Part 3
--- [Kouen City]. In the piles of rubble.
Close to the [Kouen City] which was destroyed by the three headed dragon, another battle was unfolding. A storm of explosive fire and a blizzard was brewing in the abandoned land of rubble.
“Aura-san! Oji-chan! Let’s do a pincer attack. Come, time it with me!” Shouted a figure who was moving quickly to exchange blows with another.
“Got it!”
{“Understood!”}
The clap of thunder that accompanied the plucking of a harp.
Flames that were shot from a black dragon in the skies.
And at the interception of both lines of attack was Maxwell in his brightly coloured blue and red jacket.
“Don’t overestimate yourselves, you pieces of trash!!!”
Spreading his hands, the flames and lightning that shot towards himself were deflected by a sudden explosion. It was most probably an explosion caused by the control of heat to create a sharp temperature difference in the atmosphere.
Although it was only the control of heat, the multiple ways to use that ability was vast to the extremes. It is just fortunate that he preferred to transit between dimensions and did not realise the full potential of its uses, but if he used it in earnest, it would probably have the potential to vaporise a small country in an instant.
If it weren’t for Aura and her golden harp which stabilized the atmospheric pressure of the surroundings, Rin and the others would also be in danger.
“It must have been tough to be targeted by such a powerful stalker. I kinda understand why you are scared of this guy now,” Rin spoke to Willa as she temporarily redrew to the cover of a building.
“…….ah.”
Willa widened her eyes in reply. However, she was shaking her head with tears brimming at the edges of her eyes as she couldn’t follow the sequence of events that led up to this point.
---The following will be mere gossip by the way.
If you were to ask about the biggest victim in this whole battle, then I would think that anyone would also name that person to be Willa the Ignis Faatus. Let’s just start from how she was caught up in the Game hosted by [Ouroboros] which made all residents of the city the victims. However, she was then chased around by a Demon Lord class stalker in the Game and been the target for his verbal abuse and lastly being kidnapped by an unfamiliar girl. This sort of unfortunate series of events can only exist for one person----Willa. Although Willa wished to use her teleportation to escape, the lock type Gift on her hands were exerting a power that stopped her from escaping.
And now, she was still the target of that stalker who continues to pursue her in the city that have been reduced to rubble. It truly is a disastrous day,
(I……wanna go home……!)
“Willa-san, we are going to run again! Come with me!”
Waah, and she was dragged off again while crying.
Shortly after, that area was covered with a layer of snow from the blizzard.
“Game Controller, hand over my Brideeeeeeeee!!!”
“……Hng. Depending on the situation, that might just have been a really romantic proposal, right?”
“Your Highness, this isn’t the time to talk about such stuff.”
His Highness sprinted in the blizzard along the ground of the destroyed city while Jin Russel straddled the back of the Black Gryphon [Graiya].
Rin speculated that kidnapping Willa would be highly effective in the battle with Maxwell, but the effect had surpassed her expectations.
Maxwell had lost himself for a moment after seeing Willa’s kidnapping but he returned to normal to say, “There’s actually a person other than me who wants to kidnap Willa?! Just who do you think you are?!”, and then he lost himself again.
Perhaps this man was never normal to begin with.
Because of the unexpected intervention of Rin who beat him to the prize, Maxwell gave a roar in madness. And that gave Rin a fright to take off in a hurry and the chase was on until the present moment.
“This is bad. I thought that there would still be ground for negotiations. But he just loves Willa-san too much.”
“That doesn’t make me happy in the slightest!”
Yeah, you’re right. The others around them agreed silently.
{“But what are we to do now? His attacks are monotonous due to his rage but it will be troublesome when he regains his composure. Is it really okay to not launch a counterattack now, Rin? “} The black gryphon asked Rin blankly.
“Hm~ Although it does seem like an opportunity, there’s also a big possibility that we might revert him into his cool and composed state due to a random and inferior counterattack. And the worst fear we have currently is that he might escape.”
