kscans

Chapter 221 - Interlude: A World Without Sickness

The clan "Undead" made their base in a dungeon. At the entrance to that dungeon stood three men.

One was a boy in a military uniform with short pants. Another was a man dressed like a medieval nobleman. And the last was a flashy-looking man in a sharp suit, Mist.

It was a little too early to call it evening. But once that sun dipped below the horizon and vanished, this world would end for a time.

Mist had something he wanted to do before then, and he was about to head out.

"Mist, let's just stay together on the last day."

"I will be with all of you in the new world as well, so I want to meet that person while I still have my memories. I doubt I will forget completely, but I do not know how I will remember it either."

"You're quite taken. Do you like her that much?"

"Her songs, that is. I know nothing about her, but I have listened to her songs many times. I wanted to hear her live at least once at the end. Even if it is within a virtual reality."

"You said you used to play it all the time while you were working, didn't you."

"Yes. Her songs are wonderful. I believe it was because of those songs that I was able to save so many people. Though I will not be able to do that anymore."

"...That's a difficult thing to respond to. Besides, you'll still be fine here, won't you?"

"Yes, I will be fine. And our deal was made. There is no need to worry anymore. Well then, I will be going. Please make my excuses to everyone. Let us meet again in the next world."

"I guess it can't be helped. See you later, then."

"Yes, let's meet again."

Mist parted with the two he had been talking to and took the form of a giant bat, flying into the sky.

His destination was the base of "Blackjack," the clan that won the Clan War. The person Mist wanted to meet was there.

Today was the day the virtual reality would end for a time. He had been enjoying the final moments with his clan members, but a thought suddenly struck Mist. The person who sang his favorite songs was in the same virtual world.

He had come to love the songs that were streamed for free in the real world and had listened to them over and over. He was moved every time a new song was released.

He had stopped listening to those songs after entering virtual reality, but he encountered a woman who sang with the same voice. It was Noat Vabeck, a member of the clan "Blackjack," the winners of the Clan War.

He decided to go and meet that person, and so he flew out from his base.

Mist was the leader of the clan "Undead." It was a specialized clan where all members were undead, turned into vampires through necromancy. But that composition had paid off, and they had made it to the top eight in the Clan War.

However, vampires had a drastic difference between when they were strong and when they were weak. In the battle for the top four, the entire match took place during the day, and they lost to "Black Rose," a clan of people in gothic lolita outfits.

Mist had no particular feelings about it. His members were frustrated, but to Mist, this was just a game. He thought it was a great achievement just to have made it to the top eight.

Still, there was one good thing that came from reaching the top ranks of the Clan War. He was able to watch the battles of other clans up close.

Normally, other Clan Wars could only be watched on a monitor. But the teams that made it to the top eight had the privilege of watching the other battles in person.

Mist watched the battle of "Blackjack," who had also made it to the top eight, from a prime seat. It was there he saw Noat Vabeck, providing support with her songs.

It would not be an exaggeration to say that Mist was saved by Noat's songs.

When he listened to her music, all his anxieties disappeared. Even if his anxieties vanished, the situation surrounding reality would not change. But for Mist, being able to forget everything, even for a moment, was important.

Before entering virtual reality, his only complaint was that he would no longer be able to listen to those songs. But that had been resolved. In this virtual reality, there was Noat, who could sing those songs.

Today was the last day of virtual reality, and all the clans had opened their bases to visitors.

Mist heard from an acquaintance that the "Blackjack" clan's base was also open and inviting various players. So he decided to meet her once, and if he was lucky, have her sing for him. With that thought, he headed for their base.

A few minutes later, he arrived at the location to find many people lined up at the "Blackjack" base. It seemed many others besides Mist wanted to meet the members of the clan that had won the final championship.

Mist changed from his bat form back to his human form and got in at the end of the line.

Everyone in the line seemed to be having fun. Listening to their voices, he picked up all sorts of information. Normally, there should have been voices filled with more anxiety, but there were none at all.

They were leaving Earth, losing their memories, and living in a virtual reality that they would believe to be real, yet there was no sense of tragedy. If anything, they were filled with hope.

Mist understood well.

