05: Drillizabeth Returns Home! …Or So I Thought, but We’re Facing a Water Crisis?!

“Eliza, you’re going home tomorrow?!”

“Arwf?! (Huh?! Wait, really?!)”

Right after the two girls and one dog get into bed one night, Drills suddenly announces her departure.

“Yes. Lord Gandolf has already sent word of the timing of my return. He says he will prepare the airship for me tomorrow morning.”

Tomorrow morning? This is sudden.

We’re not having a going-away party or anything? It would have been the perfect chance for some good cheer.

“Nooo! I want you to live here with us!”

The young lady goes over my body to embrace Drills. She pushes her cheek around the other’s head.

“I knew it would be like this, so I didn’t say anything until now. I was in the exact same position when you had to go home after your trip to the capital.”

Yeah, the way Drills bawled her eyes out when my lady had to return from her trip was definitely something. But now she’s so calm about it. People really do grow up.

“I’ll come back again during winter break. It won’t be long.”

“…Okay.”

Lady Mary stops rubbing up against Drills and raises her face.

“Then let’s at least stay up all night talking! I’m not letting you get any sleep tonight!”

I should have known my lady would recover that quickly.

“Hee-hee. Okay.”

The two snuggle up and talk about the past until late at night.

My lady, who was breathing very heavily after telling Drills she wouldn’t let her get a wink of sleep, fell asleep straightaway, in fact.

Every time I see her sleeping face, it’s adorable. Same goes for how she nibbles on my fur like that.

“I should go to sleep, too. Routa, I’ll turn off the lights.”

Drills reaches for the crystal lamp.

“Arwf! (Oh! I forgot something!)” I jump out of bed.

I keep thinking I need to go, but I’ve never had the opportunity. Drills and my lady have generally been two for the price of one, after all. I could never find a chance to get Drills alone.

“Wh-what is it? Do you need to use the restroom?”

“Arwf, arwf? (Drills, since we’re up late anyway, would you mind giving a little of your time to me?)”

“You can’t go to the bathroom by yourself? You sure are timid-hearted, Routa.”

“Arf. (No, not that.)”

“Well, you can’t help it.”

“Arf. (I’m not talking about the bathroom.)”

“Let’s go.”

“Arwf! (I’m not talking about that!)”

It would be inconvenient if she did know what I was saying, but her not knowing is annoying, too!

“Where are you going? The bathroom is in the other direction.”

Yes, I know that. I’m not taking you to the bathroom.

“Arf, arf. (It’s cold outside, so you’ll need a blanket.)”

I stop by the linen room on the way and drag the blankets out. This fluffy one here should be warm enough.

After bringing Drills outside the mansion, I lower myself and gesture for her to get on.

“Arf, arf. (My back is ready.)”

“? You want me to climb on?”

Drills, wearing the blanket, hoists herself up, her legs over the side.

“Arf, arf! (Then here we go!)”

“But where are we goooiiiinnnggg?!”

I asked Garo about the place in advance, so I won’t get lost. I run like the wind through the forest, lit by the moon.

Ever since my body got so big, I’ve been giving my lady rides on my back, so running without shaking her around is easy. In the blink of an eye, I reach my destination.

“Arwf, arwf. (Drills, take a peek in these bushes.)”

“I swear. What did you take me all the way out here for?”

She brings her face up to mine—I pushed open a gap with my nose—and then gasps.

“…!”

What Drills sees is a group of monsters living there peacefully.

They are of many species, but they don’t especially start fighting very much—they’re all gathered here in harmony.

They’re the monsters I rescued. Well, maybe not rescued—Nahura was the one who brought them here, and Garo and the others are the ones helping them live here.

“Why, they’re…!”

Drills seems to have figured out who the monsters are.

They include the ones that were being raised at her home, which had slave collars put on them and were passed off as rare animals. Others were rescued from that harbor warehouse.

We brought them here on the condition that they wouldn’t make trouble, and it seems they’re keeping their word, getting along despite differences in species.

“I see… Everyone’s doing just fine…”

Drills has a lot of guilt about having raised monsters as pets. She’s probably been worried about them ever since they left. It seemed to her like the monsters had abruptly disappeared.

“Thank goodness… Oh, thank goodness…”

Tears forming in her eyes, Drills nods.

“They’re all happy now…”

I brought her here hoping this would lift the burden on her heart a little, and it seems like it worked. Those tears are probably because she’s so happy.

“Arf, arf? (Do you want to go see them?)”

I let her just watch, thinking she’d be really shocked to meet them, but as she is now, I bet she could probably get along with them.

“No. That’s all right. They might remember all the bad things if I were to meet them. Just seeing them safe and sound here is enough for me.”

“Arf… (Really? Well, if it’s okay with you…)”

“Thank you, Routa. You really are extraordinary.”

“Arf, arf. (No, no. I’m just a dog.)”

“I won’t speak a word of this to anyone. This will be our secret.”

That would be appreciated.

“The next time I come to play, I want you to bring me here.”

“Arf, arf. (Of course. I was already planning to.)”

Drills continues to watch over the monsters for a short while, then eventually stands up, satisfied.

“Let us return. Mary may have woken up, and she could be anxious.”

My lady never wakes up once she falls asleep, so I think we’re fine. But if you’re satisfied, then there’s nothing more to do here. I’m relieved myself, knowing that the monsters I rescued are living healthily here.

When I put Drills on my back and turn around, the bushes rustle.

I look over and see the monsters have appeared.

“Arwf…? (What are you…?)”

The monsters quietly approach us, then bring their heads close to Drills.

“Are you saying…you’ll forgive me…?”

Drills cautiously strokes their heads, and the monsters accept it, unmoving.

“I’m… I’m so sorry…! Thank you…!”

Drills jumps down from me and embraces the monsters, who lick her tearstained cheeks.

“Arf… (I’m happy for you, Drills…)”

The moving sight really gets me in the heart.

But if I may say something…

“Arwf! (I’ve been beaten to the licking once agaaain!)”

The next morning, it is time for Drills to board the airship and go home to the Royal Capital.

“Mary! We’re only parting for a short time! I’ll come back soon!”

“Okay! I’ll write you letters!”

“Me too! I’ll write them every day!” Drills waves her hand around from atop the airship. “Thank you, everyone, for letting me stay! If you’re ever in the capital, please count on me to help you out!”

All the servants are waving back in response.

“Routa! I can’t thank you enough! Thank you! Thank you so much!!”

The airship slowly begins its ascent, growing small and distant in the sky.

“Routa, did you do something for Eliza?” asks my lady once we can’t see the airship anymore.

“Arwf. (I cannot answer that question, even for you, Lady Mary.)”

“Mmmgh! Now I feel like you’re hiding something, Routa!”

“Arwrwrw. (I’m afraid I don’t know what you’re talking about.)”

Currently, the mansion finds itself in a crisis.

“Hrm. That’s definitely dried out.”

The reason: a water shortage.

“And we’ve never had a water shortage at this time of year.”

