Sasaki and Peeps - Volume 4 - Chapter 2

<Crossover>

(The Neighbor’s POV)

I’ve known the man living in the apartment next door for a few years or so, ever since I was in elementary school. During that time, I’d never sensed so much as a hint of the opposite sex around him. In fact, he hardly even hung out with other men; his days were spent simply commuting between home and work.

It was a dull lifestyle, but I appreciated it. It gave me a sense of camaraderie with him, like we were two of a kind.

Recently, though, I’ve been seeing a whole lot of women in his vicinity.

Hunting them down led me here—an expensive hotel in the city. In one of its guest rooms, I encountered a police officer wearing an awful lot of makeup, an adolescent blond girl about my age who speaks a strange language, and a child dressed up in a magical girl costume like a character from a children’s anime.

I’ve never seen any of them before, so naturally, I don’t know their names. That lack of knowledge poses a problem since I have to communicate with Abaddon. I quickly decide to call them Makeup, Blondie, and Magical Girl.

The four of us are currently staring one another down in the hotel room.

Our surroundings basically resemble a living room, but the glass window facing outside is shattered, and wind is howling in through it. Given how high up we are, it provides us an extensive view of the clear blue sky and the city below.

It seems safe to assume that Magical Girl is to blame for this disaster, since she’s floating just outside the new ventilation source with her wand at the ready. She must have been behind the blinding light a few moments ago, too.

The rest of us stand inside the room, ready to fight. Makeup has a gun in her hands, and Blondie is holding what looks like a conductor’s baton. Meanwhile, I confront the others unarmed. I’m feeling a bit underprepared, to be honest.

Another young girl, this one in a kimono, is nervously peeking out from around the corner at the end of the hallway. She’s the only one I’ve had contact with before; the man next door introduced her as a work colleague. He added that she’s actually an adult, despite looking for all the world like a little kid.

Geez, does every last one of them have to be female?

“Personally, I recommend we get ourselves the hell outta here,” says Abaddon.

“Unfortunately, I don’t agree,” I reply.

“If that attack just now had hit you, it would have been game over, you know.”

From his place next to me, Abaddon is looking at Magical Girl with a troubled expression. Apparently that burst of light and the shattered window really were her fault.

But in that case, why are all of us unharmed? I don’t remember doing anything in particular. And based on what Abaddon said, he probably didn’t intervene, either. Besides, he said himself he couldn’t do much outside an isolated space.

Had Magical Girl purposely aimed away from us? Or had someone else made it so only the window suffered any damage?

“Please, at least let me verify their relationship to him,” I say to Abaddon.

“I agree that would benefit us both, but…”

Nobody except me can hear Abaddon talking. To everyone else, it probably looks like I’m muttering to myself. In fact, it seems my strange words have prompted all three of them to turn their gazes—and their weapons—toward me.

A moment after I notice this, Makeup reacts. Her pistol is trained on me.

“Relationship to him?” she says.

I’d be lying if I’d said I wasn’t scared. But even more than the firearm, I’m terrified of my neighbor being taken away from me. Compared to all the crises I’ve been through in the death game, this situation doesn’t yet warrant panic. I need to focus on gathering information. Depending on what I find out, I might be able to help him, I think. This idea fills me with energy, and my chest swells with a sense of purpose.

“Who do you mean by ‘him’?” Makeup continues. “You wouldn’t happen to be one of Sasaki’s acquaintances, would you?”

“You know his name?” I answer. “Then what’s your relationship with him?”

“I’m his coworker,” she replies. “So which group of psychics did you come from?”

I cringe a little when I hear Makeup say the word psychic. Isn’t she a little old for silly fantasies? Isn’t she embarrassed talking like that? These questions only make me even more curious about what’s going on with her.

But for the moment, it’s more important to pry into her relationship with him. “He told me he worked for a private company.”

“Sasaki recently transferred,” Makeup explains. “Did he not tell you?”

“……”

I’m irritated at this complete and total stranger acting like she knows everything about my neighbor when I’m the one who understands him best. And it frustrates me to hear her casually use his name without so much as a “mister.” But I’m happy to have an answer to one of the mysteries, at least.

I now know my neighbor didn’t lie. He probably only met Makeup and became her coworker after starting his new job. That meant everything he told me had been true—he was an office worker before.

“I answered your question, so now it’s your turn,” Makeup continues. “I’ll ask again. Where are you from, psychic? I know you’re not with the bureau. Are you from Futarishizuka’s old group?”

“I’ve met her before,” I say, glancing over at the kimono-clad girl near the entrance to the living room, “but I don’t remember hearing anything about a bureau. Or psychics, for that matter.”

The girl is still watching us from her hiding spot behind the wall. Thanks to her youthful appearance, she gives off the impression of an overwhelmed child. But when I listen a little more closely, I can hear her muttering things like “Give me a break, already” and “Oh, fuck!” Her voice is a little creaky and drawn out, like an old lady’s.

“Then are you a stray psychic?” asks Makeup. “Did she and Sasaki scout you?”

“I don’t think it’s very polite to call someone a stray on your first meeting.”

“Oh well, I’m sorry. I guess it would be faster to ask her instead.”

“……”

Calling someone rude while they’re pointing a gun at my face should have been out of the question. But I still haven’t figured out Makeup’s relationship with my neighbor, and that’s making me rebellious. I think I hate this person, I muse.

But as Makeup and I exchange words, something else happens—Magical Girl, who was still floating outside the window, moves.

“I will kill all psychics.”

As these unsettling words leave her mouth, she thrusts out the cute-looking wand in her hand. Like before, I see a light glimmer at its tip.

At the same time, Abaddon leaps out in front of me. The next moment, my vision fills up with white light, and a huge roaring noise starts up and continues for several seconds. It sounds like a train or a big truck passing right in front of my nose.

Eventually, as the glow begins to dim, the room comes back into view.

I look around hastily, but nothing seems to have changed. Last time, the attack shattered the windowpane and messed up the room, but this time, it appears to have done nothing.

Magical Girl herself seems confused by it. “Blocked again,” she murmurs. “It’s just like what happened with the magical middle-aged man…”

She glances around the room just as I did, probably looking for whoever blocked the attack. Abaddon used some kind of invisible barrier against a bunch of angels before—maybe it was something like that. According to him, however, he was essentially powerless outside isolated spaces, so it was probably someone else.

“Birdie, um, just now, w-was that…?”

“……”

Blondie stammers something. I still have no idea what she’s saying, though her gaze appears to be focused on the sparrow perched on her shoulder.

Considering her and Makeup’s surprised expressions, I doubt either of them is responsible. That leaves the phony little girl, Futarishizuka. Or maybe someone else is hiding just out of sight. Either way, it’s all speculation for now.

“Nobody move!” yells Makeup suddenly. A series of high-pitched cracks pierce the air. Her gun is aimed at Magical Girl, and its bullets zoom at the girl’s legs. The only reason I know where the bullets are headed, however, is because they stop dead in midair ten or twenty centimeters away from the girl in the frills.

The metal objects are frozen in place, like bugs caught in a spiderweb. Was that what stopped the beam attack moments ago? But just as I’m considering this, Makeup provides the answer.

“Ugh. There’s that Magical Barrier again…”

What kind of name is that? I think, before a sudden thought strikes me. With Abaddon’s help, I think I could take on Makeup.

“Oh, so you’re going after her, then?” interrupts my partner teasingly, noticing my gaze.

“……”

This woman must be crazy and out for blood if she’s willing to pull the trigger on a child with no hesitation. It would be best to take her out of the equation sooner rather than later, since there’s no guarantee she won’t point her gun at me next. And that mystery barrier won’t necessarily protect me again.

I gesture with my chin—my only instruction to Abaddon. He rolls his eyes and sighs, then drifts through the air toward Makeup.

Killing may be forbidden, but the demon already used his powers once before to knock someone unconscious for a short period. Compared to his ability to massacre angels and Disciples left and right inside an isolated space, on the outside he is, at best, a stun gun. Abaddon once told me that half of this proxy war consisted of the Disciples’ fights with one another on the outside—and I’m really starting to feel that now.

Unfortunately, Blondie quickly shatters my plans.

“Hey! What’s the big idea, destroying someone else’s house like this?!” she yells, shaking with anger. As always, I can’t understand what she’s saying. But as she speaks, she waves the conductor’s baton in her hand.

Immediately, there is a change in the room. Something emerges just above the floor between the other two women and me. It looks like some kind of magical circle. And then, abruptly, a humongous icicle shoots up from it, high enough to reach the ceiling and thick enough that an adult wouldn’t be able to put their arms all the way around it.

“Whoa?!”

The first victim is Abaddon, who’d just passed that point on the floor. Had the magic circle not appeared first, that icicle might have skewered him, but he immediately twists and just barely avoids such a fate. Unfortunately, he can’t evade it completely, and it tears a shallow cut in his leg.

As this happens, everyone focuses in on him. Apparently, now that he’s taken damage, he is no longer invisible.

“Huh?! Why’s there another one…?” Blondie sounds confused; evidently, she wasn’t aiming for him. I can’t tell what she’s saying, but from the panicked way she’s looking at Abaddon, her attack was only meant as a distraction.

Makeup and Magical Girl sound baffled as well, just as they were when I appeared.

“An invisibility power?” wonders Makeup aloud. “Is he with the girl in the uniform?”

“Another psychic. I must kill him,” says Magical Girl.

A white mist begins to emanate from the surface of the ice pillar; it must be just as chilly as it looks. If Blondie can produce several of these in succession, it will pose a big problem for us. She’d be even more of a threat than Makeup’s gun.

