I Was Transported to Another World with a Male-to-Female Ratio of 1:3000 and Made into a Breeding Pet for the Demon Lord’s Army - 124

Chapter 124: Imagine It! Your Future Husband!

ーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーー

【Ken-chan Battle】

【This is a dark game where one creates their ideal Ken-chan and claims him as their own! Those who master the art of Ken-chan mastery are called “King Ken-chan”】

The rulebook I borrowed from Hinami-san was packed with cringeworthy lines like that, and just reading it made my head hurt. Yeah… Maybe I should stop reading for now. I thought knowing the rules might make opening the packs more fun, but I could just ask the two of them later. Convincing myself of that, I picked up the pack I’d just received.

Pop!

“Huh? It’s harder than I expected…”

Even when I put strength into my fingertips, the pack didn’t budge. It was as if every seam had been sealed with some kind of powerful adhesive—completely unopenable.

“Oh, so human strength can’t open it after all. You males really are frail.”

Smirking, she snatched the pack from my hand.

“This one costs thirty gold coins per pack. It’s a high-end item, so it’s pretty sturdy.”

Rip!

And just like that, she tore the seal open effortlessly.

“S-seriously…? Wait, one gold coin was about 1,500 yen in the old world, right? So thirty would be… Wait—”

I counted on my fingers and froze when I got the result.

“Forty-five thousand yen a pack!? That’s insane! Aren’t these things supposed to be, like, five hundred or a thousand yen at most!?”

“Is that so? Well, even so, this is still one of the cheaper Ken-chan goods, you know.”

As she said that, she lifted me up with ease, sat me on her lap, and pulled me into a firm embrace. Her shimmering wings spread out around us, and the sensation of being enveloped by them had a kind of comforting warmth—different from Lammy-san’s tail, but equally soothing.

“Hey! You demon! Get away from Ken-chan!”

“That’s right, that’s not fair~!”

Kushina-san and Kijimu-san’s shouts echoed from behind us, but she didn’t seem to care in the slightest and had no intention of letting go.

“Alright, let’s open it together!”

【Gold Coin】【Bath Towel】【Pet Maru-chan】…

Each pack contained five cards. Without hesitation, she pulled them out one by one and spread them out quickly. Given that the game was called Ken-chan Battle, I’d expected to see a bunch of my photos, but instead, it was mostly cards of clothes and household items.

And maybe because printing technology in this world hadn’t developed much yet, even after opening quite a few packs, I hadn’t seen a single shiny or holographic card. They were fairly expensive, so if she was just pulling duds, I felt kind of bad.

“I don’t see any of my cards…”

Apparently curious herself, Kushina-san opened a few packs, then exhaled in visible relief.

“Hehehe. Rumor has it, they were going to include a secret rare featuring Kushina-sama~ But during the photo negotiations, Kushina-sama’s maids went berserk~.”

“Is that so?”

“Yes~ They apparently said, ‘If you dare use Kushina-sama’s photo as an object of lust, we’ll kill every last one of you right here!’ and the producers gave up on the idea~.”

I couldn’t believe this ridiculous card game had such a touching behind-the-scenes story. Not that anyone had bothered to consult me about any of this.

“Well, either way, you’re definitely loved, Kushina-san!”

“…Shut up.”

Kushina-san turned away, his cheeks faintly flushed. I really did think there was some kind of misunderstanding between him and those maids. Even if he wanted to return to the human nation out of his own choice, I still hoped he’d talk things out properly with them. Though… Maybe it was selfish of me to think that way.

“Hmm? What’s this? 【Sleepy Ken-chan (Child)】?”

While I was lost in thought, a card depicting me finally appeared. It wasn’t shiny either. Maybe it was another dud?

Snap!

“A Ken-chan Rare! It’s a Ken-chan Rare! And not just any, it’s the ultra-rare sleepy version! Uhehehehe♡♡♡”

Hinami-san snatched the card I was staring at and rubbed it against her cheek, grinning ecstatically. Her eyes sparkled like a child who’d just found buried treasure.

“Is that…Is that really that special?”

“Oh yes! Super rare! Cards with Ken-chan’s photo are said to appear only once in thirty packs! And for Ken-chan himself to pull it…”

Her voice trembled as tears welled up. Was she really that happy?

“That’s it, Ken-chan! Lick it!”

“L-lick it!?”

“Yes! Make the card absorb your scent! Then I can enshrine it as a family treasure!”

“Uh…”

What a waste of a rare card. Besides, if she actually made that a family heirloom, her descendants would surely be miserable. Imagine finding your ancestor’s idol autograph enshrined on the family altar… How horrifying.

“Please! I beg you! I’ll do whatever you say!”

“Anything? Then let me go.”

“Sure.”

The moment I heard that, I didn’t hesitate. I licked the card. It tasted a little weird, but before she could take back her word, I went all in, licking it thoroughly.

“Uhyohyohohoho!”

“Hinami~ Are you sure you should’ve promised that~?”

