Chapter 287 ·Turning point (50)

Turning 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󠄀󠄁󠄁󠄀󠄁󠄀󠄁󠄁󠄀󠄀󠄁󠄁󠄁󠄁󠄀󠄁󠄀󠄁󠄁󠄀󠄀󠄀󠄀󠄁󠄀󠄁󠄀󠄁󠄀󠄀󠄀󠄁󠄀󠄀󠄀󠄁󠄀󠄁󠄁󠄁󠄀󠄁󠄀󠄁󠄀󠄁󠄀󠄁󠄀󠄁󠄀󠄁󠄁󠄁󠄀󠄁󠄀󠄀󠄁󠄀󠄀󠄁󠄀󠄁󠄀󠄀󠄀󠄁󠄁󠄁󠄁󠄁󠄀󠄁󠄀󠄀󠄁󠄁󠄀󠄁󠄀󠄁󠄀󠄁󠄁󠄀󠄁󠄁󠄀󠄀󠄁󠄀󠄁󠄀󠄀󠄁󠄀󠄀󠄁󠄀󠄁󠄁󠄁󠄁󠄁󠄀󠄀󠄁󠄁󠄁󠄁󠄁󠄀󠄁󠄀󠄁󠄁󠄀󠄀󠄁󠄁󠄀󠄀󠄁󠄁󠄁󠄀󠄁󠄀󠄀󠄁󠄀󠄁󠄁󠄁󠄁󠄀󠄁󠄀󠄁󠄁󠄁󠄁󠄁󠄀󠄁󠄀󠄀󠄁󠄀󠄁󠄁󠄁󠄀󠄀󠄁󠄁󠄁󠄁󠄁󠄀󠄀󠄀󠄁󠄀󠄀󠄀󠄁󠄀󠄀󠄀󠄁󠄁󠄀󠄁󠄁󠄀󠄁󠄀󠄁󠄁󠄀󠄁󠄁󠄀󠄁󠄁󠄀󠄁󠄁󠄁󠄁󠄀󠄀󠄁󠄀󠄀󠄁󠄁󠄁󠄀󠄁󠄁󠄁󠄁󠄀󠄀󠄁󠄀󠄁󠄀󠄁󠄀󠄁󠄀󠄁󠄀󠄁󠄁󠄁󠄀󠄁󠄀󠄁󠄀󠄀󠄀󠄁󠄀󠄁󠄁󠄁󠄁󠄀󠄀󠄁󠄀󠄀󠄁󠄁󠄀󠄀󠄁󠄁󠄀󠄁󠄀󠄁󠄀󠄀󠄁󠄀󠄁󠄀󠄀󠄁󠄀󠄁󠄀󠄀󠄁󠄀󠄁󠄁󠄀󠄁󠄀󠄁󠄀󠄁󠄀󠄁󠄀󠄀󠄁󠄁󠄀󠄁󠄁󠄁󠄀󠄁󠄀󠄁󠄀󠄀󠄁󠄁󠄀󠄀󠄁󠄀󠄁󠄀󠄀󠄁󠄀󠄀󠄁󠄀󠄁󠄁󠄀󠄁󠄀󠄁󠄁󠄀󠄀󠄁󠄁󠄁󠄀󠄁󠄁󠄁󠄁󠄀󠄀󠄁󠄀󠄁󠄁󠄀󠄁󠄀󠄁󠄁󠄀󠄀󠄀󠄁󠄀󠄁󠄁󠄁󠄀󠄁󠄀󠄀󠄁