For those who aren’t geniuses, effort is the only way to fill the gaps. From that day forward, I visited the practice room daily. From dawn till dusk, I repeatedly performed the ritual of summoning Agnus in a practice room where I couldn’t tell day from night. But nothing changed on the first day of training, nor the second, nor even the third.

Since magical power was consumable, it disappeared with each summoning of Agnus. Not knowing how to recharge it, I quickly grew tired despite my initial enthusiasm. It felt like running a marathon with no finish line in sight. Moving my legs without knowing how far I needed to go drained my energy in an instant.

“Agnus. You need to stay still.”

Moreover, Agnus seemed to perceive the training as play, bouncing around on the shadow each time I summoned him. Meanwhile, my magical power dried up like a drought-stricken well. Though I wasn’t even moving my body, sweat naturally soaked my forehead.

“Haah… am I even doing this right?”

Finally, on the fourth day of training, I collapsed spread-eagle on the floor before an hour had even passed. Despite his form becoming faint due to my lack of magical power, Agnus panted happily with his purple tongue hanging out. Is this how dog owners feel when walking their large breeds?

Of course, I wasn’t expecting significant changes in just a few days. Still, I hoped to grasp even a slight feeling for it. But strangely, my condition only worsened. With each summoning, my magical power scattered into the air rather than concentrating.

Before, it had felt like gathering thinly accumulated snow, but now it was like desperately trying to clump together bone-dry sand without any water.

At this rate, I would collapse from exhaustion every time I used Agnus. The problem wasn’t limited to summoning Agnus either. To summon other magical creatures, I would need to use magical power efficiently. I understood the theory intellectually, but what was the problem?

“Why isn’t this working? Why…”

I covered my face with a towel and let out a hot sigh. Agnus had already returned to the shadow, but I still felt like an empty shell. It was like having all my blood vessels completely drained. Perhaps it was because I hadn’t been sleeping properly for days.

Just as I closed my eyes to take a quick nap, a medium-low beautiful voice tickled my ear.

[It’s because your essence is empty.]

Why does this person always appear when I’m at my weakest? And always with words that precisely pierce my thoughts. I turned my back to the voice, like turning away from an unpleasant truth.

“That essence talk again. No matter how many times you say it, I don’t understand.”

[Judging by your reaction, it seems someone else has spoken to you about essence as well.]

I’ve heard it quite often. When Nur first looked through my Ma-an, he described my essence as “empty.” Back then, I thought it simply meant I lacked magical power, but only after meeting other magical creatures did I grasp the truth.

My body was an empty cradle. That’s why I couldn’t push away what needed to be pushed away and ended up accepting everything.

“Maybe it’s a side effect of crossing worlds with a physical body.”

[That makes sense. But what matters isn’t the cause.]

Even the hint of amusement that had been faintly present in his voice disappeared.

[Though I’ve been inside you for less than a month, your condition… it’s quite serious.]

At this sudden pronouncement, I gently opened my eyes that had been closed. My condition is serious? I’d been advised not to get too close to magical creatures, but this was the first such direct warning. Half in doubt, I removed the towel covering my eyes and sat up.

“What do you mean?”

[Remember what I told you before? That I, who should have been absorbed by you, am gradually separating?]

As I nodded slightly, Oceanos pointed to my chest and said:

[It’s not just me. Countless things have taken residence in your empty shell. The time spent in your previous world, memories from staying in the novel. Ophelia’s will and even a part of me, Oceanos. All these elements aren’t blending harmoniously but pushing against each other.]

Cold emotion gathered in his narrowed eyes.

[If nothing is done, you’ll eventually break into pieces.]

Break into pieces…? Does he mean my body will shatter like a marble that falls and cracks? Finding it hard to believe, I studied Oceanos’s expression. But the face visible beyond the veil was, unlike usual, merely serious. Surrounded by pale fear at his seemingly genuine concern, I asked:

“What should I do?”

[You must merge all the chaotic elements of your essence. That’s both the way to cultivate your power and your only path to survival.]

