Chapter 32

A week has passed since that incident.

The turmoil in Mureyagururi has returned to calm.

The chaos caused by the monsters has subsided, and no new cases of humans succumbing to the madness curse have been found.

It was announced that the entire incident was the work of the demon race.

The matter of the royal army firing on the citizens was attributed to the rogue actions of a commanding officer and would be tried in a military court.

I think it’s a case of cutting off the tail to save the lizard, but they can’t announce that the demons had killed the king and taken his place.

Nan and I were granted substantial rewards by the Tsaoval royal family. At the same time, we were bound by a contract magic not to speak of what we saw in the king’s tent, which probably includes a gag payment.

Nan and Suzuki were honored as heroes who saved the town and were awarded the First Class Medal. It seems like a typical medal for a town where many Japanese live.

However, my heart is not at ease.

Yesterday, I went to the deepest level of the beginner’s dungeon, prayed to the statue of the goddess, and met Kosomare. There, I learned the current situation.

Teto, Minerva, and Metias—no, the former goddesses’ whereabouts are still unknown.

Kosomare said that this matter is a goddess issue and not related to me, but it is not unrelated to me.

Teto disappeared, and Pione and Nite lost consciousness. They haven’t woken up yet, and Milli is a candidate for the goddess.

For now, the fact that the three goddesses have become demon gods is almost unknown to the public.

Another piece of information I received is that the impact on the world is not as significant as I thought. It seems that the only effect is that no dungeon exploration bonuses can be obtained from the dungeons managed by Minerva and Teto.

Teto only manages one dungeon, and the number of dungeons managed by Minerva is not that many. Additionally, there have been no reports of monsters overflowing from those dungeons.

“Medal… I thought the First Class Medal was no longer awarded.”

When I was lost in thought, Suzuki said this.

“Isn’t it something like the People’s Honor Award?”

I feel like I’ve heard of it before, but I can’t remember at all.

I’m sure Milli would know all about it.

“Hmm, I think the People’s Honor Award was created to honor people who couldn’t receive medals due to age restrictions, so it might be similar.”

I didn’t know there were age restrictions for Japanese medals.

I also learned for the first time why the People’s Honor Award was created.

“The First Class Medal, I hear that you get ten gold coins every year, Nan. I’m thinking of not receiving this money for a while and using it for the town’s reconstruction and support for the bereaved families.”

Suzuki said.

In this incident, about fifty people died, including those attacked by monsters, those hit by the royal army’s arrows, those killed by the mad warriors, and those killed by the guards while they were rampaging. Considering the scale of the incident, it could be said to be a small number, but it is certainly not a happy story.

“Typical of Suzuki. Yeah, I think that’s fine.”

I smiled wryly and nodded at Suzuki’s ever-good-natured kindness.

“I really want to thank those people in costumes who helped protect the town.”

“That sentiment alone is enough—If we had sugar, we could make some delicious sweets for them.”

“Hahaha, sugar, right? Got it, I’ll prepare a lot by the time Nan comes next.”

Suzuki laughed.

Knowing him, he’ll probably prepare hundreds of gallons or more.

“Right, you mentioned that the orb to seal the dungeon’s rampage—the glass sphere—was given by the Magic Investigation Institute. How did they get that sphere?”

“I asked about it. It seems it was sent by the hero Alessio over a month ago. He said to use it when monsters overflow from the dungeon.”

“Hero Alessio.”

I wasn’t surprised. Rather, I was convinced.

That man had anticipated everything.

He was connected to the demon king, the master of Tarwi, and had pushed for the demonization this time.

“Nan, I think the hero Alessio is involved in the incident, but not as an ally of the demon king. After all, the town was saved thanks to him.”

No, that’s not it.

Hero Alessio sent all the miasma to Teto’s statue.

No one would believe this if I told them. If I told Suzuki, he might believe me more than the hero, but I can’t reveal the goddesses’ situation.

“Yeah, that’s probably it. He must have been connected to the demon king to learn about his plans.”

I laughed, saying something I didn’t believe.

“Suzuki, I think we should leave the town soon. Please donate my share of the First Class Medal reward along with yours.”

“Yeah—I thought you might leave the town. Hey, Nan, are you chasing some kind of incident? If you need help, I’m here for you.”

“Yeah, it’s a really strange incident. Honestly, I don’t have a full grasp of it. I feel like I’m only seeing the tip of the iceberg. So, I’ll ask for help when I understand everything.”

Before leaving My World, the hero told me this:

“I’ll be waiting in the Arandel Kingdom.”

It’s true that he is in the Arandel Kingdom.

This is because I received information from Norn that Jofre and Elise, who were with the centaurs, had returned to Florennes. Furthermore, an immigration applicant visited the town. When I returned to the base in Florennes and described their faces from a distance using the portrait skill, Flute confirmed that they were all demons.

I haven’t heard the full story yet, but the man named Garrison, who hired them, had been acting with the hero until recently.

In other words, the escape of the demons involved not only Jofre and Elise but also the hero. The fact that the centaurs were with Minerva is also related to this.

By the way, when I went to Florennes, Jofre and Elise had already fled the town.

I don’t know why he told me his whereabouts.

Does he have the confidence to defeat me no matter what I do, or is he planning something?

Either way, I have no choice.

There’s no guarantee that chasing the incident will change anything.

There’s no guarantee that I can stop the three demonized goddesses.

Still, I need to meet Hero Alessio and confirm the safety of Mari and Canon.

I couldn’t do anything when I faced Teto, who was being eroded by miasma. No, I didn’t do anything.

I wondered what I could do if I went to the Arandel Kingdom.

Could I do something now that I couldn’t do before?

I want to believe I can.

Because I have a growth cheat.

I will definitely become capable of anything.

I will show that even an unemployed person can save the world.

Let’s go back to Florennes!

※※※

Somewhere in the Arandel Kingdom.

A dark hole suddenly appeared, and she emerged from it.

A girl I had seen many times in the church—Goddess Teto.

However, she is no longer a goddess.

She is a demon god—a being that leads the world to destruction.

A woman who woke up at the scene took Teto’s outstretched hand.

As she was dragged into the darkness, the woman looked back.

There, she saw the figure of her friend.

“Wait for me, Marina.”

Calling out her friend’s name, who was drugged and wouldn’t wake up until morning, Canon faced forward.

“Soon, I will be able to grant your wish—by becoming the new god.”