󠄁󠄀󠄁󠄀󠄁󠄀󠄁󠄀󠄀󠄀󠄁󠄀󠄁󠄁󠄀󠄀󠄁󠄀󠄁󠄀󠄀󠄁󠄀󠄁󠄁󠄀󠄁󠄀󠄁󠄁󠄀󠄀󠄀󠄀󠄁󠄀󠄀󠄁󠄀󠄁󠄁󠄀󠄁󠄀󠄁󠄁󠄀󠄁󠄁󠄀󠄁󠄀󠄀󠄀󠄀󠄁󠄁󠄀󠄁󠄀󠄁󠄀󠄀󠄁󠄁󠄀󠄁󠄀󠄁󠄀󠄁󠄀󠄁󠄁󠄁󠄀󠄁󠄁󠄀󠄁󠄁󠄀󠄁󠄁󠄀󠄀󠄁󠄁󠄀󠄁󠄁󠄀󠄁󠄁󠄀󠄀󠄁󠄀󠄁󠄀󠄁󠄁󠄁󠄀󠄁󠄁󠄁󠄀󠄁󠄀󠄀󠄁󠄁󠄀󠄁󠄁󠄀󠄀󠄁󠄁󠄀󠄁󠄁󠄀󠄁󠄁󠄀󠄀󠄁󠄀󠄁󠄀󠄁󠄀󠄁󠄀󠄁󠄁󠄁󠄀󠄁󠄁󠄁󠄀󠄀󠄁󠄁󠄀󠄀󠄁󠄀󠄁󠄁󠄀󠄁󠄀󠄁󠄀󠄀󠄁󠄀󠄁󠄁󠄀󠄀󠄁󠄀󠄀󠄁󠄀󠄁󠄀󠄁󠄀󠄁󠄀󠄁󠄀󠄁󠄁󠄀󠄀󠄁󠄁󠄁󠄀󠄁󠄀󠄁󠄁󠄀󠄀󠄀󠄁󠄁󠄀󠄀󠄁󠄀󠄀󠄁󠄀󠄁󠄀󠄁󠄀󠄁󠄁󠄀󠄁󠄁󠄀󠄀󠄁󠄀󠄁󠄁󠄁󠄁󠄀󠄁󠄁󠄀󠄀󠄀󠄁󠄁󠄀󠄀󠄁󠄀󠄁󠄀󠄁󠄁󠄀󠄁󠄀󠄁󠄁󠄁󠄀󠄁󠄁󠄀󠄀󠄁󠄁󠄁󠄁󠄁󠄀󠄁󠄀󠄀󠄁󠄀󠄁󠄁󠄀󠄀󠄁󠄀󠄁󠄀󠄁󠄁󠄀󠄁󠄀󠄁󠄀󠄁󠄀󠄁󠄁󠄀󠄀󠄁󠄁󠄁󠄁󠄁󠄀󠄁󠄀󠄀󠄁󠄀󠄁󠄁󠄀󠄁󠄁󠄁󠄀󠄁󠄁󠄁󠄀󠄁󠄁󠄁󠄀󠄁󠄀󠄁󠄀󠄀󠄀󠄀󠄁󠄁󠄁󠄁󠄀󠄁󠄁󠄀󠄀󠄁󠄀󠄁󠄀󠄀󠄁󠄀󠄁󠄀󠄁󠄁󠄀󠄁󠄀󠄀󠄁󠄀󠄁󠄁󠄀󠄀󠄁󠄀󠄁󠄀󠄀󠄁󠄀󠄁󠄁󠄀󠄀󠄁󠄀󠄁󠄀󠄁󠄀󠄁󠄀󠄀󠄀󠄁󠄀󠄁󠄁󠄁󠄀󠄀󠄁󠄁󠄀󠄀󠄁󠄀󠄀󠄁󠄁󠄁󠄀󠄁󠄁󠄀󠄀󠄁󠄀󠄁󠄀󠄁󠄁󠄁󠄀󠄀󠄀󠄁󠄀󠄁󠄁󠄀󠄁󠄀󠄁󠄁󠄀󠄀󠄁󠄀󠄀󠄁󠄁󠄁󠄀󠄁󠄁󠄀󠄀󠄀󠄀󠄁󠄀󠄁󠄀󠄁󠄀󠄀󠄀󠄁󠄀󠄁󠄁󠄀󠄀󠄁󠄀󠄁󠄀