The End Of Her World Part 2

He was struck by an overwhelming urge to vent on Takemikazuchi or another deity

like him, but he stopped himself. If he went too far and ticked off that god of war,

skinny Hermes would be the one who would end up getting tossed around.

Coincidentally, the time was evening, around the same time as he had realized the

situation last night, too. The street was peaceful beneath the western sun, crowded

with villagers and adventurers returning from the Dungeon.

…Hypothetically, if I suppose this situation is a sandbox… Based on the factors that cause

a mental correction, the mastermind behind it wants to maintain peace and order in this

world.

It was unclear whether it was intended to be for a limited time or indefinite.

But there was no intention to savage the mortal realm by turning all beings into

mindless puppets. The fact that Hermes and the others maintained their free will was

proof of that.

Maintaining Orario as an unchanged city of heroes… The most likely reason for such a

circuitous tack is because the mastermind had no choice but to twist the world for the

sake of something or someone that could not be bent. To create a paradise and a prison

for someone. That is the true nature of this sandbox.

And the moment he thought of some opening to possibly break out of the sandbox, his

thoughts would be reset.

It was no good. He was blocked off in all directions.

The conclusion Hermes came to was that even if he could guess at the outline of the

sandbox, as long as he could not understand the precise rules and core of it, he could

not plot any way to break free.

An inescapable mental game. Hermes had been in checkmate long ago. From the

moment he had fallen prey to it, there was nothing he could do and no way for him to

break free. It was all just pointless struggle from the start.

I need some sort of plan. Some external guide that I can just follow without thinking.

Because of that, the only thing he could do was hope for some external help from

someone else out there who was still struggling. Someone who had not quite been

checkmated yet.

Hermes was currently incapable of doing anything under his own direction.

The moment he plotted anything himself, it was highly likely he would break one of

the rules.

Because of that deadlock, he needed something external to break through.

He had no choice but to entrust himself to someone else's plan in a way that did not

raise any suspicions of outside influence, did not cause anything unnatural, and did

not break from the normal day-to-day.

While knowing that that thought itself was only just barely this side of safe, Hermes

took off his hat.

"I'm begging you, first me… You were Hermes, after all, so you must have some trump

card prepared, right…?"

Hidden in the brim of the hat was a fragment of torn scroll.

A bit of parchment that had traces of a piece being torn off in one place.

That along with the letter from the good-natured old man had been the trigger for

Hermes's noticing something off. At first glance, it was just a fragment of paper, but

there was meaning in hiding it in his hat. Noticing that, Hermes began to reflect on his

past self's actions.

It was just a meaningless fragment of paper that Hermes had not attempted to destroy

even when he became a mere puppet.

Most likely the first Hermes, the Hermes before he had been checkmated, had written

something.

And he had entrusted it to someone.

Hermes could only cling to that supposition and hope it was true.

Aside from the fact that I have not gone on a trip, the other factor that is different from

usual… is Asfi being gone. Then is Asfi the key…?

Hermes was terribly disappointed in himself for having to rely on such tenuous

information despite being an all-knowing god. He scanned his surroundings.

It was Main Street at twilight. Lively and crowded.

There were no suspicious shadows. And he wouldn't really be able to say who might

be suspicious anyway.

He did not want to believe that he was being watched, but he could not allow anyone

to suspect that he felt something off about the sandbox.

At the same time, though, he had to make it clear to Asfi, who held the key, that he was

feeling something off about it. If he did not do that, then she would not make contact

with him.

It was a difficult conundrum. Suffering a painful headache, Hermes stopped in the

middle of the street.

Was Asfi watching him? Was she beside him? The odds were low, but he had no choice

except to try.

Looking up at the red sky, his eyes narrowed, and he spoke.

"Asfi… I love you."

It was not a loud voice. Just a whisper.

"So please… come back to me."

Dubious gazes started to center on him for stopping in the middle of the street.

Some beast people glanced over at him, doubting their ears after they picked up the

murmur.

It was something he would one hundred percent, absolutely never in a million years

say.

Hermes concluded that there was no other way for him to contact Asfi without anyone

else noticing. From the outside, he looked obsessed, and more than a little bit

narcissistic, too, but so be it.

Hermes earnestly, honestly revealed a feeling in his heart that he would otherwise

never show.

If there was no response, he would just move to another corner of the city and whisper

sweet words of love again.

He would continue singing of his love for his follower.

If it came to it, he would persist through to the very end.

Hermes was growing desperate as he prepared to head to another Main Street.

"—North Street, Jyaga Maru Kun stall."

"!!!"

An invisible someone slipped past him and whispered something in his ear.

The voice blended in with the everyday sounds of the milling crowd. If anyone heard

it, it would only be a meaningless fragment of a message.

Hermes's eyes widened, and he was immediately struck by the urge to turn around,

but he stopped himself.

Even if he did turn, she was still invisible. He could not meet her. So he put a smile on

his lips and headed in the direction he had been told.

In his heart—

Thank you, Asfi.

And you know I was telling the truth when I said I love you, right?

And as he sped along his way, he felt like he heard a murmur.

"Argh… you're the worst.

"Hurry up and return to normal… you hopeless god."

Hermes's cheeks softened as he imagined her face red through and through as she

glared tearfully at him.

"Oh, Hermes! Great timing! I'm begging you, buy some Jyaga Maru Kuns from me!"

Reaching the spot, he was greeted by a lively voice.

Hestia was in uniform, her massive breasts swaying like always as she worked in a

rush.

"For reasons, I slacked off too much on my job and I'm in trouble! I'm gonna be fired if

I don't sell enough!"

"Ha-ha, I dunno what all that's about, but good luck. It takes a long time to get back

into society after losing your job. For old times' sake, I suppose I could buy one. What

would you recommend?"

"Then make it this! The hyper-ultra-jumbo Jyaga Maru Kun deluxe! It costs a hundred

times more than the regular Jyaga Maru Kun, but just buy it as a favor for me! Please,

please, please buy it!"

"O-okay…"

Hermes's eyes were bloodshot as he reflexively took the golden, crispy Jyaga Maru Kun

that Hestia held out for him.

Genuinely speechless at the totally exhausted figure that did not look remotely like an

act, he paid a hundred times the usual price in gold coins (3,000 valis). Saying goodbye to Hestia, he started to help himself to the snack that was five hands long as he

walked the streets, and after significant struggle, he managed to finish all of it—before

slipping into a dark alley.

Leaning against the wall, he examined the wrapper, unwinding the several of them

that had been used since it had been so large. And inside the oily paper, what appeared

was—a torn fragment of a scroll.

Hermes broke into a smile as he read it.

"Turn Orario into a hearth."

It was unmistakably his own handwriting.

The first Hermes had fallen, but he had left behind a plan that would lead them back

from the brink.

"Yeah, yeah, this is more like me."

Reassuming the cool, shrewd trickster's expression, he quickly began walking again.

There had been two pieces of paper.

The first was the letter to himself that the first Hermes had entrusted to Hestia.

And the second was the location of the materials needed for the construction of the

hearth.

He could stop thinking. There was nothing else to worry about. He could just carry out

his job in a way that would not infringe on any rules.

"Let's make a hearth."

