by an arrow. She'd been extending her hand until the very end. She tried to shout something. Diamond-like tears glistened as they descended through the air. Lute successfully managed to catch her. As he watched over her, Kaito let out a quiet murmur. "...It's unusual to see you cry, Elisabeth." For some reason, she started struggling. As he gazed down at her, another faint smile crossed Kaito's face. However, smiling naturally like that was now beyond him. Black feathers had sprouted from his cheek. He immediately grabbed them and ripped them out. The twin powers of rebirth and destruction were whirling within him. A detached thought crossed his mind. Summoning God without the proper conditions having been met would have been hard, even for me. But now, given that the summoning's already completed, using His power in ways God Himself wants me to is pretty doable. At the moment, two inhuman emotions were bubbling up inside him. One was a fierce desire to destroy everything and swallow it all up. To put it in human terms, it resembled hunger. The other was a fierce determination to confine the destruction. To put it in human terms, it was like a sense of obligation. Kaito intentionally chose to amplify the latter. Little by little, Diablo's power began settling down. The underlings' cries stopped. A silence returned to the world below, one it had nearly forgotten. And at the same time, it began. A clear snapping noise rang out. "Yeah...I figured." The day of rebuilding was far in the future, so God was returning to His slumber. The Saint had been encased in a crystal. Now the same thing was happening to Kaito. A transparent layer had begun surrounding his still-living body. The snapping noise continued. Kaito murmured to himself. "Looks like it's over, huh...? I guess I did it." He quietly raised his arm. Azure petals and black darkness whirled atop his palm, and he drew a jet-black long sword from within them. The runes inscribed on its slender blade flashed, and he affirmed their meaning. All things are pardoned unto me. But I am ruled by none. "La (your job is done)." The moment Kaito whispered, cracks ran across the blade. Then Nameless, the sword without a name that was birthed from the wish to save a single woman, shattered completely. At the same time, Kaito's uniform transformed as well. At times, clothes made by magic could change based on their owner's influence. As the nature of Kaito's volition and magic shifted away from battle, so, too, did his outfit. Its end state was that of the butler uniform he'd constantly decried as unbecoming. He'd completed his transformation back into a foolish servant. Kaito slowly exhaled, then closed his eyes. The Mad King had appeared like a tempest and had vanished just as suddenly. And the massive amounts of mana he'd obtained knew that as well. There was truly nothing left that he needed to do. He'd completed everything that he'd set out to. And so Kaito Sena got to thinking. Specifically, it was during the time right before his body was fully enclosed. Hypothetically, if Elisabeth hadn't summoned me, what would have become of me? He certainly wouldn't have had to repeatedly experience the pain of death. He wouldn't have seen all those horrible, gruesome things he'd seen, either. However, he also would have gone his whole life without ever having been glad he was alive. Then like an empty bowl being filled with waterâ€” â€”memories of the various things he'd experienced in this new world swirled within his mind. The Torture Princess, laughing innocently. And tumbling toward the ground while shedding tears like diamonds. Hina, smiling gently. And drifting peacefully in and out of sleep atop a warm bed. The Butcher. Izabella. Jeanne. Lute. Ain. Vyade. All the people he'd met, all the expressions they'd made, and all the things they'd said to him. They had all been thereâ€” â€”and Kaito had lived within each of them. And Kaito hadn't forgotten the words Neue had said to him as he'd stood on death's door. "I guess...I was just hoping you could find happiness in this world." Even now, I'm still not totally sure what happiness is supposed to look like. But there's one thing I do know. The first time he'd wept with joy at having been bornâ€” â€”his death had gained meaning for the very first time. And even if he'd ended up under the same curse the Butcher had been bound byâ€” â€”no matter how foolish the decision had been, Kaito didn't regret it at all. He had no regrets. If he had but one, though... *** A crisp noise rang out as the crystal shattered. Somebody had used all their might to rip open part of the film surrounding him. Of course, it would quickly reform. Who would have done such a silly thing? And why? Flustered, Kaito turned around. Outside the gap in the crystal, he could see a black spot in the sky. It was the Kaiser. It was unclear what he'd come for, but he was wordlessly beating his wings. However, the reason for his arrival soon became clear. The Kaiser had been carrying someone. *** Kaito's bride was before his very eyes. His beloved bride had flown up to meet him. "Hi...naâ€”" "You did as you pleased, Master Kaito, and now I intend to do the same!" Her maid uniform fluttering, Hina beamed. She had already cast aside the halberd she'd used to break the crystal. She was simply reaching out her arms. She embraced him, as any would a deeply loved one. "I won't let you be alone." "Hinaâ€”" "After all, we're a family." Her smile was as radiant as a flower in bloom. Kaito trembled in surprise. He knew. He had to hurry. The crystal's opening still hadn't closed yet. If he shoved Hina away, he could still make it in time. He