The rain had started again, misting like droplets were barely visible as they had just started to fall. On the bench was sitting a girl, she had an umbrella in her hand though it was beside resting on the bench with her rather than shielding her from the rain.
Her eyes were lost as her jaw was slightly opened.
".. Rain."
This word made her take aback, flat-footed. Almost no one used her last name to interact with her, uptill now.. She turned her head slowly where the voice came from to witness a girl behind her, wearing a red dress. Then she continued with a pause.
"Does no one ever call you that?"
Sara gave a lazy nod, before coming to her senses.
"What are you doing here?"
She inquired.
"I just got permission to spend some time here and to look after all of you.. you know.. just in case."
Lisa spoke with a small smile, to enlighten the mood up. Sara brushed off the umbrella over her lap which was covering the bench as Lisa gently sat beside her. For a moment, silence shrouded them as they exchanged no words.
"Do you check others out?"
Sara murmured, her words piercing the dead silence.
"Not really.. just Zack who was with his family."
"Anne?"
Lisa nodded, Sara took a deep sigh.
"Ender was here a few moments ago.."
This statement made Lisa quite startled.
"He gave me this umbrella.."
Sara gaze went over the umbrella while it was resting on her lap, a slight curve could be seen from her lips. Lisa swallowed. The same guy who almost made a kid suicide yet she control herself by exhaling a deep sigh.
"Want me to check someone else?"
Lisa asked to shift the conversation elsewhere. Sara took a deep thought, before answering.
"Ruis."
Lisa closed her eyes and stayed still for a few moments before they bursted open, her skin went pale like she had seen hell. Coughing..
"What happened?"
Sara was puzzled as ever, for a few seconds words couldn't form in Lisa's tongue but she somehow blurted.
"W– We need.. to go.."
Her face covered in sweat as she grabbed Sara's hand and got up. Sara didn't understand what was happening.
"Crap! He concealed the area. I can't just wrap the space to go.."
Suddenly the rain started lashing so Sara subconsciously opened the umbrella over her, pulling Lisa a bit closer so she couldn't get caught in heavy rain.
"What's happening?"
She whispered, her voice blended in the lashing harsh droplets. Lisa who had her eyes closed and eyebrows knitted like she was concentrating very hard on something. After a minute, she sighed with exhaustion.
"It's covered on all sides.. well.. Doesn't matter.. I'll just destroy it.. But first we need to go there."
As soon as these words came out in a low voice, the space distorted and in the next moment they were in a forest, standing on a polished stone footpath. Though because of thick fog nothing much was visible as it looked like there was just a random pathway.
"Do you want to see everything by yourself or want me to tell you?"
Lisa asked, not looking at her. Her gaze was concentrated over the path as she left Sara's palm for a moment, making a hand sign with both hands, before chanting a single word.
"Unveil."
Suddenly with these words some Japanese style lanterns could be seen from afar with an entire exterior of a minka mansion.
"Prepare yourself.."
She muttered, before grabbing her hand again, Sara took a deep breath. Lisa could feel her hand being a bit clenched by her as she was preparing herself for the unknown. Lisa took the umbrella from her hand, this time shielding her.
"Hold on to yourself.."
Feeling her warm breath, Sara swallowed. At the next moment, the space wrapped as they were now standing on the drenched lawn of the minka, the fog was very thick as they could only see a few feet only; from their naked eye range.
Lisa's crimson eyes sparkle a bright glow as if she had just concentrated spirituality on them. Sara tried to mirror her act as her pearly gray windows started glowing too.
She glanced at her, smirking. Lisa sighed..
"Look around.."
She followed her saying, tilting her head a bit around. Suddenly her eyes widened and her jaw fell off.
Every few meters across, there was a man dead on the grass, everywhere. The whole lawn was ruined, the foundation was broken and the minka itself was in a pretty bizarre state, it was as if a monster had destroyed everything coming on its path.
Sara stood there witnessing the horror of her life, she was flabbergasted so much that Lisa could hear the beating of her heart clearly. For a minute she stood there, flinching. Before letting out a gasp.
"W– Why?"
