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Chapter 1 - Encounter/lıʌǝ ǝɥ⊥
Part 1
Kingdom of Elchea.
It was located on the western part of the continent of Andalusia, and the last country of Imanity, who were the sixteenth-ranked of the Exceed.
After their battle with the Eastern Union less than half a month ago, [the king and queen] i. e. Sora and s. h. i. +ro won their matches and restored their territory to double its previous size.
...... Following which, the problems of the country also doubled.
There were two major issues.
The first was the idea of forming a federation with the Eastern Unions that [the king and queen] i. e. Sora and s. h. i. +ro had proposed.
Establis. h. i. +ng a country across the racial barriers was simply unheard of, and thus a huge problem.
Even though they had regained a portion of their territory, Elchea still lacked the technology to properly utilize these lands.
The other problem was that, while the Eastern Union had lost its mainland territories, its nationalstrength stillremained one of the top in the world.
...... their nationalstrength, currency, not to mention socialstructures, ethnicity and language were totally different, yet they were expected to have equal access to resources.
Since it is such an obviously dif icult situation, I believe there isn't any need to further elaborate.
This was the first time in history that Imanity was faced with such an impossible task.
And the second problem was......
"Really......"
Looking at the cards in her hand, the red haired girl breathed a long sigh.
Stephanie Dora.
Usually abbreviated as Steph.
She was a member of the previous royalfamily --- a girl whose disposition was totally contrasting with what a previous king's granddaughter should be.
Even though she was harshly lacking in sleep and severely fatigued, her usually beautifulface...... was now filled with a scowl and she was emitting a dangerous aura.
The reason was the [second problem].
And that was......
"At such an important time, when the heck do those two b. a. s. t. a. r. ds intend to come back ～～!?"
--- King City of Elchea, main conference room.
Her rant resounded through the entire conference room and it shocked everyone present.
"...... Dora-kou
[2]
, I understand how you feel... but it isn't very good for a lady to say the word 'b. a. s. t. a. r. d', right?"
The one who spoke to advise Steph was standing by her side. He was a mostly white figure, who looked older than any normal elderly man.
His face was mostly similar to Steph's, as it was filled with a bitter expression.
His dog ears and tail were slightly drooping. Although he was draped in a kimono, his robust physique was still unmistakable. He was one of the
Werebeasts, Hatsuse Ino.
He was the grandfather of the former Eastern Union amba. s. sador (Hatsuse
Izuna). The currently absent king and queen (Sora and s. h. i. +ro) had forced him to handle the problems of the country...... another victim following Steph.
"Dora-kou...... ? Eh? Were you talking to me?"
Steph lagged in responding. Ino nodded his head.
"Yes. As this is a formal occasion, I should use my better judgment and use this suffix. Is there a problem?"
"And I was wondering who you were referring to...... please address me as
[the errand girl of the king and queen] instead."
Seeing Steph's smile of low self-esteem, Ino shrugged his shoulders.
"I'm afraid that if I were to address you so impolitely, others would also address me in a similar manner...... Back to the topic though, Dora-kou, shouldn't you be putting your focus onto the things at hand?"
Following Ino's line ofsight, Steph began to remember the present situation...... she then began to speak inwardly to herself.
"Sigh...... Wellsaid......"
Just tell yourself that you're just going through an important game right now.
The game was not anything particularly special, as it was just normal poker.
Other than the fact that Jokers were included in this game, it was just a regular game of poker.
-- Elchea had established a federation with the Eastern Union, with the former as the leader.
With Elchea's territory doubled, there was still the matter of who it should be distributed to and what it should be used to do...
The powerfulfeudal lords were the ones who were reaping tremendous benefits.
From the current situation, the so-called [equal and multi-racial country] was just an illusion.
No matter how complex the system, the ma. s. sive gap between the two nation's strength could not be offset.
The day a free market economy is implemented, Elchea would probably be totally and utterly trashed.
Thus, they were trying to allocate the [continentalresources] that the Eastern
Union had requested for.
Although it is relevant to say that such is simply Elchea's fate.
It is inevitable that whoever has the power to do so will clump together to try to maximize their benefits during these times.
For these reasons, there was a constant stream of Elchea's feudal lords challenging Steph, who currently held legislative power, to a game with the intention of fulfilling their demands.
The result was... Steph could not sleep properly for the past two weeks, and was forced to continue playing games against them.
(Getting challenged to a game is such a good thing... yeah. )
Steph muttered in her heart, because... it was a trap.
Everything is moving smoothly as planned...
That's right...... all is good except for the 『volume』 that I'm up against.
"『All in』--- please hurry up and strip off your clothes?"
...... what happened to her lady manners?
Because she was immensely fatigued, deep dark circles emerged under her eyes, and rage had distorted her expression--- it was simply...
Her face gave reminiscence to their fear of the 『king』. The feudal lords looked to each other.
Then they selected 『fold』 --- which means that they were now forced to obey Steph's proposal.
However --- Steph used her loud voice to render them speechless. She kicked aside her chair and stood up.
"...... Since you were willing to accept my proposalfrom the beginning, why did you make me waste all my time!?"
She threw the cards on the table and spread them. Her hand was......
--- Five of a kind.
[3]
Even if they had not folded, it would have the same result. Everyone was eliminated at one go. Looking at that hand of cards, the feudal lords turned pale.
But Steph chose to ignore them, and turned to walk away."If you don't win everything, you lose everything (all or nothing)! Please only return once all your hopes are shattered, okay!?"
Following which, Hatsuse Ino took over from Steph, and smiled pleasantly at them.
"Then, as 'pledged to the Oaths' earlier, I will now eliminate your memories.
