Chapter 95

This marks the end of Chapter Four.

Starting from the next chapter, Chapter Five, the battle with the Seven Holy Swords will intensify.

In the end, we left the town the next morning as if we were running away.

The town must be in an uproar by now.

But if the bandits are gone and the town is peaceful, I hope they can forgive us.

We hesitated on the way, but with our abundant stamina, we managed to reach our destination in about two days.

And now――――――――――――.

“…Are you really staying?”

“Yeah, I’ll stay in the human continent for a while longer.”

The port town of the human continent.

It’s the same town where a few weeks ago, Luri and I set out on Levi’s back.

“You seem pretty determined.”

“…I realized that there are some things I can’t win against as I am. To get stronger, I still have something to do on this continent.”

“Tch… Got it. I’ll let Desatoru-sama know you’re still alive.”

“Thanks.”

The two of them board the ship.

If I board this ship and return to the demon continent, I might be able to reassure them.

But if I join them now, I’ll just be a burden.

“Pathetic…”

“Don’t be so pessimistic. The opponent is a god, after all.”

“…”

Straw might have a point.

Still, I’m embarrassed by the me who used to claim to be the strongest.

It’s embarrassing to have acted so big in front of everyone.

There are still people stronger than me.

“Still can’t accept it, huh?”

“What do you mean?”

“That I’m not the strongest.”

I turn my back on the departing ship and start walking.

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

If I still can’t win, I’ll train until I’m confident I can.

I’ll become the strongest again.

“Alright, let’s go!”

“Aye!”

Our destination is the Shrine of Destruction, where the Destroyer Deutor is enshrined.

Going there will apparently restore some of Straw’s power.

Once that happens, the efficiency of my divine power training will increase.

“Wait for me, Clairsil… I’ll reclaim the power of the former monster.”

I slap my cheeks and quicken my pace.

◆◆◆

“Are your wounds okay? You could have Setsu heal them.”

“My wounds are nothing compared to the size of his stomach. Besides, relying on him all the time will make us weaker.”

“…Yeah. Maybe we’ve been relying on him too much.”

Lamina and Jion, on the sea, recall how much they’ve relied on Setsu.

How much they, as demons, have depended on him.

“Thinking back, he was always on the front lines. We just watched from behind, which was pretty weird, right?”

“Yeah. He’s exceptional, but he’s still one of us. He can’t survive without help.”

Jion sighs as he gazes at the sea.

His sigh carries a hint of determination.

“Can’t be helped. I guess I’ll train again.”

“I agree. I was thinking of retreating to the mountains for a while.”

They aren’t without a fondness for their strength.

They didn’t have any special talents, but they became this strong through sheer determination.

And they are willing to go to any lengths to become stronger.

No one has given up on becoming the strongest.

“Huh, you’re fired up! I’m――――――――――”

“Ah, it’s you guys. The ones who defeated Mirage, right?”

““!””

The voice came from the sky.

When the two of them looked up, something was there.

Something they couldn’t identify.

But they understood instantly.

This something was on a higher plane than they were.

“Hmm. That’s disappointing. If we, the Seven Holy Swords, lost to something like this, we must be pretty weak. I hope you can forgive us.”

“! You are the Holy Sword――――――――――”

“Calm down, calm down.”

Something clapped its hands.

His memory is vague from this point on.

First, a moment of silence.

Then a loud noise and a shock.

The ship, as if crushed, was severely damaged, and the crew and cargo were thrown out.

Jion and Lamina, thrown into the raging sea, kept their eyes on something in the air as their consciousness faded.

“Bye-bye”

The figure was a young boy with black hair, still a child.

But his plastered smile planted a clear sense of fear in their fading consciousness.

◆◆◆

“Phew, I’m getting bored. Don’t you think so, Shingen?”

“…Yeah, I do.”

“Don’t be so formal. You don’t really respect me, do you?”

“If you understand that, stop being so familiar.”

Saying “Sorry, sorry,” Toshima laughs.

This is the dungeon of the Demon King’s castle.

Inside the cell, Toshima and Shingen face each other.

Surrounded by walls embedded with minerals that suppress magic, they can’t use magic effectively.

But there are no other restraints, and Toshima could escape at any moment.

Still, he doesn’t.

His attitude seems the same as usual, but his spirit is in shambles.

He has no more willpower.

“You’re pitiful too. Your friends are all gone, right?”

“…Do you really know nothing?”

“Sorry, I know nothing. All my direct subordinates, including Gaia, are dead, and there’s no one who could have done anything to your classmates. They’re probably not dead… I think. The most likely scenario is that they were kidnapped.”

“Why… do you think so?”

In response to the question, Toshima held up three fingers and began to answer.

“First, there’s no trace. If they were killed, there should be bloodstains, residual magic, or some evidence of their deaths. Since there’s none, I don’t think they were killed on the spot.”

Unless there’s someone like Clairsil who can completely erase them without a trace, but moving on to the next point.

