Rokka no Yuusha - Volume 6 - Chapter 2

Chapter 2 
Hostage 

Number two returned to its assignment of spying on the Braves. Watching it go, Tgurneu wondered how many more hours it had to wait before it could witness Fremy’s despair. 
Just imagining it made Tgurneu want to break into a little jig. 
When she learned the whole truth with the Braves’ defeat spread out before her, when she found out that Adlet’s love for her was false, what would her crying sound like? How would her suffering express itself? What dying scream would accompany her suicide? 
Just thinking about it filled Tgurneu with glee. Beholding the spectacle with its own eyes might make it pass out from excitement. 
Tgurneu looked up at the sky and thought about its life thus far. Its days had been long and difficult. 
Five hundred years ago, Tgurneu had been born into this world an abnormal fiend. The abnormality was not its extremely rare, plant-type body, but its mind. 
Every fiend feels loyalty to the Evil God from birth. They come into existence hating humans and willing to devote their entire lives to the Evil God. The lone exception was Tgurneu: It alone felt absolutely no loyalty toward its creator. 
If the other fiends had ever discovered how Tgurneu truly felt, they would likely have ostracized and killed it. But fortunately, Tgurneu was intelligent and a skilled actor. It wasn’t difficult maintaining a facade of loyalty to the Evil God like other fiends. 
About ten years after its birth, Tgurneu acquired intellect on par with a human’s. At the age of twenty, it acquired—though to a minute degree—the control-type ability and became capable of manipulating other fiends. Tgurneu was acknowledged and accepted as an excellent fiend. But Tgurneu was empty. And it was lonely. 
Fiends prepare for the next awakening of the Evil God by developing their abilities. Obtaining new skills makes them tremble with joy as they consider how they can be used to serve the Evil God. Successfully killing a human gladdens them as they imagine the joy it will bring the Evil God. They all long for the day when the Braves of the Six Flowers are defeated and the Evil God is released; they discuss this dream passionately and often. 
But Tgurneu was incapable of feeling that exuberance. The days it spent in the Howling Vilelands were empty and hollow. With every month and every year that passed, Tgurneu’s sense of isolation increased. It couldn’t share this feeling with anyone. And that was a kind of suffering common to both humans and fiends. 
At the time, Tgurneu had agonized over this, wondering why it had been born at all. 
Love. When had Tgurneu first discovered that word? 
It had been a member of a fiend unit then. Their leader had ordered Tgurneu to go investigate the human realms, as its intelligence and acting ability were held in high esteem. And so Tgurneu controlled a transforming fiend and left the Howling Vilelands. There, Tgurneu learned about the lifestyle of the humans it saw, about human culture, and about the concept called love. The latter held Tgurneu’s heart in its thrall. 
The fiend studied love with intense dedication. Love was to wish for the happiness of another person, to have a relationship with that person, and to fixate on maintaining it. 
Humans loved one another. They attained happiness by loving and being loved. This force made people stronger and stirred the depths of their souls. Sometimes, it would lead them astray. All this Tgurneu understood. 
But what did it feel like to love someone? Tgurneu just couldn’t fathom it. No matter how much it wished to love someone, it couldn’t—not the Evil God, not fiends, and not humans. 
Fiends loved the Evil God, and humans loved one another. But Tgurneu couldn’t do either. 
It was said that love was the one thing that could make people stronger. This was surely the same for fiends—so Tgurneu was the most helpless creature in the world. It was said that only love brought happiness—so Tgurneu was the unhappiest creature of all. 
That helplessness tortured Tgurneu. No one knew how it felt inside, and no one showed interest in finding out. 
Then Tgurneu found out about a strange fiend. 
This fiend would be later named Cargikk. While Cargikk loved the Evil God as a fiend did, like a human would, it also loved other fiends. And so, pretending that it also loved the Evil God and other fiends, Tgurneu made contact with this creature, who had to be the happiest in all the world, including humans and fiends. 
Cargikk was simple, straightforward, and having never been suspicious of anyone, it readily believed Tgurneu. It grasped the vines that grew from Tgurneu’s body as it cried with joy at having made its first friend. 
Tgurneu had approached Cargikk because it had thought this connection might foster an understanding of love within Tgurneu. Tgurneu had hoped it might learn to love someone itself. But no matter what they talked about and no matter how Tgurneu listened to Cargikk’s words, it never came to know love. Though Tgurneu understood it as a concept and could grasp its nature, it could never love someone personally. All it got was the name Tgurneu . 
Eventually, Cargikk gained a new friend. It was the insignificant weakling of a fiend who would later be called Dozzu. Being with Cargikk and Dozzu as they chattered together like friends made Tgurneu jealous. Tgurneu hated them for being so happy—so unaware of Tgurneu’s suffering for being unable to love. But Tgurneu never revealed its feelings. The two other fiends thought of Tgurneu as a slippery and evasive character, but they believed in its friendship. 
As Tgurneu watched, Cargikk, who had been just an ordinary fiend, and Dozzu, who had been a little weakling at most, rapidly grew stronger. Their devotion to the Evil God and to other fiends had given them new powers. It was practically miraculous. 
Tgurneu’s desire for love became more and more covetous. Only love would bring power. Only love could perform miracles. In Tgurneu’s mind, this became something like his religious creed, and it came to hate all creatures capable of love. 
Even now, Tgurneu could vividly remember that day three hundred years ago, when it had proven its superiority over the second generation of Braves of the Six Flowers. 
There had been three surviving Braves: Marlie, the Saint of Blades; Hayuha, the Saint of Time; and Merlania, the Saint of Thunder. Tgurneu had predicted that the three would take advantage of an opening in the fiends’ forces to attack the Evil God. 
But that moment, a thought had occurred to Tgurneu. I want to see the fiends wailing in despair. Half this desire was the hope that their lamentation might lead it to understand. The other half was motivated by revenge, to bring suffering to the fiends it hated so much. 
Tgurneu did not share these thoughts with its allies. And just as Tgurneu had predicted, the Braves attacked the Evil God, and with Merlania’s strike, the Evil God was sealed away. 
Tgurneu’s betrayal hadn’t enabled the Braves’ victory, exactly. Cargikk and Dozzu had been exhausted. With their leaders down, the fiends had never had a chance to win in the first place. 
But the Evil God was defeated just as Tgurneu had wanted, and the Howling Vilelands drowned in the moaning of fiends. Listening to their wailing brought Tgurneu an ocean of joy. It had been two hundred years since its birth from the Evil God’s body, and now, for the first time in its life, it was feeling happiness. The discouragement and inferiority complex that had filled every inch of its heart vanished, replaced by the roiling sea of joy that came with accomplishing a great feat. It forgot its hatred of the fiends and of humans; instead, it was filled with a sense of godlike superiority. 
Tgurneu had always hated itself so much for being incapable of love. But now, it could validate everything about itself. It couldn’t acquire love, but it could get something much better. 
It could have the pleasure of crushing it. 
Thus, Tgurneu had gained its life goal: 
To see those who wailed over the loss of their beloved. 
To see those who suffered over the betrayal of their beloved. 
To see those who were forced to suffer in order to protect their beloved. 
Tgurneu was uninterested in watching meaningless suffering. They had to suffer for love . Merely watching was boring as well. The suffering had to be inflicted by Tgurneu personally. 
Tgurneu had seen enough fiends in agony during the second Battle of the Six Braves. And besides, fiends’ love was simple; their minds all worked the same way. Seeing the same thing over and over wasn’t enough to satisfy Tgurneu’s heart, so eventually, its interests shifted elsewhere. 
It wanted to see Cargikk suffer. It wanted to see Dozzu in pain. But most of all, it wanted to see human anguish. Their love was completely different from that of simple, dull old fiends. 
When Tgurneu crushed their love, it would acquire the ultimate joy, one that no one else could ever taste. 
Tgurneu began pursuing its incredibly ambitious dream. To crush love, it would have to acquire incredible strength. Tgurneu was powerless with nothing more than a weak fig as its body and no one it could call a friend. And it couldn’t have the power of love, the strongest force in the world—the only thing that could cause miracles. 
But Tgurneu figured this wouldn’t be a problem. It was certain it could acquire power. 
If it couldn’t have love itself, then Tgurneu should just control another’s. That was all there was to it, right? 
Mora was running alone about six miles west of the Temple of Fate with her light gem only just bright enough to illuminate her path. 
“Someone, someone, come! I can’t escape on my own! ” Mora yelled with her power of mountain echo. She honestly wasn’t very confident in her acting ability. But she was satisfied with this line. She was sure it would convince the fiends that she really was in trouble. 
About three hundred and fifty fiends surrounded her, but only a handful were actually attacking her. They formed multiple rings around her to prevent her escape. Blocking their endless attacks with her gauntlets, Mora dashed toward her destination. 
She was in a basin that connected three mountains. A great cliff soared upward to the north, while to the east was an easy slope downward. To the south and west were plains, where Mora’s powers of clairvoyance wouldn’t work. 
Dotted the landscape were moss-covered stone buildings. A millennium ago, this had been a populated town. Now, all the buildings were red with the Evil God’s toxin. The structures were in various states of disrepair: Some had collapsed over the many centuries, while others still stood. With so much time having passed since the town had lost its residents, it was in total ruin. The place was thick with trees and grass sprouting up through the flagstones. Most of the city had been swallowed by the forest. 
“Adlet! Dozzu! That way is blocked by fiends! Circle around from the east! ” Mora yelled again with her mountain echo. 
