The Great Heavenly Demon Sovereign – Chapter 86

About a week had passed, hadn’t it? Perhaps because nothing major happened, time slipped by in a blur.

Unlike the usual bustle of Trinity General Academy, there wasn’t even a whisper of gossip from Gehenna Academy. It was truly a peaceful time. One might call it a fleeting Belle Époque.

Of course, for academies filled with horned students, peace might be considered an anomaly… but anyway.

“Artifacts must be sent through the terminal. Everyone, move calmly!”

“Everything from that warehouse and these twelve items need to be sent to Sweet Cathedral. They’re B-52, 54, and 56.”

“Understood. Oh, we don’t have authority over this batch. The Sisterhood will handle it. Instead, we’ll take full responsibility for sending all the artifacts to Sweet Cathedral. There won’t be any issues with the relics, so please inform the Mother Superior.”

“Wait a moment… Okay, understood. I’ve received permission from Sakurako-sama. I’ll send the permit in writing.”

The Cathedral of Communions was buzzing with all sorts of students. It wasn’t even the memorial service period, so many students were curious about why so many people had gathered. A few students lingered nearby, capturing the rare scene on their cameras.

Eden was just around the corner. What was once merely spoken of as a distant goal had quickly become reality. Clubs were busy preparing for the celebration, and diplomatic channels were flooded with fine-tuned proposals.

This would sever a centuries-old feud. Surely, it would pave the way for progress in the relationship between Trinity and Gehenna. Those who fought incessantly wouldn’t change overnight, of course. But what did it matter? Let’s savor the sweetness of peace for ourselves.

“Senpai, the truck is almost full. Hippo-chan has attached all the towlines too. Oh, and the head of the Justice Task Force has temporarily handed over traffic control authority. Satsu-chan says she’ll take responsibility and get it to the destination by the shortest route.”

“I should thank our junior for that. Alright, let’s get moving. The pastor is waiting.”

The Cathedral is a cultural symbol, a historic relic that has stood alongside Trinity General Academy through its academic journey. The elegant architecture, constantly bombarded with joint research requests from Millennium, embodies the time our alma mater has endured.

Dozens of wooden crates were loaded onto a four-axle vehicle painted in gull-gray. These were artifacts that had withstood centuries. To prevent any accidents, they were to be transported out of the Cathedral, as instructed by our esteemed seniors.

The Host demanded everything be completed within two days, so we had no choice but to comply! Would it kill them to give us a bit more time?

The Mother Superior seemed inwardly displeased, but the rationale was solid and reasonable. Thankfully, she agreed to a compromise. I personally express my gratitude for her flexibility.

[Vehicle 1, departing. Everyone, start your engines and stand by. Drive safely.]

[Hikari-san, I’m in Vehicle 7. Is it okay if I play the bagpipes while driving?]

[Uh, what… Wait, Inori-senpai, what are you talking about?!]

The Cathedral grounds glowed with a woody hue. The muddy paths were streaked with indigo. Large tactical vehicles asserted their presence here and there.

At the border checkpoint, military trucks were abundant. Naturally, they were the means to swiftly traverse the vast forest spanning hundreds of miles. Ideally, we’d have plastered the place with armored ambulances and combat transport vehicles… but the budget poured into the armory was already overwhelming.

Hahaha—such is the way of the world.

If qualitative progress is impossible, quantitative expansion is the administrative duty, isn’t it? Back when Trinity and Gehenna were fighting tooth and nail, the border checkpoint mobilized nearly two thousand vehicles.

For today, they had pulled out all the stored equipment from the warehouses. The transport capacity of eight hundred military vehicles was more than enough to carry all the Cathedral’s artifacts. The long procession crossing the forest was nothing short of spectacular.

Behold, Hell, Trinity is making this much effort for you.

What are you all doing?

“Well, I mean, what’s Makoto even doing? I wouldn’t care if it was just Ibuki.”

“…Now that you mention it, why is Iroha-chan sitting in the passenger seat?”

“Gehenna’s boring. I was going to slack off at the secret base today, but watching you seemed more fun.”

Could you please not turn someone’s labor into your amusement, Natsume-san? Especially in front of a poor girl dragged out of her long-awaited holiday by the Host’s summons. She might just keel over.

Iroha-chan flashed a decadent smile. I’d been told she’d stop by the checkpoint headquarters, but who would’ve thought she was building a new secret base behind Hippo-chan? Hiding like a mouse until the artifacts were loaded—she definitely had a plan.

