Chapter 168

CHAPTER 9 Remote Victory “How are things with Seiya?” “He’s been training with Cerceus every day since then.” Five days have passed. I chat with Uno as we cook in the Porta residence kitchen. While cleanly chopping some vegetables, I sigh. “Sigh… I can transform into a demon, too, but he still hasn’t asked me to help.” “Maybe he simply does not wish for you to get hurt?” “Hm… I don’t know about that. It doesn’t feel like it’s because he’s looking out for me.” Regardless, I have quite a bit of free time, so I’ve been working on my cooking. Despite there being so many ingredients unknown to me, I haven’t had a problem, thanks to my special ability Appraise. The food Uno and Due have been serving us isn’t bad, but I want to make Seiya cuisine similar to what he used to eat in Japan, so I’ve been searching for appropriate ingredients. “I think I’ll make curry today. Now where were those spices…?” “They should be on the shelf over there.” “Thanks!” I walk over to the shelf Uno pointed at when… “What the—?!” I shriek…because I find Cerceus curled in a ball right next to the shelf. “Wh-wh-what are you doing?!” Cerceus is in Demon Mode, but he’s covered in bruises, and both of his horns are gone. “What does it look like I’m doing?! I’m hiding!” I glare at Cerceus in disgust. “You’re an idiot, you know that? Did you honestly not know this was going to happen?” “I think turning into a demon created a darkness in my heart! So I got a little too cocky!” “Oh, my. That is strange. It shouldn’t affect you mentally as long as you’re in the underworld.” “See? You heard Uno. You’re the only one to blame!” “Groan…” But Cerceus clutches his head while trembling. “I’m scared… He’s so scary… He breaks my horns every time I turn into a demon! Without fail…!” “R-really?” “Rista, Cerceus appears to be utterly exhausted. We should leave him be.” I leave the trembling deity behind and return to cooking, but it isn’t long before Seiya walks into the kitchen. “Rista, have you seen Cerceus?” I hesitate for a second, but I end up quietly pointing to the corner by the shelf. Seiya immediately marches over and grabs Cerceus by the scruff of the neck like a cat before he begins dragging him away. “A-ahhhhhh! No, no, no, nooooooooo! I don’t wanna goooooo! Somebody, heeeeeelp!” Watching Cerceus throw a tantrum kind of breaks my heart. It’s like helplessly watching a child being kidnapped. B-but, well, you reap what you sow! Good luck, Cerceus! You just have to bear with it a little longer until Seiya reaches max level! That afternoon, I bring the curry I made to the garden, where they’re training, only to find Cerceus facedown and unconscious. After saying a prayer over his body, I invite Seiya to the garden table and grace him with curry. “So how’s the leveling up coming along?” “I actually just reached max level a few minutes ago.” “Already?! I guess that means you’re ready to go!” “Not yet. There’s still one more thing I have to do.” Seiya begins to walk off after eating, so I follow him. “Hey, where are you going?” “To town.” The people of the underworld lick their lips and grin when they see Cerceus and me. I find it really unsettling, so I’ve made it a point not to stray too far from Uno’s place. Seiya, however, has apparently been going to town after training or whenever he has a little free time, so I decide to muster up all my courage and follow after him. …The underworld is crawling with bizarre creatures today as well. From individuals with long, serpentine necks to living, disembodied heads rolling on the ground, there are countless new sights to be seen around the Lord of the Underworld’s shrine. “Hello, Seiya!” “Good afternoon!” “How have you been?” I don’t know what’s going on, but everyone’s warmly greeting Seiya. What in the world…?! Since when is he Mr. Popular?! A creature, with the face of a woman but the body of a centipede, sweetly smiles at Seiya. I decide to copy Seiya, act natural, and greet her. “Good afternoon!” Her body immediately twists, and she begins licking her lips. “Hyah-hee-hee-hee-hee-hooo! A goddess…! A goddesssssssss! Give me your HP!” “Why did she suddenly change her tune when I greeted her?!” I promptly hide behind Seiya. Uno said that the people of the underworld respect deities, but…I’m starting to feel like they only see us as HP dispensers! But to no one’s surprise, Seiya briskly walks ahead with an air of apathy before stopping at a certain shop. Inside the wooden building, past the curtains, are what appear to be numerous swords, shields, and armor on display. “Whoa?! There’s a weapon shop in the underworld?!” A creature of the underworld crawls out from the back with its wiggling tentacles. The individual, who looks similar to an octopus in Seiya’s world, must be the shop’s owner. “Did my order arrive?” “Got it right here. But it wasn’t easy getting a spare for your spare and all that nonsense.” It sounds like they’ve met before. The octopus-like owner uses his multiple tentacles to pick up and show off a slightly dull scarlet suit of armor and a sword with a blade of the same color. “Seiya, did you order weapons from here?” “Yes. I actually wanted to order more, but he said it wasn’t feasible, so I made sure to keep the order small.” “What part of this order looks ‘small’?! You’ve got more weapons now than any rational person needs!” The owner looks just as shocked as me. Not even a second goes by before I realize something else and yell: “Hold on! Are you even going to be able to bring weapons from the underworld to parallel worlds?!” “These items now belong to the customer. I don’t care what he does with them, nor where he does it.” S-seriously?! Because this would never fly in the spirit world! The rules here are so lax! But there probably aren’t any good weapons or armor in warped Gaeabrande, so finding equipment here might be Seiya’s best bet. I can’t believe Seiya was even making arrangements for weapons during training! I secretly admire him until the shop owner’s mild manner suddenly changes along with his expression. “Now it’s time to pay for those weapons.” W-wait! Don’t tell me I have to be humiliated again?! After I step back in fear, Seiya says: “Don’t worry. I brought something of equivalent value with me.” “Huh?” Seiya pulls one of the heavy, pointy objects out of his pouch. “This is your payment. ‘The shameful horn of the God of Swords.’” “Wh-wh-what magnificent HP!” What the…?! He can use this as currency?! And just how many of Cerceus’s horns did he break?! Seiya ends up trading twenty of Cerceus’s horns for a total of ten swords and ten suits of armor. He then wastes no time before changing into his equipment in the back. When he returns, I use Appraise on his dull vermillion equipment. Sword and armor from the underworld. The equipment is made from the ancient metal scarletium, giving it a higher durability than both diamonds and platinum. This equipment is super rare and can only be found in the underworld! “Wow! That equipment is amazing!” “It’s superior to platinum swords and mail as well.” “That’s wonderful, Seiya!” After that, Seiya purchases a shield as well “just in case,” despite the fact that he’s not going to use it, since he’s a magic knight. On our way out, the owner says: “Pleasure doing business with you.” Once outside, Seiya immediately enters the shop right next door. Inside are countless oddities, but there are also run-of-the-mill medicinal herbs as well. It looks like this is the underworld’s item shop. “I’ll take this, that, that, and all of those over there.” The shopkeeper this time is a headless suit of armor, but Seiya doesn’t seem concerned as he extravagantly buys almost everything in sight, as per usual. “I appreciate ya wanting to buy this much, but can ya really pay for it all?” Seiya responds to the dubious owner by showing him a bagful of Cerceus’s horns. “‘The shameful horns of the God of Swords.’ “Oooh! Sold! Take as much as ya want!” That’s enough to buy everything in the shop?! Just how versatile are Cerceus’s horns?! After purchasing a ton of underworld items—most of which I have no idea how he’s going to use—we begin leaving the shop, when suddenly the shopkeeper walks over to Seiya’s side and mutters: