Chapter 148: The true end of an evil god and the squirming Fifteen Evil-breaking Swords
About fifty thousand years ago, Farmaun Gold, a champion god, had appeared outside the barrier that protected the region enclosed by the Boundary Mountain Range.
Godwin was so astonished upon hearing this that he almost looked up. "What?! Xerx, I've never heard anything about that!"
"Of course you haven't, Godwin. This is something that happened long before you were born," said Xerx.
Seeing Farmaun for the first time since the war between Vida and Alda that had taken place a hundred thousand years ago, the gods who had secluded themselves within the Boundary Mountain Range felt disgust at seeing that he had become a god.
To the gods who served Vida, Farmaun was a comrade in arms who had fought the Demon King Guduranis by their side, but at the same time, an enemy who had started the war alongside Alda, the god of law and fate, and his champion Bellwood. And Farmaun was no ordinary enemy. It was no exaggeration to say that he was a sworn nemesis; no matter how much hatred the gods had for him, it was still not enough.
During the war suddenly started by Alda and his champions, their master Vida had been wounded deeply, the Undead Zakkart defeated and their child, the True Ancestor of the Vampires, also lost his life.
Several gods had been defeated and sealed, and numerous Pure-breed Vampires and ancestors of Vida's other races had been killed as well.
Farmaun himself had been mainly been fighting Zantark, so the number of lives that he had actually taken was less than the other champions and Alda himself. But if it weren't for him, Zantark, a powerful fighter, would have been free to move and hold back the other champions. If Farmaun had not appeared as an enemy… If he had been an ally, it might have even been possible to turn the tables on Alda and win the war.
Even if the war couldn't be won, the losses suffered would have been drastically less.
Thus, the gods had felt fear when Farmaun appeared outside the barrier, but at the same time, anger and hatred rose up within them as well. As he hadn't brought any of the other heroic gods or subordinate gods with him, they had even considered deliberately letting inside the barrier and then focusing all of their effort into defeating him and sealing him away.
But it could be assumed that this was exactly what Farmaun had been hoping for, and the moment the barrier was opened even a little, his hidden allies lying in wait would appear and flood in like an avalanche.
That was why the gods had mustered as much strength as they could and temporarily strengthened the barrier, choosing to devote themselves to defensive action.
"He is a champion who, as a mortal, more than held his own ground against Zantark-sama, the war-god of fire and destruction, in single combat - a tremendous feat, even if you consider that Zantark-sama had just fused with an evil god and could not fully wield his power. By becoming a heroic god, Farmaun's power would possibly have increased, but there was no chance that it had decreased at all," said Xerx, the god of battle flags.
"At the time, the population of every race had increased drastically from the time when we fought against Alda and his servants," said Zanalpadna, the evil god of carapaces and compound eyes, continuing where Xerx had stopped. "But the recovery of us gods from our exhaustion was even more incomplete than it is now. We were in no state to fight him."
"And we couldn't ignore the existence of Bellwood and Nineroad, who were nowhere to be seen… Back then, if we had known that Bellwood had apparently vanished and those on Alda's side were exhausted as well, we might have made a different decision, however," said Rishare.
At the time, the gods within the Boundary Mountain Range had no way of gaining information about anything happening outside the barrier. As they had fought against Alda alongside Vida, they were not worshipped outside the Boundary Mountain Range.
And so, until they asked Merrebeveil, they hadn't known that those on Alda's side had been more exhausted than they'd imagined. If they had known that Alda's allies were in no state to start a war, they might have taken action.
And while the gods solidified their defense, Farmaun, perhaps giving up, had left and gone somewhere else.
"He was reciting some incantation for a while, deliberately leaving himself completely exposed, perhaps trying to provoke us. As a result of the barrier being strengthened, even sound was blocked out, so fortunately, we didn't know what incantation he was reciting," said Xerx.
"Fortunately?" Fidirg repeated.
"… If we knew, we might not have been able to hold our anger back," Xerx spat, the anger and hatred that he felt for Farmaun made clear.
He likely felt a sense of having been betrayed as his master Zantark had chosen Farmaun as a champion and given him power, only for Farmaun to become an enemy later.
"After that, we decided that there was no time for us to wait for the races to learn and grown on their own," said Mububujenge. "I sent Divine Messages and gave my divine protection to several people including Buugih, who became my heroic spirit and is now praised as the wise emperor, urging the races to stop the quarreling with one another, but that is another story."
It seemed that there was a hidden secret behind the 'Wise Emperor' Buugih's birth. Budarion was silently surprised at the revelation of the truth surrounding his ancestor.
"Ever since that time fifty thousand years ago, Farmaun has not shown himself. It's likely that he has been kept completely occupied with governing the fire attribute in Zantark's place, but… there is no guarantee that he will not show himself again," said Xerx. "After all, from what we've heard from Merrebeveil, it seems that he has taken vigilant action, such as creating the organization that later became the Adventurers' Guild."
"It seems to be a well-made organization. It trains young people efficiently and mass-produces candidates for becoming future familiar spirits and heroic spirits… to think that he would come up with a scheme to gather more followers," said Zanalpadna.
"It's a cunning plan that puts even us evil gods to shame. From how he was when he fought the Demon King with us, I would never have imagined him doing something like that."
Xerx, Zanalpadna and the other evil gods shuddered as they realized how useful the Adventurers' Guild founded by Farmaun was.
"Eh? Was the Adventurers' Guild created with that kind of intention?" Vandalieu asked.
"No, I do not believe that there were such intentions," Merrebeveil corrected them hastily, before Vandalieu began to believe it. "Though in the end, one cannot say that the organization does not function in this way," she added.
It was true that as an end-result, the Adventurers' Guild supported and stimulated the birth of heroes, and many such heroes became familiar spirits and heroic spirits of the gods of Alda's faction.
But it was clear that it wasn't an organization whose purpose was to provide new fighting forces for the gods.
A number of small organizations similar to the Adventurers' Guild had existed even before the Adventurers' Guild was founded. Even if Farmaun hadn't founded it, these small organizations would likely have unified into a single, larger organization to take up the role that the Adventurers' Guild served in today.
Merrebeveil's own hatred for Farmaun wasn't small by any means, and she had no intention of defending him. But it wasn't good to see imaginary conspiracies that didn't exist.
"I see, so that's how it is," said Vandalieu, convinced by Merrebeveil's explanation of this evidence.
"So, it was a coincidence," Xerx murmured. "Still, even if he is our enemy, he was never the type to stage such conspiracies."
But nobody took notice, nobody could take notice, of the greatest misunderstanding regarding Farmaun.
Ravovifard, the evil god of release, of whom there was only a single fragment left now. He was originally an evil god who had amassed a large amount of power on the Dark Continent. The reason he had made his advances on the region enclosed by the Boundary Mountain Range on the Bahn Gaia continent was because he had fled from the Dark Continent after being defeated in a battle against Zantark and the heroic god Farmaun about a hundred years ago.
In other words, Zantark and Farmaun had mended their relationship enough to cooperate and fight together as recently as a hundred years ago.
Even Ravovifard himself didn't know whether that alliance was a temporary one to fight the battle against him or whether Zantark and Farmaun had truly reconciled. For him, a remnant of the Demon King's army, those on Alda's side and those on Vida's side were both enemies, so it was unlikely that he had felt any need to investigate the matter.
However, Alda, the god of law and fate, had not departed from his policy of treating the members of Vida's races and the remnants of the Demon King's army equally as enemies until recently.
It would have been difficult for Farmaun to cooperate with Zantark, even temporarily, while still belonging to Alda's faction.
