Arifureta Vol 9 Chapter 2 (2/2)

Her best friend’s rival appearing in an unexpected place made s.h.i.+zuku looked at the ceiling with her hand covering her convulsing cheek. Regardless of gender, s.h.i.+zuku had come to hate that side of Hajime, and a dangerous idea of seriously spreading a painful nickname had crossed her mind… which she managed to give up.

Aiko and s.h.i.+zuku tried to smooth things over by repeatedly clearing their throats, then they continued their previous conversation as if nothing had happened.

“Then, Sensei. Did something happen when you reported to the king? After all, it seemed to have been a serious talk.”

s.h.i.+zuku’s question made Aiko recall something and she made a bitter expression where anger and distrust mixed.

“… Officially, Nagumo-kun is branded as a heretic.”

“!? That’s—!… What do you mean? No, I somehow can guess it… but isn’t that decision a hasty one?”

Hajime was powerful. With only several people, he repulsed more than 60,000 demonic beasts while using mysterious artifacts. Hajime’s comrades also possessed unbelievable power. However, his stance was he would not cooperate with Church of the Saints and would even oppose them depending on the situation. It was true Hajime was a truly dangerous existence for the Kingdom and the Church of the Saints.

However, it was truly too hasty to brand him as a heretic so quickly. The brand of a heretic was given to those who disobeyed the teaching from Church of the Saints and became the G.o.d’s enemy, and such branding would make it legal for anyone to subjugate Hajime any time, any where. And according to the situation, even the Temple Knights and Kingdom’s army might move out.

Following that, by attacking Hajime because he was a heretic, they would receive the treatment of an enemy from Hajime, his merciless and severe attack. There was no way the King and Church people didn’t know the danger. However, Aiko said they decided it right away. There was no way s.h.i.+zuku would not be surprised by that.

s.h.i.+zuku had guessed up until that point, which made Aiko nod in admiration towards the unchanging fast-learner.

“It is completely as Yaegas.h.i.+-san said. Moreover, no matter if he has tremendous power and not following the church, he ended up saving Ul, but they ignored my protests. Nagumo-kun had expected this situation, so he bolstered by t.i.tle “G.o.ddess of Bountiful Harvest.” Also, I heard from the bodyguards that the name “G.o.ddess of Bountiful Harvest” and “G.o.ddess Sword” had spread further into the other towns. So, by branding him as heretic, it is also means the church is denying “G.o.ddess of Bountiful Harvest” who saved the people. Thus, they shouldn’t be able to easily ignore my protest, or so it should be. But those people forced the decision. They were obviously being odd… also, I recalled that other than Ishtal and church’s people, the king and other royalties’ appearances were strange…”

“… That’s troubling. Just what are they thinking… But the thing they couldn’t help and think of now is “who” they should send to the powerful Nagumo-kun, right? And that’s the point here.”

“… It is so. Perhaps…”

“Eeh. There’s only us… but I will absolutely refuse that, you know? I don’t want to die. If I become Nagumo-kun’s enemy… I don’t even want to imagine it.”

s.h.i.+zuku s.h.i.+vered, and Aiko made a wry smile understanding what s.h.i.+zuku felt.

Thus, before the Kingdom and Church told Kouki and the others to fight Hajime, Aiko decided to tell them about the things Hajime told her. About the Mad G.o.ds and his purpose during his travels. She held no proof, so she didn’t know whether Kouki and the others would believe it. Furthermore, up until now they did their best because they believed the G.o.d would return them to their original world as long as they won the war against Demon race.

In truth, the G.o.d takes delight in people’s reaction to His doing, and the possibility of returning is extremely low. So let’s look for the dwelling of those who rebelled against the G.o.ds in the old times and look for a way to return ourselves! No one would believe it if those words were said all of a sudden. After Kouki and the others heard what she told them, whether they would see it as nonsense and continued to fight like before, or believed her and looked for another way… That was not something Aiko could predict. However, she must nail it to them not to blindly believing the Church. Aiko convinced herself to do that now.

“Yaegas.h.i.+-san. Nagumo-kun knows his information is an unbelievable one and will be antagonized by Amanokawa and the others, so he said this only to me.”

“Information… is it?”

“Yes. It is about the G.o.d wors.h.i.+pped by the church and the objective of Nagumo and the girls’ travel. He didn’t give any proof about it… but it is a truly important information, so tonight… no, this evening, I want to tell this to everyone.”

“That’s… no, I understand. Then, should I call everyone now?”

