There Is No Place For Fakes [EN]: Chapter 165

* * *

Some time later, Philomel and Belleron descended to the ground.

“…That’s how I ended up going in there.”

Nasar listened to Philomel’s explanation with a dark expression.

“It’s okay! I’ll take care of it quickly and come back here!”

Philomel added, trying to comfort him, but his face didn’t brighten.

Nasar had already asked Belleron to share his divine power so he could enter the ‘Stem’ as well. However, the god shook his head.

“There isn’t a suitable medium to contain the power, and I don’t have enough power to spare for you.”

Belleron had many tasks. He had to continuously purify the land and divert the evil god’s attention to prevent him from focusing on Philomel.

“I must always reserve a certain level of lifespan in preparation for the worst-case scenario.”

The worst-case scenario was if Philomel failed. In that case, Belleron would confront the evil god, even at the risk of fatal danger.

Nasar couldn’t insist any further and decided to stay there.

“Please be safe.”

He reverently took Philomel’s hand and kissed it.

‘Let’s get married! No, let’s at least get engaged again first!’

Seeing his mournful appearance, Philomel held back the words she wanted to say. She wanted to say those things 멋지게 [in a cool way] when she returned.

Instead, Philomel cupped Nasar’s face in her hands and lightly kissed his lips.

Surprised by the sudden physical contact, his face flushed red, and his eyes widened.

“Don’t look at anyone else while I’m gone, and wait for me.”

And don’t let your affection drop.

“…Yes!”

At that moment, Belleron separated the two with his arm.

“Alright, that’s enough. We have to go now; time is short.”

When Philomel looked displeased, the sun god made an excuse.

“This action is heavily influenced by the body’s owner’s will. I can’t go against the original owner’s wishes.”

“Ah, yes. Let’s just say that’s the case.”

“Hurry up and prepare.”

“Just a moment.”

Philomel swallowed a Superior Potion of Wisdom and a Potion of Strength. She also took out the Veil of Ignorance from her bag. And when Belleron wasn’t looking, she slipped a gift into Nasar’s hand.

“I’m ready.”

“Good. I wish you luck.”

The priests also added a word each.

“Don’t worry about the outside!”

“If any more monsters crawl out, we’ll take care of them!”

Finally, Nasar spoke with a face devoid of any falsehood.

“If you think you can’t do it, come back anytime. To me, you are more important than this world.”

It was a very heavy love. But seeing that Philomel felt delighted rather than burdened by it, she was also severely smitten.

“I’ll be back soon!”

And so, Philomel plunged into the ‘Stem’.

* * *

“Ouch, that hurts. Couldn’t you have thrown me a bit better?”

Philomel muttered to herself, rubbing her backside.

She entered the interior through one of the several holes that Belleron had created under the guise of attacking the ‘Stem’. It was good that she infiltrated the center immediately without wasting time, but the landing wasn’t great.

“Let’s finish this quickly and go back.”

Philomel quickly surveyed her surroundings.

She had to find Ieries’ heart.

According to Belleron, the heart didn’t mean a real heart, but the core part of the domain he created. If it disappeared, the domain itself would collapse.

Originally, it was in the evil god’s base, but now it had been moved to the ‘Stem’.

“It’s definitely nearby……”

Belleron had put her in a place where she could feel the heart’s energy.

“Then where could it be?”

Philomel put on the Veil of Ignorance and took a step. For now, there was only one path, so she had no choice but to keep walking.

Wriggle, wriggle.

“Ew.”

The crimson interior of the ‘Stem’, pulsating like a living creature, was disgusting.

Philomel tried to ignore what she saw and continued forward. Then, she came across an open space.

In the center of the empty lot, there was only an object that looked like an altar. And on top of it, someone was lying down…….

‘That person is!’

A familiar blonde hair.

It was the fake Elencia.

Elencia got up and suddenly shouted.

“How long do I have to keep doing this! I’m bored!”

Of course, she wasn’t yelling at Philomel. There was a man who appeared to be a priest next to the intruder.

“Stranger, please be patient. Ieries’ plan will be completed soon.”

“So when is that! I’ve been doing this for hours!”

“I’m not sure about that either……”

“Haa. I’m getting hungry. Bring me something to eat.”

“Didn’t I give you bread earlier?”

“You want me to eat something that tastes so bad?”

“Considering the timing, it’s better to just eat it……”

“Hey, mind your manners. Have you forgotten Ieries’ message to serve me well?”

At those words, the priest bit his lip and remained silent.

Philomel roughly grasped the priest’s identity. He was the traitor inside the temple.

Ieries needed a collaborator from the temple to blow up the Tower of Salvation.

The priest reluctantly got up from his seat.

“I’ll go see if there are any followers who have something edible.”

