Orario.
Leaving the church and already heading for the Dungeon, I suddenly felt a very familiar aura emanating from the Hostess of Fertility, an establishment where they served quite decent food, so I changed my route. If she wanted to meet me, why not? Besides, I could get some food for Griselda and the others. Heh.
After a while, I reached the establishment and, going inside, took a free table and waited. There was no point in doing anything else, because after waiting for about a minute, one of the waitresses with light gray eyes and hair sat down across from me.
- "I thought you were slacking off," I smiled and, creating a cup of coffee, took a sip. "But, as I can see, everything is fine with you."
- "And even more than that. Look," smiled Beast and casually waved her hand, as if in the next second everyone in the establishment froze, as if they were dolls and someone had cut their strings. She held them like that for a couple of seconds, after which everything returned to normal, but no one paid any attention to me or her. Not even the few weak gods. "This city is just wonderful. I have complete freedom, and no one can find me or pose a threat to me."
So, if the Beast was able to develop her powers to such an extent in practically one day, then her maturation will happen very quickly. I think a week will be enough for her, considering the state of the population of Orario.
- "Oh?" I raised an eyebrow. "I understand about the threat, because in this world there are no Alaya, Grand Servants, or any of their counterparts, but what about 'detect'? That's some new level of 'pathetic'."
- "Oh, but it's true. And the body I'm using now is perfect proof of that," said the Beast with a hint of arrogance. "That silly girl, Syr Flova, is an extremely interesting person. She's perceptive and enterprising, I give her credit for that. A long time ago, she made a deal with Freya, after which she became, in essence, the goddess's alter ego."
- "Interesting," I commented.
- "And when I offered her a deal that she could become the real Freya, she instantly agreed. And you know what?"
- "What?"
- "Freya herself has no idea about me or our deal, and at the same time, I gained access to the entire city," Beast chuckled. "The gods of this world are so weak. I could corrupt their minds and devour them right now, but that wouldn't be as appetizing."
- "Of course," I rolled my eyes and took a sip. "As I understand it, you called me here just to tell me that? If so, I haven't heard anything new."
- "Of course not!" declared the Beast. "I'd like to ask you something."
- "Ask?" I smirked. "Strange choice of words for a Beast, don't you think?"
- "I'm not like the other Beasts," Beast said in a bored tone. "You know my real name, don't you?"
- "Whore of Babylon, right?"
- "Exactly," she nodded. "And it reflects my essence. I am the vessel of every mortal sin of humanity. Their symbol, the idol to which they always return, no matter how much they deny it."
She paused and rested her head on her clasped fingers, flashing a contemptuous smirk, as if mocking the truth she herself had just revealed.
- "The very essence of humanity, the order to which 'wisdom' has led, makes 'desire' the essence of humanity. 'Wisdom' leads to 'Choice'. 'Choice' leads to desire. And desire leads to even greater desire, followed by collapse through self-destruction."
I smiled, because that was exactly the idea I supported.
It didn't matter what the result of the choice was, but the choice itself, made by the person. That's how people learned and grew, based on their experience, the 'Wisdom' given to humanity. But it was at this point that my and the Beast's opinions diverged.
While the Beast believed that humanity could not control itself, I believed that, based on the accumulated 'Wisdom', humanity could avoid its end, at least by its own hands.
Of course, the end would still come, because this law of the universe, not just of nature, applied to everyone, but at whose hands would humanity perish? That was a completely different question. There were too many factors influencing this, and it was impossible to give an accurate answer. I think even for my Clairvoyance.
- "Other Beasts are trying to destroy the Human Order, thereby returning it to its beginning. They are trying to stop humanity's ambitions and desires, but not me," she continued. "Beasts are weak compared to humans, and if we try to destroy you, we will inevitably lose, at least for now. It's foolish. It is much better to simply wait for the moment when humanity is about to destroy itself. And I, a moment before that, will be able to enjoy the absorption to my heart's content, when humanity's desires have reached their peak, but the Human Order still exists."
- "Again, you haven't told me anything new," I rolled my eyes. "But I still haven't heard the question."
- "I'm almost there," she said, and the smirk on her face changed to... confusion. "All of this concerned our original world, but not the one we came from. That moment will not come soon there, and there is no point in posing a threat to you. So... why bring me here if I was going to become a full-fledged Beast anyway, just a little later? Why try to change me if I was going to obey you anyway? Why do all this when you, Magician, and the Grand Servant and three other Beasts are already under your command?"
I couldn't answer her questions. My mouth opened and closed, and my brain, going over every possible option, couldn't find a suitable answer. It was as if there simply wasn't one.
After all, if I summarized and analyzed the Beast's words, there really was no compelling reason for me to go through with all this. The worst that could happen if I did nothing was losing Griselda and replacing her consciousness with the Beast's. That is, in theory, I could simply do what I had already done with the nun and the Beast, pseudo-merging the two entities while preserving their individuality.
I frowned.
So why am I doing what I'm doing now? What exactly motivated me at that moment?
- "Looking at your face, Magician, you don't know the answer to my question yourself," said the Beast disappointedly. "I think now I have something to do when I'm bored. And so do you. See you later, Magician."
The next moment, the waitress's expression and aura changed, and now she gave the impression of a rather cheerful girl.
- "Ah, Mr. Archaman? How did you end up here?" she asked in a completely different tone. "And why am I sitting at your table? I have to work! Mama Mia will scold me again!"
- "It's okay," I sighed, leaving the Beast's questions for later. "Can I order?"
- "Of course," she nodded and jumped up from her seat. "What would you like?"
- "Everything on the menu, to go," I said, causing Sir to open her eyes wide and look at me as if I were crazy.
- "O-of course! We'll have it ready in no time!" she exclaimed and went into the kitchen, from where I could hear the owner of the establishment shouting quite loudly. However, it didn't bother me, because right now I had something else to think about.
-0-
The Dungeon.
After paying and putting the prepared food into my magic pocket, thanks to DxD magic, I entered the Dungeon and was about to go downstairs when I suddenly felt something strange. As soon as I entered, the Dungeon seemed to start... welcoming me.
The walls of the Dungeon lit up with a soft light, the color of which was very similar to Tia's hair. The monsters began to slowly move towards me, resembling robots, then stopped and stared at me. A moment later, the eyes of one of the monsters, a kobold, seemed to light up, turning pure gold, and its body was covered with intricate tattoos, also glowing gold.
- "Chosen One of Tiamat," the kobold began in a deep female voice reminiscent of that of Tiamat from the world of DxD. The goddess, not the dragon queen. "Call me Tamait. And I am the Dungeon. It's nice to meet you in person, Romani."
I raised an eyebrow.
Quickly scanning the energy signature in front of me, I could clearly see a fusion of two entities. One of them was obviously the Dungeon, which had some semblance of consciousness, but what about the second?
- "Tiamat and the Dungeon in one person?" I smirked. "I suppose gaining full consciousness and acquiring some of the goddess's traits was quite entertaining, wasn't it, Tamait-chan?"
- "You're right," nodded the kobold and pointed invitingly toward the staircase leading to the second floor. "Come on, Romani. I'll take you to them."
- "Of course."
- "And while we're walking there, tell me about Tiamat," he added. "I'd like to hear how she's doing, if you don't mind, of course."
- "Oh, of course," I chuckled. "Where would you like me to start?"
-0-
A/N: How's the chapter? Give us your opinion. You may well be able to influence future chapters.
My P.a.t.r.e.o.n: P.a.t.r.e.o.n.c.o.m/mirzael
You'll be able to read more chapters there.