At this point, our plan is ruined.

“My, my, coincidences are a bitch,” says Abaddon.

“Coincidence?” I reply. “You don’t think this is a result of hubris?”

“In that case, you must be careful not to make the same mistake again.”

“I’ll be careful.”

Abaddon lifts into the air, floating away from the pillar and back to my side, I assume to keep me safe from Blondie’s ice. Compared to Makeup, the foreign girl looks much calmer. Her strength, however, is fiendish. Maybe that conductor’s baton in her hand serves a similar purpose to the Magical Girl’s staff.

A terrible grin spreads across Makeup’s face. “How nice of you to provide me with a weapon!” she declares. Abaddon only has a moment to shudder before she launches into a run. Her hand reaches toward the icicle growing out of the floor.

What is she trying to do? I wonder, baffled.

A moment later, all becomes clear. The tree trunk–size pillar collapses, melting away in an instant. All that water does not, however, fall to the floor in a puddle. For some reason, it stays floating in midair, as though in zero gravity.

“My reputation’s on the line here. I need to bring at least one of you in!” she shouts as the water begins to twist and writhe like a living creature, extending snakelike to launch at Blondie, Magical Girl, and Abaddon and me. The watery whips are fast. Before I know it, one is almost upon me.

I try to jump to the side to avoid it, but the water follows me. How annoying, I think as the water comes right up to my nose. Oh no.

But Abaddon acts in the nick of time, shoving me away. I fall backward toward the floor, but a moment later, his arms are around my waist, and he’s scooped me up to lie across his arms, like a princess.

The water shoots by just overhead. Abaddon kicks off the ground, and I wind up in the air with him. Naturally, my eyes dart to the other two to see how they’ve handled the situation. Magical Girl has blocked the water using some sort of invisible shield, while Blondie has created a wall of fire in front of her to vaporize it.

Meanwhile, I’m hurtling around in Abaddon’s arms.

“They don’t look nearly as silly as we do,” I comment.

“You were the one who used her reward on something stupid. We don’t have many cards to play here.”

“……”

When he puts it like that, there isn’t much I can say.

The water is still chasing us—and there’s more of it now, since the liquid originally aimed at Abaddon has combined with that coming after me. Even the water previously stuck to Magical Girl’s barrier is now heading for us—apparently Makeup decided she couldn’t hit Magical Girl and redirected her efforts.

Plus, Makeup is standing directly in front of the shattered window, deviously blocking our exit.

“Whoa, there! Time for my grand entrance! What a perfect opportunity to earn some favors!”

Mere moments after Abaddon and I start flying around the living room, we hear an energetic voice from the corner. I look over to see the phony little girl. She has burst out from the passage leading farther into the suite and is now charging for the water-manipulating Makeup. I’ve met this woman once before. Can I assume her remark means she’s taking our side?

“Wait a minute, Futarishizuka!” exclaims Makeup. “Why are you siding with them?! You’re a member of the bureau, aren’t you?!”

“Oh, but I’m not siding with them,” she explains. “I’m just doing my best to resolve the situation.”

As she moves toward Makeup, the water following us veers off course, shooting between Makeup and the phony little girl as the latter’s wooden geta clap against the floor. All the liquid combines as Makeup braces for an attack.

Why is she so afraid of that tiny girl? I wonder—but not for long. The girl in question covers several meters instantly to come within striking distance of her target. With a swing of her arm, she scatters the water between them. Some of it freezes right after to block her, only to shatter under the force of her fist.

Finally, she leaps up and lands right next to Makeup. Apparently, her physical abilities are well beyond what her appearance would suggest.

“It’d be nice if you could pull off something like that,” I remark.

“Come on. Don’t you remember how cool I am in isolated spaces?”

This “Futarishizuka”—I think that’s the name of some kind of plant—was with my neighbor before, too. Maybe it’d be best to ask him who all these people are, including her. I don’t want to annoy him with a bunch of questions, but at the very least, I need him to explain this Makeup woman calling herself his colleague.

“Checkmate.”

“Urgh…”

In a flash, Futarishizuka is right before Makeup’s eyes, thrusting her fingers toward the other woman’s nose. Makeup tries to aim her gun, but with Futarishizuka already so close, she’s having a hard time. The gun’s barrel ends up awkwardly jabbing into her opponent’s side.

But judging by their positions, Makeup should have the advantage. And yet her expression is bitter, while the phony little girl’s is relaxed and full of confidence, despite the gun barrel pressing against her.

“I’m so cool, right?” she says lazily, her gaze flicking over to Blondie for some reason.

Was her previous remark directed not at me, but the blond girl? Come to think of it, Futarishizuka was here even before Makeup arrived. And I’m pretty sure I remember her saying something to Blondie about moving to a different base. Personally, the bird on the girl’s shoulder also bothers me. Despite everything going down in this room, it has stubbornly stayed put.

“I suppose the question now is: If they’re not demons or Disciples, why do they have such power?”

“Are you sure you haven’t just forgotten what the other demons look like?”

“My, my. Could it be you’re doubting the words of your neighbor?”

“…That isn’t what I meant.”

No longer under threat from the water, Abaddon and I return to the floor. Unfortunately, the lull in the action lasts only a second—this time, it’s Magical Girl’s turn.

A beam of light shoots out from the tip of her staff. Compared to the attack that broke the window, this one is a lot smaller. It fires straight ahead, thick as a telephone pole, toward Futarishizuka and Makeup.

The former shoves the latter in the chest to get her out of the way, and both of them fall backward in opposite directions. The beam blazes through the space left behind. Makeup is unscathed, but one sleeve of the other girl’s kimono is scorched.

“Hey! What do you think you’re doing?!” she demands, raising her voice.

“I will kill all psychics,” responds Magical Girl flatly.

“I seem to recall us fighting on the same side not long ago!”

Makeup doesn’t waste a second. “Futarishizuka?” she cuts in. “Are you working with the magical girl? But you’re a bureau member!”

“W-wait, hold on. It’s not what you think! It was just a temporary—”

After so boldly bursting onto the scene, the phony little girl is taking criticism from all sides. Still, considering her actions, it seems like she’d meant what she said about trying to resolve the situation. She had saved Makeup just now.

Their little exchange also informs me that the two of them know each other, and that means my neighbor was being honest when he referred to them as colleagues. The last two unknowns are Magical Girl and Blondie. And it seems the phony little girl knows both of them as well.

If I want to figure out what’s going on, the kimono girl is the key. Maybe I should try to get on her good side.

“She saved you; shouldn’t you at least thank her?” I say to Makeup. “As a guardian of law and order and an elder, you should be setting a good example.”

“A-an elder?!” Makeup exclaims, turning to me with a shocked expression.

Apparently, that comment really bothered her. Come to think of it, whenever the male students call our female teachers old at school, they blow their top no matter how nice they usually are. Women of her age must be pretty fussy about that stuff. Will I react the same way when I get older?

“Well, now. Someone’s got the right idea,” says Futarishizuka.

“Could you be any more shameless?” Makeup retorts. “You clearly just used me to save yourself.”

“It doesn’t matter, ma’am,” I say. “Her actions still saved you.”

“Uh, could you not call me ma’am?”

“Why?”

“Because I’m not that old yet.”

“Well, you’re the oldest one here.”

One of us might be a “little girl” of unknown age, but everyone aside from Makeup is clearly a minor. She, meanwhile, is not only wearing a suit but also toting a gun and calling herself a police officer. I can tell from how sharp her movements are that she isn’t a new recruit, either. Even if she skipped university, she’d be at least twenty. If she didn’t, she’d be well on her way to thirty. The thick makeup must be an attempt to look younger. In other words, she’s definitely a ma’am.

She doesn’t seem to agree, though.

“I’m still in high school!” she insists.

“…You might wish you were, but that doesn’t change reality,” I say. Her remark is so pathetic that even a weirdo like me can’t help but cringe.

This must be what they call chuunibyou—the second year of middle school disease. Every grade has at least one kid who starts spouting nonsense with a straight face. But a grown woman doing it feels downright dangerous. I start to wonder if she has a screw loose somewhere.

Plus, she still has a gun in her hands. I guess even she managed to pass the civil service exam. Adult society can be completely incomprehensible sometimes.

“Wh-why are you looking at me like that?” she asks.

“I understand that, from the viewpoint of society, I’m not exactly normal,” I explain. “But I’ve never felt a need to change myself to fit in. I thought it was pointless. But after talking to you, I’m starting to rethink things.”

“I’m telling you: I’m really in high school! I’m still a student!”

“Aha. So secondhand embarrassment is the best way to make you self-reflect,” Abaddon interjects.

Makeup is getting desperate. I’d rather not put any more weird thoughts in Abaddon’s head, though.

“Stop talking already,” says Magical Girl, raising her staff for a third time. “I will kill all psy—”

“Don’t you know how to say anything else, little girl?” the girl in the kimono scolds her.

“……”

Magical Girl stops what she’s doing and glares at the one who interrupted her. Futarishizuka has done an excellent job of postponing the next beam, but it could go off at any time by accident, so the threat remains.

Blondie stands by not far away, with that sparrow still on her shoulder.

Magical Girl and Makeup are facing off, neither making any progress as I begin to hear police and ambulance sirens in the distance. At this rate, we’ll all be surrounded by Makeup’s friends and captured. Because of how much destruction Magical Girl has wrought, we’ll never be able to talk our way out of it.

If I’m taken to the police station, will my mother come to pick me up? I might have to cause a police officer to faint in order to escape. Ah, a wanted girl with a criminal record at my age? That would spell the end of my life with him.

