jMr3kE4R

1Chapter 1
2The Demon King, Temporarily Absent 1
3“This… this is unbelievable.”
4
5“T-That’s because…”
6
7Unable to withstand her friend’s gaze which had turned as cold as ice because she was too shocked, Chiho turned away immediately.
8
9However, Shouji Kaori, who was Chiho’s classmate, clubmate, and good friend, did not allow her to escape, and immediately put her face up close to Chiho’s.
10
11“Hey, I find it hard to believe what I just heard, can you repeat yourself?”
12
13“Uh, erm.”
14
15“What were you saying about your shift schedule?”
16
17“Erm……”
18
19Kaori mercilessly pressured Chiho who had leaned back in fright.
20
21“Your Christmas Eve! The work shifts! What~ about it?”
22
23“Erm, yeah.”
24
25Chiho repeated what she had said just now to the agitated Kaori.
26
27“Maou-san has to work, Yusa-san has to work too. I will be spending it at home with my family.”
28
29“Sasachii, I can’t believe youuuu!”
30
31“Ah wah wah wah wah wah!”
32
33While leaning forward, Kaori grabbed the front of Chiho’s shirt and shook her vigorously.
34
35“Then how about Christmas? What are your plans for the 25th?”
36
37At this stage, Kaori was already sitting on Chiho’s desk.
38
39“L-Let go of me, it, it hurts!”
40
41Chiho barely managed to free herself from Kaori, but the latter, refusing to back down until she heard the answer, stared at Chiho closely.
42
43Therefore, Chiho found it harder to answer, because she would definitely be scolded if she did.
44
45“Maou-san, Yusa-san, and I have to work……”
46
47“Until what time?”
48
49“…………I’m the only one who is working until ten pm, the two of them will be busy until closing time.”
50
51“I can’t believe youuuuuuuuuu!”
52
53Kaori’s scream became more and more agitated, and Chiho pushed back Kaori who looked like she was going to vault over the desk and fall on the floor.
54
55“I-I can’t help it too… because I’m a high school student, I can only stay until ten pm…”
56
57“That’s not the point! This work schedule arrangement is too strange! Sasachii, what were you thinking!?”
58
59Kaori reproached, her spit flying.
60
61“I’m truly feeling shock from the bottom of my heart, you know? It’s incomparable to the last one, you know?”
62
63Kaori grabbed her head and mumbled non-stop.
64
65“I think it’s okay, it’s okay even if you spend Christmas with your family! Unexpectedly, there are many people like that, and honestly, my family is like this too! But only this once, this time, this year, you can’t be like this?”
66
67“Is, is that so… but I heard that during the period from Christmas to New Year’s, they would be lacking in manpower.”
68
69“This is what I think! People might say that I have no strength of character, but kids nowadays won’t choose to work at a place where they have to work during the beginning and end of the year! The blame lies with the stores who choose to operate on those days!”
70
71Probably because Chiho was already influenced by the convenient consumer lifestyle in Japan, she thought that this was absurd somewhere in her heart.
72
73“About that, Sasachii, I hope you can listen to me.”
74
75“Y-Yes?”
76
77“Sasachii, I said this before, right? I hoped that you would find Maou-san and ask for an answer for the thing earlier.”
78
79“Eh? Ah, y-yeah.”
80
81Kaori suddenly mentioned this topic in the classroom, causing Chiho to look around her in reflex.
82
83Because the special show put up by Kaori had come to an end, no one was paying attention to them, but if this was heard by her classmates who not only are of the same age, but also loved these kinds of topics, things would become troublesome.
84
85Of course, Kaori knew about this as well, but it seemed she still voiced her dissatisfaction nonetheless.
86
87“Hey, Sasachii, we are high school girls, do you understand? High school girls are at the age where they are close to reaching the adult world they admire and wish to have some dramatic developments in their lives, right?”
88
89“Y-Yeah, right……”
90
91If it was dramatic developments, during this period of almost one year, Chiho was confident that she had accumulated enough experience to surpass the average Hollywood celebrity and no longer wanted to encounter similar things. However, she still chose to nod first.
92
93“But Sasachii, what are you doing now? During Christmas Eve, the easiest day in the year for incidents to happen, you leave the person you have a crush on and your love rival in the workplace while you return home to have a party. Even if you want to act like you have a lot of leeway, aren’t you going overboard?”
94
95“I-I already said that Yusa-san is not a love rival…”
96
97“Nonsense, in the eyes of others, that’s totally a love rival!”
98
99Kaori stared at Chiho closely, and used her finger to knock on the table like a frustrated aunt.
100
101“You’re definitely unable rush him for a reply anyway. Even so, since there is a rare chance on Christmas Eve, people will normally want to take a chance to settle things, right?”
102
103Chiho could understand what Kaori wanted to express.
104
105After all, it’s not like she had never thought about such things before.
106
107However—
108
109“Actually, before I talked with Kao-chan at the end of last month, I have already submitted the working schedule for this month……”
110
111“There’s no way to save thissss! No way, no way! There’s no saving this! Sasachii, there’s no hope for you. It will be useless no matter how many years you wait! Give up, give up.”
112
113“W-Why is it like this?”
114
115Kaori finally grabbed her head and shouted.
116
117In December, when the town started putting up Christmas decorations, Chiho had also wanted to find a chance to go on a Christmas date with Maou.
118
119She may have been thinking about it, but the other party was the King of Demons after all, and as far as Chiho knew, this would be the second Christmas he had experienced in Japan.
120
121She did not know how Maou spent his Christmas last year, but the most probable answer would be working.
122
123Then, during December 24th and December 25th this year, Maou was also working full shifts at MgRonalds.
124
125※
126
127When Chiho realized that she might have missed her only chance in life to clarify the relationship between her and Maou, it was already the end of November.
128
129The work schedules for December had already been submitted, and by that time, whether it was to Maou or Shop Manager Kisaki, Chiho was unable to say that she wanted to change her shifts for the days before and after Christmas.
130
131Of course, Chiho’s mistake was not the only thing at fault.
132
133During September to November this year, Emi and Ashiya were imprisoned in Ente Isla, in addition, Maou had travelled to save them, Urushihara had been admitted to hospital, and Emi’s mother had suddenly appeared. It was not just Chiho, everyone related to Ente Isla was in a chaotic situation.
134
135Especially for Emi, after she reunited with the mother of whom she had no impression and had caused her and the world to carry a cruel fate, the days had not been peaceful at all.
136
137During this time, the person Chiho had a crush on, who also had a deep connection with Emi’s mother, Archangel Lailah — Demon King Satan a.k.a. Maou Sadao — had been helping Emi with her burdens on both public and private occasions.
138
139To Chiho, who treasured both Maou and Emi, this was a good thing, but once she came to her senses, Chiho realized that she was feeling jealous of Emi, who was being treated kindly by Maou.
140
141Regardless if it was a good or bad thing, ever since the summer Chiho confessed to Maou, he had never changed his attitude towards her.
142
143In addition, if Maou and Emi accepted the important job Lailah entrusted them with, the distance between the two of them and Chiho would greatly increase.
144
145Chiho, unable to grasp what the relationship between her and her crush from another world was like, consulted her good friend Shouji Kaori while keeping all information related to Ente Isla a secret.
146
147This was something which happened at the end of November, the situation that time did not allow Chiho to happily look forward to a Christmas date, but in a place Chiho did not know about, another situation occurred which shook her greatly.
148
149Emi’s friend, Suzuki Rika, who now knew the truth about Ente Isla just like Chiho, confessed her feelings for Ashiya Shiro.
150
151She had expressed her feelings towards Demon General Alsiel from a foreign world.
152
153Chiho felt that as someone who loved a person from a foreign world like her, Rika, who did not change her feelings after knowing the truth and bravely pursued the answer she wanted, was dazzling.
154
155She was so dazzling that Chiho was terrified.
156
157Once she thought about the possibility that she might be rejected by Maou in the end, Chiho became weak at the knees.
158
159In addition, while Chiho could think of many reasons for Maou to reject her feelings, until now, Chiho could not think of any reasons which would make him accept her.
160
161After Rika was rejected, she still cried and said that she was unable to give up on these feelings.
162
163If it was her, after getting rejected by Maou, she would definitely be unable to pull herself together again.
164
165So perhaps Chiho was subconsciously trying not to think about Christmas.
166
167If she received an answer from Maou.
168
169That answer would definitely be related to Maou’s future choice.
170
171Not just Maou, that future might cause Chiho to be separated from Emi, Ashiya, Urushihara, Suzuno, and her other important friends from Ente Isla.
172
173The childlike thought of wanting to stay with the person she liked forever obstructed Chiho’s actions.
174
175On the other hand, Chiho had heard a completely different opinion.
176
177“If you don’t convey it when you have the chance, you’ll definitely regret it in the future.”
178
179The girl called Acies=Ara had been separated from someone important to her for a very long time. It was a period of time which Chiho, who was only seventeen-years-old, could not imagine, so she understood the weight behind the words said by the other party.
180
181What Kaori said, what Acies said, Chiho understood all of it.
182
183Because Chiho understood, Chiho’s body, Chiho’s mind, and Chiho’s heart were frozen in place, just like the winter sky covered by a thick layer of clouds.
184
185Half of December passed just like this.
186
187※
188
189“What kind of excuse is that!? I can’t believe that you would miss out the chance at Christmas because of that kind of situation!”
190
191From Kaori’s point of view, Chiho was only troubled over love, so having such a reaction was normal, but from Chiho’s point of view, under “that kind of situation,” she could not be bothered about Christmas at all.
192
193“You can’t change it anymore?”
194
195Kaori, who obviously did not know about these things, asked a question which was rather normal under these circumstances.
196
197“There’s still some time until Christmas, can’t you start looking for a replacement now, or adjust the working schedule?”
198
199“A-About that.”
200
201Chiho had considered what Kaori mentioned before.
202
203However, even if she could apply for leave on the days she had to work, it was difficult for her to ask others to apply for leave for her own convenience.
204
205In addition, Chiho could tear her mouth apart and still be unable to tell Maou, “I have some business with you on Christmas Eve, so please apply for leave.”
206
207“Ah, that’s right! I can just tell my mum that the store is lacking manpower and ask her for permission to work on Christmas Eve…”
208
209“Sasachii still harbors such thoughts at this stage.”
210
211“Eh? B-But…”
212
213“But what!? If Sasachii goes to work as well, then it will be everyone working together as usual in the end! And even if you go to work, you still have to go home first by yourself! Seriously, Sasachii, do you have any motivation at all?”
214
215“M-Motivation?”
216
217“You’re the one who said that you don’t want to be separated from everyone, right!? Currently, Sasachii is walking down the path of gradually fading away!”
218
219“T-That’s true, I’m aware of that as well.”
220
221If Maou and the others agreed to participate in Lailah’s proposed plan to save the humans of Ente Isla, a situation similar to the time Maou went to Ente Isla to save Emi would occur.
222
223Simply put, Chiho could not join them, or more accurately, was unable to join them.
224
225The reason was simple: it had always been like this, even if Chiho went to the battlefield, she would only become a burden for Maou and Emi.
226
227In many ways, Maou and Emi’s opponent was an existence which exceeded human comprehension.
228
229If Chiho, who could not even protect herself properly, appeared in that kind of place, Maou and the others would have to divide their forces to protect Chiho.
230
231This time was different from the past when she used the power of Yesod as a medium to borrow power from Lailah.
232
233Since Lailah had appeared, Chiho had no reason to fight together with Maou.
234
235Undeniably, it was true that the “leeway” Kaori described did exist in some part of Chiho’s heart.
236
237Chiho currently had reason to believe that Maou would not easily return to Ente Isla.
238
239That was because Maou had suddenly received “work” which was different in terms of direction and dimension compared to Lailah’s request.
