CH 24

「I’m back.」

「Ahh, it’s Lisa-neechan!」

「「「Welcome home!」」」

「How have you been, you pipsqueaks?」

「Thomas peed his pants. It was a big problem.」

「What’s wrong with you for picking on Thomas?」

「No, you’re just a little stingy~」

「Fuaahh! Nelly took my doll!」

「Hey, I did just borrow it!」

Lisa’s house is in uproar. But, it’s not exactly her house. This is just a vacant house she’s borrowing without permission. None of tbe neighbors or landowners complained, as Lisa had a firm grip on beforehand. She even fudged the town’s household registration. The fact that people are annoyed with her is often heard by Lisa, but it is also true that there is nothing anyone can do about it.

There are about nine orphans living here, none older than Lisa. Jake, the next oldest after Lisa, was ten years, and Thomas, the youngest, was only four. After all, Lisa herself was an orphan, so it was inevitable.

Lisa was desperate to fulfill the request because she needed to feed them. At first, she picked up Jake, but as the years went by, the number of people grew. As a result, Lisa’s income gradually became insufficient to keep up with their needs. It is the reason why Lisa approached Alfiris and company that time was because there was a possibility of a large sum. Otherwise, Lisa would not be a gambler to take on such a dubious request.

「For now, I bought something to eat. Lisa is going to be late again tonight, so Jake? Please take care of the little ones.」

「Lisa-nee, are you going to be late again?」

「I have to make sure I get paid. We’ve done a good work this time and the income will be great.」

The children’s faces lit up at Lisa’s words.

「Then, can we buy new clothes?」

「It’s cheaper if we buy the fabric and make them ourselves!」

「The roof got a big leak. That’s our priority first.」

「The door’s getting worse as well.」

「Where are my dolls~?」

「You’ll have bear with it for that!」

「Uwaah! I want a new doll~!」

「…Alright. I’ll get you a new doll for Milche.」

「Are you sure, Lisa-nee?」

This was not the kind of conversation that children under the age of ten should be having. Lisa really wanted her children to grow up without any problems, but with her own sensor rank, that was not possible. In addition, it’s hard to earn a lot of money just by searching for people and things.

In fact, she could earn a lot of money by accepting request to leave the city like this, but she was worried about leaving the young children alone for days on end. Also, since she realized that she was a blind woman, and that she was apparently not that bad looking, or even quite desirable if she was not good looking, she had turned down all requests to work with men. She wondered how many times had she cursed herself for not being a man. However, abandoning the kids was also an option that Lisa could never take.

And Milche is waiting for Lisa’s reply, expectantly waiting for her words. As for Lisa, she didn’t want to be the only one would betray the expectations of these children.

「Has Lisa ever told you a lie?」

「No.」

Milche shook her head.

「So why don’t you be a good kid and wait for me? I’ve taken tomorrow off. Let’s spend time together for the first time after a long while.」

「Lisa-nee at home?! Yay!」

「I’m going to ask Lisa-nee to read for me.」

「Lisa-nee, let’s play cards with me!」

「When did you learn that word, Ruth? Those words are something you can use because it’s『ten years early』to say so you know?」

「Ruth’s getting sick of it.」

The children were squealing with excitement. Sensing this scene, Lisa couldn’t help smiling. This was the reason why Lisa couldn’t leave the city. But this time, even though she was in dire need and wanted to receive a large reward, she still wondered why she had accepted a dangerous mission such as defeating an Archfiend. She had always avoided it if she smelled any danger, but now she found herself pulling Alfiris’ leg. It was the first time for Lisa to be unable to understand her own actions and feelings.

Every time she saw the smiling faces of the children, she felt a pang in her heart. She didn’t know why she felt it. It was too big for a discomfort to push to the back of her mind.

At that moment, a voice unexpectedly called out from behind her.

「Oh, so that’s why she works.」

「…Who are you?」

「Lisa-dono, I apologize for the sudden visit.」

Before she knew it, Albert was standing at the door with the sister. But, from the way he was standing, Albert was being accompanied by the sister.

