promise I’ll spare your life if you answer me honestly."

Vyrelia stared at me. For a moment, I thought she wouldn’t say anything, but then she pressed her lips together and spoke in a quiet voice.

"My objective in this place is to thaw the last Apostle of the Lords of the Abyss."

"Then..."

"Everything is already prepared. Even if I told you where he is, his return is inevitable. He will probably awaken tomorrow, at any moment."

"How strong do you think he’ll be when he awakens?"

Vyrelia blinked, then took a deep breath before answering.

"Perhaps Class 7 or Class 8. Though in reality, it doesn’t matter how weakened he is when he awakens. The Apostles possess an incredibly high regenerative ability, so he could become a Class 9 in a matter of minutes and recover almost all of his power within about three hours."

I nodded as I absorbed her words.

Ironically, none of this existed in my memories, at least not from what I had noticed so far.

My memories... seem to be incomplete.

My memories of Holy Land are clear only up to Chapter One and the first half of Chapter Two.

But this second half of Chapter Two is different from both reality and my memories.

’So the difficulty of the Main Mission could increase within minutes, huh?’

A certain concern began to grow inside me.

This time, I was facing an enemy I needed to be extremely cautious of.

I wasn’t referring to a villain, a mission I had prepared for, or a plan where everything would unfold exactly as I expected.

This time, I would have to rely solely on my own strength.

’I’m strong enough to kill a Class 6 without the Eyes of the End, and I’m strong enough to kill a Class 7 with the Eyes of the End... perhaps even a Class 8...’

But I had many doubts about that last part. The strongest villain I had ever faced was only a Class 7, and even then, it had been an incredibly difficult battle.

And although the fight seemed to end in just a few minutes, I had actually given it everything I had.

After reflecting for a while, I pulled myself out of my thoughts. Then I asked another question.

"What is it that you’re looking for?"

Vyrelia looked at me with a hint of surprise, as though she hadn’t expected that question.

She lowered her head slightly, then raised her hands and looked at them.

A wide range of emotions suddenly appeared on her face as she pressed her lips together.

Then she lifted her head and looked at me.

"I’m looking for a way to escape this."

She said it as though I had already understood, so I asked,

"What exactly is happening to you?"

Vyrelia opened her mouth and replied,

"It’s a rather long story."

"It doesn’t matter. Just answer."

She gave a slight nod.

"To begin with, I’m not from this world. I come from the Astral Plane, and I am an Astral Spirit. You, the natives of this world, know nothing about the Astral Plane, but..."

"We, the natives of the Astral Plane, are born from the Origin. Every being born from the Origin has a story written for them, a story that preserves their identity and their existence."

"Just like us, who are born from the Origin, the gods chosen by the Origin are also bound by these same rules. They must possess a story that defines their identity."

At that moment, I murmured as I remembered something.

"A Fable."

Vyrelia looked at me in surprise.

"What...? How do you know that?"

I shook my head.

"Go on."

Vyrelia nodded, suppressing her curiosity. Then she continued.

"Those born from the Origin and those chosen by the Origin, when their stories stop being written, slowly fall into oblivion. Their bodies disintegrate because of something called the <Origin Fracture>. Those born from the Origin have it slightly better, since the rules affecting them are more lenient, but even so..."

"Those chosen by the Origin meet far more tragic ends. Once our Fables disappear, we simply cease to exist. Our bodies, our souls, our thoughts, and everything that we are... simply ceases to exist."

"Then, from the memories of everyone who knew you throughout your life, you simply disappear."

"The records that bear your name fade away, the people you once knew no longer remember you, and the entire world forgets that you ever existed."

I remained silent for a few seconds before speaking.

"So that’s what’s happening to you right now. Once you disappear, even if you’re standing right in front of me, I’ll forget that I was talking to you just a few minutes ago."

"Yes, that’s correct."

"I understand..."

I nodded repeatedly as countless thoughts raced through my mind.

Then a question surfaced.

"Tell me, can someone who hasn’t been chosen by the Origin possess a Fable?"

Vyrelia shook her head.

"No. Only those chosen by the Origin and those born from the Origin can possess Fables."

"...!"

I opened my mouth to ask something else, but stopped myself.

I thought about my two Fables.

And only one thought crossed my mind.

’That means I’m one of those chosen by the Origin.’

’That means I could end up like Vyrelia.’

Then I asked,

"What causes your disappearance?"

"It’s... a Dark Fate."

".....?!"

"Only those chosen by the Origin and those born from the Origin are capable of possessing a Dark Fate. Although the people of this world believe that a Dark Fate is simply a predestined death, they don’t take it very seriously because they don’t know its true meaning."

I nodded faintly, and a growing sense of fear began to consume me.

I covered my mouth with the palm of my hand as I thought.

’I believed I would simply die in the future, but I was never actually going to die. I was simply going to disappear and be forgotten by everyone I’ve ever known... I-I... I’ll end up like Vyrelia...’

No.

I shook my head.

I hold two Fables in my hands that support my story, my identity, and my existence.

That means I still have a chance not to disappear.

’I need to obtain the remaining Fables as soon as possible. Otherwise... I-I’ll end up just like her... I... I don’t want to end up like that...’

I inhaled and exhaled slowly, calming my mind as I tried to soothe the storm of emotions that had suddenly erupted within me.

’It’s okay. Nothing’s wrong. There are still several years before my destined day arrives, so I still have time.’

With that thought, I pulled myself out of my thoughts, but...

"...?"

Vyrelia’s hands had already disappeared. The cracks covering Vyrelia’s face had grown far too large, and even Vyrelia’s head had begun to fade away.

Vyrelia looked at me with tears in her eyes as she opened her mouth.

"D-don’t leave me alive... P-please, kill me... Dying is better than disappearing... Please."

"I-I want to die... without thinking that no one will remember me. There’s no point... in staying alive anymore. I just don’t want to think about being forgotten. I want to die believing that everyone will remember me... Please, kill me..."

Silently, I tightened my grip on my sword with both hands.

I rose from the ground and pointed the tip of my sword at Vyrelia.

Vyrelia looked at me with a smile, and an expression of happiness appeared on her face.

My senses slowly stopped perceiving Vyrelia’s presence, as though there were nothing and no one standing before me.

Then I opened my mouth and asked,

"Do you have any last wish?"

Vyrelia looked up at the sky.

"I-I want... to see the sun one last time."

Without hesitation, I raised my sword and, with all my mana, used the First Form of the Inverted Heaven.

The clouds parted, revealing a brilliant blue sky illuminated by the sunlight.

The sunlight bathed the entire area around us.

Vyrelia smiled. Then, without taking her eyes off the sky, she said,

"M-my sister... is in the Astral Plane, living there all alone..."

Vyrelia reached into her robe and took out a pendant and a letter.

"C-could you give these to her if you ever have the chance to enter the Astral Plane... someday? It doesn’t matter if it takes you centuries, but... could you give them to her?"

I took the pendant and the letter, then nodded.

"I never break my promises."

Smiling, Vyrelia murmured...

"Thank you..."

Then I lowered the tip of my sword.

I felt flesh being cut by the edge of my blade.

And before me lay a woman who had died, while her body slowly faded away until nothing remained but an empty robe.