Early TNG Vol. 22 Chapter 4 Part 4

Full title: THE NEW GATE

Note: If you found any typos/mistakes, pls write them in the comment. Thanks.

Translator: Canon

Note: Last chapter for this volume.

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“…His presence is still there.”

He’s going to regenerate again.

Shin watched Nuva’s vanishing head just before it fell into the sea, convinced of what was coming.

He scanned everything for changes—mana flow, auras, the monsters’ behavior—believing the key to breaking through had to be hidden somewhere in the details.

“(Shin! He’s regenerating again!?)”

Filma shouted as she saw the head begin to reform.

“(The last one we fought stayed down after one death. Anyone see anything different this time?)”

He opened 【Mind Chat】 to share thoughts rapidly. To stall for time, Shin once again used 【Arc Bind】 to restrain Nuva, while Schnee froze the area around him.

“(His resistance to magic seems to be increasing. I won’t be able to hold him much longer.)”

Looking closer, Nuva’s scales had begun to emit a dark, smoky haze. Perhaps due to this, the ice Schnee had formed was melting rapidly.

(Guess I’ll give it a shot myself.)

Shin leapt toward Nuva’s reanimating head.

The pale purple blade of the 『Seiryutou』 was soon engulfed by black and violet effects. The aura expanded outward, extending the blade and forming a dark-colored edge.

Shin kicked off the air, dodging lashing tentacles, and timed his strike just as Nuva broke free of the ice and began to rise.

A compound shadow-sword technique 【Shiden - Makokusen】.

The black slash sank into Nuva’s neck.

As Shin completed the swing, the 『Seiryutou』 returned to its original glow.

The effect that had formed the blade remained embedded in the cut, beginning to draw in everything around it.

【Shiden - Makokusen】, like Schnee and Filma’s 【Explosive Slash】, activated its full effect at the point of impact. The black-purple aura absorbed all surrounding matter like a black hole, eventually compressing into a three-mel-wide sphere before vanishing.

Nuva’s neck and head were ripped away as if gouged out, his HP dropped to zero once again.

The sensation was no different. There was no special feedback, just the same feeling as when he had cut down Hevin or Corpus.

Shin immediately told the others to watch for any changes in Nuva’s behavior or form.

“(I don’t see anything different.)”

“(Sorry, neither do I.)”

The disheartened voices came from Shibaid and Milt, who had temporarily pulled back to avoid getting caught in the fight between Armaiz and Yuzuha.

But the others felt the same.

(That last strike… our eyes met, didn’t they?)

As he listened to the others, Shin recalled the moment of his slash.

The size difference between them made it impossible to say for certain, but even so, he couldn’t shake the feeling that Nuva had been staring directly at him.

As the severed head splashed into the sea and faded away, Shin remained sure—Nuva’s gaze had been fixed on him.

“(…Hey, are the monsters heading toward Shin now?)”

As Shin dodged a flurry of tentacle strikes and looked toward Nuva’s head, Milt’s words made him blink. He glanced around.

Up until now, Nuva’s target had been Armaiz. Ever since Armaiz revealed himself, the monsters had shown a tendency to cluster toward him as well. Shin and the others had been attacked too, but that was likely incidental; either because they happened to be in the path or fell within attack range. The monsters had never changed course to pursue them.

But now… they were turning toward Shin.

Hevin, Corpus, even the fused monsters—all drifting over the sea surface, headed straight for him.

Schnee and Filma were a bit farther away. There was no doubt, Shin was the sole target.

“(Did you do something, Shin?)”

“(No clue. Nothing comes to mind.)”

Shin tilted his head in response to Milt’s question.

But the longer this continued, the clearer it became: the monsters were heading towards him. It was far too distinct to be a coincidence. Even Nuva—just regenerated—was staring right at him.

“(Yuzuha, can you ask Armaiz if he knows anything?)”

“(He’s just as confused. He said the hostility that was directed at him is gone.)”

“(Gone...? Even after reviving, I thought Nuva was still fixated on him.)”

Even as he conversed with Yuzuha via 【Mind Chat】, the monsters were still lunging at Shin. But something felt off.

He dodged the fused monster’s tentacles and slashed at its core. He used magic to blow away a group of Hevin and Corpus. He evaded Nuva’s charge by kicking off the air, cleaving its neck in a swift counter.

That’s when Shin was sure, Nuva was looking at him.

“Is there something you want to tell me?”

He said it aloud without thinking.

Nuva’s attack patterns had changed. He wasn’t using his deafening roars or his massive body to slam around anymore, just repeated, straightforward charges like a one-trick brute.

And it wasn’t just Nuva.

Hevin was reaching out toward him with trembling arms, like trying to cling to something.

Corpus's tentacles swayed unsteadily, lacking any of their usual sharpness.

Even the fused monsters, while different in form, were behaving in the same way.

Shin couldn’t help but feel like there was intent behind it all.

“What is it…? What are you all asking of me…?”

He murmured, and realized how quiet it had become.

At some point, the roar of battle had ceased.

“Shin… what is this?”

“I wish I knew.”

Schnee and the others had gathered around him. With the monsters no longer offering resistance, it was hard to tell whether they should keep fighting.

“We’re surrounded.”

“They’re not coming any closer than a certain distance, though.”

Filma looked genuinely puzzled, 『Scarlet Moon』 resting on her shoulder. Shibaid stood ready with his shield, but the tip of his 『Placid Moon』 pointed passively at the sea.

As the tense standoff continued, a joint message from Tiera and Sety came through via 【Mind Chat】.

“(Shin! What’s happening over there!? The monsters suddenly pulled away from the barrier and all started moving in the same direction!)”

Sety’s message confirmed it, the monsters that had been attacking the other side of the island were behaving just like the ones here.

