Chapter 102
'...It's not as if there are no Abyssal Ones like that. But how?'
The ability to mimic someone else's appearance was not particularly rare in the Abyss. Since all kinds of monsters ran rampant there, countless monsters possessed abilities related to transformation, duplication, disguise, imitation, and so on.
But that did not mean monsters capable of impersonating the Queen of Hearts were a common sight.
First of all, every living creature entering or leaving the 'Garden' was detected by magic circles, and whenever a creature other than soldiers, knights, Her Majesty, or her pets entered, the knights were immediately dispatched to execute it. Since that had happened repeatedly for a very long time, no one attempted to trespass into the Garden unless they were suicidal—or an Abyssal One who wanted to become a soldier.
And naturally, there was no Abyssal One inside the Garden capable of mimicking Her Majesty's appearance.
<...Jeopjeop. Did you really meet Her Majesty? I know you can't speak. But you can understand me, can't you?>
<Squawk!>
<...Something's wrong.>
That response was positive. It meant Jeopjeop really had met Her Majesty.
Even if Jeopjeop was not particularly intelligent, it was Her Majesty's pet. It might mistake someone else for somebody else, but it could not mistake Her Majesty.
If Her Majesty had really come, that was fine. However, there was no way Her Majesty would calmly wander around the Garden like this.
There were two possibilities. The first was that Her Majesty had indulged in another whim, this time on a large enough scale to make her act completely unlike the personality they knew.
And the second was that someone had entered the Garden by some means while impersonating Her Majesty. If that was the case, then perhaps...
<Miss Jaquir. Here's the report on what happened at the time.>
<Hmm. Go on.>
A report on what had happened when Her Majesty had stopped by the Hunting Castle had arrived at just the right moment.
She had triggered the intruder alarm, said it was a prank, and disappeared...? And not a single soldier had directly confirmed Her Majesty's appearance...?
<...Wait. Send every soldier who was on duty at the time to the outskirts of the Garden.>
<Yes! Understood!>
...She knew the card soldiers' discipline was a joke, but wasn't this going a little too far?
An alarm rang, they heard Her Majesty's voice, and they simply turned back? What was this...?
<Phew...>
Although she was bound to the Queen of Hearts by contract and worked under her, the Queen was a complete failure as a leader.
The fact that she deliberately transformed all sorts of nobodies into the form of cards to create the 'Garden' she wanted, the fact that she kept attempting things with slim chances of success and wasting energy, and the fact that she treated her subordinates however she pleased.
Of course, what could anyone do about it? Everything in the Abyss operated according to the law of might.
<...Just in case, I suppose I should go check. Jeopjeop, guide me to where you saw Her Majesty.>
<Squeak!>
<...Haah. If you don't want to go, at least point out the location. Here's the map.>
-Poke
'Damn bird.'
After confirming the location Jeopjeop had indicated, she began moving toward it.
If Her Majesty was really there, she only had to scold her. If it was truly an impostor, she could execute them on the spot.
She did not know by what means they had impersonated Her Majesty, but regardless of whether she acknowledged that ability, impersonating Her Majesty was a capital offense.
* * *
"Good work, Miss Momo. Thanks to you, we're alive."
[It was only natural.]
"Good work, Senior. You must be tired. Would you like to sleep? I'll lay out a blanket for you."
"...Then maybe we should get some sleep. Since Miss Momo has put up a barrier, too..."
It was not wise to relax until our safety was completely secured... but I was reaching my physical limit as well.
I decided that I probably could not keep watch properly like this, so it would be better to take even a short nap...
"Wake me if anything happens..."
Perhaps because I was so exhausted, the world went dark the moment I lay down.
"S-Senior...! Miss Momo told me to wake you...! S-Something came nearby...!"
"Huh... Uh... Mm."
You know that experience you sometimes have after a proper night's sleep, where you close your eyes and suddenly several hours have passed when you open them again?
This was exactly that situation. I had just lain down, yet I was groggy with sleep, and Black Rose was waking me up.
In any case, the fact that she had woken me meant something had happened. I hurriedly slapped my cheeks to wake myself up and assessed the situation.
"What happened? Did an enemy appear?"
[...Yes. And it is an extremely formidable opponent.]
"How strong is it? Is it too late to run?"
[I could not determine its speed, but I believe that is the case. As for its strength... it is stronger than the knight Alice fought before coming to the Abyss. Much stronger.]
"...Haah."
Damn Abyss. There had been only a handful of S-rank Abyssal Ones on Earth over the past ten years, yet beings that surpassed them were wandering around here as if they were a dime a dozen.
Did that mean the Garden was one of the Abyss's foremost factions?
[Even for Momo... it would be impossible to hide perfectly from an Abyssal One of that caliber. It seems... it has already noticed us. It is waiting outside.]
"Does it seem to be doing anything? Threatening us or telling us to come out?"
[It is waiting quietly, as if expecting us to come out.]
"...Can you show me?"
At my request, Momo displayed a video without complaint.
'...Huh. It obviously isn't ordinary.'
