In a Different World with a Smartphone (LN) - Volume 3 - Chapter 2

Chapter II: The Legacy of Babylon 

Three days had passed since the incident with Kansukay. 
Things were reasonably hectic at first, but the land of Takeda quickly regained stability and found a new lord. Apparently, Kousaka — the one from the Elite Four who asked for our help — was hiding Lord Schingen’s child from Kansukay. 
The necromancer was fully aware of the boy’s existence, but with Lord Schingen himself already being his puppet, he probably just didn’t give much thought to the child. At least, that was how it seemed at first glance. There was no doubt that this chaos was caused by none other than Kansukay, but I couldn’t help but question whether the sorcerer we fought in the garden was acting out the man’s own will. 
I could’ve been overthinking things, but a part of me believed that even after the Artifact robbed him of his sanity, Kansukay subconsciously tried to avoid hurting the child of his late lord. 
Regardless, the son in question, Takeda Khatsuyohri, became the new feudal lord, and the Elite Four were once again the closest advisers to Takeda’s head. 
Just to be on the safe side, I told them to avoid picking fights with Oda. Then again, considering that my previous world and this one weren’t completely in sync, my worry and the warning might’ve been unnecessary. But I decided that if a few years passed and I was suddenly informed that Takeda had been annihilated, I wouldn’t be very pleased, to say the least. 
With the war between Tokugawa and Takeda settled, we decided to make our way to our original destination, the Ruins of Nirya. 
We were told they were at the edge of Shimazu’s territory, toward the southernmost part of Eashen. Luckily, old man Baba visited the place when he was young, so all I had to do was have him share those memories with me. 
In all honesty, holding hands and touching foreheads with a burly old man felt like a weird party game punishment or something. 
“Father, Mother, Brother, Ayane. I am taking my leave, I am.” 
“Alright, take care of yourself.” 
“Touya-san, please look out for my daughter.” As we were giving our goodbyes to Yae’s folks in her house at Oedo, Nanae bowed her head to me. Not knowing how to react, I bowed back in the same manner. Jutaro and Ayane stood alongside Nanae, smiling at us all. 
“We’ll come visit you again when we have the free time. You’re welcome to visit my place in Belfast, too.” 
“We look forward to it.” I gave Jutaro a handshake and opened a [Gate] to the ruins. 
After we walked through, still saying our goodbyes to Yae’s family all the while, we were greeted by a beautiful sandy beach. 
An endlessly wide sea gently caressed the white sand. I could see a rocky area and a small forest in the distance, but that was about it as far as scenic diversity went. 
With a single look at the map, I found out that we were on a small desert island. Well, desert might’ve not been the right word, considering that the mainland was only a two-hundred meter swim away. 
The emerald green sea dazzled us with the sparkling sunlight it reflected. I recalled reading something about white sand being white because a lot of it was coral and shells that had broken into tiny pieces. 
“Wow, it’s so beautiful...” Yumina walked across the white sand, her eyes fixed on the sea. Kohaku was right next to her, clearly having trouble walking, while Paula the autonomous bear was frolicking about as if it was nothing. Seriously? What the hell is up with the [Program] on that thing? 
In contrast to the bear, its master was gracefully walking on the sand with a parasol in her hands. Wait, where did you even get that? 
“It’s been a while since we’ve seen the sea.” 
“You’ve got that right, Sis.” The twins embraced the salty sea breeze and went on ahead, leaving footprints in the sand behind them. 
Yae started after them, but before she could catch up, she stopped to remove her sandals and socks. Probably full of sand, that’d annoy me too... 
“Ouch! Hot! Hothothot!” Come on, Yae. With sun like this, what did you expect? It wasn’t even midday, and yet the sun, hanging high in the clear blue sky, was already blazing down upon us. All the heat from the light turned the sandy beach into a minor inferno. 
Yae opted to avoid the heat by hopping on one leg and then the other, hastily making her way to the sea. It looked like a weird dance. 
Well, this place would definitely make a great resort, but where exactly are these ruins? Wait, didn’t Jubei say something about it being at the bottom of the sea? Is that really the case? I better make sure... 
I ran a map search for ‘ruins.’ Instantly, I got one hit. 
Jubei hadn’t been lying, it really was at the sea floor. According to the map, it was about a hundred meters ahead, beneath the waves. I couldn’t see anything at a glance. Guess we’re gonna have to dive. 
“Leen. Do you know any spells that allow people to survive underwater?” 
“I only know magic that lets people walk on water. I recall hearing of a Null spell that allows the user to breathe underwater, but I wasn’t interested, so I forgot its name.” 
Dang it Leen, that’s the most important part... Guess I have to dive in and confirm the existence of the ruins first. If I had a bathing suit, I’d already be changing into it, but this world doesn’t even have those. Going in with just my underwear would be embarrassing, too... 
I walked right to where the sea met the sand, where Elze, Linze, Yae and Yumina were having fun in the shoreline waves. From the way they were splashing about, it was obvious that they were enjoying themselves. 
“The cold water feels so good! Sucks that we didn’t bring our swimsuits. I wanna go for a swim.” 
“...Now wait just a minute. Swimsuits exist?” Elze’s words almost made me freeze in place. I’d always been under the impression that this world didn’t have swimsuits. 
“Hm? I-I think most clothing shops sell them. I even hear that there are different types of swimsuits that are sold depending on the region.” Linze answered my question. Oh, so swimsuits do exist... 
“Well, we’re already on the beach, so we might as well make the most of it.” When it came to clothing, there was no better place for us than Zanac’s shop, so I opened up a [Gate] that connected us to Reflet. 
It had been a while since we last saw Zanac, so our conversation dragged on a bit, right up until he began talking about how he had recently stocked up on swimsuits to keep up with demand for the warmer seasons. It was a case of perfect timing. 
I questioned the existence of swimsuit demand here in Reflet-not-by-the-sea and was told that people often swam in the nearby rivers or the lake about half a day’s walk away from town. I was also informed that some of the more affluent locals even had private pools. 
Since the girls were obviously going to take forever to choose their swimsuits, I told them that I’d pick them up later. I made a quick detour back home. If we were going to have fun in the sun, I’d do my best to make sure nobody was left out.

“The sea, is it?” 
“Wooow. That sounds wonderful!” 
“Miss Cecile, wot’s the ‘sea’?” My three maids gave their unique reactions to my suggestion. They weren’t against the idea, so I opened another [Gate] and basically shoved Lapis, Cecile, and Renne straight through to Zanac’s shop. 
I then went to the kitchen and did the same to Crea. Her husband, Julio the gardener, was soon to follow suit. 
Leaving the home completely unguarded was a bad idea, though, so Tom and Huck couldn’t come with us. I made a mental note to make it up to them somehow later on. 
Laim said he wouldn’t go swimming, so I took him with me straight to Duke Ortlinde’s house. After all, that was the house of someone who’d get really mad if I neglected to invite them.

“The seas of Eashen, huh? Sounds great! Let’s go!” 
“Father! He invited me, not you!” Is this country seriously that lacking in important business? Why is a duke of all people so eager to go to the sea? The duke and his daughter were in high spirits. Ellen, Ortlinde’s wife, watched them with a wide smile on her face. 
I was about to open a [Gate] to move the duke’s family and their butler, Leim, to Zanac’s shop, but then Duke Ortlinde said something absurd. 
“Why not invite my brother!”

“Hohoh, Eashen’s seas, you say? How considerate of my little brother to invite us.” 
“Ooh... it’s been a while since I’ve enjoyed the salty sea breeze.” 
“...Don’t you have government affairs to take care of?” As His Majesty and Queen Yuel got themselves excited about the prospect of going to the seaside, I cast a rainy cloud over their parade with my question. 
“I have absolutely no plans for this afternoon. I was actually thinking of inviting Al for a game of shogi. It’s been a while since our last game, you know? So there are no problems in that regard! I’m totally free! Ahahaha!” I couldn’t tell if that was good timing or an ill omen. Either way, their regalia stood out like a sore thumb, so I had them change into something simpler. I was fairly sure that the sight of His Majesty’s magnificent crown would make Zanac pass out and drop to the ground. 
Then I went to General Leon to ask for escorts to make sure the king and his family would be fine. He didn’t hesitate to say that he himself would take the role. Wait, are you for real? You’re the general! You have duties! 
“Heh! There’d be something terribly wrong if I didn’t come with the good old king on his holiday! I’ll have some fun, too!” Boisterous and intense as ever, Leon pounded on my back and further splintered my fragile spine. Damn, that hurts! I tried inviting Charlotte, too. She was receptive, but then promptly shut me down when she learned Leen would be there. The trauma must’ve run deep. 
Once the king and his wife came out in their simplistic, but still expensive clothing, I opened a [Gate] to Zanac’s shop. 
Oh geez, there’s a lot of people here now. Wait... I count two more than there should be. When did Micah and Aer get here...? 
“Hey, it’s been a while. You doing well?” 
“Elze invited us. We couldn’t refuse a chance to go to the sea.” Ah, so it was Elze. Well, it’s not really a big deal. I began sending those who had already bought their swimsuits straight to the beach. It was getting annoying, so I just fixed the [Gate] and kept it open. 
Once I was on the beach, I used [Storage] to retrieve some iron and linen, on which I used [Modeling] to create two simplistic dressing tents. 
The girls got a big one, but us guys would do just fine with a smaller one. Elze quickly walked into the dressing tent and shooed me away. You don’t have to treat me like a dog, you know... 
I went on to make some parasols and beach chairs, followed by a sizable sunshade. Relaxation was paramount during a beach episode, after all. Things would get pretty sour if someone got heatstroke. Last, but not least, I used some rubber to make a few beach balls and swimming rings. 
The more people got their swimsuits from Zanac, the more people came through to the beach. There was quite the crowd by the time everyone was done. 
Myself, Elze, Linze, Yae, Yumina, Leen, Lapis, Cecile, Renne, Crea, Julio, Laim, Duke Ortlinde, Ellen, Sue, Leim, His Majesty the King, Queen Yuel, General Leon, Micah, and Aer. Not counting the two small creatures... We amounted to a grand total of twenty-one. Almost a whole third of us were royalty, too. Though, there were things to be said about men being outnumbered in a similar proportion. 
Alright, with all of us kitted out in our swimsuits... Laim and Leim not included, I guess it’s time to close up the [Gate]... Wait... Crap, I forgot my own! 
I rushed back through and bought a simplistic one-size-fits-all pair of swimming trunks. They were black and weren’t made of nylon or polyester, but the material wasn’t too different from them. It was nicely elastic and even had water-repelling properties. I asked Zanac, and he told me that it was made from the threads of cocoons made by a waterside bug called the ‘Aqua Butterfly.’ Apparently, it was often used for fancy umbrellas. 
I thanked Zanac, went back to the beach, and created a fixed [Gate] leading to the living room of my house back in Belfast. I didn’t really want to bother making a toilet or anything, so that would work just as well. 
Now, for food... it’s gotta be a beachside barbeque. All I had to do was prepare an iron plate and charcoal fire. We had quite a lot of meat and vegetables in our pantry, after all. Wait, what about drinks...? Ah, I can just magic up some icy containers and cool down some fruity water. Oh, what about... Wait... is it just me, or am I the only one doing any work around here? No, it’s clear as day! Nobody’s even trying to help me out here! Damn you all! I want to have fun, too! Hm...? Wait, why’d we even come to the beach in the first place? 
 
