Morgan's memories began to return.
Even though those memories conflicted with what she believed she knew, she remained certain that they were real.
She had once had a younger brother and a husband named Shirou.
And yet now, she had no idea what had happened. It was as if Shirou's very existence had been erased and vanished without a trace.
Morgan could no longer tell what was real and what was illusion, but there was one thing she knew for certain.
The Shirou she had loved so deeply had truly existed.
That boy who had always placed Morgan's happiness above everything else.
She had always relied on him, and he had always answered her in return...
But now he had vanished from her life.
Morgan's emotions began to erupt.
She began to feel anger toward the world itself.
Shirou was not a human of this world...
So had he disappeared because the world rejected him for being incompatible with it?
In her daze, Morgan suddenly remembered a question Shirou had once asked her. What her dream was.
Morgan had proudly answered that her dream was Britannia.
Nothing was more important than ruling Britannia. Nothing was more important than saving Britannia.
The happiest thing of all was becoming Queen of Britannia.
No!
That was all a lie!
As long as Shirou was by her side, she would be the happiest person in the world.
The happiness she had now was not true happiness at all.
So what if she had become a queen admired and adored by everyone?
So what if she had saved Britannia and built an eternal kingdom?
Without Shirou, none of it meant anything!
If...
Morgan thought in despair, if it was only going to end up like this, then I should never have been allowed to meet...
I should never have met Shirou.
If one had never seen sunlight, perhaps one could endure the dark.
But now, she could not.
Morgan could not endure this world without Shirou for even a single second.
"Shirou... Shirou..."
Clutching the doll, the Queen leapt off the bed and rushed out of the room.
She ran aimlessly through the corridors, searching the old palace for any trace of him.
Her bare feet slapped against the freezing tiles and quickly became filthy, but the Queen did not care.
"My younger brother... don't leave me alone..."
Morgan rushed to the room where Shirou had lived as a child in her memories.
"My husband... are you here? If you are, answer me!"
She threw open the door, only to find a storage room without even furniture inside.
In this world, there was not a single trace proving that Shirou had ever existed.
If all of this was a dream, then it was not a beautiful dream at all, but the worst nightmare imaginable.
"Shirou? Where are you hiding? Are you playing a joke on your big sister again?"
Morgan muttered into the empty room.
"Say something! Shirou! How worried are you trying to make me? Idiot... ugh... please... please... answer me..."
Of course, no voice answered her.
Morgan stared at the little dog doll in her hands, and after a long silence, made her decision.
She had run out of options. She had been driven into a corner.
Magic power began to coil around the Fairy Queen's body, and a huge magic circle appeared beneath her feet.
"Come back to me... Shirou!"
Dark magic flowed from the witch's fingertips into the doll, dyeing it black.
This was black Magecraft.
By placing a curse on the doll that bore Shirou's name and carried Morgan's feelings for him, she would force his spirit to descend.
With the power Morgan now possessed, forcibly summoning a specific person from the Throne of Heroes was entirely possible.
"I'm here... Shirou... my husband... come back... my younger brother... let me see you one more time..."
In truth, this was a forbidden technique Morgan had never wanted to use.
As a witch of dominion, the one person she had never wanted to use black Magecraft on was Shirou.
But...
It was still better than doing nothing.
Even the cruelest curse would be better than never seeing the boy she loved again, if it could bring him back.
Hatred flickered in Morgan's blue eyes.
...Shirou was at fault too.
He had left her without a word.
Even though they had promised that one day they would go to Avalon together.
Liar.
You are mine...
Your body and your soul are mine...
Your kindness, your love... all of it is mine...
Don't run... I won't let you run away!!!
And yet...
Morgan's black Magecraft did nothing.
"How can this..."
Morgan staggered and fell to the ground.
Shirou was not in the Throne.
"Where did you go..."
Morgan muttered like someone who had lost her soul.
"Where am I supposed to go to find you... Shirou..."
Half an hour passed after the spirit summoning failed.
Only then did Morgan finally, finally recover her senses. Her trembling legs barely managed to support her as she stood.
"Ugh...!"
Several times along the way, she nearly collapsed again from weakness, but she still forced herself onward and left the old palace.