“Abaddon,” I say, “it pains me to say this, but I’ve changed my mind. I think we should withdraw.”

“I agree. I just wish you’d made the decision earlier.”

“Would you mind bringing me out through that window?”

“Just leave it to me!”

Following my instruction, he once again puts his arm around me. I’m not very happy to be held by a man other than my neighbor—but you can’t make an omelet without breaking some eggs.

Just then, Magical Girl makes a move as if by instinct.

“I will not let any psychics escape.”

She’s updated her wording, perhaps a result of the kimono girl’s reprimand. But just like before, she fires a beam from her staff.

“Abaddon!”

“We’re fine. I saw it coming.”

He nimbly flips through the air to shake off the telephone pole–size beam, avoiding a direct hit. But as he does, some kind of invisible shield appears between Magical Girl and the rest of us. Whatever it is, it causes the beam to suddenly disperse.

It has to be the same phenomenon we’ve seen several times before. But who on earth is causing it? I wonder if it’s even necessary to dodge the beams at all.

As I turn to watch, I feel a sharp pain in my toe. It seems I stubbed it against the wall.

“Ow…”

“Whoops, sorry.”

“……”

I almost criticize Abaddon for not being more careful. But I was the one who decided to stay here even after he advised me to withdraw. I’ve already asked enough of him. I shut my mouth and endure the pain. That must be why his apology was so casual, I think.

But just then, I hear a voice.

“Uh, would everyone mind pausing what they’re doing for a moment?”

And there, in that raucous living room, I catch sight of the face I’m always longing to see.

After my quarrel with Mr. Akutsu, I fled the bureau. Whatever happened now, I needed to report the situation to Peeps and Ms. Futarishizuka, so I went straight to the hotel where Lady Elsa was staying. For now, I decided not to worry about the strange flying object I’d witnessed while changing trains.

I hurried through the crowd of other patrons toward the entrance, but just before I could step into the building, something fell from above me.

I took a closer look. Is that shattered glass?

“Huh…?”

Small glass shards were tumbling down, making a pattering sound as they hit the ground. Nearby hotel guests noticed, too, and stopped what they were doing. Soon everyone was moving away and looking up. I followed suit, first backing several meters out from the entrance, then turning my gaze to the building’s upper floors.

And that’s when I saw something floating in the sky.

It was pretty far away—almost at the roof of the high-rise hotel. From the ground, it appeared no bigger than a fingernail. But I could almost make out the shape of a person—hovering there with nothing to stand on.

If memory serves, that’s right about where our room is.

A closer look revealed a whole lot of…pink?

“……”

Great, yeah. Okay. I should probably report this to the section chief. It’s gonna be really awkward calling him so soon after leaving like that. Just as I thought this, the phone in my pocket started to vibrate—the one from the bureau, not my private phone. The world already knew Lady Elsa’s whereabouts, so I’d brought it along this time instead of leaving it at home. I figured there wasn’t any additional info the chief could pry out of me at the moment, so I took the call.

“Yes, this is Sasaki.”

“It’s Akutsu. You may already be aware, but we’ve confirmed the magical girl’s appearance nearby. I need you to get there immediately. Unfortunately, there are a lot of people in the area, so I’ve already dispatched additional personnel. I want you to cover this up, posthaste.”

“Understood, sir.”

“Also, Hoshizaki is already there.”

“Wait, she is?”

“Don’t misunderstand me—it wasn’t my decision. She acted alone.”

“I see…”

She’d probably gathered the specifics from news footage and the internet and gallantly marched right onto the scene. The bureau provided extra pay for work done outside normal hours, both day and night. Rushing in on her own early in the morning sounded very like Miss Hoshizaki, so I believed the chief right away.

“If possible, try to secure her unharmed.”

“Understood, sir.”

Incidentally, this conversation did not betray a hint of our earlier discussion. The chief’s usual, flat way of talking almost made me doubt he was the same person I argued with before. Talk about being quick to change gears. Thanks to his professionalism, though, I could simply listen and give short answers.

The call ended, and I returned the phone to my pocket and dashed for the hotel building. The staff had already been informed—I flashed my police badge at the front desk to try to get inside, and the clerk immediately gave me a key to the room I was after. With it in hand, I took the elevator up.

Once I reached the correct floor, I proceeded down the hallway to the room. Using the key I’d been given, I bypassed the door’s auto-lock. And as soon as it opened, I heard people shouting.

“But I’m still in high school!”

“…You might wish you were, but that doesn’t change reality.”

I knew those voices—it was Miss Hoshizaki and my neighbor.

Wait. What’s going on here? Peeps was with them, so I doubted things had gotten too out of hand. Since I introduced Lady Elsa as a psychic, it should be possible for the sparrow to use magic. And I already made her promise not to use magic herself.

“Wh-why are you looking at me like that?”

“I understand that, from the viewpoint of society, I’m not exactly normal. But I’ve never felt a need to change myself to fit in. I thought it was pointless. But after talking to you, I’m starting to rethink things.”

“I’m telling you: I’m really in high school! I’m still a student!”

As Miss Hoshizaki and my neighbor quibbled, I carefully stepped inside. The voices were definitely coming from the living room. I passed through the entranceway and peeked into the room in question.

There I found all the people I’d figured would be present.

Floating outside the window was the magical girl, staff in hand. Lady Elsa was in the room with Peeps on her shoulder. My neighbor was there with that Abaddon boy next to her. And glaring at them was Miss Hoshizaki, still trying to prove her high school credentials.

The window glass was broken, and the interior was a total mess. I could easily guess that the magical girl had fired her Magical Beam into the room. I saw water soaking into several areas, too; probably Miss Hoshizaki letting loose. Personally, I was very interested in where the water had come from—there was quite a lot of it.

“Would you mind bringing me out through that window?”

“Just leave it to me!”

“I will not let any psychics escape.”

I watched as the scene in the living room unfolded. Abaddon picked up my neighbor, then floated into the air. The magical girl readied a Magical Beam. That was bad. I was sure Peeps could handle it, but nevertheless, I hurried into the room.

That very moment, a beam shot before my eyes. Abaddon, still carrying my neighbor, dodged out of the way. At the same time, some kind of barrier appeared beside them. It canceled out the Magical Beam with plenty of room to spare. The two floating in the air were unharmed.

Or so I thought.

“Ow…”

I heard a light thunk, and my neighbor yelped. Her foot seemed to have hit the wall during their evasive maneuvers.

The magical girl readied her staff again, about to attempt a second shot.

“Uh, would everyone mind pausing what they’re doing for a moment?” I called out, raising my voice and striding farther into the room.

Everyone turned to look at me.

The first ones to speak were my neighbor and Miss Hoshizaki.

“Mister!”

“Sasaki!”

The latter had her gun at the ready and looked quite scary. She was glaring at me, too, as if demanding to know what was going on here. I was extremely curious what the others had said to her to elicit such a reaction, but it was more important to deal with the magical girl right now.

“Please excuse my sudden interruption, but there’s something I need to tell you, Magical Girl.”

“…What?” she asked.

“That girl over there is not a psychic. She’s actually something more like you, I believe. So would you mind lowering your staff? That goes for the person carrying her as well.”

“More like…me?”

“I promise that she’s only here because of an unfortunate coincidence.”

“……”

Seeming curious about my claim, the magical girl began to settle down.

I wasn’t sure how my neighbor had gotten mixed up in that death game of hers. But considering how Abaddon had suggested things might be different if I’d “just gotten a little bit closer,” I could easily assume she’d joined the game reluctantly.

On the other side, the messenger from the fairy world—who was now just fur—had lured the magical girl into all this, leading to the loss of her loved ones. The two girls’ positions seemed very similar to me. They were even close in age.

“It’s about time you arrived.”

As the magical girl lowered her staff, Abaddon landed back on the ground, and my neighbor climbed out of his arms to stand on her own two feet.

“Mgh…”

A moment later, her whole body shook, and she squatted down. Her stubbed toe was probably in a lot of pain, but this time she bravely refused to cry out.

“You hit it pretty hard. Wouldn’t be surprised if you had a fracture or two.”

“For someone whose Disciple is suffering right next to him, you don’t sound too upset,” she retorted.

“You reap what you sow. Besides, you have to screw up to learn your lesson, don’t you?”

“Did you slam me into the wall on purpose?”

“I wouldn’t go that far. But I’d appreciate it if you used this chance to get your head on straight.”

“……”

Still squatting, my neighbor glared up at the demon hatefully. As someone more than twice her age, I couldn’t tell by this exchange whether they were friends or enemies—my neighbor spoke much more openly with him than with me. But I didn’t have friends like that anymore, so it was beyond me.

“Sasaki! That blond girl, and that bird—”

“Magical middle-aged man, what do you mean she isn’t a psychic?”

Miss Hoshizaki was midsentence, her mouth open wide, but the magical girl ignored her and spoke up, taking a step forward over thin air. Miss Hoshizaki shut her mouth, perhaps wary of another Magical Beam. An average psychic like her wouldn’t be able to stand up to a magical girl. She knew that firsthand and seemed frustrated by it.

Taking this chance to evade my veteran colleague’s suspicions, I continued my question and answer session with the magical girl. “I mean exactly what I said. There are all kinds of mysterious people out there besides psychics. From my perspective, you’re one of them, too.”

“……”

“We may all look the same to you. But I promise I’m telling the truth. Will you believe me? If not, it will only make everyone—including yourself—unhappy.”

The magical girl now knew my neighbor’s face, and I did not want her getting hit from behind while walking down the street at night or something. As a result, I wound up getting a little preachy. I’d done the same thing with the section chief. It seemed to be happening a lot more often these days.

