Chapter 97: That time when we celebrated the harvest festival in my hometown

PR: Filip/Gecko

The weather was no longer as hot as the time we brought in the cows. As promised, Enomoto-san was taking great care of them. Oda-san, together with the carpenters, made equipment that was put on the cows and they’ve been important partners in working the fields. The children were happy seeing them too.

Enomoto-san also asked me to build a bathing area for the cows downstream from ours so I did. He’s grown attached to them to the point where I saw him praising Dean as he cleaned up their straw that got dirty after having them work every day on the fields.

Dean is the male one’s name apparently. Isn’t that cooler than what I named my wolf? It was quite a nice name so I asked what the female’s name was and he said it was Monica. I was surprised that the other one also got a cool one to pair with the first. Well, at least I didn’t use common names like Tarou and Hanako. I didn’t expect that he had a better naming sense than me.

It wasn’t a naming sense fitting for someone who’s almost 80 years old so I tried asking why he decided to go with those. I felt relieved because apparently, those were just the names of a beautiful woman and her husband who lived in the village they previously stayed at. I just hope there are no humans on the island with the same names.

As for the coffee beans, the number of sales was steadily increasing. Nils-san’s s.h.i.+p has even been to the island twice since the last time. The chocolate also seems to be well received by the upper cla.s.s and we receive orders from Nils-san from time to time. A portion of the sales from the scented soaps are also coming in so the island has a bit more money to spare. Because of that, I asked him to bring liquor for the island’s harvest festival the next time he drops by.

◇

My home town’s harvest festival is happening soon but because it’s also about time for the wheat to be harvested, Latte told me the last time I went home to come back earlier.

「Anyway, the harvest in my hometown is happening soon so I apologize but I’ll be away for a few days. Please make sure there are no accidents while I’m away, okay? Are you old men going too? It’s been a while since you went back to the village after all」

「We only lived in Beryl because you were there. We’re based here now so we’ve decided to stay. We can’t use magic so even if we go we won’t be much help anyway」

「If that’s what you decided then I won’t say any more」

「If it’s about the harvest festival here then we’ll help out as much as we can」

「Understood. I’ll be relying on you then」

After saying that, I transferred back to Beryl.

「Ah, it’s papa. Welcome back~」

「Hey, I’m back~」

I patted his head as I said that.

「Where’s your sister?」

「She’s training with Suzuran mama」

「I see…… I might be in danger by the time she’s five huh?」

「Papa will be fine. You’re a demon lord after all」

He said that with a huge smile on his face but he’s also scary since he already has most of the offensive attribute magics down. And besides, there’s no way I’m going to seriously injure my own children, is there?

Ahー, my father did calmly swing his weapon at me at that time. I wonder if I should also do it to that extent. I should consult Suzuran and Latte about that later.

「What about Perna-kun, Primna-chan, and Reika-chan? Are their mama and papa teaching them anything?」

「Perna-kun was taught the dagger and bow, while Primna-chan learned the spear and s.h.i.+eld. Reika-chan has been learning the dagger and small round s.h.i.+eld as well as how to use any weapon she’ll be able to grab」

Wait, does that mean Tryapka-san can use anything as a weapon? Does she share the same mentality as me or is it because she’s a janitor? I’d instantly cry from being scared if I was being attacked by someone holding something like a saw.

「……ah. I see. You’re all learning the weapons picked by your parents huh? Miel too. Do you remember what I said before about having a weapon even if it’s only something small?」

「Un. Latte mama gave me a knife」

「I see…… Papa isn’t that good with a knife but do you want to practice for a bit?」

「Un!」

「Hmー, how should we do this? When an enemy is approaching, would you buy time or just defend yourself with a knife? Which one do you think is better?」

「I have onee-chan so I think buying time is good」

「Hmmー. Then I guess you should carry a s.h.i.+eld too. With that, you can use your weapon to slash at them for a bit whenever there is an opening. Maybe you can use magic by imagining an attack while you’re blocking with your s.h.i.+eld」

I didn’t do any of these when I was four years old but I wonder if there’s a trend that’s happening in the village of training the children even before they start school.

