“Anis! Anis…! Anis…!” Euphie cried, hugging me as she called out my name. “I’m sorry I made you worry.” I wanted to stay this way forever, but time was of the essence. I had to act. Patting Euphie lightly on the back, I pulled away. For a moment, she seemed reluctant to let go, but she timidly released me. “Thank you, Euphie. I’m all right now.” With those words, I retrieved the Celestial and rose to my feet. I could see that everyone was exhausted and wounded. Struck by guilt at leaving them to fend for themselves, I came to a stop and stared down at our opponent. “Lilana.” “…Why? Why won’t you accept me?! You were happy! Everyone always accepts me in the end! Why won’t you?!” Her eyes were wide-open in disbelief. She shook her head as though her deepest-held beliefs had just been utterly betrayed. Having seen the world she sought to create, my heart reached out to her in sympathy. “It certainly was a blissful dream,” I said with a nod. “You offered me the world that would result if you took all my painful memories. You create these places where everyone can be happy, pretending that nothing in their lives ever went wrong.” “…That’s right! So you do understand! Then why won’t you accept it?!” Lilana pleaded. “Answer me! Why won’t you accept the utopia I’m trying to create?!” I looked away, taking a moment to catch my breath before raising my head back up. “If I accepted the dream you offered me, you would take me to a place without pain or suffering. That’s why I can’t accept it. Because that’s all you have to offer.” “…What are you saying?” “These dream worlds you’ve created have no future. That’s why I reject them.” “But they do! If you accept me, you’ll be happy forever! Who wouldn’t want a future like that?! Doesn’t everyone want to be happy?!” “But you rob people of the possibility of finding even greater happiness after pulling through hardship. They’re easy—and simple. Trapped in a place like that, you lose all sense of living. Why would we want that?” “Do you really want to suffer? Do you want to risk pain and hurt? You’ll deny my gift even knowing what might lie ahead?! I don’t understand it! I don’t understand you!” “I can’t live in a world filled with nothing but peace.” “You can’t live without suffering? Are you really happy like that?!” Lilana shrieked, her face contorted in anguish as she flailed. “No matter how happy you are here, death is always just over the horizon! Death brings suffering! Grief! Wrath! Even deep hatred! People put themselves at the mercy of their emotions just to stay alive! They’re supposed to enjoy life, but so many end up miserable! Anis! This world is simply wrong!” Tears streamed down her face. Her eyes gleamed with desperation. It was hard to believe that this was the same person who had inspired such an overwhelming sense of fear and dread. This was simply another facet of the vampire Lilana. Both her monstrous ferocity and her wounded, girlish tears were part of her true self. “I’m the heir to an entire vampire bloodline! How many other vampires have failed to reach their goals, failed to live up to their dreams before I came along?! All of them failed to understand the truth! But I won’t! This world creates madness! Our existence here is so limited! It forces us all to keep on taking life, to keep on hurting each other!” “…I can’t deny that.” “Right?! So you have to understand! If we can’t remake this world to be eternal, without suffering, then people will keep on repeating this miserable cycle! I realized what lies at the end of eternity! Our quest for immortality was all an effort to change the world!” Lilana stared at me, her gaze a tangled mess of obsession. “Everyone needs to be reborn! To be like us! To live more beautiful lives! If they would just become one with me, they would be so much better off…!” She pleaded with me, reaching out with one hand—but I shook my head. “I’m not saying I don’t understand your position…but my thinking isn’t compatible with yours.” “Why not?!” “Because I haven’t given up on the world like you have.” “Why not?! Don’t tell me you actually believe in spirits?! You have a spirit covenantor right there—you ought to know what they are! You ought to know the truth behind those beliefs, you must know what magic ultimately brings!” Lilana glared across at Euphie, all but denouncing her as an abomination. I shifted my position to block her line of sight. “Your spirit covenantors have surrendered everything to this world—their very existence! They’re doomed to simply disappear! You don’t want to be saved from those…those fakes?!” “It isn’t that simple. I don’t believe your dream world is any real salvation. If spirit covenantors have simply given their entire being to the world—well, you’re just rejecting the world in its entirety. All you’re doing is taking the opposite extreme.” “…You dare say I’m wrong…?” “…Life is limited—you’re right about that. We all have to say goodbye one day. Sometimes those farewells can even seem unfair. Just being alive isn’t enough to free yourself from suffering, so I can see why you might think that this way of living doesn’t make any sense. But I