“Are there a lot of people like this who aren’t psychics?”

“I don’t know how many there are, but it’s definitely more than a few.”

Depending on the scope of the death game my neighbor was part of—the proxy war between angels and demons—there could be even more of them than psychics. I’ll have to ask Abaddon about that later.

As I continued my lecture, my mind was racing with questions about what to do next.

After appearing to consider for few moments, the magical girl responded. “I understand what you’re saying.”

“Really?”

“From now on, I’ll check first.”

“…Oh. Yeah. That would be great,” I replied. That wasn’t exactly what I’d been hoping for. How was she planning to check?

Still, if magical girl–related injuries decreased as a result, I’d count that as progress for the bureau. It was pretty rough dodging those Magical Beams without warning, after all.

Seeing me nod, she turned and called out, “You two.” This time, her gaze was on my neighbor and Abaddon, who were now back in the living room. Their expressions tensed under her attention. Abaddon stepped in front of my still-squatting neighbor to serve as a shield. Looking good, Abaddon, I thought. He’s got a good face, too.

“Did we offend you somehow?” he asked.

“…I’m sorry.”

Still floating, the magical girl bowed to my neighbor, who seemed caught off guard by the gesture. She stared at the whorl in the other girl’s pink hair with an expression that said What the heck? That alone told me how fierce an attack she and Abaddon had suffered at her hands.

“……”

“……”

The magical girl was probably a good kid, deep down. She just had no tolerance for psychics. A moment later, she spun around in midair to face the blue skies outside, turning her back to the rest of us in the room.

“I’m going home for today,” she said.

“Huh?” I was so surprised by her sudden declaration that my voice came out funny. Come to think of it, she does this a lot, I thought. I can’t ever tell what’s going on in her head.

“I hurt someone who isn’t a psychic. I did something bad. So I’m going home.”

“O-oh…”

With a creaking, cracking noise, a big black stain appeared next to the magical girl and began to expand—her Magical Field. My personal theory was that she’d seen herself in my neighbor and regretted her actions. This time she had acted like one of the psychics who killed her friends and family, while my neighbor and Abaddon had been mere victims of a misunderstanding.

“Good-bye.”

With that, she disappeared into the stain. Once it had completely swallowed her up, the Magical Field vanished. The magical girl was totally gone now. We waited for a little while, but there were no signs of her returning. She must have been telling the truth—she’d withdrawn for the day.

“I really wish that magical little girl would stop showing up,” complained Futarishizuka from a corner of the living room after watching her go. “Now the room is a mess.”

“Sorry for causing you all this trouble,” I apologized.

“Are you really? Things like this have been happening a lot lately, don’t you think?”

“I am really sorry…”

Ms. Futarishizuka had been on the butt end of a lot of disasters lately, ever since that video of Peeps and Lady Elsa got out. I didn’t even want to think about how expensive repairs to the building were going to be. I figured it would come out of insurance or something, but for the time being, I should probably pay her extra.

Soon I heard Miss Hoshizaki start scolding me. “What’s all this about, Sasaki?” she demanded, marching up and fixing me with a glare. “Would you mind giving me an explanation?”

“Right, yes.” I’d been keeping my relationship to Lady Elsa a secret from Miss Hoshizaki, just as I was keeping it from the section chief. But at this point, continuing the charade would be difficult. She was probably also skeptical about my neighbor and Abaddon.

I couldn’t give her an honest explanation.

So what should I do, then?

Just as I was really starting to panic, I heard a phone vibrating in her inside pocket. Miss Hoshizaki ignored it and continued to press me for answers. But no matter how much time passed, the phone just kept going and going. It would break off, then start vibrating again right away. Reluctantly, she reached for it. When she saw the name on the screen, her face twisted into a scowl.

“…Yes, this is Hoshizaki.”

It was her work phone, and judging by the fact that she’d ultimately picked it up, the caller must have been the section chief.

Everyone present was watching her as she began speaking into the mouthpiece.

“I encountered the magical girl, but she escaped. I’m now in combat with psychics of unknown affiliation… Yes, that’s right… We’re at the hotel in the city, the one from the news… Yes, that’s right, Sasaki is here with me, but…”

The living room had calmed down now that the magical girl was gone. Nobody interrupted the call. The only other sounds were the distant sirens of ambulances. With the room quiet, my senior’s voice rang especially clear.

“B-but why?! There are psychics in front of me, and I have no idea where they’re from. Why would I come back without doing anything? And what about Sasaki, huh?! What? Leave everything to him? What’s that supposed to mean?!”

It didn’t take me long to guess what was being said on the other end. Miss Hoshizaki’s personality made her easy to read, which worked out great for me.

“Wait just a second, sir. You can’t possibly— Chief? Chief?!”

The call was brief. It looked like the chief had hung up on her despite her request for an explanation. Miss Hoshizaki glared dangerously at the phone in her hand, making me very anxious about the gun she held in the other.

Eventually, she called out to me again.

“Sasaki!”

“What is it, Miss Hoshizaki?”

“Orders from the chief. I’m putting you in charge here!”

“What will you do?”

“…He told me to return to the bureau at once.”

“I see.”

I had a pretty good feeling Mr. Akutsu had just done me a favor. And after I’d gotten on my high horse and criticized him like that. Now I felt even worse about the whole thing. How am I going to repay him? Load him up with some extra ingots like I do with Ms. Futarishizuka? I was a little afraid he’d find some way to use that against me.

“Sasaki, is there something between you and the chief?” Miss Hoshizaki asked me.

“I’m sorry. What do you mean?”

“What do you think I mean? This is all really suspicious!”

“If you’re asking about my relationship with him, I’m not homosexual.”

“Th-that isn’t what I meant!”

My random deflection caused her to go red and panic.

Nevertheless, I couldn’t reverse the damage already done. Miss Hoshizaki disappeared down the hallway, calling out “When you get back to the bureau, I expect an explanation” over and over like some TV villain promising revenge.

That left Peeps, Lady Elsa, my neighbor, Abaddon, Ms. Futarishizuka, and me, the latecomer, making six of us in all. Now that the more boisterous characters were out of the picture, quiet returned to the hotel suite.

The noise outside, on the other hand, was getting louder and louder. I popped my head out of the broken window and looked down to see a whole bunch of people gathering below. The ambulance sirens that had once sounded so distant were suddenly directly beneath us.

“Um, Sasaki,” said Lady Elsa, “would this, well, happen to be my fault?”

“No, you didn’t do anything, Lady Elsa. No need to worry.”

“……”

The bird on her shoulder lowered his head in an adorable display of apology.

Maybe it wouldn’t be terrible for incidents like this to happen every once in a while, if it meant I got to see Peeps being so cute. That said, as his owner, I hoped he’d strive to tone down the scale of his blunders just a smidge. The Lord Starsage had even started cleaning his portable cage all by himself lately.

“In any event,” said Ms. Futarishizuka, “we should change locations, yes?”

“Unfortunately, the boss ordered me to handle the cleanup here,” I replied. “Would you mind going somewhere else with the others first? Once everything’s squared away, we can meet up as usual, if that’s all right with you.”

“Ah yes, the boss. I’d like to hear how things went with him as well, and sooner rather than later.”

“I understand. But I can’t just leave the scene like this.”

“Fine, fine.”

The timing of the chief’s call to Miss Hoshizaki and his instructions to leave the scene in my hands probably meant we could do whatever we wanted here. And if that was the case, I couldn’t just drop it in someone else’s lap. Ambulances had already begun to assemble on the ground; it would only be a matter of time before the police and firefighters got up here.

“I suppose it’s high time we made ourselves scarce,” said Ms. Futarishizuka.

“Lady Elsa, I’m sorry to keep pestering you, but will you follow her instructions?” I asked. “The people entrusted with this nation’s safety will soon come rolling in like an avalanche, and we can’t have anyone else seeing you.”

“Yes, I understand,” she replied.

“Thank you.” Fortunately, I’d obtained our guest’s approval. I shifted my gaze to her shoulder, and Peeps offered me a little nod. His eyes were several times sharper than usual, as though he was burning with a sense of responsibility—he must have wanted to make up for this failure.

After watching our exchange, my neighbor and Abaddon spoke up.

“We should probably get going, too,” suggested the demon.

“…Okay,” replied my neighbor.

“Oh? You’re being more agreeable than usual.”

“In exchange, as soon as we get back, please fix my foot.”

“Fine by me!”

With that decided, everyone quickly left the suite. The other four, plus the bird, used the elevator to head straight down to the basement parking garage. They’d be getting into Ms. Futarishizuka’s car and leaving the hotel that way.

After seeing them off, I got to work. The chief had already informed the other agencies, and I was able to take control over the scene without issue. As I handled my tasks for the bureau, I also cleaned up after myself and my compatriots so nothing would appear unnatural, just as I had when I was caught up in the death game.

By the time things settled down at the hotel, the sun was already setting. There was still a lot of work to be done repairing the building, and some of it, like the huge hole in the window glass, wasn’t going to be easy. But none of that would require bureau personnel. For the time being, at least, I had managed to cover up the existence of magical girls and psychics.

I wrapped everything up with a neat bow by blaming the mess in the suite on an unidentified gas explosion.

Wow, gas explosions sure are convenient. I have the feeling I’ll be relying on them even more in the future.

Once my work was finished, I made a perfunctory report to my boss. The thought of going back there and seeing him face-to-face made me uncomfortable, so I simply called and made the excuse that there were still things left for me to do on-site. He accepted my report and didn’t press me any further. I really owed him this time—and I was hoping to repay the debt as soon as possible.