I changed into my swimming trunks, walked out on to the beach, and began doing warm-up exercises. Well, I actually had no idea what kind of exercises I should be doing to prepare for a swim, so I just went with the radio calisthenics I was used to. As I faced the ocean and did my one-two-threes, I suddenly heard someone call out to me. 
“What kind of dance is that?” I turned around to see Elze, who was already in her swimsuit. Linze was standing right behind her. 
The designs of their bikinis were exactly the same, plain with white borders. However, Elze’s was red, while Linze’s was blue. The bottom part was a low-riser that had to be tied on the side. 
Linze was also wearing a long, pastel blue parka. I figured she was shy about her attire. It went without saying that they had beautiful bodies, and honestly, I had trouble figuring out where to fix my gaze. I was quickly able to confirm that the little sister was the one with the bigger breasts, though. 
“It’s not a dance. I’m doing warm-up exercises. Don’t want to just jump in and get an instant foot cramp, you know?” 
“Oh, alright then. Is that how it works? Well, I’ll just go ahead and believe it, I guess.” It’s a fact, damn it! I don’t need you to believe me. I glared at Elze as she lightly turned her wrists and ankles, stretched her leg tendons a bit, spun her waist, and ran straight into the sea. 
“Oh, I see that Elze-dono is already in the water, she is. I shall join her, then.” Yae was already at my side, smiling at what she was seeing. I hadn’t even noticed her approach. She was wearing a light purple bikini that had to be tied at the sides, and a halterneck. A part of me expected her to wear a sarashi and a red bikini, but I decided to never speak a word about that. After all, that would be her usual underwear, and this was a situation for swimwear. 
Oh, now’s my chance to get a better look at them... They’re huge. Whoa... she always binds them up with a sarashi, so the difference between this and her normal appearance is really throwing me off. 
Yae completely ignored my dumbfounded stare and ran into the water. 
“You’re not gonna swim, Linze?” 
“Ah, I-I’m not very good at swimming, so I’ll just rest in the shade...” Linze walked into a nearby area devoid of sunlight. Linze didn’t seem like an especially healthy type of girl. I could only hope that she didn’t get sunstroke or something. 
“Touya!” 
“Oi bruv!” Right on cue, the littler ladies stampeded toward me. 
Both of them were in one piece swimsuits. Sue’s was yellow and had frills all over the chest area, while Renne’s was red with white dots all over and frills around the waist. 
They both looked simply adorable. There was no risk of me getting nervous or shy around those two. Sue was in a swimming ring, while Renne was holding a beach ball. 
“Make sure not to go too far into the sea. Not like it’s deep around here, but still, you should stick close to the others.” 
“I know. We’ll be just fine. Let us go, Renne! Onward!” 
“Gotcha, Sis!” Sue took Renne’s hand and led her to the water. “Sis,” huh? Well, I’m just glad they’re getting along so well. With Renne being younger, I got the impression that Sue was enjoying being able to play “big sister” with her. 
“They get along soo nicelyyy.” 
“Whoa?!” Cecile’s voice startled me into backing away. I’d have preferred it if she didn’t approach people without giving away even a hint of her presence. Then again, it really showed what her real vocation was. Cecile was wearing an emerald green bikini with a pareo of the same color wrapped around her waist. It was a standard swimsuit, with no suggestive properties to speak of. 
That being said... her breasts were even larger than Yae’s, and I couldn’t help but give them an occasional glance. I always thought they were big, but that chest might even pass “large” territory and go deep into “huge.” Guess this is the true power of maturity that I’ve heard so much about. She’s fully equipped... 
“Lady Sueee, Renneeee! Let me join youuu!” Cecile began running. I keenly observed her movements. 
...Boing... Boing... Boing... Boing... Say it once, say it twice — it was quite a sight. 
“I wonder if large ones really do float...” 
“Large what?” 
“Hyahh?!” Lapis was standing behind me with a puzzled expression on her face. Again?! Quit hiding your presence, damn it! “What’s supposed to float?” 
“Huh?! W-Well, the swimming ring, of course! I was wondering if it’ll float okay!” 
“...It seems to be floating just fine, sir.” 
“Sure is!” Lapis, who was watching Sue and the others, was clad in a navy blue swimsuit that looked like a combo of a tube top and shorts. For some reason, she was holding a silver tray. 
“What’s that?” 
“Well, there’s work to be done. I was just bringing some drinks to the Ladies and the others.” Lapis looked away and I followed her gaze to see the queen and the duke’s wife reclining on beach chairs beneath a parasol. The table between them had a pair of tropical drinks placed on it, seemingly brought there by Lapis. 
“Lapis... you’re free to relax, you know?” 
“Ah, don’t worry about me. I’m having lots of fun! Cecile and I are switching work shifts now and then.” With a broad smile on her face, Lapis walked through the [Gate] leading to our house. She was truly an exemplary maid. I shouldn’t have expected anything less from a member of the Maid’s Guild. 
Huh...? I heard a loud noise, turned to its source, and saw His Majesty the King divebombing into the water. Th-That doesn’t look safe... Oh, he popped out. Guess that spot must be pretty deep. Duke Ortlinde and General Leon were soon to follow after him. Are they... Are they racing? What the hell are they doing now...? These three grown men are acting like little kids. 
“Touya.” I was staring at the king and his friends, completely weirded out by their frolicking antics, when Yumina called out to me. The cutesy white bikini with frills on the chest piece and waist looked really good on her. She spun around and looked straight at me. 
“Well? Any thoughts?” 
“It looks great on you. You’re adorable.” 
“Eheheh. Thank you very much...” Huh, that praise came pretty naturally... Is it because I still view her as a child? Guess it must be that. Actually, now that I think about it, I’m not getting flustered or shy looking at her body. Guess she just can’t capture my heart as she is now. 
“Touya, shall we go swim together?” Yumina hugged my arm. Uhh... You’re pressing your chest against me... I couldn’t tell if she was doing it on purpose or not. I didn’t realize it before... but she’s showing clear signs of development... 
It’s soft... Oh no, my face is gonna turn red, ack...! Wait, I am getting flustered! “Can’t capture my heart,” my ass! SHE’S CAPTURING IT RIGHT NOW! HELP! 
“I-I have to investigate the ruins, you know. I’ll come with you when I’m done with that.” I slipped out of Yumina’s grasp and made a quick promise. She seemed slightly dissatisfied, but didn’t take too long to agree. 
“Make sure to come play with me when you’re done, okay?” Yumina ran off after Sue with a smile on her face. 
Man, that was close... My mental defenses were crumbling just there. Well, maybe it wasn’t so bad... Or was it, actually? Yumina is cute, after all. There’s no real disputing that... If I was forced to say whether I liked or disliked her, of course I would choose the former. But I don’t know if I can look at her romantically or anything... Alright, what about this... Yumina finds a guy she loves... and she’s just told me she’s gonna marry him. Wait. No, why would you think about that?! That sucks! I just made myself mad by thinking about something stupid! Ugh... what the hell... Was that jealousy just now? I’m... not really sure. No, no. It can’t be that. Yumina is as dear to me as a little sister, so my fatherly instincts simply don’t like the idea of sending her off with some random guy... right? Right. Surely. Definitely... Probably. I think. 
“Why the pensive expression?” 
“Huh...?” I turned around to see Leen, clad in a black, adult-like bikini with white laces, holding a black parasol. 
If she was so averse to the idea of bathing in the sunlight, she could’ve chosen not to wear a bikini, but calling her out on that seemed like it’d be some kind of inexplicable loss in the grand scheme of things. Also, there were things to be said about a person wearing such a bold, side-tie, low-rise swimsuit while having such a small build. 
I wasn’t going to say anything until I saw the autonomous bear doing warm-up exercises while wearing a red and black border swimsuit straight from the early 20th century. 
“Wait. Paula, you’re actually gonna swim?” She pounded her chest as if to say “Of course I’m gonna swim!” I gave Leen a questioning glance, and the fairy chuckled in response. 
“I didn’t give her my [Protection] for nothing. She’s completely waterproof.” 
Man, [Protection] seems like a great spell. I’ll have to cast it on my smartphone. On the subject of my smartphone, I left it in the changing tent. I wonder if Kohaku’s still resting there. 
“Well, I figure it’s time to go for a swim.” I began making my way to the sea, and Paula wasn’t far behind me. Is she really gonna be okay? 
Paula made it to the shoreline, prepared herself for an amazing run into the water... and was promptly smacked in the face by a wave. She rolled back to the beach. Not one to give up, Paula charged back toward the seas. And, like clockwork, a wave hit her and sent her rolling back to the beach. I had no doubts she’d be trapped in this loop all day. 
I shifted my attention away from her and ventured into the sea. I reached the point where my feet were unable to touch the ground and shifted to a breast stroke. 
Should be around here... I took a deep breath and dove downward. 
The water was crystal clear, so I could see everything below and around me without much trouble. There it was, the ruins I’d been seeking. Various large slabs were laid out in a stone circle, in the center of which was a small building that resembled a temple. I dove further down and looked inside the entrance to see a staircase leading down. 
It was dark in there, so I couldn’t be sure, but I had a feeling it went really far down. At that point, I really needed to catch my breath, so I swam back up to the surface. 
I wasted no time. After getting a fresh intake of oxygen, I dove down once more. I instantly went straight for the stone stairs underneath, but again I was thwarted by my puny human lungs. 
There’s just no way I can do it like this. I can only hold my breath for about a minute. 
I desperately wanted to know what was at the bottom of those stairs. I wanted to find out, but there was a limit to what I was capable of. I didn’t accomplish much, but that was the best I could do. I had no choice but to return to the shore. 
Once I got back, I saw Paula facing the waves and wiping the imaginary “blood” from her mouth, as if to say “You’re... pretty good.” She’s still trying? 
I told Leen of what I saw and sat myself down on the beach. 
“So it’s at the very bottom of the sea, is it...? What should we do now, then...? Perhaps I should try calling Marion?” 
“Marion?” 
“The clan matriarch of the Marines from Mismede. An old friend of mine. She’d have no problem doing things underwater... but it just so happens that she’s quite the recluse.” Leen folded her arms and began thinking. 
I tried suggesting inviting any others of that species, but according to Leen the “recluse” part referred to a policy shared by all Marines who lived in Mismede. In short, they did everything they could to not meddle in the affairs of surface-dwellers, so getting any of them to come wasn’t an option. 
“It’s surprising that a race like that agreed to take part in the founding of Mismede.” 
“That’s the result of my negotiation ability. She’s not a bad girl, and if you know someone for a hundred years, you tend to become able to tell what they’re thinking.” A hundred years...? Geez, the scale of what Leen talks about is always too great for me to process. 
“Well, let’s leave it at that for today. Go and have some fun now. If I keep you to myself for too long, the others will come to bear a grudge on me, I’m sure.” With those words as her last, Leen went to Paula. The others? Suddenly, my sense of smell was overwhelmed by the attractive scent of cooked meat. I stood up and looked to where the wind was blowing from. There, I saw Micah and Crea, both clad in aprons. They were standing and making merry before an iron cooking plate. Micah was wearing an orange bikini, while Crea’s was striped with black and white. With them both being cooks, I wasn’t surprised that they got along. 
Not far from them, I saw Aer, who was wearing a flower-patterned one piece swimsuit, getting Linze to cool down a metallic container. Oh, guess they’re making ice cream. Looks like that’ll be our dessert, then. 
I then noticed Julio bringing ingredients through the [Gate] leading to our home. Apparently, the straw hat I got him became a part of his look. I hadn’t seen him take it off yet. 
I decided to help out, but as I walked over there I noticed something that needed my attention. 
“...What are you doing?” Two butlers, ignoring the deadly heat and still wearing their usual pitch black suit and white glove combo, were looking at something through pairs of opera glasses. 
“To see if she is safe, I am observing Miss Sue.” 
“For the same reason, I am observing the princess.” 
...These brothers seem a tiny bit overprotective. Wait, Leim’s master is the duke and Laim is my butler. What about ensuring my safety? 
Well, I didn’t see the point of saying that, so I just left them to their business and made my way over to the food. I had worked up quite the appetite. 
 
“Alright, now...” A day had passed since our beach party, and I had resolved to actually make some progress toward getting a look inside the underwater ruins. However, I had absolutely no idea where to begin. 
“If only I had a spell that would let me repel water or breathe under it...” 
“How about we build a tall wall around the ruins and drain all the water...?” And just how do you expect me to do that, Elze? 
“Um... I-I just thought of something...” Linze timidly raised her hand. Well now, that’s a rare sight. Linze wasn’t one to volunteer her opinion often. Because of that, I assumed she must have had some kind of revolutionary idea. 
“So, what is it? If you have a good idea, let’s hear it.” 
“I-I don’t know if you can call it an idea, but... wh-why don’t you just send your vision there with [Long Sense]...?” 
“......Oh.” Right. There’s nothing stopping me from doing that. Why didn’t I think of that? Am I retarded? I wordlessly gave Linze a thumbs-up and cast [Long Sense]. 
I quickly cast my vision into the sea and got a look inside the ruins. Hm... this is... 
“Well? See anything?” 
“...It’s too dark to see...” 
“Get a hold of yourself, already!” Elze’s verbal push made me hastily send a [Light Sphere] down there. 
A part of me thought the orb of light would vanish once inside the sea, but that didn’t happen. It was a silly worry, since it wasn’t like it was a Fire spell or anything. 
Soon enough, the surroundings around my disembodied vision grew bright. I moved the light in sync with the vision, heading further down the stairs. 
Eventually, I entered a large hall. In the center, there was a platform with a magic circle inscribed on it, surrounded by six pedestals. Each had a spellstone embedded in it. Red, blue, brown, green, yellow and purple — all the magic schools except Null were represented by a shining jewel. 
Aside from that, there was nothing notable. No treasure chests, no inscriptions — nothing at all. Was that really it? I returned my vision and told Leen about what I saw. The clan matriarch of the fairies folded her arms, took a moment to think about something, and finally spoke up. 
“That was probably a teleportation circle.” 
“A what now?” 
“I think that when you activate the six elements around it, the magic circle will transport you elsewhere. It’ll work in a similar fashion to your [Gate] spell, I believe.” 
Hmm... A teleportation device for fast movement between locations, huh? I wonder if the sea level used to be lower in the past... Maybe people used that place as a normal means of transportation? Maybe the ruins are only abandoned because the sea level got higher? 
“I’d like to activate it... But that isn’t exactly possible if we can’t even get there. I guess we’ll have to search for Null magic that allows you to breathe underwater and...” 
“My master, if I might interject for a moment.” Kohaku, who was nestled in Yumina’s arms, suddenly spoke up and prevented Leen from continuing her train of thought. 
“What’s up, Kohaku?” 
“I happen to know someone who can help you with your predicament.”

We moved away from the beach and closer to the rocky area, where Leen conjured up a large magic circle. 
“You are aware that summoning magic doesn’t allow you to pick who you want to summon, yes?” 
“Fret not, we shall mix master’s magic power with my spirit power. If we do that, the one I desire to bring here will surely hear and respond to the call.” Kohaku brushed away Leen’s words. I hadn’t the faintest idea that was an option. I figured it was just some kind of special-case workaround. 
“But even so... to summon the Black Monarch of all things... I’ll confess that I’m extremely surprised to discover that the tiger here is the White Monarch, but bringing forth another of the Monarchs should be absolutely impossible...” 
“It is best if you stop logical thought when it comes to Touya-dono, it is.” As Leen mumbled, Yae gently talked her down and left the magic circle. 
“Summoning them should be possible, but I cannot predict what they will want for the contract to be complete. They are not too wild when it comes to temperament, but they can be quite, well... odd...” 
“I keep hearing you use ‘they’ and ‘them’ when referring to the Black Monarch... He won’t be alone?" 
“How should I put this... the two of them make up the entity known as the Black Monarch. Well, you will understand once we summon them.” True enough. Better to get the summoning itself over with. 
I stood before the magic circle and focused my Dark magic upon it. A mist began gathering in the circle, becoming ever thicker with every passing second. Soon enough, Kohaku joined the magic channeling, charging the mist even more. Apparently, Kohaku’s magic was called Spirit Power, but I wasn’t one to care about such trivialities. 
“O Beast who governs the winter, the waters, the north and the mountains. Heed my call. Heed my summons, present your form before me.” The dense mist suddenly released a strong burst of magical energy. Or maybe it was Spirit Power, I couldn’t tell. Just like the time I summoned Kohaku, I could feel the... whatever power overwhelm my surroundings. 
Once the mist dispersed, a gigantic turtle appeared before me. It was about four meters in size. Or maybe it was a tortoise. They were both pretty similar. Just like any tortoise, it also had just four legs. However, it had characteristics which distanced it from normal tortoises and made it look closer to some kaiju from monster movies. More specifically, it reminded me of that one kaiju that could fly through the sky by launching jets from its shell. Though, the one before me didn’t have that kaiju’s large fangs, and its expression didn’t seem nearly as menacing. 
A black serpent was wrapped around the kaiju-tortoise-turtle thing. Just like the tortoise, it was quite large, too. It was larger than an anaconda. Its scales shone like black pearls and its golden eyes gleamed brightly. Those eyes were fixed on Kohaku, and myself. 
“Oh myy... Sso it really iss the White Monarch. Haven’t sseen you in forever. You doing okay, ssweetheart?” 
“It’s been quite a while, Black Monarch.” 
“Oh, come onnn, darling. Didn’t I tell you to call me Blackie?” 
Man, this thing sure sounds carefree. But what the heck is up with this snake? Yeah, he sure is friendly... but maybe a little too friendly. His voice sounds kind of thick, too... Reminds me of a stereotypical drag queen... 
“And this young fella iss...?” 
“Mochizuki Touya. My master.” 
“Your... master?” The tortoise suddenly glared at me. I felt as though I was being evaluated. Its appearance made me think it’d have the voice of a dignified old man, but boy was life full of surprises. The tortoise sounded more feminine than the snake. He did have a sharp harshness to his tone, though. 
“To have such a human as your master... Oh, how the mighty have fallen, White Monarch.” 
“Say what you will. He will soon be your master, as well.” 
“Don’t make me laugh!” 
Kohaku calmly responded to the tortoise’s provocation. Both the snake and the tortoise were now staring at me, the former with curiosity, the latter with anger. This situation was starting to feel a little troublesome. 
“Very well, boy. Touya, was it? We shall test if you are worthy of contracting us.” 
“Fine by me. What do I have to do, though?” 
“Face us in mortal combat. If you still stand and are in good health by sunset, we will recognize your power and permit you to make the contract. However, if you leave the magic circle, lose consciousness, or become unable to attack us, you can forget about it entirely.” It didn’t say anything about me winning if I defeated them. They probably believed that there was no way they could lose to me. Kohaku had mentioned that they excelled at defense, so that confidence was probably justified. 
“I just have to stand around until sunset, right?” 
“Yes. You can choose to run around, if you like. That is, if you believe you can keep running that long.” The tortoise replied with a mocking chuckle. His arrogance was starting to piss me off by that point. 
The magic circle was about twenty meters in diameter. It was definitely large enough to run around in. However, it was about to turn noon, meaning that I’d have to run around for a whole six to seven hours, and I knew that I’d reach my limit way before that. 
Then again, that was probably the Black Monarch’s plan. But it wasn’t something I was going to let come to fruition. 
“Alrighty. Let’s get to it.” 
“T-Touya, are you sure you want to do this?” Yumina looked up at me, worry apparent in her tone and eyes. What a gentle girl she was. I calmed her down by patting her head. She had nothing to worry about, after all. 
“Don’t worry, Yumina. This’ll all work out, trust me.” With those words, I entered the magic circle. The turtle was still chortling to himself and, well, I didn’t really care anymore. 
“You’re sssurprissingly calm.” 
“Indeed. I praise your courage, child. Let us begin!” As if to signal the start of the battle, the turtle let out a deafening roar. That was exemplary kaiju behavior if I ever saw any. 
Victory belongs to he who casts the first stone! 
“[Slip].” 
“Hwuh?!” With a loud crash and a strong quake, the snake and the tortoise crashed to the ground. Considering how large they were, it probably hurt them pretty badly. 
As I channeled the effects of my [Slip] spell, I reached for my waist pouch, took out a single bullet, and applied magic to it. 
“[Enchant]: [Slip].” And so, I cast another spell, giving a certain function to the bullet. 
“Begin [Program]? Starting Condition: The effects of [Slip] wear off? Cast Spell: [Slip]? Ending Condition: The original caster cancels the effect? End [Program].” That should do it. 
“Guh!!!” The tortoise was trying to stand up, so I fired the bullet at the ground right under it. 
“Gwaugh?!” It fell down once more, causing another quake. Again and again, the tortoise tried to stand up, only to spectacularly fall down and make the ground tremble. 
“You... You’re actually evil, did you know that?” Leen stared at me. The disgust in her eyes was palpable. I saw Kohaku, rolling on the ground and laughing loudly right next to her. The sight must have tickled the tiger’s funny bone. Paula, too, was rolling with her paws on her stomach. Just how much programming does that thing have? Two hundred years’ worth of code had resulted in something truly impressive. 
“Once the effects of [Slip] wear off, another instance of the spell takes its place. When that one’s gone, another is cast and, well... it’s an infinite loop. Normally, the caster would run out of magic to sustain it in mere seconds.” 
I’ll have to thank Paula for this wonderful idea. I was inspired by seeing her get perpetually smacked by the waves yesterday. My magic regeneration is greater than the cost of sustaining the loop, so there are no problems in that regard. 
“Now, I just had to wait until sunset. Linze, you brought a packed lunch, right?” 
“Ah, yes. I do have some, but...” Linze, clearly unsure about how to process the situation, looked at the Black Monarch. Hey, I’m not breaking any rules or anything. 
“How should I put this... I feel quite bad for them...” 
“I’ve seen Touya do things like this way too many times by now, and I don’t think there’s any point in saying it, but you should be more considerate of your opponents... Try to read the mood, I mean.” Wow, my methods are actually damaging my reputation... I felt that was uncalled for, honestly. A fight was a fight, and if it there was a safe way to win without breaking the rules, it was only logical to take that option. 
“Augh!” A thundering crash echoed out again. I unpacked my packed lunch and brought Crea’s special sandwich to my lips. Damn, this is a good sandwich. Can’t really go wrong with ham and cheese. 
“Gyuh!” There was another crash. The veggie salad’s pretty good too. Man, what did she put in this dressing? Delicious! 
“Grruh!!!” And another crash. 
“Hey, you guys. Could you stop that? I’m trying to eat over here.” 
“You’re terrible!” Everyone in the vicinity felt like they had to yell that in unison at me. What, really? 
“Don’t you make light of me, impudent brat!!!” The black serpent finally roared something as he fell over for the umpteenth time. It was speaking in a completely different manner than before. If you can talk normally, then what was with the drag queen mannerisms? Why would you do a character bit?! It released a ball of water through its open mouth. However, since the snake fired as it rolled along the ground, the ball went to a completely different direction and hit the barrier around the magic circle. 
Huh, that actually looked dangerous. Those outside the circle were completely safe, but it was clear that it could hurt me pretty badly if it landed a hit. 
The tortoise saw an opportunity and, while airborne after a fall, opened its large mouth. 
“Eat this!” It spewed water at me, compressed so hard it reminded me of a laser. Though, just like the snake’s ball, it fired off into a random area. 
The spell resembled Linze’s [Aqua Cutter]. I knew that one could hurt me if it landed a hit, too. 
[Slip] made the victim fall if they moved even a single millimeter, meaning that the very first fall would have them falling over and over forever. Aiming at and hitting me was difficult, but not completely impossible. 
“Guess I’ve got no choice. I’ll make you fall even more.” 
“Wh-What?!” Both of the beasts that made up the Black Monarch cried out in unison. I reached for my pouch, took out two bullets, enchanted them, and then loaded them into my gun. Instead of the ground, however, those two were meant for the snake and tortoise. 
“Nghuuaaooooh!” 
“Ngyaaaaaaah!” The two began to slip over even faster than before, ridding them of any opportunity for ranged attacks. They were falling so much that it seemed like they were inside an invisible washing machine. 
“Wh-What did you do to them?!” 
“Hm? I simply hit them with an acceleration spell.” 
“You’re evil.” Once again, everyone in the vicinity felt the need to tell me that. It was [Accel], one of my Null spells. It was meant to increase the movement speed of the caster, but as I just demonstrated, it wasn’t impossible to grant it to someone else. Normally, it created a magic barrier around the affected person, but I made sure to keep it from activating. What, why is everyone looking at me like that? Even Kohaku had stopped laughing. Instead, the little tiger just stood there half-smiling awkwardly. 
I think I overdid it. 

