Act 6: Chapter 13: Declaration of War
「You may not understand, but whims are part and parcel of those who live through the ages such as a lich. I intended to return to my life of seclusion after Kanata had left… But, after he left, I felt strong magical power from outside by some sort of coincidence, thus I ventured out to investigate it. The spider demon lord might cause quite a stir among you humans.」
Lunaire explained to Pomera and co with a cold, flat tone.
「… I see.」
Rosemonde nodded as she said so.
Since no one made any unnecessary remarks and the silence remained, she threw an appropriate response to Lunaire's story.
「During such whim, I accidentally discovered that some people seemed to be tailing Kanata. Being the cold and cruel lich I am, I don't really care about what they're trying to do, but they seem to be wreaking havoc in the world, doing whatever they want. Thus, I decided to raid their base since I happened to have some free time on my hands.」
「I see, I think I get the gist of the situation.」
Rosemonde spoke while nodding again.
As expected, Rosemonde was truly kind. This had already been the seventh time Lunaire retook this step; it might have taken twice as long without Rosemonde's assistance.
「ThAt’S A BiT ToO OfTeN To Be ReGardEd as A LicH’s WhI—」「Please be quiet for the time being, Noble.」
I quickly pinned down Noble Mimic’s lids to prevent them from spouting another nonsense.
The reason for half of the retakes was Noble, after all.
「Uhm… What will happen, Kanata-san? The white-masked person is like the boss of our enemy, right? The underling of a higher being? Does that mean we’re already safe?」
Pomera asked me.
「It does feel anti-climactic, but Veranta and co must be the culprits behind most calamities around the world… I don’t think they can do anything at this point.」
My original plan was to find Lunaire first to tell her about Veranta and his 《Invisible Hand of God》, yet I had never expected that she had already resolved that problem even before I told her. As expected of Lunaire, she was in a league of her own.
At that moment, I heard a voice resound from inside the lid of Noble Mimic that I pressed down.
「Fools… Do you really think you can get away with this? You guys didn’t brush the spark. You just opened the gate leading to hell that will engulf the entire Locklore. The die has been cast… There’s no going back now.」
Everyone’s attention instantly focused on Noble Mimic.
When I let go of Noble Mimic, their lids opened wide immediately. And Veranta, bound by rope, popped out from within.
「My sole purpose is to ensure the survival of Locklore, which I love so much… And yet, your reckless actions have ruined everything. You don’t even know what you’re doing, its consequence, and its meaning. In my opinion, your actions are nothing but vile and childish wickedness.」
「VERANTA!」
「Of all things, you choose to drag Locklore along with its entire history down into destruction along with you. Well… I know that this might sound like a loser’s wail. It’s obvious that if powerful humans continue to go on rampages, Locklore will eventually perish. Our organization exists to prevent such situations… Yet, I failed to fulfill my role. The fate of Locklore now lies in the hands of immature minds and mundane affection. The reins have already slipped out of my grasp. Make sure to choose wisely so that you won’t regret it.」
Even though he just said something serious, I really couldn’t bring myself to take it seriously—not when he said so with only his head popping out from Noble Mimic…
「… Noble, can you spit out this person?」
「He’S SomEoNe YoU Can’T TaKe YoUr EyEs OfF SinCe WE NEVER knOw WhAT He’S GoiNg To HaPPen. ThiS iS ThE SaFEst WaY.」
Noble shook their head.
「This man… Veranta is hiding a really strange item. Noble has strong resistance to magic, and their body itself is another dimension. In short, it’s like a powerful barrier. That’s why it’s the safest place to contain a dangerous individual.」 ŘÀＮô𐌱Ɛṣ
「I see…」
… It couldn’t be helped then.
We couldn’t let him out.
Regardless of his beliefs, he’s still the mastermind behind most calamities that happened in this world.
And he might have some sort of trump card.
「It’s easier said than done. We’re nothing more than the pawns of the higher being, but why do you think we’re willing to become the masterminds? It’s not like we’ve been present since the creation of Locklore either. It’s not rare for people like us to join the 《Invisible Hand of God》. The true governor of this world is the higher being who controls the 《Invisible Hand of God》.」
Veranta continued.
「The only reason the higher being keeps Locklore functioning is to make this world a source of entertainment, thus, they’re merely being lenient. We, the 《Invisible Hand of God》, are tools for that purpose. However, now that it’s come to this… The higher being will pull out all the stops. They’ll use all kinds of methods to erase you, Kanata, Lunaire, and the rest of you. They can’t be stopped. This will continue until this world is destroyed. You should at least consider that possibility after cornering the higher existence to this extent.」
「…」
Veranta did give such warnings when we met before.
