Hermes fell silent. If things really were as Loki said, then…
"My intuition tells me that everything Dionysus said was the real deal… Heh, if that were a lie, then no matter how hard I try, I doubt I'd ever beat him. Even if I got played, it'd be helpless."
Loki soberly judged that if the enemy was truly someone of that level, then there was no need for any confrontation, just surrender outright and be done with it.
"Oh? Didn't expect you to go that far, Loki… So our suspicion of Dionysus really was the result of repeatedly making biased assumptions and wronging him?"
Hermes was first taken aback by Loki's honesty, then sank into thought, why had the two of them been guided into that conclusion?
After thinking it through, he summed it up: it must have been the fixed impressions rooted in their biases. Even gods couldn't escape such things.
No, because they were gods, it wasn't strange that they formed such hardened assumptions.
Compared to the children of the lower world, the gods who actually changed were the strange ones. And wasn't breaking those rigid notions exactly the purpose of their descent?
Ahem.
Hearing this, Loki felt a bit embarrassed, but only for a moment before retorting:
"You can't blame us entirely, right? That guy also has faults. Whether it's his behavior or expressions, he's always putting on a show. Who wouldn't find him suspicious? Not being suspicious of him would be what's strange."
"Haha, you're absolutely right."
Before Loki even finished complaining, Hermes chuckled cheerfully.
He lifted the corners of his mouth, revealing a bright, refreshing smile.
"Sorry, Dionysus. It was wrong of me to doubt you. Maybe someday when I return to the heavens, I'll treat you to a drink."
Seeing the blond god putting on this act, Loki clicked her tongue.
Even at a time like this, he was still pretending, clearly taking advantage of Dionysus being sent to Tenkai, only because the guy had returned to the heavens and couldn't come back to cause trouble.
The only reason Loki didn't spit a curse was out of mercy.
"What's with that face? What, feeling guilty?"
"Hey, don't talk nonsense. No way."
Hermes turned his head away, fingers pulling down the brim of his hat to cover his eyes and upper face so Loki couldn't see his current expression.
He took a few deep breaths, easing the inexplicable irritation boiling inside him. Then he leaned close to Loki, revealing a sharp, narrowed eye beneath the brim.
"You know, Loki… I really regret it right now."
"..."
Loki silently watched him, waiting for him to continue.
"This whole series of events, only today did I finally realize something. I always thought that self-confident me could control everything. So everything that happened before didn't bother me. But now, now I finally understand: my overconfidence got me completely played."
"Heh, failure really is like this, huh? Dionysus was the key live decoy in the whole plan, drawing our attention and throwing us off."
"Meanwhile, the one behind the scenes was leisurely acting in the shadows the whole time. Ahh, I don't know which god it is, but I'm really, truly unwilling to accept this."
Of course Hermes didn't feel something cute like guilt, look at what kind of god he was.
A god who lived through the Zeus and the Hera Familia's time, and was even Zeus' close aide.
Anyone could imagine how terrible this man's personality was.
But this unreliable god, right now,
In his eyes, there was only anger, nothing else.
And on top of acknowledging he'd been manipulated, he even felt regret.
But when he looked at Loki, he still let out a laugh, though there wasn't a trace of humor in his eyes.
"Loki, are you planning to just let this slide? Trickster or not, I might be pretty famous among the gods in the lower world, but… I'm just a 'fake'. However, the true trickster of the heavens just got tricked. Is there anything more humiliating than that?"
Looking at the mastermind who nearly triggered a Ragnarok, Hermes knew, Loki, who had been played just as badly, would never let it end like this.
Compared to him, the power in Loki's hands was more than enough to enact a proper, and malicious, retaliation.
Hermes tilted his head back and leisurely walked backward. Under Loki's malicious gaze, he flipped both hands upward like a clown performing a silly act.
"Alright, alright, I know you're angry too. Just don't aim the gun at me, okay? I'm innocent."
"..."
Feeling the unrestrained malice directed at him, Hermes immediately regretted his joke and could only raise his hands in surrender.
"Okay, okay, I get it."
"Hmph." Loki crossed her arms, watching his theatrics.
"Fine. I know Loki is thinking the same thing as I am. Let's follow the clues related to Dionysus and investigate."
"Oh? So you came here to search for leads on the mastermind too?"
"Yeah. That guy's been hiding in the shadows, toying with every opponent, making us into clowns. If we don't drag them out, where's the dignity in that?"
"I see. Then let's start finding the culprit."
Hermes pressed down his travel hat again, encouraging both himself and Loki.
After saying that, Hermes stood up.
As he was leaving, he discreetly slipped the chess piece, the black king representing Enyo into Loki's hand before departing.
"..."
Squinting at the piece in her hand, Loki didn't know what to think.
"Oh, right. Loki! Asfi asked me to pass along a message to you."
"What?"
...
Once Hermes' figure fully disappeared, Loki leaned against the alley wall, playing with the black king symbolizing Enyo. She lifted her gaze toward the sky.
"Heh, blue skies… Wonder how he's feeling now."
Thinking of the annoyed expression the other guy would make when hearing the message, Loki felt an unexpected flicker of joy.
But now wasn't the time to be pleased, she was a god, after all. Matters involving gods naturally fell under her responsibility.
Loki shook off her uncharacteristic "melancholy," deciding to imitate Hermes and pull down her own hood.
Standing on the spot, Loki first contemplated where to begin.
"Dionysus… Is that guy really the clown? Or is he, just as Hermes said, the decoy pushed forward to draw attention?"