Considering the above facts, it was highly likely that Farmaun had left Alda's faction to start taking action on his own at some point after the war between Alda and Vida that took place a hundred thousand years ago, though it wasn't clear when exactly this had happened.
Thus, it was possible that when Farmaun had already left Alda's faction when he appeared here fifty thousand years ago.
But it was impossible for Xerx and Mububujenge to come to this conclusion, and even if they did, it was even more impossible for them to believe it. Not only that, but it would be difficult for them to discard their hatred from a hundred thousand years ago and shake hands with him.
So many of the gods in Vida's faction had been lost, after all.
"Om, nom, nom."
Of course, Ravovifard, the only being who knew this, had now been completely annihilated.
"… Hmm," said Vandalieu, swallowing the last of the food in his mouth. "So, you want me to absorb the Demon King's fragments so that you can strengthen the barrier to withstand a possible attack from Farmaun and the rest of Alda's faction?"
The gods nodded.
"We are spending no small amount of our power on the seals on the Demon King's fragments, and we must always maintain a reserve of spare power to suppress the fragments in times of emergency. If we are freed from this burden, many other things will likely become possible for us, not just the strengthening of the barrier," said Xerx.
"To put it frankly, they will provide you benefits with these various things that will become possible, so that is why they are asking you to do this."
"Apparently, they want to improve the barrier and make sure that nobody like Ravovifard can ever interfere again."
"They're saying, 'help us,'" said Fidirg, explaining the gods' intentions for Vandalieu.
An Elder Dragon with crystal horns that had remained silent up until now suddenly burst out in anger. "You bastard! Even if you are a god, an Elder Dragon like us at that, how dare you speak in such a… tone. Please stop." His shouting faded away, his voice losing all of its spirit.
Because countless horns of the Demon King had appeared all over Vandalieu's body. With their tips facing the Elder Dragon.
At that moment, the seal on the Demon King's fragment held by that Elder Dragon trembled, as if stirring. The Elder Dragon had softened his tone, instinctively realizing that at this rate, he would go down the same path as Ravovifard.
And then Fidirg hastily apologized to the Elder Dragon… Lioen, the crystal-horned dragon god.
"My apologies, Lioen-dono."
"It seems that I said too much."
"I'll be more careful from now on."
Fidirg understood that him being shouted at had caused Vandalieu to instinctively prepare himself for battle, but even so, he felt that it was necessary to reconcile by apologizing.
"I-indeed. I was also behaving immaturely. Let us both be more careful, brother," the crystal-horned dragon god said.
The Demon King's horns that were sprouting from Vandalieu's body slowly withdrew back into him.
"The Demon King's fragments are a source of power for me, and I can make effective use of them in a variety of ways. If taking them will lead to peace in this land, then there is no need for discussion. I will take them," said Vandalieu, accepting this proposal, still completely oblivious to the fact that he had instinctively prepared for battle against the crystal-horned dragon god. "But in exchange, I have something to request of all of you as well."
"What is it?" Lioen asked Vandalieu, who was now known to devour gods, with a stiff voice. Does he want my head? No, he wants me to hand over my flesh?
"Please lend me your strength in resurrecting my mother. I'm thinking of resurrecting her by creating a new body for her either by repairing Vida's resurrection device or creating a Homunculus, and then putting her soul in there, but…"
The crystal-horned dragon god let out a deep sigh of relief. "So that is your request. I'm very glad to hear that."
"… That?"
"No, no, no, I simply meant that I have heard from Merrebeveil, Fidirg and Zuruwarn-sama that you desire a way to resurrect your mother!" Lioen hastily corrected himself, seeing twisted horns emerge from Vandalieu's entire body once more.
Among these corrected words was an unexpected name.
"Zuruwarn-sama?" Vandalieu repeated.
Zuruwarn, the god of space and creation, one of the gods who had likely helped in the Eighth Guidance members who had died in the foreign world of Origin being reborn as Legion, and given his divine protection to them.
From those actions, Vandalieu thought of him as an ally… or even if he wasn't an ally, he was at least a friendly god, like Ricklent.
But he was not among the gods within the Boundary Mountain Range. Like the other gods who had been the primary gods of this world, Zuruwarn and Ricklent had lost their power and fallen into slumber before the Demon King was defeated by Bellwood and his allies.
The reason he was not here now was likely because the barrier put up by the gods also prevented Zuruwarn and Ricklent from entering as well.
"Yes," said Merrebeveil, perhaps wanting to avoid the crystal-horned dragon god from speaking any more unwise words. "She apparently received a Divine Message from Zuruwarn over a year ago," she said, pointing at a goddess among the other gods with a tentacle.
This goddess had the appearance of a human woman wearing a large, simple piece of white cloth with a hole for the head, holding a brush and a scroll. Thus, like Xerx, she stood out in this place that was filled with grotesque-looking gods.
"My name is Warnliza, the goddess of maps, a subordinate god of Zuruwarn-sama," she said, speaking with a gentle expression. "I serve as the guardian goddess of the High Goblins in place of a comrade who was sealed away by Farmaun. I wish to offer my gratitude for saving my children during these recent events. I am grateful to Budarion and the children of Zanalpadna as well." She gave a bow, and then began to speak of the contents of the Divine Message that she had received from Zuruwarn. "The Divine Message that I received from Zuruwarn-sama was that your wish will be fulfilled by Zakkart's legacy that lies in the deepest chamber of the Trial of Zakkart, guarded by Gufadgarn, the evil god of labyrinths. Among the things that Zakkart left behind, the only thing that could be called a weapon was a prototype model for a firearm, so there should be something there that will make it possible for you to resurrect your mother."
The Divine Message had also told Warnliza what kind of being Vandalieu was, and that she should share this knowledge with the other gods. But it seemed that she had deemed it unnecessary to inform Vandalieu himself.
Incidentally, Zanalpadna had sent a Divine Message to Queen Donaneris because she had received a Divine Message from Ricklent and Warnliza from Zuruwarn, and both of them had been told to inform their priests that Vandalieu would one day come to this land to challenge the Trial of Zakkart.
"Something that will make resurrecting Mom possible is in the deepest part of the Trial of Zakkart…" Vandalieu murmured.
He had originally planned to venture into the Trial of Zakkart to look for the corpse of the adventurer who had been Heinz's ally, but his objective had changed the moment he heard this information from Warnliza.
He had to clear the Trial of Zakkart before Heinz at all costs.
"So, when will the Trial of Zakkart next appear within this region enclosed by the Boundary Mountain Range?" he asked.
He had to clear it, but he also had to do something about the suspicious events that had apparently been happening recently in the Sauron region, so if possible, he wanted to it be about a month or so away.
It was Xerx who answered his question this time. "It will probably be next year," he said.
It seemed that there was more time than Vandalieu had expected.
"It should have appeared about half a month ago, but Ravovifard was likely wary of it," Xerx continued. "He interfered with the Teleportation of Gufadgarn, the evil god of labyrinths. The next time it will appear is next year."
"If that is true, would the Dungeon not appear when the evil god of labyrinths learns of Ravovifard's defeat?" Gizania asked, but it seemed that things wouldn't go that well.
Zanalpadna made a clicking noise as she answered. "Child of my own race, Gizania. The Teleportation cast by Gufadgarn to move the Trial of Zakkart is something that was cast long in advance, so it no longer functions according to Gufadgarn's will. Immediately after receiving instructions through a Divine Message from Ricklent a hundred years ago, he created a Dungeon that would select Zakkart's successor and began to roam the world, but his power does not extend beyond the inside of the Dungeon. He has likely not even noticed that Ravovifard interfered with his spell."
It seemed that the Trial of Zakkart was in a state similar to autopilot as it disappeared and reappeared all over the world.
