Tosho Meikyuu:Volume1 Chapter6

◇◇◇261 Pages until Memory Loss

2nd tower, 4th floor of the Library Labyrinth. 14 levels counting from the surface, a vertical displacement of 80 meters. Your group has arrived at the level where the Atelier of Kai Okutsuki, the Doctor Magna, lies.

"…We’re here."

"Yes, Okutsuki-san. Let’s hurry through as quickly as possible without alerting anyone."

Erika whispers as you pass by the guardhouse next to the elevator station.

The elevator is an important exploration base, and thus a target for attacks by Labyrinth creatures (monsters) and hostile guilds. Therefore, the ‘Apothecary’ has organized a specialized squadrons to monitor and guard each level.

(Armed guards with grimoire and long staffs. Security sure is tight here…)

"If the enemies break through here, they can ride the elevator and head directly to the populated area (Library). This is a base where humanity will be endangered if monsters pass through, so heavy security is to be expected. With the power of this True Ancestor (I) now, it will take lots of bloodsucking to break through. Prudent it is to lie low."

"Shh! Since you know, don’t say such scary things!"

As all of you watching the guards out of the corner of your eye, you hastily flee the scene.

You escape the guards’ sight by passing through the elevator hall formed by crumbling a wall (bookshelf)—and you are already inside the Library Labyrinth, where darkness and monsters reign. This is a dark and gloomy cavern of endless reading rooms.

(…This is the second level of Library Labyrinth. The air density clearly feels different from the shallow levels of the ‘Library’…)

"Please be careful. This ‘Reading Room’ lying within the darkness is the real Library Labyrinth."

Erika mutters with a tense look as she pulls out a ‘storage book’ from the blademail on her left shoulder. She tears off a page with a sticky note on it that reads, ‘Carrying Equipment’, turns it upside down and shakes it. Clink! It rolls onto Erika's palm.

"A ‘storage book’…I see, so you tear a page off to retrieve something?"

"Yes. It may be a little too bright to a vampire’s eyes, but we need light to avoid being mistaken for a criminal of some sort. Please endure this."

Erika pulls out a matchstick from her pocket and lights the wick through the windshield of the cantera. The flickering flame of the portable lamp clearly etches the Labyrinth's shelves onto your vampirized retinas.

"Now then, let us go, Okutsuki-san. Please follow me."

"No, I’ll go first. If the scenario writer really has this level under surveillance, the vanguard will be most dangerous. I can’t let you stand here."

"Mu, given yesterday’s battle, your immortality is powerless against poison or instant death traps.I'll go ahead and lead you to Teacher's Atelier."

"Umu. Simply comparing combat strength, she surpasses yours. Gender aside, the one with the obligation to lead the way into the Labyrinth is the one who is familiar with the path."

Yes, certainly. Magic power doesn’t differ in terms of gender, so there is little distinction between male and female Labyrinth seekers. Therefore, when many are moving through the Labyrinth, the order is simply determined by ability.

Usually, the team leader is at the back of the pack, able to access the entire party’s situation, while the vice-leader most adept at magic and seeking enemies is to walk in front. Currently, the most suitable position is for Erika to lead the front, Arteria to cover the back, and you, the weakest, in the middle.

"I'm the tagalong of this group…?"

"In this Library Labyrinth, a difference in experience can mean a whole world of difference between life and death. Looking at the three here, surely you are the weakest."

"…I hate to agree with a vampire, but I’m more familiar with this level. After all, I had a magic duel against the scenario writer's assassin just two days ago.

"… Okay, Erika, please take the lead…."

Even with the immortality granted by the True Ancestor, you can't deal with dangerous traps and criminal ambushes without a logic wall.

Leave this task to Erika and hurry on to your Father's Atelier.

◇◇◇259 Pages until Memory Loss

The exploration party consisting of a murderer, a vampire and a half-human slowly progresses through the depths of the Labyrinth, keeping an eye out for traps and ambushes from Labyrinth creatures and magical criminals.

(…It’s unlike the ‘Library’ here. Everywhere looks almost the same…)

You look around, intimidated by the pitch darkness and the blind spots of the bookshelves. The Library Labyrinth's bookshelves are constantly creating grimoires, so no matter the direction you look at, there will always be similar scenes. Once you lose your sense of direction, it will be almost impossible to escape unscathed.

(We’re just encountering a few simple traps, probably because Erika’s choosing this for us. Feels like there’s a little beast smell coming from deep within the darkness…)

"…It is faint, but I can smell animal blood. Looks like this is a pathway for carnivorous beasts since there are few humans nearby."

"The paths were Labyrinth creatures walk have fewer death traps or predatory 'books', so they’re easier to walk. The creatures’ footprints can also be used as markers, and it’s easier to deal with monsters we can see.."

"… I see. So with some level of combat ability, magical beasts are still a safer option."

Yes, it is. Unlike mechanical traps that attack without any sign or murderous intent, or grimoires that distort reality, Labyrinth creatures (monsters) can be detected from afar, and they are enemies that can be defeated through physical attacks.

With magic on part with your Father’s, it may be safe to establish a base within the depths of the Labyrinth, far from from the criminals that hide in human society.

(… If I remember correctly, Father's Atelier is fortified with multiple barriers. As long as the magic key isn’t undone, that Atelier should remain the same as it was five years ago …!)

You recall the memory of when you were once taken by your Father to the Atelier.

Your Father's Atelier, fortified with multiple barriers, is the place where you lost your beloved kin five years ago, and also the place where you lost your magic, your memories, and your dreams, and where you vowed to get them back.

Perhaps in that Atelier, there is a grimoire to assist your search, a 'book' that can heal your memory loss, and a clue that will reveal the enemy’s identity and lead you to the truth.

"…Erika, how much further to Father's Atelier?"

"We’re almost there. Just a turn around this bookshelf’s trap…see, it’s there."

You follow Erika, and cautious slip by the deftly concealed bookshelf trap…the cantera’s light shines upon a large metal door at the far end of the Reading Room corridor.

Within the deepest depths of the darkness of the Library Labyrinth, at the end of the long, straight Reading Room, is a double door with runes inscribed upon it, standing there as though it had been abandoned by the passage of time.

"…That emblem…"

"Yes, it is the surface of the multiple barriers Teacher Okutsuki left behind, and the Magitzkveins are just the surface."

You follow Erika's lead, and a complex web of Mana trails, runes and Magitzkveins, indecipherable to all but Doctor Magna, emerge in the lamplight.

This is an outpost for the containing strong barriers and countless grimoires, meant for explorating the depths that have yet to be reached. This is the place where you mourned your father five years ago, and where your father may have left you a clue, a connection with the scenario writer.

That door leads to the old Atelier of the Doctor Magna, Kai Okutsuki.

" …We’re here."

Erika stops before the metal gate and doesn’t look back as she mutters quietly.

Empathizing with her sentiments, you answer with a similarly quiet voice,

"It’s been five years since that night…this Atelier has always been waiting for Father’s return."

"…Yes. According to the investigation documents of the ‘Apothecary’, nobody could break through this door. Only the bloodied son was sent back to the surface through teleportation magic, and when the ‘Apothecary’, sensing something was wrong, dispatched a rescue party…Teacher appeared to have died before this door."

"…If that’s the case, Father might have locked the door with his last strength…like maybe, to entrust a certain person with the 'counter against the scenario writer's conspiracy' hidden in this Atelier."

You mutter to yourself and reach for the talisman's gold chain tied around your neck. The crystal rolls upon your palm, and the and the silver-white Mana's radiance intensified.

"Okutsuki-san, is Teacher's talisman… the key to this barrier?"

"The inside and outside of this Atelier is covered with the Doctor Magna's magic magic constructs. Even the door is part of that magic, so it can only activate once it reacts to Father’s unique magic."

You walk up to the closed door, answering Erika, and tap the tip of your talisman onto the runes etched into the iron.

"The Magitzkveins properties differ according to the person, so our magic alone can’t open this magic door. The talisman's crystal though imitates the Magitzkveins on Father's nerves."

"If it mimics Teacher's nerves…then the magical power imbued in the talisman is …."

"Yeah. The Mana that flows through the circuit will be refined in a manner very similar to Father's magic. In other words—"

You gather your concentration upon your fingertips, and activate your Father's talisman.

For five years, the magic mechanism awaited its master’s return, and you imbue life within it again..

"I can let the magic lock mistake for Father’s return and unlock the system."

Vroom.

The runes, sensing Kai Okutsuki's magical power, gives a pale blue-violet glow.

A heavy bass noise instantly echoes, and the earth tremors as if a massive gear machine is running. A thick spiral axle start to sping somewhere, and slowly, the ten centimeters thick steel doors open.

"…It all started five years ago, October 16th, since I left this Library City Alexandria."

The magical mechanism remained froze in time since that tragic night, awaiting the return of its master.

"I’ve always wanted to return to this Atelier."

The door of the Atelier was opened to welcome you.

"… I'm back, Father."

The faint smell of mold and dust agitate your nostrils.

You hold your breath for a tad, enter the room, and light the lamp on the desk. The flame quickly steadies and illuminates the darkened room.

For five years the Atelier lost its master, and was seemingly forgotten as it remained in time. The desk is littered with papers, the bookshelves on the walls are stuffed with book spines, and there is the chair that used to be your assigned seat; everything appears the same as it did on October 16, five years ago.

"…I think I was here before. This Atelier was probably where I was taken into custody…"

Erika follows you into the Atelier and looks around the room as she mutters so. For her, who was once saved by your Father, this appears to be a memorable place.

"…It's as if time has stood still…"

"Yeah…the books on the shelves, the tea leaves in the cupboard, the documents on the desk, they all were the same as that night five years ago.

"…Teacher Okutsuki was in this Atelier five years ago…"

Erika looks up at the spines of the bookshelves and wobbles to her feet.

You grab Erika by the arm, and yank her back.

"Hayaa!? Wh-what are you doing out of a sudden!?"

"I know you’re sad, but pay attention to your feet…the color there is different."

"Eh? …Ah!? "

You and Erika look forward, and there, on the center of the Atelier, is a reddish-black area that varies slightly in color from its surroundings.

The elegant luster of the silk threads has been lost in that area, as though a dried corpse is there.

"…Is this reddish-black stain…?"

"…Yeah… bloodstain."

You let go of Erika's wrist and gently tap at the boundary border between crimson and iron red with your fingertip. After five years of oxidization, the hardened blood crunches and shatters into powder.

"Five years ago, Father was killed here."

"…!"

Your voice sounds low and cold, as though you are crushed by the gravity of despair. Erika is at a loss of words, and can only stare blankly at the stain on the floor.

"…Arteria, there’s something I want to ask of you."

"Fumu…you wish of I to extract out your father's memories from the blood left in this Atelier, no?"

Arteria says as she enters the Atelier, and looks down at the blood stain on the floor.

Your Father’s blood has seeped into the carpet, and the amount is fatal. With the power of the 'Silver Night' of this Library Labyrinth, the talent eater power, it might be possible to suck out Doctor Magna's knowledge.

If the description written in Erika's ‘Evernote’ is true, your Father may have discovered the true identity of the scenario writer. If so, the may be information relating to the scenario writer’s conspiracy preserved in his blood.

With the High Daylight Walker's ability to absorb information, perhaps you may be able to get closer to the truth of five years ago—

"…Mumumu. Apologies, this is impossible."

So you think, but Arteria's response is beyond expectation.

"I-Impossible…so you can’t do this unless it’s fresh blood? "

"Umu, it is absolutely not fresh enough. The memory information deteriorates rapidly the moment this blood leaves the brain. If so, why would a vampire deliberately approach its prey and gnaw at its neck?"

"Ah…I see. That makes sense…"

If sucking blood can net you blood memories, a vampire won’t be using its fangs, but with bow and arrow. After all, one simply has to wait for the wounded prey to escape before licking away the blood that’s left behind.

"That is why vampires must be immortal. If they forsake blood after being slashed by blades or burned by magic, they will starve to death."

"…Say, do vampires starve to death?"

"They will berserk from hunger."

"…B-Being unable to die sure is suffering…"

"This is why absorbing that is impossible. This prime of I aside, the abilities I have now are completely lacking. Even if I do wish to have blood perception through sucking, I do not have anyone to absorb it from."

"Blood perception…say, since I’m your kin, I too have blood perception, right?"

"…You do, but your abilities are not even a millionth of mine."

"I’m not hoping that a kin (I) can drain something even a True Ancestor (you) can’t. I’m just wondering if we suck each other’s blood, can we amplify our knowledge?"

So this is what you’re thinking:

(1) Suck Arteria's knowledge to greatly amplify your blood perception..

(2) Have Arteria suck back to double this blood perception.

(3) Repeat this process again and again to greatly amplify its power, and your blood perception should be strong enough to suck knowledge even from weathered blood—

"That is not possible either."

So you thought, but Arteria's answer remains affirmatively no.

"I-It can’t…I thought it might work in theory."

"The draining efficiency between you and I differ far too greatly. If I have to let you suck thousands of liters of blood for every drop I suck, even I, as a Nosferatu, shall be drained dried."

"…I thought we could just do lots of things by amplify our knowledge together…but yeah, I just became a vampire, and I don’t think my blood perception ability compares to you."

"Perhaps you may if you become a mature vampire, and if I am on the brink of death, no? About 200 million years."

Unfortunately, it seems that unless you are a matured kin of the True Ancestor, two ‘talent eaters’ trying to amplify each other’s power is almost impossible, especially when the True Ancestor has lost her power.

"…But it’s too early to be discouraged. Even if you can’t suck Father's memories, maybe there’s information hidden in this Atelier that Father left behind."

"Ye-yes. The ‘Apothecary's surveillance information shows that there is no sign of this magical door being opened or closed over the last five years. The inside of this Atelier should be almost the same as five years ago."

Erika pulled out her notebook from the binder, probably something she investigated on her own, and shows the contents. It appears there has been constant surveillance around this Atelier by the ‘Apothecary’, determined to protect the reputation of the guild after the assassination of the Doctor Magna.

"…But now the Atelier is safe no longer. Once the scenario writer discovers that the door can be opened through your Father’s talisman, he shall try to kill you. If this level is being watched, the assassin of the scenario writer is highly likely to appear.

"…Agreed. I’ve been attacked many times on this level."

"Umu…or perhaps the scenario writer is trying to force you to open this this Atelier door, little girl. By knowing how to open, the scenario writer may try to distort any evidence relating to the identity."

"I see…even if evidence is left in this Atelier, it can’t be erased if there’s no way to open the magic door. The scenario writer probably attacked Erika to get her to open the door."

"Certainly. An enemy capable of assassinating the Doctor Magna could never let a mere student escape."

"…A-Are you saying that the scenario writer was using me?"

If, as Arteria says, the scenario writer is trying to conceal the incident of five years ago, Erika, as your Father's disciple, should certainly be one of the most important people to be killed.

The fact that the scenario writer let Erika escape without killing her despite the opportunities to do so shows that Erika was allowed to live on purpose.

In that case, there has to be a certain intention to it.

"From this, there may be a way to identify the scenario writer. If not so, the scenario writer has no reason to interfere with you or Sōshi."

"…If all the evidence involving the scenario writer get destroy, it doesn’t matter as to how many people want to investigate the truth. On the other hand, this means that the enemy hasn’t destroyed all the evidence, right?"

"So the evidence relating to the scenario writer might still be in there somewhere…!?"

"Certainly. Now then, let us have a strategy meeting. This level may be monitored by the scenario writer, with the book collection of the Doctor Magna and an inpregnable fortress to block any attack. As long as this place remains secure, we shall be ready and able to repel the scenario writer's assassins."

"Then…I suggest that we search the Atelier. As the vampire says, this Atelier may have information relating to the scenario writer."

"Yeah. Maybe that information might be useful to protect ourselves from this scenario writer."

You scan the Atelier using the lamps’ lights.

Documents are still scattered all over the work desk. Heaps of books are piled up messily. The archive, isolated behind an inner door, would be a good place to preserve information.

"Now then, we’ll have to decide on who’s in charge of where…"

"You, we shall investigate the archives. Without magic, you have no chance of overcoming the scenario writer's conspiracy if you take the challenge head on. Expanding your ‘books’ collection is your top priority."

Yes, certainly. Your decision to visit the Atelier, at least as of yesterday noon, is to retrieve the necessary 'books' from your Father's collection.

For you, who have lost your magic, expanding the collection of ‘books’ is a necessity. Without reinforcing yourself with a force of strong books, there is no way for your to come up with strategies to fend off the scenario writer’s assassins.

"…And, lest you forget, you have only 248 pages left. Once you fall into the cage of oblivion, it will be forever impossible to recover the truth."

"…? You have only 248 pages of memory left…?"

"Ah…yea, I haven’t mentioned this to you, Erika."

Erika, completely unaware of your memory impairment, raises her eyebrows in doubt at Arteria's words.

"…Speaking of which, you haven’t told me as to the reason how you became a vampire. As the son of Teacher Okutsuki, how did you become something like a vampire..."

"What do you mean, something like a vampire. Anyway, it’s your fault that I became a vampire. You attacked me with stone spears, and Arteria had to turn me into a vampire."

"M-My fault!? B-But why are you acting together with the High Daylight Walker…?"

"…Well, I don’t really remember. Seems like I can only maintain eight hours of memory."

"E-Eight hours? Is it really okay that your memory only lasts for eight hours?

"It’s because of this issue that I’ve been using a ‘memory preservation book’…now there are only 247 pages left of that ‘book’. That’s why I thought Father's Atelier might have a book that can cure memory loss."

"…H-How’s that possible…O-Okutsuki-san, you should be looking for a 'book' (Me) right away!"

"Hmph. You do not have to inform him so. Little girl, we shall divide the work. Sōshi and I must find the ‘book’, but considering the battle against the scenario writer, we need information."

"I-I understand! I'll take responsibility for finding the information in this Atelier. Okutsuki-san, please find the ‘memory preservation book’ no matter what!"

"Y-Yes, I get that, so don’t poke at me with your horns, okay?"

Perhaps feeling guilty for your vampirization, Erika urges you to search the archives with a vigorous voice. Intimidated by her vigor (and the tips of her horns), you and Arteria step through the inner door of the Atelier to the inside.

"…Oh…so these archives is a little dusty after all…"

The dense smell of parchment and cupric sulfate (Atrament) arise as the door closes, stinging at your nose.

The gradually oxidized smell of melanterite ink gives off a rustic scent, emphasizing the five years that have passed. Countless bookshelves occupy the entire archive of still darkness, forming a fuzzy image on your vampire-induced retina.

"…Right, let's start exploring. I’ll get a light out from a ‘book’.."

You pull out a ‘storage book’ from your binder, find the page containing your backpack, and tear it.

"!! Wa-wa-wait, you! That ‘storage book’ is …!

"Eh? What wait—puggh!"

At that moment, the backpack flying out from the ‘book’ smashes hard into your face.

"Gyaaaaaaaaaah! My jawbone tickleesss!"

