A Ray of Hope

A grand ballroom covered in fancy drapes and candlelight. Live music. Fresh fruits. Savory and juicy meat. Well-dressed people—all done on his behalf.

Yuushin felt like an emperor from the Meiji era.

He noticed humanoid creatures serving beverages and appetizers, creatures with long limbs and perfectly symmetrical bodies, their features almost geometrical. They hovered a few centimeters above the pristine marble floor, some with oval-shaped things floating behind their backs as if they were wings.

Maybe he stared at them a bit too much, for Lyr motioned to one of them, explaining before he even asked.

“They are called Dikarux—paramounts beings of Order. You need not worry about them, they are quite peaceful creatures.”

So there were creatures in that world that didn’t charge to kill on sight.

“Oh, found him—Yuushin!”

The voice that reached him from afar was Heidi’s. Behind her, he could see Johnny, Jay, and some of the others. Overall, the men’s vests and the women’s dresses were quite similar to one another. Perhaps they all went to the same seamstress?

“Yuushin, my man!” Johnny suddenly walked closer, cheeks slightly flushed, holding two filled cups. “Here, have a drink, dude. You can drink, right? Well, we look the same age, so it’s probably fine. This party is for us, anyway.”

He accepted the drink, giving a small sip.

Tastes…fruity?

“Are you feeling better?”

Jay stopped in front of him, one hand in his pocket while the other held a drink.

The two men wore similar vests, decorated with golden patterns and side buttons. Jay’s was a dark green, Johnny’s blue. Yet while Johnny wore a white shirt beneath, Jay’s was black—making his presence a bit more imposing.

Yuushin also wore a black shirt, however, his vest was more open on the chest, with black patterns blending with its deep red tone.

“As good as new,” he replied, taking another sip.

Jay smiled in return, giving a brief nod.

“That’s great to hear.” His voice was polite, almost too polite. The man didn’t seem to be very comfortable, either.

“You were discharged from the Sanctuary today, right?” Heidi asked without looking at Yuushin, her eyes wandering. She wore a delicate yet fancy laced dress—the light tone of its fabric highlighting even more the rich purple of her corset.

“Sure did. But they told me to come back for a check-up in a few days. What about you guys? What have you been up to this past week? Heard some of you were looking into sharing a house here.”

Heidi nodded once, though her gaze kept wandering every now and then, her eyes glistening.

“Yeah, we thought it was a good idea to stay together. At least for a while, as we settle in. Did some hiking too, and visited some stores…the city is quite resourceful.”

As Yuushin thought how it was quieter than he expected, he spotted Johnny far away, talking and laughing with others.

Hah, he sure is friendly…

“It’s like Heidi said, it’s best to stay together for now. As for me, I haven’t done much. Yet.” It was the way Jay looked at him, as if the man was sharing a secret. The moment Yuushin realized why Jay seemed a bit off.

He probably hasn’t made a lot of progress, huh?

Yet it was understandable. Every time Yuushin tried asking Lyr or any of the priests more about the ritual that brought them here, they would give vague replies and change the subject. So far, Yuushin wasn’t sure if the guilt in their eyes was because they were hiding something or because they blamed themselves.

…is there actually a way to send us all back?

Heidi’s eyes popped up, a sudden flush appearing in her cheeks.

“E-excuse me for a moment.”

Before either men could ask her if there was something wrong, something crashed against Yuushin’s. And before he could turn around, a smiling Lyr tumbled in front of him.

With a face redder than the drink in his hands.

“Apologies, my good sir…actually, I am in search of a chair. A chair where one can sit, you see. Yet they keep moving around, and I can’t find one.”

Jay and Yuushin exchanged glances, both holding a smile.

Then, they proceeded in guiding Lyr to an empty chair.

The priest started mumbling incomprehensible words, resting his head on Yuushin’s shoulder while holding his white tail tightly against the chest.

Losing against his own curiosity, Yuushin touched Lyr’s ears, making the priest frown for a split second as he closed his eyes.

They are incredibly soft…

“This is a nice event.”

Yuushin removed his hand in a heartbeat, somewhat embarrassed—as if he had done something wrong. Yet Jay was not even looking at him as the man spoke.

“Yeah, the others seem to be having fun too.”

Jay didn’t reply at first, taking a few sips of his drink. “Before you got here, I tried asking around if this was normal for them—seeing how anyone was invited to attend. Yet for most people here, this is their first time attending an event like this.”

As Yuushin’s eyes wandered around the grand hall, he noticed how many people actually wore simpler clothes, how their plates and cups were never empty, and above all, how happy they seemed to be.

“…Lyr did mention this was a first. Hosting a banquet like this.”

Something crossed Jay’s gaze, a shadow. And right as the man opened his mouth—

“Hmm…urse we are….rating.”

Yuushin and Jay looked down, the other man asking with a frown.

“I’m sorry, we didn’t catch that.”

With eyes half-opened, the wolf priest leaned against the chair, brushing his tail almost as if to comfort himself.

“I said…that we are obviously celebrating, you know, since…the otherworldly humans, you see…we got so many of them this time.”

“This time? Doesn’t the ritual transport a thousand souls every time?” Yuushin asked, wondering how much he should indulge a drunk priest’s mumblings.

Lyr let out a long sigh, the blue eyes staring at Yuushin yet not really focusing on him.

“Of course it does…but, I mean…the transported souls always appear at that place, as you know, at no set time or date…sometimes we are fortunate if two make out alive. Yet this time…this time, we actually made into two digits! Huzzah!”

The priest suddenly stood up, throwing both arms up in the air, his body tilting and falling to the side the same second. Both men held Lyr by the shoulders, helping him sit back.

Yet Jay’s grip was a little bit tighter.

“What about that forest?”

Lyr clasped his hands together, the white ears dropping.

“Why, it’s Yrun’Dïr Woods…there’s so many wild beasts, not to mention the corruption levels triplicate every other month…the most we could do was have some priests on hold at the borders, since those pesky things kept stealing the weapons and maps we stashed away…the air has become so more toxic, as well…”

There was genuine sadness in the priest’s voice, Lyr averting his gaze from them both.

And though Yuushin couldn’t tell exactly what was going through Jay’s head, there was enough eagerness in his eyes to give him an idea of what the man was planning.

“Hey. Do you know a way to revert the ritual?”

As Jay turned the priest around to face him, Lyr blinked a few times before his eyes landed on Jay’s.

“Re…vert?”

Jay took a deep breath, his hands trembling for a second.

“Do you know how to send these souls back to their world?”

The priest let out a frustrated groan, his body swaying as he spoke.

“I’ve been stuck as a Stellar Priest for more than a decade—how would I know?! There is not even a soul alive who could replicate a ritual on that scale, and none of the inscriptions stored at the temple explain how to undo it.”

“Inscriptions?”

Lyr nodded, going back to hug his tail.

“Given to us by the Hallowed Blessed Savior himself…”

When Jay met Yuushin’s gaze, he felt it again. That “something” that gave him chills.

“Will you go with me?”

Yet even with that gaze piercing him, all Yuushin could focus on was Jay’s smile.

“I said it before, didn’t I? You can count on me.”

A smile so bright and hopeful, it almost made Yuushin feel guilt for ever considering to stay.