CH 161

Remaining Sadness

Translated by LyraDhani

Edited by LyraDhani

After Tsugumi took the two children back to the operation center, their stay in England was extended for a week to discuss the treatment of the children and their robes.

…He couldn’t help but think that if it was going to be such a hassle, he should have just kept their existence hidden and taken them to Japan, but that would not be the humane thing to do.

Hagakure Sakura, especially, wouldn’t return until after the discussion was over because she could see through the effects of the robe–the art of concealment. …Even though he had no choice on the matter, he wondered just what these people think about his precious summer vacation.

By the way, Toono, Suzushiro, and Kazaguruma already returned home. This was too cruel.

But fortunately, Chidori was able to recognize the children as well, so she couldn’t return to Japan along with Hagakure Sakura, and so Tsugumi’s absence was not noticed by Chidori.

Perhaps Toono had helped, but it was a very last-minute arrangement.

Well even if he had gone back to Japan, it would have been difficult.

–It was because the scene of the Demonic Beast falling into the river was broadcasted to the public.

At that moment, Tsugumi only thought, “Oh, they finally saw it. Will it damage my image?” But it was not that simple.

The moment the mouth of the predator preyed on the beast, Tsugumi was in a place that had shifted from the boundary. When that happened–well, to ordinary people, it would look as if the Demonic Beast had disappeared the moment it fell into the river

However, some people–those who had wandered the borderline between life and death due to accidents or illnesses–could clearly see the mouth of the beast that ate up the Demonic Beast. Incidentally, Kazaguruma who was in charge of filming couldn’t see it, so the video was released uncensored. It was the completion of some sort of horror video.

The video was very controversial among those who could see it and those who couldn’t, so he might be asked to explain it when he returned to Japan. For that matter, the disclosure of the effects of relics was also relevant, so he would need to coordinate with the government. …Just thinking about it was depressing.

Well, leaving such trivial events aside, let’s return to the story in England.

When he spoke in detail with the two protected children – brothers Arthur and Kay – he learned many things.

They were born and raised in London and lived with their parents, but after their house was burned down by a dragon attack, their parents died in a riot that broke out afterward, and they had to hide in an alley to escape the riot.

While the two brothers were wandering alone, avoiding adults, a short old man handed them a white cloth with apples embroidered on it.

The old man said, “As long as you wear this robe, no one will find you,” and left.

The brothers, who were afraid of being caught by adults, obediently believed what the suspicious old man said. At that time, armed soldiers were walking around to give evacuation orders, and the brothers might have been clinging to straws.

However, there was only one robe, so they decided to split it in half and use it separately. Perhaps because of this, the concealment effect could only be used when the two were together.

The two brothers continued to run away from the adults and the military and stayed in empty London. He didn’t know whether they were simply afraid of adults or didn’t want to leave the place where they were born and raised.

Finally, they couldn’t find any food, and when they walked down to the river in a daze, they were discovered by an Asian dressed in black – Hagakure Sakura. He already knew what happened next, so he skipped it.

The British side, who initially protected the two, was suspicious of the children’s disappearance, but when Yamabuki instructed Tsugumi to remove the robe, the children suddenly appeared in front of them, and the adults screamed harshly, but that wasn’t important.

By the way, the discussion turned into a dispute. Well, it was only natural.

Although it had no combat power, this relic was of a class that could deter Magical Girls, Japan’s battle weapon. Depending on how it was used, it could easily assassinate important people in various countries. No one would give up the right.

Its only weakness was that it could only be operated by Arthur and Kay, but still, its effectiveness was high.

…If it could be used by anyone, it would have been a blood feud.

Moreover, when the two children’s family registers were traced, it was discovered that all of their relatives were deceased and, worse, that they had been baptized Catholics, not Anglicans, so the Vatican brazenly insisted on taking the children. Once this happened, having a proper discussion was impossible.

Nevertheless, they managed to come to terms with each other’s positions, and it was decided that the two children who were contracted to the robes would be temporarily transferred to England, one of the robes would be kept in Japan while the other one would be kept in the Vatican. He heard that there was a lot of political wrangling going on at that time, but he had no idea what was going on, so he didn’t hear much about it.

He thought there would be another full-fledged meeting in the near future, but he didn’t think Hagakure Sakura would be invited to the next meeting, so he decided not to worry about it anymore.

“I can finally go back to Japan…”

As Tsugumi let out a loud sigh and muttered this, Yamabuki, who had large shadows under his eyes, opened his mouth with a dry smile.

“We diplomats still have a lot of work to do, though. –Well, be that as it may, thank you for your hard work this time. Please leave the rest to us. I’ll try to make the deal as beneficial to Japan as possible.”

Saying this, Yamabuki–the man who had grabbed possession of half of the robes in the name of inspection and research–laughed.

This might not sound like a big accomplishment, but since the art of concealment couldn’t be used unless two children and two robes were present, it was a good thing that the danger of assassination had been eliminated. Rather, it was amazing how he could negotiate without legitimate ownership.

“Thank you for your hard work. …But still, a country with a long history is still scary. Even if it was affected by the residual effects of the Demonic Beast, I can’t believe that a relic like that would suddenly appear.”

“This country has long had a reputation for its wealth of magic and fairy legends.  –According to experts, that robe is very similar in design to one of the 13 treasures of Britain in British lore, so it wouldn’t be surprising if something else turned up. …Haha, though I’m sure I’ll die of exhaustion if that happens.”

When Yamabuki looked far away as he said that, Tsugumi averted his eyes and gave him a vague smile.

…No matter how well-paid and elite the job was, Tsugumi sincerely thought that he would never want to work for the government, seeing as he had to work until he was on the verge of collapse like this.

“‘Then again, maybe it’s because of their names that the fairies chose those kids to be relic users.”

