Sion Note:Vol 1

Memories.

"...."

His memories were coming back.

First came the smiles of his friends.

The smiling faces of his friends who should've been dead.

Toni, Tyle, and Fahl's faces. Faces of his friends. His friends, who knew him, passed him by and left him.

Everyone was smiling at first.

But there was only silence in the end.

Because they were dead.

Every last one of them were dead.

Was it because they met with him?

Or was the world at fault?

Regardless, none of them opened their mouths anymore.

Next came the face of his mother.

He wasn't really trying to recall her face, but the image came into his mind forcibly without his intention.

She always looked tired, but would still smile whenever she looked towards him.

She was beautiful. And she smiled with a kind face that always seemed to be on the verge of crying.

But she died as well.

She couldn't even speak up anymore.

But even more memories rushed back in.

His memories circled.

From bright scenes to dark scenes.

From memories that bring him happiness to memories that he didn't want to recall.

It seemed like his memories was going up stream into the past.

New scenes were born as if he was reading a woven story backwards, turning page after page backwards.

No, they weren't new.

An ancient memory.

It was an ancient memory.

One that was terribly ancient, ancient ancient ancient ancient——

"..."

Sion scowled right then.

Silver hair that gave off an air of nobility, and golden eyes that spoke of a strong will.

He was pressing down on his chest. Because his chest hurt so much that he felt like his insides would come rushing out of his mouth if he didn't.

Headache and dizziness. An unpleasant feeling that tormented his entire body.

While enduring the «curse» that ran its course in his body, he stood alone.

He was in a narrow room located in the depths of a building in the Eris house.

After emerging from several, numerous, many doors.

After emerging from countless twisted dimensions, he arrived at the center of the Roland Empire.

He was within the center of Roland's darkness.

Once upon a time, a broken hero was sealed within.

A hero and a demon were sealed within.

But they weren't here anymore.

Because Sion absorbed the Hero's body.

Sion devoured the entire body of the Fallen Dark Hero[Asruld Roland] and absorbed it within himself.

That's why his entire body was hurting, his insides were bursting, his blood was boiling, and the intensity of the pain that was tormenting him made death seem like a better option.

It was a curse. The Hero's curse was eroding his body. But he won't scream. He won't even groan in pain. He only stared into the depths of darkness with his narrow gold eyes-

"..."

Right then, someone spoke behind him.

"....Hey there. You're still here?"

It was a clear, male's voice.

It was the voice of Lucile Eris.

But Sion didn't turn around. He wouldn't be able to see Lucile even if he did.

So without turning around, Sion asked,

"Am I in your away?"

Lucile smiled.

"Not really. It's just that..."

"Yes, the Hero is no longer here."

"So why did you come here?"

"Because this place is closest to the darkness."

"...."

"No, because the pain lessens a bit...if I come here. Just for a bit, the monster within me will...."

"Calm down?"

"Yes. That's why I'll escape here again."

Lucile replied to his words,

"Is it painful?"

Sion laughed.

"Of course it's painful."

And Lucile made his appearance.

Within the darkness.

Within the darkness that Sion was looking into, the head of the Eris house, Lucile Eris made his appearance.

He was an unbelievably beautiful man.

Gold hair, almost transparent white skin. His eyes were closed. They were always closed. But with those closed eyes, he was looking at everything in Roland.

So Sion spoke while looking at Lucile,

"Are you watching your sister with those eyes again?"

Lucile smiled.

"I'm always looking at you and only you —— the king of this country..."

"To evaluate me?"

"Yes....so that you won't lose to the pain."

He extended his hand and touched Sion's cheek. His hand was terribly cold. So cold that Sion felt like laughing.

Lucile stopped being a human, and Sion stepped into the darkness as well.

Out of his own will.

Even though he knew that pain and despair lay ahead, he stepped into the darkness out of his own well.

And the two of them watched each other.

So that none of them would lose to the pain and escape.

They kept watch over each other, so that even as they felt themselves becoming less and less human from the very core of their being, they won't lose to the pain and escape —— Sion felt like laughing at this idiocy, and brushed off Lucile's freezing hand.

