Come on, let's go.
　Princess Sophia grabbed us by the arm and we're on our way to the Cathedral of Our Lady of Anna.
　The purpose of this is to discuss the future course of action with the concerned parties now that the Great Demon King has returned.

　Why the cathedral?
　The question came to mind, "During the previous attack on the Demon King, we gathered at Highland Castle.......
　And there's one more thing that's bothering me.

''Ah, um........Sophia-san?　You don't have to grab your arm so tightly.
No. You'll be whoring yourself out to other women soon enough.
'No, that's not...'
　Princess Sophia is losing her temper.
　I turned back.

　Lucy was whistling.
　Sa-san gave me a wry smile and worshipped me with both hands.
　Furiae-san turned red and quickly looked away.
　These guys.........
　No one seems to be able to help them.
　Well, it's my fault........

''Sophia-san.........''
　He turned away from me with a peck.
　Let's wait for the princess to recover from her mood........

　As I walked, I observed the scenery around me.
　The sky was cloudy and dim.
　There seemed to be fewer people on the streets than usual.
　The resurrection of the Great Demon Lord has not yet been announced to the general public.
　But I got the impression that people's faces were lackluster.
　From between the buildings in the city, I could see an ash(⋅) colored(⋅) stone statue standing at the entrance to the royal capital - the figure of Abel, the savior, raising his sword.


　-- It was an uncomfortable feeling.


　I couldn't put it into words, but I felt an intense sickening feeling.

'Sophia,'
Excuse me, I'm not angry, but...
Didn't the statues come in that color?
"?　Yes........that's right. It's a stone statue of the brave one, right?
What?
　I couldn't believe my ears.

　Aside from me and Sa-san, who came from another world, Lucy and Princess Sophia call the brave Abel 'Savior-sama'.
　It's because the average brave man and savior Abel have distinctly different positions.
　To the people who live in this world, the name of the savior is an absolute necessity.
　Even if the princess Sophia, a priestess of the Goddess Church, couldn't possibly misinterpret the name.

''Brave Mako. I'll hurry, Noel-sama is waiting for you.
Yes, sir.
　In the end, unable to talk in detail about the nature of the discomfort or Princess Sophia's words, we hurried to the cathedral.



　◇



　Many people had already gathered in St. Anne's Cathedral.
　Royalty from all countries, great nobles, brave men, priestesses, famous knights.... . etc.
　Some were familiar faces, while others were new to me.

　At the front of the cathedral, there is a podium and a statue of Goddess of the Sun (Althena).
　On the podium, Princess Noel and Esther were standing.

'Princess Noel currently holds the position of Pope of the Goddess Church.
　Sneakingly, Princess Sophia told me.
　I see, the former pope has already abdicated.
　I didn't want to see him, and that's a good thing.

'Takatsuki Makoto!
Janet?
　A female knight in golden armor rushed up to me.

''You look fine, where will you be stationed on the battlefield?　If it hasn't been decided, I'll persuade the Chancellor to take the same place...
''Perhaps you will be placed in the same army as the brave Lord of Light. Master Noel told me so.
　It was Princess Sophia who answered Janet's question.

'Is that so?'
　By the way, I had never heard of it before.

''Yes, I heard it was a request from the brave Lord of Light.
'The same as the brave men of light........ It's the main force led by President Ewain, isn't it? Huh, then it's easy to adjust. Brave Makoto, I'll fight with you.
　Janet smiled meaningfully.

'Janet, I'll ask you to take care of the brave Mako.
What?
　Princess Sophia's words gave Janet a surprising look.

''Sophia doesn't object to me approaching Takatsuki Makoto, does she?
''Well I can't go to the battlefield. Please keep an eye on this man to make sure he doesn't do anything rash.
'Well I'll keep up with you to make sure it doesn't happen like the last time!　I got it!
　Janet-san replied with a reliable smile.
　Princess Sophia smiled - then turned meaningful eyes to me.

''By the way, since 'all the women in the heroic Makoto's party' have been touched by this man, I'm sure it would be hard for you to interrupt.
"!
　Princess Sophia's words caused Janet-san to have a perplexed expression.