「I can’t use magic while being attacked you know~?」

「Instead of taking the attack, how about dodging it?」[noteTL: genius-level tactics here. just don’t get hit ez[/note]

「Papa, that’s way too hard for me」

「You can either maintain your calm and concentrate on your opponent’s pacing while activating your magic or just use your magic even if you’ll also get hit by it since you have your s.h.i.+eld. Like maybe an attack that can go through your s.h.i.+eld」

「Ehー, that’s too hard」

「We don’t have s.h.i.+elds in our household so I guess we’ll have to borrow from Speck or Kuchinas.h.i.+. Ahー, I guess a frying pan would also work」

「What’s a frying pan?」

「It’s a round iron with a handle. That works perfectly as a s.h.i.+eld. Give me a sec」

After saying that, I took out a frying pan from the kitchen and was met with a cold stare from Miel when I got back. I thought it would have served great both as a s.h.i.+eld and as a blunt weapon though.

「Well then, use this as a s.h.i.+eld while you try to attack me with that stick」

「Eh, but…… If I attack you, you’ll just counter with magic, won’t you?」

「Maybe」

「Eh~」

Miel looked like he disliked it from the bottom of his heart.

「Alright, how about shooting out magic from the frying pan?」

As usual, I have no idea how to train my children. I’m not sure if I should be gentle or kind but it’s probably because I can’t just compare it to a parent and child playing catch.

While using the frying pan as a s.h.i.+eld in my left hand, I activated a【Small Explosion】at the bottom area to protect my face and just endured the heat.

「That’s somewhat different from fire, isn’t it? It kinda went boom then it suddenly burned」

「This is called an explosion. That’s what it’s called when a small thing spreads out to a wide area and starts burning」

「Hmmー, I don’t get it」

「Alright, give me a sec」

I went to our kitchen then took out the flour.

「You know how the flour is powdery right?」

「Un」

「But as it is right now, it won’t burn」

As I said that, I tried to set the flour in my hand with 【Fire】.

「But flour is actually just a bunch of small things」

This time, I took a pinch of it and rubbed my fingers together to make it spread.

「Try imagining that these small pieces of flour are set on fire one by one. Let’s see what happens」

I produced a slightly bigger 【Fire】 from my fingertip then blew the remaining flour in my hand towards it

By doing that, a dust explosion occurred and created a small flame.

「See?」

「Hmmー, I can’t really imagine it」

「Haha. I guess it might be tough with just that. How about I try to draw it this time?」

I drew a diagram on the ground that was easy to understand. Using small circles to represent the flour particles, I drew two ill.u.s.trations. One with them bunched up together to form a shape of a mountain and another with gaps between the particles.

「This explosion is very powerful as long as the exploding fire has no place to escape to. That’s why you should be careful if you’re using fire in a storage room with flour because it might explode」

「How strong is it?」

「Hmmー」

I thought about it then tried making a 【Small Explosion】 on the ground first.

「This is what happens if there is a place for the fire to escape. I’ll show you what happens when it doesn’t next」

After saying that, I turned over the frying pan, put a stone on top of it then activated a 【Small Explosion】 inside. A loud boom was heard then the stone and frying pan went flying into the air.

Hmmー, I didn’t think the escaping energy would be that powerful.

「Amazingー! Explosions are amazing, aren’t they!?」

「Hm? Ah, yeah they are」

I was the one who did it but even I was surprised. Hearing such a loud sound, Suzuran and Lily came running with poles in hand. I have a really bad feeling about this.

「Explain」

She glared at me while sending a chilling bloodl.u.s.t as she stabbed her pole on the ground and held the frying pan in her left hand that now had a freshly made hole in the middle.

「I-I was teaching Miel magic」

「Why does the frying pan have a hole? Explain」

「I was……explaining how to imagine…… an explosion……」

「Did you have to destroy the frying pan?」

「……no」

「Prepare yourself for tonight」

「……yes」

「Since you’re here, train Lily. And buy a new frying pan after that」

「……okay」

「Papa, are you really a demon lord?」

「I’m a kind Demon Lord who doesn’t like violence. Remember that well. Even if you’re a nice guy, you can become a Demon Lord as long as you’re strong. Don’t be the kind of guy who messes around with girls okay?」

「U-un」

「Anyway, I’ll go and buy the frying pan first then I’ll prepare to train with Lily」

「Lily. Imagine that your father is a goblin for today’s practice」

「Yes」

Hmmー, I’m really tempted to head straight back to the island after buying the frying pan.

