◆ Ikana Village, Lua and Kurinka’s Home ◆
“Shin-chan, why did you not only lie but also try to pin the blame on Platiu-chan?”
“W-who would have thought this brat would go so far as to prepare an alibi and surveillance cameras…?”
“That’s separate from the fact that Platiu-chan outsmarted you at every turn, right?”
Shin’s misdeed of eating Kurinka’s fluffy custard has led to this torturous situation. It’s been over two hours now, and Shin should just apologize already. But with Kurinka firing questions one after another, he doesn’t even have a moment to breathe. If he were to apologize, Kurinka would have to forgive him right then and there, which only fuels her anger. That’s why she continues her relentless barrage.
This is the consequence of angering Kurinka. The worst thing you can do in this world is eat Kurinka’s snacks without permission. Shin probably imagined being torn apart and then regenerated repeatedly, but I think that would be better. The tension of not knowing when the final blow will come while being nagged incessantly is exhausting. Occasionally, Kurinka slams her staff on the table for added effect.
“Platiu, don’t just install cameras in people’s homes without permission.”
“I’m just testing to see if Lua notices.”
“I don’t understand what you gain from succeeding, but just stop it.”
“Exactly, Platiu-chan. You wouldn’t like it if someone did the same to you, would you?”
As expected of Kurinka. She presents a solid argument that convinces Platiu. With a pout, Platiu reluctantly climbs onto the table and removes the small camera that had been hidden in the ceiling’s gap. It’s important to firmly scold such malicious behavior to put a stop to it. Genia once mentioned that Platiu hadn’t received proper education from decent parents at a young age, which is why she struggles to distinguish right from wrong.
“So, is the farce over?”
“Sorry, sorry! You can continue the conversation, Lord Daigami.”
Her tail sways back and forth, clearly unhappy. Even if she says that, she never expected to return home to such trouble, and it was Lord Daigami who forced her to turn back. I gently pat her head, and she seems to squint her eyes in delight.
“The Celestial Realm, huh… So, are you saying that Lord Daigami wants us to refrain from intervening because we might end up in an all-out war with them?”
“Those beings are residents of the Celestial Realm and also servants of Madias. In other words, to bare our fangs at them would mean baring them at Madias…”
“You’re worried because Madias is a higher deity than you, Lord Daigami. But if we continue like this, we’ll be at the mercy of that Celestial Realm.”
“…Are you prepared for that?”
While lying sprawled on the table, Lord Daigami scrutinizes us. It’s clear that he’s not just asking if we’re ready to fight; there’s something deeper behind his gaze.
“With the military power of the Celestial Realm, it wouldn’t take long to subjugate this human world. Many, including those without the power to fight, would become sacrifices. Lua, Kurinka, can you protect all humans?”
“…It’s really difficult to do what we want to do.”
“Do you understand why the Celestial Realm has refrained from interfering with the human world since ancient times? You should know without me saying. Among them, that Ash Angel Zeyel holds the rank of Holy Angel…”
“The Guardian Celestials are among the most powerful beings in the Celestial Realm. In human terms, they would be S-rank… or rather, they hold positions equivalent to the Five Gods.”
Genia leaned against the wall, proudly raising her index finger. I won’t comment on her barging in uninvited, but I wonder what she wants.
“There’s a record of Ash Angel Zeyel, albeit a scant one.”
“Genia, could you at least knock?”
“I’m sorry. Platiu invited me in.”
“Hey!”
I just taught her not to do such things in someone else’s home. But at this point, it doesn’t matter much. For Platiu, Genia is like a parent, so it feels a bit cruel to get too angry.
“Do you know anything about Zeyel?”
“No, not at all. I only have a vague understanding of him as a figure from legends. After all, even in the Kingdom of Metallica, we know very little about the Celestial Realm. But today, I thought I might show you something interesting.”
“What’s that? A disk?”
“It’s a disk left behind by General Branburm. It was discovered in the heart of Satanakia. His message is contained within it.”
“Oh… that Branburm…”
What could the man who went mad with grief over losing his child and led the Kingdom of Metallica to ruin have left behind? Genia hurriedly prepared some machinery and inserted the disk.
As I wondered where it would be displayed, a hologram appeared in the air. It was Branburm’s figure, which I recognized. However, he looked like an ordinary man, so different from the Perfect Human I had imagined.
“Now that this has been activated, it means you have stopped my rampage. Thank you, Flash Strike Girl Lua.”
“…No way! Branburm is alive?!”
“…No. He likely anticipated that you would react this way and preemptively included a message. The timing of the recording coincides with the day you visited the Kingdom of Metallica.”
I can’t believe he predicted that I would defeat him in a rampage back then. If that’s the case, couldn’t he have avoided such a fate? I can’t comprehend it at all. Branburm, perhaps he could have been saved after all. That thought suddenly crosses my mind.
“What I want to convey is about Madias. As the Arbitrator God, Madias conducts the tuning of the world. If you are not familiar with the general overview, please pause the disk and consult someone like Director Genia.
…I will continue under the assumption that you understand. I am promoting a mechanization plan within the country and have collaborated with Director Corin to investigate Madias. In the past, he has made numerous attempts to destroy the Kingdom of Metallica through various means.
The intervals between these attempts can span over a hundred years or be as short as a few decades. The methods have included tsunamis, lightning strikes, massive earthquakes, and monster invasions… The Kingdom of Metallica has overcome these disasters using the pinnacle of technology. Therefore, we have conducted extensive research on Madias’s power and have come to a rough conclusion.
The essence of that power, derived from analyzing all data and phenomena, is that he can “cause everything to happen.” You may laugh it off, but we have already determined that it aligns with the deity worshipped by the Uzei Religion. The god worshipped by the Uzei Religion is Madias. Although his name is not written in the scriptures, when compared with the content, the “miracles” that exist there are undoubtedly the power of Madias.
In our country, we can usually identify the timing of disasters before they occur and take preemptive measures to minimize damage. However, there have been times when we were struck by unprecedented disasters that could not be predicted based on historical data. The monsters that appeared were all unknown entities that had never existed anywhere in the world before. These unidentified creatures launched a simultaneous assault on Metallica. In the past, we never imagined that such calamities could be brought about by a god. It was a product of modern technology. Until then, they had been regarded as inexplicable phenomena.
As we delved deeper into the past, we arrived at a single race.
That race is the Celestial Beings. We barely managed to uncover records of their contact with humans over 2000 years ago. What became clear was the relationship between them and the idol known as “God.” There exists another world called the Celestial Realm. In that realm, there are those who watch over this world.
Unfortunately, we could not investigate the Celestial Beings in further detail. To summarize, we have finally come to know the existence of gods in modern times. All the mysterious disasters we have faced were caused by gods, and the understanding of their power has been achieved… And who exactly is Madias the Arbitrator God?
Madias’s goal is the maintenance of the world. If monsters overflow, he will eradicate them; if humans overflow, he will destroy them. He exists to maintain the balance of the world, regardless of whether humans are present. That is why if we humans possess a strong civilization, it will be deemed harmful to the world. Thus, it was inevitable that Metallica would be targeted. He sought to destroy us with “miracles.” However, a question remains. If we understand miracles as we know them, they should be able to make anything possible. In other words, he could have easily twisted things to his advantage.
Why is there a gap in the application of his power? Why are there repeated disasters and monster invasions that he has been thwarted from executing? The possibilities are that our understanding of his power is shallow, or perhaps… Madias himself is not omnipotent.
Yes, there may be some limitations to Madias’s power. Or it could be that Madias himself is unable to fully wield his power, in other words, he is inexperienced. In any case, despite being in a position to mediate the world, his methods are rather crude.
Madias is, in a sense, akin to what we would call a “system.” It faithfully executes the commands given to it, causing harm to humans, monsters, or other races in the name of maintaining the world. There is no flexibility in its actions. It’s an outdated system.
If that’s the case, then Madias is already broken. The phenomena it brings about are utterly pathetic. However, not everything is as robust as Metallica. At this rate, humanity will eventually be annihilated by Madias… Before that happens, we must become complete. If humans can become complete, that would suffice.
The anger of losing my son—how much easier it would have been if it had faded with time. Even now, it swells and amplifies. Rua, even now, I feel infinite potential in you…
“Well, it seems this is it.”
The hologram vanished. While Genia-san was retrieving the disk, I struggled to absorb all of Branburm’s words. Branburm, having investigated so thoroughly, why did he let things come to this? He’s far smarter than I am.
“Why would he leave something like this behind and hide it?”
“I have no way of knowing, but perhaps he was conflicted himself. In his inability to suppress his own emotions, a sliver of his conscience left this message.”
He may have been someone who did terrible things to Platiu, but perhaps he still tried to be human. I was reminded anew of the enormity of losing something precious. I had always said that Madias was broken, but Branburm was already broken too. Madias is broken; I took that statement to heart.
“…So what exactly is Madias?”
“Well, I never expected Branburm to collude with Corin and investigate this deeply behind the scenes. Excluding me… So the rumors about those two being involved were true after all.”
“Hey, that doesn’t matter right now. What is Madias?”
“It’s a Divine Being, isn’t it?”
“So what does that mean? It’s not human, right? No… that’s not quite right either.”
“Perhaps it’s something referred to as a Divine Being.”
