Monster no Goshujin-sama - Volume 4 - Chapter 1

Chapter 1: The End to a Quiet Day

I sank deeper and deeper. Darkness shrouded my surroundings. I couldn’t see anything. I couldn’t touch anything. It felt somehow familiar, and I suddenly realized I was dreaming. This was that nightmare I had seen once before.

It came to me one month after I arrived in this world. Following the destruction of the temporary housing we students built, the Colony, I ended up wandering through the forest. There I met my servants, monsters of this world, and began living in that cave. One evening, after I encountered my former classmate Kaga and killed him in retaliation for trying to take my life, I had a very similar dream to the one I was having now. Although, I didn’t feel the suffocating isolation this time. I could sense something on the other side of the heavy darkness. It brought me peace of mind.

It was just a dream, yet it was somehow strange for one. I still had no idea what it all meant, however. My consciousness eventually began surfacing from the darkness. Still unable to see anything, feel anything, or know anything, I woke up.

“Morning, Master.”

I slowly opened my eyes and looked to the side. There sat a girl, completely naked, staring back at me. Everything below the charming curves of her waist was hidden beneath the sheets, whereas nothing at all was hiding her dazzling upper body.

In a sense, it was an overly stimulating sight. If it were nighttime, I might not have been able to hold back my rising urges... Or perhaps I couldn’t stop myself last night precisely because it was late. Her body arching in the dark room. Her sweet breath. The coquettish voice which spilled from her lips. I relived the luscious memories of the previous night. I normally suppressed such desires, so this might have led to my brakes malfunctioning.

“You can sleep a little longer if you want,” she said sweetly, stretching her slender hand out to my cheek. The soft sensation of her palm and her kind warmth did spur on my urge to act a little needy, but...

“...No, I’ll get up. Morning, Lily.” I shook my head and got myself up from bed. “Now that I think of it... Last time, Rose was nearby, wasn’t she?”

“What do you mean?” Lily asked curiously as she sat up next to me.

My power, inherent to those who were transported to this world—called a cheat by us and a blessing by the locals—allowed me to communicate with the hearts of monsters. Lily seemed to find it strange that I would bring up the name of my second servant born of this power. She pulled the sheets up to her breasts and cocked her head curiously.

“What about Rose?” she asked.

“Nothing. I was just having a strange dream.”

“Hmm. What kind of dream?”

“It was... Uhh... What was it?”

Even a dream that left a deep impression dissolved like sugar in coffee once awake. That was simply what dreams were. There was no longer any tangible trace of what I had seen in my mind.

“Geez. Are you still half asleep?” Lily said with a chuckle.

“...Maybe.”

I wasn’t a morning person. This was routine. That was why neither Lily nor I paid it any mind.

This was the morning of my fourth day at Fort Tilia, the beginning of a quiet day.

◆ ◆ ◆

Lily helped me dress while I remained in a groggy state. I sat on the edge of the bed looking up at her smile, which seemed fifty percent brighter than usual.

“...You seem to be in a good mood,” I said.

“Oh?”

Lily slightly inclined her head and picked up the little blowfox Ayame in her arms, whose fluffy tail had been beating the ground in anticipation. After soothing the parasite creeper Asarina, who was stretching out of the back of my left hand, Lily took a seat next to me.

“Hehehe. I mean, I got to recharge a whole lot last night.”

“...I see. Good for you.”

I sat there in a daze wondering what she had recharged as I waited for my sluggish thoughts to wake up. After a short while, a knock resounded throughout the room.

“...Ayame, Asarina.”

Fort Tilia was constructed to stand against the monsters that ran rampant in the Woodlands, a special forest thick with mana. It was one of the bridgeheads protecting humanity. While it was fine for visitors to see the mimic slime Lily, who could imitate the appearance of the late Mizushima Miho, I couldn’t possibly let anyone see Ayame or Asarina, seeing how they were very clearly monsters.

“Sorry for making you stay in such cramped places.”

“Kuu!”

“Mass—ter!”

The two monsters responded as if to tell me not to worry about them and then hid themselves before Lily went to greet our visitor. A boy in glasses with a rather nerdy personality was on the other side of the door. It was my friend from before we were sent to this world, Kaneki Mikihiko.

“Morning, Mizushima.”

“Mm. Morning, Kaneki.”

After greeting Lily, who was acting as Mizushima Miho, Mikihiko walked over to me. I had no idea what was going through his mind, but he gave me a sly smile.

“I’m heeeere.”

“...Morning.”

“You just totally ignored me. What a friend. Actually, you still look kinda sleepy, Takahiro,” Mikihiko said in exasperation before his eyes immediately shot open. “A boy and girl all alone in a room. And you, here, sleepy... I-Is this the legendary morning after?!”

“...You know I’ve never been a morning person.”

“Oh. Right. Tahaha. Sorry ’bout that. Still, Takahiro, you nonchalantly let my comment slip by. What do you think about that, Mizushima?”

“Huh? Ooh, hmm... I wonder? Teehee.”

“So! Pro! Found! I shouldn’t have asked! Commander! Comfort me...! I guess there’s no way, huh. Her guard is way too strong, but goddammit, I love that part of her too!”

“...You sure are energetic first thing in the morning,” I said, looking up at Mikihiko with half-opened eyes. “So, what do you need? Shiran isn’t coming this morning.”

Shiran was the first human of this world I met since being teleported here—specifically, an elf—and she’d taught me much about this unfamiliar world. We also attended a memorial service for the dead together in the mausoleum. For the last two days, she had been teaching me the basics of swordsmanship. That was more or less how we were acquainted.

Arrangements were made so I could accompany her on her regular morning training when possible, but the young lieutenant of the Third Company of the Alliance Knights had work to do this morning. It seemed she was on patrol duty in the surrounding vicinity. Just recently, she had led a long-term expedition into the Depths to rescue the students who safely escaped the Colony. Normally, she wasn’t supposed to receive another dispatch order for a while. However, the Alliance Knights were short on manpower. They needed all the hands they could get.

