When Kaori rejected Joshua's proposal, he immediately instructed James to gather information about Yuuya.
"Well, did you look into it?"
"Yes… this is it."
And as soon as he received the collected documents, he began to look through them.
However, as he read through the documents, Joshua's face became stern.
"What is this? Are you kidding me?"
What was written there was indeed information about Yuuya.
And it was all about Yuuya… that is, from when he was bullied before he entered Ousei Academy to the present information.
"No matter how you look at it, they are two different people. Why is the information about two different people compiled together?"
"N-no, I mean, uh… that these two people are really the same person…"
"Huh?"
No matter how many times he looked at them, Joshua could not believe that they were the same person.
"Don't be ridiculous. There's no way total plastic surgery would change that much."
"According to the specialist, there were no signs of plastic surgery on this Yuuya guy."
"That's even stranger!"
If he had changed so much and it wasn't plastic surgery, what on earth could have happened to him?
But that wasn't the only unbelievable thing.
"And what? What's with all these ball games and sports festivals? Even though Japan is a great animation country, there is no way that such a ridiculous story could have happened in reality!"
Yes, the documents contained detailed descriptions of Yuuya's performances in ball games and sports festivals.
As one would expect, the feats were not something a human could do.
"Pierce a table with a ping-pong ball? Blow up the court with a volleyball spike? If you're going to lie, at least lie better than this!"
"….."
James was so offended, but he himself thought that Joshua's reaction was inevitable.
However, no matter how much Joshua made a fuss, all this information was true.
It was just that James and Joshua, who had not seen the situation firsthand, could not believe it.
Joshua bit his nails as he threw down the compiled documents.
"Damn it… my Kaori is in love with this incomprehensible man?"
"She doesn't belong to Joshua-sama…"
"Shut up! But I know something from this information."
"What is it?"
James asked and Joshua replied in a dismissive tone.
"It means that Yuuya here is the biggest liar of the century!"
"B-but, sir, this information is accurate…"
"How is that possible? I don't know how he did it, but this Yuuya guy is convincing Kaori of some bullshit information! Maybe he has some special power, like hypnosis."
"That's…"
In all likelihood, what Joshua said was messed up, but just as messed up was Yuuya's information.
Therefore, even for James, it was hard to find the words to deny it.
"But if that turns out to be the case, then more and more, I can't leave Kaori in this place… and if this continues, she'll be at the mercy of that swindler named Yuuya or something like that."
"But… Kaori-sama didn't seem to have any intention of leaving this place…"
"U-umu…"
Joshua is disturbed by James' words.
But in the next moment, he has an idea.
"That's right! Just send her to an exchange program."
"Exchange program?"
"Yes. It would be difficult to bring Kaori to our country now. If I were to take her as my wife, she would have to live in my country for the rest of her life, not just temporarily. But if this is an exchange program, we can invite her to our country temporarily, can't we?"
"That… depends on whether or not the other party accepts the invitation."
"Of course, she would accept. She has already refused my marriage proposal. So she would not turn down my offer of an exchange student program. Besides, the proposal is not marriage, but a real study abroad program. It's a win-win situation for her."
"Indeed…"
James nodded at Joshua's words.
"But is it right? It's a study abroad program, and she'll be returning to this country in due course…"
"It doesn't matter. The important thing is to get her away from that swindler named Yuuya and to get Kaori to open her eyes. When Kaori wakes up, she will accept my love."
"Will it go that well…?"
Joshua smiled triumphantly at James, who looked a bit worried.
"What? No need to worry. If it weren't for that swindler, Kaori would soon recognize my charms."
"Sigh…"
──And so, unbeknownst to Kaori, a new story was about to unfold.
＊＊＊
Shu came down to the ground where we were, along with a strange rainbow-colored cage.
"Iris. I never thought you'd go this far."
"…Yes. But more importantly, where are Usagi and Odis?"
"Rest assured, they are here."
"Master! Odis-san!"
Shu said and held out the rainbow-colored cage.
Inside the cage were Master Usagi and Odis-san, both covered with wounds and bound in a state of restraint.
But both seemed to be unconscious and unresponsive.
"Release them both!"
"That is a request I cannot accept. You have already caused the loss of four of my comrades. I can't afford to lose any more of them who have the qualities of God."
"So what? Are you asking us to surrender?"
"Yes."
"Don't be silly! Whatever you say, we don't approve of your ideas."
When Iris-san told him in a resolute manner, Shu's face twisted in displeasure.
"Why? Why don't you understand? If we control humanity, the Evil will disappear and the world will be at peace."
"That is not true peace!"
"What is true peace? What is wrong with surrendering to peace, without anger or sorrow?"
"If the world were truly free of anger and sadness, it would be a happy place. But you are only forcing it. There is no will of the people."
"There is no need for a will. The world is rotten because it has one. The world will turn right when a god like us leads humanity in the right direction."
"….."
Watching Iris-san and Shu's question and answer, I felt that Shu had an absolute will in his heart.
Iris-san seemed to feel this as well and muttered a bit sadly.
"…It seems like no matter how much I say, it's all useless."
"That's my line. It is only a fool who does not understand my ideas. Only a fool would not listen to me."
"…It's different."
"Hmm?"
I naturally said that in response to Shu's words.
"Who are you… What is different about my ideas as a god?"
More pressure was put on my body.
But I endured the pressure and looked at Shu calmly.
"Sure, a world without anger and sadness might be wonderful. But aren't we human because we have to struggle through all kinds of emotions?"
Before I came to this world, I lived every day like hell.
I often despaired of a future that had no future.
