Chapter 44: Kansai Overlap
A few days after Princess-sama visited my home, there was a reaction from the Barrier.
“Oh. Multiple signatures. Could this be Nara-kun and the others arriving?”
“Huh?”
I was playing with Leon when I stood up and handed him over to Ivern.
“…Are you really okay with running away?”
Ivern, who received Leon, looked perplexed for some reason as he said this.
“That was the plan, right? I’ll escort you four to the town. If anything happens to me or Meileen, I’m counting on you to take care of Leon.”
Upon hearing this, Ivern bit his lip.
“…Honestly, I want to help you. But I’d just be a burden… Damn it! If only I had more power!”
I patted Ivern on the shoulder as he lamented.
“What are you talking about? It’s because you and Yulia are looking after Leon that we can face Nara-kun and the others like this. This is something I can only ask of you.”
“…I understand. But it’s just temporary, okay? I’ll return him right away… so come pick him up soon.”
“Stop it. That kind of talk is a death flag.”
What an ominous thing to say.
“Death flag?”
“Come on, it’s common in stories, right? The ones who promise to drink together after this end up dying.”
“…That’s definitely ominous.”
“And don’t worry so much. I want to have a proper talk with Nara-kun. He seems to have gained combat experience in the war against the Demon Tribe… but he might also be carrying emotional scars.”
When I said that, Ivern frowned slightly.
“You’re both seventeen, right? You’re still kids. Why are you seventeen?”
Indeed, in Japan, being seventeen means you’re still in your second or third year of high school.
Still very much a child.
And yet, these kids are being thrust into war.
I thought it was strange at first too.
“Well, I kind of get it.”
“What do you mean?”
“Kids learn quickly, right? But actual children can’t be effective in battle. So, they’re probably selecting from those who are on the cusp of adulthood, around sixteen to seventeen.”
“I see… that makes sense.”
“Still, it doesn’t change the fact that Nara-kun is a kid. I’ll observe him for a bit. Well, if he suddenly attacks without warning, we’ll have no choice but to fight.”
“Stop it, you idiot. If you keep saying that, it might actually happen.”
“Well, that’s a flag too.”
Since our conversation seemed to be going nowhere, I decided to wrap it up with Ivern.
“Yulia, Aira, come over here. I’ll take you four to the town.”
“Okay!”
“Sure!”
Yulia responded lightly as usual, while Aira energetically raised her hand, mimicking her mother Yulia.
“Cu-cute…”
“Alright, alright. Save that for when we get there. Let’s go.”
I held back Ivern, whose expression was about to crumble from Aira’s cuteness, and escorted the three of them to the town before returning immediately.
“Sorry to keep you waiting, Meileen. Let’s go.”
“Yes.”
Thus, Meileen and I set off to meet Nara-kun and the others who had wandered into the Barrier.
After teleporting to the area where Nara-kun’s signatures were detected, I found myself wandering through the forest, puzzled. “What’s going on here?”
Not wanting to startle Nara-kun and the others, who seemed to be panicking in what appeared to be an ordinary forest, I slowly revealed myself before them.
“!? Y-you are…”
Nara-kun, startled, took a defensive stance as he questioned me.
While Nara-kun was just bracing himself, the others around him had drawn their swords.
You know, you could get killed for that, right?
However, if I suddenly killed them here, it would only raise Nara-kun’s wariness, so I let them be.
“Is it okay to call you Nara-kun? Nice to meet you, I’m Kenta Maya, the Previous Summoner.”
As I greeted him, Nara-kun looked momentarily surprised before relaxing his stance.
“…I’m Mitsuhiko Nara.”
“Got it, nice to meet you. By the way, is your ‘Nara’ from Nara Prefecture?”
“Yes. And ‘Mitsu’ is from ‘light,’ and ‘Hiko’ is from ‘Prince.'”
“I see. As for me… um, I’m not sure how to explain it. This character.”
I picked up a nearby stick and wrote my name in kanji on the ground.
“Oh, I’ve seen that. It’s a mountain in Kobe, right?”
“Exactly. You know your stuff.”
“I saw it on TV before. They said the best view of Kobe’s nightscape isn’t from the famous Rokko Mountain, but from the neighboring Maya Mountain.”
“Really?”
Oh, it seems we’re having a pleasant conversation.
This might go smoothly…
“Nara-dono!! Why are you so chummy with the enemy!? Hurry up and cut him down!!”
Just as Nara-kun and I were chatting, one of the knights around him, speaking in a polite tone, ordered me to be slain.
Oh? An enemy?
“…Did you just call me an enemy?”
“!?”
I glared at the knight who had just commanded me to be killed.
In response, he froze under my glare.
What’s with this guy? Acting all high and mighty when he’s so weak.
“Hey, Nara-kun.”
“…Yes?”
“Are you my enemy?”
