Rokujouma no Shinryakusha!? - Volume 1 - Chapter 6

Commence Invasion  

Wednesday, April 8th

Birdsong came through the window with the floral curtain. The curtain was something else Shizuka had prepared alongside the futon cover when Koutarou moved in.

“Uwah, it’s already morning, Koutarou...”

Having finished up already, Sanae pulled the curtain aside and looked outside to see a clear blue sky and sunshine lighting up the neighborhood. On top of the utility poles were a couple of small birds singing. It was a normal, everyday morning.

“It’s already past 7 AM, huh?”

Koutarou rubbed his tired eyes and looked through the window. His eyes met the blue sky and clear sunlight. The sunlight passed through Sanae’s body as she stood in front of the window, and lit up the tatami mats. Koutarou thought of Sanae as a real person, but it was times like this that he was reminded that she was a ghost.

“Another all-nighter...”

It was now Wednesday, April 8th. And as of today, Koutarou had pulled three all-nighters in a row.

“Sorry, Koutarou. With this card, I’m out too.”

“Uwah, really?!”

Kiriha pulled a card from Koutarou’s hand and then placed two cards on the tea table, emptying her hand. They were currently playing Sanae’s specialty, Old Maid, and Kiriha had just finished.

“Ouch, just don’t end up in last place. Okay, Koutarou?”

“I know.”

While replying to Sanae, Koutarou reached out towards Yurika’s hand.

“Ah! Auuuuugh...”

As he did, Yurika shut her eyes and whined. Even if she hadn’t, Koutarou still would have been able to see right through her. She had a terrible poker face. If it weren’t for her alliance with Kiriha, Yurika would have run out of points long ago.

“Hah!” Koutarou shouted as he selected his card.

“U-Umm...” Yurika stammered. But hearing Koutarou’s voice and feeling a card pulled out of her hand, she timidly opened her eyes.

“Waaauugh!”

However, the only card remaining in her hand was the dreaded joker, laughing in her face.

“All right! I’m out!” Koutarou completed his hand and threw his cards onto the table.

“I...I looooost!”

Koutarou rejoiced while Yurika sunk into gloom.

“Which means I’m first, Kiriha is second, Koutarou is third, and Yurika is dead last.” Sanae recapped.

“Indeed. With that, the points are back to where they started.” As Kiriha spoke, she wrote up the points on the score sheet now hanging on the wall.

Like she said, everyone had twenty points each. According to the rules they had decided on, finishing in first place awarded three points, and finishing second awarded one point. Getting third place meant losing one point, and fourth place meant losing three. Functionally, there was a two point difference between each position. Everyone was given twenty points to start with, and once someone ran out of points, their punishment for losing would be having to leave the apartment.

“No one even managed a single point lead.”

“It seems our skills are well-matched.”

Kiriha shrugged as Koutarou yawned.

The card games had gone on for the entire night, but there was still no resolution in sight. The outcomes ended up cancelling each other out, so no one was ever able to gain the lead. At one point, Yurika was about to lose all of her points, but she’d made an incredible comeback with a lucky streak. After that, the points were simply traded back and forth.

“What are you going to do, Koutarou? It’s time to go to school.”

Still standing by the window, Sanae pointed at the clock hung up on the wall. It was already past 7:30 AM, and Kenji would show up at any moment.

“Everyone, can we pick this up after I get back?”

“In reality, there’s no time to spare... but I don’t think there will be any danger during the day.”

“I don’t mind. I too feel like resting for a while.”

As Yurika and Kiriha agreed, the doorbell rang.

“Hey, Kou! Are you up?”

And there was Kenji.

“Yeah, I’ll be right there!” After shouting towards the front door, Koutarou spoke in a hushed tone. “Everyone, please make sure Mackenzie doesn’t see you when I leave.”

“It’ll make things complicated, right? I already know that.” Sanae answered as she turned off the lights in the room to make it look like there was no one home after Koutarou left.

“Yurika, come this way a little more. The front door is in plain view from over there.”

“Oh, s-sure, Kiriha-san.”

The three girls moved to positions where they couldn’t be seen from the entrance. As Koutarou watched them, he started to get a bad feeling. The day before yesterday, it was Sanae. Yesterday, it was Sanae and Yurika. And now today, it was Sanae, Yurika, and Kiriha.

Surely... there won’t be four tomorrow, right?

“Nah, there’s no way.”

Koutarou shook his head and smiled wryly. He fought back a yawn as he turned away from the three girls. He couldn’t be too slow. Kenji was waiting for him just outside.

“Are you tired, Koutarou?”

“Something like that. I’ll sleep at school.”

“That’d be good. If you force yourself too much, it’s bad for your body.”

“Goodbye, Satomi-san.”

“Bye-bye, Koutarou. Come back soon, okay? I’ll be waiting.”

“Yeah... See you.”

With a third ceasefire in place, Koutarou left his apartment.

“School sure is great. Being at home is so chaotic...”

Embraced by the early spring’s calm atmosphere and warm sunshine, time drifted by in the club room after school. Right now, school was the only place where Koutarou could rest. At home were three girls trying to steal his room. Compared to that, the time spent at school, especially in the club room, felt like heaven.

“I just wish it was always like this. Huaaahh...”

Relaxing, Koutarou let out a yawn as he knitted. After multiple all-nighters, he was exhausted. What little sleep he got during class was far from enough.

“Not good. Gotta keep knitting...”

“Are you okay, Satomi-kun?”

Sitting next to Koutarou, Harumi didn’t miss the signs of fatigue on Koutarou’s face. She gave him a worried look. Being seriously concerned, her words sounded a little more assertive than usual.

“I’m fine, Sakuraba-senpai.”

“But you don’t look that way... You haven’t gotten enough sleep, have you?”

Koutarou tried to play it off, but it didn’t work on Harumi. Instead, her apprehensive look grew even more serious and she leaned forward slightly. Because of her weak constitution, she took matters of health quite seriously.

“Hahaha, I just moved out on my own and I haven’t quite gotten used to it yet. I’ll be back to normal soon, Sakuraba-senpai.”

“...I hope so...”

“That aside, Senpai, please show me that knitting technique one more time.”

Koutarou smiled at Harumi, who still looked worried.

With Harumi’s lesson, Koutarou was getting into the depths of knitting. Using the technique from yesterday as the foundation, he was now learning the basic garter stitch. Compared to the garter stitch, the stockinette stitch often used for sweaters was quite a bit harder. It would require a different motion. So rather than getting started on two motions, Harumi decided to have him master one at a time.

“All right. I’ll do it once more slowly, so get a good look.”

“Thank you.”

Harumi still looked worried, but she began moving her hands again at Koutarou’s request.

Satomi-kun, it’s fine to be enthusiastic, but are you really okay...?

Harumi demonstrated the technique as she tried to think of a way to allow Koutarou to rest. After showing Koutarou an example a couple of times, she finally came up with an idea.

That’s right, maybe if I leave him alone...