Rin and the others who were ready to rebel against their organisation could not afford to let him slip from this location. They had to bring him down in this place.
{“Though you might say that, but can we come up with a detailed plan on what to do? We will just be caught if this goes on.”}
Rin did not reply to that question but she started to bit her nails as she continued to run while feeling vexed about the situation.
Jin came up with a proposal then.
“Can we just simply taunt him to the limit and make him unable to return to normal?”
“……Hm. I thought about that as well, but what you do plan to do?”
“That…… will depend on Willa-san, eh?”
Aie? Tears ran down Willa’s face again.
She did not expect her Alliance partner to come up with that sort of suggestion. Or actually, the problem she had should have been with regards to his involvement with the [Ouroboros] in the first place.
“……Sorry. But we cannot allow Maxwell to leave. He will teleport the clones of Azi Dahaka to the various locations on the lower levels of Little Garden and it will become an unsalvageable situation.”
“…you… you must be lying….?!”
Seeing that Willa was dumbstruck by that revelation, Rin added bitterly.
“It’s not a lie. Because our original plan was to use Maxwell-san’s power to teleport the clones to the various locations if we were able to carry out the Azi Dahaka revival plan successfully.”
The fight between the three headed dragon and Izayoi had already spawned a few hundred clones. And those clones including the ones that attacked the refugees were sent to the lower levels in batches.
It was all thanks to Jack and Kouryuu that the battle was turned towards a more advantageous direction, but if Maxwell were to be left alone, the damages to the lower levels would increase exponentially.
“I guess the [Floor Master]s who aren’t here in this city…… the [OniHime] Alliance and [Laplace Demons] would be activated to stop the clones. But there would be a limit to their capabilities as well. If we do not remove the threat of Maxwell, the casualties will not be limited to only us in the city but the entire lower levels as well. That is not something that our org…… or at least us, who are present here of the [Ouroboros], wish to happen.”
“That is a situation that we of the [No Name]s are unable to ignore as well. And for the sake of defeating Maxwell, it is necessary for Willa-san’s assistance in our plans.”
Willa, who now understood the predicament that they were in and the worst possible outcomes, forced a nod. And it really was a forced nod. In reluctance. Although she did not know why the reasons for Rin and His Highness’s actions, it would seem that they were plotting to rebel against their organisation of [Ouroboros].
Then, it might just be advantageous for the situation to call for a ceasefire.
“But, But, what are we to do? Do you know of any way to defeat Maxwell?”
“Aiya, should I say that it’s impossible to defeat the [Third Perpetual Motion Machine] or should I say that it isn’t suitable to be defeated……”
“…… Rin, although you mentioned that term earlier, but what exactly is that [Third Perpetual Motion Machine]?”
“It’s a secret. ….. Although I wish I could say that, but we are currently allies in the same cause. Well, I will just tell you the things that do not hamper our plans to you later.”
“But, we will want a reward” His Highness giggled, and Jin could only return a bitter smile.
But Jin also started to sieve through his memory as those words gave him a feeling that he had heard something similar somewhere.
Aura, who did not notice that pensiveness, walked over to provide her proposal and her robes rippled in her gait.
“Your Highness. Should we try to bait Maxwell to activate his [Host Master]?”
“…… Mhm. It does sound plausible since we were all told of the details of his Game content, and that the answer is something related to the [Black Box], the region that cannot be observed. Let’s have him self-destruct by means of clearing his Game and hence making him our servant to be summoned at any time. How’s that idea?”
“Ew, Your Highness, do you want that sort of servant?”
“Totally not.”
“I knew it!”
{“Then, we can only rely on the [Another Cosmology] of His Highness. With the strength of His Highness, that sort of Demon Lord can be erased completely with a strike.”}
But upon hearing that suggestion, His Highness shook his head.
“Well, that’s true, but if I were to use [Another Cosmology] on him, I would also crush the spiritual attainment of the [Third Perpetual Motion Machine]. If that were to happen, how would we retrieve it from him later? It will not be possible to retrieve it with just us alone right?”
