Kays Translations

Chapter 201: Countdown to the End

Armed with valuable information, we immediately returned to the other world. Nanasia-sama stayed behind in Japan and plans to return once her interactions with the gods are complete.

“Hmm, so demons and yokai are considered monsters?”

“It seems not all of them are.”

“Maybe onmyoji or blacksmiths who made demonic swords… were they also ability users from the other world?”

“As expected of Haruka, you catch on quickly. The goddess mentioned something like that.”

Currently, we’ve gathered the key members of the village for a village meeting. They’re all trustworthy individuals with a loyalty rating of 99.

“What else did you learn?”

“Well, there’s the story of Noah’s Ark, right?”

“Yeah, the one where the world sinks in a great flood.”

“It’s somewhat related to what I’m about to tell you… apparently, the excessive overflow of monsters was the cause.”

“What do you mean?”

This was merely what the goddess had said, and we don’t know how much of it is true. With that disclaimer, I continued.

“Monsters overflowed worldwide, and humanity couldn’t handle it. So, the gods decided to reset the world… or something like that.”

“Why that? Wasn’t there a better way?”

“I had the same question. But for the gods, it seemed like there was no problem.”

“I see. So, what’s the relevance of this to us?”

“Oh, everyone was gathered here for this reason. Please, ensure that what I’m about to say remains confidential.”

Setting aside the digression, I finally broached the secret of the fantasy barrier.

The national transfer will take place one year after the completion of the fantasy barrier. Already, two months have passed, leaving approximately 10 months until the deadline.

Of the Japanese people who will be left behind in the other world, an estimated 60 million are expected to be between the ages of 15 and 50. Half of them will be instantly killed upon transfer to the eastern great forest. That leaves around 30 million survivors.

Based on the previous survival rate, only about 10% will make it to the city at most. Considering the decrease in survival areas due to the orc outbreak and the emergence of orc-class monsters in other areas, I estimate it to be around 3% overall.

In terms of numbers, that’s about one million people. Roughly the same as the population of the entire continent, there will be that many surviving Japanese. Plus, there are those who have raised their levels in Japan, so it might be a bit more.

“Even if we’re lucky enough to make it…”

“We’ll be driven out by the locals, right? While there’s some improvement in the beastmen’s country, it’ll be catastrophic in human territories.”

Following my words, Sakura provided a precise response. As she said, under the current circumstances, we won’t be accepted. Being driven out would be the least of our worries. Both the kingdom and the beastmen’s country don’t harbor positive feelings toward the Japanese.

“Even if we try to unite and revolt, the level gap makes it practically impossible.”

“There’s no food or water. If we’re thrown into such a situation… we’ll either starve or be killed by monsters. Either way, survival will be difficult.”

“Perhaps being killed by monsters would be better? If we oppose the locals and get killed, we might not even be able to respawn.”

Or perhaps, if it were the Japanese Empire… they might accept us, but there’s a limit to the number they can accommodate.

Despite the somewhat damp atmosphere, no one brought up the topic of “helping the surviving Japanese.” Anything beyond what’s visible is physically impossible.

We also discussed earning advertising revenue through video playback and fundraising through the sale of magic stones. In that case, negotiations with the authorities should be kept to a minimum. Getting deeply involved with them would only lead to trouble. It might even end up with us getting crushed. We also discussed one more thing: aiming to gain autonomy in Japan in exchange for the transfer of magic stones. Whether this will be achieved and how long it will last is dubious, though.

In the worst-case scenario, we’ll just occupy some land and do as we please. But if we don’t choose legitimate means, we’ll just be seen as a group of criminals and it will end there. This is only considered as a last resort.

With our immediate plans decided, we moved on to selecting individuals to operate in Japan.

As a basic premise, only those with a loyalty rating of 90 or higher are allowed to be involved in village construction in Japan. We need to be able to use telepathy in case of unforeseen circumstances. Of course, others are free to go to Japan, but in that case, they’ll have to deal with any problems on their own.

The main roles we’ve decided on this time are four:

– External Negotiation Team: Negotiations with authorities, land contracts, etc.

– Supplies Procurement Team: Purchasing food and daily necessities

– Broadcasting Team: PR for the other world, attracting villagers

– Base Maintenance Team: Maintaining the living environment after obtaining a base

The assigned members for each role are as follows:

<External Negotiation>

– Keisuke, Tsubaki, Sakura

<Supplies Procurement>

– Hayato, Tachibana, Hazuki

<Broadcasting>

– Juri, Natsuki, Takeshi(Samurai)

<Base Maintenance>

– Haruka, Touya, Akiho

Firstly, I’ll be in charge of all external negotiations. After all, I’m the village chief and the oldest guy here. Tsubaki and Sakura will handle the overall operations in Nanasia and accompany me whenever necessary. Additionally, I’ve appointed Kyoko as Sakura’s deputy. While Sakura is in Japan, she’ll take command of the military.

