Chapter 13: The World of the End (3)

[It’s not anything important, but could you help bring some dinner? I want to eat Auntie’s cooking.] 

The phone with rounded corners was one I had bought new when I graduated university.

The screen’s light was soft, the displayed colors looked comfortable, and there was no obvious color shift.

That was the most important reason I had chosen this phone.

After my finger tapped send, before long the phone gave a buzz-buzz of vibration.

[Aihua: OK]

A short reply, as always.

After eating lunch I felt a little calmer.

Lying on the bed there was nothing else to do.

I only opened the player and browsed the anime stored on the NAS.

How to put it…

There really was nothing else I could do.

How on earth was I supposed to explain the halo on my head to Aihua?

Besides, although she might treat it as an ordinary craft piece, now that it was already on my head and would not come off, she would ask how this halo had come about no matter what.

Should I tell her about Luna?

…

Thinking carefully, they were all trivial things.

I always got tangled in these trivial things, because I was only an ordinary person.

Perhaps meeting Lingyin had changed something, but perhaps actually nothing had changed.

In these calm and ordinary days I was only an ordinary person waiting to be forgotten.

…

…

Well.

I might as well sleep a while.

…

…

[First Nervous System]

Activity within standard values. Detection normal.

[Second Nervous System construction complete. Integrity 100%.

Activity normal. Detection passed.]

[Collecting signals from each neuron. Analyzing…

10% 20% 30%… 100%. Complete.]

[Comparing neuron signal map. Passed. No abnormal discharge.]

[Blood composition analysis. Good. Metabolism normal.]

[Tissue integrity self-check. Good. No diseased tissue generated. No hyperplastic tissue generated. Integrity 98%.]

[Bone density, bone marrow self-check. Good. Stem cell function normal. No cancerous phenomena.]

[Sensory function detection. Signal good. Normal.]

[Central function detection. Transmission good. Normal.]

[Initiating revival procedure.]

[Transferring organism control authority. From Second Nervous System to First Nervous System.

10% 20% 30%… 100%. Complete.]

[Connecting sympathetic nervous system. New synapses generating.

10% 20% 30%… 100%. Connected.]

[Diaphragm operation by electrical stimulation under Second Nervous System dominance. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7…]

[Electrical defibrillation under Second Nervous System dominance. Begin. 3 2 1.]

Zzzap—

“Ah—huff—

“Ah—huff—”

[Autonomous respiration signal detected.]

[First Nervous System activity signal detected.]

[Sympathetic nervous system activity signal detected.]

***

My heart beat so fast.

The air I drew in through my open mouth stabbed my chest.

It was a good while before I slowly recovered.

Before my eyes was a stretch of darkness.

As my breathing gradually calmed, my vision was gradually lit.

Text prompts leaping constantly before my eyes slowly grew clear, then vanished from my field of view.

Where was this?…

My head hurt so much.

Waves of stabbing pain in my brain, and at the same time it was very heavy and muffled.

I tried to step forward, but then a violent dizziness struck and I dropped to my knees on the ground at once.

The spinning sensation made my stomach churn, but it was as if I had not eaten anything for a very long time.

I only crouched on the ground dry-heaving and could spit nothing out.

It hurt so, so much…

What had happened to me?

And where was this?

I tried hard to remember, but I could remember nothing.

Clearly I seemed to remember that just now I had still been lying on my bed at home scrolling on my phone.

The surroundings were very quiet.

The dim light made everything beside me so blurred.

Touch gradually woke from a dreamlike feeling.

After the numbness over my whole body slowly faded, the solid ground sent an icy, uneven sensation through the palms supporting my body.

It felt like stone to the touch, and a little damp, yet not so much as to feel wet.

It felt like being in a dream, yet the sensations coming from my palms were so real, fine enough that even the grit my fingertips touched was distinct grain by grain.

The air drawn in through my nose was likewise a little damp, yet had not the slightest smell… rather, even the smell of water vapor that damp air always carried was absent.

It was only simple air.

For a moment I even doubted whether something was wrong with my sense of smell.

Two lines of prompts flashed at the very top of my field of view.

They seemed to have no substance, simply overlaid before my eyes.

As I blinked they still floated there:

[Halo operating.

Operating rate 1.8%. Functions normal.]

[Connection to Eden Central Archive Bureau lost.

