Chapter 86

Q. Wrap the world in a ○○○○ (4 hiragana characters)

"…Is this the end?"

Patrick stepped down from the scaffolding he had built and said. The evil god Kugelshraiber had vanished thanks to the power of the pruning sword Ikitemina. It was a strange-named evil god, but it was strong. …Did I name it?

I had defeated the evil god that had even tried to poison the world I once lived in. But I couldn't feel genuinely happy, and then a cheerful voice came. Remun said happily,

"You did it, Onee-san! You actually defeated that thing!"

"…Thanks."

"Huh? You're not happy?"

Does she want me to explain why I can't be happy? I think this god is also evil.

The other one, the god of light Sannon, had a rather indifferent attitude.

"Well, I'll be off. Yumiera Dolkness, well done on defeating the evil god. I'm grateful to everyone involved."

Sannon said that and disappeared in a burst of light. She was as aloof as ever. But I felt she would never forget Yumiera 2.

My parallel self. Yumiera 2 had died. She had jumped into a black hole to strengthen me.

She had fulfilled her promise and took the evil god with her. The fact that she had left the name of the pruning sword and her performance in this battle made it clear that she had been the most active this time.

She cursed in every direction and seemed to hate everything in the world. But at heart, she wasn't a bad person. She regretted destroying the world, and although I disliked her, I couldn't hate her.

Patrick probably felt the same way. Neither of us knew what to say, and the silence continued.

After a while, Patrick said softly,

"Is there… any hair left in the bathroom?"

"Hair?"

Are you talking about keepsakes for the grave? When I asked, he replied,

"To revive someone with the elixir, a part of their body is needed, right? We have our hair stored, but hers…"

"Oh!"

I had forgotten about the elixir. I had completely forgotten about its existence.

"The elixir! Remun, bring out all the elixirs!"

"Huh? It's impossible to revive someone without a part of their body. …Besides, isn't it better not to revive the parallel Onee-san?"

"Just give them to me."

"O-Okay."

I received four empty vials from the bratty boy. Combined with what Patrick and I had, we had six in total. I regretted using one to repair the cup.

I took out my share from my pocket. The small vial was intact. What material is it?

"Patrick, bring out yours too."

"…Yumiera, it won't work without a part of her body. She can't be revived."

"No, I'm not going to revive 2."

"Huh?"

Patrick's pained expression turned to one of confusion. Maybe I hadn't explained enough.

"Reviving 2 would just cause problems. I don't want to live with her because I dislike her, and I don't want to get a bad reputation because of her misdeeds elsewhere."

"Yumiera? Do you even know what you're saying…?"

His words trailed off. Ah, he must be misunderstanding, but I don't have time to explain.

Instead of Patrick, Remun interjected,

"That's right! It would be weird to have two Onee-sans in one world."

"Remun, be quiet. Let's move a bit."

Our destination was nearby. A grassland just outside the city of Dolkness. It was also the place where I first met Yumiera 2.

Unable to contain my excitement, I ran. Patrick followed silently. Remun casually entered my shadow.

We arrived. I remembered the location clearly from just yesterday.

"Right here, I think."

"What are you planning, Yumiera?"

It would be better to explain after we get there.

I drew the pitch-black sword from its sheath and released its true power.

"Pruning sword Ikitemina."

If this doesn't work, my plan will fail. Please, pruning sword.

I slashed the area where the spatial distortion had appeared when Yumiera 2 emerged.

"Success! I was right!"

"Huh? A portal to outside the world!? Onee-san, what are you doing!?"

A spatial distortion appeared before us, the same as the one Yumiera 2 had used. It was clear where it led.

"Let's go. I'll explain on the other side."

I jumped into the spatial distortion without hesitation. The sensation of my head being shaken violently made me close my eyes.

The shaking stopped quickly, and when I opened my eyes, the scenery had changed.

Patrick appeared behind me shortly. He looked around and said,

"Is this… the castle?"

"Yeah, it looks like the castle's balcony."

We were on the balcony of the castle overlooking the capital Balshain.

It took me a moment to recognize it because it was nothing like the capital we knew.

The bustling main street was empty, the seamless castle walls were crumbling in places, and buildings were damaged everywhere.

While I was living a relatively peaceful third year at the academy, 2 had been leveling up under the influence of the evil god. By the time I returned to the Dolkness territory as a lord, 2 had been wreaking havoc.

This was the result of her actions. I felt I had no right to blame her, having led a somewhat enjoyable life.

"2 really went all out… Were the monsters responsible?"

"Such… I thought I knew, but I didn't expect her to do this."

This was not the capital we knew. This was 2's capital. This was her world.

To me, it was a parallel world. For convenience, let's call it the 2 world.

Patrick, staring at the ruined world as if trying to burn it into his memory, said,

"I see. In this world, we should be able to find her hair."

"That's why I'm not going to revive 2. It would be too cruel to bring her back and let her live alone in this world."

"What are you planning, Yumiera?"

The stage is set. Let me explain my plan.

"Patrick, what do you think the elixir is?"

"A revival potion… isn't it?"

"It could be said that the cup was revived, but it's strange that the hot tea inside also came back to life."

The term 'revival potion' had clouded our judgment. The cup incident made me realize something.

"What do you think it is, Yumiera?"

"It's a time cloth."

"Ti… huh?"

Huh? His reaction was weak. I was expecting a 'What the heck?' kind of reaction.

Maybe the analogy with a secret gadget wasn't appropriate. Let me rephrase—

"The elixir can rewind time for the target."

"Rewind time?"

"Dead people come back to life. Broken cups are fixed, and the hot tea inside is revived. Today becomes yesterday."

"So, what are you going to do?"

He still doesn't get it. Patrick is surprisingly slow on the uptake. This is a major taboo, and it might be even more unethical than reviving the dead, so he might not have thought of it.

Will Patrick agree with my plan? I hope he does.

"…I'm going to rewind the world's time!"

I'm going to revive the world with the elixir!

I'm going to wrap the world in a time cloth!

I'll do it before Yumiera 2 destroys the world!

She and the people she killed will all come back to life!

"Is it… not allowed?"

Patrick stared at me with a blank expression.

It's a forbidden move, I know. But I'm going to do it. Even if he opposes me, even if he hates me, I will definitely do it.

Before Patrick could react, a response came from my shadow.

"No way! Absolutely not! It's crazy to rewind the world's time! The laws of the world will collapse, and we don't know what bad effects it will have! Come on, big brother, stop her!"

I hadn't consulted Remun.

Prompted by him, Patrick finally spoke. It doesn't look good.

"I… I fell in love with Yumiera because of her unconventional nature. She's unconventional but never wrong. She's hard to understand, but she's kind."

"Are you not going to oppose it?"

"Even if I oppose it, you'll do it anyway, right?"

"Uh, yeah, that's the plan."

"Great. You have a strong heart that never wavers. I love you, Yumiera."

He suddenly confessed. My mind went blank.

Remun was making a fuss, but I couldn't hear him.

So, I'm even more determined. I'm going to do it. I'm going to rewind the world.

"Alright, let's start."

I took out the six elixirs from my pocket.

I held three small vials in each hand, between my fingers.

Remun had said that the more complex and larger the target, the more magic power was needed. With the greatly increased magic power I have now, I'm sure I can revive the world.

I poured magic power into the six elixirs with all my might.

"The target is the entire world! This planet and the universe! All of time! Rewind!"

The elixirs emitted a blinding light. The intensity was too much to look at with my bare hands.

Rewind, rewind, rewind. I poured magic power desperately. I don't care if I wither away. I just need to pour in magic power.

The change came quickly.

Looking up at the sky, the sun was moving at high speed. The direction was from west to east. Everything in the world was reversing.

"Rewind, rewind, rewind."

"Go, Yumiera!"

At this speed, we might not reach the time before the world's destruction.