It was rather unfortunate. Given the opportunity, I had something I wanted to speak with her about. Seeing that she wasn’t coming this morning, I had no choice but to postpone that until the opportunity arose. There would surely be plenty of chances for us to speak so long as I remained in this fortress.

“Oh. I heard the lieutenant is busy this morning,” Mikihiko said, waving his hand loosely in the air. “Actually, I’m planning on helping out the commander too, so I can’t participate in training anyways.”

“What, you too?”

“Yup. I need to head back pretty soon. She’ll be pissed if I’m late. She can be a scary lady.”

Mikihiko’s cheerful tone conveyed how crazy he was about the woman who served as the commander of the Third Company. He had gone through the same hell as I did on the day the Colony fell. The commander was to him as Lily was to me. I could understand his behavior very well in this regard.

“...Hm? So, what did you come here for?”

“Oh, right. About Kei. She’s coming here today again, right?”

“Yeah.”

I had Shiran’s niece Kei assigned to be our attendant. This was largely a means to protect her. Just the other day, she was almost assaulted by one of the students, Sakagami Gouta. Fortunately, we managed to avert this thanks to Lily’s efforts, but we couldn’t do anything about the source of evil itself.

The power we called cheats—which the locals called blessings—was an exceedingly useful resource in this world, constantly threatened by monsters as it was. There was in fact a track record of past visitors from other worlds protecting humanity, so the locals revered visitors from afar as saviors with almost religious fervor. In contrast, elves were historically treated less favorably. As an elf, Kei required the patronage of another visitor to protect her. This was the fastest way of resolving the situation.

“So, what about Kei?” I asked.

“It’s better for her to avoid being alone as much as possible, yeah? So, I asked one of my acquaintances in the Alliances Knights to escort her here. He grumbled a bit, but the guy’s got a stout character, so I don’t think he’ll step down even if Sakagami tries anything stupid. He’s got a good excuse with her being your attendant and all. It’s a personal request from me, too.”

“I see. Sorry you had to do all that.”

“Whatever, man. Don’t worry about it. I also owe Kei a fair bit. I’ve got a bunch of other stuff laid out already.”

Mikihiko grinned. I was a little curious why he seemed to be having so much fun, but seeing that Kei’s safety hinged on this, he wasn’t doing anything imprudent. Contrary to his behavior, he wasn’t one to screw around.

◆ ◆ ◆

After that, Mikihiko quickly left just as he said he would. Lily and I also went to get breakfast together with the other students in one of the fortress’s larger rooms.

“Morning, Majima. Mind if I sit next to you?”

When we took our seats, one of the students came by to see if he could join us. It was the upperclassman who spoke with us on the way to the fortress, the one that felt like a class peacemaker, Miyoshi Taichi.

“Sure, go ahead.”

“Thanks.”

Much like how I was always with Lily, the students I came to this fortress with all had their own cliques. Miyoshi was followed by two boys and one girl. After getting my consent, they all took their seats next to us. At the same time, I felt a strange gaze affixed to me.

I looked around for the source. For some reason, the girl sitting diagonally across from me was looking at me with an inquisitive gaze.

“What is it?” I asked.

“...Um, Kaneki mentioned something to us yesterday... Majima, are you...?”

“Hey, Ryouko,” Miyoshi said in a reproachful tone.

“Ahaha. Sorry. Never mind, it’s nothing.”

Her reaction was far too unnatural. I exchanged glances with Lily. She shrugged. It seemed neither of us had a single clue what was going on.

“Uhh, did Mikihiko tell you something about me?” I asked Miyoshi.

“It’s really nothing. Don’t worry about it.”

That made me even more curious. I wanted to ask what was going on, but Miyoshi had no intention of continuing this conversation. The sight of Mikihiko’s strangely amused smile from this morning came to mind. Maybe I had to have a little chat with him about this later.

In any case, there was no point in clinging to this topic any further. I gave up and quietly ate my breakfast. Miyoshi’s group largely talked about the training they were getting at the fortress. The goal of said training was to awaken the power hidden within them as visitors from another world.

Such visitors were treated as saviors here. The way Miyoshi’s group got all excited about their futures as heroes was perfectly natural, in a sense. Today’s lesson was apparently going to be focused on the use of magic. This turned out to be a result of complaints that continuous physical training was too harsh on their physiques. I wondered if soon-to-be heroes should really be complaining about that, but perhaps such thoughts were merely born of my own sensibilities.

Similar topics were heating up at other tables as well. The two boys surrounded by Imperial Knights and soldiers had a particularly excited air about them. The one with the large build was Juumonji Tatsuya. The smaller one was Watanabe Yoshiki. They were both cheaters from the Colony’s exploration team. They were also members of the first expeditionary force, the elite team that had gone east searching for the humans of this world.

The conversation around them seemed to focus on their participation in the combat training the other day. Juumonji and Watanabe didn’t have any peculiar abilities. They were what we called warriors, those who simply possessed outstanding physical strength and mana. Cheaters instinctively knew how to use their own abilities, whereas warriors like them could apparently intuit what exactly needed to be done in a fight. They had displayed terrifying combat skills during training. I saw it for myself. I was actually rather impressed. They were sure to put their power on full display in today’s magic training as well.

The two of them had already carved themselves an unshakeable position in this fortress. They were talking to the higher-ups with tremendously confident expressions.

“They’re really impressive, huh?” Miyoshi muttered sincerely as he watched them.

“...Yeah.”

I threw in an appropriate response. My words didn’t really reflect my own thoughts, though. As I watched Juumonji smile and talk with the people of the fortress, I recalled his behavior when he showed up during the incident with Sakagami and Kei.

“Seriously. How long do you plan on acting like this is home? This is another world. Why do I have to put up with some ass who can’t understand that everything here is different...?”

That was what Juumonji had said about Sakagami’s selfish behavior. He was right. I couldn’t agree more; this world was completely different from home. After getting caught up in the panic of the Colony’s destruction, nearly getting killed, and wandering around the Woodlands in misery and pain, there was no way I could possibly forget.

On the other hand, that was precisely why I couldn’t help but question his hero-like behavior when he knew this world was different. Of course, despite my thoughts, even I could acknowledge they’d been doing well.

