Chapter 1: Flio’s Adventures in the Far East

The world of Klyrode is a world of sword and sorcery, home to magic beasts and demihumans of every shape and size. In this world, humans and demons waged war since time immemorial—until the greatest of the human kingdoms, the Magical Kingdom of Klyrode, signed a treaty of peace with the Dark Army, the preeminent organization among demonkind. In the years and months following that fateful day, both humans and demons alike have come to sing praises to their new lives of harmonious coexistence.

With the Magical Kingdom’s official adoption of the newly developed Malicium Neutralizers, magic items capable of counteracting the dangerous Malicium particles emanated by demons quickly spread across all human lands. Demonic visitors have become a regular sight, and trade between the various regions of the world has flourished like never before.

Alas, while the war itself may be over, the Magical Kingdom of Klyrode’s reigning Maiden Queen has recently found herself at her wit’s end in the face of a new problem: an escalating series of attacks from pillaging magic beasts.

Meanwhile, the Dark One Dawkson, ruler of demonkind, has a problem of his own. Some demons who still cannot bring themselves to accept the prospect of peace have turned to banditry, targeting not only human villages but even demonic settlements whose inhabitants support the Dark One’s position. So far the Infernal Four have largely managed to suppress these attacks, but the bandits’ activities have had an undeniable effect.

And as for Flio and Rys from Houghtow City, they were busy getting involved in a small disturbance of their own...

◇The Magical Kingdom of Klyrode—A Northern Forest◇

It was early in the morning as a train of wagons followed the winding old road through the dense forest. In the wagon at the head of the train, the lizardfolk man in the driver’s seat raised his head, looking up at the foliage.

“I tell ya, the trees grow so thick around here, barely any sunlight makes it down to the forest floor! At least it’s bright enough to make out where we’re going. Otherwise we’d really be in trouble...”

“Still, Papa, things are much easier now thanks to those Enchanted Frigates, wouldn’t you say?” a young lizardfolk girl said in response, poking her head out from the top of the wagon roof. Just as the words left her mouth, a shadow passed over the wagon as an Enchanted Frigate passed overhead on its regularly scheduled flight. “Look!” the girl said, pointing up at the ship. “It’s the ship we were just on!”

“So it is!” the lizardfolk man said with a smile and a nod of his head.

“They really are incredible, aren’t they?” his daughter gushed. “It used to take our wagon an entire month to travel all the way to Mount Hilrussen, but those ships can make the trip in just half a day!”

“They’re fast, convenient, and cheap on top of that,” the man agreed. “And they’ve got no qualms about letting us small-time shipping company folk take them most of the way to our destinations. They’ve been a godsend for sure!”

Thump thump thump thump thump...

Suddenly, their conversation was interrupted by a sound coming from the distance.

“Wh-What’s that?!” the man asked, looking all around him in confusion as his daughter did the same from her vantage point on top of the wagon.

“Papa! Over there!” the girl cried, pointing towards a shallow hill to their right flank. There, charging down the slope straight their way, came a group of ferocious bright blue wolves.

“Oh no...” the man said. He looked back at the rest of the wagons coming up behind him and raised his voice. “It’s the demon bandits!” he shouted. “Everyone, full speed ahead! Let’s give them the slip!”

He lifted the reins, directing the equine magic beasts pulling the carriage to run as fast as they could. Soon they were thundering down the road, leaving the bandits in their dust.

The demons in magic beast form ran and ran, but somehow the distance between them and their quarry only seemed to grow.

“Wh-What the heck is with these wagons?!” one of them complained. “They’re way too fast!”

“You’re right,” another agreed. “There’s something strange going on here...”

It was no wonder the bandits were confused. In their magic beast forms, they boasted top-class running speeds even among their fellow demons. Until today, they’d never had any difficulty catching up with a merchant wagon train.

“Damn it all!” the demon at the head of the pack cried as he ran. “We turquoise wolves are the finest runners in all of demonkind! If we can’t catch up to a bunch of magic horses pulling those heavy wagons, we’ll all be laughingstocks for generations to come! After them! Don’t let them get away!”

Behind him the other turquoise wolf demons began to rally their spirits, when suddenly...

Thump thump thump thump thump...

“W-Wait... What’s that sound...?” the leader asked, looking around in confusion for the source.

“B-Boss!” one of the wolves behind him cried. “Behind us!”

He turned his head just in time to see another—much larger—wolf coming up from behind the pack. The new wolf pelted through the forest at breakneck speed in spite of the man riding on her back, her silver fur streaming in the wind as she rapidly gained on the turquoise wolves. Before they knew what was happening, she had plunged into their ranks, charging straight for the leader and sending the wolves between herself and her target flying every which way.

“Fwoahh!!!”

“Wh-What’s haaappeniiing?!!!”

The pack head looked between the wagons in front of them and the giant wolf gaining from behind. First we can’t catch those wagons, and now we’ve been caught by this newcomer?! he thought, his distress mounting. What in the devil’s name is going on?! He ran as fast as his legs could carry him, but in mere moments the giant wolf was running alongside him.

“N-No!” Fighting through his misgivings, the pack head pushed himself further, trying desperately to run even faster. The giant wolf, by contrast, hardly seemed to be exerting herself as she effortlessly matched his pace. The man on her back looked down at him, and the turquoise wolf’s eyes went wide when he saw the mask on the rider’s face.

A-A human wearing a wolf mask, riding on a lupine demon... he thought. I-It can’t be...

In stark contrast to the increasingly frantic demon, the masked human smiled amiably. “Hey there,” he said, holding his left hand out towards the turquoise wolf. “You all weren’t thinking of attacking those wagons just now, were you?”

No, come on, there’s just no way! That’s ridiculous! the demon thought, shaking his head in denial. Wh-What would a legend like him be doing in a place like this?!

The human, meanwhile, kept speaking in the same calm air even as a magic circle appeared around his extended hand. A single glance was all it took to see that the circle contained a truly stupendous amount of magic power. “I’d really appreciate it if you put a stop to your banditry,” he said. “That way, we could all go home without anyone unleashing the power of the Wolf of Justice.”

The turquoise wolf pack leader stopped in his tracks, rearing up on his hind legs as he put on the emergency brakes. “Th-The Wolf of Justice?!!!” he cried in a telepathic voice that was practically a shriek. His packmates behind him followed suit, coming to a rapid stop all at once.

Some time later, the lizardfolks’ wagon train was parked in a corner of the woods. In front of them stood the man in the mask from earlier—the Wolf of Justice himself—accompanied by his giant wolf, sitting obediently. They had brought along the pack of turquoise wolves from earlier, now out of their magic beast forms. They were bowing low on their hands and knees before the Wolf of Justice, foreheads touching the ground in an abject display of submission.

“I swear, I never imagined I might run into the Wolf of Justice in a place like this...” the pack leader said. “I believe I speak for all of us when I say we’re tremendously honored...”

Among demonkind, a great many were of the mindset that might and might alone made right. Many of them had reacted with indignation to the current Dark One’s policy of peace with humanity as equal neighbors. They didn’t understand why they wouldn’t be allowed to subjugate the humans by force, and so they turned to banditry, like this pack of turquoise wolves.

The demonic worship of strength, however, applied just as much to the Wolf of Justice, whose overwhelming power had driven away great hosts of demons time and time again. Demonkind, in fact, had adopted him as a symbol of might, revered even above the Dark One in certain respects.

And that was why, upon encountering the Wolf of Justice in the flesh, the turquoise wolves immediately lost their will to fight and surrendered completely.

Incidentally, the Wolf of Justice was in fact none other than the mild-mannered general store manager Flio, wearing a wolf mask to disguise his identity.

Flio—a merchant from another world summoned to Klyrode as a candidate for the position of Hero. The blessing he received on his summoning gave him instant mastery over every skill and every magic spell to exist in his new world of residence. Currently he was the proprietor of the Fli-o’-Rys General Store, which he ran with his wife Rys, a former soldier of the Dark Army, as well as their son and daughters.

Dressed in his Wolf of Justice disguise, Flio held up both hands in a mollifying gesture to the turquoise wolves prostrating themselves before him, wincing awkwardly to himself. It’s a good thing an appearance by the Wolf of Justice is enough to make these bandit groups settle down, I guess, but still... he thought. I never know what to do when it gets like this... “Now, now, everyone, it’s really all right,” he said, repeating himself yet again. “You stopped your banditry, after all.”

As Flio struggled to deal with the suddenly obsequious demons, Rys in her lupine demon form came sidling up beside him.

Rys—a lupine demon warrior, once a soldier from the Dark Army. After her fateful defeat at the hands of Flio, she made the decision to walk alongside him as his wife. She adored her lord husband to an almost excessive degree and was something of a mother figure for everyone living at Flio’s house.

“You will swear to my lord hus—” Rys began, before cutting herself off with a loud cough. “Ahem! Rather, you will swear to my master the Wolf of Justice never to commit an act of banditry again, no?” she said, gazing down at the demons with all the solemn dignity she could muster.

“Y-Yes! Never again!”

“We swear! We’ll never do any banditry of any sort, so help us!”

The turquoise wolves all readily agreed, bowing their heads even lower than before. Finally, after several more rounds of bowing and fervent oaths, Flio made the rounds, shaking each of their hands in turn.

“A-A handshake from the Wolf of Justice...” one of them marveled.

“I-I’m never washing my hand again!” another agreed.

They seemed far more like young children than any kind of bandit in that moment, chattering and cavorting with gleeful excitement.

“If you’re having trouble making ends meet, why don’t you come visit the Fli-o’-Rys General Store in Houghtow City?” Flio offered, turning to face the entire group. “The manager’s a human, but plenty of the store’s employees are demons too. I’m sure they’ll be able to help.”

“A-All right...”

“Yes, my lord Wolf of Justice! I’ll do whatever you tell me!”

The demons gave yet another good round of bowing and scraping even as they left, making their way off into the forest.

Beneath his mask, Flio gave a somewhat strained smile as he watched them go, waving his hand to them as they left. I never get used to this part, no matter how many times I have to do it... he thought.

“Um... Excuse me...” the lizardfolk man in charge of the wagon train said, stepping forwards. “I’d like to thank you for saving us back there.” He bowed his head, smiling politely.

“Thank you so much!” added his daughter, popping out from behind her father and running up to Flio and Rys. “You two were amazing!” Beaming from ear to ear, the lizardfolk girl held out her hands towards Rys, who was still in her giant lupine demon form.

Rys lowered her head to allow the delighted girl to hug her as Flio and the lizardfolk man watched on, smiling kindly.

“Really, though, you were a lifesaver,” the lizardfolk man said, glancing back at the equine magic beasts hitched to his wagon. “Thanks to these magic horses we were able to get an early lead, but with the heavy wagons they’re pulling it was only a matter of time before they caught up.”

The horses snorted in indignation and reared up in response. They almost seemed to be speaking, saying things like “Don’t be ridiculous!” or “We would’ve given them the slip, no problem!”

“Oh, of course! My apologies!” said the man, hastily correcting himself. “You’re proud magic beasts on loan from the Fli-o’-Rys General Store, after all! Of course you would have gotten away!”

That’s Sleip and Byleri’s horses for you, Flio thought, a wry smile coming to his face as he watched the exchange. Their pride is every bit as elevated as their abilities, I see.

◇Meanwhile—Houghtow City, Flio’s House◇

Out in front of Flio’s house, a short distance outside of Houghtow City proper, Sleip was busy working on the ranch where they kept the equine magic beasts when suddenly, he was overcome by a single loud sneeze.

Sleip—a mighty lichsteed demon and one of Ghozal’s former Infernal Four. These days he lived at Flio’s house, where he spent his time operating the ranch alongside his wife Byleri and running races in the local magic beast racing hall.

Byleri, who was riding on one of the ranch’s magic horses, brought her mount up beside her husband.

Byleri—originally an archer from Balirossa’s company of knights in service to Klyrode Castle. After quitting the knighthood she came to live at Flio’s house, where she put her natural talent at caring for horses to work looking after equine-type magic beasts.

“Do you, like, have a cold, Lord Sleip?” Byleri asked.

“No, no, I’m quite all right!” Sleip reassured her as he rubbed his nose. “Someone must be talking about me, I think... Our lovely Rislei, if I’m not mistaken!” he added with a dopey grin at the thought of his beloved daughter, cupping both his cheeks in his hands.

From her vantage point a short distance away, Rislei looked on in exasperation at her father’s ridiculous behavior.

Rislei—the half lichsteed and half human daughter of Sleip and Byleri. Rislei was a rather serious girl and something of a leader of the younger children at Flio’s house.

“Oh Papa...” Rislei sighed audibly as she trotted along down the ranch’s grounds in her centaur form. “Can you believe he’d say that when I’m right here in plain view? I wish he’d at least try to keep his voice down when he starts going on about his delusions...”

Riding along next to her, Reptor brought his own magic horse closer to Rislei.

Reptor—a lizardfolk boy and recent graduate from the Houghtow College of Magic. He had grown close to Rislei during their time together in school, but in so doing he’d earned himself the ire of her overprotective father Sleip.

“Mister Sleip always gets a bit mushy when it comes to you, doesn’t he, Rislei?” Reptor teased.

“Don’t rub it in,” Rislei said, sighing yet again. “Honestly, if it wasn’t for that, he’d be the perfect dad...”

Reptor clapped his hand on Rislei’s shoulder. “Hey, but even so,” he said, “it’s kind of charming in its own way, isn’t it? It just goes to show how much he loves you. I wouldn’t say it’s all bad, right?”

“I know... I get that... But still...” Rislei said with a pouting frown, her cheeks blushing in embarrassment. It seemed she didn’t like admitting the truth of Reptor’s words.

Rislei’s never straightforward with her feelings, is she? Reptor mused, smiling fondly. But that stubbornness of hers is one of the things that makes her so cute.

At some point, Sleip had begun watching the young couple from across the ranch, his arms folded sternly as he glared daggers at the two of them from the corner of his eye—but mostly at Reptor. Hmpf... That boy... he thought. Can you believe he’d do that in broad daylight, with me, her father, right here in plain view?! I wish he’d at least try to learn some restraint.

Like, jeez... Byleri thought, giving a knowing tight-lipped smile at Sleip’s behavior. Lord Sleip still totally has it out for Reptor, doesn’t he! At this rate, our Rislei’s never gonna be able to get married. Even so, she came up and pressed close to her husband, blushing as she leaned in against him. But I gotta say, that possessive side is part of what I love about him, y’know?

“Hm?” Sleip asked. “Byleri, is something wrong?”

“Nope!” Byleri chirped. “Like, not in the slightest!”

They carried on their conversation in that vein for a while, until eventually Sleip changed the subject. “Speaking of which,” he said, “where have Mister Flio and Rys gotten to? I thought they were just heading over to Mount Fli-o’-Rys, but I haven’t seen them for a while.”

“Oh! Like, I know!” said Byleri. “They teleported off to the north on one of their hunting dates after Madame Rys finished the morning chores!”

“I see,” Sleip mused, looking off towards Mount Fli-o’-Rys, where Rylnàsze was making her way towards them. “I suppose you can’t exactly hunt in the area around the house any more, can you...”

Rylnàsze—Flio and Rys’s youngest child. Born with a prodigious talent for taming, Rylnàsze was beloved by magic beasts of all shapes and sizes. She put her ability to good use looking after the magic beasts kept by the Houghtow College of Magic while also studying there as a student.

“Oh!” said Rylnàsze, smiling brightly as she noticed Sleip and Byleri, waving at them from atop Sybe’s back as the psychobear made his leisurely way down the road. “Uncle Sleip! Auntie Byleri!”

Sybe—once a wild psychobear Flio met in a random encounter. Sybe sensed right away that he had no hope of defeating Flio and surrendered on the spot. Ever since that day, he had lived with them as a family pet. Sybe spent most of his time in the unicorn rabbit form Flio had granted him with his magic.

Behind Sybe came his best friend, Tybe, the Bear of Misfortune.

Tybe—a Bear of Misfortune cub who grew attached to Rylnàsze on one of the family’s trips to the world of Dogorogma and followed her all the way back to the Klyrode. Now he served as one of Rylnàsze’s familiars.

The road leading to the mountain was reasonably wide, but Sybe and Tybe walking side by side took up so much space that a carriage would have no hope of passing by the two magic beasts. They were intelligent enough creatures to understand something like that, which was why they were walking single file down the road.

The unicorn rabbit Shebe was seated on top of Sybe as well, right in front of Rylnàsze.

Shebe—a wild unicorn rabbit Sybe had grown close to, until eventually she was adopted into the family as Sybe’s life partner.

As for Sybe and Shebe’s three children, Sube was riding on top of Rylnàsze’s head, Sebe on her right shoulder, and Sobe on her left. The whole family was enjoying the view from up top, looking all around with great excitement.

Sube, Sebe, and Sobe—children of Sybe and Shebe. Sube and Sobe looked like fairly ordinary unicorn rabbits, while Sebe’s psychobear features took after their father...although for the purpose of riding on Rylnàsze’s head and shoulders, they were all currently in their unicorn rabbit forms.

“You’ve gotten so good at turning back and forth between your two forms, Sebe! Just like your papa!” Rylnàsze gushed, petting the bunny on top of her head as Sebe nuzzled happily against her hand.

Not to be outdone, Sube and Sobe leaped off Rylnàsze’s shoulders and deftly transformed themselves into a pair of psychobears as well.

“Ah ha ha!” Rylnàsze laughed. “You’re getting really good at that too!”

Following behind came a whole procession of magic beasts, featuring everything from mount boars to shellboons. Among the group, mixed in with the regular magic beasts ordinarily found nearby, were some whose natural habitat was far to the south or north of Houghtow City: a hellhart, a bergpeak stag, and the like. There were even some not originally from the world of Klyrode at all, like the divine beast known as a black hule.

With all of her magic beast friends, Rylnàsze’s walks had a tendency to look quite a bit more like elaborate parades.

Rylnàsze herself was beaming innocently from her perch on Sybe’s back.

Sleip smiled, waving back at the girl. “This whole area used to be chock-full of dangerous magic beasts who wouldn’t think twice about attacking humans,” he recalled. “There were more than enough for Rys to hunt to her heart’s content...”

“It totally seems like Rylnàsze made friends with, like, all of them at some point, though, doesn’t it,” Byleri nodded, waving to the oncoming parade herself. “Like, these days there’s nothing to hunt at all, is there?”

“Well, be that as it may, she’s been a great help with the ranch too, eh?” Sleip remarked. “Lately we’ve been getting requests from all sorts, besides the usual wagon and carriage crews. Even Klyrode Castle’s been asking for our horses...”

“Like, totally!” Byleri agreed. “We have so many clever horses who listen nicely to everything you say, all thanks to her! It’s like, I gotta step it up too, y’know?”

◇Meanwhile—Back with Flio and Rys◇

Flio and Rys parted ways with the lizardfolk merchants and took off into the forest, running like the wind between the trees.

“I must say, taking our hunting dates so far afield is quite enjoyable in its own way,” Rys remarked as she streaked across the landscape. “Even if we only started doing it because Rylnàsze’s gotten so friendly with all the magic beasts near the house.”

“Well, we wouldn’t want to hunt one of Rylnàsze’s friends, would we?” said Flio. “Besides, traveling a little farther means we get to see some fresh scenery on our date! Not that there’s anything wrong with the forest we’re used to, of course.”

“Exactly! Well said, my lord husband!” Rys agreed, happily nodding her head. “Although really, Rylnàsze’s taming abilities might be a little too incredible. If she keeps making new friends practically every day the way she has been, it might turn into a bit of a problem.”

“You know,” Flio said, “I paid a visit to Ura just before our date to see how things are going on Mount Fli-o’-Rys, and I couldn’t believe how many magic beast dens I saw all up and down the mountain. It doesn’t look like they’re going to stop multiplying anytime soon. I really need to figure out some sort of plan to stop the area from being completely overrun.”

“I see! And I’ll do my best to think of some sort of plan as well! But that aside...” Rys’s expression darkened. “It’s simply unbelievable to think that our long-awaited date was interrupted by that gang of thieves! We lost so much of our precious hunting time dealing with those miscreants! Although...” She looked up at Flio, suddenly seeming to think better of her complaint. “Thanks to them, I had an opportunity to see your gallantry in action, my lord husband! I suppose it worked out for the best after all!” The smile returned to Rys’s face just as quickly as it had left, her tail wagging happily now as she ran.

“Well, I’m happy you’re happy!” said Flio, regarding his wife with a fond smile that made her cheeks blush. He had already taken off the Wolf of Justice mask, giving Rys a clear view of her beloved’s face.

“Oh my...” she said. “My lord husband, your smile is simply too good for this world! Oh, I can hardly take it!”

“U-Um...” Flio faltered. “I-I’m never sure how to respond when you say things like that...”

Rys, however, was far from finished. “And the way you subdued that bandit leader, riding nobly on my back! It was like I was falling in love with you all over again! And then...and then...” She went on heaping praise upon praise on her befuddled husband, as Flio smiled stiffly and gently petted her head.

Th-This is really more praise than I can handle! he thought. If it were anyone else, I’d think they were trying to butter me up. “I-I’m glad I did all that work, then, since it made you so happy,” was all he could say.

“Oh, my lord husband!” Rys cried. She gazed up at him for a while in spellbound admiration. Then, as she remembered something, her eyes blinked open. “Come to think of it, we’re expecting a visit from Nyt later today, aren’t we?”

“That’s right,” Flio nodded. “From the sounds of things, she wants to talk about some upcoming event for the Houghtow College of Magic.”

Nyt was the headmaster of Houghtow City’s very own College of Magic. Flio, as a parent of several current and former students, was the chairman of the school’s parents and guardians association.

“I wonder if she’s planning one of their regular school trips,” Flio said.

“That’s right, they do a trip every year around this time, don’t they,” Rys grumbled, her voice hovering right on the edge of a complaint. “You don’t think she’s taking your power for granted, do you, my lord husband?”

“There’s no need to say it like that,” Flio said, the tight-lipped smile from before returning to his face. “The Houghtow College of Magic is doing everything it can to help the children living in the region, like waiving tuition for poor families and the like. I don’t see any reason I shouldn’t support them in their efforts. And besides, they’ve taken good care of our children, and Ghozal’s and the others’ as well.”

“Of course, my lord husband! You’re exactly correct, as always!” said Rys, changing her tune on a dime. “And now that that’s settled, let’s get back to our date, shall we?”

“Sure!” Flio agreed. “We can let Klyrode Castle know about the incident with the bandits once we get home. For the time being, let’s just enjoy the hunt!”

“Yes, my lord husband!” said Rys, her tail whipping back and forth. She sped up, racing deeper into the forest with Flio on her back.

◇Some Time Later—The Same Forest◇

Belianna alighted to the ground, folding her devil wings against her back as she took a look around.

Belianna—a member of the demon clan known as devils, member of the current Infernal Four, and older sister of Irystiel. As an expert scythe user, she spent her days flying all over the Dark One’s domain on one mission or another.

“That’s damned weird...” she said. “The damned report said there was a damned group of magic beasts raiding caravans in the area...”

As Belianna grumbled, her subordinate demons arrived on the scene, a step behind their leader. Belianna had been a low-ranking noble before becoming part of the Infernal Four, and many of the demons who were loyal to her from that time continued serving her in her new station. Today, most of the demons who had come to her aid were members of that veteran group.

A number of Belianna’s followers landed around her, making a perimeter around their leader, while others remained airborne, circling overhead. Just then, another one of Belianna’s subordinates who lacked the power of flight came running on the ground up to the group. “Lady Belianna!”

“What’s the damned news?” she asked.

“My lady,” the runner reported, “on my way here I encountered a caravan of human-aligned lizardfolk who told me they had been attacked by bandits in this forest, but were rescued by a human wearing a wolf mask and riding atop a great silver wolf.”

“Say what?!!!” Belianna’s eyes shot open at her subordinate’s words. Her body trembling with fury, she thrust the end of her scythe violently into the ground with such force that the group standing behind her flinched back at the display. “Damn it all!” she cursed through gritted teeth. “I was one damned step too late...” Then, opening her eyes, she grabbed the subordinate by the lapels and pulled them in close to her face. “Well?!” she demanded.

“Y-Yes, my lady?” the demon asked.

“Well, damn it?!” Belianna said. “What happened after that?!”

“O-Of course! Th-The bandits surrendered to the man in the wolf mask without a fight and gave up their weapons.”

“I see...” Belianna said, shaking even harder than before. “Damned perfect...”

Belianna’s subordinates watched their boss’s display with terrified awe.

“L-Lady Belianna...”

“Sh-She must be angry that a human beat her to the punch...”

“I guess I can’t fault her for that. This mission was a direct order from Dark One Dawkson, after all...”

Among their number, however, the ones who had been serving Belianna the longest knew their boss’s motivations better.

“No, no, she’s not angry that a human beat her.”

“A human in a wolf mask, and a giant wolf who does his bidding?”

“That’s right—she’s upset that she missed an opportunity to run into him.”

I-I’m such a damned idiot! Belianna thought, tears streaming down her cheeks like waterfalls even as her face twisted into a mask of rage. It’s him! The man I worship! The man I admire! The man I damn love! He defeated those damned bandits with nothing but the power of his majestic dignity! And I... I wasn’t there to see it!

To those demons who believed devoutly in the righteousness of power, the Wolf of Justice was a being greater than even the Dark One—a veritable object of worship. Belianna had witnessed his strength firsthand and found herself hopelessly smitten. Now she numbered among the Wolf’s most fanatical followers. Most of the time she took great pains to avoid showing that side of herself to her followers, for fear of setting a bad example...but, of course, her older servants knew all about her fixation.

Before long, it dawned on Belianna that she had forgotten herself in her raging emotions. She released her subordinate’s lapels, which she had been gripping the entire time, and cleared her throat several times in a vain attempt to hide her embarrassment.

“A-Ahem!” she said. “I-In any case, this isn’t the only damned area Dark One Dawkson asked us to patrol. Let’s get damned well moving!” Without waiting for an answer, her wings grew back to their full size and she took to the sky, her subordinates hurrying to catch up. Soon, the entire group had vanished from sight.

◇Houghtow City—Flio’s House◇

In the space in front of Flio’s house, past the wide-open ranch where Sleip and Byleri kept their magic horses, a vast farmland stretched out as far as the eye could see.

When she first moved into Flio’s house, Blossom had started cultivating the nearby land in an attempt to make herself as useful as possible to her hosts. Since then, the fields had grown more than an order of magnitude in size, with orchards extending as far as the nearby Mount Fli-o’-Rys. The farm’s produce was enough to feed all of Flio’s household and the entire staff of the Fli-o’-Rys General Store with plenty left over to ship to the far corners of the kingdom, making them entirely self-sufficient in food aside from meat.

In one corner of the farm stood a small and unassuming shack. Inside, however, the building had a fully equipped kitchen, where two angelic-looking women were busy preparing food and serving bowls of soup and delicious side dishes to all comers in a classic assembly-line fashion.

“Everyone, please take a tray from the rack and one each of the two sorts of plate,” Fina, who was closer to the entrance of the two, instructed the queue of workers. “Then, please line up here and I will serve you a bowl of today’s soup.” Even as she spoke, she was busy ladling out helpings of hearty miso soup from the heavy stockpot into one waiting bowl after another.

Fina—a celestial angel, formerly a Disciple of the goddess responsible for overseeing the world of Klyrode. Fed up with the petty and self-centered nature of the goddesses she was meant to serve, Fina quit her post and moved in with the others at Flio’s house instead. By the customs of the Celestial Plane she was originally given the name Zofina, a name she shared with her older sister, but she changed her name to Fina upon making the choice to leave that life behind.

One after another, the workers accepted a bowl of soup from Fina and continued to where Tanya was waiting.

Tanya—originally known as Tanyalina, another former Disciple of the Celestial Plane. She was sent on a mission to observe Flio on behalf of her superiors, who had grown fearful of the merchant’s vast magic power, but before she could begin her task, a freak midair collision with Wyne robbed her of part of her memories. Now she happily served the household as a live-in maid.

As the workers came up to be served, Tanya selected the dishes for each one individually. “You’ll be having the meat dish, I suppose? And I take it you will want the eggs. And as for you...”

The workers, for their part, each responded to her selections with words of genuine gratitude.

“Thanks, Tanya! You’re the best!”

“It would be enough if she just knew all of our tastes inside and out, but can you believe she’s also sharp enough to tell exactly what your body needs on each individual day, before you even get there? She always gives you the perfect helpings, in just the right amount!”

Of course, few of the workers had sharp enough eyes to see Tanya moving at impossible speeds between the foods she had prepared behind her and the people coming up to be served. To them it must have looked like she had everything planned out well ahead of time, to an impossible level of detail.

“But I gotta say,” one of the workers remarked. “This farm is the best thing that’s ever happened to me. All our food’s provided for, courtesy of Mister Flio.”

“The last farm I worked at barely paid anything at all,” another agreed. “We certainly didn’t get to eat like this.”

“And Madame Blossom lets us take the veggies we harvest home, as long as we ask her first. There’s no cause to worry about going hungry as long as we’re here.”

“They even let us bring our families to live at the farm with us if we like. I tell ya, I’m never going to another farm as long as I live!”

The workers all chatted animatedly as they ate, some in the open space in front of the counter, others in the dining halls on the first and second floors, and still others enjoying the sun on the terrace outside. After they finished their lunches, they returned their trays and empty dishes to a spot in the back of the building labeled with a sign reading “Used Plates.”

“Good break... Now back to work!”

One by one, each in their own time, the workers began making their way back to the fields.

Back in the used plates area was a washbasin, where two goblins were busy cleaning the plates the workers had returned.

“That Telbyress, I swear...” Hokh’hokton grumbled, furrowing his brow as he worked. “Skipping out on her turn with the dishes yet again...”

Hokh’hokton—a goblin who was once a common foot soldier in the Dark Army. These days he had found gainful employment working full-time for Blossom Acres. Unfortunately, he also found himself saddled with an unwanted houseguest in the so-called no-gooddess Telbyress after her exile from the Celestial Plane.

“No kidding,” Hokh’hokton’s companion Maunty agreed. “That woman wouldn’t do an honest day’s work if her life depended on it...”

“It certainly isn’t fair to you, Maunty,” said Hokh’hokton. “Thanks to her antics, you’ve had to spend your lunch break helping me wash dishes!”

“Oh, I don’t mind,” Maunty said. “You and I have been friends for ages, after all.”

Maunty—another goblin who used to be one of the Dark Army’s foot soldiers. Like his former comrade, he had found his way to Blossom’s farm, where now he spent his time living and working. He was a married man as well, and proud father of a veritable host of goblin children.

Maunty and Hokh’hokton once served together in the Dark Army, but their squadron had been wiped out well before the peace treaty with the Magical Kingdom of Klyrode. After that disaster, the pair traveled aimlessly across the land until they happened upon the farm. Blossom took them in, hiring them on as her very first employees. To this day, they continued to work diligently in the fields.

“I must apologize for Telbyress, I’m afraid,” said Tanya, turning around to join in the conversation as she overheard what the goblins were discussing. “I even tried chaining her to the basin with three separate castings of the Bind spell to prevent her escape, but somehow she seems to have gotten away regardless.” She sighed, looking down at the floor where the manacles she had used to imprison Telbyress lay broken in a heap, bereft of any sign of magic. “But what I don’t understand is, why is it that she’s willing to put in real effort on the transportation team, but vanishes on the spot if she’s assigned to work in the food hall or the fields...?”

