Geeeeee........

　The large jawed shears let out a decisive squeak.

　Then the giant queen ant crumpled to the ground, splattering green blood from its entire body.

　Zuzun.

　A heavy earth shaking.

　The giant's wings were slashed, deep wounds were carved into its torso, and some of its legs were almost shredded.

　A ton.

　The beautiful person landed in front of him.

　Her long, dark green, glossy hair fell softly down her back.

　With a swish of the spear in his hand, the demon's blood was dispelled and green polka dots scattered on the ground.

''Hmph.''

　Hot breath.

　But there is not a scratch on his body.

(That's great, Illtimina-san.)

The confrontation between the 'Queen Ant' and the new 'Golden Mark Demon Hunter' was an overwhelming victory for the 'Golden Mark Demon Hunter'.

　As Illtimina-san moved with misty speed, the Queen Ant had no way to do anything but one-sidedly slice and dying.

　Thinking about it, she had also beaten the Red Fang Dragon.

　Even in the spirit world, she had overwhelmed and defeated the avenging wyvern.

　Against an individual that would be inferior to the dragon species, there was no way Illtimina-san could lose.

''Brilliant.''

　Even Kilt-san nodded with a satisfied expression.

　Soltis also said, "As expected of sister Irna! He was very good at it.

　I laughed too.

'You did it, Illtimina.'

　When she recognized his voice, she looked at me and smiled slyly.

　However, her expression quickly tightened.

'Come on, let's escape to the ground.
Yes.

　I nodded, the wings on my back glowing with rainbow colors.

　Voon.

　Fortunately, no new giant ants have emerged from the three holes leading to this space.

　Now's your chance.

　As I move directly underneath the air hole, the three of them cling to me.

　''Mugu, muninin.

.................

　Yo, okay, let's go!

　Pushing all sorts of things away, I spread my metal wings wide and let them flap.

　Bafu.

　It surged up, sending dust flying.

　As it was, it jumped into the air hole.

　Huoh........

　Ripping the air and aiming for the ground.

(Hmm...?)

　And I noticed the expression on Kilt's face right in front of me was cloudy as he looked down at me.

''Well I didn't get as many reinforcements as I thought I would.

　His lips muttered in a pout.

(.........what?)

The queen ants are in danger. I thought we'd be flooded with more giant ants, but...

　Speaking of which.

(Only about five of them ended up coming from my end.)

　I don't think it was that many that Kirt-san and Solstice had defeated, either.

　Because there weren't even ten corpses.

'Was the hive too spread out and the Queen's place too thin?　But it doesn't feel right.
..........
..........
..........
Well, that's okay. You might as well get out on the ground first to think.

　Then I look up and see a strong light in our path.

　It's an exit to the ground.

　Bahu.........

　He exited the hole in one fell swoop, clinging to the air.

　With the momentum, I flew out to a height of about 10 meters and stayed in the air.

　A view of the snow-covered mountains and the snow-covered land from there.

　It's a pretty good view.

(.........Huh?)

　I looked down and suddenly realized.

　There was no sign of the captain who had guided me near the air hole.

　No, not only that, but I couldn't see the Tetet soldiers and adventurers there in the line of stone circles in the 'Fairy Township' a bit farther away, either.

''........No one there.''
What?
Hmm?
What?

　The three of them notice what I say.

　They land on the ground.

　I step on the snowy ground and the three of them move away from me.

　We all look around in all directions.

'It's true. There's no one there.

　Solstice mutters, stunned.

　Iltimina squats down and checks the snow at her feet.

''Well there are no signs of a struggle, are there?

　Mr. Kilt narrowed his golden eyes and looked at his surroundings.

　His expression is a bit grim.

''Well let's see what's going on. Everybody keep your guard up.

He put his hand on the hilt of the "Great Sword of Thunder" and warned us of this.

　We nodded, grabbed our respective weapons, and ran our eyes around the area.

　As we took our first step.

　creeping

(!)

　I felt a tightening in my chest and a shiver down my spine.

