The Reason (2)
The Reason (2)
-You wretch! Do you want to burn to death?
"Just kill me, then."
You dumped me into hell to suffer, and for what?
Infinite glory? A chance to serve?
"Look here, Ra. You don't seem to know much about humans, but a deal isn't that. You have to give the other person what they truly want for it to be a real 'deal.'"
-Do you think I would ever make a deal with a mere human?
"Oh, then don't. Look, I'm not that stupid."
I put my brain to work. When you use your head, you can gain a lot. Yep. No doubt about it.
"You called me insolent and insulted me, but you never actually touched me, did you? It was all just threatening flames. Am I right?"
-...Do you think I cannot kill you?
That was a terrifying tone. Honestly, my balls felt like they were shriveling up.
But take heart, Zahard! You are me, and I am you!
No need to be cowed by a kidnapper!
"I've been thinking. Last time, you went on about causality or whatever. Didn't you say something like that couldn't be done with this kind of offering?"
She definitely had. And I remembered it.
"To put it another way... causality is cause and effect, right? No cause, no effect... couldn't you look at it that way? Ra. My cute little Ra. You made such a fuss about causality over raising a skill by one grade, so can someone like me—dropped into this world without warning—really count as something that fits causality?"
-You...!
"A god's reality manipulation comes with a corresponding price... that seems to be the setup, but if you think about it the other way, since you dragged me here by force, haven't you already paid a great price? Am I right?"
Ah. What magnificent logic.
Hey. Ra, or whatever you are, take a good look.
This is humanity!
The height of underhandedness!
"I don't know about the first one, but is a second one even possible? I'm asking if you can find a substitute for me. My beloved god."
-This insolent brat...
Ra sighed.
-I misjudged you. I should have brought one of the others under you instead...
"Didn't you say I was the only one who completed every achievement? Is there anyone else besides me who can handle most situations?"
-If you were wrong once in a while, it'd be easier to hate you.
Ra let out a sigh. After a moment of silence, she quietly asked.
-What do you want?
Good. She was finally in the mood to deal.
"Simple. Let's see..."
Even at a rough guess, this was clearly going to be harder than any scenario I'd ever been through. And since this was reality, one failure meant there would be no next time.
Even scraping together every Hidden Piece might not be enough for a problem this big. And I only had one body, so gathering every Hidden Piece was impossible from the start.
At best, I could collect the Hidden Pieces scattered around the Empire's northern region.
"Before we make a deal, there's something I want to ask."
-What is it?
"Seeing as you brought me here, you saw potential in me, right? But in a situation where you don't even know who might Fall, how am I supposed to watch over everyone by myself?"
-You need not worry about that.
A hologram appeared before my eyes. Most of the names in the long list were ones I knew.
The Red Demon, the thigh-obsessed demon... oh-ho, even the Poison King?
They just crammed in all the important NPCs, didn't they? Every character treated as a main NPC is on here.
"...That makes even less sense. There are way too many."
-You are right. There are far too many to watch over them all. But they do share something in common. Look carefully. A cunning one like you should be able to figure it out.
"Can't you just tell me instead of speaking in riddles?"
-You could stand to think hard enough to get a headache once in a while.
"Talk about holding a grudge."
-Silence!
She glared at me. I scanned down the list in the hologram.
-I will give you one hint. Time.
Time? What did that have to do with anything? Did they all share the same birthday or something?
After mulling it over, I cautiously spoke up. When it came to time, only one thing came to mind.
The current era. Imperial Calendar year 216.
Strictly speaking, only one thing came to mind: one of the major events. In a roguelike like Glory Fantasia, it was a place packed with juicy Hidden Pieces you could never afford to skip.
"...The Academy, right?"
-So I wasn't wrong about you after all.
Ra answered, sounding satisfied.
-You're right. Most of the names on that list are tied to the Academy. Some have children there, some will enroll themselves, and others are already students. It's the Empire's finest educational institution, and graduating from it practically guarantees success. That's why so many important people are connected to it.
"Imperial Calendar year 216... next year's admission window is already out of reach, so I'd have to aim for the year after, right?"
-It is preparation time. Is a year not enough? The timing will work out well. The 'Golden Age,' when most of the key figures enroll, will begin in the early spring of Imperial Calendar year 218.
"Hmm."
Honestly, it was doable if I swept up everything I knew about. If I gathered every useful mystery scattered across the Empire's north, I could manage it, but...
Which also meant I had no chance of keeping those monsters under control at the Academy without the Hidden Pieces.
"Have any of the Hidden Piece locations changed?"
-I cannot tell you.
"Saying you can't tell me means there are some that changed."
-...I will neither confirm nor deny.
Fine. Let's just be glad Surtr was still buried down here exactly where it should be.
That alone gave me room to breathe.
"Working at the Academy might let me spot abnormalities, but... this difficulty is brutal. It's way harder than actual 'Hell' difficulty."
-.......
"Ah! It's hard! So hard! I want to die!"
-.......
"I never even said I'd do it, and I got dragged here against my will! No saves, either! If I die, that's just it—one little 'urk' and it's over!"
-Enough! Just tell me what you want!
"Well, if you put it that way."
I smiled slightly. What I wanted, huh.
Well, there was only one thing.
"If you're a god, you can do anything, right? If I save this world, that causality thing would apply too, so you'd be able to do anything."
-That's true, but?
"Then just do one thing for me."
I closed my eyes for a moment and thought. I'd lived selfishly, but I didn't particularly regret it.
If there was one thing on my mind, it was only that.
I was an orphan in both this world and the last, but there was one difference: my little sister, the only person who had ever really been family to me.
"I had a little sister named Han Seo-a back there."
-...And?
"She died. For me. It was stupid, really. She got beaten to death in my place by the orphanage director."
