200 - - Episode 198 Heartwarming

I've been concentrating on pioneering for the past few days since we went with If to battle, but I'm getting a little bored so I'm going to play with Belle and the others. I've sent Sylphy and Gina and the others to destroy the nest of the undead, but I should have taken the day off today.

"Tulu, you've been working so hard lately, let's call it a day and go play with Belle and the others."

"...... yeah."

Tulu thought for a moment and nodded happily. Oh, man, I got a kick out of that. Don't you think ...... like nomos when such a pretty girl grows up, I'll be dead by the time Tulu grows up. In my mind, Tulu will always be a sweet, sweet child. Without a word, he strokes Tulu's head and heads for the park where Belle and the others are playing.

"You can't run away from me!" "Run!" "Cue!" "Coo-coo!" "......"

It seems that they are playing tag and Flare is the tag. They are chasing each other in a maze of clay pipes.

"Hey, guys!

He calls out loudly to Bell and his friends.

"Oh, yoota, coo, coo, coo, here it comes!" ......"

The belles, noticing my voice, start to gather around, and I start stroking them. Flair is still too focused on the atmosphere. I don't think my reply fits the context. Maybe she is forcing herself to use the same words that If uses.

At first I thought that Freya would soon become more childish and comfortable with Belle and her friends, but it seems that her admiration for If is stronger than I imagined, and she never forgets to imitate them.

"What's wrong?"

After I finished petting her, Belle asked me curiously. I had told her that I would be pioneering all day, so it seems strange that she came here.

"Yes, I have a new game I wanted to teach you.

"Play-" "Cue-" "Fun?" Cooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo!" ......"

Before long, Tulu joins the happy belles, asking questions in a lively manner. I pat them on the head and explain the rules.

"This is how it works, do you understand?"

Since there were no complicated rules, the belles understood immediately and responded cheerfully by raising their hands.

"Well, let's move to a different place."

We move to the base of the spirit tree with Belle and the others in tow. In my mind, this game must be played face down in the tree. The tree may be too big, but it will make a good picture.

"Let's practice with me as the demon first. Then you can keep your distance from me.

After confirming that the belles are about 30 meters away, they start the game face down on the spirit tree.

"Darumasaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaat!

I turned around and saw that all the Belles were in position to touch me. Okay, that's what I expected. I'm a spirit. I can fly fast. I skipped the first step, but it didn't seem to matter.

"The end?"

Belle tilts her head cockily and asks. Well, this doesn't bring out the charm of "Daruma-san ga tumbled down" even a millimeter. But don't worry, I've thought of a countermeasure.

"Let's try one more time. This time, everyone take this."

Have everyone hold a single plant seed. If they hold something, they won't be able to fly as fast, and a single seed is almost as if there is no burden of magic power. They return to their original positions and resume the game.

"Darumasaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaat!

I look back and see that the bells have come to a stop just a little further from the start. Yeah, that's just right.

I take a good look at Bell, Rain, Tulu, Tamamo, Flare, and Moon one by one. Their faces are smiling, but they all seem to be standing still. Moon's body is twitching, but if he were out of the game, he wouldn't be able to participate in the game.

"Darumasaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaand!

Looking back again, the belles have moved forward a little and come to a firm stop. They seem to have understood the rules perfectly. Well then, let's show them what adults can do from here.

"Mr. Daruma fell down!

I turn around and see Tulu and Flare, who I had assumed would come at the same verbal tempo as before, huffing and puffing their way forward.

"Tulu, Flair, you missed because you moved. Come over here and join hands with me.

You got me. - That's not fair!

Tulu looks frustrated and Flair is a little pouty.

"Ha-ha-ha, I explained it to you first. I explained to you at the beginning that the speed of speech is up to the demon. Just give up and hope that everyone will help you."

These games are no fun if you don't play them seriously. I'm sorry, but we're gonna catch them all. Sometimes slowly, sometimes quickly, they weave in and out of feints, toying with the young lower class spirits.

The last one left is Tamamo. She instantly senses the moment they turn around and stops. But I see right through her. Tamamo is good at fast paces, but not at patterns that take time.

"Darumasan ga kororonoooooo!"

When I turn around, I see Tamamo rushing to stop, but he is not in time. He must have stopped once, and then resumed his movement with a long stretch of words, and then turned around so he could not stop.

"Tamamo, you moved."

"Coo-ooh!"

Too bad!　The tamamo comes flying in like a fluffy little ball. The belles are congratulating Tamamo, the last one standing, on a job well done.

"Did you guys have fun?"

"Fun!" "Coo-coo!" "Fun!" "Fun!" "Coo-coo!" "Next time: katsuze!" ......"

