Chapter 29 (224): Greed and Gluttony Appear
[Crusch: "I wonder how things are going over there. Even now, we don't know who the enemy is."]
[Priscilla: "Seeing you fools all nervous like this is annoying. I refuse to believe there's an enemy that troublesome."]
[Al: "Princess, now really isn't the time for that. Didn't Ram just say it? We can't protect Rem at all."]
[Priscilla looked displeased. In broad daylight, she trusted her strength and luck completely. There was no way some ordinary enemy could defeat her.]
[But among those present, she was probably the only one who thought so.]
[To push a combined force of three factions into that state, the enemy's strength was beyond estimation.]
Hikigaya tried to force himself to stand, but his body no longer had the strength to support him.
Fortunately, Beatrice had now become part of him.
With her by his side, moving wasn't difficult.
"Beatrice… we need to go. If we don't hurry, it'll be too late."
Beatrice: "Idiot. Hold on tight."
Hikigaya: "What are you doing?"
Beatrice: "With your condition, even reaching there is a problem, let alone fighting."
As she spoke, she placed a hand on Hikigaya's chest, and a warm current flowed into his body.
Then…
As if swallowed by a spatial current, Hikigaya was pulled into a strange space.
It felt like briefly falling asleep.
His consciousness didn't disappear, but when he tried to recall it, everything felt unreal.
When he opened his eyes again, he was falling from the sky beside Flugel's Great Tree.
It wasn't the first time, but falling with zero safety measures was still terrifying.
The powerful centrifugal force made his heart race wildly.
"Hey hey hey hey hey hey hey hey hey!"
Boom!
Just before hitting the ground, Beatrice appeared using magic, stopping him midair and gently lowering him into her arms.
Being princess-carried by a little loli was already something worth complaining about, but what Hikigaya wanted to complain about even more was,
"Next time something like this happens, can you warn me first?"
"Hikigaya, that doesn't sound like you. You're not even afraid of death."
"It's different. Dying like that is meaningless. My instincts still make me scared."
"I thought you were a monster."
"..."
In Beatrice's arms, Hikigaya looked around.
This was where they had separated before.
Under his guidance, they had deliberately taken a long detour in the opposite direction.
'Now all we need to do is…'
Boom!
Before Hikigaya could finish thinking, Beatrice seemed to understand and directly leapt into the air.
The sudden movement nearly gave him a heart attack again.
'What a troublesome girl.'
"Betty is a troublesome girl!"
....
On the other side, Crusch's group, who had been traveling nonstop, showed no signs of laughter or cheer thanks to Hikigaya's warning. Furthermore, because they were transporting the White Whale's corpse, the speed of their large convoy was unbearably slow.
Priscilla was the first to voice her irritation. "Why should I listen to that guy in the first place? Even if we ran into trouble, I'd have more than enough ability to deal with it myself."
Al, who was sitting directly across from her, explained, "Princess, in a situation like this, it's better to stay cautious. We've already defeated the White Whale, if something goes wrong now, all our efforts would be wasted."
"And for some reason, I really trust that Hikigaya guy. It feels like his eyes are hiding some kind of answer about the future."
Priscilla scoffed. "Tch, it's just dead fish eyes."
Meanwhile, Crusch was already leading the troops from the very front. She continuously observed their surroundings, keeping every word Hikigaya had said firmly engraved in her heart.
Rem: "Hikigaya-kun… he'll be fine, right..."
Crusch: "To still be worrying about his safety at a time like this, Miss Rem, that's quite an admirable feeling. No… the one truly deserving of envy should be Sir Hikigaya."
Rem gently shook her head. "No… the one who has truly received his kindness is Rem. Because Hikigaya-kun always reaches out to help when Rem is in danger, and he always appears when Rem is at her weakest. He's Rem's hero."
Listening to Rem speak about Hikigaya with such a blissful expression, Crusch couldn't help but smile faintly.
More than once, she had hoped that Hikigaya would join their faction. She knew it was impossible, but even so, she was willing to become a friendly ally to him and offer him her highest respect.
Just as the two were talking, Crusch suddenly felt a wind filled with danger slowly blowing toward them.
"All units, be on guard!"
"Spread out!"
Boom!
A powerful attack instantly obliterated an earth dragon. If not for Crusch's warning, they would likely have already lost their lives.
Priscilla: "So they really dared to come."
Al: "Just like Hikigaya predicted...."
Crusch: "Who goes there?!"
As she spoke, she drew the sword that had been resting at her waist. Since there had been no casualties in the battle against the White Whale, everyone swiftly drew their weapons and prepared for combat.
In the distance, a short figure slowly emerged. His already horrifying face, combined with that utterly terrifying smile, sent chills down everyone's spine.
"Oh my, you actually dodged it. How troublesome. I was hoping to wipe you all out in one go."
Crusch: "We have no grievances with you. Why attack us like this?"
"No grievances? My beloved pet was completely killed by you! To still dare to act innocent, how sinful, how utterly sinful!"
Mimi: "He actually called the White Whale his pet?"
Hetaro: "Sister, be careful. There's an extremely terrifying scent coming from him… it's similar to the White Whale."
Soldier: "Don't tell me the White Whale really was his pet? Just how dangerous is this guy...?"
Priscilla: "Who cares who he is? If he dares block my path, then killing him will be enough."
"And once again, that Hikigaya guy was right. How irritating… extremely irritating."
With that thought, Priscilla wasted no words. She directly drew the Yang Sword from the void. Under the scorching sun, its power was clearly beyond imagination.
