PROLOGUE

The Hidden God Awakens

Alone now that she’d teleported Arihito’s party to the surface, Ariadne lowered her outstretched hand and wrapped her arms around her chest.

The circuit-like pattern on her body glowed, and a “screen” appeared that displayed the current situation.

“Still functional… There must still be order in this world.”

This order she spoke of was what allowed magic and skills to be used in the Labyrinth Country as well as in the labyrinths themselves.

Why were there entrances to labyrinths in the Labyrinth Country? Why were the dead of other worlds brought here? Ariadne couldn’t remember how much time had passed since she’d been created, and she didn’t have any memories that would give her the answers to those questions.

Such was the natural consequence of having been abandoned.

She was supposed to sleep forever in this room, deep below the earth where no one would ever visit, but then Arihito appeared with the key. It had been taken from her and tossed randomly into the labyrinth, but he had found the hidden stairs that led to her and brought with him the key in order to wake her.

“…For a human to do that…”

It was a miracle. She was vaguely aware of the concept based on the knowledge that all intelligent life shared.

Because she was now giving her protection to their party, she was able to learn from Arihito’s license exactly how long she’d been asleep: 860 years. That’s all the time that had passed since the construction of that miniscape, the place that contained all the labyrinths in which the Hidden Gods slept.

She hadn’t been able to determine whether or not any of the other gods had been awakened. If Arihito and his party had already made a contract with another Hidden God, then…the door to this room would never have opened, and she would have remained asleep. The thought made Ariadne’s chest twinge with a warmish, almost painful feeling. An emotion only those with limited lifespans should feel.

“Arihito… Steadfast rearguard. You who are endowed with such gifts…”

She had encountered Arihito’s spirit when he placed the Activation Key in her. Unlike Ariadne, he wasn’t lonely. But he’d lost his parents before he could even form a cohesive thought. He’d been scarred by the incident ever since, living with the regret that he hadn’t been able to save them. He’d been witness to the cruelty of the world as a mere infant, sitting in the back seat of the car his father had been driving, his mother’s arms still wrapped around him.

“…Is this…water…? Am I…?”

Ariadne noticed something running down her cheek and stopped it with her hand. She couldn’t call the person who created her a “parent,” but even though she kept trying to deny the similarities between her and Arihito’s circumstances, she finally accepted that at the very core, they weren’t really that different.

“If you intend to protect your companions from behind…then I will protect you from here.”

The space around Ariadne warped to reveal a gigantic mechanical arm. She would use her remaining strength to protect Arihito and his party. She decided she wouldn’t sleep until she heard his voice. After all, a god did not need to sleep.