“Why, why are you taking off your clothes!”

Russell began to unbutton his white shirt one by one. Then he took it off completely and wrapped it around Summer.

Summer’s figure was completely hidden under the large shirt.

“Just a moment.”

“Wh-what are you going to do?”

Summer suddenly felt something strange. Russell’s upper body filling her view was closer to that of a soldier than a minister.

Well-defined muscles. And scars. Summer reached out and touched the tip of her finger to the largest scar.

She felt Russell flinch under her fingertip.

“What’s the reason an administrative official sitting at a desk has scars like these?”

“I haven’t lived a smooth life.”

Summer gazed intently at the scar. It was old, a long white scar running along his side.

For Bertrand Duke, praised as resembling a pure orchid, to have such scars. It was unimaginable.

In the original work, Russell was strictly someone who provided political help, not someone who used force.

“Maybe it’s possible if it’s Russell.”

Deceiving the god. Russell had already deceived the god once and asked Summer for information.

“Summer. Stop touching my body and engrave it.”

“…Engrave?”

“With that, you can leave whatever you want to leave. It’s good to leave what you want me to remember.”

“Are you serious?”

“If I wasn’t serious, it would be quite problematic to be half-naked in front of you like this, wouldn’t it?”

“…”

Summer opened the ink bottle lid and filled the pen nib with ink.

Then with trembling hands, she began to write letters over Russell’s scars.

Summer’s story was densely written over the scars.

“Is it possible to deceive the god with something like this?”

Summer’s hand stopped abruptly. Summer thought the world might not know just by writing some words on a body.

Probably by the time Summer returns and the sun rises the next day, these words will have disappeared cleanly.

“It’s good if we deceive, and if we don’t, that’s fine too.”

“What if the god gets angry and harms Russell?”

“I’ve never served the god in the first place. Him harming me is entirely possible, and it’s not Summer’s fault.”

“…”

“Will you tell me this time?”

“Tell you what?”

“Your real name. The name that you say you lost and want to recover so badly that you’d leave me here to go find it, that name Summer is looking for.”

“…My name?”

Russell momentarily lost his words at Summer’s expression, which was so sorrowful as she said this.

Is this what it’s like to lose one’s name?

The soul being eroded and gnawed away, becoming ragged. Did she have to endure such powerless and fearful days?

“I’m finished.”

Summer completely withdrew her pen. Russell put his shirt back on without reading what Summer had engraved.

Under the white shirt, the words Summer had engraved were hidden.

“Russell, if, if you really forget me…”

“I will remember.”

“Still,”

“Even if the world erases my memories, I will trace the marks of my life and surely remember.”

Summer shifted her gaze to outside the window. The moonlight was bright. Time had advanced significantly.

Summer got up and approached the window. Outside was ruins.

The temple that had been pristine until just now had become an old, crumbling ruin, showing how perfectly Demian had destroyed the god’s image.

“It’s a really good stage for an exit.”

Fortunately, either Fei had subdued Demian or Demian had stopped on his own, as there were no more sounds of things breaking.

Summer turned around to face Russell.

Her hair, like embroidered gold thread, shattered like sunlight under the white moonlight.

“Russell. Can you stay by my side until I take my last breath?”

“If you allow it.”

Facing Summer under the moonlight, Russell thought that if there were a god in this world, it might be similar to Summer.

“Shall we go then?”

Summer smiled and reached out her hand. Russell had no choice but to take that hand, even knowing the pain of loss would follow.

It was certainly not the rational judgment he usually made.

“Summer. Are you ready?”

After changing into a green dress and arriving at the prayer room, Fei and Demian were visible. Fei hopped down from under the fountain and approached Summer.

Honestly, Demian’s condition was difficult to describe as good even with kind words. His hands were covered in blood, and his priest’s robes were a mess.

Demian, sitting like a doll with a broken string, his black hair hanging down, didn’t even glance at Summer.

“I’m ready.”

“Don’t tell me you’re planning to just drown yourself in that holy water?”

“Yes.”

“My goodness. Do you know how long and painful that would be!”

Fei strongly objected. Summer felt that at some point, Fei had stopped being happy about her death.

It would be good if the world returned to normal.

Perhaps thanks to Fei’s fuss, Demian slowly cast his gaze on Summer.

Then Demian pulled out two vials from under his priest’s sleeve and tossed them in front of Summer.

“Take them.”

“What are these?”

Summer asked as she picked up the two small vials that had fallen.

“Poison.”

Demian answered in a completely exhausted tone.

Summer held the vials up to the faint light. There was no significant difference between the two vials visible to the naked eye.

“The left one is Blengis’s breath. The right one is a poison that kills slowly. The choice is yours.”

Instant death, or a slow approaching death. It was time for her to choose.

“Of course the left one! Right?”