“If that is your only worry, then everything’s fine. It’s said that the [Third Perpetual Motion Machine]’s spiritual attainment will return to its true possessor and that person has already been sealed three years ago. So there’s no need for Your Highness to worry. If you defeat Maxwell here in any way, it will just return to its original possessor”
“Mhmu? Then that leaves the question of how to land a strike on him in the first place.”
At this point, Willa raised her hand to catch their attention. “That, That’s the most difficult part. If Maxwell so desires, he is capable of activating his portal to escape into the between at any point in time. That was also the method he used to escape three years ago. “
That’s right. Maxwell is adept at activating his teleportation ability.
In addition to that strength of his, the Gift that controls heat makes him one of the toughest person to be an enemy. Even if they were to use Willa to taunt him, it wasn’t an absolute certainty that she is enough to keep him distracted.
And while His Highness and the others were coming up with a plan, Maxwell wasted no time in catching up to them with a blast of icy wind and numerous icicle spears were hurled in their direction.
But seeming to mock at that attack, Demon King of Confusion released his dragon flames while laughing brightly, “Hmphahaha! What’s this! What’s this! And you call yourself a Game controller-sama? Such a simple plan and you’ve not thought it up until now?”
“……Mhm. Then, O Demon King of Confusion-sama, what plan have you arrived at?”
“Oi, of course I’ve a plan. That’s the main focus isn’t it? That intelligent perverted Demon has been mesmerised by that big breasted girl over there right? Then wouldn’t that leave only one way to taunt him?”
Aha, Demon King of Confusion gave a sly smile.
Jin and His Highness tilted their heads and exchanged a glance as they could not catch the meaning of it.
Only Rin clapped her hands in agreement as she understood his words.
“Oh, that way. That might just work out.”
“As expected of Rin-san. Your observation skills are quite good. ---Can you pull it off?”
“Aiya Aiya, just leave it to me. That kind of thing is a piece of cake.”
Saying that, Rin stopped short in her tracks. It would seem that she had some sort of plan and the others who understood that the situation was about to get messier were also readying themselves for battle.
On the other hand, Maxwell appeared above them thinking that they were ready to give up.
“Game controller-dono, the oni kakurenbo game is over?” [18]
Exactly like their fears, Maxwell was gradually recovering to his normal self.
That composure would surely spell the worst scenario for them.
Rin looked at Willa and hesitated for a moment before hugging the chained up Willa.
“That’s right. The oni kakurenbo is over. But we will be starting the hide and seek from now, so do accompany us for a little.”
“Wha, and here I was wondering what you would come up with. Do you think that I will continue to accompany you in your little game? With things as they are now, let me tell you this. Your betrayal was well within our calculations. Leader-sama has given me the green light to all the others besides His Highness. Because the only one needed to overcome Kali Yuga is His Highness.”[19]
“……Aye?”
The eyes of Rin lit up with an intensity. It must have been a piece of important information. That gaze was exactly like a female cheetah who spotted its prey. On the other hand, Jin who overheard the conversation between Rin and Maxwell, did not miss the important details of that talk. Although the talk did not explain the full details.
(Kali Yuga…… [The age of vice (Kali Yuga)]? Why would that sort of thing be related to His Highness?)
(Jin. Do you know something about it?) Pest asked Jin as she stayed in her standby state in the ring of the Pied Piper of Hamelin.
Jin gave a slight nod of his head that was less than noticeable to the people around him
(Hm, because it is a long explanation, I will just cut the details and get straight to the point. It is the era where religions have come to an end and following the advancement of Human civilisation, Humans have come to lose their believes. And they enter an age of immorality and inconsideration.)
(When you mention about the advancement of Human civilisation, do you refer to the ages of the 1900s to 2000s AD? I heard that it’s the period that had lots of advancements in energy production and a gradual lost in religious faith. I also heard that it’s the age where new gods and divine spirits are unable to be born.)
