The basement of Hoozeyards Castle.
　At the bottom of that columnar-shaped cavity is a pool of bright red blood.
　And as if it was growing by sucking up that blood, one of the "World Trees" stood tall and proud in the center of the cavity.

　The red pond and the red tree were illuminated by a light source that was too bright.
　The light source was actually a flame.

　Right now, in this underground cavity, the understudy of 'The One Who Stole the Principle of Blood' and the understudy of 'The One Who Stole the Principle of Fire' were fighting with all their deadly strength.

　A fire blazed above the pool of blood, as if lit by oil.
　Fresh blood splatters in the cavity, falling into the flames and evaporating as it mingles.

　Diverse fire magic unleashed endlessly on the endlessly generated blood puppets.
　Everywhere I looked, it was all red.
　The red of the sticky water droplets in the sludge and the hot red that scorched the skin. The two substitutes continued to build their magic as they competed to see who could repaint all of the underground first.

　The battle between the two of them, after their preparations, is terrific and dizzying.
　One moment it seemed like about ten blood knights had been generated, and the next moment, about a hundred flaming arrows attacked, and in an instant, everything went off. If several walls of blood were created to allow those flaming arrows to break free, a huge flaming snake would open its large jaws and bite down from the side to destroy them. If a mist of blood was created, it would be dispelled by the flaming sword, and if it rained blood, the swirl of flames would drown it out. Blood dances and the flames bite. The repetition of the repetition of that cycle.

　In the midst of that exchange, I - Rainer Helvirshain continues to run alone on the edge of the pool of blood without using magic.
　Fafner-san counted me as one of his enemies, but to put it bluntly, it's impossible for me to participate in this head-on magic match.

　Of course, I can use comparable magic if I wanted to. It's not that I'm inferior to you in terms of the 'quality' of your magic. I'm not going to be able to get it right.

　It's a good idea to be able to have a good time with your friends.
　Immediately I gave up on covering them with magic. What I need to do is not to add the color of wind to this red world. It's to blend in with this red and take advantage of Fafner-san's gap.

　I will always move to Maria's other side and occasionally release the Great Magic of Wind, Tauschus Wind, from behind Mr. Fafner. That's all it takes to disperse his consciousness.
　At the very least, I don't give him just room to activate the great magic.

　I was most wary of the 'something' that I saw in the preparatory battle just now - the creation of that hairy monster. He said he had no intention of using it on himself, but he kept repeating the interference, just in case.

　Perhaps because of his careful tactics, the underground battle continued to be well contested.
　Mr. Fafner had talked a lot of hype before the fight, but the fight was not worth it. Of course, there was dozens of times more quality and quantity of magic flying around compared to the fight at the point of preparation. But that's it.

　What did Mr. Fafner call an 'ordeal'?
　What part of this antagonistic battle is 'Hellville Shine'?
　What was the meaning of the words 'learn from blood'?

　When I questioned this battle - it fell (・・・・・・・・).

　A blip between Fafner and Maria, who were fighting face to face.
　There was no warning.
　It fell suddenly from directly above and landed with some kind of wind magic or something, scattering blood splatters.

　Both me and Maria were startled and quickly got away from it.
　Among them, only Fafner-san was calm, as if he had been waiting for us. Then, she approached the fallen object and called out to it in a friendly manner.

''--You're here, Ragne.

　Calling names.
　It was a name I wasn't expecting at all.

　Fafner-san was right, the one who fell was definitely my senior knight, Ragne Kaikwola.
　The girl's face was familiar as she looked up in a spray of blood after she landed.

''La, Lagne-san ......?　The figure is ......

　I called out his name, too, and at the same time I became more alert.
　It was a familiar face, but its appearance was too bizarre.

　The first thing that catches my eye is her bloodied body.
　Her entire body is dyed bright red without a trace. It's even redder than the red color of Maria and I who were fighting in the pool of blood against the one who stole the logic of blood.

　A face stained with blood, a distorted smile.
　The blood dripping bangs, both eyes stained with blood.

　And most bizarre of all, the thing she held in her hand (...).
　Maria, seeing it, lets out a voice.

'...... Kanami-san?'

　Ragne, who had fallen, was holding a corpse that had been severed from all four limbs.
　The corpse was full of damage that looked like slashes.
　The torso was full of holes and one large stab wound to the throat. It was a horrible sight.
　Even now the head was about to be torn to shreds and the torso was about to be separated from the head, but the strong muscles in the neck seemed to be holding it together.
　It's the kind of muscle strength that one can detect in a corpse's life.

　--No, I don't have time to guess such things.

　That's not even the point.
　I know that corpse's clothes.
　And I know that face.
　There's no way I could go wrong.

　However, it took Maria and I, who were at a distance, a long time to understand the scene.
　I knew the name of the corpse, but my instincts refused to acknowledge it.

