BXBX NOVEL Chapter 170: An End and a Beginning
Chapter 170: An End and a Beginning
That's what the old man said.
Honestly, I don't understand what he means.
Certainly, it's not like the old man doesn't resemble me.
"You're... you're saying you're the future me?
"Yes. I am you from about 50 years later."
The old man clearly said that.
Even if he suddenly tells me that, I don't know whether I should believe him.
But this guy knows my name.
On top of that, I came to this world after reincarnating with my memories.
So I get the feeling it wouldn't be strange for there to be timeslips.
"Sorry, but I don't have the leisure to explain to you the principles of past teleportation magic."
"When you say you don't have the leisure to explain..."
"Sorry for the Hollywood movie-like words, but I really don't have time. Listen to me."
The words Hollywood movie flow smoothly.
In other words, this old man definitely has a connection to my previous world.
...Is he really me?
Those glaring eyes.
There's something gloomy in the depths of those pupils.
To speak frankly, they're the eyes of someone who kills people like it's a mundane thing.
Cold eyes which think nothing of a single person's life.
So I'll become like this in the future?
That's absurd.
It's completely unbelievable, but the old man's expression is serious.
For the time being, tentatively, I'll listen to the old man's story as if he's me from 50 years later.
"There is nothing in the basement."
The old man said that deliberately.
"I went to the basement, and thought there was nothing. And the next day, I heard the words [If there was nothing, then that's good] from Hitogami, and felt reassured."
The old man grimaced unpleasantly.
"But that was a mistake. I can explain it now."
He touched his finger to his forehead as if remembering something.
His left hand's index finger.
Hm?
He has a hand?
"Listen, most likely, there's a mouse in the basement. A sick mouse. Its peculiar feature ought to be teeth like violet magic stones. I don't know where that mouse came from or when it entered there. Most likely, one from the demon continent or the sky fortress slipped into some luggage. That doesn't matter."
The old man opened his palm, then tightened it into a fist.
"The mouse was frightened by you, and ran away. To the kitchen. And then it scavenges through leftovers of yesterday's meal, has died the next day, and gets disposed of by Aisha."
"..."
"Those leftovers are given to a stray cat the next day, and disappear."
His left hand isn't an artificial one.
Is he really me?
Or maybe in the next 50 years, it gets healed using impressive healing magic.
"But before that happens, a hungry Roxy goes down the stairs, and picks a little at those leftovers. As a result, she's infected with that mouse's disease."
"Roxy gets sick?"
When I heard the word Roxy, my concentration focused on the old man's story.
"Magic stone disease."
Magic stone disease.
I get the feeling I've heard about it from somewhere.
Oh, if I remember right, it's an illness that can only be healed with god ranked detoxification magic.
An incurable disease that gradually turns the body to magic stone.
"I didn't realize it at first. After all, magic stone disease is extremely rare. That virus dwells inside the body, and is only capable of infecting the other life within it."
"The other life?"
"That's right, a fetus. Only pregnant women can contract that illness. I did research later on and was shocked."
"Eh? No, but, Roxy is still–"
"She should be pregnant. But enough of that, you did the deed so isn't that natural?"
Roxy is pregnant.
Somehow I'm really happy, but with this explanation I'm not happy at all.
"Mice are carriers for magic stone disease, because a portion of them have resistance to it. You can identify a carrier at a glance, because their teeth have become violet crystal. And the illness spreads to what the mouse bites on. It only infects orally, and the virus doesn't persist for very long. It disappears after around a day at most, and the infection rate is low, and those infected are only fetuses inside pregnant women."
"..."
"The virus grows inside the fetus, proceeds to remold the fetus, and then turns the mother's body into magic stone."
...He's saying that Roxy will be infected by an illness like that?
"If you were to thoughtlessly go to the basement right now and let the mouse out, the next day you'll hear Aisha idly grumble [I found a weird dead mouse this morning], two weeks later you'll be told [A cat infected with magic stone disease was discovered], and right after that Roxy will come down with a fever. And it will be 30 years later before you connect everything together."
"...What happens to Roxy?"
"She dies."
At his merciless remark, I lost my words.