Faster, rewind, rewind. Rewind, world. World, rewind.

The phenomenon of the world rewinding accelerated. The sun moved so fast it was impossible to follow with the eye. Day and night repeated in an instant, making the sky flicker.

One of the elixirs in my right hand between my index and middle fingers shattered. It had reached its limit.

Then, one after another, the vials in my hand broke.

"More! More! Rewind!"

I was also approaching my limit. I had never used this much magic power in my life. I consumed enough magic power to destroy thousands, maybe tens of thousands of black holes. Enough to destroy countless worlds, I used it to regenerate Yumiera 2's world.

The last elixir shattered, and the world's reversal ended.

Time had returned to its normal flow.

Breathless, I checked the results.

"Ha, ha… Did it work?"

"Look."

Patrick pointed to the scene of the capital. The bustling main street, the majestic and enormous church, the sturdy and seamless castle walls. The lively streets I knew were there.

Good. It worked.

"The sun rose and set about three hundred times. I rewound about a year. Good job, Yumiera."

Relieved, I felt my body go limp. It was hard to stand.

I wobbled and almost fell, but Patrick caught me.

"It's not over yet. We need to find 2."

It's probably just after Alicia and the others defeated the demon king. 2 is likely hating and resenting everything in the world, planning to destroy it. I need to stop her to achieve my goal.

I can't use brute force. If she doesn't agree, destroying the world will only leave her with regret. I need to make her realize that the world is a good place.

Can I change her heart? What words will convey my feelings?

Where is Yumiera 2? I need to find her.

I tried to walk, but my legs were unsteady, and I was caught again.

"What are you doing in such a place in broad daylight?"

This voice! I turned to see myself. Yumiera Dolkness in her school uniform. She is the past Yumiera 2.

"Uh, well…"

"Oh? Me? But I look so weak. I'm not the real me."

"Am I the lonely me without a loving partner to lean on?"

We started bickering, but why is she being confrontational on our first meeting?

Confused, 2 averted her gaze and said,

"Anyway, I'll say thanks. Thank you."

She continued, looking around shyly.

"I'll do better this time."

"Could it be… you remember?"

She definitely said "this time." She knows this world has been rewound. For some reason, Yumiera 2 has memories of meeting me.

Good. She remembers our arguments, our physical fights… not the best memories, but she remembers everything.

Overwhelmed with emotion, I couldn't say anything, and 2 raised her voice.

"What's that face for! Watch this! I'll become stronger than you, stand in a higher social position than you, and find a better partner than you."

"Finding a partner is impossible."

"What? I can find a fiancé or two if I want to."

"I meant that there's no one better than Patrick… Does that mean you realize you're not popular?"

"Wh-What! …That guy isn't that great. He's just average in every way? A boring guy."

"Alright, let's fight!"

I'll show her the difference in our levels by beating her up.

I tried to jump at Yumiera 2, but was held back from behind.

"Don't stop me! Patrick is being insulted!"

"Why does it always end up like this? Can't we get along?"

No way. I hate 2.

I struggled to break free from his arms, but I was too weak to escape. What happened to my power-up?

I'll deal with Patrick first. Then 2. For Patrick's honor, I have to.

Ignoring us, Yumiera 2 leaned over the balcony and looked down.

"Have you forgotten where this is? Get out of here quickly. If you cause trouble here, it will be my fault."

"Oh! You're trying to escape!?"

"Stay well, Yumiera 1."

Yumiera 2 said that and jumped off the balcony.

Where is this? It's obviously the castle balcony. She came to this world from here.

Oh, if we keep making noise, someone will notice.

Just as I realized the danger of our location, a voice from inside the castle shouted,

"Who are you there!"

"Trouble, let's go."

Held by Patrick, we jumped into the spatial distortion.

Thus, we returned to our original world, having saved the world and a girl.

A. Wrap the world in a time cloth

I couldn't just leave 2 dead.

Killing a character just because they're in the way… Huh? Making a character dead because they're in the way? I've heard something like that before…?