“Ohh... Ghohhhh... It’ss sspinning... Th-The world is sspinning...” 
“P-Please... No more... I don’t wanna fall any more... I don’t wanna slip anymore...” Yep, I overdid it. The black serpent’s eyes were rolled backward and its head was lolling around, while the tortoise just wouldn’t stop crying. It looked like they were laying eggs or something. 
“Well... Sorry about that. Guess I went too far. Seriously, I regret it, I promise.” I could feel everyone’s cold stares from behind me, like daggers in my back. They accepted defeat and agreed to make a contract with me, so I dispelled the [Slip] loop. However, getting them to calm down took quite a while. 
“Oh, that wass truly horrid... I can ssee why the White Monarch accepted you as masster.” Even now, the snake’s head was bobbing a little bit. The tortoise had already stopped crying and was now looking at me in a stoic manner. I patted its head and apologized once again. It closed its eyes and lowered itself before me. 
“Mochizuki Touya. You are worthy of being our master. So please, form a contract with us.” With those words, the tortoise and the serpent bowed their heads to me. 
“Uhh... I have to name you, right?” 
“Yess. Pleasse give uss ssome ssplendid namess, ssweetheart.” 
Kohaku suddenly chimed in on the matter at hand. 
“Just ‘Snake’ and ‘Tortoise’ would be more than enough for these two.” 
“Shut that trap, punk! Ya pickin’ a fight or ssomething?!” The tiger’s words made the snake bare its fangs and spit verbal venom. Its true self was showing again. 
I decided to keep quiet about the fact that I was actually just going to name them Snake and Tortoise. The snake’s reaction made me realize it would’ve been a bad idea. I also assumed “Snakey” and “Tortoisey” wouldn’t work, either. 
Just like how the White Monarch is Byakko, the Black Monarch is clearly Genbu, the Black Tortoise or Turtle that represents water... 
“Alrighty, it’s decided. Kokuyou and Sango.” 
“Kokuyou?” 
“Sango?” 
When I saw those two, what came to mind was “black” and “water.” So I named the snake Kokuyou, after obsidian, and the tortoise Sango, after precious coral. It also fit with the precious stone theme I’d given Kohaku. That tiger’s name meant amber, after all. 
“Do you like it?” 
“I will gladly take the name Kokuyou.” 
“It is the same for myself. I will now respond to the name Sango. Use it as you see fit.” I was glad they agreed. With their names set, the summoned beasts could now leave the magic circle. Sango slowly crawled through the barrier. 
“Hey, wait just a moment, Black Monar— No, Sango and Kokuyou. We can stay in this world because of our master’s magic. However, your current forms would cause problems for him. You should change into something simpler.” 
“...Really?” 
“Sso we should become ssmall, like the White Monar— like Kohaku, yess? Whatever you wish, Masster! Here!” Sango and Kokuyou instantly reduced their size. There was even a “pop” sound effect. 
They had collectively become a thirty-odd centimeter long, black shelled land turtle with a normal-sized black snake wrapped around it. It was a... relatively normal appearance, until you noticed that they were floating in the air. 
“You can float?” 
“Only when we are this small. We cannot move especially fast, either.” Sango began swimming through the air. True, he wasn’t fast in any sense of the word. It seemed about the same as standard human walking speed. But man, seeing a turtle swim through the air was quite a surreal sight... 
Still, at that size there’d be no issue bringing them along with me. 
“Alright, Sango and Kokuyou. Let’s get along.” They came close to my shoulder and I patted them on their heads with my fingertips. 
“I, Sango, will do my best to support you.” 
“Ssame here. I’ll help you lotss, masster.” That was good, because I had just the job for them.

“Sso we have to allow you to breathe underwater?” 
“Yup. Can you?” 
“Of coursse. None can come closse to uss when it comess to warding.” The breathing part was settled, but there might’ve been other dangers. I decided that first, I would go there alone and activate all the spellstones. Since I had an affinity for all the elements, that wasn’t a problem for me. Upon using the magic circle and seeing where it leads, I would open a [Gate] and let everyone join me. 
 

“If something happens, use a [Gate] to return right away, okay?” As Elze and the others expressed their worry, I turned my back to them and walked into the water with Sango and Kokuyou still on my shoulder. Whoa, my feet aren’t getting wet. There seemed to be a magic barrier about a centimeter away from my body. Sango and Kokuyou were already impressing me. 
I entered the water with a splash. Soon enough, the water reached my neck, and a moment later, I was completely submerged. 
I found myself facing no difficulties. I could breathe without a problem. Even water pressure had no effect on me. 
“Just how strong is this barrier?” 
“Well... When it comess to physsical attackss, it could even ward off a Dragon, but when magic iss involved, it dependss entirely on the opponent.” Kokuyou answered with a slight sway of his head. 
“We might be powerful, but there is nothing we can do against attacks that break through the barrier’s limits, or spells that completely dispel the barrier.” Sango continued the explanation. Basically, no matter how impressive, it wasn’t the panacea to all defensive problems. 
I continued walking along the seafloor. It occurred to me that the barrier seemed to be warding away the effects of buoyancy as well. I tried swimming upward to test that, and ended up floating a little bit, so I guess it wasn’t completely gone. 
I spent time pondering about the barrier until I finally arrived at the stone circle. I walked past that, making a beeline straight for the stairs in the middle of the ruins. With a magic light at my side, I illuminated the long way down. 
Finally, I reached the large hall with the magic circle in the center. It looked the same in person as it had with [Long Sense]. It was surrounded with six spellstone pedestals. 
I approached the red spellstone pedestal and filled its jewel with fire magic. 
Moments later, the pedestal itself began to emit a reddish light. It was safe to assume that I’d activated it. 
I continued to do the same with all the other spellstone pedestals. After making five lights come alive, I made my way to the final spellstone and filled it with water magic. Then, the entire magic circle began to shine. 
“Guess this means I activated the teleportation circle.” I hesitantly stepped on it... And nothing happened. Huh? Why, though? The six pedestals are all shining and... oh... 
Does it need Null magic after all? 
My [Gate] was a Null spell, after all. It was possible that the teleportation circle was based on a similar principle... 
I stood in the center of the magic circle and focused my Null energy. The circle released a burst of light that was downright explosive! I teleported off in a flash. 
I closed my eyes due to the sudden bright light, and after I slowly opened them, I realized I was in a garden. Blooming flowers, chirping songbirds flying around, there was even a small canal with water flowing through. 
Just like in the underwater ruins, there was a magic circle beneath my feet. However, the six pedestals were nowhere to be seen. Guess it was a one-way trip. 
“Masster... where are we?” 
“No idea...” I stepped off the magic circle, looked around the garden, and noticed something approaching from the distance. Is that... a girl? Soon enough, I could see her clearly. So clearly, in fact, that I had no choice but look away from her. Silky, smooth, short, and jade-green hair. Porcelain-like skin and golden eyes. The girl had a thick air of mystery around her. When it came to age, she looked about as old as Elze and the others. That was fine by me. 
She was wearing a sleeveless black jacket with a large, pinkish ribbon. She also wore white knee-high socks and black enamel shoes. That too, was fine by me. 
Indeed, it was all fine. Except there was one thing that wasn’t! 
“A pleasure to meet you. I am Francesca, the terminal gynoid tasked with managing this Garden of Babylon.” Garden? Terminal? Her words left me with some questions, but the biggest question of all was related to what I was looking at! 
“Uhh, well...” 
“Yes? What is it?” 
“Why... Aren’t you wearing anything... down there?” I knew it was bad to look, but I couldn’t help throwing the occasional glance at her lower body, where I could see neither skirt nor trousers. 
All she wore there was a small white piece of cloth. Her panties were completely exposed. 
Wh-Why?! Just where am I?! What is happening here...?! I kinda liked it, though. 
 
“I do not know how to answer your question. I believe you could call it a... duty?” The girl who introduced herself as Francesca tilted her head in a cute manner. 
Wait a sec, does she mean that wearing skirts or pants isn’t allowed? Who’s the manager around here? I have some compliments to give! 
Wait, calm down... This situation is dangerous for your mental health. 
I need to do something about this. 
“Uhh... Francesca, right?” 
“That is correct. However, you should refer to me as Cesca.” Wouldn’t Fran be the more logical nickname here? Ah, whatever. 
“Can you please put something on? I, uh... I’m having trouble deciding where to look.” 
“But I am wearing underwear, am I not?” That’s true, but so not the point here! Guh... Stay calm and keep it together, Touya. Just think of it as a swimsuit. It’s a swimsuit, nothing more, and... 
I couldn’t prevent myself from peeking at it again. Nope! Those are panties, damn it! No doubt about it! 
“You just peeked, didn’t you?” 
“I’m sorry!” Ah shit, she’s on to me! 
“Well, if you insist, I will go ahead and put something on.” Cesca pulled a black skirt adorned with white frills out of nowhere and began getting into it. Why didn’t you just wear that from the beginning?! 
“...Are you sure you do not wish to do something to me?” 
“I’m sure. Just put it on already.” 
“I will not protest if you fondle me even a little.” 
“Enough of that! Hurry up and put it on!” I wanted to cry. I just needed to get her into the skirt so we could finally have a proper conversation, but the whole situation was mentally exhausting. 
“So, I have several questions. Can you answer them?” 
“Yes. I certainly could.” 
“What is this place?” 
“This is the Hanging Garden of Babylon, high in the sky. Some call this place Nirai Kanai.” Hanging garden? The sky? I looked around and it definitely was a garden, but it didn’t seem any different from your standard botanical ones. I could see the sky through a glass dome above us. Cesca led me to the edge, where there was a wall of glass separating us from the outside. 
Beyond it, I could see a sea of clouds. There was no doubt about it. The place actually was floating in the sky. It was well deserving of its name, a hanging garden. 
“What’s the purpose of this place? Why was it made?” 
“The construction of this hanging garden was Doctor Babylon’s hobby.” 
“Doctor Babylon...?” 
“Doctor Regina Babylon. Our creator.” 
Creator? What a weird thing to say. She’s making it seem as though she was a product and... wait a sec. 
“My lord. This is not a human. I cannot feel the flow of its vitals.” 
“Wha—?!” Sango told me exactly what was on my mind. Both my understanding and my lack of comprehension of the situation crashed into each other at once. 
“Dr. Babylon created me to be the management terminal of this garden. That was five thousand and ninety two years ago.” 
“Five th— Huh?!” Leen told me she was six hundred and twelve, and I’m supposed to believe that this girl is almost four thousand five hundred years older than her?! Wait, I guess calling her a girl isn’t right, is it? If she was created, then she’s a robot...? Wait, is she an android? Or I guess a gynoid? I think she said something like that... 
“So, Cesca. You’re a machine?” 
“Not entirely, no. I have some magically-made organic parts and a magic reactor, so I am more of a combined magical-mechanical lifeform.” 
Guess that makes her closer to a Golem or a homunculus, then... But man, she’s so realistic. A normal girl from top to bottom... 
“...I am incapable of being impregnated, but I am well-equipped to partake in the relevant act, if you so desire.” 
“I didn’t need to know that! H-Hey! Quit raising your skirt!” Is she not programmed for standard shame?! Was Dr. Babylon a goddamn idiot?! 
“Worry not, my parts are fresh, clean, and like new.” 
“I didn’t need to know that, either!” Cesca let go of her skirt, a look of disappointment clouding her face. Her mannerisms gave me a good window into the creator’s mind. It was clear to me that Dr. Babylon was not right in the head. 
“Thiss girl iss sso hard to undersstand.” Kokuyou looked at Cesca, his head bobbing side to side. I couldn’t agree more. 
“That aside... I’m impressed that this place has been active for five thousand years. Is there a reason why either you or the garden didn’t decay or break down?” 
“The hanging garden in its entirety is strengthened by magic. Though five thousand years might seem like a lot to you, I was in sleep mode for most of it, standing by in case of an emergency. The hanging garden was largely automated as I slept.” 
...Wait a sec. If she’s active right now, doesn’t that mean this place is in a state of emergency? I asked the synthetic girl, and she gave a small nod. 
“Emergency, indeed. We do not have a better word to describe it. You are our first guest, after all. What is your name, if I may ask?” 
“Ah, I’m Touya. Mochizuki Touya.” 
“Very well, Administrator Touya. You have been recognized as compatible. I — Apparatus Number Twenty-Three, codename Francesca — have been assigned to serve you. Till death do us part.” 
“Excuse me?” Compatible? No, wait... assigned? Cesca pointed at the magic circle I used to teleport here and began explaining. 
“No normal person can activate that magic circle. It is made to be unable to accept magic from multiple people. That means that it can only be activated by those with an affinity for all types of magic... Just like Doctor Babylon.” 
So, the woman who made Cesca was just like me in that regard, huh? Wow, so someone else like that actually exists in this world... Well, it was a whole five thousand years ago, but still. So this place can only be accessed by people with the same potential as the old doc. 
“Dr. Babylon resolved to assign us to a compatible person who could make it past the teleportation circle. That was four thousand nine hundred and seven years ago.” 
“So when you say compatible, you mean people who have an affinity for all pools of magic?” 
“No. That is not the case.” 
“Wait, I was wrong?!” She instantly shot my assumption down. If that wasn’t the condition, then what was...? 
“Administrator Touya, you were recognized as compatible because you told me to hide my exposed underwear when we first met.” 
“You can’t be serious! How does that gauge compatibility?! That doesn’t even make any sense!” 
“Oh, but it is very important. If you had let your instincts dominate you and tried to have your way with me, I would have dropped you to the surface in but a moment. If you had chosen to ignore my attire and let me stay like that, you would have been deemed incompatible and I would have politely asked you to return to the surface.” For real...? Her exposed panties were that important? I couldn’t help but doubt her words. 
“Dr. Babylon decided on this method to gauge whether a person is considerate and kind enough to be worthy of myself and the Hanging Garden of Babylon.” 
“I see... Dr. Babylon was some kind of freak, then.” 
“I will not disagree, Administrator.” 
Seriously? The doc was definitely some kind of complete freak. I couldn’t stress it enough. 
“Well, with that joke settled, I must reveal that it was actually left down to our own individual discretion. Personally, instead of a fake gentleman who is excessively kind and clearly used to women, I would rather settle for a ‘secret degenerate’ who throws glances at my underwear, but controls himself and pretends he doesn’t care about it at all.” 
Wait, so that’s how it was decided?! I’m getting confused! And what did she mean by ‘secret degenerate’?! That’s super rude! The word ‘settle’ doesn’t sit right with me, either. 
“At any rate, I am your property from here on out. I do hope we get along well, Master.” 
“Hhaahhh...” A sinking feeling came over me. I’d gotten into something troublesome. I could easily picture the twisted grin on Dr. Babylon’s face. 
I figured it was about time to summon the others. We all had a lot to talk about, after all. I explained the situation to Cesca and opened a [Gate] to the surface.

