After successfully getting engaged to Kuon without (?) incident, Allis
was immediately thrust into lessons to learn how to present herself as a lady
of noble standing. She was thoroughly taught proper etiquette, social
dances, and any necessary social skills. Her current basic education was
also expanded on.
Though it was primarily Yumina doing the teaching, Lu, Hilda, and Sue
also assisted with the skills they picked up due to their royal backgrounds.
Leen took up the role of teaching Allis the way of diplomatic negotiations
using her experience as an ambassador of Mismede.
Hang on, isn't this way too much for a kid to be learning all at once? I
feel bad for her, I couldn't help but think to myself. To my surprise,
however, Allis sucked up all the knowledge like a sponge, and before long,
she had already mastered many of the skills expected of a grand duchess.
"Allis's ability to learn things is unmistakable. Once she puts her mind
to it, she can do anything," Kuon remarked of his now-fiancee.
So she's a born genius then? Like father, like daughter, I suppose.
As an additional benefit to all of this, Linne and Steph began warming
up to the idea of receiving the same teachings as Allis out of a desire to not
be outdone.
"We aren't asking you to change who you are, we are simply telling you
to take on an appropriate persona when in a public setting. You don't
commence battle by showing your whole hand to your opponent, do you?
Much like that, we women take on the visage of a fair lady to encourage
those around us to let their guards down."
Leen's explanation appeared to have been easier to understand for the
girls, as they immediately began taking steps to improve their manners,
even if the change wasn't as quick as Allis's.
Well, what kind of father would I be if I sat here watching my daughters
doing their best putting in the same amount of effort?
I had been putting all my energy into condensing my divine essence
since that morning in an attempt to create the sacred core required for the
forging of a sacred treasure.
"Gwooooooh...!"
The ball of essence was gradually growing smaller and smaller.
Don't get impatient. If you lose your cool and add too much strength, it's
just gonna blow straight back into your face.
I managed to get it to the size of a softball, but the resistance that came
afterward was immense.
Is this actually possible?!
Making it even just the tiniest bit smaller seemed to take double the
effort as before.
And that's it for today!
It sure would have been convenient if I could just save my progress like
that.
"Oh no."
Having my mind distracted by such pointless thoughts caused the ball of
divine essence to rebound, and before I knew it, particles of light scattered
everywhere around me.
I couldn't help but let out a sigh.
And that's another failure to add to the list. Just how many is that now?
The extreme fatigue that always accompanied the process did nothing to
improve my mood. Even running a marathon wouldn't have tired me out so
much.
"Daaadyyyyyy!"
"Oof!"
Getting charged into with a full-on tackle right after my body had been
sapped of all its energy resulted in me unceremoniously toppling over.
I'm pretty sure my body bent right in half there!
Steph was clinging to my aching side.
"Steph, how many times have I told you not to dive into me with [Accel]
like that?"
"Daddy! I wanna go to the sea!"
"The sea?" I repeated back at her, rubbing my tender body to soothe the
pain.
Where'd this talk of the sea suddenly come from?
"I want to see a Zallytan too! Linne told me all about the one she saw!"
"A whatty-now...? Oh, a Zaratan?"
When I went to go hunt Fiendrakes with the kids in the Sea of Trees, we
ended up coming face-to-face with a stampede. The cause had been a
magical beast that looked like a large turtle known as a Zaratan, which
woke from its slumber.
With how ridiculously massive it was, you would think it was a
Behemoth, but apparently, that was the normal size for a Zaratan. It was
insane, honestly. According to Karina, the goddess of hunting, they were a
very peaceful sort, but the sheer size of them meant that the creature simply
walking could cause devastation on par with a natural disaster.
"You won't find a Zaratan by just going to any old part of the ocean, you
know?"
"Quun said that you could find one for me!"
Ugh... I mean, it's not like I can't, but there's not much I can do if it's
deep under the sea.
The Val Albus was a whale-type Over Gear, so technically, it was
possible for us to just use that, but I'd rather avoid taking that option. It was
mainly being used in the search for the wicked devout right now, so I didn't
particularly want to take it away for less serious business.
Deciding it couldn't hurt to at least give it a shot, I pulled up a map of
the world on my smartphone and ran a search for any Zaratan.
"Damn, there's a lot of them, huh?"
Seemed they weren't so scarce after all. Though even then, there were
only about thirty of them in total.
I say only, but given their size, that's already pretty significant.
It seemed they could be found on both land and in the sea. Were the ones
on land hibernating like the one we found in the Sea of Trees? Whatever the
case, I had been told they hibernated for thousands of years. If we assumed
the ones on land were, in fact, hibernating, there wasn't much point in going
to see them. However, if the ones in the sea were too deep, that didn't
exactly make them a better choice.
Let's try filtering out the ones in the depths.
"Oh? Looks like there's one near Egret. Wonder if that's the Zaratan we
found before?"
It wasn't out of the question, really. The Kingdom of Egret was an island
nation near the Sea of Trees. Their people viewed a local Sea Serpent as
their guardian deity. An overpopulation of Tentaculars had greatly injured
the beast, but it soon recovered and returned to maintaining the peace in
their seas.
Even a Sea Serpent would have some issue against a Zaratan, but
Zaratan were so docile that I couldn't imagine them ever fighting. I was
fairly sure we'd be able to catch sight of the Zaratan if we traveled to Egret.
Plus, we had been discussing going to the beach for a dip with the kids at
some point, so I'd be killing two birds with one stone.
"All right, then, how about we go see that Zaratan?"
"Yaaay!"
Steph was quite literally jumping with joy. It kinda felt like I was
planning a trip to the beach with some whale-watching on the side. Though
if a whale really did appear, swimming in the ocean was off the table.
Going on a trip to the beach with the kids... Man, we really sound like a
typical happy family, don't we?
The kids would probably ask to bring Allis along, and being the
overprotective father he was, that likely meant Ende would be tagging
along too. Actually, if Allis and Kuon were officially engaged, would that
not make us family as well?
Karen and Moroha likely wouldn't want to be left out, but the Babylon
crew seemed like they might refrain.
You know what, the party's already this big, so it wouldn't hurt to let any
off-duty knights join us. It can be like a company-endorsed vacation!
I was getting a little ahead of myself, though. Had to get permission
from the king of Egret first, after all.
"We really get to go to the sea with everyone!" Steph excitedly cheered.
I then began thinking of all the preparations we would need to make as I
tried to calm her down.
◇ ◇ ◇
"It's the seeeeeeaaaaaa!"
The second I opened my [Gate], Steph zoomed onto the beach with
[Accel], floatie in tow. Who taught her how to do a Rocket Start?
"Steph, you get back here right now!"
Steph's mother, Sue, and the golden crown, Gold, frantically chased
after her.