And said,

"...I won't lose. No, if I knew I was going to lose here...."

"You would've never made an exchange with me?"

"Yes."

Sion nodded and looked at the darkness behind Lucile. The darkness was expanding without end.

The darkness was expanding slowly but surely, as if to envelop this country - no, this entire world.

It was powerful enough that Sion felt like he was being sucked in by the darkness if he stared for too long.

Lucile turned around to look at that as well.

"...."

But he didn't say anything.

He merely gazed into the darkness wordlessly and disappeared.

He didn't have a physical body.

He didn't have a real image.

And gradually, he was losing his heart.

It was being torn apart and devoured by the monster within him, and he began to lose his consciousness as a human.

Lucile tried his hardest to endure that.

No, not only Lucile —— Sion was enduring the same thing. The feeling of himself separating from humans. His weak self, tormented by the curse and about to lose to the pain.

"..."

He watched the darkness in stillness.

Stared into the depths of darkness.

And the scenes began to swirl again. He felt like it happened faster when he was here.

The scenes circled.

The scenes swirled.

Without any intent on his part, the memories came one after another.

The face of Ferris, Lucile's sister. The beautiful sister Lucile tried so hard to protect.

He tried removing her from the cogwheels of fate. He risked his life for that alone. But even Sion couldn't know whether he'd succeed or fail in the end.

But immediately, Ferris' face disappeared. Her emotionless face disappeared.

And Ryner's face replaced her.

The face of his dearest friend.

The face of the only friend he opened his heart to.

But even that face twisted and disappeared. And the pages began turning backwards again. The pages of his memories quickly went against the stream.

The darkness swirled and circled around him, and the scene that finally appeared before his eyes was no longer his own.

The memory of something that wasn't himself.

And the scene that was revealed——

"....."

But he shook his head. He thought that he shouldn't bear witness to that scene.

The scene just now was probably one of the memories of the Fallen Dark Hero[Asruld Roland] that he absorbed.

And he didn't have enough power to look at that scene. If he saw the Hero's memories and synchronized his consciousness with him, his own consciousness might be eroded by the Hero.

Because he didn't devour every last bit of the Hero's power.

So he stopped leafing through his memories. He trudged back. Everything was dark here, and darkness was abound no matter where he looked, but he turned his back to the darkness.

And moved forward.

Just after a few steps, he could feel the darkness thinning.

A sense of reality began to return to the scenery that was overwhelmed with darkness by curses and damnations.

Eventually, after he emerged from the darkness, he found himself in a normal dojo.

The dojo of the Eris house.

A huge room with a wooden floor.

The door that was closed when Sion came was now open, and he could see the garden beyond the corridor.

It was a simple garden, different from that of many other nobles.

A small pond and plain stones that surrounded it.

And the eldest daughter of the Eris house stood upon the rocks, gazing at the pond.

It was Ferris Eris.

Bewitching blond hair, and a beautiful face like that of Lucile's. Not much emotion was reflected on her face, but unlike Lucile, she was human. She had the warmth of one.

Sion smiled at that human. Just by looking at her beautiful figure, he was able to find assurance that he still belonged to this world. He let out a sigh of relief.

Ferris folded her arms while standing on the rock and asked,

"Iris. Did you find it?"

And a pretty girl who resembled a miniature version of Ferris jumped out of the pond with a splash.

It was the younger daughter, Iris Eris. She was beautiful as well. Wet, blond hair, white skin like porcelain, and energetic blue eyes.

Iris looked up at Ferris, her sister,

"Big sister, I didn't!"

She shouted.

It was a voice filled with emotion. Within the Eris siblings, she had the most amount of humanness left in her.

Ferris responded to her sister's words,

"Then keep on searching. If you can't find it, you fail."

Iris replied with tears welling up in her eyes,

"I don't want to fail!"

"Then search for it."

"Okay!"

And Iris dived into the pond again.

Ferris looked at her without any expression.

Sion walked beside her, and she turned around,

"Hmm. Sion, you came."

He nodded.

"Yes. I had some business with Lucile."

"With brother?"

"Yes."

"And, your business is finished?"

