At the time when Yuuya was worried about the conflict with the people of planet Amel, Merl had an anxious look on her face when Marl called her over.
(Um, father… what are you going to do with Yuuya-san and the others?)
(What do you mean by what am I going to do? Of course, we're going to make them stay here for the rest of their lives.)
(You can't do that! They have their own lives to lead!)
(But how can we not entertain the Apostle who brought peace to the universe?)
The other Amelians nodded in agreement with Marl's words.
However, Merl stated with a resolute attitude.
(That's only for our convenience. The reason we were able to obtain the blueprint for the anti-astronomical annihilation weapon, and the reason we were able to defeat the Dragonias, was because of the goodwill of Yuuya-san and the others who helped us! And now you're trying to hurt them?)
(…They wouldn't have any means of space travel anyway, would they? If that's the case, they'll have no choice but to listen to us. And we're not trying to hurt them in any way, okay? I'm just trying to arrange for them to live comfortably on this planet.)
(Forcing and threatening things just for our convenience like that is just like the Dragonias, who were our enemies.)
(!)
Merl looked straight at the Amelians and told them so.
(I've been saved by them. Now it's my turn to help them. If father and the others want to force them to stay on this planet, I will take the spaceship and send them back to their home planet!)
(…..)
Marl and Merl stared at each other for a while.
Then Marl let out a sigh and dropped his gaze.
(Hah… I wonder who she got that spirit from…)
(…..)
(…Okay, okay. If you insist, let's send them home.)
(!)
(Marl-sama!)
(But!)
While controlling the surprised Amelians with his hand, Marl continued.
(Merl. I have a mission for you.)
(Eh?)
Merl froze at the unexpected words. However, despite Merl, who was frozen, Marl told her clearly.
(You must deepen your relationship with the Apostle and take his genes.)
(What?)
At this unexpected statement, Merl was surprised, and at the same time, her cheeks turned red.
(W-what do you mean by that…!)
(I mean exactly what I said. I'm sure the Apostle will eventually die of old age. But if the genetic descendants of our planet Amel inherit the Apostle's genes, then that great giant will inevitably belong to Amel. In addition, if you and the Apostle get to know each other, he might change his mind and decide to move to this planet, which is your home.)
(N-no way…)
(I'm telling you, if you disapprove of this, I'm not going to let them leave this planet.)
Merl fell silent at Marl's words.
At last, Merl nodded, feeling her face heat up as she thought back to her previous actions with Yuuya.
(…I understand. I will somehow do my best to get to know Yuuya-san better…)
(Umu. I'm counting on you.)
──Thus, a great deal of talk was going on in a place unknown to Yuuya.
＊＊＊
"We made it back safely…!"
We took Merl-san's spaceship and came back to Earth without any problems.
When we got off the spaceship, Iris-san stepped on the ground with a strange feeling.
"I don't know what to say; it feels weird to be on the ground, doesn't it?"
As Iris-san said, most of the time we were sailing in space, we were either inside the ship or using magic as a foothold, so it felt strange to have a ground we could walk on like this.
It was almost like being on a ship and then getting off. It seemed like I was swaying even though I wasn't…
I was also checking the footholds when Odis-san got off the spaceship, snapping his neck.
"Phew… I'm so tired. I'm going home now."
"Eeh? Master, are we leaving already?"
"Master, I think it's too early to go home."
Ruri and Rill protested, but Odis-san shook his head.
"I don't care what you say; we're leaving. Yuuya-dono and the others have their own business to attend to. And so do Iris and the others."
"Eh, me too?"
"…Just to be clear, have you explained to the rest of the Holy that the Evil has been defeated?"
"Ah…"
(…We haven't.)
At Odis-san's suggestion, both Iris-san and Master Usagi averted their gaze awkwardly.
Letting out a sigh at these two people, Odis-san continues.
"Hah… Oh well. We have to report on it, but there are still Evil Beasts left in that world, aren't there? Our work is not finished yet."
"Hmm… Odis was right, but I don't want to hear it from you, who's been living in seclusion all this time and didn't even know about the resurrection of Evil."
"…I feel bad about that, too. That's why from now on, as a Holy, I'm going to fulfill my duties properly. However, there is a limit to how much I can do on my own. I'm going to ask you two, Ruri and Rill, to help me."
""Yes.""
"Ugh… I really want to stay in this world… with Yuuya-kun, but… it can't be helped…"
Iris-san seemed reluctant at the end, but Odis-san and Master Usagi pulled her to the other world.
"Well then, Yuuya-dono, if you need anything else, please contact me through Usagi or Iris."
"See you soon, Brother Yuuya?"
"See you soon, Brother Yuuya!"
"Uu… Yuuya-kun! I'll be back soon!"
