Book 7: Chapter 1 |
Closed Circle
Rejuvenation and Aging
——Seven hours must have pa.s.sed since the start of
the game with the Old Deus.
Sora was currently running through an alley covered
by the darkness of the night.
——There were no stars in the night sky separated by
the squares of concrete.
Droplets of a small rain and rough footsteps were
A handgun was ready in his hands and the approaching
shadow reflected in his eyes——was only the [Enemy].
[————Chh!!]
He clicked his tongue once. Overlaying his sights on
the enemy, he pulled the trigger with machine-like
thinking.
The hammer stroked the detonator, the explosives’
sh.e.l.l casing reacted and detonated——the shock caused
his hand to shake.
The supersonic gas born from the conversion to solid
phase pushed everything out from inside the gun and made
it accelerate——
——The lead blown from the muzzle split the air. The
flash of light uncovered the shadow.
With a process in less than milliseconds, it turned into
a deadly weapon piercing through the dark night——the
lead and the light.
It shot the following shadow with a frightening speed
——hitting the body of the small Warbeast uncovered by
the flash of light.
——Yes, it was at the [body]...... He won’t aim at the
[head].
The firepower of a handgun from such a weird game
couldn’t be trusted. No, even with the handgun that Sora
knew from the old world, the bullet would slip on the
bone with the smallest angle of deviation. That was even
more true when it was the cranium, the toughest bone in
the human body.
Even more so when the [enemy] wasn’t human......
they were Warbeasts and monsters greater than that.
The aim was the triangle made by the jaw and both
chests. It’ll steal the combat capacity no matter where it
hits and, if it hits the center, he can hope damage to the
vital organs——Now, what will a coldly and rationally
fired bullet pursuing the kill will do he wondered.
It teared into the small Warbeast who slipped on the
road with the same speed as when she followed——and
turned into a corpse.
——He killed it. That’s right, he killed it.
This game is really simple, Sora laughed darkly.
————If the traitor isn’t known, then it doesn’t
matter who it is.
Except his little sister, the only one who definitely
won’t betray him...... he can simply kill everyone else.
Remove everyone suspected to be a traitor——this
incredibly simple answer was this game’s
theory
scenario.
Yes, it’s a simple game, Sora covered himself and
smiled bitterly.
Simple——but also a game easily surpa.s.sing the very
hard, with
Inferno Mode
a super degree of difficulty.
That’s because the [enemy] was a bunch of monsters
one couldn’t compete with normally.
Even then, I still can’t lose——he had survived until
now with that stubbornness.
Sora turned his gaze around and sorted out the
situation cautiously.
——It was a Tokyo like the one he saw in the game
with the Eastern Union——but, somehow different.
The height of the buildings, the complex back alleys,
the objects installed at each place of that map——
Making full use of those advantageous spots, he
managed to finish off a large-sized Warbeast, a Dhampir,
and a small-sized Warbeast.
All were done in through trickery and shooting:
feigning to be an ally, shooting at their back, luring them
out with lies, then sniping them.
While being called [dirty] repeatedly by s.h.i.+ro, he
survived until now by not choosing his methods——but.
——That nasty monster who calls itself an angel.
Just that one alone——he didn’t feel like it’ll work
out somehow at all.
After sorting the situation out, he let out a sigh in the
back alley, covered his respiration and strained his ears.
Countless footsteps in the distance were slowly getting
closer, gradually closing in.
[If I could at least regroup with my sister...... No, I
guess even that wouldn’t be desirable in this situation,
huh.]
It was a hopeless speech——but, this kind of speech
at such a time was obviously a flag.
While thinking that half-expected, half-amazed, Sora’s
ears captured the footsteps firmly stepping in the back
alley.
——He reacted even faster than his thoughts.
Ahead of the aim was the figure of a red-hair girl——
Contrary to Sora’s will, the aim wavered.
The girl was suspicious. Rather than suspicious, it’s as
if it’s far harder to search for something that wasn’t.
But, Sora put aside those thoughts and eventually
spoke some words.
[You, just how did you get inside this area...... No,
leave that for later. My sister’s together with you, huh. Did
you find a countermeasure——]
[Yes...... we found it.]
——There was no sound, only the shock conveyed.
He understood it in one beat. It seemed the bullet came
flying from behind the red-haired girl and pierced his
abdomen.
[We should’ve just done this from the very start......
Isn’t that right, Traitor-san?]
[——Wrong...... that was a bluff...... ——!]
Contrary to his will, his body didn’t move, his blurry
vision captured the shooter of the devilish bullet that
pierced through him——
He gasped. The slightly red light from the fire burning
the gun barrel reflected the one approaching through the
gun’s smoke.
The white-haired girl...... for the sake of searching
for a way to survive this hopeless game.
She had accompanied the red-haired girl——it was
his little sister.
......Putting Sora aside, whose thoughts
froze
stopped with
his mouth opened, dumbfounded.
[If the one going around killing everyone isn’t the
traitor, then who would you say it is!?]
Hearing the infuriated scream, “Wrong” ...... he
replied.
Or he tried to, but, a load of blood overflowed from
his mouth and spilled out instead.
[That was...... because if I didn’t do so...... At the
time, you wouldn’t have, protected my sister——]
——Just like a revelation, Sora came to understand it
in an instant.
It was within predictions the red-haired girl would
betray.
But, the little sister——the one that definitely
wouldn’t betray him, had betrayed...... then the answer
was——
[It was...... you, huh...... the real traitor——the
‘fake’ was you...... from the very start......!!]
Exactly——Looking back at her slowly dying brother
with mocking eyes——towards that something.
[With my sister’s appearance, with her face...... don’t
turn those trashy eyes to meeeeee————!!]
The red-haired girl swallowed her breath at his
wailing scream——but, it was too late.
The flash of light mercilessly illuminated the back
alley once again——two times, three times.
The figure of the red-haired girl collapsing on the
ground reflected in his already half-blackened vision.
[...... It’s a lie, right...... I only, believed——]
——in you, but, her lips stopped midway, the light
wouldn’t return to her dull eyes ever again.
The white-haired girl——the traitor with the
appearance of his little sister slowly approached him.
Hearing the sound of the shoes. .h.i.tting the hard cold
asphalt as death approached, Sora finally——concluded.
——Ah. This is a s.h.i.+tty game.
A development where not knowing what will happen
is very good. But, super development, you’re no good.
