Chapter 572 — Arc 8, Chapter 60 – “Witch”

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The Crystal Palace of the Imperial Capital of Lupugana, in the place that was formerly its audience chamber, the shinobi who had snuck in, Olbart Dunkelkenn, waved his right arm that was missing from the elbow down, and frowned his white eyebrows.

Olbart: [Finally stopped movin’, eh? Jeez, that makes a geezer like me feel way too depressed.]

In front of Olbart as he slowly shrugged his shoulders and heaved a sigh, was the grotesque figure that caused the shinobi old man to become fed up―― its form had been altered in a repulsive manner, to the extent that it would be ridiculous to even call it an undead; what remained of that grotesque thing’s face was sprawled out across the floor.

Olbart considered his treatment of that bizarrely abhorrent thing to be an assistance.

The undead were resurrected with their memories intact. In addition, in order to resurrect the undead, the Mana of the Stone, Muspel, who dominated the vast lands of the Empire, was being expended. ――Therefore, he had been ordered to keep the killing of the undead to a minimum.

Olbart: [Even so, it was better ta kill it. It’s way too awful if it makes me think that way.]

Valuing human life or having mercy towards the weak, that leeway that only people with such room in their hearts possessed, was something that Olbart, who did not have much time left, had already discarded a long time ago.

For Olbart, the audience chamber―― no, this experimentation ground of “souls”, had gone too far.

Olbart: [Reminds me of the bunch who made Araki, this way of doin’ things. Even tho’ it wasn’t for fun or for revenge, I couldn’t bear ta dispose of it ‘cause they nerve ta do this kinda thing. They were dealt with, tho’.]

In Olbart’s mind as he spilled those words, an unmatched, unorthodox group who he had dealt with in the past emerged.

In order to produce the perfected Spirit Eater known as Arakiya, those criminals had sacrificed an enormous amount of people, and had said that their actions were out of a sense of duty, that it was for the sake of the Empire’s future.

This horrid scene inside the audience chamber―― something had tampered with the souls of the undead resurrected in earthen vessels, something that had been mixed into their souls, something that had transfigured them. It was not for the sake of winning this war, but a barbaric act performed for an objective that completely disregarded the imminent victory or defeat. Within the details that had produced those grotesque forms, he could feel a curiosity that desired results, utterly detached from emotion, similar to that of the unorthodox criminals.

And the objective of that curiosity was understood by Olbart with a single touch.

Olbart: [――Ya got some nerve ta try n’ tamper with souls.]

Olbart often used a shinobi technique that would interfere with the souls of others―― with their Ods, and cause them to shrink. Chisha had also stolen and made use of it; however, that technique only touched upon the outer layer.

But, this inquisitive mind desired results that went beyond just that.

What exactly those results were, Olbart, who did not know the curious individual in question, had no way of knowing, but――,

Olbart: [I get a reeeal~ bad feelin’ ‘bout this, Yer Excellency. ――I guess there really ain’t the room for my betrayal after all.]

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――During the Demi-Human War, the Demi-Human Alliance was defeated, and the individual Sphinx was defeated.

In regards to that defeat, Sphinx did not have many words to say.

She had lived for over three-hundred-and-fifty years, but most of those days and months had been spent hiding away, continuing to exhaust her everything just to survive; Sphinx was no match for the opponent, who had resolved and trained themselves to kill her.

If she were to speak of the events that had happened, that would be the entirety of the story.

To be honest, within Sphinx’s mind, as she was defeated by the disciple of the Witch of Greed, faced with certain death, there were still no particular emotions.

In the first place, she had no attachment to her own life. The many years she had spent exhausting herself to prioritize her own survival were just because she thought that was rational in order to fulfill the purpose of her creation.

And then, when it seemed like she was going to disappear without having fulfilled the purpose of her creation, what she had possessed until the end was the instinct to flee, as it was difficult to abandon that purpose.

