Kays Translations

Chapter 78: A Hopeless Fool

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“Ohh, so this is the Demon Kingdom!”

The one who said this in the royal capital of the Demon Kingdom was Ota, who had been driven out of Admos’ royal capital just a few days prior.

Everything Ota did backfired on him. The Admos royal family, who had summoned him, eventually cast him out. The Explorer’s Guild, where he sought comrades, deemed him useless, leaving him with no place to belong. When he tried to monopolize healing magic in a land lacking healers, he was driven out of the clinics due to established interests.

At first, Ota had clung to hopes of making a dramatic comeback. But after one failure after another, his spirit finally broke. With no other choice, he had dragged himself to the Demon Kingdom, seeking instruction from their mages.

Ota looked entirely human at first glance, yet none of the demons around him seemed to pay him any mind.

This was purely by chance. Though Ota’s appearance was completely human, the vast amount of magic energy he possessed as a summoned being prevented the demons from recognizing him as human.

Of course, Ota himself was completely unaware of this.

Back in Admos’ royal castle, Nara had learned that the Demon Kingdom was currently in a state of absolute rejection toward humans. However, Ota had been too busy chasing after women to pay attention during lessons, so he remained ignorant.

And so, he had casually wandered into the Demon Kingdom without a second thought.

For the first time in a long while, luck was working in Ota’s favor.

“Alright! Time to check out the Adventurer’s Guild, as is tradition when visiting a new country!”

There was no such thing as an “Adventurer’s Guild” in this world.

Even in Admos, the proper name was the “Explorer’s Guild,” yet Ota stubbornly refused to call it that, instead always referring to it as the “Adventurer’s Guild.”

This was a clear reflection of his desperate desire to be the protagonist of an isekai fantasy, proof that he was still unwilling to accept reality.

After wandering the royal capital for a while, Ota finally found the Demon Kingdom’s Explorer’s Guild.

Since the Demon Kingdom was more advanced in magic technology than human nations, the demand for monster materials was also higher.

As a result, their Explorer’s Guild was far larger than its human counterparts.

And with its size came a greater number of explorers.

The Demon Kingdom’s explorers, who primarily used magic in combat, perfectly matched the image of “mages” that Ota had in his head. And there were so many of them.

Ota’s excitement skyrocketed.

“Oh! I bet there are cute girls here who will teach me magic!”

Brimming with enthusiasm, he marched into the guild. The moment he spotted the receptionist sitting at the front desk, his excitement soared even higher. Unable to contain himself, he rushed toward the counter.

“An elf! I found one!!”

“Eek!? W-What!?”

The receptionist Ota had laid eyes on was pale-skinned with long ears—features that any summoned being would immediately associate with elves from fantasy worlds.

However, elves did not exist in this world.

She was simply a regular demon with naturally fair skin and long ears as a physical trait.

Startled by Ota shouting something in an unfamiliar language while running toward her, she instinctively let out a loud cry.

A cry that echoed throughout the entire guild.

“You’re an elf, right!? This is amazing! It’s finally starting to feel like a real isekai fantasy!!”

“E-Elf? W-What are you talking about!?”

Completely oblivious to the attention he had drawn, Ota leaned over the counter, practically lunging toward the receptionist.

Fearing she was about to be attacked, the receptionist screamed at the top of her lungs.

“Somebody help!! I’m being attacked!!”

Hearing her distress, the guild’s security guards and nearby explorers rushed over, just in time to see Ota attempting to climb over the counter. They immediately restrained him.

“Oww! Hey, what the hell!?”

“What the hell!? That’s our line, you pervert! Attacking the receptionist in broad daylight, right in front of everyone—what the hell were you thinking!?”

“P-Pervert!? You’re calling me a pervert!?”

It was, without a doubt, the behavior of a pervert.

But Ota, who still deluded himself into thinking he was the protagonist of an isekai fantasy, was deeply offended by the accusation.

He struggled to break free, but having never properly trained his magic control, there was no way he could overpower the seasoned explorers and security guards.

And so, Ota was promptly arrested.

Labeled as a deviant who had tried to assault the receptionist in broad daylight at the Explorer’s Guild, he was thrown into a cell.

Having barely set foot in the Demon Kingdom before ending up in jail, Ota stared blankly at the tightly shut iron bars before him.

For a while, he remained frozen in disbelief. Then, finally, his shoulders slumped.

“Haha… What the hell is this? I got summoned to another world… so doesn’t that make me the protagonist of an isekai fantasy? Why do I keep ending up in situations like this…?”

If Kenta or Nara had seen him, they would have simply said, “You brought this on yourself.”

But to Ota, this situation felt so unfair that he simply couldn’t accept it.

“Why…? Why the hell…? Why does nothing ever go my way? Could it be…”

After saying this, Ota muttered something strange.

“Does the world hate me?”

His thoughts were completely consumed by the mindset of a tragic protagonist.

For a while, Ota indulged in this newfound sense of adversity, letting out a strange chuckle.

“Heh… Heh heh heh… So that’s how it is, huh? Fine then. If the world sees me as an outcast, I’ll act like one. Until now, I was trying to be the overpowered protagonist, but from now on, I’ll be the tragic dark hero!”

And thus, in the depths of a prison cell, a so-called “rebel” who couldn’t even use a single decent spell was born.

The guard, who had been watching Ota indulge in his teenage power fantasy, regarded him with an eerie stare.

Then, suddenly, someone arrived—and what they said left the guard stunned.

Because—

“Hey. You’re free to go. Get out.”

“…Huh?”

Immersed in his tragic protagonist act, Ota was completely caught off guard by his sudden release.

“I said you’re being released. Hurry up and get out.”

“Huh? Huh? Why?”

Not understanding why he was being freed, Ota stepped out of the cell in a daze.

“This person here has agreed to take responsibility for you. Be grateful.”

Following the guard’s gaze, Ota turned to look at his so-called benefactor—

And muttered under his breath, “…Isn’t this the part where a beautiful girl or a stunning woman is supposed to come pick me up…?”

Of course, his words didn’t reach the stern-faced, military-looking man standing before him.

“Did you say something?”

“Ah, no… nothing.”

“Someone important wants to see you. Come with me.”

“Oh?”

For the first time since arriving in this world, something was actually happening.

Feeling like the plot was finally kicking into motion, Ota’s excitement rose.

(Hopefully, it’s a beautiful commanding officer or something…)

With such wishful thinking, he followed the man out.

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