The world of the “Voice” continues on like a wave. Even I, its developer, don’t yet know the details, but those concentric circles are certainly related to “memory.”
“……So, basically. There can be dead people in this world too.”
Lia said to Leo and Carlos. The three of them, dressed in robes, had taken seats in a corner of the tavern.
Leo opened his eyes wide and tilted his head.
“Why?”
“No, are you stupid? It means the memories of dead people are stored in this world too. A dead person could come back to life with the memories from when they were alive.”
Carlos’s answer was roughly correct.
“Yeah, yeah. Carlos is pretty close. But…….”
Lia paused for a moment. Her widened eyes looked somewhere.
Two Named had appeared before she knew it: Sylvia and Yuli. They were eating chicken.
And that was not all.
Creeeeak——
The tavern’s wooden door opened with a groan.
At that moment, the temperature inside dropped sharply.
As if a large ice cube had plopped into lukewarm cola.
Lia and the children naturally turned to look at the entrance. No, everyone in the tavern did.
“……It’s Professor Deculein.”
A noble who absorbed all attention in the area.
A magical villain who, if one let their guard down for even a moment, would leave them staring in fascination.
An Irregular impossible to express with Lia’s stats, and a Named who was practically the very model of absolute self-supremacy.
Deculein.
Thud— thud—
His footsteps were regular, and his overflowing elegance flowed coldly like frost. Always neat, obsessively immaculate, he was unchanged even in the “Voice.”
Leo opened his eyes wide.
“H-Hey. Lia! What do—”
“……Shh.”
Lia, who had been watching in a daze, put a finger to her lips. Leo nodded, and Carlos pulled his robe hood low over his head.
“……Lia. What do we do? Run?”
Leo whispered.
“No. Let’s not run. We’re bound to meet him someday anyway.”
In the “Voice,” Deculein was indispensable. All the more so now that he had become faaar stronger than in the original.
To begin with, the final boss of this “Voice” was his father, Decalane.
Rattle-rattle-rattle-rattle—
But suddenly, the table began to shake. Lia looked toward the cause.
Carlos.
Rattle-rattle-rattle-rattle—
The child’s pupils had already lost focus, and his face had turned blue.
A fear engraved into him beyond learning.
Carlos was now a child twice as strong as she was. Yet the sight of him drenched in cold sweat, trembling all over, was pitiful.
“……It’s okay, Ros.”
Lia held Carlos’s shaking hand. Leo beside her placed his hand on top of it as well.
“That’s right! It’s okay. We won’t get caught~”
At those absurdly carefree words, Carlos let out a faint laugh too.
* * *
The moment I opened the tavern door, all eyes focused on me. I was used to it.
I sat at the bar with Epherene. I had no desire to mingle with those bandit-like fellows.
“……Professor. Everyone’s looking at us.”
Just as Epherene said, everyone was openly watching us, while Sylvia and Yuli, of all people, were desperately pretending not to see us.
With bread caps for disguise perched on their heads at some point.
“Is this your first time here?”
The proprietor, who had been wiping a cup, asked. The answer was Epherene’s to give.
“Yes. Why?”
“Hmm. I did not expect Professor Deculein to come here as well.”
“You know the Professor?”
“Who wouldn’t? I’ve even heard the rumor that he buried the Red Ghost alive.”
“…….”
Epherene flinched. She glanced at me and muttered softly.
“That was a bit too much…….”
“I would like to hear some other rumors.”
I got straight to the point.
All words and talk gathered in a tavern, and all sorts of quests were born there. Thus, it was the starting point of the “Voice.”
“Hmm. Rumors, you say. If it were some layabout asking, I’d have snorted in his face…… but Professor, you are a different story. Even in this world, continental fame carries some weight.”
The proprietor waggled his eyebrows and pushed a beer toward me, but there was no way I would drink such cheap liquor.
“Ahem. Count Dimiteon is said to be seeking manpower.”
