Chapter 80 - Akizuki Uta and What She Left Behind
Just then, Cecily and Aira returned. It was sooner than I expected.
"The person I treated yesterday came back to the church today, so I asked him. There's no doubt Isaac was the one spreading rumors that the church was providing treatment," Aira said.
"So it was Isaac who stole the mirror. We need to track him down," Cecily declared.
I nodded in agreement. But how would we track him? Should I postpone our journey to take Fam to Migul? If something happened to me, there was a chance the church wouldn't help her if she were alone. I wanted to get the curse on her lifted first. I also had my promise to free Cecily and Aira from slavery. They had become important, special to me. The thought of them remaining slaves was starting to feel deeply wrong. I didn't want to put it off any longer.
"Racshell-sama commanded us to find the mirror. Would you entrust this task to us?"
Karpana spoke up as I hesitated.
"Alright. I've taken custody of two of Mii's slaves. We might get some information from them. But it's highly likely there are other transferees behind him. They have special skills on par with mine. Please be extremely careful."
"Thank you for your concern, Mash-sama."
She bowed.
"Can we go with them, too?" Hyakka asked.
"Yes. We would be grateful for your help," Karpana replied, bowing once more.
I didn't know how strong Hyakka and her friend were, but they should be stronger than us, having more experience. If they were going along, there shouldn't be a problem.
The priest's hands lifted from Uta. He let out a deep breath.
"…It does not seem she was suffering from any kind of disease."
"What does that mean…"
She had foreseen her own death. So it wasn't a sudden end like murder or suicide. And yet, she wasn't sick either.
"Mash, I hadn't paid it much mind, but there are legends of other transferees besides Uta-sama. Okita Soji is one of them. But…" Maira trailed off, seemingly having realized something but hesitating to say it.
"Go on."
"As far as I know, none of the legends include episodes from their later years."
"…"
A thought struck me. Mizuki and I had undergone an 'adaptation' from Racshell to help us acclimate to this world. Could it be that the effect had a time limit? If so, shouldn't the gods have given us a clearer objective? In our current state, we're not even useful as disposable pawns. Was their goal simply to send us here? No, that's strange too. In that case, they wouldn't need living people.
"Priest, do you know anything?"
"No, I cannot think of anything either," the priest said, shaking his head. He then glanced at Uta.
"Transferees possess special powers. Perhaps, like Uta-sama, they become the cornerstones of their cities?"
"What do you mean?"
"Just as Uta-sama controls the crystal core from this space to prevent it from turning into a dungeon."
"So you mean she's a human pillar?"
The priest didn't nod, but I took it as an affirmation. This was the truth behind the miracle. Every city with a church must have a presence like her.
"Did Uta choose to die for something like this? No, judging from her memo, she was forced to. She was even carrying a child!"
"That's not correct. She was interred here only after she had already passed away."
At the priest's words, I looked at Maira.
"Before we fought Mii and his group, you said you couldn't explain the details right now. Is this what will happen to me if I die?"
Is that why she's following me? I barely managed to swallow the words.
"If that is what you wish. But as long as you are with me, I will never let you die."
She placed a hand on her chest, her gaze sincere. While she spoke of her admiration for myths in a carefree manner, underneath it all, she had been traveling with this kind of resolve. Fam, too… how could they feel that way?
"Mash. Have you forgotten? We are lovers."
Maira's resolve was her desire to be with me as my lover until the very end.
"I spoke accusingly. Maira, I hope you can forgive me."
Following my moment of weakness, I had once again shown Maira an unpleasant side of myself. Perhaps I let my raw emotions out around her because she's the closest to my age. No, she'd probably get mad if I said that. I'll just blame it on her huge boobs.
"Mash, I told you we are in this together. You can direct any of your emotions at me. I will accept them. And I will direct mine at you as well."
"Alright. But this is a bit too heavy for me, so I'd appreciate it if you kept in mind that you can just grab Fam and run away at any point."
"I understand. I will," Maira said with a smile.
"We've gotten sidetracked. To summarize: Uta's cause of death wasn't illness. But she didn't choose it herself, nor was she forced into this place. No other transferees are confirmed to have lived long lives, either. Although, it might just be that there were no legendary episodes in their later years…"
"Sorry to interrupt your summary."
Mizuki looked up from the smartphone's screen and stared at me.
"Look at this."
She showed me the phone's screen.
The transferee living in Flucht died. It's the same for all the transferees who survived the Holy War. It seems the time a transferee can stay in this world is ten years.
I wish this was a message that only Mizuki, Hyakka, Chihiro, and I had seen. I wanted time to process my thoughts before everyone else saw it. Everyone was staring intently at the screen. But no matter how much we stared, the words wouldn't change. This was the fate of a hero who had kept her promise to the gods and defeated the Demon Lord.
My heart was pounding violently. I didn't want anyone to hear it. I clenched my fists tightly.
"I think I've got the gist of it. We only came down here to find out what Mii's group was after, anyway. Let's put the lid back on and return to the surface."
I tried to say it in a joking manner.
"Master. I am with you."
Fam placed her hand over my fist and squeezed. A tremor passed from her hand to mine. Or perhaps it was me who was trembling.
"Don't say such scary things. Don't treat your life so lightly."
"But…"
"It's okay. I'm the real hero, right? We have ten years. Hyakka and her friend have one year less, but before then, I'll find a way to escape these shackles. I'll definitely find it. You too, Mizuki. I'll get you back to our world. I promise."
Did I manage to say that well? Fam was looking at me anxiously, as if she wanted to say something. She was just like me, searching for the right words.