While thinking that, I walked with heavy steps to the tool shop and when I came back, Lily was waiting for me with an iron core spear that she probably inherited from Licorice-san.

「Will you let me run away?」

「I’ll tell mother」

「Alright, Ī can’t do it with a stick so let me get my crowbar and shovel from the storage. All my weapons are on the island after all」

After saying that, I went to the small storage room at the back of our house, picked up the shovel and crowbar leaning against the wall, then went back outside.

「It’s not my usual one so let me get used to it first」

I held the grip of the shovel and swung it around using centrifugal force. After that, I held it with both hands and swung it down as hard as I could, stopping just short of the ground. Then, I rotated the crowbar on my palm to determine where the center of gravity is. Once all of that was done, I went back to face Lily while looking really displeased.

「That’s enough. You can also use magic as usual so just get on with it」

That was what Suzuran said so she’ll probably come at me for real. I’ll try not to go into the offensive myself and just counterattack.

While I was thinking that, I took my usual posture but a really fast wide horizontal sweep came at my torso so I received it with the handle of my shovel. However, because her weapon’s weight has increased, I was blown away by the impact. After that, she chased after me then swung down her long spear. I rolled away as fast as I could then grabbed a handful of dirt and threw it at her. While she was distracted by that, I stood up and regained my posture.

「Miel! This is what I meant when I said you can use anything as a weapon. Remember that! Lily, I could have countered while you were blinded so take care against those types of attacks 」

You might think I’m a coward for doing that to my children but I would have fainted if I didn’t so it couldn’t be helped. Lily was glaring at me really hard but she’s not as scary as Suzuran so I could calmly look at my opponent’s movements.

Lily must have also been waiting for me to make my move since she wasn’t attacking so I decided to go for it. I took large steps as I approached to provoke her but she thrust her spear at me so I caught it with my right hand and pulled on it as hard as I could to put her off balance. She immediately released the spear though and switched to hand-to-hand combat.

I tried to keep my distance by pus.h.i.+ng her with my shovel but she grabbed the grip and sent a kick at me which I blocked with my knee. Her face twisted a bit in pain as she threw a punch at me.

I let go of my shovel then used both of my hands to catch her right hand and twisted it away from her body to throw her down. Then, I stomped my foot as hard as I could near her head to let her know that it was over.

「Phew…… You got stronger Lilyー」

I let go of the hand I grabbed then helped her up. I helped her remove the dirt from her body and gave her a 【Water Ball】 to wash her face.

「Father is unfair! You threw dirt at my face」

She was pretty mad. Well, I guess that was understandable.

「That’s true, your father is a coward. But you see, when you’re faced with death, you better learn to do whatever it takes to survive. I think it’s important to be flexible about things like how I used the dirt when I was blown away. I’ve also said this to your grandfather but just leave fairness and chivalrous acts to knights in a castle somewhere. That’s why stop crying, okay?」

As I pat LIly’s head to console her, she burst into tears and hugged me, wiping her tears on my clothes. I continued patting her head until she calmed down.

「What do you think, Miel? Do you want to fight together with your sister or will you do it by yourself?」

「I’ll try by myself」

「Good. Lily, sorry but could you let go of me now? Miel can’t use his magic with you here after all」

「No. I’m not done yet」

After saying that, she continued to rub her head against my chest. To be honest, her horn hurts me but I guess she can still act her age. It couldn’t be helped so Miel’s training was left for the next day and I continued to pat Lily’s head.

After that, I bathed together with the children. We spent our time relaxing while I answered various questions about what to do in a fight. Dinner came after that, however…

「And because of that, father is a coward!」

…Lily recounted what happened earlier and got everyone on her side.