Sorry about that."
Part 2
-- To put it bluntly, it was a 'conflict of interests'.
Managing the recovered territories properly would profitably contribute to the countries in the alliance.
Even if we're unwilling to hand them over, we still have to let our territories be managed by somebody. Naturally, benefits would be reaped if there is a successful outcome.
Or rather, we cannot do it any other way, so this is for the best after all.
The problem lay within the fact that the n. o. bles would move against the original proposition of whose land is whose.
Thinking further, those were the territories that the former king -- Steph's deceased grandfather -- had lost in his gambles.
Since he had bet with them on his own volition, there would certainly have been some of the opposition that was left dissatisfied.
But...... if that was the case, why hadn't they used a game to stop the former king back then?
"How irresponsible of them! Whenever they lose out, they'll cry that it's the king's fault! But once Sora and s. h. i. +ro take the territories back, they'd rush to seize a slice for themselves...... Do these n. o. bles not have an ounce ofshame in them!?"
"Aristocracy is such a system. Wouldn't anyone turn out like that after being like that for so long?"
Steph unhappily walked through a corridor in Elchea City. Behind her was
Ino, who was smiling while he spoke.
The problem isn't that they are aristocrats.
No matter how corrupt they are, they are stillrulers with excellent knowledge on how to operate and manage territory.
As long as they have the heart and capabilities to do so, entrusting the territories to them to manage was unavoidable --- that was what Steph was thinking.
The problem was......
"Just think of the n. o. bles who were protesting earlier... each one of them practically had the words 『I'm only here to gain profit. Don't throw any trouble my way』. AHHHHH...... !!"
And those who deliberately act that way are allfeudal lords who hold power that is impossible to overlook.
If it is not managed well, a power struggle may result...... And once a revolt has been instigated, it would give them an excuse to interfere in national affairs.
At that time...
"Wouldn't that be easy...... easy to deal with, that is."
The one who had come up with that plan was walking behind Steph with a sinister smile on his face --- Hatsuse Ino.
When Sora and s. h. i. +ro were absent, the one left in charge of national affairs was the former king's granddaughter (Steph)...... Such a rumor was spread on purpose.
Subsequently, this situation brought about a great opportunity. The challengers earlier, who were pursuing their own interests, had lost and were punished in accordance to the oaths. They had promised to [lose all their memories during the game], and to put it flatly, it was a [clean sweep].
As a result, the policies and beneficial punishment implemented by Steph were able to proceed smoothly with no resistance.
It was very effective, and had Ino's style embedded in the plan --- which was a style developed by the multi-tribal Eastern Union to make others fall into their trap.
However, once they thought about the reason the plan was proceeding smoothly and how frequently it worked......
"Just how much do they look down on me!? They practically treat me like I am an idiot!"
It was easy to see that those people looked down on her and her grandfather.
"Alright, alright now. Dora-kou...... thanks to this, everything could proceed smoothly. That is the truth. We should instead be welcoming these ignorant peoples' contempt --- and smile while we make use of them, no?"
"--- Ino-san, can you please not address me like that... Just Steph is fine."
--- Steph was the head of the Dora family, which was the former royal family. Naturally, that means her t. i. tle is [d. u. c. h. ess].
Nevertheless, Steph continued speaking with a weary face.
"I'm just an errand girl. Call me that which doesn't sound like the position of any person with honor......"
"But, when Sora-dono and s. h. i. +ro-dono are absent, Stephanie-dono is essentially the representative of the royalfamily ---- so if we were to say you are the prime minister, then doesn't that give you the status of the n. o. blest person in Elchea?"
Ino continued speaking with his actor-like tone.
"---- d. u. c. h. ess Dora is the prime minister of Elchea, Imanity's last remaining country, and the former king's granddaughter. She delivered such a largescale and unprecedented plan to construct a multi-racial country that merged with the Eastern Union under Elchea's leaders. h. i. +p. Truly a beautiful, young and talented woman...... ! How would such a person be addressed?"
Who would that be?
Steph looked up blankly to the ceiling.
"The female protagonist of this heroic story is actually just an errand girl. The rich ironic twist to this story isn't half bad, eh."
Steph followed up by saying, "Do you intend to write the story and publish it?" Upon hearing this, Ino smiled wryly and proceeded to change the topic.
"But, within these two weeks, Steph did not even lose a single time. That is truly a great feat to accomplish."
"That's only because the opponents were weaklings."
While Ino had given a sincere compliment, he was immediately shot down in a sentence. Steph wrinkled her brow.
"Those guys are just some foolish idiots with crude ways of cheating. If the opponent was Sora or s. h. i. +ro, I'll definitely be ridiculed to their best abilities, and then taken advantage of...... Surely I needn't say more."
"Well, that is indeed true......"
Nonetheless, Ino thought to himself.
Initially, Steph relied on Ino's a. s. sistance as a Werebeast to accelerate her five senses.
But Steph continued her winning streak --- and now, Ino was only escorting her around.
Although this girl greatly underestimated her own strength...... the fact is that she is indeed -- very strong.
In comparison with 『those two (Sora and s. h. i. +ro)』, they are simply too strong to speak of.
As for normalImanity, very few would be able to beat her skill.
Steph had no idea what Ino was thinking about, and continued complaining.
"And they totally didn't realize I was cheating. Was it those feudal lords true motive simply to make me suffer from lack ofsleep and die of fatigue!?"
"...... Stephanie-dono, you're starting to sound more and more like Sora and the like."
--- Wham!
Steph stomped on the floor, and stopped walking.
"--- What did you just say?"
Her body was motionless while she turned her head, and emitted a sound like her bones were vibrating.