"…I was going to remind you, saying that there can be a lot of momentum created when withdrawing objects from the ‘storage book…"

"Grrrr…Arteria, it's too late…"

Perhaps as the overly massive backpack was stuffed into the ‘storage book’, the backpack falls heavily to the floor at an amazing speed, causing the room to tremble..

Your mandible has been shattered, and red mist emits from your mouth and nostril as you frisk for your cantera and set it alight. The archive that has tumbled over the bookshelves of the Labyrinth and connects to several Reading rooms are approximately thrice your height, creating a maze or sorts.

"…Phew. Thank goodness my jaw is healed…speaking of which, we need to find a ‘memory impairment cure book’ and ‘battle usable books’ amongst all these…?"

"Umu, now that your bones have finally healed, this shall be a different kind of bone breaking task."

Looking up at the shelves stuffed with books, you feel a little dizzy and murmur so.

This is a frontline base built as a base camp to go deeper, but this is the Doctor Magna's library after all. The number of books stored here is no less than several thousand at the very least.

"One, two, three…at least five thousand according to my rough calculation…even if we are to split and search, your memory will most likely deplete if we are to do this by ordinary means. Better to use the ‘books’ we have to draft ‘an We have to create an efficient way of finding books’."

"Then, before we look for the ‘books’, let’s check as to what books there are."

Yes. Without magic, your ability to search and fight depends almost entirely on the ‘books’. Whether it is to search for ‘books’, or to battle the scenario writer's assassin, it is essential to check the cards in your hand.

"Erm, ‘Origami paper" is not suitable for searching, and the 'books' returned by Erika are…"

"The ‘Tautologia Interrogation book’ and the ‘Mirror Copywriting paper’, I suppose?"

"Yes. These are the page and the grimoire that I brought from Japan."

You take out a 'book' and a page from the binder space.

A ‘book that forces others to answer’, the ‘Tautologia Interrogation book’, and,

A ‘book that allows you to duplicate books, the ‘Mirror copywriting paper’.

"Hmmm... … I doubt they can be used for searching, but perhaps they can counter the scenario writer?"

"…Maybe. Too bad, but I think these two are more for combat than exploration."

The ‘Tautologia Interrogation book’ is a book that ‘forces one to answer a question if the answer is yes’, a geass paper. By writing down the question on the page and chanting the Activate key, you can forcibly extract information from any opponent, whoever it is.

"…Until I gained the ability of blood perception, this ‘interrogation book’ has been my trump card against my enemies…"

"At this moment, it is faster to defeat the enemy and extract information. Though now the best way is to interrogate only for the information you need and fleeing to avoid fights."

"This strategy probably won’t work if the enemy is a scenario writer's assassin…"

"Umu…you may continue to interrogate and prevent chanting, but given the number of pages left, it may be difficult to use in battle."

"After all, there are only five pages left…"

‘Books that investigate the mind’, such as the Tautologia Interrogation book, are useful for commercial trading and crime investigations, so even replicas can be extremely pricey. To buy one in Japan, an island nation far away from Alexandria, all the more a considerable amount of coins is required.

The book your family spared no expense is merely a second hand ‘book’ once used by others, and only five pieces of paper are attached to its shabby spine.

"…And the 'copywriting paper' is useless to me now that I've lost my magic."

The ‘Mirror copywriting paper’ is a grimoire that can duplicate a page of another grimoire it comes in contact with only once, including its magical function.

In other words, with this page, you have a one time use to chant and execute the exalmatio ‘Bladeedge Storm Spear’, but…

(…Due to my traumatic memories, I’ve lost my ability to use magic. I can’t use chanting grimoires that requires Magitzkveins…)

"Hm…it appears you have no choice but to use ‘Last Prayer’ to search for the 'books' after all."

"…I guess. I don’t have much memory left, so I’ll just have to write an ability like a ‘grimoire appraising skill’ or sorts to appraise all the books one by one."

"No, I have another idea. Hopefully, this maybe reduce the memory usage to find the required ‘books’."

"Eh, you mean there's a way to do this without using memory tampering?"

"No, memory tampering is still required necessary, but this shall require fewer pages than having a grimoire appraising skill. First, to ascertain, did you enter this archive five years ago?"

"Y-yes, though I pretty much forgot…"

"If you have been in here once, in principle, this can work. Perhaps you can extract the ‘memory of the archives’ that lies dormant in your brain and allow for a more efficient search."

"’A-Archive memory’? Is this some kind of special memory tampering?"

"Umu, allow I show you exactly what I mean."

Arteria nods in response to your question and continues her explanation.

"For example…and you may have experienced so, but have you suddenly received of a memory long past, or suddenly unable to recall a memory you are very familiar with? Have you ever thought deeply about why?"

"Eh?…Hmmm, maybe it’s because my mind is so cluttered that I can’t figure out where the memory is, or something like that?"

"Umu. In fact, the human brain is divided into two parts, ‘the part that searches for memories’ and ‘the part that stores memories’. The former is concentrated in the temporal lobe, while the latter is spread throughout the neocortex."

"U…kuyuu, it feels like we’re talking about some really difficult stuff. Are these some technical knowledge from some obscure ‘neurology book’?"

"No, personal experience."

"Personal experience? Have you ever had a temporal lobe injury?

"Yes. Now back on point, the functions of memory storage and retrieval are separated in the brain. You have the necessary memory to be searched, but are unable to. Just like the books in the stacks."

"So there is…I see, so the books (memory) exist in the archive (brain), but I don’t know where the books are placed…"

You looked at the book spines lined up on the shelves and tried to visualize yourself.

A huge library with a huge number of journals, but without a book catalog to search from, you’re unable to use the massive library. Your brain, having forgotten something, may be of a similar state.

"Whether it is the nervous system or a library, a catalog is necessary to manage a large amount of information. In other words, your Father must have created ‘a book that contains book records’, an ‘index’."

"Ah…I-I see! If Father had prepared a catalog of his library, there is a good chance that I would have known where it was five years ago! If I can extract this from my memory through memory tampering…!"

Yes. By reconstructing the brain's inventory, you should be able to find clues to that archive index.

And such memory tampering hardly consume pages, unlike memory creation. By reconstructing the search function to awaken your memory, you will not require the creation of new scenes to obtain information, given that it merely involves forgetting or recalling information that you already knew of..

If you only wish to ‘remember’ something, the ‘Last Prayer’ can fulfill so with a few lines..

(…This memory tampering is only about 'remembering', so it’s pointless if I don’t know where the index is, or if it doesn’t exist…but if using up a few lines can trigger my forgotten memory, it's well worth a try …!!!)

You pull out the ‘Last Prayer’ (me) and a pencil, open the page, and begin to write.

"I remember where the archive index is, and found useful books by using it. "—15ℓ

As expected, the reconstructed search function correctly recalls your memory of five years ago—

You pull out an ‘index’ from the archives and begin your search for books.

◇◇◇239 Pages until Memory Loss

Eight hours have passed.

And before you know it, you recall that you have been looking for ‘books’.

"Huh!? T-Time just jumped again…!?"

The Memory Tampering must have automatically executed the archive search, resulting in you unwittingly having two ‘books’ in your hands.

First is the ‘Recycled paper for re-creating’, a ‘book’ that allows you to use a used ‘book’ once again.

The other is the ‘Still type, Hyper Express Envelopes, 500 pieces’, capable for sending five hundred envelopes of letters (with stamps).

"…Envelopes?"

You read the explanatory note that you yourself have supposedly written, and tilted your head in bewilderment.

It appears the ‘Recycled Paper for re-creating’—the book that allows you to reuse a book once’, can restore your memory capacity by creating a ‘Last Prayer’ with reduced pages. …

"…But even if these envelopes are stamped, are these express envelopes even usable in battle…?"

"Fumyu…these are the ‘books’ you chose, so surely there is a purpose."

A bored looking Arteria says so as she sits on a heap of books. After eight hours of assisting in the search for ‘books’, it appears even the strongest of the species appears fatigued.

"…W-Well, at least the ‘Recycled Paper for Re-creation’ seems usable…wait, thre are so few pages in this ‘book’! Just three pages left!"

You exclaimed in shock as you opened the unusually lightweight cover. You have assumed that with a ‘book to reuse a book’, you can duplicate a ‘Memory Preservation book’ to increase your memory capacity, but this ‘book merely has ‘three pages’ left.

With so few pages, even if I do duplicate 'Last Prayer' again, I’ll only have a few minutes left…! I thought Father would have a ‘Book to Cure Memory Loss’ or two…"

"Mmmm...If it can be used for other 'books', there probably is an infinite number of ways to do so…but this ‘Recycled Paper’ cannot solve your problem of memory loss."

"…And I'm not even sure what the 'Envelopes' can be used for anyway…"

These are the ‘books’ you found from the massive archive after using memory tampering to find the ‘Index’, so perhaps there is an effective way of using so…but how are you supposed to use the plain, unremarkable ‘Express Envelopes’?

"Hmm, perhaps it will be a useful ‘book’ after all? "

"…I do not think so, but it is worth a try."

While it is also vaguely described as ‘Time still’, as ‘envelopes’, surely this has to be a ‘book’ meant to send parcels to others..

You take out the relatively abundant remains of the ‘Origami paper set’, tear off a page, and slip in into the ‘Express Envelope’. Then, you write down the name of the recipient ‘Arteria’ on the addressee column, before sealing the envelop with wax (for sealing envelopes)—

"…Woah!?"

Poof! Wings grow from the envelope, fluttering on your palm. The ‘Express Envelope’ glides splendidly in the air, soars above Arteria's head, and opens with a pop.

"Fuwah!? S-Something was delivered to I!"

"…I see. So it automatically sends ‘Envelopes’…it’s a little surprising, but how’s this any different from crumpling the ‘Origami Paper’ and throwing it?"

You stare at the fluttering pages and mutter in dismay. This ability to automatically send envelopes is very convenient, but you still don't think it's useful in battle.

"U-Umm…perhaps this can be used if you do not know where the recipient is…"

"…If so, how far can this ‘envelope’ fly? If I write down ‘scenario writer's assassin’ and seal it…"

You take out the second envelope, write ‘scenario writer's assassin’, and seal it with wax. Naturally, or perhaps predictably, no wings appear on the envelope, and remains in your hand.

"… Well, there is no way we can find the scenario writer like this."

"Muu…a little puzzled am I. How did it identify the recipient earlier with just the name ‘Arteria’? What happens if there are many with the same name?"

"I-I don't know…but now that you mention it, it’s strange. Maybe there are others with the same name as you, so how does it identify the recipient?

"Mumumu…perhaps the ‘book’ can read the user’s memories or information? You and I know each other, but neither have met the scenario writer, no?"

"So you mean since ‘Envelope’ can find the recipient from my memory, I can just write ‘Arteria’ and it’ll be delivered? If so, doesn't that mean I can send it even if I short the name to 'silver'?"

You took out the third ‘envelope’, feeling somewhat sceptical, write ‘silver’ on it, and seal it. The ‘Envelope’ then sprouts pure white wings, flies above Arteria's head, and automatically opens.

"Eh, th-this is enough to get it delivered…?"

"…Hmmm, perhaps this is a rather useful 'book' after all. Since it has wings, it can track any enemy that tries to evade, and can be sent from behind cover. Even without knowing the name of the target, it appears it can be sent if the target can be identified through memory.

"…I see. So if we can use the ‘Origami Paper’ to create flames and pair it with a barrier, as long as it’s an enemy I met once, I can attack anywhere no matter where this enemy is…hmmm?"

Muttering this, you suddenly sense an inspiration deep within your mind.

This ‘Still Type Express Envelope’ can seek out the user’s memory to send out letters, even if the impression is hazy. This search function is so powerful, it can sen a letter to the ‘Silver Night’ Arteria Al Athanasia Almnasia Ausanasia of the Library Labyrinth’ even with only a single word.

Unfortunately, even that excellent searching ability is impotent since the ‘scenario writer's assassin’ does not exist in your memory, but…

"…Wait a minute. Hasn’t Erika met the ‘scenario writer's assassin’?"

There should exist the ‘scenario writer’s assassin’ in the memory of Erika in the office next door.

"!! That little girl must have met the scenario writer's assassin personally! Assuming this guess is correction, this ‘book’ locks into its recipient through the user’s memory!"

"Yeah! I can’t send it, but Erika may be able to activate it!"

You run out, shouting and kicking aside the piles of books towards the door. If the ‘Envelop’ can reach the scenario writer's assassin, you should even be able to deduce the location!

Kicking aside the ebony door, you wish to report to Erika of your findings.

"Erika!! Looks like I found something great! Maybe there’s a way to find the scenario writer's assassin..."

"—Execute, servant of the stone serpent."

Erika unleashes her magic, and a waterfall of stone spears strike you.

"Eh…woahh!"

The tentacles of stone entwine around your body, pinning you to the airspace of the Atelier. The door is slammed behind you, separating you from the High Daylight Walker. While you’re still unable to to comprehend what happened, Erika, inclined deep in her chair at her desk, speaks quietly to you.

"…Okutsuki-san, have you found the 'Book to Cure Memory Loss'?"

"Eh, ehh!? More importantly, I want to ask as to why you’re binding me like this…"

"…Given your response, I guess you haven’t found the ‘book’. Great, at least my eight hours of casting a spell to ‘overcome memory block’ isn’t wasted."

"Eh…what, o-overcoming memory block?"

You blurt out in surprise when you hear her suddenly mention there’s a way to clear your memory block.

Erika, who has been looking down at the countless documents on the table, slowly lift her eyes after hearing this, and stares at you adamantly.

"…Okutsuki-san. Are you not lying when you say you seek the truth of five years ago,?"

"E-Erika…?"

Within her ultramarine eyes reminiscent of the deep sea, you notice a rather dignified glint of determination.

It's as if a hidden truth is hidden in the depths of her gaze.

"…No way, Erika. Is there evidence in this Atelier related to the truth of five years ago…?"

You realize. It’s just a fleeting moment of memory, but while you were investigating the archives, Erika spent eight hours searching your Father's office.

Since the ‘Last Prayer’ has no mention of Erika during your search of the archive, it suggests that she has yet to discover anything that she should report to you—

Instead, she knew of a decisive truth, and frantically tried to corroborate it.

"…If yes, tell me now. I’m here to investigate the truth."

You have two hundred and thirty-two pages and eight hours of memory capacity left. Even after finding the ‘Recycled Paper for re-creating’ from the archives, some time was spent for this. To continue your Father's legacy and become someone who can save others, it is absolutely essential that you heal your memory impairment.

"Erika, what exactly is the way to overcome this memory block?"

"…To do so, you need lots of clear, flowing water. According to Teacher Okutsuki’s notes, there seems to be clean, unpolluted water on this level. Please wait for me there with the True Ancestor, Okutsuki-san."

"Eh, wait, why aren’t you going with us? You’re the only one who knows the cure, and we might get attacked by the scenario writers…"

"…Sorry, but I have to prepare. With the True Ancestor around, the scenario writer won’t attack you."

"I won’t get attacked if I’m with Arteria? W-Well, with 'Silver Night', even the scenario writers won't simply attack…"

Erika does not answer you, and compiles all the documents on the table before she slowly gets to her feet. The only parchment page left on the desk appears to be a map to the ‘Library’.

"…That stone magic will be broken after a certain amount of time. Please go ahead and wait for me."

"Understood. I just need to follow the map and go to the ‘Library with water’, right? "

"Yes…I’ll be leaving right away to avoid delaying you."

Erika says so with a quiet tone, and touches the opening mechanism of the Atelier with her finger. The magic mechanism that your Father had constructed is activated, and the massive door is slowly pushed aside.

"…Okutsuki-san, since I was saved by the Doctor Magna, I’ll definitely save you from the fate of oblivion, even that salvation will bring you the cruel truth."

With these words, Erika turns away and steps out into the darkness of the Labyrinth.

She then disappears through the magical door that has begun to close again, her footsteps echoing coldly.

◇◇◇231 Pages until Memory Loss

"…Eh, a turn around this bookshelf, and straight ahead, and we should be reaching the ‘Library’…"

It is dozen or so minutes later. As she has declared, Erika released you from the stone, and you follow the map she left for you through dozens of Reading Rooms, towards the ‘Library’ with flowing water.

"…Muu…you, is that map truly trustworthy?"

"Yep, the handwriting on this map is the same as Father's, so I think it’s trustworthy. I pity you for getting your nose smashed by the archive door because of her magic.

"Mgh…hmph! That little girl and I have been at loggerheads since the beginning! She fired stone spears at me suddenly, and even pressed obscene lump of fleshes against my kin’s arm!"

"Calm down calm down, Arteria…ah, is that light the 'Library'?"

You answer the clearly grumpy Arteria, and a faint light appears in the dim Labyrinth. You approach with hastened steps, and the rectangular white light become increasingly wide—

Before it finally spread wide before your eyes.

"!…So this is a different ‘Library’ from the ‘Floating Peak Library’."

The red of the sunset etches upon your retinas the moment you step into the light. Slowly you open your eye lids, and your vision immediately broadens to depict countless trees and fountains floating upon the madder sky.

"So this too is a sky underground…the Library Labyrinth really is a mysterious place…"

"…Muu, there is a rather rich spring here…"

With the fiery red clouds as backdrop, countless grey disks float in this ‘Library’ sky.

The tops of the disks are decorated with lawns, fountains, and trees, and aerial staircases connected them, forming a maze in mid-air that leads beyond the sky.

"Ah, there’s a name on the entrance stone tablet…so it’s the ‘Sky Garden Library’?"

The ‘Sky Garden Library’ is one of the many different ‘libraries’ existing within the Library Labyrinth.

It is a beautiful maze of hanging gardens filled with trees, flowers, plants and animals unique to this place.

"…Now then, have we arrived at the rendezvous that little girl informed us of?"

"Yeah, the sunset is beautiful, but there doesn’t seem to be anything else to see…"

Both of you arrived obediently, but since the cure information is with Erika, you have you two have nothing to do. You can’t leave too far from the entrance given that you are to meet up with her, so it seems you have no choice but to spend some time here.

"Hmm, from what I've seen, it doesn't look like there are any dangerous plants or animals or anything like that…"

"It is unwise to go too deep inside…speaking of which, breaking memory block? It may be too late to ask now, but is that little girl really trustworthy?"

"Probably. It won’t be strange to find a way to dispel such magic in the Doctor Magna's Atelier, and I don’t think Erika would do anything to disobey Kai Okutsuki's wishes."

Yes, certainly. She may have tried to kill you once, but Erika probably will not tarnish Kai Okutsuki's name on her own volition. She probably will remain your ally as long as she does not defy your Father’s teachings.

"…And you almost got petrified because I didn't believe in you. So now, I rather try and believe rather than think about what I should do when I’m betrayed."

"M-Mugu…"

"Don't worry, I’ll definitely break this oblivions spell. Didn’t I promise you? No matter what difficulties arise, I’ll never forget that you saved me.