When and where was the flag indicating that the
fake
traitor was the
this guy
sister?
In the first place, what was that speech——“I only
believed in you”?
Say that earlier. A hint that’s only collected right
before the event can’t be called a hint!
[I wonder...... Where did I go wrong......? For what
reason, did I...... work so hard......]
Continuing even after having defined it as a s.h.i.+tty
game, Sora sharply agreed with that no-good line.
——Aahh, really, just for what reason did you work
so hard for.
Just one thing...... it was “for the sake of his little
sister” that he endured Inferno Mode and came this far.
But, if that single thing was fake, then, his efforts and
hards.h.i.+ps.
Just for what reason——had he piled up tricks,
tactics, and strategies——!?
[Bye, bye Nii......]
Just a single shot. The impact told him so, but, the end
was slow——the white-haired girl’s last voice.
Isolated by the darkness...... lifelessly——echoed.
“......Nii...... how does it feel...... to die, a virgin?”
————Wait a second.
No, no, seriously wait a second!
“Hey, s.h.i.+ro, that’s a lie, right! You’re randomly saying
whatever you feel like just because Nii-chan can’t
understand the Warbeasts’ language, right!! If you say such
reckless things, how will you take responsibility if I
accidentally end up crying, huh!?”
——And then, the black-haired young man lost
consciousness.
Sora yelled with teary eyes while gazing at that screen,
holding the controller.
——Now, it surely doesn’t need to be said.
What was reflected on the screen wasn’t Sora and
s.h.i.+ro, obviously not Steph, either.
Of course, the Old Deus’ game——[Sugoroku] didn’t
have even the slightest relation to it.
——It was right at the beginning, soon after Sora
loudly made the [Traitor] declaration.
Sora requested everyone’s dice, but they all finished
writing their【Tasks】and left through the door.
As if it was obvious. No, extremely natural——saying
[This fight, we’ll buy it].
After each of them spoke out their words, feelings,
they all threw their own dice, proceeding as they pleased.
Likewise, naturally, Sora and s.h.i.+ro threw their dice
and proceeded to aim for their outcome of [62] ——But.
Pa.s.sing through one square, the moment they stepped
on the second square, they looked to the sky, then gazed at
the nearest house.
——[Ah, this is an impossible game.]
After nodding to each other, they decided to
refres.h.i.+ngly forget about everything, confining themselves
inside that house——and
played games
ran from reality.
......Thus, suffering their first defeat, the
life
story of
Kuuhaku
[ ] is now over.
Please wait expectantly for Sora and s.h.i.+ro’s next
life
work.
【THE END】
——Those two went past the sh.e.l.l of the period of life
and rushed straight to the afterword.
On one hand, one could see eight dice——the siblings’
age had reduced by two-tenths and their limbs had shrunk.
But the Old Deus’ game had long since turned into a
memory of a previous world, already far beyond the
horizon of oblivion.
They found an Eastern Union’s [Domestic Game
Machine] in the house they confined themselves in.
——Was there a game? [There are.]
——Was there a reason to not play it? [None.]
Thinking for zero seconds, the two of them wordlessly
started the game machine and ran from reality refreshed.
Sora, who didn’t understand the language of the
Warbeasts——provisionally 14.4 years old, set the
subt.i.tles to ON.
s.h.i.+ro, using Sora’s crossed legs as a pillow while
playing with the Tablet PC——provisionally 8.8 years
old, read the subt.i.tles out loud.
Seeing his sister’s unexpected acting skills, though
improvising, she translated all the characters’ lines with
rich representations——Why doesn’t she always speak
lucidly like that? Two hours had pa.s.sed since he pulled
out such a profound question——But.
After finally throwing away the controller, Sora
grabbed the package and growled.
“Even though I expected the Eastern Union would also
have ‘Zombie Games’...... what a s.h.i.+tty game.”
The t.i.tle was [Living or Dead 3 ~ The Price of
Silence] ......apparently. According to s.h.i.+ro.
It also seemed its sequel was a spin-off called [Love
or Loved] ——the game they played against Izuna.
This is what happens when one expects something
from it and tries playing something from their screwed up
senses.
The setting goes like this——The Elves’ large-scale
magic experiment to resurrect the dead had...... well, it
was the usual super failure thing.
The out of control magic gave birth to the
living
walking
dead~ and spread throughout the entire world~
The
Living Dead
traitors feigning to be alive were hidden among
their friends and~ a game with a high level of stupidity.
That was fine. A stupid game? It’s a favorite! ——But.
“Just what kind of decision leads to making a ‘Macho
Warbeast Zombie with Wings’ considered fine in the
head?”
Not a single attack worked, he growled after being
reminded of that nasty monster who called itself an
angel.
Yes——It was a nasty monster.
He was half-naked, no, that was pretty much fully
naked, wearing only a loincloth.
It was the extremely difficult and abnormally weird
s.h.i.+tty game with a s.h.i.+tty development at all times but, he
still endured it.
All for the sake of the only solace in his mind! The
[Little Sister]! A white-haired loli with cute animal ears!
...... And the result was that——after Sora suddenly
remembered the protagonist’s speech.
“Where did you go wrong? It’s the brain of the staff
who made this game that’s wrong——”
Throwing away the package, Sora barked while lying
on the tatami mat.
Enduring it for the sake of the little sister character,
there was a super development where the sister was the
[fake].
As if that wasn’t enough, he was killed while she
looked at him as if he was trash——
............Hmm?
“Hm~...... Well, that part was fine. Yeah. On second
thought, that was a reward.”
“......Nii, just how much...... do you plan on......
being aggravated......?”
He let out a single cough after being looked by his real
sister as if she was looking at trash.
“......Nnnn! ......W-Well, as expected, the problem
surely must be this scenario, right......”
He looked at the screen while still sprawled on the
ground.
On screen, the protagonist had used his privilege——
no matter how many death flags he raised, they all turn into
survival flags, he’d wake up somewhere without
displaying any regrets, just like it was written.
But Sora already lost interest in the development after
that, so he rolled around and looked at the ceiling.
While emptying his head and s.p.a.cing out, he once
again remembered that speech.
——[I wonder...... where did I go wrong......], was
it.
“......Suspicion kills everyone——I wonder why’d
you think only you wouldn’t be betrayed......”
That kind of [
theory
common sense]——It’s obvious
everyone will think the same thing.
