Inside Emilia's heart, it felt as if emotions that weren't hers were flooding into her.
While that was happening on the outside, on the inside, Ace was still face-to-face with Ryu.
"That doesn't answer my question at all," Ryu didn't seem to care about Ace's protests at all. "What is normal to you?"
"Considering that you've been holed up in this inner world of yours for three years, I'm pretty sure you've already got an inkling as to the answer, am I right?"
"…"
"Talk 'bout tight-lipped," Ryu scratched the back of his head in exasperation. "Okay then, since you don't wanna talk, then I'll do the talking until you finally decide to spit it out."
"So, where to begin?" Ryu pondered as he held his chin. "Oh! I got it!"
With amused mischief in his eyes, Ryu clapped his hand. "The three fragments. Let's start with them."
"The first Emi met and interacted with was a kid version of you, and I'm willing to bet he represents the little bit of humanity left in you… or to be more precise, that you acquired."
"Stop it," Ace glared at Ryu with a menacing look in his eyes.
"Not gonna! And even if you wanted to kill me, you couldn't since I'm not even a living being to begin with," Ryu poked at him with his words.
"Now, I'm gonna guess why that kid version of you exists," Ryu crossed his arms together. "Let's see. I bet he's the reason you've been unstable, right?"
"If you say another word, I swear I'll—!?"
"Because you've seen what normal looks like, am I right?" Ryu interrupted without letting Ace, who had frozen up from his words, talk back. "You lived in it. Studied it. Emulated it. And then you started to understand it."
"What do you know?!" Ace rose up from the ground, a dark expression that hid seething rage etched on his face. "Everyone's normal was something I should have never tried to fit in."
"Hah! I should have just acted the part of a monster back then," Ace ran his fingers in his hair, clutching the strands as his hand slowly became a loose fist. "Instead of trying to survive by playing easy, I should have just brute-forced my way."
"The more time I spent with the Blakelords, the more I realized that the world they lived in was completely different from mine. If I'm not normal, then what am I? Who am I?"
'He's finally started being honest with himself. I wonder Emi, are you listening to this? Do you see who Ace really is now? Can you feel it?'
As if on cue, Emilia couldn't stop the tears from streaming down her face.
'So painful. Is this Ace's pain?' while Emilia was drowned in the thoughts of Ace's true feelings finally unveiling before her, Ryu was continuing to push the young boy.
"And so, you shut all those feelings you had never experienced before behind locked doors," Ryu said with both hands clutching his ankles as he continued to sit cross-legged. "But within the deepest corners of your subconscious, something encapsulated those feelings and manifested them in a neutral realm."
"That something was the Asaru Takayoshi we met in this inner world. In one way or another, a remnant of him stayed within you until today. He showed both you and Emi the truth of how you came to exist. And what consciously remained of him within you was the single drive to survive no matter what."
"And that's how the three fragments become keys to understand the One True Ace. I think that's pretty accurate, no?" Ryu kept the same smile on his face. "But what of Emi?"
Ryu's question made Ace tense up again.
"How does she fit in all this story? What does she even represent to you? You tried really hard to turn her against yourself. Why is that?" Ryu asked curiously.
"Here's what I believe. You used her to prove something to yourself. No. That's not right. It was to study her."
The moment Ryu said the last phrase, Ace's expression went pale blank as his eyes widened.
"She had something you didn't. A form of humanity that didn't break even with all her circumstances. She was too bright and you wanted to break it. Crush it until there was nothing left of it. And that's because you were envious of it."
While their exchange continued, Emilia could feel the same feelings Ryu observed in Ace flowing into her. 'I see. So that's what it was.'
"You hated that aspect of her because no matter what you did, no matter how much she was pushed to the brink, she never broke down completely," Ryu spoke as if he was able to dissect and examine every fiber of Ace's being.
Almost as if being faced with his own real feelings had weakened his legs, he stumbled and fell back on his butt.
'Hmph. Idiot,' Ryu stared intently at Ace.
"A twisted form of admiration and envy. She's everything you aren't, and that's why she intrigued you. At that point, the damage was already done and whatever balance remained inside of you, it shattered. That's why her killing you would be both a liberation and proof of affirmation that you weren't wrong. That normal… was nothing more than a fragile illusion of deceptive lies and delusions."