"Fumyu…! … H-Hmph, futile it is to fool me! A dolt like you surely says such things out of carelessness!"

"I'm not trying to fool you. I'm just saying whatever I promised."

"U-Ugggghhhh…I-I shall ignore you! Fail to abide, and I shall strangle you to death with your talisman gold chain, so be prepared!"

"Got it. I don’t want to die, so I'll remember it."

You give a little smile with your reply and look back at the sunset over the ‘Sky Garden Library’.

"Say Arteria, since Erika hasn't arrived yet, why don't we take a little walk around the ‘Library’? As long as we don't go too far from the entrance, a little break should be fine."

"…H-Hmph…no choice then. I shall go."

Arteria’s face remains turned away as she pinches the hem of your robe.

"…Ohhh, it's a big fountain!"

"Ohhh…it’s amazing. Is it bigger than the fountain in Alexandria city center?"

You scale the aerial staircase with the True Ancestor in tow and arrive at a disk with a large fountain.

A wall of bookshelves is formed around the perimeter of the circular rock formation, with a cobblestone pavement less than two meters wide and a water fountain about 30 meters in diameter.

"…The water is really clear too…where’s all this water coming from? "

"Hm hmm, humanity’s myopic logic is futile in this Library Labyrinth. It is no wonder that water wells up from nowhere, and no wonder that water flows towards nowhere."

"I don't know why you're so gleeful about this… speaking of which, it's a beautiful place, but not a single person has explored here."

"It seems this 'Library of the Empty Garden' has been explored a long time ago, and probably more dangerous than other 'Libraries'. Do you see the sea of clouds beneath when you climbed up to this disk? "

"Eh? I did, but what's so dangerous about those clouds?"

There’s only an endless sea of white clouds beneath this disk. You, born in the countryside, find this to be an inexplicably beautiful scene…

"…You. If you release a ping down, you will lean this 'Library' is bottomless. If you slip off a disk or a staircase, you will fall forever through the empty sky."

"Eh? I-I’ll keep falling? Forever?"

The view that you have leisurely enjoyed all this while suddenly seems frightening. As a Nosferatu, you will not die, but falling forever is almost no different from as death.

"And the Library, because of its peculiar nature, is often chosen as a battlefield."

"…I-If anyone aside from flying types pushed off the disks will die, it’s true that hardly anyone will want to come…yep, let's stay away from the edge."

You decide to stay as far away from the outer edge of the disk as possible. Removing your boots and socks, you roll up your pants and dip into the fountain. The clear water, only reaching your ankles, feel very refreshing, and it seems to melt away the accumulated fatigue from this Labyrinth search.

"Nnn, it feels so good! Will it be cooler if we go closer to the fountain?"

You murmur as you look at the membrane of flowing water spouting from the disk center. You can play with the water, but don't get me wet, or I'll use memory tampering on you to the point of murdering you socially, you know?

"Oyy~, what about you, Arteria? Aren't you tired of walking around Labyrinth too?"

"Muu…so it appears you are fine. "

You flail your arms, calling out to Arteria, who answers somewhat unhappily.

"Eh, what do you mean, fine?"

"…It is fine for you as half man, half vampire, but a vampire cannot wade through flowing water. This prime of I aside, as of now, I might drown immediately if I descend upon flowing water."

"Ah…I see, vampires really have a lot of troublesome weaknesses, huh?

"Hmph, I am a High Daylight Walker. Even though we do have blood ties and immortality, I still remain a monster far different from you, the kin…go play in the water alone then."

"…Arteria…"

Despite the evening sun shining upon her, the face of High Daylight Walker seems a little forlorn. You cause a ripple, wade through the clear water, and walk over to Arteria.

"…You idiot. You're my True Ancestor, so can’t you just order me to ‘bring you over’? You can’t walk through flowing water, so can’t you just have this kin carry you? "

"You? W-Whoa? H-Hey, what are you doing?"

You put your hands around the waist of her crimson dress and lift the High Daylight Walker up in your arms. You then gently lower her body onto the stepping stones in the fountain.

"Hiii, flowing water!! You, do not ever let go of me here!"

"Ahaha, aren’t you too scared? There’s nothing to be scared about flowing water."

You say so while catching her flailing arms, and she, quivering due to her fear of water, latches her fingertips onto your fingers.

"…See, you're fine, aren't you?"

"F-Funyu…ugh, this is the despicable thing about you! You hold this hand of I without permission, wh-what shall you do if I drown?"

"How are you going to drown on a stepping stone? See, why don't you sit down and put your feet on it?"

"…T-Take the ‘storage book’ out…I do not wish to get this dress wet. Allow I to change."

"Yes, yes, as you wish, True Ancestor."

As Arteria murmur coldly, you smile and place the ‘storage book’ on the limestone stepping stone where she stands.

"…Li-Listen now. Close your eyes while keeping the cache-cœur dress, no? Do not open your eyes until I say it is fine, understood?"

"Yep, the clothes in the hood of my robe, right?"

Saying that, you close your eyes, and the hand holding yours leave you. Bop! You can hear the crimson dress, devoid of its physical support, sucked into the 'book’.

You spread the dress with your free hands, ready for the bat (Arteria) to fly in. Bop! Another sound can be heard, and the feeling of the fabric is removed from your fingertips.

"Hmm, Arteria, are you transformed back?"

You slowly open your eyes—only to see that Arteria is nowhere around.

"…Eh?"

Thud! You heard something slam hard into the fountain beside you.

And the stream beneath your feet turns a bright blood red.

"…A-Arteria? O-Oy, where are you…?"

You look back at the source of the noise, the fountain in the center of the disk, and over there,

"!"

You see that behind the veil of blood, a vampire has both hands pierced by granite spears.

"A-Arteria!"

"Stay away from I!"

"Ugh!?"

You withdraw your outstretched hand from deep within the water, and a stone spear whisks by before your fingertips. The stone pillars rising from the floor intertwined to form a sturdy stone lattice encasing the vampire.

"Arteria! What’s with this cage, Arteria!!"

"Vampire—"

"!? Who is it?"

As soon as you turn around to look at the source of this voice, the flying stone spears pin your legs onto the floor. Enduring the pain arising from your femur, you barely force your both eyes open...

"Unable to cross the flowing water. Thus, the fountain of the ‘Sky Garden Library’ remain the sturdiest prison to cage a vampire.

You spot a golden demon with a grey grimoire in her hand.

"Wha…E-Erika!!? What’s going on here!?"

You howl at Erika as she slowly ascends the stairs.

"You said you’ll continue to carry on Father's legacy…but is this what Kai Okutsuki's disciples do!? Why did you ambush us by surprise?"

"…I have no choice but to do this in order to tell you the truth."

"Truth? I’d like to meet the person who can chat nonchalantly after getting speared in the legs!"

"I wish that you’ll notice why I aimed at your legs. If I really intended to kill you from the start, I would have pierced both hands like that True Ancestor to stop you from pulling out the grimoire."

"You think you can pierce someone's leg if you don't intend to kill them?"

You feel your blood boil with anger. Having cleared the misunderstanding that she’s your Father’s enemy, you assumed that she’s no longer a murderer, and that you’ll be able to build a bond as comrades. …

"…But you betray me. Are we going to be murderer and vampire again…! Enough, Arteria, destroy the base of the fountain! That should eliminate the curtain of water!"

"It's useless. The True Ancestor’s arm strength now is about the same as that of a young girl, same as her appearance. As long as she’s far from the source of blood knowledge, she'll be nothing more than a helpless monster, incapable of using 'Silver Night' or instantaneous chanting."

"What…what did you do to Arteria?"

"…Okutsuki-San, you haven't been told anything, have you?"

"! You're the one who didn't tell me anything. Why are you doing this?"

"—The True Ancestor's memory only lasts three minutes and twenty-six seconds."

"Huh?"

Erika's words seemingly interrupt your interrogation, and you gasp in disbelief.

(…A-Arteria's memory only lasts three minutes and twenty-six seconds?)

"Wh-What are you talking about, you…!"

"The spell of oblivion etched upon the True Ancestor resets her memory every three minutes and twenty-six seconds. That same curse is affecting you become you received a transfusion of immortal blood."

"Reset her memory…"

Your rage towards Erika gradually dissipates into inner turmoil.

The ‘Curse of Oblivion’ robs the victim of its memories. Such is the prison binding your thoughts, one unique only to you, and supposedly unrelated to the High Daylight Walker.

How could Arteria's memory last only three minutes and twenty-six seconds—

You have never heard of this before.

"…T-That’s a lie! There’s no way you could have known such important information when we just met two days ago!"

"…Unfortunately, I’m not lying. If you doubt me, I have proof. I can read it to you if you like."

Completely ignoring your bewilderment, Erika pulls out a stack of papers from the grimoire in her hand. You reach over your right shoulder, thinking it’s an offensive ‘book’.

"May 7, year 643 of the Labyrinth. ‘Strategy draft to defeat the Demon King Arteria’, by Kai Okutsuki."

But the dozens of sheets of paper are nothing more than a report.

"!!?"

"‘Symptoms associated with vampirism: Observations and countermeasures’, written by Kai Okutsuki. ‘Herbal Clinical Trials for Mutation (Altered Shock) Alleviation’, written by Kai Okutsuki. ‘Historical Records of Martyrs seemingly caused by the Demon King Arteria’, written by Kai Okutsuki. ‘Nosferatu Sealing Experiment with Timed Oblivion Spells’, written by Kai Okutsuki. ‘Fourth Simulation of Costs of Battle to Defeat the Vampire’, written by Kai Okutsuki. ‘Second Report of Vampire De-vampirization Experiment’, written by Kai Okutsuki."

"Wh…what!? 'Written by Kai Okutsuki'…!?"

As you ask with a trembling voice, Erika stops flipping the pages and replies in a cold voice.

"All of these documents were found by me in Teacher Okutsuki's Atelier."

It was Kai Okutsuki, Doctor Magna of the ‘Apothecary’, who wrote the documents.

"…That’s, a lie!"

"I'm going to state this very clearly. You aren’t a vampire, and you still have a chance of becoming human again, and you don’t need ‘a book to store your memories’."

No, surely her words must be false. All the facts Erika denied are the most fundamental information given to drive your actions.

If everything was a lie, your 306 pages would all be lies.

"Your reaction just now convinced me…Okutsuki-san. You were fooled by the True Ancestor."

"…I’m not…! I definitely won’t!!"

Instead of replying, Erika closes the grimoire in her hand and puts it back into the crack of the shoulder mail. She probably is trying to state that she has no intention to continue hurting you.

"Okutsuki-san, are you sure you aren’t misunderstanding something?"

Her ultramarine eyes filled with pity, Erika continues. Her voice sounds too gentle for someone who intends to kill you—and you feel that there is a fatal mistake happening soon.

"For example, if a vampire bites you, you become a vampire, and if you become a vampire, you can’t become human again. Or that you’re doomed if you don't find the book to ‘save your memories’."

"!?"

"Did you have such misconceptions?"

"W-What, nonsense…!"

The words Erika say are simply incomprehensible nonsense.

Everything she is saying defies the information you know. It should be Erika who misunderstood, not you…

"—Misled by the dying High Daylight Walker over there."

The only thing that remains decisively correct is that Arteria is the source of the information.

"I'm going to state this very clearly. You aren’t a vampire, and you still have a chance of becoming human again, and you don’t need ‘a book to store your memories’."

"…No, that’s a lie…!"

"Again, I’m not lying. Have you ever read Bram Stoker’s book? It's an old document with some obsolete ideas, but it really is an imperative vampire countermeasures book that’s extremely useful against the ‘Venerable Immortal King (High Daylight Walker)’ over there."

"! Bram Stoker, the excavator of the vampire story that chronicles the exploits of Lord Van Helsing…"

"Yes. There has been an increasing number of low level vampires (Lesser Bloods), and vampires capable of ‘vampirizing any bloodsucking victim’, but they are different in nature from the High Daylight Walker’."

"!? You mean that I can’t be vampirzed even if the High Daylight Walker sucks my blood…!?"

Erika affirms your statement and continues her lecture on the ‘Orthodox Classic Vampire (High Daylight Walker)’.

"Those who have mixed blood with a vampire will mutate into a state known as 'bloodsucker’s sacrifice'. While their skins are scorched by sacramental bred’, they can still function as human lives, and merely be fatigued by exposure to sunlight instead of death. Basically, like Mina Harker in Stoker's story, or you now."

"…So you're saying I'm not a vampire yet, but a 'bloodsucker’s sacrifice'?"

"Yes. The moment a human becomes a vampire is the true moment of anatomical death. Humans are the living, and the vampires are the dead. For a human being (living) to become a vampire (dead), there must be a rite of passage called death."

"…No, that doesn't explain my regenerative powers! I was tortured so badly by you! I can’t be living like this if I’m still human!"

It pains you to say this, but this truly doesn’t make sense. You would be long dead if you’re merely a ‘bloodsucker’s sacrifice’ given that you were ‘tortured to death’.

"That’s why you’re ‘dying’. Not ‘already dead’, but in the progressive verb form—You’re not ‘dead’, but ‘dying’."

"Not a static verb…but a progressive verb…?"

"In other words, your humanity rate is slowly dropping. It dropped to 70% after your battle against me, and the vampire nature fills up 30%. You’re slowing dying (becoming a vampire)."

"Slowly, dying(vampire)…"

Erika’s words seem a little difficult to understand, but this is what she means,

1. You are a human on the verge of dying, slowly dying.

2. The process of death is called a 'bloodsucker's sacrifice'. Once this is over, you are truly dead (a vampire).

"…Typically, vampirification usually progresses when there is blood loss. If you are involved in a fight and injured, the remaining 70% humanity you have may continue to be reduced. This is why I had to restrain you to begin with."

"…Then, what do you mean that ‘I have a chance to become human again’…!"

"Yes, even as a bloodsucker’s sacrifice, you are a living person (human), albeit a bloodsucker's sacrifice. You can revert to being a normal human being again as long as the vampire elements in your blood are removed."

It’s hard to believe at first, but if this is true, that’s fortunate for you. You have assumed that you’re dead, a monster unable to return to the light of day again, but you were still human.

(…Is she saying that… I can still be human again?)

"How about it? Has that True Ancestor that’s dying over there told you anything about this?"

"!! That's …!"

There was a gaze affected by these words—Arteria is biting her lips in silence.

"…Y-You…I-I…!

"…How could she have told you? You’re a loyal slave to the True Ancestor, and emergency food. A True Ancestor would never do such a foolish thing as giving knowledge to livestock."

"…Those words make sense. But I don’t think Arteria’s lying to me. After all, Arteria saved me! Even if what you say is true, the fact remains that Arteria saved me!!"

"Are you going to believe the High Daylight Walker?…I know the Japanese value loyalty as a virtue, but until decades ago, the True Ancestor has been a monster that terrorizing mankind for five centuries."

"No! She, Arteria, she’s my…!"

"I’m not wrong. The 'Silver Night' of Library Labyrinth, the Talent Eater Arteria is—

The demon king who killed over 100,000 people."

"!!?"

The demon. King. Who killed. Over 100,000 people.

For a moment, you can’t comprehend these words.

(Arteria…killed people?)

"You called me a murderer, but the Mad King has killed more.

(The … demon king who has killed over 100,000 people, you say?)

You try very hard to understand what Erika said, so—

"That’s why the four major powers that vying for supremacy in the Library City Alexandria, the ‘Kathédra’, ‘Knights (Order)’, ‘Apothecary’, and ‘Workshop (Atrium)’ banded together under the banner of defeating the Demon Lord—and fought a war against the vampire under Kai Okutsuki's leadership."

"What…!!?"

The name ‘Kai Okutsuki’ declared to you causes your heart to be shaken to the core.

"You’re saying that Father…Kai Okutsuki was trying to defeat the Demon King (Arteria)?"

"It's true. The murders by the 'Silver Night' are so many that they can be found all over the Labyrinth's historical documents. If you count them all, the number of victims could be in the hundreds of thousands."

Erika reads your Father's manuscript and reveals the cruel truth to you.

The 'Silver Night' of the Library Labyrinth, the talent eater Arteria, was once Kai Okutsuki’s enemy.

(…So, I was protecting a magical criminal…Father’s enemy?)

"Teacher was the most instrumental person in leading the ‘Apothecary’, the four major powers against the demon king. If he survived, he probably would be respected by all of Alexandria."

(Am I supposed to be on the side that should destroy Arteria?)

"Now then, do you still believe in the demon king? Do you believe in you Father’s enemy that has deceived you—the vilest in the history of the Labyrinth, the vampire, the talent eater Arteria?"

(Was I…Was I, really deceived by Arteria?)

"…Arteria, is what she said…true…?"

"…I-I…!!!"

"It's useless. More than a decade ago, the monster was sealed in a cage of oblivion in the guilds war against the vampire involving the main forces of ‘Kathédra’, ‘Order’, ‘Apothecary’ and ‘Atrium’. She suffers from the memory binding spell of the most outstanding Doctor Magna of the ‘Apothecary’—Kai Okutsuki."

Yes. If Erika's words are true, Arteria's memory would last only three minutes and 26 seconds.

Even if you asked her the truth, she won’t be able to answer.

"The demon king was supposedly destroyed. The price being thousands of skilled explorers."

"…But she wasn’t destroyed…because a ‘memory preservation book’ exists in the Labyrinth."

"Yes. The demon king who lost all the power she once had and becomes as weak as a girl was killed over and over again by monsters, traps, grimoires, and the prison of oblivion—yet against Teacher's expectations, she obtained the ‘book’."

You never actually witnessed it personally, but the True Ancestor’s (Arteria) hell keeps flashing in your mind. She, reduced to the status of a little girl, she continued to search for the "book", relying on her only remaining immortality.

Killed and forgotten and revived, killed and forgotten and revived—only the revenge against humanity forms the pillar of support for her heart.

"And that 'book' is the key to correcting your third misconception. Okutsuki-san, you’re looking for a ‘memory preservation book’ because your memory will disappear in eight hours, right?"

"…Yeah. My memory only lasts for eight hours and one thousand pages…"

"You definitely need the ‘book’. Regarding the Curse of Oblivion which the vampire infected her kin with, it appears the information to break it is strangely flawed, as though it’s removed later on. But there’s no need for you to search the Labyrinth for the 'book'."

Erika lifts her right arm and points her slender finger towards Arteria.

"Because, you see, the Demon king there has it—

Vampire Tale in the Labyrinth."

— ‘Vampire Tale in the Labyrinth’.

It is the origin of this ‘Last Prayer’, the original copy of the ‘memory preservation book’.

The High Daylight Walker, sealed into a cage of oblivion by the magic of Doctor Magna, crawled through the darkness of the Labyrinth, dyed in rage and hatred, and after endless deaths and revivals, she obtained this—a rank A Grimoire.

"The memory of the Demon King disappears every three minutes and 26 seconds. You simply need to remove the original and keep the ‘Vampire Tale in the Labyrinth’ for three minutes and 26 seconds. That can destroy the demon king, and you’ll have the ‘memory preservation book’.

This really is the perfect solution to save both humanity and yourself.

(…Arteria’s memory is cursed. Just as I lose all my memories if I stay away from the ‘book ‘for eight hours…)

Arteria will forget everything if she stays away from the book for three minutes and 26 seconds.

(She’ll forget about the Vampire Tale’, forget about me, and also forget about who she is…)

And she shall be forever imprisoned in the cage of oblivion.

"…The demon king is truly the strongest monster capable of threatening the existence of the human race. She must be killed."

(I may still be human…in that case, the demon king Arteria would be an enemy of mine, a human.)

You can feel an ache in your left chest.

"And… you don't have much memory left, do you? Even if you do spend all your remaining time (pages) searching the Labyrinth, there’s no guarantee that you’ll find the 'book', no?"

Within your heart, which can’t feel pain with a knife stab—

(…Erika's right. I only have 209 pages of memory left.

"Even the Class A grimoire, the ‘Vampire Tale in the Labyrinth’, can be yours."

For every word Erika says, you can feel a sharp pain, wailing violently.

(…A Class A original should be more than enough to cure my psychological trauma.)

"Now, kill the demon king."

Just when you’re about to make the right decision—

(If I abandon Arteria…all my problems will be solved.)

"The talent eater Arteria, the High Daylight Walker, can only live by stealing."

(Then, it’s fine if I kill Arteria, right?)

Another ache.

You imagine yourself killing Arteria, the sight of forgetting her.

"…I’m sorry, Arteria."

You clench your fists tightly and murmur.

"…!"

Arteria's body jolts when she hears your voice.

The strongest vampire of the Labyrinth gives a resolved smile in her tear-filled crimson eyes and says,

"Th-This is fine…I knew this ending would come anyway."

The smile of deceit seems to be cloaked in penitence, sorrow, regret, and utmost foolhardiness.

"…After all, A vampire am I. A magic criminal who killed hundreds of thousands…no, furthermore, I have deceived you until now…"

Trembling with fear of death, Arteria still tries hard to hide her tears.

"…I am sorry for lying to you."

As you see the crimson eyes close, with tears sliding down her cheeks—

"—Please forgive me for being the worst, for momentarily thinking about killing you just to save myself."

You grip hard at the stone spears stabbed into your thighs with enough strength to shatter them.

"Wha…!?"

"Y-You …?"

(…Now I understand. Why does it hurt so much to think of killing Arteria?)

"My bad, but I can't kill her. I’m not ready for that."

You pull out the hexagonal granite pillar with all your might.

"Ah… what are you doing!? If your femoral arteries bleeds out, that’ll endanger the remaining 70% of your humanity! "

"Yes, you still have a chance to become human! And I have deceived you till now!"

"I don't care. How can I remain silent while my savior (you) remains crucified and my legs still pierced?"

Snap. The spear tip stuck into the fountain base breaks off.

"O-Okutsuki-san, didn’t you hear what I said? The demon king there is Teacher Okutsuki’s enemy! She’s the biggest magical criminal in history who has killed over 100,000 people!"

"Even so, she’s my savior. If Arteria hadn't saved me, I would have become one of those abandoned corpses at the bottom of that dank Labyrinth!"

(I want to protect Arteria, and I don't want to forget Arteria—)

"Arteria reached out to me. Whether it’s in the dormitory, the classroom, the balcony, the Library Labyrinth, she was always by my side! She’s my savior!!"

(—It's definitely because I'm beginning to like Arteria.)

You pull the spear out from your thighs, and the wounds instantly regenerate, with a large amount of blood smoke hissing away.

"…The True Ancestor Arteria may use to be evil. If it weren't for the True Ancestor, maybe nobody would have died in the war against the vampire, and I wouldn’t be killed."

"I-If you know that, then why are you doing this…why are you disobeying Teacher Okutsuki's will?"

"Even then!"

You throw aside the bloodied spear and refute Erika head on.

"Even then, Father won’t kill of an enemy just to solve all problems. The Doctor Magna Kai Okutsuki was a human who believed in and tried to save even his enemies!"

Yes. Your Father never gave up trying to offer salvation and forgiveness to any sinner. People called him ‘Doctor Magna’ not because of his brilliant magic, not because of his profound knowledge, but because he kept trying to show people the right way.

"The ‘definition of gratitude’ Father taught me is definitely not to kill my savior who’s once evil! If Arteria once sinned and has strayed away—I’ll bring her back to daylight, even if it costs me my life!"

"Why don't you understand? You're just being used by the demon king! She's just taking advantage of your naiveté and lack of resolve to use you as a shield!"

"Is this ‘resolve’ you speak of just to lock your savior in a prison of 3 and a half minutes and be free alone? No! I don’t want that! Even if I can forget everything after eight hours, I'm sure I'd kill myself if I can’t endure those eight hours!"

"…Okutsuki-san, you…!"

"Yeah! You're right, I don’t have this ‘resolve’ at all. I don’t have a resolve to kill anyone in my life…but!"

You reach for the shoulder, pull out a 'book' and pencil, and scream.

"—I resolved to never let anyone die!!"

Yes, that's what you swore. On October 16th, five years ago, you made a vow to your powerless self after witnessing your injured Father right beside you.

You swore to yourself that you would become the one who could save others—the Doctor Magna

"Come on, Erika Austral, if you're going to kill her—"

You etch the following oath in your memory.

"I will save Arteria." —1ℓ

"I’ll protect Arteria even if it costs me all my memories!!"

"…I too am resolved to do so. I’m willing to fight to stop you."

Erika shoves the documents into the ‘storage book’, pulls out a grimoire, and readies herself for chanting.

"Surrender, Okutsuki-san! Or I'll stab you through your limbs just to stop you!!"

Vroom! The grimoire roars. Lots of refined Mana glow faintly around the Magitzkveins flowing within her body. The magic’s coming at this rate!

('Book', lend me strength! What memories do I need to write to protect Arteria!?)

Due to the water at your feet, both you and Arteria’s movements will be hindered. Please write an experience in shallow water combat while keeping your distance. Combine that with improved evasive maneuvers, and avoid bleeding!

(Understood! — ‘I am trained to fight in running water’ ─ 80 pgs.)

"I’m not letting Teacher Okutsuki's son…I’m not letting you be handed over to the demon king! I’m taking the ‘Vampire Tale in the Labyrinth’ and save you from the cage of oblivion! Execute, Stone Serpent Fang!"

The moment the lead pencil finishes the sentence, the water around Erika splatter, and countless stone spears are shot out. She, having pretended to have kept her grimoire, has already deftly loaded a continuous spell without you noticing!"

"I don't want to solve things like that! I was saved by Arteria! If she’s guilty, I’ll atone for it with her!"

On the water surface, you dodge the hail of spears gliding through the sky with fluid movements. The memories that flow into your brain have improved your ability to fight in a watery field.

"!…Are you are seriously trying to win against me! The blood loss from your legs earlier should have reduced your humanity by at least ten percent! You’ll trigger Altered Shock and die, you know!?"

"Altered Shock! Arteria, what is Altered Shock!?"

"Eh…ah…stop, stop it, you! If you lose any more blood, your vampirization shall accelerate! This will trigger autoimmune allergies that will kill your spirit (heart)!"

"Ah yeah…when I lost blood just now, you mentioned something about Altered Shock!"

As a bloodsucker's sacrifice, you are essentially a being that continues to die slowly. However, when you bleed heavily due to trauma and various reasons, your missing humanity shall be replaced by vampirism. At this moment, the allergy the body has towards the incoming vampirism is Altered Shock, the onset of which is synonymous with madness and death.

"If you get it, then just give up! On, number two!

"! A Multichant!?"

Erika's chant shakes the atmosphere, alerting you to the second spell.

A vampire's immortality is strong against amputation and bruising, but weak against attacks where foreign object penetrates the body, like stakes. Even a single blow will reduce your mobility and ensure your defeat.

(If I take a fatal blow, I’ll go crazy and die. Even if I avoid the vitals from getting hurt, I’ll lose my edge if I slow down…! I can only dodge with all I can until I get the opportunity to counter!)

Intending to focus on evading, you stuff the ‘book’ into your shoulder mail, and posture yourself.

Then, in an attempt to speed up, you step firmly onto the water bed.

"If you’re going to try and dodge—I’ll stop you!!"

You see the water flow around Erika crack away, creek and it freezes.

"What!?"

You instinctively jump up from the water, and the large water columns rising up immediately freeze in place. The 30-meter displacement area between you and Erika instantly freezes.

"Th-The water, froze!?"

"You dodged!? You’re not getting away though!!"

"Ugh, I’ll dodge!"

The magical theory knowledge written into your memory cause you to evade instinctively. Then, the glacier beneath Erika's feet shoots reaches towards the body of water where you are about to land.

You twist your entire body, letting Nosferatu's physical capabilities take over, and try to kick off the frozen surface. The ice however instantly melts back into water, and with a crack, it tangles around your ankles.

"Freeze!"

"Gahh!! M-My leg!?"

Your right leg is trapped by the refrozen water current, and you crouch down, having lost your balance.

"Got you! You can't escape the vines of icy water binding you now!"

(I-Impossible! There’s no way to freeze or melt such a large amount of water with no chant or ‘book’ or ‘subvein’!!)

"'Damnit, I’ll just smash the ice…I can’t!?"

You try to force your way out, but the glaciers stubbornly bind you. You have lost your blood and humanity, and now that you are inching closer to being a vampire, you should be able to smash through the ice wall easily...

(…No, this isn’t right! My magical theory knowledge written in my memory says this isn’t frozen water, but …!)

"—Petrified water!!?"

"This is the ‘Cursed Blood Ability’ (Badblood)! The ‘demon blood’ that flows through my body can selectively petrify any liquid that contains even a drop of blood!"

"! The A blood petrification using the Badblood!?"

"Seizing the terrain advantage is a fundamental in war tactics! Now, let's go!"

"Ugh, ‘Origami paper’! Become a wall!"

Seeing Erika's grimoire shine, you hastily throw out the ‘Origami paper’. A bag of dirt instantly open itself to form a wall and take the rain of stone spears.

"I already know that defense! O primordial spirit that lies within the depths of the earth!"

(!!! This chant is the ‘Ancient King's Warhammer’! Is she going to crush me against the wall!?)

This is a critical situation. Even though you have the ‘Last Prayer’, there is a several-fold difference in magical combat ability between you, who can’t lose any more blood due to Altered Shock, and Erika, who is at her full strength.

Your opponent has dual veins and is a strong opponent who may have mastered vampire countermeasures from you Father's manuscripts. Furthermore, she knows your strategy from yesterday's battle, and a strategy that relies on surprise no longer works.

In order to protect Arteria, you require a ‘power’ that surpasses Erika's magic.

"Hear the earth tremor!"

(‘Power’, you say!? Where am I supposed to get the power to defeat her magic?)

The only thing you have over Erika is this ‘Last Prayer’ and your love for Arteria. There has only been one memory that brings you ‘power’ to begin with.

"By thinking of Arteria, you can surpass your physical limits and become stronger." — 1ℓ

(Wait, I thought you can’t do that!? You said you can only tamper with my memories, and that those you can’t change has to be changed physically or something!?)

No, only you can.

For you were once saved by the 'Silver Night' of the Library Labyrinth, the talent eater Arteria.

"Strike steel with hammer, shatter rock with gravel…"

Please recall. You are neither human nor vampire, you are a ‘halfpire’.

You possess the immortality and blood perception of a non-human, but also life and blood of a non-vampire. You are a ‘half-vampire, half-human’, neither belonging to the day nor night, just like the twilight.

"Hand of the old blacksmith!"

Your thoughts for Arteria drive your body just beyond its physical limits. It is a slight difference however, unable to overturn the several-fold difference in fighting strength and defeat Erika.

However, your Blood perception can be multiplied—by sucking away your own improvement.

"Execute!"

Now then, Sōshi Okutsuki-san.

Suck your blood.

"Ancient King's Warhammer!!"

(Blood—sucking!!)

The moment Erika completes her chant, the water surface before you explode.

The rocks that arise cause water spouts as they surge forth rapidly, about to annihilate your bones—

Swoosh.

The moment your canine teeth tear through your left arm skin, everything else seem to have stopped still.

(…It, stopped? )

Sounds disappear from the world. Your entire field of vision became dark as night, and the cold sweat running down your back feel like icy grains of lead pressing upon your skin.

(What is, this…? Are these dying lights!? Everything in this world…feels so slow!)

No, you are getting faster.

The Ancient King's Warhammer, a middle-level spell of matter formation, is approaching. Please hit the center of the rock as hard as you can to destroy Erika's magic. Now, hurry!

"…Haaaaah!"

You feel alone, left behind in this decelerating world as you move at your original speed. You swing a powerful fist out, smashing the protruding solid rock pulse like a sugar candy.

"Wha…?"

In this delayed world, Erika slowly makes a startled expression.

(Is this…some near-death experience? Did the bleeding just now cause an Altered Shock!?)

Certainly everything has to be explained correctly, lest this cause some foolish misunderstanding like yours to arise.

As you may have forgotten, you are a kin of the Labyrinth's most powerful vampire, the ‘talent eater’.

You are still 60% human, and are by far the inferior vampire, but you still possess the same nature and ability level as Arteria.

The ability of the target whose blood is sucked—or to be precise, the ability to multiply the difference in power between oneself and the target.

(…Eh?…Do you mean this decelerated world is your—)

It is our ability. The power of the ‘book' (Me)'s power can’t physically tamper, and only improve your physical abilities by a small fraction, a few tens of thousandths…

(… If I can use my blood memories to just improve these abilities slightly …!)

Ultimately, you can amplify your abilities by at least ten times or so. This is called a synergy effect.

"Memory tampering, and self-sucking…so this is the ‘power’ given to me!!"

You exert all your strength, and cracks slowly appear on the frozen water surface.

‘Selective blood petrification’. Those that inherit the bloodline of the stone demon—the ‘Badblood’, are powerful, even natural enemies against a vampire.

But with regards to this cursed bloodline, it applies for you as well. As a half-vampire, half-human, a halfpire, you inherit the blood perception of the talent eater, and have powerful trump cards that even the True Ancestor does not have.

The ability acquisition through memory tampering, and—

The ‘power’ to amplify your abilities exponentially by sucking your own blood.

"Y-You destroyed the Ancient King's Warhammer without a chant…! Okutsuki-San! Have you transformed into a vampire and become capable of using the same chantless magic as the Demon King!?"

"…This isn’t magic. I just believe in Arteria!"

The moment you utter your feelings for Arteria, your thought speed accelerates even faster. The strength of your determination to believe in that vampire transcends your physical limits, granting you ‘power’!

You exert all your strength into your legs and stomp the water bed. Thomp! A violent shock shakes the disk, and you shatter the ice block, running towards Erika.

"Ku! No, stay away…!"

In the center of your decelerating vision, Erika slowly cries out as she imbues Mana into the continuous spell. The grimoire responding to the caster’s will, forming a torrential downpour of stone spears.

(I’ll protect Arteria!!!)

But before you, who have transcended physical limits, the rain of spears is practically still. You snatch one floating stone spear floating.

(It’s hard to evade this barrage…so I’ll just smash through them with this stone spear!)

You raise your right arm and swing it hard at a space next to Erika. The stone spear you release cause a shockwave that blows away the hail of spears, hitting the barrier and shattering it with a single blow.

"!? K-Kyaaa…!?"

(And then…I’ll jump into this open wind tunnel!!!)

Your physical ability has increased more than tenfold, and so you can immediately cover a distance of fewer than 20 meters within a single leap. In an instant, you have closed the gap and land next to Erika, grabbing her arm.

Then, with the gentle strength of pulling a friend by the hand, you pulled her body toward you.

"Stop it already, Erika!"

Sploosh! With a huge splash, Erika's body sinks into the water.

"Pwahh! Ack! Ack!"

Erika, who’s momentarily knocked into the water, coughs out water in confusion. You, certain of your victory, helped her up so she wouldn't drown."

"Cough, haa, haa…O-Okutsuki-san, please come to your senses…!"

"You already know I'm sane. If I am brainwashed by Arteria and need to be stopped even if it kills me, you would be chanting the ‘Petrifying Stone fang’ instead of the Ancient King's Warhammer."

Yes, Erika has been chanting the ‘Ancient King's Warhammer’ that only attacks using the stone disk, instead of the ‘All Petrifying Poison Fang’ which is a trump card against vampires.

Even if your physical abilities are enhanced to their limits, the poisonous black stakes petrify on contact, and are impossible to defend against without the use of your Father's talisman.

"You didn't really give go all out, and that’s why you lost easily…doesn’t that mean that you’re also somewhat hesitant about killing Arteria?"

'T-That's, but…Kya!"

Erika turns her face aside, but you violently pull it back, trying to coax her.

"Then don't kill. If we only try to solve the problem by killing, we become 'evil' no different from the ‘scenario writer’…I’m sure Father definitely doesn’t want that."

"E-Even so, it’s true that Teacher Okutsuki and the demon king were once enemies!"

"I know, but I want to believe in Arteria for saving me."

With that, you let go of Erika, and slowly turn towards the center of the water fountain.

You look at the High Daylight Walker, crucified at the base of the fountain.

"…Arteria."

"!…Y-You! Do not come near…!"

The vampire's voice comes through the shimmering curtain of water, stopping you from approaching. She may be feeling guilty for not telling you about her past.

"Don't be stupid, you're badly injured. You probably can’t even regenerate your body without sucking my blood and absorbing my natural healing powers…don’t worry about the past. Even if what Erika said is true, the demon king (you) who killed a decade ago is different from the True Ancestor (you) who saved me."

"…This natural healing is not the issue. The Curse of Oblivion that personally binds I shall reset ‘this existence called Arteria’ every three minutes and twenty-six seconds. The wounds I have received, the blood I have spilled, and the sins of a demon king (I) unbeknownst to a True Ancestor (I), they will all be forgotten."

The High Daylight Walker, bound by the stone block tentacles, slowly looks up. Through an intermittent veil of crystal clear water, your eyes meet the crimson red eyes.

"…Arteria, you…"

"…I do not wish to know. I fear the past. With the Curse of Oblivion cast upon me by the Doctor Magna as an excuse, I continued to flee from my own sins."

Arteria gently looks back at you, seemingly fending off her fears. The shimmering red eyes have a glint of resolve, ready to seek her past.

"And this is the moment, the one where I shall face my own past. The memories of the demon king (I), which the True Ancestor (I) does not know, are recorded in this ‘Vampire Tale in the Labyrinth’."

—Thump, a familiar sound.

The High Daylight Walker Arteria has presented you with ‘her own memories’.

A ‘book’ floats by itself through transcendent magic, rejecting gravity.

