The next thing Hanakawa knew, he was floating in the darkness, with no sense of self except his own consciousness. He couldn’t see anything, and he couldn’t feel his body. He tried to move his arms and legs but couldn’t tell if anything was happening. The situation felt so unreal that he thought it might have been a dream.
What just happened to me?!
The last thing he remembered was talking with Celestina. They were about to head to the next gate, but then he had ended up here.
Open my status window!
Once you got used to the Gift, you could open your status window without having to say anything out loud. But this time, nothing happened. The system UI was integrated into his vision, so if this wasn’t a dream, that meant he was currently blind.
This would not be some type of joke, would it? I cannot be dead, can I?
There was no pain. Rather, the total lack of sensation made it scarier.
Huh? Wait, seriously? Am I actually dead? There is no way, right? I wouldn’t just die with no warning, right? If I was going to die, it should have been protecting a beautiful young woman, casually creating a scene that will last in everyone’s hearts forever, and leaving behind some incredibly profound last words! There’s no way I can be dead! I know how absurd this world is, and that death could come for me at any moment, but being shoved off like this without a chance to leave my mark?! Dying with no warning is ridiculous!
As much as he ranted inside his own head, there was, of course, no one to answer.
No, no, no, no, no! This is impossible! I know there were a large number of problems starting to pile up, but it looked like everything was somehow going to work itself out in the end! Everything was going to be resolved, the problematic people like Takatou were going to leave, and I was going straight into a life supported by cheat powers!
No, it’s not too late! I need to calm down! Just because I’m dead doesn’t mean I can give up! This is another world! Death is not necessarily the end! It is possible to revive the dead here, is it not? Just because I, as a Healer, don’t know of any abilities that could do so doesn’t mean they don’t exist somewhere! I would, in fact, like to assume that they do! Even if not, there is still the option of returning as the undead! Even if I were to become nothing but a zombie, at least I would still be alive, in a sense! Or perhaps I should aim for lichdom, the highest rank of undead? Being reincarnated into another world as such a being and aiming for world domination and a personal harem is standard fare, is it not?
But in this situation, how am I supposed to become undead?! Someone! Please, summon my soul back! Hey! Hello?! Umm...wait, is this really the end?
Slowly, despair was starting to settle in. No matter how much he railed in his head, there was no sign of the outside world changing. He was just spinning his wheels, throwing words into the void. His sense of helplessness and powerlessness was only growing.
After some unknown amount of time, when he had finally given up hope, he finally noticed a faint light. Though it was hazy, he was starting to see. Everything moved quickly from there. He realized his eyes weren’t in focus, so he desperately began trying to see what was in front of him. Slowly, the image became clearer.
“Thank goodness, you’re awake!”
The first thing he saw was Celestina’s face. Hanakawa was on his back, with the concierge sitting at his side, peering down at him. He could see Ryouko, Carol, and Sora standing off to the side. It seemed they hadn’t been particularly concerned.
“Am I...alive?” he asked.
“Yes,” Celestina answered. “Though it was not especially clear until now, I believe it is safe to say you are certainly alive.”
“Honestly, it was so grotesque, it was hard to look at you,” Carol said, looking back at him. Apparently, he had been on the verge of death before his consciousness rapidly returned.
“What exactly happened?”
“The Prison Area was suddenly destroyed,” Celestina began. “It appears the attack came from outside, as my network of threads was unable to predict it. If it had struck us directly, I imagine we all would have died.”
Hanakawa sat up. He could see outside. The walls that had enclosed them previously had disappeared. It was hard to tell the scope of the damage from their current vantage point, but the fact that they could see outside meant a significant portion of the pyramid must have been destroyed. The walls, floor, and ceiling were all heavily damaged, but for some reason the area immediately around them was untouched.
“If we were not struck directly, then why did I lose consciousness?”
“Because of the shock wave from the blast, I imagine,” Celestina answered. “I attempted to make a protective dome with my thread, but I was too slow, so a piece of rubble struck you...”
“There was a huge chunk of rock stuck in your head,” Carol described gleefully. “Your eyes popped out and everything.” She seemed far more interested in him now than when they had first reunited.
“Er, I will have to ask you to refrain from giving me such specific details.”
“Then I suppose I shouldn’t explain further,” Celestina said.
“No, I can’t bear to not know!” he cried.
“Make up your mind...” Ryouko sighed.