Path of the Extra Chapter 411: The Apostle of Life and the Apostle of Death [2]

For a fleeting instant, Lumine felt as if the entire world had halted.

It was only when Azriel got to his feet that Lumine registered movement. Instinctively, Lumine also rose, turning to face Azriel, who held a lantern in one hand.

"What... what do you mean, you'll be dead? W-Why? No—how?"

A gentle smile touched Azriel's lips as he replied,

"There are certain individuals I find myself confronting, and it appears I am too feeble to escape this particular predicament... even if I were to take a gamble."

He then retreated a step and, without any preamble, loosened his robes, exposing his bare torso to Lumine's view.

The sight caused Lumine to blush immediately, his face heating up before he could exert any control.

But then his gaze shifted.

Slowly, his eyes fixed upon Azriel's chest.

On the right side of it, a small, dark star was imprinted.

Noticing the direction of Lumine's lingering stare, Azriel spoke, his voice even and devoid of strain.

"A potent entity was confined within the Forest of Eternity. I must vanquish him if I intend to extricate myself from this situation... yet this star is a curse inflicted upon me. I have at most a few weeks to slay him. Failure to do so means my demise."

Lumine moved a step forward, almost unconsciously.

"No... there... there must be something you can do, right?"

Azriel simply shook his head.

Lumine found himself unable to accept it.

"W-What about me? I-I’m not sure how much aid I can offer, but I am the Apostle of Life... you are the Apostle of Death... if we combine our strengths, surely we can devise a solution—"

"Fool."

Azriel interjected, his gaze fixed on Lumine with a hint of exasperation.

"Be thankful his attention is directed towards me rather than you. If he were focused on you, he wouldn't be content with merely harming you. He would extend his reach to everyone you hold dear. And his influence is not confined to this scenario."

Lumine swallowed with difficulty.

A tremor ran through him as he vehemently suppressed the thought.

He could not bear it.

Lumine absolutely refused to let that come to pass.

He had to—

"You believe you are obligated to act, don't you?"

Lumine flinched at how effortlessly Azriel had discerned his thoughts. A soft chuckle escaped Azriel.

"However, even if, by some improbable chance, I manage to escape the curse's grasp... my eventual demise remains unavoidable."

As if attempting to find a way to ensure Lumine comprehended, Azriel further loosened his robes, revealing his right upper arm.

For several moments, Lumine could only stare, his gaze fixed.

His mind lagged, struggling to catch up with reality.

Then, comprehension dawned regarding what he was observing.

...Cracks.

It appeared as though veins of fissures snaked across Azriel’s arm, resembling hardened earth fractured from within.

Lumine drew in a sharp, cold breath and gritted his teeth.

For reasons unknown, they radiated an aura of intense agony.

And sheer horror.

"The price for departing the Forest of Eternity... was my very life."

Azriel lightly traced the fissures with his fingers, his expression grave.

"I absorbed an excessive quantity of cores within the Forest of Eternity, and this came with a profound consequence. I contracted a rare affliction known as Mana Core Syndrome..."

"Is... is there no remedy?" Lumine inquired swiftly.

"A cure has not yet been discovered... although I do possess the capacity to formulate one."

Instantly, a flicker of hope ignited in Lumine's eyes, only to be swiftly extinguished by Azriel's subsequent statement.

"But the sheer volume and the caliber of the cores I consumed were simply overwhelming. As you can observe, the malady has already progressed too extensively. No cure can salvage me now... No, that isn't entirely accurate. Should I cease utilizing mana entirely, and somehow find my way back to our realm where suitable resources are available, there might yet be a twenty percent probability of survival."

He offered a faint, mirthless smile.

"But that is merely the delusion of a fool. The fissures have already advanced this far due to my continued mana expenditure, and they will persist in their spread until the moment of my death."

"No..." Lumine whispered, shaking his head in denial. "I refuse to accept that! There must be an alternative! There is no way you are truly destined to die! You just revealed yourself as the Apostle of Death—how am I supposed to believe this is the definitive conclusion!"