“A garden, is it...? This could be a relic left behind by the ancient civilization of Partheno.” Leen was looking around, clearly overwhelmed by what she was seeing. 
The ancient civilization of Partheno. It was a highly advanced culture responsible for creating various spells and magical implements, more specifically Artifacts. 
This Hanging Garden of Babylon was a relic left behind by that civilization, and it was fair to call it an Artifact in itself. Going by that logic, Cesca might be considered an Artifact, too. 
Everyone was walking around and exploring the place. Cesca told us that this hanging garden was the size of four Partheno Domes. That didn’t mean anything to me as I had no idea what a Partheno Dome was. I had no doubt it was very big, though. 
There were areas much like botanical gardens, fountains, stepping stones, flower beds, ponds — anyone even casually into gardening would go crazy over the place. 
As I stood there admiring the flora, I could easily tell what was on everyone’s minds. Julio would love to see this. 
Leen, Cesca, and I were resting in one of the garden’s corners, at a spot near a pool beneath something similar to a gazebo. 
“So, you got what you wanted to find, Leen?” 
“I’m actually unsure. I only hoped to discover some ancient magic, but we happened to find something far greater.” She wasn’t wrong. The whole of this hanging garden was one giant gathering of ancient magic. It had a garden that should never have survived five thousand years, but it somehow did. Then there were flowers that never withered, a barrier that made the whole of it invisible to outsiders, and so on... It was impossible for us to guess what kind of, and just how much, mysterious ancient magic was at work on this floating paradise. 
Regina Babylon, the creator of this place, was a genius, no doubt about it. Though, it was kind of hard to ignore the fact that the good doctor was the type of person to force gynoids to walk around with exposed underwear. 
“Cesca, is there anything more to this place besides the garden?” 
“No. Nothing. Unlike the others, this Babylon facility is simply a wonderful personal garden floating through the sky. It has no treasure worth mentioning and no weapons to speak of. It is nothing more than a wonderful garden.” 
“Hey now, this place is a treasure in itself.” 
“That’s very kind of you to say. However, you are aware that this Hanging Garden of Babylon is already yours, right, Master?” Huh? What’s she saying now? 
“The one that controls and manages this place is myself, yes? And I’m your property now, Master. That means my property is vicariously yours, understand?” 
“...Are you serious?” 
“Yes, I’m quite serious. You can consider it my dowry.” 
Quite a big dowry, at that... Wait, what? I have no intention of marrying her! I’ve got enough on my plate with just one fiancee. 
“Hey, Cesca. You’ve now piqued my curiosity. You said that unlike the others, this place is just a personal garden. What did you mean by that?” Leen looked at Cesca with keen, perceptive eyes. 
Come to think of it, Cesca hasn’t been referring to gynoids in singular terms, either... Her phrasing kind of suggests that there’s more than just her. 
“Babylon is split into several floating sections. Besides this hanging garden, there’s also the research laboratory, the hangar, the library, among several others, all of which are managed by my sisters. Babylon becomes complete when all of them are joined together.” What...? 
“So, you’re saying that the floating island of Babylon was created by your creator, Dr. Regina Babylon, some five thousand years ago. It then became separate and its parts are now floating all over the world, correct?” 
“Indeed.” Leen confirmed the facts with Cesca. The scale of it all was a tad too large for me to wrap my head around. 
Everyone who had been out in the garden gathered in the gazebo and intently listened to what Cesca had to say. 
“If something like that was floating around out there, wouldn’t someone have noticed and made a huge fuss already?” Elze raised a fair point. 
“Babylon is protected by a magic barrier that prevents outsiders from seeing it. Because of that, it is nearly impossible to view it from the surface.” 
That seems about right... Dr. Babylon, the genius pervert of days long lost, must have used some kind of ancient magic to give Babylon the perfect stealth function. And the only way to discover it is by making it past the teleportation circle. A circle that would only work for those who had an affinity for all magic, just like the creator. 
“So, how many floating islands are there?” 
“Besides my garden, there is the library, research laboratory, hangar, tower, rampart, workshop, alchemy lab, and storehouse. Nine in total, but I do not know if all of them still remain active.” 
A whole nine?! Wait, considering they were all over the world, that number might actually be small. Plus, I’m pretty sure I remember hearing that the garden is the biggest of the individual pieces. Dr. Babylon was simply amazing... despite the perverted nature. 
“I’m quite interested in this library you mentioned. It seems like something that’d be full of knowledge about ancient cultures.” Leen, sitting at my side, adopted a bold grin, but I wasn’t sure if I could relate to her in that regard. 
The library belonged to that Dr. Babylon. I would not have been surprised if it was actually a gigantic porn collection. It was way too suspicious. 
I thought similar things about the storehouse, actually. I really did not want to go there and find a bunch of erotic goods. 
“I-Is it possible to contact the other floating islands?” Linze asked a question, fear and apprehension laced into her words. 
Better work on that confidence, girl. You’re still no good at interacting with new people. Well, I guess calling Cesca a person doesn’t really count... 
Either way, Linze had a point. If the other places were controlled and managed by others like Cesca, then the most efficient way to complete Babylon was to get in contact with them. 
“Sadly, the links between me and my sisters are now inactive. Our barrier is set to the highest level, preventing any and all magical communication attempts. Unless Master orders it, the defense level can’t be lowered.” 
“What does ‘link’ mean...? And what exactly do you mean by ‘Master,’ here?” Yumina tilted her head to the side. She wasn’t familiar with the word “link”? Guess Belfast hadn’t progressed enough in scientific fields to let them know about technical terms. 
“A ‘link’ is basically a connection between multiple things. And when I say Master, I mean ‘my dearly beloved husband,’ of course.” 
“Don’t tell her lies like that. Master in this case is more along the lines of ‘boss’ or ‘superior,’ Yumina.” 
Does she actually equate master with husband? How self-serving. Despite being an artificial girl — no matter how partial — she’s too much of a jokester. I already know beyond a shadow of a doubt, that this too, is the fault of Dr. Regina Babylon. I didn’t really think about this before, but Regina is a girl’s name, isn’t it? Well, she’s definitely not the type of woman I’d like to have around... 
“And why exactly are you this girl’s superior, hm?” Linze furrowed her eyebrows and pressed me for an explanation. Wait, why am I being interrogated? 
“My dear administrator gazed upon my underwear, so I decided to dedicate my heart and body to him alone. That is why he is my master, the admin of my heart.” 
“Hey! You left out several key details just now!” The air around us turned sour almost immediately. Everyone in the vicinity with the exception of Leen, Kohaku, Sango, and Kokuyou was glaring at me with cold eyes. 
Slowly, Linze folded her arms and stood in front of me. She didn’t let me get up from my seat. Her eyes were emanating a light as cold as ice. Wh-Who’s this girl? What happened to the usual calm and docile Linze? 
“...Touya.” 
“Y-Yes?” 
“On the ground, now.” Linze was mad beyond words. Her voice suddenly carried an immense weight, probably because she was always so calm and quiet most of the time. I stood up from the chair and sat on the ground. I didn’t want to risk making her any angrier. 
“You’ve already seen all of us in our underwear, and yet you did it again with another girl? Do a girl’s panties really mean that much to you?!” 
“That was just an accident back then. I just happened to walk in and see it all, and...” 
“So you did it on purpose this time, then?” 
Hey, there was just no way to defend myself from that exposure! She was the one showing them off to me! Why am I the one getting in trouble?! 
“So you weren’t satisfied with seeing us in our swimsuits? I know you were looking at us a lot.” 
“Well... That was, uh...” 
“I did my best to choose a bikini that paired well with my sister’s, and that still wasn’t enough? So you’re the type to see a difference between swimwear and underwear, are you?” Sh-She’s being really scary! Linze was looking away at nothing in particular, mumbling something quickly to herself. Even the other girls were a little confused. Leen piped up, a malicious grin spread across her face. 
“Hey, shall I show you my panties too? Seems to be the fashionable thing nowadays.” 
“Sorry, but could you please shut up?!” Leen’s grin only grew wider. She was clearly enjoying the unfolding scene. No, but seriously... why am I being picked on? I didn’t do anything wrong! 
“It looks like you don’t know why they’re mad at you.” Leen shocked me stiff. It was as though she had read my mind. Is she an esper?! Does she have some Null spell for that?! That’d be nice right about now! Gimme! 
“Just leave it at that. If you want to press him further, you should make your relationship with him clear. At the very least, you have to be on the same level as Princess Yumina here.” 
“...Yeah, okay.” Leen’s words made Linze nod and back off. 
I don’t get it. They completely lost me. I looked over to see Elze with a wry smile on her face. She was patting Linze softly on the shoulder. I don’t get it, but... it’s over, right? 
“Only the master, Touya, can give the order that will lower the level of the barrier. At a lower level, communication should be possible. However, his administrative powers do not extend beyond this garden. Unless something causes the other facilities to lower their own barriers, we will be unable to make contact, is that correct?” 
“Exactly.” Leen and Cesca brought us back to the point of the situation. 
I used my smartphone’s map to search for ‘Babylon,’ but didn’t get a single hit. Even the garden we were standing upon wasn’t marked. I took that to mean the barriers prevented my [Search] magic. 
“You’ve been floating about for so long. Surely you’d have encountered any of the other pieces at least once.” 
“Only twice. Once, three thousand and twenty eight years ago, and another nine hundred and eighty five years ago. The first time, it was the library, while the second encounter was with the storehouse.” 
Good assumption, Yumina. But even so, that’s a lot of years separating encounters. It’s not like we can just sit around waiting for that to happen again... 
“So, to find the other Babylon pieces, we have no choice but to search for the teleportation circles, then.” Leen heaved a long sigh. Wait, we’re actually doing it? I couldn’t help but feel a bit reluctant... 
“Do you happen to know where the other teleportation circles are?” 
“Negative. I do not even know the location of the one you used to get here. Where is the garden’s teleportation circle, anyway?” 
“Beneath the sea, just off the coast of southern Eashen.” 
“Eashen...? No such location exists in my database.” 
That makes sense. Eashen probably wasn’t around five thousand years ago. Regardless, it was troubling that Cesca didn’t know the location of the other teleportation circles. That would make things considerably difficult. Hell, the first teleportation circle was deep underwater. It wouldn’t be unusual if the others hadn’t survived the five thousand years they had to have been around for. That being said, finding them would not be an impossible task if they were all housed within ruins like the first one. 
“Why was Babylon separated, anyway? Spreading it out all over the world like this just makes getting it back together seem almost impossible...” 
“I am unaware of the reasons Dr. Babylon had for separating the facilities. I never asked, after all.” I wondered if she had a particular reason for doing it. It could just as easily have been for a joke or something, after all. 
Geez, my faith in Dr. Babylon is going down the more I think about her. It probably isn’t nice to assume that a person long gone was some sort of deviant... 
“So, Touya. What are you gonna do with her?” 
“Not sure how to answer that...” Elze’s question made me ponder. She’d been alone for five thousand years. That made her seem like quite a tragic character, but... 
“What do you want to do, Cesca?” 
“Well, I want to be with you, dear master. From dawn till dusk. From bathroom to the bedroom.” 
Those words made me feel uneasy. I was tempted to leave and pretend none of that day’s events had happened. Oh shit, Linze is mumbling something again! 
“Well... is it really okay for you to be separated from this garden? It can’t sustain itself without your management, right?” 
“No need to worry about that. I instantly know if something happens to the garden, and I have the ability to teleport here at will. The garden sustains itself just fine in auto-mode, so there are no problems in that regard.” 
Damn it. My escape route is well and truly closed. Seems I’ve no choice but to take her, now. 
“With that in mind, I wish to register you as the garden’s master. I am already yours, but I must make your ownership of the garden official, as well.” 
“Registration? What do I have to do?” 
“Excuse me for a moment.” Cesca walked over to me before I had a chance to get out of my chair. She placed her hands on my cheeks and, as if it wasn’t a big deal, pushed her lips against mine. 
“MmMpPh?!” 
“AAAAAAHHHH!!!!” Four shrieks resounded around me. However, Cesca ignored them and continued to force her tongue into my mouth. Whuh? He— Huh?! WHAT? What is she— Explain?! Finally, she released my lips from the lock, which gave me a moment to process the fact that she had kissed me. 
“Wh— Whuah?!” A strange sound escaped my mouth. But how else was I supposed to react? She had nonchalantly taken away my first kiss. She had stolen it from me, in fact. 
The thief in question licked her lips as if tasting them and closed her eyes. 
“Registration complete. I have consumed and recorded my master’s genetic information. Ownership of the garden will now be transferred to Mochizuki Touya.” 
“Hey, what do you think you’re doing?!” Yumina closed in on Cesca. With her small hands raised high, she was making her anger extremely clear. 
“Wh-Who in their right mind just k-k-kisses someone like that?! Even I didn’t get mine yet! I’ve yet to get mine, you know?!” Did she actually just say the same thing twice? Her face was beet red, and I couldn’t even tell if she was mad or flustered. Whatever the case, for some reason, I found it rather adorable. 
“I believe this to be the most effective way to retrieve genetic information. I cannot bear children, but the alternative retrieval method would’ve taken more time all the same.” 
“Ch-Children?!” Yumina’s face grew even redder. I didn’t know if it was just my imagination, but I swore that I could see some steam rising from her head. Suddenly, someone stood before me, blocking my view of the scene. I looked up to see Linze, glaring down at me with a stern expression. Her hands were on her hips. 
Oh, things were sure looking grim for little old me. After all, I had enhanced senses that informed me of serious danger. I resigned myself to the fear and closed my eyes tight. 
“Touya...” 
“Y-Yes?!” 
“I... love you.” 
I’m sorry, WHAT? Her oh-so-sudden words made my eyes open wide, and when I looked up at her again, I saw that Linze’s face was as red as Yumina’s. 
She quickly closed her eyes, gathered her determination, and hastily pushed her lips against mine. 
It was a kiss, no doubt about it, but unlike Cesca’s, it was clumsy and forceful. 
“Hgmgh?!” 
“AAAAAHHHH!!!” A trio of shrieks echoed throughout the Hanging Garden of Babylon. 