Partial data synchronization failed. To ensure stability of Host consciousness, partial data now being shielded. 45% 100%. Complete.]

[Halo running offline. Duration 15 min 28 sec.]

Just like in VR, orange-yellow text floated in my eyes, covering the scene before me.

Some UI seemed to be displaying in my field of view, making me touch my head by instinct.

Yet what I touched—was only my hair.

My hair was very smooth, very different from the usually rough-looking me, as if it had been carefully tended like Aihua’s.

As the dizziness and the weakness in my limbs slowly disappeared, still feeling a bit muffled in the head, I tried to support my body with my legs.

But when I straightened my waist I suddenly lost my balance and sat down hard on the ground.

Ow ow ow…

So I was neither in a dream nor in a VR game, right.

Yes.

Everything was so real.

Only I could not feel a trace of wind, a trace of air moving.

Was I in some sealed room?

Or a cave?

But how had I come to this place?

I truly could not remember a bit.

No matter how hard I tried to recall, I could even recall going out last night to buy things and eating noodles outside, yet I could not remember how I had been lying on the bed taking a nap and then opened my eyes here.

Had I… been kidnapped?

But what good would kidnapping me do?

Thinking of this I felt waves of panic.

It… shouldn’t be possible.

A poor, unremarkable NEET like me, who had never offended anyone in daily life.

The boldest thing I had done in this life was joining the school choir in elementary school…

I truly had no value worth kidnapping.

Was it… then…

Thinking of this I suddenly felt over my own body.

“Flat”—still there, flat and intact.

Waist—seemed to have no wound, bandage, stitches, scar, or anything.

Belly—complete…

Eh…

Eh, wait…

My eyes seemed to be slowly adapting to the dark.

Places a little closer to me slowly let me make out some outlines.

In the pitch black, when I touched my lower back, I felt something growing on my waist—both sides of the waist had it, and with my arms spread I could just reach the ends.

My fingertips passed on the sensation of touching something like feathers, and that thing on my waist also sent back the feeling of fingers brushing lightly across it.

This thing seemed to have grown on my body, a part of me.

I tried moving it, and as if it had long been carved into instinct, it stirred a faint, quiet wind.

It was a pair of wings.

They grew on my back, connected to my body, replacing the part that had originally belonged to the shoulder blades.

Looking back at them, the dim light kept me from telling their color, but the feathers against my arms were so distinct.

I had wings?

This… had a mysterious organization modified me?

And the purpose of modifying me?

Destroy the world?

Had some association president taken a liking to me?

That was too unlikely… no matter how I thought about it it was too unreal.

Yet without my noticing the wings on my back still stirred a breeze, sweeping lightly across the skirt hem beside my legs.

The clothes were close-fitting, the fabric smooth and gentle.

In my memory I did not seem to have clothes like this.

This feeling was like being wrapped in down.

Where was this?

What on earth had happened to me?

What time was it now?

When I calmed down these questions circled in my mind again.

My phone.

Right, my phone…

My phone was, sure enough, not there.

If this was a dream, then it was far too real.

If this was not a dream, I still could not remember where this was no matter what.

I searched every pocket on my body that could carry something.

Naturally there was no phone.

I did not even know what time it was now.

Was it day or night?

How long had I been here?

I knew nothing.

When it came down to it, was I still alive?

Perhaps I was already dead?

Was this the world after death?

But how had I died?

Thump-thump-thump…

In the dim world a string of footsteps seemed to come from a distant direction.

My gaze could not help turning toward the direction of the sound.

A stretch of pitch black, as if without end, but in this darkness there was faintly a point of light.

As the point of light gradually grew larger the sound of footsteps also grew clearer and closer, echoing beside my ears.

“Is it really all right for us to just come in like this? Shouldn’t we go back first and report to the Church?…” It sounded like a girl’s voice, crisp and full, coming from the direction of the light.

Someone was coming!

Yet before I could make a sound a boy’s voice came from the light, loud and full of vitality. “Relax, Heath. Didn’t we not run into anything the whole way? This is probably just a ruin that’s long been abandoned. We finally found a place like this in the desert. It’d be too much of a waste not to look at what’s inside.

“Speaking of which, did you see it? So big, so tall. We drove the sand-boat a full three days just to get here. How could we turn back without even looking and still face those three days of travel? We almost got lost too.”

