Ch.160The NPC Who Found Out. (3)

Even I think that I said something completely nonsensical.

The protagonist holy maiden and one of the Seven Deadly Sins’ archdemons.

Asking two people standing at opposite extremes to have a conversation? No matter how difficult and heavy that moment was, I immediately regretted suggesting it.

On one side, a battle-ready holy maiden who swings her hammer wanting to crush her opponent’s head the moment she sees them.

On the other side, an archdemon of the Seven Deadly Sins who cares about nothing except their own desires.

If I were to compare those two to modern times, it would be like the leaders of a communist nation and a democratic nation on the peninsula meeting, wouldn’t it?

Especially considering they haven’t even gone through the passage of time, just having ideological differences. They’d be justified in putting bullets in each other’s heads right away.

Maybe I’m really going to fail this trial…

“You’re more reasonable than I expected~♥ The whore of God… no. You’re Ira, the holy maiden, right?”

“I apologize for calling you a squid-smelling prostitute. It seems Luxuria is actually quite sincere and pure when it comes to love?”

…or so I thought at one point.

What’s with these two?! Why are they conversing so well? Could this be… true civilization?!

My quasi-21st century civilized conversation with a lawyer present was far less rational and discerning than what these two people(?) managed in just a few minutes. They even bowed their heads to apologize to each other, and I was genuinely dumbfounded as I stared blankly at them.

“This is possible because Johnson is mediating our conversation.”

“Well, people who can communicate will communicate. I already knew that after dealing with Caretaker Jack♡.”

“I-Is that so?”

Initially, Mosaic and the holy maiden started with verbal sparring, saying they couldn’t trust each other.

However, Mosaic, who seemed more aggrieved, passionately argued that she sincerely wanted to either adopt or be adopted by Caretaker Jack or me.

In the process, she revealed that she had been a virgin for thousands of years, and as a demon of lust, her sexual desire was about to explode.

But she honestly explained that her desire’s top priority was to have a partner she truly loved, and Ira, who had returned to being the red battle maiden, covered her mouth with an “Ah!” and exclaimed, “Demons feel that way too?!”

Then Mosaic countered with, “You’re a virgin too, right?! Then you can understand how I feel, can’t you?!” and the conversation suddenly opened up… from that point on, it entered the realm of girl talk that even I couldn’t understand.

Honestly, they occasionally sought my agreement or affirmation, but it was really just at the level of “right, right?” that people say to whoever happens to be next to them, so I don’t think my presence was actually necessary.

Anyway.

“If she weren’t a holy maiden, I would have hugged her right away and asked to be friends because we communicate so well~♡ Thank you, darling?”

“From what I’ve heard, it’s clear you’re not in that kind of relationship with Mr. Johnson yet, but if I consider this as merely courtship behavior toward someone you’re attracted to… h-honestly, it’s kind of cute. If you weren’t really an archdemon randomly spreading magical energy, I’d w-w-wa… ahem. I’d want to be friends with you.”

“I-I see. I’m glad you both understand each other properly. Hahah…”

Am I crazy or is this world crazy? The protagonist and the EP.4 raid boss just became friends?

I awkwardly laughed while looking at the two of them. Though it was just a feeling, Mosaic was clearly giving off vibes of wanting to somehow seduce both me, her stated goal, and Ira as well.

Moreover, the holy maiden, who resembled my little sister quite a bit, also awkwardly raised the corners of her mouth in response to my laughter, occasionally glancing at Mosaic. The atmosphere suggested that while she couldn’t completely trust Mosaic yet, she wanted to continue the conversation.

…Sigh. Well, well. Can’t be helped.

“T-Then, would you both like to talk more…?!”

-KWANG!!

-KKANG!!

As soon as my mouth opened, the two women suddenly swung their hammer and Mosaic’s body, striking behind me. I couldn’t even react and just stared at them blankly with widened pupils.

…Did I do something wrong? Would you please spare me? I have a pretty little sister waiting for me at home?!!

“Excuse me, Luxuria. Is there no way to prevent this?”

“Sorry, but this isn’t my domain. It’s like a rule set by the world? When an archdemon is fully summoned to the human realm, their magical energy creates a tunnel-like connection to the other world, and mindless lesser demons get summoned at random. Sorry, darling?”

“…What?”

I slowly turned my neck like an unoiled machine and looked behind me where dust was suddenly flying.

I witnessed something dark being pulverized into a bloody mess and then disappearing into powder.

So demons were being summoned behind me? And these two turned them all into mush before I could even notice?

…Haha. This is insane? They’re scarier than the lesser demons.

“In that case, it seems difficult to continue our conversation here. Even the earlier city attack…”

“That’s right. I only came here because I wanted to see darling and his darling, but those demons are running wild on their own. I live in a cave in that mountain over there, you see? That attack had nothing to do with my intentions.”

“A-Ahem. If we go up from here, there’s a cabin where my friend Caretaker Jack lives. Shall we finish our conversation there? It’s quite far from the city, so the demons won’t be able to attack there immediately.”

I spoke while trying my best to hide my fear of the two, and they both happily agreed to my suggestion.

‘This counts as successful mediation, right? Right? Can’t the trial end now? I’m terrified of being between those two.’