Taking into account the situation and circumstances of this world—compounded with the accident just before our arrival at the fortress where the Skanda beautifully intercepted the bull wrigglers—everything that happened demonstrated such good luck it only heightened their image as heroes. Regardless, they still did well in gaining the trust of the higher-ups here and unifying the students. Their glorious journey as saviors was going smoothly. This was sure to apply to the other students here as well.

“We’re just getting started ourselves,” Miyoshi said to his friends, filled with hope for their promised future.

◆ ◆ ◆

After breakfast, we returned to our room. On our way, my eyes came across a boy who was coming down the opposite side of the hallway.

“...Oh, Senpai.”

His slender face carried a timid expression. It was the bullied kid, Kudou Riku. Sakagami, the one who was using him as an errand boy, wasn’t anywhere in sight. Perhaps he was still asleep or something.

“G-Good morning...” Kudou greeted us then went to walk past us without stopping.

“Hang on, Kudou.”

“Wh-What is it?”

Kudou turned to me with a mix of fear and wonder on his face. It was understandable, considering how he was being used by Sakagami, but it didn’t feel good to be feared like this. I tried not to pay it too much attention.

“Thanks for yesterday,” I told him.

“...What for?”

“You tried to protect Kei from Sakagami, didn’t you? I thought I should thank you for it.”

Kudou stood there blankly.

“Is Kei that girl’s name? If so, I didn’t do anything worth thanking me for. I said this yesterday too, but I wasn’t able to do anything.”

“That’s not true.”

I shook my head. Kudou tried to stop Sakagami from dragging Kei into that room to the point where he got punched for it. If not for that, we might not have made it in time.

“Kei was also grateful for what you did.”

“I just...couldn’t stand his self-centered behavior.”

Kudou averted his eyes and scratched his cheek. It seemed someone in the fortress who could use healing magic had treated his wound, seeing that the swelling in his cheek was gone.

“That’s all it was... If that’s all, I’ll excuse myself here.”

I watched Kudou’s back as he hurried off but then suddenly raised my voice. “Hey, Kudou.”

“Yes?” he said as he turned around.

“Yesterday, when you heard Juumonji complain about Sakagami acting like he did back home even though everything here is different, you said nothing had changed at all, right?”

Kudou remained silent.

“What did you mean by that?”

I had been stuck on those words ever since he said them.

“What are you even saying? Nothing has changed at all.”

That was what Kudou muttered after hearing Juumonji’s grumbling. After I got thrown into this world, many things about my life changed, and I lost many things too. Coming to this fortress made me realize that more than I wanted to. So, I was curious how Kudou could make such a claim.

“...Oh, that? I was only talking to myself,” Kudou said. He forced a smile, but he looked resigned. “I didn’t mean much by it. The strong simply act however they like. We got sent to a different world, but that part remained exactly the same as before. That’s all I was thinking.”

For Kudou, who was basically a henchman or manservant for Sakagami, a new environment didn’t really change anything. Up until now, I had only focused on all the things I’d lost. That didn’t mean the things that remained the same were necessarily good things, though. There were facets of what Kudou was saying that I hadn’t thought of before.

“Sorry for saying something so strange. If that’s all, then please excuse me.”

Kudou slightly bowed his head and then finally left us behind. I watched his back as Lily leaned against me.

“Is something wrong?” she asked.

“It’s nothing.”

I shook my head. It wasn’t serious. There was just a part of me that agreed with what he’d said.

“The strong simply act however they want. We got sent to a different world, but that part remained exactly the same as before.”

The world we came from had a system of personal laws that maintained society’s public order through morals, ethics, and a sense of justice. Those laws were supported by the organizations that maintained public order. Take the police, for example, or in a more extreme case, the military. However, there was no such deterrent in the Woodlands. As a result, a portion of those with power acted as they liked, bringing about the Colony’s destruction.

In that case, perhaps nothing had drastically changed by coming here. Back in our world, in the dense forest, and here in this fortress, human nature remained the same. All it meant was an even stronger power determined the rules. If so...

“Master?” Lily said, bringing me back from my thoughts.

“We should get back to our room. Kei should be there soon.”

“...Oh, right. It’s about time, huh?”

A fair amount of time had passed because we’d had breakfast with Miyoshi’s group. At this rate, we would end up making Kei wait in the hallway. Thus, I walked side by side with Lily at a slightly hurried pace to get back.

◆ ◆ ◆

We ended up getting back just as Kei arrived.

“Good morning.”

The girl with the same blonde hair and blue eyes as Shiran bobbed her head as she greeted us energetically. She was with the knight Mikihiko had mentioned to us. He looked somewhat familiar. I scrutinized him further and recognized him as the man Shiran talked to while we were in the Alliance Knights’ office the other day. His name was Marcus.

After Marcus left Kei with us, we entered our room. What followed was class time. Although, the one playing the role of teacher wasn’t either of the older kids present, but the still childish Kei. She spread out several books on the small table and began teaching us about the monsters of this world.

“From what Shiran told us last time, all of the monsters come from the Woodlands. So, does that mean there aren’t many strong monsters outside the Woodlands?” I asked.

“That’s fundamentally true, but there are exceptions.”

Kei tightly clenched her fists atop her knees and leaned forward, doing her best to answer me. It highlighted how enthusiastic she was, which was very endearing. A thin chain carrying a red runestone about the size of a fingertip hung from her neck. This was a translation runestone.

“By the efforts of the great saviors throughout history, we’ve managed to clear our way through the Woodlands. Be that as it may, even in the lands that have been cleared, there are scraps of the Woodlands left behind. We call these the Dark Woods. It’s often the case that powerful monsters who can’t be easily defeated by any normal means set up their nests in such places. To be rid of these forests would require the resolve to suffer great casualties. The Rage of the Lands is a famous example.”

“I see. Meaning there’s a major reason to leave behind pieces of the cleared Woodlands.”

“Yes. Conversely, those monsters who don’t have a habit of settling are treated as disasters when outside the Woodlands. Unlike the ones in the Dark Woods, these inflict serious casualties when left at large. Many of them were suppressed by the esteemed saviors of the past.”

