***Final Arc, One Who Obtain Happiness, Chapter 256 Cage of Sin***
“In my opinion, I am the happiest person in the world.”
She said as usual.
She said in a calm voice as she hugged Kreschenta on the bed.
“I was loved so much not only by Kirsche-sama, but also by Her Majesty the great Queen of Alberan, whose name is deeply engraved in history.”
The sound of laughter tickled her ears.
She opened her mouth to say something, but she quickly stopped.
The inside of her chest was tense and convulsing, making it difficult to breathe,, she didn't want the servant to hear that stupid voice.
She closed her mouth tightly, pressing her face against her chest.
Covering everything from her eyelids to her lips.
The servant hugged her tightly, stroking her head with force.
"Oh, you're not denying it... By the way, I also consider silence as a confirmation, so please keep that in mind."
The teasing voice was gentle and unpleasant.
The servant spoke knowing that she couldn't look up.
"But don't worry. This embarrassing secret of Kreschenta-sama will be kept secret, as Kreschenta-sama's servant, I'll keep it to myself. A good servant is someone who fulfills their master's wishes without being told."
The unpleasant servant patted her on the head, repeating her ridiculous words.
Always, always, when it suited her, her little sister’s servant, the estate’s servant, Christand’s servant. ―
――and, Kreschenta’s servant.
She was a woman who pretended to be serious and but was in truth haphazard, and only her mouth work really well.
Using the position of a servant as pretense――she was nothing but an individualists who don't care about social order or class structure.
In Kreschenta’s vision of the ‘Ideal kingdom’, she was the most obtrusive woman.
Speaking based only on emotion, piling up plausible nonsense sophistry, seducing peoplewith cunning words, creating an environment favorable to herself.
There’s no need for two boatmen.
And Kreschenta was the queen, and this woman was, so to speak, her political enemy.
She wondered how much better it would have been if she had killed her earlier.
If that had been the case, she wouldn't have to endure such condescending words like this.
She wondered how it had come to this.
Perhaps she had been deceived by this woman's sophistry without realizing it.
"....Fufu, even when I tried to say something, I end up thinking about a lot of things, it’s not good at all. Talking about memories or the future, surprisingly, I can't come up with anything."
The servant laughed troubledly and continued to stroke her head.
Her skin was colder than Kreschenta, and it felt like she was soaking in lukewarm water.
Neither hot nor cold.
The kind of lukewarm water that made her lose her strength and not want to think about anything.
"However, I don't hold any grudges, nor am I angry or sad. I think this is a good ending to my life."
She said, rubbing her cheek against Kreschenta’s head.
"It's true that it was hard and painful. I had wanted to scream loudly... so in that sense, I'm grateful to Kreschenta-sama after all."
"hg..."
Kreschenta grabbed her back, grasping the negligee tightly.
"Always…lying... Even if you decorate it with words, you will die. I... will kill you. Why should I, be comforted by someone like you?"
"...Actually, Kreschenta-sama is exactly like Krische-sama."
‘A Beautiful person’, she said, smiling once again.
Playfully, happily, lovingly.
“Even if you are not judged by the law, you want to be punished because you have done something wrong. That feeling itself is the punishmen. ...No matter what Kreschenta-sama may say, Kreschenta-sama knows right from wrong, so anything more than that is just too much.''
As always, she stroked her head and combed Kreschenta’s hair.
*Thump, thump*, the servant’s heartbeat echoed, and she simply sniffled softly.
"Moreover, I am not the guardian of the law, but a servant who loves Kreschenta-sama dearly, so comforting her like this is only natural. And it is also natural for a crying child to be comforted."
"...not…crying."
"My, guess that's true. It was a promise to keep it in my heart."
The servant chuckled and continues stroking.
The strength in her arms was gradually weakening.
The medicine was starting to take effect, she realized, and a chill ran down her spine.
"...Please take care of Krische. I'm sure she will be very saddened."
The servant smiled a little sadly and continued absentmindedly.
"I promised I wouldn't do anything to make her sad, but"
Kreschenta instantly lifted her head and let her magic run through her.
Through the blurry vision, she could see the servant smiling.
Her palm touched Kreschenta cheek and she wiped the area under her eye with her thumb.
“Ufufu, just like Krische-sama, a crying face doesn’t suit Kreschenta-sama after all.”
"..."
"I have to keep it a secret from the others...Kreschenta-sama is my beloved, wonderful, greatest Queen in the world after all."
Kreschenta’s words were stuck in her throat and wouldn't come out.
She looked at her sleepy voice and her trembling eyelids, and grabbed her cheek.
Words were stuck in Kreschenta’s throat and wouldn't come out.
She grabbed her cheek, gazing at her voice tremblingly, and kissed her.
Their noses rubbed against each other, and the sensation of their lips was, simply soft.
The servant trembled just a little, opened her eyelids wide, and through her light brown eyes, gazing at Kreschenta.
Then, slowly narrowing her eyelids, she silently said, ‘I know’.
She smiled teasingly, as always.
After that, her eyes closed and she lets go of her consciousness.
"ah……"
Kreschenta immediately interwove magic into it.
She thought about stopping time and hurriedly changed the magic into threads.
She thought, maybe, if it went well, maybe.
But something was just terrifying.
Her breathing became erratic, and something seemed to be crawling inside her chest.
And then she just continued to weave the magic as if to escape from it.
The magic split and formed a cage like threads.
It wrapped around her body, trapping her flesh and blood, even her bones and nerves.
All she could think about was stopping time.
If she had time, she could do anything.
Whether it's 10 years from now, 20 years from now, or 100 years from now, it would be possible someday.
The only thing missing was time and lee-way.
All she wanted was just that.
Making sure to carve everything into her, from one end of her to the other, repeating it again and again.
Perfection upon perfection, layer upon layer, repeating it endlessly.
Proving that nothing was impossible for her, that she had no mistake .
――But no matter what, the result was everything.
Blood seeped into the nightgown.
Even the bleeding blood instantly turns into magical power and disperses.
Every part of the body crumbled like a mountain of sand blown by the wind.
Inside a cage locked endlessly with magical power poured into it.
Her body turned into a blue light――only her clothes remained.
Kreschenta couldn't make a sound, and she reached out her hand in a daze.
Grabbing the nightgown the servant had been wearing.
Gazing at it.
Holding it to her chest.
――How long did she spent like that
"Her Majesty! What is...?"
Before she knew it, a voice called out to her from the direction of the door.
The voice seemed to be coming from somewhere far away.
“Argan-sama, is…?”
There was a thin sensation in her arms.
She looked dazedly at the nightgown.
It belonged to the servant Kreschenta had killed.
Thinking of Nora, who had stabbed her own chest.
Thinking of the red-haired servant, she traced her own lips, and closed her eyes.
