Blue Archive story · Volume 3: Eden Treaty, Chapter 3, Episode 15
Vol. 3 Ch. 3 Ep. 15: In Response to the Fifth Koan
1 scenes, 75 lines
1. Part 1
75 lines
Right.
This is where all of that struggling has led to.
I warned Azusa that this would be the outcome...
...but she clung onto hope nonetheless.
...
It's time I told you the end of the story. The conclusion.
This is an ending where everything is in vain, and delving deeper will only lead to more suffering.
The climax to a story where one person is forced to kill another, where they must become a murderer.
It's a story meant to make you uncomfortable, uneasy, and leave you unhappy.
Gloomy, sad, painful, and ultimately bitter.
But entirely truthful.
That's the essence of this tale.
...
Do you remember, Sensei, what you said in response to the fifth koan?
"You have to believe in paradise, and you have to put trust in others."
This is the result of that trust.
It was a paradox to begin with, the Eden Treaty being a promise to put an end to hatred once and for all.
That simply isn't possible.
Ironically, the treaty bares the name of paradise. The General Student Council president always did have an unpalatable sense of humor.
You've witnessed it yourself. The hatred between Gehenna and Trinity...
Arius' deep-seeded animosity...
The treaty bearing the name of a paradise that cannot be proven was signed, driven by their rancor.
A fitting end for those of us who were exiled from paradise, don't you think?
"I get it now, Seia."
"You don't know what happens next either, do you?"
Huh?
No, because there's no point in knowing. What happens next is like an epilogue after the ending.
Knowing will only lead to more sadness and suffering.
I'm confused, then. What is there to "get," Sensei?
"You're afraid of finding out what happens after."
What...makes you think that?
"That's why you're hiding in your dreams and won't wake up."
"It was nice seeing you, but I have to go."
"There's somewhere else I need to be."
What? You're going back?
What? You're going back?
Stop. Unlike me, your body hasn't fully recovered.
Even if you manage to wake up now, nothing will change. That's what I foresee.
It's the truth of the world, as told by the seven koans!
"I'm not interested in proving paradise."
"I don't care about the koans' riddles."
...
...
Are you denying the seven koans?
But why? The existence of paradise is life's ultimate question. If its existence can't be proven, then nothing can be.
Are you trying to say that you still believe in paradise?
You can't prove it, but you choose to have blind faith that it exists?
"Can we prove anyone has ever reached paradise?" The question isn't really about proving the existence of paradise...
...but simply a koan about the nature of faith. Is that what you're implying?
"Sorry. My students are waiting for me."
"See you later, Seia."
Wait, Sensei! There's still one more thing I must ask you!
Faith alone won't change anything. It won't stop your prayers from falling on deaf ears!
Where is the rationale that faith can change the world?!
"If you believe your bikini bottoms are panties, then they're panties."
...?
P-Panties...?
I'm not sure I follow. A-And what do they have to do with bikini bottoms? Is this some type of koan? I've never heard this one before...
Leave.
...
So that's how it is.
You intend to see the epilogue after all, Sensei.
Leaving me here, hiding in my dreams...
...
I...
Perhaps you were right. Maybe I am afraid of finding out what happens next.
What's on the next page...
Must I see the story all the way to the end?
I suppose that's my duty.
...
Very well, Sensei.
Even if it's a gloomy, sad, painful, and ultimately bitter story...
...I will see it through to the end.