Kushinami Makoto's Perspective "Huh!?"
A man clad in dark, armor-like plate had appeared out of nowhere and snapped
That alone wasn't enough for him, though — he vanished along with Wakaba's body.
For just an instant, in the moment he disappeared, I caught a glimpse of a different scene behind him.
I'm guessing it was some kind of spatial teleportation magic.
Spatial magic is incredibly rare, and I've never actually seen it myself, so this is purely speculation, but still— No, none of that matters right now.
What matters is whether Wakaba is okay.
"Huh? Huh?"
Beside me, the teacher was going bug-eyed.
If a third party were watching us, they'd probably say I looked just as stunned.
What just happened was that abrupt.
Why Wakaba?
Who was that man?
Where did Wakaba and that man go?
Is Wakaba safe?
There were too many questions swirling around for me to organize my thoughts.
On top of everything, I'd already been slightly rattled by the Divine Word I'd heard just moments before.
I— I have to do something. I have to take action.
…But what?
"…Teacher, that book."
The first thing my wandering eyes landed on was the book Wakaba had handed the teacher moments ago.
The Divine Word had been heard, and right after that, the man had attacked Wakaba.
Judging by the timing, there was no way the two were unrelated.
And when the teacher had asked Wakaba about what that Divine Word meant, she'd handed over this book in lieu of an answer.
There had to be some kind of hint inside that book for breaking through this situation.
It was wishful thinking, but in the face of this sudden crisis, nothing else came to mind.
"Lend it to me."
"Ah, sure."
The teacher seemed to be recovering more slowly than me and was still dazed.
Maybe that was why she handed over the book without any resistance.
I opened it immediately and scanned the contents.
I'm not exactly a speed reader, but if I maximize the thought-acceleration bonus from my Skill, I can achieve something similar.
I'm normally the type who likes to sit down and savor a book, but now was hardly the time for that.
If I read this book, I could change the situation.
"…You've got to be kidding me."
But contrary to my hopes, the book contained absolutely nothing that would help break through the current crisis.
If anything, it only confronted me with an even more ridiculous problem.
Still, I did figure out the reason Wakaba was attacked by that man.
"Teacher. For now, let's head downstairs. Gather everyone, and then…"
This wasn't something I could handle on my own.
I needed to gather all the other reincarnators and get their input.
Well, gathering opinions might not actually solve anything, because…
It was about the world being on the brink of destruction — and two choices for saving it.
Both choices required enormous sacrifice.
There were two methods to save the world.
One was a method that would sacrifice half of humanity.
The other was a method that would sacrifice a god.
There was no way I could carry this kind of weight alone.
What a parting gift you left me, Wakaba.
It wasn't Wakaba's fault that the world was falling apart, but I still couldn't help wanting to resent her a little.
It seemed Wakaba intended to choose the method that sacrificed half of humanity.
If that was the case, then the man who attacked her must have been on the opposing side — someone who had chosen the method that sacrificed a god.
He'd heard the same Divine Word and taken action.
So they'd already split into two factions without our knowledge, each working behind the scenes to save the world.
Come to think of it, I shifted my gaze to look for someone else who should have been in this room besides the teacher and me.
There was a girl named
But even though she'd been there just moments ago, a quick scan of the room revealed no sign of Felmina.
Maybe she'd gone to report that Wakaba had been attacked to others in her faction.
If that was the case, I had to assume the conflict between the two factions had already begun.
…What could we even do?
When it came to the fight between the elves and Wakaba's group, we'd been completely on the sidelines.
I was proud of myself as a fairly capable adventurer, even if I do say so myself.
Even so, there had been nothing I could contribute to that battle.
I'd been duped by the Empire's attack on the elven village — a feint — and swallowed it hook, line, and sinker.
What could people like us possibly do in a battle that would decide the fate of the world?
…No answer came.
Besides, there was no obligation for me to participate in such a fight in the first place.
Honestly, I wanted to tuck tail and run as far away from a battle of that magnitude as possible.
But if I did run, the outcome of that fight would still directly determine this world's fate.
Depending on who won, the future would change drastically.
Could I really just stand by and stay out of it?
I didn't know.
Either way, I wasn't going to find the answer on my own.
I needed to share this with everyone and discuss it.
I took the teacher by the hand and left the room.
Tightly gripping the book Wakaba had left behind.