The World of Otome Games is Tough For Mobs - Volume 13 - Chapter 20

Chapter 20:

The Saint’s Forbidden Art

WHEN LEON’S HEART started back up, Marie slumped with relief. I guess the Guardian crest can stand in for the tool I’d need. Good. Now I can use my forbidden magic!

This feat normally involved a special tool, but the Sacred Tree had stepped in to keep Leon’s soul bound to his body.

There’s no time to waste. I need to bring him back quickly. To perform this successfully, there’s one other requirement, but I’ll take care of that myself.

Marie drew a deep breath. “While the Sacred Tree’s binding him, I’ll bring him back.” She brushed her fingers over Leon’s hand.

Julius seized her shoulders, his face full of worry. “What exactly are you planning to do?”

She looked back at him, trying her best to act normal. “What do you mean? I’m going to save him, of course.”

He and the other boys seemed dubious about her promise, as if they somehow sensed there was a greater meaning behind all this. “You keep saying that, but is bringing him back from this really possible? And wouldn’t such magic come at a major price?”

Marie was basically offering to resurrect Leon. Julius and the other boys couldn’t believe she’d accomplish a miracle like that without significant risk.

“It’s all right,” Marie said. “It’ll be fine.”

“How do you plan to bring him back, then? Explain it to us so we can understand!”

Marie had to placate them somehow. She was about to use the same magic employed when the saint Livia rescued her beloved in the third game. “I’m going to the other side, and I’ll haul his soul back. You guys on this side will need to do something about his wounds in the meantime.”

Leon’s body wasn’t in good shape.

“If you just want me to prolong his life, I might be able to—wait! He’s here. He’s finally here!” Cleare had glanced out the window. Outside, Luxion’s main ship had broken through the waves. She spun to face his motionless mobile unit. “So, you still hear me, even though you can’t move. I knew you weren’t down for the count. Hurry up and contact me, would you?” She paused. “Hm? His main ship isn’t responding to my calls. Is he having trouble or something?”

Luxion’s mobile unit was still unresponsive too.

Jilk, wrapped in thick bandages like the ship’s other wounded passengers, examined Luxion. “That’s strange. He was working just fine on the way here.”

Marie shooed him and the other boys from the room. “Out, all of you! I’ve got stuff to do!”

“All right, all right. Don’t push.”

Marie slammed the door behind them, pressing her forehead to the metal, and silently apologized to them. Sorry, guys. Thank you for everything. After brushing away the few tears that fell, she clapped her hands hard over her cheeks. “Okay! Time to get to it!” She turned back around, marched over to Leon, and grasped his hand.

“Please let me help too,” said Livia, grabbing their hands.

Marie was initially going to refuse, but seeing how intent Livia was, she gave up on dissuading her. “You help too then,” she told Angie.

“Are you sure? As long as it’s within my ability, I’ll do whatever is needed.”

Marie nodded. “You’re engaged to him, so you need to pitch in. That goes for you too, Noelle.”

Noelle swallowed her tears and smiled. “Of course! I’ll give this everything I’ve got!”

“We’re going to travel to the other side to bring back his soul,” Marie told them. “And, no matter what you see while you’re there, I must ask you not to hate Leon.” Livia and the other girls were unsettled by Marie’s implication, but before they could ask what she meant, she initiated the spell. “Here we go.”

As their bodies instantly collapsed, Yumeria and the robots scrambled to support them. The lens of Luxion’s unresponsive mobile unit flashed red for a split second, then faded to black again.

***

The next thing Livia knew, she found herself walking in a pitch-black tunnel. “Angie?” she called out. “Miss Noelle? Miss Marie?!” She couldn’t see anything, but the tunnel felt strangely familiar.

“Over here!” Marie called to them. “Make sure you don’t get separated!”

“I’m right here!” Angie chimed in shortly after.

“Hold on,” Livia cried. “I can’t see anything!”

It was a relief that they were in close proximity to one another, at least.

“Listen up,” Marie told them. “From here on out, you need to follow my instructions. And whatever you see, don’t be too surprised. Have faith in my brother.”

“Of course we will,” Angie said. “But putting that aside, I’ve never heard of an ability to resurrect the dead. How did you learn to do something like this?”