If the one I had met before was a knight... this one looked like a knight captain. Its appearance alone gave that impression, and so did the armor.
True to the Garden's obsession with decapitation, it was a dullahan as well, but I could feel that it was a fundamentally different kind of being from the Garden's other inhabitants I had seen so far.
"...We have to go out, don't we?"
[Are you sure? Our chance of victory is estimated to be less than 3%.]
"What choice do we have? It seems to have already noticed us. Since it is waiting without attacking... it seems willing to talk. It would be better to go out now."
-Thump-thump
I said that, but I was in a state where staying calm was quite difficult, too.
Han Serin. Someone who obviously looked high-ranking in that woman's Garden had come looking for me, and still did not seem inclined to attack. How was I supposed to respond?
'Have I been found out?'
I could not help but think that.
They had found me and come to capture me.
-Gulp
...It was too late to run. How could I escape from an opponent already right outside, especially one I had less than a 3% chance of beating?
Then...
'...Miss Momo. You remember the place we saw before, right?'
[You mean the portal?]
'If something happens to Alice, please take good care of Miss Black Rose.'
[...Understood. But I hope that premise never comes to pass.]
'We'll see.'
Behind me, I could see the rookie fidgeting restlessly.
Right. From what I had heard, she had lived a truly miserable life because of Abyssal Ones, only to awaken as a magical girl in the end.
And after that, the place she had ultimately been dragged to was the Abyss.
With that much bad luck, she would probably manage to survive somehow. People with truly rotten luck always seemed to have long lifelines.
"Don't worry, Miss Black Rose. I'll resolve this through conversation."
"C-can it really be settled with a conversation?"
"Yes. Alice only needs to catch Alice's doppelgänger. There's no reason to fight other Abyssal Ones, right? At least not now, unless they've invaded Earth."
"Th-that's true!"
She did not seem to think I would lose if I fought that thing.
Or maybe she simply did not think I could fool it.
Anyway. It was about time I went out.
If I waited any longer and it swung its sword, I would be in trouble...
-Flash!
-Shraaash!!
The flash lasted only an instant.
It seemed completely unconcerned with the fact that the hideout was concealed by a barrier. In a single motion, it drew its sword and slashed from top to bottom.
After the flash passed, the hideout had been split in half.
-Thud, thud...
"Kyaaaaaaaaaaah!!!"
I dodged.
Only me.
A person's arm was rolling around before my eyes, while the rookie screamed and clutched her opposite shoulder with her remaining arm.
-Lurch
"...Stay conscious, Miss Black Rose! I'll stop the bleeding... Miss Momo! Take her! Quickly!"
I forcibly shoved down the emotions that threatened to surge up before I could even process the situation, tore some cloth, and hurriedly stopped the bleeding.
Healing magic was not my specialty, but I knew at least some magic for emergency treatment. It was exactly what the name implied: emergency treatment.
"Aaah... Eek..."
"Don't lose consciousness! If you do, you'll really die! Just follow Miss Momo! Got it?!"
[Follow me! I'll support you with magic, so we need to get as far away as possible!]
I shoved the severed arm into Black Rose's hand and pushed her onward with Momo.
-Step, step
Even now, I could hear the sound of heavy armor moving.
Was it thanks to the first aid, Momo, or the fact that she had a strong will as a magical girl?
Black Rose swallowed the tears she could not hide because of the pain and somehow managed to head toward the emergency exit we had prepared in advance.
-Clink
"...! Black Rose...! This is a gun...!"
Perhaps because she had been in such a desperate hurry, she had even dropped her wand—the twin pistols—but there was no way to give it back to her now.
Gritting my teeth, I left the pistols hanging at my waist, gripped my staff in both hands, and waited for the footsteps.
Momo was gone. So was Black Rose.
At this point, I did not care about the whole act anymore.
Eventually, when the footsteps reached nearby and the dullahan appeared...
[Luna Blast]
"Die!!!!!!!!!!!!"
-Boom!
A thick beam shot from my staff and struck it head-on.
...No, it only looked as though it had struck it.
<...Hmm. That is a technique Her Majesty used in the past. Its appearance, its technique... This is not mere imitation...>
The dullahan swung its black greatsword and split the beam in two before it, then leisurely examined me before frowning as though deep in thought.
<...I see. You are the 'King.'>
"Bullshit."
<You could not have understood me, yet you began with profanity. You must indeed be the King.>
Even as it said that, it did not loosen the hand gripping its sword.
Even if it displayed a relaxed attitude as an overwhelmingly powerful opponent, the basics of a warrior remained the same.
In other words, it still recognized me as someone it might have to fight.
-Clink
'...This is uncomfortable.'
The two lumps of metal at my waist, different from my usual gear, were slightly bothersome, but this was Black Rose's precious wand. I could not simply throw it away.
In the end, all I could do was wet my throat with a dry swallow and grip Alice's staff tightly in both hands.
"If you're going to call me the King, at least call me the Queen. Can't you tell I'm obviously a woman?"