Thom swallowed dry and came to notice he had almost fallen from the trunk he was sitting on. His heart was racing violently. What a scorching determination, what a display of absolute resolve. It wasn't her aura that had pushed him back— it was the fiery passion with which she had spoken those words.

Erina was equally as terrified, but her face was flushing red and her eyes were sparkling for some reason. There was a certain admiration in her gaze.

"I loved. I am sure there is nothing in this world that is worth more than love. It has kept me alive for five thousand years... And it has helped me bring an end to those who can no longer bare an eternity without it." She looked at the mountain of crystals under her feet, sadness feeling the wave of her voice.

"The most important thing, huh..." Thom scratched his neck in discomfort. "I guess that's your point of view..."

"Do you think otherwise?"

"A-Ah, nevermind that. Continue, please. I'm deeply interested."

"Hmph." The angel simply nodded and looked at the girl that was laying on the floor as if directing her voice to her instead. "I was not the only one to love a human. Thousands of angels did so, too. However, few consumed their love into a sexual relationship. I can say, in short, that I was pregnant not long afterward."

"Pregnant?!" Thom stood up from his seat. "But... They should be a whole different species...? How the..."

"Ladai-Saras did not consent to it." The crystal girl said firmly. "Our punishment was worse than death."

"Did... You lose your baby...?" Erina asked with a tender and saddened voice.

"No." She answered with what could be interpreted as a smile. "I gave birth. But it was not as easy as it should have been. My child... Did not come out as human."

"Was it... An angel?"

"No." She shook her head. "Neither human nor angel... It was what Ladai-Saras considered her punishment. My belly grew for seven moons. The first two made my body swell enough to impede my movement. The rest, they crippled my entire body."

Erina's face turned blue as she kept listening.

"It did not stop growing. The body of an angel is not much bigger than a human's. But the one inside me was several times bigger than a just-born from any race. It grew... It grew quite heavy. I found myself laying powerless for the last few months of it. In the end, I couldn't give birth the normal way."

"T-Then, how..."

"My body ruptured." The angel said. "My entrails painted a bloody scene as my beloved watched with terror how from my bones, a baby the size of an adult goat emerged. My whole body was crippled to the point of no return. No saint magic could cure it— because it was Ladai-Saras who had hurt me this way to begin with. Three seconds after my body busted, my heart stopped and everything else fell apart like a broken stick."

Erina trembled from head to toe and moved her mouth bitterly at the thought of such a scene. She had seen things bad and worse around the world, but the thought of not being able to carry your son, the betrayal of your god, the hatred and disgust of the one you loved the most— those things made her tremble as she put herself in the position of such a tragic succession of events. She couldn't help but feel a chill run down her spine.

"When I came back to my senses, my body was this one." She extended her arm forward and clenched her hand. "And I laid in front of my son's tomb. I discovered he was named Ilhirnirlm. He was a warrior and died fighting for a nation that formed after the war between demons and angels had ended. He lived three hundred and eighty-five years. He was buried beside the skeletal remains of his father— my beloved."

"That's..." Erina refrained herself from crying by her side.

"Ilhirnirlm lived a good life, filled with honor and love from the man I put my trust on." She looked back at Thom, who jumped slightly at the weight of such a gaze. "I did what I thought was correct. I gave birth to a prideful man. I do not repent. I will not ever take back the love I felt for those close to me."

Thom felt his heart struck by an arrow as her words finally fell. His skin was covered by goosebumps in a second, something he blamed on the chilly air of winter, trying to deny that the heavy emotions of the angel had touched him. He lowered his head and bit on his lip. Was he really letting himself go because of something so stupid? A few seconds ago he wanted to murder that crystal-made construct, but now, he felt like pity wasn't enough to describe his feelings.

Couldn't he land a hit back then because of how thick the barrier was between them?

"Ughu...!" A sudden whimper interrupted Thom's train of thought. "Crystals!! Girl, I'm so sorry for you! I understand you, I totally understand, so please don't pay any attention to that cold bastard over there! Come here with me, let me give you some love!!"

Erina climbed the shard mountain between while loudly crying, and gave the cold crystal a strong, heartfelt hug that made a worrying cracking sound. The black-haired man stared at the two of them, now feeling more distant than ever. It was when the crystal girl also wrapped her arm around Erina's head that Thom snapped out of his stupor.

"Tch..." He clicked his tongue. "I guess there's some use to something like that."

"I cannot leave with you." The crystal being said. "As you see, the other fallen count on me to end what they can't. I will remain here and quench their pains, until someday I am defeated and they quench mine. Until then, I will continue to give my all in this hill. The feelings that still burn inside this cold case will remain ablaze until they're snuffed by someone with a greater passion than mine." That unmoving face of crystal seemed to move for a second, carrying across the air a fistful of emotions that seemed to slam against Thom's face.

"..."

"I apologize if I disappointed you."

Those words were placed right in front of him.

"Crystals, you don't need to worry about stuff like that." Erina happily said by her side. "By the way, wanna be my friend? I know I might be like a baby for you, but you're so cute that I can't think of you as an old lady! So, whatcha say? "

"Umu." The girl nodded. "I am fine with it."

"Neat!"

Thom clenched his fists as he heard their two voices rattle his brains. He was sure that they were not speaking with the only purpose to bother him, but for some reason, their voices sounded strangely irritating at the moment. He was still not sure of the reason, but he knew the feeling that pressed against his chest each time he heard their voice.