“If you betray then, you’ll be betrayed. It’s just
inevitable......”
Exactly——Just like how those guys wrote
their【Tasks】after betraying so easily.
Sora clicked his tongue at the same time——he
thought about “this situation”.
“——Hey s.h.i.+ro, I wonder where did I go
wrong......”
“If you’re seriously asking that, then shall I. Answer.
You!?”
But the answer he got was a furious roar and——
“Even though you betrayed me and made it
impossible for me to return that betrayal! You threw
everything at me even after forcefully dragging me, so
Why. Are. You. Holing. Yourself. Up huh——!?”
A red-haired girl rushed inside the room after breaking
down the sliding door together with a cart.
Just like Sora and s.h.i.+ro——with eight dice on their
chest——she had shrunk to 14.4 years old.
——The one whose breathing was coa.r.s.e due to
yelling was Stephanie Dola.
“See! I acquired the ‘cart’ you wanted, didn’t I!?”
“............Uh...... m?”
“——What was that about again?”
“You said you wouldn’t move unless I brought a cart,
didn’t you!”
Seeing Sora and s.h.i.+ro’s blank response, Steph roared
while scratching her head.
“Now, it’s fine if I pull it like a cart right, literally like
a horse pulling a cart, right!”
Yes, Steph turned the cart around inside the room,
taking no for an answer and urged Sora and s.h.i.+ro.
Scooping the surprised two like a shovel to ride the
cart——following, literally, the principle of a carriage.
In a way, the BGM “Dona, Dona”
[3]
would fit really
well.
Steph mercilessly dragged the two recluses out of the
room......
——In the second square...... Steph left the cart she
was pulling and sprawled on the ground.
It was being used as a bed by s.h.i.+ro, who was using
the tablet PC with hollow eyes.
Steph cried out to Sora, who, until about two hours
ago, declared the view before him as an [impossible
game].
“So? Isn’t it about time for me to get a satisfying
explanation!?”
“......About what? Eh, could it be...... about the
reason I declared to be the traitor? That was——”
“Yes, yes, it was to fool
me
the idiot, right~? I already
know that!”
Sora answered evasively in an effort to reject the view
in front of him but Steph’s screaming continued.
“Not even I would fail to see through that stinking
lie
act
so it’s really unsettling you thought otherwise!!”
——That’s right, there wasn’t even a single speck of
truth in Sora’s [traitor declaration].
With a purity rate of 100%, free of any intent to ever
add any element into it——a super lie.
Without
being a Warbeast
needing the five senses to uncover the lie——
Even Steph knew it was a third-rate act.
But——That was exactly why.
Steph didn’t know what she was supposed to do.
——[I don’t know what Sora’s real intentions are......
but]
——[I believe——he won’t let anyone die or kill
each other.]
She extended out her nine dice to Sora together with
such a lame speech.
——While trembling with a pale face. She transferred
her existence’s time——“her life”.
Knowing one’s life is fading away surely must cause
an incredible amount of fear...... but.
If this game was all about the [
dice
life] decreasing as one
proceeds, then.
Which one was better...... That——or stealing from
those close to you and indirectly killing them?
Putting the fear on the scales, she swallowed her
patheticness, but, even so, she still decided to do it——
“When I finally decided to hand over the dice, it
backfires on me! Everyone keenly made that eloquent
traitor declaration!!”
——[I’ll buy that fight, desu!] Izuna spoke in a cute
way.
——[It’s an honor for me to be able to challenge
Master.] Jibril said so reverently.
——[I’ll make you regret throwing salt on my wounds,
got it?] Plum said mysteriously.
——And Ino said [Die]...... really, it was straight-
forward, without beating around the bush——
“There’s also what you said when you guys threw your
own [
dice
lives] unhesitatingly——when all I could do was
watch!!”
While that was happening, Steph already handed over
nine dice——nine-tenths of her life.
Basically, Steph had returned to a single die’s worth of
age...... [1.8 years old].
Sora had gained nine dice’ worth of time and was now
[34.2 years old].
Together with s.h.i.+ro, he smiled——a smile so nice it
even looked creepy, at Steph.
——[Hm, the amount of
dice
age held only affects the body,
holding more than ten makes you grow older.]
——[......Then, Nii...... now that you...... confirmed
that...... there’s no problem......]
——[Right. Then——now, we’ll have you “travel
together” with us, alright.]
——[......If you don’t...... want to, then...... it’s fine,
too......]
——[But then, you’ll have to wait here all alone and
sad, with only one dice——]
——[......Because, we want to...... wait until,
everyone dies...... then...... right❤]
——[Ah, also. If no one gets to the top, then everyone
besides the leading player will die. Of course❤]
“——My feelings when you two threatened me and
used me! Answer everything within ten characters!!”
Hearing the roaring Steph, Sora went Hmm...... and
scratched his jaw.
Within ten characters, now that’s a quite a challenge
——but.
“......I think...... it’s...... ‘Not doing it’......”
“Oooh, s.h.i.+ro! That’s exactly ten characters!! As
expected of the Crossword Master!!”
“You. Are. Super. Correct~❤——I’ll snap if you
don’t cut it out already!?”
Steph rioted by rocking and rattling the cart when
s.h.i.+ro immediately answered.
“Ahhhh wait, wait I say! That was obviously because
all that was absurd, right!?”
“Right, right, now that I think about it, it was obvious,
wasn’t it——!”
Steph shouted deprecatingly in a single breath.
“Even if Sora gathers the dice, you can’t be separated
from s.h.i.+ro, isn’t that right!? Only a fool would fall for
such a bait, right! And I’m the only one who did that,
right!!”
——Yes. From the start, Sora and s.h.i.+ro were a “rule
left untouched intentionally” ——In other words.
04: In the case of [traveling together], after
declaring so, the travelers will only move in accordance
to the outcome of
one person
the representative.
05. In the case the number of players moving
together surpa.s.ses two people, an [Overall Number of
Travel CompanionsxAttendants]’s worth of dice will be
removed from the number of dice used.
——If the [traveling together] rule isn’t used, they
cannot proceed.
Even more so when there’s a reaction to possessing
more than ten dice by growing older.
Everyone’s dice——he would be [115.2 years old] if
the sixty-four dice were to gather at Sora——normally,
he’d become senile.
That’s why they followed the rule and added the [9
dice] he got by deceiving Steph to s.h.i.+ro’s [9 dice].
