Chapter 67: An Invitation and a Trump Card 

“The sea? Where did that suddenly come from?”

“Well, actually… I got a message through a Densho Poppo last night.”

Shrugging casually as he spoke, Hijiri tilted his head slightly.

Perched comfortably on top of his hair was a bird-like monster.

The little creature repeatedly pecked at his hair with its beak as if it owned the place.

Apparently, the Assassin’s Guild that Hijiri managed used monsters called Densho Poppo to deliver messages back and forth.

“Densho Poppo… like a carrier pigeon… That’s a pun, isn’t it?”

“Just so we’re clear, I wasn’t the one who came up with the name.”

According to Hijiri, the Hero who had been summoned to this world eighty years ago had been the one to christen the creatures.

“As expected… that Hero was Japanese, wasn’t he?”

“Most likely.”

“So then… what did the Densho Poppo say?”

“His Majesty has appointed me as a diplomat. He wants me to negotiate with the neighboring country so I’ll be able to continue searching for that shameless woman and the Dragon King.”

“Juggling government work while also running the Assassin’s Guild sounds exhausting.”

Hearing that made me appreciate, all over again, just how fortunate I was.

Protected by Hinoka and Amate, Papel Village was peaceful, safe, and the perfect place to enjoy the slow life I’d always wanted.

Still…

The sea, huh?

“Wait… are you saying we’re going to the neighboring country’s coastline?”

“That’s right. It’s called the Luresia Empire. It was originally founded after splitting away from the Lazaar Empire. It’s been fighting territorial wars with the Kingdom of Elde for years, so the two countries absolutely can’t stand each other. Their capital happens to be located along the coast—”

“W-Wait, wait, wait!!”

I hurriedly cut him off before he could continue.

“There’s no way I want to visit a country that’s practically at each other’s throats with ours!!”

“They’re not exactly at each other’s throats. It’s more… constant political tension.”

“That’s still a no!! I don’t want to go anywhere dangerous!!”

“Relax. Luresia is currently at war with the Principality of Zahaba, which lies on the opposite side of the empire from Elde.”

“W-What!?”

War.

The word alone sent a chill through me.

Without meaning to, I remembered the terrible stories my grandfather had told me—stories he himself had heard from my great-grandfather, who had lived through the horrors of the Second World War.

The images that came to mind were grim enough to make my face pale.

Just then, Raphiel and Eve happened to walk over.

“Eight, why have you suddenly gone so pale?”

“O-Oh, Raphiel. Well… I just heard that Luresia is at war with Zahaba, and it made me imagine some pretty awful things…”

“Hmm? The Kingdom of Elde was at war until little more than ten years ago.”

“What!?”

Hold on.

The Kingdom of Elde had been at war too!?

“Ah. Oniisan… are you imagining aircraft carriers, tanks, missiles, and the kind of warfare from the Second World War?”

“Y-Yeah… My great-grandfather fought in the war, so my grandfather told me a lot about it…”

“Ah, I get it now. Wars in this world are very different. They’re mainly fought over strategically important castles. It’s nothing like Earth’s modern wars. Of course, people still die… but it’s nowhere near that horrifying.”

I let out a quiet sigh of relief.

That… did make sense.

Still, I hadn’t realized that a neighboring country—one relatively close to us—was actively fighting a war.

Information traveled slowly in this world compared to modern Japan, but…

Maybe I’d been living with my head buried in the sand.

The thought made me realize just how little I actually understood about the political situation of this world.

Deciding I should remedy that, I asked Hijiri to explain in more detail.

“The Principality of Zahaba is a tiny nation, but the surrounding small countries have been pouring support into it. They’re managing to put up a respectable fight because of that.”

“Doesn’t that make going to Luresia even more dangerous?”

“Not really. Luresia has been pushing Zahaba back without much trouble. The reason is simple—they’re only fighting one opponent. They don’t have the national strength to provoke an official delegation from the Kingdom of Elde and suddenly find themselves fighting two countries on opposite fronts.”

I nodded slowly.

That was true.

The last thing Luresia would want was to divide its military by opening a second front.

“But… what if Zahaba somehow breaks through and attacks Luresia’s capital?”

“Then you have even less to worry about. The chances are practically nonexistent, but let’s suppose Zahaba did reach the capital… and then, for argument’s sake, they killed you.”

“That’s an incredibly unpleasant hypothetical!!”

