The Regressor and the Blind Saint

→ Anomaly (3) ←

[Have you ever had any doubts? Why does your stigma have to exist?]

Her words were expressed as questions, but no one in the room could miss the sarcasm in them.

[Right? That’s just too strange. Why the hell does this land need a miracle that can turn a fool who may have been ignorant of their potential their whole life, or even a third-rate warrior with no notable talent, into a supreme being?]

Renee’s shoulders trembled slightly.

“To convey the will of the Gods to this land…”

[Why must it be fighting power? Why did it have to be miracles through a select few representatives? Was it to bring the world closer to the Gods’ will?]

“…”

Renee couldn’t answer.

Shamefully, Renee had questioned why she had been given the stigma, but had never thought about why it existed, as Annalise said.

The same was true for everyone else.

There were three other stigmas here beside Renee, but neither Vera, the twins, nor Jenny could answer that question.

Annalise spoke again.

[This is why I hate you. I hate that the hope of saving this land are fools who can’t question things they should have doubts about.]

Annalise vented what could be described as irritation and anger, and Vera reacted sharply to it.

“…Enough with the idle talk and get to the point.”

Annalise snorted at Vera’s attitude and continued her words.

[Fine, first… I think it’s better to start it from here.]

Then she asked.

[Who do you think built this land?]

“The Gods…”

[Then who created civilization? Who developed technology?]

“…”

[Next, who was there in the primitive era? What was first created on this land?]

“…The Ancient Species.”

[That’s right.]

Affirming the words that came out unconsciously, Annalise continued to speak as she looked around at the group sitting around her.

[There were Ancient Species. After they built this land, the Gods created them first and gave them the role of managing the land.]

There was an undeniable longing and something that seemed akin to madness in Annalise’s voice as she spoke.

[The first to be created was Ardain. They shaped the greatest soul that will be with this land from beginning to end. By amalgamating the power of all the Gods, they created a being closest to omnipotence. Next, they created the other Ancient Species that would support Ardain.]

Immediately after that, Annalise burst out laughing and asked a question.

[Doesn’t this structure feel familiar to you?]

It was Miller who responded.

“…Apostles.”

It was a new theory that began to emerge in academia. The reason for the existence of Ancient Species and their roles.

“The Ancient Species are said to be the first Apostles…”

[You know quite a bit for a sorcerer.]

It was such a blatant display of emotion that, despite being in a doll form, everyone could tell Annalise was smiling deeply now.

[They’re not exactly the same as the current apostles. They should be considered failed works, so to speak. The Ancient Species were created in a rather haphazard way, with the Power of the Gods being distributed unevenly among them, rather than being fully and precisely divided.]

“…The prototype of the Apostles. Is that what you’re saying?”

[Yes. Well, I also don’t know what the Gods intended… But anyway, they made the Ancient Species in such forms, and then they completely became observers. That was the problem.]

“Problem?”

[Yes, the Ancient Species that should be in the position of administrators learned emotions and greed. Alaysia in particular was a problem.]

Annalise’s voice sharpened. It was a tone full of anger, as if she was annoyed just at the thought of it.

[That bitch learned to irrationally obsess over Ardain. The words she keeps saying nonstop are crazy things like ‘I will become one with Aru’, so is there more to explain?]

It was anger she could vent, since she was the one who had actually received Alaysia’s serum and had been involved with her.

[What happened in the primitive era… I don’t know very well, either. Well, was I even alive at that time to have seen those things? What is certain, however, is that Alaysia’s damned obsession caused an incident, and Ardain suffered a near-extinction blow while trying to prevent it. If I had to guess, I’d say it happened when she was trying to do that damn thing to become one with Ardain.]

While listening to the story, Vera found something that didn’t quite fit and asked with a frown.

“Is extinction possible? The Ancient Species are immortal…”

[That’s why I said ‘near-extinction blow,’ not just extinction. Yeah, the Ancient Species don’t die, but that doesn’t mean they’re invulnerable to any kind of harm.]

At that moment, Vera and Renee thought of an incident from the past due to Annalise’s words.

It was none other than Aedrin.

The Mother of Elves who created a new body every thousand years.

If they hadn’t intervened, she would have eventually withered away.

‘…That’s a near-extinction blow.’

Renee swallowed dryly.

Even if they weren’t dead, it was obvious that they wouldn’t be able to return to their original state after taking that much damage.

In Aedrin’s case, she would have to spend eternal life trapped in a tree that had already dried up.

As Renee continued to think, she suddenly felt a question arise in her mind.

“Wait, but how does he, in the future…?”

He resurrected. Furthermore, why would he try to destroy the continent when he resurrected?

It was a question asked without the following words, but Annalise grasped the meaning in the midst of it and answered as if it was no big deal.

[Because only his body was resurrected.]

“…What?”

[The one that will ruin the continent is Ardain’s shell. It’s a given. Ardain’s soul has already been torn apart and cannot be regenerated. Even if he escapes extinction, that doesn’t mean he can be resurrected.]

Realizing that it was time to bring this long story to a close, Annalise said.

[Now, you definitely understand what kind of existence Ardain is, right? He’s an Ancient Species bestowed with the ‘Power of all Gods’. The Ancient Species that suffered a ‘near-extinction blow’ to stop Alaysia.]

