What It Meant to Be Resolute

"What makes you so sure we can defeat Qliphoth on our own?" Yuri asked curiously.

Sonia herself had said earlier that Qliphoth's magic power was immense, rooted as he was in the earth. Even Cain had barely managed to seal him away.

What, then, gave Sonia the confidence to make such a judgment when they were just two newcomers to magic, fresh on the scene?

"I'm not sure... I'm taking a gamble," Sonia said.

When it came to defeating Qliphoth, she had never been absolutely certain of success.

No matter how much she studied the history of those events, Sonia's knowledge of Qliphoth remained confined to what she had read on paper.

After all, she was no Cain. She wasn't even a mage. All she could do was gather every factor that might improve their odds and then stake her life on the fight.

"A gamble? Interesting answer. Then do you want to bet on whether I'll kill you right here?" Yuri sneered and gently clicked off the revolver's safety, as though he would blow Sonia's brains out if her next words displeased him.

"Please, go ahead."

Sonia smiled as well. From the moment she had handed over the request, she had already resolved herself.

In nearly every scenario she had imagined, her death was unavoidable. That wasn't because she didn't want to live, but because she had to die.

Only when those like her who bore the "blessing" had vanished completely from the world could the people of Caro Town live truly peaceful lives after Qliphoth was defeated.

Death was frightening, but being resolute meant carving a path forward through a pitch-black wilderness!

So...

"No matter who kills me, as long as Qliphoth can be defeated, I don't mind giving up my life."

"Even if you don't kill me now, Mr. Yuri, I'll apologize to you and Miss Erza once everything is over."

"I know nothing I do can quell your anger, but this is the only thing I can do..." As she spoke, Sonia took out a thick stack of large-denomination bills and pushed it toward Yuri and Erza, pleading, "There's 736,800 J here in total. Please take it."

"Everything I planned has nothing to do with anyone else. For the sake of the hundreds of innocent lives in town, please save them!"

Though her words sounded like emotional blackmail, the girl's manner was utterly humble. Her head, seeming almost weightless, struck the table with a dull thud.

Yuri looked at the bills before him, some old, some crumpled. Unsurprisingly, they were probably all the savings the girl could muster. Clearly, she had no intention of leaving herself a way out, as though she had fully accepted her death.

Yuri decided to show respect for the girl's resolve.

"Wait!"

Erza, realizing what was happening, tried to stop him, but Yuri's finger had already pulled the trigger.

"Click!"

At the soft sound, Sonia instinctively squeezed her eyes shut, her whole body trembling uncontrollably. In the end, she was afraid.

Though she claimed to have put life and death out of her mind, she was, after all, just a girl in the bloom of youth, only a few years older than the two of them. When the moment truly came, she too felt fear.

"If you're afraid, then don't throw your life away so casually."

In the endless darkness that filled Sonia's vision, Yuri's slightly cold voice reached her. The hint of laughter usually present in his tone was gone.

"I understand your thoughts and your goal well enough now, but there's still one thing I want to ask..." Yuri unhurriedly put away the revolver he had forgotten to reload and looked at Sonia as she shakily opened her eyes. "As someone who's half demon, why would you rather give up your life to save these humans?"

The fact that Sonia had found an opportunity to post the request in secret meant she had once had a chance to escape Caro Town alone.

Yet not only had she chosen not to leave, she had returned to the "birdcage" and planned all this, resolved to lose everything and take Qliphoth down with her.

Was it a love of fighting born from demonic instinct, a legendary tale of a demon protecting humanity, or the descent of a saint reborn into the world...?

Yuri was curious.

Hearing Yuri's question, Sonia couldn't help falling into a daze, temporarily forgetting the lingering fear of having been so close to death.

Seven years...

Seven whole years. For a girl of only sixteen, that was nearly half her life so far. What had driven her to persevere until now?

For a moment, even Sonia herself couldn't say... Yuri wasn't in a hurry either. He simply waited quietly for her answer.

After a long while, Sonia finally spoke, a sweet smile suddenly blossoming on her pale face. "Perhaps it's because half of my blood is human."

"Oh?" Yuri's lips curled with interest, and he returned to his usual manner. That was an unexpected answer. "All right, then. I'll take the request."

At Yuri's affirmative answer, Sonia's heart leaped with joy, and she turned to look at Erza on the other side.

Meeting the girl's hopeful gaze, Erza, who was usually capable and decisive, seemed hesitant for once.

She was about to say something, but before she could open her mouth, a mocking voice came from beside her.

"What's wrong? Scared?"

A vein bulged on Erza's forehead, and her tone turned hostile. "You bastard, who are you calling scared?!"

"Is there another coward here besides you?" Yuri wore his usual carefree smile as he said something infuriating.

"You!"

Erza's eyes blazed with anger. She had still been somewhat hesitant about whether doing this would violate the guild's rules, but now she couldn't care less.

She abruptly braced her hands on the table and stood, glaring at Yuri as though ready to devour him. Refusing to back down, she said, "This isn't an official request accepted through the guild, but there's no problem if it's just a private contest between us!"

Clearly, that meant she agreed too, though she had awkwardly substituted a duel for the "request."

Yuri, as reliably as ever, sneered and replied, "Miss, please have a little self-awareness. With your current strength, you're nowhere near qualified to be my opponent."

Erza: "#!!!"