240
241“Since everyone already has plans, it’s useless regardless of how much you struggle. You should at least have some thoughts about New Year’s Eve and New Year’s, right?”
242
243However, because Chiho was too absorbed in thinking about Maou’s current situation, she answered honestly, “Ah~ I might be going to my dad’s or mum’s hometown, or, something… Kao-chan?”
244
245After Chiho answered this, she realized that Kaori, with an expression scarier than a demon’s, was glaring in her direction with a gaze that appeared to pierce through her.
246
247“Sasachii.”
248
249“Y-Yes.”
250
251“I’m going to get angry.”
252
253Kaori was already angry enough just now, but because Chiho had no retorts, she could only obediently listen to Kaori’s lecture once again.
254
255When club activities ended, the sky had started to darken.
256
257Chiho, who did not have any work shifts today and had been walking home at a brisk pace, received a message from her mother to buy some things, so she was currently weaving through the crowds at the shopping district at 100th Street.
258
259She had thought that the shopping street would be filled with Christmas colors and decorations, but some stores had skipped Christmas entirely and changed to New Year decorations instead.
260
261Especially the soba noodle eateries and fish stores, they seemed to be preparing for New Year’s rather than Christmas.
262
263Chiho walked down the street as she read the shopping list sent by her mother.
264
265“Ah, Sasaki Chiho?”
266
267Hearing a voice belonging to someone who should not have been there, Chiho almost dropped her phone.
268
269“Eh… eh, ehhhhh?”
270
271Chiho turned back, and got a shock when she realized that she was not mistaken.
272
273“Urushi, Urushihara-san! Since when were you able to leave the house?”
274
275“Can you not make it seem like I’m a ferocious criminal who was released from jail without you knowing?”
276
277Chiho’s honest reaction caused Urushihara to frown, but in the end, he had no right to frown at this.
278
279“The scene of Urushihara-san being released on the street alone to do things was too unexpected, so it’s rather difficult to imagine…”
280
281“I’m really curious, do you think of me as a beast or a zombie? Recently, I have been going out by myself, and helping out with many things at the apartment. It’s just that you don’t know about it.”
282
283“I see… s-sorry.”
284
285Chiho, who sensed that she had gone too far when she said “being released on the street alone,” apologized in earnest.
286
287After thinking about it calmly, Chiho realized that since she had learned the truth about Maou and the others in early spring, this was the first time she had seen Urushihara walking outside by himself without Maou and Ashiya.
288
289Then Chiho remembered that other than Urushihara’s lazy personality, there were other reasons why Urushihara did not go out by himself.
290
291“Putting these things aside for now, is it alright for you to go out alone now?”
292
293“Can I take that to mean ‘aren’t you worried about the police finding you because of what you did before we met?’”
294
295“Eh? T-That’s right.”
296
297Urushihara carefully confirmed Chiho’s intentions and, although Chiho was puzzled by this, Urushihara showed an unhappy expression and said, “Because Bell mentioned before that if I was allowed to go out alone, I might just get into an accident on the way and be unable to return to the apartment.”
298
299“Ah.”
300
301“What’s with that look of complete agreement?”
302
303“S-Sorry.”
304
305Suzuno would definitely react this way if she knew that Urushihara was going out by himself. Chiho, who inexplicably could understand this, was forced to apologize again.
306
307“Anyway, strictly speaking, it’s not as if there won’t be any problems at all.”
308
309“Eh?”
310
311Urushihara’s frank words caused Chiho to freeze.
312
313Having arrived in Japan, Urushihara had carried out many bandit-like activities before living in Villa Rosa Sasazuka, this was one of the main reasons Urushihara did not leave the house.
314
315Chiho did not know the details, but from Maou and Ashiya’s reactions, there was a possibility that Urushihara was caught on surveillance cameras when he committed these acts.
316
317With this, it was difficult to say that the police had given up on pursuing Urushihara.
318
319“However, the thing you’re worried about shouldn’t happen.”
320
321“Is that so?”
322
323“Yeah, thanks to Maou, I can freely use demonic magic up to a certain extent now, there won’t be any issues no matter how many police come.”
324
325“Uh, p-please don’t do that!”
326
327Noticing that Urushihara was showing an evil smile, since Chiho’s father was a policeman, she could not help but stop him frantically.
328
329“Ho ho ho, I don’t plan to run into trouble with the Japanese police, but if something bad happens, I can use that method or some other methods to solve it. I have been doing some new things lately, so my physical and mental condition is rather good.”
330
331Chiho did not know what Urushihara meant by “that method” and “other methods,” and at the same time, did not dare to ask what “new things” referred to, but based on the recent actions by the demons from the Demon World, she had an inkling of what was going on.
332
333Chiho, who had been deeply concerned by a certain issue from before, found a clue about it from Urushihara’s unexpected words.
334
335“But that means Urushihara-san has demonic magic now as well?”
336
337“What do you mean by ‘as well?’”
338
339His tone was questioning, but Urushihara had a fearless expression.
340
341Chiho subconsciously showed a challenging expression and said what she knew before.
342
343“Ashiya-san has enough demonic magic on him to change back to his demon form, right?”
344
345“Oh, is that so, you know about what happened on the day Ashiya went to buy his mobile phone huh?”
346
347“……I guess so.”
348
349From Chiho’s standpoint, she was also curious about how Urushihara interpreted the events of that day.
350
351“Hm? But that’s strange, it feels as if Bell does not know about this.”
352
353“Because I did not tell her.”
354
355“Is that so? I thought if you knew that we were harboring demonic magic without Emilia and the others knowing about it, you would feel uneasy and discuss it with them.”
356
357Urushihara’s taunting tone caused Chiho to show an unhappy expression.
358
359“Please don’t make me sound like a spy. I know very well that the current Ashiya-san is not the type of person who would do such a thing without a good reason.”
360
361There were other reasons why Chiho did not tell Emi and Suzuno about this, but she had never expected to be seen as someone who would leak secrets.
362
363“Oh~ so that means Emilia might not know too. I see~”
364
365Without knowing if it was a praise or just a thoughtless response, Urushihara nodded and said some strangely irritating things, raising his hand.
366
367She did not notice earlier because she was too shocked by Urushihara’s presence, but he was carrying a shopping bag filled with cooked food and snacks.
368
369“Haah, from my point of view, the moment Ashiya transformed in front of Suzuki Rika is equivalent to Emilia finding out about this, but nothing much will happen even if this is found out. Like what you said, we are not doing this without reason, and this is related to me going out to buy things.”
370
371“……What is that supposed to mean?”
372
373“Hmm~”
374
375Once Chiho asked this, Urushihara suddenly began to survey his surroundings and intentionally acted as if he had noticed a café nearby.
376
377“Treat me if you want to know, it’s cold here.”
378
379“……”
380
381At this moment, Chiho frowned in surprise, but once she remembered that Urushihara was normally this shameless, she could only nod reluctantly.
382
383“It’s no big deal even if this is leaked out. Simply put, Maou, Ashiya, and I still do not completely trust Lailah.”
384
385Not feeling bad about it at all, Urushihara spoke as he drank the most expensive signature coffee.
386
387After adding a lot of milk to the cheapest special blend coffee, Chiho asked, “You said you were ‘unable to completely trust Lailah-san,’ what did you mean by that?”
388
389“The meaning is literal. Think about it, hasn’t she been pursued by Heaven this whole time? But she’s so relaxed that even Maou and Emilia felt wary.”
390
391“Uh, that’s true.”
392
393In various ways, Lailah’s actions were filled with openings, so even Chiho immediately nodded to express her agreement.
394
395“The only sources for the information that Heaven has been locked down, prohibiting travel by ‘Gates,’ were the Landlady and Gabriel; we have not confirmed this. Even if Heaven has been sealed off, there is no guarantee that the enemies will not attack again, it might be that only the other party can come over, we do not believe that Lailah has put proper defences in place around her. Therefore, when all of you went to Lailah’s home, Ashiya and I didn’t join in.”
396
397“Now that you mention it, it was like that.”
398
399The day Lailah had opened up her home to obtain the trust of Maou and the others.
400
401Ashiya and Urushihara did not join them.
402
403Because Rika had confessed to Ashiya the day before and was rejected, Chiho did not feel that it was the right time to ask why they did not attend…
404
405“Personally, I wasn’t interested in Lailah’s home, and it was Maou’s suggestion in the first place.”
406
407“Maou-san?”
408
409“He asked us to stay behind just in case something bad happens. With this arrangement, if the ‘enemy’ attacks MgRonalds, Suzuki Rika’s home, or your home while Maou and Emilia are together, we can handle it immediately.”
410
411“…I see.”
412
413“In addition, Lailah’s ridiculous actions might be because she wants Maou and Emilia to play along with her act. After all, the enemy might not be limited to Raguel, Kamael, and the others.”
414
415“Eh?”
416
417Chiho was unable to fully grasp the meaning behind Urushihara’s words, and he said in a mocking tone, “Can you guarantee that Lailah is definitely a good person just because she is Emilia’s mother? Isn’t that too strange? This might sound strange coming from me, but Sasaki Chiho, to date, have you ever met a kind angel?”
418
419“No.”
420
421Regretfully, this was the only point Chiho could answer directly.
422
423“Right? You might feel that I have no right to say such things, but with regards to how evil the angels can be, I am confident that I know this better than Maou and Ashiya. It is not impossible that Lailah’s airheadedness and inability to read the atmosphere is all just an act, she might have ceased fire to make hostages out of your family, MgRonalds’ employees, or Suzuki Rika, people treasured by Maou and Emilia, to force the two of them to help her.”
424
425The term “ceased fire” sounded a little exaggerated, but Chiho could understand what Lucifer meant.
426
427“What does Urushihara-san think about Lailah-san’s situation?”
428
429“What do you mean?”
430
431It was not clear if he had understood Chiho’s question, since Urushihara quickly responded with a question.
432
433Therefore, Chiho had no choice but to elaborate on what she wanted to ask.
434
435“Erm… the final goal of Lailah-san and Gabriel-san… is to have Maou-san and the others defeat a certain person, uh, which means…”
436
437“Ah, you already know about my mother.”
438
439“……Yes.”
440
441Urushihara said that bluntly, and in that instant, Chiho did not know how to answer.
442
443“Do you respect me a little more now?”
444
445“Eh, eh?”
446
447Urushihara changed the topic too quickly, giving Chiho a shock.
448
449Why did the topic switch to whether Chiho respected Urushihara now?
450
451“You already heard about my noble lineage, right? Not only was my mother the God, I was also the top ranked angel in the Second Generation, humans should be in such awe of me that they won’t dare look at me directly, isn’t that so?”
452
453Not considering how serious Urushihara was about this, Chiho decided to respond in an obligatory manner, “Don’t be stupid, hurry up and answer my question.”
454
455“In this sense, you’re more merciless than Emilia.”
456
457Chiho replied so quickly that even Urushihara had to surrender.
458
459“Then I’ll answer you, honestly speaking, I don’t want to care about this at all. If Lailah is sincerely asking Maou and Emilia for help, and Maou and the others decide to accept, they can do whatever they want.”
460
461“Is that alright? Because…”
462
463“You’re annoying, I know that. I don’t know how many people there are, but including Lailah and Gabriel, there are some people in Heaven who are planning to kill my mother.”
464
465Urushihara replied naturally, whether it was from his expression or his tone, no fluctuation in emotion could be felt.
466
467“So what? Do you think I would suddenly remember my love towards my mother and stop them while crying, or turn over a new leaf and actively persuade my mother to repent?”
468
469“No, I do not think that you will turn over a new leaf and actively take action, but I never expected that you would be this uncaring.”
470
471“You guys are seriously unable to differentiate between what can be said and what cannot be said. I’m going to surprise all of you when you come to the apartment next time.”
472
473Chiho’s reply made Urushihara frown.