The river the mansion draws its water from is apparently almost dried up.

I went out with the old man to check on it, and he’s right—the water level has definitely gone down since the last time I was here. That time, I was happy for it since it let us catch so many crabs, but now there aren’t any here.

“The rain is still falling occasionally, so there might be something upstream.”

The old man gazes upstream, in the direction of the sacred mountain towering in the distance.

“Well, it’s not enough of a shortage that we won’t be able to eat and drink like we always do. There’s still water left in the tanks for cleaning. If we conserve our water for a little while, the river should go back to normal.”

Conserve water? How will we do that?

“Baths, first and foremost. Those use the most water. I’d hate to bear the bad news to the ladies, but the servants will have to refrain from taking baths and only wipe themselves off with water.”

Well, there’s no helping that. We can’t have the owner of the mansion, Papa, and the young lady facing a lower living standard.

Doesn’t have anything to do with me anyway—I take baths with her.

“Oh—and no baths for you, either.”

“Arf? (Huh? Why not?)”

“Every time you take a bath, most of the water overflows from the tub. It’s a waste. And while we’re at it, for the master and the lady, we’ll have them use the smaller tubs they used to use. You wouldn’t be able to get into them anyway. If you’re going to curse something, curse that huge body of yours.”

“A-arwf! (N-nooo!)”

Me, a former Japanese person, not being able to take a bath every day? That’s impossible.

“Woof, woof! (I can’t! I can’t go without baths! I object as a matter of principle!)”

“I’ll be using as little water as I can, too, and we can’t exactly give the horses any less…”

The old man is ignoring me. How sad. He has all those plans in his head, and he goes on muttering about his water-conservation strategies.

Meanwhile, I am in the throes of despair.

“Arwf… (How could this happen to me…? Baths are for cleaning the soul…)”

“Squeak. (You won’t die from not taking baths. Before coming to this place, I’d never even taken one.)”

“Arwf! (What?! That’s so dirty!)”

Unloved and unwashed?! I’m going to have to evict you from my mane.

“Squeak! (Dragons don’t sweat! We don’t need to take baths anyway! And I go in the bath with you every time you take one! I’m not moving out!)”

Oh, right. She’s a dragon. When was the last time she went back to her original form? She’s really just a mouse now. Also a little girl, sometimes.

“Arf, arf. (Anyway, not being able to take baths is a problem of vital importance.)”

The river’s water actually started disappearing quite a while back. When Shiro and Kuro went missing, the water level had already gone down. I didn’t think about it at the time, but I think the old man’s probably right, and something happened upstream.

“Arwf. (What a pain. Guess I’ll check it out.)”

At the same time I mutter that, I hear a distant howl from the forest. It sounds like awooon, high pitched, with just a little bit of coquettishness. It seems to be calling for me.

“Arf? (Is that Garo’s voice?)”

“Oh, what was that? Could that be your wife calling?”

I already said she’s not my wife.

“Squeak. (Correct. His lawful wife is me.)”

Wrong again.

“It’s all right—go on. I’ll be getting back to the mansion. Looks like today is going to be busy.”

The old man sets off back to the mansion, the misunderstanding still not resolved.

“Arf, arf. (Whatever. Garo almost never calls for me, so I guess I’ll go hear what she has to say.)”

After running toward the area I heard the howl from, I eventually see some Fen Wolves, Garo included.

“Grwl. (I’m terribly sorry for calling upon you. It seemed as though a human man was with you, and I decided it would be best if he were to not see me…)”

Sorry, Garo. Your consideration just made the misunderstanding worse.

“Arwf, arwf? (Anyway, did something happen?)”

“Grwl, grwl? (My king, were you not investigating the lower water levels?)”

“Arwf. (Yeah, and I just figured I’d go check out the cause.)”

“Grwl. (In that case, please allow me to accompany you. The Fen Wolf settlement and the elves’ village are facing critical water shortages as well, and some of our pack has just formed a team to investigate.)”

“Woof. (Oh, sure thing. If everyone else is worried about it, too, then I can’t just leave you behind.)”

“Grwl! (My gratitude!)”

“““Grwl! Grwl! Grwl! (Our king! Our king! Our incredibly compassionate king!)”””

…Do you really have to fit that in? I’m supposed to be the Fen Wolf King, and yet I don’t understand how my subjects feel.

We decide to all go up the nearly dried-up river together.

“Grwl…! (My king, I am terribly sorry…! Would you be able to reduce your speed somewhat…!)”

“Arwf? (Huh?)”

I look back and see that a very large distance has opened between Garo and me and the other Fen Wolves.

“Grwl…! (Myself notwithstanding, the other Fen Wolves cannot keep up…!)”

“W-woof, woof! (S-sorry, sorry!)”

I wasn’t intending to run that fast, but it’s been a while since I last ran around the forest, and it started to get fun.

I lower my pace and fall in next to Garo.

“Grwl, grwl. (My king, you are amazing. Not only do you stand at the pinnacle of the Fen Wolves—there is simply none other who can rival you. Even if the Demon Lord’s forces were to revive, you would defeat them hands down.)”

“Arwf, arwf. (No, no—don’t give me that much credit.)”

It just makes things worse when you do. My pet life doesn’t need the word strongest attached to it. Of course, cutest or most adorable would suit me just fine.

“Grwl, grwl. (Ha-ha-ha. My king, even your jokes are of the finest quality.)”

Nothing I said was a joke.

As I sulk, the Fen Wolves lagging behind catch up to us.

“Woof, woof. (It looks like the water’s dried up even upstream.)”

There are fish left in little ditches and puddles and such; the water level must have lowered pretty rapidly. It would be an all-you-can-catch fishing trip if you cast a net in one, but we don’t have time right now.

“Woof. (And here I figured some beaver-like animal had made a dam or something upstream.)”

“Grwl. (A…beaver? I have little knowledge, and I have never heard of a monster by that name.)”

I wonder if they’re not in this world.

Despite their cute faces, they’re considered vermin, since they cut down trees and use them to make dams, which affects things downstream. The wooden barriers they build, however, make it easy for new plant life to flourish, and they make the terrain easier for other animals to live in. They may be harmful to humans, but to nature, they’re the ecosystem-promoting civil engineers of the forest. I, once a corporate slave whose only comfort was watching animal videos, know a lot about it.

Still, no matter how far we go, it’s still dried up. We won’t make any progress if we keep on going. I’d like to take a shortcut.

“Arwf. (Guess I’ll just have to call her.)”

A handy transporter who will warp here at a single howl whenever I’m in trouble. And her name is—

“Awoooo! (Hura-emooooon!)”

“Meooow! (What is that name supposed to be? Nahura doesn’t have any funny names like that!)”

Nahura appears out of midair and jumps onto my back.

“Arwf. (And yet you still responded. Anyway, could you give us a warp?)”

“Mew… (Oh, using me whenever you want… Nahura is busy, too, sometimes!)”

You are, without a doubt, not busy. You say the same things as your owner.

