The conversation with this stranger had started in a way that I really couldn't grasp. I felt a lump in my throat. It wasn't out of fear, but simply because I hadn't expected to be mistaken for someone from this world.
"If it's not too much trouble," I said, trying to sound as polite as possible, "why do you call me Darian?"
"You are an exact copy of that human."
"'That' human? What do you mean by that?"
He thought for a long moment, as if recalling something distant.
"Darian was a calculation error in this world. He was born empty. A Miko. He couldn't generate mana or *touki*, and his existence was unsustainable. That is why his body collapsed at the age of ten."
Then, he looked directly at me.
"That is why you shouldn't be alive."
"In any case, if he actually died, why associate me with him?"
The man just stared at the ground with clinical indifference.
"You have his same trace. His same face. That black hair was the stigma of his condition. I observed him once because he represented an interesting anomaly, but it was a waste of time. There was no saving him. The ambient mana acted like poison to him. He simply rotted from the inside out."
"He... he rotted?"
"He turned to dust. That is why you surprised me." .[1]
Eris looked at me in terror, as if fearing I would vanish too. She even grabbed my arm. That grip was what snapped me back to reality. I couldn't let her stay scared.
"Well, it's impossible for me to be him, right?"
"Hmm?"
I chanted the spell for a water ball and fired it at the wall.
*Splash!*
"I am capable of using mana. In fact..." I almost did it voiceless but stopped in time. "I have a high capacity."
I turned to Eris and placed my hand over hers so she could feel I was solid. That I belonged to her.
"You see, right?" I tried to sound gentle. "Darian couldn't use mana, but I can. The ambient mana doesn't affect me."
I paused and looked her in the eyes.
"And above all, Darian died alone. I am not alone."
She loosened her grip, as if finally understanding that I was standing there, right in front of her. Without pulling her hands away completely, she moved them up to my face and caressed me, verifying I wasn't an illusion. Seeing my smile and feeling my warmth, she could only return the gesture.
Orsted broke the moment.
"Then it is a coincidence. An extremely specific coincidence."
I was about to step forward, but an arm stopped me so abruptly I nearly lost my breath. I looked up to see Ruijerd.
"Whatever you do, don't move. Eris, you neither." Ruijerd's voice was trembling. A sound I never thought I'd hear from him.
In all our months traveling with him, he had never shown a facet of fear. At least not from Millis to here. My brother hadn't told me much about the Demon Continent, but I was sure a five-hundred-year-old being isn't exactly someone who gets scared easily.
"Mm? That voice..." The man stopped. "Are you Ruijerd Superdia? I didn't recognize you at first without your hair. What are you doing here?"
He approached us with a casual calm that was almost insulting. Ruijerd gripped his spear, ready to attack, but the man didn't even flinch.
"Mm? The red-haired girl... Eris Boreas Greyrat, huh? And the other one... who are you?" he asked, looking at Rudeus. "Not a face I recognize..."
He paused briefly, then nodded with a know-it-all expression.
"Anyway. I understand what is happening, Ruijerd Superdia. You have a soft spot for children, so these three must be victims of the incident, teleported to the Demon Continent. You've been escorting them back."
Eris was perplexed and shouted, "H-how do you know my name!?"
My mind was spinning. This stranger seemed to know everyone in a way I couldn't comprehend. Even me, albeit through a mix-up with this 'Darian.' Yet, the most baffling part was that he had no idea who Rudeus was.
"Who the hell are you!? And why do you know my name!?" Ruijerd pointed his spear at the man. He didn't know the subject either.
"This is a curious place to run into you. But you look well. That is good."
The man looked at Ruijerd, unmoved by the weapon threatening him. Then, he let out a laugh heavy with self-loathing and took a step back.
Seeing that, the girl in the mask murmured, "Are you sure?"
"It is inevitable at this point."
The man walked slowly around us.
"I will get out of your way."
The black-haired woman followed him, but as she passed me, she kept staring. Although the mask hid her expression, the tilt of her head made it clear. Her attention was locked on me. Or rather, on my black hair.