“Run north! Stave off the fiends’ attacks there! We’ll break through their ranks right away and catch up!” Mora saw Adlet yell with her clairvoyance. Just as he’d told her, she ran for the sheer cliff to the north. 
A few minutes earlier, the Braves had approached the fiends’ command center in an attempt to investigate but had been discovered and forced to retreat. It was then that Mora had inadvertently gotten isolated, and now she was running frantically, unable to convene with the rest of the group—or so it seemed to the enemy. But it was all an act. The real goal was to gather a large number of fiends in this one location, and Mora was just a decoy to that end. 
“Ngh!” Mora ran up to the side of the cliff, breaking away from the fiends. But more caught up to her, closing in to attack. Mora guarded too late, and her leg was injured. The wound was shallow, but she dramatically dragged it behind her. She then “failed” to block the following attacks and fell. 
“This isn’t good!” Mora pulled a stake out from under her robes and thrust it into the ground. It threw up a no-entry barrier with a range of about fifty-five yards around her. Many of the fiends stopped at the barrier. But the ones closer to her paid it no mind and went for her. It was difficult for her to fend off their strikes while feigning an injury. 
That was when Goldof cried, “Mora!” 
Mora willed for Goldof alone to be let in while still keeping out the fiends. Goldof slipped through and swept toward her like a gale. “I made it…in time.” He beat back the fiends that attacked her. Once again, Mora was impressed with how he handled his spear. 
“Is your wound…light?” Goldof asked. 
“I’m sorry, but I’ve been badly hurt. I’ll heal it now, but it will be some time before I’m able to run,” Mora said, loud enough for the fiends to hear. One of them yelled something in code to a messenger hovering overhead. 
“You…focus on…your healing. Once you’re ready…we escape. In the meantime…I’ll protect you,” Goldof asserted, fighting off the fiends that had made it inside the barrier. 
Crouching near the stake, Mora pretended to continue mending her leg as she observed the situation around them with her clairvoyance. Five fiends were inside with her. Goldof could handle them. About a hundred more were glued around the barrier, attacking it continuously. Farther back, nearly two hundred and fifty enemies encircled the area. They must have seen this as a prime opportunity to eliminate Mora for good. 
“Mora…they’re breaking…through the barrier,” said Goldof. A united attack broke through a section of the wall of light, and a few dozen fiends attempted to surge in all at once. Pouring her power into the stake, Mora repaired the defense. She prevented its total collapse but had let in about ten foes. Goldof didn’t even have time to take a breath before facing his new opponents. 
“The bärrier—will break! Don’t stöp—attacking!” one of the fiends surrounding them yelled, apparently the leader. Mora pretended to be shaken. 
Everything was going according to Adlet’s plan. About half the army was completely engaged with Mora and Goldof. 
The area around the mass of fiends was covered in trees. There was a moderate wind blowing from the north, and the air was dry. These were perfect conditions for a conflagration. Now they just had to hold on until the preparations for the fire were complete. 
“Youfilthylousestayawayfrommeyou’relessthanpigshittrashI’llkillyouI’llkillyouI’llkillyoudeadandmakeyoubegforforgivenessinhell!” 
Spraying curses and invectives, Rolonia attacked the fiends just over half a mile to the south of Mora’s location. Her light gem, fitted into her armor, illuminated the area. 
“You’re drawing too much attention, Rolonia! And you’re pushing in too far alone!” Adlet yelled. But she wasn’t listening as she frantically swung her whip. 
Rolonia was battling the three hundred and fifty fiends that surrounded Mora and Goldof, but they were fending her off to prevent her from charging in to save Mora. The circle of fiends was so tight, an ant could hardly crawl through. Rolonia and Adlet couldn’t get near the center, and Goldof and Mora couldn’t escape rejoin their allies. 
“Rolonia! It’s no use charging them head-on! Pull back for now, please!” Nashetania rushed up to Rolonia, defending her from the enemies about to move in from either side. 
“But…w-we have to save Lady Mora. Without her, it’s all over!” With another yell, Rolonia charged in. “DieDIEmoveyourasses! Lady Mora! Youbastardsmaggotsit’syourturntodie!” 
“Calm down, please, Rolonia!” 
Rolonia ignored Nashetania’s attempt to stop her and continued her assault. She tried breaking through the line of fiends with a body blow, but they flung her away and sent her rolling along the ground. The net of fiends around Mora and Goldof didn’t budge an inch. 
This was Rolonia’s task from Adlet. 
He had told her to rush in headlong in an attempt to save Mora—but not successfully. She should deliberately fail in the attack, then retreat, circle around to another spot, and attack again. Once she failed there, she should attack from another angle again. Rinse and repeat. She would frantically scramble around the half-mile range circling Mora and draw the fiends’ attention. 
“This is bad, Rolonia! At this rate, we’ll be surrounded!” Nashetania yelled as she guarded Rolonia’s back. From the south side, they could hear the heavy footfalls of dozens of fiends. 
“Th-then we’re running! Please follow me, Nashetania!” Rolonia dashed off westward. Dimming their light gems to avoid detection, they slipped through the lines of trees and hid in the shadows of the smattering of ancient structures. 
“Follow them! Kïll Rolonia! Kïll Nashetania!” They heard the cries of fiends at their backs. 
With the ruins and the forest swallowing it, the topography was very complex. There were many places to hide and no shortage of escape routes. It didn’t take long for Rolonia and Nashetania behind her to shake off their pursuers. 
Once they arrived on the western side of the encirclement, Rolonia screamed loudly. She lit up the area with her light gem again, drawing attention with her shout. “Lady Mora! Goldof! I’ll save you now! YAGHyoufiendstheBravesaregonnasplatteryourgutsandyourcoresandstompon
themjustfuckingdie!” Again, Rolonia recklessly charged into the horde of fiends. Guarding her back, Nashetania ran after her. 
Rolonia’s job was to keep the enemy’s eyes on her. While she was fighting the fiends, Nashetania was to make preparations for the fire. The plan was for Nashetania to scatter the incendiary leaves Adlet had entrusted to her around the forest. The role was a heavy responsibility. If the fiends spotted her at her task, Tgurneu was sure to quickly recognize their intent. If that happened, then the operation would fall apart. 
Rolonia’s charge failed to break through the enemy ranks, so she retreated again from the fiends pursuing her. As she ran, she glanced behind her. Was the preparation for the fire going well? 
Nashetania noticed Rolonia’s glance, and her cheeks twitched up in a smile—a silent Don’t worry . 
With her one arm, Nashetania deftly pulled out a single dry leaf from the bag on her shoulder. Sword still in hand, she held it between her pinkie and ring fingers. And then, when she swung her sword, the leaf disappeared from her hand. Rolonia didn’t even know where she’d dropped it. This was partly because the light was dim, making it hard to see—but more because of Nashetania’s swift dexterity. It left Rolonia in awe. 
Everything was going according to plan. Once again, Rolonia was confident that trusting Adlet was the right choice. He really was the strongest man in the world. No matter what trouble they were in, Addy was sure to find a way. 
They heard Mora crying out from inside her barrier. “Adlet! Fremy! While the enemy’s forces are occupied with us, go for Tgurneu! It’s not what we planned, but we’re left with no choice!” 
Mora’s call was part of Adlet’s plan, too. Rolonia and Nashetania gave each other a small nod. 
You can do it, Addy. Your revenge is almost done , Rolonia told herself, and she charged the enemy again. 
Like Rolonia, Fremy was attacking the circle of fiends in an attempt to rescue Mora. But she didn’t actually mean to succeed; this was only for show. With Fremy were Adlet and Dozzu, who were also pretending to wage a desperate fight against the fiends. 
“Adlet! Fremy! While the enemy’s forces are occupied with us, go for Tgurneu! It’s not what we planned, but we’re left with no choice!” 
They heard Mora’s mountain echo. Fremy exchanged looks with Adlet. 
It seemed everything was proceeding smoothly. Just according to plan, the three left the area. 
The wolf-fiend’s fake command center was in battle formation about a mile to the southeast from Mora’s location, at the central road of the ancient ruins. It was a flat area a little ways off from the mountains, so Mora couldn’t study their position with her clairvoyance. About a hundred fiends stood in defensive formation, protecting the wolf-fiend at their center. The leopard-fiend the Braves were after was also in the center, beside the wolf-fiend. 
“Hey, Dozzu. Yes, if it isn’t Dozzu! You were close by until just a little while ago, but you ran off so quickly. I was so lonely.” The enemy didn’t attack immediately, and the wolf-fiend spoke to them, imitating Tgurneu. “Why are you with the Braves? Weren’t we friends? Remember? Didn’t we both pray for fiendkind’s happiness together? Abandon those stupid ideas of yours and come fight with me.” The wolf-fiend never let its impersonation falter. 
“I’m ashamed I ever called you a friend, Tgurneu.” Dozzu pretended to believe the wolf-fiend’s ruse. 
“You misunderstand me. I am concerned with the happiness of fiendkind, in my own way.” 
“There’s no use in discussing this with you. And there’s no place for you in the world of coexistence I dream of!” Dozzu charged toward the wolf. 
Adlet yelled, “Me and Dozzu will go for Tgurneu! Fremy, you take down the fiends in the air!” 
Fremy nodded. Mora and Goldof were undertaking a dangerous task, while Rolonia and Nashetania also played a difficult role. I can’t afford to screw this up , she thought as she focused her sights on the aerial fiends beyond the gaps in the canopy. 
“Hmm…what do we do about this?” Tgurneu muttered as it received reports from number twenty-four. It was south of the ruins, waiting about three miles away from Mora. 
