The self had long since been twisted.
When he succumbed to the power of the Kami, committed an unforgivable sin, and abandoned the bottom line of being human, he had already lost himself.
The countless evils he committed over the years had further twisted him to the core.
But after being gravely wounded by the one he had always seen as weak, someone he thought he could crush or kill at will—
His twisted soul and the remnants of his extinguished humanity could not help but feel anger. Yet this rising fury was not directed at Yae Sakura.
It was directed at the blade in her hand!
Even if it had become nothing more than a hunk of scrap iron, he still recognized that blade.
It was the sacred relic enshrined by generations of the Yae Shrine.
The god once worshiped by the shrine.
—The Frost Kami!
Yae Sakura was still Yae Sakura, the daughter who had grown under his very eyes. He knew exactly how strong she was.
Her current power—
All of it came from the blade in her hand.
The Frost Kami!
The wicked god parasitizing his body urged him to flee. Yet, as a puppet, a slave, the man for the first time defied the parasitic Kami, driven by overwhelming fury.
"Frost Kami... hahaha! So it truly possesses the divine power to deliver heavenly judgment!"
The man's laughter was crazed, his crimson-glowing eyes locked onto the frost-edged blade in her hand, now shining with divine light.
Once, he had prayed in fear for the Frost Kami's protection, begging it to smite the Kami with divine punishment, as legend foretold.
But no matter how he prayed—
The miracle never came.
He once thought it was all a lie. To protect the few relatives he had left—to survive—he followed the Kami's will, killed his own wife with his own hands, tore apart the last vestige of his humanity, and became one with the wicked god.
But now, the shining Frost Blade in Yae Sakura's hand told him clearly—the Frost Kami truly possessed the power of divine retribution.
Only... it had not chosen him.
He raged. He hated.
If twelve years ago this blade, worshiped for centuries by the shrine, had displayed even a fraction of its divine might against the Kami—
He would never have fallen into despair, never become this wretched half-human, half-demon creature!
The parasitic Kami grew restless, urging him to flee.
In the end, its will overpowered the man's obsession. Without thinking, it seized control of his body to escape.
Twelve years ago, it had nearly perished at the hands of the Godslaying Corps. To this day, it held a deep dread of them.
Whether stubborn or awakened, filled with hatred or pain—it mattered not. None of it would move Yae Sakura's heart in the slightest.
The fear, the agony, the hatred that had haunted her for twelve long years—all now condensed into a single resolve for vengeance.
At the doorway, Kiana saw Frost in Yae Sakura's hand erupt in blinding white light. She instinctively turned away and shut her eyes, almost blinded by the radiance.
The white light came with a thunderous roar.
A chill swept over her body. When Kiana opened her eyes, she was stunned to find the entire shrine frozen solid by Frost's power.
Yae Sakura stood with the blade in hand, driving Frost through the man's body, pinning him to the ground. The act she had longed to complete for years—revenge—was finally achieved. Yet she felt neither relief nor satisfaction.
A faint crimson hue tainted her eyes.
She pulled out Frost and slashed at the man again and again, hatred overflowing. Blood splattered, hot droplets landing on her face. Consumed by vengeance, a single thought passed through her mind—
So his blood... was warm after all?
This cold-blooded, cruel beast—
Was he truly the same as a human, capable of dying, with hot crimson blood flowing in his veins?!
Kiana thought it was over. She wanted to approach and talk to Yae Sakura, but after taking two steps and seeing her venting her wrath, she froze in fear, not daring to move closer.
The Kami who had caused all this tragedy had already dissolved into nothingness under Frost's unleashed power, like snow melting in sunlight.
All that remained for Yae Sakura was to vent her fury upon the man himself.
Kiana could understand why she did it—and even agreed that she had every right to do so—but the brutality of the scene...
She had seen death before.
She had seen horrors far worse than this. But the way blood and flesh scattered with each swing of the blade—the splashes of blood staining every surface—
It was like a scene from a gruesome horror film.
In such a moment, no sane person would dare approach.
Strike after strike.
Until no trace of a human form remained—
Only then did Yae Sakura's trembling hands stop moving.
Standing still, staring at the mass of flesh and blood on the ground, she seemed lost in thought, unmoving for a long time.
Kiana waited for quite a while, but seeing that Yae Sakura made no further movements, she guessed that perhaps she had calmed down.
Unable to bring herself to look at what remained on the floor, Kiana softly called her name. "Sakura?"
Yae Sakura was silent for a moment before finally responding. Slowly, she turned to face Kiana.
