"Alright, this is the newest product."
"Ohoho... Just what is this thing...? There's something inside?"
I was talking to Olba Strand in his company's Brunhild branch building.
The upper part of the device I was showcasing was clear, filled with goods.
Below there was a slot for money and a handle you could rotate. Below that,
there was a hole where something could come out.
In short, I had invented the capsule toy dispenser. Though the capsules inside
weren't exactly spherical.
"I guess you could call it an automated lottery machine. How about you give it
a try?" Olba put a small bronze coin into the gap and turned the handle. A small
noise came from the machine as it moved around. In response, the machine
released a small, cylindrical capsule through the prize hole.
"What's this?"
"Open it up and see." Olba unraveled the string tied around the leatherwrapped capsule, and out popped a miniature Frame Gear. The figurine he'd
gotten was a tiny Chevalier. I'd crafted it from a rubber-like substance created
by breaking down animal horns. I made sure to include all the details of the real
thing.
"Oho! This is certainly well-made... But can't we just sell these the regular
way? Why the machine?"
"The little capsules don't just have Chevaliers inside, it's down to random
chance which one you get. Here's the full list." Olba looked over the list I'd
written, and he went wide-eyed upon realizing just how many varieties there
were. He still didn't seem to quite understand, though.
"Ah, well... I'm still a little confused about the little boxes... Can't we just sell
the items in stores? Why the extra fanfare?"
"Well, let's say you want a Knight Baron figurine, right? You'd be able to just
buy it from a store for one bronze penny if we sold it regularly. But if we put it
in one of these machines, then..."
"Oh! Ohhh! I see now! You aren't likely to get it in one try! You'd need to
keep on trying until you get the ones you want! Maximum profit potential,
you're a genius!" In short, we were playing on the impulses of the masses. It
was still cheap enough not to ruin anyone, and it'd ensure we saw a steady
stream of cash. What's more, we'd encourage people to trade in ten of them
for a copper coin. That'd allow us to refill the machines more regularly.
I took out another of the capsule dispensers from [Storage].
"This one has higher quality goods than the older one. One try costs one
copper. It costs ten times more than the previous machine. But the prizes in this
one are made out of metal." It was like comparing a child's machine with an
adult's machine. Though it wasn't like it'd be an issue if a child used the copper
one, or if an adult used the bronze one.
Olba turned the handle on the more expensive one. The prize he got this time
was a Blue Moon Frame Gear, the Blue Knight. That was the specially modified
Knight Baron that Vice-Commander Norn used.
This one was slightly bigger than the rubber one, and despite its weight, it
would look good as a decorative or collector's piece.
The full list of potential prizes was:
Gerhilde (Elze's Frame Gear)
Schwertleite (Yae's Frame Gear)
Siegrune (Hilde's Frame Gear)
Ortlinde (Sue's Frame Gear)
Helmwige (Linze's Frame Gear)
Grimgerde (Leen's Frame Gear)
The Shining Count (Commander's Frame Gear)
The Knight Baron (Vice-Commander's Frame Gear)
The Blue Moon (Vice-Commander's Frame Gear)
The Chevalier (Standard Frame Gear)
Dragoon (Ende's Frame Gear)
Various Miniature Weapons
On top of that, there were prizes that weren't based on Frame Gears, too.
Black Dragon
Wyvern
Snorra Wolf
Mithril Golem
Scorpinas
Demon Lord
Bloody Crab
Wood Golem
King Ape
Various Tiny Magical Beasts
So we had a monster collection and a mecha collection.
I added in the monster collection because I wanted there to be some decent
variety to start with. I didn't want people being like "Aw man, it's just a
Chevalier again..."
Either way, there was still a chance that someone out there might constantly
get Chevaliers... That was simply a matter of chance.
For the third time, I took a capsule machine out of my [Storage]. It was the
real deal, this time. The main piece. Bigger than the last two, and much fancier.
"This one doesn't require money to turn the handle. I was thinking that when
someone spends enough money in your store, they get one turn of this as a
freebie. The items inside this one are a far higher quality than the last two;
they're crafted out of dragon bone. They're also properly colored and their
limbs are fully articulated." They were action figures, fully articulated to the
point where certain models, like Linze's Frame Gear, could even do a full
transformation sequence.
"Spends enough money... Like one silver coin?"
"Mm, well I'm not sure honestly. You're the financial expert here, so I'll leave
determining that to you." A silver coin was around ten-thousand yen, so I
wasn't entirely sure. But at the end of the day, it was a free gift, so it was his
choice.
Making them wasn't all that difficult, either. The articulated ones would take
a little more effort, but Olba had a dedicated dwarven craftsman working for his
company, so I was sure it'd be fine.
We installed the bronze penny machine inside Olba's store, if we installed it
outside there was always the risk of theft, after all. A group of kids immediately
came over to see what it was all about, and they began turning the handle.
Oh, a Dragoon. That's pretty rare.
"This is interesting indeed... If we alternate the contents, I'm sure we'll save
on cost..." Olba muttered to himself as he watched people turn the handle. He
was probably making a bunch of business choices internally already.
I passed on the various molds for the figures to Olba, then left the store. I was
confident he could handle the rest.
I walked down the main street when some commotion up ahead suddenly
caught my attention. There was a small crowd gathered, so I peered through
the gaps and saw someone making an arrest.