Some time had passed since Linze’s confession. We were all flustered beyond words, so we took Cesca with us and returned home. 
I quickly asked Laim to look after Cesca, hastily returned to my room, put my hands over my head, and dropped onto my bed. I was in a complete state of panic. 
What kind of situation did I get myself into? Linze is in love with me? “Love,” as in... that kind of love? Oh man... Maybe I shouldn’t overthink it. Linze is cute, no doubt about that. She’s a graceful, calm girl. Always thinking of others. A bit shy, sure, but she more than makes up for it with how hard-working she is. She’s definitely the kind of girl many people would be proud to call their girlfriend... But I’m still engaged to Yumina. Yumina’s an adorable girl as well, and I can’t help but admire the composure and reliability she has at such a young age. Then again, I find it pretty endearing when she acts her age, too. Am I just moved by the gap between her normal personality and her youthful actions? Hm? Wait, is it really a gap if her actions fit her age? Oh man, how the hell do I deal with this...? 
I buried my face into my pillow and sighed when I suddenly heard someone knock on my door. 
“Touya, it’s me, Yumina...” 
“H-Huh?!” I opened my door to see Yumina, standing there in her casual clothing. 
This is super awkward... But why? I didn’t do anything wrong. Is this how husbands feel when their wives find out that they’re cheating? Wait, we haven’t even gotten married yet, so it clearly wasn’t cheating or anything! Yumina walked into the room and sat on the sofa in the middle. I nonchalantly sat in front of her, but I was unable to look her in the eye. I was unsure if what I was feeling was guilt. 
Staaare... 
Staaaare... 
Staaaaare... 
Staaaaaare... 
Guh... She’s giving me the old heterochromic glare. Why is the air so heavy...? 
“Touya.” 
“Y-Yes?” 
“I am quite mad, you know?” 
How am I supposed to react to that...? We happen to be engaged, so it should be obvious that you wouldn’t enjoy seeing another girl profess her love to me. 
I did find it somewhat adorable how she furrowed her brow and pouted, but it did absolutely nothing to remove the weight from the situation. 
“Even I didn’t get a kiss yet, and now two girls got theirs before me?!” 
“Wait, that’s the problem here?!” Well, that’s all well and good, but I wasn’t the one who kissed them in the first place! They kissed me! I don’t care if that sounds like a cheap excuse, just understand that already! 
“You’re not mad about Linze confessing her love to me?” 
“Why would I be? Anyone with working eyes can see that Linze loves you, Touya.” 
Well shit. Guess my eyes are on the fritz. That made me feel a little disappointed in myself. 
“This is a good opportunity, so let me tell you this. I don’t care how many mistresses you have. It can be ten or even twenty, and I won’t mind as long as you don’t make them unhappy. That’s just something natural for men, and I don’t mind at all.” Seriously? I know that polygamy isn’t uncommon in this world, but those kinds of numbers sound a little unreasonable. It’s a little scary, actually! 
“However! HOWEVER! You can’t be so careless as to get kissed when you still haven’t even kissed your first wife! You have too many openings! Be more defensive! No, become impregnable!” 
“Well, but—” 
“No buts!” 
“Okay...” A large part of me thought that she was mad about the wrong thing, but apparently, it was pretty damn important to her. 
“So, you’re saying that you wouldn’t have any problems with this happening if I kissed you beforehand?” 
“Well, I admit I would be a bit jealous, but I wouldn’t be against it. So long as you properly treasure me, anyway.” 
Is the person talking to me really twelve? Kind of feels like her views on things are a bit too objective, right? Does she really love me as much as she claims...? 
“...You just thought something rude, didn’t you?” 
“Uhhh...” Why am I surrounded by such perceptive girls? Yumina got up off the sofa, walked around the table with determination in her step, and sat right next to me. 
“Touya. I am prepared to take you as my husband and live my whole life as your wife. That is because I love you. Because I love you just as much as, if not more than, Linze does. I don’t want you to doubt that.” 
“...Sorry.” My apology couldn’t have been more sincere. Being so doubtful of her feelings was the height of discourtesy. I was at fault for not having been clear enough to her. 
“...I really am sorry.” 
“...I’ll forgive you if you hug and kiss me.” 
Whoa! Talk about a difficulty spike! The situation’s tough enough already, isn’t it?! Then again, it really doesn’t seem like she’ll back down until she gets what she wants. I fearfully reached for her shoulders and pulled her small frame closer. I pulled her into a tight embrace, the top of her head resting under my chin. The softness of her body and the feminine smell of her hair made my heart stir wildly. 
Alright. Okay. I have no choice but to admit how I felt about her. Yumina slightly backed away from me, then slowly closed her eyes and tilted her face upward. That’s a clear sign that there’s no going back now! Even I’m aware of that! I steeled myself and kissed Yumina on her small, soft lips. It wasn’t much more than a light, gentle touch. 
I quickly reeled backward, pulling my face away from hers. She gave me a bright smile and tightly wrapped her arms around me. 
“Eheheh. You kissed me! That makes me the first one you kissed, right?!” 
“Er, well... Yeah. Guess that’s true...” I was already kissed twice, but this was the first time I had done the kissing. Wait, was that her goal all along?! A part of me began to believe that everything that had just happened was all a part of her master plan, but the thought was kind of scary, so I chose not to dwell on it. 
That aside, what would society think about a boy who’s sixteen kissing a girl who’s twelve...? I had no idea how it was in this world, but in the previous one, it would basically be a first year high schooler kissing a sixth year elementary schooler... And that seemed like a huge crime. Which was a little strange. I mean, considering that there was only a four year difference between us, it wasn’t so bad... 
“What do you think of Linze, Touya?” 
“Well, I... I think she’s cute and, honestly, I was kind of happy when she confessed her love to me. But I can’t even decide how I feel about you, and now I have to think about Linze, as well, which is really nerve-racking. And yeah, I know that makes me sound pathetic.” 
“And if you had to say whether you liked or disliked her?” 
“Well, obviously I like her. There’s no doubt about that. She’s dear to me.” 
Yumina smiled, still wrapped up in my arms. What? What’s with that sly smirk on her face...? 
“Did you hear that, Linze?” 
“What?!” Yumina spoke toward one of the room’s corners. I looked over there, and a moment later, Linze appeared out of nowhere, her cheeks red as beets. Wait, what?! 
“We asked Leen to cast that spell on her. Without it, there’s no way Linze would’ve come here.” 
Wait, she was using [Invisibility]?! She was in the room the whole time? That means she heard everything I said and... Damn it, how embarrassing! 
“It’s your fault, you know? You just shut yourself in your room without saying anything. Linze was actually crying because she thought you hated her. Elze was about to come over and punch your teeth in.” 
“Ahh... I’m thankful she didn’t...” 
Geez, I was so overwhelmed by my own feelings that I didn’t consider anyone else. I’m totally hopeless... 
“U-Uhm, I-I’m sorry about what I did. When I saw Cesca kiss you, I just didn’t want to lose to her... And it happened before I realized it... I didn’t even consider your feelings... I’m so sorry...” I closed in on Linze and took her hand in mine. She was trembling, tears running down her cheek. 
“Ah...” 
“As I’m sure you just heard, I don’t hate you. I think you’re cute and yeah, I do like you. I’m not sure how I should go about this, but I do know that I treasure you.” 
“Touya...” Linze faintly smiled. Yep. A smile fits her face better than any tears could. And I’m the one who caused those tears. Elze could knock my teeth out and it’d be justified. 
“With both of your feelings settled... how about it? Will you take Linze as your second wife?” 
“E-Excuse me?” Yumina nonchalantly said something unbelievable. Another wife? Linze? I looked at the girl and saw her fidgeting. Her face was still red as a tomato. 
“It’s fairly standard for royalty, nobility, and wealthy merchants to take second or third wives. The only issue is your dependability as a man. If you are able to properly care for us, no one will complain. I’m sure you’re okay with that, right, Linze?” 
“I-I want to be your w-wife, Touya.” 
Seriously...? Well, that makes me happy, sure, but there’s a lot of other aspects to consider here. 
“...D-Do you not want me?” Linze looked as if she was about to cry. 
Crap, I can’t let that smile disappear. Making her sad again just isn’t an option. Alright! Whatever! Come what may! 
“You’re fine with being my second wife? Are you sure about that?” 
“...I-I think I can get along with Yumina. If we can both find bliss while loving the same person, nothing would make me happier.” 
“...Alright, then. If you’re really both fine with it... I’ll accept the both of you.” Suddenly, Linze smiled brightly and hugged me tight. With her usually being so docile, that action temporarily confused me. Yumina stood up and jumped at me, too. Th-This is seriously embarrassing! 
“So, from now on, Linze is just like me — a fiancee!” Yumina looked really happy. Linze’s face was still kind of red, but from the way she nodded, it was clear that she was happy, too. 
It was already quite late, so I told them to go back to their rooms. They responded by asking me for a goodnight kiss. I didn’t yet have the guts to kiss them on the lips, so I somehow got them to compromise, strange as it may sound, with a kiss on the forehead. Yumina was happy, while Linze was embarrassed. 
After they left my room, I heaved a long sigh. Way too many things happened today. I need to get my feelings in order. As always, I lay down on my bed. 
So, how am I supposed to deal with this...? I have the money to take care of both of them, I have a proper house for them to live in. Do I even have any actual problems? Oh, right, I’ll have to pay a visit to Linze’s parents... All that matters now is my resolve. I have to be prepared to live the rest of my life with them. I have to think ahead about this... After all I... want them to be happy. 
I slowly fell asleep, with many thoughts gently bouncing through my mind.

THUD! 
The door to my room crashed open, startling me awake. Huh, who what where why?! Is it morning? The room’s bright... I looked around, half-asleep, to see a person standing by my bed. It was a girl. She loomed over me, the morning light shining down on her. 
“We gotta talk. Now.” It was the elder twin sister of the girl that had become my second fiancee just a day before. The morning light made the gauntlets on her hip shimmer slightly. 
Well, this isn’t ominous. Could trouble avoid coming so early in the morning? Just once, please? 
 
Elze took me to the third training ground of the royal army. Elze and General Leon often used this place to spar, and Elze, despite being an outsider, was able to come and go here as she pleased. We had no trouble getting in thanks to that. 
It was still early, so nobody was training. Besides the odd bird’s chirps, the place was enveloped in absolute silence. Elze led me to the training grounds, and I saw that we weren’t alone. 
“Yae? What are you doing here?” 
“...Touya-dono. I have been waiting for you, I have.” Yae sat in the middle of the training field. Her blade was in front of her and her posture made it seem as though she had been meditating for some reason. Suddenly, she opened her eyes, grasped her blade, and stood up. She seemed slightly different to her usual self. 
“You’re taking Linze as your wife, right?” 
“Ah... Yes, indeed, that happens to be the case...” I turned around to see Elze staring at me. 
There’s that glare again... Just how many times and from how many girls have I received this glare in the last day or so? Then again, it’s a matter concerning her little sister, so it’s not surprising she’s so serious. 
“So that makes you my brother-in-law, then?” 
“Aha... Yes... I hope we get along well, indeed...” I hadn’t really thought about it, but she was right. Elze as a sister-in-law... Something is just plain off about that. 
“What do you think of Linze, then? Do you really like her?” 
“...To be completely honest, I’m still unsure about that. I don’t think I can say that I love her, but the same goes for Yumina, too. Still, I definitely like her as a person, and she’s very important to me.” 
“And did she agree with that?” 
“She did.” Elze let out a sigh. 
Is she disappointed? Shocked? At a loss for words? I can’t tell... Elze briskly scratched her head and repeatedly, but lightly, kicked the ground with her toes, clearly irritated. Whoa, she’s scaring me! 
“That girl always had this side to her... Despite being such a scaredy-cat most of the time, she’s always been the type to be bold where it counts. She’s the complete opposite of me when it comes to that...” 
“I am not too different in that regard, I am not. I am unable to become determined without a proper push...” 
What are they going on about now? Elze equipped the gauntlets she had on her waist and smacked her fists together. The clang that echoed out was quite noisy. Yae, too, placed her sword through her sash and fixed its position. 
“Touya... I want you to fight us.” 
“Huh?!” 
“If you win, we won’t say anything about your relationship with Linze. But if we win, you’ll have to listen to our request.” Wait, what?! How did it come to this?! Am I being punished for something?! Yae unsheathed her sword, seemingly ignoring my confusion. 
“I borrowed this sword from Viscount Swordrick, I did. The edge of the blade is rounded off. It should not be able to kill or even cut you, but shattering your bones is well within the realm of possibility, it is.” That information does nothing to calm me down! 
“Touya, use [Modeling] to dull Brunhild’s blade as well.” 
“Wait! Before I do anything, can you tell me why I have to fight you two in the first place?!” 
“To be frank, Touya-dono. The both of us are the type of girls who need to do this, we are. It’s a matter of confronting our feelings. If you wish to call it cowardly, so be it.” I had no idea what she was talking about, but they clearly had no intention of backing down. Alright, all I have to do is lose on purpose, and... 
“If you hold back, I’ll never forgive you. I won’t accept your relationship with Linze, either. I’ll never allow my sister to be with a man who refuses to get serious when it matters.” 
Crap. She warned me against doing exactly what I was planning... Guess Elze knows exactly how my superficial mind works. 
Reluctantly, I did as I was told and used [Modeling] to round off Brunhild’s blade. 
Guess I have no other choice, I’ll just cast [Slip] the moment the fight begins, and then... 
“No Null magic allowed. You can’t call it a fight if we just drop to the ground the moment the battle starts. I won’t use [Boost], either.” 
How the hell did she know exactly what was on my mind?! Holy shit, women are scary! 
“Touya-dono can use elemental magic, as well as ranged and melee weaponry. We can only use melee weaponry, but there are two of us. That seems fair, does it not?” 
That means the only bullets I can use are the normal rubber ones. The impact from those things can really rattle your bones, though, so it’s not like they’re bad. 
“I still feel like I’m at a disadvantage, though...” 
“I am fully aware that we are asking a lot of you, we are. However, we need an opportunity to take the next step.” Once again, I had no idea what she was saying, so I just sighed and steeled myself. I figured I’d play their game as long as they needed me to. 