The area was quiet. The great tumult of the Braves’ and fiends’ battle didn’t reach this far. Examining the map, Tgurneu leisurely continued its attempts to determine what the Braves’ objective might be. 
Fremy loved Adlet. Now that Tgurneu had confirmed this most important fact, it could focus fully on the fight with the Braves. 
Though Tgurneu knew that the Braves had hardly any hope of turning the tables, it still couldn’t let its guard down. If it died, it would never get to see Fremy’s expression of love-inspired suffering. 
“Adlet, Fremy, and Dozzu are charging the fake command enter. And Rolonia and Nashetania are trying to save Mora…apparently.” With a pen, Tgurneu recorded the Braves’ locations on a map. Every single one of them was far from Tgurneu. From what the wolf-fiend had reported of their situation, it seemed they had not even considered the possibility that Tgurneu was off in hiding. 
The Braves believed Tgurneu was in the fake command center and were trying to isolate that formation and use the opportunity to kill the wolf-fiend. But Mora had been separated from the group and was subsequently discovered, and now their plan was falling apart. This was what Tgurneu was forced to assume, based on the wolf-fiend’s report. 
But, pen in hand, Tgurneu fell silent. 
“…Cómmander Tgurneu.” Tgurneu realized number twenty-four was speaking. “The wölf-fiend seeks your örders.” 
Its thoughts interrupted, Tgurneu sighed. Left with no choice, it relayed instructions to the wolf-fiend through number twenty-four. “<Continue using those three hundred and fifty fiends to surround Mora. All you have to do is keep her from escaping. You remain on standby where you are to fight Adlet’s group of three. Of the remaining troops, use a hundred to keep Rolonia and Nashetania in check. With the final hundred, restrain Adlet, Fremy, and Dozzu.>” 
“<Very well, Cómmander,>” the wolf-fiend said through number twenty-four. 
“<You don’t have to fight them seriously. There’s no need to push yourself to kill them.>” 
“<Is that äll we must do?>” the wolf-fiend inquired. 
Tgurneu was a little irritated. It’s all you’re capable of, isn’t it? You can’t possibly believe you’re strong enough to defeat the Braves? 
“<Of course, I will be making my move, as well,>” Tgurneu said, surveying the area. “Number thirteen.” One fiend from among the fifty or so nearby slithered to Tgurneu’s feet in the form of a short, fat snake. “Can you use your ability here?” 
The snake-fiend—specialist number thirteen—spent some time turning its head right and left as if sounding something out. “…Ït is…pössi…ble,” number thirteen replied in an extremely faltering manner. 
“How long will it take for your ability to activate?” 
“Ä…bout…two hour…änd…hälf.” 
Like the other specialists, number thirteen had, under Tgurneu’s orders, evolved itself over the course of centuries in order to acquire a new ability. It had exhausted all its strength in order to achieve this. As a result, even its intelligence and ability to speak had degenerated. But that had made its power immense. 
“About two and a half hours, hmm? Good, get prepared. Cover the whole area of the ruins. Turn these six square miles into hell.” 
“Ünd…ér…stood…Cóm…mänder.” Before even finishing its reply, number thirteen left Tgurneu’s side. 
Number thirteen’s ability enabled it to execute a large-scale attack over a wide area. No other fiend under Tgurneu’s command could do so much damage, and the Braves of previous generations wouldn’t have ever experienced an attack on this scale, either. 
Tgurneu told the wolf-fiend, “<I’ve sent out number thirteen. The Braves should all be dead in two and a half hours. You understand, don’t you, wolf? Do not allow Adlet or Fremy to die, under any circumstances. Be sure to prepare a means to ensure their safety.>” 
“<Undérstood. We’ve mäde every preparation to keep them säfe. We can manage number thirteen’s ábility just fine.>” 
“<Of course you have.>” 
Contact with the wolf-fiend cut off there. Adlet, Fremy, or Dozzu must have been attacking the fake command center. Tgurneu wasn’t concerned for the wolf-fiend but rather relieved. Now it could be spared having its thoughts interrupted. 
“Now then, what to do? Can I defeat the Braves now? Or…?” Tgurneu muttered quietly. 
Fremy, Adlet, and Dozzu continued their fierce battle. They were up against the fiends of the fake command center, about a hundred in close formation. There were also several free-roaming units of fiends coming to attack them. 
“Adlet, back me up, please!” Dozzu cried as it fired lightning at the fake command center, while Adlet joined in with all the tools at his disposal. Fremy guarded their backs as she shot down the aerial fiends overhead. 
“Damn it, we can’t maintain the offensive! Run!” Adlet yelled. Before they became entirely surrounded, Fremy ran for a spot where enemy forces were thin. Adlet blinded the enemies with a smoke grenade, and Fremy held them back with her bombs as they ran. 
“Ha-ha! Do you understand now that it’s no use? What can just the three of you accomplish?” The wolf-fiend desperately clung to its long-exposed ruse. 
Three against two hundred, they charged in and then retreated, over and over. It was no easy task. But the lush treetops hid them from any eyes in the sky, and the darkness of night and complex terrain prevented fiends on the ground from discovering them. Without these advantages, they would have been cornered and slaughtered in a flash. 
“…We must finish this before daybreak,” said Dozzu. They probably had about two hours. Carrying out the strategy would become difficult under morning light. The super-flammable leaves Nashetania had spread were likely to be found, too. 
“No problem. We’ll finish this up before then,” said Adlet. But the most important step of their plan was yet to be accomplished: attaching the mud-covered light gem to the leopard-fiend. This had to be done if they were going to pursue their target when it was dispatched as a messenger. 
“Are things going all right with you?” Fremy asked. 
“Relax, we’re still at the setup stage. You’ll see results soon enough,” Adlet replied. 
Fremy nodded. If Adlet said so, then it would be fast. She had her job to do, too: shooting down the aerial messengers to cut off contact between Tgurneu and the wolf. 
A fiend in the sky shrieked, and Fremy instantly fired at it, her hands moving too fast for the eye to see. With nothing but sound as her guide, Fremy struck true and brought down Tgurneu’s aide, specialist number two. Now there were just seven fiends left. 
“They’re coming from the left. We have to run,” said Fremy. 
They fled right, tramping through the woods as loudly as they could. Then, in the shadows of the ruins, they stopped and waited for the group of fiends that came chasing after them to go past and ran back the way they’d come. 
Setup was going well. At this rate, they could win. 
“If the fight continues like this, I’m certain they’ll find me,” Tgurneu murmured. It was clear the Braves were not simply attacking the wolf-fiend or scampering about in an attempt to save Mora. Though it may have looked that way superficially, they were, in fact, preparing to kill Tgurneu. 
“Wh-why? The Braves have cöme nowhere close to you, Cómmander. And the one who réquires the most caution, Mora, is pïnned. They could nëver find you,” said number eleven. 
“Indeed. I believe it’s impossible for the Braves to find me, too, but that will pose no problem for them. They’re sure to turn that impossibility into a possibility. I can tell, you know,” Tgurneu said, glaring at number eleven. “Why? Because I believe in the power of love.” 
Number eleven stared back blankly. 
As if to say You could never understand , Tgurneu sighed. 
Love was the strongest force in the world, the only one that could generate miracles, and only love would bring about victory—so Tgurneu believed. It was precisely because Tgurneu could not know love that it knew the extent of its power. 
Mora loved her husband and her daughter. Goldof loved Nashetania. Rolonia—Adlet and her Saint allies. Chamo loved her parents. 
And most of all, Fremy loved Adlet, and he, her. They were trying to kill Tgurneu to protect one another. So no matter how Tgurneu bolstered its defenses, the power of love was sure to break through. 
The greatness of love was what gave value to its demise. Destroying the strongest and most wonderful thing in the world was where Tgurneu founds its pleasure. 
“…Yes, love is sure to conjure a miracle.” 
Fremy attacked the fake command center once more, drawing their attention with smoke grenades and whittling them down with her bombs to break holes in their defenses. 
The lower-ranking fiends pressed close together like a wall to protect the wolf. From behind, the wolf watched over the fight calmly. Beside it were the red number twenty-four and the leopard-fiend, and Adlet and Dozzu were targeting those two. Fremy defended her allies from the rear with her weapon at the ready. 
Adlet pulled some vials from one of his pouches, wedging them between his fingers to throw them at the tight cluster of fiends. They burst in the air, raining down a sticky white liquid that clung to the creatures’ bodies. What Adlet had doused them in was a special adhesive mucus. Once it was stuck on you, it was hard to get off. Adlet had also explained to the others beforehand that it restricted movement, and the effect would last for some time. 
“Thank you for the help!” Dozzu cried as it fired off a lightning strike. Unable to block it, several fiends were sizzled. Without missing a beat, Fremy wove through them, gun blazing. 
“You can’t kill me using something like that, Fremy.” The wolf-fiend dodged her bullets with ease. “Stop this already. How long are you going to continue this meaningless fight?” it asked. 
Ignoring it, Adlet threw mucus vials at the wolf-fiend, but it flicked them far away with its tentacles. 
One of the bottles exploded in the air, though, splashing a little bit of the mucus onto the leopard-fiend. Fremy was relieved—the plan had worked. Getting the mucus on the leopard had been the goal of this attack. 
It was only a tiny bit, not enough to hinder nor concern the fiend, but if they stuck the light gem onto that mucus, it wouldn’t come off easily. Now Adlet just had to nonchalantly approach the leopard-fiend and attach the light gem, and their objective would be complete. 