"You will know who I am... eventually," the man said, his words firm and holding a clearly hidden meaning.
But before they could move on, I knew Rudeus was going to say something because he turned sharply and looked straight at them.
"Please, wait!" Rudeus shouted.
He looked back.
"What is it? What do you want?"
"Ah, good afternoon. My name is Rudeus Greyrat."
"Never heard of you."
After all, it was their first meeting.
"Wait. Greyrat, right? What are your parents' names?"
"Before we get to that, uh... what is your name?" my brother asked.
"Mm. Very well, I will tell you. My name is Orsted."
"Are you two acquaintances?" Rudeus asked, looking back and forth between Ruijerd and Orsted.
"No. Not yet."
"'Not yet'? What does that mean?"
"You don't need to know. Now, who are your parents?" He cut the topic abruptly, returning to his interrogation.
"Paul Greyrat."
"...Mm?" His eyes narrowed. "Paul shouldn't have a son. He should have two daughters."
I decided to intervene. I felt it was necessary, even though my instincts were screaming at me to keep my mouth shut.
"Paul Greyrat is my father too. I am Rudeus's brother." I wasn't going to leave my brother alone in this.
"Brothers?" He repeated the word. "Paul Greyrat has no sons. His descendants are Norn and Aisha."
The way he spoke of our family with such authority, as if reading from a poorly written history book, was unsettling.
"Two sons..." he muttered to himself. "And one of them wears the face of a corpse from six hundred years ago."
He shook his head slightly.
"Fate has deviated too much."
Then he looked back at us, specifically at Rudeus.
"You. Are you perhaps familiar with the name 'Man-God'?"
"Yes. He appears in my dreams..."
Suddenly, a potent killing intent filled the air, leaving me paralyzed for a moment. By the time I could process what was happening, Ruijerd had lunged forward, managing to intercept Orsted's attack while pushing my brother back.
Orsted, however, looked at me over Ruijerd's shoulder.
"So that's why you were alive, Darian. You are one of the Man-God's apostles, just like your brother."
The instant I thought Orsted was falsely accusing us, Ruijerd screamed.
"Run! Get out of he—!"
It was too late.
Ruijerd attacked with his spear, but despite all his experience, it was useless against this subject. Orsted deflected the weapon with terrifying ease and returned the attack mere seconds later.
First, he struck the solar plexus, then connected another blow to the jaw, and finally, a sharp strike to the temple ended the fight.
He could have killed him with that third blow if he had wished, but he didn't. Even against an opponent as formidable as Ruijerd, Orsted had the luxury of holding back, knocking him unconscious in an instant.
"Hyaaaah!" Eris jumped in front of me and swung her blade toward Orsted, as fast as an arc of light.
"Secret Technique: Flow."
Orsted wasted no time with Eris. All he did was attempt to gently stop her sword with the palm of his hand. At least, that's what it looked like to me. However, Eris wasn't the same as before.
At the last moment, she changed the trajectory by just a few centimeters, showing how much she had improved with my training. Orsted noticed. For a fraction of a second, an expression resembling astonishment crossed his face. Still, it wasn't enough. Orsted corrected his defense faster than the eye could follow.
Eris was sent flying, spinning through the air. Before she crashed against the wall, I managed to catch her, sliding across the ground from the inertia as I landed.
"Tch... This guy is just playing..." I looked down at Eris. "Are you okay, Eris?"
I didn't give her time to answer. I immediately used healing magic on her. As I did, I realized I had done it voiceless, something the man noticed.
"Eris... Give me your sword." I looked at her seriously, hoping she would accept immediately.
"But, Daiki, he..."
"...Trust me."
She handed me her sword. As she did, I felt her hands trembling. Even though she had trained with Ruijerd and me, Orsted was an anomaly who hadn't even taken her seriously.
"Eris. I know this will be hard, but while I 'distract' that guy, you must try to get Ruijerd out of the battle zone."
"But..."
"Eris, don't argue!"
I stood up and launched myself at him.