Hecate seems busy, but you’re definitely drowning in free time. No doubt. Otherwise, you wouldn’t be coming for three meals and two snacks a day, one of which is at midnight.

“Meow. (Pull my tail, why don’t you. Well, they say each night’s lodging and meals are worth a debt, so Nahura will bring you where you want to go.)”

Uhh, if each night’s lodging and meals are worth one teleport, you have an obligation to carry us places hundreds of times, you know.

Nahura gives a cry, and the scenery goes white.

“Squeak? (We didn’t specify a location… Where is this?)”

“Arf. (Hey, I recognize this place.)”

A lot of rounded boulders lie on the dry riverbed in the spot where we dug out a hot spring quite a while back.

“Arf, arf. (I haven’t been here in a long time.)”

Open-air baths have their own therapeutic charm, but the mansion’s bathtub is just too pleasant. I always wanted to come back here at some point but never did.

Nahura checks the hot spring. “Mrow. (It’s filled with tree leaves and dirt now, but a little cleanup and it should be usable again.)”

“Arf. (Yeah. The water might be dried up, but we dug this out of the ground. If we unplug it, we should be able to take baths in it again.)”

The water outlet is blocked with a stone. Removing that should cause the hot water to flow again. Maybe we should come for a bath after the investigation.

“Grwl. (My king, the river would appear to be dried up here as well.)”

“Arf… (Here, too… Any farther upstream and we’ll reach the waterfall.)”

That’s also where I first met Len. Well, it was more a fight than a meeting, but still. It was a clash of sad misunderstandings and a grand mission, huh, Len?

“Squeak. (No, I remember that as being the most nonsensical fight the world has ever seen.)”

What are you saying? A passionate clash between the souls of a tongue terrorist and a friendless woman… What part of that is—? Yeah, that was nonsensical. Completely and utterly nonsensical. If not for that fight, I probably never would have met this self-proclaimed “lawful wife” and millennium-old friendless dragon who now lives in my mane.

“Squeak. (Not to worry. I will never leave your side for as long as I live. Now and forever, my place is with you.)”

Hm? Do I hear a stubborn flea? I do get bitten on occasion.

“…Arwf? (…Hm? What? Does this seem strange to anyone else?)”

Sensing something out of place, I scan my surroundings.

“Meow. (I don’t think you being strange is something that only started today, Routa.)”

“Arf. (Forget the naturally rude and useless cat. I can’t hear the sound. Isn’t that weird?)”

“Grwl? (What sound?)”

Len’s roost is pretty close, to the north. The cave collapsed because of our battle, but that doesn’t mean the whole thing is gone. There should still be a big waterfall there.

“Squeak! (I see! The sound of the waterfall! I cannot hear even a drop of water falling!)”

Don’t tell me the waterfall dried up, too. That would make this an emergency. If that much water is stopped up, the rapid decrease of the water level makes perfect sense.

“Woof! (Let’s go check it out!)”

“Grwl! (Yes, sir! I will accompany you!)”

We kick off the stones on the dry riverbed, dashing for the waterfall.

“Arf… (You gotta be kidding…)”

The waterfall, which spewed all that water from a location so high you had to crane your neck to see it, is totally dry—not even a drop of water is flowing.

“Grwl… (It would appear the root cause is even farther north…)”

North of here? But that would mean we’d have to scale the sacred mountain.

With winter approaching, the mountain has already started growing a blanket of snow, and white winds billow from the summit.

“Arww… (Whoa, that looks cold… I really don’t want to climb that…)”

I sit on my rear end. Garo and the Fen Wolves stand in front of me.

“Grwl, grwl. (My king, please wait here. We have never ventured farther than this, either, but we cannot allow any harm to befall you. Please use us as your outriders.)”

“Arwf. (I couldn’t possibly do that.)”

Every fiber of my being wants to skip out on them, but I can’t let Garo and the others go somewhere that looks so cold all by themselves.

“Arf, arf. (Let’s just try getting as far as we can for now. If it seems impossible, we can just go back.)”

“G-grwl…?! (M-my king, you would come for our sakes…?!)”

Well, I doubt you guys would be able to do it alone, so I can’t abandon you. Also, whenever problems like this come up, it usually has to do with the Demon Lord’s army. I’ve been getting a bad tingly feeling for a while now.

We jump up the half-destroyed waterfall and ascend. The crags sticking out are still a little moist, which means the water’s disappearance must be very recent.

“Arwf. (It’s so cold, it’s like the season suddenly switched.)”

North of the waterfall, not even trees are growing; the freezing chill alone dominates the mountain. Hecate was taking ice from this mountain during the summertime, wasn’t she? That humongous chunk of clear ice suffered a fluffy shaved-ice fate at the old man’s hands. Recalling that cool moment in the terribly hot summer season, I shiver. That wasn’t what I needed to remember right now, in this cold.

“Arwrwrwrwrwrw… (S-s-s-s-so cold… We’ve only climbed a little, and it’s freezing…)”

“Meow… (Lady Len, Lady Len, please, if you could just squeeze over a little bit…)”

“Squeak. (What is this? This mane belongs to me. I expect you to have a little more restraint.)”

“Woof! (No, this mane is mine!)”

Nahura and Len quickly burrowed into my mane to get warm. My fur is pretty thick, but it’s arctic up here. My breath turns white upon leaving my mouth and is carried away by the wind before even a moment has passed.

“Woof, woof. (You two sure have it nice. You don’t have to walk, and you can keep warm.)”

“Meow. (Cats are weak to cold, you know. Everyone knows that.)”

But you’re not a cat, you’re a homunculus!

“Squeak. (This thing cannot be helped. The dragons have always been weak to the cold.)”

Right. Reptiles can’t move when it’s cold, after all.

“Squeak! (Don’t compare dragons to common lizards! There are things even you should and shouldn’t say— I-it’s cold!)”

Len pops her face out for a moment, then shudders in the snowy winds and dives back into my mane.

“Arwf. (It’s blowing really hard now. Even upstream of the waterfall, the water isn’t flowing. At this rate, the snow will bury the river and we’ll get lost.)”

Since we’ve come this far, there’s also a chance the source itself has dried up.

“Woof, woof! (Everyone else all right? If you’re struggling, we’ll pull back!)”

Actually, please say you’re struggling. Please give me a reason to go home.

“““Grwl, grwl, grwl! (This is no problem at all! Do not worry about what is behind you—please continue!)”””

Argh. I’m really hating that toughness of yours right now.

The soles of my feet are already really cold, and my nose is starting to hurt, and my eyes are getting bleary.

Ack, my eyelashes are freezing! And I’m about to sneeze.

The blizzard grows even stronger, and I start to have a lot of trouble seeing in front of me. That’s it. Another ten steps, and if we don’t find anything, we’re going home. I’ll warm myself back up in the hot spring, and then we’re going home.

“Arf…arf…arwf! (Ten…nine…eight…seven…six, five, four, threetwoone! Okay, we’re going home— Yikes!)”

