Epilogue

A strange creature was running through the streets at night. The thing had once been a human man called Garcia. While its limbs and body were similar to that of a human’s, its face was replaced with an eerie shield-like object with numerous tentacles protruding from it. This was a monster called a Messenger, and while they weren’t strong on their own, they could manipulate most creatures and incite them to their cause.

“Dammit, this isn’t good...!” one of the tentacles cursed. The Holy Maiden’s assassination was really just an excuse to kill as many people as possible. The Ancient Devil had been the perfect tool for that, but it had been defeated, much to the Messenger’s surprise. Considering that the Holy Maiden’s powers had explosively increased during the combat, their idea might have even ended up aiding the enemy more than hurting them. “Whatever. I’ll agitate where there’s more people next time. Might be fun to do it in central Holylight or inside Dona’s territory.” One of the tentacles let out an eerie chuckle as the creature increased its speed. It loved to influence as many people as possible, making them dance in the palm of its hand. In fact, it lived for it.

When it began to daydream of what kind of people it wanted to toy with next, it suddenly faltered and hit the ground. It looked down to find that its right leg was missing from the knee down, as if something had taken a bite out of it. As the Messenger rolled on the ground, it unintelligibly screamed in agony.

“Pardon me. It seemed like you were going to cause a lot of trouble once you returned, so I decided to immobilize you for the time being.”

The Messenger turned around to find Azur in his butler’s uniform. After a moment, it recalled that Azur was one of the workers of Dona’s manor. “Wh-Wh-What do you... grah... think you’re doing...!?”

“I can’t have you causing a mess like that in my master’s domain,” Azur said with a straight face, as if he was just stating the night’s dinner menu. His eyes were reflectionless, like dark marbles.

“W-Wait! Let me go, and I’ll pay you... Just name the price... Women, jewelry...”

“Not interested.”

A sharp wire wrapped around the Messenger’s neck and suddenly tightened, causing its head to come off with a pop. No human or monster could survive decapitation; since some monsters had multiple hearts, Azur had made a habit out of always going for the head.

“There have been a few too many surprises for comfort...” Azur muttered to himself, recalling the incident he had just witnessed. The Madam’s caravan, Luna’s awakening, the clash of the “angel” and devil, the man called Tahara, and worst of all the existence of the Demon Lord. Up against someone like that, Azur considered his assassination skills no more than child’s play.

(That man fears nothing. Not even the gods...) He had called the Tzardom’s angel a “hunk of metal,” and the Goddess of Destiny a whore. Azur had spent many years in the underground, but had never seen anyone like that. He had no other way to describe him than a bona fide Demon Lord. (I must buy time, and secure a location...) Uncharacteristically, Azur wore a sense of anxiety. There was no doubt that such immeasurably powerful darkness would soon extend its reach to Dona’s land. Even with the utmost optimism, Azur struggled to foresee victory in a battle against this Demon Lord.

(I have to get them out, at least...) Azur flashed a concerned expression as he thought of the many children trapped in Dona’s castle. If Azur had been alone, he could simply flee Dona’s castle, even though he would be pursued by Hanzo and her band of ninjas for the rest of his life. Azur had considered escaping with the imprisoned children on more than one occasion. Each time, though, he only saw darkness in their future. No matter where they ran, it would be impossible to keep running from the ninjas. There was the matter of finances, too. If he had to raise what had become a group of 40 kids, no amount of money would be enough. (I may have to rely on an old friend...) Azur considered the possibility with a grim expression, and disappeared into the dark of night.

——Somewhere in Animania.

A woman in her prime was kneeling within a giant cave. A royal partition, in the style of those once used to veil the emperor from his audience in Japan, secluded a portion of the cave, signifying the extreme importance of the figure behind it.

“Great Mother, some human has made it to the edge of our territory,” she said in a beautiful sing-song voice that befitted her appearance. She was none other than the famous Dragonborn, her strength unparalleled. The only being she would ever kneel for was the Dragon itself.

The Dragonborn reported various matters without waiting for a response. The Dragon had a very particular temper, and remained silent for years, decades, even centuries at a time. This was more of a scheduled communication rather than a discussion, as was custom. After finishing her report as usual, the Dragonborn turned to leave when a muffled voice called from behind her. She groveled to the ground, focusing everything she had onto her ears as to not miss any syllable of the divine utterance.

Leave it be.

The short sentence made the Dragonborn shudder with joy. She had only heard the Dragon speak once before. One could only imagine her elation.

Once she stood and left, complete silence was restored in the cave. Some time passed, after which a quiet voice could be heard from beyond the partition.

“So, he has finally decided to show. Let us see how he fares on this retry...”