Well, at least this won't be an uneventful trip.
Everyone had already gotten changed into their swimsuits before setting
foot on the private Egret beach. Surrounded by rocks on all sides, it was a
secluded little place. It was an ideal beach for royalty to enjoy time to
themselves in private. The king of Egret was more than happy to give us
permission to use it under the condition that, if a Zaratan really did start
approaching his country, I would do something to stop it.
"It has been quite some time since I last swam in the ocean, it has."
"Everything's been so busy since the children arrived, after all."
Hilde and Yae remarked to each other as they walked along the beach.
"It has been a while since we've been to the sea ourselves."
"All the adults have been so busy back in the future that it's been a few
years since we last went."
Hearing Yakumo and Frei's words, I suddenly understood why Steph
had been so excited.
I would like to sincerely apologize on behalf of future me.
Yakumo and Frei's swimsuits were the same color as their respective
mothers. In fact, it wasn't just them, the other mother-child pairs had all
done the same. Apparently, when it was decided we would be going to the
beach, they had all gone on a trip to Zanac's fashion shop and ordered
matching swimsuits.
Kuon was the exception, of course. He had settled on a pair of white
Bermuda shorts with black stripes. Sure, he looked rather feminine, but
even Yumina would make sure to get him a boy's swimsuit.
My sisters had also gotten changed into their swimsuits and were
making their way to the ocean. Moroha was making sure to caution the
rowdy knights that had come with us. Even though I had invited the knights
to give them a vacation of sorts, Moroha being here somehow made it feel
as though they were about to be subjected to marine corps training.
"Lady Melle, is it really necessary for us to wear this 'swimsuit' garb?"
"Everyone else is wearing them, so we must abide by the customs of this
world."
"We couldn't refuse Allis's request now, could we?"
Allis's three Phrase mothers arrived at the beach alongside their
daughter. They were all wearing one-piece swimsuits of different colors.
Allis was wearing a swimsuit of the same icy-blue color that Melle was
wearing.
Thanks to the pendants enhanced with [Mirage] they held, their skin
looked like any ordinary human's. Previously, they only created the illusion
of clothes, but that meant that if anyone were to end up touching them, they
would feel the rough texture of their skin rather than the clothes, so they
decided to use [Mirage] on their skin and then wear clothes on top of that.
Though apparently, this was their first time wearing swimsuits, which
was leaving them a bit uncomfortable.
"All three of you look so good in them! Right, Daddy?"
"Y-Yeah, you all look perfect."
Ende looked almost flustered at the sight as if he'd never seen anything
like it before.
You still in middle school or something, man?
"Oh, Kuon! What do you think of my swimsuit?"
"You look stunning. It suits you well, Allis. Very cute."
"How do you always know the perfect compliments to give to
someone?" Allis mumbled. She was squirming at Kuon's words, face
turning bright red.
"I simply spoke the truth."
"Gah, he said it with absolutely no hesitation! Is that really your kid?! If
you were in that situation, you'd definitely have been all, 'Uh, what are you
talking about?'"
"Oh, shut up," I snapped as I glared at Ende, who was making
unnecessary comments.
Listen, even I can compliment a girl when something suits her. I'm not
that socially inept. Or at least, I don't think I am...
While we had been chatting, the knights had all been swiftly setting up
tents, canopies, beach umbrellas, and beach chairs across the sand. It looked
like they had set up a net for some beach volleyball too.
These guys are way too excited to play around.
Not that I minded, of course. They were off-duty, and this was meant to
be a trip for them to relax anyway.
"Sango, Kokuyou, mind keeping an eye on the surrounding area for
me?"
"As you wish, my liege."
"But of courssse, darling."
With the way they happily floated away, it seemed even Sango and
Kokuyou were excited about being back at the sea after so long.
The water around the Kingdom of Egret was the territory of the Sea
Serpent, so I didn't expect there to be any strange monsters to worry about.
Still, I thought it best to have them keep an eye out just in case. It would be
a pain if any more Tentaculars appeared, after all.
The younger kids were more than ready to jump right into the sea, but
when the older ones warned them to do some stretches first, they all
listened without complaint. I was glad our children made sure to listen to
their siblings. It sure saved us all a lot of trouble.
After they had finished stretching, they all ran into the sea in sync.
Despite being the one who said she wanted to go find a Zaratan in the
first place, Steph was the first to dive right into the water. Well, searching
for the Zaratan could come later. It didn't look like it was moving around
out there, anyway.
Everyone else had already started their own activities. The knights had
begun their matches of beach volleyball, while my wives were having a
little tea party underneath the canopy.
Now, what exactly should I do?
"Touya, over here."
As I was considering my choices, Karen beckoned me over from
underneath a beach umbrella. The gods, dressed in swimsuits that perfectly
suited them, had spread out a sheet over the sand and were already drinking
away. Suika, the goddess of alcohol, looked well and truly drunk. I silently
begged her not to try and go swimming in that state.
Well, it wouldn't hurt to spend time with this group now and again, I
thought to myself as I sat down alongside them. It felt as if the sheet felt
was made from the hide of some magical beast. Despite the blazing heat of
the sand, it wasn't making it through the sheet at all.
Granny Tokie and Uncle Takeru were absent, it seemed. Being the
goddess of Space-time, Granny Tokie was even now dealing with the
aftershocks of the timequake, observing to make sure it wouldn't turn into a
time tunnel. Uncle Takeru, meanwhile, was watching over the on-duty
knights in place of Moroha while we were away. If he came with us, I was
sure Ende would never be able to just sit back and relax, so perhaps it was a
blessing in disguise.
"Whoa, itsh Touya! C'mon, c'mere, here'sh yer shots for bein' late."
"How many times do I need to tell you that I don't drink? I'm still
underage."
"Yer shtill thinkin' with yer old common sensh? Ya already have a
buttload of kids!"
That doesn't mean I'm not a minor. And wait, present me hasn't had any
kids!
I still hadn't turned twenty in Earth years, so I refused to drink even a
drop of alcohol. Not that I could deny that I'd been made to drink some
here and there, but that was different.
Suika downed the glass that she had originally offered to me, prompting
her face to melt into a grin. She really did always appear to be having the
time of her life when drinking. And honestly, that kind of tempted me to
have some myself.
Beside her was Sousuke, the god of music, strumming a tune from
Hawaii on his ukelele. It was a well-known song in Japan about the
Hawaiian volcano known as Diamond Head. Though the view was different
from that of Hawaii, I thought it fit.
"By the way, Touya, how are you getting along with making the sacred
treasure?" Sousuke inquired.
"Well, I guess I'm... getting there?" I awkwardly responded, averting my
eyes.
