#206

The man pulled a book from his breast pocket and flipped through the pages.

“This wasn’t… not a situation I didn’t expect. Fortunately, it’s in the manual. Please wait a moment.”

‘…Manual?’

“‘When encountering Athanas.’ If in a combat stance, respond with ‘Humanoid Creature Combat’ mode. Combat stance… Hmm. Since there’s no BGM, it’s difficult to judge. Athanas, do you intend to fight me?”

Athanas placed his hand on the hilt, but he did not draw his sword.

It was foolish to charge with a melee weapon against an opponent capable of self-destructing.

“The fact that you aren’t swinging your sword must mean you’re willing to exchange information, right? Number 2. If there is a willingness to communicate, first provide an ‘accurate and detailed’ self-introduction. A self-introduction, huh.”

The man continued with a wide smile.

“Hello. I am Nyapoleon, a servant of the benevolent mother, ‘Mother Aellusia.’ To be precise, I am a local copy of Nyapoleon.”

“…….”

“A local copy refers to a clone that does not affect the main body. The information, damage, Blessings, Curses, traits, and emotions I acquire are not transmitted to the main body. Now, may I hear your name?”

“…….”

“No answer. Are you perhaps using ventriloquism? My apologies. I currently have my hearing blocked. If I cannot see your lips moving, I cannot hear your words. Please move your mouth to answer.”

“…….”

“Do you have no intention of answering? In the event the opponent does not respond… it isn’t written. Come to think of it, I called you Athanas first. Since we both know each other’s names, I suppose we can consider the self-introductions complete. I’ve checked number 2 as completed. Number 3: once self-introductions are finished, respond kindly to ‘Athanas.’”

Athanas thought, remaining tense.

‘Why did I miss Fabio?’

Had he stopped somewhere else?

Athanas ordered ‘Codex’ to ignore everything else and find only his most recent movements.

If he had left the Apostle’s Hall once and returned before heading here, there would be a gap in his tracks.

‘I was too hasty.’

Regardless, Fabio would come here.

Unless there were other variables…

‘…Next time, I should obtain Codex first.’

Athanas decided to use the remaining time to gather as much information as possible about the ‘local copy of Nyapoleon.’

The red-haired man held no weapon other than the book.

‘Is he just following pre-set instructions without real-time contact?’

“Who issued those behavioral guidelines?”

“My, to ignore everything I say and only throw questions. How rude. Did your mother not value etiquette?”

“There is no need to show etiquette to a heretic.”

“Ah, my apologies. Looking it up, it says here that you are ‘from an orphanage.’ To have grown up without a mother. That is the second most terrible tragedy a person can experience…”

“Answer the question.”

“You’re wondering what the first most terrible tragedy is? That would be dying without being held in the arms of a benevolent and great mother! You are lucky. Though you experienced the second most terrible thing, you were born in an era where you don’t have to experience the first most terrible tragedy…”

“I asked who wrote the guidelines.”

“The answer is ‘Insanity,’ O motherless Athanas.”

‘Insanity…’

“…Why are you openly revealing that you’re following guidelines?”

“Because I didn’t know you were coming. In unexpected situations, one must follow the manual. And to follow the manual, one must take it out and read it.”

“What happens if you don’t execute the manual exactly?”

“Pop! I’ll explode.”

Athanas frowned.

What had happened in the previous timeline?

Did he self-destruct voluntarily? Or was it forced because he reached a situation where he couldn’t follow the manual?

For now, no Halo was visible.

Athanas asked the man.

“…Why are you answering me so readily?”

“Because the manual says to respond kindly. Ignoring questions would be an unkind response, wouldn’t it?”

“Are you saying it’s okay to provide information to an enemy like me?”

“I prioritize the judgment of the manual.”

“Even if you don’t know the reason?”

“Do you know why a manual is necessary? Manuals are created to defend against Divine Power that affects perception. Even if the instructions written here seem irrational, I must follow the procedure. This is because I cannot distinguish whether a clause is truly irrational, or if my perception has been twisted to make it seem so. Therefore, I trust the judgment of Insanity, who wrote the manual, over my own.”

‘He’s guarding against the Authority of Distortion.’

Reyes Floren…

Athanas belatedly remembered that the madman would also have been released from the laboratory.

Given his obsession with Fabio, he must have plotted something.

Just how many ‘Watched Ones’ were wandering around the Capital Church?

He needed to reunite with Fabio as soon as possible.

‘…Fabio.’

Athanas was slowly losing his patience.

If the thought that waiting here was the only way to avoid missing each other hadn’t held back his reason, he might have rushed out blindly to find Fabio.

Or attacked this thing.

The reason?

