Paradigm Parasite

Rick Pov

"GERVAS!"

I glare at the man I thought was my best friend in front of me.

"Ooh-oh. That's scary."

Looking at him like this, I even thought that what had just happened was a dream.

The way Gervas was behaving was so natural that it seemed like a dream.

"Now, what are we going to do? Shall we start? Or do you want to talk about it?"

"What the hell do you want to talk about?"

I yelled at him.

"Well, I don't know. How about... what's going on in this town?"

"You'd tell me if I asked you?"

"I'll tell you what I can tell you. Don't worry, I won't lie."

Gervas added, "There are some things I can't tell you."

I caught my breath and thought calmly. This might be a good opportunity to learn about Darzain, whether it's true or not.

"Why did you betray us!?"

"I didn't betray you. I'm Darzain, originally. It's more accurate to say I'm back."

Gervas shrugged his shoulders.

"Originally ...... you were Darzain, why did you...?"

"Oh, you want to hear it? Well, you know. My parents were very much into Darzain. I was born into it."

"But that doesn't mean you're going to join them! Where is your will?"

Just because you were born that way doesn't mean you'll go along with them!

Gervas looked at me with a blank expression.

"I've already dealt with that conflict. If you're trying to appeal to my emotions, you're five years too late."

Gervase shows me the back of his hand, and the sigil appears.

"It is designed to show that you are a member of Darzain, and at the same time, if you betray or commit an act of treachery against Darzain, you automatically go bonkers and die. In short, it's an anti-betrayal measure."

Gervas exhales lightly.

"...and that's why I'm not going to betray them either way."

"Is it okay that you're talking this now?"

"I've got the permission, so it's fine. Next question."

I have a lot to say, but I still have questions for this guy.

"Where's Sania?"

"Down here. And by the way, she's alive. And don't worry about that, because it's not going to happen anytime soon."

Sania is safe.

I was a little relieved to hear that.

Gervas pointed to the back room with his thumb and added, "There is a hidden staircase in that room."

I didn't know there was such a thing in the basement of the Order's facility.

And...if such a thing exists, that means....

"You mean there was someone on the inside..."

In fact, the man in front of me must be one of them.

"That's right. But it's not just an inside job."

"What do you mean!?"

"I don't know the exact number, but it seems that a percentage of the Holy Knights and Temple Knights here are under our control."

A few percent!? That's ridiculous!?

"You're so delusional about spiritual wisdom that you're losing your footing. Gnosis is still an organization. Who is to say that they are monolithic?"

"You..."

"Ah. That's okay. We're on the same page when we discuss it. Is there anything else you want to ask me?"

I think for a moment, and a man appears in my mind.

"It's Roe. Is that man one of yours?"

"No, no. He is a complete outsider. The guy in charge of this place is very interested in him, so we asked him to join us, but he refused. I saw it from a distance, but it's not good. When we tried to silence him after we failed to recruit him, quite a few of them were beaten back. I have no idea how he could be so strong."

... Roe wasn't Darzain....

If so, I feel bad for him.

I will apologize to him when I get a chance.

"I'll be honest, I didn't expect him to come this far. The number of people in our group has been reduced and the burden on us has increased..."

Gervas laughs and shrugs his shoulders.

I continued my question regardless of his reaction.

"How big is Darzain's presence in this city?"

"I don't know. I couldn't tell you if I did."

"Who's the man you said is in charge?"

"I can't tell you. He's just a scary man."

"Where's the base?"

"Underground ruins. I think the official name is the Temple of All Evil, or something like that."

Ruins!? Those ruins?

"There are knights guarding the ruins..."

I was about to say something like that when I realized. It had been hijacked.

"As you can guess, they were either originally from Darzain, or they were killed and replaced."

If that much information was available, I had a pretty good idea what was going on.

"The well, after all...."

"You are right. Some of the wells are entrances to the ruins. And this one too."

No wonder they disappear so unnaturally.

"Then the holy sword..."

"I heard it really existed. However, it was found at the far end of the place. I didn't see the real thing, but I heard it was a pretty good one."

"So you're saying the search was already over?"

"That's right. I used it for a while myself, and it was spacious and comfortable."

The more I hear, the more I want to cover my eyes and even feel dizzy.

What the hell was Gnosis doing?

I've heard most of what I wanted to hear. It's time to get to the heart of the matter.

"What is Darzine's purpose?"

"......I haven't been told the details either, but it seems to be to summon a demon of a very high rank."

Gervas turned his head to think for a moment and continued.

"Apparently, it is not so difficult to summon the demons that are ranked by Darzain up to the middle level, but the higher level demons are more difficult to summon. Anything above that, however, requires certain procedures and materials."

"So what's going on in town is one of those procedures?"

"That's what I've been told."

"How to stop it?"

"I don't know, but I'm thinking maybe if you kill the guy in charge of the ritual, it stops it?"

"Where is he?"

"I can't tell you. But you'll find out."

I take a deep breath.

This is the most important thing. You're going to answer this one.

"How do you feel about killing Refia? And did you do that to Miss Angie?"

Gervas looks up, looks me in the eye, and exhales.

"I'll answer in order. I had to make sure Refia was dead. If I didn't do it, someone else would have done it, so I settled it myself. It's the same with Angie. By the way, I know how it happened, but I didn't do it."

"I know what happened to Angie, but that doesn't answer how you yourself feel about Refia."

Gervas stands up slowly. A wry smile on his face.

"......... I guess you're right. I promised you that I wouldn't lie to you. It wasn't my intention to let her die. In fact, she was a good woman. I didn't mind spending every day with you guys. As for the Gnostic spirituality, I thought to hell with it. To be honest, there were times when I wished this day would never come. I didn't like the noble ideas of Darzain, which I had been led into, but it was better than Gnosis, except for the bloodlust."

I scratch my head.

"I was actually a member of the group, but they didn't tell me what to do, so it was easy, and I was able to earn some money by being an adventurer. I thought that in the future I would become a holy knight, which I did not want to be, and live a proper life, but when I opened the lid, it turned out to be this... I can't do it at all. ...... I became a complainer in the latter half, but did that answer your question?"

"Yeah, that's good enough."

I draw my sword.

Gervas responds with his greatsword.

"One last question?"

"Come say it."

"Why are you giving me this information?"

"It's my way of showing friendship. If you kill me successfully, you can bring back what you've just heard and go to Sania. If you lose, it will literally be a souvenir of your death."

Gervas narrowed his eyes and laughed ferociously.

"Then let's get started, shall we?"

He closes the gap and swings down from the top.

I jump backwards and avoid it.

I can't move as fast as Refia, so it's not a good idea to stay inside the range.

The time to get in is when I'm going to finish him.

I get in between the chairs and make my move.

"Screw it!"

He is trying to forcefully close the gap while destroying the chairs.

I concentrate on watching Gervas's movements as I run around.

He's that strong. If I get even one serious blow, I'm done for at that point.

One blow. One blow and I'm done.

No more thinking. Focus everything on the kill.

I've seen Gervas's moves before. Find an opening. See an opportunity.

"Hey, hey. All you do is run away? Refia is coming at me like a man."

I can hear Gervas mixing in provocations, but I ignore him.

Clearly, there is no time to talk back.

The target is fast, but the target is a large sword. The trajectory is relatively easy to read. As long as I keep my distance, I can manage to avoid it.

In addition to his movements, I also pay attention to Gervas's hand.

It is true that he seems to be gripping it, but he is not putting any strength into one hand.

Is he really swinging with one hand?

I can't do it, because the chair is smashed to pieces with each swing.

He does not use his sword to take the slash that is about to hit him, but instead lets it go.

"It flows well, doesn't it? I wonder how long it'll last?"

Ignore.

The fact that he is talking lightly more and more is a sign that he is getting irritated.

He is trying to break the situation by provoking me.

...I'm sorry, but I'm not going to go along with it.

Gervas. I'm not going to forgive you. I will kill you.

I'm going to do everything I can to make that happen. That's why I'm watching you. Don't miss it, don't miss it.

His attack is straight, for better or worse.

In addition, he has the strength to preserve his "hand."

First of all, I have to see through all of his moves.

Look, look, look, look.

Footwork, shoes, nothing out of the ordinary.

Around the waist... he may have something in his small bag pouch. Be careful.

Torso, all clear.

Arms, except he's got one hand free, and he's wearing something from ....... A magical tool to enhance his physical abilities?

From the neck up, no abnormalities.

I guess it's in his nature not to play tricks...?

I continue to observe him as he fights off heavy slashes.

Is he planning to push in like this? What is he aiming at?

I turn my attention to Gervas's gaze. His gaze is back and forth between my legs and torso.

Is he trying to block my movement by targeting my legs?

No...then why is his gaze wandering? Legs...no, not just legs.

I accelerate my thoughts as I strike away the slashes with my sword.

I have a vague idea of what he's aiming for. And I've thought of a few moves to return the blow.

I would take advantage of the opportunity.

I would avoid the slash, repel it, and then divert it.

"How about this?"

Gervas kicked the remains of a chair at me.

I jump to the side to avoid it.

Aiming at it, Gervas grips his greatsword firmly with both hands and swings it down.

He's fast.

I raise my sword to divert him, but....

"I've been waiting for you."

...Tut!"

The great sword changes its trajectory in mid-stride.

The target is the sword, not me.

My beloved sword, which I had used so many times for defense, easily succumbs to the attack and is crushed in half.

Gervase's mouth hangs open.

Here it is....

I let go of my sword and pull out Refia's dagger, which I had hidden in my pocket, and flash it.

"Gah...kafu."

Blood spurts from Gervas' neck.

He drops the great sword and stumbles backward while holding his neck, but the bleeding does not stop.

He opens and closes his mouth trying to speak, but seems unable to say anything, but his gaze speaks "why".

"...You're going to make people think you're going for my legs, but your real goal is my sword, right? I knew immediately what you were aiming for. Your gaze is too blatant. It's a habit of pointing at the foot, but sometimes it wanders halfway up. It's natural to suspect that the leg is a decoy and the real target is somewhere else, isn't it?"

The rest is a process of elimination.

If I had to pick a target that would surprise me and tilt the battle in my favor, it would be my sword.

Once I know what he's aiming for, all I have to do is invite him to attack and then counterattack.

...I'm sure it helps if you just keep one hand on it, which is what you've actually been doing, right?

Gervas exhaled with a hissing breath and a frustrated look on his face, "You got me," he said, moving only his mouth and smiling bitterly, then fell down...and exploded.

There was nothing left afterwards.

"...... hah ......... damn it!!!"

I let out a sigh... and kicked the chair that was safe as hard as I could.

"What the hell is going on!! Why did I have to kill my best friend!!"

After hitting all the chairs and pedestals around me, I catch my breath, pick up Gervas's great sword, and head for the room with the hidden staircase.

...Sania...I will save you.