Renji Kurogane, a completely normal high school student, was on his way back from a convenience store late one night when he was suddenly enveloped in a blinding light and lost consciousness.
When he awoke, he found himself in a decaying ocean world ruled by 'Hakos Baelz.' The sky was shrouded in murky clouds, and the sea was black and polluted. The world was slowly being devoured by colossal monsters known as 'Kegareshin' (Corrupted Gods).
Renji manages to reach an underwater 'Safe House,' wh
Elpis of the Corrupted Sea -A God's Despair Game- - The Logic of Song, the Distance of the Heart
Beyond the heavy door, something resonated.
Faintly, but unmistakably. It was a low, rumbling vibration that shook the air. Perhaps it was the sound of wind. Though, at this depth of 35 meters under the sea, there was no wind to blow.
Kurogane Renji sat on the bed in the simple room he'd been given, listening intently.
(What is that…?)
He hadn't noticed it yesterday when he was shown around Kaleidoscope's living quarters. He'd been too preoccupied with the scratch marks of Crawlers clinging to the outer walls and the hushed whispers of the people. But now, it was different.
He closed his eyes. His uniform was dry now, and the coarse futon felt stiff against him. He had barely slept the night before. Every time he closed his eyes, the black sea spread behind his eyelids, and the countless eyes of that monster glinted fiercely.
(I couldn't do anything.)
Himself, who could only stand frozen in the shelter. Himself, who could only tremble while Kirsche fought.
A sharp pain tightened deep in his chest.
That was when it happened.
――♪――
The vibration he had thought was the sound of wind just moments ago suddenly transformed into a clear melody.
It was a song.
And it was the same one he had heard at the bottom of the black sea yesterday. There were no words. Just a beautiful resonance. And yet, it felt as if it touched him directly deep within his chest.
Renji stood up.
"…Is that you, Kirsche?"
He voiced the thought, then shook his head. It was obvious. In this safe house, she was the only one who could sing a song like that.
His feet naturally carried him toward the room's exit. The corridor was dim. Lumen stones embedded in the walls gave off a pale orange light. That light seemed to grow just a little stronger, as if in time with the singing voice.
(Where was the training ground again?)
It was a place Kirsche had briefly shown him when she guided him around yesterday. An acoustic room for Singers, located on the third level.
He descended the stairs. His footsteps echoed surprisingly loud. The singing voice began to sound stronger and clearer the closer he got.
The melody felt like it was composed of three layers. One was very deep and heavy. Like the bedrock sleeping on the ocean floor. The second was cold and transparent. Beautiful and slightly sad, like water flowing beneath ice. And the third was――.
(It's like a prayer.)
A powerful feeling, thinking of someone.
He reached the observation window of the training ground soon after. Beyond the thick glass was a wide room illuminated by Lumen stone lights. The walls and floor were covered with special soundproofing material. In the center of it all, Kirsche stood.
Her long silver hair swayed gently down her back. Her eyes were closed, and she sang alone. The luminescent spots on her throat glowed pale blue, flickering stronger and weaker in time with the melody.
Renji forgot to breathe as he watched, entranced.
(So this is the Purification Song.)
When he heard it in the sea yesterday, he was too desperate to notice. But now, he understood.
This wasn't just sound.
Her very emotions were overflowing, taking the form of sound.
The first melody ended. Kirsche took a deep breath. He could see her shoulders rise and fall. Her profile looked somewhat pained, yet utterly serious.
And then, the second song began.
A stronger resonance than before. The air trembled. Renji felt the glass window vibrating faintly with a buzzing sound.
(What incredible power.)
But at the same time, he thought:
(Isn't this putting a huge strain on her body?)
A faint sheen of sweat glistened on Kirsche's forehead. Her fingertips trembled slightly.
Even so, she did not stop singing.
The third song.
It was completely different from the previous two. A fierce, wild melody, like a flame burning everything to ashes. The luminescent spots on her throat shone brighter than ever before. The entire room was enveloped in pale blue light.
Something pulsed violently in Renji's chest.
(This is bad.)
The moment he thought that――
The song abruptly cut off.
At the same time, Kirsche's knees buckled and gave way.
"Kirsche!"
Before he could think, Renji pushed open the training ground's heavy door and broke into a run. The dull sound of his shoe soles striking the special flooring echoed.
Kirsche had both hands on the floor, desperately trying to support her body. But her arms were trembling violently, and she looked like she might collapse at any moment.
"Don't push yourself!"
Renji slid in right beside her and supported her slender, collapsing body with both arms.
"…Ren…ji."
Her violet eyes looked up at Renji vacantly. The usual calm light was gone, replaced by a pained wavering.
Her body was surprisingly light. Frail and slender, as if she might break at any moment.
"Why are you here?"
Her voice was hoarse. It wasn't her usual clear tone. It was a weak sound, like paper rubbing together.
"I heard your song. More importantly, don't talk. Let's go to the infirmary."
Renji draped one of Kirsche's arms over his shoulder and slowly helped her stand. To be honest, his own body was also quite slender. Supporting her was incredibly difficult. But he couldn't say that now.
"…I'm sorry."
Kirsche looked down and apologized quietly.
"You don't need to apologize. Anyway, can you walk?"
Kirsche gave a small nod. Dragging her feet, she managed to take one step, then another.
They left the training ground and went down the corridor.
When they passed in front of the cafeteria, "Triton's Hearth," the cooks preparing for the morning looked at them with surprise. But Renji ignored them and hurried on.
