Watch Out for Backstabbing!

"Exactly."

She glanced at Red. That gaze, warm and gentle as an elder sister's, made Red's hair stand on end. She instinctively hid behind Miss Surtr and let out a pitiful yet blustering growl. Surtr immediately shifted her gaze, letting it linger only briefly on the Rhodes Island insignia on Red.

"This child is a Sentinel, and she shouldn't have come with you... It seems there's another pillar of support within that organization. I see. After the previous one died, it was reorganized? Then this must have become entangled in a political struggle—as for the strength you've displayed... Is that woman a princess or a queen?"

"She should be a queen, but she was a princess before her death. Her name is Theresia."

"I see." The purple-haired Doctor gave a slight nod. "It seems I lay down in the Sarcophagus of my own accord, and erased my own memories as well. You must have left that organization after Theresia's death. And now the two of you have come together. Clearly, the organization isn't being managed very well, and its successor has grown to the point where she needs to be tested—the good child you mentioned earlier must be the successor, right?"

"Her name is Amiya. She used to depend on you very much."

"Understood." Persephone nodded. "Then I truly shouldn't meet her in this state. Nor should I have used violent means to test my ally. If you hadn't come, I would probably have killed that child once, or tortured her until I extracted all the information I believed I needed. No wonder you've kept your hand on your sword."

"Good that you know." Miss Surtr replied as flames kindled across the blade.

"Then one last question. What is my name?"

"I'll tell you next time."

"..." Persephone raised an eyebrow.

The next moment, the burning Flame Sword tore through the sky amid Red's cry of alarm. It pierced through every concealment, feint, and disguise, plunging straight into the purple-haired woman's heart!

"I told you. I'm stronger than you." Miss Surtr whispered into her ear. As Persephone let out a muffled groan, she twisted the blade ninety degrees.

"Even counting your brains, your knowledge, your skills, and your authority, I'm still stronger than you—stop scheming, you bastard. In other people's eyes, you might just be a neurotic, frail, yet kind-hearted Doctor. But I know every twisted, filthy, despicable thing you've done inside and out—

"You killed Theresia at least ten times. Once for the sake of the battle, three times by accident, and in the remaining six, you brutally abused her and tortured her to death because you thought she was disrupting your thoughts! Now you've lost your memories and forgotten how I repaid you back then. But don't even think about doing the same thing to Amiya!"

Surtr's expression was cold.

And the response she received was as icy as solid frost.

"Thank you for the reminder. I'll keep it in mind." Persephone's voice held no emotion.

The hilt turned another ninety degrees.

"Keep it in your head. A thing like you doesn't have a heart."

The next moment, flames erupted from every opening in Persephone's body. Immediately afterward, everything around Surtr grew blurry and chaotic.

She had returned to that street, to the point in time when she had yet to eat her ice cream and hadn't managed to see Red.

Ah... that's right. It was just like this. She was stronger than Persephone because the Doctor's Death Return could not interfere with her memories or her rightful power. That was why she had never feared Persephone, nor ever believed the disguise Persephone used to conceal herself.

—That was why, when Theresia died, Surtr's first reaction upon returning to Rhodes Island had been to grind Persephone's bones to dust.

—That was why, even when W said she was going to meet Persephone and "reminisce," Surtr had never worried about that wretched woman's survival. Instead, she had sold her out without hesitation.

But circumstances always changed rapidly.

"Not until you see the Yellow River, you won't believe you're dead." She murmured, turning her head toward the area where the Sarcophagus was located. Based on what she had felt during her first return, Persephone should just now have opened the internal locking mechanism of the Sarcophagus after trial and error.

And the naturally suspicious Persephone would surely leave the Sarcophagus area at once, turn from the light to the shadows, and try to gather information about this world from as many angles as possible—if she had truly lost her memories.

"And now I'm going to make you give up."

The next moment, the colors of Twilight and the rancid stench of Sulfur spread across the horizon.

