Chương 39: Chapter 38: Proving Identity

A silence hung in the air. Where the ghost had been, there hovered only the purple fog, stranded without its owner. Yuto withdrew the Void Scythe and sank weakly to the floor. The sense of duty that had coiled around his heart and squeezed it had disappeared. In its place, cold emptiness and indescribable sadness. He moaned, clutching his chest. Blood-red tears still flowed down his face. The words the ghost's lips had formed in its final moments lingered in his mind.

"My son..." It echoed in his ears like an auditory hallucination and jabbed at his soul. The son who did not exist in this world had only had his existence acknowledged after killing his father with his own hands. It was so cruel that it left him panting for breath.

"No... no..." he groaned again. Then he shut his eyes. He had done what needed to be done. Someone had had to punish the ghost, and that someone could only be Yuto. He set his teeth and tried to flush his emotions out. He sympathized with the ghost, but that did not mean he approved of the choices the ghost had made, or understood them. He did not wish to recognize that spirit as the final king of Velkyne—the ghost had failed in his duty as a ruler.

He did not consider the ghost as his father either, but apparently the ghost had thought differently. And that was all there was to it. The ghost was destroyed, while Yuto was still here. He repressed what emotions remained to him and got unsteadily to his feet. His gaze was blurry, but he could clearly make out the blade, giving off a subtle glow on the altar. The weapon's complete name was actually Gloria, Velkyne's Treasure —Gloria, as in "glory." Only the king could ever possess it.

Yuto walked toward the altar like a demon-possessed man.

"I... I am..." He closed his hand over the clothes on his chest. It sounded like a reminder meant for his own ears.

"I am Velkyne's last... true king." He had cut down the ghost of a man who could have been his father and passed judgment on a foolish ruler who had destroyed the kingdom. He was both audience and cast member in this hellish play directed by the Constellations. Yuto staggered to the altar and reached for Gloria. His trembling fingers closed around the hilt. The moment they did so, an intense wave of ether coursed through his body.

Even though the sword was named to mean "glory," the energy that dug into him now through his wrist wasn't particularly splendid or heart-warming. It carried the screams of tens of thousands of people and the weight of an entire kingdom, a weight which had turned into madness and obsession in the hands of the ghost. His heart beat violently. The core inside his chest, comprising resentful spirits, seemed to react with a silent scream of its own, and a black tattoo-like pattern spread all over his body.

He could hear the drumming of his heart in his ears. His gaze wavered and darkened. A quest window came into view. [Quest: The Stirring of New Life] [Objective: Reach level 10 and???] There was a status window next to it. The number, which had stopped at nine, distorted, then morphed. It was now at ten. [Level 10 achieved.] The words in the quest window thickened and melted away. The message behind the question marks was revealed. [Existence formally established.] Every objective had been met.

The screen shifted to show him what he would receive in response. [Reward: Hatch the egg,???] The question marks here also shifted and became recognizable. [Job Advancement.] The wave of ether from Gloria seeped into Yuto's body. His legs nearly gave way, but he forced himself to stand. The egg...? Job advancement...? These words overwhelmed him at the moment. Soon, however, the windows vanished completely. Yuto clenched his teeth and pulled the sword from the floor.

One final pulse of ether, then Gloria was silent. He sensed no more screaming, and his heart quieted down. Panting, he drew back. His legs were unsteady. The story has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the violation. Though his heartbeat had slowed, he felt a different kind of throbbing now. He flinched and opened his Void Storage. The egg that had been stored inside appeared and floated into the air, where it stalled, giving off a strange vibration. He heard a sharp noise.

Minute cracks like spiderwebs spread across the surface of the egg. Then came a blinding burst of pitch-black splendor which alternated with flashes of pure white light.

"Ugh...!" Yuto moaned and covered his eyes with his arm. But the core inside his chest seemed to respond to the light and grew even hotter. The eggshell fell apart like shards of glass, and from inside emerged... a tiny girl.

"You are...?" Yuto's lips trembled. She had hair that seemed to be made out of pure darkness. Her eyes were unreadable. But terribly dark, almost abyssal. It was the same girl that he had met in the Penalty Zone, witnessed in the throes of a despairing dream. The one who had represented the Void.

"Hmm." The girl seemed spaced out. She blinked a few times, moved her small lips, and tried to make a sound.

"Ah. Ah, ah, ah. Ahem." She cleared her throat and touched her neck. With her pale, bare feet, she tapped the floor and even rubbed it. It was as though she were unfamiliar with the current state of her being. Then she moved her white hands and felt her body. Yuto gaped. She didn't even seem to be aware that he was looking at her. She opened and closed her fists, then fidgeted with the black dress she was wearing. She cocked her head in confusion.

"Hmm." When she seemed finally done with her inspection, she raised her head and stared at him. Their gazes met in the silence. Her eyes were still quiet and deep. But instead of the powerful sense of distance that he had noticed during their prior meeting, he sensed so much life and presence.

