Shun 2
After we met with the pontiff, we were at a loss for what to do next.
To be honest, there aren’t any clear means of doing anything about this situation.
The ivory god’s army, including the Demon Lord, are holed up in the Great Elroe Labyrinth, which means we can’t really meet with them.
Though I figured it was worth a shot and went to peek at the situation for myself, I found that there was already a queen taratect guarding the entrance, surrounded by a swarm of her spider monster spawn.
Obviously, it didn’t look like they were open to talking things out.
Especially since our side includes me and Natsume, with access to that “ruler authority” thing, as well as former members of the ebony god’s side: the ancient Wind Dragon Hyuvan, Ice Dragon Nia, and Dark Dragon Reise.
If we approach, they might very well assume we’re enemies and attack.
As we were trying to decide what to do next, we spotted what appeared to be a UFO being attacked by monsters in the far-off sky.
Can you blame me if I did a double take at that?
I mean, what is a UFO doing in this fantasy world?
It wasn’t just me, either; Sue, Natsume, and the others were all stunned, too.
But since the pontiff mentioned during the meeting that the Demon Lord had taken possession of an elf-made spaceship and had flown to the Great Elroe Labyrinth, we quickly figured out that the UFO must be the spaceship in question.
So we decided to defend the UFO—especially since there might be someone from the ivory god’s side aboard.
What happened next was a slaughter.
“Bwa-ha-ha-haaa! You’re a hundred—no, a thousand!—years too young to try to take ME on in the skies!”
Wind Dragon Hyuvan whizzes around in the sky at speeds far faster than I would have expected from his giant size.
Once he transformed back into his original dragon form, Hyuvan wiped out the monsters swarming the UFO in a matter of seconds.
I rode on Fei’s back to fight a little, too, but honestly, he could’ve handled it fine without us.
That’s how overwhelmingly strong Hyuvan was.
So this is the power of an ancient dragon chief…
I don’t think I’d be able to beat him.
If the ivory god’s army is confident they can square off against several of those chiefs, there’s definitely no way I’d stand a chance against them.
From that point of view, I think my decision not to join either side was the right call.
If I’d joined one or the other, I would probably have died without contributing to the battle at all.
Once the monsters have been dealt with, the UFO lands on the newly cleared ground.
Then several familiar faces come climbing out.
It’s Ms. Oka, some of the other reincarnations, and even Hyrince and Anna!
“Heeey!”
I wave from atop Fei’s back, flying down closer.
“I’m glad you’re all right!”
“That’s my line, mister! Where in the world have you been?!”
Ms. Oka huffs at me crossly.
Ah, I guess she has a point.
From their perspective, it must have seemed like I just vanished into thin air.
“Well, I actually got teleported to who-knows-where by this little guy…”
I take out the little white spider that’s remained in my pocket all this time.
While a few of the girls draw back, Ms. Oka leans forward with a sparkle in her eyes.
“Is it alive?”
“It seems to be. It hasn’t moved at all, though.”
The white spider doesn’t react, even if I poke and prod at it.
This thing randomly fell on my head, then I was teleported to some sandy beach in the middle of nowhere.
Where Sue was lying in wait…
I managed to escape, thanks to Elder Ronandt, although we still have no idea where that place was, since we used teleportation to leave.
But I guess it doesn’t matter, since I’m sure we’ll never go back there again.
I put the unmoving white spider back in my pocket.
For some reason, even though it’s the culprit that sent me to that place, I can’t bring myself to throw it away.
“So, as you can see, we’re all safe. What about everyone else? I don’t see Tagawa or Kushitani, for a start…”
“The two of them said they were joining the ebony god’s side and left. Kusama did, too.”
“I see…”
I guess it makes sense that Tagawa and Kushitani would choose to fight, since they’ve worked as adventurers all this time.
And since Kusama was working for the Word of God religion from the start, that’s an obvious outcome, too.
But what about Ogi, who also worked for the Word of God?
“Who, me? I’m staying put. I was holed up in the elf village for so long that I wouldn’t be much help in a fight anyway.”
Ogi shrugs.
From what I’ve been told, Ogi has a unique skill called “Unlimited Telephone,” which he used to leak information through the elf village barrier to the outside.
He was apparently giving inside info to the Word of God church the whole time.
But he spent long enough in the elf village himself that he wouldn’t be much help to the church now, so he stayed behind.
I think that’s a perfectly fine choice, too.
“Well, I’m just glad you’re all right. Looks like you’ve been busy, too.”