◇Meanwhile◇

While Tanya and the others were airing their complaints, Telbyress, the no-gooddess in question, sat alone in a small room in the loft above the stables.

Telbyress—former goddess, exiled from the Celestial Plane for skipping out on her divine duties one too many times. Currently she had found lodgings in Hokh’hokton’s cottage, quite against the goblin’s will. In theory she was supposed to be helping out with the work on Blossom Acres, but between her rampant alcoholism and remarkable natural laziness, she found herself on the receiving end of Hokh’hokton’s temper more often than not...

“Ah ha haaah!” Telbyress laughed merrily. “Shilly Tanya! You’ll have to casht a better shpell than that to bind shomeone like me! I ushed to be a goddesh, you know!” She guzzled down liquor straight from the bottle. There was a shelf hidden in the wall of the loft next to her, where several more bottles were waiting, lined up proudly in a row.

“Ehee hee hee hee! Jusht look at all the fine liquorsh from all over the land I picked up working for the transhportation team!” she crowed, holding the bottle tight in her arms and rubbing her cheeks fondly against its surface. “They give ush money to pay for our mealsh while we’re away, you know, but I shpend it all on booze!” At this she took another great swig, chugging the liquid down with great gusto.

“Ahhh!” she cried, a great big grin on her face. “Shkipping out on work to drink in the middle of the day... Now thish ish the life!”

Alas, however, in her drunken state, Telbyress had neglected to cast a Silence spell on the room...

◇Meanwhile◇

Over by Flio’s house, a pair of figures watched as the farmworkers finished their meal and returned to the fields.

“It looks like lunchtime is about over, wouldn’t you say, Headmaster Nyt?” asked one of them, a man dressed in office attire by the name of Taclyde.

Taclyde—an ordinary human man who served as administrator of the Houghtow College of Magic. In addition to his administrative duties, he also saw to cleaning, repairs, communication with guardians, and negotiations with other institutions. In short, nearly all of the work that kept the Houghtow College of Magic up and running rested squarely on his shoulders.

“Ssso it seemsss,” Nyt agreed. In her disguised demihuman form, Nyt appeared as a woman with blue hair and pale bluish skin. “Perhapsss now would be the right time for us to pay our visssit. We’re still making quite the imposssition, but at leassst now we won’t be interrupting their meal as well...”

Nyt—the assumed identity of the Serpent Princess Yorminyt, one of the old Infernal Four who served under Dark One Gholl. After a series of misadventures following her desertion from the Dark Army, Nyt eventually found herself appointed headmaster of the Houghtow College of Magic.

“Well then, shall we head inssside?” Nyt raised her hand to knock, only for the door to swing open before she had the chance.

“Headmaster Nyt and Mister Taclyde!” said Flio, greeting the two of them with a smile. “Welcome to our house!”

“Don’t tell me...” Taclyde said, wincing. “You knew we were here this whole time, didn’t you?”

“Yes, we were well aware,” said Rys, smiling pleasantly behind her husband as the couple showed their visitors inside. “And it’s good to see you still have the manners not to show up in the middle of lunch!”

◇ ◇ ◇

The first floor of Flio’s house opened up to a living room large enough for the entire household to eat meals together at once, with Sybe’s hutch in the back of the room. Down the hallway from there was a parlor for entertaining guests, where Nyt and Taclyde sat down opposite Flio and Rys.

“Your tea, if I may be so bold,” said Charun, placing a cup of freshly brewed tea in front of each of the four with practiced dexterous motions.

Charun—a magic doll created by a mage who once belonged to the Dark Army, and the wife of Calsi’im. She had accompanied Calsi’im ever since the skeleton discovered her and had her repaired, eventually moving into Flio’s house together. These days she helped run the Cal’Cha Teahouse attached to the Fli-o’-Rys General Store.

“Thank you for the tea, Charun,” said Flio, “and for coming all the way from the shop just for this.”

“Providing tea for the guests of the house is no less important a duty to me than serving drinks at the teahouse,” Charun answered, bowing deeply before making her exit from the room.

◇Meanwhile—The Fli-o’-Rys General Store◇

The Cal’Cha Teahouse did most of its business on the open-air terrace by the entrance to the Fli-o’-Rys General Store. Today, like always, the premises were full of customers sitting down and waiting for their orders as Yayana danced from table to table.

Yayana—once a flunky for the Shadow King who went by the name Yanderena. She was a skilled practitioner of the Assassin Dance, a style of combat designed to resemble the steps of a dance, which she used on behalf of the Shadow Conglomerate as a guard or enforcer on many occasions. One fateful day, however, she and her sister Jajana were sent to infiltrate the Fli-o’-Rys General Store, where Calsi’im and Charun recognized the value of her graceful footwork and happily took her in. Since then, she had changed her name to Yayana and begun her new life as an employee of the Cal’Cha Teahouse.

“Thank you for waiting, waiting, waaaiting!” she sang as she danced up to one of her waiting customers, twirling like a ballerina as she moved across the terrace. “Here’s your Afternoon Cake Set!”

In spite of her unique chosen way of moving, Yayana was skillful enough to never once collide with the surrounding tables or customers. In fact, her dances seemed to have become a signature attraction of the Cal’Cha Teahouse, with many of the customers happily watching as she danced along, serving slices of cake and cups of tea with elegant flourishes as she went.

“Oh, Miss Yayana!” said a woman at one of the tables. “Your dancing is as lovely as ever!”

“Oh, yes!” agreed her companion. “Why, it makes my heart feel ever so refreshed!”

Yayana accepted the two women’s praise with a graceful bow, dancing on all the while. “Thank you, thank you, thank you! You’re very, very kind!” she sang.

When I was working, working, working for the Shadow Conglomerate, everyone would only say my dancing was creepy, creepy, creepy... Yayana recalled, a tear of emotion coming to her eyes as she danced back towards the hall. Oh, I feel so blessed!

Over by the seating area, Balirossa frowned with worry as she watched the scene on the terrace.

Balirossa—formerly the leader of a company of knights in service to Klyrode Castle. She left the knighthood to live at Flio’s house, however, and now worked at the Fli-o’-Rys General Store. She was one of Ghozal’s two wives and the mother of Ghoro.

“The customers seem to be in a good mood for now, thanks to Miss Yayana’s dances,” she said, filling a teapot with hot water, a look of intense concentration on her face. “B-But will they really be satisfied with tea made by the likes of me?”

With Charun temporarily away to help entertain the guests over at the house, Balirossa had stepped in as her replacement to make tea for the other customers.

As Balirossa continued to fret, Calsi’im stepped up from behind to give her a kind, reassuring pat on the head.

Calsi’im—a common skeleton who once served as Dark Regent of the Dark Army, acting as Dark One in the absence of any higher authorities. He had in fact passed away once already only to be brought back to life thanks to Flio. Now he lived at Flio’s house and ran the Cal’Cha Teahouse together with Charun. He sometimes took on the role of acting manager of the Fli-o’-Rys General Store when Flio was away as well.

“Ho ho hoh!” Calsi’im laughed, rattling his jawbone. “Not to worry, not to worry! Your tea is every bit as good as Charun’s, I assure you! Well...” he corrected himself, “perhaps every bit as good might be going a little far, but it’s quite close, I promise you that! And I should know—I’ve been drinking my darling Charun’s tea each and every day these past few years!”

“Yah!” agreed Rabbitz, poking her head out from behind Calsi’im’s back. “Balirossa tea good!”

Rabbitz—daughter of Calsi’im and Charun. As the child of a skeleton and a magic doll, Rabbitz was a being of utmost rarity. She was known for her love of climbing atop her father’s bony head and the cheerful smile that seemed to always be on her face. It wouldn’t be long now before she began attending the Houghtow College of Magic...

The sight of Rabbitz’s smiling face and her words of praise seemed to have the desired effect. The tension cleared from Balirossa’s face, leaving her with a look of relief.

Rabbitz, incidentally, used to spend as much of her time as she could curled up on top of Calsi’im’s head. As she grew bigger, however, it became harder and harder for her to keep her balance on that precarious perch. Perhaps that was why she had recently taken to clinging to her father’s back instead, tagging along behind him wherever he went.

“Well, you heard the lady!” said Calsi’im. “Madame Blossom, we would be very much obliged if you would keep brewing these delicious pots of tea for us, just for a little while longer until Charun makes it back!”

“Understood!” said Balirossa, picking up the teapot once again. “Leave it to me!”

After all, business at the Cal’Cha Teahouse showed no signs of slowing down anytime soon.

◇Flio’s House—Back at the Parlor◇

“Let’sss get down to businessss,” said Nyt. “Once again, it’sss time for the Houghtow College of Magic to have itsss yearly school trip.”

“For our destination this year, we’ve decided on Hi Izuru, the Land of the Rising Sun,” said Taclyde, continuing on from the headmaster. “If it’s no trouble, we’d very much appreciate it if you’d let us take one of your company’s Enchanted Frigates for a special off-schedule flight...”

“Are you sure?” Flio asked. “I wouldn’t mind taking everyone there with my Teleportation spell.”

“That did cross my mind,” said Taclyde, a wry smile crossing his face. “But I thought it might be a good opportunity for the students to learn about the mechanisms behind the Enchanted Frigate’s magic gem–powered flight. And... Well, Mister Flio, I’m afraid the power of your Teleportation spell might be just a little too far outside the norm...”

“Of courssse, we will happily pay for the privilege of renting one of your shipsss,” Nyt added with a smile. “I do hope we may impossse on you for sssome assssissstance, however, in light of our longssstanding relationship with both current ssstudentsss and graduatesss in your household.”

“But you’re not expecting it for free?” Flio confirmed.

“Cccertainly not,” said Nyt. “I am well aware how of jussst how utterly remarkable your Enchanted Frigatesss are. If nothing elssse, it mussst be a sssignificant expenssse jussst to charge the gemsss with magic power for a flight...”

Charging the gems with magic power... Flio thought. Usually Elinàsze and I just take care of that ourselves, but Nyt has a point. Normally it would take a whole lot of time and labor to recharge an entire ship. I guess I should be grateful she has a fair eye for value here.

“All right,” he said with a smile. “We can discuss payment at a later date. We shouldn’t have an issue lending you one of our Enchanted Frigates. If there’s anything else you need, please let me know and I’ll be happy to help.”

“I can’t tell you how much of a relief it is to hear that,” said Taclyde, wincing and scratching the top of his head. “We do have some money from a grant from the Magical Kingdom of Klyrode, but there’s still a number of things we need to sort out to keep everything going smoothly...” He took a number of papers out from his bag and placed them on the table for Flio to see. “Right now in Hi Izuru, the Nagaseki Checkpoint has a great deal of influence, meaning there’s more places we’re allowed to go than there used to be. We’d especially like to have our students visit the National Onmyo Academy in the name of cultural exchange, if that is at all possible...”

“Well, well!” Flio remarked as he reviewed the papers. “This looks like quite the school!”

“It seems like Hi Izuru is more open to cultural exchange these days, but from what I understand they still have some fairly strict rules about things.” Taclyde continued.

“What kind of strict rules?” Flio asked.

“Well first of all, to do just about anything you need a written contract, which both parties must agree to and stamp with a magic seal.”

Flio crossed his arms in thought. “In other words, you need to go to Hi Izuru separately before the trip itself.”

“That’s right,” said Taclyde. “It would help us plan the schedule, too, if we could head there ahead of time...”

“And that’sss not all,” added Nyt. “We’ll need to make contractsss for sssecurity arrangementsss and group entry into the country too...”

“And these all need to be stamped with magic seals too?” Flio asked.

“Yesss,” said Nyt. “It seemsss to be the standard in that part of the world.”

“Well, if we’ve got to do it we’ve got to do it,” Flio said. “I can take you to Hi Izuru whenever it’s convenient. And since it’s ahead of the trip itself, there’s no reason we can’t just use Teleportation.”

Nyt bowed her head. “Thank you for your underssstanding. We’ll be counting on you when the time comesss.”

“Is there some reason we can’t do it right now?” Flio held out his right arm towards the wall of the room, a magic circle appearing at the spot where he was pointing. In just a second, a door appeared from inside the circle, swinging opening on its own. On the other side, the sights and sounds of Hi Izuru stretched out before them. They could see people walking up and down the street wearing kimono, the unique dress of the Land of the Rising Sun. Near the sea, the distinctive silhouette of the Enchanted Frigate boarding tower rose high into the sky.

Flustered, Nyt shook her head. “N-No, no, we’re not ready yet! We appreciate the sssentiment, but we ssstill have quite a few preparationsss to make before we call on you...”

“I see,” said Flio. “Okay, then.” He lowered his hand and the door closed, vanishing along with the magic circle.

“I think some of the people on the other side might have noticed us,” said Taclyde, his smile twitching noticeably as he pointed towards the wall where the magic circle had been. “It looked like we gave them quite a shock!”

“Well then,” Flio said, smiling like nothing strange at all had happened. “Just let me know when everything’s in order, and we’ll head there right away!”

◇Klyrode Castle—Conference Room◇

In one of Castle Klyrode’s several conference rooms, the Maiden Queen of Klyrode sat at the head of a long table.

The Maiden Queen—current reigning monarch of the Magical Kingdom of Klyrode. Her given name was Elizabeth Klyrode, but those closest to her knew her as Ellie. She took over the reins of the kingdom after her father, the old king, was driven from the land for his many evil deeds. As a result of her lifelong obsession with politics and statecraft, she had never taken a lover in all her thirty-some years.

Currently, the Queen was in the middle of one of her regular meetings. The assembled ministers seated on either side of the table were looking over various documents as they listened to one of their number give his report.

“Furthermore, we’ve seen a sharp decline in reported instances of the bandit raids which have been plaguing the lands near the border,” the minister said. “I believe this is the result of Her Majesty the Queen’s recommendation of deploying knights from the castle to the outer provinces.”

The Maiden Queen nodded along to the minister’s words. True, the knights have certainly played their part, she thought to herself as she read over the documents in front of her. But I don’t doubt Mister Flio’s consideration in strengthening his own security has quite a bit to do with this as well.

“Thank you for your report,” the Maiden Queen said, rising from her seat and bowing her head low. “It seems our knights’ brave deeds have succeeded in reversing the increasing damage from bandits reported along the border with the Dark One’s domain. I owe you all my gratitude.”

“O-Oh, there’s no need for that!” replied the minister who had given the report, taken aback at the Queen’s display of politeness. Flustered, he dabbed at the sweat on his forehead with his handkerchief.

The previous King Klyrode’s motto had been “A king must command respect!” It was exceedingly rare for him to lower his head even to an emissary from another country, let alone one of his own ministers. A decent number of the ministers still felt an unconscious sense of unease at the new Queen’s courteous behavior because of their time with him.

The minister sat down, still wiping his brow with the handkerchief. As he did, the Second Princess took a breath and stood up to speak.

The Second Princess—the elder of the Queen’s two younger sisters. Her given name was Leusoc Klyrode. She had been responsible for the Magical Kingdom of Klyrode’s foreign affairs since the land had been at war and their father was still on the throne. Now, as the right hand of the Maiden Queen, she spent her time speaking with the other human kingdoms’ heads of state on her sister’s behalf. She had a candid and outgoing personality, speaking frankly even to the Queen herself.

“Your Majesty,” she said, “I would like to call your attention to the written report I submitted today...” The Second Princess called the Queen by her given name in private, but while they were in a conference conducting the business of government for the Magical Kingdom of Klyrode, they were obliged to address each other as a monarch and her subject.

“The report entitled ‘Countermeasures to Demonic Aggression’?” the Queen asked.

“Yes, Your Majesty,” the Second Princess nodded. “At present, we and the Dark Army enjoy friendly, cooperative, and peaceful relations, without any sign of the other side engaging in large-scale military action. However, there are some demons who don’t approve of peace and have taken to banditry, targeting humans in particular. Recently, we’ve received reports of their activities along the border surrounding the demons’ lands.”

“In this situation, I believe we should send word to Dark One Dawkson immediately regarding our deployment of force against these bandits and seek his amnesty for any border violations related to this effort,” the Maiden Queen replied, her quick response sending a murmur through the crowd of ministers.

“Excellent, Your Majesty!” said one.

“Quick on her feet, as always,” another added with an approving nod.

One of the ministers raised his hand to speak.

“Yes? What is it?” asked the Queen.

“Excuse me, Your Majesty,” the minister said. “I approve of your decision to seek amnesty for border violations in our efforts to deal with these bandits near the edge of our territory, but I must say... The area where our kingdom borders demonic territory represents a truly vast swath of land. It would require a considerable amount of manpower even to deploy soldiers only to key strategic positions scattered around the perimeter, would it not?”

The Maiden Queen nodded her head. “Indeed, it is as you say,” she agreed, glancing over towards the Third Princess.

The Third Princess—the youngest of the Queen’s two sisters. Her given name was Swann Klyrode. As the left hand of the Maiden Queen, she had taken over responsibility for the kingdom’s internal affairs as soon as she graduated from the noble academy. She held her sister very dear to her heart, somewhat to the point of unhealthy fixation.

The Third Princess gave a slight nod as the Maiden Queen’s gaze turned her way and stood up, papers clasped tightly in her grip. Her hands were shaking with visible nervousness as she turned to address the room, but she took a deep breath and steeled her expression.

“W-Well, you see,” she began, “as it happens, the Fli-o’-Rys General Store has seen fit to lend our soldiers a great number of their magic horses in order to help with the case in question. These horses are even faster than the normal war horses used by the Order of Klyrode, and they have remarkable stamina. If we use them wisely, a single garrison can easily defend a much wider territory than before, enabling us to respond to these attacks with a relatively small commitment of soldiers. Moreover, with their Enchanted Frigates and ground transportation teams active throughout so much of the kingdom, the Fli-o’-Rys General Store is well positioned to inform us of any demons engaged in suspicious behavior around our borders.”

“The resolution to create a special strike force for the purpose of opposing demonic bandits was passed in a previous meeting, with universal consensus from the body of ministers,” added the Maiden Queen. “Moving forwards, we intend to use that resolution as a basis for further action, with the cooperation of the Order of Klyrode. I beg your understanding of the necessity of haste in this delicate matter.”

“Indeed,” said the minister who had spoken up to voice his opinion. “It is a great relief for myself as well to know that all of the necessary precautions are being taken.” Satisfied, he took his seat as the Maiden Queen and Third Princess both graced him with a formal bow.

“Now, then,” said the Maiden Queen, lifting her head once more to survey the group. “Moving on to our next item on the agenda...”

◇Some Time Later—Klyrode Castle Hallway◇

With the meeting concluded, the Maiden Queen and her sisters made their way down the halls of Klyrode Castle.

“Hahhh...” The Third Princess let out a sigh of profound relief. “Somehow I was able to explain everything properly, I think...” she said, turning to face the Second Princess as they walked. “But aren’t foreign affairs meant to be your responsibility, sister? Why is it that I had to be the one to make that report?”

“Ah ha ha,” the Second Princess laughed, patting her younger sister on the head. The Third Princess was notably short of stature, a fact which lent the gesture the distinct air of an adult comforting a child. “Now, now. There, there,” the Second Princess said.

“Hmpf!” the Third Princess protested, pouting indignantly at the treatment. “I’ll ask you not to treat me like a child, if you please!”

“Hey now, you know it’s not like that,” said the Second Princess. “Look, my duties with foreign affairs have me off visiting foreign kingdoms a lot of the time. It would be a huge load off my shoulders if you could learn how to handle these kinds of incidents in my place while I’m away.”

“I-I suppose I understand that...” she acknowledged. “But even so...”

“Besides,” the Second Princess went on. “It would be a big help to our sister the Queen, don’t you think?”

The Third Princess swallowed, her counterargument dying in her throat the very moment the Second Princess mentioned the Maiden Queen. Her love and respect for her oldest sister was enough for those words—a big help to our sister the Queen—to strike her completely dumb.

The Maiden Queen watched on with a kindly smile at her sisters’ bickering. “I’m very glad to have the two of you looking out for me,” she said, “but please do take care not to run yourselves ragged as well.”

“Y-Yes, Your Majesty!” the Third Princess replied, her face turning bright red. “I understand, of course!”

“Ah ha ha! She really is the cutest, isn’t she?” the Second Princess quipped.

“E-Excuse me?!” she sputtered, protesting very animatedly with her entire body. “Are you insinuating there’s something wrong with what I said?!”

“I hate to interrupt your sisterly bonding...” the Maiden Queen said as she opened a nearby door, leading the two princesses into a small meeting room nearby. “But might I ask for your advice on a certain matter?”

“Of course, Your Majesty!” the Third Princess said, eager to please and full of spirit. “I’m more than happy to talk to you about anything!”

“It came up briefly in today’s conference, actually,” the Maiden Queen said, glancing between her two sisters. “The matter with Hi Izuru.”

“Hi Izuru?” the Third Princess asked.

“You see,” the Queen began, “we received a letter from Hi Izuru the other day addressed to the Second Princess, our head of foreign affairs...”

The Second Princess nodded. “It sounds like Hi Izuru has a demon problem of its own,” she said. “They’re asking for our help with the investigation. That, and apparently they’ve been hoping to form an alliance with us.”

“An alliance? Between us and Hi Izuru?” the Third Princess asked, her eyes opening wide. “From what I’ve read in my books, Hi Izuru is united in name only, full of powerful noble families fighting tooth and nail to claim the land for themselves. I’ve heard each family does more or less as they like with their own territory...”

“Well, well!” the Second Princess grinned, clapping her hands in applause at her sister’s summary of Hi Izuran politics. “You’ve read about all sorts of things, haven’t you! Even outside of your special interests in administration and economics.”

“N-Now it feels like you’re making fun of me,” the Third Princess complained.

“Not at all!” the Second Princess insisted. “I genuinely admire that about you. In my case, I’m completely useless when it comes to anything outside of foreign diplomacy.”

“Well, all right, then...” the Third Princess said, not sounding entirely convinced.

Thanks in part to her work in foreign affairs, the Second Princess had developed a deeply ingrained habit of never allowing her true emotions to show on her face. The Third Princess understood this about her sister, but even so she couldn’t bring herself to fully lower her guard.

“That being said...” the Second Princess continued. “Things in Hi Izuru have progressed quite a bit since those books you read were written.”

“Progressed...?” the Third Princess asked, blinking in confusion.

“Yes, the Second Princess is right,” the Maiden Queen said, answering her sister with a smile. “Currently in Hi Izuru, the checkpoint in Nagaseki has gained a considerable amount of political influence thanks to the Enchanted Frigates enabling regular trade with the outside. Or so I understand.”

“R-Really?!” the Third Princess boggled, taken aback. “B-But that wasn’t in any of the books I read...”

“Oh, Third Princess...” the Second Princess sighed, patting her sister on the head once again. “The world’s full of things you won’t understand until you experience them for yourself. There’s a reason I make a point of visiting the actual kingdoms I deal with for my work instead of just trusting what I read in a book, you know? It’s got its dangers, but it’s the only way to fully grasp the situation.”

“Hmpf...” the Third Princess pouted, still unhappy at being treated like a child but unable to deny the truth of the Second Princess’s words. “I suppose that makes a kind of sense...”

“The alliance in question would be between us and the operators of the Nagaseki Checkpoint,” the Maiden Queen clarified. “The checkpoint has a large amount of influence, but the country is still not precisely unified. For that reason, any agreement would have to be with just that institution.”

“Which means we can’t exactly send a party of envoys on an open diplomatic mission, lest we risk the noble families thinking the checkpoint operators are plotting to seize control of Hi Izuru for themselves and stage some kind of rebellion,” the Second Princess mused. “It’s possible that the demons who have been threatening the island have some connection to the powerful nobles who are unhappy with the Nagaseki Checkpoint’s growing power.”

“In that case, why don’t the checkpoint operators simply send their own delegates to the Magical Kingdom of Klyrode?” the Third Princess asked.

“Ah, yes...” the Maiden Queen said with a dry smile. “You see, the people in power throughout Hi Izuru all have their own special seals which they must use to imprint all official documents with a magical signature. It seems that one of their rules forbids them from taking these seals outside of the area they control.”

“Are you quite serious...?” the Third Princess asked, blinking in amazement. “How do they get anything done with all these customs of theirs, do you suppose...”

“Well, the long and short of it is this,” the Second Princess said, giving the Third Princess another pat on the head. “The Magical Kingdom of Klyrode needs to be the one to send a delegation to formalize this alliance. And we have to do it secretly, so the other Hi Izuran nobles don’t find out ahead of time.” Here she placed both her hands squarely on her sister’s shoulders, looking at her straight on. “And that means, my dear little sister, that you had best hurry up to Hi Izuru to sort things out!” Her tone was jocular, but it seemed like she meant her words.

“H-Hwhah?!” the Third Princess exclaimed, flabbergasted. “Wh-Why should I do it?! Foreign affairs is your specialty, isn’t it? And you’re excellent at keeping secrets too...”

“I wouldn’t put too much stock in that last point. That country in particular is a little too hot to handle. There’s a clan there of something called shinobi...people who devote their lives to secrecy and spycraft. They’d see through me in an instant,” the Second Princess said, knitting her brow and slumping her shoulders.

“B-But if they have people like that, that’s all the more reason not to send someone like me, isn’t it?” the Third Princess squeaked.

“That may be,” the Maiden Queen said. “But as it happens, I recently heard something from Mister Flio that might prove useful.” She smiled kindly at her panicking sister. “How would you like to have Miss Rylnàsze accompanying you on this mission?”

The Third Princess’s face blushed furiously at the mention of that name.

Once upon a time, the Third Princess had suffered from a crippling fear of magic beasts. Hoping to help her overcome her phobia, her sisters sent her off to spend time with Rylnàsze, in whose company she would get plenty of opportunities to intermingle with magic beasts. The attempt was a wild success, and in short order the princess had conquered her fears completely. But as another effect of her prolonged close contact with Rylnàsze, she began to develop feelings for the girl—feelings that seemed perhaps to be somewhere in the vicinity of romantic love.

“Well, Third Princess?” the Second Princess goaded her. “Will you take care of this little problem for us? I can assure you that you’ll have the best protection anyone could ask for.”

“Would you please, Third Princess?” the Maiden Queen implored.

With her older sisters both pressing in on her from either side and her train of thought still not quite recovered from having been derailed by the mention of Rylnàsze’s name, the Third Princess only seemed more flustered than before. In the end, it would be several more minutes before she was able to give a proper affirmative response.

◇That Night—Houghtow City, Flio’s House◇

That night, not long after Flio’s household had finished their customary family dinner, but long enough for only a small handful of people to still be sitting at the living room table, Greanyl came up to Flio as he reclined in his chair.

Greanyl—a member of the Silent Listeners, the group that once served as the Dark Army’s intelligence corps. Currently she served as the head of personnel for the Fli-o’-Rys General Store, overseeing both the Enchanted Frigate fleet and the transportation department. When she wasn’t busy with that, she found time to sneak around to every corner of the land, collecting information on the state of affairs and conducting espionage on behalf of her employer.

All the former members of the Silent Listeners, Greanyl included, had become part of the Fli-o’-Rys General Store staff following their mass desertion from the Dark Army. They lived in a three-story company dormitory Flio had built not far from the Fli-o’-Rys General Store itself.

“I apologize for calling on you at such a late hour,” Greanyl said, bowing her head low.

“There’s no need to stand on formality, Greanyl,” Flio told her. “You and the other shadow demons are such a big help to us, after all.”

“But of course! They were my mewnions originally, after all!” said Uliminas, who had been sitting at the table as well, proudly puffing out her chest. “Mew can bet they’re the pick of the litter!”

Uliminas—a hellcat demon who was known as Ghozal’s confederate during his time as Dark One. She had followed Ghozal when he stepped down from his position, leaving the Dark Army as well. Now she worked for the Fli-o’-Rys General Store, under an assumed identity as a demihuman, as head of the accounting department. After moving in, she had become one of Ghozal’s two wives and had a child with him named Folmina.

“I beg your pardon, Uliminas,” Rys said, giving the hellcat a withering sidelong glare. “I believe it was Greanyl and the shadow demons who my husband was praising for their excellence, not you, if I’m not mistaken? Honestly, that self-satisfaction of yours can be very aggravating sometimes...”

“Mreow?!” objected Uliminas. “Mew got a purroblem with a bit of well-earned purride? Or are mew trying to insult me...”

In moments, Rys and Uliminas had both taken to their feet, already beginning to change parts of their bodies to their bestial forms as they glared daggers at each other from across the table.

“N-Now now, calm down, you two!” Flio said, doing his best to pacify the feuding demons. “I’m sorry about that, Greanyl. May I ask what brings you here?”

“Oh, yes!” said Greanyl, who had forgotten herself a little in the face of Rys and Uliminas’s display. She returned her focus to the task at hand and turned back towards Flio. “Mister Flio, I have a request to make of you, if I may be so bold...”

“A request?” Flio asked.

Greanyl nodded. “Myself and the other shadow demons are forever grateful for your generosity in welcoming us with open arms to the Fli-o’-Rys General Store after we took our leave of the Dark Army...” she said. “Recently, however, I’m afraid we have been finding ourselves short of hands...”

“Ah, I see...” Flio said with a knowing nod of his head, as if he already had an idea what Greanyl was about to ask.

Nearby, in the seat directly next to Uliminas, Ghozal gave a distinct “hrm” of agreement.

Ghozal—once the ruler of all demonkind under the name of Dark One Gholl, Ghozal abdicated the throne in favor of his younger brother Yuigarde and went off to live at Flio’s house. In his time there, he and Flio had become something along the lines of best friends. He later made wives of Uliminas and Balirossa, the human swordfighter and onetime knight of Klyrode. Between them he had two children, Folmina and Ghoro. More recently he had taken up responsibility for running the Fli-o’-Rys Adventurers’ Academy training grounds.

“You and your shadow demons are the backbone of the Fli-o’-Rys transportation team, and you’re also responsible for piloting our Enchanted Frigates...” Ghozal said. “And on top of that, you’ve been traveling all over collecting intelligence for the store. It’s no surprise at all to hear you’ve been wanting more hands for the work.”

“As you say, Lord Ghozal,” said Greanyl, lowering her head in a very reverential bow.

“I see...” Flio considered. “And recently we’ve been getting more and more requests for Enchanted Frigate flights to lands outside of the Magical Kingdom of Klyrode, increasing the number of flights per day. There are even some flights now that go too far abroad to make it back the same day...”

“Yes, we find ourselves needing more hands day by day,” Greanyl said. “And not only that, but now we also must monitor the activities of demons entering the kingdom in order to engage in banditry. Just this morning, in fact, there was a bandit attack in a region outside the scope of our intelligence. In the end you and Madame Rys were forced to take it upon yourselves to resolve the matter, much to our lasting shame...” She hung her head at the thought, her expression full of deep remorse for the failure.

“Oh, Greanyl, you don’t need to take it as hard as all that,” Rys said, favoring the shadow demon with a smile. “I happened to do a bit of scouting myself in my time in the Dark Army, you know! I certainly don’t mind doing my part.”

This time it was Uliminas’s turn to shoot a side-eyed glance towards the boastful grin on Rys’s face. “Meowr idea of scouting was to attack the meowment mew spotted the enemy,” she scoffed. “Gathering intelligence was only ever meowr second purriority.”

“Uliminas!” Rys said. “I’ll thank you not to tell lies about me right in front of my lord husband! I’ll have you know that I only did that sometimes.”

“Sometimes?!” Uliminas objected. “When mew went scouting, eight or nine times out of ten mew ended up wiping out the target instead! Mew hardly came back with anything like mewseful infurmation.”

“Th-That isn’t true at all! I did the mission properly one or two times out of ten at least!”

