Vol 1 Chapter 19 – Why I Think Japanese People Are Strange After All【Vol 1 – When Written in Kanji, It’s Saionji Yumeba】

The young man’s name was apparently Tortellas. His nickname was Torte.

He was around 175 centimeters tall, with a medium build, an ordinary face, wavy brown hair, and slightly dark brown eyes.

His age was 18, and his profession was adventurer.

Technically, he was a B-Class adventurer confident in his swordsmanship, but when it came to magic, he could apparently only use the elementary spells necessary for daily life.

And he was a womanizer with five women attending to him…

“Ah. Since I left one back at the inn, strictly speaking, it’s six.”

“……”

He’s a harem bastard with six women at his beck and call.

I somehow understood that every man in the cafeteria was praying for divine punishment upon Tortellas.

Since there was no particular reason to accompany them, Yumeba and I parted ways with them immediately after finishing our meal, but…

“So those kinds of people exist in the world too, huh.”

“He looks like he’d be popular with women, but he’s the type men would hate to death.”

Even after leaving the cafeteria, we couldn’t help but bring them up.

“…Are you envious, Lio?”

And then, Yumeba secretly laid a trap.

“I’m perfectly fine as long as I have just you, Yumeba.”

“Mmhmm ♪”

I won’t be tricked.

Yumeba is smiling, but I know that if I had hesitated even slightly at that question, she intended to interrogate me thoroughly.

The possessiveness of a Saionji woman cannot be measured by ordinary common sense.

Yumeba won’t show mercy just because there’s a slight possibility, and she’ll only remain an adorable wife as long as she has me all to herself.

I thought I’d never see Tortellas again, but our reunion happened far sooner than I imagined.

After leaving the cafeteria, Yumeba and I were taking a post-meal stroll while flirting when a woman dressed in rags tumbled out of a back alley.

As Yumeba and I widened our eyes wondering what was happening, the woman started running barefoot, and multiple men burst out of the alley chasing after her.

The woman seemed to flee desperately but was inevitably caught and pinned to the ground—and that’s when Tortellas happened to pass by.

Tortellas, who for some reason was acting separately from his women, flew into a rage upon seeing the woman pinned to the ground by the men. He swung his sheathed sword around and drove them back.

Then the men shouted something angrily, and upon hearing it, Tortellas hesitated for a moment before handing something over to them.

The men looked back and forth between Tortellas and the woman for a while, but eventually took what Tortellas offered and left.

After the men had gone, the woman asked Tortellas something, Tortellas answered something—and the woman clung to Tortellas and began to cry.

After that, Tortellas left while holding the shoulder of the weeping woman.

“What was that?”

“Who knows?”

Having been shown the entire sequence of that farce, Yumeba and I were at a loss for how to react.

No. I understood how Tortellas increased his number of women, but because it was so clichéd, I didn’t know whether to be exasperated or impressed.

The only thing I knew for sure was that Tortellas’s women had increased to seven.

◇◇◇

Leaving Tortellas aside, this city—or rather, this region—has frequent earthquakes.

The fact that hot springs emerge means there’s a volcano nearby, so it’s likely a region prone to earthquakes due to that influence.

“Kyaa!”

Since earthquakes rarely happen in the Empire, Yumeba, who grew up there, clings to me with teary eyes and trembles every time a small tremor occurs.

Yumeba pleading with teary eyes was very cute, but…

“W-Why are you so calm, Lio?”

“…Maybe because I’m used to it.”

If anything, recalling my previous life raised in Japan, a major earthquake power, I’m probably the strange one for not being fazed by a seismic intensity of 2 or 3.

Or rather, Japanese people who are used to earthquakes are the strange ones.

“T-The earth is shaking, you know? It’s natural to be scared of such a catastrophe.”

“The region where I lived in my past life had particularly frequent earthquakes. If you count the big and small ones, apparently the ground shook normally about 500 times a day.”

“What kind of hell is that?!”

No. I don’t think you could feel most of them, but statistically, apparently that many earthquakes occurred in Japan.

“So, when it shakes a little, I only think, ‘Ah, it’s shaking.'”

“Ugh. Doesn’t that make me look like an idiot for being the only one scared?”

The residents living in this city seem used to earthquakes as a matter of course too.

Though probably not to the extent of a Japanese person.

“It might be weird to say at a time like this, but you’re cute when you’re trembling with teary eyes too, Yumeba.”

“Ugh… You just remember this later.”

Hugging her, stroking her back, and soothing her is one of the perks.

For a moment, I thought about reaching down to stroke her butt, but since she seemed genuinely scared, I restrained myself.

Even after the earthquake stopped, Yumeba trembling nervously like a small animal and looking around vigilantly is also cute.

It’s also GOOD that she’s still scared and clinging to me, refusing to let go.

“H-Hey. Isn’t there magic to stop earthquakes or something with your magic, Lio?”

“That would require incredibly large-scale grand magic.”

