"What?"
Perhaps because my response was unusually confident, Aria looked rather bewildered.
So I made a proposal before she could react properly.
"Since that’s the case, how about we figure out where the real Deus is? Let’s search for him together."
"…Search for Professor?"
"Yeah, perhaps if we go up to the rooftop and observe the academy from up there, we may find Deus."
Aria seed confused by my words, but as if compelled by the circumstances, she followed .
Yet, at the sa ti, there was a chilling readiness in her mana, as if prepared to pierce through my body at any mont.
Aria and I then arrived at the dormitory rooftop. Thanks to the supervision of my companions, we did not co across anyone else during our journey to the rooftop.
"If we observe the academy from up here, we might see sothing, right?"
Upon hearing my words, Aria slowly approached the railing, paused, and then glanced at sharply.
"Why do you speak differently even though your face is similar to Professor’s?"
Was her reaction akin to that of seeing a character she had once cherished, was now broken?
Aria seed displeased with the way I spoke, and because of that, a subtle smile crept onto my face.
"It’s because you don't see as Deus."
I didn't want to speak like Kim Shinwoo while in Deus' body.
I wanted to differentiate Kim Shinwoo and Deus as two separate individuals.
Therefore, I deliberately changed my manner of speaking to sothing distinct, and I didn't plan on bringing up my own story if it wasn't necessary.
"I'm not Deus; I'm soone else, right?"
"…R-right."
Aria frowned slightly, perhaps thinking that she was being swayed by sothing, but eventually agreed with .
"So, just take it easy. After all, I'm just sobody that you don't know."
"…"
Confused, Aria looked at suspiciously, but I slowly extended my arm and pointed to the sports field below.
The freshn were training there in preparation for an upcoming practical session.
Eleanor stood out among them and compared to other students, the main supporting characters from the original ga like Happy, Florensia, Leorus, and Jin were also noticeable.
"Ugh."
Aria furrowed her brows slightly upon seeing them, as if she was experiencing a headache.
However, I asked her as gently as possible.
"Those kids, they were your friends, right?"
"…No. They're all imposters."
Due to Capgras syndro, Aria still thought that even the students were imposters.
However, on the contrary, I nodded in agreent at her words because Aria was indeed speaking the truth.
"That’s right, they're not the friends you know. The friends you had adventures with, developed a friendship, traveled with, ate with, shared happiness and unhappiness with—the ones from the mories you hold are now gone."
"…"
Aria slowly turned her head. She fixed her gaze on and stared dumbfoundedly.
"However, they're not imposters."
"N-not... imposters??"
"Yeah, because as you know, we've started over again."
I didn’t know why she developed Capgras syndro. It may have been due to her inability to overco the discrepancy from the previous round, or perhaps it was a side effect of her regression, or maybe she simply succumbed ntally due to the pressure.
Regardless, I was unable to ascertain the correct cause.
However, she was always drawn towards the correct answer, and perhaps, at least for now, I thought that the disorder gripping her might also be a step towards the right answer.
"You can no longer et those people you once knew."
"Ah."
"You know that too, right? You know it well enough, that’s why you feel like everything here is fake."
"Aaah."
Aria turned her gaze once more, watching her old friends enjoying their youth together in the distance, laughing.
"Why am I... not there?"
She dropped her words abruptly.
It was difficult for to attribute her overly aggressive behavior solely due to her obsession with , as she wouldn't need to be so prickly with other students in that case.
It was more like Aria disliked the fact that despite her sacrifice, her friends didn't rember her.
Even after she abandoned the world to save them, they had unintentionally forgotten the tragedies they had endured together.
Her strong dislike of that outco led her to reject them.
I continued speaking as I watched Aria sob quietly, her back hunched pitifully.
"And even Deus, whom you loved, is no longer in this world."
"…!"
Aria flinched and her shoulders trembled. Her hands quivered as she forcibly leaned against the rooftop railing.
It looked like she would collapse if she didn’t do that.
"You saw it yourself, didn’t you? The scene of Deus dying."
"Ah..."
What should I do?
I pondered deeply.
