Vol. 3 Ch. 3 Ep. 24: Hatred That Is Not Our Own

Gah...

Shirasu...Azu...sa...

*pant*... *pant*... *pant*...

I can't move, Sensei...

...

Atsuko...

*cough* Hime... Why didn't you run away?

We've lost, Azusa.

N-No, Hime! If you speak, she'll...

It's okay. It's over now.

She wasn't going to let me live regardless of the outcome anyway. So it's fine.

...?

Let's end things here, Saori.

End...?

You can't mean returning to Arius. We'll be killed if we go back...

Then let's run away. Together.

Flee...?

Yes.

Azusa taught me something.

The hatred we've carried for so long...is not our own.

It was never ours from the beginning. It was instilled into us, and we falsely accepted it as ours.

Azusa realized that before us.

...

You've learned and experienced a lot while you've been gone.

I can see now. You were blessed to have an excellent teacher, Azusa.

And now Azusa's found somewhere she belongs.

So, Saori...

...let's run away together.

Away from here. Away from Arius.

Away from that hatred that is not our own.

But...we can't just leave like this...

Splendid. So the potential of adulthood is on display once again.

Intelligence and dignity. Courtesy and conviction. Experience and wisdom... All admirable qualities.

Yes... You are the one. It's you...

You're the one who holds the answer to the sublime which I seek!

What's happening?

It can't be...

Has the doctrine been realized?

We're dealing with something beyond our level.

What's going on...?

S-Sensei...

This is...bad. We have to run. We have to get away from here.

Sensei?

"I was hoping not to use this."

Reach for your wallet.

Ah... That must be it!

So this is the card I've heard so much about!

Power gained in exchange for your life and time... An incomprehensible force with origins and limitations even we can't understand!

I wonder what Golconde would have called it... He'd probably say that it requires metacognition to understand it.

Very well. Show me, Sensei. Show me the price you have paid.

Show me power worth pawning your life over!

Respond to my work with all your might!

...

Thank you, Sensei. Truly.

My apologies for turning in unfinished work. I promise to have it completed next time.

It's just as Black Suit said. He and I don't often see eye to eye, but I suppose I owe him a debt of gratitude this time.

Until next time, Sensei.

We shall meet again, in a dream.

*cough* *cough*...

H-Hold on a little longer, Leader.

Where should we go now?

We can't return to the district. She'll have us killed.

I could think of worse alternatives.

Th-That's not good. People die when they're killed... And even if we're not, the suffering isn't gonna end...

Right. That's the truth of this life.

...