"Roxy gets a fever and becomes bedridden... You'll understand that it's magic stone disease once you see her feet start to turn to magic stone, but..."
"It didn't get healed? I tried to heal it, didn't I?"
The old man made a sad face and cast his eyes downward.
"I tried to save her no matter what by going to the holy country of Milis, and succeeded in obtaining the chant for god ranked detoxification magic, but... A lot happened on the way, and it took time. By the time I returned it was too late, half of Roxy's body was crystallized, and she had died."
But he quickly raised his face and sent me the fierce light in his eyes.
"Don't be misled by the words of Hitogami. If it's you who has knowledge of the previous world, you should understand that much. That guy is the source of every kind of evil. The last boss."
"But, why did he do that to Roxy?"
"I don't know. Even now. But it should be certain that he's acting with some kind of objective in mind. At the very end, he said that himself... [Thanks to you being an idiot, things have proceeded to my satisfaction.] ...Sheet."
Hitogami said that himself?
But, umm...?
"Orsted or Laplace might know something about Hitogami's goal... But I haven't met either of them for the past 50 years. Most likely, you won't be able to meet them either, even if you search for them."
"Nanahoshi didn't know where Orsted was?"
When I spoke Nanahoshi's name, the old man made a sorrowful face.
She didn't know?
Or could it be that Nanahoshi also...
"I didn't ask her, but certainly in this current era, it could be worth asking her. Even if she doesn't know where he is, she also thinks a lot about these kinds of things. She might come up with some kind of good idea."
"...What happened to Nanahoshi?"
"..."
The old man didn't answer.
He just had a sad expression.
But after a little while, he spoke while sighing.
"At the very end, she failed. And then became depressed, and I failed to support her... And then..."
Nanahoshi didn't return.
And then despaired, and maybe, to herself, by her own hand...
"I got it. Enough of that."
"Yeah, I don't want to talk about it either."
The old man raised his eyes, and as if pulling himself together, continued to speak.
"Listen. You'll learn about this around 10 years from now too, but... Hitogami isn't called Hitogami in this world.
"...What do you mean?"
"The God of Humans, written as Human God. There's nobody who doesn't know the name Human God, but only those who've met him directly know the term Hitogami. I don't know why he did something like that... Maybe just to toy with the people who know it."
...I see.
No wonder there's such an overreaction to the word Hitogami.
So that's a name known only to those who've met him and been deceived by him.
"At a glance, that guy seemed to only speak about things that were for my sake."
The old man clenched his fist again.
The light of hatred alone illuminated those pupils.
Incredible killing intent overflowed, but for some reason I didn't think it was scary.
"Even now, up to this moment, he hasn't told a lie. No lie that I can perceive."
His fist quivered. In the vicinity of the fist, I can see something. A crackling, coiling, purple lightning-like thing.
"Each and every thing has been for the sake of this one time, so that the suspicious you would obey him without hesitating at this moment!"
I felt blank amazement toward the flying sparks, but put myself on guard.
"Don't be tricked! You read it in manga, didn't you? Someone who talks about believing and not believing is definitely lying!"
"Well, I know that, but..."
The old man spoke with a strained voice.
"You don't understand. After Roxy is Sylphy. Heartbroken from losing Roxy, for a little while you'll stop thinking about Sylphy. Sylphy will be hurt and be in low spirits. That guy will manipulate Luke and take advantage of that."
"Luke?"
"Yeah, later on you'll hear from a woman who kept Luke's company at the time, [When he woke up the next morning, Luke acted flustered and started talking about how he'd heard an oracle from God or something.]"
"And then... what happens?"
"Luke gives advice to Ariel, and Sylphy abandons me and goes to Asura. Together with Ariel who failed to get Perugius's favor! From an inferior position, Ariel starts an internal revolt, and loses. Sylphy is killed in battle."
Killed in battle...
So she dies.
"You lose those two."
The old man shook his head while grinding his teeth.
"Yeah, even now that guy's voice when he revealed his tricks lingers in my ears. [You've done well], the feeling of having my shoulder clapped, and that shrill laughing voice... Sheet, fucking hell!!"
The old man struck the desk with a thud.