Water God Style in my left hand, holding Eris's sword.
Sword God Style in my right hand, holding Temphestalis.
But it was useless. No matter how much I wanted to attack, this guy used Flow and pushed me back. I was sure he could kill me whenever he wanted.
Rudeus, for his part, understood my message when I looked at him and began charging a fire attack. It was a massive one that started changing color.
Orsted landed a blow that sent me spinning through the air. I used the wall for support and propelled myself back, swinging my blade toward Orsted just as Rudeus was about to launch his attack. To do that, I had to let go of Eris's sword.
Rudeus unleashed his massive power. I could feel the heat all the way from here. However, the man seemed indifferent to such a massive attack. Or so I thought.
"Open, Wyrm Gate!" As Orsted let those words out, a window opened. It stopped my attack and managed to take my sword. At this point, trying to retrieve it was impossible. The 'bond' ability didn't seem to work on him.
In that same instant, the magical power flowing through his left hand was sucked in. The window frame cracked and shattered. Simultaneously, an explosion occurred near Orsted. The blast forced him back slightly, however, what followed...
"What incredible magic reserves. A Wyrm Gate wasn't capable of containing it. It's almost as if you were on the same level as Laplace... Well, you are an apostle of the Man-God, after all."
Then, he rested his gaze on me. "You surprised me, Darian. You were just a child with no strength, and now you are capable of using two sword styles. One of Light, and the other a solid Flow technique that, if I'm honest, is Saint level. And you are capable of voiceless healing magic, which is... impressive." He looked at my sword. " Hmm... it is draining my mana... Wait.... This sword belonged to Laplace's repertoire."
And his analytical look changed completely.
From one moment to the next, he dropped my sword and lunged at me. I tried to dodge somehow, but I took the hit full force in my side.
"Daiki!"
As I spun in the air, I saw my brother for an instant. Unable to stop myself, my back collided violently against his chest.
"Agh...!"
I tried to clear my blurred vision, but looking down... I saw his hand. It had pierced through my body at incredible speed. Straight through the heart.
It was an absolutely fatal wound. One my healing magic would never be able to close. And behind me, from the wet sound and the shared impact, I knew my brother had been pierced too. Two twins mortally wounded at the same time.
"How disappointing, Man-God. Now you use pawns who can't even protect themselves? What are you planning?"
His hand came out completely covered in my blood when he extracted it. My body betrayed me, and I collapsed to the ground. At the edge of my vision, I saw Eris lift her head. She wore an expression of absolute disbelief as she looked at me. Our eyes met.
"A-ah... D-Da... Daiki... Daiki! Rudeus!"
Eris, I'm sorry. I told you I would protect you.
"Daiki...?"
That voice... was the black-haired woman, I think.
I am a complete failure. I thought I was strong, that I could rescue my mother, take Eris home... I promised Norn I would return, told Rudeus I wouldn't abandon him. I just wanted to fulfill all of that so I could, at least, die in peace.
"Noooooooooooo!"
"Were they important to you? I am sorry, Eris Boreas Greyrat. But one day you will understand. Let's move, Nanahoshi."
"Wait, Orsted. There is something that has been bothering me... That boy... Wouldn't it be better to leave him alive? His name..."
Just before my consciousness shut down completely, I thought I heard someone say those words.
...
"Hikari... What is it that you wish for?"
"Mommy...? What do you want...? What do you mean by that?"
"..."
"I-I want... I want you not to leave me. That is all..."
"I see... Then, I will do everything within my reach to give you what you want, my son."
[1] Orsted has over 20,000 years of mental experience and access to the entire world's knowledge. He knows most people, including exactly how, when, and to whom they were born. He is intimately familiar with the Laplace War and the history of the Dragon Gods from thousands of years ago. If Darian was a unique biological anomaly, such as an Empty Miko, his case would be recorded in history books or Perugius's library, which Orsted has memorized throughout his one hundred loops. When he mentioned that he "observed" him, he meant that he studied his case as a potential variable against Hitogam