chapter 3

The Soldier and the Auto-Memories Doll

Since childhood, Aiden Field had proclaimed to his parents that he would become a baseball player. He was slender, limbs wrapped in supple muscles. Although he was not handsome by any means, the dark blond-haired boy's face could be considered decent upon a close look. He was that kind of person.

He was talented at the sport enough to bear ambitions towards it, and, after graduating, he had already decided to join a prestigious baseball team. His parents were proud of their son. Although he was a small town boy, perhaps he could indeed become a professional player. To him, such a future was already certain.

However, that path was no longer open.

As Aiden grew up, instead of becoming a baseball star, he found himself in the battlefield, within the dense forest of a continent far away from his beloved motherland. The enemy nation that his country fought against kept an oilfield drilling facility in secret. The mission of the 34th National Army, which Aiden belonged to, was to charge into said facility and take complete control of it.

The squad constituted of a hundred people in total. Their strategy was to split into four groups and strike from all sides. It was not supposed to be a difficult task, yet the people from said groups were currently scattered and fleeing.

"Run, run, run!" someone from one of the surviving corps shouted.

Had someone from their side revealed their plans to the enemy, or was the other nation simply a step ahead? It was supposed to be a surprise attack, but instead, they had been attacked first. The simultaneous raid from all four sides was easily destroyed along with the formation of the groups by a sudden rain of bullets amidst the darkness.

Their squad was a last-resolve gathering of young men to begin with. They were different from instructed mercenaries. A youth who only knew how to properly operate farming equipment, a boy who had commented that he wanted to become a novelist, a man who had opened up about having a wife that was in her second pregnancy – the truth was that none of them wished to be fighting in that place. There was no way they would want such a thing. Regardless, there they were.

After confirming from the corner of his eyes that the people from the split-up corps had bolted towards the opposing direction, Aiden himself also rushed into the forest breathlessly. The terror of being done for no matter where he ran off to took over his body. He had actually heard agonized screams the moment his feet had kicked the earth. Erasing the cries of birds and insects, only said screams and gunshots resounded. From that, Aiden was able to accept the fact that all his comrades were being annihilated.

The feeling of being the hunter reversed into being the prey that could be killed in a matter of seconds. It was a huge discrepancy – the former's fear was sinning, the latter's fear was losing their life. Neither of the two was good, but as human beings, neither wished to die. They favored exterminating others rather than being exterminated. However, at the moment, Aiden was amongst those who were about to be killed.

"Wait!" a voice called from behind, its owner trotting up to him with a gun in hands. A small silhouette could be spotted in the dark. It was the youngest member of the squad, a child still in his tender years.

"Ale…!" Aiden grabbed the hand of the boy that had stopped moving his legs and resumed running.

"I'm so glad! Please, don't abandon me! Don't abandon me! Don't leave me all alone!" Ale pleaded while crying.

He was a ten-year-old born in the same province as Aiden, whom the latter was familiar with. As he was the feeblest of the squad, he was not counted as fighting power and worked as a replenishment boy. By national decree, every man over sixteen woould be unconditionally enlisted in the military, and those of inappropriate age were deemed to be rewarded should they volunteer. The boy had once talked in a slightly rude tone about how he had enlisted to pay for the medical expenses of his mother, whose body was too frail.

Aiden would rather see the child survive than himself. Even though he had been supposed to worry about the boy first and foremost, his feet had moved on their own.

——Ah, to think I would forget about this small kid and escape by myself…

His eyes could see beyond the blackness.

"As if I would abandon you! I'm glad you're alive! Let's hide somewhere!"

The two sped up around the interior of the forest. While running, they could hear numerous cries from different directions. If they ran into the wrong place, death could be awaiting them with its scythe ready.

"I don't want this… I don't want to die, I don't want to die…"

Ale's soft whispers to God and the terrified shrieks ached badly in Aiden's ears.

——I don't… wanna die either. There's a lot of people I want to see again waiting for me, and a lot of things I want to do.

"It's alright, Ale. It's alright, so just run, run." He wanted to calm the boy down, but could say no more than that.

Were he one of the superior officers, would he be able to keep his cool while such a situation unfolded? The reality, nevertheless, was that he was just a young man. As he was in his late 10's, he was not considered adult enough.

——Ah, someone save us. I don't wanna die in a place like this. I don't wanna die. No matter what, I don't wanna die.

Gunshots echoed again, closer than before. He could see leaves falling from the trees in a certain direction and was able to tell that an enemy was approaching from behind. He wanted to stop his own breathing in order to even out his strident heartbeats.

"Run! Run! Run!"

While mentally berating Ale for not being able to keep up, he reprimanded himself.

