The Tomb (2)

I explained the flow of the battle I had with Enlir. Bragging about my exploits to my wives was never my thing, so the real point of the story was what that bastard had blurted out in his frenzy.

“……That’s some heavy stuff. My dear. To think you faced such an enemy and still kept your wits about you enough to fight so well.”

‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠

Once that ridiculously long TMI dump ended, Veronica scratched at her horn. It was our attendant’s habit whenever she felt troubled.

“Honestly, while I was fighting I wasn’t thinking about any of that crap. I just wanted to beat his ass as fast as possible. But now that I look back, it really is strange.”

As I spoke, I recalled Enlir’s transformation. What was it again? Something something Thor? He’d shouted that and suddenly turned into a Super Saiyan, blasting out a million volts. He wasn’t even an Earth hero, yet the bastard dared to imitate a transformation! If he’d gone full giant monster mode I might have given him credit. Tabula had been that type, even if he was on the smaller side.

“What does Humanum Dei mean?” Franc asked.

Veronica answered for me. “It is a kind of idiom. It points to an existence that is both Hominum and Deus. A human who became a god. A god who became human. Though one could imagine two completely different meanings, those people most likely use it in the former sense.”

A human who became a god. An existence that is human yet divine. That was why they called it Humanum Dei.

“Hey, Veronica. Isn’t Humanum Dei that thing? The rulers of Narmer-Nile. It’s the word they translated into Romanian, right?”

Dana asked while her healing magic traced over my wounds. Veronica, who had been blinking, gave an awkward smile.

“That…… I do not know much about Narmer-Nile either. The knowledge I possess of humans is heavily centered on Romania and Germania.”

That made sense. Veronica had only traveled the human world to break her curse. From that perspective, it was impressive she knew this much when she couldn’t even speak with other races.

“Ah! Me! I know this one! It’s about the pharaohs, right?”

Larilura shot her hand up at that moment.

“Narmer-Nile is a theocratic state, so we had to study their religious views before every performance! The troupe leader especially took the time to teach me all about it!”

“That’s because you—”

“Senior, be quiet please!”

Don’t massage my damn soles. Larilura was tormenting my feet again.

Franc tilted her head. “Pharaohs……? I’ve heard the name, but what kind of people are they?”

“You know how it goes, right? In Narmer-Nile, a being called a pharaoh—the ‘incarnation of a living god’—rules the country in the king’s place.”

“……A king? An incarnation of a god, you say?”

“Yes. We don’t know the exact details because it’s a state secret, but it’s clear they possess even greater divine power than the popes of the Romanian church.”

Larilura squeezed her brain like she was reciting from a tourist guidebook.

“What was it again? Horu…… Horuragi? Hororororo?”

“It’s Horus, you dummy.”

I corrected her. Horus. It was a name that kept popping up on the cards I used when playing pogs back in elementary school. Narmer-Nile…… Egypt…… Pharaoh…… Yu-Gi-Oh…… Ugh, my head.

“Aha♡! That’s it! Probably that! They call the incarnation of that Horus a pharaoh across generations.”

“Hmm. So there is generational succession? They call it a living god, yet it has a limited lifespan?”

Veronica sounded skeptical. She looked like a devout Christian nun listening to the doctrine of a heretical cult.

A king claiming to be the incarnation of Ra’s divine dragon in an era where the gods have already perished.

Well, just hearing it, it definitely gave off serious cult vibes.

“Yeah, that’s the one. The term Humanum Dei was how Romanian scholars translated the kings of that Pharaoh dynasty. Since I saw it in a paper, it should be accurate.”

Dana muttered while sweating from the effort of treating me. Veronica gently wiped the sweat away with a handkerchief.

“So they borrowed a term that already existed. I have not witnessed the divine authority of those called pharaohs myself, so I cannot comment on its power, but the meaning is clear.”

“It’s basically ‘I want to be revered as a god while ruling as a king♡,’ right!”

“There it is, circus girl. Your true feelings slipped out.”

Still, it didn’t seem entirely wrong. Franc frowned.

“So they’re trying to become a god’s successor? That’s something I’ve heard a lot.”

“……You mean like the successor of the Sky God?”

At those words, all my wives gathered around my head turned to look at me. Franc muttered, “Excluding Nord and that man called Enlir, should we assume there are still about eight or seven left?”

“I do not know. If they knew of the coming destruction in advance, they would have had time to prepare arrangements for selecting successors…… but it is difficult to believe every one of the Nine Gods did so.”

“Thinking the other way, other gods might have left arrangements too. The divine race of Germania didn’t only consist of the Nine Gods.”

The wives chatted among themselves. The beings called the Nine Gods were representatives of the Germania deities. Naturally, being representatives implied there were others who wanted them to step forward in their place.

Come to think of it, the Bicorn race is also part of the divine race, so that alone would make dozens.