I still hadn't even managed to make the core that acted as the power
source for the weapon. I walked in knowing it wouldn't be so simple to
make, but failing so many times in a row was a real blow to my confidence.
"A sacred treasure isn't really something just anyone can make, anyway.
You'd usually take a hundred years to forge it, so don't beat yourself up
over it. Take your time."
I knew that Karina was just trying to cheer me up, but with the threat of
the wicked devout looming overhead, that wouldn't fly. For some reason,
they were allowed to use the power of the wicked god, yet I wasn't allowed
to use any of my own divine powers. Talk about double standards.
In order to solve that conundrum, I had to make a sacred treasure infused
with my divinity, then have a mortal use it to defeat them. Even then,
though, the only candidates I had in mind at the moment were my children.
If I made a sacred treasure in the form of a katana, for instance, I could
have Yakumo wield it and she'd potentially be able to completely annihilate
the wicked god even if he resurrected. But if we put all our eggs in one
basket, there was a chance our strategy wouldn't be flexible enough to
succeed. And so, I really had no idea what the best course of action was.
"If it aids in your troubles, Sousuke's instrument is a sacred treasure
too."
"Huh?!"
At Uncle Kousuke's words, I turned to stare at Sousuke where he sat still
playing Hawaiian music. Or more specifically, I stared at the ukulele he was
playing said music with.
"That ukulele is a sacred treasure?"
"He he, Sousuke's sacred treasure ish called 'Everchanging Wonder'. It
can change into aaaaaany instrument he wantsh!"
To show what Suika meant, the ukulele in Sousuke's hands morphed
into all kinds of instruments, from a guitar, to a banjo, to a sitar, to a
shamisen, and even to a yueqin.
It wasn't just stringed instruments it could change into either, it could
morph into drums, a piano, a trumpet, a flute, and so many other things.
Finally, it changed into something that fit snugly into the palm of his hand.
It was a musical note letting off a soft silver glow. It had a strange
texture to it, like metal and yet not. The light it was letting off was the light
of divine essence. This was likely Everchanging Wonder's true form.
"What may seem a marvel to those in the mortal realm is but simply a
convenient tool for us gods," Uncle Kousuke stated. "Every one of us has
some kind of sacred treasure in our possession."
"Wait, really?"
I looked around at everyone present. Every god sat here had their own,
too?
"Indeed. For example, I have a sacred treasure related to farming tools,
Karina has one for hunting, and Suika has one in the form of a sake cup and
a sake bottle."
"What about Karen and Moroha?"
"Rather predictably, I have one in the form of a sword," Moroha told
me. "I could end up blowing a whole continent off the map without trying if
I used it though, so I don't really bring it out much."
She could get rid of a whole continent? God, that sounded insane.
Apparently, her sacred treasure was so powerful that no human could ever
wield it.
"What about you, Karen?"
"Mmm, mine is a silver bow and golden arrows that makes someone fall
in love with whoever they first lay eyes on after getting hit. I made it on a
whim as a young goddess, but I sealed it away in the Divine Realm's
storehouse. Love isn't really love if it's artificial, y'know?"
A bow and arrow that could make love sprout, huh? She really was just
Cupid.
There are so many kinds of sacred treasure out there. One that can
change shape depending on what we need at the time like Sousuke's sounds
good, I thought to myself, as the sound of the waves gently entered my ears.
◇ ◇ ◇
"Kuon, that meat's ready, so feel free to take it. Oh, Frei, not that one!"
Arcia was shouting instructions to her siblings while turning over the
meat skewers that were sizzling away deliciously on the grill.
When you're at the beach, what better meal for lunch than a barbecue?
The meat and vegetables we had brought along with us were cooked one
after the other before swiftly disappearing inside our stomachs.
Karina had somehow managed to get us a whole bunch of fish and
shellfish as well. It was an absolute mystery how one person could manage
to gather so much without assistance. Did her powers as the goddess of
hunting apply to seafood as well?
"Frei, slow down. No one's going to steal your food," Hilde admonished
her daughter in exasperation, watching as she shoveled skewers into her
mouth.
"But we've been swimming so much that I'm absolutely famished."
Not to be outdone, Yae and the three Phrase girls displayed their own
voracious appetites without reserve. Even the knight order was chomping
away at their food.
Well, at least they're enjoying it.
Suddenly, I saw something behind the knights.
A large sand castle silently stood in the distance. The detailing was so
meticulous that there were windows carved out and even stones used in its
structure. It honestly looked like a real castle.
Naturally, Kuon was the one behind it. My son created such a massive
piece of art in only two hours. I couldn't help but take a photo of it.
I was expecting Allis to pout and whine that Kuon wasn't playing with
her, but to my surprise, she seemed to be enjoying herself just sitting there
and watching him build the castle. I was so sure that she would try to drag
him into the sea too.
Is this the effect of her lessons?
I couldn't help but pity Ende when he asked Allis if she wanted to play
together and she immediately refused him, though.
I really wanted to preserve the castle with [Protection], given how wellmade it was, but Kuon refused.
"It's fine. This kind of work cannot be preserved. I would say the ease
with which it will crumble is part of the appeal, in fact."
And so, I reluctantly gave up. I could understand the angle he was going
for with beauty in impermanence at least.
Not that I was trying to do it in retaliation or anything, but I decided to
use Earth magic to make my own sculpture and cast [Protection] on it to
make some semblance of a water slide.
There was only one thing left to do after that: slide down it and divebomb into the ocean. I originally made it for the kids, but the adults joined
in as well.
Not that I mind.
"Hiyah! Huh?"
A blindfolded Steph swung down a wooden sword, slicing the air right
next to a watermelon.
And that's a miss.
Some of the other kids had taken to splitting watermelons that Uncle
Sousuke had grown to help settle the food they had just eaten. I'd had a bit
of one earlier and it was delicious and sweet.
Linne gave it a shot after Steph, but she missed as well.
Wait, weren't there usually people there to shout directions of where to
swing?
"But then it wouldn't count as training," Elze chipped in. "So long as
you have a solid grasp of where the watermelon is before you put the
blindfold on, you just need to consider the length of your steps and the
sword, and you've got it. It shouldn't really be that hard."
Uh, no, I'm sure that's a hard thing to do.
She was talking about it as if it was the easiest thing in the world, but
you were literally spun around at the start.
And hey, don't go turning a fun game into training like that.
"Aw man, I swear I would know where the watermelon is if it wanted to
kill me," Linne muttered in disappointment after her failed attempt. If I
encountered a watermelon that wanted to kill me, the last thing I would
want to do is eat it.
Yakumo was the one to have a shot after, and she managed to split it
clean in two. Or more precisely, she sliced that thing straight in half. With a
wooden sword. At the very least, it was better than it splattering all over the
place and being wasted, but still.