󠄀󠄀󠄁󠄀󠄀󠄀󠄁󠄀󠄁󠄀󠄀󠄁󠄀󠄁󠄁󠄀󠄁󠄁󠄁󠄀󠄀󠄀󠄁󠄀󠄁󠄁󠄁󠄀󠄁󠄀󠄁󠄁󠄀󠄀󠄁󠄁󠄁󠄀󠄁󠄀󠄁󠄁󠄀󠄀󠄀󠄁󠄁󠄀󠄀󠄀󠄀󠄁󠄀󠄁󠄁󠄀󠄁󠄁󠄀󠄁󠄀󠄁󠄁󠄀󠄀󠄁󠄀󠄁󠄁󠄀󠄁󠄀󠄁󠄁󠄀󠄀󠄀󠄁󠄁󠄀󠄀󠄀󠄀󠄁󠄀󠄁󠄁󠄀󠄀󠄁󠄁󠄀󠄀󠄀󠄁󠄁󠄀󠄀󠄁󠄁󠄁󠄁󠄁󠄀󠄁󠄁󠄀󠄀󠄁󠄀󠄁󠄀󠄀󠄀󠄀󠄁󠄀󠄁󠄁󠄀󠄀󠄁󠄀󠄀󠄁󠄁󠄁󠄀󠄀󠄁󠄀󠄁󠄁󠄁󠄁󠄀󠄁󠄁󠄀󠄀󠄁󠄀󠄁󠄀󠄀󠄁󠄀󠄀󠄁󠄀󠄁󠄀󠄁󠄀󠄁󠄀󠄀󠄁󠄁󠄀󠄀󠄁󠄀󠄁󠄀󠄀󠄁󠄀󠄁󠄀󠄀󠄁󠄁󠄀󠄁󠄀󠄀󠄁󠄀󠄁󠄀󠄁󠄁󠄀󠄁󠄁󠄀󠄁󠄀󠄁󠄁󠄀󠄀󠄁󠄀󠄀󠄁󠄁󠄁󠄀󠄁󠄁󠄀󠄀󠄁󠄀󠄁󠄀󠄁󠄁󠄁󠄀󠄁󠄁󠄁󠄀󠄁󠄁󠄁󠄁󠄁󠄀󠄁󠄁󠄀󠄀󠄁󠄀󠄁󠄁󠄁󠄀󠄁󠄀󠄀󠄁󠄀󠄁󠄁󠄀󠄁󠄀󠄁󠄀󠄁󠄁󠄁󠄀󠄁󠄁󠄀󠄀󠄁󠄀󠄁󠄀󠄀󠄀󠄁󠄀󠄀󠄀󠄁󠄀󠄁󠄁󠄀󠄀󠄁󠄀󠄁󠄀󠄁󠄀󠄁󠄀󠄁󠄁󠄁󠄀󠄀󠄁󠄁󠄁󠄀󠄀󠄁󠄁󠄀󠄀󠄁󠄁󠄀󠄁󠄁󠄀󠄁󠄁󠄀󠄁󠄁󠄀󠄁󠄀󠄀󠄁󠄀󠄁󠄁󠄀󠄁󠄀󠄀󠄀󠄁󠄀󠄀󠄀󠄁󠄀󠄀󠄁󠄀󠄁󠄁󠄀󠄁󠄀󠄀󠄁󠄁󠄀󠄁󠄁󠄁󠄀󠄁󠄁󠄁󠄀󠄀󠄀󠄁󠄀󠄁󠄁󠄁󠄀󠄀󠄁󠄁󠄀󠄀󠄁󠄀󠄀󠄀󠄁󠄁󠄀󠄁󠄁󠄀󠄁󠄁󠄀󠄁󠄀󠄀󠄁󠄀󠄁󠄀󠄁󠄁󠄀󠄀󠄁󠄀󠄀󠄀󠄀󠄁󠄀󠄀󠄁󠄀󠄁󠄁󠄀󠄁󠄀󠄁󠄁󠄀󠄁󠄁󠄀󠄁󠄀󠄀󠄁󠄀󠄀󠄀󠄁󠄁󠄁󠄀󠄀󠄁󠄁󠄁󠄁󠄁󠄁󠄀󠄀󠄀󠄀󠄁󠄀󠄂point (50)

