Yeah, I swore I'd save the world. At the same time, though, he had an objective that he was determined to see through to the end. He was completely unwilling to yield on it. That was why he hadn't answered Izabella's question. He'd simply smiled and persisted in his silence. Could Kaito Sena kill Elisabeth Le Fanu? If he couldn't... That would mean... "...Hina, I have something important to ask you." "Ah, yes, Master Kaito? Whatever might it be?" Hina seemed to have picked up on the seriousness of his tone. She stirred restlessly. He stroked her hair. After burning its silky texture into his hand, he spoke softly. "Do you want to have a baby?" "Whaaaaaaaaaaaaat?" Hina's voice instantly cracked. Her entire body shook. If Kaito hadn't been hugging her, she probably would have fallen off the bed. Her eyes spun around in confusion. "Mas-Master Kaito, that'sâ€” Whyâ€”? Howâ€”?" As her face went bright red, her questions became jumbled and confused. Kaito just kept gently stroking her head. With a forlorn expression on his face, he closed his eyes for a moment. 9 Kaito and His Bride It's time for a story. It's the story of a boy who was brutally killed by another, and a story of a monster who cruelly killed others. Or perhaps it's a story of a child who was abandoned by his parents, and a hero who was abandoned by the world. Either way, it's a story of admiration and folly. It's a story of love, but not a story of romance. Kaito Sena chose to fight on behalf of the person precious to him. He'd sworn he'd do anything for that dear woman's sake. He had no regrets. In fact, he was so free of remorse that it bordered on madness. If he had but one regret, though... ...it was in regard to his bride. Kaito couldn't tell what kind of expression Hina was making. Even without looking, he could feel the warmth of her cheeks through his fingertips. He opened his mouth to speak, still not meeting her emerald eyes. Or more precisely, he couldn't muster the courage to meet them. "Elisabeth told us, right? We can make a humanoid homunculus from a mixture of our physical data, then cultivate it in your abdomen. Then if we insert my bodily fluids and nurture it with mana, we can make a baby, she said. If you want to, I have enough mana right now that we could easily finish the preparations." "I, wh-wha...? Tha... Yes, I recall it distinctly, so clearly that I should surely remember it even if I lost all my memories. I wanted to have at least a dozen beautiful children with you, Master Kaito, and preferably enough for our family to form a small country. But it's really all so sudden; my heart isn't, isn't, isn'tâ€”" "When I was walking around the Capital earlier, I got to thinking. Even if someone dies, as long as the world is still there, a part of them lives on. People's lives are short, but one after another, they carve their names into the future." Kaito continued stroking her hair, half to calm himself down. Hina was still in a tizzy. However, upon hearing how serious his tone was, she stopped mumbling and gave a small nod. "Yes, Master Kaito, that's true. There are many things people leave behind." "I swore that I'd save the world, that I'd rescue everything. If the sixth and seventh waves get released, humanity won't stand a chance. I have to end things before then. The final battle is almost upon us. But out of everyone, I decided to prioritize saving Elisabeth Le Fanu first." Kaito laid out his two contradictory objectives. The only way to save the world was by killing God and Diablo while they were still sealed in their contractors' bodies. Their salvation lay in murdering Diablo, murdering God, and murdering humans. In order to save the world, they needed to kill Elisabeth Le Fanu. There was no way to lay his two objectives atop the scales and keep them perfectly level. There shouldn't have been, in any case. However, Kaito went on without mentioning that inconsistency. "Hina, you should understand what that means, right? So..." Hina's body stiffened. She closed her mouth, not saying anything. Then silently, she sank into thought. After catching his breath, Kaito buried his face in her shoulder. Then he told her what he'd been thinking. "I figured if you and I had a kid...then you wouldn't be lonely." "Master...Kaito..." His name dribbled briefly from her mouth. She then pursed her lips. When she looked up at him, the emerald eyes he'd been unable to meet seemed endlessly clear. She gently pushed him away, then got up and sat cross-legged atop the bed. Kaito knelt in front of her in kind. She bit down hard on her lip. Her face was downturned. Worrying she might be crying, Kaito tried to reach out to her. Before he could, she spoke: "Master Kaito, I don't intend to ask you to forgive me." "Huh?" "But I also don't intend to hold back!" Hina shot her head up. Her beautiful eyes were burning with a violent fury. Then without holding back, she planted her fist square in Kaito's face. The blow came hard and fast. When an automaton came at you without holding back, it was no laughing matter. If things had gone poorly, Kaito could have died. However, he wasn't as powerless as he had been before. He reflexively reinforced his body so he would be able to take the punch without having to dodge. As a result, the damage was minimal. Even so, blood gushed out of his nose like a fountain. Although the spurt of blood hit her directly in the face, Hina continued looking straight at Kaito. She offered no apology. That, coming