Chapter 51

At that moment, her body was slammed into the distant ground below her, smashing her into pieces. She felt no pain. That probably meant she was dead. She couldn’t recall experiencing any pain on the numerous occasions she’d died in the past. She’d collapsed in the desert at the start of her journey, suffered magic attacks in Candela Castle, been attacked by demonic spirits at the castle in Medial, and had Aviella shoot her in the chest—but she didn’t remember being in pain any of those times. She’d simply lost consciousness, only to come back once she’d been revived. She’d probably been manipulated so that she wouldn’t notice she was unique. Which was why she didn’t feel any pain this time, either. All she had was her consciousness. Oh, this sucks. She knew that her body was in tatters. Her head and abdomen were split open, and her limbs had been torn apart and scattered across the ground. She couldn’t see it, but she could still tell what had happened. After all, she was conscious…and the cursed artifact hadn’t been totally destroyed yet. A feeble amount of power shifted inside Shizuku’s body, attempting to restore her physical form one step at a time. “…S-stop.” She mustered a shred of determination, trying to stop the movements of the cursed artifact. Akashia was a sword that severed magic. It had the same effect on otherworldly cursed artifacts, which was why this one had retained so little of its power. Actually, I’m glad I’m conscious, Shizuku thought, changing her opinion. As long as she was conscious and had her mind, she could fight to the bitter end and drag this cursed artifact with her into death. There in a pool of her own blood, Shizuku flexed her willpower. Little by little, the presence of the cursed artifact began to fade away, as slowly as the blood she’d spilled seeped into the earth. She could end things right here and take this stubborn thing with her. Still, would she have been able to think if it weren’t for the cursed artifact’s power? She’d slammed into the ground from a considerable height. Her brain had probably been destroyed, yet she was still able to think. Maybe she had the power of the cursed artifact to thank for that. Or maybe her brain was still functioning when only a tiny part of it remained. There was so much she didn’t know. I wish I could have learned more, she thought to herself. There were still so many things she wanted to explore. That said, she didn’t regret the choice she’d made. She knew that someone else would weave together new thoughts, new knowledge, even if she couldn’t. Shizuku recalled the faces of the people who were precious to her—her family and friends from her old world, as well as the people she’d met in her new one, like Ortea and Erik. All of them would probably get angry at her for making this choice, but no matter who scolded her, she’d still make the same decision. Only Shizuku could destroy the cursed artifact in this way. She couldn’t surrender that opportunity. Shizuku observed its power and her own life as they both dwindled away. That burning flame was gradually shrinking. Her strength was waning. Her consciousness slowly began to fade. It’ll be over soon. Just then, she heard the sound of large wings flapping through the air. It made no sense—her ears shouldn’t be working. The cursed artifact shuddered inside of her, startled. She couldn’t see anything, but she could sense the red dragon landing close by. It was the same dragon she’d seen flying over the desert when she first arrived in this world. That could mean only one thing: The cursed artifact from this world had come back yet again. “…Ah.” Someone positioned themself beside her. She sensed an aura similar to that of the royal sword nearby, causing the cursed artifact to tremble. It had been killed by this sword once before. It was that death that had led Shizuku to fall into this world. Back then, the cursed artifact had taken the form of a toad, small enough to fit in your hands. This time, it was inside a broken human corpse. Could the sword tell it was the same artifact? If so, maybe it had come to destroy its core once and for all. Or perhaps it was hoping to witness its final moments. Shizuku’s thoughts faded away. Her spirit began to dissipate. The cursed artifact, which had restrained the continent for so long, was going to be destroyed by human will. And so it would end. Relieved, Shizuku started letting go of her consciousness. At that moment, however, a pair of warm hands touched her face. “Shizuku.” She heard the voice of a young girl. It was a voice she’d heard somewhere before—clear and resonant, and filled with strength. “I…believe in your freedom.”