couldn't drag her into this. He needed to let her be free. With that thought in mind, he reached out his arms. And with all his strengthâ€” â€”he hugged his wife tight. Holding your beloved in your arms. That had to be one of the purest forms that happiness came in, Kaito Sena mused. She's warm, she's lovely, and I don't want to let go of her. For if we separate, I will surely die. And he was certain she felt the same way. Kaito Sena was terrifyingly free of regrets. If he had but one regret, though... ...it was in regard to his bride. And thus, Kaito now turned to his wife with a teary smile on his face. "Hina...will you stay with me forever?" "Yes, gladly. In sickness and in health, till death do us part. I shall be by your side forevermore!" They pressed their lips together, as resolutely as when they'd exchanged their vows. Then they smiled at each other like always. Kaito hugged Hina tight. The crystal snapped and popped as it closed up. Their bodies were steadily being surrounded. As they rubbed their cheeks affectionately against each other, Hina whispered: "Master Kaito, I'm very, very happy right now." "Yeah, me too." Their field of view gradually shrank and shrank. They were being cut off from the outside world. Despite the unfathomable pain and pressure invading his body, Kaito Sena whispered from the bottom of his heart as well. "I'm so glad...that I was born." And then with a snapâ€” â€”the crystal sealed completely. Epilogue Two pillars stood atop the World's End. Feathers, white and black, and roses, azure and crimson, fluttered down from them onto the frozen earth. They cascaded below like beautiful drops of rain and flakes of snow. At that florid scene's center, a massive crystal was enshrined between the two pillars. Two humans were sleeping inside it. Or to be more precise, one was from another world, and the other was an automaton. The two were nestled up close to each other, and their faces looked downright blissful. They were like a symbol of all the joy the world had to offer. The soldiers gazed dumbfoundedly at the crystal. The power that had threatened to destroy the world was gone, and all the underlings had turned to ash. The burning-black sky, too, had reclaimed its original milky-white, rainbow hue. The snowflakes drifting to the ground were clear and pure. Amid all that, the soldiers had come to realize something. Something about the person whom they'd all relied on yet had borne fear and bloodlust toward behind their smiles. Something about the Mad King, the man they'd feared they would need to kill someday. "...Was he always such a frail-looking boy?" He was nothing more than a thin little man. Still holding Jeanne, Izabella looked down. Vlad was still smiling. Lute struck the ground and let out a wordless roar. Valisisa spat on the ground. And there was one woman who sat down in front of the crystal. Her lustrous, black hair fluttered in the wind as she gazed at its two sleeping inhabitants. Nobody moved to approach her. Eventually, though, La Christoph came up behind her. Blood was flowing from his still-open rib cage. However, there was no pain in his voice as he made his solemn statement. "This world has sustained a grave blow. Humanity has no leeway, and the Church's authority has crumbled. I have no intention of committing the folly of killing someone as useful as you. Your execution is hereby permanently deferred, Elisabeth Le Fanu. That is the least we can do to repay the debt we owe that stranger." "Is that...so?" "Before the day of your death, try to do some good at least." With that, La Christoph closed his mouth and turned. Then he left to go help treat the wounded. Elisabeth remained silent. Suddenly, though, she moved. She extended her arm and touched the crystal. She pressed her hand firmly against its transparent surface. However, she was unable to make her way inside. As she gazed at their two resting figures, she let out a small whisper. "Hina... Perhaps this is the best for you. 'Tis a good thing, I suppose, that no tears need come your way... Aye, perhaps 'tis the best for both of you. And perhaps living alone is yet another of my punishments. No, as you said, I suppose I'm not alone." "Elisabeth. This foolish servant of yours will be by your side to the very end." Elisabeth thought back on the words she herself had been told. She curled her lips upward, just a hair. She knocked her forehead against the crystal. "You fool... You complete and utter fool." No voice rose up in reply. Nothing came back to her. Even so, she wore a smile as she spoke: "'Tis trueâ€”no matter how much time passes, you shall always be my foolish servant." Feathers, white and black, and roses, azure and crimson, rained down on her incessantly. They rained down over the world, as if to congratulate it for its survival. And with that, Kaito Sena's story came to an end. It was a tale from long, long ago. A tale of admiration, follyâ€” â€”and love. Afterword Winter's cold wave has given way, and spring is upon us. And with it, Volume 6 has been released. Truly, an auspicious season. Thank you all so much for buying the sixth volume of Torture Princess. In regard to how I'm arranging this afterword, I thought I'd lead with the acknowledgments this time. To Saki Ukai, for these six volumes of wonderful illustrations; to my editor O, for putting up with all the trouble I've caused you; and to Hina Yamato, for the two volumes of the manga adaptation, I would like to thank you all so much. I'd also like to extend deep thanks to everyone else involved in the process, as well as my beloved family, particularly my sister. And more than anything, I would like to