The leather cover of the grimoire, dyed an elegant deep purple and ornamented with inlaid jewellery, has its name inscribed with beautiful letters written in pressurized silver foil.

It is the ‘book that solves memory loss’ you seek, and the ‘past of the True Ancestor Arteria’, and may possibly contain ‘the truth of five years ago’.

"So, please, I wish of you to read this 'book'."

The ‘Vampire Tale in the Labyrinth’ emerges from the shadows of the High Daylight Walker.

"The original ‘Book of Preserved Memories’!"

"…You. Since you are willing to believe I, I too shall believe in you. Even if in this past I do not know of, cursed by the spell of Kai Okutsuki, and that I am an enemy of mankind who must be destroyed."

Floating in mid-air, as if responding to its owner's will, the ‘Vampire Tales’ glides quietly through the void and stops before you.

"I shall believe that you will grant this Arteria a just judgement."

She has granted the memories recorded in that ‘book’ to be read by you, who believe in her.

"…Yeah, I understand."

You mutter quietly, realising Arteria's thoughts.

The High Daylight Walker was once cursed by the Doctor Magna and trapped in a cage of three minutes and twenty-six seconds of oblivion. Half the life of the strongest vampire, who experienced countless memory loss, is recorded in this book.

The ‘Vampire Tale in the Labyrinth’ is Arteria's very personality.

(…This is the original source of the 'memory preservation book', which contains the entire past of the True Ancestor Arteria's past. If its function is the same as the ‘Last Prayer’…I’ll use the memory tampering of this grimoire to learn of Arteria’s life until this point.)

Yes. If this ‘Last Prayer of a Thousand and One Pages’ is basically Sōshi Okutsuki's very existence—

So the A-rank original, the ‘Vampire Tale in the Labyrinth’, represents Arteria’s very existence.

The wish for you to read it is out of utmost trust, and you too wish to reply this trust.

"…Arteria. I believe in you."

You take a step into the cold clear water, and walk up to the floating 'book'.

"So tell me."

The grimoire dubbed as the original shows a more intense mana glow in response to your call.

"Tell me of what you’ve forgotten, the High Daylight Walker's past."

And so you gently extend a finger to the 'Vampire Tale in the Labyrinth'.

"I can't permit you to read that ‘book."

Zam.

A bright, burning hot spear cuts in.

"…Eh?"

It is a spear of flame, clothed in an enormous amount of heat.

This mass of raging fire contains tremendous magical power. The flame spear pierces through the petrified water bedrock like a butter, transforming its surroundings into lava as it sinks—before exploding into flames.

"Wha…gaaaahh!"

A moment later, a flash of light bursts into view.

A shockwave sends you flying, and the furious acceleration rattles your semi-circular canals—causing you to crash heavily toward something hard.

"Kyaaaahhh!!"

"Gaahhh!? Ack!?"

Every bone in your body is shattered by this intense shock.

Without realising what has happened, you barely open your eyes that are seared by light and heat.

Your retinas are regenerating due to your immortality, and they spot Erika slammed into a bookshelf by the blast. Her legs, which are instantly burnt red, hint at the massive amount of heat that had momentarily struck your and Erika's bodies and clothes.

"Ugh…! Wh-What is this…magic!!? Arteria!!?"

Realizing that something fatal is imminent, you instinctively think of Arteria. That thought accelerates your thoughts, enhancing your immortality and regenerating your body.

"Arteria, are you okay!!? Arteria!!?"

Arteria!

You look beyond the flame walls burning the Library, looking for the True Ancestor.

As if interrupting your gaze, a red lotus shadow fall danced down.

'!!? An enemy!!?"

"Reloading (recharge), number one (Carolina)."

Boom! A vortex of flames form, protecting the caster from the fall impact by using the pressure of the explosion.

The body covered completely in pitch-black robe resembles the black robe you spotted when you first met Erika. The face is hidden by a large hood however, and the swirl of flames surrounding that body is intensely intimidating—

"Execute, Flaming Lance of Intense Pain."

Such a formidable foe that you instantly understood the difference in strength.

"…M-Multi-loaded (recharger) spells!!?"

The raging fire coalesces and forms the same crimson spear that attacked you earlier.

The assailant who suddenly appeared has distilled the essential chants for spells down to mere three phrases. That tremendous proficiency and magic usage efficiency proves how extraordinary this enemy is.

"W-Who are you…!?"

"'Burn."

The moment a small whisper rattles your eardrums; the black-clothed mage raises the flaming spear. Such mobility of the enemy is too strong for you to perceive at this moment, and clearly, a sub vein is used for body strengthening.

"!! Erika’s in danger!!!'

You kick the bookshelf away and put yourself between the flaming spear and Erika. Though it’s not a direct hit, the tip of the flaming spear scorches your right arm with radiant heat.

"Grr, ah, my arm!!?"

"…Vein on, number two(Polypore), God’s Daughter, Empress, o great goddess with three faces."

(And this one has dual veins too!)

You desperately struggle in the water that’s now heated, but a second chant descends from above me. You no longer understand what is happening. A flaming spear flies in just when you’re about to read the ‘Vampire Tales’, and you’re almost killed by an assailant with overwhelming power.

(What is this amazing magic!?!? Sub veins for body strengthening, dual veins for multicharge magic!? And why is such a mage suddenly attacking us?)

"O-Okutsuki-san…! This mage is the scenario writer’s assassin who attacked me…!"

"Wh-what do you say?"

Erika ekes these words in pain, and your accelerated thoughts realise the truth.

This level is where your father's Atelier sleeps, and has been watched by the scenario writer the entire time. The scenario writer's assassin who attacked Erika must have been aware of your presence, as you were nearby during that attack.

And so the scenario writer seized advantage of the chaos of the battle to…

(Was the plan—to eliminate all those trying to find the truth from five years ago together here!?)

Perhaps to erase both you and Erika's existences from the world.

"!! Erika, get up! If this is the scenario writer's assassin, we’ll have to retreat for now and get ready..."

"Polypore, execute. Wildfire of Ending Winter."

Just as you’re about to pick Erika up, a chant echoes from behind you. You turned to look back, and intense heat and light, reminiscent of the sun, rain upon the right half of your body.

"Hiii…"

You can’t see what that is. A reddish-copper light saturates your vision.

"—Gaaaaah!"

With the intense pressure of the explosion, the half of your body exposed to the light, has been carbonised and shattered.

You slam against the bookshelf again and gasp in shock. But the right half of your right lung has been charred, and your exhaled breath leaks out through the shattered rib cage along with ashes.

"Uu, guh, grr…!'

Luckily, your left eye avoids the light, and it catches sight of the enemy behind the flames burning the Library. With a spear of flame in the right hand, the assailant intends to deal the final blow to you while approaching over the molten bedrock.

(This, is bad …! If it’s a scenario writer's assassin, we’ll definitely be killed!)

You put your hand into the shoulder mail that is yet to be burned, and press the ‘Express Envelopes’ addressed to the ‘scenario writer's assassin’ into the wax seal, which has been melted by the flaming heat.

"D-Don't you come any closer!"

"It's useless!"

No sooner has the ‘flying envelope’ been opened than a flaming spear is swung down, burning the page to a crisp. The ‘Origami paper’ that’s placed inside the envelope flutters down before the assailant.

"O-Origami paper, become a water bag!"

The enormous amount of heat emitted by the flaming spear instantly boils the water in the leather bag.

As third-year students of the ‘Apothecary’ would know, the volume ratio between water at 100 degrees Celsius is more than 1700 times greater than that of water vapour. With nowhere else to go, the water vapour can cause a leather bag to burst immediately.

(—Let’s trigger a steam explosion.)

A fierce blast of air occurs, and that will overload the mage's logic wall!

"Take that!!"

Giiiiiinnn!! The white smoke exploded with interfering noises, and the wind pressure from the blast extinguishes the flames.

The momentarily generated shockwave interferes with the enemy's logic wall, creating a complex magic array.

(Bullseyes!! With such a large shock, the Magitzkveins will have a reverse load …!)

"I told you it’s useless."

"!!?"

But the pressure, weakened by a defensive spell, gently caresses the enemy like a breeze, and merely lifts the black hood.

Amidst the rising white steam, the black hood gently hits the assailant’s shoulder—

"Given that you’re unable to use magic, you’re unable to defeat a mere pawn like this Calmia."

Calmia’s silhouette appears terrifyingly while being illuminated by the flaming spear.

"…Huh?"

"Well, should I say it's nice to meet you, Sōshi Okutsuki.'

Distorting her amethyst purple eyes into a cruel smile, Calmia gives a mocking smile. The voice is clear as a bell, yet there is clear contempt and disgust imbued in it.

She has the exact facial appearance and speaking tone of that friendly Calmia's,

Yet you feel that you’re in the presence of a horrifying monster.

"Ca-Calmia? Why are you, here…!?"

"Calmia'?…kfft, kuhahaha!!! As to be expected of an inferior species, haven't you noticed yet? Don't tell me you still don’t know what’s going on!? Hah, what a masterpiece you are!"

Calmia—or whoever appears to be Calmia, laughs madly and continues to speak. You feel a primordial fear from her voice, and instinctively pin your back against the bookshelf.

"Remember, who was the first person to greet you when you arrived in Library City Alexandria? Who was the first to visit your dorm room? Who stopped you from sucking the blood memories of that demi-human? Who waited for you to descend into the Labyrinth and interrupted your conversation—now who can that be?"

"!!!?"

With a smile so intoxicated in malicious ecstasy, or entranced by evil pleasures, that thing bares a destructive smile, saying,

"Mere son of the Doctor Magna Kai Okutsuki, haven’t you thought of that? If you visit Library City Alexandria, would your Father's enemy try to make contact with you?"

This person declares herself connected to the scenario writer of this story.

"Calmia…Calmia Loadtokson! Are you…!"

"Unfortunately, that's a pseudonym. This body is merely an intelligence terminal we've prepared. Allow me to introduce myself once again, Doctor Magna's orphaned child."

"Alias? An intelligence terminal? What the hell are you talking about?"

"Stop yapping, mongrel. Show more respect when a noble pure blood is talking to an inferior demi-human like you. Show your respect, you half-human, half-demon, inferior to dog shit?"

"Pure blood, …Calmia, aren't you supposed to be a demi-human of the cat tribe!?"

"The body certainly is! But if there are books that can ‘falsify your memories’, it’s not shocking to have books ‘that can falsify other people's memories, no?"

"Falsify…d-did you tamper with Calmia's memories!"

It answers your question with a maniacally malicious smirk.

"Yes, they have been rewritten—by us, the ‘Kathédra’."

The first of the four great powers, Kathédra, has been falsifying Calmia's memories and having her keep tabs on you.

"…Yo-You’re doing such things…!"

"Kukuku, memory tampering is a wonderful power, isn't it? Even less intelligent mongrels can be used as pawns (resource) for our Kathédra, like this individual."

"Why…why is Kathédra after me? What is your purpose?"

"Why? What a foolish question, mongrel. Of course, the role of 'Kathédra' is supposed to be monitoring and correction. "

"Monitoring? Correction? Did you falsify Calmia's memory for that purpose!?"

"What an insolent way to put it. The ways of the wise is to plant spies within the cadres of other organizations, and play the game of secrecy and intrigue with counter-intelligence. Our manner of using brains is different from you inferior species."

The insane eyes continue to speak with a sneering glee.

"It appears that you, lacking in brains, seem to use memory tampering only for 'skill acquisition', which is far from the essence of the power of memory tampering. The concept of memory tampering is the ability to implant false memories in others, fabricate personalities and control behaviour. It's ‘the omnipotence of the scenario writer’, the power to write one’s life."

"…You bastard…! So you’ve been hiding in other people's memories, doing your evil deeds!"

"What’s evil? Demi-humans like you are merely inferior, pets to us purebloods. We merely educated and disciplined through memory tampering."

"Shut up! I’m not listening to I don't want to hear your voice anymore!"

"Good grief, I merely implanted a timed memory that says ‘terminate anyone associated with Kai Okutsuki'. Truly you are the son of Kai Okutsuki, full of a sense of justice no more valuable than the carcass of an amoeba."

"You bastard! Not only are you insulting Calmia's personality, but Father as well!?"

"Now why would I insult him!? From ‘Kathédra’s point of view, this is the greatest compliment to be offered. The Doctor Magna Kai Okutsuki was a pawn that even ‘Kathédra’ couldn't handle."

"Again!!? Father’s not a pawn in Kathédra's plans!"

"No, a pawn he was. Your father was a brilliant mage, very popular, a saintly man with a strong sense of justice that can’t be bribed with money or prestige, no?"

"W-What… are you talking about!?"

"No, well, do you not understand? A righteous man like Kai Okutsuki is nothing but an evil to be eliminated by ‘Kathédra’, do you?"

"!!"

"So we simply have all the unnecessary pieces leave the board (game)."

Pffthahaha, and the vilest laugh is directed at you.

"…Did you kill him? Did the 'Kathédra' murder my Father?"

"Of course not~, the 'Kathédra' only monitors and corrects. It isn’t us who killed your Father."

"!! What are you talking about!?"

"It's true. Kathédra has always been monitoring. Until you left Library City Alexandria five years ago, or Erika Austral after she was kicked out of Kathédra, and even the moment the Doctor Magna Kai Okutsuki died."

"Shut up! I won't be fooled by the ramblings of a racist!"

"Of course not~! You just don't want to know, do you? You aren’t seeking the truth! You came back to Alexandria only to deny the despair of your past! The ‘book’ you're really looking for is merely that book to ‘falsify your memories’!"

The echoing voice gradually increases in insane, ballooning like a curse, and finally becomes an exclamation.

'"—You just want to deny the past! You were wandering in the Library Labyrinth only to deny your past sins! To not remember the truth of five years ago! To conveniently rewrite your own despair, and make yourself feel 'It's not my fault my father died'!"

"!! No! I came back to Library City Alexandria to get the truth!"

"No, you're not! You're just pretending not to know! The intelligent you inherit the blood of the Doctor Magna, so you logically determined the true identity of the scenario writer! You're pretending that you can't solve such a simple elimination question, that you forgot everything! You’re just running from the truth!"

"Wh-What are you saying!? Isn’t it you, ‘Kathédra’, who’s the scenario writer that murdered Father?"

'"Kuhahaha!! Still trying to escape again now, huh!!? Then think about it! Five years ago, your father was hunting the demon king! And now Kai Okutsuki is dead and only the demon king lives! You don't even need to think about what happened to him!"

"…Shut up, you bastard!"

'"Yes, you deny it! You wander the Library Labyrinth only to deny the despair of the past! To keep the cruel truth away and drown in gentle fiction! Your pathetic self deserves the pity and salvation of ‘Kathédra’!"

"No! I, I’m here for the truth of five years ago…!"

"Therefore, I shall tell you! On that day five years ago, on that day in the Atelier, the person who killed your father was—""

—The High Daylight Walker.

With a swoosh, a page flutters down.

The piece of paper (page) appears from the hem of Calmia's black robe, and slides across the ice floor as though it’s been premediated, coming to a still.

The one sentence spelled out on the torn page from the ‘book’—or to be precise, the black ink that covers most of the page, captivates your eyes with some kind of fateful attraction.

You unconsciously scan your eyes over the old parchment—

"This is for you. A condolence gift from ‘Kathédra’."

Between the wildly drawn black lines, you find this sentence.

■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■

─"Arteria stabbed through Kai Okutsuki's chest, killing him."

[■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■

"…You thought it was a ‘lie’, didn't you? You thought ‘Kathédra’ had fabricated evidence to deceive you. But Sōshi Okutsuki, this page was indeed ripped from the ‘Vampire Tale in the Labyrinth’."

Shut up, you thought.

"You misunderstand the power of memory tampering. It's not just the power to give you experiences and skills. It is the omnipotence of the ‘scenario writer’, to imprint false memories, distort personality, and even control behaviour and emotions."

The words spoken by 'Kathédra' unnerve you, reverberate in halted thought, with a gunky reverberation.

You didn't know anything, you don’t want to know anything, yet the enemy continues to blabber on.

"And the ability to tamper memories isn’t simply a privilege to you. You and this demi-human aren’t the only ones with tampered memories."

Thus, you shout in your heart "shut up" in your mind. The stinging voice then stops,

"Because all this while, before the war against the vampire, ‘Kathédra’ has been…ugh!?"'

The High Daylight Walker's arm pierces Calmia's body.

──The 'Kathédra' has a secret pact with this demon king Arteria after all.

The small, slender palm that had pierced Calmia's chest slowly reels back.

"Ku, hahaha. Even the life of this individual was remains a mere pawn of the 'Kathédra'…gaahhh!!"

"Thank you for your cooperation. Every drop of your blood shall be food to this demon king and 'Kathédra'."

The mortally wounded Calmia loses all strength supporting her body, and collapses onto the frozen surface.

"…Ar, te, ria?"

"Good grief, how foolish you are. Do you still not understand?"

The High Daylight Walker appears from behind Calmia, licking the blood from her fingertips clean and grabs the ‘Vampire Tale in the Labyrinth’ that floats atop the icy bedrock.

Arteria's slender fingers flicks through the pages of the 'book'…

And then she comes to the decisive page.

"The reason why I have tampered my memory and continued to deceive you... "

In this ‘Vampire Tale in the Labyrinth’ opened by her, there reads, in unmistakably large letters,

"For it is written here—‘I am the scenario writer who killed Kai Okutsuki’."

It clearly states the truth you have been seeking for five years.

You feel dizzy.

"…Have you been deceiving me?"

"Kukuku, hihi, ahahahaha! Why would I recall at this moment?"

This dizziness causes you to feel as though your entire world has been turned upside down.

"The words you said when you saved me, the magic you infused into this talisman."

"Kuhihihihihihihihihihi how maddening it is! Hihihi was it I who killed!? Of all people, I!!"

Perhaps it would feel much better if everything was a hallucination, if you were delirious from a triggered Altered Shock.

"Are you saying that all the tears and smiles you showed me were…a lie?"

"Kuhi, kuhihi. No other choice now. There is only one ending at this point."

You continue to ask Arteria with a pleading voice.

"…An-Answer me, High Daylight Walker!!"

But the answer is cruel.

"Die, Sōshi Okutsuki. I shall devour your life and have your offering for my dominion."

Something has broken.

"…ah."

Something irreplaceable that existed between you and Arteria.

"Kuu…!"

With a sound, it crumbles.

"Wooaahhhh!"

You bawl loudly and kick the bookshelf. You then pull out ‘Last Prayer’ from your shoulder mail and rush towards Arteria, screaming.

You feel that you have to stop her before your memories with Arteria can be tarnished, before she becomes the enemy of humanity, even if it means sacrificing the rest of your humanity.

"I’ll stop you…I’ll stop you personally before you dirty your own hands."

But when you tried to grab Arteria—

" ■■■—Execute, Xathrid's Shadow Spear."

A trail of black spears immediately appears from this executed spell, a black line of spears and blocks you.

"Grrr, ahhh!"

