Chapter 26 (221): Sloth Possession, the Struggle of the Mind
[Anastasia: "What is going on here…"]
[Mimi: "This is way too sudden! Is Sloth unkillable?"]
[Al: "That's impossible. Even the White Whale fell to our combined strength."]
[Julius: "Something is clearly wrong. Could this be possession?"]
[Rem: "Is this the enemy Hikigaya-kun has to face?"]
[Ram: "Even with a preemptive strike, it still ended like this… and this time, no one let their guard down."]
[Crusch: "It seems the only way to deal with Sloth may be to eliminate every single Witch Cultist."]
Watching the knights who had died due to his lack of information, Hikigaya felt a stabbing pain in his chest.
Wilhelm seemed to notice something was wrong and gently patted Hikigaya's shoulder. In the White Whale battle, this young man had entrusted his very life to them, yet now, upon losing comrades, he wore such an expression. In Wilhelm's eyes, Hikigaya valued his companions' lives even more than his own.
Felix stepped forward, staring at Sloth's remains with confusion: "Was the Sloth we defeated earlier just a decoy? Is this the real body?"
Hikigaya: "If we keep fighting with this level of uncertainty, the sacrifices will only continue to increase."
Julius: "Agreed. And this likely isn't as simple as a real body and a substitute."
Wilhelm: "Are you saying there are multiple Sin Archbishops of [Sloth]?"
Julius: "That's also possible. Every one of these hundred-plus Fingers could be the Sin Archbishop of [Sloth]."
Guilt deepened on Hikigaya's face, but the more guilt he felt, the more he had to stay calm.
"We can't waste time here. We must eliminate the remaining Fingers as soon as possible. And Ram… earlier you said all the villagers were gathered together?"
Ram: "Yes…"
Hikigaya: "Disperse them immediately. In the worst-case scenario, if [Sloth] can possess others at will, this would become a catastrophic disaster."
Only then did everyone truly realize the gravity of the situation. Ram, in particular, wasted no words and immediately began issuing orders, with Hikigaya and the others following closely behind.
'I originally planned to deal with Sloth here, then return to the mansion to stop Elsa… but now, that's clearly not how things are turning out.'
'Setting aside what Elsa might do, leaving such a threat here is absolutely not my style.'
'What would finding Elsa even accomplish? And what about Sloth?'
'Is it really down to choosing one or the other? Or splitting our forces again? But too many have already died… if something else happens…'
Hikigaya couldn't bear the weight of that unspoken responsibility.
What he wanted was for everyone to return safely, not to gamble others' lives just to protect Emilia. That had never been his goal.
As Hikigaya continued thinking, even though Ram was leading the way, the distance to their hideout still felt unbearably far.
Boom!
A massive plume of smoke rose in the distance. The sudden explosion startled everyone rushing forward, except Hikigaya and Ram, whose bodies began trembling uncontrollably.
Ram: "How… how could this happen…"
Hikigaya: "Don't freeze up, Ram. Full speed!"
Snapping back to her senses at Hikigaya's words, Ram clenched her teeth, her eyes filled with resolve to kill whoever was responsible.
Hikigaya's thoughts immediately turned to Emilia. Had she been injured in that massive explosion?
He never imagined that his own advance planning would end up becoming something he'd regret. Now that he finally understood Sloth's ability, Hikigaya knew it was already too late to change what had happened.
All he could do was rush back as fast as possible.
"Boom… boom!"
Explosion after explosion tugged at their nerves, intensifying the torment in their hearts.
Along the way, Ram was completely consumed by rage, while Hikigaya continued formulating countermeasures.
If he wanted to protect both sides… perhaps he could even use Elsa as part of the plan.
…
Ruined beyond recognition, when they finally arrived at the so-called hideout, they saw Patrasche and their forces already locked in combat with the Witch Cultists. Emilia was directing the panicked, disorganized villagers to evacuate, her face clearly filled with fear.
The appearance of a Finger completely tilted the battle. His [Invisible Hands] were like an unstoppable ability, harvesting lives one after another. Familiar faces vanished before Hikigaya's eyes, yet he could do nothing to stop it.
