The Conclusion: The Irony of Variables (1/2)

Brunaulf POV:

I took off the mask and coughed into my hand. Blood splattered everywhere as I smiled wryly. Ursula aside, I had been actively manipulating the madness for the past few hours, and I was beyond drained.

"I... I still love you..."

I glanced back at Ursula, who had woken up again. Her back rested against a broken wall while she stared at me with affectionate eyes.

I placed the mask back over my face and ignored her words. I deactivated my ability once I confirmed the fighting had truly stopped and shifted my gaze back towards District 4.

"I don't deserve it. You'll find someone better."

My feet moved, and the distance between us increased. Ursula struggled to her feet. She chased after me, tripping several times along the way as I sighed inwardly.

"Can't you... Give me a chance?... I can do anything for you..."

'Chance...'

I stopped walking; her words making me reflect once more. Denying Ursula here may end up creating a new monster inside of her, but accepting her would only magnify my own.

The District Leader had kept his word; he defeated the Ruler and would now rule over the South. He got this far, not by force, but by trusting in those around him.

What if he never gave me a chance? Where would I be now? What would I be now? My head throbbed as cold sweat ran down my neck. I placed my hand over the left side of the mask while my symptoms relieved themselves slightly.

"Ursula, will you hate me if I reject you?"

Her eyes widened as she bit her lip. She cast her gaze to the ground and grabbed hold of her arm shyly.

"...It's impossible for me to hate you... Did you forget? I was willing to die for you, and that won't change..."

I clenched my teeth, annoyed by her answer. Ever since I lost Denise, I felt... so... Tired of everything.

'She... why... did I need to lose her?...'

I placed my hand over my fragmented heart as the tiredness consumed me once more. I slipped my hand into my pocket and made a final decision. I glanced back at Ursula before parting my lips.

'It's enough now.'

"There's something I want you to do for me."

***

Margaret POV:

I stared at the floating window in disbelief.

'The Ruler... Lost?'

It didn't feel real—I was positive this was a dream. I watched the District Leader raise his fist into the air, declaring to the South that the war was over and a new king had been ordained.

'He... Won?'

The ground below trembled as people flooded the streets. They shouted and cried out while hugging one another. Some sobbed, realizing that they were truly free from the hands of the Ruler. Others danced around, determined to turn this moment into a festive one.

It wasn't just District 4; I could hear the shouts of victory from District 3 and even District 2. The voices of the people became one, forming a thunderous sound that ignited the hearts of everyone across the South.

"Heh, you really did it, kid."

I shifted my gaze to Sebastian, who had small tears in his eyes. He took a long puff on his pipe before slowly releasing it into the atmosphere. The burdens he had been carrying drifted away with the wind that carried the long trail of smoke out of our vision.

'...'

I bit my lip while shaking my head. He had achieved this result within half a day, and as far as I knew, no one had died thanks to the meticulous planning beforehand. This result was outside of my expectations.

"What do you think, Margaret?"

Sebastian pointed to the people celebrating below us. I wanted to turn my eyes away from it, but I couldn't. Their smiles were blindingly bright as if the years of pain they had suffered were a lie; they looked alive.

"...A temporary victory is nothing worth celebrating ov—"

Sebastian crouched down and tapped my forehead gently. My eyebrows curved inwards while his lips formed a thin smile.

"Be honest with me."

I clicked my tongue and shifted my gaze to the ground in utter defeat. There was no use denying it anymore... For now, the District Leader had followed through with his promises. For now, the suffering here had been alleviated... For now...

'Damn...'

I bit my quivering lip while I clenched my fists. I couldn't ignore this warm feeling bubbling up inside of my chest. This isn't what I wanted, but maybe it was for the best. Like Sebastian said, perhaps I should wait and see what the future holds.

"...I'm glad... Everyone is safe..."

He patted my shoulder before helping me to my feet. We stood side by side, watching the sunlight pour over the district as the festive atmosphere only increased. The corners of his mouth rose, and the very faint wrinkles around his eyes spread out slightly.

