#139

“…Excuse me?”

“I’m talking about Insanity. Unless one Othergod can bring two players along, he’s one hundred percent the ‘Lord of Nightmares’ player.”

“…And so?”

“Who else would be capable of showing the Heretic Slayer the introduction to the Heretic Butcher? Loclem? No, it would be a player.”

‘…Just because of that?’

I had also suspected the entity showing the dreams.

But isn’t it too hasty for Athanas to conclude that he is a ‘servant of an Othergod’ based on that alone?

‘But it’s true that I have no definitive evidence to refute it.’

Since Athanas had never been Influenced, I couldn’t check what appeared next to his name.

“Still, he is the Savior of Order; there’s no way he could be a vassal of an Othergod….”

“The Gray Saintess is also a vassal of the Distorted One. Even if she’s only half, a Saintess is still a Saintess, right? In fact, since the Gray Saintess sold her soul to an Othergod, isn’t it more nonsensical that only the Heretic Butcher remains purely on Loclem’s side?”

“…….”

“And if we’re being technical, the ST Game Company is the Othergod of Othergods, isn’t it? Would a protagonist appearing in a game created by an Othergod really have never sold their soul?”

My head grew clouded as I listened to Pandemonium.

Athanas was not saved in any of the endings.

What if that was because he had already abandoned Order…?

“…There’s a theory among players. What about the units that are famous enough that you should have heard their names, yet are never mentioned in the game at all? For example, the current Saintess.”

‘Maybe they were intentionally omitted because it’s more entertaining to watch us scramble with incomplete information?’

“The conclusion we reached is this: perhaps the game company didn’t have the authority to use them?”

“What do you mean, no authority?”

“You know, in the real world, you can’t just use proper nouns or trademarks however you want, right? Because the copyright holder owns the rights.”

Hearing that, the contents of the ‘Memo’ suddenly came to mind.

The ‘Me on the 24th floor’ had written a long-winded fiction disclaimer and asked for understanding that certain proper nouns couldn’t be used due to copyright.

“In the Dark Realm, you receive a name during Baptism. Then, who holds the rights to that name?”

“…The God of Order.”

I had learned that while studying the Doctrine.

Those who receive Baptism belong to Order in life and in death, and they can never truly own anything.

Because having already offered oneself to God, everything one possesses also belongs to Order.

And things that did not belong to me included my body, soul, and name.

‘If those words weren’t merely metaphorical….’

“Exactly. That’s why the names of units who have never betrayed Loclem cannot be used. They belong entirely to Order, and the Othergods have no authority over them.”

“…Conversely, that means any unit whose name appears is someone whose soul has passed into the hands of an Othergod in some way.”

“Oh, you’re quicker than Reyes.”

“…….”

‘How incredibly insulting.’

Regardless, it was an interesting theory.

But as long as there was no way to prove it, it remained a mere hypothesis.

It was far from enough to conclude that Athanas’s soul was in the hands of an Othergod.

‘Even if that were the case.’

It was too great a leap in logic to be certain that the current Athanas was being controlled by ‘Insanity.’

When a hole is large enough, any puzzle piece can fit into it.

“What would Insanity even gain by doing such a thing?”

“He’d gain you.”

“…I don’t have any Divine Power or anything.”

Pandemonium fell silent for a moment.

“That Sacred Relic.”

“This?”

“It wasn’t just a relic containing power; it contained a decree written specifically for you.”

‘…Like a wildlife protection sign or something?’

Pandemonium’s turquoise eyes narrowed slightly.

“Why would she do that? Who are you? What did she see in you that the Saintess would show such favor?”

“…I don’t know that either.”

“Aren’t you curious?”

“I am, but….”

“Wouldn’t Insanity want to know that too? Why the Church of Order is friendly only to you?”

‘…It seems Pandemonium has already concluded that Athanas is a vassal of Insanity.’

Without definitive evidence, it seemed difficult to change his mind.

He was an unnecessarily stubborn fellow.

At this point, I actually became curious about Insanity.

Just what kind of person was he that players reacted to every little thing with, ‘Don’t be fooled! This is Insanity’s trap!’?

“Now that I mention it, I’m fucking curious too. Do you have some special trait? Like an ability to win people over?”

“…I don’t.”

“Then is there a hidden secret regarding Happy God?”

Pandemonium rubbed his chin.

“It’s a universal rule that if there’s a stupid guy among perfectly sane Othergods whose reason and purpose are unknown, that guy is actually the most important one. Maybe he’s the most powerful being among the Othergods?”

“…It’s an interesting hypothesis, but I know nothing about Happy God. There aren’t even any clues.”

‘I suspect the Saintess is friendly to me simply because she pities a guy who died hundreds of times without being able to do anything.’

In games, the difficulty usually drops if you keep failing.

Happy God was so incompetent that he adjusted the difficulty for me.

Or perhaps she noticed me because I had accumulated ‘Affinity’ despite being a mortal….

“Did you receive anything from Happy God? An Arrangement, perhaps?”

“Nothing other than the bound trait I obtained before the possession.”

When I told him I didn’t even have a Helper or a Sacred Relic, Pandemonium looked surprised.

“Then how do you raise your stats?”

“I can’t.”

“You’re completely screwed, then.”

“…….”

‘This piece of shit, acting like it’s someone else’s problem….’

“Well, that’s not what’s important right now.”

