The fact that Toru Himusumi had gone missing spread throughout the company.
Some saw the report, some heard it from those who went to the Dark Elf village to help, and others heard it secondhand as a rumor.
Dungeon Testers, for better or worse, tend to stand out. Among them, those who generate buzz would likely have this level of recognition.
As for me, I was informed of this fact by Evia, thanks to the authority granted to me as a section chief.
I also heard that Lunaria, the Tree King, would reportedly be subjected to an inquiry to question her responsibility for losing a Dungeon Tester, and that the company was taking this incident very seriously.
“………”
There was nothing else I could say but that it was understandable.
If this were the Magician Continent or Isal, the disappearance of one or two students would be dismissed with a simple “Ah, they died.”
However, it’s different in Japan.
The disappearance of a single person would set the police organization in motion, attempting to uncover the truth.
Furthermore, if they disappeared as if it were a strange phenomenon, the media wouldn’t stay silent.
If the news spread further, the residents wouldn’t stay quiet either, and a force called goodwill would be set in motion.
“………”
While reading the report, the midday news on TV announced that a university student had gone missing.
Seeing such a future, I suppressed a sigh and recalled how the section chief of the Third Division, where Himusumi belonged, had let out a hysterical scream.
Although she didn’t directly confront the Tree King, her attitude was dismissive, indirectly sarcastic.
The atmosphere around was such that it made me think of how the Demon Lord’s Army would be like when picking apart blunders. The meeting where the concerned parties were gathered was utterly tiresome.
Evia had told me to keep quiet, pointing out that protecting them would also draw backlash to the First Division, but seeing Lunaria-san ready to take responsibility was truly painful.
Fortunately, there was witness testimony that Lunaria-san herself did not take Himusumi away, but rather Himusumi and Kawasaki accompanied her of their own volition. The president had also acknowledged this point.
As a result, the section chief of the Third Division received a warning for insufficient supervision.
“Haa, if they had asked for support from another department, that’s one thing, but to leave their post of their own accord, what kind of nerve does that person have?”
Because the meeting dragged on, I was the only one left in the office.
I felt bad for Memoria and the others, but I told them I would be working a little overtime before heading home.
Leaning back against the chair, as if exasperated, I rebuked the actions of Himusumi and Kawasaki, pondering what to do.
Honestly, there was nothing I could do.
The main problem was Lunaria-san, who took them.
And secondary to that was the section chief of the Third Division, who failed to manage them properly.
Those two were the ones causing the problem.
As the section chief of the First Division, I had received instructions to guide my subordinates so they wouldn’t take similar actions, and to provide mental care so they wouldn’t quit their jobs because of this incident. Therefore, I had to prioritize those tasks.
“……… The problem is…”
From my perspective, Lunaria-san is also a problem, but I believe she can handle her own situation.
I’m more concerned about my colleagues.
“I can’t foresee how Kitamiya will react when she hears about this.”
I heard that Karen Kitamiya is Himusumi Toru’s childhood friend.
Therefore, I also know that they were briefly in a romantic relationship.
Knowing the circumstances of their breakup, I worry about how to tell Kitamiya, who will be here tomorrow.
Will she be angry, exasperated, or break down in tears?
At the very least, I can say she definitely won’t be happy. In the end, I conclude that telling her honestly is the best approach.
I decide to put this matter aside for now, stand up from my seat, and prepare to return home to where Memoria and the others are waiting.
Though I’m hardly carrying anything, just my wallet and phone are enough. It’s convenient to have company housing when it’s like this.
Thinking this, I lock up and leave the office.
“Tomorrow might be a bit troublesome, huh?”
I muttered those words as I looked at the darkened office through the glass, but I’ve had infinitely more troublesome things happen since joining this company. Still, I left the place.
Unaware of the troublesome events unfolding outside the company.
Another side
It was in a certain park in Tokyo.
It was late at night.
Close to midnight, two women stood under a lamppost.
“So? You called me out this late for what? Though I guess asking is stating the obvious, but I’ll ask anyway.”
One of them was Kitamiya, dressed casually in slacks and a hoodie.
Her expression was undeniably displeased, radiating tension.
She leaned against the lamppost, arms crossed, a frown on her brow, and though not glaring, her gaze was sharp.
If anyone were to say she looked happy, I’d recommend they see an eye doctor.
“Miki.”
In front of Kitamiya stood Miki Nanase.
Unlike Kitamiya’s casual attire, she was dressed in loose clothing and accepted the name called out to her with her head bowed.
Even though they had reconciled, their relationship was far from mended.
It was somewhere between acquaintances and friends, more like people who knew each other.
