Some people might tilt their heads in doubt if I said this, but I consider myself a responsible person.
Of course, if a terrorist attack breaks out and people start dying, that’s none of my concern.
I have neither the position nor the ability to take responsibility for something like that.
However, if someone says that the attack happened because of me, then I can’t help but feel responsible.
That’s probably why I’m going through all this trouble right now.
And since I’ve already decided to set a trap for Loki, I needed to leave the safety of the Cradle and head somewhere deserted.
“What about me, then?”
That’s why I came to the ruins where Tillis lived.
“Saintess, you’re perfectly capable of taking care of yourself. And besides, you’re the only one I can trust.”
“I see. Well, I am pretty amazing, aren’t I? Ahem.”
Now that I’ve confirmed she’s far more empty-headed than I expected, I’ve decided I can easily manipulate her to do as I want.
“So, it’s fine if I kill anyone who comes here?”
“Let’s limit it to self-defense.”
“And why should I go out of my way to do that?”
“Do you know the saying ‘fishing in troubled waters’?”
“Don’t use difficult words.”
“Ah, I was just about to explain… Anyway, it means taking advantage of others while they’re fighting. In other words, the less you do, the more you stand to gain.”
“I see! So that means I can kill everyone who comes here, right?”
“You’re jumping to conclusions, Saintess.”
It took me three whole hours to get Tillis to understand.
Good thing I came early to explain.
Once we’d more or less settled the matter, I sipped the tea Tillis had brewed for me while waiting for Loki.
“By the way, Johan, what’s that?”
“Oh, this?”
Was it because she was bored during the wait?
For once, Tillis seemed curious about the sword I was carrying.
She had a good eye. She must have noticed that it was different from the weapon I usually carried.
From the start, I’ve never had much combat ability, so I’ve rarely met anyone who pays attention to my choice of weapons.
Other than Emily’s magic engineering equipment, most of my gear was disposable.
Even my swords. After a single fight, the blades chip or break, so I usually just buy ready-made ones off the shelf.
This one was store-bought too, but…
“This is a newly developed weapon recently reported to the academy. If you look here…”
I slid the blade slightly from its sheath to show Tillis.
“It has eyes? How cute.”
“…Does it?”
It was a chimera, synthesized by Senior Jabir through bio-alchemy.
If you want to survive, you can’t be picky about your methods.
“And thus, I am born! Mephisto—”
“Shut it, already.”
I pulled out the Book of Lemegeton, which I’d kept hidden in my coat, and tossed it aside.
Keep that up and I’ll leave you here.
You can just stay with the Judge and live together. I’ll be on my way.
“Please be kind to the spirit.”
And of course, Tillis picked it up and handed it back to me.
She even dusted it off first.
I really hate this.
“Yuna, instead of hanging from the ceiling, why don’t you join us for some tea?”
Thud!
Something dropped from the ceiling at Tillis’s words.
“Ugh.”
“What, you’ve been following me?”
“If I don’t protect you, Johan, who will?”
“Her Highness will be here any minute, you know?”
“I’m not exactly weaker than Her Highness.”
“In fighting power maybe. But in abilities? You’re crushed like a bug.”
“Well… nothing I can do about that.”
I had brought Lobelia along as a bodyguard, using the recent incident as an excuse.
To be exact, it was to prepare for when Loki showed up.
Still, maybe because she knew she’d done something wrong, she obediently followed my orders.
“Taking down Loki isn’t the problem. Honestly, if I struck at the right moment, I think I could beat him.”
That’s not true.”
“That’s not true, Johan. You’re not at that level, so don’t flatter yourself.”
“…It’s just a figure of speech.”
Fine, I’ll admit it.
It’s simply impossible for me to beat Loki, even by a narrow margin.
A real shame, that.
Anyway, the point wasn’t about who was stronger.
“In any case, we need Her Highness there so we have a legitimate reason to act against a member of the imperial family.”
Let’s say, by some miracle, I did defeat Loki.
Then what?
No matter how I justify it, I’d just be an imperial assassin in everyone’s eyes.
That’s why I need Lobelia as both a witness and an accomplice.
“Got it?”
“Really? Wouldn’t it be easier to just get rid of him without anyone knowing?”
“Exactly.”
