Chapter 3

May 1st. The date Wataru said was the day we had first come to Daide. It was safe to say at this point that we had looped back in time. However, Wataru and Emmymephy didn’t remember anything. Nor did Niku or Ichika, or even Rokuko. Though Soto seemed to remember things just like I did, for some reason.

“A loop, huh?”

“What are you talking about, Keima? Explain,” Rokuko said with a serious expression. Seemed like she understood that something big had happened.

“I’m not entirely sure how or why, but what I’m about to say is completely true. I came from the future,” I said, which made Emmymephy tilt her head.

“You traveled backwards in time? I say, I’ve never heard of such a thing happening before.”

“Whether you have or not, something like that happened. If it were just me, it’d be possible that I just had fake memories implanted in my mind or I was shown a series of illusions, but Soto also having memories makes that a lot less likely. Let’s see, how do I prove this...” I paused, trying to think of something I could say which would prove I had future knowledge. “Wataru, you were going to brag to me about this country’s toilets having washlets, weren’t you? You talked my ear off about it in the previous loop.”

“Oh, you know about the toilets? Okay, I’ll believe you,” Wataru said, believing me so quickly it almost took the wind out of my sails. “Well, I mean, it’s possible you knew about them beforehand, but I generally think it’s best to trust you with things like this. You don’t really like this kind of thing, Keima.”

“Uh-huh. I agree,” Rokuko said.

“I say, you have my trust as well. We don’t know what’s going on, so just tell us what you know.”

Perhaps thanks to the fruits of my honest lifestyle, everyone believed me right away. Soto was also there to add to my explanations. Incidentally, we explained who she was to them again.

“So, what should we do now, Keima?”

“...Dunno. I need to think about this for a bit. Let’s just go to the inn for now.”

We couldn’t hang around in the waiting room forever. Wataru guided us to the inn, and we arrived after once again taking several mysterious detours. It felt like it was in a slightly different place than before, but that was probably just something time-related.

Anyway, as soon as we got to our room, we wrote a mail to Haku. We wrote that we had made contact with Leona, and that time was likely being rolled back. Once we added the date, we sent it off, and...

“Huh?”

The mail didn’t send. For a second I fiddled with the mail menu, wondering if something was broken, but soon enough we got a mail in our own inbox. Sent from Leona.

Soooorry, the mail function is temporarily closed! Oh, but don’t worry, I sent Haku the same reports as you did last time! As a side note, you’re trapped in Daide and can’t leave! Good luck! Uhhh. What? So she’s hijacked the mail function? Leona took it over? And she knows the mails we sent last time?

“...This is crazy. But I guess that’s it for mails.”

The terrifying thing was that Leona apparently had access to all the mails we had ever sent. Actually terrifying.

That said, this at least gave me a clue as to why Soto had kept her memories, too. If Leona was spying on us, all the pieces came falling into place. Leona had probably taken a liking to Soto, just as she had with me. After all, Soto was a Dungeon Core that could use faux Hero Powers she inherited from me.

“We need to start by gathering information,” I mused.

Thinking about what came next, there was one person who likely also retained their memory from previous loops. And if my prediction was correct, I’d be able to contact them tomorrow.

And so came tomorrow, May 2nd. I left the inn, claiming to get breakfast, and found a pink-haired rich girl who dropped her handkerchief while passing by. I picked it up. She instantly turned around and spoke to me.

“Aaah! Oh, I thank you ever so much. That handkerchief belonged to my mother, a—”

“Hey, it’s not the date we agreed on, but how about you tell me what you know?”

“Ah?!” The woman did a double take of sheer surprise. “Y-Y-Y-Y-Yo... You remember that?!”

“Sure seems like you knew this was gonna happen, huh, Lady Summer?”

Indeed. It was Summer, the former-commoner daughter of a baron who had specifically stated a day after the loop for us to speak. Thinking back, all the questions she had asked us had been to get an idea of our whereabouts. She was gathering information to use next loop—in other words, this loop.

“I think I’ve got a good grasp of what’s going on now. Want to grab some tea and talk about what comes next?”

“Yes, gladly!” Summer said with a beaming smile. We went into a nearby cafe.

＊ ＊ ＊

“Finally, finally a clue for escaping this mess! So, how far back do your memories go?” she asked, cutting straight to the point.

“It happened to me two days ago, right after we signed our contract. My memories cut off at the end of the party. Though any traces of the Contract magic are completely gone now.”

“So this would be the second loop to you, then?”

“Yeah. What loop are you on, Summer? Judging by your questions last time, I figure it wasn’t your fourth.”

“This would be my seventeenth loop, I believe... This is the first time the starting date of the loop has changed. Before now, I’ve been looping through the entire year, from the day I first entered the academy.”

That was a surprise. I figured she was on her second or third, given how experienced she seemed and how she had ignored the princes’ quarrel, but wow. Seventeen, huh?

“You loop back after that party every time, don’t you?”

“One time, it happened three days later. My head was chopped off by the guillotine. That was the only time I appreciated this loop...”

“Guillotine? The heck were you doing?” I asked, giving her a stern look.

“I-It’s all ancient history, don’t ask! I just decided to let loose and obey my lusts, that’s all! It was terrible, my Succubus nature was found out and they sealed my magic to prevent my escape!”

“I-I see...”

In any case, listening to Summer was giving me a pretty good idea of Leona’s game here. In the past Leona was trying to make a story... and now she had added saving and loading to that. She put someone in a set period of time and had them loop it over and over, just like someone resetting a game.

This was basically a romance game fit into real life. A normal reality show would only ever meet one ending, but by having the heroine (Summer) retain her memories, she could have it end differently every time. Leona saying things weren’t over yet had been pointing to the loop.

Is she a demon or something? Oh, I guess she actually is an evil god. Good grief, this must suck for Summer... Oh, wait, now Soto and I are wrapped up in it, too. Yeah, this is pretty much the worst.

“So, the loop started later this time because of you all arriving, right? It’s safe to say I’ve finally reached the hidden Keima route, right?!”

“Probably, but... Wait, hidden? Are there not-hidden routes?”

“Mhm. I can show you the documents I got tomorrow if you want.”

“Documents? What kind?”

“How do I put this... They had information about routes and romance targets. Oh, the Keima route just had your name and an illustration of your face, no details about the route itself. I never thought you’d have a kid, though.”

Apparently she had been asking such detailed questions about my schedule because she planned to “coincidentally” make contact with me and conquer me à la a heroine in a visual novel. She had abandoned everything else at the party to focus on gathering intel.

“Pretty much all of it is worthless now, but still, I’m glad. If I can win your heart, this loop will end for sure! I mean, it’s a hidden route, after all! No way will it keep going after I win this!” Summer exclaimed with a happy smile. That said, I didn’t share her optimism. Leona didn’t play like that.

“Were you always in this country, hiding your Succubus nature and trying to infiltrate the government?” I asked.

“Hm? Oh, no. I used to be in a Dungeon. I was part of something called the Four Heavenly Kings or whatever. But I ran away, and got scouted while finding a way out. What about it?”

“Oh, nothing, I just thought that if you had a history here, that might have something to do with how to escape the loop. If not, it doesn’t really... Wait, Four Heavenly Kings? You’re a Succubus that ran from a Dungeon...?”

“That’s right. I’ve been terrified of squirrels ever since...”

“Squirrels...”

Now that rang a bell.

“...Have you ever heard of Core 564?”

“Why do you know that name? He used to be my boss.”

It seemed the Succubus that had surrendered in the Dungeon Battle without fighting had ran all this way. That was a surprising connection... But then again, Leona was at the Dungeon Battle, so she might’ve just scouted her there.

“Let’s just say I know him. How I know is a secret, though.”

“I see. Well, if you wanna drag me back, go ahead. Heck, if you can get me out of this cursed country, I’ll gladly follow you anywhere.”

“Can you not leave?”

“Nope... I tried in the second loop or so, but there’s some kind of invisible wall that only I can’t go through. I nearly got crushed inside of a wagon.”

She crashed into the invisible wall, but the wagon kept going. She would’ve been crushed to death if the back of the wagon hadn’t had open space. That was terrifying to think about. I wondered what the barrier was blocking, exactly. It was safe to say that Soto and I were locked inside too, though Wataru and the others were up in the air.

“Anyway, we can talk details after I see the documents you’re talking about. And just to be clear, I’m not planning to let you ‘win’ me.”

“Awww, but why?!”

“Considering the personality of the person behind this, I doubt the loop will end there.”

“B-But, how about just once? Will you try it one time?” Summer asked, trying to cling onto me.

“Nope. I’m loyal, you see.”

“Can’t you make an exception? I mean... doesn’t my body turn you on?” Summer asked, spreading the top of her shirt with her fingers to show her cleavage.

“That won’t work. I have anti-charm equipment.”

“Tch, right, you mentioned that at the party. Why do you wear those all the time? Are you royalty or something? Paranoia isn’t attractive in a man, you know. Thanks to that, I can’t even read your preferences.”

It seemed Kosaki was silently but efficiently doing her job. That was a relief; if she had shown me her feet, my heart might have actually stirred a bit.

“Guess my only choice is to conquer you the normal way... which won’t be easy since you know my identity. Aaah, what a pain! Couldn’t you just fall in love at the drop of a hat after I bump into you while turning a corner with toast in my mouth like the first prince did?”

“Nope. Also, be serious.”

What kind of generic first meeting is that? The prince should be the main romance target, he’s a prince.

“Anyway, I want information. Bring me those documents you were talking about.”

“Sure, I’ll get them to you tomorrow. We can meet up at your inn, right?”

And so, my meeting with the heroine in Loop 2 ended pretty constructively.

...Incidentally, when I returned to the inn, I found it had caught on fire. Nobody was hurt, but we had to stay in a different one.

Wataru’s {Ultra Good Fortune} definitely did that, right? Oh, we agreed to meet in the inn, and then it immediately caught fire. What a tragedy... Oh, you’re fine since you have insurance? If fact, you’re profiting from it? Wow, {Ultra Good Fortune} sure goes all the way. Spooky stuff.

＊ ＊ ＊

“Why did it burn down?”

“There are many mysteries in life.”

The next day, I met up with Summer at the wreckage of the inn, with Wataru and Emmymephy staying behind. The reasoning for that was naturally due to not knowing what {Ultra Good Fortune} would do. We didn’t want it causing more destruction to avoid the worst-case scenario, and so they understandably agreed not to tag along.

I brought Summer to a restaurant. It was a restaurant where one could borrow rooms, and there we met up with Rokuko, who had already reserved a room. I had told her ahead of time that Summer was a Succubus and she needed to wear her Divine Lionheart Bracelet. Soto and the others didn’t have anti-charm equipment, so they were stealthily participating from my {Storage} dungeon.

“Greetings, I am Summer Yog-Sothoth. I am the daughter of a baron.”

“I’m Rokuko. You know who I am, I guess? That saves some time.”

“Indeed. I look forward to working with you.”

Summer was putting on her noble girl act, probably because she had interpreted Rokuko as being someone important.

“And here are the documents I discussed,” Summer said, taking out a stack of A4-size copy paper. The letters were printed and neat. The red stamps saying “Top Secret” and “Corporate Documents” felt like Leona’s work.

“Design Document for the Real Otome Game, Show Me☆Your Face! ~The God of Chaos is Watching~.”

“I’m the protagonist of it... or the heroine, rather, it seems.”

I flipped through the pages and saw the list of people with routes: there was the student council of Harkes Daide, Crusch Nyarlathotep, and Kenho Cthugha; the elementary students Jedha Daide, Meter Dagon, and Lacie Dagon; there were some people I didn’t know, Djungarian Hastur and Madam Dagon; and then finally myself. Each had a black-and-white portrait, and everyone but me had a list of their traumas, motivations, and even fetishes. There was also a rough plot summary for each, styled as predictions of the future. However, each had the following note: These are production notes, and do not consider what impact the reincarnatees will have.

“Reincarnatees... As in, people who have reincarnated?” I asked.

“They are people who were reborn into this world with memories of a country called Japan, like Koreha. I’ve confirmed the existence of two other reincarnatees other than her,” Summer said. It seemed those reincarnatees had made it impossible for her to conquer the Djungarian and Madam routes.

“Also... I barely remember this, since I was given these documents over a decade ago from my perspective, but she said that they would have partial memories of the story implanted in them. Koreha thus knows some of these documents, but in reality...”

We could conclude that in reality the “reincarnatees” were actually just people who had had their memories modified. That was probably why Wataru had said he didn’t sense that Koreha was Japanese.

Anyway, I took a closer look at the documents while listening to Summer.

The story for the first prince’s route seemed to be about Summer completing romance events while Koreha bullied her at school, hid her things, surrounded her with lackeys, pushed her down the stairs to the point of serious injury, etc. The final scene would be the first prince dramatically canceling his engagement with Koreha at the night party. He would then get newly engaged with Summer, and the happy end would be them kissing happily. The game would run for one year and two days.

Leona had mentioned the word “villainess” before the loop happened. If Summer was the protagonist, then no doubt Koreha was the villainess, her rival in love. I honestly liked that kind of girl more than the protagonist who stole her prince away.

“But nothing went as planned,” Summer said.

Koreha’s engagement with the first prince had been canceled before the game began. And nothing went right when she tried to recreate the described story. The romance events activated, but no bullying or anything happened. She ended up trying to fake the bad things happening to her, but her deception was revealed at the night party, and she ended up imprisoned with hard evidence.

“I recall her mocking laughter as the first prince clung to Koreha. It was very memorable.”

“Yeah, I can imagine that.”

Summer spent a bit of time in prison, and just as she was starting to plan to run away, she found herself standing in front of the academy gates on the first day of school. Thus concluded Summer’s first loop.

“That was when I tried to run, but I couldn’t escape Daide,” she said, referring to her almost-suffocation in the wagon. She might’ve actually died if the wagon had been moving any faster.

“And then I found this note... You haven’t finished your job yet, have you? Good luck, good luck♪”

She then spent the second and third loops targeting different routes, but those didn’t go well, either. Apparently due to Koreha, their backgrounds didn’t match the setting document, with things like them not having the described traumas at all. In the fourth loop she got impatient and used her Succubus powers at full blast to drown the country in a sea of lust, which got her guillotined. She didn’t want to talk about it.

“The fifth loop I focused on gathering intel, and on the sixth loop I tried seeing if I could fix things somehow by becoming friends with Koreha. From there, I just kind of conquered each route one by one.”

Gambling that “You haven’t finished your job” meant she would be freed if she conquered every route, she conquered everyone she could, then used her Succubus powers to forcibly conquer the two she couldn’t normally. But from there the mysterious “Keima” figure never showed up, so she started investigating how to get him to appear.

“And then the sixteenth loop happened. You finally arrived, Keima! But, well...”

She found me in the dungeon drills, only to discover I was already married, and had a kid. She had no idea what to do, so she decided to focus on gathering intel for a loop or two.

“And now we’re here,” Summer concluded.

“...I see. So in short, you think the loops will end if you conquer me?”

“Yes. Finishing all the routes would mean finishing my job, so that has to be it,” Summer said, then looked at Rokuko with eyes full of burning hope. “So please, Rokuko, let me conquer Keima! Please!” She bowed her head as low as it would go. “I don’t think Keima will ever bend without your permission, so please, grant me this!”

Rokuko put a contemplative hand on her cheek. “Mm. So you say, but... I don’t think it’ll actually work.”

“But why?!” Summer blinked in shock.

“In the end, everything depends on how Leona feels, right? Well, now that she has a new toy like Keima here, don’t you think the looping will continue regardless of what you do? I mean, this is Leona we’re talking about,” Rokuko said; a very, very convincing argument.

“B-But... What should I do, then...?”

“Oh my. You’re thinking about this all wrong. Isn’t that right, Keima?” Rokuko asked with a smile.

“Yeah. I mean, you shouldn’t think about this like playing along with her then being set free. She’ll torture you forever like that. She’s tried that with us before.”

Indeed. I was referring to when Leona first came to our town and we faced off. At the time, Leona kidnapped Niku and forced us to play along with her games. She said that it would be over once we earned enough points, but Leona controlled the point distribution, and the goal line was infinitely high. If we hadn’t said or done anything about that, she would have kept teasing us until she got bored, however many years or decades that took.

“After all, she’s been alive for about five hundred years, and it’s safe to say she’s immortal. You’ll only suffer if you try to play along with an immortal and their sense of time. I mean, you’ve been stuck looping seventeen whole times, haven’t you?”

“Yes,” Summer admitted, since that was just a fact.

“Basically, you need to rethink things on a fundamental level,” I said, which made Summer tilt her head.

“What do you mean?”

“Summer. What’s your goal here? What do you want to do?”

“My goal...? I mean, to get out of the loop, obviously.”

“Is it really, though?”

“What are you even trying to say?”

“I mean, I just don’t see the need for breaking out of the loop myself. Let’s say you get out and escape Daide; what would you want to do on the outside?”

“Well, ummm...” Summer fell into thought, rubbing her temples. “I would want to have fun?”

“And are any of those ways of having fun things you couldn’t do in Daide?”

“I suppose not...”

Indeed. After all, there were plenty of fun things to do in Daide. It was filled to the brim with attractions built by the “reincarnatees” Leona prepared. It even had a ton of tourist attractions.

“Oh, maybe I want to eat tasty food?”

“Daide’s food is pretty good, y’know. Its worst food is better than a lot of the best stuff you can get in any other country.”

Likewise for that. Daide even had sweets straight from Japan.

“I want to sleep with hot dudes!”

“This country is filled with them.”

The whole roster of dudes for her to conquer were engineered to be hot. Oh, though I wasn’t an option.

“In short, Summer, there’s absolutely no need for you to escape the time loop to do what you want.”

“Then what am I supposed to do with all of this?!” Summer exclaimed, smacking the table with the stack of papers.

“Ignore it?”

“Ignore it?!” Summer balked.

“Yeah. Just ignore the romance events and other events that might pop up from now on. There’s no need for you to play along with this game at all!”

“B-But, at this point in the loop, I’ve already half finished conquering the first prince and the student council... I can’t just abandon it now... I have schoolwork to do, too...”

Man, just how diligent is this Succubus? Didn’t she refuse to fight in Core 564’s dungeon, and just ran away instead? Oh, but I guess she did try to run away once this time. Maybe after over ten loops of this, she’s been influenced by the heroine’s “diligent personality” and ended up diligent herself. Wear the mask long enough and it becomes who you really are, as they say.

“You’ve looped sixteen times already, haven’t you? Just consider this a break. Worst case scenario, you just have to come to the night party, yeah?”

“A break... Well, I guess I do deserve at least a little break,” Summer said, nodding to herself.

“Alright. So, let me ask again. Why do you want out of the loop?”

“I mean, I can’t leave the country otherwise.”

“There’s plenty of people who live their whole lives without leaving their country, no? There’s no washlet toilets outside of Daide.”

“But time doesn’t move forward.”

“That just means you can relax and not worry too much about your lifespan. Though I don’t know how long Succubi live for.”

“I want to have fun!”

“Then have fun here. Naturally you’ll get guillotined if you go too far, but thanks to all the reincarnatees, this country is filled with more fun things to do than most countries, no? Especially with food. Oh, and thanks to the loop you don’t even need to worry about your weight. You can even use your money on whatever you want. What, you don’t have savings? Then take out a loan, the loop will take it away anyway. How about spending some time seeing how far you can go with your fun?”

Summer blinked rapidly.

“N-Now that you mention it, there’s literally nothing bad about looping! In fact, being in a loop is universally better than normal life! What the heck?!”

“Exactly. Loops are actually pretty great!”

“I never realized!” Summer exclaimed, her eyes sparkling. “God, I was so stupid for whining about being in a loop!”

“Yup. Why’d you ever convince yourself being in a time loop was hell?”

“I have no idea. What am I even doing here? I need to go enjoy life!”

“Wait, you’re forgetting the documents.”

“Don’t need them! I have them memorized!”

And just like that, Summer had left the restaurant. Soto and the others popped out of the dungeon, as if to take her place.

“...Anyway, Soto, you can go ahead and eat these documents.”

“Oh, you don’t need them, papa?”

“I recorded every page with the menu function. I can just check the footage if I want to see them.”

After all, Leona had made those documents. There was the slight chance that just looking at them would wear down your sanity. We had just seen Summer accept going through seventeen loops and still end up completely motivated to beat the game for basically no reason. If it had some kind of curse to corrupt the reader’s mind, getting rid of them now was the best option. Soto “eating” something was actually converting the matter into DP for the dungeon, which was in other words offering up something to the gods. No better way to deal with cursed objects than that.

Soto opened her {Storage}, tossed the paper inside, and ate it. Though... wait.

“Hey, Soto. Isn’t your {Storage} dungeon connected to the outside of Daide?”

“Oh, good point. Gimme a second.”

Soto hopped into {Storage}. Aaand then came right back. Holding her nose, with teary eyes.

“Ngh. It didn’t work. There was, like, an invisible wall in the way.”

“Hit your head, huh? {Healing}.”

I healed Soto and patted her head. I didn’t know how, but apparently Daide had been disconnected on a dimensional level. If even Soto couldn’t get out, then {Teleportation} probably couldn’t, either.

“I suppose we’ll have to make do with what DP we have then,” Rokuko said.

Oh, right. There’s the DP problem, too... We’re making a bit, thanks to the bandits stuck in Soto’s dungeon, but we can’t do anything large scale with that amount.

“Alright...”

“So, Keima? Your actual thoughts?” Rokuko asked, now that I had completely gotten Summer out of our hair.

“This Chaos-run loop can eat shit. I want to get the hell out of here now.”

“Whoa momma, Master. Language,” Ichika said while pouring us tea. She set a cup of it in front of Rokuko. “What’s the plan then, my dude?”

“Getting out of the loop. I want to leave with everyone safe, and ideally without doing another loop,” I said flatly. Escaping the loop was our objective and our win condition.

“Oho. Not gonna lie, didn’t expect that. I thought for sure you’d be all about sleeping for a whole loop.”

Maybe if I were here alone. If I were put in a time loop the day I first came into this world, I would’ve applied what I said to Summer to myself and slept all day and all night for the rest of time. But I wasn’t alone anymore. I had allies, and Rokuko.

“If Rokuko kept her memories, I might not have had to be hypocritical with Summer.”

“Oh, really?” Rokuko asked. “Well, I suppose I wouldn’t be too upset about being locked in here with you either.”

If I were to be a little greedy, I’d say it would be even better if Ichika and Niku kept their memories. But really, the worst case was that all the time would catch up to us all at once when we left the loop. One or two loops would be one thing, but ten, twenty, or a hundred loops’ worth of time hitting me all at once was terrifying. And even if not, Leona was the type of person to cancel the loop at the worst possible time after we got used to it. We couldn’t let our guard down.

“Wait, did you get rid of Summer like that because...”

“Yep, I’m thinking it’d be nice if Leona canceled the loop after she started acting like an idiot and embarrassed herself. Though I doubt that’s happening, since she’s already messed up enough to get guillotined.”

In which case, it was best to keep her away and not let her help with anything.

“Also, this might help with avoiding being observed. After all, she’s the heroine. It’s pretty likely Leona’s looking through her eyes.”

Because, I mean, gamers generally see the game world through the eyes of the protagonist. The fact Leona scouted a Succubus made the protagonist a monster under her control. She could probably see through her eyes just like we could see through our monsters’ eyes.

Things would be a bit different if all of Daide were Leona’s dungeon, but if that were the case Haku never would have sent Rokuko here without noticing that fact, probably. I wanted to be a bit optimistic here.

“So, Keima. How do we get out of the loop?”

“I’ll look for what’s making the loop happen and destroy it. That seems like the most reliable way to get out.”

“That’s certainly true,” Rokuko agreed.

It didn’t take a genius to figure that out. Breaking the loop was a lot more reliable than trying to satisfy Leona and have her end it.

“Do you have any ideas on what she’s doing to keep the loop going?” Rokuko asked.

“Yep. This may be a hint that Leona left on purpose, but... Well, if it was on purpose, then even more reason to check it out.”

If she had left the hint on purpose, then this was in reality a game about escaping the loop, and the actual ending Leona wanted was us breaking free. It was a bit frustrating, but yeah, in that case we just had to play along. Since escaping the loop was our objective, clearing the game would be a true victory for us. Though it was frustrating.

“So, where should we start looking?”

“Right, I’ll tell you what I’m basing this on.”

I recalled what I knew from last time and explained my thought process.

First of all, what was a time loop, really? There were three basic possibilities that came to mind:

1) The memories of those in the loop being modified.

2) The erasure of records and memories of those not in the loop.

3) Time itself rewinding.

Of those three, if this were Japan, the first answer would be the most likely. The second and third would be scientifically impossible, but, well... this was a world of sword and sorcery. The third option was the most likely one here, really. It was also the easiest option, since one didn’t have to think too hard about it.

That said, even with magic being normal here, traveling back in time was a myth of legend itself, even if stopping time was relatively normal. However, one could say that the legends possibly existed precisely because of it having happened for real in the past.

“So yeah, I just remembered this, but...”

Rokuko had told me about the academy’s seven mysteries, and in the midst of that was... A mysterious mirror that turned back time.

“So, let’s investigate the academy. There’ll be something there... hopefully.”

“You don’t sound too confident,” Rokuko said, smiling at that.

＊ ＊ ＊

Once again we had Emmymephy arrange for Rokuko and Soto to start attending the academy. And this time, we started attending the day right after her request, resulting in our first day being the same as before. No doubt May 4th was just a convenient day for the academy somehow.

Just like the first loop, Rokuko used Tsia’s name and presented herself as Emmymephy’s friend. But unlike the first loop, we didn’t explain our objectives in attending the school to Wataru and Emmymephy. We didn’t want Wataru’s {Ultra Good Fortune} burning down another inn, and so they accepted right away. We would be using him as a safe spot by day while keeping our distance when investigating.

“Hi, I’m Rokuko Tsia,” Rokuko said.

We were back in Daide’s Royal Academy. We found ourselves in a classroom built like a stairway, just like lecture halls in Earth colleges. Rokuko introduced herself in front of the blackboard. It was my second time seeing this.

“Rokuko, I say, over here. The seat next to me is free,” Emmymephy called.

“Ah, Mephy. I think I’ll take you up on that offer.”

Rokuko sat down in the seat next to Emmymephy’s. A small stir ran through the classroom, as anyone on such friendly terms with the imperial princess was surely a big deal, even if only in the empire itself. Rokuko didn’t have her memories of the first loop, so things went down exactly the same way.

“Anyway, I’m out. Good luck guarding them while I’m gone, Wataru.”

“Feels bad being left behind... Well, I won’t ask. If anyone asks where you went, I’ll just say you went to the bathroom.”

This was the second loop, so I could entrust guarding Rokuko to Wataru. There wouldn’t be any ambushes, according to my knowledge of Loop 1, so we could just focus on gathering intel. We had done that in Loop 1, too, but to be honest I had basically just slacked off and napped all day. Yeah.

The seven mysteries of the academy. One of them was known as the mirror which traveled through time. It was target number one, but I got the feeling Rokuko would find it faster than me. School rumors were best investigated by students, after all.

I went to the library. It was filled with rows of organized books... and on second thought, it was extremely unusual for a place in this world to have this many books. Enough books to be organized and labeled, even. Even our church’s tiny bookshelves got a lot of shock and awe.

Anyway, I was here to research the history and past incidents of the academy. Maybe something had happened during a battle for Hanako of the toilet to be born, or maybe some bullying. It would probably be faster for Rokuko to research these things, again, but nothing wrong with doing some preliminary work.

The library was pretty quiet, due in part to everyone being in class. I should probably start looking for legends and stuff. First, time to see if they have any books on the school’s history.

“Master, what book are you looking for?”

“Hm?” I turned and saw Niku standing behind me in a simple maid outfit. Maybe the school gave it to her?

“Uhhh... I’m looking for history books, or books about legends. Anything that will tell me about the school’s history.”

“Understood. I believe this is what you are looking for,” Niku said, sliding a book out of the bookshelf without a moment of hesitation.

“Er, thanks...?”

“Think nothing of it,” Niku said with a smile. Or rather, something that looked like Niku.

“Who the hell are you?”

“Oh? You don’t recognize me?”

“All I know is that you’re not our Niku.”

They looked identical, but their expressions were nothing alike. Niku never smiled like that. I furrowed my brows, feeling a bit of disgust at her cute smile.

“Oh, but I thought we looked perfectly identical. I’m surprised you noticed so quickly,” the faux-Niku said with an amused laugh. The real Niku was in the middle of guarding Soto.

“What’s going on here? Are you using Transformation magic or something?”

“Not in the least; this is my true form. Greetings, Keima. I am Toi, known in this country as Toi Tindalos,” the faux-Niku said with a polite bow. Toi... If I remembered correctly, that was the name of Niku’s sister, and an experiment of Leona’s.

“Tindalos... As in the mage corps commander?”

“I would be his granddaughter. Oh, but fear not. I am registered as a human male student for appearances, but I am a girl. Though I could grow anything you want with one of Chaos’s potions should you wish it,” Toi said, not even trying to hide anything.

Still. Tindalos’s grandchild, huh? We had missed her for the entirety of last loop, but now here she is showing up on her own. And she works for Leona, too.

“Oh, and just to be clear, Tindalos’s true identity is Leona. Or rather, an illusion created by Leona that does not truly exist.”

I narrowed my eyes. She really wasn’t trying to hide anything.

“Incidentally, for the sake of my own edification, may I ask how you recognized I was not that disgraceful failure? Leona has told me that we look perfectly identical.”

“Niku doesn’t smile like that.”

“My my my! I apologize for failing to conduct proper research. For you to notice the difference from a mere smile, you must truly be showering the failure with your love. In place of Leona, her creator, I will express my highest thanks,” Toi said with a fancy bow of her head. With an adorable smile seemingly plastered on her face. “Incidentally, if you have any wishes to replace her, you need only say the word. I am a much more skilled toy than that failure, and will certainly satisfy your every desire.”

“No thanks. Not interested,” I said flatly, causing Toi to shake her head with exasperation. I ignored that and continued. “More importantly, what exactly are you planning?”

“What do you mean by that? I am simply fulfilling my duty of watching over Daide. I will even swear a divine oath, if need be. Shall I show you the signed order I am following? I am offended you would accuse me of plotting,” Toi said with another shake of her head.