But they couldn’t linger here long. They had to keep moving, or they wouldn’t be able to leave. 
“It’s no use! Just the mucus isn’t gonna stop ’em! We’ll come back for another pass!” Adlet yelled. The three pulled back for the time being and made to flee from the fiend formation again. 
The fiends of the fake command center pursued them in an attempt to cut off their retreat. A fiend came swooping down on Fremy from above the canopy. 
She was about to shoot it down when the wolf-fiend yelled, “Everyone, stop fighting!” Its minions chasing them froze. 
The unexpected change in attitude surprised Fremy, and she turned. Adlet and Dozzu stopped, too, watching to see where this would go. 
“There’s no more reason to hide it. Fremy, you are the Black Barrenbloom, the secret weapon sent by me to kill the Braves of the Six Flowers.” They knew it was just the wolf-fiend pretending to be Tgurneu, but still, the real Tgurneu was behind this. Fremy wondered just what it had planned. 
“My idea was to send you, the Black Barrenbloom, to the Braves and have the seventh protect you. But my plan has failed. Your identity has been exposed. Your role…is done now.” 
“What are you trying to say?” Fremy asked without thinking. 
“I’m sure you must hate me. Of course you would. It’s true that I hurt you. But I had no choice. I had to make you a real Brave, so I had to make you hate all fiends. I didn’t really want to hurt you.” 
“…Shut up.” Rage welled up from the pit of her stomach—at Tgurneu, who had hurt her so much, who had used her so utterly at its whims and now claimed that it’d had no choice. Even knowing that what stood before them was just a fiend pretending to be Tgurneu, it was unforgivable. 
“If we continue fighting like this, I’ll be forced to kill you. But I don’t want that. You’ve worked hard and served me better than anyone. You’ve gone through more suffering for my sake than any other fiend. Why would I want to kill someone like that? 
“Leave the Braves’ side. Come back to me—to where you really belong.” 
“How can you say that now…?” Fremy had made up her mind to ignore anything the wolf-fiend said, but the rage boiling over in her now would not allow that. 
When she raised her gun, Adlet said, “Don’t listen to it! We’re running!” 
“…I’m sorry.” Using her bombs to hold the enemies back, Fremy ran weaving through the ruins. From behind, she could hear the impatient call of the wolf-fiend. “Don’t ally yourself with the humans anymore, Fremy! That’s not going to make you happy! My subordinates actually thought of you as a comrade! They were all just pretending to hate you because I ordered it!” The wolf-fiend kept shouting. “Are you going to kill the friends who care for you?!” 
“I told you to shut up!” Fremy threw a bomb at the wolf, but the other fiends shielded their leader. Some died, and the blast flung their bodies back. Until a moment ago, she’d thought nothing of their deaths. But now, it made Fremy turn away. 
“Are you okay, Fremy?” Adlet looked at her with concern. 
Do I look that awful? Fremy wondered. “I’m all right. I’m not going to have a change of heart because of that thing’s wheedling. Not after we’ve come so far,” Fremy said firmly. She was trying to shake off her hesitation by saying it out loud. 
Fremy kept fighting after that, but the fiends stopped attacking her. Instead, they all started calling out to her, begging her to come back. 
A fiend that had, long ago, jeered at her and called her a half-breed, said, “I’m sörry, Fremy. I häd the wrong ídea about you. I—” Before it could finish speaking, Fremy shot it in the face. 
A fiend that had once despised and tormented her family pleaded, “Fremy, I have to ápologize to y—” Before it could finish, Fremy blasted it to bits with a bomb. 
“I was—under örders. To hürt you. So I did—” said a fiend from above. This one had tried to devour Fremy when she was a child. She shredded its wings with her bullets without a second thought. 
Don’t worry about it , Fremy told herself. Tgurneu was just telling her what she wanted to hear in an attempt to deceive her. 
“Stop ït! Don’t kill any möre of our friends! Why do you sïde with thé humans? They won’t accept—” 
Without a word, Fremy fired again and again, silencing every fiend that stepped forward to speak to her. 
Not long ago, she might have considered betraying the Braves. 
Since that day six months ago when Tgurneu and her family had discarded her, Fremy had constantly wished that it was just another part of Tgurneu’s plan. She’d been waiting for the fiends to tell her I was only pretending to have abandoned you. I actually did care about you . 
Even knowing they were lying, even knowing their kindness was false, she might have accepted their words. 
“Fremy, I would hate to think…” Dozzu trailed off. 
“Relax, Dozzu. I am absolutely not going to betray you,” Fremy said flatly. Bearing the pain in her heart, she kept on firing. 
It’s strange , she mused. How could she so easily spurn their pleas for her surrender? What was different about her now compared to then? Adlet’s face rose in her mind. She recalled how he’d kept on fighting to protect her in the Temple of Fate, even when she’d been trying to shoot him. 
She shook her head, driving out any distractions. This wasn’t the time to be thinking about that. 
The fiends were still calling out to Fremy, but they seemed to be gradually giving up, as fewer and fewer tried to engage with her. But it was clear they weren’t going to kill her. They were merciless when they attacked the others, but when they came after her, they aimed for the gun in her hand or her limbs. 
Then, one of the aerial fiends shrieked loudly enough to be heard a few miles around. Not in code but a language even Fremy could understand. “Where äre you? What are you döing, seventh?! You don’t mean to bétray us for the Braves, do you?! Betrayal will not be fórgiven! If you réveal even part of the truth to the Braves, pünishment from Cómmander Tgurneu will be instantaneous!” The aerial fiend continued, “Prótect Cómmander Tgurneu! Prévent the Braves’ attacks and kill them all! You should underständ that if by any chänce something happens to Cómmander Tgurneu, your loved one will die!” 
It must have been talking to Hans. Fremy ruthlessly shot down the distant fiend. 
“That could be a lie—Tgurneu’s attempt to confuse us. Ignore it,” warned Adlet. 
Still, what was Hans doing? Fremy was curious but doubted worrying about that now would bring her any answers. 
“Why are you fighting, Fremy? Can’t you hear your friends’ voices?!” The wolf-fiend was still yelling at Fremy, coaxing her to surrender. “If you must do this, if you absolutely do mean to fight, then I really will have to kill you!” The wolf-fiend said this over and over. Fremy ignored it and continued undeterred. 
Around twenty minutes after the fiends had begun begging for her surrender, she was lurking in the shadows of the ruins with Adlet and Dozzu, about to launch a surprise attack on the fake command center. 
“…?” Adlet’s head swiveled around, as if he’d noticed something. Fremy was about to ask what had happened. 
Then… 
Agony pierced her chest. She felt her throat tearing and blood flowing down into her lungs. She covered her mouth, but blood spurted out from between her fingers. 
“!” 
They were hiding from pursuit. She couldn’t cough now. She forced herself to smother any noise, swallowing the blood about to spill from her mouth. Even in the darkness, she could tell Adlet’s face had gone pale. 
She scanned the area. She could have sworn there hadn’t been any fiends nearby. She had no idea where the attack had come from. Adlet and Dozzu were safe. There wasn’t even any sign that they were in pain. The only one under attack was her. 
“Fremy!” Adlet was so upset, she felt sorry for him. He grabbed her shoulder to support her, but she warned him to be quiet. 
Fremy put some medicine Mora had given her into her mouth to stop the bleeding. Mora had told her it was a special drug made by Torleau, the Saint of Medicine. She could feel the bleeding in her throat stop. It hurt terribly, but it seemed she wasn’t about to die on the spot. 
She spread open her cloak to examine her chest. Adlet and Dozzu took a look, too. She found a strange mark there. It was red and thin as thread—in the shape of dozens of twisted, concentric circles. She’d never seen the eerie mark before. There had been nothing on her chest until just a moment ago. 
“What…is this?” Fremy stroked the red pattern. As she touched it, the pain gradually receded. 

Adlet was still pale, his lips trembling. He couldn’t say a word. 
That was when, from afar, they heard the wolf-fiend say, “I advise you one more time, Fremy: If you continue to fight, you’ll die. If you don’t want to die, return to me.” 
With those words, finally, Fremy understood what had happened to her. “So Tgurneu implanted a parasite or something inside my chest beforehand in case I ever got in its way. This must mean it’s been activated.” When had Tgurneu implanted a parasite? There was no point in speculating. Tgurneu would have had any number of opportunities. It had raised her from birth; it would simply have had to implant it into her as a baby. “…So what Tgurneu means to say is that if I continue to fight now, I’ll die. And if I surrender, I’ll be saved?” 
“If that’s the intention, that’s rather strange,” said Dozzu. “Why didn’t Tgurneu use it before?” 
Dozzu was right. Hans had tried to kill her to make use of the Black Barrenbloom’s transfer ability. But now, Tgurneu was calling for her surrender, and the fiends were holding back in their attacks on her. And this implant in her chest hadn’t been utilized up until now. Though Hans and Tgurneu were supposed to be allies, their behavior didn’t line up. 
“Tgurneu must believe that if it threatens me, I’ll surrender. It figures that having me as an ally would make the fight easier than just killing me,” Fremy said. “Tgurneu thinks so little of me. I’ll never surrender. I’ll keep fighting until I die.” 
Still shaken, Adlet said in a daze, “We’re meeting up with Rolonia…and with Mora. We have to treat your chest.” 
“What? Don’t be ridiculous!” Fremy shot back. Both had important jobs to do. They couldn’t interrupt the plan. 
“But I made up my mind I’d keep you safe!” 