"I wanted to make various preparations so it's fine that there is some time, but it does make me anxious that it's over a year away. Do you know where it might appear other than within the Boundary Mountain Range?" Vandalieu asked.
He couldn't get rid of this feeling of anxiety while knowing that Heinz, the S-class adventurer who led the Five-colored Blades, had his sights set on clearing the Trial of Zakkart.
But the gods, including Merrebeveil, told him that there was no need to worry.
"That evil god hates the believers of the gods in Alda's faction from the depths of his heart. There are apparently an uncountable number of traps within the labyrinth, designed to obliterate those believers. Even if that Heinz and his companions were to challenge the Dungeon for a second time, it would likely end in failure," Merrebeveil said.
"I see. That's a relief to hear. Now then, could I have the Demon King's fragments so that I can prepare to clear it?"
After Vandalieu and his companions left, the gods that had gathered here began remonstrating Lioen, the crystal-horned dragon god, and Fidirg.
"We warned you not to shout so much and be especially careful because he would be angry about matters regarding his mother, Lioen-dono," said Merrebeveil.
"My apologies," Lioen said.
"Fidirg, you said too much as well."
"I, too, apologize."
"Truly…"
"I'll be careful from now on."
For the gods, Vandalieu was their savior who had defeated Ravovifard, but at the same time, he was someone whom they were unsure how to handle.
First of all, he was a mortal, not a god, but he possessed the power to kill gods and more Mana than most gods as well.
Despite that, he generally showed respect for gods as long as they were not hostile towards him like Ravovifard had been.
But even the gods that he respected could not give him blessings such as their divine protections, as he possessed too much Mana.
Even so, they would not have minded having an ordinary relationship between gods and a mortal, but… things didn't look good when they, as gods, had to request something from him. Because as gods, they could offer him almost nothing as a reward.
"As we are now, we can't even give him Artifacts, never mind divine protections. Ricklent-sama and Zuruwarn-sama made efforts for him, but us not doing anything is… awkward, even if Vandalieu himself doesn't realize it," said Rishare.
"That is why we decided to build a friendly relationship first and then find opportunities to repay the favor later… You should not talk to him so directly," said Warnliza.
"My apologies, Rishare-dono, Warnliza-dono," said Lioen. "But to think that he would be enraged to that extent…"
"It is not that he was angry, Lioen-dono," said Fidirg.
"It was simply a reflex to prepare for battle."
"I think he was probably nothing more than a little annoyed."
Fidirg had once almost angered Vandalieu before, or perhaps he really had angered him. Thus, he thought that what the gods had witnessed earlier could not be described as anger.
It had been an unconscious reaction, similar to putting himself on guard.
Though the way that this reaction had manifested was extreme.
"… A countless number of the Demon King's horns emerge from his soul when he is annoyed? I would not get away lightly if those were to impale me," said Lioen.
"That is because it is his bare, exposed soul. The fragments of the Demon King that reside in him have already fused and become one with his soul. Therefore, they surface more easily when he does not possess a physical body," said Warnliza.
The fragments of the Demon King Guduranis that resided within Vandalieu had already transformed. They were fragments of the Demon King, but at the same time, they were not.
They were already a part of Vandalieu. Even if the Demon King Guduranis were to be resurrected, fragments such as the Demon King's horns would not return to Guduranis.
Because they had fused with Vandalieu to such an extent, they reacted sensitively in response to his emotions.
"Then should we not have invited him somewhere other than this place, Mububujenge?" Xerx asked.
Mububujenge's lumps of flesh squirmed in response to this question. "Are you suggesting that we should have summoned him to a Church in another nation without giving any reason, even though my Church is so close by?"
"… If we were to tell him the reason, I suppose that would give us no ground to stand on," Xerx murmured. He felt that gods telling a human, 'We are scared and would like to conduct this audience in another nation, so please make the effort of going there,' would be even more pathetic than kneeling on the ground.
"Leaving that aside, let us each do what we can as gods."
"For example, the Title. Just as we agreed to previously."
"… For the sake of Vida-sama, who will awaken one day."
"For the sake of victory in the battle against Alda that will eventually come."
"For the sake of our children, who are being oppressed even now."
"We acknowledge this being as a champion," the gods said in unison.
『The Levels of the Superhuman Strength, Rapid Regeneration, Automatic Mana Recovery, Venom Secretion (Claws, Fangs, Tongue), Enhanced Agility, Body Extension (Tongue), Surpass Limits, Soul Devour, God Devourer and Demon King Fusion Skills have increased!』
『Your Vitality has increased by 5,000!』
『You have acquired the Demon King's Blubber, the Demon King's Fangs, the Demon King's Chin, the Demon King's Eyeballs, the Demon King's Proboscis, the Demon King's Fur, the Demon King's Exoskeleton and the Demon King's Jointed Legs!』
『The Demon King's Fangs and the Demon King's Chin have fused into the Demon King's Jaws!』
『You have acquired the Title of 'Champion!'』
Vandalieu felt dizzy as he heard the announcer in his head going on and on the moment he left the Divine Realm and returned from the Dungeon.
It seemed that the announcer's voice was not played for those in a pure-soul state.
"Are you alright?" asked Myuze, supporting Vandalieu as he staggered.
"I'm alright," Vandalieu said, clutching his spinning head. "I'm a little unsteady on my feet, though… I wonder why the Levels of my Skills increased just by acquiring Fragments of the Demon King? My Vitality increased, too. And I suppose the Title is from the gods calling me by this Title?"
He questioned why his Skills had improved, though he couldn't think of what could have caused it. He had done almost no fighting in the Dungeon, too.
Was it because of that delicious food?
In myths and legends on Earth, there were foods that granted the wisdom to become a sage, longer life or even immortality when eaten. I think they were called pan tao peaches, soma and amrita, Vandalieu recalled.
Note: Pan tao peaches appear in Chinese mythology; soma is a ritual drink of importance among early Indians; amrita also appears in Indian religions, having the same meaning as the word 'ambrosia.'
That food had to be of a similar kind.
"Come to think of it, what kind of meat could that have been?" Vandalieu wondered.
"… Wasn't it the sealed Ravovifard?" said Godwin.
"No, no, there's no way that's possible… is there?"
Far too late, Vandalieu became aware that he had eaten an evil god.
A group of people concealing their faces with thick, dark-green cloths around their heads ran through the land that had formerly been the Scylla territory, now occupied by the resistance organization known as the Sauron Liberation Front.
They were fast and had no wasteful motions in their movement.
They were members of the Hilt, the lower branch of the Fifteen Evil-breaking Swords, the prided secret organization of the Amid Empire.
Their main mission was to support the movements of the Fifteen Evil-breaking Swords. Gathering information in advance as they were doing now was also a part of their job.
But gathering information regarding the resistance should have been the work of the soldiers of Duke Marme, the one who had requested for the Fifteen Evil-breaking Swords to be dispatched, not the work of the Hilt.
Even Duke Marme had likely known that he would lose too much of his reputation if he left everything to the Fifteen Evil-breaking Swords.
But his army's investigation had completely run into a dead end.
Mages trying to scout the area from above with flying familiars had gone mad one after another, and they had learned nothing other than the existence of monoliths and stone circles that hadn't existed before the area came under resistance occupation.
They had tried forming units made mostly of criminal slaves to scout at the ground level, but not a single one of them had returned.
Perhaps having been driven insane by this utter lack of results, there had even been military officers suggesting that they take women and children from farming villages to use as meat shields as they searched for the enemy.
There had been no expectations placed on Duke Marme's army to begin with, but this was too terrible.
That was why the Hilt had conducted their own investigation without permission from Duke Marme's army. But they hadn't produced results, either.