「Oh myー, it’s bad to do that when you’re against your own child you know~?」

「No, wait. That attack would have broken my bones if it had hit you know!? And it was also impossible to deflect with how heavy that attack was. It would have been really bad for me if I didn’t come up with that on the spot」

「Caam has always been good at blinding so be careful next time Lily. You too Miel」

「「Yes」」

Come to think of it, that attack is the one I’ve used the most.

「By the wayー, the frying pan looks new. What happened?」

「That was because papa was teaching me new magic」

「I see. And we got a new frying pan because of that? That’s great since the old one was already worn out. So? What did the frying pan have to do with the magic?」

「It got a hole in it while I was teaching Miel what to imagine to use the magic」

I briefly explained what happened without telling her exactly what kind of magic it was. I didn’t even dare to look her in the eye.

After we finished our food, the thing that I feared started to happen.

「Tomorrow is when we’re harvesting the wheat so go to sleep you two. We still need to talk to your father about the frying pan」

She urged the children to go to their room while radiating a chilling bloodl.u.s.t. After that, an awkward mood took over the room. Once Suzuran finished drinking her tea, she slowly put her cup down, walked over to me, then grabbed me by the collar.

「Latte. We’re going to bed first so please take care of the dishes」

I was dragged to the room, got kissed, and was pinned to the bed. I was surprised since this was the first time she used this pattern.

After she washed the dishes, Latte fearfully checked up on us but seeing what was happening, she silently entered with a huge smile on her face. We spent a really long and really intense night even though we were going to harvest the wheat tomorrow.

◇

「I want to clean my body……」

I woke up at my usual time even though we slept late. I went in the bath, lightly washed off the sweat, then began preparations for breakfast.

I don’t know why this happened just because of a hole in a frying pan but I feel like the reason doesn’t matter at this point. I regret being so scared yesterday. Suzuran has always been upfront with her feelings after all. While I was thinking about that, Latte woke up then hugged me.

「Fufufuー. It’s been a while since we’ve been that rough, hasn’t it?」

「I hope I never get invited that way again though. Even though she’s been docile lately, she still hasn’t changed at all from that harvest festival when we were kids」

「Hmmー. Suzuran-chan doesn’t really talk about the past that much but she was like that huh~? Should I ask Onee-san?」

She grinned while saying that. She was still hugging me wearing only a s.h.i.+rt and her underwear so I told her to take a bath before the children woke up. Once she got back, I decided to talk a bit about the past.

「Hmmー, so she grabbed you by the collar and kissed you while she was drunk huh? That’s something you definitely expect Suzuran-chan to do right?」

「Well yeah. At that time, I thought that I was going to get killed by Ichii-san you know?」

After that, the children woke up so we ended the conversation. Suzuran was still asleep so I went into the room to wake her up and forced her to clean herself before she went to the living room.

◇

This was my first harvest since I became a Demon Lord.

The things I have to do didn’t change though. As usual, I used 【Wind Cutter】 to cut the wheat while the others who can’t use magic picked them up. However, since the number of people increased every year, they had to expand the fields so the burden on the people who can use magic has also increased. Even the number of storage areas have increased.

Miel worked hard so he’ll be able to use 【Wind Cutter】 too but his version was still unstable so the cut was uneven. I’ve never seen Lily use magic so she was just gathering the cut wheat and loading them on the back of the wagon.

It was really rough. I should tell the village chief to stop the expansion or have those who can use magic be trained to do this. We’re definitely going at a great pace but we’re hardly making a dent in the vast golden fields. It was really troublesome……

◇

I remember that it only took a few days a few years back but it took a week this time. I guess I really should discuss this with the village chief. I won’t do it right now though since we’re at the festival area.

「With the increased number of fields this year, it took a bit of a while but the harvest ended safely. Like the previous years, this one dislikes extending this speech so cheers!」

「「「「Cheers!」」」」

After that, I sat at a table with my wives and our close friends. We talked about our children while drinking liquor.

As for the kids, they were together at a different table.

「Lily-chan is pretty strong like Suzuran huh?」

「I think that’s just how their tribe is but I don’t know how strong mother in law is so I can’t say for sure」

Wurst downed his drink then started a conversation about Lily.

