Chapter 3: Learn 4 страница

To acquire everything -「Win all the rights」, that was the only victory reward the two could affirm existed, but at that point that meant nothing to them.

What was most important was – Sora said impatiently:

“Why isn’t there a 「Victory Condition」- they hid the wrong details!”

If 「All their rights」 were taken before the previous Empress had died, it wouldn’t cause them much danger to their survival.

They should have revealed the victory conditions in order to allow people to beat the game as fast as possible – despite this, there were no records…

“…The worst…possibility…”

“- Huh?”

As Plum heard Shiro mumble, she looked at her in despair, pleading for her to explain.

“…From the very beginning…no one…knew the condition…”

“…Even the Empress doesn’t know, the possibilities of a victory condition that isn’t specific – for example…”

Sora took a deep breath and spoke, almost squeezing his voice out:

“…「Amuse me. I don’t know how you’re going to do it, but you have to do it in a specific way.」- Something like that.”

- Plum’s eyes rolled up into whites and she collapsed, and to be honest, Sora felt just like her.

If that was the truth – the reason why no one could awake her, the reason why Plum was unable to find the condition

– the reason why the love magic worked properly but was unable to wake her up, and –

Even the reason why they could completely hide the conditions – everything could be explained.

Since no one knew from the very beginning, there was no reason to conceal it.

Which meant they had to search for 「What was the Empress looking for when she went into hibernation」- back to square one.

No Game No Life:Volume 5

“Ah~ dammit, what’s wrong with that woman!?”

Sora yelled out in a voice saturated with heavy frustration, after which he collapsed. Even Shiro gave up and began yawning on Sora’s lap, while Plum – fainted.

This scene could be titled 「Despair」 and framed in an art gallery.

“…So for a change of mood, can I tell you all about something that happened in the past?”

Jibril snapped her fingers lightly, and instant the walls and ceiling of her home turned as transparent as glass. Sora lay on the floor, and what he saw was a night sky – no, wrong.

They were on the edge of the atmospheric layer – the divide between the universe and planets.

Which meant that was the universe. As he understood that, he suddenly heard a calming sound, like the call of a whale.

“...That was…?”

“It was 「Him」- the sound of the Phantasma Avant Heim.”

As she said this – Sora recalled a huge whale-shaped slab of land during their game against Azrael.

…He was on his back right now, and as that was too ridiculous to consider, he figured he would forget it soon anyway.

“「He」 was a disciple of my late Master, the Old Deus Artosh.” Jibril spoke with a nostalgic glow in her eye.

“Artosh died at the end of the Great War – but 「He」 couldn’t accept it, so he drifted from place to place in search for him, approaching any single presence of Old Dei he could find.”

Jibril looked at the sky – the red moon.

“The red moon (up there) is the dwelling place of the thirteenth-ranked 「Lunarians」, as well as the Old Dei that created them.” ^[29]

- Maybe because it was bigger than the moon of their original world, or because they were closer to it, it was a gigantic red moon he had seen countless times before.

Sora had never considered that there might be 「Sixteen Races」 up there.

“- Whenever Avant Heim sees the red moon, he will attempt to raise his altitude upon detecting the presence of Old Dei, but –“

Jibril smiled a complex yet sad smile.

“Avant Heim can’t do it.”

“…Can’t do it?”

“Avant Heim doesn’t fly in the sky, he revolved about the planets – he swims within the Elemental Galleries that the Imanity cannot see, so he can’t go into space where there are no Spirits – so…”

Sora’s gaze shifted up along with Jibril’s, and he remained momentarily speechless. - He had never seen the Milky Way up close.

But compared to photos online, it was way more epic than he thought it would have been, a glittering river of stars suspended in mid-air.

Suddenly a flash of light streaked past as though to cover the red moon up.

“He’s looking at the red moon…and crying.”

The light emitted an afterglow that shimmered faintly as it passed, and swam away.

Earlier they had heard the call of a whale as well, and now – it sounded rather lonely to them.

“…Do the Phantasma have feelings as well?”

No Game No Life:Volume 5

- The 「Phantasma」 that were ranked second among the 「Sixteen Races」.

Sora then thought, it was of course reasonable that Azrael had called upon them so emotionally as she was ranked as well.

But it just seemed rather impossible to believe that a floating slab of land could have emotions. Then – Sora remembered something all of a sudden, and he said sadly:

“…Even the Phantasma know 「Love」, but I don’t…” “Huh? Why do you say 「He」 knows love?”

“He knows to cry for his Master, and he has a Master to love – even if it isn’t love, doesn’t that mean he knows love?”

“…”

- Jibril suddenly said thoughtfully.

“Master, is there a person whose absence would make you feel uncomfortable?”

