***Chapter 294 Miko and Cage of Desire – The End***

Atop the world's highest peak, Greiviarbe.

There appeared a lone man.

Clad in thick cold-weather gear, equipped with various magical tools, his beard frozen from the outside air that was far below freezing temperature.

From the foot of the mountain, it was enormous, the great pillar of the earth.

Yet, this man, just a mere human, faced it with nothing but his body and emerged victorious.

"...Um, what should we do?"

The man's body, which seemed to have fainted, was magically isolated from the outside air, and his energy-depleted body was healed.

The silver-haired girl in the apron dress turned around and looked at Selene with a troubled look.

"Should we carry him to a nearby village while he's asleep?"

"You idiot, that would be too cruel. He worked so hard to climb all the way up here."

Selene, exasperated, approached and crossed her arms.

"A mountaineer, probably. Some people in this world really are that crazy. I can kind of understand the feeling, but should I say they’re reckless or just plain foolish..."

"Why did this person come all the way up here? Krische doesn't understand at all.”

"What you said...he came to climb the mountain, probably."

"Um...What is he going to do by climbing?"

"...Don't ask me. ...Bery."

Krische looked at Bery, confused.

Bery, who, found the abrupt question difficult, gave a wry smile.

"I...That's right...Maybe there's a meaning to meaninglessness..."

"Meaning in the meaninglessness..."

"Ah, Krische-sama, your skewer is ready to eat."

"Ah, hehe...Yes."

Simple-minded.

Krische's interest shifted back from the man to her skewer and she moved towards Bery, who was near the grill.

Lira, who had been on the verge of decadence, regained her composure due to the visitor and moved away from Elvena to stand beside Selene, near the man.

Even through the cold-weather gear, his well-built body was apparent.

Lira was reminded of the men of Kreisharana in the past.

"This person is incredible... to climb such a high mountain with just his body."

"Well, it certainly is incredible but... What should we do with him?"

"..Right, we can't just leave him like this..."

After a moment of thought, she nodded, apologized to the unconscious man, and started searching his backpack.

Inside were various tools presumably for mountaineering. Amid the unfamiliar items, she found what she was looking for.

It was a bag containing a small tent.

Taking the poles fixed outside the backpack, she began to set them up in a suitable spot.

"Need help?"

"No, I'm fine. Leave it to me."

"If you say so..."

Selene returned to Anne, conversing with her while occasionally glancing their way.

In her place, Elvena approached and offered her hand, saying that it would be difficult to do it alone.

"Fufu, Lira-sama had some alcohol, detailed work might be a bit difficult."

"I'm sorry..."

"Lira-sama is very kind."

"N-no... I just thought waking up under the open sky would be a bit much..."

Even though Krische’s power would likely heal him regardless, waking up suddenly at the summit might be shocking.

Typically, ordinary people couldn't recognize Lila and the others, and even if they did, they wouldn't remember. How he perceived this experience remained uncertain, but...

‘…M-my deepest apologies. To have defiled such a...sacred banquet.’

From what he said, it seems he mistook Lira and the others as gods or something.

Moreover, if he had fainted and then regained consciousness after reaching the freezing summit after exerting all his strength, the impression that he had been saved by God would have been even stronger.

That didn't seem like a good thing.

He had trained his body and mind, pushed himself to his limits, and challenged this mountain with nothing but his bare hands.

Lila didn't want to tarnish that resolve if possible, and felt that it was not a place for others to enter.

"There are people like this in this world too..."

"...That's true."

As the two of them stretched out a smooth-feeling cloth, presumably for protection from the cold, she felt someone's gaze on her and looked at Elvena.

She was staring at Lira's face for some reason.

"...Umm?"

"No, it seems you were sobered up from the surprise. ...Apparently Kreisharana has become a temple now."

"Yes, that seems to be the case. I remember seeing monks there a few times."

She had no intention of looking into it herself, but she found herself thinking about it.

She also knew a little bit about how Kreisharana was doing now.

The Holy Spirit was gone, and many had drifted to the plains.

But there were those who stayed and tried to protect their traditions and teachings.

There were people from the plains who were attracted to their way of being.

At some point, Kreisharana became a word that meant not a tribe, but an ideology, and a temple was built in the place where it once was.