You would be swearing an oath to Leona, the God of Chaos. As if I’d trust that.

“Why did you contact me now?”

“Leona instructed me the other day to make contact with you and serve you as necessary. I had the previous obligation of hunting a half-Dragon at the second prince’s request, but my master’s orders take priority. She told me the following: In order for Keima to understand, tell him that he tripped the flag. I shall simply give the second prince a chicken egg magically grown in size. Fear not, nobody will notice; this is a country of fools. Excluding those of several generations ago, that is.”

The second prince’s request. So that was why she hadn’t been here last time. The “flag” I tripped was probably entering Loop 2.

“Why aren’t you calling her Lady Leona or Master or something? Aren’t you completely devoted to her or whatever?”

“Oh, it is common manners to address family by their first name regardless of their status when speaking with visitors. Did you not know?”

I never thought someone in Leona’s gang would lecture me about societal manners.

“Wait, you’re treating us as visitors?”

“Indeed! Welcome to Daide! This country is currently serving as a so-called ‘theme park’ that my master Leona has created. Please enjoy it to your heart’s content. Oh, and here’s a pamphlet,” Toi said, handing me a vertically folded pamphlet. I spread it out and saw that it was a map of Daide’s capital city, except marked like a literal theme park attraction. The food stands were called the food court, the merchant’s street the gift shop, etc. There were even famous hills and date spots of high elevation. But one thing caught my eye the most.

“The Beddhist church...”

“A highly recommended tourist spot, to be sure. It’s a renovated church of ancient Beddhism, and is quite romantic; legends say that a couple which sleeps together atop a Beddhist bed will soon be wed. That is all Leona making stuff up, of course, but it might actually work.”

I feel like it’s just logical that people close enough to sleep in bed together will end up married... though I guess jinxes work the same way. Better than just making up complete nonsense based on nothing.

“Oh, yes, please take this. It is a free pass to Beddhism,” she said, holding out a red holy symbol.

It didn’t seem to be made of rubies. Compared to this pulsating holy symbol that seemed to have the energy of fresh blood, the ruby holy symbol our High Priestess wears almost seems like a replica.

“It’s a special holy symbol prepared for you, Keima. If you show this to any Beddhist in Daide, they will be at your beck and call. Please do keep this a secret from your lovers.”

That sounded like hypnotism, but I went ahead and took it anyway. I could use this for investigating the documents in the church or something. Though it was unlikely it had any documents not faked by Leona.

“What would happen if I asked you to reveal all of Leona’s plans?” I asked, poking Toi with the holy symbol.

“Apologies, it does not work on me. However, I will gladly warm your bed at night, and answer your questions. Shall I strip?”

“Pass. I’m more interested in Leona’s plans. What’s the nature of this experiment?” I asked, recalling how Leona had called all of this an experiment.

Toi lifted an eyebrow. “I will answer with the utmost honesty. I do not know. I was not told, and I do not care to ask. I am simply a stage setter. My job is to create playgrounds for her to enjoy. For example, the dungeon in the academy is under my jurisdiction.”

“You’re a Dungeon Master...?”

“Not quite. My role is... much like the Adventurer’s Guild. I am a secretary that manages those who enter. The dungeon itself existed before the country was founded, and I have not been told of what it is. The fact I have not been told means I do not need to know,” Toi said with a smile.

“You really don’t know? Like, you don’t know what’s happening in Daide?”

“What can I say? What occurs on a stage is not the job of the one building the stage. Toys do not decide how they are played with, no? Though, I am told a loop is occurring, but that is all. I do not experience it myself, so I have no answers for you,” Toi said. It seemed she wasn’t keeping her memories. “Oh, but I do recall my orders including a request to make a perfect stage for lovers to have thrilling romances upon. If you would be satisfied by a theory of mine... Well, Leona remains a girl at heart, despite everything. Perhaps she just wanted to create date spots and see heart-throbbing romances? Perhaps there is a certain couple she wishes to support. For example, you and some lucky girl!”

“If that’s true, then the whole country of Daide is being messed with for our sake...”

“Does it matter? Between you and this country, you are clearly the more important one, Keima. The country is just a stage, but you are a valuable guest; the two cannot be compared.”

Well. That was certainly an attitude Leona would have.

＊ ＊ ＊

“Wait, you met them? Despite the fact they’re Tindalos’s grandchild?”

After returning to the inn, I called Rokuko and the others over to report what had happened. Naturally, Wataru and Emmymephy were in a different room in the same inn.

“I thought we couldn’t find them at all last time,” Rokuko said.

“Yep. It happened so easily I have to wonder what the heck I was even wasting my time on back then...”

“Maybe she did this on purpose to mess with you.”

“Maybe,” I replied, though maybe this was also an act of kindness from her. Leona had said it didn’t really matter right before the loop began. “Plus, not only is she identical to Niku, she even told me that Tindalos the mage corps commander is actually Leona’s puppet.”

“...Identical to me?” Niku muttered, wearing a maid outfit (this inn’s uniform, which I had gotten for her).

“I was pretty surprised; for a second I even thought she was you. But she ended up pretty different.”

“So that is the Toi that Leona spoke of. Her name is the same as well... If I ever meet her, I will prove that I am the more useful maid,” Niku said, burning with a mysterious competitiveness. The way her face muscles refused to do their job despite the fire burning in her eyes was unmistakably Niku. Felt calming, somehow.

“So, did you learn anything else?”

“Nope. Oh, but she gave me an item to use when investigating Beddhism.”

In the end, I hadn’t been able to get anything else out of Toi Tindalos. Though I had learned a lot more than I expected, and the book she lent me was indeed about history.

“Soto, go ahead and put this into {Storage}. Be sure to stop time, too.”

“Okaaay.”

I tossed the red holy symbol over to Soto, and she put it away into {Storage}.

“I went and investigated a bunch of the school rumors, by the way,” Rokuko said. “All of the seven mysteries. The singing minstrel one hears at midnight, the forbidden hall, the dancing skeleton specimen, the stairs that grow more steps at night, the talking portrait of the first king, the time-traveling mirror,” she continued, listing them off while counting on her fingers. Yep, that was the exact same lineup I heard last time.

“Also, that history book probably mentions this, too, but... They say that the first king could see the future when he built the country,” Rokuko said.

“Future sight...? Hm, that would make sense if he looped back and had knowledge of the future.”

“Right. From our perspective, it feels like you’re just talking about the future.”

So wait, does that mean Daide’s first king was looping, too? From there he picked the best future, and founded Daide... That would actually make sense.

“Which means this looping might not actually be Leona’s magic?”

“It’s a possibility,” Rokuko said. In which case, the experiment Leona mentioned... might actually have been her experimenting with recreating the loop magic.

“Think it’d be a good idea to start researching the first king and any religious ceremonies he might have performed?”

“Uh-huh. Let’s go talk to the portrait of the first king that can talk. Nothing better than getting it straight from the source!”

“I mean, there’s no proof it’s the actual first king talking,” I replied. It was more than possible that some random ghost had attached itself to it.

Anyway, that was when Rokuko started to rub her legs together and fidget in place.

“Hm? Gotta pee?”

“No...! Listen, Keima. Since school is off on the weekend, want to go on a date?”

“A date? Like, you and me going somewhere alone?”

“Right, a date. Just you and me. I heard about a lot of date spots from my classmates.”

Oh, yeah, Rokuko invited me on a date in the first loop, too. I turned her down since it’d be too dangerous, though.

“Oh heck yeah, girl, a date!” Ichika explained. “Go on, lovebirds, I’ll hold down the fort! We’ll be fine with Wataru here! You good with this, Soto, Niku?”

“Um? But Ichika, I want to go, too!” Soto exclaimed.

“They won’t need guards?” Niku asked.

“Listen up you two. Mumble mumble mumble...” Ichika whispered something to Soto and Niku.

“...Oooh, right! I’ll stay home for sure!”

“...Understood. I will stay put here.”

“A’ight, it’s settled!”

Apparently it was settled. Yeah, in retrospect, Ichika wasn’t here when Rokuko asked the first time. I wonder if she would’ve made the date happen then, too?

Not to mention, this was different from the first loop where we didn’t know anything. Now I knew for sure Leona wouldn’t mess with any dates that took place on her specially made date spots. She would peek, but that was about it.

“So, Keima. You heard Ichika. It’s fine, right?”

“Ahhh, alright. Fine. But you have to keep the Divine Quilt on. Just to be safe.”

“Okay. I can make it into a tiny scarf or cape, so that works.”

The Divine Quilt would protect her from the most freak of accidents, and since I was using {Ultra Transformation} I could die once without issue. No matter what happened, we were safe.

With that decided, we dropped by Wataru’s room.

“Wataru. I’m gonna go on a date with Rokuko this weekend, could you look after Soto and the others for me?”

“Wait, just the two of you?”

“Since it’s a date, yeah. Don’t make it weird.”

“True. And I guess it’s fine, since you’ll be able to protect her no matter what happens. Okay, I accept.” Wataru nodded to himself.

Leaving Soto and the others with Wataru would put them under the protection of {Ultra Good Fortune}, which should keep them pretty safe. Bit late to be realizing this, but it might’ve been pretty risky for Soto, Niku, and I to go to the Beddhist Church alone way back when. We ended up being fine, though.

＊ ＊ ＊

So yeah, the weekend came. Rokuko and I began our date.

“Let’s fill up first! They told me the best restaurants in the city,” Rokuko said, guiding me to the street with all the food stands. However, today we went to a proper cafe, not a food stand. The wooden tables and chairs gave it quite the atmosphere.

“Apparently the cakes here are super tasty. The sandwiches are good, too, which makes it a good spot for bringing boys, they said.”

“Neat. Though I’d rather have cake than a sandwich.”

“I’ll go with a sandwich, then. We can split and share.”

With that, Rokuko called over an employee and started ordering. Perhaps due to learning etiquette in class, she handled it pretty well. Honestly, she even looked pretty cool doing it.

“Since it’s a date, let’s have fun conversations. Keima, talk about something.”

“Hm? Uh, that’s kind of abrupt... How’s school, then?”

This was all so sudden, I ended up talking like a father who was speaking to his daughter for the first time in weeks.

“Eheh, tons of fun. I made friends other than just Mephy, you know.”

“Yeah. You’re surprisingly good at diplomacy. So, are those the friends that told you about this place?”

“That’s about right. Nice and fancy place, isn’t it?”

“What kind of things do you and your friends talk about, anyway? Just girl stuff?”

“Weeell... Oh, food’s here.”

The waitress put the strawberry shortcake in front of Rokuko, then the egg sandwich in front of me. Once they poured tea and left, I swiftly swapped the plates.

“Let’s eat.”

“Uh-huh. But I think it’s best to chat a bit when eating this kind of thing.”

“Alright, let’s continue where we left off from, then. What do you all chat about?”

“More about food than you’d think. Like the best restaurants to visit. Visit this place since I’m investing in it, visit that place because you’ll want connections with the owner, and so on.”

That feels less like talking about food and more like noble-esque faction politics?

“Romance comes up a lot, too.”

“Ye olde who-likes-who.”

“Apparently a baron’s daughter, a former commoner, stole the hearts of the first prince and the entire student council, which is really bad since each of them are the eldest sons. Their houses are all in danger of collapsing. The first prince’s ex-fiancée is also apparently something of a prodigy, and is inventing all sorts of new sweets.”

Hm! That sure sounds like noble socializing! Also, that’s Summer, isn’t it?

“By the way, this store is apparently funded by the first prince’s ex-fiancée. She used to be selfish and shallow, but all of a sudden it was like she became a totally different person.”

“Oh yeah? Like their minds were swapped with someone else?”

That sounds pretty suspicious... Oh, wait, that’s Koreha, the reincarnatee.

As I nodded, Rokuko held out the egg sandwich, bite marks pointed toward me. “Keima, you can try a bite. Open wide.”

“You want to feed me? That sure is a date-y kind of thing to do... Wait.”

This is definitely an indirect kiss, right? Or honestly, more like an indirect French kiss.

“...Aaaah?” Feeling a bit hesitant, I opened my mouth and bit into the sandwich. It was a normal egg sandwich with sharp lettuce. The mayonnaise and pepper helped to bring it together into something pretty good.

“What’s wrong, Keima? Your face is red.”

“I-It’s nothing.”

“Ooooh, oh. I get it. Good grief, we’ve already kissed and had a child, but you’re still so innocent,” Rokuko said. She grinned and bit into the teeth marks I had left on the sandwich. With red cheeks of her own.

“...Rokuko. Here, you can have some of my cake, too. Open wide.”

I stabbed a fork into my cake and held it out to Rokuko.

“Nom!”

“Whoa. No hesitation, huh?”

She bit hard enough to take the fork, by which I mean it literally stayed in her mouth when she pulled her head back.

“Eheh, shyness is a weakness here. That was good. Here, have your fork back.”

“...Er, well, alright. At least now I know how aggressive you’re being here.”

“You should be more aggressive with me too, Keima. C’mon, c’mon.”

“I’m just glad to see you enjoy yourself.”

I ate more cake with the fork Rokuko had put in her mouth. The mix of strawberries and sweet cream was as powerful of a combo as I remembered. I decided to buy some to bring back to Soto.

From there we spent about two casual hours in the cafe, with Rokuko talking about what she had heard at school and me talking about what I saw on guard duty.

Though I mean, well, you know. I spent most of that feeling pretty off, since we were just sticking around after finishing our food.

“Good grief, Keima, can you not calm down? What happened to all that confidence and laziness you always have?”

“How do I put this... In my mind, restaurants are places to eat in and get out, so it was hard to just sit around. I mean, you saw how many people there were, right? I feel like sticking around in popular restaurants like that is just kinda rude.”

“Well, I know how you feel. We run a restaurant of our own, so.”

“Yeah, the better the food is, the worse taking up space is,” I said. Though we could take as much space in our own restaurant as we wanted, since it was ours.

“Okay, next time I’ll ask for either a restaurant with terrible food, or at least a really obscure one,” Rokuko said, grabbing hold of my hand.

Holy cow, that was smooth! Rokuko is one fearsome girl!

“.........”

“Or not. C’mon, say something. Don’t just hold my hand then fall silent.”

“Wh-What’s the problem? Holding hands is normal on dates, totally normal,” Rokuko said, pursing her lips with red cheeks.

“Then keep talking. Otherwise, it’s just... really embarrassing.”

“F-Fine. Sooo, what were we talking about?”

Seemed like Rokuko wasn’t keeping it completely cool, either.

From there we went to the street with a bunch of stores while talking. There were rows of stores with big glass show windows. Inside were mainly clothes, bags, and necklaces, plus a bunch of large appliance-esque magic tools that I could easily guess the purpose of. In this little bubble of Daide, it really did feel like I had returned to Japan. Aside from all the carriages and the lack of any black-haired people.

“This really is an impressive lineup, huh?” I said.

The easily recognizable electric appliances were the most impressive. The Hero Workshop sold dryers of their own, but the ones here looked mass produced and cheap. Though that did kind of take away some of the novelty.

“Want to buy them?”

“Nah, we don’t need them. Especially not with Survival magic. More importantly, Rokuko. Want any accessories or anything? That feels kind of date-y.”

