【Zhou Jia】self-punisher.

XV. The Ship of Theseus.

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When the life of the snake disappeared, the earth seemed to tremble invisibly once again.The scroll in his hand was rattling by the strong wind, and Karna held down the crumbling wizard hat on his head, as if he could smell the cold air of the winter plum that should not have appeared in this season.Gilgamesh's aura seemed to be fleeting, and his eyes fell on the mottled handwriting on the yellowed parchment. The strange patterns outlined strange languages ​​that could not be read.

The dense jungle in front receded towards the sides as if retreating and saluting, opening up a narrow line of road in the middle.The more you go forward, the more distracting thoughts appear in your mind, the more you can't restrain yourself from rushing upwards.It was a marginal sequelae left after the black magic went berserk.The circular open space gave off the cool smell of the soil in the rain. Karna raised his eyes and stared at the man's back. The thin paper pressed by his fingertips inadvertently cut the skin, and the sharp pain made him barely concentrate.His calm voice stirred no ripples in the jungle.

"It's over." His palm slowly spread out, and in the middle of the torn scroll was a sharp trace left by a bow and arrow.That is the bow string that can expel all darkness and filth, the meridians of the bow are made of phoenix tail feathers, and the skin is made of dragon claw scales.The whereabouts of the scroll that his father sealed up at the bottom of the tower when he was young is known only to Chiax Rama, who was imprisoned in a prank by Indra—although the latter is not very willing to recall this past event.

The hooded man glanced at the worthless Horcrux out of the corner of his eye, and walked slowly towards Karna.Standing in front of the young man, he stroked his pale lips with chilly fingers, and the trembling parts were bitten with bloodstains like jewel textures.The frail life under his hands flickered dimly like a dying furnace.He murmured in a low voice, "Are you planning to give up your life with me?"

"Everything will return to its place."

Karna raised his wand, not pointing at the opponent's lifeline, but cast an unfamiliar spell on himself that he had never practiced before.The man stood on the spot and stared at him with lowered eyes, as if he had fallen into a quagmire of silence.At the moment when he felt life cut out of his body, he saw a lion covered in bruises swooping forward from top to bottom——just before touching him, an invisible sharp arrow pierced through the sky. The lion's heart was peeled off, and a complete and bright red stone was peeled off.

The end of all things.

The continuous rain was dispersed by the soft white mist, and the body seemed to suddenly become a lot lighter, and even the initial pain of piercing the bone was diluted as if it had been a lifetime away.A resonant chanting from the depths of the forest came from a distant place, the ribs were squeezed towards the internal organs, and the body was like cracked porcelain, whining overwhelmed.The constant pain was evacuated at a certain moment, and a warm hand covered his blind eyes.

Nostalgic and distant breath.

A dull damp feeling suddenly came from the numb fingertips, followed by the noisy sound of rain from far and near, like cicadas.The line of sight wobbled for a while and stabilized. Karna struggled to get up from the muddy grass, staggered and sat back on the spot.Hot and scorching flames enveloped his whole body, and the afterimage of a lion in the rain curtain collapsed into countless clear fragments, refracting light that could only last for a short moment.

The arrow that pierced the lion's heart turned into a soft white spot of light, and a drop of rough stone that turned into blood rolled and fell into the dirty muddy water that converged into a stream. Following the whispered spell, it slowly rose into the sky and fell into the sky. into the palm of the white glove.

Arjuna, who had his back to him, turned around following the sound, and gently stretched out his hand towards him.The tips of the hair soaked in the rain faded from the wantonness of the past, and fell down very softly. His deep black eyes were full of uncertain emotions, and he stared at the young man in front of him for a long time.

"I'm worried about you." His fingertips touched Karna's cold hand, but he shook it empty.He slightly raised the corners of his mouth indifferently, and calmly bent his fingers back.He took a step forward, oblivious to the wand that lay between them. "It seems that we can finally be open and honest between us."

"Where is he?" The tip of the wand had already reached the opponent's throat, and he could even clearly feel the clear throbbing of blood vessels under the skin.Karna looked up at him, his rain-soaked robes were chilling like a shroud.He tightened his grip on the weapon in his hand.

