Returned from Another World, Earth Turned Out to Be Quite the Fantasy Too. Also, Losing Heroines, Stop Looking This Way.

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Chapter 44: “Wait—They’re Showing Up?!” ②

—The Tiny Old Man.

An urban legend.

It started with sightings of a small, middle-aged man—no magic, no sparkle, just… a tiny old guy.

Not exactly the stuff of dreams, yet strangely enough, there were a lot of reports.

Sometimes, a shadow caught at the edge of a video would spark online debates—Was that a Tiny Old Man?!

Even celebrities and public figures had claimed to have seen one.

Some said it was just a hallucination brought on by extreme physical or mental fatigue.

Others believed they were fairies. Or perhaps koropokkuru—the tiny people from Ainu folklore.

And now… there was one standing right in front of them.

No self-respecting guy could not get hyped about that.

“Uwaaaaaaah! It’s a Tiny Old Man! Whoa, that’s awesome!”

“A fairy? A youkai? I dunno—but I never thought they were real.”

“…Think there’s a Tiny Old Lady too?”

“I’ve lived a long time, but this is my first time seeing one. I honestly thought it was just a dumb rumor.”

Natsuki, Senju, Yusuke, and Shuten Doji all crouched down to get a better look, tossing out their impressions one after another.

Yusuke—who was supposed to still be tied up—was so excited he ripped through his ropes with sheer Hero power.

Meanwhile, Koume and Tamamo-no-Mae didn’t seem all that impressed.

Sipping tea, they just muttered, “Boys, honestly.” & “Right?”

“Wait, hold on—you mean Shuten Doji-ossan’s never heard of the Tiny Old Man?! And you’re a big old man yourself!”

“Hey! Even big old men are seeing him for the first time! I’ve watched those urban legend shows and laughed at this stuff, but turns out he’s real!”

“Yeah, normally you wouldn’t think something like that exists.”

“Totally. He’s on, like, the same level as the tsuchinoko.”

The guys’ eyes were sparkling like little kids at a toy store.

“S-Staring at me like that… you’re making me blush!”

“Whoa, that voice is deep!”

“Unnecessarily good voice for such a tiny guy.”

That smooth baritone echoed pleasantly in their ears.

If Ginko had been there, she probably would’ve said something like, “My ears just got pregnant.”

In other words—

The man had what they call an ikebo—a ridiculously good voice.

“But… why is Shinonon introducing me to the Tiny Old Man? —Wait! Is this a bribe?!”

“…Uh, yeah. Didn’t expect you to be this happy about it, though. Honestly, I’m kinda creeped out.”

“Impossible!”

“When I first saw him, I was shocked too… but not this much.”

Natsuki looked utterly betrayed.

Urban legends were supposed to be a boy’s ultimate dream.

To just say “I was a little surprised” and leave it at that—

Unthinkable.

“…Okay, I’ll grill Shinonon later. But seriously, what am I supposed to do with this Tiny Old Man? I mean, if I took him home as a Kyoto souvenir, my mom would probably just tell me to put him back where I found him. And I am not making another round trip on the bullet train.”

“Natsuki-kun, your mother wouldn’t treat a Tiny Old Man like some stray hamster or something! Anyway—that’s not the point! You guys are impossible to keep on topic!”

Shinonome finally raised his voice in frustration—

But really, he only had himself to blame for showing up with an urban legend.

“A-Anyway, this Tiny Old Man—”

“Please, call me Masaya.”

“Masaya?!”

“Yeah, the name’s a surprise, I get it. But that’s not the point. I wanted Masaya-san to meet you, Natsuki-kun.”

Everyone’s curiosity spiked at that.

They turned to Shinonome and the so-called Tiny Old Man, Masaya.

Shinonome gave him a little nod.

Masaya nodded back, then spoke with calm gravity.

“—I have seen this boy before.”

“…Hweh?”