As I take that final step, my face runs into something.

“Arwf? (Huh? Why is there a boulder right in front of me?)”

We’ve come here following the dried river upstream. I may have been looking at my feet through the snowstorm this whole time, but I don’t think the snow has piled up enough to make me lose my way.

“Woof, woof? (Maybe it’s because of this big boulder?)”

The giant boulder stands right in the middle of the river. Is this blocking the source of the water?

If so, we move it out of the way, and the mission will be over. I have no idea where a rock this huge even came from. Maybe it broke off the mountain’s peak and rolled down here.

“Grwl, grwl. (Moving it would be no easy task… Shall we return for now and mobilize all the Fen Wolves? Redarmor’s insane power would be useful.)”

“Arf? (Well, we just need to get the water to come out, right?)”

Same idea as digging a hot spring. We just need to put a hole in the boulder. That’ll make a direct tunnel to the water source.

“Arwoooooo! (Don’t-Want-to-Make-Water-Violently-Erupt-by-Firing-a-Strong-Beam-So-Here’s-a-Reduced-Power Beeeam!)”

A hole about the size of my head opens up in the giant boulder.

“Arwf! (Great! The water’s about to come! Run away!)”

Everyone backs away from the boulder at my call.

“…Arf? (…Huh?)”

We wait a few moments, but it doesn’t look like any water is rushing out.

“Arwf. (That’s strange. Maybe I’ll go a little stronger.)”

I go up to the hole, then check to make sure I can’t hear water.

“Arf! (Oh! I hear something!)”

It’s a zzhh-zzhh-glurp-glurp noise.

“…Squeak. (…For water springing, that doesn’t sound right.)”

“Mew. (Mm-hmm. In fact, it sounds more like water being drunk.)”

Len and Nahura are right; it sounds strange for water bubbling up. Actually, I’m not even hearing it from the hole… It’s coming from somewhere else, isn’t it?

“Grwl! (Lord Routa! Please stand back!)”

“Arf? (Huh?)”

Garo warns me in a sharp tone. At the same time, the glurp-glurp of drinking vanishes, and the ground starts to tremble.

“Arwf?! (What?! An earthquake?!)”

The trembling steadily grows more intense. No matter how I think about it, I can tell it’s too dangerous to stay here.

The earth rumbles and the boulder falls, slamming into the ground. The just-fallen snow springs up in a white cloud. Not a moment later, another even bigger boulder rises up.

“A-arf?! (B-but how?! No, wait… That’s not a boulder?!)”

What I thought was a boulder was actually hardened skin, and the spot I just blew a hole through was the underside of a foot.

“A-arwf?! (Just its foot is bigger than me? How huge is this thing…?!)”

The leg connecting to the foot, the waist connecting to the leg, the back connecting to the waist… I’d thought it was part of the mountain, but now it rises up as though detaching itself from the earth.

Once it’s standing on two feet, I get a sense of its entire body. This thing is a giant. A behemoth with arms and legs.

Even though I call it giant, however, it’s not even comparable to the golems we saw in the city. You could stack ten of those things and still not reach this creature’s height.

It’s so enormous that I can’t really make out its face through the clouds.

“Grwl! (My king! Look! The water is coming back!)”

I turn around at Garo calling me. The water has started to spurt from the spot where the giant was curled up. The source must be concentrated here, because it’s really blasting.

“Woof, woof! (So this giant was blocking the water after all!)”

“Squeak. (It seems to have been drinking all the water welling up, rather than blocking it.)”

Was that glurp-glurp noise the sound of this giant drinking the water? It wasn’t satisfied with just draining the river; it went to suck up the source itself. How big a drinker is this thing?

“Arwf, arwf. (Anyway, we should talk to it. I hope it understands.)”

And its ears are really far above us. It might not hear unless we really raise our voices loud.

“Squeak? (What? You’re not going to bring it down?)”

You friendless muscle-for-brains. Why do you always think of the violent options first?

“Woof, woof. (We should do everything peacefully. Conflict doesn’t solve anything.)”

“Mew, mewl? (But, Routa, didn’t you just blow a hole in its foot with your ultimate destruction magic? Didn’t it stand up because it’s in pain?)”

Ack! You’re right—I did shoot a beam earlier, now that you mention it!

Despite that, though, it doesn’t seem to be in pain. It’s just standing there idly now.

“Ssssssssssss!!”

Just when I think that, the giant starts breathing in.

Its lungs have an incredible capacity, even sucking up the clouds overhead. With such force as to give the illusion that the air here has grown thinner, it accumulates more air in its lungs.

“Sq-squeak? (Wh-what is this? What is it going to do?)”

I don’t know, either. After the giant takes its breath, it opens its mouth wide.

“Thaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaat reeeeeeeeeeally huuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuurts!!”

Its voice booms, echoing through the mountains.

“A-arwwwf! (Qu-quit being so loud!)”

It sucks that I don’t have hands to cover my ears with.

I look at Garo and the others to see if they’re okay. They’ve flopped their ears down to guard against the noise. Wait, that’s really cool! How do you do that? Please teach me later.

“Woof, woof?! (Wait, now it’s hurting?!)”

How hardheaded can this thing be? Maybe the pain takes a while to reach the brain because of how big it is.

“Meow. (I wonder who Mr. Giant here is.)”

“Squeak. (It is likely to be someone from the Demon Lord’s forces. The remaining generals were Gigas, the giant commander, and Behemoth, war demon and king of beasts, yes? This one must be the so-called Gigas.)”

“Arwf. (Yeah, I guess you’re right. Does that mean a fight is inevitable?)”

But wait a minute. Is it really okay to launch an attack without waiting for confirmation? There’s a possibility this is a nice giant who just happens to look exactly like Gigas.

“Squeak? (Is that truly a possibility?)”

“Mewl. (He’s trying to avoid fighting at all costs.)”

Obviously. I’m scared of fighting!

“Grwl. (Truly, only our king would show such compassion to a dastard who would drain a river.)”

“““Grwl! Grwl! Grwl! (Our king! Our king! Our deeply compassionate king!)”””

I can feel the mysterious but regularly scheduled heightening of the Fen Wolves’ rating of me.

“Squeak? (But how do you plan to get confirmation? If you speak to him, will he answer?)”

With something that took a few minutes to feel sudden pain, I have no idea how long a conversation will take.

“Arf, arf? (In that case, can’t we just ask someone who knows this thing?)”

“Squeak? (Who would know?)”

Generals of the Demon Lord’s army would know other generals, right?

“Arwf! (Which means… Mircalla, come on down!)”

“Meow. (You’d like me to summon her? Coming right up.)”

With a cry from Nahura, the former vampire and blond-haired maid is immediately summoned here.

“Hmm-hm-hmm My bed-making is perfect again today! You will rue the day you had to sleep soundly with crisp sheets and fluffy pillows, accursed humans!”

Mircalla, who seems to have been in the middle of work, dusts off her hands in satisfaction, then lets out a shriek at the polar region she’s just been called to.

