The next day.
I headed to Orsted's place once more.
Today, at least, I'd be going alone.
I'd asked Eris to watch the house.
She was on guard duty today.
I told her that if anyone suspicious showed up, she should work with Aisha to chase them away.
With that, our home's security was airtight.
Until we could summon some kind of guardian beast, I'd have her stand guard for a while.
I could have brought Sylphie or Roxy along since I'd already taken Eris there before… but Orsted's curse would make them hostile.
Going alone was the better choice.
---
Outside the hut, Zenoba was lying there, dead.
He was sprawled face-down, propped up against a chunk of metal nearly three meters long.
"No way…"
I rushed over, grabbed his shoulder, and shook him.
"Hey, seriously, Zenoba… wake up!"
His pulse was there.
His pupils moved.
He was breathing.
His body temperature was warm!
By every measure, he was alive…
I'd jumped to conclusions. He wasn't dead.
He was just asleep.
"Haaah… that scared me…"
I nearly screamed "Jesus."
Why was he sleeping out here?
As a member of royalty, he should be sleeping in a soft bed. He was old enough to know better.
Just as I was breathing a sigh of relief, Orsted emerged from the hut.
"You came, Rudeus."
"Oh, yes, I'm here."
Orsted rolled his eyes—literally—between me and Zenoba.
"Last night, Zenoba Siroena showed up here with that in tow."
"With that?"
"The armor you were using."
Oh, now that I looked, the pile of wreckage really was the magic armor. It had been disassembled into components, so I hadn't recognized it at first.
Come to think of it, when I'd reported back about the teleportation incident, I'd mentioned it was broken and left behind, and he'd said he'd pick it up soon.
"So you two ran into each other and fought?"
"Right."
Zenoba probably hadn't expected Orsted to be here, either.
I thought I should have warned him, but it had only been a day since then…
Well, from the looks of it, Zenoba had no visible wounds, so Orsted must have held back.
"In the end, he crawled all the way here saying, 'I won't hand over this armor—I must deliver it to him.' You're quite popular."
"Zenoba!"
I couldn't help rushing over to him and casting healing magic.
There were no external wounds, so it probably wouldn't do anything, but at the very least, I wanted him to rest peacefully.
Come to think of it, after collapsing here, he'd just been left out in the open.
Orsted really had no mercy.
"…He will wake up properly, right?"
"I put him to sleep using a Nukeru tribe hypnosis spell. He should wake in a few hours."
I see. A hypnosis spell.
What kind of spell was it, exactly?
Could you manipulate someone freely with it?
For instance, if I used it on Sylphie and ordered her to "lift up your skirt," would she actually do it?
…Not that she wouldn't do it without hypnosis anyway.
Wait, for her to lift her skirt, she'd have to be wearing a skirt in the first place.
A miniskirt would be nice. Sylphie would definitely look good in a miniskirt—like the ones fairies wear.
…Not that they sell miniskirts in this country.
Well, if it really could control people that freely, Orsted would be using it more. At most, putting people to sleep seemed to be the limit.
"Come inside. We'll continue yesterday's conversation."
With that, Orsted turned and went back in without waiting.
I draped my jacket over Zenoba, conjured a roof over him with magic, and then entered the hut.
I'd pick him up on the way home and deliver him to Ginger.
---
"Then, let's get straight to business."
At Orsted's words, I took my seat at the table.
Orsted produced a diary from inside his coat and thudded it onto the table.
"It was quite an interesting diary… The time-magic formula interests me, but since it can't be reproduced, I'll set it aside for now."
"Yes."
"There are a few things I'm curious about…
Before we get into the diary's contents, first, I want you to tell me everything—every single conversation you've had with the Man-God. Spill it all."
"With pleasure."
And so, recalling everything up to now, I told him about my encounters with the Man-God and everything that followed.
The times I'd met the Man-God were:
Right after the teleportation incident.
In the town of Rikaris.
At Windport.
At Eastport.
Right after Orsted nearly killed me.
Before enrolling in the Magic University.
Just before heading to the Begaritt Continent.
Just before I arrived from the future.
After I arrived from the future.
