Chapter 19
Rewrite
It seemed so odd how such a beautiful blue light could come from such a tragic scene.
Tokiya's left arm swung lifelessly in the air. Blood began to intensely pour from the thorn marks on the arm. The addition of this new source of blood seemed excessive, but it perfectly matched all of the pain and emotion Tokiya felt right before his death. The mark of the Divine Root Blessing continued to glow from underneath the sleeve of Tokiya's jacket as if it had a mind of its own. In fact, its brightness continued to increase.
The Boss shook the lifeless body around. It eventually split, and the Boss swallowed the portion already in its mouth. The other half of the corpse hit the ground with a thud that only a husk could produce.
The glow of the mark attracted the Gate Keeper, who walked over to the corpse with the intent to crush it until the light was gone. However, the Boss wasn't satisfied with the small portion it ate. It brought its head over the body and roared at the Gate Keeper. The cyclops rose its club and violently smashed the boss into the ground with enhancement magic, crushing Tokiya's corpse in the process. The Boss, covered in blood, squirmed around, so the Gate Keeper struck it with its club one last time.
The blue light persisted from underneath the body of the Boss. It continued to glow brighter until it was blinding. The vision of the Gate Keeper went white, and the ground began to shake.
*****
There was a shallow pool of water on the ground, only about two inches high.
"AAAAAAAAAAAH!"
Tokiya regained consciousness in a fit, splashing around in the shallow water.
"AAAAAH!"
In his fit, his hand hit something rough. It was a piece of rubble. He looked around and realized this new setting was scattered with fallen pillars and ruins. Other than that, there was nothing but a dark void. Tokiya recognized this place as his conscious.
There was something different about it this time. Whereas last time there were a few pillars that were standing, this time they had all fallen.
"You really fucked up this time."
Tokiya slowly looked up. It was no surprise that that condescending and prideful voice would enter his ears in this space. His eyes landed on Eien, who was smiling at Tokiya's depressed state.
"You're not going to say anything? You know it's disrespectful to not respond to your superiors."
Eien forcefully kicked Tokiya as he said this. Tokiya landed on his back and stared into the endless black sky. Tokiya barely felt anything from that kick after his brutal demise. Eien stood over him.
"So, are you regretting it? Not letting me take over your body I mean. I told you that you'd die gruesomely. Do you really prefer this over my merciful proposition?"
Tokiya's face cringed. He didn't want to admit it, but he was regretting not giving Eien his body. Although he didn't know what Eien would have done with his body, anything would be better than his current situation. If he had accepted Eien's proposition, he never would've been exposed to all of this pain and suffering. But most importantly Berserker would still be in the safety of his jail cell instead of protecting a worthless farmer who was way out of his depth. Eien scoffed.
"That face tells me everything. Regret is a terrible thing, isn't it? You could have prevented your poor bodyguard's death. All you needed to do was give up your body."
Tokiya hated it. He hated how he agreed with everything Eien said. He didn't want to hear someone degrade him and detail his mistakes while everything they said was true. He covered his ears.
"Stop, just stop. I get it, ok. Please just let me die!"
Tokiya writhed, splashing the water beneath him. Eien laughed at Tokiya's pathetic display. He stomped on Tokiya to stop his wriggling.
"You want me to stop? You want to die? How self-centered and disgusting could you be? How dare you even think to use death to escape the consequences of your actions. Berserker is dead because of you!"
Eien began kicking Tokiya with each syllable he spoke.
"You are a disgusting human being."
Tokiya couldn't take it anymore. He already knew what he was, but having the person he hated most remind him of how inferior of a person he was was devastating. He burst into tears.
"I'm sorry, ok? What do you want me to do? What do you want me to say? Tell me, please!"
Eien grinned sadistically.
"I don't want you to do or say anything. I just want you to sit there and think about how much of a pathetic failure you are. Let it sink in and spread through you so that every part of your body knows how worthless you are."
Tokiya's fingers clawed into his scalp, and his teeth gritted against each other as he clenched his jaw. Eien continued unremorsefully.
"Don't try to deny it, farmer. You know that everything would have been better if you had just given up your body. Your existence serves no other purpose than to bring pain to others."
Tokiya dropped his hands, and his muscles relaxed. Tears stopped flowing from his eyes. Eien knew that he had won. He offered his hand to Tokiya.
"Let me help you. Give me your body, and I'll see to it that Berserker makes it out of the regalia alive."