“So, that’s also one of their jobs.”

“That’s how it ended up. As for other cases, there’s one legend that tells of a monster that dominated a small country. Oh, but this is considered apocryphal by the church and isn’t acknowledged as fact.”

“It’s not?”

The church Kei mentioned was the Holy Church, which treated visitors from other worlds as objects of their faith. Pretty much every village had a church in it where they spread the legends of the saviors. What did it mean for such a church to dismiss one such legend? I cocked my head curiously.

“I mean, a monster possessing the intellect to dominate a country is impossible,” Kei said.

“...Well, that’s true.”

I could see Lily, who was sitting on the bed, giggling from the corner of my eye.

“It was apparently even turned into a play held in the imperial capital some time in the past. The Tragedy of the Undead King Carl. It’s a story of the king of a country that excelled in magic. The death of his lover, one of the great saviors, drove him mad. In the end, he turned into an undead monster called a lich.”

I had encountered another type of undead monster before: ghouls. A group of Alliance Knights moving separately from Shiran’s group during their rescue operation in the Depths were annihilated by monsters. Those knights had turned into undead monsters.

Ghoul outbreaks were dependent on the density of mana in the area. For example, corpses often turned into ghouls on battlefields littered with the dead. The soul contained mana, so when many lives were scattered to the wind in one place, the density of mana in the area was amplified. The Woodlands was a special region rich with mana to begin with, so ghoul outbreaks were a frequent occurrence.

“Liches are essentially the same as ghouls in that they’re undead monsters. However, it’s said that they’re powerful monsters who, though imperfect, are nearly immortal and can freely use magic.”

“So, it’s something like a high-class ghoul?” I asked.

“Something like that. It’s said that the Undead King Carl used his relentless willpower to maintain his intelligence. For a long time, nobody was able to defeat him. But finally, members of the Holy Order who once served under his lover were dispatched, and the Undead King vanished into the flames of purification.”

“So this Undead King is already dead?”

“Teehee. It’s just a fairy tale, Takahiro. The church teaches that the mad king led his country in open revolt against the Empire. This happened several centuries ago, so naturally, he’s long dead.”

“I see.”

I tossed in an appropriate response and sighed in a way that Kei wouldn’t notice.

That’s unfortunate... I thought to myself. I had a reason for asking Kei about such a famous monster. By stepping foot into the human world, we were distancing ourselves from the world of monsters. That meant it would be difficult for me to reinforce our combat strength. On the other hand, we could gather information much easier in the human world, a definite advantage for being here.

By learning everything I could about powerful monsters, perhaps I could encounter rare or high monsters who could potentially become my servants. Kei didn’t seem to believe it, but from what she told me about the Undead King, it hinted at the existence of monsters who were self-aware without me being a factor. I was rather intrigued by this.

But even without such a motive, just learning about monsters was meaningful in the event we encountered them. The knights were particularly well informed about the monsters in the Fringes, where the fortress was located, so this information was very valuable. The Fringes was actually quite a large region with many locales, each with monsters I had never seen before. It was all very interesting to me. Plus, I got to hear about another amusing story.

“There’s a famous monster here in the northern Woodlands, too. Stories from five hundred years ago tell of the Great White Spider. I don’t know whether or not they’re true, but there’s an arachne described as so beautiful you wouldn’t think it came from this world. It shows up in the heroic tales of the saviors.”

I almost spat out the tea I had just taken a sip of.

“A-A white arachne...?”

“Oh. Does it interest you? During the retreat of the campaign into the Abyss five hundred years ago, the Great White Spider was one among the monsters who attacked the exhausted army. The savior who led them was already dying from a fatal wound, but a heroic battle still unfolded between them. Their duel ended with no victor. It’s possible the Great White Spider may still be wandering the Woodlands to this very day.”

I mean, she’s actually supposed to be quite close to the fortress right now... Not that I could possibly mention this. Even if this was from before she had an ego, Gerbera apparently had a mischievous past. She told me before about how she encountered a human army, but she didn’t say anything about an epic battle against their leader.

In any case, our time with Kei was educational and enjoyable. We took our lunch together, and our classes continued into the afternoon until Shiran returned from her patrol duty and paid us a visit. Shiran was going to teach us swordsmanship today as well.

“Sorry for asking you to use your free time on us,” I said.

“Don’t be. It was my offer to begin with. Besides, I’ve told you this before, but I don’t really have anything to do aside from training. You’re rather enthusiastic about it, Takahiro, so there’s worth in teaching you too.”

“You’re a good teacher. It’d be a waste if I didn’t take it seriously.”

“I-I don’t believe that to be the case...”

Shiran averted her blue eyes while touching her pointy ear. Her innocent show of shyness brought a smile to my face as I decided to add an additional request.

“But I feel like you’re being a little too considerate. You can be a little stricter, if you want.”

“...I fear you’ll get injured if I were to be any stricter.”

“Sometimes getting stronger means going through some pain. I won’t complain just because of some broken bones. They can be healed with magic, anyway. Please be as tough as you want. There’s no meaning otherwise.”

“I-I see. You did keep going until you reached the very limits of your stamina yesterday, so I don’t doubt that you’re being serious...”

Shiran’s voice sounded a little astonished, but I also sensed a favorable sentiment toward my attitude.

“If you’re done talking, then let’s get going, Takahiro!” Seeing that our conversation had come to an end, Kei rushed over and grabbed my hand. “I’ll be receiving lessons from Shiran today too. Let’s do our best!”

Kei pulled my hand as if to say she couldn’t wait a moment longer. Shiran scowled, her expression troubled, as she looked over the little girl.

“Kei. You’re acting a little too familiar with Takahiro...”

“Now, now, Shiran. It’s fine, isn’t it?” Lily said, trying to smooth things over. “Majima has a little brother, but no little sister. He’s happy to have a cute girl like Kei so attached to him.”

“Still...” Shiran watched her niece tightly grasp my hand. Then her expression relaxed and she smiled. “...Very well. My apologies, Takahiro, please take care of Kei.”

“Yay!” Kei cheered, bringing a smile to everyone’s faces.

