Mobuseka Volume 13 Chapter 20

This is MTL. So, I cannot guarantee that the translation 100% contextually accurate or appropriate.

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Chapter 20 "The Forbidden Art of the Saint"

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Part 1

Marie felt relieved when she saw Leon's heart starting to beat again.

(Did the crest of the guardian substitute for the tool? But now I can use the forbidden arts!)

Normally, there would have been a necessary tool.

But instead of those tools, a young tree of the sacred tree is holding Leon's life together.

(But there's no time. I have to get aniki over here as soon as possible. And another important factor is that I can substitute for it.)

Marie took one deep breath.

"I'll bring aniki back while the sacred tree is lending me its strength."

When Marie touched Leon's body, for some reason Julius grabbed her shoulder.

He had a somewhat anxious expression on his face.

"Marie, what exactly are you planning to do?"

Marie turned around and tried to act normal.

"What? I'm just going to save aniki."

Julius and the others seemed to feel vaguely uneasy about Marie's usual behavior.

"You say you can save Leon with magic, but is it really possible in this state? Wouldn't there have to be a price to pay to save Leon?"

It's almost the same as bringing the dead back to life.

Julius and the others apparently cannot imagine that this can be done without risk.

Marie reassures them.

"It's okay. There's no problem."

"Then how are you going to save Leon? Tell me the details!"

To calm the worried Julius, Marie explained briefly.

This is the magic that Saint Livia —— used to save the protagonist's lover in the third otome game.

"I'll have to bring back the soul that's trying to get to the other side by force. I hope the physical body will be taken care of by then, though."

Leon's physical condition is not good.

Creare is in trouble.

[If only to prolong his life, we could do it somehow——wait! It's here, it's finally hereee!]

When Creare looked out the window, she saw Luxion's main body.

Seeing the sub unit that had stopped working, Creare suddenly praised him.

Even though he had stopped functioning, he was still doing its job.

[So it was just the sub unit that stopped working. As expected from Luxion. If that's the case, you should have contacted me sooner. Ara? I've been trying to talk to him, but he doesn't seem to be responding. Is there a problem?]

Luxion's sub-unit shows no reaction.

Jilk, whose body was wrapped in bandages, seemed to feel something strange about Luxion's condition.

"That's strange, it was working fine until we got here."

Not caring, Marie pushed Julius and the others out of the room.

"Anyway! I will be busy, you guys should go outside!"

"I-I get it, so don't push me."

Marie kicks Julius and the others out and closes the door.

She pressed her forehead against the door and made a heartfelt apology to everyone.

(Everyone——sorry. Thanks for everything)

She wiped away her tears, then slapped her cheeks with both hands to pumped herself up.

"All right! I'll get started right away!"

Marie approached Leon and held his hand tightly.

Then Livia grabbed Marie's hand.

"Please, let me help you."

Marie was about to refuse, but gave up when she saw the serious look on her face.

She looks at Ange as well.

"You're gonna help me too."

"Are you sure? I'll do whatever I can."

"Since you're his fiance, you should help out. Of course, you should help out too, Noel."

When Noel is called, she looks so happy she could cry.

"Yes! I'll do my best!"

Marie gives a warning to the three of them.

"I'm going to the other side to bring aniki's soul back. And —— whatever you see, don't hate him."

Marie, who was speaking uneasily, performed the saint's forbidden magic before Livia and the others could say anything.

"——I'm going to start the magic."

When the four of them were about to fall, Yumeria and the machines supported their bodies.

And Luxion's red eyes, which had not shown any reaction until now, flashed faintly once.

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Part 2

Livia suddenly found herself walking through a dark tunnel.

"Ange? Noel-san? ——Marie-san!?"

It was dark and she could not see anything, but she strangely understood that it was a tunnel.

From the surroundings came the voices of Marie, Ange, and Noel.

"I'm here! Don't get separated!"

"I'm here!"

"Hey, I can't see anything!?"

When their voices confirm that they are near each other, Marie warns the three of them.

"Listen? From here on, just follow my instructions. And don't be surprised by anything you see. ——Trust my big brother."

Ange questions Marie.

