CH 94

In the end, we left the city in order to escape the next morning.

The city should be in uproar around this time.

But the random attackers are gone and it’s become peaceful, so I’d like them to let us off for that.

There were times along the way where we were lost, but turning our physical fitness into weapons, we arrived in around two days.

And now――――――――――――

“ …You’re really going to stay behind?”

“Yeah, we’re gonna stay in the human continent for a while now”

Human continent’s harbor.

It’s the same city where Ruri and I departed on Levia’s back a few weeks ago.

“Looks like your resolve didn’t grow dull”

“ … I know that there are guys I can’t win against at this rate after all. There are things I should do in this continent in order to get stronger”

“Tch… I get it. Then, I’ll properly tell Lady Desastre of your survival”

“Thanks”

The two boarded the ship.

If I also board this and go back to the demon continent, then may be able to give those people some peace of mind.

But, I’ll be dead weight by linking up with them as I am now.

“How pathetic of me…”

“Do not be so pessimistic. We are going up against a god after all”

“ …”

Stroh’s words may be quite right.

But still, the I feel embarrassed when I called myself the strongest of the strongest.

It seems stupid to act all arrogant around them.

People who are still stronger than me are properly there.

“Still, I ain’t satisfied about it”

“About what?”

“About the fact I’m not the strongest you know”

I turn my back to the departed ship and start walking.

If I can’t win now, then I can just train and come back.

If it looks like I can’t win even with that, then I can just train more until I gain the confidence that I can win.

I can just become the strongest again.

“Right then, shall we go!”

“Right!”

Our destination, the place called <Shrine of Collapse>, where they worship this girl, the god of destruction Destroia.

If we go there, then Stroh’s powers would seem to return to a certain degree.

When that happens, my divine power training will be more effective.

“Just you wait Creasyl… for the powers of the former <Monster> that is”

I clap my face and increase my walking place.

◆◆◆

“Are your wounds really fine? You could’ve just heal it with Setsu’s Gluttony you know”

“Wounds like mine won’t fill up that one’s stomach. And besides, relying on him everytime will turn us weak”

“ … I guess so. We… may have depended a little too much on that guy”

Ramina and Jion recalled above the sea how much they had entrusted Setsu until now.

How much they, the demons depended on him.

“Now that I think about it, he had always gone out fighting in the frontlines at any time. We just look at him and be amazed in the backline, it really is strange right?”

“Yeah. He is out of norm, but he is just like us “Mankind”. He can’t live without assistance”

Jion sighed while viewing the sea.

That sigh contained a type of decision.

“It can’t be helped then. I’ll try reforging myself a little again I guess”

“I’m of the same opinion. I’ve been thinking about secluding myself in the mountains after a long time.

It wasn’t that even they had no attachment to strength.

They had no such things as special abilities, but they frantically became this strong.

And then from hereon too they would go mad anytime if it was to become stronger.

Nobody had given up on becoming the strongest.

“Heh, aren’t you motivated! Then I also――――――――――――”

“Ah~ so it’s you two~. The guys who defeated Mirage that is~”

““Wh-!””

That voice came from the sky.

There was something before them when they looked up.

They didn’t understand what that something said.

But in an instant they understood.

That this something was on a higher dimension than them.

“Uhmm. How shabby~ if she got defeated like this, then us <Seven Sacred Swords> will look weak doesn’t it? I’d like her to spare us from that you know~”

“Gh! You’re a sacred sword――――――――――――――”

“OKay okay~ Don’t make a racket, don’t make a racket~”

The something clapped their hands.

His memory was vague around this part.

First a moment of silence.

And then an explosion and shock.

The ship was gravely damaged as if it was crushed, and sailors and luggages were thrown out.

Jion and Ramina, being thrown out by the sea which began its tempest, earnestly put the something that was in the air into their field of vision while they were losing their consciousness.

“Bye bye”

Its appearance was a black haired boy, still very young.

But that smile, which looked like it was attached to him, planted a distinct fear into their continuously vanishing consciousness.

◆◆◆

“*sigh* it’s slowly getting boring. Don’t you think so? Touma-kun”

“ … I suppose you are right”

“Oh no~You don’t have to be respectful and all. You don’t want to pay respects to me do you?”

“If you understand that then won’t you stop it with that over-familiar attitude?”

Sorry sorry――――――while saying so, Touma smiled.

This is the demon lord castle, underground prison.

Inside that prison were the figures of Touma and Kouma meeting each other.

As a result of being surrounded by walls knead with magic power restricting minerals, they could not use magic well.

But there no restrictions in particular beside that, Touma should be capable of escaping even now.

Even so, Touma did not do so.

His behavior looked like it was no different from usual, but his mind was in tatters.

He no longer had any willpower.

“You’re pitiful too aren’t you. You lost all your companions, am I right?”

“ … You really don’t know anything?”

“Sorry no, I don’t know anything. My direct subordinates have all died, including Gaia, and there was not one person who could move your classmates. They didn’t die… is what I think though. Don’t you think they’re most likely kidnapped?”

“Why… do you think so?”

Touma put up three fingers to that question and began to answer it.

“First, there were no traces of them. If they were killed, then bloodstains or residual magic power, evidence of being killed is supposed to be left. Those things not being there means at least that they weren’t killed in that place I think”

Except that’s an argument if there is no one with abilities that can scatter away their traces like Creasyl though――――――he added and went to his next point.