"... That's how it happened."

I finished telling the story over the course of several minutes. I hadn't spoken for that long, but even so, my throat felt dry and I coughed several times.

Licorice saw this and ordered the Beta Series to bring me a nutrition pack. Carrot fetched it from where he had prepared it in advance, so it was a pleasantly lukewarm temperature, just right for drinking.

As I drank, Licorice looked up at the ceiling, deeply engaged in understanding the situation.

"Hm... The Invasion Tree..."

"Carrot knows more about what's going on than I do right now. Actually, Orca probably knows the most, since Orca was the one who knew the name of that monster."

I should have gotten more information from Orca before things turned out this way. As I finished quenching my thirst and muttered about it, Licorice lowered her gaze from the ceiling and shifted her attention to me.

"Does it hurt a lot?"

"...?"

I wondered what she was suddenly talking about. If I'd replied with something like 'Don't you know just by looking?' it would've sounded pretty anti-social, so I just kept my mouth shut and watched her. Licorice cleared her throat and continued.

"Cystus used all sorts of abilities, didn't he? In the end, you're the one still here, so there's no need to talk about who won or lost, but he must have been hard to handle."

My memory of the event was a blur—probably because I'd been so worked up at the time—so I hadn't really gone into detail. But Licorice seemed to want a more precise account.

"Well... obviously, it wasn't easy. I ended up like this because I used two stimulants when I was only supposed to use one. Honestly, when he shot that energy blast from his mouth at the end, I thought I was going to die."

Since I had no choice, I searched my memory and gave her more details: Cystus's words, the abilities he used, and how I finally managed to win.

If not for the effect of the stimulant limiting my sense of fear, I probably wouldn't have even considered facing him head-on.

In that moment, what Licorice had said about needing to dream impossible dreams crossed my mind. 'Impossible'—that word irritated me, and without realizing it, my anger helped me draw out more strength than usual. That's how it was, now that I thought back on it.

"You were the one who said it. That there are times you have to dream the impossible. I fought with the thought that if I could even have those dreams, there was no enemy I couldn't beat. And I did win—though I ended up a wreck."

Strictly speaking, it was hard to say I'd truly won. Cystus, who I thought was the final obstacle, went berserk even in death, trying to destroy everything around him, true to his name. And Orca had called that thing which blocked Albatross's flight the Invasion Tree.

So, I had defeated Cystus, but I couldn't say I'd truly won. That's just how it was. I still had to struggle and find a way out, somehow. And I still had to solve the problem chaining down Licorice.

"So now tell me. Why didn't you tell me?"

"... About what?"

"You know exactly what I mean. Fine, I'll let the warp rejection reaction slide—a hundred, a thousand times—since there was no way for you to know about it. But you could've at least told me you were feeling resistance about leaving Titan."

I didn't think it was possible that Licorice didn't know or hadn't sensed it. She always thought ahead of me and moved in advance.

She couldn't have been completely clueless. That meant she'd known but kept it hidden. I was asking her for that reason.

"......."

Licorice stubbornly pressed her lips shut. I met her eyes. Her crimson pupils, dimmed of their light, soon shifted downward, avoiding my gaze.

At that sight, the words I'd held inside rose all the way to my throat.

Don't tell me you were trying to bear all this alone; didn't you say you'd go to Earth with me? Didn't you say you should never abandon the captain, even if you abandon the ship? If you'd told me just a little earlier, maybe we could've found a solution by now. And so on.

There were so many things I wanted to say, but I bit my tongue. It felt like if I said them, they would become reality—that she'd actually admit as much—so I held it back, scared.

I wanted a different answer from Licorice. But silence followed, making my hope seem meaningless. Still, I waited.

Things had come this far. There was nothing left to hide, and nothing that should be hidden. When I made it clear that I needed to hear the reason, Licorice let out a deep sigh.

Finally, she spoke.

"I was scared."

Her tone was resigned—that wasn't what I'd wanted to hear. My gaze wavered.

"As you know—no, you of all people know best. You saw what I became when I was tormented by those nightmares."

"......."

