Chapter 74: Unfolding Scroll
She was so light, so tiny, so fragile.
Hilda held the little dummy tight in her arms; it was a tight yet soft grip.
Feeling the shivers of the little dummy, Hilda's body warmth drained rapidly into the little dummy's freezing skin. The pungent stench of Cursed blood dug into her nose, making her scrunch her pretty face with furrowed brows.
"...Little dummy." Pulling her head deeper into her chest, a frigid emotion swept over her heart, sinking her stomach to the pits.
'Why? What's going on with you? What's happening?'
Too many questions cluttered her overwhelmed brain.
She had come over to celebrate with the little dummy, to show off.
Yes, she wanted to show off.
She wanted to show the little dummy that she could be of some help now.
...But.
Once she arrived in the empty bedroom, once she bore witness to the messy covers and scattered debris...
Her bright mood fell.
Her joy fizzled.
And she decided to wait.
...And the reward at the end of the tunnel was a battered, bleeding, and fragile little dummy.
"Why? Why you?"
It was a selfless and straightforward comment; Hilda simply did not want this happening to the little dummy. She prayed to the light that the little dummy could be free of this pain, alas...
Hilda swept the little dummy into her embrace and stood up.
The tiny body was as light as a feather; it felt like she could disappear at any moment. Like she could break apart and vanish overnight.
Hilda hated it.
She hated this feeling.
And she hated that she could do nothing about it.
Biting her lips, Hilda silently walked to the bathroom.
"I thought I could finally do something."
An Ascendant of the Second Step!
Wow!
Amazing!
"..."
'...I'm still useless. I can't do anything for her.'
It wasn't enough.
She needed to Ascend further.
She needed to Step higher, reach higher; she had to break the ceiling of strength that was limiting her.
Pushing into the bathroom, Hilda set the little dummy down with her back to the bathtub. Then, piece by piece, she undressed the little dummy from the dress she had worn for her Ascension ceremony.
...Once her chest was revealed, Hilda's breath halted with grating nerves.
She clenched her fists, bit her lips, and held back the surge of emotions prowling and tearing at her chest.
Momentarily hesitating, Hilda carefully traced her finger along the little dummy's soft skin. She focused on the wound piercing through her chest, the freshly made scar surrounded by dried blood.
"It must have hurt, little dummy." Gently whispering, she habitually pulled the little dummy back into her embrace. Her bare skin was fragile to the touch, soft, soothing, yet terrifyingly cold.
Her limbs were small, her torso petite enough to be comparable to a small pillow in size; she was so small, so fragile-
Lowering her head, Hilda planted her lips on the little dummy's cheek, whispering, "I won't leave your side, so..."
Gazing intently at her sleeping, adorable face, "...rest well."
-----
Rustling paper noises came from my hands as I unfolded the scroll. It was the scroll that mother had passed to me via the Maiden.
Other than the initial set of words, I've unlocked another two since. Both had quite the interesting requirements, but they haven't been anything too troublesome to handle.
The next one, however...
I glared at the bottom of the partly opened scroll.
The colour of the paper transitioned from a basic white to a darker, grim, engraved grey tone; the words hidden in the next section threatened to reveal themselves at any moment.
And that moment was going to arrive at any moment.
It was almost time.
"Hey~ Little dummy~ Can you wear a soft skirt? Your pants aren't that comfortable..." Lying on my lap, Hilda rolled her head left and right with a pout. My free hand slowly caressed her hair, and each strand was soft and silky to the touch.
"No. I won't." I shut down her request with zero hesitation.
A skirt?
No.
Unless I'm forced to, I won't wear a skirt or dress.
"Ehh~ Why not...?"
Sighing, I tugged one of the strands that I had been fiddling with, producing a wince from her, "I won't change what I wear so that you find my lap more comfortable."
"Hmph, stingy." Puffing her cheeks, Hilda's lips dove into my belly, blowing warm air into my sensitive skin.
Squirming my legs from the odd sensation wriggling into my abdomen, I gave her a tiny bonk on the head, "Bad girl."
Hilda promptly broke out into a fit of giggles and smiles, "That's your punishment for saying no!"
...My lips stiffened.
And.
Then.
Almost as though mocking me;
As though it had been watching me;
Fwip.