She heard a sound of someone collapsing behind her and adjusted her breathing.
"…Argan-sama has passed away. It happened suddenly."
Then, calmly as usual, Kreschenta lied again and again.
She was a perfect being who never made a mistake.
Even if it was a lie, what she said becomes the truth.
“Onee-sama will be sad.…For now, I guess we should prepare for the funeral.”
She held the nightgown against her face for a moment.
As if wiping something off her, under her eyes.
――To Crescenta, other people were like tools.
As it always had been, as it will continue to be.
She looked up, get off the bed, and looked into the full-length mirror.
Her usual self was there, calmly staring at Kreschenta from the other side of the mirror.
That’s fine, she thought
"What a pity."
Because the tools that could have been used were ruined, because it started to trouble Kreschenta’s hand, there was nothing she could do, she just finished the last task.
There's no need to think about it, she thought, putting the nightgown on the bed.
She looked at the servant who collapsed and covering her face, reaching her hand to the door.
"I'll call Elvena-sama. Please take a little rest."
As if turning her gaze away from something that coiled around her, she focused on what needed to be done.
She step outside the room.
It was over and done with.
There's nothing she could do, so it couldn’t be helped.
Like that, she divert her attention and looked away.
――Thinking that if she did that, someday she wouldn't have to remember it anymore.
It was like a cage made of opposing mirrors.
The inside of the small magic crystal was engraved with many layers of intricate patterns.
Though it appeared to fit in one hand, it was a multidimensional crystal that warped space.
Visually, from every angle, it seemed like an infinite amount of brilliance was unfolding within it.
Every time she looked at it, the inner glow change, and if she change the angle just a little, she could see a different faces.
There were five lights shining there.
Every time she looked at it, reflections of a girl's eyes appeared from various angles.
As if searching for something, she changed the angle and focused on a single brilliance.
She thought that someday it would disappear, that she could no longer see it――but no matter when she looked at it, that light would jump into her eyes.
She rolled on her bed, still wearing a white one-piece dress, her long hair scattered.
She lied down and looks at it, holding it up, and sometimes capturing its brilliance in her hands.
She thought that the brilliance would disappear someday, but when she saw it again, it was still there.
The light was so bright that it was an eyesore.
She brought it close to her eyes again and stare at it.
She looked at it vaguely from various angles, wondering if there was a certain angle at which its brilliance would disappear.
――Hate you.
As usual, her lips moved and echoed in the void.
There was no response, nor did the radiance dim.
No matter how many times she repeated it, the brilliance was still there, showing its presence in the girl's eyes.
It remained unchanged from various angles, never leaving even when she closed her eyes.
Bossy, arrogant, and has a bad attitude.
The only thing she could praise was the food.
The servant's unpleasant, mocking smile, each word echoing in her mind, repeatedly.
She traced her lips, remembering that feeling.
Something was swirling inside her chest, and she closed her eyes at the disgusting feeling.
When she thought of her face, her face twisted in pain comes to mind.
She was in pain every night, her tears welling up.
Her blank eyes were burned into her head and wouldn't leave her.
The image of her crying out for help, horrified by pain and death, was etched in her memory every day.
‘…Even if you could endure it, how many years are you going to endure it?’
‘Of course, as many decades as Krische-sama desired.’
Even though she exposed that sight of her, she told Kreschenta that.
She said she was still happy, as if nothing had happened.
She simply expressed her gratitude.
Thank you, she repeatedly said.
Saying that thanks to her, she could continue to have happy days today as well, even though the days were filled with pain.
Yesterday, the day before yesterday, today, tomorrow, the day after tomorrow, and the next.
Kreschenta was just prolonging it.
That servant couldn’t do anything to fix it, and it was just causing her to repeat the suffering with no end in sight.
Every time she receive such words, she wondered what she was grateful for.
So, she decided to end it――she thought to end it.
"...I’m not wrong."
The words rang hollow.
When she opened my eyes, the shining light was still there, unchanged.
It was so obnoxious and obtrusive that she never want to see it again, but when she change the angle, it reveals a variety of colors.
She wondered just how much better it would have been if it had been uglier.
If it was so ugly that she didn't even want to see it, she would never have to see it again.
Why did her sister pick up something like this?
If it weren't for this, she wouldn't have had to remember it, and she wouldn't have been trapped, but because it was here, it felt like she was trapped in a cage.
Even though she tried to break free, she couldn't, her thoughts formed a cage, and the thing that she was supposed to locked up was the one locking her.
――Because I love you. I love you.
Always repeating such flimsy words.
Just lip service.
Even when she was about to be killed, she repeated those words.
She simply gave up.
She only said those things because it would have been pointless for her to speak out against her.
It was just stubbornness, just saying pretty words out of habit.
There's no way she would be happy to be killed.
No matter how you say it, death was death. It's impossible to not hold a grudge.
So surely, deep down...
Kreschenta locked the magic crystal in her palm.
Covering it so that she couldn’t see its brilliance.
It didn't matter.
――As long as she was locked away forever, those words would be her last words.
As long as she continued like this, she wouldn’t say anything more.
As long as she shone here, beautiful things would remain beautiful.
No matter how flimsy, these words would remain true and forever engraved.
Thinking that was fine, Kreschenta peered through the gap between her palms again.
She looked at the glow trapped inside the mirrored world and stroked it.
That brilliance was forever in Kreschenta’s hands.
"Kreschenta, Krische’s back."
"...Welcome back, Onee-sama."
Kreschenta slipped the magic crystal to her chest inside her one-piece dress.
Then sje stood up and turned to the entrance.
Her sister, wearing her usual apron dress, carrying a curved sword on her hip. Kreschenta tilted her head.
“What was Onee-samadoing?”
“Mosha-Mosha said he wanted to spar, so Krische went along with it. Also taking Gururun for a walk.''
Krische removed the belt from her waist and placed the curved sword on the shelf.
She approached with trot and kneeled on the bed, caressing my cheek and giving me a slow kiss.
Staying like that for a while, with closed eyes.
When she opened it, her older sister's purple eyes were peeking out at her.
A slightly troubled, a somewhat hesitant gaze.
As per the usual, Mosha-Mosha was a silly nickname given by older sister.
Even among the humans who know what her sister wished, he was one of the few that was still alive.
He was probably the type to live a long life like Felworth.
His flesh body had what could be called a regeneration limit.
After a certain period of time, blood and flesh lose their normal regeneration function, gradually deteriorating in quality, and the rate of deterioration increases――until the regeneration can no longer keep up.
Aging is deterioration.
It would have been easy to prevent deterioration if one had complete control over the body's magical power like Kreschenta and her sister, but this was not the case for ordinary people.
However, even among ordinary people, there were some who were somewhat adept at it.
Functional decline occurs as aging progresses to a certain extent.
