Chapter 14 - Oath

“Sister Yua...”

“Come, Camellia.”

As I smiled gently and reached out my hand, my beloved little sister approached me in tears and clung to it.

“Sister... Sister!”

“Camellia…”

My memories had fully returned. I gathered the sorrow and despair from babies around the world and turned them into divine power. Yet even then, it was less than one-tenth of my former strength.

The defeat 300 years ago still haunted me.

Even after becoming a god,” I couldn’t erase the curse.

My soul, expanded by 3,000 years of memories, had obtained the ability to manipulate the time of matter through the Eye of Truth, which sees both past and future. Thus I became the Time God.

Even with that power, I could only extend my life slightly. In the end, I couldn't overcome the curse.

As long as the four original great gods who cursed me—and the three of them who still remain as the current Five Gods—exist, my curse will never be broken.

Still, I won’t give up. Just to live normally, and die normally.

“Let’s go.”

“...Yes!”

As I walked deeper into the cavern, Camellia followed cheerfully.

Two men stood there, but when we passed them, their faces pale and frozen, one of them collapsed to his knees.

Let’s go... To the other god that dwells in this land.

***

The Time God who descended upon this land vanished into the depths of the cavern with another girl, paying no mind to the humans present.

As the divine pressure of the Time God faded, Nicholas finally exhaled and wiped his cold sweat with a pale face.

(Is that... what a real god is like?)

Even as a theologian, he couldn’t feel grateful for having encountered a god. He was simply relieved that he was still alive.

That the Black-Haired Girl, who had revealed the secrets of the gods, was the same as the Time God, one of the former Six Gods, felt like a cruel joke.

No... Perhaps it was because she learned the truth about the gods that she was able to become one. If so, then maybe the holy text left by the Black-Haired Girl was true.

The Time God Tartaiyua.

A newly emerged deity who appeared a thousand years ago, yet rose to become one of the exalted Six Great Gods.

Born from the wishes of people who could not accept the death of their loved ones, she is the only god among them who governs resurrection, and a Great God who possesses the physical form of a human.

Despite being one of the Six Great Gods, she led the evil gods in rebellion and waged war against the other five. She was believed to have vanished from this world three hundred years ago.

Even Nicholas, who prides himself on defying common sense, had no intention of involving himself any further with that God of Time.

The moment he became aware of her presence, the small-framed girl seemed to tower like a primordial giant, too overwhelming to even look at directly. Even now, the memory makes his legs tremble.

The only reason Nicholas still lives is nothing more than a result of the god’s whim.

Not only that, the legendary “monster”, who killed people like insects, was following her.

This is no longer a realm where mortal humans can meddle.

“...Murasame, I’m leaving.”

“...”

Nicholas spoke out of some remaining sense of duty to the stunned Murasame, but didn’t wait for a reply. He quickly headed toward the exit.

“...”

Murasame couldn’t accept reality.

Realizing that the Black-Haired Girl was the very root of Camellia’s warped life, he had spent thirty years researching the divine curses, waiting here, where she was most likely to appear.

Where she appeared, Camellia would always be.

If the Black-Haired Girl could just be destroyed, Camellia would be freed from her cursed life.

He had believed that and lived by it, but now, that belief was shattered by a cruel truth.

“...No, not yet.”

Murasame lifted his bloodshot eyes.

“If I can awaken this land’s god... Even if it runs amok... Even if the nation is destroyed... If it can kill her, then Camellia will be—!”

—Princess Tsubakiri is coming—

At that moment, he thought he heard a young Priestess’ voice.

A poor child, born for Murasame’s plan, imprisoned underground since birth, allowed to live only to hear the voice of the gods.

It was Murasame who had warped and ruined her life.

“...”

Lifting his face in guilt, the last thing Murasame saw were silver eyes and the jagged teeth of a saw made of iron.

***

When I returned after finishing my “final errand,” Nanohana, Sister Yua, turned back slightly.

“Welcome back, Camellia. Or do you prefer ‘Tsubaki’ here?”

“...Either is fine.”

We, the people of Faecyl, took on names in the language of the lands we scattered to after losing our homeland.

But I was just so happy to be with Sister again that I called her “Sister” like in the old days. And I was happy to be called as I once was.

