Chapter 80: Embers (8)
Selena followed the call and entered the conference room.
Her expression was extremely clear and peaceful.
Selena is the assassin of ‘Cape of Heat’ handled by Hagley. It was her first time here and she showed no signs of embarrassment or nervousness.
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Get down on one knee and lower your posture as always.
“This is Jay. “Did you call me?”
“OK.”
Belphegor quietly looked at Selena.
Selena was wearing the same clothes she wore when she first met Frontier. Since the clothes were designed to seduce men, they exposed a lot of skin and made her body stand out even more. Some of the people sitting at the round table even avoided eye contact for a moment.
Belphegor’s mouth opened as he glanced at Selena as if appreciating it.
“You’re in good shape.”
“… … thank you.”
“I heard that you approached Frontier de Roach. Is this correct?”
“That’s right.”
A businesslike answer with no emotion. In Belphegor’s eyes, this person was young.
“How do you evaluate that man?”
“He is a man who has nothing to evaluate.”
Selena said without hesitation.
The meaning was clear, but Belphegor asked again.
“Tell me exactly. “That one word doesn’t answer everything.”
“sorry.”
Selena bowed her head slightly and then spoke again.
“Frondier is a useless man.”
“Hoo.”
“He may have some unique skills, but his original instincts are wrong and his laziness has not improved. “I quickly become exhausted and fall asleep, unable to accomplish anything except Constell’s mandatory life.”
“From what I heard, I heard you got top grades in your grade?”
Belphegor took a stab at Selena.
Selena spoke again without wavering.
“yes. That was the case before I approached him. Because of that, I honestly had a little bit of expectation, but it was below standard. For me, the fact that he was number one is just questionable. “He probably borrowed kickbacks or cheating.”
“Hmm.”
According to the information Belphegor heard from Hagley.
Frontier was originally ranked last in Constel, but one day he improved his performance. According to the investigation, it was to avoid excommunication.
‘Hargley said he didn’t pass on this information to Selena. ‘I didn’t want to accidentally provoke Frontier, who has an inferiority complex, by talking about the past.’
Therefore, Selena’s answer is natural. She doesn’t know why Frontier was in first place, and she doesn’t know why she looks pitiful even though she’s in first place. The front and back are correct.
Hagley, who was standing a little behind Belphegor, looked at Belphegor for a moment.
If it were the usual Belphegor, he would have gotten tired of this much conversation. The devil of sloth enjoys sloth. Selena’s answer didn’t yield much, so it was time to send it away.
However, Belphegor’s mouth opened once again.
“… … “I ask you one more thing.”
“yes.”
“The original intention of you trying to seduce Frondier was to steal the ancient language from him, right?”
“you’re right.”
“What about him? “Is it clear that Frontier has that talent?”
This was not a question that had much to do with this operation. At this point, it’s almost certain.
Belphegor is suspicious of Selena.
‘What answer should I give this time?’
Interpretation of ancient languages is the most important part of Mangot’s mission. Of course, it wasn’t something of much interest to the demon Belphegor, but I was interested in the fact that it was a language that could not be interpreted.
A language that neither the devil nor God can decipher. A password system created in the distant past so that only people could communicate information to each other. It is a language that reaches the pinnacle of human wisdom.
Among the gods, there were some who tried to interpret ancient languages quite seriously.
Frontier’s talent for interpretation. It is not yet known how valuable it is, but I heard that the interpretation of Mangot’s ancient language has made progress thanks to his knowledge received from Selena.
‘But I heard that interpretation of ancient languages has been blocked since a certain period.’
Is that really Frontier’s true intention or not?
If Frontier is trying to hide the ancient language, is Selena involved in it?
Belphegor asked, trying to reveal his true intentions. His eyes became sharper, and his magic became sharper as if he was trying to see through Selena’s insides.
Selena responded without any change in tone.
“I doubt that Frondier even learned the ancient language properly.”
“What do you mean?”
“The ancient language words taught to me began to amount to simple repetition.”
“It’s simple repetition.”
“After I heard about Frontier’s knowledge and passed it on, the people in charge of interpretation at Mangot also expressed their disapproval.”
Yes, that will happen.
Belphegor asked after knowing everything.
‘The bait I was trying to hide, but instead he took it out and showed it to me first… … ?’
Selena herself first spoke about the difficulty in interpreting the ancient language. His guess is that Frondier did not learn the ancient language properly. That’s Selena’s opinion.
Of course, Selena does not know Frondier’s intentions and has no involvement, and a new possibility arises that Frondier was unable to fully interpret the ancient language in the first place.
“Do you really think that? “Frondier didn’t learn all the ancient languages.”
“He was full of inferiority complex and bravado. Since my temptation worked as intended, I guess I was able to show off at least a little to win his favor.”
Selena’s answer is an application of Hagley’s words. Hagley has no doubt that Frontier is infatuated with Selena.
