Platos charged but was repelled by the pope’s barrier. Taking advantage of his resulting imbalance, Misha used the reverb of Siren to seal his movements. Yu then slashed at him with her ice sword, making blood spurt from Platos’s body. The fight was in our favor so far.
“Cardinal Yu, Misha, and I will handle Platos. Everyone else, please save your strength.” I heard the pope say in my mind.
“Are you certain? We’re up against one of the Three Great Archdemons. Should we really be holding back?” Claire asked.
I was of the same mind.
“I don’t know why, but Platos has already been exhausted. I have a feeling something might be up, so it will be best we don’t tire ourselves here,” the pope responded.
Platos’s fighting was certainly lackluster. He had none of the overwhelming strength he had displayed last time.
“You think the demons are plotting something?” Claire asked.
“I can’t say, but we might as well save our stamina for Socrat and the Demon Queen regardless. Please be wary of our surroundings.”
“Understood.”
I remembered the last time we fought Platos we had been exhausted and thus easily overwhelmed, but we’d fought Socrat in our peak condition and still been unable to put a dent in him. If we could get away with saving our strength here before our confrontations with Socrat and the Demon Queen, I figured we might as well take it.
“But if things look dangerous, we’ll jump in, all right?” Manaria said.
“Of course,” the pope replied before beginning to cast her Area Heal.
“Oh, no you don’t!” Noticing the barrier drop, Platos rushed forward at the pope, perhaps remembering the impact of the Area Heal from their last encounter.
“You’re not getting past us.”
“That’s right.”
But blocking his path was Yu holding a sword of ice extending from her magic wand and Misha right behind her.
“Outta the way!” Platos yelled as he threw his massive body at them. Not even the combined weight of Yu and Misha could match half of Platos. It was like a pair of bicycles fending off a dump truck.
“Ice blades!”
“Tremble!”
The air chilled as Yu created countless longsword-length ice blades and fired them at Platos. I thought her action was rash at first, but I was surprised to see Platos fall forward.
“Guh?!” he groaned. The ice blades had embedded in his feet and stuck them to the ground.
“I see, so Misha’s magic can be used like that,” Manaria said.
“What do you mean, Sister?” Claire asked.
“Look closely. The swords Yu fired are trembling slightly. Misha’s improved their cutting edge by vibrating them.”
I see… So it’s like those high-frequency swords you see in science-fiction, I thought.
“It’s over, Platos!” Yu readied her finishing blow.
“Don’t think I’m done yet!” Platos pounded the ground with his arms, sending himself flying forward with raw strength alone and paying no mind to his torn feet.
“Wha—?!” Caught off guard, Yu hurriedly moved to defend herself.
“Weak!” Platos deftly twisted his body in the air, using the resulting centrifugal force to swing his club.
“Guh!”
“Aah?!”
Yu and Misha were sent sprawling backward, no match for Platos’s sheer physical strength.
“How’s that?!” he yelled.
“Heal.”
Platos’s spirits were immediately dampened by the realization that the pope’s Area Heal had activated. Both Yu and Misha, as well as the soldiers, were healed of their injuries and fatigue.
“Haaah…haaah…damn…” In stark contrast, Platos panted heavily, bearing wounds all over. His condition had seemed poor to begin with, but now he was in shambles. His feet were particularly injured, leaving him unable to move as nimbly as before. The outcome of this fight was clear.
“Platos, please give up,” the pope said expressionly.
“What?”
“It’s over. There’s no point in continuing this any further.”
Platos was silent for a moment. “You want me to surrender?”
“Yes. You may be a demon, but I’m sure you still value your life.”
“Like hell I do! We demons want nothing more than ruin! Kill me if ya want, I’m not afraid!” He shot a furious glare at the pope.
“I’ve always wondered, why is it that your kind seeks to bring ruin to this world? Has this world not given life to us both? Just what drives you all so?” the pope asked, her calm tone unbreaking. I could hear compassion and mercy in her voice.
“Life itself is a damn curse,” he said. “To live is to suffer. How can y’all not understand something so simple?”
“Certainly life has its struggles. But life has its joys as well, does it not?”
“Hah. It’s a million times better to be without suffering than to live with joy!” Still spilling blood onto the earth, Platos resumed attacking. He swung his club, shook the earth, and slashed with his nails, but every move he made was either blocked by the pope’s barrier, nullified by Misha’s magic, or parried by Yu.
