CHAPTER 20

Bag Carriers

After dampening a washcloth with cold water, I return to the room to find Mash already awake. He looks over at me from under the blanket.

“…Where am I?”

“The inn in Seimul.”

A few hours ago, the moment Seiya came out of the torture chamber after finishing his so-called “purification,” Mash fainted, as if all the tension had suddenly left his body. I asked Seiya to carry him as I created a gate to the spirit world. Using gates to the spirit world to travel fast within other worlds is probably against the rules. However, I was so worried about Mash that I went through the gate ready to accept any and all consequences. And just like that, we returned to the Seimul inn where Elulu awaited us.

As I try to explain that to Mash…

“Maaash!”

Elulu, who had fallen asleep near the bed, wakes up and leaps onto Mash.

“Oof!”

“Thank goodness! Thank goodness you’re all right! I was so worried that you wouldn’t wake up! Mash!!”

“E-Elulu?! Mash’s injuries haven’t completely healed yet!”

She lets go of Mash as he groans in pain.

“S-sorry, Mash. Did I hurt you?”

“N-no, it didn’t hurt. I’m fine.”

Mash forces a smile for a few moments until a serious expression washes away his smirk.

“It’s weird… I really…don’t feel any pain at all…”

He gazes at me.

“Wait… Did you heal me?”

I smile back.

“You were in terrible shape. It took over an hour to heal you.”

“…I’m sorry. I owe you one,” says Mash as he bashfully looks away.

That’s when the door opens without a knock, revealing the ill-mannered Hero.

“Oh, Mushroom, you’re awake.”

But Mash doesn’t even look angry. Rather, in an embarrassed manner…

“Thanks for saving me.”

He thanks Seiya without looking him in the eye.

It must have taken a lot of courage for someone as strong-willed as Mash to say that, but Seiya takes no notice.

“More importantly, I hope you two are ready. It’s time to go.”

“S-Seiya? Come on—let’s let them rest a little longer. Mash just woke up.”

But Elulu and Mash look at each other, puzzled by Seiya’s words.

“Um… What do you mean, ‘It’s time to go’?”

“I’ve decided to let you two carry my stuff. Now, hurry up. We’re leaving.”

Could he put that any more rudely?! Why couldn’t he just say something like We’re going to be working together as a team from now on? Ugh!

I’m worried about how they’ll react…but Elulu is glowing with the news.

“Yay! We get to carry his stuff! I’m so happy!”

Does she even realize what she’s saying?

Mash, on the other hand, wears a sullen expression, and understandably so. As if cornered, he timidly speaks up.

“It became clear to me then… You really are on a different level than us. As things are now, we’d get in the way just like you said we would. So… So…”

I inwardly sigh because I know all too well what Mash is going to say next. The trauma caused by the torture and Dark Firus must be deeply ingrained. Even if he overcame it but still decided that he didn’t want to come with us, I wouldn’t have any right to say anything.

However, Mash lunges out of bed, then presses his head against the floor before Seiya.

“Please make me your pupil!”

“…Huh?”

I am taken aback.

“I’ll train hard so I won’t get in your way! Of course, I’ll carry your stuff, too! So please let me learn from you! I want to be strong like you! Please! Let me train under you!”

Wh-what the…? His mental fortitude is greater than I thought…and that makes me so happy!

Seiya looks down at Mash and bluntly states:

“I don’t care what you do as long as you carry my stuff.”

“O-okay! Lookin’ forward to it! I mean—I look forward to working with you.”

Elulu gives Seiya a carefree smile.

“Hee-hee! It’s a pleasure to finally join you, Seiya!”

“E-Elulu! Don’t call him by his first name! Call him ‘master’!”

“…Call me whatever you want. It makes no difference to me.”

Seiya seems really annoyed, but while gazing at them, I can’t help but think to myself…

Well…this might not be your typical Hero’s party, but the two dragonkin offspring will be joining us as planned, so I guess all’s well that ends well.

Elulu tugs at the hem of my dress while innocently smiling.

“I look forward to traveling with you, too, Ristie.”

“Huh? ‘Ristie’? Do you mean me?”

