Volume 7 - CH 5

Chapter 5: Fighting Together 

There were still a few days until my meeting with Turgis’s head of state, so we were having Kuu show us around the nearby cities. 

Going to unfamiliar places, seeing how the locals lived, and identifying the similarities and differences between them and our own people was fun. Whenever we found something new, we met the discoveries with excitement. 

“Oh, what’s this?” I commented. “I’ve never seen this kind of fruit before.” 

“Big Brother, they’re selling some weird animals over here!” Tomoe called. “They’re small and cute.” 

“Let me see... Wait, Tomoe, doesn’t it say there that they’re for eating?” 

“People eat them?!” 

Tomoe and I looked around with great enthusiasm, while Juna and Roroa smiled. 

Those easygoing days continued, but today was different. 

Today, there were two days left before the meeting with the head of the republic. 

It was still early in the morning, but Kuu rushed over to the room where we were staying. He was out of breath, and looked like he’d been in a hurry. Behind him was Leporina, looking just as winded. 

“Hah... Hah... Ka-Kazuma...” he panted. 

“What’s wrong?” I asked. “You’re totally out of breath.” 

When I invited them into the room and asked Aisha to fetch some water, Kuu raised a hand to stop me, and tried to get his breathing under control as he said, “It’s fine... I don’t need water. Before that, I have a favor to ask.” 

“A favor?” 

“For now, can you get all of your people together in this room?” 

Seeing a serious expression on Kuu that I’d never seen him make before, I gathered my traveling companions, despite some misgivings. 

There were nine of us gathered in the four-person room: me, Aisha, Juna, Roroa, Tomoe, Hal, and Kaede, along with Kuu and Leporina. Having nine people made it awfully cramped, but he had said “everyone,” so there was no helping it. 

“So, Kuuie. What’d ya have in mind, gatherin’ us all here?” Roroa asked suspiciously. 

He was the son of their head of state, so I thought it was a bit much to be calling him Kuuie, but... given the tense situation, I decided to pretend I hadn’t heard it. 

Kuu stood up and bowed his head to all of us. While we were all still taken aback by the suddenness of it, Kuu desperately said, “I’ll keep this brief! Please! Lend me your bodyguards!” 

“P-Please do.” Leporina hurriedly stood up as well, and bowed her head like Kuu. 

“I’m sorry to get foreigners caught up in this! But still!” he cried. 

“Calm down, Kuu,” I said. “Just what happened?” 

“Ah... R-Right.” 

Kuu finally calmed himself. With a big, deep breath, he slapped his own cheeks, maybe as a way of psyching himself up. 

“The thing is, a previously undiscovered dungeon has been confirmed to exist near a mountain village that’s around two hours north of here by carriage. It seems it was a rocky mountain, and when there was a landslide, the entrance to the dungeon appeared.” 

A dungeon. 

I was used to them being a thing in RPGs, but in this world, a dungeon was understood as a labyrinthine place with its own ecology. They were also the only place outside the Demon Lord’s Domain where monsters could be found. But the monsters found in such places all had intelligence on the level of wild beasts, and they were nothing like the sentient demons found in the Demon Lord’s Domain. There were a fair number of these dungeons on this continent. 

This was what I knew about dungeons so far:

They came in a wide variety of types, and were inhabited by low-intelligence monsters. 

The deepest point contained what was called a dungeon core. 

For as long as the core existed, monsters would continue to appear, no matter how many were defeated. 

If the core was destroyed, the monsters stopped appearing... and so on.

The connection between monsters and dungeon cores was still unknown. 

However, the destroyed dungeon cores could be used as jewels for a Jewel Voice Broadcast. 

In addition to the cores, there were also cases where other out-of-place artifacts and overtechnology could be found. 

There were even groups that made it their life’s work to study the artifacts. The House of Maxwell, which Genia the “overscientist” belonged to, was one of them. 

The existence of such artifacts had caused an insane amount of progress in this world’s technology. 

In addition, there were adventurers like Dece and Juno who made their living exploring the dungeons, and nearby towns that profited off such adventurers gathering. With the various demands overlapping, dungeons were considered dangerous, but also potentially profitable. 

Kuu told us, with a look on his face like he had bitten into something unpleasant, that one of those dungeons had been discovered just two days from here by carriage. 

“Now, I’m sure there are things to be gained from a dungeon,” he said. “However, that’s something we can only discuss once the safety of the people in the villages near the entrance is secured. You never know what’s in a newly discovered dungeon, after all.” 

“So, something came out, then?” I asked. 

“Yeah. I hear ten ogres, or something like that, came out.” 

Ogres or something like that, huh... 