Shadowy spear resembling thin black bands pierce through your entire body, sewing you in mid-air. The super-dense spell language (Hi-Enchant), impossible even for human beings to perceive, weave shadow spears in an instant.

(I-Instant chanting…Hi-Enchant…!?)

"Kufufu, how foolish you are? How do you intend to stop the most powerful vampire of the Labyrinth, the 'Silver Night' of Library Labyrinth, this demon king Arteria?"

A shadow rises from Arteria's body, pcking up the ‘Last Prayer of a Thousand and One Pages. Now that this 'book' (Me) has been taken from you, there is no longer any way for you to resist.

"…I believed in you, you know? Your tears, your smile, your words, I believed everything! And yet…you trample on everything, your traitor!"

"Puhahaha! Tears? Smile? These words of I? Have you not noticed yet?"

Arteria's face twists in amusement, screeching in utter joy,

"That ‘Last Prayer of a Thousand and One Pages’ is almost entirely my own creation☆"

Now then, this story shall approach its climax.

"Kuhyahyahya! Now then, even I have forgotten how many pages I have written!"

Have you ever wondered?

Have you ever thought about how the ‘book’ (Me) is merely a novel, a figment of your imagination (fiction), written by someone else?

"There is no way that a demon king will ever cry before her kin! This part shall become a lie (fiction)!"

If you haven't thought about it, won't you think of it now?

"Or perhaps you are reading a 'book' now. The real you may be in bed at ‘Apothecary’, reading a book filled with lies!"

How much of this is real, and how much is fiction?

"Or perhaps you are in Japan, reading the stories your Father brought back with him. What now? Perhaps if you look away from this ‘book, maybe there will be a happy life awaiting you, no?"

A page ago? A hundred lines ago? Or has it all been a lie from the beginning of this story?

"Too bad, Sōshi Okutsuki, but I am the enemy of Kai Okutsuki's avenger who have deceived you for so long…but rest assured. You shall no longer be tormented for eternity."

Arteria gives a maniacal, benevolent smile of extreme tenderness.

"This demon king Arteria, shall burn everything down. ■■■■■──"

The 'Silver Night' of the Library Labyrinth casts a great spell instantly with Hi-Enchant.

And then, within this ‘Last Prayer of a Thousand and One Pages’,

"Farewell, Sō~shi."

She utters her parting words to you.

Mysterious words that the reader (you) definitely can’t recognize continue on over two pages.

After reading the story up to this point, you awoke from this fiction.

"—Haa!! Haah, haa, haaa!!"

The bright morning sun of early summer stimulates your wide-open pupils. The hustle and bustle of the city that saturates the surroundings is mixed with the palpitations of your heart, seemingly echoing in your brain.

"Hah, hah, hah …!"

The devastation that should have been before you just moments ago has vanished without a trace.

The burning rubble has been replaced by a pre-noon terrace café, the smell of flames and blood transformed into the aroma of tea, and the intense pain that had meandered through your body melts away comfortably in the cool breeze.

You lean back in your chair and look around…and see a bustling square with marble sculptures and fountains before you.

"…Alexandria's, central street?"

For a good minute, you look around the street. As it turned out, you’re in a café of in the central street of Library City Alexandria, a park area called ‘Hero’s Square’.

"…Phew!!!! What now? So it’s a story in the ‘book…!? "

The tension eases at once, and you sink your body into the back of the chair.

Through common sense, you’ve determined that a human being hit by the spell of a demon king will die. It appears you aren’t dead yet, so that means the tragedy you have just experienced was a novel.

"…Phew, that was some crazy plot twist. Never thought the High Daylight Walker would be the enemy of the Father that the protagonist has been seeking for five years…"

You toss aside the replica titled ‘Last Prayer of a Thousand and One Pages’— ‘A book that’s written with oneself as the protagonist of a story’, onto the walnut table and sip your tea that’s beginning to cool.

It seems some time has passed since you started reading this novel. Beyond the parasol atop the terrace seats, the crowd passing through the central street has grown more clustered than before.

The morning of the Victory Festival commemorating the Vampire War dazzles brightly in the brilliant sunlight.

"…Hmmm, well I'm eager to continue reading the ‘book’, but I guess it’s about time to meet up."

You finish the remaining tea, stuffs the ‘book’ into your robe pocket, and get up. While you’re curious to see how the novel ends, you can't be reading forever.

"For you are a fifteen-year-old boy attending the ‘Apothecary’, living with the Doctor Magna Kai Okutsuki, who saved humanity at least a decade ago, along you’re your stepsister who was adopted six years ago. "

"And to celebrate humanity’s victory in the Vampire War, you have promised to go shopping with your friends to help with whatever preparations the ‘Apothecary’ require."

"—S-Stepbrother Sōshi!"

"Ah, Erika, over here!"

You turn around upon hearing the voice, and see your ‘stepsister’ sprinting towards you down the main street.

"Huff, huff…go-good morning, stepbrother!"

"Ahaha, good morning Erika. You don’t have to be panic so much. "

Your stepsister (Erika), scampering over like a little animal, exhales in relief as she arrives at your side.

The bangs over her eyelashes leave a childish impression, and her ultramarine eyes looks up at you happily with a cute, sweet smile. These elements are the complete opposite of the Erika in your fantasy novel (fiction) world.

"S-Stepbrother, did Erika make you wait too long?"

"Well, it wasn’t time yet. I was reading the ‘book’ after all."

"…Is-Is it another of those ‘self-insert stories’ again…"

"Are you also … that 'book' (Me) who can enter into the story again?

You reveal the cover of the ‘book’, and Erika timidly pinches your robe. It seems this somewhat brocon stepsister is worried about her stepbrother's (you) infatuation with the 'book' (Me).

"Oh yeah. The new book is called 'If High Daylight Walker is revived in modern times’. Somehow Father was killed by the evil demon king, and I lost my magic and memory."

"Hii…! S-Stepfather is killed…!? Erika hate scary ‘books’! S-Stepbrother, you meanie…!"

"Pfft, you're too easily scared! It's just a story in a fiction."

"…How is Erika…how is that Erika in that ‘book…?"

"After Father was killed, I had to leave Library City Alexandria. Because of that, Erika and I never met, and we became strangers."

"Strang, ers…? N-Noo!"

"Wait, wooahh!? No! Erika!"

The moment you say that you’re both strangers, your little stepsister (Erika) shrieks and leaps into your clutches. Her body, pressing gently upon your chest, is trembling in fear.

"S-Sorry, I didn't mean to scare you that much…"

"Erika doesn’t want to be separated from stepbrother, Erika doesn't want to be alone anymore…! Erika wants to be with stepbrother, even in the 'book'!"

"Erika…I’m sorry, it's fine."

You gently caress the hair strands between the two horns as you calmed your stepsister down.

Erika lost her home six years ago, and was evicted from ‘Kathédra’. If your Father had died five years ago, she probably would have had to overcome the despair of losing her family and her place in the world all by herself. For a sensitive and fragile girl, that truly would be overly cruel, and would have even twisted her personality.

The stepsister (Erika) might have felt so uneasy just from imagining that despair.

"Don't worry…the thing about Father being killed is only fiction."

You pull Erika close and embrace her in a hug. All to protect your precious stepsister from the trauma of her past wounds.

"I will always be with you, Erika. I’ll become Doctor Magna like Father, and I’ll be strong enough to protect you and everyone else…it'll be fine."

"Mugyu…ehehe♪ Stepbrother, you’re so sweet……♪"

Erika smiles happily in your arms. You smile back at her and gently stroke her golden frizzy hair.

"Wapfft!...Fuehehe, wapfft♪, wapff♫ Stepbrother, if you want to care for Erika more, y-you may give Erika a kissy kissy, you know?"

"Woah, hey, don’t flirt around here."

"Muuu, brother and sister can kiss on the cheek…"

Erika giggles happily and tries to brush her lips against your cheek—

"…What are you doing on this crowded street in broad daylight, So-kun, Eriii!?"

"Waarggh?"

The voice of your childhood friend (Calmia) echoing from behind interrupts this sweet atmosphere.

"C-Calmia!?"

"Good morning~ So-kun! …So, what were you were going to do to my little sister…?"

Calmia walks up to you, arms folded, giving you a vicious smile.

Her amethyst purple eyes are reminiscent of the dawn sky. Her dark brown hair is neatly trimmed at her shoulders. The undaunted smile reminiscent of a cat's belongs to your bad friend and Erika's older sister, Calmia.

But the cat ears that so strongly asserted themselves on her head in the fiction novel have vanished, and she is now a pure human, completely uninvolved in the intrigues of ‘Kathédra’.

"No-nope! Erika isn’t trying to run away…well, Stepbrother just read a very scary ‘book’, so Erika wanted to comfort Stepbrother…!"

"Not again! It's obvious that So-kun’s been having lewd thoughts since morning! What are you two planning to do in broad daylight on such this busy central street?"

"N-No no no, I wasn't thinking about that! We were just chatting about the ‘book’!"

"Hmmm? Then what kind of lewd ‘book’ are you reading? Some ‘book’ about making out with this super duper cute Calmia-sama~?"

"S-Sister, that's not a weird dream, that’s a perverted dream!"

Erika’s cheeks are flushed red from shame as she tugs at the hem of Calmia's robe. Although they are half-sisters of the same mother, the personalities of the younger and older sisters are quite contrasting.

"No, it's not such a lewd ‘book’! Well, Calmia does have cat ears and a tail and purrs like the cat tribe and all…"

"Cat ears!? Seriously, are you really fantasizing about me!? Ahh, I’m charging you a fee for using me in your fantasises! I-I did wear cat ears as a disguise before though…ugh, that's so embarrassing!"

While she had planned to tease the relationship between you and Erika, now that topic has been directed at her, Calmia flails her hands while cheeks turned vermillion.

"Ah…speaking of which, it seemed you really wore cat ears before Father conquered ‘Kathédra’."

"…Y-Yeah. That was a tough time. Eri had horns growing from her head, and mother was torn to pieces for adultery, and then even Eri was almost executed…"

Six years ago, Calmia risked her life to save her sister from being executed by ‘Kathédra’. She remained in ‘Kathédra’ thereafter in order to delay the pursuit after her sister, desperately covering the trails. Finally, though, her deception was blown, and she was detained in place of her sister.

"I managed to get Eri out of ‘Kathédra’, but then I got locked up. If Teacher Okutsuki and So-kun hadn't come along, I really don't know where I'd be right now.

"…Sorry, sister. It is Erika’s fault for endangering you…"

"It’s fine it’s fine! Now we’re all in ‘Apothecary’ now, and Teacher has been very kind to us, and…eh, you know, if it hadn't been for that incident, I wouldn't have met So-kun."

Calmia stares at you bashfully with a small blush on her cheeks, her beautiful amethyst purple eyes filled with the color of a secret infatuation.

"…You know, So-kun. I'm still grateful for the help you gave me, you know? If So-kun and Teacher had not been there five years ago, ‘Kathédra’s crimes wouldn’t be exposed, and we sisters could never have lived in peace."

"…Calmia…"

As soon as Calmia blurts out these words, the memories of the last five years come flooding back to your brain.

You remember how while your Father was distracting the main battle mage forces (wizards) of Kathédra, he ordered you to head deep into enemy territory to save Calmia, who was imprisoned in the terrifying prison.

"It is thanks to So-kun that I’m alive today…So So-kun, you don’t have to fight alone like before, okay? I’ll become Doctor Magna so that I can return the favor to you. I won't let you take on this weight alone, So-kun."

Still smiling bashfully, Calmia earnestly swears to you.

Because of her safe rescue, you were able to extract testimonies about the ‘Kathédra’s conspiracy, which ultimately led to your Father’s revelation of ‘Kathédra’s atrocities and subjecting them justice. The survival of Calmia is also proof that the ‘Kathédra’ conspiracy in this world has been prevented from happening.

Unlike the fantasy novel (fiction), Kathédra is no longer the root of all evil and the source of all tragedy.

"…Ah-Ahem! Let's go shopping for the Victory Festival then! Since you’re fantasizing about me, I'll have you carry stuff then, So-kun!"

"No, that wasn’t a fantasy, it’s the story in the ‘book’, you know?"

As you try to clear up the misunderstanding, a bell tolls eight o'clock in the clear sky. At the same time, the fountain sculpture in the ‘Hero's Square’ spurts out fresh water.

"Woah woah, it's already eight o'clock! Ah, lookie look So-kun, that’s Teacher Okutsuki fountain!"

"C-Calmia, don't yell Father's name, it's embarrassing. Come on, let’s go!"

"Ah, S-Stepbrother, Sister, wait!"

You take Calmia's hand and walk around the stone statues glistening with water spurts.

The realistic statues, seemingly the past petrified, are the reason for the square's name.

The long sword in his right hand and the grimoire in his left, the Doctor Magna conquered his enemies with his mighty willpower, and the long-haired vampire, defeated by his wisdom and courage, falls beneath his sword tip.

The marble pedestal supporting the lively statue was inscribed with the inscription.

"The Death of the High Daylight Walker and the Savior Hero."

◇◇◇

"Alright, we’ve bought some artichoke for apple cider, and rose incense for finger water (fingerbowl). All I need is …."

"…Sister, Stepbrother is…!"

"Fuggiii…! Calmia, the stuff is a little too heavy!"

You protest loudly at your childhood friend, unable to endure the weight that is tearing off your arms.

After nearly three hours of walking around the central street of Alexandria to prepare for the Victory Festival, the items you purchased weighed over 30 kilograms.

This bit of weight would’ve been insignificant if you used a ‘storage book’, but unfortunately, Calmia the class president is very strict about wasteful spending, so the luggage bearer (you) always suffer.

"Ca-Calmia, since I bought this 'book' with my own allowance, I can just use the ‘storage book’, right…"

"No means no! The Victory Festival is for the ‘Apothecary’, and So-kun's 'book' is bought by So-kun, and as class president, I’m putting a line between personal and shared! A-And if we use the ‘storage book’, I can’t make So-kun carry stuff around…"

"No, if I didn’t have to carry, I would have been reading the ‘book’ in my room alone."

That's why no can do!"

"…Mmmm, Stepbrother, we can’t use the 'storage book' after all."

"Why!?"

For some inexplicable reason, both sisters forbid you from using the ‘storage book’.

You let out a small sigh and reluctantly lift the luggage and your head.

Then, among the people passing by on the street, you see a familiar face cross the street.

"? Huh, could it be…?"

"…Hm? Oh, isn't that Okutsuki?"

"Ah, what a coincidence, Okutsuki bro. Little sister Okutsuki and prez are here too."

Noticing your mutterings, your classmate, a dog-like boy, turns around in surprise. A gossipy girl walking with him also smiles at the sight of your stepsister (Erika) and her sister (Calmia).

"Are the three of you together to help out with today's Victory Festival? Or have you finally done it with either of them as stress relief after finishing your exams? "

"Fuehh!? S-So-kun, did you do anything to Eri!?"

"Auu!? S-Sister! Do-Don’t grab me, auuu!!"

"…Don’t start off with dirty jokes right off the bat. I haven’t done it with anyone."

You reply to the two bad friends of ‘Apothecary’ with dumbfounded words.

Unlike the protagonist (you) in the fantasy novel (fiction) world, in real life you have grown up in Library City Alexandria, so your relationship with these old friends have been almost a decade long.

Your relationship is close enough to not have any divide, or rather, too familiar for formalities…still, you can say that you are blessed to have them as friends.

"…Say, Okutsuki, I’m a guy who can keep a secret, you know? So which one, the older or younger sister? "

"I’m never trusting you, idiot. I'm busy preparing for the Victory Festival, you know. And anyway, you're a member of the preparation committee, so how about you help me carry stuff since you’re not busy?"

"Alright, leave it to my well-trained muscles, Okutsuki, heavvyyy!!"

"I got to say this though, I’m using sub veins to strengthen my body."

The boy who received the luggage loses half his balance. While he probably has more strength than you do, this weight is not something that can be moved without magic.

"Hmph, grrr, wooooahhhh! No-Not bad Okutsuki…! You’re using the transport spell inherited from Teacher (old man) to move stuff, enjoying your double date with the sisters…but my muscles aren’t going to lose!"

"Yes, enough competition on such a stupid thing. Share half of this with me."

The girl too activates her sub vein and take the luggage from the boy. After all this talk, it appears both are willing to assist in the preparation for the Victory Festival.

"Bro Okutsuki, we just need to move this stuff to the ballroom in the main lecture tower, right? Ah, if there’s other stuff to buy, we can go along too. We got work as part of the preparation committee anyway."

"Eh? Then why didn't you go with us this morning?"

"Ahh, that’s because a certain prez said, 'I'm going out with So-kun, so we'll go separately."

"Wah-wah-wah-wah! So-So-kun, let's go to the next store now!"

"Hey, Calmia, stop pushing me!"

Calmia pushes you on the back, seemingly interrupting this conversation, prompting you towards the guild area of the ‘Apothecary’.

Around the main lecture tower that oversee the sky in the distance, the residences of the ‘Apothecary’ affiliated guilds and allies are clustered together to form a castle town. At the guild gate, the linkage between the stone fortress and the central city, a banner celebrating the Victory Festival dangles there.

"Ohhh, look there. Looks like they’re taking down the scaffolding. Preparation for the Victory Festival seems to be at the very last phase."

"It happens every year after all. When I see those decorations, I know summer vacation has arrived."

The guild gate exceeding 50 meters in height has scaffolding made from the strong timbers of the Library Labyrinth, and the final adjustments to the Victory Festival gate decorations seem to be underway.

While moving slowly through the guild gate, which is crowded with passers-by and other transport creatures (monsters)—

"…S-S-Stepbrother, over there!"

"Eh?"

"So—Someone, stop my livestock!"

You hear a merchant's call for help, and turn around in unison along with the surrounding onlookers.

Creak creak creak! The sound of splintering wood echoes.

The eight-legged one-eyed elephant (Grīmekhala), trying to shake loose its cargo, slams its huge body against the scaffolding that’s in the midst of being dismantled, and you witness the sight of it being crushed.

(Uh oh…the scaffolding will collapse if this continues!)

Instantly, your exploration experience as a Doctor Magna candidate of the ‘Apothecary’ allows you to recognize the critical situation.

The impact that strikes the base of the wooden scaffold causes a huge ripple that bends the entire scaffold, snapping a narrower strip on the upper level. This is a sign of a massive collapse.

"E-Everyone, let’s help out!"

"Wa-watch out!"

Before you can take action, Erika darts forward and arrives next to a girl at the bottom of the scaffold.

"Errrii!?"

"Erika, Calmia, hold down the Grīmekhala with the others!"

You immediately pull out the Express Envelopes and write ‘Right Gate’ and ‘Left Gate’, tying them onto the rope you created with ‘Origami paper’ and send it to the girl.

The ‘Envelopes’ fly into the sky towards the left and right sub gates, pulling the ropes in the air, and barely holding up the scaffolding that was about to collapse toward the plaza.