He was not happy.

"I sense your discontent. I apologize again. I swore to listen to you if you listened to me, but I know already what you came here for. Regardless, this one will not accompany you. There is a duty waiting here for me. There is love to receive and spread while I stay, but I fear all there is by your side is insecurity and the constant threat of war. Your aura and your expression give it away, lesser human—"

"Don't call me lesser human." He snarled at her, clenching his fists.

He was losing his cool.

"... There is no longer a reason for you and the demon girl to remain. You may visit me at any time, but I cannot guarantee that it will be me who stands here next time." She touched Erina's chin softly, making the demon girl's face redden.

"I..."

Thom didn't want to return empty-handed. Frustration began to pool in his stomach as he remembered what he had said to Clung, that he would convince the crystal being to join their side. It was the fastest way to make the rest of the horde respect him for what he was and not for his imposing presence—which didn't belong to him— or his farming skill.

However, the horde respecting him wasn't as important. He didn't need the praise from those who until just a few weeks ago were having trouble grabbing sticks and swords. The people he wanted respect from were those in the higher order— the hobgoblins that the horde looked up to.

In other words, the young man wanted to be above the ones on the top. He wanted, without a doubt, to be the only one sitting in a position of power. Although it would be foolish to think that convincing a single individual to join their side would bring him such a sweet reward, it was a step in the right direction, and he didn't want to miss it no matter what.

While the two girls spoke far from him, the angered Thom tried to calm himself down. He rotated his neck and inhaled the biggest amount of air he could, then let it go as he stretched his arms forward. It was nothing but an absurd routine to keep him running and to cool his heated head, but it seemed effective almost immediately. An idea crossed his mind. However, he quickly shook it off. He would need to keep his brain empty of noise, or else, the crystal girl would see clearly through his lies.

His lies, which set off like a cannon.

"I have a dream." Those words escaped his mouth without an ounce of emotion. His eyes were blank as his mind. Only the thought of speaking was floating inside.

「Learning successful. The passive skill [Definite Liar] has been acquired. If the user tells a fact different from the truth that listeners know to be false, there is a 5% chance that living beings that can hear you will be entranced and unable to believe otherwise.

•Applying unique skill bonus...

If the user tells a fact different from truth that lsiteners know to be false, there is a ninety to ninety-nine chance that living beings that can hear you will be entranced and unable to believe otherwise after applying [Luckiest] effects.」

"... A dream?" A small hint of curiosity could be heard in the Crystals' angelical humming.

"Hm." Thom closed his eyes, straining the last bit of his mind to remain unwavering. "I wish... For all living things... To be in peace, under the same banner. I, I wish for a world where there's no wars or dispute, where everyone is joyful and the only thing worth fighting for is the people's wellbeing! I want the fields to flourish and the ones in the lower class to rise, to be equal to the nobles! I have lived my life in poverty, I know what it is to be stripped from everything you love and you cherish! Believe me, I know what it is to love, I have loved too and I've lost the people I love! My..." Thom hesitated. "My father, for example... Tell me, girl, don't you think this is a just cause? Don't you think it's something worth becoming a king for?!" He yelled at the top of his lungs, holding his hand on his chest as if to indicate his words were coming from his heart and nowhere else.

"..." The crystal remained silent for a second, before tingling slightly and looking up towards the sky. "So that is your real objective. To become a king... And you desire to borrow my power to do so."

"H-Hm..." Thom smiled wryly. "More or less."

"I see." The crystal girl stated. "There is some doubt in your mind. But I do not feel lies between your confusion. Is it because you have found out the way to trick me, or is this how you truly feel?"

"It's..." Thom looked away. "It's how I feel. If I can become king, then whatever person lives under me will live a worthy life. I'm tired of nobles and shit. I'm trying to leave the notion of war behind. If I play my cards right, I might be able to do what I want without having to spill any blood. This is, too... For love."

Erina remained silent. There was a troubled expression on her face, showing complicated emotions that steamed from the clashing between the image she had of Thom, and whatever it was that she had seen just now. A man that wants to unite everyone under the same banner? Someone that wanted power only to do what's right? A merciful king capable of ending war? Thom Arburson was not that person.

When he had killed Piston, when he had been fighting her in that ring without any remorse, when he tricked her into exhausting her body to submit the orcs, at those moments was Thom's image created in her mind. She was not sure what she had chosen to believe about him up until that very moment, but now it was clear as water. The things he had done, the things he spoke of and the things he said to feel— although they seemed to go against each other at times, now Erina was sure of what kind of person that man was.

She silently bit her lip. The crystal girl beside her didn't seem to notice her sudden loss of heart, or maybe, she had decided to ignore what Erina was feeling at the moment.

The construct jumped off the small hill and landed in front of Thom. She raised her head to meet the man's gaze once more, being only a few centimeters shorter than him.

"I will follow you." She said. "I have come to the conclusion that my curiosity does suffice for me to join your cause. However, this is under one condition. That is, that when the time comes and you can lend me your power, you will help me end the pain of those that I consider my brethren."

A glint flickered in Thom's pitch-black pupils, as if a snuffed fire had suddenly regained its vigor. He formed a warm smile and silently bowed in front of the girl, who returned the gesture as a sign of having sealed their deal.

Although from afar one could see a casual agreement and a bond being formed, one that may appear heartwarming, Erina twisted her lips as she felt the scornful scent of hypocrisy bathe her heart.