Repeat Vice - The Villainous Noble Doesn't Want to Die, So He Swore to Not Die As One of The Four Heavenly Kings - Chapter 56: Third Person

Chapter 56: Third Person

There was a gentle knock on the office door.

“…Excuse me. Are you in the middle of something?”

The voice belonged to Yurika, the maid.

Rofus and Riruka exchanged glances. Now that they thought about it, they had been talking for quite a while since they had kicked Sigil and Hawk out.

“Enter.”

At Rofus’ command, Yurika opened the door. Sigil and Hawk peered in from outside.

Yurika entered the room, her eyes inspecting the clothing of Rofus and Riruka, presumably checking for any signs of disarray.

“…What is it?”

“Nothing. I was informed by those outside that you were ‘in the middle of something.'”

“We were just talking.”

“Indeed. Should I prepare the bath and bedroom?”

Yurika’s words made Riruka turn red with embarrassment.

Rofus let out a chuckle. “Yes, please prepare them.”

“What, Rofus!?”

Riruka visibly panicked at Rofus’ unexpected agreement.

Seeing her reaction, Rofus laughed heartily, like a mischievous child who had just pulled off a prank.

“What are you getting flustered for, you fool? Get a grip. She’s teasing you, Riruka.”

“Teasing… huh?”

Riruka looked at Yurika, who shrugged with an impassive expression.

“How was I supposed to know that?”

Riruka and Yurika had met before, in the Steria territory, where Riruka had received treatment for wounds inflicted by the Bloodstained Hat, along with Rofus. However, they had never spoken directly and had almost no interaction.

Riruka stared intently at Yurika, thinking she had a playful side to her too.

Without a hint of a smile, Yurika turned her gaze to Rofus.

“Are you going somewhere again?”

“…How did you know? Are you going to stop me?”

“Do you want me to stop you? I remember trying to stop you many times, but not once did you ever stay.”

Yurika sighed in mild exasperation and approached Rofus, straightening his collar.

“As long as you return safely, that’s all that matters.”

She discreetly slipped a talisman imbued with a spell into Rofus’ pocket.

“It’s a healing talisman. Please carry it as a charm.”

“…I doubt I’ll use it.”

“Better to have it and not need it.”

Yurika glared at Rofus and tightened his tie a little too snugly.

“Or would you rather take me with you instead of the talisman?”

“…If I took you, who would explain it to Carlos?”

“True. I’ll be getting an earful from Lord Carlos again today.”

Yurika sighed and shrugged. It wasn’t the first time Rofus had left without notice, and she seemed resigned to it.

“Well then, Rofus, good luck.”

“Yes. I’ll be back soon.”

With Yurika’s send-off, Rofus left with “The Crimson Wind” to the Lightless Territory. Their destination was the Sky City, Ciel Parc. Guided by Rofus, who knew its location, their airship sped through the skies.

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To the west of the kingdom lay a great nation—the Holy Dragon Country. True to its name, the Holy Dragon Country had a close relationship with dragons.

The kingdom was known for its magic, the empire for its science and alchemy, and the Holy Dragon Country was a land where humans and dragons coexisted. Lower-tier dragons, domesticated for labor, were controlled by a special magic known as dragon magic.

High-level practitioners of dragon magic could supposedly converse with dragons. The art of commanding wyverns, used by the knights of the Steria territory, originally came from the Holy Dragon Country.

However, most of the Holy Dragon Country was covered in forests and mountains. The location of the Sky City, as revealed by the Divine Revelation, was in the mountainous region of this country. The mountain range stretched to the north, with a sacred peak towering high into the sky, its summit reaching above the clouds.

Legends spoke of the highest-ranking ancient dragons residing on this peak. The Sky City was located just above the clouds near the summit. The airship Ifrit, its crimson engines roaring, headed towards this sacred peak.

“The Holy Dragon Country, huh…”

Riruka muttered as she stood on the deck, feeling the wind.

Rofus, standing beside her, sighed.

“We’re not making any detours. Our goal is to subdue the Crystal Ghost.”

The Crystal Ghost—a variant of ghosts born in environments with high concentrations of magical elements. Essentially, it was a ghost with a physical body.

“I know. It’s just… I have some memories attached to that place.”

“I can understand that.”

Rofus shrugged, seeing the nostalgia and sadness in Riruka’s eyes.

For Riruka—and indeed for Abel and the rest of the protagonists—it was an unforgettable place. The Holy Dragon Country was the setting for the fourth and final chapters of the story, where they had their final showdown with the resurrected Dark God.