want to be able to say one day that even the suffering was worth it.” “…How can you both want to live and enjoy suffering?” “I won’t let my life be nothing but pain. Yes, life is limited—that’s why I want to live it to the fullest. I want to stand up with pride when the end finally comes. As far as I’m concerned, that’s how you overcome suffering.” “That’s… Bah! Maybe that will work for you, but it won’t be enough for everyone else!” “I’m not conceited enough to think I can save the entire world myself. I can’t even save a single person. But if I can lift even just one other person up, then that’s enough to give value to my life.” I paused there, placing a hand on my chest. “I think there’s more meaning to be found in pushing through suffering than in rejecting the world and everyone in it.” “Meaning in suffering?! What meaning?!” “When we feel pain, we discover the weight of that pain. That’s what gives us the strength to think. Just like how the spirit covenantors of old sought peace, just like how your vampire ancestors sought eternity, the power to resist pain is what propels us into the future.” That was why I could stand here, head held high, as Anisphia Wynn Palettia. I had struggled with the fear that I might be wrong, but that was what kept me pushing forward, in the search of something that could prove me right. I wanted to believe in the person I was now, the end result of that long, painful process. “Suffering can give us the power to create something new. You can’t just deny it outright.” “But that’s… What about those who can’t endure pain, then? Are you telling them all to just grin and bear it?!” “I’m not saying that. But I’m not other people. If you don’t have the will to overcome your own suffering, you won’t be able to accomplish anything by yourself. If someone is unwilling, there’s nothing I can do for them.” “Then you’re admitting I’m—” “All I want is to live happily so that other people looking to be saved can follow in my footsteps. I want to prove that people can be happy. I’m not about to give up on this world.” I couldn’t accept the reality that Lilana wanted to create, because in her world, the kind of life that I wanted to live simply wasn’t possible. “You don’t have to change the whole world, Lilana. Why not be there just for those who actually want what you offer?” This time, I extended my hand in her direction. I hoped that she would respond in kind. Lilana’s eyes widened slightly as she stared back at my outstretched hand. “Maybe someday, someone will be able to find comfort in a world you can create for them. Maybe it will give them the strength to take their first steps toward the future. That would be a wonderful thing. What do you think? If you’re willing to accept this idea, I think we’ll be able to support each other.” “…” “…What you’ve been doing is wrong. But I don’t want to deny you your wish. So can’t we coexist, side by side?” Lilana’s dream worlds could serve not to rewrite reality, but they could be temporary cradles. She just needed to accept that for herself. Because if there was a possibility that we might come to some form of accord, I didn’t want to abandon it. In my own way, I had been touched by her thoughts, by the world she had created. If I had made one wrong step myself, I might have wanted the same thing she did. In that scenario, maybe she would have been my salvation. Lilana could have been me. With that in mind, I couldn’t reject her outright. I could only hope that my thoughts, my words, might get through to her. “I love magic with all my heart. I really do believe that magic can help people find happiness. That’s why I’m able to push on… You feel the same way, don’t you, Lilana?” She hung her head in silence. “…So you love magic, too, Anis.” She couldn’t bear to pick up her head. “It’s because of magic that you love this world so much, isn’t it?” “It is. And I do love it. That’s why I’ll never give it up,” I said softly but with force all the same. Lilana lifted her face, her eyes wet with tears as she flashed me a faint smile. “I’m sorry—I mean it. We understand each other so well now…but we still don’t see eye to eye.” She paused before continuing. “I know how you feel, Anis. I understand you, because I know what I want. I can’t accept a world where people might get hurt or feel unhappy, because I have the power to prevent all that. That’s my destiny.” “Even if people don’t want the world you’re striving for? Do you really have to absorb everyone into it against their will? Is that really your solution?” “People are weak. They don’t know how to respond when faced with too many possibilities.” “…I see. So we won’t be able to reach a compromise, will we?” We exchanged troubled smiles. We both wanted to change the world, yet we stood directly opposed to each other. After all, the worlds we envisioned were irreconcilably at odds. That conclusion made my heart inexplicably heavy. “Our meeting like this was fate, Anis. But I wish it hadn’t happened this way.” “…Me too, Lilana.” With that, the conversation trailed off. A faint breeze picked up, blowing in from around us. After a while, Lilana’s