I won’t say it’s impossible, but controlling crustal movements with magic would require something on a massive scale.

“Rather than developing magic like that, flying in the sky with magic is a far easier way to avoid earthquakes.”

“Ah.”

I won’t say flying solves everything, but it’s undoubtedly true that you can escape the effects of an earthquake by leaving the shaking ground.

“Lio. If another earthquake comes… will you fly with me?”

“…With pleasure.”

Yumeba-san pleading with upturned eyes is potent.

I feel like I’d give an immediate OK even if asked to co-sign a loan.

If another earthquake comes, I’ll invite her for a stroll in the sky via princess carry.

While flirting with Yumeba like that…

“Ah.”

Perhaps we were fated or something, but we spotted Tortellas’s party again.

“Wait… Did he gain another one?”

Moreover, as Yumeba said, eight women were now attending to him by his side.

“All of those are lovers or mistresses… right?”

“That was the story.”

“Is that person… incredible at night despite his appearance?”

“……”

Yumeba probably inferred his night life based on me, but normal men and women don’t do it every night.

Doing it every night with eight women would normally wring a guy dry.

That said, the possibility that Tortellas possesses stamina beyond imagination isn’t zero…

“I don’t feel envious in the slightest.”

“?”

I didn’t think I wanted to be like Tortellas even a bit.

At the very least, Yumeba is satisfied when I attend to her every night.

Not just words, but judging from her attitude and physical reactions, there’s no doubt Yumeba feels a sense of fulfillment. If I could express Yumeba’s stress numerically, I think it would be close to zero.

“Hello, Lio-san.”

While I was thinking that, Tortellas noticed us and came over to greet us, but…

“Don’t call Lio ‘Lio’.”

“Hk!”

Having carelessly used my nickname, which is only permitted for Yumeba, he was glared at by Yumeba with terrifyingly cold eyes, causing his face to twitch.

“Um, well…”

“I’m Emilio. The nickname ‘Lio’ is…”

I wrapped my arm around the waist of Yumeba, who was still glaring at Tortellas, and pulled her close.

“Only permitted for my beloved wife.”

“~♡”

Yumeba immediately fixed her mood and clung to me.

“Y-You were a married couple. I apologize for being overly familiar.”

“…There won’t be a next time.”

Yumeba has absolutely no interest in Tortellas, so she just gave a dismissive reply.

“You’ve gained another woman over there.”

“It’s not like I’m randomly increasing my companions. It’s just that when I help people facing unreasonable circumstances, many of them want to come with me.”

“Is it your policy not to help men?”

“If someone is in trouble, obviously I’d help them.”

“…Is that so.”

That doesn’t really explain why he only has women attending to him, but then again, this guy is despised by men.

Even if they were helped by him, they probably wouldn’t want to honestly thank him.

After that, for some reason, we ended up having lunch together. Since there were so many people, we decided to settle for food stalls, and for some reason, the manpower—Tortellas and I—ended up going out to buy food.

◇◆◇

Although it was temporary, having been separated from Emilio, Yumeba stifled a yawn from boredom.

There were eight women nearby, but since they weren’t exactly on terms where Yumeba would initiate conversation, she was ignoring them, but…

“Um…”

“Hm?”

“So you were a married couple. Considering you said you weren’t lovers the other day, I thought you seemed intimate… but now it makes sense.”

“…Thanks?”

Yumeba gave a strange response, unsure how to answer the woman who suddenly spoke to her.

The topic died there, but thinking it was a good opportunity, Yumeba decided to ask about something she had wondered earlier.

“You’re all that person’s lovers or mistresses, right?”

“Ah, yes.”

“How does that work at night?”

“……Excuse me?”

“Does he attend to all eight of you?”

” ” ” “……” ” ” “

Knowing what Yumeba wanted to ask, all eight women dyed their cheeks red.

“Um, well… right now it’s a rotation system.”

Among them, the woman who seemed to be the representative answered shyly while checking that Tortellas and the other hadn’t returned yet.

“Rotation system?”

“It’s impossible for him to attend to everyone at once, so he attends to one person per night.”

“Eh? But then… that means once every eight days?”

“No. Torte needs rest days too, so it’s every other day.”

“……”

Yumeba was the one left speechless by this.

It was obvious if you calculated it, but that meant they would be attended to by Tortellas at night once every sixteen days.

And if Tortellas continued helping people, the pace would drop even further.

“Don’t you get sexually frustrated with that?”

To Yumeba, who was satisfied by her beloved man almost every night and received a response whenever she asked, it seemed like an unimaginable penance.

“We’re fine. Because we love Torte.”

“I-I see.”

Yumeba’s face twitched grandly at the woman answering that it was fine because there was love.

Because even if Tortellas’s love was real—no, precisely because it was real, that love could only be given in one-eighth portions.

At least for Yumeba, a woman of the Saionji Ducal House, it was a form of love she absolutely could not understand.

“Um, you are…”

“Yumeba.”