“Eeeeeeeeeek!! What the heck?! Where am I? And why is it so cold?!”

“Arf. (Oh, sorry for interrupting your work.)”

“Y-you again, Fen Wolf King?! Look! It’s very cold! Get over here right now!”

All right, all right. I approach Mircalla, who is trembling in the cold, and she desperately clings to my chest fur.

“Phew… I feel a little calmer now…”

Mircalla is very cute, entranced by the warm fluff she’s buried in.

“Anyway, what on earth is going on? I still have work to do, you know.”

“Arf, arf. (Sorry for all the suddenness. Would that giant happen to be someone you know, Mircalla?)”

“What? What giant are we talking about…?”

I point him out with my nose, and Mircalla cranes her back to look up at him.

“Why, that’s Gigas! You’re back to life, too!”

Oh—looks like that’s definitely the Demon Lord’s general.

“Gigas! It’s me! The vampire princess Carmilla! …I’m a little smaller right now, but you can tell who I am, right?!”

Are you sure he can tell? Your appearance is one thing, but you don’t have a scrap of mana left.

Gigas’s face is distinct now, since he even breathed in the clouds covering his face when he inhaled.

A single large eye and a horn growing from the top of his head. If he carried a club and wore furs, it would have been a perfect match…though I won’t say to what.

“Gigas! Hey, are you listening to me?!”

I wonder if it’s asking too much for your voice to reach him in this blizzard, Mircalla.

“Ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh.”

Oh, did he hear her? Gigas moves his large eye and looks down at us.

“Ihhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh…”

Ih?

“…tttttttttttttsssssssssssssss…”

Ts?

“…yyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyy…”

Y?

“…uuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuu.”

U?

It’s you?

“Ugh, every syllable is taking forever! I remember now—this is how you’ve always been!”

Mircalla is indignant.

Whether Gigas can hear Mircalla’s voice or not, he slowly lifts his right leg, thicker and longer than the Worldtree.

Its giant sole blots out the sky, filling our vision.

“T​h​a​a​a​a​a​a​a​a​a​a​a​a​a​a​t h​u​u​u​u​u​u​u​u​u​u​u​u​u​u​u​u​u​u​r​t m​y​y​y​y​y​y​y​y​y​y​y​y​y​y​y​y​y​y​y​y​y​y​y​y​y f​o​o​o​o​o​o​o​o​o​o​o​o​o​o​o​o​o​o​o​o​o​o​o​o​o​o​o​o​o​o​o​t​!!”

It’s you, that hurt my foot. I see, I see.

“Arwf? (Wait, that? After all this, that’s what you were talking about?)”

It takes way too long for us to communicate. We can’t even have a proper conversation like this!

“I​I​I​I​I​I​I​I​I​I​I​I​I​I​I​I​I w​i​i​i​i​i​i​i​i​i​i​i​i​i​i​l​l​l​l​l​l​l​l​l​l​l c​r​u​u​u​u​u​u​u​u​u​u​u​u​u​u​u​u​u​u​u​u​s​h​h​h​h​h​h​h​h​h​h​h​h​h​h y​o​o​o​o​o​o​o​o​o​u​u​u​u​u​u​u​u​u​u​u​u​u​u​u​!!”

“Arwf! (Yikes! Run away! Scram! Go!)”

I give the signal to everybody, then scoop up Mircalla in my mouth by her collar and take a big leap away from that location.

Gigas’s movements appear slow, but he only seems that way because he’s just so enormous. He’s actually moving so fast he’s almost breaking the speed of sound.

The incredible mass slams down into the spot we were in just seconds ago.

The impact rips the earth up and envelops us all in a blast of wind.

Meanwhile, at the mansion, its master, Gandolf Von Faulks, had his teeth deep in his work at his business desk.

The work must have really piled up, since even Miranda, the maid helping him as his secretary, couldn’t hide her own tiredness.

“Master, let’s take a break. Trying to fit any more in will only lower your efficiency.”

“You’re right… Time for a short break, then. I’ll put on the tea. Miranda, you can stay seated.”

“Please, that’s my responsibility. It would be good for you to step away from your desk. Why don’t you open a window? It will air the room out.”

“Mm. Yes, I am pretty stiff. The view outside should be a good rest for my eyes.”

As Miranda prepared the tea, Gandolf opened the curtains, then put a hand on the window.

“…Miranda?”

“Yes?”

“…I can see a giant standing past the mountains.”

Gandolf stared outside. At the sacred mountain, towering far to the north, stood a figure. He identified what he was seeing as logically impossible, but his eyes confirmed this sight: It was a giant person.

As he stared flabbergasted at the unbelievable sight, Miranda looked at him sadly.

“Master…you seem considerably exhausted.”

“Exhausted… Yes, it’s the exhaustion. I had no idea I was tired enough to hallucinate… I’m glad I took a break. Thank you for your advice, Miranda.”

“I’ll be sure to put extra sugar in your tea.”

“Ah yes. Some honey, too, if you please.”

Gandolf rubbed his temples, then turned away from the window and pretended he hadn’t seen what was outside.

“Warrrffffffffffff?! (Whoaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa?!)”

What incredible destructive force. A single step, and he altered the mountain’s shape.

Knocked away by the blast of wind, we manage to land in a safe area.

“Woof?! (Is everyone all right?!)”

All of the Fen Wolves are by my side, thanks to their agility. Len and Nahura are in my mane.

“Ooh, I feel sick…”

I yanked her full force by the neck, and Mircalla’s eyes are spinning.

“Arwf! (Great! We’re all okay!)”

“I am not okay! If you’d snapped my neck, so help me…! You can’t treat someone like that just because she’s an immortal!”

Well, you seem pretty energetic. I put my front paw on the yelling and screaming Mircalla’s face to silence her, then look up at Gigas.

“Doooooooooooooon’t dooooooooooooooooooodge!!”

“Woof. (But if we don’t, we’ll die.)”

I might be able to withstand the attack given how tough I am, but I’d probably get buried alive.

“E​a​a​a​a​a​a​a​a​a​a​a​t s​l​e​e​e​e​e​e​e​e​e​e​e​p​!! G​e​e​e​e​e​e​e​e​e​e​e​e​e​e​e​t i​i​i​i​i​i​i​i​i​i​i​i​i​i​i​n t​h​e​e​e​e​e​e​e​e​e​e​e​e​e​e​e w​a​a​a​a​a​a​a​a​a​a​a​a​a​a​y a​a​a​a​a​a​a​a​a​a​n​d b​e​e​e​e​e​e​e​e​e​e​e​e​e​e​e c​r​u​u​u​u​u​u​u​u​s​s​s​s​s​s​s​s​h​h​h​h​h​h​e​d​!!”

He’ll crush anyone who gets in the way of his eating and sleeping? That’s a mood. I want to do nothing but eat and sleep every day, too.

While I’m sympathizing, Gigas slowly reaches out with a hand and rips off a piece of the sacred mountain’s peak. Then he starts to eat the hard boulder.

