"Here. You want it back, don't you?"
"You demon... you bastard..."
At that mocking, cruel display, Ragna's hair bristled. The surrounding space trembled under the weight of the magic power overflowing in response to his fury.
"Did you think a pathetic stunt like that would stop me?"
His hair stood on end, the sheer volume of released magic creating a visible aura. Deep within his eyes, a pale blue light flickered, mirroring the radiance of the Saint’s own power.
"As I thought. You are indeed capable of reaching me."
Belial, who had been watching in silence, slipped from Edward’s body like a phantom. He kept the heart firmly in his grasp.
"Edward!"
As Edward collapsed, back in his original form, Ragna’s face went pale. He rushed to the man's side, his concern for his friend finally overriding his rage. The surges of magic power that had wreathed his body vanished in an instant.
"Hmph. This tedious banter is starting to bore me."
Sneering at the scene, Belial began to fade into nothingness.
"Hey! We aren’t finished!"
"Oh, but we are. I wasn't summoned to fight you, after all. Besides, if I were to fight you here and fail to fulfill my contract, my reputation would suffer, wouldn’t it?"
"I don't care where you run... I will find you, and I will kill you."
"Kufu. Try it if you can. Humans die so easily. You are no different."
Ragna could only watch in silence as the laughing demon vanished.
"Damn it!"
He spat the curse through gritted teeth. He didn't know exactly what had happened while he was away, but he knew it was the worst possible outcome.
"Ugh... gah..."
Edward opened his eyes shortly after. Despite having his heart ripped out, he was alive—likely a side effect of the demonic contract. His wounds were closing with terrifying speed, a fatal injury mending itself piece by piece.
"Hey, stay with me."
Ragna needed to hear the truth from the real Edward. Even if the words spoken while the man was possessed were technically his own, Ragna wanted to hear them now, with the demon gone.
Edward looked at him and spoke.
"Ragna... I’ll tell you this now. I’m not going to apologize."
"Don't be a fool. An apology wouldn't fix this anyway."
Ragna let out a heavy sigh, his voice softening.
"Edward. What happened while I was gone?"
"The Four Ducal Houses... they chose to sacrifice the commoners to perform a demon summoning. When Patricia heard, she volunteered to offer her own life for the purification instead."
Edward recounted the events that had unfolded during Ragna's absence.
"I couldn't stop her. I had already accepted the logic of sacrificing the few to save the many. I was the one who leaned on her. I was the one she had to support."
He had been wavering, consumed by despair.
"Even so, I truly didn't want her sacrifice to be in vain. Not until I realized I had been played."
In the original plan, the Four Ducal Houses were supposed to conduct the summoning. However, Edward had been so overwhelmed with work that his information had been tampered with. Seeing those cunning old men driven by greed at the sight of the Saint’s power, Edward realized they had set Patricia up from the very beginning.
"So, I called the demon myself. I did it so her power—her soul—wouldn't just disappear."
"And that led to this barrier?"
"Yes. It was the only way to rewrite the laws of the world. The price is blue blood, provided by those of us stained with filth. The souls that overflow within this cage will be given to Belial. In exchange, her power will never be touched. Not that a mere demon could handle it anyway."
"And you... you're going to become immortal? You're going to stay in this cage forever, just to feel Patricia’s magic?"
"I will wait. Eventually, someone with that same power will appear. Her reincarnation."
"Are you serious?"
"I've never been more serious. No matter how many centuries it takes, I will find her again. And next time, we’ll live in a peaceful world. I’ll build a happy world for her."
To Edward, the Royal Capital was now a miniature garden—a stage built specifically to grasp that ideal.
"I don't care if people call me a demon. I just want to see her again. That’s all. So..."
Edward lay on his back, staring up at the sky. He shifted his gaze slightly toward Ragna.
"...Could you just leave me be?"
"..."
"It’s over. I have nothing left to ask of you. Peace is restored. We don't need the Hero's power anymore."
"And what about outside the barrier? The world is choking on miasma. Do you really think your little plan is going to work out there?"
"I’ll gather it all and move it. It’s fundamentally the demon's power anyway. Since the contract lets me wield a portion of it, I can dump it somewhere far away... yes, the Yudaina Land should suffice."
Even now, Edward had no way to truly erase the corruption. The concept of using a massive force of purification simply didn't occur to him.
"Even if the miasma spreads again, this place will be safe. Even if the rest of the world perishes, I will protect the capital. I will never stop."
Whether it was ironclad resolve or mere obsession, Edward spoke with a chilling lack of emotion.
Ragna finally spoke.
"Edward. Make me a noble, too. It’s my fault for being late. I'll share the burden."
"Heh. Impossible. Your power is too much—you'd likely break this miniature garden just by existing in it. That’s why I’m asking you to just... stay away."
"Fine. Then transfer all the miasma from the surrounding lands into my body. Move it to me."
"Ragna... you..."
"Maybe you don't care about the people outside your cage anymore, but I do. If you're going to abandon them because you can't handle the mess, then let me protect them."
"You might be called immortal, but I don't know if you can survive that much corruption. You might end up becoming something closer to a monster."
"I don't care."
Ragna bit his lip, looking up at the sky.
"Besides, the Sage and the Hero are still alive. People can find hope in that fact alone. Patricia would want it that way."
He forced a smile.
"And that demon would probably get a kick out of watching me suffer, right?"
Edward stayed silent for a moment before finally nodding.
Instantly, a thick black mist swirled around Ragna, clinging to his flesh.
"Do you feel... anything?"
"This? This is the Power of Calamity the demon brought? It's nothing. I’ll head to the Yudaina Land. I won't be a nuisance to anyone there."
As Ragna laughed, Edward spoke one last time.
"Then this is goodbye. The Yudaina Land is on the frontier, but it is still within our borders. I’ll give it to you. Spend the rest of your days however you like."
"A noble, huh? I’ve come a long way for a rootless adventurer. Make sure you give me a high rank. Somewhere just above Patricia's... Anyway, see you around."
With those final words, Ragna turned and walked away.
Edward didn't say another word, his eyes lingering on his friend's retreating back with a profound, aching loneliness.