During preparations to fight Orsted.
Ten times in total.
I went through each of those in detail.
And what had happened as a result.
Right after the teleportation. He told me to rely on Ruijerd.
As a result, I became an adventurer.
Rikaris. He told me to take on the pet-search request.
As a result, I met Jarryl and Veskel, and was eventually driven out of town.
Windport. He told me to bring food and search the back alleys.
As a result, I met the Demon Empress and received the Magic Eyes.
Eastport. He showed me a vision of the future and told me to go to Sierna.
As a result, I met Zenoba and was able to save Aisha and Lillia.
Right after Orsted nearly killed me. I received no particular advice.
Before enrolling in the Magic University. He told me to enroll and investigate the teleportation incident.
As a result, I reunited with Sylphie and we ended up getting married.
Just before heading to the Begaritt Continent. He told me not to go.
By defying that advice, Paul died, Zenis became incapacitated, and I married Roxy.
The Man-God said that if I hadn't gone, Paul would have survived.
Just before I arrived from the future. He told me to go to the basement.
The moment I was about to, the future version of me arrived and told me what would happen.
The rats were indeed there.
After I arrived from the future. He appeared looking irritated and told me to kill Orsted.
I complied and began preparing to kill Orsted.
During preparations. He chatted away about various things—the armor and whatnot.
As a result, the completion of the magic armor was accelerated.
Orsted listened to all of this in silence.
He offered no interjections, raised no questions.
He simply listened, quietly.
"…That's everything. Does anything come to mind?"
At my question, Orsted nodded.
"Yes. I can see clearly how he's been using you."
Oh. Really?
As expected of Orsted.
"He's been using you to change history."
"Oh, history."
"Historical events that were meant to be unchangeable, set by the power of a strong destiny."
"…Is that because my destiny is strong?"
"Correct."
Apparently, my destiny was powerful enough to alter the course of history.
"But, Lord Orsted, you can also change things if you want to, right?"
"Yes."
Orsted nodded and gave the diary on the table a light tap.
"But I can't figure out the Man-God's motive for altering history this drastically."
"Isn't it so he doesn't get killed?"
"Don't take his words at face value."
"Oh, right."
Well, he could be lying.
"In any case, there's one thing I can determine."
"What's that?"
"That somewhere along this altered timeline, there's a future that benefits him."
"I see."
Orsted paused for a beat, then spoke.
"That's why I want you to alter history—so that a future favorable to me comes to pass."
Not going back to the original timeline, then.
Well, of course. Things that haven't happened yet aren't history. History is something you create.
"Also, you're being awfully roundabout about it."
"I've already been moving toward a goal set a hundred years from now.
Everything up to this point, and everything from here on, is merely groundwork for that.
You and the Seven Stars have introduced some irregularities, though…"
A hundred years from now.
He'd been working on this for a very long time. Changing plans at this point probably wasn't an option.
"…Just to confirm—we're not going to go straight to the Man-God's place and take him down together, are we?"
"As long as the relics aren't gathered, we can't reach the Man-God."
"They can't be gathered anytime soon, right?"
"Four are obtainable, but the last relic is held by Laplace.
Laplace's resurrection is roughly eighty years from now.
…The relic retrieval will be handled by me. Don't go doing anything reckless."
Reckless or not, I didn't even know where the relics were.
I'd read in the diary that the Five Dragon Generals had them, but the only location I knew was Perugius.
Hmm? But wait—if the Dragon King Chaos was supposed to be dead, wouldn't that pose a problem?
"I heard that the Dragon King Chaos has passed away. Is that not an issue?"
"I've already retrieved Chaos's share."
I see—so he'd already taken care of that.
"But it's possible that the Man-God has anticipated our plans to change the future."
"Hmm?"
"By making moves like this, we might end up digging our own graves, so to speak?"
"There's no such risk. He likely possesses powerful future sight, plus the ability to be unconditionally trusted by all living beings in this world… which is precisely why he's poor at handling irregularities."
Is that so.
The Man-God had a curse too, then…
No, but there was no way I trusted him.