"Mash, it's meaningless if you're not there."
"Mizuki, it's alright. Uta was alone, but there are two of us."
I touched her cheek. The color had drained from her face, leaving her skin the same shade as Uta's. It felt like cold, hard porcelain.
"Mash, let's summon Racshell-sama one more time. It will be fine this time. My level has gone up," Maira said, moving closer.
"She's a god. You don't have to shoulder this. I'm sure Racshell wants to help us, too. She'll give us the answer eventually."
As I answered Maira, I noticed Cecily was also looking at me.
"Don't look at me like that. Give me some of your usual arrogant attitude and say something encouraging."
At my words, she forced the corners of her mouth into a smile.
"I'll study more about magic. And then, I will save you."
I nodded.
"Aira, are you worried about me?" I asked, turning my gaze to Aira, who was looking down.
"Free me from slavery before you die."
Her words made me laugh.
"You're right. I've been feeling guilty about keeping you as a slave, Aira. It's just that this city has become a little uncomfortable. Everyone does that weird dance when they see me. I don't want to stand out anymore. We don't have to go all the way to Migul. I'll free you in Flucht. And the two from the prison, if Fam agrees. I'll also have Maira send a letter through the church to get Reed freed."
"Also, the next date is with me. Don't forget."
"Hey, it's my turn next! Mash and I promised to go boating together in Flucht!"
Maira reacted to Aira's words. She looked to me for confirmation, and I nodded back. Seeing this, Maira beamed triumphantly. There was no trace of the gentle older sister from Richelle.
"Wait, I didn't hear about this. I haven't had a date yet either."
"Cecily, you and he went out for a ride on horseback together!"
Maira reacted to Cecily's words, too. She's so conscientious.
"…Fine. Then let's take a vote," Aira said.
"That's pointless. Everyone will just vote for themselves," Maira retorted.
So I don't get a vote again?
"Everyone who thinks it should be me!"
Aira raised her hand, and Fam and Mizuki reluctantly followed. A majority was reached. The ugly dispute between the sisters was settled.
"Wha—?!"
Maira and Cecily cried out in shock, holding their heads as if in despair. I knew it was my fault. But please, I wish they'd do this somewhere else. I noticed Karpana staring at the scene, bewildered.
"They're an embarrassing bunch, aren't they?" I asked her.
"Mash-sama, you truly have values that are different from mine—no, from the people of this world."
I wasn't the one making a scene here, though.
We were about to return Uta's sword and phone to the coffin, but the priest stopped us.
"Please, keep them. They may be of use to you on your journey, Mash-sama. However, you must promise to return them one day. A visit from someone from her homeland would be a joyous occasion."
She might be happy about a visitor from her homeland, but she would definitely not be happy about them seeing her phone. Still, it could contain important information.
"By your next visit, we will have made preparations so that you may become this city's leader."
I chose to ignore the priest's ominous statement and, following his advice, we decided to take her belongings with us. Working together, we replaced the coffin lid, and left Uta's final resting place behind.
"So, what're ya plannin' to do now?" Hyakka asked as we climbed the stairs back to the surface.
"You know we don't have time. Let's just hurry up and kiss so we can move on to the next step."
"N-Next step?! So it wasn't just a kiss, you were after my body all along! …Hey, that's not what I was askin'!"
Hyakka's reaction was as dramatic as ever.
"We're going to proceed as planned with the Mateo Trading Company caravan to Migul. I intend to set up a base of operations there. After that, I think we'll head for the border with the Demon Kingdom."
First, I wanted to establish a foundation for our life in Migul. I noticed Fam watching me. She looked like she wanted to say something, but she just lowered her head.
"You're gonna go to the Demon Kingdom?" Hyakka asked.
Where I really wanted to go was Fam's hometown. If I told her we might get information about Okita Soji there, she might come along.
"I don't know. But I do want to confirm the existence of the Demon Lord."
I had a desire to confirm the Demon Lord's existence and track down the staff that was in the ark.
"We're gonna chase after the Wandering People and Isaac. After that, we'll head to Migul."
"The Mateo Trading Company is backing us. I'll introduce you to them, Hyakka. Let's arrange it so we can keep track of each other's whereabouts through the company."
Hyakka nodded. I wanted to create a more reliable contact system by leaving information at the guild as well, to create a redundant line of communication, but there was a risk that transferees summoned by the Fifty Gods could access it. I was torn.
"One more piece of advice: be careful when you reveal that you're a transferee."
"Yeah, I know. But it's also important to find the transferees summoned by the Five Goddesses."
"There are only three other groups summoned by the Five Goddesses. The chances of running into anyone else are overwhelmingly higher."
They would be strong allies, but it was unlikely we'd get much information. We'd probably just meet another absentminded duo who hadn't listened to their god's explanation. As I was talking with her, we arrived back on the surface and entered the main dome. It was only yesterday that we'd had that fierce battle with Mii's group here, but it already felt like a distant memory, absorbed into the hundred-year history of this church. The building had sustained some damage in the battle, but it hadn't lost its splendor. It truly was a beautiful structure. They say Uta founded it. It was supposedly modeled after a church in another city, but there was no doubt it was built with thoughts of her original world in mind. A temple dedicated to all gods. Her wish to leave behind a child had never reached them. Today, too, a shaft of light poured down from the hole in the ceiling. I prayed that this light would reach all the way down to the lowest level, where she slept.
Thank you for reading. To everyone who has liked, bookmarked, or rated this story, thank you very much. Your support is a great encouragement. I'll do my best.