The infirmary on the 4th level was a little distance away.
"Do you always push yourself this recklessly?"
Renji found himself speaking in a harsh tone.
"…This is my duty."
"Your duty is to destroy your own body? That way of singing is definitely too much."
"I calculate that up to three times is within acceptable parameters."
"And then you can't even stand! There's no way that's acceptable!"
Renji had raised his voice, surprising even himself.
(Why am I so angry?)
A calm part of his mind thought that. But he couldn't suppress the hot feeling burning deep in his chest.
That terror he felt the moment he saw her collapse.
It was incomparably more frightening than when he was attacked by the Crawler yesterday.
Kirsche said nothing. She just put a little more strength into the hand gripping Renji's shoulder.
When they arrived at the infirmary, an elderly female doctor immediately laid Kirsche down on a simple bed. She placed a hand on Kirsche's neck and checked the condition of her vocal cords. The room was lined with this world's medical instruments. An examination light that illuminated affected areas with Lumen stone light, a treatment device that healed tissues with sonic vibrations――technology of this world.
"Your third consecutive song. Honestly, you always overdo it."
The doctor sighed with exasperation as she applied a cold pack to Kirsche's throat.
"Renji, could you wait outside?"
Kirsche said to Renji, her voice slightly recovered.
"Huh? But…"
"It's alright. It will be over soon."
Renji reluctantly nodded and stepped outside the infirmary. He leaned against the corridor wall and let out a deep sigh.
(What am I doing?)
His anger from earlier was mostly just misplaced frustration. Frustration at his own inability to do anything. And an unbearable fear of seeing her get hurt.
(Even though we only met two days ago.)
But she was the one who had given him the first warmth he'd felt in this world.
After a while, the doctor came out and said, "You can talk to her, but don't make it too long."
When Renji returned to the infirmary, Kirsche was sitting up in bed. A white bandage was wrapped around her neck, and her complexion was still a little pale. But the usual quiet light had returned to her eyes.
"I've caused you trouble."
"I told you, no need to apologize. But that really was overdoing it."
Renji sat down on the round stool next to the bed.
"You were watching."
"Ah, yeah. I happened to be passing by. And, well, I was thinking how amazing it was, but…"
Renji scratched his messy black hair.
"The Purification Song isn't just about the throat. You sing it with your heart."
Kirsche gently touched her own bandaged throat.
"A Singer releases their strong emotions and memories, riding them on the melody. Joy, sorrow, anger. The power of that will resonates with the Black Tide Miasma that composes the bodies of the Defiled Gods, and breaks it down. So it's not just sound waves. It's waves of the heart."
"Waves of the heart…"
Renji savored the words in his mind.
"But it comes at a great cost. It wears down your own mind and body. Every time I sing, I feel like I'm losing something important, little by little. They say three times is the limit because if you sing more than that, you'll truly break."
"Then why three times? You don't have to push yourself to the limit, do you?"
"If I don't know my limits, I can't protect my comrades in battle. Because I am a Singer of Hacos Bales."
Her voice was matter-of-fact. But deep within it was a strong resolve, holding onto something she couldn't compromise.
(She's amazing, this girl.)
Renji thought so anew. She was probably around his age. And yet, she shouldered the fate of the world, fighting while chipping away at her own life.
Compared to that, what about himself?
(I haven't been able to do anything.)
"…Those three songs earlier, they all felt completely different."
Renji said thoughtfully.
"Yes. The first was a song thinking of the earth. The second, a song thinking of the sea. The third, a song thinking of the sky. I use different memories and emotions for each."
"So, the effect of the song changes depending on the type of emotion?"
"…What do you mean?"
Kirsche's violet eyes widened just a fraction.
"Ah, well, you see. In my world's physics, sound has something called frequency. How we perceive sound changes depending on whether that frequency is high or low. Similarly, I was thinking that with the Purification Song, if the emotion you put into it is different, maybe the quality of the power the song emits also changes."
Renji explained desperately, using gestures.
"Earth, sea, and sky. If the emotions used for each song are different, for example, the emotion of strong, firm determination versus the gentle, enveloping emotion of affection should create different wave forms. If there are various types of Defiled Gods, the quality of their Black Tide Miasma might also differ. If you could use different emotions in your song to match them, couldn't you purify them more efficiently with less strain on yourself?"
A moment of silence.
Kirsche stared intently at Renji's face.
"…I've never thought of it that way before."
She spoke slowly.
"We have always sung by feeling. Just pouring all of our emotions into the taught melodies. To analyze it and try to use it differently based on theory… You really are a strange person."
"R-Really? I'm not very smart, so I don't really get it, but I thought that kind of thinking was something I could do."
Embarrassed, Renji looked down. He gently traced the small scar on his left temple with his finger.
"Thank you, Renji."
Kirsche's lips softened into the faintest hint of a smile.
It was the first real smile he had seen from her. Not her usual cool, expressionless look. Like the ice of a frozen lake slowly melting in the spring sunshine, it was quiet, but held a certain warmth.
A gentle heat spread deep in his chest.
(Ah, I'm glad.)
He thought that from the bottom of his heart. He didn't know if he had been helpful. But at least, he felt that his desire to be of use to her had gotten through.
"…Why didn't I realize it until now? It's such a simple thing."
"When you do something for a long time, it becomes so obvious that you stop seeing it. It happens to me a lot too.
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