kscans

Chapter 217 - One Thinks of Home From Afar

The day after I drank myself into a stupor with the old hag, I immediately got to work. I couldn't just keep complaining forever. I called upon all the mythologies, gathered those with authority over childbirth, and formed a special team, "Safe Delivery." We traveled the world to ensure that the children still in the womb within the looping time could be born safely. There was a suggestion to expand the powers of those with authority as a sort of area-of-effect buff over the entire planet... but given the circumstances, we couldn't be too careful. This was an unprecedented slice-of-life timeline, so we decided the utmost caution was necessary and literally visited each pregnant woman one by one to pave the way for their deliveries. Normally this would have taken an insane amount of time, but I managed to do something about that. I had already tested the safety of things like time manipulation precisely because of this crazy timeline. The Safe Delivery team, myself included, operated outside the normal flow of time, so we were able to shorten the process considerably, but by the time we were done, I was mentally exhausted. Still, we had at least laid the groundwork, and I thought we could take a break...

"Getting called in just a few hours after that."

I was having a drink and thinking about heading to bed early. Right at that moment, an emergency summons came in under the joint names of the Mutual Aid Society and the government. It was too much trouble to change, so I flew to the Prime Minister's residence in my jinbei, which I use as pajamas.

"I am truly sorry about this."

"It's fine. So, Chairman, what is it this time? After the villainess, what's next? Did some obnoxious, rich noble boy attack?"

"It's a matter concerning space."

Oh? My motivation perked up a little. When you say space, it brings to mind the invaders from before. They were truly delicious. I'm not in the mood for seafood right now, so some beef, pork, or chicken would be nice.

"This guy is completely planning on eating them."

"But I don't get it. For a space matter, there aren't enough people here."

I couldn't see the figures of the world leaders who had been on the monitors last time. What happened? Did they get greedy? Greedy to get a leg up in space development?

"No, it's not like that. They just threw it at us, saying, 'It's your jurisdiction.'"

"Huh?"

What do you mean, something coming from space is Japan's jurisdiction? The Chairman and the Prime Minister sighed with indescribable expressions on their faces as I tilted my head.

"It will be faster if you see for yourself."

At the Prime Minister's instruction, what they had observed was displayed on the largest monitor.

"Th-this is..."

It was a fleet, just like before, but... The gray hulls were painted with vertical stripes of black and white with gold accents. The words "Fierce Tiger Soul" were emblazoned on the sides. A tiger motif adorned the bow of the ships. This, this was...

"It's the Barbarian Gods!!"

From any angle, the design was reminiscent of the Barbarian God Tigers. Damn it, there's no way to talk my way out of this. That's definitely our, or more accurately, Kansai's jurisdiction. It hasn't even been half a year since we fought that crazy enemy with the ridiculous name, the villainess. The bigwigs in other countries probably didn't want to get involved with anything strange. They'd probably get involved if friendly contact was made, but until then, I can understand them tossing it to Japan.

"They haven't entered our communication range yet, but..."

There's no doubt they're heading for Earth, for Japan. There's no way they'd have that appearance and have no connection to us.

"Hmm."

I sent out a light probe.

"Oh my, this is..."

"Satou-san?"

"Expectation, excitement, emotion... no, I'll just say it plainly. There's a feeling spreading through them like otaku on a holy land pilgrimage."

I couldn't feel any hostility at all. They seemed quite friendly, hoping for a positive contact with Earthlings. That said, they are aliens. We can't say for sure that their friendliness will be a positive thing for us. We can't just welcome them with open arms without knowing their values.

"For now, I'll try telepathy."

""Please do.""

I am a human from Earth, entrusted with diplomacy with other worlds. Your ships are heading towards the solar system, what is your purpose? I sent a message like that, bi-bi! to the aliens in the fleet. You think words like Earth and solar system are local slang from our planet? Rest assured. I'm using a translator, so to them it's in their own words... oh?

"What is it?"

"They're using Japanese. And it's Kansai dialect."

I haven't seen their appearance yet, saving that for a surprise, but I can hear their voices.

""...""

"It seems their goal is Earth after all. The word 'Earth' wasn't translated, so they seem to have some knowledge of us."

"This is definitely an Earth, no, a Kansai matter now."

"Yeah. The governor of the prefecture... no, the Barbarian Gods' home base was in Hyogo, wasn't it?"

They have a strong Osaka image, but I'm pretty sure it was there. Is this a matter for the governor of Hyogo Prefecture?

"We can't put such an unreasonable demand on the governor of Hyogo."

"I'm kidding. For now, the Chairman and I will go. Is that okay?"

I told them I wanted to hear their story and asked them to prepare a room and select a representative, and they readily agreed.

"I have no objection."

"Then Satou-san, we're counting on you."

About ten minutes later, a report came that preparations were complete, so I took the Chairman and teleported. The place we arrived in was a reception room, and it was a magnificent reception room, all Barbarian Gods, with tigers, tigers, tigers everywhere. But more than the room's interior...

"Th-this is..."

"Now now, Chairman. Don't be so restless."

