I decided on my future course with my seniors, and I was assimilated with Ferm, and I returned to the empty house where Nea and Kira were with Amako.

At that time, Amako had her hood removed to explain the situation, but Kira and the others were predictably surprised when they found out that she was a beastman.

Rose and Ram had never seen a beastman before, but Amako was less wary than they thought because of her proximity to Kira's.

On the other hand, Kira seemed to be distancing herself from Amako unlike I was.

 

「…… You're tired and asleep."

"That's right."

 

When it was getting dark outside, I looked down at Rose and Ram, who were sleeping together on the bed in the other room where Mr./Ms. was sleeping, and sighed as I rested my back against the wall.

The two children quickly fell asleep due to the fatigue of being attacked by the monster during the day.

 

"Ferm, you've been assimilating for quite a long time, aren't you tired?"

"Not at all, as long as you don't use magic, it won't cost me much."

 

I don't have a problem with myself, but I wonder if Ferm is the same.

Is it safe to assume that if you don't move your magic poorly, you can maintain assimilation for a long time?

 

"Oh. I'll tell you for the time being.'

"Hmm?"

"If I don't respond, I'm probably either asleep or ignoring me."

"It's terrible to ignore it, but what does it mean to sleep? Eh, is it like being able to sleep normally when you're assimilated with me?"

 

That? Isn't it surprisingly inconvenient?

As she was surprised by the shocking fact, Amako, who had been watching the sleeping Rose and Ram, turned to face her.

 

"Usato, be quiet."

"Oh, I'm sorry."

 

I was.

Hiding his voice, he talks to Amako.

 

"Amako, what did you think when you saw these kids?"

「…… Innocent child. I don't want to know why I was nostalgic so quickly. …… Usato, I'll be angry if you say anything after that."

 

I thought I was going to make a little joke, but I was warned ahead of time.

 

"I had mixed feelings, because I felt like I was being shown that demons are no different from beastmen and humans......

"I thought I knew it in my head......, but when I look at the reality, it makes me realize how naïve I was."

 

Defeating the Demon King is the same as cutting off the lifeline of the Demon Tribe.

The demon tribe suffers from poverty, and it may cause hardship to Kira and the others we helped today.

They haven't done anything wrong.

 

「…… Well, no matter how much I worry, our mission to defeat the Demon King will not change."

 

I don't know if the war will end with the defeat of the Demon King.

But to stop the invasion, you have to defeat the Demon Lord.

I put my hand to my eyes as I push the questions that are spinning in my head into the corner.

 

"For that reason, we must not look away from reality......

 

He removes his hand from his eyes and turns his gaze once more to the two demon children who are still sleeping.

Then the door to the room we were in opened and Nea appeared.

Behind her was Kira, who was glancing at me, and her gaze turned from me to the sleeping Rose and Lamb.

 

"Nea, what's wrong?"

"Gref woke up."

「! Endorsement. Immediately go to Mr./Ms.'s room. Nea, Keira, can I have a look at these kids?"

"Yes, leave it to me."

「……」

 

Leaving Rose and Rum to the two of them, he heads to Mr./Ms.'s Gref.

Then, Kira, who had moved away from Nea, followed me without a word.

 

"Keira?"

「……」

 

I spoke to him, but he was silent.

Are you worried that we and Mr./Ms. are in the same room?

He seems to be thinking about it somehow.

Mindful of Kira, who follows her to keep her distance from Amako, she arrives at the room where Mr./Ms. Gref is.

When I looked inside through the open door, I saw Mr./Ms. Gref on the bed with his upper body up.

 

"Gref"

"Oh, you brought me!"

 

Noticing our presence by Keira's voice, he lets go of the hand that was rubbing his bandaged right leg and smiles cheerfully.

 

"I've heard from Nea, you guys can be Amako to Usato?"

"Yes, is there anything wrong with your body? I took care of the wound for the time being......

"But I'm surprised that it's almost painless, it's like the injury is gone."

 

In fact, the wound has really healed completely......

Well, for now, let's just say that it was cured with healing magic.

 

"Oh, I didn't introduce myself, as you may already know, I'm Gref...... It's a strange demon tribe traveling in the Demon Lord's Realm."