"Pin him! He's under arrest!" Four of our knights were restraining two rowdy
men. They were quickly bound with rope, and then three of the knights carted
them off.
"Sorry for the trouble, everyone. It's quite alright now!" The last knight stayed
behind to calm down the panicking people. I recognized him.
"Yo! Good job just now."
"Hm? Ah... Y-Your Highness!" The blond-haired knight immediately attempted
to genuflect. It was Lanz Tempest. He was one of our newer recruits who came
from Lestia.
"Hey now, don't worry about that. You can stand. It's a little troublesome if
you decide to do that every time you see me, so please don't worry."
"V-Very well..." He sounded a little confused, but he stood up. His behavior
made sense, he was from a kingdom of chivalry, after all.
"So, what happened?"
"Ah, well. A waitress in a nearby restaurant was being harassed. Her son ran
over to inform us, and we immediately apprehended the perpetrators."
I see... So they were getting a little handsy with a waitress, huh. That's
despicable. I'll make sure they pay for their crimes.
Once I saw they were restraining criminals with rope, I was a little puzzled. It
looked like something out of a historical drama. I was sure there had to be
something more convenient than that in this world... Did they have no shackles
or iron clasps?
"Tsk... Guess I'll have to make some."
"Hm?" I reached into [Storage] and produced a steel ingot, which I promptly
transformed into a pair of handcuffs.
Oh right, gotta make the keys too... It took a few minutes, but I created a fine
set of cuffs.
"Your Highness, what is this?"
"Handcuffs! They're light and easier to carry around than ropes or shackles.
Here, give me your hands." He stuck out his arms and I clasped the cuffs on to
his wrists.
"I-Incredible... They're surprisingly tough, too..." Lanz tried to resist the cuffs,
but they refused to budge. I used the key on them and they easily snapped
open.
"You can keep them. Use these instead of tying people up, alright? I figure
we'll make this standard for the patrol. You won't be able to unlock them
without the key, though... Hold on, I'll make a spare."
"V-Very well!"
Man, you're so wooden... If I recalled correctly, Logan was in charge of the
patrol. I made a mental note to go check the details over with him later.
"So, how's life in Brunhild?"
"Quite fine, sir. Everything I see here is so lively and interesting. It's a truly
wonderful, kind country." I was happy Lanz felt that way. It made me happy to
know that people from afar thought so highly of Brunhild.
"Oh? It's you, Touya? Hm, Lanz as well?" I suddenly heard the voice of Micah,
proprietor of the Brunhild branch of the Silver Moon Inn. She was carrying a lot
of stuff with her. She must've been out shopping.
"It's been a while since you dropped by the inn. How're you doing? Staying
healthy, I hope."
"I'm doing well, thanks. I'm keeping healthy, promise." I smiled towards
Micah; she hadn't changed a bit. It reminded me that I hadn't had lunch in the
Silver Moon in a long time.
"M-Miss Micah... Wh-Why are you speaking so casually to our leader...?!"
"Ahaha, don't worry about her. She's an old friend of mine. I've known her
longer than any of my fiancees, even. She's fine." Lanz looked like he was about
to fly into a panic. She was basically the first friend I made in this world, other
than Fashion King Zanac. I only met her a few hours after him.
"So you know Lanz, do you?"
"Sure do! He's been visiting a lot lately, you know? He's a repeat customer!"
"A-Ah, uhm... that... That's only because your cooking is so lovely, Miss
Micah! I-It's just that the flavor is like no other, it reminds me of home, almost!"
Lanz suddenly stood rigid and began stammering. His face was beet red, too...
Hmm... I wonder what that's all about...
"She's got you under her spell, has she, Lanz?"
"Wh-?! Y-Your Highness, I... Wh-What?!"
"...The spell of her cooking, of course. Did you think I meant something else?"
"Ngh... N-No! Not at all, sir!"
Ahahaha... This guy's head over heels... Micah simply tilted her head, unable
to read the atmosphere.
"Micah, those bags look heavy... You should help her back to the Silver Moon
with them, Lanz."
"Oh, yes! That'd be a big help."
"V-Very well! I'll do my best!" Lanz, still red in the face, took Micah's bags and
began walking to the inn. I waved the two of them off.
Micah was around twenty years old, while Lanz was twenty-two. They
certainly seemed to be in a good enough age bracket, but... Micah's father was
a muscular, bearded giant. He'd need a lot of luck to face that mountain of a
man.
"Their relationship's becoming pretty interesting, y'know?"
"Whuh?! Where'd you come from?!" Karen was suddenly by my side. I hadn't
sensed her presence at all. Just where the hell did she come from.
"Ufufufu... In the presence of budding affection, you'll find me! In the
presence of blossoming love, you'll find me! It is I, god of love, Mochizuki Karen,
y'know?!" She struck an elaborate pose and made a peace sign, but I just stared
at her flatly.
"...I was just keeping an eye."
"Sure you were...!"
Man, you'll get in trouble one of these days. Still, her reputation as the love
goddess was spreading, she gave out a lot of advice to people, and those people
often ended up getting together.
Still, there were those who broke up after getting together, and she would
often persuade those with hopeless affections to give up on the people they
cared about. Karen said that giving up on unhealthy things was also a valid part
of love, and she encouraged it.
"Don't meddle too much, alright?"
