I finish my lunch and take a break before logging in.

I'm sent off by Ruin and the others and head to Fretia Castle where the messengers are. After being told to be careful by Princess Sara-sama and Henri-sama, I meet with a messenger from the Reich Empire.

''Are you the summoner of the Ex Machina?''

Yes. My name is Tact, the Summoner.

Hmm. Can we see the evidence?

All right. Come on!　Ix!

I will summon Ix. Now it will be wrong that I am Ix's summoner.

'It is indeed an exmachina. Then what can I do for you?

"I would like to speak directly with Your Majesty to discuss tonight's duel between me and the Dark Summoner in your land.

'Huh?　I don't see why I should be talking to the Emperor of our country about a duel.

Well, we'll cut the pillars, won't we?

'Well...then I have no choice. I'm resigned to it. Could you please give a message to your emperor?

Let's wait and see what he says.

I approach the messenger of the Reich Empire and speak.

'It is now confirmed that there is no future for you to see either the Ex Machina or its weapons.

Huh?

That's it. Thank you for your messages. Now, if you'll excuse me.

Oh, wait!　I'd like to hear the meaning of your earlier message!

You got a bite. Well, I guess you'll have to bite down.

Oh?　Didn't you know?　My exmachina is powered by my magic. If I lose to the dark summoner, my exmachina will go out of control and use up all of its energy. If that happens, the exmachina will never activate again. Naturally, it will be impossible for me to see the weapon.

In case you're wondering, this is a lie. According to Ix, even if the contract expires, Ix will be able to re-sign with the capsule and flow the magic power back to me.

''On the contrary, even if I beat the dark summoner, I no longer intend to negotiate with your country again. That's all there is to it.

"...Does that mean you're going to negotiate with my country over the Ex Machina?

Yes. Can you tell him for me?

I'll be with you in a minute.

The messenger has a conversation with someone. When the conversation is over, he comes over here.

"...His Majesty the Emperor is to see you, sir. I will escort you to him.

It's nice to meet you.

That's the first barrier to get through.

I'll be teleported to the Reich Empire by a messenger, and I'll enter the royal castle of the Reich Empire. Then I meet with the Emperor of the Reich Empire.

"You are the summoner of the Ex Machina?

'Yes, sir. My name is Tact, the summoner. Thank you for allowing me to meet with you. Your Majesty.

Because it's important to my country. You may state your business.

"Yes. I would like to negotiate with your country about the weapons used by your Ex Machina.

The Emperor narrows his eyes.

"Well. "And what do you require of me?

'We want tonight's duel to hijack the rules that were in place last time and be fought by an impartial referee.

Then His Majesty the Emperor hits the railing, stands up, and shouts in anger.

'Do you claim that injustice will occur in our dueling arena!

''That is not what I am asking. I just want you to promise me a few rule changes and a fairer referee.

I'll give you all I can for that, but is that all you need?

'Yes, sir. All I want is a proper duel to settle the matter with the Dark Summoner.

His Majesty is going to take a long hard look at me.

And if I lose, what will you do?

That's how far I was willing to go.

I don't want that to happen... won't it make those negotiations less effective?

'Very perceptive.

You're right. So I will show you the equipment beforehand. And if you'll just follow the same rules as last time, I promise to show you what you want to see.

That's all the Emperor needs to know about my aim. His Majesty the Emperor laughs.

''I see!　Looks like you're one of us!　So that's not all, is it?

Of course.

I told them everything I wanted to do, and the conversation ended with His Majesty the Emperor taking my side of the bargain.

As negotiated, I left as soon as possible to show the engineers of the Reich Empire the weapons of the Ex Machina.

In the throne room, a knight speaks to His Majesty the Emperor.

''May I?''

That's all right. I'm just a guy with a better story to tell.

Isn't this guy dangerous?

It's dangerous. But it's better if you turn it against them. If we do nothing, it won't do us any harm. All you have to do is just keep sucking honey.

The knight nodded at the Emperor's words.

''I see. Quirky. Your Majesty the Emperor.''

Do you think so?

What do you mean?

He's not a sweetheart who just lets you keep sucking honey. You only use that kind of person when you have to.

And the Emperor calls out to someone.

"Continue to watch. But never touch it.

Those who had been hiding move in unison.

'Do as you have just heard.

Ha!

Thus, unbeknownst to the dark summoners, the gears had gone haywire.


I was finally released by the Reich Empire technicians and was able to log out. I was going to hate the technicians...I was already having a hard time with all the questions.

Soaking in the bath, I soaked up the exhaustion. I was so nervous about the Emperor's visit because I was so nervous. Plus, I was being watched all the time, and it was hard as hell.

I got out of the bath and had just finished cooking when Kayo's sister called me on the video phone.

Hello. It's your brother after the bath.

'Don't bother trying to show off your bath, and you're my brother!　So how did the negotiations go?

It's a perfect fit. How about you?

We're in good shape. The rest is up to you.

I'm going to put pressure on you. Then Kayo's sister speaks with a determined look on her face.

'To be honest, I'm complicated. I want you to continue playing the game, but I also want you to stop. I feel like Sei-kun is not my Sei-kun anymore since I started playing the game.

I'm trying to be me, but it certainly feels like the old me is coming back to me now that I've started playing the game. But I can only be me.

I'm sure that I'm changing. "I may be changing, but I'm still me. But I'm still me. I'm the same as I was then. I'm going to fight for the people I care about. That's all I am.

I see. That's a relief to hear. But there's a lot of danger in equating us with Lily and the others!

Really?

For me, it's the same thing.

'Huh...I'm serious. Well, that's okay now. Don't make little Lilly and the others sad, okay?

Who are you talking to?

It's for you, pedophile. So, good luck with your game.

Hey, wait a minute. Hey, wait a minute. He hung up.

Lily and the others are growing up, so it's okay to end the pedophiles and childhood samonas for good. I ate my food while saying the words I couldn't say to anyone in my mind. Finally, the duel with the dark summoner begins.