Chapter 54: Hero of the Strongest Sword ①
A large country in the middle of the western central continent, Touran Empire.
In this relatively new country less than a hundred years old, a royal family who claims to be the descendants of a hero hundreds of years ago reigns, a country that believes in 【Heroes】... or so was written in the guidebook.
The first head of the royal family came from somewhere and said it, so I do not know whether it is true or false, but it seems that one of the heroes of modern times actually is from this country.
「Is it a hero...」
Is there really...?
According to the rumor, they are said to be stronger than a real dragon, but as a human being who became a monster, I can not believe that a human being can become so strong.
『Mukkee.』
「Yes, please do so.」
There, Monotone Monkey Pan-kun, who is familiar with this world, taught me as a teacher. The textbook is a history book that has been pilfered from a cursed (destroyed) castle.
Basically, the strength of the creatures in this world changes with the total amount of possessed magic.
Still, regardless of what kind of spirit life-form I am, as long as it is a biological creature, like a normal animal, the amount of energy that can be possessed depends on the size of the body.
Among them, a Dragon, which is an outrageous creature, seems to be particularly strong because it has a large body, physical strength, and a large amount of magical power by carrying spirit power inside its body.
But isn’t it the strongest the spiritual life-forms like me who are not bound by the body? I think so, though, a spirit can not exist without an element, a demon is a demon, a “reason” to exist like a “contract” is needed.
Well, a demon who has lived for thousands of years seems to get different context or knows various tricks, and in my case there is a “contract” with the “World Tree”.
「Haa... a clever pet. That, it’s a monotone monkey, right?」
「Yup.」 (TL: Un~)
The peddler uncle who was listening to the class (only openning a book and pointing) and was close by because of his spare time, said that as he was impressed.
Right now, I am lined up to enter that Touran Empire.
I came to this country because it was recommended by Tama-chan and Pan-kun, but because I had recently captured so many saplings in such a flashy manner, I had a reason to confirm what kind of security situation the great country had.
I also want to collect information soon. The situation has changed in various ways, and I am unsure if the info is just from a commercial guidebook.
「Monotone monkeys are popular as pets because they are smart. Miss, can’t you sell the monkey to me? I will give you 10 small coins.」
「Never.」 (TL: Yada~)
I threw away the proposal of the uncle of the peddler.
It seems clever Pan-kun’s friends are popular, but in the southern continent and the southwestern continents wilderness, they seem to be hard to get these days since I crossed out that area. (TL: Bunny’s sapling/country hit-list update at bottom)
If it’s like this for Pan-kun, then the more rare Tama-chan may be targeted.
「That so. That’s too bad. Well, it’s your turn soon.」
「Yup.」 (TL: Un~)
I was urged by the uncle who was flatly turned down and feeling disappointed, so I went to a soldier who was in the process of immigration examination.
From my experience, I know that immigration is not as strict entering a regional city instead of a capital city.
In this world, although there is transportation of cargo by a magic train, a medium-sized or small-sized business that sells products for civilians is still more mainstream than the magic train, which has a high transportation cost.
Not only such merchants but also adventurers who hunt nearby always come and go, so the entrance examination of the local city, security that I can go through by just showing off the registration card, was a steal, but as I was concerned, even in these local cities, identification cards were to be verified.
「...Okay, the ID is good.」
However, they did not test with something magical, and I was disguised as a human with chestnut-colored hair by Tama-chan’s “Clothing”, so I could enter just showing the adventurer’s card.
In the past, the adventurer’s card made with Tiz was dangerous, but in the adventurer guild after the humans settlements were gone, the demi-human resistance group recreated my personal adventurer’s registration card.
「Well then Miss Adventurer, let’s meet again if there is an opportunity.」
The uncle who was the talker with whom I was killing time for a while, left while doing such a greeting.
Also from the reaction of this uncle and the gatekeepers, I don’t feel like they would be suspicious of my disguise even if I took off the hood. If it is this, it may be fine to enter the guild.
I haven’t been able to do it at all since I came to this world, so I went around the city in the mood for a little sightseeing.
The Touran Empire or the eastern continent had an atmosphere like the Middle East on Earth. Following the separate guidebooks for each continent, the newly purchased from a bookstore, “A walk of Yggdrasia”, says although this country is only a hundred years old, it has greatly developed with black oil that overflows from deep underground, which is completely different from animal fat and vegetable oil, nicknamed 『burning liquid』, and with magic formation, it seems to be able to create a light and strong material.
...That, it’s plastic, isn’t it?
