Discovery
"Right."
Frondier readily admitted.
‘By the way, Charon was a Paladin.’
Well, it’s only natural since he received Poseidon’s divine power.
Colin continued.
“For some reason, Charon is instigating this civil war.”
“Instigating?”
Frondier looked at Carla. He had heard from her that Charon was mediating the internal conflict.
Carla also looked at Colin with a puzzled expression.
Colin shrugged.
“Of course, that’s how it looks on the surface. But you know what they say. A barking dog never bites. That’s exactly what Charon is doing.”
“……That’s a bit harsh. He’s a client you were exchanging information with.”
“Not anymore.”
Colin was very clear-cut.
“His recent actions make it clear. He says he's mediating, but he's subtly siding with one side. Just enough not to be disrespectful to God. It's enough to set fire to the already sensitive two factions.”
Looking at the current situation in the capital, the mediating party should not take sides. It may look like a beauty contest, but it's actually a battle of pride between two goddesses.
However, Charon, without appealing strongly, subtly sides with one side, and as time passes, he empowers the other side, escalating the conflict.
“I don't know if that's Charon's will or Poseidon's will. But aside from sticking with you, brother, I don't want to continue dealing with this crazy bastard.”
Certainly perceptive, Colin.
But he, too, inevitably doesn’t know information he doesn't know.
Frondier spoke.
“The problem is that it doesn't end there.”
“……What do you mean?”
“Colin, you want to support me and stop Charon, and at the same time, you want to save your own life.”
Frondier went closer to the map.
He took the pen from Colin and crossed out the Poseidon that he had written.
“This guy is a fake.”
“……!”
“I can tell his true identity just by looking at him, but there’s a high probability that the other two goddesses are also fake.”
“How can you tell?”
“Because I've met the real Poseidon.”
Colin looked up from the map at Frondier.
“……Is that true?”
“I want to surprise that complacent look on your face at least once.”
“I’ve been surprised a lot since earlier. To the point I can’t handle it.”
I wish he would make that kind of expression.
Anyway, emotions aside, it seems impossible to change Colin’s expression right now.
“Well, you believe it easily. I thought you'd be suspicious.”
“I neither believe nor doubt it. If you're telling the truth, there's no reason to question it, and if you're lying, there's no reason to question it because you'll never tell the truth, so either way, I have nothing to say.”
Extremely efficient thinking. There's a non-zero chance he's telling the truth.
“Good. It's good enough if the story progresses. Anyway, Poseidon is a fake, and I came all the way to the capital to confirm his true identity.”
“What's the point of confirming that?”
“There's no point in confirming it itself. I have a rough guess. The important thing is what comes after confirmation.”
“What comes after?”
“We believe that Poseidon's true identity is one of the 72 devils. He’s acting like a God. If Poseidon or those involved find out about this, war is unavoidable.”
Colin listened to Frondier's words quietly, blinking a few times.
This is a story that ordinary people would have a hard time swallowing. Colin tried to accept it.
“……You’re saying there might be a war between Gods and devils?”
“Yes. In the capital of the Palma Kingdom.”
“Why would the devil do that? To defy God, it’s suicide.”
“I don't know the reason yet.”
That's one of the things that still bothers Frondier.
Why are the 72 devils fighting a losing battle? This is not a matter of life and death, but a process that leads to the destruction of the entire race. Surely the purpose of preserving the race wouldn't be low on the priority list.
“So if you want to help me, the only way is to fully board my plan.”
At Frondier's words, Colin's eyes narrowed slightly. It was the most meaningful change of expression Frondier had seen since he came here.
“I don’t know if I chose the wrong side. It feels like it would’ve been better to just give up and leave the capital.”
“Haha. That’s not entirely wrong. If a war really breaks out, that’s the best option.”
“Are you confident that you can prevent the war?”
War is harder to prevent than to win. Even more so if you're a third party unrelated to the war.
Frondier tilted his head for a moment at Colin's words and said,
“Actually, preventing the war isn’t my real goal.”
“What?”
“Huh?”
Colin was surprised, and Carla, who had been listening quietly, was even more surprised.
Carla asked.
“Y-You’re saying that preventing the war isn’t your goal?”
“Yes. That’s secondary, so to speak. Or you could say it’s a bonus that comes with the real goal.”
Colin had a rough measure of Frondier. He would be even stronger than Paladin Charon. Based on reason and rationality, it was an absolutely absurd story, but Colin believed his own eyes and intuition.
To Colin, rational thinking was just a supplement. Important choices were always made by intuition. In that sense, Colin was insane in a way. Enough to realize it himself.
But he still doesn't know.
What kind of person Frondier is.
Colin asked.
“What’s your real goal?”
“Hmm, to paraphrase what you just said.”
Frondier raised his head loosely, as if remembering.
“The devil, he’s being disrespectful to me too.”
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