Harumi decided to put her plan into action right away.

“So you do it like this. Do you understand, Satomi-kun?”

“Yes, that’s a big help. I’ll give it a try.”

Koutarou began moving his knitting needles. Although awkward, he showed his determination.

It’s because you’re working so hard...

Harumi set her needles and yarn down on the desk and stood up.

“Satomi-kun, can I ask you to keep an eye on the club room for a while?”

“S-Sure... I don’t mind. But what are you going to do?”

Koutarou stopped knitting and looked up at Harumi.

“I forgot that the school committee asked to see me. I’ll be back soon.”

“I see. Okay, I’ll keep watch while you’re away.”

“Please do. Sorry about this.”

Harumi lightly bowed and headed towards the door.

“I just hope you’ll be able to get some rest this way, Satomi-kun...”

“Did you say something, Senpai?”

“Not at all. I’ll be back soon.”

“Okay, see you then.”

Harumi left the room with a small smile.

Hm...? Huh?

When Koutarou came to, the club room was dyed red by the evening sun.

“Oh crap, I feel asleep...”

The knitting needles that were in his hands had been put on top of the desk, and the jacket to a girl’s uniform had been laid over him.

“Were you able to sleep well?”

When Koutarou lifted his head to look in the direction of the voice, he saw Harumi smiling gently at him. She had taken off her jacket and was knitting in her blouse.

“Senpai, I...”

“I was just thinking about waking you up. It’s almost 6 PM.”

Harumi stopped knitting and pointed to the clock. It was now 5:45 PM—almost time for the school to close for the day.

“I’m sorry for falling asleep in the middle of club activities...”

To Koutarou who had been raised to respect others, this was a big problem. He looked apologetic and bowed deeply.

“It’s fine, Satomi-kun. I-It’s, um... Th-This society belongs to just the two of us, after all...”

Harumi’s cheeks turned red with embarrassment, but he was bowed so low that he couldn’t see it.

“That’s why, Senpai.”

“No, that’s not quite right. It belongs to just the two of us, so it’s fine as long as we agree.”

“Senpai...”

“Satomi-kun, please take care of your body...”

Oh, I see, Senpai is...

When Koutarou saw how seriously she was looking at him, he finally remembered her weak constitution.

That’s why she was so worried... 

Koutarou was grateful for her concern, but he also felt bad for making her worry.

“I understand. I’ll be more careful.”

“Good... Thank you, Satomi-kun.”

Satisfied with Koutarou’s answer, Harumi happily thanked him.

I should be the one worrying about her. I gotta keep it together...

Thanks to the appearance of three strange people, Koutarou’s life had been non-stop trouble the past few days. Even so, he was able to take heart from Harumi’s kindness.

“I’m home.”

As Koutarou opened the front door, he found that it was still dark inside. And Sanae, who had welcomed him back right away yesterday, was nowhere to be found.

“Huh?”

Just as Koutarou began wondering why, Sanae poked her head out from the inner room.

“Koutarou, over here! Come quick!”

“What is it?”

“It’ll be faster to see for yourself. Come this way, Koutarou.”

“Something’s wrong!”

After Sanae, both Kiriha and Yurika called out to him. As they all sounded serious, Koutarou tossed off his shoes by the entrance and hurried to the inner room.

“What’s wrong, you three? The light’s still... Whoa!”

As he dashed into the room, Koutarou’s eyes shot open wide.

“Wh-What is that?!”

Something strange was happening. For some reason, the wall the farthest away from the hallway was glowing dimly. The strangely glowing spot was almost two meters tall and one meter wide.

“This was just a wall, right? What happened?!”

“That’s what we want to know.”

While responding to Koutarou’s question, Kiriha turned the lights on. With the room normally lit, the glowing wall became slightly less noticeable.

“Sanae, did you do this?”

“How rude! It wasn’t me! Don’t make everything out to be my fault. Besides, what’s the point in making the wall glow?”

“Fair enough.”

Koutarou first suspected Sanae after having seen some of the psychic phenomena she was capable of causing, but he relented after she made her case. Like she had said, she had nothing to gain from making the wall glow.

“You’re always looking for a reason not to trust me! Jeez!”

With a frown, Sanae puffed up her cheeks and sat with her legs crossed in mid-air.

“It can’t be helped. You’re a ghost after all.”

“Hmph! I don’t care about you either!”

The sulking Sanae turned away from Koutarou.

“Come on, don’t start pouting because I doubted you for a moment.”

As Koutarou forced a smile for Sanae, someone tugged on the sleeve of his uniform.

“Um, Satomi-san...”

“Hmm? What? Oh, it’s just you, Yurika?”

Yurika was the one that had pulled on his sleeve. Once she’d gotten his attention, she began speaking in a reserved tone.

“The wall is glowing, isn’t it?”

“So it is.”

“Something strange is happening, isn’t it?”

“Yes, it is.”

“Haven’t you considered that it might be my magic?”

“...Maybe.”

After nodding for the third time, Koutarou turned to Kiriha.

“So Kiriha-san, how long has the wall been like this?”

He had already lost interest in Yurika.

“Wh-Why?! Can’t you at least consider it? This is a supernatural phenomenon, you know! It’s a complete mystery! It might just be my magic!”

“Not very long. It started about ten minutes before you returned.”

“Ten minutes ago, huh?”

“It’s not fair! Believing in ghosts but not magic is unfair! I demand a correction and an apology!”

“Karama, Korama. Tell Koutarou about the results of your measurements as well.”

“Got it! Ho!”

“Leave it to us, Ane-san! Ho!”

Responding to Kiriha’s request, the two haniwas ran up to Koutarou.

“There is no sign of radiation, electromagnetic waves, heat, vibration, or spiritual energy, ho! We can only detect a trace amount of light! Ho!”

“But we can’t measure the other side of the glow, ho! It’s almost as if there’s an invisible wall, ho! Where the light is coming from is still unknown! Ho!”

The haniwas explained everything in detail while gesturing wildly, but it made no sense to Koutarou.

“I don’t really get it. So what does this mean?”

“Koutarou, it means that apart from not being able to see through to the other side of the glow, it’s a completely normal wall... However, that doesn’t eliminate the possibility of technology we don’t understand being involved.”

“In other words, it’s a mysterious glowing wall?”

Koutarou slowly approached the wall.

“Aaaah, if only you’d just give me a fraction of that consideration...” Yurika started breaking into tears behind Koutarou. “Can’t you even consider it might be the doing of a girl with suspicious powers?! I’m trying so hard!”

But Yurika’s pleading fell on deaf ears as Koutarou focused on the wall.

“Koutarou, you shouldn’t carelessly touch it.”

“...That’s actually pretty persuasive when you say it.”

What did reach Koutarou’s ears was Sanae’s voice. She floated next to him and approached the wall with him.

“What? Don’t treat me like I’m some sort of floating danger!”

“That’s exactly what you are.”