“Stop.” Fremy grabbed Adlet’s wrist and yanked it away from her shoulder. Looking him in the eye, she said, “We should continue with the plan. It doesn’t look like I’m going to die right away. We just have to kill Tgurneu before I do. We can heal me afterward.” Adlet seemed ready to collapse from distress. 
“Either way, we must kill Tgurneu, or we’ll all die. We have no choice now but to focus on Tgurneu’s defeat.” As Dozzu spoke, the three dashed off. 
Adlet was still deep in thought, his face pale. He looked so bad, Fremy was unsure whether he could continue fighting. Adlet’s job was to stick the light gem onto the leopard-fiend, but he didn’t seem capable of that right now. 
“Hand me that light gem, Adlet. I can’t leave it to you at the moment.” Fremy held her hand out to him as they ran. If Adlet couldn’t, then she had no choice but to handle it herself. Adlet shook his head, though, apparently indicating he was all right. 
“Fremy! Cöme back to us! We wön’t give up—trying to cónvince you!” a fiend yelled from far away. Fremy scowled. How long did they mean to continue this pointless exercise? Did they not understand that she was not going to be won over? 
They continued setting up the plan. Adlet and Dozzu charged the fake command center again, and as Fremy provided backup, she was also eliminating the fliers. Of the fourteen in the air, she killed twelve. For the remaining two, she fired not bullets but gunpowder that stuck to their wings. It wasn’t enough to kill them, but it was enough to hamper their ability to fly. Her job was done for now. 
Fremy had made a firecracker earlier. If this firecracker was set off, or if Fremy willed it, the gunpowder she’d stuck onto the fiends’ wings would explode. She’d made the trigger device just in case something happened to her during their preparations. 
Adlet ordered a retreat, and Fremy ran, obstructing pursuit with her bombs. The fiends didn’t follow them far, and before long, the chase was over. 
“…I’ll give this to you, Adlet,” Fremy said, handing him the firecracker. Now, as long as either she or Adlet was safe, they could carry out their strategy. “And on your end?” she asked, and Adlet gave a little nod to confirm he’d managed to stick the light gem on the leopard during the chaotic battle. Fremy didn’t even know when he’d pulled it off, but it meant this trio’s preparations were complete. 
Now it was just Nashetania and Rolonia. Once those two were done lacing the forest with their leaves, they could follow through to the end game. 
Would they succeed? Could they kill Tgurneu? They didn’t know. Fremy knew only one thing: She could never let Tgurneu live—for her own sake—and for her allies’. 
But most of all, for Adlet. 
The wolf-fiend addressed Tgurneu, who was waiting in a corner of the ruins. “<Cómmander Tgurneu, it seems Fremy won’t sürrender. In fact, I believe she’s bécome even more détermined to kill us. Is this all right?>” 
Tgurneu wondered what on earth this creature was talking about. 
Then it realized. Oh yes, it hadn’t told the wolf-fiend its strategy. Tgurneu had simply ordered it to call for her surrender. “<If you’re concerned about victory, it’s already achieved.>” Tgurneu couldn’t see the face of the wolf-fiend but imagined its mouth had to be hanging open. “<Our battle with the Braves of the Six Flowers is already over. I didn’t even have to mobilize number thirteen. The Braves will all be dead before dawn, and we can finish off Dozzu and Nashetania, too. All that’s left now is to pluck the fruit of victory.>” 
“<B-but…>” 
“<Listen, wolf-fiend. Love is sure to bring about a miracle. And the miracles of love are always on my side,>” Tgurneu said, then cut off the conversation. It was in such a pleasant mood, for once, and didn’t want to be interrupted with tedious drivel. Tgurneu quietly continued awaiting reports of its victory. 
Now done with his preparations for their plan, Adlet ran through the forest with Fremy and Dozzu. They were waiting for Nashetania and Rolonia to finish their task with the dead leaves. In his heart, Adlet lamented I’m sorry, Fremy . 
He was going to put her in danger. He was going to make her suffer. 
I know I swore I would protect you with my life and make you happy, but I’m going to end up hurting you anyway. 
Strongest man in the world—ha. How foolish he’d been, babbling on about how he’d give his life to keep her safe. He felt so worthless, he was on the verge of tears. 
But he held them back. He firmed his resolve to make it through the battle that was about to begin. 
He had to protect Tgurneu. 
And he had to kill all the Braves but Fremy. 
Ever since Tgurneu had first hit on the idea of acquiring the power to control love, it had continued evolving with that goal in mind. In a mere hundred years, Tgurneu had become capable of completely controling the love of one human, which was impossibly fast by the standards of fiend common sense. 
Tgurneu was not interested in controlling the love of fiends. That couldn’t cause miracles. In fact, the fiends had already lost to the Braves of the Six Flowers twice despite their deep love for the Evil God. Tgurneu had concluded that the love of fiends lacked a necessary ingredient for miracles. 
Tgurneu was certain its ability to control love was invincible. This very power had enabled Tgurneu to realize a number of impossible goals. It had put the Saint of the Single Flower under its control and enabled it to learn strictly hidden secrets, such as the true nature of the Evil God and the Saint of the Single Flower. It had stolen the seventh crest and absorbed the Saint of the Single Flower’s remaining powers. No one had ever imagined that the Saint of the Single Flower, who had saved the world and continued to protect it, would surrender to a mere fiend—not humans, not fiends, and not even the Saint of the Single Flower herself. 
But Tgurneu had made some miscalculations, too. At first, it had thought that once it had the Saint of the Single Flower in its grasp, the game would be over—that it could undo the seal on the Evil God at its leisure. Tgurneu had believed that with control over the Saint of the Single Flower, the Braves’ source of power, the Braves wouldn’t even be an issue. 
But the Saint of the Single Flower had designed all her hieroforms to operate automatically with no connection to her own will. Even if the Saint desired it, she couldn’t undo the seal on the Evil God. She couldn’t prevent the appearance of the Braves of the Six Flowers; neither did she decide who was chosen. She wouldn’t even know who would be chosen. And the Saint of the Single Flower had exhausted her powers, ending up an empty shell, meaning Tgurneu was unable to make her kill the Braves, either. 
Even after acquiring the power of the Saint of the Single Flower, in the end, Tgurneu was still forced to fight the Six Braves. 
Even so, Tgurneu had acquired a fearsome weapon—the power he had wrung from the the Saint of the Single Flower’s husk and the seventh crest, which she herself had created in secret. Tgurneu had also acquired the right to decide who would receive the seventh crest—and when to activate its hidden ability. 
On its own, the seventh crest had no powers that could kill the Braves. The power in the crest was completely useless to Tgurneu, but there was still a way to use the crest itself. Tgurneu just had to give it to someone who would be its pawn and then slip that person in among the Braves. 
What’s more, with the power Tgurneu had stolen from the Saint of the Single Flower, it had created the Black Barrenbloom. But the amount of power acquired was very slight, and the completed Black Barrenbloom would be insufficient to kill the Braves with perfect certainty. 
So Tgurneu had to rack its brain. If it was to use the Black Barrenbloom effectively, to keep it safe, it needed someone strong to protect it, no matter what. Someone stronger than anyone, more trustworthy than anyone, and also someone Tgurneu could control as it pleased—that was the puppet Tgurneu needed. 
Tgurneu believed that, in all things, one must take the time to prepare thoroughly before carrying out the task. So Tgurneu began first by creating the environment where the seventh would be raised. 
What caught its eye was a great trader who lived in Gwenvaella, Atreau Spiker. He did scientific research, with a wealth of capital backing him, and used the results in his business. He’d inherited some assets at the age of twenty, and in ten years, he’d multiplied that sum dozens of times over. 
Using its subordinates, Tgurneu slaughtered Atreau’s whole family to make him loathe fiends. Subsequently, Atreau made up his mind to dedicate the rest of his life and fortune to revenge. 
The method Atreau chose to accomplish this was the development of weapons that could kill fiends effectively. It was exactly the sort of idea an excellent scholar and rationalist like him would devise. This, too, was per Tgurneu’s expectations. 
Next, Tgurneu taught Atreau that fiends lurked in hiding throughout human society. It made him paranoid and convinced him the fiends were trying to steal his research. And so, just as Tgurneu had predicted, Atreau decided to isolate himself in the wilderness to carry out his research on killing fiends alone. 
Atreau spared no expense, drawing upon his great fortune to gather information about fiends from all over the world. He received shipments of fiend corpses and studied fiends that Tgurneu had sent into the human realms, as well as those of Dozzu’s comrades that had had the misfortune to die. 
And so, Atreau came up with weapons for fighting fiends and then polished the technology without ever knowing it was all part of Tgurneu’s design. 
Originally, Atreau planned to be a Brave of the Six Flowers himself. There would be no point if he didn’t exact his revenge with his own two hands. But the Evil God didn’t awaken, and Atreau grew old before the day of the great battle ever dawned. Eventually, he came to consider choosing a successor. He gathered young hopefuls from all over and gave them his secret tools, teaching them everything about his craft. 
Before taking on these young apprentices, he would investigate them thoroughly. He had paid spies to look into their backgrounds. With the help of the Saint of Words, he made sure they weren’t thieves come to steal his handiwork before he made them apprentices. 
Of course, none of the young people Atreau had made his apprentices were any of Tgurneu’s. They were all fine people with sincere aspirations of becoming Braves of the Six Flowers and risking their lives to protect the world. There was no need for Tgurneu to play the odds and send Atreau a lackey. All Tgurneu had to do was take an apprentice Atreau had raised and put him under its control later. 