Now that his thirst has been slaked from draining the water, he looks like he’s hungry. He seems to take a liking to the flavor of the mountain, and he rips out one boulder after another and puts them in his mouth. His speed is dreadful, and the mountain’s peak quickly wanes in size.

“Arwf… (Hang on… If we leave him alone, is he gonna eat the entire mountain…?)”

“Grwl? (And should the sacred mountain be flattened, would he dig into the ground?)”

I wonder. If he never moves from this mountain, I feel like we don’t necessarily have to be his enemy.

“T​h​a​a​a​a​a​a​a​a​a​t f​o​o​o​o​o​o​o​o​o​o​o​r​e​e​e​e​e​e​e​e​e​e​e​e​s​t l​o​o​o​o​o​o​o​o​o​o​o​o​o​o​o​o​o​k​s t​a​a​a​a​a​a​a​a​a​a​a​a​a​s​t​y​y​y​y​y​y​y​y​y​y​y​y​y t​o​o​o​o​o​o​o​o​o​o​o​o!!”

What, so you’ll eat anything? I’ve never heard the words that forest looks tasty in that order. Gigas seems to have expressed an interest in the forest after the sacred mountain. Once the mountain is gone, he will probably start advancing toward it.

“Grwl! (My king! The forest is where…!)”

“Woof. (I know. I guess we’ll have to fight.)”

The forest is where our friends live, and past that is the mansion. I can’t stand the thought of this thing eating everything I care about like it’s a snack. But with an opponent this big, will my beam work? He was only in pain from having a hole blown through his foot. It doesn’t seem like he’s been significantly damaged.

“Arwf. (But that doesn’t mean I can sit by and watch it happen.)”

I dig all four limbs into the ground and fire a beam with all my might.

“Arwwoooooooooooooooooooooooo!!”

The super-thick beam I fire strikes Gigas right in the belly, then pierces through his body, leaving a hole behind.

“……”

Gigas stops moving.

“Squeak?! (Did we get it?!)”

Hey! Don’t jinx us.

Now that Gigas has stopped, he doesn’t even budge. It concerns me that not even a drop of blood is trickling from the hole I tore open. Actually, come to think of it, the hole itself is starting to close, little by little.

“Arwf! (Crap! He’s healing!)”

“Squeak! (Keep firing, milord! Fire, fire, fire!)”

I got it! If one beam didn’t take him down, I’ll do it with a thousand.

“A​r​r​r​w​o​o​o​o​o​o​o​o​o​o​o​o​o​o​o​o​o​o​o​o​o​!​! A​r​r​r​w​o​o​o​o​o​o​o​o​o​o​o​o​o​o​o​o​o​o​o​o​o​!! A​r​r​r​w​o​o​o​o​o​o​o​o​o​o​o​o​o​o​o​o​o​o​o​o​o​!!”

I rapid-fire beams.

“Huff, huff… (I guess a thousand was out of the question…)”

I’m out of breath with ten. My throat hurts.

“Squeak?! (Did we get it?!)”

I told you not to jinx us!

There’s a bunch of holes in Gigas’s body now, but no signs of their having done very much, unfortunately. Gigas’s body is just too big compared the holes my beams made. They may be piercing his skin, but they haven’t done any more damage than a bunch of hypodermic needles pricking a person. As expected, those holes quickly begin to close up, too.

“…Tha…”

After not having moved at all for a few moments, Gigas opens his mouth. A half-eaten boulder falls to the ground, and then his monstrous voice cries out:

“T​h​a​a​a​a​a​a​a​a​a​a​a​a​a​a​a​a​a​a​a​a​a​a​a​t h​u​u​u​u​u​u​u​u​u​u​u​u​u​u​u​u​u​u​u​u​u​u​u​u​u​u​u​u​u​u​u​u​u​u​u​r​t​!!”

You’re talking about that now?! You have some seriously slow reflexes!

“N​o​o​o​o​o​o​o​o​o​o​o​o​o m​o​o​o​o​o​o​o​o​o​o​o​o​o​o​o​o​o​o​o​o​r​e f​o​o​o​o​o​o​o​o​o​o​o​r​g​i​i​i​i​i​i​i​i​i​i​i​i​i​i​i​i​v​e​n​e​e​e​e​e​e​e​e​e​e​e​e​e​e​e​e​e​e​s​s​!!”

Gigas stomps the ground in anger.

But that’s enough to blow up the entire area like it’s just been bombed.

“Arrrrrrwwwwwwwwwf!! (Run away, run away!! If it hits you, you’ll die!!)”

We scramble to get out of the way of Gigas’s foot.

Our attacks aren’t working, and the giant’s attacks are insta-kills. Me aside, the other Fen Wolves are exhausted. How the heck are we supposed to beat something like this?

“Oogh… I got swung around so much I feel like I’m going to throw up…”

Mircalla is moaning with one hand clasped over her mouth. If we keep running around to get away like this, Mircalla will go from bloodsucker to upchucker.

“Woof, woof! (Mircalla! Doesn’t he have a weakness?!)”

“Wh-why would I tell you something like that—?”

“Woof, woof! (Please, Mircalla! Please tell me!)”

“Ah… When you look at me with such earnestness… F-fine, then. It would leave a bad aftertaste if anything happened to the people at the mansion, so I’ll tell you just this once! You’d better be grateful!”

Wait, really? Guess all you have to do is ask.

“His weakness…”

“Arwf…? (His weakness…?)”

Gulp. As I swallow, Mircalla sticks out her chest and answers with pure confidence:

“His weakness is that he’s dumb! Really dumb!”

I see! He’s dumb!

I know that! You can tell just by looking at him!

“Arwf?! (Anything else?!)”

“Anything…else? I—I mean… Well, he costs a fortune in food expenses… If left alone, he would have been able to eat my entire palace, so…”

I can tell that by looking at him, too!

“Arwf! (Damn it! Stupid useless blond-haired loli maid!)”

“What did you just say?! How insolent! I even did you the favor of telling you!”

If you were going to tell me something, I’d appreciate it if it were useful. Gigas being really dumb and costing a lot in food expenses are two pieces of information that have exactly zero use in this battle right now.

“Squeak. (What are you saying? Milord, you still haven’t taken this seriously.)”

“Woof! (I’m super serious! I was super serious when I shot those beams before!)”

You grossly overestimate me all the time. What do you want? I’m just a dog who can barf up laser beams!

“Squeak! (No, you still haven’t gotten serious!)”

How can you say that so matter-of-factly?

“Squeak, squeak! (Milord, you haven’t dispelled your shape-shifting yet!)”

Dispel my shape-shifting? What would be the point of that?

“Squeak! (It’s the same as how I can’t use my power when in mouse form!)”

Is that why Len partially goes from a mouse back to a dragon when she fights? Come to think of it, Garo is in Fen Wolf form whenever she’s serious, too.

“Squeak! (That’s right! This is a temporary form meant to restrain your power! Regain your true form along with your true strength!)”