It was three days after Perseus noticed the change in the Freya Familia's baptism—

and three days before the boy managed to land a blow on the elven warrior.

The moon has driven away the clouds, filling the night sky with a pale light.

The air is biting cold, but it's clearer than ever.

Just like my heart.

I indulge in a brief poetic thought as I sit in a chair at the window.

The fog that shrouded my mind and all the uncertainty is gone. I have no more doubt

that I'm Hestia Familia's Bell Cranell.

My whole body is filled with feelings toward my idol, and I'm consumed by a sense of

exaltation.

"But… what do I do now…?"

I munch on a premade meal from the pouch of my Dungeon kit as I furrow my brow.

Just an hour ago, I refused dinner in Sessru mnir after finishing the battle that night

and headed straight back to the room I've been using for over two weeks now. I tried

to lie and say that my body is not feeling well after exerting myself so much today, but

Master saw through it. He just called me a fool while allowing it, though… He did

actually forgive me, right?

A-anyway, under normal circumstances, this is right about the time when I would be

leaving Sessru mnir after dinner and start heading toward Lady Freya's chambers.

I wanted some time to figure out a plan in order to avoid doing that.

"If I meet Lady Freya now… she would definitely see through me. She'll realize I'm not

swimming in doubt anymore."

Children can't lie before deities. She would surely see through my current thoughts.

And I have no clue what she would do when she realized that I was certain I was not a

member of Freya Familia. But at the very least things surely would not change for the

better for me.

And in the first place, what even is the current situation?

However much I might be sure of myself, as far as the world is concerned, I am still

Freya Familia's Bell Cranell, and it's not like Aiz or anyone else actually remembers the

Hestia Familia Bell.

"Is Lady Freya… the reason why Orario is so strange?"

…Has her charm really created this world?

It seems unbelievable, but I don't have any other explanation I can think of. And I can't

believe anyone other than a deity could manage such a feat.

And if my guess is correct, then deities really are far beyond the comprehension of us

mortals. To change not just a person, but the entire world…

I shudder at an act so far removed from logic.

"If this really is something that Lady Freya has done, then… why would she do this…?"

It couldn't just be to have me join Freya Familia, could it? If it was, then why not just

charm me along with everyone else? Was there something that prevented that? Or

some prerequisite?

…No good, I have no idea.

In the first place, there is no way a mere mortal like me could begin to understand the

divine will of a goddess like her.

For the moment, I set aside my questions about Lady Freya.

What I have to figure out is how to behave myself after this… what should I do?

I can't meet Lady Freya. I still have no idea what sort of expression I should have when

I meet her.

And before the question of how to interact with her even came up, there would

probably be others who felt something off about me from the battle today. Like Hegni

or Heith. As for Master… I don't really know what he's thinking.

I probably should have just confirmed the techniques I learned from Aiz and Lyu in a

way where no one would notice, or else try to say there was no way I could pull off

such an absurd imitation against a first-tier adventurer, but I was still high on the

feeling of renewing my feelings toward my idol.

If Lilly could see me now, I'm sure she would have a harsh lecture for me.

Welf and Mikoto and Haruhime would all smile awkwardly as the goddess watched

us…

"…Goddess… everyone…"

Looking out the window, I think of my true familia.

The days I spent with Freya Familia were painful and harsh, but they were not only

painful and harsh. There were moments when I was saved, and I felt warmth from

such mysterious bonds. But still… this is not my home.

Slapping my cheeks painfully hard with both hands, I wipe away the sentimentality

creeping into my thoughts.

I do not have time.

It's possible that Hegni or someone else is reporting my current state to Lady Freya

right now.

Should I just try to run away? But what would I even do, then?

Even if for the sake of argument I managed to escape Freya Familia, the city's biggest

familia, and got out of Folkvangr, the world is still not right. I would not have anywhere

to return to without fixing that first.

I gulp down the last of the packaged meal, replenishing much-needed nutrients.

I can feel blood circulating in my body and my head as I desperately try to think of

something—when a thought suddenly pops up.

"What about Syr…? If this world is a lie, then where is Syr right now…?"

Chloe and the others do not remember Syr.

Everyone in Freya Familia says there is no Syr, too.

But I know that she existed.

It isn't a simple contradiction. She vanished entirely. My suspicions focus on that point.

My instinct is ringing.

It feels like she is the key to understanding what is happening in some way.

So what I need to do is to search for Syr… to find her?

"Lyu disappearing is weird, too…! If I can find the two of them…!"

Deciding clearly what I need to do, I jump to my feet.

Just when I resolve to start moving…

There's a thundering sound, as if in sync with me and my defiant stand.

"Wh-?!"

A massive tremor shakes the building.

Dumbfounded, I immediately steady myself against the shock. I know I decided to act,

but I haven't even done anything yet!

I frantically open my window and look all around the estate.

I'm afraid there is some kind of attack happening, but all I see is a part of the first floor

belching smoke and dust along with the glimmering remnants of magic.

"Bell! Bell! Are you there?!"

"…! Y-yes!"

There is a furious pounding on my door, and the familiar healer's voice rings out.

After a brief moment's indecision, I respond honestly.

"Thank goodness you're here…! You haven't left the room, right?!"

Opening the door, as expected, I see Heith standing there.

She has a couple other members of the familia in tow, and she looks more intense than

I have ever seen her before. She looks obviously relieved when she sees me.

"I've been here the whole time, but… what is happening?! There was a really loud noise

just now…!"

I'm a little bit suspicious of the question as I respond.

From outside my room, no, from somewhere inside the home, I can hear the shrill

clang of blades clashing.

"…An intruder. Some individual has invaded our sacred Folkvangr."

Heith is silent for a moment before responding.

I freeze in place, forgetting the situation and responding in a hysterical voice.

"A-an intruder?! A single person?! Taking on Freya Familia?!"

Crisp slashes closed in.

Lyu was sweating. She used her sword to knock aside blades that hit harder than her

own.

"Ugh?!"

"Haah!"

And then she unleashed a sharp kick to the beast person whose stance had faltered

from having his longsword knocked upward.

She didn't stick around to watch as her opponent's back slammed into the wall, instead

turning and running. She heard the thundering shouts of "Found her!" "Catch her!"

from the reinforcements already swarming behind her.

The location was the first floor of the enormous palatial manor. Lyu was trying to

escape by herself.

Trying to escape from the worst imaginable pursuers: Freya Familia.

"This really is Folkvangr…! Freya Familia's home!"

Running with all her might, Lyu attempted to confirm the situation as best she could,

even as beads of sweat continued to form.

It had already been a week since she'd woken up in an unknown underground room.

She had passed out in front of Syr—Freya—and she guessed she had been carried

away at some point after, but there was no end to her worries. It would not be

hyperbole to say that, save the Dungeon, there was no place in Orario more dangerous

than where she was.

"Hiyah!"

"Khh?!"

Immediately as she entered a wide corridor, a human leaped from a higher floor,

slicing down at her.

In the split second when her legs were numbed from blocking one strike, another

person mercilessly took advantage of that opening, attacking with a sharpness and

swiftness that forced Lyu to respond with her full strength.

—Her opponents here were all strong!

It was simple, but that was the whole of her impression.