Suddenly the two were back on their feet, once again changing partway into beast form as they glared each other down.

“That’s enough, both of you!” Flio said, jumping out of his chair as well and placing one hand on each of their shoulders in a desperate attempt to restore some semblance of calm. “This discussion won’t get anywhere if you two keep interrupting like this!” He sighed. “Greanyl, I’m sorry we keep getting derailed. So...you’re here to find some way to deal with your personnel problems, is that correct?”

“Yes, Mister Flio, that is correct,” Greanyl replied.

“I thought I gave you the authority to recruit new members to your team, though, didn’t I?” Flio asked. “Is there some reason you can’t do that?”

“Yes, sir, you did... But for the Enchanted Frigates in particular, we need personnel with the ability to determine whether any suspicious individuals have sneaked in among the passengers. We shadow demons have natural abilities that lead us to excel at espionage, but we’re considered a rare demon species. I’ve called on every one of our number who I was able to summon, but it still comes to less than a hundred individuals in total.”

“Now that you mention it, I’d noticed you hadn’t been hiring any new shadow demons lately. That explains it, then...” Flio mused, nodding his head to Greanyl’s explanation. “But if you can’t find any new shadow demons to hire, doesn’t that put us at an impasse?”

“Not quite, I believe,” Greanyl said. “There is still one lead we could follow...”

“A lead?”

“Yes, sir. I am aware of a clan residing in the eastern land of Hi Izuru composed of people known as shinobi, who also specialize in stealth and espionage. I made contact with the shinobi of my acquaintance and was told they might be amenable to employment with the Fli-o’-Rys General Store, provided certain conditions are met.”

“Then that should solve your problem, right?” Flio smiled. “So? What are their conditions?”

“Well, sir... It seems we will have to travel to Hi Izura ourselves to visit a prominent shinobi, the head of the Uga family...” She took out a map she had apparently been keeping between her cleavage and spread it on the table for Flio to see. “This map should lead us to the Uga mansion.”

“Well, if you know where it is it should be easy, right?” said Flio.

“Why can’t we just invite these shinobi here, without all this hassle?” Rys asked.

“I’d certainly like to if we could,” Greanyl said, her expression darkening as she struggled to find the words to explain. “But... Well...”

“Hrm,” Ghozal said, folding his arms and closing his eyes for a moment in thought. “Most likely they want to see what their prospective employer Mister Flio is capable of for themselves. Hi Izuru is a land where the noble houses are always vying with each other for power, but from what I hear the shinobi make their way without swearing their allegiance to any house in particular. They change their employer with every job, doing what they have to to survive in a world of conflict.”

“Lord Ghozal is correct, I believe,” said Greanyl.

“But there’s something fishy about this story of us needing to come to them before they’re willing to come to us...” Ghozal continued, tracing the path from the Enchanted Frigate boarding tower to the Uga family stronghold on the map with this finger. “I’ve heard shinobi are skilled at building traps and hidden passages, in addition to their other abilities. I bet there’s some kind of trick waiting for us at this mansion...”

“Well, that’s no matter!” Rys said brightly, hopping out of her seat for yet a third time. “No matter what trap or trick they’ve prepared for us, your ever-trusty Rys will send them flying for the hills!”

“This is purrcisely meowt I’ve been saying!” Uliminas sniped, rolling her eyes in exasperation. “Why do mew always have to come out swinging from the furst possible meowment?”

“Let’s not get ahead of ourselves, Rys,” Flio said, somewhat more kindly. “In any event, I already have some business in Hi Izuru. Why don’t we stop by while we’re in the neighborhood? Let’s not worry about sending anyone flying for the hills for the time being, at least until we see what the situation is...”

“But my lord husband!” Rys said, jabbing at the air with her fists. “In these sorts of situations it’s best to teach them some manners straightaway...like this! Pow! Kapow!”

“Ha ha ha!” Ghozal laughed. “No small feat trying to calm Rys down when she gets like this, eh, Mister Flio?”

“Don’t laugh, Ghozal!” Flio pleaded, looking all the more distressed at his friend’s jovial attitude. “Help me try to get through to her!”

In short order, the scene in the Fli-o’-Rys living room had descended into lively chaos. Greanyl looked in distress from one person to another, seemingly unable to move. H-Help! she thought. I-I never know what I’m supposed to do in situations like this!

◇Houghtow City—Flio’s House◇

The next morning at breakfast, Flio explained the entire situation to the rest of the household. “And so,” he concluded, “it seems like we’ll be making a trip to Hi Izuru sometime in the near future.”

“Oh!” Before anyone else had a chance to respond, Rylnàsze popped up from her seat, raising her hand high. “Papa, may I go with you, please?” she asked, looking up at Flio with expectant delight all over her face.

“I-I don’t know, Rylnàsze...” Flio said. “You’re going to be joining your class for the school trip, aren’t you? Maybe it would be better to wait until then...”

“Oh, that’s right,” Rylnàsze said, sticking out her tongue as she sat back down in her chair. “I forgot.”

“Excuse me... Papa?” ventured her older sister Elinàsze. “Would it be all right if I came with you, perhaps?”

Elinàsze—the eldest child of Flio and Rys as Garyl’s older twin and Rylnàsze’s big sister. Elinàsze was a hard working girl who had devoted herself to magical research. Her greatest vice was the nearly pathological level of adoration she reserved for her father Flio. Recently, she had been completely and utterly absorbed in her project of collecting magic grimoires and finding practical uses for the obscure spells she found in their pages.

“I’m rather interested in this National Onmyo Academy,” Elinàsze said.

“The National Onmyo Academy, hm?” Flio asked, a knowing smirk crossing his face. Elinàsze must have spent yesterday looking into Hi Izuru, I’m guessing.

“I’d heard the name before, but at the time I didn’t realize it had anything to do with magic,” Elinàsze said. “I rather overlooked it, I’m afraid.”

Hiya nodded sagely at Elinàsze’s explanation.

Hiya—the djinn who commanded the origin of light and darkness. Hiya possessed magic power great enough to destroy the entire world, but even that was not enough to triumph over Flio. After their defeat at his hands, they came to revere the merchant as the so-called Exalted One, and began living together with the others at his house.

“If my understanding is correct, Onmyo refers to a style of magic which utilizes paper talismans as vessels for divine power,” Hiya explained. “There are Onmyo practitioners all over the world, including within the Magical Kingdom of Klyrode.”

“Wow, really?” Flio remarked, clearly surprised to hear this.

“Hiya, are you sure?” Elinàsze blinked, looking every bit as taken aback as her father. “I’ve never heard of this before...”

“Yes, I am,” said Hiya. “It was before you were born, Madame Elinàsze, and long enough ago that it had slipped my mind, but I believe we once saw the inn staff at the Kinosaki Hot Springs Village using talismans that seemed to be from the Onmyo tradition...”

“The Kinosaki Hot Springs Village...?” Flio repeated, taking a moment to think. “Oh!” Suddenly, it hit him. “You mean the time Ghozal and Dawkson had that fight!”

“Indeed,” said Hiya with a reverential bow. “It was precisely then.”

“So the staff at the Hot Springs Village inn have some connection with this...Onmyo, it’s called?” Elinàsze asked.

“It seems that way,” Flio said. “At the very least, they used it to keep the inn’s walls from breaking while they led the guests to safety and to send the demons who had been making a mess back home in the blink of an eye.”

“Really! So it can create effects like that...” Elinàsze mused, leaning forwards with an air of great interest. “I would really like to hear about this incident in as much detail as possible, if I may.”

“Well, this is a rare sight,” said Hiya.

“We don’t often see Elinàsze take so much interest in something, do we?” Rys agreed.

The usually cool and collected Elinàsze was showing a surprising amount of excitement when it came to this new unfamiliar style of magic. Flio, Rys, Hiya, and the others took stock of her behavior, not sure what had gotten Elinàsze so worked up about Onmyo in particular.

“Well then, I suppose Elinàsze will be coming with us,” Flio said. “What about you, Hiya?”

“I would gladly accompany you if I could...” Hiya said, remorsefully lowering their head. “But alas, there is something else at present that requires my attention...”

“Hey! Hold on a minute!” Suddenly, Hiya heard the voice of Damalynas speaking to them from inside their mindscape. “You don’t mean you’re busy with that, do you?!”

Damalynas—the Grand Magus of Midnight, master of the Midnight Arts. She had long since abandoned her flesh, existing now only as a psychic construct. She found herself defeated by Hiya, however, and now she lived out her days inside their mindscape as the djinn’s beloved training partner.

“Of course,” said Hiya. “What else could it be? In any event, the only reason it’s taking so long is because you’ve been dragging your feet. Perhaps a bit of self-reflection is in order...”

“Excuse me?!” Damalynas shot back. “Are you trying to say it’s all my fault we’ve had nothing but failure so far?!”

“Well?” said Hiya. “Is it not?”

The two of them carried on in this vein...although since Damalynas was speaking to Hiya from inside their own mental world, the rest of the household could only hear one side of the conversation.

“Um... Hiya?” Belano asked, frowning. “Who...are you talking to?” Minilio and Belalio, sitting on either side of her, looked between Belano and Hiya in mute confusion as well.

Belano—originally a witch assigned to Balirossa’s company of knights in service to Klyrode Castle. She was a small and skittish woman, only capable of using defensive magic. Since leaving the knighthood, she had resided at Flio’s house while working as a teacher at the Houghtow College of Magic. Her husband was the magic doll Minilio, and Belalio was her child.

Minilio—a magic doll created by Flio as an experiment to test his abilities. In terms of appearance Minilio resembled a child-sized version of Flio himself, hence the name. He was an invaluable assistant to Belano in her work teaching at the Houghtow College of Magic. Over the course of working together, Belano and Minilio had become close, eventually becoming husband and wife and having a child together named Belalio.

Belalio—child of Belano and Minilio. As the child of a magic doll and a human, Belalio was an exceptionally rare sort of being. Like their father Minilio, they resembled a younger version of Flio, but Belalio preferred an androgynous presentation, keeping their gender ambiguous.

“Oh, oh! Pardon me!” said Blossom, who was next to raise her hand. “I’d rather like to come along as well, if I may!”

Blossom—the heavy knight from Balirossa’s old company and Balirossa’s closest friend. Naturally enough, she too moved in with Flio after leaving the knighthood. Blossom was from a farming family and well-versed in all manner of agriculture, a skill she now put to use running a large farm on the land around Flio’s house.

“From what I hear, there are plants in Hi Izuru that you can’t find anywhere else in the world!” Blossom explained with breathless excitement. “Why, I’d love to get my hands on a seedling or two to try cultivating on my own farm!”

Blossom had been going home with Ura to his house on Mount Fli-o’-Rys more often than not lately, but today she had come by the main house along with Ura’s daughter Kora, who was sitting in the chair next to her. “I’m glad you’re happy, Mom,” she said, smiling cutely up at Blossom, a sight which elicited looks of warm fondness from everyone with a clear view of the two of them.

Charun, who had been busy making her way around the table to ensure everyone was given a cup of post-mealtime tea, was the next to volunteer. “I would like to accompany you as well, if time permits,” she said, daintily raising her hand.

“Well, well! You have an interest in Hi Izuru too, Charun?” Calsi’im asked.

“Yes, Calsi’im,” Charun responded. “I’ve heard many of our customers at the Cal’Cha Teahouse speaking about the unique varieties of tea developed in Hi Izuru. I find myself quite interested in trying them for myself.”

“I see, I see!” said Calsi’im, his bony head bobbing up and down. “Well in that case, by all means!”

W-Wait! Balirossa thought, her face blanching white at the implications of Calsi’im and Charun’s exchange. I-If Charun goes to Hi Izuru, that means I’ll have to take over the Cal’Cha Teahouse again while she’s gone, doesn’t it?! I somehow managed to muddle my way through yesterday, but just one day of that was enough to tire me out completely! I’m not sure I can take a second time...

“Um... Charun... S-So... About Hi Izuru...” she said, casting her mind about for some way to keep Charun from going to Hi Izuru...but it was to no avail.

“Oh, Lady Balirossa, of course!” said Charun, smiling sweetly at the former knight. “I’ll be trusting you to make the tea while I’m gone. I feel a lot less worried about going away for a while, knowing you’ll be here in my place.”

Balirossa’s resolve failed her in the face of Charun’s smile. “I-I’ll do the best I c-can...” was all she could say.

The Flio household living room stayed full well into the morning that day, everyone chatting animatedly about the upcoming trip.

◇Houghtow City—Fli-o’-Rys Adventurers’ Academy◇

The Fli-o’-Rys General Store had gotten its start in the empty premises of a store that Flio purchased after the original establishment went out of business. The location was quite some distance outside of Houghtow City proper, in a corner of town that saw hardly any traffic at all. But since then the number of buildings and the scale of their operation had grown by leaps and bounds, starting with a wagon staging area Flio built behind the store for the purpose of conducting overland trade. In short order it was joined by a station for Flio’s fleet of Enchanted Frigates and a magic beast racing hall. Before long, people began calling that whole part of town by the name of Fli-o’-Rys Avenue.

One of the buildings along Fli-o’-Rys Avenue was called the Adventurers’ Academy. Today, the waiting room was full to bursting with expectant challengers.

“Today’s the day!” declared the leader of a particularly spirited party. “We’re making it all the way through the third level of the dungeon and coming home with magic items for a prize!”

“Huzzah!” her companions cheered.

Off to the side of the group, meanwhile, a young man dressed in a brand new suit of knight’s armor looked nervously around the room. It was clear from a glance that he was new. “I-I’m looking to try the tag team battles in the arena, if I can...” he said. “Is there anyone who would like to team up with me, maybe...?”

“If you’re looking for a partner, why don’t we join forces?” another adventurer offered.

“Oh! Thank you very much! I’ll be in your care, then.” The two exchanged a polite bow and headed off together.

Behind the reception desk, Snow Little looked out at the busy crowd.

Snow Little—Garyl’s former classmate from the Houghtow College of Magic. She was a member of the rare fable folk species who specialized in summoning magic. Like Salina and the others, she harbored faint romantic aspirations for Garyl to this day, which was why she sought out employment at the Fli-o’-Rys General Store after her graduation.

“You’re all attempting the level three dungeon course, yes? That will be five silver each, please!” Snow Little said, smiling as she helped one group of customers and moved on to the next. “Now, what challenge will your group be attempting?”

All around her, Snow Little’s summoned dwarves were busily running to and fro, collecting registration fees, handing out tickets, and even selling potions for use in the training courses.

Meanwhile, in another corner of the building, Ghozal stood behind another counter, selling arms and armor to aspiring adventurers.

“Excuse me?” one such hopeful said, pointing to one of the swords on display. “I’d like to buy that sword, please.”

“Hrm...” Ghozal grunted, looking over the customer in thought. “In your case, I’d say this shortsword and shield would be a better fit than that longsword,” he said, producing a different set of equipment from the rack and thrusting it on the would-be adventurer over his protests.

“Huh? B-But that one’s more expensive, and it looks really strong!”

“Hrm,” Ghozal replied. “You’re right about that, at least. This sword is quite something, with all the powerful enchantments on it. That being said, with your level of strength you’d need both your arms to wield it effectively. In which case, how are you planning to defend yourself from attacks?”

“B-But I...”

“Listen,” Ghozal said, placing the shortsword and shield in the adventurer’s arms and pushing him by the shoulders towards the registration desk. “Just try it once. If you’d still rather have that first longsword after that, I won’t stop you.”

At this, Mulana came running up to Ghozal at the weapons corner.

Mulana—a young girl of the rare genesis demon species, recognizable by her slight stature and long and fluffy head of hair. She had the ability to create Demon Copies, magical beings that resembled demons of various types. Individually, the copies were weak, but Mulana’s magic power reserves let her create a formidable number of them.

“Mister Ghozal, you suck at sales,” Mulana said.

“Ha ha ha!” Ghozal laughed. “I know, I know, that longsword would have sold for three times as much as the shield and shortsword combined. But I’m not about to sell someone equipment if I can tell they won’t be able to use it properly!”

“So sell them the longsword first...” Mulana said, shooting Ghozal a withering glance at the bout of laughter. “And get them to buy the shortsword and shield later on.”

“Hrm,” said Ghozal. “Not happening.”

“Hrmpf!” Mulana huffed, puffing out her cheeks at being so flatly rejected.

Ghozal patted Mulana on the head. “Apparently in Mister Flio’s homeland they have a saying: ‘to reap, you must sow.’ Waiting patiently will get us more money in the future, all right?”

“Fine, fine, I get it,” Mulana huffed, still clearly upset as she turned to leave the way she came. “The next round is about to start, so I’m headed back to the observation room.”

“Hrm. Don’t push yourself, all right?” Ghozal said. “Call me right away if anything comes up.”

“’Kay,” Mulana replied with a wave of her hand as she scurried away.

Ghozal watched the younger demon go with a fond smile. “That reminds me...” he said. “Mister Flio said he’s going to Hi Izuru this morning, didn’t he... I wonder if he’d bring me back a few of those famous Hi Izuran katanas I’ve heard so much about...”

His thoughts were interrupted by a group of demihumans approaching the counter.

“Pardon me...” said one of their number. “We were wondering if we could ask you for some advice about our equipment...”

“Sure!” said Ghozal, greeting the group with a smile. “I’ll answer any questions I can!”

If any of the adventurers present had any inkling that the shopkeeper at the equipment counter was none other than the former Dark One himself, none of them gave any indication.

◇Dark Citadel—Throne Room◇

Near the very center of the lands held by demonkind, the Dark Citadel towered over a landscape of deep valleys and steep mountain peaks. There, in the throne room, Dark One Dawkson was holding court.

Dawkson—the current Dark One, and younger brother of the retired Dark One Gholl. Once he had gone by the name Yuigarde, during which time he ruled with utter contempt for the opinions of anyone besides himself, but he had since changed his ways along with his name and now walked the path of an enlightened despot.

Dark One Dawkson, sitting not on the throne itself but on the steps leading up to the seat, was reading over a letter when his minion Phufun stepped into the throne room. “I apologize for the interruption, Master,” she said.

Phufun—a succubus who had been following Dawkson since before he ascended to the throne. Outwardly she gave the appearance of being a woman of intellect, but in actuality she was more than a bit of an airhead and an inveterate masochist.

“Master...” Phufun continued, pressing her false glasses up the ridge of her nose. “Pardon me for speaking out of turn...”

“Eh?” Dawkson asked. “What’s on yer mind, Phufun?”

“Yes... Well...” Phufun began. “I understand your decision to abstain from sitting on the throne, to castigate yourself for the failures that once led the Dark Army to the brink of ruin...but surely by now it should be acceptable for you to take your proper seat, should it not?”

“Indeed,” added Zanzibar, entering the room after Phufun and spreading his arms wide in a dramatic gesture. “In this matter, Lady Phufun and I are in full agreement.”

Zanzibar—a devil noble and one of the current Infernal Four. In the past he had raised a rebellion against the Dark One Yuigarde’s high-handed tyranny, only to be defeated. He was chosen for the Infernal Four in recognition of his pluck and initiative, as well as the valuable knowledge he had cultivated as a member of the nobility.

“Thank you both for sayin’ so. It means a lot, honest...” Dawkson said, taking to his feet with a grimace as Phufun and Zanzibar lined up before him. “But I think I need a little bit more time. I know it’s a bit pathetic, me bein’ the Dark One and all, but I just still can’t bring myself to accept it...”

“B-But Master!” objected Phufun. “In recent days you’ve taken great pains to engage in dialogue with your subjects, carefully weighing every opinion in your pursuit of a cohesive whole for demonkind!”

“Lady Phufun speaks true!” agreed Zanzibar. “And if I may add...”

Before Zanzibar could continue, however, Dawkson raised his hand, silencing him in his tracks. “Really, thank you both for sayin’ so,” he repeated. “But we can talk about it at some other time, all right?”

“Yes, Dark One!” said Phufun and Zanzibar, obediently lowering their heads.

“Now, there’s only one thing so important that I’d interrupt all yer other duties to call you here,” Dawkson said. “It’s those demons who refuse to obey the peace treaty with the Magical Kingdom of Klyrode makin’ trouble again...”

Dawkson passed the letter he had been reading over to Phufun. Zanzibar leaned over the succubus’s shoulder to see what was written as well.

“Yes, these groups and their wanton violence have been quite the thorn in our side, haven’t they...” Zanzibar mused. “When they first made themselves a problem their outbursts took place within demon lands and could be suppressed with relative haste. Lately, however, they have shifted their approach to stage attacks near the border of our domain, far from the Dark Citadel. The Infernal Lady Belianna and her forces have been doing what they can to quell these uprisings, but alas, it is simply too vast an area for her to cover.”

“The Magical Kingdom of Klyrode says they intend to dispatch a strike force of their own,” Phufun read. “To think that the humans would be sending soldiers to the border while we’re meant to be in a relationship of mutual cooperation...”

“It definitely ain’t a good look that most of the troublemaking has come from the demon side of things...” Dawkson grumbled.

The three all folded their arms, sharing a serious look.

“I believe I can do something about the security of our borders with just a few more subordinates,” Zanzibar said, grabbing a page of the letter from the Magical Kingdom of Klyrode out of Phufun’s hand. “The real problem, however, is this.”

“Right... That,” Dawkson said with a heavy sigh. “The report that some other human kingdom called Hi Izuru or somethin’ has been havin’ problems with some demon bandits of their own, completely separate from the Magical Kingdom. They say they’re plannin’ to take action themselves, but we’d better do somethin’ about it on our end too...”

At this point, Coqueshtti appeared from the hallway behind Zanzibar and Phufun, stepping into the throne room as well.

Coqueshtti—a little mad scientist girl, one of the current members of the Infernal Four. Dark One Dawkson had selected her for the rank of Infernal in recognition of the many demons she had saved with her healing magic, but as she herself was a bashful and somewhat silly girl, the post didn’t quite seem to fit her personality.

“Ah! Hello, hello!” Coqueshtti said, cradling the enormously oversized syringe she brought with her everywhere in her arms as she greeted the Dark One and her fellow Infernals with a low bow. “You need support for the antibandit strike force, yes? I’ll get ready right away!”

“H-Hold yer horses,” Dawkson said. “I mean, support is all well and good, but there’s somethin’ else we need...”

“There is?” Coqueshtti asked. “Whatever could it be?”

“We’re lookin’ for someone to go to Hi Izuru, in order to look into—”

“Oh my!” Coqueshtti exclaimed as the Dark One’s words sent her flying backwards with alarming force. “I can’t I can’t I can’t I can’t I can’t I simply can’t!” she cried out in a panic, rejecting the suggestion with every part of her body and soul. “I-I-I-I’m a noncombatant from head to toe! Oh, it’s just impossible! It would be such a terrible mess! I’m the wrong person for the job, I promise you!”

Dawkson, Zanzibar, and Phufun all sighed at Coqueshtti’s flustered display.

“Y’know what? You’ve got a point,” Dawkson said. “Considerin’ yer strengths and weaknesses, I guess there’s no way I could expect you to handle it. Sorry.”

The Dark One’s words, somehow, did nothing to alleviate the posture of absolute refusal that Coqueshtti’s body had adopted.

“Excuse me... Master?” Phufun said, stepping in front of Coqueshtti and calmly raising her hand.

“Yeah?” Dawkson asked. “You got somethin’, Phufun?”

“I may have an idea as to how we might resolve this conundrum...” Phufun said, once again pressing her false glasses up the ridge of her nose. “There is someone among the candidates for the last seat on the Infernal Four who might do well on this mission...”

“Oh?” Dawkson leaned forwards. “You don’t say, huh?”

Dawkson and the Infernals kept on discussing Phufun’s suggestion for some time until finally they came to a resolution.

“Arright,” Dawkson said. “I guess Phufun’s idea makes sense. Let’s try ’em.”

“Yes, Master.” Phufun bowed deeply and hurried out of the throne room.

It ain’t a bad idea, Dawkson considered, very slightly nodding his head as he watched Phufun go. It’s a little out there, but that might be just what the situation calls for...

◇A Building, Somewhere...◇

In a valley that led through the mountains far to the east of the Magical Kingdom of Klyrode, a train of carriages made their way down a road so rough and rocky that anyone watching could plainly see the carriages shaking precariously as they rolled along.

Inside one carriage in particular, the Shadow King sat crossly sputtering and clicking his tongue as his body jostled violently with every bump.

The Shadow King—the father of the Maiden Queen and former king of the Magical Kingdom of Klyrode. He was driven from the kingdom when his wicked ways were brought to light and thereafter took the name of Shadow King, making the Shadow Conglomerate, the black-market criminal organization he had already been running during his time as king, into his main line of work.

“Wh-Why do I have to travel on this disaster of a road, anyway?!” the Shadow King demanded, raising his voice in anger. He made no attempt to hide his displeasure from Kintsuno the Gold and Gintsuno the Silver, who were sitting in the seat across from him.

“Well, what other choice do we have?!” Kintsuno shot back. “We can’t use our usual transportation routes thanks to those idiotic demons raising a fuss around the border, now can we?! Besides, if you think you have it bad, I’ll have you know that this bumpy old road is absolutely ruining my complexion...”

Kintsuno the Gold—the elder of the two sisters who once served as heads of the demon fox clan, a faction that had wielded significant influence within the Dark Army during its heyday. She was well known for her love of everything golden. After the destruction of their clan, the sisters joined forces with their old allies, serving the Shadow King and his Shadow Conglomerate.

The party had been traveling for several days along difficult roads that lacked any suitable spots for taking a rest. In fact, for the last leg of the journey they had been driving onwards day and night without pause. It had been a number of days since Kintsuno had gotten anything resembling proper rest, resulting in dark circles under her eyes and a noticeable decline in the condition of her skin.

“We came all this way east because you insisted on it,” Gintsuno added. “But this has just been miserable from the start to—yeoch!” she cried, as a bump in the road caused her to suddenly bite her tongue.

Gintsuno the Silver—the younger of the two sisters who once served as the heads of the demon fox clan, noted for her fondness for the color silver. She too had found herself working with the Shadow Conglomerate after the destruction of her clan.

Like her sister, Gintsuno sported thick dark circles under her eyes, her beautiful skin worse for the wear due to the state of the road.

“N-Now now, there’s a reason for it, you know...” the Shadow King said, his own irritation faltering in the face of the sisters’ indignation. “And now that we’ve made it this far, it’s only a little farther until we get to Hi Izuru, where those nobles wanted to do business with the Shadow Conglomerate badly enough to pay us in advance...” he added, a sneer playing on his face.

At that reminder, the demon fox sisters’ own anger seemed to vanish from their faces. “I-I suppose they were gracious enough to give us an advance payment, after all...” Kintsuno admitted.

“That’s right, elder sister!” said Gintsuno. “Fine, then... I’ll put up with this out of respect for the advance payment.”

The sisters both gazed out the window of the carriage, looking distinctly chagrined.

I swear, they have some nerve talking like that after spending nearly all of that generous advance payment on their own... the Shadow King fumed internally to himself, taking a guess at what was most likely on the sisters’ minds. Well, I suppose I’ll just have to take the reward money we’ll get for completing the task all to myself!

Just then the carriage hit an especially big bump on the miserable old road, sending the vehicle jumping up high into the air—a little bit too high for comfort.

“Oof!”

“Ouch!”

“Dang it!”

The sound of the passengers’ cries as their heads simultaneously smacked into the ceiling echoed across the valley.

Chapter 2: The Land of the Rising Sun: Part One

◇Houghtow City—Fli-o’-Rys General Store◇

It was early in the morning, so early that even the bustling Fli-o’-Rys Avenue was completely deserted. A “closed” sign hung over the entrance to the Fli-o’-Rys General Store. In fact, every shop on the street bore a similar sign of its own.

The wagon staging area behind the shop, however, was already full of activity. Wagons returning from all over the land pulled up into the back, while other wagons were headed the opposite way, just setting out on their journeys. The flow of traffic never seemed to stop.

The staging area was connected to the nearby Enchanted Frigate boarding tower by a private road so as not to get in the way of people walking the path from Fli-o’-Rys Avenue to downtown Houghtow City. There were even underground paths exclusively for use by wagons headed for other cities nearby, all carefully arranged to avoid disrupting the city’s public streets.

In one corner of the staging area, Flio was looking between a document in his hands and the wagons headed for the Enchanted Friage boarding tower, nodding in approval. “Now, let’s see...” he said, turning to Greanyl, who was standing beside him. “Is that all of the cargo bound for Hi Izuru?”

“Yes, sir,” Greanyl reported. “Everything is packed and ready, including the trade goods requested by the checkpoint and the presents for the shinobi.”

“Thank you for checking, Greanyl,” Flio said.

“Not at all,” Greanyl replied, her voice calm as she looked over the papers she was carrying. “It’s included in the preflight checklist, after all.”

Just as they were talking, Dalc Horst came passing by in his equine form, pulling a wagon loaded full of boxes bound for the Enchanted Frigate.

Dalc Horst—a demon horse who served under the former Infernal Sleip in the Dark Army. Currently he was the head of the Fli-o’-Rys General Store’s transportation department, and he took part in the races at the magic beast racing hall whenever he could find the time.

“Hm?” Flio said, his eye falling on the boxes inside Dalc Horst’s wagon. “Dalc Horst, do you have a minute?”

“Oh, Mister Flio!” said Dalc Horst. “What do you need?”

“Nothing important,” Flio said. “I was just wondering, where is all that cargo headed?”

“Oh, this?” Dalc Horst replied with a grin. “All of it’s bound for Hi Izuru. It’s gonna be flying on the same ship as you!”

Flio took another look at the cargo and cast a spell to see what was inside the containers. The words appeared in his vision: Universal Panacea.

“Sorry to bother you,” Flio said. “That’s all I wanted to know.”

“Yessir!” said Dalc Horst, taking off at a canter for the Enchanted Frigate boarding tower.

Flio watched him go, then turned back to Greanyl. “So, Greanyl,” he said.

“Yes, sir? What is it?”

“Has anything out of the ordinary been happening in Hi Izuru?” Flio asked.

“Anything out of the ordinary?” Greanyl repeated, considering the question. “I’ve heard some things about those demon bandits, but other than that, not especially, no...”

“Nothing about disease or anything like that?”

“Nothing, sir,” Greanyl reported. “Although I wouldn’t expect to hear much on that subject from our sources at the Nagaseki Checkpoint. There’s a lot we don’t know about the internal state of the territories ruled by noble families opposed to the Checkpoint...”

“I see...” Flio said, giving the shadow demon a good-natured smile. “Thank you for telling me. Even that much is good to know.”

If it’s not disease, why would they be buying such a large supply of medicine...? he wondered.

“Come to think of it, once we get this visit out of the way the Houghtow College of Magic is going to be sending students there on a school trip,” Flio mused. “I’d better look into this, I think...”

“My lord husband!” Suddenly, Rys appeared from the staff door at the back of the Fli-o’-Rys General Store, followed by the Houghtow College of Magic administrator Taclyde and Headmaster Nyt. “Our guests from the Houghtow College of Magic have arrived!”

“Mister Flio, thank you ever so much for taking the time out of your busy day to help us with all of this,” Taclyde said, bowing his head as he walked up to him. Instead of the usual work clothes he wore around the office, today he was dressed smartly in formal attire, carrying his luggage in a hefty backpack.

“Thank you for all your assssissstance,” said Nyt, slightly lowering her head.

Most of the time Nyt preferred to wear dresses with an off-shoulder neckline, but today, as she was headed for the Land of the Rising Sun, she had chosen to dress in a traditional kimono.

