At Surshana's arrival, Naohara merely lifted his eyelids slightly, without the slightest trace of surprise on his face.
There was nothing strange about it.
After all, the Roble Holy Kingdom was a religious nation whose people held absolute faith in the Four Great Gods.
They regarded the Four Great Gods as supreme beings, so whenever disaster struck, they would naturally pray devoutly for divine protection.
This situation was especially unusual.
Because of Enhela's actions, the entire Roble Holy Kingdom had been trapped in a bizarre, eternal cycle of yesterday.
Day after day, time refused to move forward, leaving everyone imprisoned within the same day with no way to escape.
As the cycle continued, negative emotions such as fear and despair steadily accumulated, deepening the people's faith in the gods.
Even those who ordinarily had no faith would become devout believers in such circumstances, seeking some measure of comfort for their hearts.
And when faced with life and death, those prayers would naturally reach an unprecedented peak.
Thus, the instant the cycle was broken, the accumulated Power of Faith briefly established a connection with the outside world and instinctively traced back to its source.
Riding that torrent of faith, the Six Great Gods were successfully summoned.
Naohara had no intention of hiding what had happened. After making a few appropriate adjustments to the details, he openly told Surshana everything that had occurred in the Roble Holy Kingdom.
The matter involved a special existence known as "Kuyō."
As Players, the Six Great Gods and the Three were natural allies who stood on the same side.
To put it unpleasantly, even if Naohara, Nazarick, the Six Great Gods, and every combatant in the New World joined forces, they still might not be a match for Kuyō.
Things were different in the game. Even though a six-man legion composed entirely of "Players" would have very low odds of victory, there was at least still some hope.
But if those numbers were translated into reality...
Considering the opponent's horrifying background setting, Naohara felt it was better not to think too deeply about it.
There was no denying that a World Boss was incredibly powerful, but in the end, that designation was merely a threshold.
For example, if one hundred was the threshold, then one hundred and one had crossed it. One thousand had crossed it as well, and so had ten thousand.
Naohara certainly did not believe his current strength was enough to challenge Kuyō.
The higher one climbed, the more clearly one could feel one's own insignificance.
If his speculation was correct, then Yggdrasil had already been completely devoured.
Two hundred entire worlds, along with Yggdrasil itself.
There could hardly be a worse outcome.
Calling it a crisis of life and death would not be an exaggeration.
If they wanted to unite the Players, they needed a catalyst.
And nothing forged a stronger bond than a common enemy.
Faced with a threat of this scale, forget Nazarick and the Six Great Gods. Even if the Eight Greed Kings were still alive, they would probably make the same choice.
After a little consideration, Naohara shared every piece of information he was able to reveal with the Six Great Gods.
Even if he said nothing now, once he returned to Nazarick and discussed the matter with Momonga and Herohero, he would still have to speak with the Six Great Gods afterward.
Three years had brought a greater degree of trust between the two sides.
As fellow Undead and Players who specialized in Necromancy, Momonga and Surshana had plenty to talk about.
Herohero did not trust the Six Great Gods, but their identities as Players still led him to regard them as equals.
Naohara also spoke with the Six Great Gods from time to time.
A group of Players who appeared distant from one another yet remained united beneath the surface. That was probably the best description of their current relationship.
Both sides managed their own affairs, and whenever they had nothing better to do, they would even hold video meetings together and discuss matters of management and operations.
Once Naohara finished explaining everything, Surshana was visibly shaken. The Soul fire within his eye sockets flickered violently.
One reason was the existence of "Kuyō."
The other was... Enhela!
...
"Surshana, this really isn't the time for jokes. You actually know this guy?"
Naohara stared strangely at the Undead before him.
Enhela Read Gahi.
He had descended into this world as a creation of Kuyō. No matter how Naohara looked at it, there should have been absolutely no connection between him and Surshana.
And yet, bizarrely enough, Surshana actually knew him.
"...He exists in my memories."
Naohara was confused, but Surshana was even more bewildered.
Because according to his memories, Enhela was the assistant to the highest chief priest of the Slane Theocracy, as well as the fourth Atavistic God-kin.
But based on everything they had just discussed, Enhela was clearly a creation of Kuyō.
So how could he possibly have been a member of the Theocracy?
It was an obvious contradiction.
Without question, one side's memories had to be wrong.
Naohara could be ruled out first. The facts were right in front of them, which meant that Surshana's memories had been altered.
That conclusion left Surshana deeply unsettled.
Just to be certain, he used the bond of faith to question the other five gods, but they all gave the same answer.
None of them knew Enhela.
How was that possible?!
When had it happened?!
Could it have been the Kuyō Divine Right mentioned during their conversation?
But if Surshana was protected by both the Power of Faith and a World-Class Item, then why was he the only one among the Six Great Gods whose memories had been affected?!
"This guy said before that Kuyō sent him into this world in human form. Could it be that Kuyō prepared more than just his race, and also created some kind of identity for him?"
Silently altering the memories of a Level 100 Player.
Enhela could not possibly possess that kind of power. Otherwise, he would never have ended up in his current state.
That left only one possibility.
It was the influence of his creator, Kuyō.
But if that was true, the situation became even more troublesome.
Not even the Power of Faith or a World-Class Item had been able to block it.
Naohara could not begin to imagine how they were supposed to defeat a monster capable of devouring worlds.
Would they have to rely on the Wild Magic unique to the New World?
Meanwhile, after discussing the matter within their mental realm, the Six Great Gods gradually arrived at a possible conclusion.
A conclusion regarding why Surshana alone had been affected.
The possibility left all six of them silent.
They were not completely certain, but it was undoubtedly the most likely explanation.
[Bring Enhela back to the Theocracy. We have to investigate this so-called Divine Right. It has already become a threat to our survival.]
An urgent voice rippled through their minds.
The God of Light spoke rapidly.
If their suspicions were correct, then Surshana had effectively become a bomb that could explode at any moment.
The other five gods, whose continued existence depended on him, could no longer remain calm.
[It may not be ideal, but we have no other choice.]
[We have to find a way to solve this problem.]
[Damn it. Why did this have to happen now?]
The Six Great Gods spoke one after another.
Some sounded anxious, some irritated, some helpless, and some outright panicked.
But regardless of their tone, they all reached the same conclusion.
No matter the cost, Enhela had to be brought back to the Theocracy!
"Naohara... my friend, I need to take Enhela back to the Theocracy so we can verify a few suspicions. Name your conditions. As long as it's something we can provide, anything is negotiable."
Back in reality, Surshana spoke in a pleading tone.
He did not want this matter to destroy their relationship, but he absolutely had to take Enhela back.
That left him no choice but to resort to this approach.
Dignity and reputation meant nothing to the Six Great Gods.
As long as they achieved their objective, any price was worth paying.
Hearing this, Naohara emerged from his thoughts.
He gave Surshana an unreadable look.
"Name your conditions."
Those words carried considerable weight.
And the fact that Surshana could say them meant that all Six Great Gods had agreed to it.
Had they figured something out?
So, should he agree?
Judging by the situation, refusing might very well lead to a fight, but simply giving Enhela up would also be a shame.
[I recommend that you agree. Actually, earlier, in the ruins of one of the cities in the Roble Holy Kingdom...]
Just as Naohara was weighing his options, a voice sounded directly in his mind and changed his decision.
The Soul of the Platinum Dragon Lord had revealed a piece of information that immediately caught his interest.
***
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