4-81: The Summit Meeting – Evil Machine God (2/5)

4-81: The Summit Meeting – Evil Machine God (2/5)

Is that why youve been trying to provoke me for awhile now? You wanted to make the worst impression possible so that Id act?

I could see that you had an unusually strong sense of responsibility. You watched over your disciples until the last moment and lent a hand when the situation got too dangerous. You even cleaned up thoroughly after yourself like you did during the incident at Kutoria Even if doing so means puttign you at a disadvantage or costing you your honor.

Since that Mask was involved, all she had to do now was to cause a problem.

Mikoto had indeed been taken aback by his appearance, but since he appeared, she might as well use him.

Whether he killed Mikoto, destroyed the clans, or even if he became hostile to them even before that, he would not be indifferent to the consequences. She was sure of that the moment she saw the face beneath the mask.

Shinichi showed nothing of the sort to Mikoto, but in that regard, he did not lose out even to Shouko.

That was just how obvious his good-naturedness was in the way he spoke.

If I am an incompetent machine godDeus Ex Machina, then you are a convenient machine godDeus Ex Machina. A hero who would go out of his way to protect everyone and control the situation would surely not overlook the consequences sown by a clan that has lost control, right?

Tsuchimikado Mikoto!

This was a threat only possible because of her anger, and because it was Shinichi she was dealing with.

So great was the faith she had in his good will that she was even trying to use him through it.

Because of that Shouko raised her voice.

Was she really going to try and get these unrelated children into this mess through such brazen methods despite her own powers?

Shoukos voice was full of rebuke, but as expected, Mikoto paid her no heed.

Unfortunately, Shouko-chan, theres no point even if you get mad. Because Im not going to stop. Im going to end the clans no matter what happens and no matter who gets involved. I would flatter ambitious houses, I would instigate grudges between houses, I could even take advantage of the Ootsu familys plan.

Now then, what would happen then if she did that? Mikoto laughed like a cunning old witch.

Theres no other way to solve this than to get rid of me. If you leave me be, the clans leadership will be a mess, and people will die once the organization collapses. I wonder if youll be able to remain indifferent then?

What a terrible thing to say! Have you fallen this far!? If its like this, then!?

We also brought in those with nowhere else to go or those who wanted to return to their hometowns. We also minimized the disadvantages to the neighboring cities that would result from all these efforts.

Because of the location, we had to involve about five nations just to stabilize a single city.

It was a lot of work, Shinichi said like a salaryman grumbling from working overnight.

Whether it was the irritated Mikoto, the angry Shouko, the anxious old man, all of them, without question, stared blankly at Shinichi.

It was not because the scale was too big, but because they couldnt understand why he would go so far.

Moreover, if they were to borrow his words, he did all that just to stabilize a single city.

It was just too over the top, and there was no way to describe his answer other than excessive.

It even seemed as though he was intentionally doing something that he knew was excessive.

What do you want to say?

But it was precisely because of that that Mikoto had a bad premonition and stiffened.

Whether he realized that or not, Shinichi answered.

Lots. For one, though the work I put in might have been excessive, you have to put in that much effort at least if you truly want to save something. If you defeat evil, another evil will simply appear to fill in the hole left behind. If you destroy an organization, no matter what kind of organization it is, its bound to have an effect good or bad on those around it. That and When I start working, the result is always like that.

Do you understand?

The boy said with outstretched arms like an amateur stage actor, and when he grinned a suspicious smile, the world changed().

In other wordsdont get ahead of yourself, little girl.

In that instant where she could neither hear nor see, darkness gripped() her.

There was no resistance, no screaming, no breathing, nay, not even her intuition could keep up.

The boy could be seen through the gap between the darkness, but there was also a monster(something) that overlapped him that was too terrifying to be described as a demon.