Because this thing had made Fabio suffer, even if only for a moment.

“…Where is Nyapoleon? And Insanity?”

“I cannot tell you that.”

“Unkind.”

“I am doing my best. There is no way for me to provide information that I do not possess.”

“Since you intend to self-destruct anyway, you weren’t given any important information, is that it?”

Athanas continued with a sneer.

“Did you say earlier that I have no mother? It seems you do have one.”

“Of course. I have a benevolent mother…”

“A mother who drives her children into a death trap. What an amazing maternal love. To give birth to children who are disposable. Even the frozen winter would tremble at such chill.”

“…Death is not the end. It is merely an opportunity to return to Mother’s embrace.”

“And? Did she promise to give birth to you again?”

“Of course…”

“But she didn’t promise a specific time, did she? How predictable. You’ll be forgotten for a long time, and you’ll only be reborn when she decides she needs a child who can die, rather than a cherished one. And again, you’ll meet your death knowing nothing.”

“…Do not insult Mother.”

“Insult, you say. Many heretics fought and gave their lives believing in a promised heaven, but do you know where they are now? They are all in the Hell of Order. They fell into hell along with their heaven. You will be the same soon. Unable to be reborn, you’ll spend eternity wailing, trapped in your mother’s Corpse. You filthy stillborn.”

…Veins grew in the air.

Up close, it was an even more grotesque Halo.

“You wish to fight me, then? I shall comply. O motherless Athanas.”

“If I wanted to fight, I would have drawn my sword. I am merely having a conversation.”

“…Draw your sword.”

“Can you not face me if I don’t draw my sword? Because you have to respond kindly? A life worse than a slave’s. Where is the benevolence in that? I think what you need right now isn’t a mother, but an orphanage to protect you from her.”

However, before launching a grotesque attack, the man flipped a page.

“…How to handle situations when angry due to humiliation. When angry. Am I angry? Take a deep breath. And then forget. Yes, it says to forget.”

The man let out a sigh and retracted the Halo.

“I will forget. Because I was told to.”

“Even though it was your mother, not you, who was despised, you still don’t step forward?”

“Mother is benevolent, so she will not mind. Rather, she will sigh in regret that she could not teach you how deep and warm her love is.”

“…You asked why I appeared here. Then, who were you originally waiting for?”

“Naturally, ‘Fabio.’ Ah, do you know who ‘Fabio’ is? Fabio is…”

“And when you meet him? Do you intend to kill him?”

“Goodness, no. I’ll just hold onto him for a while.”

‘You killed him last time.’

“…The reason for holding him?”

“Aren’t your ears hurting terribly right now? We must do something about that contaminated adult of ledea, which is incessantly spitting out the Name of Oblivion.”

“How?”

“I do not know the specific method. It is something I have no need to know.”

Nyapoleon’s clone continued to answer with a disturbingly calm demeanor.

Even when Athanas insulted him or his religion, he merely smiled silently without getting angry.

Athanas felt a sense of urgency.

The time Fabio should have arrived was slowly passing.

‘…What acted as the variable?’

The footprints I left in the Apostle’s Hall? Or the Halo that thing briefly displayed?

Even if Fabio didn’t, ‘Marcello Teres’ would have seen it.

Did he sense a trap and avoid it?

Or perhaps…

‘No, something more fundamental than that.’

He kept feeling that something had gone seriously wrong, but he couldn’t pinpoint what it was.

Athanas retraced the things that bothered him.

Why did ‘Insanity’ write in the manual to be kind to Athanas?

Fabio had said that every Watched One knew ‘Athanas.’

Athanas, the ruthless slayer of heretics who possessed ‘Regression.’

‘…What if Insanity issued the behavioral guidelines under the assumption that I have Regression?’

Was the plan to make him waste his time by feeding him plenty of fake information in a time that would disappear anyway?

If tags were attached to each piece of information, it would be easy to identify where that information was obtained.

For example, if he suddenly started searching under the statue in the east room, they’d know he had interrogated number 4.

Or perhaps a more subtle trap had been planted, or it was simply to make him waste time…

‘Wait.’

Athanas felt a sense of incongruity and looked up.

The whole world was strangely silent.

The unpleasant sound that felt like it was gnawing at his brain had stopped.

“Ah, finally! It seems the work is finished.”

‘…This didn’t happen last time.’

“People will gradually begin to wake up.”

Something.

Something was wrong.

What was wrong? From where?

But his thoughts could not continue.

Light.

A flash of light.

It was a light so bright it felt blinding.

The hair on his entire body stood on end.

A beat later, the sound of immense divine power tearing through the air roared.

‘…Heavenly Punishment.’