Lumine's impassioned outburst did not appear to startle Azriel in the slightest.

"I am endeavoring to impart understanding," Azriel stated softly, "that no viable path remains for me now, save for the one I am poised to embark upon, Lumine."

Azriel then drew nearer.

"There remains one question I have yet to address, does there not, Lumine?"

The lantern in his grasp flickered momentarily, casting Azriel's face into shadow as he spoke in a low tone.

"Am I... malevolent?"

Feeling his breath constrict in his throat, Lumine watched as Azriel's features were once again illuminated by the lantern's glow.

"I cannot definitively ascertain whether I qualify as evil or good. I have committed reprehensible acts while rationalizing them as being for the greater good. But... I now recognize that my actions were also fueled by fear. And perhaps there were alternative choices I could have made, decisions that would have yielded more favorable outcomes for all involved."

A shadow of sadness clouded Azriel’s gaze, and in its depths, Lumine saw a distorted image of his own desperate face.

"But the decision I make now is one I know I won't regret. Not when it's for my beloved sister... and for all of you."

"W-What do you mean by that?"

A profound ache seemed to awaken and stir within Lumine’s very core.

Then, comprehension dawned.

Azriel drew nearer, his frigid breath caressing Lumine’s cheek. Azriel's eyes then drifted past Lumine, fixed on the vast, empty void that lay ahead.

"True to my name, from this moment forward, I will eliminate everyone beyond that darkness. Until my very last breath, I shall carve a path of blood and corpses... and I will not falter, nor look back."

Lumine’s lips pressed together, a struggle to quell the frantic beating of his heart and the tremor in his body. Yet, this trembling wasn’t born of fear from Azriel’s words or presence.

No.

It stemmed from the immense sorrow that threatened to crush his chest.

"Even if I am unable to escape this predicament... I will ensure that all of you do."

"..."

"I will slaughter many. Participants from our own world. And the innocent souls of this one."

"No... please, Azriel... don't do this. We still have some time, don't we? W-We can find another solution... there must be... there has to be a way to save you."

His pleas were earnest, yet deep within, Lumine already grasped the inevitable.

Azriel harbored no intention of allowing him to become entangled in the fate that awaited him.

"There is one way."

Once more, the lantern flickered, casting Azriel’s features into fleeting darkness. But Lumine paid it no heed.

"Tell me, please!"

"...Since the dawn of time, in the most predictable tales, death has always been painted as the villain, and life as the hero. The Apostle of Life embodies goodness. The Apostle of Death embodies evil. If the two of us were characters within a story, you, Lumine, would be the protagonist... and I, the antagonist. And in the kind of satisfying conclusions most narratives reach, the hero triumphs by vanquishing the villain... thereby rescuing everyone."

"What are you—"

Lumine lacked the moment to process.

Abruptly, Azriel seized his free hand, pressing it against his own chest. Instead of warmth, a chilling coldness seeped into Lumine’s palm as he felt the steady cadence of Azriel’s heartbeat. In his other hand, Azriel nearly let the notebook slip.

"You must kill me, Lumine. That is the only other path."

"... !"

Lumine’s eyes widened in sheer astonishment, rendered speechless, capable only of staring at Azriel like a bewildered fool.

Azriel, however, wore an expression of utter seriousness.

"H-How... how!? How does that save me, you idiot!?" Lumine finally managed to vocalize, his shout echoing into the void as he attempted to wrench himself free, but Azriel’s grip remained unyielding.

"Did I not just tell you I am on the verge of slaughtering dozens of innocent people, and you're still preoccupied with saving me?" For the first time, a deep irritation colored Azriel’s tone, his glare fixed on Lumine with palpable frustration.

"Well, aren’t *you* the one in immediate danger right now!?" Lumine retorted, refusing to yield.

Azriel’s fingers tightened, yanking Lumine closer, his jaw clenched.

"Haven't you been paying attention!? I am about to commit murder! Do you not aspire to be a hero!? What sort of hero would permit me to escape the consequences of my actions!?"

Struggling against his hold, Lumine fired back,

"I understand your intentions, Azriel! I won't fall for your ploy!"