Hagley thinks so, so probably everyone in charge of this operation in Cape Mango thinks so.
However, Belphegor still doesn’t like it.
“Did you give me your body?”
“… … One night to teach one ancient language. “It was a secret deal.”
“Raise your head.”
Selena’s head slowly rises at Belphegor’s words.
Those at the round table who had avoided looking at Selena’s overexposure focused their attention on her face this time.
“Jay, last question.”
“yes.”
“Did you give him your heart?”
Belphegor’s voice mixed with the aura and pierced Selena’s skin. The sharp gaze looked down at Selena coldly.
However, Selena took all of this and answered in exactly the same breath as she had answered so far.
“no.”
He spoke dully, without even a speck of emotion in his transparent eyes.
“He is not a man worthy of that.”
“… … .”
Belphegor quietly looks at Selena without answering.
Before and after answering, and all the long silence that followed, Selena was still the same as when she first arrived.
‘… … There’s not a speck on your face.’
Belphegor does not have the talent to read people’s inner thoughts. It’s not that kind of devil.
Still, it was possible to read a broad lie based on facial expressions, but it was difficult to see through Selena’s acting.
I’m suspicious of a very clean expression, but this is probably the expression in any situation.
‘There is no problem with all the answers. It is completely understandable if underestimating Frontier is due to personal dislike. but.’
However, for some reason, Belphegor felt that Selena’s answer was too appropriate.
Summarizing Selena’s answers so far:
Since Frondier couldn’t shake off his laziness, Belphegor’s curse is working well.
Frontier achieved first place in the grade in a way that was close to expedient, so Mangot is not something to be wary of.
Frondier is a half-peon who has not fully mastered the ancient language, so the slow progress in the ancient language is a minor problem.
‘Mangot is giving me exactly the answer I wanted most.’
Regardless of whether it is true or not, it is difficult for humans to doubt when someone gives them the answer they want. Especially if it makes sense and is reasonable at first glance.
What this woman said, isn’t there a possibility? No, is that too much of a suspicion?
──Ah.
It became annoying.
“Hagley.”
“yes.”
“Put that woman in jail.”
Surprised, Hagley sees Belphegor.
“Why, why are you doing that? “Jay is an important combat member of Mangot.”
“I cannot allow that woman to go outside Mangot.”
Belphegor waved his hand as if shaking off dust.
“Put him in prison and keep him out of my sight.”
* * *
I moved my body and went to each and every person I could persuade.
Even my family, Ampera, Agier, and Malia, who I thought would be the most difficult, surprisingly easily believed me.
This may be in part because their trust in me has increased, but it is also because the two of us predicted the dangers of Mangot from the beginning.
─The empire is hidden inside the walls, and Mangot stands outside. It is obvious who will be stronger.
It was truly Ampere-like to sum up the situation of the empire and Mangot in an instant with this single word.
Student council president Elin also nodded. Elin is now officially the student council president without the ‘temporary’ name. It received overwhelming majority support from Constel.
Elin promised to fully cooperate with me, and all I asked her to do was give instructions to the Constel students.
To be honest, Constel is too valuable a force to just throw away. Except that they are children who are not even adults. So I wanted to leave that judgment to Elin.
Elin heard me and dismissed it, saying, ‘You’re the same age, right?’ There was nothing to refute.
I also sent a message to Sanders, the leader of the Shroud Knights, who was in need at Tavern during the summer vacation.
He didn’t seem to completely believe me, but he agreed that the Shroud Knights had become too lax. Perhaps when the Zodiacs start moving, the Shroud Knights will move on their own.
And finally now.
“… … .”
“… … .”
“… … .”
I stand in heavy silence.
Originally, I thought persuading them would be the easiest. No, to be exact, that’s what I thought in my head.
However, seeing as I had unknowingly put off persuading them until the last minute, I guess I was actually feeling that it would be the most difficult.
“Frondier, I have a rough guess.”
Runia Freecell, who had a dissatisfied face in front of me, spoke first.
“Does the fact that you brought us here have something to do with Selena, who suddenly disappeared?”
Everyone in the classroom nodded at her words.
I called some people to the classroom after school.
The named characters of this school, from Aster Evans to Elin Evans and Edwin von Behertio, who are currently in the third year, as well as Dier Ager and Pielot von Libanze, who volunteered to be my students.
If it were the original game, the main character, Aster, would be colleagues who would work together to overcome hardships and adversity.
Of course, Aten was also here, to whom I had previously told him about the situation. Because there was something I needed to hear.
“My dad also suddenly had more work to do. “The amount of orders came in that was incomparable to usual.”
Saibel Forte said.
“It’s the same here. We oldies who would normally make noise about trivial things are also very quiet. It’s busier than quiet. “I asked what was going on, but there was no answer.”
Rovald Liev said.
“We have begun a re-examination of all the security equipment that I was asked to order. No problems were found whatsoever. “They said the reason was just a simple confirmation.”
