Chapter 16 — This Is Going to Be the New Member of the Four Heavenly Kings
Late at night, Shigeto Mitadera successfully managed to infiltrate the mansion where Rei Kushima was being held. It was all thanks to Hanakawa. His time spent hanging around the estates of the heads of the empire had them all on high alert, and that ended up pulling security away from the building where Rei was being held as the guards focused on protecting the rooms of their masters. Rei’s location was being all but ignored.
“I’m impressed things are going so smoothly,” he commented.
It is only one of a multitude of possible plans.
Since they were trying to be covert, Navi did not presently have her human appearance. Once again a book, she was sitting in Shigeto’s pocket. With the information she provided, Shigeto could find the best way into the mansion easily and already knew all the guard patrol routes. Everything had been easy so far.
After the next guard passes, go to the staircase across from us and head up to the second floor.
“Okay.”
Staying hidden, he followed Navi’s instructions, making it up the stairs. Rei was supposedly in a room in the middle of the second floor, where she was being confined.
The door will be locked, so first we need to find the key.
The key was in the maids’ waiting room. They needed one to bring her food and such.
“Shouldn’t Rei be able to get through a locked door on her own?”
Rei’s class, Femme Fatale, gave her the ability to entice men, but perhaps due to leveling up, it was also starting to have some effect on women like Rena. Shigeto figured it would be easy enough for her to subjugate a maid and escape using that power.
It is fundamentally a power meant to be used against the opposite sex. We don’t know the scope of her abilities now, so we can’t really theorize on the particulars of it.
“Is it possible she can’t move?”
It is. You will have to carry her in that case, but I have already planned a route for that eventuality.
Shigeto made it to the room. He had slipped through a gap in the guards’ patrol, so there was no one to be seen. It didn’t seem like they were trying particularly hard to keep her guarded.
He inserted the key, but the door wasn’t even locked.
“Is she not inside?”
If she had been taken somewhere else, there was no need to lock the door. But there was light coming from inside the room, so there was a strong possibility that someone was in there.
“Maybe it’s someone else?”
The only thing I know for sure is that this is where Rei was being held. The Master Oracle class doesn’t have the ability to retrieve information in real time.
The Master Oracle’s ability was not to give a perfect answer to any question. It simply looked at the future from a fixed point, reviewed potential futures, and suggested a course of action to deal with the possibilities.
“But it was an option you considered, right?”
Yes. If she is not here, she is likely in a different room, but in that case we should retreat for now. Switching to another route from here would be extremely difficult.
“Either way, we have to see what’s inside.”
It was too late to be getting cold feet. Shigeto opened the door.
“Who’s there? It’s awfully late for visitors.”
Rei was sitting on her bed, reading a book. Shigeto was relieved to see she wasn’t being treated poorly.
“It’s me. I came to save you!”
“Oh, did I leave you under my control?”
Shigeto felt uneasy. He had come to save her, but their first meeting after such a long time had prompted a fairly weak response from her. It was almost as if she didn’t care about him at all.
“I’ve got an escape route planned,” he continued. “You just need to follow me.”
“I’m not being held against my will, you know.”
“What are you saying?”
His heart suddenly began to race, and his breathing became ragged. A wave of dizziness dropped him to his knees. Confused, he looked up at Rei. She was positively glowing. He had always thought she was beautiful, but she seemed even more stunning than before.
“What?! This future shouldn’t be possible!”
Navi had manifested in human form. Taking hold of Shigeto, she was trying to drag him out of the room.
“Looks like you’ve made a cute little friend there,” Rei said. “Does that mean your power awakened?”
“Then you...”
“Yes, I’ve awakened too.”
They had no idea how Rei’s power had changed, but her awakening had been totally unforeseen by Navi, leaving her in mental disarray.
“Hold on... I came here to save you, so why—”
“I don’t want you taking me away from here, but convincing you seems like a pain.”
“Why? After you became their underling for me...” Shigeto thought she had done it to save him, so now it was his turn to save her.
“What? I thought I was about to be killed, so I figured I had to do something. You really interpreted that however you wanted, didn’t you? I guess that’s what happens when you fall for me.”
