Chapter 46: Nazarick and the Otherworld (8)
Evil Eye still dreams from time to time.
Dreams of the era now forgotten… the age that people call a legend.
She had been there the moment the legend of the Thirteen Heroes was completed. She had stood shoulder to shoulder with them. And yet, at that very moment, what Evil Eye found was something else entirely.
When she found him again, he had wounds. The Demon God had been quite powerful, yes—but not strong enough to injure that person. And yet he was wounded. Then he simply said that his role was over now, and he would take his leave.
Evil Eye always regretted that moment.
Even then, she could still faintly see traces of humanity in him—something she might have been able to grasp. It would sound ridiculous for Evil Eye, now a vampire, to speak of "humanity" at all, but even so… she had thrown away her chance to reach out to him. She had been confused, not knowing what to say. If she could turn back time, she wanted to return to that moment—just to say she would go with him.
She didn't care about becoming known as Landfall, or a legendary vampire, or anything like that. She didn't want to risk her life for honor. Even if she were forgotten—if she had said she would go with him, maybe something would have changed.
"Evil Eye, what are you thinking about so hard?"
"No… I was just spacing out. More importantly, what is it? I thought today was supposed to be a day off without any quests."
"It's nothing special. This kid here said he really wanted to meet you."
"Hm?"
When Evil Eye turned her head, a boy was standing there.
Calling him a "man" might not be wrong, but he still carried the soft impression of youth. His blond hair and blue eyes proved he carried the strong bloodline of the kingdom.
Judging from his physique, he was clearly a warrior trained in swordsmanship. And with that straightforward look in his eyes—he was likely a soldier.
As she was thinking that, the boy spoke to her in a hoarse voice.
"Greetings, Lady Evil Eye! My name is Climb! I serve as the bodyguard of the Third Princess, Lady Renner!"
"Renner? …Ah, you mean that scatterbrained princess."
She had heard that the so-called Golden Princess had a personal knight.
This must be the one. Despite being a commoner, he had won her affection and trust, becoming her direct knight. Not quite as sensational as Gazef Stronoff's position as Warrior Captain, but enough to cause a stir.
"So then… what business does such a fine knight have with me?"
"P-Please teach me magic! I will properly pay whatever compensation is required!"
"Hmmm… Sorry, but I don't take disciples."
"P-Please! I must become stronger if I am to protect Lady Renner!"
"That has nothing to do with me."
Even if Lakyus, the leader of Blue Roses, was friends with Renner, that had nothing to do with Evil Eye. And Climb wasn't weak. As an adventurer he'd probably be Gold-class. Of course, there were people far above and far below him, but according to Gagaran, he trained brutally every single day. Even so, he didn't improve—meaning Climb had reached his growth limit. In this world, only those who possessed the ticket called "talent" could climb upward.
If anyone broke that limit, they deserved more than respect; they deserved worship. As far as Evil Eye knew, such people were few enough to count on one hand.
"Hey, Evil Eye. Don't be like that. Can't you at least take a look once?"
"Gagaran, you meddle too much in people's business. You'll die young."
"Ohh, so you will do it?"
The sarcasm didn't work.
With a small click of her tongue, Evil Eye pulled a sheet of paper from her inner pocket and handed it to Climb. He stared at it blankly.
"Focus on that sheet. Imagine that everything in the world is contained within it. Feel it. If there's a result, I'll teach you something."
"Yes!!"
Climb shouted and concentrated on the paper.
What she had given him was a magical aptitude sheet. Not expensive, but the method to create it was now lost. Perhaps it could still be found in elven settlements, but in general, it was hard to come by. Focusing on it allowed one to roughly gauge their potential for magic. It wasn't absolute—even failure didn't mean it was impossible. But the probability was overwhelmingly high. In most cases, no reaction meant no talent.
"…Hmm."
When nothing happened even after three minutes, Evil Eye snatched the paper back.
"It's over. You have no talent. Give up."
"Urk…!"
