#260
Hide-and-Seek (2)
The Oath of Defiance.
His bad blood with them went all the way back to the very first day he entered Auterica.
By sheer coincidence, the first village Hans visited after setting foot in another world was their secret base.
And it happened to be at the exact moment they were in the midst of maturing that ‘Fragment of the Immortal King.’
‘Of course, that ended up being a blessing in disguise for me.’
Even after their first encounter, Hans continued to clash with those Oath of Defiance bastards over one matter or another.
From the incident in which he rescued the elf Cecily in the northern mountain range to the recent Obaifo Clan crisis in the Republic.
‘I dealt with most of those incidents, but... They were a thorough alliance of clandestine cells, so rooting out everyone connected to them was no easy task.’
Hans quietly stroked his chin as he gazed at the small piece of metal floating before him.
This was a small clue discovered at the site where the Gate of the Abyss had been opened—the greatest of all the schemes they had carried out.
It appeared to be a fragment of the slender chain used as the cord of a necklace.
[Heh— yes, his name was Termal Gadias, was it not?]
The man who had offered up everything he possessed as payment and ultimately opened the Abyss, becoming a host of madness.
Naturally, the investigation into him had already been completed long ago.
As soon as he obtained information through Grand Chieftain Baltheon, the one who had orchestrated the incident in the south, he had mobilized every information organization at his disposal.
‘His circumstances are certainly pitiful, but...’
Through that investigation, Hans had also been able to roughly guess why he had opened the Gate of the Abyss and plotted the destruction of the continent.
Were there not countless people who, after losing something precious in some incident, came to resent the world?
The only difference was that he happened to possess the ability to truly threaten the world—and actually put it into practice.
‘A victim who became a perpetrator. Now that I think about it, I wonder if the tragedy that befell him wasn’t also a scheme arranged by the Oath of Defiance.’
Was approaching and corrupting capable people after casting them into the pit of despair not also a specialty of evil forces?
Of course, now that everything was over, such speculation was utterly meaningless.
‘In any case, what matters now is—’
He had become a host of madness, the host of madness had been taken away by a man called the Revolutionary, and Hans could determine the location of that host through the medium.
The location of the Revolutionary, whose trail he had pursued for a very long time, yet had ultimately been unable to discover.
Vrrrrr—
Hans, who had been staring at the faintly vibrating piece of metal, put it away once more and stepped out of the laboratory.
All the preparations were complete. Now he intended to begin the ritual to track the bastard as quickly as possible, while preparing thoroughly and hunting him down with certainty so that haste would not ruin everything.
There was no telling what sort of scheme that troublesome bastard might have set in motion this time.
[Have you emerged... my king...? This girl, Olivia... comes to pay her respects to the great Immortal King...]
As he stepped outside, Banshee Queen Olivia appeared before him with a faint rustle and prostrated herself.
He had not called for her in advance, but the moment she sensed something unusual within the Immortal Castle, she seemed to have dropped everything and rushed over.
Her actions were worthy of his right hand.
[Yes. You came at just the right time, Olivia.]
[Command me in anything... This girl shall devote her life to carrying out your will, my king...]
Come to think of it, the pursuit had lasted far longer than he had expected.
With multiple information organizations under his command, he had assumed that finding the bastard would not take this long, now that he could look down upon the information of this world at a glance.
‘You have to give credit where it’s due. That bastard really is something.’
But there was no game in this world that could continue forever.
He had begun to grow tired of it, so it was time to bring things to an end.
[Summon all the executives.]
Of course, Hans had no declaration of surrender such as ‘I give up, I can’t find him’ in his vocabulary.
This was not a game of hide-and-seek. It was a hunt that would end only when one side or the other died.
Hans had arbitrarily transformed a game enjoyed by children across all dimensions into a death match.
***
At last, an official proclamation was issued from the imperial court of the Azerion Empire.
It was the announcement that most people had anticipated and been waiting for.
Riley would be appointed Crown Princess in place of Simon.
“Hm... Well, it was about time the imperial family made things official. The board has been turned upside down this thoroughly. They can’t keep waiting for His Highness Prince Simon forever.”