quiet voice sounded once more. “I have to defeat you, Anis. Here. Today. I won’t let you stop me from making my world a reality. If you won’t accept me, I’ll at least consume you for sustenance.” “I have to stop you, too, Lilana,” I responded. “I’m going to have to bring your destiny to an end to protect the world that I care about. I won’t let you take it all away.” Lilana’s body swelled as more monsters emerged from her back. It wasn’t long before, compelled by Lilana’s will, they rushed forward in attack. “Anis!” Euphie cried out in worry. “It’s all right,” I called back reassuringly while bracing myself. Brandishing the Celestial in a wide arc, I cut the oncoming monsters clean in half—the shock spreading all the way to Lilana’s arms, tearing them to shreds. “Huh…?” She stared down at her limbs while they regenerated. “Is that…your true power…?!” “The very power you awakened in me, Lilana.” The magical energy coursing through my body had changed. The pulsating power that previously had been situated near the base of my back had shifted now to my heart. I understood intuitively that a piece of magicite had formed there. I would have been lying if I said that I didn’t feel a sense of dread at this new upswelling of raw power. If I let this sense of omnipotence get the better of me, I could very well lose my way for real. My Aerial System: Dragon Heart technique was now a true dragon heart. “I guess I’ve merged completely with the dragon power now…” “Dragon…? That’s the source of your power, Anis? No wonder you stole my heart.” “I’m not a pure dragon, just so you know. But this is all thanks to you, I suppose, Lilana.” The dragon power in me rebounded during her attempt to turn me into a vampire, the two energies feeding each other through my Impressed Seal. With Euphie’s help, the dragon energy had won out, and so it was primarily from the dragon magic that the magicite inside my chest had been born. But within that magicite, I could sense not only dragon magic, but traces of vampire magic, too. Why do monsters with magicite infused into their flesh seek out other monsters? The reason was surprisingly simple. To grow more powerful. To take more power from other creatures. As a result, Lilana’s attempt to invade my mind and body had given me vampiric qualities as well. Vampires were capable of absorbing energy through blood and other means. For most, absorbing energy in that way was no easy feat. However, these powers enabled me to easily absorb the dragon magic. It was through Lilana’s actions that the two had now come together. To put it simply, I was now a dragon in human form. Naturally, I was immensely curious about my new condition, but that could wait. There was a more pressing task that I had to see to first. “Euphie, stay back with the others,” I instructed. “I’m not sure of my own strength here, and I don’t want you to get caught up in this.” “But Anis…!” I looked her square in the eyes. “This time, I need you to trust me.” Euphie stepped back, clearly worried. I flashed her one more smile before turning to face my opponent. “Let’s settle this, Lilana.” “I can see my monsters won’t stand a chance against you now. Can you fly? Let’s do this in the air,” she replied, spreading her two sets of wings and taking off into the sky overhead. Watching as she ascended, I poured my magical energy into my royal robe and spread my wings. High in the sky, we faced one another at a distance from everyone on the ground. It was Lilana who made the first move. Her hand lit up, and with a light wave, countless bullets of raw energy appeared before her, shooting toward me after a short delay. I swerved to one side to dodge them, but they arced around as if tracking me, forcing me to pull forward in the hope of escaping their range. But even then, I couldn’t shake them off, and so with a backward glance, I extended the Celestial’s blade and swept them all away. “If that’s all you’ve got, you’re hardly an opponent!” Lilana exclaimed, approaching from my blind spot and digging her claws into the Celestial. I swung the blade around to shake her off, and Lilana quickly fell back. “…All that from one swipe?” she breathed, staring down at her cracked claws as they regenerated. “That power is incredible. No wonder dragons are considered living, breathing calamities.” “I have mixed feelings about it, but you’re not wrong!” This time, I flew straight for her—and at the same time, Lilana swooped down toward me. In her hands, what looked like a magic sword forged of compressed darkness came into being, colliding hard against my own Celestial. At that moment, the Celestial’s power output suddenly dropped, and I was struck by the feeling that my own magical energy was being sapped out of me. I parried to separate myself from Lilana, but she quickly chased after me. When next we exchanged blows, I couldn’t fail to notice that her sword of deepest darkness cut through my own magic blade as if corroding it away—and Lilana proceeded to absorb the diverted magical energy. “…Darkness magic?!” I exclaimed. “Exactly!” she answered. “Darkness is my number one specialty!” “A suppression