Ruin?

Desert?

I completely did not understand what they were saying.

Rather, I was even more confused.

But the desert within China’s borders would be the Taklamakan, right…

How would I have come here?

No… wait.

Come to think of it, were they speaking Chinese?

For an instant I hesitated a little.

“Did you forget that three days ago we still ran into blood-worms and almost got chewed into scraps?” Another girl’s voice, this one sounding softer and more childish.

The owner of the voice did not seem very old.

Then that childish voice continued, “A lot of ruins have guards left from who-knows-what era, and this ruin doesn’t have any excavation record. Rather, we may be this ruin’s first discoverers. What we’ll run into, what we’ll find, isn’t even—”

Click!

Before the girl finished, a sound like an electric switch or some mechanism being triggered suddenly came from overhead.

A very, very large sound.

It scared me into looking up at the ceiling along with them.

Then from somewhere came a very familiar, very familiar hum-hum… of machinery roaring.

The hum-hum… roar sounded like something such as a fan.

The sound was faint as if far from us, but in such a quiet environment it at once filled every corner of the darkness.

This sound was truly very familiar, as if I had once lived in a place where this kind of sound faintly carried.

“Crap. Did we trigger something?” Clearly the boy who had still been full of confidence a moment ago was a bit panicked now.

But before he could react a piercing bright light poured down from overhead, and in an instant everything in sight became a stretch of white haze.

So glaring.

In a flash I could see nothing.

The bright white light stabbed my eyes until they ached and tears could not help flowing.

Those people who had come from who-knew-where adapted a little faster than I did.

While I still had my arm raised blocking the piercing light, the girl whose voice sounded more mature suddenly shouted:

“Get away from there, Hero-sama!”

Hero?…

I tried hard to open my eyes.

My arm blocked most of the bright light rushing at me.

A person in a long black coat with silver trim, wearing black boots, stood in front of me.

The glaring white light kept me from seeing his face.

In his hand he gripped a pale blue sword.

Hearing the girl’s voice behind him he turned back in surprise to look at her. “Mm?”

Then he seemed to notice me at his feet.

The expression of a first meeting was branded into my mind.

My arm covered part of the strong light and also covered most of his body.

In the vision that gradually adapted and grew clear, our eyes met.

Then he opened his mouth wide, showing a look of terror.

Another male voice that sounded more mature, sounding as if it already belonged to a grown man.

Amid a click from something he shouted toward me, “I’ll cover you. Fall back!”

[Laser irradiation detected. Target lock acquired.]

A muffled bang! and a burst of fire exploded beside me.

Before I could understand what had happened a scorching blast lifted my wings and blew me away.

Then from my back came the dull pain of hitting something hard.

[Hostile action confirmed. Second Neural Center judges Host does not currently possess defensive awareness.]

[Submitting proxy authority request. Failed. Connection to Eden Central Bureau lost.]

[…]

[By ruling, Second Neural Center, according to Eden Ordinance

Chapter One, Article One, to ensure Administrator consciousness activity, now executing proxy authority.]

[Overwriting organism control authority. From First Nervous System to Second Nervous System.

10% 20% 30%… 100%. Complete.]

[By ruling, Second Neural Center system, according to Eden Ordinance

Chapter One, Article Thirteen, upon the target group implementing hostile action, execute…]

“Purge.”

It was my voice, coming out of my own mouth beyond my control.

In my field of view a red outer frame floated at the edge of vision.

Red text flashed in the upper right.

As my gaze gradually lifted I stood straight up from the fallen position beyond my control.

“Black wings… Winged Folk…? No. There’s a halo on her head… Wh-why? Why would she appear here? What is this place?” Before my eyes there were four people in total.

That more mature onee-san had long, pointed ears.

Her upper body wore silver light armor.

At this moment she likewise raised the heavy sword in her hand, staring fixedly at me while talking to herself. “Why would a fallen angel be here…”

“Run. You go first!” The black-clothed boy holding the blue longsword had black hair and a pair of black eyes.

His leather boots struck crisp sounds on the ground covered in fracture marks.

Although you could see his fear, even with both legs trembling he still gripped the sword in his hand and blocked his companions behind him.

“No. If anyone goes first it’s you!” As she spoke the pointed-eared onee-san blocked in front of the boy again.

