Chapter 379

Episode 379 With Those Two Eyes (5)

“So that bastard was playing around again.”



Over time, I understood what Gestas was trying to convey. 9 years. The time I gave up for the boy. Surprisingly, it was just an illusion.

[Uh... I really didn’t know. I thought you were at least guessing.]

“Fuck.”

Expected yes. did. I guess he must have done something. I guess they’re still trying to trick me.

But who would have guessed? Who would have guessed that the time I had to endure was not the 9 years here, but the 9 years in my reality.

“This little bastard....”

Ah, now I understand why the contract was renewed this time for the sake of my health.

“I knew it was intended to prevent self-harm, but did you even take this into consideration...!”

At the time, I thought I was just preparing for him to go back on a whim and abandon Faust... but I had no intention of abandoning Faust and going back anyway, so I decided to go along with his obvious intentions...

“Damn you son of a bitch!”

What he was really aiming for was not a contingency plan, but a 9-year prank that he had set up a long time ago.

In other words, when that damn bastard found out about it, he took away my last means of returning home. I’m so angry that I know everything and everything has been blocked!

“shit!”

Oh, I’m really angry. Even though I know what he wants to me in the past, who is unexpected to this unexpected chewy chewy, I keep only reversing!

I’m just angry...!

“Damn—!”

bang! My fist crawled and hit the branch of the tree that served as the floor. I knew there was nothing I could gain by hurting myself, but I couldn’t control my anger.

My fist broke and blood splattered out.

“Zenjaaaaang—!!”

But even if this happens, my anger won’t go away. It’s still painful and miserable.

bang! I hit my blood-dripping fist again. In the second and third collisions, the skin becomes dented to the extent that the bones are visible.

A dizzying pain spread down the back of my hand to my forearm and shoulder.

[...The first offer is still valid.]

And in that pain, Gestas whispered.

[If you say you want to go back right away, we will do so.]

A push between the two of us that neither the devil nor Faust knows about. It was an offer that no one would criticize if I accepted it now.

[Do you want to do that?]

It was a compensation plan that I wanted to accept right now...

“Then what about Faust?”

But if you accept this, what about her?

[I’m going to die. But it won’t be a bad thing for her either.]

“Dying?”

Yes, the child will not have any objections either. Rather, they would agree that it was the right thing to do.

But I can’t let go of that kid anymore because he’s that kind of kid. He was definitely a child who could change, a child who could bloom brilliantly if given the chance, but it is too much to say that death was the only salvation due to just one misfortune.

[...You didn’t forgive that child. And yet, I still want to seek it.]

“Forgiveness and salvation are separate things!”

Everyone is qualified to be saved. As long as he himself shows the will to change, it is sure to happen.

At least I believe so.

[....]

But now it seems like that trust will be broken. The world is so harsh and difficult that I just can’t maintain it.

I just can’t bear it....

[...Did I feel the same way as you when I hugged Dismas?]

I lay down on the tree branch and sobbed.

Guys, I’m having a hard time. I want to go back to you, and I want to keep the promise I made. It’s so, so hard.

[I can’t remember it either.]

Please save me...

[But I remember that it was right.]

A hoof was placed on the pouring tears and injured hand. The hoof, which is divided into five parts and moves with a clicking sound, looks like a tree bark being placed on a human hand. Strange fingers brushed my cheek and intertwined between my fingers.

[If you still have a little patience left, star that embraces the ocean and sails the universe. Although you may not be able to invest an unpredictable amount of time, if you still have the will to endure a little hardship for that boy. I want to make an offer to you.]

And when my hands and his hands made a perfect clasping.

[Would you please kill Satan and completely liberate the god of this world? So that the liberated being can return you and the boy intact.]

The wound on my hand disappeared as if being washed away.

* * *

“Vidr....”

More precisely, the two humans were trying to be considerate of Berserk, who was separated from his family, and Suzaku did not want to go through the crisis of death that he barely escaped from again.

For that reason, those who saw the unspoken compromise hid in a corner and continued whispering.

[Still, treatment is needed. My sleep right now is more like fainting than a nap, so if I’m not careful, something like today could happen again. So, won’t you join the heart pieces together as soon as your strength is restored? That alone will drastically reduce the time needed to wake up.]

“Oh, I understand!”

What happens today means that powerful enemies from beyond the dimension are invading.

Something like that should never happen again. The somewhat appalled body of the Inquisitor rolled over next to the dragon.

