16-14. End of the Assailants (2)

Satou here. There's this saying, "The mountains have brought forth a mouse", but I think it's better than them bringing forth a major volcanic eruption. I mean, going on a pleasure trip in peaceful times is more fun.

◇

"Arisa!"

I went with Tama using Unit Arrangement and jumped into the place she led me to.

"Master... I'm, sorry..."

"Pull yourself together."

I take Arisa's small hand as she muttered weakly and put my forehead on hers.

--Hot.

"You're burning."

According to AR, it's not influenza, but a cold--looks like she's gotten a common cold.

"Geez, why'd you bath under the waterfall until you got a cold..."

"I'm sowwy."

Lulu who came carrying a rice gruel scolded Arisa.

I see, I get the reason Arisa caught the cold.

"Yaay, rice gruel with sweet potatoes."

Rather than the sweet potato she knows, it's a local product of Seryuu Earldom.

"Master, feed me."

Arisa is acting spoiled, perhaps the fever got her hard.

Well, I guess I can at least spoil her when she's down with a cold.

"Aan, so good. It tastes like Master's love."

Arisa's jokes don't stop even while she's coughing.

It makes me worry that she's getting delirious from her fever.

When I reflexively turned my gaze around, I saw the youth troupe assembled on Arisa's bedside.

"Aan."

"Aan, nanodesu."

"Tama too~?"

That reminds me, my little sister also demanded for the "Aan" from our mom when I was down with a fever before I went to school.

"I'm feeding Arisa right now, so later--"

I noticed something halfway through.

I look around the room.

--Thought so.

"Arisa, you didn't take the magic medicine for treating illness did you?"

I forgot about it since cold was a common illness in the former world.

With the magic medicines and magic available in this world, it can be cured in an instant.

"Eh? Err, I only had elixirs with me, so I thought it would be too wasteful to use one."

Arisa replied me while coughing.

The coughing timing somewhat feels suspicious.

"Then how about Mia's water magic?"

"Was refused."

I turned to Mia, and she shook her head while making an x sign with her arms.

"I mean, you know! Mia came back way after I got down with the cold, and I thought I would get better if I just drank water, ate rice gruel and slept--"

"Even the brownies in this room could use magic to heal a simple cold right?"

"Ugwuu."

Arisa faltered in the middle of her excuse.

Why would she go to sleep while still afflicted with the cold anyway?

"D-dat's..."

"It will be easier if you just confess nodesu."

Pochi urged Arisa while imitating a veteran detective who pressed someone to confession.

"I just wanted to have a nursing play with masteeeeeeeeer"

"Play?"

"Arisa..."

Next to Arisa who shouted with all her soul, Mia who couldn't understand it tilted her head to the side, and Lulu who understood it muttered her little sister's name while blushing.

"Rejected."

When I rejected her, Arisa muttered, "And it was the perfect chance to have a nursing play with the too healthy Master too"

Yup, Arisa should reflect on it a bit.

"Private Pochi."

"Aye!"

"Administer the household medicine used in the orphanages to private Arisa."

"Yes nanodesu. This one nodesu?"

"Yes, that one."

I gave the confirmation to Pochi who took the medicine out of her magic bag.

"--Suppository!"

Arisa screamed when she saw the thing Pochi took out.

"I'd like to refrain from that thank you."

"It's okay nanodesu. It won't hurt nodesu."

"No no, it's not about whether it hurts or not."

"Don't worry nodesu. Pochi is a suppository pro nanodesu."

"You'll break a maiden's heart!"

Arisa inched back in the bed while Pochi was approaching with an evil look on her face.

"A-at least, I'd like Master to be the one putting it in--"

"Arisa, you shouldn't act spoiled nanodesu."

"Uoo, I can't teleport? Master sealing teleportation is--"

I went out of the room with Mia while hearing Arisa's scream behind us.

I'll let Lulu handle the rest.

◇

"Satou-san!"

"Satou, welcome back."

Zena-san and princess Sistina greeted me when I returned to the living room in the solitary island palace.

I have to tell the passing of her brother of different mother, third prince Sharlick, to princess Sistina, but let's put off that for later.

It felt like she was indifferent toward the third prince after all.

"It appears there was an accident in the Holy Shell Mobile Armor's hangar, did anyone get hurt?"

"N-no. We aren't hurt anywhere. But, err--"

Zena-san who stammered her words awkwardly sent her gaze to the corner of the room.

There's Lady Karina who turns her face away while looking small there.

She probably messed up at something again.

"Would you tell me what happened?"

"Yes, allow me."

Princess Sistina begins to narrate what happened.

