Chapter 127: To the Mansion (4)
Chapter 127: To the Mansion (4)
The moment Iris explained the mask's abilities, a scene began to play out in my mind.
A pitch-black basement. A secret cultist hideout. Kidnapped victims. A gruesome altar.
But just as the wicked ritual is about to begin, a sudden bolt of lightning strikes, shattering the altar.
The cultists chanting their profane prayers and the sacrifices sobbing in terror—everyone falls silent. A strange stillness fills the air.
Where did it come from? Who did it? How?
Just as these questions begin to fill their heads, the sound of small footsteps echoes from somewhere.
Tap. Tap. Tap.
The approaching footsteps stop abruptly.
Then, from the empty air where nothing should be, a mysterious figure slowly materializes.
A robe and mask with a simple design based in black and purple. Sensing the suspicious appearance, one of the cultists realizes instinctively:
This is the person who interfered with the ritual.
Doubt turns into rage, taking the form of a shout.
"Who goes there!"
But the only response is a bizarre, crushing pressure.
Rage quickly withers away, replaced by cold dread.
The masked man remains silent. Yet, everyone present can feel that the entire area has already become his domain.
As my imagination reached that point, a gasp escaped my lips.
"Haaaah...!"
In my excitement, I tucked my hands under the armpits of the smug-looking Iris and hoisted her high into the air.
"M-Master? What is the meaning of this... Do you not like it, perhaps?"
"No way! I’m just curious. Can you show me how to use that 'Intimidation' thing?"
"Ah, if that is all, it is simple enough."
With a nod, Iris brought the mask to her small face.
Flash.
Though there were no visible straps or fasteners, the mask stuck perfectly to Iris’s face. It even shrank slightly to fit her size exactly.
"The principles are complex, but the usage is simple. The necessary formulas are already embedded, so one only needs to infuse it with mana."
As she spoke and channeled her mana, a truly peculiar pressure began to radiate from her.
"The intensity can be adjusted depending on the amount of mana injected... but since I cannot do anything that might harm my Master, this is the best I can do for now."
"So it’s much stronger if you use full power?"
"Precisely. Well? Is it to your liking?"
Despite asking for an evaluation, Iris’s tone was brimming with confidence.
But this mask was worth every bit of that pride.
"It’s the best! Make four more just like it!"
"Ahem. Seeing my Master so pleased makes me feel quite proud as well. Very well. I shall proceed as planned."
Is this the power of experience? Iris really knows her stuff.
Unable to contain my joy, I swung the lifted Iris up and down, giving her an "airplane" ride.
"Wooohooo!!"
"Master! I shall say it once more! I! Am not! A child!"
"This is so cool!!"
"Eek! E-Eeeek! To do this in front of my disciple...!"
Iris flailed her limbs wildly, trying to escape my grasp...
But when I held on tight and refused to let go, she eventually gave up and let her arms and legs hang limp.
After swinging her around for a good while longer, I carefully set her back down in her chair. Fay, who had been watching the whole scene with a blank expression, spoke up with a dubious voice.
"Junior...? What exactly are this robe and mask that you're so happy about?"
"Ah, that’s... well..."
Come to think of it, I hadn't told Fay yet.
But Fay was now in a relationship with us where we were essentially in the same boat.
It was about time I came up with a cover story for the source of my knowledge. I had a lot of tasks to give her in the future, after all.
"I suppose it's time I told you, Senior Fay. You see, the thing is..."
I paused for a moment, choosing my words and wondering where to start.
Snap!
Suddenly, Carla raised her hand, her ruby eyes sparkling.
"Master! Would it be alright if I explained it to Miss Fay?"
"Huh? I don't mind, but... why so suddenly?"
"I wanted to take this opportunity to have a conversation with Miss Fay about you, Master."
"Oh? I feel the same way. The story will likely be quite long, so leave this to us and go soothe your Master."
"Soothe Iris? ...Ah."
Glancing to the side, I saw Iris had crawled back under her blanket, apparently having reached her limit with the teasing.
She did a great job with the request, but maybe I teased her too much.
Iris had only her face peeking out, her cheeks puffed out as if to show she was sulking deeply.
I gently cupped Iris’s ears.
"...Hic!"
She flinched, but she didn't let the air out of her cheeks.