“If that happened, Zahaba would be facing wholesale slaughter.”

“Huh?”

…My death…

Would somehow lead to a massacre?

“W-Why?”

“Have you forgotten who’s standing behind you? One is a Saint who sits at the very center of the Church and can mobilize believers across the entire world with a single command. The other is a Demon King whose individual strength surpasses that of entire nations.”

“Ehh? I’m not that barbaric.”

“Indeed. Setting Eve aside, I’m an elegant, intelligent, beautiful Saint. I certainly wouldn’t commit wholesale slaughter.”

Right.

Exactly.

Sure, the two of them usually spent their days lounging around, and when necessary they were terrifyingly capable—as they’d proven when they wiped out that dragon horde.

But…

There was no way either of them would do something as horrific as mass murder.

…Right?

“Really? But if Eight died, I wouldn’t get to eat his delicious cooking anymore. And I wouldn’t be able to order games or plastic models from Earth either.”

“Extermination it is. ☆”

“Using the Miracle of Corrosion, I would gradually destroy their farmland until famine consumed the nation. One should never underestimate the grudge born from having one’s food taken away.”

“See?”

“Uwaa…”

Eve’s response was already terrifying enough…

But somehow Raphiel’s calm, matter-of-fact answer was even scarier.

“Anyway, that conversation got a little off track. So… how about coming to Luresia’s seaside with me?”

“Oh? The sea? I’ve never been before. I would very much like to see it.”

“No thanks. It still sounds kind of scary.”

“Hah! Oniisan’s such a shut-in!!”

“Not exactly a shut-in. More like someone who never wants to leave the house. Luresia has a thriving tourism industry. They raise all kinds of fish and shellfish there, and they even have a culture of eating raw seafood. I think you’d really enjoy it.”

…Hmm.

The Kingdom of Elde had enormous lakes, but no ocean.

That meant the fish available here were limited to freshwater species.

Their freshness also left much to be desired, so eating them raw was completely out of the question.

Back on Earth, I could always order sashimi online whenever I wanted.

But…

I’d never tasted sashimi prepared from seafood in this world.

“I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t interested.”

“I’ll pay for all the travel expenses. Besides, if Eve and Raphiel come with us, we’ll be perfectly safe both on the road and inside Luresia. And besides…”

“Besides?”

“You might even get to see all the beautiful girls in swimsuits.”

“…!”

Hijiri leaned close and whispered those last words into my ear.

My eyes widened instantly.

W-Well…

I was still a guy, after all.

It wasn’t like I wasn’t curious.

“I mean… of course I’m interested. But there’s also the shop to think about.”

“You need a break every now and then. Besides, if the business falls apart just because one person is away, that’s a problem in itself.”

“Urgh…”

That was such an undeniably reasonable argument that I couldn’t come up with a rebuttal.

“I’ll probably be buried in diplomatic negotiations the whole time. Meanwhile, you can relax on the beach, enjoy delicious seafood, and spend your vacation surrounded by beautiful girls. Sounds like a pretty good deal, doesn’t it?”

“…You’re really paying for the trip?”

“A man never goes back on his word. The only real concern is whether you’ll be able to handle such a long journey in this world.”

…And that was exactly what worried me.

When we’d gone to the royal capital of the Kingdom of Elde, Cardinal Larsa’s Miracle of Teleportation had gotten us there almost instantly.

This time, though…

That wouldn’t be an option.

“In that case… I guess it’s time to use my trump card.”

Using the points I’d earned from running the shop, I decided to purchase something from the online store.

It was fairly expensive.

But this was one of those situations where sparing the expense simply wasn’t an option.

◇ ◆ ◇

At That Same Time…

Deep within the forest near Papel Village…

The woman’s consciousness slowly returned.

She opened her eyes, looking around in bewilderment.

“…What… happened here…?”

She was certain she had died.

Defeated by the very friend she had trusted.

And yet…

For some inexplicable reason, she still existed.

Her body had become translucent, like a pale ghost drifting between life and death.

After staring at her own transparent hands for a long moment, realization finally dawned.

“…Ah… Orvier got careless again. Anyone killed by magic becomes a wraith or a ghost unless the Miracle of Purification is used afterward…”

The woman let out a quiet snort, amused by her friend’s blunder.

Since she had nothing else to do…

She decided she’d simply hunt down any dangerous monsters she happened to come across.

And so, hidden from all human eyes…

A monster that hunted monsters was born.