“I suppose there’s no helping it,” Shiran said with an affectionate gaze.

It was such a peaceful scene one wouldn’t think we were in the middle of a forest rampant with monsters. I continued to look at Shiran’s profile as I recalled what she told me in the mausoleum.

“Even if I may never see it again with my own eyes, I want to protect my hometown. I want to protect the other villages that share the circumstances of my countrymen. I want to protect the comrades who fight by my side.”

This kind of scene was surely what Shiran wanted to protect. Right here and now, I could feel it on my skin.

◆ ◆ ◆

Shiran went ahead of us to get the room ready while Lily and I kept Kei company. We couldn’t afford to leave her on her own. Kei got some damp cloths and water flasks ready, and we headed over to the training ground where Shiran was waiting for us. Lily and I carried most of the luggage aside from the large leather bag in Kei’s hands. Inside was her leather armor and other kinds of equipment used for her own training. The young girl’s steps were lively, as if even that weight was pleasant to her.

Incidentally, I gave Mikihiko a call. He wanted to participate in Shiran’s lessons too, and he was going to join us later. We walked down the hallways as Kei cheerfully told us about what she’d learned from Shiran already.

“...?”

When we arrived at the appointed room, which was large enough for several people to move around in at once, I felt the strained atmosphere at the tip of my nose and came to a stop. A fully armored girl was standing there, her dignified profile on display, with a sword at the ready in her right hand and a large shield in her left.

She suddenly exhaled and stepped forward. Despite the heavy armor, her movements were sharp, as if gliding across the ground. I couldn’t even tell when she raised her sword until I saw her swing it down diagonally. Her sword twirled back, the tip changing directions and going above her head in a reverse slash. Next was a horizontal swipe into a thrust. Her movements were so light one wouldn’t believe she was manipulating a large mass of steel as countless strikes flashed through the air.

The execution of her strikes wasn’t all that fast, perhaps so she could confirm the minute details of her own movements. Yet the way she carried her sword made it extremely difficult to chase the blade with my eyes. Her actions were far too smooth, not a single hint of waste. This wasn’t a common sight. This was something she had acquired through blood-curdling devotion to her studies and life-threatening combat experience. It was as if this girl before my eyes existed precisely for the sake of swinging a sword, as if she and her blade were a single entity.

She had shown me examples of how to swing a sword when teaching me before, but this was my first time seeing her training like this. If this was the norm for the knights who fought on the frontlines of the Woodlands, were the cheats we visitors possessed really all that impressive...?

“...That’s amazing,” I said, suddenly exhaling.

“Isn’t it?” Kei agreed happily. “She can use more than just a sword, too. She’s also a very talented spiritualist.” Kei’s voice was overflowing with respect for the girl she idolized as an older sister. “Contracting with spirits is a special type of magic only permitted to the elves. However, even among elves, only a small fraction of talented spiritualists can form a contract. The spirits test their contractors. All who accept this challenge are only met with success or death.”

“Meaning there’s a requirement to surpass these trials?”

“Yes. The spirits require a noble soul. Also, it’s said they need a very pure prayer. That’s why we elves go through strict training from a young age. Even so, very few dare to take on the challenge of making a contract.”

“So, elves go that far to make these contracts, huh?”

I shifted my focus to the yellow being floating above Shiran as she swung her sword. The spirit, who looked like a clay sphere with little limbs sticking out of it, had long, green garments hanging over it. As always, it drifted about the air in a happy-go-lucky manner.

“That’s right. The spirits are really special to us, after all.”

The elves were ostracized because spirits were considered monsters, enemies of humanity. That made the ones who contracted with them traitors, putting them on the receiving end of much criticism. Nevertheless, the elves never cast away the spirits. That was how special they were.

“What’s more, spirits are always helping their contractor during battles of life and death.”

“Hmm. I was under the impression it was just essential for detecting enemies.”

The sprite contracted to Shiran spotted me when I was hiding in the forest. I brought it up because of my prior experience with this, but Kei shook her head.

“They help in such ways, but that’s not all. A spirit will support its contractor with magic during battle. For example, the sprite always with Shiran will use earth magic during battle and also amplify her physical abilities. By borrowing a spirit’s power in such a way, spiritualists can do the job of two talented mages at once.”

“Hmm. That’s amazing.”

“Yup, it really is. I also want to be like that one day...” Kei’s eyes sparkled as she tightly held the leather bag in her arms to her chest. “Also! Also! That’s not the only thing amazing about Shiran!”

“Don’t go praising me to the heavens, Kei.”

Shiran suddenly brought her sword to a stop and turned this way. She looked to be intensely focused on her training, but she had realized we were present. Well, that much was natural considering how much of a racket we were making.

“Y-You were listening?!” Kei shrieked.

“I could hear you quite clearly. You must take care in retaining your composure.” Shiran sheathed her sword and walked toward us. She then held up her finger in front of the panicking Kei. “Furthermore, you’ll be a squire next year, Kei. You’re well on your way to becoming a knight. I’m still a novice halfway down my path. You must set your goals higher than that.”

“Y-Yes, ma’am.”

“I promised to watch over your training today too, didn’t I? Please get ready.”

“Yes, ma’am!”

Shiran was now in complete lecturing mode. Kei energetically ran into the room in accordance with Shiran’s instructions. She opened her leather bag and began pulling out its contents. Lily followed her, and the two of them had a friendly chat while getting ready. Seeing that Shiran was now walking my way, I struck up a conversation with her.

“There’s no need to be so strict with her, is there?”

“I have the responsibility of raising that girl into a full-fledged adult,” Shiran replied, lowering her voice so that Kei couldn’t hear. “If not, I couldn’t possibly face my late brother and his wife, or my mother who always worries for her.”

Shiran acted as an older sister, regardless of their actual relationship. Thinking back on it, the way Gerbera cared for Ayame was somewhat similar. Gerbera was a bit more of a softie, though.

“But from what I can tell, Kei is actually quite capable in both swordsmanship and magic for her age, isn’t she? She can even use a translation runestone.”