She was in the fortress of the city's largest faction. There was not a single weak person

among them, and the warriors slashing at her right at that moment were the match

for any second-tier adventurer. Each individual's level of training was incomparable.

She had only just escaped her prison, but they had already noticed and were quick to

force her into a precarious position. Even the lower-tier adventurers understood their

place and were harassing her with magic to slow her down. She had to resort to every

last trick she could muster, and she had even been forced to use her magic once, which

completely revealed her position.

Fortunately, the inside of the manor was still in a confused panic and the enemy was

not coordinating perfectly, but that did little to change the fact that she was stuck

inside a cage filled with ferocious beasts. As a reward for clashing with an elf lancer

who seemed to be a Level 4 like her, her clothes were torn slightly in exchange for

cutting through the spear's haft.

"Fellow, no, Gale Wind! How did you escape the underground?!"

The other elf was agitated, and it showed in her intense tone. The question made Lyu

remember the encounter from just a few minutes before.

She had been in a room underground that could not really be called a jail cell. She had

not been wanting for clothing, food, or shelter.

However, she could not escape due to the cursed manacles on her wrists that

weakened her and sealed away her magic.

As Lyu had grown more and more concerned, unable to do anything, a certain elf had

appeared before her.

"Leave."

She had somehow incapacitated the upper-tier adventurers who were always

guarding the door and entered before dropping Lyu's Futaba and the key to her

restraints.

"My condition for releasing you is that I want you to cause as much of a commotion as

you can in the eastern half of the manor while I act."

Lyu had been on guard against the girl who made such a straightforward demand

while keeping her distance and not allowing her true intent to show in her eyes.

Lyu had glared back defiantly, demanding to know what she was thinking, what she

was plotting, and did she really think Lyu would just listen to her?

"Please, Lyu."

But those two words, the way she said them, her gaze… they moved Lyu's heart.

Even though her face and voice did not match, she resembled a certain girl.

The girl left the room, with the elf still dumbstruck behind her. Unable to say anything,

Lyu had taken the key in her hand, unlocked the restraints, and begun fighting.

I don't understand it, either. Why did I do exactly what some stranger wanted without

even understanding her real intent? But those words and that gaze were—

Clenching the hilt of her sword tightly, Lyu's eyes flared.

She parried the stunned elf lancer's attack and finished spinning the cast that she had

been murmuring softly.

"Imbue the light of stardust and strike down my enemy—Luminous Wind!"

The blast she had been preparing while fighting knocked aside all the reinforcements

that had been gathering, causing a second explosion that rocked the manor.

"An explosion in the home?!"

The first floor beneath Babel.

Allen, who had been waiting for Loki Familia to return from their expedition in the

chamber that connected to the Dungeon's first floor, exploded menacingly when he

heard the report.

"What are you talking about? What are the boar and elves doing?!"

"A-about that… it appears to be magic set off inside the home and not an external

attack…!"

Cowering at Allen's dangerous tone, the member who had sensed the uproar at the

home lowered his voice while offering his analysis.

Allen scoffed, concluding that they knew nothing important, as the four prums who

were also present responded.

"The battle on the field should be long finished by now."

"There is no one in our familia so fool enough to trouble the goddess's ears with

accidental magic."

"Which would mean the work of outsiders."

"Could it be… Gale Wind?"

Allen's eyes narrowed sharply as Alfrik and his brothers reached a hypothesis through

near telepathy.

"A-Allen! Alfrik!"

The half-prum Van came running over at that same moment.

Allen ratcheted his head into high gear as he brushed off Van, telling him to get lost

and save it for later, but—

"She… just disappeared!"

When Allen heard that, his eyes darkened.

"…I should have just killed her…"

Van and the rest of the familia members gasped and recoiled from the bubbling wrath

welling up from the cat person.

"What's the plan, Allen?"

Alfrik, for the sake of appearances, asked the second-in-command of the familia who

was in charge of the operation there.

"As if you need to ask. We're going back."

"Something happening at Freya Familia's home?"

Aisha looked suspicious.

She stopped on a corner of a major street where tipsy bar goers were enjoying

themselves, near Daedalus Street in the east of the city.

"Yeah. Thane and the others near the shopping district got wind of it, apparently.

There are still sounds of fighting from inside the walls, according to Merrill's report."

"What's that about? They stop their death matches come sunset, right? Does that mean

some other familia picked a fight with them?"

"No clue. But we can't just ignore it…"

Falgar looked troubled.

For better or worse, there was a lot of weight that accompanied being the city's

greatest faction. If something suddenly happened in their home, all sorts of other

familias and the like would start wondering about it and getting nervous. All the more

so for a group like Hermes Familia that maintained neutrality and always had their ear

to the ground for information.

The Amazon looked troubled, as if something was bothering her, even though she

didn't remember anything that happened during the Goddess Festival.

"I'm sure it'll just end up being their death match going a little bit longer than usual,

is all. More importantly, let's get this firewood delivery job done already."

Lulune did not bother paying any attention to Falgar and Aisha's conversation. The

chienthrope girl was holding on to a bundle of firewood as she dexterously shrugged

and knocked on the door of a family's home.

"We're with Hermes Familia. The Guild asked us to deliver firewood."

"Ohh, thank you! It's already feeling like winter. You're lifesavers."

"Sure thing. We'll be coming in if you don't mind."

"Eh? Wh-what?"

Lulune slipped past the woman who had met them at the door and bent over in front

of the fireplace in the house.

"Sorry, our patron god told us to be sure to start the fire before coming back."

Quickly arranging the kindling, she started a fire with practiced ease, using a flint

starter, and the fireplace was filled with crackling flame in the blink of an eye.

The couple and their daughter were pleased with the refreshing display of skill and

extended a tempting offer of dinner as thanks, but Lulune restrained herself and

excused herself with a tired, "Unfortunately, we still have more work to do."

"Haaah, how many more of these volunteering gigs do we have left… I mean it's

definitely cold tonight, but still…"

"You took the words out of my mouth. Sheesh, since when did Hermes Familia do such

obvious brownnosing?"

"I mean, we don't usually, but…"

Magic-stone warmers were expensive, so most of the residents of Orario endured the

winter cold using normal stoves and fireplaces. But still, what was Hermes thinking,

giving them a map of houses to deliver firewood to and calling it all volunteer work?

Every member of the familia had been brought in to help with it even. Lulune and

Aisha both had been confused by all the fuss, and the familia's second-in-command,

Falgar, shook his head while holding an identical bundle of firewood over his shoulder.

"And also… this wood kinda smells a bit like blood…"

Lulune held up the bundle she was carrying and sniffed it.

"You think we're passing out logs that were used to pummel someone to death?"

"Save the stupid observations and let's get moving already. Lord Hermes specifically

said we had to get this over before midnight."

"Ah, wait up!"

Lulune quickly rushed to catch up with Aisha and Falgar, who had left her behind in

exasperation.

Hermes Familia delivered the firewood to residence after residence, starting the fire

everywhere they stopped.

Without anyone noticing, the city began to fill with hearth fires.

Boom!

Another tremor shakes the mansion as I catch myself against the wall.

"Ugh…?! A-again…?!"

Heith did not quite catch herself and stumbles into my chest, managing to head-butt

me in the process. I cough as I pull her off me.

"It seems like something really crazy is happening. Is this really okay?!"

