The gray sky grew increasingly darker, deepening into pitch black.
On the sea surface reflecting the heavens, countless Mors gathered unabashedly. Two small Mors rged into one dium-sized Mors, which continued rging until it beca a large Mors as tall as a building—rely looking at it sent chills down one's spine.
Unnoticed, the sky seed to be stained with ink.
"What—what is that?!" soone scread in terror.
Others fled in panic.
The brief peace they had just obtained was like an illusory bubble, shattered by a fierce, heavy blow!
On the distant eastern coast.
A hazy silhouette stood between heaven and earth.
Endless gray mist drifted around it, obscuring its form.
Only vaguely could one see that it was a withered figure, like a decaying corpse, rooted to the ground like dead wood. From various parts of its upper body, countless branches sprouted, forming a canopy.
It resembled a giant tree long dead.
Or like a massive hand raised toward the sky.
No one could clearly say what it truly was.
The only thing known was that it was the ultimate symbol of misfortune, the ultimate cursed hand, seemingly capable of dragging the entire world into an unfathomable abyss!
"Thud!"
Figures collapsed to the ground one after another, like dumplings dropping into a pot, completely unconscious.
Without exception, these figures were all fairies.
Without exception, they had all laid eyes upon that enormous cursed hand.
It was as if the overflowing curse had spread its contamination through the most basic dium—rely "seeing" it!
"Is that the trump card of the Great Cataclysm?"
A dream clone stood on the roof of a civilian house, staring in shock at the colossal cursed hand.
"It's just too huge?!"
Eiji widened his eyes.
The top of the cursed hand pierced into the gray rain clouds, while howling winds and thunder roared like accomplices to a tyrant. Its massive form stood like a giant reaching for the heavens, striking fear into all who beheld it.
"It must be at least two thousand ters tall! As an enemy, its scale is just too imnse!"
How could one possibly fight such an enemy?
This question lingered in his mind, and Eiji felt his mouth go dry.
With his usually invincible and proud swordsmanship, he would be utterly powerless against that towering cursed hand!
Could he handle such an enemy with his current strength?
"Gareth!"
Suddenly, soone's exclamation rang in his ears.
Eiji imdiately dispatched the nearest dream clone to investigate.
"What happened?"
Eiji arrived at Artoria's side.
Only to find that, beside the golden-haired girl, the Earth Clan fairies and Gareth lay scattered on the ground.
There were no visible injuries on their bodies, but their eyes were tightly shut, brows furrowed, as if trapped in nightmares.
Aside from Artoria, not a single person around was awake!
"Their minds were struck by the curse, so they've fallen unconscious."
Artoria sat cross-legged on the ground.
Her exhausted gaze shifted from the unconscious Gareth to the cursed hand standing tall on the eastern coast.
"That thing... there's no way to fight it... I knew it, I knew it would end up like this..."
"What are you talking about?"
Eiji frowned, looking at her with confusion.
"Instead of sighing here, we should bring Gareth back to the manor—"
"It's all my fault!"
The girl roughly interrupted Eiji's words.
"Because I ca, the Great Calamity began! Because I ca, those fairies died!"
"The day after we arrived, the Calamity broke out—do you really think that's a coincidence?!"
"It's not that we arrived before the Calamity—it's because I ca that the Calamity broke out! The Great Calamity was waiting for , not us waiting for it!"
"I knew when I woke up this morning that the Calamity would happen today. I knew it, I've always known all of this, and yet..."
The girl hung her head.
Her expression couldn't even be described as dejected—it was complete self-abandonnt. Tears mixed with snot stread down her face.
Eiji understood.
From the very beginning, everyone had mistaken the cause and effect.
They thought the Great Calamity of Norwich would break out within ten days, so they rushed to arrive within that ti. When it broke out the day after their arrival, they thought they had just happened to arrive early.
But that wasn't the case.
It wasn't that they happened to arrive early—the Great Calamity was precisely waiting for this mont!
Waiting for the day the Child of Prophecy entered Norwich!
The mont Artoria entered Norwich, the Great Calamity, as if receiving a signal, slowly yet spectacularly erged like a volcanic eruption.
If I hadn't co, those people wouldn't have died.
If I hadn't co, perhaps the Calamity wouldn't have happened.
It's all my fault.
Surrounded by such thoughts, Artoria finally completely lost her fighting spirit.
Until now, she had been forcing herself forward through sheer passion. Because everyone looked down on her, she stubbornly wanted to prove herself. But in reality, once her initial enthusiasm faded, she realized she wasn't cut out for this, that she couldn't possibly accomplish such incredible things!
At her core, she was just an ordinary girl.
Just an ordinary girl who lived in a small village, exploited as a slave by the villagers, having hardly experienced good days her entire life, yet burdened with an incomparable weight.
Her magical power was only at the level of a lower-class fairy, not even reaching the average—she was inferior even to the owner of Mike's Bar!
If not for so inexplicable stubbornness in her heart, she would have given up long ago.
In fact, before coming here, she had considered retreating countless tis.
But she thought, with everyone by her side, maybe she could do it, so she forced herself to be encouraged and ca.
But ultimately, ideals couldn't overco reality.
That enormous cursed hand was like a heavy blow, instantly shattering the faint hope that had risen in her heart!
"In that case, are you going to run away here?"
Eiji remained silent for a long ti.
He took off his sunglasses, lowered his head, and his dark pupils calmly gazed at her.
In that instant.
The first thought that arose in Artoria's mind wasn't how beautiful this man's eyes were, but that "there wasn't the slightest hint of retreat" in his eyes.
Could this person... even when facing an enemy that's fundantally unbeatable... still charge forward against the odds?
"Get one fact straight! Did your arrival trigger the Great Calamity? If you never ca in your entire life, would the Great Calamity definitely not have occurred? No, right? Whether you co or not, the Great Calamity is right there!"
"In your eyes, your arrival caused everyone's sacrifices, but in my eyes, your arrival only resulted in this few people sacrificing!"
Eiji was very calm; he didn't even feel a shred of sympathy or pity in his heart.
"Though most of the credit lies with , of course."
"However, I want to teach you one thing!"
Eiji abandoned Artoria.
Step by step, he walked toward the direction of the Great Calamity.
"The one thing I, Eiji, hate most in this life is—giving up before even trying! Before thinking about whether it can be done, first do everything you possibly can!"
"At least when you look back on this in the future, don't regret your actions now!"
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