"I'm Kyu...... My name is Usato, and I'm traveling just like you."

"Amako, as you can see, a beastman. I'm 14 years old."

"What!?"

 

For some reason, Amako emphasized her age.

And Kira, who has been silent until now, is surprised to hear her age.

…… Well, looking at Amako's height, she must have thought that she was about the same age.

Mr./Ms. Gref bowed deeply to me, who was glaring at me casually as if it was on my face.

 

"Thank you so much, you saved not only my life, but also the lives of Keira, Rose and Ram."

"No, no, we couldn't overlook it, so ......."

 

As usual, I ask Mr./Ms. Gref to raise his head.

 

"Many demon tribes rot to the heart along with the earth...... It's rare to find a kind demon like you these days. Hahaha"

"Oh, is that so?"

 

Mr./Ms.'s words upset and returning a friendly smile.

I don't understand the personality of ordinary demon people......! Specifically, I only know the Legion Commander and Ferm......!

That? Should I just go like Koga?

 

"Gref, Mr./Ms. Usat is in trouble."

"Oh, really? Hahaha, I'm sorry."

 

Mr./Ms. Gref, who was warned by Keira, apologizes to me.

Let's change the subject for a moment.

If this continues, it seems that the rags will come out.

 

"Gref Mr./Ms. about injuries...... You should be able to walk in about two or three days."

"Really? I didn't expect to be bitten by that bloodthirsty Hangwolf and get away with that...... To be honest, when I woke up, I thought my legs were just going to stop moving. I was really surprised that it wasn't as painful as I expected."

 

Mr./Ms. murmurs as she rubs her right leg, and Keira sits down on the chair beside his bed.

 

"It was a terrible injury, but Mr./Ms. Usato-san took care of it immediately."

"How amazing was that?"

"Oh my gosh."

"Oh my God."

"yes, it was bad."

"I see...... Was it bad......

 

It's a unique exchange.

Mr./Ms. Gref muttered "Oh no" like a parrot and put his hand on Keira's head with a gentle smile.

 

"I'm sorry to make you worry, and you did a good job."

「…… yes."

 

Kira nods her head with no expression.

After a moment, he lifts his hand from her head and continues to speak to her.

 

"Rest today, you're tired."

"But ......."

"You don't have to worry about me, and you see, if you don't go to bed early, the terrible healing wizard will come to kill you."

 

Hmm? I don't know what it is, but it seems that a line related to me came out at a completely unrelated ...... time.

 

「…… Gref, I'm not scared of that."

"Hahaha, I know, let's go."

"Yes."

 

With a sigh, Kira gets out of her chair and heads towards the entrance of the room.

I thought he was going to leave the room, but he stopped in front of me.

 

"What's wrong?"

"Usato Mr./Ms....... Can you teach me how to deal with dark magic later?"

 

!? Ya, dark magic!?︎ If it's healing magic or life-saving team training, dark magic is honestly not my specialty.

…… No, you can ask Ferm, who is assimilated with me, to teach me.

You can refuse, but if you refuse here, you are likely to be suspicious, so let's take it.

 

"Oh, I don't care."

"Oh, thank you! See you then!"

 

With a bright smile on her face, Keira turned from an anxious look and ran out of the room.

Mr./Ms. Gref looks at her back with a troubled smile.

 

"I'm sorry, Kira seems to be happy to meet a dark wizard like herself. Don't be offended."

"No, I don't care."

"It would be helpful if you could say that, you can stand and sit."

 

In response to Gref Mr./Ms.'s words, he pulls out another chair from the corner of the room and sits down on it with Amako.

Well, if there's one thing you want to ask first, it's .......

 

"What about Keira...... Is that your daughter Mr./Ms.?"

「…… Nope. What about that girl...... It's a kid I adopted on my journey."

"I don't ...... to say that I took it in."

"For some reason, she can't go back to her family."

『…… After all.'

 

Ferm, who had been silent until now, mutters.

 

"And the other kids?"

"Yes, those children are children whose parents have been killed by demons. I'm taking the place of the parents, but I'm not sure I'm doing well."

"No, they didn't want to leave you in your sleep until a while ago......