As expected, Elsa was also there. Unable to find Meili, she vented her fury upon the villagers instead.
Although Al, Wilhelm, and the others quickly joined the fight, the lives already lost could never be recovered. No matter how desperately they swung their blades now, all they could do was save what remained.
"My brain trembles!"
"My brain is trembling!"
"My brain is trembling!"
"Hahahahahahahaha!"
Fortunately, Wilhelm's presence prevented the situation from spiraling completely out of control.
Faced with so many enemies, Sloth chose not to continue fighting. Instead, he detonated himself, dragging everyone into a violent explosion.
Boom!
The number of wounded continued to rise. And at that very moment, Ram, who had been fighting nonstop with wind magic, was suddenly struck by overwhelming pain.
Yet this pain… did not come from what stood before her.
"Rem... Rem... Rem..."
Hikigaya: "What happened to Rem?!"
Ram: "Over there... the enemy..."
Before Hikigaya could continue asking, a strange sensation surged up from deep within him, like his consciousness was being eroded. There was nothing but endless darkness, and nausea spread throughout his body, as if discomfort was constantly assaulting his senses.
Ram: "Hachiman! What's wrong with you?!"
Hikigaya: "I... I'm fine..."
Julius instantly noticed what was happening and stopped Ram, who was about to rush over.
Hikigaya struggled to stay conscious. With his unsteady body, he glanced around the battlefield.
Sure enough, the Witch Cultists had already been wiped out. The rest was only a matter of time.
But... his own condition...
'Is it because of the Witch's miasma? Is that why I'm like this?'
'But still...'
Unable to maintain his thoughts, Hikigaya instinctively started running into the distance. On the other side, Elsa, who noticed he was trying to escape, chased after him, while Julius tossed the weakened Ram to Felix and immediately followed.
Elsa: "You bastard, where did you put Meili?!"
Julius: "Sir Hikigaya!"
Elsa tried to throw her Kukri Knives to block Hikigaya's path, but Julius intercepted it.
They kept running down the road like this, and Hikigaya would occasionally lose consciousness completely.
At this point, he became even more certain.
Sloth had possessed him.
And the reason was either the Witch's scent clinging to him, or something he didn't even understand himself.
At the end of the road, Hikigaya finally stopped, panting heavily. Julius and Elsa followed close behind, one pursuing to kill, the other protecting.
Hikigaya: "Don't come any closer! I'm..."
"Sloth... desu!"
His body twisted unnaturally, his head tilting to the side. Julius and Elsa, who had been fighting just moments ago, both froze.
Julius: "That's impossible!"
Elsa licked her Kukri Knives and revealed a delighted smile. "Oh? How interesting."
Hikigaya: "Aaaaaaahhhhhhhhh!"
His hands clawed into his own flesh, his pupils widening in terror.
"What a splendid body, hahahahahaha! So gloomy, so perfect, so deliciously unforgettable."
"It's been decades, decades since I've encountered such a body."
Julius frowned in anger, drawing his sword and pointing it at him.
"Get out of his body. Otherwise..."
"Otherwise what? Spirit Knight, come kill me. Kill the one you respect the most."
Elsa leapt onto a tree, clearly planning to watch from the sidelines.
At this moment, Hikigaya, who had completely lost consciousness and was now Sloth, stepped straight toward Julius's blade.
"For affection, devotion, pure love, universal love, deep love, sexual love, friendship, for love, for love, for looooove love love love love!"
"Love..."
"Knight Hikigaya! Your knightly soul must not lose to him! Hurry and come back to your body!"
"It's useless. I already control this body completely."
"Then remember what you're supposed to do! Is this the ending you can accept?!"
Julius kept retreating, doing his best not to stab Hikigaya, while roaring desperately in hopes of waking him.
Within the sea of consciousness, Hikigaya seemed to truly hear Julius's voice.
Slowly, he opened his eyes.
Regaining control for just an instant, he rushed straight toward Julius's blade, hoping Julius would kill him.
Julius, who hadn't reacted in time, stared in disbelief. He tried to pull his sword back, but it was already too late.
Blood burst from Hikigaya's body.
"No!"
Hikigaya smiled faintly in relief.
This time, he had to choose death.