"Oh, are you talking about my father?" Arjuna replied casually, "disappeared, or maybe exploded... Didn't you witness it with your own eyes, his life and Horcrux died together."

"Be honest," Karna said. "Stop parodying your dead father. Please tell us your real name."

"It's really interesting." The last bit of smile on the corner of Arjuna's mouth seemed to disappear.He made a hoarse tone like a low sigh, and the black mist that suddenly rose thickly rose from the ground wantonly, bursting out a low-pitched arrogance that ordinary people could not tolerate.He raised his right hand to brush away the hair hanging from Karna's eyes, and leaned into his ear in a loving manner, whispering, "Do you want to kill me, Karna?"

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Like a terrible curse that reached directly into the brain, it instantly deprived the dominance of the control nerves.Cold fingers gently caressed his shoulder and neck, strangling his fragile throat.Countless broken images flashed before my eyes, and the memory that was forcibly erased broke through the shackles, causing my heart to shrink suddenly as if it had been clenched tightly.

"Their destinies are connected together, that is a spell that cannot be broken... they cannot coexist, and they live and die together."

On the edge of suffocation, a round of setting sun floats up and down, and the light that is within reach disappears into nothingness in the palm of your hand.He discarded all distracting thoughts in the direction of the light, and precipitated all fear and hesitation—oh sun, please illuminate all the haze in this world.His fingertips suddenly felt the weight of the wand, and almost instinctively burst out a forbidden spell that had never been uttered towards the source of the surging darkness.

"Imperio!"

A surging white light burst out from the tip of the wand, hitting the opponent's heart directly.It was more terrifying than all the spells he had ever used combined—"Are you sure you want to go to Gryffindor, child... You were born to be the heir of Slytherin." The sad voice of the Sorting Hat sounded beside his ear .His eyes were clear and firm, and in Parseltongue, he uttered the innate spell words to aggravate the attack layer by layer.

In the bright daylight exposure, he saw a fleeting familiar look on Arjuna's face.This wasn't a fatal blow, but it made the boy kneel down as if he was suffering from deep pain.Furious, hesitant, split, mocking, like two souls fighting for dominance using his body as a battlefield.The chaotic black mist rampaged around him, and all living things touched were instantly reduced to gray embers.

"I am here."

Karna supported his shoulders with both hands, and protected the painfully curled boy in his arms.A series of bloodstains tore through the skin and left shocking wounds. He casually abandoned this dilapidated body, unaware that his whole body was dripping with blood.He slowly closed his eyes, held Arjuna's trembling right hand holding the magic wand, echoed the broken voice of his command, and uttered the last forbidden spell recorded on the burnt scroll.

The soul is gone.

Karna hugged the calm boy's body for a long time.The rain seemed to be a sign of stopping, and a gleam of light filtered down from the gaps in the clouds in the distance, covering them with a soft mist-colored brilliance.

In the extreme silence, he heard all things growing.

END.

I. Fragments.

A puddle of rainwater fell from the folded straight-handled umbrella, soaking through the small shadow behind the door.The man who always wears a top hat and a custom-made coat no matter what season, still brings this old umbrella that never leaves his body when he walks into this mansion this time.The manservant who hung up his coat got a bigger tip than usual, and happily watched this handsome and charming man enter the reception room.

Before the owner of this house woke up from his afternoon nap, the guest, who always believed in freedom, wandered around the room.After looking at the batch of oil paintings that Surya recently acquired, he tapped the toes of his shoes on the ground to chase the sun's deflected trajectory, and casually thought about the way to persuade Surya to throw out the noisy chime clock. method.The servants had long been accustomed to this guest's eccentric character, and tried not to attract his attention in order to avoid being the object of his pleasure.On the third yawn in boredom, something soft hugged his knee.

"Sorry, sir... If I don't pay attention, he will..."

Indra waved his hand to signal the flustered maid to stop chattering, bent down to pick up the smiling child from the ground, and at the same time remembered the name given by Surya.

"Nice to meet you, Karna."

