Kays Translations
Just another Isekai Lover~
Chapter 160: “Demon Lord Rukie and Chancellor Kelve Receive the Report on That Box”
—Demon Lord Rukie’s point of view—
“I shall now head for the Reisenga Territory. Prepare a carriage.”
After reading the letter from Thor, Demon Lord Rukie gave her orders immediately.
“There has been an important report regarding ‘that box.’ From here on, I must be in a position where I can issue orders to the search team without delay. For that reason, I need to move to a location near the border. Make the preparations at once.”
And so, preparations for the Demon Lord’s departure began.
“I never imagined the contents of ‘that box’ would be documents from another world.”
Demon Lord Rukie and Chancellor Kelve were discussing the matter of “that box” in the throne room.
Rukie held the letter from Thor in his hands.
It had been delivered just tens of minutes ago by the pixie fairies.
The letter detailed the contents of “that box” and all the information obtained during the search.
Before their departure, Rukie and Kelve decided to discuss its contents.
“On top of that, it seems a prince from the Empire has come from the imperial capital. It appears he is seeking negotiations with Princess Sophia at this time. They are reportedly near the town of Nosa, along with his escort soldiers.”
Rukie gave a wry smile beneath his mask.
“A prince’s unit from the Empire, the mysterious men who stole ‘that box’… the border area is becoming quite rowdy.”
“Moreover, suspicious individuals have even infiltrated the trading post.”
“Are they subordinates of the Imperial Prince?”
“They’ve remained silent, but I believe there’s little doubt about it.”
Chancellor Kelve nodded.
“The intruders at the trading post even resisted the intimidation effect of the ‘traffic cone,’ albeit briefly. If they are indeed direct subordinates of the Imperial Prince, it wouldn’t be surprising for them to possess such abilities.”
“So, they aren’t allies of the group who had possession of ‘that box’?”
“According to the reports, they panicked when faced with the ‘Dark Wolf.’ Compared to those who withstood the terrifying ‘traffic cone’ to infiltrate the post, they’re far weaker.”
“In both strength and mental fortitude, the former far surpasses them.”
They paused for a moment, then both turned their gaze to Thor’s letter.
“For now, let’s put aside the matter of the Imperial Prince. Next is the matter of ‘that box.’”
“Yes, Your Majesty.”
“That box contained letters from a person of another world, as well as materials about weapons, didn’t it?”
“It was far beyond anything we could have expected…”
Chancellor Kelve, holding a copy of the report, spoke in a trembling voice.
“Leaving aside the letter from the otherworlder, documents detailing weapons to fight a new species of magical beast—the ‘Hard Creatures’—were included. Honestly, I have no idea how we should handle this…”
“It was fortunate that only Thor could read the writing.”
Demon Lord Rukie let out a sigh.
“Without Thor, the search team likely wouldn’t have realized the value of the documents. It’s possible we might’ve handed them over to the Empire without understanding what they were.”
“And… if someone in the Empire could decipher them, they would’ve obtained weapon information capable of defeating the ‘Hard Creatures.’”
“Weapons on par with the ‘laser pointer’ or the ‘meteoric iron arrow,’ yes.”
“I don’t even want to think about it.”
The Empire has alchemists too.
While it’s unlikely anyone surpasses Thor, it’s possible they have someone familiar with the characters of the Hero’s World.
Letting those documents fall into the Empire’s hands would be far too dangerous.
“I feel bad for Thor-sama… but perhaps we shouldn’t have informed Princess Sophia about the contents of the letter. Maybe we should’ve kept the existence of the weapon documents hidden.”
“No, that would have been difficult.”
Rukie shook his head at Kelve’s words.
“This search was a joint operation between the Demon Lord’s domain and the town of Nosa. We needed their cooperation to conduct the search on human territory. Hiding what we found would not be acceptable.”
“…You may be right.”
“We are humans and demi-humans—in other words, different races. Precisely because of that, trust is important. For now, we’ve maintained good relations with Princess Sophia and Archduke Kharon. It would not be wise to lose that.”
Demon Lord Rukie continued.
“Besides, even Thor didn’t expect the contents of ‘that box’ to be weapon documents. It couldn’t be helped that he read the discovered letter in front of the princess.”
“Thor-sama is not the type to keep secrets, after all.”
“Fufu, indeed.”
“That’s probably why he’s earned the trust of the Empire’s princess.”
“Indeed. And Princess Sophia wouldn’t leak the weapon information to the Empire.”
Rukie regarded Princess Sophia as someone worthy of trust.
This could be seen clearly from this situation.
Truthfully, there was no need for Princess Sophia herself to join the search team.
There was no reason for a princess to step into a location where unknown parties might be hiding.
Even sending the team alone would have fulfilled her role as lord.
