"Don't do anything useless, no matter what you're thinking. I have no intention of helping you, whether I hide my presence or not."

"Huh, alright."

Pielott shook his head at Dier's persistent refusal.

If Dier was thinking along the same lines, asking for his help would be the most appropriate course, but judging from that attitude, it seemed that he wouldn't be able to borrow his strength.

'It can't be helped.'

Pielott glanced out the window.

Outside the window, after school, the sun was gradually setting and preparing for sunset.

'I am a little hesitant, though.'

Pielott had another way.

Pielott, who was expected to have a talent comparable to Aster.

It was, of course, due to his early awakened Aura and overflowing Mana, but there was a bigger factor.

Like Aster, who, along with his swordsmanship, mental power, and excellent physique, was loved by the god Baldur.

Pielott also has divine power.

It wasn't as famous a god as Baldur, but he was definitely an old god.

Above all, this god loved Pielott even more than Baldur loved Aster.

- Is that alright, Pielott?

His god whispered quietly.

- I will move as you wish.

The god's voice reached Pielott's ears, gentle and sweet.

'Yes.'

Pielott thought.

He's not trying to commit a major crime.

He just wanted to borrow something for a while. Of course, he would return it.

* * *

At dawn, when everyone was asleep.

Someone suddenly got up in the Roach Mansion.

It was Madeline, the maid who always took care of the cleaning and courtyard of the mansion.

There was no focus in the eyes of her as she got up and walked out of the room.

As she walked down the hallway, she was still asleep, and as a result, she felt weak and wobbly.

That is to say, she was now sleepwalking.

Madeline had never experienced sleepwalking in her life.

Thus, this was an extremely abnormal situation.

Creak-

Madeline walked to Frondier's room and opened the door. Had she been awake, she would have found it odd that the door was unlocked, given there was a servant specifically assigned to manage the keys.

The answer was simple. Before Madeline arrived, another person had already been sleepwalking.

Thud.

Madeline entered the room. With a vacant look in her eyes, she glanced around before walking towards the bed where Frondier was lying.

As expected, Frondier was asleep.

He was breathing softly, having recently struggled to sleep due to heightened sensitivities, but now he had finally found deep slumber. This, too, was not a natural occurrence.

“......”

Madeline shifted her gaze from Frondier to a shelf beside him. Opening a drawer, she found the necklace and wristband that Frondier always wore.

Madeline picked up both items and held them close. Then, she turned around and walked out without a hint of relief for having successfully stolen the items or anxiety about Frondier waking up.

It was as if she was certain that Frondier would never wake up.

─Yes, just like that, come out of the mansion, child.

Following that voice, Madeline walked out of Frondier's room, down the corridor, descended the stairs, and opened the mansion's front door. The chilly dawn air of spring brushed against her knees.

Through Frondier's eyes, one could see a figure standing next to Madeline, who was standing dazed outside the mansion, holding a staff. It was the god of Pielott, ‘Hypnos’.

Hypnos is the god of sleep in Greek mythology, the twin brother of 'Thanatos' who previously threatened Frondier's life. Unlike Thanatos, who appeared as a very young boy, this one took the form of an old man.

However, that was merely an outward appearance, as Hypnos's posture and gait were no different from those of a robust young man.

Hypnos's power grows stronger at night, to be more precise, as more people fall asleep, his power intensifies. Sleep is both his mana and nourishment.

For him, who governs sleep, controlling sleeping individuals or completely putting someone to sleep is no difficult task. Without significant prior preparation, it's impossible to counter his power.

─Haha, an easy task indeed.

Hypnos found a suitable place to hide the items. Even so, making Madeline walk all the way to the Constel dormitory was too much, so hiding them somewhere no one would know, outside the Roach mansion, would suffice. Later, if Pielott comes looking, that would be the end of it.

In truth, there was no need for Pielott to come looking. Pielott merely wanted to see Frondier without the Obsidian.

─Alright. Let's leave this place first.

Upon Hypnos's words, Madeline moved her feet without any reaction. His command didn't require affirmation or denial; those who hear it harbor no doubts and will inevitably follow his words.

But those steps only lasted three paces.

Boom!

Suddenly, the black lotus that Madeline was holding started to glow.

Hypnos was surprised by this and checked it. What is this? He already knew about the black lotus’s locking mechanism. Hypnos had also received plenty of information about it.

The black lotus would not activate without Frondier’s fingerprint. So, unless she planned on using it, there wouldn’t be any problems—

[Of course, that’s what I would have told Frondier.]

The light from the necklace focused in one direction, creating the figure of a human being on the ground in front of them. It was a magical engineering hologram.

Hypnos had no idea that the black lotus had such a function.

That was to be expected.

Even the owner, Frondier, didn’t know.

[I owed Frondier a debt. So I secretly created ‘a second safety measure’. Frondier doesn’t know about it, so it’s practically bait that I’ve kept hidden for a long time.]

The completed figure of the hologram looked at Hypnos with a fearless smile. The identity of this person was clear.

[I was wondering who had the nerve to touch my artifact.]

Edwin von Beheritio.

Edwin, the genius of security magic and magical engineering, revealed himself before Hypnos.

[To think that there would be a god who would greet me before Hephaestus.]

—How dare you speak so casually to a god…!

[Hypnos.]

Under his composed face, Edwin revealed a faint smile.

Edwin instantly recognized the true identity of the god. Hypnos was too easy to recognize with his appearance and characteristics. He had a sleepwalking woman next to him, so that pretty much gave it away.

[If you knew what I had to endure from other gods, as well as the people I almost lost because of it.]

Although Edwin was a hologram, the real Edwin was not there, so Hypnos had no way of threatening him for now.

Of course, the same went for Edwin, but the fact that he’d witnessed Hypnos like this was already a huge threat to the god.

[You wouldn’t be yapping like that if you did.]

Edwin was once a man whose emotions were controlled by a god. But now, he’d transformed into someone completely different.

It was as if he had some sort of immunity to gods.

[Were you eavesdropping back then? Hypnos, the god of sleep.]

—You…!

This world had never seen his like before.

A second person who did not believe in gods.