He gently held the child's little hand, and freed his long hair from it, his tone seemed to be communicating with an adult.The child's soft little body twisted in his arms, and after a long search in the breast pocket of his overalls, he found a fruit candy with crumpled wrapping paper.The little hand pulled out the sugar ball forcefully, grabbed it and stuffed it in front of him.

"……eat."

The child expressed his willingness to share, showing a direct and pure joyful smile after seeing him take the sugar ball.The taste of strawberries in his mouth turned into sticky sugar water, and he pinched the child's soft cheeks as he swallowed. "Do you have any more?"

"……No."

Karna lowered his head and fumbled in his pocket for a while, but it was already empty.He spread out the palm with the candy paper, and the overly eye-catching earrings swayed slightly with the movement of shaking his head, shining bright golden light.

"Arjuna."

He bent down to look at the young son in his arms, and handed Karna towards him.

"Can you share some of your candy with this brother?"

Arjuna, who was holding the sugar bag, looked at Karna in his father's arms intently, and seemed to regard him as a delicate doll, and stretched out his hand to grab his arm.The skin was bruised, and Karna pursed his mouth to keep from crying, but there were still tears in his eyes.Arjuna stuffed a chocolate ball into his mouth quite proudly, and looked at his tearful eyes with a bit of distaste.

"Get along well." Indra rubbed Karna's head, and put the two children together in the playpen decorated with ducklings, "Don't be so gentle, if you are bullied, you have to fight back, understand ?"

Before he left, he turned his face and glanced back. The youngest son, who was one year younger than Karna but with a much stronger physique, was unceremoniously crawling on top of him.The sweet scent of milk from the child still lingered in his arms, and the back of his hands was wet, which was the tears that fell from the child.He sighed softly, picked up the cane leaning against the corner and closed the door.

He didn't fully believe in Surya's judgment, and he lacked due respect for most gods.But he saw the shadow of death in that child, which coincided with the prophecy shown on the fool's sand table.He absent-mindedly used his cane to shake the sand table beyond recognition. When he recovered, he found that he had accidentally written blasphemous words on it, and hurriedly disturbed the sand table before Surya found out.

The air is extremely stuffy before the rain, and the faint thunder in the distance indicates that the weather is about to change suddenly.He twirled the double snake ring on his thumb restlessly, and the bony relief embedded light red marks on his fingertips.Surya, who was facing away from him, was also silent, and the dark clouds surging in his eyes were occasionally illuminated by silent lightning.He put his thumbs against his chin, and there was a suffocating tense atmosphere in the silent room.

His fingertips slowly stroked the outside of the bridge of his nose, and the punctual chime of the wall clock downstairs sounded like death's dull footsteps.The astrology is not completely accurate. According to the astrology, a famous wizard once thought that he would be attacked by a cheetah. After a day of panic, he was only scratched by a wild cat. In order to save face, he publicized how he fought the ferocious beast... He considered whether to share this with Surya as a joke, and before deciding, he saw the other's hanging right hand squeeze the wand tightly.

Immediately afterwards the house shook violently as if seized by a big hand, and he saw his elf rush in in panic and grab the brim of the hat, digging his nails deep into the soft fabric. "Shut up." He raised his voice to stop Barrow from screaming harshly, and he knew exactly what the elf wanted to say with just one glance—he grabbed his cane and rushed out behind Surya.

The protective cover that had been arranged had already collapsed into ruins, and the ceiling was still dripping with damned debris. Apparently Surya ignored his friendly suggestion to renovate the dilapidated house for the sixth time.Annoyed, Indra pointed the magic wand hidden in the cane to clear the passage, and the collapsed bricks and tiles fell towards the sides like a tornado.When he came to the gate, he stopped suddenly.

Snaking blood seeped from the crack under the door, staining the woolen carpet horribly.But no groans were heard, which meant that there was already a dead body in the room.Surya glanced at the strange shape, and immediately turned the deformed door into wood chips.The debris that fell one after another spread a shallow layer on the ground, and the room was ominously dark.He recited the formula in a low voice, and the clusters of fire and floating stars reflected the tragic scene at a glance.

The nameless man with an ugly face froze on the ground, claw-like fingers gripping his throat tightly, his eyes wide open with bloodshot eyes.