——I'll end up dying too. I'll end up dying too.

Yet, he did not think of letting go of that tiny hand. He could never do so. Aiden gripped it even tighter.

"Ale, faster!"

As they kept moving, an explosion occurred. His vision went completely white for a second. His body flew, then immediately hit the ground. It rolled onto the soil for about three meters and stopped once it hit a collapsed tree. The taste of blood spread in his mouth.

"Ta…"

Within seconds, his consciousness became fuzzy. Yet his eyes were open, and his limbs could still move. It was an unbelievable feat that he was alive.

That had most likely not been an artillery bullet. He whipped his body, covered in dirt from the impact, and confirmed his situation. The path that he had been running on just a moment before had become a gigantic hole. The vegetation had been incinerated and everything was blackened. Aiden had no idea what their enemy had shot them with, but was aware that their position had been discovered and that the foes had no mercy in order to eliminate them.

"A… Ale…" Even so, Aiden glanced at his side upon taking notice of the hand that he had not let go of. He went stiff as he realized that the boy who was supposed to be there was not on sight.

——He's nowhere… Ale… is nowhere…

The hand, still warm, resided within his palm. But the rest was gone. No head, no legs. He could see nothing other than half of an arm, its bones sticking out of the torn flesh.

——No way.

His heart was so noisy it felt like his eardrums would erupt. He turned backwards. In a remote place, he sighted a small head between the fallen trunks. It did not move.

"Ale!" he called out, having spasms as he was on the verge of crying, before he saw the head flinch slightly, its mouth forming a smile.

——Thank goodness, he's alive.

"Wait for me…"

Upon hearing the boy's voice, he felt even more relieved.

——He's alive. He's alive.

The little head moved more, turning to look at him. He was covered in blood, but still alive. His arm had been blown off, but he was still living. Aiden was about to go to him and escape with the boy even if he had to carry him in his arms, but the moment he made a move, more gunshots ensued. Those were not flashy bullet sounds like the previous times, and resembled the sound of riffles. Aiden desperately ducked to dodge the shooting while someone's curt yelp could be heard from within the darkness.

——"Someone's"… yeah, right.

The only people in the surroundings were Ale and himself.

He did not rise until the gunshot sounds were gone. His heart beat at an unpleasant rhythm.

——My heartbeats… are too loud. Aah, be quiet, be quiet…

"Why are you shooting so much? Are you having fun with this?" was what the dense rain of bullets made him want to ask.

Once the bullets ceased pouring, he raised his neck and realized that the little head had stopped moving. "Ale…?"

The eyes that had gazed at him as if he was the only one they could depend on now ogled him as though they were about to pop out. The boy's mouth hung open from back when he had uttered his last words. Ale had perished while staring wide-eyed at Aiden.

"Ah… ah… aah…! Aah!" strange screams escaped Aiden's throat. He offed from the place as fast as he could. Still feeling the stare of those pupils on his back, he ran on madly.

His heart hammered his chest. His mind was in uproar, as if it yelled with the intensity of a hundred people. Perhaps that was due to the gunshots. Or was it because of Ale's "wait for me"?

Every part of his body was disgustingly too warm. It felt like being baked in his own body temperature.

——Ale is dead. Ale is dead.

He knew there were several other people in the battleground who had ended up the same way. Many could already be dead from stepping onto landmines or being shot down.

——Ale is dead. Ale is dead. The little Ale is dead.

"Ah… aah… aah… aah… ah… ah…" screeches continued coming out of his throat in light of his feelings, which he did not even understand that well. Although he had meant to scream with all his might, his voice was too faint, insignificant in the sea of countless others. "Ah… Aah… Ah… Ah… Ah… AAAAAAAAAAAAAH!" tears burst from his eyes. It seemed his breathing could stop from all the catarrh in his nose. Even so, only his legs moved, and he did not stop running.

——No, I don't want to die…

Such were the most obvious sentiments – the instinct of survival, the terror of death.

——I don't want it, I don't want it, I don't want it… it's fine even if I can never play baseball again. It's fine, so… I don't want to die. I don't want to die, I don't want to die. I didn't come to this place… out of free will.

"Mom… Dad!"

——One more time… I want to see Mom and Dad one more time. I don't want to die. I have so many people I want to meet again.

The faces of the people from his hometown continuously appeared in his mind one after another. Lastly, what he recalled was the smile of a certain girl. It was the face of his lover, whom he had left without being able to say goodbye to or even know the taste of her lips.

"Maria…"

——If I had known things would be like this, I would have kissed and embraced her even if by force.

"Ah, Maria…"

Even at such a time, he thought of her so fondly.