As per Steph's request, we were going to go see the Zaratan in the
afternoon. It was only going to be me and the children, though. Everyone
else planned to stay on the beach. Still, at the very least, I would make sure
to record the trip for them to see later.
My liege, something to report.
Oh, darling, terrible newsss!
"Sango, Kokuyou, that you? What's up?"
A telepathic message suddenly came from Sango and Kokuyou, who
were out on patrol. Was the Zaratan making its way over here?
No, not the Zaratan, but there are hundreds of giant Gollems
advancing along the ocean floor in your direction. They will likely make
land within a few hours.
"There are what?!" I shouted out loud without thinking, attracting the
gaze of everyone around me. Was it the wicked devout?!
I opened up my map and tried a [Search], but there were no matches.
What is going on here? It's not the Kyklops?
I tried searching for just Gollems, but there were no matches for that
either, so the most likely scenario was that my magic was being blocked by
the same power of the wicked god that kept the Ark hidden.
"Is everything approaching us the Kyklops?"
No, there are also ssseveral thousssand Fishmen and Four-Armed
Gollemsss. Alssso, one of the Kyklopsss is of a different color to the ressst.
It looksss consssiderably larger and sssturdier than them.
Could that be the commander unit? In which case, one of the wicked
devout could be in there. Had they come after us? There was no way. The
only ones who knew we were here were the Egret Royal Court. That would
make Egret itself their likely target.
Well, really, I don't think it particularly matters to them whether it's
Egret or some other random country.
Their goal wasn't to plunder a specific location, but rather to plunge
people into fear and anxiety, then gather those overflowing negative
emotions to offer up to their wicked god. Or at least, that was how it came
across to me.
I can't just sit around here and do nothing—we have to begin planning a
counterattack immediately.
I opened up a line to the king of Egret without hesitation.
◇ ◇ ◇
"They're here."
I could see a horde of Kyklops rising from the sea with [Long Sense].
Egret's seas were shallow, so you could see an army arriving from a mile
away.
Just as Sango and Kokuyou had reported, the Kyklops leading the group
was much larger than the rest. Its body was shimmering a metallic brown in
the sunlight. At just a cursory glance, it looked built enough to be heavilyarmed. It was about the size of Sue's Ortlinde Overlord, and there was
something like a horn on its head that the other Kyklops lacked.
It held a weapon like a meat cleaver that was the same color as its body.
I felt that same sense of strangeness from the knife as I did from the purple
spear the previous wicked devout I met wielded.
We'll need to be careful.
On our side, we had Egret's knight order, my wives' Valkyries, Ende's
Dragoon, and a few hundred of our own knights' Frame Gears. The only
problem was that my own Reginleif wasn't here.
"Hey, you don't have any right to complain. As I recall, the one who
insisted on prioritizing the Valkyries be installed with a second seat was
you, Touya," Doc Babylon pulled me up over the phone. I could only lower
my head in shame.
"That is true..."
I had asked for the Valkyries to be remodeled so that they would come
equipped with a second seat for the children to also ride in. Additionally, it
was installed with a function that made it possible to switch who was in
control. Only the mothers could toggle it, though.
Why did I add that feature? Please don't ask... What father could refuse
when all of his daughters were begging him at once? Kuon was my sole ally
at the time, but that still made it two against eight, and before long, he was
also forced into submission.
Our kids were used to handling Frame Gears, so it wasn't exactly a
problem, per se, but I had still been hesitant.
Most of the children rode with their respective mothers, but Elna and
Linne had swapped places, placing Linne with Elze and Elna with Linze.
They appeared more comfortable with the other's Frame Gears, so there
was no reason to object.
I had a feeling that the reason Kuon had been against the idea of doubleseaters was because he felt embarrassed riding with Yumina. After all, boys
go through that period of their lives where they're embarrassed to do
anything with their mothers. Still, there was nothing I could do about that.
If we could use Reginleif, I'd have been more than happy to let him ride
with me.
Honestly though? Yumina looked so happy at getting to do this with her
son that I'd rather he humor her.
"Touya-dono, is the plan to simply charge at it head-on?" Yae asked, her
voice coming from the speaker of the Schwertleite.
"It's probably best to do that while we have him so clearly in our sights.
If anything happens, I'll immediately be in to support you," I responded
through my phone.
We may have been losing in numbers, but I was pretty sure we had the
upper hand in strength so long as the other side wasn't hiding some trump
card.
"We will handle that big ugly oaf!"
"Steph's gonna be the one to beat the big bad guy!"
Sue and Steph's voices came from the Overlord.
Given the Overlord's size, I believed they would be best suited to
combat the Horned Commander, but we had no way to know what the
enemy had up their sleeve. That cleaver it held was still creepy, too. There
was more than enough reason to want to be as cautious as possible.
"We can leave the Fishmen and the Gollems to the Egret knights, right?"
"Yeah, we won't let the Kyklops step foot on land, but the small fry that
make it past will be handled by them."
I'd already relayed the plan to the king of Egret during our phone call.
Those of us from Brunhild would generally be the ones handling the
Kyklops. We'd be in trouble if they got targeted by any long-range attacks
though, so I'd made sure to station a few Chevaliers over there.
"We really need to hurry and get those underwater Frame Gears
developed for cases like this. That way, we can actually launch attacks
before enemies come on land," Doc Babylon remarked.
"The problem is that even if we get them developed, mass-producing
them would take time."
As advanced as the workshop was, not even it could mass-produce
Frame Gears in a short amount of time. And that wasn't even taking into
account the cost of materials. Demolishing some of the Chevaliers and
reusing whatever we could take from those would help reduce them a bit,
but…
"Hm? What's that?"
"Huh?"
I was pulled from my thoughts by Doc Babylon suddenly speaking up.
She was likely looking at the footage from the unmanned surveillance drone
we sent out.
"Look, behind the Horned Commander. They're standing something
up...?"
I used [Long Sense] to investigate where the Doctor was referring to
and saw several Kyklops pointing some long cylinder skyward.
Is that a cannon?
"But if they're not aiming here, then..."
Just as I began questioning their target, there was a sudden massive
boom as something was fired from the cannon. Whatever it was burst like
fireworks high in the air above us.
The explosion wasn't that large; it really did seem like fireworks.
But then what is it? Was it just a shot fired as a battle declaration?
"What is this?"
Whatever they had shot into the air scattered a golden powder around us.
When the powder landed on my hand, it instantly melted like snow.
No, seriously, what actually is this...? Wait, no way! Don't tell me...!
"Daddy! Mommy says she feels sick!"
"Father! Mother suddenly has a headache!"
One after another, the children reported their mothers falling ill. There
was no doubt anymore what that powder was.