Tgurneu sent its agents onto the mountain where Atreau lived and had them carefully watch what happened there. Then, Tgurneu considered which of the apprentices Atreau had raised was best suited to make the seventh. 
Once, Tgurneu had been asked why it had spent so much effort on this. Specialist number two, as well as the three-winged fiend Tgurneu had used as its body, both knew all about Tgurneu’s plans, and both found the choice baffling. 
There was no need to go to the trouble of raising a powerful individual to protect the Black Barrenbloom, they had said. Any number of talented warriors or Saints with great powers would present themselves later on. So Tgurneu should just choose someone suitable from among those and put them in its thrall with its power over love. 
They didn’t understand. The cultivation of Atreau Spiker had been in preparation for the inevitable day of the final battle. Tgurneu had needed fifty years to play the winning move that would bring about its victory. 
That plan, orchestrated over the course of fifty years, was finally about to come to fruition—by means of Adlet Mayer, the strongest man in the world, whom Tgurneu had chosen. 
Tgurneu reminisced about a rare circumstance forty years ago, when a fiend had second-guessed it—the three-winged fiend, whose body Tgurneu had appropriated. 
“Why Adlet Mäyer?” the three-winged fiend had demanded. It was unusual for it to oppose Tgurneu so firmly. It even claimed that if Tgurneu could not provide a convincing explanation, it would refuse to serve as its body. 
The three-winged fiend had wondered: Why not Chamo Rosso? Why not Goldof Auora? Why choose Adlet as the seventh, when he didn’t even compare in talent or ability? Adlet was even the weakest among the apprentices Atreau had accepted. Even if Atreau was necessary for the plan, Tgurneu could simply have pulled some strings within the temple or the Kingdom of Piena to maneuver either Chamo or Goldof into becoming his apprentice. 
With a sigh, Tgurneu had replied, “You don’t get it. I believe Adlet is far greater than either of them. I know he has something neither Goldof nor Chamo have. I know he can make the plan I’ve envisioned a reality. No matter what anyone says, I will choose Adlet. He’s the one I’ve been waiting for.” 
In its mind, Tgurneu crowed to the now-deceased three-winged fiend: I was right . 
About thirty minutes before the mark appeared on Fremy’s chest, Tgurneu had ordered the wolf-fiend to win her over, to tell her that all the fiends actually thought of her as one of them. 
Of course, Tgurneu didn’t love her, not even in the slightest, though she was far from unique in that regard. And the fiends had never accepted Fremy. She was nothing more than a half-breed after all. 
Fremy would understand that, too. Hating Tgurneu and loving Adlet as she did, she would never agree to surrender. Tgurneu had an ulterior motive in mind when giving the order. 
On the southern edge of the ruins, Tgurneu spent some time just waiting. There was no need for impatience. 
Voices could faintly be heard from far away. One aerial fiend’s call reached Tgurneu’s ears. “Listen, Fremy. I was—under örders. To hürt you.” It seemed it was trying to win Fremy over, just as it had been told. 
“Oh, it sounds like we’re in full swing,” said Tgurneu. “Ah-ha-ha! What insincere nonsense is this?” 
“So I did—” The aerial fiend’s voice was cut off. 
“Oh, it was shot down. What a fool.” Tgurneu smiled. After that, Tgurneu gave the wolf-fiend instructions to deliver to the seventh via the fliers. It wasn’t long before it was done. 
A few more minutes of waiting, and Tgurneu muttered, “…I suppose it’s about the right time.” It released its host from its control and removed its fig-shaped form from the fiend’s stomach. It opened its mouth—meaning a big crack opened in the fig—revealing lips and teeth. Tgurneu stuck its tongue out all the way, and a single purplish-red flower petal appeared on the tip. 
Adlet was dashing haphazardly through the ruins. He’d gained some distance from his pursuers, looking for his opportunity to take the fake command center by surprise again and stick the light gem on the leopard-fiend. 
“Wait, Fremy! Dön’t ally yourself with the hümans!” 
“Being on their sïde is going to get you kïlled!” She could hear the fiends’ voices here and there. They had been calling for her surrender for about fifteen minutes now. 
Adlet said to her, “You get that they’re not actually concerned about you, right, Fremy? They just want to use you.” 
“You don’t have to tell me,” Fremy replied. But Adlet’s ears didn’t miss the trembling in her voice. She was rattled. Tgurneu must have wanted to attack her emotionally to make her screw up. 
Tgurneu always has been the worst kind of heel , Adlet thought, hating Tgurneu all over again. 
“…Yes, there’s no way the fiends could care about me,” Fremy muttered as if trying to reassure herself. 
Abruptly, Adlet wondered—though it was true Tgurneu was the worst kind of heel, was it the case there really wasn’t one shred of affection in its heart? Fremy had said the fiends all hated her. But did they all really loathe her? Some of them might actually care for her, in their heart of hearts. 
Just like the white lizard-fiend that died to protect her. 
The thought struck him that maybe Fremy would be happier if she returned to the fiends, but he shook his head, tossing it from his mind. Fremy hated Tgurneu. She had sworn to keep fighting as long as it lived. Even if there were some fiends out there who did care for Fremy, that didn’t matter. Adlet would kill Tgurneu and defeat the Evil God. That was the only way to make Fremy happy. 
Above their heads, an aerial fiend was yelling—not at Fremy, but at the seventh…Hans. “Where äre you? What are you döing, seventh?! You don’t mean to bétray us for the Braves, do you?! Betrayal will not be fórgiven! If you réveal even part of the truth to the Braves, pünishment from Cómmander Tgurneu will be instantaneous!” The aerial fiend continued, “Prótect Cómmander Tgurneu! Prévent the Braves’ attacks and kill them all! You should underständ that if by any chänce something happens to Cómmander Tgurneu, your loved one will die!” 
So Tgurneu doesn’t know where Hans is, either? Adlet thought. Had Chamo gotten him, or had he concluded the situation was disadvantageous and fled? Or was he thinking about saving that “loved one”? 
“That could be a lie—Tgurneu’s attempt to confuse us. Ignore it,” warned Adlet. 
About twenty minutes must have passed since then. Adlet, Fremy, and Dozzu were hiding in the shadows, avoiding the enemy’s pursuit. The fiends were still crying out for Fremy’s surrender, and she was still ignoring them. Just as Adlet was thinking Tgurneu’s plan to unsettle Fremy had failed, he suddenly heard an unfamiliar woman’s voice. He looked all around, searching for the source. But no one was there. 
“And so we meet…unknown warrior from a thousand years in the future. I am known as the Saint of the Single Flower.” 
The voice carried dignity, benevolence, and bottomless strength. For a moment, Adlet thought the Saint of the Single Flower had been revived, escaped her chains in the Temple of Fate, and was about to join them. But he quickly realized—the voice he’d just heard had come from the crest on his right hand. 
Fremy and Dozzu both looked calm. Their ears were focused on the chatter of the fiends echoing around them. Only Adlet had heard that message. 
The next words emerging from the crest chilled Adlet to the bone. “Brave warrior. I bestow upon you the seventh crest. The world…” Then, just as suddenly as the voice had come, it was gone. Dumbfounded, Adlet waited for it to continue. 
He was certain she’d just said I bestow upon you the seventh crest . Adlet looked at the crest shining on his right hand. It couldn’t be… This is the seventh crest? It couldn’t be… I’m the seventh? 
There’s no way , he thought. But the words from the crest had been mysteriously convincing. Adlet was certain they were true—not based on any reason, but instinctively. 
His crest was different from the others. It had a peculiar, special power, unlike the other Crests of the Six Flowers. Which was evidence in favor of the revelation that Adlet was the seventh. 
He was the one. There was no longer any room for doubt. 
“All right. That should do it,” Tgurneu muttered, and then the flower petal on its tongue instantly disappeared. The petal had been created by the Saint of the Single Flower one thousand years ago, a hieroform that controlled the seventh crest. Whoever held the flower petal could choose who to give the seventh crest. The one who held the petal could also impart to the bearer the message left by the Saint of the Single Flower a thousand years ago. Tgurneu had only let Adlet hear the first part. 
Tgurneu had revealed the closely guarded secret to Adlet: that he was the seventh. 
“We can’t be wasting time. Number seventeen, it’s time to go to work.” 
The minion that stepped forward in response to Tgurneu’s call was a tentacled caterpillar-fiend, so repulsive a human could hardly stand to look at it. It possessed powerful healing abilities. In exchange for lacking even the slightest offensive capabilities, it could heal the wounds of any fiend. What was truly awesome about it was that it could even heal damage to a fiend’s core to some degree. 
Two fiends had been designated as a number seventeen. One was installed beside the wolf-fiend so it could heal Fremy in case anything happened. The other was with Tgurneu. 
“Now then, this is an important task. Failure is not permitted. Treat this mission with the utmost care,” Tgurneu said. Atop its head were horns roughly the shape of a leafy strawberry top, and one of the vines growing from them sharpened into a needle. Tgurneu used it to pierce its own body. 
Learning that the crest he bore was the seventh confused Adlet, and he was given no time to calm his mind before the next disaster came bearing down on them. 
Fremy noticed he wasn’t himself and started to say something, when suddenly, she was spitting blood. 
“Fremy!” The moment Adlet saw it, he completely forgot about the voice he’d just heard. Keeping Fremy safe was everything. All this business with the seventh crest was second or third priority. 
Looking at Fremy’s chest, Adlet found a strange, red, ring-shaped mark there. 
He’d seen this mark before. 