Even during the incident with Sakagami yesterday, if not for her social standing preventing her from resisting, and if not for the fear and confusion of being approached by an older boy, she might’ve been able to get by without my help. I thought it was pretty impressive for her age.

But Shiran shook her head. “She still requires a great deal of diligent study to be able to fight to the bitter end here in the Woodlands. Besides, she has trouble maintaining presence of mind and can be rather careless. I can’t take my eyes off her.”

“You mean that just now? She just wanted to tell someone about the big sister she’s so proud of. Isn’t that a good thing?”

She probably didn’t have many opportunities to do so. Shiran and Kei were both elves; the only ones she could talk to like this were her close relatives. It was rare she could boast about her sister to outsiders like Lily and me.

“On that note, your skills are really amazing, Shiran. Watching you made me understand Kei’s desire to brag.”

“That’s not true,” Shiran objected, despite my serious tone. “This much isn’t all that impressive.” I thought she was just being humble, but there was a tranquil air to her expression. She was being genuine. “I am of course striving to do everything I can... But it never seems to be enough.”

The tranquil expression remained on Shiran’s face, but there was a gloominess to her voice now.

“It just isn’t enough. No matter how much I train my body, I’m unable to protect my comrades as they die one after the other.”

“Shiran...”

Her gloomy eyes reminisced over the brother she’d lost in the Woodlands, along with all the other comrades who’d died in battle before now.

“We’re capable of far too little. Every year, villages vanish, people are devoured, and the forest gradually encroaches on the world. Even with swords in hand, staking our lives in battle, it takes everything we have to stave off complete destruction. All we can do is face a hopeless defensive battle built on a mountain of sacrifices.” Shiran clenched her fist as the sound of tightening leather rang out. “That’s why...” Suddenly, her blue eyes focused on me—no, not me, on the saviors of this world. “...Takahiro, do you know the major difference between us and the great saviors?”

“Is there one?” I asked with knit brows.

“Yes. The big difference between us and visitors from other worlds is said to be in our souls. The power in your souls gives birth to tremendous abilities, so they say. The true essence of a person lies not in their body, but their soul. We differ from saviors in terms of our very essence.”

That’s not true... I thought to myself. If there was in fact a difference, it was simply that we were born in different worlds. That was my opinion, but I wasn’t so thoughtless as to say it aloud. Shiran’s quiet words had a peculiar weight to them.

After trying, and trying, and trying, and trying so hard...she still couldn’t reach such heights. She greatly envied what she couldn’t obtain. Those thoughts transformed the fabricated image of the saviors into religious idols in her eyes. That was what I believed. I felt it from Shiran’s behavior, as well as that of the other students.

For example, in the legends Shiran spoke of before, the saviors who descended upon this world all threw themselves into battle to save the suffering masses. There wasn’t a single exception. “Knowing what is right and not doing it is a want of courage,” so they said. A truly wonderful ideal. Such an ideal was too clear cut, however. Humans weren’t that perfect. The phrase “several men, several minds” didn’t always have good connotations. It was impossible for every single human thrown into this world to be such benevolent saints. We wouldn’t need the police if that were the case.

The legends of the saviors were far too clean. They were born of alterations to history and embellished tales. That was why I called their view of saviors a fabricated image. Nonetheless, one couldn’t say this was unconditionally a bad thing. Sometimes it was necessary to have something clean and pretty over the mud-smeared truth.

“The first savior once said, ‘This world is where wishes come true,’” Shiran continued, her voice filled with passion. “Those words were very simple, so there are many interpretations. The mainstream belief is that in this dark era where humanity is pushed to the brink, the savior left those words behind to encourage the people not to lose hope. I have also received their encouragement.”

“...”

All I could hear from this was, “I was a totally powerless and ordinary guy, but after coming here, I became a hero right out of my dreams.” Not that I could tell her that. It was clear that this illusion was something necessary to Shiran. I wasn’t so insensitive that I would shatter it.

“In just a few more years, Kei will join the battlefield. Thinking of the casualty rate among knights, she isn’t likely to ever return to our village alive. Besides, even if some circumstance brings her back, we still won’t know when the forest will swallow that village. Moreover, I won’t be able to do a thing about it. I cannot possibly bring an end to this eternal battle that has raged for thousands of years before she joins the fray...”

Shiran looked at her niece putting on her leather gear with a sorrowful gaze.

“I’m powerless, unable to do anything about the reality before me... However, hope has swooped down upon us.” Her blue eyes turned my way and she smiled radiantly. “There is no precedent for so many visitors to descend upon this world at once. Just maybe, this generation will be the one where we are released from the menace that has threatened us for so, so long.”

“...”

A thought came to mind as I looked at her smile. This might be hopeless... I had one thing I wanted to talk about with Shiran. It was about finding someone who could help us, as I had discussed with Lily.

“We ask for help after explaining a certain amount of our circumstances. We can just withhold the other stuff. For example, we want to leave the fortress, but we don’t want other people to know. We can mention that much, right?”

Right up until yesterday, I couldn’t trust a single person in this fortress. I hid absolutely everything about myself and tried to fulfill my objective. But Lily said that was no good. As their master, I decided to look for someone I could trust and ask for their cooperation. Albeit, this wasn’t just a matter of finding someone I didn’t think would betray us. I had to choose someone who knew of the circumstances of this world. Otherwise, I would just cause them trouble. The first person that came to mind was Shiran.

I had a pretty good grasp of her disposition from our interactions. I thought it might be okay to go to her for advice, just like Lily said. However, if Shiran’s perception of me was nothing more than one of these “fabricated saviors,” then I couldn’t possibly tell her I wanted to leave the fortress without anyone knowing. That would be the same as shattering her precious illusion.

It’s unfortunate, but I’ll have to look for someone else.

As I came to that conclusion, Shiran suddenly withdrew her smile.

“But I’ve come to think now... Maybe this is just my selfish hope.”

“Shiran...?”

“I was taught the great saviors who descend upon us from afar are gallant heroes who fight to save the world. If I just clench my teeth and endure, then one day, they’ll come to save us all. I don’t intend to deny I fought with such hopes in mind. However...” I was bewildered by her unexpected words as Shiran looked at me with a sincere gaze. “Back when we spoke in the mausoleum, you told me you could understand my feelings of wanting to protect my hometown, my people, and my comrades.”