I ignored the friend showing interest in the dashboard. Inserting the key, I started the engine. The machinery roared to life.

[Alright, everyone, let’s move. Next stop: Sweet Cathedral.]

After sending the radio message, the rugged sound of engines soon echoed through the forest. Look, kids, I’ll be your guide. Just follow in line, and let’s avoid writing incident reports on this joyous day.

The 45-ton self-propelled artillery crushed the compacted soil. Smaller trucks followed along the deep tire tracks.

Iroha-chan, who had been eyeing the scattered gauges on the passenger-side panel, pressed a long button.

A familiar melody filled the driver’s seat. Ritsuko-chan, slacking in the back, listened for a moment before humming along.

“Hey, I know this song. What’s it called again?”

“Huh… I didn’t know it had this feature.”

“Exactly. Nice one. Let’s listen to some music on the way.”

Long drives definitely call for music. Let’s hit the gas with this lively vibe.

[Love is all that I can give to you—♪]

…Maybe today’s turning out to be a pretty good day.

***

“Man, it’s been insanely busy.”

“Better than when you were suppressing protests, no?”

“Quiet down, Natsume-san. You’re just lazing around.”

Let’s recap the last few hours. We dropped off the artifacts at Sweet Cathedral, had a pleasant tea party with the pastor, who happened to be from the Lutheran faction, and then got scolded by Nagisa-sama for holding said tea party.

Maybe Iroha-chan was right. I haven’t done as much as I thought.

But what can I do when my body and mind are already exhausted? Keeping the truck on the road for hours takes a toll. Focusing on two things while driving is a nightmare.

“It’s twice the mental strain. Harder than arguing with the Pater faction.”

“It’s no different from talking to Makoto-senpai.”

“…Wasn’t Makoto your boss? All that talk about authority, but it seems there’s no unreasonable pressure in Pandemonium.”

“Authority? Does that even exist?”

Hearing Iroha-chan’s sharp remark, I decided not to evaluate Gehenna Academy’s political freedom. Ordinary students might be impressed by an academy that guarantees free speech for student council members… but, ugh.

No matter how I look at it, it’s not about “disinterest in political statements” but “disinterest in politics altogether.” I’m not proud of my alma mater’s political apathy, but Gehenna’s on another level.

So that’s why they ignored all those protest letters from the checkpoint headquarters.

“That bastard Makoto.”

“Whoa, even if I said that, you should watch your words.”

“Why?”

“You’ll make dogs feel bad.”

Yamatsu Hikari gave up thinking. Let’s be overwhelmed by political freedom!

Should we create a “Gehenna-Democracy” ideology? Ever since Nagisa-sama lost interest in politics—unless she falls from a tree and becomes as foolish as Chairman Makoto—the tea party has done nothing.

The Justice Task Force might fight desperately to prevent societal collapse, but they can’t handle tens of thousands of irrational mobs. In the end, even they lose motivation and let things slide unless it’s a big deal.

Chaos will follow collapse. But after generations of turmoil, won’t it end up running like Gehenna? At least there won’t be protests from the Pater faction.

“…What am I even thinking about?”

“Can you focus on driving? It’s been getting bumpy.”

“It’s because I’m culturally shocked by your stories.”

Gossip about faction leaders is common at tea parties, but Iroha-chan’s level of talk is beyond what even the parties involved could imagine. Ladies curse with grace, not with verbal assaults.

I complain a lot too. But I don’t think it’s that much. The important thing is, have my complaints about Nagisa-sama ever included personal attacks? Of course not!

That’s why I’m even more shocked. Even if it’s a horned academy, constantly dragged through the mud, Gehenna is still vast.

Chairman Hanuma Makoto reigns at the top of tens of thousands of students. Their budget is astronomical, and their artillery rivals our alma mater’s. Even during times of rampant factional warlords, Pandemonium was never attacked.

To think an insider was orchestrating those attacks. Iroha-chan, you’re scarier than I thought. Holy—terrifying!

[Senpai, we’ve arrived. We’ll store the equipment back in the warehouse, so call if you need us.]

[Good work. Oh, there’s some pork belly in the lounge fridge. Grill it yourselves.]

[You sound cheerful. Since you’re not eating, you’re saying it’s fine for me and Ritsu-chan to have it, right?]

[You know me well.]

