I Will Protect My Brother - Chapter 122

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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Chapter 122
[Purifying the soul means erasing all traces of the life the spirit has lived, returning it to a state as pure as a newborn child.]
Losing my memories and reverting to a newborn state.
Just as Rosien lost all memories of living as Rozentia, would I too—Rosien and Rosy both—be forgotten by myself?
“Then I would forget who I am as well?”
[At first, yes. But it’s only a temporary measure, so there will be memories that surface unconsciously as you live. Though they won’t be the same as now.]
Urs answered gravely.
[What disappears and what remains differs from person to person. Since you’ve lived three lives, I suspect one of your three selves might survive.]
“Different for each person? Has there been precedent? What about the risks?”
[Among the outsiders who fell here, I’ve purified the souls of those who suffered too greatly accepting reality. So you needn’t worry about becoming more dangerous than now. And truthfully, from what I see….]
Urs examined me carefully, then shook his head with regret.
[Forgive me for saying so, but I see no other way for you. If you leave this world entirely, then nothing can ever be undone.]
There was nothing more to say. Either I would die trapped in this wretched body, accomplishing nothing, or I would forget my entire past life and start anew.
Those were my only two choices.
* * *
Wind from the valley blew up from beneath the cliff.
Two months had already passed in this land’s time since I fell into Alfheim. In that span, the warm spring sunlight that had caressed my ears transformed into intense summer rays.
The verdant foliage rushed toward its peak.
Since first climbing this valley where the Dimensional Rift existed, I sought this place whenever I had the chance.
The moment I reached the cliff’s edge, I cast aside the branch I’d used as a cane. As habit dictated, I fired a flash of light into the Dimensional Rift before collapsing onto the grassland. There was no pain, but my breath came short.
“This feeble body can’t even manage this much exertion.”
Dizziness crept in from oxygen deprivation. I tried to wipe the sweat beading on my forehead with the back of my hand, but my finger caught on the frame of my glasses.
Urs had lent them to me after witnessing me stumble and crash about inside the house. With the glasses on, at least the world appeared clear.
A vision as if through cold water, touch still rough as sandpaper, sleep that wouldn’t come even after staying awake for days on end, the sense of smell and taste that never returned.
“I can’t keep living like this.”
A refreshing breeze tousled my hair and swept away.
I curled my body and rolled onto my side. I retraced the conversation I’d just had with Urs.
“That won’t do. I must continue living as I am now.”
[Is it because someone waits for you in Rahnar?]
“Yes. If I lose all my memories, I won’t be able to go find him.”
[Hmm, if your beloved is the one who resurrected you, it might be better to sever that bond now.]
“Why?”
[A life spent with one who defies natural order cannot end well.]
Urs had taken a visible dislike to Kalian from my brief account alone.
I understood his perspective. Elves were a race born from nature, living alongside it, and returning to it in the end.
They listened to the voice of the earth, surrendered themselves to the wind from the sky, and lived befriending sunlight and water, soil and wood.
With souls so pure, beings like Kalian who carried The End and chaos could never be comprehended.
[It’s foolish enough to defy nature’s laws, but to desire eternity? Finite beings must not long for eternity. And you’ve already paid the price—died twice, nearly died a third time.]
“That’s true, but….”
[Could you repeat such things infinitely? Forever?]
“Having experienced it three times, wouldn’t the next one be somewhat easier?”
[Good grief, this young lady isn’t entirely sane either.]
I couldn’t help but sigh.
“You’re telling me. Kalian Wynack—what in the world is he thinking? If he’d just let it all go and live here, everything would be peaceful and comfortable…”
In truth, even if I erased my memories, restoring my sorcerous power and knowledge wouldn’t be difficult. Everything belonging to Rosien Wynyak and Rosien Wynack was stored within my Planetarium, so I only needed to purify my soul and open it afterward.
The crucial part was emotion.
‘If I forget everything, the very motivation that compels me to return to Rahnar will vanish as well.’
Naturally, my affection and love for Kalian would disappear too. No—it wasn’t merely a matter of that. His existence would be completely erased from within me.
All the conversations we shared, every moment we spent together, the feelings he confessed and I understood, what we gave and received from one another.
