Arifureta Shokugyou de Sekai Saikyou (LN) - Volume SS - Chapter 4

Chapter IV: The Miraculous Meeting and the Phantasmagorical Adventure 

A gentle sea breeze washed across the shore as waves lapped against the beach. Amidst this picturesque, tranquil scene, a single boy heaved a frustrated sigh. That boy was of course Hajime. Four days had passed since he and his friends had conquered the Sunken Ruins of Melusine. Hajime was currently sitting cross-legged on the wooden porch of Remia’s house, seemingly deep in thought. 
Judging by the ore and materials scattered around him, it looked like he was trying to create new artifacts. And indeed, he was currently trying to finish two new artifacts, an airship and a long-range laser that used focused sunlight. However, he lacked the fine-tuned mana control he needed to craft what he needed. On top of that, his current creation magic and transmutation skill weren’t sufficient for the task. His lack of ability was the source of his current frustration. Or well, it was partly the source of his frustration. The rest of it came from— 
“Daddy, it’s lunchtime!” 
The dagon girl who’d just jumped out of the ocean like a flying fish. Myu, the girl who’d gotten extremely attached to Hajime in the short time they’d been together. She leaped toward Hajime, still dripping seawater. If Hajime caught her, his clothes would end up soaked. So naturally, he— 
“Hey, stop that! You’re getting everything all wet, Myu!” 
“I’m sorry!” 
Caught her anyway. And even though he was scolding her, he didn’t sound the least bit angry. Hajime had quite the soft spot for Myu. 
“Where’s Yue and the others?” 
“They’re already eating. They gave me a mission to come get you!” 
Myu puffed her chest out proudly. Hajime, who almost perpetually had a frown on his face, smiled. 
“I see. Thanks, Myu. You did great.” 
In front of his adopted daughter, his dour personality vanished. Had Hajime’s classmates been able to see him now, they would have been shocked. Even though he’d given them the cold shoulder, here he was, smiling warmly. For her part, Myu was all smiles as well. She loved nothing more than being praised by her beloved daddy. Incidentally, her laugh was quite reminiscent of Remia’s, and you could clearly tell they were related. Myu would gladly have spent the next hour nuzzling with her father, but she had a mission to complete. She quickly returned to her senses and got to her feet. She then grabbed Hajime’s hand and pulled him up. 
“Hurry, Daddy! Or Mommy’s food will get cold!” 
“Alright, alright, I’m coming. Want me to carry you?” 
“N-No, I’m on a mission!” 
Myu valiantly resisted the temptation to jump into Hajime’s arms. What a strong girl! Hajime thought with a smile. But at the same time, he was still grappling with how he was going to tell Myu he’d need to leave her behind when he resumed his journey. That was the other reason for his sighs. As he let Myu pull him along, he furrowed his brows and gave the matter some more thought. 
Lunch was a lively affair. Remia had made meat skewers, and Myu ended up getting her face covered in sauce as she devoured them. She sat between Hajime and Remia, and the two of them took turns wiping her mouth while reprimanding her for her lack of table manners. They looked like a perfect family. However— “Aww, I’m so jealous.” 
“Mrrr. Remia’s spot was my spot when we were traveling...” 
Kaori and Shea watched on with unbridled jealousy, while Tio laughed at the two of them. Yue, on the other hand, “I want a kid I want a kid I want Hajime’s baby—” was muttering to herself like a broken record. Upon hearing Yue’s ramblings, a slight smile crept up his face. Kaori gave Hajime a glare that could kill lesser beings, and a sudden shiver ran down his spine. Yue, on the other hand, grinned triumphantly. Kaori turned her murderous glare onto Yue, and the two settled into their usual fighting poses. Since arriving at Erisen, the two of them had squabbled at least five times a day. At this point, everyone was so tired of breaking them apart that this time they didn’t even try. 
“Oh my, how lively... Oh yes, that reminds me. How was today’s adventure, everyone?” 
But Remia was different. She had experience with child-rearing. In the face of Yue and Kaori’s simmering wrath, she just smiled gently like always and changed the topic. 
“Mrrr, we didn’t find anything.” 
Myu’s ears drooped, though she continued attacking her fish skewer with gusto. The past few days, she’d been leading Yue and the others on adventures near the outskirts of the city, but she’d yet to find anything interesting. 
“Mmm... We couldn’t find the treasure that was supposed to be hidden here when Erisen was built.” 
“Though we did discover quite a few caves.” 
“Yep. The underwater ones looked really cool, too.” 
“I guess this means six of the seven legends about Erisen are false.” 
The so-called seven legends of Erisen were mostly just folk tales and urban myths known around the city. Aside from the city’s hidden treasure, there were also stories of a ghost that wandered the sea, a mysterious ghost ship that appeared in times of thick fog, a city hidden at the bottom of the ocean where the pirate king’s treasure lay, and a fish with a human head that was supposed to bring good fortune. But of course, they were just stories. They’d been examined by other adventurers long before Hajime’s party had arrived here, so of course they’d found nothing. 
“What’s real is real!” Myu replied unhappily. Remia gave her daughter a troubled smile. Myu had been using an awful lot of strange phrases Remia didn’t understand the meaning of recently. After a few seconds, Remia turned to the man responsible for her daughter’s corruption. Hajime awkwardly averted his gaze. 
“Uhh, anyway. Don’t let this get you down, Myu. There’s still one legend left to check, right?” 
“Mhmm. The shimmering ocean.” 
No one knew where this story came from or when it started, but this was the oldest and vaguest rumor of the western seas. According to legend, there was a shimmering ocean that would appear at random times in random places. It was large enough to span from horizon to horizon, and supposedly it was home to a creature or person or “thing” of some sort that would grant a wish to whoever found it. 
“It’s such a romantic legend... If I found it, I could wish Yue would get stranded somewhere.” 
“Die, Kaori...” 
Yue drove her fist into Kaori’s side. Kaori yelped in pain and retaliated by poking Yue in the stomach. Yue squealed in surprise and quickly settled into her usual fighting pose. Round two was about to begin. Hajime completely ignored the catfight going on between the two of them and turned to Myu. 
“I couldn’t go with you guys in the morning, but I’m free now. I’ve repaired the submarine too, so how about making our last adventure a grand one? We can search all day and spend the night in the ocean.” 
“Mmm!? A sleepover adventure!? I wanna go!” 
For a moment Myu looked like she was trying to hold herself back from saying something, but then she smiled and nodded vigorously. Remia patted her on the head and turned to Hajime with an expectant look. 
“You wanna come too, Remia?” 
“I would love to. Ufufu, it’ll be a family vacation, darling.” 
That comment by Remia kicked off round three. Yue and Kaori whirled toward Remia, whose smile didn’t even falter. Why do you always have to fan the flames like this? Hajime thought despairingly to himself. But despite his exasperation, Hajime found he was enjoying himself. There was a slight smile on his face as he tucked away his lunch.

That evening, dark wispy clouds covered the night sky like a long trail of cotton candy. Hajime’s submarine looked like nothing more than a small shadow from that height. Though he’d made it much bigger when he’d repaired it after the trek into the ruins. He’d also enchanted it with gravity magic to turn it into a pseudo-hovercraft when it was above the water. As a result, it wasn’t affected by the waves at all, and Hajime and the others were able to enjoy a pleasant barbeque as they coasted across the sea. 
“It doesn’t look like it’ll rain, but it’s a shame we won’t be able to see the stars...” Hajime muttered as he looked up, a pair of tongs in one hand. 
“Mmm... Should I blow the clouds away?” 
“That sounds a bit too dangerous.” 
Only Yue would suggest altering the weather simply because she found it unpleasant. The others gave her nonplussed looks. Meanwhile, Hajime rejected the idea since he knew it would take up too much of Yue’s mana. 
“If I’d been able to finish the airship we could have taken a trip among the clouds, too.” 
“Daddy, what’s an airship?” 
“It’s a ship that flies in the sky.” 
“You mean it can fly just like the people in town!?” 
For the record, Erisen’s townspeople did not know how to fly. 
“Oh, I suppose those men did fly, in a sense. They traveled along quite a nice arc, too.” 
Tio smiled as she recalled the event from a few hours ago. When the townspeople had learned Myu and Remia were going to go on a trip with Hajime, a bunch of them had started talking to the mother-daughter pair. Friends of Myu, friends of Remia, and a bunch of men jealous that Hajime was going on a date with their crush. The latter specifically had tried to stop Hajime at all costs, and naturally, they’d all been sent flying. Specifically, Hajime had rounded them all up with wires, then flung them into the ocean. The few persistent ones—such as the town mayor, a human noble appointed to rule the city by the king of Heiligh, and his administrative staff—Hajime had tied to missiles and launched into the sky. 
“Remia-san and Myu-chan sure are... loved by the townspeople, huh...?” Kaori muttered softly. 
“They’re all just jealous of Hajime-san. But I’m surprised there are humans who are interested in you even though you’re a beastwoman like me, Remia-san.” 
“Mmm... That’s because Remia’s a devil.” 
“U-Umm, Yue-san? Isn’t that a bit rude? I just happen to meet a lot of people thanks to my work...” 
Surprisingly, Yue’s glare was powerful enough to silence even Remia. Incidentally, Remia’s job was to mediate between the humans sent by the kingdom and the dagon people that lived within the city. She was just one of many such mediators on the city payroll, and she was actually more of a part-time worker than anything. However, her signature smile and gentle demeanor were powerful enough to defuse any situation, no matter how tense. Before her benevolence, the prejudice and racism of humans vanished like mist, as did the resentment of the dagons they were ruling over. The residents of Erisen trusted Remia not only to handle official disputes, but also to resolve conflicts between married couples and siblings and the like. 
“I remember the townspeople saying they all wished they could keep one of you in their house.” 
Indeed, everyone in Erisen wanted a Remia of their own to keep their house peaceful and in order. 
“P-Please don’t bring that up, Hajime-san. It’s rather embarrassing...” 
Blushing, Remia brought her hands up to her cheeks. 
“Daddy! Daddy! Everyone also says Mommy’s unbeatable!” 
“They say that about you too, you know. I guess together you make the unbeatable mother-daughter pair.” 
People didn’t call Remia unbeatable because she was a master at fighting or anything. No, they called her unbeatable because no matter how hard they tried to win her affections, she shot them all down without a second thought. As for Myu, whenever someone tried to get close to her as a way of getting close to Remia and say things like, “Hey Myu-chan, call me daddy!” she’d just reply with “No way!” and run off with a smile. As a result, everyone was jealous both that Remia called Hajime darling, and that Myu called him daddy. 
“Remia-san. You’re not actually interested in Hajime-kun, are you?” Kaori asked timidly. Yue and the others suddenly turned to Remia with newfound interest. The young dagon woman glanced down at her daughter. 
“Ufufu,” was the only reply she gave. 
“What’s that laugh supposed to mean, huh!?” 
“You’ve got guts, Remia... It’s a shame I’ll have to bury you at the bottom of the ocean.” 
Remia deflected Yue and Kaori’s threats with her usual gentle smile. And so, the barbeque-cum-adventure proceeded smoothly. A few hours and several warps later, the party had passed beyond the Sunken Ruins of Melusine, which they’d been using as a landmark, and were now hundreds of kilometers west of any known landmass. It was nearing midnight, and there was nothing in sight. Though everyone kept their eyes peeled from the comfort of the submarine deck, they didn’t find anything out of the ordinary. Before long, Myu’s eyes started to droop. She’d had a hearty dinner, and the gentle lapping of the waves combined with the soothing sea breeze was the perfect combo to lull someone to sleep. 
“Myu, shouldn’t you go to—” 
“Don’t wanna.” 
Despite her drowsiness, Myu was determined to unearth the truth behind the last legend. Unfortunately, her body was already at its limits. Hajime turned to Remia, at a loss for what to do. Remia gave Hajime a troubled smile and patted her daughter on the head. 
“Myu?” 
“No.” 
Still, Myu refused to let herself sleep. She’d stay awake by sheer force of will if that was what it took. 
“Mmm... Myu. I’m feeling sleepy too. Let’s sleep together.” 
Thanks for the save, Yue! Hajime thought. Yue’s resting expression made her look drowsy, so she was a pro at acting tired. However— 
“You can sleep if you’re tired! I’ll take care of the rest!” Myu replied with a smile. 
“Hajime...” 
“Sorry.” 
It was actually kind of impressive that Myu could remember the lines Hajime had taught her even when she was too tired to stand straight. Unfortunately, Hajime couldn’t exactly praise her while Yue was glaring at him. 
“Myu. I’ll stay up, so you go to bed. Don’t worry, if we find anything I promise we’ll wake you up right away.” 
“That’s not good enough.” 
Myu rejected Hajime’s attempt at a compromise. She was being awfully stubborn about this last legend, and Hajime couldn’t quite understand why. 
“Why not?” 
“Because if I sleep, morning will come.” 
“......” 
“Our last adventure’ll end.” 