But I didn't want to give up my life because I was born as I am.
"You are a plunderer who takes away the human rights of others for the sake of your own ideals."
Zenovis-san wanted to live as a human.
The ideals Shu talked about were, in my opinion, such an act of robbing people of their human dignity.
When I looked him in the eye and told him this, he twisted his face in disapproval.
"I am a plunderer, you say? You know nothing of the despair and ugliness of the world…"
Then, an enormous amount of Divine Power overflowed from Shu's body, and a large number of god soldiers, incomparable to those summoned by Tone and the others, were summoned.
"If you insist so much, defeat me and prove it. And then despair. You will see what it means to stand in the way of God──!"
"It is coming!"
The moment Iris-san said that, the god soldiers rushed in like an avalanche.
"Spirit Doll!"
"Fushaaaaa!"
Immediately, Meiko called out to the spirit soldiers, and Stella responded, but they were swallowed up by the huge number of god soldiers.
"Kuh! Yuuya-kun! we'll clear the way, you take care of Shu…!"
"I understand!"
──Thus, Iris-san and the others were to deal with the god soldiers, and I was to have a decisive battle with Shu.
＊＊＊
At the time when Shu and Yuuya and the others clashed.
Night and the others, who had absorbed enormous power from the monster, also absorbed the monster's memories at the same time.
"W-woof!"
"Fugo…"
"Piii!"
The memories that flowed in went further and further back… and they arrived at the memories of the monster when it was still a "human."
"W-what in the world is this place…?"
A man who, like Night and the others, was confused by this mysterious world.
This man was the true identity of the monster that Night and the others had defeated.
The man's appearance was not that of a monster at all, but that of a human being that Night and the others had come to know well.
However, what made him different from Night and the others was the fact that his world had already been destroyed.
"The star's core had gone out of control, and the world must have been destroyed… Is this the afterlife?"
The man doubted that it was an afterlife, but he soon changed his mind when he saw the creature that appeared.
"Kishaaaaah!"
"W-what is that monster?"
Suddenly, a deformed creature not much taller than the man appeared.
Although humanoid, its face was like that of a beast, and it had sharp fangs and claws.
The creature attacked without mercy, biting the man's shoulder.
"Guaaahhh! L-let me go!"
The man immediately gathered magic power in his hands and managed to pull it off by hurling it at the creature.
Then, in order to kill the monster immediately, he gathered magic power in his hand again and continued to hit the monster until it stopped moving.
"Aaaaaaah!"
"Gaaaaaaaaaaaaaah!"
The monster screamed in despair, but eventually ran out of power and disappeared like sand.
Then, a mysterious part appeared from the monster's body.
"Hah… hah… W-what is it…?"
Alarmed by the situation, the shard turns into a green light and is absorbed into the man's body before he has time to react.
Then.
"W-what's… Guaaaahhhh!"
All sorts of information flooded into the man's brain.
About this mysterious world and the creatures that roamed it, the information the man needed was flowing in.
Not only that, the man felt pain as if his whole body was being rebuilt.
When the pain finally subsided, the man's arm was transformed into a deformed form that did not seem human.
Seeing such an arm, the man raised a dry voice.
"Ha-hahahaha… T-This is what a discarded beast looks like…"
According to the man's knowledge, this place was a world where the remnants of various possibilities that might have existed in the Abandoned World Line… were lying around.
And the creatures that wander in such a world are the Discarded Beasts, and the man was also transformed into one of them.
The only purpose for such a discarded beast to wander in this world is one thing.
By defeating other discarded beasts and collecting the fragments of the world, he could sublimate his body into the world… and obtain the world of transmigration.
Since he came from an abandoned world with no future, he can see the future again by transforming himself into the world again.
Those who had thus attained the world of transmigration are established as one world, and they could escape from the world in which this world lineage had been discarded.
Therefore, in order to escape from that world, the discarded beasts that wandered around that land continued to hunt the same discarded beasts and collect fragments of the world.
Therefore, the man who has realized the rules of this world continues to hunt the discarded beasts in order to escape from this world.
But the more he hunted, the more he lost his mind and form as a human being.
In the end, he could not even remember why he was hunting the discarded beast, and even the thought of escaping this world did not enter his mind.
However, because Night and the others were originally powerful, unlike the man, they did not lose their rationality even though they continued to hunt the discarded beasts.
At that time, the man met and fought with Night and the others, and as a result──he was defeated.
And the power, knowledge, and memories that he had accumulated over the years flowed directly into Night and the others.
"Woof…"
"Fugo."
"Pii…"
After reliving the man's memories, Night and the others learned about this world, and at the same time, they were saddened by the man's end.
However, the man was freed from the chain of hell when he was defeated by Night and the others.
Night also understood why he was able to become such a huge being.
When Night absorbed fragments of the world and constructed the world, he unconsciously constructed the world of Night.
This allowed Night to use the divine power of the Night God Wolf regardless of time or place.
As he was reliving all of the human memories, he also finished absorbing the fragments.
At that time, a green light overflowed from the bodies of Night and the others.
"Woof!"
"Fugo!"
"Pipii!"
Night and the others were startled by the suddenness of it, but they soon realized what was happening.
It was the acquisition of the transmigration world.
The green light that overflowed from Night's and the others' bodies gathered in one place, eventually forming a whirlpool.
Seeing this, Night and the others were convinced.
If they could break through this vortex, they would be able to return to their original world…
"Woof!"
"Buhi!"
"Pii!"
Night and the others looked at each other and jumped into the vortex with great force.
──Thus, Night and the others finally managed to escape from the mysterious world.