474
475“Haah… forget it, with regards to my parents, I honestly don’t remember much at all. I know that Ignora, the ruler of Heaven, is my mother, and I have some vague memories about it. However, this knowledge has no effect on my current life at all.”
476
477“How can this…”
478
479To Chiho, who was very close to her family, this was difficult to believe, but no pretense could be felt from Urushihara’s expression.
480
481“In the world we live in, we will not unconditionally develop feelings for the other party just because we are family. As for the demons in the Demon World, if the other party is a hindrance, he will be killed even if he is a sibling. If everything Lailah said is the truth, and all of you are willing to clean up the mess caused by my mother’s mistakes, then I can only say thanks for the hard work.”
482
483The day Maou, Chiho, and Emi went to Lailah’s apartment at Nerima for the first time, Gabriel told Chiho and the rest that Ignora, the angel ruling Heaven with a position equivalent to God, was Urushihara’s mother.
484
485At the same time, Chiho and the rest also knew what Ignora did to Alas=Ramus and the other Sephirah children, and the scary things the angels have continually done to Ente Isla, but for Chiho, who was unable to battle, the first thing she thought about was Urushihara’s feelings.
486
487However, if her worries were truly unnecessary, she would feel troubled as well.
488
489“Haah, but if you insist on talking about the topic of familial love… hm, how should I say this?”
490
491And the answer Urushihara gave after thinking about it seriously—
492
493“At worst, throwing me into the Demon World, leaving me alone, and not looking for me later… I’m a little resentful about that, I guess. However, I was very happy in the Demon World. Compared to staying in a world where most of the people were walking zombies, staying in the Demon World was much better, so I don’t hate her so much that I want to seek revenge… it’s more like these things happened so long ago that there are many things I really don’t remember anymore.”
494
495That was all.
496
497“Why don’t you remember it?”
498
499“Let me ask you something. Do you remember, down to the last detail, the events which happened when you were in kindergarten or when you just entered elementary school, or all the conversations you’ve had with your family and friends?”
500
501“Eh, e-erm…”
502
503“I may look like this, but I have lived many times longer than Maou. During this time, I lived freely in the Demon World, and went through happy, busy, and fulfilling times. I can’t remember events which happened that long ago. To me, Ignora might just be my blood related mother, but if you were in the same situation, it would be as if you just found out that the true identity of the enemy was an ancestor from the Edo period. Compared to something which happened that long ago, the present is more important.”
504
505The present which Urushihara so valued, he spent ninety percent of it holed up in the room while depending on Maou. Chiho did not want to be told that by someone like him, but right now, Chiho knew very well that Urushihara truly did not feel any ill feelings towards Ignora.
506
507“The past is the past. Some people use that as motivation, some people do not. Amongst the people involved, the representative of the people who do not do this is me, and the representative of the people who do this is Lailah, that’s all.”
508
509“Is that so?”
510
511“Yes. I don’t know how much you have heard from Lailah and Gabriel, but from your expression, you probably know most of it, right? Everything about the Ancient Demon King Satan’s Disaster, and also about what Ignora did.”
512
513“Uh… yeah.”
514
515It was truly out of place to be listening to such a topic while eating fries in the Moz Burger at Nerima Station.
516
517“Honestly speaking, I don’t want to care about this at all, and since I’m already like this, for Ashiya and Maou who weren’t born at that time, they will care about it even less, right? Emilia, who might become immortal, may have some motive, but with things as they are now, I don’t think Maou will agree to Lailah’s request. Or more like, Ashiya and I are walking around outside with demonic magic within our bodies because of this. This is to guard against Lailah doing something stupid because she is unable to tolerate Maou’s hesitation.”
518
519“I-I see…”
520
521She could understand what Urushihara was saying, but for unclear reasons, Chiho was not completely satisfied.
522
523However, she did not clearly know what she was unsatisfied about.
524
525Perhaps seeing through Chiho’s thoughts, Lucifer said, “And this is more advantageous to you, isn’t that so?”
526
527“Eh?”
528
529“‘I don’t want Maou or Emilia to agree to Lailah’s request,’ right?”
530
531“E-Erm………… yeah, honestly speaking, I don’t want that.”
532
533During that short period of hesitation, many thoughts flashed through Chiho’s mind.
534
535If she believed Lailah’s words completely, her thoughts of not wanting Maou and Emi to go to Ente Isla were the same as ignoring Ente Isla and its inhabitants.
536
537The “good child” part in Chiho kept shouting that it was a bad thing, but it was meaningless to go along with this feeling and lie to Urushihara right now.
538
539If Urushihara, who was especially acute in strange areas and was not considerate to Chiho at all, saw through her lie, she would lose her chance to question him.
540
541“I just do not want to be separated from Maou-san and the others, after all, why do Maou-san and the rest have to give up their current lives and get involved in such things?”
542
543“You are correct. I hate that too, why is there a need to give up this comfortable and stable normal life, go far away, and battle with their lives on the line?”
544
545“Of course, this is just my own stubbornness, if Maou-san or Yusa-san decide to do it, I have no right to stop them, but even so, I feel that what Lailah-san and Gabriel-san said is too selfish.”
546
547“I agree completely, they should clean up their own mess.”
548
549Urushihara also had no right to say such a thing, but that was the way things were.
550
551Because they could not clean up the mess, they explained things in a shocking way, saying that the world or humans would go extinct, making use of Maou’s or Emi’s kindness to win them over, this method could not convince anyone.
552
553The story Gabriel told at Moz Burger about the “mastermind of everything” helped Chiho and the others answer many questions and mysteries.
554
555After that day, Chiho had seen neither Lailah nor Gabriel.
556
557However, from how the distance between Emi and Lailah had decreased that day, compared to the sticky situation at the beginning, the current situation seemed to have progressed some from before.
558
559Maou’s attitude towards this was still unclear, and because of this, Chiho was unable to dispel the various worries she had been harboring in December…
560
561“And you should know very well that Maou will become very busy from now on, right?”
562
563“Ah, yeah, that’s true.”
564
565Chiho thought about some things when she consulted Kaori, and currently she had obtained an important piece of information which was enough to make her believe that Maou would not agree to Lailah’s request.
566
567Anyone who knew Maou would definitely think so after they knew this fact.
568
569“In this current situation, once Maou is busy, it will have a chain reaction on Emilia as well, and as far as I know, Lailah and Emilia have not reconciled yet… at least based on the lifespan of you humans, this is something you don’t have to worry about for the time being.”
570
571This sentence coming from Urushihara, who was many times older than Maou and had lived for hundreds of years, was strangely persuasive.
572
573If Maou really made the choice predicted by Chiho and Urushihara, the situation would remain the same for the next two or three years.
574
575If there was such a long period of time, Chiho would then be a university student.
576
577She would have more choices with regards to her future plans and would have more leeway in her heart.
578
579“Maou always had that as his goal, right? I don’t think he would abandon that and run off to other places.”
580
581“I… think so as well. Yusa-san would think so too, right?”
582
583Chiho said this as she took her notebook out of her bag, flipping to MgRonalds’ work schedule.
584
585Maou’s row in the work schedule had been changed for the next few days.
586
587With her fingers, Chiho touched the words which had been changed in a tender manner.
588
589And on the top, in Chiho’s handwriting—
590
591『 Maou-san is finally attending the full-timer promotion training!』
592
593—These words were written.
594
595※
596
597Around the same time Chiho met Urushihara.
598
599Yusa Emi, who was scheduled to end work at five o’clock in the evening, watched the one who might be the last customer she would serve for the day walk through the automatic doors, and raised an eyebrow in surprise when she recognized the other party.
600
601“Welcome… kindly proceed to this counter to be served.”
602
603Without any need to raise a hand in greeting, the other party recognized Emi after entering and walked towards the counter.
604
605“I want a Teriyaki burger meal, with fries and hot coffee, both upsized.”
606
607“Alright.”
608
609Emi entered the order into the cashier, notified the price, received a 1000 yen note and, finally, returned the change to the other party.
610
611A short while later, Emi placed the prepared order onto the tray. After the man received the tray, he did not say much else and went to his seat without causing trouble.
612
613After that, he did not look in her direction again.
614
615“How rare.”
616
617Ashiya Shiro had come to MgRonalds at dinnertime, and ordered a meal enough to fill his stomach.
618
619Honestly speaking, his actions were not normal.
620
621Eating out alone during dinner and ordering the more expensive upsized meal.
622
623In addition, when he was almost done eating at the bar style seating area, he even took out his Slimphone and played with it, this was too different from the impression Emi had of Ashiya, until she even suspected that some evil angel had impersonated as him.
624
625“Saemi, you can get off work soon, right?”
626
627“Eh? Ah, that’s true.”
628
629As Emi was feeling perplexed, her senior at work, Ooki Akiko, called out to her from behind.
630
631“Ah… after getting off work, can I eat dinner here?”
632
633Emi looked up at the clock which had just passed five o'clock, took off her employee cap, and confirmed Ashiya’s presence, who was quietly playing with his Slimphone, out of the corner of her eye.
634
635“I see, then do you want to make a transaction with the employee price?”
636
637“Let’s do that. Uh, please help me order the black pepper bacon burger meal, with a salad and orange juice.”
638
639“Okay. I’ll handle things here, go change clothes.”
640
641“Thank you, then I’ll take my leave.”
642
643After Emi thanked Akiko, she quickly walked towards the employee room and, as she changed clothes, she thought about the reasons Ashiya would come here for.
644
645“He should know that the Demon King and Chiho-chan are not in the store today, but it doesn’t seem like he is looking for me either…”
646
647Ashiya did interact with Emi just now, but that was probably because Emi just happened to be the only one there at that time.
648
649In the end, Emi could not think of any reasons why Ashiya would come to MgRonalds to eat.
650
651After Emi paid for the meal — with an employee discount of thirty percent — she first spent some time pretending to find a seat, then sat opposite Ashiya.
652
653However, Ashiya, who could be seen through the gaps in the partition, did not notably react. He still slowly picked up his fries at regular intervals, and his gaze was always on his mobile phone.
654
655“……”
656
657With natural movements, Emi opened up the lid of her salad, and observed the situation as she used her fork to stab the lettuce.
658
659Then—
660
661“What do you want?”
662
663Ashiya was the one who initiated the conversation.
664
665Because of the small number of people within the store, Ashiya and Emi were the only ones sitting at the bar seating area, so they could still hear each other.1
666
667“That is my line.”
668
669Through the gaps in the partition, she could not see Ashiya’s expression clearly, but he probably could not see Emi’s expression either.
670
671“Why did you come to MgRonalds at this time? Isn’t it almost dinnertime?”
672
673“For today’s dinner, we’re settling it separately.”
674
675“Oh, that’s rare.”
676
677However, this was not just a rare occurrence.
678
679If it was just Maou, Emi could still understand why he would eat dinner outside today.
680
681According to the work schedule decided in the previous month, Maou was supposed to work today, but because there were some changes in the plan, he had gone out with Shop Manager Kisaki Mayumi.
682
683During this time, the ones with the most experience after Maou, Kawada Takefumi and Ooki Akiko, would handle the store together, but either way, it was impossible for Ashiya to not know about Maou’s schedule.
684
685“So you allowed Lucifer to act freely?”
686
687“That’s none of your business.”
688
689It was true that it was none of her business, but as one of the people who knew about the financial situation of the Demon Fortress, Emi was purely worried about that. In addition, based on Ashiya’s personality, it was impossible for him to allow Urushihara to do whatever he wanted.
690
691“Someone I know suddenly deviated from his usual behavior completely, it’s normal to feel worried about it.”
692
693“Oh, you think you know all the details about our lives?”
694
695“Not completely, but it should be around ninety percent. At the very least, I can confirm that your actions today are strange.”