“What’s that supposed to mean?! I’ve had it! And here I was thinking of protecting you if something happened, but you just trample all over my kindness! You have a terrible personality!”

Sanae began sulking again and returned to where Kiriha and Yurika were.

“...Koutarou definitely won’t die a pretty death.”

“He won’t even believe in magic either.”

“It’s a common thing for people of our age. If you’re a fine woman, you’ll be able to overlook something like this.”

“I’m just a kid, so I don’t care.”

There’s no tension here whatsoever...

Koutarou could feel his spirits droop as he listened to the voices from behind him.

Standing about thirty centimeters away from it, Koutarou was still observing the glowing wall.

“Apart from the glow, it looks just like a normal wall, but...”

The glow was weak, so it wasn’t dazzling. It was brighter than fluorescent paint, but not to the degree of a fluorescent lamp. Because of that, he could still see the wall where it wasn’t glowing just fine. He could even clearly see the patterns of the recently changed wallpaper.

“What is this...?”

Koutarou reached out towards the wall. Even as his hand got close, it didn’t feel hot. It was just as Kiriha said. But he still didn’t know if touching it was safe or not.

“Now then, what to do...?”

While Koutarou was thinking it over, a change took place in the wall.

“Oh?”

At the center of the glowing spot, roughly one meter up from the ground, a blue disk fifteen centimeters in diameter appeared. White light ran through the blue disk, outlining a simple picture of a man in armor fighting against a large reptilian.

“A knight and a dragon... Is it some kind of crest?”

Koutarou brought his face closer to examine it. As he did, he realized that it wasn’t just a picture, but a three-dimensional sculpture. That strengthened his impression that it was indeed a crest.

“But why is there a crest on a glowing wall?”

Not sure what to think, Koutarou brought his face even closer to the crest. But suddenly, his vision was completely obscured.

“H-Huh?! What?!”

Koutarou was caught by surprise as his sight went dark, but he could feel something soft and warm pressed against his face. His body stiffened in response.

“Huwah?!”

A girl’s voice cried out from right in front of Koutarou.

Everyone in the room was surprised. But the most surprised of them all was the girl who had surprised Koutarou and the others.

“H-H-How rude! Burying your face in a princess’s chest is unforgivable even for a clueless Neanderthal!”

“H-Huh? Wha?! What’s going on?!”

As someone practically yelled right into his ear, Koutarou tried to pull his face away from whatever was obscuring his vision by lightly pushing against it with his hands.

“Waaaaah! Y-You dare to touch a princess’s chest?! Grab it?! Fondle it?!?!”

“Huh?!”

Standing before the bewildered Koutarou was a girl with her back towards the glowing wall. She was short, but a little taller than Sanae. With her blonde hair and blue eyes, she was probably a foreigner. She was wearing a beautiful, brilliant white dress, and the ends of her spread skirt filled up a large part of the tiny room. But above all, she was wearing a silver tiara decorated with jewels on top of her golden hair.

“...Who’s this girl?”

“I am no mere ‘girl’! Remove your hands from me this instant, Neanderthal!”

“Hands?”

At the mention of his hands, Koutarou reflexively squeezed.

“Waaaaah! D-Don’t fondle them more, idiot!”

“W-Waaaaaaaah?!”

That was when Koutarou finally realized that he had grabbed ahold of the breasts of the girl in front of him. Where he had put his hands to push away had been just where her chest was.

“S-Sorry!”

“A ‘sorry’ won’t cut it! You buried your face in my chest without warning and even dared to fondle it!” The girl’s face was crimson with anger and embarrassment. She covered her chest with her arms and continued to shout at Koutarou. “This noble chest that you played around with to fulfill your lust is not something the likes of you may touch! You should consider yourself lucky that you were not slain on the spot!”

“Lust?! Th-That’s a misunderstanding! That wasn’t my intention at all! It was just an accident!”

Flustered, Koutarou shook his head.

“All criminals say the same thing!”

“That’s not true! Who would want to fondle such a flat chest?! I have the right to choose which breasts I fondle, too!”

“F-Flat...?”

The girl’s expression froze.

“You think I’d take that kind of risk over that washing board of a chest?! Give me a break!”

“W-Washing board...?”

The stunned girl looked up at Koutarou. Her eyes were wide open and her face was twitching.

“Yeah, that’s right! Koutarou spent all yesterday fondling Kiriha’s breasts, so he doesn’t need yours!”

That was where Sanae decided to chime in. She was still holding a grudge against Koutarou from before.

“Don’t make it sound like I’m some sort of pervert!”

“There’s no need to deny it. You know you wanted to fondle them. You pervert!”

“Koutarou, do you want to touch my breasts?”

After what Sanae suggested, Kiriha turned to Koutarou and thrust her chest forward a little, making her breasts jiggle.

“No! I’m not fondling anyone’s breasts!”

“You don’t have to hold back.”

“Like hell I’d be chased out of this room over something like that!”

Yurika, who was silently watching on, pumped her fist into the air in a victorious pose.

“You got a high rank! Good job, Yurika! Fight!”

Sizing up the girls in the room, the order from largest breasts to smallest went: Kiriha, Yurika, Sanae, and lastly the mysterious girl. Yurika was glad that she was second.

“...Anyways, you wouldn’t want to fondle those.” Sanae looked pityingly at the blonde girl’s chest.

“Like I said, it was an accident! Who would go out of their way to touch those things?!”

“Th-Things...? You called them flat, a washing board... and now ‘things’...”

The girl looked down at the floor.

“You don’t have to put it like that. She’s still young. She has plenty of time to grow.”

“Uwaah, that’s a mean way to put it, Kiriha. The well-endowed sure have it easy...”

“That wasn’t my intention.”

“But she’s even losing to Sanae-chan, so they can’t possibly grow that much...”

As Yurika spoke with pity in her voice, the girl’s shoulders began to tremble. Koutarou thought she was about to cry, but what he heard wasn’t a sob.

“Heh... Heh heh... Hahaha... Ahahahahaha!”

It was sad, dry laughter.

“So you’d pity me? I see. You pity me, a princess!”

It was then that Koutarou thought he could hear the sound of the girl’s patience snapping.

“I’ll kill you! I’ll kill you all right now! I’ll make sure none of you will ever be able to speak again!”

The girl screamed, swung her hands around, and stomped the ground with her feet.

She had completely lost it.

“...It looks like you made her angry, Koutarou. You should apologize.”

“She’s right, Koutarou. You should do it while her wounds are still shallow.”

“It’s because you bullied her, Satomi-san. There aren’t many girls that can handle being bullied as well as I do.”

“Don’t try to put all of this on me! You’re the ones who dealt the finishing blow! Besides, just look at her! We’re well past the point of persuasion!”

“Muahahahaha! You Neanderthals! I won’t even give you the time to realize your sins! You can regret ever going up against me once your bodies have been vaporized!”

The girl who had lost herself in anger glared at Koutarou and the others while laughing loudly. It was clear to everyone in the room that she couldn’t be talked down now.

