After finishing his meal, Noir gently stroked the Black Blade.
Countless thoughts swirled through his mind.
Memories from his previous life, the story of this world, even the phantom pain that still struck from time to time despite his body having mostly recovered.
And yet, for all those thoughts, he still lacked one clear goal.
He had once believed he wanted revenge, that he wanted to kill every person who had ever hurt him.
But when someone showed him kindness, Noir found himself hesitating again.
Should he really take revenge?
And after revenge, where was he supposed to go?
His thoughts were a mess, utterly chaotic.
He was always too easily influenced by the outside world, always too easily changed by it.
What Noir needed most right now was to steady his heart, and the path he had chosen for that was magic.
If skills were the sum of one's past, then magic was a longing for the future.
Unfortunately, grimoires that could actively awaken magic in people were exorbitantly expensive. Without using special methods, there was simply no way to obtain one.
As for Noir, aside from the priceless Black Blade in his hand, the most valuable thing he possessed was probably those memories of his, already beginning to blur at the edges.
He tried hard to recall the future plot, but regrettably, too much time had passed.
Other than a few unforgettable scenes, Noir could barely remember much of anything unless he saw an object directly connected to it.
The next day, Noir followed the address Fels had given him and went to the designated shop.
The shopkeeper had already been informed. The moment Noir arrived, the man handed over three grimoires and ten million valis, all prepared in advance.
After receiving the goods, Noir returned to the church.
Hestia should still have been out selling fried potato puffs at that hour, so the church was empty.
After removing his equipment, Noir immediately and impatiently began flipping through the grimoires.
He certainly wanted to awaken magic, but more than that, he wanted to see clearly into his own heart.
...
From the very first time he saw it, he had fallen completely.
Hopelessly.
Irretrievably.
That beautiful world that never truly existed.
Bell, who admired heroes and longed to save everyone.
Kirito, who always bore every crisis alone.
Tanjiro, gentle to the extreme, who still chose to save others even in the midst of pain.
Shadow, whose words became reality.
Subaru, who, even after living through death again and again, still tried to save everyone...
'Yes, reality is painful. It's suffocating. So what did you do?'
Countless times, I prayed for escape from that world filled with hypocrisy and pain.
At last, the gods heard those endless prayers of mine.
'You came to this world. Did you find the life you wanted?'
I came to the other world I had dreamed of, but there were no thrilling adventures here, no gentle beautiful girls. There was only betrayal and torment.
I am not some beautiful girl, so no brave protagonist came to save me.
Nor am I the protagonist, so I never had the luck to survive certain death.
'Then what did you do?'
Countless times, I prayed for someone to come save me.
Ah.
In that instant, Noir understood why he had despaired, why he had sealed away his memories.
It was not because he feared remembering the torment itself.
It was because he feared remembering that weak version of himself, the one who, when faced with despair, could do nothing but beg, just like before.
Only this time, there was no god who would grant his wish.
'What's wrong with praying? What's wrong with being weak? We're only ordinary people.'
No.
I don't want to be ordinary.
I did not leave my old world and come here just to become another insignificant person in this one.
'Then what kind of person do you want to become?'
Scene after scene flashed through Noir's mind, sweet romance, blood-boiling battles, laughter, sorrow.
I want to fight beside them, cross every hardship with them, and become the protagonist of my own life.
'But haven't we already done that?'
...
When Noir opened his eyes, the first thing he saw was the ceiling, half-blocked from view.
"You're finally awake, Noir-kun."
"Mm."
He sat up from Hestia's warm lap pillow, bracing himself with one hand, then answered, "Lady Hestia, welcome home."
"I'm back." Hestia smiled in return. "The moment I got back, I found Noir-kun asleep on the table. So? How was my lap pillow?"
Noir picked up one of the grimoires sitting nearby and flipped through it, only to find that every word inside all three books had vanished.
He handed the books over to Hestia.
