Laughter echoed against the dim, cold walls of the cave.

Petelgeuse, cackling and grinning, revealed his bloodstained teeth, chuckling at something that seemed so hilariously good to him.

There was no one to stop Petelgeuse, who might have continued this way indefinitely. Facing such oddities, Subaru could only stare down at the ground with a furrowed brow.

Subaru was dragged into the depths of the hall dressed in black robes, treated roughly and thrown against the wall, restrained. The iron shackles gripped his limbs so tightly that blood vessels began to throb painfully.

“Hehe, hehe…”

In the throes of paralysis creeping through his limbs, Subaru wore a strained grin, as if he knew no other expression. Watching this, Petelgeuse clapped his hands with evident delight.

“Oh, how amusing! What a wonderfully engaging scene we have here! Absolutely, utterly, positively, brain-shakingly thrilling…”

With blood dripping from a wound on his left hand, he wiped it with his right fingers, smearing it across his forehead.

As Petelgeuse painted his brow with swirling patterns, he wore a grin that spoke of insanity.

In a space where two men, one lost in laughter and the other fully immersed in sheer madness, existed side by side, a shadow suddenly emerged.

This shadow was different from the figure that had carried Subaru into the cave. The tall figure moved silently, gliding next to the laughing Petelgeuse.

“—”

It whispered something in a voice barely audible to only Petelgeuse.

Upon hearing it, Petelgeuse abruptly extinguished his twisted grin and halted his comical antics.

“I see, huh! Ah, that’s… brain-shaking!”

With the same nuance that had triggered his earlier manic laugh, Petelgeuse’s expression warped into one that seemed to send chills down spines, biting his left fingernail.

He bit and tore at it, the nail peeled away and blood flowed, yet he persisted to gnaw on the flesh.

“…Ah, it hurts. It hurts, hurts, hurts, hurts, hurts. My brain shakes. Do it! Move forward! There’s no time to stop! Scream! Call out! My brain shakes!!”

Swinging his arms, blood dripped from his wounded left hand onto the cold cave floor.

Emotionlessly, the black shadow observed, slightly tilting its waist as if to offer a bow, while Petelgeuse continued his wild raving.

“Left ring finger is destroyed!? Ah, what a delicious trial! To think I’m working so diligently… the world isn’t kind to me today either!”

“—”

“Ah, that’s fine! The remaining part of the left ring finger will merge with the adjacent finger. Not to worry, we still have nine fingers! No need to be concerned!”

“—”

“Yes…! A trial! A trial! This is a trial! Everything is a trial so that we may comply with the Lord’s will! Shine, glow… ah, my brain shakes!”

Petelgeuse grinned with joy, drooling while twirling in place like a playful child.

The voice of the black-robed figure was muffled, lost in the confines of the cave, making their whispered conversation resemble Petelgeuse’s solo performance, amplifying the unsettling atmosphere of his antics.

“Ah, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes yes yes yes yes yes!”

“—”

“Is that him? The one you’re concerned about? No, no, no, no, no, no, I understand… yes!”

Curving his back and bending low, Petelgeuse leaned closer to Subaru. With his face uncomfortably close, he let out a faint, stale breath. Subaru, with a vacant grin, gazed up at him with dull eyes.

Facing Subaru’s black eyes, Petelgeuse bulged his grayish eyes as if they might pop out from forceful strain.

“Truly, truly, truly, truly, how strange, unsettling, and inexplicable… Why does someone like you appear at such a time, with a trial imminent?”

“—”

“Dragons! Ah, dragons are delightful! Earth dragons are charming and splendid! Unlike humans, they hold no unnecessary emotions. Most importantly, they faithfully follow orders, work diligently, striving to be industrious!”

“—”

“Kill it! Ah, how good that is! It was unavoidable to bring it down! Ah, you too are diligent! Excellent! That’s good! If you’re by my side, as my finger, then being industrious is what matters above all! Yes! Yes! It’s wonderfully, wonderfully, wonderfully, wonderfully good!!”

Contorting his body with astounding flexibility, Petelgeuse wore a look of ecstasy and then abruptly shot up like a tightened bow.

“My fingers’ diligence has vanquished a creature like an Earth Dragon! Ah, my brain shakes! It shakes, shakes, shakes, shakes!!!”

