It was terribly dark.
Wrapping itself all around him, it was terribly dark.
He couldn't see anything anymore.
He couldn't hear anything anymore.
He reached out.
So that someone would save him, he reached out.
But his hand couldn't reach anywhere.
There, in that darkness, he couldn't see even his hand.
"... Just when did I..."
When did I come here without realizing it?
Sion Astal looked around.
He was in the throne room.
In the heart of Roland.
But nothing was there.
People called him the Hero King.
But to him, that was absolutely nothing.
His mother had once said,
"There's nothing to be afraid of, Sion."
However, he shook his head.
I'm afraid.
I'm afraid, Mother.
Because of me, people die.
Because of me, people live.
Due to that fear, the weak me trembles every day.
He cried out for help.
Drowning in the darkness, he cried out for help.
But that voice wouldn't reach anyone.
Still, his mother's words continued.
"You grew up to be a kind child."
But kindness alone wouldn't save anyone.
The world was far, far darker than he'd thought.
Kindness alone... wouldn't save anything.
Nevertheless, he wanted to save them.
I want to move forward already, he thought.
Reflected in his eyes were countless things to be saved.
He wanted to save even just a few of the weak who cried out.
And then, this darkness.
At some point, this darkness came into the palm of his hands.
And...
His mother's voice went on.
"So even if I'm not here... you aren't alone."
At that.
Sion smiled.
"... You're wrong, Mother. I'm not kind... and that's why I'm alone..."
The only thing he could hold onto was darkness.
Deep darkness.
His hand that was held out as if to grab onto that darkness... He looked at that hand.
His hand that he'd set out to save everything.
The arm I held out to change this mad world.
To protect the people important to me.
To see the smiling faces of the people important to me.
For those important to me.
But the result was...
"......"
What was the result of that?
He gently closed his eyes.
Then his face arose in his mind.
That careless face that always looked as if it'd given up on everything.
A sadly smiling expression.
Ryner Lute's face.
In his memories, Ryner looked at Sion and spoke.
"You gave Luke Stokkart the duty..."
His words ended there.
But he knew what the rest was.
Sion gave Luke Stokkart the duty of Ryner Lute's erasure....
The erasure of the Alpha Stigma monster, Ryner Lute.
How—how did Ryner know?
How did you...
When Sion looked at Ryner, Ryner only looked at him with an expression that said that he already understood everything.
An eternally sad expression.
An expression that looked as if it'd even given up on life.
Utterly.
Utterly, it was if he heard a voice in his heart.
"Ah, it's just as I thought?"
That scream.
"You also think of me..."
His heart's scream.
But, but that,
"... That's not it,"
Sion managed to say.
But Ryner's expression didn't change.
"You also think of me as a monster, don't you?"
That's not it!
Something like that...
I don't think anything like that!
He cried out.
I don't think you're a monster!
He cried out.
Despite that, Ryner merely smiled sadly.
"Neither of you... Neither of you are to blame. I liked you both."
His face, always filled with despair.
The despair that was locked away within him.
And Ryner disappeared.
Before Sion, he disappeared in an instant.
He couldn't do anything.
Back then, Sion couldn't do anything.
That was why,
"......"
Sion held out his hand.
Even though it'd already reached this point, he held out his hand in order to restrain Ryner.
He held out his hand as if to hold onto the Ryner in his memories.
Perhaps there might still be time.
If he held out his hand, there might still be time.
That was why Sion desperately, desperately held out his hand...
But that hand didn't reach Ryner at all.
"... No."
Sion then opened his eyes.
"... I already know why my hand won't reach you..."
Quietly saying that, he again looked at the palm of his hand.
Once before, he'd held that hand out to Ryner and said this.
"Cooperate with me, Ryner. Together we'll change this country."
Together.
Together we'll change this country.
At those words.
"Ha... haha—"
Without thinking, Sion let a dry voice leak out.
That was nothing but a farce.
A mad farce.
He was the one who held out his hand, and he was the one who destroyed things.
"......"
Together we'll change this country, he'd said.
Then on the other hand, he gave out an order to kill Ryner.
Should the Alpha Stigma bearer, Ryner Lute, go berserk outside of Roland or show any traitorous behaviour—
Erase him...
That was the order Sion gave Luke.
But that...
"... I... don't think of Ryner as a monster."
Then all of a sudden.
"But you would kill him?"
Before him.
From within the darkness, there was a voice.
However, Sion didn't lift his head.
Because he knew what was there.
That voice spoke.
It was a clear and rather pretty voice.
"You would. That's correct."
"......"
However, Sion didn't answer.
Instead, quietly,
"... I don't think of him as a monster..."
"Ahahahahahahahahahahahahaha. Aren't you kind, Sion... but that's a trivial matter."
That's a trivial matter.
At that, Sion lifted his face and looked into the darkness.
Over there was something much worse than the darkness.
Greater than this darkness, like a dark spirit, something of malice was there.
That malice continued to speak.
"You advance forward only on the correct path. You're strong enough to even be able to trample over everything important to you, if you deemed it necessary. Friends. Loved ones. Everything. That is your nature alone. Now then, show me. The correct path..."
That malice continued to speak.
"Show me the path you will walk."
"......"
At that, Sion let out a light breath.
And again he tried to breathe in, but air wouldn't enter.
His breathing.
The air...
Instead, the only thing that entered was darkness.
"......"
Sion directed his gaze to the scattered documents on the floor.
Those were all the documents yielded by Luke Stokkart.
He stared at those documents.
"... I—"
He breathed out that darkness.