“Blue Knight! Activate the Anti-Personnel Weapons System!”

As the girl continued laughing maniacally, she shouted into the bracelet on her right wrist.

“As you wish, my princess.”

And strangely enough, the gem on the bracelet lit up and responded to her.

“Hey, what’s that girl doing?”

“Who knows...? She’s gotten so worked up that she’s talking to her bracelet. She’s kinda scary.”

As Koutarou and Sanae looked on in confusion, two small black disks about twenty centimeters in diameter appeared one after the other above the girl’s shoulders. They were pitch-black, and oddly enough, had no thickness to them.

“Select your weaponry.”

“Anti-Personnel Pulse Laser! Sonic Impact Cannon! Fill them with holes and pulverize them!”

“As you wish, my princess.”

After the girl shouted out her orders, something metallic could be seen inside the black disks. Even though the disks had no apparent depth, the metallic objects inside of them looked very real. It was almost as if the black disks were some sort of window.

“What the heck is that...?”

As Koutarou started to think that the metallic objects looked like muzzles, they turned and pointed at him. A bluish white light began glowing in the hole of the left object. At the same time, the right one started emitting a low-pitched sound that made the room shake.

“Hmm, I’m getting a bad feeling about this...”

Koutarou was beginning to sense danger from the disks, but as he wasn’t sure what to do. He readied himself for anything for the time being.

“Emergency alert, ho! Those things we can see from the black holes are probably weapons! Ho!”

“Energy reaction, ho! The object on the left side is most likely an energy weapon, and the object on the right side is probably a shockwave cannon, ho! They will attack within a few seconds! Ho!”

“Get down, Koutarou! She’s shooting!” Kiriha desperately called out to Koutarou.

“Huh?!”

“It’s too late now! Eliminate them, Blue Knight!”

“As you wish, my princess.”

The girl gave her bracelet the order to fire as she leered at the panicking Koutarou.

“Koutarou!”

“Oof!”

In that moment, Koutarou fell down onto the tatami mat. Sanae had tackled him and forcibly pulled him down.

And not a moment later, several blue beams passed through the spot where Koutarou had just been standing. Immediately after that, a white ball passed by as if chasing the blue beams.

“Kyaaaaah!”

The blue beam passed right by Yurika’s ear, singing a few strands of her hair. As she ducked in surprise, the white ball came next. It directly hit the broom she was holding, then exploded with a loud bang. The sound came with a powerful shockwave that assaulted the already off-balance Yurika.

“Why is it always meeeee?!”

Yurika tried her best to prevent it, but there was nothing she could do as she was sent rolling across the tatami mats yet again.

“Bwah!”

She rolled until she hit the wall, no longer conscious or moving.

“Th-That was close! Those were weapons?!”

It wasn’t until Koutarou saw what happened to Yurika that he realized the extent of the danger he was in. As it set in on him, a chill ran down his spine. Koutarou had no idea what weapons this girl was using, but after taking one look at Yurika, he could at least imagine what would happen if he took a direct hit.

“Are you okay, Koutarou?! Get up right now! The next one’s coming!”

“Y-Yeah!”

“Tch, looks like one of them has good intuition,” the girl spat hatefully. She then turned to look at the fallen Koutarou. As she did, the visible muzzles pointed right at him. “But in this small room, the next one won’t miss! Blue Knight, continue firing in synchronous mode!”

“As you wish, my princess.”

“Don’t be like that, shorty!”

“Neanderthal! First you insult my chest, now my height?!”

“You big idiot!”

“Grrrrr! And you dare to call me an idiot?!”

“Of course, you hyper-sensitive, breastless weirdo!”

As Koutarou said that, the girl’s weapons appeared to be preparing to fire again as the blue light and loud sound activated once more.

“Koutarou, stop bickering with her and hurry up!”

“Waaaaah! Oh crap!”

Koutarou was still in the middle of getting up. Sanae was helping him out, but it didn’t look like he would make it in time before the next attack.

“Ahahahaha! You’re too slow! It’s already over! You can regret the crime of making a fool of me after you’ve been turned to ashes!”

“Karama, Korama! Spiritual energy field to maximum output!”

“Got it! Ho!”

“Understood! Ho!”

As the haniwas responded in their silly, squeaking voices, they quickly stepped between Koutarou and the girl.

“But we’ll lose in terms of power, ho! We’re not good at dealing with physical attacks, ho!”

“I just need you to endure one attack! Block it somehow!”

“Got it!”

And then the blue beam and white ball struck them.

In that moment, Koutarou and the others were enveloped by a spherical, yellow film of light. It was a shield generated by the two haniwas. There was an explosion as the blue beam came into contact with the shield of light. It dispersed the beam, but shattered the shield like glass. The haniwas’ shield was only able to block the blue beam, the Pulse Laser. As a result, the white ball that came shortly after flew unobstructed, straight towards Koutarou.

“Waaaaah! This time it’s all over!”

“Special Attack: Sanae-chan Bomber!”

However, just before the ball could connect with Koutarou, Sanae blocked it by throwing a cushion using her poltergeist powers. The ball and cushion collided mid-air, and the explosive shockwave scattered cotton all over the room.

“Aaaaahhh!”

“Ugh!”

“Ho!”

“Ho, ho!”

Other than Sanae, everyone else was thrown up against the wall because of the shockwave. It was enough to make the wooden foundation of Corona House creak and shake.

“Is everyone okay?! You’re not dead, are you?!”

“I’m neither! I’m fine for now, but I won’t be for long!”

Koutarou shook his head, stood up, and grabbed the baseball bat that was leaning against the wall next to him.

“What are you going to do?!”

“The only way to survive is to strike before she can recover!”

The girl in question had also lost her balance from the shockwave. The cushion Sanae threw had triggered the impact much closer to her than she had expected.

“Tch, like I’ll let you hit me with something like that! Blue Knight, change the Sonic Impact Cannon to the Ion Blaster! This room is too small!”

Noticing Koutarou approaching with a bat in hand, the girl ordered her bracelet to change weapons.

“As you wish, my princess.”

“You’re too slow!”

However, Koutarou swung his bat down as hard as he could before she could finish switching weapons. His target was the Pulse Laser peeking out from the disk above her right shoulder.

“It’s no use, Neanderthal!”

However, the bat didn’t reach the laser. Just before it hit the barrel, the bat crashed into something he couldn’t see and bounced off.

“What?!”

“You thought you were the only one with a barrier? How foolish!”

The girl stood up with a smile brimming with confidence. She was surrounded by a network of interlocking, transparent hexagons. Just like the shield of light the haniwas had used before, it was a wall that blocked attacks.

“Not good, ho! Her barrier is on a completely different level! Ho!”

“It’s a repulsion barrier, ho! It’s far superior to ours against anything but spiritual energy! Ho!”

“Just who is this girl?!”

Kiriha was aghast by the overwhelming difference in power. Their attacks barely had an effect, and they couldn’t even fully protect themselves against their opponent’s attacks.

