Carrier Pidgeon Kehma

"His true identity is Core Number 10, an undead-type core."

As the Pope's true identity was revealed so matter-of-factly, I woke up.

"… Number 10 is an undead-type core, huh?"

I felt a bit dizzy, as if I had been abruptly awakened. I'd need to either take notes or inform Rokuko about this before I fell back asleep.

"Kehma, are you okay? You seemed to be having a nightmare."

"Ah, Rokuko… You were here?"

"Of course I was here. My borrowed comforter is here, so it's not strange for me to be here, right?"

Yeah, her reasoning is correct… right? But this is my room… No, it's correct. The [Divine Comforter] itself is a valuable item, and considering the possibility of the Light God doing something, it was the right decision to stay. Yep.

… Speaking of the comforter, there was something I needed to question Rokuko about, right?

Ugh, what was it? My memory feels hazy like after a dream…

"Setting that aside, Kehma. Number 10, an undead-type core?"

"Huh? Oh, yeah. The Light God mentioned it, the Pope's true identity. He's Core Number 10."

"It's probably best to let Haku-san know about this."

Saying that, Rokuko operated the menu to bring up the email function. It was better to let Rokuko handle that while I concentrated on remembering.

… I had more questions for the Light God, but if I had asked too much, I probably wouldn't have remembered the important parts. Maybe that's why I was cut off.

"… Ah, that's right. Make sure to say it's not confirmed, just something the Light God said. There's a possibility that even a god could lie."

"Ooh, that's true. Got it, Kehma."

That was close. I almost forgot something important. Now, besides the Pope's identity, what else was said…

"Ah. The Light God said that the goal of the Core Number 10 is to replace the Dark God—Father."

"!! That's important information. I'll make sure to pass it on."

"Also, it seems Father handcrafts the venue and cuisine for the Dungeon Core meetings."

"I knew that."

She knew? Okay, what else was there… what else…

"Core Number 4 claimed to be a Slime, or so it seemed?"

"Huh, a slime-type core?"

"Ah, no, I mean, the Core Number 10 told the Light God that."

"Oh. Well, that doesn't seem very important. We already know its true identity."

"That's true…"

Did I manage to remember and convey the important parts?

"Core Number 4, it took away the first Saintess Hero."

"? Does that mean the first Saintess was a Hero? Or that it took away her Hero partner?"

"Probably the former… And that Hero might be Leona?"

"It fits the story. Unless there's another Hero who's a dungeon. I'll include that in the mail to Ane-sama too."

The information should be verifiable by an early generation core like Haku-san. It's worth asking and noting down.

"… Yeah, that's about all the information I got from the Light God."

"Got it. I'll email Haku Ane-sama about it."

I have this feeling that I'm forgetting something important… Wait a minute.

… First of all, if I have something to ask, I can just email the Light God, right? Why did the Light God want to meet directly? Was it to avoid eavesdropping? Maybe Leona's?

"Rokuko, add that there's a possibility that Leona, Core Number 4, might be an enemy."

"Eh? Okay, I understa—… Wait, wouldn't it be risky to write all that in an email?"

"… Right. Instead of emailing, we should meet and talk in person."

"Then I'll just keep what I'm writing as a note… Right, I'll make the email to Ane-sama about urging for a tea party."

If the Light God was wary of Leona eavesdropping, then us reporting to Haku-san by email would be a bad move. We almost wasted the Light God's consideration (if there was any).

"But does the Light God know that Leona might be able to intercept emails?"

"The Light God mentioned being bragged to and burdened by the Dark God with Uza-related matters, so he might know."

"… Father and the Light God are surprisingly close, aren't they?"

"It seems they're both working on tasks given by the Creator God."

"Creator God? The one from Ancient Beddism…? Ah, right, Father also mentioned his alarm clock being broken by the Creator God. So that's the connection."

Rokuko nodded in understanding.

I guess I remembered everything I wanted to tell, so maybe it's time to get back to sleep…

Then, looking at the [Divine Comforter], I remembered something.

The Light God told me about the effects of the comforter.

"… Rokuko."

"Hmm, what is it, Kehma?"

"I'd like to talk about the effects of the [Divine Comforter]. Is that okay?"

Rokuko's cheeks turned red, and she twitched nervously.

After Rokuko admitted her actions, we received a summoning email for a tea party from Haku-san. The response was quick, and the invitation to come immediately was too rapid.

"Rokuko, you're going to explain in detail what you did to me in my dream later."

"Eh! But, um, well… yeah…"

Rokuko nodded shyly… Alright, I'll thoroughly question Rokuko after the tea party with Haku-san. First, I need to report to Haku-san about everything I heard from the Light God.

So, we used the dungeon feature to move to [White Beach] and headed to Haku-san's castle using [Teleportation].

Upon meeting Haku-san and her seeing Rokuko's still-blushing face, I was immediately confronted with a spear. Rokuko, I'm counting on you to explain that I'm not to blame, okay!?

 

＊ ＊ ＊

 

"… I see, I understand the situation."

Haku-san nodded after receiving a whispered explanation from Rokuko.

"Yes, it was Rokuko who initiated it, so for me, it was an irresistible force."

"The theory that the Core Number 10 is the Pope is probably correct. As usual, Kehma-san, you're quite bold to summon the Light God using the email feature."

Oh, she took it that way.

"… As for the matter with Rokuko-chan, please redeem yourself through your work."

"Work, you say? Understood."

I felt a bit cornered by the way she said it.

I feel like I've been working quite a bit already, but it's no use arguing here.

"Ane-sama, it was my doing, so I should be the one to work, right?"

"… Just let Kehma-san work. Thanks to him, we've already got some work done."

Haku-san said this while pressing her temples, then mentioned what the work entailed.

"We'll have you initiate a Dungeon Battle against the Core Number 10, the traitor. Sounds good, right?"

… Haku-san. Isn't that… basically a death sentence?