Since they weren’t attacking anymore, Shin decided to explain the situation to the two.

“(Shin… these monsters are the manifestation of lingering grudges of those who died at sea, right?)”

“(That’s what we’ve been told.)”

After hearing Shin's explanation, Tiera spoke after a short pause.

“(Then… do you think those grudges are really all they feel? Just hatred and resentment?)”

“(You mean they have something else?)”

“(I don’t know if I’m right. But… maybe, deep down, they just want to be set free.)”

“(Set free…?)”

“(It’s something I realized while fighting. Their bodies are made of mana and negative emotions. That means they’ll keep suffering until someone puts an end to it.)”

Even if they made it to land and attacked people, they’d only create more hatred and despair. In the end, the monsters were trapped in endless suffering.

Tiera’s powers as a Priestess of the World Tree seemed to be letting her feel the monsters’ pain.

“(None of them try to dodge attacks.)”

“(What?)”

“(They don’t block, either. They fight back, but they never try to lessen the damage. It’s like… they want to be attacked.)”

Hearing the sorrow in Tiera’s voice, Shin thought back to the fight.

Now that she mentioned it, none of the monsters had ever tried to defend or evade.

Nuva resisted the binds but if what Tiera said was true, maybe even that was just him trying to provoke attacks.

“Is that really what this is…?”

The sea was covered in monsters, so many they seemed to blot out the water itself. But after hearing Tiera’s words, Shin could only see them as pleading for release.

“Shin. The elf girl is right.”

“…Armaiz.”

The sea of monsters parted, and Armaiz emerged. None of them tried to stop him.

Even Nuva, who was nearby, made no move to attack.

“After hearing Tiera’s words, I finally understood why Nuva was targeting me.”

“…Don’t tell me…”

Based on everything so far, Shin realized what Nuva truly wanted.

Armaiz continued.

“Yes. He, too, wants to be set free. As long as he remains, his followers will remain bound in that form, trapped in suffering. His role is to gather the wandering souls lost at sea, purify them, and return them to the world’s cycle. This battle likely exists only because there was no other way.”

Souls that couldn’t return to the cycle—ones that could only wander—must have clung to impurities.

Armaiz believed Nuva had the power to strip that away and return them to the proper flow.

He had seen the buildup of negative energy in the ocean firsthand.

“When too much impurity gathers beyond what the vessel can contain, it overflows and becomes monsters. I believe that’s what we’re seeing now.”

And thus, the solution had been reduced to simple destruction and anyone strong enough could do it. But few were strong enough. Most would be devoured. That’s why Nuva had chosen Armaiz, someone powerful enough, and also tied to the world’s cycle.

Thanks to this brief pause in battle, even Yuzuha had begun to understand Nuva’s condition. Her expression was tinged with pity.

“Nuva’s unstable. He’s absorbed more souls than his vessel can hold, and he’s about to rupture.”

“He’s been doing his duty for so long, the impurity has finally overwhelmed him. If we don’t stop him here, he’ll become a being of pure destruction.”

The two Divine Beasts spoke as one; they wanted this to end now, before Nuva’s suffering worsened.

“But… he just keeps regenerating.”

Shin wanted to release him. But even with high-tier skills, Nuva still revived.

He didn’t know what else he could do.

“You can do it, Shin.”

“…Yuzuha?”

Yuzuha, who had been riding on Armaiz’s head, leapt into Shin’s arms as she spoke.

“You have the power. The power to release those who are bound.”

“…You mean that Title.”

The power of the 【Liberator】title —which could cancel even enslavement skills. It seemed the effect wasn’t limited to people.

“You’re sure?”

Shin turned to Nuva and asked.

Nuva, who had been silently watching the discussion, gave a solemn nod. The rampaging creature from before was nowhere to be seen.

Shin turned to Yuzuha.

“So I just use it on Nuva directly?”

“That alone won’t be enough. I’ll amplify your power.”

With that, Yuzuha leapt from Shin’s arms down to the sea and began releasing her power.

Her body began to glow white and grow in size.

The surrounding monsters parted as if pushed back by the radiance.

When the light faded, she had taken on the full form of an Element Tail: the same majestic form Shin had fought in the game era.

Nine tails swayed behind her. A towering, divine presence that exuded sanctity and pressure so immense that even Shin instinctively tensed.

According to Yuzuha, her power hadn’t fully returned yet—but, to Shin, it certainly didn’t feel that way.

“On my back.”

Sensing her intent from those simple words, Shin climbed onto Yuzuha’s back.

“Your power.”

Still seated, Shin placed his hand on her and activated the power of the 【Liberator】 title.

The moment he did, Yuzuha’s entire body began to shine.

A radiant yet gentle golden light enveloped her. Cloaked in that glow, she spread her nine tails wide and let out a high, resounding cry.

At the same time, particles of light rose into the sky.

They soared upward before scattering far and wide, raining down on the monsters below.

“The monsters… they’re disappearing…”

Any monster touched by the light dissolved, as if melting into the wind. And, in the space where their core had once been, a soft white light remained.

The lights hovered briefly, then slowly began to ascend toward the sky until they vanished completely.

This scene repeated all around the island… until only Nuva remained.

No new monsters appeared. The tide had stopped.

“Shin—him, you must release directly.”

“Got it.”

Shin dismounted and approached Nuva. The great beast lowered his body to meet him.

Placing a hand on the tip of Nuva’s snout, Shin activated his power.

Nuva’s massive body began to glow, then slowly faded away, bit by bit, from the outside inward.

And just before his head vanished, Nuva gently closed his eyes… as if finally at peace.

With his role quietly fulfilled, Nuva would never return again.

(TNG Vol. 22 END)

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