Groundwater leaked down from the ceiling, accumulating for who knows how long, creating a wide stream on the floor .
Splashing sound could be heard with each of our steps .
At first, I was anxious that we’d encounter monsters within . But there was no sign of anyone else inside . Just the sounds of dripping and flowing water .
I recalled what Eris had told me earlier .
That people with Mortal Sin skills were born due to the accumulated hatred of the people .
Comparing that to my old behaviour and mindset . Suffice to say that I was surprised .
From time to time, there was always this feeling of darkness slowly creeping into my heart . It was the worst when I fought Rafal at the capital . Whenever I hid myself behind that skull mask, I felt like there’s another me moving to the surface .
Having the intention to kill that Lanchester dude in the throne room . Moreover, during that incident in the military district, letting that guard die in the same way he killed others . I strangely didn’t feel any guilt back then .
I knew that it’s a bad thing . But the restraint would still come off when I felt pressured . Sometimes my emotions would explode uncontrollably .
But thanks to Roxy, I was able to get past all that . Evidently, I never wore that skull mask anymore .
While I was deep in my own thought, Greed spoke to me through 《Mind Reading》 .
『At that time, you were under the Gluttony skill’s influence . You couldn’t even hear my voice back then . 』
[My bad…I was horrible…]
『It’s the path that every Mortal Sin skill holder will inevitably trudge on . All you can do, is to experience it yourself and overcome it . It will be all over if you fail, but I believe that Fate will be just fine . 』
[He~, you’re actually encouraging me today]
『You are the wielder of this me . I have the obligation to do that much . 』
I was in a good mood after Greed praised me . But of course he followed up with his usual barbs .
[Still, thank you . Then, is there anything else you need to tell me?]
『How could you tell?』
[How long do you think I’ve put up with you?]
『Hahaha, certainly . Thinking about it, we spent more time together than you with Roxy . 』
After that light hearted exchanges, Greed switched back to a serious tone .
『There is one thing I found strange . 』
[… . . what is it?]
『Your impulse . It’s not solely coming from the Gluttony skill influence . 』
[What do you mean by that?]
『It’s just the intuition of this me . Why? Because you are different from my previous wielder . In your case… . . 』
The sound of Eris and Roxy’s gasps cut off Greed before he could finish .
Apparently I wasn’t paying attention to my surroundings during our conversation .
When I looked in the direction of their gaze, there was a gate that was even larger than the outer gate of the Royal Capital .
[This gate…looks sturdy . ]
I thought to cut it open, but Greed warned me to not do so .
And I think, I’ve seen this kind of metal before .
[This is adamantite . The sturdiest metal known in the world, which is also used to reinforce the outer wall of the fortress city Babylon . ]
[It’s exactly as Roxy said . Even Mortal Sin weapons couldn’t destroy this easily . Unless Fate is a master swordsman, I don’t think you need to even bother trying . ]
Eris threw a grin at me as she glanced sideways .
[Okay, okay, I admit that I’m not on that level yet . What about you, Eris?]
[I’m a support type combatant . There is no way I can do that . ]
[What’s the point of that blade on the black bayonet then? It must be crying over its wielder incompetence by now . ]
[You do know that I can say the same words right back at you, right?]
[… . . right . ]
I couldn’t refute her .
I had been taught swordsmanship by Aaron, and also received Greed’s guidance in the spiritual world .
But my level of proficiency still couldn’t compare to either of them .
Not going to let me sulk over that, Roxy made a follow up .
[Fai is the type to brute force through everything though]
[… . . thank you . ]
[Well, that is certainly true . I thought that it would be impossible for him to defeat the Tenryu . But Fai is the type to evolve during the heat of battle . I actually look forward to it . ]
[Stop! I don’t wanna fight that kind of battle again . ]
[But the result is the current you, who is standing here with us . ]
We’re about to head to a mysterious place here…telling something ominous like that . Oh dear…I have a bad feeling already .
Still, how do we open this gate?
Eris tried to push it open, but it didn’t budge .
[Fuu~, this is not good as well . ]
[It is too early to give up!]
[Because it’s me who tried it, of course it failed . Right, Roxy?]