Sigh, so in the end, I just went along with that angel Razielโs little game.
What on earth do they think humans are?
โHey, Victor.โ
โโฆWhat?โ
โDid you know about this and bring me here on purpose?โ
โOf course not. Iโm telling the truth.โ
Well, I doubt Victor would try to pull something on me at this point.
When I noticed something in my left hand, I checked and saw it was a necklace given to me by Lies. Itโs a necklace that heals the wearerโa fitting item for royalty.
I ended up acquiring it through Razielโs trial, but to think I could actually take it out of there.
โItโs an artifact.โ
Sepia, who came over and saw the necklace, commented as much. Her eyes were red. She had probably been crying during the trial.
โIf Iโd cleared the trial properly, would I have gotten something too?โ
โWho knows. Iโd never want to go through a trial like that again.โ
โTrue, it was terrifying.โ
I put the necklace away.
I wonder if that princess managed to escape successfully. And if sheโs been safe since then.
Throughout history, when a kingdom collapses, itโs often the royal family who face the harshest fates as examples.
If that trial was a reenactment of a real tragedy, it might be pointless to pray, but I offered a silent wish for her good fortune.
Mastema is descending toward me.
I could see from here that she had been talking with Raziel.
It seems Mastema drove him away.
โHmph.โ
Mastema handed me the angelโs core. So this was what sheโd received from Raziel.
โIs this Razielโs core?โ
โApparently not.โ
โI see.โ
It looked just like Victorโs.
Victor himself appeared and eyed both the core and me.
โWhat do you want, Victor?โ
โOf course, youโre giving that to me, right?โ
Hmm. Well, if it means he can get stronger, I donโt see why not.
โWith two cores, my rank and output will improve! Come on, come on!โ
Victor started pacing around, clearly excited by the core, acting differently than usual.
When we first met, he had seemed like a more dignified, quiet angel.
โMastema, what do you think?โ
โWhy not?โ
She didnโt seem particularly interested, responding while munching on a sandwich Arnella had packed for her.
โAll right, here.โ
โI knew youโd come through, partner.โ
Victor took the core, then slightly opened his chest area. As he pressed the core to his heart, it slowly sank into his body.
โHmโฆ Ah.โ
With a strangely sensual sigh, Victor absorbed the core.
A change quickly became visible: his wings increased in number.
He now had four wings, just like Raziel, and even his attire had subtly transformed.
His power was visibly enhanced.
โWhew. It seems that core belonged to a long-vanished angel, so I could absorb it easily.โ
โI see.โ
I could feel the power surging through my divine sword, confirming that something had indeed changed.
โSo, now whoโs stronger, you or Mastema?โ
Sepia asked, looking between the two of them.
I hadnโt voiced the question myself, but Sepia clearly still had much to learn about tact.
โObviously, me.โ
โIn this form, I donโt intend to lag behind.โ
The two began glaring at each other, and the surrounding mana started to distort from the intensity.
Being at the top of the tower, at least no one was watchingโฆ
โKnock it off. Arnellaโs going to be furious if you keep this up.โ
โIโd hate that.โ
With that, Mastema dispersed her mana, and Victor also relaxed his combat stance.
In truth, Mastemaโs power was about 70%, while Victorโs was around 30%. Currently, Mastemaโs mana was at full strength.
Under normal conditions, theyโd probably be well-matched, though Iโd rather they didnโt fight, as Victor would end up drawing mana from me.
Noel and Arnella approached us.
โIโm glad to see youโre safe.โ
โIs that what angelsโฆ really look like?โ
Though Victor was an angel too, this was the first time theyโd seen a fully manifested angel. Normally, encountering one means preparing for death.
My fatigue finally faded as I stood up.
The battle with that apostle had been grueling.
With Victor now, Iโd probably win.
With Mastema, victory would be certain.
Not that I ever want to encounter it again.
Since parting ways with Kasugal, it feels like thereโs been even more trouble.
I thought he was the real troublemakerโฆ
It was tedious to descend the Sky Tower step-by-step again.
So, I decided weโd fly down.
Mastema carried Arnella, while I held Noel close.
I sent Sepia ahead to clear out any monsters lurking nearby.
Noel clung tightly to me. She had been a bit childish when I first bought her, but sheโd grown quite a bit since then.
โU-um, Master, please take care.โ
โYeah, I got it.โ
Though both Noel and Arnella could use flight magic, they lacked confidence in their self-defense if airborne monsters attacked, so I decided to carry them.
Mastema descended first.
Then I followed.
I adjusted our descent speed with flight magic, enjoying the wind with Noel.
It had taken a long time to climb the Sky Tower, but the descent was much faster.
We reached the ground.
Nearby, a village lay eerily deserted.
Just how much of this was orchestrated by that angelโฆ?
I set Noel down.
The magic carriage looked bored, idling away.
Sepia claimed it was in โwaiting mode.โ
What does she mean by โmodeโ?