“It’s a forbidden art within the temple,” Marie explained. “Only those who’ve inherited the Saint’s relics can learn to use it.”

“Forbidden?” Angie shook her head; that wasn’t really the part she had questions about. “So, you inherited this ability through those relics?” She couldn’t fathom how that was possible. Not much time had passed since the temple recognized Marie as the Saint—certainly not enough for her to memorize a complex spell like this.

“Could you really learn something like this in such little time?” Livia asked, as if on the same wavelength as Angie. Knowledge alone wasn’t enough to actually perform a spell the way Marie had. “Either way, I see why it’s forbidden,” she added. “The ability to freely bring people back from the afterlife could cause big problems.”

Angie nodded thoughtfully. “Something about this doesn’t make sense. You could’ve used this ability at any point before this.” She asked why Marie had waited until now.

Marie sighed. “I only learned this very recently.”

“The point is that, thanks to Rie, we can save Leon,” said Noelle. “I don’t think there’s any point grilling her about it right now.”

“Fair enough. Sorry about that,” Angie said sheepishly.

Marie was happy to let the matter go.

Livia, on the other hand, was preoccupied with thinking about it. I can see completely why the temple forbade resurrection magic, but I still don’t understand how Marie learned it so quickly. Unless performing the magic itself isn’t complicated, but requires a steep price?

As she started to piece the puzzle together, a light appeared ahead.

“There! I can finally see it!” Marie cried. Footsteps echoed around them, suggesting that she had dashed forward, though it was still impossible to see her.

Once the girls reached the light, they found an enormous gate in front of them. Marie strode right up to it and pressed both hands against the doors. “Hurry!” she called back to the others. “If we take too long, his soul really will leave his body!”

When Angie finally reached the light, her form became visible. The same happened as the other girls slipped out of the darkness behind her. Together, the four passed through the gate. A town they’d never seen spread out before them.

“Where are we?” Noelle blurted out.

The place was completely unrecognizable. The architecture looked nothing like what they were accustomed to, although it seemed to be a suburb of some sort. Pillars connected by long stretches of wire lined the streets at intervals. Those streets weren’t cobbled, but were still plenty firm, and white lines were drawn upon them alongside some sort of writing they’d never come across. The strangest part by far was how well used the area looked, although no one was around.

Angie’s jaw dropped. “This is the afterlife? I’ve never seen a place like this before. Wait—I think the architecture might be a bit similar to that island we visited for our school trip.”

Livia looked at the sky. It was occupied by an enormous black hole, beyond which she saw nothing. Whatever it was, it filled her with fear and anxiety.

“I wonder what that could be,” she said. “Just looking at it unsettles me.”

Marie had frozen as she entered. Drinking in her surroundings, she wiped a few stray tears away and shook off any sentimentality, saying, “Let’s hurry. We need to find my brother.”

***

Mounting suspicion gripped Angie as they followed Marie. Why does she seem to know exactly where she’s going? None of them knew these streets, yet Marie proceeded through them with the familiarity of someone who’d been there before, leading them all the way to an apartment building.

“Here,” said Marie. “The third floor!” She climbed the stairs eagerly.

Angie lingered a step behind, scrutinizing the structure before she followed. “The building designs are completely different from the ones in Holfort. It’s almost like a separate country entirely.” None of the architecture here was like home.

The quartet hiked up several flights of stairs until they reached the third floor, where a row of identical doors greeted them. Marie showed no hesitation in picking out what was presumably the correct one.

“It’s this apartment!” Marie banged her fist against the door. “If you’re in there, come out!” When there was no response, she reached for the doorknob. “It’s unlocked.” 

She pushed the door open and stepped inside, Angie and the other girls following close behind her. Marie kicked her shoes off at the front entrance and padded through the apartment, looking for Leon as if she already knew the layout perfectly. “Maybe he’s in the bathroom?” she muttered to herself.

Anger swelled in Angie’s breast. “You sure seem familiar with this place.” It made her jealous how well Marie seemed to know Leon—better than Angie or his other fiancées did.

Marie pulled a face at her. “Look, it seems like you’re misunderstanding things, so I’m just going to make one thing clear: I’m Leon’s younger sister.”

“No way!” Noelle cried, slapping both hands over her mouth.

