Chapter 111
“Uwaaaah.”
Quies let out a deep, wailing cry, as if fully realizing the weight of her sins. Amid her sobbing, fragmented apologies like “I was wrong” and “I’m sorry” slipped out intermittently. Roina felt a bitter taste in her mouth.
Even if it was difficult to emotionally identify with her past life, she couldn’t help but feel a sense of responsibility toward the being who had been born from its influence and who now relied on her.
Then, suddenly—spark!—as if something had come to mind, Quies lifted her head. She looked up at Roina with truly pitiful eyes.
“…Why are you looking at me like that?”
“M-Master! Sniff! We can save him!”
“What?”
“The Master of the Beginning—Master can bring Rager back to life!”
“I can?”
Startled, Roina pointed at herself. They had already spent so much time saying there was no way, resigning themselves to it. And yet, now there was a method—and it involved her?
“Yes!!! Master just needs to form a new contract with Rager!!!”
According to Quies, this was the reasoning:
Since the disaster had been caused by her failed contract with Rager, if a stronger contract were to be formed over it, his life could be extended—at least until that new contract ended.
Quies begged her, over and over again.
He was someone whose entire life had been ruined because of her, so she wanted a chance to atone for even a little while. She couldn’t bear to let her first familiar be sent away like this.
Roina hesitated but, in the end, agreed.
Truthfully, she, too, felt a deep sorrow at the thought of him vanishing like this. If there was a way to save him, then she was willing to try.
***
Then, Master! Please meet with him! If you form a contract renewal with him, binding him with a stronger connection than mine, that will be enough.
A stronger connection? What kind of method is that?
That… I don’t know yet! But when the time comes for you to form a contract with him, Master will naturally come to understand how!
And so, she stepped forward into the collapsing abyss, into the space where only Luda—no, Rager—remained. The barrier, now stripped of its rules, was crumbling unsteadily.
Inside the barrier, as if reflecting his inner world, stood a temple built of stone walls. Upon the high ceiling, the sacred emblem of the goddess—a crescent moon intertwined with snowflakes—shone beautifully, while moonlight streamed in through the long windows.
At the center of it all, a holy knight who had lost his god knelt on one knee, his head bowed, awaiting the death of his master.
“Rager.”
At the sound of her voice, he lifted his head. Though his expression was devoid of any emotion, it was precisely that emptiness that made him seem even more sorrowful. Roina felt her chest tighten without realizing it.
‘Resonance, is it?’
This space belonged to the holy knight. Having stepped inside, she could not help but be influenced by him. This feeling must have been a mere fragment of what he was experiencing.
“So you call me by that name.”
He spoke with self-mockery. The weight of the years he had spent without a name bled through his words.
“Yes. I came here because I want you to live again, as Rager.”
He gazed at her intently, as if trying to discern her true intentions. His eyes, hollowed out by despair, had long since dried up. Another wave of sorrow crashed over Roina.
Drip.
Before she knew it, tears had begun to fall.
For a brief moment, light flickered in Rager’s eyes. What he felt—perhaps surprise. It had been a long time since he had allowed another person into his world. And even longer since he had met someone who would cry for him.
“Live as Rager, doing what you wish to do. Live your life. In the end, all of this started because of me—so I will take responsibility in your place.”
Roina spoke as she took a step toward Rager, then another. His disheveled white hair obscured his face slightly, but the handsome features beneath were now clearly marked with surprise.
No one had ever tried to grasp his falling hand before.
Yet now, this woman had suddenly appeared, saying she would take his hand. That she would give him life.
It was bewildering.
His eyes trembled as he looked at Roina. The moonlight filtering through the windows illuminated her, casting her in a soft glow. Under that light, she gazed down at him, tears spilling from her eyes.
As if she was pained.
As if her heart was aching.
As if she wanted to save him.
His eyes widened in confusion.
For a moment, she looked just like—
‘The goddess…’
The goddess he had believed had abandoned him.
Roina bent down to meet his gaze and extended her hand. Now that she could feel even his most intimate emotions, she could fully grasp how deeply despair had consumed him.
“Rager. Will you live again?”
As if entranced, he took her hand. And then—he panicked.
Something buried deep within him surged up explosively.
Even he had not known such a thing existed within him. Now, overwhelmed by this unknown force, he had no idea what to do.
Roina was equally flustered.
The moment she took his hand, an intense, smoldering heat bloomed from deep within her abdomen.
You must form a stronger bond with him than mine.
That “stronger bond”—could it be?
No.
Perhaps, to bind an already shattered soul, merely connecting their spirits was no longer enough.
If the re-contract required a powerful link between their bodies as well, then in a way, it was only natural.
Why hadn’t she realized it sooner?
Her face flushed with embarrassment.
But there was no time to hesitate—his world was still collapsing.
“Rager, I know this is confusing, but listen carefully. To survive, you need to form a contract with me. To give you another chance, I must overwrite the previous contract with a stronger one.”
“Kgh… then…”
Roina’s face grew even redder.
She had just realized—he was feeling the same thing she was.
His expression was a mix of bewilderment and panic as he instinctively hunched over.
“I-I think… we have to… have intercourse.”
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