Ogres were oni. In Japanese mythology, oni were a symbolic representation of those who didn’t conform to the system, and were depicted as powerful and terrifying, but somehow tragic. However, in Western mythology, they were man-eating humanoid monsters, and were often barbarians or demi-humans. From what I was hearing, these ogres sounded like the latter. 

“Around the same time that the guys from the village who found it rushed to the capital to report on their discovery, a little over ten ogre-like creatures crawled out and attacked the village,” said Kuu. “From what the guys who got away said... they saw them eating people indiscriminately.” 

“Eating people...” I murmured. 

If the ogres were attacking people indiscriminately, and eating them, at that, it was no different from an attack by dangerous beasts. Unlike a war waged for a purpose, there was no room for negotiation, and we could only exterminate them like we would animals. 

“Naturally, we’re putting a force together to put them down ourselves, and we’ve put in a request with the guild for adventurers to slay the monsters that came out of the dungeon, but... time is of the essence,” Kuu said. “Once a beast has a taste for human flesh, it’s sure to attack people again. These things are going to be the same. We don’t know when they’ll attack another village. I dunno if they’re ogres, or what they are, but I’m not letting them do what they want any longer.” 

Kuu looked more serious and heroic than I had ever seen him before. He was completely different from the Kuu who was always aloof, and laughing. It was his anger at the people of his country being attacked. Kuu had acted like being the son of their head of state meant nothing to him, but in that anger, I felt like I could see the pride of one who stands above others. 

“I see,” I said, nodding. “You have to prevent any further casualties.” 

“Yeah. That’s it, Kazuma. I want you guys to help!” Kuu said and bowed his head once more. “We can travel to the village quickly from here. Also, I know you’ve got capable bodyguards on hand. Particularly the dark elf girl, and the red-headed guy. If they’d come, it’d be reassuring. Do you think you could ask them to?” 

Emotionally, I wanted to help, but... I’d be risking the safety of my family, so I couldn’t say yes so easily. I wanted a little more information. 

“Aisha?” I asked. “Just how strong are ogres?” 

“Well, they have the strength to crush boulders with their bare hands, but even ordinary soldiers could defeat one if they surrounded it with ten men. I could do it alone,” Aisha added with a confident snort. 

“It sounds like there are more than ten of them,” I said. “Can we fight that with the strength we have on hand?” 

“If it’s around ten, I don’t see us failing. Madam Juna, Sir Halbert, and Madam Kaede are all superb combatants, and Sir Kuu is quite skilled himself.” 

“I see...” 

In that case, if we could confirm the situation on the ground, we could help. 

“Got it,” I said. “Let us help.” 

“You mean it?!” Kuu cried. 

“This is a problem that could happen in any country. It’s practically a natural disaster. Now isn’t the time to be worrying about whether it’s Friedonia or Turgis.” 

“Thanks! I owe you one!” Kuu seemed relieved to have our help. 

I added, “However, I want you to bring me, too.” 

“Darling?!” Juna shouted. 

“Darlin’?!” Roroa cried. 

In the carriage on the way there, I explained my magic to Kuu and Leporina. 

Obviously, if I told him about the limitations or the area of effect in detail it would take a long time, so I only told him what he needed to know. 

“My magic transfers my own consciousness into objects modeled on living creatures, like mannequins, and allows me to control them freely. For instance, if I transfer my consciousness into this wooden mouse, I get an overhead view of... well, just assume I can see what the mouse sees.” 

“Wow, that’s one hell of an ability!” Kuu said, impressed at seeing the wooden mouse moving around on my hand almost like it was the real thing. “Oookyakya, if I had an ability like that, I could peep on the women’s bath all I want!” 

“You had to go there immediately?!” I exclaimed. 

“Young master, you’re embarrassing me as your subordinate, so please show some self-control,” Leporina protested with tears in her eyes. 

Unlike the pensive look on his face when rushing into the inn, Kuu was already back to his usual self. 

I ignored them and continued. “That’s why, if I send this wooden mouse out to scout, I can get an accurate picture of the situation without the other side knowing. The problem is, if I don’t know what direction the enemy is in, I can only send it to patrol the area around us.” 

Maybe Aisha could, but I couldn’t do something like sense the enemy’s presence. If I knew the direction the enemy was in, I could send one out immediately, but until then. I’d have to have them spread out in the area around us to patrol. 

That said, once sightings came in from the Black Cats we’d sent on ahead, I’d know the right direction immediately. However, I couldn’t let Kuu and Leporina know about the clandestine unit operating under my orders. 