With that out of the way, I went back home to the apartment and called Ms. Futarishizuka on my personal phone. Peeps quickly came to pick me up using his specialty—the instant going-to-work spell. The others had already moved to another base, and Peeps would be taking me there.

The teleportation was instant. My vision flashed black, and when it returned, I was somewhere completely different.

My apartment was a cramped single room of only about ten square meters, but now a vast space stretched out before me. It looked like a living room, except it had to be over fifty square meters. The ceiling, too, was about twice as high as the one in my apartment. It looked very expensive.

But while both were no doubt pricey, the new place had a different feel from the hotel we’d been staying at before. Where the other was posh and extravagant, this one was refined and elegant. The furniture was simpler as well, starting with the sofa set in the center of the room. The heavy use of wood materials in the place’s design probably aided that impression. It’s like a modern Western mansion with a few Japanese elements blended in, I thought. There was even a crackling fireplace burning real wood.

The multipurpose dining room and kitchen was just as expansive as the living room—and at a glance, looked to be replete with all the fixtures one could want. This room, too, could easily contain my whole apartment; it must have been meant for hosting grand parties.

Apparently, we were on the ground floor this time.

Outside the large windows, I could see a wonderful garden that was clearly meticulously maintained. Even from inside, I could tell it was a pretty large plot of land. Past the garden was an endless stretch of trees, no neighbors in sight.

“Well, it’s about time,” droned Ms. Futarishizuka. “I’d grown tired of waiting.”

“Is this some kind of villa?” I asked. “Where are we?”

“Indeed it is. We’re in Karuizawa.”

“I’m humbled once again. You always choose such wonderful places.”

Now that Peeps and I had arrived, Ms. Futarishizuka lifted herself off the sofa. I saw Lady Elsa as well—and for some reason, my neighbor and Abaddon. They were all sitting on the sofas, surrounding the low table. I was pretty sure I’d instructed their driver to take them straight to school when we parted ways at the hotel.

The distinguished Java sparrow on my shoulder provided an answer.

“If you’re wondering about those two, I brought them here.”

“You did?” I replied.

“The girl very much wanted to see you.”

“I think you’ll recall that I asked you to do it,” pointed out Ms. Futarishizuka.

“……”

Ah, I thought. So she’s making the most of the situation. I got the feeling it’d take Peeps a while to pay her back for that leaked video.

With the death game still in its initial stages, she probably wanted to build some connections with these angels, demons, and Disciples. And since Abaddon had already requested our assistance in the past, the two of them were probably on the same page. Peeps was likely helping her out because he felt obligated to agree.

Now the bird was silent, looking like he had nothing to do and nowhere to go. How adorable. I felt bad, but I was overcome with the desire to pat his head.

“How was work, mister?” asked my neighbor, getting up from the sofa and hurrying over to me. She was still in her school uniform, just like she’d been this morning when I’d seen them off.

“Huh? Oh, uh, fine…,” I said. “It feels a little weird for me to ask this, but how was school?”

“Once classes ended, I had that bird bring me here,” she explained.

“Ah. So that’s what happened.” That meant I needed to explain Peeps’s magic. But wait, if he’s already speaking normally in front of the two of them, maybe he’s already given them the rundown.

Just as I began to consider this, a voice at my shoulder filled me in.

“I explained, and she promised to keep it a secret. I’m sorry for not asking you first.”

“No, I agree that’s the best decision.” Quick-witted, as usual. I preferred it this way as well; it was better than waiting for her to get suspicious and start poking around. Besides, I’d already had to reveal a bunch of things during our fight with the angels. I’d even expressed my intention to cooperate with the two of them.

“Is everything decided, then?” I asked.

“No, we were just about to discuss what to do next.”

“And you waited for me? Thanks, Peeps.”

“Don’t thank me. I should be apologizing for this mess.”

Now that Peeps had caught me up, our attention shifted to the sofas where my neighbor’s partner was sitting. He, too, looked the same as he had this morning, complete with cape and crown.

I have to say, Abaddon sure has style. He looks so refined sipping his tea. He fit in well with the chic living room, like a character in a television drama. He comes off more like an angel than a demon, if you ask me.

A moment later, he noticed us watching. Looking up from his cup, he said, “Oh? Are we having this conversation now, then?”

The casual way he carried himself was flawless. Wish I had some of that. Despite looking younger than my neighbor, his crossed legs seemed even longer than mine—something I prayed was just a trick of the light.

“Well, we’re all here now, aren’t we?” said Ms. Futarishizuka. “Just let this old lady put on some more tea first.”

“I’ll help you,” I offered.

“You will? Well, come along, then.”

I followed Ms. Futarishizuka into the kitchen. As I moved to the sink, she said, “Oh yes. There was something I wanted to say right up front.”

“What is it?”

“I quite like this place. If something was to happen to it, I do think I would cry. Very loudly—and without a care for who might hear. So loudly, in fact, that our boss may even find out you were the one responsible.”

“…Understood. I will practice utmost caution.” I hadn’t exactly wrecked the last place on purpose, so I’d have to be even more diligent going forward—especially when it came to the magical girl.

“I have something to report to you, as well,” I continued. “I talked to Mr. Akutsu. For the time being, I doubt he will interfere with anything we do. Yet another thing I have to thank you for, I suppose. The intel you provided came in handy.”

“So that’s why he left you to deal with the ruckus today.”

“Yes, something like that.”

“I think we would’ve ended up in this situation sooner or later regardless.”

“I agree.”

“I am terribly, terribly sorry about all this,” repeated Peeps. “I’ve caused so much trouble.”

“Yes, you have,” replied Ms. Futarishizuka. “And if you think I’m giving you the Wi-Fi password, you can think again.”

“……”

The large kitchen, which included an island, seemed incomparably easier to use than the one in my own apartment. Heck, there was enough room in here to put down a bed and sleep on it. I knew we were only making some tea, but even standing at the sink like this was kind of fun.

Once we’d prepared the tea and some snacks, we returned to the living room and each took a seat on one of the sofas. As steam billowed from the cups in our hands, we got down to business.

As for our positions, while my neighbor and Abaddon sat side by side, Ms. Futarishizuka sat by herself across from them over the low table. Lady Elsa and I sat at either end of the group, and Peeps was, as always, perched on my shoulder. He seemed a little down—maybe because Ms. Futarishizuka said she wouldn’t share her Wi-Fi password. In any case, he’d already promised to abstain from the internet for a while, so I figured I’d just give him some time.

“I’d like to say something first, if you don’t mind,” announced Ms. Futarishizuka. “Since we’re going to be talking about our future partnership and all.”

“What is it?” I replied. Whoops, looks like she’s already grabbing the reins of this conversation. She probably wanted to secure a promise or two now that she had leverage over Peeps. I felt him give a start on my shoulder, but he didn’t object.

“I’m confident I can guarantee your safety,” she began. “I would even be happy to shelter you until this proxy war or whatever has blown over. At the very least, I won’t be dying any time before the girl grows old and gray.”

“Really?” replied Abaddon, sounding interested. “That’s a pretty attractive proposal.”

“But even living quietly, our tea stores will run out and all our firewood will turn to ash. For that reason, I believe it would be in both our best interests to charge you rent. Will you agree?” Ms. Futarishizuka’s gaze shifted toward the fireplace set up in the room.

The irregular series of small pops produced as the firewood burned lent a satisfying and somehow comforting atmosphere to the quiet room. I’d just finished a day of work, and I was overcome by the impulse to lie down on the sofa and take a nap.

“What do you think of her offer?” asked Abaddon.

“It depends on how much she’s asking for, but otherwise I’m fine with it,” answered my neighbor.

“Okay, I figured as much. Why don’t start hammering out the details, then?”

My neighbor and Abaddon confronted Ms. Futarishizuka with serious expressions. It seemed to me the most I could do was listen carefully to this crafty old lady to make sure she didn’t trick them somehow. I doubted she’d try anything with us in the room, but there was no harm in being cautious.

I glanced over at our otherworldly guest and caught her drifting off. Fireplaces made Lady Elsa just as drowsy as they did me, it seemed, and she was starting to fall asleep. I wished I could help her, but circumstances meant she would have nothing to do for a while.

“I’d like a portion of whatever rewards your Disciple reaps from her clashes with the angels,” explained Ms. Futarishizuka. “I believe Disciples receive rewards from their demon, yes? Should she be fortunate enough to receive three such rewards, I was thinking one of them could go to me.”

“I’ve got no problem with that, but it sounds like something you should be asking my Disciple.”

“Abaddon, please don’t give my rights away to someone else.”

“Didn’t I just defer to you?”

I was taken aback at how quickly Ms. Futarishizuka was making a pass at the death game competitors right after doing the same with our otherworld group. As I watched her face in profile with its confident expression, I found myself impressed by her vitality. This was probably how she’d always operated, firming up the ground around her, building a solid network. The fact that she’d shown us to her prized villa spoke to her level of enthusiasm.

“Personally, I think it’s a pretty good deal,” said my neighbor, nodding.

“Truly? I’m happy to hear it.” Ms. Futarishizuka’s smile deepened.

She looked pleased with herself, like she’d just scored a nice concession from an easy target. At first glance, she came off as an adorable little girl, but looks could be deceiving, as we learned from our early run-ins with her. If not for the cursed emblem on the back of her hand, I’d have been nervous just sitting down together like this.

“But my neighbor has been helping me, too,” the schoolgirl pointed out.

“Yes, he did rescue us from a terrible bind yesterday,” agreed Abaddon.

