[Hmmm, I also like ramen, but I don't know if it's because most people think of noodles as the same as pasta or not, ramen really aren't that popularized.]
[U- Unnn. I mean, how many bowls are you going to eat... You're still a glutton like usual huh.]
I never expected that the place Alice led me to would be a ramen shop. N- No, well, I like ramen, so I don't have a problem with it... b- but as a girl who was in the middle of a date, I- I wonder if this is fine? N- No, I would still like her even if she's a girl who will eat ramen with me... that's as long as it's in a sensible amount though...
Incidentally, this is currently Alice's "43rd" bowl of ramen.
[...Kaito-san, that's not right.]
[Unnn?]
[I'm not a glutton, I just love "eating using other people's money"! Please mind the way you describe it, or you might cause a misunderstanding!]
[That's even worse!]
And as a matter of course, this was supposed to be my treat. A calculated binging that she just won't stop, even though she knows I don't like using the privileges brought by my Black-rank Invitation... Alice really is just as usual.
Dumbfounded by Alice who was acting like usual in a way, I looked around the store before tilting my head.
[Even so, are we the only guests here?]
Let alone customers, I could hardly feel the presence of people in the restaurant. Well, the refills for Alice's ramen were brought in, so there were employees here but... I think the number of people is too small compared to the size of this restaurant.
[Ah~~ Well, I have some things on my mind, so I reserved the whole place.]
[...Things on your mind?]
[Yes, well, to be precise, I have a question for you, Kaito-san. Incidentally, all of the employees here are my clones, so you don't have to worry about them.]
[...I guess this is about something important huh...]
Alice's serious expression and mood indicated that the question she was about to ask was extremely important. I wonder if that's the reason why? My spine naturally straightened as I faced her.
After a few seconds of silence... that seemed awfully long to me, Alice looked at me straight in the eyes and spoke.
[...I'll get straight to the point. Kaito-san, did something happen with Shallow Vernal-sama?]
[...Huh? W- What do you mean?]
Shiro-san? Why did Shiro-san's name pop out here?
[Even if it isn't a fight... Do you have anything that might come to mind?]
[Something that comes to mind...]
[T- That's right. For example, being given a task or being presented with a challenge by Shallow Vernal-sama... Have something like that happened?]
[...…]
Could she be... talking about that matter? The matter about how Shiro-san referred to herself as the Last Boss and said she was going to put me on an ordeal.
I certainly haven't told anyone else about that matter. I have many reasons for not talking about this, but I think the main reason is that I don't really understand what Shiro-san wanted me to do, so I haven't been able to sort out the details.
But more than that, I think it's because I'm feeling inexplicable anxiety about this matter.
I don't know why Alice is aware of this and why she wanted to know about this... but since it's Alice, I guess it should be fine, right?
She's someone who gets carried away easily, but she's not the type of person who would just laugh off important matters... She's someone I really trust. And perhaps, there's a chance that I might know what was really happening by telling Alice about this.
And what this inexplicable anxiety I'm feeling, that's making me unable to talk about this matter to others...
[...Actually, when I went to visit the God Realm before...]
So, I decided to tell her about what had happened between Shiro-san and I. Without interrupting my words, Alice listened to me with a serious expression on her face.
When I finished talking about everything, Alice brought her hand on her chin, looking as if she was contemplating about some things.
[...Is that so... An ordeal huh...]
[Is there something bothering you about it?]
[...No, it's not like there's anything particularly strange about it. I don't know why Shallow Vernal-sama made such a suggestion, but she likes Kaito-san... I don't think it will be something absurd. In fact, it may be that this ordeal is just for show, and she was planning to make your wish come true from the start.]
[I see...]
Alice doesn't seem to be shaken, and in fact, she seemed to be relieved instead. I had thought that this ordeal would be incredibly huge, comparable to the wish I was making to her... but according to Alice, something like that won't happen.
I guess I was just overthinking it huh... Shiro-san certainly had some strange sides, but she's a kind person, so perhaps, this ordeal might be easier than I think.