“Damn it! What’s with that hard shell? Unless we smash that open, we’re not going to get anywhere!”

“Enough, Koutarou! There’s no way to break that!”

“What? Is that true?!”

“It’s true, Neanderthal! The difference in power between us is like that of heaven and earth! The likes of you can’t so much as lay a finger on me!”

The girl paused her attack to boast. After everything that had been said about her chest, she was extraordinarily happy about this development.

“...I’m not so sure about that.”

Sanae floated up to the cocky girl and poked the tip of her nose.

“Wh-What?! Wh-What did you just do?!”

The girl’s face scrunched up as Sanae suddenly appeared directly in front of her.

“What? I was just poking you. You’re overreacting.”

Sanae had easily passed through the barrier the girl had been so proud of. Even the most advanced barrier was powerless against a ghost.

“Good job, Sanae! Now restrain her!”

“Okay, okay. You sure are bossy...”

Taking advantage of the blonde girl’s surprise, Sanae moved in for the kill. Using her Poltergeist powers, she grabbed ahold of the edges of the girl’s skirt.

“What are you doing?!”

“Who knows what would happen if I let someone like you be! So take this! Special Attack: Sanae-chan Tulip!”

Quick to action, Sanae lifted up the edges of the girl’s skirt.

“Uwaah! Wh-What?!”

“Just relax.”

Sanae flipped the girl’s skirt all the way up and wrapped it around her head. With her underwear now exposed, the girl did look like a tulip, just as Sanae had promised.

“Stop it, you ruffian! I can’t see a thing!”

“No way. If I stop, you’ll just continue attacking.”

The girl struggled to break free from her tulip form, but Sanae’s power was too strong. She was stuck.

“Kiriha-san.”

“What is it, Koutarou?”

“I know my life is on the line, but she just looks like an idiot right now.”

“Agreed. To think I’d see a bear here...”

Tulip struggled, but made no progress. Just looking at her was enough to induce laughter. Moreover, emblazoned on the girl’s panties was an adorable bear.

“If you give up, I’ll let you go.”

“Don’t make a fool of me! There is no way a princess of the Holy Forthorthe Galactic Empire would lower her head to primitive barbarians!”

“Then we’ll just leave you like this.”

“Grrr, you’re just a Neanderthal!”

The back and forth between Sanae and the girl was proceeding in Sanae’s favor. Seeing that, Koutarou let out a small sigh of relief.

“It looks like we’ll finally be able to catch our breath for a moment.”

“Well, about time, I’d say.”

Kiriha smiled a little. Despite their hopes, however, the commotion wouldn’t end that easily.

“Fine! If you want to play that way, I have plans of my own!”

“What? You’re still going to do something?”

“Blue Knight! Change battle mode to final attack mode! Fire a limited Genesis Buster! Reduce the area around me to photons!”

“Authentication is required for activation of final attack mode and use of the Genesis Buster.”

“My name is Theiamillis Gre Mastir Sagurada von Forthorthe!”

“Authentication complete. Identity of Princess Theiamillis confirmed. Order accepted. As you wish, my princess.”

Unlike before, the girl gave a complicated order. Hearing it gave Koutarou a bad feeling again.

“...What are you planning on doing?”

“Don’t ask such foolish things, Neanderthal. I’m attacking, of course.”

Tulip responded full of confidence once more. She was probably smiling, but Koutarou still couldn’t see her face.

“Attacking?”

Despite what she said, nothing seemed to be happening inside the room. The black holes floating near her remained motionless.

“But nothing’s happening...”

“Heh heh... Hahahahaha! This is why you’re Neanderthals! Don’t assume that what you see here is all there is!” Tulip shook with laughter.

“Emergency alert! A super-high energy reaction detected! Fifty meters above us! Ho!”

“What?!”

Hearing Karama’s warning, Kiriha leaped over to the window and threw it open so she could lean out and look up. Koutarou followed suit.

“So that’s it!”

“What the heck is that...?”

In the sky above Corona House was a black hole similar to the ones floating above the girl’s shoulders. Even though it was a starry night, the part of the sky it covered was completely dark. A large cylindrical object peeked out of the hole.

“Confirmed the generation of antimatter, ho! Its mass is rapidly increasing, ho!”

“Antimatter?! What is its mass?!”

“It’s currently at fifty-eight grams, ho! And still increasing! Ho!”

“Is that an antimatter cannon? Preposterous! Do you know what that kind of thing can do?!”

Kiriha turned to Tulip and shouted at her. The fact that the normally calm Kiriha was acting this way was proof alone of how serious the situation was.

“Of course I know! It means you Neanderthals will be reduced to photons!”

Tulip laughed at the panicking Kiriha.

“Hey, Koutarou, what’s antimatter?”

“Don’t ask me. That’s Mackenzie’s field of expertise.”

Koutarou and Sanae couldn’t keep up with the conversation, so they casually tilted their heads in anticipation of an explanation.

“To put it simply, antimatter is like a superpowered nuclear weapon!”

Strictly speaking, the nuclear fission used by nuclear weapons was completely different from antimatter. However, they both released energy on an atomic level, so it was an appropriate comparison for the two who didn’t understand at all.

“N-Nuclear?!”

“You mean that kind of nuclear?! Like what you see in movies and anime? Where terrible things happen if they explode?!”

Thanks to that, Koutarou and Sanae finally understood the situation and started panicking too.

“L-Let’s run away, Koutarou! The mushroom’s going to explode!”

“Y-Yeah.”

“It’s no use! The antimatter has already exceeded one hundred grams. No matter how far you go, you’ll never be able to outrun it! Too bad for you!”

“...So it’s all over.”

Kiriha sighed and her shoulders slumped. She clearly understood the power of that much antimatter.

“Don’t give up! Do something, Kiriha!”

“Wh-What do we do?! What should I do?!”

Having grasped the power of the weapon, Koutarou and Sanae ran around in a panic.

“Your petty tricks won’t work on this weapon! This will be my victory!”

In contrast, Tulip was ecstatic. Releasing all of her resentment, she laughed loudly. Because of that, it looked like even the bear on her exposed panties was smiling to Koutarou.

“There’s no longer anything we can do. Just give up, Koutarou, Sanae.”

“Noooooooo! I don’t want to dieeeee!”

“You’re already dead! Nuclear, antimatter, or whatever won’t hurt you!”

“Oh yeah, you’re right.”

The truth was that normal weapons wouldn’t work on Sanae, being a ghost. Being reminded of that, she was able to calm down again.

“I’m sorry for your loss.”

“Hearing that from you strangely pisses me off!”

“It’s a perk of being a ghost.”

Sanae turned to Koutarou and made a triumphant peace sign.

“You can’t be so sure when it comes to antimatter. With this much mass, it could be so powerful that it might distort space itself. Even a ghost might not survive,” Kiriha explained.

“Did you hear that, Sanae? Even ghosts can die!”

“Don’t rejoice in that, idiot!”