After declaring they would travel together, they threw
twenty-eight dice——it decreased by six, two per person.
“......Cheer up, already...... We properly returned
your dice, right......?”
It was redistributed in a way so each person would
possess eight dice——but.
“Why did you make everyone betray each other!! I’ll
keep making a fuss until I get an explanation, you know!?”
It indicated Sora’s objective was consistently——[to
draw Steph over to his side].
......And——
————To have [her a.s.sistance in betraying the
others], none other than that.
It was the same as Sora had said, where they would
kill each other——a situation he wanted to avoid.
While Steph was shouting why it did it “lead to this”,
Sora——did this.
“Hyaah!? W-What...... are you doing?”
Sora held her cheeks with his hands and forcefully
made her face him, then he gazed into her eyes.
Forgetting her anger, her face was red without
realizing, Sora, with a gaze full of sincerity——
announced.
“Believe and just leave it to me. With the power of
love, courage, and friends.h.i.+p, everyone will——prevail.”
————.
“......You’re waiting for a retort, right? Can I ask you
to reflect on your own past?”
When asked by one who
lied
betrayed and made them betray intentionally, what would
be a sufficient reply to “please believe in me”?
Steph answered that question, that dilemma, while
looking down at him with an icy gaze.
“Wha...... Why, why don’t you believe me!? What are
you doubting about this purely-pure me who’s that pure!?”
“While I’m at it, I also want you to reflect on the
present, alright!? More specifically, where you’re
currently using me as a cart horse!!”
Sora’s expression was so filled with acting, Steph
continued pursuing.
He had held Steph’s head and spoke with sincerity
——Indeed, that sounded really good.
But in reality, he had forcibly turned her around and
was currently making her pull the cart so to speak.
——Her expression questioned whether there was any
element besides [distrust] in this.
“Right. That’s it. That’s the answer.”
But, Sora spread his arms out and——exalted.
“Did everyone agree on a game where you can win if
you trust and cooperate with each other? Even though I’m
here!? In a game with Miko-san’s life as the price, would
everyone readily agree and believe in stuff like love and
friends.h.i.+p? If the winner can only be the one that reaches
the goal, then would they definitely move so
we
[ ] end up
winning——even though I’m here!? Hmm~~!?”
——He emphasized it twice.
“Are you trying to say that everyone will believe in
me?” ——Using his own lack of trust as basis.
After being affirmed it was impossible to not betray,
Steph turned to the heavens and cried out.
“What should I do about this...... there’s nothing but
persuasion......”
This game held seemingly complicated rules and many
seemingly weird places——but, in truth, it’s quite simple.
Fifth of the [Ten Oaths] ——The challenged party has
the right to decide the contents of the game.
Since memories before the game aren’t there, they
don’t know whether the challenged one was the Old Deus
or not.
But, in any case, to begin the game——“everyone’s
consent” was a major prerequisite.
Did that lineup agree to a cooperative game with
memory loss and Miko’s death as compensation——?
——There’s no way such a prerequisite would be
accepted, right?
“If the premise can’t be accepted, then it’s a simple
story, right——?”
Rolling around in the cart once again, Sora put s.h.i.+ro
on his chest and laughed.
If it’s based on the premise that there’s an “improbable
prerequisite” among the rules, then——
“It means that there are falsehoods within the rules.”
“......Something...... that was in the first
explanation...... but wasn’t in the second one......”
“......The second one...... you say?”
“This is a game started by【Pledging the Oaths. 】It
started after confirming the rules, but the memories were
erased——There’s a dif erence between the rules
explained and the rules in the [Traitor]’s memories.”
Yes, Sora answered without care.
Purposely starting the game after [erasing memories
before the game] and only disclosing the rules after that.
On top of that, clearly stating someone whose
memories weren’t erased was a [traitor]——it’s hard to
not doubt it.
“But, well, frankly speaking——something like that
doesn’t really matter.”
——It didn’t matter who the traitor was...... No, to
be precise.
That lineup, everyone agreed and started the game
——and there were rusksacks on their backs.
The dif erence between the memories don’t matter,
since just that tells us everything. ——Sora laughed
fearlessly.
Everyone cooperating with each other was
something impossible, far more stupid than the premises.
——It was far more possible for things to go this
way, right?
“All of us started this game a.s.suming we all would
betray each other——and,”
If
we
that lineup were to agree to something, it would be
with this, right?
“——Every single one of us prepared a scenario
where we, ourselves, would be the ones to win......♪”
Sora laughed pretentiously in a loud voice——
proclaiming that he was clean.
“——Therefore! Cleanly, correctly and beautifully!
Overflowing with sincerity! This humble me named Sora,
a virgin and 18 years——due to having eight dice,
provisionally 14.4 years old! Took the liberty to make an
oath, as the representative of the Players!”
He spoke with a smile while standing up and moving
around his hands in a huge act——In other words.
“Oath. We, in accordance with the rules hereby swear
br>
/>——to betray fair and square, like that.”
——No trust could win against their confidence that
“they will definitely betray them.”
That’s why it was an oath to make them remember that.
Steph stopped and turned around without turning the
cart and yelled.
“I won’t accept, something like that...... In the end,
that’s just killing...... I won’t consent!!”
“Right? That’s why it also confirms the ‘falsehood
within the rules’.”
But, while still speaking like that, once again, he sat in
the cart and answered with a creepy, bitter smile.
Rules which not a single one of them would agree to
will all be [false]——In other words.
“We agreed on betraying each other. We even took the
initiative.”
——But.
“We didn’t agree to kill each other——that was all.”
——Once again, the sound of the wheels of the cart
rolling echoed.
Sora laughed on the inside at Steph’s silence, who
couldn’t refute but wasn’t satisfied, either.
It’s natural for
Steph
someone with common sense to be
unsatisifed with that——if Sora’s principle was broken
down, after all.
In the name of her grandfather, if one looked into it
with uncovered and clean eyes.
——[All the mysteries were solved; the culprits are
us!] ——it’ll be like this.
Indeed, certainly it’s a game that would be impossible
to trust and cooperate with these members.
But, for Steph, it was too much to simply say that
[betraying each other is the right answer], so......
“There’s no choice but to betray each other——It’s
impertinently putting on the airs of a [Prisoner’s
Dilemma].”
Sora commented ironically, Steph turned around while
pulling the cart.