"I traded some of the information I got before for them. That's how I obtained these grimoires."
"What? Then doesn't that mean Noir-kun has already awakened magic?" Hestia looked at the three blank grimoires and lit up in delight. "And three kinds of it, too."
"I don't know how many I awakened yet. We'll have to update my Falna first to know for sure."
"Then what are we waiting for? Let's go update it right now. Quick, take off your clothes."
As she spoke, Hestia reached out as if she were about to help strip him herself.
"Lady Hestia, are you really not upset that I used up every single grimoire? If we had kept even one, it would have greatly improved the Familia's situation and made life much more comfortable for you."
Hestia's fingers lightly brushed the hem of Noir's dark clothes.
"So what? Those grimoires belonged to Noir-kun in the first place. Besides, if Noir-kun grows stronger, won't he just be able to earn even more valis?"
"Thank you. Being able to join the Hestia Familia is a tremendous honor for me. I will do everything I can to make the name of the Hestia Familia known throughout the whole world."
Hestia stared blankly at Noir, whose smile was still awkward and stiff, then suddenly threw her arms around him.
"No, I'm the one who should be grateful. Having a child as wonderful as Noir-kun makes me very happy."
Though she had no idea what exactly had happened, this was the first time Hestia had ever seen Noir smile.
She was filled with joy, but that smile... honestly, it was a little hard to look at.
[Noir Lv. 1]
[Strength F-392 → E-428]
[Endurance S-944 → S-987]
[Dexterity F-358 → F-390]
[Agility F-339 → F-376]
[Magic G-231 → G-265]
[Magic: Call from Afar]
[Skills:]
『Flame of Vengeance』
『Mask of Pain』
『High-Ranking Player』
[Magic Name: Call from Afar]
[Effect: Summons an unknown chaos.]
[Chant:] "From the unknown I came, across a distant journey The merging of dimensions, the crossing of fate. The contract was made long ago, and the price has already been paid. Pierce through, my soul. Answer my call, unyielding will. This is the prelude to change."
"Noir-kun, you finally smiled." Still smiling herself, Hestia copied down his updated stats, skills, and newly awakened magic, then handed the paper over to him. "Did something happen to make you happy?"
"I just suddenly realized... that all that pain is already in the past."
Noir tried smiling again, but it looked even more strained than crying. After a few attempts, he gave up.
"That's only natural. The future of our Hestia Familia is bright."
Hestia lightly hopped onto the sofa and declared it with a spirited wave of her fist.
"Unfortunately, all three grimoires only awakened one spell." Noir let out a sigh. "Lady Hestia, what exactly does this magic do?"
"I don't know."
"?"
Noir looked at Hestia in confusion, not understanding what she meant.
Did she really think he didn't know that a magic's name and chant were determined by the gods based on its actual effect?
"I mean exactly that. I don't know." Hestia turned away and put on an air of mystery. "Maybe this is one of the miracles of the lower world."
Since Hestia did not know either, the only option was to test it directly.
The underground room was far too cramped, so Noir went outside to try it. After taking a deep breath, he began reciting the chant.
"From the unknown I came, across a distant journey! The merging of dimensions, the crossing of fate! The contract was made long ago, and the price has already been paid! Pierce through, my soul! Answer my call, unyielding will! This is the prelude to change!"
As his magic was drained away, a blue magic circle appeared beneath Noir's feet.
He felt as though a part of his consciousness had sunk into a sea of nothingness, drifting endlessly through a vast void.
The sensation was like plunging his hand into a great vat filled with water.
Thinking carefully, Noir used that fragment of consciousness to keep searching through the void. He had no idea how much time had passed when, accompanied by a wave of dizziness, the magic circle at his feet shattered, and Noir lost consciousness.
Curious, Hestia had followed the entire magical reaction. The instant Noir collapsed, she rushed forward and caught him before he could hit the ground.
"His mind down...!"
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