I can picture my junior puffing out one cheek without even looking. I agreed just to tease her, though it’s not like I have any real stake in it.

Every time this happens, I think Sayuri-san has a personality similar to Hanako’s. Especially in the paranoia department. She gets like that occasionally.

I heard from Inori-senpai that sharp-minded students can be like that. Lately, I’ve started to see it as harmless teasing when things are quiet.

Anyway, it’s rare for her to get on this senpai’s nerves, so she’s probably being considerate in her own way.

[But you’re not going to eat something delicious without us, right?]

[I’m going to eat curry in the city with Iroha-chan.]

[Ahh! That’s the tasty place from the TV show! That’s unfair—do you care more about Iroha-chan than your juniors?!]

[Sayuri-san, shut Ritsuko-chan up.]

[Mmph! …Argh, senpai, protect freedom of speech!]

Ritsuko-chan’s freedom was quickly suppressed by Sayuri-san’s superior strength.

Sure, I gave the order, but what can I do? Ritsuko-chan’s complaints don’t reach the radio channel. To resist the oppression of authority, one must have a voice that reaches the leader’s ears!

“Go for it, Ritsuko-chan.”

“…You’re kinda weird.”

“You know me well.”

Iroha-chan fell silent.

Before she returned to Gehenna, we had dinner together. The butter curry mixed with rice was divine.

There was that incident where that lunatic Haruna blew up the restaurant next door again, but what can you do?

The restaurant owner hadn’t changed the flavor since the last incident, it seems.

***

A few days passed again. Two girls stood together under a clear sky.

The open view from the tea party room reflected the Cathedral of Communions across the city. The final rehearsal for the signing ceremony, set to begin in three days, was underway. The banners fluttering at the Cathedral were vivid even to my eyes.

…It’s beautiful. Nagisa-sama gazed at it with hopeful eyes. After enduring countless political storms, the destination of her path was right before her. She must be thrilled.

“It’s quite a sight, Nagisa-sama. This is the biggest event since the last military parade.”

“Rather than an event… I’d call it a celebration.”

“I think so too.”

Nagisa-sama sipped her tea.

For someone with whom I’d had a strained relationship, she had called me today for some reason. It was a routine meeting to deliver the final plans for the border checkpoint and fine-tune details.

But I couldn’t help wondering if she was afraid of something.

Is that so? She is about to personally cut the ribbon on a treaty that will send unprecedented ripples through Kivotos.

For someone who feared change more than anyone and actively opposed the student council president’s plans, is she now afraid even of the change meant to end all changes?

“The student council president should’ve seen this. Things got tough after she went missing.”

“But you’ve made it to the end. Three days—72 hours—and it’s all over. Now that I think about it, I should say this in advance: well done.”

“…You too, Hikari-san.”

I didn’t know Nagisa-sama could say such things.

Good, good. One less thing to worry about.

“Nagisa-sama.”

“Yes, Hikari-san.”

“How do you feel?”

She fell silent for a moment. She sipped her tea without a word.

She brought the cup to her lips and drank it in one go. Even though the tea had cooled in the breeze, its brand quality shone through.

“…I don’t know. We’ve been preparing for months, but… why is it that I’m not entirely happy?”

“Haha. Everyone feels that way, Nagisa-sama. Tsurugi-san and I are on edge worrying about accidents, and the Mother Superior is probably concerned about the relocated artifacts. …Yes, really. That’s how it is for everyone.”

“It looks peaceful, like nothing’s happening. But you, me, and many students in the Tea Party are at our busiest. …Maybe I’m still afraid of change.”

“You’re quite ordinary. I don’t know if I should be the one to say this, but what can we do now? All we can do is pray that He watches over us, right?”

“…That’s not wrong.”

“It’ll all work out, Nagisa-sama. Making it work out is my job.”

“Then.” Nagisa-sama met my eyes. “I’m counting on you, Hikari-san.”

“…I’ll make it happen.”

I pray we can keep this promise.

Amen.

***

Three days.

Fortifications began near the Cathedral.

Two days.

Pandemonium decided to arrive by airship instead of the train we had prepared. It took hours to deactivate the air defense system.

One day.

We transported the remaining shells to a temporary ammunition depot built at the fortification.

At Sayuri-san’s insistence, we decided to move 50,000 rounds first.

And then,

The day arrived.

At the threshold of the Cathedral, Sayuri-san said,

“It’s Eden.”

Indeed.

The gates of the garden opened.