The core.
Our one-way ticket out of this hell.
It's in the one place where it'd be impossible for anyone to reach.
The realization hit me like a riddle whose answer was sitting in plain sight the whole time. It was the kind of conclusion that made you want to throw your hands up in the air after you figured it out.
The kind that made you think 'Ah, why didn't I think of that in the first place!' due to how snugly the pieces fit together.
Yeah... They fit together in an annoyingly perfect kind of way.
"But that's— That's insane," I said. "How are we supposed to reach something that high?"
Cacophony's voice thinned, dull and distant. "We don't. We'll make it descend from the sky and come to us."
Somehow, even after she said those shocking words, I didn't have any reaction.
All of my worry and surprise had run out. The only emotion left inside me was a trust in the Empress's words.
"Alright then, a bit unconventional, but I can roll with it. We can call it 'Operation Skyfall!' or— no, how about Sky Crash! The Sky's Falling? That one's a bit too Chicken Little for my taste... Well, as long as it's catchy, I'm not the type to sweat the details. Benevolant? Oh, yes, I am! What really interests me is how. So then, I assume you've got that covered? Just what kind of plan have you got tucked away?"
Her head tilted faintly, her glassy eyes blinking up at me as if I'd just spoken another language.
I assumed that she was expressing some degree of confusion, but I wasn't certain.
It was difficult to tell what she was thinking or feeling through the hazy gloss in her pupils. She looked… unfocused. Like her body was still here, but the rest of her was already sinking away.
Her head lolled slightly to the side, her eyes struggling to stay open as her voice slurred like a radio on low battery.
"No. That part… is up to you."
Her grip over her wounds began to weaken. Soon, her hand fell from her side and landed gently in the dirt. Her fingertips twitched a couple of times before going fully limp.
I blinked.
"…Huh?"
Her head dipped forward before she caught herself with a shudder. "To destroy the core… We're going to need an overwhelming abundance of firepower... I need to rest. I must replenish my energy… without interruption... So that I can destroy it when the time comes."
"That's not an answer!" I said, leaning toward her. "You're saying that I have to figure out a way to bring that goglith down?!"
Before I could even get my next words out, I could feel something coming up my throat. In an instant, I hunched over as a torrent of blood came pouring from my lips.
'The ghost is still attacking my soul!'
I expected Cacophony to have some sort of reaction to my sudden plight, but she was already slipping.
No, all this time, from the moment that she dropped me into the dirt after we made it over the fence, she'd been slipping.
Her deteriorating state wasn't due solely to the beam of light that hit her torso.
This whole time. Even before she knew where the core was hidden, she understood that it'd be her job to destroy it and acted accordingly.
Her breath came shallow. Her eyelids fluttered like shutters in a weak breeze. The royal polish that always coated her voice had started to erode.
This state of 'rest' seemed closer to being put into a coma to me.
"This is the most effective method of regenerating and circulating spiritual energy…, but it's demanding... In a few moments," she murmured, "my consciousness… will sink."
I felt the weight drop on my shoulders like a guillotine.
"But! No, just hold off for a second! What am I meant to do? What should I do? What can I do? Bringing the sky down isn't some easy task to delegate at random!"
Her gaze wavered, her lips barely parting.
"This is... your first proper assignment as my servant... Figure out the secret to this house... then make the ghost descend... I trust you wouldn't want to disappoint me in your first endeavor."
I didn't even have time to protest. The instant that the final syllable exited her lips, her eyelids closed shut.
The Empress's body lost any sign of consciousness as she fell into a deep slumber.
"Wait—hey, hey, no!"
I lunged forward and crouched down.
I grabbed her shoulders and shook with all the might that my weakened body could muster.
Her head lolled forward limply, chin dipping toward her chest.
I gave her another shake.
Her body limply swayed from side to side, but she gave no response to my actions.
"The hell... You convince me on some crackpipe dream and then make a dramatic exit. That's not... that's not cool, you know..."
I released my grip on Cacophony's shoulders and moved back.
Just in case, I pressed two fingers to her neck to ensure she was alive. There was a stretch of silence before I felt the movement of blood from beneath her skin coming in slow, rhythmic surges. Then, with a frown, I drew my hand back.