Myu sat down and hugged her knees, staring out at the moonlit ocean. She wasn’t excited about the adventure itself, she was just desperate to spend more time with everyone. When she said “our last adventure,” she didn’t mean the last legend of Erisen, she meant the last actual adventure she’d get to enjoy with Hajime and the others. Hajime wasn’t so dense that he couldn’t understand that. Besides, he’d spent the last few days agonizing over how to broach this exact topic. This whole time the party had been lounging around on the deck, Myu hadn’t left Hajime’s side. Even when he’d gone belowdecks to grab some tool or the other, she’d faithfully followed after him, like a baby chick following her mother. It was obvious what she was thinking. 
“Myu...” 
Hajime softly stroked Myu’s emerald-green hair. He wasn’t sure what to do, whether he should tell her they’d have to leave her behind now or save that discussion for later. He’d delayed his departure for quite a few days already because he was unwilling to part with Myu, but thinking back on it, he wondered if that hadn’t been making the inevitable harder on her. At the very least, he didn’t want their last memory together to be a depressing one. Hajime glanced over at Remia, and she gave him a quiet smile, as if to say she trusted whatever decision he made. Yue and the others seemed unsure of what to say too. Like Hajime, they’d spent the last few days trying to think of how to bring up the fact that they were leaving her behind. 
“Myu,” Hajime said softly. 
She twitched, sensing from Hajime’s tone that he was about to say something serious. She looked timidly up at him, her eyes welling up with tears. Myu was a clever girl; she knew what was coming. Hajime sat her on his lap and hugged her, then looked out at the ocean. 
“It’s really pretty, isn’t it?” 
“Mrr?” 
“I mean the clouds and the sea. They look really pretty in the moonlight.” 
“Yeah...” 
The moon had reached its zenith, and its light refracted across the wispy clouds, causing them to shine with a mystical light. What few moonbeams shot through lit up the ocean, making it scintillate. 
“I’ve never seen an ocean this pretty before.” 
“Really?” 
Myu looked up at Hajime in surprise. Since she’d been born and raised here, this was a familiar sight to Myu. But back on earth, only people who worked out on the ocean saw sights like this regularly. A regular high schooler like Hajime certainly hadn’t had many opportunities to take boats out to open sea. 
“And it’s thanks to you that I can see it.” 
“It is?” 
“Yeah. We’re all here because you invited us on an adventure.” 
“Ehehe...” 
Myu blushed happily. But Hajime’s next words wiped the smile off her face. 
“I swear I’ll never forget this adventure for the rest of my life.” 
“......” 
Myu’s expression grew dark again. She should have been happy to hear Hajime say that, but she was clever enough to know what that implied. Hajime quietly waited for her to say something. He was ready for her to tell him not to go, or to bring her with him. He knew what he would say to her too. But Myu didn’t say anything. She just bit her lip, desperately keeping the tears in her eyes from spilling down her cheeks. The painful silence stretched on for a few minutes. Eventually, Hajime let out a long sigh and put his thoughts in order. He opened his mouth to say what needed to be said, but just before he could speak— 
“Ah!? What’s that!?” 
A massive presence suddenly made itself known to the party, and shivers ran down their spine. 
“Hajime-san, look up!” 
Hajime reflexively looked up in response to Shea’s voice and saw that the sky was suddenly closing. Or rather, so many clouds were appearing that it looked like someone was closing a lid over the sky. Within seconds, the moon had been swallowed up by the roiling black mass. 
“Myu, Remia. Don’t leave my side.” 
The two of them nodded, looking worried. 
“Hajime-kun, there’s mist coming in from everywhere... This isn’t normal, right?” Kaori muttered. 
“Well this is a fantasy world, so for all we know, this is normal.” 
“What do you think, Hajime?” Yue asked. 
“Someone’s behind this.” 
The fog rolled over the submarine, engulfing it. It was thick enough that people standing on opposite sides of the deck wouldn’t be able to see each other. It reminded Hajime of the fog in the Haltina Woods. Everyone quickly formed a protective circle around Myu and Remia. 
“So is the legend real?” Shea asked. 
“That’d be nice, but I don’t see any sparkling ocean anywhere,” Hajime replied. 
“Master, look. Something’s coming.” 
Tio’s voice was tense. She stared intently into the fog, trying to discern the truth with her dragon eyes, her golden, slitted pupils sparkling. Everyone turned toward the direction she was looking, and a second later, they saw it. 
“The hell is that?” 
A massive shadow cut its way horizontally through the fog. Judging by its silhouette, it was easily over thirty meters long. But it made no sound as it passed. Nor did it create any wind. In fact, it didn’t even disturb the fog. Almost as if it wasn’t real. The night was so quiet that Hajime and the others could hear their own breathing. 
“Was that a... whale?” Kaori muttered, her voice trembling. For as silent as the creature was, its presence was immense. And that was what terrified everyone. Including Hajime. As the creature circled around the submarine, he could make out what looked like fins jutting out from the body of the shadow, which supported Kaori’s guess. 
“My Demon Eye’s not showing me anything... Hey, Tio.” 
“My apologies, Master. But I know nothing about this creature, either.” 
Tio, who was always so reliable and observant, shook her head, cold sweat pouring down her forehead. Suddenly, their submarine shook. 
“Hajime-san!? Did you put us down in the water!? We’re being carried away!” 
“How!? It’s still in hovercraft mode!” 
A loud rumbling noise shattered the silence that had previously surrounded them. At the same time, the sea grew choppy and turbulent. A powerful current suddenly appeared underneath the submarine and started dragging it forward. Furthermore, the mist started to whirl around the party like a tornado as the unknown creature circled around them. 
“Tch!” 
“D-Daddy! Don’t!” 
Hajime reached for Donner, but Myu clung to him and begged him to stop. 
“Myu!?” 
“I’m sorry! But umm... I don’t think he’s a bad person!” 
“Are you saying you...?” 
Of course, Myu had no idea what the creature was, either. But it seemed she was sensing something from it. Something inside her was telling Myu that they couldn’t hurt it, and Hajime could tell from the earnest look in her eyes that she sincerely believed that. She just couldn’t express it in words. While Hajime was hesitating, their surroundings continued to transform. The whirlwind of mist sped up until they were surrounded by a wall of fog, making it look like they were in the eye of a storm. But the sky above them wasn’t clear, like it would be in a normal storm. It, too, was covered in swirling dense fog. But instead of sucking up the surrounding water, the fog hurricane was pushing it away, creating a crater in the ocean. 
“Does it mean to drag us down to the bottom of the ocean?” 
“It’s strange... I can sense mana from everything around us, both the fog and the water.” 
“Hajime-san, I think we’ll be okay! I’m not seeing any future where we die, at least!” 
Hajime shot Yue a glance. Though he said nothing, it was a trivial task for her to read his thoughts, and she quickly created a teleportation portal to let everyone escape. But before she could send anyone through— 
“Daddy! He’s calling for us! He wants us to save him!” 
“Wh-What?” 
Unfortunately, there wasn’t enough time to process that or ask Myu what she meant. Owooooooooooooooooooooo! The creature let out a howl. It wasn’t a threatening sound, though. In fact, it almost sounded melodic. A second later, Hajime and the others were surrounded by light, and their consciousness began to fade. 
“Shi—” Yue shouted, panicking. The portal she’d created scattered to the four winds. 
“Hang on, everyone!” 
It was too late to escape now. At Hajime’s command, everyone hugged each other, with Remia and Myu at the center of the circle. The submarine dropped to the bottom of the ocean, and Hajime and the others blacked out.

“Ngh... Where are we...?” 
Remia shook her head and groggily opened her eyes. Her disorientation quickly vanished when she realized that Myu, who she’d been hugging before losing consciousness, wasn’t in her arms. She leaped to her feet and shouted, “Myu! Where are you!? Say something! Mommy’s looking for you!” 
Remia’s voice carried quite far. But she heard no reply from her beloved daughter. Looking around, she realized Hajime and the others were nowhere to be seen as well. Unease welled up within her. Her limbs felt frozen. Remia had sworn to herself that she’d never lose her daughter again. But now Myu wasn’t by her side. This couldn’t be happening. Just the thought that her precious daughter might be suffering somewhere alone caused her chest to tighten up. 
“It’s fine... Everything will be fine. Hajime-san and the others are here too. She’ll be okay.” 
You have to keep it together. She told herself. Slowly the impatience and unease began to recede, and Remia could think clearly again. After a few deep breaths, she’d more or less calmed down. She took a look around, taking stock of her surroundings. She was standing on a path of cracked cobblestones, which was surrounded by the walls of crumbling buildings. It seemed she’d been transported to the back alley of some city. 
Determined to find Myu, Remia dashed out of the alleyway. She emerged onto the main street, which was nearly twenty meters wide and surrounded on both sides by massive buildings she’d never seen before. The road seemed to continue on forever, disappearing into the horizon. In the other direction, the road continued for around three kilometers, stopping at a massive castle that had a large cylindrical tower reaching up to the heavens. Remia, who possessed neither superhuman jumping strength nor the ability to fly, could only estimate the scale of this city, but by her estimation, it had once been quite huge. Not only that, it would have taken some serious engineering skills to build. 
But whatever it had once been, now it was just an abandoned, dilapidated ruin. The houses and buildings were all in disrepair and looked to be uninhabited. Indeed, Remia saw not a single person anywhere. Looking up, she saw that dark thunderclouds covered the city, occasionally sending down flashes of lightning. A faint black fog covered the city as well, making the air seem sooty and polluted. There was an overall oppressive atmosphere surrounding the city as well, as if people didn’t belong in it. 
“Where have I ended up?” Remia mused, mostly to distract herself than anything. Last she recalled, they were being pulled down to the bottom of the ocean. After a few seconds, Remia started running down the deserted street. 
“Myu! Where are you! Mommy’s looking for you!” 
She glanced here and there as she ran, searching for her daughter. The old cobblestone road was cracked and broken, with sharp pieces of rubble strewn about everywhere. Dagons generally didn’t wear sturdy shoes either, so it was doubly dangerous for Remia to run. Especially since she wasn’t looking at where she was putting her feet. Naturally, it wasn’t long before she hurt herself. 
“Ah!” 
Her flimsy sandal hit a sharpened piece of rubble, and the thin cords it was woven of ripped apart. Remia reflexively pulled her leg back, but her foot came away bloody. She tore off what remained of her broken sandal without hesitation and, ignoring the pain in her foot, continued running down the street. In seconds her feet were covered in numerous scrapes and cuts, but she didn’t stop. Myu was the most precious thing in the world to her; she couldn’t let a little pain stop her. But it wasn’t her daughter who answered her desperate cries. 
“Huh? Who... might you be?” Remia asked. 
Her shouting had attracted a rather shady figure. The figure resembled a person, but Remia couldn’t be sure it actually was one. They were wearing a robe that covered them from head to toe, and Remia couldn’t make anything out of their face. In fact, she couldn’t even see their mouth. Furthermore, the robe the figure was wearing was unnatural. It seemed more liquid than solid. To Remia, it looked as though the figure was clad in a layer of flowing black tar. 
Alarm bells started going off in her mind. Whatever that figure was, her instincts told her it was dangerous. She had to run, now. But this was the first person she’d seem in this ghost town, and the possibility that they might provide her with information caused her to hesitate. What if they knew where Myu was? Her love for her daughter caused Remia to ignore her instincts and approach the strange figure. 
“U-Umm... have you seen a little girl—” 
Before she could finish, the figure’s robe began to ripple. A second later it contracted and began to morph into the shape of a giant scythe. The figure advanced on Remia, scythe in hand. It looked like the grim reaper from Earth’s legends. Pale-faced, Remia took a trembling step backward. She tripped over a piece of rubble and fell to the ground. The dread emanating from the figure was so great she couldn’t even scream. Her gaze was glued to the terrifying figure. 
But some part of her was still shouting, You have to find Myu! Get a hold of yourself! You’re her mother! in the back of her mind. It scolded her over and over, urging her to get to her feet. Even though she was too terrified to move, even though she was up against a monster the likes of which she’d never seen, in her heart of hearts, Remia still didn’t give up. She couldn’t afford to give up. So she glared at the menacing reaper bearing down on her with every ounce of defiance left in her. A second later, a streak of red light shot through the reaper’s head. 
“Huh?” she muttered, dumbfounded. Tar dripped from the gaping hole in the reaper’s head, looking uncannily like polluted brain fluid. In the corner of her eye, Remia spotted the sleeve of a familiar, comforting black coat. 
“You’ve got guts, staring him down like that. Guess I should have expected as much from Myu’s mom.” 
Hajime landed on the ground next to Remia. Her eyes widened in surprise and she looked up at him. 
“Hajime-san! Wh-Where’s Myu!?” 
“Sorry, but we’ll have to talk later,” Hajime replied curtly. He picked her up with one arm, and she reflexively clung to his neck with an involuntary squeal. He leaped backward, and a second later something whooshed past Remia’s ear. Turning around, Remia saw a reaper’s scythe inches from her face. It seemed there was more than one black-robed figure. More than two, even. They started popping up in all directions, oozing out of cracks in the walls or floor. Soon enough, Hajime and Remia were surrounded by twenty reapers. 
