Rokujouma no Shinryakusha!? - Volume 19 - Chapter 9

Over the Rainbow

Wednesday, September 22nd

Marina knew that it was only a dream. It was a dream too good to be true, but she tried to ignore that. It was a dream of the faraway days she’d shared with her beloved Kai.

“Hey, Kai. Let’s go somewhere on our next vacation. Like Japan, maybe.”

“Sightseeing in Japan is a pain. There’s too much paperwork.”

“Jeez, what about making your girl happy and taking her on a nice trip before getting married?”

“...Is that the kind of high-level technique that’s going to be expected from me from now on?”

“Just the once.”

“Okay, okay, I’ll see what I can do.”

They didn’t have to go in for work until that afternoon, so they were leisurely spending their morning in bed together. The light of the sun was pouring through the curtains and gently lit up the two lovers smiling at each other. It was a pleasant, peaceful morning.

“Ah, you’ve got some split hair.”

“Because you’re always stressing me out all the time.”

“Jerk.”

“Ow.”

It wasn’t anything special. Just a normal, everyday morning. Just like the day before it and the day before that. That’s why she’d always believed the next day and the day after that would be the same. But she was so very wrong. Marina now knew just how precious these normal mornings were.

“...Why are you crying?”

There, Marina’s dream started to diverge from the past. Marina had never cried while she was lying next to Kai. She’d never had anything to cry about in those days.

“I was just thinking that these days were so wonderful... And now I just can’t stop the tears.”

Overflowing with emotion, Marina admitted she knew she was dreaming. She couldn’t play it off anymore.

“I know how you feel. There hasn’t been a day since that night that I haven’t felt that way. That’s why I came to visit you like this.”

“K-Kai? Are you...?”

There was a special meaning behind those words. Utterly shaken to hear it, Marina had to ask...

“Hmm?”

“Are you the real Kai...?”

“Who else would I be?”

“That’s not what I mean... Are you just a product of my imagination?”

“I wonder. I’m not actually sure myself. All I know is that I believe.”

Assuming this was no normal dream, but Kai’s soul that had entered her consciousness... That made both of them happy.

“Then... why haven’t you visited me before today?”

“I wanted to, but you were so focused on reviving me that you could never hear my voice.”

Kai wasn’t just teasing her. He’d tried and tried to call out to her, but she’d never listened.

“Then all this time...”

“Yeah, I’ve been right beside you. It was frustrating not being able to do anything, though.”

“Then I guess it was all pointless in the end...”

“I guess so. I’ve been with you all along.”

“No...”

Marina was aghast. She had wanted to revive Kai so that they could spend time like this again. But in the end, her desire had pushed him away.

“But for some reason, I was able to talk to you today. I think you changed after that battle.”

Her complete defeat and the loss of Kai’s remains had most likely wrought a change in Marina’s heart. At least, that’s what Kai believed, though he couldn’t bring himself to say it.

“That might... be true...”

Marina had a hunch as well. The dark feelings in her chest were no longer lingering there. The blackness threatening to consume her had vanished.

“If you get it, then hurry up and wake up.”

“What?”

“There are people worried about you. Don’t you remember? Two of your allies came to save you.”

When Kai said that, the faces of two girls popped into Marina’s head. Her memories after becoming a monster were vague, but she felt like she had seen them during the battle.

“Crimson and Green...? There’s no way they would!”

“Why do you think that?”

“Why wouldn’t I? We’re Darkness Rainbow, you know?! There’s no way anyone there would be worried for someone else!”

Darkness Rainbow sought the free use of magic to fulfill their own desires. They were highly individualistic and weren’t much of a team. They were only together because they had a common enemy. To them, allies were tools to be used.

“Are you going to cover your ears and shut your eyes again? Just like you did with me?”

“...”

“Why don’t you wake up and meet them? Look at them, listen to them, and talk to them. Why don’t you confirm for yourself why they really came.”

“Kai... Okay. I’ll try.”

“Good girl.”

Kai patted Marina on her head. The sensation it produced was just like what she’d felt in the past. Suppressing more tears, she smiled at Kai.

“Kai...”

“Hmm?”

“Will I see you again?”

“I guess that depends on your sex appeal.”

“Then I guess I’ll just have to keep you here with my sex appeal.”

“Don’t use any more strange spells, okay?”

“Yes, I’ve learned my lesson there...”

Marina wiped away her tears. She didn’t break down crying, but she couldn’t help the tears that welled in her eyes. Kai noticed, but pretended not to.

“See you, Marina.”

“Yeah. See you, Kai...”

Their parting was a simple one. While there might have been tears, both of them were smiling. They were sure that they would see each other again someday.

When Purple woke up, she was in an unfamiliar room of a small hut. It had minimal furniture, mostly just a humble bed. It was even more plain than the safehouse she used during her missions.

Purple simply laid in bed, staring up at the ceiling. She had the feeling she’d awoken from an important dream, but she couldn’t clearly remember it. She also felt like there was something she had to do. But because she couldn’t remember that either, she just continued to lie there.