“Damn it…”
“I take it that the fact you still live despite your belief is because there’s something you value?” the pope asked.
“The great Demon Queen ordered me to return all to nothing. That’s why I was born, that’s why I’ve lived, and that’s why I will die.”
It was clear now: Our people could never see eye to eye. An uncrossable divide existed between the demons, who wished for a nonexistence sans suffering, and humans, who sought happiness despite pain.
“Will you truly not surrender?” the pope asked.
“Don’t make me repeat myself.”
“I see…” For a moment, the pope closed her eyes and hung her head sadly before she looked to Yu and Misha.
The pair attacked with their vibrating blades, pinning Platos to the ground once more.
“Guh! What the hell do you think yer doing?” Platos groaned.
“I’m giving you a blessing; that way, you can be reborn as something that can live a proper life,” the pope said.
She, Yu, and Misha surrounded Platos. They began to chant a prayer, which summoned a glaring light to envelop his large frame. Shortly after, his body began to break down into that light, fading into nothingness.
My guess was that was an anti-demon technique of the Spiritual Church’s design. Considering their long history of fighting demons, they surely had many other similar techniques.
“Oh, Platos, let the benevolence of the Spirit God carry thee into—”
“Heh. Yeah, right,” Platos spat.
A moment later, fresh blood spurted forth.
“Platos…you…” the pope murmured in disbelief.
“I’m a demon… Like hell I’d let myself get blessed…” In his hand was his own core, which he had torn out of his chest. Dark-red blood poured from the cavity left behind. “Go. Become the final piece our Demon Queen needs…” His core flew out of view toward the imperial castle. “My Queen…please bring salvation…to this world…”
With a thud, Platos collapsed onto the ground. Having lost its core, his body began to crumble before ultimately disappearing without a trace. Even in his last moments, he showed fealty to the Demon Queen and remained true to his wish for nothingness; he had found a noble end, for a demon.
“I don’t understand. Platos, how could you not see meaning in life and yet nurse such a strong pride? Is that not contradictory?” The pope watched him as he disappeared. She seemed expressionless, but I was sure I could detect a tinge of sadness. “If you were a human soldier, then maybe you’d… No, I suppose there’s no point thinking about it at this point.”
“Your Holiness…” I said.
“I don’t think he was too different from me, Rae Taylor. If I’d made one wrong choice in my past, I’d have ended up like him, hating this world.”
I was surprised by the pope’s sudden confession.
“Don’t you remember? I’m one of many failures TAIM made in an attempt to create you,” she said. “But unlike the other lost children of the spirits, I know why and how I came into existence.”
“Right,” I said.
“There was a time when I hated you. There was a time when I questioned my own being. Perhaps I even wanted to return everything to nothingness, just like the demons.”
I didn’t respond. What could I even say when it was my fault she had these thoughts?
A silence fell between us, which quickly became a gloom. But Claire’s clear, clarion voice soon banished that darkness. “Perhaps. But Your Holiness didn’t wind up like him, and that is what truly matters.”
“Claire François…” the pope said.
Claire continued without hesitation. “I’m sure just about everyone comes to question their own existence at some point in time.”
“Even you?” the pope asked.
“Even me. But I also believe the ability to have such doubts and move past them is exactly what makes us human.”
“Miss Claire…” I murmured.
“I’m sure there are those who have the same doubts and come out the other side cursing life and yearning for nonexistence. The notion isn’t completely beyond me. But there’s no reason to drag other people into it. There’s no sense in forcing those who do accept life to die together with you,” she said with conviction. “Your Holiness, you were able to move on from your doubts and never forced them on others. You are different from these demons.”
“Yes, I see it now. It is as you say,” the pope replied, showing us a rare smile. It was as though the dark cloud surrounding her had lifted. “Whatever the past may be, I accept myself now, and I accept my life. I don’t hate Rae Taylor, and I have no reason to pursue nothingness. I am who I am.”
“That’s right,” Claire said.
“Thank you, Claire François. You truly are a wonderful person.”
“Naturally,” Claire said, looking a bit pleased. “Shall we continue, then? At long last, the castle stands before us.”
“Yes, let’s.”
Together, we entered the imperial castle. It was finally time for our battle with the Demon Queen.