Returned from Another World, Earth Turned Out to Be Quite the Fantasy Too. Also, Losing Heroines, Stop Looking This Way. - V5 Chapter 00: Prologue - “Maybe I Just Wanna Go to Kyoto?”

Volume 05

Chapter 00: Prologue – “Maybe I Just Wanna Go to Kyoto?”

“My name’s Natsuki Yura. A fresh, fifteen-year-old who just returned from a brutal other world two weeks ago. I was shocked to find that Earth’s full of fantasy too—but now it’s like, event after event, every single day! I’m totally done with it! And then suddenly, out of nowhere, weird assassins show up from Kyoto! —Thump! Huh? Is… is this what bloodlust feels like!?”

“…What nonsense are you spouting now?”

Natsuki Yura was lying on the floor in the living room—completely tied up like a sushi roll.

Next to him, someone had neatly placed a shoulder bag and a baseball cap.

He wasn’t wearing his school uniform.

Instead, he had on gray sweatpants, a white long-sleeved T-shirt, and a black hoodie.

Near the entrance sat a pair of worn-out high-top sneakers that had clearly just been bought.

—It was obvious to everyone what his plan was:

He was trying to sneak off to Kyoto.

“People keep yelling at me to go to school, but guess what—today’s Sunday! So that means… Kyoto Kyoto Kyoto Kyoto Kyoto! I’m gonna wipe out Shuten Doji, the Abe family—every last one of them! I’m gonna kill! Them! Aaaaall!”

“That’s a big fat NO! If you go on a rampage in Kyoto, I can already see a future where you destroy some priceless cultural landmark! Did you already forget about the Minazuki mountain incident or the damage to Jack’s spaceship!?”

“…Cultural heritage lives on in people’s hearts, even if it gets destroyed.”

“At least pretend you’ll leave it intact!”

“I don’t want to lie. That’s why I’ll boldly skip school, head straight to Kyoto, and destroy everything without hesitation. Cool pose!“

“—Thump“

With his eyes sparkling and his tone full of conviction, Natsuki declared his intentions loud and clear.

Koume, despite herself, felt her heart skip a beat.

“No no no no no! Natsuki-kun, you don’t have to shout ‘cool pose’ yourself like that! And Koume-san, you don’t need to actually say thump out loud either! Why are you both forcing me to play the straight man here!? It’s supposed to be the other way around!”

“Sorry.”

“My bad. I got carried away.”

“When both of you start tossing jokes at the same time, Ginko-chan’s poor tsukkomi skills are getting stretched way too thin!”

Natsuki, still wrapped up like a fried shrimp, somehow managed to sit up with impressive agility.

Tsukuyomi had told him, “Come to school,”

And his family had also told him to go back starting tomorrow—

But the truth was, today was Sunday.

Natsuki had been skipping school so often lately, his sense of the calendar was completely off.

Maybe if he’d watched some TV, he would’ve noticed…

But between all the constant events and drama, he was always exhausted and passed out.

He barely even had time to watch any videos.

“But seriously, I really do wanna go to Kyoto! I got a reward from the Minazuki family, and I was thinking I’d ride in a green car for the first time in my life and enjoy a proper station lunch.”

“…That just sounds like a regular vacation, doesn’t it?”

“N-No, that’s not it! I’m the hero who returned from another world! I’m going to defeat Shuten Doji and the oni for the people of Kyoto—And while I’m at it, I’ll wipe out the Abe family too and bring peace—”

“…You do realize the Abe family is technically on the human side, right?”

“I mean… I think both of them are pretty annoying for the people in Kyoto either way.”

“Well, sure, if they start fighting and mess things up. But you haven’t even fought anyone yet, so right now you’re just making noise.”

“It’s like—do you even plan on fighting them!?”

“…Coming from the so-called hero who totally ignored that trash childhood friend, that’s a rich statement.”

“Guuh!? T-That one stung a little… But hey! I just didn’t wanna get involved, okay? The Kyoto psychics are the ones charging headfirst into this mess with Shuten Doji, not me! That’s the difference! I don’t care what that self-proclaimed childhood friend’s mom’s son did, wherever or however he did it!”

From Natsuki’s point of view, the Abe clan’s stance didn’t sit right with him—

They claimed they couldn’t leave Shuten Doji and the other oni alone, yet they hadn’t actually fought them.

Maybe they had done some fighting, but if all they were doing was picking scuffles with low-level oni and calling it “fighting for Kyoto,”

Then to Natsuki, it meant nothing.

Even in the other world, he never bothered with generic demon soldiers.

They were weaklings among weaklings.

The only ones worth dealing with were the commanders, the Four Heavenly Kings, or the Demon King himself—

Never the grunts.

“Let’s say, hypothetically, that you do go to Kyoto,” Koume began.

“Yep yep!”

“Can you even get back by tomorrow? Do you know where Shuten Doji is? I’ll tell you right now—he’s not on social media.”

“—What!?! Even gods and demons are on SNS these days, and yet Shuten Doji isn’t!? Ugh, that’s probably why the Abe clan can’t find him either—so out of touch!”

“…Just to defend the Abe family a little—no one’s trying to track enemy youkai through social media!”

“Fine! I get it, I get it! I’ll hold off on going to Kyoto today, since I don’t want anyone spreading weird rumors like ‘Natsuki Yura is best friends with susa-susa!’ Instead, I’ll go next weekend, properly!”

“So you’re going after all. Well, whatever. Two days should be enough. And I, the great Koume-sama, will join you on the ‘Kill Shuten Doji Tour’! That guy’s nothing—an absolute joke compared to me!”

“You’re the best, Koume-chan!”

In the end, Natsuki had more or less locked in his plan to go to Kyoto.

As he and Koume cackled dramatically about it, Ginko—who had been scrolling through her phone—looked up and told them:

“Hey, Natsuki-kun. Teruko-chan says she wants you to come to the Minazuki house. She said everyone’s supposed to gather.”

“That shut-in goddess dares summon me?! She’s got guts!”

“When she says ‘everyone’… how many people does that mean?”

At Natsuki’s question, Ginko tilted her head and started counting on her fingers.

“Let’s see… probably Kazuto-kun, Senju Nanamori, and Yusuke Sado-kun, I’d guess. Seishiro Kanna’s probably back at his family estate, and Ren-kun’s working right now. Even Teruko-chan wouldn’t dare bother a guy hard at work.”

“Roger that!”

And with that, the Sunday Kyoto invasion plan was scrapped—

And they headed off to the Minazuki household instead.

〜〜Afterword〜〜

I messed up the day of the week, so I had to rewrite this part in a rush ( ; ; )

Anyway—new arc starts now!