"Of course. But more importantly, I've never heard of a magic spell that can even revive the dead. How do you know this kind of magic?"

Marie answers the question nonchalantly.

"It's a forbidden art in the temple. Only those who inherit the Saint's tools can learn it."

"Forbidden art? Did you inherit this art?"

When exactly did she inherit it?

It's only been a short time since Marie was recognized as a Saint, so it seems unlikely that she could have learned such forbidden magic so quickly.

Livia agreed.

"Is this the kind of magic you can learn in a short period of time?"

With all her knowledge of magic, she could not believe that such a thing was feasible.

And at the same time, she immediately understood that it was magic that should be forbidden.

"But I can understand why it is forbidden. Because it is a big problem to bring the dead back from the other side."

Ange asked Marie.

"That's strange, though. There have been occasions when you could have used it before."

Why didn't she use it then?

Marie lets out a sigh before answering.

"I only learned it recently."

Noel seemed to believe Marie's words.

"Thanks to Marie-chan, Leon will be saved, and there's no point in questioning her now."

Ange reflects on what Noel has said.

"You're right. Sorry."

As Marie accepted the apology, Livia was lost in thought.

(I understand why resurrection magic is forbidden, but is it really that easy to learn such magic? Or is there a big price to pay?)

Just as her thoughts seem to be coming together, everything brightens up in front of her.

"I saw it!"

Marie ran out, or so the footsteps were heard.

As they approached the light, they saw a large gate.

Marie pushed it open with both hands and called the three of them.

"Hurry up! If we take too long, aniki's soul will truly leave his body!"

As Ange approached the light, everyone could see it.

Livia and Noel followed and when the four of them passed through the gate —— what they saw was a town they had never seen before.

Noel was the first to open her mouth.

"Where is this?"

A strange landscape unfolded before them.

It looked like a residential area, but the buildings were all in a different style to those in the kingdom.

Identical pillars were placed at equal intervals and connected by wiring.

The ground is hard and not cobblestone paved, and there are lines and unfamiliar characters written in white paint.

It seems as if people are living there, but strangely enough, no one is there.

Perhaps never having seen it before, Ange is also very surprised.

"Is this the afterlife? I've never seen anything like this before. Or rather, does it look similar to the scenery we saw on our school trip?"

Livia looked up at the sky —— there was a large black hole in the sky.

She could see nothing beyond it and had a feeling of anxiety and fear.

"What is that big hole in the sky? Just looking at it makes me uneasy."

Marie stood still, wiping away tears at the sight.

"——Hurry up. We're going to pick up aniki."

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Part 3

Ange, who was accompanying Marie, had been feeling something strange for a while now.

(How come this girl hasn't lost her way since a while ago?)

Marie did not hesitate to navigate through the maze-like town, which was unfamiliar to them.

It seems she's been there before, and they arrived at the apartment complex where they were guided.

"Here. On the third floor!"

While watching Marie excitedly climb the stairs, Ange looked up at the building and observed it.

"The structure is different from our country. It's like a foreign country."

The style of the building was quite different from what she was familiar with.

They climbed the stairs and arrived at the third floor, where they found several doors lined up in a row.

Marie chose one of them without hesitation.

"This room! If you're in there, come out now!"

There was no response when she knocked on the door, so Marie put her hand on the doorknob.

"It's open."

Marie went straight into the room, followed by Ange and the others.

Marie took off her shoes and entered the room, looking for Leon as if she knew how to do everything.

"Maybe in the toilet?"

Ange was naturally annoyed that she seemed to know where everything was in the room.

"You know a lot about this."

Jealousy began to well up within Ange towards Marie, who seemed to know more about Leon than they did.

Sensing Ange's frustration, Marie made an indescribable face.

"Since you seem to have misunderstood, I'll make it clear that I'm Leon's little sister."

Noel was so surprised that she covered her mouth with her hands.

"You're kidding me!?"

Ange was also surprised, but could not believe the facts she had heard from Marie's mouth.

"That's absolutely impossible! Leon's family tree has been thoroughly researched by the Duke's family! Because there are so many rumors every time, so we have to do it over and over again!"