And she was buried just like that. Later, I tried to kill that orphanage director myself, but when I looked for him after I'd grown up, all I heard was that he'd withered away from illness and died early too.
Yeah. If there was one thing weighing on my mind, that was the only one.
"Bring her back to life for me. And if you can, let her live comfortably without ever wanting for anything."
-...Is that really all?
"Yeah, well. You're saving a person's life, and you ask 'is that really all?'—that's kind of funny. I guess a god is a god."
-What a strange one.
I got the feeling Ra smiled for some reason.
-I thought you were a complete scoundrel, but you do have some humanity after all.
"Hey. What am I, a robot? I do look after the people who follow me around because they like me, you know?"
-Very well. I will grant your wish. And furthermore, once the work is done, you as well can return to that other world...
"Huh? No need for that."
-What?
Honestly, that was the truth.
"This world is way more fun."
Yeah.
Isn't 'because it's fun' reason enough?
-Of course it is.
Ra clicked her tongue.
-You really are insane.
. . .
I devoted myself to training. The first Hidden Piece I aimed for was the one at the church headquarters.
If I obtained the Sacred Relics there, I could enter the Academy at the top of the class. It was an easy way to gain power without much effort.
If I pushed just a little harder and got dispatched to headquarters, then right away...!
I trained like mad, then casually brought up the possibility of a dispatch to Mierkant. He answered with a broad smile and even patted my head.
He seemed to be doting on me more and more lately.
What he said, however, wasn't exactly good news.
"You want to go to the church headquarters? Well. Your mind is so sharp, and you always study diligently, so you must need more theology."
"That's right. I want to learn more."
"But wait just a little longer. The number of apprentice priests a branch can send to headquarters is fixed. For a branch like ours, there's only one."
"...That's too few, isn't it?"
"This branch was already as good as ruined, so it couldn't be helped. And I've already decided who will be sent this time. Irene, who joined before you, will go first."
"What about me?"
"You'll have to wait. Don't worry. It's only one year. Next year, you'll definitely be able to go."
No.
I only have one year.
I rubbed my face. I quietly approached Irene. But surprisingly, Irene's story was different from Mierkant's.
"You're the one who'll be going."
"Huh? But the priest said..."
"It's not something you need to concern yourself with. Please pack your things before spring comes. I'll handle the rest."
Irene looked at me.
"All you need to do is keep honing yourself the way you have been."
"...Well, if that's how it is."
I didn't know the reason, but I was grateful she said that.
As expected of the Blue Falcon! I believed in you! Even though her name was on the list of those predicted to Fall, seeing her act so kindly meant the possibility of Falling was zero!
-Do not connect something like that to the possibility of Falling!
I half-listened to Ra's voice. Since Irene had given me a definite answer, all I had to do was push my training even harder.
But an unexpected obstacle appeared.
"...So Beverick has arrived in the city."
Mierkant glanced at me. For some reason, there was no warmth in his smile.
"Irene is coming, Zahard."
"The last apprentice priest you mentioned before?"
"Yes. To be precise, he's an apprentice priest dispatched from headquarters to this branch. He has about half a year left before he returns to headquarters."
"That's awkward timing, isn't it?"
"He chose to stay a little longer. I accepted it."
"He must be a good person?"
"......."
Mierkant, the kindest person I'd ever met, said nothing. He just gazed quietly at Irene, who was cleaning the prayer room.
"...Zahard."
"Yes."
"Do you know that every branch is supposed to have a bishop? Someone above me should have been stationed here. But no one came, so I've been serving as acting bishop."
Mierkant looked at me.
"There's a huge gap in status between a priest and a bishop. A bishop holds a rank high enough to administer an entire branch, and their learning and piety are on a different level. Beverick's father is one of the bishops at church headquarters."
"Priests can marry?"
"...? Most clergy can marry. You didn't know?"
"I didn't."
I'd never dug that deep into the setting. I never really played the priest class much anyway.
Why would I pick a class that stacks penalties every time you hit someone?
"An apprentice priest with connections to headquarters..."
Ah. I could picture it.
"Hearing you say that, Priest, he must not have a very pleasant personality."
"I don't want you to judge people with preconceptions. But Zahard, keep this in mind. If you get on his bad side, your talent and potential could be ruined."
Mierkant smiled ruefully.
"I... hope you'll be happy. I'm sorry I don't have the power to help."
Why was he apologizing?
He hadn't done anything wrong.
"Don't worry. Being adored is my specialty, remember?"
"Haha! Of course! There's no one in the world who could dislike you. I must be getting old—all I do is worry. Pay me no mind."
Beverick arrived exactly two days later. I cleaned the yard early in the morning and casually wiped off my sweat, pretending I'd been working hard.
A carriage stopped in front of the church. Oh-ho. Looks like he's got money.
The door opened and someone jumped out. He was quite handsome—a foppish, pretty-faced young man. He glanced up at the church.
He tilted his head slightly.
"...A lot has changed."
At his flat, unimpressed tone, I hurried over to him. Bowing and scraping, I smiled with all my might.
He's someone with connections to headquarters.
If I get in his good graces, getting Sacred Relics will be that much easier!
"Hello! I'm Apprentice Priest Zahard!"
"......"
Our eyes met. I grinned from ear to ear. Beverick's face slowly hardened.
Without even acknowledging my greeting, he strode into the church. He glanced around the interior as if looking for someone, then approached Irene, who was praying with her hands clasped in the prayer room.
And then, right away—
He even grabbed her hand, interrupting a priest at prayer.
"Irene. You waited, didn't you?"
Irene's face literally soured. Beverick beamed.
"I came back, just as I promised. Now marry me."
...What?
What the hell kind of plot turn was this?