“Manpower?”
“That’s right. To find and kill a devil wearing a human’s skin, apparently.”
I said nothing. I merely leaned back against my chair and looked at the proprietor.
“…….”
My inner self was calm. My mind was tranquil.
Yet 「Telekinesis」 manifested on its own and made the tavern tremble. The utensils, tables, liquor bottles—everything shook madly.
Grrrrrrrrrr……!
A small quake rattled the outer walls and the floor.
In this way, telekinesis taken to its extreme was becoming my “aura.” It was a state somewhat akin to the unity of self and object.
“Whoa, whoa. Calm down, calm down.”
The proprietor was aghast. I soon subdued the aura.
A constitution of 「Calmness」, where the angrier I became, the colder my heart grew.
“I know well of Yukline, the clan of Extinction. Will you accept?”
[Main Quest: Voice (1)]
◆ Objective: Devil Hunt
◆ Reward: Shop Currency +10
Ten pieces of shop currency. At last, an opportunity to strengthen the quality of my mana once more—perhaps for the final time.
I could not refuse.
I nodded.
“I accept.”
“Good. You may enter through there.”
The proprietor pointed to a door beside the counter.
“Farewell.”
I rose from my seat. Epherene followed behind me as well.
Creeeak—
The door opened with 「Telekinesis」. As I crossed the threshold, the first things I saw were two men.
One man seemed to be sleeping on a sofa, while the other sat in a chair, striking a pose.
His eyes were closed, his fingers interlaced and pressed to his forehead—a pose dripping with pretension.
“Hm. Who dares…… Huh? Deculein?!”
I knew that man, who slowly raised his face only to mutter in shock. I had met him before.
One of the Six Serpents, Jukaken.
“……Ahem. Deculein, you. Is this the first time since the Gerek incident?”
When I gave no response, he seemed embarrassed and composed his expression.
“It’s awkward, but fortunate. When it comes to beating devils to death, there’s no one like you.”
The Six Serpents were a criminal organization of the underworld. Calling themselves a “guild,” they committed all manner of crimes, and if money was involved, there was nothing they would not do.
There was no need to treat him kindly.
“I do not listen to preambles or idle chatter. Where is the devil?”
“……I have no intention of talking long with you either. Here, take this.”
Jukaken took out a document envelope. I accepted it with one hand and asked.
“Who is Count Dimateon?”
He seemed about to say something, then shut his mouth.
“……That’s for later. You look at that. It’s the devil you’re to hunt. For reference, the advance payment is ten yeopjeon. The completion payment is ten times that. Ten yeopjeon is a large sum equivalent to about one thousand elne in the Empire.”
Rrrip—!
I tore open the envelope. Inside were two composite sketches.
“…….”
I looked at the first sheet, the drawing rendered on paper.
It was a familiar face.
“To explain the mission simply, there are devils in this ‘Voice.’ More precisely, humans that the ‘Voice’ revived.”
Jukaken’s words circled around my ears, then scattered.
“You could say they’re dolls the ‘Voice’ created by breathing a piece of its own soul into them. But if you kill those dolls? The ‘Voice’ becomes incomplete too. It’s the most one-dimensional method of bringing down the ‘Voice.’”
This was the face of someone I had never seen.
Yet in Deculein’s memories, she remained vividly.
I quietly recited the name.
“……Cielia.”
“That’s right, but don’t misunderstand. The memories and the shell belong to that woman, but inside, it’s a devil. It will act exactly like her, but it isn’t real. Well…… for you, it should be easy.”
Jukaken snickered and added.
“Since she’s a woman you already killed once.”
“……Eh?”
At that, Epherene’s shoulders twitched. She glanced around and asked.
“Who…… is this?”
I turned to Epherene. Her round eyes blinked like lightbulbs.
“Sylvia’s mother.”
“……What?! Th-Then—”
Ignoring the horrified Epherene, I glared at Jukaken again and asked.