"Did you just say...... I'm similar to that loose king who's playing around in the Eastern Union!?"
"Pl-Please calm down! I only meant that your style of gameplay is very similar!"
--- The ways Steph had adopted to win...
They were to calculate the opening attack, hide her cards, swap her cards, and shuffling skills...
Then to see through the opponent's cheat and use it against him, and even to bluff and mind-game
[4] the opponent.
Those tactics were all learnt from --- challenging Sora and s. h. i. +ro, after having failed time and time again.
The fact was that Steph was initially so afraid that ifshe were to lose, she would make the implementation of a federation even harder. Thus, she was so nervous that she was able to realize what Sora and s. h. i. +ro would do in such a situation while in her games.
However, her lack ofsleep coupled with the fact that those two had yet to come back had ignited a flame within her, thus easing all her nerves.
Eventually, Steph began to unconsciously play as ifshe was playing against
Sora and s. h. i. +ro in her games.
However, the opponent was too weak and practically just trash. Steph could not tolerate herself thinking of those people as Sora and s. h. i. +ro for even a second.
--- She and her grandfather...
were being looked down upon by such trash.
That fact made it --- even harder to tolerate ------ "Ah."
Suddenly, Steph looked as ifshe had suddenly been enlightened. Her expression changed completely.
"Aahh, that's right. The n. o. bles are just trying to get in the way of the establishment of a federation. That's why it's been so difficult."
"St-Stephanie-dono?"
Seeing her change into a different person, Ino uneasily called out to her.
But, she did not seem to hear a thing...... rather, she seemed to be looking at something that was not there.
Steph's eyes suddenly lit up with brilliance and excitement. She happily turned on the spot.
"--- Ino-san, regardless of whether we're approached by n. o. bles, merchants or guilds, let's win away all their possessions, and force them to step down from their positions with nothing left on them. Everything can just be managed by the government instead!? If we're short on manpower, we'll just grab some of the citizens and appoint them as officials. If anyone dares to do anything corrupt, we'll just force them to spit out their guts till they're nothing but bones. If they continue to be rotten, we'll just arrest them and get all of them deported. This way, we can make the treasury rich, and negotiations for laws and policies can just be decided by ourselves. All our problems would be solved, right? I'm such a genius! I, I'm not an idiot...... Not an idiot～～
～～～～!!"
--- And then she collapsed.
"St-Stephanie-dono, please get ahold of yourself! Such is an act of abolishment --- an act of terrorism!!"
Steph was shouting while crying and smiling. She then hit a wall with her forehead.
All of a sudden, she felt something move... as she looked to the moving sight...... in front of her was ---
--- Sora was there.
"Aaaaahhhh...... !"
Where had you run of to slack around at?
He threw all the preparatory work to me, and went off to have fun by himself.
Although there were many feelings in her heart, what she was feeling most was so much joy that she was blus. h. i. +ng because of the fact that Sora was right there.
She had no way of hiding the joy in her chest, and many complex feelings started swelling up......
"So-Sora! You're back---- HIGII--!?"
Steph was rus. h. i. +ng forward, but her face hit a pole and her nose started bleeding while she made strange wailing sounds.
Her body laid on the floor like a stick figure
[5]
, and she stared at the ceiling above her...... then, she suddenly realized...
The 'Sora' that she saw was......
Was a reflection ofsomething in the s. h. i. +ny polished marble column ----- [her own face].
Upon realizing this, Steph mustered a single sentence while in pain...
"........................... I can't go on any longer."
"Stephanie-dono, you should get some sleep. No, I should say, please, you must get some sleep. I beg of you."
Ino propped up Steph who was lying paralyzed on the floor while he continued speaking.
"...... Do not worry. Sora-dono and s. h. i. +ro-dono are... indeed two people who are difficult to understand."
He put in his best effort to think optimistically about the siblings who were impossible for anyone to comprehend.
"But since they are stranded in the Eastern Union, they are probably arbitrating upon certain conditions with Miko-sama...... probably?"
While the federation was established with Elchea as its leader, it was still not enough to rely only on Elchea's efforts.
"I also think that that's where they are...... they definitely should be progressing through a [summit]."
--- Maybe it was like that.
The actions of Sora and s. h. i. +ro were always never on track.
However, their actions ---- had always played a huge role in Elchea.
That was the truth.
And so they should put their faith in them ---- but ----
"...... Who knows? Judging from the way that those two usually speak and act, they're sure to confuse public and private matters, ah......"
Indeed, the fact was that their actions were always in line with their own desires.
Looking in the direction of the Eastern Union, Steph complained angrily.
"...... In any case, they're definitely fooling around with the Kemonomimi girls right now, holing up in a room engrossed in their games, or doing something that any human being would deem incorrigible."
...... Ino had no way of denying that statement.
Part 3
Now changing location. The Eastern Union's capital, Kannagari. Similar to Elchea's King City, the representative of the Werebeasts lives in Miko's
Shrine
[6]
. The courtyard of the central edifice. It was filled with a lavish natural landscape, and where there were gaps, it was painted with either red or black. One cannot help but think that it is a j. a. panese garden.
This area was normally prohibited to unrelated people and the like. However, at that moment, there was a ma. s. s of people gathered next to the sacred pond.
"...... Miko-sama, what is love?"
"...... Tell us, Miko-sama......" The one who was asking these questions seriously had a head of black hair and black eyes. He was a teenager who wore a s. h. i. +rt with 『I ♥ Imanity』 on it. Sitting on his lap was a girl with white hair and red eyes.
They were the king and queen of Elchea ---- the sole representatives of
Imanity, Sora and s. h. i. +ro.