effect…! So that’s how you can be so sure of victory, using your opponent’s own magic against them…!” “Correct again…!” In terms of its effects and attributes, dark magic controlled silence and that which lay at the ends of things. It could be applied in numerous ways to stabilize people’s minds and induce sleep, suppress the effects of other magic, and even for concealment. Lilana had taken it a step further, using it both to erode other magical attacks and absorb their energy for herself. In other words, she was combining dark magic with her own vampire abilities. That weapon of hers was effective even against my magical swords, proving that she truly was a mortal enemy as far as magic users were concerned. “If you’re going to try stealing my magic, how about this?!” My magic sword wasn’t going to win this. I clenched my fist, channeling my dragon power as much as possible. Her brow twitched as she realized what I was about to do. “Haaah!” “—Ngh?!” My fist dug into her check, sending her backward though the air. She soon stabilized herself, then forced her head back into a more natural angle with a loud, grinding click. The sound was so painful that even I winced. I must have snapped her neck. But even then, the injury was quickly rendered as if it had never happened. “You’re too dangerous to approach, Anis…” “You’ll just regenerate any damage I deal anyway, right? So why hold back?” “How frightening! Magic alone isn’t enough for you! No, I think I’ll keep my distance. I really am shaking here! So how about this?!” Lilana cried, raising her hands above her head as she began to formulate another magic technique. This time, it was a ball of light emitting a blackish-purple glow—but as she poured more energy into it, its form began to change. …That wasn’t just magic. I was struck by a sense of déjà vu. The next moment, the ball of light completed its transformation—becoming a winged serpent clad in darkness, curling around its summoner. “Spirit substantiation, right?” Lilana said. “I’m glad I got to see someone do it in person. It was very informative.” “…No!” “Don’t get me wrong. It might look similar, but it’s actually quite different, you know? This is like a crystallized form of my magic, made from parts of me. If I had to give it a name, it’s more like monster substantiation.” So basically, this was like the reverse process by which monsters equipped with magicite were created. Forging monsters comprised entirely of magic certainly was similar to Euphie’s spirit substantiation, but the end result was completely different. “Devour her, Jörmungandr! Bring my beloved Anis to eternity!” With that command, the huge serpent—Jörmungandr—opened its maw wide as it attacked. I fell back to evade, waving the Celestial to fend it off, only for the magical sword to be sapped of power on contact. “Tch…! It absorbs even more power than that last attack…!” “That’s exactly what I made it to do!” Lilana laughed. She still hadn’t moved. As far as she was concerned, this monstrous serpent was probably checkmate. All it had to do was come into contact with my royal robe to completely sap its power. I couldn’t afford to let that happen, but the serpent stood between me and my real opponent. “What a pain…!” I clicked my tongue in frustration as I fought to keep my distance. I was unable to shake it off as we engaged in an endless game of midair cat-and-mouse. Lilana, meanwhile, continued to unleash more magic attacks to block my path. At the same time, the serpent, with its unpredictable movements, closed in. “One touch and it’s the end for you!” Lilana shouted with glee. “You’re cornered!” Now what could I do? Doing my best to avoid the serpent and its vile curse, I tried to think. The serpent’s main trick was using dark magic to suppress spells in general, then create a tiny hole to suck up the energy. That was how it kept on neutralizing any attacks. That strategy only worked because Lilana was a vampire, effectively making her impervious to all strikes. So long as she was alive, all she had to do was leave a tiny gap in her defenses, and she would have an overwhelming advantage against literally any magic user. However, her vampire abilities seemed to be ineffective against physically fortifying magic. She might perhaps be capable of disabling them with physical contact, but I wasn’t about to let that happen. As such, I just had to keep fighting until she lost heart—but that wouldn’t stop her giant serpent. As a monster born of magic, the creature was essentially magic itself. Though similar to the spirits of the natural world, it had been created for one reason alone. If Euphie’s spirit substantiation technique was the ultimate expression of magic, then Lilana’s monster substantiation was the ultimate expression of artificial magicite. In any event, I didn’t have time to dwell on the situation. If I didn’t do something about the snake soon, I would have a hard time getting close to my real opponent. “You’ve let down your guard, Anis!” While I was busy evading the serpent, Lilana took advantage of the distraction to speed toward me, equipped with a dark magic blade. I