Her brother must have made a great contribution by working hard to reconcile with the people of the plains and showing them the way by succeeding them as the tribe’s chief.

Time would make everything better.

Just as he had told Lira, good teachings were relatable even through the ages, and remained even when the tribe was gone, and that was exactly what happened.

Although many of the teachings seem to have changed form, the important teachings remain to this day.

‘...I will never let your faith and resolve go to waste. If you have the opportunity to see what lay beyond, you’ll surely find the Kreisharana you wished for.’

When they met at the ceremony, her brother would sometimes talk about the changes in Kreisharana.

Not everything matched the future she had imagined back then, but it was certainly the future of Kreisharana Lira had hoped for.

"Is this person also related to them?"

"I can't say for sure... Maybe, maybe not."

With a wry smile, she continued.

"Regardless, the desire to improve oneself and the appreciation for such endeavors remain unchanged. I am moved."

"Moved..."

"Yes."

If she was to express what was in her heart, there was no other way to call it than being moved.

"I was worried about the meaning of abstinence, self-restraint, and devoting oneself to asceticism. I wondered what the meaning of such things really was."

Closing her eyes, she clasped her hands in prayer.

Wearing fur and the two pieces of cloth, the top and bottom, it was incredibly cold, but she cherished it now.

Elvena was staring at Lira with a very disinterested look on her face, but with her eyes closed, she didn't notice.

"But perhaps there doesn't need to be any meaning. If indulging in pleasure is part of human nature, then so is disciplining oneself and striving for self-improvement. We should simply follow our hearts."

Yes, follow the heart.

A mind that fall into depravity, surrendering itself to pleasure and avoiding hardship.

A mind that wanted to hone itself, throw itself into hardship, and value abstinence and self-restraint.

There was no absolute truth or superiority, both were true.

"Fufu, it’s delicious."

"Nee-sama, it's not fair that Bery gets all the attention! Me too..."

"How spoiled...Bery hold Kreschenta, after that Krische will fed Kreschenta."

"Now now, Krische-sama. Here, for Kreschenta-sama too..."

"Ugh..."

The two, having lost interest in the visitor, faithfully followed their desires.

It's not that being true to one's desires was bad, but that didn’t mean that throwing oneself into hardships and devoting oneself to one's study like him was absolutely right.

Neither was wrong, and that was fine.

Whether it was right or meaningful was trivial.

Everyone should simply pursue what they wish for――Lira’s path just happened to be one of self-discipline.

"...Lira-sama, It's as if you've been enlightened."

"Enlightenment... No, fufu, certainly it felt close to that. At least, thanks to this person, I feel like I've seen a truth."

Lira nodded as she looks at the unconscious man.

Elvena stares at Lila, glaring at her.

They moved him into the prepared tent and the meal comes to an end.

Selene asked what they should do, and a mansion meeting (a traveling version) was hastily held.

Kreschenta, who was very satisfied (and wanted to go back to the mansion and have a good night's rest), said, ‘Why don't we just leave him alone and go home?’

She was saying that since he came to this place because he wanted to, she didn't care if she died in the field or not.

She speaks in a way that makes it seem like she really didn’t care at all.

Her words were surprisingly sensible, although she lacked the power to speak as she was being held by the servant.

The policy of not getting too involved with normal humans was sound, and they had saved a life that had once come close to death, so that was more than enough, and there was certainly a point to what she said, regardless of what she really thought.

Even if there was a war, they would not get involved in public affairs.

It was not something they should get involved in, as they had chosen to stay out of history, and the first policy of the mansion was that matters in the human world should be decided by those who lived in it.

It was decided as a rule that while preventive measures would be taken to ensure the survival of this world, they would not intervene in anything other than that.

In that respect, what she said was reasonable and in line with the principle, and unusually, Selene (who thought it would be a shame to leave him alone) and Krische (who also wanted to be held) also showed some agreement with her opinion.

However, Anne (who wants to be immersed in a happy fantasy) expressed her opinion that she would have a bad dream if they leave him as is.

Her opinions, which she rarely express at meetings, were emotional, but her feelings were sound.

Lira (who were enlightened thanks to him) agreed, saying,

‘It's certainly reckless and foolish, and he may have been destined to die here... but it was a fortuitus meeting that he met us like this. We should at least see him off so he can return safely.’