“Hahahah! Long live Her Highness Riley Karte Azerion, Crown Princess!”
“In practical terms, we should consider the succession struggle over. My, this is difficult to say whether it was unexpected or exactly what we expected.”
Since the tide had shifted long ago, there was little backlash.
Above all, the House of Duke Hermanhart—the greatest ally of Simon and the force behind the attack on Riley—was too occupied with responding to her counterattack to do anything else.
Although there had been no all-out war, covert conflict had continued without pause, leaving them too busy devoting all their strength to preserving their house.
“I’d like to give Viscount Isea Pristine—or should I say, Count Pristine—a gift, but what would be the best way? He happens to be serving in the death squad... Should I have it delivered to his residence in the capital for now?”
“However I look at it, the best option is to establish a connection through Count Pristine. ...Hm? Wait, perhaps we should take this opportunity to approach the lover Her Highness the Crown Princess brought into the imperial palace in advance...?”
As an added development, Isea had also been promoted from viscount to count, but the other nobles took that in stride.
In truth, she had remained a viscount only because, back when Riley had no power, Isea had lacked both achievements and influence under her command. Everyone knew that she would not remain in that position forever.
And she likely would not stop at count, either.
If she safely returned from the final battle against the Immortal King, her standing would be great enough that even the title of marquis would be insufficient. After Crown Princess Riley inherited the throne, Isea would undoubtedly rise smoothly to the rank of duke.
It was only natural that the nobles would strive to establish ties with her.
Of course, that would only happen if she did not return to Earth.
And then.
While the situation in the Empire was being thrown into turmoil amid such confusion,
another great faction, the Main God Church, was facing changes even more drastic.
“...Lady Riesta, are you all right?”
“Ah... That... Yes.”
Heinrich cautiously called out to Saintess Riesta with a worried expression, but she merely gave an indistinct reply, as though her mind had already wandered elsewhere.
Her usually lively face was deathly pale, while the corners of her mouth and eyes kept twitching.
“We’ll arrive at the temple soon. I already asked them to prepare a gate in advance, so we should be able to depart immediately.”
“...But will everything really be all right? Even if we leave our posts like this...”
“The remaining areas can respond on their own even without us. It has been quite some time since a giant last appeared, too. If one does appear, we can simply depart then, can’t we?”
“Th... That’s right... Yes...”
Her response was vacant, utterly unlike her usual decisive self.
As Heinrich led their companions across the city, the group following quietly behind them, he glanced at her.
To be honest, it felt strange to see her so flustered. This was the first time he had ever seen her like this.
She had not even reacted this way when the Immortal King had become involved...
‘Well, I suppose she has every reason to.’
He nodded as he recalled the message from the Church that had reached them while they were away.
Considering the repercussions contained within it, such a reaction was entirely natural.
That was because the message was—
an urgent notice that the current Pope, Hatianus II, was nearing the end of his life.
‘There must have already been several signs... As expected, His Holiness the Pope must have deliberately ordered them not to inform us.’
He must have been worried that those outside would be needlessly concerned.
Then, only when it truly became the final moment, one of the attendants who had remained by the Pope’s side must have contacted them.
“We have been waiting for you. This way, please.”
“We’ll activate the gate immediately.”
To Riesta, everyone in the Grand Temple was like family, but as someone who had been adopted by the current Pope and brought into the Church at a young age, he inevitably held a particularly special meaning for her.
He was nothing less than the first true family she had ever had after growing up in an orphanage.
“Welcome. Saintess, Saint. His Holiness is waiting for you.”
“Please come this way, everyone. We’ll guide you to a place where you can rest.”
Heinrich also knew that whenever Riesta was at the Rosselia Grand Temple, she visited the Pope every day despite her busy schedule.
She might give up going to the garden she loved so much, but she had never missed that routine even once.
‘Unlike me, who only occasionally asked after his health. Come to think of it, it’s been a very long time since I last saw him. Was it at the summit meeting?’
Of course, he had the excuse that he had been busy traveling outside as part of the Hero’s party, but he could not help feeling a slight pang of guilt.
“Grandfather!”