"You shouldn't be rude, y'know? I don't interfere with anyone's love life
unless they ask me directly! Love is a natural feeling in the end, y'know? You
can't hurry love." She sounded pretty reasonable, but I still had my doubts.
After all, she wasn't the kind of person who held back often.
"So, what brings you here? Did you get them together?"
"Mm... Oh, that's right! There was something bothering me a little, y'know? I
can sense some divinity in the southeast!"
"Wait, what?!"
Is it the servile god again? I can't sense any right now, but Karen and Moroha
are much, much better at it, I guess...
"Is it the servile god or something...?"
"Nope! Smells different, y'know? Definitely belongs to a lesser god like me
and Moroha. I didn't think that was possible, though..."
Wait, what? I had a bad feeling in my gut...
"Yep, looks like a third one's come down to join us, y'know?"
Wait, what?! Gimme a break! I sighed quietly and pinched the bridge of my
nose. Just what kind of god could've landed?
◇ ◇ ◇
"So, where are we looking?"
"Around here, you know? I didn't get a solid read because the divinity
vanished in a matter of moments." Once we got back to the castle I opened up
a map and asked Karen to pinpoint where she felt the spike of divinity. She
pointed at an area to the southeast, past Ramissh and near the Kingdom of
Ryle. It was just a bit into the Sea of Trees.
The region she guessed at was pretty big... I honestly had my doubts we'd be
able to find the god. Moroha was in the Sea of Trees when we met her, too.
That led me to believe that there must've been some kind of landmark or
special aspect of the area that made it more convenient for gods to descend.
"So, let me get this straight... This person, or, uh, god, I guess... can freely use
their powers?"
"In a sense, yes and no. We're not allowed to interfere with the lower realms
using our godly powers, but we can use those powers to make ourselves appear
more human, you know? Interfering down here is fine so long as we don't use
any divinity in the process, too. Loopholes are pretty handy, y'know?" Guess
that makes sense... Kinda. Neither of my sisters have been able to use their
divinity except for dealing with that servile god, after all... Even if Moroha's
super-powerful, I guess she just counts as apex human instead of god... Though I
can't help but suspect she must be cheating a little.
"Even in your case, Touya. You probably shouldn't use your true divinity too
much, you know?"
I was at a loss. I couldn't tell where the other god was, so there was nothing
to be done for it.
Well whatever, I guess it's fine. Still, I kind of hope no other gods show up.
Karen's bad enough as it i— My thoughts were cut off by my intense pain.
"You were thinking of something impolite just now, right?!"
"Ow, ow! I'm sorry! Let go!" Karen was squeezing my cheeks. That chick had a
supernatural talent for knowing what I was thinking! Though, she was
supernatural herself...
"And just what's all this commotion...?"
"Ah! Moroha!" The other sister appeared as if from nowhere, to save me
from my suffering. It kind of made sense that she'd be here too, she probably
sensed the divinity like Karen did.
"You felt it too, huh?"
"Sure did, you know? We were thinking about whether or not we should go
meet the new visitor."
"Hmm... I wouldn't mind giving them a little visit myself. Mostly I just wanna
know who up and rolled down here. It won't be a big deal unless it's the god of
apocalypses or something."
What?! If it's that guy then send him back right away!
"People can only come down here if they have the permission from the World
God, so I doubt it's anyone hostile. Could be the god of the forge, the god of
agriculture, or the god of commerce."
"Aww... Forge and agriculture are fine, but... I'd rather not have it be
commerce, you know?"
"You two really don't get along, huh?" I listened to the two talk and learned
that certain gods just had bad affinities with each other.
"I'd personally be pretty pleased if it was the god of katanas, god of spears, or
god of war. Touya over here hasn't been giving me much fun lately."
Oh, gimme a break. Training with you even wears me out, sheesh... Hell, last
time I sparred with you I had to rest up for a full day! Of course I ain't gonna
play around with you if you come at me with killing intent, you lunatic! Not to
mention the fact that I haven't won a single match against you. Fifty-two losses!
Can you blame me? I knew nothing of the god of spears or the god of katanas,
but I had the sinking feeling they'd be similar to Moroha. Though... If it was one
of them that came down and they agreed to be Moroha's sparring partner, that
would actually be a major relief.
"Well, that aside... Let's go look around. There'll probably be a reaction or
something if I let loose some of my divinity in the area."
"Gotcha. They'll know about you as well, Touya. So I don't think there'll be an
issue meeting up, you know?" I opened up a [Gate] to the Kingdom of Ryle's
border. More specifically, it was the large expanse where I had fought the
Scorpinas Behemoth. After that, we walked toward the Sea of Trees.
"Hm... Can't you two fly?"
"I mean, we could, but we shouldn't really be using our divinity." Moroha had
a point. Still, going through the Sea of Trees was a problem, so I decided to
finally use something interesting I'd found in the storehouse.
I opened up [Storage] to reveal the matter of interest. I spread it on to the
ground. It was a little bit big, more than wide enough for the three of us to sit
on.
"What's this?"
"It's a magic carpet, apparently. Let's sit down and see how it goes." I told my
two confused sisters to sit down on it, and they obliged. Then, I sat down in
front of them. In almost an instant, the carpet began floating a full meter into
the air.
"Alright, let's go." The carpet slowly began to move forward. There was a
barrier that automatically deployed around it in order to prevent wind
resistance or accidental falling. It was a pretty handy feature. I also applied
[Invisible] so nobody saw me gallivanting around like I just leaped out of a
Disney movie.