 

I nodded at Amako's words.

In fact, he carried Rose and Ram to bed because they had fallen asleep leaning against Mr./Ms.'s bed.

Judging by the way they look, they must have faith in Mr./Ms. Gref with all their hearts.

 

「…… Recently, the movement of monsters has become more active. We were no longer traveling in a daze, so we decided to head to a safe place with a group of people who were trying to move to the center...... Then I was attacked by a monster and I was lost."

"I heard from Keira, you can still join the group, right?"

"Fortunately, the injuries don't seem to be as serious as I thought, and in a couple of days we will be able to leave here and pass near the ruins to the village where we are going to join."

 

…… I was a little curious during the day, but what are the ruins?

Do you want to give it a try?

 

"Well, what are the ruins?"

"Don't you know? It's rare for a demon to not know this. The ruins are the places where the Demon King and his men used to make their stronghold hundreds of years ago."

"What!?"

"Are you sure you don't know? It's also the place where the Demon King and the Hero fought their final battle......

 

It was a place that seemed more important than I thought, ......!?

Amako's eyes widen and she looks surprised.

 

"Now, it seems that the resurrected Demon King is in the castle of the city...... There are a lot of rumors about that ruin. The Demon King's special golem that protects the ruins is still active, the high concentration of magic power fills the ruins, and some of them have hidden weapons that the heroes handled."

「! Is it a weapon that the hero was dealing with......

 

What I had in my mind was Amako's prediction.

A different sword from the kodachi that became the basis of my gauntlet.

It may be in the place where the Demon King was once based.

If you look at Amako, you can see that she was thinking the same thing as me, putting her hand to her chin and thinking about something.

 

"Well, it's a rumor that doesn't deserve to be believed."

"So, isn't it......?"

"And what about you?"

"We?"

"You're traveling like me, aren't you?"

 

With a little nervousness, I explain that I had decided with Leona Mr./Ms. beforehand.

 

"We're mainly traveling in the direction of the Beastman Country rather than the Demon King Realm."

"Ah, that's why Amako the Beastman is with you, is there anyone else besides you and Nea here?"

"Yes, there are four people and my partner demon in an empty house a little away from this house."

 

Now, here's the thing.

 

"But what about the rest of us...... Some of them avoid interacting with people or have behavioral problems, so you can't let them meet. In particular, one of my peers is a respectable person, but there is a negative impact on the child ......."

"Some of it is true."

 

Senpai can be really reliable when they're serious, but when they get out of control, they become uncontrollable, and their actions and statements ...... on a different level.

 

"Well, well, it's not surprising that most of the people on the road have had something in the past. But what is the sidekick demon? Aren't you a familiar?"

"No, it's not like they're familiars, they're just friends, and they're called Blue Grizzlies."

「…… Blue Grizzly?"

 

Oh, this is déjà vu.

I knew they would be surprised, so I immediately told them that there was no danger.

 

"It's not dangerous, it doesn't attack people, it's more of a reliable presence on the road."

「…… Oh, I've seen a lot of things, but I've never seen anyone like you. Maybe you are connected to dark magic and know the commander of the Second Legion of the Demon King Army?"

 

Commander of the Second Corps——— Koga?

What comes to mind is the image of Anchikusho standing in front of me as I try to fulfill my mission as a lifesaver and laughing and punching me.

Before I can even think about it, I reply quickly.

 

"No, no, I don't know anyone with a brain made of muscle like that."

「…… Eh, it's a lie, isn't it? Do you really know each other?"

"Huh!?"

 

- Oh my gosh, I answered immediately with ...... spinal reflex!

 

"You're the one who has muscles up to your brain, you idiot."

"Usato ......"

 

Parrying Ferm's taunts and Amako's gaze as if she were looking at a poor person, I mended my smile in agitation.

 

"It's a rotten relationship, it's just a couple of fights and punches."

"I think it's a good deal when you get into a fistfight with a non-standard who is the youngest legionnaire."

 

I don't know what it is, but every time I open my mouth, I feel like I'm digging more and more graves.

I can't say this about my seniors......

______________________________________________

Due to the setting, Kira may be as dark as Eva in the early days.