PC13B

... They've played us.

Don't despair, we still have the upper hand.

We defeated Fabius and his cultists already, and even if they were to summon more Sea Terrors, we should be able to handle them without much trouble.

Hey, Ægir. Just what were you thinking the entire time as you deceived us?

…….

I had a feeling I knew what she was going to say to that.

She was either going to say that it was for our sake, that it wasn't a deception at all…

… or maybe she'll give us one final gloating.

But her reply, the words of which were carefully selected after gazing out at the far ocean, was… not what any of us could have expected.

I'm sorry.

I thought this would be the better way to approach you. But I see how it can come across as nothing more than deception.

<…….>

<You're… sorry? Why?>

Dante wants to know why you're sorry.

Huh? Well, that's because I… did something wrong.

Wait, wait. Hold on.

You've been deceiving us all along, Mayors. And now you're gonna - ?

…….

Oi... what exactly are you after?

You're after the same thing that the geezer was, ain't that right? Turn us into your "bloodkins", that it was "all for our sake", givin' all kinds of ridiculous excuses to turn us into one of those monsters - !

I do hope that you would all one day accept becoming Seaborns.

But... I'm not about to demand that you let yourselves be transformed today, right here and now. I understand that we all need some time to mentally prepare ourselves.

May I understand your statement to be implying that you will not be forcing this upon us, should we refuse?

That's correct. It'd be against manners to do what Fabius did, shoving Sea Terror cells inside your body out of nowhere.

Manners, huh.

While I was taken aback by the fact that Mayors was a Bishop of the Deep...

... it was also true that Mayors had never tried to bring us harm, unlike Fabius who attacked the Sinners directly.

While she did almost get us in big trouble with Irene while explaining things to us...

... it's also true that Mayors has been extremely helpful so far - it was her who led us to the lighthouse, and it was her who stayed in that crumbling lighthouse until the repairs were done as that terrifying knight continued to assail its walls.

<What was your actual relationship to Fabius, anyway?>

Just someone who also once strove to realize the visions of our ideal worlds. Our goals once converged, but... not now.

I was pretty taken aback too, when they attacked you back at the village. Maybe he got... greedy when he saw Faust and Outis repairing the ship.

He got... greedy?

Fabius believed that welcoming capable people as bloodkin would expedite Seaborns' evolution.

Cool, cool. So you're like some cult leader, but you don't necessarily want to antagonize us... You still haven't told us what you're after, though?

I'm going to the City that lies beyond the dimensional door.

... So, you're trying to flee to a different world where the Inquisition won't be able to chase you?

This isn't running away.

I just want to help the people of the City, that's all.

So… I'm bringing the Seaborns with me to the City.

Don't tell me... You're going to invade the City alongside those monsters, then...?

Then, the foghorn suddenly blared, and the ship shook as it began to move.

…!?

Vessel Masas has begun to move…

Is this… an automated sailing program?

The vessel Masas will now sail toward the dimensional door.

I'll let Rhodes Island and Irene go right in front of the door, so don't worry.

... Did you seriously just tell us to not worry?

<Faust...!>

Please calm yourself, Dante. It has not yet been determined if that is indeed the dimensional door connecting directly back to the City.

No, it has to be.

The warm, shining light… and the voice from within… is getting clearer and clearer.

…….

... Why don't we just let them into the City?

The battles thus far have done well enough to demonstrate the level of danger Seaborns pose. However, I doubt they'll get very far even if they were to enter the City, don't you agree?

In Hongyuan, we've all seen what happens when sapient, sentient nonhuman entities enter the City. The Head will take action the moment they realize their presence.

Of course, we must prepare ourselves for repercussions in case they decide to hold Limbus Company responsible once the dust settles. Yet, it is also very likely that we will fully escape any culpability... as we saw in the memories of the Kong massacre.

< ... Your thoughts, Faust?>

Urban Nightmare… However, considering their specific attributes, it will not take long for them to rise to become a Star of the City level threat.

There is a reasonable possibility that they may be issued the Impuritas Civitatis classification.

Is that not… an acceptable risk? If not the Head, they should be manageable by a Wing. This isn't that terrible of a calamity -

But Kal'tsit shook her head resolutely.

No.

Your technology seems to be based on something else, which is neither Originium Arts nor any of its derived technology.

And that is precisely what could make your world vulnerable against Seaborns.

Is it because they learn fast?

Yes. Those on the frontlines of the war against Seaborns stubbornly stick to using traditional, low-tech weapons.

Deploying high-technology weapons against them is only going to make you an enticing meal.

Then can't we just let whichever unfortunate Wing that ends up fighting these -

... Do take into account that it may take a significant amount of time to earn their trust. Even if they were to be convinced, there would be other parties with alternative... perspectives on the matter, complicating issues.

