Chapter 645: The Clown Who Deceives the World (2/2)

[……No, Shallow Vernal has told us that once you lot have reached that place from the God Realm, it is our defeat and we shouldn't do anything more. It's…… our defeat.]

[Is that so…… Well then, since you aren't going to do anything anyway, why don't we have all Gods come and witness it together? Watch how this battle ends……]

[We have failed the duties Shallow Vernal-sama assigned to us, and we have no face to show to her anymore…… If that's what you, the victor, wants, then I'll go along with it for now. However, can I ask you a question, Phantasmal King?]

[What is it?]

As Chronois accepted defeat, Life also accepted defeat…… and began treating the members of Human-Demon Allied Forces who are unable to move due to the repercussions of the Critical Point of Fate.

She acknowledges the victor, the Human-Demon Allied Forces, had the right to advance.

And in the short time it took to finish her treatment to the others, Chronois asked Alice.

[……How much of everything have you predicted?]

[Predicted? Hmmm, that's a bit wrong…… It's not that I predicted it, ”I just guided Shallow Vernal-sama's thoughts so that the situation would develop this way”, you know?]

[……What?]

[Shallow Vernal-sama is an amazing person, but she's not unrivaled in every way. Especially when it comes to the mental side…… After all, this would actually have been difficult if she had kept on strengthening the Gods. So, I tried not to let that happen. I had a meeting to assume the extent of reinforcement that the Gods would have, based on the premise that Shallow Vernal-sama was peeping at my mind. In addition to making her think that ”I'm preparing for the strengthening that she will do”, I also guided her thoughts to a ”basis where she would strengthen you Gods”. Thinking about stuff like ”If the Gods are around this strong, it would be hard” and stuff like that~~]

After pausing for a moment, Alice slowly began telling the whole story.

[Shallow Vernal-sama does not incorporate the mental aspects into her strategies. She doesn't prepare mental strategies, like preparing 200 powerful beings against the 100 of your opponent and making them feel despair, or any of such plans that would overpower her opponent. On top of that, she didn't even take into account uncertainties like growth in battle or anything like that. In Shallow Vernal-sama's eyes, she would be just an outsider in this battle…… and being an outsider, she didn't want to accidentally rip apart this chess board she prepared.]

[…………………]

[Thus, if I show Shallow Vernal-sama that the basic strength of our side would be 100…… she would fight us with 101. If you apply such thought into this battle, the +1 would be the power of Judgment given to the Supreme Gods, and this supposedly inescapable space. Thus, all I had to do was hypothesize what that +1 and prepare the counter-measure for it. In that sense, this was a rather easy fight.]

[……You have surpassed…… Shallow Vernal's thoughts huh……]

In front of the dumbfoundedly muttering Chronois, Alice takes a mask out of nowhere and puts it on.

[……Shallow Vernal-sama is a great God. She truly is the Gods of the world. However, I'm the clown who deceives the world. Well, how can a God who is just beginning to understand emotions beat me in a contest of deception…… She's still 100,000 years too early to think about defeating me.]

After saying that, Alice turned her gaze to the center of the God Realm…… the Sanctuary.

(Though I say that, it's only for this battle outside of her own chessboard. It probably ”doesn't matter for Shallow Vernal-sama whether we win or lose in this battle”…… The question is whether or not we would be able to intervene in Kaito-san's fight, who is probably doing everything he can on his side…… Haahhh…… This is tough. There are too many uncertainties here…… To some extent, I guess I should prepare to play things as they come huh……)

One of the battles has been settled. However, the chessboard they're fighting in is in a different place…… because the real battlefield isn't here……

<Afterword>

Serious-senpai : [……Being able to use Underworld King's power, does that mean that the current Alice is actually stronger than the Underworld King?]

? ? ? : [Alice-chan has only reached the criteria where she can borrow Kuro-san's power, so Kuro-san is still stronger than Alice-chan. In fact, she was still struggling to control Kuro-san's power.]

Serious-senpai : [……By the way, you mind if I tsukkomi at something?]

? ? ? : [What is it?]

Serious-senpai : [……”Doing everything he can on his side”, she said…… That d*mned ordeal is just a romantic comedy simulation game, isn't it!?]

T/N: 59/187

I'm going to focus on Hazure for the moment, so here are the chapters for tomorrow too.