'!
!

　Splash.

　At about the same time, Kilt-san and Illtimina-san held their weapons at the same direction.

　I also pointed the 'Fairy Sword' in that direction.

　Only Solstice scowled and hurriedly pointed her large staff in that direction.

(...........)

　In front of me is a forest of trees that have been formed by ice.

　I can't see into the depths.

　In that white world, in the dark part, there is "something".

　That's how I feel.

　But still, what is this heavy atmosphere?

(This oppressive feeling has happened before. ........but it's not.)

　It was a night in the Kela Desert.

　That night in the Kera Desert.

　It was a coincidence.

　No way.....

　Crunch.

　In the white world, out of the darkness, a small, black figure stepped out of the white world.

　One boy emerged from behind a tree.

　We felt the expression on his face tighten.

　Black hair and dark skin.

　A smile as red as a crescent moon around his mouth.

"Hi.

　The boy calls out to me casually, with a scary voice.

　A black child appeared in the snowy land.

　In the distant land of Teteto, that "child of darkness" is standing right in front of us.


　◇ ◇ ◇ ◇ ◇ ◇ ◇ ◇ ◇ ◇.


　It was the first time I had ever seen 'that presence' under the bright sunlight.

　His height and appearance are about the same age as my 13-year-old self.

　The black hair and black skin.

　The black hair and black skin, and the black clothes he was wearing.
　I don't know if they don't feel the cold, but it's pretty cold to see them in light clothing.

　Above all, those eyes.

(I've never seen them before...)

　Even the whites of his eyes were painted jet-black, his eyes were terrifying.

　It was like an endless darkness.

　Now it was directed at the four of us, who were stunned.

"I've learned your language," it said, "and it works, doesn't it? It's quite clear, isn't it?

　He laughed.

　Just listening to his voice, I feel uncomfortable and uneasy, as if a blade is being pressed against my neck.

(............)

　sigh

　I put all my strength into my hand holding the "Fairy Sword".

　As if on the verge of exploding, my leg is filled with power - ready to strike at any moment.

　I want to kill him.

The spirit of the divine dog screams at you.

　But I have a feeling from all my years of experience in battle that I shouldn't do so.

　It's not too late to change my mind.

　And then...

..........

　Zachariah.

　The Golden Mark Demon Hunter Kirto Amandes took a step forward with no expression on her face and her hand on the hilt of her sword.

　A strong 'pressure' is released from her.

　Zazaaaaah.

　A cold wind blew through the snowy world.

(!)

　A myriad of darkness emerged from the shadows of the surrounding trees.

　Tattooed men and women with Thanatos magic letters carved into their flesh.

　The guards of the 'Children of Darkness' who were hiding were hit by Kirt-san's sword qi, and they couldn't help but reveal themselves.

''I knew it,''

　Mr. Kilt sees through the trap and checks his surroundings with his eyes alone.

　The number of tattooed men and women is twelve.

　They are in a position to surround the four of us in a circle.

(This ... might not be good.)

　Quite a difference in strength.

　Kilt-san and Illtimina-san's expressions were stern and Solstice's young beauty was pale.

　And the 'Child of Darkness' in front of us looked around at the tattooed men and women and chuckled.

'Oh dear, I told you not to come out.
I'm sorry.

　The tattooed man by my side bows his head.

　But he was in a position to move at any time to protect the 'dark child'.

Well, that's fine. ........but you can't do any more unsolicited things, can you?

　The darkness in his voice seemed to have thickened.

　The man shuddered and nodded his head, "Ha.

　As if in response to his voice, all the tattooed men and women remained unmoving.

The Child of Darkness looked at us again.

　Then he smiled.

'Don't worry. We won't let them get to you.

　............

I didn't come here today to fight. I came here to talk to you guys.

I'm talking about...

　We were stunned by the impossible words.

　Looking at his expression with amusement, he continued.

Yes, I want to sign a ceasefire agreement with you humans. --I want to sign a ceasefire agreement with you humans.


　◇ ◇ ◇ ◇ ◇.