“Hang on tight. This is going to get rough.” 
“O-Okay,” Remia replied reflexively to the commanding tone in Hajime’s voice. 
— The grim reapers let out a wordless, soundless howl as they spread their liquid cloaks out. Is that like a war cry? Hajime thought to himself. A fierce gust of wind whipped across the battlefield. Even Hajime’s Demon Eye couldn’t find out where these strange monsters’ mana crystals were, and he had no idea what that liquid tar they were wrapped in actually was. In fact, he wasn’t even sure if these were monsters, or if they were sentient. But if they were after him, there was only one thing to do. 
“I don’t have time to deal with trash like you.” 
As the reapers charged, Hajime’s hand began to glow with crimson light. A second later, seven Cross Bits appeared out of thin air. They formed a protective circle around Hajime, their muzzles pointed outward. Hajime raised his hand, and they all fired at once. There was a thunderous boom as streaks of lethal light shot toward the reapers. Regardless of what they were made of, it seemed the reapers weren’t capable of withstanding the physical and magical force of Hajime’s bullets. They were blasted backward, tar leaking from their wounds like blood. 
Hajime then leaped backward, and a second later another reaper oozed out of the ground he’d been standing on. He didn’t even spare it a glance as he blasted it with Donner. Five other reapers bore down on him from the air and he smashed them all as well with a series of highly accurate shots. Four other reapers swung at Hajime from all sides, aiming for the moment when he landed. But he ducked under their scythes with ease, reloading his revolver in the meantime. After reloading, he spun on one foot like a top, pumping Donner’s trigger. Four streaks of light shot out in a cross formation, killing the four reapers. 
“You’re getting in my way. Die already.” 
A fierce grin crept up Hajime’s face. His pupils dilated, sparkling with unrestrained bloodlust. Faced with the unleashed monster of the abyss, the reapers faltered. As did Remia, who was seeing Hajime’s bloodthirsty side for the first time. But while Hajime’s demeanor was a bit of a shock, she found that she wasn’t actually scared of him. Partly because she realized that despite being in a life-or-death battle, Hajime was taking care not to move so violently that it’d hurt her. But mostly because she understood where his anger and impatience were coming from. He was worried about Myu, too. 
“Hajime-san...” 
“Remia. Plug your ears. I’m gonna blow these bastards away.” 
Remia didn’t know why she called out to Hajime, or what she was even planning on saying to him, but his interruption gave her the perfect opportunity to shut up and nod. A second later, Hajime withdrew his rocket launcher, Orkan. He fired off a barrage of missiles, blowing up everything nearby. The resulting shockwaves obliterated the nearby ruins, leveling everything within a hundred-meter radius. Once the dust settled, Remia could see nothing was left in the vicinity. No reapers, no ruins, no cobblestone road. Still, Hajime scanned the area thoroughly, wary of any sudden attacks. Only once he was sure it was safe did he put Orkan away and relax. 
“Sorry, Remia. I haven’t been able to find Myu yet. You’re the first person I found.” 
“Huh? Oh... I see.” 
It took Remia a second to realize he was continuing their conversation from earlier, but when she did her face fell. 
“This city’s huge. I checked from the sky too, and I can’t tell where it ends.” 
From how high up Hajime had checked his surroundings, he guessed the city was at least 60 kilometers across, if not more. There were a few cities on Earth that big, but none in Tortus. 
“I’m guessing that castle’s sitting at the city’s center. Since there are roads that head straight out of it going east, west, north, and south. I’m thinking of heading for that castle while destroying everything in our path.” 
No matter which of the four main streets someone ended up on, they’d be able to see the castle from where they were. Since it was such a central landmark, Hajime figured everyone else would try and congregate there. Furthermore, Hajime knew they were somewhere north of the castle, meaning that he and Remia must be on the north main street. He knew that because before he’d met up with Remia he’d found a faded signpost that had mentioned this was the north side. Though the signpost had been written in a language he hadn’t seen before even in Tortus, his Language Comprehension skill had allowed him to read it. 
“D-Did you just say destroy everything in our path?” 
“Yeah. The best way to tell people where we are is blowing stuff up. Well, if they’re all on the south side they probably won’t be able to hear the gunshots or explosions until we’re pretty close to the castle, but... it’s better than doing nothing.” 
A tinge of unease entered Hajime’s voice as he said that. When he’d flown up into the sky, he’d seen the giant wall that separated the northern and southern parts of the city. It had been like a scaled-up version of the Great Wall of China. Hajime had no idea what the purpose of the massive wall was, but from what he’d been able to make out from a distance, the south side’s buildings weren’t as grand as the north side’s. Maybe the two halves of the city serve different purposes or something happened to make the south side collapse faster than the north? Regardless of the reason, Hajime had a sneaking suspicion that the massive wall was thick enough to block out sounds between the two sides. 
Still, he was right in saying that blowing stuff was up still better than doing nothing. Of course, he was also constantly calling out to his comrades via telepathy, and he’d sent a number of his Ornises out to scout the area up ahead to make sure he wasn’t accidentally getting anyone caught up in the demolition. 
“Won’t that attract the attention of those things though?” Remia asked, her expression stiff. She was suddenly worried her sanity might not withstand traveling with Hajime. 
“Don’t worry, I’ll slaughter them all if they come.” 
“I-I see...” 
As always, Hajime had no compunction about killing anything in his way. This time, even Remia couldn’t just brush it off with an, “Oh my.” 
Cold sweat poured down her back. Hajime ignored her trepidation and lowered her onto the ground. As her feet touched the stone the pain she’d forgotten about came back in a rush and she gasped. 
“Hm? Why’re you barefoot?” 
“My sandals were making it hard to run, so I...” 
“I see...” 
Hajime instantly realized how desperate Remia must have been while searching for Myu. He stamped his foot on the ground, instantly transmuting an impromptu chair from the cobblestones. He then sat Remia down on it and knelt down in front of her. He picked up her bloodied and battered feet and carefully examined them. After a few seconds, he rested them on his knee. 
“H-Hajime-san?” 
“I’m just fixing up your feet. I can’t use healing magic, but I’ve got some potions and a first-aid kit.” 
“I’m fine. Forget about me, we need to find Myu.” 
Hajime slowly looked up at Remia. 
“Do you plan on letting it happen a second time?” 
“Ah!” 
There was no need to specify what Hajime meant by “it.” Remia knew. Just as Remia had sworn she’d never lose Myu a second time, Myu was almost certainly thinking she never wanted to see her mother hurt a second time. If Myu saw the state Remia was in, she’d no doubt cry. 
“Besides, it won’t take long.” 
“Okay... Umm... Hajime-san? Thank you for saving me.” 
“It’s because you’re Myu’s mom.” 
Like Remia, Hajime wanted to start searching for Myu as fast as possible. Which was why he was treating Remia as quickly as he could, and responding curtly. However, his reply brought a smile to Remia’s face. Because it made it clear he cared about Myu as much as she did. Seeing his desperation warmed Remia’s heart. Which was why she found herself asking, “Myu’s... okay, right?” 
It was a pointless question, since she knew Hajime didn’t have the answer. But she just wanted him to say something that would take the edge off her anxiety. 
“’Course she’s okay. She’s braver than anyone I know. Plus she’s smart, too,” Hajime responded instantly. He believed in Myu the same way he believed in his comrades, and he didn’t doubt for a second that they’d all be reunited. 
Ah... He really is a strong kid... Remia thought to herself. She wasn’t just referring to the overwhelming strength she’d just seen on display when he’d destroyed the reapers. Hajime had the strength of heart to believe the future he desired was always within his grasp, and give his all to make it happen. Remia could see it in him. It was that strength of his that had made her crybaby daughter strong, too. Myu had looked up to Hajime’s strength, and in trying to become more like him, she’d grown. That was why she called Hajime daddy even though she’d refused to call anyone else that. Though she was happy to see her daughter growing up, Remia couldn’t help but feel a little jealous of Hajime as well. And that birthed a desire to tease him a little. 
“You sure understand our daughter well, darling!” 
Remia put on her usual gentle smile. The smile that everyone praised, and that she used as a mask to deal with others. 
Now then, is he going to get angry with me and tell me to stop pestering him, or just give me that exasperated look of his? Remia nervously waited for his reply, but Hajime didn’t even look up at her as he said, “Why bother keeping up the act when Myu’s not around?” 
Remia closed her half-open mouth, unsure of what to say. Hajime had finished treating one foot and was moving on to the second, but Remia hardly even noticed the pain going away. 
“You could tell it was an act?” 
“What, the whole darling thing?” 
Hajime had long since figured out why Remia was always dodging the question when people asked her if she was really into him or not. 
“You were only doing that for Myu’s sake, right?” 
Remia nodded apologetically. She hadn’t wanted to say the truth in front of Myu. She couldn’t. Of course, there was no way she’d actually fallen for Hajime at first sight just because he came back with her daughter. But she couldn’t bring herself to tell Myu that Hajime wasn’t really her daddy. Or that she wasn’t interested in him. After all, Hajime was the first person Myu had ever deigned to call daddy. So whenever Myu was present, Remia had made a big show of getting along with Hajime. However, there were plenty of girls around Hajime who truly were in love with him. And so she’d felt it wouldn’t be fair to them to lie and say she was sincerely interested in Hajime when they asked. 
Which was why she’d settled for acting evasive instead, using her trademark smile. After all, she knew they’d part ways before long. 
“I’m sorry... for causing you so much trouble.” 
She felt bad for prioritizing her daughter even when she owed Hajime so much for bringing Myu back. For taking advantage of Hajime after all he’d done. Remia hung her head in shame. 
“Well, it’s no big deal, really. I feel like Yue and the others have probably figured it out, anyway.” 
Hajime finished treating Remia’s feet. All the cuts and scrapes had healed over cleanly. While there had been a lot of them, most had been shallow so a few healing salves had been enough. He then opened his Treasure Trove and took out a spare pair of women’s boots, which he handed to Remia. The whole time he seemed wholly unconcerned about her confession. Remia slowly pulled on the boots while Hajime turned around and started monitoring the feeds from his Ornises. As she looked at his back, she couldn’t help but wonder. 
“Aren’t you mad?” 
Hajime looked over his shoulder and replied, “You’re doing it for Myu’s sake.” 
He shrugged as if to say that was reason enough. And for him, it was. He wasn’t so petty that he’d try to find fault with the methods Remia chose to support her daughter. Especially since he cared for Myu too. After hearing his answer, Remia found herself at a loss for words. She didn’t know what to think about Hajime anymore. 
“Hm? Isn’t that...?” Hajime muttered, finding something on one of his feeds. He zoomed in to see an explosion of golden mana. 
“Remia, let’s go!” 
“O-Okay!” 
Hajime held out his hand, making it clear he was planning on carrying Remia again. It made sense, considering he was much faster than her. However, Remia took his hand without hesitation. Almost as if she trusted him with her life. Strangely enough, though, Remia felt uncomfortable in his arms. Not because she hated him. No, rather for the opposite reason. Suddenly, the prospect of wrapping her arms around Hajime’s neck felt embarrassing. But now wasn’t the time to worry about that. Her daughter’s life was still in danger. Remia pushed her embarrassment down and clung to Hajime. A second later Hajime kicked off the ground and the scenery started flying past. Though they were moving at insane speeds, Remia wasn’t at all afraid. 
“Hajime-san, thank you very much. Truly, I mean it.” 
She was thanking him not just for saving her back there, but also for everything he’d done for Myu. As always, Hajime didn’t look down to meet her eyes. 
“You don’t need to thank me. I am sort of her dad, after all,” he replied lightly. 
Remia chuckled to herself. This time, it wasn’t a pretend laugh, but a real one.

Meanwhile, Myu herself was... 
“Mrr...” 
Currently hiding behind a few pieces of rubble inside a small alleyway. There was no one else around. When Myu had awoken, she’d found herself alone in an eerie, abandoned city seemingly filled with malice. Any small child would have been too terrified to move, but not Myu. 
“I have to hurry and save Mommy!” 
Myu bravely poked her head out from behind the rubble. She quietly glanced around. The strange malice that she’d sensed upon first waking up had thinned somewhat. And as far as she could tell, nothing was waiting to ambush her nearby. Myu took a deep breath. Then she resolutely got to her feet. Naturally, she was still scared. That much was evident by how she was trembling. Her eyes darted about fretfully as well. But even so, Myu took a step forward. 
Just like Hajime had said, she was brave. As she strode forward, Myu thought about her beloved daddy. As well as the kind, strong, cool girls that traveled with him. Utilizing everything she’d learned in the short time she’d spent with everyone, Myu continued striding forward. Eventually, she exited the alleyway and moved onto the main street. The main street itself was littered with chunks of rubble large enough to be boulders, limiting Myu’s vision. 
“Is that... a castle?” 