“Are you ready?” I simply nodded, afraid to ask what I had to be ready for. 
The next moment, Yae and Elze split up and closed in on me from two separate angles. A pincer attack? Already?! 
“Blade Mode!” I extended Brunhild into the shape of a blunted longsword, then ran toward Yae. I could have easily parried her blade, but the same couldn’t be said of Elze’s fists. 
After crossing swords with Yae, I used the momentum to slip past her. I turned around, took the New Model Army into my left hand, and fired all six bullets at her. 
I was brimming with confidence, certain all six shots would find their mark on Yae’s back, when Elze jumped into their path and held her left hand up high. The gauntlet she wore was shining an emerald green. 
A moment later, the bullets scattered into several uncertain directions. 
“As long as they aren’t magic, ranged attacks don’t work on me.” Crap, I forgot! Her emerald gauntlet was imbued with a wind-type, barrier spell that deflected all physical ranged attacks! 
“Gun Mode! Reload!” I barraged them with all twelve bullets from both of my guns in a desperate attempt to distract them and buy some time. 
But Elze didn’t seem to care. She charged at me while holding up her left gauntlet. 
“Blade Mode!” Elze’s right fist closed in on me, but I was able to evade it. I quickly changed Brunhild into a longsword again and launched a horizontal slash at her. She evaded it, too, but it bought me some time to back away and fix my stance. 
“You are a naive fool!” Yae came lunging at me from right behind Elze. I had no chance to distance myself. Hold on a sec! That’ll definitely cut me, dulled blade or not! I dodged to the side, preventing the tip of her blade from digging into my shoulder. Then, I quickly turned around and tripped her over with my leg, using her own momentum against her. 
“Kuhh?!” 
“Reload!” As Yae fell to the ground, I quickly aimed at her with the New Model Army. 
However, before I could pull the trigger, Elze attacked me with a kick, leaving me with no other option than to back away. 
“Entwine thus, Ice! Frozen Curse: [Icebind]!” My spell made the ground beneath their feet begin to freeze. 
“Agh!” They deftly escaped and split up, coming at me from two angles again. The rimy binding didn’t even have a chance to take hold. 
Crap! I’m at a clear disadvantage here! After all, it’s not like I can do anything that could seriously hurt them or anything! 
“Whoa!” I evaded another straight punch from Elze. Yae was closing in on me, too. At that moment, I closed my eyes and cast a spell. 
“Shimmer forth, Light! Dazzling Brilliance: [Flash]!” 
“Kh?!” The sudden burst of bright light made Yae stop in her tracks. I used the opportunity to back away from them again. It was best for me to keep my distance in a battle with those two. I was at the greatest advantage at long-range. 
Once she recovered from the blinding flash, Yae reached for her hip, took out her shortsword, and placed it in her free hand. What...? Yae lowered her posture and charged toward me. Right when I was about to fire a feint or two so I could make her back away, she actually threw the shortsword at me. 
Whoa?! Who the hell throws their weapon like that?! Doesn’t the sword represent a samurai’s soul?! Do shortswords not count or something?! I barely dodged it by slightly moving my pelvis to the side. Ugh! It grazed me! Before she could fix her posture, I fired all twelve of my loaded bullets at her. There’s no way she can dodge at this distance! 
“Gah!!!” The strong rubber rounds made Yae fall to the ground. Despite that, she was still able to launch a horizontal slash at me. It was something I could easily evade, though. 
But Elze was waiting for me, right at the spot I had jumped to. Crap, she’s too close! Her fists are way faster than my aim. Elze went all out and attacked me with a right hook. I don’t have any other choice! I bent my body and somehow dodged her fist, let go of my guns, and grabbed her right hand. I used my momentum to spin her around with her back facing toward me. Then, I put my right elbow into her armpit and raised her up. 
“Wha—?!” I threw her to the ground, and she made a noise that sounded like a scream. I hadn’t done a shoulder throw since school, but my body seemed to remember the motions. 
“Gah...!” Apparently, my technique wasn’t good enough to properly damage her. Elze quickly rose to her feet. 
But by the time she was standing upright again, I had Brunhild trained on her. We were so close that she couldn’t redirect the bullets even if she wanted to. 
It has a classic hold-up. 
“Reload. I win.” 
“...Why aren’t you shooting?” 
“Because if you accept defeat, I won’t need to.” Firing at someone dear to me didn’t make me feel good. I made a mental note to apologize to Yae after the battle. 
“You’re stupidly kind. Do you really think you can protect Linze and Yumina with that mentality?” 
“...That’s just who I am.” 
“Heh, it sure is. Guess it’s part of the reason why me and Yae fell in love with you.” 
“......What?” What did she just... say? I, uh... What? My brain functions froze up. 
Just as I snapped out of my trance, I realized that Elze’s right hand — the one clad in the red gauntlet — was emitting a light. That gauntlet’s ability was... increasing destructive power, wasn’t it?! Alright, if she really doesn’t want to fold, then I guess I can’t go easy on her either. I aimed at Elze and pulled on Brunhild’s trigger. The battle was finished. Or so I thought. 
“Wh—?!” I pulled the trigger a second time. It didn’t fire. As it turned out, it wasn’t even loaded. What? Why? I’m pretty sure I reloaded... Oh... 
Yae’s actions from earlier finally made sense to me. The shortsword she threw at me. She hadn’t thrown it in order to harm me. When I dodged and it grazed me, the fastener on my waist pouch had been sliced open. 
My bullets had scattered out of it as I moved, and they had all ran out. My reload was meaningless if there weren’t any bullets within a radius of one meter... I’ve been had. 
With lightning-fast speed, Elze stepped to the side and launched her fist into my chest. 
“Gghuh?!” I tumbled to the ground, my consciousness fading. 
 
“W-We want you to treat us the same as Yumina and Linze!” 
“...Huh?” I came back to my senses and, since I had lost, readied myself for whatever their request was, but no amount of preparation could’ve been enough for what they hit me with. 
“W-Well, surely you understand th-that we... We do... Ohh... Y-You should be the one to say it, Elze-dono!” 
“H-Huh?! B-But I...! Ohh... W-Well, f-first up, uh... I-I-I also love you, Touya!” 
“I-It is the same for me, i-it is!” They looked down, their faces flushed red. 
...What the hell? Weren’t we just fighting a moment ago? Now I’m being confessed to? By two girls at once, even. What exactly is this? 
“Treat you like Yumina and Linze...? What do you mean?” 
“W-We also want to become your... w-wives... we do.” 
“Y-Y-You have to agree to this, you know?! Y-You lost the fight, fair and square!” I pinched my cheek. 
Well, that hurt. Not dreaming, then. Guess I’ve got four incoming brides, huh? Wait! No no no no! Isn’t that a bit too many?! But wait, Tokugawa Ienari had more than forty concubines and over fifty children... Compared to that, I guess that I... Wait! Comparing myself to him is insane! Seriously, that guy used to harvest the... you-know-whats... of fur seals, turn them into powder, and drink them for sexual vitality! He was even nicknamed the “Fur Seal General” because of that. I don’t want to be grouped with a guy like him! Damn it, Touya, stop. You’re going off on a stupid tangent. 
“Are you two... really okay with that?” 
“I don’t mind. Nothing’s gonna change my feelings for you, and if I can be happy and others can be happy while loving the same person, then it’s all good, isn’t it?” I remembered that Linze had said something similar the day before. Those girls really were twins. Their thought patterns certainly matched up sometimes. 
“I love them all about as much as I love you, Touya-dono. If we can all become your wives, then all is well, it is.” 
Man, the girls of this world sure have a low desire to monopolize their man. Hmm... did they grow up to be like this because polygamy is the norm? Or wait, maybe these girls are just odd? Normally, this would be the perfect setting for a catfight... They don’t really seem to be displaying much jealousy though, so it’s kinda weird. Well, not that it didn’t exist. There was some slight envy, as evidenced yesterday. Come to think of it, Linze might be the most jealous person among them. 
“S-So? What about you...?” 
“Huh?” 
“I-I’m asking about what you think of us!” 
Oh, that. The recent barrage of romantic events made me feel a bit numb, and that wasn’t a good thing. 
I had to tell them exactly how I felt. 
“If I was forced to say whether I like or dislike you, then sure, I do like you. You’re both cute and have good personalities. But even so, I’m not sure if I can say that I love either of you. Just as I said before, the same goes for Yumina and Linze. I’m happy that you confessed your love to me, but I’m not sure if I can accept you on good conscience with my feelings being so vague.” 
“But you accepted Yumina-dono and Linze-dono, did you not?” 
“I wasn’t lying when I said that I liked them, and there’s no doubt that they’re important to me. They said they were fine with that, too.” 
Honestly, the concept of marriage is still pretty unreal to me. Hell, we aren’t even dating, so marriage shouldn’t even be on our minds. My cousin skipped through the whole dating process and got married because he knocked up the girl, too. Now I have a closer glimpse into that poor bastard’s situation. 
“So, that means that Yumina and Linze are fine with us too, right? Then it’s all fine.” 
“But I have no idea what they’ll say about this...” 
“There is no need to worry about that, Touya-dono. The one who invited us to become your wives was Yumina-dono, it was.” 
...Pardon me? 
“Right when the king gave you the mansion, Yumina secretly approached us. She asked us all how we felt about you, confirmed our feelings, and then suggested we all become your wives. We weren’t so certain about it at the time, though. But, uhm... little by little... we began to think it’d be nice. Then when Linze lost her composure yesterday, I finally decided! I want to be by your side, Touya.” Elze looked straight at me. There was no hesitation in her eyes. Her face was still a bit red, though. 
“I began to think that it would be great if we could all live as a family, with you at the center, I did. In all honesty, I am still unused to Yumina-dono’s leniency, but I have no doubt that I want to live by your side, I truly do.” 
Yumina was the one who said she wouldn’t mind if I had ten or twenty mistresses... Was that “leniency” just a display of her confidence as the first wife? 
“S-So?” 
“...Alright, I understand how you both feel. I like you both, too. Elze, you’re lively and cheerful, albeit a bit obstinate, but I find that pretty cute, too. Yae, you’re diligent, dignified, and very considerate of your family. I’m also aware that you’re gentle and good with children. You two would be excellent wives, I’m sure.” 
“Th-Then—” Before Elze could speak, I raised my hand to stop her. 
“However, I need some time to think. I’ll give you my answer in the evening. I’ve got some stuff to mull over first.” 
“...Alright.” 
“...I understand, I do.” We headed back home. I went up to my room, while Elze and Yae went to have a talk with Yumina. 
I sat on my bed, exhaled a long sigh, and assumed my thinking pose, flat on my back. 
What now? Well, the answer to that question is already obvious. I already accepted Linze, so refusing those two is out of the question. I like them all about the same. They’re all important to me. I don’t want to, nor do I think myself capable of doing anything to hurt them. But that’s exactly what makes me question if I’m really the right person for them. I’m scared that this situation might just make them sad in the end. Or maybe I’m just scared for myself... Marriage is a big deal, after all. It isn’t just my own problem. I have to shoulder the lives of other people. Being cautious is natural, isn’t it? Not only that, but the burden on me is four times heavier. Can I really carry that weight? 
“Hmmm... Maybe I should consult someone.” 
Leim... would surely just side with Yumina. Lapis, Cecile, Crea... I’m somewhat reluctant to discuss this with women. Renne isn’t even an option. Julio... is a bit unreliable... Guess there’s only one person I can count on. 
What I did next was something I’d wanted to try for a while. I just hadn’t gotten the opportunity. I don’t want to just talk to Him, I should go see Him in person. 
I went to the kitchen and took some baked sweets to bring to Him as a kind gesture. After I was done gathering bits and pieces, I held the stuff under my armpit. 
“[Gate].” I walked through my shining portal and was instantly greeted by an ever-expanding, shining sea of clouds. Among the clouds was an old tea table, neatly placed on a small patch of tatami mats. Ah, now this is nostalgic. 
There was an old man sitting next to the table. He turned to me, seemingly frozen in surprise as he bit into a rice cracker. 
“...O-Oh. Oh my. It seems I have a visitor. Hoho, if you were going to drop by, you should have informed me ahead of time. I’ll actually be quite honest with you, though. I had no idea that you even could come back here of your own free will.” 
“It’s been quite a while, God.” I’d been there before, so I had the idea that maybe I could use [Gate] to return. I didn’t actually expect it to work, though. 
“This realm is dense with magic, after all. That is probably why you could come back. It is also the reason why you could not return to your previous world. The magic in the atmosphere on your Earth is very thin, I’ll have you know.” 
“Oh, this is for you. I brought cookies and stuff.” 
“Oho, thank you very much. I believe that warrants a nice cup of tea.” He began filling a teacup with hot water. And, of course, it turned into tea the moment it poured from the spout. But what else was I expecting? He was God. 
I silently drank the warm tea. 
Ah, delicious. It’s been a while since I last had green tea... 
“Well now, what brings you to my humble abode?” 
“Ah, there’s something I wanted to consult you about...” 
“Hmm? Well, do tell.” I began explaining my situation to him. I wanted to know what I had to do about my circumstances and how I should interact with the girls moving forward... I made sure to cover all the necessary details. 
“Hmm... Are you not simply overthinking things? They said they love you, so why not just be happy?” 
“Well, I am, but I can’t help but consider all the things that come with it.” 
Sharing my worries with God makes me feel like I’m at a confessional. Not like I sinned or anything, though... 
“Very well, then. Let me call in the specialist.” 
“Huh?” God reached for the black phone at his side and dialed a number. 
A few moments later, a woman rose up from the sea of clouds. It looked like she was in her early twenties. Her hair was as pink and as fluffy as the thin, white silk she was wearing. She floated through the air toward me. Her wrists and ankles were adorned with golden rings, and her neck had a solid gold collar-piece around it. I also noticed that she wore no shoes. 
“Kept you waiting, huh?” She sat at the tea table after giving a playful greeting. 
“Er... and this is?” 
“This lovely lady is the god of love. I thought she would be the perfect person for your troubles.” 
The god of love?! Her?! 
“Well, well. Lovely to meet you! I must say, I’ve been watching you every now and then! You’re a very interesting young man.” Now that she mentions it, God did mention something like this once before... Something about a god of love that had taken an interest in me, if I recall. So this is the woman herself? I never expected to be consulting a deity about this. God only knows, I guess. 
“So, the title ‘god of love’ means exactly what it says on the tin, right?” 
“Yes, it does. But it’s not like I control people’s feelings, get it? I just do a little of this, and a little of that... things that set the mood and create those standard, love-related cliches. I guess you could say I’m the producer of situations like those!” 

“Cliches...?” Oh, I think I get what she means. She’s probably referring to those cases where girls are late to school, hurry there with toast in their mouths, and run into a great guy who just happened to walk around the corner. 
“Yeah! Cliches! All the lovey-dovey ones. If you need a specific example, I’m the one who seeks out guys who go ‘Darling, I swear to you... when I return from the battlefield, we will finally be married.’ And then I make sure they never ever reach the altar!” 
“That kind of thing is your fault?!” By “never ever reach the altar,” she clearly means that she makes them die, right?! Wait, that’s a death flag, not a love flag! 
“So, what’s up?” I had my reservations about consulting her, but I really had no other choice. She happened to be the goddess of love, so I figured maybe she would have some good advice. At any rate, I hastily explained my current situation. 
“Hmm... sounds like things are getting super interesting.” The god of love smiled, reached for the cookie on the table, and stuffed it into her mouth. She’s not one for manners, clearly. 
“But I still don’t see your problem. It’s fine if you like each other, isn’t it?” 
“But... four girls at the same time?” 
“There’s your first mistake! You have to discard the common sense of the world you used to live in! If you only love one of them and consider the others to be extras, you’re not only making them pitiful, but you’re also being cruel as well! But if you love them all and are truly intent on making them happy, then that’s just another form of true love, get it?” 
Love... Do I even feel it for them, though? 
“Why did they even fall in love with me...?” 
“I don’t know! Sometimes you get the ones who fall in love at first sight, and other times there are those who don’t realize their feelings because the target of their affections is too close to them. Each person has their own life, and there’s a lot of room for variation there! Love doesn’t fly straight like an arrow! There’s many paths to it, get it?” Part of me understood her explanation, but another part of me didn’t. Still, I at least understood the point that there was no true form to love. 
“Interested in what I think? Seems to me that you lack confidence. You’re worried about whether or not you’re worthy of responding to their feelings. But here’s the thing, young man! You aren’t the one who decides if you’re worthy. They are!” 
Damn... Kind of feels like she hit the nail on the head. I was just feeling weird because I felt like the girls were idealizing me. I didn’t believe that I fit the image of me that was in their heads. 
“You should be more honest with yourself and see where these feelings lead. Sure, it’s important to be considerate of how others feel, but you can’t just go and act against your own interests in the process. Doing so wouldn’t just be rude to yourself, but also to the girls who confessed, get it?” 
“I see... So I’m allowed to be a bit selfish, then?” 
“That’s more like it! Love isn’t about one-sided happiness! It’s meaningless if you don’t become happy, too.” 
...That’s true. I have things I can never let go of. I have to talk things out and reconcile with the girls. Those reservations might be with me for the rest of my life, but at the very least, I have to get them to agree to that. 
“Did you find your answer?” God spoke up as if he just read my mind. 
“I’m not sure, but I think it’s in sight at least.” 
“Very well, then. That is quite good to know.” 
“Eheh, glad to see the cliche I granted you didn’t go to waste!” 
...Hm? She said something strange just now... Cliche? One of the things she manufactures, right? 
“What exactly do you mean by that? The cliche you granted me, I mean.” 
“Oh, just a little while ago, I produced a situation in which you walked in on them changing and then got really surprised. You should be thanking me, get it?” 
“That was you?!” This god of love seems to be a fan of generic scenarios. 