"Maria!"

If he kept that up, he felt that he could die at any moment, even without receiving any bodily damage.

"Maria! Maria! Maria!"

And should that indeed happen, it would be deplorable if she continued thinking of him even after his death.

——No, I don't want to die! I don't want to die!

It would be too pitiful, he thought.

——No, I don't want to die! No, I don't want to die! No, I don't want to die! No, I don't want to die! No, I don't want to die! No, I don't want to die! No, I don't want to die! No, I don't want to die! I don't want to die. I don't want to die. I don't want to die. I don't want to die. I don't want to die. I don't want to die. I don't want to die. I don't want to die. I don't want to die. I don't want to die. I don't want to die. I don't want to die. I don't want to die. I don't want to die. I don't want to die. I don't want to die. I don't want to die. I don't want to die. I don't want to die. I don't want to die. I don't want to die. I don't want to die. I don't want to die. I don't want to die. I don't want to die. I don't want to die. I don't want to die. I don't want to die. I don't want to die. I don't want to die. I don't want to die. I don't want to die. I don't want to die. I don't want to die. I don't want to die. I don't want to die. I don't want to die. I don't want to die. I don't want to die. I don't want to die. I don't want to die. I don't want to die. I don't want to die. I don't want to die. I don't want to die. I don't want to die. I don't want to die. I don't want to die. I don't want to die. I don't want to die. I don't want to die. I don't want to die. I don't want to die. I don't want to die. I don't want to die. I don't want to die. I don't want to die. I don't want to die. I don't want to die. I don't want to die. I don't want to die. I don't want to die. I don't want to die. I don't want to die. I don't want to die. I don't want to die. I don't want to die. I don't want to die. I don't want to die. I don't want to die. I don't want to die. I don't want to die. I don't want to die. I don't want to die. I don't want to die. I don't want to die. I don't want to die. I don't want to die. I don't want to die. I don't want to die. I don't want to die. I don't want to die. I don't want to die. I don't want to die. I don't want to die. I don't want to die. I don't want to die. I don't want to die. I don't want to die. I don't want to die. I don't want to die. I don't want to die. I don't want to die. I don't want to die. I don't want to die. I don't want to die. I don't want to die. I don't want to die. I don't want to die. I don't want to die. I don't want to die. I don't want to die. I don't want to die in the cold land under the lonely sky of a country I don't even know how to properly pronounce the name. I still know nothing of life's true joy and happiness. Only eighteen years. I've only lived for eighteen years. I have the right to live more. Have I been born die a dog's death in a place like this? That's not it. I've been born to be happy. Isn't that right? Have I been born to suffer? Wasn't I born out of my parents' love? That's it; I have the right to be happy. That's how it's supposed to be. Besides, it's not like I wanted to kill anyone from this country. The government decided on its own that we were obligated to come here. I don't want to hurt anyone. I don't want to hurt anyone. I don't want to be killed by anyone. I don't want to kill anyone. Where in this world has anyone ever been born to kill others? Isn't that meaningless? Why do we have to fight one another just because we live a little far apart from each other? What would be left after we did so and died? Who decided that things should end this way? I'm a human. I'm a human being. I'm a human being with doting parents. I have a home to return to. I have people waiting for me. Even so, why is it that a youngster like myself has to take part in war? Who started something like this? At the very least, it wasn't me. At the very least, it wasn't me. I never wished for something like this to happen. I don't want this. I want to go home. I want to go back to my hometown. I want to go back to my hometown. Aah, I want to go back. Right now, I want to leave this place and go back to that beautiful countryside town. Right now. Right now. Right now. Right now. Right now. Right now. Right now. Right now. Right now. Right now. Right now. Right now. Right now. Right now. Right now. Right now. Right now. Right now. Right now. Right now. Right now. Right now. Right now. Right now. Right now. Right now. Right now. Right now. Right now. Right now. Right now. Right now. Right now. Right now. RIGHT. NOW.

"Ah…" a different, dumbfounded voice leaked from his lips. His back was unbearably hot and he had to crouch down after receiving an impact. As his knees could not immediately support his own weight, he fell face-first onto the ground.

——What… is this? It feels like there's lava pouring from my spine… It's too… hot.

Unable to hold back, Aiden lay down, emptying whatever was in his stomach. To think he was vomiting even though he had not eaten anything. However, it was actually blood.

——Eh, no way… I threw up… blood… I… why…?

Aiden moved his neck to look at his back for the first time. He could see a black stain spreading out even in the darkness. There was no way it could be sweat. He was then able to confirm that he had been shot as he heard the sound of boots slowly approaching him and spotted several armed soldiers coming from behind.