It was terribly dark.
Wrapping itself all around him, it was terribly dark.
He couldn't see anything anymore.
He couldn't hear anything anymore.
He reached out.
So that someone would save him, he reached out.
But his hand couldn't reach anywhere.
There, in that darkness, he couldn't see even his hand.
"... Just when did I..."
When did I come here without realizing it?
Sion Astal looked around.
He was in the throne room.
In the heart of Roland.
But nothing was there.
People called him the Hero King.
But to him, that was absolutely nothing.
His mother had once said,
"There's nothing to be afraid of, Sion."
However, he shook his head.
I'm afraid.
I'm afraid, Mother.
Because of me, people die.
Because of me, people live.
Due to that fear, the weak me trembles every day.
He cried out for help.
Drowning in the darkness, he cried out for help.
But that voice wouldn't reach anyone.
Still, his mother's words continued.
"You grew up to be a kind child."
But kindness alone wouldn't save anyone.
The world was far, far darker than he'd thought.
Kindness alone... wouldn't save anything.
Nevertheless, he wanted to save them.
I want to move forward already, he thought.
Reflected in his eyes were countless things to be saved.
He wanted to save even just a few of the weak who cried out.
And then, this darkness.
At some point, this darkness came into the palm of his hands.
And...
His mother's voice went on.
"So even if I'm not here... you aren't alone."
At that.
Sion smiled.
"... You're wrong, Mother. I'm not kind... and that's why I'm alone..."
The only thing he could hold onto was darkness.
Deep darkness.
His hand that was held out as if to grab onto that darkness... He looked at that hand.
His hand that he'd set out to save everything.
The arm I held out to change this mad world.
To protect the people important to me.
To see the smiling faces of the people important to me.
For those important to me.
But the result was...
"......"
What was the result of that?
He gently closed his eyes.
Then his face arose in his mind.
That careless face that always looked as if it'd given up on everything.
A sadly smiling expression.
Ryner Lute's face.
In his memories, Ryner looked at Sion and spoke.
"You gave Luke Stokkart the duty..."
His words ended there.
But he knew what the rest was.
Sion gave Luke Stokkart the duty of Ryner Lute's erasure....
The erasure of the Alpha Stigma monster, Ryner Lute.
How—how did Ryner know?
How did you...
When Sion looked at Ryner, Ryner only looked at him with an expression that said that he already understood everything.
An eternally sad expression.
An expression that looked as if it'd even given up on life.
Utterly.
Utterly, it was if he heard a voice in his heart.
"Ah, it's just as I thought?"
That scream.
"You also think of me..."
His heart's scream.
But, but that,
"... That's not it,"
Sion managed to say.
But Ryner's expression didn't change.
"You also think of me as a monster, don't you?"
That's not it!
Something like that...
I don't think anything like that!
He cried out.
I don't think you're a monster!
He cried out.
Despite that, Ryner merely smiled sadly.
"Neither of you... Neither of you are to blame. I liked you both."
His face, always filled with despair.
The despair that was locked away within him.
And Ryner disappeared.
Before Sion, he disappeared in an instant.
He couldn't do anything.
Back then, Sion couldn't do anything.
That was why,
"......"
Sion held out his hand.
Even though it'd already reached this point, he held out his hand in order to restrain Ryner.
He held out his hand as if to hold onto the Ryner in his memories.
Perhaps there might still be time.
If he held out his hand, there might still be time.
That was why Sion desperately, desperately held out his hand...
But that hand didn't reach Ryner at all.
"... No."
Sion then opened his eyes.
"... I already know why my hand won't reach you..."
Quietly saying that, he again looked at the palm of his hand.
Once before, he'd held that hand out to Ryner and said this.
"Cooperate with me, Ryner. Together we'll change this country."
Together.
Together we'll change this country.
At those words.
"Ha... haha—"
Without thinking, Sion let a dry voice leak out.
That was nothing but a farce.
A mad farce.
He was the one who held out his hand, and he was the one who destroyed things.
"......"
Together we'll change this country, he'd said.
Then on the other hand, he gave out an order to kill Ryner.
Should the Alpha Stigma bearer, Ryner Lute, go berserk outside of Roland or show any traitorous behaviour—
Erase him...
That was the order Sion gave Luke.
But that...
"... I... don't think of Ryner as a monster."
Then all of a sudden.
"But you would kill him?"
Before him.
From within the darkness, there was a voice.
However, Sion didn't lift his head.
Because he knew what was there.
That voice spoke.
It was a clear and rather pretty voice.
"You would. That's correct."
"......"
However, Sion didn't answer.
Instead, quietly,
"... I don't think of him as a monster..."
"Ahahahahahahahahahahahahaha. Aren't you kind, Sion... but that's a trivial matter."
That's a trivial matter.
At that, Sion lifted his face and looked into the darkness.
Over there was something much worse than the darkness.
Greater than this darkness, like a dark spirit, something of malice was there.
That malice continued to speak.
"You advance forward only on the correct path. You're strong enough to even be able to trample over everything important to you, if you deemed it necessary. Friends. Loved ones. Everything. That is your nature alone. Now then, show me. The correct path..."
That malice continued to speak.
"Show me the path you will walk."
"......"
At that, Sion let out a light breath.
And again he tried to breathe in, but air wouldn't enter.
His breathing.
The air...
Instead, the only thing that entered was darkness.
"......"
Sion directed his gaze to the scattered documents on the floor.
Those were all the documents yielded by Luke Stokkart.
He stared at those documents.
"... I—"
He breathed out that darkness.
