Correction work.

At the Burning Trees’ answer, the Spit-Forth Arm turned to look behind him with a confused expression.

There, Divine blood had gathered.

Yes, they had gathered there, but...

[...That is what you call correction work?]

[That’s right.]

The problem was that the composition was rather bizarre.

Two Divine blood surrounded by a huge number of Divine blood.

It was a blatantly violent scene at a glance, and the Spit-Forth Arm fell silent for a moment.

Heavy bewilderment spread across its face.

It turned its gaze back toward the Burning Trees.

Because, looking at what was happening in front of it, there were suddenly many things it wanted to ask about.

Still, there was also the truth that sometimes it was better not to know than to know, so just as the Spit-Forth Arm was hesitating—

the Burned Trees let out a sigh.

[Haaah— this really isn’t easy.]

[...What isn’t?]

[Lately, even inside the group, there’s been a steady stream of bastards— no, brats that need correction work.]

The Trees shook its head, saying it was a headache.

Before the Spit-Forth Arm could even respond, a scream came from behind.

[.......]

At a glance, it was blatantly obvious what kind of method Star Root had used to gather Divine blood.

The Spit-Forth Arm stared blankly at the Burned Trees.

For a moment, it considered whether this one truly did not understand what the problem was, but—

[Ahem—]

—it soon cleared its throat.

In truth, its question had already been answered the moment it came face to face with the Burned Trees, but even so, leaving just like this would feel a little strange.

No, to be exact, there would be nothing wrong with leaving like this, but how should ❀ Nоvеlігht ❀ (Don’t copy, read here) it put it...

[.......]

It felt like it should not do that.

For now, there was no choice but to keep the conversation going.

[Come to think of it, do you know about Astarotte?]

[...Astarotte? Ah, those insane zealots? I already have a rough grasp because of all the newcomers coming in.]

[Newcomers coming in... is it.......]

[Why do you ask?]

[No, no. It’s nothing.]

The Spit-Forth Arm gave an awkward little cough for no reason.

Then the Burned Trees continued.

[Now that I think about it, I heard things have gotten noisy lately because of Astarotte. Is it because of the "fragments?"]

[That’s right. I don’t know what kind of reason led a high-ranking Divine blood to do something like that, but in any case, the situation is serious.]

[Why is that?]

[So you really don’t know the details.]

The Spit-Forth Arm briefly explained the current situation to the Burned Trees.

[I see. So that’s what happened.]

[Still, I suppose no request for help has come to this side yet? I heard other Divine blood have been moving around lately to gather groups together.]

At that, the Burned Trees shook its head.

[Even if they asked for help, I don’t think we’d be moving.]

[Is that so?]

[To begin with, if that one does not move, there is no way we can step forward ourselves.]

At that answer, the Spit-Forth Arm felt a flicker of puzzlement, then realized the "that one" the Trees was referring to was the Star Eater.

At the same time, a rumor it had heard before came back to mind.

[But I heard the Star Eater is moving.]

[...What?]

[I heard that he already agreed to participate in the subjugation force.]

The Burned Trees’ eyes widened.

[...Is that true?]

[That’s what I heard.]

[...Then that means the Star Eater will be participating in the subjugation force as Divine blood.]

At the Trees’ question in return, the Spit-Forth Arm dragged out the end of its words.

[Uh....]

To begin with, all it had heard was the rumor that the Star Eater would be joining this subjugation force.

But hearing the Trees say it that way, it did sound plausible.

[I don’t know the details either, but... well, I suppose so.]

The Spit-Forth Arm gave a faint nod.

A sudden light came into the Trees’ eyes.

[I see— is that so.]

At last, as if the time had finally come, it smiled a meaningful smile.

[Then at last—]

It rose from its seat.

As though it had long awaited this very day.

[The time has come to properly serve that one.]

The Trees’ resolute voice rang through the air.

####

The day after arriving in Colony, Alon and his group immediately started heading toward the Empire.

They needed rest too, but time was short.

Before they knew it, it had already been a week since they began crossing the desert.

"Hoo—"

In the dead of night, after everyone else had gone to sleep.

Out in the desert, which had turned bitterly cold unlike the daytime, Alon stopped what he had been practicing until just now.

"Hm— I think it’s come up quite a lot now. The level of completion is high."

"Is that so?"

"Yes."

At Penia’s evaluation, Alon let out a sigh.

Seeing that, Penia looked thoughtful, then spoke carefully.

"But, Alon."

"What is it?"

"Why are you suddenly practicing that magic?"

"This magic?"

"Yes. To be honest, it isn’t really magic you need to be practicing right now. And it’s a little dangerous too."

At Penia’s question, Alon thought for a moment before answering.

"As a precaution."

"...As a precaution?"

"Yes. As a precaution."

Concern and curiosity rose together on Penia’s face.

Her large eyes turned toward Alon, but she soon closed her mouth.

Instinctively, she understood.

That even if she asked any further, Alon would not answer.

So Penia decided to change the subject.

"Come to think of it, what are you going to do about that?"

"What do you mean?"

"The Sin. You said you were going to tell Seollang too, didn’t you?"

Alon slowly nodded.

As she said, he had intended to tell Seollang about the Sin.

More precisely, about the proper way to handle a Sin.

"I did."

"Are you going to tell her tomorrow?"

"Yes. I should hand over the vessel too."

"Then should I prepare separately for it as well?"

This time, Alon shook his head.

"No, let’s put that off for a bit."

"Hm— alright."

"...?"

"Why are you looking at me like that?"

"...Aren’t you going to ask why I’m putting off the preparations?"

"Ah, that?"

He had been sure Penia would question that statement.

But when her reaction turned out differently than expected, Alon asked, and Penia gave it some thought.