The situation will rapidly grow out of control if Backstreets Syndicates or Fixers get involved, unless the Head designates a taboo to prevent it... Even then, considering what she has been saying...

Yes, we must consider the possibility that they may be capable of absorbing the Head's technology as well, before they are expelled from the City.

…….

How do you plan on helping the people of the City, Mayors?

By giving them a chance to become Seaborns.

W-what are you on about? Become... Seaborns?

<…….>

She ain't all there either, eh...? What kind of "help" is that?!

Mayors, you know that's no different from what the Church of the Deep is doing here.

No, it is different.

Because someone... showered the City with the 'light'.

<The light...?>

The beam of light from the White Nights and Dark Days incident. How do you -

Could it be...?

Becoming a Seaborn... is to become a part of a great will called We Many.

By doing so, one can be reborn as an altruistic lifeform... but at the cost of ego, the sense of self.

And that's always been my issue with it.

Everyone has beliefs of their own… dreams of their own. It feels too empty to lose all of that when they inevitably lose their sense of selves as they become Seaborns.

Look, I want each 'Seaborn' to have their own wishes.

But the light shining through the dimensional door to our world is too… faint to push them toward that evolution.

If only the light of the City could become more tangible… it just might be able to give every Seaborn an identity of their own, to remain uniquely themselves.

Then why is it that you advocate toward those of the City to join the Seaborns, when one could simply learn more of the light afore returning here?

At first, I thought all I needed was the clue to a better evolution. But… Don Quixote's tales of adventures changed my mind.

Mine… adventures?

You don't understand just how precarious you all are.

And how would you? When you were born into that kind of world from the very start?

A place where life has become a commodity and gold one of its few religions?

The City has abandoned its yesterdays to survive today, and by doing so, has given up on its tomorrows.

Just as I needed the light, the City needs Seaborns.

It needs their tenacious hold to life, and their absolute, unconditional selflessness.

But at the end of the day, it still means that everyone has to turn into monsters.

People ostracize 'the other'.

Something that isn't like me, something that feels alien to me, something I don't know or understand...

So that fear is natural. Because Seaborns are... not human.

But you just have to cross that threshold once.

Miss Mayors, do you believe the nature of humanity to be... evil?

Humans are... selfish, but that's not necessarily a bad thing. Good things can come from selfishness, that's for sure.

But... the side effects have become simply unsustainable.

Doctor, you've been to countless battlefields where Rhodes Island has fought tooth and nail for the rights of the Infected. But what came of it? Peace?

…….

… No. It's the same.

But still… we're all still getting better, little by little.

… I'm not trying to deride those small, incremental steps and call them meaningless. Change takes time, and should it continue, I believe your efforts can be a beacon of light that will lead humanity toward a brighter future.

But what about everyone who is sacrificed while you're taking your time, taking those incremental steps?

Every single day of that incremental change is marred by unjust deaths. Some are enslaved for no other reason than their differences. People live on in that despair that seems to have no end.

…….

I agree with what the light told me.

People are diseased. They're so sick that, even in the far-flung future, even on the day the world ends, they will continue to fail to look forward, obsessed with scrutinizing each other in search of those differences.

Even when every Ægir returns to sea, they're still going to bully and hate anyone with pointed ears, labeling them Ægirs.

Even when Oripathy is truly eradicated, people are still going to suspect and persecute someone as the Infected.

People are imperfect beings.

You're right. There probably isn't anyone out there who can… really sacrifice themselves for the sake of others with nothing but perfect selflessness.

But not when it comes to Seaborns.

They don't suffer from all this absurdity, nor are they coerced to sacrifice against their will. They have the power to progress toward a better future built from mutual understanding.

Because they're the kind of lifeform that seeks common ground instead of scrutinizing for differences.

The bells...

A strange-shaped form shimmers and materializes before Mayors.

I couldn't quite tell what it was, but it was round, and it looked like... a 'tool'.

... It is possible that she had already met the conditions to effloresce.

A possible explanation would be the absence of the particular 'pull' required to draw it out of her - or the insufficiency of it.

This isn't anything like... the Arts. What... what is happening in front of Miss Mayors...?

... Is our proximity to the dimensional door increasing the potency of influences coming over from "The City"?

... Precisely.

The connection to Faust returning to... normal levels seems to indicate that.

<W-wait, can people in other worlds - I mean, Mayors... also manifest E.G.O?>

Internal conflict and anguish is a commonality among every intelligent entity, regardless of whether they are from the City or not, therefore... Yes, Faust is quite positive on this possibility as well.

... However.

What? What… what does that mean…?

... The potential to effloresce an E.G.O...

... implies the potential to Distort as well.

You've been dreaming for a long time, Mayors. Drawing your own picture of an idealized world.

And you have chosen the ocean as the means to building a path toward that vision.

Yet... why have you failed to take the leap of faith yourself?

... I had to make preparations.