Usually around that time, they became conscious of mastering their bodies by emphasizing magical power over flesh, and began to maintain stability in their aging state――such people lived a long time.
Of course, a lot of it depends on the quality of the body they were born with, but Aleha seems to be quite strong physically, and the control he had over her his using magical power was also quite good.
Now that he had started aging, there were limits to what an ordinary person could do, but it seemed like his body would last for at least the next few decades.
――It would be better if he died soon.
She looked into her sister's eyes, thinking that perhaps he had inadvertently influenced her.
If time passed quickly and washed away everything around her sister, her sister wouldn't need to hesitate anymore.
Her sister only needed Kreschenta, who cherished her and was cherished by her.
"...Kreschenta, um...Krische need a talk..."
"I'm hungry."
She looked at her sister to interrupt her words.
She reached out her hands and placed them around her sister's neck, and used her magical power to manipulate the magic crystal in the bathroom and fill it with hot water.
Her sister looked at Kreschenta again, puzzled, and then she smiled quietly.
"...Then, let's cook, eat, and take a bath. ...Then we'll talk. Is that okay?"
She didn’t answer and leans closer, but her sister picked Kreschenta up and said, ‘What a spoiled child’.
Her troubled smile somehow resembled that servant's.
In the kitchen, she made Lakura pie, pumpkin soup, and stewed mutton.
When it was just the two of them, they didn't need that much.
The cooking was so familiar that they could do it with eyes closed.
Waiting side by side, the wait seemed longer.
She looked at the shelf while stirring the soup.
Spices, tableware, cooking utensils――their arrangement has not changed for a long time.
Originally, it was optimized for her sister to cook with that servant, and there was some room for improvement after she and Kreschenta joined together.
But as if it was only natural when her sister organized things, she always kept them in this state.
From knives to tableware, everything has been polished to a sparkling shine, and its location has remained the same.
――Just as it was when that servant was there.
They didn't go on adventures like that servant.
They made small adjustments to the taste, and when they get new ingredients they I cook with them.
But they never said they would try something they had never done before.
‘……my apologies. Today's challenge was a failure.’
She recalled the apologetic smile on her face and sipped the ladle.
The soup was as delicious as always, just like when that servant was there.
There was no such thing as a failure in a dish that had been made for decades.
Although her sister denied it, she was a servant who made many mistakes.
She was a woman who could make reasonably delicious food, but she was so reckless that she thought she was doing it on purpose.
She made sauces and desserts mainly from fruit that tastes bad no matter how one look at it.
Most of the time, she failed and wasted ingredients.
However, her sister always looked happy while watching her.
Sometimes it went well, and she rejoiced as if she had made the discovery of the century.
‘Kreschenta. This wasn't a failure, it just didn't succeed in trying. There is much to learn from failure in this world.’
As if quoting, she raised her finger while saying that as if it was a wise saying.
Her sister was indeed foolish.
She didn't think there was no truth to it, but it was just a meal.
Just one more delicious taste.
There was enough delicious food, and there was enough stability, so she always looked at the irrational attempts exasperatedly, wondering what the point was in seeking more.
She memorized most of the dishes and caught up, but she had no choice but to hang out with these idiots and was pushed around.
She thought this kitchen was often chaotic.
Since that servant disappeared, things have stabilized and there have been no more failures ―― then they should be a little more rational and change the arrangement of the tools.
But it remained the same as before.
The strong spices that were unusable stayed in front of the shelf.
The dishes, knives, frying pans, and pots, everything was as that servant liked.
Every time she entered the kitchen, every time she cooked there, she remembered.
――The figure of that servant standing there overlapped, the figure of her sister smiling happily overlapped, and the figure of Kreschenta reluctantly accompanying them overlapped.
She’s sure her sister was the same way.
She smiles with strange amusement as she cooked dishes that didn’t change and never fail.
Whether together or alone――in her sister's head, there was that servant.
"...Kreschenta?"
As she frowned in displeasure, her sister approached and took the ladle.
She then sipped the soup and tilted her head.
Did her sister thought she had failed in the seasoning?
"Ehehe, it's delicious."
"…Good to hear."
When she let out a sigh, her sister pressed her lips against hers, looking troubled.
She tasted like a faintly sweet pumpkin soup.
It tasted just as it had since those days, nauseatingly so.
She would probably continue to taste this forever.
She would probably be able to enjoy this for eternity.
Suddenly, she realized that all of the dishes Kreschenta made were ones that she learned from that servant, and no matter what she tasted, they tasted just like that servant.
Everywhere in the estate――the more that servant were missing from the estate, the more she slip into the gaps.
She traced her lips with her fingertips, feeling it.
Even now, I could still feel the touch, like it was yesterday.
――I know.
The words that were spun without a voice echoed in her head, and they still wouldn’t go away.
After finishing the meal, soaking in the bath, and changing into nightclothes, her sister held Kreschenta on her lap and ran a comb through her hair.
The chipped moon shone through the window.
However, the moon never change its shape.
The earth blocks the sunlight from the other side, so a shadow appears on the moon.
The moon was always in perfect shape in the sky.
It was just that a shadow appears there.
"...Kreschenta"
"I don't want to hear it."
Kreschenta was always perfect.
From the time she was born, she was born complete and unchanged.
It was the world that was wrong, and it was the world that was distorted.
The moon always floats in the sky, unchanged.
People could only capture what they see, so it just looked like something was missing.
To a bug clinging to the ground, it would certainly appear as a chipped moon.
But Kreschenta was not chipped.
Neither was her sister, the one that was wrong is everything else.
That was the truth, the certainty.
But, if so.
She changed the world the way she wanted, gained everything in the world, became a perfect being that everyone recognized――why was she still thinking about that servant?
Why was she trapped in the circular train of thought?
"...I don't want to hear about that."
It was supposed to be a trivial matter that she decided not to remember.
The only person who stood next to her was her older sister, and the rest were her older sister's favorite accessories.
It couldn't have been more than that, and it shouldn't have been more than that.
It had to be that way.
‘――If not, then I.’
Thinking about it, something unpleasant was swirling in her chest again.
Her sister just hugged her body and put her cheek against hers from behind.
“Kreschenta said that eternity is here, but perhaps eternity is not what the Krische wants.”
As if wrapping her arms around her.
As if trapping her entire body in a gentle cage.
“Kreisharana said, eternity is just a process, and what you want is what comes after..."
And then, affectionately.
"Rather than a goal, it's just Krische’s selfishness, isn't it?"
Her sister said in embarrassment.
"…Maybe, in the end, Krische just wants to see Berry again."
‘aah’, she lamented silently.
At least Kreschenta knew her sister's heart would always be there.
"Krische just want you to say, 'I'm home,' and to say, 'Welcome back.' … just wanting to give a hug, like usual, and say, 'Thank you for your hard work’."