Fei spoke as if there was nothing to consider. But Summer dropped the Blengis’s breath on the floor. The fallen vial shattered.

“I’ll take the right one.”

“…”

Demian’s red eyes stared directly at Summer. It seemed both Demian and Fei found Summer’s decision unexpected.

Summer looked down at the vial in her hand.

She knows. The mind that has lost reason is poised to return with trembling, but the body already knows.

This act she is about to do is not an act of returning. It was an act of ending.

Summer was the only one who knew this. Summer slowly put her lips to the mouth of the vial.

The poison that went down her throat was terribly bitter.

“Ugh!”

Immediately, Summer staggered with the sensation of her insides twisting. The empty vial in her hand fell to the marble floor.

“Summer!”

Russell quickly supported Summer.

“Th-the fountain, cough, throw me into the fountain…”

Black blood came up with every word she spoke.

Russell quickly picked Summer up and approached the fountain. Then Russell stepped into the fountain.

It wasn’t very deep. It only came up to Russell’s knees at most.

“Cough!”

Summer spewed out blood again. The prayer room was eerily quiet. No one could make even a breath sound.

“Why do you all… have such faces…”

Summer mumbled and laughed emptily. Especially Fei, who had a completely distorted face beyond just being gloomy.

“Russell, quickly…”

“Alright.”

Russell slowly bent his knees and lowered Summer. The freezingly cold water came up tightly to his chest.

Russell didn’t let go of Summer.

He was busy constantly wiping Summer’s blood with his hand while holding her on his lap.

“Summer. Please, please…”

Mutterings flowed from between Russell’s lips. Summer gazed at Russell intently, taking him in fully with her eyes.

“Russell, you know how to be flustered too.”

“Please, Summer…”

Russell tightened his arms around Summer without even knowing what he was pleading for.

It felt like Summer was about to disappear. He was afraid. The forgotten fear of loss came back again.

While nursing his sickly mother by her side, Russell had to helplessly watch a person slowly dying.

Even now, holding Summer, he was helpless. Perhaps even more so than then.

“Ugh! You know, Russell…”

“Don’t speak. It will hurt a lot.”

“When I die, hoo, please don’t hold a funeral.”

“Summer, please… don’t be so cruel to me anymore. Please…”

“It’s a request, Russell.”

“…”

Russell’s face seemed to crack, and soon his expression contorted with pain.

“This is a personal request.”

“…”

“Don’t cry too painfully, cough! I saw someone who lost a precious person. Ugh, haa… it felt like my heart was being torn apart, haha, I didn’t like it.”

“I refuse. I will hurt as much as I want.”

“That’s too much.”

Summer spoke trying to smile and pretend to be calm. But her face was becoming increasingly pale as the blood drained away, and her fingertips trembled.

“Russell.”

“Yes. I’m here. I’ll be here until you leave.”

Red liquid spread over the clear water. The area around Summer and Russell was already blood-colored.

“Will you tell me, sniff, that you love me just once?”

“…”

“Even if it’s not true, sob, it’s fine, cough, just once.”

“…”

Russell’s closed lips wouldn’t open. Summer laughed as if she had expected that.

“You stingy person. You can’t lie even to someone about to die.”

At that moment, Summer’s head tilted back sharply as she felt dizzy.

“Summer!”

Russell quickly adjusted his hold on Summer. Her body was too cold. The end was approaching.

“…Russell?”

Summer’s eyes widened as she barely gathered her senses and tried to say goodbye to Russell one last time.

“Why are you so cruel?”

“Russell…”

Tears fell down Russell’s cheeks. His blue eyes, wet with moisture, contained his grief-stricken and devastated feelings.

Summer forcibly raised her arm, which was difficult to move even a finger, and wiped away the tears flowing down Russell’s cheeks.

“Russell, don’t cry too much.”

“…Don’t leave.”

“…”

“I was wrong. I won’t be able to handle it. I’m not at all prepared to handle parting with you.”

“…”

“Summer, please…”

“Russell. Don’t be too sad. After all,”

Summer spoke, gasping for breath as if the end was approaching.

“Time flows, and we must inevitably part once.”

“Summer…!”

“Take care. I’m leaving first.”

With that, Summer closed her eyes. And using her last strength, she pushed away Russell’s arms.

With a splash, Summer’s body was completely submerged.

Russell hurriedly tried to lift Summer up again, but it was after her physical body had disappeared like a mirage.

Russell’s blue eyes shook unsteadily.

“Summer…? Summer, Summer! No… Summer! Please, no…”

Russell frantically dunked his head into the fountain again and again, searching for Summer like a madman.

Fei also approached quickly with a bewildered face and stared blankly into the blood-stained fountain.

“Did even her physical body… cross over?”

Summer was gone. Nowhere to be found.