(Mhm……. But, how do I say this. Because of the close relationship between Kali Yuga and astrology, the derived dates from the perspective of Little Garden will differ from that of Earth and it is difficult to confirm the exact start of that age.)
( ……Mhm? That what does it mean by overcoming Kali Yuga?)
(It is literally what it means. Kali Yuga is the fourth part of the era cycle and when the time comes, it will continue on to a new era. Or that is my guess on the meaning of those words.)
But, why would that be connected to His Highness?
Jin accelerated his thoughts.
[Kali Yuga] and the [Third Perpetual Motion Machine], and the true identity of His Highness.
He was pondering over the cause, effect and relationship between those three and then suddenly,
(---Wait a moment. Just now, didn’t they mention something more important?)
(Aye?)
Because that was something that Jin had yet to witness for himself, he was unable to come up with an answer to it immediately. But he was sure that he had gotten for himself a piece of information that would give him the biggest opportunity to land a heavy strike upon the [Ouroboros] Alliance.
Not noticing the change in Jin, Rin turned away her gaze from Maxwell.
“Is that so? Even our betrayal is within calculations? …… My, I’m really impressed. How many steps did that person see in advance?”
“Hou? As expected of leader-sama, even Game controller-dono is unable to surpass his predictions?”[20]
“……Yeah, it sure is, just like a freakish monster. That person is really a monster to be able to predict this sort of development. And if all the sequence of events were predicted from the start--- ”
Understanding the situation and what she needed to do next, Rin closed her eyes as she brought up her dagger to her shoulder level, “it just means that Maxwell, you are the sacrifice here.”
Saying that, Rin changed her expression immediately to smile sweetly while hugging Willa tightly. And Willa started to protest this move with her struggles but Rin’s devilish hand was much faster.
Switching her dagger to her other hand, she freed it to grab Willa properly, moving ever closer to her face, tipping it up by the chin and----
“Then, excuse me?”
---took Willa’s lovely lips.
“ “ “--- ……Wha-!” ” ”
Jin, Maxwell and Pest shouted simultaneously but were unable to utter another word.
Willa, the victim, was unable to comprehend the situation as her mind went completely blank. ---However, the sensation of the soft tongue that slid into her mouth brought her back to her senses.
“Mo, Ah, Wait……!?”
“Stop talking. You will bite your tongue.”
Saying that softly and resuming the act of fusing their lips once more.
The tongue invaded further this time with a higher level of intimacy. Gently licking at the inner cheeks of the desperately resisting Willa, the tongue belonging to the younger of the two then charged into the depths of Willa’s mouth in an instant, leaving no time for her to react.
Having her first time forced upon her, Willa desperately hit Rin’s back to signal her to stop but that struggle soon became feeble. And as her finger tips slightly relaxed, that was when Rin finally released her lips and the thin sticky strand between their lips fell to the ground.
When their gazes met, Willa immediately bent her head as her ears turned a bright red.
Perhaps it might be a strange thing to see a demon embarrassed by such a degree of kissing, but it was still her first experience after all. Willa fell weakly to the ground as her body felt exhausted from the experience that ran through her like an electric current that fried her senses. It was just as if she had completed an intense workout.
Rin placed Willa’s arm over her shoulder while slipping her arm to support Willa’s other side as well before facing Maxwell with a taunting smile.
“…..Okay, that’s how it is. Can you tell me what you are feeling now, Mr Maxwell? What’s the feeling to see the kiss stolen from your soon to be bride?”
“---……”
It was an unexpected silence and there was no change in his expression.
Rin blinked her eyes as she cursed her luck.
“……Eih? There’s not much of a reaction huh? Let’s do it another time?”
“No, Don’t want…..!!”
“But if our taunt fails here and he escapes, his stalking behaviour towards you will probably get worse you know? For example hiding under your bed or leaping from the space between when you are in the toilet.”