“How do I…”

[I’ll help you.]

I suddenly lifted my head that had been hanging limply. Smiling faintly at me, he looked almost like a demon threading a needle to steal my soul.

Suddenly, Iris’s words came to mind—that one shouldn’t carelessly accept favors from the wealthy.

“What’s the condition?”

[It’s simple.]

Oceanos shrugged and said matter-of-factly:

[Give up on being an extra character.]

“What… do you mean?”

[You’ve grown too accustomed to your contradictions. You want to live as an extra while acting more proactively than anyone else. Isn’t that amusing? A bridesmaid who came to scatter flowers suddenly snatching the bouquet.]

My pupils trembled rapidly at his words that hit the mark. Oceanos traced my lips with his index finger and whispered in a chillingly low voice:

[If you fear taking responsibility, you should have quietly held the flower basket from the beginning.]

Right. I’ve constantly hoped for someone to take this baton from me. I feared the world ending due to my plans going wrong several times more than the world ending because I did nothing.

So I fixed broken walls one by one, brainwashing myself with thoughts like “Once I do this, someone will come” or “When this is over, someone will appear.”

But nothing changed. No matter how much I avoided responsibility, the hero I was waiting for never appeared. Meanwhile, the stone that had been stopped on the steep hill began to roll down as the prophecy foretold. And someday, that stone would crash through the broken wall and overwhelm this empire.

Should I just wait for that ending with my hands tied? Or have I already become too deeply involved? Reading the anxiety on my rigid face, Oceanos said:

[Can’t you give up? Then you must finally acknowledge it.]

As I slowly raised my gaze, my unremarkable face reflected in his transparent eyes.

[You’re destined to be the protagonist, Tae-oh.]

Feeling a weight pressing down on my entire body, I unconsciously took a short breath.

“…I shouldn’t have asked.”

I threw the towel I’d been holding onto the floor and left the practice room. Oceanos didn’t try to stop me. He simply stood in place, watching me. Like someone certain I would return. That made me walk even more resolutely up the stairs without looking back.

Night had fallen outside, with only precariously swaying torches visible here and there. As I hurried to return to the dormitory, I spotted a tall silhouette standing in my path.

“…Sezan?”

Standing under the flickering light, Sezan immediately showed a pleased expression.

“Brother Tae-oh.”

“Heading home now?”

“Yes. I had no idea you were still here.”

“The practice room stays so bright, I lost track of time.”

“Well, that’s true, but…”

His kind eyes took on a worried light, making me smile involuntarily. Without anyone taking the lead, we naturally walked toward the garden. In the garden where only the gentle sound of wind brushing leaves could be heard, I asked Sezan:

“Is it going well?”

“I’m trying my best. My parents will be coming, so I need to show them results I won’t be ashamed of.”

The face revealing his firm determination was quite different from Sezan’s usual self.

“You know, Sezan.”

“Yes, brother?”

“Has there been something you wanted to avoid, but ultimately couldn’t?”

Despite my hesitation, fearing it might be a rude question, Sezan immediately nodded.

“Of course.”

“May I ask what it was?”

“The position of heir to House Piart.”

His unexpected answer left me speechless. My lips twitched before I finally managed to ask why.

“W-why is that?”

“I’m not cut out to be a duke. I don’t have my father’s decisiveness or my mother’s integrity. But it’s not a position I can refuse just because I don’t want it.”

From my perspective, Sezan was more than qualified to become a duke. His determination to use magic despite lacking magical power and his attitude of not caring much about social status weren’t qualities easily attained. I wanted to immediately contradict his words, but kept my mouth shut for fear of negating all his concerns.

Seeming to read my thoughts from my complex expression, Sezan smiled.

“But it’s alright now.”

“Have you… accepted it?”

Sezan nodded lightly and recited in a solemn voice:

“If I must do something unavoidably… isn’t it better to use the time I would spend avoiding responsibility to strive to become a better person?”