''Oh, you........you didn't think you'd even make a move on the Moon Priestess (Furiae).... Moreover, she's a 'saint' now, isn't she?
You can't use that kind of common sense with the heroic Makoto.... I saw them sleeping in bed together today.
'What a terrible man.... Sofia, you're having a hard time....
'Janet, it's another royal duty...'
I'm on your side.
Hmmm, that's very reassuring.
　Something about the two of them getting along with me as a buddy.


　Then.
"Ladies and gentlemen!　Silence!
　One of the Temple Knights shouted loudly and the huge doors of the cathedral were locked with a heavy thud.

''I see that all parties are present.
　Princess Noel's well-passing voice rang out.

　There is room inside the cathedral for hundreds of people to sit, but today it's nearly full.
　And along the walls of the cathedral, a line of knights, who would be the guards, are on alert.
　Outside the cathedral, the Temple Knights have also formed a guard, so this is probably the most important stronghold at the moment.　

　We were seated at the very back of the room.
　As it happens, Janet-san is also sitting near us.
　Shouldn't he be at the Ballantine family's side?

I have asked you to come here today because the Goddess has something important to tell you about the resurrected Great Demon King (Eveleth).
　Princess Noel looked at Esther-san........no, Goddess (Ila) of Fate, who was next to her.

　In the next moment, Esther's body shone and an enormous amount of magical power (mana) filled the cathedral.
　A pair of wings of light appeared from Esther's back.
　Every single person in the chapel hung their heads.

(You're making it sound like she just descended, but it's Ila-sama from the beginning...?
　I glanced at Ila-sama's face while bowing my head to match my surroundings.
　Oh, she was staring at me.
　I think she might have heard my heart.
　.........Ila-sama, you look tired.

"Lift your head.
　Gravely, the Goddess of Destiny (Ila) spoke.
　Then she takes a glance at the humans in the cathedral.

'To everyone, I have something to tell you.　
　Master Ila continued to speak.

''As I'm sure you've already heard, today, the Great Demon Lord has returned after a thousand years.
　A murmur arises.

''However, the Great Demon King's strength is still not enough, and there are only two Demon Kings left on the Demon Continent. The war situation is very different from what it was a thousand years ago. Against us, we have prepared sufficient military equipment. If we fight them head-on, our victory will be unassailable.
　Oh........and relief.

　That's why we've been preparing for that for several years now.
　I can hear brave voices from the nobleman-like people near us and the soldiers, such as "Finally this time is here...", "We will defeat the great demon king and make true peace..." and "Arms clang...".
　Morale is high.

　But I was concerned about Princess Noel, who is next to the Goddess of Destiny (Ila), because her face was dark and somber.
　I wondered if she was worried about Sakurai-kun.
　When I looked for Sakurai-kun, I saw him in the front row, next to President Yuwayne.

''A coalition of human tribesmen who are greatly outnumbered by national power. The Demon King's army that has lost one of the Demon Kings and the Great Demon King has not regained his original power. If we are going to attack, now is the opportune time........
".........?
　Oh, what?
　Something's changed in the story.
　There is a buzz in the sanctuary.
　Looking closely, Ila-sama's expression was grim.

''The resurrected Great Demon King wasn't a foolhardy one either........ The Demon King's army, which is inferior in strength, has played a despicable hand....... The Demon King's evil power is threatening everyone's lives.......
　Wait, wait, wait. Ila?
　Where is the mood for victory?
　The people around me were also confused by the suddenness of the situation.

''Let's be clear, we can't win against the Great Demon King at this rate....... We won't even be able to compete.''
''What do you mean?!''
　One of the noblemen from the Land of the Sun shouted out.

''I'll explain... but first, there's someone I need to call on.
　Ila-sama raised one hand and a huge magic circle emerged in the air.

　A magic circle shining in rainbow colors.
　I've seen it before, the summoning magic formula.
　Even if it was the most familiar, that magic could never be handled by a human.
　A god-grade summoning magic that could only be activated by Ila-sama's divine qi.
　And what came out was a familiar, tall, beautiful goddess.


(Is it okay for you to come to earth so casually...?)


　The one who descended was the Goddess of the Sun, whom I had just met the other day.