Chapter 72: Jealousy… Hehe~
Blessings were descending upon us- No, upon her.
Upon Hilda.
Stuck in her embrace, I lifted my head towards the ceiling, but there was no ceiling to be found; only Blessings, countless Blessings, furious, beautiful, and tender.
Yet, amid this flurry of Blessings, I could vividly witness the Curses. The hurricane of darkness bore its fangs and ripped into the tapestry of light, cementing itself into Hilda's Ascension.
This is what it meant to Ascend.
This is what it meant to climb the Second Step in the Heirarchy.
If the impact of Blessings and Curses Esme and I went through during our ritual was the equivalent of a normal punch, then this bloom of Blessings and Curses;
Hilda's Ascension;
It's like an explosion.
A terrifying, incendiary explosion.
It descended into her, digging through her pores and surrounding the two of us in a cocoon of light and darkness.
An ocean of black and white.
Blessings and Curses.
As this flow drilled into Hilda's body, I, for a moment, witnessed it;
An insignia.
A symbol.
It released itself from Hilda's body, dragging out portions of flesh, pools of blood, and the already established flow of Blessings and Curses of the first step.
Hilda's muffled scream echoed in my ear, her embrace tightening to an almost suffocating level as she stuffed her head further into my body.
She was hurting, and for good reason.
This amalgamation of everything that built up the foundation of the girl named 'Hilda' began coalescing;
Forming;
Shaping;
...Into the symbol of a spear.
CRUNCH!!!
A horrific noise echoed from Hilda's body.
...Into the symbol of a sword.
SQUELCH-!!!
A disgusting, flesh-rending noise squirmed from her body.
...Into the symbol of a shield.
And finally, with one gut-wrenching scream echoing from Hilda's throat, the symbol of the spear and sword crossed over each other, overlapping on top of the shield.
Manifestation.
...A Close-Quarters Armament?
I gazed upon the essence of Manifestation for the first time in my life. This was a rare opportunity to come to terms with the method used for Manifestation. I can't pluck apart the full process as I don't know what Hilda's doing, but-
This is good enough.
The body, Blessings, and Curses must all be sacrificed to Manifest your Armament or Arcana.
But I don't have Blessings.
Still, this was good enough.
The symbol of the Close-Quarters Armament flashed before my eyes, blinking and condensing with a set of deep, mesmerising kaleidoscopic colours.
However.
Soon enough-
Zip.
The symbol dissipated before my eyes;
The Blessings;
The Curses;
The Manifestation;
All of it disappeared.
...And all I was left with was the vague rush of Curses hanging in the air.
I could no longer see her Manifestation.
But it was certainly all still there, the Blessings, the Curses, the Manifestation; it must still be blindingly bright around us. It's probably not possible for anyone else to look through this veil and see our figures at the moment.
Hilda's trembling arms clung to my back, their warmth passing through the dress to me. But, soon enough, she retracted them.
She pulled back.
Staring at me with quivering eyes, with bit lips, and with obvious pangs of sizzling pain poking through her veins, Hilda smiled.
Even with all that, she smiled.
Not a forced smile.
Not an artificial smile.
But a smile that spread through to the corners of her eyes, that folded her glabella cutely.
Her hands reached for my waist, wrapping around it as she pulled me closer. Not into an embrace, but into a seemingly more intimate position, whereby she lowered her forehead towards mine.
Even through this Ascension process, she didn't turn her attention away from me.
My heart clenched in this situation; it beat irregularly in the depths of my chest.
"...L, little d- Cough! dummy..." Dribbles of blood drooled from her lips, staining her pretty chin with a familiar tone of crimson red.
"Mhm?" I responded lightly.
I didn't know what to say.
What to do.
...I didn't know how to respond to her in this situation.
But.
I didn't need to.
Hilda took control.
She slithered her right hand up my waist, following the shallow contours of my body, tickling my side, till her slender, pretty fingers reached my mask.
My heart caught in my throat as I gulped.
Slip.
...Hilda pulled the mask aside, twisting it open like a door, covering my face from the crowd of onlookers on my left.
My face was revealed to Hilda.
My white eyes.
My pale, tired face.
My face, Esme's face.
And by the time my thought processes clicked back together, I felt the sensation of soft, moist lips attaching to my cheek. Hilda's face clung close, her warm breath tickling me as those loving, ruby-red eyes gazed down at me with tender emotion.
"Thank you for everything, little dummy."
Her words whispered into my ears, tickling something in my stomach that had yet to be tickled.
