The Quantum Maze can be breached.

However, it was uncertain if Archlich and Antirianus would be able to enter Akasha after breaking through the Quantum Maze.

The important thing was that there were no plans to let them reach the entrance of Akasha.

I wasn't sure if I could even gain a slight advantage against the archmage.

But what mattered was the Alsbringer, which made me stronger the stronger my opponent was.

And Tiamata, a relic optimized for battles against the undead.

With Eleris's assistance on top of that.

By overcoming these two obstacles, I would reach the end of this story.

The Gate Incident would not occur.

The Demon King would quietly disappear.

Adopting the name Reinhardt as my true name, I would spend the remainder of my time.

Eliminating one by one the seeds of chaos sown throughout the empire and the continent.

Uprooting each and every possibility of turmoil I had spread, and those that had spread because of me.

I would find peace of mind through the world's peace.

Although I still didn't know how to resolve the many twisted relationships and lies, I believed that somehow, it would work out.

I needed to think more about whether I should tell the truth to those who would feel betrayed by me, and if so, how to tell them.

Now that I knew that doing nothing was the best course of action, I hoped for everything to converge peacefully as I remedied the situations I had set in motion.

With a start, Eleris and I opened the door of Akasha.

A long, long corridor.

Someone was standing in the middle of the Quantum Maze.

As if he had been waiting.

"You've already arrived, great one."

The old vampire smiled at me, holding a skull in his right hand.

"It seems you already know everything..."

Like we knew about Akasha, it appeared that Antirianus had also learned about Akasha.

But before that, the skull held in Antirianus's right hand.

I narrowed my eyes as I looked at it.

"Antirianus, what is that?"

"Ah, are you asking about this...?"

Antirianus threw it toward me.

It felt more like he was rolling it rather than attacking.

The skull rolled to my feet.

"Do you understand if I say it belonged to the Archlich?"

"It was the remnant of the leader of Cantus Magna we were searching for. The skull of Lukren."

As soon as the skull touched my feet, it crumbled into dust and disappeared. The black dust into which the skull had transformed didn't look ordinary.

"Antirianus, what do you want?"

At Eleris's hostile tone, the elder bowed his head slightly.

"Sadly, everyone in the Council... misunderstands me. Of course, I understand why..."

"..."

"I don't really have any such intentions."

The purpose behind the elder's smile remained inscrutable.

"If there is anything, I told you before."

"Joy."

"I am prepared to enjoy both your success and your failure, so I am entirely willing to cooperate with you."

In that situation, I had to briefly hold Lukren's hand in order to find out what Akasha was and where it was located. I had no intention of betraying you."

"So I found out what Akasha was and got rid of the now-useless Lukren."

"I came here to locate Akasha, and I have no interest in such trivial matters as becoming a god."

Antirianus looked at me with a cold smile.

Amusement.

Was that the only reason for his cooperation, and he had no interest in possessing a powerful artifact like Akasha?

It was hard to believe, but Antirianus seemed to be genuine as he looked at me and Eleris with a smile.

"I believe the world is interesting because it's unpredictable," he said.

"In a world where I can control everything and everything goes according to plan, what interest or pleasure could I find?"

"Becoming a god in some world would be like a child's sand play, just on a larger scale."

"Your Excellency."

"I enjoy stories where waves and tidal waves crash into sandcastles built by children, and storms rage."

"I like stories where a desperate child, trying to protect their painstakingly built sandcastle, either achieves something or sinks into the depths of despair, unable to do anything."

"I want to see stories that are unpredictable, but enjoyable just by watching."

"However, I cannot tolerate a skeleton lost in the delusion of becoming a god trying to steal the ending of such a story."

"I hope you will take Akasha."

"You don't seem to be the type to indulge in the desire to become a god. You seem to love more human, emotional, and trivial matters."

"I enjoy stories of people risking their lives for such trivial things."

"Your Excellency."

"Please tell me a story that is either exceedingly joyous or exceedingly despairing."