It embarrassed me to say that directly, so I pouted slightly. Sister smiled mischievously and hugged me tightly.

“You’re so cute, Camellia!”

“S-Sister!?”

I was taller than her now, so when she hugged me, we had a little too much contact, and my face flushed.

Even in my memories, she’d never clung to me like this. Flustered, I looked at her, and she tilted her head curiously.

“...Could it be your memory isn’t completely back yet?”

“Huh?”

As I gave a dumb-sounding response, she pulled away and grinned.

“This is the real me. I was just putting on airs when I was acting like a princess.”

“Eeeeh?!”

She was no longer the graceful Sister I had first met, but rather the same “Hana-chan” from just a few days ago—that seemed to be her true personality.

I had thought my memories had completely returned, but it now felt like pieces of them were starting to slip away again.

Seeing me like this, Sister Yua’s face suddenly twisted, as though she were about to cry.

“...I’m sorry. Not only did I throw your life into chaos, but I even passed on the effects of my curse to you.”

“Sister…”

Simply by staying by Sister’s side, I had gradually come under the influence of her curse, and now I kept being reborn, not as Faecyl, but as the same being called “Tsubaki.”

But this unnatural curse, unlike Sister Yua’s, didn’t allow me to retain my memories perfectly each time. And yet...

“Sister, you are wrong. This is what I wished for.”

I said it clearly, wrapping both of my hands around Sister’s.

Come to think of it, whenever I met Sister, it was often when she was on the verge of death, so maybe I’d never had the chance to tell her this so plainly before.

Fifteen hundred years ago, back then, I was saved by Sister. Not because she picked me up, but because every ounce of love she gave me since then was my salvation.

That’s why I have no regrets. Saving Sister is everything to me. If she doesn’t exist, then this world itself has no meaning.

Even if... even if the cause of everything back then truly was Sister.

“I’m here by your side because I want to be. So... so please, don’t abandon me…”

I clung to Sister’s hands as tears spilled from my eyes. I’ve always been a crybaby in front of her. Only in front of her can I be my true self.

“Camellia…”

Sister gently embraced me again... and her thin body trembled just slightly.

“I was afraid to drag you into this. I didn’t want you to get hurt because of me. But still, you kept chasing after me to save me... If that’s the case—”

Her arms around me tightened.

“Will you stay with me, forever?”

“Yes!”

I answered Sister's invitation without hesitation.

This was a vow. After fifteen hundred years of chasing after her, I had finally reached the point where I could walk at her side.

Of the Four Great Gods who had cursed Sister, one—the former Sun God—had all of their temples destroyed by the people incited by Sister, and was ultimately reduced to three separate evil gods.

Through the war three hundred years ago, in which my “elder brothers and sisters” and I had fought, the teachings of the Wolf God had been so distorted that their power was severely weakened.

I will fight—together with Sister.

As I gave my answer without hesitation, Sister smiled shyly.

“Thank you...”

“O-of course…”

Just like a few days ago, we smiled together—

“Kuh…”

“Sister!”

Suddenly, Sister Yua doubled over in a coughing fit. I rushed to support her, only to see her hand pressed to her lips, smeared completely with blood.

“S-Sister…”

“...Kuh… It looks like I don’t have much time left.”

It was the curse of the gods. It interfered with all phenomena and aimed to bring onee-sama the most painful death imaginable.

Because of it, Sister would die before reaching adulthood. Now that she had become a god, she could force her body to keep moving using Divine Power, but while that Power could heal her body, it could not restore the Life of this current incarnation.

She was smiling as if to ease my worry, but just breathing must be agonizing for her.

“Let’s go, Tsubaki. …We can’t leave that alone.”

“...Yes.”

Supporting Sister, I continued deeper into the cavern.

She had called me “Tsubaki,” not “Camellia.” No longer just a little “sister” to be protected, I was now called by name as a sister who walks alongside her. And so, I would not allow my steps to falter. I would walk beside her.

“…That god is afraid.”

As we walked, Sister began to speak.

“Born from the desire of the people of this city… forcibly awakened by humans… and now terrified of me, the god who came to stop it.”

“...I see.”

The god residing in this land is still like a newborn, barely even born.

