The Hooded Stranger
At the very heart of the Raipania Continent lay the academy city of Leila.
A massive academy city formed around a single academy, it was a symbol of continental peace and a place of harmony for various races and nations.
Among the countless banks within the academy city, the one used by the most people was the Stingy Temperance Bank, Leila Branch 1.
It was operated by Stingy Temperance, one of the 7 Heroes who had ascended to constellation status, and her apostles.
Having symbolized the virtue of temperance through her feats even as a human, she had become an icon of wealth to the continent's people, and her bank was always overflowing with customers.
Natasha, a beastkin who had worked at the Stingy Temperance Bank for ten years, was handling her duties as usual on this ordinary day.
~Ah, so boring. Why won't time move faster?
She glanced furtively at the clock all the while.
I wanna hurry back and pet our dear Lina...
Twitch
Her long ears perked up.
A chill raced up her spine.
Whoa, it's here.
That one has arrived.
Her hands began to tremble.
Turning her gaze toward the entrance, she saw people murmuring and parting ways.
A miraculous path cleared through the packed crowd.
Striding down that empty space was a tall figure cloaked entirely in a black coat, hood shaped like a helmet, and a mask.
As biting cold and terror permeated the surroundings, the once-noisy bank fell silent.
Gulp
The people tensed, staring up at the mysterious guest and backing away.
Thud, thud, thud
The black figure approached the teller window.
Natasha manipulated an artifact to urgently summon the branch manager, then stepped out to greet him.
"W-Welcome, esteemed customer." She tried her best to act calm, but her back was already drenched in cold sweat.
It's been a while. Natasha... was it?
A deep, rumbling voice echoed—not one you could imagine coming from a human throat, man or woman. It was like the resonance from a deep, abyssal cavern.
Zing
Natasha's legs went weak. Wh-why does it remember my name?
She felt like collapsing right there.
Had she done something wrong? Why did it remember her?
I've come to withdraw from my deposit.
"R-Right this way, customer."
No matter how terrifying the situation, she was a pro who'd won Employee of the Month dozens of times this year alone. Natasha barely managed to drag her frozen legs and led the black customer to the VIP room.
Hmm...
Every breath, every aura from the black guest overwhelmed her heart, pounding it relentlessly.
As a bank employee, she knew the astronomical sum in this customer's account—a level that couldn't belong to an ordinary person. It screamed of someone who moved the continent from the shadows, or at least their trusted subordinate.
Creeeak
"This way, please."
Natasha bowed as she opened the VIP room door, and the black guest entered.
"Ah! Welcome."
Inside, the branch manager offered an awkward smile and a handshake to the black guest.
It's been a while, Branch Manager.
"Ahaha, it's an honor to see you again, sir. P-please, have a seat."
The manager sat with the guest, wiping sweat from his brow incessantly with a handkerchief, unable to calm down.
This was a former elite mercenary, an apostle of Temperance at the lowest seat, who could smash gangs head-on—yet he trembled like this.
Just who was this customer...?
She shook her head vigorously. No, no.
Why even wonder? You wanna die?
Sometimes ignorance is bliss in this world.
Natasha cursed her foolish curiosity and gripped the door handle.
A quiet bow and closing the door would free her from this terrifying atmosphere.
Good job, Natasha. Now back to work diligently.
I won't complain about boredom anymore. I'll work hard.
Wait.
Come back in.
Me? M-why me...?
Natasha's face drained of color.
Had she messed up? Fallen out of favor? But she hadn't done anything!
Don't fear. It's nothing bad.
The VIP turned to the branch manager.
I have something to say about this employee's service.
Overwhelmed by terror she couldn't bear, Natasha squeezed her eyes shut.
A keychain modeled after Demon Lord Lina dangled and swayed from her waist.
Sales have really dropped lately.
I need to implement the weapon system in the game ASAP.
Or maybe officially release merch like that keychain she had.
Making and selling unauthorized merch without official permission.
It stung my face and belly alike from the losses.
I stowed the thick bundle of checks from the branch manager into my subspace pocket.
"Satisfied?"
I asked the soul-form demon god floating beside me.
The King of Ten Thousand Demons who Overcame Pride says thanks.
"It was a kind gesture, but... that employee didn't seem thrilled."
My fake identity, The Hood, created to withdraw and manage the massive earnings from Akashic Archive.
To avoid tails or exposure, I used the Dream power from my constellation sponsor to disguise myself as a black-armored knight.
The added effects deterred attention from others... but as a side effect, people found me scary.
The King of Ten Thousand Demons who Overcame Pride mutters she wanted to repay a player who likes our Lina.
"Her service was satisfactory to me too, but..."
Considering she passed out at the end, it might've backfired.
The King of Ten Thousand Demons who Overcame Pride says she just fainted from joy—she's still young?—and gives you a pitiful look.
......Is that it? Hard to tell since it's from a demon god. Maybe it was the account balance. Fainting from joy after a national-budget-level account holder praises you to your boss isn't weird.
The King of Ten Thousand Demons who Overcame Pride nags you to tell an interesting story since she's bored.
"......What are you, a kid?"
There was a reason I, who once awkwardly messaged constellations via terminal to hide my identity during my sponsor's freakout, now traveled with this demon god.
The recent black sludge attack.
Our constellation was furious at the sludge that tried to kill me. (Though her fury was just slamming her stubby arms on the desk.)
Since it called them "us," more such beings definitely existed.
From another world, we still hadn't pinpointed their identities or locations.
These Abyss fiends might strike again anytime. (We couldn't keep calling it sludge, so inspired by labeling it an Abyss assassin in Akashic Archive, we dubbed them the Abyss.)
Thus, my sponsor ordered constellations to guard me in shifts for instant response.
I doubted god-like beings would bother protecting a mere human at first.
The Magitech Engineer who Shed Wrath suggests we three divide the day into thirds for surveillance.
Sacrifice who Overcame Sloth agrees wholeheartedly to protect her benefactor.
The King of Ten Thousand Demons who Overcame Pride says she needs precious time with Lina... Ah! Fine, fine! Stop hitting me, Lina! as she dodges around.
What's a three-way day shift?
In the end, the three constellations took turns guarding me.
The King of Ten Thousand Demons who Overcame Pride yawns that she wouldn't guard you if you weren't her benefactor.
The King of Ten Thousand Demons who Overcame Pride says be grateful for this demon god's protection.
"Yes... of course I'm grateful."
It's almost too much for little old academy student me.
Three gods—heroes, sages, lords, no less—taking shifts to bodyguard one person? Way too extravagant.
......
Truth be told, though, the Abyss (working title) aren't lightweight foes.
That sludge alone nullified powers from my sponsor and the demon god alike—a monster.
Two more like it, and our forces might not hold.
We needed to analyze the sludge fast, resolve sins to boost power.
What were its comrades up to now?
Even suppressing the fear, unease lingered in a corner of my heart.
The dimensional rift's deepest bottom.
Six shadowy figures rose in the pitch-black darkness where not even an inch ahead was visible.
As though imagining something unpleasant, the already-dark complexions of the six silhouettes grew even darker.
Vwoong
Once more, the space sank back into darkness.