Flio greeted the pair with a smile. “Hello, Headmaster Nyt, Mister Taclyde. It’s good to see you today. And Rys, thank you for showing them here.”

“No need for thanks!” Rys insisted, beaming. “It was nothing, really!”

Incidentally, on the topic of outfits, Flio was dressed in his usual adventurer-style clothing while Rys was wearing her favorite white dress.

“Heh...” Nyt chuckled as she walked up to the couple. “I mussst say, I never thought the day would come when you and I would travel together like thisss, did you?”

“Certainly not!” Rys agreed. “When you were one of the Infernal Four, the only destination we’d be headed to together would have been the front lines of battle!”

Nyt, in fact, was none other than Yorminyt, formerly a member of the Infernal Four. Back in those days, Rys herself had been known as Fenrys, younger sister of Fengaryl, Yorminyt’s colleague on the Infernal Four. The two of them joined the Dark Army at around the same time and both were women around the same age, so it stood to reason that they quickly developed a sense of camaraderie with each other. Perhaps that was why their conversation had strayed so quickly into such familiar territory...

“I mussst sssay though, Rys,” Nyt observed. “Are you really going to wear the sssame outfit as alwaysss on our trip to Hi Izuru? Hee hee hee...”

“Why, of course! Don’t be absurd!” Rys insisted. “This dress is the first present my lord husband ever gave me! That alone makes it the finest outfit in the entire world!”

“And that’sss quite a lovely sssentiment, of courssse,” said Nyt. “But we are going all the way to a foreign country, no? Isssn’t it far more fashionable to dressss in the clothesss of the land we will be visssiting?”

“Of course it is! I thought of that too, you know!” Rys said, folding her arms and squaring off against Nyt, glaring defiantly. “And that’s why I prepared something special for when we go to visit that shinobi boss’s mansion!”

“Ha ha hah!” Sleip laughed, watching the exchange with great amusement as he carried a load of cargo. “Nyt and Rys haven’t changed a bit, have they! Feels like I’m back in the Dark Army!”

“Really?!” Flio exclaimed, clearly surprised by the revelation. “They used to act like this all the time in the Dark Army?”

“Ha ha hah! Every time they came face-to-face, anyway!” Sleip said. “They were great friends back in the day!”

“Excuse me?!”

“Excussse me?!”

Nyt and Rys both wheeled on the spot, incensed by Sleip’s choice of words.

“Sssleip, I mussst object!” said Nyt. “Are you sssaying I was friendsss with this lousssy flea-bitten mutt?!”

“How dare you?!” protested Rys. “I’m the one who’s ashamed to be associated with a dainty little snake like you!”

“Care to sssay that again?!” Nyt demanded, shoving her face up close to Rys’s.

“Only if you’ve got the guts to repeat your little remark!” said Rys, refusing to back down.

“R-Rys!” Flio said, his own composure faltering as the conflict showed no signs of settling down. “Calm down! We’re going to be leaving in just a moment! You too, Nyt!”

“Ha ha hah!” Sleip laughed. “Mister Flio, I’m afraid the best thing to do here is just let them go at it until they’ve had enough. Anything else will just keep them at it for longer!”

“B-But Sleip!” Flio objected. “You can’t possibly just plan to ignore this, can you?!”

Sleip gave the panicking Flio a glance out of the corner of his eye and wordlessly headed off, carrying the luggage in his arms.

Unfortunately, it would be quite a while before Rys and Nyt had had their fill of arguing.

◇Meanwhile—Flio’s House, Inside the Stables◇

“Like... Huh?”

Inside the stables in the pasture outside of Flio’s house, Byleri lifted up one of the cushions of the sofa in the back of the caretaker’s room, cocking her head in confusion as she looked underneath.

“That’s totally weird...” she said. “Like, I know this is where I hid those rare books from Hi Izuru I found the other day! I was, like, hoping to sneak a peek while Lord Sleip was at the Fli-o’-Rys General Store...”

Byleri stared into the spare below the sofa cushion, utterly baffled as to where the book could possibly be.

“Like, I hid it right here to make sure Rislei or one of the other children didn’t stumble onto it... Or Lord Sleip, for that matter...” Byleri said. “So, like, where the heck did it go?”

◇The Magical Kingdom of Klyrode—High in the Sky◇

High above the Magical Kingdom of Klyrode, a single Enchanted Frigate soared through the vast cloudless skies. The passengers were seated in a large, glass-windowed central room to enjoy the view.

“Wow... It’s beautiful...” Levana, who had decided to come along for the trip, was standing with her face pressed right up against the glass, looking out at the expanse of blue below.

Levana—a young leviathan girl whom Flio had adopted into the family as a foster child. At first glance she seemed like a bookish girl, but the leviathans who had raised her in her earliest days had brought her up to believe in the supremacy of sheer muscle, leaving her with more than a bit of a bullheaded streak. She was currently attending classes at the Houghtow College of Magic, both to foster her considerable natural talent for sorcery and in an attempt to overcome her shyness.

“Levana certainly seems to be enjoying the view,” said Rys, smiling at the sight of Levana pasted motionless to the window.

“It’s no surprise,” Flio said, smiling as well. “Enchanted Frigates bound for destinations on the same continent don’t ascend this high, after all.”

“We’re so high up...” Levana marveled. “The world’s so big... It’s just amazing...” She looked out wide-eyed at the land passing by below—until suddenly a red dragon flew right underneath the ship, directly into her field of vision.

Flio, of course, noticed the dragon immediately. “W-Wait... Wyne?!”

“Dada! I’m over here-here!” Wyne called in response from inside the ship, waving with her right hand even as she took a big bite of the huge hunk of skewered meat she was holding in her left.

This Enchanted Frigate featured an onboard shopping corner, where passengers could purchase both souvenirs and food. In the kitchen, Hiya was already deftly searing the next helping of meat.

Elinàsze watched the djinn work, clearly curious about something. “You know, I’ve always wondered...” she said. “Why don’t you use your magic to cook, Hiya? Is it more fun this way?”

“Madame Elinàsze,” Hiya responded with a very formal bow, all while carefully minding the progress of the meat, “when it comes to the common unknown customer I will indeed elect to use my magic to prepare food. However, for food intended for the Exalted One or members of his household, your esteemed mother has long been of the insistence that it is to be prepared by hand.”

Meanwhile, farther forwards on the ship, Flio looked out the window with a puzzled look on his face. “But if Wyne’s over there...then who could that dragon be?” he wondered. The red dragon slowly overtaking the ship did indeed look quite a bit like Wyne in her wyvern form...

Suddenly, the internal audio system sprang to life throughout the Enchanted Frigate. “This is an announcement,” came Greanyl’s voice, projected from the cockpit where she was piloting the ship. “Unidentified dragon spotted. We will be taking evasive maneuvers in expectation of hostile action.”

“Wait...” said Flio. “Then is that a wild dragon that just happens to live in the area?”

“No, no, that would be quite impossible!” insisted Calsi’im, shaking his skull for emphasis. “Dragons are the absolute apex of magic beasts in this world! Nearly all of them have been part of the Dark Army since long, long ago! Aside from Miss Levana and her people, who had been living deep underground, I don’t believe there should be any wild dragons at all! Although...” he added, pensively crossing his arms, “I suppose I can’t rule out the possibility that there are other species living underground like Miss Levana’s were...”

“So then...” Flio said. “What is this one doing here?”

Flio and Calsi’im both turned to look out the window, where suddenly they could see the dragon looming huge in front of the ship, rearing up like it would start breathing fire at any moment.

“W-Wait!” said Flio, hastily holding up his hand. “Th-That doesn’t look good!”

Elinàsze and Hiya held up their hands as well, ready to use their own magic against the dragon. Before any of them could act, however...

“Bam!” Without any warning at all, Wyne appeared in the sky, crashing into the dragon from above with a nasty headbutt right as it was about to unleash its breath. Wyne was still in her humanoid form, only her dragon wings manifested as she faced off with her opponent.

In fact, the word “headbutt” might have been a generous description. Wyne was simply flying straight down at an alarming speed, completely upside down as she collided with the dragon.

“Gwahhhhrrh!!!” the dragon cried, nearly wailing as the force of the attack sent it plummeting towards the land below.

“Ah ha ha!” Wyne laughed. “Let’s play more!” She flew downwards after the descending dragon, speeding up even faster.

The passengers on the ship watched speechlessly as a sudden battle between dragons began playing out before their eyes.

“E-Erm... Ahem!” came Greanyl’s voice, shocking everyone back to their senses. “We will now be continuing our flight to Hi Izuru. The ship remains undamaged.”

“Wyne, can you hear me?” thought Flio, sending a telepathic message to the dragonewt outside. “Try to bring that dragon back with you, if you can...”

“Ah ha ha!” came Wyne’s response, laughing joyfully as another loud crashing sound rang out below them. “Bam-bam!!!”

“Ah...” Levana let out a soft breath as she watched a cloud of dust explode up from the ground from an impact far below. In spite of everything that had happened in the last few seconds, she had not stopped pressing herself to the window for even a single second.

“Well...” Flio muttered wryly to himself as he took stock of the situation. “At least that dragon seemed like a common magic beast, unlike Wyne and Levana who have demihuman forms. I guess all there is to do is come back and recover it later.”

◇Hi Izuru—Nagaseki Checkpoint◇

The city of Nagaseki was located on the western edge of Hi Izuru—the one and only port in the entire land. As an island nation far removed from the main continent of Klyrode, Hi Izuru had been home to a great number of warring noble families since ancient times, each fighting to become the supreme rulers of the Land of the Rising Sun.

The nobles had signed a pact with each other: “Borrow not the power of other lands.” Each of them fought with only the force they could muster from their own territory. This pact was formed out of the fear that a noble who unified the country by calling upon the assistance of foreign powers might open Hi Izuru up to that power’s influence, which was something the warring nobles of Hi Izuru desired even less than for any of their rivals to claim the throne.

From the streets below, a woman watched as the Enchanted Frigate carrying Flio and his companions came to a gentle stop at the boarding tower in Nagaseki City. She was dressed in a light pink kimono and beaming from ear to ear as she looked up at the ship docking overhead.

“What a delight to have a second Enchanted Frigate come to our port in a day, outside of our usual scheduled flight!” the woman gushed, before remembering herself. “Oh, I nearly forgot! I need to reactivate the part of the barrier we lowered to let the Enchanted Frigate in!” She quickly called up a magic window and pressed a number of buttons, causing a glowing magic wall to reappear behind the ship, filling in the gap in the barrier caused by their entry.

“Good afternoon, Miss Itsuhachi,” said Flio, appearing from the Enchanted Frigate and addressing the woman with one of his trademark easygoing smiles.

“Mister Flio!” Itsuhachi said, running up to greet her guests. “It has been too long.”

“It really has,” Flio agreed. “The last time I was here was when we were signing the contract to officially allow our Enchanted Frigates into Nagaseki, wasn’t it?”

“Yes, so I recall! And I am honored to be able to meet you once again.” Itsuhachi bowed very low with practiced formality.

“From what I hear, though, you’ve been promoted since then, haven’t you?” Flio asked.

“Oh! Yes, I have! At the time I was a member of the staff. Now I am a manager of the entire Nagaseki Checkpoint.”

As Flio and Itsuhachi were talking, the rest of the group began to emerge from the Enchanted Frigate onto the boarding tower—with one exception.

“I’m back, Papa!” said Elinàsze, materializing from a magic circle that appeared on the ground right next to Flio.

“Hi, Elinàsze!” Flio greeted her. “How’d it go?”

“Well, I was able to recover it in its entirety,” she reported. “But there’s something strange about it...”

“Strange?” Flio asked.

“That’s right,” said Elinàsze. “Maybe I should just show you.” She held up her hand towards the wide-open space in front of her to summon a very large magic circle, which subsequently produced an equally enormous dragon.

This dragon, of course, was the same one Wyne had vanquished earlier—although it seemed like Wyne herself had only intended to play. Elinàsze had eagerly volunteered herself to recover its body and just returned from using her Teleportation spell to accomplish the feat.

“Y-You! What are you thinking?!” Itsuhachi shouted, not at the dragon but at Elinàsze.

“What? Me?” Elinàsze asked.

“Yes! You!” Itsuhachi stormed over, pressing her head up close to Elinàsze’s face. “Where precisely did you Teleport from just now? It wasn’t from outside the barrier, was it?”

A troubled look came over Flio’s face at Itsuhachi’s words. Ah... That’s right...

It was precisely what he thought. The whole land of Hi Izuru was enveloped by a giant magic barrier, preventing anyone from entering from outside. The barrier interfered with teleportation magic as well, making it truly impassable...in theory, anyway.

For someone with Celestial Magic, like me and Elinàsze, this barrier is so easy to break through that we can do it without thinking... Flio thought, his mind already working in spite of his distress to come up with an explanation he might offer Itsuhachi. It’s been so long since she’s come here, Elinàsze must have forgotten...

“Forcing your way through the barrier is a serious offense!” Itsuhachi went on, loudly lecturing Elinàsze. “According to the Seventeen-Article Constitution of Hi Izuru—”

“I came from the ship, of course,” said Elinàsze, with perfect bald-faced composure.

“Oh?” Itsuhachi probed skeptically.

“I just didn’t want to bother with going down all those stairs, so I teleported from inside the ship,” Elinàsze lied. “That’s not any sort of problem, is it?”

“N-No, not at all...” said Itsuhachi, seemingly unable to press the matter any further in the face of Elinàsze’s sheer brazenness.

I’ll admit, that was a decent way to make it through that situation, Flio thought, smiling stiffly. But maybe I should have a talk with Elinàsze later...

“Anyway, Papa, look,” said Elinàsze, directing his attention back to the dragon.

“Look...here?” Flio asked, walking up to the underside of the dragon as it lay motionless on its flank. “Wait... What’s this?” Sensing something wrong, he held his hand up towards the dragon’s body, summoning a magic circle which displayed a window of text:

◇Megakuri Monster: Wyvern Model

“‘Megakuri Monster: Wyvern Model’?” Flio said, looking up in surprise at the astonishingly realistic mechanical dragon. “So it wasn’t an actual dragon, just something designed to look like one?”

At first glance the clockwork dragon looked indistinguishable from the real thing, but on closer inspection the whole thing was made of interlocking wooden parts, skillfully pieced together to form the semblance of a dragon.

“My!” gasped Charun. “This is the dragon that we saw flying in the sky earlier?” Charun was dressed in her best clothes for going out: a black gothic-style dress paired with a lace parasol resting on her shoulder.

“These sorts of clockwork dolls are a specialty of Hi Izuran handicrafts, I believe,” said Calsi’im, looking up at the dragon beside his wife. He too had forgone his usual robe in favor of a tuxedo and bow tie for their trip to Hi Izuru.

“That’s true,” said Flio. “We even have some clockwork from Hi Izuru for sale at the Fli-o’-Rys General Store that can change into various kinds of magic beasts depending on how you arrange the parts... Although those aren’t any larger than the palm of your hand. They’re more like toys.”

At this point Itsuhachi stepped up to the group, not quite managing to hide the look of concern on her face. “Excuse me,” she said. “I may know something about this. The truth is, these clockwork creatures have recently been giving us a small amount of trouble.”

“Trouble?” Flio asked. “What kind of trouble?”

Itsuhachi frowned for a moment as if she wasn’t sure how she should answer the question before seeming to make up her mind. “We call these giant clockwork monsters Megakuri, you see. Lately a number of them have begun attacking the Nagaseki Checkpoint...”

“Is that why you ordered so much Universal Panacea from the Fli-o’-Rys General Store...?” Flio mused, thinking back to the wagon’s cargo he had seen earlier that day.

Itsuhachi nodded. “I suppose I shouldn’t be surprised that you would notice,” she said. “That medicine is intended for the soldiers who were injured battling the Megakuri. We can produce our own healing potions here, of course, but recently the nobles have been refusing to sell us the medicinal herbs we need as raw materials...”

As Flio weighed the information he had learned from Itsuhachi, Hiya came floating up beside him. “Of course, a brisk sale of our Universal Panacea does the Fli-o’-Rys General Store no harm,” they remarked. “After all, the magipharmacology department under Madame Elinàsze has developed a system capable of producing all we need quite automatically.”

“Sure, but wouldn’t it be faster just to sell ’em a ton of arms and armor loaded up with powerful enchantments?” suggested Damalynas, appearing next to Hiya. “That way they could make short work of any Megakuri monsters or demon bandits that would dare attack them!”

Hiya took one glance at Damalynas’s prideful smirk and puffed-out chest and sighed audibly. “Don’t be a fool, Damalynas,” they said. “Or have you forgotten? Following the signing of the peace treaty between the Magical Kingdom of Klyrode and the Dark Army, various regulations have been put in place on the sale of especially powerful magic weapons in order to avoid giving rise to unnecessary conflict.”

“H-Hey!” Damalynas objected, her voice sounding distinctly unconvincing even as she cast around for an excuse. “I-I didn’t forget! I was just...y’know... There’s no bad ideas, right?” With that she vanished back into Hiya’s mindscape, escaping from the whole awkward situation.

“That girl...” Hiya sighed again, pressing their palm to their forehead in exasperation. “What am I going to do with her...”

Itsuhachi, however, looked over at Hiya with a complicated expression. “Miss Damalynas is correct, of course,” she said. “There are some of us who are of the mind that we could easily handle the Megakuri attacks if only we could purchase powerful equipment from the Fli-o’-Rys General Store. However, if we did that it would only give the nobles permission to purchase similarly powerful weapons as well. At present Hi Izuru seems to be headed towards unification under the guidance of the Nagaseki Checkpoint, but there are many nobles who oppose this development as well...”

“So if the nobles got their hands on those weapons, they’d just end up using them to fight each other, and soon enough it would escalate to full-on war...” Rys said, holding up her index finger. “But if there are nobles sending these Megakuri things to attack the Checkpoint in order to get in the way of unification, opposing them with your own forces might be a problem too...”

“That’s exactly right,” Itsuhachi confirmed. “Until we know for certain which noble is employing these Megakuri, there isn’t much we can do.”

“I suppose not,” Flio nodded, folding his arms in thought. “You can’t exactly punish them if you don’t know who you’re dealing with, and if the Nagaseki Checkpoint takes steps to strengthen its military the nobles will take it as an excuse to do the same.”

“We’ve had attacks from very large clockwork monsters before this, but I never imagined we’d face anything on this scale,” Itsuhachi said. “Of course, we at the Nagaseki Checkpoint intend to do everything in our power to ensure you have a safe and pleasant visit. That being said...” Here she turned to face Nyt and Taclyde, lowering her head in apology. “While we greatly appreciate the Houghtow College of Magic’s interest in visiting our country for your study trip and understand how far you’ve traveled for this meeting, I’m afraid much of the land is still under the rulership of nobles with whom we do not enjoy peaceable relations. We would love to accept your offer, but perhaps it would be better to wait to visit until the current disturbance has quieted down...”

Nyt merely listened quietly as Itsuhachi spoke. “Isss that the only obssstacle, then?” she asked with a smile, looking completely unperturbed.

“Um... Yes?” Itsuhachi answered, her response coming out as a question.

“If thessse Megakuri are all we have to deal with, I wouldn’t sssay I’m particularly worried,” Nyt said. “Isssn’t that right, Taclyde?”

“Why... Yes!” Taclyde replied unconvincingly, his voice breaking as he stared at the fallen Megakuri. “If you say so, Headmaster!”

“Oh, no, no,” Itsuhachi began to explain. “This type of Megakuri isn’t the one that’s been causing us trouble...”

Just then, however, a smaller woman dressed in a kimono came running out of the checkpoint office. “C-Captain Itsuhachi!” she said. “Th-They’re back! They’ve broken through the third barrier and are headed this way!”

“I-It can’t be!” Itsuhachi said, her eyes going wide. “Our barriers have always been enough to stop their attacks before, no matter their size!”

“W-Well...” her subordinate reported. “This one was somehow able to avoid being detected by our magic pulse sonar! By the time we made visual contact, it had already broken through our last layer of defense!”

“No!” Itsuhachi’s eyes went wider still.

“Graaaaorrrhhh!!!”

Suddenly, with an earsplitting roar, the Megakuri monster came into view past the jetty behind where the party had gathered. It crashed through the waves, looking for all the world like a genuine leviathan as it reared up out of the water. Unlike the wyvern model Wyne had fought earlier, this one had no wings. Its body was more like an enormous serpent, leering down at Itsuhachi and Flio’s companions.

“S-Send a message to the Barrier Defense Force!” said Itsuhachi. “Tell them to come at once!”

“Y-Yes, ma’am!” said her subordinate, taking off running as her legs could carry her. Before she could get away, however, the leviathan-model Megakuri rushed forwards in pursuit, bearing down on her and Itsuhachi with its long, powerful neck...only to come face-to-face with a woman barring its way.

“Well, well...” hissed Nyt, dramatically concealing the lower part of her face behind a folding fan she was carrying as she interposed herself between the Megakuri and its targets. “You look like every bit the ssserpent, don’t you? I must sssay, you have a lot of nerve appearing before me with a form like that.”

“H-Headmaster Nyt?!” Taclyde exclaimed.

“No, you mustn’t put yourself in danger!” protested Itsuhachi, running up behind Nyt. “Th-The Defense Force will be here any minute, so please—”

Nyt held up her right hand, stopping Itsuhachi in her tracks. “I assssure you, there’sss no need to worry,” she said, transforming into a demon before the checkpoint captain’s eyes. Her upper body remained humanoid, while her body below the waist became the coiled tail of a snake. “I am very powerful, you sssee.”

This was the true form of the Serpent Princess Yorminyt, formerly of the Infernal Four from Ghozal’s reign as Dark One.

The leviathan Megakuri was still half submerged in the water, but even so its top half alone towered five times as tall as Nyt. Such a size difference would make it look to anyone like Nyt was at a disadvantage.

“I should help her...!” Flio said. Before he could make a move, however, he was stopped by none other than Rys.

“My lord husband, please, there’s no need for alarm.”

“Rys? Are you sure?”

“However it may look, Nyt was one of the Dark Army’s Infernal Four,” Rys declared, folding her arms with an air of nonchalance as she looked over at Nyt standing between them and the Megakuri. “She would never come up short against a hunk of junk like that.”

“Ahhh, my old comrade in armsss...” A smile crossed over Nyt’s face, although she kept her eyes trained on the Megakuri. “You know me ssso well.”

Yorminyt may have been one of the Infernal Four back when Ghozal was known as Dark One Gholl, but Rys—or Fenrys—was the younger sister of her fellow Infernal Fengaryl and a pack leader in her own right. The two of them actually had deep respect for each other’s strength, which was why they felt comfortable speaking so flippantly to each other.

“Very well!” said Nyt, using her serpentine lower body to leap into the air. “Let’sss sssee how much thisss oversized toy can take!” In just a second she was eye level with the Megakuri, sharp claws at the ready. She lashed out, aiming a raking slash at her opponent—except...

Ker-splash!!!

Before Nyt’s claws could make contact, an actual bona fide leviathan appeared from the waters right behind the leviathan-model Megakuri.

“Hissss...” Nyt withdrew her arms moments before they could cut through the Megakuri. A new enemy? she thought, calmly taking stock of the situation. No... Thisss isss...

The second leviathan opened its mouth wide, and with a powerful chomp it bit down on the Megakuri leviathan’s head.

“Oh my!” exclaimed Itsuhachi.

“Ah!” cried her subordinate, both women startled by the sudden development.

The two of them stared in amazement as the leviathan began crunching and chewing through the Megakuri leviathan’s head, greedily devouring the contraption as if its wooden body were made of candy.

“Hey, Levi-Levi!” said Wyne, running up to the colossal sea creature. “Does that taste good-good?”

The leviathan—who, of course, was in fact Levana in her draconic form—ceased her snacking when she noticed Wyne, and she set the now-immobile Megakuri down on top of the wharf. “Mpf... Not at all...” she mumbled unhappily. “It just tastes like wood...”

“Ah ha ha!” Wyne laughed, clutching her stomach with one hand and pointing at the pile of splinters that had once been the Megakuri. “Of course it does! Look! It’s made of wood-wood!”

Levana turned back into her humanoid form as Wyne cavorted about, her cheeks flush with embarrassment. A short ways away, Flio and Rys looked on with wry amusement.

“Now that I think about it, Levana spent the whole time we were on the Enchanted Frigate staring out the window...” Flio remarked. “I guess she can’t have eaten very much food on the way over.”

“I suppose not,” nodded Rys. “Levana might be a small girl, but she needs to eat almost as much as Wyne does.”

“That wasss quite inconsssiderate, I should sssay!” remarked Nyt, walking up to the couple. She had reverted back from her demonic form and was once again wearing her human disguise. The expression on her face looked like she wasn’t sure if she should be angry or amused. “It’sss been ssso long sssince I had sssuch a good chance to show off, you know. Why didn’t you ssstop her from interfering?”

“I-I’m sorry, I guess,” said Flio, lowering his head, although the amused smile never left his face.

“You certainly have no need to apologize to her, my lord husband!” Rys chided him, interposing herself between him and Nyt. “After all, you only have yourself to blame for falling behind Levana, no?” she added provocatively to the former Infernal.

Nyt fixed Rys with a severe glare for a moment before softening to a chagrined half smirk. “I sssuppose ssso,” she conceded, shrugging her shoulders in defeat. “I certainly can’t disssagree with your logic. Although I’m not ssssure what I think about falling behind one of my studentsss...”

“Mama,” Levana said, scampering up to the growing group. “I want something to eat...”

“Oh!” added Wyne, running along after her. “Me too, me too!”

The mention of food finally seemed to bring Itsuhachi, who had been unable to do anything except stare in blank confusion at the scene playing out in front of her, back to her senses. “O-Oh, yes!” she said. “Excuse me! S-Since you’ve come all this way, we’d be very much obliged if you’d join us at the checkpoint for refreshments. I believe the preparations for the meal are underway as we speak.”

Levana and Wyne made a sharp ninety-degree turn and ran straight up to Itsuhachi at the offer.

“Really?!”

“Yay-yay!”

Itsuhachi smiled down at the pair. “The rest of you too, of course! I’d say you’ve all earned a rest after that!” she added to the whole party. “Please do come inside. There will be a special dessert as well.”

“I see!” said Flio. “Well, since you’ve gone to all the trouble, I suppose we should take you up on your offer... Right, Rys?”

“If it’s your will, my lord husband, I would gladly accompany you anywhere!” said Rys, beaming happily as she took Flio’s arm in both of hers, the two of them walking over towards Itsuhachi as well.

“I sssuppose we might as well go with them, wouldn’t you say, Taclyde?” said Nyt.

“I don’t see why not! Lead on!” said Taclyde, following along.

“Would you care to accompany us, my darling Charun?” Calsi’im offered.

“Calsi’im, it would be my pleasure,” said Charun, and so the two of them joined the growing procession.

Itsuhachi led the group towards the checkpoint. “Itsuku,” she said, turning to the subordinate who had alerted them to the disturbance earlier, “please see our guests to the reception room. I will tell Hoshiyo and Marumia to get everything ready.”

“Yes, ma’am!” said Itsuku, showing Flio and the others into the building.

“All right,” Itsuhachi said once Flio and the others were safely inside. “Now to clean up what’s left of that Megakuri...” She hurried back towards the wharf where Levana had left the gnawed and splintered remains of the clockwork dragon. Except—

“What’s this?” Itsuhachi said, blinking in confusion. The wharf where the battle had occurred only moments before was right before her eyes, but the leviathan-model Megakuri was nowhere to be seen.

The Defense Force, who had finally arrived on the scene as well, seemed just as confused as she was. “What’s going on?” one of them wondered. “That thing was right here just a minute ago...”

“I only looked away for a second, and it was gone!” said another.

As they were looking around, baffled, Elinàsze walked by in front of them at a leisurely pace, wearing a wide-brimmed witch’s hat. “Good day,” she said by way of greeting as she went past them and into the checkpoint, with Hiya following along behind her.

“So...” Damalynas chuckled, speaking to Elinàsze telepathically from Hiya’s mindscape. “You’re not gonna tell them you took the Megakuri remains?”

Elinàsze, in fact, had swiftly packed the husk into her Bottomless Bag during a moment when the others were all distracted by the conversation, recovering it for her own uses.

“Whatever do you mean?” Elinàsze replied, her expression unchanging even as she used her own telepathy to reply. “I’m just doing my job as big sister, cleaning up after Levana’s messes!”

As she stepped into the checkpoint building, Itsuhachi and the others began running back and forth in plain confusion, searching for any sign of the vanished Megakuri.

◇Meanwhile—Outside the Nagaseki Checkpoint◇

Not far from the Nagaseki Checkpoint, a group of shadowy figures gathered atop a nearby hill. One of them, a man named Saruizo, stood with his muscular arms folded as he watched something in a magic window he had summoned. He was wearing a red outfit reminiscent of the ninja-style uniforms worn by Greanyl and the other shadow demons.

Saruizo furrowed his brow as he watched the scene in his window play out. “Well, that was certainly a pitiful display...” he said, putting his hand to his forehead in exasperation. “After all the support it took to build that thing, it was reduced to rubbish in the space of a single second. Truly, it is shameful for a shinobi to resort to these clockwork toys. I can’t wait for this nonsense to die out completely...”

“U-Um... Saruizo?” said another one of the figures, a smaller man by the name of Korunoe. He wore a blue ninja outfit of the same design as Saruizo’s, supplemented by a plain happi coat with the characters for “Clockwork” proudly displayed in deep indigo on the back. “Y-You can make as many rude comments as you like in just a moment, but right now, would you please be quiet? You’re disrupting my concentration!”

Korunoe’s voice shook as he struggled to maintain his focus. “I-I need to try to recover the magic gem that was powering the leviathan Megakuri if I can...but...” He turned towards the third figure in the group, a tall and lanky woman wearing a green ninja outfit and a pair of large round glasses. “Fua! Can you sense the sealing talisman anywhere? It was telepathically transmitting its location until just a moment ago, giving me full control over the Megakuri, but now I can’t get any response whatsoever.”

“Mnghhhh...” Fua pressed her index fingers against both her left and right temples, looking towards the Nagaseki Checkpoint in intense concentration. “I-I-I can’t detect any response at all!” she said. “N-Not from the wyvern-model Megakuri we lost earlier, and not from the leviathan-model Megakuri we lost just now! Wh-What’s going on?!” Clearly distraught, she reached out with her mind, desperately searching for the sealing talismans used by the Megakuri monsters.

“W-Well, keep looking!” said Korunoe. “The magic gems that power their movements are important, but more than that, the wyvern model they took out first is a state-of-the-art design that took a tremendous amount of work to build! I’d really like to get its body back if we can...”

“B-B-Believe me, I’m well aware!” stammered Fua. “I-I-I have to get that talisman back for my own reasons too, though! Th-Th-Things might go rather badly if I don’t...”

“Mh?” asked Saruizo, unperturbed by the panic that had overcome his two partners. “What do you mean, Fua? Aren’t those talismans designed to destroy themselves once the Magakuri is rendered inoperable?”

“Th-Th-That’s true...” Fua said, beads of sweat running down her face. “B-B-But this time I didn’t detect the usual signal the talisman sends on its destruction! I-I-If they’re able to examine it, th-th-they might find out about my ties to the National Onmyo Academy! I-I-It would be an absolute disaster!”

“But Fua,” Saruizo argued. “If you can’t sense the talisman anymore, shouldn’t that serve as proof that it was destroyed?”

“I-I-I really hope that’s the case...” Fua said. “B-B-But somehow I have a really bad feeling about this...”