'...!'

My eyes widened, and my heart thumped. It was a genuine smile similar to the one he used to make when his wife was still alive.

Sebastian had never stopped caring about District 4, so to see it finally return to what it once was all those years ago clearly meant more than the world to him.

"You should smile like that more often..."

He glanced at me slightly before letting out a sweet laugh.

"I have a reason to now, don't I? The district is safe, and a long-lost family member has finally come back to me."

"Family..."

I gazed at the torn letter near the wall for a few moments. I stumbled over towards it, kneeling down to pick up the two pieces of paper.

'A revolution can be quelled, but the fire it has lit will serve as a light for future generations.'

The Leader's ocean blue eyes stared directly at the floating window, penetrating through it and reaching the hearts of everyone watching. His lips curved upwards into a bright smile, prompting the crowd to cheer even louder.

That light in his eyes: that hope was a burning flame that shone brighter the more people trusted in him. He knew his responsibilities and didn't run from them.

'It will be a reminder that someone tried and failed...'

I glanced at Sebastian's clenched fist shaking. A wide grin appeared on his face due to the change in leadership. If I had used Bomb of Life to set everyone free, this moment... They never would have witnessed it.

'...So you try and succeed.'

His shortcomings had been covered by someone who saw the bigger picture. The Leader had suffered loss. He had been pushed to the limit multiple times, but still, his flame burned bright.

'Remember this... We love you, Margaret.'

I held the torn pieces of paper close to my heart as my shoulders heaved up and down. I sobbed loudly while I stared at the sky. I missed them. I missed them so much.

"Let's go back, Margaret."

Sebastian gently placed his hand on my shoulder, stroking it until I felt ready to move. I nodded my head and got to my feet. We headed back to the one place I hadn't been since the day I first fled District 4: Comfort.

It took longer than usual for us to arrive. I examined the crowds of people as we ran across the rooftops. It was a scene I needed to burn into my mind because I knew if things went south, I would go back to my old ways.

"Haha, relax."

Sebastian laughed as he watched me scrutinize their faces below. My eyebrows twitched; I was a grown woman, yet he had been treating me like I was still a little girl.

"I'm not a child anymore, Sebastian."

"You'll always be a child to me."

His wide grin made my lips form a thin smile, though I felt slightly annoyed for some reason. In retrospect, I could certainly understand my behaviour being considered as somewhat immature. Besides, Sebastian was still my legal guardian.

We dropped down from the rooftops, barely finding room to land among the crowd of people packed together outside Comfort.

"Mr Cruiser!! He won!!"

"The District Leader actually won!!"

"Actually? Hmm, sounds like someone didn't believe he could do it."

"N-not really... I mean, come on, you saw how strong the Ruler was!"

They chattered amongst themselves, making way for us as we approached the entrance.

"Oh! Margaret!! Thank you so much for looking after my son the other day!"

"Thanks for treating my back!"

"Try not to work too hard, dear. Rest is important too."

They came up to me one by one, expressing their heartfelt thanks and concern. It made my eyes widen as I nodded my head, accepting their feelings of gratitude. We stepped inside Comfort. It was just as rowdy in here as I remembered; the sounds of glasses clashing together happened at a rather disturbing frequency.

"!"

A waitress nimbly moved through the tables, handing out food and drinks while engaging in small talk with some of the customers. They all knew her well, their faces lighting up whenever she passed by them. She turned around to attend to the front when her feet abruptly stopped.

Her eyebrows curved inwards, quivering slightly as she pulled her lips in. Her cheeks rose in response, trying to hold back the tears that pooled at the sides of her eyes. She took a step forward as a small whisper exited her mouth.

"...Sis?"

I ignored the tears running down my face and smiled helplessly. Sebastian gently tapped my back, giving me the strength I needed to move forward. I opened my arms wide, gazing directly at Ness.

"I'm home."