“......Prisoner’s Dilemma...... you say?”
——If everyone cooperates and someone manages to
win, then maybe everyone’s lives will be saved.
——But, if you betray, then you can win yourself.
——The moment everyone thinks that, the chances of
everyone losing increases......
“It’s a famous example in our previous world, but......
To put it simply——”
————A detective brings a certain possible deal to
Prisoner A and Prisoner B.
【1】If both of them remain quiet, then, both of them
will receive a [prison sentence of 2 years].
【2】If one of them confess, the one who confessed will
be [released] while the other who remained quiet will
receive a [prison sentence of 10 years].
【3】But, if both of them confess, both will receive a
[prison sentence of 5 years].
If the prisoners believe in each other and remain quiet,
they’ll get away with the better result——a [prison
sentence of 2 years].
But as long as the prisoners pursue their own benefit,
it will definitely become a [prison sentence of 5 years].
If one of them betrays the other and confesses, the one
who confessed will be [released] and the one who
remained silent will receive a [prison sentence of 10
years].
Then the option of keeping quiet——in actuality,
doesn’t exist.
There’s no other choice but to bet on the possibility the
other will remain quiet while confessing. By doing that
At worst, the [prison sentence of 10 years] can be
evaded, if lucky, they’ll be [released].
——This is the reason it’s called a dilemma.
On top of that, in this game, the Old Deus had politely
told them——there was a [traitor].
Using that example, it would be the same as saying
[however, one has already confessed].
If someone had already betrayed before the game even
started, then believing each other was——“
meaningless
impossible”.
“So that’s why you said to betray? Isn’t that exactly
what the [detective] wants?!”
Indeed, it’s meaningless to believe in each other and
there’s no other choice besides betraying each other.
But isn’t doing that exactly what the [detective]——
what the Old Deus wanted?
——That “pointing straight out the heart of the
problem” att.i.tude really wasn’t like her at all.
But, she wasn’t even aware she was doing it so Sora
laughed——and corrected her.
“No, that’s exactly what we want. In truth, this
example doesn’t establish itself as a dilemma, you see.”
“..................What?”
“By betraying and believing in each other, instead of
the ‘better result’, we get the ‘best result’♪”
Sora and s.h.i.+ro gave a thin smile onminously distorted
——that is, and continued.
This game——No, this game, too.
Sora and s.h.i.+ro, Imanity’s strongest gamer,
Kuuhaku
[ ]’s,
policy, their existence itself revealed everything.
Both past and future, no matter the opponent, it was an
unwavering fact of the present——Namely.
“No matter what game it is, even before starting——”
“......We’ve already won...... that’s...... all.”
They pulled everything into their hands and all
attempts were within it.
Not even G.o.d was missing from the compilation thread
The eyes of the two who arrogantly said that,
fearlessly and irreverently, saw Steph’s trembling
shoulders and——
“............Well, that’s only if we’re able to see the
end of the game, right...... hahaha, haa......”
“............s.h.i.+ro...... can’t stand it, anymore......
want to...... go home......”
——The next moment, they could see her shoulders
dropping.
In Sora and s.h.i.+ro’s sharp and irreverent eyes——in
their eyes that moved unconsciously.
It was the hard truth they avoided looking directly
upon——Basically, it captured the [Game Board] in the
sky.
In an instant, they left behind a voice tired of a cloudy
life and sank into the cargo.
“......Ah, Uhm. If you’re going to act cool, then, could
you please do it until the very end?”
Strength suddenly left Steph and she panted with her
eyes half open, but, Sora declared inside his heart.
Defeat
Death]——through the loss of all dice is
——impossible.
Losing due to stealing and betrayal is——even more
impossible.
But——
“The stealing and betrayal ‘doesn’t matter’ you
know...... there’s a different cause of loss for us.”
With a raping eye, he threw away everything that
happened until now saying it “doesn’t matter.”
But, without giving Steph any time to process, Sora,
with a pensive expression——continued.
“......But really, this isn’t even funny; that really is the
most probable——
defeat
ending......”
Gazing at the interminably giant [Game Board], he
spoke.
It was——
“——————[Starvation.]”
——.
————It was urgent.
They felt inside a cruel and merciless silence...... but.
“......E~Eeehh? Ahm...... What do you mean?”
“Ha, haha...... I vaguely doubted it, but, you really
haven’t noticed? ......”
“............Ignorance is bliss...... those are profound
words...... right......”
Towards Steph who was tilting her neck, Sora and
s.h.i.+ro smiled——but, with eyes of a dead fish——
“Ah, attention all pa.s.sengers~! Could you please look
to your left~?”
Even though the ones riding on something were Sora
and s.h.i.+ro.
Steph turned her gaze to beyond Sora’s left hand, who
was extending it like a bus guide.
What laid beyond it was “land” ——and the Eastern
Union’s countless islands visible on the ocean.
——It was on the left. Not below or above. There was
a land to their left.
“Continuing, could you please look to your right~?
——Now, I wonder what do you see?”
What she saw was what the Old Deus had created, the
absurdly huge——[Sugoroku] game board.
The
square
continent floated on air without any support, drew
a spiral, pierced the clouds, and stretched high into the
sky.
——It was something that’s seen a lot on television
games where the stage was set in a fantasy world.
A load of rock going against gravity and floating on air
——a field where one walks forward atop it.
Be it F〇9’s last dungeon or Ra〇n or Ji〇
Kingdom
[4]
, well, anything is fine.
Now then, walking above that rock, let’s slowly try to
turn it sideways by 90°.
If it obeys common sense, we would fall. But since
this lacks common sense, let’s a.s.sume we won’t fall.
That stupid load of rock goes around picking a fight
with gravity, pretending to be a [square]. After each of
them stretch itself to the size of a city, extending throughout
s.p.a.ce, overlapping a few hundreds of them in a spiral
——The boldness of it to pretend it’s a [Sugoroku Board]
——Well, you see the image, right?
The impression leaving your mouth, even though you
try to hide it, wasn’t [beautiful] even by mistake——
“.................. It’s an absurdly huge game board
That’s right, it’s absurd. It’s also huge.
“Ye~s it’s an absurdly huge game board! Now, what’s
our current position after we’ve walked for five hours!?”
“............The second square, right.”
Yes, the second square——In other words, they were
on the [second rock].
“That’s~~ ri~ght~! Basing on the above——Now!