He could not expect anything from reality. Even when he heard the news that they had managed to bring back resources from another planet, he felt no particular joy. But the proposal to lose his memories and live in this world filled him with great expectation.

That was the hope Mist had been searching for.

To forget reality and live in this world without any worries. How wonderful a thing that was.

Just as he was thinking this, he heard a voice from behind.

"Looks like it'll take a while. Think we'll get in before the world ends?"

"Well, it'll probably be fine. This fortress is one of the biggest among the clans. It can probably hold about five hundred people. And look, the line's moving pretty fast. I think we'll be in in about five more minutes."

Mist turned around, thinking he had heard that voice somewhere before.

There stood a man and a woman. He recognized them immediately. They were the Brandle Siblings from the clan "Dragon Soul," who had also reached the top eight in the Clan War.

He had never fought them, but he had seen them fight. The clan "Dragon Soul" had lost to the samurai group "The Samurai."

Though it was their first meeting, there was a chance they knew of him, as they were both from top-eight clans. His purpose for coming here was Noat, but he had also wanted to talk with the people who had achieved excellent results in the Clan War.

Mist spoke up, thinking he might be able to have a conversation.

"Excuse me, but are you perhaps the Brandle Siblings from 'Dragon Soul'?"

"We are, but you're-- ah, no, I've seen you in the Clan War. Mist from 'Undead,' was it?"

"I'm glad you know of me. I am a lucky man indeed. To meet Ash-san of the 'Dragon Eater' and Ren-san of the 'Dragon Curse' on the final day... Oh, but first, my greetings. As you seem to know, allow me to introduce myself again. My name is Mist."

Mist bowed his head. And until they entered the base, the three of them talked.

Once inside the base, he listened to Ash's story, a continuation of the conversation they had while waiting in line. It was about his father, Veru.

Mist thought as he listened.

Ash respected Veru. It had been a long time since that father of his had stopped working as an actor. Ash thought it might be their fault, and he did not like it.

It was his dream to one day be in a movie with his father, but that dream seemed unlikely to come true. And then his sister, Ren, said she wanted to live in this world. So, Ash had said, living in this virtual reality was not so bad.

His sister, Ren, had a slightly complicated expression on her face, but then her eyes welled up with tears and she said, "I'm sorry," and hugged Ash. Mist smiled, thinking what a close pair of siblings they were.

Due to his profession, Mist also knew about Ash's mother, Kilika. Kilika had passed away at a young age due to an incurable disease. He thought that must have influenced Veru's decision to quit acting.

Mist gazed at his own hands.

(There is no sickness in this world. For a doctor, it is a world where I cannot make a living, but this is surely the world I have been wishing for...)

After that, he parted ways with Ash and the others. It seemed they had come to see the Hero Ivan, but when they found he was not there, they went to see Cecil Arven, who was known as the "Collector."

And Mist went to look for the woman called the "Prima Donna," Noat, for his own purpose.

Mist wanted to hear her sing before he forgot reality.

Looking around, he saw a place with a crowd of people, where there was a raised stage-like area. On that stage were people holding musical instruments.

A woman walked to the center of the stage. It was Noat, the one Mist had been looking for.

"Time-wise, this will be the last one. Any requests?"

The people there all shouted out their requests at once. It seemed everyone knew Noat, and they were requesting the titles of the songs that had been released for free.

But among them, Mist's favorite song was not there.

She had said this would be the last one, so it might have already ended, but Mist decided to try requesting it anyway.

It was the first song Noat had released, before she became famous. Mist requested it in a loud voice he did not normally use.

The people around him did not seem to know the song and looked blankly at him.

Noat also seemed surprised, her eyes blinking. But she quickly broke into a grin.

"Interesting. That's the song where it all began for me. We might run out of time, but listen to as much as you can."

There was no musical accompaniment for this song. Only Noat's voice echoed around them.

This world was about to end. It was not a bad way to end it, listening to this song. Mist was filled with an indescribable sense of happiness.

Before the song could end, the surroundings were enveloped in darkness.

He did not know if it was real or an auditory hallucination, but Mist listened to Noat's voice, which he could hear even in the darkness, as he let go of his consciousness.