With Bery (who support the theory of fortuitus meeting) and Elvena (the ??? group) agreeing, the opinions was split into two.

However, with Selene's agreement that she would had bad dreams, they came to the conclusion that they would watch over him so he could safely descend the mountain.

This was not the first time they had helped people, with the Sea of Trees survival tours and ocean drifting tours.

The mansion's policy was to think from a broader perspective, and there was also the view that individuals who they had fortuitus meeting with were the exception, and this opinion was fully adopted.

They made a suitable bed for him on the south side where he had climbed, and saw him off on his return journey.

Stabilizing the weather, packing down the snow, and secretly adding some portable food to his backpack was sufficient.

Step by step, he steadily made his way down the path he had come up, occasionally using a rope to skillfully descend.

The white mountain range shining in the sun.

Brown winter gear left footprints on the pure white slopes.

The man's figure was infinitely tiny compared to this world.

He was different from Lila and the others who were playing with avalanches.

No matter how much training he had, it was still reckless.

To challenge a mountain like this, clutching one life in hand, one misstep, one accidental slip on the snow, would mean losing it all.

But the man firmly stamped his mark on the pure white snow, on the ice, and slowly, without breaking his pace, moving, still tiny.

It was a sight that was burned into Lira's eyes.

She felt her energy, which had supposedly been fading, grow stronger again, and made another snowman.

Elvena, beside him, was looking at Lira, not the man.

And so the 57th Christand Snow Mountain Disaster Tour came to an end, and Lira and the others left Greiviarbe.

In stark contrast to the frigid land, they returned to the mansion in the warm forest to tidy up for the time being.

They brought along a fair amount of luggage, from the tent, sled, and chairs they had been using, and carefully polished each item before placing them in the storehouse built next to the mansion.

Magic was often used to melt snow on the snowy mountains to make makeshift hot springs, or to climb back up the mountain after skiing down, but maintaining these tools was usually done by hand.

Only Kreschenta complained.

Even she, despite her complaints, did not seem to dislike this kind of work, and she was in a good mood as she carefully wiped the small articles and complained about her frustrations in the snowy mountains.

There was not a single person here who found this kind of work bothersome.

Maintenance of the mansion, villa, and hut, and everything else was basically done by hand.

When you think about it, even life in this mansion, which feels decadent, was not all pleasure-oriented.

Spending time on work that could be completed in the blink of an eye, meaninglessly and wastefully――in a way, it must be for the same reason as Lira's daily training.

They put time and effort into even making a simple cup of tea, and now they make things from tea leaves by hand.

Everyone was particular about all kinds of things, and worked seriously on trivial and pointless things.

"...Come to think of it, even though we've spent a thousand and several hundred years here, maybe I've only seen the surface."

"The surface...?"

Lira said as she and Elvena carried the table they'd just finished maintaining back to the hut.

"I thought that life in the mansion was depraved. But in reality, I realized that life in the mansion and my everyday life are not that different. When I think about the meaning of doing unnecessary things by hand, I think they are similar."

They had realized for a long time what Lira had finally realized.

Of course, they may have been unconscious, but they certainly felt that they could not just pursue pleasure.

"When Elvena-sama said that humans are creatures that need balance, isn't that what she meant? People cannot endure pain forever, but they are not made to indulge in pleasure alone. I think Elvena-sama was trying to teach me that."

"Um..."

“When I think about it, I may have taken things too far, trying to distract myself from escaping by indulging in pleasure.”

Indulging in pleasure was wrong.

Abstinence and self-restraint was right.

On the surface, Lira said it was fine to live like Krische and the others if they were happy, but deep down, she must have been fixated on that idea.

Abstinence and self-restraint were merely a means to discipline her immature self, not the goal.

Lira was only doing it to maintain her own balance, as she was prone to becoming corrupt, and it was a matter for Lira and Lira alone.

It goes without saying that Selene and Bery were the same.

Krische also had her own aesthetic, and she spent her days adhering to it.

She worked energetically every day, hoping to become a fine lady and servant, and even Kreschenta’s meddl―― no, considering her abilities, it would be easy to solve anything but, she helped Selene and Bery with their work.

The reason why Lira only remembers their spoiled, corrupted appearances must be because that was the only side of them she had seen.