As Koutarou and the others fell into pandemonium, Tulip’s bracelet coldly reported the countdown to their demise.

“The generation of antimatter is complete.”

“Excellent! Start the firing procedure! Don’t forget to pick me up as you fire!”

“As you wish. Initiating firing procedure.”

“Waaaaah, it’s firing! It’s coming!”

“Noooooooo! I don’t want to die young!”

“An unexpected end for the surface invasion. Then again, I doubt there will be much of Japan left to invade after this...”

The girl laughed. Koutarou was restless. Sanae was clinging to him. Kiriha had a distant look in her eyes. And Yurika was still unconscious. As the five of them each reacted in their own way, the time finally came.

“The antimatter has finished loading. Safety device released. Awaiting order to fire, my princess.”

“Heh heh heh! And with this, it’s over! Genesis Buster, fi—”

However, as the girl was about to give the order, another voice rang out in the room, interrupting her.

“Please wait, Your Highness!”

“Ruth?!”

The girl raised her voice in surprise as another person came jumping out from the glowing wall. It was a sight similar to how Sanae passed through walls, but the girl that came from the wall was wearing a military uniform with a short skirt. She was taller than Tulip, and roughly the same height as Yurika.

“H-Hey, a person just came through the wall!”

“What are you going on about now? That’s how Tulip showed up too.”

“Really, Kiriha-san?”

Koutarou hadn’t seen Tulip’s entrance. He was busy examining the crest when his sight was suddenly blocked out.

“Y-Yeah. The first girl came out of the wall like this girl just did. She just immediately bumped into you.”

Kiriha had already given up hope, but she was shaken by the appearance of this new girl.

“Your Highness! What is the meaning of firing the Genesis Buster at the planet?!”

And she immediately began shouting at Tulip.

“B-But... They were making a fool of me!” Tulip tried to object, but her tone of voice had completely changed.

“It looks like that girl came to stop Tulip.”

“Do you think so?”

Koutarou and Sanae blankly stared at the two quarreling girls. They were unable to comprehend this unexpected development.

“That doesn’t mean you can destroy this entire planet! First of all, it violates the galactic treaty!”

“...Hey, Sanae, it sounds like the weapon above us has enough power to destroy the planet.”

“So Earth was on the brink of destruction...”

“Knock on wood.”

“But they called me flat, short, and stupid! There’s no way I could forgive them!”

“Who would bring out a wide-area destructive weapon intended for space combat for a childish reason like that?”

“B-But, Ruth!”

“No buts!”

The new girl was quickly gaining the upper hand in their dispute. Tulip gradually spoke less and less, until she was mostly silent.

“Phew. Looks like everything will settle down...” Kiriha let out a big sigh and relaxed her shoulders.

“Your Highness, please calm down. If you kill the residents of this room, you won’t be able to complete your trial. Are you planning on becoming the quickest to fail the trial in the history of Forthorthe? Will you bring shame to your mother?”

“...”

At the mention of her mother, Tulip stopped arguing.

“Your Highness, please think about this. Forthorthe has no jurisdiction over this planet. We are the ones being unreasonable here.”

This new girl has been quite reasonable, actually...

The past few days had been a mess of unreasonable people forcing themselves into Koutarou’s apartment. So to hear someone be rational and levelheaded now was like music to Koutarou’s ears.

“I understand... Blue Knight, release attack mode and return to guard mode. Cancel the use of the Genesis Buster.”

“As you wish, my princess.”

“Thank you very much, Your Highness.”

The new girl flashed a relieved smile. And with that smile, the commotion in the room settled for the moment.

There was a hole in the wall from the laser, and the wallpaper had been torn by the shockwaves. The once beautiful tatami mats were now heavily worn out and had scorch marks on them.

“If Landlord-san sees this, she’ll probably cry...”

After giving the room a look around, Koutarou started feeling guilty. Corona House was Shizuka’s treasure. It was a keepsake from her late parents. Finding it in this state would cause her a lot of grief, and Koutarou was painfully aware of that.

“Koutarou, please sit down so we can start.”

“Oh, right. Sorry.”

As Kiriha called to him, Koutarou turned around to the five girls all sitting down around the tea table. Going clockwise, it was Sanae, Kiriha, Yurika, Tulip, and then the girl who came with her. And between Sanae and Kiriha was an open spot.

“So I sit here.”

Koutarou sat down in the only place left.

“It’s kind of cramped.”

“There are six of us now, after all.” Kiriha shrugged at Sanae’s words.

Originally, neither the tea table nor the room was designed for this many people. Because of that, it felt even smaller with six people stuffed in it.

“Once we deal with this problem, it’ll feel bigger again. It’s not like we’re trying to deepen our friendship.”

“Well, that’s true, but...”

The truth was that Sanae was a little sorry for that.

“So, getting right to it, who are you two?”

“Hmph.”

Despite Koutarou asking her, Tulip—the first girl to come out of the wall—refused to answer. Acting like a spoiled child, she turned away from him.

“I am sorry. It seems my master is in a bad mood, so I will explain in her place.”

Instead, the girl in uniform began speaking. Compared to the girl in the dress, she had a mild and amiable aura about her. She politely bowed her head to Koutarou and the others in place of the sulking girl. Her courteous behavior left a favorable impression on him.

But I learned my lesson with Kiriha. I should hear her out fully before I let my guard down...

With everything that had happened, Koutarou couldn’t relax.

“Allow me to introduce us. First is my master, Her Highness Theiamillis.”

The girl in uniform indicated the girl sitting next to her.

“‘Her Highness’?”

It was a phrase the girl had used several times already. Koutarou knew that it indicated someone noble, but he didn’t think it suited the girl in front of him at all.

“Yes. Her Highness’s name is Theiamillis Gre Forthorthe. She is a princess of the Holy Forthorthe Galactic Empire.”

“Princess?! This brat is?!”

Hearing Koutarou’s surprised words, the girl in the dress—Theia—glared at him. However, perhaps having learned how to show discretion, this time she said nothing.

“Yes. Her Highness is the seventh princess, but she is the only child of the current empress.”

“So she’s a princess? Really?”

The girl explaining nodded at the amazed Sanae.

“There is no mistaking it. However, it would be hard to show you proof right away...”

“That won’t be necessary. I understand that the two you of you at least hold high positions.”

“Oh?! You’ll believe us?!”

“Yes. To a certain extent.”

Surprisingly, Kiriha seemed to buy in to the girl’s claims.

“What do you mean, Kiriha-san?”

“Koutarou, just think about the power of their weapons.”

“What about their weapons? Well, they were awfully dangerous...”

“Do you think just anyone would be walking around with weapons like that? The antimatter least of all.”

“Ah, so that’s what you mean.” Koutarou was beginning to understand what Kiriha was implying.

“What does she mean?” Sanae asked, still confused.

“You see, Sanae, which seems more logical to you: a normal person walking around with weapons like that, or someone very important?”