"Still, I'll give you advice. If you can't cast magic, then learn about magic. Even just knowing spells up to the Third Tier will reduce the blood you shed. It might even save your life one day. Study everything—spells everyone knows, and spells nobody knows. If the kingdom's books aren't enough, get books from other nations. If someone with no talent wants to grow stronger, that's what they must do."
"T-That's not the same as becoming stronger."
"How foolish. Knowledge is the strongest power of all. Accumulating knowledge is becoming stronger. Even this muscle-headed idiot knows almost all spells up to the Third Tier."
At that, Climb shut his mouth. Evil Eye sighed.
"I won't tell you to give up just because you lack talent. There are truly idiotic people out there who break through their growth limits. If you really want to become stronger, then fight on the battlefield until you're on death's doorstep. Maybe then you'll grow. But I hope no one will be sad if you die."
"Sir Kaiser once told me something similar. I realized then that strong people truly see differently."
"Hm? Kaiser…? You met Kaiser? Short, white hair, black eyes?"
"Ah, yes… We just sparred lightly."
Evil Eye looked at Climb.
Kaiser was also someone who had broken through his growth limit—but he had innate talent from the beginning. He and Climb were not the same. Yet Evil Eye believed breaking limits was not solely about talent—fate and miracles played a larger part.
Tapping the table lightly, she spoke.
"I can't teach you magic directly, but when I have time, I'll teach you my magic knowledge. That much, I can do."
"...!! Th-Thank you! Lady Evil Eye!!"
"Ohh, that's great! Virgin! You're tiny, but your knowledge is sharper than anyone in the kingdom! Opportunities to learn from her don't come often! Thank me!"
"Th-Thank you, Miss Gagaran!"
"I'm the one teaching you… Haa. And identify your weaknesses. Not knowing your own weakness is the height of stupidity."
"Yes, ma'am!"
With that, Climb left energetically. Evil Eye sighed, already feeling the annoyance he would cause. She hadn't intended to help him this much… but in the end, she decided she would. She didn't know how strong Climb could become—but if he truly broke through his limit, she would apologize and acknowledge him. Until then, she would happily keep calling him "kid."
"But weaknesses, huh… I wonder if that Kaiser guy has one."
"He does. You are his weakness, Gagaran."
"What? What do you mean? Not in that way, right?!"
"What do you mean 'that way'…? Sigh. Kaiser's weakness is humans."
"Humans?"
"Most of his techniques are designed to hunt heteromorphs and demi-humans. Well, considering the job he's held for centuries, it's only natural. Because of that, he's comparatively vulnerable when fighting humans."
"I-I see…"
Gagaran muttered in surprise. The idea that the seemingly invincible Kaiser had a weakness shocked her. She still couldn't forget that divine martial technique that obliterated Troll Road and countless trolls. Even now, the memory remained vivid. She had been training harder than ever, but no matter how much she pushed herself, she couldn't imagine reaching that level.
"Well, he's not foolish enough to leave that weakness unattended. Besides, only someone who's reached a similar realm would even be able to identify that as a weakness. If the difference in strength is overwhelming, then a weakness has no meaning at all."
"True… he's that strong. Even Gazef, and even our leader, wouldn't be able to do a thing against him."
"And this isn't a weakness, but—he has a curse. One that can basically never be undone. A curse that affects the soul, or the very concept of existence."
"Huh. And… what is it?"
"…Sorry, but I can't talk about that without Kaiser's permission."
"Well, it would be like exposing his weakness. Should I ask him when I meet him later? Or… would that be rude?"
"No idea."
Evil Eye recalled the curse placed on Kaiser.
It was a curse of resurrection denial.
Kaiser could never be revived by resurrection magic. Even a spell beyond the Tenth Tier would fail.
Conversely, Kaiser himself could not use resurrection-type magic, nor could he possess items related to resurrection. She remembered long ago—when Kaiser had merely touched a resurrection item she had risked her life to acquire, the item burned to ash instantly.