She sprinted forward, leaving a trail of tears behind her and jumped into my arms. She held me tight, crying loudly into my shoulder. The pain Ness felt... I was the cause of it. She looked up to me as an older sister and always wanted to do the things I did.

'We are family...'

I bit my lip while rubbing her back. The sunlight illuminated the room, causing sparkling reflections to bounce off the metal objects as I smiled.

The world I thought was hell suddenly didn't look too bad.

***

X POV:

I slipped my hands into my pocket as I watched the boy raise his fist into the air. I suppose it was only right that I refer to him as a Leader now, not a boy. He may have gained the right to sit on the throne, but it was far too early to call him a King.

'Is this the result you wanted, Copycat?'

He had proved his capability and taken over the South. However, what was his plan now? Rebuild and reinforce his ideology across the districts? It would be interesting to see what direction he would go in next, especially since there were other forces moving behind the scenes.

"Gia, what do you think of Baekan?"

Despite her burning heterochromatic eyes, there was no smile to be seen on her face. Baekan had resorted to using KEDs not once, but twice in order to give him an advantage over District 4's Leader.

"He's a tough opponent. Right now, I'd probably lose if I fought him."

My eyes narrowed at her response. Gia was incredibly strong, and the depth of her ability had yet to be completely explored. However, hearing her say she'd lose slightly annoyed me for some reason.

"You're capable. How could you lose to a man who has no dignity like that?"

She raised an eyebrow at my response while her lips formed a soft smile.

"And you?"

I stared at the floating window, recalling every detail of the battle I had just witnessed. There was no doubt about it. Baekan was an opponent that couldn't be underestimated, even without the use of KEDs.

"The reason I struggled to fight against Solina was because her ability is a hard counter to my own. It's the same for Baekan; he would struggle to deal with my ability."

KEDs aside, close-range or long-range attacks would both be inverted. His biomass would effectively become my own whenever he entered Inversion. Alternatively, I could use Inverse from a distance, keeping him locked in place, simultaneously stopping him from using the KEDs.

'...'

KEDs included, I wasn't confident I could win. 2 KEDs were impossible, while there was a decent possibility of victory against 1 KED. It all depended on whether I could withstand the initial force of his attacks to invert them backwards. In the end, it was a big 'if,' and that was something I didn't like.

"Inversion... You'd be able to control his biomass at will. The problem would be the strength of his attacks."

As expected, Gia had also reached the same conclusion as I did. I turned around and looked up at the sky briefly. My mission here was complete, so it was time to move on.

"Gia, you should stay here."

She glanced at me while her eyebrows bent inwards.

"Is that an order?"

The afternoon wind blew between the two of us, and I remained silent for a while. It was true that I didn't utilize Gia often because of her urges, which often led to unnecessary bloodbaths when permitted, but there was also another reason.

"...My mind is at ease when I know that you're safe."

I didn't bother to look at her reaction. Instead, I directly walked off.

"So that's why I often sit on the sidelines."

My feet abruptly came to a halt as my lips parted slowly.

"What do you mean by that?"

"Is it wrong for two people who care about each other to be together?"

I furrowed my eyebrows at her words. Feelings were variables that got in the way; Gia knew this. I shook my head and was about to flick my fingers towards the sky when she grabbed hold of my hand.

"You're taking me this time."

"Don't be stubborn, Gia."

She glared at me with those aggressive eyes of hers. We stayed like that for a few moments before she eventually let go. She looked visibly upset, refusing to look at me as I slipped my hand back into my pocket.

'It's for the best.'

I carried on walking when I saw her lips part.

"There's this guy who said he's interested in me."

'...Mind games. Simple mind games.'

My pace quickened as I ignored her words.

"I'm thinking about giving him a chan—"

I wrapped my hand around her waist and flicked my two fingers towards the sky, not wanting to hear another word of it.

"Not bad. You win, Gia."

The world spun as she buried her flushing face into my shoulder. Feelings were variables that only got in the way, and yet I didn't want to let her get away.

I shook my head lightly. It was simply too ironic.