"It has to be divine venom," Moroha spoke up. "Don't worry, this
amount won't kill them. I guess we can call it diluted divine venom, or
diluted venom for short."
Diluted venom? Is that really all you could come up with?!
"It's definitely divine venom, but it's like they've taken the tiniest
remnants that remained and diluted it even further," she continued. "There
are a lot of impurities in it, and they've clearly adjusted various properties.
Truth be told, you couldn't kill even a servile god with this, let alone a
lesser god. It doesn't change the fact that it'll still affect them, though."
"Moroha, I feel kinda sick... It might be worse than we thought..."
I heard Suika's voice pipe up from behind Moroha.
Wait, is the divine venom affecting her too?!
"Nah, you're just too drunk."
Oh, for the love of...!
"It's fine, man, seriously. It's not strong enough to affect actual gods like
us, though your wards seem to be feeling it a bit. Even if it isn't a threat to
their lives, it's probably making them feel a little worse for wear."
"And the kids? Will they be okay?"
"They'll be just fine," Karen reassured me. "Your kids are demigods,
y'know? If it was the real deal, it might be a problem, but something like
this is no bother, y'know!"
Oh, of course. Our kids would have my divine blood running through
them. If it had been the original divine venom, there was a good chance
they'd be feeling the effects even worse than my wives, but I guess that
"diluted" was the important part. We were fine because we had the genes of
a god, but since my wives didn't, they were being affected by it. Were they
really going to be okay?
"Yeah, I'll be good, I think. Just feel kinda rotten..."
"It feels like one of those mornings after eating too much..."
"I feel like I've just ridden on an incredibly bumpy carriage ride..."
Elze, Sakura, and Lu spoke up, voices completely lacking energy. Their
bodies really were reacting badly to it. Despite how weak it was, I didn't
think even [Recovery] could get rid of the negative effects.
It didn't seem like it was bad enough to knock them unconscious at
least, but it really did come across as a weak poison. They seemed to have
light headaches and stomach pains at worst. That said, even symptoms as
small as those could be deadly in a battle, since it was enough to disrupt
one's concentration.
Is that what the wicked devout are aiming for?
"No, Father, it appears they had a different aim. This gold powder is
interfering with the circulation of ether liquid through the Frame Gears.
Their output has decreased to around 62%. The effect it has on our mothers
was likely an unexpected side effect from their end."
So their aim was to decrease the power of the Frame Gears, then?
Back during the fight with the witch-king when he had become
Hecatoncheir, he released some kind of gas that paralyzed the Q-Crystals.
Was it something like that?
The wicked god had created Fake Gears before, and given the Kyklops
we were faced with right at this moment, they likely had some degree of
knowledge of the structure of a Frame Gear.
"Actually, are they okay? Should their Frame Gears not be affected as
well?"
"They aren't stupid. I'm sure they have their own measures in place to
account for that. Honestly, given those Kyklops are made solely from
Gollem technology, I don't even think the effects of the powder would be
all that significant on them in the first place. We'll need to think of a good
countermeasure ourselves... Touya, could I ask you to grab a sample?"
"Hm? Yeah, sure."
Though I accepted, whenever this diluted venom touched anything, it
just melted away.
So, uhhhhhh, how should I get a sample of this exactly?
I couldn't help but think it impossible as I stared at the powder dancing
in the air in front of me.
"Oh, duh! I should just use [Prison]."
Though thinking back, the divine venom couldn't be blocked with
[Prison] before. Maybe the fact that it was weaker would make the
difference?
Using my divine powers here wouldn't count as influencing the surface
world, right? Surely it's fine.
I used a [Prison] enhanced with my divinity and created a 10x10 cube in
the air, before then compressing it to about the size of a dice. Some of the
glimmering diluted venom was floating about inside.
Hey, it worked. Guess I'll shove it in my pocket for now.
"Father, it will be difficult for Mother to pilot the Schwertleite in this
state. I would like permission to take over."
"Oh, me too! I'd like to pilot the Siegrune!"
"Me as well, Dad! I've piloted the Gerhilde before, so it'll be fine!"
"Don't leave me out! I'll fight instead of Mommy!"
Before I could respond to Yakumo's suggestion, Frei and Linne followed
by Steph all piped up.
Ugh, I was thinking to myself that it would be okay for them to get a shot
at some point, since they would have someone supervising them, but I
wasn't intending for it to be right from the start.
Still, I knew it would be wrong for me to force Yumina and the others to
fight in their current state. If it was the same as the divine venom we had to
deal with before, the symptoms would pass with time, so maybe it would be
okay to let them pilot the Valkyries just for now.
"Hmm, fine, but only if you promise not to go overboard. And make
sure to swap with your mothers once they've recovered, got it? I repeat, do
not go overboard. I'm being serious here."
"Yaaaaaay!"
The girls all cheered at having been granted permission. Did they even
pay attention to my warnings? I was especially worried about Steph and
Linne.
My worry wouldn't halt the enemy army's advance, though. They had
already made it within firing range.
"They do say the early bird catches the worm. Let us first signal that the
battle has begun!"
Quun and Leen's Grimgerde was the first to advance. The Frame Gear's
shoulder and leg armor slid open, revealing the multi-shot rocket pods
installed inside. The gatling gun on its right arm and the vulcan cannons in
the fingers of the left hand were aimed at the Kyklops as they hooked both
heel anchors into the ground.
"Full Burst!"
The Kyklops at the vanguard were bombarded by the full brunt of
Grimgerde's weapons. However, despite being barraged with a rain of
phrasium fragments, the Kyklops continued their march forward
undeterred.
"They're rather tough, are they not? Is it because Grimgerde isn't
working at maximum output?" Leen asked the question that I had also been
wondering.
"Since it uses [Explosion] to fire the fragments, the drop in efficiency is
likely partly to blame, yes, but aside from that, their frames are simply just
that resilient!" Quun replied.
Though they managed to withstand it for longer than expected, the
endless assault of bullets eventually made a few of the Kyklops topple over.
However, the Horned Commander that led the army still showed no signs of
stopping, even after being hit with many of Grimgerde's rounds.
Grimgerde's attack came to a halt after letting out a white plume of
either-filled smoke. Usage of Full Burst had reached its limit, so it would
need to go on cooldown.
"I leave the rest to you, Steph."
"I've got you, Quun!"
The Ortlinde Overlord circled its right arm as it stepped forward.
"Here goes nothing! Cannon Knuckle Spiral!"
The Overlord's right arm detached at the elbow, then rotated at high
speed toward the metallic-brown Horned Commander.
Just as it had done with Grimgerde's phrasium fragments, the Horned
Commander took it straight to the chest. When the fist collided with its
thick armor, the rocket punch managed to form a crack.
