In this world, I knew that my existence was tantamount to no more than a speck of dust.
Of course, I knew.
I stood under the faded skies of the north, overwhelmed with a sense of helplessness.
The snow beneath my feet almost felt like it was swallowing me whole, rendering my body stiff.
"It's good to be back. Now, who should I kill first?"
The devil incarnate, Lilith.
Unfortunately, she has completely taken over the body of her host. When I saw the dramatic change in her appearance, I knew then that Ingrid Nala Marchetti was beyond saving at this point.
Gone was the lady who charmed people with her pink hair and emerald eyes. Her earthly beauty was nowhere in sight. All I see is a vile woman who was out to decimate the defenseless north.
Think, Callie. What can you do right now?
"Grand Duchess!"
I turned towards the source of the voice. There was a knight rushing over to our direction. At first, I could not see his face amidst the heavy snow. But as he got closer to us, my face lit in recognition.
"Louie," I whispered rather affectionately.
Grand Duke Averill's personal knight was covered in steel from the neck down to the toes. Only his face was free from the armor, displaying his dark and ruffled hair and hazelnut eyes.
Above anything else, he seemed disoriented.
That's when I realized that Louie was rushing over to the grand duchess. However, before he could get past me, I forcibly pulled him back by his arm.
"What-!" He turned his head towards me.
"Stay away from her." I firmly told him.
At the moment, Ruth Alessia di Camellia was in a state of epiphany. She was enclosed within an impenetrable barrier of black magic, kneeling on both knees and whispering her voice to the wind.
To me, it almost looked like she was praying.
To the devil, that is.
Aside from that, there was black magic in the form of purplish, serpentine matter leaking out from the barrier and seeping towards Lilith, who was still hovering midair and marveling at the entirety of Chioni.
I can only surmise that my sister was offering her life force to the devil. At least, that's what it looks like to me.
"It's too dangerous now, so don't go anywhere near her." I stated, eyeing the grand duchess.
"You are..." Louie trailed hesitantly.
"I'm here under the orders of Princess Louisiana Odette Von Solaris. Your master should be with Her Highness in the palace." I imparted formally to the knight. "I have come to inform you that..."
"Enough with that." The knight raised his hand and interrupted me. "There is no need to tell me all the details. We're already short in time as it is."
I stared at him, taken aback.
"I only need you to tell me two things: whether His Grace is alive or not and what I am supposed to do right now." Louie added with all seriousness.
I gulped. "Aren't you trusting me too easily?"
"His Grace has already told me about you." The knight explained curtly. "He stated that someone who looks exactly like Isabelle would arrive in the north, and he also told me to follow your orders."
Alistair said that?
"So?" Louie asked expectantly.
"His Grace is injured, but he will live." I attested.
He sighed in relief upon hearing my words.
"As for what you're supposed to do right now..." My lips pursed. "Soon, this place will turn into a battlefield. I need you to evacuate the residents inside the fortress. Can you do that, Sir Louie?"
The devil incarnate will wreak havoc in Chioni.
Many will lose their lives as collateral damage.
That much, I knew.
The idea that this story was born from my mind gave me a sense of guilt that gripped my heart.
After all, this wasn't just a novel anymore. It was a world where real people lived with their own stories to tell. That's why I felt a sense of duty to protect them. It's me who created this hellhole.
Therefore, this was my atonement.
"I understand." The knight replied without complaint. "And you? What will you do?"
"Well, good question." I took a deep breath and lifted my face to the skies, where the devil was levitating imperturbably. "I guess I will have to keep the enemy occupied. That's my role here."
I need to stall until the main character arrives.
Where are you, Haniel?
As planned, Louie and I parted ways. The grand duke's personal knight hurried back to the duchy in order to evacuate the residents to the fortress.
As for me, however anxious I felt, I drew my sword.
If it were Ellis, she would never back down from an enemy. This is her body and I stole her life, so I should at least honor the spirit of her knighthood.
Let's do this, Callista.
As I noticed earlier, Grand Duchess Averill was in the midst of a ritual. If I'm guessing correctly, the barrier surrounding her was manifested by Lilith.
The devil appears to be protecting her.
Does it have something to do with their contract?
I'm sorry, Runa. I thought to myself.
In order to prove my guess, I braced myself and decided to strike the grand duchess. Without an ounce of hesitation, I sprinted from my spot and swiped my sword against the purplish barrier.
As expected, my sword couldn't penetrate it.
In that split second, I tilted my head towards the direction of Lilith. A shiver ran through my whole body when I caught her chalk white eyes looking dead straight at me, veins bulking in her neck.
So I was right. She is protecting her.
There must be a reason why. Will she weaken or perish if something happens to the grand duchess?
The next thing I knew, Lilith was already attacking me with black magic manifested into a cluster of whips, swiping indiscriminately all over the place.
