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Chapter 126: Searching for Mushika

"Musika."

Vinesha trembled as she called out that name.

"Master, Grantoni."

One after another, she spoke their names as she lifted herself up.

The evil spirit shattered the fragments of the sky, pushing her outside.

Vinesha crawled on the ground, coughing violently.

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As the fragments of her memories pieced together, tears poured endlessly from her eyes.

She couldn't bear her own self-loathing.

"It was all because of me. Everything was my fault."

She looked at the pendant in her hand.

Musika had been taken and killed by Abomination.

Marisa had sacrificed her life to save her.

Grantoni had been caught in his own rampage, losing his face and everything else.

And yet, she had wandered aimlessly, having lost her memories.

"Grantoni..."

Vinesha whispered his name.

The one who had every right to resent her the most.

Her younger brother was currently inside Abomination’s soul world, searching for Musika.

She clasped her hands together.

No.

She couldn't lose Grantoni after already losing Musika and her master.

But Grantoni wouldn't be able to find Musika.

No matter how talented he was, he wasn't strong enough to stand against Abomination.

‘If it were me…’

Vinesha was the one who had handed Musika over to Abomination.

If anyone could find traces of her, it would be her.

Abomination had known this, which was why he had destroyed her memories.

But he couldn’t erase the memories engraved on her soul.

Vinesha began drawing a magic circle with the blood squeezed from her own hand.

She needed to create a coordinate to summon Musika here.

At that very moment, Abomination had revealed himself in the otherworld.

This was the only chance to bring Musika back.

If she could find Musika, Grantoni would return as well.

"I'll take all the blame, no matter what."

Vinesha bit her lip, her vision blurring with tears.

"Musika, please, I beg you."

Years had already passed.

There was no guarantee that Musika’s consciousness remained intact.

But in this moment, Vinesha prayed desperately.

She wished, over and over again, that Musika’s mind had survived being devoured by Abomination.

As soon as she completed the magic circle, Vinesha poured all her mana into it.

"Musika."

A crimson mana, infused with soul magic, began to unfold around her.

"We have to save Grantoni."

The moment the glowing magic circle burst forth—

Boom—

The light of the magic circle faded all at once.

Seeing this, Vinesha stared blankly at the sky.

No response.

She knew better than anyone what that meant.

"...Ah."

Musika’s consciousness had been devoured by Abomination after all.

Vinesha refused to believe it.

"No."

So she drew the magic circle again and activated it.

"No. Please, no."

She kept drawing and drawing the magic circles.

But every time, they flickered and went out.

Splurt—

Blood poured from her nose and mouth.

The backlash of using too much mana had hit her.

But she caught the blood in her hands and used it to draw the magic circle even more precisely.

If she couldn’t find Musika, Grantoni couldn’t be saved either.

"Cha, lari..."

With trembling hands, she continued drawing the circle.

"Chara, ri... Take me instead, kill me."

Finally, after completing the magic circle, she wrung out the last of her magic and activated it once more.

"Let them go."

The moment she activated the blood-drenched magic circle—

Boom—

Once again, the magic circle flickered and disappeared.

Vinesha stared blankly at the ground.

Countless magic circles, drawn in blood, lay scattered across the shattered fragments of the sky.

And not a single one of them had received a response from Musika.

It was all her fault.

Tears of blood dripped from Vinesha’s eyes.

"Please..."

She begged toward the broken sky.

"Please, this is all my fault. They did nothing wrong."

Vinesha wept.

Like a child, she simply cried and begged.

"Take me instead. Just take me."

But the sky remained silent.

She hung her head toward the ground.

Then, with the last dregs of her empty magic, she forced her trembling hand to draw another magic circle.

Even if she died here today, she would call out to Musika until the very end.

As she made that resolution and continued drawing—

Thud, thud, thud, thud—

She suddenly heard a sound.

Vinesha lifted her head.

There, she saw them—

The soulless puppets of Abomination, rushing toward her.

They sprinted across the shattered fragments of the sky.

Vinesha stared at them in a daze.

Her body had no strength left.

Even the evil spirit that had been guarding her was gone.

There was nothing left for her to do but be trampled.

Abomination wouldn’t even allow her the time to complete a magic circle.

Just as despair was about to overtake her—

Tap!

A woman appeared before her, her azure hair billowing as she ignited brilliant azure flames.

The Unyielding Azure Flame.

Eve.

"Assistant Professor Vinesha! I don't know what you're doing, but Hannon Irey told me to be a lighthouse!"

Eve bit her lip as she watched the spirits rushing toward them.

She was terrified of ghosts, and in this moment, overwhelming fear gripped her.

But she fought it off with sheer determination.

Whoooosh!

Eve's azure flames flared wildly, soaring high enough to touch the sky.

"How about this?! Is this a lighthouse bright enough to reach the heavens?! Will it help you find the one you seek?!"

The lighthouse of azure flames illuminated the sky.

The light was so fierce that it could wake even the sleeping.

And in that light, Vinesha saw the image of a man.

The name Eve had just shouted moments ago—

Hannon Irey.

Vikamon Niflheim

At that moment, she realized who had led her to this place.

"…H-Husband."

Vinesha had no way of knowing what he understood or why he had guided her here.