"… Is it around here where communication with them was cut off?"
"Unlike before, there are no monoliths and stone circles nearby. There's no sign of anyone around, or any evidence of fighting."
Two platoons had already been lost.
The Dirk unit had approached a monolith, and when they tried to investigate it, the monolith that had been turned into a Golem… a Rock Golem painted with the Demon King's ink, had taken them by surprise and punched them, taking half of them down. The survivors that had returned with this information had gone mad, showing signs of mental illness.
This had made it clear that some or perhaps all of the monoliths were Stone Golems that would not only have negative effects on the mind, but attack those who approached them carelessly.
And as for the Dagger unit, their regular communications had stopped and none of them had returned.
But that in itself was important information. If it was the resistance that had taken down the Dagger unit, then something connected to the resistance had to be around this area.
The leader of the Scimitar unit raised his hand to give a hand signal to search for evidence.
"Are you people allies of the guys who came here before? You're wearing similar clothes, so that's probably right, isn't it?" a deep voice suddenly said from overhead without warning.
The members of the Hilt in the Scimitar unit immediately scattered and spread out. They didn't do pointless things like look up reflexively and shout, "Who's there?!"
Miles's lips that were painted with a vividly-colored lipstick rose in a ferocious smile as he saw their swift movements. "Your movements are just as good as the guys who came here before. Surrender if you value your lives. If you give us information while you're still alive, we'll give you special treatment, you know?"
The response to this offer was having knives thrown at him.
As they were knives designed to be thrown, their blades were small, but they were coated in poison. Miles avoided them by falling towards the ground of his own accord.
"I see, so your answer is the same as the guys from last time. Then… I'll kill you!"
The moment Miles's feet touched the ground, he broke into a fierce sprint. The members of the Hilt responded with the cold, hard resolve that could be expected from a shadow organization.
The members of the Hilt did not possess high combat capabilities. Thus, they knew themselves that defeating Miles would be difficult for them. Thus, they had come prepared with the resolve that only one member would run and return alive with information, while the rest would become sacrificial pawns to buy time.
"… Consecutive Throw!"
"KIEEEEEH!"
Two of them deliberately made themselves conspicuous and attacked Miles. Their weapons were coated in a deadly black poison, and even an experienced warrior who could see their intentions would be unable to ignore them.
But Miles charged straight towards the throwing knives, still smiling ferociously. "Iron Rend! Overarm Swing!"
He swung his extended claws and slashed through the torso of the first Hilt member, piercing the chest of the second one who had been throwing knives with Overarm Swing.
"A Vampire?! During the day, how?!" shouted a third member of the Hilt in surprise as he realized what Miles was after seeing him slaughter two of his companions in the blink of an eye with his claws.
Miles's expression was completely unfazed despite having been wounded by throwing knives coated in a poison that should have had immediate effect.
And as Miles turned to face him, the third Hilt member dropped his knives and raised his hands above his head. "W… wait. I understand, I'll surrender. I'll tell you everything I know. So spare my life -"
"Flying Claw Slash." Miles's Unarmed Fighting Technique martial skill sent the head of the third Hilt member flying into the air.
"… He said that he would surrender," said Iris, appearing from the direction in which the fourth member of the unit had tried to escape. Her sword was hanging from her hand, its blade stained crimson.
Miles gave a cynical laugh, giving the headless corpse of the third Hilt member a light kick. "That's just one of the methods that these guys use. If they believe that they can't win, one will try to escape and the rest will become sacrificial pawns to buy time. Some of them will draw attention by attacking, and once they fail, the last sacrificial pawn will surrender. And once I approach, he would use an explosive Magic Item to blow himself up. They probably decided upon these roles from the beginning. Self-destructive Magic Items aren't things that can be easily mass-produced, after all."
"That is… enviable. Ordinary organizations would not be capable of this. Do you know these people, Miles-dono?"
Assassins and spies that committed suicide when they were caught in order to protect their secrets were not uncommon. Iris herself carried a Magic Item that would end her own life.
But this behavior was a result of the determination of the individual, different from something forced upon the members by the organization.
The Noble-born Vampire Miles had once worked secretly in the underworld as the Pure-breed Vampire Gubamon's subordinate, so Iris wondered if he had come across these kinds of people before, but that didn't seem to be the case.
"No. I reported it, didn't I? I killed five people that seemed to be either spies or assassins the day before yesterday. Those guys and these guys had the same methods. I'm sure they were following the same manual," Miles sighed, thinking about how much trouble he had gone through the day before yesterday.
He had ended up killing all of them in the end, but his clothes had been burned by getting caught up in the explosion of the one blowing himself up and he had struggled in finding the one who had run away; it had been quite the ordeal.
"I see…" said Iris.
"It's good that I��m stronger after having become an Abyssal Vampire, but because of that, my Warning Skill doesn't respond to small dangers. It's quite troublesome," said Miles.
"So, what about their spirits?" Iris asked.
"Impossible. These guys had talismans of Alda sewed onto the insides of their clothes. Unless we strip their clothes off before we kill them, their spirits ascend the moment they die. And since they're experts at blowing themselves up, their preparations to kill themselves is thorough. Knocking them out and capturing them is impossible. Of course, nobody can question their spirits except Boss, and I can't see ordinary spirits even after becoming an Abyssal Vampire."
"So, these are anti-Vandalieu-dono measures. I thought we had kept things well-hidden, but…"
Iris had thought that she had kept Vandalieu's involvement well-hidden, but it seemed that information was something that would always be leaked sooner or later.
"That's probably right; I want him to hurry and come here, but… According to Legion's regular reports, things will be calming down over there soon," said Miles.
"Well then, let us return for now," said Iris.
"What are we going to do with these bodies? It's possible that there could be some kind of clue on them," Miles said, glancing at the corpses lying on the ground.
But Iris shook her head. "They're the kind of people who carry Magic Items for self-destruction and talismans. It would be pointless to examine them. And it's possible that Magic Items telling their employers where they are have been embedded all over their bodies."
Neither she nor Miles noticed the small winged insect, about the size of the tip of a person's finger, that was attached to her hair.
"They're the kind of people who carry Magic Items for self-destruction and talismans. It would be pointless to examine them. And it's possible that Magic Items telling their employers where they are have been embedded all over their bodies."
"Bububuh… Close," said the 'Insect Swarm' Bebeckett, one of the Fifteen Evil-breaking Swords, chuckling as he heard Iris's words through the insect that he had planted on one of the Hilt members. "My insects transmit not only your location, but sound as well… bububuh."
The small insect planted on the Scimitar unit of the Hilt delivered information to its master.
Monster explanation:
[Majin]
The following is from the Adventurers' Guild's records. Regardless of the truth, this is how the Majin race is perceived in human societies.
They are a race born between Vida, the goddess of life and love, and an evil god whose name has been forgotten in the present era.
Their appearances have characteristics that differ between individuals; the only features they have in common are two horns and a tail with a pointed tip.
Other features, such as the color of their skin, the number of eyes they have and the presence and absence of wings, vary wildly.
The Majin are broadly separated into the following categories. Battle-Majin Vandals, who are berserkers that possess sturdy, large bodies. Obscene-Majin Succubi and Incubi, who possess a devilish beauty and suck the life out of their victims. Beast-Majin Diablo, who possess many beast-like features. And the red-skinned Kijin High Ogres, the most numerous type, who are physically sturdy but inept in the use of magic.
But these are categories defined and named by the Guild; the Majin themselves do not categorize themselves in this way.
Other than the Kijin, the Majin are at minimum Rank 6, but there are also those at Rank 7, 8 or greater, and it is speculated that the Majin race's base Rank also varies from individual to individual.