pushed back with the Celestial, only for the serpent to lash out in her place. At this rate, I wouldn’t be able to fight both of them…! “How about this, then?! Celestial!” I poured all my magical energy into the Celestial, triggering the sky-blue blade to shift to crystallize, burning whiter than ever before. When it had expanded to the size of a longsword, I brought it down on the serpent. The condensed magic contained in the serpent was soon entangled in my crystallized weapon. The creature writhed about in an effort to shatter my blade, but I had filled it with such an abundance of energy that it wasn’t about to be easily broken. “Slash it through!” The Celestial, which I brought swinging around with all my strength, sliced the serpent clean in half. Lilana’s eyes widened in shock as the snake lost its shape, dissolving into the surrounding darkness. “What?! Impossible! Do you realize how dense that magic was?!” “You know what they say: it’s all about mastering the basics. The simplest solution is usually the best one!” Lilana fell back, crossing her arms to shield herself with a harried look. Too late! I almost cried out as I unleashed an upward diagonal slash. “G-gah!” The blow tore through her side and came out the opposite shoulder, sending blood flying around us—and while the wound regenerated quickly enough, her expression remained grim. I just had to keep on going, I told myself—when she broke out into a broad smile. She looked to be finding the whole situation somehow amusing—impossibly so. “Ha! Ha-ha-ha! I don’t know why, but I can’t stop laughing! I’ve never had to fight so hard to win before!” “…Never?” “I mean, I’ve never lost anything,” she answered, her voice light and relaxed. “Even from my earliest memories, I already knew so much because of the knowledge stored in my magicite. Everyone only ever had praise for me. They kept on saying that I would be the greatest of vampires. And sure enough, before I knew it, there wasn’t a vampire around that could beat me.” “So you’re a boaster, too?” “All I’ve ever had to worry about was the future of the world and my own… But now, I can’t stop thinking about you,” Lilana said with an awkward grin. “…Yes, that’s right. You, and your magic, Anis. This feeling of not knowing, of pursuing possibilities, of being excited by the unknown. Like nothing is impossible. That even if we can’t accomplish it just yet, all we need is time…” A thrill coursed through my body at these words. Lilana continued to show me a calm smile as she patted herself on the chest. “I never thought it might be so fun competing like this…” “…” Her words turned soft. “It truly is fun. Yes, for the first time ever, it’s like magic is really sparkling.” This was no good. Her words were reviving my own long-cherished thoughts and memories, but I was busy making sure we weren’t going to collide midair. “…! Why?!” I demanded. “…Anis?” “Have you been alone all this time, Lilana? Did no one ever see you for you? Did no one bother to properly look? You didn’t have anyone to talk to, to learn magic with? Even vampires need friends!” Lilana broke into a slight scowl. Then, as if in realization, she lowered her voice: “Yes, you’re right… I was always alone. All this time, I just never realized it.” I felt like screaming at the top of my lungs. Why? Because if Lilana was alone precisely on account of her incredible magical talent, then she was just like me, alone because I wasn’t gifted. It was all so ironic, and sad, and frustrating. No matter how many lives she absorbed into her own, she would always be alone. No wonder we didn’t get along. Her love was like how a child might adore a treasured pet. Now that I understood how she had become the person she was, I couldn’t help being angry. She didn’t have anyone by her side, not in the way that I had Euphie. She had always been alone, and because of that, she had become this fiend. I couldn’t shake the feeling that if our lives had been different, if we had met under different circumstances, we might have become fast friends. “I never actually felt lonely,” Lilana continued. “But we vampires keep each other too close, like we’ve all melted together. You never have a moment to ask yourself if you’re lonely. Ah. So this is what it means to brush up against other people…” “…” “Do you think we might have been friends if we hadn’t met like this?” “It’s not too late…” “…Don’t say that if you don’t mean it, Anis,” Lilana warned me. Her face softened with realization. “I’m glad I met you. Yes, this was definitely fate. It’s our destiny. But it’s too late. You’re thinking the same thing I am, aren’t you? If only we hadn’t met like this. Some people manage to get the fate they want, but many don’t. The world isn’t fair.” “Lilana…” “You said the world I’m trying to make has nothing to offer but the past. I’ll admit it. That’s an undeniable fact. But is that so bad? No! No! You can call me evil if you want—I don’t care!” Her crimson eyes were downcast, her hands clenched tightly at her chest, trembling with emotion. She’s no monster, I thought. Despite it all, some part of her was human. “Even if I need to