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Volume 5 Chapter 1 Part 4

「Oh? If I remember correctly, he was a sculptor, right?」

「Yes. I heard that during his years as a student he even went to Florence in Europe where he studied as an exchange student, and all of the works he created there were centered around Heracles and Asclepios.」

「Huh? Only around those two? Now that is plenty strange. Did he not make even a single statue of me? As I said earlier, I also helped him a lot, after all.」

「Yup, I do not think there were ever any statues devoted to you.」

That one blunt, instantaneous answer did a real number on Orpheus this time. Although he is primarily known for being a poet, it is also true that he is one of the many heroes present in Greek Mythology, so he was probably interested in knowing if one of his friends who could sculpt statues also made one to commemorate his various exploits, and knowing that he did no such thing must have been a truly devastating blow to his pride as a hero. In order to try and make him feel better, You crossed her arms on her chest and tilted her head to the side in an attempt to jog her memory if there was really not a single statue devoted to Orpheus, but no matter how many times she was trying to search up for that information in her head, but every time the conclusion was the exact same one: that her father really did not create nothing of the sort.

Normally, Izayoi would have taken that chance to taunt Orpheus even further, but this time he did not do it, because his mind was preoccupied with something that You said just now.

(Florence. . .  in Europe? Why did she had to say it in such a weird way?)

Speaking of Florence, known as the City of Flowers, the first thing that should come to mind was not Europe, but Italy, the country where Florence was located. If you went to Italy and started saying that not only Florence, but also Italy’s capital city, Rome, were not 「Rome and Florence of Italy」but 「Rome and Florence of Europe」, then it would be more than likely that you would become the sole target of the ire of all the natives of Italy in your general vicinity. . .  and that would be the best possible outcome. As for the others, well. . . . . they would definitely be much more bloody and gruesome.

However, it looked like Izayoi was the only one who felt discomfort at that name, because right now, Orpheus was completely engrossed with looking back on the past while stroking his chin.

「This is really strange. If Koumei and Arthur were not summoned to Little Garden, it would not have been possible for us to defeat The Demon Lord Dystopia and end the Dystopian War. And let me tell you, these two had put up a really good fight.」

「. . . huh? My father was summoned to Little Garden to fight against Demon Lord Dystopia?」

You tilted her head in puzzlement at Orpheus’ statement. It was the first time when she heard about the exact reason for why was her father summoned to Little Garden. However, Orpheus gently shook his head and put his hands together with an apologetic look.

「No, that is definitely not the case. Koumei was one of the people who should have been outside of fate’s reach, his summoning an accident. Just like it was written in Morgan’s will, the only one who should have been called here by Lia Fail.」

That last sentence was not directed towards anyone in particular, so they hung in the air and then disappeared without a word of commentary. When Orpheus lifted his head, he saw that both Izayoi and You were simply nodding their heads.

「Even though we managed to bring the Dystopian War to an end with the help of many Gods and heroes, its conclusion was far from the ideal one all of us desired, and why would it be, since it was only something we came up with after discussing 「the fastest way to end the war regardless of the cost」. In the end, even though it brought peace back to Little Garden and The Outer World alike, there were many nights after that where I could not sleep because of regret and contempt at how it ended. . . .  However, if it meant that even in spite of this my greatest disciple, Canaria, and the baby that Heracles helped bring onto this world could go and become the heroes of the new era along many others and achieve the feats that would make our own exploits pale in comparison to them. . . . . then surely that would mean that my own anguish and Canaria’s regrets were not meaningless.」

He had a radiant smile on his face, but his eyes still had a tinge of sadness that could not be hidden in them. The moment Izayoi saw that sorrowful combination, he immediately understood.

(I see.  . .  so he also knew about Canaria’s death.)

She was a disciple who was so beloved by her teacher that he ultimately decided to hand over his power as a Storyteller to her, so of course he must have been pretty devastated when he learned about her death.

He looked at You’s grown-up face once more and then he tightened his own expression, almost as if Orpheus had made a decision about something right now.

「 . . . .  *Sigh* all right! I think it is about time for me to start heading back.」

「Heading back? Where?」

「To 『Uroboros』. While I am still a 『No Name』 member at heart, it does not change the fact that I am their servant now. I did a number of things that can be classified as opposing and going against them, but these offenses are by no means a reason for me not to go back to them, I am afraid.」

Amazed by Orpheus’s words, You looked at Izayoi, and he nodded back at her, confirming that what he said just now was absolutely true. Well, since she does not know the truth and only arrived here recently, then of course there would be no way for her to see the big picture and have the perfect knowledge of the entire situation they were currently in. A situation where a member of the original 『No Name』 had no choice but to fight for 『Uroboros』.

Just like Izayoi said, You had no idea about what was going on here, but she ultimately decided to trust Izayoi’s judgement. Izayoi also knew that some of the pieces of the puzzle were still missing, but for the time being he nodded his head, expressing his agreement for Orpheus’s decision to go back to 『Uroboros』.

「Well, you are right. From your point of view, such a decision certainly cannot be helped, right?」

「H-Hey, now wait just a second! Are you really fine with that?! Are you serious?!」

After all, You still had her doubts when it came to 『Uroboros』 and everything and everyone who were involved with them.

「Yeah, it is perfectly fine. I cannot think of that many reasons for why would someone like Orpheus obediently followed 『Uroboros』 without as much as a word of complain, so if he does exactly that, then his reason for it has to be pretty damn important. Since he is known for being one of the most devoted husbands in the history of Greek mythology, then maybe he is doing 『Uroboros’s』 bidding because his wife has been taken hostage?」

「 . . . . .  Hahaha. That is a secret, I am afraid.」

Orpheus shrugged his shoulders and flashed them a bitter smile. That smile told Izayoi most of what he suspected, but it is quite possible that if Orpheus’s wife has indeed been taken hostage then he also might have some kind of curse or restriction that prevents him from talking about it to anyone placed upon him.