#143

Pandemonium let me go readily.

Since I had been straining to pull my hand away, I staggered for a moment.

“It’s not like this is something I can force you to do. If you’re absolutely unwilling to help, then I guess you’ll just have to endure it alone. What else can I do?”

‘…Isn’t that obvious?’

He didn’t even know I was here, so he probably intended to manage somehow without me in the first place.

Just live according to your original plan.

Pandemonium let out a loud, deliberate sigh.

“Ah, I heard that cognitive decline sets in faster when you’re stressed….”

“So what? Go meditate or something.”

“At this rate, I’ll have to listen to your nagging until the Tutorial ends.”

“…And what changes once the Tutorial is over?”

“Huh?”

“I’m asking if there’s some reason I won’t have to nag you once The ‘Stars’ open.”

Pandemonium rolled his eyes.

“…Well, because the world will be in chaos? It won’t exactly be a situation where people are telling me to get married, right?”

‘As if.’

Immediately after the contract, everyone will be playing it safe.

Because the Apostle’s Constraint will be lifted.

‘…Is he planning to hang every single member of the family?’

I replied without letting on that I had goosebumps.

“So you were trying to enter a fake marriage just because you didn’t want to be nagged for about a month?”

“Otherwise, I’d have no justification to protect you in our house. Just think about what people would say if I simply brought you along.”

‘Ah.’

Right, I’m currently a Chanter.

If he brought me along without a good reason, there’s a very high probability I’d be seen as his male lover.

The male lover of the acting Head of the family who is under pressure to marry….

‘It’s a battle between curry-flavored poop and poop-flavored curry.’

I thought his sense of morality and shame had been deleted along with everything else when he proposed to me, but it seemed this guy had used his head to make the least shameful choice possible.

‘In that case, the best option is to eat neither.’

“Protect? Where could possibly be safer than here?”

Once the Tutorial ends, there will be no ‘protection mechanism’ to save their lives, so players won’t even dare to come near the Capital Church.

Despite saying that, Pandemonium’s expression didn’t brighten.

“Couldn’t the Saintess execute you the moment the Tutorial ends? You said you don’t even know why you’re being protected. Aren’t you afraid she might suddenly turn on you?”

‘…If we’re talking like that, I’m more worried about you.’

He’s already this far gone; what will happen after he contracts with the War God?

Who knows how much more he’ll change.

‘But I shouldn’t show that I’m scared.’

I gave a hollow laugh on purpose.

“Haha, if I get a Game Over, just make sure you save me.”

Pandemonium’s expression stiffened noticeably.

‘What now.’

“…If you’re worried about wasting points, then don’t bother.”

“No, no. Of course you should save me. Of course….”

“It probably won’t be much help, so it’s fine to push it back. You can save me whenever you have points to spare.”

“…I guess so.”

‘I guess so?’

No, you piece of shit.

He’s making me feel damn lonely.

Couldn’t he have just said, even as a lie, that he’d scrape together every point he has to save me first?

‘Seriously, this guy has zero social skills.’

Seeing how he begrudges the act of saving me, the claim about reviving dead NPCs is 100% a lie.

“Hey. Even if I said that, would it kill you to say you’d save me first?”

“…Why? It’ll only make things unnecessarily dangerous.”

‘Sigh….’

“Ugh. Forget it. I should just blame myself for possessing a trash unit.”

What a cold-hearted bastard.

He already has the mindset of a strategy gamer.

As a performance-obsessed player, I understand, but I thought he’d at least think I was somewhat useful….

‘…I haven’t exactly had an outstanding run as the War God.’

The War God is the most incompatible partner among the Othergods.

Aside from the Unupdated God, with whom you can’t even reach an ending.

Whenever I reached an ending as the War God, he would always grumble to me, telling me not to ruin the aesthetics of war and that winning isn’t everything.

Once, out of annoyance, I spent a massive amount of points to have a long conversation with him, asking what exactly he wanted.

‘At the time, I just thought it was a script.’

What did he say?

That war bastard wanted to stay forever in the era of warriors who believed that if they died in battle, they would go to Valhalla.

‘What a legendary old-fashioned prick.’

After hearing that, I got pissed and told him that ants would continue their fierce physical brawls for tens of thousands of years just as he wanted, so he should just watch that, as it suited his level. He got absolutely livid and trembled with rage.

He went ballistic, saying he’d make sure I met the most horrific death, so I just said, ‘Yeah, I’ll just close the game~’ and shut it down.

I don’t think I ever picked the War God again after that….