"It's finished."

"So, you want to dive in as well?"

Ferris suddenly pointed to the point, and Sion asked,

"Just what are you doing here?"

Ferris replied,

"It's a long story."

"Okay."

"Just three years ago, I thought of something brilliant."

"Hmm."

"Dangos are skewered by sticks, right?"

"Yes they are."

"So if I kept those sticks after finishing the dango,"

"Hmm."

"When I got thirty thousand of them, I'd make a boat —— that was my plan."

"Huh~"

"So, I made one."

Sion was surprised,

"You mean, you got thirty thousand of those sticks?"

Ferris nodded immediately.

And Sion did some mental calculations in his head,

"Um, you thought of your plan three years ago, right?"

He asked, and she nodded.

"Yes."

"So, for three years, you ate more than twenty sticks of dango per day, right?"

Ferris looked at him with her emotionally crippled eyes,

"Is that the result you got?"

She asked, and Sion re-calculated,

"Ah, um, you'll get around thirty thousand if you eat 27~28 sticks of dango per day, I think."

"Hmm. I've eaten less than I thought."

"No, no, you've eaten too much..."

But she interrupted his words and pointed at him,

"No! Dango masters have to eat hundreds of them per day!"

She said energetically.

Sion looked at her pointed finger with a blank face,

"Saying that must've felt pretty good."

Ferris nodded just a bit happily,

"You want to say it too?"

"No, I didn't really get enough sleep, so I'm not that energetic."

"Work again? If you keep working like that, your body will break down. Just quit it and eat dango. Eat dango."

Sion laughed,

"Who does that?"

Ferris looked at the pond again and answered,

"A dango master."

"Haha. I could say the same of you —— your body won't hold if you keep eating dango like that. Just recently, you lost consciousness and we had to take you to the hospital..."

"That wasn't because of dango."

"But you made Ryner worried and angry, right?"

"Uh..."

"The doctor told you to control your dango impulses and get a more balanced diet, right?"

"....Leaving that aside!"

"No, wait-"

"These two days, I've been making a ship with Iris."

And Sion turned towards Iris who didn't seem like she was surfacing anytime soon. She was swimming in the pond while wearing her dress. It had been more than three minutes, but she was still trying her hardest to dive.

"Um, Ferris. Shouldn't Iris be taking a breath anytime now..."

But Ferris ignored him and said,

"Our masterpiece that took us two days broke apart the moment it hit the waters."

And Sion began to understand the situation. It's true that water-drenched sticks were piling up like mountains beside the pond.

Sion looked at that and asked,

"By the way, how many sticks are in that pile?"

Ferris replied,

"29982 sticks."

Which meant that around 18 sticks have gone missing inside the pond.

Sion looked at the pond again, at Iris who was overhauling rocks and sand at the bottom of the pond.

He turned towards Ferris and said,

"So, what're you going to do when you get all of them?"

"I'll use more potent glue and make the strongest ark!"

"Huh. It's nice how you guys always do these fun things~"

"Really?"

"Yeah."

"So you want to dive in?"

Sion shook his head hurriedly,

"No, no, I still have work to do, so I'm going back to the castle."

"I see. Then tell this to Ryner."

"What?"

"I'm finishing up the ark, so come over soon."

"Haha, I see."

Sion nodded.

Ferris nodded as well.

And Iris emerged from the pond with a splash again.

"Big sister, I can't find them!"

Ferris looked troubled, and she placed her sword down on the ground.

"I'm left with no choice. I'm coming."

She jumped into the pond.

"Kyah-!"

Iris shouted happily. But in the middle of it, Ferris stepped on her face and jumped into the pond.

"Gyaah-!"

Her shout turned into a scream.

The two of them looked rather happy, fooling around in the water, and Sion observed them,

"....It does look fun. Lucile, don't you want to join them?"

He muttered.

Of course, no answer came.

Sion smiled. He turned his back towards them and began walking.

From the Eris house.

He made his way back towards the castle from the center of Roland's darkness.

♦

His office was quiet.

The king's office in the Roland castle was an unbelievably plain room.