Seaborns are beautiful, there's no doubt about it. It's just that… a key piece was missing to really achieve what I want.

You're not being honest with yourself.

I know it very well that you were afraid of becoming one of them.

The fear that your own creed might crumble, that you might lose your own sense of self, your ego.

The fear that you might end up becoming nothing more than just another thing swept up by the ineffably overwhelming will.

... Isn't it terrifying? That this hope can just… disappear in a blink?

Who is she talking to?

... Is this something Limbus Company has experience with? If so, I'd appreciate an explanation.

…….

... She's hearing that voice.

When that singular faith that one had absolute confidence in... breaks in one fell swoop, and their ironclad will is shattered...

... people of the City have the potential to Distort into a monstrous form at any time.

It is said that these phenomena are... often accompanied by the Distorting individual hearing a disembodied voice.

Indeed, those who Distort would oft behave as though they were engaged in a conversation. Of course, the same could be said for those who awaken E.G.O...

... At first, I thought it was Cathy. But it wasn't her.

The voice was beautiful, comforting, and even... cosy. The kind of voice that puts all deep contemplation to sleep, so calm and... so warm...

…….

It - no. There is more to the sunshine than its warmth.

<The sunshine...?>

You don't share your interest with the other devotees - "survival" isn't what you care about.

What you really care about is giving everyone a chance to experience what it feels like to live in a world of warmth... ephemeral it may be.

Right, we have to be about more than just prolonging our existences.

What really matters isn't survival... it's what we leave behind for posterity, our legacy.

As long as there's a guarantee that the light can indeed protect the sense of self… it'll be more than enough to convince people to become Seaborns.

Please, you don't have to concern yourself with what other people might think, Mayors.

… But everyone has their own wishes.

I can't just bulldoze over theirs to force mine upon them.

But that's not what you really believe, is it? You know that better than anyone.

While you hesitate, countless people who are bound to the inescapable bridle will continue to suffer.

…….

That-that might be true, but…

It's okay. You don't have to hide the shape of your heart, its colors.

The only thing you have to concern yourself with is… how you can lead the people of the City… and then Terra.

Okay, we can't just sit here and let this happen. Operators, to positions -

Operators unable to approach! She's surrounded by a strange field, Doctor!

Whenever someone would Distort due to reasons other than the Monolith... a strange pressure would prevent our approach, as though to stop us from interfering.

Looks like that applies here, too. All the way over in another world...

Love is our collective destination, after all…

So please, let go of this tool that might break your heart.

Don't force yourself to walk the path of thorns. Your pilgrimage needn't be that of suffering.

No, I… I…

You don't believe in any recourse, do you? Other than this, anyway.

…!

Don't you think we should find a better, faster path with less suffering? Before more people inevitably hurt each other with their ill-intent?

You're… you're right.

If there is no recourse… it has to happen faster. I can't waste any more time while people suffer.

Follow your wishes, follow your desires…

... and paint. Let's show them the painting of your world reflected in your eyes.

Before the compassion they believe in… becomes completely worthless.

…….

<... I understand the shape of your heart, and what makes you want to enter the City. >

<But we still know so little about the Seaborns, about Terra, about Iberia.>

<Whatever may have lit the fire under your feet...>

<... I can't bring you with us to the City as you are now.>

Even before the Sinners had the chance to translate my words, Mayors slowly turned in my direction as though she clearly understood my words.

But I must, Dante.

Your adventures were full of exhilarating tales, and I saw kindness in the every word and action of you and your friends, but...

That's not enough.

You don't think they'll... change?

No, they will.

In the far, far future.

An incandescent brilliance burst forth from before Mayors.

Past that light, I saw the ocean.

The calm sound of gently lapping, crashing waves; the immense, golden brilliance.

A portal...? Where did it come from?

<... Dungeon of the Fathoms.>

... A gate that leads into one's heart.

This periphery... is where LCB department's speciality begins.

... While what lies beyond this periphery does not necessarily warrant Rhodes Island's presence...

<Can you guys help? I don't know what kind of fathoms I'm walking into, but... I have a feeling that we're going to need your assistance.>

Doctor. Dr. Kal'tsit.

... We're only here to investigate the dimensional door, but... I don't want us to turn our backs on people we can help.

Rhodes Island... accepts Limbus Company's cooperation request.

I'll go, too.

You're still in Iberia. I can't let Iberian business be handled solely by outsiders, let alone an incident connected to the Church of the Deep.

Don't worry, it's not like this is the first time we're letting someone not in our group into a Dungeon of the Fathoms. We'll be fine.

... More Sea Terrors.

Given the circumstances, it seems very likely that Sea Terrors that were swarming the lighthouse are coming this way as well. I'll call Skadi here.

You'll be staying behind, then?

Amiya will go with you, Doctor.

Following Mayors, who had already disappeared into the portal...

... we take our steps into the utopian world beyond.