"Alright, we stopped it! Erika, grab the kid and get out of there!"

"I-It’s dangerous here. Ho-Hold onto this big sister here!!"

"…Erika, above you!"

Erika tries to help the girl who has fallen due to the weird noise. You see that above them, her up. But just above her, you see a toolbox sliding down from a tilted scaffold, and the scattering heavy tools are about to fall.

"Damn it, gotta get there!"

You quickly pull out the ‘storage book’, open a page, and throw it towards the rain of tools. The falling chunks of iron are sucked into the 'book ‘and disappear without harming Erika.

"Woah! S-Stepbrother. Thank you, very much!!"

"Erika, hurry up and get inside my barrier!"

"Guh…! Okutsuki, sorry, the restraints won't hold anymore!"

You run towards Erika and get her into the range of your logic wall, but your classmate's voice ring behind you. The Grīmekhala, having escaped the binding spell of Calmia and the others, leans its head toward you.

"! Hold on, Erika! And pull out a ‘writing paper’ from my shoulder mail!"

"Y-Yes!"

You imbue magic into the sub vein for body strengthening, carrying your stepsister and the girl.

Then, you put your fingers on the grimoire that Erika has pulled out, and begin chanting the spell.

"—Magitzkveins, on!"

"Okutsuki, it’s headed towards!"

"So-kun!"

"O’ the pillar of the sky, foundation of the country, the goddess of storms who guards the Dragon Field!"

At the same time as your classmate's short cry, the Grīmekhala completely shakes off its restraints and begins to charge forward on its eight legs. You stare intently at the body charging towards you, and imbue Mana into the Magitzkveins.

"The atmospheric gods, hear these summons, bind the blades of the wind with invisible arms."

A moment later, the sharp ivory with overwhelming momentum is about to seize your flesh—

"Now to thee I offer this pious prayer,"

"Stepbrother, now!"

"By the grace of the divine storm!"

With a thud, you stomp onto the ground and leap into the air with three people’s weight upon you.

"Execute!"

You aim at the onrushing, raging beast while in mid-air.

"──Bladedge Storm Spear!!"

You unleash an enormous amount of magical power and shoot through the monster with the storm spear.

Vroom! A tremendous gust of wind blows through the plaza.

The storm's chains, charged with magical power, form a vortex that lifts the giant body, restraining it one meter in the air above ground. Furthermore, the precise use of magic connects the joints together, holding up the scaffolding through wind pressure.

"Alright! Everyone, I’ve caught the monster! If anyone’s hurt, please cast healing spells for them!"

You lower Erika and the girl to the ground, calling out to the surrounding crowd.

The passers-by, who had panicked due to the near-catastrophic collapse, exchange looks, only to realize that not a single person’s injured…before applauding in unison.

"…Eh? Th-That’s weird? Is there anyone who needs healing spells …?"

"Okutsuki, looks like you've done well, huh?"

A male student says as he pats you on the shoulder, and at the same time, cheers ruptures around you.

"We-Well done, young man. As to be expected of an ‘Apothecary’ student!" "Hey, let's go hold up the scaffold!"

"Okutsuki, wait, so he’s the hero’s…!" "The son of the Doctor Magna who destroyed the Demon King! This is big news. I’m going to boast to the whole guild that I was saved by the son of the hero!"

"…Big brother, big sister. Thank you for saving my life!"

The girl who was hugged by Erika says so, and bows her head, before spotting someone in the crowd and scampering away.

"…Phew. Well done, So-kun, Eri!"

"S-Sister! E-Everyone looking here…woahwoahwoah!?"

Erika starts to panic due to the relief and shame she feels, and falls flat on her bottom. Warm giggles can be heard around her, and she lowers her head, with even her ears reddened.

"A-Auu…Stepbrother, hide me, hide me!"

"Woah, don't hide behind my back. See, you did something worthy of praise."

You hold your Stepsister’s hand and pull her up. Brrr… you hear a gust of wind in the distance, bang! followed by the sound of an explosion.

The fireworks launched by the pressure of the wind spell depict various colors in the eyes of the onlookers, signalling the arrival of the Victory festival of the Vampire War.

The cheers filling the surroundings intensify, honouring both your Father and you.

"""Hurray for the ‘Apothecary!"""

The sky above the guild gates is filled with daytime fireworks and cheers from the crowd.

◇◇◇

Peeewwwww—bang!!

The midnight fireworks announcing the culmination of the Eve blossoms with Mana in the early summer night sky.

"Wew. Looks like the eve of the festival’s going to end well today again."

You look back at the rowdy students filling the ballroom in the main lecture hall across the balcony, and rest your body against the railing behind you.

Thanks to the recent preparations, the eve of the ‘Apothecary’s Victory Festival went well. Having left the center of the ballroom, surrounded by the sound of stringed instruments leaking from the cloister and the scent of apple cider fluttering in the night breeze, you feel that all your hard work has been rewarded.

"…phew, so peaceful."

You reach your hand out to the night sky in the outermost shell, murmuring so as you savor the tranquil joy.

At this moment, surely everyone living under this sky is hearing the same fireworks as you. Like you, they love the same peace in a world where the High Daylight Walker has been destroyed, and the evil deeds of ‘Kathédra’ has been corrected. You feel truly happy, clenching your fist in the void.

"…I don’t know why, but even though the starry sky isn’t any different from usual, it feels a little kinder today."

The moon shines in the night sky, and a ring of small satellites orbit around Earth’s trajectory, looking so dazzling. The sky is seemingly divided into two worlds, between the shore here and the shore beyond.

"I wonder if it is because I read this ‘Last Prayer of a Thousand and One Pages’."

You murmur, and pull out the ‘Last Prayer’ from the inner pocket of your night tailcoat, leaning your elbow on the balcony railing as you quietly open the leather cover.

"…’Last Prayer of a Thousand and One Pages’. ‘A book that’s written with oneself as the protagonist of a story’."

The story depicted on the page is a fiction that can never happen in reality.

The Doctor Magna's death, Erika's despair, Calmia's tampered memory, ‘Kathédra’s plots, your amnesia, and the High Daylight Walker's betrayal, everything’s a lie.

"…This is good, isn’t it? "

You utter quietly, seemingly letting out your resignation slowly.

The old protagonist of ‘Last Prayer’ wished to be someone who could save others. ‘I wish to be become someone who can save others, because this world is filled with tragedies’. Such a notion he has might be stronger than the you in this world.

Just as there is no resolve without hesitation, no salvation without tragedy.

Just as there is no victory without battle, no happiness without pain.

You feel it’s all a noble prayer that can only exist at the end of deep despair.

"Well, it’s all fiction anyway."

And that's why you can quietly treasure this gentle and peaceful Festival night commemorating the victory over the vampire.

"…Yep. It’s almost time for the closing ceremony. Let’s continue the book later when I return to my dorm room—woah!?"

Just as you are about to close ‘Last Prayer’, a strong gust of wind blows through the outermost shell and snatches the leather cover from your hands.

The 'book', seized by the North African night winds, bumps into the roof of the aerial corridor a few meters below, and the pages’ flutter from the book, vanishing into the night.

"Ahhh—… I haven’t read the ending yet…"

You hang your arms outstretched in the air.

The land breezes blowing toward the sea at night will surely carry ‘Last Prayer’ all the way to the Mediterranean Sea, and scatter it between the beautiful waves.

You will never ever be able to read the ending of ‘Last Prayer of a Thousand and One Pages’.

"…Well, that’s fine. The moment this memory tampering happened, the protagonist (I) has been doomed to die."

Your murmur of resignation blends into the night winds, and you looked back at the balcony leading to the ballroom

"…S-Step, brother?"

"Huh, Erika?"

You look towards the voice calling out to you, and find Erika who appears to have slipped out of the ballroom, with only one eye peeking out from behind a pillar in the corridor leading to the ballroom.

"What's wrong? Is the ball tiring you out?"

"Au, au, th-the ball is fun, but, Stepbrother, you weren’t around, so…"

Erika answers, and teeters up towards you, worrying about the high heels she’s still not accustomed to. She pinches the skirt of her blue night dress, and probably has something she’s worried about.

"…S-Stepbrother. E-Erika is, angry, you know?"

"Eh, why? Did I do something to make you angry…ah, looks good on you. The ultramarine dress is pretty like the wavy ocean at night, and well, Calmia curled your hair, didn't she? It’s rare to see you wear a dress with opened cleavage, but it's very classy with the mana sparkle of the talisman."

"Haauuu!? No-No, this isn’t it, this is not the issue!"

You had assumed Erika’s asking about opinion of her clothes, but she’s flushed red and flailing her arms. If it’s not about her ball dress, why’s she angry?

"That’s not it…! S-Stepbrother, you just…left without saying anything."

"Ah… sorry, so you’re looking for me."

"Y-Yes…Stepbrother, you were next to Erika just now, but it feels like you’re looking at somewhere far away…it’s like…it’s like you’re leaving Erika…"

"That’s stupid, why would I leave you? I’m your stepbrother."

"Wapff!?"

You say this and gently place a hand on Erika's head. Your little stepsister, who’s usually easily appeased, isn’t smiling, and remains anxious looking.

"…E-Even though we’re siblings…it’s because we’re siblings…siblings aren’t lovers, so we may not be able to be together forever, so…!"

Erika says in a small, trembling voice, and then tightens her grip on the sleeve of your tailcoat, before asking you with a certain determination in her deep blue eyes,

"…Stepbrother, will you stay with Erika? Can Erika always be with Stepbrother, in a place, closer than family…?"

"…Erika, are you…"

Upon seeing the sincere passion that shines in the ultramarine eyes, you detect the love hidden deep in the heart of your stepsister. You sense that she yearns for a love beyond that of siblings, beyond that of family, an eternity that is only for the two of you.

"…Eri-Erika is in love. Erika loves Stepbrother!"

"Uu…!"

Your heart aches the moment this love is professed to you.

Ever since Erika became your little stepsister six years ago, you always acted as the older brother. You have always acted not as an equal romantic partner, but as her guardian and senior.

Now, however, Erika is asking you to make a choice not as a stepsister, but as a girl. In return for her biggest love, she is asking you to give her your biggest love.

The one biggest love you can offer to a person.

"…E-Erika, I …"

Somewhere deep in your memory, a whirlwind of unspoken emotions well up within you.

You knew that feeling of ‘love’.

The same feeling that Erika has, a heart that favors someone else moreso than herself. Somewhere inside, you know of that passion to devote your life to only one special person.

(…Yes, I know. One time, I was in love …)

Your heart aches.

It’s the pain of an unspoken love. It is the curse of the lost love.

You have certainly loved someone more than yourself.

And you have a feeling that it's probably, surely, likely,

The feeling you should offer to ‘■■■■■’.

The feeling you should offer to ‘Erika’.

(…I see. I must have been attracted to Erika without realizing it)

Yes, this love probably started out as familial affection.

Not having loved anyone especially in particular, you were attracted to your stepsister without realizing so, and you came to cherish Erika because she’s closer to you than anyone else.

(…Is that, so? I don’t really like anyone else, and Erika likes me, so reciprocating Erika's feelings isn’t really betraying anyone, right?)

Somewhere deep in your chest, you feel an ache again.

You feel that some very important precious memories are being eroded by the love that melts your thoughts like syrup, but the warmth of Erika's body as she hugs you makes it all seem unimportant.

"…Step, brother."

"Erika, I…"

"…If you can't answer, you don’t, have to…"

Erika's slightly heated fingers capture your neck. The ultramarine eyes, reminiscent of the deep ocean, close in seemingly prayer.

"…Because Erika, wants to, kiss you."

Erika's faintly throbbing heartbeat echoes inseparably with yours.

And then, your lips close together, perfectly aligned as one.

"Ka, pfft."

Tinkle.

The gold chain of the crystal talisman wraps around your neck.

"Ugh, gahh!"

Suddenly deprived of the freedom to breathe, you instinctively jerked back.

However, the gold chain entwined with Erika's fingertips tightens with an intensity that seems to be imbued with magical power, entangling you like a shackle.

"Gah!? I-I can’t, breathe…!"

"St-Stepbrother!"

The tightened chain sinks into your neck, as though trying to strangle you. You reach for your neck to escape the suffocation, but are unable to tear off your Father's talisman. So you try to remove the hook at back of your neck, which should be right next to the robe's hood.

"…Eh?"

But the tip of your index finger ends up touching the knot in the taut chain.

At that moment, the gold chain, which had been so tightly entangled, fell off your fingertip.

Free from the chokehold, you gaze silently at the crystal talisman shining in your hand.

"…The talisman’s magic power…"

The crystal talisman, which was given by your Father and never left your body, should have been familiar to you.

Yet for some reason, at this particular moment, it shimmers with the brilliance of Mana, as if though to convey something.

"…A silver, glow."

It is small.

It truly is a small, very small flaw in the story.

The crystal talisman, tinged with magic, should have been a sign of parental love from your Father.

"Silvery white, like a vampire."

It was not the deep blue-purple mana of the Doctor Magna's profound knowledge.

It was shining in a pure silvery-white Mana reminiscent of the High Daylight Walker's pure love.

Suddenly.

A clear hot drop of water drips upon the crystal talisman like blood.

"…It’s different. It’s not this kind of world."

You cry.

You’re crying for ‘someone’ who has been taken from your memory, and can never be reclaimed again. You can’t even remember the reason why you’re crying, and you keep doing so.

"This isn’t it. What I’m looking for, what I swore to get back, isn’t this lie (fiction)."

Somewhere in the far reaches of the world, you heard something akin to paper starting to tear.

With the talisman clenched in your grip, a crease runs through your field of vision, bringing the written fantasy (fiction) to a catastrophic end.

"No."

You hold up the starry silver-white Mana against the blackness of the brush (ink) that erodes the world.

"The one I really loved, whom I truly loved, what I decided to believe in..."

You try to call out the scenario writer’s name of this story.

"It's 'REDACTED'."

"I do not wish for you to remember that, Sōshi."

Crack, and there is a sharp sound.

"!!?"

It is the sound of the world dying.

And so the fantasy that unfolds before your eyes is tearing apart like a piece of paper, reduced to mere scraps.

"You shall forget. You shall remain in the embrace of this eternal paradise, unable to reach the truth of five years ago. To forget everything is your true happiness."

Within the tears of the pitch-black page, the end of this fantasy spreads out to engulf the entire world.

The prearranged story (scenario) is torn...

"This world, after all, is nothing more than a collection of words."

The scenario writer's domain (backstage) is thus exposed before the reader's eyes.

That is a world of black and white.

In the extremely white world, reminiscent of the surface of a book, the jet-black ink that reads ‘scenario writer" form a vortex, and hordes of letters flow along, seemingly depicting the silhouette of the High Daylight Walker.

"Welcome to the backstage of this story (scenario) of I."

At the same time as the mocking voice echoes, countless black dots (ink) coalesced, scribbling words onto a white sheet of paper (page).

You intuitively understand.

This is the core where you’re forced to read the lie (fiction). This is the domain (note) of the scenario writer who writes this story.

"Congratulations, reader. You have broken through the fiction and arrived at the truth. How do you feel? How do you feel now that you have shattered this perfect and happy fiction forever with your own hands?"

"…Horrible. You betrayed me, tampered my memory, and made me believe that the false world constructed only with letters was real. You made such a stupid lie—a stupid fiction come true!!"

"Good grief, how ruthless you speak. Did you not feel very happy even in this a stupid fiction? For it was a fiction written by this talented eater, just as you wished."

As the collection of letters laughs mockingly, the word ‘mockery’ spreads across the white void. What you assumed was reality is simply fiction, a mere mass of letters.

"The reader (you) has longed for a past without tragedy, a future where your Father was not killed, a peaceful world without strike. I, who have sucked your blood and memories, understand this better than anyone."

The head of the vampire is covered with an unnerving huge number of ‘smile’ words.

"Hence, the scenario writer (I) wrote. I have falsified your memory, just as the reader (you) once desired."

"—Th-That’s not it!"

Feeling a rage akin to fear, you interrupt the scenario writer.

"You have lost, scenario writer! No matter what fiction you write, I will never forget the demon king! Your plot to tamper my memory and mislead me is now a piece of white paper!"

Considering the demon king's words, this is a world fabricated by the scenario writer's memory tampering, and that the scenario writer has been attacking your mind by writing false memories.

"I won’t forget…! As a son who lost his father to an assassin (you bastard), as a kin saved by True Ancestor (you bastard), as a person betrayed by a vampire (you bastard), I have to stop the demon king (That guy)!"

Yes. It is the last duty of a human person who fell in love with vampire.

If High Daylight Walker is going to fall into evil, you must fight her. To avenge your Father's death, to prevent your benefactor from turning evil, to abandon your love for the vampire—

You must finish the story of the demon king.

"I don't want this fiction! Give me back my memories, scenario writer!!"

But the scenario writer whispers quietly, seemingly lamenting your will.

"Do you not know? Even your love for ■■■■■■■ is a fiction written by a scenario writer?"

" …Ah?"

Such a devastating blow this is, that it can shatter your fighting spirit at once.

"Congratulations on detecting this fantasy, reader (Sōshi). As you pointed out, this world is fiction…but so? Did you think that I wrote a 388-page 'book' simply to deceive you? "

You assume the scenario writer is attacking the reader's (your) mind.

By writing a perfect and happy fiction, the scenario writer is trying to steal your memory.

Therefore, the scenario writer who failed to falsify your memory should have been defeated by the reader.

"The scenario writer (I) is defeated? Is it the scenario writer (I) who is attacking the protagonist (you)? What a pathetically stupid thing to say. What I am attacking, what I am trying to topple, is the fundamental principle of this world."

But what the scenario writer is attacking now isn’t the protagonist's (your) memory.

"The scenario writer’s story may be too difficult for the reader (you) to follow; I suppose? Allow me to explain so. The truth that I am trying to convey to you by writing this fiction is..."

This is not the mind of the protagonist, nor his memories, nor his existence.

"Even the memory of the original world has been tampered with."

This is a novel that attempts to destroy the memories that the reader (you) believes to be real.

"Wh,a…?"

"Have you ever heard of Kurt Gödel's Second Incompleteness Theorem? What about Self-Reference Paradoxes? What about the Infinite Regression of Munchausen's Trilemma? Kuku, surely you do not know."

"D-Don’t try to fool me! How is this tampered with? This world is supposed to be a fiction!"

"Truly. You are right, this world is fiction. I acknowledge that fact…but so? How can you prove that ‘the world you are in is not fiction’?"

"!!?"

The reader (you), questioned by the scenario writer, is unable to answer.

The reader (you) has a memory of starting with this ‘book’, and that memory’s impossible to tamper. In other words, this novel is fiction, and the reality should exist beyond the novel…yet the scenario writer tells you this recognition too is also all a tampered memory.

Now, reader (you), please remember.

When did the reader (you) start reading 'book'? Where did you start reading 'book'?

