Ch.159The NPC Who Found Out. (2)

No.

“Excuse me, are you Caretaker Jack?”

“No, I’m not.”

The fiery hair color is similar, but it’s not him.

“What…? But how…”

“I’m Caretaker Johnson, an acquaintance of Caretaker Jack.”

The violet eyes that shine as brightly as the Milky Way are similar, but it’s not him.

“Ah… Oh! I, I see! I’m sorry. I heard there was only one caretaker watching over this place…”

“No, you’re correct. I just came to see him briefly today.”

The form-fitting nun’s habit on a voluptuous body, the slit revealing healthy thighs. The fact that she’s a healthy and beautiful woman can’t be denied, but it’s not her.

“I see. Well then, Johnson, let me thank you again. Thanks to you stopping the demon, we were able to prevent the demon’s attack without any casualties.”

“W-well, that…”

When she smiles broadly, charming dimples appear, but still, it’s not her.

-KWANG!!!

“What the hell?! What was that?! A hammer?! Did you just hit me with a hammer?! Me, with this priceless beauty?!!”

“…As expected of one of the Seven Deadly Sins. I thought I landed a direct hit, but you don’t die with just one attack.”

The gentle eyes, the high-pitched voice. They’re very similar, but still, it’s not her.

The full-body obscenity that had been sent flying shouted angrily as it rose into the air to look down at us, and I look at the red beauty confronting that mosaic mass and think.

‘This isn’t Ira.’

There are so many similar characteristics, but not a single one connects to Ira.

They say girls can grow unrecognizably in just a month, but unfortunately, that doesn’t apply to Ira and me.

The time I spent holding my little sister as she slept, the time I spent washing and raising her with my own hands. The bone structure, facial lines, voice I knew because of that. The color and luster of her hair. Even her scent.

I know everything there is to know about young Ira’s body. This is an absolute truth that cannot be denied by anyone.

That’s why I’m called a sister complex by our women.

That’s why I’m certain. Even if Ira grew up, she couldn’t become a woman like this.

“What does being beautiful have to do with anything? From the start, how many people have you ruined with that body and face? It’s not priceless, it’s poisonous!”

“W-what?!! Y-you crazy bitch! Who did I ruin?! I’m a virgin, you know?! I’m not some whore who rubs against just any man!!”

“Ha! A virgin Seven Deadly Sin of Lust? Even a passing dog would laugh. And if that’s true, that’s just as pathetic in its own way!”

“Grrrr! Y-you!!!”

The mosaic seems angry, trembling visibly, and the red woman smirks with satisfaction at seeing her provoked by her words.

The self-proclaimed “saint” [Ira] readjusted her grip on the hammer with both hands and began to surround herself with a golden aura.

…Indeed.

“Huh?! What?! You, that holy power!! Are you God’s whore?!”

“How absurd. Who are you calling a whore? You squid-smelling prostitute.”

“H-how dare you!!! Calling me a whore again… I’ll kill you. I’ll kill you!!!”

She is definitely not my little sister, Ira.

She’s a completely different person who just happens to share the same name and some similar characteristics. The holy power she uses, the light surrounding her body makes it clear.

Looking at her appearance, similar to a “protagonist” from a game, I wondered if she was the protagonist of this world, and sure enough.

-HWAAAK!!!

“Try it if you can! I’ll crush your head with this hammer, just like I did to your comrades, the Seven Deadly Sins of Envy and Wrath.”

The moment her slightly lowered voice rang out, her hair color completely turned golden, and her violet eyes that were like the Milky Way also emitted a subtle golden light.

‘…The protagonist of this world is female.’

When starting the online game “Eight,” there’s a part where you determine the protagonist’s gender.

Females appear as [Saints] and males as [Holy Men], and both characters show themselves surrounding their bodies with holy power and their hair turning golden.

The [Protagonist] of this world, chosen by God. They are beings who defeat demons alongside the player, the [Savior].

I silently watched the two facing off, and.

-PAANG!!

-KUUNG!!!

The mosaic mass that fell from the sky at a speed my eyes couldn’t follow and the golden mass that created a deep crater in the ground collided in midair.

With an explosion that seemed like it would produce effects similar to those seen when warriors from some archipelago fight, the two masses collided a few more times in the sky before repelling each other like magnets and landing on the ground.

‘…Even if my skills return, I don’t think I could handle this.’

“Darling! You’re not acquainted with that hammer-wielding whore, are you?! Right?!! The way she swings that stick, I’m sure she even masturbates with that hammer?!!”

“Who’s your darling?!! Mr. Johnson is a proud caretaker who protects people’s homes!! He’s not someone who would join hands with a demon like you!!! And who would do such things with a hammer?!!”

I’m not sure how they collided, but the mosaic fell in front of me, and the golden mass fell on the opposite side.

Oh, if I say the wrong thing here, I’m dead…

[(!)Quest – Mediate the fight between the two and proceed with the Trial of Circulation.]

[Penalty: If you fail to mediate the fight, the trial will fail.]

Hah! You’ve got to be kidding.

The mosaic and the saint both turn their attention(?) toward me. Looking at the [normal] status window that appears before them, I feel a headache coming on.

