The Whale and the Shrimp (7)
Elodie, who Vishnu was trying to possess, and Elodie, who had just become aware of the power of her soul and was about to use it.
It was clear that if this continued, pandemonium would ensue.
However, Vishnu, as a God, could not escape this fight, and Elodie did not even have the possibility of pandemonium in her mind.
In other words, one of them would─
Clang!
[Stop!]
“?!”
Elodie swayed for a moment.
She had felt a certain power inherent within her and was about to use it against Vishnu, but her body changed direction in the middle of it.
There, staring back at Vishnu,
“……Rudra?”
There was another man separating her and Vishnu.
Unlike Vishnu, who seemed to have entered through a crack in the world, Rudra struck like lightning.
Rudra, the God of wind and storms.
He was the one who had disrupted both Vishnu and Elodie’s powers.
[……Phew.]
Rudra himself seemed to have arrived just in time, and after confirming that both of them were safe, he let out a sigh of relief.
[Elodie, you never cease to amaze me.]
It was not Elodie who reacted to Rudra’s words, but Vishnu.
[Rudra! How dare you interfere!]
Vishnu was unusually colored with anger.
Gods basically do not interfere with the actions of other Gods.
This was not because Vishnu was a chief god. No matter what God it was, they basically did not interfere with the affairs of other Gods. Even if they did interfere, they would not do something so sudden and forceful like this.
This was because the Gods had experienced a lot of backlash from such interference in the past. One might say that even Gods learn as history progresses.
[Sorry, Vishnu. I was going to try not to interfere, but I didn’t know Elodie would use the power of her soul.]
[…….]
The same went for Vishnu.
If he had stayed put, pandemonium would have surely ensued.
And if that happened, the result was set in stone.
[Now is not the time for either of you to leave.]
“……Pandemonium?”
Elodie frowned.
She had heard it from Frondier. About pandemonium. And about the power of the soul.
‘Then what I felt just now, was that my soul?’
It was certainly a strange sensation. It was a different feeling from Mana. Mana felt like wind circulating within her body, but the feeling just now was.
‘……If I had to put it into words, it was similar to a voice.’
It was a kind of cry. Was that what the power of the soul was?
At the same time, Elodie realized. Unlike Mana, the power of the soul could not be strengthened or weakened no matter what she did. It was simply determined from the moment she was born. Perhaps it was only natural. It was literally her soul.
[One of us?]
Vishnu let out an unpleasant sound.
[Are you saying that I would lose in a battle of souls?]
[……Vishnu, you know as well as I do that Gods are not good at lying. So the only answer I can give to that question is.]
Rudra let out a sigh in the middle of his sentence.
[I don’t know.]
[Rudra!]
[Stop it. Are you going to fight me now? Calm down, Vishnu. Even you couldn’t have been relaxed about the pandemonium, could you? Elodie is loved by five Gods. You’re not the only one who recognizes her talent.]
If Elodie and Vishnu created pandemonium, who would come out alive?
Rudra also placed most of the odds on Vishnu. No matter how much he loved Elodie, she was only human. Pandemonium did not deal with things like the proficiency of a mage or a warrior. It was simply a battle of pure souls.
Elodie, no matter how talented a mage she was, was only human, but Vishnu was not just any God, but one of the three chief Gods. The difference in class was clear.
However, no one knew what kind of power Elodie’s soul actually held.
[Vishnu, you hate ‘not knowing’ as much as Frondier, don’t you? The fact that you quickly figured out that Frondier was obsessed with information is also because you,]
[Shut up!]
Thud! Crackle!
When a strange sound rang out, Rudra turned his head. The air between them emptied for a moment before filling up again.
Rudra’s eyes turned cold.
[……Vishnu.]
[Rudra. Do not dare speak to a chief god so carelessly. Me, losing in a battle of souls? It is something that has no possibility whatsoever. Know that it is blasphemy against me.]
[……Blasphemy, you say.]
Rudra briefly touched his forehead. Perhaps it was a characteristic he possessed, but sparks flew with that small gesture.
[Elodie.]
Rudra called out to Elodie.
“What?”
[Do you remember the promise you made to me?]
“……?”
[You asked me to protect Frondier.]
Ah.
Elodie remembered at those words.
When she had told him that Frondier’s weaving was clearly blasphemy.
Worried about the threat of the Gods that would befall Frondier, she had asked Rudra for a favor.
[I told you. On my name. That I would honor that wish.]
─If that’s what you want, I will protect Frondier, and I will personally deliver divine punishment to any God who tries to harm him. Even if it means that all the Gods except me become my enemies.
Yes, he had definitely said that.
But why was he bringing that up now?
Before Elodie could even ask, Vishnu’s face contorted first.
[……Rudra. What are you trying to say.]
[Elodie.]
Rudra called out to her again.
[How much are you willing to risk?]
“……What?”
[Protect Frondier. How much sacrifice is possible to achieve that one thing? Is it more important than your own life? Is it something worth distorting your entire destiny for? Or is it a priority even if it means disrupting the balance of the entire world?]
“…….”
Elodie couldn’t answer.
She hadn’t thought that deeply about protecting Frondier.
Frondier was just Frondier.
Someone precious to Elodie, someone she didn’t want to lose.
But was the life of one person a matter of fate and the world?
[……Hehe.]
Rudra chuckled as if he understood.
It was too early for Elodie to be having this conversation.
[You don’t have to answer now. But don’t forget. Put it off as long as you can, and answer when you can’t put it off any longer.]
She would need time to prepare until then.
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