The truth behind the crowd was that those two were petting severalspecies of Werebeasts --- Kemonomimi girls --- while making delicate and charming sounds. In addition, there was a long queue of Kemonomimi girls looking on with faces that were bursting with envy.
"...... What should I say? Even though there's so much to say......"
Speaking with a voice that sounded like wind chimes was a woman who was sitting on the opposite side of the game board.
No one knew her real name, and she was a golden fox with two lush tails.
She was the Werebeasts' representative who had total authority over the race
[Miko].
"...... I've been meaning to ask the two of you...... What on earth is in your heads?"
The three people were in the middle of a game called [Corner Sparrow]. It was a unique traditional game of the Eastern Union.
--- Although it was some aspects in common with [Mahjong], it was essentially a completely different game.
"What? Ah, okay, I win again."
"...... This game...... is pretty...... interesting......"
--- They were petting the countless Werebeast girls while asking the flippant question of 'what love was'.
--- Yet, they had easily mastered this game, which they had just seen for the first time and heard the rules of only a few tens of minutes ago.
In that very short period of time, they had formulated strategies that maximize in efficiency and countless arrangements ---- and even worked out a few ways to cheat.
But that was not the biggest problem...... Miko had mixed feelings, and smiled bitterly while she sighed.
"How the heck did your cheat escape my notice? Tell me?"
--- Even though she was depending on her five senses, Miko could not perceive the slightest of flaws in their movements.
Sora smiled like a hippie while replying her.
"Oh? You're going as far as to say that we cheated? How disgraceful. But, s. h. i. +ro did memorize all the cards that were facing down while tracing their positions, and I only pretended to shuffle so that I could control the cards that s. h. i. +ro might need ---- This isn't to be called a cheat."
Indeed, one of the two reasons why what they did could not be deemed as a cheat---
--- was that those two had not seen their opponent's cards at all, and were only speculating what was in each other's hand.
"Also, Miko did the same. We're both in the same boat, eh?"
The second reason was that she still lost to them when under the same conditions...
They had only chatted with her for a while, yet they had already beaten her in a game that she was playing for over fifty years.
Her opponents had faced her directly with the strength to win, and had exceeded her in terms of points...... There was nothing she could do about that.
She had been so thoroughly defeated, yet she felt overjoyed.
Miko's cheeks perked up as she forced a smile, while Sora began to state his demands.
"Alright, 'as pledged to the oaths', I may request of three things from you
no problems there, right?"
Facing the helplessly smiling Miko, Sora continued his speech.
"Firstly, I ask you to take into account the interests of both nations, and to objectively create a tax table in accordance with the import and export of different goods."
Compared to Elchea, the Eastern Union knew their mainland resources like the back of their hands. That should have been obvious enough.
Then, the only person who could accurately evaluate the gap between the two countries' nationalstrength, and also to strive to meet the interests of both sides, was [Miko], the sole representative of the Eastern Union. There was not a more appropriate candidate around.
Since it is to implicitly 'take into account the interests of both countries', the benefits cannot go unilaterally to the Eastern Union.
Miko admired in her heart the fact that there were never any holes in their plans, but...
"...... In other words, you guys are throwing all the work onto me once again......"
In the past half a month, Sora and s. h. i. +ro were really hard at [work].
They visited Miko's residence every day, and bet for the interests of both countries in games.
...... Indeed, they were remarkably efficient in their work. They had been victorious over Miko in every single game. If you were to overlook how they threw all of their substantive workload onto Miko, it was an impeccable feat.
"Specialized work should be a. s. signed to those who specialize in it. Since
Miko-sama only spent half a century to unite this huge country, I believe in your abilities ♪"
Upon hearing how easily Sora replied her, Miko laughed while scratching her hair.
The federalsystem used by the two combined nations...
It seemed to be a reference to their original world's United States of
America. This move was unprecedented, and thus involved numerous obstacles which needed solutions and compromises to be made. The friction between the two countries also needed to be reduced to a minimum. So, they decided to throw all of these things to Miko to get resolved.
In truth, that was the most correct approach. Although Sora and s. h. i. +ro were super gamers, they were no politicians.
However, Miko's forced smile was for a different reason.
As of that day, she had attempted to win against Sora and s. h. i. +ro several times
--- and failed.
This time, she thought she would be able to win with a game they had never seen before, but she stillsuffered a beautiful defeat.
In addition, she had used a lot of tricks, hoping to win some benefits for the
Eastern Union...... but the result was that she completely failed to trick or win against them.
However, to formulate the policy in this way, as Sora and s. h. i. +ro said, it would thoroughly meet the 'interests of both countries'. However, be it Elchea or the
Eastern Union, there would be some short-term losses, but long-term benefits will definitely be reaped on both sides ---- looking at the records of these doc. u. mented policies, Miko could not help but sigh.
She had no complaints.
However, since she was always trying to deceive those two with cheats, she began to feel a little guilty.
The problem lay with their second request which was incidentally...
"Okay, the second request is as usual ---- let us stroke Miko-sama!"
"...... stroke......"
--- Indeed, they would senselessly bet for the rights to stroke Miko every time before starting the game.
"Well, since you are seriously considering government policies, I'll let you have a touch......"
Miko sighed while looking at the stack of doc. u. ments that was constantly piling up.
Then, she slowly swung her two golden tails over to them to let them touch.
"OKAY! It's here! Let's go, s. h. i. +ro!"
"...... Today we must definitely...... make Miko moan......"
With s. h. i. +ning eyes, Sora and s. h. i. +ro pounced onto Miko. Miko laughed bitterly while she thought ---
--- the Werebeasts who are the Exceed's fourteenth ranked race...