As they both started walking, I discreetly looked around for the status window, but it stubbornly refused to appear.

…But, there’s something strange about this status window too?

‘…No, it’s fine. At least it’s more normal than the broken status window from earlier.’

While I was lost in these thoughts, I failed to notice that the distance between Mosaic and the red holy maiden, who were walking ahead of me, had become much closer than I expected.

*

“So~ Johnson here is nice, but Caretaker Jack is great too, you know? With his wild appearance, and seeing how well he treats his wife, the tigress, I think he’d be very affectionate even to a demon like me♥? He’s a man I don’t want to miss out on~”

“That’s where our views differ a bit. A woman should only look at one man, shouldn’t she? The saying about being a virtuous wife and wise mother exists for a reason, right? For a stable family, a woman should…”

“Eh~? That’s not right! Your thinking is so old!! You’re younger than me but completely old-fashioned! Just like men can have multiple wives, women can have multiple husbands too?”

“…W-When you put it that way…?”

“Right? Isn’t it strange that only superior males can have multiple females? It’s absurd to say that attractive, superior, beautiful females like you and me shouldn’t have many good males. Don’t you think that’s strange too?”

“A-Attractive… B-Beautiful?!”

“Oh my? You don’t know how pretty you are? Hey darling? What do you think of this lady?”

“…Ah, yes. She’s attractive.”

“*Hiccup*?!”

“Hehe, see? And think about it? If it’s a female’s destiny to receive the seed of a superior male, shouldn’t a superior female also maximize her excellent appearance to leave many offspring in various combinations?”

“*Gulp* T-That’s true… C-Certainly.”

“Originally, wasn’t the concept of chastity that your god speaks of raising issues with loveless sex and irresponsible adultery?”

“Uh, um…?”

“On that point! I’m very clear!! Though I’m still a virgin for now! If both Jack and Johnson accept me! I’ll receive both their seeds and give birth! I’ll raise the children with all my affection and love!! The order might be a bit unfortunate, but that’s first-come-first-served, so it can’t be helped. Besides, women have two holes anyway, right?”

“…E-Eh⎯?!”

Oh shit, my God.

The sight of an archdemon trying to corrupt a holy maiden with just words before my eyes is hard to follow even with my experienced mind.

What’s truly legendary is that what she’s saying doesn’t even sound that wrong.

We arrived at the cabin and sat around the table. Despite the slightly different layout from my house, I managed to prepare some tea for the two of them.

But is this demon really the EP.4 raid boss I knew from the game? She’s so different from the game version, except for her obsession with lust?

Originally, she was the worst archdemon who, far from having any concept of chastity, controlled people’s sexual desires to force breeding between monsters and humans, lesser demons and humans, expanding her territory indiscriminately. But the Mosaic demon I’m seeing now…

“In that sense! I believe it’s right for not just males and females, but females and females to mix too!!”

“W-What are you saying?! W-Women together can’t have children…!!!”

“Hehe! That can be solved by finding men they both like later! It’s even better if they like the same man?! Threesome! Loving orgies are truly enjoyable?! Originally, you said you killed Envy, right?”

“Y-Yes? Ah, that…”

“Ah, if you thought he was my comrade, don’t worry about it. We archdemons mostly don’t care about anything except our own desires. More importantly, that Envy bastard is a lunatic who envies all females because he’s male. You know that, right?”

“Ah, yes. I felt that while dealing with him. He was furiously angry at me just for being a woman. He was almost like a demon of wrath.”

“Right? But that guy says men can also have relationships like heterosexual ones because men have holes too. Actually, his followers…”

Aah, I don’t want to hear this~!!

Mosaic suddenly started preaching about bisexuality, using examples of anal enthusiasts.

And leaving behind the holy maiden who, seemingly having some interest in such topics, was listening attentively while blushing, I stood up from my seat and headed toward my destination.

Well, my destination was just a few steps away—the old wooden door right in front of me.

‘I don’t know what’s what anymore. I’ll just follow my instincts.’

The room where my sister “Ira” would have been. But in this world, my sister doesn’t exist.

That holy maiden has features very similar to Ira, but she’s definitely not Ira.

My big brother sensor confirms this with certainty. So what I need to know is…

‘If this world is truly a “cycle,” I need to understand why my little sister isn’t here.’

Though I think this conclusion might be too centered on my perspective, from my point of view, there are no other questions left.

I could conclude that Ira doesn’t exist because she had a different father, but I still can’t understand it.

Because…

‘In the game, it seemed I couldn’t leave this mountain because I couldn’t forget Ira, according to the context of what was said.’

[Everything precious to me is here.]

That was what I, the NPC caretaker who met the player and protagonist, said. I was a character who wouldn’t leave this mountain, saying such things.

But my sister doesn’t exist in this world just because it’s a parallel world? I can’t understand that point.

Leaving behind the two people—one raising her voice saying “My ultimate dream is to have both a female harem and a male harem!!” and the other responding with “Ehhh?!”—I opened the door to the old room.

-Creeeeak.

[(!)Quest: This is the final stage of the trial. Understand the ‘cycle’ and achieve your goal.]

[Reward: Your survival rate will significantly increase.]

As I checked the room, before my eyes were an old desk, a book on the desk, and the text of such a status window appeared.