It was about a year ago, back when he’d been spending day and night in training under Atreau Spiker. Atreau had been researching fiends the whole time, too. 
One day, someone had sent a number of fiend corpses to Atreau with an explanation that a soldier had found them in hiding in the Verdant Land. No sooner had the soldier discovered them than one pierced its own chest with its claw and died. The others began spitting blood at the exact same moment. The soldier had apparently been confused as to why the fiends had died without a fight. 
Though the acquisition of corpses was a common event, Adlet wondered what kind of connections Atreau had to get them. Puzzled, Adlet had waited for Atreau to finish inspecting the bodies. 
After some time, Atreau had pointed at them and said, “It seems certain fiends have a strange power.” 
“Oh. But they all have strange powers, don’t they?” 
“It’s not the ability that’s strange. It’s the purpose.” Atreau showed him the corpse. There was nothing odd about the one that had killed itself with its claws. There were, however, strange marks on the chests of the others, shaped like circles of red thread. “The fiends had something done to them. First of all, I found a kind of parasite in the one that stabbed itself. And all the other stiffs had strange tumors inside. Those tumors had some power that was the cause of death. A fiend used its ability on them.” 
“What kind of ability?” 
“It’s obvious to me that it kills a whole bunch of other fiends when a certain one kicks the bucket. Now then, what would be the purpose of such an ability? Were they afraid of a secret getting out…?” Atreau mused. 
Figuring it was nothing important, Adlet had left Atreau to go back to his training. Following that, Atreau had continued researching this chain death but ultimately came to the conclusion that he wouldn’t gain much in the way of results and gave it up. 
The loop-shaped mark on Fremy’s chest was definitely that same chain-death ability, and it had yet to be fully activated. But that meant if a certain fiend died, Fremy would, too, at the same time. 
Adlet was about to inform Fremy and Dozzu but suddenly remembered what that aerial fiend had yelled not long ago—its message intended for the seventh. 
“Betrayal will not be fórgiven! If you réveal even part of the truth to the Braves, pünishment from Cómmander Tgurneu will be instantaneous!” 
That hadn’t been meant for Hans. It had been for him. 
Tgurneu was warning him not to reveal even part of the truth. That must have meant he shouldn’t reveal the chain-death ability to his allies. If Tgurneu’s intention was to kill him, Adlet wouldn’t have cared. But if Tgurneu’s target was Fremy… 
Adlet couldn’t tell the others about the chain-death ability. He didn’t want to endanger Fremy—not even in the slightest. 
“So Tgurneu implanted a parasite or something inside my chest beforehand in case I ever got in its way. This must mean it’s been activated… So what Tgurneu means to say is that if I continue to fight now, I’ll die. And if I surrender, I’ll be saved?” asked Fremy. 
“If that’s the intention, that’s rather strange,” said Dozzu. “Why didn’t Tgurneu use it before?” 
Ignorant of everything, Dozzu and Fremy speculated as to Tgurneu’s intent. Once more, Adlet recalled what the aerial fiend had said. “Prótect Cómmander Tgurneu! Prévent the Braves’ attacks and kill them all! You should underständ that if by any chänce something happens to Cómmander Tgurneu, your loved one will die!” 
Adlet understood then which fiend’s death would kill Fremy: Tgurneu’s. It had to be. 
Adlet was frozen—unable to move. Tgurneu had forced him to see that if they slayed Tgurneu, Fremy would die, too. He could no longer kill Tgurneu, and he wasn’t allowed to reveal the existence of the chain death to the others, either. 
His brain couldn’t keep up with all these sudden sharp turns. A voice that had sounded like the Saint of the Single Flower had told him he was the seventh. Fremy had been taken hostage, and only Adlet was aware of it. 
What do I do? Adlet was in agony. 
Tgurneu was certain that this plan, built over the course of fifty years, had borne definite fruit. Tgurneu’s manipulation of Atreau had all been for this moment, when it took the Black Barrenbloom hostage to threaten the seventh. 
There had been two requirements for this accomplishment: first, teaching the seventh about the existence of the chain-death ability beforehand. Adlet had to understand that Fremy was a hostage, or there would be no point. And the most important thing was that only the seventh ever know about the ability. Secretive Atreau had hidden most of his research from everyone but his apprentices, just as Tgurneu had induced him to. 
None of the Braves were aware that Fremy had been taken hostage. Adlet couldn’t tell them. 
If they realized Fremy would go down with Tgurneu, one of the Braves might save her. Fremy might even kill herself to keep from becoming a burden. But that wouldn’t be a concern if nobody else was even aware of her predicament. 
Tgurneu liked taking hostages. No—you could say Tgurneu was obsessed with it. Why? Because it was a ploy that capitalized on love. The suffering and agony on human faces when Tgurneu took hostages was always so satisfying. 
“Now then, Adlet. You’ll understand what you should do now, won’t you?” 
Adlet frantically tried to sort out the situation. He himself was the seventh. He couldn’t doubt that. He’d understood immediately that the voice’s message was true. 
So Hans was a real Brave, and that meant the transfer ability had never existed. At the temple, Adlet had assumed Hans was the seventh and set him up, guessing based on his behavior that a transfer ability existed. That was what he’d told the Braves of the Six Flowers through the white lizard-fiend and Nashetania. But this meant all his assumptions had been fundamentally mistaken. There was no such thing as the transfer ability. The Black Barrenbloom would stop if they killed Fremy. 
If it was revealed that Adlet was the seventh, then his lie about the transfer ability would be exposed, too, and the Braves wouldn’t hesitate to kill Fremy. Fremy herself would choose death, too. So he had to protect this secret. 
But still, what was Tgurneu thinking? Why had it chosen Adlet as the seventh? If his role was to protect Fremy, then how had Tgurneu known he would fulfill it? 
Calm down , Adlet thought, pulling himself together. It didn’t matter who the seventh was. It wasn’t important what Tgurneu was thinking, either. The primary thing that should be on his mind was how to keep Fremy safe. 
Adlet decided he had no choice but to cancel the plan for now. Putting his hand on Fremy’s shoulder, he said, “We’re meeting up with Rolonia…and with Mora. We have to treat your chest.” He had to undo the chain death waiting for her. Killing Tgurneu would come after that was done. Until then, Tgurneu had to live, no matter what. 
But Fremy shook off his hand, saying, “What? Don’t be ridiculous!” 
Adlet almost blurted out At this rate, if we kill Tgurneu, you’re going to die . Yet, the words wouldn’t come out. “But I made up my mind I’d keep you safe!” 
Fremy smacked his hand away. “Stop. We should continue with the plan. It doesn’t look like I’m going to die right away. We just have to kill Tgurneu before I do. We can heal me afterward.” 
No, Fremy. We can’t. 
“Either way, we must kill Tgurneu, or we’ll all die. Now, we have no choice but to focus on Tgurneu’s defeat,” said Dozzu. 
Dozzu and Fremy dashed off. They were going to go through with it. What should I do? Adlet asked himself over and over in his mind. It didn’t matter anymore that he was the seventh. Whether he was a real Brave or the seventh, as long as Fremy was safe, he was fine. How would he protect her? The question occupied every corner of his mind. 
If Adlet could just undo the threat on Fremy’s chest, everything would be resolved, but he couldn’t even guess as to how to accomplish that. Adlet had only ever seen what the ability did. He’d never researched how it might be undone. He couldn’t even speculate at that. 
Mora? Or Rolonia? Adlet immediately dropped that thought. Even for them, it would be difficult. They both specialized in healing injuries. He doubted either would know a way to undo a fiend ability once activated on someone. 
Dozzu or Nashetania. They might help him out somehow , he thought, but then he immediately rejected the idea. First of all, there were too many fiends lurking everywhere. They would be watching the party’s actions. If they attempted to undo the chain-death ability, they were sure to be found. There was no way Tgurneu would just stand by and let that happen. It might actually punish them for it. It obviously wouldn’t kill itself, but there was also no guarantee that the ability was its only means of killing Fremy. Adlet couldn’t risk it. 
So he could neither rely on Mora’s or Rolonia’s abilities, nor could he consult with Dozzu or Nashetania. 
Fremy was nearly finished laying the groundwork for their plan. There had been no contact from Nashetania and Rolonia, which meant preparations were going well on their end, too. At this rate, they would end up killing Tgurneu. 
Adlet considered deliberately discarding the light gem in his belt pouch to throw a wrench in things for the time being—to force them to retreat and buy time. But he realized that was pointless, too. It wouldn’t resolve anything. His allies would come up a new scheme to take Tgurneu’s life and carry it out. 
Should he obstruct the Braves and prevent the success of the current plot? He couldn’t do that, either. Dozzu, Nashetania, and Goldof would suspect him. If Hans and Chamo found out, they would take the opportunity to expose him as the seventh. 
The reason Fremy wasn’t dead now was because Adlet had insisted killing her was pointless, and they all believed the Black Barrenbloom had a hidden transfer power. If his lie came to light, Fremy would die. He couldn’t allow even the slightest possibility that the truth might be revealed. 
Adlet’s mind whirled around desperately. Was there no way to kill Tgurneu and keep Fremy safe? Hell, was there no way to keep Fremy alive, period? 
Fremy extended her hand to him then. “Hand me that light gem, Adlet. I can’t leave it to you right now.” She’d noticed Adlet was distressed and seemed concerned. 
Adlet shook his head to tell her he was okay. His thoughts still a mess, he kept running with the others toward the fake command center. 
Adlet understood there was only one way he could protect Fremy—to kill all the Braves of the Six Flowers, just as Tgurneu had ordered. 