“And if I keep bargaining like this,” continued my neighbor, “eventually I won’t have anything for myself. Like I said before, Abaddon’s rewards are essential for me to survive the proxy war.”

“Perhaps,” said Ms. Futarishizuka, “but you won’t get anything if you’re so reluctant to pay for room and board that you wind up murdered in your sleep.”

My neighbor fell silent. She seemed to think things over for a few seconds before responding. “I heard that you’ve both entered an isolated space in the past,” she commented.

“We have, but what about it?” replied Ms. Futarishizuka.

“And that you’re strong enough to slay lower-ranked angels.”

“……”

This time, the girl in the kimono had no response.

My neighbor, though, continued right along. “What if our end of the bargain was to give you the privilege of entering these isolated spaces?”

“You intend for me to slay any angels and Disciples that appear, I presume?”

“Yes. I think you would get more out of that than sharing my rewards.”

“Still, I cannot voluntarily enter these ‘isolated spaces,’ as you call them.”

“I think becoming a demon’s Disciple would clear up that problem.”

“…Go on.” Ms. Futarishizuka’s expression changed slightly. She maintained her smile, but I couldn’t help feeling that her gaze had grown sharper—though looking at her for too long gave me the chills.

“According to my partner, there are still demons who haven’t found Disciples.”

“Ah,” said Ms. Futarishizuka. “While I appreciate the suggestion, unfortunately, I can’t give you an answer right away.”

I knew how grueling those battles were from personal experience. It was called a death game, after all—your life was on the line. Ms. Futarishizuka’s decision to put off her answer was definitely the right move. I would have simply refused outright. At most, I figured we would aid my neighbor as outsiders. There was a huge difference between coming in as a third party and actually having skin in the game, after all.

“Then for the time being,” said my neighbor, “I hope you’re willing to make do with one out of every five rewards instead of every three.”

“If I may ask, how many rewards have you received so far?”

“Two, since the game started.”

“…Hmm.” Ms. Futarishizuka put a hand to her chin in thought.

“Do you think we’d lie about how many times it’s been?” my neighbor shot back.

“Why wouldn’t you?”

“You’ve experienced it already—how everything in isolated spaces happens in a single instant for those outside. All I can do is ask you to trust me. If you can’t, then please reconsider becoming a Disciple,” my neighbor said, looking the other girl hard in the eyes.

Ms. Futarishizuka once again appeared to think things over. After a short time, she gave a little nod. “All right. That will work for now.”

“Thank you.”

“I’ll arrange for a second villa near this one. Would that be amenable?”

“Yes. That sounds wonderful.”

My neighbor was applying herself to this death game brilliantly. She was still so young, and yet she’d gone toe to toe with Ms. Futarishizuka. She definitely wasn’t your average girl. Of course, not being familiar with her opponent’s immense psychic powers and villainous past probably helped immensely.

“What about you two, then?”

Now that their discussion with Ms. Futarishizuka was over, Abaddon turned to us. Lady Elsa, who was already dozing, snapped out of her reverie at his voice. As if to insist she wasn’t sleeping, she straightened up and fixed her posture. Adorable. Not that I would mind if she just flopped over and fell asleep. She still had a little drool on her chin.

“For the time being,” I said, “I’d like to pass on the fruits of our labors to Ms. Futarishizuka.”

“Oh? That’s unusually generous of you,” she replied.

“Do you have a complaint, child?” demanded Peeps.

“No, not really. I’d be more than happy to take you up on that.”

“In exchange,” I continued, “would you consider our debt from the incident with Peeps paid in full?”

“I’d be too frightened to push the sparrow any further,” she answered. “I agree—taking care of that now seems the safest solution. But I’d prefer to receive my reward fairly soon.”

“I’m well aware, and I think it can be arranged.”

“…I am truly sorry,” Peeps said to me.

If my actions could help keep my neighbor even safer, then I could think of no greater reward. My financial issues had been solved thanks to my exchanges with the otherworld, so for the moment, I simply needed to focus on maintaining a good relationship with Ms. Futarishizuka. Peeps seemed to understand all that and didn’t object. I was, however, feeling a little uneasy at how much more important she was making herself in the grand scheme of things.

“If possible, I’d like to say hello to the girl over there, too,” said Abaddon, looking to his side at Lady Elsa.

The blond girl didn’t understand him, but she realized the conversation had turned to her. She looked over at me, troubled, and said what I figured she’d say. “Sasaki, what is that boy saying?”

“He says he’d like to talk to you.”

“But I can’t speak this land’s language,” she said, tilting her head to the side as she wondered what to do.

I addressed Abaddon in her place. “As you can see, she speaks a different language from the rest of us.”

“But you seem able to communicate with her just fine.”

“Please think of it as yet another strange mechanism at work—just like your isolated spaces and Disciples. At present, however, I can’t give the ability to anyone else.”

I couldn’t allow Lady Elsa to become involved in the angel-demon proxy war. I felt bad for my neighbor and her partner, but putting Lady Elsa into contact with the death game participants would only place her in greater danger. I wanted to politely decline here and now.

Perhaps guessing my intentions, Abaddon decided to change the topic. “I’m surprised there’s a language I don’t know in this day and age,” he reflected.

“You can understand other languages?” asked my neighbor.

“Well, yes. I’m actually quite studious, you know.”

“…I see.”

“So when I see the grades you get on your English quizzes—”

“P-please don’t say any more. Be quiet!”

“Whoops! Looks like I’ve been silenced.”

It sounded like my neighbor was having a rough time in English class. Considering her disastrous home life, it seemed cruel to expect her to do anything beyond maintaining her health. She seemed embarrassed about it, though, and started arguing with Abaddon.

It was like watching an elder sister having a friendly quarrel with her younger brother. I hoped he would continue to be a good influence on her. If so, I could move out of my current apartment without fear or worry. I wonder if I’m just being arrogant.

“In any case,” interjected Ms. Futarishizuka, “would you all like some dinner?”

“Us too? Are you sure?” asked my neighbor.

“Of course. You’re the guests of honor.”

“Such an enticing offer,” replied Abaddon. “My partner here doesn’t often get to eat her fill, you see.”

“Oh? Well then, you may feel free to eat to your heart’s content.”

Once we finished discussing our mutual cooperation, dinner was the obvious next step.

Spurred on by her desire to impress my neighbor and Abaddon, no doubt, Futarishizuka bent over backward to treat us to a lavish meal—a stroke of luck for those of us joining in. Peeps, too, happily tucked into some delicious-looking meat.

Once the food was gone, it was time for our trip to the otherworld. As before, we first headed to our warehouse headquarters to select what goods to bring, then set off for the Kingdom of Herz.

Despite everything that transpired that day, we were able to cross worlds that night the same way we always did. We hadn’t spent any longer than usual in Japan, and given prior experience, the time difference between worlds meant at least half a month had passed on the other side—a month at most. According to Peeps’s calculations, it varied each trip.

In any case, we first paid a visit to the town of Baytrium, under the control of Count Müller, and headed straight for his estate to deliver a video letter from Lady Elsa.

“It’s nice to see you again, Count Müller.”

“I’m glad to see you as well, Lord Sasaki—and Lord Starsage.”

“My apologies again for never informing you of our arrival in advance.”

“Please, no need to apologize. You’re always welcome here.”

We exchanged pleasantries from our seats on the sofas. Peeps fluttered off my shoulder and settled onto the little perching tree on the low table in front of us. I suspected the sparrow did this partially because he knew how much it made the count smile.

I placed the laptop next to the tree, then played the video letter for him as I’d done last time. When it was over, I reported on Lady Elsa’s recent situation. I decided to keep the whole affair with the proxy war a secret for now. She hadn’t been personally wrapped up in it, and there was no reason to needlessly fan the count’s unease. I’d already discussed the matter with Peeps, too.

Eventually, once we’d laid out the situation in Japan, the count straightened up and changed the topic. “By the way, Lord Sasaki, there was something I wanted to talk to you about.”

“What is it? I’m all ears.” Another problem, maybe? I thought. Things had been so crazy in Japan recently that I was hoping to spend some nice leisure time in the otherworld. It’d be nice if nothing bad had happened.

But the next words out of the count’s mouth dashed all my hopes. His news shocked me.

“I’ve received word that Prince Lewis plans to invade the Ohgen Empire,” he explained.

“Huh…?”

I couldn’t help my surprised response.

Prince Lewis was Prince Adonis’s elder brother. I had the great luck to see him for a few moments during my audience with the king. In contrast to his jolly, attractive younger brother, I remembered Lewis as having a more subdued beauty.

The two of them were competing for the Herzian throne. They’d never cross blades with each other directly, but there was no shortage of nobles and aristocrats around to stab each other in their place.

Count Müller belonged to the faction supporting Prince Adonis—and the same went for “Baron Sasaki.” In other words, Lewis was the highest general in the ranks of our political enemies. And now, for some reason, he’d declared war on the Ohgen Empire.

“Since we’ve been gone, has there been any indication within Herz that hostilities might begin?” I asked.

“No—at least, I haven’t heard of anything.”

“I’m curious what Prince Adonis thinks of this.”

“Actually, I heard this from the prince himself. He seemed quite troubled.”

Even Peeps got an angry word in. “This is madness. Does Lewis intend to destroy the country without even waiting for the ascension of a new king?”

From the bird’s point of view, this place was his former home, for which he’d given everything. His incredible loyalty had even earned him enough resentment from his peers to get him assassinated. Ever since his reincarnation as a Java sparrow, he kept court business at arm’s length—but this was enough to provoke even his ire.