Feelings like she was holding back, and yet they were doing it, was nothing more than irrational jealousy.

Looking at Elvena, she was looking at Lira's face in thought.

She shook her black hair, which was neatly tied around her shoulders, narrowed her narrow eyes, and then suddenly, a soft smile appeared on her face.

"I know I'm not such a fine person to be teaching you, Lira-sama... but I suppose that's what it means to take a break. Lira-sama is so hard on herself that even the most peaceful and comfortable aspects of everyday life seem like a decadence, and I was a little worried that Lira-sama was pushing herself into a corner."

"I see. Sorry to have worried you."

Putting the table down, Lira bowed her head, and Elvena gave a wry smile.

Perhaps Elvena was trying to corrupt her――a doubt she had had many times before.

But it was a hopelessly rude one.

Elvena had just been worried about Lira all this time.

It was shameful to have felt that way about her.

"...The truth is, umm... I have often thought, with much rudeness, that maybe Elvena-sama were seducing me into depravity and enjoying it."

"my."

She looked up timidly, and Elvena looked surprised, as if she had never expected that.

She was relieved to see Elvena’s reaction was as she had imagined it, but her cheeks were stained and her eyes were swimming at her own rude thoughts and words.

"But, you're right... Now that you mention it, I'm always getting in the way of Lira-sama. I'm sorry. I thought I was being considerate, but maybe I'm just being a bit of a busybody..."

"N-no, well... it's not that Elvena-sama is bad, it's just that I'm the kind of person who can't accept other people's kindness honestly... Elvena-sama is not at all"

Seeing Elvena with a troubled and slightly sad look on her face, Lira hastily denied it.

"No, as long as you're honest about it, I'll make sure to improve myself."

"Improve? Umm, I was just being stubborn... I'm very happy, and it’ll be fine from now on. I'm only saying that that was only up until now... Right now, I'm very grateful."

"...Are you really not pushing yourself too hard?"

"Yes, I'm not lying."

Lira said, looking straight at Elvena.

Elvena stared at Lira, then smiled as if relieved.

It was a charming and cute smile.

"...I'm glad. But if there's anything, please tell me. I’m actually someone who doesn't know how to keep a distance from others... so"

"It's okay. Elvena has never done anything like that before. In fact, I think I'm the one who's unknowingly doing rude things more often than not..."

"Fufu, that's not true."

Elvena said, looking at the things that had been organized in the warehouse.

"That's about it for now. Will Lira-sama go to Regalave-sama and the others?"

"Yes, to say hello."

Currently, four of the dragons were here.

The fifth of the seven-game match between Berry and the oldest dragon, Linasera, had been taking place three months ago, and in addition to Kushenaras, another dragon had come to watch it.

Bery had been coming out once a day to move her magic pieces, but nothing had changed.

The spirits were engrossed in playing board games, sometimes arguing like children, sometimes not.

Lira, the Holy Spirit, and the girls were all equally free here.

Thanks to the climber, her stiffened heart had loosened.

It was a good time to resume her training.

She would spend her days in abstinence and self-discipline because she wanted to, not because she had to.

Not because it had any meaning to it, but because she wanted to.

That's probably all that matters.

"And then--"

‘――I'll go back to my previous way of life to train myself again.’

Just as she was about to say that,

"Yes, as promised, I'd like Lira-sama help with making the costume."

"Eh?"

Elvena smiled and opened her mouth.

"... What's the matter, Lira-sama?"

"No, nothing... I'd completely forgotten. That's right."

"Is there something you need to do?"

"No... I'd be happy to help you out."

‘That's good to hear’, Elvena said, clapping her hands.

A full-bloomed smile, it was a rare sight from her.

"Please take a break and relax for a while, so please feel free to ask me anything you want."

"R-rest..."

"Yes, I have practiced sewing a little, but doing everything from scratch is still an amateur job and I'm not used to it, so I may cause you trouble... but I will do my best to take care of other parts. Leave it to me."

Elvena approached with a smile.

"Ah, well..."

"After all, it's going to be quite a hassle to consider Lira-sama's preferences, measurements, and fittings, so if Lira-sama don't mind, how about staying in my room instead? It's more convenient for me that way..."

The first step she took in her resolve was swept away by the rapid-fire words.

Today, the Miko was inside the cage of desire.