Book 10: Chapter 10

「You should very well understand the danger posed by leaving the Demon King in this world. So, then… Why would you…?」

「Wait. I don’t understand what you’re talking about.」

Vermudol interrupted the conversation. He looked around the room.

「But before that, I need to ask… Are we in the Dimensional They appeared to be in a castle.

They stood on the wide, spacious floor of what seemed to resemble a throne room. However, it was clear that there was something very strange about the place.

Outside the window, all that could be seen was a chaotic swirl of vibrant colors.

What was this place, and what was this intense feeling of uneasiness that hung in the air?

Though Vermudol was relatively unfazed by the sight, Celis, who was only human, looked around at her surroundings, and…

She let out a high-pitched yelp.

It was a reaction that was to be expected.

Over there, at the end of the room, stood a woman.

She was a woman whose appearance was known by many, but very few had ever seen her in person.

She had bright golden hair and wore a cleanly white robe. That woman, who stood upon ground that had been scarred by some sort of battle, was—

「Philia…」

Ichika spoke her name. She quickly moved her hand to the sword that hung at her waist. However, she did not step forward.

Though she was faced with a mortal enemy that she would have liked to kill as soon as possible, it was not Ichika who would decide whether or not to attack. She readied her sword, preparing to strike as soon as she was told.

…However, Philia was not even looking at Ichika.

She wasn’t looking at Vermudol, either.

The person she was staring at stood right behind him… It was Rydolg. Philia glared furiously, her eyes blazing with anger.

「…Rydolg. What do you think you’re doing?」

「I was about to ask you that exact same question. What do you think you’re doing, throwing the entire world into such a chaotic state?」

Gap right now?」

He had seen that vibrant swirl of colors once before, back when he had connected with Ykslaas’s Life Seed.

However, he had never seen this place before. Ykslaas’s dimensional castle still lingered within the Zadark Kingdom, and this castle was clearly different.

Even Ykslaas, who had stayed in the Dimensional Gap for some time, claimed that she did not know where they were.

So what was this place?

「This place? Well, I guess I should explain. Would you understand if I told you that this is the castle of the Alva Queen?」

The castle of the Alva Queen. That must mean that this is the headquarters of the people that continue to summon the Alva and bring chaos and confusion into the world… If this was true, why were they here right now? What was the explanation?

「But it looks the castle was destroyed…」

「I can’t feel any sort of living presence around us… Is that right?」

As Sancreed and Kain looked around, Reina shook her head.

「Somewhere very far away from this place… I sense a strong presence, one that feels very familiar. I feel a powerful force of dark magic. Oh, I’ve figured it out. It’s Dagulas, isn’t it?」

「Dagulas…!? You’re kidding, right!? He’s here right now!?」

Ykslaas reacted immediately. She had previously ruled over the kingdom that worshipped Dagulas, under the name of the Spirit King, Ystia.

Through his interaction with Ykslaas’s Life Seed, Vermudol had learned about everything that had happened to her.

She had been forced by Philia to take on various roles of evil, reincarnated into this world over and over again.

Though she had broken free and now worked under Vermudol, it appears that, somewhere at the root of her soul, she still had her past memories as the Spirit King left over.

「He isn’t here right now, but he’s somewhere in the Dimensional Gap. I’m sure of it.」

Answering Ykslaas’s question, Reina turned back toward Philia.

However, Philia did not take her eyes off of Rydolg. Her fierce expression of anger shifted toward one of vexation.

「…That’s right. The God of Darkness, Dagulas, unleashed his wrath upon this place. And because of that, all of my efforts were put to waste.」

Despite the distress in her voice, Philia still did not take her eyes off of Rydolg.

From what Philia said, it appears that the God of Darkness, Dagulas, had gone on a rampage on this place, killing the Alva queen… As well as the countless Alva that inhabited it.

Though this outcome was incredibly fortunate for Vermudol, he did not at all understand why this had happened. He had spent so much time and effort trying to solve the problem of the Alva, and now, just like that, it was completely gone. As a result, he felt slightly disappointed at the realization.

「You’re taking it way too far, Philia. At the moment, there’s no point in getting rid of the Demon King. The negatives completely outweigh the positives.」

Saying this, Rydolg turned back around to face Vermudol.

「…So. Where should I start? Ah, right, Demon King Vermudol. First, I would like to address your biggest concern.」

Rydolg continued to speak.

「It’s about the reason why you have to be destroyed. That reason is due to the person that brought you into Remfilia in the first place.」

In the beginning, the God of Earth, Atlagus, created the land.

The God of Fire, Agnam, bestowed upon the land the power of fire.

The God of Water, Aklia, created streams of water that ran through the land.

The God of Wind, Wyrm, created great winds that ran through the sky.

The God of Light, Rydolg, and the God of Darkness, Dagulas, created day and night.

The God of Light, Philia, sowed the seeds of life upon the completed land.

And from these seeds, humans, the first form of life, emerged.

The gods bestowed blessings upon these innocent humans.

And with these blessings, humans began to feel emotion.

And at the same time, many other forms of life were born.

This is the story of the origin of all life that lives on the land of Remfilia.