“Ken-chan-scented Ken-chan Card~♡ With this, I’m invincible~♡”

“Oh dear~ she’s completely gone~.”

Clutching the card tightly to her chest, Hinami-san smiled in pure bliss. I’d accidentally gained an ally in the strangest possible way. If making friends was this easy, maybe I could just hold a signing event in the hallway and escape without much trouble. 

Well, assuming a prisoner is even allowed to hold a signing event, that is.

“By the way… How do you actually play this game?”

Carefully slipping out of Hinami-san’s arms (as she bounced around the room with excitement), I asked Kijimu-san.

“First, each turn you save up gold coins and purchase Ken-chan~.”

“P-purchase…? Not summon?”

“Yes~ You pay gold to the Demon Lord to purchase the right to mate with Ken-chan~.”

That sounded disturbingly transactional. Too realistic, honestly. Couldn’t they have come up with something less creepy?

“Once you purchase Ken-chan, you use Equipment Cards to decorate him, and whoever creates the ideal husband wins~.”

“Equipment cards?”

“Yes, these!”

She showed me the cards I’d thought were duds earlier, things like the bath towel and clothes.

Looking closer, each had a note like “Additional Option – XX Gold Coins,” so they really did have a purpose.

“My favorite is this 【White Apron】~ It combos beautifully with the ‘Newlywed Love Set’~”

“Uh-huh…”

Her tentacles swayed excitedly as she explained in detail. Her enthusiasm almost drew me in, but when I listened closely, she was basically describing her dream married life, not the actual card mechanics.

“By the way, are there any cool weapon-type items, like swords?”

“Of course there are~ You’re quite the niche type, Ken-chan~”

Smirking, she proudly pulled a card from the deck. It depicted a sword with a broken tip, titled 【Sword of Kukoro】.

“This one’s inspired by the scene of an imaginary male knight defeated and made to kneel before a demon~♡ You’ve got good taste, Ken-chan~.”

“That’s not what I meant… Wait, huh?”

“What’s wrong~?”

“Well, I just noticed. These cards don’t have any text besides the gold cost. How do you even use them?”

“You imagine it~!”

“I-imagine!?”

“Yes~ For example, if you imagine 【Ken-chan Carrying a Blanket】 equipped with 【Baby Bottle】, then… ehe♡ ehehe♡ Ken-chan~♡ Mama’s gonna change your diaper now~”

She giggled blissfully while stroking the card, drool dripping from both her mouth and tentacles until the floor turned sticky. Kushina-san frowned, looking thoroughly disgusted.

“Uhehe… That’s how you create your ideal Ken-chan~ And if your opponent falls for him, you win~.”

“Wait, so… No HP, gauges, shields, or anything like that?”

“I don’t know what those are, but no~.”

Seriously…? I felt deflated. This wasn’t the kind of card game I’d imagined at all. It was more like one of those old girls’ arcade dress-up games that used to sit next to the bug-battle machines.

“There are also sabotage cards, like 【Maru-chan’s Rampage】 and【That NTR Spider Woman Coming Between You】—”

After learning the rules, I played a match with Kijimu-san. But on the very first turn, she said, “You look too cute when you’re thinking, so I forfeit~” and instantly gave me a special victory.

Against Kushina-san, neither of us fell for the other, so the match dragged on in an awkward, hellish stalemate. In the end, Ken-chan Battle was demoted to being used as a deck of old maid cards.

＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝

“Goodnight to you both.”

Click!

“Really now… Are you sure it’s okay making that promise to let Ken-chan escape? The plan was to have the boss come here in three days and…”

“It’s not okay, but a promise is a promise… I have to keep it.”

“In that case, what about sending a letter to Luna-sama with our location~? It should reach her in three days at this distance~.”

“No. We’d be caught for sure. This organization’s influence is terrifyingly widespread.”

“Then why not just give up~? Forget about the promise~”

“I’m not giving up.”

“……”

“Geez~ Fine, fine. As your childhood friend, I’ll stick with you to the end~.”

“You sure? We could die.”

“If I die for the sake of a kind male like him, it’s worth it~ Besides, I don’t like doing it in groups anyway~ I’d rather spoil him slowly… Tenderly and thoroughly~.”

“…That last part’s your real reason, isn’t it.”

＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝

【About the Ken-chan Battle Museum】

This museum, sadly marking its 40th anniversary this year, houses exhibits and archives related to the trading card game Ken-chan Battle. Among its displays is the world’s most expensive card, 【Sleepy Ken-chan (Child) – Signed and Scented】. However, we recommend not visiting it.

Despite its auction price having skyrocketed to five hundred million yen, it’s frankly nothing more than a stained photo. Most visitors from other worlds would find it entirely unremarkable. The Demon Realm offers many far more appealing attractions—majestic nature, exquisite cuisine—so your time would be better spent exploring those instead.

And rest assured: the rumor that winning a Ken-chan Battle tournament grants the right to mate with Ken-chan is completely false.

(Excerpt from “A Traveler’s Guide to Otherworlds, 2041 Edition”)

ーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーー