Sorry, Hinokagahime!

　A scorching hot flash of light gushed out.

　The cherry blossom, clad in divine descent magic, swiftly drew on Suzuri's blade and skillfully swung her sword to counterattack.

　The silver and cherry blossom-colored flashes of the sword intersected in layers.

　It's clear that the sword fights, which don't even have time to breathe, are an offense and defense beyond the realm of human beings.

　The heat swirling in the interval between the two increased in copiousness with every second, and the two of them, Melissa and Melissa, could do nothing but sit on the sidelines and watch.

''Demon General Suzuri!　What the hell are you thinking!

　Sakura swings her blade at Yokonagi, pausing for a moment, then turns her cut end around and raises her voice.

　That gaze seems to be looking straight at Suzuri, but in fact, she is unable to look directly at his face and slightly averts her gaze.

　I don't need to reiterate the reason why.

''Shiranui Sakura. In the many times I've invoked God's descent, I'm sure you've experienced the sensation of being robbed of your own body more than once.
...... so what about it. If you're going to surrender God to this body, the danger of being consumed by power will naturally follow.
But didn't that feeling come down from the outside, from within you?

　Sakura's lips were drawn together at a loss for words.

　The creepiness preceded the surprise.

　How could Suzuri know what she was feeling inside - the inexplicability of it all came flooding in, but Sakura quickly tried to let her rational judgment take precedence.

　Whatever means he used, Suzuri also succeeded in activating the gods' descent, though he didn't know what on earth he used.

　Perhaps he was struck by a similar sensation at that time and hypothesized that Sakura must have felt this as well.

　There is also a reasonable explanation for the point at which he succeeded in bringing the god down.

　Sakura's father, Kurato Shiranui, was unable to control the imperfect god-surrender he had forced himself to master, and for fear of collateral damage to his wife and children, he faked his death and visited the Western Continent in search of a means of control.

　There, he met a man named Algernon - the Duke of Kingswell's own brother - who helped him overcome his outbursts with the help of his dungeon exploration and challenged him to break through the Demon King's Castle - and was captured as a decoy and experimented on. After being turned into the body of Demon General Suzuri, it was made into the body of Demon General Suzuri.

　If it had become controllable at the point of taking it away, it's not surprising that they were able to take advantage of it and use it.

　-- Sakura tries to calmly and rationally consolidate her consciousness and control her rage and confusion.

　But the words Suzuri told her could easily cut through Sakura's efforts.

'You are not bringing a god down on your person. What you call a god ...... that you call a god, Hinokagahime, is inside yourself.










　Gandalf, the demon king, wants to talk to me directly - I decided to accept the request despite my hesitation.

　If he had summoned me alone as a target, I might have thought it was a trap and refused, but at the same time, considering the faces of the nominated people, I couldn't help but change my mind.

　The people other than me that Gandalf nominated were His Majesty Alfred and the researchers.

　Frosty didn't name any specifics about the latter, but he definitely seemed to have Hild's participation in mind.

　Even including the minimum number of guards required, the simple number of people would be about half of the audience we had just had.

　His Majesty has accepted the request on that basis and has advised me to accept it if possible.

　I can't think of any reason to refuse in this situation other than being scared.

　Anyway, we have responded to Demon King Gandalf's summons and will be heading deep into the Fifth Maze.

　Me and Garnett, His Majesty and Ezell, Hild and Ambrose...... really are the minimum number of people.

　If we were to evaluate it from a third party perspective, we might say it's a high-risk, high-reward choice that puts the king's person at risk.

　However, it is also one of the main characteristics of the person of King Alfred that he has always been able to convince us that we don't have to worry if this person has made the decision.

''-- His Majesty Gandalf. I have brought King Alfred and Luke White Wolf's party with me.

　Frosty spoke reverently in front of the door and pushed open the old door.

　The scene beyond was a dim, temple-like hall that felt even serene, contrary to the opulent and glamorous castle interior of the Fifth Maze.

　It was clearly not a space that was intended to entertain guests.

　It was a literal sanctuary, a space that strived to maintain a sense of calmness and quiet ...... such an impression.

　I'm sure you'll be able to find a way to make the most out of your time in the world.

　I'm sure you'll be able to find out what's going to be the exact shape of it from this distance, but it looks like a big old spear.

'You have come well. You are the champion of the earth and heir to the power of Alphasul.
'I see. If you dare to call Luke that, I saw that this errand was related to Alphasul.

　His Majesty Alfred walked unabashedly and unapologetically, stopping a few steps before Gandalf.

　We followed suit and stood shoulder to shoulder next to His Majesty.

　There's not even a magician general or even a soldier in sight around us.

　Frosty never seemed to follow, either, and he bowed deeply and closed the door from the outside.

''Naturally. You have a reason to know. Otherwise, Agat Ram will not be able to take Alfazl from you.