I ran with all my might, not daring to look back. I managed to evade the whips that came into my way by rolling over the snow and dashing in all directions. I didn't stop running, not even for a second.
"Puny human."
Lilith's voice thundered across the skies.
"You dare touch my lifeline?"
Looks like I angered the devil incarnate, huh?
I hid behind the snow-covered cedar tree, totally out of breath. No, this isn't gonna work. If I keep running in circles, I'll be exhausted in no time.
Damn it. It's too tiring to run over snow.
"Do you truly think that you can hide from me?" Lilith laughed mockingly. "No matter. I shan't waste my time on you. My minions will take care of all the puny humans of this wretched empire."
Once again, she smiled. Lilith looked ecstatic.
"Today, I shall witness the world fall at my mercy."
To my horror, a cluster of skeletal figures emerged from the snow one by one. Calling the undead was a spell that I had only ever read from the books, as it was taboo to use black magic in the empire. Now that I'm seeing it with my own eyes, it felt unreal.
My skin crawled with repugnance. "Shit,"
What the hell am I supposed to do here alone? If those creatures do manage to get past the fortress, all the evacuees in the duchy will be in danger!
"Haniel," I called out anxiously. "Where are you?"
There was no point in brooding, so I came out of my hiding spot and assumed into a battle stance.
I know that I can't save everyone, but I'll fight off as much enemies as I can. It's the least I can do.
"Come," I grinned. "Fight me till I drop dead."
I screamed hysterically as the army of the dead charged at me. I felt nauseous amidst the bevy of decaying skeletons, but I firmly held my ground.
I was outnumbered, but my heart did not falter. If there was anything that could wear my will out, it was the exhaustion gradually pervading my body.
Even so, I fought. And I fought really hard.
I was drowning among the sea of skeletal figures but I pushed through with pure grit, busting and hacking off their fragile bones. Fortunately, they were easy to tear down. If anything, it was their stench that was slowly weakening all my senses.
It was the smell of death, a scent that I will never get used to no matter how many times I've died.
"Hm? Why aren't you giving up, you poor thing?"
For some reason, I could hear Lilith's voice despite the huge distance between us. It was almost as if she was whispering to my ear. Is this her power?
"I don't like this. Humans should be at my mercy." Her voice was laced with annoyance. "You should be despairing. Should I grant you a taste of hell?"
After saying so, time instantly stopped.
Literally.
When I looked around me, the army of the dead was frozen along with time. However, what's alarming was that everything in my vision suddenly turned monochrome in color.
Why are you fighting so hard? What's the point?
There was a voice echoing inside my head.
After all of this, what awaits you is nothing.
My chest heaved.
Once you reach the end of this story, the novel no longer has any use for you. As an extra, only death awaits you. So, why work so hard for this world?
"Shut your trap." I closed my eyes and desperately held onto my head. I don't know what the fuck is happening... but somebody make this hell stop!
Just kill yourself, Callista.
"No," My eyes welled up with tears. "Shut up."
You already did it once. Why not do it again?
I inhaled sharply. A sense of helplessness took over me, like I was splashed with cold water.
You're all alone in this world. No one will blame you if you give up. How could they possibly understand what you've been through?
I stared blankly at nowhere, my thoughts adrift.
Dying every time the arc ends... How long will you be a slave of the novel, Callista? Go make your own destiny. Take your own life before they kill you off.
"You're right." I gripped the hilt of my sword tightly. "I'm done being a slave of this story."
I lifted my sword and placed its blade over my neck. My fingers trembled in apprehension.
Am I doing the right thing?
"But, you know..." A smirked formed on my lips as I spoke. "If there's anyone who should take their own life, I'm sure as hell it isn't me, but you."
With that, I thrusted my own blade over my shoulder. I let out a bloodcurdling scream.
In an instant, time resumed and my vision turned back to normal. I was right. It was all an illusion.
Bitch... I had to injure myself just to wake up!
As soon as I returned to reality, I sighed in relief.
I was relieved, partly because I managed to wake up on my own... and also because of the figure standing before my eyes. Is this an illusion, too?
He was clad in his white coat embellished with golden and purple accents while wearing a black turtleneck underneath. Interestingly, his white pants was still neat and clean, while his black boots were deeply buried within the snow.
Still, the most iconic thing about him was the hat on his head, where translucent black veils draped and covered his face all the way down to his waist.
"Hi." He stared at me. "Forgive me for being late."
God, how I missed those purple eyes.
"You were standing there in a daze, totally trapped within an illusion, so I was about to wake you up."
A small smile dawned on his face.
"But it seems that my help was unnecessary," Haniel looked so proud. "That's my girl."
He's here. The love of my life is already here.
The main character of the novel, Haniel Calypso Astana, has finally appeared in the final arc.
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I hope you enjoyed this chapter as much as I enjoyed writing it. The star is finally here!
Stay safe and healthy, everyone!
Yours Truly,
Aomine-san