At that instant, purple lightning scattered through the surroundings, lighting them up like it was midday.
The light quickly faded, but a burn mark remained on the desk.
The old man exhaled with a "fuu".
"I'll say it again. Don't believe in him. You'll end up regretting it."
After saying that, the old man suddenly clutched his stomach.
Looking at him, his complexion seemed a bit worse than earlier.
"So I'm out of time... But even if I say this, you probably don't know what you should do."
The old man's face was deathly pale.
Purple bags had appeared under his eyes.
The old man took a deep breath and then exhaled painfully.
It kind of feels like he's on the verge of death.
Maybe he suffers from some kind of illness.
"First of all, hmm, Eris."
When I heard Eris, I felt my brow furrowing.
"I want you to write and send her a letter immediately. Say [Well, I've been a bit unfaithful, but I love you.]"
"I don't love her. It's because of her that I became impotent."
"Forgive her. You're a man, aren't you?"
"..."
The old man grinned in self-derision.
"...Though I said that, I ended up not forgiving her, and was antagonistic with her for years."
"Antagonistic?"
"Time and time again, I was almost killed by Eris. She would chase me no matter where I went, and every time she found me it would turn into a no-holds-barred battle. Well, she took it easy on me. If she wanted to, there were plenty of ways to kill me. She would make sure never to pick a fight where she'd kill me.
On the contrary, if I was ever in a crisis, she'd save me from the shadows. Almost like Vegeta."
'Vegeta'...
"Well, she's different from the prince of the vegetable country. She just wanted to be by my side. She had always loved me. She loved me and did her very best for me...
But she's bad at expressing herself, and didn't know what she should do, so the only thing she was able to do was hit me."
Even if he tells me that.
I'm someone with wives and a child.
It's true that there was a time when I loved Eris.
But, that's... in the past.
"But Slyphy and Roxy..."
"Not a problem. Sylphy's tolerant about that kind of thing, and Roxy doesn't think that she suits me, so she'll allow it. Even Eris, if you give her an explanation in advance, will agree. Oh, but prepare to get hit. Because she's that kind of woman."
"Even if you say that..."
"Protect all of the women who say they love you. Isn't that nice? What's wrong with that? A man should be reliable."
"Don't say it like it's somebody else's problem."
"I'm saying it because I was left with no one."
There was a strange sense of weight to the old man's words.
But you know...
"I have a responsibility toward Sylphy and Roxy..."
"If you're talking about responsibility, you have one toward Eris too. She's been persevering for your sake the whole time. She's a poor talker so it didn't get through to you, but the whole time. If you don't take responsibility for her, what about all her effort?
...You'll be condemned by Ghyslaine. In front of Eris's body."
Eris's... body?
"Eris... dies too...?"
"Yeah, to cover me. If I remember right... That was when I had a rematch with Atofe. A serious Demon Lord was stronger than I thought, and I let my guard down."
The old man said that nostalgically, the corner of his mouth twisted.
To be able to be inattentive toward Atofe, just how strong is he? This future me.
It seemed doubtful, is he really me?
"Listen, you must send a letter. If you don't want to regret it... If you do it now, it should barely make it there in time."
"Ah, aah, well, if you say that, I'll send it. But, where do I send it?"
"The Holy Land of Swords. You should have had some suspicions, right?"
The Holy Land of Swords.
It's not that far from Sharia.
Maybe I thought it might be something like that. So she was training there.
The Holy Land of Swords...
"Got it."
"Don't write it like you're pushing her away. If Eris despairs, you'll be killed."
"I know."
I think that I know what kind of person Eris is.
...Or at least, I thought I did.
If this old man's words are true.
She had no intention to dump me, and I didn't understand that.
Now that I think about it, there's no way an awkward speaker like her could write a letter well.
And thus, we passed each other by, which gave rise to unhappiness.
"Fuu"
The old man exhaled cumbersomely.
And then raised his face with a startled expression.
"Also, I forgot to say something important. Don't oppose Hitogami."
"'Don't oppose'? He deceived you, didn't he?"
"Yeah. But you can't win against Hitogami. I couldn't win against him. Someone like me couldn't arrive at the place where Hitogami is."
