Chapter 288
**"…………"**
The four divine pillars gazed down upon the mortal realm, unsure even where to begin with their criticisms.
Separate from the gods intently observing the world below, the Goddess of Wisdom was once again leisurely reading manga, but that was fine for now.
"This is truly unexpected, isn't it?""An army... of spirits, you mean?""Indeed. An organization that fights with discipline and precise movements.""Ahahaha... Could it be that our apostles will have to fight *that*?"
What they were watching was the scene of Liberta battling the Rainy Devil.He had challenged and defeated a monster that should have been classified as a natural disaster.Cold sweat, which shouldn't even be possible for them, trickled down the gods' brows at this fact.
Having witnessed this battle, all four pillars unusually cooperated to investigate if any rules had been broken, but the result was clean.The only conclusion was that he had achieved this result within the bounds of what was permissible by the rules. They judged that devising a countermeasure was more important than disputing this fact.An alliance formed by the gods.
"There's no need to fight it, but there is a need to compete. There's no doubt that the Southern Hero—no, Kefeli's hero—is currently a full head above the rest of us."
Liberta and his companions had become far too powerful to deny it.
"That's right. Subduing the Evil God is our common goal and the subject of our competition. There's no need for *him* to challenge that monster.""However, it's also a fact that we are inferior in competitive ability. Allowing this solo run to continue unchecked is inadvisable."
Despite saying it was no time for reading manga, the seats where these four pillars sat were each piled high with their favorite manga, making Kefeli look at them with exasperated eyes, wondering if these gods were even serious about winning, before promptly returning to her book.
"So, what shall we dooo? We could use an oracle to call for cooperation, I suppoose. My apostle could probably do it, but can the apostles of you seniors handle iiit?"
Yes, Kefeli understood.Apart from the Apostle of the Goddess of Love, Paffle, the apostles of the other three pillars were far too individualistic to form any cooperative front.
"Well, if it were a form where the other apostles were placed under the command of *my* apostle...""If they can defeat my apostle, then maybe they could? Following the strong is the common sense of my apostle's world. Well, don't think it'll be that easy to win.""How barbaric. In that case, they should unite under *my* apostle, who possesses a solid economic foundation."
The Western Apostle, the Apostle of the Goddess of Mediation, Meter, had an overly strong sense of discipline and a strict personality demanding someone to look up to as a model.If a cooperative system were formed, it would have to be based on a clear norm.
The Northern Apostle, the Apostle of the God of War, Akm, was a denizen of a world that lived by the law of the jungle. The laws of nature were absolute; their compatibility with the Western Apostle could be said to be the worst.And finally, as for whether the remaining Eastern Apostle, the Apostle of the God of Commerce, Goldos, was the type to obey the other two—that was not the case.
The Apostle of Discipline, the Apostle of Battle, the Apostle of Commerce.Precisely because they were chosen with confidence, each believed themselves to be the one who should be at the top.The summit is for one alone. Recognizing this, all three pillars understood that cooperation would be difficult.
"Sooo, does that mean it's Kefeli-senpai's solo victory as things stand?"**"…………"**
Because they were so self-confident, cooperation was difficult.What should normally be a good thing was, in this instance, backfiring.
"Well thennn, shall my apostle become a disciple of Kefeli-senpai's apostle insteaad?"
Amidst this atmosphere, only Paffle, who had a more adaptable apostle, instantly judged what to do.
"Paffle, you...""It's not against the rules, is it? Besides, Kefeli-senpai's apostle seems quite tolerant towards those who cooperate and become allies. If I use an oracle to tell them not to be hostile and to cooperate and let him nurture them, isn't that killing two birds with one stone?"
The three pillars' gazes gathered on the Goddess of Love, accusing her of trying to get a head start, but she showed no sign of caring.Paffle acted swiftly, judging that to make up for being late, she couldn't afford to be picky about her methods.
"Is that okaay, Kefeli-senpai?""Do as you please. As long as it doesn't violate the rules, I have no intention of complaining. Just be prepared that if you form a cooperative system now, you will undoubtedly get dragged into things.""Yesss, I'm aware of that. Well then, I'll gratefully accept your kindneess.""Wait a moment!!"
Intending to do things properly, Paffle sought permission from Kefeli as well, who granted it without even looking up.Fundamentally, since they had no means of contacting their apostles outside of oracles, there was no need to seek permission.
However, if by any chance Kefeli got angry and used an oracle to forbid cooperation with other apostles, that would be the end of it.So, just as Paffle was about to take action after properly discussing the necessary points, Meter called for a halt.
"That proposal—I shall join as well.""With *your* apostle?"
For Meter, who had already used one oracle, using one of her remaining two was a tough decision, but she judged that forming a cooperative relationship with Liberta now offered a better path to victory than aligning with Akm and the others.
"Yes. With signs of Azhdaha's revival, we should want as much combat power as possible, should we not? If it's my apostle, they can participate as a combatant with ample equipment.""......"
Cooperating with Paffle, judging from her personality, didn't carry much risk, so Kefeli had approved it. But if Meter's apostle was going to move, that changed things.The compatibility between Meter's apostle and Kefeli's apostle was fundamentally poor on a human level.However, in terms of whether cooperation was *possible*—it was.