“Second, there are no eyewitnesses. Your classmates aren’t a small group. If they were taken out one by one, it would take a considerable amount of time. During that time, in the midst of a chaotic war, someone would likely have seen something. But no such information has come up. So, I think they were kidnapped.”

“…”

Toshima’s explanation hit the mark.

If even a piece of flesh had been left behind, it would be a different story, but there’s no trace at all.

The idea that they were kidnapped makes sense. Or rather, it’s what I want to believe.

No one wants to think their friends are dead.

“And lastly, this isn’t directly related, but… I know of one organization that wanted the bodies of ‘transmigrants.’”

“!”

The content of what he said was this.

The organization is called the Teran Chamber of Commerce.

A major chamber of commerce that Toshima himself has dealt with before.

Its president, Teran, is now a hollow shell, but the chamber itself still exists.

The last information he knew was that the president of the chamber was no longer Teran, but his younger brother.

And that he harbors a deep grudge against the demons who captured his family.

“If they are planning revenge against the demons, they will likely strengthen their forces with their specialty, biological weapons. Your classmates would have been good experimental subjects.”

“…! Bullshit!”

Shingen, in a fit of rage, headbutts the iron bars.

With a “bang,” blood flows from his forehead, but it heals immediately.

“…I want to… go help them.”

“It’s not a good idea to rush in without solid evidence. Besides, you’d definitely lose right now. You’re not using your power effectively enough.”

“…”

Shingen gritted his teeth.

Toshima’s words were too accurate.

“Then… train me.”

“Huh?”

After slamming his fist on the floor, Shingen stands up quickly.

He looks straight at Toshima and says it.

Toshima, after a moment of shock, takes a deep breath and starts talking.

“Phew… Why do I have to do something like this for anyone other than Setsu?”

“You want to defeat the gods, don’t you!? You must hate them! If you make me stronger, I can be a valuable asset! Even if I can’t reach them, I won’t be a burden! What do you think of this deal!?”

“…”

To be honest, from Toshima’s perspective, it was a completely unnecessary conversation.

He thought it would just waste time and create another useless person.

But his strangely positive attitude was oddly not annoying.

(Setsu would probably say the same thing, right?)

Toshima stands up and walks to the iron bars.

Then, he spreads them apart with his hands.

“Here we go…”

“W-What…?”

He escapes the cell and walks right up to Shingen.

“Let’s start with this. Just spreading the iron bars and escaping. It’s easy, right?”

A glimmer of light appeared in Toshima’s eyes for a moment.

◆◆◆

“Damn, I’m out of eggs… I’ll have to go buy some later.”

“…Really, you don’t look like a housewife at all.”

“Shut up, I’m a veteran, you know.”

The woman with black hair and a bad look in her eyes, wearing an apron, serves tea to the beautiful pink-haired woman sitting in the living room.

The pink-haired woman takes a sip and lets out a sigh of relief.

“Anyway, what are you going to do? Your son is in a bit of a bind, isn’t he?”

“Yeah, it’s a hassle. Training with the Destroyer for divine power… It’ll be a while before he can do it.”

“Yeah, that’s true.”

The black-haired woman sits down and drinks her tea.

She crosses her legs and drinks from the teacup in a way that’s more masculine than most men.

“As long as he doesn’t meet the conditions, the dam blocking his divine power won’t break. If this continues, he’ll be stuck with that morning dew-like divine power.”

“But doesn’t Deutor know the conditions?”

“He probably does… but it’s a gamble. Meeting the conditions early could even result in losing his power. But if he’s afraid, he won’t stand a chance against the Seven Holy Swords.”

She lifts the teacup again and drinks.

When she puts it down, her mother’s face is visible.

“Well, if he tries anything unnecessary, just kill him. I’ll leave it to you for a while. What about that girl? She’s completely black, you know.”

“Sunset? She’s fine. The more emotional she gets, the more powerful she becomes. She’s strong enough to protect herself, so that’s good.”

As she says this, the Goddess of Beauty, Aphrodite, smiles.

The God of Death, Death, drinks another sip of tea, seemingly uninterested.

“I’m not taking her.”

“Even though you’ve given her so much, even though she’s not your daughter. She’ll turn into a monster if you keep this up.”

“She can turn into a monster. She’s my precious child… I’ll give her everything I can.”

Aphrodite’s expression is that of a sister thinking of her younger sibling.

Death, seeing the two of them so involved in family and child-rearing, laughs again.

“Let’s not make it too hard on ourselves.”

“Yeah, there’s always something to worry about.”

The two of them look at each other and smile wryly.

“By the way, I’m thinking of going out for a while…”

“Huh? The whole family?”

“Yeah. My husband and daughter want to see him. Besides, if he awakens…”

“Yeah, I see.”

Death’s expression is both stern and apologetic.

She seems to be struggling with whether to take a parental or a godly stance.

This emotional struggle is evident.

“Make up your mind, whether to bring Setsu back or not.”

“Yeah, I get it.”

Death stands up, thinking of making something to eat, and remembers she’s out of eggs as she opens the refrigerator again.

A new series has started.

"The Reincarnation of a Laid-Off God"

Please look forward to it.