Standing beside the corpse, she was covered in blood—aside from the unstained blade, her hands, face, and the once-white miko robes were all splattered and soaked red.
Her eyes, too, glowed with an unnatural crimson hue.
She looked deranged—frightening.
Seeing Kiana's uneasy expression, Yae Sakura swallowed back the words on her lips. She thought—Kiana must be afraid.
Between her and that man lay an ocean of blood and hatred. But to an outsider, he was still her father—her own flesh and blood.
She had killed her father before Kiana's eyes, then dismembered him beyond recognition.
It was only natural that Kiana would feel fear.
To want to distance herself.
When Kiana called out, Yae Sakura had turned around, most likely having regained her composure. Seeing that, Kiana took a few cautious steps forward, closing the distance between them.
Looking at the blood on Yae Sakura's face, she didn't flinch or recoil—instead, she reached out and gently wiped it away with her sleeve.
"It must have hurt... a lot, right?"
Yae Sakura froze.
She had thought she would lose this friend—that she would be feared, rejected.
Yet in Kiana's eyes, there was no fear, no disgust—only aching sympathy that stirred something deep within her.
"I..."
Her voice was hoarse.
But after uttering a single word, she fell silent, unsure what else to say.
The crimson in her eyes gradually faded.
"...Thank you."
Once again, Yae Sakura expressed her gratitude.
Not only for giving her Frost, but for still standing by her side at this moment—without hatred or judgment.
"We're friends, aren't we?"
There was no water nearby, so Kiana could only wipe away what she could for now. The heavy stench of blood made her want to suggest they leave this place.
"He killed my mother."
Kiana stopped mid-sentence and held her tongue, choosing instead to listen quietly as Yae Sakura continued.
"It was right after my mother gave birth to my little sister."
Kiana's eyes widened. She glanced at the mangled remains on the ground.
"Twelve years ago, he encountered that Kami in the mountains. Under its threats and temptation, he personally offered my mother—the woman who had just given birth—to it as food."
At that time, she had been in the room.
She had watched her father drag her mother away, watched helplessly as she was devoured by the Kami, powerless except for her cries.
"One year ago, he did the same thing again. He offered my little sister to that same Kami."
She had tried to escape with her sister, but they were caught and brought back. Last year, she resisted—but it had been in vain.
Just like the man today.
Back then, she had posed no threat to the Kami. More than feeding, it had been amused by her suffering, curious how long she could endure before completely breaking.
"I hated him!"
"I wanted to grind his bones to dust!!!"
Yae Sakura was explaining herself to Kiana.
Kiana hadn't judged her for desecrating the corpse—but Yae Sakura still wanted her to understand why she had done it.
"Then grind them!"
Kiana's face twisted with disgust. It was the first time she had heard of something so vile, so devoid of all humanity.
Now, it almost felt like simply killing him had been far too merciful.
"Burn him to ashes—and scatter them in the latrine!"
Kiana's suggestion was even more radical than her own.
Yae Sakura took a deep breath and calmed herself.
"You understanding means a lot to me."
"I can't say I fully understand what you went through, and I won't pretend to know your pain," Kiana said, her tone firm. "But after what he did—no amount of venting could ever be too much. He didn't deserve to be your father. You don't owe him that title at all!"
"That's enough."
Nothing more was needed. That alone was enough. Having a friend's understanding brought her heart a faint, fragile warmth.
She turned and looked back—at the stillness that followed everything's end. A strange sense of unreality welled within her.
This had been her nightmare for years.
If only her sister...
Thinking of her late sister, Yae Sakura felt a dull ache in her chest. But she knew all too well—what was lost could never be regained.
"Can I join you?"
Yae Sakura's words came out of nowhere.
Now that she had fulfilled her long-held wish, her future was a blank void. Yet one thing was certain.
She didn't want to stay here anymore.
She had gotten along well with Kiana, and it was thanks to her that she had learned about Frost and the Kami—thanks to her that she had been able to take revenge.
To join the organization Kiana belonged to—
To slay more Kami—
To stop more tragedies from happening—such a thought took root in Yae Sakura's heart.
Kiana looked at her.
In this world, there was only Yae Village—this single, enclosed space. After all, this wasn't the real world. It was just a Stigmata World.
The Godslaying Corps...
Should she continue like this—slowly guiding Yae Sakura to awaken her memories?
But even if they tried, they couldn't leave the mountain.
"You want to join the Godslaying Corps?"
"What I wanted to do is done," Yae Sakura said softly. "Now, I want to leave this place—with you. To go outside. To stop tragedies like this from ever happening again."