Let’s fully answer the question that you asked when you
broke through the house’s door a while ago!!——In other
words! ‘Why did we confine ourselves there?’!!”
After sucking in an incredibly long breath.
“It’s too uselessly huge and slowwwwww! If we
crossed a single square after walking for five hours——
Just how many days, how many months will it take until
we set foot on the dice’s outcome, the [62
nd
] square~!”
——aree, ree......
...... ee......
In the s.p.a.ce called uselessly broad.
Sora’s useless complaint uselessly piled up
echoes...... and uselessly disappeared vainly.
“It’s the Old Deus’ game, so, it’s obvious it’ll be
ridiculous......”
Indeed, Sora scorned at Steph’s cursing as she pulled
the cart.
“Haahn!! She must be a really s.h.i.+tty game maker to
mistake a map uselessly big and cool as something
interesting. Did she think replacing [
development costs
money ] with
[power] would complete
this
a spectacularly s.h.i.+tty game!?”
That’s exactly what you’d normally think of when a
capital is purposely created in the sky of a fantasy
world.
Indeed, it’s impossible to imagine how much power
was necessary to make something like that possible——
But.
Why! Especially! Must that continent! Float in the
sky!
To sell a good fight with gravity is definitely a [waste
of power] when there’s no need to.
Sora affirmed before the deed that could literally be
called a [work of G.o.d].
——Wouldn’t a virtual s.p.a.ce be enough?
“Moreover, even with all these fields, there not even a
‘straight road railway’, and as if that wasn’t enough, ‘the
road is long’ ......this is the worst landmine pretending to
be an open world......”
——In the end, it isn’t load-free.
About two hours ago——before Sora and s.h.i.+ro
declared it to be an [impossible game] and confined
themselves.
While aiming for the outcome of the dice——the
[62
nd
] square, they walked away for five hours.
After finally crossing the first square, at the square’s
end——he stood at the division of the land.
They moved onto the next square with the time used in
a cup noodles’ timer.
As they moved onto the [second square], s.h.i.+ro, faintly
breathing——murmured.
——[...... The number of footsteps, until here......
were 20,834 steps......]
Mathematics, too, were out of Sora’s area of expertise,
but, any words beyond that point was unnecessary.
s.h.i.+ro’s current height was 131cm——her step length
was about 0.48m
[5]
.
The size of one square calculated from there is——
surprisingly, about [10km
[6]
].
The several kilometers between each square is moved
through teleportation. The [ascending squares] are
excluded as crossing isn’t necessary.
This game board piercing the heavens in a spiral has
——[350] squares——In other words.
“......It’s [3,500km
[7]
] until the goal...... walking
with your own feet. Without any fast travel.”
Seeing Steph’s expression as if it still hadn’t hit her,
Sora turned towards her with a difficult smile.
Then, will she get it if I say it this way?
That it’s almost the same distance as crossing
America or making a full lap around Honshu in j.a.pan
——No......?
For an inhabitant of this world, I should make this
kind of comparison, huh.
“......It’s the same as going from Elkia’s western
border to
Kannagari
the Temple of the Priestess——do you get it this
way?”
After Sora said that, this time for sure, the lights
disappeared from Steph’s eyes.
There’s no way for Steph to not know about it when
she was in charge of politics, diplomacy, and trade.
It was a distance even Elkia’s open sea sailing s.h.i.+p
which took pride in its max speed would take on average
——half a month.
Naturally during that time, it’ll be on of -roads,
outdoors, in direct sunlight; furthermore, if the dice
decreases, with a child’s feet.
With such conditions, you’d ask ‘Why did you
confine yourself?’
If I had to say it, it was a question as stupid as
asking why do moles dive into the ground——
“......This game. If you have only one die left, you
cannot proceed any further. Basically, unless someone
ascends or everyone has only one die left without reaching
zero——it won’t end.”
It was a super drawn out war game continuing
endlessly......
The more it’s prolonged, the greater the probability of
everyone losing——besides
Jibril
that absurd living being who
needs no food or sleep.
Yes, he let out a dry smile that was almost giving a
rustling sound.
Why did Sora forget about it all, threw everything
away, and confined himself? ——He now announced the
reason.
“For starters, there’s no way we can
walk such a distance, right!? I’m a
flesh and blood human, you see!? For
a person, a living being who gets
hungry and tired, it’s a distance that
would normally and inevitably kill
him!!!”
——In the distant past, starting from the southern end
of Africa, humanity had crossed the majestic Eurasia.
It’s said they reached the
Americas
New Continent beyond the
Pacific Ocean by going along Indonesia on a wooden boat.
But, the strength of such a primordial humanity had
long since been lost by its descendants.
Much less when it led to the poster child of
civilization——the hikikomori gamer, there isn’t even a
residue left.
One square...... They almost died walking 10km——
this is the modern human. This is reality.
It didn’t matter if they already confirmed their
victories before the game even started.
That only applied if they managed to see it to the end,
right?
Low physical abilities, due to the time elapsed,
elements unrelated to the game itself——“self-
destruction”.
To Sora and them, this was the most unreasonable,
therefore realistic, hypothetical
defeat
conclusion they could
expect.
Once again facing despair with s.h.i.+ro, he glanced at
Steph who just now also fell into the same despair.
He smiled bitterly, suddenly, the protagonist’s speech
of that game floated once again in the back of his brain.
——[I wonder...... where did I go wrong......]
He answered Steph’s question about why he had
confined himself, but——it was different.
——They’re challenging a G.o.d.
——They’re in the middle of mutual betrayal.
——They lose their life if all their dice is lost.
——They lose their life if they get defeated.
Even if such fearful sentences were heard and lined
together——
——They’ll die if they get hungry.
Before this single too realistic line——and therefore,
easily understandable sense of danger.
Sora questioned that, which allowed him to put
everything else aside with just a “it doesn’t matter.”
——Just where did I go wrong to agree with such a
rule?
■ ■ ■ ■ ■
——Still on the second square.
Nine hours had pa.s.sed from the start of the game......
there was quietness.
Inside the long and continuing silence, all that echoed
were the rustling of trees and the chirping of birds.
The sound of the cart wheels rolling couldn’t be heard
anymore.
Before the irrefutable reality, even Steph had stopped
pulling the cart and crouched down.
Confronted with reality once more, Sora laid in the
cart and watched the dusk without moving an inch.