There were bookshelves and only two tables.

One man was sleeping on one of them.

Ryner Lute.

Messy black hair that told of his sleeping habits, and a tall, thin figure that just stenched of lethargy.

He was sprawled over around thirty documents and slept with drool coming from his mouth.

Sion looked at Ryner,

"Hey."

He said,

"Hey, Ryner."

"...."

"Can you hear my voice?"

He tried calling out to Ryner, but no reply came.

Sion smiled and sighed right after. He headed towards his own desk and sat down.

The amount of documents on his table seemed to reach towards the ceiling. When he left the office, the pile was only half of its current height, but it seemed like his work increased exponentially in the small time that he was out.

The ones on the left were new ones. The ones on the right were already taken care of and brought out by his underlings.

Only unfinished work remained.

He placed his hand on the topmost document. It was something that had to be done today, but he couldn't take care of all these documents even if he worked three days without sleeping.

He hadn't slept for two days already. And Ryner was with him in that regard, so he'd understand why Ryner would want to sleep now.

Sion stared at Ryner, and then at the impossible amount of work he had to do,

".....Hah."

He sighed and breathed in,

"Hey, Ryner."

He said.

"Don't sleep~ I can't do this alone~ Help me~"

He spoke, but Ryner didn't answer. He must've been tired as well. Ever since Ryner came here, his work has lessened drastically. Even though Ryner hated trouble and always said he was sleepy, he was helping Sion as much as he could.

And he dealt with all the problems that normally would've gone to Sion.

He even worried about Sion's condition.

"...."

Sion looked at the black-haired sleepyhead and thought that he'd have to thank him sometime.

I'm so glad that you came back —— he wanted to tell him that.

So he grabbed the ink bottle on the table and pulled off its cap. He threw the bottle at Ryner as hard as he could. The bottle hit Ryner's head.

"Woah, ouch!?"

Ryner shouted and looked up. The contents of the ink emptied themselves on his face...

"You! What are you doing!?"

Ryner hollered, but Sion smiled,

"Well~ I was just thinking of thanking you for all the help you've given me, Ryner!"

Ryner gripped the ink bottle tightly,

"How is this thanking me!?"

"Hmm. This is what you get for leaving me behind and sleeping~"

"You left me behind and went out for a walk!"

"But I came back."

"Do I look like I care!?"

"I'm back~"

"I dooooooooooon't give a damn, seriously! Please! I've been working for you for two straight days...."

"Make that three, then..."

"Stop screwing arouuuuuuuuuuuuuuund!"

Ryner interrupted Sion's words and hollered.

Of course he understood those sentiments. So much that it hurts. But Sion made himself into a demon and said, while pointing towards the pile of unfinished work on his left,

"But you see, there's still so much left."

Ryner looked at the pile of documents with his sleepy eyes. He swung his hand nonchalantly and threw the ink bottle back. Not towards Sion, but directly towards the mountain of paperwork, which crumbled from the impact.

And Sion looked at the avalanche of papers,

"...It'll be difficult to pick them up."

He muttered.

"See! See! You're so tired that you don't even get mad at this! Seriously, it's no good. Let's sleep, alright? Working overnight is just stupid. And I hate working so much that I risk crumbling to dust every time I hear the word 'work', so making me work overnight is just stupid to the extreme and I'll really kill you dammit!?"

Ryner ranted on and on. Sion said,

"You became more energetic after taking a small nap?"

"I didn't."

"Then you could work a little longe...."

"I won't. I'll be going back home."

Ryner stood up sleepily and said,

"You should go home too. Go home and sleep."

Sion shrugged and answered,

"And where would that be?"

"No idea."

"So where would yours be?"

"Wherever you aren't."

"Haha."

Sion slumped his shoulders and thought.

Both of them didn't have actual homes.

No, they didn't even have a family.

Because everyone died.

Back then, Roland was corrupted to the core, and life was cheap.

So their friends and families died. And as survivors, they nestled close to each other and tried their hardest to live.

So that this country would improve slightly.

So that there'd be less people like them.

They can't turn back time, but still, they wanted a brighter future.

So,

"...Well, I'll just work a little longer..."