Grasping the tip of the wand in Arjuna's hand, a wisp of black smoke and fine sand slowly fell down.

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"This is impossible."

Surya turned around and threw the broken wand aside, but the spell that was recalled just now displayed a heinous and terrifying fact without any meaning.The death spell he couldn't decipher was the child's innate talent for the dark arts.The Death Curse, which erupted uncontrollably and wantonly, went straight to the unsuspecting Karna.Sensing the danger, the loyal servant rushed forward and stood between Karna and the death curse, causing his life to be deprived in an instant.

"Everything is possible, Surya." Indra, who was fiddling with the Rubik's cube, looked calm, "All other possibilities have been ruled out, and the solution has become the easiest link."

"I don't understand what you mean." Surya watched the Rubik's Cube in his hand spin rapidly, and the sections painted in bright saturated colors dazzled and returned to the original face.Indra gently put the Rubik's Cube in his hand, "The initiative is in your hands, dear old friend. You have noticed that the child's body is inhabited by a split soul... As he grows older, The side with more superior talent will have full control of the initiative. We need to recover the situation before then and minimize the cost."

"It's not up to him to decide, and it's not his intention to kill people." Suliye said in a low voice, "He has already received the punishment he deserved..."

He opened the door.Arjuna, who was sleeping with his pillow on his arm, was no different from children of that age. Of course, it could not be seen that the soul carrying the terrible talent had been torn apart by the shapeless death curse, and could not be condensed into the original one. whole.He turned over in his sleep, his frowning brows relaxed.

"How much time do we have?" He stared at the same face of his young son.

"Three days."

If Surya goes back one more time to trace the spell, the truth of the prophecy that has plagued him for many years will be released many years in advance.Before Arjuna's soul manifested its terrifying gifts for the first time, the glowing light on the tip of the wand linked an unbreakable spell.

"...They said... that I will die soon." Karna lowered his head, "I will not see... my lord father..."

"……Won't."

"...they said...it was the prophecy of the father."

"...If I say no, I won't." Arjuna grabbed his hand and said impatiently, "I promise, as long as I don't die, you won't die."

The candle flame trembled in the influx of cold wind, and disappeared into the boundless darkness.The torrential rain was as loud as cicadas, dispelling all the secrets left in the dirty soil.

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The star trails are deviating from the original traces.

That is not the so-called Horcrux, but the chain that bound the soul.Making this never-before-seen object consumed Surya's life and left an indelible mark on the back of Indra's hand.This body will not be completely occupied by it until the chains are all broken.

It is indeed exquisite.

Kuro's fingertips were playing with the ring his father left behind, and Naga was entrenched at his feet in awe.The heavy shackles that exist only for him are just weak playthings in his eyes.Cold flames surged from the bottom of his eyes, and he whispered hoarse instructions in snake language.But this small and fragile vessel exudes a soft light, and still sticks to its mission faithfully.

Surya had already passed away, and his father's soul also fell into uninterrupted rampage after that-he couldn't control his natural talent for black magic, and after that, it ended meaninglessly with the help of Axe Rama. life.That stupid man's evaluation was quite accurate, he was essentially the same as his father, that's why he had an instinctive disgust.But these are over... He has already seen the little tricks played by his father's generation. With just a little careful thought, all the hills and valleys lying in front of him can be razed to the ground in an instant.

Those sad little chains can only be broken by Karna's hand.

Rubbing the bridge of his nose, he casually wrote the diary with plausible prophecies leading him into obvious traps.His destined enemy in this life will untie the cage of the beast with his own hands, and sharpen the sharp knife that cut his throat.

Everything is in his expectation.It is precisely because of this that the world seems so tame and boring.Let's just look forward to it, the so-called old enemy who can merge with his fate.The string of time was rapidly rewinding in the circular converter. He raised his hand and stared at the old pocket watch hanging in his palm. The glazed dial could not withstand the turbulent airflow and burst into criss-cross patterns——he slowly opened his eyes, He smiled kindly at the boy holding the book in front of him.

"Hello, Karna-senpai."

End