"Shirou... Shirou..."
Tears poured endlessly from the Fairy Queen's eyes.
She wore no shoes. Her beautiful, flawless feet were cut by weeds and numbed by the frozen ground.
But no matter what pain she suffered, none of it could draw Morgan's attention now.
She searched aimlessly in every direction, hoping to catch sight of Shirou.
Where exactly did you go?
Should I go left, or should I go right?
Morgan reached a nearby forest.
The spirits and wild beasts in the forest were startled when they saw the Fairy Queen so distraught.
But Morgan ignored them all and simply searched through the forest in a daze.
When they were children, Shirou had often snuck Morgan out of the palace and brought her here to play.
In this forest, Shirou had once taken her hand and run with her all the way through it. It was a beautiful memory she could never forget.
But even here, she found nothing.
After that, Morgan went to still more places filled with memories.
She went to the place where she had taught him about herbs.
She went to the lakeside where he had taught her how to swim.
The Queen searched almost every place that remained in her memories, but still found no trace that Shirou had ever existed.
"Uuu...! Uuu...!"
As time passed, despair slowly settled deeper and deeper into the Queen's heart.
Could it be that she would never see him again?
That terrifying thought gradually took root in her mind.
Morgan shook her head, refusing to imagine such a future.
Right now, she held only one conviction. She had to find Shirou.
Find Shirou, and then tell him one thing.
I was wrong.
I lied.
My dream was never to save Britannia.
My happiness was never becoming Queen.
Only you...
My younger brother, my husband... you alone are truly irreplaceable. You are my dream.
"Hah... hah..."
At last, Morgan arrived at the cave the two of them had once used as their secret base.
It was the first Magecraft workshop they had built together, a place that had belonged only to the two of them.
"..."
The last bit of hope in Morgan's eyes went out.
The cave was pitch black. There was no trace of magic power or any barrier left behind. It was as though no one had ever come here.
That space filled with memories did not exist.
Even so, Morgan dragged her bleeding feet inside.
"Shirou..."
She called for the husband who would never appear.
No matter how hoarse her voice became, there was no answer.
Shirou no longer existed anywhere.
...
…
Morgan walked all the way back to the palace and shut herself inside the room she had lived in as a child.
The place was a complete mess, but she did not care. She simply sat down on the bed again and wrapped her arms around her knees.
"Uu... uu... uu..."
No more tears would come. The Queen could only sob quietly.
She bit down on her lip, trying to force back her grief, but it was useless.
A bone-deep loneliness pierced straight through her heart.
Her chest hurt as though it were being torn apart.
It was only because Shirou was there that I could endure this loneliness.
As long as he was there, no one else mattered. Nothing else mattered.
As long as he was there, I would never feel lonely.
But now, I am alone.
In this vast, unfamiliar world, I have been left here all by myself.
Morgan could not accept it.
Just remembering the part of her life where Shirou had not been there was enough to make her feel sick.
She had been smug about ascending the throne as Queen.
She had taken pride in trusting no one and borrowing strength from no one.
She had even congratulated herself on saving the kingdom through her own power alone.
All she felt now was regret for her own ignorance.
Bright sunlight filtered in through the curtains.
Dawn had just broken.
But clearly, this was no longer the first sunrise since then.
The Queen, who could no longer remember how many days and nights had passed without sleep, stared blankly at the half-open door.
Why has Shirou still not come to find me?
It is already getting late.
He should be here by now.
Shirou, did we not promise that today we would sneak out of the palace and go play?
Morgan had reached her limit, both physically and mentally.
She began to hallucinate, and her memories started tangling together.
Her eyelids slowly grew heavier.
Before long, the Queen fell into a deep sleep.
...
...
"...Morgan."
The moment she heard that sudden voice, Morgan's eyes flew open.
"Ah, ah? Shirou!?"
The Queen looked around with dazed eyes.
She realized she was no longer in her room, but in a garden instead.
And when she saw clearly who had called her name, Morgan's eyes widened.
"Merlin...!"
A fierce killing intent burst from her, and Morgan roared at the female Magus,
"So you really do know something!"
Merlin possessed the highest rank of Clairvoyance.
