The Sanctuary’s Secrets and Bebe’s True Face

“What—what is this? Is it magic?”

“No! It’s coming from the grooves in the floor!”

“You there! What in the world have you done?!”

I merely shrugged, replying, “As you can see? [It is always present yet nowhere, everything yet nothing. Your holy war has cast our fate into the unknown.]”

I don’t recall the exact words, but it was something along those lines. Still, as long as the keywords are roughly correct, it activates. What did I just do, you ask? This is supposed to be the assassins’ headquarters, so shouldn’t it have a proper defense system? That’s why I built it. I remember spending a fortune on this place.

“[The progenitor has arrived. Ignite the sacred fire.]”

No sooner had the words left my lips than everything touched by the beams of light began to incinerate. Pristine white flames engulfed the interior, filling it completely. Screams of agony erupted from all directions.

Yet, the fire was neither hot nor suffocating. A startled Nocturne initially made a fuss, but upon realizing the flames weren’t touching him, he waved a hand through the air and asked,

“S-something like this existed?”

“It’s a sanctuary and a base, after all. It needs something like this, doesn’t it?”

“But, Sir Haut, you said you weren’t an apostle.”

“I designed it myself. That’s why I can use it.”

No blood remained. Everything had burned to ash. The acrid stench, thick enough to clog one’s nose, the greasy chunks of flesh, the refuse—all had vanished. The cavernous space was utterly empty, save for a faint, ethereal glow, like a misty forest traversed by fireflies.

“I’ve been coming here for three years, but I had no idea it was like this.”

“If you work hard, I’ll train you well and give you an apostle’s position. Give it your best.”

“Uh… are you serious? You’d give me something like that?”

I nonchalantly scanned the floor as I replied. Ah, there it is. It seems they hadn’t sold this off, at least. I picked up a red agate ring. This was the ‘Twilight Mist.’ I considered wearing it, but then tossed it back into my inventory.

“I wonder what the inside is like. For now, tell the others outside to come in a bit later. I need to check if there’s anything to clean.”

CRACK—!!

As I stomped my foot, what appeared to be walls began to glow with an icy blue light, splitting apart. With a series of clunking, dull thuds, the interlocking stones and metal plates shifted, revealing their hidden depths. The space visibly doubled in size compared to before.

“Hah… I thought this was incredible, but this was just the entrance lobby?”

“I made it for our Bebe. There’s no way I’d make it shoddily, is there?”

“C-can’t I just watch?”

“I’m going to use magic. It’s only basic, so the damage won’t be much, but I think it might kill you. [Wind Sucker.]”

As I extended my hand forward and cast the spell, a gust of wind shot out with a rustling sound, carrying stone dust with it. Oh dear. I have no idea how old this place is.

Nocturne, witnessing this, recoiled with a horrified expression.

“Right. It’s too early for me to die. I’ll be back in a bit.”

And then he scurried away. It’s probably better without him. I wasn’t bored in the slightest while cleaning. I almost got annoyed earlier dealing with those pesky rats that had snuck in, but then I remembered I could brag about our Bebe, and my mood brightened again.

“Bebe—Bebeb-be-be—Just ten minutes—Bebeb-bep—”

I continued cleaning, humming a bizarre, mashed-up song whose origin I couldn’t possibly pinpoint.

After finishing the cleaning, I waited with an excited heart, but the others didn’t come in even after a long while. Shouldn’t their curiosity have gotten the better of them by now? When I went outside, I found them lingering at the entrance, unable to enter. What was going on?

“Why aren’t you coming in?”

“W-we can’t find the entrance, Sir Haut.”

“Good heavens. It seems you don’t even meet the basic level requirement!”

I’d forgotten I’d set a level restriction. It must be because I’ve activated the system now. Until now, there was no one to operate it, so anyone could come and go freely. I built this to keep just anyone out, but I never imagined they wouldn’t even meet the minimum level!!

“Hey, at the very least, you need to be Level 30 so you don’t get beaten up everywhere you go! Aren’t you being a bit too lazy for your age? Rabi hit max level when they were 21. Of course, I did help them out just a little.”

“I don’t know who this Rabi is, but an ordinary person can’t achieve the strength that meets your standards. And you keep talking about ‘levels,’ but what even are they?”

Nocturne grumbled his reply, lamenting my perceived weakness. I could only clutch my chest in dismay.

“Ugh… they don’t even know what levels are…!! Come to think of it, the sprout level limit was 20…!! I completely forgot! How adorable!”

“Stop calling us cute! All three of us are strapping young men!”

“The sprout headband truly is the best!!”

With the fluttering sprouts on their heads, nothing they said could irritate me! It truly was a magical item! After thoroughly enjoying my naughty mood for a good while, I clapped my hands twice. Instantly, the door glowed, and the perception-hindering magic dissipated.

“I’ve lifted it temporarily. Can you see it now?”

“We’ve been wandering here for ages…”

“Come on in! You have to see how beautiful, cute, charming, and magnificent our Bebe is! I’ll even give you souvenirs when you leave!”

I pulled the three of them into the headquarters. They were speechless, their eyes wide as they gawked around. A strange sense of pride swelled within me. I’d spent a fortune, and it seemed they appreciated it!

The passages were intricately woven with a series of full, arched structures. In the same architectural style, a large central dome created a vast, open space, around which various facilities were constructed. I’d gone to immense trouble to ensure perfect circular symmetry for everything. Along the grooves in the walls and floor, lines of light flowed, from which tiny, fluffy particles of light bubbled up, brightly illuminating the interior.

“A ruin like this, right in the middle of the capital?”