I'd never believed a word that guy said…
Wait—Orsted's curse didn't work on me. Did that mean the Man-God's curse didn't work on me either?
The Man-God had seemed to struggle in our conversations, too.
No, but in the end, I had ended up trusting his words quite a bit.
Was it that the curse didn't completely not work?
Was there a possibility that I'd eventually start fearing Orsted, too?
No, Orsted's information might not even be correct.
The claim about being unconditionally trusted by all living beings could also be wrong.
In that case, I had absolutely no idea what was actually true.
Even the notion that "curses don't work on me" might only be half right.
Until recently, I'd been pretty terrified of Orsted.
Conversely, the Man-God had gradually grown more trustworthy as time went on.
Well, this was all unknowable stuff. I'd just set it aside.
"Even if he's bad at predicting things… can we still win?"
"We can."
Orsted stated it flatly.
"He's not omnipotent. He's only one step away."
Those words weren't directed at me.
It was as though he were telling himself.
Orsted intended to win.
Even if he fell into a disadvantageous position along the way, he would ultimately prevail—I could see that determination in him.
It was reassuring.
"For now, we'll start by altering the nearest history."
"The nearest?"
"Yes."
Orsted continued.
"Make Ariel Anemos Asura, the second princess of the Asura Kingdom, the queen of the Asura Kingdom."
"Oh."
"If necessary, manipulate her as a puppet."
"Oh?"
A puppet.
That was another one of those words with unpleasant connotations.
"Would the real Ariel-sama really let herself be manipulated that easily?"
"Puppet is a strong word—it doesn't require anything grandiose. If a connection with the Asura Kingdom is established down the line, that will suffice."
"I see."
When he said "down the line," he probably meant actions aimed at the point a hundred years from now. If we started something now, there would be results by then.
For example, encouraging research into magic.
For example, bolstering military preparations.
For example, sowing the seeds of the kingdom's collapse.
"Can we really do all that without problems?"
"No issue. In the original history, Ariel becomes queen."
"Oh? Would you mind telling me more about that history?"
"Very well."
Orsted nodded and began to speak.
---
"In the original history, Ariel Anemos Asura becomes queen.
This was a certainty, protected by an extremely powerful destiny."
"Looking at Ariel as she is now, that's hard to imagine."
"Probably."
Lately, Ariel had been on the decline.
It was obvious even to me—she was clearly overmatched against Perugius.
Perhaps because of that, Sylphie also seemed to be rushing around busily in various directions.
She was trying hard, but it felt like she was fighting an uphill battle.
"For Ariel to become queen, the efforts of three people are needed.
The first is her guardian mage, Derek Redbat."
Guardian mage Derek.
If I remembered correctly, he was a mage who had served as Ariel's bodyguard before Sylphie.
He'd died in the teleportation incident, hadn't he?
"He was a shrewd man with lofty ambitions.
Even without the teleportation incident, Ariel was destined to encounter Perugius.
It was Derek who persuaded Perugius during that meeting."
So if Derek had survived, things wouldn't have turned out like this.
"Derek continued to serve as Ariel's advisor and eventually became prime minister."
Prime minister.
That was an important position.
"And that man died in the teleportation incident?"
"Yes. He should have been protected by a strong destiny… but he died."
Even destiny wasn't a guarantee, then.
I probably shouldn't assume that having a strong destiny meant I couldn't die, either.
"So should we find a replacement?"
"No. If we're manipulating her, a prime minister would actually be a hindrance. We don't need one."
"Can Ariel function without a prime minister?"
"Since Ariel came to the magic city Sharia, there will be changes in personnel. It shouldn't be a problem."
If you say so.
I had a feeling that going about things too haphazardly would come back to bite us.
Well, at least he wasn't asking me to be the prime minister.
I was no shrewd politician.
"The second person is Eris Boreas Greyrat."
"Eris?"
What did she have to do with any of this?
Just being an Asura noble didn't seem to give her any connection to Ariel.
"In the original timeline, Eris's swordsmanship would have caught the right eyes, and she would have joined the Asura Knights.
There, she would have met Luke and been destined to marry him."
"Ohhh…"
That stung.