Her sister was a child, and she was a bit more stupid than Kreschenta.
In order to meet that servant, an unusual means was needed, and in order to fully enjoy it, a peaceful world was needed, and that naturally became the word eternity.
“Krische doesn't know how difficult it is to think about eternal love or anything like that, but Krische think everyone could see through the Krische’s stupid ideas.''
A perfect world for her sister. An ideal paradise. A childlike utopia.
Since her sister wanted everything she wanted, she let it be.
Knowing that her sister's desired eternal paradise wouldn't be accepted, and knowing that only a few would accept it.
Knowing that her sister would get hurt every time she was rejected, and over time learning to not expect much from others――if it’s like that, she thought that someday, her sister would only think about Kreschenta.
――Without thinking about unnecessary things.
“...What Krische’s wished for is Krische’s. What other people wished for is other people’s. If you think about it, it’s a very simple thing. Because Krische is Krische, Krische just wanted to meet Bery and wants to spend all time together, Krische is just thinking selfish things.”
‘Everything is Krische’s selfishness’, Krische smiled
“On top of that, Selene and the others said they would go along with the Krische’s foolishness.”
Looking happy without end.
"Krische doesn't know what's going to happen. Maybe someday she will leave Krische’s side...but Krische’s sure that would be because she's satisfied, and Krische doesn’t think it would because the love for Krische run dry or anything like that.''
The papier-mâché cage of words that Kreschenta had built, like a cage, collapsed without any easily.
She knew this would happen soon.
She felt like it was quite early, but she also felt like it wasn't.
“Even if it’s different, that’s okay.”
Either way,
" ――Krische thinks of it like that, and interpret it in a convenient way."
Her sister would never forget that servant and would never let her forget.
She clenched her fist and lowered her eyes.
The scent of that servant was ingrained not only in her sister's memory, but also in this room, in the kitchen, in the magic crystal around her neck――even in her memory.
"...It's just like Argan-sama huh, Onee-sama."
She said fed up with it.
"Just always saying things that are pleasant to listen to. …That person is not as respectable a person as Onee-sama think she is."
"Krische thinks whether someone is admirable or not is trivial. Even if she's not admirable at all, Krische still loves Anne."
Krische smiled saying ‘even Krische isn't admirable’.
"Krische is fine with whatever the result is. Even if, as Kreschenta said, they eventually gets tired of Krische... Krische still wanted to see Bery and the others."
Stroking Kreschenta’s cheek, Krische spoke as if exhaling.
Without trying to conceal anything, to the point where it sent chills down her spine.
Krische voiced her desires freely.
“That’s Krische’s conclusion. …That’s why――”
"I don't like it."
She cut off her sister words with a single sentence and grabbed her sister's arm.
"Why?"
"...Unlike Onee-sama, I have no interest in these people. I'm much happier and more at ease now that it's just the two of us."
"It’s all lies. Why is Kreschenta acting like a bad girl like that? Even Kreschenta about Berry and the others ―― "
"I'm really fed up. Please stop making assumptions."
When she shook her sister off and stood up, she turned and glares straight at her sister, her tone intensifying.
"I wonder how many times I'll have to say that I don't like her before Onee-sama will understand. Onee-sama cares about her, so I was just being considerate."
The more she thought about it, the more unpleasant it became.
Discomfort crawled inside her chest, and there was nothing she could do about it.
Every time she remembered, she recalled the feeling of 'that rag’.
"Onee-sama’s head really is full of flower gardens huh. Bery, Bery, Bery...I'm really tired of the ridiculous memory about her."
"...Kreschenta"
"Even my patience have limit...The next time Onee-sama mention Bery, I'll really get angry."
Even she was surprised at how unstable her emotions were.
Her body was shaking involuntarily, her breathing was shallow, and something was swirling inside her with no place to go.
“If Kreschenta really said from the bottom of her heart that Kreschenta would like to be alone with together with Krische, that Kreschenta hates Bery and the others and doesn’t want to see them, then Krische will think about it.”
Her sister stared back at her and continued.
“But that won’t happen, so Krische won’t stop even if Kreschenta get angry.”
"How would you know such things, Onee-sama?"
"Because Krische is Kreschenta’s big sister. While Krische doesn't understand the feelings of others at all..."
Krische smiled sweetly, as she always did.
"Only Kreschenta’s, Krische tried to really understand Kreschenta’s feelings."
Seeing her sister like that, Kreschenta stiffened.
"... Onee-sama, just what do you think you understand"
She tightened her grip on her hand so much that blood oozed out.
―― There was no way her sister would know.
She had seen it all by herself.
She was the only person by that servant’s side, who had seen what her sister had tried not to see back then.
Day and night, every day, repeatedly.
That was precisely why, if not――such a thing.
“Somehow, it looks like the quarrel between Selene and Bery.”
Her sister said, as if reminiscing, and stood up.
"...More importantly, Kreschenta, you said ‘Bery’."
Krische walked out and opened the balcony door.
"Kreschenta is always pretending to be angry at Bery and trying to keep up appearance. If Kreschenta really thinks that way, why not just get truly angry once in a while?"
Her purple eyes sparkle against the moonlight.
――Her sister said seriously.
From head to toe, cold as if frozen.
She swung her right hand ―― the surrounding magic changed as if bursting.
Even if she was her older sister, she had exceeded her limits.
"Saying such things...Onee-sama, you might regret it you know. Onee-sama, do you understand the situation? I can control magic all over the world right now."
"Krische know"
Her sister answered and stretched out a thread of her magic power to the magic crystal lying on the desk in the room and shattered it.
Then, when she received a small amount of magical power, she wrapped herself in blue line and floated in the air.
“However, Krische is Kreschenta older sister.”
"...Does Onee-sama think I'm inferior?"
"Kreschenta is just as smart as Krische...but even so Krische will still wins."
‘Because Kreschenta isn't serious after all’ she said.
She wraps her purple eye in her silver eyelashes and narrowed them.
" Does Onee-sama think I can't kill Does Onee-sama?"
In response, Kreschenta also narrowed her red eyes with a gleaming gold trim.
"I can just create a new body and seal Onee-sama’s soul so that Onee-sama can't disobey me."
Just coldly, her color glowing darkly.
"...To think Onee-sama was this stupid."
Her sister was trying to distance herself from her.
Kreschenta had all the magical power from the Heavenly Pole in her hands.
It was hard to believe her sister didn't understand the disadvantage of giving up the only thing her sister had superiority over.
――Even knowing that, she was giving Kreschenta the advantage.
IT was like adding fuel to the fire.
"Ehehe. But Krische knows that Kreschenta is just as stupid as Krische."
Still, her sister said with a smile on her face and looked at Kreschenta.
"...And on top of that, just like Bery, Krische truly loves Kreschenta."
――She took off gently into the night sky with a chipped moon.