“Shiro.”

“So the one you love is –“

“Shiro – ah~ so if I know love and I know how to love, does that mean I know how to fall in love?” Love differs from person to person – what a troublesome concept.

What was the Empress searching for before she hibernated? If it was truly related to love, then he could do nothing – Jibril was thinking of something else at the same time.

“…Is it really like that?”

When Artosh had been conquered, Jibril had felt crushing despair along with the rest of the Flügel.

After that, the Flügel had begun gathering information, they didn’t know what they were searching for, but they still searched.

The reason to live, the reason to exist, the reason to not die –

Searching for those 「Answers」 that couldn’t possibly exist – but Jibril found it. It wasn’t a common answer, but it let her find – her own reason to exist.

“…? What is it, Jibril?”

It wasn’t for knowledge, but instead for the 「Unknown」 ahead of her that confused her, if –

“M-master, forgive me for asking, but could you listen to a single request of mine?”

“Yeah, what is it?”

“Could you please say 「Jibril you useless fellow, I don’t need you anymore」?”

“…L-let me just say something here, I don’t get where this conversation is going at all.”

“Just don’t ask – please.”

As he saw Jibril press her forehead on the ground while bowing deeply, Sora accepted her request reluctantly.

“-「Jibril you useless fellow, I don’t need you anymore」- is that alright?”

-

“M-M-M-M-Master!!”

“- W-w-what!?”

She teleported so close to Sora that their heads almost connected, which caused Sora to cry out uncontrollably.

“W-why is this? I’m currently feeling the same sensation of my spine tingling as I licked the feet of that long-eared one under Master’s orders, and the time where I stole Shiro-san from you during the FPS in the Eastern Federation –

No Game No Life:Volume 5

and a feeling as if my chest is being constricted! What exactly is this unknown sensation!?”

“I don’t know! I don’t know, but aren’t you adding too much weird elements into this!?”

Sora replied with his face set in stone as Jibril looked at him while panting, blushing and almost drooling. Although, Jibril suddenly seemed to have understood something – she nodded, and then –

“Master, in the six thousand, four hundred and seven years since my birth – Jibril has finally understood what it means to fall in love.”

“…Huh? Are you serious?”

“Yes, I can finally help Master out – and what love means is!” Jibril kneeled down solemnly in front of Sora and reported.

“Master commanded Dora-chan to 「Fall in love with you」, and ignored her aside from that one time; as for Dora-chan that was a declaration of love, so! The feelings placed within me as the Master I’ve been serving under for so long with all my heart said he doesn’t need me any longer – which is pity, bitterness, relaxation and all other sorts of feelings that make chills run down my spine, that’s love -!!”

“Jibril, could you please just calm down, you’re just making things more complicated –“

Sora said with his expression still carved in stone, at this time – with a loud slam! – Shiro stood up.

“Huh!? W-what was that, Shiro, my heart nearly leaped out of my chest!” However she completely ignored Sora’s response.

“…Unknown sensation…I don’t know…can’t reach…yearning…Azrael couldn’t find it…Jibril found it…Steph felt it…the unknown…the future…「Hope」.”

- She was pretending to sleep earlier, so she had heard everything.

She mumbled a string of words – recited, as she suddenly began flipping through the books.

“…The Empress that deceived everyone… - the Empress…victory condition…wasn’t changed.” She said.

She suddenly lifted up a book – and said:

“…Nii…I know…the condition…to awaken the Empress now.”

- As they heard this, Sora, Jibril and even Plum leaped up together and looked at Shiro. And only Shiro – appeared happy, no…

“…Nii as well…judgmental error…you do that sometimes.”

Her expression was completely different from the usual, as she actually seemed happy and laughed.

“…Nii, Nii~ haha…Nii…messed up…♪”

Shiro shook her shoulders from side to side, her feet couldn’t help but swing about – and she smiled victoriously. Sora didn’t get her meaning, but he did moan suddenly –

“W-wait a second, huh? I made a judgmental error? B-but situational decisions are…” “…Yes, Nii’s…forte…but this time…Shiro won♪”

- She appeared truly happy.

In that game, Sora only felt dizzy as it was the first time Shiro had beaten him at it.

“H-how is this possible…I lost in judging situations, deduction, strategy, my reason for existence…”

-『 』 - They were the strongest Imanity gamers, two in one, and if he as the strategist were to lose in terms of judgment –

No Game No Life:Volume 5

Ignoring Sora who was almost in tears, Plum immediately asked Shiro:

“W-what is it!? What do we have to do to awaken the Empress!?”

As everyone bated their breath in anticipation – and as Sora looked at her tearfully.

Shiro – revealed the answer.

Дата добавления: 2015-11-14