"And how should we proceed with this contract, Ars Paulina?" Lavinia muttered as she faced the Spirit of Time before her.
"Didn't I tell you to be patient, child? We have plenty of time," Paulina said.
"Um..." Lavinia did not know how to respond to that.
She glanced back at Jay's wounded body as he lay to the side. Her hand slowly reached out and took his. It was hard and rough, yet even in his current unconscious state, it still felt reassuring to her.
"Initially, I should not be making a contract with you. Even now, I still doubt whether I should form one with just a random girl," Paulina said, her sharp eyes looking down at Lavinia.
"Random... girl?"
Paulina nodded.
"Yes. To me, you are just a random girl. At least, you were before the trial," Paulina said. "But after seeing how easily and splendidly you completed it, and knowing that even in the face of your greatest desire you were willing to throw it all away for that young man over there... I must say, I am quite tempted to make a contract with you."
Lavinia froze.
"Did God... no, did Yesh tell you to make a contract with Illya-kun?"
"Hm? That young man?" Paulina raised an eyebrow, and Lavinia nodded.
"Not specifically," she continued. "You see, child, nobody knows, not even Him, who will manifest Ayin within their spirit. I suspect Yesh planned for it to manifest in a human, but the identity of that human specifically? No one knows."
Lavinia fell silent.
"Do you know why He created the Sacred Gears, powers meant specifically for humans? The same power that you and that young man possess?" Paulina suddenly asked.
"It is a way for humanity to fight back, right? Against the supernatural world?" Lavinia answered.
"That is indeed one reason, but it is incomplete... Tell me, child, from your understanding, why has the supernatural world, filled with gods and dragons capable of destroying continents with a single attack, not simply wiped out humanity? I know there are strong humans in the world, many of them throughout history. Of course, your husband is an exception, since even without Ayin he possesses power that surpasses some of the strongest gods in this world. But even before that, for thousands of years, humanity has endured, while most remain unaware of the supernatural world as a whole. Why do you think that is?"
The question came out of nowhere.
"They... simply do not think humans are worthy enough?"
"That is correct, but again, it is not the whole truth... Gods, dragons, devils, and angels are, in the end, just like humans. Some are good, while others are not, or are even outright evil. The same is true for humans. Humanity has committed countless atrocities throughout history, enough to shame even some gods and monsters. So despite knowing that some of this power would be used for evil, why did Yesh still create the Sacred Gears?"
Lavinia fell silent.
"The main reason is not simply to protect humanity from the supernatural world... It is to make humans strong enough to face the impending doom that is yet to come, and to protect the world even if He is no longer here."
'Trihexa.'
Ars Paulina then pointed at Lavinia.
"And some of those humans... are the two of you."
Lavinia fell into deep thought. She understood what the Spirit of Time meant by the impending doom, and even so, the burden of carrying the fate of the entire world felt overwhelming. And to think that Yesh entrusted it to them, humans, out of all of the beings in this world.
"Anyway, enough of the history lesson. Let us proceed with the contract now."
The Spirit of Time then slowly stepped down from her marble throne.
"Um, do you mind if I ask something?" Lavinia suddenly spoke.
"Hm? What is it, human child?"
"Why don't you heal Illya-kun first before making a contract with me? To me, it seems like you are simply shifting the main reason why we unsealed you in the first place." Lavinia's sapphire eyes met the cold gaze of the Spirit of Time.
Ars Paulina fell silent for a moment before speaking again.
"Very well. Let me tell you something about my power."
She continued, "Essentially, you could say that I do not possess any power to heal your husband. Unlike Theurgia which is a King of Spirit himself, I am merely here as a guardian, or as Yesh would call me, a Time Keeper."
Ars Paulina then raised both of her hands, and above them, two spheres appeared.
One was blue, and the other was pure white.
"Time Keeper?"
Ars Paulina nodded.
"I am here to grant you the power that Yesh entrusted to me. You can think of it as another form of Sacred Gear. My role is mainly to conduct the trial for anyone who unseals the Book of Celestials and to determine whether they are worthy of wielding the power of time or not," she explained.
"When you form a contract with me, you will gain two abilities." Ars Paulina lifted the white sphere in front of her.
"The first power is contained within the Spirit of the Day, the hours of waking. This is one part of the power you need to heal your husband. This is the..."
"The Heart of Ice."
Lavinia's sapphire eyes fixed on the glowing white sphere.
"The Heart of Ice..."
"The Heart of Ice, to put it simply, is the power to stop time. More specifically, it stops the time of your own body and anything you touch," Paulina said, her eyes locked onto Lavinia.
She took a slow step closer.
"When you apply it to yourself, your body ceases to exist within the flow of the world. You no longer age. You no longer feel hunger, thirst, or even the need to breathe. Heat cannot burn you, cold cannot freeze you, and no force, physical or magical, can harm you."
Paulina's expression remained unchanged.