“In that case, we can have Leporina look,” Kuu said as if it was no big deal. “Leporina and her fellow white rabbits have good ears. Even in forests with poor visibility, she can sense what direction things are moving in by the sounds they make.” 

“I only know the direction of the sound, and if it’s a single source or many, though,” Leporina added. 

Oh, that paired well with my ability. Leporina could narrow down the direction, and then I just had to send out the mouse. 

Then I received a message. 

“Inugami reporting in. Target sighted.” 

The report from Inugami and his men came into my mind through the separated portion of my consciousness. 

“We have visual confirmation of five from here. The targets are ogres. However, Your Majesty... their form is somewhat warped.” 

Warped? I was able to see the dolls I was controlling from an overhead view, but that also meant I could only see the area around them. Because the Black Cats were monitoring the targets from a distance, I couldn’t see them myself, so I could only imagine based on the report. 

“Their faces and size match ogres, but their arms are massive and touch the ground, resulting in them walking on all fours,” said Inugami. “I hear many monsters are bizarre in form compared to those told of in legends. Most likely, this is one such subrace.” 

A subrace of ogres... huh. I made the mouse he was carrying shake to indicate I understood. 

The arrangement was that Inugami and his people would stake out the dungeon the ogres had appeared from for now. That was to prepare for a situation where more monsters crawled out of there, and because I couldn’t have a unit of spies doing anything that stood out too much. 

Even so... it caught my attention that many of the monsters that resided in dungeons had bizarre forms. 

The large number of monsters and demons that showed up after the appearance of the Demon Lord’s Domain. They were distinct from the many strangely shaped monsters that inhabited this continent’s dungeons. What was the difference between them? Was there even one to begin with? 

In order to get a full picture of this world, I may need to turn my eyes to that, too. 

It was a vague feeling, but that was the sense I got. 

While I was thinking that, we reached the mountain village said to have been attacked by the monsters. 

It was a hamlet with only about ten buildings, but it looked like it had been hit by a typhoon. None of the buildings were burned, but almost all of them were collapsed or had holes in the walls. If there was one difference from a typhoon, it was the splatters of blood that could be seen here and there. 

The lines of blood that looked like someone had been dragged were especially disturbing. 

“Damn... First, we search to see if anyone’s here!” Kuu said, gritting his teeth. 

We all looked around to see if there were any survivors. However, we couldn’t even find the bodies. 

Wait, Hal, he’s the son of their head of state, okay? 

Kuu was holding the cudgel decorated with a golden centipede that we had seen in Taru’s workshop. Hal was holding two short spears, but the bottoms of their shafts were bound by a thin chain. Was that the new weapon he said he’d bought at Taru’s place? I believe it was called the Twin Snake Spear. 

“You punks are gonna pay for what you did to our people!” Kuu spun his cudgel around like a windmill, then weaved nimbly through his opponent’s onrushing arms to accurately whack the ogre’s forehead, solar plexus, and other vital points. “Too slow! Here, you can eat this, too!” 

Most likely, that cudgel was strengthened with an enchantment. Every time the cudgel struck flesh, there was thumping sound. The ogre held the place where it had been struck and winced in pain. 

Compared to Kuu’s style of infighting, Hal was working at medium range. 

He wreathed his right hand spear in flames, and threw it at the ogre. When the ogre evaded it, the spear stuck in the tree behind it. That moment, the flames burst. There was a loud roar and the tree exploded into pieces. 

The ogre closed in on Hal, unintimidated, and raised up its huge arms. 

“Oh, crap!” Hal cried. 

Before it could swing down, Hal pulled on his remaining spear. 

That pulled on the chain connecting the spears at their base, and the other spear smoothly returned to his hand. Hal crossed the two spears and blocked the ogre’s downwards blow. 

“Urgh... Yeah, I’m not doing so hot, taking it into battle without any practice,” he groaned. 

While he slid his crossed spears and redirected the ogre’s arms to the right, Hal spun his body, and landed a flaming backwards roundhouse kick on the ogre’s flank. The ogre’s body, which was easily over two meters tall, was thrown back about five meters. 

Hal cracked his neck, and looked at the ogre. “Sheesh... I’ll have to train to be able to use it quickly.” 

Hal grinned, then threw his left spear at the ogre this time. 

The ogre tried to dodge it again, but Hal used the remaining spear and chain to change its course. The ogre was unable to avoid it, and it struck its right shoulder. 

“Blow up!” Hal shouted. 

The flame-wreathed spear blew away the ogre’s right arm. 

While Kuu and Hal seemed to be holding the advantage in their battles, Aisha was fighting two ogres alone. Despite that, there was no sign whatsoever that Aisha was in trouble. 