“Ive already experienced that sort of thing.”
“Ooh, is that for real? Well, I guess I have to praise you for keeping yourself together until now.” Rin was surprised by that unexpected retort.
But if they were to leave things as they were, it would surely turn ugly. This way, they could only attempt to up the game with an increased ferocity. Placing her hand on Willa’s clothes as she thought until that point, that was when Maxwell roared with an emotionless stare.
“---[Summon Maxwell myths. 3S, nano machine unit]---!!!” [21]
Aye? Hearing that summoning for the first time, Rin and Willa had doubted their hearing. They were expected for him to activate his Authority of [Host Master] but he had called out for a “Summon” instead.
It was understood that it was some sort of summoning ritual but only Demon Lord of Confusion widened his eyes upon hearing those words.
“ [Summon myths]? …… Oi Oi. Is it for real? Things are going to get ugly from here.”
“Aye?”
“Sorry, I forgot to explain. That guy hid it so well all these time. …… Tch, it is as they say that he’s of the four digits huh? This guy’s real identity isn’t that of a Demon Lord! Everyone scatter and run! The gods are coming!!!” Demon Lord of Confusion shouted as he was starting to be covered in his cold sweat.
The group retreated to a distance even though they were unable to comprehend the current situation as they realised that that would be the best option at the moment.
On the other hand, Maxwell, who was already beyond the state of anger was at the epicentre of a storm of heat waves and chilly winds. The intermingling of the cold and heat waves that intercepted each other in almost a thousand times per second was beyond the rules of the physical world and it caused the particles of the atmosphere to rampage out of control.
Breaking through the seams of the world, space shattered like a broken glass panel.
And out came two figures wreathed in fiery heat and icy winds from the gap.
Wings sprouted from the backs of these armoured monsters and though they might not appear to be living organisms, their iron-like surface pulsed with a similarity to that of blood vessels running below the surface.
And while everyone was surprised at the appearance of the strange monsters, Aura gave a small cry in despair.
“This spiritual power….. don’t tell me that those are angels……?!”
“Those are angels?! Did you mean those monsters over there?!”
“No, That’s not it! Not, but I think……”
“But they are surely beings that are close to angels! A summon ritual that calls out the word “myths” is definitely one that summon gods! And it is something that a Demon Lord is unable to accomplish! Those who can do it are the elder gods, poets and Queen herself.”[note: elder gods are the main gods of each mythological faction]
Hearing Demon Lord of Confusion’s exclamation, Rin grinded her teeth together.
“What’s happening……?! Then, the real identity behind the Third Perpetual Motion Machine would be,”
“Now’s not the time to dally around analysing those stuff, they are coming!”
The angels spread their wings and charged forth with their sword and spear respectively.
Scrambling to their battle positions after hearing the warning from His Highness, they formed a line to meet the incoming mysterious angels.
Charging into an incoming angel, His Highness grabbed the hand that held the spear to prevent it from being wielded. Giving the hand a twist, he then launched a kick to the top of his opponent’s helmet.
Though he might be small in stature, his strength easily shattered he helmet with a kick. After all, it was what allowed him to fight on par with Izayoi to have dragged out that long battle from before.
However, the one who was surprised was His Highness who initiated the attack.
(What’s happening? This kind of feedback. It’s just as though I’ve kicked a cloud. There’s no sensation……!?)
The accuracy of that instinctive analysis was soon provided with immediate proof. Moments after the destruction of the angel’s helmet, a swirl of fog seemed to condense in that location to repair it to its original state.
And giving a creaking sound of *creak creak creak*, the steel angel brought up its spear and disappeared.
(A teleportation?! Where did it go?)
{“Your Highness! Behind you!”}
Quickly turning his head to see the blackish-red light rimming the steel angel as it emitted heat in its downward swing of its spear.
But this slash and sudden thrust should have been expected to be of no effect on His Highness. Hence His Highness, who understood that fact, judged the blow to be too late for dodging and took on the spear directly while planning to return an attack from there.