“Names, sir?”

“Yes. The thirteen treasures of Britain belonged to King Arthur. The fairy who gave them the robes must have wanted to help the boy who has the same name as the king.”

To Yamabuki who said that with a smile, Tsugumi looked at him with a surprised look and said.

“Yamabuki-san is surprisingly romantic.”

“I usually pretend to be a rationalist. …But I used to try to be a hero in the past. Now I only have good memories of that.”

Recently, there had been a trend toward female heroes in favor of Magical Girls, but good old action movies still featured male heroes. In Yamabuki’s childhood, that must have been more mainstream.

This thought made Tsugumi smile a little as he thought, “This person also had a cute childhood.” It made him feel a little closer.

Then, Tsugumi said something that suddenly came to mind to Yamabuki, who had spoken with sentiments.

“From my point of view, Yamabuki-san, who works hard to the point of exhaustion, looks like a great hero.”

“Eh?”

Yamabuki looked puzzled at Tsugumi’s reply, and Tsugumi tilted his head as he continued.

“Because a hero is someone who can fight to protect something important, right? I thought that’s how it works.”

After Tsugumi said that, Yamabuki went blank and fell silent.

Feeling awkward, Tsugumi forcefully ended the conversation by saying, “Well, it’s time for me to go and pack my bags.”

…Thinking about it, the other party was a diplomat with a thousand mountains. He was probably tired of hearing such childish compliments. He might have been taken aback. Thinking about it made Tsugumi feel embarrassed.

Turning away from Yamabuki who went silent, Tsugumi escaped from the place while regretting that he had said something unnecessary.

◆ ◆ ◆

The man, Yamabuki Shizuru, was once a male Magical Girl chosen by God with miraculous probability. The God with whom he had contracted in the past had forbidden him to tell anyone about it, so there was no one who knew about it except Yamabuki himself.

When he first signed the contract, Yamabuki believed he was special, but unlike Hagakure Sakura and Yukino Shizuku, Yamabuki was not gifted in battle, even though he had the aptitude for being a Magical Girl.

Yamabuki, who began his activities as a stray Magical Girl under a false name and appearance, quickly ran into a wall.

The skills he was assigned were mediocre, and his fighting sense was far inferior to that of higher-ranked Magical Girls.

His final rank was D-class. Moreover, he was only able to win by sheer luck after suffering a serious injury.

Being chosen as a Rikka would be a dream come true. On the contrary, it was impossible for him to even make it into the top-ranked Magical Girls. Yamabuki, who didn’t have the courage to challenge the C-class, gave up on his dream early on.

At that moment, for the first time in his life, Yamabuki experienced deep frustration.

He had only been active as a Magical Girl for one year. It would be difficult to find someone who remembered him now.

Yamabuki hadn’t met the God who chose him since he canceled the contract. He felt a little sad about it, but it couldn’t be helped since he didn’t live up to his expectations.

But Yamabuki didn’t rot because of that.

As if using the frustration of his setback as a springboard, he devoted himself to his studies and succeeded in gaining a place in the government’s elite course that would have been the envy of everyone.

–Yamabuki was proud of who he was today. But the frustration of being a Magical Girl remained as an indelible lump in his heart.

“I look like a hero, huh? –I never thought the day would come when my former goal would say that to me.”

Yamabuki muttered and stared at the ceiling.

–The person who had so easily overcome a barrier that he had never been able to overcome in his former life called the current Yamabuki a hero.

He knew that it was just a social commentary. But wasn’t it too simplistic of him to feel so saved just by such words?

He didn’t know what Hagakure Sakura meant by saying such a thing, but he certainly felt lighter.

…I’m not an adolescent kid, he smiled wryly at himself.

“…But it looks like I’ll be able to drink some delicious sake today.”

He felt like instead of sleeping pills, he could enjoy the unnecessarily expensive alcohol that he kept in stock, just for today.

Suddenly, he recalled the backward glance of Hagakure Sakura, who left in an embarrassed manner. He felt a little sorry for not reacting well and making her feel awkward.

–But more than that, Yamabuki thought, she was a truly frightening child.

From inside the government, he had heard that Hagakure Sakura had an unusual reputation among the staff, but he had never thought it would be this much.

Hagakure Sakura was able to behave in the way people wanted her to as if it was natural. It wasn’t that she was an all-around beauty, but she had her own opinion.

Without being noticed by anyone, she took up a position with favorable impressions and spoke words that easily penetrated the gap between the heart and mind.

She wasn’t flirtatious at all, but she instinctively read people’s subtleties and unconsciously adjusted them to the extent that no one felt uncomfortable.

…Even if it was a natural talent, he was too familiar with it. Depending on how one would perceive it, it was like a sweet, deadly poison.

–But depending on how it was used, it could also be the greatest weapon of all.

Considering the current situation, troublesome exchanges with other countries would surely increase. Depending on the situation, it would only be a matter of time before the isolation of the country was lifted. In that case, it was essential to educate diplomats who could behave under pressure from other countries.

However, in Hagakure Sakura’s case, she would be able to move immediately as an immediate asset if she overcame the language barrier. It would be a shame to lose contact with her.

“I wonder if we can somehow pull her over to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs after she retires as Magical Girl…”

Yamabuki chuckled, thinking that if she heard it, she would turn pale and refuse.

–So it seems I also have been poisoned in a way.

“But with that personality, I wouldn’t be surprised if she gets stabbed in the back at any time. I’ll give her some advice to be careful the next time I see her.”

Yamabuki nodded quietly, thinking that if this continued, there would be people who would misunderstand and become attached.

–Well, even with that kind of advice, it goes without saying that it’s already too late for a lot of things regarding Tsugumi’s relationships.