To her, Vikamon had been nothing more than a vessel for self-inflicted suffering, an excuse born of emotional deprivation.

Her heart bore a gaping hole that could never be filled.

Even if she had lost her memories, deep down, she believed herself unworthy of forgiveness.

And so, she clawed at that empty void in her heart, shoving her twisted affection onto others.

She was certain Vikamon would never return her feelings, no matter what.

That certainty allowed her to pour all of her wretched love onto him without restraint.

Surely, that was all there was to it.

Yet now, she recalled the way Vikamon had looked at her.

Regret and sorrow.

An array of emotions she had never tried to decipher.

She had been so consumed with scraping away at her own emotions that she had never once looked back at him.

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Only now did his expression surface in her mind.

She didn’t understand.

She didn’t know why he had brought her here or why he had helped her recover her memories.

But there was one thing she knew for certain.

He hadn’t wanted her to suffer so much.

The azure flames burned brightly before her.

The beacon on the vast sea howled, searching for its ship.

Vinesha placed her hand upon the completed magic circle.

"Musika."

She closed her eyes and called out to her younger sibling.

What was love, that she had been so blinded by it?

That she had even felt jealous of her beloved younger sibling?

She despised herself for how she had been.

Even if she had been manipulated by the Abomination, the root of those emotions had been her own.

"Musika."

And so, with tears streaming down her face, Vinesha prayed.

She pleaded to see her dear sibling once more.

Vinesha's magic circle began to shine.

In that instant, she felt a warmth settle upon her shoulder.

Her eyes slowly turned behind her.

There, a spirit stood.

Vinesha realized, belatedly, who it was.

Her teacher, Marisa.

The one who had sacrificed her soul to save her.

Though she had lost her will, Marisa had returned to Vinesha’s side.

Marisa gently placed her hand over Vinesha’s.

Seeing this, Vinesha felt a surge of power welling from within her, from a source unknown.

Even at the very end, the foolish student had to rely on her master.

Pouring out every last ounce of her magic, Vinesha screamed.

"Musika!"

A blinding light erupted before her.

The white radiance was so intense that Vinesha nearly shut her eyes, but she forced them to stay open.

At last, she saw a child sitting in a corner.

Vinesha dashed toward them.

She stumbled and fell but scrambled up again, running as fast as she could.

The child tilted their head upon seeing her.

"Big sis? Why are you rushing over like that?"

The moment she heard those words, Vinesha could no longer hold back her tears.

She wrapped her arms around the child.

"Musika, I missed you so much."

Returning the words Musika had once said to her, she held her tightly.

Musika, in turn, hugged her back with all her might.

"I missed you too, sis."

In the distance, hurried footsteps echoed.

Vinesha looked up at the sound.

There stood Grantoni, his face reduced to a skull.

Having wandered through the realm of souls for an untold amount of time, his entire being was battered and torn.

Panting, he gazed at Vinesha and Musika.

He had searched the endless sea for so long, chasing that azure beacon.

And when he finally arrived, he found them there.

"Vinesha… Musika."

When Grantoni spoke their names, Vinesha tightened her hold on Musika and stood up.

Musika had fallen asleep in her arms.

"Grantoni, I'm sorry. This is all my fault."

Even after Vinesha had lost her memories, Grantoni had come looking for her once.

But she hadn’t recognized him at all.

She had pushed him away.

After that, Grantoni had descended into madness.

Once so stoic, he had taken to wild behavior and forced, foolish smiles.

It was as if he had been trying to escape from his own unbearable reality.

Vinesha felt deep sorrow for him.

Because of her, his life had been shattered.

To him, she must have felt like nothing short of a disaster.

"But… there are people waiting for you."

She wanted Grantoni to know—he could be angry at her.

But he couldn’t ignore those who had come to save him.

"I’ll make sure Musika returns safely. Let’s meet again outside."

They had taken such long, winding paths.

Now, it was time to turn back and find their way home.

Grantoni looked at her for a moment.

Then, slowly, he turned away.

The moment he saw Musika, he understood.

He could never have saved her from the Abomination.

Even if he had found her, all they would have shared were a few words before parting again.

But Vinesha was different.

She was the most gifted soul mage he knew.

And the one most deeply connected to Musika.

"Vinesha… I never resented you."

Vinesha’s eyes widened.

"I only ever resented myself for being too weak to do anything that day."

He had always known—Vinesha truly saw them as family.

That was why it had pained him so much when she lost her memories.

And why he had loathed his own helplessness.

So, he had set out to bring Musika back.

Because if he did, he believed that one day, things could return to the way they were.

"That's not true."

Vinesha called out to him.

"Grantoni, you never gave up searching for Musika. That’s why we found her."

She needed him to know that.

Hearing her words, Grantoni fell silent.

And then, both of them began to fade, vanishing from the realm of souls.

They were returning to the real world.

"Heh."

Grantoni let out a dry chuckle.

"When you see Musika, tell her I looked really cool searching for her."

Time had passed since Musika’s death.

Even Grantoni, once so taciturn, had grown cheekier.

"She's my little sister, not yours."

And Vinesha had changed as well.

As they disappeared, they both shed tears.

At last, the deep rift between them had begun to mend.

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