Upon seeing that Aiden could still move, the men laughed. If they were gambling, it was probably a wager on who could kill him with a single shot. Most likely, Ale and the others had been dealt with in the same manner.

"This is the fifth one."

They seemed like youths of the same age as Aiden. Their bodies basked in the enjoyment of merely cornering someone, drunk with the atmosphere of war. Had they been born somewhere else and met different people, they might not have turned out that way.

Aiden had randomly killed many in the frontlines, yet he had just come to understand what warfare truly was. It was about murdering people, pure and simply. And those men had fun with it. Even with greater causes being used as justification, the essence of war did not change. To realize such a thing only when he was about to be killed was ludicrous.

Whatever reasons nations had to fight each other held no value in combat zones. Such was the plain and cruel truth. Aiden was a murderer, the enemies were murderers, and one of them would have no choice but to die. As it turned out, the one soon to be eliminated was himself.

——Why did things come to this?

The men chatted in spite of Aiden, who still lay on the ground.

"It's thirty points if you hit the back."

"I told you to aim for the head, didn't I? Dumbass. We'll lose the bet."

"Enough already. Let's look for another target. This one can't move anymore anyways."

"Aim better next time."

Once the talk was over, he would surely be executed. It could be in the most atrocious way, with his clothes striped off him and his body dragged along the soil.

——No…

Tears spilled from his eyes again.

——No, no, no.

Once the laughing men were no longer watching him, he crawled onto the earth as to somehow flee.

——I don't want to die like Ale. No, no, no, no, no. Anything but this kind of death. Someone… help. Help me. Someone… help me. Someone… God… God… God… God…!

"Hey, don't ya go runnin' off." Along with a cold voice, the sound of gunshots echoed again.

His leg was hit. Probably due to being shot in his backbone earlier, he did not feel any pain, only the heat. Panicking at the fact that his sense of pain was numbed and that his foot no longer moved, Aiden cried.

The gunshots continued repetitively. It felt like a game. His remaining limbs were shot one by one as though to be made even. His body cramped with every shot and the men watching it snickered. Shame, humiliation, despair and grief assaulted his body.

"This guy's like a frog."

"This is fucking gross. Hurry and kill him."

"Yeah. Kill him, kill him."

"Next is the head."

The creak of a bullet magazine being filled ensued. Aiden was too scared of everything by that point, squeezing his eyes shut and preparing to die.

It was at such moment that something tremendously huge fell from the sky like a clap of thunder. Swirling recurrently, it pierced the earth. Was it a sign that a great existence was coming to put an end to those foolish conflicts? For a second, due to the shock, that was what all of the men had thought. However, what had descended was not a mythical deity but a giant axe. Its silver blade was soaked in a red rain of blood. Its handle had a pointed tip which shape resembled a flower bud.

Axes were symbolic representatives of every weapon – more brutal than guns, more efficient than swords. Even if that was the middle of a battlefield, for something of the sort to fall from high above was nothing short of cryptic. And the abnormalities did not end there. A flying object noisily made its way towards them.

"It's a Nightjar!"

Such was a monoplane that had been popularized in the weaponry industry and distributed from the prospering North to the rest of the continent. It was a double-seat type of fighter plane, slightly bigger than compact one-seat boats. Its main characteristic was its form, which was similar to that of the bird it had been named after, with large wings and sharp fuselage tip. Its hull was thin, yet the plane was largely used for surveillance due to its outstanding speed.

——Which side? On which side is it?

Neither Aiden nor the soldiers who had been about to shoot him could move. Which of them was the Nightjar an ally of?

Someone dangled onto a long iron rope that hung from the low-altitude plane. The person stretched their arm to grab the battle-axe cast down to destroy everything in that spot, spinning around the holder several times before landing on the ground. Aiden inhaled deeply from watching such acrobatic body movements, but his breathing only became disturbed instead.

The mysterious being slowly raised her head. Only her white face was truly visible amidst the darkness. She was like a white rose blooming within the night. Even with his vision slightly distorted by tears, Aiden could tell how stunning she was. Her blue irises reminded him of the far-off southern seas, her lips as red as the moonrise in a desert. Her facial features would have made his heart race were that a normal day, but in such circumstances, he felt nothing but fright. Her golden hair shone brightly even in the blackness, making the burgundy ribbon decorating it stand out.

No matter how one looked at her, she was a woman as beautiful as a doll.

image

"Forgive me for interrupting your conversation. I have taken the liberty to intrude from above." Her voice resounded loudly, "Is Mister Aiden Field around here?"

Speaking so elegantly and bearing a dignified appearance, she could be either an angel or a reaper, leaving the men bewildered. That was only the expected – with a woman of that caliber showing up in the battleground, one would not be able to help but wonder if they were hallucinating.