Antirianus bowed his head to me.

Insane.

That was the only thought that came to mind.

He wanted to help me find out what Akasha was, offer it to me, and then assist me in whatever I did afterward out of curiosity.

My despair as well.

My happiness too.

It was a story that would surely be entertaining, and he intended to derive pleasure from simply observing it.

Eleris bit her lip, seemingly at a loss for words, as she looked at Antirianus's sincere but mad attitude.

"You've gone mad from the boredom of time, Antirianus."

"Didn't I tell you before, Lady of the Fire?"

Antirianus's eerie vampire eyes shone.

"After living for an absurdly long time, how could I possibly be sane?"

He had achieved everything he wanted, possessed everything he desired.

Yet he didn't want to die, so he became a vampire and lived for an unbearably long time since then.

Thus, now devoid of even desire, he found pleasure in witnessing the joy or despair of others.

"Of course, the screams and pleas of Lukren before his death provided me with great amusement. The death of an old undead who could not fulfill his long-held desire and faced a meaningless end..."

"Merely watching it brought me immeasurable joy."

Antirianus looked at me.

"Of course, I am not fit to partake in the pleasure of carrying out such acts. An old, worn-out wretch like myself is not suited for the role of a protagonist."

Antirianus had been helpful so far.

This level of madness was, rather, reassuring. He had no reason to claim the Akasha, nor anything he wanted to do with it.

I couldn't even be angry at his excessive malice, which was content to just watch my success or failure and snicker in the background.

"Anyway, Antirianus, are you saying you'll be on my side?"

"You shouldn't trust me too much, of course. I am capable of both actions for your happiness and actions for your misfortune."

His honesty, bordering on repulsiveness, left me speechless.

Antirianus had killed Archlich. The legacy of Cantus Magna was completely severed.

Antirianus still had his head bowed.

"If you cannot trust me, you may use the sacred relic of purity to strike my neck. O, exalted being."

"..."

As if to show he would not resist, Antirianus offered his neck.

If he couldn't witness my end, would he really risk his life?

Should I kill him?

Madness is unpredictable.

Antirianus betrayed us at the critical moment and reached the place where the Akasha was in a single stride. We arrived first and understood the truth, but we couldn't know if he tried to take the Akasha for himself.

We couldn't know the future, nor what Antirianus was thinking.

However, he had been a great help so far.

Incomprehensible madness can become trustworthy when it exceeds an unfathomable level.

A madman this far gone wouldn't change his mind for a petty motive.

"You madman."

I decided to trust Antirianus's madness.

Yes.

Let's go together with this crazy old man.

Until the very end.

Eleris was left behind with the Akasha.

Naturally, since we couldn't predict what Antirianus would do, we couldn't let him near the Akasha.

Antirianus was untrustworthy, but he had killed Archlich, a very dangerous problem.

We didn't know how far he would be on our side or when he would stab us in the back, but for now, he was lending us a hand.

Antirianus was truly useful, and all he wanted from me was amusement.

If a powerful existence like Antirianus fully cooperates in exchange for being an audience to my life, it's not such a bad deal, is it?

First, I had to meet Charlotte.

And Ellen, too.

I didn't know how to explain the truth, and I wasn't sure whether I should tell Charlotte about the existence of Akasha, but I had to see her first.

Through Antirianus, I returned to the Imperial Palace by mass teleportation.

There was certainly an issue about explaining how I disappeared from the Lich's tomb and reappeared at the palace in some way.

How should I go about revealing the deception I had played on everyone so far?

Antirianus decided to head to the Lich's tomb and report the details to the Vampire Council and the Black Order.

"Will you be alright? They must think you're a traitor by now."

"I believe it'll work out somehow."

Wearing a snake-like smile, Antirianus disappeared into the shadows of the night.

Well, is it time for me to worry about Antirianus?

I walked through an alley in the Imperial Palace and went out to the street.

If I successfully hide Akasha, I'll have to rectify the deeds I've done as the Demon King. Gradually sorting out the affairs of the Devil's Cult, one by one.