"In that state, child, the laws of the world simply stop applying to you. Gravity, momentum, air resistance, all of it becomes irrelevant. You are no longer bound by the rules that define everything else."
She raised her hand slightly, as if illustrating an invisible concept.
"And it does not end with you. Anything you touch can be placed into that same state. Objects freed from the world's interference can pass through anything, armor, barriers, even space itself in a sense. They no longer interact with the world because their time has been stopped."
A brief pause followed.
"A single motion could tear through flesh. A single strike could erase entire formations. No defense would matter, it would simply phase through it. Of course, there are some exceptions. In this vast supernatural world, there are beings and phenomena that are immune to time, or can even override it completely."
Paulina glanced to the side, as though picturing it.
"But even something like a dimensional attack or a tear in space becomes meaningless. Stop the time of the tear, and you can walk across it as if it were solid. Walls, buildings, as long as you are in this state, you will pass through them, leaving only absence behind."
Her gaze returned to Lavinia, sharper now.
"But understand this. While you are in that state, you are also… detached. If you wish to properly interact with something, you must stop its time as well. Otherwise, you will simply phase through it."
Her voice softened slightly.
"Ultimately, this power will make you almost invincible, unless you face something that can bypass time itself."
Then, for the first time, Paulina's voice lowered, almost like a warning.
"But there is a cost."
"A cost?" Lavinia raised an eyebrow.
The Spirit of Time nodded.
"When you stop the time of your own body… your heart stops with it."
Her eyes narrowed slightly.
"You are not immortal in the way you think during this mode... You are paused, and detached from the world around you where time moving as usual. And the longer you remain in that state, the more your body suffers when time resumes. Pain… beyond what most minds can endure."
Paulina exhaled softly.
"The longer you maintain it, the closer you come to breaking yourself. That is the drawback of using the Heart of Ice," she said with a serious expression, which startled Lavinia slightly.
She fell in a deep thought.
'The prospect of such power is frightening despite its potential. But what does it mean by an attack that can bypass time? That is very vague,' Lavinia thought.
Seeing the expression on Lavinia's face, Paulina smiled.
"Well, do not make that face. It is not that frightening. Just make sure you do not overdo it."
Lavinia could not help but let out a dry laugh at the spirit's words. How could she not be worried? An absolute defense that could still be bypassed by certain attacks was hardly reassuring. Still, she somehow understood what she mean by an attack that could bypass time, as her sapphire eyes drifted toward Jay.
'...An attack like Illya-kun's Nonexistence,' Lavinia thought.
"But Lina-chan, based on your explanation… I still do not understand how I can use this power to heal Illya-kun since it can only stop time," Lavinia said as she glanced back at the small spirit.
Paulina coughed at the way Lavinia addressed her.
"L-Lina-chan? What kind of name are you calling me, human child!?" she protested.
Then she cleared her throat.
"Ahem. Well, anyway… that is where the second aspect of the power comes into play." Ars Paulina raised her other hand, revealing the dark bluish sphere.
"This is the Spirit of the Night, the Hours of Surrender… called the Hymn of the Suspended World. It is the authority over this suspended realm, a conceptual universe created by Yesh using his Power of Creation. It exists within the dimensional gap and possesses its own flow of time."
Ars Paulina then raised both hands.
"Extortion and insertion of time, day and night, the dichotomy of the zodiac of the 24 hours, the celestial bodies, and time itself. By combining this power with the Heart of Ice, you can stop the time of your own body so that you do not revert to a state before possessing this power. Then, you reset this world's time so that all of your husband's wounds are healed. Or more precisely… reverted to a state in which he was never wounded."
Lavinia's eyes widened.
A thin smile then appeared on the spirit's face.
"If you understand, then call upon my name… Lavinia Reni."
Ars Paulina then raised both of her hands toward Lavinia's heart. The white and dark bluish spheres were drawn into her chest, slowly being absorbed. Her small, thin body began to glow as it disintegrated into particles of light.
Lavinia felt something awaken deep within her subconscious immediately after absorbing the two spheres. And then, suddenly a burst of dark bluish aura then exploded around her body, an immense surge of spirit energy that could easily rival a Satan-class creature or even a low-tier god.
Lavinia's eyes glowed with majesty as a whisper echoed across the distant land.
"The Time of Crowning Has Come. He Is the One Who Begins All."
-Ars Paulina
Then the world exploded in a brilliant blue light.
***
Jay felt his body ache as light slowly seeped into his vision.
As his dark hazel eyes slowly opened, he saw an otherworldly dark-blue sky filled with countless stars in the distance. A glowing landscape of white grass stretched endlessly before him.
'Where am I... The battle...' Jay thought. Instantly thought about the last moment of his battle against the Egyptian Supreme God.
He felt cold stone beneath his back as he lay on top of a marble surface. Then he noticed something soft supporting his head. Slowly, he turned his gaze upward.
He realized he was lying on Lavinia's lap.
"Lavi..."
Jay whispered.