696
697“Don’t pry into the privacy of your customers, you’re a store employee, isn’t that so?”
698
699“Whether it’s good or bad, every time all of you try to use the concepts of this world as a shield, you’re normally doing something which you don’t want me or Bell to know.”
700
701“……”
702
703As if he was feeling rather unhappy, Ashiya fell silent.
704
705“Haah, forget it.”
706
707After saying this, Emi stopped her interrogations.
708
709“I don’t know what’s going on, but this is being rude to the customers after all, sorry about that.”
710
711“Ugh.”
712
713“I’m going home after I’ve eaten, take your time.”
714
715“……”
716
717After that, only the sounds of Emi eating were heard, and those sounds also stopped after a short while.
718
719Just as Emi got up and was about to take the tray to the rubbish bin—
720
721“Yusa.”
722
723Ashiya’s voice was heard from behind.
724
725“Have you met with Suzuki-san recently?”
726
727“Ugh!”
728
729Emi looked back in surprise.
730
731But Ashiya was still facing the bar, with his back facing Emi.
732
733“…The last time I met her was about two weeks ago, but… we do message each other.”
734
735“I see, that’s good.”
736
737“What’s wrong with Rika?”
738
739Did her tone sound too abrasive?
740
741The moment Emi spoke, she regretted her question immediately.
742
743Didn’t that mean that she knew something had happened between Ashiya and Rika?
744
745Some time back, Rika had looked for Emi for advice because she planned to confess to Ashiya.
746
747Emi knew that Rika and Ashiya went out afterwards, and she knew that the Slimphone Ashiya had in his hands right now was probably chosen by Rika.
748
749Most importantly, Emi also knew the “results” of Rika’s confession.
750
751The only thing Emi did not know about was the “process.”
752
753But she had not met Rika these two weeks.
754
755And the message Rika sent over—
756
757“It’s no good after all, thank you for everything you did for me.”
758
759—only that was written.
760
761After that, Emi could not contact Rika at all, so as if she had plunged into a sea of fog, she felt a sense of unease.
762
763She had probably said everything that she wanted to say.
764
765Emi felt that all the questions in her mind were going to be said.
766
767What happened between you and Rika?
768
769What did you do to Rika?
770
771What did you say to Rika?
772
773If she could, she wanted to drag Ashiya out of the store immediately to explain it clearly, from beginning to the end, what happened that day.
774
775But after a short while, Emi suppressed these feelings, moved her gaze away from Ashiya, and walked out of the store.
776
777“Ah, Yusa-san is done with work already? Thanks for the hard work, be careful on the way home.”
778
779“Yeah, I’m going home first.”
780
781Emi brushed past Kawada, who had returned from his deliveries, at the entrance, and she left the store after some greetings. Ashiya did not turn back at all during this time.
782
783Once Emi left the store, which was equipped with heating facilities, and walked outside into the streets which had turned completely dark, the cold air rushed towards her face.
784
785To fetch Alas=Ramus who was entrusted into Suzuno’s care at Villa Rosa Sasazuka, Emi walked on Koshu Kaido listlessly.
786
787Thanks to the cold air outside calming her down, she started to feel that not asking Ashiya about Rika just now was the correct judgement.
788
789Emi knew that Rika liked Ashiya. In fact, Ashiya was the only one who did not know.
790
791Since Rika wrote “It’s no good after all,” there was only one conclusion.
792
793Emi was confident that if Ashiya delayed his answer like what Maou did with Chiho, or chose to accept Rika, Rika would definitely consult her immediately.
794
795After all, Rika had looked for Emi to ask if Emi could forgive her feelings before she knew if she could confess.
796
797Rika had gathered her courage and confessed, but she was still rejected by Ashiya in the end.
798
799If so, Emi could not advise her anymore, and was unable to do anything else for Rika.
800
801“What… kind of result was I looking forward to?”
802
803Emi did not want Rika to get hurt.
804
805However, she did not think that Ashiya could make Rika happy, and did not think that Ashiya had such intentions.
806
807“Haah…”
808
809The white breath, which came from her heart containing no conclusion, formed the outline of Chiho’s face in the night sky.
810
811“These are just my selfish thoughts.”
812
813If Rika could not be with Ashiya, then was it alright for Chiho to be with Maou?
814
815From the beginning, Emi had decided somewhere in her heart that Rika’s wish would not be fulfilled, causing her to loathe herself.
816
817Like what Lailah, Suzuno, and Ashiya had said in their lectures, the indecisive Maou was unable to harden his heart and treat Chiho this way.
818
819On the other hand, although Ashiya no longer disliked humans as one-sidedly as before, since he would return to Ente Isla sooner or later because of his sense of duty, there was always a certain boundary between him and this world.
820
821She felt bad for Rika, but if it was her from some time back, after knowing that Ashiya had rejected Rika, she would only think that she would have one less thing to worry about if she fought these demons in the future.
822
823But it was different now.
824
825Yusa Emi, who interacted with Maou, Ashiya, and Urushihara purely as an individual, was different now.
826
827The fragments of the Hero’s soul in Emi’s heart told her that there was nothing to be bothered about.
828
829However, for the current Yusa Emi, there was some part of her who felt angry at Ashiya who had hurt Rika’s feelings.
830
831“I’m so selfish.”
832
833Selfish, she was really too selfish.
834
835Her past self who would just naturally curse them with “Go die” and “I am going to kill all of you one day” would not have harbored such feelings.
836
837But in fact, Emi’s two important friends harbored feelings that overcame the barriers of worlds and species.
838
839Just as Emi frowned because of the commotion caused by her heart not reaching any conclusion or answer, she discovered a familiar figure at the intersection in front of her.
840
841“…It’s so cold today.”
842
843The sentence she could not help but say contained some annoyance, relent, and some joy which she did not understand.
844
845It was not a feeling as exaggerated as “rejoice,” but a very childish “joy.”
846
847“Oh, oh my, Emilia. Wel, welcome back, you’ve worked hard.”
848
849That person was Lailah.
850
851Holding a supermarket plastic bag, how long had Lailah been standing there?
852
853Since that day, she would occasionally lie in wait along Emi’s route home.
854
855Her motive was obvious. The day Emi visited Lailah’s home in Nerima, the distance between the two had decreased a little, and Lailah now wanted to further improve their relationship.
856
857However, her methods were so idiotic that even Emi, who thoroughly disliked Lailah, could only show a troubled smile.
858
859Emi did not walk down this road every day.
860
861Other than Chiho, Emi and Maou had recently become close with their seniors at work, and depending on the time they got off, everyone would go on to drink tea together.
862
863Or she might go to other places to buy things for Alas=Ramus, Suzuno, and her father, Nord.
864
865If she wanted to see Emi, all she had to do was wait at Room 101 of Villa Rosa Sasazuka where Nord lived.
866
867“How many hours have you been waiting?”
868
869“Eh? N-No, it’s not like that, I made arrangements to go to your father’s place, and while buying some things on the way, I coincidentally…”
870
871“Your nose is really red. And the supermarket name on that bag is further than Sasazuka Station.”
872
873“Ah…!”
874
875Lailah covered her nose on reflex.
876
877“The weather’s so cold, you could have just waited in Father’s room.”
878
879“B-But I won’t be able to talk to you alone like that…”
880
881Luckily, Lailah was just a mother who did not know how to interact with her daughter who she had not seen for many years, otherwise these actions were just like a stalker’s.
882
883“…I’ll carry that.”
884
885“Eh? Ah!”
886
887Emi sighed lightly, and took the supermarket plastic bag from Lailah’s hands.
888
889“E-Emilia, that’s heavy…”
890
891“I have gone out with Bell and Ashiya to buy things, this much is nothing.”
892
893After saying this, Emi started to walk without waiting for Lailah to reply.
894
895Lailah got a shock, but immediately came to her senses, following her daughter frantically, and then she walked up next to her in a rather timid manner.
896
897During this time, because Emi sensed that Lailah wanted to talk to her but did not dare to begin, she spoke first, “You didn’t make a mess of the room after that, did you?”
898
899“Eh? Y-Yeah, I do clean up properly! It’s not messy yet!”
900
901“Please don’t end up like that anymore.”
902
903Emi smirked a little, but immediately regained her stern expression.
904
905She was still unable to laugh honestly in front of Lailah.
906
907Some time earlier, Emi and the others had gone to Lailah’s room to understand how Lailah lived in Japan, and saw a room which was so messy that it could no longer be called a room, and once the popular cleaning robots entered the porch, they would be in such despair that they would just turn around and jump off the public corridor.
908
909In front of Maou and the others, Emi entered the room and started to clean it, and although she had stayed there for the entire day, she had just been cleaning.
910
911During the cleaning, only Lailah and Nord would talk normally.
912
913Emi and Lailah did not know what to say to each other, and in the end, other than sorting out the items scattered around the room, the two of them did not talk at all.
914
915Even so, compared to the relationship the two of them had before, this was already a huge improvement, and in reality, the distance between them had decreased to the point that they could walk together like this.
916
917“Is your work busy?”
918
919“Everywhere is shorthanded at the end of the year. But my work does not involve human life where every minute matters, so it’s nothing much.”
920
921“I-I see. That’s good.”
922
923Emi did not say that she was not busy, so it was unclear which part of it was good, but even so, the two of them did converse.
924
925The two of them continued conversing clumsily like this, and when they reached Sasazuka Station, Emi subconsciously stopped walking and stared at the intersection in front of the station and the Shuto Expressway viaduct above it.
926
927“Emilia?”
928
929A few scenes flashed through Emi’s mind — Urushihara attacking the viaduct, Chiho who had almost been flattened, Maou’s and Ashiya’s demon form, fighting with Olba who should have been her important comrade, and Chiho, who still smiled at them even after getting to know their true identities.
930
931“…No, it’s nothing.”
932
933She never thought things would turn out like this.
934
935During this period of almost one year, how many times had she thought of this?
936
937Assuming… Assuming Maou or Emi erased Chiho’s memories, she would probably not be standing here.
938
939After the Demon King fought with Urushihara, Chiho did not show any signs of her memories getting erased. Thinking back on this, Emi started to want to believe in a possibility which someone who knew the Demon King would not think of.
940
941She had never mentioned this to Emerada and Alberto.
942
943If she had to pull something up, before she became familiar with Chiho, Emi at once mentioned this to Maou in a half-joking manner.
944
945Of course, at that time, she did not think that Maou would accept that suggestion, and in actual fact, Maou had rejected it determinedly.
946
947However, Maou’s surroundings now brought that possibility closer to fulfillment.
948
949Emi could not help but think this way.
950
951Ashiya chose to reject. But what about Maou?
952
953“Hey, Lailah.”
954
955“What is it?”
956
957“How did you marry Father?”
958
959“Eh?”
960
961This sudden question shocked Lailah.
962
963“How, how did we get married? W-Why did you ask this all of a sudden? E-Erm, m-marrying someone you like is a normal thing to do, isn’t it?”
964
965“……”
966
967Emi had thought this when she heard her father explain how he met Lailah, but the damage caused by a parent’s love story to their child was much more than they had expected.
968
969“I’m not asking about that. You’re an angel who will live for thousands of years, Father is a normal human who will not live beyond a hundred years, why do the two of you still want to be together?”
970
971“Hmm…?”
972
973“The time you have spent together with Father is just a small portion of your life, right?”
974
975“…Ah, that’s what you’re referring to?”
976
977“The two of you will be separated sooner or later, and you will see him leave this world, why do you still…”
978
979“If we did not have such resolve, we would not be together in the first place.”
980
981She was still speaking kindly, but Lailah replied with a rare determined tone.
982
983“It’s true that the time I spent together with that person in Sloan Village is not a rather long period of my life, but it is one of the most important and happiest times in my life.”
984
985“…Why did you choose Father?”
986
987“Why?”
