"Assistant of Rituals Suematsu! I can't hold out any longer! Aaaaaaaargh!"
A monk collapsed, blood pouring from his eyes.
I, too, wrung a ritual prayer from my throat while black blood streamed from my eyes, mouth, and nose.
"Everyone! Hold on! Endure it!"
The priests of the Chronos Religion also sang their hymns desperately, bleeding all the while.
It was all right.
The end was near.
Once the purification was complete, Lady Tatiana would surely arrive.
One look at His Majesty the King of Chronos, Lord Leo, was enough to see he was in critical condition.
Black blood welled from his eyes, nose, and mouth.
It was a wonder he was even alive.
Lady Kevin and the other doctors were fighting desperately to keep him tethered to this world.
And then, this place had been assaulted by something.
The doctors were already collapsing one after another.
Our only hope was Lady Kevin.
According to God... according to Lady World, it was apparently the curse of a calamity god.
"Rotate out! Choir, second wave! Sing!"
"Archbishop! We have never engaged in combat with a god before!" the choir cried out, their faces contorted with terror.
"None of us have ever fought a god! Stand your ground!"
The instant those words left his mouth, the archbishop flew through the air and slammed into the wall.
"Archbishop!"
The medical staff rushed to carry him out.
The calamity god's power was terrifyingly immense.
Letting one's guard down for even a fraction of a second led to that.
The only thing that could resist a calamity god...
It might sound laughable, but it came down to sheer strength of will.
Grit.
Indeed, there was no choice but to endure through pure grit.
I squeezed out every ounce of strength I had left.
Memories of the past flashed through my mind like a revolving lantern.
Ever since I was a child, I could do anything—except fight.
Academics, sports, everything.
That was why I had always lived my life holding back.
I made sure people thought I was merely mediocre.
My goal was to avoid provoking jealousy.
That was the kind of place my homeland had been before Lord Eddy took over its governance.
Draw jealousy, and you wouldn't survive.
Such was the reality of a planet ruled by the Duke Association.
In a place like that, a clever kid who was afraid to fight was nothing more than easy prey for thugs.
And not just thugs.
Society was thoroughly merciless toward the nail that stuck out.
Even if you were killed, people would simply dismiss it with, "He had it coming, arrogant brat."
That was what my homeland used to be like.
I was terrified of violence.
I was terrified of yelling thugs.
I was terrified of pirates.
Above all, I was terrified of hurting someone myself.
The reason I only ever fired missiles from the rear during battle was born of that same terror.
No matter what I did... that was the one thing I could never overcome.
So I secured my place by playing the fool and leaning on those around me.
I am no threat to anyone.
I even convinced myself that I was merely a mediator.
I willingly took on the jobs everyone else despised, handling everything outside of combat.
And though branded as incompetent, I climbed all the way to knight captain.
I made sure people would overlook me because of my harmless personality.
I kept playing the clown so no one would ever suspect I was capable.
The endless torment of living a lie.
I believed that was the fate thrust upon me.
My family was a lineage of hereditary knight captains.
Running away was never an option.
I thought the agony would last forever.
Yet those painful days came to an abrupt end one day.
The Duke House was dismantled.
And then, my liege and His Majesty Leo appeared.
My revered liege and His Majesty the King of Chronos, Leo, were entirely different from the people of my home planet.
For the first time in my life, they acknowledged my worth.
They commanded me to give it my all.
Playing the jester had already become second nature, but there was no longer anyone around who laughed at me as a useless fool.
These peaceful days had arrived for the first time in my life.
I would never forgive anything that threatened them—even if it were a god.
I had no idea how one was supposed to fight a god either.
Yet I prayed desperately to the heavens.
I will never yield to the likes of a calamity god!
As I gritted my teeth and held on, a figure began to crawl out from the pool of black blood that had splattered onto the floor from my comrades.
A pitch-black silhouette with limbs.
It had neither hair nor skin, and its eye sockets were gaping voids.
Had it formed a body out of blood?
A voice rumbled from the dark figure—a low, grating sound that seemed to echo from the depths of the earth.
Hearing that voice, the choir fell silent.
The very next moment, they collapsed one after another, bleeding from every pore of their bodies.
Yet, strangely enough, I felt no fear.
"Little creature. Why do you not fear?"
The black entity peered down at me.
So, I gave it an answer.
If that drew its target onto me, all the better.
Even if only for an instant, it would buy some time.
"The only things this one fears are the deaths of Her Majesty the Emperor, His Majesty the King of Chronos, and my liege."
"Why do you not yield?"
"Does Your Deity forgive those who yield?"
This god was surely no such noble being.
His Majesty Leo did so without batting an eye, but... the ability to forgive was the true mark of the strong.
Yet this god... had tried to destroy the Persion, Ozen, and Magellan, who had submitted without knowing any better, as well as the Taikyoku Nation and Chronos, who had effectively surrendered.
No... it had abandoned the Corpse Eaters and driven the Pruon Nation to the brink of extinction.
It was merely a creature that ruled through brute force.
A being that possessed no cards to play other than violent threats.
The exact antithesis of His Majesty Leo.
"Heh... heh-heh-heh..."
Laughter slipped from my lips unbidden.
"Why do you laugh?"
"Come to think of it... His Majesty Leo is far more terrifying than Your Deity. His Majesty Leo even forgave the Pruon! Your Deity is inferior to His Majesty Leo!"
"Insolence!"
In the next instant, blood erupted from my eyes.
Grit.
Suppress it with sheer grit.
I must not let my spirit break.
Bleeding profusely, I stood my ground.
And then, I roared.
"Why should I be afraid?! Do not underestimate humanity!"
"Well said, Suematsu!"
Her Majesty the Emperor's shrill voice rang out.
Entering the room were Lord Leonidas, Her Majesty the Emperor escorted by Lord Pigetto, and...
"Preparations are finally complete, Uncle Suematsu!"
Saint Tatiana was there.
"Insolence!"
This time, the god's focus shifted to Tatiana.
A crushing pressure surged toward her.
"Hmph!"
Lord Leonidas and Lord Pigetto braced against it with their shields.
"Leonidas! Can you attack?!"
"No room to move!"
"Understood! I'll take it!"
Lord Pigetto pushed forward, deflecting the pressure with his shield.
Step by step he advanced... and slammed his shield into the god.
Then, Lady Tatiana's hymn resonated through the air.
With a heavy splash, the god dissolved back into blood.
"Insolence, insolence, insolence!"
The god began crawling out from another pool of blood.
"Lord Katori! It's all yours!"
"Yeah! Here I go!"
Sword Saint Katori stepped into the room.
In his grip was a Japanese katana.
With a single fluid strike, Sword Saint Katori cleaved the god in two.
"How's that, little god? Stings a bit, doesn't it? This katana is the finest masterpiece modern smiths can forge, you know."
"Insolence!"
"Hah!"
With sheer fighting spirit, the Sword Saint blew away the god's oppressive aura.
...Was Lord Katori truly human?
However, the katana did not escape unscathed.
A heartbeat later, the blade rusted over and crumbled to pieces.
"Ah, crap..."
"Insolence!"
Sword Saint Katori flew into the air and slammed violently into the wall.
"That hurt, you bastard!"
Was Sword Saint Katori really part of mankind?
"Lord Groom! Wake up! Come now! Show us you can protect your wife!"
Her Majesty the Emperor slapped His Majesty Leo across the face.
In the next moment, His Majesty Leo's body gave a sudden, violent jolt.