Saruizo took a glance at his two companions, both looking desperately towards the Nagaseki Checkpoint, and sighed. “Fine, then. You two keep doing that if it helps you feel better. Myself, I’m going to report this development to the commander.” He turned on his heel and took off into the forest away from the checkpoint.

As for Korunoe and Fua, the two of them were both too preoccupied with their search to offer a word of parting, both silent beyond the occasional grunt of “nghhh...” or “mhff...” from the strain of their intense focus.

◇Meanwhile—Inside the Nagaseki Checkpoint◇

“Hmh...” A smile played at the edges of Elinàsze’s mouth as she sat in her seat by the window. The jewel on her forehead, which she usually kept concealed using her magic, was fully visible, shining with rainbow-colored light.

“Madame Elinàsze...” ventured Hiya, noticing the change from their seat across from her. “Has something happened? Your jewel...”

“I suppose something has happened,” Elinàsze said. “I noticed some strange telepathic vibrations reaching out towards the Megakuri we recovered and thought I’d try following them back to their source. I may have learned something interesting...” She held up her Bottomless Bag, offering it to Hiya. “Hiya, could you perhaps have Damalynas inspect these Megakuri parts inside your mindscape? I believe there should be some sort of talisman attached somewhere, which someone is using to control the Megakuri from afar.”

“A talisman?” said Hiya, bowing low. “I see. I will do as you say.” By the time the djinn lifted their head, the Bottomless Bag had vanished from Elinàsze’s hand.

“So let me get this straight,” said Damalynas. “I’m supposed to look for a talisman of some kind on the Megakuri parts in this bag?”

“Yes, please,” Elinàsze replied. “From what I’ve gathered there’s a spell that’s meant to destroy the talisman if the Megakuri ever breaks, but it looks like we managed to get the parts into the Bottomless Bag before it took effect.”

“I seeee...” Damalynas mused. “And as long as it’s in the mindscape I can stop time to work on it and keep it cut off from the outside world. Is that what you’re aiming for?”

“Yes, that’s the idea,” Elinàsze nodded. “I’ll leave it in your hands, then. Thank you for your help!” The jewel on her forehead vanished, and Elinàsze reached for a stick of skewered sweet dango dumplings.

Hiya looked over at Elinàsze from the corner of their eye. To think that she could converse directly with Damalynas from inside my mindscape, without any assistance on my part... they thought, as Elinàsze took a bite of her dango. Truly, the daughter of the Exalted One is a force worthy of respect...

“Oh my,” said Elinàsze. “These dango are quite good! Here, Hiya, you should try some too!”

“Ah, thank you,” Hiya remarked. “I will certainly try one.”

Farther down the table, Levana held up her empty plate. “More, please?”

“Say what?!” balked Hoshiyo, who had been serving them as a member of the checkpoint staff, wearing an apron over her green kimono. “B-But I just gave you another helping, didn’t I?” She looked back over her shoulder with practiced grace to see that the extra-large plate of exquisite cuisine which she had set on the table had already been completely devoured, as if the food had never existed. Levana, however, didn’t even seem to be out of breath from her feat of culinary demolition.

Th-This child... Hoshiyo thought, gulping unconsciously. Wh-What a remarkable appetite...

Without missing a beat, however, the look of distress vanished from Hoshiyo’s face as she rallied herself for the occasion. “Why, you’ve polished it off, haven’t you! I’ll be back with another helping right away!” She took the empty plate back from Levana and headed off at a jog for the kitchen.

“Me too, me too!!!” piped up Wyne, holding up her own empty plate before Hoshiyo could leave the room.

“Oh my, yes, yes, of course, of course! I’ll be just a second!” said Hoshiyo, hurrying over to take Wyne’s plate as well.

Flio, who was sitting nearby, gave Hoshiyo an apologetic smile and sheepishly lowered his head. “I’m sorry for all the trouble, Miss Hoshiyo,” he said.

“Not at all!” Hoshiyo replied, beaming from ear to ear. “It’s very much my delight to see them enjoying the food so wholeheartedly!”

Behind Flio, Levana and Wyne both bowed their heads, smiling with every bit as much delight as Hoshiyo. “Thank you!!!” they said.

“Just leave it to me!” said Hoshiyo, before vanishing into the kitchen. “There’s quite a bit more delicious food where that came from!”

Flio watched Hoshiyo go and turned back to face the rest of the group. “Now, while Wyne and Levana are busy finishing their dinners, perhaps it’s time for the rest of us to set out for our various destinations?”

Everyone nodded in agreement—with the exception of Wyne and Levana, who were occupied with waiting for Hoshiyo to return with their food.

“Rys, Greanyl, and myself will be headed for the shinobi village,” Flio said.

“I believe I know the way, if I may take the lead,” Greanyl offered with a bow.

“In that case, I should change into my formal attire first!” said Rys, happily bobbing her head as she went off into one of the side rooms to undress.

“Charun and I will be paying a visit to one of the local teahouses!” said Calsi’im, looking up from the cup of tea he was drinking already.

“Yes, Calsi’im!” said Charun, politely bowing her head.

“And I believe Headmaster Nyt and I are bound for the National Onmyo Academy, yes?” asked Taclyde.

“Yesss indeed,” Nyt nodded. “We mussst come to an arrangement with them regarding the upcoming ssschool trip, after all.”

At this, Elinàsze raised her hand. “Oh!” she said. “May I perhaps accompany you there, please?”

“I would be interested in joining you as well,” volunteered Hiya with one of their low formal bows.

“Wyne and Levana, you stay right here at the checkpoint and be good girls while we’re gone, okay?” said Flio.

“Okay!” the two agreed readily. By this point in the conversation they were already well underway demolishing another enormous plate of food apiece, with Hoshiyo jogging back to the kitchen to prepare yet more food for the hungry dragonewts.

“All right, everyone,” Flio said. “We’ll meet back here after—”

“My lord husband, just a moment!” said Rys, cutting him off mid-sentence. She had returned from her brief jaunt to the other room, except...

“R-Rys?” Flio said, his eyes going wide at the sight of her. “Wh-What’s that you’re wearing?” Around him, Calsi’im, Charun, Taclyde, Nyt, and even Greanyl all stared in disbelief as well. And no wonder: The outfit Rys had chosen bore a certain resemblance to Greanyl’s everyday shadow demon garb, but with remarkably little cloth to hide her body. It went beyond merely suggestive, bordering on the obscene.

“Oh, this?” said Rys, her cheeks blushing just a little but clearly proud of her work on the costume. “I suppose it is a little on the revealing side, but I believe this is what passes for formal wear among shinobi, is it not?”

“M-Madame Rys...” Greanyl asked with a worried note in her voice, timidly taking a step closer. “I-I wonder, where is it that you learned such a thing...?”

“Why, from the illustrations in this book!” Rys said, handing the shadow demon a single bound volume.

Greanyl began flipping quickly through the pages with a look of concern, but as she went on her face became redder and redder until soon the entire upper half of her body was a brilliant shade of scarlet.

Th-This is the book Madame Byleri had hidden in the stables! she thought.

Yes! The book Rys had used as a reference was none other than the missing volume of Byleri’s own private collection, and a perfect example of the curator’s taste in passionate sensual romance featuring very explicit adult themes.

“Hm?” Rys looked up at Greanyl’s reaction, innocently puzzled. “Greanyl, is there something wrong?”

“E-Erm... M-Madame Rys...” Greanyl choked out, her voice equal parts distress and bashful embarrassment. “Th-This book is one of Madame Byleri’s...well...”

“I-I think we get the picture,” Flio assured her. “In any event, Rys, it doesn’t seem like that outfit is formal wear at all...” He reached into his Bottomless Bag and produced a tasteful cape, draping it over Rys’s shoulders.

“Fascinating...” Hiya remarked, nodding with some kind of sage understanding as they took in Rys’s state of dress. “I had no idea Byleri dabbled in material of this sort as well...”

“H-Hey! Hold it right there!” Damalynas objected from inside Hiya’s mindscape. “You aren’t getting any kind of strange ideas from this, are you?!”

“Oh?” Hiya replied. “I believe you are perfectly well aware of exactly what I am thinking, Damalynas.”

“W-Well, quit it! There’s no way in all the worlds I’m putting on that kind of humiliating getup!”

Rys, meanwhile, glanced around at the rest of the group in confusion, still uncertain about what exactly they had objected to about her outfit.

◇Hi Izuru—On the Road◇

A little later on, Flio and Rys were traveling in a two-person rickshaw down a well-maintained road leading into the mountains.

“This rickshaw is an interesting way to travel, isn’t it?” Flio remarked. “I don’t ride in vehicles very often myself, but it’s a good feeling to be able to take our time and enjoy the scenery on the way to our destination for a change, isn’t it?” Throughout the ride he had been looking all around with a smile on his face, taking in the landscape of Hi Izuru.

“Yes, I quite agree!” said Rys, who was enjoying the view as well from her seat beside Flio. “And not only that...” she added, nuzzling up to Flio and blissfully closing her eyes. “There’s nothing stopping us from cuddling as close as we like! I for one can’t imagine a more pleasant way to travel.”

“Th-That’s true!” said Flio, looking over at his wife. Rys had since changed out of the risqué ninja costume she had worn at the Nagaseki Checkpoint, back into her usual white dress.

Rys really gave us a shock back at the checkpoint, Flio recalled, gently wrapping an arm around her shoulder. But as far as I’m concerned, this is the dress that suits her best of all.

“My lord husband...” Rys sighed, leaning in closer against him.

Meanwhile, as Flio and Rys were enjoying a moment of intimacy, Greanyl was outside riding on the back of the magic beast pulling the rickshaw down the road—a local Hi Izuran species known as a moonring bear. Her ears were burning, cheeks flushed red at the conversation she had overheard, even as she kept herself facing fastidiously forwards, not even allowing herself a glance back at what might be happening behind her back.

F-Flio and Rys are such a good couple... Always so loving with each other... she thought. I wonder... If I were to ever marry... She shook her head, stopping herself before she got any further. N-No, no, no! I shouldn’t think about that right now! I have a mission to see us safely to the shinobi village and to ensure that the two of them fully enjoy their visit to Hi Izuru!

Greanyl refocused on the task at hand, casting a Search spell to keep an eye out for any activity as the rickshaw made its leisurely way down the road.

◇???◇

Somewhere in Hi Izuru, in a mansion a fair distance away from the Nagaseki Checkpoint, Saruizo sat kneeling in proper formal posture in a room decorated in the traditional Hi Izuran manner, with tatami mats for a floor. In front of him, on an elevated platform, sat a woman.

“And so,” he said, “I regret to say that our two dragon-model Megakuris’ attack on the Enchanted Frigate ended in spectacular failure...” He leaned his heavily muscled body forwards, pressing his head to the tatami with enough fervor to scrape his skin.

The woman simply looked down at Saruizo for a long moment, frowning and furrowing her brow. It was clear to see that the news had put her in a distinctly bad temper. Finally, she sighed and shook her head. “Indeed...” she intoned. “A Megakuri or two being broken is one thing, you know, but losing the magic gems that powered them is another matter entirely...”

“Of course, Lady Ganano,” Saruizo said. “And that is why Korunoe and Fua are both searching desperately as we speak for any trace of where they might have gone.”

“Indeed...” Ganano repeated, sighing again. She tossed off one of her kimono’s sleeves to expose the sarashi wrapped around her chest and folded her arms. “You understand our plan, of course?” she said. “If an Enchanted Frigate were to be destroyed, the ones sending them would deem it unsafe to do business with the Nagaseki Checkpoint. Then we, the Odo family, would destroy the Megakuri in turn. The owners of the Enchanted Frigates would come to see us as the more reliable option and agree to an exclusive contract with us instead. With the market for foreign goods under our control, we would be one step closer to the dream of unifying all Hi Izuru under the Odo banner! All I would have to do then is wait to inherit my position as family head...”

“I do have a suggestion regarding that scheme, Lady Ganano...” Saruizo said, lifting his head off the floor.

“You do, Saruizo?”

“If I may be so bold, I believe we could accomplish your ends with far more expedience using the power of the Musclemancy taught by my people, the Koruiga Shinobi...” Saruizo flexed his arms to show off his muscles, which at full power were nearly as thick as tree trunks.

Ganano gave Saruizo a sidelong look. “Believe me, I’m well aware of what you Koruiga can do with those well-trained muscles of yours...” she said. “But you and the Odo family have an alliance, you understand? If we used you to conquer the country by force, we’d be the ones to draw the blame. That wouldn’t help us unify Hi Izuru at all, now would it? And that’s why I ordered Korunoe, a survivor of the Clockwork Shinobi that the public believes to be extinct, to create the Megakuri for our strategy. And when your Koruiga muscle puts an end to the wicked Megakuri...”

A smile played on Saruizo’s face at Ganano’s words. “It’s a good plan, I’ll give you that,” he said. “You promised Korunoe that success might lead to the revival of his school, but the truth is that the Clockwork Shinobi will be wiped out to the last for the crime of assaulting the Nagaseki Checkpoint.”

“Of course, we also need to keep a sharp eye on Fua, our secret collaborator from the National Onmyo Academy faculty. We need her help in order to control the Megakuri from such a great distance...”

“No need to worry on that front,” Saruizo smirked. “I have been accompanying Fua nearly everywhere under the pretext of assisting with her work.”

Ganano nodded, satisfied. “On that note, where are Korunoe and Fua headed next?”

“Once they’ve finished looking for our missing Megakuri, I expect Korunoe will go to his part-time job at that teahouse, while Fua will return to the academy.”

“Indeed...” Ganano nodded once again. “In that case, you are to continue monitoring their activities. See to it that they produce our next Megakuri sooner rather than later.”

“Yes, my lady. It shall be done.” Saruizo turned and left the room, leaving Ganano alone.

Ganano sighed yet again as she watched Saruizo leave. “The things I do to become head of the Odo family...” she said. “Nothing’s gone quite according to plan. But I can’t lose heart! After all, our foreign collaborators, the Shadow Conglomerate, would never let me back out now...”

Rising slowly to her feet, she began a silent dance, twirling gracefully atop the tatami.

Chapter 3: Hole: Thus Hero Gold-Hair Fought: If You Wanna Travel, Nothing Beats Hi Izuru!

◇A Road, Somewhere◇

Far to the east of the Magical Kingdom of Klyrode, a carriage traveled along a bumpy mountain road. The road was so bad that anyone watching could see the carriage shake and rattle with their naked eyes, but inside, Hero Gold-Hair and his party seemed perfectly at ease.

“Say, Keats...” Hero Gold-Hair asked, looking out the window at the scenery rolling by. “Is it just me, or is everything outside shaking rather badly...?”

“Not to worry, sir!” came Aryun Keats’s telepathic voice, emanating from the carriage ceiling. The carriage, in fact, was none other than Aryun Keats the carriage djinn in one of her transformations. “In the past when we had to face such uneven terrain, I had no way to prevent my passengers from feeling every jolt and shock directly! But after a great deal of experimentation, I’ve finally discovered a way to keep the inside of the carriage moving along smoothly no matter the condition of the road!”

“Well, well!” Hero Gold-Hair said, clearly impressed. “That’s quite a thing you’ve discovered, isn’t it!”

Wuha Gappoli, lying down on the seat crossways from Hero Gold-Hair in her light shirt and hot pants, let out a snort of laughter, mirthfully flailing her arms and legs. “Aryun’s just trying to make it sound cooler than it is. All you did was touch one of those new Fli-o’-Rys General Store shock-free wagons and copy the ability from it!”

“And what is that supposed to mean?” Aryun demanded. “First, I had to obtain the information that Fli-o’-Rys’s new wagons don’t shake with the bumps in the road...”

“Information that, I believe, you got from Riliangiu?” said Wuha.

Riliangiu—originally a spy sent from the Realm of Evil. She was currently putting her espionage skills to use on behalf of Hero Gold-Hair and his party by scouting ahead and keeping her ear out for any useful intelligence.

Riliangiu... Hero Gold-Hair thought. She’s always checking the roads ahead of us, helping us out by telling us the best ways to go... But since she communicates with us by telepathy anyway, it feels like it’s been ages since we’ve seen her in person. I wonder how she looks these days...

“Um... Excuuuse me?” said Tsuya from her seat next to Hero Gold-Hair, raising her hand to speak.

“Hm? What is it, Tsuya?” Hero Gold-Hair asked.

“O-Oh, um, weeell...” Tsuya began, fidgeting nervously as she glanced over at Valentine sitting beside Wuha Gappoli, who was still mercilessly roasting Aryun Keats. “I know Hero Gooold-Hair said we should head to Hi Izuuuru, but...”

Valentine—once one of the Twelve Evil Generals of the Realm of Evil. She chose instead to live a life of hedonism on the world of Klyrode and renounced her former allegiance to travel with Hero Gold-Hair as a member of his party.

In her natural body Valentine appeared as a voluptuous woman, but at present she was in the form of a child, scarcely two heads tall.

“Oh?” Valentine laughed. “Are you worried about my body, Tsuya? Not to worry! I can use my power-saving mode to cut down my magic power consumption to the absolute minimum!” In spite of her insistence, however, she didn’t pause from stuffing her cheeks with the giant hunk of meat she had been eating for even a single moment.

B-But even wiiith her power-saving mode, Valentine needs ten times the food or more than the reeest of us... Tsuya thought, frowning as she took the party’s purse out of her Bottomless Bag and opened it to see nothing more than a small scattering of coins. She leaned in close to Hero Gold-Hair, holding up her hand to block the view as she whispered in his ear. “T-To be peeerfectly honest, I don’t know if we can afford a pleeeasure trip right now...”

“Y-Yes, I know what you mean...” Hero Gold-Hair folded his arms, his expression darkening. “Wh-Which is why this isn’t a pleasure trip at all! Yes, that’s right...”

“It iiisn’t?” Tsuya asked.

“N-No!” Hero Gold-Hair insisted. “Of course not!”

“Th-Then...why are we goooing?”

“W-Well...” Hero Gold-Hair said. “Th-That’s...”

O-Oh no... he thought. I can’t tell them it’s “my intuition” now! Not after I told them to trust my intuition and go after the bounty for those demon bandits, only for the Wolf of Justice or whatever his name was to beat us to the chase...

“W-Well!” he declared, raising his voice for emphasis. “Th-The point is! Just trust me! All right?”

“Truuust you?” Tsuya asked, her eyes misting over with tears. “Can we reaaally...?”

“O-Of course you can!” Hero Gold-Hair barked. “Obviously!”

“I dunno,” Wuha Gappoli quipped, still lying sprawled out on her side across from them. “This feels like one of those times where you aren’t so confident in yourself and are just trying to bully your way through.”

“Th-That’s quite enough out of you, Wuha!” Hero Gold-Hair said. “You have to trust me here too!”

“But caaan we trust you? Hero Gooold—”

“Honestly, Tsuya! Enough with that tone!”

The carriage rolled along the narrow path as the passengers argued inside. Behind them, an Enchanted Frigate came flying high above the open sea.

◇Hi Izuru—Nagaseki City, Enchanted Frigate Boarding Tower◇

The great hull of the Enchanted Frigate flew through the sky, high above the land. This was not the Enchanted Frigate Flio and the others had ridden to reach Hi Izuru, but the normal daily flight scheduled to arrive that day.

This Enchanted Frigate traveled between many different lands on its route, departing in the evening the previous day and flying through the night to arrive at Hi Izuru. It crossed the western edge of the continent and flew over open sea for a long while before finally coming within view of the island nation and the solitary boarding tower reaching high above the city.

“Oh my...” Demmie said from her seat in the general passengers’ compartment, eyes lighting up at the sight. “So that’s Hi Izuru...”

Demmie—the current head of the demon noble family House Ulgo, which once held a position of great importance in the Dark Army but fell to ruin after being expelled from the ranks. She and Hero Gold-Hair once worked together to solve the notorious demon-beast incident, after which Hero Gold-Hair interceded with the Dark One to allow her family back into the Dark Army.

Demmie, who had been reclining back in her chair in order to sleep, stretched her arms and back as she roused herself for action, pinching her cheeks and giving her best look of determination. “Recently I’ve been rather focused on fighting against the demon bandits back home,” she said. “This time my mission is to enter Hi Izuru in order to ascertain the movements of this other demon bandit group...but I’ll be sure to take care of everything! After all, I’d hate to worry everyone else in the family!”

◇Meanwhile—Dark Citadel, House Ulgo’s Chambers◇

The Dark Citadel was home to many demons stationed there for one reason or another. At any given time many of them would be away on missions, but for those whose duties were more of the indoors variety and those who had yet to be given a mission, they would be assigned one of the individual rooms within the citadel walls, where they would stand by and wait for the Dark One to call upon them.

One of those rooms had been assigned to House Ulgo, of which Demmie was the head. Waiting inside were Demmie’s loyal retainers: the iron-arm demon Genbushein, the cottonflower demon Rosalina, and the golem Rozen Laurel.

“Investigating the demons who’ve gone rogue over in Hi Izuru...” Genbushein muttered, his arms folded and his foot tapping on the floor. “Secret mission or not, I can’t believe Her Ladyship would go on her own!”

“Her Ladyship is a very hard worker, and quite capable as well, but even so...” agreed Rosalina, nervously wringing her hands as she didn’t quite sit but rather floated slightly above the seat of her chair.

“She’s just too good-natured, Her Ladyship!” said Rozen Laurel, holding her head in her hands and shaking it left and right. “And she can be too trusting sometimes—believing anything she’s told! Oh, I do hope nothing happens to her. I’m ever so worried...” Rozen Laurel’s body was made of stone, but cut with a distinctly feminine figure. Her tone of voice, too, had a feminine and fashionable edge.

“Yes, we can only hope...” said Genbushein.

“Agreed, agreed!” chimed in Rosalina.

With that, all three retainers sighed at once, adding to the heavy cloud of anxiety that seemed to be hanging darkly over the room.

◇The Shore Opposite Hi Izuru◇

Aryun Keats, still in carriage form, stood parked along the shore, Hi Izuru visible across the water.

“Hm...” Hero Gold-Hair pondered as he looked out across the sea, folding his arms.

“Hero Gooold-Hair...” Tsuya said, walking up halfway to meet him. “Um... I was just wooondering... How were you planning on getting to the other siiide?”

“Oh, that’s easy enough,” Hero Gold-Hair said. “There’s a harbor up ahead where they have ships for bringing carriages across to Hi Izuru. From there it’ll just be a quick jump to the island.”

“Okay...but aren’t you forgetting something?” said Wuha Gappoli, scrunching up her face. “We’re wanted criminals, remember? For stealing all that treasure from the Klyrode Castle sanctuary...”

“That’s riiight...” Tsuya recalled. “And becaaause of that, now we can’t ride on one of those Enchaaanted Frigates! Imagine how increeedible the view must look from up there...”

Hero Gold-Hair ignored the remarks, a smug grin on his face as he looked back over his shoulders at Aryun Keats’s carriage form. “You know what to do, right, Keats?” he said.

“Yes sir! Just leave it to me!” Aryun replied, transforming abruptly back into her humanoid form and depositing Valentine and Wuha Gappoli, who had still been sitting inside the carriage, unceremoniously on the ground.

“Eek!” cried Valentine.

“Hey!” complained Wuha.

Without looking back at her erstwhile passengers, Aryun took off at a run straight towards the water. “Transforming now!” she said as she leaped into the air. Her body was enveloped in light, and in a moment she had transformed into a seaworthy boat.

As a carriage djinn, Aryun Keats possessed the ability to transform into any vehicle she had ever come into contact with. The form she had chosen, perhaps for reasons of personal comfort, seemed to be a fishing vessel, which impacted the water with a splash.

“Now!” said Hero Gold-Hair. “All aboard the ship!”

“Ehe hee!” Wuha Gappoli laughed, charging past Hero Gold-Hair and leaping towards the water. “Last one in’s a rotten egg!” She landed safe and sound on the deck of the good ship Aryun Keats, grinning from ear to ear.

“Oh, that does look fun!” said Valentine, jumping after Wuha and doing a twirl in midair.

“All right,” Hero Gold-Hair said, getting ready to follow suit. “Here I—”

“U-Um... H-Hero Gooold-Hair?” Before his feet could leave the ground, however, Tsuya grabbed Hero Gold-Hair’s arm from behind.

“Hm? Wh-What is it, Tsuya?”

“W-W-W-Well... Uuum... Y-You knooow...” she said, trembling fearfully as she held Hero Gold-Hair’s arm tightly. “It’s juuust, there’s nooo way I could eeever make such a biiig jump...” With that her legs, which had been shaking like a newborn fawn’s, gave way completely, and she fell down hard on her bottom.

“Such a big jump?” Hero Gold-Hair repeated. “We aren’t that high up, are we? Wuha and Valentine both landed safely, after all...”

“B-B-But Wuuuha’s a suuuper amazing djiiinn, and Vaaalentine’s some important person from the Realm of Eeevil!” Tsuya protested, tears in her eyes. “But I’m just a normal seeervant! I never had aaany talent for magic even when I was tryyying to study it!”

Hero Gold-Hair looked distinctly annoyed as he glanced down at Tsuya. “Fine, fine...” he grumbled. “Whatever you say.” He scooped the woman up from where she had collapsed on the ground and into his arms in a princess carry.

“Fwaaah?!” Tsuya cried, her eyes going wide.

“Hold on tight, okay?” Hero Gold-Hair told her, kicking off the ground and soaring through the air.

“Fwaaaaaaahhh?!” Tsuya wrapped her arms around Hero Gold-Hair’s neck, holding on for dear life.

“M-Mghf! Ts-Tsuya!” Hero Gold-Hair complained. “W-Watch where you’re grabbing!”

“Hfhwfeeehhh?!!!” Tsuya, however, didn’t seem to hear a single word Hero Gold-Hair had said. She squeezed tighter, strengthening her grip on his neck and choking him even more painfully.

“H-Hff...” Hero Gold-Hair choked as he began to lose consciousness. Nonetheless, he somehow managed to stick the landing onboard Aryun Keats—although it might be more accurate to say he collapsed in an undignified heap.

Splaaash!!!

Suddenly, with a thunderous sound, Aryun Keats’s deck began to rock violently. Wuha Gappoli and Valentine both jerked their heads over to shoot a pair of accusing glares in Hero Gold-Hair’s direction.

“H-Hey! Hero Gold-Hair?!” said Wuha.

“You really are too rough sometimes,” Valentine chided him.

“F-Fweeeh?!” Tsuya’s eyes shot open as she scrambled to her feet. “C-Could thaaat really have been from me and Hero Gooold-Hair landing on the deeeck?!” she wondered, looking every which way in her confusion.

“I-It’s not Hero Gold-Hair!” came Aryun Keats’s panicked voice. “We’re under attack!”

“A-Attack, you say?” Valentine echoed, staring off at sea, where she spotted a head popping up from out of the waves. “Could that be what’s attacking us?” she wondered, straining to see.

“Kof kof...” Hero Gold-Hair wheezed, managing to regain consciousness and pulling himself to his feet. “Wh-What’s going on?”

“O-Oooh! Hero Gooold-Hair! There’s sooome kind of weeeirdo in the waaater!” said Hiya, pointing off in the direction of the head.

As if in response, a head rose up out of the waves, giving Hero Gold-Hair’s party a better view of what they were looking at: a young girl in a navy blue swimsuit riding on top of some sort of spherical object. She produced an object that looked distinctly like a megaphone and held it to her mouth.

“You there!” came the girl’s voice, amplified magically by the device in her hand. “Unauthorized ship from lands unknown! This is Mayu, of the Nagaseki Checkpoint Barrier Defense Force! You are not transmitting the magic signal indicated by your embarkation documentation! You are to present your entry forms immediately!”

“Nghh...” Hero Gold-Hair grumbled. “I never imagined they’d find us that quickly...”

“What do we do, Hero Gold-Hair?” Aryun Keats asked. “That last attack was some kind of underwater explosion! I don’t know how many more of those we can take going off near us before things start to get dicey...”

“Yes, I see,” Hero Gold-Hair agreed. “I wouldn’t want to be hit by one of those blasts either...” His eyes shot open. “Keats! Turn this boat around, on the double! We’ll shake this Mayu lady off our tail!”

“Sir, yes, sir!” Aryun Keats’s ship hull began to glow, transforming from a fishing boat to a fast-looking vessel with a keen bow for cutting through the waves.

“Resistance is futile!” Mayu said through the megaphone. “Cease this at once!” She held her left hand up high. On her signal, a number of other spherical devices like the one Mayu was riding rose out of the water, each piloted by another girl. These girls had paper talismans over their mouths, apparently enchanted to enable them to breathe underwater.

“Whoa!” Wuha Gappoli winced, looking around them. “Looks like we’re in trouble, huh, Gold-Hair? Seems like they’ve got us completely surrounded.”

“So it does,” Valentine agreed, returning to her original form and summoning dark threads between her fingers. “What do we do now, Hero Gold-Hair?”

“H-H-Hero Gooold-Hair?!” Tsuya cried, wrapping her arms tight around his waist as she slumped back down to the deck. “Wh-What do we dooo?!”

Hero Gold-Hair took a slow look around at his crew, and then up at the sea where Mayu’s Barrier Defense Force had them blocked off with a tight semicircle formation. It didn’t look like they were going to give them any chance to slip through.

“Keats!” Hero Gold-Hair bellowed, looking down at the ship.

“Yes, sir!” replied Aryun Keats.

“Steer hard to port and see if there’s anywhere we can make landfall!”

“Yes, sir!” Aryun quickly turned to follow the shore the party had jumped down from just moments ago. The shoreline there terminated in a sheer cliff with nowhere for them to disembark, so Aryun raced along, looking for more favorable terrain.

“Ah!” Mayu cried. “Don’t let them get away! Everyone! Stop them in their tracks!”

The Barrier Defense Force surrounding Aryun launched their magitorpedoes at their target, taking off after her on their spherical crafts.

“These must be the same people who tried to sneak into Hi Izuru around this spot the other day!” Mayu said as she led the rest of her forces in pursuit. “This time, we must capture them without fail!”

Ahead of them, the good ship Aryun Keats sailed ahead at high speed, the magitorpedoes that Mayu’s Barrier Defense Force had launched exploding one after another all around her.

Boom!

Kabang!

Shoom!

Somehow Aryun managed to avoid the initial salvo, but things were looking grim. “I-It’s taking everything I have to avoid these magitorpedoes!” she reported, her voice sounding grim. “They’re not giving me a chance to speed up and get away!”

“Come on, Keats!” Hero Gold-Hair told her. “Keep it up, just a while longer!”

“J-Just a while longer...?”

“That’s right. I have a plan.” He turned to look over Valentine, leaning over the rail to shout. “Valentine! Can you make a net with those threads of yours to try to catch those magitorpedoes they’re launching?!”

“Ohhh... That would be a great idea, if I could...” Valentine said, shaking her head mournfully. Her body at some point had reverted to the two-heads-tall power-saving mode she used to preserve her magical reserves. “I just don’t quite have the magic left to do something like that!”

“Tch!” Hero Gold-Hair grimaced, clicking his tongue. “No good, huh?”

Ka...BOOM!!!

Mere moments later, an explosion rang out right behind them as a magitorpedo scored a direct hit on Aryun Keats’s stern.

“Hero Gold-Hair!” Aryun Keats cried. “Wh-What do we do now?!”

“Grrh...” Hero Gold-Hair thought. “H-How about this...” Gritting his teeth, he reached into his Bottomless Bag, casting his eyes around desperately until he spotted a particular point of coastline. “Keats! Aim right for that cliff!”