"Oh gosh... This is really nice, you know?"
"The only issue is that it takes a ton of magical power to operate, so it's
useless for most people." The two of them gradually got used to it, so I took the
speed up a notch. I didn't get to do any cool loops or acrobatic tricks, though.
Eventually, we arrived above the Sea of Trees. I stopped the carpet, and we
hovered in the air looking down at it.
"I'll release some of my divinity, then." I triggered my Apotheosis very, very
carefully, and almost immediately afterward a flash of divinity came from the
forest in response. It seemed like they had sensed mine, then flashed theirs
back as a signal.
"Hngh?!"
"Hmph?!" Karen and Moroha briefly had goofy expressions on their faces, like
they'd been electrocuted for a few seconds.
"Something wrong?"
"Ah, well... That divinity we felt just now..."
"It came from multiple sources, you know?"
Multiple sources?! What the hell is that supposed to mean...? There are
multiple literal gods over there? What are they doing, having a goddamn
party?!
"What does this mean?"
"I don't know... But there's only one way to find out, you know? Let's go,
Touya!" I didn't know what to say, so I had to go and see in order to believe. I
made the magic carpet head toward the source.
Gradually, I could make out someone in a small forest clearing. Not just
someone, but several someones.
As we got closer, we could hear some lovely music. On top of that, there was
the sound of laughter and a delicious smell.
"...What the...?"
"Goodness..."
"That's amazing, you know...?"
They were actually doing it. They were actually having a goddamn party.
A young man was playing the mandolin as a little red-faced girl sat chugging
booze. If that wasn't odd enough, there was a middle-aged man nearby
shoveling berries and nuts into his mouth while a young woman merrily grilled
meat nearby.
What the hell is this? I jumped off the carpet as it landed before turning to
Karen.
"It's the god of music, the god of alcohol, the god of the hunt, and the god of
agriculture, you know?"
What the hell?! There's four of them?! I stared on in abject confusion as the
little girl noticed us and waved us over.
"Heee~! It's the blade goddess and the love goddess, hic! Come and have a
drink, hic!" She was a little girl with long, blue hair, and looked to be about
seven years old. She was clearly younger than Sue as far as appearances went,
too. Though, oddest of all, she was clumsily waving a bottle of booze around.
What the hell, this kid is the god of alcohol?! The one playing the mandolin
was clearly the god of music. He looked to be in his twenties, he seemed like a
pretty-boy as well. He smiled gently in my direction, his blond hair swaying in
the breeze, but he didn't stop playing for a single second.
It kind of felt like he was expressing his feelings through his notes. The tune
he was playing had subtly shifted once he noticed us, in fact.
The older-looking man stuffing his face with berries looked to be in the prime
of his life. He was laughing merrily. His eyes were slightly narrow, and he looked
pretty relaxed in general. His hair was a plain brown and he had a fairly simple
air about him. I assumed him to be the god of agriculture, which only left the
green-haired girl with the ponytail to be the god of the hunt. She had some
improvised arrows by her side, along with a bow.
She was grilling some meat, presumably sourced from some game she'd
hunted down herself. I wondered just what the hell she was cooking though, as
the meat looked almost identical to those on-the-bone hunks you'd see in
manga. It looked really good!
"Well then... Why are you guys here, you know? There are way too many of
you to have been sent against the servile god, you know...?"
"Nope, ain't that. Mhhh... We ain't... Chomp... Here for no servile gods." The
god of the hunt muttered as she tore her way through hunks of meat. She sure
was a wild person... er, god. But I wondered what she meant by her statement.
"We're here fer you, laddie. Assigned to ya, in fact."
"Huh?!"
The narrow-eyed older man... er, god... pointed toward me. I absentmindedly
pointed my own finger toward myself as well.
"Touya? What do you mean you're assigned to him?" Moroha spoke up
before I even had a chance to voice my confusion.
"It is how it is, lass. World god gave 'im divinity, aye? An' he's gonna reach
godhood with the old feller's blessin', too. It's our duty an' honor as senior gods
to make sure the little whelp kin follow on in our footsteps as a proud an'
powerful god, won'tcha agree...?"
"Yeah, yeah! Hic... We thought of a cool story to justify it so, hic, we're gonna
play down in the mortal world for a bit, woohoo!"
...Please don't be so frank about it! Did you guys seriously use my budding
divinity as a convenient excuse to goof off down in the mortal realm?!
The god of the hunt let out a boisterous laugh all of a sudden.
"Naaaw, it's fine! Been a long time since we mortalized ourselves, yeah? We
just gotta get used to our bodies for a bit, bwahaha... I tried fighting two of
those magic beasties and doing it as a mortal was pretty damn refreshing!"
"Yahoo, hic! Been forever since I drank anything other than sacramental
nectar! I'm getting all boozed up, hic! Hell yeah!"
"Aye, been a good while since I came an' ate some've the soil's bounty
myself. S'delicious an' pure."
"..." The god of music simply remained silent as his strumming seemed to
transmit the sound of contentment. Was he seriously not going to talk?
"That's great, you know? Good job on getting his permission!"
"Yeah, it was no biggie! We said to him that we wanted to go, and he said he
didn't have a problem. He asked us to keep an eye on the little guy over here,
so that's what we'll do...!"