And yet, Princess Sophia chose to join the search team.
That was likely out of a sense of responsibility as the ruling lord.
Rukie believed that such a person could be trusted.
(Well, it also seems Princess Sophia has taken a liking to Thor, so perhaps she simply wanted to be near him.)
Rukie nodded.
(Participating in the investigation as a lord, and spending time with Thor on the side. Princess Sophia seems to have lived a restricted life up until now. It makes sense that she cherishes moments like these. So, spending time with Thor while fulfilling her duties as lord… huh?)
(Her role as lord… on the side…?)
A sense of discomfort crept in.
Rukie felt as if he was misunderstanding something and fell into thought.
(To Princess Sophia, what is the real priority—her duty as lord or Thor?)
Princess Sophia is a wise woman.
She had assumed she was acting for the benefit of Nosa and to strengthen her own position.
—But what if it was the other way around?
What if she joined the search team simply because she wanted to be with Thor?
What if her desire to become Thor’s fiancée is simply because she wants to marry him?
Her duty as lord is the side role.
Thor is the main priority; her role is secondary.
If Princess Sophia is already in that state—
“────!?”
Rukie clutched her chest.
Behind her mask, her face grew hot.
(…This might be bad.)
Sophia is Thor’s fiancée candidate.
Rukie has accepted that.
So, it’s not strange for Sophia to be with Thor.
But──
(What is this feeling? I’m so frustrated. This isn’t good. This really isn’t good…)
“What’s the matter, Your Majesty?”
Before she realized it, Chancellor Kelve was looking at her with concern.
Rukie cleared her throat, as if to cover her inner feelings.
Then she straightened her back, looked at Kelve, and said,
“It’s nothing. More importantly, about the contents of ‘that box’.”
“Yes. According to the letter, the beings we call ‘new species of magical beasts’ originally appeared in the Hero’s World.”
Unaware of Rukie’s inner turmoil, Kelve read aloud from the letter.
“So, the Empire’s soldiers summoned them into this world… is that correct?”
“Y-Yes. In the Hero’s World, the heroes and their descendants have been fighting those ‘Hard Creatures’.”
“It’s likely that only the heroes and their descendants can face such magical beasts.”
“The real issue is why the ‘Hard Creatures’ started appearing in the Hero’s World in the first place.”
“What do you think, Your Majesty?”
“There’s too little information. I can’t even begin to guess.”
“I understand. I have no idea either.”
“However, the winged fairy who brought the letter also relayed Thor’s words.”
Rukie recalled what had happened just a few tens of minutes earlier.
A winged fairy had come to the Demon Lord’s Castle and delivered a letter.
They were the ‘Earth Winged Fairies’—the most serious and polite of them all.
Several of them worked together to convey Thor’s message.
The message was──
“‘Knowing heroes, maybe they summoned powerful magical beasts from another world in their pursuit of being the strongest?’… That’s Thor’s theory.”
“I can believe that! A hero would totally do that!”
“It’s certainly possible if it’s a hero.”
Demon Lord Rukie and Chancellor Kelve nodded in agreement.
Thor’s theory was as follows:
────────────────
The heroes from another world constantly fought to become the “strongest.”
Even after they returned to their original world, it’s entirely possible they continued that pursuit.
Perhaps they even fought among themselves to further hone their skills.
That may be why they needed powerful items like those found in the ‘Mail Order Catalog.’
Thus, in their search for greater strength, the heroes likely summoned ‘Hard Creatures’ from another world—to serve as worthy rivals.
Knowing the heroes, it’s not surprising if they accidentally summoned a large number of ‘Hard Creatures.’
It’s quite common for heroes aiming to be the strongest to not think about the consequences.
As a result, the ‘non-heroes’ of the Hero’s World also began to suffer… and even ordinary people needed countermeasures against the ‘Hard Creatures.’
I believe that’s why the research facility mentioned in the letter was created.
────────────────
“Makes sense.”
“That explanation is very clear.”
Rukie and Kelve folded their arms in thought.
“But what I don’t understand is why the researcher who wrote the letter was working on a weapon rejected by those who ‘don’t understand romance.’ Do we really need romance to counter the ‘Hard Creatures’?”
“According to Thor, ‘It’s probably a weapon that lets ordinary people fight as stylishly as the heroes.’”
“Ordinary people, fighting like heroes?”
“There were heroes who performed rituals before fighting, right?”
“You mean the ones who declared lines or struck poses before battle?”
“Yes, those. I’ve even heard there were some who caused explosions behind them.”
“Colorful explosions. There are oral accounts in the Chancellor’s family too.”
“Perhaps those were rituals performed before unleashing great power.”
“…True. The heroes who did that often had the strongest techniques…”
“That’s probably what they meant by ‘romance.’”