“How is it for you, Yumeba-san?”

“How is what?”

“Do you love your husband… Emilio-san?”

“I love him more than anyone in this world.”

“……”

“I can be satisfied just by having me and Lio in this world. Conversely, I believe that in a world without Lio, there is no meaning for me to exist. The only thing important to me is Lio.”

That was Yumeba’s true feeling.

To a normal person, it’s the thinking of a madwoman, but for a woman of the Saionji Ducal House, it’s common sense they possess from birth.

Nothing to be ashamed of, nothing to hide, and nothing to boast about.

Because this is the Saionji Ducal House.

When Emilio and Tortellas returned, and Yumeba returned to Emilio’s side as if it were her designated position, the women ended up fighting anguish in their minds.

Without a single exception, they were people whose lives were saved by Tortellas or who received equivalent grace, and had asked to accompany him.

They loved Tortellas from the bottom of their hearts, and thought they could risk their lives for him.

(I shouldn’t think things like this… but I feel envious.)

Looking at Yumeba’s words and attitude, it was obvious she spent her time constantly one-on-one with Emilio.

In other words, she possessed 100% of the affection of the man she loved with all her heart.

They had never doubted Tortellas’s love—but it was also a fact that it was far from exclusive.

To put it clearly, they sensed the overwhelming difference in density and felt envy.

They say love is infinite, but even if love is infinite, logic dictates that if there are multiple women, the time spent together is divided.

It was natural to envy Yumeba, who monopolized both the love and time of her beloved man.

(I mustn’t waver. We live to repay our debt to Torte.)

And they fell into a quagmire of thought.

If they prioritized debt over love, the reason for being together would be dyed in a sense of duty.

If they were together because of a debt, it would mean love wasn’t necessarily required.

The doubt born from contact with Yumeba ended up thrusting a serious problem upon them.

◇◇◇

While eating the food bought from the stalls with Yumeba—suddenly, the ground shook.

“Kyaa!”

I wasn’t shaken, but Yumeba screamed as usual and clung to me…

“Whoops.”

The shaking was bigger than I thought, and I lost my balance too…

“Hup.”

As declared, I princess-carried Yumeba and soared into the air with flight magic where it wouldn’t shake.

Though only a few centimeters off the ground.

“Lio… Thanks ♡”

Having escaped the ground’s shaking and being held by me, Yumeba regained her composure, but…

“Guh. It’s big!”

Against the earthquake that continued to shake violently, Tortellas and his group couldn’t remain standing either and were lying prone on the ground.

“…This might be a bit bad.”

“What is?”

“An earthquake this big occurring… means a situation that isn’t very good is about to happen.”

The earthquake had already become big enough that standing was impossible, shaking at a level that wouldn’t end at intensity 4 or 5.

Furthermore, considering this is a hot spring town…

“W-What is this vibration?”

After a while, the earthquake subsided, but conversely, an unpleasant vibration transmitted through the ground, shaking in small tremors.

“We’re moving up a bit.”

“Ah, okay.”

Accompanied by Yumeba, I went to the sky above the city and looked around from a high position—discovering a tall mountain towering in the distance.

“Is something wrong with that mountain?”

“…It’s going to erupt.”

“Eh?”

“At this rate, magma will spew forcefully from that mountain and be launched high into the sky. Afterwards, the magma will flow down and turn the city into scorched earth.”

“……”

“It’s just a possibility, though.”

Earthquakes and volcanic eruptions have a close connection, and after a large earthquake, a volcanic eruption often occurs in conjunction.

It’s not certain it will erupt yet, but…

“L-Lio. Is… isn’t that mountain shaking?”

“…Better cover your ears.”

Immediately after I erected a soundproofing barrier to wrap around Yumeba and me—a vertical red pillar rose from the mountain that seemed to be a volcano.

Thanks to the soundproofing barrier, the roar didn’t reach us, but the vibration transmitted through, conveying the magnitude of the impact with a tingling sensation.

“What… is that?”

“A volcanic eruption… but the scale is beyond imagination. At this rate, magma will flow not just into the city but into the entire surrounding area.”

Looking down, the city was in a state of complete panic. Some were confused and flustered, some sat down paralyzed by fear, and others prayed to God for help. There was no one who accurately understood the current situation.

“W-What do we do?”

“The quickest way is to escape via teleportation, but…”

We are affiliates of the Empire, and we only came to this city for travel.

Even if we abandoned them and fled, there would be no grounds for anyone to blame us.

“However, my pride won’t allow me to abandon them when I have the power to save them. I won’t go all out with body and soul, but I don’t mind saving them within the scope of my leeway.”

“Giggle. What an arrogant way of thinking.”

“…Can’t be helped.”

Because I am the King of Pride—a Demon Lord who possesses the God-Slaying Weapon [Lucifer, King of Pride].

The God-Slaying Weapon [Lucifer, King of Pride] probably won’t be useful in this situation, but the things I can do are by no means few.

A mage isn’t just for show.