Tokiya slowly sat up.
"You mean it?"
"Of course. I'll do the things you couldn't. After all, I am just a better you."
Tokiya sat there for a while. Eien sucked his teeth.
"There isn't much time before he'll be killed by the Gate Keeper. You do want to save him, right? Prove that at least one decision you made served someone well."
Tokiya stared at Eien's hand. He could see a black thorned vine peeking out from under his sleeve and onto his hand. Tokiya wasn't surprised that Eien had the mark of the Divine Root Blessing, for he had assumed it because they seemed like the same person. The existence of the mark on Eien's arm did raise questions though.
However, these questions didn't matter as Tokiya slowly lifted his arm to accept Eien's hand. Their hands got closer and closer. Suddenly, a flash of light came from Eien, and within seconds his whole body was encased in a giant pink crystal. Tokiya sat there with his arm still half stretched, not knowing what just happened.
Cracks formed in the crystal casing. Tokiya thought Eien was breaking out, but the crystal shattered causing Eien's body to be separated into large chunks. Simultaneously, all of the ruins and water burst into bright yellow magic particles, and the dark void turned into a magical yellow space.
Tokiya quickly crawled back, distancing himself from the pieces of Eien's body. His breathing quickened, and his eyes darted around the void. His eyes landed on a figure that stood out against the yellow backdrop.
It was Eien. No, it was him, Tokiya. Despite it being clear this man was another lookalike, he had many features that made him stand out from Eien or Tokiya. His eyes were much friendlier than Eien's, being more like Tokiya's, but softer. However, it was more accurate to refer to only one of his eyes, for his left eye was covered by an eyepatch with a large gem in the center.
However, his clothes stood out just as much as his eyepatch. He wore nothing but a blue robe with wide sleeves to cover his whole body. There was a black sash around his waist to fasten the robe, and the only other thing he wore were wooden sandals on his feet.
The man walked over to Tokiya carelessly dodging the crystalized chunks of Eien's body. He smiled down at Tokiya and rapidly waved his hand.
"Wow, it's so cool that I finally get to meet you. Sorry about him. He's a real jerk, isn't he? And can we talk about Karasu? She can never seem to protect us properly. Haha, I'm just joking, partially. She's a nice woman. Although, I heard that she didn't always used to be like this. You didn't hear this from me, but I heard she used to be a real ice queen. Can you imagine that? I shouldn't be surprised though. I always had a suspicion that she was bipolar."
Tokiya stared up at the man in confusion. He talked so fast and jumped from one topic to the next without any pauses. It was nearly impossible to understand him or where he was going with his speech. However, Tokiya felt oddly comfortable around him. The man's bubbly demeanor matched the warmth of a bright void. The man raised his one visible eyebrow then chuckled nervously.
"Sorry, was I talking too much? People always tell me I do that."
Tokiya remained speechless. He didn't know what to say after this complete shift in tone. In addition, he was still suffering from the intense feeling of wanting to just drop dead. The man stared down at him uneasily as he sighed.
"I really shouldn't have been the person to do this. Come on, Tokiya. Don't be so sad."
"..."
"At least stand up."
The man's soft and pleading voice caused Tokiya to slowly stand in a zombie-like state. The man smiled after finally getting a response from Tokiya.
"Good, good, just like that. Now forget everything that Eien told you. He's just a mean, stupid nincompoop."
There was a pause before Tokiya responded.
"No. He's right. Everything that happened out there just supports what I've known about myself for my entire life. I'm worthless."
The man frowned.
"That's not true! Just because you messed up once-"
"Messed up? You think I simply messed up?"
The man jolted back at the sudden interruption. Tokiya continued with his uncontrolled emotional outburst.
"I didn't just mess up! I got Berserker and myself killed! I made Karasu risk her life just for me to end up dead! I promised Gremory I'd return just to never be able to keep that promise! I haven't done anything right! Not only that, but I've caused harm to every person who tried to help me! I gave them nothing in return!"
The man's face turned into one of genuine worry.
"T-Tokiya..."
Tokiya covered his face with his hand.
"No, not you too. Don't worry about me. Don't concern yourself with me. I have nothing to give you in return."
The man put his hands out.
"I-I know that, but I still want to help you..."
"I don't want your help!"
The man stood there speechless.
"Please, just let me die."
The concerned man took a deep breath.