In the evening, I had the girls gather in the living room. Laim, Lapis, and the others weren’t with us. It was only myself and the four girls who had confessed. 
The four sat on the couch in front me and patiently waited for my words. 
I considered all of those girls far too good for me. That was exactly why I didn’t want to lie to them and wished to let them know my true feelings. 
“Alright, well, to start things off let me just say... I have no plans of getting married.” 
“WHHHAAAATTT?!!” The four of them leaped off the couch at the same time. Their surprise took verbal form and echoed throughout the living room. 
 
“Wait, what?!” 
“H-Have we done something wrong, have we?” 
“...You said you’d accept me as your wife...” 
“Touya?!” All four girls leaped to their feet at once and closed in on me. Crap, that came out wrong! 
“Okay, wait! I only meant ‘right now,’ all right! I wanted to say that I’ve got no plans of getting married right now!” My words stopped the girls dead in their tracks. Okay, good. They’re at least willing to hear me out. 
“If not right now, then at some point in the future?” 
“Of course. If none of you are against the idea, I’ll marry all four of you quite happily.” I answered Elze’s question, and the girls returned to their seats. Good, they’ve calmed down a bit... 
“I like all of you equally, and I don’t plan on breaking my promise to marry you, but I can’t get married right now. I don’t want it to feel like we’re only together because I got caught up in the moment.” 
“...I do not understand what you mean, I do not.” Yae tilted her head in confusion. 
“What I mean is, I just don’t think I’m ready for a commitment like that yet. I’m not mature enough to look after other people. I mean, I’m still not fully convinced I can even look after myself at the moment. So, please, wait until I am ready to carry the weight of another life alongside my own. If it doesn’t seem like I’ll ever become that sort of person, you’re free to leave my side at any moment. Nobody can take that right away from you; not me or anyone else.” That was my own selfish condition to the agreement. I wanted everyone to be happy, but I wasn’t yet sure if I could make them happy. I was still lacking in so many areas. I didn’t have the resolve, the courage, the strong feelings of love, or the knowledge to make any of them happy just yet. 
I knew that I was basically just telling the girls to wait until I felt like I was worthy of them, but I didn’t intend to just lead them on indefinitely until I suddenly decided that day had come. The condition I’d laid out for them could’ve easily made any girl hate me, and I could’ve accepted it if any of them decided to call the whole thing off for that reason alone. That was their choice to make, and I intended to respect their wishes. 
“...You really couldn’t have worded that any better? I mean, I guess that makes sense, but still.” Elze sighed as she spoke, with an expression that was somewhere between exasperation and relief. Hell, the fact of the matter was that the girls had all proposed to me, and what I had said was just as bad as if I’d never said anything at all. I was unsure of what to do. I would basically be taking away their choices in the matter for my own convenience. Even I felt like that was a horrible thing to do to someone. 
“You’re playing dirty. You already know that we’d never just throw you aside like that, but you’re pretending like we have that option anyway, right?” Elze shot another glare at me as she spoke. Well, I mean, I don’t think that highly of myself, but it’s not like I was expecting you all to just cut all ties with me here and now or anything. 
“Falling in love is never an easy thing, it is not...” Yae gave Elze a pat on the shoulder. Elze herself turned her head away and puffed up her cheeks. 
“...Even if my sister gives up on you, Touya, I’ll wait for as long as I have to... Because I want to be your wife.” 
“Hey, who said anything about me giving up on him?!” Linze laughed as she watched her sister panic. Oh good, she was just teasing her. 
“I’m fine with that, too. We’ve already talked this over among ourselves, after all. Now all we have to do is make you fall so completely head-over-heels in love with us that you’ll be the one proposing to us next time.” 
“Guess I’ll just have to do my best to keep you from falling out of love with me before then.” Yumina’s words brought a smile to my face. From now on, we’re not just party members anymore. I’m engaged to these girls. They’re my lovers, and one day we’ll all be part of the same family. I need to do my best so that day comes even a little sooner, and when it does, I’ll be the one to propose to them properly. 
“So with that, all four of us are Touya’s fiancees. Shall we line up in order and have him kiss us as proof?” 
“WHAT?!” Elze, Linze, Yae, and I were all caught completely off-guard by Yumina’s abrupt suggestion. Meanwhile, it looked like she wanted to give herself a pat on the back for coming up with such a cunning plan. Why are you never satisfied with things getting wrapped up semi-normally for a change?! 
“W-Wait, umm, d-don’t you think it’s still a bit too soon for that?!” 
“Th-Though we may be e-engaged now, I do believe we should take things in due moderation, we should...!” Elze turned red as a tomato and broke out in a panic. Yae was bright red, too. While I could understand Yae’s reaction, I wouldn’t have taken Elze to be such a late bloomer. 
“But he kissed me just yesterday, you know?” 
“Huh?!” As Yumina muttered those words, Elze and Yae turned their heads in my direction with such speed that I worried they might get whiplash. I mean, she’s not lying, but, uh... 
“A-Actually, he k-kissed me, too... On the forehead, I mean...” 
“HUH?!” Linze spoke up, and this time the two turned to face me with even greater speed than before. I mean, she’s not lying either, but give me a break here! 
“A-Alright then, that settles it! You’ve gotta k-k-k-kiss us, too!” 
“I would... like a kiss, too, I would...” 
Alright, hold up! Aren’t you the very same girls who were just saying that it was “too soon” or that we should “take things in moderation” a second ago? What part of this is “moderate” to you?! Elze and Yae locked me down with their gazes, still blushing up to their ears. 
Crap, I can’t exactly run away now... Not after I just decided I’d accept everything about them. 
I reached out my hand and drew Elze closer toward me. She jumped a little at my touch, but she didn’t put up any resistance as I gently pulled her body in. I placed my hand on her cheek, then drew my face closer to hers, when... 
“T-Too embarrassing, changed my mind!” 
“Ghuoh?!” Leaving me with only those words, Elze’s fist came crashing directly into my solar plexus without warning. The abrupt force gave me no time to steel myself, so I collapsed for the second time that day. As my consciousness faded, the only thought to cross my mind was something along the lines of oh no, not again... 

“...Ungh?” 
“Have you regained consciousness?” I awoke to find myself back in my own room, laying on my bed. The sun had long since set. Through the dim lamp-light, I could make out the figure of Cesca sitting in a chair next to my bed. She was dressed in a maid uniform, for some reason. 
“Cesca...? What’s with those clothes...?” 
“Lady Lapis presented me with them. If I am to serve my Master, then this is to be my uniform, so I have been instructed.” 
...Come to think of it, I just kind of left Cesca in the maids’ hands the minute we got back home, huh? I didn’t forget about her or anything, but too many life-changing decisions kept flying at me one after another, and... Hang on, that’s all this girl’s fault, anyway! 
“Alright, but what brings you to my bedroom?” 
“I have come to make love to you.” I leaped to the edge of my bed like I’d just heard a gunshot fire in my direction. The fog in my mind cleared itself up instantly. My chastity is in danger! 
“That was a joke. I have no plans for that. Not today.” Don’t just casually stick “not today” on the end like you think I won’t notice! I can never let my guard down around you for even a second! 
“The truth is that I’ve come to deliver a message addressed to you.” 
“A message for me...? Who’s it from?” 
“It is from Doctor Regina Babylon.” Hold the phone, what? A message for me... from that ancient genius doc? The very same person who created Cesca and the Hanging Garden of Babylon?! But how? Cesca moved her right hand to her left wrist as if to take her own pulse, only to open her left wrist up and bring out a cable with some sort of connector on the end. 
“Whoa.” It’s times like these that I have to remind myself that Cesca’s actually a machine. 
Cesca took the cable and presented the end of it to me. 
“Huh? What am I supposed to do with this?” 
“I am unsure. The doctor told me that if I gave this to my new Master, then he would understand.” Instructions unclear. Unfortunately, as a flesh-and-blood human being, I can’t think of any other places that I could comfortably “connect” a thing like that to... Do I stick it in my mouth...? Wait, could it be? The shape of this connector looks familiar, but... No, that can’t be right! 
I went over to where my coat was hanging up on the wall, then took my smartphone out of the pocket. After that, I took the cable Cesca had offered to me and tried plugging it in. It fit perfectly. 
My phone made a little beeping noise when it picked up the foreign cable, and the screen displayed a loading bar that slowly filled up with green. When the loading bar hit 100%, my smartphone’s screen suddenly lit up brightly. 
“H-Hey, what is this?!” The light gradually died down to reveal a person roughly 15 centimeters in height standing on top of the screen. 
The person was semi-transparent, almost as if to assure me that I was merely seeing a 3D projected image... which would have been fine, except my phone wasn’t even capable of projecting holograms, to my knowledge. 
The holographic person was a lady who looked to be in her early twenties. She wore a white lab coat and glasses, and had what looked like a cigarette in her mouth. Her long, blonde hair hung down messily, which I felt was a shame because it would’ve suited her perfectly otherwise. The top and skirt that she wore beneath her lab coat were also creased, adding to her overall slovenly appearance. 
“This is Doctor Regina Babylon.” 
“This is the doctor...?” The doctor, who had until then been sitting somewhat listlessly, turned her face up to gaze at mine as she grinned at me. Huh? 
“Howdy there. Nice to meetcha, kid. The name’s Regina Babylon, as you know. Before anything else, let me just thank you for taking up administration of the garden, as well as Francesca. Really, it means a lot to me, Mochizuki Touya.” 
“Wait, how did you...?” What does this mean? Why does someone from almost five thousand years ago know my name?! Not just that, but why does this connector fit into my smartphone perfectly? It’s almost as if it was specifically designed to be used exactly like that from the very beginning... 
“Trust me, I know how you feel. I mean, that’s a very good question. Of course you’d want to know. After all, you’re a very special kind of person.” 

Special...? Wait, does she know that I’m from another world?! Just who is this Doctor, anyway?! 
“Allow me to give you the answer you so long for. Look closely now.” The doctor spoke slowly, and as she did, she raised her skirt up before my eyes. Black lace panties consumed my vision. 
“This is my favorite pair, I’ll have you know.” 
“The hell do I care?!” I threw my smartphone down onto my bed without thinking. The hell do you mean I’m “that kind of person”?! Don’t just lump me in with you! It’s not like your panties were the first thing I wanted to know about or anything, alright?! 
“Ha ha ha! I’m kidding, I’m only kidding. Don’t worry about it, that was just my way of breaking the ice.” Or so the good doctor said, still attempting to flash her panties at me from her new position atop the bed, grinning at me all the while. I knew it, this person’s way beyond your regular eccentric! The holographic doctor returned her cigarette-like object to her lips, that grin never leaving her face. 
“I’ll explain everything to you, so forgive my little prank. Firstly, why do I know about you? Well, you see, I have a device that allows me to glimpse into the future.” A device for looking into the future? Is it some kind of Artifact? I had no idea she was such a genius that she could even make something like that... She’s still a weirdo, though. 
“I mixed a bit of Space-Time Magic together with some Light magic, and then used a Null spell called... Well, never mind. That’s not important. What’s important is that I made a device that can project the future. The problem is, the device has a couple of fatal flaws. First, the visions of the future I can observe are only fragmentary, and second, I don’t get to decide how far into the future I want to look. The device seeks out someone with the same biorhythm as the wielder from the future, and proceeds to reflect events from that person’s life. In my case, having an affinity for all the base magic elements came back to bite me, meaning the extremely far-off future that you are in is the only one I’ve been able to get a look at.” You’re telling me I have the same biorhythm as this nutty professor? I don’t even know what that means, but I don’t like it. It feels like she’s lumping me in with her as partners in crime or something... I’m not like that, okay?! We might be the same kind of person, but that only extends as far as our magical alignments, got it?! 
“Anyway, that’s how I caught sight of you. At first I was only looking out of curiosity, but then things got more and more fun as time went by. It got to the point where I was having great fun watching you and your party go about your wild adventures, but then one day, I wasn’t able to see your future anymore. Why do you think that was? It’s because the future had changed. No, that’s not quite the right word for it. I suppose a better way to put it would be that your future became uncertain.” Uncertain...? What’s an uncertain future mean? 
 (The past) —————————— ? (The future) 
Let’s imagine time moving in a straight line from past to future, like this. If, somewhere along the line from ? to ?, an unknown factor named ? were to intervene, then the new future would change from ? to ?1. 
If the future the doctor had been looking at so far was future ?, then some huge event big enough to change the future, Event ?, must have happened, creating future ?1 as a new possibility... I think. 
“I thought it might have been the fall of Partheno... but that event is likely already set in stone. After all, our civilization doesn’t exist in your world anymore. Anyway, the fall of Partheno was brought about by the enemy of mankind, the Phrase, and their relentless invasion. That much was already an established fact in your era, too.” The Phrase... Wait, the Phrase?! The crystal creatures that Leen told me about! So the fall of the five-thousand-year-old civilization was brought about by that same weird species?! 
“We fought back, of course, but the Phrase came at us in the tens of thousands. Nothing could be done to prevent the fall of Partheno. After that, the Phrase scattered to all corners of the world. It was truly the end of days. I’m sure that the reason I stopped being able to see the future beyond that point is simply that there is no future for the world under those circumstances.” 
So the flow of events between ? (The past that the doctor existed in) and ? (The future that I’m currently inhabiting) was slowly tilting toward ?1 (The future where the Phrase destroyed the world)? But still, that doesn’t make too much sense. The world is fine. 
“Right. As I’m sure you’ve noticed, your future never came to an end. For some reason, they disappeared from the world before the worst possible outcome could occur. I don’t know how or why, but thanks to their abrupt disappearance, I was able to see the future you inhabit once more.” 
That means ?1 was ultimately averted. That’s good to know, at least. If ?1 had been the future of this world instead of ?, God might’ve sent me somewhere else entirely, and then I wouldn’t have been able to meet with everyone here. 
Still, what could’ve made the Phrase just up and vanish from the world one day...? Were they wiped out by some kind of Phrase-targeting virus like in some sci-fi novel or something? 
“Anyway, that should suffice as an explanation as to why I know all about you. And naturally, I left Babylon there as a little present for you. Use it however you like. I’ve even filled it with lovely girls catered to your tastes. Feel free to use them however you like, too!” The holographic doctor gave me an evil little smirk when she said that. Dammit, what’s with this feeling?! Her whole face is just saying “No, no, don’t worry. I understand perfectly. You’re a boy, I get how it is,” and it’s driving me up the wall! This must be what it feels like to have an older sister who gets her kicks out of messing with you! 
“Just in case, I split Babylon up into multiple parts to prevent it from falling into the wrong hands. Whether you go hunting for the rest of the pieces or not is up to you, I don’t mind either way. It all belongs to you now, anyway. From what I’ve seen, it doesn’t really seem like you’ll be needing anything so absurdly powerful in your future, anyhow.” 
Then why did you even build it?! I know they say the line between genius and stupidity is paper thin, but this person’s clearly way over that line! 
“Well, I’ve been talking for a while now, so I’ll end the message around here. Oh, and by the way, when this message finishes playing, Francesca will strip naked.” 
“Whhhat?!” 
“That was a joke. Anyway, see you around, kid.” 
I threw my smartphone at the bed again. Ugh! Goddammit, that little Doctor Panties kept making fun of me right till the end! I don’t get her at all! Did she seriously build all of Babylon for the sole purpose of messing with a kid five thousand years in the future?! 
“...Shall I strip?” 
“Thou shalt not strip!” I quickly stayed Cesca’s hand. 
So the long and short of it was, Doctor Babylon had been peeking in on us from the past, so she knew all about us. But if she really could see the future, then why was the teleportation circle for the garden located at the bottom of the sea off the coast of Eashen? For that matter, why bother splitting Babylon into several pieces if she knew it was going to me, anyway? It made it all very hard to believe she was seeing the future perfectly. 
No, wait. She said she could only take fragmentary glances into the future, so maybe she couldn’t zoom in on the finer details or something. I really hope that’s the case, because if it’s not, then I’ll never be able to rest easy again knowing that someone’s peeking in on everything I’m doing all the time. 
Another thing that caught my attention was the Phrase. From how she spoke, it seemed like the Doctor wasn’t aware that the Phrase still existed in this world line. 
Maybe that cricket-type Phrase we met at the old capital had actually just been sealed there this entire time. If so, it would mean that the Phrase invaded one thousand years ago, too... That would explain why the old capital came to ruin so suddenly, and why it had to be relocated in the first place. It all makes sense if I consider all these events to be related. 
So if the one that we ran into was probably a survivor from when the old capital was invaded, then... I’d bet it was originally caught so that people could research it to try and find some kind of weak point. 
But hang on... If that were the case for the cricket-shaped one, then what about the snake-shaped one that Leen saw? Shouldn’t we take this as a sign that the events that happened five-thousand years ago, and then more recently one-thousand years ago, are about to happen all over again? 
Five-thousand years ago, the world was on the brink of destruction. One-thousand years ago, the old capital fell. Following that pattern, the events appeared to be reducing in scale. Even if it were to happen again, things likely wouldn’t turn out as disastrous as the last couple of times... Still, it would’ve been foolish to make that assumption. 
“Is something the matter?” 
“Nah, it’s nothing...” 
This is all just “what if” right now. If my fears turn out to be unfounded, then I couldn’t ask for anything more, but on the off-chance that my guess is right... 
“Won’t do me any good to keep dwelling on it, I suppose. I’m sure it’d just make everyone feel uneasy, so I’ll keep quiet about it.” 
“About my making love to you?” 
“You’ll do no such thing, and that is not what I meant!” 
“Understood, Master.” This train of events could have easily spiraled out of control. The last thing I wanted to deal with immediately after getting engaged was being accused of cheating. I chased Cesca away, since I’d already made sure that she’d been given her own room, and crawled into bed. 
 