The aliens' appearance wasn't so different from ours, but... their attire. Standing before me now was a mature woman wearing a military-style coat over a tiger-striped bikini. The mysterious phrase, "It's punishment time, da-cha!" echoed in my mind, but she wasn't a demon girl. She was wearing what looked like tiger ear attachments. There was also a man who seemed to be her second-in-command, but he was wearing a tiger skin. It wasn't a real skin from an animal, though. I couldn't sense any life from it, so it was probably a prop with that design.

"A pleasure to meet ya for the first time. I'm Torara Dotonbori. I'm the supreme commander of this fleet. A pleasure to make your acquaintance."

Wow, I thought, just wow, as I introduced myself and asked about their circumstances. According to her, they were a race called the Fierce Tiger People from the planet Koshien in a certain star system in outer space. Wow.

"Well, a long, long time ago, we had a different name, though."

"...I take it that has something to do with your visit to Earth?"

"Exactly. Brilliant, here, have an ame-chan."

I popped the candy she gave me into my mouth and urged her to continue.

"This story goes back more than two thousand years. In an era called B.T...."

""B.T.?""

"It's short for Before Tiger."

""Ah, yes. Our apologies, please continue.""

What are we going to do, I thought, and when I looked at the Chairman, he gave me a similar look. This is bad. I have a feeling this is the most ridiculous diplomatic meeting in Earth's history.

"Back then, our planet was on the brink of ruin due to the native creatures and invaders from the sky."

They had some occult powers, but their level of civilization was apparently not much different from our B.C. era. So fighting native creatures was one thing, but invaders would have been tough. It might be over for us, the people were in a mood of despair. But in the midst of that despair, a savior descended.

"That savior was an Earthling who had been transported here after being caught in a spatio-temporal disturbance, Koga Kisshou."

Kisshou was suddenly thrown to another planet and was initially confused, but...

"When he learned of our situation, he got super pissed."

""Why?""

"He said, 'Every last one of you has such a gloomy face! The Fierce Tiger Soul is about never giving up until the very end!!'"

I don't think the people back then were tiger fanatics, though.

"With his natural drive and charisma, Kisshou gathered allies one after another and continued to fight against the despair that covered our planet."

He acted as a bridge between races, established a common language, spread culture, and was a whirlwind of activity in various fields. There's no doubt he spread the Barbarian Gods and the Kansai dialect at that time.

"Under Kisshou, the united human race fought with the slogan 'A.R.E.'"

""A.R.E.?""

"It's short for 'Aim for Revenge and Excellence'."

And so, thirty years after his arrival, when Kisshou was around sixty, the war ended and the people found peace. At that time, to mark the beginning of a new era, the planet was named Koshien, and the people living there became the Fierce Tiger People. Kisshou worked hard on reconstruction while searching for a way back to Earth, but it was never to be, and he died at the age of eighty-nine.

"'They're gonna change... the Barbarian Gods... under Senji Tsukino's tiger training, the dark ages... I want to see it through...'"

Apparently, Kisshou repeated this in his delirium until his death. The people never forgot the final wish of the hero who had worked so hard for them. If they couldn't do it, then at least they would... the Fierce Tiger People, who hold duty and compassion as their national principles, swore to fulfill Kisshou's wish.

"We've been steadily accumulating technology and prayers, and finally, in our generation, it's become a reality."

"I see."

"Well, you might not believe it."

"No, I'll believe you. Do you have a portrait of Koga Kisshou or anything?"

"? Yes, well..."

"Then there's no doubt this is him, right?"

When I took out a photo, Commander Torara's face was painted with astonishment.

"Satou-san, when did you..."

"While I was listening to the story, I accessed the Metropolitan Police Department's database and ran a search. It was a perfect match."

Senji Tsukino, dark ages, that's all I need to know the era. I looked around that time and found that a missing person report had been filed by his parents in 2001.

"The family who filed the report has since passed away, and he has no other relatives, but his grave still exists. Do you have any of his belongings?"

"! We brought a part of his remains and a few of his belongings."

"Then I'll arrange for them to be placed in his grave."

"...!! Thank you! Thank you! Satou-san, you're our great benefactor!!"

"I'm just responding to your spirit."

To Torara and the others, Kisshou was a man from long ago. Yet they had inherited his regret for so long, and had worked hard to honor his memory in any way they could. As a fellow Earthling, it's only natural that I would want to respond to that spirit.

"By the way, are you interested in diplomacy with Earth?"

"Yes... but before we get into the details, there's something I want to ask."

"I have a feeling I know what it is, but what is it?"

"What happened to the Barbarian Gods? What happened?"

"Just as Kisshou hoped, they broke out of the dark ages under manager Tsukino and won the league championship."

""!""

"And this year, they also became the champions of Japan."

The moment I said that, Torara and her second-in-command burst into tears. The Chairman and I were taken aback.

"T-tell everyone! Quickly! Quickly!!"

"Sir!!"

And immediately, the information they had learned was shared with the entire fleet...

""Whoa."

Rokko Oroshi was being sung with passion here and there. The Chairman and I were taken aback.

"...So this is going to be the first encounter between Earth humanity and friendly aliens."

"...We can't make it public now, but I wonder what will happen later."

I wonder what they'll write in the history books.