“Jukaken. Do you not want this ‘Voice’ to be maintained?”
“Hm? No, no. You. Think of what I’ve built in the underworld. Would I want to abandon all that gold and treasure to live in this world made by some damn devil? Besides, we underworld bastards fall for fakes like this pretty easily. Therefore, the existence of this ‘Voice’ is troubling for us as well. Shouldn’t a false world be destroyed as soon as possible?”
Those words were unexpectedly persuasive. Nor did he seem to be lying.
“Ah, more importantly, you. There’s one more sheet in there. Look at it now and decide, no matter what.”
Jukaken’s expression turned rather serious.
I lowered my gaze again.
Cielia’s softly smiling face, and behind it, another sheet of paper left behind.
The instant I switched the positions of the two composite sketches and looked at the next page.
“…….”
Uncommonly, I was flustered.
For a moment, the circuits of my thoughts were severed.
“Professor?”
I could not answer. My lips felt as though they had stuck together and would not move.
“Professor……?”
Epherene looked at the composite sketch on her own.
She murmured the name written on the paper in a small voice.
“Yu Ara…… von…… Vergissmeinnicht……?”
Yu Ara, von, Vergissmeinnicht.
The first woman Deculein loved more than anyone.
At the same time, the Easter egg that she, whom I loved, had inserted into the game.
Perhaps, something no different from her other self……
“Who is this?”
Of course, I had no memories of this woman. To begin with, she was likely not the real Yu Ara.
Vergissmeinnicht. I did not know any family bearing the name “Forget-me-not.”
However, the figure in this composite sketch resembled her.
No, it was identical.
The face I was meeting again after far too long, the black hair and two eyes, the mischievous lips, were still so vivid in my mind that I could ache with longing—yet, of all things, I could not remember her voice at all…….
“Professor?”
Epherene shook my shoulder.
Jukaken’s voice dug into my ear.
“You may choose only one of the two. You, if it’s too hard, you may avoid it. I understand love too, you see.”
“…….”
I glared at him and twisted my mouth.
Because I sensed a worthless, worm-like pity from him.
“When was it that you lost your boyfriend again?”
“……You crazy bastard! I told you not to say that!”
“Boyfriend?”
Epherene raised her eyebrows. Jukaken silently swept back his hair.
“You don’t need to know.”
“Um…… Ah, yes. I think I get what it is…… More importantly, who is this person?”
To Epherene, who asked without much thought, Jukaken answered as if taking revenge.
“Deculein’s first fiancée. The only one he ever loved, they say.”
“!”
At that moment, Epherene’s body jolted greatly.
“Then…… N-No! Then this isn’t right!”
Epherene waved both arms about. Jukaken asked back in a sarcastic tone.
“Why isn’t it?”
“What do you mean, why……? Even if it’s a devil, you said it looks exactly like someone he loved.”
“It goes beyond looking exactly alike. For all intents and purposes, it’s the same person. Her memories have been reproduced too.”
“Ah, then that makes it even more wrong!”
Epherene burst out shouting.
“That makes no sense. How could…….”
She began muttering something else, but I simply looked at the composite sketch.
I looked at her, whose voice I had forgotten.
The face of her whom I had missed for so long felt as if I had found a treasure lost in the distant past, and yet…….
Rustle—
I gently set the composite sketch down.
“No, that doesn’t make seeeense—!”
“You crazy bitch! Let go of me! Why are you making a fuss! Are you insane?!”
“Ah, anyway, have someone else do—”
“Epherene.”
I stopped Epherene, who had somehow gotten into a scuffle with Jukaken.
“……Yes?”
To Epherene, who let go of Jukaken’s collar, I asked in a low voice.
“If your father were revived as a devil…… could you kill him?”
“…….”
Epherene said nothing. As if she disliked the question, and especially as if she was angry that it had come from me, the one who had killed her father, she bit her lower lip.
Then, as if in retaliation, she asked back.
