Gluttony Demon King with the Swampman ~A Man with No Magic Power Who Dreamed of Magic, Wielding Knowledge from His Past Life Through Steady Research and Hard Work to Become the Most Vicious Final Boss~ - Chapter 48: A Decadent Daily Life That Could Almost Be Called an Epilogue (2)

Chapter 48: A Decadent Daily Life That Could Almost Be Called an Epilogue (2)

We began preparing to move.

That said, packing was no problem at all.

Noiche’s subspace pouch can hold literally anything.

Oz quietly finished all the chores like arranging carriages, maps, and stocking food while we were away.

The only thing we really did was go around saying goodbye to everyone who had looked after us.

First stop: Adventurer Guild, Dura branch.

Guildmaster Dordwin welcomed us and said with deep feeling,

“From the day you arrived until the day you left, it was nothing but storms.”

I truly am sorry about that.

The Sword Demon King, the mess with the hero—he must have had no peace of mind the whole time.

“Haro, congratulations on reaching A-rank. But once you start taking B-rank and above requests, it’d be best to stick with the young ladies from House Levi for a while. From here on, manners and refinement become very important.”

“Understood.”

I bowed deeply in thanks, and Dordwin saw us off with a cheerful laugh.

By the way, the guild buzzed the moment I walked in. Apparently becoming A-rank at my age is the youngest record in all of Dura.

“…I really don’t like being the center of attention.”

Next was Egiy’s former workplace, the blacksmith group “Zilmoza’s Flame.”

Master Zilmoza is still detained by the kingdom, so his top disciple, the dog beastman Aljan, was acting as representative.

“Old man left for the capital yesterday with Lord Witruwius. They’re going to the Magic Association headquarters to investigate Demon King influence.”

I see.

That means Zilmoza’s suspicion has been cleared. Good news.

“Haro-kun… what kind of person is Lord Witruwius, from your point of view?”

“I think he’s very trustworthy.”

When I answered honestly, Aljan let out a relieved breath.

He’s a reliable old man. The heroes under him may be shallow thinkers with strong preconceptions, but they don’t seem like outright villains. They’ll be fine.

Aljan also spoke to Egiy.

“Egiy, how’s work on your end?”

“I-it’s fun! Right now I’m adjusting Haro-kun’s prosthetic arm together with him…!”

“That’s important work.”

He rumbled happily deep in his throat.

“Well then, Egiy. Just like I heard, the old man’s fine. So go without worry.”

…Being seen off like that, I felt a little reluctant to leave. This really had been a city full of good people.

Will we ever meet people like them again?

Come to think of it, I suddenly wondered and quietly asked Aljan,

“Hey, Aljan-san.”

“…Yeah?”

“How old is Egiy, exactly…?”

I didn’t need to finish the sentence.

Aljan answered with a troubled look.

“…Over a hundred years older than me. At first I had no idea how to treat her.”

Yeah, figures.

A long-lived elf acting that deferential.

We both chuckled and clapped each other on the shoulder one last time.

Last stop: Oz and the monastery.

The children peeked at us from behind while the oldest boy, Raoul, looked back and forth between me and Oz.

“Big Sis Oz, so that guy bought you.”

“…Yes.”

“Got it. Should be fine, though. I personally guarantee that guy’s strength!”

I was stunned at the confidence, but Raoul seemed surprisingly okay with it, so I tilted my head.

“…You’re not upset? We don’t even know when she’ll be back.”

“Huh? Nah, well… that was always the plan anyway.”

What did he mean?

When I tilted my head again, Oz answered.

“I was originally supposed to be sent into service at a merchant house. Right around then my magic eyes went out of control and the arrangement fell through…”

Oh, I see.

Then I guess I got lucky. I managed to snatch up a rare magic-eye user.

“Well then, kid—no, Haro, right? Take care of Big Sis Oz.”

“Yeah.”

“Big Sis Oz! If he does anything weird, run back here!”

“Yes.”

