The Great Sword is not the Main Body!
Chapter 182 – The End of the World (4)

With a single casually tossed remark from Laila, the once-bubbly atmosphere instantly grew heavy.

“Serr is a created being…?”

Rubia’s playful smile vanished, her expression hardening.

It felt like being trapped in an airless, confined space.
A discomfort like invisible thorns pricking every inch of my body permeated the atmosphere as Serr, who had been covering her face with her hands, slowly raised her head.

And on that gradually lifting face was…

“As I suspected.”

A brilliant smile.

“Huh… S-Serr…?”

“Why are you calling me, Noah?”

“Um… what…?”

I gripped and released Frey repeatedly, wondering if my Ki Sense was malfunctioning, but Serr’s expression remained unchanged.

…Has the shock driven her insane?

Still wearing that refreshing smile, Serr tidied her disheveled hair and turned to Laila.

“What you’re saying—that I was created by you. Is this an absolute fact?”

[It is.]

“I… see. Huhu, huhuhu…”

For the first time since sitting down, Serr leaned back in her chair, crossed her legs, and alternated her gaze between Rubia and me.

“…Serr.”

“Rubia, don’t look at me like that. If anything, I should be rejoicing at finding someone of the same kind—one of only two in the world. Isn’t that something to celebrate?”

“But—”

“No buts. Didn’t I tell you before? That you and I are similar. That we are inevitable existences. That was the answer. I arrived at the perfect conclusion from the haziest of clues.”

Swoosh — With a graceful motion of her hand, Serr summoned a tiny spirit.

“As expected, I truly am a genius.”

Gently stroking the spirit’s head with her finger, Serr extended her arm, sending the spirit toward Laila.

The spirit, instantly transported to Laila, tilted its head curiously before smiling brightly and floating toward her.

[Then you must already have some idea how things will unfold.]

Kyuaa…

Laila cradled the tiny spirit with gentle hands, playfully poking its cheeks while fixing her gaze on Serr.

“Yes.”

[Would you be willing to share your insights?]

Serr, who had been gazing up at Yggdrasil, suddenly shifted her eyes to me and Rubia.

“No.”

[What…?]

“Huh…?”

“What?”

Noticing our dumbfounded expressions, Serr chuckled softly and waved her hand casually through the air.

Crack — At that same moment, the roots of Yggdrasil where Laila had been leaning split apart.

[Eh?]

The tea set Serr always carried with her—
Laboriously lifted by three struggling spirits—
Floated up into view.

“Would you care for some coffee?”

[Haha, hahahaha!! To accomplish such a feat in that brief moment!]

“Didn’t I tell you? I am a genius. For someone like me, this is no more difficult than brewing a cup of coffee.”

[What an incredibly arrogant statement. Kuhahaha!]

Laila, laughing heartily, reached toward the tea set that the spirits were struggling to hold.
Meanwhile, Serr wore a smug expression as she stared down at the spirits.

Caught between them, the tiny spirits began sweating profusely, anxiously gauging their reactions.

“Spirits, bring it here.”

[The poor things are struggling. Let me take it.]

“This is their routine duty.”

[I’ve heard you treat spirits roughly, but I never expected such cruelty. Don’t you feel sorry for these adorable little ones?]

“These perverted creatures may look cute on the outside, but they secretly enjoy being treated harshly.”

[What nonsense.]

Caught in the sharp exchange between Serr and Laila, the tiny spirits shuddered, sighed resignedly, and floated toward Serr.

Kyuuui…

“See? I win.”

[Good grief…]

Flashing a victory sign at Rubia and me, Serr chuckled playfully and began brewing coffee.

Clink, clack, tink

Without needing instruction, the spirits diligently brought everything Serr needed. Only after delivering the finished beverages to us did they return to Laila, collapsing in exhaustion.

Hik… hik… kuu…

[Hmm… you’ve worked hard…]

Laila looked uncertainly at her coffee cup before gently stroking the exhausted spirits’ backs.

“…Are we really supposed to drink this?”

“Please, enjoy it at your leisure.”

“Haah…”

Rubia, seated beside me, eyed the coffee—likely infused with the spirits’ blood, sweat, and tears—before reluctantly taking a sip.