“...Yeah, I did.”

“I can tell you weren’t lying by watching how you swing your sword. Takahiro, you aren’t trying to protect this world like the great saviors from the stories... I feel that you are desperately devoting everything you have to protect something dear to you. I don’t mind if you laugh this off as me being conceited, but I believe you are the same as me.”

Shiran was empathetic toward someone who harbored the same feelings she did. I felt the same way about Shiran down in the mausoleum. Back then, she felt that in me as well.

“If this is true, then the hopes I pinned on you were nothing more than a selfish illusion.”

“...You’re not angry? I betrayed your hopes, didn’t I?”

“Getting angry over the betrayal of a hope I pushed on you arbitrarily is far too insincere, don’t you think? On the contrary, I should apologize to you, Takahiro. Please forgive me for projecting such a selfish illusion on you.”

Shiran’s eyes were looking right at me in the here and now.

“I’m ready! Huh? Shiran? Takahiro? What’s the matter?”

Kei finished putting on her leather armor and came running over. She looked at each of us with a curious expression. Lily sensed something was going on, so she placed her hand on Kei’s shoulder to stop her.

“Shiran, I...”

I resolved myself and opened my mouth, hanging on to my next words. Shiran waited for me...but her complexion suddenly changed.

“Hm?! Please wait, Takahiro.”

She looked straight up in the air at the spirit emitting a flashing yellow light. It spun in circles in a fluster as its tiny limbs flailed about. I felt déjà vu. It was the same scene I saw right before the bull wriggler attack in front of Fort Tilia.

“Monsters?”

“Yes. It seems they’re close to the fortress.” Shiran looked at me standing there tensely and gave me a reliable smile. “There’s no need to worry. Monster attacks are an everyday occurrence here. We have already finished our patrols for the day and there were no abnormalities, so this is likely an attack by highly mobile monsters, something like one or two tripdrills. It happens all the time. It’s nothing serious.” Shiran then walked past me and stepped into the hallway. “The others probably haven’t noticed yet. I’ll go inform them. I shall return once we are sure they have been repulsed, so let’s continue our conversation then.”

“Sure,” I said with a nod.

Shiran gave me a refreshing smile. “I can respect you for devoting everything you have for the sake of something dear to you. Even if you weren’t a savior, I look forward to when we can speak again.”

◆ ◆ ◆

“Yoohooo! I’m here!” Mikihiko yelled right after Shiran left. “I just passed Lieutenant Shiran earlier. Seems like something urgent came up?”

“She said monsters showed up and had to go. Does this happen often?”

“Ooh, that. Yup. Happens all the time. It’s pretty much guaranteed once every three days or so. In most cases, she’s the first to notice, so there’s not much of a point in having the army’s sentries around. She’s like a high-efficiency radar.”

“That makes sense.”

In truth, considering how she couldn’t detect Ayame and Asarina in hiding, I knew Shiran’s spirit only told her when enemies were nearby. It was a little different from a radar. Regardless, it was a splendid means of detection. Judging from what Mikihiko said, this ability of hers was quite valued in the fortress.

“I think the Alliance Knights are probably going to be deployed to exterminate the approaching monsters,” Kei said as she loosened up her lithe body and looked up at us.

“Isn’t the defense of the fortress the army’s job?”

Fort Tilia was garrisoned by the Southern Imperial Army, the Second Company of the Imperial Knights, and the Third Company of the Alliance Knights—the latter being dispatched by one of the Empire’s vassal states. The army managed the fortress’s defenses while the knights suppressed the monsters in the Woodlands. I had heard this was how their duties were segregated.

“Of course, the army will take up defensive positions, but those people are pretty much turtles,” Kei answered.

“So they don’t go into the forest.”

“Exactly. On the rare occasions monsters slip through and make it all the way to the fortress, they complain to the knights, even though defending the fortress is their job! Isn’t that cruel?!”

“Well, you could tell them that if they wanna complain then they should just go and do it themselves,” Mikihiko said with a strained smile. “Although, if you do, they’re probably gonna start complaining about the forest being under the knights’ jurisdiction.”

“...Sounds like a real pain,” I said.

“That’s how organizations go.” Mikihiko shrugged then snapped his fingers. “Oh yeah. Hey Takahiro, since it’s going down and all, why don’t we go have a look?”

“Have a look at what...? You mean the knights repelling the monsters?”

“Yup. You’re interested too, yeah?”

“...I guess.”

It was actually quite an attractive proposition. Seeing experienced knights who had gone through proper training take part in battle would be a good reference.

“But is it that easy to go and take a look?”

“It’ll be fine so long as you don’t say something stupid like you wanna go down with them to get all up close and personal. Actually, I guess if you insist, they’ll let you do that too... But you don’t wanna trouble little Kei here by dragging her into a battle and making her cry, do you now?”

“I won’t cry!”

“Are you fine with watching?” Mikihiko didn’t actually want to make her cry himself, so he asked to be sure. After Kei gave him a quick nod, he moved things along. “Then let’s go to the southern observation tower. We can see about half of the fortress’s surroundings from there.”

With that, we went along with Mikihiko’s proposal and got moving. There was more hustle and bustle in the fortress than usual. They were preparing to deal with the monsters. We talked to a few soldiers and managed to get permission before arriving at a spiral staircase which led to the top of a tower.

“Oh yeah, Takahiro,” Mikihiko said halfway up the staircase, turning around with a cheerful tone. “I heard you made little Kei here your mistress. That true?”

“M-Miss—?!”

I wasn’t the one to react to this. It was Kei. She stumbled on the steps and nearly fell over. On the other hand, I merely knit my brows a little. Unfortunately, I’d known this guy for a long time already, so I was used to Mikihiko saying stupid crap by now.

“Also, you’ve laid your hands on Shiran, so I hear.”

“Wh-Who is saying such things, sir?!”

“I guess pretty much all the students know... Well, I’m the one spreading it around.”

“M-Mikihiko?!”