"What are you staring for?" she asked. It wasn't the echoing voice he had heard in the dream. It was a real human voice, carried to him by the surrounding air. A very faint smile—one that could have been mocking, he couldn't be sure—appeared on her face at the sight of the dull shock on his.

"You... Was it you? Inside the egg?" Yuto managed to say. The girl shrugged.

"Not an egg. More like a prison. If you hadn't been able to prove your existence in this world, I would be trapped in it for all time, an unwilling spectator to your despair and screams," she said. She softly walked past him and inspected the traces of the battle on the floor.

"But you... Even though you never existed in this world, you passed judgment on the king for his crimes and proclaimed yourself the true king of Velkyne. You cut down the fool and took glory for yourself," she continued.

"By doing that, you proved your identity. As an extension of your act, I was freed from the prison and allowed into the real world." She spun around. With both hands, she gripped her dress and bowed to him.

"Allow me to thank you. You really should feel honored, you know." As she curtsied, her silhouette burned into his eyes. The sight of her overlapped with the memory of his daughter from the past life. The girl who had put on a pretty dress for a festival and greeted him with clumsy motions. These cool eyes and proud tone were not those of his daughter. But her slim shoulders, and the way she seemed to want to strike him as confident, made his heart ache.

Yuto shook his head powerfully, willing the idle thoughts to go away. It was clear that he had become far too distressed. This was a completely different girl, but he was seeing his daughter in her. She was anyone but his daughter. She was someone who spoke for the Void, the Void who had approached him in his despair. An exotic guide who showed him the way, apparently wanting the destruction of the Constellations just like him. He wiped away the bloody tears from his cheeks roughly using his sleeve.

Then he sank Gloria's blade into the floor and leaned it against the wall.

"You don't have to thank me. I had your help," he said.

"Ah! So you haven't forgotten. That's not surprising since it happened last night. Yes, the sense of shame and despair nearly broke you. I was the one who held you together. When madness nearly took you, forcing you to forget even your desire for revenge and your duty, I reminded you of that which should not be forgotten." She dropped the folds of her dress and crossed her arms.

"You should be thanking me. If I hadn't aided you last night, despair would have consumed you, and you'd have been lost," she said.

"You want a thank-you, is it?" Yuto said with a chuckle.

"You didn't do that out of the goodness of your heart. You needed to... The Void needed to. That was why you did it."

"It seems to me that you're averse to showing gratitude. Does it hurt your pride to bend toward a girl like me? I thought it might."

"It isn't like that. I'm asking you a question. Are you, and the Void, using me... as the Constellations did?" he asked.

"Hmm," she said, and her eyes narrowed.

"It traumatized you, I take it? I suppose that was unavoidable."

"Of course not. I was taken advantage of all my life, then thrown away," he said.

"That is not something I have to apologize for. I'm quite sure the Void concurs with me on this. It was the Constellations who used you, not the Void," she said.

"And what about now?" Yuto narrowed his eyes at her. Their sharp gazes collided in the dark.

"Using you..." she mumbled. Then she began to hover around him slowly.

"The first thing I would change is that word: use. No, the Void is not using you. The Void needs you."

"Is there a difference?" he asked.

"Yes, and it's a fundamental difference. The Constellations took advantage of you, but the Void isn't doing that. Those prideful, splendid stars put you on a stage and made you dance. They tasted your despair and enjoyed it. But not the Void." The girl stopped short right in front of him. Her eyes were cool as they stared into his.

"The Void doesn't want a performance from you. The Void wishes to take down every lie and remove the false light that fills this world, returning it to the original silence that filled it long ago. You were the only vessel that could achieve this desire. That is all." She suddenly grabbed him by the wrist.

"We are collaborators in this, Yuto Velkyne. If you want revenge on the Constellations, then you must borrow the Void's power. If the Void wishes to destroy the rules of this universe, then it must be done through you. Now, if you would call that taking advantage or using someone like a tool, then feel free to do so," she said.

"But remember this. The Void will never betray you in this contract. As for you... I suppose you could, if you desired it." Yuto gazed into her cold eyes and detected no lie.

"Understood," he said. He grabbed the girl's wrist in turn.

"There is no going back now, anyway. Suspicion will only fatigue both of us."

"I'm glad you're able to see some sense," she said with a slight smile. She let go of his hand. She took a few gentle steps back.

"So, what should I call you? The spokesperson, as you called yourself before?" he asked. She cocked her head, thinking. Then a mysterious smile appeared on her face.

"Call me? I do not have a name, but since I have materialized in this form, I suppose I will need one. You may call me Ellun."

"Ellun...?" he asked.

"It is an ancient word for 'void.'" She snickered at him.

"But if you had a different name in mind, you may use that instead." His face twitched. Did she know that he had been thinking about his daughter? He glowered at her briefly, then sighed.

"Ellun it is," he said.