「(Who are you that Lisa wasn’t able to notice you until you approached us?)」

「I apologize for the sudden visit. However, I have something to say to you. If you don’t mind it is.」

「I don’t think this room is the right place. We’ll go to the back room, Jake, Lisa needs to talk to this sister. It won’t take long, so go and have dinner with others.」

「Okay.」

Seeing the boy named Jake was about to move with the children, Miliazar also Albert to the same.

「Albert, take care of the kids.」

「Understood.」

Lisa patter the children’s heads amd urged them to go to the room where they would be eating. She went with the sister to the back room.

「So, who are you?」

「I’m sorry about this. I am Sister Millie. I have come to ask you for a favor. Forgive my sudden visit.」

「If it’s a legitimate request, why don’t you go through the guild?」

「I’d like you to treat this as a legitimate request, but this can’t go through the guild. I’m willing to give you a cut for the reward.」

「I see, the subjugation of the Archfiend was your request.」

「You’re not a slow learner.」

「Of course.」

The two of them exchanged conversations as if they were trying to figure out what was going on in their guts.

「So, what do you want?」

「It’s simple. I want you to accompany Alfiris and Miranda from now on. Semi-permanently. The reward is that I will take care of the little ones here for the rest of their lives.」

「…You’re a good hostage. Is that more of a threat than a request?」

Lisa’s eyes intensified and she turned to look at Miliazar. It’s not that she can actually see her, but she can’t help but to do so out of habit when she wasn’t blind yet.

「Here, don’t take things that way. I think think this is an unbeatable condition for you.」

「Why?」

「How are you going to live without your parents, and possibly without a family register? There may be more children to come. You may have more children, but will you be able to support them with only the request of this town? What if a fire breaks out when you’re not in home again? What if there’s a robbery? What if you die while taking a request again?」

The possibility that Miliazar pointed out was not something that Lisa had not considered. But there was no solution, and she tried to avoid thinking about inconvenient things as much as possible. In that respect, Lisa was probably still a child, no matter how she looked.

「…You say a lot of nasty things.」

「But it’s something a head of a family has to think about. It may be good for now. But if you have no education, no family register, and no skills, you will never be able to work properly. As children grow up and their sphere of activity becomes larger, they will learn about the world, they become greedy and they want test themselves. But those children who do not see the light od day will soon be involved in crime. Theft, extortion, prostitution… even murder.」

「You’ve got a lot to say. But Lisa’s not gonna let them do that!」

「No, you can’t avoid it.」

「You don’t know what you’re talking about!」

Lisa raised her voice unusually.

「The adults cannot be trusted! They abandon and abusechildren for their own reasons. I’ve seen enough of that! Lisa will raise those children once and for all!」

「But you can’t do that at this point. No major problems seems to be occuring at the moment, but one problem and this kind of life will soon collapse. In fact, it’s such a miracle you guys haven’t fallen apart before.」

「What do you want me to do then!?」

「I told you that I will take care of it. I’ve seen what happens to children who don’t have parents. I’ve had enough of that, I won’t tell anything from that. Most of them die in the wild. At best, they are bought as slaves to be used by perverts, or even attacked by fiends and monsters… It’s not good.」

「…Who the hell are you?」

「I’m sure you know what you are asking about, am I right?」

Miliazar smiled fearlessly. Lisa hesitated, wondering if she should say anything, but decided that silence is futile.

「…At least more than the Bishop of Arnelia. Perhaps you’re the Master Bishop…」

「Why do you think so? I am dressed like a child?」

「Albert said, 『Miranda-sama.』It indicates that he is in a position to use honorifics to a status higher than bishop. But from the way he acted and the way he stood, there didn’t seem to be much of a difference in status. He was just waiting for your orders like a faithful guard dog. That means your position is higher than a bishop’s.」

「Hmm, so?」

「If a person with your chi… presence and this much magic power is only high priest, then Archfiends and fiends should have been abolished from the world. It’s a good thing that I’m not the only one who can’t imagine that the Master Bishop is a fiend.」

「You know that much? Excellent!」

Miliazar clapped her hands in admiration. But Lisa had just started to sweat profusely. Maybe that was it. She didn’t understand it at first, but now she knew how strong Miliazar was. It was a byproduct of her battle with the Archfiend. The overwhelming presence of the Archfiend that she fought yesterday was so overwhelming that it is probably just a twist of fate.

