Irina deeply, deeply regretted her prayer. The one who stepped foot into their paradise that day was someone who would paint over their hell with an even worse one. Her ominous black wings asserted her presence, and her beautiful looks filled with absolute confidence went along with a bestial smile. Behind her was an army of monsters.
Asia, who had confirmed the woman's level with a special skill granted to the Fairy Princess, almost swooned. Her level was 4000.
Huh?!… What is this… monster? No. There's no way she's a hero. As if there could be a hero like this.
But still, she's not "her." She's not someone prepared by the Goddess. Why would she create someone so meaninglessly strong like this, when she's been killing heroes all this time because she didn't want to leave behind anyone too powerful?
In the first place, this woman's ignoring the level limit the Goddess put in place. Asia quietly contemplated this information. I heard the rumors that there was someone called the Devil King who "she"—who's calling herself the Grimm Queen now—is truly afraid of and is avoiding direct confrontation with.
Asia had thought it was an exaggeration though, since there had been many people up until now who'd had rumors this exaggerated floating around about them. Unfortunately, however, it turned out that the rumors were all true.
What should I do…? This person… She'll ignore the script and could really kill Satsuki. Not because of the Goddess's Script. It won't be some fake victory decided on beforehand. She'll really and truly dominate Satsuki in a real fight and kill her. She's a real monster.
She was a true bug, naturally born into the world and completely unrelated to the Goddess's machinations.
In front of her, Asia raised her trembling voice to ask, "U-ummm… Do you have business with me?"
"Indeed I do. I've heard that there is a Fairy Princess in these parts who makes use of a strange ability… Welcoming a follower of the Goddess would be interesting, so I came. Okay now, getting to the point… We came to take you away, or tame you, Fairy Princess Asia. And you too, big sister Irina."
Asia was rendered speechless. It took a couple of seconds for her to process what she'd just heard. Huh? What? She's going to capture me? Like a monster?
Many humans had visited Alfheim throughout the years. The Fairy Princess had been petitioned for help or advice many times. However, no fool had ever come to try to capture her. As if there could be. The Goddess wouldn't allow it.
"Ah. Of course, you're welcome to resist. You have the right to refuse. If you don't want to be captured, resist with all your might."
"I'll take you up on that offer!"
"Come, my beloved children. Heroes from the past!"
Irina raised her Excalibur, and Asia activated her special skill, the "Throne of Heroes".
The flying ship Argo floated up into the air along with all the heroic spirits from the past who were on it. The little sister summoned them, and the older sister led them. With that arrangement, the skill Throne of Heroes was completed and became an unbeatable, unfair skill.
However, the black-winged angel took one look at the ship and sent out a light punch. Right afterward, a giant hole opened up in Argo, and it started to sink while emitting smoke.
Huh? Shocked, even Asia's thoughts were momentarily quiet. Wha—Uhhh? Did Argo just… fall? Is this a joke?! Did this person seriously sink Argo with just the wind pressure from her punch?! That thing is as hard as orichalcum?!
The black-winged angel was truly a common sense-destroying being, or common sense possibly just got sick of dealing with her and ran away at full speed. The summoned heroes were all easily subdued by her aura and rendered immobile. The fairy sisters also crumpled to their butts on the ground.
What the hell? What the hell is she?! I don't know anyone like her?!
Asia felt like she was experiencing a somehow even worse version of Hel, a super-Hel. This woman was like an all-encompassing despair that engulfed and surpassed regular despair. She was a source of unfairness, absurdity, and irrationality that stomped on everything lesser than herself, one who broke every other absurdity. And she was exactly what Asia had been waiting for—one who could rip apart even a Goddess's Script.
The woman stood in front of Asia and looked down upon the Fairy Princess. "Your eyes, they look like they belong to a corpse. Looks like the role the Goddess forced on you was too much of a burden."
Surprised, Asia could say nothing in reply.
"What's wrong? Why are you so surprised? Did you seriously think that I didn't know? True, I do realize that I wasn't on the smart side of the scale, but… even then, even I'd notice something this obvious. You and the Grimm Queen… It's such a perfect story of opposing light and dark that it's like someone is literally pointing out that there is a purposeful balance being kept. And that's not all. Weiss translated a stone tablet left hidden deep in some ruins, and it seems as if you've faced off against someone very similar to the Grimm Queen many times, and for a long while now. It's as if the world is a pendulum, swinging between light and dark, between hope and despair… That convinced me. 'Ahh, they're totally working together,' I thought." Naru paused. "Right on the money, yes?"
Naru used a finger to lift up Asia's chin so they would lock gazes.
"It must have been quite painful for you. You must have deceived heroes and watched them die countless times, and it must have eroded away at your heart. Rejoice—this will be the last time."
Asia was shocked.
"If the Goddess will not answer you, then I shall. The curtain will soon close on this play, and when it does, you will no longer have to send anyone to their deaths." Naru quieted, then said, "We will be destroying the whole stage, after all."
While listening to Naru, Asia felt like she was face to face with a Devil. Devil… an evil being that defies divinity. That's exactly what she is. No matter how I look at it, she's completely ignoring the Goddess's Script. For someone like this to be born… It must have been completely unexpected for the Goddess.
But… Ahhh, how ironic. To think that the one to say the words I've always wanted to hear wasn't one of the heroes I've always loved and respected, but the exact opposite. Or maybe she said it because she's a Devil?
"I'm going to retake true freedom for this world, which has been forced to repeat a third-rate play over and over again. In order to do that, I want you… Become our ally, Fairy Princess Asia."
It was the temptation of evil, and it led down the treacherous path of betraying the Goddess.
The hero wouldn't be able to destroy the Goddess's Script. The only one who could would be a monster completely out of the norm. So Asia took Naru's hand, because even if this was the path that led to her destruction, she could no longer stand plucking flowers before their time.