Without hesitation, she swung it down. A sword beam as radiant as the blazing sun roared forth.
However, the man before her made no move at all. He faced Priscilla's attack head-on, not even attempting to dodge.
He opened his mouth wide, and Priscilla's attack instantly lost all its power, completely dissipating.
Priscilla: "Impossible!"
Al: "Princess..."
Everyone stared at the scene before them, momentarily at a loss for words. Relying on her fighting spirit, Crusch slowly raised her blade and addressed the figures ahead: "Who are you? State your name!"
"Ahh, that felt great. My whole stomach feels warm now! As for my name..."
"Witch Cult Sin Archbishop, representing [Gluttony], Lye Batenkaitos."
At the same time, a young man whose aura completely differed from the one before him stepped forward. His striking white hair immediately drew everyone's attention.
"So much pointless chatter… how arrogant."
"Witch Cult Sin Archbishop, representing [Greed], Regulus Corneas."
Gluttony: "Our pet was killed, so we came to take a look, and what a harvest this is. I'll definitely be full now. After all, you managed to kill that reckless monster who lived for four hundred years. I knew you'd be perfectly ripe delicacies. Good, good, very good, so good, really good, isn't it? Isn't it? Of course it is! Our hunger can finally be satisfied, ahhahaha, ahhahaha, hahahaha!"
Al: "The Witch Cult… and two Sin Archbishops at that. This is getting troublesome."
Greed: "Relax. I'm nothing like that one over there. I hate fighting. Hunger, desire, such vulgar cravings have nothing to do with me."
Priscilla swung the Yang Sword again, this time aiming to catch Greed off guard and kill him in one strike.
But...
Boom!
Time itself seemed to stop. Every attack froze completely in place.
Greed, who had been wearing a faint smile just moments ago, now looked as though he had been gravely insulted.
"Hey, you know? Attacking someone while they're in the middle of speaking, what kind of education did you receive? I'd say this is an infringement on my freedom of speech, don't you think?"
As he spoke, his eyes locked onto Priscilla's face, as if trying to vent his hatred onto her.
Priscilla's arm suddenly lifted into the air, completely beyond her control. Al immediately moved to shield her, but it was already too late...
"Ice Bind!"
Boom!
Greed's attack was interrupted once more, and the one who appeared was Hikigaya, who had just been teleported in.
Rem: "Hikigaya-kun!"
Crusch: "Sir Hikigaya..."
Priscilla stared at Hikigaya, unable to say a word.
Hikigaya: "Sorry I'm late. This body's already at its limit. Beatrice, put me down for now."
Greed: "Tch. I really hate it when people interrupt me while I'm talking. I really hate it when people interrupt my attacks. I really hate, "
Rem: "Hikigaya-kun, are my sister and the others alright?"
Hikigaya: "The villagers and everyone else are fine. They'll be arriving here soon as well."
Greed: "Hey, are you treating me like I don't exist?!"
Crusch: "In any case, Sir Hikigaya, it's a relief that you made it."
Priscilla: "Why are you looking at me? I'm not grateful to you at all. Not even a little."
Greed: "....."
Gluttony: "Enough with the chatter. Look at yourselves, you'd think some kind of savior arrived. He's just an ordinary man."
Hikigaya: "You're not wrong there... I suppose I should at least ask for the names of the two famous individuals who are about to take my life."
Gluttony: "Witch Cult Sin Archbishop, representing [Gluttony], Lye Batenkaitos."
Greed smiled brightly. "Witch Cult Sin Archbishop, representing [Greed], Regulus Corneas."
Hikigaya: "The Witch Cult again… what a pain."
Gluttony revealed a sinister smile, while Greed immediately activated the surrounding particles of light, completely freezing time.
However, strangely enough, while everyone else was unable to move, Hikigaya alone could still move slightly within this space.
But that still wasn't enough...
Bang!
In the next instant, before anyone could even process what had happened, Al's arm was sent flying as he tried to block an attack meant for Priscilla.
Even after losing his arm, Al showed no expression of pain. Instead, he grabbed his sword with his remaining hand and pointed it at Gluttony.
Gluttony: "What a shame. I didn't get to eat a truly delicious one. As for you, you're quite the nuisance."
Greed smiled faintly. "If my guess is correct, you must be the legendary Bloodstained Princess, Priscilla."
Seeing Al injured for her sake, Priscilla could no longer hold back. The Yang Sword had fully charged.
"To be allowed to know my name before dying is already an act of great mercy from me."
Gluttony smiled faintly, and Hikigaya noticed it without missing a single detail.
'That attack earlier… I still haven't figured it out, but I'm certain it was Gluttony's doing. And the one standing in front of me… he seems capable of briefly stopping time.'
'They're both monsters, one worse than the other...'
Beatrice gently grasped Hikigaya's hand. Feeling the warmth rising in her heart, Hikigaya sensed Beatrice's resolve as well.
The decisive battle began. Gluttony rampaged through the soldiers with terrifying speed, while Greed stood to the side, watching the battlefield with an inscrutable gaze.
Soon, anguished screams echoed across the field. Countless members of the subjugation force fell instantly, reduced to lifeless corpses, severed limbs flying through the air.
Mimi, Crusch, and Priscilla charged in at lightning speed, while Beatrice unleashed Ice Bind toward Greed.
But...
"I already told you. I hate fighting."
All attacks stopped right in front of him, unable to cause any effect at all, and finally… dissolved into particles of light.
(End of this chapter)