Lisa understood that she didn't need to explain who did all this up, because Sara's expression was just like that, a mix of feelings could be visible on her face but what she could see was a pathetic face, the face who had trusted someone more than anyone ever..
"AGHHH!"
They heard a scream of a girl, it was indeed not a fake scream, it was like someone was begging for their life. Lisa wraps space but the umbrella in her hand falls off, nevertheless they were now in the area where the screech had come from, their gaze went towards someone. The long hairs above the neck, the build and posture and the outfit the person was wearing..
Sara's biggest nightmare became true.. It was him..
"Ruis?"
Hearing the voice the man froze, stunned. Then he gradually turned around, suspecting he was either hallucinating or was it a deceiving act.
"Sara? Lisa?"
His eyes bursted open, like he was caught. Sara then began to ask him questions, meanwhile Lisa's gaze went over a girl who was a young Japanese girl, she instantly went over her.
Before taking her into the mansion instantly, there she poked her neck to make her unconscious. Then placing her fingers on her forehead she took out her memories as they came out in bright yellow light, dancing in her fingers before disappearing away.
She gently laid her on a bed before coming back to the scene. As soon as she came back, Ruis on his knees started screaming wildly. Punching holes on the ground with his fists, he did that for a few seconds. While Lisa takes a glimpse at Sara's face to find it expressionless.
"I… I didn't do this for anyone.. I did this for myself."
He muttered, finally accepting the reason why he did all this.
"It was all me.."
He continued, looking at his hands, they were washed by the rain but the redness was there. His sword lay beside him.
"There is nothing I can do to reverse this.. just like that day.."
He stared at his hands, drowned by rain, drowned by himself.
"There is a way.. these people have been killed.. the soul takes time to go when it's not a natural death.. they are still intact within them.."
These words made both Ruis and Sara turn their heads towards her as she broke the endless splatter of the rain. Saying in a hushed tone.
"We can still save them all.."
Ruis looked at her, surprised.
"H– How?"
A whisper could be heard from Sara's lips.
"You should know.. how to do this.. don't you? In the end you're an exception in spiritual growth."
She stared at Ruis, wearing a solemn expression, her tone subdued. He bit his lips, his fingers twitching.
"Y– You are telling me.. to revive the same people I just killed right now."
Lisa stared at him, no answer, no argument. Sara was herself puzzled about what they should do.
"They would have no memories about this day. Like in their life this day had never occurred."
Hearing this statement, Ruis stayed silent, thinking hard about something.
"If you want to prove you are not a monster. Prove it by an action.. not words.."
Ruis took a deep breath, nodding his head down when exhaling. It was safe to say, he was tired of all of this.. Of blaming Fate..
After some minutes, all the dead bodies were lined together horizontally. Ruis stand before them beside the girls. The rain had stopped, for now but the clouds were still there.
Ruis cleared his throat, gasping for air. In the next moment, his body started emitting a light blue aura, his pearly gray eyes lightened up as he declared.
"Flow."
Enormous aura flowed from his body, first reaching up the sky and when it was just about to penetrate the clouds. It changed its direction before spitting into many small ones, each landing on a person; there was Ruis's clone there in them as well.
A bright light emerged from the bodies so scintillating that it blinded them for some seconds. After that, when it faded away, the wounds regenerated even Ruis's clone left arm.
Lisa went towards while Ruis took his turn back, she extended her fingers by only hand before pulling the fingers towards her. Suddenly a bright yellow light emerged from their foreheads, they're so many that they filled her palm, dancing everywhere. She lifted it upwards as the dazzling gleam fades away into the clouds.. It was quite a breathtaking scene... As it should be...
Lisa stared at the sky, her expression was a bit satisfied now.
"My work is done. Now you both wrapped this up and cleared things."
Using her wrapping ability, she disappears from their eye sight in another 4 seconds, to another place. Ruis looked at the people laying on the ground before him, they were still unconscious. He glanced over Sara whose expressions were still the same. He sighed, walking some steps before taking a pause.
"Flow rewind."
He contacted his leg muscles, pushing them to the ground, maintaining a steady position. Suddenly the ground started emitting a blue aura, next it hardened into an energy layer before covering the whole minka by ground.
