Chapter 53: The Concept-Erasure Domain, Alnima — Part 2

The KOTATSU was talking.

Of course, it was actually the being inside it who was speaking. But apparently, they'd burrowed so far inside that all I could see was a kotatsu talking.

"People aren't supposed to be able to enter this place in the first place..."

Exactly. The reaction of “I—” from earlier had made that abundantly clear.

Common sense, values, memories... Everything of that sort was incompatible with this space. A world where every “concept” had vanished was enough to drive a human insane just by being perceived.

On top of that, my body belonged to a spirit, and Little Star had been doing everything in their power to help me. That's probably why all I suffered was nausea.

For now, “I—” had fallen completely silent to recover. ...Come to think of it, this might be the first time since my memories returned and we became one trinity that the “human” had gone on mute.

"...Hmm? Wait, I thought your presence felt strange. You're not human, are you? But you're not quite a spirit, either?"

There were only a very limited number of ways to function properly in this space. And every one of them was so absurd that it could practically be dismissed as a purely theoretical proposition.

But there was one method. Something ordinary living creatures couldn't do, yet conceptual spirits could manage with ease—or, rather, do automatically without even thinking about it.

That method was to continuously observe oneself as a firmly established “concept.”

In a space where all concepts had vanished—and continued to vanish—you simply had to maintain a clear awareness of yourself as “this kind of being.”

That was all there was to it, at least in theory.

But ordinary life-forms couldn't do such a thing.

Because humans are creatures who live by thinking about all sorts of things.

Take a top-tier athlete, for example. They might seem to devote themselves to just one thing, but they still live their lives thinking about food, sleep, hobbies, relationships, health, money... The list of other things they have to consider goes on and on.

It's not that any of that is bad. It's simply how humans live, because that's the kind of creatures they are.

And that's why humans can almost certainly never become conceptual spirits.

...At least, “almost” certainly.

...Whoops. Now wasn't the time to be thinking about all that.

I needed to focus on my conversation with this “former spirit.”

With “I—” out of commission, “I—” had to hold things together.

"Human? Spirit? Or something else entirely? ...No good. I can't figure out what you are. That black robe of yours must be quite something. I can't see through it, even though I'm a former spirit myself."

I took another look at the kotatsu, which was muttering something to itself.

The being inside peeked at me through a small gap in the slightly lifted blanket.

It must have been difficult to see me clearly, but they seemed absolutely determined not to come out.

Well, whatever. Let's get straight to the point.

"—I'll be direct. Lend me your strength in fulfilling my mission, former spirit."

"Refused. I'm not doing anything anymore. I don't care if the world is in danger. Just hurry up and leave."

He knew about the World Eater... Or, rather, he was probably referring to the other crisis.

The evil that threatened another world. The “Wicked King” who had stolen his mission as a spirit.

...And yet, if he was a spirit—if he'd once been a spirit—then after learning the Wicked King's goals and methods, shouldn't he have resisted as a spirit?

I'd known this was how things stood, but seeing it firsthand still made me feel...

"Sigh. So this is what becomes of a spirit who has lost their mission... No, had it stolen from them. As a fellow being who lives for a mission, I find it truly heartbreaking."

He had originally been the conceptual spirit of “winter.” His name was simply Winter.

Besides their individual martial techniques and skills, a conceptual spirit's strength was also affected by the power of the concept they embodied. Since “winter” was a concept recognized by countless life-forms, he had apparently been an exceptionally powerful spirit.

"Easy for an outsider to say. Do you even understand what it means for us spirits to have our missions stolen?"

But he'd lost what was practically the very essence of a conceptual spirit: his mission, his “concept.”

The Wicked King had taken away his reason for existing, leaving him unable to find meaning in life. And yet, his spirit body wouldn't even allow him the mercy of withering away, so he continued to spend his days doing absolutely nothing.

In short, he was an unemployed, kotatsu-dwelling shut-in NEET spirit.

"I. Un. Der. Stand. I, too, was once told by my very own mission that I was unnecessary. In fact, I'm still dragging around a mission that's unnecessary even now."

And this situation wasn't someone else's problem for me.

I'd also been told that my mission—to “return Harukawa Kizuna to Earth”—was unnecessary by Kizuna-kun himself.

I understood. I sympathized.

If I'd taken just one wrong step, if even one little thing had gone differently, I surely would have ended up just like him.