Many Battle-Majin are Rank 7 or greater, while Obscene-Majin and Beast-Majin are Rank 6. And Kijin are Rank 4. These are thought to be their average strengths.
Other than Kijin, Majin are gifted not only physically but also when it comes to magic, and they often possess a variety of other special abilities as well.
Most Majin do not have limited lifespans; they can live forever without aging as long as there are no external factors to cause death. But in exchange, they have a poor ability to reproduce. They are capable of conducting a ritual to transform members of other races into members of their own race to make up for this, but unlike the Vampires who use this process to rapidly increase their numbers, the Majin rarely conduct this ritual.
But there have been examples reported long ago that those charmed by Obscene-Majin are transformed into Majin themselves.
Also, the Majin as a race possess an ability that allows them to use Demons, monsters formed from contaminated Mana that has coagulated and materialized, and they often make up for their small numbers by using these Demons. This fact led to a deeply-rooted theory in the past that the Majin race was a superior race of Demons. However, this has been refuted in recent times by long years of study carried out by researchers.
Kijin, on the other hand, have limited lifespans and age, but in return have a superior ability to reproduce. Because their biology differs so greatly, there is a theory that they are of a different race from the Majin altogether, but Kijin and Majin often build a system where they cooperate with one another and other types of Majin often lead large groups of Kijin, so the more widely-supported theory is that the Kijin are an inferior race, or a subordinate race, to the Majin.
But such theories are irrelevant for adventurers. The important thing is that Majin are powerful but their bodies are treasure chests of materials that can become ingredients for an enormous variety of Magic Items and medicines. Also, the 'Majin Slayer' Title that can be gained from exterminating Majin is not at all inferior to the 'Dragon Slayer' Title.
According to another theory, the male parent of the Majin race's ancestor is Zantark, the war-god of fire and destruction who fused with an evil god, and the Majin themselves adhere to this theory, but the Church of every god denies it.
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Side Story Chapter 23: Reincarnated individuals here and there, and the god of thunderclouds
Rodcorte, the god of reincarnation, realized that Vandalieu had begun to take full-scale actions in the region enclosed by the Boundary Mountain Range.
Due to the barrier put up by Mububujenge, Zanalpadna and the other gods, Rodcorte and those who had ascended from being human souls to familiar spirits through his power could not see the records of the humans, Dwarves and Elves living south of the wetlands in real-time.
But through the records from the humans and members of other races who had been killed by Bugitas, Gargya and the other usurpers out of anger or amusement, Rodcorte had become aware that a large-scale conflict had occurred in the nations south of the wetlands.
And after that, the humans, Dwarves and Elves of the Zanalpadna kingdom, the High Kobold kingdom, the High Goblin kingdom and finally, just a few days ago, the Noble Orc empire, had begun disappearing from Rodcorte's circle of transmigration system.
It was possible for souls in Rodcorte's circle of transmigration system to be moved to Vida's system through Vida's races that originated from monsters converting humans and other races into members of their own race.
But the difficulty of the ritual required for this differed between the races, and it was almost impossible to convert large numbers of humans into members of Vida's races within a short period of time.
The only other explanation was Vandalieu, who could guide souls to Vida's circle of transmigration system without any need for a ritual.
However, this had not been confirmed. The humans, Dwarves and Elves of the nations south of the marshlands were not combatants, so once they had stopped being killed by Bugitas and his subordinates, no new information had come in.
Thus, Shimada Izumi and Machida Aran had needed to put the limited evidence together to draw the conclusion that Vandalieu had intervened in the war among the nations south of the marshlands, resulting in a victory within a short period of time, and the souls of the humans were being guided as a result of the processes of colonization and post-war recovery.
But they also guessed that in order to keep up these political measures, Vandalieu would have to keep pouring power into the southern region of the continent for a while… for the next few years or perhaps over a decade.
This conjecture had been made based on the history of wars and colonial policies on Earth and in Origin.
And the deceased reincarnated individuals from Origin had spent almost the entirety of their time limit in thought, taking this conjecture into account as well. Pressed by the thought that Vandalieu would be focused on the inside of the Boundary Mountain Range for the next few years to a decade if they were to reincarnate now, they had each come to their own decisions.
The ��Oracle' Endou Kouya chose not to be reincarnated, but to instead become Rodcorte's familiar spirit like the 'Inspector' Shimada Izumi and the 'Calculation' Machida Aran.
This was because his ability in combat only met minimum standards, and although his Oracle ability had been almost completely comprehensive in Origin, he thought that in the world of Lambda where monsters and Vida's races that were not a part of Rodcorte's circle of transmigration system existed, it wouldn't even be of use as a reference.
With that being the case, he had decided that he could contribute more by not being reincarnated and supporting his allies from here rather than try to train himself in battle when he wasn't suited for it, and he had also decided that this was what was best for him as well.
The 'Mage Masher' Minami Asagi, the 'Ifrit' Akaki Akiko and the 'Clairvoyance' Tendou Tatsuya had chosen to be reincarnated in adult bodies.
Asagi and Akiko had chosen this option to stop Vandalieu, while Tendou had chosen this option so that he could tell Vandalieu that he had no intentions of showing hostility towards him.
Tendou had merely been used like a tool when the 'Death Scythe' attacked Vandalieu directly from the Divine Realm. But Vandalieu himself was not aware of that.
It was likely that Vandalieu only knew Tendou Tatsuya's name and ability, assumed that he had cooperated with Kyuuji to try and kill him and it wouldn't be strange if he thought of Tendou as a dangerous person, a target that needed to be eliminated with top priority.
With that being the case, it would be even more dangerous to run. That was what Tendou thought. The reason he hadn't accompanied the 'Noah' Mao, who had been reincarnated before everyone else, was because he had been afraid that he would get her caught up in things and expose her to danger.
But the three of them had named one condition after deciding to be reincarnated.
"Being reincarnated after us is… petty, isn't it?" the 'Chronos' Murakami Junpei said in an exasperated tone.
"Why don't you give it some real thought?" Asagi said in response, looking just as exasperated.
"It's only natural for us to want to protect ourselves," said Akaki.
"It'd be no laughing matter if you guys saw where we're reincarnated and what we look like," said Tendou.
It was a terrible way to say it, but Murakami had betrayed Asagi and the other Bravers in Origin, they couldn't be blamed for feeling this way.
"So, it's fine for you guys to see where we're reincarnated and what we look like, then? Where's the proof that you won't come to kill us later?" Murakami grumbled, but the truth was that he thought the chances of Asagi and the others coming to kill him and his companions were low.
His group outnumbered Asagi's, and more importantly, based on their personalities, it was difficult to imagine that they would do something like that.
"We told you that we won't as long as you guys don��t try to kill us or our other friends, didn't we? Our powers would be revealed to the humans of Lambda," said Asagi.
Most importantly, there was the fact that they would not be able to live freely if their cheat-like abilities, which were named Unique Skills in Lambda, were revealed. The reincarnated individuals wanted to avoid conflict with each other as much as possible so that they could avoid that.
Nobody would guess that they were reincarnated individuals just from having the fact that they possessed Unique Skills revealed. But those who possessed Unique Skills in Lambda were few in number, and possessing them would cause them to gather attention.
If those Unique Skills were special Skills that hadn't existed in Lambda, before… If it became known that they were Skills that forcibly manipulated the timings of the user's own spells and martial skills and even the timings of others, or Skills that nullified all attributes of magic in an area, there was no telling how much attention they would get.