Kurinka pulled out something that had been nagging at me. I certainly couldn’t wrap my head around the concept of a Divine Being. We humans, animals, monsters, elves, the Demon Race, dwarves, and giants—each race is different, but they are all living beings. Is a Divine Being a separate race? No, that doesn’t sit right either.
“Considering Madias’s true identity as a Celestial Being seems reasonable.”
“That Celestial Being is a far superior existence compared to us. Therefore, to bare fangs at them means…”
“Lord Daigami is a Divine Being now, but he was originally an animal, right?”
His ears perked up slightly in our direction. I might have angered him, but Branburm’s message seemed to provide one answer, so I didn’t mind.
“A Divine Being… is a creature with immense power, isn’t it? That Celestial Being is probably just a different race of the same kind. They look down on us, calling us ‘humans’ and such.”
“Indeed. It’s a more constructive interpretation than viewing them as something that has existed since the beginning of the world. At the very least, it seems Branburm thought so.”
“Corin was investigating alongside him too. I wonder what she thinks? Oh, right… it was my fault that things turned out this way…”
“She’s doing much better now. However, she harbors quite a grudge against you, so I wouldn’t recommend meeting her.”
I’ve been disliked. But she was the one who initiated things. I’m not going to apologize. Kurinka nodded in agreement. Wait, she can understand me even when I’m not speaking? That’s creepy.
“It seems we were too caught up in the concept of a Divine Being. Perhaps ‘Divine Being’ is merely a title for something with exceptional power.”
“If that’s the case, then what? It doesn’t change the fact that Madias is an existence that surpasses human intellect. The Celestial Beings are the same. The fact remains that they possess greater power than humans in the human realm. Moreover… as the Arbitrator God, there are things that exist thanks to him.”
“Such as maintaining the world, right?”
“Exactly. If Madias were to disappear, an unprecedented Calamity would rain down. There are unseen Calamities that lie dormant all over the world, kept in check by Madias. There are Calamities far worse than Vandalsia or Rulud. I ask you once more…”
Lord Daigami sat at the table, scrutinizing each of us in turn. He was trying to guide us, humans, to make the right choices. Lord Daigami is the guardian deity of Azuma, but he cares for humanity, which is why he is like this. The people here are no exception. That’s why he speaks so firmly.
“Can you choose the fate of the world?”
“We can. What’s wrong with us, the ones living in this world, making the decisions?”
“…A quick answer.”
Lord Daigami got off the table and curled up on the floor. It was as if he suddenly lost all motivation, wrapping his long tail around himself.
“Humans are trying to distance themselves from the hands of the Divine… It’s both a joy and a sadness.”
Those were the words of a guardian deity of Azuma. Because he loves humanity, he is so serious about this. That’s why he’s worried sick. He doesn’t want us to be destroyed by Madias.
“I won’t let it come to war with the Celestial Realm. I’ll stop it with all my power.”
“Director Genia! This is bad!”
“Oh, Harp-san.”
The tense atmosphere was shattered by a woman in a white coat named Harp. She was the one who assisted me when I tried to meet Platiu on the airship. Harp-san was holding a device with a small screen.
“Why are you bringing a small monitor here?”
“I’ll connect the channel right away!”
“What is this…?”
The screen displayed a fleet covering the entire sky. Flying ships—these belonged to the Torkaria Federation, if I recall correctly. Swimming in the center was a ship so large it reminded me of the Sky Cannon. It was making its presence known as if it were the boss of the surrounding flying vessels.
“The location is the sea north of Avangarde. A satellite of Metallica that barely survived caught this.”
“The main fleet of the Torkaria Federation… and that’s the Giga Atlas-class Assault Airship ‘Cyclops.’ This isn’t good. Have you contacted Major Curtis, who is cooperating with us?”
“Yes… He seemed quite confused about this matter. Even if we wanted to contact that fleet, our current equipment won’t allow it.”
“Hey, should we go? If they’re planning an invasion, that would be a disaster.”
“No, that would be… It would be problematic if things escalated. It’s not yet confirmed that they’re invading, and my prediction is likely…”
I could only watch with bated breath as the massive fleet quietly approached us. Major Curtis, from the Torkaria Federation, was someone I had met in Satanakia. He seemed like a good person, but my intuition warned me that the fleet displayed on the screen might cause trouble.
◆ Shin Report ◆
Damn it, I never expected that brat to get so much out of me.
Creating a camera, of all things—where did they even gather the materials?
I’m so frustrated, so frustrated, so frustrated! Grrr!
Even though it’s a world crisis, what is that fox doing at this point?
Fine, whatever.
What use is Metallica’s message for a strategy?
I’m so annoyed that I can’t focus on the report.
This time, I’m done.
I won’t snack anymore, but I’ll definitely take revenge on that Platiu.
I can’t let my pride as a Demon Race go unaddressed.
Remember this!