“It is as you say, Lord Starsage,” agreed the count. “However, the prince seems stubbornly determined. He’s already begun calling on the nobles supporting him. I doubt he’ll make a move right away, but I don’t believe he will give up, either.”

“Is he so certain the dragons on the border will take Herz’s side?”

“That, I do not know. I cannot dismiss the possibility, however.”

“Hrm…,” The distinguished sparrow groaned, tilting his head in bafflement, looking very cute.

If Peeps is groaning like that, I thought, Prince Lewis must be a pretty incredible guy. He previously caused Count Müller a lot of trouble by saying he’d take Lady Elsa as his concubine. That was why she and the count were still living apart.

Was he really the type of person to act on a whim? Because if he is, that’s more than a little troubling. If a guy like that has a chance at becoming the next monarch, Herz is in worse shape than I thought. I hadn’t wanted to touch the faction war with a ten-foot pole. But after hearing all this, I couldn’t help but root for Prince Adonis.

“I’ll continue to hunt for more information,” said the count.

“We’ll leave it in your capable hands, then,” replied Peeps.

“Thank you.” Count Müller bowed deeply.

I bet he’s happy the Starsage asked him to help. Peeps does tend to solve everything on his own, after all.

At first, the difference in the flow of time between this world and Japan had worked to our advantage. But now, as we involved ourselves ever deeper in its affairs, I recognized the cons of this, as well. Every time we met with the count, it seemed he had more big news—or word of some new trouble brewing.

After trading updates, Count Müller recorded his video letter for Lady Elsa and we took back the laptop. Once all our work was done, we decided to set out for Baron Sasaki’s territory that same day.

Considering the scope of their progress the last time we visited, we couldn’t afford not to check. Only a day may have passed in Japan, but I couldn’t even imagine how far they’d gotten. I hoped funding hadn’t run dry; that would spell disaster.

To get there, we used Peeps’s teleportation magic. The count wouldn’t be accompanying us this time, so it was just the two of us heading over. First, we set our destination high in the sky so we could use flight magic to get a bird’s-eye view. Then my vision flashed black, and the familiar Müller estate reception room was replaced by a new set of surroundings.

All around us were clear blue skies. The wind whistled past, tickling my cheeks refreshingly. The sunlight was warm, too; it was perfect afternoon weather.

“Well, well,” said Peeps as we both took in the sight below. “Their progress is once again astounding.”

“Looks like it,” I replied.

He was right—construction on both the ramparts and the fortress had evidently proceeded at a fever pitch. Last time we were here, we saw a lot of what seemed like foundations for the structures. Now, though, it looked like a few had their upper sections already completed.

The large golems helping with construction made the work look a lot simpler than in modern times. Scaffolding seemed scarce here—there was only as much as the workers needed. It was like they were making buildings out of toy blocks. Maybe the lack of hassle made the work go even faster.

“Those golems are providing a wonderful boost to efficiency,” remarked Peeps.

“You think so, too, huh?”

“And their movements are so precise. For one person to be controlling several is impressive.”

“Yeah, their movement seems as quick as a human’s.”

“This type of magic lacks visual appeal—and thus is not well-known to society. Few casters in the field have much renown. If this one is in the civil construction industry, they must be so talented, they could charge almost anything for their work.”

Peeps almost never gave other magic users such rave reviews. They must have a real master helping out. There were actually quite a few such people in modern times. They didn’t show up much in the media, but certain craftspeople got to be so well-known that they became synonymous with the jobs they did.

Though, personally, I wish this crew would work a little more slowly.

“Could we head down and say hello to Mr. French?” I asked.

“Very well.”

With the sparrow’s approval, I used flight magic to decrease my altitude. I’d grown pretty accustomed to this part. I landed near the area with all the tents—the one we’d visited last time. This was essentially the living quarters for the on-site workers. The population density had risen here, and there were now twice the number of dwellings. There were even some simple wood houses among the tents.

In addition to the on-site workers, more people who looked like merchants and adventurers had arrived. I even saw a few carriages coming and going. At a glance, it looked like a refugee camp, but I could tell it was already starting to function like a full-fledged settlement. Why, I’d say this place is more lively than some villages.

As I walked along, I spied a familiar face.

“Sir! I knew it was you!” he exclaimed.

“It’s good to see you, too, Mr. French,” I replied.

“I saw someone come down from the sky, and I had a feeling!”

“Well, thank you for coming out to meet me.”

“Of course. Thank you for taking the time to visit.”

Luckily, Mr. French had caught sight of me, saving me the trouble of seeking him out. We stopped in the middle of the area with the tents to exchange greetings. He wore rougher clothes now than his old chef’s uniform—a short-sleeved shirt and a pair of coarse pants. With his stern features, he cut an intimidating figure. He had dirt and dust on him, too; he must have been working on-site again today.

“First the restaurant and now this,” I observed. “I really can’t thank you enough.”

“No need for thanks. I’m doing this because I want to,” he replied with a smooth, attractive smile. The expression, combined with his rough appearance, radiated reliability.

“Nobody’s been bothering you, have they?” I asked.

“We’ve had no problems of the sort so far,” he reported.

“I’m glad to hear it.”

“And the Ohgen Empire’s kept quiet, too, just like you said it would.”

Previously, a man named Viscount Ohm had visited Count Müller on Duke Einhart’s orders. I’d been worried those troubles might continue, but apparently I hadn’t needed to.

“If you ever require more funds, don’t hesitate to ask,” I told Mr. French.

“More?” he repeated. “Never. In fact, we might actually have too much, sir.”

“Really?”

“People have been arriving here every day looking for work. If the pay gets any higher, all hell might break loose. You’ve already provided enough to employ several high-ranking magicians, after all.”

“Oh. No wonder things are moving so quickly.”

“Yes! Thanks to you, both the walls and the fortress are coming along well.”

“I feel bad asking this when you’re all working so hard, but what is this fortress meant to be for? If Herz planned to station troops here to keep the Empire at bay, I would have appreciated being informed in advance.”

“What? No, it’s going to be your personal estate, sir.”

“My…personal estate?”

“This territory belongs to you, doesn’t it?”

That was a little troubling. How was I supposed to appreciate being given an estate square in the middle of this empty grassland? This place was the boonies! It had “thirty minute drive from the nearest convenience store” written all over it. I fully intended to stay at that luxury inn in the count’s town.

Peeps seemed slightly concerned, too, and his little body gave a shudder. Our ideal life of rest and relaxation was quickly turning into a frugal subsistence on the frontier. And we had no idea if and when the Ohgen Empire was going to attack. Plus, some awfully enormous dragons were living nearby. I didn’t want to say it, but this seemed like one of the least livable areas I could imagine.

“As you know, Mr. French, my visits here are brief,” I reminded him.

“Even so,” he insisted. “We can’t allow a noble such as yourself to live like a rootless wanderer, sir.”

Most importantly, we were absent from this world for far longer than we were present. If something was to happen, it was very likely we wouldn’t be here for it.

Maybe the best option was to explain all this to Count Müller and have him give the fortress to family members or something. They’d be overjoyed to have a frontline base for Baytrium, and we’d be overjoyed to not have to change our lives around. Yeah, that sounds good.

“But don’t worry, sir,” Mr. French went on. “We don’t intend to leave you with an empty domain.”

“I couldn’t possibly ask for anything else,” I insisted.

“Work has already started to fix up the major road connecting to Baytrium.”

“Major road? You mean that dusty, broken path?”

“That’s the one, sir. By the time we finish the fortress, it should be easier for carriages to come and go. Before, it used to take a week to travel either way in good conditions. But once we’re done fixing up the road, I hear they’ll be able to come and go more quickly.”

“I really can’t thank you enough for going to such lengths.”

“You’re doing your best for us, sir! We’re with you all the way.”

The residents of Baytrium, Mr. French included, had already experienced being one step away from an Imperial invasion. Pushing out the front lines like this—even if it meant giving the area to a foreign noble like me—must have held a lot of weight with them. Otherwise, there would be no reason for them to work this hard. Maybe we could even get help from other nobles with lands bordering the Empire.

In the meantime, another familiar face approached from behind Mr. French.

“Hey! I thought it must be you, Baron Sasaki.”

It was the man we’d met last time when Count Müller had been with us—the master builder who ran a construction company in Baytrium. He cut a striking—and terrifying—figure, with his stern features, shaved head, huge frame, and rippling muscles. After spotting us, he trotted over.

“It’s good to see you again,” I said.

“Here to take a look at the work, m’lord? We’ve come pretty far, eh?”

“You have. I’m shocked—I never thought things would move this quickly.”

He’d probably noticed us descending from the sky like Mr. French and come to see us; his own work uniform was just as dirty as the chef’s. I felt bad pulling them away from their jobs like this.

“I was actually just asking Mr. French about the progress,” I told him.

“I see, I see.”

With this new addition to our group, the three of us stood around making light conversation, and I had them fill me in on the status of the work. As always, Mr. French seemed to be in high demand. The master builder told us all about how hard he was working, just like the last time we visited. Apparently, he was so engrossed in building the fortress, he sometimes forgot to sleep or eat.

That was probably why, after a few minutes, an idea suddenly dawned on me. I’d just thought of a brilliant way to distance ourselves from the frugal future now facing us.

“By the way, who’s been giving orders on-site?” I asked.

“Orders, sir?” replied Mr. French. “Right now, the people who know what they’re doing are taking command in different areas. Sometimes people come to me, but if there’s a problem, we all gather together and figure it out.”

“What about when you need to have one person serve as a representative to some third party?”

“That almost never happens,” explained the master builder. “We haven’t really considered it, m’lord.”

