Since Zogral was above my head, I'm not sure how I'm going to be able to keep my mind off of it.
If I don't take a breather at some point, I might be exhausted by the time the battle is over.
Well, I guess I'll have to wait until after the ritual is over.
I can't rest until we have the plan to defeat Zogral.
With this thought in mind, I turned my gaze once again to the piece of emptiness.
It's an extraordinary technology, isn't it, to cut off a piece of Zogral and seal it inside a glass ball?
If a world with this technology were still around today, we might have found a way to defeat Zogral.
Indeed.
The world is a mess, isn't it?
I shrugged my shoulders.
I looked away from the glass ball and saw Surara rolling toward me from across the corridor.
"I'm the first! …Or so I thought!"
Surara looked at Leticia and me and shouted in surprise.
"Master-san! Leticia-oneesan! You're early! Have you finished your talk already?"
"Yes, I'm done. I've told him what I have to tell him, so all we have to do now is to go through with the ritual."
"Yes, we'll do it together!"
Surara said and jumped up and down on the spot.
The ceremony will require the help of Iris, Lily, and Leticia, as well as Surara and the other Helper Slimes.
I'm really grateful to have friends who are willing to lend their help at times like this.
I am truly blessed.
As I was looking back at myself like this, I suddenly noticed that Surara was staring at me.
"Surara, what's wrong?"
"Master-san? What is that?"
Surara's gaze was directed at the piece of emptiness in my right hand.
"This?"
"Yes."
Surara nodded his head.
His expression was more serious than ever.
"This is a piece of emptiness. It seems a part of Zogral is sealed in it."
"Eeeehhhh! Really!?"
Surara rolled his eyes and exclaimed in amazement.
"I-isn't it dangerous? Master-san, you won't get absorbed, will you?"
"Don't worry. It seems to be sealed up."
"That's good, but be careful."
Surara told me with concern and then turned his gaze again to the piece of emptiness.
"Hmm."
"What's wrong?"
"I think I might recognize it."
"What?"
"But maybe I am imagining things. I'll ask the other slimes before the ritual."
"Yeah, I'll be looking out as well."
"Come to think of it, Surara-sama was created in an ancient civilization, wasn't he?"
Leticia suddenly opened her mouth.
"It may be that Surara-sama was also created using technology from another world. That's why you recognize the piece of emptiness… I guess."
"That could be a possibility, yes."
However, that is only a guess.
If the truth is revealed, it will be when Relic's research is advanced.
He said he might be able to make progress in deciphering the ancient texts, and we should look forward to the results of that research.
Not long after that, Iris and Lily arrived.
"Ara, are we the last?"
"Sorry, we're late."
"No, don't worry about it. It's not the time yet."
I looked at the clock on the wall and saw that it had just turned 11:15.
"The time for pickup was originally 11:30, wasn't it?"
"Yes. That's right."
I nodded at Leticia's words.
"So we decided to meet five minutes earlier and meet here at 11:25."
"But in fact, we're meeting at 11:15, which is 15 minutes before the actual meeting time."
What can I say? Everyone in our party is basically serious.
But it's not a cramped, suffocating atmosphere, and in that sense, it's probably the ideal atmosphere.
Anyway, all we have to do now is to wait for our pickups.
In the meantime, I told Iris and Lily that Relic had brought a piece of emptiness.
"Can't that be used as material for [Creation]?"
"I don't have a recipe in mind at the moment."
However, as Iris said, there is a possibility that it can be used as material for something.
I think I should store it in the [Item Box] for the time being.
As I was storing the pieces of emptiness in this way, a female staff member of the guest house came in the entrance from outside.
"There is someone here to pick you up. May I show you to the entrance?"
That was pretty fast.
Fortunately, we're all here, so it won't be a problem if they come.
"Yes. Let them come in."
"Very well."
The female staff member bowed and went back outside.
The "pickup person" who arrived shortly after was a young woman with chestnut-colored hair in a braid… It was Milia.
"Good morning, Kou-san! Everyone! I'm here to pick you up!"
Milia greeted with a bright smile and waved her right hand in the air.
"You are as energetic as ever."
"That's right! It's times like this when I have to be in high spirits.
Well, that's for sure, isn't it?
Looking gloomy won't make the situation better. In fact, if you feel down, you won't be able to do the things you should be able to do.
If that's the case, it's definitely better to keep a cheerful face.
"Anyway, we're all here now, so let's get going."
"Oh, wait a minute."
"What's wrong?"
"There are two things I need to explain to you beforehand. First, you will have to walk to the central square. It's about a long enough walk. We originally planned to provide a carriage, but the horses are too frightened now."
"That's understandable."
Iris nodded in agreement.
"Even now, Zogral is in the skies over the royal capital. Horses are sensitive creatures, and they can't remain calm."