Thinking back, it was a deeply infuriating memory.
"Well, anyway… where do you think Kaiser is now?"
"No clue. He said he was training a disciple. Or maybe he's off fighting something again."
"He doesn't look like someone who enjoys fighting."
"He enjoys it plenty. He just holds back because he's a Guardian. And Kaiser, you know…"
Evil Eye sighed as if lamenting the foolishness of fate.
"…He attracts battles."
....
The Slane Theocracy was in an uproar.
Usually it was lively, but never chaotic. Yet today, chaos filled the air. From atop a tower, Zesshi looked down at the village below, puzzled.
She had wanted to take a stroll, since it had been a while since she'd gone outside. Nigun, standing behind her, seemed troubled about upcoming reports and responsibilities, but Zesshi didn't care in the slightest. Let him worry. She wasn't planning to leave him behind—although she had considered it. But that expression of his, as if he'd commit suicide if she left him, forced her to drag him along. It was annoying, yes… but he wasn't a bad guy.
Sometimes teasing him was fun, and talking with him made for good company.
In conclusion, Zesshi quite liked Nigun.
And so the former member of the Sunlight Scripture had become her subordinate—her "attendant," in name and duty.
"L-Lady Zesshi! We can't go any farther! I'm begging you!"
"Quiet. More importantly, why is this place so noisy?"
"Huh? Ah, one of the God-kin trainees escaped."
"A trainee? The First Seat guy?"
"No, not him."
The Theocracy housed three "God-kin."
Beings who inherited the blood of players—beings beyond humanity's limits.
The strongest of them stood here now: Zesshi Zetsumei.
Below her was the First Seat, a man.
And lastly, there had once been the Second Seat—stronger than the First Seat, but so unstable and violent that he had been sealed away. They had succeeded only by using Zesshi herself to restrain him.
"Oh, that brat… the one whose puberty came late. If it's him, then of course he could escape whenever he wanted. Just the fact that he held himself back until now shows remarkable patience."
"And now the entire Theocracy is in chaos. If he'd just escaped, that would be one thing… but he smashed the statue of the Great Six Gods on his way out, s-so…"
"How delightful."
"It's absolutely not delightful!"
Nigun, full of devout faith, reacted completely differently than Zesshi, who had none. Nigun's stomach churned painfully.
She might be incredible, sure—but this is too much!
She's completely out of control! She attacks me randomly, disappears whenever she feels like it… She's absolutely enjoying teasing me.
How did my life end up like this!?
Nigun held back the urge to vomit as he tried to persuade her.
Right now they could still return quietly and pretend nothing had happened. Everything Zesshi did was reported—and every time she caused trouble, he was the one punished. Ever since becoming her attendant, Nigun had been scolded far more than during his entire time as a soldier. The stress was unbearable; his stomach aches never faded.
"We really should go back. Your existence is classified! If anything happened to you—what would we do!?"
"If something happened to me here, that would mean the Theocracy is on the brink of destruction."
Don't say something so logical!!
Nigun almost shouted it out loud. His patience, which he had discovered only after being assigned to Zesshi, was truly being tested.
"Anyway… I'm bored. Let's go back."
"Ohhh, thank the Gods. Then let's—"
She was actually going back.
Good. If they hurried, they could keep her outing a secret. Nigun didn't want any more stress. And yet—Zesshi was the one who carried the strongest blood of the Six Gods, the Theocracy's ultimate warrior, humanity's guardian.
Humanity's guardian.
The phrase made Nigun think of Kaiser again. A chill ran down his back. That terror still hadn't left him.
He just wanted to go home and rest.
But then—
THOOM!!
Zesshi leapt downward, smashing through the roof of a building.
Nigun stood frozen, mouth open.
It took several seconds for him to understand what had happened: Zesshi had charged forward, destroyed a building, and assaulted someone.
Clutching his head like it might split apart, he screamed:
"YOU DAMNED WOMAN!!!"
Whether she heard him or not didn't matter. He had no choice but to scream.
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