“Do you not like the nickname…?”

“N-no, I don’t really mind…”

Ha-ha-ha… I mean, I’d prefer to be called Your Majestic Godliness, but whatever.

“Oh, master! I know this may be sudden, but I have somewhere I’d like to take you!”

“Ah! Mash?! Are you talking about the Dragons’ Den?!”

The Dragons’ Den…? This is the first I’ve ever heard of it.

“Hey, Mash. What’s the Dragons’ Den? Is there something important there?”

…To summarize what Mash learned from the late village chief of Nakashi village:

It all began sixteen years ago. A dragon descended from the heavens and landed in Nakashi village with two infants: Mash and Elulu. The dragon said to the village chief, “These children, rich with the blood of the dragon, shall join the Hero who has received revelation from the gods and shall protect Gaeabrande from evil. When the Hero appears, go to the Dragons’ Den and break the seal. The ultimate weapon, unparalleled in its ability to vanquish evil, awaits.”

Exuberant, I shake Seiya by the shoulders.

“Seiya! The ultimate weapon! We have to go get it!”

But Seiya’s expression is solemn as he gazes at the sword at his waist.

“But I just synthesized a platinum sword and made three spares…”

R-really? Now I feel kind of bad. But this is what adventure is all about! After working so hard and finally getting a weapon, you’ll sometimes almost immediately find something even stronger!

“Let’s get this adventure started! To the Dragons’ Den! Mash, Elulu, lead the way!”

While these two are full of smiles and ready to go…

“Not yet.”

Time stops with those few words.

“I have somewhere I have to go first.”

“S-Seiya… Don’t tell me you’re going to—”

“Yes, to the spirit world. I can’t afford to ignore my training.”

Crushed, I drop my head.

Every time… We go on a little adventure, and then we’re right back in the spirit world… The Summoning Chamber’s starting to feel like home…

“We’re going to the Dragons’ Den next, right? I have to make sure I’m prepared to fight dragons.”

Mash and Elulu turn pale, as one would expect.

“M-master, please don’t! Are you trying to make us go extinct or something?!”

“Y-yeah! There’s no such thing as a bad dragon! Probably.”

“We won’t know until we go. At any rate, I’m going to the spirit world, and you’re coming with me. Rista, it wouldn’t be a problem if we brought them, right?”

“Yeah… I guess…”

I have mixed feelings about all this but give my approval.

I’ve decided not to say anything, since he has proven that training in the unified spirit world is actually working. If Seiya did what I, someone who has summoned only a few Heroes, suggested and fought monsters to level up, then he probably would have already been killed. Gaeabrande is an S-ranked world. What was common sense in past worlds isn’t common sense here. The best thing to do is to leave everything in Seiya’s hands.

I cast a spell and create the gate. Following Seiya, Mash and Elulu almost skip through as if they were going on vacation.

After arriving in the unified spirit world, Seiya immediately asks where Cerceus is. Given it’s around noon at the moment and he usually takes his lunch breaks in the dining hall, we decide to head straight there.

Elulu’s eyes dart about for the entirety of the walk through the sanctuary.

“Hey, Ristie! This is where all the gods and goddesses live, right?!”

“Yep.”

Mash gets an eyeful as well.

“This sanctuary is amazing. Not only is it huge, but the decorations, the paintings—everything I see is art… Not like I know much about that, though.”

“Whoa! Look at the beautiful flowers in that vase! I’ve never seen anything like them! Hey, Ristie! Can I go have a look?!”

“Elulu, hold up! Look at that guy over there! He’s got a halo floating over his head! Is he an angel?!”

Seeing Elulu and Mash so excited fills me with warmth. I can’t blame them. Most people would react this way during their first time in the spirit world…unlike some who just lock themselves away for a few days in a white room and work out.

The abnormal Hero grabs Elulu by the back of the neck like a cat, stopping her in the middle of her exploration.

“You can do that later. I want to start training.”

“Mn…! But there’s so much more I want to see!”

“S-Seiya, I don’t mind going to see Cerceus, but I don’t think he’s going to spar with you anymore.”

“I don’t care about that. I need him for something else.”