“Mm? Okay, I’ll take anything except a ring, then.”

Rokuko already had a shining red ring on her left ring finger. It was a simple ring made fancy only by the orichalcum coating and big ruby on it.

“This ring you made me suits me better than any other, so what’s the point in buying another? If we call the Beddhist holy symbol a necklace, maybe I’d like a hairpin or something?”

“...You know you may need to swap rings with me at some point, right?”

“That’s different. Your Succubus ring doesn’t count since it’s a guard.”

And so, I thought of an item to get her other than a ring.

“You think of something too, Keima. Something that’ll look good on me!”

“Sure, but I wonder what’s best...”

From there we spent plenty of time selecting a hairpin. That was easier on me than hanging around in a cafe all day.

From there, having enjoyed our date to our hearts’ content, we found ourselves atop a hill lit by the setting sun. It was a popular tourist spot since you could see all of Daide’s capital city from it.

“Did you learn about this place at school, too?”

“Mhm. It’s used all the time in popular romance novels, even. See?” Rokuko pointed, and I followed her finger to see other couples here as well. It certainly did seem to be a date spot.

“...By the way, Keima. It’s a bit late for me to ask this, but did you go on a date with me in the first loop, too?”

“Hm? Nah. I didn’t. But it’s not ’cause I didn’t want to, okay? I just thought it’d be dangerous.”

“Of course. I know you love me, Keima.”

“R-Right.”

It was true, but kind of embarrassing for her to just say it like that.

“Keima. If we loop again, and I lose my memories, go on another date with me, okay?”

“Sure. I’ll take you around instead, if that ever happens.”

“Sounds like fun! Oh, not that I would be able to look forward to it if we loop,” Rokuko said, then leaned against the railing. I followed after her.

“What a nice view.”

“Yeah.”

“...Keima, you know that dates like this always end with a dramatic kiss, right?”

“Er, w-well, I suppose...”

“Eheheh, don’t worry. I know veeery well how indecisive you are,” Rokuko said, cackling. Her face was red, even amid the orange of the evening sun. “But if you kiss me here, I might get jealous.”

“Jealous? Why?”

“Jealous of the next me. She’ll get to keep memories of the first time you kissed me on your own,” Rokuko said, tilting her head up and stretching a bit.

Her face blocked the sun, getting up close to mine in the blink of an eye. There was a soft sensation.

“So you can kiss me on your own once we’re out of the loop. Do it at a dramatic moment, one that I’ll never forget.”

“...Y-You don’t mind doing it yourself?”

“It’s fine! Aaah, now it’s going to be the past me who’s jealous. ‘Why did you get to go on a date and even kiss him?!’ Anyway... Look, the school’s so small from here! Isn’t the inn we’re staying at over there?!” Rokuko asked, putting on blatantly fake energy and leaning over the railings.

“Whoa there, be careful... I mean, you’ll be fine even if you fall, but still, don’t.”

“I’ll be fine if you keep holding my hand. Look, the sun’s about to set.”

I looked, and saw the red sun start hiding itself behind a hill. I watched it sink down with Rokuko’s hand in mine. And with that, I steeled my resolve to end the loop, so that Rokuko didn’t lose her memories of this.

Once the sun finished setting, the sky turned from red to the dark blue of the night.

“Oh, and after the sun sets, we’re supposed to link arms and walk under the street lights.”

“Makes sense. Now that you mention it, there’s even street lights here. The imperial capital has them, too, but still.”

Though naturally, the light came from magic tools, not LEDs or anything. If the city had less order, I’d expect that to increase crime rather than decrease it, but maybe not.

“In stories, muggers show up, and the hero protects the heroine.”

“Wait, we’re actually going to get attacked? Maybe we should go home early, then.”

“Well, there is an inn nearby. One targeted at couples.”

...What, is that like one of those inns?

“Well, you could just blast any muggers to death with your magic, so.”

“I’m not so sure.”

“We’ll be fine. Muggers here will be weaker than the average Demon Realm person.”

“Okay, when you put it like that, yeah, I’d blast the crap out of them.”

This country sure is more peaceful than the Demon Realm, at least on the surface. Though the Demon Realm is kind of a special case, and I don’t know what’s going on under the surface here.

And so, we linked arms and returned home beneath the street lights. We didn’t get attacked, but we did find Wataru and the others around with smug grins.

“...Lemme guess, you followed us?”

“Hahaha, nah, no way. We all just went out on our own and coincidentally ended up in the same places as you.”

And so, starting with Ichika who had probably introduced the plan to begin with, I smacked them all in the head. They stopped complaining because they were going to follow us from the start. Somehow, I didn’t notice them at all.

＊ ＊ ＊

From there, we investigated the school’s seven mysteries and its ceremonies, both religious and not. As a result, we learned they didn’t really have any ceremonies, and they were almost all duds.

Hanako of the toilet was simply a stray cat being stealthily raised in the girls’ bathroom (with the cat’s name being Hanako), and the dancing skeleton specimen was just a Skeleton disguised to look like a normal human skeleton (he being a spy from the Demon Realm). The stairs that grow more steps at night were actually just a hidden path, which led to the back of the talking portrait, which was a peephole into a guest parlor. It was just a simple spying trick. The minstrel that could be heard in the night was the ghost of a choir student, which could be considered a big hit for the seven mysteries, but wasn’t relevant to us. We just left the ghost there since its singing didn’t hurt anyone.

From there, we learned the forbidden hall was a room in the dungeon, which just left our main objective, the time-traveling mirror.

The mirror was apparently past the furthest hall. Thus, we waited for the day of dungeon drills, which provided the rare opportunity to go into the school dungeon which contained the furthest hall. These were the last of the seven mysteries, and we wanted to explore them thoroughly.

I only noticed this after looking at the pamphlet Toi gave me, but this dungeon’s not just at the center of the academy, it’s at the center of the entire country of Daide. There’s definitely something suspicious going on. Or rather, I really want there to be something suspicious going on.

We finally hit May 13th, the day of the dungeon drills. The second prince had scouted Soto once again, so we had once again promised to delve into the dungeon with him. The other members were likewise the same as Loop 1. And indeed, Summer was there, acting cool.

Wearing a bunny suit, for some reason.

No, but why a bunny suit? It’s definitely a Succubus kind of thing to wear, but I don’t know about the daughter of a baron wearing one. Koreha’s literally keeping her distance out of embarrassment.

“Keima, Rokuko! Nice to see you again!”

“Y-Yeah. Hey.”

“That’s a pretty bold outfit... Why a bunny suit?” Rokuko asked.

“I decided to live more freely, and I’m starting with my clothes! Ahaha, truth is, this is actually a formal outfit that people of Daide wear to dance parties. Surprising, considering how lewd it is,” Summer said, jumping to make her boobs and fluffy ears bounce. There was even a lighter (a flame-producing magic tool) wedged into her cleavage.

“Wait, really, Mephy?”

“Not in the empire, but I don’t know about Daide. I say, Lady Koreha, which is it?”

“W-Well. Bunny suits are considered formal wear for dance parties, so it’s fine, but... Nobody has actually worn them before...”

Incidentally, even on earth it was considered fine to wear bunny suits on TV, but not really in public. Leona adopting that for dance parties in this world was very much like her. She had worn a bunny suit herself during the Dungeon Battle with Core 564, so yeah.

“But Summer, putting your outfit aside, why are you attending dungeon drills but no other classes? Up until today, you had been skipping class to go wild... while achieving perfect grades on makeup exams, but in any case...”

“Weeell, I figured if I didn’t show up you all wouldn’t have enough people,” Summer said. She must have based that on her memories of the last loop. She was pretty diligent.

Class began, and we met up with Soto and the others.

“Papa!” Soto cried, waving and running up to me. I caught her in my arms and patted her head. Niku bowed, keeping a maid-like distance. Behind them were the second prince and the twins. This time, Summer didn’t ask about my relationship with Soto.

“What, you’re Lady Soto’s father?!”

“Greetings, please give your daughter to us!”

Despite not having introduced ourselves yet, the twins went straight to asking for Soto. I seemed to recall them doing the same last time.

“Uh, Soto? Didn’t I tell you to get their names wrong on purpose this time?” I asked.

“I got them completely wrong, but it still ended up like this somehow,” she replied, glancing at Niku.

“...Indeed. She got them perfectly wrong,” Niku said. In other words, by getting them wrong with one hundred percent accuracy, they deduced she could tell them apart after all. If there was another loop, we would need to try getting them wrong based on some kind of randomness. Maybe just flip a coin before speaking to either of them.

Anyway, they viewed her being able to distinguish between them as the result of true love, and naturally moved right to trying to marry her. I decided to deal with it the exact same way as last time. “Alright, but give it up if I can distinguish between the both of you. You’re Meter and you’re Lacie, right? Turn around and swap places as much as you want,” I said, and then easily distinguished between them through tags on the map.

“So? What was that about love?”

“A-Amazing...” “How did he do that...?”

“If you really want people to know how to tell you apart, tag yourself or something. Don’t make it hard on purpose then whine. What are you, little kids?” I asked, being a bit spiteful since this was the second time. That wasn’t right, really; I was comparing them to Niku and loli-form Rokuko, but they were actually elementary students. The definition of actual kids. “Er, sorry. You are still kids... or young, at least. Makes sense you’d be a bit selfish. Sorry, forget I said anything,” I finished, speaking in something of a deadpan. The twins looked at me with moved, sparkling eyes. Well... At least they were quiet now.

Anyway, we went straight into the dungeon, but I abandoned my guard duty immediately. I was here to investigate the bottom of the dungeon, so yeah.

I left guard duty to Wataru and stealthily left the party, then used 100 DP I had on hand to summon a bunch of rats. We weren’t in a Dungeon Battle, but they were still the best tools to use for exploring a dungeon. It was honestly a bit intimidating to see a swarm of rats up close like this, but as they were summoned through DP they were my loyal servants.

I sent them off to explore the dungeon, and watched as my map rapidly filled itself out. Times like this really reminded me how unfair Dungeon Masters truly were. A few rats got eaten by monsters, but I nevertheless found the staircase in the blink of an eye. At this rate, I could probably get back while Rokuko and the others were still doing their drills.

I started walking to the downwards staircase I had found. A few monsters popped up on the way, but they didn’t prove to be much of an obstacle. I either blasted them down with a single shot of magic, or intimidated them so much they fled instantly. I charged forward quickly, not fearing death since I had {Ultra Transformation} anyway. It helped that there were no traps whatsoever; before long, I was down to the next floor.

And so I silently conquered the dungeon just like that, until I came across an odd room on the seventh floor.

“The hell is this place...?”

There was a large mirror on the wall, and there were groaning magic circles on both the floor and ceiling with glowing lines. This was obviously not a normal room.

“Um, Keima? What are you doing here?” came a voice.

I felt the room temperature drop by two degrees. A sharp sense of tension shot through my back. I turned, and saw Leona in her nun outfit.

“You sure show up everywhere, huh, Leona?”

“For today alone, that’s my line,” Leona said, sounding like she hadn’t expected me to be here.

“What, you weren’t spying on us?”

“Not today, since I’m busy. As you can see,” she continued, pointing at the glowing magic circles.

“What are they, anyway?”

“The time-traveling magic circles left behind by Daide’s first king.”

My eyes widened. “In other words... If I break these magic circles, the looping will stop?”

“Fear not. I have already finished dissecting the circles. Their magic is in the palm of my hand. Today I am just here to, let’s say, dispose of some waste,” Leona said, reaching a hand out to the ceiling. The magic circle faded, no longer working.

“What about the mirror?”

“It connects to the king’s room. He was a genius, but he didn’t manage to turn back time itself, so the best he could do was use the mirror to communicate with his past self.”

Thus was the true form of the time-traveling mirror, apparently. It seemed investigating the seven mysteries had been a good idea.

“...Hm? But wait, why is the mirror in this dungeon then?”

“Simple. He, too, was a Dungeon Master. That was why he was able to connect to the past, even if only with his voice. He was one... or rather, fifty-some steps away from actually turning back time, but I managed to finish the work he left behind. Now the magic does indeed turn back time. Eheheh,” Leona said, casually answering my suspicions. “He was called a prophet and a fortune-teller back then. Indeed, he certainly was a genius at magic. He poured his life into creating... or rather, discovering, the ultimate magic. A true genius if there ever was one.”

“So if he was a Dungeon Master, that would make this his dungeon... Where’s the Core?”

“Well, this dungeon is a bit of an unusual case. Its Core is already dead. However, the dungeon hasn’t actually died yet.”

Before I could ask how that was, Leona continued.

“This dungeon is built firmly on top of a ley line... Well, to put it in terms you would understand, it’s a brain-dead vegetable that’s being barely kept alive on constant life support. Well, it’s yet another relic left behind by that genius. Still, it has no soul anymore.”

In short, the dungeon body and its functions alone remained. Apparently.

Leona stroked the floor’s circle, a bit sadly. It, too, lost its light and faded away.

“Okay, then. My business here’s all finished.”

The room remained lit with the soft light of a dungeon’s interior, even now with the magic circles both dead. Yet more proof the dungeon wasn’t dead yet.

“But why go out of your way to erase the circles if we’re going to loop back anyway? You must be erasing them every loop, right?”

“Think of it as a tiny memorial service. I used to know this Dungeon Core. Oh, and by the way, this is the only day of the year this room can be entered. Really, I’m impressed you made it this far. There aren’t any bosses, but even I think this dungeon has a pretty complex layout.”

I gave a vague smile, swallowing the urge to say a swarm of rats really simplified matters.

“By the way, Keima,” Leona said with a smile of her own. “You said all that to the heroine, but it certainly seems to me that you don’t want to loop yourself. You came here to stop the loop, no?”

She figured me out, huh? And she really was looking through Summer’s eyes, I guess.

I smiled despite the cold sweat running down my back.

“Is there something about this loop that dissatisfies you?”

“What, would you fix it if there were something?”

“Of course. I went out of my way to build this playbox, so I want to have plenty of fun with it. As you said yourself, there’s plenty of good food and fun places to go, on top of having infinite wealth and life. You can make up for mistakes no matter how many times you make them. What exactly doesn’t satisfy you?” Leona asked, tilting her head.

“The fact that nothing stays, I’d say.”

“Nothing stays?” Leona put a thoughtful finger on her chin. “Aaah! You’re worried about Rokuko’s memories, aren’t you? Okay, I’ll work on it.”

“You could change that?”

“Of course! As a result of my research, I even succeeded in getting a mere High Succubus to keep her memories as part of the loop. This is more than possible! Ah, how wonderful. Soon the world will be more than satisfying for you, Keima!” Leona exclaimed, clapping her hands.

I decided to hear Leona out here. If Rokuko kept her memories, this certainly wouldn’t be all bad.

“How will you do it?”

“First, allow me to reveal the secret to having memories capable of surviving the time traveling. Simply put... you need the divine protection of both the God of Darkness and the God of Light. You just need these two, on top of being inside Daide itself. Doesn’t a combo of Light and Dark seem incredibly strong?”

With those conditions, it certainly made sense that Leona, Soto, and I were keeping our memories.