***Final Arc, One Who Obtain Happiness, Chapter 256 Cage of Sin***
“In my opinion, I am the happiest person in the world.”
She said as usual.
She said in a calm voice as she hugged Kreschenta on the bed.
“I was loved so much not only by Kirsche-sama, but also by Her Majesty the great Queen of Alberan, whose name is deeply engraved in history.”
The sound of laughter tickled her ears.
She opened her mouth to say something, but she quickly stopped.
The inside of her chest was tense and convulsing, making it difficult to breathe,, she didn't want the servant to hear that stupid voice.
She closed her mouth tightly, pressing her face against her chest.
Covering everything from her eyelids to her lips.
The servant hugged her tightly, stroking her head with force.
"Oh, you're not denying it... By the way, I also consider silence as a confirmation, so please keep that in mind."
The teasing voice was gentle and unpleasant.
The servant spoke knowing that she couldn't look up.
"But don't worry. This embarrassing secret of Kreschenta-sama will be kept secret, as Kreschenta-sama's servant, I'll keep it to myself. A good servant is someone who fulfills their master's wishes without being told."
The unpleasant servant patted her on the head, repeating her ridiculous words.
Always, always, when it suited her, her little sister’s servant, the estate’s servant, Christand’s servant. ―
――and, Kreschenta’s servant.
She was a woman who pretended to be serious and but was in truth haphazard, and only her mouth work really well.
Using the position of a servant as pretense――she was nothing but an individualists who don't care about social order or class structure.
In Kreschenta’s vision of the ‘Ideal kingdom’, she was the most obtrusive woman.
Speaking based only on emotion, piling up plausible nonsense sophistry, seducing peoplewith cunning words, creating an environment favorable to herself.
There’s no need for two boatmen.
And Kreschenta was the queen, and this woman was, so to speak, her political enemy.
She wondered how much better it would have been if she had killed her earlier.
If that had been the case, she wouldn't have to endure such condescending words like this.
She wondered how it had come to this.
Perhaps she had been deceived by this woman's sophistry without realizing it.
"....Fufu, even when I tried to say something, I end up thinking about a lot of things, it’s not good at all. Talking about memories or the future, surprisingly, I can't come up with anything."
The servant laughed troubledly and continued to stroke her head.
Her skin was colder than Kreschenta, and it felt like she was soaking in lukewarm water.
Neither hot nor cold.
The kind of lukewarm water that made her lose her strength and not want to think about anything.
"However, I don't hold any grudges, nor am I angry or sad. I think this is a good ending to my life."
She said, rubbing her cheek against Kreschenta’s head.
"It's true that it was hard and painful. I had wanted to scream loudly... so in that sense, I'm grateful to Kreschenta-sama after all."
"hg..."
Kreschenta grabbed her back, grasping the negligee tightly.
"Always…lying... Even if you decorate it with words, you will die. I... will kill you. Why should I, be comforted by someone like you?"
"...Actually, Kreschenta-sama is exactly like Krische-sama."
‘A Beautiful person’, she said, smiling once again.
Playfully, happily, lovingly.
“Even if you are not judged by the law, you want to be punished because you have done something wrong. That feeling itself is the punishmen. ...No matter what Kreschenta-sama may say, Kreschenta-sama knows right from wrong, so anything more than that is just too much.''
As always, she stroked her head and combed Kreschenta’s hair.
*Thump, thump*, the servant’s heartbeat echoed, and she simply sniffled softly.
"Moreover, I am not the guardian of the law, but a servant who loves Kreschenta-sama dearly, so comforting her like this is only natural. And it is also natural for a crying child to be comforted."
"...not…crying."
"My, guess that's true. It was a promise to keep it in my heart."
The servant chuckled and continues stroking.
The strength in her arms was gradually weakening.
The medicine was starting to take effect, she realized, and a chill ran down her spine.
"...Please take care of Krische. I'm sure she will be very saddened."
The servant smiled a little sadly and continued absentmindedly.
"I promised I wouldn't do anything to make her sad, but"
Kreschenta instantly lifted her head and let her magic run through her.
Through the blurry vision, she could see the servant smiling.
Her palm touched Kreschenta cheek and she wiped the area under her eye with her thumb.
“Ufufu, just like Krische-sama, a crying face doesn’t suit Kreschenta-sama after all.”
"..."
"I have to keep it a secret from the others...Kreschenta-sama is my beloved, wonderful, greatest Queen in the world after all."
Kreschenta’s words were stuck in her throat and wouldn't come out.
She looked at her sleepy voice and her trembling eyelids, and grabbed her cheek.
Words were stuck in Kreschenta’s throat and wouldn't come out.
She grabbed her cheek, gazing at her voice tremblingly, and kissed her.
Their noses rubbed against each other, and the sensation of their lips was, simply soft.
The servant trembled just a little, opened her eyelids wide, and through her light brown eyes, gazing at Kreschenta.
Then, slowly narrowing her eyelids, she silently said, ‘I know’.
She smiled teasingly, as always.
After that, her eyes closed and she lets go of her consciousness.
"ah……"
Kreschenta immediately interwove magic into it.
She thought about stopping time and hurriedly changed the magic into threads.
She thought, maybe, if it went well, maybe.
But something was just terrifying.
Her breathing became erratic, and something seemed to be crawling inside her chest.
And then she just continued to weave the magic as if to escape from it.
The magic split and formed a cage like threads.
It wrapped around her body, trapping her flesh and blood, even her bones and nerves.
All she could think about was stopping time.
If she had time, she could do anything.
Whether it's 10 years from now, 20 years from now, or 100 years from now, it would be possible someday.
The only thing missing was time and lee-way.
All she wanted was just that.
Making sure to carve everything into her, from one end of her to the other, repeating it again and again.
Perfection upon perfection, layer upon layer, repeating it endlessly.
Proving that nothing was impossible for her, that she had no mistake .
――But no matter what, the result was everything.
Blood seeped into the nightgown.
Even the bleeding blood instantly turns into magical power and disperses.
Every part of the body crumbled like a mountain of sand blown by the wind.
Inside a cage locked endlessly with magical power poured into it.
Her body turned into a blue light――only her clothes remained.
Kreschenta couldn't make a sound, and she reached out her hand in a daze.
Grabbing the nightgown the servant had been wearing.
Gazing at it.
Holding it to her chest.
――How long did she spent like that
"Her Majesty! What is...?"
Before she knew it, a voice called out to her from the direction of the door.
The voice seemed to be coming from somewhere far away.
“Argan-sama, is…?”
There was a thin sensation in her arms.
She looked dazedly at the nightgown.
It belonged to the servant Kreschenta had killed.
Thinking of Nora, who had stabbed her own chest.
Thinking of the red-haired servant, she traced her own lips, and closed her eyes.