"...Little guy?" Gimme a break... I feel like the old man was trying to do
something nice, but he sent down a bunch of weird eccentrics to get the job
done...
"Pshaaaw... It's no problem! C'mon, drink up!" The god of the hunt shoved a
wooden cup full of booze in my general direction.
I guess I can legally drink, sure... but don't be so pushy about it!
"...Where'd you guys even get the alcohol from?"
"Hmhmm~? Hic, we beat up a bunch of nasties for a tribe in the area, and we
got aaall these lovely drinkies as a reward. I'm the god of alcohol, hic, but
drinking in the higher realm does nothing for me, hic! That's why I'm happy
down here, you feel me? I get all buzzed and shit! Eeheheh!" The god of
alcohol's face was almost entirely red, and she was laughing like an idiot.
A-Are you drunk already? Is that okay? The fact that you look so young is
kinda throwing me off... Your eyes are spinning, are you seriously alright?!
She unsteadily stumbled toward me and started pulling at my pants leg. I had
no idea what she wanted.
"Hey, Big Brooo, hic... Gimme some snacks, some snacks! Squid... Edamame...
Yakitoriii, hic! I know you're holding out!"
H-How... How did you know that?! I have all of those things in my [Storage]
right now... Is that divinity at work?
"Oho, sounds yummy. Let's have some, yeah? We don't have much to eat
here, and we gotta celebrate! We're super-duper celestial beings, but for now,
let's forget about that and party!"
"Aye, yer right! I wanna try havin' a bite of what the ground world has ta
offer, too!"
"......" The god of agriculture nodded along with the god of the hunt's
words, and the god of music simply intensified his strumming. Karen and
Moroha simply looked at each other, then me. Their expressions were one of
defeat.
"Geez Louise... Guess it's just one of those moments."
"It'll be fine, you know? Bring out the food, Touya."
I shrugged my shoulders and listened to my sister, opening [Storage] to pull
out a table, several chairs, and a lot of food and drink.
The god of the hunt started wolfing down the food as the god of agriculture
slowly savored his food. The god of alcohol, on the other hand, was alternating
sips of booze with handfuls of snacks. The god of music played slow, somber
tunes and didn't eat a single bite. After a while, the god of alcohol shoved a
yakitori into his mouth and the tunes became merry. It seemed like he
expressed his feelings through the notes he strummed, but frankly, I wished
he'd just put the damn thing down.
Even my sisters began to get drunk and merry, and they joined in on the
festivities. I was effectively participating in a divine banquet.
Frankly, it was weird as hell...
I wandered away from the main group and picked up my phone.
"Just what's the big idea here?"
"Ah, well... They have been working very hard for very long, you see. I thought
perhaps some time off would do them some good."
I was on the phone with the old man, the big G himself. Frankly, I wasn't too
keen on my world becoming a pleasure cruise destination for any gods who
were needing some downtime. I wondered if it was really alright for gods to be
doing that, before remembering that a lot of early earth legends had gods
coming down and doing reckless things as well.
"Come now, boy. I'm sure they will not be a bother. Treat them well, and they
will surely behave... I think."
You think?! You totally know they're gonna be a pain!
"And remember, someday your own divinity will exceed even theirs. It is
important to get used to them sooner rather than later."
The situation was a little messy for me to internalize, but it kind of felt like a
company president telling his son to mingle with the staff in order to get a good
feel for work and employees before taking over despite being completely
unqualified.
I sighed slightly, then said my goodbyes to the old man. I had no idea what to
do.
"Big Brooo! Come, hic, dwink! Dwinkies, gotta dwink up and everywon will be
happy! Fowget about the transient nature of mortal depwession! Chug, chug,
chug!" The god of alcohol laughed obnoxiously as she somehow twined around
my leg like a snake.
You're trouble, damn it! And how the hell are you dragging me like that?!
Don't tell me you're some kind of master of the drunken fist... After being
forcefully dragged to the table by an overpowered little girl, Karen forced a
wooden cup upon me. What the... Your face is all...
"Hey, Touuuuuuya. How about you tell your big sis just how far you've gone
with those little girlies, you know? I'm just dying to hear about what you did to
them, you know?!" Karen, completely drunk out of her mind, began yammering
on and grinning like an idiot.
"...You're drunk."
"Am not, you know? Am not, am not, am not! Can't prove it, you know?"
I can smell it on your breath! You're acting like a total drunkard. Plus, you're
breathing really heavily too...
I turned to Moroha for help but she was already unconscious.
How the hell is the god of swords such a lightweight?! I figured it was better
than her suddenly brandishing knives and forks after getting drunk, but I was
kind of relying on her to save my ass.
The god of alcohol kept on chugging, the god of the hunt kept on laughing,
the god of agriculture kept on eating, and the god of music kept on strumming. I
had nobody to help me.
Good lord... Are these lunatics really our gods?
◇ ◇ ◇
We decided that the new arrivals would take on the roles of my uncle and his
kids. I didn't want to add any more siblings, after all.
I definitely didn't want the god of agriculture, who looked about forty, to be
my brother anyway. Making him my dad would be troublesome from a political
perspective.
Either way, he became my uncle, and the other three became my cousins.
My uncle was Mochizuki Kousuke. (God of Agriculture).
His eldest son was Mochizuki Sousuke. (God of Music).