“Okay. Hurry back.”

With Elencia waving her hand arrogantly, the priest approached the direction where Philomel was.

He walked out the way Philomel had come and muttered to himself.

“That damn thing……!”

The intruder didn’t seem to be able to use her heart properly even here.

After the priest disappeared, Elencia sighed.

“Ha, there isn’t a single person I like. The Emperor, that guy was annoying, but he still did almost everything I asked him to do.”

At that moment, the ‘Stem’ rumbled as if there was an earthquake.

“Ugh!”

Because of that, the intruder almost rolled off the altar.

“This is happening again! What is it!”

Belleron was attacking the ‘Stem’. To prevent the evil god from noticing Philomel’s presence.

“Really! I wish this world would just be destroyed!”

It was when Elencia was shouting at the ceiling. A cold sensation touched her back.

“Don’t move if you don’t want to get hurt.”

“Phi, Philomel?”

Elencia, who recognized Philomel’s voice, tried to turn around.

Philomel held her weapon close to Elencia.

“Just listen to what I say.”

The fake Elencia’s fine hairs stood on end.

“Ho, how suddenly from behind? There was definitely no one here.”

“That’s none of your business.”

“Have you lost your mind? Where do you think you are…….”

“You’re the one who’s lost your mind, cooperating with the world’s destruction.”

Philomel tapped Elencia’s back with her weapon.

“……What do you want from me?”

“Take me to the place where the evil god told you not to approach.”

In fact, it was Philomel’s guess that the evil god had told this woman that.

For some reason, Elencia was currently an important existence to the evil god.

‘And judging from the conversation earlier, it seems like she’s been staying in this place for quite a while.’

In the center, near the heart.

If he were the evil god, he would have certainly set up sufficient security measures to prepare for someone attacking the heart.

He might have told Elencia in advance, worried that she might get caught up in those devices.

“Ho, how did you know that……!”

And that guess was correct.

Elencia fell for a simple leading question.

“Enough. Just guide me.”

“Am I crazy? Guide you to a dangerous place?”

“Does this thing behind you not look dangerous?”

“Heeek!”

Philomel tapped her a few more times, and Elencia began to tremble.

“Don’t stab me!”

She probably thought the weapon Philomel was holding was a knife.

“Ah, I understand! I’ll go, okay!”

In the end, the intruder, who hated pain more than anything, surrendered.

“Good. You made a good choice.”

“But I’ll only guide you to the vicinity, and I won’t go in!”

“Stop talking and lead the way.”

Looking at the blonde back of her head, Philomel thought.

‘It’s fortunate that I found Elencia before the heart.’

Either way, she had to find this person. The intruder was the key to closing the rift.

Belleron said.

“Ieries brought the soul of a stranger into this world to make the rift wider.”

Originally, rifts of a certain size would be repaired on their own by the world’s resilience. With the evil god’s power still sealed, it would be difficult to create a large rift that exceeded the resilience.

However, the story changes if there is an existence in this world that ‘shouldn’t be here’.

“Because of that contradiction, the world’s resilience cannot function.”

So, the evil god gathered all his power and summoned the intruder’s soul. It was possible because the soul didn’t have a physical form and because the intruder herself strongly desired it.

The evil god, who was searching for a suitable soul, noticed it.

‘Me too, like Elencia…….’

The desperate wish in this person’s heart just before death.

In the end, the fake Elencia was nothing more than a pawn of the evil god from beginning to end.

Philomel stared at the woman’s back with cold eyes.

‘The sight of her misunderstanding that she came here thanks to her excellent novel and running wild.’

Disgusting.

However, Philomel had no intention of kindly telling her the truth. Above all, there was not enough time.

“Walk faster.”

Elencia, who was slowly leaving the altar, flinched at Philomel’s cold voice.

“……I’m just a slow walker.”

It was then.

“Stranger! I’ve brought food!”

The priest with a small basket appeared in the open space.

In the moment when Philomel’s attention was focused on the priest, Elencia ensnared her.

“It’s an enemy! Philomel is here!”

“Yes? What do you mean an enemy?”

“She’s invisible due to the effect of an item, but she’s here! While I’m holding her, quickly get rid of her!”

The priest, who grasped the situation, quickly pulled out a dagger from his waist.

Philomel felt a slight sense of fatigue.

‘I wanted to handle it quietly if possible…….’

Well, it’s okay. This isn’t bad either.

“Aaaagh!”

She lightly pushed Elencia away with her left hand and then raised the weapon she was holding in her right hand upwards.

Bang! A gunshot rang out.

As a result, the Veil of Ignorance was removed, and Philomel’s appearance was revealed.

She was pointing the gun at the priest, who was standing there blankly.

“Drop the knife.”

The weapon she had was a revolver.