A firestorm that blotted out the sky and sun swept up. Amid the terrified, despairing screams of the Chernobog residents who had only just managed to calm down, it rushed decisively toward the area where the Sarcophagus was located!

Section Twenty-Three: Watch Out for Backstabs!

It was the same building, the same hall.

The same two people, but at different points in time. When Surtr rode the flames and Sulfur straight through the Sarcophagus's outer wall and its many protective measures, forcing her way directly into the core area, Persephone had only just emerged from the coffin-shaped machine. Mist from the thaw still coiled around her body.

She looked at Surtr with a complicated expression and a trace of anticipation.

"Your name is Persephone." Miss Surtr gave her the answer she had hoped for, proving that her memories and will had not been erased by Death Return, and that she truly surpassed Persephone in power. The flame-haired Sarkaz snapped her fingers, and a sigil formed from gathered flames took shape, its lettering clearly displayed.

—'Persephone'

Persephone's brow lifted slightly.

"It feels familiar. It seems this name is indeed closely connected to me. But... it isn't enough. I don't think this is my real name."

"It isn't." Surtr nodded. "It's a name you gave yourself. Persephone, the queen of the underworld in ancient mythology. It suits the special power you possess very well, because you truly are accompanied by death. It wouldn't be an exaggeration to call you the spouse of death itself."

The two of them conversed pleasantly, without a trace of their earlier hostility. This was only natural. If one side possessed Death Return while the other held a perspective and perception surpassing it, then any excessive emotion or action had little value here. Surtr had realized this long ago and developed the appropriate habits for dealing with Persephone. For Persephone, seeing through that layer was even simpler.

So she asked,

"Then my real name is—"

"I don't know." Surtr didn't hedge on this matter. "You said you'd forgotten it. But when Theresia asked you the same question, one of your answers was that perhaps you had never had a real name."

"I see." Persephone seemed to understand something. She also noticed the subtle shift in Miss Surtr's tone. "The situation is quite serious... It seems you're in a similar position to me?"

"Yes, I've indeed forgotten my real name." Surtr did not use the word "too" to place herself and Persephone in the same camp. "But that won't attract attention in this world. People here are accustomed to preparing two names: one real name and one codename for work. It's a custom, and neither name is superior to the other. My codename is Surtr."

"The people of this world..." Persephone lightly savored those words. She had said them deliberately, and she knew Surtr didn't care. "Your name doesn't sound like it shares the same root as Persephone."

"That's right. My name is spelled Surtr." Miss Surtr formed another stable arrangement of letters with flame. "Its origin is also ancient mythology, though from a different myth than yours. It refers to a fire giant who destroyed the world, wielded a sword of calamity, and brought an era's history and mythology to an end."

She saw Persephone's gaze shift slightly toward the red-and-black Flame Sword floating behind her.

"Yes, this child is that sword. Its name is Laevateinn. It's my hands and feet, my extension—and a portion of the power I command."

"And another portion of your power saw through my trump card?" She was referring to Death Return.

"You can understand it that way." Surtr replied, "Of course, I can also reveal the specific details to you. But not here, and not now."

"You're very confident." The purple-haired Doctor raised her brow lightly. Her fingertips tore at the air, and several gray-white blades of air slashed out, easily carving a huge opening in the wall. That opening had once connected to a corridor, whose far-end window offered a direct view of Chernobog's urban scenery. But now, beyond the shattered window, there was only a wall of flames like Twilight.

No one came to disturb their conversation, and no clamor interfered with the quiet of the hall. The city's chaos and din were sealed outside without the slightest leak by that sturdy barrier. No force could shake it.

The purple-haired Doctor, of unknown race but very likely a Lilin, lightly pursed her lips. Her lips were as sharp as blades, while the alternating light and shadow in her eyes revealed her rapidly turning thoughts.

Outside the window, the tranquil wall of flame remained perfectly still.

Inside the hall, the thoughtful philosopher whispered softly.