The old man said that as though mortified.
He didn't arrive at the place where Hitogami is.
In other words, as I thought, that place is somewhere in this world?
"When I realized that, I trembled. I couldn't even avenge Roxy and Sylphy. I worked this hard to defeat him, but I can't even reach him. I can even manipulate gravity, but he won't come within the reach of my hand."
After saying that, the old man pointed at the inkwell on top of the desk.
The inkwell gently floated up, then immediately dropped down again with a clink.
Drops of the ink flew onto the desk.
"I can float in the air and communicate with others over long distances. I regenerated my arm. Not to mention I can even jump through time and fly to the past... Well, this magic is a failure, though."
A failure.
Just what was a failure?
This man is actually right here, right now.
"You probably vaguely sensed it already, but what's called magic in this world is omnipotent. Once you realize that, you can essentially do anything."
While saying that, the old man raised his left hand.
In contrast to his proud behavior, the old man's face had gone past deathly pale, and was now pure white.
Black bags had appeared below his eyes, and his lips were dyed blue.
"But this power no longer means anything. I was too late. When I became strong, there wasn't a single person left I wanted to protect."
The old man's eyes were glaring as always, but the power was already gone from his pupils.
His breath was rough and thin.
"Listen, I'll say it again. I hate Hitogami.
But I can't beat him. There's no way to. I don't have the technique to arrive at his place. In the era I live in, the thing that's necessary to reach Hitogami's location does not exist. So don't fight with him. I don't know what his goal is, but it's fine if you even act servile, just don't oppose him. You'll just get done in by him, with everything still going as he wants.
In which case, right now, before anyone's died..."
The old man's hand suddenly lost its power and fell.
He raised his chin and gazed at the ceiling.
"There are three things you should do.
Consult with Nanahoshi.
Send a letter to Eris.
Doubt Hitogami, but don't oppose him. That's all."
"..."
I couldn't respond.
When he tells me all this suddenly, words can't come out.
But I somehow sensed that this old man was desperately trying to convey something to me.
"Y-You don't have any more concrete advice or anything?"
"How nostalgic. Come to think of it, the me of this era was quite a slacker... Well, of course, I'd like to teach you more details about various things, but... We're out of time."
"You've been saying you don't have time, you're out of time, etc., for a while now. Is a late night anime starting or something?"
"No... It's ending. By the way, don't depend on other people so much. When you first came to this world, in the early days, you didn't merely rely on other people, did you...?"
The old man looked at me as though seeing a grandchild.
Now that he says that, I do get the feeling I've been doing nothing but relying on other people recently.
"Also... Now that I've come here, history should have changed. No matter what I say, it's not necessarily true it will come true. And since past teleportation takes this sort of form, the history that I've walked won't change..."
The next instant.
The old man's eyes shifted and lost their focus.
His arms dangled downward, he lifted his chin, and he gasped with difficulty.
"You... will lead a different life than I did. Just as you always have, you'll have successes, you'll have failures, you'll have times you reflect, and you'll have times you regret."
The old man moved slightly, then fell from the chair.
"Hey, are you okay!?"
I rushed over hurriedly and helped him up... I shuddered.
The old man's body was light to an extent unthinkable from how it appeared so solidly built.
It might be even less than 40 kilograms.
What is this, what's going on.
"I... don't think that because I came from the future, I'll be able to recover from my mistakes. This magic is a failure... There are no do-overs in human life..."
The old man let his blank gaze wander around while putting his quivering hand inside his robe.
"I jumped with the diary as a point of origin... so I brought it... What I've experienced is written in it... Do your best... so that you don't have regrets... Don't become like me, and have that guy laugh at you... please..."
The old man's glaring eyes moistened, and he took out a bulky file-like thing from the pocket of his fluffy robe.
It's worn out, but I know it.
It's the diary that I only just made.
Before I could take it, the diary slipped from his hands and fell to the floor with a thump.
But what stole my attention wasn't that.
When he removed the diary, I briefly glimpsed something caved in on the other side of his robe.
Almost as though there was nothing below his clothes...
"What's... with that body...?"
"Hah, it was... incomplete... My past teleportation... wasn't able to... take my... entire body..."