"That's right. It would be a disaster if the horses got out of control in the city, and I'm sorry, but we'll have to go on foot."
"I don't mind. What about you all?"
I asked this question, and Iris and the others responded that they had no problem with it.
"Then, let's go on foot."
"Thank you very much. If it's too hard for you to walk, please let me know. I will do my best to pull the carriage."
Milia said this and raised her right hand.
The arm is slender and thin, just like a woman's.
"No, it would be faster if I pulled the carriage."
The Armored Bear Armor has "Monstrous Strength S+."
If it's a small carriage, I should be able to move it by myself.
"Kou-sama is the center of the ritual, so I can't let you work. I'll take the lead here."
Saying this, Leticia raised her left fist.
The hand is covered with magic power and is surrounded by sparkling blue-white meteor radiance.
"If I use the power I inherited from the God of War, I can at least pull a carriage."
"I can pull a carriage, too, if I really want to! Hmph!"
Even Lily and Surara began to get motivated.
"Then why don't you just get the Grand Cabin out and have Dest pull it for us?"
Finally, Iris commented calmly.
Well, that's one way to do it.
The Grand Cabin was a large, two-story carriage I had built a while back, and I had asked Dest, the Destroyer Golem, to act as a horse for the overland trip from Aunen to Fort Port.
"Well, the distance to the central plaza isn't that far, so we'll just walk normally."
There was no argument against my words.
Well, it seems that Milia, Leticia, and Lily all wanted to "pull the carriage" almost as a joke.
"I was going to be able to play an active role. What disappointment."
Apparently, Surara was serious.
Well, let's see if he can put his enthusiasm into the ritual.
"For now, I guess we're going to have to settle on foot as our means of transportation. So, what's the other explanation?"
When I asked her that, Milia glanced at the clock on the wall before answering.
"Let's see; we're leaving at 11:30, right on time, please."
"Is there anything wrong with being early?"
"There is. After all, Kou-san is famous as the "Dragon Slayer" and has defended the royal capital three times, including yesterday's battle. If you go outside, a lot of people will rush in to give you a big cheer."
"Wait a minute. We lost yesterday's battle, you know."
"But you still fought to protect the capital, and you kept the damage to zero, didn't you? There are many people who want to thank you, and to prevent panic when Kou-san arrives, knights and adventurers with [Calm] abilities are stationed here and there."
"That means the arrangement will be finished at 11:30."
Iris said so, and Milia nodded.
"Yes, that is correct. So let's kill some time here for a little more than ten minutes."
"What are we going to do to kill time?"
"How about playing Shiritori*?" [T/n: Shiritori is a Japanese word game in which the players are required to say a word that begins with the final kana of the previous word. No distinction is made between hiragana, katakana, and kanji. "Shiritori" literally means "taking the end" or "taking the rear."]
"Well, that's all right."
At the most, we could kill enough time here, and it would be good to take a break.
It is precisely at times like this that it is important to relax and have some fun.
"If so, why don't we have some rules?"
It was Leticia who said so.
"For example, we could limit it to phrases related to the trip so far."
"And while we're at it, it would be a good way to pass the time if we could at least add a few words about our trip!"
Iris added.
"It sounds interesting."
"I'll do my best!"
Lily and Surara seemed to be on board with the idea.
"Okay, then, let's go with that rule. Is Milia okay with that?"
"Yes, I'm fine. If push comes to shove, I'll make up a non-existent trip episode and talk about it!"
That's usually against the rules.
"Who would you like to start with, then?"
"Let's start with me."
Leticia was the first to open her mouth.
"The sea boat paella. I was surprised when we ordered the paella in Fort Port, and it came in a boatload."
"That was a surprise, wasn't it?"
I nodded in agreement with Leticia.
"It tasted good, and I'd like to try it again."
"That's right. Then, Surara-sama, you're next."
"That 'A,' it's easy!"
Surara said with a confident look on her face.
"Iris-oneechan! Thank you for always protecting Master-san!" [T/n: From Airisu.]
"…Surara. If you end a word with an 'n,' you lose."
"Ah! I was careless! I'm sorry I didn't manage to kill time."
"No, why don't we just start over as usual?"
I suggested this, and Iris and the others nodded their heads in agreement.
So, it was Surara's turn once again.
"Then [Item Box]! It's a skill often used by Master-san! I want to go in there too!" [T/n: Aitem Boks.]
"Creatures can't go in there, though."
"Too bad! Next, Lily-oneechan!"
"R-right?"
Lily thought for a moment, then continued.
"How about slime?"
"You mean me!"
Surara shouted happily.
"Next is Milia-oneesan!"
"I understand! Leave it to me!"
Milia cheerfully replies to Surara's words.
"Well, was it 'ra' for Surara-san?"
"No, it's 'M' for suraim."