Perhaps from overuse of magic, but as a result, the forest is disappearing and the desert is increasing over less than a hundred years, and products using plastic instead of trees have become mainstream, so it seems that the current climate has been created by this vicious cycle, and the desert increases further.
The guidebook is strangely distresssing at the end because the land will be a full-fledged desert in several hundred years.
Food supply relies on imports from other continents, and plastic products, which are light and strong and thus seem to sell well, but it is also necessary to search and dig for the 『burning liquid』 that is the raw material, which all require a large amount of magic. Therefore, if there is no 【Sapling】 in this area, the country will collapse quickly.
Well, my job is the 『destruction and regeneration of tree saplings』, not the 『eradication of the human settlements』, but honestly, it doesn’t matter to me.
「Anyway...」
It’s pretty looking at the city... and cool buildings... I think that, but it’s less impressive than I thought.
From the start, I have no memory of going out with my family before moving into the closet or veranda, and even after moving to the facilities there were rooms with many bunk beds, I only know the narrow world called the experimental facility, I thought that I could not be moved because I only knew about the world through the library. I walked through the city and somehow I understood the reason.
I feel cold if I touch the ice and I feel the heat from flames. You may think that it is natural, but I can not burn my body with a flame and I can not freeze from the cold.
Throughout town wearing cloth headress for shade, even if you look at people only in light clothes without which they cannot survive, as you look at the landscape over the screen, 『Oh yes, that’s dreadful.』
I can only have that impression, that feeling is like a player who doesn’t realize that this world is still real, but I realized that most of the reason was that I had transcended into a high-ranking demon who is different from human beings.
In any case, I am completely a demon now, and my sense of feeling “happiness”is different than when I was human before.
When I was human, I wanted a meal for my hunger, I wanted to sleep in a futon that wasn’t cold, I wanted a lot of pains to disappear quickly, and many other thoughts, but such a desire has disappeared... and even more various things have been lost.
「...」
When I was walking while thinking about such careless things, Pan-kun who was on my shoulder told me that a strange guy was following me.
Although Tama-chan or I can see the gaze and presence, but it is awkward that I can not tell whether it is curiosity or malice.
They were in the back of a well-hidden place, but I was a little interested, so I enticed them to follow me into a back alley. Something I lost from being a human being... I think one of them is “fear”.
I was interested in it because there was only one big “power” mixed in with the presences surrounding me.
「Yoyo, young miss. Isn’t this area dangerous?」
Entering the back alley and going a little further, the three men who were following me cast such a museum-class old line.
「Big brothers, what is it?」
「What, just a little warning. That monkey is a Monotone Monkey? It is surprisingly rare species in this area. When you bring such a pet openly, it may be targeted by bad guys, so us big brothers will take care of you. 」
Are we going to introduce a nice job to the lovely little lady? All you have to do is keep the skirt-chasing geezer of a noble some company.」
「We will get paid an introduction fee. Ha ha ha ha ha ha ha.」
What is weirder, then the men gather their voices and sing.
Pan-kun is quite popular. That peddler uncle also said 10 small coins, so if you think about it, he may be worth several times that number.
Where I would usually freeze them right away to be Tama-chan’s snack (ice bar), I instead silently wait out their performance without doing anything.
They thought such that I was scared and I could not get out my voice, but men approached with a grinning faces while I seem shaking from side to side from being threatened.
「Yes, yes, obediently so, otherwise in the painful case...」
「Gyaaa!?」
One of the approaching men suddenly screamed and fell.
「Wh, what.」
「Gyaaa.」
When the first man was surprised and turned around, the other man also broke down, and the last remaining man took out a knife in a hurry, but something that flew away broke the blade of the knife and then hit the man’s head directly and struck out his consciousness.
「...Hiii!」
When the three men fell in an instant, one man screamed out from the shadow of the alley.
It was the peddler uncle who had looked so kind. Although I said that about selling Pan-kun, he was easily withdrawn, did that uncle also take the bait?
As he turns his back and runs away to the street, again something flies by and the uncle’s consciousness was easily reaped.
A stone – A small pebble that blew away and quickly deprived them of their consciousness.
As I stood still, the silhouette of a man with a large and wide back appeared from the direction of the street, and as he approached me with a zuka~ zuka~ sound, he suddenly shouted.
「HEY! A young girl should not be carelessly entering a back alley! If you’re old enough, you must be able to watch out for bad men! How old are you!?」
「11 years old.」
「Of course, way too young!!?」
Suddenly I was helped, suddenly I was given a sermon, and when answered honestly, he was taken aback.
That was a meeting with a man whom I would meet again often.