That was why she fled to the basement of the Royal Castle of Lugunica, which had become the grounds for a decisive battle; the fact that she displayed the willpower to break away from the Witch of Greed’s disciple there, was also a result of following her instincts.

It was merely that, that escape sequence, in which she had no particular attachment to her life, altered Sphinx’s fate.

???: [――I have use for you. You shall serve me well, in order to grant my wish.]

In that man’s corrupted eyes, the intense flame of ambition could be seen flickering.

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――The flame of the Yang Sword Vollachia, would burn anything it had decided to destroy to ashes.

The plan of Vincent Vollachia and Natsuki Subaru had been to make Sphinx firmly believe that, for whatever reason, the Emperor had relinquished the treasured sword of crimson.

As a result, at the end of a grand wager of lives, Sphinx was scorched by the flame, having lost in the bout of deceit.

The blade of the Yang Sword that had reached the Witch, Sphinx, delivered a scintillating flame to the bearer of the Great Disaster who had been resurrected as an undead; the several Sphinxes that were facing off against Vincent’s group, the Sphinx waiting in the Crystal Palace, the Sphinxes observing each battlefield of the Imperial Capital, and the countless Sphinxes that ought to have been launching attacks all throughout the Empire, all burst into flame simultaneously.

Sphinx: [――Countermeasures: Required.]

While being scorched by the bright-red flames, the Sphinx who had been cut, muttered so. But, even if she made use of the undead’s advantage of meagerly feeling pain, she would not be able to hold out for long with herself being burnt to a crisp.

In that case, would she abandon the several bodies that had already been scorched, and proceed with the plan as a new Sphinx, having learned from this Death? ――No, that would be impossible.

The flame of the Yang Sword was burning Sphinx’s very soul.

Even if she tried to create a new undead version of herself, as long as the foundation that was her soul remained burning, it would be impossible to prevent the earthen body from burning as it was created.

Sphinx: [――――]

She had no countermeasures. Together with the sensation of a deadlock, the body of this Sphinx crumbled.

Even if she died by burning, and headed to the next iteration while having learned from this Death, the reconstructed Sphinx would merely come to the same conclusion that she had no countermeasures as she met her end.

Her end, this would be her end. Having spent a long time going around the world, the Witch of Greed’s failure, Sphinx’s quest of investigation, would have its curtain’s close here.

She had exhausted every measure, she had sufficiently laid out traps, but it had not been enough.

That was a defeat similar to the one she had experienced in the past, during the events of the Demi-Human War. At that time, too, Sphinx had exhausted every measure, yet it had still not been enough, and she had been left with no choice but to perish in defeat.

The reason that had not come to pass, had not been because of Sphinx’s own actions, but because of the interference of an outsider.

Thus, this time, she could not hope for the same thing to happen.

After all, the owner of that ambition, who had saved Sphinx back then, was already gone.

Leip Barielle was dead. That was why, there was no longer――,

Sphinx: [――Analysis: Required.]

Suddenly, engulfed in the fiery blaze as she was, Sphinx who was supposed to be heading for her demise, took action.

While the flame of the Yang Sword kept her entire body alight, Sphinx placed a finger below her own jaw; blowing away the entirety of the Corebug present within her cranium, she induced her own Death.

And then, the Sphinxes present on the battlefield, in the Imperial Capital, and throughout the entire Empire, all carried out that same act in succession.

Sphinx: [――Analysis: Required.]

Sphinx: [――Analysis: Required.]

It was not that she had given up on herself. Nor was it that she had been dominated by suicidal thoughts.

Only, through dying, all of Sphinx’s memories could converge on her soul. If all the countless Sphinxes died simultaneously, and all the countless memories converged, the collective base of knowledge known as herself would accumulate.

Of course, it was only a matter of time before the soul where all those memories were gathering would be scorched, thoroughly burned to naught.

However, in the time before it was burned to naught, Sphinx naturally continued to construct her own burning selves, and by doing so, she was able to accrete countless analyses and debates about the situation and countermeasures.