'It's faint, but she does have a pulse... Guess she wasn't lying or anything.'
That was good. Right? The chances of a betrayal plot twist were low, plus it doesn't seem like she's trying to pull a fast one on me.
Yup, good.
I raised both of my hands and dragged them up over my face, pressing my palms so tightly against my skin that it felt like I could smother my own thoughts if I just held them there long enough. I shut my eyes and felt the pounding of my heart in my chest.
After everything that's happened, in this worsening situation, I didn't even have another person to speak with anymore. I had to endure and take on all of this responsibility all on my own.
I began to speak into my palms.
"…That's weird," I muttered into the prison of my fingers. "I really want to give up and drop everything... And yet I don't feel like I can... Right now, I'm not in despair..."
I let out a shaky breath that left me lightheaded. "Guess her empty words sparked a pretty big fire in my chest."
My hands slipped down from my face, and I stared at my palms, smeared faintly with dirt and red. I flexed them slowly, as if trying to feel whether they were still my own.
Then, with a bitter grin, I curled them into fists.
"Fine. Sleep all you want, Empress. But when you wake up, don't act surprised if your servant has already reshaped the world in your absence."
I sat back on my heels, looking at the silent house looming nearby, its shadow stretching long over the dirt. Then I turned my attention toward the backyard filled with fake swords.
Feeling the warm liquid coming up my throat, I placed my hand over my lips in anticipation.
"Is something like this... even solvable? Where should I even start?"
Khak! Khak!
After coughing up another handful of blood, I wiped my hand on the fabric of my jacket.
The taste of iron coated my tongue, but I forced myself to stand. My knees wobbled like I'd borrowed them from a scarecrow.
I spat a streak of red into the dirt.
"The dirt should be glad. It's been blessed with the taste of kingly blood."
The dirt drank my blood, and I straightened. My battered body continued to sway from side to side as I attempted to gain my bearings, though the intense pain shooting through my muscles made that task feel impossible.
I placed my hand on the fence for support as my focus shifted back to the house that loomed before me.
"Strange swords, a plastic throne, and then there's this almost mundane-looking house... Maybe it's actually meant to be a castle? That would fit the theme better."
My gaze lingered on the house for a few more seconds, but soon enough I lowered my head.
I needed to think things through.
Given all of the information that I had available to me, it didn't seem as though there was an obvious place to begin my investigation. Still, with no time to waste, I had to take a shot in the dark and figure out anything I could.
I slipped the orb back into my jacket pocket, pressing it down until I was certain it was secure. A quick shake of the fabric reassured me it wouldn't slip free. Only then did I let out a slow breath, tension releasing from my chest.
Pushing myself off the fence, I took pained steps toward the first stop in my investigation, the forgotten battlefield of plastic swords.
My first instinct had been to go toward the house, but that wouldn't be a good idea.
The reason was simple: The house was further away compared to the swords.
It would've taken me much longer to get into the house, and with my every step feeling like murder, even small differences in distance would've taken a huge toll on me.
And so the best choice was obviously to head toward the closest area of interest.
Still, even this short stretch of dirt was proving to be a challenge. Each one of my uneven steps dragged like I was pulling chains around my ankles.
Every few steps, I had to pause just to breathe. My ribs burned like they were lit with coals, my stomach knotted with pain, and the back of my throat bubbled with blood I refused to cough up until the timing was right.
Though I'd only moved a few feet, I was exhausted.
At last, I reached the nearest sword and used it as a crutch to steady myself.
In front of me, rows and rows of blades were stabbed upright into the earth. Dozens of them. Maybe hundreds. Some were long, some short, some curved, some jagged.
From afar, the battlefield of blades might've looked grim or even noble, but up close, this place lost its luster.
"If they weren't plastic, this place might've been cool."
Still using one sword as support, I leaned over and grabbed the hilt of another sword.
My fingers wrapped around the worn grip, and I pulled.
The blade slid free with a faint hiss of dirt. The weight settled into my hand.
And then my brow furrowed.
"They really are just toys."
I gave the blade a tentative swing, and it bent like a pool noodle.
I stared at it. Then at the rows of swords stretching across the backyard.
"…You've got to be kidding me. Is there even any magic in this place?"