Then why are you…?

Confused, I continue walking until we arrive at the dining hall. I survey the vast room, but Cerceus is nowhere in sight. We give up and decide to check somewhere else, but right before leaving the hall, I randomly make eye contact with a familiar face in the kitchen at the other end.

I hear a faint “eep!” coming from the kitchen, then see a man dressed in an apron try to crouch down and hide.

…There’s no mistaking who that is.

“Cerceus?!”

I force my way into the kitchen…and can’t believe my eyes.

The well-built, muscular Divine Blade is wearing a floral-print apron with a silver bowl of meringue in hand.

“…What are you doing?”

Seiya glares at Cerceus, causing the latter’s back to bolt up stock straight.

“S-S-Sir Seiya! How are you doing today?!”

Blech… There’s nothing godlike about him anymore… I mean, he’s talking to Seiya like the Hero is his superior… And there’s just something about that beard with that apron… They don’t make sense together at all…

Cerceus’s eyes wander as he speaks.

“So, uh… As you know…I was thinking about quitting swordsmanship. I mean, it’s dangerous, you know? Like, you bleed when you get cut and it hurts and, like…”

What the—?! That wasn’t a joke?! The Divine Blade is seriously giving up the blade?! Just how traumatic was his training with Seiya?!

Cerceus bashfully shows us the bowl full of meringue.

“S-so lately, I’ve been learning how to cook. See? …Oh yeah! I just baked a cake. Would you like to try a piece?”

He retrieves a plate with a strawberry shortcake and shows it to Seiya. It’s visually impressive to the point that it’s hard to believe this gorilla of a man made it. However, the moment Seiya lays eyes on it…

“Disgusting. Get that away from me.”

“But you didn’t even try it!” yells Cerceus.

I can’t blame him. Anyone would react that way if someone said their food was disgusting without trying it.

“I worked so hard to make this…!”

That’s when the poor guy notices a redheaded girl who looks like she might just happen to like sweets. He smiles.

“What about you? Would you like to try some?”

He holds out a fork and knife to Elulu, but she shakes her head.

“Hmm… No thanks. I mean, I bet it’s full of muscles or something…”

“…?! It doesn’t have any muscles in it! Wait! How would you even put muscles in a cake?!”

Seiya stares at the pitiful man holding the unwanted cake.

“Listen, Cerceus. I’m not saying you can’t have a hobby. But that’s not your calling, and you need to focus on that before anything else.”

“M-my calling…?”

“I’m referring to this, of course.”

Seiya unsheathes his platinum sword, revealing the radiant blade.

“Noooooo! I don’t wanna spar anymoooooooore!!” Cerceus screams. It’s a howl that even has Mash questioning the god’s mental stability.

“Don’t worry. I’m not going to be the one training with you. He is.”

Mash is just as surprised as Cerceus.

“Huh? Y-you’re not going to be the one training me?”

“You’re not ready for me. He should be around your level, though.”

“Wow, Seiya. You’re really looking out for Mash.”

“Well, I can’t let the errand boy carrying my stuff be weak. It would defeat the purpose of having him if a monster simply stole everything from him.”

Cerceus glances at Mash a few times, a boy only half his size.

“I-is he your disciple? Uh… Would you mind if I used Scan on you for a moment?”

“Be my guest.”

After timidly casting Scan, Cerceus stares at him for a while with a dubious glare.

“Hmm? You’re not using Fake Out, right?”

“No… Why?”

Suddenly, Cerceus tears off his floral-print apron.

“All right! Let’s do this! I’ve gotta warn ya, though. Training with me is gonna be tough! I hope you’re ready! Gwa-ha-ha-ha!”

“Wh-what is wrong with this geezer?! His personality is all over the place!”

Mash is right. Cerceus is… I don’t even know what to say! He started acting all tough the moment he discovered that Mash was weaker than him! These types of guys are the worst!

With a new spring in his step, Cerceus escorts Mash out of the kitchen. After that, Seiya turns his gaze to Elulu.

“All right, you’re up next.”

“Huh?! M-m-me too?!”

Elulu’s astonished voice resonates throughout the kitchen.