"Fall for it!? You believe I'm fabricating this!?" Azriel’s voice escalated, unsettling Lumine even further. "Have you not already witnessed my brutality against a prince’s broken body?! Did you truly think I didn't observe the look in your eyes when I declared myself the 'unworthy prince'? Do you imagine I am oblivious to your knowledge of the truth behind those whispers?! Are you truly prepared to let a monster depart unchecked?!"

Completely unnerved by Azriel’s uncanny ability to read his thoughts, Lumine found himself further astonished by an entirely different revelation.

"Y-You know too...?"

"Of course! Why would I be ignorant of the truth behind the 'unworthy prince' moniker?" Azriel spat, his voice laced with bitterness. "To be branded a monster, to have the truth suppressed, with the great monarchs convening to decide my fate... this was their proposed resolution. The only dissenters to labeling me the 'unworthy prince' were King Ragnar and Queen Lyraelle. Not even my own parents truly rallied to my defense. Though, I suppose that outcome is preferable to being deceased, wouldn't you agree?"

"I—"

Azriel’s grip intensified, causing Lumine to flinch in pain.

"You still fail to comprehend, do you not? Do you not desire to be a hero, Lumine!?"

"I do!" Lumine finally bellowed.

"But I cannot claim the mantle of a hero by taking your life! How would that resolve anything!?"

"If you possess any courage—any ambition to become a hero—then you must slay me here. Take my head to the great kings and queens, and they will all rejoice. Even if they don't, I assure you the gods certainly will."

"Gah!"

Finally, Lumine yanked himself free from Azriel’s grasp and stumbled backward, water sloshing around his feet. He fixed Azriel with a glare, and Azriel returned it with a dark, unsettling intensity.

"As if I desire to be that kind of hero! And what about your sister? Huh!? How will killing you save her? Or Celestina? They need you!"

Azriel's jaw appeared to be clenched so tightly it might shatter. Eventually, he clicked his tongue and spoke again, his voice now softer, more subdued.

"I already told you... that entity won't stop with me. It will pursue everyone I care about..."

Azriel advanced once more, while Lumine remained rigid, on his guard.

Then, with a look that held an almost desperate plea, Azriel uttered,

"Kill me..."

Now, Lumine understood.

Lumine finally grasped the reason behind Azriel's preceding words.

His spoken words conveyed one meaning.

But his eyes conveyed something entirely different.

They communicated—

That slaying him...

Would serve as his salvation.

Lumine clenched his fist, tightening his hold on the notebook. He felt the sticky warmth of his own blood as it trickled down and dripped into the water below.

"I... cannot..." he finally confessed in a tone of resignation, then averted his gaze, his eyes screwed shut.

"I do not wish to..."

Lumine found himself incapable of going through with it.

It wasn't due to a moral objection to murder itself...

But rather, an internal refusal, especially when directed towards Azriel.

Azriel lowered his head, a faint smile gracing his lips—a smile devoid of happiness or anger.

"Alright..." he murmured softly.

Lumine's eyes fluttered open, and he regarded Azriel.

"You know, someone pointed out to me today that I appeared weary. The truth is... I am past exhaustion."

A drawn-out sigh escaped Azriel’s lips. He closed his eyes briefly, then reopened them. The look he gave Lumine now held a quiet determination that caused Lumine to instinctively bite his lip.

Azriel then extended the lantern toward him.

"There's no need for you to accompany me any further. I'm certain you're deeply concerned for Yelena, aren't you? Go. Be with her."

Unconsciously, Lumine had already accepted the lantern.

Then, Azriel walked past him.

However, Lumine already knew.

His legs would remain immobile.

They would not follow.

And with equal certainty, he knew this conversation—this profound moment with Azriel—would forever haunt his memory.

And so, Azriel continued his solitary walk.

He chose the path Lumine could not tread.

The sound of his splashing footsteps gradually faded, eventually disappearing altogether.

Then, he was gone.

Vanished, as if absorbed into an abyss.

Lumine remained rooted to his spot, the sole beacon of light within that boundless darkness.