"I honestly can't picture Eris and Luke getting married."
"Luke would fall for her at first sight."
"Seriously?"
Was Luke one of those guys?
A descendant of the Hero or something?
No, but at this point, it wouldn't be strange for someone to fall for Eris at first glance.
She was incredibly beautiful.
And her chest was huge.
And her body was sexy.
It wouldn't be surprising if someone was completely taken in by her looks.
"After being rejected again and again, Eris Boreas Greyrat would eventually relent.
Luke Notos Greyrat would keep pursuing her no matter how many times she hit him.
After they married, they became a loving couple."
Huh.
A loving couple, huh.
Heh… well, Eris did have her sweet side if you got past the surface.
…Still, it felt like I'd been cuckolded.
Alright. When I got home, I was going to grab Eris's breasts from behind.
She'd probably punch me, but hey—everything comes at a price.
If it meant getting to squeeze those breasts, I'd gladly become a punching bag.
"This probably isn't a very enjoyable story for you."
"No, honestly."
"Then I'll just give you the overview."
I had no knowledge of that other history.
There was no version of events where Luke and Eris ended up together.
In the current history, I was the only one Eris loved.
Eris was all mine.
"In the history I know, Eris Boreas Greyrat was a swordswoman whose skills, while not quite what they are now, were approaching saint-class.
She had a good pedigree and a striking appearance, but her fierce temperament earned her the name 'Red Lion.'"
Red Lion.
I was pretty sure Eris used to be called something like "Mountain Ape."
Quite the promotion.
Now she was the Mad Dog King… but she was still an animal in the end.
"Alongside Luke, Eris defended Ariel from assassins multiple times and helped pave her path to the throne."
"That's basically Sylphie's role now."
"Correct."
"…In that history, what happened to Sylphie?"
I probably didn't need to ask, but I was curious.
"Sylphiette became an adventurer under the tutelage of Roxy Migurdia.
Her green hair made her somewhat unpopular, but she eventually conquered numerous famous labyrinths and became one of the world's foremost labyrinth explorers."
"Oh."
Sylphie was amazing.
She was truly my Sylphie.
When I got home, I was going to have a good time nibbling on her ears.
"So who did Sylphie end up marrying?"
"I'm not telling you this to satisfy your curiosity."
I got shut down hard.
My apologies.
Just as I deflated, Orsted sighed and told me anyway.
With a "fine, fine" sort of energy.
"As far as I know, Sylphiette and Roxy Migurdia never married anyone and lived their entire lives as spinsters."
"I see. Thank you."
So Roxy and Sylphie were both single.
Nice. Those two were all mine.
That made me happy.
Especially after hearing that Eris married Luke.
Was this what possessiveness felt like?
Those two were mine, and mine alone.
I'd never give them to anyone.
"Would you like me to tell you the history of the rest of your family?"
"No, let's get back on topic."
I wanted to hear it, but there was no point learning about a world where I didn't exist.
Better to ask only what was necessary.
I'd leave my curiosity satisfied with this much.
"So Sylphie took Eris's place—that's what we're going with, right?"
"Yes. The proof is that Ariel is alive.
Furthermore, because Eris stayed by Ariel's side, Philip Boreas Greyrat and Sauros Boreas Greyrat also joined the second princess's faction."
Hm, more dead people.
Both Philip and Sauros were dead.
The thought that those two were supposed to become Ariel's allies…
The current situation was looking pretty dire.
"So who's the third person?"
"Tristina Purplehorse."
Tristina Purplehorse?
…No idea who that was.
"Tristina is the daughter of the Purplehorse family, a high-ranking noble house in Asura.
At the age of eight, she was kidnapped and became the sex slave of Darius Silva Ganius, the Chief Minister."
Darius.
The most powerful and ambitious minister in the Asura Kingdom at the moment, if I recalled correctly.
He'd been a first prince faction supporter, hadn't he?
Making an eight-year-old a sex slave—classy.
Speaking of which, what was the first prince's name again?
"Tristina was on the verge of being quietly disposed of, but Ariel rescued her. Even for a Chief Minister, years of imprisoning a Purplehorse daughter would lead to severe scrutiny. The result was that the Chief Minister fell from power, and the first prince, Grabel, lost his influence."