from the same woman who would weep her heart out and fly into a rage if Kaito suffered so much as a scratch. Upon seeing her like this, Kaito came to a realization. She'd had to snap there. She'd had to hit him. That was the conclusion she'd reached, and so she'd put it into action. "Please don't look down on me, Master Kaito." Hina solemnly started talking. She glared at him with her fist still balled up. Her eyes were burning with the same fury as before, but at some point, clear tears had welled up in them as well. "I'm well aware. I know what you're trying to do, Master Kaito, and I know how you're planning on doing it. I've known from the very beginning." "You've known...from the start?" "Yes, from the moment you, with all your kindness, said you were taking charge. From then on, I've been able to guess everything you intended to do. And I decided it was all right, so I made my peace and remained closely by your side. And yet now after all this time...what was it you said? I believe you used the word lonely?" The corner of Hina's mouth twitched upward. Her clenched fist trembled. Her pale fingers weren't just wet with Kaito's blood, but with her own machine oil and imitation blood as well. Her skin was torn, revealing its unrefined innards. Then the emerald dams burst. Big, round tears streamed down her face. When she continued, she was practically screaming. "Of course, I'm lonely! I've been lonely this whole time!" Kaito gazed at her in astonishment. The harsh truth he'd been avoiding had suddenly been thrust in front of his face. Ever since we parted ways at the World's End, all I've been doing is trying to save Elisabeth. It's time for a story. It's the story of a boy who was brutally killed by another, and a story of a monster who cruelly killed others. Or perhaps it's a story of a child who was abandoned by his parents, and a hero who was abandoned by the world. Either way, it's a story of admiration and folly. It's a story of love, but not a story of romance. Nor is it a story of him and his bride. Yet who would have thought the bride herself was aware of that? All this time, I haven't talked it over with Hina, not even once. As the pain shot through his face, Kaito came to realize just how cruel that was. Now, though, it was too late to apologize. There was nothing he could even tell her. The die had already been cast. Nothing he said could possibly merit forgiveness. For a long time, he'd been taking advantage of her sympathy. In a way, this was his punishment for that. Even so, though, his resolve remained unshakable. Stopping this story of his was no longer in his power. Even if she resented him, even if she hated him, that was just how things were. But still, he didn't want to let things end like this. With that sole thought in mind, Kaito opened his mouth and clumsily tried to string his words together. "...Hina, Iâ€”" "But really, that's all right." "...Huh?" "Even if I'm lonely, even if I'm sad, it's all right. As long as you are who you are, it can't be helped. She was the one you chose to protect. I was the one you chose to love. That's plenty. I'm completely satisfied with that." Hina's tone abruptly softened. Kaito stared at her in blank amazement. Hina slowly reached out, then hugged him tight. She went on, not hesitating for a moment. "I'm glad I was created. I was able to be by your side. I don't regret a single thing about my life. For that is what love is." Her words were firm and sure. They sounded almost like a profession of love. As Kaito listened to them, he discovered something amiss. Hina's uniform-clad arms were wet, not with blood, but with some sort of clear liquid. As he wondered what it was, Hina gently continued: "However, there was one thing that I truly did get mad at you for. I wished to become part of your family, and you were kind enough to grant that wish. But please don't refer to children as tools to distract from loneliness. Our children... If the future is graceful enough to permit us to stand alongside our children, then it should be when we've chosen to have them, and when we are ready to greet them together." She stroked Kaito's back over and over. And thus, in her unconditional love, she forgave her groom. "It's okay, Master Kaito. You don't have to worry about me. I'm all right." "Iâ€”I... I said I loved you. We were supposed to be a family, and Iâ€”" "It's really okay. I understand. So please follow your heartâ€”so that you may go forth without regrets and say with a smile that you were glad to have lived." That's all I need. So please don't cry. Hina whispered those words to him. And in that moment, Kaito Sena finally realized something. He had been crying. Kaito Sena had no regrets. In fact, he was so free of remorse that it bordered on madness. If he had but one regret, though... ...it was in regard to his bride. Hina stroked his head, as if to say there was nothing more that needed to be said. Heavy tears rolled down his face. He returned her embrace, practically clinging to her. Time drifted by as the two of them sat alone in their own little world. And it was then and there that he arrived at a decisive answer. Could Kaito Sena kill Elisabeth Le Fanu? The answer he arrived at was crucial in determining the world's ultimate fate. Eventually, he looked up. He gently drew away from Hina. Alarmed, she drew a handkerchief with a cartoonish spin. She then leaned over to wipe off the blood and tears stuck to Kaito's face. However,