Chapter 159: Dialogue with the Holy Woman

Day 376 of Life in Another World – 51,752 Points

The morning after the teleportation incident, I expected the villagers to be unsettled, but we welcomed another calm morning.

As usual, everyone gathered in the dining hall, chatting amiably while having breakfast. While the topic of the city naturally came up, there was no hint of pessimism in the conversation.

Personally, after a night’s sleep, I felt completely calm. It may sound insensitive, but I felt refreshed.

I’ve always thought that being in the village dispels the clouds in my heart. It’s like the feeling of anxiety and restlessness fading away. It’s hard to describe… It’s not like my emotions are being manipulated; I just attribute it to the “Goddess Effect.”

While contemplating this, the members of today’s scouting team gathered at my table as they had their breakfast in hand.

“Good morning, Keisuke-san. You’re up early.”

“Good morning, everyone. Perfect timing, let’s have a meeting while we eat.”

Today, we planned to scout the lord’s mansion, checking on the situation after the sage’s disappearance and confirming if the barrier had been breached.

The team consisted of Kana as the stealth specialist, Lev as the explorer, Tsubaki as the data analyst, and Sakura as the guard. Tsubaki and Sakura volunteered for scouting last night.

Just like yesterday, I asked Kana to use her stealth skill for reconnaissance, while I requested Lev to conduct a population survey using her exploration skill. Tsubaki would compile the data, while Sakura and I would serve as guards.

“I mentioned it briefly yesterday, but did anything bother you since then?”

“Keisuke-san, be careful of the rabbitfolk’s hearing. There’s a possibility they’re being coerced by the Empire.”

“Ah, when we first met, Lev was also listening to the conversation in the village.”

“Yes, the exploration skill can prevent detection, but it can’t block out conversations. If you need to talk, keep your voices down, and it shouldn’t be a problem.”

“Thanks, I’ll be careful.”

After the serious discussion, Lev, still with a serious expression, resumed his struggle with a plate piled high with potatoes. Seeing his vigor, Sakura spoke up.

“Lev-san, are you sure you can eat all that? Anyway, aside from that, what will we do if the hero or sword saint appears?”

“I’d like to try talking to them if possible… but considering the sage’s situation, it might be impossible. If they turn hostile, we’ll have to rethink our strategy.”

“I see… Without teleportation magic, there’s no need to panic. What about the residents of Keimos?”

“If they come towards the forest, we’ll leave it to Haruka to welcome them. They might have already been wiped out, though.”

It seems they’re gathering at the northern gate, but whether they’ll be released or gathered… I’m not sure yet.

After sharing other points of caution, we all finished our meals and prepared to depart.

—

Upon completing the teleportation to the lord’s mansion, we immediately checked the surroundings…

There were fewer people than yesterday, but still close to a thousand Japanese individuals in the courtyard. Most of them were armed, and according to the appraisal results, they were mostly around level 60. I thought they had abandoned this place, but it seems they’re quite tough.

(Is this some sort of hidden move? We need to be careful.)

The barrier surrounding the outer wall was bridged by a staircase-like earthen wall, probably made with earth magic. This was within my expectations, so it didn’t surprise me. Since the barrier is now meaningless, we should remove it immediately.

The people in the courtyard were surprised when the barrier suddenly disappeared, but our stealthy presence prevented them from noticing us. I saw some adventurers running towards the lord’s mansion, probably to report to their leaders.

“Sakura, there might be big shots coming out now. Be ready to cast spells at any moment. Kana, continue with your stealth.”

“Understood!”

We waited for a good 30 minutes. While Lev and Tsubaki were compiling data, I appraised the adventurers.

There were various occupations among the adventurers, but the majority were warriors, followed by swordsmen, spearmen, and hand-to-hand fighters. In the range I could see, there were ten healers and a whopping 42 magic users of various elements.

There were also sealing mages, enchanters, and shield users, and even some rare ones like “Adamantine Fighters,” but there were no apparent secondary classes or unique skill holders.

One thing that caught my attention was the absence of people with ranged physical professions like archers or hunters.

(Weren’t they used by Rado at the beginning? Why isn’t anyone using bows now? … Well, it doesn’t matter.)

There’s no point worrying about things I don’t understand. Thinking that, people finally started coming out of the lord’s mansion. There’s no mistaking it; it’s the sword saint and the Saint. As they appeared, the Japanese people in the courtyard began to gather one after another.

However, there was no sign of what I presumed to be the hero. There’s a possibility that I haven’t recognized him due to some skill, so we remained on high alert.

“Keisuke-san, it’s strange that the trump card hero isn’t here today. Please don’t go outside the barrier.”

“Yeah, they probably won’t break the barrier, but… let’s be prepared to teleport at any moment.”

I relayed the situation to Tsubaki and Lev and prepared for a quick return to the village. Meanwhile, the Japanese from the Empire gradually approached the barrier. Leading them were the sword saint and the saint.

“Nanashi Village people, I know you’re there. Come out of hiding; I want to talk to you.”

The distance between us was about 20 meters. The saint stopped there and spoke.

“Keisuke-san… What will you do?”

“Well, let’s hear her out for now. Of course, from within the barrier.”

“Understood. If anything happens— I’ll shoot without hesitation. Even if you try to stop me, Keisuke-san.”

“Got it. Since I’ve already called Touya and the others, please prepare the meeting while I talk to the saint.”

The saint had a slightly cold demeanor, and there was nothing strange about her appraisal results. Was yesterday just a misunderstanding, or is there some secret? That remained unclear, but for now, I decided to show myself.

“I’m the village chief of Nanashi Village. What do you want to talk about? If it’s about the sage, I have no intention of apologizing. Our policy is to eliminate hostiles.”

At first, I thought about handling it peacefully, but I’ve already had one of their own killed. There’s no point in pretending now.

“I’m the saint of the Japanese Empire. Well, not exactly that kind of person. And as for the sage, let’s drop it. I heard he was acting on his own.”

“…The Empire had no intention of that? Sorry, but I find that hard to believe. Weren’t you gathering residents at the northern gate to investigate the village?”

“Oh, that. I was just looking for skilled individuals. I plan to release them after a while.”

The saint answered calmly. She seemed uninterested in the sage’s death.

(“Skilled individuals,” huh? Indeed, yesterday, the sage did mention that teleporting to the village was his own decision…)

“By the way, Village Chief, what happened to the sage’s body? I heard you brought it back; could you tell me about it?”

“We respectfully mourned him here. He’s been buried, so he should have returned to the earth by now.”

“…I see, that’s good then.”

(Oh, she frowned for a moment just now, or rather, clicked her tongue. Was she worried after all? Could it be that they were… lovers? No, probably not.)

The saint looks 20 years old, and the sage was supposed to be 42. It’s not impossible, but if her indifferent attitude is genuine, then their relationship might not have been like that.

“It’d be troublesome if you used your skills to revive him. It seems you were planning to spawn orcs in Imperial territory, but I apologize for disrupting your plans.”

“It’s a shame, but I don’t have that ability. Well, you know that from the appraisal, don’t you?”

“I wonder about that… I’m not really sure.”

“Oh, is that so? Well, never mind.”

With that kind of probing, we engaged in casual conversation for a while. Although Touya and the others had already arrived at the tent, the atmosphere wasn’t tense.

“By the way, there’s something I’ve been curious about for a long time…”

“What is it? If I can answer, I will.”

It’s completely unrelated to the city or village… but there’s something that’s been bothering me. Because of this question, I couldn’t concentrate on the discussion at all.

“While looking at the thousand guards here, I can’t help but wonder… Why are they all middle-aged men?”

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