‘…Surely he doesn’t remember that?’

That’s one more reason why I didn’t want to get close to Pandemonium.

I decided to change the subject.

“Let me ask one thing I’m curious about. What are the players planning to do by holding a Council?”

Seeing as they risked everything to come all the way to the Capital Church, it feels like something big is about to happen.

“…That’s a secret.”

“I see.”

‘He still doesn’t trust me.’

Well, I’m the only one free from Game Over, so how could he trust me completely?

I could report him to the Saintess, wipe out all the players in the Capital Church, and aim for victory by fishing in troubled waters.

“…Anyway, be careful. The Captain of the Inquisition knows about the Council but is intentionally not stopping it. The Order might have some scheme of their own.”

The Council itself might be a trap.

I don’t know how threatening that trap would be under the restrictions of the Tutorial, but….

“By the way, are Insanity and Bonaparte attending the Council too?”

When Athanasuki misunderstood that he had fallen into Insanity’s trap, he was outraged, asking if this was the price of cooperation.

In other words, holding the Council was an operation that Insanity was also part of.

“…They aren’t attending. Though they might be nearby.”

“That means they’ve joined forces for this.”

“The Council itself was the Pioneer of Civilization’s idea.”

Wasn’t that Pioneer of Civilization killed because of Insanity?

A plan to sit at the same table as someone who might be a traitor….

I started to feel uneasy.

If it’s something that benefits all players, it means, conversely, that Order will suffer a great loss.

‘What on earth are they planning to pull?’

Should I ask Reyes?

He seems like the type to tell me everything without thinking twice….

Just then, there was a knock on the door.

[Fabio, are you inside?]

‘…Elamin?’

“Who is it?”

“Shh!”

Following yesterday, if Elamin sees me with someone else today, he’s definitely going to misunderstand….

Cold sweat broke out.

‘Did I lock the door?’

I pushed Pandemonium behind the door, into the blind spot.

If I only open the door halfway to talk, he won’t be seen.

After telling him to please be quiet, I opened the door slightly.

“Elamin?”

“Ah, thank goodness.”

Elamin gave a kind smile.

“There was something I couldn’t give you yesterday.”

‘The Relic of Casimir….’

The long cylindrical box was sealed with a wax stamp.

It felt slightly heavy.

‘…Is there a severed tongue inside this?’

It was a bit creepy, but it was an extremely rare and useful item in the Dark Realm.

I beamed a bright smile.

“I’m not sure if I should be receiving something so precious. Please convey my gratitude.”

“She said it was a trivial matter compared to what you received from Lord Casimir.”

‘Is he talking about the relic Antonio gave me?’

He didn’t give it to me.

He lent it to me.

‘Though I wouldn’t dare ask Casimir to return it….’

Elamin cleared his throat.

“Ahem, was everything resolved well yesterday? Seeing you two leave together this morning, it seems you’ve reconciled….”

Hearing Elamin’s words, my face grew hot.

“You saw that? I didn’t know you were there.”

“No, I heard it. From another Chanter.”

‘Of… course rumors would spread.’

Even if I didn’t recognize them, the Chanters who originally lived here would naturally recognize a stranger like me.

“…Yes. We cleared up the misunderstanding.”

“That’s a relief.”

Elamin continued with a serious expression.

“However, that man…. It would be wise to be cautious of Athanas.”

“What? Why?”

“You should have seen the look on his face when he sent me out; it was absolutely ghastly. Fabio, if you had truly spent the night with another person, he looked as if he were ready to slice the other’s throat in a single stroke.”

‘…Because he thought an evil heretic was in my room, not a cheating partner.’

He probably had a look that said, ‘Heretic! Die!’

Athanas is the Sword of Order, after all.

“This may sound presumptuous, but please consider breaking up.”

“What?”

‘I thought a love-bird like him would naturally lecture me not to cheat.’

“The human heart is the one thing that cannot be obtained by force. If a lover wishes to leave, you must let them go. But one who cannot accept that and draws a sword may at any moment turn the tip of that blade toward the one they loved. Please be careful.”

“Haha….”

Seeing him mistake Athanas for a jealous lover made me feel a bit embarrassed.

It felt as if I had unintentionally caused great damage to Athanas’s reputation.

“U-um, he was probably just sharp because he was worried about me. I told him recently that there were some scary things happening. That’s why he came to see if I was okay that day. Athanas… is not the kind of person to be jealous or anything like that. Truly.”

Elamin frowned.

“You are….”