When I asked, Nara-kun hesitated for a moment before looking down and replying.
“…Honestly, I don’t know. Until I came here… until I met you, I thought you were the enemy of the world. But you spoke to me. I can’t believe you did such terrible things… but I can’t shake the image of that scene… the scene in Lindor from my mind.”
“Ah, that was…”
It’s true that I half-destroyed the capital of Lindor.
As I pondered how to explain, Nara-kun suddenly turned his gaze to Meileen, who was standing beside me.
“And… the one next to you, she’s from the Demon Tribe, right?”
“That’s right.”
For now, I won’t mention Meileen’s name or that she’s my wife.
I don’t even understand why he’s confirming that.
As I remained cautious, Nara-kun suddenly bowed deeply to Meileen.
“I-I’m so sorry!!”
Nara-kun’s sudden apology took Meileen by surprise, her eyes widening.
“Uh, um, what are you apologizing for?”
Both Meileen and I were confused by the meaning of his apology, so when we asked, Nara-kun spoke with a pained expression.
“I… I’ve killed many… many people from the Demon Tribe…”
As he said this, tears began to flow from Nara-kun’s eyes.
“I’ve killed many of your kin… It’s unforgivable… I’m truly sorry…”
Ah, this is hitting him hard.
I completely understand.
“W-what are you saying, Nara-dono!! Your battles are those of a hero!! You should be proud, not apologizing!! Especially not to a Demon Tribe woman like her…”
“Huh?”
I cut off the knight who was about to say something with magic, severing his head.
Seeing that, the other knights’ wariness skyrocketed.
And Nara-kun’s eyes widened in shock.
“!? K-Kenta-san!? What are you doing!?”
“What am I doing? My woman was insulted, so it’s only natural to get angry.”
“B-but…”
Ah, this kid…
He’s really just been summoned for a few months.
He’s still dragging the ethics of his original world with him.
This is a different world governed by a different set of ethics.
“And Nara-kun, that guy just called you a hero for defeating many of the Demon Tribe. He referred to her as just a Demon Tribe woman. This means they don’t see the Demon Tribe as people. And here she is, a Demon Tribe member, standing before them. What do you think will happen?”
“…It’s dangerous, isn’t it?”
“Exactly. And…”
I glared at the knights, who looked ready to strike at any moment.
“They see you as nothing more than a tool.”
“!! D-don’t listen to this nonsense!! Nara-dono! You mustn’t heed the words of this man!!”
As I revealed their true intentions, the knights desperately began to shout that I was lying.
Nara-kun, told not to believe me, looked at me with a serious expression.
“Why… why do you think that?”
His face showed a reluctance to believe he was being treated that way, yet he seemed to be slowly realizing it.
“Because.”
After saying that, I patted Nara-kun on the shoulder.
“I hear you’re still seventeen. Forcing a kid like you onto the battlefield just because you’re strong is proof they see you as nothing more than a tool.”
When I said this, Nara-kun’s eyes widened in shock before his face twisted, and tears began to fall.
“Ugh… ugh… uuuuh!”
He desperately tried to stop himself from crying, but it was futile.
As Nara-kun began to sob, I looked at the knights.
“So, just so we’re clear, my only enemies are you guys.”
I stepped forward.
And then…
“So… die.”
As I said that, I drew my sword and charged at the knights.
Even though the knights of the Human Tribe boasted superior physical abilities, they were no match for me. My physical prowess was already heightened by the Summoning bonus, and with magic further amplifying it, they stood no chance.
I cut down all the knights present in an instant, as if slicing through slow motion.
“Seriously, why are these weaklings so full of themselves?”
I shook the blood off my sword and turned around to find Nara, his sobs now silenced, staring at me in shock.
“Hm? What’s wrong?”
As I approached, Nara’s face twitched slightly as he spoke.
“Are you a serial killer, Maya-san?”
“Want me to kill you too?”
After saving him from these guys, that was the thanks I got.
I put Nara in a headlock and started heading home.
Of course, with him in a headlock, he was coming along for the ride.
“I-it hurts! This is a corpse, Maya-san!”
“Shut up. A cheeky brat like you deserves this much.”
“What the heck is that supposed to mean?”
As we bantered back and forth, Meileen followed behind us, smiling.
Thus, what began as an assault by the Summoner turned into a rather amusing result of taking Nara home.
Oh, right.
“Should I take care of that?”
I said, releasing Nara from the headlock and turning around.
“Huh? Kenta? What’s up?”
“Well, if we leave it, it’ll be unsanitary.”
I said, casting a spell to ignite the body of the fallen Admos soldier.
“If we don’t burn it, bugs will start crawling out.”
“Hehe, you really are a neat freak.”
Right?
As I chatted amicably with Meileen, Nara suddenly chimed in.
“…You two are psychos.”
It goes without saying that Nara’s head fell victim to my headlock once more.