I cannot know for certain whether I should complete Akasha and create a new world for the demons to migrate to.

Sarkegaar would wholeheartedly agree with that plan.

If I were to take the demons to the new world, and if my ability to control the demons becomes stronger than it is now, perhaps I could become a god-like being in the new world.

A god-like being, what a tasteless thing. If I were to attempt such a thing, Antirianus might try to kill me out of boredom.

I walked down the road, stood at the entrance of the temple, and as always, passed through the gate.

But somehow...

There was a different kind of unease than before.

Everyone seemed to be...

Looking at me.

Particularly the guards, including those at the temple gate, watching me with an uneasy feeling.

As soon as they saw me, their muscles tensed as if they were on edge.

Suspicion.

And doubt.

Furthermore, fear.

Because of this unease, when I passed through the gate and looked back, I encountered a strange sight.

The guards had already moved to block my retreat.

And then...

"...Bertus?"

Bertus, who had been sitting on a bench somewhere, slowly walked towards me.

Why was Bertus here in the middle of this deep night?

Bertus usually seemed to wear a slightly frivolous smile. Unmasked, he had a somewhat gloomy grin.

But this Bertus was different.

He wore a menacing and hardened expression, a look of Bertus I had never seen before.

His face was full of fury beyond his control.

Why?

"I don't understand."

Bertus, surrounded by countless knights, looked at me.

"I can't comprehend this situation at all."

Bertus spoke as he looked at me.

"Why... is it you?"

Confusion, anger, and a sense of betrayal mixed within Bertus, who seemed unable to understand the situation himself.

Ah.

That's what it was.

I felt something inside me shatter.

Was it too late?

No.

Had it been like this from the beginning?

Was it my destiny to reach the conclusion of everything and end up like this?

Just one more step to go.

Was it my destiny not to take that final step?

"Capture him."

At Bertus's brief command, people moved.

My arms were bound, and my eyes were covered.

But that wasn't all.

"They say he uses a power called the Word Magic. Gag him to prevent any nonsense," Bertus ordered curtly, and my mouth was sealed shut as well.

The one consolation was that among my possessions, only the Flame of Tuesday had been taken away. I still had the invisible ring of Sarkegaar, which allowed me to maintain Reinhardt's appearance.

Since it was a tool for concealment and disguise, the Dreadfind tribe's treasure would have been undetectable during a body search, as long as I didn't remove it myself.

I was dragged off to some unknown location by the knights.

Something had gone wrong.

I didn't know to what extent they suspected me, but Bertus knew something.

I had no idea how things had gone awry, but I had accumulated around 100,000 achievement points by now. Could I not resolve the situation with Word Magic?

In some building within the temple, and a place presumed to be deep underground.

Clink! Clink!

The sound of rattling chains echoed.

And there was no way I wouldn't realize it when my blindfold was removed.

Unraveling the suspicion was impossible.

Grrrrrr......

Just like me, a Lycansloth, gagged, was confined within an iron-barred cell.

Was it red fur?

No.

It was blood, and its original fur was white.

A white Lycansloth, its entire body covered in blood.

Clink! Clink!

Bound by chains, the Lycansloth writhed and struggled with madness in its eyes. But no matter what kind of chain it was bound with, the chain only tightened and never broke.

Loyar.

And full moon.

Even without knowing the specifics, there was no other way to understand it.

Loyar had been captured.

And Loyar had revealed her true form during the Demon King's attack.

"Do you need more explanation?"

Bertus, standing beside me, asked coldly.

Even if I didn't know how we reached this point, the conclusion was clear.

It was now confirmed that I was either a servant of the Demon King or the Demon King himself.

Even so...

I tried to use Word Magic.

Even if they knew I was the Demon King, they would trust me.

They would believe in my intentions.

[The requested Word Magic operation cannot be performed.]

It was decided that I would kneel before the mountain of lies I had built myself.

So, of course, it was impossible.