After pointing out the two facts, Annalise asked.

[Who established the Holy Kingdom?]

Renee replied nonchalantly.

“The first Apostle…”

Then, she realized.

“…!”

Annalise giggled.

[Right, it’s the first Apostle. That’s Ardain. When Ardain realized he could no longer stop Alaysia, he created Elia to prepare for the future. The concept of ‘Divinity’ is created by using all the Powers that made him.]

[In order to retain the power that no creature on this land should have been able to handle, the Gods created a new species capable of handling it, so that they could give it without creating another creature.]

[That’s you guys. With nothing much to offer, a bunch of fools who passed the qualification just by being born with a blessed body. A dagger forged by Ardain to stop Alaysia.]

***

Silence fell over the room.

Vera’s expression hardened, and his thoughts expanded as he ruminated over what he had heard.

Not all the questions were answered, but at least he had a grasp on why this was happening and what was causing it.

This was a disaster that Alaysia would cause.

Now he certainly knew what he was up against.

After realizing that, Vera asked Annalise.

“…Do you know what causes the other Ancient Species to go on a rampage?”

He needed an answer to the part that remained unanswered.

[It was that bitch playing tricks. I don’t know the details… But she has a unique talent to control minds.]

“…It works on the same Ancient Species?”

[Not for all Ancient Species. Even in the future you saw, weren’t some of them sane?]

Vera replaced his affirmation with silence and then asked another question.

“So, you have to tell us now. What method did you come up with to stop the Ancient Species?”

There was deep hostility in Vera’s voice as he asked the question.

Of course, it was because the method she came up with was to sacrifice Renee.

Annalise sighed at Vera’s attitude and replied.

[…To artificially create a soul comparable to Ardain’s. I meant to artificially create a soul that will be put into the body of Ardain, who will be resurrected by Alaysia. And then command that soul to destroy Alaysia, not the continent.]

As it was now a method that could no longer be used, Annalise’s expression was full of annoyance.

[It wasn’t impossible. A temporary vessel for the soul could be made by imitating the body of the Ancient Species, and there already existed someone with a soul that could be placed within it.]

Vera clenched his fists tightly.

His eyes glared furiously to Annalise.

“…That soul is the Saint. Is that what you mean?”

Renee’s body flinched. She had already heard about it from Vera, so she wasn’t too shocked.

Annalise snorted and replied.

[Yes. The soul of the Saint and the power engraved in her soul. I wanted to take advantage of that since it’s the soul most similar to Ardain. Well, looking at it, this wasn’t going to work either. I don’t think such a foul-tempered bitch would be willing to give up her life.]

At the sarcastic remark directed at her, Renee bit her lip and replied.

“…No. I could’ve given it away. If you did it the right way, that is.”

[What can’t you do with words?]

Another round of sarcastic remarks.

Renee felt her anger rise at that and fired at Annalise.

“I heard your story well. But in the end, the only way you could think of, after all the talk about the great cause or whatever, was to sacrifice others, right? Is that really a great cause? From my point of view, you’re just a villain who sacrificed the wrong people because you were afraid to die. You are a coward who hurts others but doesn’t want to be hurt.”

It wasn’t anger at having criticized her.

She was furious that the solution Annalise had so brazenly rationalized was ultimately based on the sacrifice of others, and that she would never admit it was wrong.

After many incidents and meeting many people, Renee realized that the world wasn’t all romantic, but there were still values in her that hadn’t changed.

“You can’t say it’s for a great cause if it’s built by sacrificing those who don’t want it.”

[Stupid bitch, it’s a way to protect more things.]

“That’s an excuse. You just ran away. You’ve gotten so caught up in the illusion that you’re the only one who’s great, and that if you can’t do it, then no one else can. You just closed your eyes to the truth. You’re just struggling to find a way to save yourself.”

The moment when Annalise was about to retort with great anger to her assertion…

“Bad kid.”

Slap!

Jenny slapped the doll’s forehead.

[Euugh…!]

A stifled groan escaped from Annalise.

Realizing that Jenny was trying to help, Renee reached out, stroked Jenny’s hand, and continued.

“If I were you… I would never make such a decision and move like that on my own. I would have asked others for help and thought about it together.”

What followed were words of sympathy for Annalise, as if to pity her.

“I feel sorry for you. There’s nothing more pitiful than being trapped in your pride and not being able to see the world around you.”

As soon as she had finished her words, Renee stood up and the others followed suit.

“We’ll leave now. Get some rest.”

Renee left the room.

The group left one by one. Vera, the last to leave, stared at the doll and thought.

‘…She doesn’t know everything.’

The part about the origin of the Holy Kingdom and the divinity was pretty credible given Miller’s reaction and what Vera himself knew, but the rest was not.

First of all, she knew little about Orgus’ intervention and his purpose.

Moreover, the claims about the purpose of Alaysia were weak. If Alaysia’s purpose were simply to resurrect Ardain’s body and destroy the continent, then the Renee from the previous lapse wouldn’t have used such extreme methods.

To put it a little harshly, the past Renee was the kind of person who would have burned her own soul to finish off Alaysia.

‘She is just a senile old woman, after all.’

Realizing that there were pieces Annalise was forcibly putting together while absorbed in her own guesses, Vera snorted and walked out of the room.