episode_0102

“It was a big deal this time too. How come incidents around Zeke never end?”

“The world is trying to punish me.”

“How much..?”

“It means that all kinds of absurdities are heading towards me.”

The North Continent I visited again was still cold.

Fortunately, Cheshire did not steal the heating equipment this time, so the equipment has been installed in the sanctuary and is running at full power to maintain body temperature.

“Zeek is managing the seal of the Lord of Death that I mentioned earlier, right?”

“Uh. The name is Daisy. Both mentally and physically, I am a child.”

“With that girl named Daisy… How did you meet?”

“Lieutenant… . An unidentified mass death incident occurred in a small village on the outskirts, so I went to see it just in case. I found Daisy there.”

A large number of dead bodies, bleeding from every pore, nose, mouth, and eyes, were lying on the ground where everyone had gathered and enjoyed a feast, as if they were having a party.

And in the meantime, Daisy collapsed from exhaustion.

Judging from the fact that he was wearing a cone hat and that there was a cake with Daisy’s face on it, it appeared that he was probably in the middle of a birthday party.

Even though it was a small town, all the residents gathered together to celebrate, so I could see how pretty Daisy was.

And the incident where all the residents she was so close to died was a very big trauma for Daisy.

Now, thanks to the utmost sincerity treated by me and Medical Director Asha, I have succeeded in overcoming my past as soon as I complete the strategy.

In the beginning, Daisy was a dangerous child who built a solid wall around herself, did not allow anyone to approach her, and often had fits.

“I don’t know how the seal ended up in that village, but it was fortunate that I found it before something bigger happened.”

“…I see.”

Azta’s voice coming through my head was trembling slightly.

I couldn’t tell if the tremors were due to Daisy’s sad story or some other reason.

“Now that I think about it, Azta, have you never heard of Arthur?”

Aslen said:

It is Arthur who trapped the Lord of Death in Daisy’s body.

So, in order to research Arthur in more detail, I listened to Fran’s story, but since I didn’t really hear the important part, I plan to listen to it from Azta, who is believed to have lived at a similar time.

“…Well. I don’t know if the Arthur Zeke is talking about is the same Arthur I know.”

“Adventurer Arthur. The one chosen by Excalibur. A hero who left behind numerous feats in the Central Continent. I don’t think there can be more than one person like this.”

“……”

Azta’s voice cut off.

If she didn’t know, she would have just said she didn’t know, but judging from the sudden interruption, it is clear that Azta knows Arthur.

However, I don’t know if he’s reluctant to tell me even though he knows, or if he’s just organizing his thoughts.

Since the conversation with Azta is done through telepathy, her emotions flow into his head in a subtle way, but since he cannot see non-verbal expressions such as facial expressions or actions, there is a limit to understanding her psychological state.

“First of all, Zeke. The term Arthur the Adventurer is an awkward expression.”

“Huh?”

While I was feeling frustrated, I heard Azta’s voice again.

“The word Arthur means ‘traveler’ or ‘adventurer’ in the Northern Continent language. So it’s a tautology.”

“If it’s a person’s name, it doesn’t matter, right?”

“…His name is not Arthur. I just called myself a traveler.”

I don’t know how important that is, but it might be important to Azta, who has a deep interest in language.

Anyway, looking at Azta’s assertion, it was clear that she knew about Arthur.

“Can you tell me more about it? I want to know about Arthur.”

“Before that. How does Zeke know about Arthur?”

Azuta asks a question in return.

From my perspective, I only know it because it is a famous legend, but for Azta, who is trapped in ice, I feel like I know someone I knew from hundreds of years ago, so I am curious.

“The legend of Arthur the adventurer. It’s a story so famous and loved that there’s almost no one in the Central Continent who doesn’t know about it. I heard that story.”

“…It is said to be a legend. That’s surprising. I thought it would definitely be forgotten… .”

Azta paused for a moment before answering. There was a sense of sadness and loneliness in Azta’s voice.

“Arthur… I really want to talk to Zeke about this, but I think it will still be difficult. Because it’s not a very good story.”

It’s not a good story.

I guess Arthur’s ending isn’t a happy ending.

“It’s a shame. Well, there are many opportunities to listen in the future.”

Actually, there is no need to rush.

Just knowing that Arthur is involved in Azta’s upcoming event is enough for me at this stage.

Anyway, you will find out when the time comes.

Because there is enough time.

“Opportunity… It won’t be much.”

“What does that mean? Are you really trying to break the seal?”

“No, that won’t happen. never. Rather, it is to avoid breaking the seal.”

Azta is trapped in the ice like this to maintain the frost witch’s seal.

So, no matter when I come, Azta will be here to welcome me, so why are there not many opportunities?

“Last time… . Did you hear the voice of the Frost Witch?”

“I heard. I tried to explain it away, so I pretended not to know.”

