**Holy Kingdom of Quolia — Northern Province**
The wind howled and snow swirled through the air.
Breath came out in white plumes, and the freezing cold mercilessly drained body heat.
From the distance, shrill and unknowable cries overlapped and echoed.
Screams, war cries, curses, and mockery.
While her superhuman hearing picked up the mad clamor drifting from cities far beyond this land, the Funeral Saint Soarina quietly asked:
"What are the movements of Witch Erakino?"
"She's stationed in a city that fell the other day. There's been no movement since."
The one who answered was the Senior Holy Knight escorting her.
The Cardinal who had governed the Northern Province and constantly meddled in her affairs had already fled far away.
The onslaught of the Siphoning Witch Erakino grew more ferocious by the day.
And the response to those who had been siphoned.
Soarina, who had been pushed onto the defensive dealing with magical beasts and demihumans scattered across the Northern Province as if to disrupt military movements, gritted her teeth as she received the knight's report.
"On the front lines, the Veiled Saint has appeared. It seems the Saint's miracles are compatible with the Witch's, so the stalemate has continued for some time now."
In Soarina's mind, the image of the Saint who always hid her face behind a veil and hung her head as if bowing came to the surface.
Though she had barely spoken to her and didn't even know her background, as a fellow Saint she felt a kinship stronger than most.
She sent words of gratitude and encouragement in her heart, grateful that the Saint was still safe and holding the Witch back.
But even a Saint was only an individual. There was a limit to what one person could do.
And they had moved too late.
"Have you calculated the extent of the damage?"
"In the Northern Province, two cities have fallen. As for villages and small towns, the count is beyond reckoning. The Northern Province garrison of approximately thirty thousand was annihilated by the Witch's forces. The civilian casualties are too numerous to calculate..."
Soarina quietly closed her eyes and offered an apology to those she couldn't save.
No matter how much she apologized, she couldn't bring them back.
She had become a Saint because she wanted to save everyone, yet everyone slipped through her fingers and vanished.
Another shadow crossed Soarina's face.
"As for the calamity on the Southern Continent—no, I don't have the luxury of worrying about that."
She had received reports that the investigation of the Southern Continent's Great Cursed Realm, mandated by divine oracle, had gone off without any issues.
She had felt some mistrust toward the Cardinal's evasive attitude when she pressed for details, but now was not the time.
Even if some problem did arise, two other Saints remained in the royal capital.
Soarina resolved to focus on the problem before her and fulfill her duty.
"As for the subjugation of the magical beasts and demihumans scattered in the surrounding area, I'll leave that to the Holy Knights. I'm heading to the front lines to support the Veiled Saint. Even if we can't defeat the Witch, we'll push her back from this land."
As Soarina stepped forward, the Holy Knight hurriedly called after her.
A Saint's physical abilities far surpassed those of a Senior Holy Knight.
If she wished, she alone could sprint to the front lines in a matter of hours.
Naturally, no one could keep up.
"Please wait, Soarina! Your deployment to the front lines requires the Cardinal's permission—"
"That isn't needed. I've made my decision."
A powerful gust whipped up, and the knight involuntarily stumbled as snow filled his vision.
When he shook his head and opened his eyes, the Saint's figure was nowhere to be found.
◇ ◇ ◇
**El-Nar Spirit Contract Union — Tetralchia Council Chamber**
In the elven-governed coalition state, at its supreme decision-making body, the chieftains of each clan sat around a table with grave expressions.
The one delivering the report before them was a young elf.
He was the next chieftain of a certain clan, a promising young man permitted to attend this assembly to gain experience.
With a solemn expression, he read aloud the contents of the document.
"Contact with the Tuwis Clan's capital city of Weis-Nar has been cut off. The city's final ultimatum is the same as the other fallen cities—based on information received from scouts, there is no doubt about it. They've defected."
"Again!? This means the entire Tuwis Clan has gone over to the enemy!"
A fist slammed on the table, and a famously hot-blooded clan chieftain roared.
But even the others, who hadn't taken action, clearly harbored the same feelings inside, as evidenced by the groans and troubled expressions as they crossed their arms.
"With all due respect to you chieftains blessed by the spirits, may I make a suggestion? Should we request aid from the Holy Kingdom of Quolia? This incident—though it may be presumptuous of someone so young to say—seems beyond our ability to handle..."
"Don't be absurd! A situation this pathetic—even if Quolia has been our ally for years, we could never bring ourselves to ask!"
"Rather, it's precisely because they've been our ally for years... For the pride of us elves, blessed by the spirits, we must resolve this problem ourselves."