I think he liked it. Since I had caught them all so unprofessionally, I cut off my hand and that of my trapped friends and we practiced our escape pattern.

"Well then, you can all play together now. This time the ogre is Tulu, who grabbed me first.

"Okay."

"Fun, fun, coo, coo, coo, coo, I won't lose!" ......"

He watches over the belles, who scatter in high spirits, and lays down on the grass a short distance away from the spirit tree.

"Hmmm, looks like a fun game, doesn't it?"

I looked toward the voice and saw Dolly flying from the top of the spirit tree. I don't mean to peek at her, but it's very disturbing that I can't see inside her skirt, even though she's wearing it and I'm looking up at her from right below.

I forced myself to turn my eyes away from the fixed gaze, even if I couldn't see it. ......

Dolly, who was looking at me curiously as I turned my face away from her. Is Dolly a natural devil type?

"No, it's nothing. You've been watching me, haven't you?

"Yes, the spirit tree seemed to be having a good time, so I came to check on them, but Belle and her friends were having so much fun.

I've heard things I shouldn't have.

"...... Are spirit trees conscious?"

Yes, plants are more or less conscious. The spirit trees are very much enjoying the bustle of their surroundings. It seems to be happy that the children are playing under the tree.

"Heh, I'm glad you're happy."

...... let's see, the lawn I'm laying on. The trees I've cut down, even though they were thinned out, the crops I've harvested and eaten...... I've killed a lot of demons, and now it's too late, but it's awkward to hear it again.

"Hmmm, don't worry about it. I'm really only faintly aware of lawns and trees that haven't aged well. Yuta-san isn't harming the plants needlessly, you can rest assured."

Dolly, who reads my color, follows me up. Thank you.

"So how conscious is the spirit tree?"

"Yes. The spirit tree is a special tree, so even though it has grown rapidly, it has the same level of consciousness as Belle and her friends.

Is she as good as Belle, or is she still just a kid?

"I see, you must be bored if you can't move. Are you okay?"

"Hmm, Yuta, trees don't move. That child of the spirit tree knows how to have fun without moving. Besides, he may eventually come out to play by making a guardian to which he can transfer his consciousness. When that happens, please give it a name."

"Wow, I didn't know spirit trees could do that. I'm not very good at it, but I'll try my best to think of a name when the time comes.

I don't know when, but it looks like we're going to have another little buddy. It may be getting a little too crowded, but they're doing their best to enrich the area around the base, so we'll do our best to be hospitable when they come out.

"Hmmm..."

"Hmm?　Dolly, what's wrong?

"No, Belle is really not good at keeping still. She was being watched by Tulu, but something was bothering her, so she looked up at the sky and got caught.

"Yeah, that sounds like Belle."

She was holding hands with Tulu and looking happy, "I'm stuck! It's a good thing that she enjoys everything.

"Cu-cu-cu-cu-cu-cu-cu-cu-cu-cu-cu-cu-cu-cu-cu-cu."

"I'll be waiting!"

Well, maybe Rain said he would help and Belle said she would wait for him. So Rain is the knight and Belle is the princess ......, then Tulu's role would be that of a demon king who locks up ...... princesses, right?

"What's wrong?"

I couldn't help but laugh, and Dolly was interested and asked me why. I told her that I had imagined it, and she laughed, saying that she had imagined it too, and that she felt sorry for Tulu's casting.

But when I look at it that way, it's like watching a children's playground, and I feel relieved. Daruma-san ga tumbled down is the Demon King's special spell. The knights who came to the rescue of the princess who endure it desperately. ...... The future of despair where the demon king Tulu buries the knights, or the happy ending where the demon king is defeated and the princess and the knights are united. It will be interesting to see which will win.

............ As a result, it was Priest Moon who freed Princess Belle after many attacks by the Demon King Tulu. Knight Rain, who had been so determined, easily fell into the Demon King's trap and secured the princess.

Flare, the heavy knight who moves cautiously not to be defeated this time, is still in the rear. Tamamo, the scout, who is moving quickly and playing with the enemy, is in the right place, but is secured with his tail wagging as Bell cheers him on.

Now, Princess Belle is holding Priestess Moon in her arms, just out of the reach of the Demon King Tulu, in a happy and moving ending. I feel a little sorry for the knight Rain, but that's the way of the world, I guess.

"It was quite interesting, wasn't it?

"Yes, it was."

Bell and his team are about to enter the second round. Surprisingly, everyone wants to be an ogre. Maybe they want to say "Daruma-san fell down. Rain and Tamamo seem to be able to understand him somehow, but what about Moon?　It seems that spirits can understand each other's words, so I hope it will be OK.