The first prince's name was Grabel.
Right. Filed away.
"I see. And what happened to Tristina in the current history?"
"She's missing."
"Is she dead?"
"No. Darius has a habit of cleaning up his surroundings the moment a major incident occurs. He would have disposed of his sex slave, so there's a high probability she's dead."
A matter of probability, then.
Probably better to assume she was dead.
"Darius's people sometimes sell off slaves they no longer need on the market for profit.
Women who become slaves in that manner are usually purchased by someone else and continue as slaves, or if they're still minors, they're trained and turned into thieves."
At this point, Orsted tapped the diary on the table.
"There's a thief named Tris mentioned in this diary that interests me."
Tris.
If I remembered right, she was the female thief I'd encountered when the diary-version of me infiltrated the Asura Kingdom.
The diary didn't have much detail…
"But the name Tris isn't that unusual in Asura, is it?"
With all the various squirrel-themed names and such, there was no shortage of them.
"You're right, but as far as I know, there is no female thief by the name of Tris in that area. Moreover, the descriptions of Tristina and the thief in the diary match on several points."
Oh, I see.
There was a person unknown to Orsted—one who knew the history—appearing in the diary.
Similar name, possible same person.
So was it like some kind of name-shortening phenomenon?
If they were the same person, maybe she kept just "Tris" to make herself easier to address.
"So if we get our hands on her, we can bring down the Chief Minister?"
"She'd be a living witness."
In that case, if we were making Ariel queen, we'd have to contact her.
"Why wouldn't she just go back to her family?"
"Because the Purplehorse family secretly sold her off—it was all staged as a kidnapping."
"Even though her family sold her, the sex-slave revelation still brings down the Chief Minister?"
"Officially, it was a kidnapping. And as long as it provides ammunition to attack someone, the details don't matter."
Makes sense.
Darius had plenty of enemies, and nobody cared about the specifics of who did what.
As long as the fact was that a high-ranking noble's daughter had been abducted and forced into servitude, bringing down the Chief Minister wasn't difficult.
"What a troublesome kingdom."
"Indeed. But it's precisely because they're all like that that they hold the most power in this world.
Even accounting for the fact that they live on fertile land."
Well, there were probably plenty of people who were good at diplomacy, at least.
Bias aside, if they were all constantly undermining each other domestically, they'd have to be strong negotiators with other nations.
"In any case, with Tristina in hand, we can bring down Chief Minister Darius.
Once he's out of the picture, the rest should fall into place."
"Is Chief Minister Darius really that powerful?"
"Yes. It would be no exaggeration to say that the current king only became king because Darius was there."
That much, huh?
He must have been the type who was good at fundraising and political maneuvering—someone like Ozawa.
"If the attempt to bring him down fails… you kill him."
"Wait, I have to kill him?"
"Yes. With your powerful destiny, dispatching him should be easy."
Whether you could kill someone was determined by the power of destiny?
Come to think of it, the Man-God had also hinted that I might be able to kill Orsted.
"…Understood."
I was hesitant about killing someone.
But if it was to protect my family, I'd do my best.
The target was a villainous minister.
That made it okay.
If the target was a Zaku, it wouldn't be a human anyway.
"But wait—I'm pretty sure you mentioned there's a second prince faction too, right? Don't we need to do something about them?"
"The second prince, Halfaus. There is no path for him to become king. He's not king material, and few people genuinely believe he should be the king."
"But we don't know what might happen this time. There's a chance—however slim—that he could end up on the throne."
The second prince. So his name was Halfaus.
I didn't know what the second prince looked like or what he was like personality-wise, but if he was being considered as a candidate, he must be at least somewhat capable.
Anything could happen.
"No issue. If it fails, we'll handle it better next time."
"Next time? You mean the next attempt?"
"Ah… yes, that's right."
"What happens to Ariel?"
"She'll probably die."
After living two thousand years, did a failure or two just not matter?
Long-term plans didn't guarantee that every step would succeed.
