Arald accompanied me to the west coast of Agoris.
This area was Baal's, or rather, Edrium's territory, so Arald and I could freely spread our wings and soar through the sky.
"Come to think of it, you knew about the existence of this continent from the beginning."
"Of course."
"You hid it well."
"...I don't recall telling any particular lies."
This guy, he acts just like me.
Well, I had a feeling that would be the case from the moment we met.
Perhaps, Arald and I are not a good match by nature. If I had met someone like him in my previous life, I wouldn't have stayed connected for long. It would be annoying to think that there's another guy like me.
'Thinking about it, I've changed quite a bit too.'
Unlike before, when I used to befriend people based solely on personal preference, now I save and manage people based on necessity. In the process, individual personalities have become less important.
Whether it's growth or adaptation, I don't know, but the current me has a strong sense of doing what he has to do.
"This is it."
Arald led me to a sandy beach.
"They fought on a beach like this?"
"Ragnarok was mostly fought on the old Falind, the continent of Etius. Naturally, devils didn't even dare to go near Etius. Of course, most of the devils were in the Demon Realm at the time, but some of them moved to Agoris through contracts with humans."
"And you were one of them."
"That's right. So I couldn't witness most of Ragnarok, but I could see the parts that reached Agoris."
Ragnarok. The name carried a heavy weight.
The war that took place on Etius had an impact that reached Agoris.
I looked around.
It now looked like an ordinary beach. There was not a single trace that a god and giants had fought here.
"For your information, before Ragnarok, this was a rocky coast. Not a sandy beach."
...It wasn't that there were no traces; the traces were so huge that I couldn't see them.
What kind of fight could turn a rocky coast into a sandy beach?
"Somewhere around here, Pandemonium exists."
"If a giant is holding out, it must be."
I activated my sixth sense.
It was always active, but I had to be even more sensitive to find Pandemonium.
Finding Pandemonium was similar to finding Elodie, who had disappeared from this world in the past. Back then, Elodie was right in front of me in the cabin, but I couldn't see her. It was that hard to find.
But I had already found Pandemonium twice, and I had learned a few tricks.
As a result.
"...There it is."
"Yes?"
Arald's eyes widened in surprise.
"Is that true?"
"Why are you surprised? You brought me here."
"Well, it was a long time ago, and I never thought it would actually still be there. And above all, this is the first time I've seen someone find Pandemonium."
Well, that was most people's reaction.
Pandemonium was hard enough to find, let alone re-enter.
'By the way.'
I didn't expect to find it so quickly either, but there was a reason for that.
'So that's how it looks.'
Every time I had found Pandemonium before, I was already inside. It was because I was re-entering the Pandemonium I had fought in, so it was very close.
In other words, Pandemonium was a kind of different world. If you take a half step back, you enter it, and when you come out, you return. That half step is a direction that ordinary people 'cannot go'.
But this time, Pandemonium was quite far away, and I could see it clearly.
'...A door. No, a gate.'
Pandemonium didn't look fancy at all.
It was just a single door standing there. No, there was no door, just a door frame.
If I cross this door frame, I would enter Pandemonium. That was my gut feeling. So this must be the gate.
"...Are you going in?"
"Yes. That's why we're here, aren't we?"
I looked at Arald, who asked a silly question.
But Arald seemed quite uneasy.
"What's wrong?"
"...Something feels off."
Arald frowned.
He glanced back for a moment as if retracing his steps.
"Master Frondier, I have a question."
"What is it?"
"Do you believe in fate?"
...?
I heard a question that was quite familiar, yet awkward to come up at this moment.
But my answer was set.
It had never changed, not even once.
"No. Because I don't believe in God."
"...Right. That's right"
Arald seemed somewhat relieved by my answer.
I looked at him for a moment and then walked towards the door frame.
Beyond this, there was a giant.
I would find him, gain knowledge, and find a clue to counterattack God.
With that resolve, I took a step forward.
The moment I crossed over.
─10 minutes! You said 10 minutes!
─It's already been an hour!
For some reason, certain words came to my mind.
Selena's voice.
The time when I thought it had only been 10 minutes, but it had actually been an hour.
'...Wait.'
By the time I realized that and looked back...
The door frame was gone.
I had already entered Pandemonium.
Read ahead by supporting me on Ko-fi. Tiers starting at 10$ per month and you can access upto 40 advance chapters! Choose your tier by clicking the 'Support me' button! Join our discord server for latest release updates and novel discussions. Rate and review this novel on NU to help people find this novel. Bonus chapters on reaching milestones. Happy reading!