The words of the chieftains, as leaders of their respective clans, were absolute.
Being heard at all was already more than he could hope for, so when refused here, there was no going back.
The other chieftains shared the same sentiment.
Elves grew in wisdom and power as they aged. In most cases, this contributed to the safety of their companions, but sometimes—as in this instance—their pride swelled until they lost sight of the bigger picture.
The young man, still treated as a junior in the council, quietly bowed his head and withdrew his words.
"Besides, they're preoccupied with the Witch that appeared in the Northern Province. Rather, we of El-Nar should settle this trivial problem ourselves and go to their aid. Either way, your proposal is difficult to implement."
"Exactly! If this ever leaked to other nations, future historians would gleefully write volumes mocking our country! Damn it! Those despicable, evil wretches... Ugh! Even the thought of them is revolting!"
"Deploy the Saints! Send the Spirit Warriors too! Let's settle this wretched matter once and for all!"
Amid the clamor, the assembly drew to a close.
At last, the deployment of El-Nar's Saints was decided. If a single Saint possessed power exceeding that of an entire army, perhaps they could reverse this dire situation where whole clans were falling one by one.
And yet, somehow...
The next chieftain felt a gnawing anxiety that this problem might be the harbinger of something far greater.
◇ ◇ ◇
**Southern Seas — Rocky Reefs and the Sea Nation of Sutherland**
The southern continent of Idragia—a land still largely uncharted, with vast stretches of wilderness.
The maritime nation of Sutherland, which held the continent's eastern coastline as its territory.
A neutral human nation with strong aptitudes for trade and fishing, but on that particular day, an anomaly had struck one of its cities.
"Hmm? Fog...?"
A sailor working at the harbor tugged on the mooring rope of a caravel while eyeing the haze rolling in from across the sea with suspicion.
Fog was a sailor's worst enemy.
Poor visibility made it difficult to determine one's position at sea, and depending on the circumstances, one might encounter sea demons or sea beasts.
Fortunately, since only ships being prepared for departure were in port, there was no danger of shipwreck—but that didn't make it any less troublesome.
The fog was thickening. Come to think of it, fog was unusual at this time of year.
Could a fog thick enough to blanket even the harbor even exist?
The area was growing noisy.
"What the hell is that!? Whose ship is that!?"
A coworker working nearby pointed across the sea and shouted.
The man squinted and peered into the depths of the fog. Sure enough, something ship-like was swaying there.
"That's from Quolia, isn't it? All our ships are accounted for, and it doesn't look like anything from the other ports..."
"A Quolia ship? But it seems to be lacking in ornamentation..."
Suspicious, he tied off the mooring rope.
It nagged at him, but work came first. In this kind of fog, the sooner they finished, the sooner they could have a drink.
That thought brought his gaze to the ground—and that moment decided the fate of him and his coworker.
"No, wait—that's not right! That's not a ship! Ah, d-don't l-look at i—Miruna!!"
"Hey!"
He spun around to find his coworker frothing at the mouth, eyes rolled back, collapsing.
The man identified it as a mental attack—something sea demons occasionally employed.
"Damn it! Enemy attack! Enemy attack! Get word to the military—! Listen, you bastards, don't look directly at it!"
Don't look directly. Keep the ship in the corner of your vision.
What he confirmed through that oblique glance, while fighting the nauseating sensation of his mind being contaminated, was decidedly not a ship.
◇ ◇ ◇
**Great Cursed Sea — Mynoghra Palace Construction Site**
In the Great Cursed Realm, construction was progressing steadily.
The primary project currently underway was Mynoghra's royal palace.
A symbolic building meant to project the nation's prestige couldn't remain some crude makeshift shack forever.
Moreover, royal palaces could produce various effects, so from the standpoint of national governance, its construction was urgent.
The foundations were largely complete, and the structure had taken on a recognizable form.
Colorful tapestries and wall hangings woven by Dark Elf women adorned the interior, and it was easy to imagine how magnificent the place would be upon completion.
In the throne room, Takuto sat on his usual stone pedestal, savoring the quiet of night and the warm glow of torchlight, softly humming to himself.
"...By the way, Lord Takuto."
Suddenly, a voice came from beside him.
He glanced over and locked eyes with Atou, his most trusted confidante.
It was because of her that he was where he was today.
With Atou by his side, he had been able to grow the nation in relative peace, free of major troubles.
Filled with a rush of emotions, Takuto returned a smile.
"Hmm? What is it?"
"Before you came here, Lord Takuto, you were just an ordinary, unremarkable citizen, weren't you?"