If it was just groundwork for a hundred years from now, maybe one or two setbacks were acceptable.
But still.
"Let's not do that—the Man-God would be rubbing his hands in glee if we took that kind of short-term approach."
At my words, Orsted's expression turned to fury.
Scary face.
But I pressed on.
"From here on, we may face repeated failures.
They might even affect the final outcome."
I could agree with the idea that as long as we won in the end, it was fine.
But if Ariel died, Sylphie could get caught up in it.
I'd also promised to introduce Guerrilla to Ariel.
My family's misfortune was my misfortune.
I had no desire to be unfortunate.
"Let's treasure each individual encounter. Let's win every battle without ever letting our guard down."
"…Of course."
Orsted nodded firmly.
"So our initial plan is to make Ariel-sama queen.
Lord Orsted will give the orders, and I'll carry them out—is that right?"
"Correct."
It was like having him back me up.
Having the Dragon God Orsted of the Dragon God Association in my corner, so to speak.
The dirty work I'd be doing was a bit of a hassle, though.
"We should also prepare countermeasures against the second prince, Halfaus."
"Agreed. Leave that to me. I'll bring down the key nobles supporting him. He has no ambition to be king himself, so that alone should sufficiently crush his will to compete."
From his tone, I sensed something.
To Orsted, maybe it didn't matter who became king.
Even if Ariel died and Halfaus became king instead, all he'd need to do was sneak me into Halfaus's camp.
"When does the operation start?"
"In about a month, news should arrive that the king has fallen ill."
"And until then?"
"Prepare everything before then."
With Orsted's words, our immediate plan was set.
---
Now for preparations.
Preparations, though—what exactly did that entail?
Contacting Ariel and Luke was a given, but there would be other things to arrange too.
"What do I need to prepare?"
"First, your equipment. You'll likely face the Man-God's apostle in combat.
You'd probably manage bare-handed, but you'd be better off with proper armor."
Orsted said this while glancing outside the hut.
There sat the magic armor, separated into its components, and the peacefully sleeping Zenoba.
Looking closely, I could see that he'd also carefully brought back even the right-hand gatling gun.
"That's nothing compared to the God of Battle armor, but it's impressive. You must have put considerable effort into crafting something like that."
"Well… the Man-God did give me quite a bit of advice on it."
"Is that so… So he dug his own grave as well. What's the inscription on it?"
"Inscription?"
"The name engraved on the armor."
"Magic Armor."
"I see… Boring name. Shall I give it a new one? Let's see…"
"No, thank you."
Orsted narrowed his eyes and smiled.
Even his smiles were unsettling.
Name aside, having the performance of my armor praised by the legendary Dragon God Orsted—what would Zenoba and Cliff think about that?
"If you're going to continue using it, some improvements would be advisable.
As it is, it consumes all your magical energy in a single use."
"That said, miniaturizing it wouldn't be possible within a month."
"Then perhaps we'll put it off for this time…"
Orsted said this while resting his chin on his hand and nodding.
Could it be he was going to help with the construction?
Would our armor bear the Dragon God's emblem?
"However, if you can't clothe yourself in fighting spirit, that's problematic. I'll arrange a robe for you."
"Oh, yes. Thank you."
That robe would probably be expensive too.
"I'll also prepare a few magical artifacts you might find useful."
"…"
The best environment, the best pay, the best equipment.
Was Orsted planning to provide everything?
Quite a contrast from the Man-God, who just threw advice at me and left me on my own.
"Come to think of it, I've been hearing a lot about the God of Battle armor lately. What exactly is it?"
"Master Laplace's greatest masterpiece, and his most catastrophic failure."
Master Laplace's masterpiece.
So Laplace had made it.
"The armor's surface glows with golden radiance from the mana it emits, granting its wearer supreme power. However, the mana is so immense that the armor develops a will of its own and seizes control of its wearer's consciousness—a cursed armor."
A cursed armor…
The Dragon tribe sure excelled at creating things like that.
Laplace seemed to make nothing but cursed objects.
Between the Spear of the Spelled Race and this armor… the man couldn't make anything decent.
"Though nowadays, it sleeps at the bottom of the Ring Sea, in its deepest depths."