Out of a sense of obligation from their past friendship, Kitamiya had responded to the summons, but it was in person, not via email or phone.
Seeing this, Miki had a bad feeling about it.
“Karen-chan, Tou-kun, Tou-kun…”
Kitamiya, thinking that idiot had done something again and anticipating troublesome events, suppressed a sigh, already thinking she’d be sleep-deprived tomorrow.
However, her displeased expression quickly vanished.
Sevenase’s voice turned tearful, and tears rolled down her cheeks, illuminated by the dim park lamppost.
“Wh-what’s wrong?”
Kitamiya, unaware of the situation, abandoned her displeased demeanor and could only surmise what had happened from the words Sevenase was muttering, thinking Toru had caused trouble again.
She held Sevenase by the shoulder, who clung to her chest, sobbing uncontrollably and unable to speak.
Figuring something serious must have happened, perhaps another infidelity leading to a breakup, Kitamiya led Sevenase, who was still sobbing, to a bench in the light.
“Ah, come on, look.”
Kitamiya resigned herself to the situation, mentally apologizing to her colleagues for being sleep-deprived tomorrow, and sat Sevenase down on a bench in the light.
“So, that idiot did something again, right?”
Kitamiya deduced that Sevenase’s state meant Toru had likely done something. To her question, Sevenase simply shook her head.
“Oh, stop crying!”
Since Sevenase couldn’t properly answer her question, Kitamiya was at a loss and could only do what she could, petting her head and trying to calm her down.
This went on for about ten minutes until Sevenase finally stopped crying.
“Let me ask again, what happened?”
Still seemingly processing her emotions, Sevenase hiccuped but Kitamiya asked again, telling her it was okay to take her time.
“Tou-kun went to help a village he was indebted to, and left.”
Village? Kitamiya tried to organize the information. She recalled the incident that happened while Kitamiya and the others were in the dungeon.
“Could it be the Dark Elf village you went to before to make a contract with a spirit?”
She asked to confirm, and Sevenase nodded.
Kitamiya wondered what Toru had to do with it, and decided to ask.
“I heard that a magic beast attacked there, so what, that idiot wouldn’t possibly have gone there, would he?”
Her childhood acquaintance with Toru was not for nothing; she could predict his actions, and the answer she received was the worst.
Kitamiya inwardly cursed him, thinking he was an idiot, but now realizing he was a complete fool.
She guessed he must have been driven by his unnecessary sense of justice to go and help when Sevenase nodded.
“Kawasaki-san went with him too.”
Kitamiya thought he was beyond saving.
“I told him, “It’s dangerous,” “Stop it,” so many times.”
Kitamiya couldn’t understand why her childhood friend, who was also her lover, would ignore her pleas to go to a dangerous place with another woman. Frustration began to well up.
“But he left, and I’m worried. I told him to wait for me.”
Still, Kitamiya didn’t stop stroking Sevenase’s head and focused on listening to her story.
“And then, and then…”
Kitamiya anticipated that this was where Sevenase’s crying began. But again, something welled up inside her, and tears flowed again as Sevenase’s story stopped.
“It’s alright, it’s alright, just talk slowly, okay?”
Kitamiya tried to soothe Sevenase in the gentlest tone possible, urging her to continue.
She felt she needed to know what came next, so Kitamiya patiently waited. One minute, then five minutes passed.
Again, Sevenase calmed down and said in a small, almost whispered voice.
“Tou-kun, has gone missing.”
At her words, Kitamiya’s hand, which had been stroking Sevenase’s head, stopped.
Missing.
It took her a few seconds to process the word, and then Kitamiya was flustered.
She assumed that hearing her childhood friend, and in a way, her lover, had gone missing, she might be slightly shaken. She encouraged her to continue.
“Who told you that?”
“The Section Chief… he said Toru acted on his own and went missing, and called him useless… and said he was dead.”
Kitamiya had seen Jiro speak a few times, but she had a negative impression of him.
From Sevenase’s current state, she guessed that the message was delivered much more harshly than what Sevenase was relaying.
“That must have been tough.”
Honestly, Kitamiya felt conflicted.
As a human being, she felt concern hearing that an acquaintance had gone missing, but beyond that, she felt no stronger emotion.
Despite having been his lover, she couldn’t get as emotional as Sevenase, who was crying so hard.
That’s why Kitamiya could only worry about Sevenase. She couldn’t say “He’s missing, so let’s go find him,” nor could she offer any constructive advice.
All she could offer was:
“It’s alright, knowing him, he’ll probably just show up one day saying he worried everyone.”
