Chapter 577

"I don't want to be treated as a prop, something that can be used and then discarded! I absolutely will not allow him to go anywhere else!"

"If I were to become one of them, I'd rather die here right now! I'd rather drag him down with me, so he can never escape me!"

"That's why I absolutely will not admit it! I will absolutely not admit that I am his NR!"

Am I crazy?

Has my brain gone mad?

After uttering that forbidden confession, a small, rational voice deep within Erice asked her this question.

It's understandable to call this childish, unreasonable possessiveness.

However, considering Utsumi Erice's background and her mind, which should have become more mature and resilient after experiencing the Tokyo Incident, this declaration was undoubtedly a groundbreaking and Overturning change.

However, this is a common trait among those 'entangled with Novia ', and there are many examples of this; it's not surprising at all.

In this light, the law-abiding Luce is a major exception.

In short, Erice simply couldn't tolerate the taboo associated with that relationship.

So...

So, this is probably the only way.

Erice's heart was screaming, or rather, shouting wildly.

That was something beyond the factors of Wrath and the concept of Gluttony, a creaking sound emanating from Erice herself Lord's Mind, Poimandres—

I will never let you fall into depravity; believe that this is the only love I can give to myself, the only one born into this world.

"This is the only way..."

Erice muttered to herself, her gaze fixed on Manazuru Chitose before her.

"Step by step..."

Then his gaze fell on Lilith behind him.

"Walk past you one by one and kill you all."

"I killed you, Chitose. I killed Kuonji. I killed Lilith. I killed everyone—the fact that you're still alive is something I can't forgive!"

"Novia, me too! That's right, does this same principle apply to you now? If so, that makes things much easier..."

"I... I really like you..."

Then, just as this terrifying, bloody, and loving confession was about to reach its climax—

A handprint was placed on the back of Erice's neck.

"Snap."

A soft sound.

It was as if something had gone out.

The burning, frenzied flames in Erice's eyes vanished instantly, her body went limp, and she fell backward, only to be caught by Novia.

"They say it would be even better if you could listen to others finish speaking instead of immediately taking action."

The silver-haired youth couldn't help but sigh.

My emotions included helplessness, headaches, and... how should I put it... a sense of déjà vu, like "I knew it."

Ever since learning about the relationship between Samael and Samiel, Novia had suspected this possibility, so she glanced at Lilith.

Facing Novia's gaze, Lilith not only didn't restrain herself, but instead revealed an extremely smug, radiant smile, as if to say, "See, this is what my son of Wrath, Lilith, is like."

Yes, it really looks like it.

That kind of madness—willing to destroy everything, even oneself, in order to get someone.

Lilith knew better than anyone else.

Therefore, it's understandable what Erice wants most in this situation.

Immediately afterwards, Lilith stretched out a hand, her slender fingers tracing a provocative arc in the air. She even produced a lollipop from somewhere, extending her small tongue to gently lick the glistening candy... It was a scene of shimmering beauty and boundless spring-like allure.

That expression, that posture, seemed to be proclaiming—

"Yes, that's right."

"I used to be like that."

Is there a problem?

"If there are any problems, you can punish us like before, okay? Me and Erice, alright?"

579: The younger sister should teach the older sister! (5k5)

The unpleasant smell lingered deep inside my nasal cavity.

It was a loss that could not be recovered.

What did I say? How could I say such things...?

A deep sense of regret weighed heavily on Erice's heart, leaving her with no way to undo her mistake.

Logically, Erice should be feeling very sad.

She should have been able to cry her heart out, but Erice couldn't shed a single tear; she had never cried in her fourteen years.

Therefore,

Erice grabbed the sheet and tried to curl up inside it; she opened her eyes in a state of utter drowsiness.

Two figures slowly came into view.

Grandmother... no, Manazuru Chitose's face didn't reveal much of an expression; her demeanor was calm, just as always.

And a little further away from Chitose, that guy was leaning against the table.

Novia.

Erice looked back on her near-self-destructive madness, her reckless obsession, and her fanaticism of "I'll get it even if the world is destroyed" from yesterday in this excessive tranquility, and it all seemed somewhat unreal.

But soon Erice took a deep breath, sat up straight, the blanket slipped off her shoulders, and her gaze passed over Novia, finally landing on Manazuru Chitose.

More than her delusional thoughts, Erice is now most confused by Grandmother's claim that she is her Chitose, and by the true nature of her relationship with Novia.

Just then, Novia seemed to notice Erice's confusion and spoke up.

"Erice."

"Do you remember? Six years ago, after we finished dealing with the London incident, on our way back to Akihabara from London on that ship, when the ship was sailing over that land that was originally Russia territory and had been completely submerged by the sea, we were attacked by a large group of unidentified Drone."

Erice knew, of course.

After that day, he disappeared, as if he had never existed, leaving her all alone.

"I... I remember," she managed to squeeze out the words from deep in her throat, "That was the day 'you' disappeared."

Novia nodded slightly, seemingly unsurprised by her answer. Her gaze then slowly shifted from Erice's pale face to Manazuru Chitose, and she continued:

"The specific location of the attack, if converted to an old-fashioned map, before sea levels rose and that land was completely submerged by the cold seawater, was the Tunguska River region of Siberia."

Tunguska.

This word, occasionally mentioned only in history classes, brought to life a name that was both legendary and profoundly familiar—a name so distant it seemed almost mythical.

The Tunguska Event.

At the beginning of the 20th century, the cause of the mysterious explosion, which remains a mystery to this day, was estimated by later scientists to be equivalent to hundreds of atomic bombs detonating simultaneously over Hiroshima—the most powerful and mysterious explosion in human history.