...I could only blankly nod in return; I was too stunned to do anything else.
-----
Moments ago.
The sole beam of light carved a singular circle of life in the centre of the stage; all eyes watched Hilda closely.
Everyone was preparing for Hilda's Ascension.
...Until a second figure took the stage.
A tiny but beautiful figure.
"Dear sister?" Esme mumbled with confusion as she instinctively took a step closer to Yulei's wheelchair.
Her hand unknowingly gripped the chair's handlebars for stabilisation.
She didn't understand why her sister was up there, but, for some reason, her chest felt stuffy. It was uncomfortable; she didn't like the feeling.
But then came the moment.
"I dedicate this life to you, little dummy. I am yours."
When those words escaped Hilda's mouth, a faint sour feeling lingered in the back of Esme's mouth.
Even as the Blessings and Curses descended, even as the light shone so bright that none should be able to see-
She could see.
Esme could see through the veil.
As a Curseless One, as a being who is the Light of Blessings itself;
Blessings cannot hinder her vision.
Nor can Curses.
That's why, when she saw Hilda take a step back;
When she saw her hands wrap around Alora's waist;
And when she pulled the mask to the side, allowing Hilda a clear view of Alora's face. The face that she herself had yet to see;
But.
Most importantly.
Crucially.
When Hilda pushed her face towards Alora's behind the cover of the mask-
'...Did she just...?'
-a pitchy, black emotion took seed in the depths of Esme's chest.
Her face fell.
Her emotions froze over, like the glaciers of Antarctica.
But, in place of these frozen emotions was another, unfamiliar one.
A steaming, throat-clamming, heart-tearing one.
Jealousy.
-----
Thirty minutes.
That's how long I spent with Hilda nuzzling my face with her soft cheek and small nose. Throughout this time, Hilda's Ascension progressed smoothly, as long as you didn't include the pain that came alongside the process, that is.
Once the time was up, Hilda backed off and reattached my mask. She secured it with an adorable little smile on her lips while she giggled with joy.
Her Ascension was a success.
Hilda Von Lamperard, daughter of Giliard Von Lamperard, the Commander of the Sanctified Knights, had officially taken her Second Step in the Heirarchy.
From now on, she was a titled Ascendant.
Though Hilda stepped back, her left hand overlapped with my right hand; she locked our hands together with unprecedented levels of strength. However, it wasn't that Hilda was squeezing my hand too tightly; it's simply the fact that I can sense that I can never escape her grasp.
It's impossible. She's too powerful now.
"...Congratulations, Hilda."
"Hehe, thank you!" Her fingers playfully rubbed mine as she leaned closer and pressed her body against me. Knowing well how weak my body was, she kept her weight off, maintaining a delicate yet comfortable balance of body contact and warmth.
Nonetheless...
"..."
We're at the centre of attention.
Many eyes were on us, but the only eyes I recognised were those of the mother, Esme's friends, and Esme herself.
And, speaking of Esme; she's staring at me.
I tracked her line of sight, and, lo and behold, she was continuously darting her eyes between us and staring daggers at the hand and body clasping onto me.
And I-
...Is she jealous?
I immediately recognised the emotion flowing through her mesmerising golden eyes. A tangy, joyous feeling swept into my heart, warming my chest upon that recognition.
Why?
Because it meant she was mildly aware of the emotions in her heart.
It meant my feelings were being reciprocated, even if it was marginal.
Hehe.
I'm happy.
Smiling foolishly, I took in Esme's image; I burned it into my memory.
So pretty!
-----
Alas, all good things must eventually come to an end.
The ceremony was over.
Hilda had taken her Second Step, formed her Manifestation, and is much stronger than before.
But that also meant my presence was no longer required.
The banquet must still be ongoing, but I'd already returned to my quarters. To this dismal, quiet bedroom.
Hilda, my Sword Maid, wasn't here.
Mother, the Mistress, wasn't here.
And the Maiden wasn't here.
It was just me and my thoughts, and the countless voices, but there's no point in counting them. They're always there after all.
Sitting on the bed's edge, I swung my flimsy, tiny legs. A trickle of Curses traversed my limbs, stitching everything together and breaking down continually.
It won't be long before I'm glued to crutches again, or worse.
Not that any of that matters.
At this stage, it's a waste to worry over anything else.
Because I must focus.
I must focus my mind, body, nerves, and resolve.
The reason for it is simple.
Creak...
A figure stepped through the leaf-engraved bedroom doors; dark-blond hair, dark eyes, and faint wrinkles lined her face.
The Maiden.
It's time.