　Ceasefire ... agreement?

You're kidding me.

　I replied.

　My trembling legs took a step forward on their own.

　The tattooed men and women around me tried to move in response to the killing spirit.

　But one glare from the 'Child of Darkness' stopped them from moving.

　Then he said.

'Hey, Marl.'
..........
'Mutant 'Son of God', I've always found you very interesting.

　A happy voice.

　My voice in response was filled with the fire of anger.

'I want to kill you, you know.

　How many innocent people were killed because of you?

　How many people have been turned into demons?

　And now you call it a truce agreement?

That's true. But you're not going to kill me.
...What?
'If it were a Godgu Arquin, I would have killed him. But "Marle" didn't. It's just that you've got that in you, isn't it? Isn't that right?

　...like I understand.

　I'm going to remind you that it's not right.

If you move, three people around you will die, too.
!

　The tattooed man and woman remained silent.

'And I'm sure you can't ignore the possibility of reducing further human casualties.
..........
Because 'Merle' is so sweet.

　The tone was more of a chiding than a compliment.

　My limbs trembled.

　But it was also true that he couldn't pounce on the 'Child of Darkness' any further.

''Marle........''

　I hear Iltimina's caring voice.

　The moment I heard it.

Okay.

　Recovering my reasoning, I managed to keep the emotions inside me at bay.

'Just talk to me. Then we'll decide what to do about it.

'Child of Darkness' smiled a red crescent moon and nodded happily.

'I trusted you to answer that, Marle.

　Then he looks lost.

'Well, where shall I begin?　

(Common enemy?)

　All four of us give him a dubious look.

　In front of him, his expression disappears slightly and he utters the name.

'The six 'demons' on this earth,'

　And.


　◇ ◇ ◇ ◇ ◇ ◇.


Demons...

The sealed demon thing!

　It was Solstice who exclaimed that.

　He nodded, "Yeah.

Silly.

　Mr. Kilt tells me with a look of surprise.

'You're the one spawned from that demon, aren't you?　Isn't its purpose to destroy the 'divine seal' and free the 'demons' who are the parents?

Yeah, that's right. So, we fought in the Cocudo area and...

　The Third Child of Darkness, which was created by them in an attempt to free the demons, was also to be defeated.

The 'Son of Darkness' looked back at us with blank, black eyes.

''Such a purpose, who said that?''
..........
Didn't my guys tell you that in Cocudo?　'We're not going to fight you.'

　...that.

　The woman with the black flying dragon told me that.

I'm sure you've heard the story.

(...what?)

　The four of us were all dumbfounded.

To be more precise, the plan was to break the seal a little bit to create the Demon Shard, and then kill the main body of the demon with the seal. And our friends were going to take care of the remaining pieces of the Demon Shards as well.
..........
That's why our guys went to the Cocudo area.

　That's ridiculous.

Of course I was thinking about the possibility of antagonizing you guys.
..........
If you failed to convince me, I will leave you to deal with the demon fragments. That was the plan. And you did exactly what we expected you to do with the Demon Shard for us.

　............

''Child of Darkness'' laughed, twisting the black eyes of emptiness into a thin line.

''So, thank you.''

(~~~~)

　I wasn't happy to hear him thank me.

　My emotions were so raging that I couldn't say anything.

　That fight for my life, all the feelings I felt at that time were the result of dancing in the palm of the 'dark child's' hand!

"Merle.

　quickly

　Mr. Kilt grabbed my shoulder tightly.

　I huff at the force in his voice.

　I shouldn't.

　If I lose my composure, I'll be dancing to the "dark child" again.

(Calm down, Merle.)

　I take a deep breath.

"I'm sorry. Thank you, Mr. Kilt.
Hmm.

　Mr. Kilt smiled, showing his white teeth.

　Encouraged by my companion's presence, I looked over at the Child of Darkness again.

　He said, "Hmmm? He looks a little impressed.

'I still admire your strong sense of restraint.
Shut up.
"Hmm.