“Sir, yes— Wait, what?!” Aryun began before cutting herself off with a bewildered shout. “There?!!!”

Ahead of them, where Hero Gold-Hair was pointing, was a particularly rugged and craggy stretch of cliff wall. “B-But Hero Gold-Hair! Even I couldn’t make my way through that sheer cliff in my boat form!” she wailed.

“Trust me!” Hero Gold-Hair insisted, running up to the very front of the ship with the Drilldozer Shovel clutched tight in his hands. “Valentine!” he shouted back over his shoulder. “Keep my feet attached to Keats no matter what!”

“Now that I can do!” Valentine said, summoning her threads. “Leave it to me!”

Hero Gold-Hair climbed up onto Aryun’s prow like a figurehead, his legs firmly attached thanks to Valentine’s threads of darkness.

Wuha Gappoli furrowed her brow at the sight. “It’s a good thing Valentine didn’t say, ‘No can do!’ or else you’d be going splat against the cliff!”

“D-Don’t saaay that!” Tsuya cried, tears in her eyes as she bonked Wuha on the head. “You’ll jiiinx it!”

Hero Gold-Hair, however, didn’t seem to be listening at all. He focused his mind, fixing his sight on the cliff ahead. Then, just as they were about to make impact, his eyes snapped open with heroic resolve. “And...there!” he shouted, bringing down the head of the Drilldozer Shovel.

Scrape scrape scrape scrape scrape!

The sound of frantic digging rang out as the shovel carved out a path ahead of them. “Keats!” Hero Gold-Hair barked. “Hurry and pass through there!”

“Sir, yes, sir!” Aryun Keats went right through the newly created waterway as Mayu’s Barrier Defense Force came up behind them in hot pursuit.

“D-Don’t let them get away!” Mayu repeated. “Everyone, follow—” Just then, however, Hero Gold-Hair split a boulder with the Drilldozer Shovel, collapsing the path he had just opened. She watched as rocks came tumbling into the water with great force, sealing off the way ahead.

Mayu came to a sudden stop and frowned in defeat. “W-We might not be able to pursue them, after all...” she said. The opening in the cliff wall was once again completely blocked. “Status report?”

“Y-Yes, ma’am!” one of her subordinates replied. “Of our total thirty-eight units, five were lost to collision with the cliff. Fortunately, all other vessels remain unharmed.”

Mayu folded her arms at the report. “We’ve been tightening security in this area because of the reports we’d heard of suspicious ships thought to belong to the demon bandits moving through this part of the water,” she said. “They’ve given us the slip this time, but at least we were able to prevent them from entering Hi Izuru. I’m suspending the defense operation for the time being. Half of you, return to the Nagaseki Checkpoint with the officers who lost their ships and report this enemy contact to our superiors. The rest of you, return to your patrols!”

“Yes, ma’am!”

Half of the remaining ships headed off back towards Nagaseki while the other half, including Mayu, reapplied the water-breathing talismans to their mouths and submerged back under the water.

Over on the Hi Izuran side of the water, Demmie looked out at the battle raging on the sea. “I’d heard there were suspicious ships thought to belong to the demon bandits we’re looking for spotted in this area...” she said. “It looks like the rumors were true after all.”

Demmie had come to this stretch of land to see if the information she had overheard had any truth to it. Excited to see her efforts bear fruit so quickly, she pumped her arms, psyching herself up. “Okay!” she said. “Now to get closer and see what I can learn!”

Demmie’s wings appeared on her back and she took off into the air, when suddenly there was the sound of magicannon fire coming from the water.

Blam blam blam! Blam blam blam! Blam blam blam blam blam!

“H-Hahawah?!” Demmie cried, twisting her body in midair to see Mayu and the other members of the Barrier Defense Force, who had been submerged in the water just moments ago, aiming magicannons up into the sky.

“I thought we might remain underwater in the area just in case, but I never expected the demon bandits to return to the scene so soon!” said Mayu as she fired wildly into the air. Following her lead, the other Barrier Defense Force officers spread out, creating a dispersed pattern of chaotic magicannon fire.

“What? Ah! Oh no!” Demmie contorted herself to dodge the best she was able. She spread her wings wide in a bid to gain speed, only for one of them to catch a direct hit from a stray magic bullet.

“Ow ow ow!” she cried. “M-My wing! It hurts too much to put any power into it! And my clothes are all in tatters on top of it! Oh no!”

Battered in all kinds of ways, Demmie plummeted out of the sky towards a forest along the coastline.

“She went down somewhere on the continent,” Mayu said. “But with our reduced force at present we wouldn’t have much hope for victory if the enemy has any backup. Wait for support from the Nagaseki Checkpoint!”

“Yes, ma’am!” her subordinates replied as they moved to prepare their operation around the area where Demmie had fallen to the earth.

◇Some Time Later◇

Hero Gold-Hair’s party continued breaking their way through the sea cliff, opening up an impromptu path before them. Eventually they emerged onto a sandy beach with a nearby forest where they noted the presence of a convenient cave.

“Well, what do you know...” Hero Gold-Hair marveled at the head of the party. “I wouldn’t have expected to find a cave in a place like this! And it looks like it goes on for quite some distance too...”

Walking next to him was Wuha Gappoli, her arms held out in front of her to manipulate a window she had summoned. As a manor djinn, Wuha excelled at detecting the shape of enclosed spaces, such as caves. She was currently putting that talent to use, scouting out the terrain ahead.

Wuha led the way confidently through the maze of branching paths. “I have to say, Wuha,” Hero Gold-Hair remarked. “You’re doing quite well at navigation, especially since you haven’t stopped walking for even a moment.”

“I mean, I guess,” Wuha shrugged. “If there’s one thing you can count on me for, it’s finding my way inside a cave. And I gotta tell you, this place is chock-full of traps. Pitfalls... Dead ends... Paths that just lead you around on an endless loop... Who knows what we’d run into if we stumbled down one of these false corridors. I’m pretty sure this is the right way, but...”

“But what...?” Hero Gold-Hair asked, sneaking a peak at the window over Wuha’s shoulders. “Is something wrong?”

“Here, look,” Wuha said, moving the window closer to Hero Gold-Hair’s line of sight with a jerk of her head. “It’s just a bit more walking until we reach the deepest part of the cave...where it opens into something that clearly looks like some kind of man-made storeroom. And if you look here...”

Hero Gold-Hair peered at the map of the long snaking cavern they had been exploring. True to Wuha’s words, the craggy cave walls continued only a little farther before they came to a smooth, neatly rectangular chamber. Inside, a number of shining dots flickered in and out of existence.

“Hm...” Hero Gold-Hair folded his arms.

“You see those dots?” Wuha asked.

“Yes... What are those?”

“People,” Wuha said. “They’ve done a bang-up job hiding their presence, but they couldn’t stop me from picking up their location.”

“Peeeople?” Tsuya asked, taking a peek at the map herself from behind Hero Gold-Hair.

While Hero Gold-Hair and Tsuya were focused on the map and Wuha’s explanation, Aryun Keats was walking a short distance behind, draining a bottle of liquor in a single hearty swig.

“Pwah!” she cried, returning the empty bottle to her Bottomless Bag and retrieving a fresh one. “My energy’s on the ropes after that wild cruise! I need more fuel!”

Aryun’s carriage djinn abilities that allowed her to transform into any kind of vehicle cost a great deal of magic power while active—power that could be replenished by absorbing energy from magic gems, or else from certain magically charged liquors.

“Ooh!” Valentine gushed. “That’s some fine-looking liquor you have, Aryun!” Still in her two-heads-tall power-saving mode, she reached out with her dark threads towards Aryun’s Bottomless Bag, aiming to take a bottle for herself.

“What?! Hey!” Aryun protested. “I would really rather you didn’t! This is a special ultra-concentrated magic liquor I got for when I need to recover my power fast! It wasn’t that easy to get my hands on.”

“Come on!” Valentine pleaded. “Surely you can spare just ten bottles!”

“I-I only have eleven left in total! If you take ten—”

“You two!” Hero Gold-Hair said, turning to interrupt Aryun and Valentine’s argument. “Keep it down for a—”

Shoom!

Just then, something came flying their way from farther on down the cavern. “Kh!” Hero Gold-Hair quickly took the Drilldozer Shovel from his Bottomless Bag, knocking the oncoming object aside with a metallic cling. Rebounding from its impact with the shovel, it veered off course and sank into the cave wall.

“C-Could it beee...?” Tsuya wondered as she inspected the mysterious object.

“You know what that thing is, Tsuya?” Hero Gold-Hair asked, keeping his eyes facing forwards and gripping the Drilldozer Shovel with two hands in a combat stance.

“I’ve ooonly seen them in books before...” Tsuya said. “But I’ve heeeard shinobi use a weapon called a shuuuriken...”

Shoom! Shoom! Shoom!

Before Tsuya could explain any further, more shuriken came after the first, a storm of them shooting through the air.

“Hm!” Hero Gold-Hair exclaimed, pushing himself to his limits to block each and every one—only to see another volley incoming already. “G-Gwuah?!” He swung his shovel more and more frantically, trying desperately to keep up with the tide of projectiles. “Damnation...” he muttered. “W-With this many coming in, it’s all I can do to keep knocking them aside...” Gritting his teeth, he shouted back over his shoulder. “Take cover behind me! Now!”

“B-But Hero Gooold-Hair!” Tsuya wailed. “Isn’t there something you can dooo?”

“Well?!” Hero Gold-Hair bellowed, wildly swinging his shovel to knock the shuriken aside one after another. “Is that the best you got?!”

There were so many shuriken, however, that despite Hero Gold-Hair’s best efforts, Tsuya and the others found their clothing cut to ribbons by the blades as they sheltered behind him. A single shuriken didn’t do much in the way of damage, but with hundreds upon hundreds of them filling the air, the girls soon found their garments in a horrible state indeed.

“H-Hero Gold-Hair, sir!” said Aryun, her upper body already nearly bare. “I-I believe we may have stumbled into a very bad situation!”

“Ah ha ha...” Wuha laughed. “Lucky for me I can use my hair to hide my modesty...but if that ended up being cut, things might get dicey indeed...” Wuha’s clothing was no less torn to shreds than Aryun’s, her naked body nearly on full display as she manipulated her hair in an attempt to keep her chest covered.

“O-Oh no!” Valentine cried as a stray shuriken shattered the bottle of Aryun’s liquor she was cradling in her arms. “M-My precious liquor!!!”

This carried on for many long minutes of Hero Gold-Hair desperately beating back the assault.

“Gh...” he grunted. “Not to discount the importance of your modesty, but at this rate my arms might not hold out much longer...” His arms trembled worryingly as he swatted shuriken after shuriken out of the air. “Th-This is a godawful lot of effort so soon after I tired myself out digging through that sea cliff... Nrhh...”

“Hero Gooold-Hair!” Tsuya begged as she and the others stuck as close as they could to his back in an effort to avoid the shuriken. “Pleaaase hang in there!” Alas, with the sheer number of projectiles coming their way, the entire party’s clothing had been well and truly torn to shreds, leaving them with just their hands to try to cover up their bodies.

“Come on, Hero Gold-Hair!” Wuha Gappoli said. “Isn’t there something you can do?”

“M-Maybe...” Hero Gold-Hair said as he continued swinging for all he was worth. “But I’d need an opening... Even just for a single second... Ghwf!”

Meanwhile, down the corridor, groups of shinobi women occupied various points in the cavern, continually hurling shuriken towards Hero Gold-Hair and his party.

“I-It doesn’t look like they plan on retreating...” one of them said, worried sweat forming on their brow.

“N-Normally someone would run away after having this many shuriken thrown at them...” another shinobi agreed.

“They must be protecting themselves somehow...”

“But I don’t detect any sign of magic!”

The shinobi continued their assault in spite of their various grumblings, when suddenly a man’s rough voice rang out from behind. “You useless idiots!” the man said. “Hurry up and drive them away! That’s what we pay you for, isn’t it?!”

“If you can’t take care of this, then what good are you?!” barked another man, just as coarsely as the first.

“W-We are! We’re in the middle of our operation right now!” one of the shinobi shot back between her shuriken tosses.

“Tch...” the first man contemptuously clicked his tongue. “Need I remind you, the goods here have already been paid for in full. We need to see them to the Odo family in Hi Izuru, no matter what!”

“So get rid of the intruders already!” another of the men echoed.

It used to be so easy to sneak items through the weak points in the Hi Izuru barrier by our hidden sea route... the man lamented to himself. But with all these frequent shipments we’ve been making for the Shadow Conglomerate, we’ve started to draw the eye of the Nagaseki Checkpoint Barrier Defense Force. It’s getting to be a challenge just sending ships out...

“I swear...” he muttered darkly. “I knew we should have hired Koruiga Shinobi instead of you Uga. You’ve been completely useless.”

“Excuse me?!” the Uga Shinobi all replied at once, turning to face the man.

“I’ll have you take back those words! Was it not the secret techniques of our school that we used to create this underground storehouse, in a cavern full of branching paths to make it nigh impossible to discover?”

“Who do you have to thank for all the intruders who found themselves led down a false path and ended up going back the way they came?!”

“Don’t give me that nonsense when you’ve let these intruders make it all the way to our front gate!” the man shouted back.

“Kh...” The Uga Shinobi seemingly had no answer to that particular accusation.

“Well!” the man said, smirking at the Ugas’ moment of weakness. “If you understand, then hurry up and—”

“We’ve had enough of this!” said the woman who seemed to be leading the Uga, withdrawing a paper talisman from between her breasts. “Our contract is over!” She threw the talisman at her feet, where it exploded in a puff of smoke, enveloping her and the other shinobi.

“S-Say what?!” the man exclaimed, temporarily blinded by the smoke filling the room. By the time it cleared, the Uga Shinobi women were nowhere in sight. “Th-Those scoundrels!” the man said, gnashing his teeth and stomping his feet when he realized what had happened.

“U-Um... B-Boss...” another of the men said, stepping up to him.

“Yes?! Got something to say?!”

“L-Look, I-I understand why you’re angry, b-but... Um...”

“Well?!” the boss barked. “Out with it!”

“I-It’s just... Um... With the Uga ladies gone...wh-who’s keeping the intruders away...?”

“Huh? That’s...” the man began, but then suddenly it hit him. Wait... he thought. He’s right! Those Uga shinobi were keeping the intruders at bay with their shuriken until just now! Now that they’ve gone, there’s nothing holding them back!

“O-Oh no!” he exclaimed. “Come on, you lot! Grab your weapons and—”

Before he could reach his own weapon, however, threads of darkness came flying from the cavern, tying the men up one after another with stunning precision until all of them were lying cocooned on the floor.

“Phew!” Valentine said, gazing at her handiwork with a look of great satisfaction as she stepped into the room, followed by Aryun Keats and Wuha Gappoli. “With those shuriken gone, I can finally use my threads of darkness!”

“I suppose we can chalk up another win to Hero Gold-Hair’s sheer perseverance?” said Aryun.

“Looks like it!” said Wuha, the two djinns both grinning happily at each other. “I tell ya, I almost didn’t expect him to pull through this time!”

Taking up the rear came Hero Gold-Hair, leaning on Tsuya’s shoulder for support. He seemed completely exhausted from all of his exertion wielding the Drilldozer Shovel, so much so that he didn’t even have it in him to react to Wuha and Aryun’s antics as he took in breath after ragged breath.

“Hero Gooold-Hair?” Tsuya asked. “Are you okaaay?”

“O-Of course!” Hero Gold-Hair answered before being overtaken by a violent coughing fit. “I-I’m... Cough! Hack...!” he sputtered, collapsing to take a knee.

“H-Hero Gooold-Hair?!” Tsuya said, bracing her legs and doing her best to help him back up.

As he struggled to catch his breath, Hero Gold-Hair took a look around at the state of the room, now full of cocoons of dark thread containing their fallen foes. “In any event, it looks like they won’t be causing us any more problems...” he said.

“I should certainly say not!” Valentine agreed. She was standing on guard as the party took stock of the room, ready to shoot more threads at any time should the situation call for it.

“Still...” Hero Gold-Hair grimaced as he finally pulled himself up to his feet. “It feels like it’s been one long string of bad luck lately...”

“Oh, I don’t know about all that,” Wuha Gappoli said with a grin and a thumbs-up.

“No? Did you find something, Wuha?”

“Oh, just a hidden door somewhere right about here...” Wuha said, strolling up to a section of the wall. “Say, Valentine. How about checking whether any of those men that you’ve got cocooned up happens to have a key on them?”

“Oh! Of course! Just one moment!” Valentine agreed, holding out both hands and rapidly moving her fingers with fine dexterity. As she did, the threads of darkness making up the cocoons began to move and squirm. All at once, the men began to cry out from where they lay helpless on the floor.

“G-Gwaaah—ha ha ha ha!”

“Stop! I-It tickles!”

“N-Nooooo!!!”

In just a moment, however, Valentine had found what she was looking for. “This looks like the thing!” she said as a dark thread reached out from one of the cocoons, carrying a ring of keys. Valentine had used her control over the threads of darkness to conduct a full-body search of the men and locate the one who had been holding on to the keys to the secret passage. She plucked it from the extended thread and handed it over to Wuha. “And while we’re at it...” More threads snaked out of the rest of the cocoons carrying Bottomless Bags and mundane purses alike, as well as any particularly expensive-looking bits of precious metal. “We might as well take their valuables while we’re at it!”

“Yaaay! Thaaank you!” Tsuya cheered, beaming with delight as she scooped them up in her arms, letting go of Hero Gold-Hair and sending him tumbling to the floor—not that Tsuya seemed to notice, as she gleefully began cataloging the various treasures. “Looook! This Bottomless Baaag is fuuull of magic gems! And this neeecklace looks like it would sell for a looot! This will all be a huuuge help to our finances!”

“I made sure to only take the things that looked like stolen goods, by the by,” Valentine added, nodding in smug self-satisfaction at her handiwork.

Once again, the cocooned men all began to complain at once.

“H-Hey! Give it back! Give back our stuff!”

“We stole that fair and square!”

“You can’t just take it from us!”

“That’s quite enough of that,” Valentine said, looking back over her shoulder at the men on the ground. With a wave of her hand she pulled the cocoons tight, constricting their bodies until they could no longer speak. “And just like that, glorious silence,” she said with a grin.

“Not bad, not bad...” Wuha Gappoli said, finally finding the correct key after a bit of trial and error and going to open the door. “But the stuff that’s back here is gonna make that look like peanuts...”

“Holy—!”

The eyes of everyone in Hero Gold-Hair’s party all went wide at the sight of what was waiting for them in the hidden room...

◇Several Days Later◇

In a back alley in a certain town somewhere in the world stood a certain two-story building. In one of the rooms of that building, a man—the Shadow King—sat on his resplendent armchair, tapping his foot with utmost impatience.

“Hm?” he snapped, addressing the two women standing before him. “What was that you said, you demon fox sisters?”

Before him stood Kintsuno the Gold and Gintsuno the Silver, the demon fox sisters, now positively drenched in sweat.

“W-Well...” said Kintsuno.

“H-How do we put this...” Gintsuno wondered.

Whatever it was, it seemed like very difficult words for the two of them to say.

The Shadow King gritted his teeth in irritation. “Enough of that!” he bellowed. “I asked you what this is about!”

“Y-Yes...” Kintsuno choked. “I-It’s about the goods we sent to the Odo family in Hi Izuru...”

“I-It seems some brigands came by and took the lot of it!”

“Say what?!” The Shadow King reeled, taking to his feet. “But you should have been there with them the entire time! So what in the devil’s name happened?!”

“H-Hm... Oh...” Kintsuno began. “A-About that...”

“Um...” said Gintsuno. “How do we put this...”

This is bad! Kintsuno thought, sweat running down her brow. We can’t tell him we paid someone else to do the work and spent the rest of our time there living it up!

The truth is that the demon bandits we contracted to handle the delivery had the goods stolen from them in turn... thought Gintsuno, just as flustered as her sister. But if we say that, then we’ll be the ones held accountable!

“Well, don’t just stand there, hurry up and retrieve the treasure that was stolen!” the Shadow King said. “One of the items was a magic gem big enough to be the energy source for a Megakuri! You must be able to find some trace of that at the very least!”

“Y-Y-You’re right!” Kintsuno yipped.

“W-W-We had better get looking at once!” agreed Gintsuno.

“We’ll let you know when we find it!” said Kintsuno.

And with that, the pair darted out of the room.

“Unbelievable...” the Shadow King muttered, clicking his tongue again as he flopped back down into his chair. “You wouldn’t be able to tell with the Concealment spell on that storehouse, but a magic gem that size would be bound to leave a trail the moment you took it out. How could they not have noticed that?” As he grumbled, he took out a cigar and placed it in his mouth. “You could find it even if it was eaten by some kind of giant magic beast... It’s the obvious thing to try!”

◇Meanwhile◇

In a town not particularly close to the borders of Hi Izuru, Hero Gold-Hair and his party found themselves in a large outdoor bath attached to a little inn.

“Mmmmhhh!!!” Tsuya sighed, leaning her shoulders back against the rim of the bath and stretching out her legs. “It feels so niiice to have a bath where you can stretch out your leeegs like this!”

“You said it!” agreed Aryun Keats, stretching out her legs just like Tsuya’s. “These hidden country hot springs are a real treasure... A real treasure indeed...” She poured herself a cup of sake from a small jug she had beside her and drained it in a single gulp.

“It’s been so long since we could relaaax like this...” Tsuya said. “It’s wooonderful...”

“And of course!” Wuha Gappoli added, swimming past the two of them. “It’s all thanks to that hidden treasure I found on the other side of that secret door!”

“That’s right!” said Aryun. “And thanks to you, now we can sit here drinking this delicious sake!”

Tsuya nodded in fervent agreement.

“But I gotta say...” Wuha said, peering over at Valentine as she swam her laps around the hot spring. Valentine was sitting on the edge of the pool in her power-saving mode, but something was distinctly off...

“Ahhh!” Valentine sighed, blissfully rubbing her distinctly rounded tummy with both of her hands. “This is the best... With that gigantic magic gem we found in that store house, I won’t have to worry about my energy reserves for a very long time!”

Tsuya, Aryun, and Wuha all turned to stare at Valentine in her current state.

“I couldn’t beliiieve it when she ate that entiiire magic gem in a siiingle gulp...” Tsuya said.

“It’s amazing how much smaller it’s gotten in just a few days...” observed Aryun.

“She couldn’t even walk right after she first did the deed...” Wuha recalled.

It was just like it seemed. Hero Gold-Hair’s party had indeed made off with Shadow King’s coveted magic gem, as well as a great number of other valuable magic items from the hidden storeroom.

“But ooother than the magic geeem, which Lady Vaaalentine ate, we sold the reeest of the magic items in this country tooown...” remarked Tsuya, poking her index finger against her cheek in thought.

“That’s true,” said Aryun, frowning as she downed another cup of sake. “We might have been able to get a better price if we held out for a more favorable market.”

“Oh, I can explain that,” came Hero Gold-Hair’s voice from the men’s bath right beside them, where he had been bathing alone. “It seemed like someone entrusted the bandits with those items, right? If we went and sold them willy-nilly in some big city they’d be marked as stolen goods in no time. We’d be arrested on the spot!”

“Oooh, I seeee!” said Tsuya.

“I suppose that does make sense...” Aryun conceded.

“Well, good!” said Hero Gold-Hair. “I’m glad you understand!” He fell silent but lay back in the bath, floating spread-eagle in the hot water.

I can’t believe I was so incapacitated by muscle fatigue that I couldn’t move at all... he thought, remembering his recent trials. I suppose deflecting shuriken isn’t exactly the kind of movement I’m used to, but...

Suspended in the water, Hero Gold-Hair gingerly tried to move one of his arms.

“Yeoch!!!” he cried, pain rushing through his entire body.

“H-Hero Gooold-Hair?!” called Tsuya. “Is sooomething wrooong?!”

“That kind of sounded like a scream!” said Aryun.

“N-No! It’s nothing! Nothing, I tell you!” Hero Gold-Hair hastily insisted. “A-Anyway! Let’s enjoy our windfall! Everyone relax!”

“Yes sir, Hero Gold-Hair!” the girls all replied at once.

Hero Gold-Hair closed his eyes, luxuriating in the sound.

Well... he thought. This sort of thing is all right from time to time...

◇Dark Citadel Throne Room◇

In the Dark Citadel, at the heart of his domain, Dark One Dawkson sat as he always did on the steps leading up to his throne—still feeling that he was unworthy to sit upon the chair itself. Today, Demmie had come to stand before him.

“So...Demmie...” Dawkson said, glancing at something behind Demmie’s back. “Wazzat you got there?”

“Oh! Yes!” Demmie said, looking behind her at the strange cocoons lying on the floor. “These are the suspected demon bandits I found just outside of Hi Izuru.”

Phufun pressed her false glasses up the ridge of her nose. “The demon bandits are inside of those?”

“Yes, that’s what the people inside told me...” Demmie answered, scratching her head in an embarrassed gesture. “I wasn’t certain what I should do with them, so I thought I should bring them back here.”

“I see...” Dawkson looked between Demmie and the mysterious cocoons. All I ordered her to do was bring back information about these demon bandits... he thought. I never expected her to up and capture ’em all!

“Arright, got it,” Dawkson said. “We’ll see what these punks have to say for themselves in a bit. Good job, Demmie.”

“Th-Thank you for your kind words!” said Demmie, bowing low.

“But... Er... I’ve got a question...” the Dark One added.

“Yes?” asked Demmie. “What else can I help you with?”

“Ah, it’s nothing important...” Dawkson said. “Just...what’s with that getup yer wearin’?”

“Oh, this outfit?” Demmie replied, doing a graceful twirl. “This is the garb of the shinobi of Hi Izuru! I got it to use for my undercover investigation, but I’m afraid my ordinary clothes got all torn up at one point in the mission...” she admitted, smiling bashfully.

The outfit Demmie was wearing, however, was so outrageous that even Phufun, whose own clothes were quite revealing with only a single cord holding her chest in place, found herself raising her brows in disbelief.

“R-Right...” said Dawkson. “Well, go back to yer room for now and take a rest.”

“Yes, Dark One!” said Demmie, bowing low. “Thank you very much!”

Once Demmie had left, Dawkson turned to look over at Phufun. “Hey, Phufun...” he said.

“What is it, my master?” Phufun asked.

“Those clothes Demmie had on... Izzat really what the Hi Izuran shinobi wear?”

“I don’t believe so...” Phufun answered. “I don’t recall any of the various types of shinobi wearing anything so utterly shameless...” Although, she thought to herself with mounting bewilderment, I do feel like I might have seen something very similar in the illustrations of some adult-oriented reading material on sale in Hi Izuru...

Dawkson crossed his arms and cocked his head to the side, utterly perplexed.

Chapter 4: The Land of the Rising Sun: Part Two

◇Hi Izuru—In the Mountains◇

“You know, Greanyl, I’m impressed!” Flio said, voicing his appreciation for her navigation through the mountains. “You sure seem to know your way around here.”

Flio’s words were certainly well deserved. The path the three of them had been following was a bare dirt road, so wild and overgrown that at first glance it looked like nothing more than an animal trail.

“It was long ago, but I did live in this area for some time,” Greanyl explained.

“That explains why you have an acquaintance here, I suppose!” said Rys, nodding in understanding.

“The acquaintance we’re meeting to see about hiring some people to work at the Fli-o’-Rys General Store, you mean...” Flio said, with a slight note of anxiety. “I hope it goes all right...”

“It will!” Rys insisted, beaming as she gave her husband a smack on the back. “With you here, my lord husband, it’s bound to go perfectly!”

“Y-You think so?” Flio asked.

“Of course!” Rys smiled. “Why, it’s you, after all!”

With Rys’s happy smiling face in front of him, Flio could only concede. “You know,” he said, “with you saying it, Rys, somehow it feels like everything will work out after all.”

“It will!” said Rys. “And on the one-in-a-million chance that something goes wrong, your beloved wife will take care of things—by force!” On that last word her expression suddenly changed to a mask of fearsome rage, her arms changing into their bestial forms and her wolf tail materializing behind her as she menaced the air in front of her like she was ready to rip whatever stood there limb from limb.

“H-Hang on, Rys!” Flio objected, doing his best to pacify his warlike wife. “You should definitely not do that! It would only make the talks more complicated...”

As the couple carried on their banter, Greanyl led them ever onwards, not allowing any emotion whatsoever to show on her face as she forged ahead. Mister Flio and Madame Rys are enjoying each other’s company as much as ever, I see, she thought.

After they’d continued down the road for a while, Rys suddenly seemed to notice something. “Oh?” she said, looking off to the right of the group.

“Did you see it too, Rys?” Flio asked.

“Yes...” Rys nodded, staring curiously into the distance. “I thought I could sense some sort of odd presence...”

Flio looked in the same direction as his wife, screwing up his face in concentration, when suddenly they heard a voice coming from somewhere nearby. “Stand back, Greanyl! No interfering!” it said.

“You know I can’t do that...” Greanyl replied, drawing the short blade she kept sheathed behind her back and assuming a combat stance just as projectiles came flying their way from every direction, completely surrounding them and cutting off any possible escape route, keeping the party pinned by sheer numbers. “Nh...!” Greanyl could feel herself tensing up, beads of sweat forming on her brow. “There’s so many of them!”

The next second, however, every last one of them vanished in a single instant.

“Huh...?” Greanyl said, blinking in confusion.

“Say, Greanyl!” asked Flio. “Those wouldn’t happen to be those ‘shuriken’ I’ve heard about, would they?” His voice didn’t sound alarmed in the slightest. If anything, he sounded like a tourist excited to see something from a foreign culture for the first time.

“A...sure-you-can, my lord husband?” Rys asked. “Whatever is that?”

“I read about them the other day in a book on Hi Izuran shinobi,” Flio explained. “It’s a kind of weapon you don’t see much in the Magical Kingdom of Klyrode.”

“Oh, these are weapons?” said Rys, her own tone just as unconcerned as her husband’s was. “But I can’t say I felt even the slightest bit of killing intent...” In spite of her nonchalance, however, her arms and legs were both fully in their lupine form, and she had summoned a magic circle at her feet in order to cast Teleportation at a moment’s notice.

“U-Um... Mister Flio, sir...?” Greanyl asked, finding herself unable to understand what exactly had just taken place.

“Oh, right, sorry, Greanyl,” Flio said. “There wasn’t any killing intent behind it, but those shuriken still might have hurt if they hit someone, so I used a quick Capture spell to get them all out of the air.” Indeed, there was a golden glowing orb hovering in front of his chest, inside of which Greanyl could see a truly stupendous number of shuriken packed into the tight space. Flio had taken one of the shuriken back out of the orb, holding it up for himself and Rys to examine with great interest.

“I-I should have known!” Greanyl said, sighing with relief as she came to understand what had happened. “Of course Mister Flio would make it out completely unharmed. What a relief...”

“It’s no surprise we were unharmed, actually,” Flio said. “Look, these shuriken are made of wood. They don’t even have a cutting edge.”

“Why, my lord husband, you’re right!” concurred Rys.

“I see...” said Greanyl. “Most likely, this was an attempt to judge the strength of the people I had brought to meet them. Or more likely...” she added, sighing as her expression darkened noticeably, “given who we’re dealing with, it might be more along the lines of a prank...”

“A prank?” Flio and Rys both asked at once.