She really was sulking.
I gave a wry smile and nodded.
"Alright. Then please explain it well to Senior Fay."
"Leave it to me, Master! Now then... Miss Fay, have you ever wondered how Master knows all these things?"
"Yes. I've wondered that since the first time we met."
"There is a reason for it all. For some reason, Master always holds back and never tells the full story, but what happened was..."
Blah, blah, platypus, yadda yadda.
"And that's how it is!"
"Wow... Junior... So that's why you brought those recipes before where you knew the ingredients but not the ratios."
Fay nodded as if everything finally made sense.
In H&A, as long as you had the materials, you could create items with a single 'Craft' button, so you never knew the exact production process.
I had given her a few requests where I just provided the materials and the intended result... It seemed she still remembered that.
Well, it was right before the dungeon practice, so not that much time had passed.
"Hey, Junior. So, is your goal to root out the cultists?"
"Ah, come to think of it, I've never mentioned that part."
I had always talked about general policies and immediate tasks, but I had never gone into detail about the final goal.
Since the people here were those I intended to go the distance with—and people who had no choice but to do so—it should be fine.
"A goal... In a way, it could be said to be rooting out the cultists, just as Senior Fay said."
Sensing the importance of the conversation, I looked around at the women who were all focused on me before continuing.
"To defeat every last one of the Evil Gods. That is my final objective."
"......"
"......"
"......"
"......"
Perhaps because the scale of the statement was so vast, everyone present fell silent for a moment.
The sudden silence was first broken by Iris, who was munching on my share of the dessert as a condition for forgiving me.
"Master. When you say 'defeat' the Evil Gods, do you mean their death?"
"That's right."
"Hmm..."
Iris let out a low hum as if contemplating what to say, then swallowed the piece of tart with a gulp before speaking.
"About 300 years ago, I participated in the Great War waged by the gods."
"I suppose you would have."
Since Iris was over 500 years old.
"At the time, I was only an Intermediate Magician, so I could not stand on the front lines. However, even so, I know well the dreadfulness of the Evil Gods. Indeed, I saw it with my own eyes, so it is only natural."
"Master... have you seen one yourself? An Evil God?"
"Yes, my disciple. Just as you said, I saw one with my own eyes, albeit from a distance."
Perhaps recalling the memories of that time, Iris’s body trembled slightly.
"Confused Unity... that thing was a mass of flesh larger than a mountain. Its body, made by fusing countless living creatures together, was simultaneously a beast of the field, a creature of the water, and a bird of the air—yet it was none of those things."
Ah. She must have seen Confused Unity, of all things.
Nowadays, it was just a creature that had been thoroughly beaten by me and was grinding its teeth in spite... but in its prime, Confused Unity was truly terrifying.
In terms of pure combat power, it was ranked among the top three of the Evil Gods.
"Everything in its path was devoured and vanished. It was only after seeing it consume the sword strikes of Sword Masters and the spells of Archmages that I realized... that an Evil God is, indeed, a god."
"B-but aren't they all sealed now, Master?"
"Yes. They were sealed by the power of the Hero Rahim and the Good Gods. However, that was only possible thanks to a once-in-a-lifetime genius like the Hero and the gods who descended in person."
After kindly answering Elisha’s question, Iris turned her gaze toward me.
"Master. Since I can guess your origins, I understand your intent as well. Certainly, the Evil Gods are beings that must be truly killed and annihilated."
She continued, her eyes now calm and somber.
"But honestly, I do not think it is possible. Unless the Good Gods were to descend to the earth again as they did during the Great War, the Evil Gods are beings that cannot be dealt with by human strength alone."
"Well... I suppose so."
"Then, rather than trying to defeat the Evil Gods, would it not be better to consistently subjugate the cultists to maintain the seals? As one who has experienced the Great War firsthand, I believe this is a far more realistic path. ...Of course, if my Master commands it, I shall follow."
Realizing she might have overreacted, Iris carefully added the last part.
I nodded to show her it was alright.
"I know what you're trying to say. And I want that too."
Truly. I sincerely wanted that as well.
"...If only we could."
"What do you mean by that...?"
To the bewildered Iris, and to Carla, Elisha, and Fay, I shared a secret I had never told anyone until now.
"The seals. They’re going to break within a few years."