"…"
Orsted really did know everything.
You couldn't ask for a more reliable ally.
"Here, take this as well."
Orsted produced something scroll-like from his coat.
I took it and unrolled it—there was a magical circle drawn on it.
"This is?"
"The summoning circle for a guardian beast, as I mentioned yesterday."
"Oh."
"As you channel mana into it, imagine an existence that protects your family. You can also use words. The appropriate being should be summoned."
"Just with my imagination?"
"Your mana reserves are immense. It's better not to specify too precisely—a broader approach may summon a more suitable partner."
Even if he told me I'd find a "more suitable partner," what was I supposed to do with that?
Well, if that was how it worked, I'd give it a try.
"Nothing weird will be summoned, right? Like some loli that starts with 'Ma' and ends with 'Tei'?"
"What gets summoned depends on you… But Kirika Kirisu possesses immense mana, regardless of its size. That small circle probably couldn't summon it."
The size was the problem?
Oh well.
"Either way, I'll try summoning the guardian beast starting tomorrow."
"Good."
"So, for the next month, I'll deepen my relationships with Ariel and Luke while preparing for the fight."
"That's right."
"Understood."
That should wrap up the discussion for now.
Oh, right.
There was one more important thing I'd forgotten to ask.
"…By the way, apparently one of my descendants is going to help you in the future, Lord Orsted? Should I have as many kids as possible? Or is it like before—if I have children, Laplace might be born or something?"
"…Laplace will not be born from your children. Do as you please."
"Understood. I'll do as I please."
So just have plenty of kids, then.
Orsted would probably be happier surrounded by a large group of companions.
"Well then, I'll take my leave. I need to try out this summoning circle."
"Right."
"Until next time. If anything comes up, please contact my home."
I was about to stand up when—
I remembered one more thing I had to ask.
"Oh, one more thing, Lord Orsted. Have you met with the Seven Stars yet?"
"…No, not yet."
"I know it's not my place, but if you're upset about having been summoned by her, I hope you'll consider forgiving her. I was the one who blackmailed her and basically forced her to do it against her will."
"…"
Orsted said nothing.
I didn't want to be the reason people fell out with each other.
"The Seven Stars was opposed to me fighting you.
Because you'd been kind to her, she said."
"…"
"She still seems to carry some guilt over setting you up.
If there's any room for you to forgive her, would you consider meeting her again and accepting her apology?"
"Understood. I'll do that. She is, despite everything… a useful woman."
Right.
Very useful.
"Oh, actually—speaking of which, that reminds me.
Regardless of whether I can contact you, it'd be inconvenient if you can't reach me. Take this as well."
Orsted pulled a ring from his coat pocket and set it on the table.
I'd seen it somewhere before.
Recently, in fact.
It was the one Nanahoshi had—the one I'd used as bait.
"If anything urgent comes up, use this to call me."
When used, the ring would emit mana for a period of time. While emitting mana, its paired compass would continuously point in that direction.
If this were a magical tool, it would be like making some kind of radar…
Unfortunately, replicating the effects of a mana-infused artifact was extremely difficult.
Still, giving me this meant…
He was confident that even if I launched a surprise attack again, he could deflect it.
Or perhaps he'd decided to trust that I wouldn't attack him again.
…Let's assume it was the latter.
Orsted wouldn't want to exert his full power and waste precious mana two or three times over.
If he trusted me, I had to live up to that trust.
"I'll take it. Until next time, then."
I accepted the ring and left the hut.
---
After that, I carried the sleeping Zenoba on my back and delivered him to Ginger's room.
I left a message: "I'll come again later to discuss repairs for the magic armor."
When I returned home, Sylphie was waiting with a scowl.
She was angry that I'd been wandering around for two days without telling her where I was going, so I explained that I'd been meeting with Orsted. I kept the details of our future plans under wraps but told her that things would start moving in a month.
After that, things progressed naturally, and she coaxed me into bed, where I set about the important work of increasing Orsted's future allies.
The key ingredient for this kind of work was love.
That was my excuse, anyway. After that, I slept soundly for the night.