Perfect, I thought. Time to pop the suggestion.

“Unfortunately, due to various circumstances, I’m unable to stay here for long stretches of time. Should that cause the work to stall, I wouldn’t be able to face any of you—not when you’re all working this hard.”

“We already heard as much straight from Count Müller, m’lord,” said the master builder. “He said while you’re a Herzian noble, you also serve as a merchant directly under the count, and you can’t neglect those duties.”

Incredible! I thought. Didn’t think the count would be helping me out here, too. No wonder the workers hadn’t grown dissatisfied with their good-for-nothing lord who was never around. This also reminded me just how well the people of Baytrium loved their count.

Thanking my lucky stars, this poor excuse for a noble continued. “It looks like more people are visiting this place than before. I’m guessing it will grow into something of a settlement before too long. Naturally, that also means we’ll be seeing more guests from other places.”

“What are you getting at, m’lord?” asked the master builder.

“I was thinking of giving full authority to develop my lands to Mr. French for the foreseeable future.”

“Wait!” exclaimed Mr. French. “Sir, I… That’s way too much for me to handle!”

“Are you being serious, m’lord?” asked the master builder. “There’re more money and goods invested in this place than your average noble could get from a year’s worth of taxes. And you want to entrust it to a commoner you’re not even related to? That’s going beyond simple eccentricity, don’t you think?”

At my proposal, their expressions shifted dramatically. They looked at me with total and utter shock. I cleared my throat to buy time, then put on a show of looking around, my eyes naturally drifting over to the sparrow on my shoulder.

A moment later, I saw him give a nod. Great! I thought. Approval secured from the Lord Starsage himself.

“But none of that would have been possible without Mr. French’s help, so I can’t be upset, no matter what the end result is. And so, I’d like to ask again. Would you please do me the favor of taking on full responsibility for this fortress?”

What was the worst that could happen—we’d fail and have to start over again? That would take a lot of time—which was exactly what Peeps and I were after anyway.

“I promise to continue my funding, of course,” I added.

“B-but I’m only a cook,” objected Mr. French. “I could never take on that much…”

“Then for the time being, why don’t you talk with the master builder here and everyone else. Get their opinions on how to proceed.”

“……”

This was my plan—to progressively transfer control of these lands to Mr. French and his people. Returning gifts was difficult for anyone. And while the chef didn’t personally feel any hostility toward me, the rest of the workers developing this land were attached to him, not me. When it came to rights and interest, at least one of the people close to him was bound to feel resentment—believing Mr. French much more suited to be lord of the land than a noble who was never around.

As Baron Sasaki, that was a wonderful prospect. Eventually, I’d get so much pushback that I’d have to feign resignation and hand over the entire kit and caboodle. And once Peeps and I were rootless wanderers again, we’d stay in Count Müller’s domain and do nothing but eat and sleep.

“Sir,” said Mr. French, “I had no idea you were considering such a thing…”

“Can I leave it in your hands, Mr. French?”

“I don’t know how much I can do, b-but I’ll give it everything I have, I promise!”

“I appreciate it. I feel at ease knowing you’ll have it covered.”

This should stabilize relations in the domain for the time being.

Our goal was a life of leisure—nothing more. We didn’t have time for all this land development nonsense.

Once I was finished playing the baron and checking on the work site, we headed to the Republic of Lunge, once again relying on Peeps’s teleportation magic to get us there.

Before meeting with Mr. Joseph, we transferred the goods from Japan into the warehouse he’d been lending us. Sugar and chocolate took up most of the real estate, but we also brought food items that would be difficult to source locally, as well as specially requested items such as calculators and medicine.

This was all routine work for us, but aside from delivering video letters to Count Müller, it was our most crucial task in the otherworld. In other words, as long as we got this done, nothing else mattered.

And that was exactly the kind of life we were after.

Once we finished unloading, we visited the offices of the Kepler Trading Company. After being shown to the reception room, we found Mr. Joseph already there waiting to greet us.

“It’s good to see you again, Mr. Sasaki.”

“Mr. Joseph. It’s been some time.”

After exchanging greetings, we each chose a sofa and sat down. We were alone in the room—apparently, Mr. Marc was absent today.

“We’ve stored the products in the warehouse again, as usual,” I told him. “Here’s the inventory. We brought extra sugar, as requested. We also brought more contraceptives, among other things.”

“I appreciate it,” he replied, reaching across the low table for the inventory. “I’ll have someone check everything over right away.” He clapped his hands. A man entered from a side door, dressed like a butler. Mr. Joseph whispered something in his ear, and the man immediately exited into the hallway.

This was all business as usual. I’d had Peeps write the inventory I’d just given Mr. Marc; I still couldn’t read or write this world’s language.

“All the medicines you’ve brought us have been incredibly effective,” the man continued. “We’re constantly getting orders for them. Though this was true for the tranquilizers as well, the effectiveness of the contraceptives has become a hot topic among the upper classes, if a little belatedly.”

“Is that so? I’m glad to hear it.”

Recently, medicine was beginning to catch up with our original big sellers—manufactured goods like calculators and transceivers. Mr. Joseph had told me to bring him as many as I could source.

This was one of the items I’d become able to procure thanks to Ms. Futarishizuka’s help, and with demand so much higher than supply, the price had risen considerably. Plus, since they were consumables, people were going through them like crazy. And to top it all off, technology here was unable to duplicate them, giving me a complete monopoly.

Personally, if some mysterious merchant tried to sell me medicine, I’d be too terrified to use any. But this world’s values and the fact that healing magic was relatively common meant that even people in high society were surprisingly willing to try it out. The idea was that if anything went wrong, they could just go crying to whatever practitioner of the healing arts they had on retainer.

After a few moments of looking over the inventory, Mr. Joseph picked up a pen from the low table and began scribbling something on the paper—numbers in this world’s language, next to each of the tightly packed product names. I couldn’t do letters, but I could manage numbers. I’d decided I needed to learn those if nothing else, so I spent time studying them.

“How about this for the total price?” Mr. Joseph asked.

He’d added unit prices and subtotals to the inventory with a grand total at the bottom. All told, it would be about three thousand in Herzian large gold coins. If I swapped them for regular gold coins and melted them down into ingots, it was sure to weigh a ton. That would be more than enough to repay Ms. Futarishizuka for everything. She’d been so helpful lately that I couldn’t afford to neglect her.

“That looks perfectly fine to me,” I responded.

“Excellent. I’ll prepare the payment as soon as we’re finished checking the goods.”

Through the good offices of Mr. Joseph, we stayed the night in the Republic of Lunge. As always, I was well-taken care of and spent the night comfortably. By the next day, the checks were complete, and I received full payment on the spot. It seemed our products were selling fantastically.

We decided to return to Baytrium that same day and went straight to the Hermann Trading Company to deposit money for the development of my territory. I further explained that I’d transferred control to Mr. French and instructed them to go to him if any questions arose about the handling of the money.

We’d be splitting our income roughly into thirds: One would be sent to Mr. French, one brought back for Ms. Futarishizuka, and the rest we’d set aside for emergencies. For this last sum, Ms. Futarishizuka had provided us with a vault in a corner of the warehouse. It was actually more of a locked shipping container, and we’d just been tossing ingots inside. We’d probably continue stashing our extra funds there for the time being.

Last time, we sent five hundred large gold coins to Mr. French; this time it would be double. The scope of their work had expanded, so I was adding a little extra. After all that big talk, I really didn’t want to let funding run out.

After finishing all our tasks, we finally had some time for magic practice. We used the plains bordering the forest outside Baytrium as before. There were no human settlements out here, so we’d been using the area for this purpose ever since we first started visiting this world. According to Peeps, we were also well-removed from the major roads.

Over several days, we traveled back and forth between there and the inn, and I studied magic under Peeps. Thanks to all the time we were able to devote, I was seeing good results.

“I continue to be amazed at how quickly you learn magic,” commented Peeps. “You have a real sense for this.”

“Really? It means a lot hearing you say that, Peeps.”

“As well it should. You ought to be proud.”

I then received a lecture on magic from the distinguished sparrow, and true to his compliment, he saw fit to teach me one more spell—specifically, the one to create a golem. It was the same spell Peeps always used to manipulate the laptop. Category-wise, it was intermediate level magic, though that only covered its creation. Skill in golem manipulation varied wildly from person to person, and according to the bird, proficiency was everything in this world.

It felt sort of like operating a radio-controlled toy in my mind. For now, the most I could do was make a little earthen golem stomp around a bit. I couldn’t immediately think of a use for it, but I’d grown interested after hearing it was a rare skill employed in my territory’s development. I decided to study it, in the hopes that I could help out if an opportunity arose in the future. As for the going-to-work spell, I still wasn’t seeing the light at the end of the tunnel.

In any case, time flew by, and we soon came to the last day of our otherworld sojourn. We were now back in the luxury inn in Baytrium.

“We should probably return soon,” remarked Peeps, looking up from his struggle with the laptop on the living room table. On the screen in front of him, a clock ticked away, the background pitch-black. Apparently, he’d been simulating the passage of time in Japan. I couldn’t believe how resourceful this sparrow was—he was even skilled in time management.

“All right, then, Peeps. I’m ready.”

“Understood. Let’s be off.”

In this world, too, there were many causes for concern. But I decided to be grateful that I had a chance to slip away from the uproar back home and relax for a while. I felt as though I’d enjoyed some of that slow life we were after for the first time in a while. Plus, I got to chat with Peeps about all kinds of things, so I was pretty satisfied.

Now refreshed, I was ready to return to my bureau job in Japan.