Inside a room of a luxurious inn, as the blonde buzz-cut man, Colonel Teltel, was eating a meal, a tall man dressed in foreign white attire suddenly appeared beside him.
"Colonel Teltel, the capture of the Singularity has ended in failure."
He delivered the news with a voice tinged with irritation.
"Huh? What did you just say?"
"You failed."
"W-Wait just a second! Those guys are my direct subordinates! There's no way they could lose to the inferior life-forms of a world like this!"
"Complain all you want, but you failed. That is the reality. Naturally, Lord Tartarus is utterly furious. Thanks to you, even I received a terrible reprimand!"
The masked man in white foreign clothes spat the words out.
"Who got in my way?!"
Colonel Teltel asked, his face draining of color.
"The recording-type items all failed to activate across the board, so who did it remains unknown. However, they wiped out your subordinates all at once. The beings capable of pulling that off are few and far between."
"The Evil Army, huh...? Why at a time like this...? So, is the operation called off?"
Colonel Teltel held his head in his hands.
"No, the conclusion reached was that it wasn't the Evil Army this time."
The masked man in white promptly shot that down.
"Huh? If it's not the Evil Army, then what kind of faction is it?!"
"A Singularity."
"A Singularity? You mean aside from that girl, Lumine?"
"Correct. It seems there was another Singularity—another absurdity of this world—besides that girl."
"Haha... I see. Is that why I'm still in one piece?"
Indeed. Normally, that Tartarus would never let Colonel Teltel walk away unharmed after failing a mission. The reason why required no second thought.
"Of course. Lord Tartarus believes you still have some use. Though, you only have one chance left."
"I-I know that!"
Tartarus's cruelty and ruthlessness were well known to anyone from the Heavenly Realm. He could not afford to fail again.
"What should I do?"
"I shall convey Lord Tartarus's orders! There is a Singularity within an organization formed by humans called 'Kyou' in the Lawless City Induram! Present them to Lord Tartarus alongside the Singularity Lumine! This is your final chance!"
I knew it. Teltel had experienced the sheer absurdity of Singularities more than enough. If that Singularity happened to be a combat type, mere subordinates of Teltel stood absolutely no chance. Complete amateurs at fighting triumphing over the Heavenly Army divine pillars, who were seasoned killing machines. It was precisely because they were such concentrated masses of absurdity that both Heaven and Evil had resolved to eliminate them as Singularities.
"Understood."
Standing up, he straightened his posture and offered a salute.
Failure was no longer an option. The Singularity among those "Kyou" people was a combat type. If he didn't stay on his toes, even Teltel could be destroyed in the blink of an eye.
(Why do I have to deal with this crap?!)
Lamenting his fate wouldn't change anything. This time too, he had been dragged into a struggle revolving around Singularities.
Last time, it had been a legitimate operation sanctioned by the Heavenly Army, with the full backing of Heaven guaranteeing their justification. But this time, on Tartarus's orders, they were violating the sacred taboo between Heaven and Evil.
If exposed, someone like Teltel would be purged by both Heaven and Evil without a second thought. Not a single excuse would be entertained.
(I just... have to do it...)
The die was already cast. There was no turning back now. If Teltel wanted to survive, his only option was to capture both Singularities and present them to Tartarus.
(I'll do it! I'll damn well do it!)
Colonel Teltel clenched his right fist tightly and shouted with fierce resolve.