"In that nightmare, I could glimpse the existence known as Lobelia. I saw what a monster she is, the countless things she's done over an unimaginable span, just how much, and how far she can go. It felt like being thrown naked into a cold universe decorated with endless stars. Not even seeing each thing, just everything passing by, one after another..."

Licorice continued, saying she'd witnessed countless deaths in those nightmares.

"I saw them even when I closed my eyes, heard them with my ears shut, smelled them even if I pinched my nose. The very idea of death."

"......."

"But the sense of déjà vu didn't come before I had the nightmares. I'd been dreaming them since before I met you, ever since I woke up in that unfamiliar place. I just forgot, because Lobelia's coercion was erasing them. That's why I couldn't say anything. If I told you, I was afraid the nightmare would cross the boundary and become reality. Actually, it's already become real, in a way. It wasn't just Titan that's in chaos—the disaster has spread throughout the entire universe."

Licorice went on.

"I never once looked outside while doing broker work on Titan. Sure, sometimes work forced me to think about what was out there, but I was always too busy to care for long, and I'd quickly lose interest. But that turned out to be a kind of suggestion telling me not to leave Titan. I thought it was just my personality."

Licorice tried to playfully ask if I hadn't already noticed how strange her personality was. But when she saw my grim expression, her face fell.

"... You're the one who said that if I went to Earth, you'd wrap up your work here and set up a new office there. You said you expected me to help with your work on Earth, too."

"I did. At the time. Back then, I thought my reluctance to leave was just anxiety about the unfamiliar. I didn't think it was a big deal. But it wouldn't go away. By the time I realized something was off, it was too late. Now, I know it was a trick orchestrated by Lobelia. That's all."

"That's all—!"

My voice rose without me meaning to, but I cut myself off in the middle when I saw Licorice flinch. The frustration built up. I'd started this conversation to resolve it, but all it had done was pile on more.

Licorice had hidden it on purpose. Whether it was the truth, other information, or something else, I could tell. When Licorice feigned indifference, avoiding my gaze, that was her tell—she always did that when she was hiding something.

And I also knew interrogation wouldn't get me anywhere. Licorice was never the type to respond to that.

"... That can't be everything, Licorice. It shouldn't be everything."

Nightmares born from the bypass connecting her to Lobelia. The resulting terror must have been real. No, it was real. Licorice had only barely managed to return to her normal self thanks to Sprout's help.

But Licorice wasn't the type to give up everything because of fear. She was the type to fight back. Even when she encountered the source of her fear—Lobelia, in the Archive—while her condition was worsening, her eyes hadn't died. If her resolve was going to break, it would have done so then, not now.

That Licorice was reacting this way meant she must have realized something else, something new, only recently. I was convinced. Unless we dug into this, we wouldn't be able to move forward.

"Licorice, is what you said before about wanting to go to Earth with me still true? Is that how you really feel, even now?"

"... That... yes, I still feel the same."

It took her a long time to answer, but I realized her feelings hadn't changed. But nothing was resolved. Licorice's eyes still held no light.

"If you still want to go to Earth with me, then you wouldn't look like this. No, you couldn't. You'd be doing everything possible to find a solution. Even if you've only just learned about the warp rejection reaction, you could start looking for a way to suppress or remove it now. So why are you acting like you've already given up? Acting like the answer's already set?"

"... You have to distinguish between what you want to do and what you have to do."

"Doing nothing isn't what you 'have' to do, is it? What's really stopping you? What is it?"

"Lee Hyun-woo, I..."

It wasn't enough that my whole body was battered; even the slightest touch felt like I'd fall apart. Just sitting on the bed had been taxing, but now, as I braced myself, a piercing pain ran through me, making me grimace reflexively. If I hadn't taken painkillers, I'd be drenched in cold sweat.

I moved closer to Licorice and took her lost, wandering hand in mine. It was so cold, it was hard to believe she was alive. I didn't care—I just gripped her hand tighter.

Licorice's eyes trembled. She let go of her crossed leg and bit her lip almost at the same time.

"Tell me. What is it that I have to do?"

"......."

"Licorice, I don't want to have regrets. So please—tell me."

Not giving up from fear, not surrendering before even starting, not letting repeated failures or mistakes make you quit—that was how you avoided regret.