“Heh heh heh, what’s so important that you’ve rushed in like this? I thought you were old enough to get married by now, but you’re still just a child.”
“Grandfatherrr...”
Riesta rushed toward the Pope, who had raised his upper body from the bed, and threw her arms around him.
After greeting him, Heinrich stood quietly to the side and waited as he watched them.
He would have liked to excuse himself while the two of them caught up, but for some reason, the Pope himself had asked him to wait.
Their serious conversation could begin only after Riesta had finally calmed down and settled herself.
“Ahem. I’m afraid I’ve been rude, having kept the Saint waiting.”
“It’s all right. It’s an honor to witness the bond the two of you have built over the years.”
“Heh heh heh. Thank you for saying so.”
The Pope looked so healthy that it was difficult to believe he had little time left, but Heinrich could sense it clearly.
The last remnants of life within his body were burning with brilliant intensity.
Riesta had apparently noticed the same thing, for the hand tightly clasping the Pope’s trembled faintly.
“I summoned the Saint because there is something I must tell you before the end.”
“Something you must tell me...?”
Heinrich’s expression grew serious.
There was no need to ask who the subject of the Pope’s final words would be.
The Pope nodded heavily, then slowly opened his mouth.
***
Ba-dump— Ba-dump—
In the border region of the Abyss, where chaos and emptiness mingled, the sound of a violent heartbeat rang out.
Of course, the sound was soon scattered in every direction by the distortions in space and vanished, but its presence remained, slowly encroaching upon the surroundings.
“Ahh— my lord.”
A single word leaked from the very center, seeming as though it might go out at any moment.
It was so distorted and broken that one might doubt whether it was truly a human voice, yet the madness and fanaticism filling it were so overwhelming that merely hearing them was enough to drive the listener insane.
‘My death is approaching.’
The being, who had pricked up both ears and listened to the sounds of the world, let out a quiet lament.
There was not much time left.
The cause of the unknown death that had slowly drawn near, forcing him to make an extreme choice, had finally taken complete shape and was closing in around him.
‘But I cannot let it end here.’
Even if he himself were to perish here... he had a duty to sow seeds for the ‘self’ of the next generation.
Just as he had been able to carry out his work with ease because he had inherited the will of the previous generation after becoming His Excellency’s apostle.
‘It is regrettable that I will not be the one to see it through, but it cannot be helped. I shall gladly allow this body to become fertilizer so that the next one may properly take root.’
Twitch— Twitch—
His body, fused with the seed of madness, continued to jerk.
It was a phenomenon caused by the new body not yet having stabilized properly.
He had sensed death and hurried as much as possible, yet it was still in this state.
‘Faster. Properly. Completely.’
Just as he was consumed by obsession and struggling to control his body—
Splat—
Something rising from the depths of the Abyss collided with his body.
[———!]
The being slowly turned his head.
What entered his gaze was a familiar existence that had appeared before him many times by now: a humanoid creature with a pure-white body, standing about as tall as his chest.
“Ah, you’re a little late this time. I’ve been waiting.”
Delighted, he eagerly reached out with both hands and seized its shoulders.
And then—
“Come, beneath His Excellency’s grace... you too shall become one with me.”
Crack— Crunch!
His mouth suddenly expanded, and he opened it wide, swallowing the creature’s head whole.
The tragedy occurred in the blink of an eye.
But he merely busied himself chewing, cleanly devouring even the remnants.
When the entire process was over,
he had grown by roughly the length of a finger joint, and his unstable body had also been refined, bringing it another step closer to completion.
Ba-dump— Ba-dump—
Once more, the sound of a violent heartbeat began to echo in every direction.
“...What a pity. Since things have come this far, I wish I had begun sooner, before I was pressed for time. If only the plans had gone properly...”
After letting out a light sigh, he lowered his gaze to look down at his twitching body.
Unlike the filthy creatures of the surface, it was a pure-white body, impossibly clean, smooth, and beautiful.
No matter how he looked at it, this form was the ultimate human—the New Humanity itself.
‘It’s nearly complete...’
Thus, the gestation of the former Revolutionary, founder of the Oath of Defiance—
the current ‘King of Madness’—
was entering its final stages before emerging into the world.