His right chest was pierced as he expected it to but the impact was what shocked him the most.
(That’s heavy……!?)
That was a strike from a stiff movement that told of no special techniques involved. However, that absurd strength behind the strike was enough to stop His Highness in his steps. If it were any of the others such as Graiya or Aura, they would be cleanly punctured to their deaths with that attack. Setting aside their possible intelligence for now, their strength was truly of a divine realm.
And so, His Highness made his decision.
“Rin, Aura, Graiya! And Willa, Jin, Pest! I will be the opponent for this guy and Maxwell! I will leave the sword wielding one to you guys! Use Rin’s Gift to put distance between yourself and the opponent while searching up for the identity of these guys! Remember, don’t get close to them no matter what!”
“Understood! We will count on Your Highness to buy us time while searching answers to their real identities!”
“May our Flags fly victorious!”
Saying that, the others besides His Highness started to run towards the outskirts.
But only Jin who rode on Graiya’s back was deep in thought over the symbol emblazoned on the chest of those angels.
(Where have I seen…… that Flag……?)
A Flag that used the theme of flower petals. Although he was sure that he had not seen it with his eyes before today, he was certain that he had heard of it somewhere. But no matter how hard he tried, that piece of information just did not seem to come to him now.
(Damn, why can’t I remember it?! I definitely heard of this symbol somewhere!)
Jin gritted his teeth as he struggled to comb his memories for that information. But the adrenaline from the battle situation was making his thoughts sluggish. The shortfall of having no actual battle experience before now was starting to make its presence known here.
The group left the streets to enter the forest and were transversing through the unchartered sea of trees.
Amidst the frantic and chaotic vortex, the battle continues to intensify.
Translator's Notes
[Note: History has been divided by the ancient Indian scholars into four eras in a continuous loop. They are the Golden age (Satya Yuga), Silver age (Treta Yuga), Bronze age (Dwapaea Yuga) and Metal Age (Kali Yuga). Among them, the most prosperous era would be the Golden age followed by the Silver age. The metal age is ranked the lowest in prosperity and it is the end or downfall. After the Metal age, the world would kick start itself into a new Golden age. Details will be added below in Note 1. Thank you [hentai_Shiroyasha] and [Puppeteer of the Blood Night] for providing this information.]
[Note 1: The four eras of Hinduism
YUGA= era
In the traditional Hinduism belief, there is a unity of time called a Yuga.
The world’s time is divided into 4 Yuga—Satya Yuga(or Krita Yuga), Treta Yuga, Dvapar Yuga, Kali Yuga.
During Satya Yuga, everyone is able to feel and know of the power of god. People are able to communicate telepathically and there is no divide between the material world and the world of consciousness. There is no pain or suffering, no war, no religions and there is no sense of time’s passing. It can be said to be the golden age of the Humans.
Treta Yuga is the era of spirituality. Man has discovered time, invented tools, and utilised their intellect to rule the world. Telepathy between humans are obstructed and war is born. It is said that the story of <Ramayana> was written in this era.
When it came to the era of Dvapar Yuga, Man started to study science and invent more tools. They also had to start making a choice between the realm of spirituality or materialism. They note the distance between themselves and others around them and interpersonal communications were reliant on language. In this era, the power is held in the hands of women. It is said that Krishna’s death signalled the end to this era and that the <Mahabharata> depicted this era in its literature. And at the end of the <Mahabharata>, Humans welcome the age of Kali Yuga.
Kali Yuga is the era of materialism. Man have replaced women to be the power of the world. The chase for materialism has far exceeded the chase for spirituality. Power and supersitions start to rule the spirits of Man. Few know of the presence of gods and the only method for Man to understand god I s is through the use of religion.
[magrefadditional notes: Mother Goddess (eg. Juno) Check https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mother_goddess for more.
Yellow Dragon is mentioned in vol 7 note 63.
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