Chapter 113 - Holy War (2)

4

The Inquisitor.

A holder of an epithet. One of the so-called first-generation hunters, active since the Tower’s earliest days. A blond psychopath who had decisively hunted down extremists and stabilized the Tower when countless people poured in from every kind of country, from regions where no country had yet been founded, and from regions whose countries had collapsed.

“I interpret constellations as deities from other worlds!”

The specialist in religious warfare, who now administered every religion on Earth under the Pantheon, beamed.

“Put simply, a deity is a law! For example, the laws that exist in our world, Earth, would be the laws of physics! These laws of physics are like the Windows operating system installed everywhere by default, so there’s nothing particularly special about them! Which means there’s nothing particularly special about our world, either!”

Uh.

“What about nukes and guns?”

“As I said, the laws of physics are the foundation installed everywhere by default! So those two can emerge in any world, provided its technology advances far enough!”

The Inquisitor explained that in places where magic and miracles were commonplace, developing technology based purely on physical laws was difficult, so those two might develop much later. But that did not mean nuclear weapons and guns could not be invented in other worlds.

'True, there was an apocalypse destroyed by nuclear war. Chronicles of the Space Iron Knights, which became our twenty-third floor, was science fiction, too...'

So that was it. Earth was the weakest of all worlds.

It made sense, considering neither magic nor skills had been commonplace before the Tower rose. Still, hearing that our home, the blue planet Earth, was weak left me feeling strange. Was this love for my homeland? No, should I call it love for my home planet?

“But as you said, guns and nuclear weapons are indeed powerful enough weapons! Unleash those two, and you can wipe out most constellations’ apostles!”

“I see.”

Raviel tapped the corner of her mouth with the tip of her fan.

“Since the laws of physics form the underlying foundation, physical force also applies universally.”

“Precisely! Naturally, anyone without a physical form cannot exert physical force in any way. And if they have a physical form, it follows just as naturally that physical attacks will work on them! There is still the question of efficiency—whether they take the full force of the impact or reduce it first!”

The Sword Emperor, floating about, gave a small exclamation of admiration.

“Ha. That guy’s sharp.”

'Does that sound right to you, too, Sword Emperor?'

“Yep. That’s why the Heaven-Slaying Star could crack Sparkle’s skull with aura, and why I never lost out to anyone despite training in nothing but swordsmanship. And, whatchamacallit, the kid running the Black Dragon Guild could fry Hungry Ghost with a beam. Physical force is an incredibly powerful law.”

[Sparkle nods glumly.]

“You can think of a constellation’s standing as being determined by how closely it’s forced to adhere to those physical laws, or how far it can stray from them.”

I wondered what that meant, but just then the Inquisitor explained it.

“That part I just mentioned about ‘reducing the physical force they receive’ is surprisingly important! It means they obey the laws of physics, but aren’t completely bound by them! As for how that is possible...”

“... Constellations each possess their own laws, and their apostles likewise use those laws to oppose the laws of physics.”

“Oh! Another astute interpretation! You truly are the Death King’s husband!”

“That goes without saying.”

My husband said something adorable. That alone was enough for me to say with confidence that Raviel was making this little tactical meeting shine.

“Zombie, can we focus? We’re deciding whether this world gets destroyed, you know?”

[Sparkle leaps up and smacks the back of the Hero’s neck.]

Yow.

These poor souls who knew nothing of love.

“Oh, cut the bullshit, Zombie.”

[Sparkle looks at the Hero with the eyes of a dead fish.]

'Sparkle, you don’t have eyes.'

[Sparkle tells you to look at the gem decorating its scabbard.]

I did as it said and looked at the ornament on Sparkle’s scabbard. Somehow, the gem’s color had grown dull.

Hmm.

'All right. I’ll rein it in.'

“And pay attention.”

'Yes.'

1. Every constellation has its own laws.

2. Its apostles follow those laws as well.

“What kinds of laws, for example?”

“Hmm! For example... yes. There is a constellation called Bavit.”

Also known as the ‘God of Love,’ the Inquisitor added.

“This constellation [interprets everything in the world as romance]. In the world Bavit rules, power and wealth are meaningless! A person’s strength is determined by how much romantic power they possess.”

“Romantic power? What’s that?”

“Hmm! Seeing is believing.”

The Inquisitor formed a hand sign with both hands.

“Divine Art, God of Affection.”

Light flared!

Light spread from the Inquisitor’s hands. It wasn’t just white, but reddish... a little pink? In any case, mist rose in curls, rather like a heavy perfume.

“Aha! I’ve temporarily brought the god Bavit’s stellar domain down here! Try doing anything at all, Death King!”