***

Five days had already passed since I started going to the practice room. Determined to finally get a feel for it today, I brought sarracenia with me. Following the manufacturing method I remembered, I made a potion and entered the practice room. As soon as I opened the lid, I poured the sarracenia potion into my mouth and swallowed. The bitter taste mercilessly pricked the base of my tongue like needles, making me feel like I might vomit at any moment.

Barely managing to cover my mouth and hold it down, I quickly called for Agnus. Perhaps thanks to the sarracenia, Agnus emerged from the shadow with much glossier fur than yesterday. But that was all.

“…Huh?”

Not even a minute had passed. No, it was before his form had fully taken shape down to the toes. Agnus dispersed in mid-air like a mirage. He disappeared without me commanding him to return. Even after calling his name again and again, the situation remained unchanged.

Agnus couldn’t manifest. In my panic, I took out the potion bottle I had saved for tomorrow. Just as I was about to open the lid, a pale white hand appeared and gently stopped me.

[How many times must I tell you? No matter how much water you pour into a bottomless jar, it’s all the same.]

My hand holding the potion bottle trembled. Was it sleep deprivation? Or nervous exhaustion? Perhaps because of consecutive sleepless nights, my patience was wearing thin faster than usual. I sharply brushed away the hand meant to help me and showed an irritable reaction.

“Honestly, I don’t understand your intentions.”

Glaring fiercely, I spoke the thoughts that came to mind without filtering them.

“Let’s say your claim that my essence is breaking into pieces is true. Then why not just let me split apart? Why are you offering to help? Is it because you’ll disappear too if I’m not whole?”

[Well, that reason exists too, of course.]

Waving his hand casually, Oceanos answered with a rather serious attitude:

[You’re different from the Oceanos who was my main body. Your emotions change dozens of times a day, and you even deny yourself. Watching you, a weak human doing reckless things for magical creatures, I suddenly became curious.]

Stepping forward abruptly, Oceanos bent down toward me. With a rustle, the thin veil flowed down and touched the bridge of my nose. The scar crossing his forehead, white as jade, looked particularly red.

[I wonder how far you, struggling to change this world even a little, can actually go.]

Pure interest, almost frighteningly so, spread across his long, slit-like lips. This part that broke off from Oceanos intended to gamble on me. It seems his words about playing along with me despite knowing the outcome of the war were sincere.

Though still doubtful, I needed his help. That was an undeniable reality. Closing my eyes tightly and then opening them, I asked boldly:

“Is there any loss I need to bear?”

[None. The only thing you must bear is responsibility.]

It’s true, he whispered with seductively red lips. About to grasp his outstretched hand, I instead made a threat that would likely have no effect.

“If anything happens, I’ll cut you out by any means necessary.”

[Haha, how frightening. But don’t worry. If you disappear, I’ll soon follow.]

Looking into his crescent-shaped eyes, I fell into deep contemplation.

“……”

When I heard what Sezan said yesterday, it felt like emerging from a swamp I’d been struggling in for a long time. He was right. If something must be done unavoidably, it’s better to use the time you would spend avoiding responsibility to strive to become a better person.

I was still afraid of taking responsibility. But having things I wanted to protect, I had to bear it.

“Fine. All this talk about being a protagonist, I still don’t get it… but at least I want to take responsibility for those I’ve saved with my own hands.”

Finally, I grasped Oceanos’s hand. Though it lacked warmth, I could clearly feel the power hidden beneath the snow-white skin. Pulling my tightly gripped hand, Oceanos laughed heartily and said:

[Well thought. Child who defies the prophecy, absent from the gods’ plans.]

A sudden gust of wind blew through the enclosed practice room. I covered my face with one arm and only lowered it after the wind stopped. Then, the human form had completely disappeared, replaced by a whale with dozens of eyes. Creeak, creeak. All the eyeballs that rotated with an eerie sound turned toward me.

[I will gladly embrace your chaos and become your complete essence.]

I heard various voices speaking at once, like multiple people talking. Ophelia’s voice, System’s voice, and even my own voice were mixed in. Eventually, the pure white whale opened its enormous mouth and swallowed me.