Mayuten ~The Demon King and the Hero Reincarnated as Twin Elementary School Students~ - Volume 4 Chapter 4

Volume 4 The Demon King and the Hero, Fighting for the Family

Chapter 4   The Demon King and the Hero Know the Identity of the Kidnapper

In the dimly lit room, Hikaru was seated on a chair, seemingly unconscious and bound. The tip of a knife held by the kidnapper was pressed against her throat.

Isumi shouted, “Hikaru!”

However, Hikaru showed no signs of waking up.

But that wasn’t the most pressing matter!

“No way, Kageyo-kun, Isumi-chan. Elementary school kids brandishing iron pipes? I can’t let that slide,” said the kidnapper with a seemingly cheerful expression.

Upon discovering the true identity of the kidnapper, both I and Isumi were left astonished.

Isumi, still holding the iron pipe, let out a bewildered voice.

“What’s going on? Why is Kimijima-sesei involved in this…?”

Yes, it was true. The kidnapper holding the knife against Hikaru was none other than Haru Kimijima-sesei, our teacher who had replaced Tanaka six months ago and remained our homeroom teacher in the sixth grade.

“Now, why do you think that is, I wonder? Isumi-chan… No, I mean, Heroine Shirene, what are your thoughts?” Kimijima-sesei asked, as if she were back in the classroom.

Isumi shouted, “Do you understand? Release Hikaru!”

“Oh dear, it seems you still struggle with critical thinking. Well then, Kageyo-kun… How about the Demon Lord Benes?”

There was no doubt anymore. She knew about the other world and was aware of our true identities. Perhaps she, too…

“It seems you bear a grudge against the Demon Lord and the Hero. You must have been reincarnated from the other world as well.”

Upon hearing my words, Isumi furrowed her eyebrows in confusion.

“Well done, Kageyo-kun… No, I mean, Demon Lord Benes,” Kimijima-sesei clapped her hands with a smug expression.

Isumi yelled out in disbelief.

“Why do you hate us? What’s the reason behind it?” Isumi asked.

“Well, I’ll explain all that soon, but before that, let me tell you, Shirene. Yelling won’t do you any good. Your voice won’t reach outside, and Hikaru-chan is under a sleeping spell with magic, so she won’t wake up either,” said Kimijima-sesei.

Isumi clicked her tongue in annoyance.

I see. So, the reason for raising our voices earlier was to achieve this. Indeed, if the hostage wakes up, the rescue could become easier. Though it might cause unnecessary fear for Hikaru.

Kimijima-sesei then asked us, “Before we talk further, could both of you please put down the iron pipes?”

“What if we refuse?” Isumi asked.

To this, Kimijima-sesei responded with another question, “You wouldn’t want to hurt Hikaru-chan’s beautiful neck, would you?”

Isumi reluctantly said, “Fine,” and tossed the iron pipe away.

Kimijima-sesei turned to me and said, “Demon Lord Benes, you too.”

“Understood,” I replied.

We couldn’t afford to harm Hikaru. So, I also discarded the iron pipe.

“Thank you. Now it’s easier to have a conversation. I do love well-behaved children,” Kimijima-sensei said with a gentle smile, beginning to share more of her story.

“Indeed, I was reincarnated from the same world as you. In my original world, my name was Marionear,” she revealed.

Isumi exclaimed, “Marionear!?”

“Do you know that name?” she asked.

Isumi nodded and added, “It’s the same name as Eleanor’s mother.”

Eleanor?

I recalled hearing that name somewhere.

Yes, Isumi mentioned it behind the school building.

If I remember correctly, Eleanor was a young girl who served as an apprentice to Heroine Shirene, skilled in healing magic.

Kimijima-sensei smiled warmly in response.

“I’m glad. Watching Isumi-chan over these past six months, I was worried if you’d remember my name. Back in our social studies class, you didn’t seem to remember the names of the samurais at all,” Kimijima-sensei said with a hint of playfulness.

“As expected, I remember the name of a friend’s mother. So, you’re Eleanor’s mother?” Isumi asked.

“Yes, that’s correct,” Kimijima-sensei replied.

The conversation was still elusive. Why would the mother of one of the heroes’ comrades hold a grudge against us? While it was understandable to have a grudge against me the Demon Lord, I couldn’t fathom the reason behind the hatred towards a hero.

Kimijima-sensei let out a cold chuckle and said, “Oh dear, you two are quite slow on the uptake, aren’t you? Well then, shall I enlighten you? After all, this is the last lesson I’ll give.”

The last lesson? Did she mean she intended to kill both of us or leave as a teacher? Or perhaps, it was both?

“But fear not, it’s not a complicated story. It’s quite easy to understand the grudge of a mother whose only daughter was killed, don’t you think?”

That meant…

I turned to Isumi and asked, “Was Eleanor killed by the Demon Lord’s army?”

Isumi replied with uncertainty, “I don’t know.”

“Right before the final showdown with you, I told Eleanor to run away. Our other comrades had fallen in the battle against the demons, and I was prepared to use the self-sacrifice spell, ‘Balas Eternity.’ I thought it might even blow up the Demon Lord’s castle,” Isumi said.

So, she didn’t want Eleanor to be caught in the self-sacrifice spell, ‘Balas Eternity.’

Believing that peace would come if she could defeat the Demon Lord, and hoping that Eleanor could live happily… It sounded too naive.

A comrade of the hero who defeated the Demon Lord. Even if she was just a child, if the remnants of the Demon Lord’s army found her…

Kimijima-sensei said, “Eleanor never returned. We waited for five days, ten days, twenty days, even thirty days.”

It made sense. After all, the Demon Lord’s castle was in the center of the demon-inhabited continent. While I didn’t know Eleanor’s hometown, it was probably on a continent inhabited by humans. There was no way a child could return alone from such a distance.

Isumi was trembling, tormented by regret.

“When that child ran away, chasing after Hero Shireen, she was only six years old! In Japan, that would be just the first grade of elementary school!!”

The same age as Hikaru.

“Answer me, Hero!! Why did you take Eleanor away!?”

Kimijima-sensei’s… plea was almost a tearful voice.