“Hmm...”

I looked around awkwardly. It was late at night. The Inquisitor, Raviel, and I were in the ducal house’s lodgings, holding a strategy meeting to prepare for the invasion coming in ten days.

“... Nothing seems all that different except for the pink mist.”

“Excuse me for a moment!”

It happened then. The Inquisitor hooked my ankle and tripped me. “Huh?” I staggered, my body tilting, and with an “Mm,” I happened to grab Raviel’s arm. “Whoa?” We both fell to the floor.

“Oh?”

Raviel gazed down at me. She had ended up on top of me. It had all happened in an instant.

“Gongja, such displays of affection in front of others are rather embarrassing.”

“Uh, uh...”

I was flustered.

“N-no! No! That’s not it, Raviel! I was just about to fall...!”

“Ahaha.”

The Inquisitor smiled brightly.

“A composition often seen in romances!”

“Inquisitor, what is this...?”

“In Bavit’s stellar domain, every action leads to romance! Even falling isn’t simply falling—you drag someone nearby into it. Hmm, for example, if you were wearing a dress shirt and drinking water, Death King, there would be a 95% chance you’d spill it and make your skin show through the shirt! The people around you getting flustered at the sight would be inevitable!”

Good God. What the hell was that? Wasn’t that cosmic horror?

“In short, a stellar domain reinterprets the world and brainwashes people. The Great Library we were in until recently is the same! The Librarian interprets the world as [a collection of stories], and there, we are forced to become [characters in stories].”

Light flashed.

When the Inquisitor formed another hand sign, the pink haze covering the floor vanished. Blushing, I wriggled out from beneath Raviel.

The Inquisitor beamed as he spoke.

“Defeating those who possess their own laws using the laws available to us. I define this as both a holy war and a stellar war!”

A holy war and a stellar war.

“Hmm. Then how should we handle the holy war coming in ten days?”

“For that, we’ll need to know exactly which constellations we’re facing! As you can infer from what I’ve explained so far, our response will differ according to the laws each constellation possesses!”

“Indeed. Knowing the enemy before a war is of the utmost importance.”

The Inquisitor nodded at Raviel’s words as she held the tip of her fan between her lips.

“Yes! So let me ask: exactly which constellations’ apostles will invade ten days from now?”

Hmm.

“Would you know them if I told you which constellations they are?”

“If I know their true names, absolutely! I can look them up through my skill, [Compendium of All Gods]!”

At that, I recalled what I knew about the young man before me... no, a woman, since he was currently possessing Golden Silk Blossom’s body... anyway, this person.

'It was around when we fought Hungry Ghost on the thirteenth floor.'

Back when I was busily spouting my “I’m a prophet, okay” routine, the Black Dragon leader had told me the Inquisitor knew other worlds’ religions inside out, even if that knowledge came from a skill.

Good.

“Can you infer true names from descriptive titles... that is, the constellations’ epithets?”

“If they’re well-known beings, yes!”

In that case.

“[The Ox That Harvests Ruins], [The Warhorse of the Eternal Plains], and [The Immortal Evangelist of Happiness].”

“Hmm.”

The Inquisitor rested a hand on his chin.

“[The Ox That Harvests Ruins] is Mutia. Its primary domains are [destruction] and [re-creation]. Simple, but powerful.”

Destruction and re-creation.

“Roughly how does it fight?”

“Let’s see. It can exert incredibly powerful physical force according to its will! It can use that to crush and smash a wide area, or conversely, dismantle a particular being’s physical structure... Ah, it could also create golems by dismantling things and then recombining them. Very rarely, it exerts that power over time! Time is physical, too!”

So Lady Golden Silk Blossom’s ‘female lead on her second run’ trait had indeed come from using Mutia’s power.

That meant an outside constellation’s apostle was already in this world.

'Could that be why the Shut-In Librarian chose this world as an apocalypse?'

To put it in the Shut-In Librarian’s terms, perhaps because this was no longer solely their own story, but one an outside constellation had already meddled with, he had gained room to ‘intervene’ as well?

Or was it simply because, as Raviel had said, this world had no constellation?

'The former does seem more in line with the Shut-In Librarian’s disposition than the latter.'

As I pondered that, the Inquisitor continued.

“[The Warhorse of the Eternal Plains] is Mahos’s epithet. Its primary domains are [duels] and [war]. Another straightforward but powerful ability!”

Duels and war.

“Does it make you unable to refuse a challenge to a duel, things like that?”

“Yes! Or it can spread a battle frenzy that knows no fear of death across a wide area, or grant wisdom in tactics and strategy! Ah, conversely, it can also forcibly create a peaceful zone by ‘forbidding war itself’! That is another extremely rare case, though!”