“All this happened after I was killed. Honestly, it doesn’t feel real to me.”

“Yeah… That’s right. We did kill you back then, Rofus.”

Riruka said thoughtfully as she leaned against Rofus’ shoulder.

“You never know what will happen. We were once enemies trying to kill each other, and now, even if it’s just for show, we’re pretending to be lovers.”

“You started this.”

“Yeah, I did.”

Rofus looked exasperated, and Riruka gave a dry laugh.

“…By the way, didn’t Yurika seem like she was waiting for her husband to return? She seemed really close to you… Aren’t we supposed to be lovers? Isn’t this cheating?”

“Don’t conveniently forget the ‘pretend’ part. We’re not lovers at all. Yurika is just a maid.”

“Really?”

“You’re jumping to conclusions. Even if Yurika and I had that kind of relationship, it wouldn’t matter to you.”

“…What if I said it does matter?”

“Huh?”

Just as Rofus was about to ask what she meant, his wide-range magic detection spell picked up a reaction. The magical presence seemed to be following the airship, though it was too far away to be seen.

“…Is something wrong?”

Riruka, sensing Rofus’ tension, brought her face closer to his.

Rofus sniffed and gently moved away from Riruka.

“…The Sky City is moving as if guided by someone’s will, almost like it’s evading the airship.”

“Yeah, Fran’s Divine Revelation told us that.”

“This means that whoever it is can track the airship’s movements. Otherwise, the city couldn’t evade it. I focused on how they’re tracking us. Since boarding, I’ve been using magic detection in a radius of about 10 kilometers.”

“Ten… kilometers…!?”

Riruka’s face twitched as Rofus stated this matter-of-factly.

Even a high-level mage would be considered excellent if they could detect magic 100 meters away. This was possible for Rofus because of his seemingly limitless magical power, but Riruka, being proficient in advanced magic, understood how absurd it was.

Though taken aback, Riruka saw Rofus shrug with a hint of disappointment.

“As for the tracking method, it seems they’re using wild birds enhanced by magic to follow the airship. The magic responses I detected were too weak to be monsters.”

“Wild birds…? Following an airship at its top speed?”

“They must be magically enhanced to fly faster. It’s not that surprising.”

“Really…?”

Somewhat dissatisfied, Riruka frowned.

Rofus narrowed his eyes, looking disappointed.

“Using familiars to track the airship… it’s the most amateurish and sloppy method I could have imagined. Are they mocking me with such low-level tactics?”

“No, no, we didn’t notice at all, and you’re the only one who can do such ridiculous large-scale magic detection. The opponent probably didn’t expect it either.”

“…You haven’t realized it, have you?”

“…What?”

Riruka furrowed her brows, seeing Rofus’s slightly exasperated look.

“Currently, the only way to reach the Sky City is by airship. If the location of the airship is known, the Sky City can move to escape. That’s exactly what’s happening to us now.”

“That’s true.”

“The one controlling the Sky City, how do they know this? How do they know that the only way to reach the Sky City is by airship?”

“…Ah.”

Riruka’s eyes widened.

A chilling sensation traced Riruka’s spine.

The only way to reach the Sky City is by airship.

That is a fact clear through the story.

However, that also means it is knowledge that can be gained through the story.

The one controlling the Sky City is clearly wary of the airship and has taken measures against it.

That fact leads directly to one conclusion.

“The one controlling the Sky City has future knowledge, just like you and me.”

Rofus stated definitively.

Cold sweat trickled down Riruka’s cheek.

＊

“No way…! Future knowledge means they’re an Apostle…!?”

Riruka exclaimed in shock.

Rofus stared at Riruka.

“That’s the problem. Are the six Apostles you mentioned—the ones with future knowledge—really the only ones?”

“I don’t know. But knowing the future would require the power of a god…”

“Can’t you ask the Wind God?”

“The Wind God only guides—blowing the wind—without speaking to convey anything. The only time we talked was when the world was about to end last time. And lately, there’s been no guidance at all… Even when I call out, the wind doesn’t respond anymore.”

“No response from the Wind God…? A so-called god, useless when it matters most.”

Rofus said dismissively, and Riruka slumped her shoulders.

“…I’m sorry.”

“Why are you apologizing? Your apology doesn’t change anything.”

Rofus continued, “Anyway, I have an idea of who’s controlling the Sky City.”

“Huh!? No way, who!?”

Riruka asked in surprise, and Rofus, with a look of annoyance, pointed into the distance.

“I’ll explain step by step. First, ahead, there are five birds flying alongside the airship… They’re about 1 km away; you won’t see them even if you strain your eyes.”