Of course, the reincarnated individuals would be given a Skill that kept Unique Skills hidden from Guild registration forms and such. And they would normally keep these abilities hidden and make sure that they weren't seen even if they did use them, though they wouldn't be able to do this in life-or-death situations.
And Rodcorte had reminded them of something.
"I understand that there will be situations after you are reincarnated where things cannot be helped. But as I have said many times before, I do not want you to crush each other for no reason."
Even though he reminded them of this, Rodcorte had no way of directly interfering with the reincarnated individuals while they were alive. However, for Murakami and his companions, Rodcorte was an employer who had promised them rewards. Directly going against his will was a bad idea for them.
And several limits had been placed on them before their reincarnation.
The cheat-like abilities of the 'Chronos,' 'Mage Masher' and the 'Venus' Tsuchiya Kanako had been altered so they would not work on other reincarnated individuals other than Vandalieu.
"I wish you'd placed those limits from the beginning," said Aran.
"Completely agreed," said Izumi.
But Rodcorte had never even imagined that the reincarnated individuals would end up in circumstances where they would be killing each other, so it couldn't be helped that he hadn't thought of doing this until now.
"About that crushing each other for no reason, the conditions regarding Vandalieu are just as we agreed on before, right?" said Murakami.
"Whether we kill Vandalieu or you stop him, we won't interfere with one another. If either of our groups get to him first, the other won't contact Vandalieu until the first is done trying. And if you guys succeed in stopping him, we'll give up on killing him. Right?" said Kanako.
"Yeah, that's right." Asagi nodded, and then looked at Rodcorte. "You don't have any problems with that either, right?"
"I do, but I shall respect your intentions," said Rodcorte.
There were several methods to accomplish Asagi's task of "stopping Vandalieu." One was to convince Vandalieu to accept committing suicide, forcibly returning his soul to Rodcorte's circle of reincarnation system and living a fourth life, but there was also a way for Vandalieu to relinquish his death-attribute magic while alive… to seal it away.
Asagi intended to persuade Vandalieu to do this… though Aran, Kouya, Mao before she was reincarnated and even Akaki and Tendou who were going to be reincarnated with him had all tried to talk him out of it, telling him that it would fail.
No matter how I look at it, I can only see a future where things break down and they end up trying to kill each other, Murakami thought.
I wonder why this person believes that he can come to an understanding with Vandalieu in the end when they were nothing more than classmates? thought Kanako.
Murakami and his companions hadn't tried to stop Asagi, but they were certain that things wouldn't go well and he would fail.
And it was clear that Rodcorte was also thinking, "He is going to fail and they will end up fighting either way, so I shall leave him be."
… It was possible that Asagi himself knew that the chances of persuading Vandalieu to do this had an extremely small chance of success. But he probably thought that because they were both from Earth and had the bond of being former classmates, there was hope as long as he didn't give up.
"I don't give a sheet, so hurry up and go!" the 'Marionette' Inui Hajime shouted, seeming irritated.
He had parted ways with Murakami's, but he had declared he would not join up with Asagi's group or with Mao, and that he would be reincarnated last of all.
It seemed that his paranoia hadn't been cured, even up to the very end.
"Yes, yes, we know so please be quiet. Well then, please take care of the seven of us," said Kanako.
And so, Murakami's group, which had been reduced to seven with the loss of the 'Gazer' Minuma Hitomi and the 'Death Scythe' Konoe Kyuuji as well as Inui Hajime, were reincarnated.
"Kahah… A heartbeat and breaths. It's good to be alive," said Murakami, testing the condition of his new, young body.
He was unusually sentimental at the sense of completeness that he hadn't felt in the pure-soul state that he had been in before being reincarnated.
He hadn't even noticed this feeling when he lived on Earth or in Origin. He now understood the truth in the words, "You don't know what you've got until it's gone."
"Status… Alright, my name has changed properly from 'Murakami Junpei' to Junpei Murakami*."
Note: His name is now written in katakana and in first name, surname order like western names.
In Lambda, names were generally not written in kanji. The Japanese language had been spread by the champions, but this was the case for a number of reasons, such as the fact that most commoners could only read hiragana and katakana.
That was why Murakami and his companions had asked Rodcorte to adjust their names while he was adjusting their Statuses.
Rodcorte hadn't been able to change their names completely, however; he could only make their names be displayed in katakana. If they wanted new names, they apparently needed to be reborn normally and be named by their new parents.
"Leaving that aside… How are your bodies?" Murakami asked.
"At least try and cover yourself up a little. How come you're so bold?" said the 'Odin' Hazamada Akira… or rather, Akira Hazamada, complaining about Murakami's complete lack of effort to cover his nether region despite being completely naked.
"… We should have asked him to separate us by gender and have us placed a short distance apart," said the 'Sylphid' Misa Anderson, pressing a hand to her brow.
Note: Everyone's names are in katakana now, which makes the readings of their names clear. I had previously translated Hazamada's name as Hasamada Aki (I've gone and fixed this in previous chapters). It's possible that Rikudou Akira's name is read differently; not sure how likely it is that they both have first names read 'Akira.'
"We're past the age where we should be embarrassed, aren't we? Though our bodies are those of teenagers again," said Murakami.
Though they had reincarnated with adult bodies, their new bodies had the appearances of humans in their mid-teenage years. At this age, it was just barely not too unnatural for them to not have had any Jobs before.
This was yet another change that had been decided by Aran and Izumi after they looked into information about this world.
"How are your appearances?" Murakami asked.
"I'm just like how I was in my younger days in my previous life," said Hazamada.
"There's nothing really different… Isn't it strange that humans look the same, even in another world?" said the 'Hecatoncheir' Doug Atlas.
The three men of the group had all chosen to be reincarnated as humans.
Because the appearance and physique of their bodies were influenced by their souls, there were thick traces of their appearances from their previous lives. If they told people who had known them in their previous lives that they were younger brothers of their previous selves, they would be told that they look too similar even for siblings.
Their objective was to kill Vandalieu, so why had they not chosen to be reborn as a race that would have a very different appearance from their previous selves, like Mao had done? That was because Asagi and the others were certainly looking at their new forms from Rodcorte's Divine Realm.
They had promised not to crush each other unnecessarily, but Asagi's goal was to persuade Vandalieu. It was unlikely that he would hesitate to give Vandalieu information on Murakami and his companions, whom he didn't consider allies in the slightest, in order to gain Vandalieu's trust.
Even if they were to be reborn as Dwarves or change their skin color to white or black, it would be meaningless if Asagi and his companions were to give that information to Vandalieu. Not only would it be meaningless, it would actually be a drawback, as they would need to take more time to get used to the vastly different size and biology of their bodies.
With that being the case, it was best to choose bodies that were similar to the bodies they had in Origin.
"Hmm, I get the feeling that I can hear really clearly," said Kanako.
"My Mana has increased, and it seems that elemental magic is easier to use than in the previous world," said Misa.
"Status! I see, this is just like a game," said the 'Super Sense' Kaoru Gotouta.
Note: I mistranslated Gotouta's name as Gotouta Kaori before. Close enough.
"Aegis… my power feels the same as it did in the previous world," said the 'Aegis' Melissa J. Sautome.
The four women had all chosen to be reincarnated as Elves.
"Why did you all choose to be Elves?" Murakami asked them, seeming fascinated not by their naked bodies, but their ears.
"Because we heard that they're a race of people with long lifespans that don't age easily," Kanako replied. "My skin had already gone past its turning point in my previous life."
"Because Elves have more Mana, so I thought that it would be easier to use Sylphid and elemental magic," said Misa. "Not that I'm denying that they look good."
Elves were a race that were inferior to humans in physical strength and stamina, but superior in Mana and qualities for using magic. And as Kanako said, they were a race of people with long lifespans, living up to around five hundred years.
