"Never... I will never raise a disciple again."

The always calm gray eyes cracked. It cracks, goes on again, and finally breaks and bursts into tears.

A low voice continued, containing the feeling of falling to the bottom of an abyss.

"I won't raise any again..."

It's better to betray, why should it be like that? Even if he put the technology he taught in the back of my head, it wouldn't be any more difficult to use as an experiment, saying that it's amazing to have a body that doesn't die. With regard to the truth of the youngest disciple, Raven declared, dropping despair with a grimly calm expression.

"I'm tired."

[... Baby]

"Now I'm going to rest too."

[.......]

"It's a contract, such a joke...... Whether the world goes down or not, let it go as it pleases."

... Will it end up like this?

He knew he had been tired for a long time, but why did it explode now? The guardian spirit he was watching gave a terrible sound.

'It shouldn't be like that...'

Raven is a man who should not rest. Even more so, as he signed an immortal contract. The whole world could not allow him to waste time.

But despairingly, the guardian spirit did not deserve to stop him.

In addition, it was clear that he was still trying to keep his faith, contrary to the remarks he uttered in tears, in that he still did not put death on his lips even amid the collapse.

The guardian spirit, watching the close and precarious appearance, asked another question that had been bypassed for a long time after silence.

[What about the other students?]

"...... They will quickly forget and live if I disappear from sight anyway."

As always, everyone did, so it will be the same this time.

He knew they did many cute things, like write a diary and get a tattoo so that they wouldn't forget him, but... they did.

"They'll do well on their own."

Not a single person remembered him for a long time in his more than 100 years, so Raven disappeared without regret, abandoning all ties.

So it's been 10 years.

****

[Imperial Calendar, April 1, 1012]

[When I woke up, Master had disappeared. When I asked the others, they said they didn't even know he was away, let alone know his whereabouts. These useless bunch...

I asked the youngest guy who just arrived just in case, but he also said he didn't know either. I guess so. He is the one who calls Master "Father" and follows him. If he knew, he wouldn't be here like this. He's also useless.]

[Imperial Calendar, April 2, 1012]

[Master has not returned yet. It was impossible for someone who usually tried to stay within our sight as much as possible to leave without a word like this. Where the hell have you been? Have you been kidnapped? ...I'm worried about the kidnappers.]

[Imperial Calendar, April 3, 1012]

[Today too, Master didn't even show his nose.

I have thought about it seriously. What could have happened to cause Master to be away from home for such a long time? From what I remember, there's nothing more to it than collecting souls, so I guess that's probably it. Because the Master sometimes goes on errands to collect souls in Death's place.

However, I felt uncomfortable when he left without saying anything, so I decided to search for Master's whereabouts from now on. Others also agree.]

[Imperial calendar, April 5, 1012]

[Master has not returned yet. It's worth it because it took about 2 weeks to get back from retrieving souls. The problem was that despite investigation, no clues were found about Master's whereabouts.

This is bad. We need to prepare for the worst, but we don't have much time. Because the Master is someone who will be completely forgotten at some point after disappearing from sight. ...But it's still okay. The condition that must be met when recruiting disciples is to be able to remember Master without seeing him for more than two weeks. Is he okay?]

[Imperial Calendar, April 6, 1012]

[Master didn't come back again today. Information about the Master's whereabouts is also not progressing. I'm nervous. Something's not right.]

[Imperial Calendar, April 7, 1012]

[Master didn't come back today either. The subject is unknown.]

[Imperial Calendar, April 8, 1012]

[Today as well.]

[Imperial Calendar, April 9, 1012]

[He'll be back in 2 weeks. He disappeared on the 1st. Today is the 9th. Let's wait a little longer.]

[Imperial Calendar, April 10, 1012]

[Incompetent guys who don't even know where Master is. I don't know why he chose these guys as his students. I couldn't find him either, but I'm still strong.]

[Imperial Calendar, April 11, 1012]

[It's okay, 3 days left. The reason why I couldn't find the subject is probably that Master is a sleek person. When he comes back, I'll ask him why he's gone without saying anything. If there's no good reason, I'll get mad.]

[Imperial Calendar, April 13th, 1012]

[Finally tomorrow]

[Imperial Calendar, April 14th, 1012]

[... Master hasn't back. The information on the subject is also clean. It's like...(can only see letters vaguely through the traces of nervous black paint)As if someone had intentionally deleted it.

