Chapter 2

Back in the hut, Kabirumba spread a piece of paper on the table. There was a pen nearby. Then, Kabirumba began to write letters. It seems that the letters are the same as they were a hundred years ago. That was good.

”Okay, first we need to get some meat and vegetables from some town or village. Do you understand up to this point?”

”Yes, sensei…”

”Good. Then what do we need to get meat and vegetables?”

”Money.”

”That’s right.”

Kabirumba squints at me as if to say, “Well done”. This guy’s face is more expressive than I expected. I remember when Kabirumba used to have the flat look in the old days.

”So, have you thought of a job you could do while we’re touring around the island? If you don’t work, you won’t get paid.”

”Well… there are a lot of fruits here. How about a fruit shop?”

”It would be nice if there was a town or village nearby.”

Kabirumba smiled.

That’s right. Goods are nothing if there are no buyers. Does anyone live near this island in the first place?

”Kabirumba, where’s the nearest town or village?”

”There is a settlement about two days’ walk from here. It has a population of about twenty people. Though, they are going to leave soon because they found they could not achieve their planned results. And once they are gone, it will take about five days to get to the next place.”

”Oh no!”

”I was just thinking, where do you learn words like that?”

Kabirumba looks at me suspiciously. I don’t know either. So I answered with silence. Then Kabirumba sighs.

”So, fruit shop is no good.”

”No?”

”Yes.”

What to do now? Should I become an adventurer like the hero of the past in order to show the world how powerful, how great, and how terrifying I am as a former Demon King? Let power be everything?

”If I can’t be a fruit seller… Should I become an adventurer…”

”It’s rejected…”

”Why not?”

Before I could finish, Kabirumba denied it dismissively. Its eyebrows were furrowed, as if it were angry. But I don’t think I’ve done anything to make this guy angry yet.

”Of course it’s obvious. Leo-sama, you will be overdoing it, right?”

”I can’t deny it.”

”Then… you were going to play the Warriors, weren’t you?”

”How did you know?”

”As expected!”

Kabirumba starts to wiggle and move in waves. I believe this is the “dance of anger” that people do when they are angry. I’m not sure if this is officially true. Kabirumba is a mystery. No one is completely sure of its ecology.

”Anyway, no adventurers. Well, how about becoming an alchemist? You’re good at it, aren’t you?”

”That’s true, but can I sell alchemic item? I don’t remember any money coming from it.”

”That’s because we were fighting with humans. Now that the world is at peace, it can be exchanged for money.

So that’s how it was. With money, I can buy things. If I can buy things, I can be happy. I don’t know why I didn’t realize it before. Then…

”Okay, then! I’ll be the Alchemist King!”

”There’s no such title, but…”

Kabirumba gave me a blank stare. Does he know all the titles in the world? Kabirumba is such a scary kid. But I will not give up.

”If there isn’t one, I will make one. Now, I’ve got a new goal. I’m not going to conquer the world. I’m going to become Alchemist King.”

”Do your best. But then, many people will want the alchemic item that Leo-sama made, so I guess there will be no more vacations.”

”What? I’ll lose my vacation?”

That’s absurd. Where’s my slow life? Am I going to spend 24/7 all the time?

”Stop, stop. I’m not going to become Alchemist King. I will just make alchemical items so that I won’t be too busy, and live a slow life of self-indulgence.:

”That seems to be a controversial goal. But for Leo-sama, it’s a good idea.”

Thank you, my friend. It has strengthened my resolve.

”Well then, let’s leave as soon as I make the right items. I want to get there before the settler villages leave.”

”That’s a good idea. There are not much materials on this island, but restorative and antidote potions should be able to be made.”

”That’s right. But first, there’s something I must make for sure.”

It would be a waste if I died again by an accident, even though I had resurrected myself. So, I decided to make a second “Substitute Platinum Coin”.

The material I need is a platinum coin from the old days. It would be difficult to obtain nowadays. After all, this platinum coin is so pure that a magic circle can be engraved on the inside of it with magic power.

However, it requires a great deal of knowledge and skill to do so. Still, it’s a piece of cake for me.

With this thought, I put a platinum coin on the table, and then I make a magic circle. Together with a golden glow, the magic circle is sucked into the platinum coin.

* * *

”By the way, Leo-sama was able to use the magic of flying, huh?”

”Of course, that’s because it’s convenient for transportation.”

”Then I think it’s okay to go straight through the settlement village.”

Kabirumba, with its gnarled head growing out of my shoulder, is tilting its neck. Certainly, it may be so. But this is my first encounter with a human being since my resurrection from a hundred-year slumber. I must proceed with caution.

”What if I go to a big town and I screw up? Hmm, well, in a developing village, there is no problem. I can just wipe them out without leaving any trace.”

”Please don’t do that.”

I was joking. But it’s easy to “pretend they didn’t see us” if there’s only about 20 of them. Still, it’s better to approach only a few people at first.

Now, there is a white smoke in front of us. Perhaps that is the settlement village. In the distance, wooden fences and crude houses come into view. They look just like the huts we had just left.

”Leo-sama, please stop! You’re not going there directly from the sky, are you?”

”I’m going to do that, though…”

”No! There are only a few people who can use flying magic! Only the ‘Four Wise Men’ can do it.”

”Then that makes five if you count me… just kidding. I’ll be down in a minute.”

With a swift, vertical movement, I descended to the ground. After all, it is best to move forward step by step while stepping on the ground.

Now, where we landed is in a dimly lit forest. Naturally, there are no paths. Well, with Kabirumba-sensei, who knows the world so well, there is no way to get lost in the forest.

”Then, which way?”

”This way. There are monsters in the forest, so be careful.”

”They are still here after a hundred years? The Creator never gets tired of them.”

”The Creator is giving us blessings. I don’t think it’s good to talk like that. What if the monster disappears because of your stupidity?”

”Yes, yes.”