Cherreads

Chapter 45 - Chapter 45: Chapter 45

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Translator: Vine

Chapter Title: Before Leaving (2)

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As I tilted my head, the Emperor fell silent, and the Sword Saint quietly closed his eyes.

The atmosphere grew heavy in an instant.

Feeling that something was wrong, I looked at Derren, my eyes asking for an explanation of the situation.

"...He was murdered."

What?

"Lord Evill was in the underground prison two days ago..."

Derren ran a hand through his hair, explaining what had happened in a trembling voice.

The details were brief.

Evill had been found dead in the underground prison. Mort, who had been confined there, was nowhere to be found.

'Mort broke free of his restraints and escaped on his own?'

It was impossible. The restraints I had used on Mort weren't mere shackles; they were an artifact of absurd power, capable of sealing not just the body, but the very soul imbued with demonic energy.

Even my notoriously picky master had said so. Among the countless precious items scattered throughout his subspace, this particular set of restraints, he unequivocally stated, held the highest value.

As far as I knew, there was only one way for a soul to free itself from an artifact of such incredible power.

'Death or Annihilation.'

So, the answer had to be one of two things:

Mort took his own life, or,

He was murdered by someone.

The possibility of him taking his own life was low. Because if, by some slim chance, Mort had chosen suicide, his body should have been found at the scene, just as Evill's corpse was.

Therefore, the most likely inference was...

'He was killed by someone?'

While it was the most plausible hypothesis, it was also a story difficult to accept.

Even if he was an incomplete being, the fact remained that Mort was still one of the Seven Deadly Sins. Mort could wield the authority of sin, and on top of that, he was a Sword Master who had once been a Hero.

Even if he had been defeated by me, even if he was weakened, he was absolutely not someone who could be easily taken down by just anyone.

'Could it be...'

Suddenly, a hypothesis came to mind.

'Sloth, what if he killed Mort and recovered the body?'

Then it made sense. No, if not that, this situation couldn't be explained by any other hypothesis.

"Your Majesty, if it wouldn't be too rude, may I ask a few questions?"

"...You have my permission."

"As I understand it, the Empire, having lost its starlight, has been shaken by impure beings for quite some time. Is that correct?"

"I wish to deny it, but it is an undeniable truth."

The Emperor answered calmly.

"It must have been an unavoidable situation. Therefore, I ask: Were there any Sins among those impious individuals who shook the Empire?"

The Emperor nodded, and the Sword Saint and Derren fell silent, closing their eyes.

"And among those Sins, was there perhaps the Sin of Sloth?"

"That is correct."

"Sloth, when was the last time that scoundrel appeared?"

"A week and a day ago, that is, the day before you fought the Sin of Wrath."

"...So, his whereabouts are currently unknown."

"That is correct."

"It's an impious question, but... do you have any means of contacting that individual?"

The Emperor shook his head, denying my question, and Derren subtly pinched my arm, conveying that this question was going too far.

I didn't care.

My temper had snapped at how strangely the situation was unfolding, and I continued to rain down a barrage of questions on the Emperor.

"Sloth, that scoundrel. What did he look like?"

I wanted to get something, anything, from the Emperor who had directly faced Sloth.

"I don't know."

"No one knows."

The answers came not from the Emperor, but from the Sword Saint and Derren, and I tilted my head, urging them to explain.

"He appeared in a new form every time."

"Pardon?"

"Just as I said. That scoundrel had no face of his own."

My mind reeled at the incomprehensible answer.

"He would appear in the form of this race, like an orc, or in the form of livestock like a dog or a pig. And that's not all. One day he was my lost daughter, and another day he was my deceased mother. That scoundrel was like a demon... no, he was a demon itself."

The Emperor's grave pronouncement continued.

"The fortunate thing, at least, is that the scoundrel has left this place."

Thud.

An old hand mirror, taken from the Emperor's robes, was placed on the table.

"To flaunt his presence nearby, he forced me to always carry this mirror, and I could not refuse. Because every time I disobeyed his demands, I had to witness with my own eyes or hear clearly with my own ears the deaths of countless citizens.

