Black Summoner – Chapter 59

Thump… Thump…

(What is that? I feel like I’m hearing a loud noise in the distance.)

“And so, Mother’s stew is exquisite. Try it sometime, Older Brother.”

(I can hear a little girl’s voice too. I feel like I’ve heard this voice somewhere before. Where was it…?)

“That sounds delicious. But Efil’s cooking at my place isn’t too shabby either.”

(Now it’s a man’s voice. I feel like I’ve heard this voice somewhere too… Ugh, my head hurts…)

“Mmmph, Mama is the best! But if you say that, I guess I can try yours too.”

(Come to think of it, what was I doing…? I was doing something important, I think…)

“Ryuka, you mustn’t trouble the Adventurers, remember?”

(What happened to Setsuna, Nana, and Miyabi…? The last thing I was doing…)

“Hahaha, it’s no trouble at all. We still have a long way to Traage. I welcome any conversation.”

(This man’s voice… The last thing I… Setsuna and the others…!)

“Oh, looking awake, kid?”

My consciousness returned. Before my eyes was a clear blue sky with not a single cloud. Slowly, I sat up, and Touya recognized the person before him. It was the girl who had been captured at the Kokufu hideout, her mother, and…

“Touya, was it? Does your body hurt?”

It was the man in the black robe who had been engaged in a death match, disguised as a game, until he lost consciousness.

“…! You! Get away from that child!”

“Well, that’s how it is. Just rest and recover quietly.”

As soon as he saw Kelvin, Touya tried to pounce, but Kelvin unleashed a light Heavy Wind Pressure. Touya, still recovering from his illness and injuries, didn’t have the strength to withstand it and collapsed back to the ground.

“Guh, I won’t loseeee…!”

“Kid, it’s fine to push yourself, but look over here first. And if you strain too much, your wounds will open.”

Touya, continuing to exert force against gravity, glanced forward at Kelvin’s words. The man in the black robe was sitting cross-legged, with the girl perched on his lap.

“Youuuu! What do you think you’re doing to a young girl?!”

“No, you idiot! Look at what Ryuka is holding!”

Kelvin increased the power of the Heavy Wind Pressure slightly and pointed to what Ryuka was hugging. Trembling in Ryuka’s arms was a slime, the adventurer who had been in the room where Ryuka, her mother, and many others were held captive.

“That slime… Wasn’t it one of the adventurers who went to rescue…?”

“That’s right, his name is Kuro. And I am Kelvin, that adventurer.”

Kelvin flashed his golden Guild Card, attempting to clear up Touya’s misunderstanding.

“I-impossible… The adventurers who came to help were supposed to be that Large-sized man and the woman with the magic gem who were captured by you…”

“It’s true! That’s why I told you! I told you my ‘Older Brother’ saved me! Those two were allies of the evil bandits!”

“Ryuka, please stop. Hero-sama, I apologize. But what my daughter says is the truth.”

“… ”

With the rescued girl saying so, Touya had nothing to retort. Now that he thought about it calmly, the man in the black robe had never admitted to being with Kokufu. On the contrary, he seemed to have been defeating Kokufu as an adventurer. The slime that had requested rescue from Touya also seemed to be following him obediently. The answer derived from integrating these points was–

“You… were the adventurer who went ahead…?”

“I’ve been saying that for a while now.”

At this point, the Heavy Wind Pressure was finally released.

“Have I cleared up my misunderstanding?”

“…Ah, I’m truly sorr—”

Suddenly, the dazed Touya heard a heavy thump. And a faint vibration. Until now, his emotions had been overwhelming, and he hadn’t noticed, but now he realized this was not the surface.

“… Where is this?”

“Ah, remember that black Golem you fought? We’re on the transport version of it.”

“…Huh?”

Touya cautiously surveyed his surroundings. A black, slightly rounded ground. A safety fence was visible on the outer edge of a space roughly the size of a small apartment. Footstep-like sounds echoed at regular intervals, causing the ground to shake.

“Honestly, I hadn’t thought about how to transport the rescued people to Traage. I’m glad it worked out when I clumsily modified the Golem creation magic.”

“You’re such a scatterbrain, Older Brother.”

Kelvin and the mother and daughter laughed heartily. Touya was simply dumbfounded.

“R-right! Setsuna and the others, the other rescued people!?”

After observing for a while, Touya snapped back to reality.

“Just in case, I’ve put them on separate Golems with my companions. Well, now that the leader’s misunderstanding has been cleared up, there should be no problem introducing them. Please wait a moment.”

“Sera, Touya’s misunderstanding is cleared up. Bring the other heroes over here.”

“Yay! I was getting bored anyway. I’ll bring them all at once.”

“…My companion is bringing your group here now. Oh, they’re already here.”

“Eh?”

As Kelvin looked up, Touya followed his gaze. Something was approaching…

“Sorry to keep you waiting!”

Sera appeared from the sky with a loud roar. Nana and Miyabi were on either side of her, with Setsuna on her back. It’s easy to forget, but she is a demon, so she has wings. She was just hiding them with a “Disguise Hairpin,” but their function was not lost. With the “Flight” skill, she can basically fly freely.

“Ugh, I think I’m going to throw up again…”

“This is… a new experience!”

Nana’s face turned pale as she held her mouth, while Miyabi’s eyes sparkled. It clearly showed her aptitude for roller coasters.

“I was bored, so I hurried! Come on, let’s have some tea, Kelvin.”

“You even brought tea and snacks along, huh…”

“Efil thoughtfully packed them for us. She’s completely devoted to what you say. We invited her, but she’s continuing her guard duty, how serious!”

“I-I want some too!”

“Oh, Ryuka…”

Come to think of it, I told her to be alert with Clairvoyance. I’ll have to do something for them when we get to Traage.

“…Touya, did you hear what happened?”

“Ah, it was all my misunderstanding… Setsuna, Nana, Miyabi, I’m sorry for making you go through this…”

Touya bowed deeply.

“And, Mr. Kelvin. I apologize for the trouble caused by my own silly misunderstanding.”

He knelt down and performed a Dogeza. Touya was about to stop the other heroes behind him from doing the same along with him. No, I mean, it was a light setup, hoping it would turn out this way, but it was something I had aimed for deliberately. This stance, with justice at the forefront, is a bit precarious, but the heroes probably have some thoughts about this matter.

“What’s passed is passed. More importantly, please protect your rights as the winner of that game, and I’ll have no complaints.”

Touya explained about Kokufu to them. It seemed Mist-san had already explained it beforehand, and he got her understanding in just two sentences.

“If I can be of use with the name of a Hero, then naturally I will. But that won’t be my punishment. Mr. Kelvin, is there anything else you can do?”

“Anything else? Hmm, let’s see…”

He glanced at Sera and Ryuka, who had already started drinking tea without him. Hey, why are you eating and drinking already? It’s fine though.

“Ryuka, do you have any good ideas for making him reflect?”

“Reflect? Hmm, hmm… Seiza!”

“Seiza?”

“In Traage, children who do bad things receive scolding while in seiza. It’s very strict!”

“…Then, seiza until we reach Traage.”

“Uh, um… How much longer until Traage?”

“About half a day with this Golem.”

Touya and Nana froze.

“I’m used to it, so I’m fine… Can you two be okay?”

“Setsuna, what is seiza?”

On the occasionally swaying Golem, the true trial of the heroes had begun.