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“So, are you going to answer me now?” Itaka Izumi asked on a certain early morning, in the comfortable bed of a roadside inn.

“What still requires an answer?” the Lord of Light asked, once again employing Izumi's body for a cushion.

“What are you actually going for here?”

“Meaning?”

“What is your endgame? The big picture. The master plan. Why did you make Yule your vessel and leave your comfortable pet kingdom? All that.”

“Did you not already conclude that it was to have my dear vessel conquer the Trophaeum and save the world from destruction and chaos?” the Divine suggested.

“Yes, I said that,” Izumi nodded. “You didn't. You neither confirmed nor denied it. Which is why, I'm thinking it might not be right. Because, if that were all, you wouldn't have even considered marrying her off to the fake duke, after you summoned me to protect her. No goddess could be so flippant. So it's not really saving the world from the prophecy that you care about, is it?”

“Oh, but I am not a goddess, Izumi," Aiwesh corrected. "I am a Divine. Merely a fragment of a true God's power.”

“If you hold a godly power, then is there really a difference?”

“There is a clear, fundamental, undeniable difference.”

“And you're still not answering me.”

“My, could it be that you actually have a brain? I thought you were a hopeless, unwanted earthling with nothing but swords and girls in that head of yours?”

“That's really quite rude and going too far," Izumi replied, "but I see no wrong in admitting I like cute girls and swords.”

“You will refrain from admitting you have a brain, however?”

“Yes. To be honest, I don't think it's a chain of logic that justifies the label of a braniac, especially when it’s self-proclaimed.”

“I love your honesty, Itaka Izumi!" Aiwesh laughed. "Yes, a hero should be direct and blunt. And a little retarded. You do have the makings of a proper champion.”

“I don’t know about being a champion, but you can't go on being a NEET and a maiden for as long as I have without learning to confront various issues.”

“Very well,” the Divine Lord nodded. “I believe I should be direct with you in kind. I admit I never offered the contract to my beloved vessel for the sake of having her restore the Covenant. When I saw her for the first time, I did not think she would have it in her, and I still do not. Not now, when daemons hold the tower. Yes, that task is impossible for Yuliana Da Via Brannan, even if I were to lend her my power. Make no mistake; it is impossible for anyone.”

“Then why did you do it?”

“Because I have a dream. Yes! I one day became aware that I had something my kind generally does not. A dream. An ambition beyond my preordained purpose. You could even call it a vision.”

“It’s not about equality among races, is it?”

“But that is precisely what it is. Universal equality—in my name.”

“What...?”

“I do not want to simply breathe new life into a dying world," the Divine explained. "I want to make it my own. I want to recreate it in my own image. I am not looking to uphold an outdated, broken system, but take it apart and rebuild it by my own design. My intent is to travel the world in the guise of my vessel, uniting all life, including my brothers and sisters. And then, by taking all the Godly fragments onto myself, I shall become One True God, in the place of the cowards who ran off and left this world to rot. All the nations and races, humans, dharves, emiri, cirelo, hamasi, goti, cruleans, lynxians, every creature from drakes to wyverns, from ghouls to unicorns, will find their place in the second Golden Age, under my rule. Such is my dream. No, it could very well be the true reason why I exist.”

“I can’t tell if that’s a good idea or a bad idea, but you’re probably insane.”

“Yes, when it comes to the matters of this world, you cannot tell mad from sane, being only an outsider, can you? But try to think of it this way—once I am God, the Logic of this world, I may grant the whole of Ortho my blessing and life can go on unhindered. There will be no need for champions such as yourself to be summoned or fed to the Trophaeum's hungry jaws every thousand years. Is that not a good thing? Worth fighting for, even?”

“I suppose it is, from a purely moral perspective, but what else do you plan to do after you become a God?”

“I shall leave that to your extensive imagination," Aiwesh said, poking Izumi's nose with her slender finger. "Think long and hard, Itaka Izumi. Think until your brain hurts. Not that it will change a thing. I brought you into this world and just as easily I can remove you from it. So content yourself with my sweet vessel's tender albeit inexperienced kisses, dwell in the bliss of ignorance and pray you will never be awakened from it.”

Having heard all that, Izumi—closed her eyes and tried to go back to sleep.

In a moment, she would pay witness to Yuliana’s flustered shrieking and be forced to get up to meet another day in another world, laden with trials. But until that time, for even just a few more fleeting seconds, she wanted to sleep and keep dreaming of video games.

Royal Banquet | END