His eldest daughter was Mochizuki Karina. (God of the Hunt).
And last but not least, the youngest daughter was Mochizuki Suika. (God of
Alcohol).
Only the god of alcohol looked younger than me, so it gave me an excuse not
to be as formal with her.
When I introduced them to the others, everyone was less surprised by my
new relatives and more surprised by the fact that Suika was absolutely blackout
drunk. I quickly improvised an excuse on the spot, claiming that if she didn't
drink a shitton of booze, then she'd suffer debilitating spasms due to her
mysterious illness. I was pretty sure they bought it.
According to Leen, dwarven children started drinking around the age Suika
resembled. So, though I couldn't write her off as a dwarf, I just so conveniently
happened to remember that her mother was, in fact, a dwarf. What a weird
coincidence.
"Hm... More of your family, then?"
"Yeah, sorry... It just kind of happened." I was walking east toward the
farmland with Yumina when she suddenly spoke up.
She and the others knew I came from another world, which meant they also
knew my sisters weren't blood-related. And so, it went without saying that they
understood my relation to my uncle and cousins was also not a blood-related
arrangement, either. I couldn't exactly tell them the truth, though.
"So then... these new relatives are the same as your sisters, yes...?"
"Ah... Well... I mean, skill-wise, sure. They all have individual talents, but not
all of them are combat-related. Karina is a serious huntress though, she's
almost unmatched with a bow." That was to be expected of the god of the
hunt, though. She'd never let her prey escape. She also seemed to be talented
with machetes, guns, axes, and snare traps. I briefly wondered if that actually
made her better than Moroha, but it likely didn't. Moroha was specialized in
sword combat, while Karina was simply more versatile.
The four of them quickly got used to life in Brunhild and began to work in
their own ways. That was why I was heading over to the farmland. I wanted to
see how they were getting on.
"Oh... I-Isn't that your uncle now?" Yumina pointed toward a man in the
distance, and she was right. He was tilling a field with his hoe. Uncle Kousuke
was wiping his brow, the straw hat on his head protecting him from the sun. He
looked like he'd worked up quite a sweat, though. His farm clothes were all
sweaty. The guy certainly suited the look. But that really went without saying,
he was the god of agriculture after all.
"Mornin' Touya, Yumina. How're you two holdin' up?" He greeted us with a
little smile. The man really came off as... unremarkably plain.
"You're tilling the field all by yourself? You know you can hire people for that,
right...?"
"Ain't how I do it, lad. If a man ain't willin' to till the soil... then he ain't
worthy've tastin' nature's bounty... Well, iffin' I'm bein' honest that's a mighty
hardline approach ta take... Really, it's just what I wanna do, aye? I'm happy
that we kin reclaim some've the wildlands an' set down the seeds fer harvest."
If he used his divine powers he'd probably be able to get all this done at once,
but there wouldn't be any love or fun in that. Also, he wasn't allowed, which
was a good point too.
Still, he was definitely living up to his title. I could see he was making the most
of his specialized knowledge. He started scattering some stuff along the fields,
and I asked him what it was. Apparently, it was bone meal made from the
ground bones of magical beasts. He said that the magical qualities of the
creatures' bodies did uh... something to promote... something or other. I didn't
quite get it. Lakshy the Alraune, on the other hand, seemed to take great
attention to this detail.
He wasn't just willing to till or sow, either. He also said he'd tend to the rice
paddies. He was such a plain and simple man it was almost hard to imagine he
was actually a member of the divine pantheon.
We returned from the farmlands only to notice an unusual sound coming
from the central plaza in town.
"Is something going on...?" As we got closer, we determined the sound to be
music. I had an inkling as to who it was.
I pushed through the crowd and saw the face of the god of music, my cousin
Sousuke. He was skillfully playing a guitar in front of a water fountain.
The guitar was one of the instruments I'd made on Sakura's request. He must
have taken it and brought it out here to play. I first made a piano, but quickly
moved on to flutes, trumpets, castanets, and all kinds of other things. I kind of
went a little overboard and might have quietly challenged myself to make every
instrument imaginable. I didn't know how to play them though, so they ended
up piling up and going unused. I left them in the knight order barracks since a
couple of the recruits ended up having more than a passing interest.
Sousuke's performance ended, punctuated by a rapturous applause. Some of
the people were even moved to the point of tears. I was surprised his
performance was that amazing...
"What a wonderful display...!"
"Yeah, I don't think there's anyone that can outdo him..." We left Sousuke as
he started up his encore, and walked through the streets past the guild. I
happened to turn my head and look towards the bar, only to see...
"What the...?" There were a bunch of guys at the entrance to the bar, all
steaming drunk.
They were all on the floor too, so I stepped over them and checked inside.
Just as I expected, Suika was there chugging booze like no tomorrow.
There was a man sitting opposite her, clutching his glass. He was wasted.
"Oh, Big Brooo! Wanna have a dwinking contest? When I win, set the money
down there, gahahaha!"
"...Why would I do that?" Suika was merrily swaying her glass around, but I
was just plain annoyed.
The other patrons were either unconscious or unsteadily heading for the
door. They must've all tried to challenge Suika, only to be drunk under the table
in no time. I wondered just how long this had been going on for.
"You're laaate, so we're gonna start you with three cupsh, hic..."
"I'm not here to drink, get it? Enough of this."