...No. Perhaps I might have become something even more wicked.

"...I don't know what you are, but don't lump some random, insignificant thing together with a spirit's mission."

What an irritating way to put it.

But calm down. He didn't know I was a spirit. If he didn't know, then I could at least understand why he'd say something like that.

This was precisely when role-playing mattered. Role-playing solves everything. Long live role-playing!

There's a good chance this conversation will be depicted in the game, too. It was still too early to give him any certainty that I was a spirit. For now, I had to leave him with no more than the suspicion that I might be one.

That was “I—”'s plan, after all.

"How should I describe that feeling?"

...Actually, I'm completely on my own right now. I'm the only one coming up with the lines. One hundred percent improvised, straight from the source.

Well, it'll be fine. “I—” and “I—” are ultimately the same being. There's no reason I can't do what he can.

I'll make him eat his words when he hears about my flawless role-playing later.

...Oh, but making him regret underestimating me isn't the only appealing option. Getting him to praise me would be nice, too.

For example, something like: “Not bad, spirit. I guess Tierra As really wouldn't work without you,” or “Well done, spirit.『 I』 have underestimated you.”

...That's so good. It's perfect. I'll make him praise me to the skies!

"It's as though everything about you has been denied. As though the entire world has left you behind... A feeling like that."

"...Hmm."

"As though the ground suddenly crumbles beneath your feet, swallowing you into an unfathomable darkness. You start to feel as if nothing you've done up to now—or anything you'll ever do in the future—has any meaning at all."

"...You... I see. So you've experienced it, too."

At this point, all I had to do was put the feelings I'd experienced back then into words.

Only a spirit who'd been through the same circumstances would truly understand. “I—” and『 I』 probably couldn't comprehend it. It was a feeling unique to spirits.

But that was precisely why he—the former spirit—should understand.

"If that's the case, then it's even stranger. Why can you remain so calm? Judging from our conversation, you're still devoting yourself to your mission, aren't you? How...?"

Right. It was only natural for him to wonder.

He and I were both conceptual spirits, both betrayed by our missions.

But there was one clear difference between us.

"Because I wasn't alone."

I had this trinity of a body.

"The beings, the wills, dwelling inside me supported me."

"What... are they?"

The two souls dwelling within this body.

And in particular, the “human” who was the origin of everything—

"They don't encourage me or anything. They're not that kind. But I wasn't alone. That alone saved me so much."

He and I came from the same origin. And yet, we were completely different.

What created that difference was surely the story he'd woven with the people he wished to reunite with, in the place he longed to return to.

"Humans are such mysterious creatures, aren't they? They're born without any mission. They're thrown out into the world with nothing but their own bodies."

Humans are free.

They can choose for themselves whether to find a mate or not, whether to have children or not. They're not ruled by instinct.

We spirits are different. We're born with a mission, live solely for that mission, and die once we've completed it. From a human perspective, we spend a long lifetime accomplishing one single purpose. We fulfill the concept we've been given and bring it to completion.

"And yet, sometimes they create or accomplish something so extraordinary that it surpasses even spirits who live for a single mission. They truly change the world. That's what humans can do."

That's right.

For example, a tiny human managed to move the will of an entire planet.

"I'm sure that's the potential of humans... No. I'm sure it's the potential of life itself."

"...What are you trying to say? Don't tell me you're going to tell me, a spirit born with a mission, to live like a human now that my mission is gone. That's like telling a beast to live like a fish."

Well, yes. That's true.

Spirits and humans are completely different kinds of beings.

But—

"That's not what I'm saying. ...Spirits are living beings, too. Beings who have been granted life. If that's the case, then for as long as we live, we should keep exploring the possibilities that life holds."

—Both are living beings, with souls and bodies.

And that's why I'm sure we spirits can change, too.

I'm still on that journey myself.

"You don't have to become human. You don't have to imitate them, either. You only need to surpass what it means to be a spirit while remaining a spirit."

"Surpass what it means to be a spirit while remaining a spirit..."

"The mission originally implanted in me withered once... Well, actually, it snapped. Completely in half, right at the root. But then it sprouted again, stronger than ever before. And so—"

My mission to bring him back had changed shape a little.

I'd gained a way to help him on his journey to save the world. The long-cherished wish to save my little sister had become part of it, too.

And I had someone walking alongside me.

And so—

"—My mission now is far stronger and more beautiful than it was before."