At the end of the street, a good distance away, Myu saw a castle with a giant tower. Flanking the castle on either side were walls higher than any she’d seen before. The buildings around her were all in disrepair, and none were terribly tall. At most, they were four stories high. She’d seen Fuhren before when she’d been kidnapped, but from what she could tell, this ruined city was many times bigger than it. 
“Mommy’s probably looking for me...” Myu muttered to herself. Though she was still disoriented, she forced herself to think. 
“If she can’t find me she’d... probably go to the castle?” 
As far as Myu could tell, that was the biggest landmark. It made sense that Remia would head there. 
“Daddy’ll definitely go there.” 
Of that, Myu was certain. While she might not have known the meaning of the word itself, she knew Hajime and the others always acted rationally. 
“If I go there... I’m sure Daddy’s Ornis birds will find me! And then we can search for Mommy together. Or maybe he’s found Mommy already. I know there are bad things here, so I have to go slowly or they’ll see me...” 
Myu made a small fist, confident that she could do this. Of course the dimly lit, menacing street was quite daunting to someone as young as Myu, but she motivated herself by thinking of Hajime. 
“Daddy always said if you give up the adventure’s over! I can do this! I’m a big girl! Do your best! I can fly! Yes, we can!” 
Myu didn’t really know what the last few phrases meant, but they’d sounded cool when Hajime had said them so she used them as encouragement. She was the daughter of the monster of the abyss, she wasn’t going to let anything stop her! 
“This way.” 
“HOIAejghoasjgoaigfj!?” 
Just as she was about to take a bold step forward, she heard a mysterious voice, making her scream in surprise. Panicking, she quickly clapped her hands over her mouth and retreated to the safety of the rubble. Her heart was pounding wildly and there were tears in her eyes. For all her bravery, Myu was still a little girl. 
“This way, girl of the sea.” 
Myu twitched, but managed to suppress her scream this time. The voice sounded like it was coming from inside her head. She looked around frantically, but couldn’t spot anyone. 
“Wh-Who might you be?” 
Now she was using her mother’s politeness. Sadly, the disembodied voice didn’t say anything other than repeat, “this way.” It was obviously suspicious. But after calming down and thinking about it, Myu realized the voice somehow “felt” the same as the creature they’d seen the silhouette of. 
“Are you the shadow?” 
By shadow, she was referring to the massive creature that had brought them all here. Despite how large its presence had been, Myu hadn’t found it scary at all. In fact, she’d found it quite comforting. She’d felt the same sense of security around it that she did when she was swimming in the ocean. 
“Hurry, child of the sea. Danger is coming.” 
Exasperated by Myu’s continued inaction, the voice imparted slightly more concrete information. That was enough to convince Myu. 
“This way?” 
Somehow, she could tell which direction the voice wanted her to go in. 
“I will take you to your brethren. To another strong child of the sea.” 
“Do you mean Mommy?” Myu asked, but there was no reply. She shut her mouth and obediently followed the voice’s directions. 
The rubble made it hard to walk, and Myu needed to be careful where she stepped, so she didn’t make too much noise. She followed the mysterious voice’s guidance, and whenever it said danger was near she stopped breathing and waited quietly for the dangerous robed figures to pass. To her surprise, she was much calmer than she expected. She was nervous of course, but only a little, and it made her thinking sharper. It helped that she’d already experienced being in a dark, dirty, dangerous place before. 
Compared to her time in the underground prison, this was far better. She had a guide, and people she could trust looking for her. Plus, she wouldn’t have to escape into a sewer this time. Probably. Most importantly, though— 
“I need to hurry and Mommy.” She had a mission. 
Myu needed to find her mother, who was as powerless as her. The last thing she wanted was her beloved mom getting hurt because of her again. 
“I’m sorry.” 
Suddenly, the voice apologized to her. Myu suddenly remembered that the shadow had been asking for help, too. 
“Mister Shadow, what’s your name? What do you want us to do?” 
It was only at this point that Myu realized she hadn’t even asked the shadow what its name was. But the only reply she received was the same apology as before, and another plea for help. It appeared the shadow couldn’t communicate very effectively. Normally, that would have been strange, considering how immense a presence it had been, but Myu seemed to understand both that this was the case, and that it wasn’t strange. 
“You must be really weakened right now...” 
It occurred to Myu that it might have used up the last of its power to call everyone here. 
“Seek out they who can create, they who can scar the flow of time.” 
It sounded more like it was talking to itself than Myu. She was paying close attention to the voice as she walked, so she picked up everything it had just said, but half of the words had been too complicated for her to understand. Still, she was almost certain it was talking about Hajime. However, its next words threw her prediction off. 
“Though they live in different times, the two shall share this moment. I have brought those who share your comrades’ powers here for that purpose.” 
“T-Two?” 
Myu was half-guessing what the voice was trying to say, so when it added clarifications that didn’t line up with her predictions, it left her completely lost. 
“Mrrrr, right now all I can do is keep going!” 
Myu pushed her questions aside from now and focused on the task at hand. The voice might be guiding her along the safest route possible, but carelessness could still lead to death. Just then, Myu heard a thunderous roar. 
“Mrrr!?” 
The earth shook, and she was knocked off her feet. A second later, there was another series of noises. Someone was fighting. Whoever they were, they were behind Myu. Probably two or three streets away at least. But they were getting closer. Myu was still quite far from the castle. And with the speed she ran at, they’d catch up to her in no time. 
“Is it Daddy?” 
She had a feeling it wasn’t. Myu knew what it sounded like when Hajime fought. And there were no gunshot sounds, or explosions, or streaks of red light. She guessed it was Yue, or perhaps Shea. 
“Hurry, child of the sea! Your brethren are near!” 
There was a sense of urgency in the shadow’s voice now. Myu, too, sensed danger closing in on her quickly and with a hesitant, “O-Okay,” she turned her back to the fighting noises and started to run. Whatever scary “things” she could feel were catching up to her fast. They’d probably been lured here by the sounds of fighting. Or maybe they’d finally locked onto Myu’s location. Either way, it was clear to Myu that they wouldn’t just pass her by like they did before. Though she wanted to cry, she gritted her teeth and kept her tears bottled up. If there was time to cry, there was time to run. She could no longer afford to care about where she stepped, and soon enough her feet were covered in cuts just like Remia’s had been. As a result, her speed dropped. And eventually, her feet caught against a loose piece of rubble and she tripped. 
“Awaah!” 
Tears sprang to her eyes as her knees slammed against the ground. Looking up, Myu realized she’d run all the way to a wide plaza. More importantly, though, she sensed something behind her. Raising herself into a sitting position, Myu turned around. Behind her, she saw a giant wolf with no fur glaring at her. 
“Ah...” 
Her voice came out as a soft whimper. She was too terrified to scream. Her instincts were yelling at her to run, but she was rooted to the spot. The creature stalking her was unbelievably grotesque. Worse, it had brought its minions with it. Smaller wolves loped out from gaps in the buildings, surrounding Myu. Chunks of rotten flesh dripped from the large wolf’s furless body, and it bared its fangs at her. But just as it leaped forward, a blinding flash of light filled Myu’s vision. A second later, the giant wolf was blown backward. 
“A-A whale?” 
Indeed, it was the whale who had intervened to save Myu. But now the whale was only two meters long, swam through the air, and was made of glowing particles of light. And it had just tackled the wolf out of Myu’s way. The wolf slammed into the building behind it and was buried under a mountain of falling debris. But it quickly blew the debris away with a gust of bloody wind, and let out a ferocious howl. A second later, its tiny minions rushed at Myu. The whale made of light slid down to where Myu was and overlapped its body with hers. The aura of light surrounding Myu blocked the wolves’ fangs, keeping her safe. It then flashed again, blowing the wolves back. Myu was safe for the moment, but she knew she couldn’t relax just yet. 
“Uuu...” 
The bloodlust emanating from the wolves was sapping away her courage. She was shivering in fear, and it looked like she could pass out at any moment. The thought of just giving up and letting the whale take care of the rest crossed her mind. In fact, she was about to do just that when she suddenly realized something. 
“Are you getting smaller, Mister Whale?” 
It wasn’t just her imagination. Since Myu herself was small it was still big enough to cover her completely, but the whale was definitely shrinking. 
“Is it because you’re protecting me?” 
The whale didn’t reply. Myu still had no idea what it actually was. But she knew it was sacrificing itself to protect her. And it had the same warmth to it that the shadow and the voice had possessed. Myu gritted her teeth again and wiped her tears away. She rallied her courage and got to her feet, cutting through her fear. 
“Mister Whale! I’m okay now!” 
Her voice was trembling and her face was pale. She was clearly not okay. But the determination in Myu’s eyes was unwavering. 
“I’ll keep running, so run with me!” 
It felt as though the whale shined brighter for a moment. As if Myu’s bravery was giving it strength. She glanced toward a nearby alleyway. She planned to run into a narrow space and hide there to buy time until Hajime came to save her. Don’t give up, no matter what. That was the most important lesson Myu had learned from Hajime and the others. But before she could start running, the wolves surrounded her from all sides. As if mocking her new resolve. Even so, Myu didn’t falter. She sucked in a huge breath and shouted, “Do your worst!” 
At the very least, she wouldn’t be beaten in spirit. A second later the pack of wolves leaped toward Myu. 
“Oh my. You’re quite spirited, for one so young.” 
But before they could reach her, they were washed away in a torrent of water. 
“H-Hweh?” 
Myu blinked in surprise. She watched as the current of water snaked around the wolves like a living creature, going into their mouths to destroy their bodies from the inside, crushing them through sheer water pressure, or cutting them to pieces with precise jets. Though Myu was inside this whirling current, none of the water even touched her. It moved protectively around her like a barrier. None of the wolves could get close to her no matter how hard they tried. The giant alpha wolf tried to use its blood wind to blow the water away, but its paltry wind was swallowed up by the giant press of water. 
“I-Is that one of your friends, Mister Whale?” 
The shimmering whale didn’t reply. But it separated itself from Myu, as if to say everything was going to be okay, and started shrinking faster. Once it was small enough to fit in her palm, it plopped onto her head and remained there. As Myu looked up in confusion, the same woman’s voice from earlier called out to her. 
“My, you have some interesting friends, young lady.” 
Her voice was gentle, far gentler than one would expect from someone who was engaged in a fierce battle with monsters. Myu looked up and saw— 
“Mommy?” 
An older dagon woman was sitting elegantly atop an arch of water. Her gentle demeanor and faint smile reminded Myu of Remia, which was why she’d reflexively said, “Mommy.” But this woman was wearing completely different clothes from Remia. 
“M-Mommy? I wasn’t expecting anyone to call me that. Ah, hang on a moment.” 
The older lady drew the cutlass at her waist and sliced the wolf charging at her in half. The giant wolf charged at the same time from behind, but the lady’s cutlass shattered into pieces and she swung it like a whip at the alpha wolf, using a small water current to keep the cutlass-pieces mostly linked. Anywhere her water whip struck, the wolf’s flesh was shaved away. The shards of cutlass inside the whip were vibrating at a high frequency, making it into a kind of chainsaw. The wounded alpha wolf tried to leap back and regroup, but the lady didn’t relent. 
“Mutts that can’t follow orders need to be punished. Come, grunt like a pig for me.” 
The lady started scoring the wolf with a consecutive series of whip lashes. With every strike, more of its flesh was shaved off, and it started whimpering pitifully. Funnily enough, its whines did sound like the grunting of a pig. This dagon lady might have had the same gentle look to her as Remia, but she was far more sadistic than Remia ever could be. 
“Sorry about the interruption. At any rate, I’m not your Mommy.” 
“Ah, yes. You’re not.” 
The alpha wolf had been reduced to a pile of meat and bones. The few remaining minions it had left were about to be next. The dagon lady brandished her whip, making it clear she didn’t intend to let even a single one escape. The whole time she was goring the wolves, she maintained that gentle smile that was so reminiscent of Remia. Honestly, it was a little scary. Myu felt bad for ever thinking this woman could have been her mother. 
“Umm... thank you for saving me. Who are you? I’m Myu!” 
“My, what a polite young lady you are. Saying thank you and introducing yourself is an important part of proper manners.” 
The older woman grinned. At the same time, she sent torrents of water rushing out in all directions to clean up the blood, guts, and corpses sprawled around the square. Once that was done, she moved her arch into the barrier that was protecting Myu. 
“It’s nice to meet you, fellow dagon girl. I am—” 
The water barrier burst apart into a million tiny droplets that glittered like a kaleidoscope. The woman paused for dramatic effect, then finished with a dazzling smile, “Meiru. Captain of the Melusine pirate crew.” 
This was a meeting that shouldn’t have been physically possible. But somehow, the light whale had traveled across time to unite Myu with the “other strong child of the sea,” Meiru Melusine. A wielder of ancient magic and the ruler of the western seas. In order to rescue Myu, it had guided the two dagons to each other. 
Myu wanted to ask if this really was all the whale’s doing, but the whale was sitting unresponsive atop her head. It seemed exhausted. Incidentally, Myu had been constantly pestering Hajime to tell stories of his adventures, so she had heard the name Meiru before. 