No matter how I look at it, this status window is different from the broken one earlier. Damn, mediate? They want me to mediate between these two?

The status window that has stripped me of my skills, making me a weak shrimp, and now tries to force me between two whales.

Damn, this is too much? I thought it was finally working properly, but it wants me to die?

I laughed in disbelief, and the full-body obscenity seemed to be somewhat taken aback by my reaction…

“…A revelation. A revelation has descended.”

“Huh?”

“What?”

The golden-glowing woman looked at me directly and spoke those words.

…Wait, what did she just say? Did she sense the status window that just appeared?

-THUD!!

“Caretaker Johnson. I recognize that a divine revelation has descended upon you. If you would speak it now, I will listen and then eliminate that wicked demon!”

“W-wait. D-darling? No! I really only came to court you! You saw earlier!! I really…!!!”

…She’s not Ira. No, she’s not just not Ira, she’s a nuisance!!

The mosaic is closer to me than the saint right now.

But because she’s raising her hammer and telling me to speak the revelation immediately, the Seven Deadly Sin demon is looking at me with a sense of betrayal and bewilderment.

In other words, if I make a mistake here, I’ll be dragged into the battle and turned into caretaker ketchup.

…Damn. Is this how a no-upgrade zergling feels between two full-upgrade ultras?! And neither of them is on my side?!!

I rack my brain with all my might.

I need to stop these two from fighting, not just because I don’t want to die, but also because I need to clear the trial.

‘Roll, brain!! Flash, tongue!!!’

“…I have received a revelation.”

“D-darling?!!”

“I am listening.”

The mosaic, which looks genuinely wronged, seems to be gradually turning black?

That looks like demonic energy. She genuinely feels betrayed by me.

Moreover, the golden-glowing woman has even closed her eyes, as if this were natural, and has gone into full ASMR listening mode.

…Please. Keep your eyes open. If you’re like that and I get attacked, I’ll just be squashed!

I swallowed dryly and quickly spoke before the mosaic’s demonic energy grew larger.

“The revelation is this: You two are misunderstanding each other. R-resolve it through dialogue…”

“……”

“……”

It’s heavy. So heavy!! Silence really does have weight?!!

With both women(?) saying nothing, I felt like I was undergoing gravity training as I rolled my eyes, while the mosaic remained frozen in a slightly blackened state. The golden-glowing saint had already opened her eyes and was just staring at me.

Please!! Say something…!!!

“Hmm~♥ As expected of my darling. You made even the divine kind understand my sincere love?”

“…I just learned that Mr. Johnson is a person worthy of receiving revelations, and I don’t think someone like you would lie. …Though I’m not entirely convinced, I’ll put away my weapon and talk for now.”

Wow! Victory!!!

*

“Jack! We’ve wrapped things up here!!”

“Aah! What’s going on all of a sudden?! Demons attacking as soon as you come down from the mountain, how despicable is that?!”

“Thank you all for your hard work. I’m sorry. I never thought they would target us right after I came down…”

After killing the last demon in front of the city gate, I bow my head to the soldiers who fought alongside me, but they all wave their hands and say it’s fine.

Fortunately, no one was hurt. If the demons had attacked more forcefully, I might have failed in my duty as a caretaker.

Really, what’s going on today? It’s strange enough that I met a man with the same face as mine, but even though I definitely killed two strong demons that appeared today, why did this happen?

As I clean up the demon corpses around and collect the magic stones, Miho, who couldn’t participate in the battle because she was injured, is whimpering beside me.

Hearing her crying sound as if she feels guilty that I came down from the mountain because she was hurt, I quietly reach out my hand to comfort her.

“It’s okay. It’s not your fault. If anything, the fault lies with me…”

“Huh? Jack? Why are you here?”

“Hmm? Captain? What do you mean?”

The gate’s guard captain, who had been fighting at another barricade, approaches me with a puzzled expression, and I tilt my head in confusion as he continues, asking if I really don’t know.

“No, earlier, over there~ a saint from the [Great Holy Nation] helped with the battle, and I heard that a very strong demon had appeared in the mountains. So when she said she was going to help the person fighting it, I naturally thought you were there…”

“…What?”

She heard that I, the caretaker, would be there fighting a powerful demon, so she rushed off alone.

…Damn. What’s this now?!

“So, we were about to gather the uninjured guards to climb the mountain, but since you’re here…”

“Damn it. Miho, you stay here with the guards.”

“Kiiing…”

“You’ll just get hurt again if you come along. Leave it to me, Captain. Which direction was it?!”

“Uh, huh? Oh. T-there. Toward the middle of the mountain on the way to your house…”

After hearing that much, I immediately ran toward the mountain.

Damn, if it’s something a saint would call powerful, it’s likely to be that Seven Deadly Sin demon I’ve fought several times.

Please, please. Don’t be too late!!!

‘Don’t kill her!!’

Today’s attack might be because of her appearance, but I know.

That demon, the Seven Deadly Sin of Lust, Luxuria…

‘If she just keeps her promise to me, she might someday be able to live among humans!!!’

Thinking that today has really gone awry in every way, I ran with all my might toward our house.