Shigeto’s mind fell into further chaos, unable to think about anything other than her.
◇ ◇ ◇
Hanakawa was in an empty white space.
“Yet another dream, I suppose. And it looks like I have returned to my female form?”
His transformation into a girl had been temporary. He was a little disappointed, but no one would recognize him in that form, which would result in him losing his position as jester, and he would be killed if he was discovered.
“If this is a dream, perhaps I can make a mirror appear... Oh, it worked.” He looked exactly as he had before. “Then I should... Hmm. Is this manner of speech still appropriate? Putting that aside, if what Malnarilna said is true, then I have been called to give someone advice.”
He looked around. Empty white space expanded in every direction with a single black speck in the distance. It appeared something was over there.
“Since this is a dream, can I fly? Oh, it looks like I can.”
His body floated up into the air, and he began flying towards the speck. He found a boy in a school uniform standing there. His age seemed to be similar to Hanakawa’s.
“Hmm. He seems like quite the gloomy fellow. Like the kind of guy to get absorbed in otherworld fantasy novels to escape reality.”
“Oh! A goddess?! You must be a goddess, right?! Am I being reincarnated in another world?! That must be it!”
“How does someone so cowardly in front of their own classmates act so arrogantly in front of a total stranger?” Hanakawa muttered under his breath.
“Did you say something?”
“No, not at all. I’m... Ahem, I am a messenger from God! Oho ho ho!”
“Ohhh! So before I get sent over, you’re here to explain things to me, to soften the blow, right?!”
“P-Precisely!”
Hmm. I didn’t decide on a character beforehand...but I will probably never see this guy again, so I can just wing it. Now then, I suppose I am meant to give him some advice on choosing a new power.
We’ll leave the explanation to you!
Just as he was wondering what to do next, he heard Malnarilna’s voice. At the same time, details about the process of giving out powers flowed into his head.
“Indeed!” Hanakawa continued aloud. “Upon reincarnating, you will be granted a new power, but there are some conditions! You are being summoned to defeat the villain Yogiri Takatou! Naturally, if you refuse to engage him, your power will disappear!”
“So I’m being summoned to fight a Demon Lord, huh? Classic!”
“You will be permitted to select your own power, but Yogiri Takatou possesses the ability to inflict instant death, so please take that into consideration.”
“Oh? What kind of powers can I pick?”
“Uhh, well...” Hanakawa didn’t really know what kind of powers were okay. For example, it was likely impossible for the boy to ask for a power that made him stronger than Malnarilna. There was clearly going to be some sort of limit.
Oh, we didn’t explain that, did we? No matter how amazing we are as gods, the powers we can give out are based on the person.
So just think about something that matches his fate score!
Fate score, is it? I seem to remember the Sage Miss Aoi saying something similar. Well, how is this young man’s fate score?
Terrible.
Totally mediocre.
But he died in a weird way, so he got a bit of a bonus!
Aha ha...so that is why people transported to other worlds die in such strange ways...
Leaving out how poor the boy’s fate score was and thus how weak his ability would have to be, Hanakawa moved right along with his explanation.
“Please choose something under one thousand skill points! Here is the skill list! Please try and think of something that could defeat Yogiri Takatou! His abilities are to detect killing intent and inflict instant death at will, so think carefully...”
“I’ve already decided. All stats times ten thousand! A simple power like that is easier to use than any of these complicated ones. There won’t be any catch like, ‘You can’t control yourself at ten thousand times strength,’ right?”
Information about the skill immediately appeared in the back of Hanakawa’s mind. One would think that if a person suddenly moved at ten thousand times their normal speed, it would be impossible for them to control themselves, but since the speed of his thoughts and reflexes would be multiplied by the same amount, it seemed like it would work just fine.
“That should be no problem. But did you hear what I said? Such a power would never be able to defeat—”
“If I move at ten thousand times speed and hit him with a punch at ten thousand times strength, he’ll die, right?”
“As I thought!” He wasn’t listening at all. Hanakawa decided to leave it there. He didn’t really care about this guy one way or another, and it wouldn’t affect him personally if the boy was killed.
“So, am I going to start as a baby?”
“Well...if we did that, it would take quite some time before you were able to combat Yogiri Takatou...so we will have you appear as a mysterious stranger, suddenly visiting this world. Is that acceptable?”
Hanakawa gave Malnarilna’s explanation to the boy directly. Although they said it was a reincarnation, it was more like a summoning. The only difference was that, unlike an actual summoning, he had died in his previous world, so a new body was being prepared for him.
“Starting over as a baby sounds like a pain, so that’s fine,” the boy responded.
Having acquired his acceptance, Hanakawa explained the rules of being an apostle briefly before sending him off.
“Is that good enough? I am not sure having them select their own powers is wise. I feel like it would be preferable for you to select the power for them.”
That was just a test!
Next time it will be a much better person, so they’ll have lots more choices!
“I hope it is someone who will actually listen to what I say...” Hanakawa felt like his role of giving advice wasn’t actually all that meaningful.
◇ ◇ ◇
The person with the ability to multiply all stats by ten thousand was defeated by Yogiri Takatou.
◇ ◇ ◇
“So, this is going to be the new member of the Four Heavenly Kings.”
Hanakawa felt a cold sweat running down his back. They were in the audience chamber of the palace. Shigeto Mitadera and Rei Kushima were standing in front of them. Yoshifumi was sitting on his throne with Hanakawa standing beside him. One level down were Rena, Luna, and Abby. The new member of the Four Heavenly Kings, Rei, knelt there with her subordinate, Shigeto.
I’m not going to be outed as a traitor, am I? Hanakawa had met secretly with Shigeto and cooperated with him. If someone pointed that out, his position would be in danger.
“I know Yoshifumi’s decisions are final, so I can’t argue with it or anything, but is she going to be all that useful?” Luna asked, doubt clear in her voice. It seemed she had plenty of desire to argue.
“Well, we’re back to four for now. She is a little strong, at least. Also, Rei’s subordinate here is a Master Oracle. When I asked why they came to this island, they told me somethin’ interesting.”
At this rate, it appears the discussion will have nothing to do with me? Hanakawa felt a little relieved.
“Apparently, there’s a way to beat the Sages.”
“What?!” Rena, Luna, and Abby were plainly shocked.
“We’re not invincible or anythin’. Sometimes Sages die to Aggressors. But according to this guy, there’s a much more certain way. Something that will let you almost always beat a Sage if you have it.”
“What on Earth...”
“Abby, this is kinda related to your work. Those guys from the royal family went to the Elven Forest, yeah?”
“Yes. Adventurers were sent to deal with them, but... No way, is there something there?”
“If they wanted to get over here, there’s no reason to go through the Elven Forest. But they did, so they must have a goal.”
“I see,” Hanakawa interjected. “So this is about the World Sword Omega Blade, is it?”
“Huh? You know about it?” Yoshifumi asked.
“I heard about it from Sir Mitadera earlier.”
“Right, you came here with Rei. Well, that’s right. Apparently, if you have that sword, you can kill Sages. I’m not sure it’ll work against someone invincible like me, but it’s probably not good to ignore it. I’ve decided to go deal with it myself.”
“Do you really need to bother yourself over something like that?” Luna asked. “Why not just send Rena or something?” Luna’s role was to oversee the city, while Abby was in charge of the adventurer system. Rena was comparatively more free to act than the rest of them.
“A sword that can beat the Sages sounds interesting, doesn’t it?”
Yoshifumi’s intention in creating his empire was to manage his boredom. He had let the royal family survive because he felt like they might do something interesting if left alive. The adventurer system and hostile environment of West Ent were all just ways for him to kill time. So if there was a sword that could destroy Sages out there, it might prove to be a stimulating experience.
“I get the feeling it’ll be nothing, though. Rena, Rei, Hanakawa, and...Shigeto? You’re coming with me.”
“Me as well?!” Hanakawa sputtered. “I find it hard to believe I will be of much value!”
“You’re there to keep me from getting bored. Make sure you entertain me.”
“Urgh... Well, the Elven Forest, is it? Perhaps I will be presented with a selection of beautiful elves for myself. As a retainer of the emperor, it is not out of the question to have one or two elves serve me...”
Pushing down the numerous awful premonitions in his head, he tried to think positively.
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