Even though the topic was her daughter, Suzuran was just quietly munching meat. Her mouth isn’t all dirty compared to the last time though. I think that’s because she’s become calmer after giving birth.

「As for Miel-kun, he’s working hard on his magic just like Caam. Right?」

s.h.i.+nken went along with it and started talking about Miel as well.

「That’s trueー. Magic is my strong point but I don’t know about Latte since I haven’t seen her using it」

「I can use my tribe’s special magic but I just haven’t used it or shown it to anyone, you know? I’ll secretly teach it to Miel though~」

She was already tipsy and slightly flushed from drinking alcohol so it was not really a secret anymore.

「How is Primula-chan? I heard she’s getting taught the spear and s.h.i.+eld by Kuchinas.h.i.+」

I decided to go along with it as well and asked about the three idiot’s children.

「She’s okay. She’s only been taught to aim for the moment an opponent gets impatient with her s.h.i.+eld. Apart from that, she’s just learned that she needs to be five steps ahead of everybody else」

Don’t talk about something scary like it’s nothing. It’s natural for a s.h.i.+elder to be in front but putting that into practice requires some courage.

「If that’s the case then Perna-kun is amazing as well. He can use a short sword and a bow, and he’s also everyone’s mediator. Promising, isn’t he? I wonder if I get my daughter to seduce him while we can」

Kuchinas.h.i.+ grinned as she said something terrifying.

「Well, you should respect Perna’s will when it comes to that. Going back to the topic, I think Reika-chan’s amazing. I also use a dagger but I can’t use it like that with the quickness she inherited from Speck」

「We’re teaching her to be quick and low since she inherited my husband’s legs. The rest depends on how far she can go I think」

It’s weird. The way the women’s group is raising their children is quite out there. I would be good enough if they grew up healthy for me though.

「For me, I’m not really sure about the idea of using anything as a weapon」

Speck, who was being hugged by Tryapka-san, joined in as well.

「I don’t want to meddle with how the others teach their children but I just have to say, I am also teaching Lily and Miel. However, I just give them the freedom of choice to decide what weapon they want to use. Well, I wouldn’t have taught them that if they didn’t ask though」

After saying that, I glanced at my wives.

「They need the strength to survive at least. Caam’s way of thinking is wrong. They’ll die if they don’t have the strength to protect themselves」

「That’s right. They need to be strong to an extent」

「For me, I want them to be as safe as possible. It would be sad if they become adventurers but just die a dog’s death」

「It’s their life so we should teach them the basics and let them do what they want If they want to be adventurers, you should respect their decision」

I don’t get the education in this world. Don’t they get that I just want the children to live in a peaceful and safe place?

□

「The adults are drinking so let’s also drink!」

After saying that, Lily took a cup of beer and was about to drink it.

「You can’t, Lily-chan. It’s too early for us. Shouldn’t we wait until we start school at least?」

Perna tried to stop her.

「My father said it’s fine since we already look like adults you know?」

Primula told the others what she heard from Wurst.

「I’m small so it’s no good I guess……」

Reika was disappointed that she couldn’t drink when she looked at her appearance.

「……my mama forced me to drink it so I don’t really like it. It’s just onee-chan who does」

Miel refrained from drinking, leaving his sister hanging.

「Fine fine. I’m the only one who’ll drink」

After saying that, she drank alone then the children’s conversation began.

「You know how my father is a Demon Lord right? That’s why our mothers told us to train with him but even though we’re doing that, he’s too nice so it doesn’t really feel like training」

「You still haven’t won though」

Miel interjected while drinking fruit water with a discontent look on his face.

「How strong is Caam-san? I’ve heard a lot about him beating high goblins with a shovel and magic but I don’t really know how strong high goblins are」

「It seems like that story’s true but I don’t know why papa uses a shovel. I think magic would be enough with how good he is with it」

「I heard about it from my mother that he gave the exact support needed during the time they hunted goblins when they were still in school. Caam-san must be like a middle guard who can get a good grasp of his surroundings right?」

「My father said that he was so bad at the bow that he practiced throwing things a lot. He also said that Caam-san is good at teaching magic」

「It’s true that he’s good at throwing. He also taught me how to use flour to make something called an explosion you know?」

Just like that, Miel told everyone the details about the dust explosion that he learned.