988
989“Father is just a normal human, he does not come from a prestigious family, nor does he have a hero’s lineage. He is unable to help in the war which you plan to ignite, so why did you choose him?”
990
991In some sense, this was the biggest question Emi had when she was thinking about Nord and Lailah’s relationship, but not only was Lailah’s answer simple, it was a little annoying.
992
993“Emilia, have you never fallen in love before?”
994
995“Hahhhhhhh?”
996
997This statement, which was not an answer and filled with a challenging tone, caused Emi’s face and ears to turn red in anger.
998
999However, even when she saw that Emi was angry, not only was Lailah unfazed, she looked towards her daughter’s face in a worried manner, “E-Emilia, are you the type who wants to know about the annual income of your male partner first? Placing importance on career and occupation, wanting to hook some rich guy? Rather than feelings, money and stability are more important?”
1000
1001“W-W-W-What are you saying!? Why are you suddenly talking about those things!?”
1002
1003“Y-You’re the one who started this topic first, of course I would think this way. You can’t do that, okay, of course if you pick a partner who looks like he loves gambling and would commit domestic violence, I would ask you to reconsider, but for something like love, you have to first see if your heart is swayed by the other party!”
1004
1005“Wait a moment! What are you saying!? I…!”
1006
1007“Weren’t we talking about the reason behind your father and my marriage? Of course it’s because we’re in love, what other reason is there?”
1008
1009“Wha… you, you said in love… w-what is this? I’m not asking about that…!”
1010
1011“I have never considered lineage, Sephirah, or battle ability. I fell in love with the man named Nord Justina, this is the only thing which could be considered a reason.”
1012
1013“T-That’s all?”
1014
1015“Your father definitely feels the same way.”
1016
1017“T-That…”
1018
1019She could not deny it.
1020
1021Thinking about it carefully, Emi had listened to her father’s passionate romantic history together with Emerada and Suzuno some time back.
1022
1023Having her friends hear about her father’s love story embarrassed her so much.
1024
1025“Of course there were many painful experiences after we married. To the people of Sloan, I was a wanderer of unknown origin. Because that person was protecting that piece of land and house by himself after his parents died, I was seen as someone who wanted to scam him. But I worked hard, made an effort to learn the basics of agriculture and animal husbandry, and used my medical knowledge to help the midwives of the village, integrating into village life little by little. We were unable to live as luxuriously as the nobles, but I would work together with him, occasionally going to the cottage in the mountains for a short vacation, watching the stars together, playing in the river, or reading the books his father left behind, other than that, there were also many other joyous things.”
1026
1027Considering how long Lailah had lived, this was something which happened rather recently, but she sounded as if she was reminiscing about things which had happened a long time ago when she talked about it.
1028
1029“Your father knew I was an angel from the beginning because of what happened when we met. He knew that he would die earlier than me, but he was still willing to stay with me. We have spoken a lot, and argued, but we stayed together in the end. Other than that, I don’t know what else to say.”
1030
1031“B-But…”
1032
1033“Of course I’ll feel sad.”
1034
1035Lailah understood what Emi could not say and replied to her directly, “Your father will become an old man one day, and without changing much in appearance at all, I will watch him leave, however, even after knowing this, I still could not help but like him, just like what I said before, whether your heart is swayed is important!”
1036
1037“Whether your heart is swayed… that kind of thing.”
1038
1039“Kindness and honesty, these are things difficult to learn even if they have been taught by others. That person had such characteristics from the beginning, which was enough reason for me to like him, and my heart could not help but want to be with your father. Can this be considered an answer?”
1040
1041“Is this an answer?”
1042
1043Even Emi who asked this question did not clearly know.
1044
1045She knew that when an angel who has an exceptionally long lifespan decides to marry a human, they have almost the same mentality as a human, but Emi did not know if this was considered happiness.
1046
1047Next, Lailah spoke as if she had seen through Emi’s thoughts, “Hey, Emilia, this might be a topic you hate, but I still have to say it.”
1048
1049“W-What is it?”
1050
1051“If a person wanted to know whether they were truly happy at a certain point of time, they would only know for sure when looking back on the past. Even happy memories from the past can be painful now. However, if you don’t take action at all because you’re afraid of getting hurt, you definitely won’t obtain happiness. If you don’t take action, you will slip down the slope of misfortune without knowing it, and even if you only get a small scrape each time, your wounds will still increase.”
1052
1053“……”
1054
1055“Of course, you might encounter misfortune if you take action, and there will be a lot of situations where you’ll get badly injured. But do you think that I, who could only say these words after living for many thousands of years, am unfortunate?”
1056
1057Emi answered Lailah’s question immediately.
1058
1059“I can’t judge that.”
1060
1061“That’s right, fortunate or unfortunate, this can only be decided by me. Luckily for me, I feel that marrying your father was a fortunate event, and I don’t regret it, I believe your father definitely thinks the same.”
1062
1063“Yeah, at least on this point, I can guarantee it.”
1064
1065“Eh?”
1066
1067“No, it’s nothing… sorry, asking such a strange question.”
1068
1069“It’s alright, rather than that, you should ask all you want, ask more!”
1070
1071“Don’t get ahead of yourself. Father is still waiting for us, let’s return to the apartment quickly.”
1072
1073Emi gently pushed Lailah away when Lailah wanted to hug her arm, but the light in Lailah’s eyes did not dissipate at all.
1074
1075“Since you treat that apartment as a place to ‘return’ to, why don’t you just move in?”
1076
1077“We’ll see.”
1078
1079Emi, who felt that she had spoken too much with Lailah, forcefully ended the topic and continued walking.
1080
1081She needed to show the attitude that she did not want to care about Lailah and Gabriel’s plan.
1082
1083This had nothing to do with the distance between her and Lailah, it was Emi’s own problem.
1084
1085“Ah, Emilia.”
1086
1087“What is it?”
1088
1089“I might have said such things just now, but if possible, Mother hopes that your heart isn’t swayed by that kind of person.”
1090
1091“That kind of person?”
1092
1093After looking in the direction Lailah was pointing, Emi could not help but suck in a breath.
1094
1095Didn’t that back belong to Urushihara?
1096
1097“Erm, Lucifer turning out like this, I have to bear some responsibility for it too, but after hearing about his life in Japan from Satan, Alsiel, and Chiho-san, Mother honestly cannot accept that kind of person…”
1098
1099“What you said isn’t funny on a lot of levels, and the scene in front of us could not get any more serious. That guy is actually wandering around outside without a guardian!”
1100
1101“Ah, Emilia!”
1102
1103It was just Urushihara walking on the streets alone, but it was enough for Emi to feel an indescribable sense of uneasiness. She frantically chased after Urushihara’s back, and Lailah followed after Emilia with a slight run, then on the way to the apartment, Lailah and Emi—
1104
1105“Whether it is Bell, Sasaki Chiho, or you, stop this already! I already said that I am many times older than you people! I’m going to get angry!”
1106
1107—were forced to listen to Urushihara’s protests.
1108
1109※
1110
1111A few hours after Emi and Lailah returned to Villa Rosa Sasazuka while listening to Urushihara complain, the skies darkened further.
1112
1113Once the chaotic dinner period passed, a noisy person rushed into the MgRonalds in front of Hatagaya Station.
1114
1115“It’s time for dinner!”
1116
1117Obviously, that person was the Shop Manager for the Sentucky Fried Chicken Hatagaya store, Sarue Mitsuki, whose true identity was archangel Sariel. He had come to Kisaki’s store to contribute, within a reasonable amount, to its business profits.
1118
1119“The arousal in my heart, which resounds more than the clock announcing Christmas Eve, burns with love tonight as well! Tonight, I, Sariel………………… how regretful, the goddess isn’t here today as well.”
1120
1121““W-Welcome.””
1122
1123Recently, using some unknown supernatural sensory organ, Sariel could judge if Kisaki was around within a few seconds of entering the store.
1124
1125In the past, when Sariel came to the store, most of the employees, with a stiff smile, would push the work of serving him to Maou, but after half a year, everyone was mostly used to it. Despite feeling a little perplexed, they would serve him the same way as any other customer.
1126
1127However, the customers were unable to act the same.
1128
1129In principle, Sariel, nicknamed “one person flash mob,” would only come thirty minutes after the morning, afternoon, and evening peak periods. Therefore, there were still some people amongst their regular customers who had never seen him.
1130
1131If it was their first time seeing him, some may even drop their cups in fright.
1132
1133Then, an unfortunate event happened. A certain man, who was seeing Sariel's abnormal actions for the first time, dropped his newly bought Smartphone in fright.
1134
1135“Oh, oh no.”
1136
1137He picked up the phone he dropped and frantically checked if there was any obvious damage to its exterior, but the man’s voice and actions caught Sariel’s attention.
1138
1139“Oh? It’s rare to see you here.”
1140
1141“……”
1142
1143After spotting Ashiya Shiro, Sariel walked towards him with a look of surprise.
1144
1145“Why are you eating by yourself during this time? Al… no, uh, let me think, Ashiya, it’s Ashiya, right?”
1146
1147Sariel, who normally did not interact with Maou and the others, took some time to remember Alsiel’s name in Japan.
1148
1149“I heard Maou mention it before, but I never thought that you were actually doing this kind of thing.”
1150
1151As for Ashiya, he turned back to face Sariel in an exasperated manner.
1152
1153“What do you mean?”
1154
1155However, Sariel acted as if he did not know what he was doing wrong.
1156
1157“That, how should I say it? That would be reading love letters to Shop Manager Kisaki in a loud volume, troubling others every time…”
1158
1159“Calling it a love letter is rude, I convert my overflowing passion directly into words every time. Preparing lines in advance would not touch anyone’s heart.”
1160
1161He did not know how serious Sariel was about it, but if all of it was the truth, Ashiya could only feel awed by those lines which Sariel referred to as passion.
1162
1163“Regardless, Shop Manager Kisaki and Maou are not around today.”
1164
1165“I know. As long as Shop Manager Kisaki is not around, the store’s atmosphere, lighting, sounds, smell, and everything else are different.”
1166
1167What did Sariel see and sense?
1168
1169“Hm? Wait a moment. Did you just say that Shop Manager Kisaki as well as Maou, are not in the store?”
1170
1171“T-That’s right.”
1172
1173“What does that mean? Why are the two of them not around? Maou is a Shift Manager, right? The Shop Manager and Shift Manager actually leaving the store at the same time, did someone from the upper management come?”
1174
1175“It’s not like that. Because Maou is applying for the full-timer promotion training, he left the store for the day with Shop Manager Kisaki.”
1176
1177Ashiya, who had never seen Sariel’s strange behavior, did not know how careless his words were.
1178
1179In front of Ashiya, Sariel’s expression turned more and more frail, and his eyes were filled with a murderous intent.
1180
1181“Only Maou and Shop Manager Kisaki, the two of them?”
1182
1183“W-Wait, what are you thinking, it is just the two of them, but it is for work related matters.”
1184
1185“Full-timer promotion training? My goddess went with the Demon King to participate in that?”
1186
1187“Uh, erm, I don’t know whether Shop Manager Kisaki is with him the whole time.”
1188
1189“…Ugh.”
1190
1191Sariel produced a hell ogre-like groan from deep within his throat, then suddenly turned towards the counter, walking in that direction with large strides.
1192
1193Kawada could not help but flinch because of the other party’s aura, but he still summoned his voice with all his might to serve the customer—
1194
1195“W-Wel…”
1196
1197“I want to work at this store too!”
1198
1199“...comee?”
1200
1201—yet Sariel’s overly shocking request called Kawada to let out a shrill voice.
1202
1203“You’re still hiring employees right, I want to apply, hurry and arrange for an interview, I’m going to immediately write my resume later.”
1204
1205“Er, er, er, er, erm, Shop Manager Sarue? What are you saying?”