　In the meantime, Mr. Fafner, who must have known about the fall beforehand, began to speak.

'You've got my 'Scripture' and 'Heart' too: ....... You got them after all: ......
Yes, sir. I stole them both. Now you're sure you don't mind if I'm Mr. Fafner's master?

　Ragne speaks in his usual manner.
　In this unusual situation, he doesn't say a single word to us, who are supposed to be his friends, but continues to speak only to the enemy.

　Naturally, even now, the skill 'bad feeling' continues to be activated.
　Two of the 'worst' ones continue to make loud warning sounds at the fact that they are talking in front of us.

'Yeah, that's fine. But more importantly, ...... why did you kill Kanami?

　Mr. Fafner uttered something that me and Maria refused to understand.

　-- "Why did you kill Kanami?

　Does that mean that Mr. Lagne fought and won Christ: ......?
　Does killing Christ mean that Christ is dead: ......?
　If he's dead, does that mean that he's - I mean - dead ......?

　Thoughts that don't get to the point are spinning out of control.
　I find myself refusing to admit what I don't want to admit, and too much time is wasted.
　I stand there dumbfounded, and the conversation continues with just the two of us in front of me.

'Lagne. Didn't you two ever think of holding hands and facing the fate of this world together?
Oh no, that's impossible. Kanami's brother is a stinker. He would definitely betray you in the process. That's why I betrayed him first.

　Conversation ensues that confirms that Ragne killed Christ.
　I'd like to think that a corpse is a fake anyway. And yet, that 'blood-stealer' has admitted it. The man who seems to be the most knowledgeable about death in this world has made the assumption that Christ is dead.

　Christ is dead, and that's what we keep seeing on our retinas, a scene that we are forced to understand.

'Well ....... You betrayed me before I betrayed you ....... So that's how it works: .......

　Mr. Fafner dropped his gaze into a pool of blood.
　Then, as if she was shedding blood, she dropped another large tear.

　He must be grieving the death of Christ.
　Mr. Fafner continues to spill tears as if he is confronting the reality of the two of us who won't admit it, and Fafner murmurs as if he is resentful.

'...... Yeah, I knew it. This is how the world works. As soon as you think there was hope, you're in the depths of despair. ...... It's no wonder. No one can ever trust another person. That is the way we are made. That's why people will always kill each other. We put each other down and drop each other. That is the nature of the inevitable. I know that. ...... I knew that, but I knew that ....... But, yo ....... I didn't expect to die so easily ....... It's going to happen so fast ....... Ah, ah, ah, ......, ah, ......!

　...... It's impossible.

　Strange.
　It is strange that Christ would die.
　Even that Mr. Tiara said that Christ would never die.
　He even said it was a problem because he would never die.

　From now on, wasn't Christ going to be the enemy of the world along with his sister, that Yotaki guy?
　Haven't we prepared ourselves to stop Christ from becoming not just the strongest, but invincible?
　Wasn't that why Lastiara was prepared to bring his friends together and prepare them?

　But if Christ is dead now, all those assumptions are turned upside down.

　I already had enough information to understand.
　But I still couldn't admit it to myself.
　Maria, who was very close to me, was the same, and she asked Lagunet-san, trembling, "La, Lagunet-san, that's it.

'La, Lagune-san, it ....... That kind of .......
Yes. You see, Maria, it's just as you see it. But, please wait a minute. First of all, I want to make sure that the contract between Mr. Fafner and the squire is clear.

　They told me immediately that it was a corpse as I saw it.
　Our hope is violently cut off, and Maria and I both turn even paler.

　Between the shock, Fafner-san, who looked up even though she couldn't wipe away her tears, speaks the rest of the story.

''Ha, haha. A master-servant contract or ....... Does that mean you're going to be Kanami's understudy?
No, I'm not a substitute. I'm going to surpass Kanami's brother and become the best. I'm going to surpass the 'Great Savior (Magna Messiah)' and win, win, win, win, win over everything in the world, and I hope to become a god at the end of .......
Lie to me, ....... You're just trying to impress me, dude.

　Fafner glared at her with both tears in his eyes, which Ragne coolly passed off.

''Mm. I knew it, no? Rather than ......, Fafner-san is too decent! It's the most sane thing I've ever met in my life, the one that steals your reason. I'm not stumped and I'm not trying to put my trust in anything. ...... You're so sane, you're so sane, you remain normal, you don't pay any 'price' at all, you're just one 'person' facing this world.
'Is ......?　Am I normal?　Haha, I've never heard that before. I never thought you'd see anything out of the ordinary in all of this. But I'm a lot more than you think.
'When you're properly saddened by someone's misfortune and then get caught up in it and cry, that's pretty insane, isn't it?