"Aww..."
I took Suika's drink out of her hand. She was absolutely the worst out of the
four who had arrived. After that, I took her with me and apologized to the
barkeep. He actually seemed fine, though. Apparently, he'd made a tidy profit
from all the drinking that had gone on.
"Geez... Please don't drink this much."
"It's beehn awhile since, hic, sincesh I had a drink, you dummy! Lemme jush
cut loose a little... How about Yoomina and I get close over shome whishkey,
hic!"
"I-I'm quite fine, thank you..." Yumina smiled very politely and gave a
dismissive handwave.
I wondered what the bar was thinking by letting someone so little drink so
much, or even at all, but apparently, she had just flashed the royal name of
Mochizuki and no questions were asked.
Seemed they weren't sure whether or not to believe her, so they had to call
some knights over to verify the situation. I made a mental note to apologize to
those guys later on...
"Oh, Touya and the others, huh?" Karina walked out of the guild as we walked
out of the neighboring tavern.
She registered with the guild pretty quickly and immediately set to work
doing hunting-based quests. She didn't see the need to delve into dungeons or
seek out treasure. For her, the thrill was in the hunt... and in eating the
products of said hunts.
It seemed like she'd just got done hunting, as well. There was a very large bird
in her hands.
"Caught you guys at a good time. This is dinner for tonight, tasty stuff. Give it
over to Crea for me, wouldja?"
"Roger."
Karina kept bringing in all kinds of wild game recently, so our diet was
gradually growing a little more varied. I opened up [Storage] and stashed the
bird in there.
"If I'm honest, I wanna hunt bigger beasties than these. There's nothing so
spooky in Brunhild though, so you better take me out into the world later!"
"Sure, why not. I'll do a little investigating into Mismede's hunting grounds for
you." Brunhild didn't have much in the way of large monsters, but I was certain
that Mismede would have them in abundance. The Sea of Trees was also filled
with stuff that'd make any big game hunter squeal with glee.
It seemed like the four Gods had settled into Brunhild perfectly... Man, I'm
really happy they're all helping in their own ways. Except for Suika. Suika is the
worst.
"Hmph, hic! You thinking of something ruuude, Big Bro?!"
...Damn. She can read my thoughts as well as Karen. I guess I really can't treat
these guys lightly...
◇ ◇ ◇
"So... what did you learn about the island?"
"A few bits and pieces. Culturally, they're not too far from us. But there aren't
many people there, and they don't have much in the way of living space. I'm
gonna go out on a limb and say that's due to all the Behemoths, though. They
can't really do anything to expand beyond their protective barrier, but they do
have a couple of unshielded outposts."
I answered Leen's question as I munched down some ramen that Crea had
prepared. I'd looked up the recipe online and she replicated it perfectly. I was
glad. The soup was a little bit watery, but it tasted damn great. She even
managed to replicate the narutomaki, so I felt blessed.
I should make her do gyoza next time... Probably won't taste quite the same
as the stuff you can get in convenience stores, though.
Leen and myself aside, I shared this room with Elze, Linze, and Yae. Yumina
was spending time with her little brother Yamato, Hilde was off in Lestia seeing
her older brother, and Sue was at home with her parents.
Lu was learning how to cook almond-based treats with Crea, and Sakura was
helping out Fiana with school-related activities.
"So the barrier's still intact... Since people are living there and surviving..."
Linze muttered as she ate her ramen, taking a moment to blow on it. She wasn't
very good at using chopsticks, so she used a fork instead.
"The barrier itself is covering the exterior island, the four main cities in each
cardinal direction, and the temple in the middle. I'm going to assume that the
temple is probably the source, and probably something the Sage of Hours left
behind."
That would make it an artifact. It would also mean they couldn't change the
areas that were being protected. Their safe zones were inherently limited,
which meant they couldn't expand. In other words, the people would be
attacked by Behemoths as soon as they wandered from the safe zone. Still, the
Behemoths were too big to get much out of eating people...
It was more likely that they'd be focused on hunting each other, or magical
beasts. Though, if people decided to build outside the barriers, then the
Behemoths would trash anything built out there. They couldn't get much more
than an outpost created, for fear of destruction.
"Can't they kill the Behemoths? They'll win if it's a life-or-death situation,
right? There are enough of them."
"I'm not so sure about that. They do have enormous catapults that they use
to ward off any that come too close, but they're playing it safe and fighting
defensive for the most part." Besides, if they hadn't been playing it safe, I doubt
they'd have lasted all these years. I wondered if they'd figured out their own
ways to deal with Behemoths due to the isolation. Either that or they were
counting on the barrier to save them.
"It is only humans on that island, is it not?" Yae spoke up as she skillfully
slurped her ramen. Soba and udon existed on Eashen, so her proficiency didn't
catch me off-guard. She was already on to her third bowl, too.
She didn't gain weight at all, despite the fact that she kept shoveling away
food. Then again, she worked out a lot, so it wasn't like she had some innate
fat-blocking talent. It was a simple case of calories in vs calories burned.
"Actually, no. There are mostly humans there, but there are a few beastmen
and demonkin mixed in there as well. There isn't any discrimination in their
society, either. They all live equally." I felt like our society could learn a lot from
that approach. That being said, the prejudice might have just been put by the
wayside in favor of survival. They needed to work together in order to stay alive
in such a hostile land.
