"This is where the [Hala Grass] is located!"
"Hah… hah… this girl is so careless without even knowing my hardships…"
After Mai had registered as an adventurer, Lexia and the others immediately came to the entrance of the Sky Mountain, where the [Hala Grass] was said to grow.
Luna, who had been dealing with the monsters that attacked them one after another until they reached the mountain, was completely exhausted. Seeing this, Mai couldn't help but open her mouth.
"U-um, Lexia? Do we have to do it today as well?"
"Of course! We have to collect it right now and make a love potion for Yuuya-sama!"
"No, I think it's more for Lexia's sake than for his…"
Mai couldn't help but blurt it out, but it didn't reach Lexia's ears right now.
Mai, who decided that there was nothing more she could say, held up the sword that had been provided to her by the Regal Kingdom when she arrived in this world.
"I'm really an amateur when it comes to fighting monsters, as you can probably see from before we arrived here. This sword was also provided to me by the country, but I've never held a sword in my previous world."
"I'm not going to say that you don't have to worry… but I should be able to help you to some extent. So you can fight with all your might, Mai."
"If you insist, I'll take your word for it… and train myself in combat."
When Mai made up her mind, Lexia couldn't bear the excitement anymore and finally stepped into the forest.
While Lexia and Luna, who had experienced the Great Devil's Nest, did not feel suffocated because the atmosphere of this forest was overwhelmingly brighter than in the Great Devil's Nest, Mai felt a sense of oppression that she had never felt in Japan, and she felt somewhat suffocated.
This was a true sign that the monsters that inhabited the forest were strong. The surge of magic power leaking from the monsters' bodies made Mai feel nauseated.
As each of them carefully made their way through the forest, Luna quietly told them.
"Stop."
"!"
"…There's a monster."
As Luna glared sharply at a certain part of the forest, a boar with magnificent tusks jumped out of the bushes.
"Charge Boar, huh! Be careful, it's a C-class monster."
Normally, it was not the kind of monster that a newly registered adventurer like Mai would have to deal with. But since Luna, who was known as an assassin, was here, the danger was minimized.
As soon as it spotted Lexia and the others, the monster called Charge Boar made a run, accelerated, and charged at them. Luna swung her arm sharply in the face of the attack, and the Charge Boar stopped moving as if its body had been caught in something.
"Buruoo!"
"Mai!"
"Okay!"
Hearing Luna's words, Mai immediately rushed to the Charge Boar and swung down the sword in her hand.
When she was first summoned to the other world, she was hesitant to attack, even when the opponent was an Evil Beast. However, in front of the people of the other world who were suffering from Evil, Mai thought that if she didn't do her best, the people of this world would be in danger, and she was able to push aside her aversion to fighting.
Perhaps this mental aspect was also one of the reasons why Mai was summoned to this world as a "Saint."
While Mai was attacking the Charge Boar in cooperation with Luna, Lexia also attacked the Charge Boar with a self-defense knife.
"Eii! Iyaa!"
However, as a princess, Lexia's strength was feeble, and she didn't seem to be doing any real damage. With the addition of Lexia's attack, which was not certain if it was supposed to support them, the Charge Boar finally collapsed and disappeared as a particle of light.
"Yay! We defeated it!"
"Y-yeah. We managed it somehow…"
"Hmph. Putting Mai aside, I'm not even sure Lexia's contribution is worth mentioning."
"What did you say?"
As usual, while Luna tweaked Lexia's words and Lexia chewed on them, Mai stared at her palms.
"(As expected, I'm not used to fighting with weapons… But it's okay. If I do my best, the people of this world can be saved. I have to do my best…)"
"Mai?"
Then Lexia, who sensed something wrong with Mai, looked into her face with concern.
"Eh? Ah, I'm fine! More importantly, let's quickly find the herbs that Lexia is looking for, okay? The longer we wait, the later we'll get back."
"Oh, yes! We have to find it quickly!"
Lexia and the others began their search for the [Hara Grass] again.
"I'm surprised to learn that Mai and Yuuya-sama are from the same world! What's Yuuya-sama like in your world?"
"Eeh? I don't know much about him either…"
The only time Mai had met Yuuya was at the shrine where he and Kaori had gone for a test of courage.
"Ara, I see. I like how mysterious he is! I'm going to use the love potion… to get to Yuuya-sama no matter what it takes!"
While searching, Lexia is burning with love for Yuuya.
"In order to do that, I have to find the [Hala Grass] no matter what!"
However, there is no sign of the [Hala Grass] that Lexia is looking for, and the time is flying by.
"Hey! We can't find it!"
"I don't need you to tell me that. You're the one who suggested it, right?"
"You want it too, don't you? The love potion!"
"I'm not the same as you! I don't need it──."
"If you have the love potion, you can do anything you want with Yuuya-sama, you know!"
"…Alright, let's find it."
"Luna?"
Mai retorted to Luna, who immediately switched her mind.
While searching for the hard-to-find [Hala Grass], Luna noticed a certain sign.
"What's… that…?"
"What's wrong?"