The very fact that a fiend of this level existed was already far beyond Lisa’s imagination, and regretted having let such a dangerous being into her home so carelessly.

「(W… Wha… Such a tremendous amount of magic and energy! The Archfiend that we fought yesterday is like a child compared to the being in front of me… If this being sees Lisa and the others as enemies, there is no way we can survive. I have to get the little ones out of there, but… If Albert is a knight who is loyal to this person, there’s nothing I can do.)」

Lisa’s thought were spinning around in her head. But no matter how she thought about it, she could not find a solution. In spite if Lisa’s inner thought, Miliazar continued to speak.

「I’m going to show you my true form. You are the second person alive to see this, after Albert. I’ve never shown it to Miranda. Rejoice, it is usually only shown to those I kill.」

But Lisa no longer heard those words. She directly sensed Miliazar’s swelling spirit. She tried to hold on to her trembling legs, but finally she couldn’t hold on and slumped down on the spot.

「Ah… Ahh…」

Her figure transformed into Miliazar. Her body was covered with golden fur, and her tail grew out. This time, she had not transformed to the point of changing her physiognomy, but her appearance was clearly different from that of a human being.

The slowly approaching Miliazar seemed like a very distant event to Lisa, who was in a daze from being overwhelmed by so much energy. Eventually, Miliazar was right in front of her, and its tail extended and wrapped around around her. Lisa could not move a muscle. The emotion that came to her mind was fear and despair at her inability to protect the children.

「(Lisa… Is she going to die in a place like this…?)」

Her thoughts stopped in the face of the overwhelming power, and she could not think of anything. All that was left was the fear of death. She was aware of her tiny self being scared to death, but she have no sense of reality. She wondered this is what it’s like to die. When Lisa thought that,

Something soft…

She patted her on the head. Lisa puzzled over what had happened.

「Well, doesn’t my tail fell good? I’m quite proud of it.」

「…Hah?」

「Hey, what did you think I was going to do to you?」

「No, Lisa don’t know what you mean by that.」

「The children should be spoiled by you. But who’s going to spoil you? I think I am someone old enough to be spoiling you.」

Lisa’s eyes widened. She had never heard such words before. She have never thought she could be spoiled by anyone. Not even her own parents had allowed her to do so. Something hot was rising in Lisa’s eyes.

「Wh… Why…?」

「Hmm? No, I’m worried about you because I’ve been watching you through a familiar. In the past, when I was having a difficult time, there was someone who patted me on the head like this. It was a very happy memory for me, if it weren’t for her, I would have been in the position of being called the Archfiend by now. It would have been better if I could stayed by her side for a long time, but unfortunately, she didn’t have that kind of time to live long. Well, I guess that’s the order of things. That’s why I wanted you to know that there is someone watching over you. If you continue like this, you will be ruined sooner than the children. Don’t you think you should live more freely?」

「To have more freedom…?」

Lisa repeated the words as if she were chewing on them.

「And eventually the children will leave your hands. Those who raise them must take this account. Our role is to make sure that the children become independent. Our roles is to provide them with options so that they can grasp their own future. In order to do that, you have to take charge of your own life first.」

「I… see…」

「By the way, does my tail feel good?」

「Yes, it’s very…」

「Yes, it does. Yes, it does.」

Miliazar smiled proudly. Lisa let her stroke her for a while, but she had a question, so she decided to ask her.

「I need to ask you something, if that’s okay.」

「Yeah? Well, it depends.」

「Why would a fiend be the head of a church?」

Lisa had always thought that fiends were incompatible with humans. It was a common perception throughout the world. She couldn’t believe tthar the head of one of the largest human groups was a fiend.

