Nil wanted to run away, to hide, to disappear, for the ground to open up and swallow them whole and leave nothing behind. They grabbed their catalyst in a panic, created a portal right below them, and immediately closed it as soon as they were through.

They started ripping feathers from their wing. Tears of pain and sorrow filled their eyes as their bloody hands tore them from their back. The grass beneath them turned a mellow shade of red. No matter how many black feathers fell to the ground, more grew to replace them.

Nil’s trembling hands unsheathed their blade and pointed it at their neck. Instead of driving it into themself, however, they dropped the sword.

[‘Peacemonger’ is active. You can’t take lives.]

What kind of sneering irony was that? They punched the ground, splattering even more blood all over themself. They kept punching it, screaming. Their tears mixed with the gore. They slumped to the ground, grabbing their head.

The pain, the memories, they just wanted it all to go away. Their loud thrashing died down as they gave up, turning into muffled weeping.

How could they keep living, with the knowledge of what they’d done? So many innocents murdered. An entire planet razed to the ground. It was impossible to estimate the number of deaths. Was it hundreds of thousands? Millions? Even more?

Everything that had happened up until that point felt meaningless now. They had no right to be happy. Ray, Kai, Nova, Max… They didn’t deserve to call any of them friends.

The memories were blurry, fragmented, detached—like echoes from the past. It was hard to make sense of them, but Nil was sure they were the same as that thing. Not for any logical reason, but because they knew, like one knows the sun exists, even at night.

There were so many mysteries still unsolved. Was that planet Asphodel? Was it Earth? Was it completely unrelated to both? It had to be some third planet, right? After all, both Asphodel and Earth were still full of life.

Even so, if the voice that had saved them during the Tutorial had been sincere, then they were coming to Asphodel. The other Seraphim. And their goal was likely the same as it had been—to “purge” all life.

Was… Was Nil supposed to stand up to them? No, they couldn’t—it was impossible.

Suddenly, a portal opened inside the pocket dimension, ripping away the air in a much more ragged way than the portals created by the catalysts. Durai stepped through, and it closed behind him.

Nil looked down, covering their face, kneeling in a pool of their own blood as they tried to make themselves as small as possible.

“I was right,” Durai said in a serious tone. “You are not human.”

Nil scrambled up, still crying, and opened their arms. They barely managed to get the words out through the sobs.

“...Kill me…” they said. “...Please…”

Durai shook his head. “I won’t be doing that.”

Nil fell back to their knees. “...Why?”

“Because I was also wrong,” he said. “You aren’t dangerous.”

Nil managed to quiet down their tears. “I am.” They looked at their hands, covered in blood in every sense of the phrase. “I have killed… So many people.”

Durai just stared at them, emotionless.

“I know,” he said.

Nil’s reddened eyes widened. “What?”

Durai looked off into the distance, toward the horizon of the dimension.

“At the start of this moon,” he said, “someone contacted me through the system. I suspect you were saved by the very same person after you failed the Tutorial. They warned me you would come, saying you were going to save this planet, and that I should give you my support.”

The voice… Nil wasn’t sure who they were, even now. They were surely someone they’d known, but their fragmented memories didn’t clarify who. In fact, the system wasn’t present at all in their memories.

“Did they say what I’m going to save this planet from?”

Durai shook his head. “I was hoping you would know.”

Nil looked down. The Seraphim… How to explain everything, exactly?

“An invasion,” they said. “Unimaginably powerful beings are going to come in order to destroy Asphodel. They…” Nil gulped. “They can’t be stopped. Not even by you.”

Durai nodded. “I see… Does that mean your amnesia is cured?”

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“Not exactly, but—” They jerked their head at Durai. “Wait, how can you be so calm about this? You are all going to die!”

He raised an eyebrow. “Aren’t you supposed to save us?”

“I…” Nil struggled to form a response. “...I can’t. I don’t know what that person was thinking, but there’s no way I can do it.”

Durai walked forward and placed a hand on their shoulder. “You must.”

Nil stepped back reflexively, looking away. “No, I can’t! You don’t know what you’re talking about!”

Durai reached into his coat pocket and took out a handwritten note. He unfolded it and examined it carefully.

“Our mutual friend left… detailed instructions for you,” he said, handing them the piece of paper.

Nil frowned as they read what it said.

“Is this your idea of a joke?” they said, glaring at Durai.

Durai looked down, embarrassed. “I swear I am telling the truth.”

[Objective 1: Earn the blessings of the Four Spirits.]

[Objective 2: Reach Level 7.]

[Good luck! ^-^]

[PS: You only have until the rise of the next Blooming Moon.]

…

“Detailed instructions?” Nil finally said.

