[V11C34] A Father and a Stranger
Translated by Jodas 11: Envoy of the Abyss‘If only Satie and our daughter lived…’ The unremarkable gatekeeper Lutz Otto imagined a future where his wife and daughter survived more times than he could count.
Miriam would definitely nag him all the time about how he was raising her wrong. It would hurt to hear, because she would usually be right. Then, when she was done with that, she would probably follow it up with tales of the times Otto screwed up in his youth. Then Klaus would awkwardly chime in with something that was supposed to make him feel better but definitely did not. Lutz would get mad at him, and Satie would laugh at their antics.
What sort of things would his daughter like? Would she take an interest in singing like Satie? Would she like to try swordfighting like Lutz?
With parents like Satie and himself, she would definitely have a talent for magecraft. But if she didn’t want to become a mage, that would be fine by him.
Both Lutz and Satie lost their parents long ago, so neither had a hometown to return to. That was why neither had really considered leaving the Wedge Tower, but they didn’t mind moving to the big city so their daughter could study something other than magic… Miriam would absolutely throw a fit about it, though.
When the time came to it, he would have to count on Klaus’ support. It would be the favor of a lifetime. Otherwise, that woman would chase Satie down to the ends of the world.
…Why did his visions for the future always involve begging his old friends for help?
However, Satie died, Klaus and Miriam betrayed him, and his daughter was sacrificed to the Ancient Magical Artifact.
Miriam departed this world hating him with every bit of her soul, and Klaus lost his good arm, his life still hanging by a thread.
He was furious when he learned the truth. ‘They took my daughter from me, I’m the victim! They lied to me all this time; I thought they were my friends!’
At the same time, a different thought haunted him.
‘Maybe they would have told me the truth if I wasn’t such a quitter.’
(I know, it’s all just a delusion to make myself feel better.)
The whole time that Lutz had given up on trying his hardest, while he was living quietly as a humble gatekeeper, his daughter Fiene was putting her life on the line to defend the peace. Klaus was headmaster, but that didn’t stop him from going out on the frontlines and exterminating Monsters.
Lutz was the only one content with doing nothing, simply wasting away his life.
—He wanted the punishment he deserved.
When he joined this operation as a member of the Wedge Tower, he realized that Spiremaster Abel was going to aim for Fiene’s life. So instead, he decided to take matters into his own hands and rescue his daughter before Abel could lay a finger on her.
But the constantly shifting mana density on campus stopped him in his tracks.
That was when he saw one of the vines absorbing mana and the idea struck him.
Any human knew that wandering around areas of high mana density would lead to mana poisoning. But what if he pricked himself with one of the vine’s thorns and let it absorb his mana? Would he be able to make it all the way to the center without suffering the effects?
Knowing that it was a risky bet, he grabbed a rose vine as tightly as he could and ran in until he laid eyes on a certain girl.
A white dress, straight black hair, a lovely face that reminded him of Satie— ’Ah, no wonder Miriam worshipped her.’
Fiene probably knew nothing about her father. Someone had to tell her. He had to be the one to say it.
“I’m… Your father!!”
Otto’s desperate scream did not change Fiene’s expression at all.
Looking at her real father with a merciful smile, the daughter asked:
“What meaning is there in that fact?”
Her voice held neither anger, hatred, nor hostility.
Otto expected some part deep within Fiene to be longing for her father. Or else, if Fiene resented the father who abandoned her, he was prepared to accept her judgment.
But the reality was neither. The concept of a father meant nothing to Fiene. She understood what it meant to be a father in the biological sense, but she had no thoughts about her own father.
Seeing Otto stunned in silence, Fiene hummed “Ah…” like she had just remembered something.
“Don’t blame Möbius. He told me about you, when Miriam wasn’t looking. ‘Your father’s still alive. Lutz Otto, one of the Wedge Tower’s mages. Once I get rid of all the Monsters, I’ll make sure you get to see him.’ He said.”
He could easily imagine Möbius’ voice and face saying those words to Fiene.