Fallen angel…

It sounded like a very dangerous word.

Was it referring to me?

Behind the two swordfighters was a sturdy grown man wearing glasses with a heavy cannon shaped like a cross on his shoulder, and a purple-haired girl wearing a black hat who was taking a short staff from her mage robes.

What was this otherworld-RPG-looking party?

Who was I?

And where was this?

Why was I here?

[Searching nearby active construction equipment. Discovered Construction Towers: 5. Authority activated.]

[Nearest Construction Tower discovered. Distance 2 m. System integrity 41%. Activated.]

[Kinetic device — Multi-target Flame Barrage Missiles.

Producing…]

Zzz… A feeling as if current were passing through my body made all my hair seem drawn toward something behind me.

Crackling sparks struck the ground beside me.

In the flashes the stone floor was left with little pits under the current.

Then.

[Production complete. Loaded. Targets locked. Fire.]

Boom—

Firelight at once dyed every corner of the entire room red.

A scorching impact wildly tore at my skirt hem and the feathers on my wings, while I only stood before everyone, watching calmly.

The four figures wavered in the flames.

It seemed I could hear their shouts, like ghosts.

And I, calmly watching all this, slowly raised my hand.

Current crackled on my arm again.

[Energy device — Plasma Projection Apparatus.

Preparing. Charging 30% 50% 80%…]

Hum—hum—

Bright light like lightning passed through the “wall” formed by flame like arrows.

They shot continuously toward those four figures from rows of fine needles floating in a ring at my wrist.

Where this bright light flashed, even the stone walls were left with red glow from being melted.

[Target group suppression successful.]

[Using offline database to construct Magic.]

[Searching optimal formation array.]

[Optimal solution: Heaven-Earth Burst Fusion. Compatibility 89.2%.

Calculation complete. Execute first stage. Begin construction.]

What?!

The continuous fire from the floating objects on my wrist had not yet ended when a magic circle floated up from the ground and lit beneath those four figures’ feet.

A fiery-red magic circle, drawn from the outer circle inward.

When the magic circle finished drawing, a childish girl’s startled cry came from the center of the flames. “Crap!”

At this moment it was probably too late.

From the firelight flashed the gold of a gem lighting up.

The gold light made the sturdy uncle with the cross on his back stand out from the flames.

At this moment he was holding a gold gem in both hands and chanting with all his strength.

[Construction complete. Execute second stage.]

“Ah!!—” A muffled roar, and a slash of silver light cutting down toward my face flashed past.

The next instant my hand seemed to pass through something.

A slick, warm feeling accompanied by a strong stench of blood made me lift my head and glance at the golden hair hanging before my eyes.

The heavy sword flew far, struck the distant wall straight on, then bounced to the ground with a heavy sound.

Warm, bright-red liquid ran from between her pink, crystalline lips.

With a cough a great amount of blood sprayed from her mouth and at once dyed my arm red. “Cough…”

“Heath!!—”

“Hero-sama! Don’t go over there!” In the black-clothed boy’s heart-rending shout a small figure threw her arms around him and held him fast.

“Ancient calamity sleeping in the memory of the earth, I am Creator Angel · Yulin. Between you and me no extra words are needed. Wake at once, wake at once, and turn all the evil of this world to ash!—Heaven-Earth…”

[Chant interrupted.]

Magic…

Even as foolish as I was I could see that the me who had lost control was about to release a very dangerous spell, and that this spell was extremely likely to wipe out the four people before my eyes.

This kind of thing…

This kind of thing…

Why?

The onee-san with pointed ears, her eyes shone like jade, but there was no life left in them.

A person’s body was actually so light, so fragile.

Drained of strength, pierced through the abdomen, she knelt to the ground as I lowered my arm.

A pillar of gold light rose from the ground beside the four, blowing away the raging fire and also blocking the beams shooting from my wrists.

The uncle gripping the gold gem looked as if he were defending with all his might.

The small purple-haired girl held the black-clothed boy tightly.

And that swordsman called the Hero looked at me with hatred.

Enough.

Enough, enough!

Isn’t this my own body?

Listen to me!!!

[Error. Authority overwritten. Proxy interrupted.]

[Error. Unable to obtain connection with Central Bureau. Unable to repair error process. Clearing all proxy processes. Execute.]