Angie was similarly taken aback, but she didn’t buy it for a minute. “That’s not possible! I’ve investigated Leon’s family line thoroughly using the Redgraves’ connections! About a dozen times, if you must know, thanks to all the rumors constantly swirling around!”

“Miss Marie,” Livia said calmly, not sharing the shock the other two felt, “won’t you explain what you mean by that?”

Marie stared back at them solemnly, reinforcing the fact that this was no lie or joke. “To be exact, we were siblings in his previous life.”

Angie’s brow wrinkled. “Previous life?”

The apartment they had entered wasn’t terribly spacious, to say the least. The student dorms were nicer than this place. It was hard to believe so much was crammed into the tiny area: a bed, a desk, and much more.

Noelle scanned the room. “Oh, look, this place has a monitor too,” she said. It reminded her of the ones Luxion and Cleare used in their ships.

“I’ve never seen this alphabet before,” Livia said, her curiosity piqued. “Could this be…an ancient civilization?!” She studied a poster on the wall.

Marie frowned. “Yeah, sure. An ancient civilization. Just so you know, that’s a dating sim poster you’re looking at.”

Despite Marie’s dismissive attitude, Livia was still bursting with curiosity. She could somehow tell the room belonged to Leon. “So, that’s why you know so much about him. You remember your previous life together.”

Angie was dumbfounded that Livia accepted everything so easily. “You’re really not surprised?”

“So many strange things happened around Mr. Leon,” Livia said with a bitter smile. “What Miss Marie said makes a lot of sense when you put it in context, especially since I’d heard her call Mr. Leon her older brother before.”

Marie’s cheeks flushed.

“So this is Leon’s old room,” Angie remarked, deciding to check it out for herself. “Then I should be able to find… Aha. Here it is.” She’d peeked under the bed and discovered what appeared to be Leon’s porn.

Marie hid her face behind her hands. “Big Bro, you idiot. Can’t you think of a better place to hide your pervy stuff? I’m embarrassed for you. Your fiancées have you all figured out.”

Noelle was busy ransacking Leon’s bookshelves. “Ah, there’s more over here! This really does feel like Leon’s room, considering all the hiding places are the same.”

It was Livia who found the most important item in the room. “What is this?” On the floor, she’d located the package for the very otome game they were part of.

Marie approached and gazed nostalgically at the package. “Alte Liebe,” she said. “The Saint’s Tale.”

Alte Liebe was the game title, while The Saint’s Tale was the subtitle.

Livia’s hand trembled as she gripped the package. She’d noticed someone who looked just like her on the cover, along with a group of men identical to the idiot brigade. Curious, Angie came over and took it from her hands. She couldn’t read the text on the package, but on the back was a woman in a red dress who resembled her as well.

“These guys look like the prince and his friends,” said Angie. “I’ve seen the locations in these snapshots too. That’s the fountain in the academy plaza, right?”

Marie dropped her gaze to the floor, face scrunched. “To Leon and I, this place we’re in right now was reality. From our point of view, the world you all come from is a video game. A fictional world.”

From there, she went on to explain how she and Leon had reincarnated into the world of Alte Liebe. She detailed the whole story carefully from the very beginning to the end, leaving out nothing.

By the time she finished, Angie’s hands were clenched tightly around the package. “You’re saying Livia and I were enemies in this game? That’s unthinkable!”

Livia seemed to share her opinion. “Angie’s right. I’d never agree to duel with her!”

“That’s because I got in the way,” Marie said with a sad smile.

“In the way?” Angie’s eyes widened with realization. “Wait… Don’t tell me!”

“I only knew what would happen in the game up to the midway point,” explained Marie. “That’s why it was so easy for me to entice Julius and the other boys. I knew from the start exactly what they liked and wanted to hear, because I’d memorized their preferences.”

Angie’s hand shot out, but Livia grabbed her wrist before she could slap Marie. “Let me go, Livia!”

“Please calm down. I admit I’m surprised too. I really am, but I’m very happy with the way things turned out.”

“But, Livia, her actions made you suffer as well.”

Livia nodded. “I know. We’ve all been through a lot, but I’m glad that you and I ended up with Mr. Leon. That’s why we should focus on finding him right now.”