Aiden, who had become a little relieved that the other men were focusing on her, was soon struck by dread again.

——What… is this?

Why was that woman looking for him? While wondering about it, Aiden was in a dilemma and could not think of anything to do other than answering the unfathomable entity. "I-It's me… I'm Aiden."

Maybe revealing his name had been a mistake. It could put him in an even worse situation. Even so, the faces of the people from his hometown resurfaced in his mind.

"Help… me…" he pleaded hoarsely.

As the woman's emotionless orbs stopped on him, who still lay on the ground, she graciously bowed her head. "Pleased to make your acquaintance. I rush anywhere my customers desire. I'm from the Auto-Memories Dolls service, Violet Evergarden."

By the time the soldiers came to their senses and pointed their guns at her, she was already holding onto her own weapon. The axe was larger than the average human height, but she lifted it with both hands as if it weighted nothing, like she was some sort of beast. The men shivered from distress.

"What the hell is this woman?! Okay, just kill her! Kill her!"

"Di… Die, die, die, dieee!"

Gunshots echoed together with the shouts, but the woman remained unharmed while readying her axe, which did not obtain a single bullet scratch.

"Here I go… Major." After whispering lowly, the woman jumped over Aiden, aiming to slash the men. Although she looked petite and fragile, each of her footsteps reverberated stridently.

Since Aiden was in such a precarious state, it was difficult for him to twist his neck and look backwards, yet he yearned to see the fight to the point that he somehow managed to watch it from the corners of his eyes.

It seemed like the woman was dancing rondo, but in truth, she was merely swinging the axe towards the opponents by swirling widely. It was an exceedingly bizarre technique. She would protect herself from attacks by using the blade almost as a replacement for a shield, then grab onto the handle buried in the soil and lift it upright, spinning on her heels.

The men, who soon could not defend themselves from the offenses delivered by such a delicate body, surrendered and started screaming. Even though her movements appeared light, the outcome they had led to was the opposite. She mastered a variation of certain-kill classical martial arts that Aiden had never witnessed before. The guns were shattered by the tip of the axe's handle as though they were as brittle as children's toys. Just by also being hit with the handle on their shoulders, the men were brought to their knees.

"She's… a monster!" one of them yelled, running away without being pursued.

The woman concentrated solely on attacking the men that confronted her in a machine-like manner. It was obvious she was accustomed with extreme battles; enough that the word "accustomed" itself was an understatement.

"This… damned woman! Die! Die!"

The woman swiftly continued to exchange blows with the men that shot blindly into the darkness, swinging the axe without hesitation and gradually coming closer to them while dodging the bullets. The instant one of them reached for a weapon in his pocket and charged at her stomach, she spun her slender legs broadly and kicked his face. None of her flowy moves were wasted as she kept landing consecutive swats.

The difference in power was overwhelming. Definitely, even should there have been more soldiers against her, the situation would not have changed. It was as if the woman's strength resided unshakable within the axe that she held onto.

——Why… doesn't she use the blade? Aiden thought puzzlingly.

With such a vicious axe, she could easily put an end to everything if she used its main force, but she did not do so. Settling for wielding it as a blunt weapon, she did not distribute any fatal hits.

The battle was short-lived. After beating everyone but Aiden, the woman returned to his side. Squatting, she peeked at his face. "I apologize for the wait."

It was then that Aiden noticed how the one named Violet Evergarden had a face with reminiscing child-like features. Her well-developed beauty gave the impression of a mature adult woman, but her figure was also close to that of a girl.

——Isn't she… about as old as me?

"Master…" Violet gasped profoundly upon taking a better look at Aiden's whole body.

"Th… Thank you… for saving me. Hum… how… do you know me?"

As Aiden spoke with a trail of blood coming out of his mouth, Violet took a set of bandages from her bag and started wrapping them around his wounds. "Master, you called for me. You contacted the Auto-Memories Dolls service after seeing our advertisement, is that not right? The fee has most certainly been paid."

Hearing that, Aiden searched in his memory despite his trail of thoughts becoming hazy due to blood loss. Come to think of it, he had been shown an old pamphlet by someone from his corps while drinking at the bar of a city next to his former battlefield. The bar's bulletin board was filled with varied informational services, message fliers and memos, and the man had found that one pamphlet among them.

"So it was true… that 'the Auto-Memories Dolls service will rush anywhere anytime'?" He smiled at the promotional catchphrase. It was at that second Aiden recalled that he had indeed contacted the service as punishment for losing at a card game, and it had cost him an absurd amount of money.