At first, this just-born “life” was too fragile to survive on its own. Therefore, the gods decided to watch over and protect the inhabitants of Remfilia.

Blessed with the power of the gods, the land flourished and grew beautiful.

And as time went on, humanity began to rapidly change their way of living. Though their bodies were significantly weaker than that of other species, humans possessed the wonderful power of “words.”

Seeking the protection of the gods, the absolute divine beings, they began to form civilizations. They wielded weapons and armor as a way to protect themselves.

Their undying spirit of curiosity enabled them to use the great power known as “magic,” and using this power, they began to form “nations.”

On the land of the massive Kazarelia Continent, a total of seven human nations were formed.

The nation of Beastmen, who worshipped the God of Light.

The nation of Shadowmen, who worshipped the God of Darkness.

The nation of Izectia, who worshipped the God of Fire.

The nation of Sylphids, who worshipped the God of Wind.

The nation of Lusperio, who worshipped the God of Water.

The nation of Metalio, who worshipped the God of Land.

And finally—The nation of humans, who worshipped the God of Life.

At the center of the continent stood the nation of the Shadowmen. On one side of the continent lived the Beastmen, the Izectia and the Lusperio. On the other side of the continent lived the Humans, the Sylphids and the Metalio.

The reason for this split was the appearance of the Izectia and the Lusperio. Compared to the others, these two races were some of the most unusual in terms of appearance. However, the Beastmen did not care at all about this difference in appearance. Therefore, the Shadowmen, who happened to be the most unusual-looking race and also the most commanding, made a proposal.

The proposal was that they themselves should be situated at the center of the continent. The other races should, then, split up on either side. The Beastmen understood the Izectia and the Lusperio, and their appearance was closer to that of other humans. So, by keeping them together, it would benefit humanity in the long run.

If people were to band together and form a sense of identity on the basis of appearance, they may eventually come to see other races as abnormal, as enemies that they have to fight. This dangerous mindset might eventually bring about a war among the humans. This is what the Shadowmen feared.

So they tried to eliminate any reason for conflict to occur. And so, humanity made incredible advancements, strengthening to the point where nothing could possibly threaten them. Worshipping the gods that protected them, humans began to experience a new era of prosperity.

However, because of this, humans began to see the gods as impossibly powerful beings, beings that they could “never even think of challenging.” 

No matter how powerful they became, they would never be able to face the gods. This also meant that no human would ever attain the status of a god.

So… If one of the gods suddenly tried to kill them, what would happen?

It was simply a matter of “if.”

If a human were to, one day, rebel against the gods, what would happen to them?

The humans began to think. If, by some incredibly small chance, something like that were to happen… What would they do…?

And this idea was what created the first “corrupted thoughts” in the minds of the humans.

These thoughts and worries would escalate, leading people to wonder how they could kill a god. Wondering this, some people attempted to determine the weaknesses of the gods, just in case such a situation may occur.

Though they had no intention of harming the gods that protected them, if the gods shared a common weakness, it might be useful… And so, they continued their research.

And in response, the gods began to monitor the emotions of the humans.

The power of each person was very small… However, the overwhelming amount of corrupted thoughts was throwing off the balance of magic in the world.

The balance of magic power, which fills this world to its brim, is still incredibly stable. Even though the current effect is still very small, as time goes on, it may transform into something bigger, leading to unexpected consequences.

To prevent this from happening, the gods made sure to listen to the words of the humans that they protected. They fought alongside the humans, assuring them that they would never even think of destroying humanity.

Though this brought great relief to the humans, their worries were not wiped away. The possibility still lingered within their minds, and no amount of reassurance could eliminate the worry of what might happen “if” things went wrong.

Even the slightest hint of the possibility could spread an intense feeling of insecurity. 

Even if the gods themselves took a neutral position, the people below were not guaranteed to do the same. “One day, they might begin to attack us…” The gods thought, as they began to worry.

And these thoughts would slowly begin to distort the world, creating imbalances in the distribution of magic.

The gods, worried by this looming threat, set out into the world to remove these imbalances.

And in response to the overwhelming worries of the humans, civilization grew more and more advanced.

Stronger magic, stronger weapons.

They grew stronger and stronger.

To become strong enough to defend against anything that threatened them—this is what humans wished for, and it is this desire that led them to even greater prosperity.

Seeing this, the gods grew more and more worried.

It was at this time that the “Demon God” first intruded upon the world.

「The Kazarelia Continent…」

Celis muttered under her breath.

「Yes. This was well before the world’s land split in half, forming the “Sea of Farthest Ends.”」

「…This makes me feel nostalgic.」

Saying this, Philia narrowed her eyes, as if she were trying to recall something from the distant past.

However, the continent was not what Vermudol was interested in.

「You talked about the Demon God intruding upon the world, did you not?」

「Yes. And as a result, the Dark Continent was born… Along with the Mazoku.」

It was not a specific action of the Demon God that had caused this to happen. His appearance in Remfilia alone had drastically shifted the world’s balance of magic, single handedly causing the Mazoku and the Dark Continent to be formed.

And then, the Demon God created the “Demon King,” who was to serve as a coordinator of the Mazoku, Philia said.

「It wasn’t until the Demon God told me this that I first met him.」