They could exceed the limits of their body's physical capabilities.
This was naturally impossible for humans to achieve, and needless to say, it defied the laws of physics.
The way they used to make this possible --- was to rely on the elementals within their body.
...... All life in this world had some amount of 'Elemental' within their bodies.
There were elemental corridors to retain strength or make connections that were like nerves -- and the [external elementals (magic)] was what determined the ranks. As the fourteenth rank, the Werebeasts had a meagre connection, and were thus incapable of using magic.
But as for [the elementals within each body], the only race who would be unconscious to their use was the Imanity.
The Werebeasts utilized the strength of their body's elementals to achieve heights that humans would be amazed at.
A good example would be [Bad Blood] which was used by Izuna and Miko.
By controlling the elementals within their body, they could enhance the performance of their body and cast a field ofself-destruction. That was the skill of the Werebeasts.
But the price paid for circulating elementals through their bodies was a special phenomenon that endlessly causes disorder.
And that specific phenomenon had a greater impact depending on how weak the body of the Werebeast is.
The result on the Werebeast race was a chronic disorder of the elementals within one's body, especially seen in women and children...... which was followed by discomfort.
It was not easy to solve this problem alone.
............ after saying so much, what was trying to be conveyed was......
"...... Fluffy fluffy...... pet pet...... hehe......"
"---!"
Under s. h. i. +ro's touch, Miko almost let out an ecchisound, but managed to keep it in by dispersing her attention.
Sora and s. h. i. +ro...... those two's technique of leading around the elementals within her body was --- abnormally clever.
Imanity should not be able to see elementals though.
Even if they were from another world, the technique to lead around
Elementals belonged to the field of high magic.
And yet, those two were......
"--- Hng, right here!"
"------------!!"
...... The reaction was instantaneously captured with the touch that had substantially leaded around the elementals.
The result was inadvertently the elimination of the chronic disorder in the
Werebeasts due to the disorder in their body's elementals.
This is... how would you call it ---- probably an exceedingly charismatic ma. s. seur?
It's only natural that this would attract such a long queue, right?
"...... What else? You did say that you wanted 'three' requests today......
Ah."
Because of the accurate touch, she almost let out an ecchisound. Miko forcibly repressed it and bet on this opportunity to ask the two of them a question.
"...... It's about time to state it, right? Of course, I think it has something to do with this situation, right?"
She looked to Sora and s. h. i. +ro who were being hugged by Werebeast girls who were strangers to them, while they alternated between petting the crowd.
To this point, Miko had been pretty much dying to say that. But, first putting that aside......
The two of them had their mouth and nose covered, and each wrapped with a towel that seemed to be borrowed from Izuna.
Sora was wearing what looked to be cat ears, and s. h. i. +ro was wearing rabbit ears. Jibrilstood behind them, and for some reason or another, she had slightly drooping dog ears on her head. Izuna stood by her side, with eyes eagerly looking onto Sora and s. h. i. +ro who were petting Werebeast girls, as if waiting for her turn.
Miko then narrowed her eyes to look at the last person.
In her line of vision was a Dhampir girl who crouched in the corner of the room whose body was constantly s. h. i. +vering.
"Last night, after I rejected the request issued by Plum, -- the Dhampir over there -- she went all over Kannagari to advertise the petting skills of s. h. i. +ro and me."
The result seemed to be the long queue of Werebeast girls waiting to be stroked.
They had clearly covered their faces and used the s. p. a. ce to divert others' attention while going to Miko's shrine, but the moment they stepped out and walked a little, the scenario completely changed...... Sora shrugged his shoulders and laughed bitterly.
"She threatened to keep up this troublesome behavior untilI promised to rescue the Dhampir race."
"............ Is that so......"
"Master, this should be enough. You should just use a game and bet for her head, win, then chop her head off ♥"
"I'm s-s-sorry...... b-but this is an important matter which involves the survival of an entire race!"
A single glance by Jibril who was emitting a murderous aura caused Plum to huddle in her corner and let out a cry of misery.
"---- That is, regarding my third request......" "Un."
"Please use your status as the werebeasts' sole representative to order them that, whenever we take the initiative to go out, they are not to come looking for us. If not, they'd just line up outside the main door of Izuna's house, and we'd be too scared to enter their line ofsight that we wouldn't even touch the door, and thus be unable to state the original purpose of our visit."
............
--- Miko looked as ifshe had much to say.
But, in order to hear what his original purpose was, she used a sharp tone and spoke.
"--- Step down."
With only that sentence, the Kemonomimi girls were immediately so scared that their hairs stood on edge, then they repeatedly bowed their heads while scrambling to escape from the shrine's garden.
Moreover, s. h. i. +ro was waving goodbye in the direction of their backs.
"That should be it. ---- So, what was it you wanted to talk seriously about?"
Miko had an intolerant expression when she asked. Sora nodded solemnly in response.
"Yup, ---- it's a major issue that puts both Elchea and the Eastern Union at stake."
Sora started the topic, and no longer had his usualslovenly appearance. He wore a very serious look on his face, like he had encountered a problem which was extremely difficult to solve.
Accordingly, Miko proceeded to sit opposite Sora.
Sora said, "You know the capital in the sea that's south of the Eastern Union; the country called Oceando?"
"That's our neighbouring country. Of course I know of it. It's the nation of the
Seirens."
--- Seirens.
The Exceed's fifteenth ranked, which was above Imanity by a single rank, and below the Werebeasts by a single rank.
Their capital was located beneath the deep sea, and because they could only live underwater, they were not interested in acquiring territories.
They were also a race with a special ecology, and thus they have minimal transactions with other nations and were closed off to the rest of the world.
