In Her Palm

Did Leona get ahead of us, or were we led here? Either way, the outcome was the same.

I pulled Rokuko close and hid her under the [Divine Blanket] just in case.

"Oh, I should call you Kehma-san instead of Keima-san, right…? Please don't be so scared; it makes me want to pamper you too much."

"Either way is fine. More importantly, why are you here?"

"Well, I thought it would be a big surprise if I was here when you escaped. So I just went ahead and did that."

She used her incredible abilities in such a wasteful way just to get ahead of us.

Still, I couldn't sense any hostility or murderous intent. It's a bit annoying, but our attempt to harass her seemed to have failed.

"Did I surprise you?"

"Very much so… I thought my heart stop for second there."

"Hehe. It's what you call a [Huge Surprise Success☆], isn't it?"

What kind of surprise is that, damn it?

By the way, Toy seemed to be in so much pain from the sound of the [Divine Alarm Clock], but Leona seemed completely fine… Wait a minute. Speaking of her…

"You're the Chaos God, right? Does it not work on gods?"

"Yes, that's right. After all, I'm still human, so it's harmless to me since that's how it's set up, isn't it? It's only natural, since the human-shaped Core Rokuko-chan and Dungeon Master Kehma-san were also unharmed. Besides, you can find out by appraising the clock with 【Super Appraisal】."

Leona giggles as she speaks. But she must have been peeking at us, right? Otherwise, I wouldn't have expected her to be here. It would be pointless to ask about that, though.

"… Hey, is Toy not human? She seemed to be suffering."

"Oh, Rokuko-chan, good question! As expected of Kehma-san's Core… Well, she's a beastman, so she's considered human, but her creation process was special. She's more like a homunculus because I mixed various things in. His physical aging stopped about a year ago."

Leona happily answered Rokuko's question.

… Now that I think about it, Niku also mentioned that her height wasn't increasing.

"I used a demi-god too, so it only partly worked on her."

"And what about the soldiers and maids vomitting?"

"Rokuko-chan, that's because their bodies were suddenly returned to [Normal] and they were surprised by the result… It's truly a wonderful effect that can undo all that with just those side effects. By the way, the thousand curses that bound me were also completely dispelled. As expected, the [Dispel] that resounded throughout the country. It seems even curses from the Curse God couldn't win against an item made by a higher existence, the Dark God."

Leona smiled.

Curses that bound her… could it be that Leona forced me into using the [Divine Alarm Clock]…?

"Well, I was using the [Curse Absorption] skill, so it was originally just a buff for me! But now that it's gone, I've actually been weakened, haha!"

Leona laughed as she spoke. Maybe I did end up getting my revenge if it left her weakened?

"Well, that's… "

"Though I've been weakened, it feels like I've washed my hair after not doing so for several days. It's refreshing."

… I think I got my revenge, but maybe she forced me into using it after all? Hmm.

"So what do you want from us?"

"Didn't I just say it a bit ago? I wanted to see the look on your faces when you two escaped, Kehma-sam. That's all, really. Oh, or did you mean me bringing you to Daido? I had you talk to Toy for that. It was a present—a used toy."

A used toy.

Meaning that Leona had already accomplished her goal in Daido a long time ago and she was basically presenting me with a toy she had grown tired of as if it were a hand-me-down.

"If you'd come when I invited you before and experienced this, it would have been a bit troubling, but everything other than your part had already been settled, so it was a perfect opportunity to clean up."

"… It doesn't seem like you're just making excuses."

"Yes, thanks to that, I was able to see various interesting things beyond my expectations. Like when Toy got emotional and attacked Kehma-san, it was so passionate and moving! I'm sure the effect of the [Divine Alarm Clock] played a part, but even though I kept her as a toy, she broke the rules… it was wonderful."

In the end, it seemed that things were going to work out well for Leona no matter how they turned out. Damn it.

"… So I was in the palm of your hand?"

"Oh? Would you like to scribble on my finger?"

"Am I Son Goku here or something?"

As I said that, Leona laughed in genuine delight. From there, she started talking cheerfully.

"Originally, I was asked to do something about a selfish daughter who was prayed for. So I mixed in a humble personality and forcibly corrected her. That was the beginning."

From there, she came up with the idea of the fake reincarnators, the [Rencarnates].

"By the way, let me clear up one more thing. What's with the ridiculous last names like Dagon and Cthugha?"

"Hm? Oh, that. It was part of the fun when Kehma-san didn't come. Do you know what an otome game is? It's a love simulation game for girls. I wanted some unique names for the capture targets, so I mixed them in, and when they weren't captured in a harem end, the un-captured family would transform into the corresponding monsters."

So it seems that the monster factor was purified as she successfully achieved a harem end (or so she said).

"Making the rival daughter a [Rencarnate] and embedding otome game knowledge was a mistake, but everyone was happy to offer their fiancés to the heroine."

Leona bragged as if she was recounting her failure as a heroic tale.

"I wanted to see a little more of the soap opera drama pattern."

"Soap opera…?"

"Isn't it fine? I came here when I was 16, so I've never seen a soap opera. I wanted to see it."

"Couldn't you have just controlled their thoughts more thoroughly if you wanted that?"

"Hmm, things would be boring if they only went as I wanted. On that note, Kehma-san, you're truly amazing. You constantly betraying my expectations is why I love you."

I messed up. So the thing she hates the most is me acting as she expects?

… No, if she expects me not to act as she expects, then acting as she expects would make her happy… I'm getting confused.

"Well, it's a shame that you managed to avoid all those traps, like the gender swap trap and the room where you can't escape unless you do something naughty. I would've loved to see you as a girl, Kehma-san… Hah, if you had drank this mana potion, you would've become a girl."

… The only thing for certain is that Leona is incredibly mischievous.

"… Indeed, I'd be a bit curious to see Kehma as a girl."

"Hey, Rokuko? Who's side are you on here?"

"Right? I think he'd become unexpectedly cute—no, I'm sure of it. In my name as the Chaos God, I'd make him into an erotically cute girl."

"Hey, Leona?"

At this point, I couldn't help but interject.

Leona then turned her back on us, looking over her shoulder with a smile.

"Ah, that was fun. I'm satisfied with this experience. So, Kehma, you can do whatever you want with Daido. I'll take this opportunity to withdraw from Daido as well. Though it's a mess, it'll still have the know-how of making Japanese food and I carefully crafted its scenery, so it might be a perfect amusement park."

An amusement park. A fitting term to describe the current state of the artificially created playground that is Daido.

"… It's about time Haku-chan notices and comes over, right? One of the curses that were lifted included a surveillance curse from Haku-chan and the others. Well, they could only vaguely tell the direction I was in, but once the response disappears, they'll naturally come to check."

"Ugh."

"Alrighty then, see you again!"

With that, Leona waved cheerfully and teleported somewhere.

… In the end, I might have done something unnecessary.