“The original owner of this mirror could only send his voice back through time, since he only had the God of Darkness’s protection, but I improved it. Eheheh, mind if I brag? Surely not, surely not. Only one called the God of Chaos such as myself could have managed to improve it this far. Though it does help that it was a ritual predicated on using my functions, but... I dissected the destroyed magic circles in this dungeon and succeeded in directly making a loop, and began experimenting with how to make others loop as well. That only took fifty-three attempts to succeed. I had to inject someone with a mixture of Light and Darkness power to fulfill the previously stated conditions! Goodness, I never would have succeeded without the looping, either. Well, it’ll be a bit different this time since Rokuko is already a server of the God of Darkness, but if she’s lucky it’ll only take a small number of attempts!” Leona exclaimed, smiling.

“Fifty-three attempts? It’ll only take a small number, if she’s lucky?” I asked, repeating the points that caught my attention the most.

“Don’t worry, you have nothing to fear. After all, this is a time loop—if we keep trying until we succeed, then success is absolutely guaranteed!”

I felt my head spin at that. “And what happens if you fail?”

“Oh. Well, she’ll probably die or go insane? But since I’ll keep going, the failures will be lost to time regardless. It’s simple, like reloading a save until you dodge an attack with a 1% chance to dodge. There will be a bit of a waiting time, since the loop time is set, but... Well, we have plenty of time. What’s the problem?” Leona smiled, as if there was no problem at all.

I thought back to my date with Rokuko. Since she didn’t keep her memories, she had talked about herself as the “previous me” and the “next me.”

Rokuko was lucky, but judging by how Leona was acting as if failure was inevitable, it was highly likely she would screw it up on purpose. In which case, I absolutely couldn’t just nod and play along here. I would never abandon Rokuko, even if it was only once or twice in a hundred-plus loops.

“...That’s not a deal I’m about to make.”

“Oh, does it hurt your kind heart, Keima? Mm, mm. I understand how you feel. In that case, I’ll delete all memories of failed loops. Memory control is easy as pie. You seem a bit resistant to it, so you’ll need to willingly accept it, but in practice it will feel like winning in a single time. What a blissful world! Everyone will be happy! Aaah, as a nun myself, I’m so glad to have been blessed with the power to make everyone happy!”

As expected, Leona and I could never be friends. What she talked about certainly happened in games a lot, but this was reality.

...Oh, and really. There’s no guarantee that Leona’s telling the truth, or that the Rokuko mixed with Light or whatever would be the same Rokuko. If it ends up changing her into someone else that just looks the same, like Toi is to Niku, that would be game over then and there.

“...Sorry, but I’m not about to let you mess with Rokuko,” I said. The more I thought about it, the more bizarre it was that I had listened to Leona for even a second.

“Really? Well, I suppose you can hardly cheat on her freely if she’ll remember it all. Ahaha, very well. But feel free to bring this back up if you ever change your mind.”

“Hey, Leona. Want to make a bet?”

“Oh? What, a challenge? I’ll accept if it’s fun,” Leona said, her smile never faltering.

“I don’t know how exactly it works, but I’m going to break your loop. I win if I can break it. How’s that sound?” I asked.

Leona’s eyes widened with surprise, as if having been caught entirely off guard. This was a challenge she would have to accept regardless of whether it was fun or not.

“...Hm. You really don’t like this happy world, do you? Mm, weeell, I can think about it,” Leona said. She fell into thought for about ten seconds, then answered. “Okay, but I’ll be defending it with absolutely everything I have, and if the loop completes you’ll have to be my pet as a punishment. Since I’m kindhearted, I’ll settle for having you once every two loops.”

“Eh, sure. Consider it me paying back the favor of you telling me all this,” I said, agreeing largely because it would keep Rokuko safe either way.

“Hey, I’ll even go so far as to erase your memory of the pet loops, if you want.”

“Like hell I would w— Wait. There aren’t any loops you’ve erased my memory of, are there?” I asked. I had the terrifying thought of me having lost already, only for my memories of that loop to be deleted.

“Eheheh.”

“C’mon, answer.”

“I’ll leave that to your imagination... Ah, er, fine, this is your first time looping. Well, excluding all the times you didn’t come to Daide.”

“Good, then. My strategy would change if you already knew all the cards up my sleeves.”

“Eheheh. But there’s not much in this for you right now, is there? Is there anything else you want as a bonus? Like, becoming my pet! I can add a bonus reward if you win within five loops, easy. I’ll do AAANYTHING you want,” Leona said with a provocative grin.

“...Well, Haku did ask me to bring you back to her if I could.”

“Hm? Mm, but that’s not what you want, is it? Good grief, you have a cute girl like me saying she’ll do ANYTHING. Isn’t there only one answer here? This is why people call you a virgin. Oh, that was just a guess. Am I right?”

Yes. Dammit. My monsters and slaves make fun of me for it.

“Okay, if I win, let me punch you.”

“Aw, you’d punch such a cute girl? Keima, do you have a ryona fetish?” Leona giggled.

Ryona...? Now that’s some obscure sex terminology. I’m just gonna pretend I didn’t hear anything.

“Okay, then. I’ll let you punch me. Where will it be? My stomach? Face? I recommend my butt or boobs. Or could it be... You meant that in a sexy way? Squeee♪”

“Not at all. It’ll be a full-force power punch. Still good?”

“Of course. That’s fine with me,” Leona said with a nod.

And so my battle with Leona was settled. To be honest, I felt like I had been a bit too hasty. If I hadn’t said anything, losing would have had no consequence, and Leona would have just looped me back without any punishment. However, I felt obligated to challenge her like this. I had no intention of letting the loop keep going. Leona getting her way just annoyed me on some deep level.

Alright, time to practice punching at full force. Think I’ll go with the face.

“Okay, out of respect for you being willing to challenge me, I’ll tell you something nice,” Leona said, narrowing her eyes and smiling. “The time-traveling magic is veeery delicate. The restrictions are so precise it has to happen at a specific time, at a specific place, and only once every ten years when the stars align. On top of that, it uses such an enormous amount of mana that even I end up drained multiple times over. It’s only possible at all by using the divine Authority of the gods. Thus, I don’t have any second copies waiting to force the loop to happen. Fear not, even I struggle quite a bit to make magic on this level happen.”

“Whoa, not that I’m complaining, but should you really be telling me that much?”

“Why, of course! I mean, you need all the help you can get, right? It wouldn’t be much of a challenge if I didn’t at least share this much... I need to make the game fun, y’know?” Leona said, grinning.

“Still, for something with restrictions that harsh, you sure are using it a lot, aren’t you?”

“I mean, think about it. If time rewinds, then the stars go back to their old positions, too. The place doesn’t change, either. The only thing that leaves is the mana. Naturally, you don’t get the mana back when time goes back, but...” Leona paused to lift up the skirt of her nun outfit. “Hey, what’re you doing?! Pervert! Frea— Oh.”

A garter belt, with black lace underwear... Could it be?

“Did you notice? Indeed, this is the Divine Underwear. Ahaha, you know how all of the Divine Bedding gives increased regeneration, right? The regen speed is based on how much you’re missing, so I can use as much magic as I want no matter how many loops there are. Teehee!”

After giving me a very lengthy look at her underwear, she finally lowered her skirt back down. She blushed a bit.

“Did that turn you on? My own heart’s pounding, to be honest. I haven’t felt like this since I was seventeen!”

“How many years ago was that, even...?”

“Eheheh, consider that god humor. Oh, and if you escape the loop, I don’t mind giving them to you as a reward,” Leona said smugly. I really wanted to punch her in the face. Leona did a spin for seemingly no reason whatsoever, making her skirt flutter up a bit.

“Let the game begin, then. In the end, will you be able to find the time and place where I perform the ritual? The only hint you have is... it happens between now and that party. That, and it’s somewhere in Daide! Aaah, what a hopeless situation! But surely, if you just keep looping, you’ll find it one day. Don’t worry, as long as you don’t give up, victory is guaranteed!” Leona said, laughing with amusement. “I’m looking forward to you keeping your promise to be my pet... {Teleportation}.”

With that, Leona vanished.

＊ ＊ ＊

“So yeah, we’re fighting Leona now,” I said, explaining the circumstances to Rokuko and the others after returning to the inn, following barely having made it back to the group before dungeon drills ended.

“I never thought you’d make such a pointless, risky gamble, Keima... Was she mind-controlling you or something?” Rokuko asked.

“No way, girl. Master’s always been like this, y’know? If someone threatened you, he’d even punch the crap out of a god. The only thing controlling him here is love,” Ichika said.

“Oh, um, r-really? I see,” Rokuko said, blushing as Ichika elbowed her. Now that I thought about it, why had I made this challenge without even thinking about it for a second...? To Leona, no less.

“...N-No comment.”

“Silence is confirmation, Masteeer!”

Ichikaaa! Shut up!

“Anyway, how are we going to find the time and place of the ritual?” Rokuko asked.

“I have an idea for that,” I said, looking at Niku. I had just spent some DP on a bunch of paper, which she had spread out on the floor for me.

“Is this how you wanted them?” she asked.

“Yeah. I want you to... Hold on, {Create Golem}. I want you to stamp the paper with this. Like this,” I said, covering the bottom of the large, paper-sized stamp with ink before pressing it down on the paper. When lifted, the paper below had a grid of lines on it.

“Understood,” Niku said. I handed her the stamp, and Soto shot her hand up.

“Papa, I’ll help, too!”

“Okay, I’ll make another, then. {Create Golem}... Here you go,” I said, handing Soto an identical stamp.

“What even is that? A melon roll stamp?” Rokuko asked.

“It’s just a grid,” I replied. Though lattice grids did look like the surface of melon rolls. “Ichika, put the dates and times into the stamped papers. From tomorrow until the party on the 31st.”

“You got it. One paper per hour, huh? With twenty-four hours, and today being the 13th... That’s over four hundred sheets. Kinda annoying, but I’ll handle it. Just a bit of number punching,” Ichika said, getting to work.

“What are you going to use this for?” Rokuko asked.

“I’ll pair this up with a map, and... have Wataru help. Probably have Emmymephy help, too, since she doesn’t seem to be doing anything.”

“What do you need them for? They’re good for a safe zone, but not for investigating, right?” Rokuko asked, tilting her head. However, Wataru was the key to my plan here.

“Rokuko, take out a map of Daide for me. Even a tourist pamphlet will do.”

“’Kaaay.” Rokuko bought a map with DP. It was the perfect size. I just had to stamp it, and... done.

“Master, what next?” Niku asked.

“Holy cow, that was fast.”

“I hurried. Eheh.”

“Me, too! Eheheheeeh!”

Niku and Soto puffed out their chests with pride. I gave them both congratulatory headpats.

“I’m only on day three, dudes... Niku, give your girl some help. You can start on the 31st and work back.”

“Very well,” Niku said, going over to help Ichika with her tail wagging.

“So, what do you need Wataru’s help with?”

“To do something only he can do, naturally. It’d probably be faster just to show you.”

After waiting for Niku and the others to finish, I asked for Wataru’s help with narrowing down the ceremonial hall and the time it would be taking place.

“Heeey, Wataru, you’re in here, right?”

I pushed into our neighboring room with a map and two ten-sided dice. Rokuko was off getting Emmymephy.

“Yup, come on in. Oh, by the way, Keima. The twins got worried when you wandered off. I made excuses for you, so y’know, you’re welcome, buddy!”

“Thanks, pal. Your efforts were rewarded; I found some pretty important clues.”

“Oh yeah? Wh... Oh, guess I can’t ask. Good grief, to think the day would come that my {Ultra Good Fortune} was this unhelpful...” Wataru sighed. Fear not, my friend. I have good news for you.

“About that. There’s actually something I want your help with. It’s something only you can do, so yeah.”

“Oh? I can be useful? Gladly, then!”

“Yup, yup. Now then... Go ahead and roll these dice for about an entire day.”

“...Er?” Wataru blinked.

“I brought Mephy.”

“I say, what do you need my help with?!”

“Masteeer, we finished the papeeer.”

Emmymephy, Rokuko, Ichika, Niku, and Soto all came in at once, with Niku having the graph paper from before. I spread out the map on the table.

“Thanks for the help, Princess Mephy. I’ll need you to help without knowing why just like before.”

“Done and done!”

I handed the graph paper to Emmymephy. It was a pretty thick stack of 432 sheets of paper; eighteen days’ worth, with each day having twenty-four sheets.

“Er, so, what exactly should I be doing?” Wataru asked.

“I want you to roll these dice. We have a date, time, and a map with a marked grid... If you combine all these elements, each roll of the dice will give you a time and a place. Still with me?”

Wataru nodded.

“This is the important part. I want you to swear this to me. You are not to go to the place at the time marked by the dice if you can help it.”

“Wha?”

“Repeat after me. You are not to go to the place at the time marked by the dice if you can help it. Okay?”

“I-I won’t go to the place at the time marked by the dice if I can help it!”

“Good. Now, I’ll explain while you do it. Roll the dice.”

Wataru rolled the two ten-sided dice a few times. He got a 17 and a 20. 2 over 3. Add +13 for today’s date, and...

“Let’s see here. That’s 8PM on the 30th, and since it’s 2 over 3... That marks the church on the map,” Wataru said.

“Yup. Princess Mephy, note that down. The sheets are separated by hour, make sure not to mix them up.”

“Understood! Ah, I say, I just need to fill in these boxes, correct?”

The sheet of paper was for the 12th’s 8PM. There were as many boxes as there were on the map.

“First, draw a tiny vertical line, followed by three more lines next to it in a row. Then for the fifth line, cross it diagonally,” I said. It was the American way of counting to five with marks.

“Hold on a second. I say, how many times are we doing this?”

“Ideally about ten thousand. The more numbers the better for stats like this.”

“Ten thousand?! I-I say, consider it done! You may trust me! I say!” Emmymephy faltered, but nonetheless stood her ground.

“Er, okay. Well... I guess I really will be rolling dice all day,” Wataru said with a sigh, having agreed to help too quickly. It seemed he understood what I wanted to do here.

Indeed. This was dowsing using his {Ultra Good Fortune}.

In the past, we had used Wataru with a stick to find Rokuko and the others fast. At the time it was predicated on us already knowing the answer, but I had developed it forward to brute force the answer with {Ultra Good Fortune} investigation.

This method would reveal the highly dangerous locations that Wataru needed to avoid at all costs. His {Ultra Good Fortune} would manipulate the dice to land on places he needed to avoid.

I had made the rule “do not go there if you can help it” rather than “do not go there under any circumstances” in order to measure the danger. Not going there under any circumstances would likely lead to it marking places Wataru wouldn’t need to go on the day of anyway.

Leona had said I had a 100% chance of succeeding as long as I didn’t give up, but with this I could narrow down the dangerous places with 99% accuracy. All thanks to Wataru.

“Aaah, I get it. Hence the map and graph paper. Good luck, Mephy,” Rokuko said.

“Rokuko... I say, I’ll do my best!”

“Okay, we’ll be making other plans elsewhere. Good luck, Wataru.”

“...Yeaaah. Oh, Mephy. 22nd, 1PM, 8 over 3.”

Yep, yep, keep on making data. Good luck, Wataru, and also Emmymephy. Heck, I’ll even have Ichika and Niku help out later if you want. All of this is resting on your shoulders.

Anyway, it was time for us to think of a way to block the time-traveling magic itself.