Hearing his voice, Lavinia looked down. Both of her hands gently cupped his face.
"Good morning, Illya-kun… did you sleep well?"
Her voice filled his ears, bringing with it a deep sense of relief. Relief that his greatest regret in his final moments had not come to pass. He was still alive.
A faint smile appeared on his face, but it soon faded.
"I'm sorry, Lavi..."
"For what?"
"For almost recklessly killing myself," he replied.
Lavinia smiled faintly. The Jay she had met three years ago would never have said something like that.
Even when he nearly died during his fight against Azi Dahaka, he had never truly cared about his own life.
But now-
'You are finally starting to live for yourself, huh... Illya-kun,' she thought.
She had always been there, observing everything he did. The way he spoke, the way he expressed concern, the way he approached life, everything.
But Lavinia did not want to intervene.
After all, the one who understood himself best was Jay himself.
The Jay from three years ago would have immediately returned to his goals, cold and unwavering. A man who cared only about the world around him, never about himself.
Lavinia never believed he was wrong. And perhaps it was also her own fault, her own selfishness, that made her refrain from intervening in his path. Even if it hurts her to watch him walk further down a road with no turning back.
A twisted love, in a way that made Lavinia allow him to do questionable things. It was her selfishness.
But right now, she could not be happier.
Lavinia smirked as she placed her fingers on top of Jay's forehead.
"Hm… your apology is rejected," she said playfully.
"Uh..."
"Didn't you once tell Oshishou-sama that you would not lose to anyone?"
Jay did not know what to say.
"That's… literally three years ago, and I was talking about Augusta specifically. And what did Glenda even tell you about it?"
"That's an excuse, Illya-kun..." Lavinia replied. "The point is, you have a tendency to go overboard when fighting stronger opponents. You do realize that fighting beings on the same level as the strongest existences in the world, and probably one of the strongest ever will not end well, even if you win, right?"
"That's... true, I guess," Jay muttered. "But in my defense, that guy was planning to kill me from the start. Even if I ran away, he would have kept coming for me."
"Well, in that case, i guess your actions are somewhat justifiable," Lavinia said with a small smile.
Jay closed his eyes again, enjoying the fleeting silence. Lavinia also smiled as she gazed toward the horizon of the suspended world.
But then, as silence settled between them-
"You know, Lavi..."
"Hm?"
"I always thought I did not really care what happened to me, as long as I fulfilled my creed. My life, that night… I felt something in my heart. Something unbearably painful. A feeling I could not describe, and did not know what to do with," Jay said as Lavinia listened quietly.
"When I saw my family… Sister Andrea, Elena, Mihea, Andrei, Iacob, Ilie, Filip… all of them died in front of me, I felt like my world shattered into pieces. Every reason for me to live was gone. I felt hatred, anger, and the only thing on my mind was to kill the one responsible. And I did."
Jay placed a hand over his chest.
"But instead of happiness, I only felt emptiness. The pain did not go away like I thought it would. And I thought, maybe if I killed everyone connected to this pain, the Devils, all of them, then maybe even if the pain did not disappear... I would just forget what caused it. So I moved forward and killed thousands of them. I destroyed their cities and their future… just to feel the same emptiness again."
Nothing.
He continued.
"I thought I was ready to die for it. I even thought it might be liberating in a way, thinking the pain would finally end."
Jay paused.
"But when I stood before death… I realized I did not want to die. Part of me thought it was because I had not fulfilled my goals yet, but no. It was not regret that made me want to live."
He slowly sat up, facing Lavinia directly. She still said nothing, watching him closely.
With a thin smile carrying countless emotions, he said,
"The thing I regretted the most… was that-"
"-I could not be with you."
Lavinia's eyes widened. Her breath hitched, and her face turned as red as it possibly could, as if even the air around her was burning.
She lowered her head, unable to respond to the direct attack from Jay.
But then, another attack followed as Jay gently took both of her hands.
"Maybe I cannot abandon everything and start a family in the countryside like you once dreamed of. At least not until Rizevim and Trihexa, and the threats they represent to the world, are dealt with..."
"...And despite all of that, Lavinia Reni, would you allow me the privilege to distort your dream… to accompany me until the end of this journey… and become my wife?"
Hearing that, Lavinia immediately raised her head, her hands trembling as tears began to fall down her cheeks.
With a smile, the most beautiful smile Jay had ever seen-
"Yes."
The word was barely a whisper-
-but it carried everything.
"I will walk with you… to the end of your journey… and beyond it."
Her fingers fully intertwined with his, with no hesitation left.
"So do not call it distorting my dream," she added softly, her eyes shining.
"Because my dream is to always be there… with you."
And this time-
Jay did not wait as he pulled her into an embrace.
_________________________________________________________________________
AN :
And yep, Barca got a fucking Red again.
Oh yeah, i also thought about having a classic DxD scene after this, Should i do it or nah, or just simply off screen it?
Anyway, just a 9 chapters left of this Arc.