"Hm... because you said so, Alon. I figured there must be a reason."

"...Is that so?"

"Yes. And besides, you’ve been continuing to keep an eye on Seollang, haven’t you?"

Then she said,

"...Honestly, I don’t know what it is about Seollang that keeps drawing your attention. To me, other than the fact that she’s gotten much stronger, she doesn’t seem any different from before."

"......"

"But even so, if you’re concerned about it, then there must be something there."

Because I trust you, Alon. Evan probably feels the same way too, she added, then looked awkward for no reason.

At that, Alon stared at her blankly for a moment, then ran a hand across his face.

Because it suddenly struck him that someone placing pure trust in him was unexpectedly embarrassing.

So after quietly composing himself for a moment, Alon—

"Thank you."

—offered that short thanks.

"It’s nothing."

Penia smiled.

And the next day.

At the point when, far off in the distance, patches of green grassland and forest began to appear where it was no longer desert—

"Seollang."

"Hm? What is it, Master?"

"Take this."

Alon handed the vessel to her.

"This is...?"

"It’s a vessel of Sin."

"...A vessel of Sin?"

"That’s right."

After nodding, Alon briefly relayed to Seollang what he had heard from Rine.

"Ah— so if I can use the Sins properly, I can become even stronger than I am now, Master?"

"That’s right. Of course, with a Sin that has already been dealt with—"

As he was about to add that, Alon stopped for a moment.

Because he suddenly realized that the Sin of Pride had never actually been extinguished.

'...What are you supposed to do in a case like this?'

So while Alon paused to think—

"Hm— so the point is, I just need to let the Sin dwell in this vessel, right, Master?"

"That’s true for now, but...."

Seollang asked.

Alon came back to himself a beat late and nodded.

At that, Seollang seemed to think about something, then—

"I’ll try it!"

—shouted in a loud voice almost immediately.

"...?"

Alon involuntarily showed his confusion.

He had been able to help before because Rine had told him how to call forth a Sin using one that had already been extinguished as the medium.

But to contain a Sin that had not been extinguished, they would first have to find wherever that Sin currently was, so Alon was about to say something about that—

"...Huh?"

"...?"

—and could not continue.

Because the pale vessel, which clearly had held no color at all just moments earlier, had gradually begun to fill with color.

And then.

When at last the color completely filled it—

[Just how long were you planning to keep me locked up!?]

Alon saw it.

The black dragon that burst out from the gauntlet now dyed completely black.

"...?"

"...?"

Question marks rose over the heads of both Alon and Penia standing beside it.

####

Around the time Alon was staring blankly at the suddenly appeared Sin of Pride with a bewildered expression— 𝚏𝗿𝗲𝐞𝚠𝕖𝐛𝗻𝗼𝐯𝕖𝚕.𝚌𝗼𝗺

a strange rumor began to spread through the Central Mage Tower.

It was about Heinkel.

Of course, it was only natural that all kinds of rumors would spread about her.

To begin with, she was an idol among idols, someone every mage admired beyond measure.

And the words she spoke when she appeared in human form had also been deeply shocking to mages in several ways.

She had, in effect, defined a miracle vivid enough to leave itself carved into the minds of mages who did not believe in miracles.

A dead person returning to life—and not just anyone, but the very idol of mages—was more than enough for word to spread among mages, but...

The rumor currently circulating through the Mage Tower was a little more delicate.

It was about Heinkel’s body.

The mages no longer had any disagreement over whether Alon was a god.

What he had shown them was unmistakably a miracle no magic could achieve.

And yet even so, there was only one reason the mages had taken an interest in Heinkel’s body.

Because her body looked far too much like someone else’s.

...To be a little more precise, like Penia Crysinne, the vice tower master of the Blue Tower.

And perhaps because of that, a rumor had recently begun to spread through the Mage Tower that Penia and Alon’s relationship went beyond merely being special—that they had already promised each other a future together.

This was a misunderstanding on the mages’ part.

It could only be a misunderstanding.

Because Heinkel’s body was one she had kept sealed away in the Library for a long time for her own purposes, and this time she had merely taken that body out and used it.

Contrary to the truth, there were two reasons this absurd misunderstanding had grown among the mages.

The first was the meticulous distortion of history Heinkel herself had carried out all this time.

Originally, her appearance had been extremely young for her age, and because of that, she had always disliked her own looks.

So, almost as though trying to hide that inferiority complex, she had portrayed herself as female in every piece of information that included her, even the fairy tale books she appeared in.

She had gone so far as to maintain the concept that she had become younger because she was a spirit even while actually living as one.

And the second reason was Heinkel’s own statement.

She had said that the Magic King had given her life.

Which in turn meant that Alon had given Heinkel a new life and a new body, which also meant that he was the one who had made and designed that body.

And since the body he had made looked extremely similar to Penia in childhood—

"...No matter how I look at it, this is real, isn’t it...?"

"Look. Even the hair and eye color are blue."

"...No, but if you look at the records of Lady Heinkel, I think her original coloring was blue too."

"But if you actually picture her appearance, there’s no way that image was what she looked like as a child either, right?"

"That’s true."

"Then I guess the rumor really is true."

That rumor spread through the Mage Tower like weeds, without ever reaching Heinkel’s ears while she remained fully occupied with recovering her magic power after recently regaining a body.

And then—

"...Haaah.... I really hoped it wasn’t true...."

Thinking, hoping, that perhaps the rumor he had heard had been even a little—just a little—exaggerated,

Hidan, who had come disguised as a mage of the Brown Mage Tower to uncover the truth,

"...The vice tower master of the Blue Tower is going to be replaced."

remembered the Blue Moon’s regular meeting, now only a few months away, and wore an expression much like that of a sorrowful frog....

...It was a chilly autumn.