「So flour can be set on fire huh? I guess we should be careful」

「Ah, I remember the story about father breathing fire with liquor. That sounds like what he said back then」

「Un. Even our grandpas like to say that father is smart but he’s also dumb」

「What’s with that? Is he smart or dumb?」

「I think it’s just like what they said. Everyone says that the village became bigger because of how easily he can come up with all sorts of ideas but mother says that he can be really childish at times. That’s exactly what happened when he breathed fire using liquor」

Lily slightly narrowed her eyes as she said that.

「Onee-chan, you’re not an adult yet so you should stop drinking now」

「……I know. I want to try fighting father at least once when he’s serious though. I heard that he even managed to beat grandpa. Ah ah, it would be great if I could get even strongerー. I wonder how long it will take? When it comes to magic, I can only make a water ball after all」

She pouted and slightly puffed her cheeks as she said that.

「Which one is stronger, Caam-san or Suzuran-san?」

「Mother」「Suzuran-mama」

「Then why didn’t Suzuran-san become a Demon Lord?」

「I think papa’s just too kind to go against mama」

「But he was fine throwing dirt at me today. Last time, he threw a stick that was acting as a knife at my face. I deflected it but before I knew what was happening, I was already pinned down……」

「I guess it’s true that he does whatever it takes to win a fight. My mother taught me to not drop my weapon though」

「Me too」

「I was told to use everything as a weapon so I can’t really comment on that」

□

「So they say but what actually happened?」

「I said it earlier, I really didn’t want to train with her but I was told to. Lily came at me seriously and it was getting harder and harder to hold her back so I tried winning even if the method was cowardly. And with that, I hope it would gradually show that there are other ways to approach things. Miel was also present so I hope he also takes that in」

After saying that, I took a sip of my drink.

「How do you feel about teaching your children cowardly moves in the first place?」

「It’s better than having them die. That’s why I’ll win even if I play dirty」

「I don’t understand what Caam’s thinking at all. It’s unthinkable to throw dirt at the face of your child, even more so because she’s a girl you know?」

「At that point where we were facing each other with weapons in hand, she was an enemy. I don’t know what you guys are teaching your children but I use my methods. If they say they want to know this or that then I’ll teach them everything I know. That is as long as I know of it though」

I think we shouldn’t have a conversation about how to raise children while drinking.

□

At the royal capital during the preparations for the harvest festival, two black-haired men were walking around while eating a kebab they bought from a stall when they noticed a poster on a wall of a house.

「Oi, is this j.a.panese?」

「Hah? Oh, it’s true. Let me see…… It says that the royal family is using the heroes as sacrificial p.a.w.ns」

「Yeah. It says if we want to know more details we should go to ○○ inn at the ○○ sector in the lower cla.s.s district」

「What should we do?」

「I guess we should at least try listening. I’m also interested in how others will react. We can’t just decide by ourselves after all」

「So I guess we’re going huh?」

After that, the two heroes went to the place that was written on the poster where there was a grand sign in j.a.panese welcoming the heroes.

「Woah. It’s overflowing with enthusiasm」

「We’re in this world after all so that’s why it’s like that」

They knocked on the door. Someone inside told them to knock in 3-3-7 beat if they really were j.a.panese and so they did.

「Welcome」

The door opened and a man who looked like he was around forty years old came out.

「Well, for starters, we’d like for you youngsters to listen to what we have to say. Come inside」

After saying that, the man standing in front of them invited them inside, and offered them coffee. They heard rumors about it recently but they wondered if it existed in this world as well.

「Well then, it’s a bit long is that okay?」

The two heroes looked at each other then gave the man a nod.