Ange and Noel were puzzled by Marie's statement.

However, only Livia was not surprised.

"Marie-san, can you explain it?"

Marie had a serious expression on her face in front of the three of them. Her attitude showed that she was not lying or joking.

"Aniki and I were brother and sister in a previous life."

Ange tilted her head at the unfamiliar word.

"A previous life?"

When the four of them entered Leon's room, it was not exactly what you would call spacious.

The student dormitory would have been more splendid.

It looks like a small room with a bed, a desk, and a bunch of other stuff crammed into it.

Noel notices a monitor in the room.

"There's a monitor here, too."

Similar to the monitors used by Luxion and the others, there was one in Leon's room as well.

Livia was also looking around the room with interest.

"There are a lot of characters I don't know. And could this be —— an ancient civilization?"

Marie had an indescribable look on her face when she saw Livia getting excited about the poster in the room.

"Right. An ancient civilization. ——It's a gal game's poster."

Livia's curiosity was piqued and she was excited, but she could sense that Leon had been living in this room.

"The reason you know so much about Leon-san is because you remembered your previous life."

Ange rolls her eyes at Livia's lack of doubt.

"Doesn't that surprise you, Livia?"

Livia gave a wry smile and explained why she wasn't surprised.

"Until now, strange things have happened involving Leon-san. And when I heard that they were siblings from their previous lives, it all made sense. Marie-san has even called Leon-san "onii-chan" before."

Marie was embarrassed to learn that he had heard her call him onii-chan.

Ange checked herself to see if it was really Leon's room.

"Leon's room in his previous life? If so——I knew it was here"

When she searched under the bed, she found erotic books as a matter of course.

Marie hides her face with her hands in front of her brother's hobby.

"Stupid big brother, aren't you ashamed that even your stash is the same as in your previous life? I'm embarrassed as your sister. I mean, it's obvious to your fiancees."

Noel was looking through the bookshelf.

"Ah, it's here too! It's in the same hiding place, so it feels like Leon's room."

And then Livia finds the most important thing.

"——What is this?"

It was a package of "that otome game" that had been left on the floor.

Marie looks nostalgically at the package.

"Alte Liebe......The Tale of the Saint"

The title is "Alte Liebe" and the subtitle seems to be "The Tale of the Saint".

Livia's hands were shaking as she held the package.

A girl who looks like Livia is surrounded by a group of boys, presumably Julius and his friends.

Ange was also curious and received a package from Livia.

She could not read the words, but when she checked the back of the package, she saw a person who looked like herself in a red dress.

"This looks like His Highness and the others. And I've seen this place before. Isn't it the fountain in the school square?"

Marie looked down with a solemn expression.

"For us, this is reality. Your world is a game from our point of view. It's like a fantasy world."

Marie confessed that they had "reincarnated in the world of Alte Liebe."

She began by carefully explaining the game and then told them all about it.

The whole story that was originally supposed to follow.

Now that she knew everything, Ange was unconsciously clutching the package.

"You mean me and Livia are going to be hostile? That's not possible!"

It seems Livia felt the same way as Ange.

"That's right. I will not have a duel against Ange!"

Seeing them, Marie smiles a little sadly.

"That's because I got in the way."

Ange, who knew what she was talking about, widened her eyes.

"You got in the way? No, wait——you, could it be!"

Marie had some knowledge of the game, albeit only partially.

She explains what she did as if she were repenting.

"I had knowledge up to the middle of the first work. So —— it was very easy for me to seduce Julius and the others. I knew from the beginning what they liked, and I remembered most of the behaviors that the five of them liked."

When Ange raised her right hand, Livia stopped her.

"Livia, let go!"

"Please calm down. I'm surprised too. I'm surprised, but —— I'm very happy right now."

"Livia, but I'm sure Marie gave you a hard time, too."

"Although a lot has happened, I am happy to be in the relationship I have with Leon-san and Ange. So, let's go and pick up Leon-san quickly."

Ange looked down at the package.

"Right. But I see——from Leon's point of view, we are just characters in a story."

It made her very sad, and at the same time, she guessed what Leon was thinking.

