Chapter 84

INTERMISSION A Fool’s Dream I had always been afraid of the dark. On moonless nights, I would sneak into my sister’s bed to feel safe. “Hmm… It seems there’s nothing special about the Untargeted, and a mere relative at that.” Where were you now? Eating isn’t the same without you. I can’t even tie up my hair without you. Where did you go? I would do anything for you. That was the only thing I still remembered. “Come, little Kaori, it’s time to begin. Don’t worry, it won’t hurt. It’ll all be over very quickly.” A dark room. A small room. A room that reeked of mold. Where were you? Where did you go? I’ll do whatever it takes. Whatever it takes to find you. So please. Come back to me. Hold me. Stroke my hair. Tell me that you love me. “Let’s do our best to track down your sister Shiori, shall we?” Please. It was cold. It was dark. It was dirty. Where was I? How did I end up here? “Hmm, another failure. Looks like the Untargeted are a load of duds. The results from the mana test are disappointing, too. Perhaps that’s exactly why they weren’t targeted? Sigh. This is getting me nowhere. For the sake of my research, I need to capture a Reject.” “…Ah…eh…aah…ah…” From my lips came a voice so strained I could hardly believe it was my own. No, this was no voice. Merely the sound of air passing through me. My throat had been destroyed long ago. “Ah, not to worry. You’re still useful to me. So long as you’re still alive, there’s lots of experiments we can do on you that we can’t do on Kaori. It’s faint, but the mana test is showing results. Aah, my ancestors were right. Kheh-heh-heh. They all laughed, those ignorant buffoons. But they were all jealous of my greatness! Well, who’s laughing now?!” I heard the mad laughter as if through a speaker. Oh, yes, that was right. My ears had been destroyed as well. “Hee-hee-hee. Phew. Now, it’s time to begin today’s experiment. The more we fatten you up, the more mana we’ll get out of you! Isn’t that good? You’ll be instrumental in making me one of the most powerful mages of all time!” That’s right! That’s it! I was broken! Broken! And it was all because of the person in front of me! Why?! How could this have happened…? “Now, let’s try this ritual today. It’s supposed to allow you to see into the spirit plane. Granted, it takes away your ability to view reality, but why would you want to keep looking at this ugly world, hmm?” No…no…no…NOOOOOOOOO!! “…Ah…aah…ah…” Help me! Somebody save me! Mai! Satomi! Anyone! Get me out of here!! Mom, Dad! I want to go home!! “Now, now, there’s nothing to fear. Let’s begin.” Somebody…help me… “Dammit! Dammit! Dammit! Dammit! Aaaaaaaagh!!” No expense had been spared in the creation of this underground laboratory of mine. I was so close! Just one step away from achieving my dreams, but he betrayed me! “Damn you! What have you done?!” In the darkened room, I let out all the anger and frustration I usually kept concealed. “That damn shut-in. That worthless loser. How many times did I tell him not to kill her?! Now look at what he’s done, that imbecile!” Gripped by emotional rage, I kicked the wall and vomited. When that proved insufficient to dispel my anger, I slammed my fists against the wall. My ears rang, and I felt just a little of the boiling heat transfer from my brain to my stinging hands. “Phew… Tch. Now I need to alter the research schedule. Their souls separate from their bodies once they die. I need to do whatever I can with what remains, and then…” I ruffled my hair, took a deep breath, and opened the door leading out of my lab. Out in the hallway, the stairway leading up was on my right, while to my left was a room with four colored doors, all facing each other: red, blue, yellow, and green. The red and blue rooms were currently in use, while the yellow room contained the corpse. I entered to find it lying on a slab, pale and bloodless, and partially covered by a sheet. “Now, where to begin?” I touched the girl’s cold skin and tugged open her stiff eyelids with my thumb. Her lifeless eyes were dim and vacant. As I tilted her head, her white lips fell partially open. “These materials are not easy to replace, and a lot of planning goes into their acquisition…” A list of tasks flitted through my mind, dividing itself neatly into two piles: those I could do with a corpse and those I could not. I tore off the sheet and smiled. “Let’s make the most of our time together, Satomi! ” The pallid object on my table was no longer a human being but a lump of flesh. It was in pristine condition, save the large cut across the abdomen, where I had sliced her open. However… “…Aah, that’s what I like to see. The traces are far more strongly pronounced in this specimen, even in death. Not like those Untargeted at all. The Touched are a different breed!” I poured a mottled green-and-blue solution over the body, and crimson particles rose into the air. The magical reaction with her was far stronger than with those who had simply been there at the time. If only she were alive, and her soul still present, it would have brought me that much closer to unraveling the secrets of the summoning spell. “Heh. Hee-hee-hee. I will find a way. There has to be a way. A path into the world from which that spell originated, a land overflowing with mana…” I rifled around for a silver tool engraved with magical carvings and grinned, licking my lips in anticipation. Soon, very soon, it would be mine. True magic, like that wielded by the mages of old. This world had lost its magic, and even the simplest of miracles could no longer be performed. Everyone with the ability to manipulate mana had died out. But soon, it would be mine, and with it, the beginnings of a new race of proud mages! “Aaaaaaagh!! It’s not working!! This cannot be!!” I drew large crosses across the pieces of paper scattered over my desk, then slammed my fist, pen still in hand, into the table before crumpling up the papers into a ball. “Aaaargh!! Why not?! Why not?! What’s missing?! What do I still need to do?!” I was furious. Rage clouded my mind. Why now, when I was just one step away? My goal was almost in reach, so tantalizing it drove me mad. “What is it?! What am I missing?!” I had analyzed all the data resulting from my experiments, but not a single scrap of it had given me the result I desired. There was nothing more I could get out of my hard-earned test subjects now. “…It’s just not enough. A relative of the Summoned, an Untargeted, and even the corpse of a Touched. They’re all just by-products.” Worthless rejects only gave me worthless data. My research was going nowhere. “…It’s time to proceed to the next phase.” He had appeared to me in my darkest hour, as if granted by God. If my experiments so far were for anything, it was all to ensure that I wouldn’t let his unique existence go to waste. Soon, very soon, I would tear open a hole between worlds to spill fresh mana and rejuvenate this dying land, enabling me to partake of the power of the outer void and usher in a new age of legend. “I shall be the greatest sorcerer this world has ever known! Hee-hee-hee. For I alone possess the blood of my ancestors, and none shall stand against me!! Keh-heh-ha-ha-ha!!” Yes, and I would transcend all human reckoning! A new stage of life! Ah-ha-ha-ha!!