Heresy (4)
Tap— tap— tap—
“Huh…? If it’s the first Challenger—”
“Let’s leave it here for today and talk about the details later, shall we? I have another appointment after this. Rubia, you’re welcome to keep this communication crystal. Sirin has plenty of spares. Well then, let’s speak again soon. Today was fun. And Noah… I’ll see you next time.”
“Ah… yes. Thank you so much for your help, Hermila.”
“Th-thank youuu…!”
“Of course. We’re grateful to all of you as well. Get some rest, and enjoy your time together.”
Click—
With a warm, easy smile, Hermila finished speaking, switched off the crystal, and sank back into her chair.
“Haa…”
“You two seem to have grown quite close.”
“You think so too, Yuria?”
“Yes. When she was still with me… it wasn’t quite like this. That… k-kiss… ahem. She’s become rather bold.”
Looking embarrassed, Yuria averted her gaze and muttered as she took the seat across from Hermila.
“And you’re one to talk, Yuria. Aren’t you waiting for Hepais to come of age? Talk about the pot calling the kettle black. Last time you were going on about being like a parent.”
“…Ahem.”
“Heh. Funny how things turn out. There wasn’t a single future where it went this way.”
“Then… does that mean…”
“Yes. Taking Hepais in was for her blessing in the first place. We needed it to make the Elixir. And…”
Rustle—
Trailing off, Hermila opened the worn book lying on the table.
“At this point in time, she was supposed to die. Hepais.”
Yuria’s face twisted.
“Luci died, and Hepais survived. Heinzel lost both arms, but your legs weren’t cut off.”
Thump— Hermila closed the old book and shut her eyes.
“Thanks to that, the balance of the world collapsed… and thanks to that, the Elixir was completed.”
Then she began tapping the desk again—tap, tap—and continued.
“I don’t know what kind of ripples that will cause, but we can’t just sit around worrying.”
“What was added to the Revelation?”
“The crimson moon. The one who leads the vanished past. Best and worst. Choice. That’s as far as I could interpret it. What the hell is that even supposed to mean…”
“Damn bastards. Would it kill them to write it clearly? Right? Always putting on airs for no reason.”
The massive man eating a sandwich beside them scratched his head roughly.
“Tell me about it. Anyway, are the preparations done, Alex?”
“Yeah, more or less.”
“Good. And Yuria—have the others arrived in Urusphier?”
“Yes. I received word from Jure.”
“Perfect. Then let’s get ready. Yuria, would you store this for me?”
Yuria tucked the book Hermila handed her into her subspace and rose from her seat.
“How many of them?”
Tap— tap— tap—
“Ninety-three.”
“Hey, Weed. What’s ninety-three divided by three?”
Alex, the giant hammer resting on his shoulder, grinned slyly at Yuria.
“…Thirty-one. And if you call me Weed one more time, I’ll make weeds grow out of that mouth of yours.”
Tap—
“Fine, Flower.”
Tap—
“Look forward to it. Starting tonight, some lovely little flowers will be blooming right out of that filthy mouth of yours.”
Thud—!
Hermila stopped drumming her fingers on the desk, stood, and opened her eyes.
“They’re here. Let’s clean this up quickly and head out ourselves.”
“Where to?”
Her eyes, now shining with a brilliant five-colored light, answered.
“Cartia.”
Toward Cartia, where Noah and Rubia were waiting.
And then the door opened.
Ninety-three test subjects.
Incomplete Masters poured in.
The communication orb went dark, and Rubia’s deep sigh filled the room.
“The first Challenger…”
But.
What’s a Challenger supposed to be…?
Why does everyone know this stuff except me…
“Rubia… what’s the first Challenger…?”
“Ah, right. You’ve never heard about this side of things, Noah. Hmm… to explain Challengers properly, I should start with Erden.”
“E-Erden…”
“On the surface it’s a holy order, and everyone thinks I’m the one leading it, right?”
“Yeees.”
“But the reality is… just like Sirin said earlier, it’s a group of very bad peop— ahem, very bad people.”
“Bad people…”
“Yes. That’s all you need to know, Noah. Just that they’re a group of very bad people. The details are too shocking—you shouldn’t hear them.”
“I… I’m an adult too…”
Rubia kneaded my soft thigh and licked her lips.
“Being an adult and this are two different things. Anyway, Erden is that kind of place. Always be careful. Extra careful. Got it?”
“Yeees.”
“Next is the End and the Sun Goddess Lilith.”
“The End…!”
I know about the End.
It was the final boss of the story up to that point.
“Yes. The End. You’ve heard of it. When the balance of the world collapses and paradise descends… the being that brings fire to burn the world and darkness to return everything to the beginning.”
Um… I don’t know any cool lines like that.
“And the story that only the Priestess can stop that being.”
The hand kneading my thigh.
The hand wrapped around my stomach grew cold.
“From my personal interpretation… I think it’s a seal. The seal of the End. And the medium is the Priestess.”
A faint tremor in her voice.
The racing heartbeat against my back.
“When the End descends, if I resolve to sacrifice myself… maybe the Sun Goddess Lilith would descend into my body… I’ve thought about that too. Heh heh.”
A self-deprecating laugh.
And a hollow sigh.
I freed myself from Rubia’s hands, turned, and wrapped my arms around her neck.
“…It’s okay.”
“That’s right. You said you’d protect me for the rest of your life.”
“Mm… yeah. So… don’t worry too much.”
Peck—
“Oh my? Are you kissing me to make me feel better? Earlier you said we should only do it when we’re alone in the room?”
“…Th-that’s… mmm…”
Chuckling softly, Rubia pulled me into her arms and buried me against her chest.