"Oh, that's right."
Milia smiled a little while giggling.
"M, huh? Mmm… The Inexhaustible Lust Dragon, was it? The dragon that Kou-san defeated before?" [T/n: It's taken from mujin (無尽), which means inexhaustibility.]
"Yeah. Actually, I defeated it together with Leticia."
"As the name suggests, it was a troublesome dragon that multiplied endlessly."
"It was thanks to Letitia's [Domination] that we were able to defeat it."
The [Domination] is one of Leticia's unique abilities, which allows her to control any living or inanimate object she touches by infusing it with her own factor.
By using this ability, she drove the lust dragon to self-destruction, and we somehow managed to win the battle.
"Then, Kou-san, it's "U"!" [T/n: U from ryu.]
Oops.
I was so caught up in the conversation that I forgot it was my turn.
"U, huh?"
What could it be?
"I can't think of any." [T/n: Ukabanaina.]
"Then, next, maybe 'na'?"
Iris muttered something like that after hearing my words.
No, no, wait, wait.
"That was just a mumble. …I mean, I'm surprised there aren't more phrases that start with 'u.'"
If it's a word that has nothing to do with travel, there are plenty of words like sea urchin or wool. [T/n: sea urchin = Uni (ウニ), wool = Uru (ウール).]
With this special rule, it's hard to come up with one.
After I groaned for a while, Milia eventually said.
"Oh, it is now 11:30. What do you want to do?"
"The purpose was to kill some time, so let's get going."
"Then I guess Kou lost the game."
"No, wait!"
Iris's words had me reflexively opening my mouth.
"Maybe with a little more time, I can come up with something."
"Ara, Kou-sama, you are surprisingly competitive, aren't you?"
Leticia murmured with a smile.
"…Same as me."
Lily said in a whisper.
It's true that Lily has a competitive streak, too.
I remembered that she had tried many times before to distinguish between Gram Origin and Gram Imitate.
"Well then, Master-san, if you can think of a word that starts with a "u," let me know!"
"Yeah. You can count on me. Then let's go."
We were leaving the guest house with Milia, and the staff came out in force to see us off.
"Kou-sama, everyone, please be careful!"
"We are all waiting for your return."
"Please be safe!"
With such warm cheers at our backs, we left the guest house.
We walked through the garden and out the main gate.
There were many people waiting for us.
"Dragon Slayer-san! Good luck!"
"I'm rooting for you! Please protect the royal capital!"
"Kyaa! Please look at me!"
They're in a huge uproar.
I mean, what was that last statement?
Please look at you? I'm not an idol, you know.
The street had sidewalks on both sides and a carriage path in the center.
The sidewalks were full of people, and we were walking along the carriage road.
"You're so popular."
Iris muttered with a wry smile.
"It reminds me of when we were in Aunen."
"It sure does."
"Is something wrong?"
The first person to ask this question was Lily.
"I remember when Kou-san was very popular after he defeated the black dragon in Aunen."
Milia answered with a smiling face.
"Just by going out on the street, people would shake his hand, ask for his autograph, and even ask him to pat their children on the head so that they would grow up healthy and happy."
"I remember that too."
That brings back memories.
"I'm just a human being, though, and I don't have that kind of blessing."
"Kou-sama, I object to it."
Leticia shrugged.
"You can't call yourself a mere mortal when you're possessed by my brother, the Greedy Dragon of Great Calamity."
"That's true, isn't it?"
Iris nodded.
"In addition, if the sealed part of Kou's memory is revealed, it could be that he is not a mere human being after all."
"I think it's possible."
Lily nodded her head.
"But, Master-san is Master-san!"
Surara said in an innocent voice.
"If you have a hard time remembering anything, just rub me a lot and forget about it!"
"I understand. Thank you. Well, whatever the memories are, I will be tired after the ritual, so please massage me as you did before."
"Yeah, leave it to me! I'll do my best to give you a full course along with the other Helper Slimes!"
While talking like this, we walked through the royal capital.
As one would expect from such a large city, the buildings were large.
We eventually made a big left turn and arrived at the central square.
"Oh, Kou-dono! We have been waiting for you!"
As soon as we entered the square, King Octo was waiting for us with his escort knights.
"I think you can bring out Blaznir here, don't you think so?"
"Yeah. It will be alright."
The central square was surrounded by trees, but the central area was grassy and quite spacious.
It seemed like it would be no problem to put out Blaznir here.
I opened the [Item Box] and thought about taking out the Blaznir.
Immediately after, a huge magic circle floated on the ground, and when a flash of light burst out, an airship with large bird-like wings on both sides appeared.
"Oh…!"
King Octo exclaimed in admiration.
"So this big thing was in the [Item Box]? It was written in the letter from Relic that the capacity was infinite, but it's really a powerful sight to see it in person."
