Episode8(S1-2)：DEATH & PREPAREDNESS
When the sun wheel tilts to the west and the sky begins to shift to vermilion. Blackbirds are active and chirping around the area. In less than half a day, Da Darg had completed the journey that had taken Quon two days to complete. Its healthy legs are also superior to those of ordinary creatures of The Earthly Realm. Its power, in keeping with its mechanical appearance, impresses Quon.
Far from the hustle and bustle of the city, a long, quiet, and calm world emerges from the depths of the forest trees. Artificial houses in harmony with nature blend into the landscape and burn an unartificial, single-picture aspect into the viewer's eye.
“So this is your hometown.”
“You know?”
“No way, this village did not exist 10,000 years ago.”
But still," said Alpina, opening her gold colored magical eyes to look around her. The murmuring of the stream flowing at your feet was muffled, and small animals shook and rippled the grass and flowers.
“No sign of The Human Child. In addition, there seems to be a faint residual presence of the Sacred Beasts.”
“...... No way⁉”
Quon drives his horse. Even if they are non-creatures of The Earthly Realm, their essence is not much different from that of ordinary carriage horses. For Quon, who was used to handling such things, it was no big deal.
Huge mechanical horses take dirt trails. It rushes into the village, passing between minimalist houses and spewing a wind noise that doesn't match its huge size.
“This is ......”
A scourge. Or overrun. Quon could not help but be blindsided and stunned by the sight of everything being unilaterally taken away from him. Indeed, he thought he smelled blood in the air shortly before they entered the village. He didn't pay much attention to it, assuming that some beast had found a meal. In reality, however, it is not an ecological pyramid of predator and prey, but a stage of willful and malevolent killing. The unpleasant smell that pierced his nose was the odor of sadness and regret of The Human who emitted it.
From behind Quon, who stands stunned, Alpina slowly walks up to him. The sound of stomping through a pool of blood jumps, and she puts one hand on her waist. When she looked beyond it over Quon's back, she saw a single lump of flesh lying there. Objects that may have once been The Human roll around. The colors of dried blood and bright fat and flesh tissue fold in on each other, reminiscent of a bright mille-feuille. However, it is by no means appetizing, but rather only mentally shocking. Thanks to this he had to carry nausea in his chest.
“That's your family?”
“......I was originally an orphan. My Master picked up on that, and that's how I got to where I am today. He's my master and a family man.”
“It's been a long time since he died. Already his soul is foggy and lost. Neither Rebirth nor Reincarnation is possible.”
Rebirth is the right of The Angel and Reincarnation is the right of The Devil, and is not given to Sacred Beast and Monster. Therefore, as long as the executors of this one incident are all composed of Sacred Beasts, even if they reach the scene after the fact, it will all be a futile waste of time there.
“......What happens to the soul that fizzles out?”
“There, it returns to nature. That's all there is to it.”
Phew," Quon exhales loudly. That was all he could do. There were no words.
“How long are you going to cower there? No matter how much you want, no one will help you.”
“Even if it is The Angel or The Devil?”
“That is, even if it is The God. The art of rebellious soul is only a pipe dream. What are you going to do? Do you want to be heartbroken here and fall to the ground?”
For Quon, he is a mentor and benefactor. He is the meaning of his life and the goal of his life. Now that it is lost, there is no reason to live any longer. If he could, he would give up everything and end up here by his master's side. That was all he had in mind.
But that is not allowed. Quon has a contract with Alpina. Even if it was to be entered into in a distorted form, it is still a contract.
Quon stands up again and faces Alpina. His eyes were red and swollen, but shining sharply. In contrast, Alpina also has large, cat-like sapphire-blue colored eyes that glare like a snake. The expression on her face was dainty and at the same time cool-headed. Then, sitting on a nearby rock, she crosses her legs and rests her cheekbones, silently listening to his words.
“Alpina. Sign a contract with me again. I'll give you my time. Instead, let me put an end to this joke of a case.”