＊ ＊ ＊

“Wouldn’t it be best to just preemptively destroy the place where the ritual can supposedly only be held?” Rokuko asked.

“That might work if she needs some tools. But if it’s just the place that’s important, she could probably use magic to clean up whatever mess we make.”

“Like Core 6 cleaned up the coliseum in an instant? It’s possible. Should we break her tools, then?”

“...Would Leona not be able to just instantly create new ones?” Niku asked.

“The more I hear about this, the more of a pain in the butt it sounds like...” Ichika groaned.

“Papa! What if we stick her in my dungeon and stop time to ruin the schedule she has?!”

“Not a bad idea, but she’ll probably be part of the half that doesn’t freeze, since she’s the God of Chaos and on a level beyond humanity. It’d be faster to just close the {Storage} and cut her off from everything else.”

We were talking things out, but I really couldn’t imagine a single reality in which we beat Leona.

“...Gaaaah! This is going nowhere! At this rate, how about we just smash ourselves against her without a plan and see what happens?! Keima can be a pet for one loop, it’s fine!”

“That’s basically just giving up and accepting a loss... Wait, Rokuko, you wouldn’t mind me being Leona’s pet?”

“I know you’ll come back to me in the end! I have faith!”

This feels odd... Almost like I can’t tell whether she actually has faith in me or not...

“Anyway, Master, you sure Leona isn’t spying on this little meeting, too?” Ichika asked.

“Yeah, pretty sure. Should be safe to say that we’re still in range of Wataru’s {Ultra Good Fortune} right here.”

Ichika cocked her head. “What, she can’t spy on us when Wataru’s around?”

“I’m curious about that myself.”

It didn’t seem like Leona had turned this entire country into her dungeon territory. Daide still belonged to that dead-yet-alive dungeon. And subsequently, Leona generally viewed the loop through Summer’s perspective.

The exceptions would be the day of the dungeon drills, and the night party. Those seemed to be the only days Leona stopped looking through Summer’s eyes, and the only days Wataru could meet Summer. Both this loop and the previous loop pointed to that.

In short, {Ultra Good Fortune} was working to make sure Leona didn’t notice Wataru. It even went so far as to burn down the inn we were staying at to avoid her seeing him. That made it highly likely that Leona didn’t even know he was here, and that we could avoid her just by sticking close to Wataru.

“In short, we’re fine as long as Summer or Leona herself aren’t here. I’m guessing the results of Wataru’s dowsing will end up showing where Leona and Summer are.”

“Huh, so she can’t mess with him if she doesn’t even know he exists... {Ultra Good Fortune} is some pretty scary stuff,” Ichika muttered. In retrospect, the thought of mentioning Wataru to Leona hadn’t even occurred to me. That was probably {Ultra Good Fortune}’s influence, too.

“In short, it should be a safe bet Leona doesn’t know Wataru’s here. Or like, if she did, we wouldn’t need to do this guessing game, and we could just find her through luck. She probably sees him as a generic bodyguard at best.”

“So basically, he’s her blind spot,” Ichika concluded.

“Yup. And therein lies our chance for victory.”

But if you flipped that around, you could say we had no chance of victory if we didn’t exploit this. And in turn, our greatest chance of winning this was in the first loop, where Leona had her guard down and didn’t expect us to know where the ritual hall was. We needed to prepare as best we could before challenging her.

“But still, we’re fighting Leona, right? We’ll have to tackle this like we need to kill a god if we want to win,” Rokuko said.

“Yeaaah. She is the God of Chaos, so.”

“Papa. The God of Chaos is a god that bends even time and has all power in the palm of their hand, right? I learned about it in theology class!” Soto exclaimed.

Theology, huh? Elementary students are learning theology?

That was when Niku, who had been deep in thought, suddenly looked up and lifted her hand. “Master. We have only one chance of victory.”

“You have an idea?”

“Yes—our only hope is a surprise attack from the front.”

Okay, you lost me. Attacking from the front so you don’t get noticed? That seems contradictory.

From there, we continued our heated debate. It was certainly heated, but we couldn’t come up with any plans which guaranteed victory. In the end, I just decided to try them all, from best to worst. Worst case scenario, I would just loop.

...And Wataru’s gonna be working his butt off. First comes figuring out the time and place for the ritual.

# Leona’s Perspective

And so it became May 30th, the day before the night party. To reveal the answer in advance, this was the day where the ritual was held.

From what Leona had seen through Summer’s perspective, Keima seemingly hadn’t been able to find her, and so she stopped worrying about him. And now, she was in the ritual hall. Or not, actually. She was in the basement of the Beddhist church, which had a soft red carpet for resting her knees on when praying.

Leona was offering a prayer in this room, where she knelt alone. Just who would Leona the God of Chaos pray to? Was she perhaps just thinking of what to eat for dinner that night? These were questions none had the answer to. Perhaps she was looking through the eyes of her subordinates to enjoy the outside world.

“Lady Leona. May I have a moment?” came a voice. The door opened, and Toi approached Leona.

“Oh? You mustn’t leave your post, Toi.”

“My apologies, Lady Leona. But I have a request for you, if I may,” Toi said, with a deadly serious expression.

“A request...? Ahaha, certainly. Ask for anything you like.”

“I would like to participate in the ritual as well. Seeing Keima has made me interested in learning what kind of ritual it is, exactly.”

“Oh my, how rare. However, I can’t tell you anything about the ritual,” Leona said with a laugh. “It wouldn’t be fun if I just told you, know? You may search for the ritual hall yourself, I won’t stop you.”

“...Isn’t there anything I can do?”

“Nope, nooope.” Leona patted Toi’s head. “Still, to think you would come ask me that yourself. Honestly, how did you even find me here? I don’t believe I told you about this place.”

“Well. I simply asked for a black-haired, red-eyed nun. They told me without any difficulty. And this room was unlocked.”

“Oh, really now? Well, I suppose I wasn’t particularly trying to hide that I was here, at least. What better place to hide a nun than a church, as they say.” Leona brought her face closer to Toi’s flat, expressionless face.

A sharp slap ran out. Leona had slapped away a knife thrust toward her neck. Toi dropped her silver knife onto the red carpet, her hand numb from the blow.

“My my, that’s a bit much for a prank... Don’t you think so, Niku?”

“Tch... You saw through it,” Toi... or rather, Niku said, clicking her tongue.

“I mean, obviously. Did you think I wouldn’t?”

The Toi that Leona knew wouldn’t leave her post. She wouldn’t make requests, either. After all, a toy did not need such independent thoughts. Leona knew she had raised her better. Though if Toi actually had been interested somehow, she would have been willing to bring her to the ritual.

“And so here we are, alone together again. Could you be attempting to seduce me, perhaps?”

“...I won’t lose this time,” Niku said, pulling out a magic knife from her {Storage}. She was trembling just a bit.

“You’re so lively it’s adorable. By the way, have you grown at all since the last time I saw you?” Leona asked with a bright smile. Niku had indeed not grown in the least since the day Leona kidnapped her. Her small frame made it easy to slip into futons, but it also troubled her, since it meant she had a shorter reach and less strength than she would have liked as Keima’s blade.

“...Did you do something to me?” Niku asked.

“I mean, if a loli grows up, she’s not a loli anymore. I made sure you could stay a cute, adorable loli forever, for your sake. Keima is still showering you with love, no?”

“Yes, thanks to... you...!” Niku grunted, swinging with all of her hate. The speed of her attack seemed fast even to Leona. However, it was something like a baseball she was ready to catch with a mitt. It wouldn’t do much damage if it did hit, but it would hurt a bit, so she dodged it anyway.

“That’s my grandchild for you. That would have chopped off just about anyone’s head. But too bad, you’re fighting me.”

“You could dodge that?”

“Again, did you think I couldn’t? A weak attack like that would never hit me, obviously.” Leona raised her right hand and produced an unremarkable bronze sword out of thin air. It was a cheap-looking sword that clearly lacked any magical enchantments whatsoever. The blade was worn, too, and didn’t seem capable of cutting anything.

“I considered using a random stick for fun, but I’ll be nice and use a sword.”

“I will destroy that smug face of yours.”

“Do you think you can?”

Leona lazily swung her sword down. Niku jumped to the side, and the wall behind her ruptured as an invisible force shattered the stone.

“So even that was easy for you to dodge, hm? You really are my grandchild.”

“...The quality of your weapon means nothing, then?”

“I have a pretty high attack stat. Ahahaha.” Leona gave yet more lazy swings, this time vertically, horizontally, and diagonally. With each swing of the bronze sword, Niku dodged, and the wall behind her was carved with a permanent wound.

But Niku was steadily closing the distance between them as she dodged. Seeing that, Leona clenched her left hand, and lifted it up to chest height.

“Flick!”

“Ngh!”

The instant Leona opened her hand, Niku’s head shot up as an invisible finger flicked her forehead. The force of the blow jerked her head back and froze her movements. Leona used that opening to swing her sword. Niku narrowly managed to swallow the pain and leap to the side, avoiding the invisible slash.

“With that posture, you won’t be able to dodge the next blow, just saying.”

“Ngh?!” Niku prepared herself to be hit. And yet, the blow never came.

“Why...?”

“I mean, you’re Keima’s dakimakura, no? He’d get mad if I just up and broke you. Ahaha, but don’t worry. Even if I do kill you by accident, I can just fix you, so don’t hold back. I still perfectly remember the body composition of the Toi series, and worst case scenario, I can revive you from your soul. Oh, but with that in mind, maybe I don’t need to hold back at all?”

“...I won’t hold back, either.”

“Oh my. That makes it sound like you weren’t going all out before now. What, will you show me how far you’ve grown?”

“Shoot forth, ice, and pierce mine enemies—{Ice Bolt}!”

“Lame, {Ice Bolt}.”

Leona instantly blocked Niku’s chanted magic with a spell of her own, only she didn’t need to chant. It wasn’t even a special trick, as far as Leona was concerned. She could have even gone completely chantless and cut the spell name if she wanted to.

“Don’t tell me using magic is you going all out. Your magic stats aren’t anything special, even if they are better than an average person’s. That’s why you’re a failure without even a serial number... Though it looks like your physical stats at least meet the par I set.”

“Shoot forth, ice, and pierce mine enemies—{Ice Bolt}!”

“Again... Wait, where are you even shooting those?”

“Shoot forth, ice, and pierce mine enemies—{Ice Bo—!”

“Whoa?! Careful now.”

Leona blocked Niku’s slash and punched her, sending her flying. She had leapt into an attack midway through her third chant. That ended the chant and stopped the spell from firing, but that had caught Leona off guard just enough for her to instinctively shoot out her left fist and punch Niku’s stomach.

“Guh...!” Niku slammed against the wall with a loud thunk. Leona blinked, then began preparing Restoration magic.

“Not bad. You made me actually throw a hard punch... Oh?”

However, Niku was unscathed. An attack that should have burst every one of her internal organs hardly felt like it did anything.

“That equipment... The Divine Quilt, I see. Where did you get that, I wonder? You sure are being treated well.”

“Cough...! Yes, Rokuko lent it to me. Ngh, cough!”

It was the Divine Quilt that had been made by the God of Darkness. Niku had slipped it under her clothes to defend from outside attacks. However, Leona’s attack had pierced through it and dealt some damage regardless.

“.........”

“You seem confused, though it is hard to tell. Well, you see, that’s just a normal quilt to a god. Our divine attacks will go through it a bit. If not, nobody could have peeled off the sleeping creator god’s blankets.”

“...That is a sin in Beddhism, is it not?”

“It is, I suppose. But my main religion is the Church of Chaos, so it doesn’t matter. Its god says to just do whatever you want, and why, I’m that god!”

Leona threw her sword. Niku dodged it by the skin of her teeth. However, the sword twisted to pierce the ceiling, at which point it dropped lightning that made the stone floor explode. Niku was knocked back within the quilt’s protection, before eventually hitting the ground and rolling to a stop.

“Did a god’s lightning stun you? Ahaha. I wonder if I should go calling myself the God of Lightning, too.”

It was magical lightning that defied the laws of physics. Niku was stunned and unable to move. Her being undamaged was either thanks to the Divine Quilt, or Leona holding back.

“Now, what’s your next move? That stonewall quilt of yours doesn’t seem to be doing very much.”

“...Ngh!”

Leona cast Restoration magic to unstun Niku. It was harmless, and thus slipped through the defenses to heal her. And then, immediately after, Niku dashed out of the room without hesitating for a moment.

“...Hm. Well, whatever.”

Leona decided to just let her shamelessly run away. She could sense that Niku had left the church.

“I surely hope she isn’t thinking she can just tail me from here,” Leona mused. She, naturally, had {Teleportation}. There was no need for her to go outside or walk to her destination. Leona wouldn’t make it that easy for at least another ten or twenty loops.

Still, if they had managed to find her location in the church on the first loop, she probably wouldn’t need to lessen the difficulty for them to find the actual location on their own in a few more loops. With that in mind, Leona first used {Teleportation} to a completely random location before using it again to her actual destination.

And with that, she arrived at the ritual hall.

It was a room made of stone about the size of a gymnasium; in truth, it was a magic laboratory within the castle of Daide, the symbol of Daide as a whole. Tindalos, the fake old commander of the mage corps, did his magical research here as he pleased. The floor tiles had magic circles engraved in them to improve their magical resistance, and were thus immensely resistant to magical effects from within. Naturally, the stones were strong on their own as well, and physical blows would have to be pretty strong to scratch them. The idea was that no matter what happened inside it, the outside wouldn’t know.

Leona had selected this room as the ritual hall simply so nobody would bother her. Honestly, it was too obvious of a location to really be considered hidden, and no one could be blamed for thinking she had just been lazy. But she hadn’t been planning to hide it in the first place. She only made it a secret because Keima wanted to stop the loop and antagonizing him was funny. That was it.

As far as she was concerned, he would probably guess it was here if he had a good instinct for these kinds of things. Though he would have to learn the room existed in the first place before he could do that.

“...Hm?”

Leona suddenly sensed something vaguely off. She stopped walking, and took a half step to the left.

Instantly, a beam of light shot through where Leona had been from behind. The aim was perfect, and judging by the pulsing mana discharged left in the air, it was pretty strong—enough to vaporize a normal person in an instant. If that had hit her head-on, even Leona would have become breathless from the pain.

The first shot was followed by beam after beam of follow-up attacks. Each was as strong as the first one had been, and Leona didn’t recognize the spell.

“This is...” Leona paused, forming a barrier without a chant. It would only last a few seconds when made so haphazardly, but that was enough time for Leona to turn around, see who was shooting, and beam a smile.

“Good job finding this place, Keima! You have my praise!”

“...That wasn’t enough to take you down, huh? This is gonna be pretty rough.”

There stood Keima, grimacing in sharp contrast to Leona’s grin.

# Keima’s Perspective (5/14, The First Day of the Investigation)

“Look at the 30th. The danger suddenly shifts to the castle,” I said, predicting the location of the ritual hall based on the data Wataru formed of where he shouldn’t go (after 15,000 rolls).

There were two threads that remained strong and consistent through the data: Leona and Summer. One thread started where Summer left in the morning and returned there later, while the other generally stayed within the Beddhist church at all times. It was easy to guess that was Leona.