“Mrr? Meiru? Meiru Melusine? Mrrr?” 
Myu cocked her head, trying to remember why that name sounded so familiar. Before she could finish searching her memories though, Meiru squatted down in front of her and asked, “So, Myu-chan. Where exactly is this place? The truth is, I’m a little lost.” 
Meiru furrowed her eyebrows. She explained that she’d been patrolling the waters around Andika, which was a city built on boats, with some friends of hers when suddenly a thick fog had started swirling around them. After that she’d found herself here, separated from all her friends. In other words, the exact same situation Myu and the others had encountered. 
Once Meiru finished her explanation, Myu looked up and said brightly, “Meiru-oneechan, I’m lost, too!” 
“You don’t live here?” 
“I don’t think it’s possible for anyone to live here, Meiru-oneechan.” 
“I-I suppose that’s true... Hm? Come to think of it, you resemble Diene quite a bit... Oh, Diene is my little sister. Being lectured on common sense by someone who looks just like my sister hurts a little, actually.” 
Meiru’s shoulders slumped and Myu thought to herself, Onee-chan’s amazing, but she’s also kind of useless. 
“Umm, so why are you here then, Myu-chan?” 
Meiru cleared her throat and quickly changed the topic. Just as Myu opened her mouth to answer, the sounds of fighting she heard earlier returned. They were much closer this time, and Myu could see bolts of lightning arcing into the sky a few blocks away. A second later the air around the buildings a short distance away shimmered, then they were all blasted into bits. 
“Myu-chan, don’t leave my side.” 
“O-Okay!” 
Myu huddled in Meiru’s shadow. For some reason, she found Meiru’s presence to be extremely reassuring. Even though they’d just met, and Meiru could use magic even though she was a dagon, and she called herself a captain of a pirate crew, Myu wasn’t scared of her at all. Her intuition told her Meiru was a good person. She felt the same way about Meiru that she did about the whale resting atop her head. 
As for what Meiru was thinking of Myu, well— 
Sh-She’s so cute! She’s friendly, honest, and she’s got a mascot-type thing on her head! In fact, she might even be as cute as Diene! This little girl’s an angel! Her thoughts were quite impure. But then Meiru was the same woman who’d planned to take over an entire city for her sister’s sake. It was hardly surprising that she’d be overjoyed when the dagon girl she just saved started clinging to her. 
Ironically, Myu had gotten closer to knocking Meiru out with happiness than any of her enemies ever had with violence. Fortunately, it didn’t look like Meiru would need to fight right now anyway. 
A few more buildings were blasted apart, and a horde of giant creature the size of horse carts flew into the square. There were fourteen of them in total, and they looked like giant frogs. Their skin was mottled black and green, and they looked absolutely disgusting. Worse, their tongues were forked, with the forked ends looking strangely like human hands, and the mottled patterns on their skin looked like screaming human faces. Just looking at them gave Myu goosebumps, that was how creepy they were. She reflexively clung to Meiru’s thigh for comfort. It was a wonder she managed to keep herself from screaming. 
Meiru opened her mouth to say something reassuring, but before she could, a person walked out of the ruins of the destroyed buildings. 
“How dare you launch your disgusting spit at the beautiful, amazing Miledi-chan’s face!? There’s so much of it, too! I’m gonna crush you!” 
And crush the frogs she did. Black spheres appeared above their heads, flattening them into the ground. The blonde-haired, blue-eyed beauty who’d appeared into the square wiped her cheeks with her sleeve. Though she’d won, there were tears in her eyes. She turned around and wailed, “O-kun! I’ve been sullied!” She leaped toward the bespectacled young man who’d suddenly climbed up the pile of rubble. 
“Uwaaah! Stop Miledi, you’re gonna get me all slimy!” 
The youth dodged out of the way, casing Miledi to faceplant into a wall of rubble. 
“Hey, Oscar... You’re supposed to do the nice thing and hug me.” 
Miledi pulled her head out of the rubble and glared at the young man— Oscar. 
“Oscar, that one was definitely your bad,” said a tall, taciturn man who walked up behind Oscar. 
“I knew I could count on you, Nacchan! Tell that four-eyed bastard off!” 
Miledi circled around behind the tall man—Naiz—and tried to push him into Oscar. However, her hands struck only empty air as Naiz adroitly dodged out of the way. 
“Oi, Naiz... Why’re you avoiding me?” 
“Because you’re covered in slime.” 
“Damn you booooooooooth!” Miledi screamed in rage. 
Myu watched from a distance as Miledi chased after Oscar and Naiz, determined to share the pain of being slimed with them. 
“Pirates are weird people,” she remarked. 
“I... suppose that’s technically true... But please don’t assume those three are what all pirates are like.” 
In the first place, Miledi and co. weren’t even pirates. But rather than explain that, Meiru just called forth a stream of water to wash Miledi off. It was only after her torrent swallowed Miledi whole that Oscar and the others realized Meiru was here. Glad to finally be reunited, the three of them ran toward their dagon comrade. 
“Meru-nee! I’m so glad you’re sa— Now just one minuuuuuuuuuuuuuuute! We’ve been here five minutes and you’re already kidnapping little girls!?” 
“Torrential Burst.” 
Miledi was once again swallowed whole by a tide of water and spun around over and over. When Meiru finally spat her out, she didn’t bother drying her this time, leaving her a sopping mess on the floor. 
“U-Umm... are you okay?” 
Myu poked her head out from behind Meiru and gave poor Miledi a sympathetic look. 
“Y-You’re so kind... What an angel!” 
“You can just ignore Miledi... Anyway, I’m glad you’re alright, Meiru. Also, who’s that girl?” 
“There seems to be some kind of strange creature... That is a creature, right? The thing resting on her head, I mean.” 
“Her name’s Myu-chan. Apparently, she’s lost just like us. Also, she’s my little sister now.” 
Miledi and Myu both shouted, “What!?” at the same time. Myu hadn’t expected Meiru to suddenly adopt her as her little sister. Myu’s eyes met Miledi’s, who was also something like a little sister to Meiru. The two of them nodded at each other in sympathy. Oscar heaved an exasperated sigh, then knelt down in front of Myu. 
“It’s nice to meet you, Myu-chan. I’m Oscar Orcus. Can we ask you a few things?” 
Myu hesitated before replying. Something about Oscar’s name struck a chord within her memories. 
“Oscar-oniisan... Orcus? Mrr? Isn’t that...” 
“And I’m Naiz.” 
“Naiz...oniisan.” 
The final key Myu needed to link her memories together was Miledi’s self-introduction. The leader of the Liberators jumped to her feet, lifted one leg, put her left hand on her hips, and made a peace sign with her right. 
“And I’m the super pretty genius mage, Miledi Reisen!” 
She finished her introduction with a wink. Suddenly, Myu’s eyes widened in recognition. 
Miledi’s over-the-top actions had helped her recall all the stories about the labyrinths Hajime had told her. She pointed at Miledi and said triumphantly, “The world’s most annoying person!” 
“Bwagh!?” 
Being told that with such an innocent smile made the genius mage Miledi drop to her knees. Meanwhile, Oscar and the others burst out laughing. They turned away from Miledi, laughing uproariously. 
Miledi glared at her comrades, but they didn’t stop. Her eyes twitching, she turned back to Myu and said, “Wh-What a strange thing to say. Have we met before, Myu-chan?” 
“Nope! I’ve just heard stories about you!” 
“I-I see. And who did you hear them from? I need to know who’s been telling young children lies about me.” 
“Daddy!” 
“Y-Your father?” 
“Yep! Daddy said, ‘No one else in existence is as annoying as Miledi Reisen! If there was a contest for most annoying person in the world, she’d win it every single time!’” 
“Bwahaha!” 
“Hey, stop laughing O-kun, Nacchan, Meru-nee!” 
“A-Also...” 
“There’s more!? Does your daddy really hate me that—” 
“He said, ‘I’ll never forgive that bitch for flushing us down a toilet.’” 
“Not only does he hate me, but he also holds a grudge!? And what do you mean, flushing you down a toilet!?” 
Suddenly, the laughter stopped. Oscar and the others gave Miledi cold stares. I can’t believe you’re the kind of person to flush little girls’ dads down the toilet, Miledi... their expressions all seemed to be saying. 
“I-It’s not true! This has to be a misunderstanding! I’ve never flushed anyone down the toilet in my life! How would you even do that!?” 
Who on earth is this kid’s dad!? Have we really never met before!? Miledi thought to herself. Meanwhile, Myu was happily rattling off all the stories that popped into her head. Her eyes glittered with excitement as she talked. She was actually meeting the people she’d heard about in Hajime’s tales! 
“Oh, and you must be ‘Oscar the maid-lover,’ right, Onii-san?” 
“Wha—?” 
How do you know that!? Oscar thought, his glasses slipping off his face. 
Before he could recover, Myu turned to Meiru and said, “Oh, and you must be the Meiru Melusine that Daddy said was a super sadist and really sloppy with housework! He told me never to become a dagon like you!” 
“Huh!? I think I need to have a nice, looong talk with your daddy, Myu-chan.” 
Meiru’s veins bulged with barely suppressed rage. I’ll show you who’s a sadist! 
“And you, Onii-san...” 
“Hrm? Wh-What about me?” Naiz asked hesitantly. 
He’d hidden away from the world for decades, so he was pretty sure Myu’s father couldn’t possibly know anything about him, but he was still worried. 
“You must be Naiz Gruen! Daddy said you were a lot better than the other three, and that you probably had a really hard time dealing with all of them!” 
“Y-You know about the Gruen name?” Naiz was shocked, but for completely different reasons than the other three. Gruen was the name of the village Naiz was born in. The village he’d destroyed with his own two hands. The only living people who should have known that name were his three comrades. 
It was now that Miledi and the others were beginning to realize there was definitely something strange about Myu. At the same time, Myu was beginning to realize this situation didn’t make sense, either. The Liberators who existed only in stories shouldn’t be standing right in front of her. But here they were, in the flesh. 
Are they fake? Other people pretending to be them? But they look and sound exactly like Daddy said they did... and he said no one else knows about the Liberators... 
Confused, Myu took an involuntary step backward. 
Miledi stepped forward, her expression serious. But before she could say anything, Myu asked, “Why are you alive?” 
“Bwagh!?” 
Miledi crumpled to the ground again. She thought Myu was implying something like, “Aren’t you embarrassed to still be alive after all the horrible things you’ve done?” 
“I-I’m sorry for living,” Miledi muttered despondently, kneeling on all fours. 
“Whoa, are all dagons super sadists or something?” 
“So this pure-looking child is going to end up like Meiru...” 
“What exactly is that supposed to mean, Naiz-kun? And Oscar-kun, say that again and I’ll smash your glasses.” 
Watching this exchange Myu realized what she said had somehow hurt Miledi. She hurriedly tried to resolve the misunderstanding, but Oscar said, “Nah, just leave her alone. More importantly, we need to know what you know.” 
Naiz and Meiru nodded in agreement, while Miledi moaned, “Be kinder to your leadeeeeeeer!” 
Just then, a massive earthquake rippled across the ruined city. It was as if something massive was trying to push its way out of the ground. The air trembled. Myu squealed as the shockwave caused her to lose her footing, and Meiru reached over to catch her. But before she could, Myu was enveloped in a warm light. That light slowly carried her up into the air. 
“Wawawah! Ah, Mister Whale?” 
The light whale which had been resting quietly on Myu’s head suddenly enlarged back to its two-meter size and placed Myu on its back. 
“Seek out they who can create. Hurry.” 
The whale repeated its earlier request. Its voice was strained and trembling as if even saying that much was a struggle for it. 
“Wh-What now!?” Miledi screamed in confusion. 
Looking in the direction of the castle, she saw that dark clouds were starting to gather above it, and the tower was spewing some unknown black miasma. The black mist that covered the city was growing thicker as well. It felt as if the end of the world was approaching. A second later, multiple streaks of red light shot through the dark clouds. The moment she saw them, Myu’s face lit up. 
“Daddy!” 
It appeared Myu and the Liberators had been sent to one side of the wall, while Hajime and the others had been flung past the other. From the looks of it, they were fighting something while making their way to the castle. 
“Child of the sea. There is... not much time.” 
“Okay! I’ll get Daddy right away, don’t worry!” 
“M-Myu-chan? Who are you talking to?” Oscar asked. 
It appeared only Myu could hear the whale’s voice. Though now wasn’t the time to explain that to everyone. It was obvious the whale was in a hurry. 
“The glowing whale! He’s the one who brought you guys here, Oscar-oniisan!” 
“That guy?” 
Oscar shot the glowing whale a suspicious look, but before he could do anything to it, Miledi held out a hand to stop him. She looked nothing like the pitiful wreck she’d been a few seconds ago. 
“Myu-chan. What do we need to do?” 
She asked only what was necessary, and Myu replied succinctly, “Go to the castle!” 
