This Thing

I fell into a brief reverie, watching the mass of flesh burn endlessly from Daisy's flames.

I had thought only vengeance lay dormant in my heart. ...But I realized other emotions were mixed in as well. So, I watched it silently, then shook my head.

There's no need to dwell on something that's completely over.

There was no way to undo it, nor any reason to. So, just as I was about to leave, abandoning the hesitation that had arisen, a Black Orb caught my eye where the mass of flesh had been.

*The Source of Power.*

My gaze naturally gravitated towards it, as it was the very thing that had popped out as a reward when I'd defeated the Dullahan. As I picked it up with a hollow laugh, a thought suddenly flashed through my mind.

*If I had acted differently... would the outcome have been different?*

I don't know. Elysia had only intended to use me, and I had only clung to Elysia to fill my own emptiness. So, even if I had acted differently, the outcome might not have changed.

Even if it had changed, those were assumptions that could no longer be realized. I shook off all thoughts, gripped the orb, and decided to return to where my comrades were.

* * *

"Damian."

The first person I saw upon returning was Shiren. Shiren waved, greeting me happily at my return. As I chuckled at Shiren's appearance and approached, Liana, who was nearby, urgently spoke up.

So, what was that thing?

From Liana's perspective, it was something completely new, so she couldn't contain her curiosity and questioned me. I looked at Liana and told her its true identity.

"Elysia."

"Huh?"

"I said, Elysia."

"..."

Perhaps it was a completely unexpected answer, as Liana nodded with a very bewildered expression. Thinking it best to show them the Black Orb I had picked up earlier, I pulled it out. Shiren, who was nearby, looked at it with great interest and spoke to me.

...That's fascinating." "Fascinating, you say?"

Unable to grasp her intention at all, I asked again. Shiren nodded, picked up the orb, and spoke to me.

Yeah. How should I put it? All sorts of things are twisted inside. Mana, magic, and Divine Power—all the powers you can imagine.

I couldn't quite understand what Shiren meant, but I could tell that what was contained within it was far from normal.

*Artificial Sun, mixed powers, and the Dark Mages' goal...*

I'd need to delve deeper to understand what these things meant, but one thing was clear through Elysia.

The Dark Mages are trying to create something.

At my words, Shiren's eyes widened as if something had occurred to her, and she stared at me. Then, her words abruptly died out, and she fell deep into thought. I couldn't tell what she was thinking, but it seemed she had definitely grasped something.

I'll ask her what it is later.

For now, I decided to ponder what to do with this orb. As I stared at it, Daisy looked at the orb, drooling, and spoke to me.

Mnyak!? Yum yum. Tasty.

Huh?

Mnyam.

Daisy seemed to want to eat it, pointing at it with her paw. Then she shook her head, pointed at me, and made a gesture of eating.

*Does she want me to eat it?*

It was quite cute that she was drooling while gesturing for me to eat it. Watching her, I instinctively felt like giving it to Daisy, but...

...since I knew how this orb was made, I thought it would be awkward to give it up this time. Just as I was stroking Daisy's head, Shiren, who had been lost in thought, slowly raised her head, pointed at the orb, and spoke to me.

Can I investigate this before you eat it, perhaps?

At her suggestion, I nodded and handed it to Shiren. Shiren carefully took it and spoke.

"I'll give it right back once I'm done investigating." "You can take your time returning it."

I needed a little time, just a little, to prepare myself.

At my words, Shiren nodded, took the orb, and scampered off somewhere.

I didn't know what Shiren had discovered, but just as I decided to wait and see, Ruen looked at me and spoke.

What... exactly happened?

It would be better to explain in detail rather than gloss over it. I calmly began to explain exactly what had happened to Ruen, Liana, and Lorraine.

After I told them everything about Elysia and what I had seen there, everyone exchanged glances, unable to say anything, and fell silent. Seeing the strangely subdued atmosphere, I waved my hand and spoke.

Don't worry about it. It's in the past anyway, and there's no way to undo it." "But..." "Besides, I gave her several chances, but Elysia squandered them. And since we've already tried to kill each other multiple times, just accept it.

