Alicization Dividing Read online

  It certainly wasn’t pity. Saving Alice from this fate was half the reason Eugeo and I were here at Central Cathedral in the first place. But there wasn’t enough time to explain all that. And besides, it wasn’t Alice Synthesis Thirty that Eugeo wanted to rescue from the tower, but his childhood friend Alice Zuberg, who had been abducted from Rulid Village eight years ago.

  I tried to come up with an argument that would convince Alice as I fought against the screaming pain. But no such rationale manifested. I could offer up only a partial truth.

  “I…Eugeo and I didn’t come charging up the cathedral for the purpose of destroying the Axiom Church.”

  I stared down at Alice’s fierce blue eyes, searching for the right words. “We want to protect the realm from a Dark Territory invasion, just like you. We fought a goblin band in the mountains two years ago…not that I expect you to believe me. So I don’t want you to die, if you’re one of the most powerful Integrity Knights. You’re a valuable source of power.”

  She drew her brows together, taken aback by this comment, but regained her poise to snap, “Then why do you turn your sword upon your fellow man and commit the greatest taboo of bloodshed?!”

  The question came from a place of pure righteousness—implanted by Administrator for her own ends or not. Alice’s eyes burned. “Why did you harm Eldrie Synthesis Thirty-One and all those subsequent knights?!”

  Sadly, I didn’t have a convincing reply. My desire to save the human realm was both honest intent and an act of hypocrisy. If I reached the top of the cathedral and defeated Administrator, Cardinal would regain all system privileges. In order to prevent the coming catastrophe, she would attempt to reinitialize the entire Underworld. And as of that moment, I couldn’t think of a way to avoid this outcome: salvation through utter oblivion.

  But if Alice and I plunged to our deaths, that would only make the coming tragedy worse. If the “final stress test”—an invasion from the Dark Territory—happened without Cardinal having control, the Integrity Knights and Administrator would fall in battle, and every last human being would be agonizingly slaughtered.

  The worst part of all was knowing that if I died here, I would simply wake up in a Soul Translator somewhere in the real world. The Underworldians would perish in a hell of suffering, and I would be perfectly fine back in reality. An unthinkable conclusion.

  “I’m…”

  With the little time I had left, what could I possibly say that would convince the protector of the church and its dedication to order? But no matter how futile, there was nothing else I could do in this situation.

  “Eugeo and I attacked Raios Antinous and Humbert Zizek at the academy because the Axiom Church and Taboo Index are wrong. Deep down, you know that’s true, don’t you? Just because the Taboo Index doesn’t outlaw it, should higher nobles be allowed to torment and defile completely innocent girls like Ronie and Tiese…? Is that what you believe?!”

  My body shook as my mind flashed back to the scene I witnessed two years ago in the student dorm—the girls mercilessly trussed up with tears in their eyes. The tip of the sword creaked in the wall again, but I barely noticed it.

  “Well?! Answer me, Integrity Knight!!”

  My raging emotions manifested in a hot droplet that spilled from my eye to Alice’s forehead below. The golden knight sucked in a sharp breath, her eyes gaping. When her trembling lips opened again, it seemed as though the harshness of her attitude had given way to something else.

  “The law…is the law. Sin…is sin. If the people are allowed to define the law by their own needs, then how are we to uphold order in the world?”

  “And who decides if Administrator was right to create the law that way? The god of the celestial realm? Why aren’t I being fried by a bolt of lightning from above, then?!”

  “Because Stacia’s will is made clear through the actions of us, her servants!”

  “And Eugeo and I came up all this way hoping to clear that up! We want to defeat Administrator and prove that it’s a mistake! And for the exact same reason…”

  I glanced up briefly at the sword wedged into the wall and saw that it was nearly out. One move from Alice, one tiny little gust of wind, and the tip would either break or fall out, sending us plunging below.

  “…I refuse to let you die right now!!”

  I sucked in the biggest breath I could, tensed my stomach, and summoned all my remaining willpower.

  “Yaaaah!!” I bellowed, yanking my left arm up to lift Alice. Both arms and shoulders screamed with pain, but I managed to bring her up to my level and use the last bits of my strength to shout, “Stick your sword in that seam! I can’t hold out…please!”

  Up close, her features were twisted with emotion. A moment later, she lifted her arm and loudly, deeply thrust her Osmanthus Blade into the seam between marble blocks. At nearly the same second, my black sword slipped out of the stone, and my other hand lost the grip holding Alice.

  In a single, vivid instant of panic from head to toe, I envisioned my long, long fall to the ground, and the oblivion that awaited.

  But all I actually felt was a split second of floating, then a fierce tugging shock. Alice’s hand had shot out and grabbed the back of my shirt collar. Once I was sure she was supporting all my weight with her sword and arms, I let out a deep breath. My pounding heart gradually eased to a state less than sheer panic.

  “…”

  I looked up at her. In the span of a single second, we had switched positions both physically and mentally. The golden Integrity Knight clenched her jaw, as if grappling with every possible kind of conflicting emotion. I felt her fingers loosen and tighten over and over, shifting pressure on the back of my collar.

  Eugeo was the only Underworldian I knew who could be uncertain under such extreme circumstances. The other artificial fluctlights, for better or for worse, were blindly faithful to a certain set of behaviors, and did not need to grapple with huge, difficult choices. Put another way, all the truly important decisions were always handed down to them by something or someone else.

  In other words, Alice the Integrity Knight’s mind had a more “human” quality than many of her fellow Underworldians—even after her soul had been altered by Administrator.

  I had no way of knowing what sort of inner debate she housed. But after several seconds that felt like an unfathomable eternity, she easily lifted my body up to its former level.

  Unlike her, I had no reason to hesitate. I instantly thrust my sword into the seam once more, exhaling. Once I was stable again, Alice withdrew her hand from my collar and turned her face away. Despite the sternness of her words, her voice itself was weak and small.

  “…I did not save you, only repaid what you did for me. Besides…we have not finished our duel.”

  “Ah, I see…In that case, we’re even now,” I said, choosing my words carefully. “Here’s a suggestion. Both of us need to find a way to get back into the tower. So why don’t we call a truce until then?”

  “…A truce?” she asked, turning to throw me a truly mistrustful glance.

  “Yes. I doubt we can manage to destroy the cathedral’s wall again, and it won’t be easy to climb it. If we work together, it will raise our chances of survival. Of course, if you’ve got any easy ways back inside, I’m all ears.”

  “…”

  She bit her lip in frustration. “If such a method existed, I would have done it already.”

  “Yeah. Obviously. So may I assume we’re in agreement on a truce and cooperation?”

  “Before I say yes…what exactly do you mean by cooperation?”

  “If one of us seems likely to fall, the other helps. If we had a rope, it would make it easier for us to maintain our position, but I suppose that’s asking too much.”

  The knight did not answer or look at me for a long time, then bobbed her head almost imperceptibly. “It is a logical suggestion…I must admit. I suppose I have no better choice,” she said, turning to glare at me. “But the instant we retur
n to the tower interior, I will cut you down. Do not forget this inevitable outcome.”

  “I’ll…keep it in mind.”

  She nodded with satisfaction, then cleared her throat, signaling a topic change. “So…you mentioned needing a rope? Do you have any extra fabric?”

  “Fabric…?”

  I looked down at my outfit, realizing I didn’t have so much as a handkerchief in my pockets. If this were good old Alfheim, I could produce a veritable ton of extra clothes, capes, and so on from my virtual item storage, but the Underworld was not blessed with such convenience.

  “…Well, all I’ve got is this shirt and these pants. If need be, I’ll take them off, though,” I offered with a one-shouldered shrug.

  Alice made the bitterest face I’d ever seen and yelled, “That will not be necessary! You must be joking. I cannot believe you would head into battle with nothing but a sword.”

  “Hey, you dragged me and Eugeo here from the academy with nothing but the clothes on our backs, right?”

  “But you snuck into the tower’s armory, didn’t you? There were plenty of very fine ropes in there that…oh, forget it. This is a waste of time,” she snorted, turning away. She lifted her right hand in its golden gauntlet, then grimaced when she realized she couldn’t take her other hand off the sword hilt.

  She thrust her arm toward me and commanded, “Undo the fastener on my gauntlet with your free hand.”

  “Huh?”

  “And do not touch my skin under any circumstances. Quickly now!”

  “…”

  From what Eugeo told me, back in Rulid, Alice had been a bright, friendly, and kind girl to all. So where was this totally opposite personality coming from?

  At last, the feeling was back in my left hand. I lifted it up to the fastener on her gauntlet. I held the metal device so she could pull her hand free. Her pale, slender fingers made a gesture, and she shouted, “System Call!”

  This was followed by some complex, unfamiliar commands. The gauntlet in my hand flashed and began to change shape. Within a few seconds, I had a beautiful, coiled golden chain in my hand.

  “Whoa…a matter-transformation spell…?”

  “Weren’t you listening? Are those ears on the sides of your head, or carnivorous holes for devouring insects? That was just a shape-changing art. Only the pontifex herself can perform the art of altering the very material.”

  I apologized to Alice, who clearly didn’t view our truce as a chance to soften her tone, then tested the strength of the chain. I stuck the end into my mouth and tugged; it felt like my teeth were going to pop out. The metal was thinner than my pinkie finger, but it was clearly tough enough, and the chain was bookended with sturdy-looking fasteners.

  I stuck one of the fasteners onto my belt and held out the other end, which Alice took and attached to the metal clasp of her sword belt. The length of hanging chain between us ran about fifteen feet long. As long as we didn’t both fall at the same time, this gave us some measure of security.

  “All right…”

  I glanced around to survey our situation. Based on the placement of the sun, we were hanging from the western wall of Central Cathedral. The sky overhead was turning from blue to purple, while the sunlight hitting the white stone painted it a soft orange hue. I estimated it was about half past three.

  After a very careful glance past my feet and the thin wisps of cloud beyond them, I could make out the stone walls that surrounded the cathedral garden like a miniature play set, then the rest of Centoria, split into four by the Everlasting Walls. The sight was a reminder of the impossible height of the tower.

  Counting the thickness of the stone partitions, I estimated each floor of the tower to be about twenty feet high, so the height of the eightieth floor, where I fought Alice, would be over fifteen hundred feet off the ground—perhaps more like sixteen or seventeen, given the high ceiling on the fiftieth floor. If I fell from here, there was no chance of survival. My body would be so pulverized by the impact that I’d be reduced to dust. The air around us was gentle for now, but there was no guarantee it wouldn’t blow harder.

  I shivered and clenched the hilt of my sword tighter, then wiped the sweat from my free palm on my pants.

  “So, uh…just so I’m clear on this…,” I started to say.

  Alice’s face shot up to look at me; she’d been gazing down as well. I thought she looked a bit paler than before, but her tone of voice was just as blunt as ever. “What?”

  “I was just wondering…if you know the high-level sacred arts to change the shape of items, maybe you’d also be privy to an art to…fly? Okay, sorry, forget I asked,” I stammered at the sight of her arched eyebrow.

  “Did you learn anything in school?” she snapped. “The only person in the entire world who can fly in midair is the pontifex herself. Even the youngest apprentice monk knows that!”

  “Hey, I said I was just checking! You don’t have to get so mad at me.”

  “I did not appreciate your insinuation!”

  It was becoming more clear by the moment that Alice the Integrity Knight and I were simply not designed to get along on a personal level. Still, I stifled my urge to snap back and asked, “Fine…so in that case…is it possible to call that enormous dragon you flew me here on?”

  “It’s just one stupid question after another. Dragons are only allowed to approach the thirtieth-floor landing. Even Uncle…er, the knights’ commander himself isn’t allowed to take his dragon higher than that.”

  “H-how would I know those rules?!”

  “You ought to have realized the implication, since the landing was placed only on the thirtieth floor!” she said, glaring at me yet again for a good three seconds before we both turned away in a huff. I spent the next three seconds calming my rage over her totally unfair accusations before I was ready to resume.

  “So…there’s no way for us to escape this predicament through the air…”

  It took Alice another couple of seconds to regain her cool. Her blue eyes caught mine. “Not even birds can approach the upper reaches of the cathedral. The pontifex cast some kind of special art unknown to me that prevents them from coming closer.”

  “I see…Very thorough.”

  Off in the far distance, I saw a birdlike shape, but it didn’t seem to be getting any closer. I supposed it was some combination of Administrator’s magical power and a pathological sense of caution. In a sense, the abnormal height of this structure was both a symbol of power and an indication of fear toward some unseen foe.

  “So that leaves three options…climb down, climb up, or break through the wall again.”

  “The third will be difficult. Central Cathedral’s walls possess a nearly infinite life and regenerative ability, just like the Everlasting Walls. The same can be said of the glass windows on the lower levels.”

  “So we can’t even climb down to where the windows are,” I murmured. She nodded.

  “In fact, that hole punctured in the wall is even difficult for me to believe…I suppose I must accept it as some freakishly unlucky outcome from melding our Perfect Weapon Control arts, so it produced a huge burst of power. You have really been a thorn in my side.”

  “…”

  I merely breathed through my nostrils, certain that arguing my case would only lead us into another downward spiral. “In that case…couldn’t we repeat the phenomenon if we attempted the same thing again?”

  “I can’t rule out the possibility…but it would be difficult to make our way through the wall in the few seconds before it repairs itself again, and more importantly…I’ve already used the Perfect Weapon Control of my Osmanthus Blade twice. It needs either a good helping of sunlight or a long rest in my sheath before I can use it again.”

  “True, the same goes for mine. It needs a few hours of sheath time…and I’m sure that just hanging from it like this is doing plenty of damage on its own. Whether we go up or down, we should probably start moving soon.”

  I brushed the marble
stone with my free hand. It was devastatingly smooth. The blocks were nearly six feet to a side, stacked upon one another infinitely, with not even a window to break the totality of the west face. And even those were indestructible, according to Alice.

  Our only means of traversing the tower side was to utilize something like rock-climbing hooks that we could jam into the seams of the marble stone to use as handholds. The amount of energy required to go up or down seemed about the same, so I figured we might as well go up, but that led to another major problem.

  I gave Alice my most serious face, preparing for another nonanswer, and asked, “If we go up from here…will there be a spot we could use to get back inside the tower?”

  As expected, Alice looked hesitant at first. She bit her lip. If there was a place farther up to reenter the building, it would have to be very close to the top floor, where Administrator lived. It would be tantamount to taboo for an Integrity Knight tasked with protecting the Church to escort an enemy to such a vital place.

  But Alice drew a deep breath and said firmly, “There will be. On the ninety-fifth floor, in a place called the Morning Star Lookout, the tower is open to the air, with only pillars for support. If we can climb up that far, it will be easy to get back in. However…”

  Her crystal-blue eyes got even harder. “If we actually make it up to the ninety-fifth floor, I will have to kill you.”

  There was enough force in her gaze to make the back of my neck tingle. I nodded. “That was the deal, I believe. So shall we climb the wall, then?”

  “…Very well. It’s more practical than going all the way down to the ground from here…But you make it sound so simple. How will we climb such a sheer wall?”

  “Why, we’ll just run vertically right up it…I’m kidding,” I added hastily, seeing the temperature in her eyes rapidly dropping to subzero numbers. I cleared my throat, switched hands on the sword, and motioned with my free hand. “System Call! Generate Metallic Element!”