A second later, the square was filled with malevolent creatures. As if reacting to Myu’s desire and trying to stop it, countless wolves, frogs, and grim reapers oozed out the cracks in the walls and floor. They filled the square and the streets, a veritable wall of monsters. If they couldn’t win in strength, they’d try to win with numbers. To Myu, it seemed like advancing through that overwhelming wall of monsters would be impossible. However— 
“Bring it on!” Miledi just grinned fearlessly and slapped a fist against her open palm. Adversity? Hopeless situations? An overwhelming difference in numbers? That was nothing! 
“Alright, O-kun, Nacchan, Meru-nee! Our little princess needs help! Let’s show her what ancient magic can do!” 
Miledi thrust her hand out and flattened the first wave of flesh-wolves with her gravity magic. 
“Might as well, since it looks like helping her’s the best way to find clues for how to get back.” 
Oscar shrugged his shoulders, then summoned a giant volley of enchanted swords which he flung against the mass of grotesque frogs. 
“What kind of Liberator would refuse a child’s plea?” 
Naiz grinned faintly and shattered the space in front of them. 
“Myu-chan’s my precious little sister. There’s no way I’d abandon her.” 
Meiru resurrected the stream of water she’d used earlier and used it to sweep away a bundle of grim reapers. Within seconds, the monsters had been massacred, leaving the way forward clear. Myu’s eyes were as wide as saucers. Meanwhile, Miledi and the others confidently stepped forward. They were like knights escorting their young princess. 
“Alright, let’s go, Myu-chan,” the leader of the Liberators said, looking back at Myu over her shoulder. Myu was touched by Miledi’s kindness. 
“We’ve got a few things we wanna talk to your daddy about. How dare he call me the world’s most annoying person!? Don’t you mean the world’s most beautiful person!?” 
And a second later, she was completely disillusioned. The Liberators were clearly motivated by personal grudges. Even Meiru was smiling sadistically at the thought of meeting Hajime. 
“Th-Thank you.” 
Though she thanked them, Myu was secretly thinking, Maybe these guys are useless after all... Also, I’m sorry for bringing these people to you, Daddy. 

“Tch... These fuckers are so persistent.” 
Hajime clicked his tongue in irritation. He was using his gatling gun to mow down the hordes of monsters that kept popping up. But no matter how much he fired, their numbers didn’t seem to thin. For each one that fell, another one showed up. Monsters were flooding out of the castle in droves. Hajime glanced to the side and saw his comrades, whom he’d rendezvoused with a few minutes earlier, fighting on the nearby rooftops. 
Kaori was a little ways behind the others, maintaining a barrier to protect Remia. Shea was serving as her bodyguard, keeping the enemies away. Meanwhile, Yue and Tio were using their draconic thunder and breath respectively to mow down the hordes of enemies. No one felt very threatened by the oncoming wave. All the monsters had on their side was numbers. Sure, Kaori was half in tears because of how disgusting they looked, but no one was worried they might actually do any harm. However— 
“Gah!” 
One of the grim reaper’s scythes grazed Hajime’s flank, and blood spurted from the wound. 
“Hajime!” 
“Hajime-kun!” 
Yue’s expression grew murderous and she directed her lightning dragon to turn the reaper into ash. At the same time, Kaori cast a ray of healing magic on Hajime, closing his wound instantly. Since monsters had started pouring out of the castle, Hajime had suffered numerous small wounds like this. Normally, he wouldn’t even have broken a sweat against enemies of this caliber. 
“Damnit. Myu, where are you...?” 
However, his worry for Myu was causing him to get impatient. He was controlling twelve different Ornises at once while fighting, which was distracting him. Even using Riftwalk, remotely controlling that many objects was pushing the limits of what Hajime was capable of. Since the bulk of his attention was focused on searching, he wasn’t fighting at even close to full strength. 
“Get out of my way— Asura.” 
Yue sent out a pulse of gravity magic that crushed everything in a five-hundred meter radius in front of her. Naturally, that included all the monsters, too. She was pissed now. 
“Hajime... get inside Kaori’s barrier! Focus on searching for Myu!” 
“These monster hordes are endless! Let Yue and I take care of them while you secure Myu!” 
“...Fine. I’m counting on you two!” 
Hajime gave the castle in front of him a hateful glare. I wish I could just blow that thing to pieces. Unfortunately, he couldn’t do that just yet. 
It was obvious the castle was an integral part of whatever crazy situation they’d found themselves in. If he destroyed it, he might end up destroying their only means back home. Of course, it was possible destroying it was how they got back home, but then what if Myu got left behind? Hajime nodded to Yue and Tio, and the two of them switched from fighting offensively to defensively. He then leaped back to the safety of Kaori’s barrier. 
“Kaori. I’m gonna use Limit Break. The moment its effects end, use restoration magic on me.” 
“You got it!” 
Kaori nodded firmly while Remia gave Hajime a scared look. 
“Hajime-san... what if Myu...?” 
“Believe in her.” 
He’d find her, no matter what it took. And when he did, he knew he’d find her safe and sound. It wouldn’t do Remia any good to get heartbroken when they still didn’t know anything for certain. She understood that was what Hajime was trying to tell her as well. She clasped her hands in front of her chest and replied, “Alright.” 
A second later, another earthquake rocked the city. Like the last, it seemed to originate from the castle. 
“Eek!” Kaori screamed and stumbled backward. Her Hallowed Ground was riddled with cracks. Even though it was the strongest barrier spell in existence, the earthquake had been enough to nearly shatter it. 
“Ngh. I felt that one,” Shea groaned. She was standing in front of the barrier, her warhammer held in front of her like a shield. It seemed she’d protected Kaori’s barrier with her own body. Kaori quickly healed her and her barrier. 
Up in the sky, Yue coughed up a lungful of blood while Tio staggered backward. Fortunately, Yue’s automatic regeneration kicked in to heal all her injuries, while Tio’s naturally high endurance kept her from taking too much damage. But they weren’t out of the woods just yet. 
“Holy shit, are you kidding me?” 
Hajime’s expression was stiff as a board. Yue and the others looked just as stunned. The tower that stuck out of the center of the castle was suddenly riddled with cracks. Furthermore, the sky above the tower was beginning to warp. It looked like it was twisting around itself. Or like someone was trying to twist it apart. 
A second later, death descended upon the mortal realm. More specifically, a supergiant grim reaper that looked like the amalgamation of all human pain and suffering appeared from the distortion in the sky. After it followed a three-headed flesh wolf who had blood vessels that writhed like tentacles running all over its hairless body. And after that came a giant frog covered in noxious slime. Hundreds of bloodshot human eyes were set into its skin, which was dappled with patterns of screaming human faces. Finally, there came a dragon that had rotting human hands and feet growing out of its scaled body. It was wrapped in a corrosive mist that looked like a dark thundercloud. 
All of the creatures looked like they’d been specifically designed to make anyone who looked at them go insane. They were all radiating an overpowering aura of bloodlust as well. 
“So all the guys up till now were small fry? What a joke,” Hajime said with a smile. 
“Th-Th-Th-This isn’t the time to be s-s-s-miling!” Kaori whimpered, her sanity already at its limits. She stood with her legs pressed together, doing her best not to wet herself in front of the boy she loved. Hajime knew the giant creatures had already noticed them. They may not have looked in Hajime’s direction, but it was obvious the monsters’ bloodlust was directed at him and his friends. 
Worse, all of them were powerful enough to make even Hajime, the man who’d crawled out of the depths of the abyss, tremble. Not only that, it looked like they still hadn’t reached the peak of their strength, since their presence continued to grow stronger. 
“Yue, Tio! Buy me five, no, three minutes! Please!” 
“Mmm... Leave it to me!” 
“I swear by my title as a guardian of the people that I will not let them lay a finger on you!” 
“Shea, keep the small fry at bay! Show them what an overpowered rabbit can do!” 
“Aye aye, sir!” 
“Kaori, keep it together!” 
“I-I’ll do my best!” 
Hajime smiled fearlessly. As long as the comrades he trusted were still willing to fight, not even the proverbial end of the world could scare him. For her part, Remia didn’t even scream when she saw what was coming. She just continued praying for Myu’s safety. Hajime grasped her hand, and she squeezed back with more force than he thought dagons had in them. Just as Yue and Tio were about to launch themselves toward the grim reaper, and just as Hajime was about to activate his Limit Break to more effectively control his Ornises— 
“Asura.” 
A powerful wave of gravity crushed everything around Hajime and the others, while neatly avoiding them. At the same time— 
“Ability nine, Thunderlord’s Judgment.” 
“Serpent Vortex!” 
“Void Fissure!” 
Powerful bolts of lightning and a swirling vortex of water that looked like an industrial excavator slammed into the grim reaper, while a spatial fissure that looked strong enough to rend the heavens themselves struck the other three giant creatures. Hajime and the others looked on in speechless amazement. Some of those spells had included gravity and spatial magic. Hajime glanced questioningly at Yue, and she dumbly shook her head. 
That makes sense, it didn’t sound like her voice anyway... But then, why does it feel familiar...? In the midst of his confusion, Hajime heard the voice of the person he’d been searching tirelessly for. 
“Mommy! Daddy!” 
“Myu!?” 
As the miasma was blasted away, Myu came flying from across the other side of the wall. While Hajime had believed she was strong enough to pull through, he’d still been worried she might have gotten hurt or traumatized or something. But it turned out Myu was perfectly fine. 
“What the hell’s with that glowing whale!?” 
“He’s my friend!” 
“Are you sure you’re okay!?” 
“I’m fine! Oh, and I brought really strong reinforcements!” 
So she’s fine AND she brought help? Hajime’s jaw dropped open. The whale shot straight toward Hajime, and once it was close enough, Myu hopped off, knowing that Hajime would catch her for sure. Kaori hurriedly dispelled her barrier, and Hajime caught her. Myu gave Hajime a lovable grin, and his dumbfounded expression turned into a wry smile. 
“Remia, I think your daughter’s gonna grow up into one hell of a woman.” 
“Good grief! Do you have any idea how worried I was!? Just, good grief!” 
Hajime handed Myu over to Remia, who was repeating ‘good grief’ over and over like a broken record. She hugged her daughter with tears in her eyes. But then, a second later, a new wave of bloodlust assailed Hajime and the others. The grim reapers had returned, and it looked like their four bosses had already revived. Donner was enough to take out the smaller reapers, but it lacked the firepower to do any real damage to the supergiant reaper. It bore down on Hajime, swinging its massive scythe. 
Kaori had dropped her barrier when Myu had arrived. So instead, Hajime summoned his shield and used it to guard. But it turned out there was no need to guard at all, as Myu’s “reinforcements” took care of it. 
“That weapon uses blastrock and electricity to shoot out pellets at high speed, huh? And is that a Treasure Trove? Man, you’ve got some pretty cool artifacts.” 
Oscar flung his black coat back as he used his umbrella to block the giant reaper’s scythe. He turned back to look at Hajime, who instantly recognized the bespectacled face. 
“Oscar Orcus? No way...” 
“I see... So just as Myu-chan said, you really do know about us.” 
Oscar adjusted his glasses. He gave Hajime a curious look while he muttered, “Ability two, Wall Burst.” 
His umbrella glowed gold, and a second later, the reaper’s scythe had been pushed back. Naturally, Hajime didn’t let the opening Oscar created go to waste. He stood back-to-back with his fellow Synergist and pulled Schlagen out of his Treasure Trove. He then turned around and blasted the giant reaper with his rifle. 
Meanwhile, the revived frog was being slowly shaved to bits by a powerful vortex of water shaped like a giant snake. There was an arch of water a short distance away from the stream, and sitting upon that arch was a familiar dagon woman. Hajime also recognized the grim-looking man who’d just teleported right next to Oscar. 
“Meiru Melusine and Naiz Gruen, too? Wait, please don’t tell me that—” 
Unfortunately, Hajime’s prediction was spot-on. 
“Whenever the world is in danger, I’ll be there to save it!” 
A girl whose voice Hajime knew all too well fell from the sky right in front of him. 
“The world’s beloved, prettiest, most beautiful mage...” 
Miledi lifted a leg, put her left hand on her hips, and made a peace sign with her right hand. She gave Hajime a perfectly choreographed wink and finished, “Miledi-chan is heeeeeeeeere!” 
She also used magic to create a rainbow of multicolored smoke behind her. This wasn’t Miledi the golem. She wasn’t wearing a smiley-face mask. This was the blonde-haired, blue-eyed Miledi the human. 
Hajime was completely stunned. He hadn’t expected Miledi to actually look so beautiful. Truly, it was an absolute waste of good looks. Of course, the fact that Miledi brought attention to it herself just pissed him off. So, naturally— 
“Die, Milediiiiiiiiiiii!” 
“Huh? Nyowaaah!?” 
Hajime fired at Miledi with Donner, while Shea swung Drucken at her and Yue used gravity magic to try and crush her. Her perfect introduction was ruined by the grudge the three of them held against her after experiencing her labyrinth. Unfortunately, she somehow managed to dodge all of their attacks perfectly. 
“Hey, calm down!” 
