kscans

Chapter 61 - The Twilight of the Gods and Kobito-san ~Ten~

《Why? The gods are not supposed to be able to convey matters concerning the fate of that world. Only within the scope of an individual, at most.》

Looking down at the King of Castrato and his men, the god who had proposed the bet muttered in disbelief.

The unwritten law of the gods that they must not interfere with the principles of the world. Just watch. How painful and agonizing that was. It was an anguish common to all gods who resided in the heavens. All they could do was give oracles and blessings to individuals. How to guide the world using these was their eternal proposition.

If there was a Misaki, a proxy for the gods, they could convey the true intentions of the gods and interact skillfully with people, but such a being did not exist in Arcadia.

There were worlds with many Misaki and divine messengers, but most of them lurked in the celestial realm, or in the abyss and deeps, rather than the surface world. Those beings, common to all worlds, would occasionally descend to the surface, but they did not actively involve themselves with humans.

If a Misaki had been born in Arcadia, the bet would have undoubtedly been lost.

Because a Misaki would speak for the gods. Their will would be conveyed directly to humans.

It was a stroke of luck that a Misaki was not born in Arcadia. Yet, for some reason, the true intentions of the gods had been conveyed to the people of Arcadia.

《Why, I wonder?》

The god who proposed the bet collapsed with a look of despair.

His name was Legion. It was the name given to him by the people of Hazerlap, the world he watched over. Hazerlap, once covered in rich, deep forests, was a world of survival of the fittest, where fierce beasts roamed. It was a harsh environment where the weak were culled. Naturally, this principle also applied to humans, and the humans of the world Legion created gave a name meaning demon to the god who occasionally bestowed oracles and blessings upon them.

Faith gives birth to power, and that power is returned to the world. Humans, equipped with wisdom and technology, surpassed other creatures and achieved great prosperity. Legion too had thought that this world would continue stably, without any worries.

No one had imagined that a slight misalignment of a button would ignite a conflagration that would swallow even the stars and strip the surface of the earth bare.

Even if he lost the bet, Legion would not suffer any real loss. He would simply lose the few seeds of life he had given and silently watch his dying world.

Silently watch... As if I could.

Victory was within reach. There was no way he could give up.

Somehow... If he could somehow stop the return of magic. Or rather, if he could make them fight over magic and cause a foolish war.

The Golden King.

Legion grinned slyly and, through the scrying mirror, sent down a new oracle to Castrato.

"Wow, it’s really glowing."

Around the time the curtain of dusk began to be studded with the sparkle of stars, Kobito-san and her group finally arrived at the multi-purpose square by the Kininaru Ki on the outskirts of the royal capital.

Against the backdrop of a deep purple curtain, the Kininaru Ki glowed faintly. Under its broad canopy, Kobito-san stood with her mouth agape, her eyes wide and round.

It was a truly mysterious sight. The trunk, the branches, even down to a single new bud, had a faint glow as if coated in a fine golden powder. But it wasn’t a mystical or divine light, but rather a light accompanied by an approachable warmth.

Adoris watched the tirelessly gazing Kobito-san with a smile and began preparing a meal. The knights started setting up camp for the night.

They unceremoniously took out sealing jewels, broke them, and used the materials that emerged to erect two tents, each about five meters in diameter.

Then Dolphen guided Kobito-san to one of them. When Chihiro entered with a curious expression, she found everything from a bed to large cushions and a table set prepared inside.

However, Kobito-san was taken aback by something else entirely. Huh? What is this?

The tent had a spacious interior, and the exterior and interior volumes didn't match. A quick glance revealed it was nearly ten meters deep. Around a large, round low table were five cushions so big Chihiro could get lost in them, and beyond that, there was one double-sized bed and one single-sized one. A little further away were two more single-sized beds.

The entire floor was covered with a thick carpet. Kobito-san, Japanese on the inside, almost took off her shoes.

"The central bed is for Chihiro-sama and Sakura. Adoris and I will use the bed on the far right, so please call out if you need anything."

Looking where he indicated, she saw that the space between the beds was partitioned with a thin curtain, and the double-sized bed even had a grand, veiled canopy.

"Is this what camping is like?"

Kobito-san let out a wry smile, remembering their camping on the small island in the Kilfan Empire. A simple tarp and a thick shelf. That was what camping was supposed to be.

Dolphen, correctly understanding the little girl’s question, offered a complicated smile.

"Originally, this is what a journey for a member of the royal family who does not neglect proper preparations is like. It is conducted so that there are no inconveniences. ...Our journeys until now have been too irregular. We were just making do with whatever was at hand."

I see. So this is the Knight Guard showing their true strength.

"Just having a space to lie down would have been enough."

Beneath the table set was a quilted rug with intricate embroidery, and there Kobito-san went barefoot. Sakura prepared tea near the little girl, who was relaxing lazily against a cushion.

The interior space was twice the size of the exterior. This too was magic, she was told. An application of the sealing jewels.

Magic is so convenient, really. I can only be grateful to everyone in Frontier for willingly letting go of this blessing.

Chihiro had been prepared for a massive, clamorous opposition, so in a good way, she was caught off guard. She had feared that anguish and agony, the raw ugliness of humanity, would be unleashed, causing tremendous chaos throughout the country.

But when the lid was lifted, apart from the council at the royal palace, there was no significant resistance, and things proceeded smoothly.

All that was left was to complete the golden ring and turn off the tap.

If Joker in the Western Forest was the trump card prepared by the gods of Earth, then surely it would work out somehow.

While Kobito-san was lost in thought about the yet-unseen Western Forest, a new oracle was sweeping through the royal palace in the country of Castrato.

《If Frontier is abandoning magic, then they should have no need for the Golden King, the source of magic. In that case, obtain her, make her your puppet, and bring magic to Castrato.》

The brainwashing drug that had been used in secret for hundreds of years.

This was a drug given by an oracle, and it had been used on those destined to enter the Frontier royal family. It was to hide Castrato’s intentions and to send people who would do Castrato’s bidding into the Frontier royal family. A glance at Consort Habirush would reveal its effects.

Using this, it was possible to suppress the ego and manipulate someone at will. The Golden King would be no exception. She had heard that the Golden King was a young princess.

They would snatch the Golden King from Frontier, which had enjoyed the blessings of magic, and Castrato would newly receive the blessings of magic.

While harboring a sliver of doubt about the oracles they had received so far, they could not resist the temptation of easily obtaining magic, and Castrato steered itself towards the worst possible course.

The people of Castrato, unaware of Legion’s smiling intentions, were dancing to his tune. Human desire is bottomless. In a medieval world where foolish conflicts fueled by short-term gain were rampant, this prize was a treasure so attractive it was dazzling.

This world’s one and only Golden King.

However, just as Castrato had infiltrated spies into Frontier, this world was a medieval one with an unstable equilibrium. Other countries also had spies in every nation. The various countries had picked up on the suddenly active movements of the Castrato army.

And of course, the reason why.

A spy from Frontier also grasped this and sent a fast horse to Romel.

The people, dancing without knowing the intentions of the gods.

The clashing emotions of people still intersected and began to move, revolving around the treasure that was Kobito-san.

Completely unaware of the anguish and agony of the various countries, Chihiro was savoring the meal Adoris had made for her.

"This is delicious. I love Adoris’s cooking."

The Frontier party felt a sense of warmth at the little girl’s beaming smile. Kobito-san had no idea that this journey would be the one to decide the final contest between the gods. Finding happiness in delicious food, Kobito-san is still Kobito-san today.