That was not merely an eye that could see the "present." It was an omniscient eye that could survey every "present" across all parallel worlds.
A sage with such eyes could not possibly know nothing and be kept in the dark just like her.
Morgan lunged forward and grabbed Merlin by the collar.
"Where did Shirou go! Give him back... give him back... give Shirou back to me!"
".........."
Merlin calmly shook her head.
"If you think I deceived you, then you are wronging me.
In truth, the me in reality is in the same position as you. I had no idea at all that history had been 'replaced.'"
History had been "replaced"...?
Morgan frowned, catching another key point in Merlin's words.
"You just said the Merlin in reality... then does that mean you are...?"
The flower Magus nodded.
"I am not the real Merlin. I am Merlin's 'echo.'
I am the Merlin, the Succubus, who lives within your mental world.
Though it pains me to admit it, the real me knows nothing about the situation before us...
Because the real me does not possess a bond with him as strong as yours does.
To put it simply, I just do not have enough 'love'!"
Merlin laughed bitterly at herself.
"Even though I always believed I loved that child, my Arthur, more deeply than anyone else. It really is rather sad."
Merlin had eyes that could perceive the truth, but not a deep enough bond.
Morgan had her bond with Shirou, but lacked eyes that could observe the world.
So neither of them in reality noticed that history had been "replaced." But if their abilities were combined...
Then Merlin's echo living inside Morgan's mind could see everything.
Morgan slowly let go of Merlin's collar.
"Tell me... what exactly happened..."
"Mm, I will."
Merlin paused for a moment, then began to explain.
"First, I need to make one thing clear. The world you are in is not a dream, but a real world.
You lived a happ..."
Morgan shot her a vicious glare, and Merlin immediately corrected herself.
"Ahem. You lived a great life as Queen of Britannia. That is real history."
"..."
Morgan narrowed her eyes suspiciously.
Real history?
If it was real, then why was I able to save Britannia so smoothly?
Britannia's destruction was absolute, and yet I changed that fate with ease.
The Morgan of the past had believed that her own genius and effort had created a miracle, even overcoming the interference of the Counter Force.
Now, at last, she understood that it had never been like that.
All of it had most likely been a dream Shirou wove for her sake!
Merlin neither confirmed nor denied it, and continued,
"Arthur has not disappeared."
"He has not disappeared? How is that possible!?" Morgan shot back at once.
"He has not disappeared. He is simply staying by your side in another form."
Merlin did not explain what that meant. Instead, with sorrow in her expression, she said,
"Your guess was half right.
The reason you were able to save Britannia was because of Shirou's help from the shadows. He made a contract with the Counter Force."
"!"
Morgan's mouth fell open in shock.
"A Guardian...?"
A Guardian of the Counter Force.
She had heard the rumors before.
The seductive voice humans hear in their moment of despair. The cruelest miracle of all.
One offers up one's soul to the Counter Force, becomes its eternal slave as a Guardian, and in exchange receives a single chance to have one wish fulfilled.
The Queen's voice trembled.
"Are you saying that Shirou willingly sacrificed himself and became a Guardian in order to create a world where I could be happy?"
At that, Merlin showed her usual infuriating smile.
"If it were really that simple to make you happy, Arthur would have done it long ago. A mere Guardian of the Counter Force could never stop Britannia's destruction."
"What... do you mean?"
The moment Morgan asked that question on instinct, the unease in her heart reached an unprecedented height.
Merlin spoke softly.
"Arthur did not become a Guardian of the Counter Force.
In order to lead the woman he loved to a world where she could be happy... he became the Counter Force itself."
Morgan: ".........Huh?"
How could a human possibly become the Counter Force?
No, by then Shirou had already ceased to be human... wait, could it be...!?
Merlin continued,
"The one Arthur made a contract with was 'Humanity, Alaya.'"
Alaya was one of the planet's two Counter Forces.
One was "Humanity, Alaya," the collective will of primates.
The other was the planet's soul itself, "World, Gaia."
"And the terms of their contract were this.
Arthur would help 'Humanity, Alaya' kill 'World, Gaia,' and would take its place as the new 'World.'"
Merlin said it calmly.
