"Well yes, were I to abandon my material body at this time to exist purely as a soul, perhaps— Although seeking refuge in the Netherworld in such a manner exists as a possible solution, that I do concede... Upon my pride as a goddess, I only wish to fulfill the meaning of life and death."
Nearing her death, the witch goddess spoke words of enlightenment.
If only she had reached this level of enlightenment earlier, then Godou could have avoided the need to oppose her in this manner.
Godou sighed. He had been very angry before the fight, completely unable to forgive her for what she intended to do to Yuri. But apart from that, he could let everything else slide.
After all, he had responded quite excessively in turn.
"To me, this is already 'an eye for an eye.' I'd say we're even now."
"Such incomparable absurdity is truly befitting of a god-slaying monarch. But unfortunately, half of my life as a deity was already taken by His Highness Alexandre. If only this half of a body is used as a sacrifice, the [Circle of Usurpation] belonging to that joke of a witch probably won't come into play..."
"Hmm? What are you talking about?"
Ignoring Godou's question, the goddess slowly closed her eyes.
"Ah yes, but then again, you still possess that blade, Kusanagi-sama... In that case, there is meaning in sacrificing this battered body of mine... Listen carefully—Will you? Do not feel too depressed. By the life remaining in this half of a body, I, Circe, shall surely follow you, Kusanagi-sama..."
With her eyes remaining closed, she continued but Godou could not comprehend her words.
"Black blade... White— One day, these shall become the weapons you wield as a cross... Fufu, I can already see it, Kusanagi-sama..."
"Hey, are you still okay!?"
Godou raised his voice, worried that Circe's final moments had arrived.
Then Circe slowly opened her beautiful eyes of bright violet and exhaled weakly.
"I am very sorry, Kusanagi-sama. I am already determined to offer my life as nourishment to the man with whom I have spent loving moments together..."
"Who is this man you love?"
"Of course I am referring to you, my dear Kusanagi-sama."
"No, that's totally not the kind of relationship we have!"
Godou protested loudly against the goddess who had finally turned back into a girl in love.
Unfortunately, he was not the kind of person who could pretend to be her lover at a time like this.
"Fufufufu. For a woman like me, this rustic simplicity is quite cute, you know?"
Circe, who was smiling at the sight of Godou's panic, should be the one described as cute instead.
If only this goddess could have acted in this manner from the very start, then things would not have come to this.
Godou sighed again.
"Ah yes, let me take these final moments to enact my vengeance on His Highness Alexandre for betraying my love. Regarding the great hero whom he seeks, you should search the Argo's pedigree if his true name is what you desire. I reveal this secret only to you alone, Kusanagi-sama!"
While the goddess Circe recounted these words, an adorable smile remained on her face.
Then immedidately, a strange sound of collapse came from her body. This was probably due to the curse she had placed on herself, most likely the sound of heart failure.
In the next instant, Circe's body turned into sand and collapsed.
"To think it'd be the Argo?"
"The ship that carried the band of heroes led by the renowned Jason... That ship used to find the golden fleece?"
Erica and Liliana began to discuss the goddess' last words.
On the other hand, Godou was experiencing an indescribable feeling. Despite clearly knowing the answer to the mystery Alexandre Gascoigne sought, this goddess kept completely silent about it throughout the time she spent together with that man. Godou was truly overwhelmed with the conclusion that "women are scary indeed..."
But he did not say it aloud in fear of being overheard by the surrounding girls.
In actual fact, Yuri happened to have walked over to his side at this very moment.
"Godou-san, you have worked very hard. At the very least, we are all gathered here and reunited, safe and sound."
"Yeah, I owe a lot to your care this time, Mariya. Thank you."
Godou expressed his sincere thanks to the Hime-Miko who was comforting him with a gentle smile.
But this elicited an unexpected response instead. Yuri stared at him with an expression as if she wanted to say something.
"M-Mariya?"
"......"