Of course, a subtle sense of unease lingered, but I decided it was better to bury it for the sake of my other comrades and not mention it further. To forcibly lighten the mood, I raised my tone more than usual and continued speaking.

Anyway, enough about that. I have something I thought of a while ago... Do you want to hear it?

At my question, Liana looked at me with a terrified expression. She must have immediately realized that what I was about to say wasn't normal. I found Liana's reaction amusing and opened my mouth.

First, I'm going to commit Bomb Terror.

When I stated my conclusion, Liana replied with a bewildered look.

"But I didn't say I wanted to hear it?"

"Does that matter?"

"...?"

I calmly continued speaking, openly ignoring Liana.

Whatever the case, due to this incident in The North, both the Order and the Dark Mages will form investigation teams, and now the real commotion will begin. That's right. So, what I'm saying is, while those guys are sending troops over here, how about we set off Bomb Terror in each of their main bases? ...? So you're saying you'll set off Bomb Terror not just on the Dark Mages, but on the Order too? Yep.

Ruen looked at me with a somewhat dumbfounded expression, then spoke in a hesitant voice.

I don't know if that's possible. As long as Paladins exist, such reckless Bomb Terror would probably be blocked.

Hearing that, Liana chimed in, supporting Ruen's words.

Besides, we don't even know where the Dark Mages' main base is.

It was frustrating, but they were right. I nodded at their opinions, pondered for a moment, then spoke lightly.

Then, unfortunately, we'll just have to kill the ones who come here to investigate.

...

Liana shook her head and sighed. Seeing this, I realized the mood had lightened, so I decided to stop joking and continued speaking.

"Everything I've said so far was a joke." "I figured. How long has it been since the last Bomb Terror, and you're talking about another one..." "Oh, but I'm serious about the Bomb Terror." "...?"

I had said it playfully, but for an unexpected attack, nothing beats Bomb Terror. Of course, using it continuously would drastically lower the success rate and damage, making it difficult to keep using. But for a while, I could still get my money's worth.

Because I think it's best to extract as much profit as possible before the results of the Bomb Terror become known elsewhere.

There was a need to carry out the Bomb Terror continuously and quickly.

However, as Liana said, we don't know where the Dark Mages are...

Then the Order would be my target. But since the Order is divided into factions friendly and hostile to us, I decided it would be best to distinguish between them as much as possible and carry out the Bomb Terror accordingly.

When I explained this, Ruen looked at me intently and spoke in a calm voice.

...As Damian knows, I am a Saintess of the Order, but I am a Fake Saintess, not a true one.

Fake Saintess. What this implied was the same as with Dale.

Yes. The fact that I can be replaced.

She is but a replaceable piece. That's why the Order puts Ruen forward, she said, but it doesn't consider her a very important existence.

Therefore, my influence within the Order isn't very significant. Of course, there are those who follow me, but... most of them are either truly devoted or spies planted by high-ranking Clergy to prevent me from doing anything foolish...

Ruen spoke at length, then suddenly paused, took a small breath, and concluded succinctly.

One thing is certain: there isn't a single normal person among the high-ranking Clergy.

At that statement, I fell silent for a moment and looked at Ruen.

Now that I think about it, it was strange.

It was the same at Pernoer Cliff, and at Chetika Port City. It was strange that the Saintess, who was supposed to be the central figure of the Order, would step forward to resolve these issues herself. Furthermore, it was strange that no one came to rescue her when she was in danger.

I don't know what it is, but one thing is certain... Ruen is definitely being marginalized.

And no one supported Ruen's actions either. The moment I made that judgment, I understood what Ruen meant by saying there were no normal people in the Order.

Well, there's nothing bad about it. It just means I can commit Bomb Terror.

Just as I decided to do so and was about to speak, Shiren, who had gone into the room to research, suddenly returned and spoke to me.

I figured out what this is.

I was surprised that her research had finished faster than expected, so I looked at Shiren. Shiren looked back at me and spoke.

This is a Divine Power Mass.