Rukie had also heard about the heroes’ fighting styles from her parents when she was small.
At the time, she had foolishly thought it was “cool.”
That very feeling must be the ‘romance’ written about in the letter.
“But the ‘Hard Creatures’ aren’t beyond our ability to defeat. It’s just their numbers that make them worthy rivals to the heroes. In that case…”
“What’s important is defeating the beasts efficiently, and the rituals before fighting… in other words, the ‘romance’ isn’t necessary.”
“But the letter’s author had the heart of a hero. That’s why he sought romance.”
That’s probably why the researcher from another world left behind materials for “weapons of romance.”
Believing that someday, someone would carry on their ideals.
Thinking that way made the contents of the letter much easier to accept.
“Anyway, when it comes to handling the documents, we’ll leave that to discussions with Princess Sophia. Let’s get in touch as soon as we arrive in the Reisenga territory.”
“Understood. What about the Imperial prince?”
“If he desires the box itself, I don’t mind giving it to him.”
Rukie gave a smile with just the corners of her mouth.
“What’s important is the contents of the box. That’s why I also approved Thor’s ‘plan.’ The issue is how much information from the letter we should pass on to the Empire.”
“We can’t allow the ‘Hard Creature’ to be summoned to this land again. We should explain the circumstances and strongly advocate for a complete ban on Hero Summonings.”
“That is true, but…”
“Is there something you’re concerned about?”
“By passing on the information, there’s a chance we might actually provoke the Empire instead.”
Rukie spoke in a weary tone,
“If they hear this, the Empire might summon a ‘Hard Creature’ just to train themselves. That’s what I’m afraid of.”
“……Ah.”
Chancellor Kelve looked stunned.
Rukie continued.
“Although the catalyst for summoning magic has already been lost, we can’t let our guard down. The Empire still knows the summoning ritual.”
“Then perhaps it’s better not to inform the Empire about the ‘Hard Creature’…”
“Even so, there’s still a chance the Empire will attempt a Hero Summon.”
“…That is troubling.”
“That’s why Thor came up with the idea of placing a fake letter inside the box.”
“A fake letter?”
“To stop Hero Summonings and protect this world. He consulted with me on its content. How to warn of the dangers of Hero Summoning without giving the Empire more information than necessary…”
Rukie’s eyes sparkled as she murmured.
Because she was happy that Thor had relied on her.
“Still, I don’t think that’s something Her Majesty should be handling.”
However, Chancellor Kelve declared firmly.
“Certainly, the matter of ‘that box’ is important. But Her Majesty is already quite busy. I believe it’s best not to place any more burden on yourself.”
“I don’t mind just giving some ideas.”
“As Chancellor and as one of the civil officials, I can’t overlook any increase in Your Majesty’s burden. Ideally, Erte, being a civil official, should have taken that into consideration before writing the letter… but it seems my niece is somewhat influenced by Thor-sama.”
Chancellor Kelve kneeled before Rukie and bowed his head.
“I understand Thor-sama’s intentions, but this is a strategy against the Empire. It should be handled by a military or civil official.”
“…You may be right, Kelve.”
“Your Majesty should focus on preparing for your departure and the meeting with Princess Sophia.”
“Very well.”
“I’m grateful for your understanding. Then, I shall relay this to Erte and General Reisenga…”
“I’ll leave the rest to you, Kelve.”
The Demon Lord Rukie stood and declared:
“I command you, Chancellor Kelve. Consider the contents of the letter to be placed inside ‘that box.’”
“……………………Eh?”
“Thor will translate the written contents into the ‘Hero World’s language.’ Then we’ll transcribe it onto paper and place it inside ‘that box,’ so it can be read when the Empire opens it.”
“M–Me…?”
“Until then, we’ll appeal for a ban on ‘Hero Summonings’ through diplomatic channels. Princess Sophia and Archduke Kharon will likely cooperate. That too, is part of the plan.”
“U–Understood.”
Chancellor Kelve kneeled down.
“I, Kelve, shall write a document to stop the Hero Summonings.”
“Good. Write it as if you were a researcher from another world.”
“…………Understood.”
Eventually, preparations for departure were complete.
Rukie boarded the carriage designated for the Demon Lord. Kelve followed behind in a sturdy carriage.
Minotaur soldiers guarded the front and rear of the procession.
And so, the procession began its journey smoothly—
“—The Chancellor’s carriage is shaking quite a bit.”
“—There’s a shock and sound, like something hitting the carriage pillars.”
“—Perhaps he is training himself. Incredible.”
“””As expected of Chancellor Kelve, indeed…”””
For some reason, with the heavily shaking carriage in tow, the Demon Lord’s army advanced southward.