The choice of whether to use an oracle or not floated in Kefeli's mind.She stopped reading her manga and faced Meter, who was looking back at her with a serious expression.Weighing the risks and returns, after a few seconds of silence...
"......Do as you please. However, if you issue an oracle that leaks information about Azhdaha and get punished for it, it has nothing to do with me.""Yes, I shall do so.""And I make no guarantee that *your* apostle will be able to cooperate with *my* apostle.""Of course. I understand."
Thus, something that could be called a Goddess Alliance—or perhaps not quite a cooperative system—was formed without Liberta's knowledge.In Kefeli's mind, she calculated that even if she stopped them here, they would probably use their oracles on their own accord to make contact anyway. Factoring in the effort required to use an oracle to prevent it, she chose not to intervene.
"Ah! Then me too, me too!! If I tell them they can fight strong people, my apostle will probably go to the Southern Apostle's place as well. And if we leave Azhdaha alone, things will get bad for me too!""In that case, I cannot afford to fall behind either."
As a result, Akm and Goldos also declared they would send their apostles.Kefeli had anticipated it might come to this, and she looked at the men who had hastily joined in with exasperated eyes.
"Have you no pride? Just a moment ago, you were discussing how to deal with *my* apostle through cooperation."
Including Meter, she criticized them for flipping their stance far too quickly.
"Don't be like that, Southern. You just need to know when to cling to things like pride and when not to. Now is the time *not* to cling.""The Northern one speaks truth. This is a time when we should seize the advantage."
For a moment, Kefeli suspected they might be planning to conquer the Southern Continent under the guise of this arrangement.Looking at human history, invasion under the name of assistance was commonplace.If that were the case, if prominent figures from other nations suddenly descended upon the Southern Continent, the king of that nation would naturally be wary.
If they ran wild as they pleased, Liberta would deal with them.If utilized well, the forces to fight Azhdaha would increase.Pondering what to do, Kefeli concluded that it might be good for him to meet the apostles of other nations and gain information here.
"......Just don't do anything that gets in the way.""I know. Even *I* understand that it would be bad if Azhdaha ran amok.""Indeed. My apostle would be helpless if attacked by spirits."
After reconsidering whether she should use her remaining two oracles, she decided a simple warning would suffice for now, though she pondered whether she should consider eliminating the other heroes depending on future developments.
"But you knoow, the scariest one is that human, Liberta, right?""Paffle, what do you mean by that?"
Just as Kefeli finished issuing warnings whose effectiveness was unclear and was about to quietly return to her reading, Paffle tilted her head and stated that Liberta was more frightening than Azhdaha, or even the spirit army.Kefeli's hand, turning the page, stopped, and Meter questioned the meaning of her words.
"What do I mean? I mean exactly what I said. If something happens, especially if someone he cares about gets hurt, he'll use that knowledge of his and come for revenge with everything he's got, right? He'll devise strategies with his intellect and come to defeat his enemy using his full power. Azhdaha, being a monster, is a fearsome existence, but it lacks intelligence. The number of spirits is a threat, but they are capricious."
Paffle returned her tilted head to its normal position, her soft smile turning into a serious expression as she pointed out Liberta's true terror.
"And his common sense is fundamentally based on the common sense of the world where he experienced the sandbox Kefeli-senpai prepared. It's common sense from a different world than ours. There are cases where actions we think are fine by our world's common sense are *not* fine for him, you know? If you carelessly do something and incur his hostility... Do you think that violence known as 'knowledge' won't be directed at you?"
Knowledge can sometimes become a deadly weapon.The gods were well aware of this, but the point Paffle raised again was, in a sense, a potential pitfall.
"It would be wise to instruct them to be extremely cautious when issuing oracles.""I'll do that too.""I shall do likewise as well."
Then, as Paffle turned her gaze towards the game board, she could see the epicenter created when the Rainy Devil was defeated.What if that were to occur recklessly all over the world?Destruction and slaughter on a scale that would make Azhdaha pale in comparison would erupt across the globe.The terror of an individual possessing that power.
"Do you think my apostle is some kind of Destroyer God?""Nooo, I don't think that at all~. I merely, as a goddess with an apostle residing on the same continent, sought to alleviate Kefeli-senpai's concerns, that's all."
While this applied to the other apostles as well, Paffle implicitly communicated that she had an ulterior motive—to prevent unreasonable territorial invasion by warning them to be especially cautious of Liberta, who stood out as particularly anomalous.
"What is your goal?"
Kefeli, who had no memory of doing anything that would warrant such trouble, looked at the junior Goddess of Love with suspicion. In response, Paffle softly took out a single volume of manga.
"The afterword of this author's work said there are other works too, and that they were also self-published in things called 'doujinshi'...""......"
It seemed the romance manga had been a clean hit with the Goddess of Love. Hearing this straightforward request born of ulterior motives, Kefeli let out a sigh and picked out what seemed to be the relevant items from her own collection.
"Take them.""Thank you sooo much!!"
What she pulled out were items somewhat thinner than the books she had been reading until now.Paffle accepted them preciously and returned to her seat, clutching in her arms books with slightly more... provocative cover art.Faced with the oddly sparkly art and content that seemed to preach that 'love comes in many genres,' the gods averted their eyes slightly.