1206
1207“Kawada, is your comprehension ability so poor that you can’t understand such a simple thing?”
1208
1209Sariel, who visited the MgRonalds in front to Hatagaya Station the most as a customer, had already memorized the names of all the main employees.
1210
1211“You just have to tell Shop Manager Kisaki about me applying for the job today, someone will then naturally contact me about the interview date.”
1212
1213“Uh, er, erm, ehhh? No, no matter what…”
1214
1215Despite it being Kawada, he became speechless when faced with this ridiculous situation, the shop manager from another company in the same industry suddenly running over and wanting to apply to work here, it would be difficult not to feel flustered.
1216
1217“A-Anyway, Shop Manager Sarue, please calm down! I will tell Kisaki that you have come by!”
1218
1219“Wouldn’t that be the same as usual? I wanted to apply to be an employee… ugh?”
1220
1221“What idiotic things are you saying?”
1222
1223Ashiya, who could not continue watching this scene, stepped forward to stop Sarue.
1224
1225“What are you doing, let go of me! I’m serious about it!”
1226
1227“That’s even worse! Erm, I will deal with this man. I’m sorry, please help clean up the table I just used…”
1228
1229“Ah, al, alright, I will clean it up.”
1230
1231“Many thanks. Hey, we’re going.”
1232
1233“Let, let go of me! Let go! What do you want!? This has nothing to do with you, right!?”
1234
1235“If I did nothing despite being present, I would be unable to face my master later. I stayed here for the sake of handling this kind of situation!”
1236
1237Kawada could only stare in a dazed manner as the male customer taller than himself left while carrying away Sarue who was about Chiho’s height.
1238
1239“Kawacchi, you’ve worked hard.”
1240
1241Ooki Akiko, with her heart filled with pity, patted Kawada’s back lightly from behind.
1242
1243“Aki-chan… what happened just now?”
1244
1245“I don’t really know either, but this means that this store still needs Kisaki-san or Maou-san to be around. This world has all kinds of people after all.”
1246
1247“When I think about how I might encounter this kind of thing in the future, I start to worry whether I have the ability to inherit my family business.”
1248
1249“This kind of thing will not happen so easily.”
1250
1251“I wonder if Shop Manager Sarue became like this because the reservations for the fried chicken buckets for Christmas are too low?”2
1252
1253“It seems like full time employees accumulate stress easily, I’m starting to worry if I can find a job.”
1254
1255For a long while after that, Kawada and Akiko were unable to shift their gaze away from the automatic door the tall and short customers passed through.
1256
1257“Damn it, let go of me! It’s about time you let go of me! I’m going to call someone!”
1258
1259“We’re already standing out a lot. Listen well, if you return to the store and say those idiotic things, I will report this to Shop Manager Kisaki through Demon King-sama.”
1260
1261“I understand! I understand already! Let go of me first!”
1262
1263It was already ten thirty pm, but there were still many people around Hatagaya.
1264
1265Amongst those people, Ashiya carrying Sariel attracted many gazes.
1266
1267Sariel also finally calmed down, and after getting put down by Ashiya, he glared at Ashiya unhappily, but he only straightened out his clothes and showed no signs of wanting to run back to MgRonalds.
1268
1269“I’m at fault as well, for momentarily losing my reason.”
1270
1271“Then what happened before that wasn’t you losing your reason?”
1272
1273Sariel ignored the surprised Ashiya and complained in a low voice, “Hmph, damn Demon King. Actually spending time alone with my goddess for the full-timer promotion training, how detestable. No, I heard that the Demon King has been very fixated on becoming a full-time employee for unknown reasons, could it be that he’s had his sights on my goddess since the beginning?”
1274
1275“Wait a moment, I will not allow you to randomly speculate on Demon King-sama’s thoughts, and how can you confirm that there is no one else with them?”
1276
1277“You’re the one who doesn’t understand the situation,” Sariel said scornfully. “It’s not that easy to add one more full-time employee at this time. If a non-full time employee wants to convert to a full-time employee, a nomination from the supervising manager is needed, else they might not even have the opportunity to participate in the training. At least in Sentucky, if a full-time employee is to be hired, the immediate supervisor has to take on the responsibility of being their training partner, personally guiding the employee for the training… personally guiding… damn it, you stinky Demon Kingggggg!”
1278
1279Sariel became angry at what he said, but coming from a full-time employee from Sentucky, what he said was unexpectedly convincing.
1280
1281But as Demon King Satan’s trusted follower, Ashiya could not stay quiet about this.
1282
1283“Let me say this first, Demon King-sama and Shop Manager Kisaki will not develop the male-female relationship which you have imagined.”
1284
1285“This kind of thing, no one can confirm this, right!?”
1286
1287However, in a blunt manner, the archangel rebuked the Demon General’s explanation.
1288
1289“Regardless of how small the chances are, nobody knows what can cause the relationship between a man and a woman to deepen! To Shop Manager Kisaki, the Demon King is her trusted subordinate, a man she trusts enough to reveal her dreams to! In addition, they share the same hardships at work! There is nothing else which would make me feel more uneasy than this!”
1290
1291“Is, is that so?”
1292
1293Sariel’s reasons for worry were more realistic than expected, shocking Ashiya a little.
1294
1295Ashiya had only obtained some fragments of information about Sariel’s personality through Maou, Chiho, Emi, and Suzuno, so he had thought that Sariel was an unrealistic and frivolous person.
1296
1297“I have wanted to ask this since some time ago.”
1298
1299“What is it!?”
1300
1301“What kind of relationship do you want to build up with Shop Manager Kisaki?”
1302
1303“Hmm…”
1304
1305Ashiya’s question caused Sariel’s gaze to change.
1306
1307“This is really a difficult question.”
1308
1309“Hmm?”
1310
1311“Considering our respective environments, it would probably be better for me to marry into Kisaki’s family.”
1312
1313“…Hmm?”
1314
1315“I am not so optimistic to think that my current self has a chance. The question now is not whether I am willing to take Shop Manager Kisaki as my wife, but if she plans to take me as her husband.”
1316
1317“……Hmmmm? Wait, wait a minute.”
1318
1319“What’s wrong?”
1320
1321“Your premise is too strange.”
1322
1323“Which part of it is strange? If marriage was not the premise, I would not carry out those courting actions.”
1324
1325“Your actions were under the premise of marriage?”
1326
1327Ashiya could not help but feel shocked.
1328
1329“I don’t know of any other methods.”
1330
1331“Uh, erm, it’s not about the method. Before that, do you plan to marry a human?”
1332
1333“Is there anything strange about that?”
1334
1335Even if he was asked if there was anything strange about it, Ashiya could only say that Sariel’s existence and actions were very strange, but it was meaningless to say this now.
1336
1337“Don’t angels live much longer than humans?”
1338
1339“Yeah, and so? Is that what you wanted to say? Two people with vastly differing lifespans would not be happy even if they are together?”
1340
1341After Sariel said this, without waiting for Ashiya to reply, he continued to speak as he shrugged, “I had thought you wanted to say something else, but fortune and misfortune can only be decided by the parties involved, right? Love affected by the opinions of others isn’t considered love in the first place.”
1342
1343“The parties you’re talking about currently don’t include Shop Manager Kisaki, you know?”
1344
1345Ashiya finally could not hold it in and said this, but Sariel replied once again in a mocking manner, “I heard that you were an intelligent demon conferred the title of Chisho, I never expected that you would be this ignorant.”
1346
1347“What did you say!?”
1348
1349“The only one who will feel super happy when together with Shop Manager Kisaki is me of course.”
1350
1351“W-What?”
1352
1353“Even if I spend my whole life on this, I cannot confirm whether Shop Manager Kisaki feels happy or not when she’s with me.”
1354
1355“W-Wait, what are you saying?”
1356
1357“This thing called happiness can only be felt by the person themself. Although I have to work hard to make the other party happy, whether my efforts make Shop Manager Kisaki happy, only she can decide that. I am not Shop Manager Kisaki, even if I have a lifespan close to eternity, I definitely cannot treat the true happiness she feels as my own feelings of happiness.”
1358
1359Ashiya was already so surprised that he became speechless.
1360
1361The way Sariel spoke sounded like it did not matter what the other party felt as long as he felt that it was good, but in reality, it was the complete opposite.
1362
1363“You should have lived close to a thousand years. In your life which is not considered short, have you encountered anything which would be seen as fortunate no matter whose point of view it is? I can confirm that, in my life so far, I have never encountered anything like that. Even so, happiness to me is working continuously to chase after that unknown absolute happiness. And that happiness has now come to my side, and exists in the real world!”
1364
1365After Sariel announced this loudly, he pointed towards the MgRonalds in front of Hatagaya Station which was located close by.
1366
1367“Especially that happiness, there is already a precedent!”
1368
1369“Precedent… are you referring to?”
1370
1371“That’s right! Emilia’s existence is a form of happiness born from a human and angel overcoming the barriers of time! After her existence was revealed, Heaven received a shakeup. I, who encountered Shop Manager Kisaki, strongly believe that shakeup was a cry of life meant to cause Heaven and us angels to break away from the ten thousand year long stagnation!”
1372
1373Sariel raised both his arms up high and let out a shout, but although the people who passed by intentionally circled around him, Ashiya, as if he was pinned to the spot, could not move at all.
1374
1375“Alsiel. You have heard Gabriel’s plan too, right?”
1376
1377“…You…”
1378
1379“I only learned of it recently as well. If I knew this in the past, together with Raguel, we would have given him the Falling judgement. After all, the me at that time still did not know of the goddess who had descended to Earth, Kisaki Mayumi. In the past, I believed that for Heaven to continue existing, the guidance by the beautiful Ignora was necessary… but it’s different now.”
1380
1381Sariel finally lowered his arms and ran his hand through his long hair.
1382
1383“As long as there is the land, the sky, oceans, and organisms which can think and move like myself, humans can advance. I figured out that the person who is stopping this is myself. If Ignora, who is pursuing an ideal colony, saw this Earth or this world called Japan, she would definitely judge it a disorderly, dirty, and immature world. However, instead of a boring sterile room, I would prefer to continue walking in this disorderly world with the people from colorful worlds who have shown me many colors I have not known before… Ah, if they are those white angels working in the hospital, I would welcome them anytime.”
1384
1385If the last sentence was not there, what had been said would have been very cool. For that part, the only thing which could be said was “As expected of Sariel.”
1386
1387Then, at this moment—
1388
1389“What are you doing, pestering people on the street?”
1390
1391Unfortunately, suddenly encountering Kisaki Mayumi, who was wearing a suit, at the wrong time, this was also Sariel’s style.
1392
1393“Ah… S-Shop Manager Kisaki, things aren’t what you think they are.”
1394
1395Sariel only turned his neck to look back, and froze on the spot in a strange posture.
1396
1397Kisaki was carrying a shoulder bag which Ashiya had seen before, containing so many files that it could not be closed, and the neatly designed thick coat made her look like a capable businesswoman. This attire helped to increase the strength of her gaze which looked like it was going to pierce through Sariel.
1398
1399“Why are you talking about white angels working in the hospital while standing in the streets, exposing your own hobbies?”
1400
1401“N-No, erm, I was discussing a philosophical topic of what exactly is happiness with this man here……”
1402
1403Sariel, who became weak at the knees, looked like he was going to fall over at any time.
1404
1405“Ah, uh, I…”
1406
1407This was not exactly wrong, but Kisaki was Maou’s superior, and not wanting to make her angry, Ashiya subconsciously shrunk back in fear.
1408
1409“Ah, you’re Ashiya-san, right? I’m sorry, someone from our shopping street caused trouble for you.”
1410
1411“I-It’s not like that, erm, I was really talking with Shop Manager Sarue.”
1412
1413“There’s no need for you to protect this person. If he really did something, I will report it to the chairman of the shopping street and the police station immediately, so what trouble did this man cause you?”