"It all happened when we were visiting the hangar--"

Someone stole the Holy Shell Mobile Armor's pilot suit, the mobile armor, and tried to hijack [General].

The fairly successful hijacker who boarded the Holy Shell Mobile Armor, swung the already booted-up armor's arm, and destroyed the scaffold and supporting frames around it, causing panic in the hangar.

The researchers who were about to be crushed under the collapsing scaffold were saved by Lady Karina's intense actions, but since Zena-san and princess Sistina seemed like they had forced smiles when they talked about it, I should take it with a grain of salt.

Her saving them is probably true, but she must have messed up at something.

"『Bizarre humanoids made of wreckage and steel beams』?"

Golems made of rubble that rose up from the wreckage and cloud of dust gathered and beat the researchers to death.

"That's weird. I've put the function to create servant golems like the original in the fake, yes, however I've programmed it so that they are forbidden to kill..."

Servant golems was a function relevant during the wars, so I had programmed them with Three Laws of Robotics built-in.

"Yes, Mito-sama also hypothesized that they might be familiars created by a lesser demon."

Looks like the one behind the incident here were demons too.

The root is probably the same as the one from Duchy Capital.

"Now that you mention it, where's Mito?"

"She said that something else might happen there, so she's on stand by along with Liza-san in the capital."

Then I'll go see how they're doing later.

"May I continue?"

"Yes, if you please."

The rubble golems were dealt with by princess Sistina's golems, while Zena-san was dealing with the Holy Shell Mobile Armor's hijacker.

As Zena-san was chanting advanced magic after her lower class ones proved ineffective, apparently, that was when Lady Karina blew away the steel frames and re-joined the frontline.

"So it was surprised by Lady Karina and tumbled over?"

The hijacker seemed to be a dullard.

Well, even if he made a run with the armor, without the [Real Activation Key] I gave to the king, it wouldn't be able to enter flight mode or high-mobility mode, nor could it fire any weapons, he probably would have ended up getting caught by the Shiga Eight Swords and Hikaru in the end.

"So, did you manage to catch that hijacker?"

"Yes, my golems dragged out the mobile armor and Zena-san arrested the man who tried to run away."

The hijacker seemed to be the page fired by the first prince back then, who was also a former employee of the third prince.

Well, they were probably trying to cause something in the capital while that man created a diversion as a throwaway piece.

Hikaru is probably staying with Liza in the capital because she came to the same conclusion.

"You two did great."

When I praised the two, Lady Karina's mood got even gloomier in the corner of the room.

Apparently, she feels bad for being the only one who did nothing great.

I walk to Lady Karina.

"Karina-sama."

"....Satou"

When I called to her, she buried her face into her own breast after a slight reaction.

--As expected of demonic breasts.

"Looks like you saved the researchers."

"That's all I did desuwa..."

Looks like the optimistic Lady Karina is currently in a rare self-loathing phase.

"That's not true at all, or are you dissatisfied that you 'only' saved people's life?"

Lady Karina raised her face with a startled look.

Her reaction resembled Pochi somehow.

"Moreover, we were only able to recapture the Holy Shell Mobile Armor without breaking it thanks to Lady Karina's actions."

Regardless of who the other party was, the fact is the matter was able to be concluded quickly thanks to her actions.

"Satou"

Lady Karina is looking up at me with moist eyes.

She looks like a girl in love, so I'm not sure how to react here.

"Mission complete~?"

"Suppository complete nanodesu."

Tama and Pochi appeared from the door.

Arisa's punishment--administering is done it seems.

Alright, I'll let Pochi who's close to Lady Karina to take care of her.

I beckoned Pochi and entrusted her care to her.

Lady Karina whose arms were wide open was frozen with a taken aback look on her face, but I left the place while pretending not to notice that.

◇

"Hikaru."

"Ichirou-nii."

I teleported next to Hikaru who was sitting on top of a Royal Castle's spire.

From what I gather on the Map, I don't see anyone like demons, or reincarnated people nor unknown high level people.

The sage mice, Chuu Fat and his colony hasn't reported any abnormality either.

Liza is standing with one leg on top of another spire, doing a quiet stance training like a master martial artist.

"I found Dynast in the Duchy Capital."

"You did?"

Hikaru stood up suddenly with a serious look on her face.

"That one is different from General. It's an absurd armor that could fight against a demon lord if it could keep its distance. We've got to think up a plan to--"

Hikaru spoke vehemently without listening to me.

It got quiet after I smashed its defensive barrier, shot out the magic circuit on its core and drained its mana.

Fighting it at close proximity was probably a wise decision.

"Everything's fine, Hikaru."