"U-umm…!"

"It sort of seems like a lot more than just a single rebel breaking in. If anything, it seems

like a pretty big—"

"—Argh! Look, it's not like I freakin' know, either; this is just happening out of nowhere

all of a sudden! I'd like some explanations, too!"

Heith rubs her forehead as her face turns red, and she swings her hands up in the air

in frustration.

I'm a little bit taller than her, but I can't help recoiling apologetically and reflexively

mumbling a hasty "I-I'm sorry."

"Bell, no matter what, please don't leave this room!"

"Eh?!… B-but!"

"You're special to Lady Freya, so if anything happens to you, I'm going to get a massive

earful! Just think of it as helping me out, and please just stay here! Okay?! I'll leave

guards here for you, too!"

Heith leaves the room without letting me get a word in edgewise.

Like she promised, a couple of older familia members, one male and one female, come

in as she leaves.

"Bell, listen to what Heith said, okay? I know she's being a bit overprotective, but she's

also taken a bit of a liking to you, too."

"And also, there's the issue of you getting cursed. This attack might have some

connection with all of that, too."

"O-okay…"

My impromptu guards are Remilia and Rask. Along with Van, they're the ones who

spoke with me most often.

Their tone is kind, but… their eyes are watching me with an odd intensity.

Are they on guard around me? No, is it that they don't want me to make contact with

the intruder?

If that's the case, then it would explain Heith's question when she first came to my

room.

What do I do…?!

It's definitely true that a different wind is blowing now.

It's almost like a tailwind has been watching me and picked up right when I regained

my idol. Given the fact that I have to avoid contact with Lady Freya, this is unmistakably

a great opportunity.

Turning away from the two of them, I pretend to look out the window while thinking

about what to do.

I heard that the Gullivers, Allen, and Van and the other second-tier adventurers are

not at Folkvangr because of a quest they have to handle. It does not change the fact

that the difference in combat strength is impossible to overcome, but it's still less than

half of what it would normally have been…!

I should make my move. Make a decision. Break through the people who have taken

care of me these past weeks and take action.

I close my eyes for a brief moment, carefully managing my breathing to avoid being

noticed, and then I instantly spin around. Just as I'm about to start running, the two of

them collapse.

"Wh-?!"

They shudder and slump to the floor, and for a second, I'm stunned.

What happened?!

Confusion and caution mingle as I hear a squeak. At some point the door was opened.

Staring at the half-opened door, I make up my mind and cautiously step outside.

Looking to the left and the right, I see the hallway is deserted.

—No…

At the end of the long hallway, there is an almost illusory figure shimmering as if

beckoning me in that direction.

I set aside my doubt and follow after the shade.

The magic-stone lights lining the castle-like corridor go out, bringing darkness. I

follow the indistinct, almost-ghostly shadow without anyone finding me.

Soon I arrive at a western corner of the home, on the top floor.

A room for meditation to allow warriors to gather their mind.

"This is…"

There is a stained glass window in the ceiling high above. It's almost like an altar.

The room is a long space like a small chapel. The floor is made of black marble. There

are no chairs. It almost looks like a stage for a coronation, with long shallow stairs

leading toward the back of the room. Instead of statues of deities, greatswords, spears,

battle-axes, and various other weapons that are all clearly well worn line the walls

here.

They are surely the effects of the einherjars who are no more.

I step into the hall of warriors, into its tranquil, almost sacred atmosphere.

And when I reach the center of the room, the door that I left open suddenly closes.

"!"

I spin around.

The only light in the dark room is the faint moonlight from the stained glass window

in the ceiling above. Rays of deep blue, light purple, and a sorrowful silver all fill my

eyes as a single girl steps toward me from the entrance.

"Ho rn…"

Long, ashen hair and a black dress that made her look like a witch's apprentice.

It's my second time meeting her.

Her hair covers the right half of her face, just like it had when she came to deliver the

letter before the Goddess Festival.

"...…"

Her footsteps ring out as she silently approaches me.

There are questions I have to ask. And countless curiosities.

Was she the one who guided me there? If so, why? What are her intentions?

Why have I never met the girl who is called the goddess's attendant despite having

visited Lady Freya's chamber so many times?

And more than anything, is this really only our second time meeting?

What is this strange feeling… as if I've met her dozens of times before, as if she's always

been beside me?

Many questions cross my mind, but none of them make it into words.

Nameless, the one without a second name.

Forgetting to speak, I'm drawn into her eye, as if she is there to hand down my

judgment in place of the goddess.

"...…"

"...…"

She stops.

We look at each other.

There is a small distance between us in the center of the room.

The noise from outside the room is distant.

Is the intrusion happening in the east of the home? There is no one near this room.

No matter what happens here, there would not be anyone who would intrude.

Time continues as we look at each other, and finally she speaks.

"How much of the answer have you reached?"

I instantly understand what she is asking.

I shouldn't answer. Logic is screaming at me to keep my mouth shut, but I give a

foolishly honest response.

"I'm not actually a member of Freya Familia. I'm Hestia Familia's Bell Cranell."

It felt like I could not lie to her.

Her expression does not change in the slightest at that confession, and she asks again:

"Then, how much have you figured out?"

"…Huh?"

But I do not understand her second question.

It does not sound like she is just asking about the weirdness and inconsistencies that

are affecting Orario.

It sounds like she is confirming something different, a far more crucial core of

something…

"Wh-what do you mean? What are you…?"

I do not know what Ho rn's intentions are. And I'm clearly flustered.

Her face that was as calm as the surface of a lake at night suddenly grows stern.

Her small hand clenches.

And just as it looks like her long gray hair has tilted down—

"...…Trash."

I hear her murmur.

"Eh?"

"…Trash, trash, trashtrashtrashtrashtrashtrashtrashtrashtrashtrashtrashtrashtrashtr

ashtrashtrashtrashtrashtrashtrash!"

The next moment, she looks up and explodes.

A mindless, shocked look crosses my face for a brief moment before my eyes widen

and I recoil, taken aback by the barrage.

"You go beyond an utter fool, putting you squarely in the realm of pure garbage!

Enchanting her so! Tormenting her so! And you still don't understand anything?!

Nonsense! Snap out of it!"

"Eh, eh, eh?!"

"How long must you insist on being content with playing the fool?!"

Her long hair sways violently, and she swings her hand roughly to the side while

unleashing a storm of rebukes at me.

Talk about a change of appearance! It's scary. Like scary enough that I'm afraid for my

life here!

Because of Ho rn's sudden eruption, I forget my position and almost fall backward.

"You brute, feigning harmlessness! Unconscious of your crimes! Enemy to all women!

Filth of humanity! Monster who mistakes obviousness for sincerity! If the deities ever

erred, it was in creating a foul beast like you! Parasite of original sin tempting all those

older than you! Daring even to seduce the sublime goddess! Have some shame!"

"Wait! Seriously, what are you talking about?!"

"The 'Please Call Me "Big Sister"' ranking is a joke! What a farce!"

"Why do you know about that?!"

I can only cry out in panic at the furious fusillade of abuse.

While that's happening, Ho rn's rage knows no bounds, and she reaches behind her hip

and pulls out a knife—wait what??!!

