Capítulo 12: Suspended Student Can't Be Trusted

"Ritual of the dead?"

"Yes, in this ritual, life force of the target is sucked out first and then the caster gradually gains control over his consciousness. To think that there is such a mage who can use ancient witchcraft, and such complex magic circles, no wonder a trap was there."

"That means.....is he dead?" I asked with a trembling voice.

"Hm, not exactly. I can sense that his life force has been depleted. But he is not dead yet, due to this ritual. Moreover, there is a way to solve this situation actually..."

"Solve?! Is it possible!? How?!"

Then the guardian beast looked around the magic circles and the middle aged man, who was not conscious probably.

Upon closely investigating the whole area, he came to a conclusion.

"It seems that things have not escalated too far. If we would have been a little late then this ritual would have entered the final stage."

"But there is a way to save him, right? Please tell me."

"...Even if he is not dead yet, this is a very delicate matter. Do you know this boy thoroughly."

Huh? What is he getting at?

"Um, he is a good friend of mine. So maybe? I am not sure. Is it necessary right now?"

"We can't stop this ritual, but we can overwrite it. Due to my position and some other constraints, I can't directly get involved in this matter anymore. So his life is in your hands now."

"In my hands? How?"

Later he explained everything I had to do.

In this ritual the caster exposes all the negative emotions of the target and breaks him mentally by creating illusions inside his head.

So to overwrite this ritual, I have to connect my consciousness with Harald's and try to convince him that these are all just illusions.

The guardian beast said that he would take care of the arrangements. I just have to participate in the subsidiary ritual created by him and offer a part of my body containing some blood and nerve fibers.

"Excuse me. Which body part would be sufficient? I mean, would a finger be preferable?"

"Yes, but are you sure? A finger offered in a ritual might never regenerate even using healing magic. Still do you want to do this?"

What?! I thought I would fix the cut finger later by magic. It's not possible?

What should I do? Apart from the pain of cutting a finger, I am not even sure that this gambit would work.

No, this is a crucial step. There might be even greater hurdles later. If I can't even cross the first one then how would I be able to return to my home?

"Um, is the tip of a finger acceptable too?"

I have heard that tip of little finger can regenerate if some part of the nail is left and the wound isn't stitched. I hope that's the case here too.

"Hmm. That would be a little difficult...but I would try my best."

Okay! Let's do it!

***

Seems like the pain of cutting my fingertip has subsided.

Moreover, as soon as we started the ritual, I was teleported to an unknown place with darkness all around it. According to the guardian beast, these are memories of Harald and I have to find him first.

I have an idea more or less about what Harald's trauma would be.

In the novel, it was mentioned somewhere that both his mother and his caretaker Sabel, were killed brutally by a demon while trying to save him, in front of his eyes. He, somehow, survived. But that tragic experience left a deep scar in his heart.

That was the reason, he trained relentlessly to protect his family and friends from further threats. The guilt of being the reason of their death must be still hounding him.

But, in the novel, as time passed by, Harald came to be able to face his past in a later scenario all by himself.

So, for now, he still needs outside help for achieving that.

Then my objective is clear. I have to find Harald's consciousness in this sea of memories and watch for myself exactly what illusion is binding him here.

For a long time, I was flowing with the story's pace. Now is the time to take the pacing under my control.

As I searched for Harald, I was preparing what to say to convince him and how to deal with the aftermath. Then I noticed a bright light coming from one corner and approached that beam of light to find a vast expanse of plain field full of grasses and some kind of golden flowers in patches.

An eerie feeling filled my heart as I witnessed a depressing sight.

In the middle of that bed of flowers, a boy sat with face buried between his knees. A middle aged man and an woman stood beside him mumbling words like,

"Why didn't you save us?"

That boy was Harald. The man was probably his caretaker and the woman was his mother.

But the most depressing part was a young girl was lying in front of him with all of her limbs and her head cut off, while she was pleading for help.