"There's a powerful presence…! Lexia!"
"Eh?"
The strong presence that Luna felt was getting closer and closer to Lexia, she hurriedly called out, but the source of the presence suddenly appeared in front of Lexia.
"──Ara? You ladies are…"
"S-Sword Saint-sama!"
The identity of the strong presence that Luna sensed was actually that of Iris, the Sword Saint. Moreover, behind Iris, there's also Usagi, the Kicking Saint.
(What is it? Little girl. You were here too?)
"Ah, you're Yuuya-sama's master… why are Iris-sama and Usagi-sama here?"
Lexia forgot about the [Hala Grass] and asked in surprise. And Usagi nodded once.
(It's just perfect. I have to tell you girls about something.)
"Eh?"
(Especially that little girl over there.)
"M-me?"
Mai, who hadn't expected that she would be called, shouted in surprise. Although Mai herself did not know much about the two people who appeared here, she sensed from Lexia's attitude that they were not ordinary.
What on earth would such a person want with her…?
As Mai waited anxiously for Usagi's words, Usagi told her plainly.
(Your role is over.)
"Eh?"
(As I said, your role is over.)
"….."
Not understanding the meaning of Usagi's words, Mai fell silent. Then Iris, who was watching the scene, let out a sigh.
"You know… there's no way she can understand with just that, right?"
(I don't know. That's just it.)
"You really are an unreasonable lump of meat…"
Letting out a sigh at Usagi's behavior, Iris gave Mai a wry smile.
"The only thing is, what he said is true. You are the saint who was summoned from a different world, aren't you?"
"Y-yes. It is said that I was summoned to defeat the Evil that exists in this world… "
"…That Evil is no longer around. It has already been defeated."
"Eh?"
"No way!"
"…What did you say?"
Mai was stunned by Iris's words, and Lexia and the others widened their eyes in disbelief. Then Lexia quickly came to her senses and opened her mouth in a panic.
"P-please wait, Iris-sama! It has been defeated, you say…? Do you mean that horrible being has been defeated?"
"Yes, that's right."
Mai had never seen Avis, so all she knew was that there were such beings called Evil, but Lexia and the others who had seen Avis in person and seen how he had overwhelmed Iris and Usagi with his incredible power could hardly believe it.
"Who in the world defeated him? Could it have been Iris-sama and the others?"
"As expected of Iris-sama! And Usagi-sama is also very strong, as he's Yuuya-sama's master!"
"Amazing… the power of those who are called Holy is incredible…"
Lexia's gaze shined on Iris and the others. Mai also had been told by the king of Regal when she was summoned to this world that there were people called Holy who opposed the Evil. She, too, was aware of the fact that they were, in fact, extraordinary.
However, Iris and Usagi looked at each other and smiled bitterly when such a reaction was directed at them.
"I'm sorry to disappoint you when you are praising us like that… but it was Yuuya who defeated the Evil."
"""Eh?"""
"To be more precise, it's Yuuya's family."
As Iris explained, Mai tilted her head because she didn't know much about Night and the others, but Lexia and the others, who knew about Night and the others, opened their eyes even wider.
"T-those Night and the others… no, or did the Genesis Dragon lend them a hand?"
"Nope, not at all. Usagi and I also witnessed the moment directly… and before we knew it, Yuuya had taken a bluebird as his new family member, and together, the three of them, including Night and Akatsuki, defeated the Evil."
"T-that's ridiculous…"
(…It's really ridiculous.)
Even Usagi seemed somewhat tired when talking about it, which made Lexia and the others realize that this was the truth.
And then──.
"As… as expected from Yuuya-sama! I knew he was different from the rest of us in this world!"
As usual, Lexia's eyes sparkled at Yuuya's actions. However, Mai would not like to be thought that all earthlings can do such crazy things, so she hurriedly denied it.
"No, I'm not as crazy as that guy! The rest of the people on Earth, including me, are normal!"
"Earth?"
(Hou? That sounds like an interesting story. Please continue.)
Then Iris, who still had no idea that Yuuya was from the same world as Mai, tilted her head. On the contrary, Usagi also urged her to continue with a curious look.
Mai, who could not refuse the urging of the two, told them that Yuuya was from the same other world… and that he had the power to travel back and forth between the two worlds.
"I-I see… He wasn't a resident of this world, huh…?"
(Even if he was, he wouldn't be able to get that much talent. And even in that world, he is probably not normal. Am I right?)
"It's not normal at all. Please don't use him as the standard for our world. A world based on him would be too scary."
In addition to Usagi, who nodded her head in agreement with Mai's words, Iris was somewhat confused.
"I-I've found the perfect man for me, but he's not from this world… But then again, Yuuya, you can go back and forth between two worlds, right? But is that something that can be done indefinitely? Or is it finite? If it's finite, which world will he end up in…?"
"Eh? Um… Iris-sama?"
When Mai called out worriedly to Iris, who was acting strangely, Iris abruptly made up her mind.
"I've decided! Let's go to Yuuya-kun's house right now to talk to him!"