"You two—run!"
Keeping his voice low, Dr. Romani spoke in a panic.
"She hasn't noticed you yet… no, maybe she has and just doesn't care… Either way, once she does care, it'll be too late. A king like her isn't going to follow some 'no fighting when there are too many people around' rule. Move, now!"
"Yes, Senpai—let's go!"
Mash was pale with urgency as she echoed him.
"No."
But to their shock, Ritsuka suddenly set her jaw and refused—then strode straight toward Ophis, who was still looking over the nearby stalls as if she were out for a casual stroll.
"Senpai!"
Mash reached out in alarm, then could only grit her teeth and follow.
"Hm? What's this—oh, it's you."
Ritsuka hadn't even gotten a word out before Ishtar noticed them approaching.
"I was wondering why the feeling was kind of familiar. Still… I didn't get the chance to say this last time, but you, as you are now… If I'd seen you back then, I probably would've taken you out without a second thought."
"…Huh?"
She'd barely opened her mouth and was already getting sniped at by a girl who couldn't have been ten. Ritsuka froze, not sure what she was even supposed to say.
That reaction… Fine. She doesn't look openly hostile for the moment. Better not put more pressure on Ritsuka right now.
In Chaldea, Dr. Romani stared at the readouts and had no idea what to say.
The goddess and the King of Heroes seemed… oddly close, didn't they?
Ritsuka, of course, had no idea what was happening on his end. She could only treat the suspicious-looking little girl in front of her as—well, a little girl. She put on a gentle smile and bent down.
"Hey there, little—"
"Who're you calling 'little'?!"
Ishtar pouted in irritation, then turned away with a dismissive wave.
"She's here for you. I'm not getting involved."
She watched Ishtar walk off. Only then did Ophis turn back and offer Ritsuka a stick of cotton candy—untouched.
"Want some?"
...
Somehow—despite Ritsuka having no idea how things had ended up like this—she and Ophis wound up sitting side by side on a park bench under Mash's tense, unblinking stare.
To Ophis, there was nothing strange about it.
For the Ouroboros girl, whose worldview had been shaped in no small part by living alongside Enkidu, anything from trading sword blows to blasting each other with Magic Cannons fell squarely under "play." From the very beginning, Ophis had never regarded Ritsuka and the others as enemies.
"Ophis… do you want to destroy humanity?"
Feeling like letting the silence drag on was only making things worse, Ritsuka suddenly turned and asked.
"…"
Faced with the abrupt question, Ophis tilted her head at Ritsuka, puzzled.
"Destroy humanity?"
What would she do something that pointless for…
"Because… back then, didn't you say that if humanity's mistakes piled up too high, you'd destroy them, or something…"
Seeing Ophis's confusion, Ritsuka pressed on.
"I only erase errors. I will not destroy humanity…"
Even Ophis went a little speechless at the misunderstanding.
"My duty is to maintain the balance of the world—one could also say the relationship between humanity and the world. Since it is balance, I will not allow either side to collapse. Even if that requires purging most of humanity, I would leave behind a spark to carry on. And besides…"
She shook her head, not continuing.
Duty was one thing. Whether she could truly carry it out was another. There were very few things that could stop Ophis from wiping out humanity—but they did exist.
She didn't say that. Instead, she simply shifted topics.
"Besides, humanity now—while admittedly far more lax than in the Age of Gods—has not reached the point that demands correction. It is merely a necessary phase of development. So I have no intention of acting against humanity."
"…Then if you don't intend to destroy humanity, what is your purpose? Why did you attack us? And what do you know about the Incineration of Humanity?"
Hearing Ophis answer so cooperatively, Ritsuka finally couldn't hold back and blurted out the questions burning deepest in her chest.
"…"
Being hit with so many questions at once, Ophis didn't know which to answer first.
"The one responsible for the Incineration of Humanity… I know. But that answer should not come from me. And in any case, Ritsuka should soon be able to meet that existence."
After thinking a moment, Ophis shook her head.
Even if Ritsuka met it, the "answer" she got would still point in the wrong direction, but… since all the seers kept silent, Ophis had no interest in breaking their unspoken agreement. And she wasn't interested in these matters to begin with. The Incineration of Humanity was severe, but it could never succeed from the start…
Even if they chose a confluence point shared by many parallel worlds, that didn't mean the existence behind it could truly detonate humanity across so many parallel worlds at once. And if not all parallel worlds were affected, then counterattacks from every direction would follow.
Of course, at this moment, none of that had anything to do with Ophis.
"Still. While I cannot observe the Incineration of Humanity in full detail, I can glimpse a little of what comes after."
"Huh?"
"I will speak plainly. At least for you, Ritsuka, I do not think resolving the Incineration of Humanity will be a good thing… Humanity as a species has many admirable qualities, but that does not erase the filth that exists in so many individuals. Even if I say that… for the Ritsuka of today, forget what happens after you save Human Order—aren't you not even prepared to save Human Order in the first place?"
Ophis hopped down from the bench and turned to face Ritsuka, using a rare, serious tone for such a long stretch of words.
Seeing Ritsuka still staring blankly, Ophis let out a small sigh.
"That is why… this is my purpose. If this continues, Ritsuka will die."
Turning away again, Ophis lifted a hand and waved.
"For me, being a king is a troublesome duty. It does not make me eager to continue fulfilling a king's responsibilities. But since it is an old bond, it cannot be helped. Let me, in the name of the King of Heroes, grant you a trial—Fujimaru Ritsuka. Prepare yourself, then stand before me. If you can defeat me, I will bestow upon you the King's highest reward…"
By the time her words fell silent, Ophis was already gone from in front of Ritsuka and Mash.
---
T/N: I HAVE NO EXCUSE! EXCEPT THAT UHHH SPYTL! AND ASPENTL! HAS KEPT ME DISTRACTED! THOSE FIENDS! I will try to post more now...
bonus chaps
100 stones → 1 bonus chap
200 stones → 2 bonus chaps
300 stones → 3 bonus chaps
and so on :3
100+ new chaps every week across all my TLs on the P website :)
hehe every 100 followers on either instagram or twitter = 5 bonus chaps...?
(for all ongoing tls)
discord.gg/wisetl
patreon.com/wisetl
instagram: hanbaowise
twitter: WiseKingOfUruk_