Riruka squinted, trying to spot the birds, but Rofus looked exasperated.

“Using birds as familiars… It’s a familiar tactic, isn’t it?”

“Birds… Ah, Despia!”

Rofus nodded.

In the story, one of the Four Beasts, the Death Wing Despia, commanded countless bird monsters to attack villages and towns in the kingdom.

“Despia controlling the Sky City… That’s impossible. Then… no, wait, could it be…”

Riruka realized the identity of the one controlling the Sky City and shuddered.

There is only one being in this world capable of commanding the Four Beasts.

The master of the Four Beasts—

“The Demon King…!? But… the Demon King hasn’t revived yet, right…”

Riruka panicked.

According to the legend, the Demon King, along with the Dark God, was a calamity sealed long ago.

The Demon King’s revival occurs at the end of the first chapter of the story.

In other words, it is more than a year away.

When the Demon King revives, the sky turns a reddish-black, and the Catastrophe occurs, making all monsters worldwide more aggressive.

Currently, there are no signs of such an event, meaning the Demon King has not yet revived.

“Indeed, the Catastrophe has not occurred. However, as a prelude to the Demon King’s revival, the Four Beasts appeared. Think about it, what exactly are the Four Beasts? How did they come into existence?”

“I don’t know… But.”

Riruka didn’t know the origin of the Four Beasts in detail.

In the future dreams Rofus saw—the story—there was no mention of it either.

The Four Beasts suddenly appeared and caused havoc across the kingdom.

Through the prophecies of the saint, it was determined that the appearance of the Four Beasts was a sign of the Demon King’s revival.

That might not be entirely incorrect but is not entirely accurate either, according to Rofus’s assessment.

“The Four Beasts are said to have appeared out of nowhere, but that’s not entirely accurate. There must have been monsters that became the Four Beasts.”

“Monsters that became the Four Beasts…? The Four Beasts are just the Four Beasts, right?”

Riruka questioned, and Rofus shook his head.

In fact, Rofus had encountered a gigantic Kraken, which seemed to be the precursor to the Sea Monster Strauf.

“Do you remember Strauff?”

“I didn’t see it directly, but Abel told me about it. A Kraken the size of a small island, right? He said they defeated it with battleship cannons.”

“…Come to think of it, you weren’t part of the party during the Strauf battle.”

“Yeah, it feels weird hearing it from you, Rofus, but that’s right.”

“Fine. Two years ago, I encountered the Kraken that would become Strauf. It was a ‘Ship Eater’ that had been lurking in the cursed sea for three hundred years.”

Riruka narrowed her eyes.

“The ‘Ship Eater’ demon… That became one of the Four Beasts?”

“From what I see, yes. A creature that had been hiding in the cursed sea for three hundred years suddenly grew huge and started attacking human settlements as one of the Four Beasts. It’s natural to suspect some sort of intervention.”

“By who… Well, that’s a pointless question.”

“The Demon King himself or someone aligned with him. I doubt the Demon King is one of the six Apostles you mentioned. Although, it’s ironic for me to say that.”

“True…”

In the story, both the Demon King and Rofus were clear enemies of humanity.

The reason the Six Gods rewound the world, according to the Wind God, was to seek a future that doesn’t end.

Given that, it’s questionable whether they would choose beings who were antagonistic to humanity as Apostles.

Rofus had another doubt.

Seeking a future that doesn’t end sounds quite abstract, but the Wind God gave a very specific directive, stating that defeating the Dark God required the six Apostles and that none of them could be missing.

Rofus found it suspicious.

“Do I find the Six Gods shady because I’m an atheist…?”

“Oh, yeah, Rofus, you are the ‘self-centered’ type. You don’t seem like someone who’d believe in gods.”

“‘Self-centered’… What kind of dumb genre is that…”

Rofus frowned while looking into the distance where the birds were flying.

“Should I get rid of them?”

Rofus’s shadow expanded on the deck, and from it, a sea dragon emerged, spewing dark breath to obliterate the five birds he had detected.

The sea dragon then extended its neck, firing dark breaths in every direction.

“Whoa, whoa! What are you doing!?”

Startled, Riruka grabbed the hem of Rofus’s coat.

Rofus replied as if it were nothing.

“There were five birds tracking this airship, but there are other magic-infused birds all around. I’m just killing all the birds within a 10 km radius.”

Rofus’s overly aggressive thinking and the vast amount of magic power to make it happen.

Riruka, realizing this anew, felt dizzy and muttered quietly.

“I see. I see…”

Her hushed murmur was drowned out by the sound of the repeated breaths.