consume the world—to kill it, to bring it all to ruin—I’ll destroy this unfairness. I never asked for this! If I erase it all, I can create the world I want for once! A happy world, like an eternal dream! A world where no one has to go through that kind of pain again!” “…Even though in the end, you’ll still be all alone?” I asked softly. “What more could I ask for than to be last one standing? You’ve helped me realize what I really want, Anis.” “I’m not here to give you ideas…!” “No, this is our destiny. Yours and mine. You’re here to remind me that I can’t save the world just by keeping it alive.” “No…! No I’m not…! Giving up on everything isn’t the solution!” “That is why we’ll never agree, Anis.” I clenched my jaw so hard that my teeth might break, shaking all over as my rage bubbled up. Lilana, meanwhile, was wearing a troubled smile. “We’re natural enemies, Anis,” she said. “…Me? Your enemy?” “The way we live, who and what we are, everything. We’re opposites. I’m a swarm, taking lives into my own. So long as the heart of the swarm, my body, doesn’t die, it doesn’t matter how many limbs I lose. I’ll regenerate. But you—you’re a single, monolithic entity. You’ve incorporated other lives into your own, condensed all their power into one. Which is why my swarm isn’t strong enough to beat you. I can already see how this is going to end. I’ll be crushed and defeated.” “…So are you ready to surrender?” “Why would I do that…? I can’t—not if it means leaving the world the way it is.” “Lilana, is it really too late to make your dreams a reality? People are always growing and moving forward. Even if you can’t see any hope for your future now, who’s to say you won’t find some later? All it takes is time. So can’t you wait? Belief is just another type of eternity!” “…Belief? Eternity?” “That this moment will lead into the next one. Times change. We change. But time is never destroyed. We remember it, we break it into digestible portions, and we carry it with us into the future. So we keep moving forward, along with all the baggage we’ve accumulated through the years. If you can bring yourself to believe in that, I’m sure you’ll find eternity.” Follow your heart, I prayed. Just once will do. “Why not give it a try?” Lilana closed her eyes, turning her gaze to the ground. After a long moment, she looked back up with a saintly smile. “…You’re right. That might be a type of eternity after all.” “In that case—” “You can make that eternity possible, Anis. If you put your energies toward your eternity, then I can safely bet everything on mine.” “Lilana…!” “Thank you. But I’m sorry. You don’t know how happy I am right now. You’ve shown me that even after being denied, there are still so many possibilities, which is why I can bet everything on my vision of eternity without any worries.” “Why won’t you understand?! Give it a chance!” “I’m shouldering another burden—revenge against the Kingdom of Palettia. The drive to overcome your magic is in my blood.” “You’re bringing that up now?!” I cried back. “What about what you want?!” “It’s part of who I am. My future is competing against yours. I’m willing to gamble it all. Besides, I don’t want to let you keep beating me around!” “…Is that your only reason?!” I had totally lost my composure. Meanwhile, Lilana’s smile was unwavering. How could she remain so calm?! I wished I couldn’t, but I could positively feel her determination—she was willing to die here. “Is this really what you want?!” I shouted. “Even if my wish is lost, eternity won’t be. You’ve shown me that. So, Anis—let’s give this everything we have! Let’s see whose magic will usher in the days to come!” Lilana clasped her hands together in front of her. She looked as though she could hardly contain her excitement. “Venerable ancestors! Your quest has reached its end! I will make everyone’s momentary joy eternal, by leading them to peaceful, blissful slumber! Because that is the ideal we should all aspire for!” All at once, from her toes up, Lilana melted into darkness. It was like her body itself was being transformed into magic. But I couldn’t accept what I was witnessing. “No! Not that kind of magic!” “Anis…” “That kind of magic leads to death! I’ll never, ever accept it…!” “Anis!” By now, even her arms were melting into the darkness, leaving only her upper body exposed. And yet her smile was unwavering. She looked back at me, her gaze filled with compassion and gratitude. “I’m so happy! I’ve found a goal only I can fulfill! A dream to make real! The impossible to make possible! Blessed are the people! I’ll take you all with me, to reach eternity! I will be the cradle of your joy! I’ll consume the world and plunge everyone into blissful dreams! That’s my answer to life!” …I knew it in my heart—my words couldn’t reach her anymore. Maybe they had never reached her in the first place. Still, I had to bring myself to try. “…I wish we hadn’t met, Lilana. I’m going to hate you forever now.” We resonated with each other so perfectly that I wanted to envision a future for the both of us. I was sure of it. This encounter would stay with me forever.
Chapter 100
28 min read