Part 4 —Powerless. —Why do I lack power so? Eugeo was immersed in those thoughts alone while the highest minister, Administrator, burnt the sage, Cardinal, with monstrous bolts of lightning. The sword golem he thought as some grand demon from the land of darkness was originally human like Eugeo… certainly, he was aghast upon hearing that and shuddered at the terror that was the highest minister for thinking up of and carrying out that task. However, what struck Eugeo the most was the despair from his complete inability. There was a reason why they, Kirito, Knight Alice, the black spider, Charlotte, the highest minister, Cardinal, and himself had ended up in a fight against the highest minister on the highest floor of this cathedral. That would be Eugeo’s wish to rescue his childhood friend, Alice Schuberg, from the Axiom Church. Eugeo was the one who pulled the rest into this danger. That was why he must be the one to fight on the front lines the most, the one to be hurt the most. —And yet, I. Ended up succumbing to Administrator’s temptations, pointing a sword towards Kirito as an integrity knight, memories sealed away. Returned to the highest floor after trapping Kirito and Alice in ice with the intention to take down the highest minister without anyone else’s help, which went up in smoke instead. Blinded Chief Elder Chudelkin with an art during that fight yet ended up doing no more than watch as the sword golem cut down Charlotte, Kirito, and Alice. —Was I this powerless? —Alice’s memory fragment was only a mere ten mel away… somewhere in the miniature covering the canopy. Would I have my life saved by Cardinal’s self-sacrifice and be chased out from the cathedral without taking that back? Would that be how my journey ends? The highest minister would definitely expel Eugeo, Kirito, and Alice to multiple far apart locations. They might even be blown away outside of the Norlangarth North Empire. In the worst case, he might neither meet Kirito nor return to Rulid ever again. He might end up alone in an unfamiliar, foreign land, with the fear of pursuers from the Axiom Church… regretting his own foolishness and powerlessness… At the very least, he should keep his eyes from closing; that thought first went through his mind as he solemnly glared at the dazzling lightning hammering Cardinal. Eugeo then noticed at last. That resigning himself to the fate of being sent away to a foreign land… would be the most disgraceful choice he could make. The highest minister had said so. That she would transform forty thousand humans, half of those inhabiting the Human World, into swords. That she would produce that terrifying yet miserable monster in huge numbers and fight the forces from the land of darkness. That meant all families and loved ones would be pulled apart from each other. Like Eldrie and his mother. Like Deusolbert and his partner. Like Alice and the Schubergs. And they would all turn into hideous, horrifying weaponry. Such injustice was unforgivable, utterly forgivable.
—Stopping that tragedy would be the final mission handed to me. I am here, now, for that reason. I have neither the swordsmanship of Kirito or Alice, nor the arts proficiency of Cardinal… however, there was definitely still something I could do. If I had the time to lament about my lack of power, I should be using that time to search for a way to fight. Eugeo desperately pondered as he stood still. Though the Blue Rose Sword could possibly break the barrier that deterred all metal as it was half ice, a reckless charge to slash at the highest minister would only result in burning to death by lightning or cut apart by the sword golem. The recollection release art would only stop the highest minister’s movement for a moment at best. Even with an attempt to destroy the sword golem first, the attacks would not reach its only weakness, the piety module in its chest. Even if they did, it would need an accurate strike through the one cen gap between the three greatswords forming its back. Not to mention the need to slip through the attack from its ribcage’s blades. That would require the ability to soar through the air like the highest minister and armor capable of repelling sharp blades. It might be better to just turn into hard ice and fuse with the sword like what happened in that glimpse, at the Great Library Room, of the blue rose and eternal ice’s memories. In that instant. Eugeo’s two eyes opened wide. There was a method to grant that wish. There should be. However, even if it was realized, there was something else necessary. The same power that fueled the sword golem. The miraculous power that could bring forth the recollection release art. Then suddenly, Eugeo heard his name called out—or so he thought. As though something drawn him there, he looked up at the hall’s canopy. Art depicting the creation myth era was drawn upon all of the extensive canopy aside from the part in its middle. The goddesses who created the skies and lands of the Human World. The ancient humans granted the opportunity to live there. Eventually, the goddesses chose a medium to guide the humans in their place. And the Axiom Church was born, with a tower of white marble built in the heart of the central capital, Centoria. Just like the description of the creation myth Eugeo was immersed in reading at a nook of the Great Library Room. However, those were likely all fabricated. A story made up by the highest minister, Administrator, to control the masses. The miniature of a small bird resided on a corner of the canopy filled with such lies. It was flying earnestly with an ear of wheat in its beak. A piece of art of a small bird blue that died as it brought wheat to the remote regions from the fields around the capital strictly controlled by the upper nobility. It was the one and only story that he still believed might have been the truth. The crystal set in that small bird’s eye flickered blue. A radiance always by Eugeo’s side since long ago. A light that twinkled vividly in the eyes of a girl with blonde hair of the same age— And thus, Eugeo finally understood the mission entrusted to him.
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