The supplies procurement will be handled by Hayato and his wife. With their spatial storage and abnormal condition immunity, there’s no one more suitable. Additionally, with Tachibana’s combat ability and Hazuki’s healing, they’re practically invincible. Since men and women have different needs, it’s a perfect combination.

The broadcasting team will be led by Juri and Natsuki, with Takeshi assisting. I’m counting on Juri’s broadcasting experience and Natsuki’s expressive abilities. Takeshi will be in charge of photography while also serving as a guard.

Above all, this team is extremely eloquent. There’s no other team better suited for promoting the other world. In a good way, of course.

And finally, regarding the base maintenance… Haruka, who can handle identification duties and is an all-rounder, Touya, the strongest force in Nanashi Village, and Akiho, the battle healer. They are selected to handle everything perfectly, from receiving villagers to eliminating external threats.

However, all these members hold important positions in the other world. Before they start their activities in Japan, I intend to appoint deputies or proxies and have them take over. The situation in Nanasia’s town is stable, and there are no signs of the empire attacking. So, we should be able to handle everything adequately.

◇◇◇

A week has passed since the village meeting, and we headed back to Japan once again. This time, we came with the previously decided activity members. For now, I want to start by using our homes as a base and go for shopping for broadcasting equipment and daily necessities.

“Touya, we’re finally back!”

“Hmm, since I’m inside the house, I’m not sure. Did I really come back?”

Touya responded to Natsuki’s excitement with doubt. It’s true that it’s hard to tell when you’re inside the house. I understand that, but… that was a bit of a blunder in his statement. Watching their exchange, Akiho also chimed in.

“Touya, your reaction is too weak. You should at least pretend to be excited at times like this.”

“But you know… Akiho, you probably don’t feel it either, right?”

“Yeah, not at all. I hardly feel any excitement about coming back.”

“What’s up with you? You don’t seem like you want to go along with it at all…”

“Both Naachan and I are fine. Anyway, Touya is always…”

Although the reactions of the three young people were like this, the other members showed similar attitudes.

(I guess you can’t really feel it until you go outside.)

“Hey, everyone. Since you’ve come back after a long time, how about you take a look around the town while we’re out shopping today?”

“Wow, that’s unusual coming from the cautious village chief. Is it okay to give permission so easily?”

“Well, there’s no absolute certainty in anything, but I think it’s okay now since we haven’t been exposed yet.”

“Well, maybe you’re right?”

“Actually, what I’m worried about is drawing attention by getting involved. We have the power of monster class. Please be aware of that.”

“I see… I understand.”

Except for Sakura and Tsubaki, everyone is returning for the first time. There are buses to the city, so I think they should enjoy Japan after a long time. Even if something happens, we can use telepathy, so there should be no problem.

Nanasia-sama is heading to the divine realm again today. She told me that they are welcoming her with a mood of long-awaited rebirth of the gods. I think it’s highly unlikely, but… I hope we can avoid a situation where Japanese gods bring Nanasia down or something like that.

“――Well then, we’ll go to Grandpa’s village. You can use the cash I handed over freely.”

While everyone is heading out to the city, I plan to visit Grandpa’s place with Sakura and Tsubaki. I handed over all the cash to Hayato, who has spatial storage.

“I bought casual clothes last time, so please choose whatever you like.”

“Village chief and Sakura-san, thank you. I’ll use my spatial storage for shopping… Oh, of course, I’ll make sure not to stand out!”

With Hayato here, there’s no need to worry about carrying heavy loads or having large sums of money stolen. He can also nullify abnormal conditions, so it’s safe and secure, but…

“By the way, Hayato, you know what I mean, right?”

“Huh? Was there something?”

“Even if someone tries to mess with you, you absolutely can’t use a hero’s strike. I’m telling you, this is not a joke.”

“No, no, I won’t do anything stupid like that! I’ll be fine, I promise!”

After that, when I asked, “What if someone tries to mess with your wife?” he suddenly fell silent. This might be a bit dangerous.

Well, with various things happening, after everyone changed their clothes, I guided them to the bus stop. Natsuki and Akiho, who boarded the bus, were grinning… well, it’s fine if they buy whatever they like today.

(I mean, I don’t think it’s possible, but… there’s no way they’ll spend all the cash, right?)

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