They had a handicap compared to humans in terms of physical strength and stamina, but once they increased their Levels and acquired multiple combat-related Jobs, their Attribute Values would increase and the difference would become negligible.
Normally, undergoing multiple Job-changes in itself would require a lot of hard work and effort, but… for these reincarnated individuals, who possessed Rodcorte's divine blessing, it would not be difficult.
"One of you should have chosen human or Dwarf. Four Elves will stand out too much," said Hazamada.
"I don't want to age faster on my own~" said Kanako.
"… We're going to be reborn in another world once we kill Vandalieu, so isn't it irrelevant?"
"Cut the chit-chat," said Murakami. "Let's slaughter the group of bandits ahead and get clothes, money to get by for now and Experience Points."
At Murakami's command, the reincarnated individuals moved out.
Bandits… even if they were criminals, they were people, and the act of killing and looting them was unimaginable for Japanese people. But Murakami's group felt no resistance or discomfort towards their actions.
Until they betrayed Bravers, they had chased down fiendish criminals and terrorists all over the world. They had experienced numerous missions where they needed to kill.
And after they betrayed the Bravers… the truth was that they had been investigators for the federal state, but they had also worked with the Eighth Guidance as terrorists. It hadn't been unusual for them to kill their enemies and plunder their belongings.
There was nothing different now other than that they would be killing bandits rather than researchers and soldiers.
And after acquiring crude clothes, money and supplies, Murakami and his companions began moving towards a nearby town.
They wouldn't attack merchants and adventurers recklessly as the 'Gungnir' Kaidou Kanata had done. Murakami and his companions had no intention of living out long, fulfilled third lives here in Lambda, but they couldn't imagine that they would be able to kill Vandalieu within a few months.
They anticipated that it would be a long process of gaining the strength they needed to oppose the Demon King's fragments that Vandalieu possessed, as well as gathering the things they would need to seal the fragments as they would no doubt go berserk after Vandalieu was killed.
This would take time measured in the scale of years, so they had no intention of giving into short-sighted desires and committing evil deeds that would create more enemies for themselves.
Things were progressing without any particular problems.
But a few days after reaching the town, a situation arose that Murakami had not anticipated.
Kanako, Melissa and Doug disappeared.
"Those guys… of all the things they could have done, they betrayed us!���
Kanako, Melissa and Doug, who had left the town that Murakami and the others were staying in, were proceeding through a forest that was distant from the highway.
"According to the homeless former-merchant-san that I gave a silver coin to and used my Venus on to steal his memories, we should come out onto another highway in about three days if we keep going this way," said Kanako, who was leading the way. "If we go from there into another forest, we should come out into the neighboring duchy. Ah, the journey will be quite dangerous, so please prepare yourselves, you two."
"Even if you say it will be dangerous, it'll just be bandits, right? They won't be good for anything except killing time," said Doug. "Well, I have two Elf women with me, so they'll probably attack us with a lot of spirit, so it probably will be quite a pain."
"Don't let your guard down," said Melissa. "We're still not accustomed to the methods of using Skills and martial skills."
Within the space of a few days, the three of them had already registered at the Adventurers' Guild and equipped themselves decently.
Their armor and weapons were apparently cheap items suited for new adventurers, but each of them was equivalent to a B-class adventurer in terms of Skills and Levels alone, and they possessed cheat-like abilities on top of that. If their enemies were washed-up mercenaries who had become bandits, there would be no problems even with leather armor and knives that were incredibly unreliable compared to Origin's military body armor and combat knives.
But the reincarnated individuals were not accustomed to the martial skills that didn't exist in Origin, and there was plenty of reason to believe that they would be defeated if they were to fight enemies who made exceptional use of them.
Such masterful users of martial skills would almost never stoop low enough to become bandits, but it was still best to be careful.
"So, what are we going to do from now on?" Doug asked.
���Of course, we're going to get away from Sensei… Murakami," said Kanako, correcting herself. "For now, I think we'll be fine after we go to another duchy. I did ask Aran and Izumi not to tell him where we are, after all~"
"Won't they chase after us?" asked Melissa, looking worried.
"We should be fine after we get far enough away," Kanako replied. "It's become harder for us reincarnated individuals to use our abilities to kill each other than it was in Origin. Murakami should avoid us as well."
But it seemed that Melissa and Doug were still anxious.
"But it's that Murakami we're talking about here," said Doug. "Won't he do things like use money to hire assassins to kill us once things calm down?"
"I can't say that there's no chance of that happening, but those assassins hired with money aren't reincarnated individuals, so we'll be able to use our abilities on them," said Kanako.
"Ah, that's true."
"And Murakami isn't so all-powerful, either," Kanako continued. "Right now, he's only just been reincarnated, so he doesn't own anything but the clothes on his back. He doesn't have the money or the connections to the underworld that he needs to hire assassins."
"But couldn't they acquire those right away if they wanted to?" asked Melissa.
Indeed, Murakami and his companions would likely be able to acquire money and connections within a few months if they wanted to.
Their skill in magic was equivalent to that of B-class adventurers at this point, and there were all kinds of ways that they could make money if they chose to do so, and people on both the surface side and underworld of society would want to have connections to them.
"That's true, but that would make them stand out a lot. New adventurers earning large amounts of money within months would be really conspicuous, and they would be promoted in the blink of an eye as well," said Kanako.
Murakami's objective was to kill Vandalieu, so he would certainly want to avoid attention. But adventures of B-class and above would be showered in attention no matter what they did. They would have to come up with clever ways even to move from city to city.
If they didn't want to stand out, they would stop promoting once they became Class adventurers, acting in moderation while keeping their true strength hidden.
"Then it seems that things will work out until we make contact with Vandalieu, Kanako," said Melissa.
"It does, doesn't it? There are no phones and no internet in this world, after all. It seems that the names of Class adventurers won't spread as far as other duchies, too," said Kanako.
"Yeah, I've started to see hope in living," said Doug.
Kanako and her two companions had separated from Murakami's group in order to make contact with Vandalieu and migrate to his nation.
There were two reasons for this. The first was that they were absolutely certain that they would not be able to kill Vandalieu.
Even if they cooperated with Murakami's group, even if the 'Avalon' Rikudou Akira and the 'Braver' Amemiya Hiroto were to come to this world, they would definitely not be able to win.
Kanako, Melissa and Doug were certain of this because they had lost their lives when death-attribute Mana had gone out of control.
It didn't matter if they had cheat-like abilities. The effects of Aegis and the telekinetic power of Hecatoncheir hadn't worked at all. The same would be true of Kanako's Venus.
In fact, they couldn't understand how Murakami could possibly think that he could kill Vandalieu when he had died to out-of-control death-attribute Mana just like them.
"Also, we need to make sure to not be noticed by Asagi and his group, either," said Kanako.
And as for the things that Asagi and his group would try to convince Vandalieu of… Perhaps negotiating for him to not have reckless conflicts with the reincarnated individuals might work, but she was certain that persuading him to abandon death-attribute magic would fail.
It was clear that the bond of being former classmates between Vandalieu and them that Asagi believed in without a doubt did not exist. In fact, it was the same former classmates who had killed Vandalieu in Origin.
Even if a bond like that did exist, what kind of fool would relinquish his vast power of his own accord?
Hopes of persuading him with ethics and righteousness were slim, too. Even from the small amount of information available, it was certain that Vandalieu was living with his own sense of values, so it was difficult to imagine that this method would be very effective.
Akaki and Tendou would have no choice but to somehow talk Asagi into giving up on this.
If Kanako's group was accompanying Asagi's group during this process, Vandalieu's impression of them would become worse.