Because the deaths caused by his lack of information were something he could no longer accept.
And Rem was still in danger, how could he abandon her?
Everything.
Everything had to return to that point.
"Ara ara, what a troublesome boy."
Time seemed to freeze as Pandora slowly stepped out of Hikigaya's body.
Julius: "Impossible! My blade clearly pierced Sir Hikigaya! Who are you?! Get out of his body right now!"
Pandora still wore that calm, gentle smile. With a casual wave of her hand, Julius was completely immobilized, forced to watch as she walked toward Hikigaya step by step.
The Sloth-possessed Hikigaya glared viciously at her, but Pandora flicked his forehead lightly, and Sloth was blasted out of his body.
Without a host, Sloth became nothing more than a mass of black, flame-like soul energy.
"Aaaaaaahhhhh! My body! My perfect body!"
"What a noisy fellow."
Pandora gently closed her small hand, and the soul flame vanished completely, sound and existence erased from the space before them.
Elsa, who had been watching from the tree, felt overwhelming fear for the first time.
This was absolute power.
With a single flick of a finger, someone could be annihilated instantly.
Even Elsa, who could revive, could only suppress her presence as much as possible.
Of course, Pandora had already noticed her.
But her goal was still Hikigaya, so she simply ignored the two behind her.
Hikigaya: "Huff... huff... huff..."
Pandora smiled faintly.
Hikigaya: "You saved me? What did you do to them?"
Pandora: "You could say that. As for them, I didn't do anything at all."
Hikigaya: 'With strength like that, why not just revive everyone?'
Pandora maintained her gentle smile. "Sorry. All I can do is alter realities that have already occurred."
Hikigaya: "I forgot, you can read minds..."
Pandora: "So, Hachiman-kun, I'm looking forward to the choice you'll make."
Hikigaya recalled everything that had just happened, nothing remained but endless regret.
If he didn't change all this, he would never forgive himself.
So he had already decided, hadn't he?
Pandora: "As expected of Hachiman-kun. I'm really starting to look forward to the world of something genuine."
Hikigaya: "One last question before I die. Why did you come out of my body?"
Pandora: "Because... I love you deeply too, Hachiman-kun. I want to reach everything about you. As long as you call for me, I will appear."
Hikigaya: "Out of everything that happened today, that line is the most horrifying."
Pandora: "Saying that will hurt a girl's feelings, you know, even if it's you, Hachiman-kun..."
Hikigaya: "If only I could actually hurt a monster like you."
Pandora kept smiling softly.
There was nothing left to wait for.
Hikigaya slowly stood up, walked to the immobilized Julius, and said: "I'm sorry. This is all my fault, so... I'll make it right."
"Even if you think this is irresponsible... believe me."
"See you later, Julius."
Hikigaya walked toward the forest behind him. After making sure Julius couldn't see him, he formed his fingers like a gun and poured all his mana into wind magic.
"Wind Blade!"
Bang!
Pandora: "Not even able to deceive yourself... it seems I should leave as well."
As Pandora's figure faded, everything in the world seemed to return to nothingness, swept away into the long river of time.
[Emilia: "So this is Hachiman-kun's choice?"]
[Beatrice: "Looks like even after defeating the White Whale, it still wasn't enough for him, I suppose. Well, that's only natural, his goal from the beginning was to save the people here."]
[Ram: "Hachiman, if this is your choice, then... Ram truly grateful."]
[Rem: "Sister, even now Rem doesn't understand what happened. Did we encounter another powerful enemy?"]
[Crusch: "If an enemy could endanger both me and Priscilla with the Yang Sword, then it certainly wouldn't be someone simple to deal with."]
[Priscilla: "Who would dare block my path, I wonder?"]
[Julius: "I don't want to think this way, but the only possibility now... is an Archbishop of Sin."]
[Wilhelm: "You're saying the White Whale wasn't lured here by Sloth?"]
[Julius: "There's that possibility."]
At the same time, the returned Hikigaya was now sitting on Rem's ground dragon, holding her tightly in his arms.
"Hachiman-kun?"
"I-It's nothing... Are you okay, Rem?"
"Of course Rem is fine. But Hachiman-kun, you should take better care of yourself. If you're tired, Rem will always be your safe harbor."