Dear Mom, Dad————– I told Alice about the ordeal that Shiro-san had told me about before, and according to Alice, it wouldn't be something incredibly absurd. With her assurance, I'm starting to think that it would be safe but... I wonder why? Right now————- The uneasiness lingering in my heart still remains.
While smiling at Kaito, who resumed eating as if to regain his composure, Alice was repeatedly thinking about this matter at an incredibly high speed. She tried not to let Kaito know about it, going as far as to deceive him by faking her emotions leaking out from her magic power that might be detected by Kaito's Sympathy Magic, but her mind wasn't calm at that moment.
(...It's far more troublesome than I had expected. Most of all, what's worse is that... Kaito-san would have to pass an ordeal that Shallow Vernal-sama herself had to spend "more than half a year preparing for"... There's a good chance that that person who looks just like Kaito-san's mother is also involved in that matter.)
Yes, the impression she had was the total opposite of what she had just told Kaito. In order not to make Kaito feel uneasy, she said something to reassure him earlier but... The subject they're talking about isn't something that she could ever be optimistic about in her assumptions.
(...It had turned out just like she said it would huh... I should be as prepared for anything that might happen as possible.)
With that in mind... Alice remembered the conversation she had with that being that had caused her to ask Kaito this question a while ago.
The time goes back, a few days before the Six Kings Festival. Alice's clone, who works as the storekeeper of her miscellaneous goods store, is visited by an unexpected person.
[Visit, Subject, Important.]
[...Eden-san? Kaito-san isn't here today, you know? Also, can you please stop with that complicated way of speaking?]
[...I know that my child is not here. The reason I'm here is that I want to talk to you... Alice.]
[...Seriously, what turn of events could possibly———–!? A ward? You're talking about something that you wouldn't want others to hear huh?]
Eden's words came as a surprise to Alice. Alice had thought she understood Eden to some extent. However, she couldn't understand why she would go to the trouble of visiting Alice, as she should have been someone who perceived all beings, other than the ones she called as her own child, as trash.
[Even though I am such a person, I have some evaluation for you. You are worth far less than my child, but you are still someone worth remembering your name. You are far better than any other talking piece of meat.]
[...Well, thank you for that... So, what do you need?]
[...Beware of Shallow Vernal's movements. That is, if you don't want to "lose" my beloved child...]
[!? W- What are you...]
[I can tell you anything more. It goes against the contract I had with Shallow Vernal. I can't speak directly to my child about anything regarding this matter, but I'm sure Shallow Vernal thought that I perceived all the inhabitants of this world as nothing but trash... There were some holes in our contract. Making use of that, I'm conveying it all to you.]
[...Contract?]
[I can't give you the concrete details... but in the not-too-distant future, my beloved child will have to confront God.]
[Wha!?]
The words Eden dispassionately said were something that Alice could never ignore. However, she couldn't talk about the details.
As if to say that she had said what she needed to say, Eden turned away and began walking to the exit of the miscellaneous goods store.
Alice, still feeling dumbfounded about what she heard, only watched her departing back, but Eden suddenly stopped in front of the door and muttered without turning around.
[...What an interesting turn of events. She was once called the "Destruction God of the Apocalypse", but now, she's being called the God of Creation. What the future holds really is unknown.]
[....]
[But even with that change in name, does that really change her nature? She still stands at the end of the story.]
[...What do you mean?]
[..."Epilogue: The End of the Story"... That is what the being named Shallow Vernal is. I don't know her true motives either. However, I guess it's just like that question... Which do you think came first... Was it the chicken or the egg?]
[What exactly are you talking about?]
[..."Did Miyama Kaito come to this world because of the Hero Summoning" or "was the Hero Summoning created in order for the being named Miyama Kaito to come into this world"... In the first place, "who was it" that made the magic circle for Hero Summoning in the Human Realm... I think that would be something worth investigating.]
[....]
[My child, oh my beloved child, "are you really a being of miracle that she happened to meet" or "are you a being that someone who could see the future wanted to meet"... I wonder which is the true prologue of the story?]
Telling these words to no one in particular, Eden left the miscellaneous goods store. Leaving a big question within Alice's mind...