And in the worst-case scenario, it was possible that Asagi wouldn't back down and they would begin trying to kill each other. Kanako's group wanted to avoid getting caught up in that at all costs.
"Well, I don't think Asagi and his friends would trust us anyway. There aren't any bonds between us, after all," said Doug.
"You're right, there aren't any bonds," said Melissa.
"Even though we were former classmates too," said Kanako.
The three of them agreed with each other as they walked on.
The second reason they had left Murakami's group was to migrate to Talosheim, which was probably the most culturally advanced civilization in the world of Lambda.
Incidentally, Rodcorte had no intention of carefully monitoring Kanako's group for the time being. If they actually tried to join Vandalieu, he might warn them through a Divine Message or strip them of their divine protections, but at this point, he was probably hoping that Kanako's group would have a change of heart once again.
"But I wonder if he will accept us," said Melissa. "We'll kneel on the ground and beg if we have to."
"I would object if he asked us to lick his shoes, though," said Doug.
"There is hope," said Kanako. "When that 'Death Scythe' idiot went and made that blunder, I was desperately signaling to him."
Kanako had been making crosses with her arms and shaking her head furiously to signal to Vandalieu. Back then, she had noticed that he was properly looking at her.
"Let's give up on reckless dreams of a fourth life and focus on living stable, pleasant third lives. I'd like to become an idol again if I can, though," Kanako said.
"Work hard on that by yourself," said Melissa.
"Yeah, I'll cheer you on," said Doug.
"… I never suggested that we should be a three-person idol group, did I?"
Asagi's group of three was reincarnated after Murakami's group of seven. And after them was the 'Marionette' Inui Hajime.
Vandalieu was scary to him, but having a greatly different size and biology was scary as well. So, he had chosen to become a human, similar to the humans of Earth and Origin, for this new life.
And he had also avoided being reincarnated normally as a baby. Considering the possibility of other reincarnated individuals or Vandalieu coming to kill him while he was still an infant or child who couldn't act freely, he had no option other than to be reincarnated in an adult's body.
"… Now, I suppose I'll spend the rest of my life in a forest or mountain. No, but it's not like I'll be able to use the same methods for survival as Origin… I guess I'll live in a town for a while after all."
Inui Hajime - Hajime Inui, put on the clothes and equipment that he had stolen from bandits like Murakami's group and began walking.
He had received training in the army, so he had learned ways to survive out in the wild, but he wasn't confident that they would work in a foreign world.
"Villages have small populations, but since I'm an unfamiliar face, I'll stand out. So I suppose it has to be a town after all… No, how about earning a large amount of money and buying a house and field in a village somewhere to live a self-sufficient life on my own? I doubt I'd stand out if I said that I'm a retired adventurer or something," Hajime murmured to himself.
"Quite the feeble-hearted one, aren't you?" said a voice other than Hajime's, echoing inside his head.
"Rodcorte?! Or is it you, Aran?!" Hajime shouted, putting himself on guard.
"Don't be so frightened. And I'm not Rodcorte or one of his familiar spirits. I am Fitun, god of thunderclouds. A god who expects great things of you, Hajime Inui."
Hajime's eyes opened wide upon hearing the name of a god that he had never heard of before. "A god of this world?!"
He had heard from Rodcorte that there were many gods with different personalities in Lambda, and they took action in the world far more frequently than the god of Earth and Origin. He had also gained fundamental knowledge regarding the gods from the main myths and legends told by Aran and Izumi.
But why had such a god spoken to him directly, and what did he mean by 'expect great things?'
"I'm sure there are endless questions that you want to ask, but I am not able to come to a mutual understanding with you unconditionally, either. It takes quite a lot of power to send my spirit clone to descend upon the world, you see," said Fitun. "For now, accept my familiar spirit into you."
"What?! Accept it for now, you say! There's no way I'd be able to do that, is there?!" Hajime shouted.
It was only natural that he rejected Fitun's request. There was no way he could simply nod his head when he didn't even know what kind of god Fitun was.
"What? Do you not want power?" Fitun asked.
"There's no way I want it! Even if someone like me were to obtain power, there's no way I'd be able to do anything with it anyway!"
"Do you really not need it? Are you fine with being a defeated dog, running away with its tail between its legs? Do you not care if you are killed by Vandalieu?"
"?!" Hajime was lost for words after having the future he feared the most put into words.
Fitun's voice continued whispering inside his mind. "Have confidence in yourself, Hajime. You have qualities and talent. I, Fitun, whose name echoed across this land and have now become a god, guarantee it. Hajime, you are fit to become a hero."
"Me, a hero…?" Hajime repeated.
"Of course. You met a miserable end in your previous life, didn't you? I understand the pain of lost battles. But think about it. Was the life of hermit the thing that you have always desired? A quiet life of ploughing a field in a peaceful village until all of your hair turns white? Do you intend to curl up in fear your entire life so that you are not caught by Vandalieu's eye?"
"Th-that's…"
"That's wrong, isn't it?" Fitun continued. "You were born as a man, and you have qualities and talent. You want to be served by good women in a mansion, eating good food and living a life of luxury with no discomforts. You want to look down on the pitiful commoners from above as they praise you. Isn't that right?"
"But in my previous life…"
"You couldn't do that in your previous life. That's why I'm saying that I will grant you the power to make that possible in this life. Or are you more comfortable being a defeated dog? Do you want to treasure a meager happiness, the likes of which can be trampled over by the strong on a whim? Will you choose to kill your true self and live a worthless life?"
"…" Hajime stood stock-still, with no words to say.
His mind had been broken ever since his death in Origin, but he had originally had the personality of someone who craved the limelight and had a desire to control others.
That was exactly why he hadn't been able to bear being just another person among the Bravers… among a group of heroes, and accepted Murakami's invitation.
For Hajime, Fitun's tempting words sounded so very sweet. Accepting this offer would be right, and refusing it would be wrong, wouldn't it? He felt agreement towards Fitun's words.
"Can I really… become a hero?" he asked.
"Yes, you can," Fitun said. "You can defeat Vandalieu, become acknowledged by every person in this world and be praised by all of the gods as well, not just me, becoming a true champion."
"I, defeat Vandalieu… that's right, come to think of it, everything is his fault, isn't it?"
Vandalieu had been an ordinary student, just like Hajime… but despite that, he had awakened to death-attribute Mana, and even tried to help others pointlessly before dying, leaving behind the troublesome Eighth Guidance. Wasn't it all his fault that things had become a mess in Origin?
To begin with, if Vandalieu had noticed that Rodcorte had confused his name with someone else's and properly received his cheat-like abilities before being reincarnated, Amemiya Hiroto wouldn't have become so powerful.
Once Hajime began thinking about this, he began to think that all of the misfortune that he had experienced in Origin… even the misfortune that he had brought upon himself, was all Vandalieu's fault.
"A huge amount of Mana, death attribute magic, and now he's ruling his own nation, served by multiple women and doing as he likes… and he even has those Eighth Guidance, even Isis! So, why should I live my third life cowering in fear of him?! Alright, I'll accept you!" Hajime shouted.
"V-very well. I shall now give you my divine protection and an Artifact. Hajime Inui, from this moment forth, you are my champion," said Fitun.
Even though he was the one who had fired Hajime up, these reckless thoughts made Fitun hesitate for a moment and wonder if he should give up on this plan. But it would be troublesome to wait for another reincarnated individual, and there was the possibility that the existence of the reincarnated individuals would be found out by Alda before another one came.
And it was also uncertain whether there would be a reincarnated individual that would be more convenient to make use of than Hajime.
And so, he decided to give Hajime his divine protection and Artifact.
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