"There aren't that many people living there though, even with the limited
territory, but that's probably because they can't fish or do proper agriculture."
Even if they managed to fend off monsters to claim farmland, a Behemoth
could just walk in and trash it the moment anything was ready to harvest.
Having such hard work go to waste would make it hard to consider even
attempting in the first place... It'd be too demoralizing to even try.
It'd be wiser to build their farms inside the barrier. Have something like the
houses built around the perimeter of the barrier, and the crops on the inner
area.
If something attacked, the houses might be trashed, sure... but the food
would be okay. It'd increase their chances of surviving that much more.
"Still... an island of Behemoths, eh? It really makes me curious... I mean, why
would magical beasts have evolved in such a way in one place?"
"Doctor Babylon proposed the theory that Behemoths are spawned based on
magic element density."
"Element density?" Elze and Yae raised a brow in confusion at my words.
The theory that the doctor had was that magical beasts evolved from regular
animals that absorbed residual magic elements from the air. For example, a
bear species that gradually built up elements of Wind magic in the air might
have mutated into the Thunder Bear species.
The theory expanded into the idea that Behemoths came about when a dense
amount of magical elements were infused into a creature.
Typically, the residual levels of magic in the air were too thin to have an
effect. However, there were a few places in the world where the density was
greater than others. Places rich in nature, holy mountains, the sea floor, and the
depths of huge forests were all regarded as these so-called Mana Wells.
According to the doctor, those Mana Wells created Behemoths frequently.
I asked her why Behemoths didn't just appear all the time in these places, and
she said that the number of creatures that could actually absorb elements from
the air was surprisingly low. Apparently, humans were capable of it as well,
though.
Anyway, the issue with the mysterious island was the very barrier that
protected it. The magic in the air couldn't disperse, so all of it was trapped
inside. In other words, it was constantly cycling around the animals and
probably being absorbed by any compatible ones. Just because it was being
spread around to them didn't mean it'd disappear, either.
That was why the island itself had basically become an artificial Mana Well,
and also probably why there were so many Behemoths as a result.
"So wait, does this Mana Well thing affect people?"
"Humans can't absorb more magic than their maximum capacity, Elze. That
being said, mana sickness is a thing, and can also be caused by overexposure as
well as underexposure." Leen quickly responded to Elze's query.
In the case of the Behemoths on the island, it wasn't likely that these
creatures were born as regular animals. It was probably that after several
generations of being in such a magically dense place, the Behemoths simply
became the evolutionary norm.
That being said, Behemoths typically weren't capable of successful mating
due to their genetic irregularities... Though, it was also possible that the
Behemoths on the island could just be very old. They had extended lifespans
after all.
I guess the real issue was whether or not the Behemoths were now being
born naturally or not...
It would be fine to have them pop up now and then, since they were just
freak mutations, but we could be dealing with an entirely new species here, and
I wasn't sure how to proceed in that regard.
Still, the place definitely gave me a Monster Island kind of vibe. It would've
been pretty convenient if a silver warrior from space came down and sorted it
out for me. I wasn't quite sure if he'd be able to clear out the island before the
Three Minute Rule was up, though.
"Then will the possibility of Behemoths being born go down after removing
the barrier, will it?"
"Most likely, yeah. But I can't say for sure... and I don't know if the people
maintaining the barrier know that either... or even if anyone is maintaining it..."
Either way, the barrier had to come down at some point. If not, the people in
there would be trapped indefinitely.
"At any rate, I've been thinking I want to contact the people on the island. I
need to tell the neighboring countries about it. Elfrau and Hannock agreed to
meet, but I haven't got a reply from Palouf yet. I'm hoping Lihnea's king can
persuade them to come, but I'm also unsure about how much I should tell
them..."
In the worst-case scenario, we'd proceed without Palouf's consent. Opening
up trade with the island would give the rest of the world access to relatively
cheap monster materials. However, the island seemed to have a strange halfbarter based currency, so I wasn't sure how it'd go. They definitely had gold,
silver, and copper coins, so they at least recognized how the system worked.
"It'll take a while before we open up channels with them, so I guess it's not
urgent... But I think we should—"
I was cut off by the familiar buzzing of my smartphone. It was a mail from
Relisha. Odd.
"What is it?"
"A message from Relisha. Seems like some Phrase have been detected. They'll
come through any time starting tomorrow and ending a week from now..." I
answered Linze's question as I scanned over the mail.
"Did she mention how many? Or their power?"
"Not yet." Phrase appeared regularly around the world, but typically it was
just Lesser Constructs, the kind of thing a coordinated party could take out. A
few people were even good enough to take on the Intermediates.
Still, the Advanced Constructs and, god forbid, the Dominant Constructs, were
way too much for regular people to contend with. Brunhild was typically only
asked to help if it was a major issue. When we were called out it was typically a
given that something big was going to come out.
"Where is the emergence point, Touya-dono?"
"Regulus. I'll have to tell Lu."
"Tell me what?"
I turned to find an apron-clad girl standing in the doorway. She had almond
tofu on a tray. Lu placed it on the table, and man did it look good...
I decided to talk about the Phrase situation after trying out the treat. Couldn't
pass the stuff up.
Mm, that's good... I scooped up the white stuff in my spoon and shoveled it
into my mouth. It was tasty and had the texture of gooey snow.