Silence continued. She seemed to be seeking something, that was what her gaze conveyed. Godou was then struck by a sudden realization.
Perhaps back when he was immersed completely in the fight, Godou had naturally used "that way of addressing her." But now, he had switched back to the old manner of address, contrary to her request.
Realizing the situation, Godou was about to go "Yu—" but could not bring himself to say it.
Addressing her so intimately by given name made him feel very embarrassed. Seeing him unable to voice it, Yuri hung her head sadly.
Godou frantically tried to speak her name again but it proved to be unexpectedly difficult. Seeing Godou muttering away because he was unable to say it, Yuri smiled with a chuckle.
"It is fine to use the old way for now. Just use the easiest way to address me."
Feeling the grace of her merciful understanding, Godou went "Mariya..." and hung his head.
To think he would anger her on a matter like this, he really was quite useless.
"However, if you continue to do that without changing your ways, my patience will run out eventually, you know? Please prepare yourself accordingly, yes?"
Godou could not do anything but nod in response to this reasonable request. At this very moment—
He suddenly felt it. A feeling as though a great weight was placed on his back for a fleeting instant.
"Godou-san, that was the goddess Circe's—"
Yuri was dumbfounded. She probably saw what had just entered Godou's body.
"Power... Something similar to that has entered me... But will it become my new authority?"
"Y-You mean...?"
"That goddess seemed to be half dead and in an incomplete state. If that's the case, what is going to happen?"
Although he was puzzled, Godou did not really care as much as his questions suggested.
He would be quite troubled if he increased these ridiculous powers that ran counter to his pacifism. If he did not gain a new authority, all the better.
Speaking of which, quite a fair amount of time had passed since defeating Lancelot.
Why had he not felt the gain of an authority? While he was pondering over this—
Erica, Liliana and Ena had already arrived by his side. Looking at Godou and Yuri, the trio began a strange conversation.
"Seriously, there's a unique mood hanging over just the two of them. It really feels like something was already accomplished. Looks like we'd better check carefully, just as Erica-san suggested."
Ena spoke with what appeared to be a worried expression.
Liliana responded in a worried tone of voice:
"Since Mariya Yuri is the one he drifted out at sea together, one could not be too optimistic... Indeed, given they were spending time together just the two of them, combined with the suspension bridge effect, clearly the matter cannot be ignored..."
"I've already said it before. Yuri is unexpectedly someone who easily goes with the flow. More surprisingly, she's also quite a passionate person. In light of the need to confirm all our respective positions right now, an interrogation is unavoidable."
"I-Interrogation?"
Godou frowned in response to Erica's mentioning of such an unsettling term.
Hearing Erica's proposal, Yuri also interjected frantically.
"E-Excuse me! After hearing everyone speak
, it feels like some kind of problem between me—and Godou-san is being insinuated!?"
"No, Mariya Yuri. You are not the one to judge whether there is a problem. We three will be the ones to do that."
"I sincerely hope that you two could report in utmost detail what has happened during the time you spent together alone. Based on this report, we shall conduct the interrogation."
Following up on Liliana's stern declaration, Erica also used a rare tone of voice lacking in her customary elegance.
Even Ena looked up at the night sky with great intensity of feeling and said:
"A while back when everyone was talking about whose home to invite His Majesty to, Ena never expected it would end up as Yuri's sole victory. I suppose one could call this a greed-less victory."
"E-Ena-san. It is fortunate enough for everyone to be reunited safe and sound. Please do not talk about strange things like who won or lost, okay!?"
"Th-That's right. Basically, isn't it ludicrous to start discussing with the assumption that 'there is something'?!"
"Please keep your mouth shut, Godou. Indeed, you are normally harmless as a gelding. At least, basically."
Erica spoke with an expression as if she were a solemn and composed queen in the process of impeaching a traitor.
"Nevertheless, you tend to exhibit unforeseen explosive power on occasion, is that not the case? Hence this is basically a similar case. Our intention is to simply confirm if any exceptional situation arose. Please accept your interrogation obediently."