........He is a person who lives roughly, so if we don't take care of him, he doesn't live like a human being, so I really don't know where he has gone.

It was a serious matter, so we all gathered and had a meeting. Just in case, we decided to wait until tomorrow, but the atmosphere is heavy. An unexplainable eerie energy squeezed my chest as if a piece of ice had become stuck in my heart. It's weird, it's ominous. Why the hell?]

[Imperial Calendar, April 15, 1012]

[In the end, Master did not return today either. With this, it has been more than two weeks since Master disappeared.

Everyone has serious faces. I probably have the same expression. This is my first time being away from Master for this long... It's scary.

I'm scared that if I keep going like this, I'll really forget him. He said the longest he remembered him without being in sight was a month. Just one month. Two weeks have passed, so there are two more weeks left. Will we be able to find Master before then? No, in the first place, will I be able to not forget Master by then?]

[Imperial Calendar, April 16, 1012]

[There is no progress in the investigation today. Everyone was going crazy with anxiety, so I told them to calm down, but instead, they ended up fighting. Actually, I think I'm going crazy too. Considering the average, the fact that I remembered Master so far means that I have endured for a long time. Because there were people who forgot Master as soon as he disappeared from sight. I don't want to forget Master.

Master pretended not to be bitter whenever people forgot him. It was a sign of becoming too accustomed to the hurt, a remnant of expectations that had been given up. Even though it was a passing relationship, if the disciples who shared their daily lives forgot their Master, he would have a harder time than before. I don't want to hurt him. Although he is not a good protector, he is a more reliable and important person than anyone else. That's why I'm writing this diary so I don't forget, but...]

[Imperial Calendar, April 17th, 1012]

[What's the point? If the memory disappears, the bond and feelings I have built with him will also disappear. There is no way that I would have the same bond with him that I forgot about my Master.

Today, Rowena, who forgot Master, proved it.

She threw a diary found under her bed into the face of a man who said, "We had a master, and even so, I don't know why everyone is so desperate to cling to him."]

[Imperial Calendar, April 18, 1012]

[No way. Really?]

[Imperial Calendar, April 19, 1012]

[Why? Why? Why? Why? Why? Why? Why? Why? Why? Why?]

[Imperial Calendar, April 20, 1012]

[I was so sure. The teacher left us on his own. If you were kidnapped in the first place, you wouldn't have this information. Why?

What did we do wrong? Confused. It seems sad, and angry at the betrayal.

But wasn't our accumulated time heavier than others, Master? You should have told me the reason before disappeared.

I don't want to give up on him until I hear the reason. So, I decided to find him until the end of the world. The others joined in. The reason why he raised us was because he wanted people on Earth to be safe from monsters, so wouldn't he make an appearance someday if he fulfilled his wish?

I should get to the top. I will find Master with a stronger information network and raise his disciples according to his will. If I make such an appropriate system and try to ensure the safety of mankind, the day will come when I catch his tail. If I don't give up, Master won't die, so I'll find him someday. No matter how hard he tries, he won't be able to hide until his life runs out.]

[Imperial Calendar, April 1, 1022.]

The diary was closed.

The man, who had already read the diary several times and lightly brushed the surface of the familiar but unfamiliar diary, looked up. He wondered if the undesirable eyes scanned three pairs of eyes toward him, but soon he bent with cynicism.

"Okay... it turns out that everyone here was looking for Master...?"

"......."

"I can't believe it."

Wasn't it a close relationship? It's not related to our friendship, but how long have we known each other?

"Why didn't you tell me?"

Liv, Master's second disciple, would not have known if she had not arranged this position.

She didn't get this opportunity until she noticed that others were looking for Master, so she said it all.

She thought she was the only one looking for Master. Altair, Raven's first disciple and chairman of the Awakenings Association, was at a loss.

"You should have said it. I wasted my manpower."

"You didn't tell me either!"

"I thought you'd forget Master and live well."

"That's why I'm like that, too."

"Me too."

... He was speechless.

Yeah, it was these guys. After being silent for a moment, Altair looked away from the pointless argument and brought up another topic.

"Then let's get it straight. When did you become aware of the existence of Master? When did you start looking for Master?"

For his information, she found out a week after writing her last diary. She read the diary carefully and started looking for Master again. Liv, the chairman of the Fragment Spirit Association, who was rolling her eyes at the addition, blurted out.