"Unforgivable, unforgivable, unforgivable!!! I will never, ever forgive what you've done!

Your stupid face and your pathetic voice and that kindness that torments the goddess

so! I should have killed you when I had the chance!"

"E-eeeeeep?!"

"It's all because you appeared before the goddess!"

A blade dance begins in the blink of an eye.

Just like she indicated, I cry out pathetically while I avoid the knife slashing toward

me.

Our two figures dance in the light of the stained glass at the center of the room.

The swishing sound of wind being cut assaults my ears time after time. I can't let my

guard down. Even if her level is below mine, there is no mistaking she is still an uppertier adventurer.

I fall into panic by the utterly unexpected development as I desperately try to avoid

being carved up. We change places several times as I evade the knife she is holding in

a backhand grip.

"When you're around, the littlest things give her joy! And sadden her! And hurt her!"

"Eh…?!"

"You have the potential to be a hero, so why do you not have any lust?! Why can't you

just accept love?! If you did, then she would at least be rewarded some small amount!

How many women must you keep hurting like this?!"

Ho rn does not stop as she vents at me.

She swings her arm to release the pent-up rage and punches me square in the cheek

with a heartfelt scream.

Realizing that she's referring to Lady Freya, I'm stunned, and try my hardest to

understand what she is saying.

"What devotion! Slave to your accursed infatuation!"

"Ghh—!"

When I hear the person I idolized scorned like that, though, my limbs, which only

recoiled so far, burn with a resolve to fight back.

My eyes flare as I try to grab the knife that she is swinging down at me.

"Because of you! She is…! I'm…!"

But.

" "

When I see the tear falling from her eye, my arms freeze.

The next moment, she tackles me, knocking me to the ground.

"Ugh?!"

My back slams into the hard floor.

Her soft limbs cling to me, and she throws the knife down beside me.

A shrill sound that feels like it will split my eardrums rings out as Ho rn grabs my neck

with both of her hands.

"Aaaaah! Odious! Detestable! How I wish I could kill you!"

I forget to fight back, my arms limp on the floor as my eyes open wide.

Not because I'm bound by her furious visage.

"And yet, so maddeningly precious…"

Her bluff is falling apart, and her feelings are on the verge of being entirely revealed

as time stops for me.

It's almost pitiful how her trembling fingers don't squeeze my neck at all.

Even though she seems like she wants to stop my breathing so badly, she can't bring

herself to go through with it.

Love and hate.

Even though it's just the littlest bit, and only surface deep… for the first time, I feel like

I really understand the concept of love and hate being two sides of the same coin.

"If I had just met you first!"

She shouts.

"If I had known the future that awaited!"

She rages.

"Before the goddess could meet you, I could… I could have embraced you…"

She trembles.

"If I… had just met you… first…!"

The light through the stained glass window shines on her back as she reveals the

thoughts that lie in the depths of her heart.

"—The goddess would never have been tormented, and I could have fallen for you as

myself."

She's like a sinner confessing all her sins.

"It was no good…"

"Huh…?"

"My way… didn't work…"

Her voice is faint.

Trembling.

Her feelings slowly slip out from behind the mask that has been removed.

"I wanted her to remain a sublime goddess… I didn't want her to become a mere girl

like me…! That's why I tried to kill you, to stop her deluded wish… but, but… but…!"

Her long hair falls, brushing against my forehead.

Her hidden right eye is uncovered.

Unlike her left eye's iris, which is fully black, her right eye looks almost silver, or

bluish-gray.

Tears are welling in that eye.

"Even though she fully intended to bury the girl's feelings when she failed to achieve

her wish! Even though I thought she would wake from her nightmare after being

rejected by you! I can still hear her! Crying! I never heard that voice before!"

Her tears fall on my cheek.

As I watch in shocked silence, she cries like a child right before my eyes.

"She's suffering! Hurting! To a degree she does not even recognize herself! She's on

the verge of breaking! At this rate, she will never be saved! This isn't right! It can't be!

That isn't what I wanted at all…!"

Wavering between love and , on the verge of collapse.

It's a string of words I can't comprehend. I can't grasp her intent.

But my eyes are stolen away by the overflowing emotions, and by how she herself is

sobbing.

"…Realize it! Just notice already! It won't mean anything if you don't realize it

yourself!"

Ho rn howls at me even as her tears continue to fall.

"There is no meaning if a fake like me tells you the truth!"

Her face is a mess as she pleads with me to reach out my hand.

"So please…"

Her heartfelt plea rings in my ears.

"Please realize it… Bell—"

The moment I hear that voice…

So many of the memories and events leading up to today all flash through my head at

a fantastic speed.

" "

Words, tone, resonance, sadness, tears, feelings.

Similarities, commonalities, resemblances, closeness. There are too many to count.

The girl crying right before me. The girl who worked at The Benevolent Mistress. And

the sublime goddess beloved by all.

Three people that should not be interchangeable in any sense of the word.

And yet their three expressions overlap.

—The goddess's attendant.

—Nameless.

—"This child will never become anyone else."

If she cannot become any other person—then from another angle, that means the

person she could become was already determined?

Then could that be—the goddess?

The odd feeling I have whenever I meet her.

The feeling that I've met her before, as if she has always been at my side, as if I've

known her since long ago.

Her face and voice are entirely different, and yet she resembles them too much.

Like a reflection on the water that changes with every little ripple.

She also called herself a fake just now.

And she also said, "I should have killed you then."

The person who resembled Syr who tried to kill me that day during the Goddess

Festival.

The assumption I had then was that they shared memories or perhaps senses. If that

was actually close to the reality of it, then she and Syr really are bound in some deep

way.

And…

"—Aaaa, I really do like you."

"—Ahhh, I truly do like you."

What she said, and what the goddess said…

Her smile that I saw in the goddess's expression that night.

The warmth that enveloped me. The line between that silver and bluish-gray.

It always seemed so strange. Her having some connection with the city's biggest

familia. The guards and honorifics. One and only. Irreplaceable.

This world being so twisted, and her disappearing, and the goddess appearing before

me in her place.

Wait, wait, wait, wait…

I reach a possibility so absurd, so crazy, there should be no way I could possibly reach

it.

The existence of Nameless is the final piece that finally lets me realize the truth.

As the torrent of flashbacks and realizations finally finish, my lips open.

"You're… Syr?"

I speak her true name.

"And Lady Freya… is Syr, too?"

And the name of the girl.

"...…"

Her crying expression slowly changes into a beautiful smile.

Her fingers leave my neck and gently caress my forehead.

Looking down at me while I'm stunned and unable to move, Ho rn's eyes narrow, and

she slowly stands up.

As if following her, I stand up as well while she picks up the knife.

"…Here…"

"Eh… Th-this is… the Hestia Knife?!"

I'm dumbstruck by what she holds out to me.

The knife she was swinging at me is the knife that Lady Hestia ordered just for me.

Even if the room is shrouded in darkness, I'm ashamed of myself for not noticing. It

almost feels like the knife itself is upset with me.

At the same time, though, I remember something.

Something the goddess told me once, and something that Lilly said, too. Anyone who

doesn't bear Lady Hestia's falna can't properly wield this knife. The blade itself has

been dead in a sense. No matter how much Ho rn might have hacked away at me, it

wouldn't have been possible for her to mortally wound me with it.

