Chapter 93

Once, I’d wondered something.

What would happen if a child chosen by the Evil God was born… and we just kept them around until the late game?

Confession.

Thanks to the veteran gamer’s ironclad experimental spirit, I’d tried it. More than once.

And each time, that run turned into a complete disaster.

“Seriously? You’re telling me an apocalypse triggers here? Even if it’s called the Apocalypse, this is just overkill!!”

No matter how hard I tried, there was no end to the misfortune, tragedy, and calamities.

Supernatural incidents and monsters multiplying exponentially, fanatics running wild—!

I’d clung on to the end, staking my pride as a seasoned player, and finally realized:

If a child chosen by the Evil God is born, you must stop it!

“Lucy, duck! Now!!”

Lucy immediately crouched down.

Fortunately, since I’d been keeping watch, I was able to get Daddy to move at just the right moment.

“Cut it down!”

“What? But…”

Even while answering with me in his arms, Daddy’s body moved with precision.

Shhk!

Of course, the current Shadow Tagger couldn’t be destroyed by any weapon.

But the shadow lunging toward Lucy was cleaved in half, giving her just enough room to escape danger.

However—

‘Urgh…!’

Part of the shadow flicked toward me.

In an instant, it changed—not into the Tagger’s form, but into a jagged thorn.

— Ah… no… It wasn’t you… I felt darkness, though!

The shadow thorn that struck me opened a gaping mouth, then bit down on me.

Prick!

It stung—like a bug bite.

— I won’t disappear. I’m coming with you…

The whisper fractured, growing fainter.

— The Great One will welcome you.

— They love things as broken as you!

Heeheehee. Kekek, kyahahahak!

That bone-chilling, twisted laughter filled my ears. But I didn’t panic.

‘Ah, so this is what happens when you get bitten here.’

Something the protagonist could never experience—a little refreshing, actually.

“Nemesia…! Are you alright?!”

“Mhm, I’m fine. Just stings.”

I showed Daddy my slightly reddened finger, then shook it off.

“Lucy, what’re you doing—get in there now!”

“Ah, uh, o-okay!”

“Let’s go, Lady Lucy…!”

Still dazed, Lucy hurried into the portal with her Guardian’s help.

Only then did I breathe a sigh of relief.

‘Haa, one crisis averted.’

If Lucy had been pricked by the thorn that got me, a status effect would’ve triggered—the Evil God’s power would take root in her body, awakening her as a “child chosen by the Evil God.”

Me? Nothing to worry about.

Back in the underground fanatic cell, when I faced the Nightmare-Feeding Insect, I’d already proven it.

The protagonist of this world has a 90% chance of resisting any status effect from a monster.

‘And since nothing’s happened… guess it failed.’

I was just clenching my fist in triumph when—

— When They call you, I’ll answer first… because we’re friends.

The sound was as soft as a passing breeze.

I turned my head, wondering if I’d imagined it.

But the sound didn’t come again.

“What’s wrong?”

“Mm? Nothing. Must’ve been my imagination.”

If something had really happened to me, the “status board” would’ve told me.

“And Daddy, don’t worry. You know stuff like this doesn’t get to me!”

Only then did Daddy look reassured.

I stared at the bite mark a moment longer, then looked away.

“Let’s go too!”

It happened just as Daddy stepped into the portal—

— Woof woof woof! Woof woof!

Dogs’ laughter echoed in my ears. I frowned, tucked against Daddy, and passed through.

‘Haa, I’m exhausted.’

Thus ended the trial. No one dead.

* * *

The moment they stepped through the portal, Derek felt relief.

He was grateful, joyous even, to finally get his daughter out of this perilous place.

“Nemesia…”

He started to lower his head to her, then froze.

In the white light of the portal transit, the Shadow Taggers, unable to follow further, crowded thick around them in frustration.

Every single one formed a mouth—lips torn wide into a smile without lips.

Like the smile right before a scream.

— Birth!

— New birth!

— Foretold!

A beat of silence.

Then the next words made Derek’s eyes go wide.

— Foretold.

— Arrival.

— …Birth.

— Thank you… Pope.