(I knew he was hiding something, but was it this?)

This certainly can't be said, Ange thought as she put the package on the desk.

Noel, who had been silent until now, looked lonely when she saw the package.

"I'm not there?"

Marie let out a big sigh.

"You are not there because you are a character in the second work. But don't worry, you're the main character in the second one."

"I'm glad to hear that——I guess? It's kind of a weird feeling."

Marie looks troubled when she learns that Leon is not here.

"I mean, if aniki isn't here——is he at our parents' house, after all?"

Ange becomes interested when she hears that Leon's parents' home.

"Is this where Leon's parents live?"

"Yes. Maybe——our parents are here too."

Ange, Livia, and Noel are surprised when they hear it.

"Your parents are here!?"

To Ange's surprise, Marie nodded.

"Maybe. Come on, let's get going. ——Haa, I'm feeling kind of heavy."

Marie slumped her shoulders and headed for the entrance.

When the three of them left Leon's room, they found a cat with dark gray fur sitting there, well-behaved.

It was looking up at the four of them with red eyes.

Ange tilted her head to one side and looked at the cat.

"Cat?"

How could there be a cat when there had been no living creature at all before?

The cat has a proud look on its face, and when Ange reaches out to it, it distances itself and turns its face away.

Then, as it heads for the staircase outside the apartment complex, it purrs at the three of them.

It was as if it was telling them to follow it.

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Part 4

The cat took them to the family home, a place she had missed so much.

Marie had never been back home properly since she was kicked out of the house.

She never thought she would be able to return to her parents' house in her second life.

As she tried to ease her nervousness with a deep breath, Livia approached her curiously.

"What's wrong?"

When she is called out at ill-timed moments, Marie coughs.

"I-I'm nervous!"

Ange is dumbfounded.

"It's your parents' house, isn't it? Did you do something?"

Marie awkwardly explains how Leon was reincarnated.

"W-Well, you know——I was the one who caused my brother's death —— I deceived my parents, got money from them, went on a trip abroad, and so on——there were a lot of things that happened."

Livia and Ange's eyes on Marie suddenly turned cold.

Noel was taken aback by Marie.

"Marie-chan, how should I say it, that's just cruel."

"I'm talking about my previous life! M-Mou, we're going in!"

Cutting the conversation, she pressed the doorbell and heard a nostalgic voice over the intercom.

It was her mother's voice.

"Ye~s, who is this?"

Marie tried to speak her name, but stopped when it was almost in her throat.

She cannot remember her previous life's name.

"E-Etto——Ano, that"

When she was in trouble with how to say it, her mother noticed Marie first.

"Even the stupid daughter has returned? You must be Marie now, right? I'll unlock the door. Just come on in."

At the sound of her mother's voice, the front door was unlocked.

Marie hesitantly opened the front door and went inside, where she was greeted by the familiar view of her parents' home.

The familiar scenery, the familiar smells——memories of her previous life came back to her vividly.

The other three came in after Marie.

Livia looked at the house with interest.

"Is this Leon-san's parents' house? It's quite a splendid place."

Ange was puzzled.

"I-I've never seen this style before."

From Ange's perspective, who grew up as a young lady, she would not have considered it splendid.

The style was different and her words were vague.

Noel, on the other hand, is calm.

"I feel calmer somehow."

Marie quickly moved toward the living room and opened the door to see the family there.

The kitchen was next to the living room, and her mother was cooking there.

In the living room, where a kotatsu was set up, her father was reading the newspaper.

When Marie arrives, he looks up and greets her casually.

"You're back too? Oya, what about those ladies?"

Marie stood there.

Her parents were there, older than she remembered, but nostalgic.

And then——.

"Who? Visitor?"

——Leon, who had been sleeping in the kotatsu, slowly got up and yawned.

Seeing him, his fiancées burst into tears.

Marie jumped on Leon and grabbed him by the chest and rocked him back and forth.

"Stupid big brother! Let's hurry up and go back! Come on, if we don't do it quickly, we won't be able to make it in time!"

Marie tried to take him out of the kotatsu, but Leon——.

"Eh? I don't want to."

——refused.