A Road with No End in Sight (3)

"Who are you...?"

"My name is Saijo Kurusu. Well... I suppose you could say I'm something like a father to you."

At those words, Alice's face involuntarily twisted. She took another step away from Kurusu.

"Wow, that hurts a little, having you reject me so openly. Even though it's the truth."

"I only have one father. I don't want some stranger I just met calling himself my father."

Alice replied sharply, on her guard. For some reason, Kurusu smiled as if he were pleased.

"Everyone who comes here says the same thing. So you do, too... Heh heh."

With an innocent, childlike smile, Kurusu kept chuckling to himself for a while. Alice couldn't understand what had made him so happy, so she held her breath and waited for him to continue.

"Now then... I'm sure you have a mountain of questions, but first, let me say this, as I always do to everyone who comes here. Welcome to Earth... to the planet Earth."

Hearing a word that should have been familiar, Alice tilted her head in confusion. It was slightly different from the one she knew.

"Earth? Not Hexaldoria? Is this a different world from the one we lived in?"

"At its core, it's the same... and yet a completely different world, you might say. If the world you lived in, Hexaldoria, is a dream, then this world where you and I are now, Earth, is reality."

Alice had been on guard, openly hostile, but as she listened, she relaxed and looked confused. Since he was giving her information, she knew he wasn't about to attack, but she couldn't make any sense of what he was saying.

"I like that expression. It's the look of someone who tried hard to figure it out, but couldn't."

"You could just tell me without being so mysterious... By the way, where did Menou go? You hid him, didn't you?"

"He seemed a little strong-willed, so I sent him to the main hall ahead of you. It would be a problem if he started a fight the moment we met. And the reason I'm speaking with you alone is very simple: I wanted to talk with a demon. This is the first time a demon has ever come here."

But then, murmuring, "I'm satisfied now," Kurusu suddenly snapped his fingers. Circular blue lights appeared beneath his feet and Alice's.

"Explaining everything twice would be a bother, so I'll continue the conversation where everyone else is."

The blue light that had appeared beneath her feet gradually rose, enveloping Alice's body. In an instant, her surroundings changed. She was in what seemed to be the main hall Kurusu had mentioned earlier, where Takako, Rex, Tina, Kururu, Parna, and Menou were waiting.

"Alice!"

The moment she saw Alice, Parna rushed over with a relieved look and hugged her tightly, as if checking that she was all right. The others hurried over to Alice right behind her.

"Lady Alice... Are you unharmed? Did he do anything to you?"

"Yeah, I'm fine. Menou seems to be all right, too."

Perhaps because she still wasn't used to seeing Menou without horns, Alice flinched and stepped back when he suddenly approached, looking entirely human. Menou was so handsome that he could only be described as a beautiful young man. Alice quickly tried to cover her reaction with a bashful smile. Seeing this, Tina gave an awkward smile and looked away, saying, "I guess that's what happens..." She seemed to have had the same reaction.

Takako, Kururu, and Rex were relieved to see that everyone was safe and together. They let out sighs of relief and smiled.

"Ah... I'm glad. We were worried something had happened to you when Menou was the only one who showed up here. That weird man didn't do anything strange to you, did he?"

"That's rude. I'm not some animal who makes a pass at just anyone, you know?"

Parna, who had been holding Alice by the shoulders, let go and turned around. Kurusu stood behind them, sighing as if exasperated and wearing a sarcastic smile.

"Oh? You're not going to jump this time?"

"I'm not so easily startled that the same entrance can surprise me twice."

Even as she said that, Parna braced herself and slowly backed away. Kurusu smiled with satisfaction when he saw her, then moved away from the group.

"Well then, let me welcome you all properly! Welcome to the next stage... Earth. It's been a long time since heroes graced us with their presence. And seven of you at once, no less... I'll make sure you're treated with the utmost hospitality."

In contrast to Kurusu, who spoke lightly and energetically, everyone else fell silent, their expressions tense. They were in no state to calmly smile and chat in the face of a situation that made absolutely no sense.

"Wow, none of you are smiling at all. Don't worry, I won't do anything, and nothing will happen. Besides, you could say I'm an ally of yours."

"If you're an ally, then answer me... Where are we? You said this was Earth. What's different about it from the world we lived in, Hexaldoria?"

As if to dispel her anxiety, Takako voiced the question that had been on her mind all along. The others seemed to share her curiosity and nodded in agreement.

"Hexaldoria is... another Earth, created by making 'the worst tragedy' that befell this world never happen. A refuge where humanity found hope at the very end... a simulated world."

"...What does that mean?"

Rex asked, his face contorted with indignation at the implication that they had come from a world that didn't exist. But Kurusu didn't answer. He glanced at Rex with a knowing smile and continued, saying, "There's an order to these things."