Returned from Another World, Earth Turned Out to Be Quite the Fantasy Too. Also, Losing Heroines, Stop Looking This Way. - V5 Chapter 46: “Sudden Flashback Arc?!” ②

Chapter 46: “Sudden Flashback Arc?!” ②

“So you know of my kind. Good. My name is Masaya.”

“…Masaya, huh.”

“As you can see, I’m a Tiny Old Man.”

“Ah, right. Uh… hello, I’m Shinonome Abe.”

The sudden appearance had completely disarmed Shinonome.

He wasn’t sure if he should exorcise this thing as a youkai… or be excited about meeting an actual urban legend.

Also, despite speaking perfect Japanese, the guy was dressed like an old-school British gentleman—complete with a perfectly groomed Kaiser mustache.

Honestly, he was less a “tiny old man” and more a tiny gentleman.

“S-So, uh… Tiny Old Man Masaya-han, what business do you have with me?”

Shinonome eyed the stranger cautiously—

Whatever he was, he wasn’t an oni or a god.

Masaya removed his silk hat and smiled.

“I understand your caution. But I want to help you.”

“Help… me? What do you mean?”

“—If I’m not mistaken, you know the boy who was attacked by an oni here, yes?”

Shinonome’s heart skipped a beat.

What did this tiny man know?

“…The boy attacked here was a dear friend of my younger brother.”

“I see. My condolences.”

“…I knew it.”

Hearing those words—my condolences—Shinonome couldn’t help but picture the worst.

Masaya lowered his gaze.

“There were two boys attacked here. One fought desperately to protect his friend from the oni. But the other… was brutally devoured.”

“…Ah… damn it. What am I supposed to tell Madoka?”

Shinonome knew Masaya wasn’t lying.

There was no reason for him to make up something like this.

“If I’d had the strength, I might’ve been able to save him… but I’m only a Tiny Old Man. I’m sorry.”

“It’s fine. Just getting this information is something I’m grateful for. But… why tell me?”

“…Against a terrifying oni, those young boys thought only of each other—not themselves. There was love there, without a doubt. I was a coward, too afraid to do anything but watch… but I felt I had to tell someone.”

“…Thank you.”

Shinonome bowed deeply to Masaya.

It was heartbreaking to hear that Madoka’s friend hadn’t made it—

But knowing that, until the very end, the two had cared for each other… it was at least some comfort.

Still—

That didn’t mean he could just let it go.

“Masaya-han.”

“What is it?”

“If you saw the whole thing, then you also saw the bastard oni who attacked my little brother’s best friend, right?”

“Of course. But… if I tell you, it’s obvious you’d be going up against an opponent you can’t possibly beat. That’s why I’m hesitating.”

“…Masaya-han. I’m the oldest brother—I’ve got younger siblings. So there’s no way I can forgive an oni who hurt my little brother.”

“…Even if I say nothing, you’d still risk yourself to find that oni, wouldn’t you? In that case, I’ll tell you.”

Masaya tapped his cane against the ground.

“The oni who attacked your brother and his friend… the one who beat them down and devoured their flesh and blood—Is one of Kyoto’s legendary top-ranked oni from ancient times!—Ibaraki Doji!”

The moment the name left Masaya’s lips, Shinonome clenched his fist so hard his knuckles popped.

“And she ‘saved’ Madoka, huh? That conniving monster… trying to act like she did us a favor. Fine. Good. Perfect. I’ll kill her. Tear her apart. Grind her into the dirt. For Madoka’s sake—and for that boy’s too—I’ll have my revenge.”

And so, Shinonome Abe began the long path toward vengeance.

〜〜Afterword〜〜

As many of you guessed, the one who attacked both Madoka and Natsuki was indeed Ibaraki Doji.

Why Shinonome didn’t immediately act on his revenge… will be revealed in the next chapter.

Interlude: “Mukaijima Monster Agents, Right?” ②

“Haa… haa… Looks like we’re finally almost done here.”

Thanks to Susanoo-no-Mikoto, the remaining forces of the Dopnyanya Pirate Crew had been pretty much annihilated.

All that was left was the battleship where Ginko and the others were.

“…Seriously, every single one of these guys is some scary-looking old man yelling ‘Kill them!’—who’s that supposed to appeal to?! Don’t they know there’s an unwritten law that only female knights or princess knights are allowed to say that line?!”

“There is no such law.”

The deadpan reply came from Seishiro, who was also breathing hard, sweat beading on his forehead.

And as always, the black-clad little girl clinging to his back turned to look at Ginko—

Then, for some reason, gave her a firm thumbs-up.

“…Huh?” Ginko tilted her head.

Probably, the little girl was agreeing with her on the whole “kill me if you must” (kukkoro) thing.

So Ginko gave her a thumbs-up back.

The little girl nodded in satisfaction.

“Aoyama-san, Uncle Seishiro—look over here. The Dopnyanya Pirates have prisoners!”

Yoshimasa pointed ahead, and when they looked, they saw ten men and women locked in a cage.

From children to adults, all of them were completely naked, wearing nothing but collars around their necks.

“…Uh, what kind of play is this supposed to be?”

“They’re obviously prisoners! Why would you even think it’s some kind of play?! Never mind—let’s get them out!”

“Haa… Fighting alone is exhausting enough, and now I have to rescue aliens too? I’m expecting hazard pay for this, Jack-san.”

With a swing of the magic sword Hanako, the cage shattered apart like it was nothing.

“Alright, let’s get these off you—”

“Stop! Don’t touch that!”

“…Huh?”

Ginko had gone to start with the kids first, reaching for a collar—

Only for one of the captives to let out a near-scream.

“These collars are rigged with explosives!”

“…Why would they even do that?”

“…Probably to make sure we don’t try to escape.”

“Uh, sorry, but who exactly are you people?”

“You—you don’t know who we are?”

“That’s why I’m asking?”

“…I’m not sure where we are right now, but I am Dillon Caron Cassie Ariel Kimura, a politician from Uranus.”

“…Jack-san, why is it that your name—and his—still end with a Japanese surname?”

The alien’s ridiculously long name was strange enough, but Ginko quickly weighed the pros and cons of just leaving them be.

Pros: …None, really.

Cons: If Dillon and the others died while captive, Jack would probably get blamed—

And Ginko definitely didn’t want that mess on her hands.

“I guess we wait here until Jack-san shows up?”

“…Forget about us. We knew the risks when we were captured.”

“Maybe you can say that, but what about the kids?”

“My children are the children of a politician—they understand the risks as well.”

“…Yeah, but still…”

Dillon was putting on a brave face, but his body was trembling with fear.

The children didn’t complain, but silent tears slid down their cheeks as a woman—likely their mother—held them close.

(Ugh… this is gonna leave such a bad aftertaste. If only they looked more alien, maybe it wouldn’t hit so hard… but they look just like humans, so… gah, this is awkward.)

While Ginko was busy holding her head in frustration—

“All done. The collar’s been disabled.”

—Yoshimasa, for some reason, had casually stepped forward and popped Dillon’s collar right off.

Ginko and the others instinctively tensed—

But nothing happened. No explosion, nothing.

“T-That’s impossible! People have died trying to forcibly remove those!”

Dillon stared at him like he’d just witnessed a miracle, while Yoshimasa pushed his glasses up with a smug little flourish.

“—I learned it in kindergarten.”

“That kindergarten is freakin’ amazinggggggggg!!”

〜〜Afterword〜〜

Yoshimasa: “Note: Yoshimasa is just a normal boy. In kindergarten, we also learn how to remove bomb collars.”