"Listen. I know I'm not the one who can bring you out of your depressed state right now. But someone a long time ago, the girl who gave me my life, once taught me that it only takes the belief of one person to push another forward. So, if I can be that person for you, no matter how depressed you may still be, I will push you to see tomorrow. I truly do believe in you, Tokiya Hara."
Tokiya's breathing quickened.
"No, don't believe in me. I'll just let you down."
The man smiled.
"It's too late. My belief is already in your hands. You're special, Tokiya. You didn't hear this from me, but that Eien is terribly jealous of you. It takes one heck of a man to make that Eien jealous. So, I'll keep on believing in you. Now go out there and give it your all."
With that, the man reached out his hand and pushed Tokiya back. Tokiya lost his balance and fell. As his body descended to the ground, he could see the face of the smiling man slowly fading. Suddenly, the head of the man disappeared, and blood geysered out. His head hadn't just vanished. It was as if something had taken a giant bite.
Before Tokiya could react or do anything about the gruesome scene, his head hit the ground, and everything went black.
*****
When Tokiya regained his vision, he was still lying down. Above him he saw the hole in the ceiling from earlier with the colony of worms still staring down in fear of the Gate Keeper.
"I'm alive?"
Tokiya sat up and looked at the right side of his body. It was intact with only a few bruises from the fall into the lobby. He looked to his left side and could see the blue light of his Divine Blessing glowing from underneath his jacket sleeve.
He looked around. Something was missing. Berserker was nowhere to be seen. He frantically looked around for any sign of him, but all he saw was a pool of blood in front of him. The pool was growing quicker by the second as blood dripped into it from above. Tokiya looked up to find the source of the blood. Above him he saw Berserker's limp body being crushed by the jaws of the Boss. Berserker was in the exact same place Tokiya had been.
The two had switched places.
Tokiya's mouth gaped open. He shook his head as if he were denying the fact that Berserker was dead. Heavy footsteps could be heard as a large shadow was cast over him. He stretched his neck back to see the Gate Keeper raising his club over him. He instinctively stumbled to his feet and dove out of the way just as the club descended upon the ground.
The Boss shook its head violently until Berserker's body split in two. The falling half of his body hit the floor, and his blood splattered everywhere. The Boss swallowed the other half whole and set its sights on the fallen half.
However, the Gate Keeper noticed the Boss' movements and directed its mindless bloodlust at the giant worm. It began pulverizing the Boss with repeated strikes of its magic-enhanced club, forming a giant, bloody crater. The Boss' body faded into magic particles.
Tokiya reached his hand out, grasping for something.
"B-Berserker..."
Now that the Boss was defeated, the Gate Keeper put its attention on Tokiya. As the cyclops approached him, the only thing Tokiya could do was crawl back.
"Stay away! Haven't you done enough?"
Tokiya stared down at his left arm. The blue glow could still be seen from underneath his sleeve. If there was any chance of Tokiya getting out of here alive, it was his Divine Blessing. However, the glow was slowly dying down. Tokiya quickly grabbed his left arm.
"No, no, no! Don't do this..."
He dropped his arm.
"No, this is what I deserve. I deserve to die."
A disembodied voice entered Tokiya's mind.
"I truly do believe in you, Tokiya Hara."
The words of the friendly lookalike rang in his head. Tokiya didn't want to live for himself. He needed to live, at least see the next day, so he wouldn't disappoint the last person who believed in him.
"I need to live for him."
The mark of the Divine Root Blessing began to glow bright again. The club of the Gate Keeper was rapidly descending upon him. Tokiya instinctively thrust his arm out and punched the club with everything he had. A giant smoke cloud appeared, and Tokiya was sent flying back into the wall of the lobby.
Tokiya felt a sharp pain in his left arm. He looked down, and through the smoke he could see that the whole sleeve had been destroyed, and his entire arm was wrung and twisted like a towel. Scattered throughout his wrung arm were small holes with small geysers of blood. It seemed like if he moved too much his arm would fall right off. In addition, his mark had completely stopped glowing.
Once the smoke cleared, Tokiya could see the Gate Keeper again. However, it only motionlessly stood in place. Tokiya's eyes widened. The entire right side of the cyclops' body had been decimated. Not only that, but the floor and wall behind the Gate Keeper looked like a tornado had hit it. Tokiya gawked.
"Did I do that?"
The body of the Gate Keeper began to fade into magic particles. Tokiya tried to stand, but it was made hard by his wrung arm and other injuries. Tokiya felt something soft and fuzzy touch his neck which startled him and caused him to fall forward.