Hyrince looks over my shoulder at the ancient dragon chiefs.
“I’m glad you and Anna are safe, too, Mr. Hyrince.”
I hadn’t seen either of them since I woke up in the elf village.
I’d been especially worried about Anna, since I revived her with my Mercy skill after Kyouya killed her.
Seeing her safe and sound is a big relief.
“Master Schlain, thank you. I owe you my life.”
“Not at all. I’m so glad you’re safe.”
I nod to acknowledge Anna’s thanks.
“We’ve got a lot of catching up to do, I’m sure, but we’ll have to save it for later. There’s something way more important that might change everything.”
Hyrince looks uncharacteristically grim.
Seeing that look on him when he’s usually so laid-back tells me that something really serious is happening here.
“What’s going on?”
“The evil god isn’t the ivory god.”
…What does that mean?
We follow the group into the UFO.
There, Hyrince reveals one surprising piece of information after another.
First, he tells us that he’s really a part of the ebony god.
Second, they’ve found out the ivory god isn’t the “evil god” from the world quest, although they can’t say where this information comes from.
Third, the real evil god is a god called D.
And finally, this D is the creator of the system, and the head administrator who reigns over this world and keeps it running.
There’s so much new information that my head is starting to hurt.
Ever since the world quest started, and especially after talking with the pontiff, there have been so many big reveals that my brain can’t keep up.
No, I guess that’s been going on even before the world quest, since Wakaba and the others told us what was going on…
“At any rate, no matter how things shake out between the ebony and ivory gods, D is planning to destroy half of humanity either way.”
Hyrince looks grave as he says this.
“…Isn’t there any way to stop that?”
“Yes…there probably is.”
I let out a breath of relief at that, although Hyrince’s tone still makes me a bit nervous.
“D is generally fair. She gives everyone a chance. So there is probably some method for preventing this catastrophe, too. Otherwise, she wouldn’t bother giving us a warning. But I haven’t the slightest idea what that method might be.”
Hyrince crosses his arms, furrows his brows, and closes his eyes.
He’s right. Without any kind of hint, we really don’t even know where to start.
“Pardon me…could we not perhaps turn the tables on this evil god D?”
That’s an extreme suggestion, Yuri…
“Impossible.”
“We won’t know that until we try!”
“Well, then, is there any way a human could stop the sun from falling to the Earth?”
…No, I’d say there’s not.
“It’s on the same kind of level. Even if the ebony and ivory gods worked together, they wouldn’t stand a chance of defeating D.”
If someone who’s a double of the ebony god is saying that, it must be true.
“So are you saying there’s nothing we can do but sit around and wait for it to happen?”
“……”
Hyrince grimaces at my question without a verbal response.
“…Well, if we do not have a hint, we shall just have to ask the mastermind directly.”
Elder Ronandt finally speaks up after listening in silence for so long.
“The mastermind?”
Hyrince looks bewildered.
“Indeed. This ‘D’ is the creator of the system, hrmmm? Surely there must be some considerable connection between creator and creation. We simply follow that connection with Spatial Magic and use it to teleport to wherever D might be.”
“But that cannot…no, wait. Can you actually do that?”
Hyrince’s eyes widen as he looks at the old mage.
In reality, Elder Ronandt did use the familiar-master connection between me and Fei to teleport to where I was.
That must be where he came up with the idea.
“…It is theoretically possible. Why, just look at the explosion in the other world that brought the reincarnations here. That was caused by a Dimensional Magic master in this world.”
“What?!”
There’s another unexpected revelation.
I had no idea something like that was behind the incident that caused our reincarnation…
“I suppose…it could be done. But it will be incredibly difficult, you realize?”
“Hmph! Who in the world do you think I am, young Hyrince? They call me humanity’s strongest mage, and for good reason! I was Julius’s teacher, too. Have a little faith, eh?”
“Heh. When you put it that way, I guess I’ve got no choice but to trust you.”
Hyrince’s oddly arrogant demeanor, possibly a manifestation of his “ebony god” side, fades back into his usual composure.
Oh, right. I guess since he was a member of Julius’s party, he probably knew Elder Ronandt as his teacher for a long time.
I’d completely forgotten.
“I shall begin testing at once whether I can teleport to this ‘D.’ The rest of you, perhaps you had best tell the pontiff about what we’ve learned, at the very least. You should be able to get there well enough with this newfangled ship. Now hurry up and put an end to this pointless war!”
On Elder Ronandt’s command, everyone jumps into action.
Thus, we began our efforts to counteract the true evil god.
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