"In the original world, Britannia's life had been forcibly prolonged thanks to Arthur's and Morgan's efforts.
To bring the Age of Gods in Britannia to an end, the Counter Force...
Or rather, to be precise, Gaia's side, the World, dispatched Albion and the King of the Moon, but both were defeated by Shirou and the Knights of the Round Table.
Things had already gone far beyond all reason. The foundation of human order had long since been reduced to ruin, and Gaia herself was already at the end of her strength. If things had continued like that, pruning would have been inevitable.
Our world was already beyond saving, but Arthur did not give up.
Not to save the world, but to save you."
Morgan: ".........."
"Arthur made a secret pact with 'Humanity, Alaya,' killed the already dying Gaia, and became the new Counter Force.
Just as the Holy Sword of the Planet possesses the power to alter history, the moment Shirou became the planet's Counter Force, the original history underwent a massive 'replacement' in accordance with his will."
Morgan felt her head explode with a sharp buzz.
She remembered the damage that had already been on the Sword of Selection. She remembered the chance event that had led her to master Holy Lance Magecraft. She remembered the opening Albion had suddenly shown during their battle.
The mysterious phenomena that had silently helped her since childhood. That invisible hand.
The truth behind all of it was Shirou, after he had become the Counter Force.
Even before he killed Gaia, Shirou had already ceased to be human. He had become the "God of the End," a being whose spiritron structure was equivalent to that of a Divine Spirit.
Morgan immediately understood. Even if Shirou had become something akin to the planet's terminal, there was no way he could actually replace the soul of a planet. The scale of their existence was simply on entirely different levels.
So the way he had taken the place of the dead planet and become the Counter Force was this.
Shirou had transformed into the physical laws, the Texture, fixed onto the planet's surface by the Tower of the End.
".........."
Morgan hugged her shoulders as if she were freezing.
Why...
Why would you go that far for me, Shirou...
Even if pruning had already become inevitable...
Rather than finding happiness alone, I would have wanted to face destruction together with you!
Merlin lowered her long lashes.
"I'm sorry, Morgan... our Arthur no longer exists.
His body, mind, soul, even his consciousness, have all been completely erased. Shirou has become a protective concept."
Merlin placed a hand on Morgan's shoulder.
"Stop looking for that child... his greatest wish was for you to be happy.
If he could still think, then seeing you like this would only make him suffer."
"..."
Morgan could not say a single word in response.
Shirou had sacrificed everything for her.
If Morgan rejected that gift and went on living buried in grief, then that would be the greatest betrayal she could commit against Shirou.
".........."
Morgan awoke from the dream woven by the Succubus.
She sat blankly on the bed, reached out toward a ray of sunlight streaming through the window, and grasped only empty air.
Shirou was nowhere anymore.
No. Shirou had not disappeared. He had become the "world" itself.
Even if they could never meet again, Shirou would remain by her side forever, protecting her.
Just as Merlin had said, Shirou had not vanished. He was simply accompanying her in another form.
So... I should be satisfied with that, right?
Morgan held back her tears, bit down on her lip, and quickly came to a decision.
"I'm not satisfied...!"
"I don't want this...!"
"I only want Shirou. I want him beside me...! He is my younger brother, he is my husband...!
I want him to hold me tightly! I want to hear him tell me I'm cute! I want to curl up in his arms and whisper my love to him!"
"Do not be selfish, Morgan."
The Succubus's voice echoed in her ears.
"You know perfectly well that Arthur can never return."
"Selfish...?"
Morgan's beautiful eyes trembled slightly.
Shirou had once sighed and said that sometimes Morgan was as selfish as a princess.
"I am a princess. Got a problem with that, my younger brother?"
In her memory, Shirou had answered with a wry smile.
"Alright, alright... then it's my job to indulge the princess's selfishness as much as I can."
"!!!"
She found it.
There was a way to meet Shirou again.
This world as it existed now was a world Shirou had created solely to bring about Morgan's happiness.
So in this new world, "Morgan's happiness" was the Counter Force's highest priority, on the same level as "the planet's continued existence."
...If Morgan were to define her happiness as "Shirou's return," then what would happen?