However, it didn't manage to completely shatter it, so the arm ended up
getting deflected back. The arm then changed course and slotted itself back
into place.
"It didn't break! Mommy, that big thing's really tough!"
"Hmm... I wonder if it's because of that strange gold powder..."
Sue sounded incredibly weak. I wanted to let her off the Overlord, but I
needed someone to be there to step in if anything happened to Steph.
It's okay. She should start to feel better in a bit.
Honestly, the decrease in output was way more of a hassle than
expected. It was a bit like a human afflicted with altitude sickness. We knew
the Babylon crew was working on a countermeasure, though, so we just had
to focus on defeating the enemy in front of us.
The Horned Commander lumbered forward with loud, earth-rumbling
footsteps before swinging down its cleaver on the Ortlinde Overlord.
"Stardust Shell!"
Starry lights gathered in the outstretched left hand of the Overlord
before transforming into a wall of light. The Kyklops' weapon clanged off
the luminous barrier.
"You… You block the way. I…break you."
Despite being blocked by the shield, the Horned Commander continued
relentlessly swinging down his cleaver. The man's voice I heard coming
from the Kyklops was stilted and didn't sound very intelligent. At the very
least, I didn't think it was the wicked devout I had met before.
As if to make a point of that, the Horned Commander still did not stop.
It's clearly not doing anything no matter how many times you try, so why
bother? Just as I thought that, the Stardust Shell began to shatter little by
little.
"What?!"
Was that the special ability of the cleaver? Or was it because of the
reduced strength of the Overlord due to the diluted venom?
"Steph, the Overlord can't handle any more! Shove him away!"
"Got it, Mommy! Cannon Knuckle Spiral!"
Steph took the moment when the cleaver was raised to spiral the
Overlord's right knuckle smack-bang into its chest. A point-blank-range
surprise attack appeared to have been too much for the Horned Commander
as it staggered a few steps back.
The Overlord released a follow-up shockwave from its chest, sending
the horned Kyklops even further away.
Before Steph could catch up to her opponent, though, three Kyklops
stood in her path.
"Oh, come oooon! Get out of the way!"
She charged forwards and attempted to punch one of the Kyklops, but it
easily dodged her strike. The Overlord lacked speed due to how large its
movements were, so it wasn't very difficult to dodge if you could see the
attack coming.
The Overlord was made as a defensive unit in the first place. When it
came to protecting its allies, there was none superior, but it was lacking in
choices when it came to having to directly attack. It had an anti-Upper
Construct weapon known as the Gold Hammer, but its main way of
attacking was its fists.
It didn't help that the size of the enemy the Gold Hammer was made to
counter was far bigger than a Kyklops. If they made use of it here, it was
possible they would just completely miss their target, or get caught in the
gravity wave due to being in too close proximity. Plus, the burden on the
Overlord for using it was also huge.
"Cannon Knuckle Spiral!"
The Overlord's right arm was shot out. Naturally, a rocket punch was
much harder to dodge than a simple swing, so the Kyklops took it right in
the face and exploded into pieces, but more Kyklops immediately appeared
to surround the Overlord again.
After being punched away, the Horned Commander used its cleaver as a
support to push itself back up.
Are these guys managing to coordinate their attacks somehow?
According to Doc Babylon, the Kyklops were like Soldats where they
could share information between a few units at a time. That meant these
Kyklops were likely standing in front of the Overlord in order to protect the
Horned Commander.
If they actually have some semblance of coordination, this is gonna
make things much harder...
Just as the commander unit managed to stand itself up and begin making
its way back over, it suddenly stopped. And it didn't seem like it stopped
voluntarily either, it was more like it was actively stopped by some outside
force.
"Is that—?"
Right as I went to turn around, something flew past me way faster than I
could look. In the next moment, the Horned Commander and the Kyklops
surrounding it were sent catapulting out into the sea as if pushed back by
some invisible wall.
Managing to look back properly this time, I saw the Rossweise standing
poised with its Symphonic Horns on both of its shoulders, as well as
Brunhilde armed with its sniper rifle.
"Kuon, was that you that stopped it?"
"Yes, Father. Yoshino said that she required the target to remain still to
ensure her aim would be accurate."
So Kuon used his Mystic Eye of Immobilization. Can't believe he can use
it on a massive mech like that.
If he was able to immobilize any enemy and take that opportunity to
snipe them, was my son not basically unbeatable?
Then again, using the power of a Mystic Eye even once took a massive
amount of energy, never mind using it a bunch in quick succession, so
maybe not.
The Kyklops that were directly around the Horned Commander had been
blown away alongside their leader in the attack, but the others that were
closer to us had been spared and began approaching the Overlord again.
However, one of the Kyklops that was approaching suddenly stopped in the
same unnatural way that the Horned Commander had, and then in the next
moment, a gunshot rang out and a bullet went straight through his head.
Wait, that was Kuon again? Accurate headshots aren't easy to pull off.
He was already piloting Brunhilde as skillfully as Yumina.
The head of a Frame Gear typically only contained cameras and sensors,
so ordinarily, it would have had little to no effect, but it seemed like the QCrystal of a Kyklops was situated there, much like with a Gollem. The QCrystal was basically the brain of a Gollem, so if that was broken, then
naturally, it couldn't function.
I could still remember Doc Babylon criticizing Gollem manufacturers
for refusing to throw out their old preconceptions of how they should be
built.
She had a point, though. What need was there to place a Q-Crystal in the
exact same place if it wasn't necessary? It would be so much safer to place
it somewhere hard to strike like their back, or even just place it in the same
area as the G-Cube that powered it. They couldn't function without the
other, so if even one of them was destroyed, it would be game over anyway.
Though if you considered it from the perspective of intending to retrieve
the frame afterward, it was probably better to ensure at least one part would
remain intact.
"We can't let Kuon take all the glory!"
Frei charged forward in Siegrune and slashed a Kyklops right in half.
Her usual battle style was to adapt to the situation and pull whatever
weapon would be most suitable against her opponent from [Storage]. It was
a rather unpredictable and crafty way of fighting. It may have been because
of that that her control of Siegrune felt less sharp, at least compared to when
Hilde was piloting it, anyway. But despite that, she was managing to take
down the Kyklops much better than the other Frame Gears.
Yakumo was also cutting down Kyklops one after the other in the
Schwertleite. She fought very similarly to Yae, so controlling her Frame
Gear came much easier to her.
"Hiyaaah!"
"Come at me!"
Two of the fighters were much wilder and rowdier than the rest: it was
Linne piloting the Gerhilde and Ende piloting the...
Wait, hang on. Is that Allis piloting the Dragoon? When did she get on?
The Dragoon hadn't been remodeled to add a second seat, but the
cockpit was probably spacious enough for a child to fit inside.