Edwin von Behertio said.
They have already sensed abnormal air currents felt in Constel.
“Frondier.”
And last.
Aster Evans looks at me with an extremely serious expression.
He glanced at Elin for a moment and said.
“I heard about it from my sister.”
“okay.”
If it were Elin, of course she would have told Aster. I hoped so too.
“I heard Mangot is coming.”
“huh.”
“To stop it, you are gathering the empire’s troops by telling people the story.”
“… … huh.”
The others look at each other in surprise at Aster’s words. To those who don’t know, these words will be very shocking.
Ha, Aster sighs.
“If you think about it, I don’t know anything about you.”
At those words, I burst out laughing.
It had to be that way.
“so do i.”
Because that’s what I’m going to say.
Astor Evans.
The main character of the game Etius.
Aster Evans, who I believed would know better than anyone else because I handled the game myself and played it countless times.
But ironically, the non-player Aster Evans is someone I know nothing about.
Because it is a game, there is no Aster Evans who knows the future and avoids wrong choices.
There is no longer any Aster that follows the optimization route accumulated through sharing information with many people and countless retries.
Even if miracles happen dozens of times, Aster does not do that.
Because Aster is now Aster Evans.
‘That’s why I’ve been avoiding Aster without thinking.’
The day I first met Aster.
At that time, when I was watching which way Aster would head on a two-way road.
At that moment when I saw that I had walked to the right when I was supposed to go to the left.
It was despair for me at the time, but it was the moment I realized that Aster was not a character who simply followed orders.
Aster’s power is absolutely necessary. Therefore, his strength must not lag behind or become insufficient. I build strength and gain allies in places unrelated to his strength.
I follow the trajectory of the main quest, but it’s always behind the scenes of the main stage.
In order not to damage his growth, I kept my distance from him unless absolutely necessary, but I always remained anxious.
Can Aster become stronger if he does not follow the optimal route that players have developed?
At first, I was worried about whether I could catch up with him, but now I am anxious about whether Aster will be able to gain that much strength.
But now.
“Frondier, ever since I arrived at the sanctuary.”
Aster draws his sword.
Soon his aura surrounds the sword, and it turns bright blue and glows.
Brilliant color, intensity, and strong momentum. It will most likely surpass the Aster of this period that I raised using the optimal route.
Aten, who had been silent, woke up, but I raised my hand to stop him.
Aster continued speaking.
“Baldur constantly whispers to me.”
“what?”
“Be careful of yourself.”
The tip of Aster’s sword is pointed at me, and his aura flows through his entire body.
Nevertheless, all the mana lingers around his body as if it were condensed instead of leaking out from somewhere in his body.
Instead of spewing out aura like many powerful players, it is a perfectly captured wave of aura. Aster’s power lies there.
“I’ve been on the lookout for you ever since. And now you are casually saying things that could shake the pillars of the empire.”
I smiled at him.
Aster looked at me as if he didn’t like that.
“What’s funny? “It would be normal to be angry.”
“Thanks to that, you became stronger. “Because they saw me as a threat.”
Aster doesn’t know my exact power.
In such cases, it is normal for an ordinary person to imagine things in a way that suits their own thoughts, but Aster, due to his characteristics, inflates my unprecedented threat to an incomparably higher level.
Aster sees the obstacle he has assumed so high, and worries that it will one day become a threat, so he overcomes it on his own. He is that kind of person.
Aster, do you really know?
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You, freed from the framework of games, were the protagonist of the game I dreamed of.
Compared to Aster Evans, a character who followed my commands and pursued perfect efficiency, you were much stronger and shined without me.
Would you know that I was deeply relieved after seeing that?
“… … “Did you already expect Baldur to say that to me?”
“No, it wasn’t until much later that I even made an inference. “At that time, I was completely busy saving Cybel.”
But I can’t help but think about it while the gods see me as a threat and try to kill me.
What about Baldur, one of the strongest gods in Etius? Is he also hostile to me?
In that case, something must have been done at the sanctuary where one can contact Aster.
“Aster, you are strong and just, but you are not as cunning. It’s all visible on your face. “I could see him trying to distance himself from me from then on.”
“… … .”
Aster avoided his eyes as if he had nothing to say.
“So I did what he wanted. “Because you, who make me your enemy, will become that much stronger.”
“… … “Did you use not only me but also Baldur?”
“Well, if I had to put it that way, it’s like that.”
“Aren’t you afraid of God?”
I paused for a moment at that innocent question.
This is a question I haven’t heard in a long time. However, it has always been a natural question for people in this world.
Let’s see, what did I say in response to this before?
“Something like that,”
At that time, a beautiful voice sounded that seemed to be imitating my voice, but was not similar at all.
Elodie was speaking with the eyes of a playful girl, smiling, and raising one finger.
“I have never been afraid.”