On top of that, on the night before the party, Leona’s thread suddenly disappeared and moved to the castle for a few hours.

Thus, I prepared new maps to iron things out further: blown-up maps of the castle and the church. They were as detailed as I could get them, but I got the feeling we’d only need three thousand rolls to narrow things down.

I went to Wataru’s room, where I found him and Emmymephy slumped on the floor like good friends who had just formed a deep bond through adversity.

“Ngh, I say, I cannot believe that took fifteen thousand rolls. I never want to see dice again...”

“Same, I never thought rolling dice would be such hard labor... It probably wouldn’t have taken us days to finish if you hadn’t ironed out the process to only take three seconds each time, Princess Mephy.”

“Sorry about that, you two! Anyway, I want more data on the church and castle. I’ve split them into fifteen sections for you!” I said. The two of them shot me angry glares that seemed to say, “Bitch, really?”

“Don’t worry, we have the date and time ironed out already. You’ll only need to do about three thousand rolls.”

“...Why is it, Princess Mephy, that I feel saved by that rather than insulted?”

“I say, what a coincidence, Wataru. I was just feeling the same thing... Wait, what?! What is this map?! Castle blueprints are highly guarded state secrets!”

I had bought a bird with DP, had it fly up, and then drew the maps myself while looking at the footage. Though... On second thought, couldn’t I have just drawn the contours of the castle? The map I’m giving them doesn’t need to be that detailed... Oh well, this might help {Ultra Good Fortune} give more accurate results, so it’s fine.

“Uh... I know a guy. It wasn’t easy to get, so I’m counting on you both to make use of it.”

“Ngh, fine. I say, Wataru, let’s get this done!”

“Right. Let’s finish this!”

...And yeah, thanks to Wataru and Emmymephy’s efforts, I ended up narrowing Leona’s location down to how many meters above ground she was at five minute intervals. They had my endless gratitude.

# Leona’s Perspective (5/30, The Day Before the Party)

Leona licked her lips, like a carnivore before her prey. She was like an animal when it came to Keima.

“I didn’t feel an ounce of killing intent before that attack. You might be better suited to being an assassin than you think.”

“Don’t be dumb, I didn’t have killing intent because I didn’t think for a second that kind of attack would kill you. And I was right, wasn’t I?”

“My, my! You have so much trust in me!” Leona exclaimed, rejoicing to a blatantly fake degree. She was teasing him.

“Why’d you bother dodging? At least let one hit you.”

“Mm. I just kind of felt like it?” Leona suggested. There was no other answer, since indeed, she had just kind of felt like dodging. “Anyway, how did you find this place? For you to have snuck into the castle... You must not just be guessing here.”

“Let’s call that a business secret. Men with a lot of secrets are more cool and attractive, no?”

“My, my, my. Very well, I won’t ask, then. What’s important is the fact that you’re here, Keima. That said... I have a ritual to perform. Sorry, but I don’t have time to play with you.”

“Stopping that is... why I’m here.”

“Of course. If you’ll give me a moment, I’ll summon some back up. {Call Slave},” Leona chanted, and a magic circle appeared beside her. Above it appeared a dog-eared, brown-skinned, loli maid... Toi.

“I have answered your summons, Lady Leona. Toi Tindalos has arrived, at your service,” Toi said with a bow.

“Toi. I am going to perform the ritual; stop him. You can buy that much time, no?”

“You may count on me. I am your perfect toy.” Toi puffed out her chest with pride at being entrusted with work. Keima couldn’t deny that even that felt identical to Niku.

“...Just you, huh? Do you think you can beat me on your own?”

“Say that after you win, not before. Rather, I am the one who must question whether you think you can beat me on your own. Recall that I am Chaos’s toy. Unlike your beloved failure, I am perfect and complete.”

“Nah. Naturally, I’ve got backup,” Keima said, opening his {Storage}. He then took out a dog-headed halfling from it... a Kobold. It had iron swords in both hands.

“A mob monster?”

“Yup. This one feels the closest. Alright... I’ll leave Toi to you.”

“Woof. (Understood.)”

Toi found that phrasing curious. Closest to what?

An instant later, the Kobold lunged, attacking Toi without saying anything. She swung her iron swords in a tight posture.

“Ngh...! You’re fairly fast!”

The clinking of metal filled the air. Toi blocked both swords with combat knives she got from seemingly nowhere. She had managed to block the swings thanks to being Toi, but if this Kobold showed up in a normal dungeon, it would have instantly killed just about any C-Rank adventurer. It was clearly far above the level of a normal mob monster.

“Let us see how well you do when attacked, mob!”

Toi swung her combat knives. The clanking of metal hitting metal filled the air. The Kobold deftly blocked each strike with its iron blades, sending sparks flying through the air. Clink, clink, clink! Right, left, left, down, up. The combat knives flew at speeds beyond human comprehension, but the Kobold blocked every swing.

“Hm? This Kobold is oddly resilient.”

“Woof. (So you are Toi, then?)”

“...Yes? What of it?”

Leona and Keima could understand the dog’s barking with their translation skill. Toi, meanwhile, had a reasonable grasp of dog language. Since she, too, was a dog beastkin.

“Woof. (I am Niku.)”

“Hmmm...? I see. So you are the failure. Looking quite pathetic, you are.” Toi launched an especially hard swing, and the Kobold—Niku—blocked it easily. Indeed. The Kobold was being possessed by Niku, and manipulated from afar.

“Niku, you take care of her. I’ll stop Leona.”

“Woof. (Roger.)”

“You would abandon the body you received from Lady Leona to inhabit that of a monster? Why would you choose such a frail body on purpose...? It boggles the mind. But I suppose it will be dead soon enough. Go, {Lightning Blade}.”

Lightning shot through Toi’s knife. It was a blade skill for enchanting a weapon with electricity. Being hit with that stunned the Kobold and created an opening. Toi did not miss this.

“I... win?!”

—But Toi’s combat knife was blocked by another Kobold.

“Oh, Toi. I forgot to mention, but since Kobolds are mob monsters, I’ve got tons of them. Have fun.”

Keima had taken out extra Kobolds from {Storage}. As the ten Kobolds surrounded her, Toi’s mouth twitched just a bit.

# Keima’s Perspective

I surrounded Toi with Kobolds while Niku was distracting her. And so...

“Woof? (Oh, did you think it was me?)”

“Woof. (Too bad, this one was me; Niku.)”

“Aaah, so confusing! How dare you?! You’re just a failure!”

“Woof. (You must be a true embarrassment if even a failure is making you struggle this much.)”

“Shut up! Just die!”

However, Niku (a Kobold) blocked the knife. She held her ground with the blade pushing her back, then attacked with another Kobold. Toi dodged, attacked, then got attacked by yet another Kobold.

“Woof. (This time, this one is me.)”

“Hmph, not bad, failure! To think you would make up for weakness with numbers!”

Niku attacked Toi while swapping through the Kobolds. Toi was forced to turn while fighting, and Niku used that opportunity to attack with different Kobolds from both sides. Only one of them had Niku inside.

“Woof. (You’re a small-fry pup that can’t even beat Kobolds.)”

“How dare you! You are such a failure you didn’t even manage to stay in the trash properly!”

“Woof woof. (Small-fry pup, sore loser, all bark no bite.)”

Indeed, Niku (as the Kobolds) was in such an advantageous position she even had the leeway to taunt Toi. Each Kobold was a small fry individually, far weaker than Toi. They only managed to fight on an almost-equal level once possessed by Niku. But that level was equal only when there was a single one of them. Niku had transformed the throng of Kobolds into a deadly whole by rapidly swapping between them. The strong foe in front of Toi would suddenly appear behind her when she was unable to move. And then they would attack from both sides! It was impossible for Toi to tell which Kobold was Niku. They all looked identical, and even if she distinguished between them, Niku would have swapped between them in the next second.

It was a strategy that exploited her new nature as a Dungeon Master to its fullest!

“Ngh, I thought I would overwhelm you with knives, but it seems I must use area of effect magic instea—”

“Woooooof!”

“Hyah?! Ngh, interrupting my chant with a loud scream! Pathetic! The kind of cowardly strategy I would expect from a failure!”

...Incidentally, not all of the other Kobolds were complete small fry. Ichika and Rokuko were controlling two from Soto’s master room, and while they weren’t on Niku’s level, that still meant there were two extra strong Kobolds in the throng. And even if some got killed, Soto had over a thousand ready to deploy. With a dog beastkin, Niku, as her Master, Soto could summon one Kobold for only 15 DP. Even for the swords, I had gone wild and made her about two thousand swords using {Stone Pyre (Iron)}.

So yeah. Sorry, Toi. This isn’t a one-on-one with Niku, or even a one-on-ten. Seems like you blundered here, huh? Not a chance in hell you win alone.

“Leona, looks like we win this dogfight.”

“Hm. Seems so indeed... Not bad, Keima,” Leona said, smiling. “Still, why do you get on my case for all the things I do when you’re wasting so many Kobolds’ lives? I mean, that’s a very Japanese thing to do, hypocrisy hell yeah, but still.”

“Hm? Eh, well... I only noticed this after Ichika said it, but the truth is, I don’t give a damn what you do.”

“...Oh?”

I didn’t feel any hesitation for exploiting the monsters I made specifically to be exploited. I used Golems for materials all day. With that in mind, it definitely would have been hypocritical for someone like me to criticize Leona.

“We just don’t share tastes, and normally I would just grimace at most after hearing about your bullshit. If you did these things to people I don’t know in places I don’t know about, I wouldn’t care in the least. It wouldn’t have anything to do with me. But once you start playing your games on my territory, things change. That’s all there is to it. After all, I’m a Dungeon Master. What’s odd about a Dungeon Master protecting their territory?”

Leona rubbed her chin, nodding. “I see... Guess I can’t blame you, then!”

“Right? If you’re saying we should all do what we want, as the God of Chaos no less, I can do whatever I want here, yeah?”

“Yup, yup. Of course! The world is a playground. We’re free to do whatever we want!”

“...So yeah. Sorry, but I’m gonna stop your oh-so-fun looping here. Not for any grand reason; it’s just in my way.”

“Go ahead, feel free. But of course, I’m also free to fight back!” Leona exclaimed, a flood of differently sized magic circles appearing with her at their center. “Allow me to explain. Some of these magic circles are dummies, some are for offensive spells, but... Indeed, this is the Ultra magic, the time-traveling {Load}. Think you can stop it?”

In an instant, a wave of missiles launched from the endless magic circles, resulting in what looked entirely like a bullet hell shooting game. It was exactly the kind of flashy fireworks one would want to signal the start of a fight.

“Oh, you are wearing the Divine Quilt, right? You’ll likely survive just barely, then. Maybe.”

“Uh.”

I had heard about it from Niku, but apparently Leona’s attacks were capable of slipping through the Divine Quilt. Curse you, Chaos. Can’t you hold back just a little?

# Leona’s Perspective

“{Summon Gargoyle}!”

Keima avoided the roaring fire, ice bullets, and electricity beams Leona shot from her tiny magic circles by summoning Gargoyles to use as shields. Naturally, spells launched with the intent of hitting the Divine Quilt were too much for mere stone to bear, and each spell destroyed a group of Gargoyles. Also, judging by how he was summoning multiple Gargoyles from each {Summon Gargoyle}, Leona deduced he was likely multi-chanting.

“Gotten better, haven’t we?”

“Don’t have time to talk! Eat shit!”

Keima didn’t just guard; he shot torrents of light toward her as well. The light erased a magic circle that could be considered a Fireball Spawner. Leona rewrote it... Apparently his spell erased magic circles.

“I’m not familiar with that spell. Is it from the God of Light...? Where did you find it?”

“Ahahaha, that’s a business secret!”

As far as she could tell, it was a basic and therefore mana-efficient spell that didn’t require much in the way of incantations. She could have used {Ultra Identification} to research it if she heard the chant or spell name, but Keima made sure to cast these alone in silence. That said, it was likely a spell without an element. One where you caused your mana to go on a rampage and then throw it in the general direction of where you wanted to cause chaos. If so, it was on the verge of not even being a spell at all.

“...Is that one of the God of Light’s secret weapons? Good grief, you sure are pushing yourself,” Leona muttered. The rampaging mana would forcibly activate any magic circle it touched, and if they were half made nothing would happen except a breakdown of said magic circle. Leona guarded the attacks with barriers, taking care to make sure it hit any circle except the {Load} circle.

“{Summon Gargoyle}, then {Stone Pyre}!” Keima chanted, stating nothing more than the spell name. Stone pyres shot out of the ground of the ritual hall. She swung her hands, breaking them down while casting more spells.

“{Stone Pyre}! {Stone Pyre}! {Summon Gargoyle}!”

These weren’t fake magic circles like the ones she had tricked Aidy with before. They could be repaired if damaged slightly, but the more he interfered with the circles, the slower they took to finish.

“...Hm, this is a bit more troublesome than I expected,” Leona mused. She deflected the pyres with chantless barriers, and smashed the Gargoyles with bullets of air.

The troublesome thing was that the pyres came from places Keima wasn’t touching directly, and that even included them shooting out of the Gargoyles’ heads. That was surprising enough to actually catch her off guard. The only saving grace was that they hadn’t shot out of their crotches.

“...I see, you’re activating long-form spells through the Gargoyles,” Leona said. She had figured it out after seeing it enough times. {Stone Pyre} was only supposed to activate on ground within reaching range, but by slowing the activation down and having Gargoyles carry the spell Keima could activate it from further away. On top of that, he could stretch out the flow of mana to connect it with the floor.

“You truly are clever, Keima.”

Leona was impressed, and praise from the God of Chaos wasn’t something to take lightly. He should be proud. Even if he hadn’t been able to make her move a single step.

“Still, you sure like to use Earth magic, don’t you?”

“Yeah, ’cause it leaves behind wreckage. It’s easier to dodge with this stuff around,” Keima said. But Leona saw his actual goal.

“You’re trying to destroy the ritual hall?”

Keima’s magic had already destroyed quite a few of the magic-resistant stone tiles. The beam of light in particular was deadly. It demolished walls and gouged out the floor. Even the magic-resistant magic circles were broken down and scattered mercilessly.

He was even stealthily putting the stone tiles into his {Storage}.

“So you noticed, huh?”

“Yup. Sorry, but it’s all pointless. The magic circles on the ground don’t have anything to do with the ceremony. {Save and Load} is purely within my hands.”

“...So, what about the stone tiles with the magic circles on them?”

“Those are just for increasing magic resistance. They’re useful to have in labs, since they can block minor magic damage completely.”

“So there’s not much point bringing them back, huh?” Keima said jokingly, and Leona broke into a smile without thinking.

“...{Pitfall}.”

At Keima’s word, a hole opened up beneath Leona’s feet. But she didn’t fall. It was like she was standing on an invisible floor.

“Too bad, I formed a barrier. I saw the mana crawling toward my feet, so... Sorry for not falling, hmm?”

“C’mon, it’s a pitfall. How can you not fall in it? You’re a human.”

“Um. I’m a god, remember?”

Keima furrowed his brows, as if only just remembering that fact.

“Woof! (Master.)”

And then came a voice, or rather, a bark that changed the battle. A Kobold ran up to Keima.

“Heya, Niku. Where’s Toi?”