Warding off all of the ogres’ heavy blows with her greatsword, she followed that up by slashing them. As time passed, the number of gashes carved into the two ogres’ bodies increased. 

“So inexperienced. This isn’t even a warm up,” Aisha said as she cut off one ogre’s fat arm at the shoulder. 

All three of them were doing an amazing job fighting. 

Incidentally... for my part, I was watching them from a distance. 

That was so I could keep a watch on the seven that were being delayed, as well as keep an eye out for any signs of further enemy activity in the surrounding area. 

While I would occasionally see an opening and have my Little Musashibo (Small) with Bowgun Equipped take a shot, the ogres’ thick muscles kept getting in the way, so my supporting fire wasn’t doing much more than harassing them. 

“Everyone so strong,” I murmured to myself. 

“Of course,” Juna said. She was standing beside me as my bodyguard. “Aisha and Sir Halbert are among the best warriors in our country. Sir Kuu is strong, too, I might add. I’m not sure I could beat him.” 

“Oh, yeah. Now that you mention it, you were one of them, huh...” 

The commander of the marines in the former navy. She was someone who had a strength she could compare against others. 

“I know I can rely on you,” I added. 

“Hee hee.” She seemed pleased. “But... don’t let your guard down, okay?” 

Juna suddenly pulled out a number of knives and threw them forward. 

On this day, the swordsman Dece, the thief Juno, the priest Febral, the mage Julia, and the martial artist Augus left their usual area of operations in Friedonia in order to visit the Republic of Turgis. 

They were here to buy equipment. They needed to procure new arms and armor to replace the ones they had used up in their adventuring business, and they all agreed that, if they had to buy them anyway, they should get Turgish equipment, which was noted for its high quality. 

Being contractors who took jobs from others, not only was function important, but appearance, too. 

Because imports were relatively expensive, they had decided to go to the place where they were made as a means of conserving money. 

Dece and the others were all smiling after buying their new equipment, but then the adventurers’ guild issued an emergency quest. 

Apparently, there had been a dungeon discovered near a mountain village, and ogres had crawled out of it to attack that small settlement. The quest was to “cooperate in subjugating the ogres.” 

These sorts of emergency quests were issued in the name of both the guild and the country, and adventurers in the affected area were half-forced to accept them. They could refuse, but in the event they did, they would face harsh measures such as being stripped of their status as an adventurer. 

“Well, if it’s an emergency quest, we can’t exactly refuse,” Dece commented. “Let’s go, everyone.” 

“Urgh... I just got this new equipment, and I need to get it dirty already?” Juno complained. 

Their shoulders slumped, as they realized they were getting dragged into some real trouble. 

Even so, they couldn’t ignore an emergency quest. 

There nothing else they could do, so Dece and the others hurried into the mountains to join up with the group that was already on location and dealing with the issue. 

“...Hey, you,” Juno said. “Haven’t we met somewhere?” 

The female thief had distinctive green hair and was seventeen, maybe eighteen years of age. Her defiant eyes seemed a poor fit for her childish face stared hard at me. 

Within her party, she specialized in scouting and ambushing, so she dressed lightly, with hot pants and a tank top with a breastplate over it. But because of this country’s cold climate, she was now wearing a cape over top of that. 

“Your face...” she went on. “I feel like I’ve seen it somewhere before?” 

“Erm...” I said. 

I wasn’t sure exactly which face she meant. Was it my face on the Jewel Voice Broadcast as the King of Friedonia, or my face from when we’d encountered each other in the former slums, or the face of the person inside the adventurer Little Musashibo...? Oh, wait, I had been controlling that Little Musashibo remotely. Well, no matter which of my alternate identities it was, it would be troublesome to explain. 

Judging from the wrinkles on Juno’s brow, it seemed Juno herself couldn’t recall where she had seen me. In that case, my solution was decided. 

I offered my right hand to Juno. “Nice to meet you. Would you people happen to be the adventurers coming to support us?” 

“Huh? Uh... Yeah, but...” 

“Whew, it’s a good thing you’re here.” I took Juno’s right hand and shook it hard. 

My plan was to move things along before she figured anything out. While I was still holding Juno’s right hand, I pointed to the last of the five ogres which the others were working on defeating. 

“We also came here to slay ogres and answer the request for aid that Sir Kuu issued.” 

“Y-You did?” Juno looked at me blankly. 

Whew... It looked like I’d managed to play it off well enough. 

“...Darling?” Juna, who had been standing beside me, was looking at me with a smile. 

Even though she hadn’t said a word, I could tell what she was thinking... 

“Oh, my, just how long do you plan to hold her hand for?” 

“Just what sort of relationship do you have with her...?”