「First off, we’re being used as sacrificial p.a.w.ns like the poster said. Geez, you shouldn’t have taken the poster and just memorized its contents」

The man then proceeded to explain how their companion who infiltrated the castle and managed to hear those words from the king himself. He told them about how the princess who did the summoning was low down on the line of succession and that her marriage with a local n.o.ble was already decided. However, because her partner was extremely unattractive, she repeatedly summoned heroes in her desperation and picked the ones she liked so she could surround herself with them. Among those heroes, her favorites are given commanding roles on the battlefield and peerage to an extent so they get to do whatever they want.

He also confirmed that being a Demon Lord doesn’t immediately mean that they’re evil because of the existence of a j.a.panese person who was reincarnated and became one.

That Demon Lord got along well with humans who were slaves and was striving to make an island where humans and demonkin could coincide. However, he’s worried that someone would interfere with the coffee, chocolate, and cocoa business in his territory and it might cause a lot of damage to the livelihood of the residents there simply because he’s a demonkin and a Demon Lord.

The Demon Lord is willing to take in summoned people who have little to no combat ability but have general knowledge about some things.

The two heroes also found out that a number of the summoned were quite angry at the royalty.

That’s the details of their conversation.

「There’s no going back if you listen any further. Are you prepared for that?」

The two of them looked at each other then nodded in consent.

「Got it. Listen carefully. Because of the reasons stated earlier, us summoned j.a.panese are going to stage a coup and take over the castle. If we leave things be, the number of summoned j.a.panese fighting against the demonkin and possibly dying in a foreign place without knowing anything will just increase. We haven’t confirmed yet if there is actually a ritual to send us back so we’re going to stop any more from being summoned, make everyone realize that the demonkin aren’t the greatest of evils, and put a wrench in their corrupted plans」

「I would never have thought we’d be doing something that you just see on the TV」

「That’s true. It was so peaceful back home that other countries thought we were being complacent after all. This place isn’t Earth nor is it j.a.pan though so we have to take action. You’re just being exploited so stop being a fool, thinking you’re the best」

The man in front of them said that with a cold smile on his face.

「So what exactly are we doing?」

「To put it simply, we’re thinking of taking control of the castle and the church headquarters at the same time. That will be immediately followed by finding a list of the upper echelons. We’re thinking of punis.h.i.+ng, imprisoning, or even giving the death penalty at worst to the corrupt bunch. It’s going to be tough without a certain amount of firepower but fortunately, we managed to convince quite a few combat-oriented heroes. They wouldn’t expect the heroes to betray them after all. After that, we’re just thinking of interfering a bit with the politics here and there and take money from those brainless idiots who have just been lining their pockets to lower the taxes」

「I’m a combat type so politics and that kind of thing is going to be hard for me」

「The knowledgeable heroes will do something about that. I’m thinking that we look at the tax first then send funds or aid to the poor villages. Oh c.r.a.p, we’re straying away from the topic. Anyway, you combat-type heroes will be in two groups. One is a special forces group that will partake in an infiltration mission just like in movies and games while the other is an a.s.sault force in case the infiltration group gets discovered. In that situation, you’ll avoid killing if possible and just subdue your enemies. The a.s.sault group will be staying near the castle the night of the operation so they can quickly move if the infiltration team gets discovered」

「What if it goes according to plan? Phones don’t exist here so there’s not a lot of ways to get in touch」

「I’m thinking of putting up a sign at the first inn on the right side of the main street of the royal capital written in j.a.panese two months before the operation saying 『Laborer recruitment ends in sixty days』. Fortunately, the intelligence gathering capability of this country and the whole world is so low that they haven’t gotten a trace of us yet. I’m not sure if that’s their pride of being a large country or just oversight though. If the worst happens though, even if we don’t have enough people, we’ll still proceed with the operation」

「Is that really alright? It’s obvious that the plan has a lot left to be desired」

「Even though I laid it out for you, we’re still in the early days of planning so we only have a rough idea. I mean, it’ll be suspicious if a large number of heroes gather in the capital after all. We should be as spread out as possible to prevent that and just establish a way to communicate with each other. We also plan to give the knights’ order food poisoning several days before the operation. Each unit might be in different barracks so there’s a chance it’ll be hard to contaminate their food though. At any rate, try to visit the royal capital as much as possible. That’s all」

They regretted asking but they were a bit excited about what was to come.