A man appeared before Carla.
He wore a knight’s uniform, a sword at his waist—armed and ready. As if he’d been waiting for a fight to break out here in Atlas.
Carla, wary of the approaching man, stepped back a pace, then quickly checked Frondier beside her.
Frondier stood as motionless as before.
His body had certainly hardened considerably, but she wasn’t confident this state could withstand an enemy’s blow unharmed.
If the time it took him to awaken again was similar to before—
'It wasn’t that long, but more than enough if someone decided to attack.'
Carla looked the man straight on and spoke.
"What brings you here, Sir Antero?"
At Carla’s words, Antero didn’t answer; he flicked his gaze toward Frondier standing beside her.
"Who is that man?"
"A royal knight has no reason to come all the way here, wouldn’t you say?"
Each ignored the other’s question.
Antero’s brow tightened.
"You’ve grown rather insolent, haven’t you? Medusa."
"......Who [N O V E L I G H T] is that?"
Carla asked that as she even put on a provocative smile.
Frondier’s condition was dangerous. So she meant to divert Antero’s attention to herself.
Antero jutted his lip.
"You know your situation. Do you think you can keep living like this if you act out with me?"
"......I’m keeping the promise. I’m gathering information on demons, aren’t I? I’m already doing something sufficiently dangerous."
At Carla’s words, Antero looked at her for a moment, then shifted his gaze back to Frondier.
"Is he that important? That man?"
"......!"
As expected, she’d only drawn him for a moment—insufficient.
Indeed, Frondier’s current state looked extremely strange to others. And Carla remaining at his side would be all the more suspicious to Antero.
"Hmph. A decent face, I’ll grant him that. Do monsters have preferences like that?"
"......"
Carla did not bother to answer.
In truth, the feeling that seized her the instant she saw Frondier hadn’t come from his looks.
There was no need to explain that to Antero point by point.
"But from the looks of it, he’s a cripple with only a face to show."
Step.
Antero took a step forward. At the same time, Carla braced herself.
Clink.
Antero’s sword cleared its sheath, and—
"If I put his life on the scale, will my dealings with you go more smoothly?"
"Antero!"
Carla stepped before Frondier as if to block him.
As if that irked him, Antero’s face twisted.
"What do you think you’re going to do?"
"Take one more step and see what I’ll do."
At Carla’s threat, Antero let out a disbelieving laugh.
"Don’t tell me you’ll use petrification. Turn me to stone?"
"......"
"Carla. Did falling for a cripple make you one too? I told you what would happen if you cast petrification on me. I’ve layered myself with security and tracking spells. Your identity and location will be exposed in an instant, and you’ll be an enemy of this nation—no, of the entire continent. Is that what you want?"
Carla bit her lower lip.
Truth be told, threat or not, she could no longer use petrification.
She felt it exactly herself: the curse Atena had laid was gone.
That overwhelming power that had been so hard to control—where had it gone? She couldn’t even imagine she’d be able to use it.
As Frondier had said, she had become ordinary.
At this point, Carla had no need to continue dealings with Antero.
Except for this moment—where Frondier was in danger.
'Even if my curse is gone, Antero won’t believe it. He might even touch Frondier to confirm it.'
Either way, Frondier remained in danger.
Then better to bluff to protect him.
She would use the now-absent petrification as a shield to drive Antero back.
Carla smiled.
"I don’t care anymore."
"......What was that?"
"I’m keeping my promise. The period you set hasn’t ended yet. Interfere with me any further, and I’ll throw away my cover and everything."
"......"
At that, Antero closed his mouth and looked between Carla and Frondier.
Carla spoke again.
"It’s your turn to keep your promise."
Antero tilted his head, boredom and irritation mixed on his face.
"......No."
With that same face, he murmured low.
"You would never make that choice."
"......!"
"Because you can’t accept reality. You still think you’re human."
Antero began walking again. Closer to Carla. Closer to Frondier.
He looked at Carla with naked contempt.
"A monster’s place."
***
Atena screamed before me and jerked her head away as if fleeing.
Looked like she’d climbed out of the void.
"Oh, you’re up?"
"M-my eyes! Argh! I—I can’t see!"
"Ah, that’s how my Pandemonium works. You experienced partial erasure before. This time that just became the whole."
"No, not that! My eyes—I’m blind!"
"Right, it feels like blindness. I don’t have that sensation, but Bael—"
"Get that light out of my face!!"
Ah.
Only then did I cancel the still-blazing Wisp.
Magic used via formula resolution produces an enormous number in a bundle, so canceling takes a bit of time.
Crackle, tch—
Even the way it went out was a little like fireworks. The brightness dropped, it flickered, then vanished with a small sound.
"There. It’s off."
"Hah—huff......"
Atena still covered her eyes with her hand, as if they hurt.
Hmph. That much, huh.
"I thought I was going to go blind."
She’d calmed down a little; she took her hand from her eyes. Eyes that already resembled jewels seemed to glitter even more. Maybe that was my imagination.
"What kind of god goes blind from that. Don’t be dramatic."
"It’s your magic—of course you’re fine! Who thrusts such a brute-force spell right in someone’s face!"
Atena sounded aggrieved.
Then she tapped her own head with a finger.
"What kind of magic was that......?"
She seemed to be searching her head for something she knew. But nothing came, and the groaning dragged on.
A god who doesn’t know a basic spell like this. Disappointing.
Still, I’m kind, so I decided to explain kindly.
"It’s called Will-o’-the-Wisp. A light spell used to brighten dark places, and—"
"How is that a Wisp! The power and purpose were completely different!"
She cried out in disbelief.
Even so, a Wisp is a Wisp.
"If you don’t believe me, want to see it again?"
"No! Enough! Get lost!"
Noisy way to refuse.
Only then did she seem calmer and looked around.
"......Where is this?"
"I feel like I’ve said it a few times now—it’s inside my Pandemonium."
Atena looked around with a face mixing fear and curiosity.
As with Bael, as long as I’m in here with them, they don’t seem to be affected by the space. Whether that’s because I’ve broken the rules of Pandemonium, or it’s a trait of my power, I don’t know.
"You really can reenter Pandemonium."
She looked at me, newly surprised.
Then she touched the corner of her mouth and grew grave.
"......To think there’s a human who can do this. This could break the balance......"
"What balance?"
"N-no, nothing. A matter on our side."
"If you don’t say, I won’t let you out."
"Hey! That’s not how this works! You promised to let me out! Are you going to break your word?"
True, the promise was: I get Atena out, and she gives me information.
But I said,
"Atena. You seem to forget—I’m human."
"Wh-what about it?"
"I don’t know about gods, but humans sometimes break promises."
Atena’s mouth fell open.
"Y-you would break a promise with a god?"
"Just give me a hint. What you said just now really stuck with me."
I was half joking, but I did want to know.
The fact that I can reenter Pandemonium—does that imply something beyond what I know?
"A hint? Something like that, I—"
So said Atena, but then she seemed to change her mind and muttered again,
"No—depending on the situation, it might be better if he knows......"
"So what are you saying."
"You’re planning to take a shot at Poseidon, aren’t you?"
"......Well, that’s not the objective, but."
We’ll probably have to go through that process.
Atena said,
"As far as I know, you’re the only one who can currently reenter Pandemonium."
"Yeah, I know."
I’d heard it from Marco, the demon. All demons had tried and failed.
I hadn’t realized that included gods as well.
'It’s not that Marco hid that from me; he probably didn’t know gods were included in Pandemonium at all.'
Gods like Atena knew from the start, but Marco did not.
If even a demon of Marco’s level doesn’t know, the ones below him surely don’t.
Atena continued,
"You’ve been calling it ‘my’ Pandemonium, but winning doesn’t make Pandemonium yours."
"I’ve heard that, but it feels good to call it mine."
"......What kind of demon-like mindset is that."
Atena looked at me with cool eyes.
She sighed.
"Winning doesn’t make it yours. Try thinking that it might be more advantageous to assume it doesn’t."
"......Hm?"
Winning doesn’t make Pandemonium mine. And that thought is more advantageous?
Watching my face for a moment, Atena clapped her hands.
"All right, that’s the hint."
"......Even with the hint, I don’t get it."
"If I make it so you understand everything, it’s not a hint. In that case, just giving you the answer would be more efficient."
"That’s true. While we’re at it, how about making the efficient choice?"
"Absolutely not!"
Fair enough. I didn’t feel like forcing it further.
She’d given me a hint I couldn’t use immediately. Which is to say, the hint itself isn’t a lie.
"All right. Let’s go."
I reached into the empty air.
I’d done the way out with Bael, so doing the same would work. Leave the way we came.
Just then, Atena said,
"Frondier. One last thing."
"What?"
"I’ve never considered leaving Pandemonium before, but if that really happens, common sense says the two inside will return to their original worlds."
"Well, yes. That’s what happened."
"In other words, I go to the world of salvation, and you to the human world. Then unless you use Pandemonium again, you won’t be able to meddle with me. And I won’t be cursing Carla anymore, so you can’t use that either."
"Yeah, I know."
"Do you really believe I’ll help you? That I’ll give you information about Poseidon, knowing you can’t meddle with me?"
In other words, the exact opposite of a moment ago.
After I save Atena, there’s no telling if she’ll keep her promise. Besides, she was Carla’s enemy; odds are she won’t want to help me.
So I said,
"It doesn’t matter."
"......What?"
"My first objective was to bring Carla in. By separating you from Carla, I already achieved the initial objective."
And if Atena really doesn’t want to see me again, she obviously won’t curse Carla again. That functions as a kind of security.
"And you hate Poseidon. I don’t like him either."
"......Hard to answer, but yes."
"Then you’ll want those two to fight. Naturally."
At that, one corner of Atena’s eye twisted in a strange way.
"Are you clever, or just unbelievably stupid?"
The goddess of wisdom asked me a profound question.
So I answered the goddess of wisdom,
"I’m about the same as you."