If the higher existence was growing bored of Locklore, then the entire world was going to be erased just like that.
My only choice was to fight till the bitter end or get killed obediently.
I had no other option but to act with some hope that the higher being might show leniency.
「I know. The higher being will use every single piece of this world to try to kill you without reservation. Are you prepared to turn the entire Locklore into a living hell?」
「I…」
I was at a loss for words.
Did I do the right thing by resisting the higher being?
There was no doubt that the higher being was merciless.
However, the continuation of Locklore depended on them.
「I’m with him.」
Lunaire spoke to Veranta.
「Veranta… By the time I found out about you and your group, I was prepared to stand with Kanata even if it meant making enemies of the entire world. If there are those who wreak havoc in this world, then they’re my enemies as well. There’s no reason to go easy on them.」
Lunaire’s tone shifted to a serious one, contrasting with her previous unreliable tone as she spoke to Veranta.
「Rather, are you really going to surrender to them, Kanata? Those people are targeting me as well, right? Since you said you love me, you should take responsibility and protect me. Otherwise, I’ll be in trouble.」
「Lunaire-san…」
She might be trying to cheer me up.
There was no sign of embarrassment; she spoke directly, looking straight into my eyes.
「That’s a foolish answer. In the end, you’ll only drag everyone down with you into an abyss of despair…」
Veranta heaved a sigh as he shook his head.
「Why are you taking the side of the higher being who’s trampling on this world despite claiming that you love Locklore?」
「Do you really think you have a chance to beat them, lich girl? They manage countless worlds for their amusement, literally beings from another dimension. We cannot even fathom the bottom of their strength.」
「Why do you think we have no chance even though you said that you have no idea what the other party can do?」
「Wha–!」
Veranta was taken aback by Lunaire’s remark and fell into silence for a while after that.
「You madman… You have no idea just how reckless you are. Hah, to think that Locklore’s fate falls into these naive folks.」
After a brief pause, Veranta spat those words as if to vent.
「Reckless and not worth it—that’s an interesting remark you’ve got there. The world is filled with irreplaceable things. There must be something important for you among the things you discarded in exchange for peace, Veranta. If you don’t even understand that, it only means you never truly loved someone.」
「…」
Veranta looked dumbfounded upon hearing Lunaire's reply.
Considering Veranta's previous actions and words, it seemed that he was genuinely driven by a single-minded desire to ensure the survival of Locklore.
Moreover, he definitely couldn't ignore the weight of the lives lost by his machinations up until this point to fulfill his goal.
The man himself might have long since realized the truth in Lunaire’s words.
「Hahahahaha… I really am no match for her…」
Pomera let out a wry laugh as she glanced at Lunaire.
「Let's do it… Kanata-san. I have no idea how strong this so-called higher being is… But it's exactly for that reason Pomera thinks it's worth a challenge. Let's kick their ass!」
「Sorry for showing such an ugly side. Thank you for your encouragement… Lunaire-san, Pomera-san.」
Yes… I just realized that if I gave up now, Lunaire would undoubtedly become the next target.
I had no idea if this was the correct choice or not.
However, even if the fate of the entire world was put on the scale, I refused to give up knowing the person I loved would become the next target.
「I've made up my mind as well. Since we've come this far, if the higher being descends to this world, then we’ll beat him up and send him back to where he came from!」
I squinted my eyes as I made this declaration.
Nyarlhotep, spying from the higher dimension, must’ve seen and heard my declaration too.
At this point, I still had no idea what they were going to do.
However, I’ll give my everything to protect those dear to me.
===My first CN project, why waifu though? Well, coz the main heroine's job is buying soy sauce till the end of act 1
New Project:
Harem, Hero, Demon King, Seven Deadly Sin, Seven Virtue, Sacred Beast, Sword and Magic, Dystopian Future, DESTINY PROJECT HAD IT REALIZED!, Dungeon, Dragon, 72 Demons, Reincarnations
===TN: Those Who Can't Wait For more Jil-kun's, I've Uploaded Advance chapters in Fox<–HERE and in PATREON(cheaper 10/$10) with a paywall of course===
More and Cheaper(10/$10) Advance Chapter :
(~’.’)~Support Me With Ko-Fi~(‘.’~)