"Eh, but, earlier, you said you could regrow an arm..."
"I don't have any more mana... Sorry... If only Cliff was alive, the past teleportation would've been better able to... a little more, here, information for you..."
"...I'm sorry, it's okay, so don't speak."
"...You... have regret... as Hitogami wants... why in a place like this... what I should say... I came to the past, so at least a glance..."
The old man's eyes no longer saw anything.
His words made no sense, it was just vague phrases flowing out.
Before I knew it, the area below his eyes was dyed black, and the shadow of death had appeared on his face.
This is the face of someone about to die, no, of a corpse.
"Ah"
But those eyes suddenly focused on a single point.
He saw something over my shoulder and behind me.
He extended a quivering hand toward that.
"Aah, Sylphy, Roxy... Damn, you sure are cute as ever..."
A single tear's trail flowed down from the old man's eye... the light was gone.
The strength dissipated from his body, and his neck drooped down.
...He was dead.
I turned around.
The door wasn't open.
It had made quite a loud noise, so I thought that someone might have been woken up, but...
On the verge of death, I wonder what phantom the old man saw.
When I thought that, I heard the footsteps of someone coming down from the second floor.
"!"
I went out of the room in a hurry.
Right then, Roxy and Sylphy who held a staff and candle arrived there from the second floor.
"Rudi, I heard some kind of voice and sounds. Is someone there?"
"Is it a thief?"
The two of them spoke with relief after seeing my appearance, but didn't let go of their sense of danger, and were vigilant.
Should I speak to them about the old man?
...No.
"No, I'm sorry. I was half asleep. I saw a weird dream, and ended up using magic. Looks like I woke you up, I'm sorry."
"A dream so you used magic while half asleep... I heard something like a shout too, is everything okay? Um, if it's tough, should we sleep together? I mean, obaa-chan said [Human warmth is the best when you want to forget something painful]..."
"No, it's fine. I'd probably do something lewd, after all. Sylphy's not back to her normal condition yet, right?"
When I refused Sylphy's attractive proposal, Roxy looked displeased.
"If you say it's really, really tough, I don't mind, but... No, but recently I've been thinking that it's possible, so if you can I'd rather you just limit it to touching..."
"No, I'm saying there's no need today."
At Roxy's words, I suddenly remembered the old man's words.
The old man said that Roxy was pregnant.
When Roxy said [Thinking that it's possible] maybe she was referring to that.
"...I'm really fine, so you two can return to bed. I'm going to sleep too, after tidying up the room."
"If Rudi says that, I'll do so, but... If it's not all right, tell me, okay?"
"We are married, so please don't be reserved. Well then, goodnight."
Sylphy and Roxy said that concernedly, then went up to the second floor.
After confirming that, I turn back toward the laboratory.
In any case, the first thing I should do is confirm the old man's words.
I don't really understand who the old man was.
Was he really me from the future, or was he someone else?
He did something dangerous enough to kill him when he came here.
There's credibility in that action, but it's all so sudden that I can't completely believe it.
"..."
But I thought.
I don't want to lose those two.
And, I don't want to die amid regret like that old man.
Part 2
After that.
I returned the two of them to their rooms, and strictly ordered them to not go outside their rooms tonight no matter what.
I went around to the rooms of all of the family members on the second floor, and locked them from the outside with earth magic.
I went around to all the rooms on the first floor, and confirmed that nobody was there.
After that, I returned to the laboratory, and stripped off everything on the old man.
"...!"
His body had no stomach.
There was a large hole from his ribs down, and I could only see bone and skin.
There were almost no internal organs.
But aside from the stomach, it was a splendid body.
There was so much muscle that you wouldn't think he was in his late 60s, and scars from his history of battles remained in various places.
There was a welded-like scar on his chest, and a mole in a place slightly different from where mine was located.
From the looks of it, his body was the same as mine.
If I had to mention a difference, it would be that he has a left hand.
He said he grew it... So healing magic also has some impressive skills.
Aside from the diary, the old man didn't have anything in particular.
No ornaments, no staff.
Below the robe was just a shirt, trousers, and underwear.
There wasn't anything in his robe pocket or his pants pocket.
