Reincarnated as Twins: And Then, I Was the Only One Abandoned - ☆71 What Awaits in the Abyss ①
☆71 What Awaits in the Abyss ①
We continued deeper into the darkness.
Lilith illuminated the path ahead with mana. But her light felt weak, as if it were being swallowed by the surrounding darkness. It was as if this place itself rejected the very existence of light.
“Hey, hey, what’s the rush? You should be more careful—”
Lilith’s voice echoed from a short distance behind me.
When I turned back, I realized that I had somehow ended up at the very front of the group.
“Huh? I didn’t mean to rush ahead, though…”
Even I was surprised.
I wasn’t being driven by anxiety or impatience.
If anything, with each step forward, an odd sensation was growing within me—
A strange excitement, like I was on my way to meet someone I hadn’t seen in a long time.
“Y-You’ve got some serious guts…”
Yuhak murmured in an exaggeratedly trembling voice.
“Well, you did defeat Emperor Alexis and rise to the throne. Meanwhile, my legs are shaking so badly I can barely walk.”
“Come on, it’s not that big of a deal.”
I smiled wryly at his words. But I couldn’t ignore the strange feeling creeping through me.
It was pitch dark. I had no idea how far this path stretched.
And I couldn’t even tell how long we had been walking.
Just as I started thinking about that—
—Uooon.
A shudder ran through my entire body, like an eerie chill creeping over my skin.
At the same time, I felt as if the space around us had suddenly expanded.
It was as if we had stepped from a narrow corridor into a vast hall.
I still couldn’t see anything. Yet, I sensed that the ceiling and walls stretched infinitely in all directions.
「You have arrived.」
A voice echoed in my mind.
Startled, I turned around, but no one else seemed to have heard it.
「I have waited. For a thousand years. Though, I was asleep for most of it. Guhahahaha!」
“Huh? Are you talking to me?”
I blurted out in confusion.
“Hmm? What’s wrong? Hearing things?”
Lilith frowned, looking at me with concern.
“Hearing things…?”
No, I definitely heard something.
Was the darkness messing with my senses?
「It is no illusion.」
This time, I heard the voice clearly—with my actual ears.
At that moment, something began to stir within the darkness.
An overwhelming presence emerged, as if pure darkness itself was condensing into a single point.
I could feel my companions growing uneasy.
—But no one could move.
All we could do was stare at the source of that presence.
Lilith intensified her mana light. And slowly, something took shape within the darkness—
A figure, humanoid yet dragon-like, an otherworldly being.
…Wait.
This looks familiar.
…Oh. It’s freaking Bahamut from Final Fantasy!
(Note:
Bahamut from Final Fantasy
)
「I am the Beginning. The Primal Dragon who governs the power of origin.」
Its voice shook the very air itself.
Before its overwhelming presence, everyone else seemed frozen in place, as if paralyzed.
「I have awaited you. For a thousand years, since that day.」
“…Wait, you’re talking to me? A thousand years? Since what day?”
I was completely lost.
What the hell was it talking about?
What day?
I wasn’t even alive a thousand years ago.
「Yes, you. And yet… not you.」
—Huh?
What the hell is this thing saying? Is it okay in the head?
「To be precise, you have lost the qualification.」
…Okay, seriously, what does that even mean?
「Did you consume the trash left behind by the High Pontiff? You were never meant to possess any power.」
“Oh, you mean the mana? Yeah, I did eat some weird fruit or whatever, and suddenly mana started gushing out of me.”
As I recalled that incident, the dragon-shaped mist wavered and let out another booming laugh.
「Guhahahaha! I see. Then I shall pass it on to your descendant.」
…Wait, hold up.
I have no idea what you’re talking about.
I don’t know what happened a thousand years ago, but I got isekai’d here eighteen years ago. How does that connect?
「Take me with you. Fate is cyclical.」
“Uh… yeah, I don’t know about that. You’d probably destroy an entire city just by existing.”
「Do you have the power to refuse?」
The so-called Primal Dragon taunted me.
“Well, I alone probably don’t, but…”
I glanced at my companions behind me.
“If we all work together, maybe…?”
「Hmph. Then try.」
Hearing those words, I instinctively turned around to check on my companions.
“—Huh? You’re seriously going to fight it?”
Lilith stared at me in disbelief.
Yuhak had a hand on his forehead, remaining silent. While Abyssla was smirking—though his expression seemed a bit strained. As for Elysia, she looked like she was about to faint at any moment.
“Well, we have to do something—”
“…No, no, hold on. How are you even able to talk so casually with that thing? You’re starting to scare me…”
“Huh? I dunno, it just kinda gives off this… weird sense of reassurance? Like, I don’t think it’s actually going to do anything that bad—”
Even as I said it, I had no idea what I was talking about.
But before I could figure out why I felt that way, Yuhak caught my eye.
“Hey, Yuhak, can you try using your ability on it? You can weaken it, right?”
“W-Well, technically, yes… but even if I do, what’s the point…?”
At that moment, the Primal Dragon’s voice rumbled through the air.
「I do not mind. Go ahead. I promise I will not retaliate.」
“D-Don’t blame me if something goes wrong!”
Saying that, Yuhak channeled dark mana into his right hand. He quietly focused his energy.