She wasn't trying to kill me this time at all.

"…Wait, from the very start, were you… trying to help me?"

I'm still gripping the knife as she firmly clasps my hand in both of hers.

All of a sudden, the hieroglyphs engraved in the knife take on a purple gleam, as if life

has been breathed back into it.

Seeing that, Ho rn laughs softly.

"Yes, I never intended to kill you—from the very start, this was my intention."

And then, as if offering up her body, she throws herself onto the knife in my hand.

"What?!"

I can feel the blade piercing her skin. The warm red pouring from her.

In the blink of an eye, her clothes and my hand are drenched in blood.

I immediately hold Ho rn as she starts to lose strength and collapse.

"What are… what are you doing?!"

Kneeling down, I support her slender arms as I cry out in shock.

I only just barely managed to redirect the knife blade that slipped into her chest. I

could not do anything more than that. The blade pierced just a little bit below her

chest, but blood is still welling from inside her, robbing her of life.

I pull the knife out and desperately try to stop the bleeding as Ho rn weakly leans her

head against my chest.

"I betrayed… the goddess… out of devotion to her… And for a second time… at that…"

The smile on her lips is one of pity.

A smile of pity and of contempt for her own foolishness.

"And more than anything… I loved you… Not because of anyone else's feelings. I did it

of my own volition."

Her fragile, repentant smile reflects in my wide eyes.

"So I will die… in order to atone for what I've done…"

She is bleeding out, and her face is frighteningly pale as my hand forcefully pushes

against her chest.

"Healing! There's still time! If I take you to Heith—!"

Why are you doing this?! Why are you trying to die?!

I can't help remembering Winne, who once died for me, as I grit my teeth and try to

carry Ho rn.

"Wait…"

But when I start to stand up, the slender hand clinging to my chest stops me.

"My magic… miracle to connect me with her…"

"C-connect…?!"

"If I use this… she will… see everything… she will know everything about you as well."

Ho rn tries to explain as I listen in confusion.

Her breathing is shallow, and she wheezes in pain as she gathers the last of her

strength.

"But even so… that you may know… her feelings that only I could hear…"

Summoning every last bit of mind she had left inside her, she begins to pray.

"…Untrodden stairs, forbidden door… today, this day, my body infringes heavens' laws…"

A magic circle unfolds around us.

Its color is a gray that does not quite reach silver.

"Hollow soul, shallow lust…"

A quiet undulation. The magic power swirling is slight as well.

Particles of light reflect the glimmer of the stained glass, gleaming as they ascend to

the heavens.

It's an ephemeral beat that sounds almost like a prayer for salvation.

A shorter cast incomparable to that of the sage.

But it treads upon a taboo realm of the same sort. A secret spell that is hers alone.

"By the name exchanged… descend, daughter of the gods—"

And with quivering lips, she speaks its name.

"Vana Seiðr."

The magic circle shatters.

And the fragments of light, the ashen color gleam, transform into a beautiful, jewellike

silver and are absorbed into Ho rn.

"?!"

Her body shimmers like the crescent moon as I hold her and become shrouded in heat.

The light subsides as the magic courses around her, and once it has all settled, in my

arms is—

"…Syr…?"

The girl with the blue-gray hair.

I murmur in a daze.

As my voice reaches her, her eyelashes quiver.

Her blue-gray eyes slowly open and look up at me.

"…It hurts…"

"Eh…?"

"I didn't want to experience this feeling… I can't bear it… I cast Syr aside, and yet… and

yet it still hurts so much."

Syr's voice. Syr's gaze. Syr's breathing.

These are not Ho rn's words.

They are the feelings of the real her, which only Ho rn with her connection to the

goddess could know.

"Even though I thought I would be satisfied with you alone… I hurt so many people

and so many precious things… I'm so numb. Syr was all just a lie, but… I can't explain

it…!"

A sacred scene is unfolding as I hold her beneath the blue-and-purple light of the

stained glass window.

By chance, the room feels like the cathedral did when I visited it with her.

Is the grief-stricken voice filling the room the remnants of the goddess?

That which should have been cast aside.

Should have been buried.

But it had remained deep within her in a place where she didn't notice?

"The thing I wanted most… is something else. What I wished for, what I prayed for

was—"

A voice seeking .

I gulp.

A big tear wells in her eye and trickles down her cheek.

"Please, stop me! I don't want to be driven mad by love anymore!"

And she says the words that the goddess could not speak.

"Save me… Bell…!"

"Ghhh!"

My fingers tightly grip the slender shoulder I'm supporting.

My heart starts throbbing. On impulse, I…

The billowing torrent of emotion scorches my chest and my heart, and I swear a vow.

"I will save you."

I respond, even if the answer is a foregone conclusion.

"Even if it means hurting you again! Even if it's nothing more than serving my own

ego! I will save you!"

I swear it in a loud voice with all that I have, as if to ensure it reaches her hollow heart.

I do not know what I should do. But I've made up my mind.

No matter how much scorn it earns me, no matter how ugly an act of self-satisfaction

it is—Bell Cranell is an absolute fool who can't abandon this girl.

Self-preservation is not enough to make me brush aside a hand reaching out to be

saved!

Her tears fall on bloodstained clothes. Just before the girl looking back at me quietly

closes her eyes… it feels like she smiled every so faintly.

She slips into a deep sleep, like a child who has cried herself to exhaustion.

"…! The wound…?"

The wound on her—no, on Ho rn's chest—is gone.

Is this a side effect of the spell?

Is the wound healed?

No, is it because she transformed into the daughter of the gods?

I honestly don't know the nature of this spell. But it's clear that her life is safe for now.

But I can't take that for granted.

When the magic that is still being maintained is finally released, Ho rn's fatal wound

will probably return, and she will breathe her last shortly after.

"I won't let that happen…!"

Holding her in my arms, I stand up.

I don't want to lose anyone. I won't let it happen.

No matter how boastful, how fanciful, how much a pipe dream, or pathetic, or

shameless, or foolish it is—say it, say it, say it!

I will save everyone!

"I will save all of you!"

Holding her body, I start running.

I leap out of the mediation chamber and head deeper into the estate.

Charging to the highest floor, where the goddess awaits.

He's coming.

The boy is coming here.

Realizing it from the senses that Ho rn shared via her magic, Freya grimaced.

"Ottar."

"Milady."

"Save Ho rn. I won't allow her to return to the heavens and disappear from my sight

like this."

She gave her loyal retainer his order as she sat in her chair.

"No, I won't allow it. To do something like this… I will punish her personally. Do not

allow her to die under any circumstances."

"But what of your guard, Milady…?"

"It matters not. I do not need any other children, either. Take everyone and go."

"…Yes, Milady."

With that, Ottar left the room.

The presence of the rest of her guards and attendants grew distant.

There was only the single goddess in her chamber, which had fallen silent.

He was coming to where she awaited.

"Bell…"

Running. Running. Running.

I sprint, holding her body as her arms hang limply and her eyes stay closed.

At my back, I can feel the battle cries and furious swordplay still unfolding in the

eastern wing. Using the suspended corridor on the top floor and avoiding the central

courtyard, I rush into the northern building.

I encounter no one. This is unnatural. I can tell that much.