"We've gotten used to seeing it, but when you think about it calmly, it's quite extraordinary, isn't it?"
Iris nodded her head and said.
"When the battle is over, you might want to start your own transportation business."
"And with [Auto Mapping], you don't have to worry about getting lost!"
Milia said as if she was taking advantage of Iris's words.
Leticia opened her mouth further.
"And if you use [Divine Speed Blessing EX], you can get to your destination in an instant."
"It's going to be very, very popular."
"Master-san, you're going to make a fortune!"
I didn't expect Lily and even Surara to be on board.
The transportation business, huh?
Hmm…
That's right.
If you read it in conjunction, it's transportation, isn't it? [T/n: Not sure about this one.]
No, that's not what I meant.
I mean, I didn't think [Full Assist] would retort.
Really, you're becoming more and more human.
That aside…
"Even if I do get into the transportation business, it's not for a long time down the road. As for me, I still want to see more of the world, and I've already made enough money."
"Sure, you've got a lot of rewards for all the work you've done so far."
"Oh, speaking of rewards."
King Octo said with a look of recollection on his face.
"We haven't talked about the rewards for defeating the Yellow Dragon, the Lust Dragon, and the Demon God Dragon the other day, have we? Then there is this Zogral. The situation has grown so large that it has exceeded the scale of monetary compensation. Why don't you become a nobleman? With the items you possess, you could make the land grow rich and lead a life of luxury."
"No, let me refrain. A nobleman, in other words, is responsible for the lives of the people who live on the land. I'm not that kind of person."
"You are a humble man, Kou-dono. Usually, when people hear that they can become nobles, they jump at the chance."
"That's a good thing about Kou, isn't it?"
Iris said with a chuckle, and Milia continued.
"Well, in Kou-san's case, I think it's okay for him to be a little more greedy."
"That said, Kou-sama's mind is probably occupied with the battle with Zogral right now, so why don't you think about it later?"
"I guess so."
I nodded at Leticia's words and turned to King Octo.
"Please let off on the reward for me."
"All right. I'll think about it myself. What kind of reward is appropriate for a hero who saves the world?"
"I haven't saved the world yet."
I chuckled and called out to everyone.
"Now, that's enough chit-chat. Let's go inside Blaznir."
"I understand. I'll do my best for the ritual."
Lily nodded her head and clasped her hands tightly.
She seemed to be in high spirits.
"I wonder if everyone is already here."
Surara was heading for the entrance door on the side of the hull with a happy and joyful look on her face.
Oops.
I haven't used "Helper Slime Summon EX" yet.
I've established a link with Blaznir.
May I activate "Helper Slime Summon EX"?
Yes, of course. I'll be counting on you.
The next moment I nodded my head, and white smoke popped up around the deck, one after another.
"Here we are!"
Hello, Master-san!"
"Today's the day of the ritual, and we're all going to do our best!"
The slimes were bouncing around on the deck, shouting cheerfully.
"Oh…!"
King Octo exclaimed in admiration right beside me.
"Although Surara-dono is also quite a good one, it is also lovely to see a large number of others making noises together."
"Do you want to come with us, King Octo?"
"Is that alright with you?"
"Yes. The [Descendant of the God of War] might be useful."
"Yes. Then, I will accompany you."
Then, King Octo told his guards to be on the alert around Blaznir and returned to us.
"I have given my instructions. There will be no problem without me."
"Kou-san, may I accompany you too?"
Milia also requested to go with us.
"Yes, of course. If you feel anything strange during the ritual, just let me know."
So, in addition to the usual members of Iris, Lily, Leticia, and Surara, I took Milia and King Octo with me and boarded Blaznir."
Immediately after, a voice echoed in my brain.
I will generate a ceremonial field by Spatial Distortion EX.
Is that okay?
Spatial Distortion EX is one of the effects that Blaznir possesses, which gives it a much larger internal structure than it appears on the outside.
It is also possible to add more rooms at will.
Since it had been decided in advance to generate a ritual field, I nodded my head.
Now let's start the generation.
…Generation completed.
The ship shook for a moment.
It was probably the aftermath of the "Space Distortion EX."
"Kou-dono, what was that?"
King Octo voiced a question, so I told him that I generated the ritual field with my skills and the granted effect.
"You can do such a thing… You really are out of the ordinary, aren't you, Kou-dono?"
"No, it's not that I'm amazing──"
"You want to say that your skills are amazing, don't you?"
With a mischievous look on her face, Milia said that.
"No, it's my skills and the granted effects."
"Kou, is that where you're going with this?"
Iris giggled at my words.
"It's just like Kou-sama to stick to such things, isn't it?"
Leticia also chuckled.
After such a scene, we decided to go to the place of the ritual.
"The ritual place is this way! Follow me!"