His face flushed with excitement over a madness no sane person could comprehend, a trickle of nosebleed suddenly flowed from Petelgeuse’s nostrils.

He licked the blood about to drip into his mouth, painting his face scarlet while staring rapturously, senselessly relaxed.

“Ah… the dead Earth Dragon is truly ‘Sloth’,” he murmured with feverish eyes, trembling at his own heightened state.

Then, with a rough motion, he wiped away the blood with the sleeve of his robe and, as if to cast aside all previous excitement, his demeanor became chillingly cold.

“Immediately clean up the site where the dragon wagon was destroyed. Before the day of the trial arrives, we must avoid any exposure of our existence. There shouldn’t be any witnesses left, I ensured that… but what about the passengers? You killed them, right?”

“—”

“Update on that? Ah, let’s hear it. Magnanimously, broadly, with immense love. After all, I treat my fingers with compassion.”

With his arms wide open and the hem of his robe swaying, Petelgeuse solemnly nodded.

Seeing him act in accordance with the title of bishop, the black shadow lowered its jaw, still keeping its voice low.

“—”

“One passenger… a girl with blue hair. She got snagged on the left ring finger, destroying the wagon. Combat ensued while capturing her… the destruction of the ring finger was due to her… condition unknown.”

Upon receiving the black figure’s report, Petelgeuse shook his head, cracking his neck.

He continued to probe in a manner reminiscent of a pendulum, twisting, writhing, and tilting.

“Life—Death—Unknown… huh?”

After stating this, he slowly, slowly lifted his trembling head and directed his vacant gray gaze toward the figure in black robes.

“You, are ‘Sloth,’ huh?”

As he spoke, Petelgeuse brought his left hand, fingering that very ring finger, to his mouth.

And just like that, without a hint of hesitation, he bit down hard on the tip of that finger.

The squelching sound of flesh grinding between his molars echoed, loathsome sensations filled his mouth as blood accumulated within, only to be spat out, and he seized the black shadow’s face with his crimson-soaked left hand.

“Before the trial, the situation is exposed! That—that! That!! That!! Your sincere way of rewarding the Gospel?! Ah, Sloth! Sloth! Sloth!!!”

Petelgeuse, skin and bones, swung Subaru around like a ragdoll, left and right, while the black figure’s passive lack of resistance only emphasized Petelgeuse’s madness. He tilted his head back, gazing at the ceiling.

“And! My fingers’ Sloth is my own Sloth! Ah, please forgive my failure to reciprocate your favors! With my whole being, with utmost diligence, I wish to live according to the Gospel! I wish to be pardoned!”

Releasing the black shadow, Petelgeuse knelt down, tears flowing as he clasped his blood-stained hands together in a prayer-like pose, desperately begging in hopes of seeing something there.

The mistreated black figure, too, followed suit, raising its face to the ceiling like Petelgeuse, silently confessing its own sins and faults.

—It was an abnormal spectacle.

Petelgeuse switched emotions at an alarming rate, from joy to anger to sorrow and laughter without warning. He was beyond emotionally unstable; he was emotionally non-existent.

Equally strange was the black figure, accepting the abuse without a flinch. Simply witnessing Petelgeuse’s behavior as a bishop might suggest he ought to be called a believer—better yet, a fanatic.

“Love! I must repay love! Being Slothful is unacceptable! I must follow the Gospel! I must return the love given to me with love!”

“—”

“I need to find the girl whose life and death are unknown! If she’s alive, end her life! If dead, sever her head and bring it here! I must deal with this myself and apologize for my Sloth!”

The black shadow responded to his shrill command and melted away into the darkness of the cave.

And when that presence faded, Petelgeuse remained kneeling for a moment, breathing heavily and in shock.

“Well then, well then, well well well well well…”

Kneeling, Petelgeuse inched closer to Subaru.

The action of rubbing his knees against the harsh, jagged ground was a mere self-infliction as the skin beneath his robe was playfully torn.

Ignoring the pain suffered, he looked down at Subaru.

“You, in the end, what are you?”

“Ugh… Ah…”

“You don’t seem guided here by the Gospel, but the dense aura of deep affection surrounds your body. Fascinating indeed…!”

He leaned forward and stuck out his tongue as if about to lick Subaru, who was in no condition to respond to his questions.

