Volume 10 Chapter 49 Collapse Of The Red Moon
Little SylSyl sparkles and fades away in my arms.
SylSyl's emotions, her memories, come through so painfully, and I can't help but cry.
"Thank you, Lydia. I'm glad it was you who came to me."
"SylSyl..."
"Even though I've been alive for so long, and I'm much older than you, it feels nice to be called that."
SylSyl's words, her voice, and the echoes of them seem to linger in my eardrums forever.
With my empty hands, I hug my body.
"SylSyl...!"
"Lydia!"
Before I could even soak in the lingering sadness and sense of loss, many red hands reach out toward me and Sir Stefan from within the inner sanctum of the red moon.
Sir Stefan slashes through them with his holy sword, pushing them away.
"The powerful magic of Goddess Alexandria is still lingering. We need to escape before we're trapped! If the red moon collapses, we'll vanish along with it."
"SylSyl..."
"Sylphina has disappeared. She must have been saved by Lydia."
Sir Stefan takes my hand.
I stand up as he pulls me along.
The floor inside the red moon is crumbling rapidly from the back.
The collapse is getting closer.
Beyond the ruins, the sky opens up wide.
"Wow..."
"Lydia, run!"
Sir Stefan slashes through the large hands trying to grab us, creating a path.
But──where are we supposed to escape to? The entrance of the red moon, where we came in, is closed, and all I see ahead is a dead-end wall.
The ground beneath us is crumbling.
Sir Stefan and I are thrown into the air from the collapsing floor.
My hair and clothes flap wildly in the wind pressure.
What spreads out before my eyes is our beloved land, stretching from Bernard Kingdom to Kirschtein.
I can see mountains in the distance.
Next to the Holy Capital, the sea spreads out.
Duke Girard's territory, Edelstein.
And beyond that, there's Elgard, where my Elder Brother Chrisrain lives, a place I've never been to.
The Bernard Kingdom is vast, and I only know a tiny bit about it.
The places I've been to are just a handful.
There are so many people living here, and not just people──animals, plants, all sorts of things are alive.
There are plenty of painful, sad, and tough times.
But──just as much, there are also many happy and fun moments.
I want to protect my place.
My homeland, where my loved ones live.
Even the people I don't know cry and feel down every day, but they also laugh and find joy.
They love someone, argue with someone, worry, and play as they go through their days.
"Please, Goddess Alexandria! Lend me your strength one last time, the power to heal everyone!"
The crumbling red moon falls to the earth faster than I and Sir Stefan do.
When a huge piece of the red moon falls, something terrible is bound to happen.
The land will be hurt, and the people, plants, and animals living on it won't be safe.
"I've granted Goddess Alexandria's wish! So now, please listen to my wish!"
I'm okay with losing the power of a Saint.
If I have strength, I'm willing to give it all up.
I want to protect everyone, this country, this land.
My body is enveloped in light.
My body, which was only falling, gently floats up.
Is it my prayer, or is it the power of Goddess Alexandria responding to my wish? The crumbling red moon transforms into macarons, cupcakes, chocolate torte, and mille-feuille, raining down sweets all over the Kingdom.
From the form of a large dragon, the slightly smaller Mer-Mer catches Sir Stefan on their back and stands beside me.
"Lydia..."
"Ms. Lydia!"
"Lydia!"
Sir Stefan's voice overlaps with the voices calling for me.
With his gem-studded wings and tattered clothes, Sir Ciel flies over to me, arms wide open.
Mr. Lucian, riding Fafnir, also comes flying my way.
On Fafnir, there are Nel-Nel, who has returned to her rabbit form, and Med, who has turned back into a lizard-like shape.
"Sir Ciel, Mr. Lucian! Nel-Nel, Med...!"
I see the figures of everyone who lost their lives, wounded and collapsed, under Sylphina.
I know it's an illusion, but still, somewhere in my heart, those images remain like dark stains.
Realizing they are safe brings me relief, and the tears that had stopped flowing start to overflow again.
The light that had wrapped around me fades, and I gently fall from the sky.
Sir Ciel catches me, and while holding me, he lands on Fafnir.
"We're over the limit, Ciel."
"Thanks for the save, Lucian. I managed to avoid showing a pathetic sight by falling while hugging Ms. Lydia."
"Is the Mysterious Demon King out of magic too?"
"It seems the Star's Fallen Reaper couldn't bring down the moon either."
"Um, um!"
As the two start bickering, I chime in.
"Ms. Lydia, I'm so glad you're safe. Welcome back!"
"Welcome back, Lydia."
After sharing a wry smile, they give me gentle smiles.
"Yes! I'm back, I'm home...!"
I smiled back brightly.
I intended to smile, but I wasn't sure if I really was.
But even if it was a smile mixed with tears, I knew──my precious people would accept it without a single grimace.
Just thinking that made me happy.
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