She heard a sound of someone collapsing behind her and adjusted her breathing.
"…Argan-sama has passed away. It happened suddenly."
Then, calmly as usual, Kreschenta lied again and again.
She was a perfect being who never made a mistake.
Even if it was a lie, what she said becomes the truth.
“Onee-sama will be sad.…For now, I guess we should prepare for the funeral.”
She held the nightgown against her face for a moment.
As if wiping something off her, under her eyes.
――To Crescenta, other people were like tools.
As it always had been, as it will continue to be.
She looked up, get off the bed, and looked into the full-length mirror.
Her usual self was there, calmly staring at Kreschenta from the other side of the mirror.
That’s fine, she thought
"What a pity."
Because the tools that could have been used were ruined, because it started to trouble Kreschenta’s hand, there was nothing she could do, she just finished the last task.
There's no need to think about it, she thought, putting the nightgown on the bed.
She looked at the servant who collapsed and covering her face, reaching her hand to the door.
"I'll call Elvena-sama. Please take a little rest."
As if turning her gaze away from something that coiled around her, she focused on what needed to be done.
She step outside the room.
It was over and done with.
There's nothing she could do, so it couldn’t be helped.
Like that, she divert her attention and looked away.
――Thinking that if she did that, someday she wouldn't have to remember it anymore.
It was like a cage made of opposing mirrors.
The inside of the small magic crystal was engraved with many layers of intricate patterns.
Though it appeared to fit in one hand, it was a multidimensional crystal that warped space.
Visually, from every angle, it seemed like an infinite amount of brilliance was unfolding within it.
Every time she looked at it, the inner glow change, and if she change the angle just a little, she could see a different faces.
There were five lights shining there.
Every time she looked at it, reflections of a girl's eyes appeared from various angles.
As if searching for something, she changed the angle and focused on a single brilliance.
She thought that someday it would disappear, that she could no longer see it――but no matter when she looked at it, that light would jump into her eyes.
She rolled on her bed, still wearing a white one-piece dress, her long hair scattered.
She lied down and looks at it, holding it up, and sometimes capturing its brilliance in her hands.
She thought that the brilliance would disappear someday, but when she saw it again, it was still there.
The light was so bright that it was an eyesore.
She brought it close to her eyes again and stare at it.
She looked at it vaguely from various angles, wondering if there was a certain angle at which its brilliance would disappear.
――Hate you.
As usual, her lips moved and echoed in the void.
There was no response, nor did the radiance dim.
No matter how many times she repeated it, the brilliance was still there, showing its presence in the girl's eyes.
It remained unchanged from various angles, never leaving even when she closed her eyes.
Bossy, arrogant, and has a bad attitude.
The only thing she could praise was the food.
The servant's unpleasant, mocking smile, each word echoing in her mind, repeatedly.
She traced her lips, remembering that feeling.
Something was swirling inside her chest, and she closed her eyes at the disgusting feeling.
When she thought of her face, her face twisted in pain comes to mind.
She was in pain every night, her tears welling up.
Her blank eyes were burned into her head and wouldn't leave her.
The image of her crying out for help, horrified by pain and death, was etched in her memory every day.
‘…Even if you could endure it, how many years are you going to endure it?’
‘Of course, as many decades as Krische-sama desired.’
Even though she exposed that sight of her, she told Kreschenta that.
She said she was still happy, as if nothing had happened.
She simply expressed her gratitude.
Thank you, she repeatedly said.
Saying that thanks to her, she could continue to have happy days today as well, even though the days were filled with pain.
Yesterday, the day before yesterday, today, tomorrow, the day after tomorrow, and the next.
Kreschenta was just prolonging it.
That servant couldn’t do anything to fix it, and it was just causing her to repeat the suffering with no end in sight.
Every time she receive such words, she wondered what she was grateful for.
So, she decided to end it――she thought to end it.
"...I’m not wrong."
The words rang hollow.
When she opened my eyes, the shining light was still there, unchanged.
It was so obnoxious and obtrusive that she never want to see it again, but when she change the angle, it reveals a variety of colors.
She wondered just how much better it would have been if it had been uglier.
If it was so ugly that she didn't even want to see it, she would never have to see it again.
Why did her sister pick up something like this?
If it weren't for this, she wouldn't have had to remember it, and she wouldn't have been trapped, but because it was here, it felt like she was trapped in a cage.
Even though she tried to break free, she couldn't, her thoughts formed a cage, and the thing that she was supposed to locked up was the one locking her.
――Because I love you. I love you.
Always repeating such flimsy words.
Just lip service.
Even when she was about to be killed, she repeated those words.
She simply gave up.
She only said those things because it would have been pointless for her to speak out against her.
It was just stubbornness, just saying pretty words out of habit.
There's no way she would be happy to be killed.
No matter how you say it, death was death. It's impossible to not hold a grudge.
So surely, deep down...
Kreschenta locked the magic crystal in her palm.
Covering it so that she couldn’t see its brilliance.
It didn't matter.
――As long as she was locked away forever, those words would be her last words.
As long as she continued like this, she wouldn’t say anything more.
As long as she shone here, beautiful things would remain beautiful.
No matter how flimsy, these words would remain true and forever engraved.
Thinking that was fine, Kreschenta peered through the gap between her palms again.
She looked at the glow trapped inside the mirrored world and stroked it.
That brilliance was forever in Kreschenta’s hands.
"Kreschenta, Krische’s back."
"...Welcome back, Onee-sama."
Kreschenta slipped the magic crystal to her chest inside her one-piece dress.
Then sje stood up and turned to the entrance.
Her sister, wearing her usual apron dress, carrying a curved sword on her hip. Kreschenta tilted her head.
“What was Onee-samadoing?”
“Mosha-Mosha said he wanted to spar, so Krische went along with it. Also taking Gururun for a walk.''
Krische removed the belt from her waist and placed the curved sword on the shelf.
She approached with trot and kneeled on the bed, caressing my cheek and giving me a slow kiss.
Staying like that for a while, with closed eyes.
When she opened it, her older sister's purple eyes were peeking out at her.
A slightly troubled, a somewhat hesitant gaze.
As per the usual, Mosha-Mosha was a silly nickname given by older sister.
Even among the humans who know what her sister wished, he was one of the few that was still alive.
He was probably the type to live a long life like Felworth.
His flesh body had what could be called a regeneration limit.
After a certain period of time, blood and flesh lose their normal regeneration function, gradually deteriorating in quality, and the rate of deterioration increases――until the regeneration can no longer keep up.
Aging is deterioration.
It would have been easy to prevent deterioration if one had complete control over the body's magical power like Kreschenta and her sister, but this was not the case for ordinary people.
However, even among ordinary people, there were some who were somewhat adept at it.
Functional decline occurs as aging progresses to a certain extent.