“Ngh, let me go, Oscar! Do you have any idea how much that woman toyed with us!? Even if this is an illusion or if she’s fake or something, I won’t be satisfied until I’ve blown at least one hole into her body!” 
“She’ll die if you do that! I realize your anger’s probably justified but— Hang on, are you breaking through my metamorph chains with just brute strength!? Are you some kinda monster!?” 
Oscar had instantly restrained Hajime with his prized Metamorph Chains the moment Hajime had attacked Miledi, but he was prying them apart using his bare hands. 
“You calm down too, little bunny. I realize Miledi-chan is possibly the most annoying person in the world, but— Hang on, are you really a rabbitman!? How’re you so strong!?” 
“Do you have any idea how many times she drenched me in that disgusting liquid!? I need to give her at least one good punch!” 
“Miledi-chan, what did you do to these people!?” 
Meiru tried to contain Shea inside a water prison, but Shea smashed through it with one swing of her warhammer. Meanwhile— 
“I-Impossible. You can use spatial magic!? Just who are you!?” 
“Miledi must die... I won’t show her any mercy.” 
Naiz tried to use spatial magic to lock Yue in place, but she used her own spatial magic to cancel his spell, causing his eyes to widen in surprise. Miledi had no idea what she’d done to these people, but she realized the grudge they held against her ran deep. 
“I don’t know what I did, but I’m really sorry!” 
Miledi went down on all fours while floating in the air. Even when apologizing, she refused to let her head touch the ground. 
Meanwhile, Tio, Kaori, and Remia were completely out of the loop. They glanced around in confusion, Tio taking care of the swarming monsters while Hajime’s group and Miledi’s group bickered. Surprisingly, it was Myu who restored order. 
“Jeez! What are you doing, Daddy? You too, Shea-oneechan, Yue-oneechan. This isn’t the time to be fighting!” 
Myu’s angry, high-pitched voice carried quite well across the battlefield. 
“N-No, but Myu—” 
“Bad Daddy!” 
“Ah, okay, okay. I’m sorry.” 
“Woooooow, you’re letting a little girl order you around! Hey hey, how does it feel getting scolded by your own daughter? Bahahahaha!” 
“Miledi-oneesan?” 
“Hyaah!? I-I’m sorry.” 
Hajime and Miledi hung their heads, thoroughly chastised by Myu. She then went and did the same to Shea and Yue, bringing them back to their senses as well. 
“Daddy, we’re almost out of time! We have to save Mister Whale!” 
Myu’s expression was more serious than Hajime had ever seen. He could tell this wasn’t some childish prank. 
“Everyone, come over here! Yue, Kaori, Tio, make us the strongest barrier you can!” 
Yue and the others instantly sprang into motion, and they deployed a combination of Hallowed Grounds and spatial barriers. 
“Miledi, Naiz, Meiru. We’re helping them.” 
At Oscar’s call, Miledi and the others obediently gathered as well. They placed down their own combination of gravity, water, and spatial barriers. With six extremely powerful barriers protecting the group, even the giant monsters couldn’t hurt them. They roared in frustration as their attacks bounced off the group’s multilayered defenses. 
“Alright, Myu. What’s going on? What do you know?” 
Hajime knelt down in front of Myu. She took a deep breath, then put a hand on the glowing whale next to her and replied, “This whale is the shadow we saw before. He needs Daddy and Oscar’s help.” 
As they’d neared the castle, the whale of light had regained a bit of its power and had been able to communicate with Myu once more. While they’d been traveling to Hajime, it had told them the gist of the situation. Apparently, the whale was the guardian of this destroyed city. Long ago, this city had been brought to ruin by the same monsters that were flooding out of the castle. Those monsters had actually been created by human hands, and the strongest of them made the nigh-immortal Hell Eater Hajime and the others had just recently fought look cute. 
But, as it always went in stories like this, the people had been unable to control the monsters they’d created, and brought their empire to ruin. However, they’d at least had the tenacity and the good sense to seal away the monsters they’d created. But to do so, they’d needed to use the whale as a cornerstone. 
Now, centuries or perhaps millennia later, the seal had been weakened to the point where it was nearly gone. If the lynchpin of the seal, the tower that the whale was fused with, broke, then the ancient evil horrors would regain their full strength and would start terrorizing people across all worlds and all times. 
“Mister Whale’s been waiting this whole time for someone who can fix the seal to come! He said he needed really strong ‘Synergist-creators!’” 
This abandoned capital didn’t actually exist anywhere within the real world. It had once stood where the sea they’d come from was, but the seal had transported it into a gap between dimensions. Basically, this whole space was a city-sized Treasure Trove. 
And because the whale was also the product of that ancient civilization, it too possessed the power to transcend space and time. However, its power had been greatly weakened, so it could only transport people here once, and only people who visited the particular stretch of sea the capital had once been on. Meaning this was the only chance anyone would ever have to repair this seal. Restoration magic wouldn’t be enough to do it because a lot of the damage to the seal was too old to be realistically recovered. It would take more mana than anyone in the world possessed. Which was why the whale had needed to bring in people who could analyze the seal and rebuild it from the ground up, namely Synergists who could use creation magic. Not only that, Synergists with more skill and mana than either Hajime or Oscar possessed individually. 
“So it brought you and Oscar-oniisan together even though you’re from different times, Daddy! It made a miracle!” 
Myu spread her arms wide, and for a moment Hajime wondered if this really was Myu. The glowing whale, which was apparently an avatar of sorts of the seal’s guardian, illuminated Myu with its light. As if Myu was the oracle it had chosen to speak through. Everyone present couldn’t help but be awed by how dazzling Myu looked. 
After she finished her story, Hajime took a deep breath. His mind was full of questions. Whether or not all the stuff about the seal was real, how it had managed to move Miledi and the others across time, as well as why they had to clean up someone else’s mess. 
However, there wasn’t enough time to think about all this. The tower had begun leaning precariously, and it was so cracked that it was a wonder it hadn’t collapsed under its own weight already. 
Hajime shrugged his shoulders, ruffled Myu’s hair, and said, “Guess we’ve gotta fix it then.” 
Miledi, the leader of the Liberators replied, “Alright, let’s do this. Don’t worry, my O-kun’s the greatest Synergist in the world. We’ve got this in the bag!” 
She grinned proudly. Miledi had absolute faith that there was nothing Oscar couldn’t do. 
But upon hearing that, Yue scowled and replied, “Excuse me? That’s an even bigger joke than your existence. The greatest Synergist in the world is my Hajime.” 
Miledi wasn’t about to let that pass uncontested. She gave Yue a glare that could curdle milk. Yue countered with an icy smile. 
The two of them stared each other down, trying to look as intimidating as possible. Seeing that, Hajime and Oscar exchanged glances and smiled sympathetically at each other. 
They could worry about these petty squabbles later. Right now, Myu’s request took priority. That desire was what kept everyone cooperating for the moment. 
“Yue, you’re in charge while I’m off fixing this seal or whatever.” 
“Miledi, it’s the same as always. Make sure no one gets in the way of my work.” 
Hajime grinned fearlessly, while Oscar adjusted his glasses with a slight smile. Naturally, Yue, Miledi, and the others all nodded confidently back to Hajime and Oscar. With that, the strongest team in all history was formed. And the one to start things off was Naiz. 
“Myu, where do we need to go?” 
“To the top of the tower, Naiz-oniisan!” 
“Got it.” 
Oscar quickly brought out his Metamorph Chains and bound everyone together. A second later, the party was floating a short distance above the tower’s summit. Naiz had teleported everyone in an instant. 
“He didn’t even use a gate...” Yue muttered in surprise. 
As they started to fall, Miledi used her gravity magic to soften everyone’s landing. The tower’s summit was about ten meters in diameter, and the only object on it was a one-meter tall obelisk. It was riddled with countless cracks, and it looked like it was moments away from shattering completely. 
“That thing! That’s what we need to fix to fix the seal!” Myu shouted, just as monsters started flooding the rooftop. 
“Go, Hajime! Myu, Remia, stay with Hajime! Kaori, put up a barrier! Shea, take care of any enemies that get past Tio and me!” 
“We’re counting on you, O-kun! Meru-nee, you provide support from above! Nacchan, you take the other side!” 
Yue and Miledi shouted out orders while Hajime and Oscar ran over to the obelisk. Myu and Remia stuck close to Hajime, with the glowing whale at their side, and Kaori quickly cast a barrier over all of them. A second later, the giant grim reaper bore down on the shimmering barrier. 
“Dieeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee!” 
Shea yelled out her signature battle cry and batted the giant reaper’s scythe away with her hammer. The force of the blow was so great that it echoed through the roof and sent the reaper flying. 
“Whoa, is that girl really a rabbitman!?” Miledi shouted in surprise. Even as she spoke, she flew high into the air and used a Heavensfall to send the swarm of flesh-wolves and their three-headed leader to the ground. They fell straight down, not even scraping the side of the already weakened tower. At the same time, Miledi also used gravity magic to support the tower’s foundations. 
Wow... Her magic’s so precise. And yet she casts so quickly. 
For the first time in her life, Yue, the vampire princess who’d been considered the greatest mage of her generation, was jealous of someone else’s magical talent. However, she wasn’t going to let that get her down. Learning that there were heights she had yet to reach just stoked her desire to improve. And this was the perfect chance to watch and analyze the legendary Liberator who’d developed the techniques Yue was so fond of. She’d make Miledi’s skills her own, and improve them even further! 
Wow, this girl’s shaping her mana so quickly... Is she learning how to do that from me? After just watching me do it once? 
In the same way that Yue was impressed by Miledi’s skills, Miledi was impressed by Yue’s. Thanks to Myu’s earlier explanation, she knew that Yue was from a different time than her. Meaning that normally, the two of them would never have met. That went a long way to explaining why Yue could use gravity magic too. And since Yue and the others knew about her and the Liberators, Miledi had figured out they must be from the future too. It’s such a waste! I’ve finally met someone who can rival my magical ability, and this is the only time we’ll ever get to see each other!? This sucks so much! Miledi thought regretfully to herself. 
“Hey, what’s your name?” 
Of course, Miledi had heard Hajime say Yue’s name multiple times. But she felt compelled to ask anyway. This girl used the same magic as her, possessed as much talent as her, or possibly even more, and it was clear from how strong Yue’s bonds with her comrades were that she was someone who understood compassion. Miledi had to hear Yue introduce herself with her own words. 
If only she’d been born in our era. She would have been such a reliable comrade! The thought was so vexing to Miledi that it nearly brought her to tears. Yue sensed what Miledi was thinking from her expression, and she turned to face the Liberator with a serious expression. 
“Yue... The world’s strongest vampire princess. And... the one who inherited your magic, Miledi Reisen.” 
“Ah... I see. So that’s how it is.” 
Miledi felt Yue’s back lean against hers. It was warm and reassuring. 
During the battle, they’d gotten closer and closer until eventually, they were fighting back-to-back. Yue had no way to know what Miledi was thinking as the two of them crushed monsters with gravity magic in perfect sync. But she could tell that Miledi trembled a little when their backs touched. 
“Well if you’re my successor, then I guess I’ll show you an example of how the great Miledi uses gravity magic! Think you can follow along with the lesson?” 
“Don’t get cocky, Miledi... I’ll surpass you before you know it.” 
Grins tugged at the corners of both girls’ lips. With the greatest gravity magic wielders of the past and present working together to polish each other’s skills, no enemy could stand against them.  

Meanwhile, Tio, Naiz, Meiru, and Shea were all covering for each other as they fought, and Kaori provided support from the ground using her healing and defensive spells. Together they kept the horde of monsters away from Hajime and Oscar, who were in the middle of repairing the obelisk. 
Damn... This guy’s good... Hajime thought to himself. Red sparks ran down his arms as he desperately tried to keep up with Oscar. It was taking everything he had to keep the obelisk from falling apart. Even though he was the greatest Synergist alive in the present, he was having a tough time figuring out how to repair the seal. In fact, when he’d seen how complicated and precise the layers of magic circles that composed the seal were, he’d almost wanted to give up. To make matters worse, the obelisk itself was created from some ore he’d never seen before, and it was a hundred times more resistant to magic than sealstone. 
Every time he repaired one section of the obelisk, another gave way, and when he repaired that yet another section fell apart. It was like trying to solve a puzzle that kept changing itself. 
“Don’t panic. No matter how complicated something looks, its fundamental building blocks have to be simple. All we have to do is figure out how all the threads connect, then neatly tie everything together,” Oscar said calmly, though there were beads of sweat pouring down his forehead. Despite how resistant to magic the obelisk was, Oscar was easily able to weave his mana into it. With every passing second, Oscar understood more about the obelisk and grew closer to learning the secrets of how to repair it. 
Damnit! So this is what the legendary Liberators were like? His skills are on a whole different level compared to mine! 
Unknown materials? Magic circles that had never been seen before? Those meant nothing to Oscar. So long as he could analyze the structure of the obelisk, he’d be able to repair it completely. That was just how godlike his skills were. Hajime couldn’t help but grit his teeth in frustration when he saw how big a gap there was between their abilities. 
