The goddess finally finished reading my report.
[There were some things I never expected, but it seems that making the Heroes more powerful by going to the Golden Demon Zone was a success. The casualties were only two light-colored Heroes, whose presences donât change anything whether theyâre alive or not...... These results are superb âª]
The Royal Castle of Alion.
The Goddessâ Personal Room.
Inside this room were only the Goddess and I.
The Goddess is twirling her fingers between her hair.
[âLevelling-upâ...... Everytime they kill a Golden-Eyed monster, we could visibly see growth within them. There is no such thing like an âeasy growthâ in this world. Before they notice it, raising these numbers itself would be a pleasure for them... Fufu, maybe itâs in the humanâs nature to be a slave to numbers.]
The Goddess threw the report back on to the desk.
[But Nyantan...... I canât help but wonder why Sogou-sanâs precious friends are still alive. Do you know why? It canât be helped if I think that itâs really strange.]
[It appears that someone or something has stopped them.]
[Ehh~? D- Donât tell me that you didnât investigate who stopped themâ- Well, you probably did, right? Youâre excellent after all. Iâm really sorry if I doubted you.]
[My apologies. I couldnât figure out who it was.]
[Ehh~? Thatâs absurd! Y- Youâre lying, right? Youâre not making light of peopleâs lives, right?]
I deeply lowered my head.
[My apologies.]
[Is that so... Is that so................................... Youâre not just covering up someone, right?]
[Thereâs no one for me to cover up.]
[Ummm... This is hard for me to ask but......]
[By all means.]
[You didnât immediately submit Ashintoâs report summarizing the information you received from Urza, did you?]
[I was late from submitting that report. My apologies.]
As if sheâs confirming her own words, the Goddess muttered.
[Youâre late... even though youâre excellent.]
The goddess rises from her seat.
She stood behind me.
[Youâre not secretly in touch with the Ashinto, the people who killed the âHumanityâs Strongestâ and were planning some kind of nefarious plan, are you...... Fufufu. Well, you wouldnât do that, right?]
The goddess put her hands around my waist.
Her hand began to caress my belly.
[You wouldnât do that, would you?]
[I wouldnât.]
Then, the Goddess began groping around my body.
Itâs as if sheâs looking for something hidden.
[What about the Takao Sisters?]
The reason why I was chosen as the sistersâ mentor.
The underlying reason is she wants me to act as their watchdog.
The goddess still hasnât decided how to treat the sisters.
[I dared to give those sisters freedom to act. And theyâre using that freedom to do something that causes me grief? Ahh...... Iâm very nervous just to hear your answer. I think I need to take a deep breath...... Hwooooooooo Haaaaa......]
[Theyâre not moving in any way that we need to be particularly concerned about. Theyâre steadily getting stronger though.]
[But the other day, they asked me a question that seemed to defy me. Itâs as if theyâre thinking Iâm being mean to Sogou-san......]
[I thought that if I gave the impression that Iâm not alienating them, I thought that they would come to trust Vysis-sama just like the other Heroes do...... That question may also be for that reason.]
[Is Hijiri-san really a person like that?]
[Yes.]
[Hmm~ I thought Hijiri-san was more aggressive than that...... she looks awfully eerie. Arara...... ââAh, youâre not lying, are you?]
[Of course not.]
[............, ââââ. ............? ââââ, ................................................? ....................................................................................................................................?]
This is a unique way of cross-examining by the Goddess for those who refuse to speak.
In rare cases, the Goddess uses the silence to probe the other personâs mind.
[So thatâs how it is~]
Itâs difficult to judge what she means with just those few words.
I donât know how to interpret that.
The Goddessâ hands stop moving.
[Umm, Nyantan...... If itâs really too difficult for you, itâs alright for you to betray me, you know? Please donât overdo it. I wonât blame you. I will just dispose of you.]
[Thereâs no way I would betray Vysis-sama.]
[Then, that delayed submission is really just your mistake......? E- Even though your cute little sistersâ life may be at stake...... Itâs amazing that youâre able to make a mistake there. I canât help but respect your courage.]
[I havenât gotten around to do it because of the continuous duties that I need to do those days. My apologies for the failed assassination towards the members of Ayaka Sogouâs group.]
[Fufufu...... Youâre a responsible person, arenât you?]
[.....................]
[Am I too strict?]
[No.]
[Am I being narrow-minded?]
[No.]