“Woof. (I tied her up over there.)” The Kobold pointed to where Toi was bound up and being put into {Storage} by a throng of Kobolds.

“Let... go of me, you inferior beast! Do you think a failure has the right to do this to me?!”

“Woooof. (So that makes you a weak, weak pup even lesser than a beast.)”

“Ngggh...! O red star, I call u—nggh!”

“Woof. (No magic chanting.)”

One couldn’t use magic with their mouth blocked. The mana she had been pouring into the spell dissipated. It was all Toi could do to groan in frustration.

“Ahaha, incredible. To think mere Kobolds could be used so effectively. I might have to apologize for calling you a failure,” Leona said.

“Woof! (You’re next!)” barked the Niku-Kobold while dodging fireballs. She seemed to be getting close, so Leona activated {Earth Bind} without a chant. The Kobold was stuck in place, then had its head blown off. The next Niku-Kobold approached.

“...{Call Slave},” Leona chanted while blocking their magic attacks, causing Toi to disappear from between the Kobolds and reappear by Leona. The Kobolds surged to recapture her, but Leona formed a barrier to stop them.

“...F-Forgive me, Lady Leona. They captured me by surprise.”

Toi bowed her head almost to the ground. Even her maid outfit was in tatters, covered in bite wounds from the Kobolds.

“Stop, stop. I don’t care,” Leona said, snapping her fingers to heal Toi. But her face was emotionless, and her eyes had a look of bored disappointment. It was the gaze of someone looking at a useless toy. Of disappointment.

“Th-Thank you very much, Lady Leona,” Toi said, despite shaking and paling at the sight of Leona’s expression. When Leona sighed, she jerked, and her tail drooped.

“...Seems like Niku was better than you. If this were the tortoise and the hare, you’d be the hare. The hare loses, you know. You’re a dog, but a hare. How about you try hopping, huh?”

“Y... Yes. Hop, hop, hop!”

Toi put her fingers behind her head like a rabbit and tried hopping a bit. She was being forced to imitate a rabbit while magic attacks rained down on Keima’s group.

“Look like you’re having more fun!”

“Hop! Hop! Eheheh, eheheheh!”

Toi forced a smile and hopped like a rabbit while tears of frustration streamed from the corners of her eyes. Her beloved master was forcing her to do this while holding off Keima with a single spare hand. She really was useless. She really wasn’t needed, she realized, which made the tears keep flowing.

“Why are you crying? This is fun. Aren’t you having fun?”

“Eehehe, yes, so much fun! Thank you for playing with me, hop!”

She hated being useless. She hated that she had to act like a rabbit, despite being a dog. But if she was told to have fun, she would. She was happy to be used as a toy, like her namesake. A mix of emotions stormed within Toi’s heart.

“Aah, that’s good. That’s the expression. So cute, it sends shivers down my spine. Mm. In honor of that expression, I’ll give you one more chance.”

“Ah...! Y-Yes, th-this time for sure, this time for sure I’ll be useful! I will!” Toi exclaimed, bowing her head once again.

“Thanks for waiting, Keima.”

“I’m not waiting, and you killed three platoons of Kobolds without even looking, y’know. Could you at least hold back when talking to someone?”

“Aaah, sorry. My body just kind of moved on its own while my mind was elsewhere. Anyway... Would you mind playing with Toi again? It’s almost time for the main part of the magic. Oh, right. And let me add this into the fray... {Call Pet}.” A sizable magic circle appeared over Toi’s head.

“Wha?” Toi said, which was all she got out before a black liquid began raining down on her. “L-Lady Leona?! Buhwuhguh!”

“Master, it’s been so long! Hm? What’s with this dog? Don’t tell me, it’s another pet!”

The black liquid jiggled, swallowing Toi up. Toi flailed within it.

“Hiii, it really has been a while. But that’s technically my granddaughter, Toi.”

“Granddaughter! Master’s granddaughter! Sorry!”

The black liquid spat Toi out, and morphed into the shape of a wolf.

And that was Leona’s pet slime—Rin.

# Keima’s Perspective

{Call Pet}. Judging by the name, it was a spell for summoning one’s pet. And what appeared was a black Slime. I remembered it. It was the slime that I had punished with a load of salt after it messed with our dungeon.

“...Rin?”

“Huh? Who’re you?”

It was unmistakably the deadly Slime that had occupied our dungeon for a bit.

“Oh my, Keima, you know my cute little Rin?” Leona asked, stroking Rin’s head. Rin leaned against her, practically purring with delight. To think she was the master... the super strong master that Rin had talked about.

I mean, makes sense they’d call her strong. She’s friggin’ Chaos.

“I get it now. They’re a Slime, so you got Rin from Slarin, the Dra*on Qu*st Slime. Very clever.”

“I know, right?! They used to be so round and cute back in the day. In these kinds of games, there’s a certain beauty to raising a Slime to be your strongest monster ally, no? So I mixed things up with them, evolved them, and then... they got this strong!” Leona exclaimed, filled with pride.

“I see... Well, I know how you feel. There definitely is beauty in raising Slimes.”

“Exactly. I knew you would understand.”

Leona was proud. Rin was self-assured. Toi was frustrated.

“Hyah.”

I shot {Element Bursts} from both hands in a surprise attack, hoping to hit Leona and Rin unaware. Leona flicked hers aside, and Rin exploded on contact. The black juices scattered, then gathered back together to form a wolf again.

Tch, no damage, huh?

“Eugh, guh, guuuh... Where did that come from?! You trying to kill me?!”

“Wait, it actually did damage?”

Rin bared their teeth, growling. But they left it at that, since they didn’t have orders from Leona to attack.

“There there, good pet, Rin. Go and help Toi now. Okay?”

“Right! I’ll help your grand-pup! Hey, grand-pup!”

“...My name is Toi. Now, let us go! I cannot shame myself any further... Help me, black Slime! We shall defeat them together!”

Toi and Rin began their charge together. A Niku-Kobold blocked Toi’s attack, but Rin chopped its head right off.

“I was just getting hungry! And I just got blown up, so this is perfect. Nom nom nom.”

“Hey! Don’t eat, fight, Slime!”

“Healing, food, comes first! Eating to fight is common sense! Also, I’ll help after eating!”

Rin just ignored the next Niku-Kobold to eat the first Kobold’s corpse. They were as much of a glutton as ever. Which reminded me of something...

“Hey, Rin, sorry about that. Let me make it up with this.”

“Mm?”

I took out a pure-white plate I bought with DP.

“Th-That’s! The tasty thing...! I can have it?!”

“Yeah. Consider it an apology from me. By the way, you promised to let anyone who offers you white plates go, right? Are you gonna break your promise?”

“Ngh! I, I...”

Rin froze, debating whether to take the white plate or not. I wiggled it around, and their face followed it back and forth.

“Catch...!”

“Wooooof!”

I threw it like a Frisbee, and Rin ran off to chase it. Toi, now alone, watched them go with a dropped jaw.

“...Niku-Kobold, go!”

“Woof. (Yes.)”

“Um? Um?”

With Rin having left to go eat the plate, Toi was surrounded by twenty Kobolds, who captured her much more efficiently than before.

“YOU STUPID SLIIIIIIME!”

Toi raged as she was carried into {Storage} by the Kobolds. I was starting to feel a little bad for her.

Rin came back after finishing eating.

“Overlooking you, and saving grand-pup, are two different things! There’s no... problem...! Mm? Where did... grand-pup... go?”

“I just brought her inside. You better hurry if you want to help her.”

“What?! She left me behind?! Just wait!”

With that, Rin jumped into {Storage} on their own. I... closed {Storage}. Time inside of it stopped. I wasn’t sure if Rin counted as a divine being since they were Leona’s pet, but they wouldn’t be able to leave {Storage} regardless. Soto could just make a room for them and lock them inside later.

“...Alright. Leona, I’ve taken out your pawns!”

“Sigh... I suppose they were just a slime in the end.”

Leona, having seen all that from start to finish, naturally gave me an exasperated look.

# Leona’s Perspective

Rin was unexpectedly useless... or rather, Keima already knew exactly how to control them, so they had been disposed of far faster than planned. Leona had messed up by purposely training them wrong as a joke, since they were just so cute when they were dumb.

Leona sighed, while blocking Keima’s next wave of attacks with a barrier. How many times had she sighed already? As the boss of this operation, incompetent lackeys were technically her responsibility.

“I see I need to train Rin’s smarts a bit more. It’s my fault for letting them wander around for the past some years. Toi is a waste of space as well. She doesn’t have enough creative spirit. I suppose it is a common trap for those with talent...”

Leona could have summoned them both back with magic, but she elected not to. At the very least, she would leave them be for the rest of this loop.

“Oh, do you want Toi, Keima? If you raised Niku that far, surely you could make Toi into something worthwhile, too.”

“Sure, but my fee will be you ending this loop.”

“Woof. (We don’t want her.)”

“Oh right, that was what we were fighting about. That’s another issue entirely,” Leona said, joking. “But, well... This was all an act. I’ll just be satisfied with the fact they bought a little time. In truth, I already finished by the time I summoned Rin.”

“...What?”

Indeed. Leona had already formed the necessary magic circle for the ritual. The magic circles swirling around her disappeared one by one. All that was left was activating {Load}, and then closing it in a time-stopping barrier. The loop would occur once the barrier was broken.

“Seriously?”

“Seriously. Despite how it may look, I take things pretty seriously and always arrive to appointments early. I activated my evil plan five minutes ago. It’s like basic stuff for me.”

“Hyaaah!” Keima shot out an explosion of mana in something of a surprise attack. The air around Keima contorted, and countless beams of light shot towards Leona and the magic circle. They hit, and exploded.

“Aha♪! Aren’t you a little ashamed about attempting surprise attacks like this?”

However, Leona had already formed a barrier—and not a hasty one, but a strong one made over a lengthy period of time. It blocked even a Gatling gun—esque barrage of blows. There was nothing the Niku-Kobold could do.

“Ngh, you really blocked it?! C’mon, this is all the firepower I’ve got!”

“Honestly, you’re the scary one here, Keima. That destroyed half of my thousand-layer barrier in just a few seconds.”

It had only been a few years since Keima came to this world as a Hero. And yet, his power was already reaching that of Leona, who had spent five hundred years researching the world to her heart’s content after abandoning her morals.

“Okay, added another thousand layers.”

“That’s not r... Wait, whoa!”

“Woof! (Master, this is...!)”

She then put a barrier around Keima and the others as well. One that had 131,072 layers. Even Keima would take a lot of time to break through it.

“Just sit quietly with that Kobold and watch.”

That secured her victory. It was hardly any effort at all.

“I ended up taking this a bit seriously, since my pet and grandchild were just that incompetent, but normally I might’ve even let you win here... Oh, do you remember our promise, Keima?” Leona asked, looking over Keima from head to toe while licking her lips.

“The one where I could punch you?”

“Eheheh. That was if you won. But in the next loop, I’ll make you my pet and give you looots of love, don’t worry.”

She prepared the necessary barrier for activating the spell. With that, she just had to cast the time-traveling spell {Load}. No matter how grand of a spell it was, she had already cast it dozens of times. Her body knew it by heart. And she could sense she had enough mana to activate the spell.

Leona knew she had won.

But the spell failed.

“...What?”

Leona blinked with surprise. It failed, and yet the enormous store of mana she had saved for it nonetheless drained out of her... Some of the leaking mana went back to her, recovering her stores slightly.

“Ngh, ah... Why? How?”

Leona panicked a bit. The circle had been perfect. She searched her memories for any possible error, one by one. And then she found it.

“What...?! My rule over time wasn’t strong enough...?”

Indeed. Her authority, her power for controlling time. Her power as a god. It hadn’t been enough, by just the tiniest little bit. It was a slight enough gap that she probably would have been fine if she had cast the spell with all her mana, but she had spent it in the fight, and now that she had lost almost all of it, there was no trying again.

...There just wasn’t enough time to recover that much mana. At this rate, she wouldn’t be able to make it in time for the ritual.

“Hmm... Judging by that reaction, seems like our plan worked, huh?” someone said. Keima.

“Did you do this, Keima?”

“Sorry, Leona, but yeah. It was me.”

Leona looked at Keima in his barrier prison, and saw him smiling with relief.

# Keima’s Perspective

“Sorry, Leona, but yeah. It was me.”

“...What in the world did you do?”

Apparently a plan we had been working on elsewhere had worked. Seemed safe to spill the beans now.

“Honestly, it was a gamble on whether it would work at all. You mentioned you needed the Authority of the gods to make it work, so I gave some of the time power to Beddhism’s god. Remember when you told me about how to kill the gods? ‘Steal their authority,’ I believe you said? Glad to see it actually worked a bit, Chaos.”

“Beddhism’s God? But Beddhism doesn’t have a—”

“Oh, it does. Indeed... The goddess that manipulates time and space, Sototemporarily the God of Time!”

“...!”

Indeed. I had made a god for Beddhism, the religion without a god.

“I believe I had written in the script that Beddhism is a religion by the people, for the people,” Leona said.

“I just had to spread a little myth: when you get in bed, night turns to morning. This is because the God of Time is stealing your time. It’s because of her that it becomes morning without you realizing it.’”

I called her God of Time on purpose to deal with that Authority stuff, but she wasn’t worshiped. She was more like a sprite that would show up in fairy tales.

“When did you spread that myth...?”

“When you weren’t looking. Surprising, huh?”

Indeed. Soto had worked with Wataru to spread news that she was a god born of Beddhism without Leona noticing. And she had actually demonstrated her powers by boldly using her {Storage} dungeon and stopping time, slowing it down, etc.

“Y’know, we used that holy symbol you gave us, too. I can’t believe it actually made people listen to anything we said. Was it brainwashing? It was honestly kind of terrifying.”

The red holy symbol had really done work. It made the Beddhist disciples believe us, spread the news, and speed things along. With the approval of Wataru the Hero, the executor for the Pope of Beddhism.

It was a safe place, but also a place people would gather. We only had two weeks to make it happen, but it was good to see it actually worked. And you know, the fact Leona didn’t hear about it despite us spreading it like wildfire, well...

...It sure was lucky!

We had exploited luck as far as it could possibly go. This was a bad gamble we didn’t even know would work in the first place. But, well, the heavens were on our side!

“It was a myth about a god that steals time. Perfect for stealing your time-controlling powers, don’t you think?”

“Heh, heheheh, hahahahaha! Not bad, not bad at all! That’s right, that’s how you kill gods! Good on you for remembering, Keima!” Leona exclaimed, cackling with joy. “Since I’m locked inside Daide with the loop, Daide is my world right now. It’s only natural my Authority would get stolen if I didn’t doubt my place in the world. Aaah... Good grief. This spell really is way too precise, and needs way too perfect conditions to work. At this point, it would take all I have just to send some words back to a specific point. But the mirror to send those words isn’t even nearby. Ahaha... Now, I can’t even influence the past to change the future. In short...”

Leona paused and faced me. Then, she gave a peaceful smile without any malice, and continued.

“I admit it. I lose.”

In other words, we had won.

“You can sell me, fuck me, or do whatever,” Leona said.

“...Doesn’t that phrase go ‘you can cook me, boil me, or do whatever’?”

That heroine Succubus said the same thing. You taught her that, didn’t you? C’mon.