What on earth is the purpose of bringing up the country composed of those people...... ?
Miko stared with that question in her eyes. Sora responded with a vigorous nod."Indeed. This is something that involves them, Miko-sama..."
Sora inhaled deeply.
"... Like I was saying, Miko-sama, what is love?"
"I'llsay this one more time. If you're asking for a fight, I can take you on. ♥"
Miko's smile stretched through her face --- but she exuded an aura which looked as ifshe was preparing to activate [Bad Blood].
Her fur turned slightly reddish, and she let out a low growl.
Part 4
--- Returning to a time some time back: last night.
The H-game was set at a different location, so as Sora had declared, he coldly rejected all demands.
Plum clung onto Sora's feet, begging wildly while on the verge of bursting into tears.
"P-Please wait! I can only ask this of you, Your Majesty!"
"You're irritating! I do not intend to get involved with something that clearly rated M-18! Please get yourselves acquainted with these limits!"
The race known as the [Dhampirs] used a white turbid liquid to subst. i. tute for blood as food.
--- Regardless of whatever manner it was to be implemented, it would be sent to the restricted area of the room with no excuses.
"No, it's ----- Ahh, no, some people also became like that......"
"This has indeed turned into an H-game story!"
"P-Please listen to my explanation! If we go on like this, our race will peris. h. !. +"
"... Uhh?"
"...... Un?"
Sora and s. h. i. +ro suddenly stopped what they were doing. Hearing those words made it impossible for them to ignore the situation.
The line of vision of those two intersected to confirm something.
--- A race peris. h. i. +ng is a worrisome issue.
"...... I'll listen to what you have to say. But hear this. If I judge the topic to touch on hentai, we're ending this conversation immediately."
Sora reluctantly sat on the floor cross-legged, and sighed when he finished his sentence.
s. h. i. +ro sat on Sora's lap, and Jibrilfollowed to sit beside them.
As for Izuna --- perhaps due to fatigue, she huddled next to Sora's body, and nodded off into sleep.
"Th---Thank you very much!"
Plum wore a teary eyed expression, and repeatedly bowed at Sora.
"Ugh...... Please hold on a moment......"
Some irregular patterns emerged out of her purple pupils......
All of a sudden...
...
--- What on earth were they doing?
In that short time, Jibril appeared before Plum's face, and Izuna jumped in a spiral to go behind Plum.
The actions of those two resulted in a surplus of air, which was still blowing through the room.
"...... Eh?"
Plum screamed while staring blankly at Jibril's sharp eyes who were staring back at hers.
"Don't think you're something great just because you managed to get close to
Master. But if you really think I will be silly and let you succeed a second time, let me tell you this --- know your place, you little worm."
"Grandpa said that once I sense the scent of the magic of Dhapmirs, I must immediately avoid the other party's eyes, des."
Izuna growled. Her voice was cold and filled with wariness.
At this point, Sora trembled in fear and trepidation. To the two people who had their guards up, he said, "I-I think...... because of the [Ten Oaths], she should not be able to cause any harm, right?"
"Even if it does not result in harm, it is possible to disguise another's cognition. That is to say..."
Her hostile gaze s. h. i. +fted to Plum's [side].
"Concealing over there, a gigantic luggage --- or such."
Jibrilstared to an empty s. p. a. ce as if there was something there. Plum waved frantically while she tearfully explained the situation.
"Th-This is a misunderstanding! I had only applied the disguising of cognition to myself!"
--- With a thunderous sound, numerous suitcases appeared from nowhere.
"............ Un."
Izuna sniffed with her nose, and then let her down her guard and returned to
Sora and s. h. i. +ro's side.
"As I had too much luggage, because of that... I just disguised the existence of the bags so that it would be easier to carry......"
It was at this time that Sora and s. h. i. +ro grasped the situation and widened their eyes in surprise.
"In other words... you hid the [existence] of your luggage, thus eliminating their weight?"
"No, it only removes the feeling of the volume and weight. It does not imply the luggage disappeared."
"So, when you first appeared, you were so fatigued because of..."
"...... This reason...... ?"
"S-Sorry...... 'cuz it's too heavy......"
Plum constantly bowed to apologize, but Jibril on the other hand...
"The Dhampirs' [disguises and illusions] --- they are at times superior to the
Elves in regards to affecting one's cognition through magic. Those trunks of luggage had always been here...... we were just not aware of them."
"Uwa, but Jibril was aware of them?"
"It makes me sad to admit this but if I was not paying attention, I would have overlooked it. There will never be a second time."
Jibrilspoke with clenched fists and a lowered head. Nonetheless, Sora's gaze moved to her side.
"...... Izuna, why did you drop your guard?"
"...... ? Because I did not smell the scent of lies, des?"
Perhaps she had become fatigued from moving so suddenly. Izuna had curled up into a ball, and yawned when she replied.
"Un." --- Sora and s. h. i. +ro narrowed their gaze.
In front of their eyes was Plum. She had flipped over her luggage and looked as ifshe was searching for something.
Then, she said, "I-I found it!" She unfolded a doc. u. ment...
"Umm, ugh...... rumor has it that Sora-sama intends to unite all the races."
"...... Yeah."
That was the externalreason.
They had merged with the Eastern Union and were preparing to create a federation --- such a large matter should have already been exposed to the public. But as for who was controlling the race pieces, it should be a secret kept between Sora, s. h. i. +ro and Miko.
As he did not feel any special need to mention this, Sora simply expressed his affirmation.
"Let me get right to the point..."
Feeling satisfied at Sora's reply, Plum continued her speech.
"Currently, we, the Dhampirs and Seirens, are on the verge of extinction.