1414
1415“Nothing! It’s really nothing! Erm, rather than that! I heard that Maou is working with Shop Manager Kisaki today!”
1416
1417“Hm? Ah, you came to fetch him?”
1418
1419Because Ashiya forcefully changed the topic, Kisaki looked at Sariel suspiciously, then replied according to Ashiya’s topic, “I’m sorry that you made a wasted trip, I bid goodbye to him on the train just now, he seems to be going straight home today. Oh yes, I forgot to tell him something today, please help me remind him to buy a new pencil case, that plastic pencil case which is so worn out that it has holes might give others a bad impression during the training.”
1420
1421“I-I understand, I will let him know.”
1422
1423“I’ll leave it to you then… hey, Sarue, I still have some things to ask you, you should be willing to accept such an honor, right?”
1424
1425“Of course, you can ask anything!”
1426
1427It was obvious that a lecture more punishing than sitting on a pincushion was coming, but Sariel, who had been completely frozen just now, immediately showed a joyful expression, his tail wagging.
1428
1429“T-Then I’ll take my leave first.”
1430
1431Once he noticed that Kisaki was focused on Sariel, Ashiya bowed immediately and prepared to leave, but at this moment, Sariel shouted from behind, “Oh yeah, Ashiya! Help me pass this message to your roommate! The offer from before is still valid, so ask him to freely choose how to live his life!”
1432
1433“Eh? O-Okay…”
1434
1435Ashiya, who was unable to show a bad attitude in front of Kisaki, felt perplexed by this strange message—
1436
1437“Don’t guide the lives of other people so carelessly. No matter what, you’ll only lead people astray.”
1438
1439And Sariel, despite being hit on the back of the head by an annoyed Kisaki, still looked very happy.
1440
1441Actually, Ashiya had planned to sit at MgRonalds until it closed, but since he had received concrete information that Maou had already gone home, it was meaningless to stay there.
1442
1443Maou’s social circle was centered around the MgRonalds in front of Hatagaya Station, and the reason Ashiya stayed there was to guard against unknown threats.
1444
1445“But Demon King-sama should have sent me a message before going home, then I could have returned home earlier to prepare supper for him… ah.”
1446
1447When he could no longer hear Kisaki’s and Sariel’s voices, Ashiya mumbled to himself while checking his phone, and noticed that there was a ① symbol on the top right corner of the message icon.
1448
1449“……”
1450
1451The message was received fifteen minutes ago. When Ashiya opened it up, he realized that it was a message sent by Maou, and its contents were that he was reaching home very soon. Ashiya frowned and said, “It’s because of Sariel that I did not notice the vibration in silent mode. I think that the way to change the vibration mode was…”
1452
1453Ashiya stood on the spot and stared at the screen for a while—
1454
1455“……”
1456
1457But the phone screen still mercilessly turned dark in front of Ashiya, who froze with a perplexed expression on his face.
1458
1459After exceeding the standby time, it went into sleep mode.
1460
1461“I wanted to set the standby timer to be slightly longer too…”
1462
1463Ashiya felt that he saw the cheerful smile of a certain lady on the other side of the phone screen which had turned dark, then, without doing anything, he put the phone into the pocket of his pants.
1464
1465“What am I doing?”
1466
1467After that, he had not contacted Suzuki Rika.
1468
1469However, every time he saw Rika’s name shown at the very top of the phone book with less than twenty people recorded, an emotion he had never felt before would circle within his heart.
1470
1471“…I have to go back quickly. Demon King-sama should have reached home.”
1472
1473Ashiya stuck his frozen hands into his pocket and quickly walked back to the apartment. But before reaching the room, Ashiya kept getting the feeling that Sariel’s words were chasing after him, and he could not calm down at all.
1474
1475※
1476
1477That day a few weeks ago, when the distance between Emi and Lailah shortened a little.
1478
1479After escaping from Lailah’s room that caused others despair, Chiho and the others asked Gabriel a question in the Moz Burger at Nerima Station, and did not get an immediate answer.
1480
1481“Do all of you know about Nauru?”
1482
1483Everyone felt that it was a foreign term.
1484
1485Because this was said by Gabriel, Chiho thought that it should be a term related to Ente Isla or Heaven—
1486
1487“Sasaki Chiho, you haven’t heard of it?”
1488
1489But for unknown reasons, Gabriel called upon Chiho, someone from Earth.
1490
1491“Eh? Eh? Me?”
1492
1493“Yeah, to be exact, of those present, only you or Ama nee-san would possibly know about it.”
1494
1495“That means~~ this term refers to something on Earth~~?”
1496
1497Gabriel lightly nodded in response to Emerada’s query—
1498
1499“So it does not refer to those parasites living in the lake and marsh areas in the northeast region of the Northern Continent~~ which rapidly replicate within the bodies of the cows which accidentally drink the water there~~ and devour their hosts until there’s nothing left, right~~?”
1500
1501—then after hearing the next question asked by her, his face immediately turned stiff from fright and he replied, “What’s that, I don’t know about terrifying creatures like that.”
1502
1503Just as everyone was thinking Does such a creature even exist? Gabriel finally revealed the answer, “A-Anyway, Nauru is the name of a country on Earth. It is a small island nation only larger than the Vatican City and Monaco, located near the Equatorial Pacific Ocean. It is considered part of the Micronesian Islands, but it is located far away from the other islands. Because it has a small population, it is dependent on Australia for its national defence and economy. During the war, the Japanese seemed to have built an airport there.”
1504
1505As everyone listened, it sounded more and more like a nation located on Earth.
1506
1507Though Chiho heard this much, she still had no impression of the country of Nauru, but from a few keywords, she deduced that it should be an island nation with a warm climate and beautiful seas.
1508
1509However, how was this country of Nauru related to Heaven?
1510
1511Gabriel ignored everyone’s question and continued to speak, “During the 20th century, this country was known as Heaven on Earth. Firstly, no citizens had to pay taxes.”
1512
1513“Eh?”
1514
1515Chiho got a shock, Suzuno and Emi’s eyes also widened in surprise.
1516
1517“Not only that, every citizen could obtain a basic income with no conditions attached. In other words, for all citizens across all age groups, the nation would provide them with the funds needed for their daily needs on an annual basis. This is different from the citizen pension which Japan currently gives to the elderly from low income households, okay? From infants to the elderly, they are able to get an amount such that there will be money left over even after eating out for all three meals every day and changing cars every year, they can get this money without working, and I will say this again, they don’t have to pay taxes.”
1518
1519“Is, is this true?”
1520
1521This was an environment which greatly exceeded Chiho’s level of understanding, but Gabriel nodded very seriously.
1522
1523“Yeah, it’s normal for you to react like this. But all of this is true. There aren’t many people with Nauru citizenship, but their per capita income at that time was the highest in the world, much higher than Japan and America. They did not have anyone who could be considered super wealthy, but all the nation’s citizens used to be equally affluent. Even when measuring against global standards, this was an undeniable fact.”
1524
1525As if Chiho was listening to a story about a foreign world, she was shocked speechless.
1526
1527Talking about foreign worlds, why did Gabriel, an angel from a foreign world, know about this country which was unknown by the Japanese on Earth? Feeling bothered by this, after Chiho calmed down from the shock she received at the beginning, she immediately noticed one thing.
1528
1529“Used to?”
1530
1531“Yeah.”
1532
1533“…Then how about now?”
1534
1535As if Gabriel was waiting for that question, he answered with a huge smile, “The national unemployment rate is more than ninety percent, it’s one of the poorest countries in the world. Currently, they are receiving assistance from various places around the world via diplomatic relations so they can barely survive.”
1536
1537“H-How did it turn out like this?”
1538
1539Chiho, who lacked knowledge about politics and the economy, was unable to imagine what happened to cause the paradise on Earth to end up in such a predicament.
1540
1541However, Emerada, who was born into the world of politics, immediately saw through the underlying reason.
1542
1543“That country~~ did it use to have some natural resource which the whole world needed~~? Then because that resource dried up later~~ they became like this now~~?”
1544
1545“That’s right, that country used to be a place rich in phosphate.”
1546
1547Whether as an industrial raw material in manufacturing or as an agricultural resource, phosphate was necessary.
1548
1549Since the manufacturing and agricultural industries needed it, that meant the whole world needed it.
1550
1551Within the small land of Nauru was the largest deposit of phosphate in the world, formed from seagull feces accumulated over tens of thousands of years.
1552
1553At the beginning of the 20th century, the large nations which required phosphate flooded into Nauru one after another, and the local leaders kept changing over time based on the current situation.
1554
1555Nauru became an independent republic after World War II and joined the Commonwealth of Nations, and after that, slowly became the paradise as described by Gabriel, but during the 1990s, all signs of the paradise disappeared without a trace.
1556
1557“In a short period of less than ten years, from a paradise, they collapsed to become the poorest nation in the world. A prosperous land, famous for being an export nation with rich natural resources, collapsed in just ten years. However, to completely deplete something accumulated over tens of thousands of years in less than a hundred years, humans are really scary.”
1558
1559Gabriel spoke as he prepared to take another fry, but after realizing that the fries had all been eaten, he shrugged in a self-mocking manner and spoke, “However, the decline is something which could not have been avoided. After the phosphate depleted, businesses from around the world and laborers who had left their home countries to work there also started to leave, Nauru became poorer and poorer like this, and of course, the basic income policy with no strings attached could not be maintained any further. If they had no money, they couldn’t even buy food. So Sasaki Chiho, if it was you, what would you do at this time?”
1560
1561Chiho had the illusion that she was in a history or civics class in school, but she still tried her best to think within the scope of her limited knowledge.
1562
1563“I would probably look for a job, but since that place seemed to be going through a Great Depression, there wouldn’t be any job opportunities within the country. If so, if they want to secure their food sources, they can still barely maintain it with agriculture or fishing industries, or go overseas to look for jobs…”
1564
1565The black and white movies of the American Great Depression and the topics in the textbooks Chiho had watched and read in class surfaced in her mind.
1566
1567“Splendid answer. If it was that guy who called himself First Rate, he would probably just give up and starve to death.”
1568
1569Everyone present intentionally avoided thinking about who Gabriel was referring to when he said First Rate.
1570
1571“That is the normal reaction. No one wants to starve, if they feel that the money is going to be used up, normal people will start to use it sparingly or look for a job.”
1572
1573Gabriel continued to speak with a self-mocking smile, “But, unexpectedly, most of the Nauru citizens did nothing.”
1574
1575“Eh?”
1576
1577“It’s not that they couldn’t do anything, but they didn’t do anything. Other than the people who had continuously worked in the primary industries since a very long time ago, the other citizens only silently watched as the industries collapsed and their nation’s economy became bankrupt.”
1578
1579“D-Did nothing, how can this be?”
1580
1581“The phrase ‘He who does not work shall not eat’ can only exist if there were people before this who worked to get food.”
1582
1583At this moment, Amane, who would occasionally tease Acies and Iron, but was now starting to worry that the two of them were sucking her wallet dry at a terrifying rate, joined in the conversation.
1584
1585“The period of time in which the Nauru citizens did not need to work was too long. In the era which they depended on the phosphate industry to prosper, most of the people with jobs in the country were laborers from overseas who went there to work, and before the proliferation of the phosphate industry, the indigenous people lived on by fishing or farming on the small land. Because most of it was self-sufficient or through barter trade, no monetary economy existed. Therefore, no matter which era it was, the thought of ‘working to get money’ did not exist.”
1586
1587Because even the fishing industry operated on self-sufficiency, this kind of industry would not be filled with energy.
1588
1589When mining for the phosphate, the whole island was covered in pits and holes, and even the backyards of their own homes did not escape harm, so the agriculture industry which existed before the development of the phosphate industry faced many challenges even if it was just for self-sufficiency.
