It is a secret art that has been studied by Sakura's family for generations.

　In the first place, 'God' is a being that was assumed to be a thing that gives skills to humans.

　The majority of people believe in God as a being with a human ego, but there are also a certain number of people who claim that he is a mass of power with no personality.

　But neither argument has ever been proven, and many, like me, believe that there must be "something" that gives us skills, but we don't know what it is.

　I've heard that this kind of discussion is not only in Westland, but also in the East, where Sakura was born and raised.

　Sakura's clan belongs to the forces that consider 'gods' to be 'a mass of supernatural power', while Nagi is said to belong to 'a higher race with an ego'.

　And Sakura's clan has been researching the secret art of bringing down a part of the "lump of power" that brings skills to humans into their bodies.

　--This is a godsend.

　The sword made of total baboon kane that I was commissioned to make by Sakura was also a necessary ritual tool for the success of the god-surrender, and this enabled Sakura to achieve the god-surrender.

　However, it is said that in order to achieve complete descent of the gods, there is one more thing that is needed.

　That's the 'God-Descending Pattern', and it's the one Sakura asked me to [restore] earlier.

"The God-Devouring Pattern is an invisible thing, isn't it?
'Yes. They say they can visualize it if you fully excite it, but normally they don't even know where it is.
Okay. So that makes [analysis] your best bet.

　A pattern is not physically engraved on the body like a tattoo, though it is called a pattern, but it is engraved on the bloodline by magical means.

　They are engraved into the bloodline by magical means, and are designed to be present in the body from birth, passed down from parent to child.

　However, it seems that there was a flaw in the inheritance process, and with each passing generation, distortions began to accumulate in the pattern little by little.

　Research into the gods' descent, including the creation of swords made of total baboon kane, had been difficult, and the distortions had increased over the course of the generations, and there was a danger that they would not function properly.

'Just to be sure, there's no guarantee that [restoring] the pattern will increase its performance.
I know, sir. But I'd like to do what I can. I don't want to have to say, "Well, maybe if I had done that, I could have done that...

　Sakura smiled with her strong-willed eyes.

　Then there's nothing more for me to say.
　I'm just going to do the job as requested.

Okay, then, let's go.

　I placed my hand on the area between Sakura's neck and chest while concentrating on my consciousness.

　First, I'll focus on pouring the magic power of 【Analysis】.
　【Restoration】 can be done later. We read the current shape of the pattern and search for the form it should be in.

　When a vague overall picture comes into my mind, the sight of a memory that isn't mine fills my vision.

　Ah, this - the same thing happened when I [repaired] the old wounds on the garnet before.

　The landscape you're about to see is surely a memory of Sakura.










　-- It's a building of a style I've never seen before. Is it a dwelling in the east?
　The floor is covered with a flooring material made of woven dry grass.

　It was very open, and beyond the paper walls ...... no, that's a door, or at any rate they were opened, there was a garden with a serene atmosphere.

　In the center of such a hall, I - or rather, the young Sakura, the core of my memory, was sitting directly on the floor, facing a man who looked like her father.

　He was a mature man, dressed in white, Eastern-style clothing, stern yet exuding tenderness.

'Listen to me, Sakura,'

　The father speaks to the young Sakura in a gentle voice.

'It is the long-cherished desire of our family to bring the gods down to their bodies.
"Yes, Father!

　Sakura replied cheerfully.
　That's the only thing that tells me that she's an honest girl.

''But we must not forget the important thing. You must not only not be consumed by the power of God. You understand.''
"...... Yes, of course.

　There was no energy in his response this time, but it seemed to be due to fear.

　It's not that he's afraid of his father.
　It's the events of the past that are about to be told that are frightening.

'Long ago, from our clan, there arose a man who had accomplished the manufacture of the scarlet-gold sword. He attempted - and failed - to bring down the god completely. The power of the gods painted his mind and burned everything to the ground.''

　Young Sakura cringed and feared the story her father was seriously telling her.

　She couldn't laugh at the childish reaction.
　For Sakura, who will eventually take over the attempt to descend the god, this is an event that could happen to her as well.

''Don't be consumed by power. Don't forget this--''





　-- the scene switches in an instant.

　The wooden hall where the father and daughter had been talking blazes with crimson flames.

　A cherry tree, now more grown and less juvenile than before, stands in the boarded-up hallway against the garden.

　It's burning.
　The wooden ceiling. Paper-covered walls. The woven grass floor.

　And the thing I used to call my father.

　The thing that was his father, the thing that painted his father, was laughing out loud at the sight of his father.

''Father!''

　The ceiling of the wooden hall collapses amidst a strange humor, covering everything with heat and smoke--










Thank you, Master Luke. Thank you, thank you, I feel a little lighter...

　The moment my vision returned and Sakura's face came into view, smiling with satisfaction, I reflexively grabbed her shoulder tightly.

'Le...... Luke-dono?'
No. Don't use the God-drop. Maybe I shouldn't have fixed that .......
Um, I'm sorry, ......, is there something wrong with you?

　Sakura looked terribly confused, but she didn't try to force my hand away, but instead showed her calmness and willingness to listen to what I had to say.

'Sorry ......, I shouldn't have started talking like this all of a sudden.

　I regret in a double sense that I acted impulsively.

　I should have been able to broach the topic more calmly, and most of all, if I said this, I would have had to tell him the fact that 'there are cases where I can read memories with [Restoration]'.

　However, there's no way around what I've said.
　When I told her honestly about the scene I saw, Sakura laughed at me to reassure me while revealing her surprise.

'No need to worry. I think I've already told you that my father lost his life in a failed attempt to bring down a god. It was probably the memory of that time that Lord Luke caught a glimpse of.
Though: "But... ......

　The same thing could happen to Sakura, couldn't it?
　Interrupting my attempt to continue, Sakura picked up the total hibikiro-kane sword sheathed at her waist and held it out in front of me.

'My father's mistake was to use an imperfect substitute ritual implement. However, I have a sword that Lord Luke tailored for me. And it's hard to imagine how something that was successful even with an imperfect crest could fail because of a perfect crest, isn't it?

　He said that in a calm tone of voice, and a slight conviction grew in my mind.

　Of course, it doesn't mean that my fears have completely disappeared.
　The concerns still remain, as they should.

''It's possible that the ...... power to unload will increase and become uncontrollable, isn't it?''
'There is certainly no reason to be completely convinced. I can't help you with this one. But you can go to .......

　Sakura smiled brightly as she hugged the sword of Hihiyrokane.

'I believe in myself and the protective sword that Lord Luke made for me. Couldn't I answer something like this?

　I couldn't think of any more words to argue with him.
　When I forced myself to bite back, I was going to be nothing more than a spoiled child who said no, no, no.

Just don't be ...... reckless, please.
'Yes, of course!'

　I believe in Sakura and the sword I made.
　I concluded that in my mind and decided to convince myself of that.