Contrary to the calm scenery, if that view was made
into a painting and a t.i.tle is added on——it’d be [The
End].
But, a small voice above Sora’s chest rejected
decorating a museum with it.
——Until now, it was only working endlessly.
The small hope was using the tablet PC the entire time,
with the resolution to exhaust the battery.
“..................Nii...... I finished, calculating......”
Saying so, she showed the dazzling tablet PC’s screen
to her brother——with a smile s.h.i.+ning several times
more.
——Showing to her brother a hope that released more
light than the stars.
“——Woaaaaahhhh d.a.m.n yeah!! Both the Old Deus
and Tet should just eat s.h.i.+t!!! Ah, whose line was it again?
——G.o.d is always in my heart——or more specifically,
on my chest!!”
“Hyaaaaah w-w-what’s going on! I-It hurts, you
know!?”
Sora had raised a strange voice from above the cart
while carrying his little sister, correction, a G.o.ddess, up.
The cart tilted and the handle had bounced strongly
and hit Steph in the face.
But, he was sure the “harm” would be treated as
“negligence” by the [Ten Oaths] ——therefore!
Sora splendidly ignored her protests, giving s.h.i.+ro a
piggyback ride, he smiled and turned the tablet to Steph.
——He should’ve apologized for the negligence but,
since those two were the antonyms of common sense,
Steph made a resigned face——
“......A ‘world map’? What are those...... red,
oblique lines?”
“The map of this game board——It’s the drawing of
the ‘part of the land the Old Deus copied’!”
The [first square] they crossed and the currently
[second square] ——
The two and the potential squares forming the spiral
were joined together as seen from the land drawn on the
map.
s.h.i.+ro indexed the distance ratio and the s.p.a.cing of all
350 squares and, just in case, the overall length of
3,500km.
It was a map that indexed this game board, copied
from the land, from its starting point to the end.
“......This...... Is it really something that great?”
Seeing such a pitiful and ordinary person who couldn’t
understand the feat of the G.o.ddess, Sora screamed
appalled.
“Y-You, look carefully——There are no mountains,
straits, or deserts!! Not to mention, this is a farming
region!?”
——Exactly, if one goes by the map s.h.i.+ro indexed.
This game board was the Eastern Union’s former
continental territory——north-northeast from the center of
the Lusia
[8]
continent.
Grazing the
Sanctuary
Inviolable Area, it crossed the territory of
Elven Garde and lead to Elkia.
With Sora and the other’s equipment...... the terrain
wasn’t “physically impossible for one to travel by foot”!
Even more so——this [second square] was Eastern
Union’s former territory that’s now Elkia’s farming region
on the southeast border.
“Then, we still have a
chance to win
survival route——!!”
Sora, who had overcome despair, was ready start
walking, jumped down from the cart while carrying s.h.i.+ro.
I see, it still won’t change that it’s a journey of
3,500km.
Although unfortunate, we don’t have any residue of the
old humanity’s strength——but.
“In that case, let’s just go like a modern person would.
With the method of making something else walk for us!!”
“It’s about me, right, it’s about me, isn’t it!?”
“Listen to me, cart horse! It’s about catching a ‘leg’
and making it pull the cart!”
“As expected, it’s really about me, isn’t it! You said
‘cart horse’ just now, didn’t you, so you already caught
one!!”
Putting aside Steph who making a fuss, Sora picked up
something stacked in the cart——In other words.
“Alright, s.h.i.+ro——Let’s go ‘
bag
capture’ a horse or
maybe a cow.”
“......Got it...... Understood......”
He let a dangerous smile float on his face as he held a
hoe and a rope.
“Y-You’re going to steal!? That’s——N-No, good or
bad thing aside, with the [Ten Oaths] it’s——”
But, the restricting voice of common sense was
answered with the smiling embodiment of the lack of.
“......Hey, how about you look back to our actions
until now?”
Property invasion, unauthorized use of equipment.
The presumption is——
“Even you ‘stole’ that cart and committed ‘property
destruction’ by flas.h.i.+ly destroying that door, right?”
“——Gahh! ......H-Huh?”
Steph finally seemed to have noticed and Sora smiled
bitterly.
——If the Old Deus created this
land
game board from
nothing, then——it’s not supposed to have a house.
But, “gouging it” from the ground wouldn’t end with
just an uproar on rights infringement, it’d violate the
[Oaths].
Even if it’s an Old Deus, the [Ten Oaths] are absolute,
then this place——
“It’s a stage the Old Deus ‘copied’ from the
ground...... everything existing here is a ‘replica’ of
what’s on the ground and as such, it’s no one’s possession
——That’s why the [Ten Oaths] didn’t apply.”
——Therefore, there aren’t any other
people
Exceeds,
targets of the [Oaths], in this place besides the game
partic.i.p.ants.
——Therefore, there are living beings exempt from
the [Oaths] here——like birds, trees, and since it’s a
farming region, cows and horses.
With the exception of the partic.i.p.ants——you’re free
to burn or cook everything inside this game!
“There~fore! Let’s first go catch a ‘leg’ to tie to this
cart and make it pull it.”
......Although, doing that isn’t as simple as saying,
but, he swallowed those words.
“Ah, so you really didn’t plan to make me pull it all
the way......”
“......Are you thinking that I’m the kind of person who
would make someone pull a cart for 3,500km?”
“I thought so without a doubt until a while ago. Now,
I’ve slightly changed my opinion of you.”
“You know...... If I did that, you would become
exhausted, right......”
——If he were to commit such a mistake——
“Then who would pull the cart
next!? You should try to think with
some common sense!!”
“Isn’t that right~❤ I knew it, let’s just say goodbye to
that change of opinion ♪”
——Everything was decided by games——It was a
world Tet reasoned was a utopia.
It was extremely unwilling the two hikikomoris
accepted physical labor.
——But, if it was to win the game, then, it couldn’t be
helped.
If it’s made into a demonstration in the previous
world, they wouldn’t even confine themselves, thinking
flexibly.
......Sighing, looking to the left outside the game——
gazing at the ground surface of the sea, Sora stood alone.
“Speaking of which, I wonder when Kurami and Fiel
will be joining this game.”
“What? It’s a game starting by ‘pledging to the oaths’,
right? They can’t join in the middle of——”
“I’ll be troubled if they don’t. Besides, intruding in
the middle of a game is a form of art, right?”