If you give up before even trying, you're left with lingering regret. If you quit because you failed, then failure is all that remains. You'll keep thinking, 'I should have, why didn't I,' until the regret eats you alive.

Licorice, unable to resist my stubbornness, finally sighed and opened her mouth.

"... You must've heard from Carrot. About what I am now—what I really am."

"He said you're not quite a normal human, structurally speaking."

"It feels strange, hearing that directly. But it's true. I have all the functions, but my structure is very different."

"It's nothing new, is it? I suspected as much ever since you said you were Lobelia's clone."

"But you didn't know what was inside me, did you?"

Licorice tapped her own head as she spoke.

"There's a device inside my head, and it doesn't just manage the basic functions of the brain. It's my main control core—similar to the core in your heart, but mine is different in that it's forcibly absorbing Lobelia's knowledge. Radically different."

Licorice explained that from the moment she saw her birthplace in the Archive, knowledge started being forcibly injected into her head. She'd realized this when she manipulated the Archive's main system, though apparently, the amount was far greater than I'd imagined.

"I'm being force-fed knowledge I shouldn't have. Enormous heat builds up during the process, and I passed out because I couldn't handle it. When I came to, I realized something."

"... What was it?"

"That even now, the flood of knowledge pouring in—so overwhelming even 'enormous' is an understatement—was destroying me. That the knowledge itself, so forbidden, was causing me to lose myself."

"No way..."

"Yes. If this keeps up, I'll become no different from Lobelia. No, I'll become Lobelia herself. That part is inevitable. That's how I could use those powers before. You saw it—the dark red code that erupted unconsciously."

"......."

"You still have the restraint device button I gave you, right? Don't let go of it. You never know when I'll become Lobelia and attack you. I'm a lot stronger now, you know?"

Licorice said this with a casual smile, as if convinced it would lighten the mood.

"My desire to go to Earth with you is real. To be honest, the suggestion not to leave Titan was partly broken when they started injecting me with knowledge. The warp rejection reaction can be neutralized if I tap into that power. But I shouldn't."

If Licorice gave up control, Lobelia's consciousness would take over her body. That's why she insisted she had to distinguish between what she wanted to do and what she had to do.

That was when I truly understood what Licorice meant when she said she was afraid. She was terrified of becoming Lobelia.

"I have to stay here. Even if I escape from Titan, I can't go to Earth. Earth is probably the only place that's managed to stop the disaster. If I ruined that too, because of me... If you finally made it to Earth, I don't want you to have to go through all this again."

"... So you're going to stay here and do nothing?"

"I won't do 'nothing'. I'll do everything I can to help you escape."

"And after that, you'll stay here alone?"

"......."

Licorice just shrugged silently. I took a deep breath, straining to keep my emotions in check. Because if I spoke now, I'd end up shouting: "What kind of nonsense is that?"

"Isn't there a way to erase that knowledge? In the end, that's the real issue—so if we wipe it, wouldn't that solve everything?"

"It's possible. But it's meaningless. Or, more exactly, it's not the result you'd hope for. The only thing I can do is reset the device inside my head."

Licorice didn't know of a way to reset the device that would preserve just her consciousness. She hinted that, in the end, her consciousness would inevitably be erased.

"... Don't say that. The answer is simple, isn't it? Deal with Lobelia. That would solve most of the problems, right?"

"... What?"

"It's Lobelia who's injecting that knowledge. If we kill her, wouldn't it stop the transfer? It's not like you've turned into Lobelia already; if we cut it off now, you'd still be you."

"Are you serious? If you're just trying to make me feel better, that's fine. I can always tell what's true and what's not, remember? Don't—wait... it's not a lie."

Licorice's face twisted as she started to object, but then she just stared at me in a daze. I knew she could tell truth from lies, whether through intuition or some other ability. She'd always been able to tell, and she'd never been wrong.

I didn't avoid her gaze. There was no reason to. I was being completely sincere.

"We just have to take care of Lobelia—and that monster that resealed Titan. All of them."

"This is ridiculous. You... you actually believe that..."

