Chapter 107 - 107
"Who are you...?"
I was bewildered by the sudden appearance of the young man. Ignoring my confusion, he gave me a bright smile as if we were old friends, took my hands, and shook them vigorously.
"We finally meet! Man, I've heard stories from this guy, but you took way longer to get here than I expected. I even ended up showing you the past."
"Um, excuse me..."
"Ah, no need for thanks. Think of it as a service. Anyway, we've finally reunited."
"Reunited? Have we met somewhere before?"
I couldn't follow the conversation at all. Based on his tone and gaze, "this guy" must have been Kuro. So he had heard about me from Kuro.
But when? And why? When I voiced my confusion, the person before me released my hands and frowned.
"Huh?"
"Eh?"
"You mean you still haven't gotten your memories back?"
"Memories?"
"You know. The condition for me bringing you back to life."
Bringing me back to life? What? Did this young man just say he brought me back to life?
"Man, what a letdown."
My mind struggled to process his words as they looped through my head. The young man put his hands on his hips and turned away with a huff, clearly displeased. But I couldn't even worry about his mood; I was simply speechless.
I brought you back to life.
He definitely said that. If so, who... what was this person?
In my confusion, I felt my throat go dry. If I looked in a mirror, my eyes would surely be wide with shock. I forced my sluggish mind and mouth to move.
"Was it your power that brought me back to life?"
"Well, yeah. Ah, so we're starting from there."
After a brief glance at me, the young man looked toward the black horse with an annoyed expression and ran a hand through his messy black hair.
"Fine. I'll show you the past."
As he spoke, the lake water rose with a splash, floating on the wind. The water expanded like a giant cloth stretching from the surface to the sky. The young man then released a light from his hand toward the water.
To my disbelief, the giant curtain of water began to project my image.
"My reflection is in the water! What is this?"
"It's called a 'screen,' apparently. I found it when I peeked into the past of the Daughter of Light... ah, the Saint. It's the quickest way to show you."
A screen? It was an unfamiliar word, but I was more focused on the state of the "me" shown on it. I could only stare in a daze.
Is this... am I seeing myself after I died?
The me on the screen was covered by the black robe of the Order of Mages. I could easily imagine that beneath Theodore-sama's robe lay a tattered dress and a blood-stained chest. It was undoubtedly me after the bandit attack, when Theodore-sama had arrived. This matched what I had seen while unconscious. But after hearing a voice, I had lost consciousness again, so I didn't know what happened next.
He was going to show me that part.
I stared at the mysterious young man. "Look, I'm showing you the part you don't remember, so watch," he said, gesturing toward the water screen with his chin. Cold sweat ran down my back, but I turned my gaze back to the water as instructed.
A black mist began to surround my prone body. Then, this young man appeared.
The young man on the screen watched me with interest, then closed his eyes while holding his hand over me. After a few seconds or minutes, he smirked.
"I was looking at your past then," the young man beside me added.
"Is such a thing possible!?"
"For me, yeah."
The explanation came as a supplement from the man beside me. But with one impossible thing happening after another, I could only look back and forth between him and the screen.
"Here, the next part is the good stuff."
I focused intently on the screen at his words.
"No way..."
To my utter shock, a white, ghost-like mist emerged from my dead body and floated into the air.
"That's like your soul, I guess."
"My soul... that was me after death?"
"Yep."
The dead me floated around, looking at the surroundings, then moved to Sarah's side. My translucent figure hugged her and sobbed.
It was me, yet I didn't remember it. Still, the heart-wrenching pain of that other me resonated in my chest, making it hard to breathe.
"Are you sad?"
The young man on the screen asked. The me who was clinging to Sarah looked up.
I'm sad.
"Why?"
I hurt everyone. My family, the Saint, the coachman, Sarah.
The young man laughed as I refused to let go of Sarah.
"Your magic is interesting. Your dark power is incredibly vast... It's been a while, maybe I'll play around a bit."
The ghost-me didn't seem to notice his murmur and didn't look up. But his next question changed the atmosphere entirely.
"Do you want to live?"
I don't want to die. I'm scared. I want to live.
The ghost-me looked down, hugging my trembling body with both hands.
"I see. I don't hate that attachment to life. Is that woman important to you?"
Sarah is important... she died because of me.
"If she didn't have to die, what would you give up?"
Sarah... won't die...?
At his words, the ghost-me looked up. With a face whose expression was hard to read, I stared at him, then rushed toward him desperately.
Me! It's my fault this happened. She did nothing wrong! It's my fault... I'll give you myself, so please save Sarah and the coachman.
The young man listened in silence, then grinned. It was the pure, delighted smile of a child who had found a fascinating new toy, devoid of malice.
"Let's see if those are your true feelings. Fine, I'll give you a chance to redo it."
A chance to redo it?
"Whether you make the most of this chance or waste it is up to you. Now, wandering soul. Go back to the past and struggle."
As the young man spoke and held out his hand, a storm-like gale struck the forest. Trees shook and branches snapped with a terrible noise. At the same time, the screen suddenly went dark.
Then, the lake water silently vanished back into the surface.
That was...
I stared at the empty sky where the screen had been, filled with disbelief.
"Understand now? Basically, I'm the one who brought you back to life."
I snapped my gaze toward him. The young man was looking at me with a bright, twinkling smile.
"Then... you are..."
To be able to bring someone back to life... for someone to do that intentionally, rather than it being a mere miracle...
No, a human couldn't possibly do this. It was like something out of a story. Who could possess such power? Only someone with overwhelming strength. For instance... yes, like that overwhelming presence I felt during the Spirit Summoning Ceremony.
But this person... no, this spirit wasn't the Spirit King of Light.
Which meant this person was...
"Yep. I'm the Dark Spirit King."
The young man—no, the Spirit King—said it as if it were nothing, showing his snaggletooth in a bright smile.
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