Upon hearing this, Erice subconsciously looked at Manazuru Chitose.

Meeting Erice's gaze, Chitose gave a faint smile.

"When I was eight years old, in 1908, after the Tunguska Event, I met Novia in that birch forest that had been completely destroyed and everything was scorched by the flames."

"I was born into a long-declining, nearly extinct Magecraft family. Though it's called a family, that's an exaggeration." Chitose's tone was self-deprecating. "By my generation, I was the only one left in the Manazuru family. At that time, relying on the Magecraft Lineage's Inheritance, almost negligible, perception of Magic Resistance, I vaguely sensed that a tremendous Od would emerge in the distant, icy north."

"So, at the age of eight, I embarked on a journey to Siberia alone. Perhaps it was out of a Magecraft's innate pursuit of the word 'Root,' or perhaps it was simply a child's curiosity about the unknown. But as you all know, what I encountered was neither a Magecraft Ritual nor a miracle, but a disaster known as the 'Tunguska Event.'"

The Chitose spoke very casually, as if it were of no importance.

"Flames and shockwaves engulfed everything in my vision. The sky was stained with the colors of blood and fire, and the earth cracked violently beneath my feet. I thought I was going to die. Faced with such destructive power, humanity seemed pale and laughable. But, just before I lost consciousness, someone appeared."

Manazuru Chitose turned her gaze to Novia.

"He appeared out of thin air, emerging from the other side of a torn beam of light. He mistook me for someone else, a girl named 'Erice' who looked very much like me."

Chitose paused, seemingly lost in a brief recollection of that distant memory.

She looked back at Erice, who was already dumbfounded and whose mind had completely shut down.

"If I hadn't met him, if I hadn't met Novia, who mistook me for you and extended a helping hand, I might have died long ago on that scorched, eternally frozen Siberia land."

I see.

Erice understood everything.

All the mysteries have been Answer.

All the confusion has been resolved.

Time travel.

Time travel.

So strange, so illogical, yet so... logical—after all, it's mysterious, after all, that's the Magecraft.

But,

"Why... why..."

Erice's voice trembled uncontrollably as she looked at the calm Chitose, then at Novia.

"If that's how it is, if that's how it is! Why didn't you tell me sooner? Why did you keep it from me all this time?!"

The feeling of being betrayed by the person you trust most is very painful.

Chitose was the Chitose who answered Erice.

"Because, Erice, I told you, you originated from Novia, but that didn't happen through normal means. I asked Scathach to help me obtain a drop of Novia's blood."

Because our arrival was unexpected, we must also prepare for our unexpected departure.

Eight-year-old Manazuru Chitose probably thought this way.

"In the decades that followed, I considered thousands of ways to try to study, analyze, and 'use' this blood-derived substance. Whether it was the Clock Tower, the Atlas Institute, or the Lostbelt Sea, all attempts ended in utter failure, far beyond the scope of any human Magecraft, science, or even Wisdom to analyze or comprehend."

"Until the unprecedented Holy Grail War, which swept the globe, broke out without warning, this matter, which I considered my lifelong obsession, finally saw a glimmer of hope. I used the Holy Grail War's system, utilizing its immense Od that could grant almost any wish, to try to 'hatch' that drop of 'blood' as a 'seed' of life. However, just as I was about to succeed, an unexpected event occurred on the Tokyo battlefield where I was."

"The blood that served as the seed was unexpectedly and completely absorbed into the Divine Core of Izanami- Izanami, the Japan mythological mother goddess who manifested in her full form at that time. Thus, you, who should have been born as my and Novia's 'offspring,' or even 'half of my being,' became, by some twist of fate, the child of that Goddess of the Yomi's defilement."

Izanami.

The mother who protected Erice.

"Izanami was also puzzled by this for quite some time, but after all, she was an ancient Deity who governed the Root concept of 'death,' and her definition of bloodline, life, and even existence was far broader than that of humans. She didn't care where you came from; she only believed that you were a unique 'child' born and nurtured from her Divine Body... As for why you are still so similar to me, it's probably because I have been taking care of you for a longer time."

"Izanami believes that you will be the new founder of the Japanese Divine System in the New Era."

"So, she chose your surname."

"To help people see the heavens is to become the Amatsukami; to help people build a nation is to become the Kunitsukami. And to help the son of another to travel to the Star Sea boundless and endless Universe is naturally to become— Utsumi."

"Then, she named you 'Erice,' whose true meaning comes from Elysium, the final resting place of heroes in Greek Mythology. She hopes that you will become a new, Universe mother goddess, transcending earth, Elysium, and national boundaries. A final resting place that can gently and selflessly accept the souls of all the brave 'children' who sacrificed themselves to explore that dark Forest. That's roughly the meaning."

The "Universe" that humans can most directly perceive is the vast and boundless starry sky above their heads.

In that starry sky, the most dazzling, the most central, the one that gives light and heat to all things, is the Star known as the "Sun".

To walk with the Sun, to guide the souls of the departed, and to grant peace to heroes—is this not the Perfection embodiment of the Authority of the Supreme Being Great Lord of the East —the Sun God —in Ryukyu Shinto legends?

The grand concept of "Universe" bestowed by Izanami is the ultimate complement and sublimation of her divine kingship, which originated from the Eastern Sun God.

So, what about the other one?

What Erice knew amidst the chaos in Tokyo—

Poimandres.

As one of the Supreme Being entities in Ancient Greek Hermeticism Alchemical Theology, what exactly is this Supreme Being "Lord's Mind"?