Although we've tried every possible way...... we are still powerless. So we hope to rely on the a. s. sistance of Sora-sama and his companions."
...... ----- Umm.
"Jibril, can you explain to me how the Dhampirs are related to the Seirens?"
Upon hearing Sora's inquiry, Jibril quietly accepted his order and lowered her head. She began her explanation to Sora.
"After the implementation of the [Ten Oaths], the Dhampirs could not absorb the blood of others without permission. Thus, they have to live relying on others --- the Seirens are also in a similar situation."
"...... Heh?"
"...... the [Seirens]...... the fifteenth ranked...... are a race that can only...... live in the ocean."
s. h. i. +ro began to proceed with her explanation.
The Exceed's fifteenth ranked Seirens --- to simply put it, they were a race of [mermaids].
They lived in the shallow portion of the ocean, and had the upper body of a human and had a fish tail instead of legs.
Their ecology had certain particularities. The first of which was... that they could not leave the ocean for a long time.
Because of this, they built an undersea city named [Oceando] which was a vast maritime territory.
The second particularity was that they were a race with only females.
In other words, their way of reproducing...
"...... requires...... [a male of a different race]......"
After hearing s. h. i. +ro's explanation, Sora looked to Jibril with half-open eyes.
"I say, be it the [Dhampirs] or the [Seirens], aren't the biological defects of this world too serious?"
"There were no issues in the beginning... only after the implementation of the
[Ten Oaths]."
Jibril continued her speech.
"As the Seirens only needed to catch another race's male and eat him, and the Dhampirs can just suck blood without saying anything, there were no problems. But, they cannot do harm to others because of the [Ten Oaths]
--- perhaps other races had been hurt --- but they should be the ones who were most deeply hurt."
Jibril had a smile on her face, and emitted a murderous aura while talking about the past. Sora directed a question to her."...... Sigh, what do you mean by...... catching to eat? Exactly as it implies?"
At that moment, a grim image of girls, whose lower half was that of fishes, taking big bites and chewing up other races flashed through his mind... This may have fallen under the M-18 ban for a different reason. Sora shuddered at the thought.
However, Jibrilshook her head.
"No, because Master said to be healthy, so I put it subtly. It has a s. e. xual meaning."
"How can there be such a heaven in existence?! I want to go! Jibril, let's set off immediately!"
Sora joyfully stood up, but Jibrilreplied in surprise.
"You'd be extracted until exhaustion or even death. Is that really okay?"
"How can there be such a h. e. l. l in existence... I don't want to go...... I'd never go there in my life!"
...... The mermaids could not reproduce unless they drained the life of someone of another race.
How much does this world want to betray my hopes and common sense until it is satisfied......
Sora's mood instantly hit bottom. He sighed and sat back down.
Not understanding why Sora was dejected, Jibril continued her explanation.
"Anyway, the Dhampirs and Seirens are races that cannot live without causing harm onto others. With the [Ten Oaths] hurting their survival, at such a time, the Dhampirs must have set their target on the Seirens."
Sora nodded.
"Yeah, ranking them as fifteenth between Imanity and the Werebeasts was a fitting choice. That means they cannot use magic either, right? No wonder the
Dhampirs, who are experts at illusions and disguise magic, unilaterally intend to bait them out for food."
Both races which were on the verge of extinction would not be worried about bets, I suppose.
The atmosphere was stillfull of murderous intent, but as it pertained to a matter ofsurvival...
Jibril was smiling happily instead.
"Unfortunately, this matter seems to have turned a right angle and dramatically changed...... it has become an issue well known all over the world."
--- Rather than going up a ramp, they were growing in the direction of a right angle. Jibril continued her speech happily.
"Getting bitten by a Dhampir willresult in a [disease]...... I believe I've said this before."
"Yeah......"
"To simply put it, the disease is that [you will die if you get exposed to sunlight]. Since they are already unable to go ash. o. r. e and have always lived under the sea, the disease does not const. i. tute a problem to the Seirens." "---
Un? Eh, that is to say?"
At that point, Plum smiled weakly and replied, "...... Yes, we Dhampirs --- made this [symbiotic] proposal......"
Jibril continued speaking."They adopted a strategy for the Seirens to provide blood, and the Dhampirs to provide magic to bait out other races for food.
The Dhampirs intended to put up a [united front] with the Seirens."
"That is really..."
"...... Amazing......"
Sora and s. h. i. +ro praised them together in their hearts.
Even though they were facing the crisis of extinction, and it was impossible for them to pull any tricks ---
To think they managed to come up with the perfect escape route that takes each other's interests into account, and it was a correct and problematic proposal ---
"Yeah, they really are a race that greatly stupefies others --- I'm referring to the Seirens."
--- What?
Jibril then smiled towards the pitiful Plum while she continued speaking.
"Because, to the Dhampirs who they are coexisting with --- the Seirens have actually [taken a bite] ~♪"
............ Eh?
"The result is that the Dhampirs lost tragically to the Seirens. The Dhampirs are now forced to find males to help the Seirens reproduce, and the males of the Dhampirs are forbidden from sucking the blood of any race other than the
Seirens. What a baffling contract."
............ ------ Huh?
Perhaps even with s. h. i. +ro's intelligence, she had not foreseen such a situation.
She looked towards Jibril and could not help but suspect that she misheard those words."...... Haha...... this is really so hilarious."
Opposite them, Plum had somewhat of an expression of despair.
"My ancestors probably did not expect that --- the Seirens did not understand the consequences of the [Ten Oaths], and unconsciously contributed to their own extinction, I think...... haha."