Still, though, you know what my true form is. I’ll just get a little bigger than I am now. And since all I do is eat and never exercise, I’m pretty sure I’ll turn into a fatty. Even if I bare my chubby round body, I won’t be able to move anymore, and he’ll just scoop me up for a snack!

“Squeak! (Just do it already!)”

“Woof, woof. (Ow, that hurts. Quit biting me.)”

Either way, we don’t have any options right now. I decide to go along with Len and dispel the shape-shifting art.

I release the restriction maintaining this form that I so firmly decided upon. My body, with the spell lifted, begins to glow brightly, and then—the fluffiness pierces the heavens.

Back at the Faulks estate, break time was about to end.

A porcelain teacup was set down, now empty. The black tea, with plenty of honey in it, had had a deep sweetness that completely ruined the taste of the leaves, but it had worked wonders for a tired body.

Gandolf, lord of the mansion, gave a big stretch.

“Phew. My exhaustion has all flown away, thanks to that tea.”

“I am glad to hear it.”

“Then let’s give it another go… Actually, there is one thing I’d like to make sure of.”

Gandolf decided to challenge the window again—the window from which he’d seen the hallucination before. A giant standing on the sacred mountain? Common sense dictated that was impossible. How terribly tired he must have been to have seen something like that.

Physically refreshed, Gandolf leisurely swung open the curtains and the window.

“………Miranda?”

“Yes?”

Miranda, who had been clearing away the tea things, looked up.

“…I can see a giant past the mountains.”

“…Master… You’re still so tired… It breaks my heart…”

Miranda gazed at Gandolf with grieving eyes.

“No, please listen. That’s not all. Next to the giant is Routa, and he’s much bigger. He’s piercing the clouds; he could even reach the stars.”

“…I’m sorry. I’m not entirely sure what you’re getting at.”

Had the master finally gone mad from overwork? Miranda was worried.

“I don’t know what’s happening here, either! But there he is—Routa! An enormous Routa! Look! See?!”

“Please calm down, Master! There is no such sight to be seen! I must tell you that I—I can see it?!”

“You can see it, right?!”

“I can!”

Routa, so gigantic he disrupted their sense of distance, towered high over even the sacred mountain.

“To think we would see the same hallucination…! Could this really be…?!” Miranda balked.

“Could it be…?!”

Gandolf and Miranda exchanged glances, then came to the exact same conclusion.

“Overwork, right?” he tried to confirm.

“Yes, overwork. There is no doubt.”

They nodded gravely.

“How could this happen? I had no idea I was this exhausted…”

“It appears I have been pushing myself a little too hard as well.”

“Let’s call it quits for today. No work. Miranda, you get some rest as well. I give you permission.”

“I will do that, sir.”

“I must say, though, that is such a ridiculous hallucination.”

“Yes, indeed. This has taught me a valuable lesson about the dangers of working too much. I will be sure to take breaks when appropriate from now on.”

The two were, as always, blind to the truth.

After being enveloped in a white light, I stood there, baffled.

“Arwf…? (What? Why does the sky look so dark…?)”

And the horizon looks like it’s bent into a round shape. Also, the air feels kinda thin.

I thought I was just on the sacred mountain. Where am I?

After dispelling the shape-shifting technique, I should have returned to my original form. It wasn’t supposed to change where I was standing, but I have no recollection of this place.

“GAROON! (Milord!)”

Oh? Len leaps into vision, having returned to her dragon form.

But despite her currently being the shape of a dragon, her size is still that of a mouse. In fact, she might have even gotten smaller. Why did she do a transformation like that?

“Arf. (What’s wrong, Len? You got pretty small.)”

She’s kind of cute, too, flapping her little wings like that.

“GARORO! (I am not small—you have grown too large, milord! Look at your feet!)”

“Arf? (My feet?)”

I look at my body another time, and when I realize what’s happened to me, I scream.

“A-arrrrwwwwwww!! (M-my body—it’s so enormous!!)”

My giganticness seems to shun the very world—truly fitting of the name of Fenrir, the beast whose jaw was said to reach the heavens, the one who shook the entire earth.

“Arwf, arwf?! (Acting cool with my knowledge of mythology from my past life is fine and everything, but how could I be so big?! How the heck did I get to this size in just a few months?!)”

This rate of growth is absolutely insane. It’s a good thing nothing happened near the mansion that required me to shape-shift. I’d never be able to explain this away, no matter how hard I tried.

“Arwf?! (Wait, wouldn’t you be able to see me from the mansion?!)”

The sacred mountain at my feet is visible from there, so there’s no way they wouldn’t see me when I’m far larger.

“A-arwf, arwf…! (Th-this is bad! I gotta get small again, and quick…!)”

In order to do that, I’ll need to defeat Gigas immediately.

Where is he? Where’s Gigas?

“GARORO. (Down—directly below you. He is right next to your front leg.)”

“Arf. (Oh. You’re right.)”

Gigas is staring up at me, mouth agape.

“H​e​e​e​e​e​e​e​e​e​e​e​e​e​e​e​e​e​e​e​e’s b​i​i​i​i​i​i​i​i​i​i​i​i​i​g​g​e​e​e​e​e​e​e​e​e​e​e​e​e​e​r t​h​a​a​a​a​a​a​a​a​a​a​a​a​a​a​a​a​a​an m​e​e​e​e​e​e​e​e​e​e​e​e​e​e​e​e​e​e​!!”

Gigas was so tremendous before, but now, he’s the size of a doll.

“Arf. (Hmm.)”

I slowly lift my front leg and put it on Gigas’s head.

“Woof. (Here we go.)”

I put a little weight into it and hear a crack.

Gigas pathetically flattens underneath my paw.

“…Arf. (…Guess that’s a win.)”

He was a powerful enemy who caused us so much struggle, and I defeated him in an instant. Are victories like this really the best way to go about things?

“GARORO! (Amazing, milord! Quite literally a crushing victory!)”

Len happily flits around me.

Gigas probably never thought the day would come when he’d be crushed by someone bigger than him, either.

“Arf. (Well, a win’s a win, right? Len, please re-cast the shape-shifting spell on me. I want to go back right now.)”

“GARO. (That seems like a waste. I prefer you as you are now.)”

But I don’t! You can’t raise a pet this big.

“GARO. (You could conquer the world at any time if you so wished. You are humble as always, milord.)”

Conquering the world? No thanks. I’m really enjoying my current life. There’s no better life than being a dog raised by rich people. So please hurry up and make me small again.

“GARO. (I suppose. If you insist, milord, then as your wife, I can only obey.)”

I don’t even have the energy to retort that she’s not my wife. I’m tired from running all the way to the sacred mountain, I’m worried that I was seen from the mansion, and I may have peed myself a little because of how scary Gigas was.

I have Len cast the spell on me again, and after I get small, I go back to Garo and the others.

“Grwl! (My king! That was a marvelous fight! I saw with my own eyes how you crushed that giant to death!)”

