"Hey, I'll be ready for now. How's it going over there? Hearing her say this, Lin Yiyan looked at his knees. Placed there was a small sword sharpened from the branches of the second hardest platinum oak tree in the forest. Under the guidance of Grandpa Garrita, who knew the forest better than anyone, it took two months to cut the steel-like wood into this shape. The blade is completely ready, and all that remains is to decorate the hilt.

"It's faster on my side. There's only a little time left. Hearing Lin Yiyan's answer, Alice said with a smile, "Then let's work hard to complete the work." ”

"Hmm." Lin Yiyan looked at the sky through the treetops again, and Sauls had already passed through the center. I've been working in this secret place in the forest since early in the morning, and it's almost time to go back.

"Na...... It's almost time to go back. It's going to be exposed. Hearing Lin Yiyan shake her head and say this, Alice pouted like a child.

"It doesn't matter. ...... a little more Stay a little longer, okay? ”

"I can't help it. Let's stay a little longer. ”

Nodding his head, he immersed himself in his homework and counted his points.

"It's done!"

"It's done!"

As if overlapping with two voices that sounded at the same time, the sound of clattering grass came from behind. The two of them hid their things behind their backs and looked back at once. Standing there with a stunned expression was a young man with short soft flaxen hair, Yugeo.

Yugeo blinked his clear green eyes and said in a surprised voice, "What, it turns out that you two have been here since early in the morning." What the hell are you doing? ”

Lin Yiyan and Alice shrugged their heads and looked at each other.

"I've been discovered."

"So didn't I say it all, it's all over."

"It's not all over yet. Okay, give me that. ”

Alice snatched the wooden sword she had just made from behind her and gently tucked it away in the scabbard she was holding. Then she took a step forward in front of Eugeo and shouted with a smile like the sun, "It's three days early...... Happy Birthday, Yogeo! ”

Seeing the white gold oak sword handed over by Alice, which was stored in a leather sheath embroidered with white dragon embroidery, Yugeo's eyes suddenly widened.

"Huh...... This is, for my ......? So, something powerful......" Lin Yiyan was frightened by Alice's sudden move, and continued with a wry smile, "Yugeo, you said before that the wooden sword that my father bought was broken, right?" So...... Of course, it's not as good as the real guy your brother has in his hand, but it's certainly much better than the wooden swords sold in the grocery store! ”

Eugeo, who trembled and reached out to take the sword, leaned back in shock at its weight, and then a smile appeared on his face that was not under Alice.

"Really...... This one is heavier than my brother's sword! It's amazing...... I...... I'll cherish it. Thank you both. So happy...... It's the first time I've received a birthday present that makes me so happy......"

"Hey...... Hey, don't cry! Lin Yiyan saw that the corners of Yugeo's eyes were slightly glowing, and hurriedly shouted. Yugeo said, "I didn't cry", wiped his eyes, and looked straight at Lin Yiyan.

Then, laughing again. The smiling face suddenly twisted into the colors of the rainbow. Sudden heart-wrenching. A strong sense of nostalgia and loss that makes people helpless. Tears overflowed from my eyes, dripping my cheeks.

Alice and Eugeo, who were standing together, also smiled with tears in their eyes-

Together, they said:

"We ...... The three of us really live together. ”

"Even if you have to separate here...... However, the longing will stay forever. ”

"In your ...... Your heart remains. So—"

Then, the scene surrounded by the shade of the trees disappeared, and Lin Yiyan returned to the top floor of the central cathedral again.

"So—don't cry, Yi Yan." Whispering, Yugeo's hands lost strength, his right hand falling to the ground and his left hand to his chest. The sparkle of the prism in his palm was almost gone.

The such a brief scene that Lin Yiyan saw just now was undoubtedly his memory. Although there is only this one scene that comes to mind, even so, the fact that he, Alice, and Yugeo have grown up together since they were children and formed an unshakable bond filled Lin Yiyan's heart with warmth and slightly healed the pain.

"Ah...... Missing, right here. Lin Yiyan put the fingers of his left hand on his chest and whispered with a whimper, "Forever, it's all here." ”

"Right...... So we're friends forever. Where are you...... Yi Yan, I can't see you......" Although he was still smiling, Yugeo's eyes gradually thinned, and he asked me hesitantly.

Lin Yiyan leaned out and hugged Yougeo's head with his left hand. Tears fell down Yogeo's cheeks.

"I'm here, I'm here."