Before he could say anything, the scene shifted—the black space, the bizarre monsters, all vanished.

When they returned to the starting point, Derek blinked slowly.

The area was already crowded with children and Guardians who’d arrived ahead of them.

He glanced around briefly, then his gaze shifted to the medium that had caused this supernatural event—the “doll.”

And suddenly, his shoulders twitched slightly.

“Look, it’s gone!”

“Hey, Lord Gidehme, don’t touch that!”

Where the doll had been, there was nothing but ash. In moments, even the ash melted away.

Derek knew this phenomenon well.

It was what happened when a supernatural occurrence was completely destroyed.

That fear-eating creature would never arise, never appear anywhere again.

A miraculous feat wrought by the children.

And most likely, all thanks to the baby Pope in his arms.

Lost in awe, he looked down.

“Daddy? What’s wrong?”

Looking into his daughter’s pure, innocent eyes, Derek wondered—

Did you not see it?

But instead of unsettling her, he simply shook his head.

“Nothing at all.”

Right now, she needed rest. He’d save the questions for later.

“…You did well.”

The big hand landed on Nemesia’s head, making her eyes go round like a startled rabbit.

But only for a moment.

The child smiled brightly—purely, as befit her age.

“Mm!”

* * *

‘Phew, what a perfect run!’

Even I thought I’d struck the right balance—showed enough capability while keeping my real power under wraps(?)—and most importantly, never once gave anyone reason to suspect I was the Pope.

And on top of that, getting White Silence here? What a huge haul!

“My word, this is astounding…”

“The supernatural occurrence, ‘Shadow Tagger’, is completely gone…!”

“And the time it took!”

Apparently, the time it took for us kids to resolve this was far shorter than the Order had expected.

‘Well, of course.’

When you’ve got someone used to speedrunning like eating breakfast, it’d be a crime if it did take long.

The Order, thinking of the children’s health, granted us a day of rest.

‘One day? Stingy. So stingy.’

The Order’s bunch… I’ll sue you for child abuse someday…

Still, by the time we gathered again the next day, every injured or exhausted child had been thoroughly treated by the priests.

“Alright, candidates. For fairness in evaluation, I’ll ask: In your opinion, who contributed the most in this trial? You may also raise your hand.”

Truthfully, even if I had played a bigger role than usual this time, I wasn’t too worried about the fallout.

Why?

“…I can’t remember. Someone helped me a lot, though.”

“I’m not sure… it’s fuzzy…”

“Dunno.”

One of the quirks of ‘Project: Shadow Host’—once you escape the supernatural zone, your memories of what happened there turn hazy.

Back in the game, I’d once taken advantage of this—openly revealed I was the Pope and showed off…

‘But the memories do return, bit by bit.’

And one time, a kid remembered that the protagonist Khan was the Pope—and the run went up in flames with a bad ending.

This time was different.

Yes, I’d taken the lead more than most, but only “guided them just enough.” Even if someone remembered, it wouldn’t matter.

While the kids groaned, trying to recall, I shot my tiny hand into the air.

Me! Me! Me!

Come on, Professor, call on me!

“…Oh, Candidate Nemesia?”

Maybe because I’d botched the last practice, he looked less than thrilled as he called on me.

“I remember!”

“Oh?”

There were other professors in the room too, here for the evaluation, and all their eyes lit up.

“Well?”

“I know who did the most!”

I glanced to the side.

“It was Emmet!”

Emmet’s eyes went wide.

Sorry, buddy. I saved your life, so this much is fine, right?

Just let me use you this once.

Emmet’s mouth opened, probably to protest.

But then I met Gidehme’s gaze. His fierce eyes narrowed slightly, then he raised his hand halfway.

“I agree. I remember too. Nemesia’s right—he did all the work.”

“Oh! I remember now too,” Flora said with a dazzling smile, almost making a shara-rang sound.

For a moment, the look she gave me was one that said just trust me!

“Emmet even carried me when I was dizzy, all while looking after everyone else! Oh, I think he even carried three people at once! So cool!”

…Flora, that’s straight-up fabrication, isn’t it?