After some time passed, Purple could hear voices from a neighboring room. There were two of them, both female.

“I wonder if Purple is okay...”

“She was absorbed by the gates of hell...”

She knew them both well. It was Crimson and Green, fellow leaders of Darkness Rainbow. Purple listened in on them, still lying in bed.

“She might stay this way...”

“Stop that. Don’t say anything so horrible. Just imagining Purple sleeping forever sends chills down my spine.”

“I wouldn’t want to get into a fight without her, either. It doesn’t suit us, does it?”

“I just can’t get into things if Purple isn’t there to take charge and be all cool and stuff.”

“That’s right, Crimson... Did you know Purple doesn’t like kurka fruit?”

“Really?! There are really people who don’t like kurka fruit?!”

“Just a friendly reminder that she’s not ‘all cool and stuff’ all the time. She lets her guard down every now and then.”

“Heh, now I’m looking forward to getting a glimpse of that too.”

The two girls were just casually chatting. It was ultimately pointless small talk. Purple’s name had come up, but she didn’t learn anything other than that they were worried about her.

“Now that I think about it, it’s almost time for dinner.”

“You’re already hungry? Heh, I’ll go start cooking.”

“Okay, then I’m going out for a bit.”

“Why? It’s already starting to get dark.”

“I was thinking of going to get some kurka fruit. It grows around here, right?”

“I give up... Do you want to make Purple angry on purpose?”

They really were talking about nothing of consequence. It was all silly nothingness, but for some reason... Purple wanted to join in. She wanted to try spending time talking to someone about nothing. She didn’t know why, but she felt like she should.

And so Purple got up, opened the door, and headed to the neighboring room. Crimson and Green were waiting for her there. However, maybe that wasn’t all. Maybe, just maybe, what she’d been craving all these years was waiting for her there too.

After the battle at Sariachal, Crimson proposed a deal with Koutarou and the others: they would surrender the code for the weapons controller if Koutarou let them go free. Because Clan hadn’t been able to finish her hacking before the floor was blown out, it was a welcome proposal.

And so they got the code and Darkness Rainbow fled the scene. Clan immediately got to work with the code and stopped the automated weapons under Darkness Rainbow’s control. With that, Darkness Rainbow’s army was forced to surrender at the capital because their force was suddenly reduced, and the fighting was put to an end right before it was about to swing into full-blown war.

Darkness Rainbow’s forces agreed to disarm, and they were currently waiting to learn what would become of them. However, the whereabouts of Darkness Rainbow’s six leaders, Maya, and Elexis were unknown. Now that Darkness Rainbow’s army was being disarmed, it was hard to imagine that its leaders, or Maya and Elexis, would be making any major moves in Folsaria or on Earth. Based on that, Koutarou and the others were worried that they might be headed to Forthorthe.

There were primarily two reasons why Darkness Rainbow might end up in the Forthorthe Galactic Empire.

The first was because they made excellent soldiers. The people of Forthorthe only thought of magicians as fiction. Of course, they wouldn’t consider girls carrying around staffs a real threat. They could boldly enter various places and perform various duties. Whether that be sabotage or espionage, they would be a big threat to national defense. There would also be plenty of Forthorthians who would pay a hefty sum for their services, though Elexis would surely be their primary employer.

The second reason was so that they could gather strength again. Rainbow Heart’s hand didn’t reach as far as Forthorthe, so the could recoup under Elexis’s protection and eventually return with an army to seize Folsaria. The original plan was only to go to Forthorthe after taking Folsaria, but they might have to reverse that now. Looking at the bigger picture, the order didn’t make all that much of a difference.

Koutarou had banished Maxfern and Grevanas from Forthorthe to different worlds, and as a result, given rise to the People of the Earth and the Magical Kingdom of Folsaria. And now, Elexis was about to return to Forthorthe with Maxfern’s inheritance of spiritual energy technology and Grevanas’s inheritance of magic. In other words, those banished by Koutarou were about to make a rather unwelcome homecoming. Of course, Koutarou had no intention of overlooking that. He figured that he would probably need to go to Forthorthe himself in the near future.

Ever since the battle in Folsaria, the girls would often catch Koutarou lost in thought with a serious expression on his face. They’d discussed it amongst themselves a few times, but not in regards to what Koutarou was worrying over. They already had a rough understanding of that. What the girls were really worried about was the fact that the expression Koutarou wore when he was deep in thought was clearly quite different from that of a normal boy his age.

“Maki-chan, Satomi-san’s got that stern look on his face again.”

“That’s no good... That’s not like Satomi-kun at all.”

Once cosclub activities were over for the day, Yurika and Maki returned home to find Koutarou leaning against a wall with that particular look on his face. He hadn’t even noticed them coming in. His current expression gave off the impression of someone with an adamant will and excellent judgment. It was the same expression he wore during battle. In other words, it was the expression of the legendary hero the Blue Knight.

There had been a time when the girls thought that expression was wonderful. But now, they couldn’t really enjoy it. They’d come to realize that it didn’t really suit him at all.

“Let’s rush in, Maki-chan!”

