No, if it’s not a ghost… Then the sound was coming from a living child.
But what kind of crazy person in this world would imprison a child in a place like this? That was absolutely unforgivable.
But there were people like Kasef Everett… It’s not a very impossible thing.
I closed my eyes and took a deep breath. Then, slowly, one step at a time, began to take steps in the direction from which the sound came.
[ Uwaaah…! ]
The child was crying very sadly. That voice, which at first frightened me, now felt a little pitiful. That didn’t mean that I had completely lowered my guard, but…
I kept moving towards the voice.
And finally, I found a small light in the dark.
“……?”
The pale light was very small. Like a candle that, despite it all, was dimly illuminating the surrounding darkness.
And the cries were coming from this very small light.
This was no ordinary fire…
It was the soul of a dead person.
‘…Ghosts really exist.’
Of course, there was a job called an exorcist in this world.
However, it was questionable how credible the claims of those belonging to the occupational group were.
Like most other people, I had dismissed the rumors of ghosts and exorcisms as superstition. There was no such thing as ghosts in the world… was what I thought, but now, there was a real ghost in front of my eyes.
[ Waaah! ]
Besides, it was crying very sadly.
“…….”
…After thinking about it for a while, since elemental spirits existed, there must really be ghosts as well.
Of course, there is a big difference between spirits and ghosts. Still, weren’t they similar in the sense that they each had souls?
[ Uwaaahh! ]
I don’t know if it’s because of my feelings, but this ghost was crying even louder when I appeared. As if it wanted me to calm itself.
I thought about what to do, then carefully reached out and patted the small light. I couldn’t actually touch it, but I was able to imitate the action.
“…Be good now, stop. Don’t cry.”
[ ……. ]
Even though it was just a light, it’s as if I could feel its gaze… But strangely, it wasn’t scary anymore.
Was it because I found out that the grotesque ghost I once imagined was actually just this little light?
Maybe it was because a small light like this candle was illuminating the darkness surrounding me.
I continued patting the light and asked cautiously.
“Um… What’s your name? Why are you crying here? Do you know how to go up and leave?”
[ ……. ]
The small light was silent for a moment, then answered in a surprisingly cute little girl’s voice.
[ I’m stuck here… Mom and Dad abandoned me here. ]
“…Why?”
[ Because I am a cursed child… Uwaah! ]
The small light started crying again. I had to calm this poor ghost for a long time.
After a while, the small light barely asked.
[ Elder Sister, do you want to get out of here? ]
Since she was calling me ‘Elder Sister’, it seemed like the girl was fairly young. I nodded and replied.
“Of course I want to go out. Is there any way out?”
[ …There is. But the way up is very scary.]
“…Very scary?”
[ Uh-huh… You have to wake up a very, very scary being. ]
“What kind of being is that? Is it somewhere in this abyss?”
The small light that had completely stopped crying now floated around me and came into my arms.
A sudden embrace… I was a little taken aback, but I asked again, carefully covering it with both hands as if I was hugging the small light.
“Did you try to awaken the being too?”
[ Yeah… . But I was rejected by ‘it’ because I am a child of a monster. ]
‘…A child of a monster?’
For a moment, I wondered what that meant, but I remembered the contents of a book I read a long time ago.
【 …In a time when research on magical power and magic had yet to be done, the people of ancient times regarded mages as children of monsters. 】
In other words, this child was… a human born with the qualities to become a mage.
However, in ancient times, such people were called ‘children of monsters’, so the parents of this small light abandoned the child in this abyss.
“…….”
When I learned why the small light had to be abandoned into this abyss, I felt a little more compassion. So, more carefully than before, I embraced the small light.
[ If SIster wants to awaken the being, I can tell you where ‘it’ is. But, Sister… It is very scary and dangerous. ]
“…….”
[ Do you still want to awaken that being? To get out of here? ]
“Yes, I want to.”
I answered sincerely. Then the small light seemed to let out a small sigh, then it broke free from my arms and began to sway like a will-o-wisp.
[ Alright. I’m giving Sister a special treatment because I like you. Let’s go! Follow me carefully. ]
The small light slowly began to lead. It flickered like a small candle and seemed to go out any moment, but it was clearly illuminating the path I had to take in this darkness.