This was the night when the five comrades finally reunited, safe and sound.
The sky was filled with myriad stars. The island was surrounded by the South Seas' deep-blue waters. A literally open and dramatic location. Without any place to run.
In actual fact, after calm consideration, Godou realized he had not actually done anything unaccountable.
Nevertheless, when questioned about what the two of them had been doing alone together over those two days, Godou and Yuri inexplicably entered an alarming state of panic—
Epilogue
The new year had just begun not too long ago.
Alexandre Gascoigne was currently located in Portugal's ancient capital of Coimbra.
His latest efforts were directed towards obtaining "a missionary's journal dating back to the Age of Exploration when a certain heretical monk had recorded his activities in various parts of Madagascar, engaged in heinous acts defiling God."
Going through several plans in his head, he strolled along a quiet street in the ancient capital at night.
A phone call suddenly arrived. Checking the LCD screen, he discovered it was an old acquaintance—the witch he had run into roughly one month ago.
"How nice of you to call expressly this time, Lucretia. But surely you do not intend to engage in idle chitchat. State your matter concisely."
'Hohoho. I offer you my greetings, Your Highness the Prince.'
Lucretia's answer could be heard from the phone.
'However, since you put it that way, I shall dispense with the chitchat. Let me cut straight to the matter. I am actually concerned about the latest news the Princess brought back from the Far East.'
The matter. She likely meant the "King of the End." Alec nodded.
'The goddess Circe, who once shared an intimate relation with Your Highness several years ago, has died by Kusanagi Godou's hand. Reportedly, the goddess used her last strength to summon the hero Odysseus in an attempt to corner the young man... But she failed so close to her goal and finally passed away.'
"...Oh."
'Through this battle, it is readily apparent that Odysseus is not the 'King of the End.'"
Alec reawakened vivid memories dating to several years past.
Odysseus. The heroic god he recently mentioned as having a "35% chance."
Alec was intending to investigate him thoroughly when he discovered the 'sleeping goddess.' The witch goddess Circe who had trapped the wandering hero for a year. A [Heretic God] who had apparently remained in slumber for centuries.
'By my speculation, Your Highness the Black Prince awakened the goddess Circe for the purpose of discerning the truth about the hero Odysseus, am I correct? Your goal was to obtain information about him. Hoho, even if Your Highness went as far as to make a highly unusual proposal of "Would you like to search for Odysseus together with me?" to her, I would not be surprised.'
Alec frowned. It felt like Lucretia had seen through the truth.
His bringing Circe to the South Seas to revive her was, of course, a part of his explorations.
He had awakened the goddess, who possessed a deep connection to Odysseus, on a land where traces of the "King of the End" had been discovered. This would surely bring his journey of demystifying the Devil King-exterminating hero's identity to an entirely new playing field—
However, the "experiment" concluded with unexpected results.
The awakened goddess quickly discovered Alec despite his efforts to conceal himself. Furthermore, she began to cling to him annoyingly for some unfathomable reason, always speaking like some kind of delusional girl, even going as far as to attempt imprisoning Alec using magic.
In the beginning, Alec accommodated her as appropriate but quickly grew tired of it. After maybe the fourth day of saying "I love you," he immediately fled from the goddess. Soon after he ran, it developed into an altercation. Finally, Alec used his labyrinth authority on the island he had created together with Circe and succeeded in imprisoning her.
Recalling these unhappy memories, Alec naturally put on a bitter face.
'I never expected such a colorful and heroic saga from Your Highness the Prince, who has never been the subject of salacious rumors.'
"Really? I, on the other hand, find nothing colorful about it."
'As expected of Your Highness the Prince. Still the same old in this regard, even Italian boys in elementary school are better than you.'
The witch's last comment was a sincere exclamation, carrying no sarcasm at all.
Alec clicked his tongue disapprovingly and changed the unpleasant topic.
"By the way, since Odysseus is not the 'King of the End,' then in that case..."