1590
1591However, the concept of working to get money did not seep into the lives of the Nauru citizens who were able to live on without working for the past few generations.
1592
1593Of course, not every citizen was without a job, the transportation, communications, and businesses there were still functioning as normal, and as long as they were willing to put in effort, tourism could still be developed, and even the declining phosphate industry was still actively looking for new sources of phosphate.
1594
1595The politicians who had been trained overseas also wanted to revive the economy via the real estate and financial industries.
1596
1597Luckily, the citizens there had a mild temperament, so no riots happened despite the economic collapse, and the already small population did not decline rapidly as well.
1598
1599But the biggest problem was that the citizens’ will to work was abnormally low, and the eating habits during the abundant era and the unique idea of beauty in the South Pacific where ‘fat is beauty’ led to the constant worsening of the obesity rate and number of people with diabetes.
1600
1601The economic policies which were implemented failed constantly, and rather than preventing the decline, they were even speeding up the decline.
1602
1603In the end, in exchange for international aid, they started to accept refugees, but even the refugees complained that “it was impossible to stay in this kind of country.”
1604
1605In current times, where the paradise dream which lasted for a hundred years had dissipated, even if they wanted to revert to the peaceful island nation unique to the South Pacific, it would take a very long time to do so.
1606
1607Chiho was unable to hide her surprise after learning that such a country actually existed in this world, but after hearing this much, she still could not understand how this topic was related to the current state of Heaven.
1608
1609“Haah, I have never seen all this with my own eyes, I read a lot of information about this world in the internet café I was staying at, and this is just part of it.”
1610
1611Chiho never expected that this random topic was information obtained by an angel from a foreign world using the internet, but Gabriel’s expression was unexpectedly serious as he said these things.
1612
1613“Actually, the current situation in Heaven just happens to be the same as Nauru’s when they were about to decline. Most of the angels are lacking nothing in their lives. However, including Ignora and us Guardian Angels, also known as the top brass, we all know that we cannot continue to be satisfied with this kind of life, but no one wants to change this situation, no one is willing to act for the sake of this.”
1614
1615Gabriel’s gaze shifted from Chiho to Suzuno.
1616
1617“Let me ask you this, what is the final goal of the believers of God? What do you expect when you pray to God?”
1618
1619“We hope God will provide salvation, and in the end, reach a Paradise where there is no suffering. Something like that.”
1620
1621Suzuno, who still saw herself as a Cleric, replied in this way.
1622
1623“In reality, we do not think that such a world truly exists somewhere, and we do not think that it is enough just to reach that place. A world where everyone works hard to realize such a belief is the Paradise described in the Bible. The main branch of Saint Ignord is currently using this kind of theory.”
1624
1625“Yeah. If a Paradise with no suffering truly existed, then what would happen to humans?”
1626
1627“They would either fall to extreme depravity, or have a very low level of emotion and code of ethics, no matter what, the human society we know of would probably collapse.”
1628
1629“Correct answer!”
1630
1631Gabriel clapped his hands in a pretentious manner and Amane nodded in agreement.
1632
1633“Ignora created that kind of Paradise and is still ruling that place.”
1634
1635“What does that mean~~?”
1636
1637In a rare moment, Gabriel acted as if he was carefully choosing his words, and answered Emerada’s question.
1638
1639“After obtaining a body which will not die as long as they are not put to death, humans are no longer humans, becoming something which is only living.”
1640
1641After Gabriel said this, he used his right hand to draw a line across his neck, signifying the action of a beheading.
1642
1643“Angels are immortal existences, but that immortality only means that they will not die naturally, if their head gets cut off, or they lose a huge amount of blood which a transfusion cannot replenish, they will still die. However, the basic theories of spells have found that even if the heart is damaged, as long as there is enough holy magic in the body to repair the heart, there is still a possibility of revival. Haah, I don’t know if there are any after-effects, but there is still a possibility that we can be saved after receiving a wound which is fatal to a human. In addition, the capacity of holy magic is directly proportional to the strength of the body. So, regardless of the reason, we basically do not get the flu, and we do not get sick.”
1644
1645“Ah, I’ve heard of this before.”
1646
1647Chiho recalled the contents of the teachings passed on by Suzuno in the bath house before she had successfully learned Idea Link. She looked towards Suzuno, and they nodded at each other.
1648
1649“Yeah, on the other hand, because us angels can currently store a huge amount of holy magic, we have obtained a body which will not die as time passes. Even if we do not eat, or live for a few thousand years, we will not die from reasons related to metabolism, growth, or illness. Humans which will not die as long as they are not killed, staying in an absolutely safe shelter, living a life where nothing is lacking, this is the current Heaven.”
1650
1651They can continue to live on even if they do nothing.
1652
1653This was the same as Nauru when they could continue to obtain the money they needed to maintain their lives as long as they were alive.
1654
1655“Thanks to that, the people of my home… the inhabitants of Heaven, wasted away. That place used to be no different from Earth or Ente Isla, a place where humans with normal bodies gathered. But after the overlapping of misfortune, coincidence, and Ignora’s power, we were bestowed with the title of angel and lost our identities as humans. This is to be expected, because we did not have any reason to live. After obtaining immortality, we were not required to do anything. Having spent too long in this state, we have already forgotten how to live with a purpose.”
1656
1657Just like Nauru’s citizens who, for a few generations, could get money without having to work, the citizens of Heaven, no, Gabriel’s home, had fallen into a similar situation.
1658
1659“Please think back, those angels who have appeared in front of all of you so far, how many of them have you encountered in total?”
1660
1661“Uh…”
1662
1663Chiho and Suzuno looked at each other once more, and started to count with their fingers.
1664
1665“Sariel-san, Gabriel-san, Lailah-san…”
1666
1667“Raguel, Kamael, and those from the Heavenly Troops, and in this situation, Emilia and Lucifer should also be considered angels?”
1668
1669“Don’t you feel that this is too small? We are still alien-like highly intelligent beings who have been controlling the history of Ente Isla from the shadows, you know? However, the numbers are this low. Do you know how many demons the Demon King mobilized when he attacked Ente Isla?”
1670
1671“Even if we are only considering the final clean up battle in the Central Continent, there must have been more than fifty thousand troops…”
1672
1673Suzuno said this as she looked at Maou’s side profile.
1674
1675Maou did not react much, and did not rebuke either, so it must have been the correct answer.
1676
1677On the flip side, it could be said that several times that number of demons had been exterminated by the humans of Ente Isla, but even if Maou felt that he had to take responsibility for this, he would not hate humans because of this; Suzuno knew this better than anyone.
1678
1679However, just as everyone remembered the numbers left of the Demon King Army at the end of their invasion, Gabriel immediately said something shocking.
1680
1681“The total population in Heaven right now is less than five thousand. Among them, more than ninety percent of the people just sit around and do nothing. Besides living, they do nothing else.”
1682
1683“Only… five thousand people?”
1684
1685Whether as a species or for forming a society, this number was too small.
1686
1687Faced with Chiho’s question, asked in a raspy voice, Gabriel nodded nonchalantly.
1688
1689“The technology of our planet is more advanced than Earth’s current level, and our spell civilization is more developed than Ente Isla. However, the reason why we are posing as angels in Ente Isla, is because our planet was destroyed.”
1690
1691Gabriel threw out the term “destroyed” very bluntly, causing Chiho, Suzuno, and Emerada to freeze.
1692
1693Because Lailah had told Maou and Emi before that she hoped that the two of them could save the Ente Isla humans from the crisis.
1694
1695“That was really just a result of the accumulation of many misfortunes.”
1696
1697Gabriel rested his chin on his hands, and sighed lightly.
1698
1699“During the period of time when the activity of the star in the center of our solar system was low, a large scale supernova explosion occurred in the nearby Milky Way. The damage caused by this incident only caused the telecommunication systems to shut down globally for one or two days, this was not the problem. Perhaps the currents of space had changed, the pressure of the supernova explosion brought over terrifying, harmful substances from an unknown location, enough to cover our entire planet. The period of time when the activity of the star was low would be around thirty years from Earth’s point of view. Anyway, the star system our planet was located in was normally protected by the solar winds of our star, but during the period of time when the solar winds stopped, the pressure caused by the faraway supernova explosion unfortunately brought harmful substances drifting around the nearby extrasolar space to our planet, and for unknown reasons, when our fixed star began to enter its active period, those harmful substances flowed back into the galaxy, just like an unfortunate chain of car accidents. Haah, but this information was only discovered by the scientific team formed by Ignora after things could no longer be salvaged.
1700
1701“Gab-kun was also one of the researchers at that time?”
1702
1703Gabriel shook his head in response to Amane’s question.
1704
1705“No, at that time, I did not know anything about science, medicine, or astronomy,” Gabriel regained his usual frivolous smile and spoke, “When my mother planet was still alive, I was the Head of Security for the research facility managed by Ignora. Our salary was pitifully low compared to the specialized researchers, but we were on very good relations with the people in the research facility. I also became acquainted with many big-shots during that time… ah, I don’t remember the last time I talked about these things. I thought I had forgotten most of it…”
1706
1707Gabriel suddenly showed a nostalgic expression and watched the people pass by the window as they entered and left Nerima Station.
1708
1709“Anyway, those harmful substances caused everyone in the world to be hit by endemic diseases with terrifyingly high fatality rates. A good number of countries with weak economies were eradicated. Ignora’s research facility was an organization created to find an effective strategy to counter the harmful substances and the epidemic, hiring various talent from around the world. The research facility was located in an immigrant city on the moon. We had a very long history of space exploration, so whether it was exploring the planets within the star system or having people immigrate over, this was something very natural to us. To protect humans from the dark reaches of the harmful substances and endemic, we began our research in various fields, medicine, astronomy, spells, meteorology, geoscience, urban policy, construction, genetic engineering, and the development of laws, economic policies, and distribution techniques to which the research results could be applied, anyway, we did everything we could, but…”
1710
1711Gabriel looked back towards Acies and Iron who had started to snatch Maou’s wallet to add on more orders.
1712
1713“We still failed in the end. We were unable to save the planet and the humans. Our home planet was much more advanced than Earth and Ente Isla, but less than twenty years after the endemics spread across the planet, that advanced human civilization was destroyed. And the reason had to be a war which was started because the whole world fought over Ignora’s research results related to ‘immortality.’ You can’t even laugh about this. We never thought humans were that stupid, we felt a lot of despair at that time.”
1714
1715“Does that mean the standards of Paradise had collapsed?”
1716
1717“Crestia Bell, sadly it was nothing that noble.”
1718
1719Gabriel denied Suzuno’s question with a smile.
1720
1721“Humans could not tolerate the wait. They were only concerned about pursuing a magic which could instantaneously get rid of the sudden calamity. What we should have done was spend a few generations to create an antibody which could resist the endemic diseases, build strictly controlled quarantined shelters in various places around the world, or spend a few hundred years to create a membrane in the atmosphere which could block out the harmful substances. However, Ignora’s talent did not allow us to do so. She skipped the slow process of creating the antibody and went straight to creating a magic known as immortality. And the whole world went after it like a flock of ducks. They no longer cared about anything else, and were unable to wait any longer. The whole world started to say ‘Quickly, hand me the ideal body which will no longer fear the endemic.’ This is not a collapse of standards, they just brought about their own destruction because they could not tolerate the wait.”
1722
1723“Can I ask a question?”
1724
1725“What is it, Ama nee-san?”
1726
1727“That immortality research, how was it completed?”
1728
1729Amane spoke in a stern tone, this was a question asked when she already knew the answer.
1730
1731Gabriel noticed this as well, and he looked towards Acies who had finally managed to snatch Maou’s wallet from him and was running towards the counter.
1732
1733“Ignora found traces our planet’s Tree of Life. And found the Sephirah children hidden amongst the humans.”