He also understood how simple that would be right now. 
But even if he did kill all the Braves as Tgurneu had instructed, what would happen to Fremy? She’d sworn she’d keep fighting until her death. She would obviously face Tgurneu alone and die. So was it all over? Was there no way to keep her safe? That couldn’t be. He was the strongest man in the world, so he should have been able to find a way. 
No sooner had the thought occurred to him than he heard the voice of a fiend coming from somewhere. It was crying out in search of Adlet, Fremy, and Dozzu. “Cöme back to us, Fremy! We wön’t give up trying to cónvince you!” Adlet saw the pain on Fremy’s face the moment she heard it. 
That was when Adlet made up his mind. 
Fremy hated Tgurneu. That much was clear. But Fremy didn’t hate all fiends. Somewhere in her heart, she wanted them to accept her. She had once loved fiends, and that love had yet to entirely disappear. 
So Adlet would kill all the Braves aside from Fremy. 
And he would send her back to the fiends. 
Fremy would try to protect her allies. She would keep fighting to kill Tgurneu, but Adlet would stop her. He would make sure to convince her, even if it cost him his own life. He would convince her she would be happiest if she returned to where she had originally belonged. 
It would be painful. He knew this would hurt more than anything he’d ever overcome, more than any battle he’d ever fought. Fremy saw Rolonia as a friend. She didn’t think badly of Mora, either. She would mourn their deaths. Plus, Fremy believed in him. When she found out who the seventh really was, it was going to hit her hard. She might hate him. He was going to wound her despite his promise to make her happy. That was the most painful thing of all. 
But he still had to do this. He had to protect her. He had to endure the pain. And he could—because he was the strongest man in the world. 
Right about when Adlet was making up his mind to kill the Braves, Mora was at the north side of the ruins yelling, “I’m sorry, Goldof! Please bear it a little longer!” 
Goldof and Mora were together inside the fifty-five-yard-wide barrier. The corpses of about twenty fiends that had fallen to Goldof’s sword were piled inside it. Mora’s hands clenched the stake tight as she sent her power pouring into it. 
The fiends pressed against the barrier, violently battering it over and over with a unified effort. Even this barrier couldn’t hold out for long. When it ripped, Mora quickly repaired it while Goldof fought off the fiends that burst inside. They had done this several times. 
As Mora powered the barrier, she also scanned the area attentively with her clairvoyance. Nashetania and Rolonia were running around about half a mile away from where Mora and Goldof were. 
Nashetania covertly scattered dry leaves soaked in chemical in her wake, watching cautiously for any fiends that may have noticed or might be picking up leaves. Her work was admirably perfect. Not a single fiend had caught on. 
From Mora’s position, she couldn’t really tell how things were going with Adlet, Fremy, and Dozzu. The fake command center was outside her range. She couldn’t see the party fighting there, either. 
But the number of aerial fiends in the sky was steadily decreasing. It seemed Fremy was handling her role. Once the fire was set in the forest, Mora and Goldof planned to wrap themselves in fireproof cloths that Adlet had handed them earlier and break out of the circle of fiends surrounding them. Just a little longer. A little longer, and the plan would begin. 
Meanwhile, Rolonia was guarding Nashetania’s back as she kept an eye on their surroundings. 
At first, it had been terrifying. Even Rolonia had thought Adlet’s plan was dangerous, wondering if Nashetania and Dozzu would actually do what they’d been told. What she was most anxious about was her own acting ability, that she might ruin Adlet’s plan. But that anxiety was gradually fading. She was fooling the fiends. 
Nashetania came to her side, brought her lips close to Rolonia’s ear and said, “You’re deceiving them so well. It’s perfect.” Though Nashetania was an enemy, her compliment made Rolonia sincerely glad. 
“By the way, you heard those cries earlier, didn’t you?” Nashetania added. By that, she must have meant all the fiends calling for Fremy’s surrender. As they had been running around the ruins, the voices of the fliers had reached their ears. “They might attempt something. If Fremy betrays us…” 
“N-no, please don’t say that.” Rolonia gave Nashetania her best glare. “She’ll never betray us. You don’t need to worry at all.” 
“…All right. If someone as timid as you insists so strongly, then I’ll believe it, too.” Nashetania backed down surprisingly easily. 
Together with Fremy and Dozzu, Adlet charged the fake command center again. His goal now was the exact opposite from before. He wasn’t trying to defeat Tgurneu but the Braves of the Six Flowers. 
The Braves trusted him; they were putting their all into setting up this ploy, so he had to make the most of it. They would continue preparations for the fire as they had been, and they would ignite it, just as planned. Before that happened, though, Adlet would secretly tell Tgurneu everything. 
What would Tgurneu do, once it learned of their scheme? It would turn their strategy against them and kill them all. It would plant a trap, send the leopard-fiend somewhere Tgurneu wasn’t, lure the Braves there, and kill them all. That’s about what Adlet would have come up with. All the Braves, including Fremy, would be caught unawares, assuming the plan was going well. With Tgurneu’s forces, killing all of them but Fremy wouldn’t be that difficult. 
They couldn’t take too long. He would do the deed in one fell swoop. And in order to accomplish that, he had to take advantage of this situation. 
For now, he had to finish setting up the operation. Adlet was fighting the fiends of the fake command center with Dozzu, looking for a chance to stick the light gem onto the leopard-fiend. 
During the many charges so far, Adlet had sown the seeds of their trap. He’d thrown a number of his tools at the enemy horde: smoke bombs, paralysis needles, weighted strings that would tangle around legs, mucus that impeded movement. With these, he’d injured and dirtied the fiends’ bodies. 
Adlet checked on the leopard’s status. Since it was protected by its allies, it hardly had a scratch. But the mucus he’d thrown at it earlier clung to its back and rear, picking up tree leaves, pebbles, and bomb fragments. 
Adlet judged that this was his chance. With Dozzu’s and Fremy’s backup, he rushed into the center of the enemy’s formation. The fiends easily prevented his reckless charge, but when Adlet was surrounded, Dozzu fired off a lightning bolt to help him. The moment the enemy was distracted, Adlet threw the light stone at the same time as a handful of needles. Lost among the action of the lightning strike and the needles, the little gem completely escaped the enemy’s notice. It clung to the leopard-fiend’s rump, and the mucus firmly fixed it there. 
Dodging attacks, Adlet splashed more mucus on all the fiends. Some of it stuck to the leopard-fiend’s hind quarters, too, and the light gem was no longer visible. 
Neither the leopard-fiend, the wolf-fiend, nor any of the others seemed to notice what Adlet had done. To them, Adlet’s attacks would have looked wild and indiscriminate. 
Adlet continued the melee for a while after until, eventually, he ordered a retreat. The three left the wolf-fiend’s formation to hide somewhere away from their pursuers. 
Fremy had shot down the majority of the aerial fiends and explained that the rest could be killed at any time. She handed Adlet the explosive device to use when they carried out the plan. “And on your end?” she asked him. 
Adlet nodded. He told her he’d finished his preparations, too. 
“At first, I really wasn’t sure how this would go…but it’s working, isn’t it?” asked Fremy. She showed no sign that she’d picked up on his intentions. 
“We’re almost there,” said Dozzu. From the fiend’s attitude, it didn’t seem suspicious, either. 
“I’m worried about Mora and Goldof,” Fremy admitted. “I wonder if they’re safe.” 
“I doubt it will be a problem. Goldof is the sort who becomes stronger the greater the crisis. He’s sure to take care of Mora,” Dozzu replied. Neither knew anything. 
“I’m more worried about him betraying us than anything else,” Adlet said, cutting into their exchange. 
“When we meet up with Nashetania and Rolonia, we won’t be carrying out the plan right away. We’ll check for any missteps or traps from Tgurneu first. We’ll watch to see what the fiends do for a while, and then we’ll execute. Got that?” 
Dozzu and Fremy nodded. 
“…I think there’s something here,” Adlet said, standing up. He wanted to tell Tgurneu about their plan as soon as possible, but if his other allies found out, it was over. He had to act cautiously. 
Fortunately, they were well out of the range of Mora’s clairvoyance. It would take some time for Nashetania and Rolonia to reach them. He just had to keep out of Fremy’s and Dozzu’s sight. 
“Fremy, Dozzu, search the area. I’ll do the north, Fremy—the southwest, and Dozzu, you handle the southeast,” Adlet ordered, leaving the ruined building where they’d been hiding. Just as they’d been told, Fremy and Dozzu kept watch. 
First, Adlet would put some distance between himself and the other two, then he’d quietly make contact with a fiend. It couldn’t be just any fiend. It had to have a certain degree of intelligence and be able to understand that Adlet was the seventh. 
Right around then, a fiend was crawling around the ruin where Adlet, Fremy, and Dozzu had hidden. Tgurneu had deployed it from the true command center, and its mission was to make contact with Adlet and learn the Braves’ plan. The tiny centipede, about twenty inches long, was skilled at covert operations and had sharp senses, though not as sharp as specialist number thirty’s. If Adlet was alone, making contact would be easy. 
The centipede-fiend saw Fremy and Dozzu leave the ruin, then immediately found Adlet. He was alone, looking around the area. He wasn’t acting like a scout. He was looking for a fiend to make contact with. 
But then, just as the centipede-fiend was about to raise its voice— 
“Adlet! Dozzu! This is bad!” Fremy’s voice rang out, cutting through the darkness. “Chamo’s coming!” 
Moments before Adlet would have discovered the centipede-fiend, he turned the other way and ran back toward the ruin.