Chapter 457

Returning Home

The next day, after enjoying the Beast King’s hospitality, I enjoyed sightseeing in the Beastmen village under the guidance of Lyuu.

According to Lyuu, the Beastmen were scattered to form villages, and the village of War Wolfs was located a little distance away from the Beast King’s village, which was their capital city.

In addition, she said that it was like “A place about a quarter the size of the capital, and without all the tourist attractions”, so it was not very interesting. It was simply a normal village.

Nevertheless, it was Lyuu’s birthplace and I wanted to visit it, but unfortunately, I had to give up because I was told that if I made plans to go there, we would be returning about a week later than we had planned.

We would come back when we had more time or when Lyuu would like to revisit her hometown.

We were away for quite a while.

–And so our visit to the dwarves’ and beastmen’s villages came to an end.

“I’m home!”

“”I’m home!””

“…I’m home!”

After returning to the dungeon using the dungeon return device, we were immediately welcomed by everyone in our home.

“!!!! Welcome home, everyone!”

“Welcome home!”

Illuna and s.h.i.+ jumped on us first, then Lefi and Layla followed suit.

“Welcome back, you guys. From the looks of it, well, it looks like you got a lot out of it.”

“Welcome back, everyone. And Yuki, did you evolve your race?”

“Oh, you can tell. A lot of things have happened. So…anyway, Lefi, how is everything going?”

Understanding the meaning of my question, Lefi answered with a wry smile.

“Well, there’s no change in particular. Same as usual.”

“I see. I’m glad to be back.”

Feeling slightly embarra.s.sed, I hugged her tight.

Lefi also looked embarra.s.sed, but smiled gently.

***

After giving them the souvenirs I had bought, and making a lot of noises over them, I told Lefi and Layla about my time there.

All the stories starting from the airs.h.i.+p ride were being discussed over a cup of coffee Layla had brewed for us.

“–so, you see, it seems that this G.o.d, Ruin, has been helping me, and this is how I evolved into this race.”

I sprouted wings on my back, showing the third pair that had increased as a result of my race evolution — and then, with a flash, Lefi’s arm reached out and touched my wings.

“…Um, Lefi-san. I was just having a serious conversation with you.”

“Yes, you were. I am also listening seriously, so don’t mind me and continue.”

Lefi said that with a sharp look in her eyes, but with a slack mouth.

Well, I half-expected that reaction.

Wing fetish.

“…Then, me too…”

“Eh, Layla-san?”

Layla’s fingers reached out and touched my wings in the same way as Lefi.

“I see… This is a nice feeling… I can see why Lefi is so fascinated with it…”

Unlike Lefi, her hand was a little reserved, like she was gently brus.h.i.+ng it.

There was something about it that made me feel a little restless.

“Kaka, Layla understands it well, right? Come on, Yuki, don’t worry about us. Continue the story.”

Nell and Lyuu, who had just finished taking a bath, grinned at me and said, “Take your time,” “We’re going over there,” and left.

I smiled and let them touch my wings as I continued my story.

“…Well, with that reason, I am no longer a Demon Lord and have become a High Lord, a being similar to Lefi. But my power is still inferior to Lefi’s.”

“Well… You certainly have an extraordinary presence that is outside the bounds of the humanoid races. Even the monsters in the Demon Forest would most likely run away from you. The monsters that live in the depths of the West Forest would not be bothered by it, though.”

“Just as I expected. Also, it seems like there’s a lot of magic leaking out of me, and I want to do something about it as soon as possible. So, Lefi, can you teach me how to effectively disguise my presence? You’re always holding back, right? If I don’t learn it soon, I won’t be able to go out very often.”

“Well, starting tomorrow, I will teach you how to handle magic. I’m sure you’ll be able to do it. But still, to be attacked by a bunch of stupid humans, encountering a G.o.d, and then facing an army of demons, even encountering the old lady Cicerius. You are that one, aren’t you? The one you called a troublemaker.”

“Yuki-san, you are always involved in commotion wherever you go, aren’t you?”

…It’s true that something always seemed to happen wherever I went.

And about half of them were caused by me.

…Ah, well, all those things happened because I tried to go out on a trip.

In other words, I brought along trouble with me, but not exactly expecting it to happen. Those troubles were somewhat of an accident, but it did involve my actions.

‘Everything happened because it was fated to happen.’

–I think that’s what a troublemaker would think about.

I should be careful, from now on.

“Well, it can’t be helped. No matter how careful you try to be, something is definitely bound to happen to you. You are simply that kind of man.” (Lefi)

“It’s not normal to encounter a G.o.d… What kind of G.o.d was he?” (Layla)

“What kind of G.o.d? Well, I guess he was not that much different from us, just that he was from a race called G.o.d, a race with power. He was apparently just watching, while events around us were happening. However, he’s gone now.”

I pulled out the Ruin Spear from my item box and showed it to the two.

“Is that the spear you received when you went to the Dragon Village with me?”

“Ah, it seems there was a piece of his soul left in this spear. He left knowledge and power for a junior like me.”

“…junior, huh?”

I nodded to Layla, whose deep intelligence peeked through her features, indicating that she must be thinking at high speed.

“Ah. I was informed that Dungeons are apparently the seeds of a world. Mine had almost the same quality as that of Dominus, the G.o.d of Beginnings. And Demon Lords are its administrator. They are in the same position as the G.o.ddess Gaia and the other G.o.ds. …No, rather only Gaia would definitely be the closest to what a Demon Lord is, similar to my current position. So you could say that I am their junior. That’s what I was told.”

My heart jumped for a moment as Layla brought her face close to mine and grabbed my hands with both of hers.

Her eyes were s.h.i.+ning brightly.

…Layla was the most sensual person in our house, so when she did something like this, I naturally got nervous, you know?

“Can I ask you more about the story of the G.o.d that Yuki-san told us about?”

“Oh, oh, I’ll tell you everything I know, but that’s for later. It’s going to be a long story for sure.”

“Oh, ooh, tell me everything you know about the other side, even if it’s going to be a long story, along with information about the labyrinth. I never thought I would have the opportunity to learn about the knowledge of G.o.ds… Ufufufu…!”

Layla, with a droopy face, overflowed with a bewitching – not ‘suspicious’ – chuckle.

…Yeah, that look on her face was lovely, as well.

Layla had drifted off into her own world, so I kept talking to Lefi while Layla held my hand.

“How’s it going over here? Anything?”

“Nothing much has changed. Oh, and can you check on Rir later?”

“Yes, I will give him a look, but… did something happen?”

“Well, perhaps your evolution has had an effect on him. The other pets didn’t seem to have changed, but… well, you’ll have to check it out for yourself. It’s quite interesting.”

Lefi grinned, looking conceited.

What happened, really? I was so curious about it.

My race’s evolution affected him as well…?

“–Well. Yuki, let me wash your back.”

“Oh, ah, yes, have at it.”

“And Layla, you come, too. I’ll wash his body with you.”

“! Yes, of course…”

Layla smiled without refusal, her cheeks dyed with embarra.s.sment.

“Eh… um… Are you okay with that, Layla?”

“Yes, if it’s okay with Yuki-san, I’d be happy to join you…”

“Yuki, are you nervous? Hmm?”

“…Shut up.”

I could only retort to Lefi, who was smiling at me in an aggravating manner.