All I did was press him a little bit with my front paw, but it must have looked like an amazing force from below.

“I can’t believe Gigas would be defeated in such a nonsensical way…”

“Arwf. (Sorry for beating up one of your friends, Mircalla.)”

“…I don’t care. I’m not in the Demon Lord’s army anymore anyway. And besides, that witch is probably gonna grab him, too.”

“Oh, you know me so well.”

“E-eek?! When did you get there?!”

Mircalla gives a shriek and hides behind me. That’s a little too scared, if you ask me.

“Woof. (Yo, Hecate. Same as always?)”

I wonder what she’s going to steal a fallen general’s power to use for this time. This happens every time, so I’ve gotten used to it, too.

“…You never doubt me, do you, Routa?”

That’s because I don’t feel the need to. Hecate doesn’t seem like someone who would steal the Demon Lord’s army’s power and use it for evil purposes. And I know she’s saved me a few times already.

Most of all, I make it a point to never interfere in anything that isn’t related to my life as a pet.

“You really are something.” Hecate gives a wry grin, almost astonished. “In any case, I’ll send you back to the mansion.”

“Arwf! (Oh, wait a sec! Instead of the mansion, can you send us to the hot spring?)”

I’m positively freezing because we’re here in the cold. There’s even frost crystallizing on my mane. I’d like to warm up in the hot spring first, at least, before going home.

And we can just have Nahura send us back when we’re done.

“Arf. (Come to think of it, Nahura’s been pretty quiet.)”

I glance behind me and see Nahura has fallen out of my mane and is now still as a rock.

“A-arwf?! (Sh-she’s frozen?!)”

We hurry and launch Nahura into the hot spring. As soon as she thaws, she springs back to life. Like a cheap toy.

“Meow! (Well, now, I am quite sorry for causing so much worry!)” Nahura apologizes, lying on the edge of the hot spring. The rocks, heated by the water, seem quite comfortable for lying on.

“Arwwfff… (I feel like a new dog…)”

The rest of us soak in the hot spring as well, leisurely relaxing our frozen bodies.

“Ugh, why am I even here…? Well, I suppose my toes were pretty cold. I was practically about to get frostbite.”

Mircalla, who took off only her shoes, is swishing her feet around in the hot water.

“Mew, mew? (Mircalla, do you hate baths, too? You’re just like me!)”

“No! I got dragged here in the middle of my job! Also, I still have things to do after this! Send me back this instant!”

Prioritizing your work over this warm, bubbly hot spring? The maid spirit seems to have permeated you.

“Arf. (Well, we’re all warmed up now, so let’s head back.)”

While we were soaking in the hot spring, the river’s water level recovered quite a bit. We can hear the rolling of the waterfall from here, too.

That should solve the water shortage. The sacred mountain’s terrain changed a little, but aside from the scenery, there shouldn’t be any problems.

“Arwf! (Okay—let’s go home!)”

With Nahura’s spatial magic, we warp near the mansion.

“Grwl! (Lord Routa, thank you for once again deigning to save us!)”

“““Grwl! Grwl! Grwl! (Our king! Our king! Thank you very much!)”””

“Woof. (Right. See you later.)”

We see Garo and the other Fen Wolves off, then head for the mansion’s front gate together.

“I’ll go in through the back. Bye.”

So she won’t be caught slacking, Mircalla goes off to sneak back into the mansion via the back door. Sorry for summoning you so abruptly. Good luck in the rest of your work.

I, not feeling particularly like I skipped out on my duties, return to the mansion through the front gate.

“Oh, Routa? Did you go out?”

It’s Papa. What has he been doing near the gate? Is he done with work?

“I took the rest of the day off. I was so wiped out, I was seeing things. I saw a huge Routa out the window at the sacred mountain! Funny, right? Ha-ha-ha!”

“Arw-rw… (Ha-ha-ha… Funny…)”

Yeah, he definitely saw me when I was gigantic. But instead of suspecting my true identity, he’s convinced himself he was hallucinating. I’d expect nothing less from Papa. Your blindness is alive and well.

“I decided it was a good chance to take you out for a walk, but Dr. Hecate was here a little while ago.”

Hecate? I figured she’d come to the hot spring once she was done, but she didn’t. She came back to the mansion?

“She left this stone statue here, saying something about it being lucky. I don’t care for statues, but I do hope it wards off evil.”

Papa looks up at a stone statue standing there, about three meters tall.

When I see it, I start coughing.

“Argh?! (Wait, isn’t that Gigas?!)”

The giant I just defeated moments ago has been reduced in size and placed right there.

“I​I​I​I​I​I​I​I​I​I​I​I d​o​o​o​o​o​o​o​o​o​o​n’t h​a​a​a​a​a​a​a​a​v​e t​o​o​o​o​o​o​o​o​o​o​o m​o​o​o​o​o​o​o​o​o​o​o​o​v​e. V​e​e​e​e​e​e​r​y​y​y​y​y​y​y​y n​i​i​i​i​i​i​i​i​i​i​i​c​e. N​o​o​o​o​o​o​o​w I​I​I​I​I​I​I​I​I c​a​a​a​a​a​a​a​a​n s​l​e​e​e​e​e​e​e​p a​a​a​a​a​a​a​a​l​l t​h​e​e​e​e​e​e​e​e​e t​i​i​i​i​i​i​i​i​i​i​i​i​m​e.”

Gigas speaks in a voice Papa can’t hear. Despite having been made into a statue, Gigas himself seems happy.

Anyway, why does Hecate keep putting the generals at the mansion after stealing their power?

My land of peace and tranquility is changing into a place infested with demons. At this rate, about 30 percent of the residents will be monsters.

“Oh, Routa! Welcome home! I’m finished studying, so let’s go play!”

Lady Mary waves to me from her second-story window.

Ignorant of how the mansion is steadily becoming a home for monsters, she’s adorable again today in her youthful innocence.

“Woof, woof! (Gladly! What should we play? Should we play tag? We haven’t played that in a while.)”

She runs down the stairs and flings open the front door, and I catch her with my fluff.

“Father! Father, do you want to play, too?!”

“Oh, you’re inviting me? That makes me happy.”

“It’s been a really, really long time since I got you to play with me! What a wonderful day this is!”

“It seems I’ve been too engrossed in my work of late. If I’m so far gone that I’m hallucinating, it’s all over. I’m going to delegate more of my tasks and rest more from now on.”

“Really?! I’m so happy!!”

Lady Mary’s smile is positively radiant. When she’s happy, I get happy, too.

Okay! Today is play day!

“Father, we’ll play tag first!”

“Ha-ha-ha. No matter how old you are, you’re always a tomboy. Well, if I’m going to play, I’m not going to lose so easily. Are you ready?”

“Bring it on!”

“Arwf! (Yeah—come at me!)”

We run around the courtyard, playing until Papa drops to his knees in exhaustion.

Without any way for Papa to keep up with the stamina of a child and a dog, he’ll probably wake up tomorrow with his whole body sore and have to rest even more.