"I wouldn't joke about this."

"Why? Why would you go so far...?"

"Because Licorice isn't Lobelia. You once said we define ourselves through our own thoughts. You're not Lobelia. You're Licorice—the one I have to save."

"... Don't be stubborn. I appreciate it, I really do—"

"So we should just leave you here and escape without you?!"

I couldn't hold back and yelled. Licorice flinched, and the hand that was already pale from my grip turned even whiter. Licorice recoiled.

"You're the one being ridiculous and stubborn here! If any of us were going to abandon someone, we'd have done it already! But we didn't—that's why we're all still here!"

If anyone had truly tried to abandon someone, we—or rather, some of us—could've gotten out when the blockade on Titan lifted. Those on Albatross and Griffin could've escaped this hell the moment Griffin was destroyed, just by giving up on those of us engaged in ground operations.

But we didn't. Even as Griffin was destroyed, those on Albatross fought desperately to save us still on the surface.

Why? Because it felt like the right thing to do.

"You're the one lying—not me! The Licorice I know wouldn't say things like this! She'd push ahead with her plan, not tell anyone, and only let it out after crossing a point of no return! But you didn't—you confessed before it reached that point!"

If she'd really gone through with it, we would've been forcibly kicked out, leaving Licorice behind on Titan. Sure, we would have reached Earth, but Licorice wouldn't have been there.

Biting my lip, I lowered my head and forced myself to swallow another rising shout. Then I looked up and spoke.

"Stop going in circles and hurting yourself. That's a bad habit. You said you're scared, didn't you? Then ask for help."

Licorice, as if I'd hit her in a sore spot, ground her teeth and screamed.

"... How can I? How can I ask that of anyone, knowing how dangerous it is? Knowing it's a death mission!!"

"What's so impossible about it? We just have to break everything in our way. So I'll ask again: if dealing with Lobelia is all it takes, can we save you? If it helps you in any way, I'll do it. We have to get past this challenge anyway."

Licorice, about to get angry, instead met my eyes and shut hers tightly. She bit her lip and then murmured weakly.

"Why... why do you mean it? Why would you go so far, for me...?"

I kept my mouth shut. Not for any special reason— I just felt it was the right thing to do.

'That's not true.'

There was a reason, actually. Because I wanted Licorice to wish for that, too. Because, when I'd been abandoned in the back alleys of the residential area without a clue, it was Licorice who'd reached out a hand to me.

Lobelia claimed that moment was her influence, but I saw it differently. Back then, Licorice's eyes weren't dead, like now. That was not the look of someone being controlled.

Even if it was Lobelia's suggestion that led me to the back alleys, everything after that had been driven by Licorice's will. That's what I believed. So this time, it was my turn to reach out to her.

Licorice was now desperately trying to see if my words were true, wanting them to be false for her own sake. Yet the façade she wore began to crack.

I waited in silence so Licorice could fully judge my sincerity. As the quiet stretched, the cracks spread, until at last the mask collapsed.

Licorice whispered, broken.

"You've gotten so reckless."

"Yeah. If I had to make an excuse, it's the situation itself that's made me like this. I wasn't always like this."

"It won't be enough. Nothing will be."

"Was it ever? We've always been lacking, in everything."

"... Do you think we can win?"

"I've never once thought we could, not really. But I kept fighting and, right now, the one standing here isn't a monster—it's me. It'll be the same this time. No, it will."

"... And if we fail?"

"I told you—I don't want to have regrets."

As the mask shattered, Licorice's true expression was revealed. A person so vulnerable, their gaze on the verge of breaking as it met mine.

"I promise. I'll make it so you, Licorice, can smash Lobelia with your own hands."

"... It hurts."

"Pardon?"

"I said it hurts..."

Looking where Licorice was staring, I realized too late what she meant. I'd been gripping her hand so tightly ever since grabbing it earlier that she was in pain.

I hurriedly apologized and released her hand, and the blood rushed back to her pale skin, turning it pink again. Licorice rubbed her hand, sniffling.

At some point, those sniffles turned to sobs. Now it was my own face that had gone pale.

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