"I found out about its existence two weeks after I wrote my last diary. I started looking for Master three weeks ago."

"I found out the day after I wrote my last diary. Someone threw a diary in my face. After that, I went looking for Master, and after you forgot him, I searched quietly and repeatedly, forgetting and reminding myself."

"It wasn't until 15 days after I wrote my last diary that I found out that he existed and started investigating, I guess."

Only then did the others speak, and voices poured out.

Liv's face twisted by the fact that everyone started looking for Master early on.

"What? So everyone except me has been looking for him for a long time? Then what about the youngest?"

"He hasn't come here, but I think he's probably the same. It's obvious why someone who has nothing to do leaves every day, right? He's probably running himself to find Master. I'm more surprised that you started looking so late."

"...... There was no reason to look for it in the meantime. Anyway."

He tapped the diary he had brought and said.

"The reason why I found this diary after feeling weird... It must have been because of the tattoo, right?

A tattoo in the form of an open book, with 'Diary' written in the middle.

As expected, As if this was all the same, the positive response immediately came back.

"That's right. I thought we were continuing with one idea that we were just for humanity, but it wasn't."

"Certainly, us people aren't that kind enough to put up with fighting for humanity."

"I'm not altruistic enough to be for others in the first place."

It was all possible because there was Master at the center.

Altair swept down his left chest, where the tattoo existed, and gave himself a mockery of laughter.

"...... It was ridiculous. I thought I was determined to come up with a system to protect humanity on my own, but I can't believe there was a hidden background."

"By the way."

A woman who was still listening raised her hand.

Rowena, Raven's third disciple and president of the Fighters Association, lowered her hand and raised her chin, saying as if she couldn't understand.

"Why are you looking for Master? I was just looking around when I had time to spare, wondering what kind of person he was doing. If you find him, do you want to have a conversation and have a meeting? That's why I sometimes forget about it. But what should I say?... I don't think that's what you guys are doing."

I mean you guys.

Fingers full of scars pinpointed Altair and Liv.

"You're so aggressive. Especially one of them seems desperate?"

Liv, who met the bird-like gaze, frowned.

In an uncomfortable silence, Raven's fourth pupil, Hwan, who was looking at her, Altair, and Rowena alternately in uncomfortable silence, slowly nodded.

"It certainly is. It's quite suspicious that you knew Master existed and didn't care, but suddenly you started looking again three weeks ago. If you can figure out that other people are also looking for Master and call them in, it means that you have researched diligently.

"..."

"As the president of the Shaman Association, I would like to meet the shaman who is said to have taught me in person to understand his skills and expand my knowledge, so I am not actively pursuing the so-called master. This also means that I don't feel the need to gather and find information by interacting with people I don't necessarily get along with."

Of course, he couldn't say that he had no illusions about the 'Master' in his diary at all, but...

With his unfavorable inner thoughts firmly hidden, Lynx, who pretended to be gentle, gave off a soft voice.

"Hanni, can you tell me why? Then I will cooperate."

"......."

Liv quietly avoided his eyes at the sight that was straightforward.

At the end of the silence that came again, she glanced at Altair, who was silent, and opened her mouth slowly, unable to overcome the pressure of silence.

There was a sign of reluctance on her face.

"...... I want to live."

"Oh."

He know what it is.

The absence of a black jaguar, who was with her wherever she went, has long been noticed by everyone here. Instead of asking more, Hwan turned to the chairman of the Awakening Association.

"You too?"

"......."

"Well, yes. I-."

A lifeless smile appeared on his face.

"To kill."

"...... What?"

"I mean it," 

He said, smiling furiously without avoiding the eyes of other association presidents.

"Looks like all of you have business with Master........."

"......."

"If I promise active cooperation, I will put my business off to the last order when I face Master."

Before you guys solve the problem, if I kill him first, it will be awkward, right?

From asking about things I don't necessarily know, I feel disgusted. Altair changed the reason he gave with threats.

The distorted voice matched the continued attitude.

"Of course, that's assuming you take good care of Master, so it would be a good idea to keep him safe when you find him."

He spoke firmly, as if to keep this in mind.

"The moment I lose sight of Master, I will kill you, regardless of whether you have any business left to do or not."

"... I'll have to set up a room without a window."

"A door with a food outlet too."