The building has been intentionally cleared out. She really has seen through my

movements. She's inviting me in.

But even so, I'm not going to stop.

Abandoning all fear and unease for the moment, I push forward.

"!"

Just a short distance from my goal.

As I run up the stairs leading to the highest floor that I had grown so used to passing

through, I see him standing there blocking the way.

The enormous, rust-haired boaz.

"Hand over the girl."

"Ghl…!"

The city's strongest adventurer, who has already defeated me in a single blow once

before. Ottar is looking down at me from above as he makes his curt declaration.

The overwhelming presence of someone impossibly stronger causes me to catch my

breath, but I still adjust my hold on Ho rn to shield her.

"I will not kill her. It's the goddess's will."

"Eh…?"

"That girl shall live."

Those are the warrior's brief words.

But because he is a true warrior more than anyone else, I feel like I can trust what he

says.

Looking into his rust-colored eyes, I fall silent and make up my mind. I do not know

anything about the nature of her magic, and I can't use any healing magic myself, so I

wouldn't be able to heal her wound myself no matter what I tried. Trusting Ottar, I

walk forward and hand her to him.

His treelike arms gently cradle her.

"Go. The goddess is waiting beyond here."

That is all Ottar says.

I watch his back as he passes me on the stairs and then turn forward again.

I climb the remaining stairs. I stop running, taking the steps one at a time to steel my

will.

Suddenly.

I remember the heroic tale—"Erlandr of Water and Light."

The spirit passes away without ever revealing her true name.

The saint falls into grief and regret.

And the knight is tormented by guilt.

Then what about now?

Who is the knight, who is the spirit, and who the saint?

Who has failed to act on their feelings?

Who has achieved love?

Who has failed to realize ?

Who is the most pitiful?

I'm no Erlandr.

But I'm going to go to the saint—to the witch.

To bare the feelings that lie in my breast.

"—You've come at last, Bell."

The highest floor.

Opening both doors, I arrive at the goddess's chambers, where she is waiting alone for

me.

The couch and table where we sat and talked so many times before has been put away.

She is just standing there.

"I suppose it would be shameless to ask what brings you here."

Her tone and the air about her are totally different from just yesterday.

She is staring me down not as the loving goddess who has given me so much warmth,

but as a cold empress.

"If you had just accepted me without noticing everything… I would have always been

at your side and provided you with love… Ho rn did something she really shouldn't

have."

Her silver gaze is clear and cold, strict.

She is like a child whose favorite toy had been ruined, like an arrogant dictator. And

yet even so, she is brimming with a supernatural charisma.

Two sides of the same coin.

A ruthless and uninhibited goddess of beauty worthy of being called an absolute ruler.

The form of a deusdea utterly unlike the girl at the tavern from my memories.

But I speak without cowering.

"You were Syr."

She responds without batting an eyelash.

"Yes, it was I who played with all of you at that tavern."

And if anything, she answers as if this is all pointless.

"However, you appear to be misunderstanding something. The girl Syr never existed

to begin with."

"...…"

"There was once a girl with the same name… but I received that true name from her.

What you saw was merely my performance. A pretense."

I'm surprised by how calmly I take what should have been such a shocking confession.

"What do you mean?"

"Just what I said. I was role playing… it was just a game. Hiding all traces of my divinity,

assuming the mask of a girl, I pretended to be a mortal to pass the time."

"Role playing…?"

"Yes. And while doing that, I met Lyu and the other girls. And you. It was all just an

extension of my game."

Her eyes narrow soberly, as if explaining something so trivial as not to be worth the

effort.

"I created all of it. Syr never existed from the start. She was just a piece in my game. A

flight of fancy."

She was implicitly saying my resolve to save Syr was badly misdirected. But even so, I

still called out to her.

"Syr."

"…Stop calling that name."

"No."

"Ghh…"

"Syr."

Every time I say that name, her expression twists in annoyance.

I stare into her silver eyes.

"Why? Why were you crying then?"

The day of the harvest festival.

She cried that day when I hurt her, beneath the gray skies, which continued to look

like they might also break into tears for days afterward.

Her eyes widen.

"Why did you always help me? Even up to today?"

When I ran away from the bar after being laughed at. When I was overwhelmed by just

how far beyond my reach my idol was. During the incident with the Xenos when my

body was so hopelessly cold. She always appeared before me, at times offering a smile,

at others a path to escape, and sometimes just providing me simple warmth.

And all those times she continued to prepare a lunch for me.

There were so many questions lying within those few words.

"…The reason I helped you in Syr's form was to guide your growth. I fell in love with

your soul at first sight. After cultivating that translucent gleam, and after developing

your body and mind to my preferences, I intended to harvest the fruits of my labor."

"...…"

"The grimoire, the amulet for the war game, and everything else as well… it was all to

help you grow and to protect you."

That much was certainly true. I overcame so many battles largely because of all the

support and advice she gave me. It was because of all that that I could stand there

before her as a second-tier adventurer.

It wasn't wrong. But it wasn't the whole truth, either.

"The tears you saw… were merely the performance of the girl. At that moment, Syr

would have cried, so I conformed to my game and acted out my role."

"That's a lie," I fire back immediately.

"!"

"Your hurt was real. Those tears were so real, I was paralyzed by them."

I reject her claims.

No matter how painful it is, no matter how much it tears at her heart and mine, I will

not allow her to say those tears were a lie. I will affirm the existence of the girl named

Syr Flover.

She was not just a performance or a pretense at all.

"Syr was there."

A wispy cloud passes outside the large window.

The moonlight shining into the chamber quietly stills the air.

After my vehement denial has finished echoing, the pale, moonlit room falls silent, and

her face remains warped.

And as if growing annoyed by my refusal to avert my eyes, my unchanging expression,

as if losing her patience, she pulls something out of her pocket.

"…! That ornament is…!"

The paired accessories. Not my knight one, the spirit's.

The one I gave Syr.

"The first present Syr received from you… she was happy."

The silver inlaid with blue decorations draws my gaze.

She smiles.

She holds it up in her right hand, as if to put it into her hair—

"But I don't need it anymore."

She swings it down with force.

Before I can react, she throws the ornament forcefully to the ground, shattering it.

The shattering sound that pierces my ears is almost like a girl crying out.

As time slows to a crawl, the fragments of blue scatter cruelly across the floor, robbing

me of speech.

"The game is over. There is no point in indulging your wild musings."

A piece fell near her foot.

She raises her leg and crushes it without any hesitation.

"Syr is gone now. Syr is dead."

Time stops as she steps on that fragment. I see all my memories of Syr dwelling within

it, and my blood boils.

The goddess's gloating eyes see into my heart, stirring up my emotions, manipulating

my feelings.

As if it is amusing, setting fire to a calm heart.

I'm caught in the goddess's trick. I'm in the palm of the witch's hand.

But so what?

I break the silence, screaming.

"You're wrong! Syr is still alive! Syr is you! You were the one who asked me to save

you!"

"That was just the result of Ho rn's emotions getting crossed up. The impurity of a

child's wish and my divine will mixing in the process of her magic. I don't want to be

saved, and I certainly have not asked to be saved."

Her senses were linked by the magic, so she knew from start to finish.