In the past, she had possessed no strong emotions whatsoever regarding Death. But now, things were different.

Sphinx: [――Resistance: Required.]

Sphinx: [――Resistance: Required.]

Sphinx: [――Resistance: Required.]

Resisting, resisting, as she resisted, Sphinx scraped together every conceivable possibility, and analyzed them.

The conclusions of each bastion, the soul experiments at the Crystal Palace, the history of the Vollachian Imperial Family, the Spirit Eaters, the foreign entity from the Kingdom, Stargazers, commandments, the Great Disaster, every last possibility, the fragments of existence itself; she analyzed all of it.

And then――,

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――Bound to the prison, Priscilla’s crimson eyes fully witnessed the entire chain of events befalling Sphinx before her eyes.

The Witch’s body had suddenly burst into red flames, and with a single glance, Priscilla understood that it was the scintillating flame brought about by the Yang Sword which was passed down in the Vollachian Empire.

She also understood that the one who had delivered that scintillating flame to the Witch, was none other than Vincent Vollachia.

Priscilla: [So you have finally revealed the card you had kept facing down? You truly are cunning to the bitter end, elder brother.]

As a member of the Vollachian Imperial Family herself, the fact that Vincent had not drawn the Yang Sword, and instead preserved it as a trump card, was obvious to Priscilla. Of course, given the troublesome quality that came with wielding the Yang Sword, it was no wonder that Vincent did not thoughtlessly rely on it.

Anyhow, having been defeated in the bout of deceit, the Witch was destroyed by the flame―― at least, she should have been.

Priscilla: [You, what did you do?]

Sphinx: [――Analysis: Required.]

The Yang Sword’s flame would burn what it wished to burn, and the Yang Sword’s blade would cut what it wished to cut.

That was a truth that could not be bent. Despite that, the Witch who ought to have been engulfed by bright-red flames in front of Priscilla, slowly broke free from that scintillating flame.

The flames had ceased their scorching of the Witch.

The Yang Sword’s flame would burn what it wished to burn, and the Yang Sword’s blade would cut what it wished to cut.

Ergo, the fate of the Witch, scorched and cut by Vincent’s Yang Sword, was not something that could be altered.

However――,

Priscilla: [Who are you?]

If the one who was burned, the one who was cut, became something else entirely, it would be a different story.

In all likelihood, Vincent had killed the Witch, had killed Sphinx with the Yang Sword.

But, the form of the Witch who had escaped the flame, was not the Witch that Priscilla knew.

The cracked pale skin, the black eyeballs endowed with irises of golden hue, and the youthful appearance of a little girl, with all of those cast away, that being stood before Priscilla.

Long white hair that reached down to her back, and black eyes that housed a clear intellectual and inquisitive spirit. ――White and black, if one tried to draw that being, then those two colors would be fully capable of representing it.

Priscilla: [Who are you?]

???: [――The Witch of Greed.]

At Priscilla’s repeated question, there was a quiet response, yet one brimming with conviction.

Having fulfilled the purpose of its creation after a long time, the being whose very soul had altered in nature―― the current incarnation of the Witch of Greed, having escaped the fate of being scorched by flame, spoke. [1]

Witch: [The purpose of creation has been fulfilled. ――Now, I will proceed to fulfill my purpose in life.] [2]

So she declared.

Translation Notes:

[1] – Tappei provides a reading for the word 現身 of うつせみ. Normally, this reading does not match this kanji, and is instead for 空蝉, which is used to refer to the cast of shell of a cicada. This may be some word play to imply the Witch of Greed has cast off the shell of Sphinx.

[2] – Here, the Witch of Greed speaks using the pronoun ワタシ, which is not Sphinx’s pronoun, but Echidna’s. Based on this, the line can be taken to mean that, now with Sphinx’s purpose fulfilled, she will strive to accomplish the original purpose of the Witch of Greed.