(Let's go, you idiot… Yuuya, I'll see you soon!)
After saying goodbye to each other, everyone returned to the other world.
After sending everyone off, I called out to Merl-san, who stayed behind.
"Thank you, Merl-san, for taking us back here!"
(N-no. Yuuya-san and the others saved us, so this is only natural.)
With her cheeks slightly reddened, Merl-san replied and bowed her head.
(Then, I'll be going now.)
"Yes! You can come and visit us anytime!"
"Right! We'll be waiting."
"Woof!"
"Fugo!"
"Pii!"
"Hmph…"
As they greeted Merl-san, she smiled gently and then laughed bitterly.
(Well… I had a little business on Earth, anyway… Hahaha.)
"Eh? Business?"
(Yes. But I'll leave you here for now. See you soon!)
With that, Merl-san left.
A lot had happened since Merl-san's arrival, but peace had finally come to me.
＊＊＊
Around the time Yuuya returned to Earth.
In the other world, the members of the cult that believes in Evil were gathered at the [World's Disposal Ground].
"──So you finally found out where he is?"
"Yes! As Founder-sama predicted, there seems to be a human living in the [Great Devil's Nest]!"
When one of the cult members replied to the man who was called the founder, the other members of the cult around them began to buzz.
"No way, he really is living in the [Great Devil's Nest]…"
"But if it were not for that, our God would not have been defeated…"
"But who the hell is he?"
In the midst of all the speculation, the founder calmly asks the believer who made the report.
"And did you get any more information about this person?"
"Yes! After investigating, it seems that there is no doubt that he is a young man. However, it is doubtful that he is from this continent…"
"What do you mean by that?"
"According to my investigation, he has an unusual name: Yuuya Tenjou…"
"I see… A name like that sounds unheard of in any of the countries on this continent…"
"In fact, I wanted to find out what continent he was from, but even the Alceria Kingdom, where the rumor originated, doesn't seem to know that much about him…"
"No, thank you for your efforts. What we need to know now is whether or not any humans are living in the [Great Devil's Nest]. And this time, it has become clear. Then there's no need to hesitate any longer."
"But… if that person has defeated our God, will we be able to defeat him on our own?"
In response to the believer's words, the founder shook his head.
"No. If we fought normally, our defeat would be inevitable. But this time, there is no need to fight. We have the magic of the abominable Sage who once destroyed our God. If we use it, we can simply switch the existence of that person and our God and accomplish our longing without fighting him… The power of the Sage who destroyed our God will be our power this time!"
"Oh…!"
The founder stood up vigorously and looked around at all of the believers.
"Gentlemen! Our divine enemy is in the [Great Devil's Nest]! That land is extremely dangerous, and there is no guarantee that you will be safe. But in order to extinguish the hated divine enemy and revive our God, I ask you to entrust me with your lives!"
"For the sake of our God!"
A crazy light lit up in the eyes of all the believers present.
Seeing them, the founder nodded in satisfaction and raised his arms high in the air.
"Let's go! To eliminate our enemy… Yuuya Tenjou!"
──Thinking that peace had finally arrived, Yuuya was greeted with a new trouble.
＊＊＊
During a new movement of Evil believers in another world, Kaori was called to the chairman's office of the [Ousei Academy].
"You said you wanted to talk to me. What is it?"
"Oh. Actually, I wanted Kaori to take care of the new student again."
"Eh, the new student?"
Kaori was surprised by the unexpected words from her father, Tsukasa, but she quickly understood.
"I see… The summer vacation will soon be over, so it might be the right time for a transfer student."
"That's why. So, since Kaori took care of Yuuya-kun and Yuti-san, I wanted to ask you again. What do you think?"
"Yes, it's fine!"
When Kaori nodded in response, Tsukasa also smiled as if relieved.
However, his expression soon changed to one of slight suspicion.
"Um, what's wrong?"
"Hmm? Oh, I'm sorry. As Kaori said, it's not particularly strange that the transfer student happened after the summer vacation, but… my memory is a little fuzzy. I don't remember being consulted about or giving permission for this new student."
"Huh…"
Kaori tilted her head curiously at Tsukasa's words.
The reason for this is that when a student from another school moves into this academy, it is natural that the school's president, Tsukasa, should have been consulted for his approval, but Tsukasa had no memory of such procedures.
However, since Tsukasa had the documents in his possession, he was sure that he had confirmed this matter.
As the two of them puzzled over the strange phenomenon, Kaori suddenly remembered and asked.
"What kind of person is the new student, by the way?"
"Oh, it's this girl."
Tsukasa handed her a document with a picture of the new student, and Kaori checked it.
And Kaori was somewhat familiar with the picture.
"Huh? This person is…"
──The document showed the face of a girl with phosphorescent blue hair.