"Haa… I can't do this anymore," Ryu rose up and stared down at the unresponsive Ace, charging up a punch that went straight to the silver-hair boy's face.
"IDIOT!" screamed Ryu as the violent punch landed and broke Ace out of his daze. "JACKASS! WASTE OF SPACE! LUKEWARM! COWARD!"
"While you were there wallowing in your little drama, people tried to extend their hands to you! But of course, mister is so miserable that he pushed them away, and he became even more miserable because he couldn't just take a hint!" Ryu then grabbed Ace by the collar, their foreheads against each other.
"Now you listen to me, because I won't say it twice," Ryu glared at Ace dead in the eyes. "You're gonna push your ass off from the ground, get the hell outta this place, and never come back even if it kills you!"
As Ryu released Ace from his grip, he released a long a deep breath.
"Haa… much better! So, what're you gonna do now? I can always kill you and take over your body if you aren't gonna cooperate," Ryu had the most refreshed and brightest expression as the words left his mouth.
But for Ace, that moment reminded him of something. The day he showed his true colors to Emilia and the day when he first met Chris. His hand then went to the area where pain flared on his face.
"What… what should I do?" Ace asked, the air around him surprisingly humble and vulnerable.
Ryu turned his back on him as if shrugging off the question. "Hell would I know, idiot? You should stop overthinking things. I'm done dealing with this crap. I'm outta here."
Ryu then faded into nothingness as Ace was left alone.
'You think you're funny. So in the end, you want me to choose,' Ace rose up from the ground as around him, three keys appeared from thin air.
'Red, blue, and yellow,' Ace looked at them intently. 'Red is the Shadow, Blue is the kid me, and yellow is Asaru, huh? A choice, is it? But what should I choose?'
Ace's thoughts replayed each event that happened in his inner world. Emilia's confession to the kid version of him, what happened to Asaru Takayoshi, and his fight with the Shadow-faced warrior.
'What am I supposed to do?' Ace questioned as images of Emilia, Chris and Ryu came to mind. 'Who am I? Among those three, who am I?'
Ace's recent exchange with Ryu and the events that happened after the 5-Star Competition came back to mind.
He stared silently into his hand, the seconds seeming endless as a voice from the past rang out in his mind… a certain prince's words.
I don't think battle must always be a matter of life and death. Some fight to protect people. Others do it to defend their convictions.
After all, humans aren't such black-and-white beings. We all have a path we chose in life, and we simply follow that path no matter where it may lead us. That's simply one such process in this thing we call life.
'Convictions, huh? Now that I think about it, that day Emi said something, didn't she? What was it again?'
Don't take this so lightly!
'Chris, Emi, Arnold… Would they know what to do in this situation? But they aren't here.'
Ace's drifted from one Key to another.
'Who am I? Maybe that doesn't matter. Asaru Takayoshi… That guy… What choice would he make? No. I guess that doesn't matter either. Then what am I supposed to do? Stop overthinking. That's what he said.'
He took one last look at Keys, his lips parting slightly as if a silent realization washed over him.
"I'll just… take all of it," he muttered, the answer rolling off his tongue unintentionally.
"Good answer, idiot," a voice came out from behind Ace as his head shot back to only see Ryu grinning from ear to ear.
"You…" a pulse reverberated throughout Ace's body as shadows with silver hues swirled around him and a black crown appeared atop his head.
'What's going on?!' Ace questioned as pop-up screens appeared in front of him.
[Notice: Release of Third Seal complete.]
[Status Update initiated.]
[…]
[Status Update complete.]
[End of Main Scenario.]
"Bye, bye," Ryu waved at Ace whose body faded into pixels. "And to the pleasure of never seeing you again. Ever."
---
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"Ngh," eyes opened as they noticed the ceiling above them and the black-haired young woman above them.
As his vision became clear, Ace's eyes locked onto Emilia's, a silent yet mellow tension forming between them for a moment.
"Hi, Ace," Emilia broke the silence first.
Though it didn't show on his face, it was evident that Ace hesitated for a moment.
"H-hi, Emi."
As she heard those words, something came over Emilia, making her freeze for a moment. Something that she couldn't hold back anymore. Something she couldn't control. Something unexpected.
Ace's eyes were wide as what unfolded next was an outcome he didn't understand. Emilia's figure leaning in and the soft and warm sensation on his lips as the black-haired girl kissed him.
'Eh?'