"Well, yeah, that's normal enough! I mean, my family was a little well-off, I guess, but still totally normal! Why the sudden question? That's a weird thing to ask, Atou."
Takuto's origins were, as he said, nothing remarkable.
He had a commoner's sensibilities and a conventional sense of ethics.
Though he'd been thrust into this otherworldly existence with the shocking fate of having to run a nation like a game, at his core he was still a modern person.
That was how Takuto judged himself.
Anyone normal would be bewildered in this situation. And yet, wasn't he doing a remarkably good job as king compared to what one might expect?
He evaluated himself this way and surrendered to the faint joy and excitement welling up from within.
That said, if Atou was asking this, perhaps some un-kingly qualities still remained?
With a questioning look, Takuto quietly gazed into Atou's eyes.
Atou steeled herself and confronted Takuto with the question she hadn't been able to voice the other day.
"Oh, no! I didn't mean it like that... It's just, I've been wondering if my killing those Holy Knights might have offended you in some way, Lord Takuto..."
"Offended me? Why?"
Atou had no answer ready.
She hadn't expected to be asked that.
Takuto had full knowledge of the battle's details through Atou.
The sensation of rending flesh, crushing bone, and casually snatching away lives—all of it.
Atou had prepared some excuses for having gone too far during the battle. She had ready words of apology for her cruel actions.
But being asked why she would feel the need to apologize—that was entirely outside her expectations.
Takuto had been an ordinary human before coming to this world.
Which meant he should possess an ordinary sense of ethics, and Atou believed that some part of that had been passed on to her as well.
That was precisely why she took pride in being able to walk alongside him despite being an evil existence.
But Takuto had just shattered that belief without even realizing it.
In a scene that would unsettle even the most hardened person, he had simply asked "why?"
Atou felt as though she was being scrutinized, licked clean by some unsettling presence.
She no longer knew what was wrong and what was right.
She was tormented by an indescribable anxiety—had his nature changed when he came to this world?
The terrifying thought crossed her mind that the attributes of Mynoghra's leader had been bestowed upon him, and that the gentle Takuto who always called out to her had vanished somewhere.
"You're being weird, Atou."
"Oh, no! I—I'm terribly sorry..."
But even this worry, she realized, was a mistake on her own part.
She recalled that she knew nothing about the person called Ira Takuto except what she had learned through the game.
She could not possibly voice any further doubts.
"Is something bothering you? If there's anything I can help with, just say the word."
"It's nothing. It was just a misunderstanding on my part..."
"I see... Are you feeling down? I don't want to see Atou like that. I want you to stay energetic like you always are."
Her hand was gently taken and enveloped, as though a parent were warming a child's frozen fingers.
The warmth of his touch was warm. The smile that surfaced was filled with tender affection.
But the words spoken carried something that felt absolute...
"Now, come on, smile?"
"Y-Yes!"
Atou hurriedly responded.
Overcome with an inexplicable terror, she even forgot for a moment that she was a hero harboring the potential to destroy the world, and managed a stiff, far-from-convincing smile.
It was a forced expression that could hardly be called refined, but Takuto seemed satisfied with it.
As Atou sighed in relief and tried to reconcile with the inexpressible terror welling up inside her, a hand gently rested on her head and stroked it.
Its owner was, naturally, Takuto, gazing at her with an expression brimming with tender affection.
Takuto's kindness, Takuto's feelings—everything came through to her.
The unease she had felt until now seemed to fly away somewhere, replaced by a happiness that filled her with relief and trust.
Before she knew it, Atou had nestled into Takuto's chest, quietly accepting the solace it offered.
Night fell, and only the soft crackling of torches drifted through the silence.
Surely the relationship between Takuto and herself would one day have to be settled.
Atou thought.
Why had he come to this world? Why was she, a character from a game, here with him?
The answer to those questions hadn't yet shown even the faintest thread.
But if only for now—
"There are all sorts of things going on, but I think I can manage as long as Atou is with me. So let's keep going together, okay?"
"I feel the same way, Lord Takuto."
If only this moment could last forever.
Forever, and forever.
Together with Takuto, whom she worshipped and loved.
Never ending, just the two of them—she prayed.
"Things are getting interesting one way or another. Let's enjoy it!"
"As you command, my King..."
Bright words meant to encourage and uplift. Her beloved king.
But to her eyes now,
Takuto's figure appeared as nothing more than a humanoid shape cloaked in pitch-black darkness.
End of Chapter One
=Message═══
The chain event [Arrival of the End] has been triggered.
■■■ within the map will [proceed].
~Good civilizations, place your faith in God and resist the end.
~Evil civilizations, trample the world as your desires command.
───