“That was the concept I went for. It feels good that you noticed. Hehe.”

“You made it? Who did?”

“Naturally, I did.”

Truthfully, I had secretly hoped they would ask. Since it was a rare opportunity, I would boast to my heart’s content! With an excited voice, I explained to the three of them.

“Initially, I considered using torches, but their illumination was weaker than I’d anticipated. Moreover, our Bebe had been severely injured once and was a bit afraid of fire. So, I scrapped the whole thing and rebuilt it myself!”

“I hired about 30 Elas to handle the construction and mechanical devices, while I personally crafted the enchantments for all the magical apparatuses here.”

“Every single groove in the floor tiles is crammed with spell formations! To the eye, it might look like a simple channel for water, but in an area the size of a coin, there are at least twenty magical formulas layered on top of each other!”

“On the walls, I installed additional devices: one to seal the base in emergencies, leaving only the central dome open, and another to automatically regulate the temperature and humidity within. Ah, our Bebe was a bit frail and had delicate bronchi. It was my ambition to build an underground base, but I couldn’t have her getting sick because of it, could I?”

“And on the ceiling…”

Mid-sentence, I snapped my fingers in the air. The high ceiling, which had been awash with shimmering light, instantly transformed to display the sky. A pristine blue sky, just as it was. I pointed upwards and smiled.

“Our Bebe loves looking at the sky, so I made sure to include that. I don’t precisely recall where all the projection stones were placed, but I installed them in about five different areas.”

Sometimes, when we were bored, we’d lie here together and gaze at the night sky. Bebe wasn’t very fond of going outside. She was so soft-hearted that she found it quite difficult when people stared at her.

“I’ll show you this first! I’ve installed the ‘Echoes of Time’ here!”

It felt like playing the game again, just like in the old days. Excitedly, I crossed the central area and passed through the corridor facing forward, heading inside.

Unlike the exterior, the interior was shaped like a small, rectangular house. One entire wall was taken up by the jet-black Echoes of Time, while the rest resembled a typical home. In one corner of the space lay a plush bed, drawers, a desk, and a chair. A wardrobe stood idly against another wall, and opposite it, a fireplace with two sofas placed before it.

This inner central room was specifically made for Bebe. The room she used for her duties as an apostle was separate. It was designed so that no one except Bebe and I could enter. Though, I had temporarily lifted that restriction now.

Perhaps it was due to the atmosphere, so different from outside? The three who had awkwardly shuffled in now looked around with uncomfortable postures. I stood before the Echoes of Time and gestured to them.

“Sit wherever you like. Oh, and the food on the shelves has a permanent preservation spell on it, so feel free to take some.”

“N-no, we’re f-fine. Even so, eating something that’s probably been here for at least a hundred years is a bit…”

“Hmm, really? Just sit down quickly! I’ll show you!”

Once I confirmed they were all seated, I touched the Echoes of Time. With a faint, trembling vibration, lines of light chaotically formed unknown characters and images. Then, a long list of event videos scrolled out before my eyes.

From that list, I selected the topmost video with Bebe’s name.

Flicker, flicker. The wall flickered like an old television before beginning to display the video. Faint, indistinct shapes swirled together, gradually becoming clear.

“Ta-da—! This is our Bebe! Isn’t she cute?”

I introduced her brightly, but everyone’s eyes wavered. Why were they like that? Just as I tilted my head in confusion, Jack pointed at the screen, his hand trembling.

“Th-that, that’s ‘Bebe’?”

“Our Bebe is beautiful, isn’t she? Cute, isn’t she?”

“Y-your standards are truly beyond me. Where is that cute?”

“What’s the problem?”

Because I fed her so well and raised her diligently, our Bebe had grown tall. She was a head taller than me. The Bebe on screen wore the custom-made black light armor I’d crafted, topped with a dark brown robe. The robe was incredibly ornate, embroidered with gold. All of it had been magically treated, too.

Well, I know our Bebe might look a little scary to others.

“She doesn’t… have a face.”

“That was something even I couldn’t help. When I brought her in, her face was already melted and mangled. I tried everything to fix it, but in the end, I couldn’t.”

It’s true that she was a bit disfigured. More than half of her face was a mass of wrinkled burn scars. Her left ear was missing, and only a few sparse strands of hair grew on that side. I know all this. But if she’s cute in my eyes, what else matters?

“Without the scars, she would have been a hundred times more handsome. Of course, even then, she was beautiful and cute all by herself.”

“No, first of all, that person ‘Bebe’ is a head taller than you, isn’t she? What’s so cute about such a giant? She’s just a mon—”

Before Jack could even finish his sentence, I lunged forward, grabbed him by the collar, and lifted him straight into the air. Caught completely off guard, he flailed his hands, choking and sputtering in my grip.

“Watch your words. Even for you, I won’t let that slide. I’ve never let anyone who speaks ill of our Bebe live. If you want to test that, go right ahead.”

Perhaps because it was a game with a Charm stat, there were always events related to facial disfigurements. I hated seeing our Bebe get downcast every time, so if I heard even a whisper, I’d kill them all. If anyone said anything on the forums, I’d challenge them to a fight, drag them into the game, and beat them senseless. If they didn’t show up, I’d find their code and raid their game whenever they were online, killing them repeatedly.

On average, about twenty times? The most persistent ones I killed around 128 times. After that many deaths, people would finally concede, acknowledging that our Bebe was indeed the best. Some people just need a good beating to come to their senses. Though, after that, even more people started calling me a lunatic.

I dropped Jack as if tossing him aside. He couldn’t even stand properly, collapsing to the floor and gasping for air. Amidst all this, the video continued to play.