“Haa… yes, that’s how it is. Next is about the Masters.”
“Mphh…!”
I wanted to say “Masters!” but my face was buried in her chest so I couldn’t speak properly…
“Yes. Not the strange… Masters we met, but real ones like Kalt.”
Once her breathing had steadied a little, Rubia gently set me down and continued.
How did she even understand that?
How?
“Well… simply put, there are ten Masters in the world, right?”
“Yeees.”
“Except for Sirin, you can think of all of them as being on Erden’s side.”
“…Huuuh.”
“Nine… well, Kalt is dead. The second Master lost his power sealing the Tyrant, and the first Master is missing… so that leaves six.”
“Uh… isn’t that a lot…?”
The lore said Kalt was the weakest among the Masters even if he was a pain to deal with.
…If they’re stronger than that.
“But according to Sirin, none of them are a match for her. If they all came at once it might be different, but if she takes them one by one there’s no problem. She said leaning on her too much would be rude, but since she can’t hunt the Beasts of the End herself, she might as well help with this much… huh?”
Rubia clapped a hand over her mouth in sudden realization and murmured.
“Don’t tell me she already left…?”
“Eh…”
Before Sirin left she definitely said…
That she had to take responsibility, that she’d make it easier for me to move…
Creak—
“She has most likely gone.”
Ser’s voice drifted in through the suddenly opened door.
Step— step—
“She has been inquiring after the Masters’ locations for some time, so she must have planned this from the beginning. As expected of that less-short, insolent little monkey.”
Tsk— Ser clicked her tongue, set down two cups, and took a seat.
“Please drink. Strawberry milk for Noah, coffee for Rubia.”
“Th-thank youuu…”
“…Yes. Thank you. Ser, do you know where Sirin went?”
“I do not. Which is why I am even more irritated. Still, there is no need to worry. She will easily defeat one or two Masters and return… though I never expected her to be this proactive. That cheeky little brat.”
“Huuuh… p-please use nicer words…”
Watching Ser carefully, I slipped out of Rubia’s arms, grabbed the greatsword leaning nearby, then took a sip of the strawberry milk on the table.
Slurp—
“Haa…!”
Just the right warm temperature…
Sluuurp—
“By the way, Noah, do you like strawberry milk?”
“Gulp— phew… yeees. I like it…”
Ser looked at me while idly touching her lips, then tilted her head.
“Hmm… you said you are an adult now?”
“Th-that’s right…?”
“Then no matter how much you drink, they will not grow.”
“Pfft—!”
Beside me, Rubia, who had been tilting her coffee cup, trembled as she tried to hold back laughter.
“W-what won’t?”
“Your breasts.”
“…Eh.”
Clink— with the most elegant motion imaginable, Ser lifted her coffee cup.
Then she lightly cupped her own chest as she spoke.
“In fact, Noah, your small breasts as they are now are cute and suit you perfectly. So even if they could grow, they must not.”
“W-what…?”
Ser’s words hit so suddenly and so hard that my mind went completely blank.
“Well, that is how it is. So be content with what you have, Noah. Growing them large brings nothing good. Is that not right, Rubia?”
“Ahem… pfft… ahem, yes. That’s right. Your shoulders always ache, food drips onto them when you eat, and if you sit too close to a slightly high desk they get in the way. Finding underwear that actually fits is a nightmare too…”
…That sounded genuinely sincere.
Does she really think they’re inconvenient?
“Uh… r-really?”
“Yes. Rubia is correct. When you look down you cannot even see your own shoes, and when you wear clothes or a robe you look rather plump. Those are the drawbacks. And Noah, you swing a greatsword, do you not? That would make it even more inconvenient.”
“Mmm… that does sound really inconvenient…?”
“Therefore, Noah, do not chase after something useless and unattainable. Be satisfied with the present.”
“U-unattainable…? Mmm…”
Everything she said is true.
There’s not a single wrong word.
So why do I feel… kind of bad?
“Why that expression? Do you still wish to grow them larger? Even though it would be of no help whatsoever? Sirin always says it, does she not? ‘This body’s form is the strongest in the world!’”
Ser, who had been speaking in a soft, gentle tone with a mysterious smile, suddenly jacked her voice up—whoosh!—and perfectly imitated Sirin.
But her face stayed the same, so it looked incredibly uncanny…
“Oh my, that was exactly like Sirin just now.”
“Heh heh, thank you. I used the power of a wind spirit to change my voice. It seems I succeeded reasonably well. As expected, I am a genius.”
Then clink— Ser set down her coffee cup and looked between the two of us.
“The atmosphere seemed rather stiff, so I mixed in a little joke. Are you feeling better now?”
“Ah, yes. Heh heh… you always throw those silly jokes like that, Ser.”
“They are not silly. At the very least, for Noah they were words that will nourish body and soul.”
“…P-please stop…”
“Heh heh, understood. May we move on to the main topic now?”
I pouted and drank my strawberry milk.
Rubia nodded.
“Then, Cartia. Are you listening? I would like to have a conversation.”
“…Yeah, I’m listening.”
At Ser’s words, Cartia—who had not shown herself for a while—wavered into view.
Seeing her, Ser glanced back and forth between my greatsword and Cartia, then carefully opened her mouth.
“Cartia and Carpeng. What is the relationship between the two of you?”
“Huh…? C-Cartia and Carpeng… uhhh…?”
“Hah, this is why I hate sharp-eyed little shits. Tch.”
Watching Cartia roughly scratch her head and sit on the table, Ser spoke in a serious voice.
“Are the two of you lovers?”
“Huuuh…!”
“Oh my…”
“…You’re shitting out of your mouth, you crazy bitch.”