What should I do to revert this twisted Aria created by Deus from the first– no I an, Kim Shinwoo from the first round?
I pondered, reconsidered, and adjusted my thoughts several tis.
Was there a less painful alternative? Was there a way I could avoid her getting hurt, even if it was just a little bit?
However, there was no such way.
That was how intense it was—the obsession and dependency on the first round Kim Shinwoo was deeply rooted within Aria—and the thorns that had also sprouted firmly in place.
To extract them, the roots had to be killed first.
I had to kill the first round Kim Shinwoo with my own hands.
"The Deus you loved is long gone. He's already dead, and Deus from this world is a completely different person."
"Ah."
Aria couldn't respond.
It was evident that she had also harbored similar thoughts unconsciously because the from the first round and the present were too different.
"Th-that's..."
"Aria, you have to accept it."
"…."
Aria's body trembled.
Her falling tears dampened her shoes.
This was sothing that could only be said now, as she currently saw as soone else.
Perhaps, if she had still thought of as Deus, she would have just brushed off this kind of talk.
However, her heart and mind were currently screaming— that this Deus was fake. That he was another person.
Therefore, Aria had no choice but to accept it because even I myself said that I wasn’t the Deus she knew.
"Why..."
It was more like a complaint.
So, I didn't bother responding. After all, she wasn't expecting one either.
"Why, why, why in the world! I did my best... my family, Professor, my friends... I just wanted to save them all!"
"…."
"Why are you all doing this to ?! Why did everyone leave ?! Even though we all had those mories, why did everyone forget eeee!"
Covering her face with both hands, Aria fell to her knees as her strength departed.
Yet her tears still flowed rcilessly, slipping through her fingers.
“Why do you show up in front of as soone else now?! No one even rembers ! We... we said goodbye! But why are you all still here?! You all left alone! Laughing and talking! Having fun all by yourselves!”
"…."
"I'm still… still in so much pain! I still haven't forgotten you all! I… I… I'm still…!"
Aria's forehead touched the ground, the tears streaming down showing no signs of stopping.
"I just want to see you all!"
It was unclear how much ti had passed. Waiting for the girl to pour out all the tears she had been holding back, I just stared at the sky as the sun set below the horizon.
No matter how much ti she had, I knew that it still wouldn't be enough to release all the resentnt she held.
"Will it… be better…"
Her body seemingly drained of strength, Aria crouched and spoke with a hoarse voice.
She sought an answer from .
"...If I forget everything? That way, will I finally be free?"
"…."
"Will I finally be free if I forget my lingering feelings for Professor, my mories with my friends, and everything I've done?"
Only after hearing it all did I realize that it wasn't a question; it was a wish.
What would I do if I won the lottery?
Wouldn't it be great to co first in this midterm exam?
What if my parents were actually conglorates?
These were just wishes and delusions befitting soone of her age.
She wanted to forget.
That was what Aria was hoping for.
However…
"That's not freedom."
There was no way it would work like that.
She couldn’t just leave it like that.
I couldn’t make her forget everything I had done to her.
"If you try to escape, it will just keep repeating itself. Eventually, you'll end up in the sa situation you are now in once again."
Slowly.
Aria raised her head very slowly.
She grabbed hold of the rooftop railing with her trembling hands once more and stood up, glaring at with fierce animosity.
"So what?! Why is that so bad? No one, no one rembers anything anyway! No one knows the difference anyway! And no one rembers !"
With her fists clenched, her voice cracking, and her face streaked with tears, the pitiful girl was convinced that her past held no value.
"Then why not as well? I, too, can just forget everything I've done, can’t I? It would be fine if I just pretend that this worthless life of mine never happened, right?"
"I rember you."
However, what I rembered was just a story that took place on this continent.
"…What did you say?!"
"I, too, found salvation by watching over you as you lived your life."
It was just from a slightly distant place, beyond this world, beyond dinsions.
"I think I now have a slight understanding as to why I ca to this world."
The boy who found salvation while watching the girl who persevered in her life even in the midst of tragedy.
"That is to repay what I received from you."
The ti had co for him to repay the debt, to repay the salvation he had received from the /genesisforsaken
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