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((The 17 pages of St. Patrick's Day + Triple Saturday -- Page 7 of 20))
“You see?” said Hector. “Just because you have the power to do things like that to people, doesn’t mean you should. Especially not without asking their permission first. I mean, you’re a god, aren’t you? Have a sense of responsibility or something!”

“I... I do have a sense of responsibility...”

Rather than responding, the Senmurai just stared at him, waiting for elaboration.

“I--” Malast looked over his audience. “Ugh. Why do you think I never intervene in the affairs of your kind? Despite constantly being asked to, no less? It’s because I have a responsibility to let you be the makers of your own fate.”

“...Is that really true?” The Senmurai probably could not have sounded more doubtful if he tried.

“Yeah,” added the one called Diego. He was sitting cross-legged on the ground with his ghost in his lap. “Seems like you intervened pretty hard with this little tournament of yours.”

“You, return to silence,” said Malast.

And again, the one called Diego found himself unable to speak.

“Was that really necessary?” said Hector.

“I find that one’s voice particularly irritating for some reason.”

Hector folded his armored arms. “He’s not wrong, though. You did intervene in our affairs, didn’t you?”

Malast’s expression twitched. “That’s. Because. Secho. Secho is an exception.”

“Why?”

“Because!” said Malast with uncharacteristic fervor. “I told you before! He is my only friend! The only thing I have ever liked!”

“Okay,” allowed Hector. “But then, doesn’t that mean that the real reason you don’t intervene in our affairs is just because you don’t feel like it? Because we don’t interest you? I mean, you are the God of Boredom, after all.”

“I... well... that’s... true, but...”

“I mean, you can rationalize it all you want, but you can’t honestly say that you have a sense of responsibility if you’re really just doing what you feel like doing.”

And Malast appeared to be lost for words.

This was getting out of hand, Royo felt. He had no idea what the Senmurai’s game here was, but it didn’t seem like a good idea to just let it go unchecked.

He would have to challenge Hector himself, if there was to be any hope of rescuing Malast from him.

“Senmurai,” said Royo, gaining everyone’s attention. There was no point in pulling his punches. He needed to turn the conversation into favorable territory. “If Malast gives you the Urn of Growth, will you use it to merge with Secho’s remains? Or will you simply take it and do nothing with it?”

“Ah...”

Good. That seemed to have removed some of that momentum.

“Why are you asking?” said Hector.

An easy question to answer. “Because it is highly relevant to achieving a desirable resolution from our current circumstances. Malast wants nothing more than his friend to return to him.” He spared the Idle God a pitying glance. “Now, perhaps the manner in which he has gone about it... has been less than ideal, but he never claimed to be a perfect being, despite whatever biases you and I may possess toward the term ‘god.’”