“No, it is an information I don’t want to be known by the church’s side, so I want to tell it at a time when everyone has gathered naturally; at dinner. And we should be able to talk among ourselves if I said I want to spend time with the students I haven’t seen for a long time without any outsiders.”

“Indeed… I understood. Then, at dinner it is.”

Afterwards, a good amount of time had pa.s.sed while s.h.i.+zuku and Aiko chatted. However, they couldn’t have known that the promise for the dinner could not come to pa.s.s…

The time was evening.

While the sun was setting, it gave a parting gift of vivid orange color, and Aiko was walking along the empty corridor. The evening sunlight entered the corridor from the windows and drew an obvious contrast on the wall and floor at the other sides.

Aiko went towards the dining room while her gaze was captivated by the evening sun, but she immediately stopped after she felt someone’s presence. When she looked forward, she saw a woman-like figure inside the shadow. The woman walked in the middle of the corridor, and gracefully stopped her feet with a straight stature. Her clothing was the nun’s habit of Church of the Saints.

The woman was beautiful, however she spoke to Aiko with a somewhat mechanical and cold voice.

“Nice to meet you, Hatayama Aiko. I’ve come for you.”

Aiko felt a chill ran down her spine when she heard her voice, but she feigned her calmness as to not become impolite to someone she met for the first time.

“Umm, nice to meet you, too. Coming for me… you mean the dinner with the students?”

“No, your destination is the main church.”

“Eh?”

The sentence which didn’t give her a chance to answer, made Aiko inadvertently ask her again. At that time, the woman moved out from the shadow into a place lighted by the evening sun. Seeing the woman, Aiko held her breath. Even Aiko, who was the same gender as her, was instinctively charmed by the woman’s beauty.

Her silver hair was sparkling while it was being reflected by the evening sunlight. With big, long and narrow blue eyes, and her mysterious and wonderful features that seemed to be both of an adult woman and a young girl; all of her parts were perfectly positioned. Her height was tall for a woman, around 170 centimeters, which forced Aiko to look up at her. Her white skin was as smooth as a white porcelain, her hands and feets were slender. Her b.r.e.a.s.t.s neither big nor small, it was a truly exquisite size if one was thinking about the balance of her entirety.

However, she was regrettably had no expression. Rather than expressionless, it was as if she wore a Noh mask. No one would doubt if it was said she was a statue — the best masterpiece by a famous sculptor. The woman possessed an inhumanely artistic beauty.

Towards Aiko, who held her breath, the woman smiled and indifferently continued her words.

“We feel the thing you are going to tell them will inconvenient us. After all, what your students will be doing now looks “interesting” to us. That’s why, until the time come, you will temporarily leave the stage.”

“Wh-What are you…”

The beautiful nun slowly approached Aiko without even making a footstep, and Aiko instinctively backed. Then, Aiko saw the nun’s blue eyes shone. Aiko felt her mind grow hazy. Immediately, she concentrated as though she was going to invoke magic, and her haziness dispersed in a snap.

“… I see. As expected, I can only disregard that you are calling yourself a “G.o.d.” For you are capable of resisting my “charm”. There’s no other way. I will just take you by force.”

“D-Don’t come! Wh-What I want—… ugh!?”

The pressure from the woman’s true character made Aiko immediately tried to activate her magic. However, faster than her finis.h.i.+ng the chant, the nun momentarily shortened their distance and drove her fist into Aiko’s stomach. Aiko collapsed, and at the time she felt her consciousness about to be swallowed by darkness, she heard the nun’s mutter.

“Don’t worry. I won’t kill you. You are an excellent piece, and you might be useful against that irregular.”

The white-haired, eye-patched boy floated inside Aiko’s mind. Following that, while knowing it wouldn’t reach him, she shouted his name in her mind right before her consciousness completely disappeared.

———— Nagumo-kun!

“?”

The nun easily shouldered Aiko as though she was weightless, then she looked around the corridor as if she had sensed someone. For a while, the nun silently searched for something. Then, she slowly opened the guest room’s door along the corridor.

Following that, she entered the room, looked around, approached the closet without any sound of a footstep, and she forcefully opened the door. However, there was nothing inside, so the nun tilted her head and looked around once again, looking here and there. Before long, after not finding anything, she shouldered Aiko again and went outside of the room.

With silence returning into the room, a trembling murmur could be heard.

“… I must tell this… someone—”

No one was inside the room. However, retreating footsteps could be heard, and before long, the room completely regained its silence.

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