"Ah......h

Yugeo looked into the distance, and his smile deepened slightly.

"Can you see it...... In the dark, shining...... It's like the stars...... In Kigas, next to the roots...... Every night, there will be a person, looking up...... Stars in the night sky...... It's like...... The ...... of your sword Radiant ......"

The whisper that pierced the distance slowly lowered, but it sounded in my soul like a drop of water, "Yes...... Yi Yan's, Black Sword...... It's called the Sword of the Night Sky...... bar. How's ......"

"Hmm...... Good name. Thank you, Eugeo. ”

Lin Yiyan tightly hugged his friend's body, which was slowly becoming lighter. His last words, through the consciousness of mutual contact, came like droplets of water falling on the water's surface, "...... Small, World...... Like the night sky...... Gentle ...... Cover ............"

The transparent teardrops that cut through the eyelashes turned into particles of light and disappeared. Leaving a slight weight on Lin Yiyan's arm, Yugeo's eyes slowly closed.

………

Yugeo stood in the depths of the dark corridor. However, he is not alone. Holding his left hand, Alice, in a blue dress, stood there with a smile on her face. Yugeo pushed his grip slightly, and gently asked the girl who was his childhood sweetheart, "That's it...... Okay, right? ”

Alice shook the big ribbon tied with her blonde hair and nodded in reply, "Hmm." After that, I'll leave it to those two. They're going to steer the world in the right direction. ”

"That's right. That...... Let's go. ”

"Hmm."

At some point, the Ugeo has changed to his childhood posture. He and a girl of his age and height held each other's hands tightly and walked towards the white light in the distance of the cloister.

This moment-

The durability value of the Human Unit given the ID NND7-6361 has been reduced to zero. The Light-Cube control program, which receives this signal, sends a command to the Light-Cube where the Fluct Light is stored.

The Light Cube interface, which received the command, faithfully formatted the praseodymium crystals connected to it. The tens of billions of photons hidden inside shine for a moment, and then spread-

The soul of the one named Eugeo, who had lived for less than twenty years, was forever liberated from the tiny cube.

At about the same time—

Another Light-Cube placed far away from the Ugeo's Light-Cube also performs the same process. The Fluct Light, which was created through an irregular operation and stored a part of the memories of Alice Cybbeck's soul, was also freed from the cage of crystals.

Where the collection of photon clouds that make up the two souls disappeared is now unknown.

………

Lin Yiyan knelt there until Yugeo's body and the fragment of Alice's memory on his chest turned into particles of light and disappeared like Cardinal's remains.

How long has it been?

When Lin Yiyan noticed, the void space with whirlpools on the other side of the glass window had disappeared for some time, and the window had changed back to a starry sky. A faint light was already emerging on the end mountain range on the distant eastern horizon.

Even though his ability to think was almost completely lost, Lin Yiyan still shook his body and moved closer to the knight Alice, who had fallen a little farther away. Alice was also quite badly injured. Fortunately, most of them were only burns and did not bleed much, and the continuous reduction of the Mandate of Heaven also stopped. When Lin Yiyan picked her up with her left hand, she didn't seem to have regained consciousness, but only moved her eyebrows slightly, and a soft voice leaked out of her mouth.

"Partner! Are you okay! Deleg's silent voice sounded softly from Lin Yiyan's ears, "Why don't you use my power......"

"This world is just a fictional world, and the power of Draiger will only accelerate its collapse!" Lin Yiyan replied in a low voice.

"Your Friends ......"

"There will be a way, as long as you contact the people outside, find Jarvis and Akihiko Kayaba, and they ......" Lin Yiyan said with a tone that did not give up at all, "Only in this way, maybe we can gather up their scattered light......"

"Hopefully......" Draiger sighed slightly, said something softly, and finally died......

In this way, Lin Yiyan hugged Alice and walked slowly, slowly, to the north side of the room. Now the only intact crystal system terminal in this room, flashing with inorganic brilliance, is waiting for Lin Yiyan.

Gently placing Alice on the ground, Lin Yiyan pressed one of the transparent buttons with the fingertips of his left hand. The display lights up, reflecting a complex management interface. The operation interface is all in English that cannot be called a sacred language, but as he touched the screen again and again, he finally found what Lin Yiyan was looking for.

External Observer Call.

Lin Yiyan stared at the label with the name. Observer. Raising his stiff left hand, he pressed the button to call the observer with trembling fingertips. Later, a dialog box with Japanese text appeared on the display and a warning tone sounded.