Kei began cutely wailing on Mikihiko’s shoulders. She had completely forgotten he was a savior. Shiran would definitely criticize her if she were here, but Mikihiko laughed it off like he was having a blast. His face was that of a criminal taking delight in his own crimes. He wasn’t just being thoughtless, though. Spreading such rumors did in fact make it safer for the two of them. Now I understood. The strange behavior of Miyoshi’s group during breakfast was because of this.

I had one or two complaints, like he just assumed I would approve, and that the exploration team would probably make a fuss once they found out, but Mikihiko was just trying to protect them in his own way.

We reached the top of the tower as we continued to chat. There were several soldiers in the room keeping a vigilant watch on the outside through large, open windows.

“Oh, Mikihiko? What brings you here, sir?”

“We just came to take a look. They’re with me,” Mikihiko said, apparently acquainted with the soldier. “I heard monsters showed up. Where are they?”

“We can’t see them yet. The knights are just about to sally out.”

“Okay. So to the front.”

Mikihiko walked up to one of the windows. From above, Fort Tilia was like a large polygon. This tower was set where two of the walls met. Looking out the windows installed on the circular wall, we could see the glittering light from the fortress’s iron gate. Wind blew through the window, carrying the scent of the forest.

“...Hm?” Lily muttered, sniffing at the air and knitting her brows.

“What’s wrong?” I asked.

“Oh, nothing. Maybe I’m just imagining things. Just now, it felt like...”

“Oh! There they are!” Mikihiko shouted, cutting Lily off.

Looking closer, the iron gates were opening. Around twenty fully armored knights marched out of the fortress. They looked to be part of the Alliance Knights, but I couldn’t see Shiran’s white helmet in the crowd. A row of soldiers armed with bows stood on the ramparts above the gate.

The drawbridge was lowered over the moat surrounding the fortress and the knights marched across. When the last knight finished crossing, they all came to a sudden stop. I wondered whether something had happened when Lily tugged on my clothes.

“Th-This is bad.”

“What...?”

Just as I was about to ask what was going on, I held my tongue. I could also hear the noise now. The earth was rumbling far away, and the sound was gradually getting closer. The forest was trembling. Something was coming. The moment that thought flashed through my mind, a tidal wave of green poured out of the trees.

“Wha—?!”

It was an army of three-meter-tall bugs, bull wrigglers. Not just ten or twenty of them either; there were easily over a hundred surging out of the forest. They encroached on the open land surrounding the fortress like a surging wave, kicking up vast clouds of dust behind them.

“Th-The hell is that?!”

“You’re kidding, right? Am I having a bad dream...?”

“Wh-Why are there so many...? H-Hey, this is bad! They have to get the drawbridge up quickly!”

The soldiers in the tower were astir. Their reaction told me this was an abnormal situation. Panic delayed everyone’s response. The drawbridge finally started to rise as arrows coupled with magic fire poured down from the ramparts. The path before the bull wrigglers turned into a field of death abound with iron and flames.

However, this would only be a field of death for weak humans. The surging wave of monsters couldn’t be stopped by such superficial means. Arrows plunged into meat. Carapaces burned. But that wasn’t enough to slow down these tenacious bull wrigglers, let alone kill them.

The fortress’s defenses were built under the assumption that their overwhelming numbers would take on a few monsters at a time. With their attacks spread so thinly across the green tide, it was clear the defenses would be less effective.

The vanguard of the bull wrigglers finally reached the drawbridge. The knights stood before them, no longer able to return to the relative safety of the fortress by crossing the moat. Even if they could return, they chose to defend that spot to the death.

The moat surrounding the fortress was deep, but it wasn’t enough to stop the monster invasion. It was nothing but a means to slow them down to begin with. Still, anyone could tell that such stalling tactics were essential in a siege. Enemies crawling through the moat made easy targets, giving the advantage to the defending side.

If the drawbridge was taken, however, the tactic would lose its effectiveness. That was why they couldn’t possibly afford to yield their position. The leader’s decision wasn’t wrong.

I could hear his sharp command all the way from the tower. “Third Company! Charge!”

Even fully clad in sturdy armor, the twenty knights looked ever so tiny as they charged into the bugs. And in just a few seconds, they were swallowed by the green tide.

“Nooo!”

Kei screamed and covered her mouth. The knights were no longer visible within the mass of green bodies and dust. Their noble sacrifice bought just a few seconds. But those few seconds were priceless. That was enough time to raise the drawbridge, after all.

Well, it was supposed to be, at least. So why did the drawbridge stop halfway up? The bull wrigglers leaped into the air toward the half-raised drawbridge. Several of them fell into the moat, but many managed to make it.

“Hey! No way! Come on! You’re shitting me, right?! Cut it out! Hey! Stop!” Mikihiko yelled stiffly.

We watched as more and more bugs clung to the bridge, slowly causing it to sway...when suddenly, it could no longer withstand the weight and crashed down. The path was open. There was nobody left to block them. The large army of caterpillars charged across the bridge toward the iron gate. And without slowing, they crashed into it. The fortress shook with a thunderous roar.

“Whoa!”

Green body fluids scattered in the air. One after the other, like lemmings throwing themselves off a cliff, or like moths to a flame, they showed no hesitation in slamming their bodies against the iron gate.

As they did, their heads caved in, crumbled, and scattered into the air. They were dying. It was as if this was some competition. Their nauseating behavior somehow reminded me of ghouls. I couldn’t sense even the smallest attachment to life that any living being should possess.

They relentlessly slammed into the fortress, their furious attacks enough to pulverize their own bodies. The first wave caused a creak. The second a tremble. The third, fourth, and fifth opened a crack in the gates. The iron doors shook, lurched, and wrenched open. The green tide surged through the open gate all at once.

“The monsters...got through...?”

Someone’s dumbfounded voice struck my earlobe. I was probably in a stupor for less time than most of the people in the room. That was why I was able to notice Lily, who was right by my side, suddenly stiffen.

“Oh no! They’re coming this way!”

I brought my gaze up from the gate and spotted a flock of flying bullets: seventy-centimeter-large insects, stab beetles. In the next instant, the top floor of the observation tower we were in collapsed.