Tokiya turned around to see what startled him. Floating in front of him, he saw a small eagle with a lion-like body and wings. In the center of its forehead was a tiny horn. The creature chirped at him. Tokiya stared at it cautiously.
Suddenly, the walls of the lobby began to crack, and the regalia began to rumble. Tokiya looked around at all the destruction. The lobby was going to collapse and bring the whole library down with it. Tokiya forced himself to stand and staggered forward. The small creature followed him.
"Why am I still going? I told that man not to believe in me. I can't even escape my fate. I'm going to die in this stupid lobby again."
Chunks of the ceiling began to fall, almost crushing Tokiya as he stood in place. There was nothing he could do. Even if he did manage to escape the lobby and start climbing the library, there was a colony of hungry worms ready to intercept him.
"Haha, why was I trying this whole time? Why did I try to fight Mors? Why did I try to escape the cult? Why did I try to master the Divine Root Blessing? Why did I think that I, the most worthless person ever, could beat fate?"
Tokiya's eyes widened. His feet were no longer on the ground, and he found himself covered in a mysterious purple aura. He looked at the floating creature and saw that the horn on its head was covered in the same aura. Tokiya spoke to it in a monotone and disheartened voice.
"Hey you, put me down."
The creature chirped in response but did not obey Tokiya's command. In fact, the creature levitated Tokiya further off the ground. The ceiling completely crumbled, causing the worms above to fall into the lobby. However, the creature launched Tokiya into the sky and followed him.
Tokiya stared down at the lobby as it got further and further away. The creature suddenly shifted Tokiya to the left as a giant piece of rubble zoomed past him. Tokiya looked up to see that all seven floors of the regalia were falling over him. The creature continued steering Tokiya through the falling debris and occasionally smashing him through rubble when there was no other option. All of the pain and sharp movements caused Tokiya to violently throw up.
Occasionally, a few worms would fly past them as they fell to their deaths. Tokiya glanced at the tiny creature that was carrying him. The aura around its horn was wavering and it seemed to be struggling to levitate a man so much bigger than it. However, the creature persevered. It wasn't going to let Tokiya die.
Out of the corner of their eyes, both Tokiya and the creature noticed a bright yellow glow. Far in the distance, falling down on a piece of rubble, was a stone arch with a glowing portal in the center. That had to be the exit.
The two dashed after the arch as it continued falling through the air. The aura around the creature's horn grew smaller and smaller, and Tokiya could feel himself slipping against the control of the creature. The creature let out a loud chirp as it put all of its energy into keeping Tokiya in the air. After barely dodging the more rubble eventually, the glowing portal was right in front of them. They dashed through it.
Tokiya slid face first against the grassy ground of the forest. It was night now. He was back. He could hardly believe that he actually managed to escape the regalia. He wiped the mud and dirt off his face and sat on his knees. Behind him was the sphere that trapped him. It was shattered, reflecting the destroyed state of the library.
Tokiya stared at it.
Berserker's body was still in there, crushed by the entire weight of the library. Meanwhile, Tokiya had managed to escape. He alone had survived. He, the person at the center of everything and the person who got them in this situation in the first place, was the only one who survived.
He glared at the mark on his wrung out arm with contempt.
"You did this! Why did you switch our places? Why did you bring me back to life? Why couldn't you let him live?"
Tokiya burst into tears and plunged his face into the muddy ground. He grabbed his destroyed arm and squeezed it with hatred, ignoring the pain. The ground muffled his voice.
"I hate you! I hate you!'
The horned creature floated above Tokiya as he cried into the ground. After a bit, the creature slowly faded into magic particles, leaving Tokiya to suffer alone. Tokiya's grip on his arm tightened until it snapped in half. He screamed in pain.
"AAAAAAAAH!"
He flipped over and writhed, as blood dripped out of his arm. He looked up, his vision of the sky being blocked by the thick canopy. His screaming stopped although the pain didn't, and as tears continued to stream down his face, he felt his eyes growing heavy. Tokiya didn't even try to keep them open. His eyelids soon fell over his eyes, and Tokiya fell asleep.
Seconds later, a figure quickly emerged from the bushes. It was Karasu. There was an expression of extreme worry on her face. She crouched down to check Tokiya's pulse and was relieved to find that he was still alive. She picked up his body and held him close with motherly care.
"I'm so sorry, Tokiya."