「It’s a long story, but… well, there’s nothing to hide. I’m a very rare species and all the others have died out. Our pelts and tails are considered to be very valuable. We were also not very powerful as fiends, so we were always targeted by both humans and fiends.」

Miliazar remembers the past. By the time she was born, the species was already on the brink of extinction.

「That was a long time ago… but I was even more of an outlier. We usually have four tails but I has five. For that reason alone, I was persecuted by my own people. We were so few that there were no more than 100 of us. It’s really boring. Humans and fiends are the same in every world. They fear and despise those who are different from them.」

「…」

「I was chased by my friends, chased by fiends, chased by humans… Before I knew it, I had wandered in a human village, where I had been chased around and had lost my strength. Just when I was ready to give up, a woman came to my defense.」

「A human?」

Miliazar nodded firmly at Lisa’s words.

「That’s right. Although, the concept of magic was not yet widespread at that time, the woman had mastered restorative magic. She was highly valued by the villagers. Well, more than that, she had a wonderful personality. Anyway, I was saved by her, and she took very good care of me. I used to climb into her lap. Eventually, the villagers began to treat me well. It was the first time I felt like belonged.」

「…」

「Then I went into the forest for about half a day to pick flowers for the woman. When I returned, I found that the village had been attacked by demons and wiped out. I hated the fiends, but I was too weak to do anything about it. I couldn’t anything about it, so I ran away… I managed to survive, and I trained and trained, and a few decades laters, I eradicated those fiends from the world. But then…」

Miliazar paused.

「After all that, it was just a waste of time. The villagers would not return, and life would return would not return to the way it had been. I had no purpose in life. I was alone, I had nothing to do, I wandered from place to place and helped a stranded man. He was very grateful to me. Why me, a demon? I thought. But when I took a closer at myself, i realized that before I knew it, I was just like a human. Maybe it’s because all I’ve been thinking about is avenging the villagers. I don’t remember the reason.」

「At will?」

「Almost. As you can imagine, it takes a lot of strength to change a skeleton, so I can’t do that easily. The face seems to be on the woman who saved me. Anyway, i started to go around helping people after that. The man started to follow me. He was my first subordinate. After that, the number of people who worked with me increased one after another, and through twists and turns, we became the Arnelia religion we are today.」

After hearing the story so far, Lisa was convinced. She was surprised that the Arnelian religion had been established like a snowball, but she was sure that what they were doing was not wrong.

「I understand.」

「So for me, helping orphans is a regular occurrence. Don’t worry about it. Even an orphan can grow up to be a fine person if given the proper education and opportunities. Even if you don’t the Arnelian religion, there are opportunities for offices in the other countries. There have been people who became knights from orphans, people who founded towns, and even people who founded countries. The first generation of the Lazaar family was also an orphan.」

Lisa was speechless. Miliazar had been the protector of the humans for an uncanny number of years. And she would continue to be so. Perhaps she is someone that could be trusted. It was ironic that the first powerful person she trusted was a fiend. But, she already trust Alfiris, she thought.

「Now that I’ve told you about myself, what about you? You’ve never told anyone about yourself. I think now would be a good time to tell yours.」

「Do you want to hear it?」

「Well, actually, it doesn’t matter. But if you don’t, I feel that your mind will lose its equilibrium. It seems that your past has become a burden that you are not able to handle it. You’re not aware of it, or perhaps you don’t want to be aware of it?」

「Are you a sensor?」

「I’m just old enough! Kakaka~」

A fiend who laughs vivaciously. But she may be more trustworthy than anyone else. And she was sure that she was just like her. Lisa thought of this and remembered her past. It was rare in the middle of the field, and she was all alone in the falling snow. She understood. Perhaps she should just let her mind go from that place, Lisa thought.

「If you’d like to hear about Lisa’s boring past, then please do.」

「Very well. Let’s hear it.」

Miliazar, who was smaller than her, patted her on the head.

Then she remembered her earliest memories…