Meanwhile,
I alternated glances between the “coffee cup” in my hands and Serr’s casual smile before squeezing my eyes shut and taking a mouthful.

Unlike the usual sweet drink, it was incredibly bitter.

“By the way, what did Serr just do that shocked Laila so much?”

“Nothing significant. I merely redirected the connection from this Yggdrasil rooted in the Spirit Realm to the ‘real’ Yggdrasil.”

Looking exasperated, Laila sent the exhausted spirits back into Yggdrasil’s roots.

[You make it sound so trivial. Priestess, what my descendant just did was utterly outrageous. Imagine an ordinary human with no medical knowledge or healing magic removing all their internal organs and then reinserting them. A tremendously complex and difficult task, wouldn’t you agree?]

“…Yes, it certainly would be.”

[Exactly. Yet she just performed an equivalent feat. One slight misstep and she could have been permanently crippled—a tremendous gamble that she executed as casually as brewing coffee.]

Rubia’s astonished eyes turned toward Serr.
I too stared at her, the unbearably bitter coffee still held in my mouth.

Yet Serr remained unfazed, shrugging nonchalantly as if everything were normal.

[Had you prepared for this in advance?]

“That’s a secret.”

Laila’s question, loaded with deeper meaning.
Serr’s terse response, cutting through all those implications.

The coffee in my mouth was intensely bitter.
Something felt off about Serr, who had always given me strawberry milk but today offered coffee while acting entirely normal.
The Beasts of the End and Kartia, usually so noisy in my head, were suspiciously quiet.
Even Rubia, who surely sensed the strange atmosphere, remained silent.

My breathing felt constricted.
My chest felt tight.
It felt like a thorn was lodged in my throat.

Incredibly frustrating and uncomfortable.

Of course… there was a simple solution to end this discomfort.

I could just ask Serr and Laila directly.

They would surely answer.

And yet.

Why couldn’t I bring myself to ask?
Why didn’t I want to know?

Why were my instincts rejecting the resolution of these questions?

I didn’t understand.

I didn’t understand, but the frustration was becoming unbearable.

Gulp… ugh…

As I struggled to suppress these stifling emotions, forcing open my reluctant lips—

[Ugh, I can’t stand this anymore.]

Kartia’s voice, silent until now, immediately sealed my lips again.

“K-Kartia?”

I had just made an enormous decision.
A truly major resolution…

And with a single comment from Kartia, my words died in my throat.
Frustrating… yet oddly relieving.

[Can’t anyone just fucking speak clearly?]

“Huh… w-wait—”

[Shh. Stay put.]

Snatching the coffee cup from my hand, Kartia downed it in one gulp before fixing her sharp gaze on Laila.

[It’s been a while, Kartia.]

[Skip the pleasantries.]

[Have you recovered all your memories?]

[Yeah.]

[That’s fortunate.]

Crack — At Laila’s touch, a sturdy chair rose from the ground right beside me.

[This snake-like woman still hasn’t fixed her annoying way of speaking.]

[How can habits formed over countless eons be changed in a mere moment?]

[Bullshit.]

Receiving Kartia’s harsh words with graceful composure, Laila offered her a flower.

[I still remember your preferred scent. What do you think? Is it to your liking?]

[Hah.]

Though the chair looked rather rigid, Kartia plopped down without hesitation, snatching the flower and snapping its stem with a crack.

[Serr, what’s wrong with you? I thought you were sharp. Why are you suddenly so soft-hearted?]

“…I am not.”

[Tsk, well, what can you do? You’re human after all. It must be difficult to say it yourself.]

After patting Serr’s shoulder, Kartia turned to me.

[Fine, I’ll explain everything. I’ll only say this once, so listen carefully.]

Clatter — The cup trembled in Serr’s hands as cracks formed in her composed facade.

[Rubia was created by Lilith to protect this world. In contrast, Serr was created to destroy it.]

Laila, still leaning against the tree roots with her gentle smile, deepened her expression.

[To be precise, not to destroy it, but to transform it into a new world.]

[Cut the crap.]

Crack — Frey, charged with even denser killing intent than usual, materialized in Kartia’s hand.

[Noah. If Laila dies here and now, the Advent of the False Paradise begins.]

“F-False Paradise…?”

[In exchange for the lives of Rubia and Serr, a gate to the higher world will open.]

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