"What type of doll do you wish for? We take any request."

After being asked so by a young man through the phone, Aiden replied without much thinking, "I'd like an exquisite beauty who could come to the frontlines. Ah, a female, please."

"The dolls required to travel to dangerous areas are especially expensive."

"Is there no way to make it cheaper?"

"A relatively cheap offer is if you rent one for the minimum time of one day."

"Then I'll go with that. Hum, my account is—"

He had forgotten to cancel the order afterwards, and had probably not spoken so articulately on the phone since he had been drunk at the time. Amongst the people that had partied with him like idiots, no one had remembered what he had done the following day due to being hungover.

——To think that she… would really come… Plus, a woman like this alone in the middle of a combat zone… one exactly the way I asked for, no less.

As Violet's figure reflected in Aiden's orbs, she looked nothing short of angelic.

"H-How… did you know where I was?"

"Company secret. I cannot answer that." She refused so curtly that he could only fall silent.

If a mere amanuensis corporation had managed such an achievement, how in the world could it be a "company secret"?

"For now, Master, let us simply escape from here. Does your body hurt? Please endure it…"

"No, it doesn't… it just feels really hot. This is… probably… pretty bad, right?"

At Aiden's tearfully voiced question, Violet swallowed back whatever she seemed to be about to say. After a momentary silence, she accommodated the axe in a holster fastened around herself and put her arms around Aiden. "I will have to treat you as luggage for a little while. Please bear with it." Her body enshrouded with strength, she lifted him up. Despite her previous statement, it was closer to carrying him like a princess.

Embarrassment seemed possible even at such a time, and Aiden felt like laughing through his tears.

From that point on, Violet's actions were quick. As she ran through the jungle despite carrying a grown man, he worried about whatever she would do if they encountered more enemies, but it seemed that it would not be the case. Apparently, Violet was receiving instructions from someone. A voice occasionally leaked from the big pearl earrings she wore, and she would move after replying to it in a low tone.

Briefly thereafter, the two arrived at an abandoned cottage with the intention of using it as a temporary hideout.

——Is this place really safe? It's not like we can hide forever, though. Aiden thought. He somewhat understood due to his body's condition that he would not last much longer. Violet had treated him with first-aids, but his bleeding had not ceased. If that were possible, it would already have stopped.

"Please stay concealed in here for a while."

The inside of the cottage was covered in spider webs and dust. Letting Aiden down on the floor, Violet rummaged through her bag, pulling out a blanket.

"There's… a lot… in that thing, huh?"

The corners of Violet's lips rose slightly at Aiden's question. Straightening the blanket, she placed Aiden at its center and enclosed it around him.

"I feel… stuffy…"

"It will become cold later."

"Really?"

"Most likely. I have been told so." Those were like the words of someone who had seen countless people pass away.

Aiden felt even more intrigued by Violet. What kind of background did she have? How was she so strong? Many questions floated about in his mind, but what came out of his mouth was something completely different, "Could you… write letters in my stead?"

Violet's expression stiffened at Aiden's words.

"Or maybe… could that telecommunication device of yours reach my country?"

"No, sadly."

"Then, please… write letters for me. You came here… because I hired you, right? Please write them. After all, it feels… like I'll die soon… so I wanna… write letters." His throat started to grow dry and he coughed after speaking.

While watching him spit blood, Violet rubbed his shoulders and nodded. "Understood, Master." Her face expressed doubt no more. She took what seemed to be good quality paper and a pen out of the bag, placing it on her lap and telling Aiden to recite the letters.

"First is… Mom and Dad, I guess…"

He talked about how they had raised him with so much love, how they had taught him baseball, how they were surely very worried, since not many letters could be delivered from the battlefield, and how his last letters had turned into his will. He then conveyed his gratitude and apologies.

Writing rapidly, Violet captured his feelings with preciseness. Whenever the words piled up, she would ask if the terms used were good enough, bettering the letter's contents. Aiden had not been able to write to his parents with frequency, partly due to being no good with organizing his thoughts, but it was different with her around. Words were born one after another – all he had wanted to say overflowed.

"Mom… even though I had told you… that I'd become a baseball player… to get money for you to restore our house… I'm sorry. Dad… Dad, I had wanted you to watch more of my matches. I was really happy… when you told me that you liked seeing me hit the ball. I… I had actually started baseball because I wanted to be praised by you. I feel that if there was… anything else you'd praised me for… it would have been an option too. There's nothing more fortunate… than having been born as the son of you both. I wonder why. I've… always… been so happy… and, well… I've gone through quite a lot of hardships… but… I never thought I'd die like this."

