「Milery!? The elf girl Taira was talking about!?」
「Is it really her?」
「Yeah, no doubt about it.」
She’s the only one who calls me “Ichi-sama”, and more importantly, she’s wearing the brooch I gave her.
It’s definitely her.
『I see… So, Ichi-sama isn’t from another continent of elves but from another world entirely.』
『You knew?』
『I only realized it after I ended up in another world myself.』
『Milery, you’re the one draining energy from Danpol, right? Can you stop it right now?』
『I’m sorry, but I can’t do that.』
『Why not!?』
『Because I need the dungeon’s energy.』
『Because of that, Danpol’s in a near-death state. You and Danpol got along well, didn’t you?』
Danpol also liked Milery.
He said he was training her as an adventurer to fight against the Monster of Apocalypse.
『…………』
『Milery! At least tell me why you’re doing this!』
I pleaded with Milery, who was looking down with a pained expression.
That’s when it happened.
Suddenly, a fireball came flying at Milery.
Milery used the elven language to cast a dark arrow spell.
Elves are supposed to be weak against dark magic, but—
「Hey, what are you doing, Kikke!?」
I scolded Kikke, who had suddenly attacked Milery.
I thought he was just the system navigator—can he even attack?
「Tyler, she’s the remnant of the elven hero. We can’t leave her like this.」
Kikke said that and unleashed more flames.
Milery countered with her own magic.
Fire and darkness clashed.
「Taira, what’s going on!?」
「According to Kikke, Milery is the remnant of the elven hero. That’s why he can’t leave her be.」
「The elven hero? Did she come to this world because she’s a hero!?」
「I really don’t know.」
Whose Side Should I Take?
Milery? Or Kikke?
While I was thinking, the battle raged on.
Turns out Kikke was actually strong.
And Milery was strong too.
The Milery I knew was weak enough to almost get killed by a Tiger Wolf, but now she was showing strength equivalent to level 100.
Did Danpol train her as an adventurer after that?
But the battle ended in an instant.
Kikke’s flames pierced through Milery’s darkness—
「Short Warp! Reflect Magic!」
I teleported in front of Milery and used Reflect Magic to deflect Kikke’s spell into oblivion.
『…Ichi-sama, why?』
「Tyler, don’t get in my way! Didn’t you come here to save Danpol!?」
「I did. But I’m also Milery’s friend. I can’t let you kill her here.」
I said that to Kikke and turned to Milery.
『Milery, if it’s about saving the elven world, I’ll do it. I promised Queen Lushatuna too. If you’re the elven hero, if you want to save the elven world, then trust me—』
『No, no, Ichi-sama. What I want to save, what I have to save is—』
That’s when it happened.
「Ichino-san!」
A black snake appeared out of nowhere and lunged at us.
Ayame’s shikigami intercepted it.
「To think I’d meet familiar faces again in a place like this. Is it fate’s design or the gods’ jest—」
The man who appeared was the eerie guy we met in the Wakakusa Mountain dungeon, the one who seemed to be collecting cursed objects.
It was surprising to see him here, but more shocking was the snake.
「That snake—was that your doing?」
「Hmm? You know my snake… I see. Recently, a snake I was raising was killed by someone. Was it you?」
「You were raising it?」
「I let it nest in people who harbor darkness in their hearts, stimulating their desires to further nurture the snake. It was almost ready for harvest, but—ah, I see. I didn’t notice it before, but you’re a hero, aren’t you? A mere servant snake would be useless against a hero.」
What is this guy talking about?
He figured out I’m a hero?
What does he even know?
「What are you talking about!?」
Hime shouted, but the jugonshi ignored her and threw a talisman at us.
Is that a shikigami?
Before I could think further, the paper transformed into a black wolf.
Kuro leaped out of my shadow to intercept it.
He wouldn’t lose to some fake wolf—his fighting style seemed to say as much.
「Hey, lend me a hand! I can’t handle this alone!」
「Tch—honestly, I didn’t want them to see this fight—」
In response to the jugonshi’s words, another figure appeared, and this time, I truly doubted my own eyes.
「No way… why—」
Milk also lost her voice upon seeing him.
He gave a troubled smile and spoke to me.
「I don’t know what’s going on here, but could you step back?」
「Please explain the situation. Why are you here—Takeuchi-san?」
The person who appeared was Takeuchi Shingen, Japan’s number one explorer.
Shingen-san held a golden bamboo sword and said,
「I’m sorry, but I can’t explain the situation.」
「Then I can’t step back either.」
「I see. Then—」
Shingen-san’s figure vanished—wait, behind me!?
「Short Warp!」
I followed his presence and teleported between Shingen-san and Milery.
By then, Shingen-san was already mid-swing.
I ended up taking the hit from his golden bamboo sword with my own body.
I saw Shingen-san’s face twist in regret.
And I understood why he made that face.
Because where I was sent flying was right above the sea of magma.
『Ichi-sama!』
「Taira!」
「Ichino-san!」
The voices of Milery, Milk, and Ayame echoed.
If I fell into the magma like this, it’d be dangerous.
I tried to escape using Short Warp, but the impact to my chest made it hard to breathe, and I couldn’t speak.
At this rate, I’m going to fall.
-0-
Takeuchi Shingen: Gyuuzou’s master, Japan’s number one explorer.
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