"..."

"Each time, this mirror was always filled with black. But now, it's just an ordinary mirror. I trust someone as astute as you has understood what I mean."

"So, Sloth, that scoundrel, has left this place."

The Emperor nodded, and I fell silent, lost in thought for a moment.

An unexpected and complex situation, clues like tangled threads, my mind was a mess.

'What if...'

As I was sorting through my thoughts, a preposterous hypothesis suddenly struck me.

'What if Evill was Sloth?'

The story fit perfectly.

"Did Governor Evill have any family?"

The question came out instinctively.

"He had none."

The answer to the question was also immediate.

"..."

My words caught in my throat.

Wow, I truly hadn't expected that.

****

"They say that Sir Lars, and even Mort, the former Hero, were defeated by that child."

The old man, clad in pure white, extravagant holy vestments, was bowing his head deeply to a woman who appeared far younger than himself.

"What should we do? Disguise some Crusaders as assassins and..."

"No, do nothing."

The woman answered calmly and firmly.

"That child has annihilated five Sins. What could mere nobodies like you possibly do against such a child?"

"...However, if that child arrives here... and attempts to act as they did elsewhere... it would put us in a rather difficult situation..."

"Hmph. Our Pope is quite talkative today, aren't we?"

Tap. The woman's slender finger tilted the old man's chin upwards.

"You're wagging your tongue quite a bit today. Unlike your usual self."

"...My, my apologies. I... misspoke."

"Franco. It seems your memory is fading with age, so I'll tell you one more time. The reason I keep you alive and by my side isn't because you're impressive. It's simply because you're obedient."

"...I will bear that in mind."

"Good. That's how my favorite little dog should be."

The woman stroked the Pope's white hair and continued.

"Now, in any case, I should answer your question, shouldn't I? You asked what you should do, yes?"

"...Yes."

"Leave them be. No, welcome them."

She said, a smile playing on her lips.

"The more you do that, the more that child realizes there are no obstacles, the more they will become intoxicated with overconfidence, and eventually forget fear."

"And those who forget fear are bound to lose even more."

"Exactly. That child will pay a very heavy price for their forgetfulness. They will lose the woman they wish to save, lose love, lose trust, and even lose all their friends."

"...It seems you have a good plan."

"Rather than a good plan, it's more accurate to call it a certain plan."

Lust raised her hand and gripped the air. Instantly, a broken sword, discolored black, appeared in her slender hand.

"Just as I did to the saint who wielded the Holy Sword, I will gnaw away at that child, little by little, very little. Why? Because I want to savor that child for a long, long time."

Lust seductively licked her lips and asked the Pope in an excited voice.

"Aren't you excited? To see that child begging and pleading at my feet, shedding tears of blood just like your own brother."

"...Yes."

Pope Franco forced a smile and answered with difficulty, and Lust, watching him, burst into peals of laughter.

****

I thought I was quite good at improvisation, but...

It seemed I was still only human, as it took me quite a long time to sort through my chaotic thoughts.

It was understandable. The unfamiliar situations I encountered for the first time, and the shocking truths that were completely different from what I knew, were more than enough to muddle my mind.

My contemplation continued ceaselessly.

Even when I left Izejith, enjoying the Empire's hospitality,

Even as the journey continued, with landscapes of mountains and rivers, sun and moon changing,

Even until the sight of the Elderath Holy Nation appeared in the distance.

My mind spun ceaselessly.

As a result of pushing my brain to its limits, I finally reached a conclusion just before arriving at the Elderath Holy Nation.

[Dad, what are you thinking about right now?]

To Twit's question, who had a bump on his head, I was able to answer with a smile I hadn't shown in a long time.

"I was thinking I'd just kill them all anyway."

[...Dad, you sound incredibly insane right now.]

I didn't deny it, nodding and grinning.

Because in this world, where it's hard to survive without being crazy, 'madman' was the highest compliment among compliments.

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