Volume 12 Chapter 5 Holy King Fuuko
As we proceed through the grand holy castle,
the Holy King resides on the top floor.
We enter the stairway tower and climb the pure white spiral staircase.
The grand holy castle is not only beautiful on the outside but also elegant on the inside.
It's not flashy, but it's refined and clean. Perhaps because it serves as a grand holy temple, the space feels solemn and awe-inspiring.
"Well, we're here."
After climbing the stairs for a while, the blond-haired young Inquisitor stops.
It seems that there are barriers set up within the castle, and with his authority level, he can't proceed further.
"...Chief Milnas, please be careful. This man is dangerous."
"Sein, he's not a bad person. Besides, it's not good to have that attitude towards Her Majesty the Holy King's guest."
"But... No, I-I apologize."
The young man called Sein looks down, his face pale.
'Hey, how do you feel now? Hey, how do you feel? Want to eat some popcorn?'
"Stop it, Juju."
"Guh, guh, guh..."
Mr. Sein glares at us with a blue vein bulging on his forehead, seeing us off. Or rather, he's completely staring us down.
Before long, we reach the top floor's corridor.
It's a pure white corridor that reminds one of an ice plate.
"Her Majesty the Holy King likes games."
As we walked briskly down the corridor, Miss Miimo suddenly said.
"It's not that she likes games, but rather, she likes the uncertainty of the outcome. She's tired of living. Being unable to leave her room for so long has made her feel that way."
'In other words, she's a shut-in gamer.'
"Shh."
"She also has a natural talent for foresight, which is unfortunate for her. To her, everything in this world feels predetermined and boring."
"Haa."
"But despite that, she has a special interest in you alone."
"In me?"
"It's because of that interest that I've caused you unnecessary trouble... or rather, I'll be causing you even more trouble from now on... so please, don't come to dislike her."
Miss Miimo stops in front of a single door.
It's a pure white door that's almost too tall to look up at.
Miss Miimo was about to knock, but...
"――You don't need to do that."
A girl's voice came from inside the room.
And then, the door was opened from the inside.
What was on the other side of the door was... a pure white space.
The floor, ceiling, and walls were all white.
And they were polished like a mirror.
In the room, doll-like knights were lined up, and in the center...
――There was a girl in a wheelchair.
A girl who sat comfortably in her wheelchair, like a king.
It was obvious at a glance that she wasn't an ordinary person.
Her pure white hair, pure white crown, pure white dress, and rainbow-colored eyes that sparkled...
Each of these parts was unusual, but what caught my attention was...
The giant doll standing behind her.
A doll that resembled a goddess statue. Its fingers stretched out with multiple threads, connecting to the girl's body in the wheelchair. It was like a puppeteer and a puppet had switched roles.
"...Cute"
I couldn't help but blurt out my impression.
This girl was equipped with high-rank equipment all over her body.
The giant doll, her clothes, crown, wheelchair, and even her eyes... everything was equipped.
It was like she was a doll made from scratch.
If even her real body was equipped like this, I would have proposed to her right here.
So... this is the Holy King...?
"Are you coming in?"
The Holy King tilted her head and muttered to me, who was frozen in place.
I snapped back to reality and hastily entered the room.
Miss Miimo closed the door from the outside, and I was face to face with the Holy King.
My opponent was the king of a country. Not just any country, but a global superpower, and also the head of a global religion. I didn't know the etiquette for dealing with someone like that, so I ended up getting flustered.
I thought maybe I should just prostrate myself on the ground or something...
'You're the one who sent a hate letter to my Noroa! At least offer me some hospitality! We can talk later!'
At this point, I realized that bringing this doll was a problem that went beyond etiquette.
The Holy King completely ignored Juju and gazed at me with a vacant expression.
"I've been wanting to meet you, Noroa Rator?"
"Uh? Ah, yes"
It was a tone that was somehow mysterious.
In the dark, it was as if she was carefully choosing her words, feeling her way through.
I couldn't tell if she was searching for something, testing me, or just lacked confidence.
It was enough to slightly disturb my thoughts.
"You're..."
There were too many things I wanted to ask, and my words got jumbled.
As if she had seen through that, she preemptively answered.
"I'm Fuuko, the Holy King? And the giant doll behind me is my friend Onette?"
She pointed to the enormous doll behind her, a motionless goddess statue.
Her friendliness seemed completely nonexistent.
"Are you friends――"
"Are you in the same relationship as you and Juju?"
"No, I'm more like Juju's owner."
'Noroa is like my pet, you know?'
"Are you close friends?"
"No, we're not."
I don't want people to think I'm like Juju or something. I'm a real person.
"More importantly, I heard that it was Miss Fuuko who sent me the letter."
"Can you say that?"
It was unclear?
"The letter said, 'You know "her" and you'll die.' What do you know about me?"
I had been moving for the sake of this one question.
Of course, I wouldn't get an answer for free. If there was a volunteer spirit like that, the answer would have been written in the letter.
The fact that she had deliberately called me here meant there was another purpose.
And that thought was correct.
"Is what you're thinking correct?"
Miss Fuuko said.
"Then, can't you at least tell me the purpose of calling me here?"
"What do you think of it?"
"...You want to use my power, right?"
"30 points?"
"That's a subtle score..."
"Is it a perfect 10 out of 10?"
"You're too correct, it's overwhelming!"
The scoring was extremely sweet.
'Ugh, this is ridiculous! If this keeps up, my anger will reach its peak!'
"Do you think that's good?"
'Ugh, I'll never talk to you again in my life!'
Juju got angry.
Miss Fuuko elegantly ignored it and continued.
"So, you're good at solving curses, right?"
"Huh? Well, I guess so..."
I think I'm better than average at it. I've got experience, too.
"So, I want you to solve the cursed disaster in the Holy City?"
"The holy city's curse?"
"There's been a weird phenomenon happening in the holy city lately. It's too big for us to handle alone, and if we leave it, the holy city might be in trouble?"
"Hmm..."
I don't really feel like it's that big of a deal.
It sounds like some vague, fortune-teller-like words.
"Uh, so... the reason you called me here is to solve the holy city's curse, right?"
"That's one way to put it..."
"......"
Still, it's hard to read her.
I remember Miss Miimo saying, "The holy king likes uncertain things." Maybe that's why she's acting like this.
"If you solve it, I'll tell you the information you want. It could be about you or about 'her'..."
"What if I don't cooperate?"
"You'll die or something?"
"Don't kill me off so easily, okay?"
"Then you'll fall into hell, got it?"
"That's a phrase a fortune teller would love..."
I let out a sigh.
It feels like I'm being manipulated somehow.
There's probably an ulterior motive behind why I was called here.
'...Noroa, there's no need to listen to what this suspicious person has to say.'
Juju pulls on my sleeve.
If I'm careful and don't fail, maybe I should just observe the situation for now.
Anyway, there's one thing I need to ask.
"Miss Fuuko."
"...?"
"Is the cursed equipment causing the curse... cute?"
"Probably SSS rank?"
"I'll take it."
I decide immediately.
Well, it's not like I'm going to participate in something bad, and I'll get the information I want, too.
I couldn't find a reason to refuse the request.
But I won't just do whatever she says, either.
"But, when it comes to receiving a request, there are 2 conditions, you see――"
"...Huh? "
Miss Fuuko makes an interesting face.
"Did you come up with the conditions for me? Well, I'll listen to them, okay?"
"Thank you. So, the first one is――"
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