“A being that governs war also governs peace... That sounds a little strange.”

Raviel smiled faintly at my muttering.

“What is strange about it? Peace is merely a name for [a state in which war has ceased]. Thus, anyone who can impose war can naturally impose peace as well.”

“Another precise understanding!”

The Inquisitor beamed.

“I don’t know the true name of [The Immortal Evangelist of Happiness]! It appears to be a constellation that isn’t very famous yet!”

An unknown identity.

'Not being famous means it’s weak, so could that be an advantage?'

As I wrestled with that, Sparkle shuddered.

[Sparkle requests that you also ask whether he knows about the ‘Goddess of Protection.’]

'Sparkle... weren’t you the one who told me to focus on the meeting...?'

[Sparkle advises that this is a very important matter!]

'What’s gotten into you...?'

[Sparkle declares that this is solely to judge whether the Inquisitor’s information about constellations is accurate, and that it has no personal motives whatsoever!]

Hmm.

“Um... this is a bit off topic, but do you happen to know about the [Goddess of Protection]?”

“Oho.”

The Inquisitor smiled.

“[Goddess of Protection] is Hwiya’s descriptive title! As the name suggests, her main domain is [protection], along with [immortality]! She is quite a powerful deity, but according to my Compendium of All Gods skill, she has currently lost her power due to some incident.”

[Sparkle sparkles, saying this person is the real deal and can be trusted!]

“Gongja, what has suddenly gotten into that sword? It’s blinding.”

“One moment. I’ll wrap it up...”

[Sparkle screams, asking you to stop.]

Anyway, with former constellation Sparkle having confirmed the accuracy of the Inquisitor’s information—to me alone—Raviel rested the tip of her fan against her chin.

“Troublesome... One enemy of each different type. Three enemies in total.”

“It gets even more complicated, since which powers of a deity an apostle can borrow, and how much, vary from apostle to apostle!”

“Even so, we can grasp their general tendencies. Thank you for sharing this information.”

“Aha! Saving this world will benefit our Tower as well! Helping is naturally the efficient choice!”

“Is that so.”

“Yes! And my other skill, [Divine Art], lets me borrow almost any deity’s power as long as I know their true name! Add your strengths to that, and I’m sure we’ll find a way!”

Our strengths.

Raviel and I gazed at each other. Then we spoke at the same time.

“Love.”

“Love, indeed.”

There were surely countless people who fought better than us, and people smarter than us. But there was one thing I could say with confidence: we loved more deeply than anyone.

“... Huh?”

The Inquisitor tilted his head.

“This is strange, Death King. Watching the two of you being so affectionate makes the area around my heart ache and tingle. I’ve never felt this before. What could it be?”

“A heart attack.”

“I’m also hearing that my immersion rate has increased! How should I interpret that?”

“No... first, please be careful about that immersion rate.”

If Golden Silk Blossom devoured the Inquisitor before the holy war, we would really be getting nowhere.

Since I had already explained it, Raviel knew that well. She spoke.

“The ‘love’ we just mentioned has another meaning besides the usual one.”

“What meaning?”

“I’m sorry, but we cannot share that. Call it a secret weapon.”

“Hmm, I can’t account for it while devising tactics, then...”

“That is fine. Instead, let us discuss more basic tactics and methods of combat. As a powerful figure in this world, I can position a substantial security force wherever I wish at the wedding venue. For example, I could borrow the Special Task Force from His Majesty the Emperor...”

“Oho, roughly how strong is that Special Task Force...?”

And so Raviel and the Inquisitor continued their conversation, seated across from each other.

'This will work.'

Seeing these former rivals in love—though, of course, one now had someone else inside—amiably resolve to fight together filled me with an inexplicable optimism.

'This will definitely work!'

As I strengthened that conviction, my attendant spirit threw cold water on it.

“Gongja. Get a grip. Three apostles invading is no small matter.”

'Roughly how dangerous is it?'

“Think of it as about one and a half Hungry Ghosts from the twelfth floor invading.”

What an inventive unit of measurement.

'Hungry Ghost was a constellation. The ones invading now are apostles. Surely apostles are weaker than constellations?'

“It was a bottom-tier constellation. In your Tower’s ranks, about a D-rank constellation, I guess?”

'Hungry Ghost on the twelfth floor?'

“Hungry Ghost on the twelfth floor.”

Having stated that flatly, my attendant spirit picked at his ear.

“Well, since it’s you, I’m not worried. No, maybe I should say I’m not worried because it’s ‘you two.’”

As he spoke, my attendant spirit glanced at Raviel.