“...Yurika, you’ve changed a little lately.”

“Huh? How?”

“Heh, I was just thinking how you’re starting to look more like your master. Well, more importantly, let’s rush in!”

“Ah, r-right!”

Because of that, whenever the girls found Koutarou making that serious face, they would do whatever it took to interrupt his thoughts. This time that role fell upon Yurika and Maki, and they rushed up to Koutarou and began using various wrestling moves on him.

“Satomi-kun!”

“Satomi-san!”

“Wah! Wh-Whhat now?!”

“Satomi-kun, let me practice my headlock on you, please!”

“All right, then I’ll practice my figure-four leglock. Take that!”

Play wrestling was starting to become a daily occurrence in room 106, and the girls were all starting to get pretty good at it. Even the unathletic Yurika had a few moves under her belt. Because of that, the two girls were able to get Koutarou into submission without much resistance. Their surprise attack had been a big success.

“Ow, ow, ow! I give, I give!”

Koutarou tapped out without a fight. Hearing that, the girls happily let go and smiled at him. Seeing their faces, Koutarou let out a sigh of relief.

“Jeez... Everyone’s gotten really into pro wrestling lately...”

Because Koutarou didn’t understand what the girls were really up to, that’s all he thought it was. He never dreamed it was because of the face he was making, but Yurika and Maki decided to come clean.

“That’s because you’ve been looking so serious lately, Satomi-san.”

“Everyone is trying out their wrestling moves on you because they want you to return to normal, Satomi-kun.”

“I have?”

Koutarou looked at them wide-eyed.

“Yes. Frequently.”

“Well, yeah, I guess...”

Thinking about it, he realized Yurika had a point. Whenever she looked sad, he would hit her or try out various wrestling moves on her too. So if they’d been trying that on him recently, it made sense.

“I’ll be more careful not to worry you guys. At this rate, my body won’t last.”

“I think that’s for the best. Everyone looks like they’re ready to move on to the next stage.”

“Next stage?”

“We agree that we might be being too rough on you with all the wrestling, so we’re thinking of switching to kisses.”

“Kisses?!”

Koutarou let out a hysteric yelp in his surprise. That would certainly reduce his physical burden, but it would greatly increase his mental burden. To him, kisses were even more dangerous.

“You idiot! Save those for more important times! Don’t waste them trying to cheer me up!”

“I think it seems like an effective tactic based on your reaction just now.”

“If you don’t want that, make sure to be careful, okay?”

“Okay, okay... Jeez, when it comes to you guys...”

If he was that surprised just hearing about it, what would he do when they actually kissed him? Koutarou promised himself to be more vigilant. All he had to do was keep the girls from worrying.

“But... thanks, you two. For worrying about me.”

After calming down, he realized that he had plenty to be grateful for. They were only doing this because they were worried about him. Yurika and Maki looked at each other, lightly held hands, and flashed Koutarou two bright smiles. Koutarou was back to his usual self, so this was a victory in their book.

“Don’t forget, Satomi-kun. Just like how you don’t want us to have to be magical girls, we don’t want you to have to be the Blue Knight.”

“I think it’s unfair that you get to remind us and we don’t get to remind you, Satomi-san.”

“...Yeah, you’re right.”

They felt the same way he did every day. The same was probably true for the other girls as well. There was no way that it was okay for him to be the only one who looked so serious. This time, Yurika and Maki were right.

I really am blessed with good friends...

Though he didn’t say it out loud, that was always on Koutarou’s mind. He treasured the girls, and that wasn’t a one-sided thing. He just had to remind himself sometimes.

Seeing Koutarou’s expression now, the girls put a little more strength into their clasped hands. That alone was enough for the two of them to understand each other's feelings.

“Satomi-kun, could you lower your head a little?”

“Why?”

“Just do it, Satomi-san. Please.”

“Okay...”

Koutarou gave in to their demands and lowered his head a little. He figured he might have a case of bedhead, or maybe something was in his hair.

However, it seemed to be neither, as the two girls pressed their lips against his cheeks.

“Y-Y-Y-You idiots! What are you doing?! I just told you to save those for important times!”

Koutarou jumped back from the two girls and began scolding them in a fluster. It wasn’t like he was really mad. If anything, he was incredibly happy, but he didn’t want either of them to do anything they might regret.

“Satomi-san, now is one of those important times.”

“You don’t mind if it’s at an important time, do you?”

They had been involved in a major conflict, but everyone had come home safely. However, Koutarou still looked like he felt he was in battle. His mind still hadn’t come home. A few wrestling techniques had brought him back, however, so all was now well. There was nothing more important than that.

“U-Ugh...”

Koutarou still wasn’t done scolding them, but the words just wouldn’t come out. The reason for that was because Yurika and Maki were right. He knew in his heart that this was indeed an important time.

“Ah, Satomi-san is blushing.”

“That’s a much better expression than before, heehee.”

Despite Koutarou’s suffering, Yurika and Maki were laughing with cheerful expressions, still holding hands. They didn’t mind so much the worries that were going through his head now.