That’s why it feared Sister. That’s why, despite being a god itself, it was influenced by the curses of the Great Gods and tried to eliminate Sister, whose memories had yet to return.

“...There it is.”

“That is…”

A pillar of light rose from deep within the great hollow. That is the god of this city.

"――――――――――――――"

A scream rang out in terror, and the great cavern shook like an earthquake.

“I’m sorry… I don’t hold a grudge against you, but I can’t allow your power to be used by humans.”

Sister’s voice, filled with unwavering resolve, echoed through the dark cave.

“Humans… must never be brought back to life. And humans can never truly be resurrected.”

That god’s power was the same as Sister’s—the power of resurrection granted by the God of Time.

But I knew the truth. While this god seemed only capable of reviving the body, Sister’s resurrection restored even memories, allowing the revived to live seemingly normal lives.

Yet… it was still a false life.

Their laughter, their tears—these were merely reflexes dictated by memory. Their hearts never changed. They couldn’t change, couldn’t grow.

They had no true heart—no soul. They were nothing more than puppets moved by memory.

Even so… people still sought salvation from the God of Time. They prayed for the miracle of resurrection, simply wishing for their loved ones to remain by their side.

But behind that wish lay countless tragedies. The eternally unchanging resurrected could never live alongside the living, whose hearts continued to grow and change. In the end, many people, driven mad, killed the very ones they had once longed to revive.

That was why Sister disappeared three hundred years ago. She made it seem like she had vanished from existence.

“Eye of Truth.”

"――――――――――"

Sister manifested her divine power. The god of this land screamed in agony.

“My Eyes unveils even the truths of gods. They cursed me to erase my very soul because I alone... am capable of killing a god.”

What was Sister seeing now? Most likely, she was seeing through the god’s very composition, the collective desires of this city… no, this entire nation.

The power brokers in politics and finance, the global money traders, those drawn to this city for their own ends—Sister saw through them all. Her Crimson Butterflies would now eliminate them in one coordinated purge.

That was the one and only way to destroy a god.

"――――――――――…………"

Ah… I could hear the god’s death throes. Another god had disappeared from this world.

“Sister…”

“Yes?”

The masterless cavern began trembling again, more subtly this time. This vast hollow must have expanded and sustained itself in proportion to the god’s growing power.

“Kuh…”

“Sister!”

I rushed to her side and helped her sit down.

Her body could no longer hold out. If she had refrained from using her divine power, she might have lived a little longer. But Sister couldn’t allow that god to remain unchecked.

Was this… also part of the curse?

Without making a sound, I wept. As my silent tears fell, onee-sama gently brushed them away with her fingers and spoke to someone in the shadows.

“You can come out now.”

“Yes.”

The one who emerged at her call was Akino-nii-san.

As I saw the familiar black-and-white butterflies fluttering beside him, I realized his true identity.

“Akino-san… is that child doing well?”

“Yes. Mikoto-sama is always worried for you both…”

“That child hasn’t changed, has he?”

“So… Brother…”

Fifteen hundred years ago, it wasn’t just me whose fate changed. The four siblings back then—including my twin brother and sister a—had their destinies twisted as well.

The second eldest sister, unable to bear the grief of Sister Yua’s death, still wanders the world to this day, mad with sorrow.

And Brother Mikoto, cursing the gods and fate that had tormented Sister, became a god himself. As the God of Chaos, he has thrown the world into disorder to erode the power of the other gods.

“So the Fukami family… they’ve been serving Mikoto too?”

“Yes. Our family, along with related branches around the world, have always been your loyal retainers since fifteen hundred years ago. Even Lady Tsubaki was once protected by her grandfather, a member of our lineage.”

“That old man was quite capable… just like 'that person'.”

Sister closed her eyes, nostalgic for the distant past.

“Akino-nii-san. You should evacuate soon. If you go now, you might still make it out.”

”Tsubaki…”

Unlike me, a servant of the God of Blades, whose only role is to fight, Akino-nii-san, as a follower of the God of Chaos, might still be able to survive this.

But he shook his head gently and knelt before Sister and me.

“As a member of the Fukami family, I will remain by your side until the end.”

An attendant on the path to the underworld…

But if he can live, I want him to. Because… he was once my family.

