Chapter 192: Inhabitants of Another World

As soon as we stepped into my backyard, Sakura began her magic verification.

I acted as a lookout, making sure no one was spying on us. It would be troublesome if the neighbors noticed and reported us to the police.

Well, speaking of which, the barrier is much more conspicuous… Even though we can’t hide the barrier, there’s no need to expose everything else.

For now, I just need to recruit Grandpa, my nephew, and the people from Grandpa’s village. Even if things get noisy, I can handle it calmly, and worst-case scenario, I can always escape to another world.

While I was thinking about that, Sakura finished her magic verification and reported the results.

It seems that magic works here too. Whether using my own magic power or a magic stone, both are possible.

The efficiency of magic power usage is almost the same, with the only issue being its recovery speed. But even that seems fine as long as we have a magic recovery stone.

“Alright, next, let’s try setting up the barrier. I’m planning to extend it right up to the edge of our property… Any problems with that?”

“Hmm, I can’t think of any.”

“I see. Well then—”

“Wait! Can the shape of the barrier be changed freely? If so, how about extending it to fit perfectly against the outer walls of the house?”

“Oh, that’s a good idea. It might be less noticeable that way.”

First, I set up a square barrier just around the building as usual. Since I can’t immediately change its shape in detail, there’s no helping it. After fixing its position, I began to adjust its shape.

The barrier adhered closely to the walls and roof of the house. If you looked closely, you might notice something strange, but it was definitely less conspicuous. Since you couldn’t see beneath the ground anyway, it wasn’t an issue. It seemed to be a level of deception that could work well enough.

“This looks good. It should be deceptive enough.”

“For things like magic circles or storage spaces, we could set up tents or tarps in the yard. For now, this should suffice.”

“I’m glad you came with me, Sakura. Thanks.”

After confirming that magic could be used inside the barrier (our home), we returned to the living room.

◇◇◇

“Sakura, let’s take a short break. I think there are some drinks in the universal bag…”

Whether it was because I stored them in the universal storage or because I brought them out of the house, the household appliances I tidied up in the other world had disappeared in Japan. Naturally, there was no electric kettle… I took out some cold drinks from the universal bag.

“By the way, it’s midwinter here. But I didn’t really feel the cold.”

“I checked on the computer earlier, and it turns out today is the Saturday after New Year’s Day.”

“My sense of the seasons has dulled quite a bit.”

“Probably because the climate there was stable, it feels more pronounced here.”

“Anyway… The views on this guy’s videos are insane. This has to be number one in the world, right?”

“I guess so. Maybe you don’t even need to work anymore? I’m not really sure, though.”

While we were discussing, we were browsing through the initial witness’s videos.

He uploaded many videos under the title “Another World Series,” and each one has an unbelievable number of views. The number of subscribers to his channel is also staggering… He seems to have successfully achieved the opposite version of an isekai rise to power.

“But don’t the authorities regulate this kind of information? Isn’t it unusual to just let it go like this?”

“Hmm, I’m not sure. Maybe it’s intentional?”

“Intentionally letting the information flow?”

It’s just a hypothetical, but the government probably already has a lot of information. They’ve surrounded the returnees from appraisal jobs, protected the capable ones, and secretly progressed with their research, seeking their cooperation. And they might also be starting new energy development and magic tool creation using magic stones collected from monsters.

They might be heightening awareness of monsters early on, pushing for their normalization, and guiding the public towards a trend of monster subjugation adventures.

I feel like it wouldn’t be strange if things were like that…

“I see… That’s not entirely impossible. Fantasy might be spreading more widely than we think, considering that monsters actually exist.”

“True. It’s all just speculation, though. But I think people like us might be thinking similar things.”

“I’d like to check those kinds of forums later.”

“I’m sure they’re buzzing with excitement. At least, I’d be checking them every day.”

While we were having that conversation, our break ended, and we went back to browsing through the timeline together.

—

Day 440: Existence of People from Another World Revealed

– It was discovered that there is an area in a certain part of Kanto where no one can enter. There, a high school boy was living with women who appeared to be people from another world, with animal ears and tails.

– The number of people there is unknown, but there are currently 14 confirmed individuals. They look almost human, but some of them have animal features. They would later be referred to as “beast people.”

– Their residence was an ordinary house. It had a small garden and was surrounded by a cinderblock fence. There was an invisible barrier extending to encompass the surrounding houses.

– The person involved is a victim of the otherworldly transfer incident. According to nearby residents, he suddenly returned about two months ago. There were testimonies such as “lights were on in the house one day,” and “multiple people’s voices could be heard.”

“Hey, isn’t this… him?”

“Without a doubt, it’s the other village chief. It’s concerning that the barrier isn’t visible.”

“No wonder we couldn’t find him no matter how hard we searched… So he’s definitely back in Japan. It was the right decision to call off the search halfway.”

“Returning to Japan along with his home. Bringing people from another world too. Involvement with the goddess. These seem to be confirmed.”

“…And it seems there’s more to the story.”

– According to media investigations, after returning to Japan, he repeatedly made contact with several former classmates. Furthermore, all of those classmates would be involved in some kind of accident. The students involved were reported to have physical injuries or mental illnesses.

– According to classmates who were there at the time, before his disappearance, he was subjected to insidious bullying from some students. The opinion that “he must have sought revenge” is prevalent. However, no testimony has been obtained from the parties involved in the accidents.

“This is clearly a revenge plot… He gained power in another world, so he could have done anything.”

“But was this his goal? It doesn’t feel like the goddesses were involved…”

“I’m not sure about that. This might be his personal vendetta, and the goddess-related matters might come later?”

“In any case, I want to investigate the site once. Fortunately, we have his address and name.”

“Yeah, but let’s make sure we’re well-prepared first.”

It seems his home surroundings are currently surrounded by the Self-Defense Forces. The area is off-limits, and there are rumors of “government officials coming and going.” At this rate, it doesn’t seem easy to approach.

But on the flip side, it means he can’t increase the number of villagers either. Even if he lowers the loyalty settings and try to involve the Self-Defense Forces… No, he wouldn’t resort to such barbaric acts.

“However… There’s too much information. It’s been over a year, so it’s to be expected, but…”

“The events up to this point happened more than 100 days ago. I think the situation is still evolving.”

“But we need to investigate properly.”

“We can’t just recklessly go outside like this.”

(Is modern Japan really okay?)

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