Steph asked dubiously, but Sora answered
meaningfully while only smiling——
“——Alright, I wonder which farm animal will
thereby become Imanity’s sacrifice?”
“......Nii...... s.h.i.+ro, likes horses...... but, like cows,
even more......”
Making the rope creak, Sora and s.h.i.+ro looked around
for a target not included in the [Ten Oaths]
——Essentially.
They were searching for a pitiful livestock stripped of
its [right to live], becoming prey for the
Exceed
Sixteen Races
——
“......s.h.i.+ro, s.h.i.+ro~...... won’t you wipe your
drool......?”
Steph’s eyes, seeing the
two
predators, changed into the
way one looks at demons, but——she was ignored.
Overwork them as legs, eat them when starving——!!
That was why it was limited to horses or cows.
This game, the first and absolute condition was to
live...... it’s time to show the humans’ dirty way of
living......!
■ ■ ■ ■ ■
A large flower bloomed in the open sea.
The giant flower spread its petals on the sea’s surface
as if to cover and conquer the waves——it was a [s.h.i.+p].
There wasn’t a mast or a paddle, not even the sound of
a propeller, much less a flag indicating its affiliation, but.
The flower bed’s carving trajectory on the sea’s
surface——That diverse scenic view eloquently spoke of
its affiliation.
——Elven Garde.
Woven with the magic of the Elves——riding on the
drifting “fragrance” instead of water——a flower.
Floating above the flower, the land, the sea, making
flowers bloom to further advance, the floating flower——
Vár Pullum
Flower Vessel
[9]
].
It wasn’t just a single s.h.i.+p elegantly and soundlessly
conquering the harsh ocean.
A countless number of
Vár Pullums
flower vessels from the west
turned toward the eastern sea and were now crossing the
ocean.
They formed orderly ranks, speeds aligned, and their
trajectory drawing multicolored flowers on the sea’s
surface.
They formed a
flower garden
giant fleet extending for dozens of
kilometers, from the first one to the last one.
Large, red roses was leading the fleet——a single
Vár Pullum
flower vessel.
On the bow of that vessel was a black haired human
figure.
The sea breeze disturbing her black hair and veil, the
dark girl glaring sharply at her destination was——
“............ *hik-choo*”
She was repeatedly letting out a cute sneeze.
“*Hi——hik-choo*! I-It’s cold...... it’s cold here,
Fii!?”
“Kurami—? Stop trying to look cool and come
inside~You’ll catch a cold, you know?”
She said towards the black-haired Imanity girl
trembling with her nose running——to Kurami Zell.
The golden-haired Elf girl, Fiel Nirvalen, hugged her
closer and spread her shawl.
While coming down from the bow, the black-haired
girl asked.
“Uu...... and then, Fii? Just how much longer it
looks like it will take?”
“Hm~ with this progress...... it seems it’ll take more
than half a month~”
“Ugh...... even though it’s a distance that normally
wouldn’t take even an entire day to reach......”
“It’s a
antique
flower vessel, you know? It took time to both
gather them and make them move~”
——I know that.
Going by air, not sea——The Elves’ principle
transport, any place on earth would be like their
“neighborhood”.
For Elves, something like a s.h.i.+p moving above water
was nothing more than an obsolete antique of a distant
past.
But now, these slow antiques were extremely
necessary——Kurami clicked her tongue.
——It must’ve been a few months since she started
acting separated from Sora and the others.
Meanwhile, she endlessly piled the collapse of Elven
Garde——the culmination was this.
The greatest marine trade port in the Elven territory
——Tilnog, where influential merchants and related
companies established a force in the province, reaching
even the Govenor.
She tricked them into a game then, gripping their
weaknesses, changed the leaders and silently attacked
them.
In order to transfer the Senate and make the province
move, she even took the majority of the guilds, the House,
and the Senate’s consent vote.
——Everything was for this moment.
——For this
timing
occasion when those two were
challenging the Old Deus.
For the sake of the siblings moving far beyond the
a.s.sumption, she too, had
had to accomplish quite the
impossible.
That also applied to the numberless dangerous bridges
she had to run through——But——
“......If we don’t make it in time, it’ll all go down the
drain——if that happens, then everything will——”
“It’ll be too late for anything...... I understand that,
Kurami......”
Fiel hugged Kurami, who was biting her nails from
impatience, as she replied as if to soothe her.
——That’s right. This game won’t end without us
——no.
Kurami glared at the giant land floating on the horizon
——the Old Deus’ game board and bit her lips.
The destination she was leading the huge fleet to was
below it——the Eastern Union.
In the spiral’s center——She won’t allow it to end
without her in the center of the game.
“......Fii, can you see what those two are doing right
now?”
“Yes I can~ Obviously, I can see it~♪”
At Kurami’s words, the irises of Fiel’s eyes and the
gem on her forehead glowed faintly.
Her tone of voice and smile spoke of her extremely
natural, yet, arrogant confidence.
——With her using
hexacaster
the Six Layers Formula, there’s no
event within the horizon she couldn’t see through.
......But.
“I ‘see’ them, you see~ but, I don’t really~ understand
‘what they are doing’.”
“......Huh? What does that mean?”
“Hmm, they’re stabbing a horse with a rod——ah,
they found a stray dog——now they’re running while
crying.”
“————————Really, those guys, just what the
h.e.l.l are they doing?”
Not even Fiel could see the answer for that question,
which Kurami accidentally let out.
■ ■ ■ ■ ■
——The 34
th square...... it’s been forty-two hours
since the start of the game.
[
This place
The square] the horse-drawn cart loaded with Sora,
s.h.i.+ro and Steph was running through a moist plateau.
According to s.h.i.+ro’s map, the duplicated surface was
a farther eastern surface of Elkia’s reclaimed eastern
territory.
The Forest of Spirits——a land virtually grazing on
the territory of the Elementals, known as the [
Sanctuary
Inviolable Area].
——Now. Sora had no way of knowing about the
murmur faraway on the horizon, but.
While the cart swayed violently, Sora started thinking
suddenly, just what the h.e.l.l am I doing?
I’m playing a game against an Old Deus? I’m
surviving? ——No.
If he had to say it, then——he would be
[philosophizing]. The theme was...... correct, it was
about “rights” ——
——The [Ten Oaths].
It guaranteed the rights, while forbidding all kinds
of killing and pillaging——basically, the [Violation of
Rights].
But——“living” by itself meant infring