The next day, I paid a visit to the shopping district in the southern part of the capital. 
My destination was a jeweler’s. I figured I should, you know, buy engagement rings for everyone. 
I could’ve easily made the rings myself using [Modeling], but cheaping out on an important gift to one’s fiancee just felt wrong to me, so I wanted to buy them from the store instead. That said, I had no idea what the going price for engagement rings even was. I’d heard before that an engagement ring was normally “three months’ wages,” but I’d also heard that that was just a rumor spread by jewelers to make people spend more on them. Not that it mattered either way, since I wasn’t even being paid in “wages” in this world... 
From what I’d read online, an engagement ring was something a guy gave to a girl upon getting engaged. This was the one that was supposed to cost “three months’ wages.” And then separate from that, there was the pair of rings exchanged during a wedding and then worn all the time by a husband and wife. Because these rings were left on all the time, they didn’t have to be overly expensive, apparently. It also seemed to be the norm for wedding rings to come without jewels attached. 
For a normal wedding, I’d only need to buy three rings. One engagement ring, a wedding ring for my wife, and a wedding ring for me, but in my case I had four wives, so I’d ultimately need four engagement rings for the girls, four wedding rings for the girls, and a wedding ring for myself, for a total of nine rings... 
Hang on, is that even how weddings work over here? I only just noticed, but that’s just a custom from my world. I don’t even know if things work that way over here. I mean, wedding rings are probably the norm at least, but... 
Unsure of the local customs, I decided to ask the person who worked in the jewelry shop when I got there. 
As I walked through the shopping district with my head full of such thoughts, I happened to overhear an argument going on. Curious to see what kind of trouble was brewing, I went over toward the food stall that the voices were coming from. When I got there, I found the stall manager standing with his arms crossed, angrily eyeing the customer in front. 
“Look, kid. I don’t know where ya got them coins or what they’re worth, and I don’t really care. Ya can’t pay with them here. We don’t take ’em. Capisce?” 
“That’s troublesome. I’m afraid these are all I have, you see...” The customer was a boy around the same age as me. He wore a black top over a white shirt, black pants, and had a long white scarf around his neck. His color scheme was perfectly monotone. He stood there scratching his head, clearly troubled. Even the hair he was scratching at on his head was pure white. In his hands he held two crepes, one half-eaten. 
“Eeehh, can’t I just pay with this, though? This is money too, you know?” 
“If you don’t got any money, then that’s the same as stealing my food. Don’t make me hand you over to the guards, kid. I’m tellin’ ya, we don’t got no weird coins like that in this country!” 
“Uhh, excuse me...” I couldn’t help but stick my nose in. From what I could gather, it seemed the boy didn’t have any of this country’s currency, but he went and accidentally took a bite out of some food without realizing that he wouldn’t be able to pay for it. 
“Yeah? Whaddya want?” The shopkeeper barked at me angrily. 
“I’m just passing through, but if it’s just about the money, then I can pay for his share. Would that be alright?” 
“I ain’t complainin’, just so long as yer payin’.” I handed the man one copper coin, and he gave me two more crepes. Four crepes for one copper seemed a reasonably decent price. With that matter sorted, the boy and I left the stand with food in hand. 
“Thanks. You really helped me out of a bind there.” 
“Don’t worry about it, really. But I’ve gotta ask, do you really not have any money you can use around these parts? Like, none at all?” The boy thanked me, and I had to check with him just to make sure. I couldn’t help but wonder where in the world he’d come from. After all, even Eashen used the same common currency as Belfast, and those places were almost on the opposite sides of the world. 
“See, I was able to buy stuff with this money before, though...” The scarf-clad boy took a handful of silver coins out of his pocket. 
“They’ve got a pretty weird shape to them.” The common currency in this world was chiefly round as far as I understood it. This was true for gold, silver, and all other types of coin. In comparison, the coins the boy was holding were 8-sided. They were octagonal-shaped coins. I’d never seen their kind before. I picked one up out of his hand so that I could examine both sides properly. 
“If they’ve caught your eye, then I’ll give you a few as thanks for earlier. It doesn’t seem like I’ll be able to use them here, anyway.” 
“You sure? Alright, I guess I’ll take just enough to cover the cost of the crepes, then.” Honestly I didn’t really want them that much, but I figured accepting his offer would keep him from getting hung up over it, so I took a few of the coins from him. 
“My name’s Touya. Mochizuki Touya. What’s yours?” 
“Ende. It’s a pleasure, Touya.” He extended his hand, and I gripped it in a firm handshake. I remembered thinking at the time how unnaturally cold his skin felt. That was a fateful day, the event that served as the first meeting between myself and the boy named Ende. 
 
“Hmm, what should I do? It’s gonna be tough not having any money.” Ende tilted his head while eating his crepe. I bit into mine, too, and we gazed on at the crowds of people coming and going in front of the water fountain. 
“Yeah, no kidding. You’re probably just gonna have to get a job for now.” 
“What’s your job, Touya?” 
“Mine?” My job... My job, huh? I’ve never thought about it much before, but what is my job, exactly? Adventurer, I guess? I mean, technically most of my work is done through the guild and all. 
“I do odd jobs here and there as an adventurer with the guild. You know, stuff like hunting monsters or guarding caravans.” 
“Ah, I see. Sounds like something that’d work for me.” You make it sound so simple. Well, I guess there’s no massive risks of danger at the lower ranks, so it should be fine. 
“You thinking about getting registered? What are you gonna do about getting a weapon? Well, you could always just do plant-gathering quests for the time being, I guess.” 
“Why would I need a weapon? It’s not like I’m going to be off slaying Dragons, right?” Is he planning on going at it barehanded? Is he a brawler like Elze? Then again, he could also be a mage. Something caught me about the way he had said that, though. Almost as if he was saying that even Dragons would’ve been a piece of cake for him if he had a weapon. 
“Well, alright. I can lead you to the guild office, then. I had some business there today, anyway.” 
“Please do. Sorry for all the trouble.” I threw the empty crepe wrappers in the garbage and made my way over to the Guild. I needed to withdraw money to buy the rings for the girls, after all. 
Ende was a little bit taller than me. Around 170 centimeters, give or take. His looks were fairly androgynous, too, like one of those pretty-boy characters. Damn it, I’m not jealous or anything, you hear me?! 
My eyes couldn’t help but be drawn to his white scarf, how it trailed almost all the way to the ground. It wasn’t even winter, so I had no idea why he needed such a long scarf anyway. 
“It was a gift from someone precious to me.” When I inquired about it, that was how he answered with a smile on his face. He kind of missed my point, though. Did he mean that his girlfriend gave it to him? His tone of voice sure made it seem so. The guild’s sign came into sight before too long. The hustle and bustle around the quest board was as lively as ever. 
I took Ende up to the counter and had the receptionist run him through the registration process. While he was busy with that, I went to withdraw some money from the adjacent counter. This was a once-in-a-lifetime thing, or so I wanted to believe, so I wanted to splurge on the rings. 
When we met back up, I had my money ready and Ende had his brand new Black guild card in hand. 
“No troubles with your registration, then?” 
“Went just fine. All that’s left now is to start doing quests. I didn’t know the guild had offices all around the world, though. That saves me a lot of trouble. I’m never in one place for very long.” That so, I thought. For a traveler, he sure was dressed rather lightly. Hell, I was impressed he’d been able to make it so far as a traveler with no usable money to his name. He had this sort of blissfully ignorant air about him, too. I thought for a moment that maybe he was some runaway prince from a distant land. 
I had my suspicions about the guy, but I decided not to pry. Everyone had their own circumstances, after all. 
“Well, I should really get going. Try and stick to the simpler quests at first, yeah? Don’t push yourself too hard now.” 
“Got it. Thanks for everything, Touya. Hope we meet again somewhere.” 
“Yeah, I’ll see you around.” I parted ways with Ende and left the guild office. He really was an odd one. 
With that out of the way, I made for the jewelers.

Each of the four girls in front of me sat with their rings, and gazed at them with great big smiles on their faces. Their design was a fairly simple platinum band with a diamond on each, but they still cost me a pretty penny. Looking back on it, from the moment I told the lady that I didn’t know the standard price for these things, I should’ve expected that she’d try to overcharge me. I mean, once I’d decided on a design and heard the cost, I asked for four of them and the lady’s eyes went wide. 
The rings I’d chosen were enchanted ones, with a spell that let them naturally adjust to the size of the wearer’s finger. In addition to that, I’d included some enchantments of my own. 
“Each of those is enchanted with [Accel], [Transfer], and [Storage], by the way.” I figured [Accel] was a good battle choice, [Transfer] would let the rings work as spare magic batteries in case they ever ran out at a critical moment, and [Storage] would be a handy spell for any girl to have. 
“Thank you so much, Touya.” Yumina held her left hand in her right, and smiled as she gazed down at the ring on her finger. 
Next up, I took out a mithril chain necklace. 
“Here, Elze. This is for you.” 
“For me?” Elze took the chain, seemingly a little puzzled. 
“Well you can’t really wear that ring under a gauntlet, right? I figured a necklace would let you keep it on even if we got into any fights.” 
“Oh, gotcha. I never thought of that. Thanks, Touya.” Elze put the ring on the chain and wore it around her neck to see how it looked. I felt it really suited her. Since the chain was mithril, there was no chance of it breaking, and as long as the ring was somewhere on Elze’s person she’d be able to make use of the magic it’d been enchanted with. 
With the rings handed over, I realized I still had something in my pockets. I reached in and took out the silver coins that Ende had given me, and placed them down on the table. 
“What are these?” 
“Earlier today I met this weird guy called Ende, and I got these from him. Apparently they’re some country’s currency. Recognize them at all?” Linze took one of the coins and began inspecting it with great interest. 
“I’ve never seen anything like this before... They have a very elaborate design carved into them, so I can only imagine that they’re considerably valuable...” I sure hoped that wasn’t the case, because I’d basically taken them as payment for two whole crepes. I began to wonder if maybe taking Ende to get them converted into usable currency would have been the better idea. Thinking about it, even just taking him to a pawn shop would’ve gotten him at least the price of the silver they were made of. 
I took one of the coins and gave it another good look over for myself. I heard a knock at the door, and Renne popped her head into the room. She held the door open for Cesca, who brought with her a teapot and some cups. 
“I’ve come to serve you tea.” Cesca said, as she placed the cups onto the table and began to pour tea for us. As I was watching her do that, Renne came up beside me acting all fidgety. It looked like she had something to say. I wonder what’s up... 
“Um, Touya... er, sir. Can I getcha to... Um, I mean, I do indeed have a request, sir...” 
“You don’t have to force yourself to speak politely when Leim’s not around. What’s up?” 
“Well, y’see, I wanna ride a bike, too...” A bike? I guess I don’t really see anything wrong with that. I dunno how I’d feel about her riding it around town, but it should be fine if she’s got someone with her at the time. 
“I wanna practice, but my feet don’t reach the danged pedals! Sue said you made a littler bike for her before, and, uhhm...” Aha, now I get it. The only bike we have at home is an adult-sized one. Renne’s still too small to ride a bike like that. I should’ve noticed without her having to point it out to me. 
“No problem, Renne! I’ll make one especially for you, then. What color would you like?” 
“Really? Yer not havin’ a laugh?! Then... a red one!” 
“Your wish is my command, little lady.” 
“That’s spot-on! Thanks a bunch!” Renne leaned across the sofa and hugged me tight. C’mon now, if Leim were here he’d be furious, you know? Still, I’m just happy if you’re happy. 
I wore an awkward little smile and just let Renne hug me, when my eyes met with Cesca’s. 
“...So you’re a pedoph—” 
“Hey there, nice weather we’re having today, am I right?!” I can’t let you finish that word, Tin Can! I’m already self-conscious enough about that kind of thing thanks to Yumina, so don’t make this any worse for me! Cesca gave me a suspicious stare for a while, but eventually went back to pouring tea like the little outburst had never happened. After she was done, she caught notice of the coins laying on the table and tilted her head slightly. 
“I didn’t think this currency would still be in use after all this time.” 
“What do you mean, after all this time? Cesca, you know where these came from?” 
“Yes. These particular coins are Partheno Silver. They were first minted exactly five thousand two hundred and eighty four years ago, and were used commonly around this region, too. I’m amazed that they’re still in circulation.” That long ago?! Cesca’s words made me pick the coin up once more and examine it even more intently. It definitely didn’t look that old in the slightest. Hell, it looked almost brand new. Why would Ende have been carrying something like this around...? Hang on. What was it he said back then? 
“See, I was able to buy stuff with this money before, though...” 
Before? What did he mean by “before,” exactly? Is there really anywhere in the world that might still be using a currency from the days of old? I had an idea, but it was a ridiculous one. It almost seemed to me as though Ende were a human who had time traveled here from the past. Either that, or he could have been one of Doctor Babylon’s android creations like Cesca. 
“Cesca, out of curiosity, were there any males among those of you made by Doctor Babylon?” 
“Males...? No, none at all. The doctor never bothered making any males. There were a few with more masculine personalities, however.” 
More masculine, huh... Come to think of it, Ende did strike me as rather androgynous. Looking back, I can’t really say for sure that Ende’s really a “he” at all. I mean, I highly doubt that’s the case, but... Cesca watched as I became lost in thought and shot me an even more suspicious glance. What is it this time? 
“...So you’re a homos—” 
“Alrighty, that’s enough! Stop! Please, for the love of God, don’t go there!” That’s not what I was asking, and I certainly don’t swing that way! I’m straight as a ruler! Man, I just really love girls!!! 
“Do not worry, Master. Be it young boys or big, burly-armed men, I will try to adjust myself to better suit your tastes. Shall I wear short shorts from now on?” 
“Thou shalt not!” Man, why is she strangely knowledgeable about these things in particular? Is she just taking after her creator like kids take after their parents? Look. Go on, look at what you’ve done. Everyone’s confused now... Except for Linze. Why’s she blushing?