As a childhood friend, drawing on unfounded experience, she offered words of encouragement.
Kitamiya understood that these words would only offer a small comfort. But at this moment, it was all she could say.
“If he were someone who could be easily dealt with, I wouldn’t be having this much trouble.”
Kitamiya quietly spoke to Sevenase, trying to calm her down, wondering if she herself was coming across as normal right now.
She guessed Sevenase had come to her wanting someone to affirm that Toru was alive.
Understanding this, Kitamiya uttered words that would offer little comfort, words that would neither harm nor help.
“Look, tomorrow I’ll ask Jiro-san for the details, okay?”
In the end, she couldn’t do anything for Sevenase. This was a situation with no easy solution, making all the cleanup she’d done for her childhood friend up until now seem trivial.
Seeing Sevenase cry so hard, seemingly unable to recover from the shock, Kitamiya offered encouragement as if it were someone else’s problem.
“Karen-chan, aren’t you sad?”
It was precisely that question from Sevenase, now calmer, that stumbled Kitamiya.
Sevenase’s words, striking directly at Kitamiya’s true feelings, made her heart feel as if it had stopped for a moment.
Suppressing her confused feelings, Kitamiya forced her facial muscles into a smile and conveyed her words.
“If I get flustered too, it’ll be a lost cause. Give me a break. Two women crying in a park at night until morning? That’s the last thing we need.”
It was a flimsy excuse, but it was also her true feelings.
“I see. Karen-chan, you really are strong.”
Kitamiya didn’t know if Sevenase believed her. But seeing Sevenase calm down, Kitamiya felt relief, careful not to let it show.
“I’m not strong, I’m angry. Why did he go missing without telling me?”
While not entirely a lie, these words weren’t her complete truth. As she spoke them, Sevenase gradually began to calm down.
“Thank you, Karen-chan.”
Finally, she managed a smile.
“It’s fine, we’re not strangers. More importantly, I have things to do tomorrow, so let’s hurry home. I don’t want to be attacked by some suspicious character.”
“Okay.”
And so, Sevenase, now recovered, and Kitamiya left.
Far beyond the scene where the relationship between these two was returning to its former friendship.
Beyond what distance could express, beyond space and time.
In the Hanzibal Empire of Isal, in a room of the Imperial Capital’s castle.
It was a corner of an area designated for the Third Princess.
A room separate from the inner palace.
There slept a man.
If the two of them were to see him, it would be a man they would not mistake, sleeping there. And by his side, as if watching over him, sat the Third Princess.
“Ugh…”
A faint sound escaped from the room, illuminated by the sunlight, and a man slowly opened his eyelids.
“Where is this?”
The man slowly opened his eyelids, looked around gradually, and noticed a beautiful woman.
“You are…?”
Then, as if by reflex, the words he uttered upon not knowing her. Anri Hanzibal, sitting on the chair, replied with a gentle, motherly smile.
“My name is Anri, Anri Hanzibal.”
And, as if to reciprocate, she spoke with the same gentle voice.
“Your name is…?”
A seemingly ordinary process of self-introduction.
Normally, this procedure would go smoothly unless one were extremely wary.
“I am, I am…”
Perhaps out of politeness, or perhaps because he thought it sounded better, the man changed his first-person pronoun and attempted to introduce himself.
“I am, who am I?”
No, he couldn’t introduce himself.
The reason for changing his pronoun was not politeness or habit.
He was simply puzzled as to which one he used. However, he realized the abnormality of not being able to state his own name, was bewildered and afraid of not knowing who he was, felt as if something was about to collapse, his teeth chattering, and his body began to tremble. Anri gently placed her hands on the man’s cheeks, guiding him to look at her.
Then, pale green and black pupils met.
“It’s alright, no one here will harm you. Please, take your time and remember.”
Captivated by her gentle gaze, the man…
“Ah, I understand.”
…closed his eyes gently and fell back into sleep.
Quote of the Day
Ignorance is a sin, applies in many ways.
Thank you for your continued feedback and for pointing out any errors.
This chapter will conclude in the next installment.
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*The first volume of the novel has been published by Hayakawa Bunko JA.
It was released on October 18, 2018.
The e-book version was released on October 31 of the same year.
Volume two was released on December 19.
Volume three was released on February 20, 2019.
The content includes revisions and additions to the material posted on “Shōsetsuka ni Narō,” with the inclusion of an unreleased interlude.
Please look forward to the new releases!
A comic adaptation is being serialized in Kodansha’s “Young Magazine The Third.”
We hope you enjoy that as well.
We ask for your continued support for this work.
