"An being that must be defeated..."
Rozen's words made Anna's breath catch for a moment.
The girl's hands clenched suddenly into fists at those words.
This change did not escape Rozen's notice in the slightest.
His furrowed brows deepened further, and the gaze he turned on Anna grew contemplative.
In this atmosphere, Anna's voice once again rang out.
"As I thought, if it's a human, they'd definitely think that way, right?" Anna said quietly. "As long as you're human, you'd want to defeat such a monster—you'd think that kind of monster shouldn't exist, right?"
Her tone was filled with complex emotion: part expectation, part self-mockery, leaving one unsure of what to say.
Anna continued, speaking to herself as much as to him.
"Indeed, Gorgon is an existence that must be defeated—or rather, her very existence is a mistake."
"She's clearly a monster, yet descended into this era under the guise of a goddess, aiming to destroy humanity and conquer the land. That's something that must never be permitted."
"Her actions are unforgivable. She must be defeated."
As she spoke, her voice regained firmness.
In that moment, it was clear that she wasn't so much telling Rozen these things, as she was trying to convince herself.
Rozen stared deeply at Anna and slowly opened his mouth.
"Those reasons you mentioned are valid." Rozen said, "But when I said she's an existence that must be defeated, that's not the only reason."
"Not the only reason?" Anna blinked, then asked, puzzled, "Then… do you have another reason for needing to defeat Gorgon?"
But no sooner had she said this than realization struck her.
"Oh, right. You're the final Master of humanity, and you came here to repair this Singularity."
So, for the sake of humanity's future and the continuation of human order, Rozen had to defeat Gorgon, who possessed the Holy Grail. Only then could the final Singularity be repaired, and everything restored.
That was how Anna understood it.
However...
"That's not the only reason."
Rozen smiled and shook his head, telling her that even his position wasn't the whole of it.
"Then…"
Anna was now even more confused.
If that's the case, what other reason could Rozen possibly have for needing to defeat Gorgon?
She didn't understand.
Seeing her confusion, Rozen fell silent for a moment in contemplation before speaking again.
"Regarding Gorgon's actions—yes, personally, I can't overlook them. But to be honest, rather than hatred or hostility, what I feel toward her is… more like frustration."
Rozen actually said this.
"Frustration?"
Anna grew even more perplexed.
But Rozen was speaking his true feelings.
"To be honest, I actually feel sorry for Gorgon. No—more precisely, I feel sorry for Medusa."
Medusa.
At the mention of that name, Anna's delicate frame gave the slightest, nearly imperceptible shiver.
"Medusa did nothing wrong, yet was cursed without cause and turned into a monstrous being. She was exiled to the island and constantly persecuted by humans drunk on their own sense of righteousness. In the end, she went mad and truly became a monster. Just looking at that, that goddess was nothing but a victim," Rozen said as if unaware, continuing, "Given that, feeling sorry for her, feeling pity, grieving her fate—those should be natural emotions for anyone who knows her story."
Rozen felt the same.
He had sympathy and sorrow for Medusa.
"But she wasn't a goddess. She was just a monster…"
Anna sounded like she was refuting his view, yet her tone was weak.
Rozen clearly understood Anna's thoughts.
"Because she's a monster, because she's a threat to humanity, she deserves no pity—only hatred and enmity?" Rozen said with a twist of his lips.
"Maybe that's the common sense for most ordinary people, if they were in that situation themselves."
People might sympathize with Medusa, might feel sorry for her, but only because they saw her as a fictional figure from legend.
They processed her story as something made-up—and so could safely feel compassion and sadness.
But just imagine: if you truly lived in the same era as the monster called Gorgon, sharing the same world, the same land—could that sympathy really withstand the terror, the fear, and the loathing born of encountering such a horrifying creature?
If people were actually confronted with the snake-haired demon of legend—this mad beast that could slay even the greatest heroes—would they still care how tragic her backstory was?
Or would they only tremble at the threat to their lives, at the sight of their idols and loved ones turned to stone, and curse the monster that did it?
From that perspective, Rozen's sympathy might seem utterly sanctimonious to those who had been victimized by her.
And yet...
"This is just a difference of perspective," Rozen said. "In truth, I wasn't harmed. I am an outsider. I am an objective observer. So, from my own position, what's wrong with feeling sympathy and sorrow for Medusa?"
"Medusa was cursed unjustly, went mad from endless human persecution—those are facts. Can anyone deny them?"
"She even dirtied her own hands with blood just to protect her two sisters, struggling endlessly to grow stronger. If anything, that makes me admire her, not despise her."
"At the very least, if it were me, I'd have done the same."
Rozen's words, which bordered on cruel, left Anna staring at him in silence, eyes filled with indescribable emotions.
"If that's how you feel… then why say she's an existence that must be defeated?"
Anna asked, struggling to suppress her emotions.
"Isn't it obvious?" Rozen answered without hesitation. "Because the one here isn't Medusa anymore—it's Gorgon."
Anna's body trembled.
Rozen went on.
"She descended into madness for the sake of protecting her sisters—not to massacre all of humanity."
"She likely never regretted staining her hands with blood. At least that way, she was able to protect her sisters—even if, in the end, she devoured them herself."
"The one she hates the most… was probably never humanity. It was herself."
"Given all that, when everything ends, she should receive the proper ending—not continue existing like this, clinging to a hatred that doesn't hold up, wielding a vengeance that was never hers to begin with, running rampant in this era."
Rozen's words poured into Anna's ears.
"If the current Gorgon were still Medusa, and she saw what she was doing now, she'd be in agony. She'd want release."
"And if no one else can do it—then I'll do it myself."
"In both her existence and her reason for fighting, this Gorgon is a mistake."
"That's why she must be defeated."
That was the reason.