Usually around that time, they became conscious of mastering their bodies by emphasizing magical power over flesh, and began to maintain stability in their aging state――such people lived a long time.
Of course, a lot of it depends on the quality of the body they were born with, but Aleha seems to be quite strong physically, and the control he had over her his using magical power was also quite good.
Now that he had started aging, there were limits to what an ordinary person could do, but it seemed like his body would last for at least the next few decades.
――It would be better if he died soon.
She looked into her sister's eyes, thinking that perhaps he had inadvertently influenced her.
If time passed quickly and washed away everything around her sister, her sister wouldn't need to hesitate anymore.
Her sister only needed Kreschenta, who cherished her and was cherished by her.
"...Kreschenta, um...Krische need a talk..."
"I'm hungry."
She looked at her sister to interrupt her words.
She reached out her hands and placed them around her sister's neck, and used her magical power to manipulate the magic crystal in the bathroom and fill it with hot water.
Her sister looked at Kreschenta again, puzzled, and then she smiled quietly.
"...Then, let's cook, eat, and take a bath. ...Then we'll talk. Is that okay?"
She didn’t answer and leans closer, but her sister picked Kreschenta up and said, ‘What a spoiled child’.
Her troubled smile somehow resembled that servant's.
In the kitchen, she made Lakura pie, pumpkin soup, and stewed mutton.
When it was just the two of them, they didn't need that much.
The cooking was so familiar that they could do it with eyes closed.
Waiting side by side, the wait seemed longer.
She looked at the shelf while stirring the soup.
Spices, tableware, cooking utensils――their arrangement has not changed for a long time.
Originally, it was optimized for her sister to cook with that servant, and there was some room for improvement after she and Kreschenta joined together.
But as if it was only natural when her sister organized things, she always kept them in this state.
From knives to tableware, everything has been polished to a sparkling shine, and its location has remained the same.
――Just as it was when that servant was there.
They didn't go on adventures like that servant.
They made small adjustments to the taste, and when they get new ingredients they I cook with them.
But they never said they would try something they had never done before.
‘……my apologies. Today's challenge was a failure.’
She recalled the apologetic smile on her face and sipped the ladle.
The soup was as delicious as always, just like when that servant was there.
There was no such thing as a failure in a dish that had been made for decades.
Although her sister denied it, she was a servant who made many mistakes.
She was a woman who could make reasonably delicious food, but she was so reckless that she thought she was doing it on purpose.
She made sauces and desserts mainly from fruit that tastes bad no matter how one look at it.
Most of the time, she failed and wasted ingredients.
However, her sister always looked happy while watching her.
Sometimes it went well, and she rejoiced as if she had made the discovery of the century.
‘Kreschenta. This wasn't a failure, it just didn't succeed in trying. There is much to learn from failure in this world.’
As if quoting, she raised her finger while saying that as if it was a wise saying.
Her sister was indeed foolish.
She didn't think there was no truth to it, but it was just a meal.
Just one more delicious taste.
There was enough delicious food, and there was enough stability, so she always looked at the irrational attempts exasperatedly, wondering what the point was in seeking more.
She memorized most of the dishes and caught up, but she had no choice but to hang out with these idiots and was pushed around.
She thought this kitchen was often chaotic.
Since that servant disappeared, things have stabilized and there have been no more failures ―― then they should be a little more rational and change the arrangement of the tools.
But it remained the same as before.
The strong spices that were unusable stayed in front of the shelf.
The dishes, knives, frying pans, and pots, everything was as that servant liked.
Every time she entered the kitchen, every time she cooked there, she remembered.
――The figure of that servant standing there overlapped, the figure of her sister smiling happily overlapped, and the figure of Kreschenta reluctantly accompanying them overlapped.
She’s sure her sister was the same way.
She smiles with strange amusement as she cooked dishes that didn’t change and never fail.
Whether together or alone――in her sister's head, there was that servant.
"...Kreschenta?"
As she frowned in displeasure, her sister approached and took the ladle.
She then sipped the soup and tilted her head.
Did her sister thought she had failed in the seasoning?
"Ehehe, it's delicious."
"…Good to hear."
When she let out a sigh, her sister pressed her lips against hers, looking troubled.
She tasted like a faintly sweet pumpkin soup.
It tasted just as it had since those days, nauseatingly so.
She would probably continue to taste this forever.
She would probably be able to enjoy this for eternity.
Suddenly, she realized that all of the dishes Kreschenta made were ones that she learned from that servant, and no matter what she tasted, they tasted just like that servant.
Everywhere in the estate――the more that servant were missing from the estate, the more she slip into the gaps.
She traced her lips with her fingertips, feeling it.
Even now, I could still feel the touch, like it was yesterday.
――I know.
The words that were spun without a voice echoed in her head, and they still wouldn’t go away.
After finishing the meal, soaking in the bath, and changing into nightclothes, her sister held Kreschenta on her lap and ran a comb through her hair.
The chipped moon shone through the window.
However, the moon never change its shape.
The earth blocks the sunlight from the other side, so a shadow appears on the moon.
The moon was always in perfect shape in the sky.
It was just that a shadow appears there.
"...Kreschenta"
"I don't want to hear it."
Kreschenta was always perfect.
From the time she was born, she was born complete and unchanged.
It was the world that was wrong, and it was the world that was distorted.
The moon always floats in the sky, unchanged.
People could only capture what they see, so it just looked like something was missing.
To a bug clinging to the ground, it would certainly appear as a chipped moon.
But Kreschenta was not chipped.
Neither was her sister, the one that was wrong is everything else.
That was the truth, the certainty.
But, if so.
She changed the world the way she wanted, gained everything in the world, became a perfect being that everyone recognized――why was she still thinking about that servant?
Why was she trapped in the circular train of thought?
"...I don't want to hear about that."
It was supposed to be a trivial matter that she decided not to remember.
The only person who stood next to her was her older sister, and the rest were her older sister's favorite accessories.
It couldn't have been more than that, and it shouldn't have been more than that.
It had to be that way.
‘――If not, then I.’
Thinking about it, something unpleasant was swirling in her chest again.
Her sister just hugged her body and put her cheek against hers from behind.
“Kreschenta said that eternity is here, but perhaps eternity is not what the Krische wants.”
As if wrapping her arms around her.
As if trapping her entire body in a gentle cage.
“Kreisharana said, eternity is just a process, and what you want is what comes after..."
And then, affectionately.
"Rather than a goal, it's just Krische’s selfishness, isn't it?"
Her sister said in embarrassment.
"…Maybe, in the end, Krische just wants to see Berry again."
‘aah’, she lamented silently.
At least Kreschenta knew her sister's heart would always be there.
"Krische just want you to say, 'I'm home,' and to say, 'Welcome back.' … just wanting to give a hug, like usual, and say, 'Thank you for your hard work’."