“Well, it’d have to be the important person. She had a mushroom bomb after all.”

“Right? That’s the point. It would be strange if those girls were normal.”

The short of it was that it seemed way more likely for someone in a position of importance to be in possession of weapons that destructive.

“I see. Now that you mention it, that makes sense.” Convinced, Sanae nodded before moving to make fun of Yurika. “Yurika, unlike a self-proclaimed princess like yourself, she’s the real deal.”

“I... I’m a real one too!”

“I know. You’re a real hardcore cosplayer, right?”

“You’re wrong! Why does everyone bully me?!” Yurika grit her teeth in frustration, but no one was listening to her.

“To show status, show power... It’s an old-fashioned method, but it was effective.”

“I would like to apologize for the sudden display of force.” The girl bowed apologetically.

“You don’t have to worry about that. We were both in the wrong.”

“Thank you very much.”

“You sure forgave her quickly didn’t you, Koutarou?”

“Could you at least remember what you said?”

Sanae flinched at Koutarou’s cold glance. She agreed that she may have said too much. Apart from his first remark about her chest, Koutarou felt he had said too much as well. The same was true for Kiriha and Yurika.

“So what about you? Do you hold a high position as well?”

“No, I am just an officer. I am in charge of guarding Her Highness and taking care of her. My name is Ruthkania Nye Pardomshiha. Please call me Ruth.”

“...Ruth is my childhood friend.” Theia, who had been silent until now, added on to Ruth’s introduction. “She’s a reliable and talented guard.”

“Your kind words are wasted on me, Your Highness.”

Ruth smiled at Theia, and Theia blushed a little before turning away again.

“Hmm, so this person was a soldier.”

“Ruth-san, huh...? Oh crap, I almost forgot. I’m Koutarou. Satomi Koutarou. I live here.”

“I’m Higashihongan Sanae. And this flashy one is Yurika. But the only flashy thing about her is her appearance, so don’t pay her too much attention.”

“I’m Nijino Yurika. From the magical—”

Yurika attempted to introduce herself, but...

“Kurano Kiriha. Feel free to call me Kiriha.”

Sadly, she was interrupted by Kiriha.

“Wah... Waaah! D-Do you really hate magic—and me—that much? Waaah!”

Yurika drooped her shoulders as she bit the corner of her handkerchief, tears streaming down her face. Ruth was surprised by Yurika’s sudden crying.

“Did something happen to Yurika-sama?”

“It’s fine. Just leave her be, Ruth-san.”

“Okay, Satomi-sama.”

“Waaaaaaaah!” Yurika continued to cry.

“...?”

Ruth was unable to fully comprehend the situation, but she decided to leave Yurika be for now.

“By the way, Ruth, I believe you mentioned a galactic empire before. What did you mean by that?”

“Koutarou, did she say something like that?” Sanae, who hadn’t been paying attention, tugged on Koutarou’s sleeve and asked.

“She did. Holy something Galactic Empire. Theia over there seems to be a princess from that country.”

“Oh, I know about the Empire in Ginza.”

In Ginza6, there was a famous hotel by the name of the Imperial Hotel.

“That has nothing to do with this.”

“I know that too...”

“It is as you say.” Ruth nodded her head. “As you have surmised, we are from the Holy Forthorthe Galactic Empire.”

“The Holy Forthorthe Galactic Empire... I’ve never heard of a country by that name.”

“You haven’t heard of it either, Yurika?”

“Why would you think I would know about it?”

Yurika looked puzzled at Sanae’s sudden question.

“Because it sounds like something right out of an anime.”

“Wah... Waaaaah!”

“Don’t make her cry for no reason, Sanae.”

“Sorry, I couldn’t help it...”

“So, Ruth-san, where is this country? In the Middle East? Or maybe in Europe?”

“No.” Ruth simply shook her head. “It is in a different galaxy, about ten million light years away from here.”

“So that really was the case?!” Kiriha instinctively stood up. She had suspected it when Theia brandished an antimatter weapon, but she was still very surprised.

“Koutarou, is there a different Ginza? One outside of Tokyo?”

“She said a different galaxy, Sanae.”

Koutarou was perplexed. He understood what Ruth was saying, but that was because it sounded like something out of one of the movies he would watch with Kenji from time to time.

“That can’t be right. If they came from a different galaxy, they would be—”

“Yes, that’s correct. We came from a different planet. In other words, we are aliens.”

The girls who introduced themselves as Theia and Ruth were the most extraordinary visitors yet.

“A-Aliens...”

Koutarou had to close his mouth after his jaw dropped.

“After ghosts, cosplayers, and underground people, I thought nothing would really surprise me. But aliens...”

“I’m not a cosplayer! I’m a magical girl!”

“I believe it’s quite normal to be surprised. It is extremely rare to come into contact with another civilization, after all.” Ruth smiled apologetically.

“But now that you mention it, it makes things make a lot more sense.”

Lasers, barriers, and antimatter cannons... It was hard to imagine those kind of sci-fi weapons existed on Earth.

If people really had things like that, surely technology on Earth would be far more advanced. Kiriha’s haniwas were quite surprising, but the technology Theia and Ruth had surprised even Kiriha.

“There’s no doubt about it.”

Kiriha wiped away the sweat from her brow. She couldn’t stop her cold sweat, knowing how much stronger the other party was.

“...Karama, Korama, prepare those.”

“Got it! Ho!”

“We’ll bring them right away! Ho!”

Being given orders, the haniwas sprang into action. They flipped up the tatami mat closest to the front door and jumped down the hole beneath it.

“Koutarou, what do we do now?”

“For starters, let’s continue as if what they’re saying is true.”

“You believe them when they say they’re aliens?”

“Yeah. They don’t look like they’re lying.”

Koutarou brought his mouth closer to Sanae’s ear and whispered.

“Besides... Even if it’s a lie, those weapons are real.”

“...That’s true. They’re different from someone like Yurika.”

Sanae whispered back to Koutarou and then looked at Theia and Ruth. As she did, something else crossed her mind.

“Hey, Koutarou.”

“Hmm?”

“You don’t believe them just because that Ruth girl is your type, right?”

“Of course not!”

“Really?”

“Really! ...Well, she is cute.”

“C-Cute? I am honored, Satomi-sama...”

Ruth always had a serious expression on her face, but hearing Koutarou call her cute, she blushed. When she did, she actually looked more like a girl her age.

“She’s got a proper attitude, and she’s not saying anything ridiculous. There’s no reason to doubt her, right?”

“You sound suspiciooous! Isn’t it just because obedient girls are your thing? Typical boy... You see a cute, docile girl and you’re all over her.”

“Well, compared to the rest of you, any girl is docile!”

“...A very good point.”

Sanae, Yurika, Kiriha, and now Theia. The four of them were practically the opposite of docile.

“Satomi-sama, thank you for believing us. I have always worried over how to make you believe this part.”

“Always? So you two didn’t arrive today?”

