“Hn? Ah, you’re the Demon Lord . I see, although your form has changed your aura remains the same as before . However, you have lost your magical power and you’re barely standing . ”
“ … How did you come here? Even a Hero shouldn’t have a technique to tear apart space . ”
It was as Miri asked . Apart from those I permitted to enter, only the Goddess-samas can enter here .
“I certainly do not possess that ability . I have a collaborator . ”
“Collaborator?”
Miri said with a look of suspicion – and then .
“Minerva, what is the meaning of this!”
Setolance shouted furiously .
A rift in space suddenly manifested and Minerva-sama appeared . Along with something unexpected .
“I lend him my strength . Sorry, Suke-kun . Kaguya-chan . I am your enemy . ”
Minerva-sama was our enemy? – More importantly, why was it here?
Why was Centaur here?
Centaur appeared floating in the air beside Minerva-sama trapped in some sort of lightbox .
“Fufufu, Suke-kun, and Kaguya-chan never realized the true identity of this child until the very end . ”
“True identity?”
“Yes . That said, Centaur is a wonderful name . Perhaps you heard of the name Chiron?”
Chiron? I never heard of it . I thought that Keroron sounded like a frog but it was definitely not related .
“ … The name of the Centaur Sage that appears in Greek mythology . Sagittarius, one of the twelve constellations, is modeled after it . ”
“You’re right . Well, you should know that much . He is said to be the ancestor of medicine . He was also the master of Asclepius, the staff that Suke-kun used previously . It would not be an exaggeration to say that he is Tet-sama and my ancestor, as we are experts in drugs and medicine . ”
“No way – are you telling me he is inside Centaur?”
Setolance-sama said as she generated a new spear of light and attacked Centaur . But her strike was blocked by a light barrier and she was blown back .
“It’s useless . Setolance, your strength was absorbed by the Salamander so it was linked with that red spear . With the red spear broken, your strength is below a third of what it usually is – you won’t be able to break my barrier . ”
Why was Setolance-sama so impatient?
What does it have to do with Centaur’s true identity?
“Onii, attack Minerva! Now!”
Miri shouted .
“ – All right!”
It seemed that only I was able to take action now .
I nodded and was about to cast offensive spells –
“I would be troubled if you forgot about me – Paralyze Sword . ”
A severe numbness struck my body and I collapsed to my knees .
I had forgotten about the Hero due to the rapid turn of events – no, perhaps deep down I didn’t think that the Hero would resort to surprise attacks .
Alessio cut the string of the item bag on my waist, took it, and tossed it at Minerva .
“It’s mine – return it . ”
I thrust Guardian Sword on the ground and raised my upper body .
“Oya, you can still move? My Paralysis Sword … hmm, to express it for an otherworld person like you, even an elephant won’t be able to move for three days … or something like that? Elephants are like Ganesha, right? That might be an overstatement but it is that powerful . I see, you’re at least above me in terms of status . ”
Hero Alessio said and kicked away my sword .
Without my support, I fell prone .
“But your experience related to battle is lower than an amateur . But, with your status now, you look like you can move in a few minutes so please end it quickly, Minerva-sama . ”
“Yeah, I know . Hero-chan . ”
Minerva-sama said and took out a large nut from my item bag .
Fruit of the Earth – the source of power born from the Golden Tree .
“Golden Tree – an object of worship that the Dark-Elves deem as their guardian deity; a sacred tree that has the same power as the Goddesses, capable of sealing the power of a Great Spirit . Using this power, I will be able to amplify my holy power . ”
Minerva-sama said indifferently .
“However, if used differently, it can seal holy power instead . Seal the power of the Holy Beast!”
Minerva-sama’s hand went through the light barrier and forcibly stuffed the Fruit of the Earth into Centaur’s mouth .
Black mist suddenly poured out from Centaur’s mouth .
A girl dressed in black – I have seen her before .
I never met her in person but I have seen her Goddess Statue .
“ … Goddess Metias-sama . ”
Right, she was the seventh Goddess – Metias-sama .
“Wrong – that is not a Goddess . She is the same as Tet now, a Demon God . ”
“Koshmar-sama! And Torerul-sama as well . ”
All six Goddesses had gathered .
“You’re late, Koshmar . What were you doing?”
Setolance-sama complained at Koshmar-sama .
“Humans impeded me . ”
“That magician called Hagg used a troublesome spell . I didn’t expect a human to be capable of sealing a Goddess’s movements . ”
Torerul-sama said .
“Actually, I am even more surprised that Minerva, the person who keeps saying she wants to die, is betraying us . I thought you were the same as me but aren’t you quite a hard worker . ”
Torerul-sama said as she glared at Minerva-sama but she ignored her and knelt in front of Metias-sama .
“It’s been a long time Koshmar . And Setolance . Oh, I wonder if Libra is asleep . ”
Metias-sama said with a smile .
“Do you know how much I suffered because the three of you sealed me?”
The three of them sealed her?
Tet-sama said that Metias suddenly disappeared but behind the scenes, three Goddesses were involved .
The reason was the same as Tet-sama .
Metias-sama was a Demon God .
“Metias . Be thankful that I didn’t kill you . ”
“Kill – aren’t you mistaken? Setolance – when have you ever won against me?”
It was a hair-trigger situation .
It was infuriating that I could not move at such a time .
“Hey, Ichinojo . I feel like I am outside the loop . I have completely no clue why Metias who should be missing is here and why she is a Demon God . ”
Torerul-sama sat beside me and complained .
“ … I see . ”
Well, going from the flow of the story, it seemed that Torerul-sama became a Goddess to close the hole that Metias left behind .
“Hmm . Well, I recently discovered that your Jobless skill comes from Metias so Koshmar and I may have done some investigations . ”
“Torerul-sama – Koshmar-sama probably knew from the start that my skill was set by Metias-sama . After all, she said in Florence that it was the criminal’s objective to set the Jobless skill . ”
“What – it wasn’t just a feeling, I was completely left out of the loop!?”
Torerul-sama was stunned .
“Unfortunately, I will be withdrawing . Thankfully it is easy to escape this unstable space and I have to treat this child . ”
Metias said and she floated the immobile Tet-sama up by magic and pulled her closer .
“Don’t dream of escaping . ”
When Koshmar-sama said that, a barrier appeared around Metias-sama, Minerva-sama, and Tet-sama .
It seemed far more powerful than my Holy Mirror but Metias’s smile didn’t fade .
“Eh, you don’t know? This space is originally my world . Even when I was sealed inside the Holy Beast, I was still able to cause a rip in the barrier . ”
Suddenly a door appeared within the barrier .
“It’s easy to escape . ”
Minerva-sama disappeared as well .
“Well then, I should withdraw too . – ”
The Hero whispered something into my ear before disappearing in an instant .
And then, only Miri, the four Goddess-samas, Centaur and I were left .
【Ichinojo leveled up】
… The experience I gained from defeating the snake born from miasma probably just entered .
It was also the signal that the battle was over .
I seemed to have learned a few skills but I couldn’t think about them .