　The Child of Darkness laughed happily.

'A 'child of God' and yet a contrary being to 'God's will'. Really interesting, you are.

　...................

　He took a deep breath.

"That's why I think you'll understand why I want to defeat 'The Devil'. That's why I want to defeat the Devil.

(...why do you want to defeat a demon?)

　My blue eyes stared at him.

　Taking it in with his empty black eyes, he replied.

I am Merle. I want my world to accept my existence.


　◇ ◇ ◇ ◇ ◇.


My... world?

The Child of Darkness stares at his hands, his dark eyes downcast.

'I am a child of the devil.
..........
But my own ego is separate from the body of the demon that brought me here. I am who I am.

　There was a strong will in his voice.

　He looks up.

"'Demons' are, you know, truly terrifying beings.

　The smile on that crescent moon was gone.

'True to his own desires, he has a high intellect, but no thoughts of ethics or empathy. And they are powerful. To them, the humans of this world would be nothing more than a tool for their own pleasure.
..........
No, I'm just as useless to the demons as they are to me. If they need me, they'll abuse me, and when they don't need me, they'll discard me.

　There was a definite fright in the expression of that 'Child of Darkness'.

''If the 'Sealed Demon' resurrects, they will continue to lay waste to death and despair until the world is destroyed.
..........
I'm trying to prevent that from happening.

　...........

I don't want to die.

　The voice of the 'Child of Darkness' who told me this was indifferent.

　That's why I didn't feel a lie in the heart hidden there.

　He is speaking the truth.

　I can see that.

'I don't want to accept the reality of being trampled and annihilated by overwhelming violence without being able to acknowledge my existence...I don't want to accept that reality. No, I cannot accept it as a single organism.
..........
That's why I want to kill a 'demon'. And I want to kill any other 'demon shards' that might bring the demon back.

The Son of Darkness is a sincere appeal to us.

"That's why I'm calling for a ceasefire with you, and for us to fight together.

.................

　We had no answer.

　We were facing each other in a snowy world, about ten meds away.

　Huohhhh....

　A cold wind blew through.

　Mr. Kilt muttered.

'So the enemy of my enemy is my friend.
..........
..........
..........
'That's all well and good. But after you kill all the 'demons' in response, what do you do?

　There was a strong light in his golden eyes.

'Are you willing to live with us, among us humans?
No way.

The Son of Darkness laughed.

'I don't think you humans will ever accept us. You are creatures who only feel safe when you are in control of the world. Once the demons are gone, you'll try to kill us as a threat, won't you?
..........
And I feel the same way.

　He laughed with a crescent smile.

'I told you in the beginning, didn't I?　I want 'my world'.

　There is a deep darkness there.

　A deep, deep, jet black will that seems to fall away if you look into it.

(So that's the priority of the threat.)

　At some point, we'll come to terms with that.

　But first, we have to get rid of the biggest threat, the demons.

　That's why this is a temporary handshake.

　The Children of Darkness is proposing to create a temporary cooperative relationship.

Do you think he'll go along with it?

　Mr. Kilt said as he tried.

'Of course,'

'Child of Darkness' replied in plenty of time.

　I felt the two of them look at each other, sending invisible sparks in the air.

　The air is tense.

　My breath caught.

　Eventually, Mr. Kilt let out a breath.

'Do you have any proof that you can believe that proposition?'
No.

　He answered honestly.

─ Trust isn't created by words, but by actions. So let's create it with our actions.
..........
The demon sealed in the dollar continent is about to be resurrected. The wards won't last another year.

(...what?)

What?

　Mr. Kilt has a stunned look on his face.

　He said.

'The first priority is to get rid of that demon.
..........
We're going there too. Isn't that where we'll have our first fight together?

　Then he laughed.

'I might be skeptical. But if you hear that, you'll go, won't you?
Nuh-uh.

　Mr. Kilt snorted in frustration.

'Shall I give you one more piece of information?
What?
You can't go to the Dark Continent just yet. It's a realm of evil. If we don't keep our strength up, even you guys will die sooner than you think.
..........
Hmmm, we can't afford to lose you before we fight together.