Having spent so much time with me, he probably had an inkling of the ‘secret weapon’ Raviel had mentioned.

So did I. Thus, I did not think we would be unable to overcome the invasion itself.

But.

“But Zombie, you want to clear it with zero casualties—a no-loss run—if at all possible, right?”

'Yes, that’s right.'

“Then you’ll really need to put a lot of thought into it. Assuming that brainiac and your husband handle the tactical side, you should work on your own fighting skills.”

My attendant spirit folded his arms and looked down at me.

“Hmm. Come to think of it, your rank was D, too, wasn’t it? You’re not planning to stay at that level forever, are you?”

Of course not.

5

And ten days flew by.

“It’s finally your wedding day!”

In the Empire, weddings were held in the evening.

Marriage was the union of the sun and moon. Apparently, the evening sky, where those two heavenly bodies mingled, was best suited to a wedding. The more vivid and red the sunset, the better the wedding day was considered to be—and today was just such a day.

“You look so wonderful today, Duchess!”

Surrounded by attendants, I experienced a peculiar feeling.

No fewer than five attendants clustered around me like beetles, styling me. They kept fussing, “How can you be so lovely!” and “Her Grace is so fortunate!” without a pause. I was about to lose my mind.

“Um, thank you, I appreciate everything. But could you somehow tone down all this fuss...?”

“No, absolutely not!”

The attendants answered firmly.

“At least for today, Ducal Consort, you must be the finest groom in this country! Even if frugality and humility are virtues, you mustn’t act that way! Today, quite literally, beauty is the only virtue!”

Ah, I had experienced this once before...

It was exactly like when the Black Dragon leader and the major guild leaders had made a huge fuss about taking publicity photos of me...

Of course, there were differences from back then.

“Congratulations on your wedding, Ducal Consort.”

An elderly gentleman with a distinguished beard entered the dressing room and greeted me. Not knowing who he was, I looked bewildered. Seeing my expression, he smiled wryly.

“I am your adoptive father. I hold a modest post in the imperial household, helping manage its affairs. I’ve heard much about you from Her Grace, the new Duchess of Ivansia.”

“Ah...”

Good heavens. I had wondered who he was, and he turned out to be a father I had never seen in my life!

“N-nice to meet you. Um. Well, you see...”

“Please feel free to call me Father. Do not worry. I know that you do not regard me as your father in your heart. I will never exploit your standing to throw my weight around and disrupt the ducal household.”

The elderly gentleman bowed with utmost courtesy.

“I intend to retire from my position after this wedding. Your husband has shown me a great deal of consideration. Hoho. I no longer need to worry about my old age.”

“...”

A sigh escaped me. Just how much effort had Raviel put into this day?

For the first time in my life, I spoke this word.

“... Father.”

“Yes, you who will become the moon of Ivansia.”

“I have no connections in high society and know nothing about politics, so I’m unfamiliar with the state of things. I wanted to ask: what are the people of the Empire saying about this marriage?”

“To put it briefly, it is one unprecedented development after another.”

The elderly gentleman spoke in a dignified manner.

“A wedding in House Ivansia is comparable to a royal wedding. Preparing an event of that magnitude in barely a month would normally be exceedingly difficult. And then there was breaking off the engagement with His Highness the Crown Prince, inheriting the house—each of those...”

The elderly gentleman fell silent then. It had grown quite noisy outside the dressing room. I could hear the guests murmuring.

“... Each would have been impossible had Duchess Silver Lily failed to persuade His Majesty the Emperor.”

Stroking his beard, the elderly gentleman smiled.

“Ducal Consort, your husband is truly capable. The very fact that she is loyal to His Majesty is an unparalleled blessing for the Empire. Though our bond as father and son was forged merely for this one day... if I may offer a word.”

At that very moment, the elderly gentleman narrowed his eyes.

At the same time, an intense presence, almost comparable to the Sword Star’s, radiated from his aged body.

“Given that your husband requested my ‘other office’ as well, and judging by the security arrangements at the venue, I suspect today’s wedding will not go entirely smoothly.”

The imperial chamberlain.

Who also served as commander of the imperial Special Task Force. By the time he said those words, the commotion outside the dressing room had turned to screams.

“Zombie, get ready.”

I looked out the window.

“They’re here.”

Just as my attendant spirit had said.

[An apostle of ‘The Ox That Harvests Ruins’ manifests.]

[An apostle of ‘The Warhorse of the Eternal Plains’ manifests.]

[An apostle of ‘The Immortal Evangelist of Happiness’ manifests.]

The sky had turned red as the two heavenly bodies mingled.

As that sunset crumbled, the enemies we had been waiting for revealed themselves.