Durai scratched his head. “They are pretty straightforward, at least.”

Nil sighed. “What even are the ‘Four Spirits’?”

“A local myth,” Durai answered. “The natives of the continent often tell the story of the spirits that created the world and gave it life and magic.”

Nil cocked their head. “So they’re like gods?”

“More like forces of nature,” Durai said. “The Spirits of Earth, Air, Water, and Fire.”

“And they exist? I guess they must, since magic is real…” Nil commented.

Durai shrugged. “I didn’t believe they did,” he said. “The fact that magic exists doesn’t mean that the myth about its creation is true. Still, if our ‘benefactor’ is being honest, I must have been wrong.”

“I’m not sure I trust them…” Nil said.

“I didn’t at first,” Durai admitted. “It was all too suspicious, and I had no reason to believe them—that’s why I tested you. You can tell a lot about someone by fighting them. After our brief exchange, I was certain you were being honest.” Durai smiled slightly, and his eyes held a nostalgic gleam.

Nil doubted the reliability of being able to know whether someone is lying through fighting, but they were glad it had worked out for them.

“Since they were telling the truth about you,” Durai continued, “I’m inclined to believe them about this as well.”

Nil nodded. “I understand,” they said, “but how would I go about finding these spirits in the first place?”

“Corwyn may know something,” Durai responded. “He enjoys learning about the native culture, after all.”

Nil looked down. “Until the rise of the next Blooming Moon…”

“Under a year,” Durai said. “On account of the different astronomical conditions, there are actually thirteen full moons every year, so you have twelve of them left.”

Nil remained silent for a few seconds. They looked up at the sky, so beautiful. One of their dreams flashed in their head: Standing on top of a pile of corpses, overlooking a ruined world. Only the beauty of the sky remained.

They didn’t deserve the chance to redeem themself—what they had done could not be erased. However, if it meant saving Asphodel… No, even then…

“I need time to think,” they said, still not looking at Durai.

Durai frowned. “There isn’t much time.”

“I know, it’s just that…”

Nil didn’t finish the sentence. The truth was, they wanted to die. Repentance was not an option. Not for them. Not after everything. Some sins could not be atoned for. Each second they allowed themself to live, they were committing another one.

“A week,” Durai said.

Nil glanced up at him, confused.

“I’ll give you a week to make up your mind. It’ll also give Corwyn time to gather as much information as possible on the Spirits.”

“What will you do if I decide not to go, exactly?”

Durai stared into their eyes. “I will forget about this, and assume Asphodel doesn’t need saving after all. If you’re truly destined to save it, why would you refuse your duty?”

“I…” Nil parted their mouth to speak, but no more words came out. Their ‘duty’, huh?

“You should keep training throughout this week,” Durai continued. “Your precious time should not be wasted.”

Nil bit their lower lip. They did feel calmer when they were swinging a sword. Perhaps it would help them come to a decision.

Durai turned around. “We should go.”

“Wait,” Nil said, prompting him to look back. “How can I keep leveling up? To reach level 1, we had to drink that strange substance, right? If I need to get to level 7…”

Durai turned around again, rubbing his chin. “The following levels are different,” he said. “The jump from 0 to 1 is essentially turning nothing into something. That something is already there now, so the progression will be more natural. However, it’s not a question of stats, even though they’re a relevant factor…”

He stroked his beard thoughtfully, trying to come up with an explanation. “Let me put it this way: Your level depends on the feats you’ve accomplished. If you kill a dragon, you will certainly level up, but it’s not exclusively about fighting. Corwyn got to level 5 by inventing that magical smartphone he showed you. I know people who leveled up after a tough negotiation. It mostly depends on your class—you have to play into the role it presents for you.”

Nil nodded hesitantly. Their class was Nameless Guardian… They still weren’t sure what it entailed. They weren’t in the right mindset to start thinking about it.

“By the way…” Durai said. “Do you need a new shirt?”

Right. The wing had torn their shirt apart. They were so out of it that they hadn’t noticed.

They blushed. “I would appreciate it.”

Durai summoned a pocket dimension, and tossed a shirt their way. Did the man just have whatever might be needed on hand at all times?

Nil cut a hole for their wing with their sword, and carefully put it on. Durai opened an exit portal with his bare hand by manipulating the mana in the air, and gave Nil one last glance.

“Another piece of advice,” he said. “Stick with those friends of yours; saving the world is not a one-person job. You’ll lose your sanity in no time if you isolate yourself.”

Nil looked down. They couldn’t possibly drag their friends down with them. Without a response, both Nil and Durai went through the portal to face the still befuddled crowd waiting for them back at the Academy.