I opened communications with the Dragoon to see what was going on.
"Ende, what's happening?"
"I suddenly started feeling like crap...and then Allis jumped into the
Dragoon saying that...she'd take over..."
Oh, of course. Ende was Uncle Takeru's ward, so the diluted venom
would affect him too.
When he said that she took over, did that mean she was the one in the
pilot's seat? Which meant that he was shoved into the narrow space up the
back while feeling ill to boot. I felt kinda bad...
Just hang in there, man.
Allis's fighting style wasn't the same as Ende's, but she was still doing
well piloting the Dragoon. It lacked the precision and control that Ende had,
but if it worked, it worked.
"Allis, one's headed your way!"
"Aye, aye!"
The Dragoon sliced the Kyklops that Linne had accidentally let slip past
in two with its twin blades. The two mechs covered each other's backs as
they cut down the enemy one after another.
Their coordination was amazing. I had to wonder if Ende and Elze were
advising them. They were making sure to support each other while taking
down the enemies in front of them. They weren't half bad at all.
But just then, a Kyklops that Gerhilde had failed to completely destroy
moved to swing its blade down on the Dragoon from its blind spot.
Before the attack could hit its target, however, the Kyklops was
assaulted by a rain of phrasium fragments, collapsing into the water with a
splash.
"Linne, don't let your guard down."
"Elna!"
The Helmwige flew past the Kyklops that the Gerhilde was currently
battling. The blades built into the wings sliced the enemies in two before
ascending back up.
Though Elna and Linne weren't in their own mothers' units, they were
both controlling them well. Aerial support fire was appreciated. In fact,
Elna seemed more suited to that sort of support role.
Talking about support roles...
"Let's rock and roll!"
The sound of a guitar came blaring from the Rossweise that Yoshino was
piloting. She was playing "Danger Zone," the theme song of a famous
movie about a group of fighter pilots. It felt a little strange hearing it here.
Is Yoshino playing the guitar live?
Suddenly, Sakura's vocals joined in beside the echoes of the electric
instrument.
Even though this song had gentler vocals, her voice sounded weaker
than usual. The diluted venom must have been affecting her as it had
everyone else. Her voice hadn't regained its usual vigor, despite the amount
of time that had passed. Still, it was clear the song was having an effect
regardless—the Kyklops' movements were slowing. They were being
forcefully delayed.
Thanks to how dull their movements had become, Kuon's phrasium
rounds were able to hit their mark one after another. He was succeeding at
consecutive headshots almost as if he was a robot made just for that task.
Was our son actually an S-tier sniper? Should I make sure not to stand
behind him like that famous sniper from that one manga?
"You're too slow!"
Following up after Kuon's string of headshots, Arcia's Waltraute, which
had been refitted with a booster unit, charged into the Kyklops. With swift,
accelerated movements, the Waltraute swung the sword it held in both
hands, sending two Kyklops' heads flying into the air.
She can put on some show despite the decreased output...
The Waltraute turned and waved at me.
"Did you see me, Father? I'll kick these small fries right up their
bottoms!"
"Arcia, turn back around! Losing focus on the battlefield can be
deadly!"
"Wah!"
"Not so fast. [Slip]!"
The spear-wielding Kyklops charging at the Waltraute tumbled right
over into the sea. Arcia wasted no time thrusting her twin swords right into
it.
That was a close one!
Arcia wasn't the thorough type that would make sure the job was done
before celebrating; it was a little worrying, honestly. At least for now, Sue
was with her, so she'd probably be fine.
We appeared to be at the advantage on this battlefield. The Four-Armed
Gollems and Fishmen who had slipped past the Frame Gears were being
taken out by Egret's knight order. Given enough time, I was sure we'd be
able to eliminate them all. However, there was still one problem...
I saw the Horned Commander rising from the water from where the
Rossweise had sent it flying. The attack from earlier had been more of a
delay tactic, so it had barely taken any damage.
"A-All of you…in my way! Destroy all!"
The Horned Commander took its shimmering meat cleaver and slashed
it down into the ocean at full force.
"What is he doing?!"
The sea split in the direction the cleaver had been brought down, and
sharp rocks from the ocean floor began sticking out one after another,
forming what almost looked like a mountain range of swords.
The wave of rocks was heading toward the Ortlinde Overlord with
tremendous force.
"Guard, Steph!"
"Got it, Mommy! Stardust Shell!"
The stellar barrier blocked the attack's advance, but that road of rock
swords was still left standing.
"It's very similar to [Earth Wave]. Everyone, be careful. That large
sword he wields appears to have the ability to manipulate the terrain," Leen
informed us from the Grimgerde that had finally finished its cooldown
period.
It can manipulate the terrain? Why are these guys so annoying?
Guarding against that would be difficult if you weren't using an aerial
unit.
"Oh, wait."
I looked up at the Helmwige soaring through the sky. It fired a
concentrated barrage of phrasium fragments on the Horned Commander
from above. Unable to avoid the attack, the Horned Commander raised its
cleaver and used it as a shield.
Though the shots that hit its body were lodging themselves into the
frame, any that hit the cleaver reflected straight off it. The only reason that
would happen would be if whatever material the weapon was made of had
the same strength as phrasium, meaning it was likely a sacred treasure of
the wicked god—a wicked vessel. It would make it the same as the rapier
and spear the wicked devout I had met before were wielding.
"F-Flying one…noisy! I…make fall!"
The Horned Commander slammed its cleaver into the ocean floor once
more, causing the land underneath it to shoot up into the air and create a
large rock tower with the Kyklops standing on top.
Having made its way right in front of the aerial Helmwige, the Horned
Commander leaped off the tower and swung its cleaver down on the Frame
Gear.
Shit!
I went to unleash a [Prison] at the Helmwige, but then a loud gunshot
rang out. The wicked vessel flew out of the Horned Commander's hand,
twirling into the air.
Stood nearby was the Brunhilde, sniper rifle at the ready.
Thank god Kuon's here!
The horned Kyklops fell into the sea together with its cleaver.
"Mom, Elna, are you two okay?!" Linne shouted worriedly from the
Gerhilde. I couldn't blame her for being worried.
"It gave me a bit of a fright, but I'm fine."
"We're okay, Linne. Thank you for your concern."
The Helmwige did a loop in the air to show that there was no problem.
They don't seem to be putting up a front at least.
It definitely made me panic, though. I don't think any of us expected
him to suddenly jump like that. Turned out we couldn't just assume the
Helmwige would be safe just because it was up in the air.
The Horned Commander stood itself back up. A moment passed after it
held its hand out to the side, and then suddenly, the meat cleaver shot out of
the water and into its grip.
"We really did nothing to him," Leen despaired.