If you included every minor god, the number would reach dozens or even hundreds. Besides the famous Norse gods like Odin, Thor, Loki, and Freya, weren’t there other gods who had hoped for successors?

“Umm~. But, doesn’t something feel off?”

Larilura crossed her arms as if something was bothering her. Dana, who had finished treating my upper body and was moving her chair toward my legs, swept her side hair back.

“Off? What is?”

“Well? It’s just my feeling, but…… that person ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠called Enlir didn’t give me the impression of someone completely fixated on being ‘the successor of Lord Thor!’ you know?”

“……Completely fixated?”

“Yeah. I mean, his appearance, weapon, and magic might resemble him, but that’s just ‘imitation,’ isn’t it? To Lord Thor, Mjolnir is as precious as Ring Ring 3.5 or Crown Crown’s book is to me, right? Would he have given something like that to a person with such a rotten personality?”

“……Huh?”

Now that she mentioned it, she had a point.

We opened our eyes wide at the feeling of having the core issue struck from an unexpected angle. Compared to that Deutsch squinty-eyed bitch who only sang empty praises about being a successor, Enlir—the self-proclaimed successor of Thor—had received a fake Mjolnir. Meanwhile I was getting a headache just thinking about reapplying magic to my spear.

That damn Odin bitch should have at least given me her spear.

“If it were me, when choosing my successor I would consider not just ability but also personality and mindset as important.”

Larilura held up her index fingers on both hands and made an X.

“I could happily teach techniques to Senior and even grant him Larilura Grade 1. But for that person Enlir, even before talking about qualifications, I just don’t feel like being nice to him. Even if he possessed the greatest talent in the world.”

“──That’s right. You are definitely correct, Larilura.”

Veronica rested her chin in her hand and frowned.

“The dwarves are the race that forged Mjolnir for the Thunder God. Enlir was a wretch who sprayed toxins on that race’s descendants. Given the Thunder God’s personality as passed down through oral tradition, he would never have chosen such a scumbag as his successor merely because the qualifications were met.”

“So that means……”

Franc, who had muttered unconsciously, held her tongue. But we all understood the words that followed.

──So that meant Enlir had obtained his power in a different way from Odin and me, didn’t it?

Even Odin, the god of magic, could only leave behind an avatar that barely influenced the present world.

Otherwise, why would he have appeared in my dreams by borrowing my mother’s form? I had no image of Thor as a master of magic. Even a superficial one didn’t fit. Wasn’t Thor the god of warriors? Being that macho hammer guy, even with help from Loki or Odin, it didn’t seem like he could have left behind a proper successor selection system in the modern era.

And at that moment.

“──Is it fate?”

Veronica, who had whispered softly, snapped her fingers as if startled by her own words.

“That is it! Fate! It is fate, my dear! Did the Prophet not say it as well! That fate possesses the nature of a paradox!”

The excited Veronica poured out words like a machine gun without waiting for my reply.

“That elf called Yerna left behind the word ‘Divine Throne’ before she died, did she not? That is the clue! Those who have qualified to ascend the Divine Throne of an extinct god can clearly receive part of the god’s power!!”

“Teennng……?”

What the hell was she talking about? If she was going to floor it like that, I needed to be able to follow. The pace was too fast, professor.

“Ugh……. How should I explain this? Humans often use the metaphor of ‘fighting over the throne,’ yes?”

Veronica pulled her neck back like a cat that had been flicked on the forehead and calmly continued.

“But ordinarily the throne itself holds no power. Simply sitting a passing beggar on a splendid chair does not transfer royal authority, does it?”

“True.”

“The Divine Throne follows the same logic. It means that when a qualified person ascends it, that person becomes the true successor of the god! And even the ‘qualification’ alone grants a certain level of authority!”

“……Like how princes and princesses gain power as royalty thanks to their right of succession?”

“Yes! What a wonderful analogy, Franc!”

At Franc’s example Veronica hopped like a rabbit. Ah, right. Our Veronica’s personality tended to break down when she got excited. I’d forgotten.

More importantly, ‘qualification.’

Is being a god’s successor like a unique job class in game fantasy novels?

Well, I could think of it that way. It meant power would be unlocked by fulfilling quest conditions. It felt a bit too straightforward, but the idea was roughly the same.

Thinking that way made me sigh.

Fuck this shit. I really should have had a status window.

If I had one, it would clearly list something like Title: Odin’s Successor (First Class Change).

It’s not just a day or two that I’ve ended up filming some pseudo-mystery in another world. My head hurts so much I could die.

Sighing wouldn’t change anything. If the world always worked that conveniently, who would ever suffer?

“Such fate would normally be predetermined through prophecy or revelation, but recalling the Prophet’s words changes the story!”

As I lamented, Veronica continued. “Humans are called the children of chaos who defy fate! Surely Enlir and the other wretches are abusing that point to steal the successor positions of the Nine Gods!”

“So Enlir was one of the candidates for Thor’s successor among them?”