“Then what about you, Professor? If someone you loved—”
“I.”
I looked into Epherene’s eyes.
Pupils as clear as the sea, ignorant of any lie.
To myself reflected within them, I answered with certainty.
“Gladly.”
[Quest Accepted: Voice (1)]
* * *
Meanwhile, Sylvia was staring intently at the door behind the counter that Deculein had entered.
“Lady Iliade.”
She was trying to peek and eavesdrop—no, keep watch—but the woman in front of her kept getting in the way.
“……”
Sylvia puffed out her cheeks sullenly and glared at Julie. Julie asked with a face as serious as could be.
“Are you saying that is truly possible?”
“……Yes. But do you really want that?”
“Yes. I truly do.”
Such an earnest voice. Sylvia thought.
This woman really knows nothing.
She is far too foolish.
“You may regret it.”
“That is all right.”
In the world of “voices,” every voice and memory on the continent was stored.
Therefore, what Julie wanted was the truth—the voices of Veron and Rockfell at the time they died.
Sylvia said,
“Then cooperate with me. I need a knight too.”
“Yes. Of course. But may I ask what sort of cooperation you mean?”
“……”
Sylvia hesitated for a moment, but answered honestly.
“In this world, my mother is alive.”
Julie’s eyes widened. Sylvia continued in a low voice.
“I know she’s fake, but I want to meet her at least once. To do that, I need a knight’s help. There are many obstacles in this world. There are tigers too.”
“……Yes. I understand. In that case—”
“Us too!”
Just then, a ringing voice came from somewhere. Sylvia and Julie looked down in that direction.
Lia. Leo. And some child they had never seen before.
Three children had approached all at once.
“I don’t know what this is, but let us join too! We’ll be useful too! We have to earn cash coins too!”
At the child named Lia’s request, Sylvia furrowed her brow first, but Julie spoke as if soothing her.
“Ah, Lady Iliade. These children are adventurers—”
“I know. We met them together, didn’t we? On the way to Reccordak.”
“Right. We did.”
Julie looked at Lia. Lia smiled brightly and nodded.
“Mm. Miss Lia successfully protected Professor Deculein during the great tiger hunt. She may be young, but she possesses truly unbelievable skill. So—”
Sylvia rose from her seat without a word. Julie followed her, and the five of them left the tavern together.
Outside, it was as noisy as a marketplace.
—Come, come. Everyone, buy these~ There are many items you won’t even see on the continent~
It was, in fact, a marketplace.
Sylvia tried to pass by, but then a certain dagger caught her eye. It was a silver dagger being sold at a street stall.
“It is suitable for self-defense. Even a young lady’s hand can swing it well enough, and if you succeed in stabbing just once, instant death! One nyang in cash coins.”
“……”
Sylvia turned away without a word. She was, so to speak, a miser. No—more precisely, she had no need to buy things at all.
If she recalled the item she had just seen and drew it with mana—
Shiiik—
The exact same item as what she had just seen.
A silver dagger, not different in the slightest, was now held in her hand.
“Phew. There goes Deculein.”
Then came Carlos’s sigh of relief.
Sylvia turned to look.
“……Ah.”
Epherene and Deculein.
Deculein walked ahead, and Epherene followed three paces behind him.
Epherene looked gloomy, but Deculein, too, seemed drenched in a certain melancholy.
“……”
Deculein.
Sylvia vaguely understood the feelings she held toward him.
Love, and hatred.
Contradictory emotions that could not mingle with each other.
“Lady Iliade. Then where should we go now?”
Julie asked. At some point, the three children were beside her.
Sylvia did not particularly like the children, but just as Julie had said, their skills seemed decent enough.
“We can join too, right?! Oh! From the right, this is Carlo, Leos, and I’m Lia!”
Lia said energetically.
Sylvia’s answer was quiet.
“Fine, so follow me.”
“Yes!”
“Noisy child. Be quiet. Lower your voice.”
“Yees……”