Then, he let out a long, blatant sigh.

“Yes. I suppose that could be the case.”

‘He clearly thinks that’s bullshit.’

I apologized to Athanas in my heart.

My eloquence was insufficient to convince Elamin.

“…Still, if you ever feel threatened, please come to me or Lady Casimir at any time.”

“I will keep that in mind. Thank you for your concern.”

Because of Pandemonium listening behind the door, I didn’t want to prolong this conversation.

“Then….”

The moment I tried to close the door, something caught it.

“Wait. I should be going too.”

‘What the fuck…?’

As I tilted my head back, I saw the face of the bastard grinning mischievously.

‘Why the hell is this crazy bastard popping out now!’

If he had any tact, wouldn’t he know what kind of misunderstanding this would cause?

Elamin’s pupils are literally shaking.

“Ah, right. I had something to give you before I left.”

While I stood frozen, unable to say a word, Pandemonium pulled a ring off his pinky finger and slipped it onto my hand.

“Wha- wha- what….”

“I’m giving this to you so you can find me using it.”

‘Why the hell are you giving it to me now, you piece of shit.’

Pandemonium playfully kissed the ring, gave a light bow to Elamin, and walked out.

‘…That fucking bastard.’

I could feel everyone in the hallway glancing our way.

Elamin looked at me with an expression demanding an explanation.

I immediately pulled the loose ring off my ring finger.

“…It’s a misunderstanding.”

“…….”

“Really….”

Elamin pressed his hand to his forehead for a moment.

“Let’s go inside first.”

After entering my room, Elamin locked the door and let out a very long sigh.

“Do you know what that ring is?”

“…No.”

“In noble families, a ring engraved with one’s name is created only once in a lifetime. There are only two cases where such a ring is given to another.”

“What are they?”

“The first is to prove that it is an order issued by the owner. It is used to guarantee the identity of a messenger in urgent situations where a proper letter cannot be written, or for very important matters. And the second is….”

>>Right, you can use a bit of telekinesis with that ring. It also has an inventory function. It’s damn important, so don’t lose it.

‘Why the fuck did you give it to me without discussing it first.’

“…It is a kind of oath that the family will mobilize all its power to help, no matter the circumstance.”

Is it similar to a gratitude token in martial arts novels?

“It is absolutely not an object to be handed over lightly.”

“I see.”

“Especially in the Teres family, the meaning is somewhat unique….”

“…What else is there?”

“The story of the first Head of the Teres family is quite famous. He gave his ring to a herbalist who saved his life and told him that since he saved his life, if he came to the family with the ring, he would be given whatever he desired. And that herbalist went to the first Head and requested only one thing: to be allowed to stay by the Head’s side.”

‘Did he ask for a job?’

Indeed, even if he asked for a large sum of money, he’d be harmed if he didn’t have the power to protect it.

Given the nature of a herbalist’s profession, they often spend time alone in mountain valleys, making it even more dangerous.

It would be wiser to obtain a stable position….

“Thus, it is said that they held a lavish wedding, rare for that time, and the Head cherished the herbalist as her husband for the rest of her life.”

…So that’s what ‘staying by the side’ meant?

I was a bit flustered because I had been thinking in terms of martial arts tropes until just now.

If a herbalist saves the young head of a clan and receives a token, then later visits the clan and asks for the chance to serve them instead of gold and jewels, a medical hall gets established—it doesn’t lead to becoming the mistress of the house.

“I don’t know what happened, but if you say it’s a misunderstanding, it would be best to return it.”

Elamin held out his hand.

“Give it to me. Just in case, I will make sure it is returned through Lady Casimir.”

“…Lady Casimir?”

‘Is it okay for Pandemonium to encounter the Captain of the Inquisition?’

What if he gets a Game Over?

I can’t collect points….

“She must be very busy; would it be alright to ask her for such a trivial favor?”

“…Do you not know what the former heir of the Teres family has done?”

I instinctively touched my neck.

Elamin’s eyes narrowed.

“Right now, on your neck….”

>>If you need a place to run to when things go south later, just show that to anyone and tell them to take you to Teres territory, and the acting Head will reward them greatly.

‘You son of a bitch.’

He could have given it to me quietly after Elamin left.

I’m totally screwed now.

>>Hehe, grateful, right?

I wanted to curse him out intensely, but I couldn’t send a reply because of Elamin.

“I’ll think about it!”

“Pardon? What….”

I forced Elamin out, locked the door again, and caught my breath.

“Pandemonium!!”