The face of a man wrestling with the guilt of sacrificing his best friend’s daughter in order to protect that friend… Surely he must have left some kind of impression on Fiene. Would she be curious about the father she never knew, or would she hate him?
“And when I heard that, it made me think.”
A single tear dropped from Fiene’s eye.
Shedding a clear, pure tear from innocent eyes that knew no evil, the girl said:
“Ah, that man must need salvation as well.”
Suddenly, Otto felt an intensely unsettling feeling creep up inside him.
As if he had bit into a hot pepper thinking it was a sweet candy, the taste of something completely unlike his expectations sent a shock from his tongue to his brain.
Why, when told she may be able to meet her father, did this young girl’s mind drift to salvation?
“Möbius was always in so much pain. So when I learned why he was suffering so much, I knew I had to save him.”
In Fiene’s eyes, Otto was a stranger who happened to be related to her. No different from the common masses.
Not the father she always wanted to meet. Not the father she hated. Just a man who happened to be there.
At a loss for words, Otto stood frozen in place. Fiene’s eyes gently softened.
“You’re in pain too, I see. Don’t worry, I will save everyone.”
Her gaze was merciful yet detached, as she was not one of those she had to save. Unlike them, she did not wish for salvation.
The King of Monsters standing beside Fiene stared at Otto without saying a word.
(I’m scared. I’m scared, I’m scared, I’m scared! Why am I so… Why… I’ve never been so scared in my life… I can’t do anything, I’m going to die! I’m scared, I’m scared, I’m scared!)
Struck by the fear, he lost all strength in his hands. The rose vine he held fell to the ground and high-density mana ate away at Otto.
Otto fell to his knees, unable to even breathe, when Fiene held out both hands to him.
“It’s okay, the Font of the Abyss accepts all. Here you will find true peace and serenity.”
With the fear paralyzing his mind, he found Fiene’s words strangely persuasive. In the same way that water seeps into dry sand, her mercy seeped into his mind.
—If I jump into that Abyss, I will be free from the fear. There is peace in there.
When Otto’s legs took the first step towards the Font of the Abyss…
“Is that really meant for humans?”
He heard a voice from up above.
It took all of Otto’s strength to crane his stiff neck and get a look at the sky.
Flying overhead with the Magical Flying Device’s wings spread behind her was the white-haired girl from Hütter’s class…
“Tia!”
For the first time, there was life in Fiene’s voice.
She smiled like a girl her age ought to and looked to the skies.
“I’m so glad, you came for me after all!”
In stark contrast to Fiene’s joyous welcome, Tia glared at her with cold eyes.
The Tia that Otto knew was a carefree girl who was always happily singing some kind of song.
That same Tia now howled, her voice filled with rage.
“The Abyss is the spring that gives birth to Monsters! Humans do not come from there; they don’t belong there!”
Her thundering voice sounded nothing like the carefree young girl he knew. She shouted with an intensity that matched Fiene’s holy pretentions.
There, the King of Monsters interjected with a soft voice.
“Our god has expressed a desire to save both humans and Monsters.”
Each word he spoke imparted a bone-chilling fear on Otto.
This fear must have reached Tia as well. Tia was biting her lip, her face was deathly pale.
Fiene gestured a hand towards the black substance that covered the surface of the Third Spire — the Font of the Abyss.
“The Abyss is born from negative human emotions. It is born from humans, so it is a part of humanity. So… It should be perfect for humans, is it not? It will accept humans with open arms.”
Fiene’s right hand dipped into the Abyss. At first, he thought it looked like her hand was sinking into a pool of black water, but this was more than just that.
Fiene’s pale hand melted away, becoming one with the Abyss.
Watching his own daughter do something so incomprehensible, Otto desperately wanted to scream “STOP!” And yet his throat was so dry and scratchy not a sound left his mouth.
Fiene didn’t even spare Otto a single glance. Her eyes were fixed squarely on Tia.
“Tia, be my messenger. God’s messenger. And be the songstress that sings the blessings of the Abyss.”