“Visualize, then create. That’s what we Synergists do. Isn’t that right?” 
Complete, utter perfection. The closer Synergists grew to that ideal, the more beautiful their creations became. So it was only natural for them to chase after such perfection. A true Synergist was someone who could create something beautiful that would last for time immemorial. 
If you call yourself a Synergist, you should be able to manage that much... Oscar’s expression seemed to say. 
“Alright, bring it on!” 
Hajime’s lips curled upward into a grin. He bared his teeth, his eyes shimmering with determination. He reached up and ripped off his eyepatch. Normally it didn’t bother him, but right now it was just in the way. If he wanted to analyze Oscar’s skills perfectly, then his Demon Eye needed to be free from all obstructions. 
“Ah!? That eye of yours...” 
The moment Oscar saw Hajime’s eye, he understood what it did and how it worked. 
Hajime’s grin grew wider and he said, “I’m gonna make your skills mine. Now show me what a legendary Synergist can do.” 
For a moment, Oscar was dumbfounded, but then he returned Hajime’s grin. 
“Very well. Steal my techniques, if you can!” 
“Watch me, Master!” 
“I don’t recall ever taking any disciples as arrogant as you.” 
As the two bantered with each other, they stepped it up a notch. Oscar took the lead, while Hajime followed using his Demon Eye. Hajime learned quickly and started using his mana more efficiently with each passing second. Not only that, he learned new ways of imbuing his mana into different objects. Once he learned Oscar’s methods for analyzing materials and the flow of mana, he refined them to make them faster and even more precise. But Oscar wasn’t about to let himself be done in by his disciple that quickly. Every time Hajime learned from and refined one of Oscar’s techniques, Oscar took that and refined it even further. 
Oscar was wrapped in a nimbus of sunlight-golden mana while Hajime, who’d activated his Limit Break during their contest, was covered in deep crimson mana. The two Synergists were shining beacons of light in this miasma-covered world of darkness. 
“Analysis complete. You’re better at imbuing creation magic into objects than I am. I’ll switch to supporting you now,” Oscar said curtly. 
“Roger. I’ll start the repairs. We’ll do the deepest magic circles later. Start with the fourth one,” Hajime replied just as curtly. 
“Got it.” 
The two of them stared at the obelisk with absolute focus. They were like doctors performing a never-before-attempted life-saving surgery. It took perfect coordination and every ounce of skill they possessed to repair the obelisk with the pinpoint precision needed for such a complex artifact. 
The light coming off the two Synergists grew brighter. Golden and crimson sparks ran down their arms as they used up every last ounce of mana they had. Had there been anyone watching the castle from a distance, it would have looked like the light of dawn was cresting above the horizon, pushing back the darkness. 
“Raaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaah!” 
The horde of monsters let out a collective scream. 
“Oooh, the tower’s starting to get fixed!” 
“Heh... I knew Hajime could do it.” 
“Bahaha! Didn’t you hear them? He called O-kun his master.” 
“And then, right after he said he’d switch to supporting Hajime.” 
The two mages crushed the remaining monsters with gravity magic, then glared at each other with icy smiles. Meanwhile, Kaori and Meiru showered everyone with restoration magic. It seemed Kaori had learned a thing or two from Meiru as well, as her magic had gotten much faster and more powerful as well. Within seconds, everyone’s wounds had been healed and their mana restored. 
In a last-ditch attempt to prevent the seal from being repaired, the dragon opened its maw to fire a blast of corrosive breath at the party. But before it could, Shea hammered it with a series of explosive slugs, blowing it to bits. From the other side, the three-headed wolf tried to shoot pellets of blood at the party while the frog tried to launch its spit at them. But Shea stopped both of them as well. 
“Wow, I can see everything. This is some really useful magic!” 
During their fight, Shea had unlocked Prophetic Visions, a derivative skill of her special magic Future Sight. It allowed her to see a few seconds into the future, and this she could activate at will. It was thanks to it that she was able to efficiently crush all the monsters just before they attacked. She’d seen Meiru use restoration magic to project visions of the past, and had attempted to do the reverse version of that for herself, to outstanding effect. 
“It appears this fight is coming to a close.” 
“There’s nothing more dangerous than a wounded beast. Let’s end this before they try anything.” 
The end was in sight. There was no need to remain on the defensive now. Tio gathered all of her remaining mana and fired off her most powerful breath attack yet, while Naiz unleashed another Void Fissure. The monsters trying to stop the tower’s repair at all costs were sent tumbling into oblivion. A second later— 
“Transmute!” 
Oscar and Hajime cast the final transmutation needed to fix the tower completely. Veins of golden and crimson light shot down the tower, and with a deep rumbling, the entire thing righted itself, the deep cracks disappearing like they’d never existed. 
“Vwoooooooooooooooon!” 
The triumphant call of a whale echoed through the city. 
“Mister Whale!” Myu shouted happily, raising her hands into the air. Had Remia not been holding her, she probably would have run up to the whale. 
For its part, the whale grew brighter and brighter until the entire world was covered in light. It shot up into the sky like a firework and dispelled the dark clouds covering the city with its blinding radiance. 
“Raaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaah!” 
Screams of hatred and malice filled the air as the last remnants of the monsters were burned away. They turned to dust in the light and the black mist that had permeated throughout the city was sucked into the tower. The resulting gust of wind that came from it was so strong that Yue and the others were forced to land atop the tower, or risk being blown away. 
Hajime held on to Remia and Myu to keep them from being pushed off the tower. Oscar clung to his glasses with one hand and shouted, “The repairs should be done! Myu-chan, what happens now!?” 
Myu closed her eyes for a second, then shouted loud enough to be heard over the wind and the dying screams of monsters, “We go home! Back to our original time!” 
Suddenly, a whirlpool of light shot up from the tower. Hajime and the others were swallowed up by particles of light. Everyone present knew that this miraculous encounter in a strange city was coming to an end. Just like when they’d come here, everyone could feel their consciousness slipping away. It felt as though they were being dragged to the bottom of the ocean, again. 
Unable to bear parting just like this, Miledi shouted, “Yue-chan! Can you... Can you guys live life the way you want to!?” 
She had to know if her earnest wish that the people of the future would be able to live freely had been granted. 
Yue turned to Miledi, looking deeply into those kind but unwavering sky-blue eyes. After a brief pause, she replied, “Yep... You wanted a world where people could live freely, right? Don’t worry!” 
Yue gave Miledi the biggest smile Hajime had ever seen, then hugged Hajime’s back. The two groups, past and present, were pushed further apart as the sandstorm of light started guiding them back to their respective times. At this point, they were too far apart for Yue to make out Miledi’s expression. But even so, Yue could somehow tell that Miledi was smiling. That Yue’s words had bolstered the Liberator’s resolve. 
However, Hajime didn’t want everyone to part on such a somber note. There was no need for sad farewells between them. So he shouted, “Miledi, I’m still gonna pay you back for flushing us down that damn toilet!” 
“You’re still going on about that!?” 
“And Oscar! That hydra is overkill! Learn some self-restraint, you bastard!” 
“I have no idea what you’re talking about!” 
Even Yue and the others looked surprised by Hajime’s remarks. But a second later, they realized what he was going for. Myu, Yue, Shea, Tio, Kaori, and even Remia, shouted lighthearted farewells to the Liberators who’d aided them in this adventure. 
So naturally, Miledi replied, “Let’s... Let’s meet again in the future!” 
Miledi’s hopeful farewell was the last thing anyone heard before the light took them and they all lost consciousness.

Hajime awoke to the sound of waves lapping against his submarine. He opened his eyes and saw he was lying atop the deck. 
“Huh? When did I fall asleep?” 
As he muttered that, he realized there was something heavy lying atop him. Looking down, he saw Myu and Remia resting on his chest, their hands gripping his. He turned to either side and saw the rest of his party was also all lying next to him, sleeping peacefully. 
“What the hell’s going on...?” 
His memories felt fuzzy. When did he fall asleep here... and why? He remembered they’d gone out to search for the Shimmering Ocean, then... 
“Mmm...” 
Yue slowly opened her eyes next to him. A second later, so did Myu and everyone else. 
“Did we all just doze off or something?” Hajime muttered to himself. 
But that didn’t seem right. Looking down at his watch, he noticed almost no time had passed since the last thing he remembered. Hajime slowly got to a sitting position, careful not to push Remia or Myu off. 
“Are you guys okay? Does anyone else feel like something’s off?” 
“You feel it too, Hajime?” Yue replied quietly. 
“Mrrr... I feel weird too. Like we forgot something important.” 
Myu hugged Hajime, looking oddly lonely. It appeared no one had any memories of what had happened after they fell asleep. 
“By the way, Hajime-kun? Why are you hugging Remia-san?” 
“Huh!?” 
Remia looked down in shock. Realizing she was resting in Hajime’s arms she hurriedly pulled away. There was no gentle smile or “Oh my” this time. In fact, she was blushing. 
What’s with that reaction...? Kaori and the others thought suspiciously. 
“No clue. I was hugging them when I woke up.” 
Even Hajime was confused, which was a rarity. Remia’s sudden change, combined with the fact that everyone’s memories were hazy, meant something must have happened, they just didn’t know what. Yue and the others cocked their heads in confusion. 
“Ah! Master, look!” 
Tio suddenly pointed to the ocean in surprise. Looking over, everyone saw that the sea was sparkling. As far as they could tell, the shimmering extended endlessly. At the very least, it reached all the way to the horizon. 
“What the hell’s going on?” 
First their memories, now this. Under normal circumstances, Hajime would have been extremely wary right now. But for some reason, Hajime and the others weren’t worried at all. It was as if they knew there wasn’t any danger. 
Motes of light rose up from the shimmering sea, ascending to the heavens. It was like Hajime and the others had been transported to a sea of golden stars. 
“Look, Daddy! It’s a fish!” 
Myu was pointing to a spot where the motes of light had gathered to create the shimmering form of a small fish. It swam freely through both the sea and the sky, parting the golden light in its wake. 
More sea creatures started to form, and within seconds the sea was full of glowing life, floating through the air and water. Whenever one of them touched Hajime or the others, it burst into particles of light, then reformed a short distance away. It was such a wondrous sight that everyone could only watch in stunned silence. 
Eventually, a giant whale surfaced from the depths of the glowing sea. 
“Vwoooooooooooooooooooon!” 
Its warm light was reminiscent of a sunny forest floor in early spring. Everyone instinctively knew they would be safe in its gentle embrace. Though it said no words, everyone could tell that the whale of light was immensely grateful to them. 
“The Shimmering Ocean...” Hajime muttered quietly. 
No one contradicted his assertion. As Hajime stared at the massive, hundred-meter long whale and its entourage of sea creatures, Hajime suddenly realized something. 
“Is it just me, or do we suddenly have more mana than before?” 
“Mmm? Ah, you’re right...” Yue muttered. 
Shea, Tio, and Kaori all nodded as well. Suddenly Myu looked up at them and said, “That’s its way of saying thanks.” 
A second later, Myu blinked in confusion, unsure why she’d said that. 
“Umm, I think I also know a new way to use my Future Sight too now,” Shea said timidly. 
“Mmm... Come to think of it, I understand how to control mana better now.” 
Hajime closed his eyes for a second, analyzing his current state. 
“Damn... I feel like I just leveled up my Synergist skills, too. I bet I can finish my airship and laser now.” 
What the hell happened while we were asleep!? Hajime didn’t understand any of this. But while none of this made sense— 
“But it feels like something really good happened! Like we met a bunch of really cool people!” Myu shouted happily. Hajime and the others exchanged glances, then smiled in agreement to each other.

“O-kun! Nacchan! Meru-nee! I dunno what happened, but I feel really happy all of a sudden!” 
“Yeah, I know what you mean. I feel like I got a really cheeky disciple.” 
“Indeed, I feel good.” 
“I feel like I met a new angel.” 
Far in the past, a group of four stood in the same place, watching the exact same scene. Of course, Hajime and the others had no way of knowing that. But they didn’t need to, so it was fine.

Though Hajime found his utter lack of curiosity about his missing memories curious, his attention was currently focused on the glowing sea. The giant whale let out another grateful cry, then turned its back on them. It dove into the ocean, much like a real whale would. The sparkling water rose up in a giant pillar as the whale displaced it, and the shimmering sea creatures danced around where the whale had submerged. 
“Oh yes, Daddy! We have to make a wish!” Myu shouted as she suddenly remembered what the legend had said. 
“Those who encounter the Shimmering Ocean will have their wish granted.” 
Hajime and the others nodded, and they all silently made their wishes. 
“I wish I get to be together with Daddy forever!” Myu alone voiced her wish out loud, and when Hajime heard it he suddenly felt like making another wish aside from asking to find a way home. 
Please teach me what I should tell Myu when I have to leave. 
In the end, Hajime’s greedy second wish was granted after many sleepless nights spent wracking his brains, and Myu’s wish was granted in the form of Hajime’s promise.