Twenty-one-eight: Once you give up, that’s it, right?

Alphard checked Bair’s death over and over.

He knew the damn stubbornness of the demons too well—thoroughly. Only after being absolutely certain this time that the demon was truly dead did he dash toward Kyle.

“Marilyn! How’s Kyle-sama’s condition!?”

Marilyn didn’t even turn. She pressed both hands to Kyle and poured massive amounts of magic into him.

“…! Just… shut up for a sec! ‘Divine Breath Sacred Realm,’ ‘High-Speed Critical Healing,’ ‘Holy Spirit Gospel’… please, work!”

“Gh…!”

Alphard, having used up every potion he had, could do nothing but fume.

Just as Raidock, having double-checked the demon’s death with meticulous care, rushed over, he grabbed Craft by the collar and hoisted him up from his sleep.

“Craft! Wake up! Get me some damn healing potion—something crazy powerful!”

Evva snatched Craft away, clutching him tight, shouting.

“No! Raidock! He’s not waking up even though the wounds are healing—this is worse than you think! If we don’t keep him still, Craft’ll… Craft’ll die!”

“What? Damn it! Get Javir here!”

Raidock spat, then shot toward the castle like an arrow.

Evva gripped Craft’s hand so hard it hurt.

“Craft… hold on… stay awake… even Marilyn’s magic can’t wake you… that means you’re already dying. So… so… don’t you dare…”

Around Kyle, a crowd had formed—Alphard among them.

“Get a doctor… no, Javir!”

“Raidock’s already on his way!”

The knight ran to Alphard, who was pacing, furious he could do nothing.

“Captain Alphard! The Queen has arrived!”

“What?!”

The king, Vaindeck, was running over, cradling Javir in his arms. Raidock was right behind him.

Looks like they’d met up somewhere along the way and come back together.

No greetings. Just a glance between them, then they were moving.

Javir was dropped roughly onto the ground and immediately lunged at Kyle, testing potion after potion, then methodically checking Kyle’s body.

Then—

“…Regrettably…”

A quiet whisper.

“What?! No way! You’re joking! Javir, please, look again! Kyle-sama… Kyle-sama…!”

“Calm down, Alphard. You know why the potions and healing magic aren’t working…”

“But—but!”

“Without a soul… without that thing called a soul… it’s not a person anymore. Pushing this further… could turn him into a corpse spirit.”

Vaindeck cuts through the arguing pair.

"Jabir. Try this."

He hands over a small vial.

"Is that an elixir? But... it's not possible..."

"Doesn't matter. Use it. This is an order."

"Understood."

Jabir scoops the elixir onto his finger and rubs it into the gaping wound in his chest. Though he looks like a girl-child, he’s a renowned physician—no flinching at Kyle’s state.

A moment passes.

"Your Majesty. Regrettably..."

Jabir slowly rises, shaking his head toward the king. But before he can finish, Alphard shouts.

"Look! The wound’s closing—just a little at a time!"

"What?!"

Jabir spins around, frantic. Sure enough, Kyle’s body is healing—slowly, but healing.

"Impossible! To start healing after death...?"

"Lord Kyle is not dead!"

Marilyn trembled, replying to Alphard’s shout.

"But, but... his pulse... his breathing... it's not coming back..."

"What do you mean!?"

"Stay calm, Alphard! Hmm. But this... could it really be...?"

Jabir rested a hand on his jaw, lost in thought.

"Jabir. If you’ve got something, say it. Anything."

"May be a waste of time, though."

"We can’t lose Kyle now. If there’s even a sliver of hope, we try anything."

"Understood. Marilyn. I need your help."

"If there’s anything I can do..."

"Good. Then—"

Under Jabir’s command, Marilyn cast magic upon Kyle.

All of them praying for a miracle. Holding on to hope.

◆

After finishing his words, Alphard slowly crossed his arms.

I practically kicked the desk over in my rush to stand up, shouting without thinking in this room full of important-looking people.

“Wait—! Kyle’s—! He’s healed, right!?!”

Jabir sighs, waving a hand lazily.

“Calm yourself, Craft. Lord Kyle is in the back room.”

Back room? What, you’re gonna scare me like that?

I exhale, relief flooding through me.

“Phew… that’s good.”

“Good? Not at all.”

I stare right back at Jabir, head tilted slightly.

“…Huh?”

“Jabir. Show him.”

“Understood. Craft. Come with me.”

“Huh? Oh—yeah.”

He’s healed by elixir and magic, right?

I follow behind Jabir, unease still clinging to me. At the far end of the long corridor, a single, exceptionally sturdy door stands out.

The holy knight guarding the spot noticed us, gave a bow, then opened the door.

The room wasn’t all that big. Dim, the lamp’s light weak and unreliable. Worst of all—utterly barren.

My heart’s pounding loud.

In the center of the room stood a bed… no, a large stone platform. And on it, a block of ice.

“…Kyle.”

I reached out, touched the ice gently.

That’s right. Kyle was trapped inside the ice.

No anger. No nothing. My chest felt hollow.

“Lord Kyle is sealed away by Marilyn’s magic.”

“Sealed… like this?”

“Aye. We alchemists haven’t even figured out if people have souls. But we do know something—something like a soul—exists.”

“…Yes.”

Soul. Person. Body. Death.

We don’t know jack about it.

They say corpses without souls turn into zombies or ghouls, but nobody’s actually figured it out. Still, it’s safe to assume that’s what happens.

“Standard wisdom says healing magic or potions don’t work on the dead. But the elixir did.”

“Yeah.”

“So we’re assuming the soul’s still there.”

“Then—!”

My body suddenly flares up with heat. The master stops me with a hand.

“No matter how much we tested, we never got a single response that could be called alive. So I made this assumption.”

Finger snaps up.

“The body’s almost dead, but the soul’s barely clinging on.”

“So… what does that mean?”

“Never heard a tale like this? About a demon or ancient evil, its body mostly shattered, sealed away… then rising again? Stories like that linger in every corner.”

“Just another old legend. A fairy tale, really.”

“The magic you used, Marilyn—was meant to seal away creatures like the so-called ‘demon gods.’”

Jabir mumbles, “I asked for it myself. Never thought I’d actually be able to use sealing magic.”

Just muttering it out loud, like it’s nothing to me.

I’m starting to get what he’s driving at.

A god whose body is near death. Sealed away. Now revived. That’s… close to Kyle’s state.

Jabir slaps me hard on the hip.

You said you might be able to make a resurrection potion. We’re betting on it.

Resurrection potion!

Craft! You’re going to make it—no matter what! The peak of alchemy! The secret elixir of resurrection! The Yggdrasil-Soma!

Today!

April 28, 2023—Volume 7 of Qubi Alchemy is out!