“…Akino-niisan. I saw a little girl down in this underground space. Please… save her.”

“Yes. Akino-san, please, from me as well.”

“…As you wish.”

With a deep bow, Akino-niisan vanished into the darkness, as if melting into shadow.

He had been protecting me all along… Thank you, Brother. Please, live.

The cave’s ceiling begins to collapse. Even Akino-niisan might only barely make it.

“Cough… Tsubaki, come here.”

“Yes… Sister Yua.”

In the crumbling cave, now just the two of us, I held Sister in my arms as tears welled in my eyes.

Her body is so cold now… How much pain must she be in? How much suffering?

“Sister… I’m sorry. Again… I couldn’t save you…”

“Tsubaki… thank you. Right now, I’m happy. Because you’re here.”

“Sister!”

The tears won’t stop… I failed again. I couldn’t save her again!

As I hugged Sister tightly, her weak hand gently stroked my back, as if to soothe me.

“Tsubaki… next time, I will survive.”

“Yes…!”

The cave’s collapse grew louder. A massive stone fell near us, drowning out Sister’s faint voice.

“Even if—”

***

That day, a localized earthquake centered around the Kanto region occurred. Major figures in the political and financial world died one after another.

Globally, prominent money traders died of heart attacks. Japan’s stock prices continued to fall—and thus began Japan’s “Lost Two Decades.”

***

I dream of the past.

A nostalgic… and sorrowful memory spanning fifteen hundred years.

Sister was betrayed by her fiancé, had her family murdered, and was burned alive.

When I found her, she was a sickly child in a filthy slum, dying after years of suffering.

Another time, she was captured as a slave by nobles, imprisoned for years. By the time I reached her, her body had been mutilated.

Again and again, I saw her die. And not once could I save her.

In a place called Arizona, when I arrived, researchers had captured the Black-Haired Girl and dissected her alive. All I could do was ease her pain as she died.

And even this time, without saving her, I died together with Elder sister by being crushed by a boulder and suffering.

And this time too—she wasn’t saved. She died with me, crushed by the stones, suffering.

And once again, a new cursed life begins…

***

A clear blue sky, bathed in gentle sunlight.

In the distance, tall buildings rose. The laughter of children could be heard.

In a park, vast like a forest, on an early summer afternoon, a breeze rustled the leaves—

And suddenly, she appeared in this world.

She hadn’t been hiding. She hadn’t fallen from the sky. She was simply born from the void, nothingness, and thrust into this world.

Wearing only a simple, natural-colored dress, barefoot, a girl of about four or five. Her faintly metallic black hair fluttered in the wind. Amber eyes quietly opened, reflecting the summer camellias blooming nearby in sepia tones—

“…Aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaahhhhhhhhhhhhhhh!!!!!!!”

A scream of pure anguish tore from the girl’s throat.

"Not again… I failed again."

What？

"I couldn’t save her… again."

Who？

The girl had nothing. Not even her a name.

Yet within her surged a furious anger, a bottomless hatred that could burn the world, and overwhelming sorrow. The child wept uncontrollably.

Mothers with toddlers distanced themselves, disturbed by the sight.

But one small girl in a kindergarten smock approached her.

“Hey, are you hurt?”

Smiling, she asked the weeping girl.

Shining black hair. Red eyes. A face of no clear nationality. When she spoke, the iron-haired girl suddenly stopped crying, startled.

“…Hic…”

“There, there—pain, pain, fly away~”

The black-haired girl lightly patted her head. The crying girl’s face crumpled, and like a normal child, she began to bawl.

“…Waaaahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh!”

Tears streamed down as she cried. The black-haired girl looked slightly troubled, then gently hugged her.

“It’s okay. Don’t be afraid. You’re not alone.”

“Waaahhhhhhh!”

As the iron-haired girl sobbed, the black-haired girl gently stroked her hair.

“I’m here with you.”

And the iron-haired girl thought:

I never want to lose this warmth again.

This time, I’ll save her. This time, I’ll survive. Even if—

“Next time, I will survive.”

A voice echoes in her memory,someone’s vow, overlapping with her own resolve.

“Even if I have to sacrifice the entire world to do it.”