--- With her face full of misfortune, a gloomy smile emerged on her considerably fatigued face."...... Ugh...... ?...... Nii...... What's......
going on?"
s. h. i. +ro tilted her head in confusion, as ifshe had just been handed someone else's big mess.
Sora responded to her and said, "--- Ahh~ In other words, I hope it isn't......"
Although it was an incredulous thought... Sora still proceeded to say it.
"The Dhampirs did not use their magic and made a fake game, and proposed that if there was a tie, they would have a symbiotic relations. h. i. +p with each other... But, the Seirens did not understand the intentions of the Dhampirs and won the game unilaterally, and were so happy with the outcome --- am I right?"
From Jibril's pitying smile and Plum's exhausted smile, one could tell it was
[totally correct].
"...... Sigh, the Seirens are idiots after all..."
"Their reputation reverberates to the heavens. The super idiots of three thousand worlds ♥"
"They really are a race that's stupid to the extreme...... haha."
"Grandpa said that they were more stupid than hairless apes, des."
Jibril who looked full of contempt, Plum, and even Izuna who should have been asleep, answered Sora's question without hesitation.
"...... This is too much. To think there was a race that could be looked down on more than the Imanity...... I am a little touched."
However, Jibril continued her speech with a smile on her face.
"Well, that way, things get very interesting too ♪"
First, she put up a finger.
"To begin with, the Dhampirs can [survive] by consuming body fluids other than blood."
Then, she put up two fingers.
"But [growth] requires blood --- if they do not mix their souls, they will always maintain a child-like appearance."
Then, three fingers were put up.
"Because the Seirens need to suck the blood of only the males of other races, but are barred from doing so because of the Oaths. However, because they will maintain the appearance of a child, the Dhampirs will be unable to reproduce amongst themselves. Thus, in order to obtain blood, the males have to obey the Seirens, and in order to give birth, the females also have to obey the Seirens."
Following which, she put up four fingers.
"Even if a Seiren were to disobediently flee from the city, they would still carry a [disease] --- that should be enough to understand, right?"
Finally, with a smile, Jibril put up five fingers.
"Because the Dhampirs have such idiotic opponents, they have been accidentally been driven to a corner. ♪"
............
s. h. i. +ro had already lost interest in this foolish story and was playing with her nails.
Sora was also looking confused at the ceiling. Suddenly...
What Plum said flashed through Sora's mind.
--- "Ahh, no, some people also became like that."...
...... Let's try to sort out this information and think through before judging them.
First of all, the Dhampir females have no obligation to obey the Seirens, so they can leave.
It's just that they would continue to have a child's appearance.
But as long as they have the body fluids of other races, they can survive.
Under such conditions, the appropriate body fluid ranked behind blood is
[that]?
And she said that --- some people also became like that...... ?
--- Wait, just wait a moment.
............ then that's a ------ legitimate loli
[7]------
"B-But, we have solved this issue once in the past......"
"Eh, aha, ihh? What did you say?"
Sora had just become completely biased.
Everything Plum said seemed to somewhat confusing so she pulled back.
"What we said after speaking about the [Ten Oaths]... The Dhampirs have been successful in establis. h. i. +ng a symbiotic relations. h. i. +p."
Jibril nodded, and continued speaking.
"The essence that the Seirens require from males --- the [soul essence] must be won and depleted before reproduction --- however, when [a single generation comes from a single person], and the rest are still living, the amount ofsoul essence required for breeding that is to be extracted will not cause the death of the ingested individual, so..."
"The Dhampirs are only with absolute compliance to [her] for [a. s. sistance with reproduction]. --- With her ident. i. ty as the [queen], every generation of
Seirens come from the sole representative. They take the approach to [only have the Queen reproduce]."
"--- Ohh!"
"...... a clever trick......"
Sora clapped his hands to express his admiration, and s. h. i. +ro clapped similarly as ifshe was presenting an offering to the G. o. ds.
"The Dhampirs are pretty much just [a. s. sisting the Seirens with reproduction], and it isn't in violation of the Oaths. On the other hand, they can also deny the
Seirens if they mean to extract energy from them until they die. The Dhampirs also have blood they can suck... Wow, is this not a perfect situation to be in?"
So it was like this... although major mistakes were made, this gorgeous drama had a nice plot twist.
They managed to make it such that neither will perish while establis. h. i. +ng a system that ensures the continuity of both races.
In other words, they had successfully achieved the [interracial coexistence] that Sora and his companions were trying to achieve, and did so earlier than them.
"... This is sure enough of a great feat. The Dhampirs aren't ranked twelfth for nothing."
"Unfortunately, Master, that system had collapsed because of the queen of that generation."
--- Just how many plot twists are there in this story?
"...... Then what good did the queen of that generation do?"
Sora asked with cold eyes, but Jibrilremained smiling, though this time she had her fingers on both hands stretched open.
'--- Nothing-at-all~ ♥' was Jibril's reply.
Plum, who originally wore an expression of misfortune, now looked as if her soul was about to come out of her, and she laughed bitterly for a while.
"She left me with the message, 'Let me sleep until my prince comes. I will not wake up till then. '...... And then she was out cold."
Ah?
Jibril was grinning madly. What made her smile that much?
"In other words, the Dhampirs can undergo reproduction with the Seiren's
[current queen] as long as they do not die... But when her mother was still the queen, she was affected by some fairytale and pledged to the Ten Oaths then left that sentence and entered an eternalsleep."
...... Hey, hey, are you kidding me?
"Until the prince that makes her fall in love appears -- in other words, only if someone [pledges by the Oaths] through the [game] that she had set would she ever wake up. Al
| ← Ch. 19 | Ch. 21 → |