“And for all you lovelies who haven’t been able to keep up, you should consider this proposal a godsend for your people♡. Allying here will significantly reduce the likelihood of further pointless conflicts arising. At the very least, neither me nor my ally, Mr. H, want to fight, ehe.”
Vagia apologetically directed the conversation toward the nations that had been left out of all the Player talk. The subject matter was utterly incomprehensible to them. Only confusion lingered on their frowning faces. But they picked up on the most important factor: whether they reached an agreement today or not would greatly affect the course of the world…
And there was one person who would determine that fate sitting at their table…
“What are your thoughts on this? Dear King of Mynoghra, Takuto Ira♡,” Vagia purred.
“My thoughts?”
“Yes, you. What exactly is your goal? Isn’t peace appealing to you? This is reality, not the world of a game♡. No matter how much protection you have from the gods and the game, once you die, it’s game over for good. No reloads. I don’t know if there’s an afterlife or not, but one definitely isn’t prepared for the losers.”
This was the second time since the conference started that Vagia drew attention to Takuto. Perhaps he was the only natural choice to ask for an opinion at this point in the conversation. The general atmosphere seemed to indicate that the other Players, including Yu, could eventually be persuaded. Mr. H had already allied with Vagia, so he was likely on board with her plans.
The greatest loose thread and threat to Vagia’s plan was none other than Takuto Ira. And unfortunately for her…she was right to worry about him.
I might have considered it earlier on…
Takuto didn’t want to die either. He had come to a new world with a healthy and fit body. If agreeing guaranteed peace, then he would have happily picked the route that led to him living it up with Atou in Mynoghra.
But that route had been blocked off already.
Takuto wasn’t naïve enough to change his mind now, nor was he weak of will to waver.
“Now that I think about it, I never did ask about your goal,” Yu chimed in. “Since you teamed up with me, I guess you’re more of a peace seeker than I thought?”
“Seeking peace isn’t wrong,” Takuto said, reiterating his earlier comment.
“Oh! I see! They call you the King of Ruin, so I thought you’d be thinking more about bringing ruin and all.”
“I’d get defeated by the Hero if I was thinking such things.”
Takuto chose words that deflected away from his true answer. He meant what he said to Yu; it’s just that his priorities had changed. And what had taken the slot of his number one priority was unlikely to be unseated.
“Then you agree to our terms?” Vagia asked.
“No,” Takuto said without missing a beat.
With just one word, he refused. Firmly.
Sometimes it’s easier to get your point across by being clear-cut instead of clumsily beating around the bush. Vagia’s vicious scowl proved he made the correct choice.
“Can I ask why?”
“No particular reason. If I had to give one, perhaps it’s because I’m the King of Ruin and an evil being? I’ve become a bit interested in destroying the world.”
Refusing would result in open hostilities. In which case, he had no reason to give information to his enemies. Takuto had already gathered a great deal of valuable information from this conference. He didn’t need to make unnecessary excuses and expose his weaknesses.
Takuto glanced to his side. He couldn’t read Yu’s expression. Yu had made it clear from the start that he was opposed to this proposal. Seeing how he listened to Takuto’s words, which could be interpreted as a declaration of war, without complaining, it seemed they were on the same page.
You can’t underestimate a Hero’s intuition. My other, unstated reason is that this whole proposal is shady as hell.
People who present you with a great opportunity and give all sorts of reasons to force you into making a hasty decision are generally con artists. Takuto was familiar with those tactics. He wouldn’t have accepted Vagia’s deal either way, even if he wasn’t thinking about Isla and the Ascension Victory.
“And you can’t be convinced to change your mind? I’m willing to compromise where I can.”
“Then how about you all lose and come under my dominion? Don’t worry, my kingdom is kind to its vassals.”
“We…can’t do that.”
See, there’s the truth, Takuto snorted.
If the goal was just to end the game, then it shouldn’t matter who won in the end. The result would be the same whether it ended with everyone’s surrender or a single person becoming the winner. The supposed goal here was to prevent things from ending in bloodshed. No matter who wins or loses, if no blood is shed, then it’d be peaceful.
But Vagia was quick to shoot down his counterproposal.
Either she absolutely needed to end the game with everyone’s surrender, or she didn’t trust the man known as Takuto Ira. Whatever her thoughts might be, they mattered not to Takuto, who’d already decided to be enemies.
“Too difficult for you to fall under Mynoghra’s umbrella, eh? Then how about this? Why don’t you tell us Mr. H’s name and game as a gesture of good faith? I might consider it if you do.”
“Not happening,” the orblike statue suddenly spoke.
Takuto was knocked off-kilter by the sudden interjection, but laughter bubbled up within him when he realized the voice belonged to Mr. H himself.
“Pft! Bahahaha!”
“…What’s so funny?”
“Sorry, sorry. I was surprised you joined the conversation, is all. Um…Mr. H, I presume? I apologize if I offended you.”
Not much information can be gleaned from words alone. The meaning behind the words can change significantly when looking at the other person’s face and gauging their expression.
Regardless of that, Takuto could easily guess just how angry Mr. H was from his remark.
“I wasn’t making my proposal to a coward who doesn’t have the guts to come here himself. I was speaking to Witch Vagia.” Takuto intentionally provoked him.
Anger leads to recklessness, and recklessness leads to mistakes. Mistakes lead to confusion, and confusion plus mistakes lead straight to death.
Since Takuto had already decided they were his enemies, he set out to provoke them as much as possible to see if anything amusing came of it.