Sion made to pick up the documents.

But a wave of dizziness assaulted him. It was the same as always. The kind of dizziness that assaulted him every day ever since he absorbed the Hero.

And his memories circled.

Mysterious memories that were not his own.

Dark memories.

Memories of a monster.

Memories of a monster were played back inside his head, almost like it was trying to wrestle control from Sion, trying to deprive him of his freedom, tormenting his whole body with pain. And a strange scenery appeared in his head.

It was a field.

The moon rose above the field.

But everything was dark.

Extremely dark.

There was nothing but darkness.

"...."

He felt a voice calling out to him from afar.

Someone was trying to say something.

But he couldn't really make out the words.

"....on..."

He felt someone faintly calling his own name from afar. But he couldn't spare a moment to respond.

There was only the darkness, the darkness, and he-

But right then,

"....Hey Sion! Are you alright!?"

A loud voice sounded beside his ear.

Sion regained his consciousness thanks to the voice. He raised his face, and saw Ryner standing there.

The darkness had disappeared.

And so did the field.

Only the face of his closest friend remained, looking down at him with worry. He was grasping Sion's shoulders, as if to reaffirm that he was awake.

Sion looked at those hands, and smiled. He smiled kindly and happily.

He held back the pain that ran throughout his body and smiled.

"....Ah~ I was asleep."

He said.

"I guess I was sleepy too. I really can't go on without sleeping. My consciousness just blanked out for a moment."

Ryner looked at him with a "I told you!" face.

"Your consciousness just blanked out....? Geez, seriously, I forbid you from working anymore today. You'll really die if you keep this up, you know?"

Sion nodded.

"Hmm. You're right. I'll reflect upon this."

"Oh, for once you're honest."

"I'm always honest, right?"

"I'm throwing up."

Ryner said with a deadpan expression. Sion laughed, and picked up another piece of document.

"So, I'll sleep after I finish this..."

"You're not reflecting upon this at all."

Ryner whacked his head.

Sion cradled his head and looked up at Ryner.

"That hurt."

"That's the whole point. The next time you don't sleep, I'll knock you out, alright?"

He said, and Sion smiled again.

He smiled even though he felt like crying.

And,

"I get it."

He said.

"I'll sleep a little."

He said.

He stood up and pointed towards the bedroom beside the office.

"Sleep with me..."

"Go kill yourself."

"Ahaha."

"Ah geez, stop saying stupid things and just sleep. I'm going back to the inn and sleeping."

"Alright, see you two hours later..."

Sion waved his hand, and Ryner nodded, turning his back towards him. While he made his way towards the exit with fumbling steps, he said,

"See you two hundred hours later."

"You're not coming back for ten days?"

"I don't want to come back, ever again."

"But you will, right?"

Ryner shrugged and left the room.

Sion stared at the door and shrugged. He attempted to return to his desk, but...

"...."

I'll stop. He tapped his own head and smiled bitterly, making his way to the bedroom. Sion lay down on the bed.

But his pain won't disappear with sleep.

The pain running through his entire body won't disappear.

He knew that from the very beginning. Ever since he made a contract with Lucile and decided to take the Hero into his own body.

And whenever he closed his eyes, the memories returned.

The memories of that monster returned.

The monster's memories went wild inside him, violating, invading and breaking his mind.

"..."

Sion closed his eyes.

But slumber wouldn't grace him with its presence.

What assaulted him was pain, despair, and the dark scene he bore witness to a moment ago.

A moon made its ascent above fields of wilderness.

But everything was dark.

The darkness expanded, as if to envelop the entire world—

And a lone demon was there.

A lone demon with a lonesome face stood still against the solitude that battered at him.

He stared at that demon.

He stared at the beautiful demon who was looking up at him with tenderness in his eyes and the moon at his back

Sion called out the demon's name.

He called out the name of the demon in front of him.

"Ryner."

And the demon responded.

With happiness, tenderness, delight, loneliness—

"...Ah....aah, I see. So you finally called my name, Sion."

The demon said.

And when he looked at this memory, everything began to fall apart.

Translator's Notes

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