Case closed, maybe?

"… Hah, huh? What happened to me…?"

"Oh, Kaoru. You're awake. Morning."

"Kuh, to think the tables would turn from that position…!"

"Nyahahaha! It's all thanks to the file I gave Karina, nya!"

When Kaoru came to, she found the Maid Homunculus tied up, Misha cackling triumphantly, and me holding the rope I'd bound the maid with.

Hm? Wait, when was I freed from my restraints? When did I turn the tables and capture… no, that's not it? I used the file I got from Misha to break free, and then I… restrained the Maid Homunculus… right?

"Something's fuzzy about my memory…"

"Oh my, that won't do. As expected of the devil's vessel. It seems Chaos doesn't work well on you."

"Did you do something?"

"Not at all?"

The Maid Homunculus didn't seem to be lying.

"… Was it because of that white caterpillar?"

"My, what a strange thing to say. There's no way a mere insect could affect a humanoid Divine Artifact personally crafted by the Space-Time Goddess. Besides, that thing is actually defective. It gets jammed in the opening and can't fit through."

Hm? Oh right, the difference in Divine Artifact rank. Yeah, if that's the case, it wouldn't work… Ah, I broke free because I obviously didn't want a bug doing brain-squishing on me, right?

Yeah. That's definitely what happened. No doubt about it.

"Well, whatever. Now I know you're the mastermind. Once I hand you over to the Goddess, my job's done. Good thing I made it in time… I should be able to plea for a reduced sentence for Kaoru too."

"Yeah! I'm counting on you, Karina. I never gave my name myself, after all!"

"Kuh, l-let… me… gooo. I will create the Chaos God, I will become the mother of the Chaos God. Don't… get in… my way."

Maybe because she was a homunculus, her emotions seemed sparse, making the whole display ring somewhat false—but that couldn't be right. The fact that she was the mastermind was the undeniable truth.

Misha cinched the bindings tighter, and I addressed our captive.

"While I'm handing you over, if I deliver Divine Artifacts to the Goddess too, I'll get plenty of SP. A mass of Divine Artifacts like you, I'll offer you up to the Goddess whole."

"… The lie-detecting Divine Artifact among my internal organs, the 'Liver of Truth and Falsehood,' shows no reaction… So it's true. Very well then, please take care of me."

What kind of Divine Artifact is that? A liver? Organs with built-in…? Well, obviously organs are inside the body, so duh. But they have Divine Artifacts even in places like that…?

"With this, case closed, maybe?"

"Nyahaha! Karina, it's not over until you get home, nya!"

"That's right, the cat-san over there is correct. Don't let your guard down, Karina!"

"Yeah, yeah. So, where's the nearest church around here?"

I wanted to make this delivery as soon as possible. With that in mind, I asked Kaoru, but she just shook her head.

"No, there probably aren't churches for your Goddess in this country. They were worshipping that Chaos thing, after all…"

"Can't be helped then…"

"Actually, there is one? It was convenient for obtaining holy water to use as an alchemy ingredient. I'll guide you there. Now then, carry me."

Seriously? And you're the one saying that, Maid Homunculus? How commendable of you.