No, if it’s not a ghost… Then the sound was coming from a living child.
But what kind of crazy person in this world would imprison a child in a place like this? That was absolutely unforgivable.
But there were people like Kasef Everett… It’s not a very impossible thing.
I closed my eyes and took a deep breath. Then, slowly, one step at a time, began to take steps in the direction from which the sound came.
[ Uwaaah…! ]
The child was crying very sadly. That voice, which at first frightened me, now felt a little pitiful. That didn’t mean that I had completely lowered my guard, but…
I kept moving towards the voice.
And finally, I found a small light in the dark.
“……?”
The pale light was very small. Like a candle that, despite it all, was dimly illuminating the surrounding darkness.
And the cries were coming from this very small light.
This was no ordinary fire…
It was the soul of a dead person.
‘…Ghosts really exist.’
Of course, there was a job called an exorcist in this world.
However, it was questionable how credible the claims of those belonging to the occupational group were.
Like most other people, I had dismissed the rumors of ghosts and exorcisms as superstition. There was no such thing as ghosts in the world… was what I thought, but now, there was a real ghost in front of my eyes.
[ Waaah! ]
Besides, it was crying very sadly.
“…….”
…After thinking about it for a while, since elemental spirits existed, there must really be ghosts as well.
Of course, there is a big difference between spirits and ghosts. Still, weren’t they similar in the sense that they each had souls?
[ Uwaaahh! ]
I don’t know if it’s because of my feelings, but this ghost was crying even louder when I appeared. As if it wanted me to calm itself.
I thought about what to do, then carefully reached out and patted the small light. I couldn’t actually touch it, but I was able to imitate the action.
“…Be good now, stop. Don’t cry.”
[ ……. ]
Even though it was just a light, it’s as if I could feel its gaze… But strangely, it wasn’t scary anymore.
Was it because I found out that the grotesque ghost I once imagined was actually just this little light?
Maybe it was because a small light like this candle was illuminating the darkness surrounding me.
I continued patting the light and asked cautiously.
“Um… What’s your name? Why are you crying here? Do you know how to go up and leave?”
[ ……. ]
The small light was silent for a moment, then answered in a surprisingly cute little girl’s voice.
[ I’m stuck here… Mom and Dad abandoned me here. ]
“…Why?”
[ Because I am a cursed child… Uwaah! ]
The small light started crying again. I had to calm this poor ghost for a long time.
After a while, the small light barely asked.
[ Elder Sister, do you want to get out of here? ]
Since she was calling me ‘Elder Sister’, it seemed like the girl was fairly young. I nodded and replied.
“Of course I want to go out. Is there any way out?”
[ …There is. But the way up is very scary.]
“…Very scary?”
[ Uh-huh… You have to wake up a very, very scary being. ]
“What kind of being is that? Is it somewhere in this abyss?”
The small light that had completely stopped crying now floated around me and came into my arms.
A sudden embrace… I was a little taken aback, but I asked again, carefully covering it with both hands as if I was hugging the small light.
“Did you try to awaken the being too?”
[ Yeah… . But I was rejected by ‘it’ because I am a child of a monster. ]
‘…A child of a monster?’
For a moment, I wondered what that meant, but I remembered the contents of a book I read a long time ago.
【 …In a time when research on magical power and magic had yet to be done, the people of ancient times regarded mages as children of monsters. 】
In other words, this child was… a human born with the qualities to become a mage.
However, in ancient times, such people were called ‘children of monsters’, so the parents of this small light abandoned the child in this abyss.
“…….”
When I learned why the small light had to be abandoned into this abyss, I felt a little more compassion. So, more carefully than before, I embraced the small light.
[ If SIster wants to awaken the being, I can tell you where ‘it’ is. But, Sister… It is very scary and dangerous. ]
“…….”
[ Do you still want to awaken that being? To get out of here? ]
“Yes, I want to.”
I answered sincerely. Then the small light seemed to let out a small sigh, then it broke free from my arms and began to sway like a will-o-wisp.
[ Alright. I’m giving Sister a special treatment because I like you. Let’s go! Follow me carefully. ]
The small light slowly began to lead. It flickered like a small candle and seemed to go out any moment, but it was clearly illuminating the path I had to take in this darkness.