The scroll unfolded, revealing, in bright red, the next line.
[Hello, my sweet Alora~]
[I know you haven't been quite satisfied with the Maiden's involvement in your punishment, you don't quite like her, do you, right?]
I blankly nodded, agreeing with the text.
[So...]
The words seemed to grow brighter in my eyes, filling my vision.
[That only means the punishment is perfect, right? The more you hate it, the harder it is, the more you must sacrifice-]
My breath hitched.
[-then the more perfect the punishment, right?]
[Now then, my sweet daughter, from now on...]
My eyes quivered as they read the final line;
As they absorbed the order carved within;
[...you may not use your Curses during punishment or to resolve the aftereffects of punishment, because that is what it means to sacrifice.]
...Oh.
Yes, mother.
Shutting the scroll, I placed it aside as I focused on my innards, as I focused on the hastily stitched together heart and chest.
If I let go, I will die.
...But I must not use Curses.
Smiling lightly, I lowered my face to the locks of ruby-red hair encumbering Hilda's head. Resting my face within the silky-smooth material, I casually pulled out the stitches one after the other.
One by one.
Stitch by stitch.
The key locations in my ventricles and atria, the hole in my heart, and the hole in my chest. I unfolded all the Curses I had been using to hold this faulty body together—a shambolic yet functioning mess.
I'm dying.
The crushing, vivid feeling of heaps of blood spewing out from my heart into my chest cavity, coating my lungs, ribs and other organs in deoxygenated blood.
...And, with the hole in my chest open-
Glug.
A sticky, glugging spill of thick liquid echoed from my chest.
With my face stuck in Hilda's pleasant, aromatic hair, my upper body was rapidly weighed down by the weight of my wet shirt.
The white fabric rapidly turned into a stark, eye-catching red.
And, soon enough, the scent broke out as well.
"Little dummy?" Unsurprisingly, Hilda immediately noticed the shift in my demeanour, and turning her eyes towards my body with slight confusion-
"Dummy!!!"
A shriek escaped her throat as she shot up, readjusting her position to hold me in her quivering arms.
Her face drained to a pale-white, her throat dried out as she gripped my chest. The bubbling spews of blood drenched her fingers as she struggled to comprehend this abrupt shift in my health.
And I must admit, it was certainly abrupt.
But.
I must follow the order.
Plus, my mother would never send me to my death.
Yes, I am dying.
But I don't believe that I will die.
...Still, my vision is growing hazy.
My thoughts were starting to grow sluggish, and my body was beginning to shake with an oddly cold sensation.
"W, wait, little d, dummy-! What's happening!"
Flustered, bewildered, terrified...
Hilda was enduring an amalgamation of every emotion a human could experience during a moment of great loss.
The little girl in her arms, me, had just been sitting on her bed, and she had been relaxing with her head on the little girl's lap.
Then, just as the little girl read through that scroll, she, she-
"Don't die! You're not dying, right?!"
...Maybe?
...Wait...
Now that I think about it...
I can't use my Curses...
I opened my mouth through the overwhelming drowsiness, and, driving all my energy and power into my throat, I-
"P, plug it... My heart... My chest..."
I stared into Hilda's teary, crimson eyes through the hazy veil that was obscuring my exhausted vision.
Her throat hiccuped as she stared down at me, her mouth quivered as she tried to speak, but I covered her words with my own; the last few words I could spit out before my energy ran out.
"Your Blessings... Stitch me..."
That's right...
If I can't do it...
She can...
And...
This must be what mother intends...
That alarm button would only get me killed...
Hilda probably had no idea why this was happening.
And, how could she?
But.
None of that mattered.
She had to do this, regardless of difficulty, regardless of confusion; she had to save this fragile creature that lay in her arms.
And, I believe in her.
I know she can do it.
Because Hilda is-
Flutter~
Dark Curses swayed before my fading vision; they arose from Hilda's right hand, forming a familiar structure of a sword.
It's not that the sword is made of Curses, but her powers have grown by such a large amount that the volume of Curses inhabiting her Blessings has grown in proportion; it made it quite easy to spot the frame of her Manifestation.
A sword.
As my Sword Maid, it proved to be quite fitting.
"I, I'll do it-!"