Sorry, already doing plenty of weird things.

Or rather, having weird things done to me. Yesterday they basically spent the entire day slowly milking me dry.

Of course I can’t let the kids find out—way too corrupting.

“Big Sis Oz! See you again!”

“Come back anytime!”

Waving goodbye to the cheering children, we left the monastery behind.

“…Shall we depart, then?”

“Yeah.”

That very day we left the city.

Being A-rank apparently comes with travel privileges—even Egiy and Oz, who aren’t adventurers, could pass the gate under my name.

Our ride: a carriage.

A fancy unmanned one this time. No driver needed—the horses are enchanted to remember the route and head to the destination on their own.

“If anything happens, I can take the reins.”

Oz can even handle horses.

She really is ridiculously capable for someone raised in a monastery.

Inside the bigger box-type carriage, Zaria, Noiche, Egiy, and Oz each kill time however they like. A very relaxed journey.

Our destination this time is the city of Terranon.

At my request: a quiet town with lots of interesting ruins nearby and not many people or adventurers.

Dura was a great city, but all that adventurer bustle didn’t really suit me.

I glanced at Egiy inside the carriage.

What caught my eye was the thin stack of papers in her hand.

A newspaper. Thanks to advanced papermaking and printing for magical education, even commoners can get one if they have a little money.

When I looked over, Zaria noticed too.

“Egiy, anything interesting in the news?”

“…Huh? Y-yeah! Actually, super timely news!”

She’d been completely absorbed in reading and came back to reality with a slightly dazed look.

Timely news?

When we urged her to continue, Egiy summarized while reading aloud.

“It’s about the heroes and Demon Kings. The seven heroes are finally all gathered… and thanks to the capital observatory, the names of all seven Demon Kings have been revealed too.”

“For real? They found the last hero!”

“…Observatory? Then it was big brother.”

Come to think of it, only six heroes had been found before. If they’re all together now, that’s great news.

But Egiy corrected one thing.

“Ah, no… it’s not that they ‘found’ the last one, they ‘summoned’ him.”

“Summoned? What does that mean?”

“Yeah. Using a secret ritual passed down in the kingdom, they summoned the final hero from another world. Thus the seven heroes are assembled, and together with the names of the seven Demon Kings, they are revealed here.”

—Another world?

The word made me twitch involuntarily.

But Egiy didn’t notice my reaction and kept reading.

“The hero who has manifested in this land, and the names of the Demon Kings are—”

Hero of Flame.
Hero of Flowers.
Hero of Armor.
Hero of Light.
Golden Hero.
Hero of Dragons.
Hero of Another World.

Demon King of Ashes.
Demon King of Thorns.
Sword Demon King.
Demon King of Darkness.
Demon King of Dreams.
Demon King of Storms.
Demon King of Another Star.

“…Hero of Another World, huh.”

A hero summoned from another world.

Yeah, that’s pretty standard fantasy fare. A bit cliché, even.

“Ashes, Thorns, Sword, Darkness, Dreams, Storms, Another Star…”

Noiche counted the Demon King names on her fingers.

“…Oz’s magic eyes grew stronger along with signs of the Demon Kings reviving, right?”

“Yes, that seems to be the case.”

“Then… Oz’s magic eyes are connected to the bloodline of one of these seven Demon Kings?”

Yeah, that does follow.

Oz nodded at Noiche’s words.

“I don’t know my parents’ faces, so I can’t say for sure… but I can make an educated guess from my own blood.”

“You have an idea?”

“Yes.”

Oz nodded and continued.

“The Demon King of Dreams—roughly two hundred years ago, the succubus queen who took over an entire country with sleep and puppet-master magic eyes. I most likely carry distant blood from one of her kin.”

Then Oz looked a little embarrassed—

She turned her face slightly away and said quietly,

“In other words, I’m a half-human, half-succubus.”

…Uh, yeah, well.

Sorry to interrupt while you’re embarrassed, but from my point of view that explains everything perfectly.