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"They're trying to kill me! Someone's definitely plotting against me!"
"Why... Why am I always the target?!"
Indra was kneeling on his office chair with both knees, clinging to the backrest as he wailed at the top of his lungs, his voice on the verge of tears.
Fresh from training, Kenshin stopped in the doorway and glanced at Mata. "What happened to him?"
Mata picked up a pear from the desk and handed it to Kenshin before finally explaining, "You know how I went to Thousand Eyes to buy information on Algol?"
"And?" Kenshin accepted the pear, curiosity written all over her face.
Mata tried to answer, but the moment she opened her mouth she burst out laughing instead. Pear juice sprayed everywhere, leaving her chin dripping.
"How do I even put this... I honestly don't know. Every time I think about it, I just can't stop laughing. Hahaha... poor Indra."
"Where's the original report? I'll read it myself." Kenshin couldn't contain his curiosity any longer.
"I already resold the original, but I kept a copy." Mata casually pulled a parchment from her Gift Card and handed it over with a grin. "One warning. Don't eat the pear until you've finished reading it. Otherwise you'll end up like me."
"Is it really that funny?"
Kenshin eyed her skeptically. After a moment's thought, she obediently set the pear back on the desk, unfolded the report, and began reading.
She turned the pages in silence.
Then faster.
And faster.
By the time she reached the end, she paused for a long moment before looking up at Mata. "When it's time to choose the next Heavenly Army Commander... vote for me."
"Get lost!" Still hugging the sofa, Indra snatched a file off the desk and hurled it at her. "I'm not dead yet!"
"At this rate, you soon will be."
Kenshin didn't even bother dodging. The folder passed harmlessly through her as she answered with perfect composure.
Indra froze. "Could you not enjoy my suffering for five minutes? I'm already losing my mind here."
"No."
Kenshin looked utterly unconcerned. After all, she wasn't the one caught in this disaster.
"As expected of you, Kenshin." Mata laughed so hard she was practically doubled over. "When the Heavenly Army holds its election, you've got my vote."
"You two have no conscience..."
Grinding his teeth, Indra took several deep breaths before finally calming himself. "Who the hell did this?"
"Doesn't the report say?" Kenshin picked up the pear and took a casual bite. "Loki."
"Oh, please." Indra rolled his eyes. "With Loki's guts? No way. At best, he was dragged out as the fall guy."
He wasn't boasting. As far as he was concerned, Loki didn't have the nerve to scheme against him.
Mata dabbed the juice from her chin with a tissue. "Maybe the world of High School DxD really is just that unusual, and Loki happened to stumble into the right circumstances?"
That only made Indra's expression darker. "You're saying this was just... me having spectacularly bad luck?"
The histories of the observed outer universes developed differently from humanity's existing history. With infinite possibilities came every conceivable variation.
It wasn't impossible for there to exist a world where Indra reigned as the head of Buddhism, the lord of Hinduism, and the Daoist Heavenly Emperor all at once.
If Loki had happened to discover and observe exactly such a world... then everything in the report could simply have happened naturally.
Which meant this whole mess was nothing more than his terrible luck.
"It's possible," Mata admitted with a teasing look. "Buuut considering Algol also used that world's peculiar nature to complete her advancement, I have to wonder if someone picked that world very, very carefully."
Kenshin frowned, "If that's the case... then is Loki one of the Tricksters too? I suppose that would suit him."
"..."
Indra's face was black with resentment. "Those relics should've been wiped out ages ago. And now they've got the nerve to scheme against me."
Kenshin's brows remained tightly knit. "Indra, anyone capable of helping the Demon Star take that step isn't some harmless new group of Tricksters."
Indra's expression sank further. "Damn it... Which old monster is backing them? It can't be Kurma, right? ...though that's actually possible. But Kurma's path isn't the same as Algol's..."
Mata quietly supplied a single word, "Demon."
Indra fell silent. A moment later, realization dawned on him, and he sucked in a sharp breath. "Mata... you can't possibly mean... No way. Surely he wouldn't stoop to playing a game like this."
Even Kenshin's face turned serious. "Mata, this isn't something to joke about. That person may have plenty of complaints about today's Buddhist faction, but if you're right... this stops being funny."
Mata casually examined her fingernails. "If 'demon' is supposed to refer to one of the current seventeen two-digit beings, then isn't Buddhism the only possible answer?"
The thought hit like a thunderbolt.
Shakyamuni Buddha... as a member of the Tricksters?
The muscles in Indra's face twitched violently. "Wait... the Daoists are just as likely."
"I see..." He let out a bitter laugh. "The Lord of Mount Meru. The Heavenly Emperor. So this might be a test aimed at me."
Mata shot him a meaningful look. "Your Brahma-Shakra Spear drew everyone's attention during the battle against Azi Dahaka. And with the Godslayer War about to begin..."
Indra fell silent.
"You two..."
Watching the two of them speculate endlessly, Kenshin finally shook her head. "Instead of sitting here making wild guesses... why don't we just ask someone who actually knows?"
"Ask the Buddha? Or those shameless, hypocritical Daoists?" Indra shot her a flat look. "Do I look like I've suddenly developed a death wish? The last thing I want is to sit down and discuss something, only to end up dissolving into it myself. Every last one of those two-digit monsters is terrifying. If someone wants to ask, they can go do it themselves."
Kenshin replied flatly, "Isn't there still one self-sealed two-digit left?"
"You mean Shiroyasha?" Mata immediately sat upright. "But that old hag charges a fortune for information. Who could possibly afford her?"
Kenshin simply jerked her chin toward Indra.
Mata blinked and turned toward the desk.
Only to see that... the chair was empty.
"...Damn it." She slapped a hand over her forehead. "So he did have a secret stash."
Kenshin let out a sigh. "When it's something this serious, you find the money however you can. If someone's laying a huge trap for you, the sooner you find out... the sooner you can run."
"Fair point." Mata sighed as well.
Then both women suddenly froze.
Their eyes met.
At the exact same time, they shouted, "Oh no! Indra still has the key to the Heavenly Army's treasury!"
Moments later, the Heavenly Army headquarters exploded into utter chaos.
People were running everywhere.
Gods and buddhas alike could be heard loudly cursing.
Meanwhile, at the gate leading to the lower layers of Little Garden, Indra rubbed his nose, patted the bulging treasure bag hanging at his waist, and muttered to himself, "They've probably noticed by now... Time to get out of here."
With that, he quickened his pace.
.
.
.