"Un, I believe in Ichirou-nii. But, Dynast's 『Damnation Cannon』 is--"

"I've neutralized and retrieved it with me here."

"--Eh?"

Hikaru froze still with a serious look and then she quickly sighed in relief.

"I'm so glad. I expected nothing less from Ichirou-nii."

"Let's contact Yuika, and then offer him a proper burial like with General on the right day."

"Un, please."

I stayed here for a while, and then went back to the Duchy capital alone.

I can tell my conversation with God Tenion to everyone once Arisa is cured from her cold.

◇

"Satou-san, is it over?"

"Yes, without problem."

When I got to Tenion Temple entranceway, the former head miko, currently miko apprentice Lily was waiting for me.

--Oh?

A blue dot on my Radar is coming here from the Duchy Castle area.

Ga Hou the orc has returned to his base through the sewer, so this one's probably Lady Ringrande.

Since she's with white dots, maybe they're going around to see the Duchy capital's state?

"They look to be quite in a hurry."

"--Yes."

A group of cavalry knights who rushed in like they were jousting stopped at the entrance of Tenion Temple.

The horses that have stopped upright look quite imposing.

"The miko over there! Call the temple head and Sera-sama!"

One of the knights haughtily gave an order to miko apprentice Lily.

"Yes."

Miko apprentice Lily obediently run into the temple to call the two.

Behind him, Lady Ringrande who didn't look well was helped by the other knights to get down from the horse.

"Ringrande-sama?"

"Sa-Satou."

Lady Ringrande is in critical condition for some reason.

But she seemed fine when she was chasing the Holy Shell Mobile Armor [Dynast] earlier, wonder what happened?

"Are you alright?"

"I'm running out of time. Take me to Sera."

"I understand."

I receive Lady Ringrande from the knights who looked dissatisfied and head to Sera's resting room.

She's in [State: Weakened (Serious)] according to AR reading, her health gauge has almost run out.

"Did something happen?"

"Yep, I used a little something I shouldn't have used."

I saw Ringrande's gaze turned toward her left ring finger for an instant.

It seems to be a type of [Cursed Ring] according to AR reading.

Apparently, it's an artifact from a dungeon that will continue to convert your life force into mana even after it's full.

According to the detailed info on it, recovery magic and health recovery magic potion won't work while it's in effect.

"Ringrande-sama, Sera-sama is currently resting inside this room."

I could only hear a very faint sound from Lady Ringrande, probably because her health had been exhausted.

The other knights were going to come too, but I kept them away by telling them that I couldn't let Sera, an unmarried woman, in her nightdress be exposed.

I close the door with a thud.

The sleeping Sera is the only one in this room, so let's do this.

"--Fracture."

I touched Lady Ringrande's cursed ring and then it crumbled away like a rusted ring.

This saves time from dealing with a cursed item, no complain please.

The health reduction has stopped after the ring is destroyed, but she's been terribly weakened already.

"Ringrande-sama, please drink this."

I push an elixir bottle on her mouth, but she's already lost consciousness and can't drink it.

I put the elixir in my mouth and make Lady Ringrande drink it mouth-to-mouth.

It's just a treatment and the impregnable fortress pairs shouting [Guilty] aren't looking, so this should be fine.

The AR reading indicates that Lady Ringrande's health gauge has been safely refilled.

"...Satou-san?"

I heard a half-asleep voice of Sera from the bed.

"--Ane-sama!"

I used [Magic Hand] to catch Sera who tried to get up from the bed and almost fell from her anemia.

Since it didn't look like she saw me giving the mouth-to-mouth, I told her about the attack on Duchy Capital, and how Lady Ringrande used a cursed item to avert the crisis, resulting in her critical state.

"Ane-sama is always like that. She always goes straight forward with only the goal in mind....."

Sera is brushing Lady Ringrande's hair who's still unconscious.

Even though she sounded like she couldn't believe her, it seems like she doesn't truly hate her.

"I was able to converse with God Tenion thanks to Sera-san. I'll tell you the details along with the other girls once we get back to the Solitary Island Palace."

"Yes, I'm glad to be of service."

I told Sera what needs to be told while Lady Ringrande was still unconscious.

"We will leave the duchy capital tomorrow morning. You should get some rest in Tenion Temple today."

"Yes."

Since I won't have anything to do tonight, let's go to Ga Bou's place and have some drink there.

"--Satou-san."

Sera beckons me as I stand up.

That's a rare gesture from Sera.

"Please do the mouth-to-mouth to me too when I'm injured okay."

Surprised, I look at Sera's face and she looks back at me like a child who's succeeded in her prank.

It was really scary since her eyes weren't laughing.

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