“Yes...” Greanyl confirmed. “Sasuran, the elder of the village. She treated me like her daughter while I was living here, always doting on—” She shook her head. “N-No, never mind that. Th-The point is, she fancied herself something of a prankster... Honestly, the way she acted was quite ridiculous and completely unbecoming of her age...” As she spoke, Greanyl’s face underwent a whole gamut of expressions from exasperation to genuine anger.

“N-Now, now, Greanyl,” Flio said, placing a hand on the shadow demon’s shoulder with a tight-lipped smile. “Let’s try to stay calm, okay?”

Greanyl cooled her nerves and returned to her senses when suddenly it hit her. “Master Sasuran must be nearby! Would you show yourself, please?” she said, raising her voice to call out to the surrounding area. When no response came, she looked around and called out once again. “I don’t believe anyone else in the village has the dexterity to wield so many shuriken at once! I know it’s you!”

“Um... About that...” Flio said, getting Greanyl’s attention. “I may have already captured the person who was throwing those shuriken, just in case...”

“Say what?” Greanyl blinked, freezing on the spot. “D-Did you really?”

“I did...” Flio said. “But it looks like she’s a fairly young woman, I have to say. I wonder if it’s not this Sasuran you mentioned after all...?” He pointed his right hand towards the ground and a magic circle appeared, producing a woman with her arms, legs, and mouth all bound tightly with thread, unable to move an inch. Perhaps sensing that she had no hope whatsoever of escape, the woman didn’t seem to be offering any particular resistance, just lying quietly on the hard ground.

Greanyl let out a gasp at the sight of the woman’s face. “M-Mister Flio, sir! There’s no doubt about it! This woman is Sasuran!”

“She is?!” Flio and Rys both exclaimed in shock.

“Really?” Flio asked. “B-But she doesn’t look particularly like an elder at all...”

“Quite rightly observed, Mister Flio...” Greanyl said with a grimace. “In fact, I have no idea how old Master Sasuran actually is. From the day I met her all the way until now, she has never seemed to age a day...”

“I-I see...” Flio replied, looking down at the defeated shinobi master on the ground in front of them.

◇Hi Izuru—A Teahouse Near the Nagaseki Checkpoint◇

“Hahhh...” In a teahouse by a stone-paved road not far from the Nagaseki Checkpoint, Korunoe let out a long, tired sigh. I’m truly glad Saruizo from the Koruiga clan got me that position working for the Odo family... he thought. And I’m doing my best to show how useful our Clockwork Shinobi school’s style can be... But attacking the Nagaseki Checkpoint isn’t what I hoped I’d be doing with my clockwork creations...

The shinobi sighed once again. “How can I face my forefathers after doing something like that...” he wondered, muttering to himself. “But if I stop, that’ll be the end of the Clockwork Shinobi...so I guess it’s not all bad. And by teaming up with Fua, that onmyoji who’s also working for the Odo family, we’ve been able to use sealing talismans to just about perfect the remote operation technique. We can even control those complicated Megakuri monsters without being anywhere nearby...”

“Oh, Korunoe, sweetie!” came the voice of the matron of the teahouse, startling him out of his thoughts. “Would you please bring the guests their order?”

“A-Ah! Yes, I’m coming!” Korunoe said, hurrying back towards the kitchen, where the teahouse matron handed him a tray of tea and various accompanying sweets.

“Here you go!” the matron said.

“Thank you, ma’am,” Korunoe replied, turning to bring the tray over to the teahouse proper. But I can’t believe the Odo family pays me so little money that I have to take this part-time job in the teahouse... he thought, a frown crossing his face as he caught a glimpse of his body.

For a boy, Korunoe had a notably slight frame—slight enough that the matron of the teahouse had decided to dress him in a girl’s kimono. Korunoe looked down at the brightly colored outfit and sighed yet again.

“Um...” he said. “Madame?”

“Why, what is it, sweetie?” the matron asked.

“It’s just... It’s been a while since I asked about getting a men’s teahouse uniform for me to use,” he frowned. “Do we still not have any in stock?”

“Oh, sweetie, you mustn’t say these things!” said the matron, beaming down at him. “Why, with your slender figure and adorable face, I’d say the women’s uniform is a far better fit! In fact, maybe we should keep you dressed this way forever!”

“I-I’d rather you didn’t...” Korunoe said. “I’m a boy, you know...” He glanced over at the large standing mirror to the side of the corridor leading to the teahouse to take stock of his appearance. The boy looking back had a youthful face and large round glasses and was dressed in the women’s uniform—complete with his hair done up in a shimada bun, a traditional hairstyle for Hi Izuran girls—and finished with a dazzling ornamental hairpin.

B-But anyone looking at me like this would think I was a girl... he thought, frowning more deeply still.

“Kidding!” said the matron. “I’m kidding, don’t worry! I’ve put in the order, so you’ll just have to wait for it to arrive. Now, come on! Enough of that somber face! Lovely and charming, remember?” She pointed her fingers to the sides of her own mouth as if she were using them to lift its corners into a full-fledged smile.

“I know, I know...” Korunoe said with a sigh before smiling back so naturally that no one would imagine it was anything less than authentic and moving on to the teahouse.

The moment Korunoe entered the room, he was greeted by a chorus of voices from all around the shop.

“Oh, it’s little Korunoe! Isn’t she just the cutest thing?”

“She’s such a hard worker, isn’t she!”

“A-Ah!” Korunoe exclaimed in a thoroughly sweet and charming voice. “Thank you very much!”

The matron ordered me to keep the fact that I’m a boy a secret while I work... he thought, wincing inwardly to himself as he made his way through the shop. But even as long as it’s been, I still can’t get used to people making those sorts of comments... Still, thanks to this outfit nobody has any idea that I’m actually the last of the Clockwork Shinobi, so in a way I guess I should be grateful...

Half lost in his own thoughts, Korunoe approached the table where the two guests he was waiting on were seated. “Sorry for the wai...t...” he began, the words dying in his throat as he laid eyes on none other than the bony visage of Calsi’im, dressed in a formal black robe to match Charun sitting across from him.

H-Huh? Korunoe thought, thrown into confusion by the sudden encounter with a skeleton, a type of creature he had never seen before. I-Is that man an undead? B-But I didn’t think we had undead types like that in Hi Izuru, did we? There’s skull yokai, I guess, but those look a little different, don’t they? What in the world...?

“No trouble at all!” Calsi’im insisted, as jovial and gregarious as ever. “Why, we only just got here!” He took the tray from Korunoe’s hands as the shinobi stood stunned and placed one of the cups of tea and plates of dango dumplings in front of his wife before serving the other set to himself.

“A-Ah!” Korunoe cried, belatedly returning to his senses to find the table already set. “I-I’m so sorry!”

“Not to worry, not to worry!” Calsi’im reassured him, his jawbone rattling with laughter as he handed the now empty tray back to Korunoe.

“N-No, I really am terribly sorry...”

“Not to worry, I tell you!” Calsi’im said, dismissing Korunoe’s repeated apologies with a smile. “Now, we came all this way to try the tea here, didn’t we? So let’s enjoy it thoroughly!”

“Of course!” agreed Charun.

The two each picked up their cups and took a sip.

“Well, well!” Calsi’im remarked appreciatively.

“Why, I’ve never tasted anything quite like this!” said Charun.

The two of them shared a familiar look before draining their cups dry in a single long drink.

“Ahhh!” Calsi’im sighed. “You know, I would quite like another cup of that tea!”

“Yes, I would rather like another cup as well,” agreed Charun.

“O-Oh! Yes! Right away!” said Korunoe, hurrying back to the table to collect the empty teacups and hustling back to the kitchen.

Are those two some kind of tea connoisseurs? Korunoe wondered. It seemed like they liked our shop’s tea, at any rate. It made me kinda glad to see...

“We need two more cups of tea, please, Madame!” he said, entering the kitchen.

“Of course! Right away!” the teahouse matron replied. “But tell me, how did it go? Did the two of them seem like they enjoyed our tea?”

“Oh, yes,” Korunoe reported. “It looked like they loved it.”

“I see, I see!” the matron said. “That’s good to hear! Those two have ties to the Nagaseki Checkpoint, you know.”

“The Nagaseki Checkpoint?” Korunoe swallowed nervously. D-Don’t tell me they’re here to look into the Megakuri I created...

“From what I’ve heard, they’re from the Fli-o’-Rys General Store in Houghtow City, in the Magical Kingdom of Klyrode,” the matron explained. “They’ve come here to try bona fide Hi Izuran tea, and maybe even find a supplier for their own store. I believe it was Miss Itsuhachi from the Nagaseki Checkpoint who introduced them to our establishment.”

“O-Oh, I see...” Korunoe breathed a sigh of relief. The Magical Kingdom of Klyrode... The biggest country in the entire world... he reflected. I’ve heard they’re doing incredible things with magic dolls in that part of the world. To a Clockwork Shinobi, magic dolls represent the very pinnacle of our art. One day I’d really like to see one for myself... Korunoe let out a sigh.

“Here you go, two fresh cups of tea!” said the matron. “Serve them right away!”

“Y-Yes, ma’am!” Korunoe replied, taking the tray and hurrying back to Calsi’im and Charun in the teahouse.

Before long, Calsi’im and Charun had each put away five more cups of tea. Finally, they called over the matron herself.

“We would be overjoyed,” Calsi’im said, “if we could possibly acquire some of the same tea leaves you use at this fine establishment!”

“And if possible, we would be much obliged if you could instruct us in how to prepare them so well,” seconded Charun.

“Why, goodness!” the matron said, a great big smile spreading across her entire face. “We would be simply delighted to do business with an establishment like the Fli-o’-Rys General Store! Here, follow me to the back and I’ll show you how to steep this tea. Korunoe, you’ll see to Mister Calsi’im while we’re away, won’t you?”

“Y-Yes, ma’am, of course!” said Korunoe, as the matron led Charun off to the kitchen. Calsi’im watched them go with a satisfied smile on his face while Korunoe stood off to the side, holding the tray in his arms. Dealing with ordinary guests is simple enough, but what am I supposed to talk about with a guest I’ve never met before who came all the way from a foreign country... he thought, trying desperately to come up with an appropriate topic of conversation.

“By the way, Miss...Korunoe, was it?” Calsi’im asked.

“Ah?” Korunoe replied. “O-Oh! Yes, that’s right.”

“I’ve been wondering for a while now...” the old skeleton said. “What is this doll you have here on the table?” He pointed to a spot where a small mechanical doll stood with a great paper fan in its arms, waving it at Calsi’im’s teacup.

“Oh, that...?” Korunoe said. “Th-That’s a clockwork doll designed to use its fan to cool the tea down when it’s too hot to drink.”

“Oho!” Calsi’im exclaimed, looking down at the fan-wielding doll with great interest. “A clockwork doll, you say!”

Korunoe clasped a hand over his mouth. O-Oh no! he thought, as cold sweat began to run down his back. I shouldn’t have mentioned clockwork to the foreign guests! They were probably on the Enchanted Frigate we attacked with the Megakuri...

Calsi’im, however, seemed entirely focused on the doll, watching closely as it worked tirelessly to fan his cup of tea. “I see, I see!” he said. “What a fascinating little device!”

Korunoe breathed a sigh of relief. I-I guess it’s not a problem, then... “Y-You know...” he said, “I-I’m actually very interested in that kind of clockwork doll myself. I’ve even been studying to learn how to make them. If I could, I’d really like to make something like one of the legendary magic dolls some day, but I’ve never had a chance to see one in reality...”

“Oh?” said Calsi’im. “A magic doll, you say?”

“Yes, sir, that’s right. A magic doll,” said Korunoe.

“You don’t have magic dolls in Hi Izuru, I take it?” Calsi’im asked.

“No, we don’t,” said Korunoe, smiling more easily now that the conversation had gotten off the ground. “Although I’ve heard they exist in places like the Magical Kingdom of Klyrode and the Dark Citadel...”

“Well!” Calsi’im declared. “As it happens, you have in fact seen a magic doll!”

“What?” Korunoe blinked. “Y-You’re teasing me, aren’t you?”

“Not at all!” said Calsi’im. “In fact, my darling wife is a magic doll herself!”

“Y-You really shouldn’t joke about things like that!” Korunoe said, protesting in disbelief.

Before Calsi’im could respond, they were interrupted by Charun returning from the kitchen. “Calsi’im,” she said, “would you please be so kind as to try this tea for me?”

“Oh, Charun! There you are!” Calsi’im said. “Well? What do you think?”

“The tea served in this shop has a subtle and profound flavor,” she said. “I would very much like to serve it at our Cal’Cha Teahouse, if it can be arranged.” Then, without warning, she lifted up a flap in the front of her dress, revealing her bare skin.

“M-Madame?!” Korunoe exclaimed, his face turning bright red.

Charun, however, paid him no mind at all, continuing until her entire stomach was exposed. She opened up a hollow compartment right in the middle of her abdomen and stuck her hand inside.

“Eh?!” Korunoe’s eyes went wide, watching as Charun produced a Bottomless Bag from within the middle portion of her body.

“My darling Charun keeps her most precious possessions inside her stomach, you see!” Calsi’im explained to the dumbfounded Korunoe.

“Oh my! Calsi’im!” objected Charun. “You know you shouldn’t tell people about things like that!”

“That’s right! How silly of me!” said Calsi’im, his skull rattling with mirth. “My apologies, my apologies!”

Korunoe stared, stunned motionless by what he had just seen. A-A magic doll...! he thought. Sh-She really is a magic doll!

He stood there, unable to move, as the teahouse matron, Charun, and Calsi’im moved on to discussing the prospect of supplying tea to the Fli-o’-Rys General Store.

◇Meanwhile—National Onmyo Academy◇

While Calsi’im and Charun were making deals and drinking cups of tea, Nyt and Taclyde from the Houghtow College of Magic were paying a visit to the National Onmyo Academy, along with Elinàsze and Hiya from Flio’s house and Damalynas tagging along inside Hiya’s mindscape. At the moment they were being led down a wood-floored corridor by a man wearing a noble’s white and red robe in the kariginu style, which seemed to be the official uniform of the Onmyo Academy.

“For our part,” the man said, “we at the Onmyo Academy would be overjoyed to become sister schools with your illustrious institution.”

“You are mossst graciousss,” Nyt said with a smile. “And we at the Houghtow College of Magic hope our studentsss will be able to increassse their magical abilitiesss through contact with the magic practiced in other landsss.”

“Certainly,” said the man in the robe, “and we would be glad to play host to your school trip, as you’ve proposed. Please leave everything in our hands when it comes to the matter of lodging and accommodations.”

“Oh, that would be a tremendous help!” Taclyde said with evident delight.

Under ordinary circumstances, Taclyde handled the administrative work for the Houghtow College of Magic entirely on his own. To someone like him, who put in long grueling hours day after day to manage the school’s finances and operations, an offer like that was beyond his wildest dreams.

“It should reduce the financial burden on our students’ guardians too!” he said. “Really, we’re so very—” Suddenly, however, he stopped when he came to a realization just as the words were halfway out of his mouth. No, wait! he thought, the expression of delight vanishing from his face, which was rapidly going pale. This means that when the Onmyo Academy students come to visit Houghtow City for their school trip, we’ll be obligated to make arrangements for them!!!

“Well, then,” said the man from the Onmyo Academy, leading them on as the corridor took a rightward turn. “If you’ll come this way, I will prepare the magic contract for the establishment of our sister school relationship.”

“Excuse me,” said Elinàsze, pausing in her tracks. “We were wondering if we might be allowed to take a look around the school?”

“Of course, I understand,” said the man. “I will find someone to show you around, if you will wait here for just a moment.”

The man continued down the hallway with Nyt and Taclyde, leaving Elinàsze and Hiya alone for the time being.

“All right. Now’s our chance to look for the person who created the talisman used in those Megakuri,” said Elinàsze, holding out her hand and summoning a magic circle, centered around a paper talisman—the same one they had discovered inside the wreckage of the wyvern-model Megakuri that had attacked the Enchanted Frigate. “Apparently the detailed workings of the technique used to create this talisman single its creator out as someone connected to this school...”

“A moment, please, Madame Elinàsze,” said Hiya, stopping Elinàsze before she could get very far down the hallway.

“Yes, Hiya? What is it?” she asked.

“It’s just that our host will shortly be sending another person to act as our guide,” Hiya reminded her. “Won’t it be a slight problem for us if we are gone when they arrive?”

“Oh,” said Elinàsze. “But that just means we need to find this person before our guide gets here, right?”

“I-I can’t deny that, I suppose...” said Hiya, taken aback by Elinàsze’s self-assured proclamation. “And I certainly don’t doubt your ability to find the creator of this talisman even in such a short window of time. But perhaps this is a task we should entrust to someone else?”

“Who do you have in mind?” Elinàsze asked.

“I shall bring her out right away.” Hiya gave a deep bow and summoned a magic circle of their own. The magic circle flashed and began to rotate as the figure of a woman appeared within, standing in stoic silence. Her clothes were quite similar to the outfit worn by the man from the Onmyo Academy, with her long hair tied back in a ponytail.

“Oh!” said Elinàsze. “That magic power! Would that be...Maglion, by any chance?”

“You are insightful as always, Madame Elinàsze,” said Hiya, bowing gravely once again. “It is indeed her.”

Maglion—a former servant of the Realm of Evil in the employ of Valentine, one of the Twelve Evil Generals. She was soundly defeated by Hiya and ended up being absorbed into the djinn’s mindscape.

“Maglion has been joining Damalynas and myself for our various training sessions...” Hiya explained, as Maglion bowed low to Elinàsze as well.

“Thanks to the guidance of my elder siblings Hiya and Damalynas, I have finally come to understand the true way,” said Maglion, looking worshipfully towards Hiya. It didn’t escape Elinàsze’s notice that there were two distinctly heart-shaped marks floating in Maglion’s eyes as she gazed up at the djinn.

Oh, yes, that’s right... Elinàsze thought, smirking in amusement despite herself. When it comes to Hiya, words like guidance and training have a very particular meaning, don’t they...

“I see...” she said. “Maglion stayed in your mindscape while we were at the Nagaseki Checkpoint, so she should have no problem moving around. Do you think you could find the person we believe created, or else took part in the creation of, this talisman?”

“Of course!” said Maglion. “You can leave everything to me, big sister Hiya!”

It had in fact been Elinàsze who made the request, but Maglion seemed to be deliberately snubbing her in favor of Hiya, giving them a formal bow to punctuate the statement.

“Madame Elinàsze...” said Hiya, frowning at Maglion’s behavior. “I must apologize for her rudeness...”

“Oh, no, it’s quite all right,” Elinàsze reassured them. “As long as she can get results, that’s the only thing I care about.”

“B-But...” protested Hiya.

“Really, it’s fine!” Elinàsze insisted. “Now, Maglion, if you will...”

“Yes! Right away, big sister Hiya!” Maglion bowed again—to Hiya, of course—took the talisman from Elinàsze, and vanished using Teleportation.

“Hahhh...” Hiya sighed, holding their head in their hands. “What a troublesome girl...”

“Are you sure it’s not too soon for that one to show her face in public...?” Damalynas chimed in from Hiya’s mindscape, psychically shaking her head in exasperation.

“It might be...” Hiya agreed. “And here I had thought that we finally had a good opportunity to bring her out...”

“Still!” Elinàsze said. “Maglion is an excellent spellcaster, isn’t she? I can tell that much just from meeting her.”

“That is true...” said Hiya, Elinàsze’s words bringing them back to the present moment. “By the standards of Klyrode, Maglion’s abilities put her in the very top class.”

“Right! So let’s just leave it to her, shall we?” Elinàsze said. “Besides, look!” She pointed down the corridor, where another member of the Onmyo Academy staff was coming their way, presumably sent by the man from earlier. “While she’s busy with that, the two of us will be getting a tour of the Academy’s stores of grimoires and the site where they make these sealing talismans...”

“Your wish is my command,” said Hiya, accepting Elinàsze’s proposal with another formal bow.

◇ ◇ ◇

As their tour guide led Elinàsze and Hiya down the corridor, a tall and slender woman watched fearfully from her hiding spot in the shadow of the building.

“O-O-Oh no oh no oh no...” the woman—Fua—said, her skin clammy with nervous sweat as she spied on Elinàsze and the others. “Th-Th-Those people have it... Th-Th-The sealing talisman I made! I-I-I cast a Concealment spell on my surroundings, s-s-s-so most likely they won’t be able to notice me here... B-B-But if I am found, m-m-m-my position in the Academy will be in danger!”

Wiping the sweat from her forehead with the sleeve of her robe, Fua racked her brain for anything she could do. “I-I-I know...” she said. “I-I-I’ll employ the last of the thirty-six strategies written in the ancient books of warfare: When all else fails, run away! I-I-I’ll go home for the day with the excuse that I’m not feeling well. A-A-And tomorrow, those people will most likely go back to their home country. Yes... That’s the best course of action...”

Fua nodded to herself, satisfied to have a plan, and stepped back to make her retreat. “I-I-I suppose I should start by returning straightaway to the f-f-faculty office...” Still hidden behind the building, she took a right...

And immediately came face-to-face with Maglion.

“H-H-H-Hwuahhh?!!!” Fua cried in a voice that was nearly a wail.

Maglion stepped forwards and put her hand on Fua’s shoulder.

“H-H-How were you able to find me?!” Fua demanded. “I-I-I should be hidden by my Concealment spell!”

“Oh? You were using Concealment?” said Maglion. “I didn’t notice! But more importantly...” She turned to leave, pulling Fua along in her powerful grip. “I have a number of things to ask you about this sealing talisman,” she said, dangling the strip of paper Elinàsze had given her in front of Fua’s eyes. “I trust you’ll have some answers?”

“H-H-Hyaaaaahhh!!!” Fua shrieked in horror yet again.

With Maglion’s own Concealment spell active around them, however, Fua’s voice could not be heard by anyone around them.

◇Hi Izuru—Road to the Nagaseki Checkpoint◇

Flio and Rys rode in their rickshaw down the road leading to the Nagaseki Checkpoint, nestled close together in the two-person carriage. Pulling the rickshaw was a Hi Izuran magic beast known as a moonring bear, with Sasuran walking alongside to the bear’s left.

By appearance Sasuran looked to be younger than Greanyl, dressed in the black outfit traditionally worn by the Uga Shinobi. Her hands were interlaced behind her head, and she was humming a jaunty tune as she walked alongside the rickshaw.

“Um, Miss Sasuran...?” Flio said. “Are you sure you don’t want to think about this more before you make a decision?”

“Think, huh?” Sasuran laughed. “Why? What’s there to think about?”

“Sasuran!” Rys snapped, losing her patience at Sasuran’s generally unserious disposition. She stood up, changing her arms to their lupine forms to menace the master shinobi. “I’ve had quite enough of that ridiculous behavior of yours! If you meant the oath you swore to work for my lord husband, you will stop making a fool of yourself this instant!”

“It’s all right, Rys,” said Flio, gesturing for her to sit back down with one of his famous easygoing smiles.

“B-But my lord husband...” Rys objected, but nonetheless she reluctantly returned to her seat, releasing her transformation to return to her humanoid form.

“Thank you for listening,” Flio said with a smile. “I appreciate it.”

“W-Well...” said Rys, her cheeks a shade of red at the sight of her husband’s smiling face. “I-It was a request from my lord husband, after all...”

Flio nodded, satisfied. “This is just a guess...” he said. “But I think Miss Sasuran might be testing us right now.”

“She’s...testing us?” Rys asked.

Flio nodded again. “Think about it,” he said. “She may have agreed to bring the entire Uga clan back to Houghtow City, but in order to do that it would be her duty as leader of the clan to judge whether or not we were worthy of their loyalty. If you think about it that way, doesn’t that explain the way she’s been acting?”

“Oh!” said Rys, her eyes opening wide with realization.

Next to the rickshaw, Sasuran’s face went stiff as she overheard the couple’s conversation. I don’t believe it! she thought. This man’s seen right through me! She turned to look inside. Rys, she saw, was still pouting unhappily, as if she weren’t entirely convinced, while Flio smiled fondly and softly petted her hair. It was all in all a touchingly intimate scene.

The wife, Madame Rys, places a great deal of importance on proper conduct and does everything she can to maintain social order... Sasuran observed. The husband, Mister Flio, understands his wife’s perspective but has a great sense of prudent consideration, gently pulling her back when her behavior threatens to become too extreme...

Sasuran’s gaze fell next on Greanyl, who was walking behind the rickshaw, making sure to keep a sharp eye on the group’s surroundings. And Greanyl’s been working for these two... she thought, nodding in approval. I admit, I was worried for her when I heard she had lost her position under Dark One Gholl, the so-called greatest Dark One in history... But if these are the sort of people who have taken her in, I suppose I should count myself relieved...

Sasuran slowed her pace, falling back next to the rickshaw. All at once, her nonchalant posture vanished as she adopted a more serious expression. “I apologize,” she said. “As you surmised, Mister Flio, I had been attempting to ascertain whether or not you were a suitable figure to be the liege lord of the Uga.”

“Attempting to ascertain?” Rys asked, still clearly displeased. “Wasn’t our battle in the forest enough for that purpose?”

“True, you more than adequately demonstrated your strength,” Sasuran said. “I fought you with all the strength my old body has to muster, but you sealed me away as if it were nothing. Truly, it was a performance worthy of respect. However...” She frowned, as if the words were difficult to say. “I’m afraid we humble shinobi have circumstances of our own. I have been thinking lately that it’s nearly time for me to entrust the leadership of the Uga to the next generation. For a while now I have been leaving the direction of our clan in the hands of our younger members. Their decision was for us to take on a security contract with a particular group. It was a good source of income, but in the end it seemed we misjudged our partners. I wouldn’t like to repeat that mistake...”

As she spoke, several more Uga Shinobi appeared from the wilderness behind them. “Master Sasuran,” one of them said, “I am truly ashamed about that whole affair.”

“Don’t blame yourself,” Sasuran told her subordinate. “I approved of the decision as well, remember?”

“B-But only because of the trust you had given to us...” the shinobi objected.

“It’s all water under the bridge,” said Sasuran. “Just make sure you learn from your mistakes!” Indeed, the shinobi all seemed to be reflecting seriously on their decisions that led to the disastrous alliance with the demon bandits. Sasuran offered them some kind words of reassurance before turning back to Flio.

“Now, Mister Flio...” she said. The other shinobi followed her lead, turning to face the merchant as well. “It has only been a short time, but I believe I have ascertained your character.” She knelt down on the ground, the rest of the Uga following suit. “You are a prudent man who places great value on the people around him. I have every confidence that the Uga Shinobi will be in good hands working for one such as you. Therefore, we will be accompanying you to the city of Houghtow, where we pledge to follow your orders with all diligence.” She lowered her head, followed by the rest of the Uga.

Flio smiled. “We look forward to working with you as well!” he said.

“Yes, you are very welcome,” Rys agreed, nodding happily.

“Well then,” said Flio, reaching into his Bottomless Bag. “I guess I need to get a magic contract ready. That’s how things are done in Hi Izuru, right?”

“No, no,” said Sasuran, stopping him before he could go any further. “We shinobi of the Uga put our trust in contracts of the spoken word. There is no need for documentation.”

“What? Really?” Flio asked, eyes widening in surprise. “Well, if that’s how you do things it’s all right by me, but are you sure you don’t need these?” He took out a number of papers from his bag, handing them over to Sasuran.

“These are...terms of employment?” Sasuran read.

“That’s right,” said Flio with another one of his breezy smiles. “We give this information to everyone employed by the Fli-o’-Rys General Store. Please look it over at your convenience.”

I wonder...is he trying to bind the Uga clan with this contract of his...? Sasuran thought, thinking back to the clan’s past bad treatment as she glanced down at the papers in her hands. Our conditions working for the Shadow Conglomerate were absolutely terrible... We had twenty-four-hour security for the merchandise, and security for our employers as well. They expected absolute obedience to every instruction and even made us liable for all the costs. There was no guarantee of treatment if any of us were hurt, and if our employers found any fault with our performance they would happily reduce our pay. Now let’s see...

As she read through the terms handed to her by Flio, however, Sasuran’s eyes grew wider and wider. “One work day is eight hours, with overtime pay available on occasions when we exceed that amount... They don’t just promise compensation for supplies used over the course of a mission, but medical treatment for any injuries will be paid for by the Fli-o’-Rys General Store as well...”

“I-It can’t be!” said one of the Uga Shinobi behind her, also reading through the terms.

“I-I’ve never heard of a company treating its workers this well!” said another.

“Excuse me...” Sasuran couldn’t help but ask. “Is this...true?”

“Of course, it’s all true,” said Flio. “This is what’s normal for the Fli-o’-Rys General Store.” He looked over to Greanyl for confirmation.

“I can confirm that what’s written there is the truth,” said Greanyl, nodding once. “I and the other shadow demons have been working for the Fli-o’-Rys General Store under those same exact terms.”

Sasuran and the other Uga were stunned speechless by Greanyl’s words. Not just the Uga, but all shinobi have existed as beings of shadow, serving various nobles in all kinds of difficult missions... Sasuran thought. For so long we have lived with death as our constant companion, never knowing what the morrow might bring...

A long moment passed as the shinobi processed what they had read in their contracts. Then, finally, they lowered themselves to their hands and knees and prostrated themselves before their new employer. “Thank you very much!” they said, all lowering their heads at once.

“H-Hey!” said Flio, wincing at the display. “We’re going to be working together, you know! There’s no need to lower yourselves like that!”

No matter what Flio said, however, it would be some time before Sasuran and the other shinobi were finished with their bout of groveling...

◇A Few Hours Later◇

“Wow!” Levana gasped as she looked out the window of the Enchanted Frigate. “Look! You can’t even see the Nagaseki Checkpoint anymore!”

“Uh-huh, uh-huh!” said Wyne, cheerfully hugging her foster sister. “These Enchanted Frigates are fast-fast! But I’m even faster, you know!”

Flio and Rys sat nearby, watching the two dragonewts enjoy the view. “It’s good to see those two having so much fun,” said Flio.

“It really is,” Rys said with a smile. “I heard they were well-behaved on their own at the Nagaseki Checkpoint too.”

“It was a productive trip this time, though, wasn’t it?” Flio remarked. “The entire Uga clan accepted our invitation to come work at the Fli-o’-Rys General Store.” He glanced behind him, where Sasuran and the other Uga stood together on the ship.

“I must say, though,” Rys said, a frown coming over her face. “I certainly didn’t expect formal shinobi outfits to look like that. They don’t look anything like the pictures in Byleri’s book...”

“I-I guess not!” said Flio. “B-But that aside, you should make sure to put that book back where you found it once we get back to the house, okay?”

“Yes, of course, my lord husband.” Rys agreed.

At this point Calsi’im and Charun came walking up to join the conversation, followed by a third figure who had been accompanying them—the Clockwork Shinobi Korunoe.

“I should thank you for letting an old skeleton like myself come along with you this time, Mister Flio!” said Calsi’im.

“I, too, would like to offer my thanks,” agreed Charun.

“I-I’m really beyond grateful to you for hearing out my request...” said Korunoe, looking very tense in the face as he gave a deep bow.

As if learning that Charun was a magic doll hadn’t been enough to make Korunoe want to come along, hearing from Calsi’im that Flio’s house was home to a veritable factory of magic dolls more than cinched the deal.

“I-I-I’ve always wanted to study in the Magical Kingdom of Klyrode...” Korunoe continued. “I can’t tell you how happy I am to be hired as the tea supply coordinator for the Cal’Cha Teahouse, with the opportunity to study at the Houghtow College of Magic whenever I have time off.”

“Of course!” Flio said. “And feel free to come to me if there’s ever anything you don’t understand. If it’s something I can help with, I’d be glad to lend you a hand.”