Although if it was me, if Sylphy or Roxy died, I think I'd at least carry around something that belonged to them.
But 50 years, huh.
It might have all been lost.
I gathered all that in the corner of the room, and wrapped the old man in a blanket that was lying around nearby.
Carrying the body, I headed toward the backdoor located in the kitchen.
"..."
In the kitchen, leftovers from last night's cooking had been placed on top of a dish.
So he was saying that the mouse would eat that.
In which case, I should dispose of it.
I go outside through the backyard, and went to vacant land in the neighborhood.
I dug a hole there, put the old man's body in it, and set it on fire.
The magic fire burned up the old man in the blink of an eye, changing him to ashes.
The unpleasant odor of burnt human flesh hung in the air.
The smell of my own corpse.
"Uugh..."
When I thought that, I became nauseous, and vomited in the corner of the vacant land.
After burning the body, I made an urn with magic, and placed the old man's ashes in it.
I'll bury these ashes in the same place as Paul.
If the old man is really me, that ought to make him most happy.
After collecting the ashes, I filled the hole and returned to the house.
I entered through the backdoor and went straight to the laboratory.
I set the urn next to his belongings, and picked up my staff.
I headed toward the basement.
I've already opened up my demon eye.
The old man said [Don't go].
He said that a mouse will come out, fish through the leftovers, and the fetus inside of Roxy will become infected with the mouse's disease.
Therefore, I have no choice but to confirm it for myself.
Whether there really is a mouse.
If I don't do that, I won't be able to trust the old man.
And if it really is there, I can't leave it alone.
"..."
The stairs to the basement were dark.
I took out a light spirit scroll from my pocket, illuminating the surroundings.
I descended the stairs, took a deep breath, and placed my hand on the door.
"...hm?"
When I did that, in the corner of the stairs.
Among the thin layer of dust, I found something that bothered me.
Footprints.
A mouse's footprints.
Those footprints continued toward the basement, and there were no footprints going out.
I did... not... open the basement door.
I opened a fist-size hole in the center of the door with magic, and stuck my staff through it.
I sent mana to my staff.
The image was ice, the scope was the entire room.
In the basement there was manure that Aisha used for the kitchen garden, and there were magic items and such, but I wasn't going to pay that any mind.
"...Frost Nova."
I muttered that, and it was frozen in an instant.
Just in case, one more time.
"Frost, Nova."
The cold was spread completely through the room, to every nook and cranny.
I let the light spirit go through the hole and light up the other side, and peeked through the hole to verify that the room was completely frozen.
I opened the door.
I opened the frozen door, entered, and quickly shut it.
"..."
I immediately found the mouse.
Close to the hidden door to the shrine, frozen pure white, dead.
I could see transparent violet teeth through its half-open mouth.
Teeth that were like magic stone.
I searched every corner of the room to make sure there wasn't a second one, made a box with earth magic, pierced the mouse's corpse with a rod, put it inside and completely sealed it.
I wonder if it would be better to dispose of the body with incineration.
Or if would be better to entrust it to the magic guild and have them study it.
The latter.
If I report it along with the information from the old man that it was magic stone disease, I'll be able to tell whether it really was.
Although in the first place, I don't know whether a virus can be obtained from a frozen corpse.
I left the basement and locked it with a key.
Furthermore, I filled in the portion that had a hole in it.
It seems like magic stone disease's germ doesn't infect through the air, and the infection rate is low, but I don't know what might happen.
For a little while, I'll make this basement a forbidden room.
I returned to the laboratory.
I was wide awake and didn't feel like sleeping.
First of all, what should I do?
What can I do right now?
Should I read this worn out diary?
If I read this, I might understand what'll happen from now on.
But he said that history had changed.
If I were to say like a certain game would, this is another world line.
It's a world changed by the me who came from the future.
Even if I read this diary and prepare for it, there's a high possibility that what's written won't occur.
I suddenly noticed the inkwell and the black stains on the desk.
The scar from the old man striking it with a fist full of mana.
I remembered the three things that the old man said.
Among them was one that I could do now, right here.
I sat in the chair.
"..."
First of all, I decided to write a letter to Eris.