With vacant eyes looking somewhere distant, Subaru stared up at Petelgeuse, who murmured, “Ah, my brain shakes,” in an ecstatic tone.

“I should know the face other than ‘Pride,’ but considering how much affection you’ve received, I can’t help but think you’re not unrelated to the Gospel.”

Petelgeuse muttered, and with a quick motion, he pulled a book from within the folds of his robe.

It was a black-covered book, roughly the size and thickness of a dictionary. At first glance, it appeared to be just a beloved novel.

“Ah… I can feel the Gospel. My brain shakes…”

His affectionately gliding fingers traced over the black spine, his breath audibly warm with excitement.

With no title or markings, Petelgeuse savored the book’s texture, then began to turn the pages slowly and ceremoniously.

“You are not mentioned in the Gospels, nor is there a whisper regarding the issues arising before this great trial! It means—!”

He slammed the book shut with a loud sound, holding it aloft as he spat.

“Your existence is trivial! The fact that you won’t be recorded in the Gospel means you are entrusted to me! Even while receiving such deep, profound, heartfelt affection… how contradictory you are! Ah, my brain, my brain, my brain!!”

He thrust a finger against his temple, clawing at it with a wild intensity. Skin split and blood began to ooze.

Even seeing this, Subaru offered no response. He only laughed vacantly, truly ignoring Petelgeuse’s self-harm.

“Ah, ah, ah, ah, ah… Ignoring me is lonely! So lonely! Even though I treat you so kindly, oh so kindly!”

Petelgeuse’s outstretched hand seized Subaru’s face, fixing his gaze, regardless of where those empty eyes wandered.

Subaru, in a stupor, frowned and tried to resist this rough act.

“—Look into my eyes.”

With quiet intensity, it was perhaps the least emotional statement he had made thus far, but there was a compelling force in his voice and gaze.

Subaru’s body jolted, shaking, and although dazed, he looked directly into the man’s gray irises, glowing with madness.

Then,

“Answer me. Respond to me. Why are you here? Why are you so cherished? Have you heard the Gospel directly? If not, do you at least know what it is?”

“Ah, ugh… huhah…”

“This isn’t getting us anywhere… Shall we change the order, then?”

Petelgeuse tilted his head 90 degrees to the right in a brisk manner, his face coming even closer.

Then,

“I’m going to ask you—”

“—Ughh!!”

With a close approach, Petelgeuse extended his tongue and licked Subaru’s left eye.

That act, that deviant violation of personal space triggered a reflex to reject, as Subaru trembled, rattling his shackles.

Yet that only lasted until the next chilling words reached his ears.

“—Why are you pretending to be insane?”

※※　※　※　※　※　※　※　※　※　※　※　※

The gray is terrifying.

Those eyes staring directly at me, the eyes I can’t break away from are incredibly frightening.

My body trembles, I turn my face away, trying to escape those eyes, but the grip holding my head is too firm, and the chains binding my body are excruciatingly cold, there’s no escape.

All over, my body aches unbearably.

Thrust from the overturned dragon wagon, my body is covered in raw abrasions with no treatment whatsoever. Beneath my torn clothes, the raw, bloody wounds quicken the pain, implying a deeply distressing memory connected to them.

Where has the blue gone?

The blue that was always by my side. The blue that gently touched me. The blue that fed me when I was hungry, held my hand when I felt uneasy, that blue.

Without blue, everything would feel less frightening.

Green, brown, and white are all absent.

What’s here is nothing but absolute darkness and the grayness directly in front of me.

The blackness that says nothing, answers not a word, just exists is scary too.

But the gray is far more terrifying beyond that.

“Have you ever heard the Gospel directly?”

I can’t comprehend his words. My mind fails to function in understanding. The overwhelming desire to reject the unpleasant takes precedence, and I shake my body, my face, and heart away from the thought.

Still, the gray figure won’t allow that, inching closer to me.

“This isn’t getting us anywhere… Shall we change the order, then?”

As he inched closer, the gray figure extended a long tongue, a tongue just recently soaked in blood, advancing toward me mercilessly.

“It’s my question—”

—The surface of my left eye, the very pupil, is cruelly licked.

The rising nausea, overwhelming fear, and the instinctive rejection igniting the chains clanging haven’t stopped the gray figure. Instead, he twisted his tongue, forcing it beneath my eyelid, rolling my eyeball upon his tongue.