“That must be it! The fact that he could handle even a portion of Mjolnir’s power is proof!”

Veronica raged at some unknown bastards. Dana, who had been treating me, leaned back against the chair as if catching her breath.

“So what is it? That bastard Enlir was strutting around with the power of roughly a seventh prince, acting like a brain-dead idiot?”

“……Hmm. In terms of nuance that his qualifications were insufficient, that would be accurate.”

Veronica, who had calmed her excitement at the calm question, answered.

“However, in terms of power alone, his was real. Someone possessing that level of skill is probably not common.”

“Really? Well, yeah. That guy said he was the seventh seat, right? Even if there are stronger ones above him, there’d only be five or six at most.”

Dana spoke as if relieved. Listening to her, I felt relieved too. It meant there wouldn’t be a house party protocol with mass-produced fake Thors running around. Though in that case they’d end up as trash mobs anyway—that was the national rule.

“Veronica, you look somehow happy.”

When Franc smiled and spoke, Veronica stomped her foot as if to say ‘of course.’

“How could I not be! Not only has the enemy’s level of danger been somewhat revealed, but this story also gives us an advantage!”

The ‘our advantage’ probably referred to me. Even without digging through that Deutsch power-crazed goddess’s memories, a policy had practically formed. Besides, this hypothesis would serve as a compass when I later investigated Odin’s memories.

Rather than searching without knowing anything, relying on a hypothesis is better.

It was good for me too. I had no idea how long Odin had lived, so rummaging through his memories blindly had felt overwhelmingly daunting.

─Smack!

Dana suddenly delivered a palm strike to me while I was thinking. The sincere smash from Sargadis’s spicy fist brought tears to my ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠eyes.

“What the hell? Why are you beating your husband out of nowhere? Is this hinting at the patriarchal wife in a gender-reversed world?”

“What else, you idiot. Treatment’s finished. Get up before I charge you for the medical fees.”

Oh, I see. When I stood up, I checked my body and was impressed. The net-like and parallel veins that had covered my chest and back like grilled leaves were almost completely gone. At this rate, a scar-treatment potion would finish the job. As expected of our Dana.

I spoke with gratitude. “Oh, fuck. It healed so cleanly. Ma’am, do you issue cash receipts here?”

“If I’m deducting medical fees I’d have to settle from three years ago, so no. Looks like my husband’s about to file for bankruptcy and return to slavery.”

“Hey now. Where are you trying to eat it all by yourself? We should deduct it from our joint assets as a couple.”

“This crazy bastard is now aiming for a creative economy that surpasses creative destruction. If the trickle-down effect explodes inside the family, how is that any different from a flood, you bastard.”

“How about calling it a water park of love instead of a flood? I’ll repay the medical fees with my body. Just bring it, damn it.”

When I tried to hug her playfully, Dana giggled and pushed my face away with her foot.

“Kkukkuk. Ah, get lost, you moron. Your big sis is so exhausted she feels like she’s going to die.”

“Yeah, our dear wife worked hard. Thank you.”

As I got up and stretched, Larilura spoke.

“By the way, even Dana unnie couldn’t heal all the wounds at once. I’m surprised our senior didn’t die.”

“Zerglings don’t die from one Yamato shot originally.”

“I don’t know what you’re saying but it’s probably nonsense as usual so I won’t comment! Patients need consideration after all☆! Hehe~♡ There’s no other junior with such a warm and cute heart, right?”

“That seems less warm and more like it’s burned.”

Anyway, it was fine. It seemed better to avoid intense training for a few days, but moving around should be no problem. I said while pulling a shirt over my upper body.

“Now I’ll learn the avatar magic, deliver the message to the lord, and once my armor is finished I’ll return with Ursula. Our work in Germania is done.”

“Yay♡! We’re finally going home!”

“Isn’t your home Romania?”

I chuckled at Larilura, who was making a fuss with joy. Although the journey had become more complicated than expected, now we just needed to return and use Seidr to peek at Odin and Yerna’s memories.

That will become a clue about the Compilation Battalion.

Neither the merchant guild master nor Enlir had left their souls behind. It was only natural. I wasn’t the only necromancer or spirit medium around. Especially for the Compilation Battalion, who were hostile to the black mage organization Immortalis, it was inevitable they would be thorough in their handling of souls.

After that, we would probably spend time in Sargadis until spring and then head to the auction in Romania.

If possible, during that time I’d discuss with Franc──

As I was thinking that, Franc spoke as if she had read my mind.

“──Nord. Is it all right for a moment?”

“Ah, yeah? Why?”

I was organizing our return schedule and asked back without much thought. Franc seemed to hesitate a little.

“Franc. Don’t overthink it, just say it. We’ve put out all the urgent fires.”

Perhaps gaining courage from my words, Franc approached me, buttoned up my collar, and spoke shyly.

“……Could we stop by my parents’ grave for a bit before we go?”