“Yes.” Ruth nodded. “Well, we actually arrived at this planet yesterday evening.”

“So what were you doing until now?”

“We were gathering data for the translation device by listening in on the discussions in this room and by picking up broadcasts from the planet.”

As Ruth explained, she pulled out a small box and showed it to the group. It was the translation device that the two of them were using.

“Now that you mention it, both of you are speaking Japanese.”

“To think that small box could do that...”

Koutarou and Sanae stared at the device. Ruth handed it over to them so they could get a better look at it.

“Because of that, we also have a rough understanding of everybody’s circumstances. But I am deeply sorry, as what we did amounts to eavesdropping on you.”

“Well, we wouldn’t get anywhere if we didn’t understand each other, so you don’t really have to worry about that, Ruth-san.”

“Thank you very much, Satomi-sama.”

Ruth had been prepared to get yelled at, so she felt a little relieved.

“So what did you two come here for?”

“That would be the problem.” Ruth’s expression turned more serious. It was time to get down to business. “Her Highness came here because of a certain ritual passed down through the royal families.”

“Ritual?”

Kiriha looked up. Ruth nodded and continued her explanation.

“Yes. The succession of the throne works in such a way that all those born to the royal families are, without exception, given a trial when they turn sixteen.”

“A trial? What kind of trial?”

“There are all kinds of trials, depending on the person. It could be searching for something, investigating unexplored areas, fighting against a predetermined enemy, or something else altogether. The ones that clear their trial are deemed to have the right to succeed the throne.”

“So it’s like a coming of age ritual?”

“That’s correct, Kiriha-sama. Unless they clear the trial and prove their worth, they can’t succeed the throne. Not even as the empress’s child.”

“So Ruth-san, if she clears her trial, does that mean she’ll become the empress?”

“No, that is not quite the case. Those who clear their trial are recorded in order of completion on the list of candidates. After that, the throne is passed down to the ones on the list, starting from the top.”

“In the order they clear it, huh? So that’s how they prove themselves.”

“Yes. That’s correct, Satomi-sama.”

“So that means you two—or rather, the princess over there—came here to clear that trial?”

“That’s right.”

That was where Theia finally opened her mouth again.

“I have to show my power. To that end, I came here with just Ruth.”

“Just the two of you?”

Koutarou was a little surprised. In his head, royalty traveled with a grand company. Yet here, Theia only had Ruth with her.

“That’s right. I’m supposed to demonstrate my capabilities in this trial. That wouldn’t be possible with a large retinue.”

“I see. You have to do it on your own, or there wouldn’t be a point to it.”

“Precisely.”

“So, what’s the trial? Since you came all this way, are you exploring like you mentioned before?”

“No. Her Highness’ trial is an invasion.”

“Invasion?!”

“Her Highness has to invade this room and become its ruler in both title and function.”

“W-Wait a minute! Why does it have to be my room?!”

Koutarou was taken aback as Ruth continued to explain.

“As I believe you are now aware, the trial is to prove the capabilities of potential successors to the throne. A full-scale invasion wouldn’t be necessary. Her Highness was given coordinates to a small space, selected at random, for her to occupy and make into her own territory. It’s merely ceremonial.”

“So that space just happens to be my room?!”

“I know it’s hard to believe, but the coordinates the computer selected for the trial perfectly overlap with this room.”

“What kind of a coincidence is that?!”

“We are perplexed as well. Normally, the coordinates for this trial are in empty space. All you have to do is place your flag in that predetermined space and it’s over. What is primarily asked for in this trial is the courage to make a journey to the outskirts of known space, far, far away.”

Ruth had a serious look on her face.

If a computer really chose coordinates at random, there would have been a near guarantee that it selected empty space, considering the universe in all of its vastness is mostly empty space. The coincidence made this the first time that coordinates had indicated a habitable planet with intelligent life on it.

“So what happens in this case?”

“If intelligent life is found at the invasion point, not only is invasion required, but the lifeforms must be made to swear fealty. It’s a trial to demonstrate capacity for leadership, after all. Of course, taking their lives is absolutely out of the question”

“Which means—”

That was when Koutarou finally understood the circumstances.

“Even someone as stupid as you can understand now! So swear your eternal loyalty and transfer the control of this room to me right now! If you do, you will become a citizen of our glorious empire and be able to enjoy a long, prosperous life!”

The seventh princess of the Holy Forthorthe Galactic Empire, Theiamillis Gre Forthorthe wasn’t just trying to invade room 106. She was also after Koutarou’s heart.

“I refuse!”

As Theia demanded his room and his loyalty, Koutarou’s response was the same as always.

“Who would swear loyalty to someone like you? Don’t make me laugh!”

Since she had practically torn his room apart, Koutarou didn’t think very highly of Theia. Swearing loyalty to her was unthinkable.

“Curse you, Neanderthal! I treat you gently, and this is how you repay me?!”

“When did you ever treat me gently? The only one who showed any manners was Ruth!”

Ouch...

A dull pain ran through Koutarou’s head as he yelled at Theia.

Did I get a little too excited?

Koutarou shook his head in an attempt to get rid of the headache, but the pain remained along with a heavy feeling in the center of his head. He thought the headache was from getting too excited, but in reality he had been pushing his body past its limits for the past few days.

“I don’t mind turning you into ashes on the spot, you know?!”

“I already know that you won’t be able to clear your trial if you do that! Enough with your crappy empty threats!”

But Koutarou quickly forgot about his headache. The girl in front of him was a much bigger problem.

“Grrr, all because this Neanderthal picked up some unnecessary knowledge...!”

“If you weren’t with Ruth, I would have kicked you out long ago!”

“What?! Is that how you treat your master?!”

“Who is the master here, huh?!”

“It’s me, pleb! Do I have to explain every single thing for you to understand?!”

“As if I’d ever understand you, Tulip!”

Neither Koutarou nor Theia would back down as they glared at each other. As they continued scowling, they moved their faces closer and closer, to the point where their lips were almost touching.

“Your Highness! Satomi-sama! Please, calm down! Fighting won’t help anyone!”

“Even if it’s at Ruth-san’s request, I refuse to listen to this shorty!”

“You heard him, Ruth! This pleb won’t understand unless we use force! He’s a Neanderthal who doesn’t even understand the glory of being a Forthorthian citizen!”

Ruth’s earnest attempts at persuasion had no effect on Koutarou and Theia. They were both far too worked up. However, Ruth wasn’t about to throw in the towel.

“Please! I beg you to listen to my selfishness! No matter the outcome, the two of you mustn’t fight!”

Ruth was seriously worried about them, which gave strength to her words.

“Grrr... I-I understand, Ruth. I’m sorry for making a commotion.”

“I’ll only overlook it this time, for Ruth-san’s sake.”

Fortunately, her second attempt got through to them. They started to withdraw, but continued to glare at each other.

“Thank you very much. Both of you. I am truly grateful that you would listen to my selfish appeal.”

Overcome with relief, Ruth rubbed the corner of her eye.