Her sister was a child, and she was a bit more stupid than Kreschenta.
In order to meet that servant, an unusual means was needed, and in order to fully enjoy it, a peaceful world was needed, and that naturally became the word eternity.
“Krische doesn't know how difficult it is to think about eternal love or anything like that, but Krische think everyone could see through the Krische’s stupid ideas.''
A perfect world for her sister. An ideal paradise. A childlike utopia.
Since her sister wanted everything she wanted, she let it be.
Knowing that her sister's desired eternal paradise wouldn't be accepted, and knowing that only a few would accept it.
Knowing that her sister would get hurt every time she was rejected, and over time learning to not expect much from others――if it’s like that, she thought that someday, her sister would only think about Kreschenta.
――Without thinking about unnecessary things.
“...What Krische’s wished for is Krische’s. What other people wished for is other people’s. If you think about it, it’s a very simple thing. Because Krische is Krische, Krische just wanted to meet Bery and wants to spend all time together, Krische is just thinking selfish things.”
‘Everything is Krische’s selfishness’, Krische smiled
“On top of that, Selene and the others said they would go along with the Krische’s foolishness.”
Looking happy without end.
"Krische doesn't know what's going to happen. Maybe someday she will leave Krische’s side...but Krische’s sure that would be because she's satisfied, and Krische doesn’t think it would because the love for Krische run dry or anything like that.''
The papier-mâché cage of words that Kreschenta had built, like a cage, collapsed without any easily.
She knew this would happen soon.
She felt like it was quite early, but she also felt like it wasn't.
“Even if it’s different, that’s okay.”
Either way,
" ――Krische thinks of it like that, and interpret it in a convenient way."
Her sister would never forget that servant and would never let her forget.
She clenched her fist and lowered her eyes.
The scent of that servant was ingrained not only in her sister's memory, but also in this room, in the kitchen, in the magic crystal around her neck――even in her memory.
"...It's just like Argan-sama huh, Onee-sama."
She said fed up with it.
"Just always saying things that are pleasant to listen to. …That person is not as respectable a person as Onee-sama think she is."
"Krische thinks whether someone is admirable or not is trivial. Even if she's not admirable at all, Krische still loves Anne."
Krische smiled saying ‘even Krische isn't admirable’.
"Krische is fine with whatever the result is. Even if, as Kreschenta said, they eventually gets tired of Krische... Krische still wanted to see Bery and the others."
Stroking Kreschenta’s cheek, Krische spoke as if exhaling.
Without trying to conceal anything, to the point where it sent chills down her spine.
Krische voiced her desires freely.
“That’s Krische’s conclusion. …That’s why――”
"I don't like it."
She cut off her sister words with a single sentence and grabbed her sister's arm.
"Why?"
"...Unlike Onee-sama, I have no interest in these people. I'm much happier and more at ease now that it's just the two of us."
"It’s all lies. Why is Kreschenta acting like a bad girl like that? Even Kreschenta about Berry and the others ―― "
"I'm really fed up. Please stop making assumptions."
When she shook her sister off and stood up, she turned and glares straight at her sister, her tone intensifying.
"I wonder how many times I'll have to say that I don't like her before Onee-sama will understand. Onee-sama cares about her, so I was just being considerate."
The more she thought about it, the more unpleasant it became.
Discomfort crawled inside her chest, and there was nothing she could do about it.
Every time she remembered, she recalled the feeling of 'that rag’.
"Onee-sama’s head really is full of flower gardens huh. Bery, Bery, Bery...I'm really tired of the ridiculous memory about her."
"...Kreschenta"
"Even my patience have limit...The next time Onee-sama mention Bery, I'll really get angry."
Even she was surprised at how unstable her emotions were.
Her body was shaking involuntarily, her breathing was shallow, and something was swirling inside her with no place to go.
“If Kreschenta really said from the bottom of her heart that Kreschenta would like to be alone with together with Krische, that Kreschenta hates Bery and the others and doesn’t want to see them, then Krische will think about it.”
Her sister stared back at her and continued.
“But that won’t happen, so Krische won’t stop even if Kreschenta get angry.”
"How would you know such things, Onee-sama?"
"Because Krische is Kreschenta’s big sister. While Krische doesn't understand the feelings of others at all..."
Krische smiled sweetly, as she always did.
"Only Kreschenta’s, Krische tried to really understand Kreschenta’s feelings."
Seeing her sister like that, Kreschenta stiffened.
"... Onee-sama, just what do you think you understand"
She tightened her grip on her hand so much that blood oozed out.
―― There was no way her sister would know.
She had seen it all by herself.
She was the only person by that servant’s side, who had seen what her sister had tried not to see back then.
Day and night, every day, repeatedly.
That was precisely why, if not――such a thing.
“Somehow, it looks like the quarrel between Selene and Bery.”
Her sister said, as if reminiscing, and stood up.
"...More importantly, Kreschenta, you said ‘Bery’."
Krische walked out and opened the balcony door.
"Kreschenta is always pretending to be angry at Bery and trying to keep up appearance. If Kreschenta really thinks that way, why not just get truly angry once in a while?"
Her purple eyes sparkle against the moonlight.
――Her sister said seriously.
From head to toe, cold as if frozen.
She swung her right hand ―― the surrounding magic changed as if bursting.
Even if she was her older sister, she had exceeded her limits.
"Saying such things...Onee-sama, you might regret it you know. Onee-sama, do you understand the situation? I can control magic all over the world right now."
"Krische know"
Her sister answered and stretched out a thread of her magic power to the magic crystal lying on the desk in the room and shattered it.
Then, when she received a small amount of magical power, she wrapped herself in blue line and floated in the air.
“However, Krische is Kreschenta older sister.”
"...Does Onee-sama think I'm inferior?"
"Kreschenta is just as smart as Krische...but even so Krische will still wins."
‘Because Kreschenta isn't serious after all’ she said.
She wraps her purple eye in her silver eyelashes and narrowed them.
" Does Onee-sama think I can't kill Does Onee-sama?"
In response, Kreschenta also narrowed her red eyes with a gleaming gold trim.
"I can just create a new body and seal Onee-sama’s soul so that Onee-sama can't disobey me."
Just coldly, her color glowing darkly.
"...To think Onee-sama was this stupid."
Her sister was trying to distance herself from her.
Kreschenta had all the magical power from the Heavenly Pole in her hands.
It was hard to believe her sister didn't understand the disadvantage of giving up the only thing her sister had superiority over.
――Even knowing that, she was giving Kreschenta the advantage.
IT was like adding fuel to the fire.
"Ehehe. But Krische knows that Kreschenta is just as stupid as Krische."
Still, her sister said with a smile on her face and looked at Kreschenta.
"...And on top of that, just like Bery, Krische truly loves Kreschenta."
――She took off gently into the night sky with a chipped moon.