Even though he had not been taught by his parents how to kill…

"I didn't think this would happen. Like, normally… normally… people imagine themselves becoming adults, finding a lover, getting married, having kids… I-I… I… I thought I would be able to take care of you. I didn't think… that I would be shot without really knowing why… and die in a country so far away from you. I'm sorry. I'm also sad… but the two of you… clearly… will be sadder. I was supposed… to come back to you safely… since I'm your only son. I was… supposed to come back. But… I won't be able to. I'm sorry. Sorry." He resented so much not being able to see his parents again and felt so guilty that his tears recurrently halted his words. "If… the two of you end up being reborn… and becoming a married couple… I'll go to where you are. And then… I want you to give birth to me again. Please. I didn't mean for things to end like this. I had wanted… to become happier… I was supposed… to show my happy self… to you. That's the truth. So… please. Dad and Mom, you pray too. Make me your son again… please."

Violet wrote down every single word he sputtered. "I could make it more accurate, but at this rate, I feel it will be better if the letter contains Master's manner of speaking."

"Seri… ously? Would it be okay… even without prettier words?"

"Yes… I believe that this way… is better."

"When you say it like that, I kind of feel… into it…" he compulsorily laughed, coughing more blood.

Violet wiped his lips with an already blood-soaked handkerchief. "Is there anyone else you wish to write to?"

As he was asked so with a hint of urgency, Aiden was quiet for a moment. His eyesight was blurry, even though tears were no longer coming out. Violet's voice was also somewhat distant. If she was in a hurry, he must have been looking terrible. He was about to die.

The smile of a modest girl with braided hair came to his mind.

"To… Maria." As he whispered her name, his love engulfed him to the point of making him want to bite something.

"Lady Maria… is it? Is she from your town?"

"Yeah. If you deliver this together with my parent's, you should be able to find out who she is. She's a childhood friend from my neighborhood. We had been together ever since we were small… and she was like a little sister… but after she confessed, I realized that I probably… liked her too. But… I came here… without having done with her anything that couples usually do. It's kind of awkward to date a childhood friend… Haha, we should have… at least kissed… I would have been glad to, honestly. I've never… done it before."

"I shall transfer these feelings of yours into the letter. Master, just a bit more… Please do your best." As if making a wish, Violet tightly held Aiden's hand.

Unable to feel her warmth or even her touch, he started weeping again. "Yeah." After organizing his foggy thoughts, Aiden began to speak, "Maria, are you… doing good?"

——The reason why I'm starting this letter with such a casual greeting… is because I don't want you to feel me dying.

"I wonder… if you're… lonely… since I'm not there. It would be a problem… if it turns out that you're crying everyday… but I've… being seeing your crying face… since we were kids… and it's cute, so you shouldn't… cry in front of men."

Memories of the time he spent with her replayed one after another.

"I wonder if you remember… when you… confessed to me. You had… told me to not reminisce… to that time, but… y'know, I… I… was really… really… really… happy back then."

——The way you smiled in my arms with your cheeks dyed pink.

"I was really… so happy…"

Her figure when she was still an infant. The time she had started letting her hair grow long. The woman Aiden loved unfathomably just from the moments they had spent together was carved deep within him.

"That was probably… the peak… of my life… for real. I mean, I can't remember anything else. Much more… than when I… won a baseball tournament… or was… praised by Dad… the thing that made me… the happiest…"

——My Maria. My Maria. My Maria.

"…was being told… that you… were in love with me."

Being told for the first time by someone other than his parents that he was loved without any hesitation.

"To tell the truth… I used to… only see you as a little sister… but you're… too adorable, so… I soon… fell for you… You will… become even more gorgeous from now on, right? Aah, I'm jealous… of the guys that will be able to see it. If I could… I had… wanted to… make you… my bride… build a small cottage… and live… in that countryside, with you. I… loved you. I love you… Maria. Maria… Maria…"

——Aah, my lovely girlfriend. If only you were here right now.

"Maria, I don't wanna die…"

Violet's breathing rang loudly in his ears.

"Maria, I wanna… go back to you…"

——Aah… my head… is melting… little by little.

"I wanna… go back… to… you…" He could not keep his eyes open. But should they close, he felt that the words would stop as well. "Maria… wait… for me… Even if… it's just… my soul… I'll come back… but it's… fine if I'm… not your 'only'. Just wait. Just… don't forget. Don't… forget… the first man… that you… confessed to. I also… won't… forget. Even by… the gates… of heaven… I won't… forget. Maria… don't… forget me."

——Violet, is it… all written?

"Ah… no good… my… eyes won't… open. Violet… I entrust… my let… ters… to… you. Tha… nk… you… for saving me… and for… coming. I'm not… alone. I'm… not… alone…"

"I am here. I am… right here. I am by your side."