Last time, when I was about to go back after telling Azta the story of Wonderland, I heard a strange, tearing voice.

The voice whispered to me to take it out, and Azta panicked and quickly sent me away.

The frost witch’s voice suddenly sounded.

Azuta says that there is not much time left, and the reason is to avoid breaking the seal.

Combining this information, we can come to one conclusion.

“The frost witch’s seal is being released.”

“Yes. It’s not completely resolved yet, but if things continue like this, it will be released.”

“How to seal it again?”

“…Yes. It’s a very simple method.”

There is a simple way.

But what if you didn’t do that simple method?

Of course, that means there is a problem somewhere with that method.

“The Frost Witch and I share the same body. So if I wake up, the Frost Witch will wake up too.”

“Then on the other hand, if you fall asleep, the Frost Witch will also fall asleep.”

“Yes. But if you fall asleep this time, you won’t wake up until hundreds of years later.”

What the fuck?

Hundreds of years?

“No. You can’t fall asleep.”

Hundreds of years.

I have to attack you.

There is no time to wait for hundreds of years.

I can’t wait in the first place.

“Hundreds of years later. Then, in effect, I will never see you again.”

“…right.”

“No. I can’t tolerate it.”

“…You don’t want to break up with me?”

“Are you saying that? It’s natural.”

If you don’t win, it’s game over, damn it.

“I see.”

There was a faint hint of joy in Azta’s voice.

No, you idiot.

Now is not the time to be happy.

“Zeke… . I feel sorry too. You’re probably the only one who can have a normal conversation with me like this, and even if you don’t… . Because you are special. So, I feel bad about breaking up with you. But when the Frost Witch awakens, great disaster will come. I can’t afford to watch such a disaster again… .”

Azuta’s voice was full of solemnity, as if he was reciting a will.

“So you’re going to sleep again? To save the world?”

“…Because this is the most certain method.”

“Do you plan to keep falling asleep and waking up like that forever? That’s not a ‘solution’, it’s just putting the problem off.”

“There is no other way… .”

“There is no way? That’s wrong.”

As I denied Azta’s thoughts, her embarrassed feelings flowed into my head.

“There is always a way. It’s just so difficult that I can’t even think about it.”

“If it is infinitely close to impossible, it is safe to say that it is impossible.”

“No. Even if it is infinitely close to impossible, it is not impossible. You know it. The path I have taken so far has been a series of miracles. This isn’t just luck. If there is even a faint possibility, it is my ability to make it come true.”

I put my hand on Azta’s ice.

The chill penetrated my gloves and made my palms tingle.

“Arthur sealed the Lord of Death in Daisy’s body. That means the Frost Witch can also be sealed as long as she has an artificial body, right? You can make an artificial body. All we have to do is find out how Arthur sealed it. There is a way. So, stop thinking about diving on your own.”

Arthur was human.

Not a divine being, but just an ordinary human being.

So if Arthur could do it, so could I.

“…Zeek, is that for me?”

“Doing it for you means doing it for me.”

Because conquering Azta is my goal.

[Azta’s strategy progress has increased. (48 -> 58%) Acquire 1,000 strategy points]

[Azta’s favor level has increased. (3 -> 4) Acquire 500 strategy points]

Suddenly, Azta’s progress increased by 10%.

Usually, this level of change increases when you experience a small event or a major change in your mood.

Seeing that the level of liking is rising, it seems that my comment just targeted Azta’s tastes.

“Thank you, Zeke. Even if it’s just words, thank you so much.”

“It’s not just words. I’ll take care of the frost witch thing, so you can just wait.”

“…Okay. I look forward to it.”

The solemn feeling I felt just now had been somewhat diluted, and now I could feel positive emotions such as joy, anticipation, shame, and affection.

As I was hitting it directly into my head through telepathy, I felt strange because I felt like I was assimilating to Azta’s emotions.

“Just one thing. There’s one thing missing from Zeke’s method.”

“What’s missing?”

“Yes. To seal the Frost Witch, you can’t just use an artificial body. There must be a suppressor that can suppress the witch’s soul to completely seal it.”

What an inhibitor.

The artificial body alone is annoying, so you need one more material?

“How can I get that inhibitor?”

“How to get it… I do not know either. Scholars say that finding an inhibitor is close to impossible. That’s why only one artificial body could be created.”

“If something is close to impossible, it means it is possible.”

“…Zeek is positive.”

Azuta seemed dumbfounded, his voice was weak.

“It’s not positive. I’m saying this because it’s really possible.”

“Hehe… . okay. I’ll trust Zeke.”

Judging from the way he spoke, as if he was soothing a child who didn’t know what to do, it seemed like he was confident that I wouldn’t be able to save him.

How would you know that infinite retries are fraudulent?

Infinite opportunity means that anything is possible.

“So. What is that inhibitor?”

The soul of “…”

“What?”

“The soul of God. The suppressor is the soul of God.”

What the fuck?