　He said that.

Oh, yeah.

　I added as I remembered.

'I had forgotten all about it, but this is a service.'

　I look at the tattooed man.

　The man releases something.

　Thud.

　What fell to the snowy ground in front of us was the head of a giant ant.

　Green blood stained the white of the snow.

We've taken care of all the ants so that you can easily fight the queen ants.

(Huh?)

　The meaning of this is slowly penetrating.

　If you look, the limbs of the twelve tattooed men and women are drenched in green blood, and their skin is also splattered with return blood.

(.........why?)

Trust is what you do.

　I was stunned, and he replied in a funny way.

　Mr. Kilt looked back at the Child of Darkness with a grim expression.

'What's wrong with the people of Tetet?'
I'm in the tunnels.

　He replied.

'They were in the way, so I've locked them in the tunnels. Of course I didn't kill him, did I?　I'll take that into consideration.

　...........

　It really wasn't some kind of battle atmosphere.

I think we have something to talk about. Well, we're going to go now.

'Child of Darkness' laughed and took a step backwards.

　The tattooed man and woman also showed signs of trying to pull back.

　Mr. Kilt, Illtimina, and Solstice say nothing.

　They try to disappear, into the snow world.

　But before they do, I open my mouth.

'Wait.'
Hmm?

The Child of Darkness looked at me with interest and stopped.

'What is it, Merle?'

　......................

　With a little breathlessness, I asked.

"So far........how many 'divine relatives' like me have you killed?

　piquant

　The air is tense.

　The tattooed men and women looked nervous and held their hips low.

　Even Kilt and Illtimina looked at me, surprised.

'Answer me.'

　I said.

　He said quietly.

"Seven.
..........

　The moment I hear it, I close my eyes.

　Don.

　The faucet of great power within his body opened up fully.

　Beast ears sprouted and a thick, long tail sprouted out.

　At the same time, the 'divine Armor' shattered and became a particle of light that clung to me.

　''Voong.''

　Rainbow-colored full body armor.

I, who was in 'Ultimate God Body Mode', was being consumed by Arcuin's unbearable fury and was attacking the 'Child of Darkness'.

''Aaaaaaah!''

　I rushed forward with a roar.

　The tattooed man stepped forward and grabbed at me.

　Gokin'

　A small arm, wrapped in iridescent armor like an exoskeleton, snapped its arm in reverse and popped more than 20 mead.

　Another tattooed woman attacked from the side while transforming.

　A plant-like body.

　Ivy extended from both of its arms and twisted around my entire body.

　It also wraps around my neck and tightens up with such force that even the rebar seems to break.

　But.

　livid

　He tore off that ivy, grabbed it all together, and swung it around as hard as he could.

　Doggone it.

"Ugh!

　The demon woman was slammed to the ground just in front of Solstice.

　Overwhelming violence.

　The terrifying power of the Ultimate God Body Mode, the 'Child of Darkness' also widened its eyes.

　Aiming at its neck, I tried to wave my arm.

''Marl!''

　A moment later, Illtimina's voice was heard.

(Huh)

　Gishie....

　A sharp, clawed arm stopped where it touched the dark child's dark skin.

　A streak of purple blood flowed down its neck.

　The helmet, which looked like a wolf's head, looked down at the face of the Child of Darkness from close range.

''Don't mess with my people any longer.

　It could have been Arkyn's voice.

'Child of Darkness,' he nodded.

'All right, I promise.'
..........

　dang

　I leap backwards.

　In the air, my rainbow-colored full-body armor turns into particles of light, and when I land, I'm back to my beast-eared and tailed divine Marle.

　Right beside me is a fallen plant demon that has been left lying on the ground.

　I stared at it.

"Solstice,
What?

　The girl who called my name looked at me in surprise.

　I said, "Try that magic.

'Try that magic.'
'Well, uh ... um, yeah. I get it.

　She nodded somewhat hurriedly and readied her large staff.