So this was why Yae Sakura had joined the Godslaying Corps—why she had become a Sentinel.
Kiana lowered her gaze, thinking for a moment.
"Sakura... have you ever felt like... we've met before?"
Her revenge was complete.
There shouldn't be any more danger in this Stigmata World. During the past few days, Kiana had learned much about her—about the pain buried deep in her past.
She had never known that Yae Sakura's past had been so tragic—and yet, after all that, the Yae Sakura of the future had still managed to live like a normal person.
"We've met... before?"
Yae Sakura blinked. She trusted Kiana not to say meaningless things. If Kiana spoke in riddles, there had to be a reason behind it.
Met before...
No—she was certain she had never seen Kiana before. Kiana had definitely never been to Yae Village.
Her face was unforgettable—beautiful and distinctive.
If she had met her before, she would never have forgotten.
She had never seen her before. But from the very first moment, she had felt a strange familiarity—a sense of trust that defied logic.
It was a feeling she couldn't quite describe.
"I've been wondering... whether I should tell you the truth," Kiana said, her voice low, her expression conflicted. "At first, I wasn't sure if you were really the same friend I once knew."
Yae Sakura's instincts told her what came next was important—something that could shake her understanding of the world. "...What do you mean?"
Her grip on Frost tightened nervously.
What did she mean—'the same friend'?
Was Kiana mistaking her for someone else?
Had she helped her all this time because she believed Yae Sakura was another person—someone else she once knew?
That thought made Yae Sakura's chest ache with an indescribable heaviness.
"Don't be nervous. Just listen."
Kiana looked straight at her and said quietly, "This place... isn't the real world."
Yae Sakura froze.
She had thought Kiana would start talking about knowing someone who looked like her from years ago—but instead...
"...What?"
Not real?
Yae Sakura was utterly confused. Living as a consciousness within the Stigmata World, she hadn't realized her situation at all.
The inconsistencies of this world—all the things that didn't make sense—her mind simply ignored them, unconsciously dismissing what she couldn't explain.
"...Sakura, have you really never felt that something about this world isn't right?"
Kiana had spent three days here with her. Unlike the real world, the Stigmata World was filled with strange, illogical occurrences—she had already encountered many things that defied reason.
But Yae Sakura had ignored them all.
"What are you talking about, Kiana?"
Hearing Kiana deny the world's reality left Yae Sakura deeply confused. "If this isn't the real world, then what does the real one look like? And why are we in a false one?"
"The world outside..."
When Kiana thought of the real world—its desolation and ruin—she glanced toward the scenery beyond the shrine.
Her mind cleared slightly.
"I know the you who joined the Godslaying Corps in the future. This place... should be a fragment of your past."
Kiana wanted to tell her everything—but as the words reached her lips, she hesitated.
To tell her the outside world had already been destroyed?
That she was already dead?
That what stood before her was merely a consciousness within a Stigmata?
That this was only a reflection of the past?
Yae Sakura tried hard to think, to recall something—anything—but nothing came. She truly had no memory of what Kiana was talking about.
"I can't remember anything."
She shook her head. "What you're saying... I have no recollection at all. But—I believe you."
She didn't believe the unbelievable words.
She believed in Kiana.
She had already decided to leave Yae Village, to join the Godslaying Corps, to hunt more Kami alongside Kiana.
If Kiana said this world wasn't real—then that must mean she came from the real one.
Whether it was the Godslaying Corps or the real world—it didn't matter to her anymore.
Kiana had thought that once she revealed the truth—that this world wasn't real—Yae Sakura would awaken from her illusion, recall fragments of her past.
Even just a little would make explaining easier.
But to her surprise, after hearing that this world wasn't real, Yae Sakura still couldn't remember anything. Nor did she truly grasp what she meant.
That caught Kiana completely off guard.
Could she have been mistaken all along?
No—impossible!
"I know I don't have any proof, so it's natural if you don't believe me," Kiana said after a pause. "But how about this—once you're done here, come with me to the mountain. I'm guessing you've never gone beyond it, right? Because this world exists for your sake—only this village truly exists. You can't go any farther. When we reach the peak, you'll understand."
"...Alright."
Yae Sakura wanted to say there was no need.
She was willing to believe her.
But Kiana's tone was so serious.
This world...
Was it really just a fragment of the past? A false existence?
Doubt clouded her thoughts. The idea unsettled her so much that she no longer had the will to clean up the shrine.
Could it be that she had truly forgotten... so much?
—
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