Who is the reader (you) reading the 'book'? Does the reader's (your) memory remain beyond the 'book' (Me)?

If the memory remains—

—Is it not a memory that has been tampered with by someone else?

"The scenario writer (I) has tampered with your memories. I have rewritten your memories, falsified your love for I, and implanted false memories about the world from which you came. Just as five years ago, you falsified your own memories to conceal the despair of your Father's death."

"Shut up …! I won’t be deceived by such lies; the original world exists! I believe my memories! I have to stop the demon king!"

"Do you trust your memories? Stop ■■■■■■■? If you truly wished to stop the resurrection of ■■■■■■■, why did you not try to recover the truth? You have been in a position to predict the demon king's resurrection since October 16, five years ago."

"What…?"

Cowered by the crimson eyes, you’re rendered speechless, having lost your momentum to refute.

The High Daylight Walker■■■■■■■—the scenario writer has implanted a falsified memory in your mind, asking ‘why have you forgotten about your encounter with ■■■■■■■ five years ago despite it actually happening’.

"You could have prevented it, could you not? If your memories of the original world are true, then you must have met this ■■■■■■■ on the night of the tragedy. If you have wished to stop ■■■■■■■, could you not have left her to die that night when she was attacked by the murderer?"

Yes. If the original world you remember is true, you must have met High Daylight Walker on October 16, five years ago, in the Atelier where father was killed.

You must have known about the existence of High Daylight Walker, five years ago, that she had successfully taken revenge on Kai Okutsuki for cursing her memory, and her intent to revive as the demon king.

"'Hmmm? If you wish to stop ■■■■■■■, you would not have forgotten. For if you have not lost your memory of five years ago, you could have killed the demon king."

(…I killed the demon king…? Right, if I still have my memory of five years ago, I would have known that ■■■■■■■ was Father's enemy the moment we met in the Labyrinth…!)

"If so, you would not have been infected by the curse of oblivion, and you would not have been murdered by the murderer. You could have avenged your Father's death by destroying ■■■■■■■."

The 'Silver Night' of Library Labyrinth, the talent eater ■■■■■, says so with a devastating smile.

"But you could not, for you fear the truth of five years ago. You discard your memories, relying on your trauma and flashbacks."'

"─!!"

You, who have had the dormant wounds gouged out within you, are confronted and silenced with you weakens.

If your memories of the ‘original world’ are true, then you would have had the opportunity to defeat the evil demon king and save the world. You, whose memories were stolen by the trauma, have instead saved your Father's enemy with your own life.

For you have sealed the memory of that tragic night in a cage of oblivion.

"And so what did you say? ‘I want the truth back’? Kuku, so you fear and reject the truth to the point of warping your memory to forget the truth. It is not because of the power of the ‘book’ or the curse that you lost your memory of five years ago, but because of your own weakness. "

"N-Not at all!! I-I-I’ve been seeking the truth! I'm still seeking it! I didn’t lose my memory because I ran away from the truth!"

"No. You have always wanted to ‘falsify your memory’ ever since that tragic night five years ago. You always yearned to escape from the abominable memories, to be free from the despair of the past. What you truly seek for in the Library Labyrinth is really a book that can rewrite your memories."

"…No…! Why would I…!"

"The proof is, when you obtained ‘Last Prayer’, you did not write down that you ‘regained your memory of five years ago’. If you had, you might have been able to stop this demon king, but your weakness, your fear of the truth, kept you distant from the truth."

"…, I, I…!"

(How didn’t I try to obtain a memory of five years ago when I have a book that can falsify memories…!?)

"You verbally state to seek the truth, yet you are unwilling to know it. For you are afraid. If Kai Okutsuki died because of you—it would be as if you had killed with hundreds and thousands of people with your own hands, lives you could have saved had Kai Okutsuki lived."

"S-Stop it! Shut up, I!!"

The demon king sneers viciously and proclaims,

"—Thus, you chose to flee. You have fled from the death of Kai Okutsuki, from the resurrection of the demon king, and from your own sins, into the flashback of darkness. It is you who falsified the truth of five years ago."

"What…aaaaaahhhhhhh…"

The trauma that has tormented you has been a memory tampering that you yourself wished for.

"Do you now understand? The reason why you could not stop ■■■■■■■ is your weakness. You ran away from the truth that you had to face and falsified your memory."

(…I have to stop ■■■■■■■…but are they really my memories? Isn’t it ■■■■■■■ who implanted false memories inside me? No. Is ■■■■■■■ real? Isn't that a character in this novel written up by a scenario writer…?)

"Yes, truly you can no longer trust even your own memory. You have betrayed thy own memory. You are too terrified to think ‘that your mind may be broken if you recall’, and so you distorted you own memory and flee from the truth. This doom is the wages of your wickedness, and you shall be justly judged."

The scenario writer exposes the darkness of your mind and torments you, trying to break even your last remaining beliefs by admonishing you repeatedly. She is seemingly judging the sin of memory tampering by tearing your heart out.

(… Did I commit a sin? Is it a punishable sin to wish to falsify painful memories and rewrite the despair of the past…?)

"Truly. Falsification of memory is a vice. Memory tampering to erase past despair is especially so. Therefore, you shall lose your Father’s teachings, your magic, your dreams, and even your own beliefs, the ‘book’ of the original world (memories) that are worth remembering, and continue to be imprisoned in this fiction till death."

(…Did I run away from the truth? …Didn’t I return to Library City Alexandria after five years to retrieve the truth and become Doctor Magna for that purpose?)

"If you never wanted to become a Doctor Magna, would the words that you always mutter merely be a self-suggestion? After all, if you keep proclaiming that you wish to continue your Father's legacy, you can mitigate the fear of ‘the truth that Kai Okutsuki may have died because of you’. This is nothing but shallow self-delusion."

(…Is my wish ‘to become a person who can save others’ a falsified memory? But I believe in the existence of Sōshi Okutsuki (me)…)

"If you truly believe in yourself, you should have stood your ground. You should have fought. Hopelessness, hurt, and truth are the trials you have to overcome to believe in yourself. Yet you fled. You have encased everything in a cage of oblivion and fled into amnesia."

(…Maybe I escaped. Because if I had remembered my memories from five years ago, I would have been able to stop ■■■■■■■’s resurrection…but I couldn't.)

"Truly. You wished to tamper with it. Ever since that night five years ago, you have always wished to falsify your memories, to keep the cruel truth away, to drown in a gentle fiction. Congratulations Sōshi Okutsuki, this world of nothingness (fiction) is the end of the salvation you wished for."

You remain adrift in a dizziness of surrealism, continuing to be exposed to the denunciations of the scenario writer.

The ‘scenario writer’ knows. She has sucked away your memories, knows where to pierce your heart to make it bleed based on the ‘collection of words’, and where to punch it to break it.

"Now, time to pull back the curtain on the story. If the backstage remains exposed, surely the readers will be bored out of their minds."

"U, ah, …!"

As soon as the word ‘grimoire’ seemingly coalesce in the scenario writer's hand, a "book" (Me) is formed. The virtual persona (character) prepared by ■■■■■■■, the mastermind behind everything in this world, is trying to bury the entirely flawed story by killing the protagonist along with the reader (you).

"This shall be the end of the reader's (your) prayer. This scenario writer has written a perfect and happy fiction simply to fulfill the reader's prayer. If it displeases you so, then the scenario writer (I) will gracefully put down her pen."

The scenario writer whispers a farewell, and the grimoire glows.

"This moment shall be your judgment, Sōshi Okutsuki, the reader and protagonist of scenario writer (I)."

The collection of letters called ‘scenario writer’ emanates an enormous amount of ‘magic power’ and begins its ‘chanting’.

""O’ the pillar of the sky, foundation of the country, the goddess of storms who guards the Dragon Field!"

(…A, chant…! Got to counterattack…!)

You instinctively try to pull out your grimoire, but your fingertips, extended to your right shoulder, misses completely. It is then that you realize your body has become a whirlpool of information formed by the many words ‘you’.

(I don’t have a grimoire!… No, even if there is one, I can’t use magic! Because my magic, along with my memories of five years ago!)

""The atmospheric gods, hear these summons, bind the blades of the wind with invisible arms.""

The scenario writer of this story, the master of a world devoid of trauma, continues to chant cheerfully, as if to mock you for losing your magic due to trauma.

(…I'm definitely going to be killed if this keeps up… but even that death may be a fiction. I have falsified my memory, and there’s nothing else I can believe …)

You can’t act. You can’t solidify your will. Because you have falsified your memory.

You can’t believe the truth. Because you have falsified your memory.

You can’t believe in ideals. Because you have falsified your memory.

You can’t believe in yourself. Because you have falsified your memory.

And if even your feelings for ■■■■■■■ are just a fiction, a mere novel—

Then you can’t believe in any meaning of fighting the scenario writer.

"Let the blades of the wind cut down all who oppose me!"

You can’t believe anything, and the chant finishes.

The scenario writer unleashes a spell onto the reader (you).

"Execute──Reverse Red Blades!"

With a snap.

The ‘extreme pressure difference’ created by the spell cut through your chest.

"Gah…ughh!?"

(My body, is…!)

Your body, struck by the ‘vacuum blade’, bursts open from the inside, spewing out ‘blood’. Your skin is ripped open, your ribs are broken, your exposed lungs are sliced open like ajar doors.

You collapse into a world of pure white.

"Ack…!? Haa…ahem!? Hii, Huu, huuu—!"

"Mu…not a fatal blow. Perhaps I cannot use all my power given that I am an existence constructed from your own memories. Kufufu, boring it is however to let you die immediately. You shall rot and die."

You see your fingertips being eroded by the many words of ‘death’.

You’re rapidly approaching death due to massive blood loss and breathing difficulties.

(Death…? Is the existence of Sōshi Okutsuki, all my feelings…ending?)

Shiiinnn.

The crystal talisman, severed off by the wind, rolls in the white fiction and rings away like a funeral bell.

You are dying.

With nothing to believe in, with nobody to believe in.

You will die, betrayed by memory, deceived by the High Daylight Walker, judged by the scenario writer.

For your own sin of tampering the memory of despair and trying to flee the truth.

(…Is this karma…? Is this my punishment for thinking I could falsify my memory and conveniently rewrite my own memory …?)

You realize your failure and ruin, and recall the past as your consciousness drowns in blood.

(…Maybe I was wrong. Maybe my subconscious desire to rewrite the despair of the past has robbed me of my memories, destroyed my magic, and kept me away from the truth…)

If you hadn’t lost your memory. If you hadn’t fled from the despair of the past and faced the truth, you might have been able to stop ■■■■■■■ from becoming the demon king of darkness.

You might have stopped ■■■■■■■'s dominion—and lived with her.

"■■, hyuuuuh, ■■■…!"

Amidst your mortal pain, you gasp and repent with blood-colored tears.

(…It’s my fault…If I had sought the truth, I could have stopped ■■■■■■■ before she became the demon king, and, before ■■■■■■ sinned.)

It is only now that you realize that you love ■■■■■■■.

Even in this perfect and happy world, Erika, Calmia, friends, Father, magic, dreams, everything was being meaningless without ■■■■■■■.

If a miracle can happen at this moment and bring ■■■■■■■ out of the darkness, you’ll be willing to pay whatever the price.

You wish you can be the one to save ■■■■■■■, even if the cruel truth hurts you.

And yet you’re about to die, unable to even remember ■■■■■■■.

"…■■, hyuu, ■■…ack, hyuu…"

At the end of your story (this world), the memory of the vampire, your last love, flickers like dying lights.

"I, love, you."

The fingertips, extended in trembling despair, gently caress the side of the crystal.

"…■■, ■■■."

‘Timed memory shall begin to thaw.’

Clink.

At the end of this dying thought, at the very back of a brain that’s almost silenced, the sound of gears whisper.

"…Eh?"

Instantly, with a shattering sound, Creak! Mana gushes from the talisman touching the fingertips with a crushing sound. The magic power seemingly explodes to form a silvery-white vortex that coalesces before your eyes.

The trump card in your memory, the crystal talisman with absolute protection.

The magic of the True Ancestor sealed within it seem to explode within the white void and fill the entire space, projecting a vampire onto your nearly sealed vision.

Her hair is a silver wind. Long hair, shiny like silk, spreads to cover the white skin.

Her shining eyes are jewels of blood. The twin eyes, dyed in the red of fresh blood, are as clear as polished rouge.

Fluttering upon the white backstage is the High Daylight Walker...

"…And yet you say you love me once more."

She turns back towards you with the same brilliant smile as the vampire you love so much.

The scenario writer formed of black letters, raising a grimoire with a murderous intent,

And the vampire, standing to protect her kin, appears as the white Mana.

The two ■■■■■■■ figures stand tall, each seemingly asserting on being the real one.

"…■, ■, ■■■■…?"

"I-Impossible. There is no such thing as a ‘timed memory’! For this scenario writer (I) has falsified the True Ancestor's memory! The personality and memory of the High Daylight Walker should have been erased from memory!"

"…W-Why? ■■■■■■■…betrayed me…"

You mutter dumbfoundedly while still prone on the domain let out a mutter of oblivion as you collapsed in a blank domain.

The scenario writer, faced with the vampire, shrieks in shock as though she has discovered a fatal flaw in her own story.

"The story (scenario) of the author (I) should be perfect! This Memory Tampering is the ‘scenario writer's omnipotence’, capable of implanting false memories, distort personalities, and control behavior and emotions! So why is the True Ancestor…?"

"Truly. ‘Vampire Tale in the Labyrinth’ is a 'book' that falsifies the memories of others and manipulates at will by rewriting what they know. Once captured by its magical power, memories that have been tampered shall be tampered again, and those with falsified personalities shall not resist, making it a grimoire of absolute domination."

The phantom of ■■■■■■■ flickering in the pure white void looks upon you with deep red eyes, and says,

"Therefore, I have engraved in your memory. The memory to destroy the demon king’s story, within the most beloved kin of this True Ancestor (I)."

She had included the foreshadowing of ‘you’ in this story.

"…I-In, my, memory …!"

"Kuu…! High Daylight Walker, did you implant memories of the True Ancestor within Sōshi Okutsuki (protagonist)?"

"Truly. Memory tampering is the ‘omnipotence of scenario writers’, and can even create memories that are destroyed through memory tampering."

"Wh-what…■■■■■■■!!! You have been deceiving me, haven't you!?"

"No. The True Ancestor (I) bound to this timed memory, can never betray you. The one who fooled you is the personality of the demon king fabricated by ‘Kathédra’—the vampire with false memories!"

—Yes, that's right. These two ■■■■■■■ cannot be the same entity.

The demon king is a scenario writer of slaughter who tries to falsify your memories by writing a perfect and happy fiction.

And the True Ancestor is a scenario writer of a love story waiting for her redemption, believing in you even in this imperfect and tragic reality.

‘Last Prayer of a Thousand and One Pages’ is not a fiction written by one scenario writer—

"…■■■■■■■. Are you, maybe…!"

"You. There are two scenario writers in this story!"

True Ancestor and Demon King, two scenario writers, are competing to write a novel with different endings.

"■■■■■■■ had her memory falsified?"

Clink.

The gold chain that trembles in your clenched fist rings out in affirmation of you.

"So the demon king (you) betrayed me because someone had imprinted a false memory?"

It is a foreshadowing set up in the story.

The vampire who betrayed you has left a talisman of absolute defense to release you from your tampered memories (fiction), causing a definite narrative contradiction.

"So the True Ancestor (you) saved me by inscribing a true memory on me, didn't she?"

What if ■■■■■■■ is a scenario writer?

What if she’s the mastermind behind this story, the one who twisted your life, wrote all the foreshadowing, and conspired to bring the return of the Demon King and his dominion over the world?

Then the crystal talisman, once gifted to you by the Doctor Magna, granted life again by the High Daylight Walker—

"—■■■■■■ believed in me all along, didn't you?"

Can’t possible give a glow of the silver-white Mana.

"…■■■■■■■. You are no demon king of darkness…!"

The dying heart, the story that was almost over, is set in motion by a burning love affair.

The True Ancestor wrote a ‘memory that breaks through the memory tampering’, and the silver-white magic gushing from the crystal talisman shall gradually awaken you from the fiction written by the demon king.

"…■■■■■■ believed in me. Even though I betrayed even my own memory…!"

You are the foreshadowing of this story.

The protagonist whose memory True Ancestor has inscribed into to defy the demon king's plan and rewrite the ending.

"Kuu…so I shall settle through force! O’ the pillar of the sky, foundation of the country!"

"…This time, I believe!"

You place the talisman on your chest and unleash your own Magitzkveins.

"The atmospheric gods, hear these summons, bind the blades of the wind with invisible arms…"

To regain the memories and magic that were once lost, to destroy this perfect and happy fiction, by overcoming your traumatic memories—to go save the True Ancestor.

"Execute──Reverse Red Blades!"

In the face of the oncoming wind blade, you draw all your magical power from the Magitzkveins, seared with the memory of despair, and imbue it into the crystal talisman.

You shout the name of the vampire you believe in.

"──Arteriaaaaaaa!!!"

Giiiiiiiiiinnn!

A high-pitched ‘interference sound’ echoed in the white darkness of the scenario writer's domain (backstage).

A logic wall resembling a mandala expands upon a page, and a one-meter radius space centering from the talisman tears through the fiction like a thin sheet of paper.

"Wha…gyaaaaaahhhh!"

Girigirigiri. The ‘scenario writer’ is torn apart with a cracking sound.

The bundle of words that form the ‘scenario writer’ and the final shackles that bind you shriek as they are sucked into the page crack.

"…Everything’s been tampered with. Both the reader (I) and the scenario writer (Arteria)."

You watch the jet black words fade away with hatred, and the silvery white of Mana, descend upon you lovingly, feeling that you’re beginning to understand everything.

Just as your love for Arteria revives your dying heartbeat.

Just as Arteria’s love for you breathes life into an almost finished story.

You will awaken from the darkness of tampered memories, bathed in the light called Arteria.

"…You may have realized the truth now. Both your memories and I have been tampered with by ‘Kathédra’."

The image of a vampire projected by magic informs you while seemingly swallowed by the collapsing world.

"…The whole story is a conspiracy hatched by a scenario writer. And you are the kin written in by the High Daylight Walker to rebel against this story, and rewrite the ending."

"…Yeah. I understand everything."

Yes, you have understood.

You are a character created by a scenario writer (Arteria), a person whose memories have been falsified by the ‘omnipotence of the scenario writer’, whose personality has been controlled, whose life has been rewritten according to the wishes of the True Ancestor—

And you are the protagonist of this story with the truth implanted in your memories to save the vampire (Arteria).

"… I won't run away anymore. Even if my memory runs out, no matter what trials await me."

In the depths of the fading ‘fiction’, the silver-white Mana is swallowed up by the end.

"Arteria, I will bring back the True Ancestor (you) from the tampered memories."

You mutter, seemingly vowing to the time-limited memory the True Ancestor engraved.

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