“Next, there are no eyewitness testimonies. Your classmates are not a small number at all. One should need a certain amount of time if they’re going to get rid of each of them. Meanwhile, it’s very likely that someone have witnessed them if it’s during a busy war. But not even one of that sort of information has appeared until now. At this point, wouldn’t it fine to say they’re kidnapped?”

“ …”

Touma’s argument was on point.

It would be a different story if even a single bit of piece of flesh was dropped, but there were literally no traces of them.

I understood and accepted his argument that they were abducted with this. Or rather I want to accept it.

Your friends are dead and such; nobody would want to consider that.

“And lastly. It has nothing to do with this directly, but… I know of an organization who desired just one, just a single body of an “Otherworlder”.

“W-!”

The contents he recited were as follows.

Its corporate name was <Terran Company>.

It was a major company that had business with Touma himself before.

The president Terran has now become an empty shell like an invalid, but the company itself remains.

The latest information he knew was that the company president was no longer Terran, but his younger brother.

And the fact that he harbored deep resentment towards the demons who had captured his blood relative…

“If they’re thinking about revenge against the demons, then they must be strengthening their military strength by developing their prided biological weapons. And your classmates would be good material for those experiments, don’t you think?”

“ …! You’re kidding me!”

Kouma butted his head on the bars with excessive anger.

Blood flew from his head along with the sound of a bang, but it immediately healed.

“… I want to go… save them”

“It’s not like I’ve gotten proof of it, so no being hasty okay? Besides, the current you is definitely going to lose. You mastered too little of your powers”

Kouma clenched his teeth.

His words were too correct.

“In that case… please train me”

“Hm?”

After striking the floor with his fist, he stood up with vigor.

And then fixed his eyes straight at Touma and said that.

After being overcome with surprised for a while, Touma took a breath and then spoke.

“*sigh* … Why do I have to do something like that for someone other than Setsu I wonder~?”

“Even you want to beat the god don’t you!? You resent her don’t you!? In that case, I can become a fighting power if you make me stronger! Even if I won’t reach her, I will no longer hold you back! How about it, these conditions!”

“ …”

It was honestly not a negotiation Touma would want as a matter of fact.

He imagined whether he would create a useless person and lose his time.

But he strangely did not hate his strangely proactive attitude.

(Setsu would… say the same thing I bet)

Touma stood up and went to the bars.

And then just like that, he held the bar and spread them left and right.

“There we go…”

“He- hey…”

He slipped out of the prison and walked before Kouma’s eyes on the other side.

“How about we start with this first, just spreading the bars and escaping. Easy right?”

Though just merely, it was a moment where light was born in Touma’s eyes.

◆◆◆

“Tch, we’re out of eggs… hafta go buy some later”

“ … You honestly don’t suit the housewife look, do you”

“Shaddup, I’m already a veteran despite my looks”

The woman in apron with black hair and bad looks put out tea to a beautiful pink-haired woman, who anybody would be jealous of, sitting on a chair in the living room.

The pink-haired woman took a sip, put it down and breathed a sigh of relief.

“More importantly, what will you be doing? Your son has become something a little interesting hasn’t he?”

“Yeah, something annoying that is. Clinging onto that god of destruction and divine power training eh… it should be impossible for him at this time”

“I know right?”

The black-haired woman sat on a chair and drank tea.

The figure of her heartily crossing her legs and drinking it by grabbing the teacup from above was manlier than the men around there.

“As long as he ain’t clearing the conditions, the dam holding back that fellow’s divine power won’t break down. At this rate he’ll get stuck fighting the whole time with that morning dew looking divine power”

“But Destroia is aware of those conditions, no?”

“She should know I guess… But that’s a gamble. If he clears it as soon as he can, then there’s even the chance of him losing power. If he’s afraid of it just because of that means he ain’t gonna look like an enemy to those <Seven Sacred Swords> bunches”

She raised up her teacup again and drank.

When she moved away her hand, a mother’s expression was shown right after.

“Well, I can just kill him if he fucking tries to do something unnecessary, so I guess I’ll leave him to her for a while. You too, what are you gonna do with that girl? Ain’t she pitch black?”

“Yuuhi? That girl is alright. She will display more power the more excited she grows after all. Now she is strong enough just to be able to protect herself, so that is alright”

While saying so, the <Goddess of Beauty Aphrodite> smiled.

<Death> drank another mouthful of tea, seemingly uninterested in it.

“Not going along are you~”

“Even if you say that, you gave too much blessings to her even though she’s not even your daughter. You’ll age sooner or later you know?”

“It’s fine if I age. She is my big sister’s important child after all… I will give her as much as I like if it’s something I can give”

Aphrodite’s expression was that of an older sister thinking of her younger sister.

Seeing themselves, who were <gods>, being eager in raising children or being for their family members, Death smiled again.

“Seems like we both have our own share of troubles eh”

“We really do, our worries are not going away”

The two looked at each other’s faces and made a strained laugh.

“That’s right. I’m thinking about us going there for a while too you know…”

“Eh? With the whole family?”

“Yeah. My husband and daughter are dying to see him. Besides, if that guy were to <Awaken>…”

“I suppose”

Death’s face looked stern and apologetic.

She was unable to decide whether to pick her standpoint as a parent or as a god.

She read out her feelings that said so.

“Properly decide on it okay? Whether you would――――――――――――――――bring back Setsu-kun or not.”

“Yes, I get that alright?”

Death stood up, once again opened the fridge, and thought shall I make something fitting to eat? She then remembered she had run out of eggs.