Ruis closed his eyes, concentrating while the broken fountain, structure and ruined garden started repairing again, after 20 seconds the whole minka had regained what it had lost. The energy layer shattered as Ruis was covered in his own sweat. Gasping for breath, he sweeps his forehead with his shoulder. The last work has to be done..
Moments Later...
Two people were strolling on the polished footpath, a bit distant from each other, with one being a girl who was wearing a dress and the other who had a ragged outfit with a sword tied up to his belt. The girl's expression was still unreadable and the boy had a regretful face.
"I will tell you my master's story.."
He broke the dread silence between them, Sara didn't respond nor make any nod. Nevertheless Ruis continued.
"He was a ruthless assassin and the younger brother of the head. He submitted his entire life to them.. until he came here for a mission, while doing the mission he fell in love with a woman, but for that he had to betray his family."
Ruis continued with a pause.
"He spent 5 wonderful years with that woman, until one day traveling home he found her and her daughter dead. Then he left the place and came to our village, because of his skills as an assassin he was given a high title there. He also was skilled in making paintings so he did that for a living.."
Ruis gasped for air, saying with a dark tone.
"When I had nothing in the world.. He gave me everything.. I thought of him as my father, as he should be, in the end. He did more for me than anyone did for me in this world.. Indeed he was my world.. now.. I have no world.."
He glanced at Sara to see her expression hadn't changed. He expected this, it would not be enough to convince her, so he continued walking, without any words exchanging.
They strolled for so long that they entered the city, now the clouds started disappearing to reveal a breathtaking sunset. Ruis sat on a nearby bench where the horizon had blurred into soft, bruised violet and spun gold. The cold breeze passed away, rustling his wet hairs as Sara sat beside him, but a bit away.
Both look at the gorgeous sunset, the chirping of birds like they were finally free from the storm. For a moment, both mellow out there. Not exchanging any words.
"I have realized.."
Ruis whispered, looking at the gentle orange-golden rays gleaming over his hands. Subconsciously, his lips curved.
Sara glanced at him out of the corner of her eye.
"This world is really beautiful; we just have to seek out its beauty."
"What if someone destroyed the beauty of this world?"
Sara spoke, her sharp pearls staring what he would say, this made him smile more, he leaned back to the bench, relaxing his back; his long fingers extended to the air where the golden beam glitter over them, it was such a beautiful sensation. So the moment.
"They can destroy the world.. but they can't destroy my world.. If they try, I will cover myself in another beauty, deceiving myself from the world's experience."
Sara was speechless by this answer, she didn't expect this in any of the 13 answers she made up in her mind. Sighing, preparing herself to say something but suddenly she heard another statement.
"Beauty can never be destroyed. It can be suppressed but its destruction depends on our perspective. I won't let anyone nor myself destroy my own world."
Ruis took a deep breath of cold refreshing breeze, his facial muscles all relaxed. Sara bit her lips, muttering.
"... who is your world?"
Ruis pearly gray eyes sparkled for a moment, he slowly headed his head towards her, at this moment. It was like if the sun had a special charm in it, he was astonished, flushed.
The pearly gray windows luminously emitted a soft light like a moon. The face was shrouded with a gentle orange beam. Her dress so her expression, soft and startling. Her crimson lips dazzling by the golden beam as they were in a position like they were waiting for an answer. In this moment, Ruis could all see beauty, he could all see beauty, beauty of the world..
".. You."
Beauty of his world.
Sara didn't know what to say, think, her expression so her thoughts had gone blank. Tears form around her eyes. A logical thought couldn't form in her mind.
~ W– What?
She ignored her logical reasoning and dashed to embrace him, it was so sudden Ruis couldn't contract his muscles and fell on the bench with her. At this moment, he could feel her tears dripping on his neck. Her fingers pulling his shirt tight, he scrubs her hair gently.
~ I found it.. I found it.. It was here all along.. beside me.. I promise I will not let anyone destroy it, nor I will let myself destroy it.. It is mine.. All mine.. will be mine.. all along.. for eternity.. We will be for us.. In every world.. In every life.. We will be together.. Everywhere..