The 'Child of Darkness' scowled dubiously.

　Right in front of her, Solstice chanted her magic.

"Let the Holy Light dispel the sickness that flows in his body!　--Fa-Pa-Luntia!

　snappingly

　A white glow, like a flash of light, gushed out from the magic stone of the staff.

　Bathed in it, the plant demon shuddered with a jolt.

　In the next moment, its body changed like a reverse regeneration from when it became a demon, regaining its human form.

　Eventually, the figure of a naked woman appeared.

　However, the tattoo-like Thanatos magic letters had disappeared from her skin.　

''Yes, it worked!''

　Solstice cheered.

　I nodded.

　The remaining eleven tattooed men and women looked on in astonishment as they watched their friends change.

''...........''

　zap

The signs of the "Child of Darkness" have changed.

　It was such a dangerous sign that the surface of the sea, which had been calm, was about to be swept up by the storm and undulated by a large wave.

　Zawa zawa zawa........

　A dense demonic atmosphere.

　An aura of purple darkness rose from the small body.

　Kilt-san and Illtimina-san reflexively held their weapons at the ready.

　The tattooed men and women have turned pale.

　I said to the 'Child of Darkness', whose expression was distorted with anger.

''We just did what you did, and we did it too.
..........
..........
... yeah. ... yeah, I guess.

　With a twisted smile, he let out a squeaky voice.

'She was the family I made. And you took that away from me. .... same for sure.
..........
I won't forget you, Merle.
I'm the one who's forgotten.

　I answer him head-on, taking his killing intent to heart.

People who say you are their family have been turned into demons and their lives have been ruined because of you. There are many people who have been caught up in that misery. I will not allow that to happen.
..........
You can fight with me. But I won't let your world come to me.

　Clearly, I declared.

　Staring at me, the Child of Darkness laughed.

'That's what I'm talking about, Marl.'

　The aura of darkness disappears from his entire body.

I'm going to get the world I want.

　The black eyes of emptiness looked at the three companions at my side.

''It's a world of equality and meritocracy where people are not discriminated against for being 'demon blood people'. It's a world of meritocracy, where people without 'demon blood' are recognized as the inferior race. This world that is based on the existing values will be plunged into the darkness of chaos and will be rebuilt from the ground up.
..........
..........
..........
I hope you guys have thought this through.

　A soft smile.

　As the same 'devil's child', it was a smile directed at his fellow countrymen (kazoku).

　Solstice gulped a bit.

　Kilt-san remained with a stern expression.

　And Illtimina-san.

All I want is the world that Merle wants.

　He snuggled up next to me with his crimson eyes staring at the 'Dark Child'.

　The hand placed on my shoulder is very hot.

(Illtimina-san........)

　She met my gaze and smiled.

'Yes.'

　He instantly removed his gaze from her, as if he had lost interest in her.　

　That dark gaze catches me again.

'Well, fine. The fact that you hate me is a result of my own actions. 'Because I'm a piece of the devil' is not the same as any other 'child of God' reason.
..........
I'm still interested in you.

　............

We may be children of God and the devil, but we're heretics. We can fight with each other for a while.

　Then a red crescent moon smile comes to mind.

　Huoaoao........

　A strong wind blew.

　The snow piled up in the air and the world was turning white.

　A black shadow disappearing there whispered to me.

''--I'll be waiting for you on the dollar continent, Merle.

　hyggeo

　A gust of wind blocked our view.

　Eventually, when the wind disappeared, there was no one there.

Not even the Children of Darkness.

　Nor the 11 tattooed men and women.

　What was left was the four of us and one woman who had returned to human form from a demon.

"..........
..........
..........
..........

　We were speechless for a while.

　The next thing I knew, my hands were shaking.

　Geez.

　I tighten my grip.

　It was an unexpected encounter with the "Child of Darkness".

　I suddenly look up at the blue sky.

　The clear blue sky was high and wide for all intents and purposes.

.................

　I let out a long, long, white, cloudy breath toward it.