And this longing I feel right now—all of it.
‘I want to see him… I want to go see him right now.’
But a question Urs had casually posed lingered in my mind.
[Does it have to be you who seeks her out? Can’t you hope that she comes looking for you?]
“…”
[From where I stand, you shouldn’t be worrying about and caring for others right now—you need to care for yourself first. If that lover of yours truly loves you, he’ll naturally come looking for you.]
I had never thought of it that way, but his words weren’t wrong.
If I cannot go, then he can come.
[If you’re truly fated to be together, you’ll meet again no matter what.]
As Urs said—even if my soul returns to a state of pure white and I begin everything anew, would we meet again?
Of course we would, without a shadow of doubt. I may not fully understand my own feelings, but I was certain that Kalian would find me again.
Then there was no reason to hesitate.
I buried my face in the grassland, breathing in the faint scent of grass deeply, then suddenly sat up.
“Fine. Since there’s no other way anyway, I might as well try.”
I folded the Planetarium that had been hovering in the air. Instead, I kindled a tiny flame in the palm of my hand.
It was a fragment of the soul fire Kalian had given me.
The sparks couldn’t maintain their original lotus shape and scattered into individual petals. I sent them through the Dimensional Rift.
“Come find me once more.”
The Dimensional Rift rippled and swallowed the sparks.
“Find me again, and make me fall in love with you once more. Kali.”
If, even after everything returns to the beginning, I come to love you again, then that will be when the truth of this feeling is finally revealed.
Though I commanded it as if I had no regrets, my heart was clouded with sorrow. I clasped my hands tightly together and prayed with greater desperation than ever before.
‘Even if I cannot return to you, please come find me. I beg you.’
After a long while, I turned my back on the Dimensional Rift.
I started descending the cliff, then suddenly ran back up, and with all my remaining strength, I cried out one final time.
“Don’t forget my ring—bring it with you!”
* * *
Rahnar Calendar Year 1464.
Kirges Observatory in Delpiam.
The Transcendents gathered in Delpiam for the first time in a long while. It had been five years since their last assembly.
“Welcome, Wynack.”
“Long time no see, Kirges. Is everyone inside?”
“Yes. Whezel and Yeljewa arrived first. However, that… person did not come.”
Alpien glanced toward the empty space behind Owen.
“Has Young Wynack still not returned to Abuye?”
“He hasn’t come. I haven’t seen him in quite some time either. Judging by the flames that have been erupting from the Nemada Kingdom recently, I suspect he’s been there.”
More than five years had passed since Rosien Wynyak vanished without a trace. From that moment onward, Rahnar had been consumed by raging infernos day after day.
Flames that would not extinguish until their target was completely incinerated swept across every corner of the planet, devouring the darkness. Wherever the tendrils of the Lost Soul extended, everything burned indiscriminately.
Yet the one who ignited this catastrophic fire moved unpredictably. Only rumors spread of a breathtakingly beautiful young man with golden hair and crimson eyes, and wherever he appeared, flames erupted.
“Still, it’s a blessing that he doesn’t indiscriminately devour both people and beasts.”
Rosien Wynyak’s complete dedication to reformation was not entirely in vain—the flames of the catastrophe faithfully tracked and apprehended the Lost Soul.
Honestly, none of the Transcendents had anticipated that Kalian Wynack would be so compliant and cooperative.
But since no one could predict how long this would last, they had to find clues about Rosien Wynyak’s whereabouts as quickly as possible.
And finally, they achieved results.
“Kirges. Have you discovered something?”
“Look at this.”
The massive telescope at Kirges Observatory illuminated the night sky. The entire cosmos was projected onto the Planetarium above.
Alpien pointed toward the east with his finger.
“Do you see that flickering light there? It first appeared about a month ago, and since then it’s been observed irregularly but consistently. Like a signal someone is sending.”
“A signal? Could it be… Rosien?”
“I cannot say for certain. But wouldn’t it be worth investigating? Young Wynack has been quite emphatic about not overlooking even the smallest clue.”
“Have the coordinates been confirmed?”
“Yes. It’s one of two locations.”
Alpien snapped his fingers. Two names appeared beneath the intermittently twinkling point.
[Mercedes]
[Alfheim]

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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