She has a bewitching smile, confident of her superior position. Her eyes narrow, as if

teasing a foolish child who is growing enraged over nothing.

"And who would ask you for help? Weren't you the one who rejected Syr's love in the

first place?"

Her lips curl into a sneer.

That is the crux of it all. The arrogant reality that Bell Cranell perpetrated.

Faced with her entirely correct argument—I absolutely agree.

"That's right! I did reject it!"

"!"

I step forward, paying no heed to how her silver eyes widen in shock.

The fragments of the accessory have scattered across the floor, creating a single path.

A single, straight path that doesn't require me to crush any pieces of memory

underfoot.

She looks stunned as I push forward with long strides until I stand right in front of her.

"I rejected your confession! Your feelings! It was none other than me who hurt you!"

Like another moment in the past, I'm so close that our lips might easily meet as I

unleash all of my feelings.

"I'm the one who did that to you! That is why I'm going to stop you!"

"Ghh…?!"

"That is why I'm going to save you! I won't let anyone else take this terrible role!"

The determination burning in my chest. The vow of what is surely a childish

stubbornness.

I can't make up for the tears she cried. But I can protect her from hurting anyone else

and from hurting herself any further.

I'm the source of the problem? That's right! I caused it, and I hurt her!

So what, then, as terrible as I am, I don't have any right to do anything? This isn't a

joke!

However much other people might scorn me, however much I might hate myself, I

know full well that just folding my hands and doing nothing is more unsightly and

more meaningless!

It isn't reparations or atonement or anything!

The source of what is hurting us is the fact that I rejected her feelings!

"…Do you understand what you are saying? One-sidedly deciding to save a girl you

yourself rejected before? Even though you refuse to give her love or anything else?"

She has stood in shock, but soon a clear and obvious loathing appears in her eyes.

She snorts scornfully.

"What a hideous ego. Even among the gods, there was no male like you. You really are

a hypocrite beyond all possible comprehension."

"Then what you've done is ego, too!"

"Ghh…!"

"In order to take me for yourself, you've twisted everyone—all of Orario! That is a

terribly hideous ego, too!"

Her sneer pierces my heart, drawing blood, but in full defiance, I force her to look in

the mirror and bleed, too.

I know it already. She's letting her possessiveness run wild, and I'm spewing sophistries.

We are both flailing about, letting our unbearable and unseemly selfishness show for

all the world to see.

The die was cast and shattered long ago. However much one might long for love or

wish for , blood and tears will always flow in a clash of egos that devolves into

hurting each other.

There is no going back for us.

My eyes and her silver eyes glare at each other.

"…No matter how much you scream and cry, it does not change the fact that I was

playing a game. Syr was my lie—"

"There's no way I could believe such a heartfelt confession was all just a lie!"

"Wh—?"

I shout back half on impulse, and for the first time, her silver eyes waver in shame.

"No matter how much you try to say it was all a game, I won't let you say Syr did not

exist! What do I care about your pride?!"

I can never forget that day.

I will carry her tears and my shock and regret for the rest of my life.

No matter how much we might wish it, no matter how much we might want a do-over,

nothing will change the fact that that day actually happened!

"That wasn't a lie at all, it was real! I won't let anyone deny it! Not even you!"

As I continue shouting, it seems like for just a moment her perfect white skin, her

cheeks redden.

But just as soon as I think that, her peerless visage warps, and as if she can't bear it

anymore, she pushes me away.

I move back a few steps without stumbling, still watching her.

"…Disagreeable. Yes, this is terribly unpleasant. It's the first time I've felt this way."

Her smile disappears, and a quiet rage backs her words.

The goddess's wrath, her divine strength, makes my skin tingle.

I'm surely doing something unbelievably crazy right now.

I'm defying the goddess of beauty. Getting into a heated argument with one who awes

even other deities.

But even so, the sacred flame in my back, the feelings hidden in my heart, will not yield.

"You'll stop me, you'll save me… for all of that glib speech, what is it that you are going

to do?"

"...…"

"I'm sure you have guessed, but it's true, my charm does not work on you alone, Bell.

But Orario is still twisted. Were I to give the order, the whole city would become your

enemy. Hestia Familia, too… and even your precious Sword Princess."

While I'm pressing onward in solitude, she thrusts at me with reality.

No matter how much I try to be calm, my heart is racing. And as if seeing through even

those movements, her eyes flare sharply as she declares the solemn truth.

"I will absolutely break your spirit, by whatever means necessary."

There is no exaggeration in what she said. She has absolute control over the fate of

everyone in Orario.

I can't hide the bead of sweat that trickles down the back of my neck.

"There is no way you could save me—"

Just as she says that, something odd happens.

I notice it immediately.

"—Hot?"

My back is burning.

The blessing of the sacred flame is roaring, as if burning away the false blessing from

when the goddess of beauty updated my status.

" "

At that same moment, Lady Freya inhales sharply, and her expression changes.

She turns sharply, her gaze directed outside the window.

To Orario's night sky, filled with the light of hearths.

"…Hestia…?"

At some point, countless hearth fires began flickering throughout the city.

"Ugh…?!"

The change gripped the entire metropolis at once.

In the Chamber of Prayers beneath Guild Headquarters.

Fels dropped to a knee in front of the stone altar, one hand on the ground for support.

"My body is hot…?! There is no flame, and yet it's like I'm burning…!"

The mage's voice shuddered as if actually being scorched by flame.

Seeing that, Ouranos, eyes still closed, quietly spoke.

"The authority of the sacred flame has begun to move."

"Sacred flame…? What do you mean?"

As if sensing danger instinctively, the silver gleam deep in the black robe's hood

sparkled like an explosion of fireworks.

Running against one of Freya's rules, words and actions that would upset the balance

of the sandbox, Fels became a puppet to her charm, holding out a magic item pointed

toward Ouranos's seat.

But Ouranos did not waver.

"It's meaningless, Fels. It's already too late. No matter how she might try to turn all of

you into puppets, the roaring flames cannot be stopped."

Like the heavens that watched over the world, he coolly began the reveal.

"If all who are charmed react to certain words, actions, and signs in order to erase any

points of danger… then we need only rely on signs that we alone can understand."

"What…?!"

"Subtle signals that children and even deities from other homelands would not notice."

When Hestia had come down there, the arrangements were already complete.

The two deities were conspiring even as Fels listened.

That was why Ouranos had said what he did. "There is nothing you can do now."

There is nothing you can do yet, so wait until the time comes.

"From the first part of the conversation, I knew that Hermes had left a message with

Hestia. With such limited options, it was a gamble… but I entrusted Hermes with

delivering the firewood."

"Firewood…?! What of it?!"

The firewood that the Guild had prepared and entrusted Hermes Familia with was

nothing but regular kindling. It did not have any special power in and of itself. And

Fels, bound by Freya's rules, had not been suspicious of it at all.

Ouranos, or rather Hestia, had tampered with it after that.

Sparked by Hermes's first message, it was all Hestia's daring resolution in correctly

interpreting the old god's will and continuing to act without giving up hope.

"The wood carried through the city—has had Hestia's ichor poured over it."

"That was a really… really dangerous tightrope walk…"

Hermes leaned against a wall, murmuring weakly beneath the cold sky that looked

like it might deliver snow on the city at any moment.