“You two are terrifying.”
That’s the mindset of a criminal, through and through.
As a virtuous man like myself, even imagining it sends chills down my spine.
“By the way, Yuna.”
“Hmm?”
“Why are you still lying there?”
“Well, uh… ngh…”
Like someone suffering from sensory disruption, she flailed on the floor for a while before going limp.
For a moment, I wondered if Tillis had done something to her, but she only tilted her head as if she was just as puzzled.
“Spit it out. What did you do?”
“Ehh, it’s a secret.”
“Do secrets even exist between us?”
“You kept your special ability a secret from me too, Johan.”
“Judging by how you’re talking, Yuna… you’ve awakened your ability, haven’t you?”
“…Oh.”
At first, I wasn’t sure what was going on, but when she mentioned an awakened ability as an example, I understood.
That’s exactly how Yuna looks right now.
She was feeling the same kind of disconnection people experience when they’ve just awakened their ability.
If that sense of disconnection reaches its peak, it turns into transcendence syndrome; if you get used to it, it means you’ve successfully awakened your ability.
And if you can completely internalize that peak-level disconnection, you become an Archmage.
“You managed to follow me around in that state? Or… did you awaken your ability just now? But that’s way too sudden, isn’t it?”
“Puhihi…”
“What did you do? Be honest.”
“Uee… aiaaa…”
I grabbed Yuna’s cheeks and pulled them this way and that as she lay sprawled on the floor, tormenting her.
You little… you little! You’ve been bullying me all this time just because you’re strong, haven’t you?!
“So? What is it?”
“The ability to copy.”
“What’s that? What does it do?”
“It’s the ability to copy magic or other abilities and use them as your own.”
“You’re walking around with a ridiculously dangerous ability, you ticking time bomb.”
There were probably a number of limitations, but even just being able to copy another person’s ability opens up limitless possibilities.
More than that, her very existence was a threat.
“So right now, you…”
Since Yuna wouldn’t have just collapsed for no reason, she must be using an ability.
So, what did she copy?
Tillis’s ability Charm wasn’t anything special, so it wouldn’t have knocked her down like this.
“Did you copy my Thought Splitting?”
“Mhmm! It seemed useful! And I wanted to figure out the limits of my ability too!”
“And that’s why you ended up like this?”
“Johan, I see you in a whole new light now. How have you been using something like this? And for over ten years at that…!”
“I’m just that good.”
“Mhmm! Mhmm! You’re amazing.”
“Flattery won’t save you from me being mad at you, you know. You little brat.”
“Aaaghhh!”
For a while, I was able to torment the utterly helpless Yuna to my heart’s content.
***
In the end, Yuna gave up on using Thought Splitting. She clutched her head and kept clinging to me miserably.
“I’m never copying Thought Splitting again. This headache is no joke.”
“Well, I’m glad it turned into a good lesson for you, Yuna. But why are you clinging to me like you did something praiseworthy? Let go.”
“Heeeng, don’t be mad.”
“I’m going to be.”
She hit the one nerve I can’t stand, so of course I have to get mad.
If I always spoil her like this, Yuna will only get more spoiled.
But…
“Ugh, you’re not letting go.”
“Just because I have a headache doesn’t mean I don’t have strength.”
“…Fine, I give up.”
I’m too weak to discipline Yuna. Even with a headache bad enough to keep her from standing properly, she’s still strong as ever; there’s nothing I can do.
“Johan, what do you think would happen if I copied the Saintess’s ability?”
“Why bother? Even without copying something like that, you’re already…”
“I’m already pretty?”
“Well, yeah. Let’s go with that.”
“Hey, don’t let’s go with that’ me. You honestly think so. Don’t be embarrassed, Johan.”
This brat…
It’s annoying because she’s not wrong. That just makes it worse.
“Uh, sorry to interrupt while you two are busy, but we have a visitor.”
“Which kind?”
“Uh… the kind you can’t kill.”
And who would that be?
I’m pretty sure I told her not to kill anyone.
Only to act in self-defense. So how exactly is she deciding who’s killable and who’s not?
“Saintess, you still have great things to accomplish, so acting on impulse like that isn’t wise.”
“And what exactly are these ‘great things’?”
“…Never mind. Just live your life.”