The Goddess placed her hand around my lips and shoved her finger into my mouth.
[Even if you reflected about it yourself, someone would definitely complain about those who donât grow at all...... and you would have some nerve if you had grown to dislike the other party for complaining. Iâd like you to give me a break from that tendency for those with greater calibres to just easily forgive others. There isnât anyone in this world who didnât grow without getting hurt. Sniff...... Itâs a really tough world, donât you think.......? Please do your best......]
[Iâll strive to be better.]
The hurt ones isnât the Goddess, nor is it myself.
Shutting off my senses, I let my gaze wander about.
One thing caught my eyes.
I think...... Itâs a large painting covered with a piece of cloth.
I hadnât been in this room before.
It appears that the goddess noticed my gaze.
[Youâre curious about that?]
The goddess walked over to the painting and took off the cloth.
A blond High Elf comes into my sight.
[This is a portrait of Seras Ashrain.]
The former leader of the Holy Knights of Neia.
[It was an offering to me from Bakuosâ emperor. Now that they have lost the âHumanityâs Strongestâ, it seems that they wanted to be under the protection of the strong goddess. Fufu, as far as Iâm concerned though, I wanted the person herself here rather than this painting.]
It is said that this was painted while looking at the person herself.
It was apparently the work of the royal painter at that time.
Itâs also said that this was originally the treasure of the Holy King.
After they have captured Neia, most of the treasures fell into the hands of Bakuosâ Emperor.
However, this painting was kept by the Holy King until his end.
[It is said that the Holy King rarely allowed the others to paint the person herself face-to-face. It seems that he had a professional royal painter to paint some of them but...... Well, thatâs the reason why the authentic paintings of her were so valuable. Of course, it seems that forgeries would frequently come out in the market too...... Ah, I also heard that some of her portraits posted on the Mercenary Guild were stolen? What a frightening story...... Ah, how terrifying their thoughts must be...... Humans were really frightening, arenât they?]
The Princess Knight, Seras Ashrain.
Sheâs already dead.
The public has already perceived her as such.
Her corpse still wasnât found though......
[Ah, yes, I heard something amusing. Did you know that the items she personally used were being actively traded among the nobles of various countries? I heard that the value of those things has bizarrely risen since the rumors of her death began spreading around the continent.]
Her used items.
That alone created their value.
âWhat strange people...â is what I only thought.
[If theyâre worth that much...... If I could get my hands on the person herself, she would surely have lots of uses. For instance, letâs seeâ-]
Usesâ- I hate the sound of that word.
âI could have earned a lot from lending her out to others.]
âLending her outâ
I know what she means.
There isnât any repulsion in the Goddessâ tone.
Yes, itâs as if sheâs treating her just as one of her pawns.
The same is true for Vysisâ Apostles.
They were only Godâs pawn after all.
[Sniff...... Itâs too hard for me to reveal my true emotions. My heart is always crying as I continue to make tough decisions...... But Nyantan, please listen carefully. What you have in you is the courage to be hated by others.]
â½
Following the Goddessâ command, I departed from Alion.
My destination would be Magnar Kingdom.
The Anti-Demon White Castle.
This time, the prided unit of the Thirteen Cavalries, the Sixth Cavalry was also sent out.
Why were we sent towards that castle again?
This is because the Great Demon Emperorâs army had finally begun a full-fledged march southwards.
The representatives of each country were once again gathering at the Northern Magnar.
â½
The Anti-Demon White Castle.
The room where wolves gather.
The representatives of each country have been having a heated debate in this place for about half a day.
Nevertheless, most of them were just following along the Goddessâ intentions......
A peculiar heat gathered within the room.
The Queen of Jonato rested her chin on her hand.
She had a weary look on her face.
[Please open the window, Curia.]
The Queen asked the Saint behind her.
The Saint calls out to the Goddess and White Wolf King.
[Would it be fine?]
The White Wolf King wordlessly nodded.
Holding out her hand, the Goddess showed her agreement.
The Saintââ Curia Gilstain opened the window.
Refreshing breeze came into the room.
The refreshing breeze gently ruffled the Goddessâ silver hair.
Their discussion paused.
Theyâve run out of ways to deal with them.
Every country probably hasnât even revealed their hidden cards......
Then, one of the civil officers entered the room.
He then directly approached the White Wolf Kingâs side and whispered something in his ears.
Making the civil servant step back, the White Wolf King crossed his arms.