　Crisply, Mr. Ragne assured him.
　Fafner-san did not retort to that.
　On the contrary, as if to admit it, he said in a small voice, "-- Right. That's why I'm no good," he nodded and increased the amount of tears again.

　It was a conversation that showed that the two people in front of me had something in common that we didn't have.

　But that's not important to us now.
　What is important is something else.
　Instead of me, Maria shouts it first.

''Mr. Lagune!　It doesn't matter!　Take it!　Explain that kind of thing to me right now!

　He finally recovered from the shock and took a step forward.

'Description is ....... This is a dead body. That's the end of the explanation.

　In contrast, Ragne-san laughed like a cat.
　He answered in an agitated manner, as if he was waiting for that step.

'Who, what is it ....... It's .......
Oh, that's where we start. As you can see, this is Kanami's brother. In other words, the battle in the upper floor is over. Nosufi and Kanami's brother were both defeated, and I'm the winner. ...... Can't you see that much?

　As soon as she finished listening, Maria was ready for battle.
　She is clothed in such a thick magical power and killing spirit that it seems she wasn't in a state of readiness when she was fighting the substandard "the one that steals the truth of blood".
　The tip of that eye is, of course, the corpse that Ragne-san has.

''...... it, let me have a good look at it. Let me check it out.

　And then he begged them to give it to him.
　But the enemy shook his head and tried to refuse the request.

You can't do that. "You can't do that. I'm going to give it to you.
Just go to ・・・・ and hurry (...)

　But before she could say no to that, Maria refused to be refused and released a no-motion fire magic from her hand.

　It was not a red flame, but a white flame. The all-out 《Flame Arrow》 without any calculation at all, it rushed out while evaporating like a gutting of a pool of blood.

''-- 《Quartz Shield》''

　Lagne-san had expected that, and she responded to it with magic without being upset at all.
　It was a magic that should have been impossible for her, who had little magical talent.
　It wasn't just an earth magic, but a crystal magic that purified the power of the earth to the extreme. The crystal that was once used by 'The One Who Steals the Reason of the Earth' Lowen Alais in the 'Dancing Tournament' was generated.

　The crystal spread out like a mold from the sword at Ragne's waist and covered the left half of her body.
　It becomes a hemispherical shield and flicks away the 《Flame Arrow》 as if a small sun were rushing through it.

　The 《Flame Arrow》 slammed into the back wall and melted the soil, creating a horizontal hole that I don't know how far it goes.

''Heh, collecting our magic stones can do that ......

　Fafner-san was fluently marveling at the brilliant crystal defense.

''Fafner-san, please take care of Kanami's brother for a moment. I'll pull out the magic stone later, please be polite.

　Ragné tries to hand the corpse he was holding over to him, who has a free hand.
　It's probably in preparation for the battle that's about to begin.
　It's a good thing that you're not going to be able to get the best out of it.

It's a good thing that you're not going to have to be told ....... It's Kanami's body. ......

　Mr. Fafner received the corpse and hugged its body tightly, closing its eyelids and letting all the tears that had gathered in its eyes fall away.
　Seeing this, of course, Maria's heat rose.

'I'm telling you to give it to me here: ......!　Can't you hear me? ......!

　Her magic is feverish and the pool of blood at her feet is boiling even though she hasn't activated any magic.

　Seriousness is serious, too.
　She looks as pissed off as she did a year ago in the battle with Palinkron.
　That time, Maria turned one battlefield into scorched earth.
　I'm about to unleash a map-rewriting level of magic in this small space.

'......!　Well, wait a minute!　You need to calm down!　It's not a done deal yet!　Something is wrong!　A lot of things are wrong!

　I remembered the flames of that day, and as soon as I could I tried to stop them.
　I didn't want to get involved, but I was even more worried that I was being provoked by the enemy.

　However, there was no way Maria would listen to that restraint, and the next magic was building up.

'I am calm ....... I'm calm and just decided ...... that I'm just going to fight either way!　--magic 《Tiana Blaze》!

　Maria holds up her arms and converges the oversized magical power at the end of them.

　The attribute of the compressed magical power is fire.
　Naturally, that sphere of magical power is hot and white.
　Beyond the ordinary colors of red and blue, the too-dense magic power and heat shine white.

　Earlier I likened the Flame Arrow to a small sun.
　But if you look at the magic that's being used now, you'll understand how lukewarm the heat of the previous Flame Arrow was.

　And as if to appeal to the fact that this is the real sun, the white sphere blotted out the water on the ground, scattered white smoke, and swelled up.

　With my skin scorched and my eyeballs nearly melted, I protected my face with my arms, and then took a defensive stance with wind magic.

　At the prep stage, it's no longer a range magic.
　Just by being there, the entire pool of blood boiled off. It turned the underground cavity into a scorching hell, trying to deny all possible life.
　That murderous white sphere finally gained enough volume to swallow a person--.

Eat it.

　Maria released that sun.