Gulp!
Before the large double doors in front of me, I heard someone gulp.
Beyond these very ominous-looking doors, the Evil God awaits. In other words, it’s the final battle. It’s understandable to be nervous. The fate of the world, quite literally, rests on our shoulders. It’s only natural to be nervous. Even I’m nervous.
Perhaps the source of that gulp just now was me.
I was so nervous I couldn’t even tell for sure.
Even for me, who has defeated the Evil God countless times in the game, this is how it is. I can only imagine how nervous Cornelia-san and the others behind me must be.
When I turned around, I met the eyes of the Reginleif members, their faces stiff. This isn’t good. I need to ease everyone’s tension.
“Alright, let’s form a huddle!”
“A hud…dle?”
“That’s right, Ria. Come on, everyone, gather ’round in a circle.”
Everyone looked at me with puzzled expressions when I suddenly said that. But the fact that they properly formed a circle made me feel their trust.
And so, I put my arms around Cornelia-san’s and Eleonore-san’s shoulders, forming the huddle.
We all brought our faces close, as if we were sharing a secret.
“Listen up, okay? I’m sure you’ve all figured it out, but the Evil God is beyond those doors.”
I felt everyone’s faces, so close to mine, tense up again. But while a moderate amount of tension is fine, excessive tension is not good. I want everyone to fight the Evil God in their best condition. That’s why I’m resorting to a little trick.
“Don’t look so scared. You all look cuter when you’re smiling.”
“Dee, now’s not the time for…”
“No, El-san, it’s precisely because it’s now that we should laugh. And loudly, too. I want to see everyone’s best smiles. Come on, laugh. Here I go! Ahahahaha hahaha hahaha!”
“D-Dee?”
“Onii-sama?”
“Onii?”
“Even if you tell us to laugh now…”
I can see everyone’s confusion. But I have no intention of backing down.
“Everyone, even if you have to force it, laugh! Hahahaha hahaha hahaha!”
“Ahahaha…”
“That’s it, Ria. Louder, with all your might! Ahahahaha hahaha!”
“Ahahahaha!”
“Mhm. Wahahahaha hahaha hahaha hahaha!”
Cornelia-san and Lily-san joined in. I sent a look towards Claudia-san and Eleonore-san.
“Oh, honestly. Ufufufufufufufufufufufu.”
“Ufufu…”
“Clau-san, El-san, let’s laugh even harder! There’s no one here to nag us about etiquette! Let’s laugh with all our might, as much as we can!”
“Ahahahahahahahahahahahaha!”
“Ahahahahahahahahahahahahahaha!”
“Nice! That’s the spirit!”
Even though it was the last moments before fighting the Evil God, we continued to laugh. It didn’t take long for our initially forced laughter to become natural.
That’s right. Even though a life-or-death battle is about to begin, why are we laughing?
The more calmly I think about it, the stranger the situation is.
But it’s better to be laughing than to be stiff with tension. Laughing out loud relieves tension and allows you to draw out more power than usual.
It was just some vague information I remembered seeing on TV in my previous life, but trying it out, it might actually be surprisingly effective. My body, which had been on the verge of trembling from nervousness, relaxed and felt slightly warm.
Looking at everyone’s faces, their cheeks were slightly flushed.
Nice. This is a good feeling.
At least, it’s better than their deathly pale faces from before.
“Alright, we’ve laughed, so shall we go?”
“Onii-sama, why did you suddenly start laughing?”
“That’s because, Ria, laughing gives you strength. See? Everyone looks good, right? It’s much better than being stiff with tension.”
“Mhm. But my jaw hurts…”
“That’s because you don’t usually talk much, Lily-san.”
“Fufu. I certainly feel like my tension has eased.”
“That’s right, Onee-sama. My body has warmed up a little too.”
“So, that means we’re fully prepared, right? Then, let’s go. This time, let’s laugh the Evil God away, too.”
“””Yes!”””
As I placed my hand on the door to open it, it began to open on its own. From beyond the door, white smoke, as if from burning dry ice, crept out, and a cold air flowed in.
I advanced without paying it any mind.
What came into view was a large space illuminated by black candles with blue flames. In the back, there was a large suit of black full-body armor sitting on a large black throne.
It’s huge. Even though it’s sitting, it must be over four meters tall.
There are no pillars of light flowing into the throne. This means all the Four Heavenly Kings of the Evil God have been defeated, and the Evil God has no buff effects.
Thank goodness. It seems Reinhardt-san and the others kept their promise.
Two red lights leaked from the slits where the armor’s eyes would be. Those are the Evil God’s eyes.
“So, you have come… Heroes of mankind…”
Its voice was hoarse and withered, like wind echoing in a cave. So this is the Evil God’s voice… It was a listless voice, more reminiscent of a withered old man than of dignity. However, it was a voice filled with deep, deep hatred.
“I bear you no ill will… but you shall disappear. And then, I shall reign as a god, and a new world shall—”
“Lily-san, magic!”
“Mhm!”