This is disgusting! No! Help me! I’m terrified, terrified, terrified.

Terrified, terrified, terrified, terrified, terrified, terrified, terrified, terrified, terrified, terrified, terrified!

“—Why are you pretending to be insane?”

Terrified, terrified, terrified, terrified, terrified, terrified, terrified, terrified, terrified, terrified, terrified—

I couldn’t understand what had been said.

The intrusive sensation of being licked at my eye, the overwhelming discomfort of being continuously gazed upon, and the fear stemming from visible insanity surged within me, causing my trembling body to halt completely.

Dumbstruck with gaping mouth wide open, my eyes totally blank, feeling the unsettling sensation of being licked, I heard—

“—Why are you pretending to be insane?”

Repetition of the gray figure’s inquiry echoed in my mind.

“Ahhh…!”

“No, no, no, no, no, no, no! The real curiosity lies here. Why, for what reason, are you pretending to be cloaked in insanity?”

I shouldn’t listen. I must not let those words enter my ears. I shouldn’t understand.

I shook my head wildly, clanging my shackles as I did, severing my consciousness. I distanced the words pouring from the man’s mouth from my ears. To listen means realizing, understanding—that should not be allowed.

“No convenient escape of ‘unconsciously’ will be provided. You are aware, you understand yourself, and yet you still parade insanity!”

“Ahh! Nooo! Ugh! Ahh!”

“Your madness is far too rational. Under such clever pretenses, quietly seeking sympathy, striving for affection, you cannot truly descend into madness!”

I screamed, straining my throat against excruciating cries, attempting to drown out the man’s voice. But he delivered his words seamlessly, piercing through the cracks of my consciousness with mocking precision.

“A failed act of madness. If you’re truly to immerse in the madness, the world cannot be perceived through the lens of others; to be mad means to detach oneself in solitude!”

“—Baah! Baaah! Babababaahh!”

“Oh, how ridiculous! Why do you pretend to be mad!? To those truly unhinged, such superficiality simply peels off, becomes visible, and is utterly ridiculous!”

Words I didn’t wish to hear, truths I didn’t want to know, crashed against my eardrums.

I felt suffocated. Nauseated. Something within my chest swelled. A dark, dreadful something cried out to escape. I couldn’t let that emerge.

For if it did, if that were to happen—

“Pity! Pity! For the pitiful disgrace that you are! Ah, I shall lament you! Despite receiving so much love, what is there to reject!? Do you long to stagnant in decay without absorbing the love bestowed upon you, nor returning it!?”

The gray figure shook its head, violently tossing aside my head.

My thrown head collided with the wall behind, causing sparks to fly and a sharp pain to shout within me.

Yet the man’s consciousness remained entirely absent of concern for my plight, instead inserting another finger into the wounded tip of his previously bitten finger, promoting even further bleeding.

“Ah, ah, ah, you are… ‘Sloth,’ huh!”

A cracking sound reverberated within my skull as if something had shattered.

I had heard nothing. Nothing made it to my ears. All were mere ravings of a madman. None bore accuracy, nor grasped the truth.

I understood nothing. I could decipher nothing; that’s how it ought to be. That’s how it had to be.

For if it weren’t—

“Ah, that’s enough.”

The murky darkness swelled within my chest, on the verge of bursting when, suddenly, the man’s vigor dulled and he whispered.

Instantly, the creeping sense of anticipation that had my skin crawling faded away, and the terrifying light that loomed ahead dimmed, unknowingly releasing the tension throughout my body.

“Not too much, not too much, I wouldn’t want you cornered too tightly. Perhaps, it might do you good to ponder things slowly over time? When you genuinely face the affection, the answers will surely reveal themselves.”

“Ah… ugh…”

What on earth is this man saying?

None of the words pouring from his lips resonated with my understanding. It felt as if he seemed to wield supreme control, fathoming my situation, as if he understood the unseen shadows cast upon me like a compassionate adult leading a child, or a devil disorienting lost souls crossing a treacherous bridge.

I wasn’t supposed to comprehend this. I mustn’t attempt to. Moreover, thinking in such a manner is impossible now.

Understanding it, I would find there would be no turning back from that point.

“Ah, I hope… you are not Slothful, but diligent instead.”