Pandemonium asked me with a serious expression.

“Have you ever had any nightmares?”

‘Nightmares….’

I’d had several dreams that could be called nonsense.

But I didn’t think those dreams were influenced by the power of the Lord of Nightmares.

‘Heaven Above, Earth Below, I Alone Reign Supreme’ would have nullified ‘nightmares’ as well.

Those were likely just a collection of memory scraps played back by my brain.

“Don’t even think about hiding it. I’ve never seen a guy survive by lying and saying he wasn’t bitten after a zombie bit him.”

“No, it’s just that I don’t know if I should consider it a nightmare….”

The words Athanas had said this morning weighed on my mind.

Had he said that if I couldn’t remember it, it wasn’t an important dream and there was no need to worry?

“…Someone did ask if I’d had any nightmares.”

“Who?”

“Athanas….”

The moment he heard that, Pandemonium’s face stiffened.

‘Oops.’

I messed up.

What if he assumes I’m already infected by ‘nightmares’ because of that comment?

He would likely stop giving me information.

“…Are you two sleeping together?”

‘Ah.’

Was that what he was concerned about?

“I thought you said you weren’t dating?”

“I didn’t mean sleeping in that sense….”

“No, seriously. Be honest. I don’t have prejudices about that stuff. Or maybe I do? Maybe a little. If a guy with a dick said he liked me, it would be pretty awkward. Honestly, it’s just a bit much, right? Even if dating men is common here, I lived in a place where it wasn’t the norm. If we’re close like brothers and then one confesses, we wouldn’t be able to hang out like before, right? But wouldn’t it be the same if a female friend confessed? Anyway, I’m not going to judge you for dating a man, and as long as he doesn’t actually like me, I don’t care.”

‘…Judging by how long he’s talking, he seems to care a fucking lot.’

Had he been confessed to by a man in the real world?

“But after seeing the worse types here, I figured liking humans is a start. Someone like the Heretic Butcher is honestly a relief because he’s just a regular guy. So, if you two are sucking and blowing, why not just be honest? I’ll keep it a secret from Skides.”

“Really, truly, we are absolutely not dating.”

“…Then why have you slept together?”

“Athanas sleeps a lot. Like the ‘Sleeping Athanas’ meme, he falls asleep anywhere, and since there’s not much to do next to a sleeping person, I occasionally close my eyes too.”

“Where?”

“…In my room or in Valentine’s prayer room.”

“…….”

“It’s really just because we needed a soundproof space.”

“At this point, it would be less suspicious if you were just dating.”

“I think you’re continuing to misunderstand in a strange direction….”

“No, not you, I mean the Heretic Butcher. That bastard is suspicious.”

‘…Because he thinks he’s a vassal of Insanity, everything looks suspicious.’

“Soundproof means that no matter what happens inside, no one knows outside, right? And he falls asleep first while alone with a Watched One in such a space? Would the Heretic Butcher really be that careless? No way!”

…I really shouldn’t talk about Athanas in front of this guy anymore.

His confirmation bias is only getting stronger.

“Have you ever called the Saintess in front of the Heretic Butcher?”

“…No.”

“As I thought.”

‘What do you mean, “as I thought”?’

Pandemonium grabbed my shoulder.

“When you break up, make sure to call the Saintess first, and notify him in her presence.”

“What?”

“I’d want to be there by your side if I could, but if I did, Insanity would find out. Oh, and absolutely do not tell him I gave you this advice. Got it?”

‘What is he talking about all of a sudden?’

Stop making logical leaps in your head.

“To protect you, Insanity must never know that we met. That way, he won’t be able to recklessly guess the reason for your actions. For now, I have to stay at the Capital Church until the Council is held, so it would be best to tell him you’re breaking up next week. Until then, avoid being alone with him, no matter what excuse you use.”

“Wait, what on earth are you talking about? Why are you taking the breakup as a given premise?”

Pandemonium looked at me as if I were the strange one.

“Then you’re not going to break up?”

“It’s not even certain if Athanas is really a vassal of Insanity….”

“No, regardless of that. Didn’t you say you only attracted attention to find a player? You’ve found one now, right? Is there any need to keep pretending to date?”

I couldn’t answer.

‘…That’s true.’

There were still things to find out about Order, but ‘cooperation’ wasn’t essential for that.

Unlike when there were no clues at all, I now knew the head of the research institute and had a way to resist Oblivion.

‘I don’t think I’ve been of much help either….’

I thought that perhaps, for Athanas’s sake, I should have suggested breaking up long ago.

If he had only kept me by his side because he was worried about me….

“That reliquary, did you prepare it?”

“…No, Athanas gave it to me.”

“Then give it here. I’ll take it and investigate. Who knows what he’s done to it.”

“I can’t.”

“Why?”

…Because a real part of Athanas is inside.

I don’t know what he’d do with it, so how could I hand it over?

But if I said that, Pandemonium, who was already suspicious of Athanas, would never back down.

“…Valentine’s reliquaries are trackable. If a location other than the usual one pops up, Athanas will notice something is wrong.”

“Location tracking?”

“Basically, Valentine’s Sacred Relics….”

“No, don’t you find it strange even as you say it? He’s monitoring you.”

“That’s because I’ve been in danger a few times….”

“So he just keeps watching what you’re doing and then comes to find you? Fuck, is he some kind of stalker?”