"B-Broth...er sa...ve me. I d-don't w-want to die. H-Help me p-please."

She was Christiana, his sister.

The mere fact of a family member dying can put most adults into mental breakdown for some days. And yet this boy has endured this pain for years, holding him responsible for their death.

However, comforting him here wouldn't do any good. I am sure, he had been told that it was not his fault many times by people around him. Still, he succumbed to the darkness within his heart.

He has yet to see many deaths and slaughters.

So what should I do here?

As I approached him, the figures of those dead beings vanished into thin air leaving Harald alone.

Sensing someone approaching, Harald looked up at me with trembling eyes. He asked with a monotonous voice.

"W-Who are you?"

Huh? Have you seriously forgotten the face of the student whom you threw out of the academy with your own hands? Well, whatever.

When I took a good look at him, he was bigger than me in size with a build like that of a knight in the army, but his expression was akin to that of a lost child with teary eyes.

"Does it matter who I am? It won't change anything."

"Y-You are right. She died. They all died in front me. I couldn't save anyone. They were all begging for their lives! Still I couldn't do anything!"

"Seems like it."

"If only I had more power!"

"Yeah, sucks to be weak, doesn't it?"

"..."

"By the way, is that all? Isn't it your fault that you couldn't save her even though you are stronger from 'before'?"

"?!....It wasn't enough."

"So? What will you do now? Just whine about it for the rest of your life? Let your remaining friends die in suffering? Then die yourself like a pathetic loser?"

".....What else can I do about it?"

"The hell you said!? Did your mother sacrifice herself to see this?!"

"..."

"Sabel too. Are their sacrifices not of any value to you? Why do you think they tried their best to keep you alive? You hold the talent of your family's founder. In the upcoming predicaments, in the name of your family, you have to save your people. For their sake, you have to move forward."

"C-Can someone like me really be able to do that?"

"What are you saying? Of course you can't."

"....."

"I mean, you can't with your current self. That's why you have to break out from your shell and get stronger. Harald, wake up to reality."

"..."

After that magnificent speech by me, he looked at me intently for some time. Then for some reason, he cried even more like a new born baby. I was honestly baffled by his mood swing.

Then, he wiped his tears with a determined look on his face. I think, that was enough of a push for him.

Simple minded guys are easily swayed by others influence.

But looking at his face now, I realized how he was able to face his past in the original storyline.

He looks simple minded, but he is strong, both physically and mentally. With a little push, he was able to sort out his own shortcoming and look forward.

Someone has said it right after all. 'In the end, you are the only one who can save yourself.'

Now then, I hope I can use you to my heart's content.

With that being said, the scenery around us changed, and within a second I was back to my body.

***

Fast forwarding the after events, it went like this.

The guardian beast carried both me and Harald to the outskirts of the forest. There, we parted ways, as he told that he shouldn't be seen by other humans.

From that point on, I carried Harald somehow to Cecille's house. At that time it was already afternoon and more than 2 days had passed since I had left her house for searching Harald.

As for his condition, Cecille said it would take some time to replenish his mana, after that he would gain consciousness.

Despite her nagging me to tell her all the details, I left for my own home because I had to prepare for the upcoming storm.

***

Thank God. It's still there.

My hut, my creation was standing intact majestically. After all it was my pride.

Anyway, I sorted out my situation and future plans, sitting beside the river bed.

Aside from that, a strange thought occurred to me. I couldn't help thinking about the similarity in day night rhythm of this planet and seasonal changes to my original world.

Perhaps, I should buy a clock.

No, that would not suit my bank balance.

After sorting out all the work left to be done here, I went straight to Cecille's house.

As I was entering the main hall, with a blast of wind, a pitch black sword swiftly cutting through the air reached my neck and stopped.

"Hey! What have you done to my brother?!"

I was somehow expecting this but...

Do you hate me that much!? Have some faith in me, will you!?

Are you some bro-con or what!?