Angie looked down at the package. “You have a point. I guess this puts things into perspective. Leon must’ve thought of us as characters in a story.” That was heart-wrenching to realize, but it helped her recognize what had likely been going through his mind this whole time. I knew he was hiding something. So this was it. She could see why he’d kept it secret. She set the package down on his desk.

Noelle crept over and peeked at the package. Her face fell. “I’m not even on the cover.”

Marie sighed deeply. “That’s because you don’t show up until the second game. You’re not in this one. Don’t worry, in that game you’re a protagonist.”

“I…guess that’s comforting to know. But it all feels kind of unsettling, to be honest,” said Noelle.

Marie was mostly concerned that they hadn’t found Leon yet. “I guess, if he’s not here, he has to be at our parents’ place.”

“Your parents’ place is here too?” Angie asked, perking up.

“Yeah. I think our parents are probably there as well.”

All three of the others were shocked.

“Your parents are here?!” Angie cried.

Marie nodded. “Probably. Anyway, let’s get going.” She let out a beleaguered groan. “I’m really not looking forward to this.” Slumping her shoulders, she lumbered through the front entrance and headed back outside.

As they stepped out, they saw a dark-gray cat sitting politely in front of the door. Its red eyes stared up at them.

“A cat?” Angie tilted her head.

They hadn’t encountered any other animals, let alone people, up to this point. What was a cat doing here?

This particular feline had a proud, regal look. When Angie stretched her hand toward it, it jumped up and hurried away. It paused once it reached the steps, glanced back at them, and let out a short cry. It was almost as if the cat was telling them to follow it.

***

Guided by the cat, Marie found herself in front of her family home. She hadn’t returned here since her parents chased her out. After reincarnating into Alte Liebe, she’d assumed she would never see it again.

She sucked in a deep breath, trying to calm her nerves.

“What’s wrong?” Livia asked.

The question caught Marie so off guard that she choked as she tried to exhale. “I-I’m nervous, okay?!”

Angie rolled her eyes. “This is your family home, isn’t it? Wait. Did you do something to hurt your relationship with your parents?”

Marie avoided her gaze. “Well, um… I was sort of responsible for how my brother died…and I tricked my parents into giving me money so I could travel overseas… A lot happened, let’s put it like that.”

Livia and Angie glared at her. Noelle was simply exasperated. “Rie, I’ve got to tell you, that’s pretty awful.”

“This was a long time ago, okay?! During my last life! Now, come on. Let’s go in!” She marched to the door and jabbed the bell.

A familiar voice—her mother’s—trickled through the intercom. “Yes? Who is it?”

Marie tried to say her old name, but she couldn’t remember it for some reason. Her voice got stuck in her throat. “Um, uh… I’m… Er, that is…”

As she fumbled for some way to respond, her mother asked, “Is that my idiot daughter? You go by Marie now, right? I’ll unlock the door. Come inside.” There was a hint of annoyance in her voice.

The lock released with an audible clank. Marie hesitated, then pulled the door open. A familiar sight sprawled in front of her. Everything from the decorations to the smell hanging in the air brought back fond, vivid memories of her previous life.

The other girls filed in behind her. 

Livia eagerly drank in every detail of the interior. “So, this is where Mr. Leon grew up? What a lovely home.”

“I-I’ve never seen architecture like this before,” Angie stammered, unsure what else to say. She’d been raised as a high-ranking noblewoman, so this was far inferior to what she’d grown accustomed to.

“Seems homey to me,” said Noelle.

Marie peeled off her shoes and darted through the hallway to the living room. She pulled the door open and stepped inside. Next to the living room was the kitchen, and her mother was in there cooking. Her father sat at the kotatsu, reading a newspaper. He lifted his head when she entered. “So you’ve come back too? Oh—and who are these young ladies you brought with you?”

Marie stood frozen. Her parents were older than she remembered, but otherwise just as familiar.

“Huh? Have we got guests?” Leon, who’d been slumped sleeping at the kotatsu, slowly lifted himself with a yawn.

The moment they saw him, Angie and the other girls burst into tears. Before they could move, Marie shot forward. She seized her brother by his shirt collar and shook him violently. “Imbecile! It’s time to go back! Pull yourself together, and let’s go! We don’t have much time!”

She tried to drag him away from the kotatsu, but he resisted. “What? No, I don’t want to.”