[Their movements were slow but...... as we thought, their southward march werenât just to have skirmishes with us.]
The White Wolf King closes his eyes.
A deep crease is etched between his brows.
Heâs probably recalling the details of the Northâs map inside his head.
As if he canât take the pause anymore, the Magister King asked.
[W- What do you mean?]
The White Wolf King opens his thin eyes.
[Their movements were perfectly organized...... West, south, east...... They must be planning to invade in all of these three directions at the same time.]
The Queen sank deeper into her chair.
It looks like she had difficulty accepting the situation.
[It looks like theyâre moving in a way that theyâd greatly stretch out towards our lands. From the way things are going...... It looks like theyâre not going to stay in one place. I wonder what their aiming for, dispersing their forces like that?]
[I donât know. It must be something only these demons could think.]
The Goddess glances towards the empty sky.
[Will the army advancing towards the south split up later...... And later, join the army from the east and west? That could also mean that...... the army heading south is a reserve army that would act as reinforcements to areas where the war is not going well?]
[Or perhaps, theyâre planning to push through this Anti-Demon White Castle and plunge straight towards the Golden Demon Zone.]
[No, I donât think thatâs possible though......]
The Magister King sent a modest denial towards the White Wolf Kingâs words.
However...
[Well, yeah.]
The White Wolf King easily accepted his denial.
[The monsters created by the former Root of All Evil and the monsters created by the new Root of All Evil...... the camaraderie of these two factions were surprisingly thin. Itâs probably their âbirth parentsâ were different, that they even often act against each other......]
The theory that rose up every time a new Root of All Evil appears.
A new Root of All Evilâs forces.
The monsters that gathered in the Golden Demon Zone.
The conflux of these two theories.
But just as the White Wolf King said, the camaraderie of the two sides were completely nil.
The information weâve accumulated from the past proves it.
The White Wolf King lets out a rough sigh.
[However, if they were to attack towards all three directions, we may find some of our arrangements rather troublesome...... Is it alright to just entrust this to Vysis?]
The Goddess slightly nodded.
[Yes, leave it to me.]
Then, a new man entered the room.
A fearless yet graceful young man.
Heâs quite tall and has a solid build.
The Great General of the Mira Empire.
He also used to be the first in line to the inheritance for the imperial throne.
In other wordsââ Heâs the Mad Emperorâs oldest brother.
The Mad Emperorâs brother handed him a piece of paper.
The two of them also started whispering something with each other.
When they whispered with each other, the General exited from the room.
The Mad Emperor looked towards the paper he received and then threw it towards the table.
[Hereâs our latest analysis of the enemiesâ capabilities...... First of all, their numbers itself were already quite extraordinary. It would be better for us to estimate the qualities of each monster to be worse than we expected.]
The Goddess quickly glanced at the paper.
[I seeâ- This is quite unexpected......]
Aside from the Mad Emperor, the other representatives stood up from their seats one after another.
All of them leaned their upper bodies towards the paper in the center of the table.
The Magister Kingâs white eyes opened wide.
[W- What the heck is thiiiiiiissssssss..........!?]
[Itâs several times larger than the previous Root of All Evil......]
The Goddess has an unusually stern expression on her face.
[Moreover, since weâve lost the main force, the Black Dragon Knights...... I donât know who these Ashinto fellows are or where they are now, but they really did a great deal of trouble.]
Striking the table with both of his hands, the Magister King looks devastated.
[Uuuuuuuuoooo.......!? The reason why theyâre conducting simultaneous invasions to the three directions was all because theyâre confident in their numbers huh!? W- With these numbers...... And all of their troops heading in any directions were the worst monsters they could possibly be. Guuuhhh...... What do we do...... What the heck do we do......!?]
A streak of sweat ran down the Queen of Jonatoâs cheek.
[This vehement great march...... Now then, I wonder how I could react to this......]
With a stern crease on his eyebrows, the White Wolf King stared at the paper.
[Itâs not likely that any country will be able to compete against them with just the strength of a single country alone...... Even if we do win, we must be prepared for the dizzying hours of reconstructions......]
Filled with prudence, the Goddess narrows her eyes.
[I also donât think that the enemy would deploy all of their forces this early...... However, I donât think this is a situation where every country would be able to hold back their cards. This war...... All of us must join hands and face it will all of our mightââ]
Then, the Goddess thrust the reality towards them with a decree.
[âor everything will be trampled down.]