“Are you saying you don’t need any more pieces?”

[It’s good to have it, but there’s no need to go out of your way to bring it. As long as you wake up, you can maintain the status quo with half a heart. Even without a heart, it’s as if they’ve been doing a good job of blocking it for the past few hundred years.]

However, instead of running like the Inquisitor, the Deathbringer stayed where it was. Even though the frostbite had healed, my legs were still numb, and the fact that there was nothing to do even if I went there also played a part.

He stood next to Suzaku and continued his conversation with him.

[You can return the heart piece even if you retrieve it slowly. He’ll be happier about it too. If there are a few more souls as big as that human, the egos will get mixed up and it will be difficult.]

“...Is that so?”

The ego is mixed up. As an ordinary human being, he couldn’t even sense it. Deathbringer massaged his arm, remembering the dragon that had awakened and Berserk reacting to him.

The wound has healed properly thanks to the Inquisitor, but for some reason, his mind is experiencing illusions of endless pain and brokenness. Even at this moment when my fingertips smooth my forearm, I continue to feel like the wound remains.

“Even ancient beasts live really hard lives.”

[Because rights come with duties.]

“It doesn’t seem like you are enjoying your rights that much, but...”

Deathbringer spends time tied up in spider webs to protect Suzaku’s situation of living on the battlefield and the dimensional wall. I saw a dragon sending. As expected, it was not like he was enjoying his rights.

[They live longer than humans. That is a right.]

“If you simply live and breathe, is that life? Doing what you want... or doing something fun... or something that makes you happy is something that can be said to be living a life.”

However, if you emphasize something like that, someone’s attention will naturally be drawn.

shit. Deathbringer clenched his fists as he looked at the person who was still lying down even though his clothes had been regenerated. It wasn’t just the ancient beasts that were forced to live without any joy.

[I feel something strange.]

“...What?”

[No one has ever said that to me before.]

“Eh.”

[I wonder if Sentai Suzaku felt this way when he was worried.]

Meanwhile, Suzaku, who was flapping his wings, sat on the Deathbringer’s head.

[Do you want to receive protection?]

“...I won’t refuse if you give it to me. But can you give it to me now? “Wasn’t recovery a priority?”

[Oh, that’s right. Then I’ll go back and give it to you.]

Really. The face of the Deathbringer, who had been looking forward to it for a moment, cooled down.

[Oh, right. But you. How did you separate the pieces?]

“...? “Oh, that’s it.”

Ah, I was already wanting to ask about this. Deathbringer took out his unholy sword that he had forgotten about.

“This sword? Strangely enough, when you hold it, things you normally don’t see—”

[It’s a sword made from sea dragon scales. And that too with the scales of the fallen. Right?]

“Yes? Yes. “How did you know?”

[You know it when you see it. okay. This is that guy...]

Suzaku, who was standing on the top of his head, stuck out his head and then crouched down. Then, if only the tail was removed, a ball that could fit in the fist was completed.

[I don’t know why I saw things like that just because I was holding a sword. Maybe it’s because he lives in the deep sea and has seen many hidden things? Sometimes, such daily life becomes fixed as a characteristic.]

“That’s because it is like that. But I don’t see this every time.”

Until now, the bronze color symbolizing the dragon heart piece was not visible in Berserk. According to Suzaku, she also has a piece of her heart.

[That’s because it’s made of scales rather than eyes, which is a part specialized for seeing. In other words, the performance is a bit lacking. And the fact that the fragments were only visible on the corpse... is probably because the characteristic presence of the creature that was hiding the fragments was erased by death.]

“Then what did you see then...?”

[That was covered up with force. The presence of living things is nature itself, so even if you cannot recognize it, you can see its hidden power. Could it be something like that?]

“Hmm... I’m not sure about the criteria.”

There was no need to see anything through this in the first place, so even if you tried to set a standard, it would be difficult to set one.

“Still, thank you for letting me know.”

Even if it’s a feature you don’t use, it’s better to have it than not have it. Deathbringer remembered that and put the false sword back.

“...When will you wake up?”

[I don’t know. Since my soul has run away from home, I cannot give a definite answer to this.]

“Is that so... oh oh?”

What ran away from home now?

“What!?!”

[Ouch! What if you hold your torso so hard!! I’m dying!!]

Just like Berserk did before, this time Deathbringer’s hand began to squeeze Suzaku.