'Oh? Did you think of something? I would be most grateful if you would enlighten me free of charge. Just as you already know, I too, once took part in the search for that king. Hence I would be rather interested.'
"Nothing much, it's just a spontaneous idea."
Alec shrugged in response to Lucretia's request.
"The image of the wandering Pan-Eurasian hero who often displays his valor through the bow and arrows... Yet the hero who fits this description best, Odysseus, is definitely not a god with [Steel] characteristics. Nevertheless, given the case, I think the following possibility can be established."
Without any pretense, Alec simply explained the possibility he had once suspected in the past.
"Simultaneously possessing [Steel] traits and the characteristics of the wandering Pan-Eurasian hero... The 'King of the End' must be a hybrid like that."
'I see, so that runs completely contrary to the notion of purebloodedness. If that really is the case...'
"Yeah. If one were to carefully trace forwards and backwards from the pedigree of the hero Odysseus, the chance of finding the 'King of the End' should be substantial. That's what I believe."
Naturally, this was nothing more than speculation.
But after saying it out loud, Alec somehow found his argument more compelling than first imagined.
Translator's Notes and References
Ozōni(お 雑煮): a Japanese soup containing mochi rice cakes. Strongly associated with Japanese New Year's, it is one of the most auspicious foods eaten for the occasion.[1]
Oshiruko(お しるこ): a sweet porridge of azuki beans boiled and crushed, served in a bowl with mochi. It is loved by many Japanese, especially during the winter.[2]
Kunikida Doppo(國木田 獨歩): (15 July 1871 – 23 June 1908) a Japanese author o
f novels and romantic poetry during the Meiji period.[3]
A reference to Johnny & Associates, a Japanese talent agency that trains and promotes groups of male idols.[4]
Reference to Maria-sama ga Miteru.[5]
Former XX residence(旧 〇〇邸): most likely a veiled reference to the Kyu-Iwasaki-tei Garden(旧岩崎邸庭園), a western-style residence that formerly belonged to the Iwasaki clan (founders of the Mitsubishi Group).[6]
Cocktail party effect: the phenomenon of tuning into a single voice while tuning out others, much the same way that a partygoer can focus on a single conversation in a noisy room.[7]
Bodhidharma: a 5/6th century monk who transmitted Buddhism to China and also started the tradition of physical training for the Shaolin monks.[8]
Anglerfish hot pot(鮟 鱇鍋): the ankou-nabe is a hot pot dish made with the seven edible parts of the anglerfish: the fins, the skin, the gills, the liver, the stomach, the ovaries and the meat itself, together with tofu and vegetables such as garland chrysanthemum, spring onions, shiitake mushrooms and Chinese cabbage.
One-Seg: a mobile terrestrial digital audio/visual broadcasting service in Japan, Argentina, Brazil, Chile and Peru.[9]
Yuriwaka Daijin(百合若大臣): a young nobleman who is the protagonist in a legend set during the Mongol invasion of Japan in the thirteenth century.
Opening line of Homer's Odyssey.
Kamameshi(釜飯): literally "kettle rice," kamameshi is a traditional Japanese rice dish cooked in an iron pot called a kama.[10]
Makunouchi(幕の内): a popular type of Japanese bento which consists of fish, meat, pickles, eggs and vegetables along with rice and an umeboshi. There are also other kinds such as a chestnut-rice, sweetfish sushi and meat-and-rice-casserole forms.[11]
Xue Pinggui(薛 平貴): the protagonist of a Chinese folk story set during the Tang dynasty. He married the prime minister's daughter and later went on a military expedition out west, eventually becoming the king of Western Liang, finally returning to China to reunite with his wife.
Steller's sea eagle: Haliaeetus pelagicus, is a large bird of prey inhabiting coastal northeastern Asia and mainly preys on fish. On average, it is the heaviest eagle in the world. This bird is named after the German naturalist Georg Wilhelm Steller.[12]
Campione 13 Page 27