“All right. Now, you continue on with me. I will make you reach your goal.”
An unseasonably cold wind blows through the village. Her hair sways a glossy-black color with sapphire-blue colored accents. Her oceanic sapphire-blue colored eyes and snow colored thighs glow. Quon, who had once again signed a contract and developed a sense of purpose, showed no signs of clouded hesitation in his mind.
Alpina stands up slowly. It then, she partially releases the magical power circulating in her body. With a snap, a high-pitched sound with her fingers, her magical power is poured into all the wreckage scattered around the village. When the piece of flesh bathed in her magical power is enveloped in a twilight colored light, it becomes one with that light and returns to nature as particles.
“Let's give the parting gift with the contractor's intentions in mind. I wouldn't mind leaving the wreckage as it is, but it would be against your will, wouldn't it?”
“Thank you, Alpina.”
Well," Alpina said, moving deeper into the village. All the wreckage is gone, the blood has been washed away, and the serene village is strangely devoid of any sense that human life existed there until a few moments ago. It even gives the illusion that it has been that way from the beginning.
At the farthest point from the entrance of the village, a short distance away from human habitation, is the house where Quon and his master lived. Because the workshop, a building that makes a lot of environmental noise, also serves as a residence, it is impossible to see it without going deep into the village.
A few minutes later, they return to his home, which is just beyond the woods in the village. But no matter how much he longs for warmth, there is no heart to greet him, no scent to stimulate his hunger. There are only inorganic walls and roofs, and the coldness of them makes his heart ache even more.
But that does not mean he can stop here. Quon exhales deeply and opens the cold, heavy iron door to enter the workshop. It was the space where he and his master used to hammer iron to create weapons and armor. However, no rasping or rhythmic sounds can be heard. A silence enveloped them that made their ears ache. While Quon stops and looks around with deep emotion, Alpina strolls freely around the workshop and picks up a reasonable weapon and armor. They are the various weapons and armor his master once created, which paradoxically prove that he existed and reaffirm that his master's death was a reality, not a dreamscape.
“Are all the swords here forged by you?”
“No. It's mostly the master's. The only one here that I've forged is the one that's on display there.”
With that, Quon points to a single sword hanging on the wall. Despite its simple, rugged appearance, it still looks like a work of art to the uninitiated eye.
Alpina floats in the air and grabs that sword hanging on the wall. The air around her vibrates as she pours her magical power into it, and a squeaking sound echoes from the entire house.
“What about that sword?”
“I just thought there was a hint of something familiar. Quon, this is no ordinary sword, is it?”
“Yes. I believe it used dinosaur horns or something like that.”
Hou," Alpina recalls. Her face does not look particularly different, but there is a hint of pleasure in it.
“The angel and The Devil seem to have disappeared, but even in this age, only The Dragon remained in The Earthly Realm?”
“Hmm? Not only The Angel and The Devil, but The Dragon is real too?”
“The Angel that governs Rebirth, The Devil that governs Reincarnation, and The Dragon that is the deterrent of The God. These three races make up The Sons of God. Once, until about 10,000 years ago, many The Sons of God descended to this The Earthly Realm. But from the looks of it, everyone seems to have disappeared from The Earthly Realm.”
But," says Alpina, getting off the ground. The high sound of boots hitting the floor reverberated through the room.
“How could you identify these as The Dragon's horns with that level of recognition?”
“I'm skeptical, though. I've always heard that you can find something like that around here. But we don't know who they are, so we're just making a big fuss about them being dinosaur's horns all together, it seems.”
I see," Alpina scoffs. Then she opens her gold colored magical eyes and looks into the depths of the sword.
I knew it was you, Vernard. I never thought we would meet again in this way.
For a few seconds, Alpina closes her eyes. Her consciousness travels far back in time, hundreds of thousands of years. Alpina, sensing the present of her old friend who lived the same time long ago, closes her magical eyes and gradually opens her sapphire-blue colored eyes.