He fell from that height and it did nothing? Like, sure, the damage
would've been mitigated by the water, but I was expecting something to be
damaged, at least.
The Horned Commander began walking toward us again, cleaver in
hand.
"Cannon Knuckle Spiral!"
Steph sent out the Overlord's right arm. Spiraling like a bullet, it
collided right into the enemy.
"I…already see!"
The Horned Commander tilted its cleaver, using the large surface area of
its blade to bat the Overlord's arm into the sea as if it was a fly. Ignoring the
arm now lodged into the ground, it continued its advance and swung its
cleaver down toward them, but the Overlord held its left hand in front.
"Stardust Shell!"
The luminous barrier blocked the attack. Just as it had done before, the
Horned Commander kept slamming its cleaver down into the shield again
and again to try to forcefully shatter it.
He's relying entirely on brute strength here. Don't think there's any doubt
this dude isn't the brains of the operation.
"You dummy! No hurting Steph!"
"Gwah!"
Just as the Stardust Shell was beginning to crack, the Gerhilde landed a
clean hit on the Horned Commander's head with a flying kick. It seemed as
though the kick had been fortified with [Gravity], since despite how heavy
the Kyklops looked, it still fell with great force into the water.
As it tried to get back up, the Gerhilde followed up with a roundhouse
kick. Though the Horned Commander was practically twice the size of the
Gerhilde, the heel of our Frame Gear had hit it in just the right place to
knock it off-balance. Once again, the Kyklops fell into the ocean.
Its horn had broken off, and its head was all malformed, but it was still
functional. The Horned (literally past tense) Commander stood up once
more, battered head and all.
"That still wasn't enough?! Why not just stay down already!"
"Linne, no!"
Before Elze could stop her, Linne had already jumped into the air,
holding out Gerhilde's right arm, preparing to fire the pile bunker into the
Horned Commander's stomach. However, it was immediately grabbed by
the Kyklops's massive left hand.
"S-Stop…being so a-annoying!"
The Kyklops lifted the Gerhilde and swung it down toward the sea.
This is bad!
"Envelop all, o Wind! Gentle Embrace: [Air Sphere]!"
Seconds before the Gerhilde hit the surface of the water, the invisible
wind cushion that I had sent out gently caught the red frame and softened
the blow. Having absorbed most of the damage that would've come from
the collision, the Gerhilde made only a gentle splash as it hit the water.
How many close calls does that make?!
As tough as the exterior of the frames may be, even the Gerhilde
would've suffered some real damage if it hit the water at that speed. Of
course, the automatic emergency evacuation would have kicked in and
teleported Linne and Elze away before they were hurt, but it was still
seriously bad for my heart.
The Horned Commander took its cleaver and went to continue with a
follow-up attack, but two units stood in its way before it could.
"What do you intend to do to our sister?"
"Death be upon you."
Yakumo used the katana of the Schwertleite, and Frei the sword of the
Siegrune to slash both of the Horned Commander's wrists. The joints of a
mech weren't very strong, so they were right to aim there, but I never
imagined they would be able to aim for it so precisely.
The Horned Commander's hands fell into the water together with the
weapon they held. However, its assault did not stop: it simply took the
stumps and tried to punch with them instead. The Schwertleite and Siegrune
dodged the attack in opposite directions.
Behind where they had been standing was the Grimgerde, all guns aimed
right at the enemy commander.
"Uh, guh..."
"Full Burst!"
The rain of phrasium fragments hit the Kyklops's head one after the
other, turning it into a honeycomb. That strike had likely shattered the QCrystal, as the unit stopped moving before falling backward into the ocean.
"That's what you get for bullying my little sisters."
The angered attack from the third oldest had decided the result of the
fight.
Your father's proud that you guys get along so well that he doesn't need
to interfere.
"Ngh..."
The cockpit in the torso of the metallic brown Kyklops suddenly flew
open.
A large man crawled out from it. His muscles were bulging, and he had
a cylindrical full-face iron mask on. He wore an apron stained with blood
and thick leather gloves. That strange appearance, together with the fact his
weapon was a meat cleaver, made me think of an actual butcher. The iron
mask even brought to mind an executioner.
"C-Come! Yellow Ocher!"
When Iron Mask held his right hand out to the side, the meat cleaver
shot up from underneath the sea toward him. It shrunk in size before
landing in the man's hand, but it was still about the size of a large sword
more than a regular knife.
That's what happened with the purple spear that one wicked devout had.
That has to be a wicked vessel.
"I...I destroy…towns of this country. I destroy lots."
I used [Teleport] to make my way onto the destroyed Kyklops's
shoulder.
"Why do such a thing? Are you trying to revive the wicked god?"
Right now, we needed information. This man didn't come across as the
brightest, so I thought that I would maybe be able to pull something out of
him.
"W-Wicked god? Dunno. Gold, Scarlet…told me to destroy...so I
destroy. N-Not complicated."
Gold and Scarlet... Could those be names of some of the other wicked
devout?
The gold crown was known as Gold, but...there was no way they were
related, right? I was just letting my imagination get the better of me. But for
him to not even know who the wicked god was? Wasn't he meant to be one
of the wicked devout? It would have been pretty sad if that NEET god
wasn't even loved by his followers.
"I…I destroy when people…get in my way too. Head feel good when
kill humans. Feel happy...so I destroy."
If we could see his face right now, I was more than sure that he
would've been giving the creepiest smile.
Seemed this guy was someone that couldn't function unless he was
following orders.
Well, no, that's not quite right. He kind of just seems faithful to his own
desires. He's no more than a pleasure killer.
I used my divine sight with [Analyze] on the man. Gods weren't
allowed to use their divine powers to directly influence the mortal realm,
but using it to analyze an opponent wasn't considered a violation of that
rule.
Hmph. His heart isn't beating, and he has no soul either. Is he an
Undead?
Actually, it seemed like his soul had been transferred to the wicked
vessel instead. It was attached to his body through some kind of spirit
thread, which likely meant that unless we destroyed that weapon, this guy
wouldn't be going down any time soon.
He seemed far from human by this point, so it would be a good idea to
deal with him here and now, but destroying a wicked vessel without using
any divinity? There was no way. The rules being enforced on me here felt
way too strict.
"S-So…I destroy you too!"
Iron Mask leaped toward where I stood on his Kyklops's shoulder. I took
out the Brunhild sheathed at my waist and fired three shots at him, but even
when they hit, it did nothing to deter him, and he immediately went to slice
his cleaver down on me.
"Blade Mode!"
Now in its sword form, I was able to use Brunhild to block the attack. I
felt the shockwaves run through my arms, but since he was attacking from
the air, it wasn't impossible to take.
"[Power Rise]!"
"Guh?!