Hikigaya hugged Rem even tighter, and she gently held his head, softly patting his shoulder.
Not wasting any time, Hikigaya quickly sent a messenger monkey back to the mansion and revised their plan.
Elsa.
Sloth.
And unknown powerful enemies.
No matter what, he had to protect everyone at the same time.
'Should I call Pandora out? As long as I call her...'
'But she herself is an unstable variable. She might even be watching me right now.'
'In that case, I'll trust myself.'
Hikigaya stepped forward and said, "Sir Wilhelm, Knight Julius, and Knight Felix, I need the help of the three of you."
Al: "Bro, aren't you short on manpower already? I'm not doubting Sir Wilhelm or Julius, but this..."
Hikigaya: "No. I'm confident we can win. And... I also have something to tell you."
Crusch: "Sir Hikigaya, please go ahead."
Hikigaya: "If you encounter any trouble on the road, contact Rem immediately. I'll rush over to support you."
Priscilla crossed her arms. "Foolish man, what do you mean by that?"
Hikigaya couldn't explain the future he already knew. He simply walked to Rem and said: "I will save you. No matter what."
Rem: "Rem has always believed in you."
Though Crusch couldn't fully understand his words, she still remembered them. Following Hikigaya's suggestion, they chose to take a longer route.
After they departed, Julius asked in confusion: "Do you know something? If it's dangerous, why not go together to Roswaal's domain?"
Wilhelm: "No. For Lady Emilia, other candidates stepping onto her territory is itself an insult. And if we truly encounter a powerful enemy, it would only bring disaster to the civilians in that region. If they were to join forces with Sloth, resistance would be impossible."
Hikigaya nodded. "Of course. This is all just my speculation, so you don't need to worry."
Wilhelm glanced at the unusually calm Hikigaya and said nothing more, while Julius spoke quietly: "Can we really defeat the legendary Archbishop of Sin, Sloth, with just us?"
Hikigaya: "If we don't succeed, then we die trying."
Julius: "For you to say something like that… it's truly unbelievable."
…
They mounted the ground dragons again and continued on their way. Since Hikigaya had already sent the monkey back ahead to release Meili, he decided to launch a surprise attack.
Of course, that was assuming Elsa didn't cause chaos.
In Hikigaya's view, since Elsa's objective was Meili, as long as she could meet Meili face-to-face, there wouldn't be any real problem.
The real issue was how to deal with Sloth and still return safely to Rem.
But now clearly wasn't the time to think about that.
Because in the previous loop, Hikigaya had confirmed that one of Sloth's Fingers was hidden among the villagers, that was what triggered the massive explosion and countless casualties.
And the purpose of this trip wasn't anything else.
It was to avoid alerting the enemy and quietly remove that 'traitor'.
For Felix, this was practically effortless.
Riding nonstop, Hikigaya soon ran into Ram again. Because of Ram's watch, all the Witch Cultists had already been taken care of in advance.
Ram: "Hachiman, where's Rem?"
Hikigaya: "We'll talk about that later. There's no time now. Where are the villagers?"
Ram: "They're all in the village. Ram already did what you told me. Meili is among them too, she really behaved herself and didn't do anything."
Hikigaya: "What about Elsa?"
Ram: "Elsa? Never heard of her."
'So she hasn't appeared yet… well, that's actually good.'
The journey was almost completely unobstructed. They quickly returned to the village.
Emilia was standing on a raised platform.
On her left were Chin and the others, and on her right stood the village guards.
Ram: "It's just ahead..."
Hikigaya raised a hand to stop Ram and scanned the villagers carefully.
Ram: "What is it, Hachiman?"
Hikigaya: "Don't alert them. We need to wait for the right moment."
Ram: "What do you mean?"
The five of them hid behind the trees, suppressing their presence as much as possible.
Only by letting Felix identify the 'Finger' in advance could they protect the villagers.
Otherwise, in the end…
It would turn into that endless hell all over again.
Just then, Meili suddenly sniffed the air, as if she had discovered something, and broke into an innocent smile.
"I've been waiting so long. You're finally back, Hachiman."
(End of this chapter)