“I-I’ll keep that in mind!” said Korunoe, bowing his head again and again. “Thank you so much!”

The next person to join the conversation was Elinàsze.

“Hello, Elinàsze,” said Flio. “How was your visit to the National Onmyo Academy?”

“Oh, Papa! The academy was full to bursting with some very fascinating books!” Elinàsze replied. “I was able to observe the process of creating their sealing talismans too! I have all sorts of ideas for things to try as soon as we get home!”

“I see,” said Flio. “I’m glad you found it useful, but I have to ask...” He looked his daughter up and down, scrutinizing her from head to toe. “You didn’t take anything home without permission this time, did you?”

At those words, Elinàsze suddenly seemed to go stiff.

In the past, during one of her visits to the Celestial Plane, Elinàsze had made copies of the forbidden tomes found within their archives, entirely without permission. After that incident, Flio felt the need to make sure his daughter hadn’t gotten up to any similar misconduct.

“Of course not, Papa!” said Elinàsze, mischievously sticking out her tongue. “I haven’t brought anything with me at all! Nothing, I suppose, except for the knowledge I’ve gained.”

“All right, then,” Flio said, nodding amiably. “I’m glad to hear it.”

Technically that isn’t even a lie, Elinàsze thought to herself. After all, I’m not the one who brought something back...

Behind her, Hiya stood quietly as an entirely different conversation played out inside their mindscape, unbeknownst to the rest of the ship...

“S-S-Stop it, please!” Fua begged. “A-A-Anything but that!!!”

“If that is what you want, all you must do is confess,” said Maglion. “To everything.”

“She’s right...” said Damalynas. “It’s not gonna help you any to try to tough it out.”

“E-E-Eeeek!!!” Fua shrieked. “N-N-Nooo!!! Y-Y-You can’t!!!”

As for what foul deeds might have been transpiring to elicit such a reaction, that is left to the reader’s imagination...

In another set of seats nearby, Nyt and Taclyde were enjoying the reprieve after getting another job out of the way.

“In ssspite of everything, we were able to finalize the sssister ssschool contract in time for our ssschool trip...” Nyt said.

“Yes, that is a relief...” Taclyde frowned, looking down at the several-hundred-page document sitting on his lap, its title page reading Contract for Formation of Sister School Alliance. “But somehow I can’t help looking the gift horse in the mouth...”

He thumbed through the pages, his expression darkening further. I gave this thing a once-over at the Onmyo Academy... he thought. But once we get back to Houghtow I had better take some time to look through it again, in detail...

Flio looked all around, taking in the state of everyone on the ship, and turned his attention back to Rys. “Now all that’s left is the journey home,” he said.

“That’s right!” said Rys. “And then, I must get started on tonight’s dinner!”

“Couldn’t you have asked Tanya to handle dinner today, of all possible days?” Flio asked.

“Why, that would never do!” Rys objected, proudly puffing out her chest. “The wife of my lord husband must never cut corners when it comes to the house!”

“All right, fair enough!” Flio acquiesced with a smile. “In that case, I’ll look forward to the meal!”

“Yes, my lord husband!” said Rys.

And so the ship sailed on swiftly above the clouds, bound for Houghtow City in the Magical Kingdom of Klyrode.

Epilogue

◇Houghtow City—Flio’s House◇

That day, the family dinner table was graced by two welcome visitors: Flio’s son Garyl accompanied by Swann, the Third Princess.

“You don’t say!” Garyl said between spoonfuls of soup. “So you’re going to be having shinobi from Hi Izuru working for the Fli-o’-Rys General Store, then?”

“That’s right,” said Flio. “And there’s another boy, Korunoe, who came here in order to study. He’s going to be working at the Cal’Cha Teahouse and taking classes at the Houghtow College of Magic in his free time.”

Garyl nodded along thoughtfully to his father’s explanation.

Garyl—the son of Flio and Rys, and Elinàsze’s younger twin. His friendly and upbeat personality had won him many fans both in his time in school and now as a knight of the Order of Klyrode.

“By the way, Dad...” Garyl asked, glancing over at Swann across the table. “Was there anything out of the ordinary happening in Hi Izuru? I’m gonna be heading there for work pretty soon myself, if you have any information you can spare...”

The plan was for Swann to accompany the Houghtow College of Magic students for their school trip to Hi Izuru. Publicly it would be a simple trip for the purposes of broadening the princess’s horizons, but in fact she had a secret mission known to precious few even within Castle Klyrode. Swann’s true purpose would be to serve as an envoy for the Magical Kingdom of Klyrode and negotiate a treaty of friendship with the Nagaseki Checkpoint. Garyl, of course, would be coming along for her protection.

Garyl watched as Rylnàsze, who was sitting in the chair right next to Swann, leaned in to get the princess’s attention.

“Oh, Swann!” Rylnàsze said. “Have you tried the soup? It’s absolutely delicious!”

“Is it really?” Swann asked, trying a spoonful at Rylnàsze’s urging. “It really is!” she beamed, taking another sip. “What a simply wonderful soup!”

“Isn’t it?” Rylnàsze said, watching Swann eat with a smile. Then something on Swann’s face seemed to catch her eye. “Oh!” she said, leaning in close and licking Swann right on the cheek.

For a second, Swann was perfectly motionless. Then she let out a remarkable cry. “Hyaaaaaah!!!” she exclaimed, her face turning bright red.

“You had some soup on your cheek!” Rylnàsze explained, smiling without a care in the world. “I got it for you!”

“Th-Th-Th-Th-Thank yooooouuu...” Swann said, collapsing in her chair like a deflated balloon, apparently too worked up to remain sitting upright.

“Huh?!” Rylnàsze said, rushing to her feet and holding Swann tight. “Swann, are you okay?!”

Unfortunately, however, the increased physical contact only exacerbated the situation. “Hyaaaaaah!!!” the princess cried yet again, her face turning the same shade of red as before.

“Hey! Swann?! What’s wrong?!” Rylnàsze asked, plainly worried about her strange behavior.

Garyl cracked a wry smile at the sight. “You never see Her Highness acting like that at the castle,” he remarked.

“I can imagine it must seem strange if you’re used to seeing Swann’s stoic castle persona,” Flio said. “But Swann’s still in her teens, you know. I think it’s good for her to have times like this, where she can forget about the demands of court and act like a normal girl her age.”

“Good point...” Garyl nodded. “That makes sense.” In his mind, though, he found himself thinking about the Maiden Queen, Elizabeth, whom he and the rest of the household knew as Ellie. When Ellie was Swann’s age, they were still in the middle of the war with the Dark Army... he thought. From what she’s told me, she never had a place where she could act like a normal girl...

“You know...” Garyl said. “Peace is really pretty great.”

“I couldn’t agree more,” said Flio. “And that’s what your mission this time is all about, too, isn’t it? So you’d better do your best.”

“Yeah, of course!” Garyl nodded. “So... Um... Dad...”

“Yes, Garyl?” Flio asked.

“Sorry if this is a strange question, but...” he began, before thinking better of it and cutting himself off. “No, actually, never mind.”

“Are you sure?” Flio asked. “I’d be happy to answer any question you have, although I can’t guarantee I’ll know the answer myself...” He smiled. “Well, if you change your mind you can come to me at any time.”

“Oh? Is something the matter?” asked Rys, walking up to her husband and son. “Garyl, you know you can speak to your father or myself about anything,” she told him. “As your mother, I’ll do everything I can to support you.”

“Thanks, Mom,” Garyl said, smiling back at her.

I don’t know... he thought. I wanna ask about getting married to Ellie, but it’s just so hard to get the words out...

◇The Following Day◇

The next day the students from the Houghtow College of Magic arrived at the Enchanted Frigate boarding tower next to the Nagaseki Checkpoint. It was the second extra flight to arrive in two days. Two figures watched from the nearby mountains.

“Lady Ganano...” said Saruizo, the leader of the Koruiga Shinobi. “Were you being serious when you said that the envoy from the Magical Kingdom of Klyrode is aboard that ship?”

“Yes, Saruizo,” answered Ganano, heir to the Odo family. “I am quite certain.” Then, turning away from the shinobi, she began muttering darkly to herself. “First we lose contact with the Shadow Conglomerate...then Korunoe, who was making the Megakuri monsters for us, goes missing...and now Fua, our coconspirator from the National Onmyo Academy, has gone dark as well. Now my only option to become head of the Odo family is to rely on the Koruiga Shinobi and their Musclemancy to subjugate our foes with sheer military force...”

With her bloodshot eyes and heaving shoulders, it was readily apparent to anyone that Ganano was far from her right mind. Any ordinary person seeing her in that state would either try to talk her down or else simply leave...but not Saruizo. Thrilled to hear his employer finally speaking favorably of the approach he had initially proposed, he had no intention of repudiating her current state of mind.

“That’s what I’ve been saying from the start!” he declared, eagerly springing to his feet. “I knew it was the best way to go!” He looked ahead at the Enchanted Frigate boarding tower, where the students from the Houghtow College of Magic were just beginning to emerge from the ship. “All right, boys!” he said, rallying the other Koruiga who were waiting in the forest behind them. “Let’s move out! One of those people is gonna be the envoy from the Magical Kingdom of Klyrode! Take the kids alive, and pound everyone else into an early grave with your magic muscles!!!”

“Yes, sir!” said the Koruiga, rising to their feet as one.

“Now!” Saruizo continued. “Let’s—” But that was as far as he got before suddenly losing consciousness, as Garyl appeared seemingly from nowhere.

“I thought I could sense something strange going on...” Garyl said. “So you’re the bad guys!”

Saruizo’s unconscious body went flying back from the force of Garyl’s attack. He had caught him off guard, but even so, taking down a man as brawny as Saruizo in a single strike was an astonishing feat. Garyl, however, seemed to be perfectly calm and composed as he looked around the area and lowered his body to a running stance. “Hah!” he cried, darting forwards at speeds that would put a tempest to shame—and relying on nothing more than his ordinary human leg strength, without transforming any part of his body to its bestial form.

“A-An enemy?!”

“Wh-Where—”

“H-He’s too fast! I can’t—”

Garyl’s speed was so preposterous that the Koruiga had no recourse but to all be sent flying as well. The whole thing was over in less than ten seconds, leaving every last Koruiga Shinobi unconscious on the ground.

Ganano stared in silent disbelief at the sudden turn of events as Garyl came walking up in front of her.

“So now it’s just you...” he began. Before he could get much further, though, he was interrupted by a group headed his way from the boarding tower. “Oh, hang on!” he said, turning to face the newcomers.

“Sir Garyl!” said Itsuhachi, as she and the members of the Barrier Defense Force came running up to meet him. “We’re here, just as you directed us before you suddenly ran off! May I ask what is happening?”

“It looks like these shinobi were just about to attack the Nagaseki Checkpoint!” Garyl explained.

“Th-They were what?!” Itsuhachi said, as a jolt of tension ran through her escort.

“Oh, but don’t worry! I took them all out myself,” Garyl reassured her. “I was just about to deal with the woman who looked like she was calling the shots, but it looks like she must have fainted.”

“I-I see!” said Itsuhachi. She and the Barrier Defense Force officers visibly relaxed. “Please, leave the rest to us!”

Garyl watched as the Defense Force set to work carrying the fallen shinobi out of the forest, and then returned to the boarding tower where the students were waiting.

“Did something happen, big brother?” Rylnàsze asked, a worried look on her face as she stepped up towards him with Swann trailing right behind.

When Garyl had suddenly run off towards the mountains, Rylnàsze had immediately moved to shield Swann, ready to put herself in harm’s way to protect the princess. All around them, a group of magic beasts and common animals alike had come out of the woodwork to guard the two girls from attack.

“I see the animals all love you as much as ever, Rylnàsze!” Garyl said, grinning cheerfully as he patted her on the head. “I’ve taken care of everything. You just focus on having fun on your school trip, okay?”

“Okay!” said Rylnàsze, bobbing her head and beaming from ear to ear.

With Ganano and the Koiruga Shinobi arrested and thrown in jail, Itsuhachi and Swann were able to come to an amicable agreement in the aftermath, forming an alliance between the Nagaseki Checkpoint and the Magical Kingdom of Klyrode. In the skies high above the city, Flio and Rys could be seen riding on Wyne’s back in her full wyvern form, watching the proceedings with great interest.

“Garyl did well, as always,” Flio said, nodding his head in approval as he watched through the window he had called up. “We didn’t need to step in at all!”

“But of course!” Rys gloated, proudly puffing out her chest now that things seemed to have come to a resolution. “Garyl is our very own, very wonderful son, after all!”

“That’s right,” said Flio, smiling fondly. “Well said, Rys.” It did seem like there was something weighing on his mind... he thought to himself. But maybe I’ve been worrying about him a bit too much... Satisfied for the time being, he nodded his head. “All right, Wyne,” he said. “Ready to head back home?”

“Uh-huh, uh-huh!” came Wyne’s cheerful reply. “Right away!” She adjusted her heading towards Houghtow City and beat her powerful wings, quickly picking up speed. Thanks to the Concealment spell Flio had cast earlier, not a single person took note that they had been there at all.

“Oh, my lord husband,” Rys proposed. “Perhaps we could stop somewhere on the way and do a little hunting to find a magic beast for tonight’s dinner?”

“Good idea!” said Flio. “We have plenty of time to spare, so why not?”

“Yaaay!” Wyne cheered, changing directions as she flew. “It’s a hunt-hunt!”

Soon the three of them were completely out of sight, vanishing into the dazzling sunlight.

Side Story: Everyone’s Morrow Part 19

◇Deep in a Forest◇

In the middle of a lush forest, surrounded by trees, stood a three-story cottage. Early one morning, the usual woodland sounds were broken by angry voices ringing out from somewhere inside.

“Hey! You! What are you doing in our house?!”

In the cottage, Cartha was holding a broom in her hands and using its end to deliver wallop after wallop to two figures dressed in matching gold and silver cheongsams.

Cartha—originally born to a farming family, and now a wife of Hugi-Mugi. Cartha fell in love with Hugi-Mugi at her first sight of the doppeladler’s human form, and after a fiercely fought campaign she finally managed to win their heart. Now she lived in their cottage in the forest, together with Hugi-Mugi’s other two wives.

“H-H-H-Hang on just a moment!” said Kintsuno the Gold.

“Listen to what we have to say!” begged Gintsuno the Silver.

The demon fox sisters seemed completely unable to fight back against the fury of Cartha’s broom. It was all they could do to run all around the house, fleeing before her unrelenting attack.

“We most certainly will not!” declared Shino, dressed in her priestess habit and brandishing a wooden cross at the sisters. “I can’t believe it! We left the house early in the morning to see the children off on their school trip, only to find you two strange women sleeping in our bed when we returned! How dare you! Evil spirits, leave this place!”

Shino—a priestess who grew up in the same village as Cartha. Like her, she too fell in love at first sight with Hugi-Mugi and now lived as one of their three wives. She still spent much of her time in the village, however, caring for the sick and injured.

“W-W-We’ve only been searching for some of our stolen property!” Kintsuno explained.

“And on the way we came across your cottage completely by chance and ended up falling asleep in your beds...” added Gintsuno.

Their pleas were not enough to dissuade Cartha and Shino, however, and soon the sisters found themselves bolting from the entryway with the humans hot on their tails. Then, from overhead, a shadow fell upon them as Hugi-Mugi arrived on the scene.

Hugi-Mugi—a kind of two-headed monstrous bird known as a doppeladler who once served as a member of Dark One Gholl’s Infernal Four, although lately they had taken to spending much of their time in the form of a human. After leaving the Dark Army, they found their way to this forest, where they had been enjoying a peaceful life together with their three wives and children.

Hugi-Mugi, in their enormous doppeladler form, breathed jets of hot flame from both of their heads at the intruders below. “You, yes! Yes, you!” they shouted. “What do you think you’re doing, yes? Yes, why are you sneaking into people’s houses?!”

“Hot hot hot!” Kintsune yipped.

“Mercy, please!” pleaded Ginstuno.

Their tails aflame from Hugi-Mugi’s fire breath, the sisters ran for their lives into the forest. Hugi-Mugi, however, had no intention of letting them go—and neither did Cartha and Shino, chasing after the foxes behind their husband.

From the front door to the cottage, Mato watched the chase unfold.

Mato—originally a merchant who found herself under attack by bandits in the forest, only to be saved by Hugi-Mugi. She began living with Hugi-Mugi in an attempt to repay them for saving her life, but over the course of their time together she came to fall in love as well, and now she lived with them as their third wife.

“Those women were trying to steal the magic gems and other valuables I purchased from that golden-haired man the other day, by the looks of things...” Mato mused, as she went to pick up the various precious items the demon fox sisters had left scattered all over the floor in their haste to escape. “Perhaps it would be better if I sold these things off sooner rather than later.”

All the while she could see fires raging here and there as Hugi-Mugi continued to press the attack.

◇Houghtow City—Houghtow College of Magic School Store◇

The school store for the Houghtow College of Magic was located in a building near the center of campus. The building’s first floor was home to the shop and food hall, while the second and above served as dormitories, all managed by the Fli-o’-Rys General Store.

The dormitories were home to many students whose primary residences were too far away to easily make the journey to school, with the food hall and store staff residing there full-time as well in order to be on hand to respond to any sort of situation. Currently on duty was a graduate of Houghtow College of Magic.

Irystiel—Garyl’s former classmate from his time at the Houghtow College of Magic. Since graduating, she’d found a job with the Fli-o’-Rys General Store and now worked at the school store on campus. Irystiel was half devil and so painfully shy that she was incapable of conversing without the aid of her stuffed animals. Her older sister, Belianna, was one of the Dark Army’s current Infernal Four, but that detail was being kept secret.

Irystiel was dressed much the same as she used to during her days at school, in a black gothic lolita dress. At the present moment, she was using a cloth to wipe the food hall table. Her black stuffed bear, which ordinarily would never be seen outside her hands, was cleaning up as well, using a broom that was quite a bit bigger than its own body to gather all the trash littering the floor into one pile.

The stuffed animal used to be nothing more than an ordinary doll, but after all the time and personal importance Irystiel—a devil—had invested into the object, it had begun to develop a will of its own...or at least enough of one to help Irystiel with her work.

This bear was a present from Lord Garyl... Irystiel thought, her cheeks flushing as she glanced over at the stuffed animal. I’m keeping it with me forever...

As Irystiel and her doll were working in the food hall, a woman stepped inside the building. “Hey!” she said. “Irystiel!” It was her older sister Belianna, in her disguise as a human.

Irystiel startled as her sister entered the room, looking back over her shoulders at the door. Is it a student?! Or...a teacher?! she thought, but when she saw who it was she breathed a sigh of relief. Her stuffed bear ran up to her feet and Irystiel scooped it up into her arms, casting a quick cleaning spell on herself and the bear as she did.

“Irystiel says, ‘Knock before you enter the room!’ Graarh!” the stuffed bear said, animated by Irystiel’s skillful ventriloquism.

“Hey, what gives?” said Belianna, giving her sister the side-eye. “I thought you could talk normally to me at the damned least. What are you doing treating me like I’m some damned stranger?”

Irystiel lowered the bear to her chest level and teasingly stuck out her tongue, although from the look on her face she was still feeling very shy.

I was so damned worried when I first sent her to this damned magic school... Belianna thought. Back then she never used to show any of her emotions, like some kind of damned doll. It’s damned good to see she’s learned how to express herself so much...

Belianna and Irystiel were in fact half sisters, with only the same father in common. While Belianna’s parents were both devils, Irystiel had a human for a mother. At the time the humans and demons were still at war, and the union was enough of a controversy for their family to be demoted from high-ranking to low-ranking nobility. For that reason among others, Belianna sent her to the Houghtow College of Magic, concerned that things might get “damned hairy” for Irystiel, as she put it, if she sent her to “one of those damned demon schools.”

“I haven’t seen you in a while, big sister...” Irystiel said, smiling happily. “I guess you must have been very busy? Have you been keeping well?”

“Well, recently I’ve been running all around the damned frontier hunting some damned demon bandits, on the orders of Dark—” She cut herself off, thinking better of mentioning the Dark One’s name in a human school, even if it was a time of peace. “W-Well, you know. Him. But on the upside, all the work has been doing wonders for my damned reputation.”

Irystiel smiled as Belianna recounted her exploits with evident delight. Big sister Belianna was always so tired when she first began working for the Dark Army... she recalled as she nodded along. It’s good to see her so full of energy lately...

“Anyway, guess damned what!” Belianna continued, suddenly leaning in close. “I’ve been having a damned ton of near misses with the Wolf of Justice in the middle of my damned missions. I haven’t managed to run into him, but if we keep showing up in the same damned places, sooner or later I might have the chance to fight by his damned side! Can you imagine...”

The two sisters talked on for quite a while, Belianna chatting away as Irystiel listened happily to everything she had to say.

◇Houghtow City—Fli-o’-Rys General Store Company Dormitory◇

Not far from the Fli-o’-Rys General Store itself was the dormitory meant for company staff. It was there that most of the individuals working for the store made their homes. In one of the rooms, Greanyl sat down on the side of her bed, removing the muffler she kept wrapped around her neck to reveal her bare face.

“The shinobi have been adjusting to their new jobs faster than I had been expecting, thanks to Mister Flio’s help...” she said to no one in particular. “It’s been good to see.”

“Quite right!” replied a girl’s voice from somewhere near the ceiling of the room. “It’s part of our creed as shinobi to always perform better than what our contractors pay for. That’s why we’ve been striving to go beyond the initial terms of our contract.”

Greanyl shot a reproachful glare up towards the spot where the voice had come from. “Sasuran...” she said. “I told you that spying is forbidden in the company dorms, didn’t I...?”

“Oh, please don’t misunderstand,” Sasuran said as a panel on the ceiling flipped over to reveal her stuck to the other side. “You shadow demons excel at detecting the presence of magic, but perhaps you are at something of a disadvantage against those of us who use physical techniques to conceal our bodies. I came to offer that bit of advice. And also...” Here Sasuran hopped down from the ceiling and took to one knee. “I wanted to thank my old friend for guiding us shinobi of the Uga clan to this place.” She lowered herself to both knees and bowed so low that her head touched the floor of the room.

“Y-You really don’t have to do that...” Greanyl said, urging Sasuran to stand back up.

When Sasuran lifted her head, however, her face bore a smile that could almost be described as smug. “So!” she said. “How far have you taken things with your Sir Dalc Horst?”

“Wh-What in the world are you talking about?!” Greanyl sputtered.

“What in the world, hm? Do you think I’m blind?” Sasuran teased. “Come on! What’s the harm in indulging in a little love gossip from time to time?”

“I-I’m telling you!” insisted the shadow demon. “S-Sir Dalc Horst and I don’t have that sort of relationship!”

“Oh, you don’t?” Sasuran asked. “In that case, I suppose you’d have no problem with me taking him for myself?”

“What?! No! Y-You can’t!”

“Hmmm? But if there’s nothing going on, you should have no reason to object, right?”

“B-But...” Greanyl objected, her face bright red.

Sasuran carried on teasing Greanyl for quite some time as the two of them chatted with each other about this and that late into the night.

◇Houghtow City—Fli-o’-Rys Adventurers’ Academy◇

Ghozal stood at the counter of the Fli-o’-Rys Adventurers’ Academy before the store opened, holding the katana Flio had purchased for him as a souvenir of his trip to Hi Izuru. “Hrm...” he said, giving the weapon a few test swings. “A fine blade. I’ve heard that traditional Hi Izuran katanas are made with some kind of special forging method. I’d be willing to bet a sword picked out by Mister Flio would be of that kind...”

He held the sword in front of him, closely inspecting the blade. “Well, look at that!” he said, whistling with admiration. “I couldn’t tell at first glance, but this sword is made with layer after layer of steel, all forged together! I’d say it’s several times more powerful than a cheap magic sword. But I bet it will be even stronger if I channel my own magic power into it...” He focused his magic into the katana in his hands, its blade glowing bright in response. “Hrm!” he shouted, delivering a single horizontal cut.

The top half of the Adventurers’ Academy front wall slid noticeably out of alignment from the foundation. Ghozal, it seemed, had cut the entire front half of the building neatly in half with that single strike.

“H-Hrm...” he said, a troubled look coming over his face. “Th-That’s not good, is it...?”

“Mister Ghozal...?” asked Mulana. Ghozal turned to see her standing behind him, a look of disbelief frozen on her face. “What are you doing?”

“Oh! Mulana!” Ghozal laughed. “I was just testing the cutting edge of this sword! Looks like I overdid it a bit! Let’s hope the whole place doesn’t come crashing down, huh?”

“D-Don’t make jokes about that!” Mulana shot back, her expression deadly serious.

Alas, the Fli-o’-Rys Adventurers’ Academy would have to have its opening time pushed back by quite a bit on that particular day.

◇The Magical Kingdom of Klyrode—Maiden Queen’s Chambers◇

The Maiden Queen sat back on her bed. “We were able to formalize our alliance with Hi Izuru, thanks to all of the Third Princess’s hard work,” she said, smiling with sisterly pride.

“See?” the Second Princess said, smiling back. “I told you she could do it.”

“And indeed you were correct,” said the Queen. “At the time I had thought it couldn’t be done unless you or I paid a visit personally. I thank you for your counsel.” She lowered her head in gratitude, but then her expression suddenly darkened. “I would like to thank the Third Princess for her efforts as well, but she’s been in bed with that fever ever since she returned from Hi Izuru...”

“Oh, that...” the Second Princess said, with just a note of hesitation in her voice. “Just a hunch, but I wouldn’t worry too much about it if I were you...”

“Why, what do you mean?” the Maiden Queen asked. “She’s picked up some sickness from visiting a land she’s never been to before, hasn’t she...?”

“No, I think it’s probably something else...” the Second Princess said. “In any event, we should just let her rest for the time being.”

“I’m not entirely sure what you mean...” the Queen said, nodding her head in spite of her misgivings. “But if you say so, Second Princess, I believe you.”

Meanwhile, in her own chambers, the Third Princess lay on her side in bed, her face a brilliant shade of scarlet and her breathing hot and labored.

“A-Ahhh...” she sighed. “Rylnàsze... Y-You shouldn’t touch me there...”

After she had finished with the contract, Swann had gone on to have a truly wonderful time with Rylnàsze on her school trip. Now she was lying in bed, repeating those memories to herself with such fervent passion that it had actually caused her to develop the symptoms of a fever. Just as her sister the Second Princess had predicted, it would take her several days before she was fully recovered.

◇Flio’s House—The Stable◇

Telbyress stepped into the attic of the stable outside of Flio’s house, humming happily as she entered. “Hm hm hm hm hmmm! Once again I’ve given Hokh’hokton the slip and snuck all the way to my secret liquor cabinet!”

By all appearances, Telbyress was indulging in her usual habit of skipping out on work in the middle of the day in order to hide out with a bottle of liquor. This time, however, something was wrong.

“Huh...?” Telbyress’s face fell as she stared in stunned disbelief. The bottles of liquor that had once stood proudly lining one wall of the attic had all vanished without a trace. All that was left was a note, written in Hokh’hokton’s hand.

“I’ve sold all your liquor,” it said.

For a while Telbyress could do nothing but stand there, uncomprehending. Then she let out a horrible sobbing cry. “My liquooooooor!!!” she wailed, in a voice absent of even a single shred of the dignity one might expect from a former goddess.

◇Houghtow City—Fli-o’-Rys General Store◇

“All right, everyone!” the turquoise wolf leader said, raising his voice. “It’s another day! Let’s show ’em what we can do!”

His pack, lined up single file, all raised their arms as one in response.

“Yeah!”

“Let’s get it done!”

Flio and Sleip watched the turquoise wolves go about their morning routine from a short distance away.

“They’re still a bit rough around the edges, but you can’t fault their motivation, can you?” said Sleip, folding his arms and nodding in approval.

“I have to say, though...” Flio said. “We’ve had so many former bandits come to join the Fli-o’-Rys General Store. Are you sure you can handle taking them all for your own supply team?”

“Ha ha hah!” Sleip laughed, flexing his biceps. “No need to worry! I’m not about to lose to a bunch of pip-squeaks like them!”

“True, with muscles like those I suppose you wouldn’t,” Flio said, managing to crack a smile in the face of Sleip’s overwhelming vitality. “Speaking of which, Greanyl’s team seems like they’ve been having a much easier time of things too, thanks to all the new shinobi we hired.”

“I can imagine,” Sleip said. “So much of their work is keeping tabs on bandit gangs and dangerous magic beasts, after all. A crafty bunch like those shinobi is the best tool they could ask for, like an oni and their iron club!”

“True enough!” Flio nodded.

Just then, Rys came running up with a smile on her face. “My lord husband!” she said.

“Rys, what has you in such a hurry?” asked Flio.

“W-Well, my lord husband, you see...” she began, fidgeting nervously and cradling her arm. “I’ve heard that some very dangerous magic beasts took up residence in the mountains just ahead. Do you think we could maybe...um...go on a hunting date together, right this moment?” Even as the words left her mouth, she was already turning her limbs into their bestial forms.

“Ha ha hah!” Sleip laughed. “No trouble in paradise between Mister Flio and Rys, I see!”

“Of course not, Sleip!” said Rys. “And don’t think for even a second that I’ll let you interfere!”

“Ha ha, all right...” Flio said with a chuckle. “I’ll go and get my—”

“No!” Rys insisted. “Let’s just go like this!” Within moments she was fully transformed into her lupine demon body, running as fast as her four legs could carry her.

“Ah! R-Rys?!” said Flio, rushing after her to climb up on her back.

“It’s been so long since we went on a date!” Rys gushed as soon as Flio was sitting down, running like the wind all the while. “I’m so excited!”

Rys looks really happy right now... Flio thought as he found himself smiling at Rys’s exuberant joy. In the blink of an eye, the two of them had vanished down the road and out of sight, just as Byleri happened to be coming along.

“Like, what was that?” Byleri asked Sleip, raising an eyebrow. “Are Mister Flio and Madame Rys, like, going on one of their dates or something?”

“That’s right,” said Sleip. “They’re every bit as lovey-dovey as ever, those two.”

“They, like, totally are!” Byleri said, bobbing her head and smiling.

“Hmm...” Sleip considered. “Say, Byleri...what do you think of going on a hunting date ourselves one of these—”

“Say what?!!!” Byleri exclaimed, rejecting the idea with all the strength she could muster. “Like, no way, no way, no way, no way, no way!!! I could never! Totally, absolutely never!”

Off in the distance, they could hear the sound of Rys raising a joyful howl to the sky.

Afterword

Thank you very much for reading this book!

Incredibly, Level 2 Cheat has now reached the number of nineteen volumes. The story this time was about the Fli-o’-Rys General Store going to Hi Izuru, where they had encounters with some brand-new characters as well as a reunion with some returning cast from the last time we visited.

This time the story of Hero Gold-Hair and his party actually had a small connection to Flio’s side of things. Flio’s parts, on the other hand, have really been putting the “Chillin’” in Chillin’ in Another World. I hope I’ve been able to find an enjoyable equilibrium.

And once again, as reliably as always, the manga version of Level 2 Cheat will be going on sale at the same time as this book. They’ve written some really entertaining stuff for the children’s event that started in the last volume. Even I was blown away! I for one can’t wait to see how the manga timeline will continue to diverge from the original.

Finally, as always, I’d like to thank Katagiri for the excellent illustrations, everyone at Overlap and elsewhere involved with the publication of this book, and every one of you who picked up a copy, from the very bottom of my heart.

February 2025, Miya Kinojo