“That’s what I’m doing.”
The elf Tillis just living her life.
Anyway, I still have no idea who’s here to see us.
But judging by the complete lack of hostility, maybe it’s Lobelia?
Knock, knock.
Right on cue, someone knocked at the door.
Tillis walked lightly to the door and brought in the guest.
“We have a guest.”
“I’m Loki Vicious van Miltonia. A pleasure to meet you, Sir Johan Damus. Or… is this our second meeting? The clown of the Misfits?”
“……”
No, this is not a guest. Why is she just casually bringing him in?
“Ahem.”
What are you smiling about, Tillis?
Even if you puff yourself up like that, I’m not giving you any praise.
***
The target appeared without warning.
I would have liked a little more time to prepare myself, but there’s no helping it.
I’ll just have to act as composed as I can.
“Yuna, take the Saintess somewhere else for a bit.”
“Yes.”
Yuna glanced at Loki, then staggered over to Tillis.
Pulling off the act of a frail patient in just that brief moment….impressive.
With that, she could claim a valid reason for seeking out the Saintess and slip out of suspicion at the same time.
And there’s no way Loki would expect her to pull off a performance like that.
“Please, have a seat, Your Highness. I’ll pour you some tea.”
“Oh, no need. I’m already grateful you’d receive an uninvited guest like me. There’s no need to trouble yourself further. More importantly…”
Loki smirked and took the teapot from my hands.
“As it happens, I have some fine tea leaves with me. Would you care to try them?”
“……”
“Please, don’t refuse. They really are exceptional tea leaves.”
With that, Loki took a neatly wrapped packet of tea leaves from his coat and began making tea right then and there.
By the time the subtle fragrance had filled the small room,
He was calmly pouring tea into my cup.
Watching the thin stream trickle down—trickle, trickle—I couldn’t shake the creeping chill running down my spine.
“Go ahead, Sir Johan. A gift from me.”
“……”
“You wouldn’t refuse a gift from an imperial member, would you?”
“…Of course not.”
There was no way out of this one.
Since there was no escaping the situation, I resigned myself and drank the tea Loki had poured for me.
“It has a nice aroma.”
“I’m glad to see you enjoying it.”
Loki smiled softly.
Then, in the next instant, his eyes turned serpent-like as he fixed his gaze on me.
“Judging by how you drink without hesitation, I’d say you have an antidote on you.”
“……”
“So the rumors must be true.”
Was he trying to test me?
Not that it was particularly surprising.
From the start, Loki has always enjoyed cornering others into unavoidable choices.
Whether I drank the tea or refused, Loki would have gotten something out of it.
I can only wonder how many more traps like this he has prepared…
“Yes, that’s right. If you’d like, I can give you one. Since you’re imperial members, I’ll even give you a discount.”
“Haha…”
A crack formed in Loki’s smiling façade.
Like a mask shattering, a menacing gleam filled his eyes.
Watching him, Yuna’s earlier words came to mind.
No matter how clever or cunning he might be…
“You’re not exactly a master of the poker face. If the Prophet were still alive, what would you have done then?”
Are you really as smart as Kult?
“And you act as if you’ve got more than one life to lose.”
Crack!
At Loki’s words, everything around us began to freeze.
If Lobelia’s specialty was barehanded combat, Loki’s was magic.
And among magic, his specialty was ice magic. The kind that—
“Fenrir.”
One of the highest-grade spells, passed down only through the imperial family.
“Cut off just the arms and legs to make them easier to transport. Freeze the stumps so they don’t lose too much blood.”
What a crude method.
Maybe it’s because he’s an imperial member who uses his power to the fullest viciously that he doesn’t even bother thinking about the aftermath.
“Be careful.”
Unlike Loki, I had to consider what comes after and a dozen other things, but that doesn’t mean I’m going to just sit here and take it.
I’ve got my own ways of dealing with him prepared.
“My sword… has eyes.”
The moment I drew my sword, the chimera began to open its eyes.
“You see.”
“…What kind of cursed sword are you even carrying around?”
Despite the situation, a thought occurred to me.
“Exactly.”
At least Loki still has a proper sense of sentiment.
For a while there, I thought I was the strange one, since no one else ever said anything about this sword.
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