"Please… Please… touch me…"

"I am holding your hand now."

"Ah… some… how… it's… true. It's… gotten… cold. It's… true. I'm… cold. I'm… co… ld…"

"I will pat your hand a little. It is fine. It will only be cold for a while. Soon, you will find yourself in a warm place."

"I'm… lonely…"

"It is all right. Master, it is all right." Violet's voice sounded a little pained.

Aidan progressively lost track of where he was. Where was that place? Why was his head so unclear at the moment?

"Da… d…"

——Hey… I'm scared… Mom, for some reason… I can't see anything… It's scary…

"M… om…"

——I'm scared. Scary, scary, scary.

"It is okay." As someone assured kindly, Aiden calmed down and smiled just slightly.

Ultimately, the words he had wanted to say no matter what left his mouth, "Mari… a… kiss… me…"

——I had… wanted to kiss you. But… I was always too embarrassed… so I wondered if you could be the one to do it.

Shortly after he thought so, he could hear the sound of touching lips.

——Aah, I scored my first kiss with the girl I like in the end… Maria, thank you. Thank you. Let's… meet again.

"Goodnight, Master." Someone's voice echoed from far away.

He was uncertain of who that 'someone' was, but one last time, Aiden uttered a whisper as light as a breath, "Tha… nk… you…"

Violet hugged the letters of the young man that had died in front of her while he cried, before carefully packing them into her bag. Standing up firmly, she addressed to the communication device, "As of now, I will be returning. Please report where the lodging spot of the transport unit is. Also, this is my own selfishness, but… I will pay for the transportation expenses, so please… allow me to take… one corpse with me."

There was not a single teardrop on her face.

"Well, even if you say it is a shortcoming, it cannot be helped. I understand. I do not… always do this sort of thing, so… Yes, please. Thank you very much." She spoke dispassionately, as though she was in an office. However, as she carried Aiden Field's body once again, she held him far more lightly than the first time, not at all bothered by the bloodstains it left on her white one-piece. "Master, I will take you home." She said to the boy that smiled a little with his eyes closed. "I will definitely… take you home." In her expressionless features, only her red lips trembled slightly. "Therefore… you will not be solitary anymore."

Embracing the youth, she silently left the cottage. From beyond the jungle, gunshots and screams could still be heard, but Violet did not turn back.

The amanuensis business and postal companies had a close relationship. The letters of copyists would normally be delivered by postmen, but since that particular one had come from a distant country in war, the Auto-Memories Doll delivered it personally.

A beautiful agricultural area surrounded by golden rice fields. She could agree that it was a bucolic town as splendid as it seemed when the young man had wailed that he wanted to go back to it. Even as Violet, an outsider, peeked out of the window of the carriage she found herself in, every by-passer greeted her.

To that tender land, she brought a sorrowful message.

Her destination was Aiden Field's birthplace. Violet reported everything to the elderly couple that had answered the door, handing the letter – handing 'him' – over to them. She then proceeded to inform them about his last moments, not forgetting any detail. Maria, the girl whose illusion 'he' had seen just before passing on, was there as well. They listened to her talk while shedding tears, not uttering a word. It seemed that the boy's image was imprinted in their hearts as to never be forgotten.

The girl, red-faced, broke down when accepting Aiden's letter. "Why? Why did he have to die?" she asked Violet.

The latter remained silent, not answering any of the questions. Even though she was normally expressionless and would merely say whatever she was supposed to quite frankly, she was at a loss for words upon being hugged by a crying woman at the time of her departure.

"Thank you."

It was an unexpected thing to hear.

"We'll never… forget your kindness."

As though not used to being embraced by someone, her body strained and twitched awkwardly.

"Thank you… for bringing our son back."

At such warmth, her eyes expressed bewilderment.

"Thank you."

She stared at the woman who conveyed her gratitude while crying – at Aiden's mother. For Violet, it was somehow unbearable, and she replied with a weak, "No… No…"

An ocean of tears spread gently within in the blue orbs that gazed at 'him'.

"No…"

The sea turned into a single, light droplet and traveled down her white cheek.

"I am sorry… that I could not protect him." Those were not the words of the Auto-Memories Doll Violet Evergarden, but of a young little girl. "I am sorry… for letting him die."

No one blamed her. Even Maria, who lamented along the lines of "Why?!", did not find Violet to be guilty. Everyone present simply embraced each other and shared their grief.

"I am sorry…" Violet continued to apologize repeatedly in a low voice. "I am sorry for letting him die."

"Tha… nk… you…"

No one blamed you for anything, Violet Evergarden.